Category: 4-Stars

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Book Review: Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay (Swallowtail Bay #2) by Katie Ginger

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Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay
(Swallowtail Bay #2)
by Katie Ginger

 

Amazon  US / UK / 
B&N / Apple / Google

 

Grab your strawberries and cream and get ready to return to the beautiful Swallowtail Bay!

Summer is in full swing and the locals are getting excited for the launch of the Swallowtail Bay strawberry food festival. But will all run smoothly when festival organizer Hetty’s heart is torn between lord of the manor John Thornhill and successful bakery owner Ben?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Stanley was the limpy seagull Hetty had adopted and fed regularly from a special little plate. They’d both grown very fond of him as they imagined his deformed foot meant all the other seagulls teased him and wouldn’t let him join their gangs.

 

His family didn’t need any more egg on their faces. They had a whole omelette there already.

 

She hadn’t mentioned camping to Macie yet. Hetty and Macie had a shared loathing of this particular outdoor pursuit. Neither of them could understand the appeal of sleeping on the ground and were terrified that ants might crawl into their knickers in the middle of the night. Admittedly, it would probably be more traumatic for the ant, but it would leave an emotional scar on them too.

 

I thought rule number one was always go to the toilet before a kids’ party started because you definitely won’t want to go in there afterward?

 

A man who even after a year gave her the kind of kisses that made cartoon stars appear over her head and the world burst into song.

My Review:

This was a delightful diversion and pleasant and sweet read, something light and frothy to relax with and ease the tension from my shoulders after reading too many thrillers in a row. The writing was smooth and amusing, the characters were earnest and endearing, and the storylines were easy to follow and engaging with a bit of family drama that plucked at my curiosity as to how it would all play out.

 

About the Author

 

KATIE GINGER lives in the South East of England, by the sea, and she really wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay is her fifth novel. The first, Spring Tides at Swallowtail Bay is available now. Her debut novel The Little Theatre on the Seafront was shortlisted for the Katie Fforde Debut Novel of the Year award, and her stand-alone Christmas novel Snowflakes at Mistletoe Cottage was a US Amazon bestseller.

When she’s not writing, Katie spends her time drinking gin, or with her husband, trying to keep alive their two children, Ellie and Sam. And there’s also their adorable King Charles Spaniel, Wotsit (yes, he is named after the crisps!).

For more about Katie, you can visit her website: www.keginger.com, find her on Facebook: www.facebook.com/KatieGAuthor, or follow her on Twitter: @KatieGAuthor

Instagram: @katie_ginger_author

 

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Book Review: The Magnolia Sisters by Alys Murray

The Magnolia Sisters
by Alys Murray

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

 

Harper Anderson has a to-do list longer than the Colorado River, and fields of tulips to tend to at her family’s flower farm in Hillsboro County, California. It’s her dream to run the business with her sisters when their father retires, keeping up traditions that began with her great-great-grandmother.

That is, if there’s a farm left to run. Rich out-of-towners looking for a slice of country living are hiking up the prices in town and it’s putting her family out of business. So she has no time for the arrogant LA tech mogul who makes her an offer to use their farm as his sister’s wedding venue. No amount of money could make up for the destruction it would wreak on next season’s crop. The sooner Luke Martin is on his way, the better.

But Luke isn’t willing to go. He’s been looking out for his sister ever since their deadbeat parents left them to fend for themselves, and he’ll do whatever it takes to make her happy. So when Harper’s newest farmhand leaves her in the lurch, he sees an opportunity to strike a deal. He’ll work on the farm for free if she’ll give him the chance to change her mind.

Harper and Luke each expect the other to crack first. What they don’t expect is the chemistry that sparks between them as they work side by side among the budding roses. But Luke’s presence is turning over more than the earth, and just as Harper is starting to let her guard down, he stumbles upon a secret that could spell disaster for the entire Anderson clan.

With her family’s happiness at stake, can Harper put her trust in a man who is worlds apart from everything she knows?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

She yawned, practically tripping down the stairs with half-open eyes, probably following the scent of coffee instead of using her sight like some kind of millennial badger.

 

Harper noticed something about May she’d never noticed before. It was there in her walk, there in her sitting. She carried herself straight and broken, like she was trying not to disturb an open stab wound right in the center of her back. How had she never noticed before? How had she never taken the time to actually see the pain she’d been carrying around for years now?

 

One mystery solved. Well, not a mystery, more like a Scooby-Doo cartoon where the true culprit was before them all along.

 

My Review:

 

This was my first experience reading the agile and smoothly penned tales of Alys Murray and I have since added more of her books to my TBR. Her relatable characters were uniquely quirky and likable and inhabited storylines that were engaging, easy to follow, and well balanced between humor, family drama, and angst. I would classify the genre of this entertaining story as women’s fiction with a bit of light romance that only went as far as earth-rattling and heart-racing smooching. I was smiling throughout most of this pleasant and amusing tale until the author unfortunately tossed in one of my least favorite tropes near the end which took a bit off the shine, but I would still read it again and look forward to more from this clever storyteller.

About the Author

Alys Murray is an author who writes for the romantic in all of us. Though she graduated with a degree in Drama from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and a Master’s in Film Studies from King’s College London, her irrepressible love of romance led her to a career as an author, and she couldn’t be happier to write these stories! Currently splitting time between her home state of Louisiana and London, she enjoys kissing books, Star Wars, and creating original pie recipes for all of her books. Tobey Maguire is her Spider-Man.
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Book Review: I Know Your Secret by Ruth Heald

 

I Know Your Secret
by Ruth Heald

You’re not who you say you are. Neither is she.

She thinks she knows me.

She believes my marriage is falling apart at the seams, that my husband can barely look me in the eyes. She thinks I’m desperate for a baby, that my longing for a family keeps me up at night. As much as I hate to admit it, all of this is true.

She thinks I listen to her advice, that I care about her opinion. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

Because she has no idea who I am. She has no clue that I know everything.

I know her secret. I know that she did the unforgivable. I know how many lives she ruined.

I know exactly what she did. And I’m here for her.

An utterly gripping, addictive, and shocking read about the dark secrets we’re ashamed to admit, and the lengths people go to for revenge. Fans of K.L. Slater, My Lovely Wife, and The Wife Between Us will be racing through the pages, gasping at the twists, and reeling from the explosive ending of this unmissable page-turner.

My Rating:

My Review:

 

This was a slowly evolving tale fraught with interpersonal conflicts, marital discord, mind games, stalking, hidden agendas, habitual liars, cheating spouses, and mentally and emotionally unstable characters. I couldn’t decide who was the most unbalanced between the therapist and her new client, as they were both less than prime human beings in need of serious chemical assistance and a reality check. The tale was multi-layered and well textured with hidden clues and well placed red herrings. I was reluctant to put my Kindle down for fear I would miss something and was feeling rather smug thinking I had it cracked, yet I was well fooled by this sly and duplicitous wordsmith. Ruth Heald may appear to be a pleasant suburbanite like any other in your neighborhood coffee shop, but don’t you believe it. She is undoubtedly a crafty and cunning trickster and quite likely quietly plotting someone’s demise while sipping her coffee.

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Ruth Heald is a psychological thriller writer from a suburban Buckinghamshire town. She studied Economics at Oxford and then worked in an eclectic mix of sectors from nuclear decommissioning to management consulting.

Seeking a more creative environment, she found a role at the BBC and worked there for nine years before leaving to write full time. Ruth is fascinated by psychology and finding out what drives people to violence, destruction, and revenge. She’s married with one daughter and her novels explore our greatest fears in otherwise ordinary, domestic lives.

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Book Review: Stranger Ranger (Parker Ranger #2) by Daisy Prescott

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Stranger Ranger, an all-new standalone contemporary romance from USA Today bestselling author Daisy Prescott, is now available in Kindle Unlimited!

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New park ranger Daphne Baum is a reformed good girl. Breaking free from her overbearing family as soon as she turned eighteen, she’s been on her own ever since. The life of a park ranger, moving from park to park, suits her just fine. Though still a rule follower, she’s okay with a little sin in her life.

Every generation of Hill men has its black sheep. The general consensus among the family is that Odin Hill is the lucky bastard this go around. At seventeen, he blew out of town like an angry tornado only to return fifteen years later withdrawn and secretive. Living like a recluse in the hollows in the Smoky Mountains, he’s happy to keep to himself and is content to let locals believe he’s the town weirdo. Odin prefers the company of his pet pig to the nosy citizens of Green Valley.

When Daphne discovers Odin might be committing nefarious deeds on park land, she vows to find out the truth behind the handsome, yet chaotic, loner. Will the stranger help the ranger discover the difference between being good and doing the right thing? Or will they find themselves on opposite sides of love?

‘Stranger Ranger’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #2 in the Park Ranger series, Green Valley World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The only vegetable I’ve ever seen you eat is a potato, preferably fried or formed into a tot.

 

“Is that apple cake? There are free samples. Bet they’d be nice enough to let us have more than one.” Her steps falter as she swivels her head, pausing and sniffing the air like a velociraptor.

 

Because our last name is Hill, some people like to joke that we put the hill in hillbilly. Some people think they have a sense of humor when they’re just being mean-spirited. As my Nannie Ida always says, glasshouses provide good views, but then again, so do mirrors.

 

This woman makes no sense. One minute she’s accusing me of being a criminal, and the next she’s petting my bicep like a baby animal.

 

“I love your accent.” She sighs, her eyes all dreamy like I’m her favorite boy band member.

 

I should know better. Both assumption and bias have “ass” in them.

My Review:

 

When you need to add a smile to your day you can always count on a Smartypants Romance to provide not just one but several.   This amusing slow burn romance was hours of fun. Stranger Ranger features a female forest ranger who becomes rather obsessed and intrigued with Odin, a former small-town hillbilly turned world-class chef who has traveled the world before returning to his hometown for a simpler life of farming and foraging. Odin enjoys walking his beloved pet pig, Patsy Swine, down Mainstreet. And if that doesn’t make you smile then you should consider consulting with your doctor regarding the possible need for pharmaceutical assistance.

 

Check out Happy Trail, book 1 in the Park Ranger series of standalones, FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

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Excerpt

By early afternoon, the crowd at the farmers’ market fades, leaving only stragglers, bargainers, and tourists sampling the charms of small town life.

I’ve had enough people for the week I’m looking forward to the quiet of my own company. All the talking and friendly chatter exhaust me. You’d think vegetables would sell themselves given they’re pretty self-explanatory. Yet folks wanna hear a story about a carrot being grown from the guy who pulled it out of the dirt himself. So I play my part of the happy farmer at the stand. It’s my bad luck I’ve always been charming. Part of my DNA.

My family has lived in the mountains surrounding Green Valley longer than anyone around here can remember. Before there was a National Park or even a Cades Cove, the Hills had established a homestead in the Smokies straddling Tennessee and North Carolina.

Because our last name is Hill, some people like to joke we put the hill in hillbilly. Jethro Winston for example. He’s hysterical. Some people think they have a sense of humor when they’re just being mean-spirited. As my Nannie Ida always says, glass houses provide good views, but then again, so do mirrors.

This is why I prefer the company of Patsy over most folks. She’s smart, a good listener, tidy, and doesn’t give a damn about my family and reputation. She has more class than a lot of the gossips and Sunday church-goers around here.

After I consolidate the remaining produce into crates and load up the van, I fold the tables and collapse my tent. While I work, the face of the brunette ranger floats through my mind.

She looked familiar but I didn’t recognize her name. It isn’t likely our paths have crossed. I don’t get out much and I’m not hanging around the bars or the visitor center in Cades Cove. Normally, one of my cousins covers the stand at the weekly farmers’ market and I can avoid the crowds. This is what happens when I let my guard down and am forced to engage with the public. I get iceberg and Bible quotes. I’ve never been a fan of either.

Bothered I’m still thinking about her, I close and lock up the van.

“Come on Patsy, let’s go for a walk.”

She gives a happy snort and steps closer to where her leash hangs on the top rail of her pen.

When the two of us stroll through town, folks stare. It’s worse when they insist on sharing a comment, tell the same old joke, and, in general, make a fuss. Honestly, I assume at this point people seeing the two of us together would be old news around here.

Guess some folks don’t have enough going on in their lives that they need to make commentary about people minding their own damn business.

I don’t understand what the big deal is about a man walking his pig.

Patsy’s excellent on a leash. Doesn’t pull. Has never instigated fights with dogs. Hasn’t bit anyone. Doesn’t do her business in the middle of the sidewalk. In my mind, she’s much better mannered than any old hound dog.

She’s pretty darn perfect in every conceivable way.

Except the one time she trampled Mrs. MacClure’s flower bed. Even that was my fault for not paying closer attention to where we were walking.

If I had to find fault with her, Patsy thinks she’s in charge. And she’s a little more than spoiled. I only have myself to blame.

“Clarice, please tell me you see that man walking his pig.” A woman shouts to her friend and points from about three feet away.

“I’m not invisible,” I tell her with a flat smile.

“Oh dear.” Her companion rolls her eyes. “You’re a tall drink of cool water, aren’t you?”

The question is rhetorical. Being compared to a refreshing beverage doesn’t require a response, so I remain quiet. Patsy tugs on her leash and releases a frustrated snort that we’ve stopped walking.

“You two have a nice day, m‘kay.” I step off the sidewalk to pass them.

I’d like to say their behavior is atypical. If I hear “You’re like the Jolly Green Giant. Only less green” one more time …

For the record, I am not jolly.

There must be something in the well water around here. We grow ‘em tall in Green Valley.

Does a pig need to be walked on leash for health and exercise? No.

I’m the only weirdo in all of Green Valley who likes to take my daily constitutional accompanied by a sow. Not even Cletus Winston is as much of an oddball as I am. And that’s saying something.

He’s only interested in pigs and boar in terms of sausage. In my opinion, he’s missing out. If we were friends, or even friendly acquaintances, I might suggest we partner up. Truffle salami can be incredible. Or so I remember. I don’t eat pork anymore. Not since I’ve had Patsy. I’d be offended if she ate human body parts around me.

Hogs will eat pretty much anything you give them. A few years ago a pig farmer went missing. Wife said he ran off with his mistress. Everyone believed her until his gold tooth turned up in the muck and mud of their hog pens. Macabre, but true.

I don’t eat pork and Patsy doesn’t eat me. It’s an unspoken pact between us.

Not that she’s some sort of demon pig crazed with bloodlust. Not at all. She’s the best pig in eastern Tennessee. Don’t need a blue ribbon from the state fair to make it true.

This leisurely stroll around town is all part of my ruse.

If someone sees us ambling someplace we don’t belong, they’ll leave us alone, which is the entire point.

There’s freedom in being a weirdo. Folks keep their distance. Sure, there are the asinine comments, but for the most part they assume I’m dim-witted or crazy. Fine by me. With or without my porcine sidekick, I’ve always been different. I learned early on that people like to form and hold onto their own opinions. Pointless to try to change someone’s mind. What they think of me is their problem, not mine.

About Daisy Prescott

Born and raised in San Diego, Daisy currently lives in a real life Stars Hollow in the Boston suburbs with her husband, their rescue dog, Mulder, and an imaginary house goat. When not writing about herself in the third person, Daisy can be found traveling, gardening, baking, or lost in a good book.

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Website: https://www.daisyprescott.com/

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Book Review: Love in Deed (Green Valley Library #6) by L.B. Dunbar

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Love in Deed, an all-new standalone contemporary romance from L.B. Dunbar, is now available in Kindle Unlimited!

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Sometimes it takes an outsider to force us to see who we are. The real struggle is accepting what we learn. For Beverly Townsen, nothing could be closer to the truth. Virtually a shut-in, Beverly has pulled back from Green Valley’s community, preferring the isolation of her farmhouse and her daily routine of viewing home improvement television shows. When the opportunity arises for her own home improvement and a personal re-assessment, she’s not so excited about the reality of real life versus DIY programs.

Jedd Flemming understands physical pain and personal loss, but it’s never stopped him from bucking forward in life. A former military man and rodeo star, his life as a nomad comes to an end with false accusations and a family matter back in the Valley. It’s been a long journey to find his way home and once there, there’s nothing he wants more than to reclaim what he’s lost…and maybe the elusive female reclusive who holds a sliver of his past.

With an unprecedented proposition, Beverly finds a stranger living in her barn, raising horses on borrowed pastures, and plowing his way into her vacant heart. Old hurts linger, but sometimes love in deed is louder than words.

‘Love in Deed’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #6 in the Green Valley Library series, Green Valley World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

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Download your copy TODAY! Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

This is the hashtag-me-too era, buddy… You can’t just reach out and touch someone.

 

I’d believed all kinds of things about Howard. He’d love me forever. He’d make it good for me. He’d take care of us. An iron skillet of reality upside the head had finally made me see the light and realize Howard’s true nature. He loved women—all kinds of women—just not the one labeled his wife.

 

I called her Bee as I was leaving because the name is fitting. Her tongue stings like the pesky pollinator.

 

The glare I give my daughter could melt a candle without a wick.

 

I think it’s about to get as ugly as starved cannibals finding prey…

 

“Men are all hot air.” “Howard was hot air,” Jedd retorts. “I’m just hot.” Shaking my head, I can’t help the smile growing on my lips. He’s ridiculous but not wrong.

 

Her laugh is a lyric calling to me like a siren to a sailor.

My Review:

 

More Smartypants Green Valley? Why yes, thank you – bring it on! I always cross my fingers with anticipation yet approach with trepidation when I read this author as while I have enjoyed most of her books, heavy angst is just not my jam and her writing tends to be chockablock full of interpersonal conflicts and inner turmoil. And while this book was no exception to that standard, it wasn’t as arduous to endure as the storylines and issues were highly relevant and the writing was engaging with well-crafted and enticing storylines laced with clever spikes of humor and a slow-burning attraction that occasional sizzled and seemed destined to spark into an inferno.

 

Although, I will confess that for the first half of the book I had an ongoing and valiant struggle with the bitter and waspish character of Beverly as I found her rather horrid. Beverly had been dealt a bad hand and had become ill-tempered, snappish, and was wallowing in self-pity yet made no effort for improvement and was too prickly and proud to accept assistance. She was blatantly rude, leeching off her daughter, and just patently unpleasant. Beverly annoyed me greatly and was the type of person most people, me included; go out of their way to avoid. While he also had hidden motives, the character of Jedd was a saint in comparison. Yet despite all that, I was reluctant to put my Kindle down, I seem to be terminally bewitched by all things Green Valley.

 

 

Excerpt

“Momma,” she whispers, and I turn at the soft question in her voice. Her eyes scan my face. Does she fear she’ll look like me one day? Those bright eyes will dim, and lines will form in the corners. Will they be rivers formed from tears, or will she eventually find laughter? Does she wonder if her lips will match mine, permanently curled downward? Can my girl still smile? Will her hair go gray too young as mine did? Will the stress of her life turn her into someone lonely and lost?

I blink back the tears fighting for release. I won’t cry. Nothing left to cry over. It’s all gone.

“Do you fancy him?” my daughter asks, and I choke on the question.

“What…? I…of course not. Don’t be silly. I’m sure he’d be more interested in the likes of you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hannah asks, brows rising in surprise.

“I’m sure I don’t need to explain the birds and the bees to you. Men like him only want young things and only want one thing from those young things. I don’t think he should stay here,” I sneer, recognizing the pulse at my neck and the thump of my heart. My daughter is a pretty girl, and this older man could be attracted to her for all the wrong reasons. Young girls go for older men to solve their daddy issues.

“He’s sleeping in the barn,” Hannah counters, her voice deepening in displeasure. Ticking off points on her fingers, she continues, “We don’t need to feed him. He’ll rebuild at his expense or hire what he can’t do himself. The back field will be plowed and prepped for spring planting.”

I snort in response, but my eyes return to Jedd’s movement. Into the barn. Out in the yard. My observation traces down his perspiring spine to the waist of his pants where his shirt has untucked. My fingers curl on the armrest of the rocker as my eyes outline the fine globes accentuated by those smooth pants. My mouth goes dry.

What is it about this man? Why am I suddenly lusting after him?

I can’t. That’s the bottom line. I can’t anything him. Under fifteen percent and tight pants and a perfect backside is still a man with empty words.

My eyes fall blindly on the reality television program. The only man a girl can count on is the fictional kind. I force my attention away from the barn, but my eyes seem to have a will of their own.

“We can’t have a stranger living in our barn,” I huff. Jedd stops, turning in his tracks with a pile of lumber on his shoulder as if he heard me, which is impossible on two counts: the panes of glass and his lack of hearing. Still, he stills, and his eyes narrow on the house as if he knows I’m watching him, I’m talking about him, and I don’t agree with this arrangement.

“Too late. He’s moving in.” Hannah definitively nods, dismissing my opinion as Jedd swings back around. She leans down to kiss my cheek and then exits my room, but I remain transfixed.

Suddenly, reality is more fascinating than television.

My eyes continue the cat and mouse game of watching Jedd disappear and then reappear. I don’t know how much time transpires, but eventually, the bed of his truck is empty. Still, I hold my breath as if the barn is a giant octopus, swallowing him whole. I fear he might disappear forever like Howard did, which is the silliest thought I’ve had in a decade. I don’t need Jedd. We don’t need Jedd. There will be no attachment to him.

But then, Jedd appears at the open barn door and gives a single wave toward the house, and I smile in spite of myself.

About L.B. Dunbar

L.B. Dunbar has an overactive imagination. To her benefit, such creativity has led to over thirty romance novels, including those offering a second chance at love over 40. Her signature works include the #sexysilverfoxes collection of mature males and feisty vixens ready for romance in their prime years. She’s also written stories of small-town romance (Heart Collection), rockstar mayhem (The Legendary Rock Stars Series), and a twist on intrigue and redemption (Redemption Island Duet). She’s had several alter egos including elda lore, a writer of romantic magical realism through mythological retellings (Modern Descendants). In another life, she wanted to be an anthropologist and journalist. Instead, she was a middle school language arts teacher. The greatest story in her life is with the one and only, and their four grown children. Learn more about L.B. Dunbar by joining her reader group on Facebook (Loving L.B.) or subscribing to her newsletter (Love Notes).

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Book Review: JoJo’s French Escape by Lorraine Wilson

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JoJo’s French Escape
by Lorraine Wilson

 

Amazon US / UK /  B&N / GP / Apple

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‘She had me at Bonjour! Warm, funny, deliciously French…this lovely story filled my heart with sunshine’ Jane Linfoot

Imagine yourself in beautiful France with the sun warm on your face and a glass of wine in your hand…Jojo’s French Escape is the perfect summer read!

Trapped in paradise…

For twelve months JoJo Grant has been hiding from a secret too shameful to share.  And whilst her sanctuary might be the beautiful French countryside, JoJo has a horrible feeling that her peace is about to be shattered…because bursting into her life is the hottest celebrity chef around – Callum O’Connor.

Callum knows all about JoJo’s past, her time as a reality star, the scandal that has dogged her, but he isn’t sure why she’s still hiding?  After spending time with Jojo, it’s obvious to him that she has nothing to be ashamed of – she just needs to be a little braver…
But as much as JoJo likes Callum, he thrives on the glare of the outside world.  Can JoJo let go of her past…with Callum by her side?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The only love Aiden knows involves the use of a mirror or a TV camera.

 

“You know if anyone ever gives you any grief we’ll set the dogs on them, celebrity chef or not.” I look down at the two tiny chihuahuas, one miniature Yorkie and the blind ex-hunting dog who happens to be a total softy. My mouth quirks involuntarily into a smile at the idea of them defending me, though I’m sure they’d all give it a good go. The chihuahuas in particular are utterly fearless.

 

Who was it said that a life without passion is a slow way to freeze to death?

 

She blinks, her false eyelashes make her look like she’s being attacked by spiders.

 

I really am trying to wish them well but mostly I’m just wishing them well away from me.

My Review:

Holy smokes, this was not what I was expecting but an engaging and relatable tale nonetheless. The premise had a British reality TV star escaping unwanted notoriety to the south of France after she was “officially disgraced” when her then-boyfriend, a publicity, and fame-obsessed reprobate and scum bucket, leaked a sex tape she was unaware he had created. Oh, and he was also cheating on her with her best friend, ouch. It was no wonder she wanted nothing to do with social media or men in general, much less a well-known TV chef who happened to have escaped to the same French locale. Yet their chemistry overcame their misgivings and – gasp – their connections were so erotic I was gasping like a fish out of water.

The writing was easy to follow and predominately the inner musings and observations of JoJo as she navigated her transition from disgraced to empowered with the support of her new friends and heartthrob. I was quite taken with the cleverly chosen quotes used to start each chapter and also the timely and insightful inclusion of The Power of Now, which I confess requiring Googling to accurately recall.

About the Author

Lorraine Wilson writes flirty, feel-good fiction for One More Chapter – a Harper Collins imprint – and is unashamedly fond of happy endings. She loves hearing from readers and feels incredibly grateful to be doing the job she always dreamt of.

She splits her time between the South of France and Cambridgeshire and is usually either writing or reading while being sat on, walked over or barked at by one of her growing band of rescue dogs.

Social Media Links 

Amazon author page: http://bit.ly/lorrainewilsonamazon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LorraineWilsonWriter

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Romanceminx

 

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Book Review: Fight For Me (Arrowood Brothers #2) by Corinne Michaels

Fight For Me (Arrowood Brothers #2) by Corinne Michaels

New York Times Bestselling author, Corinne Michaels, brings a new breathtaking and emotional love story to life in the second STANDALONE in the Arrowood Brothers series. 

Fight for Me is LIVE!

I fell in love with Sydney Hastings when I was ten years old.

At sixteen, we whispered promises of forever.

When I was twenty-two I broke them all. I left her and promised never to return.

After my father’s death, I’m forced to go home to Sugarloaf for six months. She’ll be everywhere, no longer just in my memories and regrets.

When we’re together, it’s as though time never stopped. She’s still the one I want, but I don’t deserve her. Instead of apologizing, I take that beautiful, broken woman in my arms. But after that, it’s her turn to leave me.

 Now I have to fight. For her. For us. For the life we both want …

Download today!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2SHBKoW

Amazon Worldwide: mybook.to/FightForMeCM

Apple Books: https://apple.co/32b8YA0

Nook: http://bit.ly/3284ZEw

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2HC0Pvl

Google Play: http://bit.ly/3bR4YcI

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2uYc6Dn

 

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

Yeah, I’m a walking episode of Jerry Springer.

My Review:

  This tale was laden with blindly stubborn characters in conflict with each other and angst, oh, the angst. Despite a heavy dose of my least favorite things, Ms. Michaels still managed to hold my attention with an enticing and interesting premise, complex and alluring characters, and heart-squeezing and sizzling plot lines. I’m already primed for the next brother’s installment.

 

 

Meet Corinne: 

Corinne Michaels is the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller author. She’s an emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun-loving mom of two beautiful children. Corinne is happily married to the man of her dreams and is a former Navy wife.

After spending months away from her husband while he was deployed, reading and writing was her escape from the loneliness. She enjoys putting her characters through intense heartbreak and finding a way to heal them through their struggles. Her stories are chock full of emotion, humor, and unrelenting love.

Connect with Corinne:

Facebook: https://bit.ly/1iwLh6y

Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Jcp29z

Instagram: https://bit.ly/2L1Vzo6

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2N1H2Gb

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1NVZmhv

Pinterest: https://bit.ly/2m7MkEL

Bookbub: https://bit.ly/2yc6rss

Stay up to date with Corinne and sign up for her mailing list:

To sign up for monthly text alerts: Text CMBOOKS TO 77948

*US only due to carrier restrictions*

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Book Review: A Wedding in the Olive Garden by Leah Fleming

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A Wedding in the Olive Garden
by Leah Fleming

Amazon / GP / Kobo / B&N

 

Can an island in the sun provide the second chance Sara needs?

A warm and uplifting novel about love, friendship and new beginnings on the beautiful Greek island of Santaniki.

Sara Loveday flees home and crisis to the beautiful island of Santaniki. Here, amid olive groves and whitewashed stone villas, where dark cypress trees step down to a cobalt blue sea, Sara vows to change her life. Spotting a gap in the local tourist market, she sets up a wedding planner business, specializing in ‘second time around’ couples.

For her first big wedding, she borrows the olive garden of a local artists’ retreat, but almost at once, things begin to go wrong. To make matters worse, a stranger from Sara’s past arrives on the island, spreading vicious lies. Can her business survive? And what will happen with the gorgeous new man who she’s begun to love?

This is a gorgeous, warm-hearted, and uplifting novel conjuring the local color, traditions, and close bonds of island life.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

“I thought it was the man who did the proposing, you brazen hussy,’ he laughed… ‘Then you’d better get down on your knee and ask me proper. My knees aren’t up to it. If I get down I’ll not get up again. I suppose I’ll have to fork out for a wedding ring then,’ he laughed.

My Review:

 

I’ve never been to Greece but I feel like I’ve just returned as Ms. Fleming’s writing was so descriptive I felt like I was inhabiting the small Greek village right along with the characters, and I enjoyed getting to know their customs and foods without ever having to set foot in the airport – oh happy day. This was an active but slowly developing plot with multiple intersecting storylines while populated with a large international cast of uniquely quirky and fractious characters. Being an animal lover I particularly appreciated the message of responsibility and rescue and rehoming of strays. I also picked up a new phrase for my Brit Word List with spoilt for choice – which means having lots of options.

About the Author

After careers in teaching, catering, running a market stall, stress management courses in the NHS as well as being a mother of four, Leah Fleming found her true calling as a storyteller. She lives in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales but spends part of the year marinating her next tale from an olive grove on her favorite island of Crete.

Follow Leah:

Twitter: @LeahleFleming

Website: leahfleming.co.uk

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Book Review: THE SUMMER VILLA by Melissa Hill 

THE SUMMER VILLA
by Melissa Hill 

Amazon  / B&N / Harlequin / Indiebound / Target /

Walmart/ Google / Apple / Kobo

ISBN: 9780778359982

Publication Date: April 28, 2020 

Publisher: MIRA Books

When a little white lie becomes the story of your life, what if the truth comes out?

For three women, it’s a life-changing trip: one finds the man of her dreams, another discovers inspiration amidst Italian food and culture, while a chance encounter with a handsome local usher in the ultimate life change for the third. But most importantly, it’s the beginning of a deep and lasting friendship between all three.

Now years later, Kim Weston – entrepreneur and owner of internationally successful Italian food and lifestyle business, The Sweet Life – has bought and restored the tumble-down villa to its former glory — and plans to reopen Villa Dolce Vita as a wellness/cultural retreat – a fitting honor to the root of her business inspiration.

To celebrate the villa’s grand opening, she and her Italian business partners are throwing a huge three-day party; flying a group of family, business and media contacts to the Amalfi Coast to join in the celebrations. And most importantly, the (still) close friends who started the journey with her: Annie and husband Nate, whose love story began at the villa, and single mum Eva, whose son was the result of an ill-advised Italian fling.

But in the run-up to the planned weekend in Italy, it becomes clear that not everyone is happy about the party, nor are they on board with such ambitious plans for the location. And, as Villa Dolce Vita’s grand relaunch draws closer, old memories and past secrets come to light, and the three old friends are forced to question if anything that happened on that first fateful trip to the villa is at all what it seemed.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Abandoned in the toilets at Connolly train station in the center of Dublin almost thirty years ago, she’d barely been breathing when she was found by a curious Irish Rail cleaner, who heard a noise from inside the ladies. There he found an infant, scarcely a few hours old, and had called for an ambulance. Even before she had a name, Annie was making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

 

She sighed inwardly. You could get lost in the guy’s accent, never mind his arms. It was like condensed milk— thick and sweet.

 

She smiled to herself in the darkness. This was obviously what people were talking about when they joked about Italian men… She’d had no idea what she’d been missing.

My Review:

 

This book had a bit of everything – women’s fiction, romance, family drama, and several mysteries. The premise and storylines were interesting and well nuanced with plenty of red herrings and misdirections to keep me guessing.

 

The characters were international and an odd lot of personalities, rich and poor, all attempting to run away from or avoid what their lives had become. And while a few of them were too good to be true, most were guilty of being selfish, less than honorable, hiding several uncomfortable or juicy secrets, and being more than a bit annoying and unlikable – in other words – like most people I know. Except for Colette who was a sweetie pie, her only flaw was being overly gullible, a problem I was once plagued with before I knew better and blossomed into the lovely shade of jaded cynic.

 

The featured locale was one of the most lovely places on earth, the Amalfi coast of Italy, and as the only safe and screaming baby-free mode of travel currently seems to be digitally provided or on the pages of a book, I was eager to utilize my Kindle as my passport.

 

About the Author

MELISSA HILL lives in south Dublin with her husband and daughter. A USA TODAY and international #1 bestseller, she is the author of 13 novels, including The Gift of a Charm and A Gift From Tiffany’s. The Gift of a Charm was a USA TODAY bestseller. Hailed “the queen of the big plot twist,” she combines all the warmth and humor of contemporary women’s fiction with plots that keep readers guessing from page to page. Melissa also co-writes forensic thrillers with her husband, Kevin, under the pseudonym Casey Hill, featuring crime scene investigator Reilly Steel. For more information, visit www.caseyhillbooks.com.

SOCIAL:

Author Website: http://www.melissahill.ie/

TWITTER: @melissahillbks

FB: @melissahillbooks

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/334579.Melissa_Hill

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Book Review: Dreaming of Italy by T.A. Williams

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Dreaming of Italy
by T.A. Williams 

Amazon / B&N / Apple /GP

Up for a dream promotion, Emma won’t let anything get in her way – not even love.

 

Working for a major Hollywood film company isn’t all glitz and glam. But when Emma gets sent to tour around Italy to scout the perfect location for a new blockbuster movie, she’s not going to complain. Especially when it could make or break her career…

Historical adviser for the project Mark is a distraction that Emma does not need. As they explore the beauty of Italy, Emma starts to fall for the mysterious Mark, and soon finds herself torn between her job and her heart.

From the wild, northern mountains of Piedmont, down the vibrant coast of Cinque Terre, and through the rolling hills of Tuscany, Emma’s journey becomes one of self-discovery as she questions her priorities in life.

This heartwarming story of romance and redemption is the perfect read for fans of Tilly Tennant, Holly Martin, and Daisy James.

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

JM did have his ever-present right-hand man, conveniently named Dexter, perched on a stool at his side to fill him in if her name should escape him. With his minute stature alongside his six-foot-six employer, Dexter had always reminded Emma of one of those little fish who swim around sharks, even venturing into their mouths to remove parasites and keep the predator healthy.

 

Where do I start? He eats everything with a spoon. Doesn’t trust forks. Seriously, you should see him with steak. He drinks half a pint of black coffee for breakfast out of an old tooth mug that’s rumoured never to have been washed. He carries the mug around with him hooked to his belt wherever he goes. They say he meditates for ten minutes before and after every bowel movement. He never wears green. I forget the rest, but you’ll love him. He’s a hoot.

 

A little quirky?? You really like understatements, don’t you? Erasmus is looking at quirky in the rear-view mirror. I’ve got a poodle that’s saner than he is.

My Review:

 

This is the second time I have a perused a gentle, sweet, and satisfying read courtesy of T.A. Williams, and both stories featured Brits who were traveling through Italy, and as luck would have it, I adored them both.   The storylines were cleverly interconnecting, pleasantly enjoyable, slowly building, and easily relatable, while cast with likable characters I wanted to root for. And oh, what a drudgery, the characters were tasked with scouting locations for a romantic movie to be shot in Italy. The writing style was easy to follow, colorfully descriptive, and flowed smoothly with interesting and amusing little twists and teases to pluck at my curiosity and keep my interest primed. The only problem I encountered was the uptick in my appetite due to mouthwatering descriptions of the sumptuous meals ingested and enjoyed by the lucky characters. I may have gained a few pounds from all that delicious pasta.

 

About the Author

Amazon
Goodreads
Website

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Firstly, my name isn’t T A. It’s Trevor. I write under the androgynous name T A Williams because 65% of books are read by women. In my first book, “Dirty Minds” one of the (female) characters suggests the imbalance is due to the fact that men spend too much time getting drunk and watching football. I couldn’t possibly comment. Ask my wife…

I’ve written all sorts: thrillers, historical novels, short stories, and now I’m enjoying myself hugely writing humor and romance. Romantic comedies are what we all need from time to time. Life isn’t always very fair. It isn’t always a lot of fun, but when it is, we need to embrace it. If my books can put a smile on your face and maybe give your heartstrings a tug, then I know I’ve done my job.

I‘ve lived all over Europe, but now I live in a little village in sleepy Devon, tucked away in southwest England. I love the place. That’s why you’ll find leafy lanes and thatched cottages in most of my books. Oh, yes, and a black Labrador.

I’ve been writing since I was 14 and that is half a century ago. However, underneath this bald, wrinkly exterior, there beats the heart of a youngster. My wife is convinced I will never grow up. I hope she’s right.