BLOG TOUR: A Sky Full of Stars - Dani Atkins

 

He'd have done everything differently if he'd known she'd be gone so soon...

When Lisa married Alex, she gave his life meaning. She was a professional astronomer: a stargazer. And when she gazed at Alex, she saw that behind his tough exterior was a man she could love.

Alex, Lisa and their young son Connor made a happy little universe. But when Lisa dies suddenly, their universe is destroyed. Alex is shattered by loss, and overwhelmed by the difficulties of being a single father to a six-year-old boy.

Then Alex meets four strangers. Two men and two women, who never met Lisa, but whose lives changed profoundly because she died. As Alex hears their stories, he begins to realise the world may not be as cruel and senseless as it seems. Perhaps, after all, the future is written in the stars...

What did I think?

Oh my goodness, this beautiful book should have waterproof pages as I blubbed all the way through it.  As I have previously read and loved one of Dani Atkins' books, I have to admit that I picked this book up without reading the synopsis as I just knew I'd love it...and I wasn't wrong!

So with the story being a complete mystery to me, I was hit with the massive shock of Lisa dying (this isn't a spoiler, it's in the blurb) and my emotions were really put through the wringer as I was powerless to prevent my tears from falling just a few chapters in...and they didn't stop until well after I'd turned the final page!  

I don't want to accidentally reveal any of the wonderful story so I'm going to keep my review purposefully brief, other than to say that the writing is stunning and the beautifully drawn characters really touched my heart.  I've made no secret of the fact that I cried throughout this book but it's not all tears of sadness, it's just so emotional and poignant.  That's why I chose to read the book based solely on it being a Dani Atkins novel as she's such a talented author and her books are completely unforgettable.

Hauntingly beautiful and incredibly emotional, it's all the stars for A Sky Full of Stars although it definitely deserves more than 5 stars.  I really can't recommend it highly enough but make sure you have your tissues handy when you read it.

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

My rating:

Buy it from:

Amazon

iBooks

Bookshop.org

Waterstones

About the author:

Dani Atkins is an award-winning novelist. Her 2013 debut FRACTURED (published as THEN AND ALWAYS in North America) has been translated into seventeen languages and has sold more than half a million copies since first publication in the UK.

Dani is the author of five other bestselling novels (THE STORY OF US, OUR SONG, THIS LOVE, WHILE I WAS SLEEPING and A MILLION A DREAMS) and PERFECT STRANGERS, a standalone eBook novella. In 2018, THIS LOVE won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award at the RNA awards in London.

Dani lives in a small village in Hertfordshire with her husband, one Siamese cat and a very soppy Border Collie.

Follow Dani:

Twitter: @AtkinsDani

Facebook: www.facebook.com/daniatkinsauthor

Follow Aria:

Twitter: @Aria_Fiction

Instagram: @ariafiction

Facebook: @ariafiction

Website: www.headofzeus.com

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BLOG TOUR: The Desire Card - Lee Matthew Goldberg

It's time for some serious crime as I hop aboard the damppebbles blog tour for The Desire Card by Lee Matthew Goldberg.  I am releasing my review for the tour so read on to see what I thought.

Any wish fulfilled for the right price.  That's the promise the organization behind The Desire Card gives to its elite clients - but sometimes the price may be more menacing than anyone could ever imagine.

Harrison Stockton has lived an adult life of privilege and excess: a high-powered job on Wall Street fuels his fondness for alcohol and pills at the expense of a family he has no time for.  Quite suddenly all of this comes crashing to a halt when he loses his job and at the same time discovered he almost certainly has only months left to live.

Desperate, and with seemingly nowhere else left to turn, Harrison activates his Desire Card.  What follows is a gritty and gripping quest that takes him from New York City to the slums of Mumbai and forces him to take chances, and make decisions, he never thought he'd ever have to face.  When his moral descent threatens his wife and children, Harrison must decide whether to save himself at any cost, or do what's right and break his bargain with the mysterious group behind The Desire Card.


The Desire Card is a taut fast-paced thriller, from internationally acclaimed author Lee Matthew Goldberg, that explores what a man will do to survive when money isn't always enough to get everything he desires.

What did I think?

Harrison Stockton is such an odious character that I didn't think I was going to enjoy The Desire Card at first, but I am pleased to say that I couldn't have been more wrong!  I absolutely loved it!  It's the first book in a five book series and I can't wait to see where the story goes next.

Harrison is what you would definitely call a workaholic; he is married to his job and it's almost like his wife is the other woman.  When Harrison finds out the cause of his sickly pallor that caused him to lose his job, it was like a real wake-up call to me.   As the author reminds us: nobody ever lay on their deathbed and wished that they had worked more.  I have been guilty of putting work before my health in the past so I could completely understand Harrison putting off his health check in favour of work.  What is unforgivable though, is putting work before his children's school events.  There is no do-over; you can never get that time back and every time he missed a soccer game or a ballet recital he lost a little bit of his own children. What would he give for a second chance? Read The Desire Card to find out! 

I found The Desire Card so very thought-provoking, not only the work/life balance but the thought that money could buy you anything you desired.  How much would I pay to save my own life or the life of my loved ones?  How can you even put a value on that?  The company who run The Desire Card manage to attach a price to absolutely anything your heart desires.  It's not so much a case of rubbing the lamp and a genie pops out, as this magic really does come with a price..more often than not, in a six figure sum!  Yikes!

The Desire Card is a dark, gritty and disturbing It's A Wonderful Life for the 21st Century.  As greed for money, power and possessions fuel the world, money really can buy you anything.  It's such an outstanding fast-paced, dark and compelling modern-day thriller that I think it would translate effortlessly to the screen.  I'm already looking forward to the next book!

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

My rating:

Buy it from:
Fahrenheit Press
Amazon UK
Amazon US



About the author:

Lee Matthew Goldberg is the author of the novels SLOW DOWN, THE MENTOR, and THE DESIRE CARD. He has been published in multiple languages and nominated for the 2018 Prix du Polar.

The second book in the Desire Card series, PREY NO MORE, is forthcoming from Fahrenheit Press in 2019. His pilots and screenplays have been finalists in Script Pipeline, Stage 32, We Screenplay, the New York Screenplay, Screencraft, and the Hollywood Screenplay contests.

After graduating with an MFA from the New School, his writing has also appeared in the anthology DIRTY BOULEVARD, The Millions, Cagibi, The Montreal Review, The Adirondack Review, The New Plains Review, Underwood Press and others. He is the co-curator of The Guerrilla Lit Reading Series (guerrillalit.wordpress.com). He lives in New York City.


Follow him:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeeMatthewG
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leemgol
Website: http://www.leematthewgoldberg.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leematthewgoldberg/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lee-Matthew-Goldberg/e/B00RPF06TS/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1

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BLOG TOUR: The Friend Who Lied - Rachel Amphlett

What she doesn’t know might kill her...

Lisa Ashton receives a last-minute reprieve from death two weeks before her birthday. Regaining consciousness, she is horrified to learn one of her friends has been killed – and saved her life.

As she recovers, she uncovers a trail of carefully guarded reputations, disturbing rumours, and lies. Soon, Lisa begins to wonder if one of her friends is hiding a terrible secret. 

Because five of them entered the escape room that day, and only four got out alive. 

And someone is determined to cover their tracks before she can find out the truth.

Can Lisa find the killer before someone else dies?

What did I think?

I've had my eye on Rachel Amphlett's books for a while now but I had never got around to reading one until now.  What a book to start with; The Friend Who Lied is so tense and compelling that I could hardly tear my eyes away from the pages.  I definitely have the Rachel Amphlett bug now.

I was hooked right from the start when Lisa wakes up in hospital after a kidney transplant, only to find out that she is alive because one of her friends has died.  This close knit group of five have been friends since university and we soon find out that they used to be a group of six.  'They're all hiding something', I cried and I couldn't wait to find out what!  I love digging into fictional characters' lives and we get a good old nosy around in this book!

I found the living donor theme really interesting; it's one thing to get tested when your friend needs a kidney but it's a whole new ballgame when you find out you're a match.  It seems like such a no-brainer to save the life of a friend or family member, but I wondered what I would do in the same situation and whether it would be an easy decision to make.  With the risk of organ rejection it's not guaranteed to work, but could you live with the guilt if you didn't even try?  It's lucky for Lisa that her match died and the decision was taken out of their hands...but was fate the only player in this game?

The Friend Who Lied is an absolute secret-fest; I love scratching the surface and seeing what lurks beneath and in the case of this group of friends, it's very murky indeed.  They all have something to hide and it's only a matter of time before the masks start to slip.  I absolutely raced through this book and as the web of deceit began to untangle I even found my greedy eyes sneaking a peek down the page!  

I can't believe it has taken me so long to read a Rachel Amphlett book but, on the strength of The Friend Who Lied, I'll definitely be adding her whole back catalogue to my wishlist.   The Friend Who Lied is faultless and worth every one of the five stars I have awarded it;  it's a very highly recommended read and most readers will easily read this in one-sitting.

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

My rating:

Buy it from:
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com
Kobo
Apple Books
Google Play




About the author:

Before turning to writing, USA Today bestselling author Rachel Amphlett played guitar in bands, worked as a TV and film extra, dabbled in radio as a presenter and freelance producer for the BBC, and worked in publishing as a sub-editor and editorial assistant.

She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction and spy novels, including the Dan Taylor and English Spy Mysteries espionage novels and theDetective Kay Hunter British police procedural series.

She’s a member of International Thriller Writers and the Crime Writers Association, with the Italian foreign rights for her debut novel, White Gold sold to Fanucci Editore’s TIMECrime imprint, and the first four books in the Dan Taylor espionage series contracted to Germany’s Luzifer Verlag.

Praise for Rachel Amphlett

“Thrilling start to a new series. Scared to Death is a stylish, smart and gripping crime thriller” ~ Robert Bryndza, USA Today bestselling author ofThe Girl in the Ice

“Scared to Death… moves along at breakneck speed with twists and turns” ~ Angela Marsons, bestselling author of the Detective Kim Stone crime thriller series.

Social Media Links: 

Email: info@rachelamphlett.com

Website: www.rachelamphlett.com

Twitter: @RachelAmphlett

Instagram: @RachelAmphlett

Facebook: Rachel Amphlett




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BLOG TOUR: I Give You My Heart - SarahJane Ford

I am delighted to be taking part in the Rachel's Random Resources blog tour for SarahJane Ford's debut novel, I Give You My Heart.  You can read my review and also enter the fabulous giveaway to win a signed and dedicated copy of this amazing book.

A terminal diagnosis.  A life-saving sacrifice.  A love letter written on the walls of her heart.

Alice Richards looked forward to watching the seeds of love she and her husband planted bloom and grow well into their old age. But her plans for the future shrivel up and die when she learns she has an inoperable brain tumour.

Determined that she won’t die in vain, she decides to become an organ donor. With a few precious months left, Alice begins documenting her fairytale romance—from their first meeting to the children they dreamed of having. She’ll pass on every detail to her heart’s next owner… along with careful instructions to send her husband reminders of her undying love. Before her time runs out, Alice must find the perfect candidate to guide her husband through unimaginable grief and hold the memory of their love in her heart.

I Give You My Heart is an emotional romantic fiction novel with an uplifting message. If you like strong-willed women, undying love stories, and honest portrayals of coping with a terminal illness, then you’ll love SarahJane Ford’s heart-warming epic.

An unmissable love story full of warmth, beauty and with a huge, beating heart. Perfect for fans of Cecilia Ahern’s ‘P.S. I Love You’ and Jojo Moyes’ ‘Me Before You’.

What did I think?

Get your tissues ready, they said.  It's a weepy, they said.  I'm tougher than that, I said, right up until the point that the tears started rolling down my face and the beautiful words on the page blurred into a soggy mess.  I have never read a book filled with so much emotion that it does literally spill out of my eyes.  This is SarahJane Ford's debut, so just imagine what we have to look forward to next; although how she plans to better this one, I don't know but what a wonderful problem for an author to have!

Alice and Alex are the perfect couple, fated to be together from the moment that they met over coffee; coffee that spilled down Alice's shirt.  As their eyes met, Alice's heart skipped a beat and the rest, as they say, is history.  Alas, they will never grow old together as Alice is diagnosed with a terminal brain tumour.  Alice, being the most generous and selfless woman that she is, decides to donate her organs so that others might live on through her gift of life.  She only has one stipulation: that her heart goes to the most deserving recipient and she tasks her best friend, Ryan, with finding the perfect person to look after her heart.  

As Alice spends her last days with her family, she writes a manual for her heart so that the recipient can remind Alex of some of their favourite memories, those memories that Alice believes lie within her heart but they might just need a little nudge.  As if this wasn't emotional enough, we hurtle towards the inevitable conclusion and we must say goodbye to Alice...or is it just au revoir?  

Oh wow, what an emotional book.  I thought I would be prepared for Alice's inevitable death but I cried like a baby.  There is not a word out of place in this beautiful debut which captured my heart through the stunning writing of SarahJane Ford.  This book reminds us to live every day as if it's our last and also draws attention to organ donation.  We don't want to think about our own demise but it's certainly worth considering leaving behind a parting gift to enable others to live on.

You will not read a more heartbreaking or heartwarming book this year.  I Give You My Heart is THE most emotional book I have EVER read; it's an absolutely stunning debut and one not to miss.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon




About the author:

SarahJane is the debut author of ‘I Give You My Heart’ which is due to be published on September 1st 2018.

SarahJane was born in Scotland but grew up in the Cheshire countryside, which is home to her. After a few years living in Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, where she went to secondary school, she has now settled back in Cheshire in a quirky flat surrounded by trees, birds and rolling fields.

A marketing professional since finishing her formal education SarahJane is delighted to be following her writing dream. She still works part-time as a Marketing Manager, whilst furiously penning her second novel.

Harbouring an adventurous spirit, SarahJane loves to travel, be surrounded by the wilderness or be riding Cornish waves.

SarahJane loves to read (ideally by the sea!). She was raised on the greatest love stories, which is where her romantic soul comes from. She is in love with love...Mr Darcy's brooding looks in Pride and Prejudice; Julia Roberts and Richard Gere's arresting chemistry in Runaway Bride; the intensely emotional Titanic; going weak at the knees for Danny Zuko in Grease; Cecilia Ahern's heartbreaking P.S. I Love You and Patrick Swayze's mega moves in Dirty Dancing. 

Social Media Links – www.facebook.com/sarahjanefordauthor/

Website: www.sarahjaneford.com

Giveaway

Giveaway to Win signed hardback of I Give You My Heart with a personalised message (UK Only)

*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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