Saturday 31 December 2016

Happy New Year.....


Wow, how fast has this year gone! I can't believe I have been blogging for nearly 2 years now. I absolutely love having a blog and it has brought me closer to so many authors, publishers, bloggers and a few people who have become lifelong friends.

I want to say a huge thank you again to my book buddy and fellow reviewer, Julie Williams, who if it wasn't for her reviews this year, my blog would only have half the content it should have had! I have been so busy at work this year and I am studying an Apprenticeship, which unfortunately has interfered with my reviewing somewhat. Hopefully by the middle of 2017 I will have nearly finished the studying and can then concentrate on the blog more!

I have decided not to do a top 10 this year as I just couldn't whittle it down to a select few, but I would like to say a huge thank you to all the authors who have appeared on the blog, either via reviews, interviews, Q&A or Blog Tours.

I don't tend to make new year's resolutions anymore, as I always break them within the first week! but I have decided I am going to do the £1 jar and put a quid in every time I read a book! Let's see if I can get a bit of spending money at the end of 2017 for a few more books!!



I already have a few dates in my diary for 2017, so here's to another fab year of Blog Tours, Reviews etc and I hope I can bring you much more on the blog in the coming year.

All that's left for me to say is I hope you have a very Happy New Year and I hope all of your dreams come true!

Be Lucky.....

Julie
xxxx

Saturday 17 December 2016

London Calling
by
Helen Carey
Winter Blog Tour


I think it's general knowledge by now that I do love a Family/London saga and by the looks of this one by Helen Carey, I am going to thoroughly enjoy this one! I have an extract for you today, but am hoping to have a review for you very soon.



Extract


Prologue
12 December 1942
With considerable relief, Molly Coogan pulled her cloak round her, checked that her nurse’s cap was pinned on securely, ran down the last few stairs and crossed the dimly lit lobby towards the heavily sandbagged doors.
Her hand was already on the handle when she heard someone speak behind her.
‘I wouldn’t go out there if I was you.’
The voice was portentous, almost gleeful in its gloomy menace, and Molly turned to see one of the hospital porters pinning a poster up on the wall next to the empty reception desk.
‘That sounds ominous,’ she said. ‘Why not?’
It struck her suddenly that the whole lobby was unusually empty. Visiting hour was long past, but there were normally a few staff coming and going. She knew it wasn’t an air raid. Even in the depths of the Wilhelmina septic wards she would have heard the sirens. She had heard them often enough. And the planes that followed.
Much of south London had been smashed to smithereens by Nazi bombs over the last couple of years. But the Wilhelmina Hospital had been built to withstand the Zeppelin raids of the Great War. It was proving equally effective against the Luftwaffe, despite its proximity to tempting targets like the Clapham Junction rail interchange and the Battersea power station.
In her darker moments Molly sometimes wished that the Wilhelmina would suffer a direct hit and put everyone out of their misery. Throbbing and humming gently, insulated from the real world by its emergency generators, it was like some sinister old submarine. And she hated it. She hated the boarded windows, the hushed gloom, the ghastly competing scents of sepsis and iodine, the dogmatic senior nurses and the smug, complacent doctors. Most of all she hated the constant presence of death.
She didn’t know how much more she could take. Even tonight . . . She stopped and shook her head.
‘Why not?’ she asked again. ‘What’s going on outside?’
‘Fog,’ the porter said.
He took a spare drawing pin out from between his teeth and stood back to admire his handiwork. Even in the muted light, Molly could see that it was a picture of Winston Churchill.
‘Fog?’ Molly repeated. ‘I’m not scared of a bit of fog.’
But then she hesitated. It was an excuse not to go up to the Flag and Garter. A legitimate excuse. She could go back to the nurses’ home instead, crawl into bed and block out the day, block out the thought of a young girl dying of septic infection only ten days after pricking her finger on a rose bush.
‘That’s easy to say, but it’s a right old pea-souper tonight,’ the porter said. ‘Just like the old days.’
Molly felt torn. She was dog tired. But she had promised her friend Katy Frazer that she would help up at the pub.
‘You can’t see your hand in front of your face,’ the porter added.
Wondering what other platitudes he would come out with, Molly took a step forward to read the slogan under Winston Churchill’s face. We will go forward together.
That was all very well for him, Molly thought. Going forward for old Winnie probably meant being tucked up in front of a log fire somewhere nice and safe with a big fat cigar in his hand and a map of the world on his lap. But for her it meant struggling up to Lavender Road to spend the evening behind the bar in a noisy, smoky pub.
She nodded an unenthusiastic good night to the porter and pushed out through the heavy doors. She had to go. It was her last chance to give Katy a hand. She was back on nights again tomorrow, and by next weekend, fingers crossed, she would be at the maternity hospital in Croydon, starting midwifery training.
It wasn’t much of a change. There’d still be scrubbing and cleaning and starchy old ward sisters to contend with. But at least she would be ushering life into the world rather than out of it. And if nothing else, it would get her away from the Wilhelmina, from London, from Lavender Road. And from Katy and her lovely Canadian husband Ward Frazer.
She would try to make a fresh start. It would be a wrench. A terrible wrench. But she knew it had to be done. For the sake of her sanity.

To order a copy of London Calling click here

Tuesday 6 December 2016

The Girl Who Had No Fear (Book 4)
by
Marnie Riches
Blog Tour


I'm delighted to be a part of the Blog Tour for The Girl who Had No Fear, the next instalment of the George McKenzie series. I have an extract for you and I can't wait to read this one to see what's in store for George!



CHAPTER 2 

 ‘Pull him from the water,’ Van den Bergen said, standing beneath the golfing umbrella in a vain attempt to shield himself from the torrential spring rain. Shifting from one foot to another at the canal’s edge, he registered that his toes were sodden where the rainwater had started to breach the stitching in his shoes. Damn. His athlete’s foot would almost certainly flare up. George would be on his case. That much was certain. ‘He looks rough, boss,’ Elvis said at his side. Standing steadfastly just beyond the shelter of the umbrella. Water dripping off the end of his nose and coursing in rivulets from the hem of his leather jacket, the stubborn idiot. Van den Bergen glanced down at the bloated body in the canal. Now that the frogmen had flipped him over, he could see that the white-grey skin of the man’s face was stretched tight; that his eyes had taken on a ghoulish milky appearance. There were no ligature marks around his neck, just visible as its distorted, waterlogged flesh strained against the ribbed collar of his T-shirt. No facial wounds. There had been no obvious blows to the back of the head, either. The only visible damage was to the man’s arm, which had been partially severed and now floated at an unlikely angle to his body. The torn flesh wafted in red fronds like some strange soft coral in the brown soup of the canal water. ‘It was a bargeman that found him, wasn’t it?’ Van den Bergen asked, picking his glasses up at the end of the chain that hung around his neck. Perching them on his triangular nose so that he could read the neat notes in his pad. ‘He was moving moorings round the corner from Bilderdijkgracht to Kostverlorenvaart, and the body emerged when he started his engine. Right?’ Elvis nodded. Rain, drip-dripping from the sorry, sodden curl of his quiff. ‘Yep. That’s what he said. He had pancakes at the Breakfast CafĂ©, nipped into Albert Heijn for milk and a loaf of bread—’ ‘I don’t want to know the bargeman’s bloody shopping list, Elvis,’ Van den Bergen said, belching a little stomach acid silently into his mouth. ‘I’m trying to work out if our dead guy’s arm was severed in the water by accident by the blades on the barge’s engine or as part of some fucked-up, frenzied attack by a murderous lunatic with a blunt cheese slice and an attitude problem. I’ve had enough nutters to last me a lifetime.’ ‘I know, boss.’ Elvis sneezed. Blew his nose loudly. Stepped back as the frogmen heaved the waterlogged corpse onto the cobbled edge of Bijlderkade. ‘This looks like it could just be some guy got drunk or stoned or both and stumbled in. Maybe he was taking a piss and got dizzy. Unlucky.’ He shrugged. Still holding the golf umbrella over him, Van den Bergen hitched up his raincoat and crouched by the body. Watched the canal water pour from the dead man’s clothes back to its inky home. ‘No. I don’t buy it. We’re not that lucky. It’s the fourth floater in a month. All roughly in the same locale. We normally get ten in a year, maybe.’ He thumbed the iron filings stubble on his chin. Was poised to run his hand through the thick thatch of his hair, but realised Marianne de Koninck would not thank him if he contaminated her corpse with white hairs. ‘What do you make of this, Elvis?’ he asked, staring at the dead man’s distorted features. He stood, wincing as his hip cracked audibly. But Elvis was speaking into his mobile phone. Almost shouting to make himself heard above the rain that bounced off the ground and pitted the canal water like darning needles being flung from heaven. Nodding. He peered over at the Chief Inspector. Covered the mouthpiece. ‘Forensics are three minutes away,’ he said. ‘Marianne’s with them.’ Van den Bergen nodded. ‘Good. I don’t believe in coincidence. Something’s going on in my city. I don’t like it one little bit and I’ve got a nasty feeling this is just the tip of the iceberg.’


To order this book click here 


Thursday 1 December 2016

Penhaligon's Attic
by
Terri Nixon

Cover Reveal Tour
&
GIVEAWAY

I'm delighted to be a part of the Cover Reveal Tour for Penhaligon's Attic. I make no secret that I love a good family, saga and if it has a bit of history involved, then all the better! I think the cover is gorgeous and from the small snippet here, I think this story sounds like a corker!




Genre: Historical Saga
Release Date: 01 December 2016
Publisher: Piatkus Books


1910. Anna Garvey arrives in Caernoweth, Cornwall with her daughter and a secret. Having come from Ireland to take up an inheritance of the local pub, she and her eighteen year-old daughter Mairead are initially viewed with suspicion by the close-knit community.

Anna soon becomes acquainted with Freya Penhaligon, a vulnerable girl struggling to keep her family business afloat in the wake of her grandmother's death, and starts to gain the trust of the locals. As their friendship deepens, and Freya is brought out of her shell by the clever and lively Mairead, even Freya's protective father Matthew begins to thaw.

But when a part of Anna's past she'd long tried to escape turns up in the town, she is forced to confront the life she left behind - for her sake and her daughter's too . . .




BUY LINKS

Amazon UK Paperback: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Penhaligons-Attic-Penhaligon-Terri-Nixon/dp/0349412650 

Amazon UK E-book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Penhaligons-Attic-Penhaligon-Terri-Nixon-ebook/dp/B01GHMZZ0Y 

Amazon US E-book: https://www.amazon.com/Penhaligons-Attic-Penhaligon-Terri-Nixon-ebook/dp/B01GHMZZ0Y




ABOUT TERRI NIXON


Terri was born in Plymouth in 1965. At the age of 9 she moved with her family to Cornwall, to the village featured in Jamaica Inn -- North Hill -- where she discovered a love of writing that has stayed with her ever since. She also discovered apple-scrumping, and how to jump out of a hayloft without breaking any bones, but no-one's ever offered to pay her for doing those. 

Since publishing in paperback for the first time in 2002, Terri has appeared in both print and online fiction collections, and is proud to have contributed to the Shirley Jackson award-nominated hardback collection: Bound for Evil, by Dead Letter Press. 

As a Hybrid author, her first commercially published novel was Maid of Oaklands Manor, published by Piatkus Entice (a digital-first imprint of Little, Brown) in 2013. The paperback is published by Piatkus Books. The two further books in this series: A Rose in Flanders Fields and Daughter of Dark River Farm are published by Carina UK (a digital-first imprint of HarperCollins) 

Terri's self-published Mythic Fiction series set in Cornwall, The Lynher Mill Chronicles, is available in paperback and e-book. 

Terri also writes under the name T Nixon, and has contributed to anthologies under the names Terri Pine and Teresa Nixon. She is represented by the Kate Nash Literary Agency. She now lives in Plymouth with her youngest son, and works in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at Plymouth University, where she is constantly baffled by the number of students who don't possess pens.



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terri.nixon.page
Twitter: @TerriNixon
Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7161840.Terri_Nixon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/telnixon/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/telnix
Blog: https://terrinixon.wordpress.com/
Website: www.terrinixon.com


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday 28 November 2016


The Reading Group
by
Della Parker
Blog Tour

This is a first for me! This is a series of short stories by Della Parker about a group of friends who meet up at a meeting group to read a variety of books, eat nibbles and drink red wine (sounds right up my street!). This first part (December) is just over 20 pages long and is free! I like these characters already and can't wait to find out more about them in the coming books. I have Chapter One from the February book as a taster for you......




           


Chapter One from February

‘Do you have to go there tonight, darling?’ Anton put on his little-boy voice, the one that Kate had found so endearing when they’d met, but that right at this moment sounded more petulant than cute.
‘I do, sweetie, yes.’ She glanced back over her shoulder. He was on the sofa, his long legs sprawled in front of him, his shoes unlaced but not off, mussing up her cushions. She kept her voice light – oh, so light – but inside a thread of panic was rising. Reading Group was her escape, especially lately. Since he’d been around so much more. Since things had – well – changed.

She’d never thought she would need an escape from her marriage. She wasn’t one of those women who didn’t take it seriously, like her sister when Ben had proposed: Oh, go on, then, I’ll give it a go. Try it for a couple of years. Why not?

When Anton had proposed Kate had been thrilled, excited and in love. So in love. When she’d stood at the entrance of the sixteenth-century church beside her father, pausing to smooth down the pale silk coolness of her dress, and seen him waiting there, it had been one of the best moments – no, THE best moment – of her life. Without a doubt. She had meant every word of her vows.
Till death us do part. In sickness and in health. Through good times and through bad. That line wasn’t in there, but it should have been.

‘Kate, sweetheart. Stay.’ Anton shifted his feet onto the floor and patted the space on the sofa next to him. He was still in his work shirt, although he’d taken off his tie and undone the top button. ‘We can look at those brochures you got for the kitchen. Make some decisions. The builder’s coming tomorrow at 9.30. You are in, aren’t you?’ He paused. ‘Then I thought maybe . . . after we’ve chosen our kitchen . . .’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘We could get an early night.’
An early night was the last thing she wanted.
She tapped her watch. ‘I don’t want to let the girls down. I made a commitment, darling. We all did. Reading Group, first Thursday of the month. No matter what.’ She smiled to soften the blow.
His beautiful mouth twisted a little. He was too used to getting his own way.

‘OK. You won’t be too late, though, will you?’
‘I won’t be too late.’
Outside she breathed in the sharp February air with relief. Freedom. Three hours a month. Her time. It wasn’t too much to ask, was it? She was a good wife, wasn’t she? A good wife. Such an old-fashioned phrase.

They’d been reading the classics lately. It was a decision they’d made a couple of months ago. Serena had suggested it. Serena hosted the group. She had the largest house, the most comfortable house too – it had one of those big old orangeries that backed onto an acre of garden, beyond which the ocean rolled out in a panoramic glitter of blue.



Join us on Twitter on Friday 2nd December from 4pm to find out more about #TheReadingGroup


Sunday 27 November 2016

The Things I Should Have Told You
by
Carmel Harrington

Guest Review
by
Julie Williams



Review

I am thrilled to meet the Guinness family in this beautifully written book. Held together by the ‘glue’ of the family Pops, Olly’s Dad, who is incidentally a very wise man, sees that his family is crumbling in front of him and uses his insight to arrange a final gift that he hopes will unite the family. 

Olly and his wife Mae have drifted apart after he lost his job and is now a stay at home Dad to their children Evie and Jamie.

As the family, some reluctantly, set off to Europe in a camper van they nickname Nomad, they are truly tested. Getting the opportunity to visit many countries and experience traditions and local food has the Guinness’s thrown together to share their fears and laughter. This adventure carefully planned from start to finish by Pops gives the family a chance to come together again.

I loved the journey of this story told by all the family members. There is laughter and tears so have your tissues ready. I have never been ‘a camper’, preferring the luxury of a nice comfortable bed, but the Nomad did have some appeal. 

While reading the Guinness’s experience in Porec Croatia it brought back a hilarious memory of last year while I haw on holiday there, as the weather wasn’t too good we decided to hire out some bicycles and ended up cycling through a nudist campsite! I can just imagine this happening to the Guinness family.

Carmel is a fabulous author and I have thoroughly loved all her books. Packed with emotion The Things I Should Of Told You makes for a great read. 

Thank you Carmel I can’t wait for the next book!

Saturday 26 November 2016

The Fight for Lizzie Flowers
by
Carol Rivers





Review

After reading the first Lizzie story, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this sequel and it didn't disappoint! 

I was warned that the beginning of this second book had a fantastic twist and wow I didn't see that coming! It started with a cliffhanger and it didn't end there! 

Lizzie is trying to move on with her life after Frank's death and by building a life with his brother Danny seems the next step to a more settled life in the East End, but with any London family saga, nothing ends up being that simple!

I think Lizzie has become a lot more independent in this sequel. She is running the greengrocer shop owned by her Father in Law, but has plans to expand and make the business grow, but local gangsters who run protection rackets have other ideas.

This is another cracker of a novel by the lovely Carol Rivers and when I reviewed the first Lizzie book, the author said that I had inspired her to pick up her pen and start writing book three about Lizzie!! I can't wait for that one! I feel there is so much more to come from Lizzie and her family. This book has highs and lows, but through it all it shows the true grit that Londoner's had during a time of hardship and poverty. Beautifully written and thoroughly researched. Thank you Carol, I do love a good old London family saga!


Friday 25 November 2016

A Promise Between Friends
by
Carol Rivers

Review




Ruby is a headstrong, naive girl who wants more out of life than living in a two up two down house with a husband and family and so when she meets Anna who offers her a job as a model, you just know that things are going to go pear shaped!

Ruby meets Nick, who is a friend of Anna’s and they begin a relationship, much to the annoyance of Anna. Ruby loves feeling wanted and needed and just doesn’t see the signs that what Anna expects of her in her job, isn’t the same as what Ruby thinks it is and she realises to her cost that she may be in too deep.

Not only is Ruby trying to make a better life for herself, she is trying to find out the root cause of why her beloved brother committed suicide just two years previously. An act that has sent her mother off the rails and her father trying to keep the family together.

This is a fabulous story of a London girl who sets out to find a better future for herself, but with sometimes disastrous consequences. The characters were very well written and descriptive (even if I didn’t like some of them!).

Another cracker from Carol Rivers and I hope it’s not too long before there is another one to get my teeth into!


Amazon Link click here

Thursday 24 November 2016

Q&A with Jo Lambert

I'm delighted today to bring you Q&A on Boon's Bookcase. Jo Lambert has agreed to answer my questions (I hope I didn't grill her too much!!)


Hi Jo and welcome to Boon's Bookcase. Thank you so much for agreeing to answer some questions on my blog about your writing.



Firstly, please could you tell readers a little about yourself?
I spent an idyllic childhood in rural Wiltshire. Although I moved to Bath in the early 1980s I didn’t stay a city dweller for long. Two years after arriving I moved to a beautiful village on the edge of this wonderful city where I can now have the best of city life and a rural escape. I’m married, share my husband with a green MGB-GT (it’s a bit of a tussle for his affections sometimes) and own a small grey feline called Mollie. I said goodbye to my 9 – 5 in the summer of 2013 to become a full time writer.

When did you first realise you wanted to be a writer?
I was always good at essays at school, had an overactive imagination and loved books (I could read before I started school). I think those three things sealed my fate. I must have been around eleven when I made my very first attempt at writing a book about a girl and her pony and the adventures they had. I didn’t do a lot of writing in my teens – for me it was all about the music and fashion then - although at college I was a regular contributor to their magazine. I think the need to write was always there, it was simply a matter of waiting for the right time to begin.

What did you do as a job before becoming a writer?
After secretarial training I took a business qualification and moved from PA support into management. I’d always worked full time, then in 2010 decided to reduce my hours. I went from a full on job as Admin Manager in a very busy hospital Pharmacy Department to a job share which gave me two clear days a week to concentrate on writing. I’d cut my hours back deliberately because I had a date in mind when I planned to leave work altogether. If I’ve any regrets it’s that I didn’t do it much earlier.


How do you carry out the research for your novels?
They say write what you know about and for my first series of books I did just that. The location was a fictitious West Somerset village called Meridan Cross. Growing up in a small village on the edge of Salisbury Plain, creating this place and its inhabitants was very easy for me. By the time I had written the fifth and final book, I had also set scenes in Spain, and Italy - one of my favourite holiday destinations. The last two books – my South Devon Duo – were set in South Hams, again a regular holiday location. If the backdrop is going to be a big part of the book, for me it has to feel authentic - and that means I have to have been there. The internet is also extremely useful for research and I have on occasions used Google Earth for a virtual walk around places. I did this when I needed to remind myself about Verona for a scene in one of my books. I had visited a long time ago but couldn’t remember anything apart from the Arena.
My latest WIP is set in the Italian Lakes and North Cornwall. I need to know a little about surfing so that will be a new and exciting challenge!


Which aspects of your writing do you find easiest and most difficult?
Easiest – the writing, although like most other authors I do suffer on occasions from writer’s block. However the actual creation of the story is for me the best part. Like slipping into a parallel world where you’re in charge – there’s element of being the eldest child in the family there somewhere – we’re always supposed to be the bossy ones aren’t we? And the worst part? Well it has to be the dreaded synopsis.


What are your writing routines and where do you do most of your writing?
Our house is built into the side of a hill and I have an upstairs office with views across the valley. It’s peaceful and a great place for inspiration. As for routine, I try to set aside a specific block of time each day, usually in the morning.

When you're not writing, what do you like to read?
I’ve a very broad taste in books. Fantasy ( I loved Game of Thrones), Contemporary (authors like Sheryl Browne, Kelly Rimmer and Jenny Harper) Crime (Robert Bryndza is a favourite) and, of course historical (Philippa Gregory). I’m also a reviewer for Brook Cottage Books and a NetGalley Professional reader

How important do you think social media is to authors in today's society?
I think it’s a must in order to keep up with what is going on in the writing world; to promote your work and link with other authors. As well as writing I also actively blog, promote and review. If there is a downside, however, it has to be social media sites like Twitter and Facebook which can prove a bit of a distraction while writing!

Could you tell the readers a bit about your latest book?
Watercolours in the Rain is the second book of my South Devon Duo series. It’s set in 2012/13 and brings the main three characters from the first book, Summer Moved On, back together. My ‘love to hate’ character Lily is about to cause even more trouble.

Which of your characters would you most like to be and why?
It has to be Ella Kendrick from my Little Court Series. She was the first main female character I ever created and was central to the trilogy and one of the sequels. I based her on an old work friend of mine but I also took elements of several other people I
knew. She became the template for all my other strong female characters and holds a very special place in my writing life.




Thank you so much for your time in answering my questions.




website: http://jolambertbooks.com blog: 

http://jolambertwriter.wordpress.com

Brook Cottage Books: www.jolambert@brookcottagebooks.wordpress.com e-mail: 

taurusgirl185@gmail.com Googleplus: google.com/+JoLambert

Twitter: @jolambertwriter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jolambert185 Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jolambertwriter/ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/jo-lambert-6 4644530


BUY LINKS FOR THE DEVON DUO 
Summer Moved On https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0139IXHZE 

Watercolours in the Rain https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01LX4GRE5


Tuesday 22 November 2016

It's Publication Day for
Small Great Things
by
Jodi Picoult

Guest Review
by
Julie Williams




Review

I love Jodi Picoult’s books and this is another terrific read that did not disappoint. Small Great Things is so well researched that it brings this powerful and emotional book to life with harrowing honesty.

Ruth Jefferson a labour and delivery nurse for over 20 years at a Connecticut hospital is in the minority in the maternity department there. Although she has never seen it as a problem, being the only person of colour nurse there, that is until she arrives for her shift one day and asked to take over the care of newly delivered mum Brittany Bauer and her baby son Davis.

She sets about doing what she has always done but when Turk Bauer, a white supremacist says she is not to touch his son or wife a supervisor is called and Ruth is ordered not to touch Davis. A few days later after Davis has a routine circumcision the nurse assigned to monitor him is called away on an emergency leaving Ruth as the sole person to monitor the baby. When he suddenly deteriorates Ruth is in a no win situation should she try to save the baby’s life or obey her superiors written instruction not to treat him?

I really enjoyed that this book is told through three characters perspectives, Ruth, Kennedy her lawyer and Turk. We also learn about Ruth’s family and how this affects them, especially her bright and well educated son Edison. 

This thought- provoking and at times uncomfortable read certainly made me think about the effects racism can have on all sides and at times this sent shivers down my spine. Will justice prevail? I am certainly not going to give that away but be prepared for some twists.

Monday 21 November 2016

Adventurous Proposal
by
Laura Barnard


Guest Review
by
Julie Williams


Review

This is my first read by this author and I must say I will definitely be reading more books by her. If you are looking for a quick Christmas romance read then this novella is just perfect. Not only does it have romance but also comedy that will have you laughing out loud.

Florence and Hugh are in a bar waiting for their perspective dates, when after a while it becomes apparent that they have both been stood up. This mutual situation starts a conversation between them and before you know it a wedding proposal has taken place! Planning for a wedding in less than a month is not plain sailing as this novella offers plenty of obstacles along the way.

Adventurous Proposal is an easy read that can be devoured in one sitting. It kept me on the edge of my seat wondering if the wedding would go ahead but I am not going to give away that. 

Sparkly and light hearted this is a fabulous festive read.

Sunday 20 November 2016

Mistletoe on 34th Street
by
Lisa Dickenson


Guest Review
by
Julie Williams



Review

This gorgeous book is set in New York and Lisa describes this holiday season so wonderfully that I wish I could go off to the travel agents and buy my ticket right now! 

There are mixtures of characters in this story, some I warmed to straight away, while others took time to grow on me but in the end they all felt perfect for this tale.

Olivia, the central character, has never experienced a traditional Christmas and prefers to spend her festive holidays home alone. This year she is really looking forward to some peace and solitude as she is put in charge of taking five colleagues across the pond to a conference in order to gain support and interest for the company they work.

There are comical moments as well as romantic ones and friendships are brought together and made in the Big Apple. 

After reading this book I think that being stranded in New York would not be a problem for me as I would love to visit all the tourist attractions that Olivia goes to. It’s certainly a city on my bucket list now.


Saturday 19 November 2016

Blog Tour
for
A Year and A Day
By
Isabelle Broom



I'm delighted to be a part of this blog tour. I can't wait to read this book and it is right up there on my Christmas TBR pile! Isabelle has written a piece for Boon's Bookcase about why she loves Prague. I must admit, I have wanted to visit Prague for a couple of years now. I'm sure by the time I have read this book, I will want to go even more!




Why I love Prague – Isabelle Broom

I was 19 the first time I set foot in Prague. It was 1999, and I arrived on a coach that I’d hopped on in Amsterdam. After seven or eight relentless hours on the road, all I was craving was a soft pillow, but when my fellow backpackers and I arrived at our hostel on the outskirts of the city, we discovered that half a Canadian Ice Hockey team was staying there, too. Try saying no to those lads when they invite you out for beer and goulash – I didn’t have a hope in hell of getting an early night!

We all bundled down to the Prague Metro together and caught one of the super-fast (seriously – you have to hold on or you fall over) trains into the centre of the Old Town. I will never forget how it felt to emerge from the station and see the vast Gothic Powder Gate looming above me in the fading light. I imagine I looked not unlike a cartoon character dragging its jaw along the cobbles, and I remember all of us pointing things out to each other and immediately picking up that unique Prague buzz. It’s such a friendly city, and the warm chatter, strains of music and general feeling of frivolity seeped into me in a matter of minutes.


Prague is packed with such incredible architecture, ranging from so many centuries, that it takes several hours just to take everything in around the main square, let alone explore the rest of the city. It’s also easy to navigate, so after a few days you feel like a proper local, and everything becomes familiar – a huge plus and comfort when you’ve been on the road for weeks. The key thing for me, though, is that magical quality that I talk about in the novel. There is a sense in Prague that there are whispers circulating on the air, that history is being made, that moments of love are being shared, and there’s no better place to experience all of it than on the historic Charles Bridge. It’s honestly one of my most favourite places on the planet, that bridge. I just hope I’ve done it – and the wonderful, vibrant city of Prague – justice in my book.


Promo
 for
His Kidnapper's Shoes
by
Maggie James



Genre: Psychological suspense

Release Date: 15 November 2016 (republication)

Publisher: Lake Union

Daniel is my son. He has always been mine. And he always will be.

On some level deep inside, Laura Bateman knows something is wrong. That her relationship with her son is not what it should be. That it is based on lies.

But bad things have happened to Laura. Things that change a person. Forever.

For 26-year-old Daniel, the discovery that his mother is not whom he thought comes close to destroying him. As his world turns upside-down, he searches for sanity in the madness that has become his life. But he is left with nothing but questions. Why did Laura do something so terrible? Can he move past the demons of his childhood?

And the biggest question of all: can he ever forgive Laura?


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ABOUT MAGGIE JAMES


Maggie James is a British author who lives in Bristol. She writes psychological suspense novels.

Before turning her hand to writing, Maggie worked mainly as an accountant, with a diversion into practising as a nutritional therapist. Diet and health remain high on her list of interests, along with travel. Accountancy does not, but then it never did. The urge to pack a bag and go off travelling is always lurking in the background! When not writing, going to the gym, practising yoga or travelling, Maggie can be found seeking new four-legged friends to pet; animals are a lifelong love!