ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS BY JENNY HALE

Synopsis: Snowflakes are falling, there’s carol singing on every corner, and Leah Evans is preparing for a family Christmas at her grandmother’s majestic plantation house in Virginia. It won’t be the same now that her beloved Nan is gone, but when Leah discovers she has inherited the mansion, she knows she can give her daughter Sadie the childhood of her dreams.

But there’s a catch. Leah must split the house with a man called David Forester. Leah hasn’t heard that name in a long time. Not since they were kids, when Davey was always there to catch her.

Now David is all grown up. He’s gorgeous, successful, and certain of one thing: Leah should sell him her half of the house.

They can’t agree, but as they share memories over wine by the log fire, Leah notices a fluttering in her stomach. And by the look in his eyes, he’s starting to feel it too.

Will it be Leah or David who must give up their dreams? Or, with a little bit of Christmas magic, will they finally understand Nan’s advice to them both about living life without regrets … and take a chance on true love?

Kat’s Rating: 4/5

Kat’s Review: Good old Jenny Hale, if there’s one thing you can be sure of it’s a curl up, feel good, good old fashioned romance! This latest release although not my favourite of hers was an easy to read book and one that is perfect for Christmas. Leah and her daughter Sadie are the lead in this Christmas book and we see Leah try to come to terms with the death of her Nan. Leah struggles as a single Mum, however knowing that her Nan had left her the family home ‘Evergreen’ in Virginia she feels like she at least has some stability in her future. However, when she receives a letter from her Nan she is shocked to discover that her Nan has actually left half of the house to a man named David Forester.

Leah is an easy character to like as is her daughter Sadie. Leah has two incredibly good friends Louise and Roz who both help support her and she leans on them heavily as she tries to make sense of what she needs to do. With the girls taking care of Sadie, Leah decides she needs to go to Evergreen and meet David to try and figure out what to do. What she didn’t account for was remembering the boy who was once known as Davey and suddenly recalling their childhood memories. She knows then that she just cannot give up her dream for her future home for her and Sadie.

What happens is we see the story unfold with the addition of more and more characters such as David’s mother June, and a man who has been kept a secret for many years. Although this was slightly predictable it certainly has the feel good factor and is a heart-warming story that shows the family bonds that people sometimes forget over Christmas. As usual Jenny Hale does a magical job of describing locations and only a few chapters in to Leah arriving at the house I was ready to stick on a pair of snow boots and go sledding with them. Like I said this wasn’t my favourite JH book but as always a great read.

A Cornish Christmas by Lily Graham

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Synopsis: Nestled in the Cornish village of Cloudsea, sits Sea Cottage – the perfect place for some Christmas magic …

At last Ivy is looking forward to Christmas. She and her husband Stuart have moved to their perfect little cottage by the sea – a haven alongside the rugged cliffs that look out to the Atlantic Ocean. She’s pregnant with their much-longed for first baby and for the first time, since the death of her beloved mother, Ivy feels like things are going to be alright.

But there is trouble ahead. It soon emerges that Stuart has been keeping secrets from Ivy, and suddenly she misses her mum more than ever. 

When Ivy stumbles across a letter from her mother hidden in an old writing desk, secrets from the past come hurtling into the present. But could her mother’s words help Ivy in her time of need? Ivy is about to discover that the future is full of unexpected surprises and Christmas at Sea Cottage promises to be one to remember. 

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Kat’s Review: So you read the synopsis and expect to be let in for a magical fluffy Christmas themed book. No! That’s not what you get at all I think…thankfully what you do get is a rather compelling sort of book. Let me explain. Many of my regular Blog Visitors know that when it comes to ‘paranormal’ or ‘ghost’ type stories I tend to roll my eyes. The exception to this rule only comes in the form of the extremely talented Crime Writer Caroline Mitchell. You may now add to that list Lily Graham. I’m never that keen on paranormal elements, and to be honest although I don’t mind story lines being slightly outlandish, sometimes paranormal type books extend that way too far over my preference for a line. When I started this book I had no clue this element was even part of the story line. Thankfully it’s done in such a way that it’s an emotionally charged kind of ‘tear-jerker’ book as opposed to something bordering on the ridiculous.

Ivy and her husband Stuart have moved from London back to Ivy’s home town of Cloudsea. A beautiful Cornish village by the sea, which has enabled them to start afresh. Now that Ivy is pregnant with their first child, the grief she feels following the death of her Mother eases. However when she brings her Mother’s old writing desk to her home she has no idea how that simple act will change things for her. Sadly I don’t want to explain any more of the story line as I think it ends up being a spoiler for those wanting to read it. What I will say is that the story line follows a normal couple, dealing with normal things. That sounds strange right? Well I have to say it made a refreshing change to read about the normal things, such as a great couple having arguments over misunderstandings and then making it work.

The characters of Ivy and Stuart are easy to like and extremely readable. I fell in love with their dialogue when referring to Stuarts Mother nicknamed ‘The Terrorist’. As the story progresses we see Ivy making decisions that help her deal with her grief such as contacting friends of her Mothers from a group nicknamed ‘The Thursday Club’. I loved the addition of a bunch of older women all so different and they definitely added to the colour of the story. Although I had my doubts at the beginning due to the ‘magical’ element that made not an ounce of difference. I ended up reading the book in one day and loved it. Any author that can produce a book featuring a paranormal element, as well as romance, tears and laughter get a (surprise) 5 out of 5 from me.

Time to Play by K A Richardson (The Forensic Files #2)

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Synopsis: DI Alistair McKay is still reeling from the ‘one that got away’ but when he is called to deal with a potential murder at the water side, he must put his personal worries aside.

As police diver, Marlo Buchanan, starts pulling bodies out of the water, it becomes clear that something isn’t right. Someone is torturing young girls and dumping them in the local reservoir.

Then the body of a man is discovered and Mackay and Buchanan are pulled into the seedy underworld of human trafficking. As the team race against the clock tensions start to run high. Can they overcome their personal demons to work together? And will they find the killer before he strikes again?

 Kat’s Rating: 4/5

Kat’s Review: I haven’t read the other 2 books in the North East Police series but that made no difference to this book. However, having completed this book it’s just made me disappointed that I didn’t read them as this one was a great read. Marlo Buchanan is a Police diver and to be honest this career path is one I haven’t seen in a fiction book I’ve read so it made a refreshing change. Her and the team are called out regularly and at first there seems to be no link to the other part of the story.

Elvie is another main character we get to know as we witness human trafficking first hand as the young fifteen year old is brought to England to await her fate. The opening chapters are certainly an eye opener and I feel like there are no holds barred in the descriptive horror that awaits these girls. In addition to Elvie, we meet Marlo’s colleague Connor who is struggling not only with his own secrets, but the fact that his Mum is suffering with Alzheimer’s. I did love the character of Marlo and her colleagues and other team members that form part of the RIB, also subsequently form part of the ongoing story lines which start to thread together as the book progresses.We meet Ali who is another copper whose path ends up crossing that of the Dive Team and Marlo as he investigates his own cases. I liked the back story with Ali and he is an extremely likeable guy.

Due to the fact there are multiple threads going on, at first it seems there is too much much in all honesty it was done exceptionally well and each element to the story piqued my interest. As time progresses it becomes clear that there is a lot more linking all the characters than it appeared at first. The writing was easy to get into BUT I did have one major gripe. I understand that sometimes the use of accents means the author changes wording so it seems more realistic such as using slang etc. But in this book the word ‘gunna’ instead of going to appeared more times than it seemed I’ve had hot dinners. I know that seems like I am being super picky but it grated on me as I didn’t think it fitted with the characters. Also both Marlo and Ali towards the last quarter of the book start calling everybody ‘love’? It came from nowhere and again just wasn’t in keeping with the characters. This was the main reason for me not giving it 5 stars, otherwise it was a cracking read.

I shall certainly be reading her future work as the book was fantastic, I will just cross my fingers in the hope she is ‘gunna’ change the characters wording in future to slightly fit their mould more.

Take A Chance on Me by Carol Wyer

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Synopsis: When Charlie’s husband leaves after ten years of marriage, her spirits hit an all-time low. She just isn’t sure how to pick herself up again. So, best friend Mercedes makes it her mission to put a spring back in Charlie’s step with the perfect bucket list.

As Charlie takes a chance and bungee jumps and belly dances her way through an array of adventures, her love life also begins to look up and she’s soon enjoying a few dates as a newly single woman. She begins to realise that finding romance, might not be so hard, especially when you’ve got someone like journalist Jake who has an adorable little boy and is very easy on the eye. 

But is Jake too good to be true? As Charlie’s challenges on the bucket list get bigger, so do her questions about Jake. Should she continue to hold out for the fairy-tale? Or should she take a chance on Jake and hope for a happy ending? 

Kat’s Rating: 4/5

Kat’s Review: This was a lovely read even though it started a little on the slow side. Charlie’s past has unfortunately shaped her future and she is struggling to lift herself out of her funk. Luckily for her she has a friend named Mercedes who is larger than life. Mercedes convinces Charlie one drunken night out to complete each others Bucket List. It took me a while to really warm to Charlie but as she takes on Mercedes list you can’t help but feel like spurring her on.

Mercedes and Charlie make a great twosome as friends and this makes for easy reading. The reasons spurring Charlie on at first seem obvious but as she takes steps to complete each challenge something new comes along and changes her outlook. Even when she feels like giving up you just know that somehow she will manage to pull it off. One of the nicest things about this book is the colourful array of brilliant characters that join Charlie on her journey. From Peggy the next door neighbour with her pet parrot Bert, to the class of Belly Dancing friends she meets. There are also her colleagues at the City Hospital where she presents a radio show.

In addition to Charlie completing the list she has to deal with a slightly strange ex-boyfriend as well as a pesky journalist who seems to pop up at every corner. Life is certainly interesting and fun ans you can’t help but to be swept along with the excitement of it all while reading. The latter part of the book gets a little more exciting and by the time I had reached the end I was disappointed to have finished it. This is a real feel-good and heartwarming book that I thoroughly enjoyed and I look forward to Carol’s next book!

We Were On A Break by Lindsey Kelk

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Synopsis: ‘You’ve just had a holiday,’ I pointed out, trying not to yawn. ‘Wasn’t that enough of a break?’

‘I don’t mean that kind of break.’

There’s nothing worse than the last day of holiday. Oh wait, there is. When what should have been a proposal turns into a break, Liv and Adam find themselves on opposite sides of the life they had mapped out.

Friends and family all think they’re crazy; Liv throws herself into work – animals are so much simpler than humans – and Adam tries to get himself out of the hole he’s dug.

But as the short break becomes a chasm, can they find a way back to each other? Most importantly, do they want to?

Kat’s Review: 5/5

Kat’s Review: Although I read maybe 70% crime, the remaining 30% is spent reading books like these. I am a bit of a Lindsey Kelk fan and loved the Angela Clarke series of books. However, this latest release I knew nothing about other that the fact I loved the author. When I started reading I realised that Lindsey Kelk has not lost her touch and as I read I recalled that one of her skills was telling the ‘real’ version of event. Especially dialogue between characters and this book is no different.

Liv is on holiday with her boyfriend Adam and she knows a secret. Adam is going to propose!!! Only he doesn’t, and what was meant to be a return from holiday with a rock on her finger ends up being the start of a ‘break’ between them. They are such likeable and normal characters with a whole host of secondary characters, all of which were brilliant. Vet is a vet and works with her father in the practice in their village. Adam is a self-employed carpenter who has a ridiculously self-important older brother Chris who plays his part in getting Adam into a stick situation.

Just a few chapters in and I was belly laughing at some of the situations they both found themselves in. The great thing about this was that each chapter was written from the POV of either Liv or Adam so we get to see how they are both coping with their current situation. Liv has a whole host of friends who are fabulous in equal measures, one of which is Cass who is married to Adam’s brother, the outspoken and blunt Abi, and the absolutely fabulous David her colleague from the Vets.

Throw in a cat named Daniel Craig (legendary!) some crazy parents a whole village that stick their oar in and you have the winning combination. Lindsey Kelk clearly writes from the heart and creates characters that you will fall in love with. This was an absolute joy to read and made me hastily return to my blog to see which books I have missed out on. Thankfully it is only one book I’ve missed, but with the miserable winter approaching I now have something to cheer me up!!!

Girl In Danger by Leigh Russell (Lucy Hall #2)

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Synopsis: Chasing a story, reporter Lucy Hall plunges into a desperate fight to save her own life.

Lucy Hall’s first summer in Paris promises to be idyllic. She’s fallen in love with the city and enjoys her new job as an investigative reporter. When her friend Nina comes to stay, the girls look forward to a wonderful summer. But Paris is a city of contrasts and Lucy is about to experience its dangerous side.

When an anonymous source promises her a scoop, Lucy can’t resist the chance to make her name. The deeply unsettling meeting with her informant indicates that there may be more at stake than she’d suspected. Returning home with questions instead of answers, Lucy finds her apartment ransacked and Nina gone.

Lucy knows her friend is in danger, but the police are unwilling to help. When her informant is found dead, she realises she may be next. Lucy has something the killer wants and he’ll do anything to get it back…

Kat’s Rating: 3/5

Kat’s Review: I read the first in the Lucy Hall series and enjoyed it, however they are certainly not the same as Leigh Russell’s series of books featuring Geraldine Steel. These are more mystery type of books and seem to be somewhat a slower pace. The first book in the Series Journey to Death I enjoyed and I thought it was a good introduction to Lucy. However, when we meet her in the second book she has moved to Paris to start a career as an Investigative Journalist. It becomes apparent pretty quickly that she is very new to it all and she takes every tip seriously in her quest to break into reporting. Her friend Nina visits her, however following an anonymous tip, when she returns home she finds her flat ransacked and her friend missing. 

The story moves along and she meets a man who seems willing to help her but Lucy can’t help but be wary as she isn’t sure who she can trust. We also see the story from Nina’s point of view, along with the main man who runs the criminal world in Paris. The reason I felt so indifferent with book 2 is that there were times it all felt a little repetitive. Although Lucy is a newbie, things fitted a little too neatly for her to ‘bag the story of her career’ and the subsequent chain of events lay just the wrong side of believable for me. 

Although I liked Lucy as a character I didn’t feel as connected to her in this book as much as I did the last one. Things seemed too well planned and this made me feel more indifferently about her than I did previously. The story was enjoyable enough and I think is probably a good alternative to those who don’t want hard hitting, gory or violent crime novels. For me I just couldn’t connect and as such didn’t feel it was one of Leigh’s stronger books.

Christmas Under a Cranberry Sky by Holly Martin (Juniper Island #1)

Synopsis: Piper Chesterfield lives a glamorous life travelling the world and reviewing the finest hotels. She calls nowhere home, she works alone and that’s how she likes it. For long ago Piper decided that to protect her heart she should lock it away. 

 So when Piper’s next assignment brings her to the newly opened Stardust Lake Hotel for the festive season, the last person she expects to face is Gabe Whitaker, the man who broke her heart so completely she could never love again. 

But Piper isn’t the only one who has been frozen in time by heartbreak. Gabe hasn’t forgotten the golden-eyed girl who disappeared from his world without a trace. 

Now fate has reunited them on Juniper island, can the magic of Christmas heal old wounds? And can this enchanting town be the one place Piper can finally call home? 

Kat’s Rating: 4/5

Continue reading “Christmas Under a Cranberry Sky by Holly Martin (Juniper Island #1)”

Strangers by Paul Finch (Lucy Clayburn #1)

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Synopsis: Unknown, alone, and fearing for your life.

As PC Lucy Clayburn is about to find out, going undercover is the most dangerous work there is.

But, on the trail of a prolific female serial killer, there’s no other option – and these murders are as brutal as they come.

Lucy must step into the line of fire – a stranger in a criminal underworld that butchers anyone who crosses the line.

And, unknown to Lucy, she’s already treading it…

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Kat’s Review: My name is Kat and I am a ‘Heck’ a-Holic’…with that in mind I was a little anxious starting a book by Paul Finch which didn’t feature my beloved Mark Heckenburg. However, I am now ‘fan girling’ over a new character so I can rejoice that I can stave off my Heck fix for a while with the new girl of the hour PC Lucy Clayburn.

PC Lucy Clayburn is introduced to us in a somewhat disastrous view of an assignment, and following on from that I wondered what on earth she would be doing. Well, it turns out that being a PC and making some hard earned collars on the streets meant she was a waling candidate for a new task force put together to catch what seemed to be a prolific female serial killer.

That in itself is quite an unusual scenario, as is the state of the bodies by the time this maniac woman has finished with them.

Enter Detective Superintendent Priya Newal who wants Lucy on the team. Priya makes for another strong lead female character and I like the fact that she is a firm but fair influence over Lucy. With Priya’s backing Lucy forms part of the team and goes undercover. Because of her previous assignment it seems she is even more determined to make an impression which means ultimately putting herself in danger.

From start to finish the book packs a punch, filled to the brim with dangerous individuals, strong lead and secondary characters and a pacy and thrilling story line. You can’t really ask for too much more can you? Paul Finch seems to have quite the knack of creating lead characters that stay with the reader. I know that Heck is my favourite as the series is a few books in and although Lucy is in second place, if he continues to write like this…who knows! I was so thrilled to have read and loved this book as much as I did, and I can certainly recommend it to people. All I need to do now is cross my fingers and hope I don’t have too long a wait to see Lucy again.

Painted Skins by Matt Hilton (Grey and Po #2)

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Synopsis: PI Tess Grey and her partner Nicolas Po Villere have been hired by Margaret Norris to find her granddaughter, Jasmine Reed, who has been missing for sixteen days. But if Tess is to have any chance of finding Jazz, she needs to know the truth about the young woman s troubled past. What is it that Margaret Norris isn’t telling her?

Tess and Po aren’t the only ones looking for Jazz. With shady local businessman Daryl Bruin and his henchman John Trojak also on her trail, as well as a mysterious and violent stranger, Tess prays, for Jasmine s sake, that she and Po find her first. But it s only when Tess uncovers a link to several other missing girls that she begins to make headway in the investigation and finds herself in a desperate race against time to track down Jazz before it’s too late

Kat’s Rating: 5/5

Kat’s Review: I’m thrilled that I bumped this book up my to read list as it was much better than I expected. I LOVE it when a book surprises me like this. I read the first in this new series and although I enjoyed it, I thought it was a little slow and I struggled to connect with the lead character Tess Grey. Following on with this book, clearly I was walking through sludge with the last book as with this book I fell in love with Tess and her ex-con Partner Po.

In book one (Blood Tracks) I can now see that this was meant as an extremely good base for getting to know these characters. With this book there is no need for that as the readers have already seen Tess reasons for making her way as a Private Investigator instead of a cop. Although book one is an excellent base, I guess this book can be read as a standalone, but I always feel like its best to start a series at the beginning. In this latest instalment, Tess and Po have been hired to find the granddaughter of Margaret Norris. Jazz has been missing just over 2 weeks so Tess and Po get started on trying to trace her.

It becomes apparent pretty quickly that Jazz is also being searched for by Daryl Bruin and his henchman John Trojak, Tess and Po want to know why and the story really starts to pick up pace. It becomes clear pretty quickly that there is a lot more to Jazz being missing than a simple runaway scenario. The book has a great hold over the reader and with each chapter it seems to gain momentum, tension and pace. When their old friend Pinky appeared I rejoiced as he was such a brilliant character in the first book I was hoping he would make an appearance in the second.

This book was everything a great thriller should be and I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. I can imagine this would make a GREAT film, although quite who would play these characters who knows. What I will say is that although the Joe Hunter series of books by Matt Hilton is hugely popular, this new series seems to have fallen short and I cannot work out why. This is an absolutely amazing book and a series that I will continue to read. Hugely enjoyable and massively under rated, if you haven’t tried Matt Hilton before then these books are a great place to start!

CHRISTMAS AT THE LITTLE VILLAGE BAKERY BY TILLY TENNANT (HONEYBOURNE #2)

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Synopsis; Snow is falling in Honeybourne and Spencer is bringing home his American fiancée Tori for a traditional English Christmas with all the trimmings. But when his hippie mum and dad meet her high-maintenance parents, sparks of the wrong sort start to fly. Then Spencer bumps into his first love Jasmine and unexpected feelings come flooding back. 

Millie is run off her feet with Christmas orders at the Little Village Bakery and new baby Oscar. Thank goodness her cousin Darcie is here to help her. Although she does seem to be rather flirty with Millie’s boyfriend Dylan. 

Will Darcie ever find true love of her own? And is marrying Tori a terrible mistake for Spencer if his heart is with someone else?

*Please note, if you plan on reading the first book, then do not continue reading my review as it will inevitably contain spoilers*

Kat’s Rating: 4/5

Kat’s Review: I absolutely loved the first book by Tilly that was set in the small village of Honeybourne. When I realised this was the second book featuring some of the same characters I was extremely excited. The first book features Millie and Dylan, and although they play a big part in this latest book, the main characters are Spencer and Tori. Spencer has been in America and he has brought his English fiance home for Christmas. Sadly for Spencer he hadn’t bargained on a lot of the things that end up happening over the seasonal period in Honeybourne.

Although Millie and Dylan are now settled with baby Oscar, they have help in the form of Millie’s cousin Darcie. Darcie helps out at the bakery and she certainly makes a lasting impression on the reader too. It seems Darcie is somewhat smitten with Dylan which can only cause confusion. IT seems on Spencer’s return he is the only one that has noticed it. However he has his own problems in the form of his hippy like parents and also meeting Tori’s parents for the first time.

As usual the characters Tilly Tennant creates are lovable and what is even more endearing is that you get to see additional characters from around the village that featured in book 1. Jasmine and Rich feature especially seeing as Jasmine was Spencer’s first love and one that he never quite got over. There are so many funny moments which made me giggle, especially when Spencer and Tori’s parent meet…it makes for some very amusing scenes.

Overall, the first book edged it for me as Millie and Dylan are still firm favourites. Having said that this was a thoroughly enjoyable book and with the added benefit of being set in a snowy Honeybourne around Christmas time it certainly has the seasonal feel to it. I love Christmas books, and think this would make a wonderful addition to anybody’s stocking this year!