The Girl Who Lied - Sue Fortin

The truth hurts…

Erin and Roisin were once friends until a fatal accident ruined both their lives. Now, Roisin has discovered a secret—one Erin has kept for over a decade—and she’s determined to make Erin pay for her lies.

Erin wants nothing to do with Roisin. She has a new life in London and no intention of going back home. Yet when her father is mysteriously and critically injured, Erin has no choice but to return and face Roisin—and her past. Erin knows if the secret of what she gave up got out, the consequences could be devastating.

When Roisin suddenly disappears, suspicion soon lands on Erin. She would do anything to protect her family, but just how far is she willing to go when time is running out…?

What did I think?

What would you do if your deepest, darkest secret was about to be revealed?  How far would you go to protect the ones you love? These questions were posed to Erin when she returned to Ireland after thinking that she left her past and her secrets behind for good.

The book starts with Erin Hurley receiving an email from her old schoolfriend, Roisin.  Roisin is a part of Erin's past that she wants to forget, but Roisin won't give up and keeps pestering Erin claiming that she knows Erin's secret and even has proof.  Erin is determined to ignore Roisin in the hope that she will go away but when Erin's Dad has an accident and she returns to Ireland, it's only a matter of time before she bumps into Roisin.  How much does Roisin really know and will she really reveal Erin's secret?

Erin has a very strained relationship with her Dad and you could feel her conflicting emotions as she visited him in hospital.  As the days went on it was almost like she defrosted and you could see the little buds of love starting to reappear on her family tree.  Whilst Erin is visiting her Dad we are treated to flashbacks of Erin's school days.  Days that were far from happy thanks to Jody Wright calling her Curly Hurley and Bunny because of her curly carrot coloured hair.  There's one in every class, isn't there?

As with any small town, it was inevitable that Erin would run into Jody and his teasing hasn't lessened as the years have passed, he still has his schoolboy humour and is completely ignorant of the hurt his words have caused.  Jody's cousin, Kerry, on the other hand is warm and caring and it isn't long before Erin is drawn to him and finds that the attraction is mutual.  Erin doesn't want to get close to anybody but Kerry has really strong feelings for her - feelings that would see him going to any lengths to protect her.

When Roisin's threats don't abate and she suddenly goes missing, I felt like I was reading a game of Cluedo.  With so many people caring about Erin, any one of them could have caused harm to Roisin, including Erin herself.  The way that Sue Fortin leads us up to Roisin's disappearance was brilliant; any one of four people could have met with Roisin and seen her come to an unfortunate end.  I certainly had my money on one of them in particular but, yet again, I was completely wrong!

I really enjoyed this as a story about family relationships and how blood is thicker than water.  Roisin's disappearance was an added bonus that added an extra thrilling dimension to the story.  Although some of the story was guessable, it was so completely engaging that it left me with a lump in my throat and tears running down my face at the end.  The Girl Who Lied is a superb book that drew me in from the very first page then put me through the emotional wringer and left me reaching for the tissues at the end.

I received this e-book from the publisher, HarperImpulse, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

COVER REVEAL: The Little Antique Shop under the Eiffel Tower - Rebecca Raisin

Book Information

Title: The Little Antique Shop Under the Eiffel Tower
Author: Rebecca Raisin
Series: The Little Paris Collection, Book 2
Standalone?: Yes
Release Date: July 1, 2016
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Don’t miss the exciting new title The Little Antique Shop Under the Eiffel Tower by Rebecca Raisin available on July 1, 2016 - pre-order your copy today!

Watch for more in The Little Paris Collection

1. The Little Bookshop on the Seine (available now)
2. The Little Antique Shop under the Eiffel Tower
3. The Little Perfume Shop off the Champs-Élysées

What reviewers are saying about The Little Bookshop on the Seine

‘ This novel is a love letter to Paris, and even more so a love letter to books; it is absolutely a must-read book for book lovers.’ – Rather Too Fond of Books

‘easy to read and devoured quickly, I literally could not get enough and I was so sad to finish it. It was a truly captivating, spellbinding tale of taking chances and living life to the full that I am sure will ring true with many readers.’ – Compelling Reads

‘I love love love this author, and this book cements the fact that this series is a winner!’ – Fiona (Goodreads)

‘I loved every second of The Little Bookshop on the Seine, easy to read, with words oozing charm and good feeling, that just made me feel warm and cosy.’ – Rachel’s Random Reads

‘a beautifully written novel’ – Hilda (Goodreads)

‘A delightful story that's perfect for reading in your favorite cozy chair. … Such a good book to lose yourself in.’ – Janet Robel (Goodreads)

‘It really brought Paris to life … extremely romantic, love is most definitely on the menu’ – Elaine (Goodreads)

‘a great escape to Paris and I’m looking forward to the other books in the Little Paris Collection.’ – French Village Diaries

Book Links

Amazon US: https://amzn.com/B00W7Y9VQG

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00W7Y9VQG

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/little-antique-shop-under/id1022781469?mt=11

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-little-antique-shop-under-the-eiffel-tower-rebecca-raisin/1121995906?ean=9781474035514

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25371094-the-little-antique-shop-under-the-eiffel-tower

About Rebecca Raisin

Rebecca Raisin is a true bibliophile. This love of books morphed into the desire to write them. She’s been published in various short story anthologies and in in fiction magazines, and is now focusing on writing romance.

Rebecca aims to write characters you can see yourself being friends with. People with big hearts who care about relationships, and most importantly believe in true love.

Come and say hello to Rebecca on her Facebook page or Twitter.

Follow Rebecca

Website: http://www.rebeccaraisin.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6915386.Rebecca_Raisin

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaRaisinAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jaxandwillsmum

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/rebeccaraisin/

BLOG TOUR: Anything For Her - Jack Jordan

What an honour to be kicking off the blog tour for Anything For Her, a book that was named in many readers' top books of 2015, including mine.  This really is a book not to be missed, as evidenced by the many rave reviews from bloggers and readers alike.

As part of the blog tour, I am reposting my review from July 2015, updated with the stunning new cover for Anything For Her.  

Sometimes the past comes back to haunt you.

Louise Leighton’s life has fallen apart, all because of one fateful night. Her husband is an adulterer, her sister is his mistress, and soon, Louise will lose everything she owns. But she never imagined she would lose her daughter.

Eighteen-year-old Brooke Leighton is missing. It’s up to Louise and the Metropolitan Police to find her. Has Brooke run away? Or has she been taken against her will? And can Louise aid the investigation without mentioning the night where all of her troubles began?

If she mentions that night, she will incriminate her daughter for heinous crimes. But if she doesn’t, she may never find Brooke; and if she has been abducted, the person who took her may come for Louise, too.

Sometimes the past comes back to kill you.

What did I think?

Louise Leighton is happily married to Michael with two happy carefree children, Brooke and Dominic, when an unfortunate event shatters her world.

Wow!  This book fell through my letterbox and didn't even hit the bookshelf - once I picked it up, it refused to be put down!  It gripped me from the very first page when Michael revealed that he had been having an affair with his sister-in-law.  He blames his actions on Louise, as she has changed after “that night”.  “That night” is the hook that had me turning page after page, long after I should have been asleep and dreaming of books, beer and cheese.

Jack Jordan has very cleverly chosen a mindless act for “that night” that sets in motion a series of events with cataclysmic consequences, resulting in a shared secret between Louise and her daughter, Brooke.  The tension was palpable as more details of “that night” emerge and the past doesn’t just come back to haunt them, it comes back to get even.

This is an exceptional debut novel; the writing is sublime with an abundance of magnificent metaphors that had me mentally applauding on every page.  This is definitely a contender for my book of the year.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

You can also read my Q&A with Jack Jordan here.

Follow the Anything For Her blog tour below and look out for Jack Jordan's new gripping page-turner, My Girl, coming very soon.

See You Soon - NC Marshall

What is true friendship really worth? 

When Emily receives an e-mail from her estranged childhood friend, Ali, she instantly looks forward to reading what it has to say. She hasn’t seen or heard from Ali in a very long time and hopes that they can begin to rekindle the perfect friendship they once had. 

But when Emily opens the e-mail, she finds it isn’t the friendly message she had hoped for. Instead, it is a desperate plea for help from Ali to tell Emily she could be in danger. 

Growing increasingly concerned for Ali’s safety, Emily is forced to return to the seaside town where she and Ali had grown up. The same town that she had fled from over fifteen years ago, when she had sworn she would never return. 

Once back there, Emily is quickly thrown into a game of cat and mouse, where she must follow the clues to help her old friend. But time is against her and she is constantly looking over her shoulder. 

It appears Emily isn’t alone, and must hurry before her past finally tracks her down... 

What did I think?

I absolutely loved NC Marshall's debut, Sleep Peacefully, and named it in my top 20 reads of 2015.  So when I was absolutely delighted to be offered the chance to read this new book.

See You Soon starts with a tantalising prologue that whipped the wind right out of my sails, leaving me with the question 'who is the 'me' in the prologue?'.  NC Marshall very cleverly waits to the end to reveal the answer to that question, ensuring that I raced through See You Soon like Usain Bolt in the 100m sprint.  

Emily moved away to the North East from the little seaside town of Sandbroke, losing touch with her schoolfriends.  Out of the blue, she receives an email from Ali, an old friend, saying that she's in trouble and begs Emily to help her.  When Emily receives no response from Ali, she calls the police and her worst nightmare begins - she must return to Sandbroke, the town that holds difficult memories and the key to her secrets.  When Ali checks into the local Holiday Park, she is relieved that Rose, the owner, doesn't recognise her despite them going to the same school.  Then Rose hands Emily a note that was left for her...a note from Ali with a key to her house.  As Emily follows the trail and receives more notes from Ali, you could feel her moving closer and closer to danger and I couldn't remove my eyes from the page for even a second.

Emily's fear of returning to her hometown was written so vividly that it was palpable, but she must have been really good friends with Ali at school to push through her fear and return.   What a lovely thought that is; time and distance can't break friendships forged in your early years. Emily is very guarded and doesn't want to get too close to the past she ran away from, but secrets don't stay buried for ever.  

See You Soon is a really gripping, suspenseful read.  I felt like I was holding my breath in anticipation throughout the whole book, so thankfully it's not a long book!  I would never have guessed the final twist and I had a wee tear in my eye reading the epilogue.  NC Marshall is a very talented author; her writing is so vibrant and suspenseful with sublime twists.  I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot more from her, and I certainly can't wait.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

Finding Sheba (Omar Zagouri Book 1) - H.B. Moore

For centuries, historians have speculated that the Queen of Sheba is nothing more than a seductive legend; but when undercover agent Omar Zagouri finds a tomb in a tunnel beneath Jerusalem, he unearths cryptic clues that may lead to the queen’s final resting place.

This discovery, if authentic, could throw into question the governmental claim to the Holy Land—and prove the Bible false. Wealthy collectors, ruthless archaeologists, and officials from Egypt, Ethiopia, Israel, and Yemen scramble to find and lay claim to the secret site.

Dr. Richard Lyon of Brown University, the world’s leading expert on the queen, is found murdered in his office, setting off a chain of deadly events. Omar desperately works to piece together the puzzle to locate the queen’s burial ground, fearing another assassination will take place. He teams up with one of Lyon’s protégées as well as with his ex-girlfriend, agent Mia Golding, in order to unravel the truth about the queen, expose a murderer, and reveal a timeless story of love, revenge, and sacrifice.

What did I think?

I do have a keen interest in ancient history, particularly Egyptian and Roman, so I always like to read fiction books involving archaeology and hidden treasures.  Finding Sheba definitely fell into that category and H.B. Moore cleverly added a thriller element to it which made it a very quick read as I absolutely raced through the pages.

There are three interconnected stories in the book as all of the characters pair up: Nicaula & Batal, Omar & Mia and Jade & Lucas. Sometimes the balance between historical and romantic fiction felt like it was tending more towards the romance side, but then something unexpected would happen to move the scales towards historical fiction and even thriller.  So all in all, Finding Sheba is quite a mix of genre that works very well. 

Nicaula, the Queen of Sheba, and Batal was always going to be my favourite story.  Nicaula is the queen and is destined to marry King Solomon but her heart lies elsewhere, with Batal, a lowly soldier.  Their story unfolds as the other characters look for her tomb which will confirm the very existence of the Queen of Sheba.

Omar and Mia are ex-lovers but have to work together, following secret orders in the quest for the safe preservation of antiquities.  Mia reminded me of Lara Croft as she can certainly stand up to the men and give them a run for their money.  Omar is clearly still in love with her, but how does Mia really feel?  Mia is hiding some secrets of her own and I had an awful feeling she was using Omar because of his feelings towards her.  I was never sure which side she was really on, which just goes to show the talented suspenseful writing style of H.B. Moore.

Jade is thrust into the mix after her professor, Dr. Lyon, was killed and she had already accepted an internship in Cairo to research her thesis on the Queen of Sheba.  She is paired with Lucas, an attractive French egyptologist who naturally sets her pulse racing.  Lucas is a bit of a mystery and, just like with Mia, I sometimes wondered who he was really working for.

There are some really interesting thoughts on the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon - with neither of their existences having been proven.  Finding Sheba certainly gives food for thought as the effect of proving their non-existence would be felt around the world.   For me, there was a bit too much of the romance side of things as everyone paired off; thankfully there's enough of an espionage kind of feel to the book to help me overlook the racing pulses of attraction.  Of course, I loved the archaeological passages in the book; stumbling across tombs and trying to decipher the poem in the letter Omar received from his grandmother.  The anticipation of a major archaeological find gave me goosebumps throughout and I had to keep reminding myself that it wasn't real.

So, whether you believe that the Queen of Sheba existed or not, this is a fascinating fictional read spanning millennia.  I felt like I was transported to ancient times in one moment then thrust into the cut-throat battle for antiquities the next.  I'm really pleased to see that there is another Omar Zagouri book; Omar is a great character and I will certainly be adding the next book to my reading list.

I received this e-book from Booklover Catlady Publicity in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

Sugar and Snails - Anne Goodwin

The past lingers on, etched beneath our skin ... 

At fifteen, Diana Dodsworth took the opportunity to radically alter the trajectory of her life, and escape the constraints of her small-town existence. Thirty years on, she can’t help scratching at her teenage decision like a scabbed wound.

To safeguard her secret, she’s kept other people at a distance... until Simon Jenkins sweeps in on a cloud of promise and possibility. But his work is taking him to Cairo, and he expects Di to fly out for a visit. She daren’t return to the city that changed her life; nor can she tell Simon the reason why.

Sugar and Snails takes the reader on a poignant journey from Diana’s misfit childhood, through tortured adolescence to a triumphant mid-life coming-of-age that challenges preconceptions about bridging the gap between who we are and who we feel we ought to be.

What did I think?

I do love to read books based in the North East; I get that little skip of pride in my belly seeing places I've been and streets I've walked down in print.  I also visited Cairo many years ago which created my love for Egyptology, so I was getting a double whammy in this book.  Unfortunately for me, Cairo doesn't feature greatly, as it is about the event that happened there in Diana's past rather than the city.  Location aside, Sugar and Snails is such an exceptional and unique book that deals with some difficult subjects in a sensitive and honest manner.  Anne Goodwin has created a character in Diana that you instantly care about because of her insecurity, but Diana is stronger than she thinks and the reader has the honour of joining her on a journey that sees her fear peeling away like the layers of an onion.

Diana Dodsworth is a junior lecturer at a university and, with a select group of only a few friends, it is clear that she likes to keep herself to herself.  One night at a dinner party she meets Simon and it is clear that there is an attraction there but there's something holding Diana back.  Despite Diana constantly pushing him away, Simon is undeterred and their relationship grows.  When Simon is offered a position in Cairo he wants Diana to come out to visit him but Cairo holds painful memories for her and she is loathe to apply for a passport to join him.  As Diana's past is revealed, it becomes apparent why she doesn't want to travel to Cairo and I felt such terrible anguish for her.  Will their relationship survive the distance?

This was such a heart-rending story and it is very difficult to review without spoilers.  Suffice to say my heart was breaking at the pain Diana has endured in her life.  From parents who didn't understand her, and even took her on a trip to Lourdes to cure her, to confusing teenage years when every teenager just tries to find out who they are.  Some passages are difficult to read and I had a clenching tummy on more than one occasion, but my discomfort was quickly surpassed by my feelings for Diana's wellbeing.  Diana feels so alone and scared but when she overcomes her fear she finds out that true friendship is more than skin deep.

So hopeful and heart-rending, Sugar and Snails is an amazingly brutal and honest story about one person searching for their place in life.  Diana is perhaps more honest than most people can ever hope to be and I applauded her bravery throughout the book.  Sugar and Snails is emotional and intelligent and well worth 5 stars from me.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

The Rejected Writers' Book Club - Suzanne Kelman

Librarian Janet Johnson is puzzled when she is invited—and practically dragged—to her first meeting of the Rejected Writers’ Book Club. This quirky group of women would much rather celebrate one another’s rejected manuscripts over cups of tea and slices of lemon cake than actually publish a book. But good friends are exactly what Janet needs after moving to the small town of Southlea Bay, Washington. Just as the ladies are about to raise a teacup to their five hundredth rejection letter, they receive bad news that could destroy one member’s reputation—and disband the group forever. To save the club, Janet joins her fellow writers on a wild road trip to San Francisco in search of the local publisher who holds the key to a long-buried secret. As they race to the finish line, they’ll face their fears—landslides, haunted houses, handsome strangers, ungrateful children—and have the time of their lives.

What did I think?

I had seen some excited tweets about this book and, as a self-confessed chain tea drinker, how could I resist a cover with such fabulous teacups on it?  It's a book club with a difference; every member has written a book and received a rejection letter which is just cause for a get together and celebration.  Then disaster strikes...one of the ladies receives an offer from a publisher!

Janet works in the local library and, after receiving a call from her 'ice child' daughter in distress, decides to visit her daughter in California.  Janet is afraid of flying so she is planning to drive from Washington to California.  This links in nicely with the book club ladies as they need to go to San Francisco to convince the publisher to reverse the offer letter, and as Janet is going anyway they invite themselves along.  As the ladies go off on a road trip, Janet leaves her husband to hilariously cope with the raccoons that visit their garden at night to play dustbin piñata.  

The Rejected Writers' Book Club is a fun read that reminded me of the Golden Girls as the ladies get into so many hilarious scrapes as they attempt to recover the manuscript.  I also really enjoyed the relationship between Janet and her daughter; seeing it develop over the course of the book into something a little less strained.  I read this whole book with a smile on my face; although there were some worrying moments I knew there would be a smile right around the corner.

I do hope Suzanne Kelman allows us to visit Southlea Bay again soon.  I'll certainly be in the queue to read the next book.

I received this e-book from the publisher, Lake Union Publishing, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon