The Blue - Lucy Clarke

They had found paradise.  What would they do to keep it?

With a quick spin of the globe, Kitty and Lana escape their grey reality and journey to the Philippines.  There they discover The Blue – a beautiful yacht, with a wandering crew.

They spend day after languorous day exploring the pristine white beaches and swimming beneath the stars, and Lana drifts further away from the long-buried secrets of home.

But the tide turns when death creeps quietly on deck.

A dangerous swell of mistrust and lies threatens to bring the crew’s adventures to an end – but some won’t let paradise go…whatever the price.

What did I think?

This book was simply amazing, completely gripping and an absolute page-turner.  I’ve had it in my pile to read for quite some time and although I was interested enough to request a copy, other books seemed to pique my interest more.  How wrong I was to leave this little beauty gathering dust.  If you have it in your TBR pile, read it now!

I love books that flick back and forth between the past and the present so I knew that once I picked this up, I wouldn't be able to put it down.  You feel that all of the characters on The Blue are running away from something or perhaps simply trying to make a new start, either way they are all hiding secrets and you don't know who can be trusted.  You can feel the air almost crackling with tension; on the surface they all appear to be friends but underneath alliances are being made and it's only a matter of time before the weakest may get thrown overboard.

I was absolutely captivated by this story, I fell in love with the beauty of both The Blue and the scenery she sailed in.  I read it so fast as I wanted to know why Lana left The Blue, what happened to Joseph and whose body is now floating in the sea.  There was so much I didn't even see coming, even though the clues were there but I was just enjoying myself so much being swept along with the magic of The Blue.

This really is a stunning book, it is so vivid and written so beautifully that I felt I was part of the voyage.  I won't ever hesitate again in picking up another book by Lucy Clarke.

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

My rating:

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Snowflakes on Silver Cove (White Cliff Bay book 2) - Holly Martin

Libby Joseph is famous for her romantic Christmas stories. Every December, readers devour her books of falling in love against the magical backdrop of the Christmas season. If only Libby believed in the magic herself…

Struggling to finish her current novel, Libby turns to her best friend and neighbour George Donaldsonto cheer her up. But George also needs a bit of support himself. Nervous about getting back into the dating saddle after splitting from his wife, he and Libby strike a deal. She will teach George how to win over the ladies, and Libby will in turn be inspired to inject her novel with a good dose of romance.

As Libby and George explore the beautiful White Cliff Bay on a series of romantic Christmas-themed dates, Libby finds herself having more fun than she’s had in ages and…discovers feelings that she never knew she had for George.

But is it too late? Will George win someone else’s heart or can Libby act like the heroine in one of her stories and reach for her own love under the mistletoe this Christmas?

What did I think?

I love reading Holly’s books as they never fail to give you a nice warm hug as the temperature drops outside, both in reality and within the pages of the book.  I particularly loved the way that this book linked to the Christmas at Lilac Cottage book with both stories occurring at the same time, although either of them could be read as a stand-a-lone novel.  I felt like I was catching up with old friends with cameo appearances from Penny and Henry.

Holly has focussed on two meant-to-be couples in Silver Cove.  Libby and George are best friends who are both in love with each other but neither of them have the confidence to tell the other one their feelings.  Then there’s Amy and Seb who are fizzing with sexual tension but Seb is a widower and is worried about starting a new relationship, thereby hurting the feelings of his mother-in-law.

I think Libby and George were my favourite couple as I was just willing one of them to take the risk and tell the other how they felt.  They are perfect together and every time they were getting close to revealing their feelings, something happened to put a spanner in the works.  That’s the beauty of Hollys writing; it’s not all champagne and love hearts, there are massive hurdles and great big spanners too!

Although Libby and George were my favourites, I really enjoyed the sparks flying between Amy and Seb.  I find that Holly Martin’s books always manage to make tears spring to my eyes; it was in a scene with Amy and Seb that my eyes sprung a leak as Seb’s mother-in-law, Judith, finally accepted Seb’s feelings for Amy.  It was so poignant and written so beautifully.

This is another Christmas Cracker from Holly Martin – I absolutely loved it.  It has just enough magic in the air to give it the feel of a modern fairytale.  Holly's books are just the thing to warm us up on these cold winter nights.

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

My rating:

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The Secret of the Cathars - Michael Hillier

Philip Sinclair's grandmother leaves him the unusual legacy of a translated journal of his ancient ancestor, who was one of the four Cathar perfecti who escaped from the castle of Montsegur with the 'treasure of the Cathars' strapped to his back - a treasure that has never been found. She also requests that he travels to the Pyrenean fastness of le Bezu where she believes the treasure still lies.

Meanwhile, the famous young French archaeologist Jaqueline Blontard, known as Jackie, arrives at le Bezu with her assistant to prepare excavations as part of her new television series about the Albigensian Crusade. They believe nobody is yet aware of their explorations, but they couldn't be more wrong. Not only does the Roman Catholic Church already know about their plans, but a secret body in Paris has sent someone to watch the excavations and a criminal gang in Marseilles has become involved in the search for the Cathar treasure.

Soon after Philip arrives at le Bezu, Jackie's assistant is killed. Suspicion immediately falls on Philip and the police instruct him to stay in the locality while they investigate, but she does not believe he is responsible. The couple decide to work together to find the secret treasure, but before they unearth the location, news comes from Paris that TV France, who are funding the series, have decided to close down the dig. Philip and Jackie continue to search on their own and, closely followed by the shadowy organisations, they unearth much more than they had expected...

Full of suspense, action and romance, The Secret of the Cathars explores the mystery of the Cathars and the historical events that supposedly took place years ago in a contemporary story. It will appeal to fans of historical mysteries and thrillers such as The Da Vinci Code.

What did I think?

I had never heard of The Cathars before so, in addition to being a fantastic story, this was a really interesting history lesson for me.  It did take me a few chapters to really get into the book as there were a lot of different characters introduced at first, but once I got into the story I couldn’t wait to pick it up each evening for another instalment.

Philip Sinclair inherits his Grandmother’s house when she passes away, along with a letter requesting that he travel to the ancient Cathar stronghold le Bezu to find some scrolls that his ancestor had hidden in the castle.  Philip is also given a diary belonging to his ancestor, Phillipe de Sainte Claire, which his Grandmother has translated into English.  This is his key to finding out where the scrolls have been hidden.

When he gets to France, he finds that a team of archaeologists have started excavating le Bezu and his interest in the site makes him anything but welcome.  Then one of the team is discovered dead on the site and a murder investigation gets underway with Philip being one of the main suspects.  Unbeknown to the police there are lots of other suspects, some even hidden amongst the archaeology team.  Nobody is who they seem.

I've always dreamt of being an archaeologist so I loved the character of Jacqueline Blontard.  Jackie is an archaeologist who has her own series on TV France where viewers can follow her current project.  She has come to le Bezu to excavate the Cathar stronghold and to my absolute delight le Bezu is a real place.  I even found that when I googled it, I had drawn an imaginary picture in my mind that was pretty close to fact – thanks to the vivid scene that was set by Michael Hillier’s amazingly descriptive writing.

This really is an excellent book reminiscent of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon novels.  There are so many different people trying to get their hands on the treasure that you don't know who to trust.  I even had goosebumps at the ending, and like the Da Vinci Code it certainly made me think 'hmmm, maybe...'.  If you enjoyed the Da Vinci Code, you will enjoy The Secret of The Cathars - it's perhaps not as 'Hollywood' as Dan Brown but it's an absolutely riveting read.

I received this book from Authoright PR in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

Alchemy: turning silver to gold - Chris James

The Sequel to "Alchemy: a story of perfect murder" - available for Pre-Order at Amazon. Launch date: 14 December 2015.

After finding Jacob Silver's body missing from his grave at Pentonville Prison, Lizzie Weston battles to prove he is immortal - and clear his name.

Detective Inspector George Neville searches for Jacob's missing remains and learns that Nicolas Flamel is not only alive but cooking another brew - and leaving dead bodies wherever he goes.

Portraits and heads in jars, exhibits from Jacob Silver's "trial of the century" cause havoc as Jacob's murdered victims seek revenge.

Sir Robert Weston is honoured by Queen Victoria for services to medicine - after stealing with Jacob's discoveries.

But where is Jacob Silver?

A new trial, the sensation of the next century, reveals all.

What did I think?

Alchemy: turning silver to gold takes us on another trip to Victorian London, following the sensational hanging of Jacob Silver.  This definitely needs to be read in conjunction with Alchemy: a story of perfect murder as it won’t make much sense as a stand-a-lone novel and it follows on directly from the first book.

Where the first Alchemy book was about the quest for immortality, this second book in the series examines whether immortality has actually been achieved, thanks to the elixir that Jacob gave to his friend Lizzie Weston.  Lizzie emerges unscathed from some life-threatening events and she begins to believe she is immortal, all the while you feel that all of these strange happenings are being orchestrated by the legendary Nicolas Flamel.

Although Jacob doesn't appear until halfway through the book, Lizzie is a main character who had me enthralled.  She has an air of the supernatural about her, having miraculously survived consumption and an explosion, and I felt she almost glowed from within the pages of this book.

I did really enjoy this but not as much as the first book as some parts were a bit too fantastical for my liking; I was okay with the chattering evil decapitated heads in jars but Lizzie's effect on them was a bit puzzling.  Perhaps it will become clearer in the third book, for which I can't wait, thanks to the amazing cliffhanger at the end of this book.  Chris James has certainly mastered the art of making the reader eager for more!  As with the first book, I thought the spectacle of the trial was described brilliantly; the writing is so vivid that I felt I could have been sat in the public gallery myself.

As with the first book, there are some famous faces making an appearance in the story and this all adds to the authentic flavour of the book.  Chris James has managed to completely immerse the reader in the Victorian era, although I did question whether the ‘f’ word was in use back then.  I can see this being a series of books I will re-read over the years, they are very entertaining and I'm such a greedy reader as I'm already looking forward to the next one.

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

My rating:

BLOG TOUR: Ruby Flynn by Nadine Dorries

I was thrilled when Emily Zinkin from Head of Zeus invited me to join the Ruby Flynn blog tour.  Ruby Flynn is a lovely book set in Ireland and Liverpool and I'm delighted to share a special guest post from the author, Nadine Dorries, in which Nadine talks about her inspiration behind Ruby Flynn.

Guest post from Nadine Dorries - the inspiration behind Ruby Flynn:

When I finished writing The Four Streets trilogy, I knew, I had to write something completely different. My editor would not describe those words as music to her ears. If you write a novel and it becomes a number one bestseller, what your publisher wants you to keep doing, is to keep writing more of the same. The fact was that The Four Streets trilogy was such an emotionally powerful journey for me, that I felt as though I had to set my next novel in a place I truly loved and where I had spent the best days of my life, in a remote village on the west coast of Ireland. I was born in 1950’s Liverpool, the granddaughter of an Irish grandmother, Nellie Deane, who never stopped missing home and so every time she won on the bingo, she would scoop me up, kidnap me and take me home. To her home, a blissfully rural cottage still standing today. This had many advantages for me. I had my own donkey, Jacko. There were no boundaries to the streams and fields and mountains I could roam and play in. I learnt how to milk a cow, stack a haystack, beat the midges and fell asleep at night in front of the fire listening to the adults chattering and telling stories they had all heard before.

In the graveyard, there was a headstone, which haunted me. It was on a grave of two brothers who had died in their cottage in the snow of ’47. A notorious winter in the weather history of the Atlantic Coast. Returning to the village following the publication of The Ballymara Road, I revisited the graveyard and the stone ignited something in the adult me and that was where the first idea of Ruby Flynn came to me, when I was stood on a mountainside cemetery overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. In Ruby Flynn, I have kept all the original village names, and each description is of a place that exists.  

Nadine's website is launching early next year with a 6-weekly magazine - click here to sign up now for free.

You can also read my review of Ruby Flynn here and don't forget to follow the tour!

Ruby Flynn - Nadine Dorries

The darkest sin casts the longest shadow... RUBY FLYNN, set in Ireland and Liverpool, is the enthralling story of a family haunted by ancient wrongs.

The FitzDeanes are wealthy. They have Ballyford Castle in Ireland and a growing shipping business in Liverpool. But Lady FitzDeane is unable to provide an heir. All of her five boys have died in infancy. There are whispers that the family is cursed - punished for a terrible mistake long buried in the past.

When young Ruby Flynn, an orphan reared and educated by nuns, arrives at Ballyford to work as a nursery maid, she cannot shake the feeling that she has been there before. But when?

Soon rumours and strong emotions are swirling around the beautiful girl with red hair, green eyes - and a mysterious past. Who is she really? And what will her arrival mean for this powerful family, riven by tragedy?

What did I think?

It's been a long time since I've read what I call a 'Mammy's book' (aka family saga) so I was quite surprised at how much I did actually enjoy Ruby Flynn.  I really enjoyed the linguistic style of Nadine's writing as I could almost hear the Irish or Scouse accents of the characters in my head.  As expected, it was an easy read with a slightly predictable ending but there were some events in the book that were quite unexpected, to say the least.

The book starts as a young Ruby is found during the 'great storm' with her dead parents and taken to the local convent.  On her arrival at the convent there is an incident with a precious vase so we are under no illusion that Ruby is a strong feisty character and not a poor little orphan as you might have expected.  I thought that there might have been more interaction with the nun characters as they are usually normally wicked or hilarious but they seem to play a very small part in the story.  As Ruby gets older she is chosen to go to work in the nursery of Ballyford, which I imagined to look a bit like Downton Abbey.   There are, however, no children in the nursery at Ballyford, allegedly due to the legendary curse.  This was such a terribly sad story in itself as the lady of the house refuses to leave the empty nursery.

The master of the house, Charles FitzDeane, decides to set up a shipping business with Rory Doyle, the local bad guy who he thinks of as a friend, and needs little excuse to spend more and more time in Liverpool.  It is no surprise that Charles ends up leading a double life to escape the sadness that awaits him back home.  Then on a visit back to Ballyford he is captivated by the red hair and green eyes belonging to Ruby, and finds it easier to spend more time in Ireland.  Charles and Ruby share a past that Ruby is completely unaware of and it was intriguing to watch the story of the past unfold.  

It has the usual tried and tested successful formula of the rich man in the big house and the poor servant girl but what sets this apart are the unexpected, and sometimes tragic, twists and turns that the book takes us on.  It's well worth a read for those who enjoyed Nadine Dorries' Four Streets Trilogy or if you're partial to a good old Catherine Cookson style family saga.

I received this e-book from the publisher, Head of Zeus, in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

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The Girl With No Past - Kathryn Croft

Twenty years running from your past. Today it catches up.

A gripping psychological thriller for fans of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.

Leah Mills lives a life of a fugitive – kept on the run by one terrible day from her past. It is a lonely life, without a social life or friends until – longing for a connection – she meets Julian. For the first time she dares to believe she can live a normal life.

Then, on the twentieth anniversary of that day, she receives a card. Someone knows the truth about what happened. Someone who won’t stop until they’ve destroyed the life Leah has created.

But is Leah all she seems? Or does she deserve everything she gets?

Everyone has secrets. But some are deadly.

What did I think?

It took me a few chapters to really get into this book but once I did, I couldn’t rest until I found out what had happened in Leah’s past. It’s a really good psychological thriller as it has the reader keen to uncover the past but at the same time on the edge of your seat trying to find out who is stalking Leah in the present day.

I do love a good flashback so I really enjoyed these parts of the book as I scoured the pages for clues as to what Leah is hiding from her past. The young Leah has few friends at school and is part of a small group of four – 2 boys and 2 girls. They quickly pair up and become couples but Leah’s relationship is far from perfect as her boyfriend, Adam, sets up a hate campaign against one of the teachers.  He is so obsessed with this teacher that I wondered if something untoward had happened and it was really creepy when he used to sit outside her house. The others are drawn into Adam’s campaign and my mind was racing as I wondered what had happened. I’m not going reveal any spoilers but I will say that I was grimacing as some events were described.

Leah is paying for her sins by living sparingly, having little contact with family and not attempting to make friends. She works in a library and meets Ben who is donating books one day. I think Leah sees Ben as safe as he has a girlfriend and only wants to be a friend. It seemed completely out of character that she trusted him so quickly as she had kept everybody at arms-length until then. Leah becomes even more unrecognisable by joining a dating site and meeting a guy called Julian. He seems perfect and even accepts her soulless living arrangements. So I thought that she is finally getting her life back together…but I was so WRONG! As the stalker’s campaign against Leah intensified I started to wonder who she could trust and I actually ended up mistrusting everybody. Sometimes you are just better off on your own, I say!

As the past is revealed I thought of how cruel fate can be – how one action or inaction can cause a chain reaction of events that will affect you for the rest of your life. I did really enjoy this book but I did feel a bit exasperated at times with Leah’s conflicting ability to trust no-one/trust a complete stranger, so for that reason it’s a solid 4 stars from me.

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

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon