BLOG TOUR: The Book-Lovers' Retreat - Heidi Swain

One long summer. One perfect setting. Can fiction inspire real life…?

Sometimes a book grabs you by the heart and grows to mean everything to you. That’s what Hope Falls is to friends Emily, Rachel and Tori. So, when they get the chance to spend a whole summer at the cottage in Lakeside where the film adaptation was located, they know it is going to be the holiday of a lifetime.

Spending six weeks away will give them a chance to re-evaluate their life choices. For Emily to decide which way her career will go – the safe route, or the more risky creative option? And for Rachel to decide whether to move in with her partner Jeremy. Then Tori has to drop out at the last moment, and her space is offered to another Hope Falls afficionado, Alex. 

But when Alex turns out not to be who they expected, the holiday takes an unforeseen turn. And as the summer develops, so does their friendship. Could this be where they uncover their future selves, find love in all its forms and where their lives will change course forever…?

 

What did I think?

I love Heidi Swain books and I absolutely adored The Book-Lovers' Retreat - all her books are fabulous but I think this one is my favourite so far.  The characters, the setting, the writing and the plot are all perfect and I thoroughly enjoyed my virtual visit to the Lake District.

It's such a wonderful story of three friends who have been planning to visit the film location from the screenplay of their favourite book: Hope Falls.  I can just imagine their excitement as their dream trip to the idyllic cottage in the Lake District becomes a reality.  When one of the friends drops out the whole trip is thrown into jeopardy, but luckily there's a lot of Hope Falls fans waiting in reserve...all Emily and Rachel have to do is pick one of them.

I loved everything about this novel and I feel like a Hope Falls fan myself as The Book-Lovers' Retreat is a book I want to read over and over again.  All the characters have so much depth and there's a lot to discover about each of them, as well as a fabulous storyline as they live their dream in Lakeside.

Hugely entertaining, incredibly compelling and absolutely wonderful, The Book-Lovers' Retreat is a book-lover's dream: I don't think you'll find a reader who won't love a book about a book.  Very highly recommended - I'm putting it on my favourites shelf and I can't wait to read it again.

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

My rating:

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The Puppet Show (Washington Poe #1) - M. W. Craven

A serial killer is burning people alive in the Lake District's prehistoric stone circles. He leaves no clues and the police are helpless. When his name is found carved into the charred remains of the third victim, disgraced detective Washington Poe is brought back from suspension and into an investigation he wants no part of . . .

Reluctantly partnered with the brilliant, but socially awkward, civilian analyst, Tilly Bradshaw, the mismatched pair uncover a trail that only he is meant to see. The elusive killer has a plan and for some reason Poe is part of it.

As the body count rises, Poe discovers he has far more invested in the case than he could have possibly imagined. And in a shocking finale that will shatter everything he's ever believed about himself, Poe will learn that there are things far worse than being burned alive...

What did I think?

I had heard so many people raving about The Puppet Show that I bought two copies; one for me and one for a gift.  I was so confident that it was going to be good that it's the first time a recipient has read the book before me.  Actually, 'good' isn't a word I'd use to describe The Puppet Show; it's far too mediocre.  Exceptional, outstanding and magnificent come closer to describing how completely brilliant it is.

I love how it's a DS Washington Poe book but it is his soon-to-be civilian partner, Tilly Bradshaw, we are introduced to first.  I've always been described as very literal so I loved Tilly right from the start; she even loves numbers as much as me!  Tilly takes literal to the extreme, however, but it just makes her more endearing.  It's absolute genius to pair her with Poe, a gruff Northerner who pushes (and oversteps) the boundaries to see justice served.  After stepping so far over the line he couldn't see it with binoculars, Poe finds himself brought back from suspension when a serial killer runs rampage in Cumbria.

Written in a refreshing no-nonsense way, M. W. Craven tells it like it is in this outstanding first instalment of the Washingon Poe series.  With his dogged determination and disregard for authority, you can't help but compare Washington Poe to Harry Bosch.  Poe is definitely someone that Bosch would like and admire, and Bosch could maybe even learn a thing or two from him.

This has to be one of the best starts to a series I have ever read and if the only way is up, then I can't wait to read more of the Washington Poe series.  Luckily, at the time of writing, I already have the next two instalments waiting impatiently on my Kindle.  Absolutely superb, The Puppet Show isn't just my book of the year, it's my book of the decade.  It's well deserving of a full 5 stars and then some.  So very highly recommended, it's a book that you won't be able to put down and a series to which you can't wait to return.

My rating:

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The Mistake I Made - Paula Daly

Synopsis:

We all think we know who we are.

What we’re capable of.

Roz is a single mother, a physiotherapist, a sister, a friend. She’s also desperate.

Her business has gone under, she’s crippled by debt and she’s just had to explain to her son why someone’s taken all their furniture away.

But now a stranger has made her an offer. For one night with her, he’ll pay enough to bring her back from the edge.

Roz has a choice to make.

What did I think?

This is the third Paula Daly novel that I have read in the last few months and although I enjoyed it, it didn't command my attention from the first page like Just What Kind of Mother Are You? and Keep Your Friends Close.

Roz is quite a likeable character and her frustration was evident when dealing with her waste of space ex-husband.  Roz has made some bad decisions in her life and accepting the offer that she gets from Scott Elias is the worst decision she could make.  I understand why she did it, and could feel her relief as her bills started to get paid, but she didn't realise that Scott didn't just want to hire her by the hour, he wanted to own her and would go to any lengths to do so.

I liked Roz's son, George - a chip off the old block, already starting to make bad decisions for himself, thinking he could help Roz out. He's a very likeable little boy and he gets on well with the neighbours as he likes to play with their little dog, Foxy.  I do like the loveable dog characters that make appearances in Paula's novels.

When Roz's boss, Wayne, goes missing it was lovely to see DS Joanne Aspinall and DS Ron Quigley make an appearance, with Ron keeping his stomach happy as always.  I was hoping to see them at some point but I didn't know how they were going to be introduced, which is where Paula Daly's writing is so good - springing surprises on us.  Paula is the queen of the unexpected.

Overall a good read but not as much of a page turner as I've come to expect from Paula Daly.  It is, however, a really good psychological thriller, with a Fatal Attraction edge to it, as we see what Scott is prepared to do to get Roz all to himself.  Paula Daly really delves into the human psyche in all of her books and this one is no exception.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Released 27th August - pre-order now from Amazon

Just What Kind of Mother Are You? - Paula Daly

 

Synopsis:

No family is perfect.

A husband, three children and a full-time job, so many plates to keep spinning.

No wonder you forgot you were supposed to be looking after your friend's daughter.

But no one has seen her since yesterday.

And she's not the first to go missing from your small town.

So who's hiding something?

What did I think?

In Paula Daly's page turning debut novel, set in the wonderful wintry Lake District, we encounter every parent's nightmare - a missing child.  Where this novel stands out from the rest is the fact that Lucinda went missing when she was supposed to be in the care of her best friend's Mum, Lisa.  I really felt Lisa's anguish pouring out of the page as she crushed herself under the weight of blame.  I willed her on, together with her husband Joe, when she found the courage to face Kate and Guy.

When suspicions turn towards Lucinda's Dad, Guy, I knew he had something to hide and, I have to admit, I did suspect what it was but I didn't get it 100% right and I certainly didn't see the other twists coming.  

I loved the inclusion of the scenes at Lisa's animal shelter and when she was out on a rescue visit; it was written with such feeling and was cleverly linked to the abduction story.  These shelters do such amazing work and I thought it was brilliant that the author managed to raise awareness of the plight of such establishments whilst dealing with such a tense storyline.

We are also introduced to DC Joanne Aspinall, her colleague DS Ron Quigley and her auntie Mad Jackie - characters who also make an appearance in Keep Your Friends Close.  I do like to see some of the same characters in books as you feel like you get to know them.  These characters inject a bit of humour into a serious storyline - there are some hilarious pages discussing alcohol consumption and Ron says he's not much of a boozer, he just has five or six pints on an evening!

Paula Daly is certainly one to watch - her writing brings the characters to life and with more twists than a Curly Wurly, I can't put her books down and read this in one sitting (thanks to Tempur for providing the cushion).

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Keep Your Friends Close - Paula Daly

Synopsis

What do you do when your best friend steals your life?

You've been friends since university, when you became the people you are today.

You don’t see each other enough but when you do it’s as if you’ve never been apart.

She's one of the family. You would trust her with your life, your children, your husband.

And when your daughter is rushed to hospital, you’re grateful that she’s stepping in at home, looking after things.

But your best friend isn’t who you think she is. You’re about to find out just how wrong you were...

What did I think?

Wow!  This was a page turner and I started and finished it on the same day.

Natty and Sean seem like the perfect couple.  They have been together since they were teenagers and despite parental pressure to break up they are still together 16 years later.  Eve, Natty's friend from university, turns up one day just as Natty gets a call that her youngest daughter has taken ill on a school trip in France.  Natty rushes off to France leaving Eve to look after her eldest daughter and her husband.

Eve's destruction of Natty's life had me reeling - I was disappointed at how easily Sean was taken in by her and was cheering Natty on when the red mist descended.  Natty was like a lioness defending her cubs and willing to do anything to keep them safe.  When she started to investigate Eve's life, you just know she'd going to overturn a stone with lots of nasty little secrets under it.  I couldn't turn the pages fast enough in anticipation of the final showdown.

The Lake District setting was sublime and sometimes I felt like I was driving down the winding roads and gazing across Lake Windermere.  The blossoming love between Natty's Dad and his home help was a really nice part of the story and had its own twists and turns.  I even laughed out loud at the mention of Sean's parents' breakup and his Mum's explanation for why his Dad left her.

A fantastic psychological thriller - prepare to lose a day when reading this book!

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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