Category: 4.5-Stars

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Book Review: Accidentally In Love by Belinda Missen, @rararesources, @belinda_missen

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Accidentally In Love
by Belinda Missen

Don’t miss the new laugh-out-loud rom-com from the author of One Week ’Til Christmas!

Perfect for fans of Mhairi McFarlane, Rosie Walsh, and Josie Silver.

In the space of a week, Katharine Patterson has quit her job, decided to move back home, and broken up with the guy she thought was the one.

No big deal.

Because Katharine has a plan. She’s going to open her own art gallery, just like she’s always wanted. What she’s not going to do is worry about boyfriends.

Then she meets Kit, a handsome and talented local artist. He might be the most stubborn person Katharine has ever met. He might also make her feel like no one ever has before.

And Katharine might be about to fall accidentally in love…

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

…she looks like the poster child for corporate office perfection, whereas I’m sure I left the office looking like the love child of Beetlejuice and Alice Cooper.

 

‘Go easy on the old boy… He thought Kit would be right up your alley.’ ‘Let me be very clear… He’s not going anywhere near my alley.’

 

… there’s a teensy bit of smug satisfaction that comes from knowing he’s stuffed up so badly. Who am I kidding? The schadenfreude is a strawberry milkshake, and I’m so very thirsty.

 

‘Can I tell you a secret?’ He leans in and fixes me with such a look I’m certain he’s about to unload nuclear codes on me.

 

Everyone has those mornings where something simply doesn’t feel right… It’s more a charge in the air. That’s how I feel right now, life slipping off-kilter as I step into the bridal shop. A bell above the door tingles to alert the God of mischief that it’s time to suit up.

 

My Review:

 

I always enjoy delving into Belinda Missen’s books as every one of them that I’ve had the pleasure of perusing as been lively, fun, cleverly amusing, and delightfully irreverent, and this one was no exception. And in addition to all that, it was also highly entertaining and thoughtfully perceptive. There was a brilliant and well-honed balance of humor, interpersonal conflict, family issues, witty banter, romance, personal loss, deep friendship, angst, and unabiding familial supportiveness.   The storylines were teeming with uniquely flawed and oddly compelling characters full of unusual quirks that provided unexpected levity as well as additional creative story elements.

 

I smirked and snickered my way through this engaging tale and picked up a bit of artsy knowledge along the way as well as a new addition to my Brit Wordlist with lurgy, which Mr. Google told me is British slang for ‘A fictitious, highly infectious disease; often used in the phrase “the dreaded lurgi”, sometimes as a reference to flu-like symptoms.’ I recall suffering several reoccurring bouts of lurgy in high school – an excellent cover story for my perpetual truancy.

About the Author

 

 Author and sometimes foodie, Belinda is a ridiculous romantic who met her husband after being set up by a friend two states away.

Residing in country Victoria, surrounded by books, cat-fur, and half-eaten cake, Belinda divides her days between writing rom-coms, baking, and indulging her love of comic books.

Social Media Links

www.belindamissen.com

facebook.com/BelindaMissen

twitter.com/belinda_missen

Instagram @belinda_missen

 

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Book Review: SOMEONE’S LISTENING by Seraphina Nova Glass

 

SOMEONE’S LISTENING
 by Seraphina Nova Glass

 Graydon House Books

You’re not alone. Someone’s waiting. Someone’s watching…Someone’s listening.

In SOMEONE’S LISTENING  Dr. Faith Finley has everything she’s ever wanted: she’s a renowned psychologist, a radio personality—host of the wildly popular “Someone’s Listening with Dr. Faith Finley”—and a soon-to-be bestselling author. She’s young, beautiful, and married to the perfect man, Liam.

Of course, Liam was at Faith’s book launch with her. But after her car crashes on the way home and she’s pulled from the wreckage, nobody can confirm that Liam was with her at the party. The police claim she was alone in the car, and they don’t believe her when she says otherwise. Perhaps that’s understandable, given the horrible thing Faith was accused of doing a few weeks ago.

And then the notes start arriving—the ones literally ripped from the pages of Faith’s own self-help book on leaving an abusive relationship. Ones like “Secure your new home. Consider new window and door locks, an alarm system, and steel doors…”

Where is Liam? Is his disappearance connected to the scandal that ruined Faith’s life? Who is sending the notes? Faith’s very life will depend on finding the answers.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I heard one of the women complain about her kids, and then say something like “but what is a home without children?” And uninvited, I answered, “quiet.”

 

He made a joke about how people with toddlers refer to them in months, and stated that if they’re over a year old, you can just say “a year,” not fifteen months. They’re not aged cheese.

 

I think of the Barbie graveyard we had in the garden where we’d buried fourteen Barbie dolls, in all, after Biff Larson’s dog next door chewed up their heads. Each doll had its own name and gravestone, and each had a proper funeral with personalized eulogies.

 

But it’s all the postmortem depression, that’s what the doctors say. Well, not a doctor, but her cousin Angie who want to be a nurse. It’s real shit though. I looked it up. After chicks have babies and stuff.

My Review:

 

I struggled with this one and waffled in how to rate this perplexing and engrossing tale. I marveled at the clever plot, the sustained and steadily ratcheting level of tension, the intrigue, peril, twists and turns, witty snark, and unexpectedly amusing observations. But damn, I had trouble even halfway liking the main character of Faith. I felt so badly for her struggle, but I wasn’t drawn to Faith as I found her to be annoyingly self-involved and making extremely poor decisions and idiotically abusing substances, all of which didn’t jive with her training and experience as a popular and highly successful psychologist.

Faith was impulsive, causing calamity, and making a mess of everything she touched. I surprised she didn’t have alcohol poisoning with the vast amounts she was tossing down. I had nearly lost all patience with her once she had begun spiraling out of control and losing touch with reality, but the compounding and confounding intrigue were just too good to give up. I was hopelessly ensnared, on the hook, deeply invested, and grinding my teeth for fear parts of this elaborate and multi-layered mystery would never be solved.

It was ingeniously clever, maddeningly paced, and tantalized me with misdirections, red herrings, and false assumptions. Everyone seemed to be suspect at one time or another and I would never have come up with this ending. Sigh, I’ll need a spa day, a crate of Moscato, and a stack of rom/coms to recover from this one. Seraphina Nova Glass (love that name) is a wily minx.

About the Author

Author Website

Twitter: @SeraphinaNova

Instagram: @SeraphinaNovaGlass

Facebook: @SeraphinaNovaGlass

Goodreads

Seraphina Nova Glass is a professor and Playwright-in-Residence at the University of Texas-Arlington, where she teaches Film Studies and Playwriting. She holds an MFA in playwriting from Smith College, and has optioned multiple screenplays to Hallmark and Lifetime. Someone’s Listening is her first novel.

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Book Review: Eliza Starts a Rumor by Jane L. Rosen

Eliza Starts a Rumor
by Jane L. Rosen

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU /
B&N / GP/ Apple

 

The author of Nine Women, One Dress delivers a charming, unforgettable novel about four women, one little lie, and the big repercussions that unite them all.

It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. When Eliza Hunt created The Hudson Valley Ladies’ Bulletin Board fifteen years ago she was happily entrenched in her picture-perfect suburban life with her husband and twin preschoolers. Now, with an empty nest and a crippling case of agoraphobia, the once-fun hobby has become her lifeline. So when a rival parenting forum threatens the site’s existence, she doesn’t think twice before fabricating a salacious rumor to spark things up a bit.

It doesn’t take long before that spark becomes a flame.

Across town, new mom and site devotee Olivia York is thrown into a tailspin by what she reads on the Bulletin Board. Allison Le is making cyber friends with a woman who isn’t quite who she says she is. And Amanda Cole, Eliza’s childhood friend, may just hold the key to unearthing why Eliza can’t step out of her front door.

In all this chaos, one thing is for sure…Hudson Valley will never be the same.

Funny, romantic, raw, and hopeful, this is a story about being a woman and of the healing power of sisterhood.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

There was no way Eliza’s polished, stick-thin mother, with her shiny golden hair, would have admitted that her daughter, who did not receive her skinny gene or her shiny gene, had only inherited her crazy gene.

 

The only thing worse than being cheated on was being made a fool of, and if that was what was going on, she would take him down.

 

She assumed that those first accusations against Carson were only the tip of the iceberg. Her gut told her that her husband would be going down like the Titanic, and like on the Titanic, all women and children belonged in lifeboats.

 

I am a twenty-eight-year-old feminist woman intent on raising a feminist daughter. We are just starting out on this journey together. There are no circumstances that would make me suck it up.”

 

“Do you want a protein shake?” “If by protein you mean tequila, then yes.”

 

“Alison could defend me. Temporary insanity.” “One can only hope it’s temporary,”

My Review:

This was a highly amusing yet thoughtfully written, perennially relevant, timely, engaging, and cleverly paced tale with multiple story threads that tangled and converged into a smoothly woven unit. The large cast of characters was diverse, endearing, deeply flawed, and interestingly quirky while dealing with humorous and curious conundrums as well as common and uncommon issues. There were a few mysteries to solve and personal and professional snooping was required to mete out the appropriate justice to make most things right in the end.   And it all started with an impulsively spread yet titillating and synergetic rumor that had been posted in haste in a desperate attempt to stay relevant.

About the Author

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Jane L. Rosen is an author and Huffington Post contributor. She lives in New York City and Fire Island with her husband and three daughters. She often takes inspiration from the city she lives in and the people she shares it with. She is the author of a young adult novel, The Thread, which she self-published. In addition to writing, she has spent time in film, television, and event production and is the co-founder of It’s All Gravy, a web, and app-based gifting company.
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Book Review: To Find Polaris by C. Elyana Brooke

To Find Polaris
by C. Elyana Brooke

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU 

ONE OF THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL AND HEART-BREAKING LOVE STORIES PUBLISHED IN 2019.

He has sky-high cheekbones and he sounds way better than Sinatra.

British bad boy and singer, Lord Mark Hartley has been spoiled by success — too many women, too many private jets, too little love. Suffering from his dark past and perhaps an even darker future, he is looking for love without success and he has no idea how to navigate what lies ahead.

Then he meets Julianne McNally, a beautiful, serious, and centered young American trial lawyer, who has sworn off romance,
having experienced the bitterness of a broken heart.

He needs her skills, and she reluctantly takes his legal case. Despite Mark’s best efforts, falling in love with a celebrity, whose press precedes him, is simply not part of Julianne’s plan.

But Cupid may have the way of shooting the heart of even the most hardened cynic and star-gazing can be a romantic adventure…

Their sexual chemistry is combustible but their relationship almost explodes as their values conflict and emotional stakes rise. Will they find Polaris, the North Star, that stationary point of direction? Will they find their way home to each other?
This novel explores the emotional and psychological truths and challenges in forming a lasting relationship.

Set in Devonshire, England, Los Angeles, and Paris, this smart, sexy, contemporary romance is also an emotionally charged and psychologically moving love story, an atypical, unpredictable, unconventional and non-generic romance. Be prepared to experience something quite different as only can come from the pen of C. Elyana Brooke. Are you team-Mark or not? Read it and join the discussion!

This is the debut novel in The World of C. Elyana Brooke. Please click on her author name under the book title Follow her on Author Central to track her upcoming releases! Below the Brilliant Stars has just been launched on Kindle and paperback is soon to follow!

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

He is such a dichotomy, a sensitive artist in the clothing of an avowed wolf.

 

I have been single handedly keeping psychiatrists in Mercedes and yachts for years.

 

There are millions of people who have never known true happiness and they continue going about the business of leading their lives. I am proof positive that it’s possible and I’m still an incorrigible optimist in spite of it.

 

“It’s not easy, Mark, fulfilling dreams and quelling fears.” “No, darling, no one will ever tell you that. Dreams never come easily.”

My Review:

I fell into this oddly and undeniable compelling tale and couldn’t seem to let it go, although it was not an easy read as it hit all the feels high and low and plummeted the depths quite thoroughly. The writing was slightly hypnotic, easy to follow, lavishly descriptive, and sucked me into a vortex that was hard to pull away from, even when I wanted to throw my beloved Kindle down and walk away in furious indignation.

Mark Hartley was an English lord as well as a multi-talented and well-known actor, popular singer, beloved songwriter, successful businessman, cocky Casanova, total bastard, unrepentant cad, and possibly the most selfish and screwed up jackass on the planet. His behavior was loathsome, yet his family’s had been even worse. I empathized with and despised him in equal measure. He was deeply damaged and his attitude and infidelities were deplorable and devastating for his wife, yet he was also beguiling, compelling, multi-layered, self-indulged, intelligent, wracked with anxieties and obsessions, and twisting himself in knots.

This was a heart-wrenching tale that often had me gnashing my teeth and bristling with annoyance, yet I couldn’t put it down. I was hopelessly bewitched and lethally invested in these intriguing and complex characters as well as the twisted saga of their warped relationships. They nearly ruined me. I was stamping my little foot and wanting to give them both a good whack or ten with my Kindle, although I have to admit, they kept me deeply engrossed and out of trouble for quite some time as this book was 458 pages long with multiple storylines and a large cast of irregular and uniquely irresistible and fascinating characters. C. Elyana Brooke has mad skills and strong word voodoo.

About the Author

C. Elyanna Brooke lives with her family outside of Boston and has been writing books since “forever.” Besides writing, her interests include gardening, music, and skiing. She has a great deal of familiarity with the law and music and likes to set her books in legal and musical environments. Elyanna prides herself on her versatility as an author so be prepared to see several titles in different genres in the future, including an espionage/romance.

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Book Review: Death of a Mermaid by Lesley Thomson

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Death of a Mermaid
by Lesley Thomson

Amazon US / UK / CA / AU / 

B&N / GP / Apple

 

Freddy left her childhood home in Newhaven twenty-two years ago and swore never to return. But now her parents are dead, and she’s back in her hometown to help her brothers manage the family fishmonger. Nothing here has changed: the stink of fish coming up from the marshes; the shopping trolleys half-buried by muddy tides; the neighbors sniffing for a new piece of gossip.

It’s not what Freddy would have chosen, but at least while she’s here she’ll get to see her childhood best friends, Toni and Pauline. At school, the three of them were inseparable. The teachers called them the Mermaids for their obsession with the sea, and with each other.

Then Pauline goes missing, and Freddy must decide. Go back to her new life, or stay and find her friend?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

A hush fell over the pews. Girls scented trouble. Fights in the convent were supposed to be out of the sight, if not from God, at least from the nuns.

 

Toni Kemp was watching her. With the twisted perception of a thwarted adolescent, Karen was convinced Toni had engineered her tragedy to worm her way into Mags’s Mermaids.

 

But the fun of the hidden wore off and hindsight had shown Freddy it was toxic. A love kept secret feels barely true.

 

My Review:

 

This was my first exposure to the devious nuanced plotting of Lesley Thomson and I am wondering why I have not noticed her work before as I’ve been missing out. Her word skills are vast with storylines that tangle, mesh, and unravel with cunning and guile. The plot was rather complex and contained several relevant and major social issues from domestic abuse, bullying on several levels, friendship, coming of age, homophobia, dysfunctional family dynamics, mean girls, religious practices and fanaticism, murder, and greed. All the characters, primary, secondary, and even those just briefly passing through, were an interesting mix with unique quirks and odd yet interestingly detailed traits that at times were unexpected and somewhat incongruent while they tickled my gray cells and taunted my curiosity. Such as the detective who had retained the agile shoplifting skills she had honed as a teen for the risky five-finger discount when it came to purchasing chocolates.

The tale was observantly written from multiple POVs with keenly perceptive and insightful glimpses into each prickly character as the story threads slowly built toward a dark and cohesive core. I was holding myself tighter and tighter and nibbling on my cuticles as the tautly written tale built to a climax. And while I had guessed whom the murderer was early on, the rest of my theories and hypothesized motives were incorrect.

In addition to assisting in solving a series of tragic murders, I also gleaned two new additions to my Brit Word List with Roundheads – who were supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War and distinguished by a close-cropped hairstyle; and cottaging – men cruising for or engaging in sexual activity in a public lavatory.

 

About the Author

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Lesley Thomson grew up in west London. Her first novel, A Kind of Vanishing, won the People’s Book Prize in 2010. Her second novel, The Detective’s Daughter, was a number 1 bestseller and sold over 500,000 copies.

Follow Head of Zeus

Website: www.headofzeus.com

Twitter: @HoZ_Books

Facebook: @headofzeus

Instagram: @headofzeus

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Book Review: Willow’s Wedding Vows by Debbie Viggiano 

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Willow’s Wedding Vows
by Debbie Viggiano 

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA  

Wedding vows have never been this personal…

Willow has been living with marriage-shy Charlie for more years than she cares to remember and is old-fashioned enough to want a wedding band and a loads-of-sex honeymoon before stretchmarks and nipple shields.

So when the once-wary Charlie surprisingly goes down on one knee, Willow doesn’t question why her boyfriend is suddenly so keen to rush her into saying “I do”.

The first clue comes as Willow is zipped into her Cinderella dress, the second as she bobs into the wedding car, and the third as the Roller swings towards its fairy-tale destination… leaving a shell-shocked Willow desperately trying to figure out what to do next.

A bride can do anything she wants on her wedding day, but nobody expected her to do this…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Kev had more faults than the cracks in Earth’s crusts and could be feistier than a racehorse waiting for the off at the Grand National.

 

Jean was now turning to face Willow, her face looking like a walrus who’d anticipated a fish supper but been given tofu.

 

She told me I have all the passion of a pensioner at a rave.

 

Karen, pursing her lips. ‘Don’t do that… That thing with your mouth. Makes it look like a cat’s bum.’

My Review:

 

This was a fun and delightfully comical tale full of saucy humor, conflicted characters, and a few selfish, contemptible, sleazy, and vile lying cheats. At first, I was restless and alarmed at the rocketing infidelity and breezy disregard Charlie exhibited toward Willow, as well as her lack of observational skills, complete gullibility, and inability to consider warnings. Willow was a sap, quite slow on the uptake, and more than a bit ditzy, but that “sneery little voice in her head” knew better. I have one of those too, although mine generally makes naughty observations and floods my mind with useless bits of information when I’m trying to recall something important like how many calories are in ice cream or my true age.

Ms. Viggiano’s storylines were crisp and amusingly entertaining, the banter was snappy, her characters were enticing yet fatally flawed and humorously detailed, and her analogies were absurdly creative and called up sharply focused and ironic visuals.   I smirked, cringed, and giggle-snorted while I read and although I had solved the mystery of the identities of the guilty parties, I still enjoyed the bumpy ride all the way to disembarking the vehicle. This was my first exposure to the comedic stylings of Debbie Viggiano and I adored her clever humor and wry wit so much I have added her entire Goodreads listing to my TBR.

Ms. Viggiano has also provided me with two new additions to my Brit Words and Phrases list with gave it some welly – to use force, and ear-wigging – to eavesdrop.

About the Author

 

Amazon
Goodreads
Website

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.Prior to turning her attention to writing, Debbie Viggiano was, for more years than she cares to remember, a legal secretary. She lives with her Italian husband, a rescued puppy from Crete, and a very disgruntled cat. Occasionally her children return home from uni bringing her much joy…apart from their gifts of dirty laundry.

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Book Review: A Country Dilemma by Sasha Morgan

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A Country Dilemma
by Sasha Morgan

Amazon / Kobo / Apple / B&N

For Christie Newbury, moving to the Cotswolds as the new owner of The Templar, a quaint countryside inn, was supposed to be a dream come true. But then her husband drops a bombshell that turns her life upside down.

Architect Daniel James has just one month to find the perfect home. When his search takes him to the village of Treweham, his instant attraction to the Templar’s beautiful – and newly single – owner is a distraction he can’t afford.

Christie needs an expert’s eye. Daniel needs a place to stay. It’s only a business deal – but it has never been more tempting to mix business with pleasure…

Welcome back to Treweham, a village of scandal and secrets.

Perfect for fans of Holly Martin and Debbie Johnson.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The moment Christie’s eyes met Stephen Newbury’s, the attraction was instant. Across a hectic, rowdy pub packed to the rafters with rugby players and hen parties, they homed in on each other like radars. When their gazes locked, time stood still. Stephen’s pint glass hovered mid-drink, whilst Christie halted, her conversation abruptly stopped. An urge between the two pulled like a magnetic force, bringing them together in the thick of the crowds.

 

Being dead didn’t make you a saint.

 

My Review:

 

I am mourning the end of this series as I have reveled in Ms. Morgan’s active, quickly paced, and snappy storylines as well as her delectable hits of spice and amusing humor. This installment was more angsty and tautly wound than the first two as several of the main characters were dealing with difficult issues and major transitions, and floundering a bit with uncertainty. The issues were significant and relevant and the engaging storylines were well-paced, thoughtfully crafted, and insightfully and observantly detailed. I adored these endearing characters and am reluctant to bid them farewell.

 

In addition to providing me with top-notch reading entertainment, Ms. Morgan has been a prolific source for my Brit Words and Phrases List with yet three more additions: Scouser – a native of Liverpool; barm cakes – a soft, round, and somewhat flat bread roll which are often sold in fish and chip shops; and under the cosh – in a difficult situation.

Sasha lives in a rural, coastal village in Lancashire with her husband and Labrador dog. She has always written stories from a very young age and finds her fictional world so much more exciting than the real one.

Follow Aria

Website: www.ariafiction.com

Twitter: @aria_fiction

Facebook: @ariafiction

Instagram: @ariafiction

 

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Book Review: THE LITTLE BOOKSHOP ON THE SEINE by Rebecca Raisin 

THE LITTLE BOOKSHOP ON THE SEINE
by Rebecca Raisin

ISBN: 9781335012500

Publication Date: 1/7/2020

Publisher: HQN Books

 Target / Walmart / Google / iBooks / Kobo

 

It’s The Holiday on the Champs-Élysées in a great big love letter to Paris, charming old bookstores and happily-ever-afters!

When bookshop owner Sarah Smith is offered the opportunity for a job exchange with her Parisian friend Sophie, saying yes is a no-brainer—after all, what kind of romantic would turn down six months in Paris? Sarah is sure she’s in for the experience of a lifetime—days spent surrounded by literature in a gorgeous bookshop, and the chance to watch the snow fall on the Eiffel Tower. Plus, now she can meet up with her journalist boyfriend, Ridge, when his job takes him around the globe.

But her expectations cool faster than her café au lait soon after she lands in the City of Light—she’s a fish out of water in Paris. The customers are rude, her new coworkers suspicious and her relationship with Ridge has been reduced to a long-distance game of phone tag, leaving Sarah to wonder if he’ll ever put her first over his busy career. As Christmas approaches, Sarah is determined to get the shop—and her life—back in order…and make her dreams of a Parisian happily-ever-after come true.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I only ran if chocolate was involved, and even then it was more a fast walk.

 

What? Just ’cause I’m an old woman that don’t mean I can’t appreciate beauty! My eyesight still works plenty fine!

 

Missy had a thing about boosting people up, she only saw the good in a person and threw compliments around like confetti.

 

The closest I’d come to confrontation was when the local book club dissolved into a heated argument, their opinions divided, and someone had to stand in and mediate. But I’d known those ladies my whole life, and all I had to do to calm them down was threaten to take the wine away.

 

He was my Mr. Right, there was no question about that. It was just a shame he wasn’t Mr. Right Here.

 

My Review:

 

I adored this tender story and debated and waffled in how to rate this lovely tale. The writing was easy to follow, highly relatable, and sweetly engaging while gently paced with several slowly evolving yet beguiling storylines and cast with a peculiar hodgepodge of curiously alluring and intriguing characters.   I enjoyed the leisurely, humorous, and captivating glimpses of the quirkiness of the authentic Parisian lifestyle and the secret marketing tactics utilized with the locals vs. tourist mentality. My heart seized at every mention of the iconic Notre Dame while I alternated between wistfully remembering my long-ago visit with the rather hideous gargoyles and recalling the more recent and distressing news videos of the beloved structure in flames. While it wasn’t an enrapturing breath-stealing romance or brain itching thriller, the descriptive and engaging prose kept me well entertained with a smile on my face for most of the day. I have finally hit a soft landing and alit on the smooth quality and skillful finesse of the talented wordsmith and a 4.5-stars rating while coveting more of the same.

About the Author

Author Website

Twitter: @JaxandWillsMum

Facebook: @RebeccaRaisinAuthor

Instagram: @RebeccaRaisinWrites

Goodreads

 

Rebecca Raisin is the author of several novels, including the beloved Little Paris series and the Gingerbread Café trilogy, and her short stories have been published in various anthologies and fiction magazines. You can follow Rebecca on Facebook, and at www.rebeccaraisin.com

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Book Review: An Unexpected Gift (Insta-Spark Collection #4) by Melanie Moreland

An Unexpected Gift
(Insta-Spark Collection #4)
by Melanie Moreland

Now Available exclusively on Amazon for only 99 cents

#Free to Read on Kindle Unlimited

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2pNxed5

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/UnexpectedGR

BookBub: http://bit.ly/UnexpectedGiftBB

GPS Failure? CHECK

No gloves, No boots? CHECK

Car malfunctions? CHECK

It appears that Santa’s elves may have a detour planned for Evan’s holiday. What he didn’t

count on Christmas delivering was An Unexpected Gift.

An unplanned journey

A change of direction

The meeting of two lost hearts

When Evan Brooks sets out to repair his fractured relationship with his family, a broken-down

car and an unplanned detour lead him to Holly Cole.

Her eyes captivate him.

Her words comfort him.

Her heart warms him.

Is she the unexpected gift he’s longed for?

Is this just a detour, or the road to happiness?

Find out in this heartwarming Christmas story.

 

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

“Your taste in strays is excellent.”

“You’re not odd. You’re Evan. You’re perfect.” Her words were like a small shock running through my system.

My Review:

 

This was a quick, sweet, easy to fall into, and sexy read that left my heart feeling light and satisfied. The main characters were lovably endearing and sweet enough to cause dental issues. I adored them as much as their supportive and passionate romance. Evan was a treasure.   Sigh, we all want a besotted and thoughtful husband like Evan, although admittedly, most of us don’t deserve one quite so devoted.

 

An Unexpected Gift is part of the Insta-Spark Collection!

What is Insta-Spark?

When you want a bit of naughty along with the nice.

Insta-Spark collection from Melanie Moreland are complete standalone reads with one thing in

common – lots of sweetness and a guaranteed HEA. Instant attraction, little angst – love and

happiness abounds in this series.

An Instant Connection #3: mybook.to/AnInstantConnection

Christmas Sugar Insta-Spark #2: http://mybook.to/CSrAmz

It Started With A Kiss Insta-Spark

#1: getBook.at/ItStartedWithAKiss

Available #Free to read on #KindleUnlimited

About the Author

New York Times/USA Today bestselling author Melanie Moreland, lives a happy and content life in a quiet area of Ontario with her beloved husband of twenty-seven-plus years and their rescue cat, Amber. Nothing means more to her than her friends and family, and she cherishes every moment spent with them. 
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While seriously addicted to coffee, and highly challenged with all things computer-related and technical, she relishes baking, cooking, and trying new recipes for people to sample. She loves to throw dinner parties, and also enjoys traveling, here and abroad, but finds coming home is always the best part of any trip. 
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Melanie loves stories, especially paired with a good wine, and enjoys skydiving (free-falling over a fleck of dust) extreme snowboarding (falling down stairs) and piloting her own helicopter (tripping over her own feet.) She’s learned happily ever afters, even bumpy ones, are all in how you tell the story.
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Melanie is represented by Flavia Viotti at Bookcase Literary Agency. For any questions regarding subsidiary or translation rights please contact her at flavia@bookcaseagency.com
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Book Review, Giveaway: Bluebell’s Christmas Magic by Marie Laval

Bluebell’s Christmas Magic

by Marie Laval

 

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA / B&N

A gorgeous new Christmas story from the author of best selling novel Little Pink Taxi


A flick of a feather duster and a sprinkle of Christmas magic …
Cassie Bell is used to mess. Her cleaning business, Bluebell Cleaning, is well known in the Cumbrian village of Red Moss. However, now it’s almost Christmas and Cassie has a slightly messier situation to deal with than she’s used to.

She’s been hired to help Stefan Lambert, an injured army helicopter pilot who’s staying at the local Belthorn Manor whilst he recovers. Stefan resents Cassie’s interference and is definitely not looking for Christmas cheer. But Cassie prides herself on sparkling surfaces – so, can she bring some festive sparkle to Stefan’s life too?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Before she could move out of the way, Piers bent down, slid his arm around her waist and kissed her cheek, dangerously close to her mouth. His lips were warm and moist, and she tried to repress a gasp as she caught the whiff of beer, musky aftershave and sweaty socks that always seemed to cling to him.

 

‘We’re getting too old for dealing with overexcited children all day,’ her granddad replied. ‘Last time I dressed up as Santa… and I’m not even mentioning the fake beard that gave me a rash for days afterwards.’ ‘I fell asleep in the grotto and my snoring scared the children away,’ David Fern added, laughing.

 

‘Do you know what charms my husband gave me to thank me for the hard time I had giving birth to his three sons?’ Tim’s cheekbones flushed bright red. ‘It was a joke, Rachel…and I’m a farmer after all.’ Oblivious, Rachel carried on, ‘He bought me a sheep, a tractor and a cow! If he thinks that’s an incentive for me to produce baby number four, he is seriously mistaken.’

 

The shop and restaurant were boarded up, and padlocks and chains hung from the doors to the shower blocks and launderette. There was no sign of life in the office either. All that was needed to complete the desolate décor was tumbleweed blowing about and whining harmonica of a Spaghetti Western soundtrack.

 

My Review:

 

I was again enamored with Marie Laval’s breezy yet absorbing writing style and creative and amusingly descriptive storytelling. Her latest delightful tale kept me well entertained and had a bit of everything; an injured helicopter pilot with PTSD nightmares staying in the manor of the absent yet wealthiest family, a comedy competition, elder abuse, holiday festivities, a sudden rash of crime in the previously safe village, family issues, a blossoming romance, sexual harassment in the workplace, ghost sightings, and a century-old mystery to solve. I adored the main characters, especially the sweet and naïve Bluebell house cleaner Cassie, who took excellent care of her clients well beyond their cleaning needs and may well have used a bit of fairy magic during her dusting. The fairy riding a feather duster painted on the side of her van brought a smile to my face every time it was mentioned, and her clever grandfather was a treasure.

About the Author

Originally from Lyon in France, Marie now lives in Lancashire with her family. She works full-time as a modern language teacher and in her spare time, she loves writing romance and dreaming about romantic heroes. She writes both historical and contemporary romance and best-selling Little Pink Taxi was her debut romantic comedy novel with Choc Lit. She belongs to Authors on the Edge and writes short stories for the best selling Miss Moonshine’s anthologies. She is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Authors. Her native France, as well as her passion for history and research, very much influences her writing, and all her novels have what she likes to call ‘a French twist’!

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/marielavalauthor/

https://twitter.com/marielaval1

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