My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Fliss often looked as if she’d got up with two minutes to spare for work to discover someone had burned all her hairbrushes during the night.

Corrine lifted her eyebrows so high in disbelief they might have left her head entirely,

if Lucifer himself had wandered in wearing a pair of Speedos and asking for a bag of ice to cool down, she wouldn’t have been a bit surprised.

The only time I see all the heathens in church is today when there’s mulled wine afterwards.

My Review:

I have enjoyed this perceptively written and heartfelt series, populated with quirky and original villagers for the midwife and the clinic staff to serve. Ms. Tennant deftly traverses multiple family dramas, workplace tension, weather snafus, holiday complications, addictions, and competition pettiness, all with an easy-to-read, amusing, and engaging writing style.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Her performance was so wooden I half expected termites to start a union.

I don’t trust that woman. She’s an executioner who uses blood for fountain-pen ink.

‘Sounds like he chased after money like a dog after sausages,’ Opal commented. ‘He did. Relentless, single-minded, and with a fair bit of drool involved,’ Virginia added.

There is a lot of pride in getting older. It comes with the perk of feeling the veil of hogwash lift, all the societal pressures that you’re supposed to believe in and adhere to becomes piffle. You wish your younger self had the same level of clarity and confidence.

My Review:

This was an entertaining, amusing, and easy-to-follow cozy read, populated by a clever pooch and a copious cast of largely unlikable yet uniquely authentic and quirky secondary characters. I had not read the previous book, but I didn’t feel that this hampered my understanding or enjoyment, as Opal’s relevant history was provided in ample detail. The storylines were well-plotted and smartly merged, just in time for our eagle-eyed heroine to save the day.

Three former friends. One last request. The journey of a lifetime!

In life, Norman George – passionate knitter, excellent friend and secret youtube sensation – liked nothing better than a good laugh. And, it seems, he gets the last laugh even in death, because at his funeral, he invites his three closest friends to scatter his ashes in a place close to his heart, the Shetland Islands. The only issue is, while Bridget, Gloria and Derek might have loved Norman, they can’t stand each other.

So it’s with trepidation that the eclectic trio set off in their minivan on the ferry to Lerwick, each harbouring their own reason for wanting to grant Norman this last request. But as storm clouds roll in over the Shetland Islands, all of them are about to discover that some secrets are best shared, and that even after death, good friendship can change everything…

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Making sweeping statements is unkind. Judgement without knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Derek was a pensioner and absolutely could not hold his own in a fight. He’d never tested that theory, to be fair, but he was pretty sure he was right.

My Review:

For a human on the other side of 60, I found this to be cleverly amusing as well as acutely and sometimes painfully perceptive on the effects and attitudes of aging by those in the throes of the process. I remember my grandfather groaning (what I mentally labeled as old man noises) and, on more than one occasion, remarking to me as a child, “It takes a lot of courage to get old.” I now know what he meant. The writing alternated between humorous and reflective, and then on to observant and poignant. I will be looking for more of this author’s storytelling.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Aye, as a kid Jamie had known anger and fear, as well as the impulse to protect others, and it had made him determined as an adult to see the best in people, for the sake of his own well-being as much as theirs. You never knew what someone was going through, so it was best to be kind where you could.

‘Anonymous keyboard warriors posting comments in their underpants on the other side of the world aren’t the people who matter,’ insisted Ally, giving her brother a stern look. ‘Half of them will be bots, anyway.’

Angus was an elderly hillfooter who spent all day splattered with droppings in a hut with his beloved homing pigeons. He lived off his homegrown veggies and stinky roll-ups and was often in the local paper for threatening hillwalkers who strayed onto his land with various antique shotguns which the police seized one at a time, only for him to somehow acquire another.

Kenneth would begin his shift here at nine p.m. and end it at two when he’d walk down the lane to the dairy and stock up his milk van ready for his rounds which he, famously, did in his doorman tux. Nobody questioned it round the town. It was just the way things were.

There seemed to be a moment where she was searching his face for a reaction. He couldn’t help feeling some kind of test that he hadn’t revised for was being sprung upon him. He fixed his face into a delighted smile.

…he was hanging on a shoogly peg (which is the Scottish version of skating on thin ice, only much, much more fun to say, usually).

Party cannons shot confetti in her cerebral cortex.

My Review:

This was a fun, light, entertaining, and easy-to-follow read. I always enjoy reading Kiley Dunbar’s cleverly amusing tales, and I revel in her sneaky, wry humor. Her new series is set in a small Scottish village, populated with a large cast of quirky, flawed, and authentic characters.

And I gained an entry to my British Isles Words and Phrases List with swither, which Mr. Google tells me means to hesitate, vacillate, or be perplexed, particularly in making a decision or choice.  I certainly will not swither if asked if I’d like to read another of Kiley Dunbar’s books.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

I’m sure we’ll barely get out of the car before she’s upon us, like one of those cloaked things out of Harry Potter.’ ‘Cloaked thing? Like a wizard?’ ‘No… You know, the big flying hooded things that suck the joy out of everyone they touch.’

Zoe was at once captivated by the tranquillity of narrow roads, so clean and ordered there had to be an army of elves patrolling when everyone was asleep, keeping it tidy.

‘Magnus,’ Geoff said. ‘Put the shovel down– you’re only digging deeper every time you open your mouth.

They looked normal enough, if it helps. I only counted one head on each of them, so that’s a good sign.

‘You didn’t move here because you were drawn by some mystical force?’ she asked wryly. ‘Were you?’ ‘Oh yes, it was called a job offer.’

Are there any village weirdos? There must be, right? Anyone with six fingers married to their sister?

Some men can be grown-up about these things, and then there’s Ritchie.

My Review:

Tilly Tennant is one of my favorite go-to authors for a relaxing, easy-to-fall-into, and gentle read. And I need those between the tense heart-pounding thrillers I alternatively pick up. The Village Midwife is a continuation of the Village Nurse tales and features the same quaint Lake District village and its eccentric villagers of Thimblebury. The storylines are thoughtful, colorfully detailed, relevant, and easy to follow while populated with authentic and knowable characters. It was a leisurely paced and pleasant read.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

“I’m not betraying you, I promise. I’m just trying to be happy,” I whisper, to nothing, to the house, to no one.

I kept everything in, and then when it spilled out, he couldn’t handle it. It was too much at once. Maybe our life, our marriage, would’ve been different if there had been a steady river of feelings, not a dam that might break at any moment. I’m a private person, and it’s been my downfall in many ways. I lock myself up tight.

He’s always looked like he walked out of a story— effortlessly thoughtful. Strong jaw, high cheekbones, a mouth that always seems on the verge of something— wry or knowing, like he already sees where the conversation is going. His gaze cuts right through the surface and into the marrow of who you are. And those eyes— deep-set, watchful— like he’s memorizing you without ever having to try.

… love isn’t about what’s easy or what makes sense on paper. It’s about who stays. Who stands in the wreckage with you and still reaches for your hand.

My Review:

This was a slowly paced, tense, and angsty read, and as I’m not one for constant angst, this was so not my jam. The main character of Anna was nettlesome, constantly on edge, and not someone l would befriend or enjoy knowing as she seemed about to unravel, yet I wanted to know how this was going to come together. To avoid my discontent, I found it best to read this one in segments, as it was annoying me, yet I remained curious, despite wanting to give Anna a smack or ten with my Kindle. While not a realistic scenario, the last few eye-popping chapters left a skid-mark across my gray matter and made the rest worth the effort.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Paranoia is different. It is a slippery, malignant thing– feared by those who know of its presence, an invisible threat to those who don’t.

I don’t remember what happiness sounds or tastes like, or how it feels between my fingers.

‘What if’ has been an enemy of mine for as long as I’m able to remember, standing in doorways to stop me passing, whispering in my ear at night to keep me awake. It has been the sibling I never had, competitive and sneaky, tripping me up then feigning innocence when I fall. Now, it stands here beside me, taunting me with everything that could go wrong.

My Review:

This was a tense and disconcerting read. But I am not a fan of angst, and I didn’t like these people; they were all rather heinous. Nor could I fully forgive them even after the driving force of their problems was revealed. But while I found them to be contemptible creatures who had done inexcusable things to each other and had knowingly neglected their child, I was unreasonably curious to find out what was going to happen next. Victoria Jenkins has penned a compelling tale.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

He was thin back at uni, but now his eyes have sunk into their sockets, making them look like the marbles in a pinball machine.

I know the people they used to be. But they’ve all changed. It’s like someone took a magnifying glass and ramped up all their worst qualities, making them clearer, brighter, louder.

All at once, she can’t bear the thought that she has touched a dead body. She imagines all the germs, all the flies and maggots, and feels desperate to scrub it off her skin. She fears all that death is catching.

The sympathy she once had for him is wearing thinner by the day, like a big ball of string that is being stretched and stretched until it’s just the thinnest fibres left.

…she sees the shadow of death hovering over her like a grey cloud. It’s an icy, unnerving presence that seeps into her bones. At times, the pain is so relentless, she hears their voices– the dead ones– all shouting at once, making it impossible to pick out what any of them are saying. It’s as if they’re trapped in a never-ending loop, their voices echoing and overlapping. She tries to block them out, but their presence is impossible to ignore. Their spirits refuse to rest in peace.

My Review:

These were horrible people thinking horrible thoughts about and doing horrible things to each other, over many years, until it ended, horribly.  I did not like them at all.  They were immature, selfish, warped, and just toxic creatures.  Yet this devious scribbler planted a worm in my gray matter, and I was hooked.  The little pea in my brain needed to know what was going to happen to them and who was killing them off one by one, and who would be the last one standing, as there always has to be at one left to tell the tale.  I would never have guessed this outcome, my hypothesis went in a different direction.  I love it when that happens.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

…we all know Flo isn’t backwards at coming forwards. I’m sure she’ll have thoughts, and she’ll go out of her way to make sure I hear about them.

Today she seemed out for an argument, though she also seemed as if she didn’t know who she wanted to have it with. It looked as if anyone who put a foot wrong and happened to be in her path would do.

My Review:

This installment was busy with several story threads and a bit of family drama. The storylines were leisurely paced and easy to follow. I enjoyed the continuation and ongoing relationships of my favorite quirky village characters, even when I wanted to give some of them a pinch or five.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

When tragedy strikes, there’s only before and after.

It’s almost as though I can feel the oxygen being vacuumed from the room, the air replaced with a suffocating silence.

My Review:

This one kept me guessing and threw several red herrings in my path. The main character frustrated me as she was rather mono-focused and clueless and needed a few good kicks to the keister to dislodge her noggin, but she finally came around and opened her eyes. Several smacks and alarming shocks will do that to a person, both of which this wily scribbler provided in spades.