A Different Kind of Lovely - Petra March

"A man with a damaged soul fell in love with a ballerina with a broken body."

When Neal Medwin glimpses Mina Automne for the first time, he's a man whose soul is darkened with memories of a painful past, whereas Mina is a vibrant, strong, young woman. She's a determined ballerina who's carefully planning and painting her life.

Neal steps into her existence and threatens to shatter Mina's plans with an impossible request.

Mina can't help the fragile man who's invading her home, even though their parents used to be close friends and she knows of Neal's hurtful background. She allows him to linger within her lovely and artistic world, however, hoping he might find some peace and solace.

Slowly, their conflict turns into friendship, and eventually into love, until a terrible discovery ruins Mina's projects and forces her to let go of all her dreams, and of her sweet, damaged man.

Neal is unable to fight for Mina and for the unripe love they share, because he's not ready to leave his past behind. He's not strong enough - not yet.

What did I think?

Petra March has such a dreamlike quality to her writing that it's the perfect escapism from our dark and dismal lives (I speak for myself, of course).  I was honoured to try my hand at editing and read an early draft of A Different Kind of Lovely but it was clear that the quality of Petra March's writing shone through every single page.

Neal and Mina are broken in different ways, so it is natural that they would be drawn to one another.  I loved how Neal referred to Mina as his butterfly, both may appear fragile and beautiful on the outside but they are tougher than you think underneath.  What Mina didn't realise at first is how Neal managed to enter her life.  It wasn't an accident that he was in that place at the time he met her, although it was a tragic accident that ultimately brought them together.  I'm being deliberately vague as to get the most out of these books, you should really read them all in order.  The characters are linked in such a way that it's so breathtaking to behold the hand of fate at work.

I was delighted to see some of our favourite characters from the early books and it's like they have grown up in front of our eyes.  I welcomed them as I would an old friend and felt as if I was hovering on the outskirts of their midst seeing events unfold.

Heartbreaking, ethereal and dreamlike, A Different Kind of Lovely will awaken your senses and encourage you to hold on to your dreams.  The strength shown by Mina's character was both uplifting and courageous and it just shows that a person can appear fragile and breakable on the outside but be so very strong and vigorous underneath, and vice versa of course.

Do read these books in consecutive order to get the most out of them, it will really make a world of difference to understand the characters' history and see their development.  Pure escapism with a dreamlike quality, open your heart to Petra March's ethereal writing and her exquisite characters.

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

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Anything You Do Say - Gillian McAllister

Gone Girl meets Sliding Doors in this edge-of-your-seat thriller

Joanna is an avoider. So far she has spent her adult life hiding bank statements and changing career aspirations weekly.

But then one night Joanna hears footsteps on the way home. Is she being followed? She is sure it's him; the man from the bar who wouldn't leave her alone. Hearing the steps speed up Joanna turns and pushes with all of her might, sending her pursuer tumbling down the steps and lying motionless on the floor.

Now Joanna has to do the thing she hates most - make a decision. Fight or flight? Truth or lie? Right or wrong?

What did I think?

Oh wow!  What Gillian McAllister has created here is nothing short of exceptional - two novels in one in only her second book!  I'm sure many an established author would shy away from such a challenge with the others wishing they had written it.

If I had to describe Joanna in one word it would be 'imaginative', so when she hears footsteps behind her after a night out she thinks it is the man she spurned in the bar.  As the footsteps get closer, Joanna reaches out and pushes her would-be attacker down the steps she is about to descend.  His momentum propels him forward at speed and he lies bent and broken at the bottom of the steps.  In that split second, Joanna must decide whether to run or call for help.  In a rare treat for readers, Gillian McAllister shows us the journey down both paths that Joanna will follow if she reveals or conceals her crime.

I thought it might get confusing with alternate 'reveal' and 'conceal' chapters but it really doesn't.  In conceal, Joanna is eaten up with guilt and her lie snowballs out of control and threatens to crush her under its weight like the boulder chasing Indiana Jones through the tunnel.  Even when Joanna reveals her crime she still can't help getting tangled up in a web of lies and her whole defence revolves around the one thing she is lying about: how long she hesitated before raising the alarm.

I do firmly believe that we have particular paths we are destined to follow in our lives.  Even though sometimes there may be a fork in the road or roadworks causing a diversion, we ultimately get back on the path we should be on.  Joanna's journey is just like this as whichever path she follows, reveal and conceal will merge together at the end but will leave very different casualties in their wake.

Anything You Do Say is such a thought-provoking and hugely entertaining book.  At her fork in the road, I felt Joanna's fear and truly believed that she was afraid for her life so I can completely understand why she lashed out like she did.  It's easy to say that you would rush to help an injured person, but would you be in such a rush if you thought that person meant to do you harm and may still be a danger to you?  It's hard to say how you would react in such circumstances; with that spike of adrenaline and a thudding heartbeat in your ears, what would you do?  This is the question that I'm sure every single reader of Anything You Do Say will ponder for many days, weeks, months and even years after reading this outstanding novel.

Oh you've upped the ante now, Gillian McAllister!  I'm not sure how you plan to follow this but I can't wait to find out.  You had me hooked with Everything But The Truth but Anything You Do Say is so extraordinary that it completely blew me away.  This book is going to be a HUGE success so make sure you pick up a copy and see what everyone is raving about.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

Follow the tour:

A Dream of Lilies (A Touch of Cinnamon Book 3) - Petra March

Nicholas Baudin lives in Toulouse, France, where he owns a small coffee place, Le Petit Café. His life is apparently tranquil, and made of small joys and simple habits. In truth, though, this young man's soul is troubled with memories of a painful event.

Then, on a bright spring day, Nicholas meets a strange, enchanting young woman with white hair, and pale blue eyes. Her name is Lily Brightwell. She is an actress who captivates crowds with her talent and her stories.

As Nicholas begins to fall for the young artist, his life turns into something unexpected and lovely.

What did I think?

The 'A Touch of Cinnamon' series is getting better and better and, albeit this is a short novella, it is most definitely my favourite book so far.  There is something so very poetic about the way it is written as it perfectly blends romance and tragedy.  Although it is part of a series, it could definitely be read as a standalone as enough history of the characters is relayed as a refresher.  For those of us who have read A Veil of Glass and Rain and All the Skies I Will Not See, this was another beautiful and captivating part of the story.

The moment when Nicholas first sets eyes on Lily was absolutely breathtaking.  It is like he is drawn to her by an invisible magnetic field and no matter what they do or where they go, they are meant to be together.  Lily is living with the pain of losing her first love, David, in such terrible, tragic circumstances.  She needs to let go of David before she can love again and, as she faces up to what happened to David, she finds that she has been linked to Nicholas way before she even knew of his existence.

I absolutely love the way that Petra March links all of her stories together, with coincidence and fate playing a starring role.  The stories are so moving with deeply defined and emotionally damaged characters that leap off the page as if you are reading in 3D.  Their thoughts and feelings are laid bare so we feel as if we know the characters inside and out.

A Dream of Lilies is a stunning addition to this remarkable series; A Touch of Cinnamon is a captivating series of love, fate and destiny that would melt even the coldest of hearts.  Each book reads like an act of a play which, when read in its entirety, will have your heart calling for an encore.  Bravo!

  

I received this e-book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon