Beneath the Orange Blossom

by

Emma Cowell

 Lost love. A devastating secret. And a summer that could change everything…

Two years on from her husband’s death, dressmaker Ellen is learning how to live again and put memories of a difficult marriage behind her.

However, never far from her mind is another memory: Alexandros, her first love from the summer she turned eighteen.

The moment she'd arrived in his hometown of Kardamyli in Greece, Ellen had been intoxicated by the scent of orange blossom in the air, the days of endless sunshine and sparkling azure waters – but most of all by Alexandros himself. They were meant to be, until a devastating secret forced Ellen to leave and never look back…

But now, when her best friend suggests they recreate their teenage summer in Greece, Ellen knows it’s time to confront her past. Will Greece give her the freedom – and happiness – she desperately craves? And there, amidst the lush olive groves, could she rediscover the love she thought she’d lost forever?

REVIEW

When Ellen loses her husband suddenly, everyone thinks she is the grieving widow, but little do they know that she is glad to finally be free of him. After decades of living with her abusive husband (who was a highly respected Police Inspector) and finally having enough of being her grandchildren's babysitter, she jets off to Greece to the place where she met the only man she ever truly loved. Alexandros. 

Ellen arrives in the little town of Kardamyli in Greece with her friend Penny to try to relive a little bit of their youth, but will Alexandros still be there and if so, how will she explain to him how and why she left, not to return for decades.

The two women are only in the town for a matter of days when Ellen (who is a seamstress) is pulled in to help the local dressmaker make the costumes for a festival that is happening in only a few days time and her friend Penny (who can be a piece of work at times!) is not happy at being left to her own devices, but Ellen is in her element and works all the hours she can to help the local dressmaker who is indisposed.

It's only when Ellen is at the festival amongst all the crowds that she sees a familiar face and all the memories from long ago come flooding back...

This holiday to Greece was supposed to be a trip down memory lane, but a whole can of worms open up instead. 

A real page turner with great characters and such attention to detail that really puts you in the holiday mood and I can't wait to read more from this author. 

 Somewhere Only We Know

by

Cathy Bramley

When Magnolia Jones finds her daughter's travel journal, she can think of no better way to honour her life than setting off on the gap year trip that twenty-three-year-old Brontë had dreamed of taking.

It was meant to be Brontë's adventure, but perhaps following her daughter's footsteps around the world is exactly what Magnolia needs to piece her broken heart back together and begin to heal.

As her travels take her further away from home, memories of a long-ago summer come flooding back. Magnolia barely recognises that girl she used to be - the dreams she had, the freedom ahead, the midnight kisses on the beach with curly-haired, brown eyed Jackson.

Maybe, just maybe, in this magical place that is somewhere only they know, Magnolia is about to discover that her journey isn't over - it's just about to begin...

REVIEW

Maggie (Magnolia) lives with her daughter Brontë and things are going along nicely when Brontë says she wants to go on a gap year after just landing a fantastic job. Maggie does not take it well, but when tragedy strikes and Brontë is killed by hit and run driver, Maggie finds Brontë's gap year book and once opening it, she decides that the only way she can honour her daughter's memory is to go to all the places that Brontë wanted to visit, including Bali where Brontë was conceived to try to find her father.

Once Maggie starts her travels she has memories of when she went travelling herself to Bali and met the love of her life Jackson. Little did she know that when she got back to the UK she would be pregnant, but that would be the last she saw of him for a very long time. 

Although the trip is difficult for Maggie, the people she meets along the way will influence her life forever and the little signs she gets, she knows that Brontë is with her on her journey.

This is such a lovely, heart felt and sometimes heartbreaking read. I loved the characters and really felt the grief that Maggie had, but her strong will to also move on with her own life was there throughout the book, she just had to push herself to find it. 

I loved this book and would thoroughly recommend it.