My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

I’m definitely over him– and baffled why I was ever under him…

Also, and I know this sounds ridiculous for a thirty-something woman to say, but it felt so wonderfully naughty, to be breaking the rules. I got a real kick out of it. In a similar vein, I also got a kick out of drinking from my mum’s favourite mug, sitting in my dad’s chair, and listening to his records that no one is allowed to touch. I even allowed myself a cheeky five minutes to touch my mum’s collection of crystal ornaments– basically, all the things I’ve been discouraged from doing my entire life, that I can only do today because no one is here to tell me off for it. To be honest, I’m sure neither of my parents would care about any of these things now that I’m an adult (allegedly), but just let me have this.

I dash to the downstairs loo and check myself over in the mirror quickly. I was eating cheese puffs about half an hour ago and I still feel like I’m covered in orange stuff. I know, I know, it’s unfathomable how sexy I am. How is Rex resisting me?

I tell you what, one thing I didn’t need to worry about, being here alone this past week, was running out of the important stuff like toilet roll or shower gel. There’s a cupboard full of tinned food and bottles of water– something my dad has lovingly dubbed her ‘zombie supplies’– which is supposed to be for worst-case, unlikely scenarios like extreme weather or wars or wars or God knows what– but you better believe she’s ready for them.

My Review:

This was a lively and fun read, laced together with breezy and amusing humor and witty observations. It didn’t matter one whit to me that I was reading a British story occurring in heavy snow during the Christmas holidays while I was experiencing a humid August day in the tropics. The engaging storylines were pleasantly entertaining, easy to follow, delightfully original, refreshingly unpredictable, shrewdly paced, and held my interest throughout. I enjoy this crafty author’s sense of humor and I plan to weave more of her work into my bloated TBR.

About the Author

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Portia MacIntosh is the bestselling author of over 20 romantic comedy novels.

From disastrous dates to destination weddings, Portia’s romcoms are the perfect way to escape from day to day life, visiting sunny beaches in the summer and snowy villages at Christmas time. Whether it’s southern Italy or the Yorkshire coast, Portia’s stories are the holiday you’re craving, conveniently packed in between the pages.

Formerly a journalist, Portia has left the city, swapping the music biz for the moors, to live the (not so) quiet life with her husband and her dog in Yorkshire.

One Hundred Chances
An Aspen Cove Romance Book 21
by Kelly Collins

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS   

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

I had no idea what my face was doing. In my mind, my eyes were wide with disbelief, my mouth opening and closing like a fish, my nostrils flaring with a barely contained exasperation. But outwardly, I must have been maintaining some semblance of control, because my brother was grinning at me like they’d just presented me with the greatest gift.

A four-year-old had lapped me twice and I officially left the last of my dignity back with my real shoes. I wasn’t going to see it again as long as I was wearing these wheeled bad boys.

Pat did appear to like animals way more than people. I had no doubt that she’d dangle a small toddler in front of an alligator if one came up the street.

I don’t regret giving you my heart, Phoebe. I just wish you’d taken more care with it.

My Review:

No serial killers were harmed, nabbed, or met during this story, although the main character of Phoebe had a somewhat disturbing lifelong fascination with them, to the extent of making them the focus of her doctoral dissertation on True Crime. Can you say, twisted sister?

These cleverly constructed and slyly paced storylines contained an odd dichotomy with an extremely angsty, graceless, and dark main character fleshed out and implanted into wryly humorous observations, heart-squeezing inner musings, a fledgling romance she wanted no part of, smoking hot sensual love scenes, and smirk-worthy comedic scenarios.

Phoebe was an acquired taste and difficult to fully appreciate most of the time as she was a smart yet prickly nerd with a sharp tongue. She was socially awkward and inwardly focused, yet self-sabotaging. I wanted to give her a pinch or ten and smack her with my Kindle more than once. Although she began to grow on me, bit by bit. Alicia Thomspon is a wily and insightful raconteur.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

…she’s generally pretty chilled, but on the rare occasions I’ve seen her riled, she’s been terrifying.

My Review:

This was a refreshingly light, whimsical, and enjoyable read from start to finish. It was easy to follow and I didn’t mind the predictability of some of the plot lines as it proved to be just what I needed. Their route was still engaging and fun while remarkably remaining upbeat and humorous despite the inevitable bumps in their road. The writing was breezy and delightfully amusing as it laced the tale together with wry humor, a best revenge break-up make-over, and a surprisingly easy holiday romance. I enjoyed these endearing characters as much as their storylines.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

She tried the front door, expecting it to be unlocked for some reason, but found that they’d locked up before leaving. Seems silly to think about securing a house when the thing you’d most want to secure it against already happened. That’s like coming in from a bad storm and putting on a rain coat.

A little known thing about crime scenes, which Dale had not been aware of previously herself, is that once the police are done asking questions, and stomping around photographing things, marking things of interest to test or dust for prints, they leave you with the mess. Anytime you hear of a neighborhood shooting, or a suicide, or an arson, just picture people, on the darkest days of their lives, having to clean up all that horror.

That’s a thing that you don’t fully realize, until you’ve lost someone very close to you. It’s a thing that’s almost impossible to even describe. The away-ness of death. The gone-ness of it? It’s otherworldly. Ghostly, as a whole. like you yourself are a little less part of the living, just for having taken in the cold loss that it leaves behind.

My Review:

Other than a rather gruesome scene at the beginning and the first few chapters dealing with the aftermath, the storylines are mainly one woman’s inner musings and personal struggle with grief. While there were glimmers of keen insights and her profoundly visceral reactions to touchstones, the vast majority of the writing ground down into a rather tedious recitation of the minutiae of her deep depression as her life fell apart. I was invested in the first third of the book and felt the potential, but not being a fan of constant angst, I found the remainder to be rather dull while I kept waiting for something to spark. Alas, the last two-thirds of the book failed to engage.