BLOG TOUR: The French Vendetta (Charles Holborne Legal Thriller Book 11) - Simon Michael

When London barrister Charles Holborne travels to rural France in 1970, he is hoping for a quiet escape. Instead, he finds a village still ruled by old loyalties, buried secrets, and unresolved guilt. 

A woman has disappeared. Accusations resurface. And the past,shaped by fear and silence during the Nazi occupation, begins to intrude on the present. As Holborne is drawn deeper into a case the village believes it has already judged, he discovers that justice here is fragile – and truth can be more dangerous than lies. 

Moving between wartime France and the uneasy peace decades later, The French Vendetta explores how communities rewrite history to survive, and what happens when moral compromise is mistaken for justice. 

A gripping historical crime novel about memory, prejudice, and the long shadow of war.

 

What did I think?

As a huge fan of the Charles Holborne legal thrillers series, I couldn't wait to read book 11, The French Vendetta, and I was not disappointed.  It's another outstanding instalment in this fantastic series and it also works particularly well as a standalone with it being set in France.

Charles and Sally are newly married and they are taking a well-deserved break in France with their young daughter Leia.  Things don't go quite to plan and when Sally is taken ill Charles contacts his father's old friend who offers his cottage in the countryside to recuperate.  Well this doesn't sound much like a legal thriller, I hear you say, but it wouldn't be a Charles Holborne book without a court case and this very unusual one is well worth waiting for.

The whole village is brought to life through Simon Michael's exquisite descriptive writing and I felt as if I was there with the Holbornes.  Tensions are high in post-war France as friends and neighbours became enemies during the war.  It is difficult to read about anti-Semitism but it's important to be reminded of such horrific prejudice and Simon Michael writes about it with sensitivity, honesty and respect.

I always love catching up with Charles and the balance between his personal and professional life is perfectly weighted as always.  Charles and Sally are characters that I have grown to love over the years and I feel very protective of them, especially when they are put in harm's way and Charles doesn't half get himself into some scrapes!

Bursting with intrigue and suspense, The French Vendetta is an unforgettable, thought-provoking and powerful novel that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.  To quote myself from book one, The Brief, The French Vendetta is "absolutely unputdownable", as is the whole series.

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the online book review tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: The Missing Wife (Mary Shelley Investigations book 1) - Donna Gowland

A young aspiring writer finds romance and mystery in Paris! For fans of Mary Shelley, Daphne du Maurier, Diane Setterfield and Laura Purcell.

A daring adventure or a foolhardy affair…?

1814, London

It isn’t easy being the daughter of the great Mary Wollstonecraft, harder still to navigate life without her. Sixteen-year-old Mary Godwin is desperate for excitement and trapped in a family she feels stifled in, under the watchful, disapproving glare of her stepmother, she is constantly battling for her father’s attention and approval.

So when the young Romantic poet, Percy Shelley, comes blazing into her life, she falls quickly and deeply in love with him. But Percy has plenty of demons. He is already married with a second child on the way, and he turns up to the Godwin family home with a bottle of laudanum, declaring he will end his life if he cannot be with Mary.

William Godwin forbids contact between them, but Mary’s heart aches for the man she believes to be her soulmate. And so she agrees to elope to Paris.

The excitement of the journey soon wears off and they arrive in the city weary, travel-sick and penniless, though luck finally seems to be on their side when they meet a man who offers them money to find his missing wife.

But with Mary becoming increasingly homesick and concerned for her future, will her love affair with Percy be all she had hoped for? Could the search for the missing wife set her on a new course of self-discovery?

Or will her first daring adventure prove to be her downfall…?

THE MISSING WIFE is the first book in the Mary Shelley Investigation series: thrilling Gothic murder mysteries with a tenacious literary heroine working as a female sleuth.

THE MARY SHELLEY INVESTIGATIONS SERIES:

Book One: The Missing Wife

Book Two: The Lost Girls

Book Three: Death at the Altar

 

What did I think?

WOW!!!  Donna Gowland has completely taken my breath away with her stunning first novel in the Mary Shelley Investigation series, The Missing Wife.  This book is UNMISSABLE!!! 

I didn't know a lot about Mary Shelley, other than that she wrote Frankenstein and was married to Percy Bysshe Shelley so I loved this fabulous reimagining of her life that is based on actual events.  

Mary Godwin is a teenager when she meets and falls in love with poet Percy Shelley.  The pair elope to Paris with Mary's stepsister in tow, leaving a lot of scandal and Percy's pregnant wife and young daughter behind.  Percy is such a dreamer and Mary is besotted with him, so when his money runs out they agree to look for a missing woman.

The mystery of the missing wife Claudine Lamont is completely gripping and it is mesmerising to follow in Percy and Mary's virtual footsteps where you can almost see the inspiration for Frankenstein appearing before your eyes, 

Completely breathtaking and absolutely brilliant, The Missing Wife is an outstanding novel that will appeal to readers of all genres: mystery, history, literary and romance.  I loved the real life characters and can't wait to read more in the series.  A very highly recommended read and a well-deserved five stars.  C'est magnifique!

I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the Love Books Tours bookstagram tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Waterstones

Amazon

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BLOG BLITZ: Poppy's Parisian Patisserie - Daisy James

Escape to chic and glamorous Paris!

When Poppy Phillipson loses her chocolate-making business in the Blossomwood Bay fire, she’s heart-broken; all her hopes and dreams wiped out in the space of an hour. As if that wasn’t enough, her last three dates were a complete disaster – one two-hour lecture on the intricacies of the off-side rule, one no-show, and an embarrassing abandonment mid-date – and she’s having a hard time not to take it personally.

So, when her brother asks her to come to the rescue of his friend Olivier Bourdain, owner of Pâtisserie Madeliene, following a freak skiing accident, she decides it’s the perfect way to escape the Devonshire drizzle and enjoy a petit sojourn from all-thing romance exploring the boutiques and boulevards of elegant Paris.

However, when she meets handsome French chef Fabien Dumont, with his sexy accent and dark brooding eyes, her determination to take a dating hiatus is severely tested. Should she concentrate on improving her skills as a pâtissière, or should she throw caution to the wind and embrace everything the City of Light has to offer… including the possibility of love?

Join Poppy as she heads to the dazzling city of Paris, and enjoy a story filled with delicious French pâtisserie and a soupçon of heart-warming romance.

 

What did I think?

I am absolutely loving Daisy James' Blossomwood Bay series and Poppy's Parisian Patisserie is another fabulous instalment, filled with romance, drama and delicious pâtisserie.  Don't worry if you haven't read any of the other books in the series as they can all be read as standalones.

Poppy lost her livelihood in the Blossomwood Bay fire so she's at a bit of a loose end when a wonderful opportunity comes her way.  So she jets off to Paris to work in a pâtisserie and learn from one of the best pâtissières in the city.  A local chef catches Poppy's eye and a spark of romance is ignited, but Fabien has a lot on his plate with strange deliveries appearing at his bistro and some awful reviews that threaten his business.  Somebody definitely has it in for him!

I love the little sprinkling of mystery that Daisy James adds to her books, it adds a huge dollop of drama to the mixing bowl of romance.  I thought Paris was brought to life beautifully through Daisy's writing and I felt as if I was walking along the banks of the Seine, experiencing all the sights, sounds and smells of Paris.

Poppy's Parisian Patisserie is a fun, romantic read that sweeps the reader off to Paris.  I really enjoyed my virtual visit to the City of Light and can't wait to read more about the lovely residents of Blossomwood Bay.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog blitz and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Purchase link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0CX9N1JLL

About the author:

Daisy James loves writing stories with strong heroines and swift-flowing plotlines. She especially likes to create sunshine-filled settings in exotic locations - the Caribbean, Tuscany, Cornwall, Provence - so she can spend her time envisioning her characters enjoying the fabulous scenery and sampling the local food and drink.

When not scribbling away in her peppermint-and-green summerhouse (garden shed), she spends her time sifting flour and sprinkling sugar and edible glitter. She loves gossiping with friends over a glass of something fizzy or indulging in a spot of afternoon tea - china plates and teacups are a must.

Daisy would love to hear from readers via her website – daisyjames.co.uk, or her Facebook page or you can follow her on Twitter @daisyjamesbooks, or on Instagram @daisyjamesstories.

Social Media Links – 

https://www.facebook.com/daisyjamesbooks/

https://www.instagram.com/daisyjamesstories/

https://x.com/daisyjamesbooks

Never Forgive You - Hilly Barmby

A glamorous French wedding 

Arriving at the station with her boyfriend Davey MacGregor and his twin sisters, Ailsa and Juliette, Hetty, a thriller book addict, picks up on family tension. But that’s natural before a big wedding, isn’t it? Hetty feels out of her depth. The family are wealthy and well- educated, whereas she is a council house girl. Davey’s cousin Isabelle is to marry Jean- Jacques, a French right-wing politician, in the family chateau. 

A fairy-tale event 

Ailsa is hesitant about coming back to France. Eight years ago, something happened that nearly destroyed the family. But that was dealt with, wasn’t it? Hetty has secrets of her own that she doesn’t want known. Ailsa is drawn back into the past. What, exactly, did happen? The expensive wedding is everything it should be, except when the groom is taken ill. The revellers carry on, but something is seriously wrong. 

Then things start to unravel 

The relationships between the family members fracture and secrets from the past start coming to the surface, with murderous results… Who is telling the truth? Who is out for revenge?

 

What did I think?

As you can tell from the fabulous cover, Never Forgive You is a dark and disturbing novel and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I loved the setting of a French wedding in a village where the MacGregors are clearly not welcome.  Something clearly happened in the past and I couldn't read fast enough to find out what it was.

It's evident from the start that this is one heck of a dysfunctional family but the true extent is not revealed until near the end.  I had my virtual running shoes on when I was reading and I read the book in two sittings as I couldn't put it down until I had discovered all of the secrets.

The family aren't terribly welcoming to Davey MacGregor's girlfriend Hetty and my blood was boiling as I read chapters from their point of view and found out what they really thought about Hetty.  Just who do they think they are?  With skeletons in their closet tapping on the door to get out, they really shouldn't be acting so aloof.

Compelling, dark and disturbing, Never Forgive You is a page-turning thriller that incensed and entertained me.  Revenge is indeed a dish that is best served cold.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Hobeck Books

Amazon

BLOG TOUR: The Ghost Ship (The Joubert Family Chronicles book 3) - Kate Mosse

The Barbary Coast, 1621. A mysterious vessel floats silently on the water. It is known only as the Ghost Ship. For months, its captain - Louise Reydon-Joubert - and her courageous crew has hunted pirates to liberate those enslaved during the course of their merciless raids.

But now the Ghost Ship is under attack – its hull splintered, its sails tattered and burnt, and the crew at risk of capture. But the bravest among them are not who they seem. Louise is fleeing a miscarriage of justice; her lover, Gilles Barenton, is at risk of being exposed - she is forced to masquerade as her brother. The stakes could not be higher: if arrested, they will be hanged for their crimes. Can they survive the journey and escape their fate?

A sweeping and epic queer love story, ranging from France in 1610 to Amsterdam and the Canary Islands in the 1620s, The Ghost Ship is a thrilling novel of adventure and buccaneering, love and revenge, stolen fortunes and hidden secrets on the High Seas. Most of all, it is a tale of defiant women in a man's world. 

What did I think?

I have been adding Kate Mosse novels to my book collection for a number of years but shockingly, The Ghost Ship is the first of her novels that I have read.  The Ghost Ship is the third book in The Joubert Family Chronicles and it can totally be read as a standalone as I absolutely loved it and didn't feel at all disadvantaged that I hadn't read the earlier books in the series.  

I love historical fiction and particularly enjoy seeing a cast of characters and maps in a book.  The Ghost Ship has both...and more; there's not just one map, there are three and that's without counting the maps on the beautiful endpapers.  The maps add an extra dimension to the fully immersive experience already created by Kate Mosse's vivid and evocative writing.   

Set in the early 17th century, Louise Reydon-Joubert is breaking down the barriers that hold women in their place.  Louise doesn't just own a ship, she's the captain of it and she is respected and loved by her crew.  Of course, there are some that would see Louise put back in her place and there's some delightful skulduggery afoot.

I was completely riveted by the whole story and the blossoming romance between Louise and Gilles is beautifully portrayed.  I am even more eager to read the earlier books in the series now and I will be returning to The Ghost Ship when I read the whole series.

Filled with adventure, passion and danger, The Ghost Ship is an outstanding historical fiction novel with a feminist slant.  It's an instant classic and very highly recommended.

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

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Freya's French Farmhouse (The Blossomwood Bay Series Book 2) - Daisy James

 

Welcome to Freya's French Farmhouse, the second book in a brand new series from the author of the Hummingbird Hotel series and the Cornish Confetti Agency series.

Escape to the French Riviera!

After losing her aromatherapy studio in the Blossomwood Bay fire, Freya Farnham finds herself at a loose end, especially when her trusty Renault decides that it’s time to head to the scrapyard in the sky. Now she has no excuse not to agree to her parents’ request to head to the pretty village of Saint-Julien to find out why her late Uncle Toby’s gorgeous French farmhouse isn’t selling, even when the real estate agent, Xavier Deschamps, advertises himself as "the best in the whole of Provence".

As soon as she arrives, Freya realises what the problem is, and so, with the help of handsome local car mechanic Jacques Jordan, she invests her last euro in a kaleidoscope of cleaning products and sets about transforming the drab and dusty dwelling into a chic and shiny château. Little did she know that in the process she would discover more about her family’s history than she bargained for.

Can she come to terms with her past? Or will the demons that have been snapping at her heels since childhood prevent her from seizing the chance to achieve a much-longed-for sense of belonging in the friendly community where she’s treated as one of their own?

Why not join Freya as she explores the lavender-infused Provençal countryside, and enjoy a trip filled with fun, fragrance, and delicious foodie treats with a dash of heart-warming romance thrown in for good measure!

What did I think?

No matter what the weather is like outside, you can always rely on Daisy James to whisk you off to sunny climes.  Freya's French Farmhouse is the second book in the Blossomwood Bay series but it can definitely be read as a standalone as it has its own contained storyline with cameo appearances from some of the characters we met in book 1 (Tilly's Tuscan Teashop). 

Freya inherited her love of fragrance from her late Uncle Toby so when she loses her aromatherapy studio in the Blossomwood Bay fire, she takes the opportunity to make one final visit to Uncle Toby's farmhouse in France before it is (hopefully) sold.  The farmhouse has been on the market for quite some time and although it is a little unloved and shabby, Freya can't understand why it hasn't sold and it's a mystery she's determined to get to the bottom of.

With family secrets to unearth, romance to blossom and skulduggery afoot, this is a hugely entertaining story in a truly gorgeous setting.  Daisy James writes in Full HD with the vivid sights, sounds and smells of Provence all vying for attention in my imagination.  There's always something unforgettable in Daisy's books that makes me smile and in this instance it's the 'procrastination pixies' - they always visit me too!  

I don't often share quotes from books but Daisy's writing is so beautiful that I wanted to share a small excerpt here as only Daisy James could make dust sound pretty:

"...the shafts of golden sunlight that sliced through the gaps in the shutters highlighting the dust particles as they danced a jolly jig to an inaudible tune."

I don't physically travel but I don't need a passport to experience the world through my books, and Daisy James paints such beautiful pictures through her writing that I feel as if I'm actually in the breathtaking location she has chosen to write about. 

I adored Freya's French Farmhouse and I didn't want my virtual visit to Provence to end, although I'm already looking forward to my virtual trip to Hawaii in the next Blossomwood Bay book: Holly's Hawaiian Holiday.  

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About the author:

Daisy James loves writing stories with strong heroines and swift-flowing plotlines. She especially likes to create sunshine-filled settings in exotic locations - the Caribbean, Tuscany, Cornwall, Provence - so she can spend her time envisioning her characters enjoying the fabulous scenery and sampling the local food and drink.

When not scribbling away in her peppermint-and-green summerhouse (garden shed), she spends her time sifting flour and sprinkling sugar and edible glitter. She loves gossiping with friends over a glass of something fizzy or indulging in a spot of afternoon tea - china plates and teacups are a must.

Social media links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/daisyjamesbooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009889775019

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The Seven Sisters (Seven Sisters Book 1) - Lucinda Riley

The Seven Sisters is a sweeping epic tale of love and loss by the international number one bestseller Lucinda Riley.

Maia D’Aplièse and her five sisters gather together at their childhood home – a fabulous, secluded castle situated on the shores of Lake Geneva – having been told that their beloved adoptive father, the elusive billionaire they call Pa Salt, has died.

Each of them is handed a tantalising clue to their true heritage – a clue which takes Maia across the world to a crumbling mansion in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil . . .

Eighty years earlier, in the Belle Époque of Rio, 1927, Izabela Bonifacio’s father has aspirations for his daughter to marry into aristocracy. But Izabela longs for adventure, and convinces him to allow her to accompany the family of a renowned architect on a trip to Paris. In the heady, vibrant streets of Montparnasse, she meets ambitious young sculptor Laurent Brouilly, and knows at once that her life will never be the same again.

The Seven Sisters is the first book in the spellbinding Seven Sisters series, inspired by the mythology of the famous star constellation. It is followed by The Storm Sister.

 

What did I think?

I have wanted to read The Seven Sisters for a while but with so many books, so little time I didn't know how I would ever fit in a 622 page novel, but I am SO glad that I made time for it.  It is breathtaking!

The Seven Sisters is inspired by Greek mythology and Pa Salt (Atlas) names his six adopted daughters after the daughters of Atlas and Pleione: Maia, Alcyone, Asterope, Celaeno, Taygete and Electra.  On Pa Salt's death, he leaves his daughters a letter with clues to their birth, should they wish to discover where they are from.  This book is Maia's story.  

I fell in love with this book the moment I picked it up; the writing is so beautiful and the story so compelling that I couldn't put it down.  It has a dual timeline with the story alternating between Maia in 2007 and her great-grandmother Izabela eighty years earlier in 1927.  Location plays a big part in The Seven Sisters and Geneva, Rio and Paris are painted so beautifully that I felt as if I was there.

The way that Lucinda Riley weaves historical facts with a captivating fictional story is absolutely breathtaking and I absolutely devoured every single beautifully written word, gathering interesting historical facts along the way.  I love how The Seven Sisters has the contained storyline of one sister but it's part of a much bigger picture and I can't wait to read more of the series.  

Captivating, breathtaking and epic, The Seven Sisters is a very highly recommended read - it's well worth making time to read this stunning novel.

I received a paperback to read and review for a Tandem Collective readalong and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK

Amazon

Sun Damage - Sabine Durrant

The heat is intense.

The secrets are stifling.

She just needs to escape . . .

Nine guests arrive at a remote villa in the south of France.

They know each other well. Or think they do.

But at least one of them has plenty to hide - and nowhere to run.

Under the relentless sun, loyalties will be tested, secrets revealed, and tensions pushed to the point of no return.

 

What did I think?

I've enjoyed some Sabine Durrant novels in the past and Sun Damage is no exception, although strangely the blurb doesn't seem to accurately reflect the novel.  So much so, that you'd be forgiven for thinking you'd picked up the wrong book when you first start reading.  Bear with it though, as this is a tense and claustrophobic novel that is so easy to read.

Ali and Sean are con artists, preying on the wealthy without a second thought.  When a con takes an unexpected turn, Ali sees her chance to escape Sean's clutches and finds herself masquerading as a chef for a British family who have rented a holiday villa in the south of France.  How the other half live, eh?

It's hard to actually like Ali as a character as she is a con artist so you're never sure who the real Ali is.  The family dynamic and the relationships between the guests was very interesting to read, as was Ali's relationship with Sean.  I found it fascinating how quickly and easily they managed to glean information about their marks, which is of course a lot easier in this digital age.

I didn't find it as twisty as I expected from the blurb, I think my imagination must have been working overtime as I worked out most of the plot quite early on and even expected more twists to be revealed from clues I thought I'd picked up, but they didn't materialise.  So, even though I was left with a few unanswered questions I still enjoyed the book.

Sun Damage is quite a slow burner but it's compulsively readable.  It's beautifully written as you would expect from a Sabine Durrant novel, with characters that you love to hate.  It's a good book to take on holiday to read by the pool and a stark reminder to not post your whole life on social media.

I received a gifted hardback copy from the publisher as part of the Tandem Collective readalong and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

BLOG TOUR: The Girls - Bella Osborne

In the 1970s, the girls were best friends sharing a house and good times: Zara, the famous diva actor; Val, the uptight solicitor; Jackie, the wild child and Pauline, the quirky introvert. Now they're in their twilight years, and Zara suggests that they live with her to support each other through old age. 

Initially, being housemates again is just as much fun as in their heyday. But then Zara reveals the real reason she asked them to move in with her, and suddenly things take a sinister turn. 

As the women confront their demons, they come under the spotlight of the press, the police and an angry parrot. With their lives spiralling out of control, can they save their friendships and each other?

 

What did I think?

The Girls, written by Bella Osborne and narrated by Julia Franklin, is a fabulous addition to the Isis Audio catalogue.  I was so deeply affected by the story of four old friends that I couldn't prevent tears rolling down my face at the end.  

It's such a refreshing change to have older characters, with this wonderful cast being in their 60s, 70s and 80s.  They have so much history, both together and individually, and I loved all of them, although I particularly wanted to reach out to introvert Pauline to give her a massive hug.  Jackie often made me laugh as she speaks before she thinks and Val is the sensible one who loves spreadsheets (like me).

Pauline, Val and Jackie all receive an invitation to their old friend Zara's surprise 80th birthday party.  Zara is a famous actress so the invitation is met with varied feelings: delight from Jackie so she can rub shoulders with the stars, indifference from Val as she is as cool as a cucumber, and horror from Pauline who doesn't feel like she fits in anywhere.  Also horror from Zara when she turns up as she doesn't want everyone to know her age!  The party, however, is set to change all of their lives.

The story is wonderful and it went in a direction that completely surprised me.  Listening to the characters interacting with each other is like putting on a comfy pair of old slippers as they all get on so well.  It's not all air kisses and compliments though as each character has some deep issues to work through, but a problem shared is a problem halved and there's nothing they won't do for each other...or is there?

The narration is stunning.  Julia Franklin brings each character to life with their own unique voice; I am so impressed as it sounds like each character is actually speaking and each voice is so consistent that I could recognise who was speaking.  Julia Franklin's talent is astonishing, although I have to say that her own voice is so soothing that I couldn't listen to the audiobook in bed as I kept dropping off to sleep before the chapter ended.

Bella Osborne is an author who is new to me but I'll definitely be looking out for more of her books.  There's an exquisite line in The Girls that describes the glinting light on the sea as being like paparazzi flashes and I just thought that was so beautiful and fitting for the story.

The Girls is poignant, heartwarming and surprisingly thought-provoking.  I'm going to miss the girls terribly, now that I have finished listening to the audiobook.

The Girls is narrated by Julia Franklin and is out on 1st May on Audible and other trade download platforms, on the digital library platform ulibrary, and on physical CD and MP3 both in libraries and from the website The Reading House: https://thereadinghouse.co.uk/

I chose to listen to an audiobook received from the publisher; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

The Reading House

Audible

Amazon

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Wish You Were Dead - Peter James

Wish You Were Dead is a Quick Read short story from bestselling author Peter James.

Roy Grace and his family have left Sussex behind for a week’s holiday in France. The website promised a grand house, but when they arrive the place is very different from the pictures. And it soon becomes clear that their holiday nightmare is only just beginning.

An old enemy of Roy, a lowlife criminal he had put behind bars, is now out of jail – and out for revenge. He knows where Roy and his family have gone on holiday. Of course he does. He’s been hacking their emails – and they are in the perfect spot for him to pay Roy back . . . 

What did I think?

I'm way behind with my reading of the fantastic Roy Grace series but I've wanted to try a Quick Reads book for quite some time.  So as 2021 is the 15th anniversary of the Quick Reads programme, which makes reading entertaining and accessible for less confident readers, I thought it was an excellent time to try one. 

At 124 pages long, Wish You Were Dead is a fantastic novella that possibly comes after book 17 in the Roy Grace series.  As I've only read two so far (shocking, I know), this was quite a jump in Roy Grace's personal story for me, however, the main storyline is completely gripping and thrilling which makes it very easy to read the book in one sitting.

Although the Roy Grace series is so very well established now, I don't think readers will feel terribly disadvantaged if they jump into the series at this stage.  This little intriguing insight into the Roy Grace series is highly likely to make new readers want to discover more of the series and that's an absolutely fabulous result for the wonderful Quick Reads initiative.  

I thoroughly enjoyed Wish You Were Dead and it's given me the nudge I needed to tackle my leaning tower of Roy Grace novels.

I received a gifted ARC to read and review; all opinions are my own.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

BLOG TOUR: Fresh Water for Flowers - Valérie Perrin, translated by Hildegarde Serle

 

Violette Toussaint is the caretaker at a cemetery in a small town in Bourgogne. Her daily life is lived to the rhythms of the hilarious and touching confidences of random visitors and her colleagues—three gravediggers, three groundskeepers, and a priest. 

Violette’s routine is disrupted one day by the arrival of police chief Julien Seul, wishing to deposit his mother’s ashes on the gravesite of a complete stranger.  Julien is not the only one to guard a painful secret: his mother’s story of clandestine love breaks through Violette’s carefully constructed defences to reveal the tragic loss of her daughter, and her steely determination to find out who is responsible.  

An unforgettable story of love and loss told through the life of a woman who believes obstinately in happiness. Touching on the deepest aspects of human life, Fresh Water for Flowers brings out the exceptional and the poetic in the ordinary and reminds us of the life affirming value of kindness. 

What did I think?

I don't think I would have picked up this book from its title alone and that would have been a terrible tragedy as it's an absolutely stunning novel.  The title may be a bit odd but then so is the setting of the book: a cemetery in a small town in France.  I've certainly never read a book set in a cemetery before!

I loved this book from the very first page as Valérie Perrin transports the reader to the Brancion-en-Chalon cemetery and we are introduced to its cemetery keeper Violette Toussaint.  Of course you naturally wonder how Violette came to be a cemetery keeper and why she seems so content in this strange location.  The unravelling of Violette's personal story is so beautifully done as it interweaves  between daily life in the cemetery and anecdotes of past funerals.  It may sound morbid but it's actually incredibly moving and I love how Violette makes notes of each funeral showing how varied people can be in their grief.

Violette gets a strange visitor one day in the form of Julien Seul who is honouring his mother's wishes of having her ashes placed in a particular tomb.  This may sound like a standard request, however, the tomb's current occupant is a stranger to Julien.  The secret to this mystery lies within his mother's journals which Julien shares with Violette.  It's not so much the content of the journals but the sharing of the story that draws the pair together and Julien's appearance in Violette's life feels like fate.

The chapters are quite short (there are 94 chapters over 474 pages) and Violette's story is so engaging that I found myself racing through the book.  I loved the unusual quotes at the start of each chapter, it's not explained what they are but I made the assumption that they are plaques on the various gravestones in the cemetery.  I think the majority of them are fictional quotes written by the author although I recognised the 'Do not stand at my grave and weep' poem.  It was a lovely touch though and I enjoyed reading the moving and often wise words.

As well as the chapter quotes there are some outstanding nuggets of wisdom in the prose.  I don't often share quotes from books but this one really resonated with me so I had to share it to remind myself of its brilliance.

'As soon as your thoughts are turning dark, take your pruning shears and cut back those troubles.'

So beautifully written, this heartfelt and poignant novel will stay with me long after I turned the final page.  Hildegarde Serle's translation is impeccable and you could be forgiven for forgetting that this novel was originally written in French.  I am so glad that I have discovered this very unusual and poignant hidden gem of a book and I definitely want to read it again.  I loved it and wholeheartedly recommend it.

I can't thank Midas PR enough for inviting me to take part in the blog tour and sending me an ARC to read and review; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

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About the author:

Valérie Perrin is a photographer and screenwriter who works with (and is married to) Claude Lelouch.  Her first novel, Les Oubliés du Dimanche, has won numerous prizes, including the 2016 Lire Élire and Poulet-Malassis prizes. Fresh Water for Flowers is her first novel to be translated into English and an international sensation.

About the translator:

Hildegarde Serle graduated in French from Oxford University. After working as a newspaper subeditor in London for many years, she obtained the Chartered Institute of Linguists Diploma in Translation. She is the translator of A Winter’s Promise and The Missing of Clairdelune, atmospheric, absorbing tale.

Follow the tour:

The Long Way Home - Fanny Blake

A family secret, a mysterious legacy, and a journey that will change everything…

 

When Isla, a 65-year-old grandmother, is left nothing but an old painting in her mother’s will, while her sisters and aunt inherit the estate, she is devastated. Close to retirement, getting ready to live on her own terms, the last thing she expects at this time of her life is such turmoil. So, to find an explanation for her mother’s rejection, she embarks on a road-trip.

 

But, right at the last moment, she’s forced to take her sullen – and, in her view, impossible – 14-year-old granddaughter Charlie with her. Cramped together in Isla’s car with her smelly old dog, these ill-assorted travelling companions set off to uncover some shattering and life-changing family truths at the same time as learning to love each other…

 

The Long Way Home is set in the UK and 1950s Paris where the story really begins, spanning four generations of women and the secrets that get passed down through them.

 

What did I think?

It's actually really refreshing to read a novel with an older protagonist as it just shows that it doesn't matter what age you are, you are still faced with the same problems and suffer the same insecurities.  In 65-year-old Isla's case, just because you're older doesn't mean you're wiser and it's no surprise that Isla is thrown into a tizz when she is treated differently to her sisters in their mother's will.

Isla has always had a strained relationship with her mother but that doesn't explain why her two sisters and her aunt should inherit her mother's house when all she has been left is a painting.  As you would expect, there are one or two arguments among the siblings so Isla decides to take a trip back home to Scotland to patch up the relationship between her sisters and hopefully get to the bottom of the mystery of her inheritance.  

Unfortunately, Isla has to take an unwilling companion with her in the form of her 14-year-old granddaughter Charlie.  A typical teenager, Charlie is glued to her phone and barely says a positive word, making the trip more of a chore than a pleasure.  As the trip progresses it was lovely to see Isla and Charlie's relationship grow and it felt like Charlie unfurled like a flower with just a little bit of nurturing and some TLC.  That is until Isla's new boyfriend turned up to upset the balance.

I really liked Isla but I cringed at some of the decisions she made, although it's understandable with so much going on in her life.  I also loved May's story set in 1950s Paris and thought I had it all worked out but I was delighted to find that I was completely wrong.  Fanny Blake's wonderfully vivid writing brings her characters to life and I felt like I was drinking coffee in the cafés of Paris and actually sitting in the car with Isla, Charlie and stinky Jock.  

Beautifully heartwarming, captivating and intriguing, The Long Way Home is a fabulous summer read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon