BLOG TOUR: Let the Bells Ring Out - Milly Johnson

Seven people, four days and a snowy Christmas on board a luxury sleeper train. This festive season getting away from it all takes on a new meaning…

The Yorkshire Belle is a glamorous steam train all decked out for an escapist festive getaway. It is not supposed to be where a group of people, all trying to get to their destinations for the holidays, will spend their Christmas. 

Seven people, each with their own hopes and dreams, secrets and sorrows, board the train as strangers, but as the snow keeps falling and they realise they are going nowhere fast, they are forced to slow down and embrace the present.

This Christmas on board the Yorkshire Belle, will the friendships they make change their lives forever?

 

What did I think?

I need to apologise to Milly Johnson as I simply cannot write a review that will do justice to this fabulous book, but I'll give it a try.  Also, I need to say sorry (not sorry) to my other Milly Johnson books as Let the Bells Ring Out is my new favourite.

Milly Johnson is one of my favourite authors and her new book is always guaranteed to be a five star read before I've even read the first word.  This might sound blasé but believe me she earns every single star and MORE!

If you could imagine your favourite Christmas movie, your favourite festive read and your favourite Yuletide treat all wrapped up in beautiful paper with a huge bow and lots of love from Milly Johnson then you are close to the feeling I got when I read Let the Bells Ring Out.  I'm getting goose bumps just thinking about it now.

Beautifully written, heartwarming and fabulously festive, Let the Bells Ring Out is a truly wonderful novel that is filled with Christmas spirit and bursting with the magic of Christmas.  I intend to read it again over the upcoming festive season and for many years to come.   Five stars just aren't enough for this magnificent book - a very highly recommended read.

I received a beautiful signed hardback to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Same Time Next Week - Milly Johnson

Welcome to Spring Hill, home to a square of independent shops and cafes, a thriving local community and nearby the newest venture, Ray’s Diner. Here a group of women meet once a week over a cup of something warming.

 

Amanda is primary carer to her elderly mother and one of the only women in a male-dominated company. Used to being second-best all her life, is this her time to finally break ranks and shine?

 

Sky works at the repair shop, patching up old teddy bears, and their owners’ hearts. But her heart beats for the one man who is strictly off-limits.

 

Mel has been a loyal and loving wife to Steve for thirty years. Then when he goes to his old school reunion, life as she knows it will never be the same again.

 

Erin is trying to get over a traumatic loss where her guilt weighs more than her grief. Can she find the first step to healing lies in sharing an hour with strangers once a week? 

 

Astrid is feeling in need of a change and a challenge. But when a fantastic opportunity presents itself, who is around to convince her she is worthy enough to take the risk?

 

Can these women find the answers to their worries, acceptance, courage, support here? Join them at the same time next week to find out…

 

What did I think?

Milly Johnson is one of my favourite authors and her new book, Same Time Next Week, is a fabulous as the author herself.  I could never pick a favourite Milly Johnson book as I love them all but Same Time Next Week would be a definite contender.

There are a lot of characters to get to know and you certainly do get to know them throughout the book.  I loved them all as I laughed, cried and fist-bumped the air with them.  I was totally invested in their lives and I am missing them so much I want to read the book all over again right now.

It's so good to have older protagonists who are coping with changes in their bodies and their lives.  Milly tells it like it is and she is so right about the whatdoyoucallit...the menowhatsit thingy.  I thought it was just me who forgot words and left sentences unfinished.  I really must thank Milly for making me feel not quite so abnormal.

This book has everything: lots of drama, bucketfuls of emotion and a huge heart.  It's like a soap opera in a book and I didn't want it to end.  An easy five stars for another outstanding Milly Johnson book and a very highly recommended read.

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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BLOG TOUR: Together, Again - Milly Johnson

Sisters Jolene, Marsha and Annis have convened at their beautiful family home, Fox House, following the death of their mother, the tricky Eleanor Vamplew. Born seven years apart, the women are more strangers than sisters.

Jolene, the eldest, is a successful romantic novelist who writes about beautiful relationships even though her own marriage to the handsome and charming Warren is complicated.

Marsha, the neglected middle child, has put all of her energy into her work, hoping money will plug the gap in her life left by the man who broke her young heart.

Annis is the renegade, who left home aged sixteen and never returned, not even for the death of their beloved father Julian. Until now.

So when the sisters discover that their mother has left everything to Annis in her will, it undermines everything they thought they knew. Can saying their final goodbyes to Eleanor bring them together again?

Together, Again is the story of truths uncovered and lies exposed, of secrets told – and kept. It is a novel about sister helping sister to heal from childhood scars and finding in each other support, forgiveness, courage and love.

 

What did I think?

Together, Again is Milly Johnson's 20th novel and what a treat she has in store for her readers.  There's something so very comforting about reading a Milly Johnson novel, even though they tackle emotional and often difficult situations.  So make a cuppa, put your feet up and lose yourself in this heartwarming book.

The three Vamplew sisters have never really been close and they haven't been all together since their youngest sister left home at the tender age of 16.  When their mother dies, the sisters find themselves back in their childhood home and whilst they may have arrived as strangers, they might very well leave as friends.

I loved all three sisters, both their individual characters and the story behind them.  All of their backstories contain secrets and there's nothing better in a novel than buried secrets waiting to burst out of the page.  There's lots to discover in the Vamplew family history and I couldn't read fast enough to experience all the shocks and surprises that this fabulous book had in store for me.

Poignant, heartwarming and as fabulous as the author herself, Together, Again is a delightfully emotional novel that has dark secrets at its heart but is perfectly balanced by the warmth of sisterly love.  Highly recommended.

Many congratulations to Milly Johnson on such a marvellous achievement - here's to the next 20!

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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BLOG TOUR: The Woman in the Middle - Milly Johnson

 

Shay Bastable is the woman in the middle. She is part of the sandwich generation – caring for her parents and her children, supporting her husband Bruce, holding them all together and caring for them as best she can.

 

Then the arrival of a large orange skip on her mother’s estate sets in motion a cataclysmic series of events which leads to the collapse of Shay’s world. She is forced to put herself first for a change.

 

But in order to move forward with her present, Shay needs to make sense of her past. And so she returns to the little village she grew up in, to uncover the truth about what happened to her when she was younger. And in doing so, she discovers that sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to find the only way is up.

What did I think?

I experienced a wealth of emotions when reading The Woman in the Middle; I laughed, cried, fumed and loved every single page.  Milly Johnson writes with so much vivacity that my kindle was virtually thrumming with life and I was enjoying it so much that I really didn't want the story to end.

I'd never really thought about it before but Milly is so right about a lot of women being part of the sandwich generation: stuck in the middle caring for ageing parents and growing children.  Shay Bastable spreads herself as thinly as a dieter buttering bread as she cares for her elderly mother, does everything she can to support her husband and makes sure that she is always on hand for her grown-up children.  So who cares for Shay?  Nobody!

As events see Shay's world evolving and changing, she decides to face up to her past and returns to the village of her childhood.  I adored this part of the story, especially Shay catching up with old friends and enemies.  It made me think about how much we hold on to things that happened to us at school.  Many people have encountered school bullying and it's something that is so difficult to forgive and forget, but perhaps knowing the reasons behind the bullying could make us see things in a different light.  It's food for thought anyway.

Milly Johnson really knows how people tick and she creates such relatable and believable characters that I found myself caring about each one of them (apart from Bruce, of course).  The Woman in the Middle is a heartfelt and engaging novel that evoked so many emotions in me.  It's a truly wonderful book and another stunning novel from Milly Johnson.  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

The Woman in the Middle by Milly Johnson is out now, published by Simon & Schuster in hardback, eBook and audiobook. Milly will be joining My Weekly for a virtual event on Thursday 21st October at 7pm – register for free here.

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