It Started With Christmas by Jenny Hale

51mjtH8lfdL._SY346_  Synopsis: Holly McAdams loves spending the Christmas holidays at her family’s cozy cabin, with its little red door and twinkling lights, tucked in the snowy hills outside Nashville. But this year will be different. Someone unexpected is joining them…

After Holly and her beloved Nana struggle through a snow storm to reach the cabin, they discover gorgeous and wealthy Joseph Barnes, who has been renting the cabin for the last few weeks, is now snowed in. And it looks like he’ll be staying for the holidays.

Determined to make the best of the surprise situation, Holly tries to bring everyone together by baking delicious treats and decorating the cabin with plenty of festive sparkle. She finds herself growing close to handsome Joseph, who is unlike anyone she’s ever met before, even if Nana isn’t so keen on the dashing stranger with the mysterious past.

But charming and irresistible musician Rhett Burton is also back in town. Thrown into close proximity with the person who used to be her best friend and the man who broke her heart, Holly realizes it’s time to face her feelings and figure out what she really wants from her life. But to complicate things, both Joseph and Rhett have secrets to reveal…

Will Holly be able to find herself and the love she’s always dreamed of this Christmas?

My Rating: 4/5 Continue reading “It Started With Christmas by Jenny Hale”

Publication List – Jenny Colgan

  1. Amanda’s Wedding (1999)
  2. Talking to Addison (2000) aka My Very ’90s Romance
  3. Looking for Andrew McCarthy (2001)
  4. Working Wonders (2003) aka Arthur Project
  5. Do You Remember the First Time? (2004) aka The Boy I Loved Before
  6. Where Have All the Boys Gone? (2005)
  7. West End Girls (2006)
  8. Operation Sunshine (2007)
  9. Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend (2008)
  10. The Good, the Bad and the Dumped (2009)
  11. Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe (2011) Cupcake Cafe #1
  12. Christmas at the Cupcake Cafe (2012) Cupcake Cafe #2
  13. Welcome to Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop of Dreams (2012) aka Sweetshop of Dreams Rosie Hopkins #1
  14. Christmas at Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop (2013) Rosie Hopkins #2
  15. The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris (2013)
  16. The Little Beach Street Bakery (2014) Beach Street Bakery #1
  17. The Christmas Surprise (2014) Rosie Hopkins #3
  18. Summer at the Little Beach Street Bakery (2015) Beach Street Bakery #2
  19. Christmas at the Little Beach Street Bakery (2016) Beach Street Bakery #3
  20. The Little Shop of Happy-Ever-After (2016) aka The Bookshop on the Corner
  21. The Summer Seaside Kitchen (2017) aka The Cafe by the Sea Mure #1
  22. A Very Distant Shore (2017) Mure #2
  23. The Endless Beach (2018) Mure #3
  24. Christmas on The Island (2018) aka An Island Christmas Mure #4 
  25. The Bookshop on the Shore (2019)
  26. 500 Miles From You (Due June 2020)
  27. The Christmas Bookshop (2021)
  28. Sunrise By The Sea (2021) Beach Street Bakery #4
  29. An Island Wedding (2022) Mure #5
  30. Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop (2023)
  31. The Summer Skies (2023) Mure #6
  32. Close Knit (2024) Mure #7
  33. The Secret Christmas Library (2025)
  34. Meet Me At The Seaside Cottages (2025) Mure #8
  35. The Late Bloomer (2027)

She Saw What He Did by Lynda Renham

41t6ncB+AlL._SY346_ Synopsis: Abby Miller thought she had the perfect family; a good looking, loving husband and a beautiful daughter. Her life was complete. The shock discovery that her husband, Jared, had been having an affair rocked her world. So when Jared suggested a short break to the Cannard Islands, to heal their fractured marriage, Abby agreed. An idyllic holiday turns into a nightmare when Abby sees something through the telephoto lens of her camera. Suddenly her life and the life of her daughter are in serious danger and no one seems able to help them.

My Rating: 4/5 Continue reading “She Saw What He Did by Lynda Renham”

Lucy in The Sky by Paige Toon

51+K42IHzmL._SY346_Synopsis: Settling down for a 24-hour flight to Australia, Lucy finds a text message on her phone – not from her boyfriend James, as she fondly hopes, but from a woman claiming to have slept with him four times in the past month. Trapped on the plane, she questions everything about her relationship with James. She finally calls him and he reassures her: it was only his mates playing a silly joke.

James is a lawyer, persuasive and gorgeous and Lucy adores him. So why, at the wedding in Sydney of her best friend Molly, does she have niggling doubts, and find herself attracted to Molly’s brother-in-law Nathan? The sooner she gets back to her regular life in London, the flat she shares with James, her job in PR, the better. Nathan is a happy-go-lucky surfer boy, with no prospects, no place to live, an almost-girlfriend in tow. And the other side of the world…

Lucy – a girl caught between two distant continents – and two very different men…

My Rating: 3/5

My Review: Having read Paige Toon’s newer books I was keen to go back and read her debut novel. This was originally published over 10 years ago back in 2007. This book concentrate’s on Lucy and the opening few chapters were brilliant. Lucy is on a flight to that is going to last 24 hours and all she can think of is a text message claiming her boyfriend James has been unfaithful to her. Soon enough she has landed and is spending time with her friends and is introduced to Nathan.

Now normally I am quite constructive (or try to be) but this book just felt ‘blah’.  Yeah Lucy was an okay character, but there were way too many cliches and it felt a little bit contrived. That sounds like I am being super critical, but I think this is due to the fact that her more recent books are brilliant and this is a sure sign that sometimes going back to read debut’s isn’t the best idea. I know for a fact that I have changed over the course of 10 years, and I am pretty sure Paige Toon has too. I think this clearly shows in her writing.

This was what I would consider a fluff book. Easy enough to read, nothing too horrible about it, but overall largely unremarkable and unmemorable. I am just thrilled that I picked up Paige’s more recent books.

Kiss Me, Kill Me by J S Carol

51ut94kua9l._sy346_Synopsis: When Zoe meets Dan, he’s everything she is looking for in a man – intelligent, charming, supportive.

It’s only after they’re married that she realises that he’s controlling, aggressive, paranoid. And there’s no way out.

Or is there?

Zoe knows she has to escape, but Dan’s found her once before, and she knows he can find her again. But Dan has plans of his own. Plans that don’t necessarily include Zoe.

Be careful who you trust . . .

Kat’s Rating: 4/5 Continue reading “Kiss Me, Kill Me by J S Carol”

One New York Christmas by Mandy Baggot

40731112Synopsis: Will this Christmas romance be just for the holidays?

A fun, festive romantic comedy to curl up with this winter. If you love Josie Silver’s One Day in December, you’ll love Mandy Baggot’s heart-warming festive romance.

Lara Weeks is heading to New York with best friend Susie for the Christmas trip of a lifetime.

A festive break in the snowy Big Apple visiting the tourist hotspots, not to mention the shopping, seems like the perfect way for Lara to get over her ex-boyfriend. Or maybe make him so jealous he begs for a second chance.

Enlisting the help of gorgeous actor, Seth Hunt, doesn’t quite go to plan, but there’s something about him that has Lara wishing for a different kind of happy ever after… Continue reading “One New York Christmas by Mandy Baggot”

One Dark Night by Tom Bale

51wmvafszslSynopsis: He sees his wife’s eyes watching him in the rear-view mirror, the kids up on their knees to get a better look. That’s when he hears the scream…

You’re driving home from a family outing one afternoon, when a speeding car cuts you up, nearly causing you to crash. Like anyone would, you pull over to confront the driver.

But a glance into the backseat of the speeding car reveals a woman fighting to escape. She is terrified and she’s screaming for your help: these men have murdered her husband…

What would you do? Continue reading “One Dark Night by Tom Bale”

Fight Back by Anna Smith (Kerry Casey #2)

51+mqnipr3lSynopsis: Kerry Casey is now a fully-fledged gangland boss. With her business partner Sharon and her wily lawyer Marty at her side, she is busy ridding her organisation of the drug-dealing, people-trafficking scum her dead brother Mickey got them involved with. But her great dream is still to take the Caseys straight.

Her plan to turn her organisation around hinges on building a property empire in Spain. But Kerry has some deadly rivals – in Glasgow, on the Costa del Sol, and even further afield. They will never believe she has what it takes to defend her turf, and they won’t rest until the Caseys are destroyed.

When her enemies strike at the heart of the Casey family, Kerry must prepare for the fight of her life – for her business, her friends and her own survival.

Kat’s Rating: 5/5 Continue reading “Fight Back by Anna Smith (Kerry Casey #2)”

Publication List – Carol Wyer

Crime Genre

  • Little Girl Lost (2017) Detective Robyn Carter #1
  • Secrets of the Dead (2017) Detective Robyn Carter #2
  • The Missing Girls (2017) Detective Robyn Carter #3
  • The Silent Children (2017) Detective Robyn Carter #4
  • The Chosen Ones (2018) Detective Robyn Carter #5
  • The Birthday (2018) Detective Natalie Ward #1
  • Last Lullaby (2018) Detective Natalie Ward #2
  • The Dare (2019) Detective Natalie Ward #3
  • The Sleepover (2019) Detective Natalie Ward #4
  • The Blossom Twins (2019) Detective Natalie Ward #5
  • The Secret Admirer (2020) Detective Natalie Ward #6
  • Somebody’s Daughter (2020) Detective Natalie Ward #7
  • An Eye For An Eye (2021) Detective Kate Young #1
  • A Cut for a Cut (2021) Detective Kate Young #2
  • A Life for a Life (20222) Detective Kate Young #3
  • A Truth for a Truth (2023) Detective Kate Young #4
  • A Soul For A Soul (2024) Detective Kate Young #5

Romance Genre

  • Mini Skirts and Laughter Lines (2011)
  • Surfing in Stilettos (2012)
  • Just Add Spice (2013)
  • Three Little Birds (2014)
  • Grumpies on Board (2015)
  • Grumpy Old Menopause (2016)
  • Life Swap (2016)
  • How Not to Murder Your Grumpy (2016)
  • Take a Chance on Me (2016)
  • What Happens in France (2019)
  • Suddenly Single (2019)

Publication List – Anna Smith

  1. The Dead Won’t Sleep (2011) Rosie Gilmour #1
  2. To Tell The Truth (2012) Rosie Gilmour #2
  3. Screams in The Dark (2013) Rosie Gilmour #3
  4. Betrayed (2014) Rosie Gilmour #4
  5. A Cold Killing (2015) Rosie Gilmour #5
  6. Rough Cut (2016) Rosie Gilmour #6
  7. Kill Me Twice (2016) Rosie Gilmour #7
  8. Death Trap (2017) Rosie Gilmour #8
  9. The Hit (2017) Rosie Gilmour #9
  10. Blood Feud (2018) Kerry Casey #1
  11. Fight Back (2019) Kerry Casey #2
  12. End Game (2020) Kerry Casey #3
  13. Trapped (2021) Kerry Casey #4
  14. Until I Find You (2022) Billie Carson #1
  15. If I Should Die (2023) Billie Carson #2
  16. Last Seen (2024) Billie Carson #3
  17. In The Shadows (2025) Billie Carson #4
  18. The Widows (2026)