Category: Book Reviews

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Books On Tour (Review): The Orphan’s Daughter by Sandy Taylor

A beautifully written story that packs an emotional punch, The Orphan’s Daughter just rocketed to the top of my favorites list. Set in 1920s rural Ireland, it is filled with rich detail and memorable characters. The author made everything (down to inanimate objects) come alive (more on that in a bit).

Amazon: http://bit.ly/2RTpHo1
Kobo: http://bit.ly/36YeVS1
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2vLhycR
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2tstj7e

One of the strengths of this book was the way the author circled back around to moments or thoughts. For example, the book starts with Nora and her friend Kitty grading a funeral. Their doing so illustrates the innocence of youth. Later in the book, when there is a personal loss, Nora realizes how much they did not consider the feelings of the mourners. The book is filled with moments like this, which showed real character growth.

Nora is a character one can naturally root for because she is just a good person. I enjoyed Nora’s interactions with people. I especially liked the exchanges with Kitty when Nora used a big word (“Grandad Doyle?” “The very man.”) That was a little detail, but it illustrated the closeness of the girls and the respect that Nora had for her grandfather (which arguably set her at least partially on her path mid-way through the book).

As to those inanimate objects coming to life? Seemingly innocuous items (a wall, a chair, a dress) have an impact on Nora’s life as much as a person might. While the objects can’t show emotion, they can undoubtedly evoke it. This is another aspect that I thought the author did very well. In a like manner, the town of Ballybun was a character in its own right. The author did a phenomenal job of describing rural Ireland so that the reader got a full picture of the town and its people.

There is real emotion throughout the book as well, and the author does a spectacular job of conveying the highs and lows as Nora experiences them. Her joy and sadness, her sense of wonder at finding something amazing, and her confusion when she can’t sort out her emotions are all detailed and completely natural within Nora’s personality.

Ultimately, the story is about love, loss, and the sacrifices that one makes. The tag line calls it “heartbreaking and unforgettable,” and both are true. I cried more than a few times (which rarely happens to me), and there were moments of beauty that will stay with me for quite a while. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up today.

Author Bio

Sandy Taylor grew up on a council estate near Brighton. There were no books in the house, so Sandy’s love of the written word was nurtured in the little local library. Leaving school at fifteen, Sandy worked in a series of factories before landing a job at Butlins in Minehead. This career change led her to becoming a singer, a stand up comic and eventually a playwright and novelist. 

@SandyTaylorAuth
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Blog Tour w/Review: The Southern Belles by Katie Simpkins

Based on the description, I thought this book had an interesting concept. Not to mention that I have read a lot of crime and psych thrillers lately, so a novel about three sisters whose fates change and who have to figure out new lives sounded appealing.

While the premise remained interesting, the book as a whole did not live up to my expectations. I liked the set-up (a sick girl asks her grandmother to read her a story). It reminded me of The Princess Bride (one of my all-time favorites).

I also liked how each of the sisters had a distinct personality as well, with Livvy as the dreamer, Georgie as the fighter, and Evey as the practical one. These fit the stereotypes of where kids often fall in age-order (youngest to oldest). I thought the author did an admirable job of creating events in each girl’s life that illustrated their character traits.

In addition, I appreciated how each of the girls found their path in life and how each path differed, but how they all realized that money wasn’t everything. That was a good lesson that was well-illustrated.

However, there were times when I felt like the author did not know where to go with the story. The action flipped back and forth between each of the girls multiple times, making it sometimes challenging to keep up with who the focus was on at the time.

Some extra characters and events seemed to have no purpose other than to stretch the story. I understand that there had to be conflict along the way, but some things muddied the plot and were unnecessary to the general development.

The other thing that struck me right from the beginning was poor grammar in a few parts. It almost seemed as if an editor missed parts of the manuscript. For example, there was one section at the beginning written in the past perfect tense, which led to multiple uses of the word “had.” It was awkward and clunky…and the English teacher in me was dying inside.

There was a unique twist at the end that I guessed early on. But there were a lot of uneven parts which made it difficult for me to get through smoothly. Better editing and some tightening of the plot would improve this story significantly. As a whole, the book was just okay.

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Blog Tour w/Review: Witness Protection Widow by Debra Webb

Excited to be a part of Harlequin’s February 2020 Blog Tours. Today I have a review of a book from Harlequin Intrigue.

After a long stretch of psychological thrillers and police procedurals, I was looking for a brain break. I found it in this book.

You can read the synopsis in the blurbs, and what you see is what you get. There is no in-depth character study, no hidden secrets, or mind-boggling twists. It’s a straightforward plot with action and romance.

I enjoyed the story, but I will say that this book is part of a series, and I got the distinct feeling that I would have enjoyed it even more if I had read the others first.

That’s not to say that it was unreadable as a standalone, because it certainly was. The plot was fully developed from beginning to end. But there were a lot of references to past events that obviously occurred in other books. So, I think reading those first would have led to a deeper understanding of the events in this book.

I did like the set-up, because really, who doesn’t love a damsel in distress/old flame as protector story? And I thought that the chemistry between Ali and Jax was tangible and realistic which made it easier to root for them. All in all, this was exactly what I needed when I needed it. It is a good book and a quick read. Just know that if you want to have a more in-depth read, find the first books in the series.

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Blog Tour w/Review: Truth Hurts by Rebecca Reid

If you read enough psychological thrillers, you get to a point where you can sometimes guess where a book is going. That’s no fault of an author – it’s just that you become able to catch some signs or hints of a character’s motivations.

That’s not the case with Truth Hurts by Rebecca Reid. While I was able to guess a few things, the overall plot kept me turning pages because I truly had no idea how everything was going to work out. And that’s just one of the things I enjoyed in this book.

The author laid the groundwork for Poppy’s character (with flaws and assets) right from the start which stayed the same throughout the book. That consistency added to the feeling of unease in later chapters. Poppy’s backstory is old in intermittent chapters simply labeled “Before.” I liked how there was no real timeframe given; the ambiguity added to later events as well.

As I have mentioned before, it is difficult to write reviews about psychological thrillers because I am not someone who gives away plot points, and in a well-written book (like this one) even the littlest mention of something could ruin it for another reader.

I will say, however, that I loved the author’s cleverness in having Poppy read Jane Eyre because that same vibe was prevalent for two-thirds of the book. There was a gothic feel (obviously intentional) which made Poppy’s suspicions seem more probable and kept me waiting for the proverbial shoe to drop.  

I did feel that there were some unanswered questions and a couple of loose ends that I would have liked to have seen resolved, but I did not see the end coming; it was a total jaw-dropper. Another psych thriller that you should take a look at, especially if you like claustrophobic, gothic novels.

AUTHOR BIO

Rebecca is the Digital Editor of Grazia. She has written for Marie Claire, the Guardian, the Saturday Telegraph, the Independent, Stylist, Glamour, the iPaper, the Guardian, Indy100, LOOK and the New Statesmen amongst others.

Rebecca is a regular contributor to Sky News and ITV’s This Morning as well as appearing on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, LBC, BBC News 24 and the BBC World Service to discuss her work. 

She graduated from Royal Holloway’s Creative Writing MA in 2015 and Perfect Liars was her debut novel. 

Rebecca lives in North London with her husband.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RebeccaCNReid
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccacnreid/
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Books On Tour (Review): The Leaving Party by Lesley Sanderson

I am a fan of claustrophobic movies (The Shining and Misery are two of my favorites). I have always found books a little bit more challenging to get into (the irony is not lost on me that the two movies above were books first). It is difficult to maintain interest when the action all has to take place in one location. The author needs to be very creative with the atmosphere.

I am happy to report that The Leaving Party does an excellent job of this. Not only is the claustrophobic feeling achieved (everything takes place in a house), but the author goes a step further and juxtaposes the tension of the story with a going-away party.

Amazon: https://bit.ly/3aNeZXO
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2RuDpxD
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2O0iVdQ
Google Play: https://bit.ly/3aVn390

I liked how the author started with a murky prologue. Was it an event in the past, or something yet to come? How does it tie into the story? I had to go back and re-read the prologue a few times during the book to try to figure it out.

The story is told from alternating points of view between Ava and Lena, with the events of a past party interspersed. The action flows smoothly, and the switches are always natural; I never felt jolted out of the narrative.

I thought that the author’s exploration of friendship and the lengths people will go to for each other was especially fascinating. How can a person tell when a friendship crosses the line? Can friends always be trusted, even to the detriment of family relations?

What I appreciated most, however, was how the author threw in a few red herrings. I take notes when I read, and in looking over them to write this review, I noticed that I had at least four different solutions to a plot point affecting Ava. I changed my mind at least that many times depending on the details the author provided. I liked that I was kept off-balance.

I do think that there were a few things that could have used more depth, but overall it was a tightly written novel with tension and a few “that did NOT just happen” moments. I would certainly recommend it.

AUTHOR BIO

Lesley spends her days writing in coffee shops in Kings Cross where she lives and also works as a librarian in a multicultural school. She has lived and worked in Paris and speaks four languages. She attended the Curtis Brown Creative novel writing course in 2015/6, and in 2017 was shortlisted for the Lucy Cavendish fiction prize. Lesley discovered Patricia Highsmith as a teenager and has since been hooked on psychological thrillers. She is particularly interested in the psychology of female relationships.

www.lesleysanderson.com
https://www.facebook.com/lsandersonbooks/
https://www.instagram.com/lesleysandersonauthor/
https://twitter.com/lsandersonbooks
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Books On Tour (Review)-The Nowhere Girl by Nicole Trope

One of the most cleverly-crafted stories I have read in a while, The Nowhere Girl lives up to its tag line of a “gripping and emotional page-turner.”

Amazon: https://geni.us/B07ZRPQVS7Social
Apple Books: https://apple.co/36dNS5M
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2Wy1uV1
Googleplay: http://bit.ly/2N5oKa5

From the very first chapter, it is apparent that there are going to bad things that occur during the story, and this is undoubtedly the case. One of the strengths of this book is the author’s unflinching look at domestic abuse and its long-lasting effects.

(While the emotional impact is strong, and I felt that even as an observer, it should probably be mentioned that the descriptions of physical and child abuse are graphic and sometimes detailed. They may be extremely disturbing to some readers).

The author made a bold choice in being so descriptive, but the detail catalyzes the story. Some events can occur only because of the detailed memories that arise for both Alice and Molly.

I do not want to belabor this point, because I do not want to give anything away. The plot is tightly woven, and to mention anything more would lessen the impact of the story. The author deftly switches between Alice and Molly in the present and Margaret (their mother) in the past.

There are moments of heartbreaking sadness and deep-seated anger, despair, sacrifice, and hopefulness – honestly, the full gamut of emotions are touched upon throughout the plot. I thought that the author did an incredible job of accurately portraying the feelings of all of the characters.

I felt sympathy for all of the female characters at one point or another, although Molly’s attitude after she received certain news rubbed me the wrong way. I understand her feelings, but there were a few thoughts that I found to be troubling.

 I did think that the book ended a tad abruptly. The build-up and uncovering of the family secrets were done well, but it all seemed accelerated at the end and then it just…wrapped up. I would have liked it to be a little more even at the end, but I was still satisfied with it.

I would highly recommend this book, with a warning that the subject matter is disturbing, but treated with dignity and respect.

AUTHOR BIO

Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realised the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because-as her professor pointed out- ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’ She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Masters’ degree in Children’s Literature. After the birth of her first child she stayed home full time to write and raise children, renovate houses and build a business with her husband.


The idea for her first published novel, The Boy under the Table, was so scary that it took a year for her to find the courage to write the emotional story. Her second novel, Three Hours Late, was voted one of Fifty Books you can’t put down in 2013 and her third novel, The Secrets in Silence, was The Australian Woman’s Weekly Book of the month for June 2014.
She lives in Sydney with her husband and three children.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NicoleTrope/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nicoletrope

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Books On Tour (Review): The Forgotten Wife by Emma Robinson

I am an active reader. Whenever I pick up a book, I hope to find something that I can grasp onto that will give me a more profound understanding of character motivations or (at the very least) I hope to learn something new. A character might go through an experience that I can relate to, or have a familiar attitude. In the case of historical fiction novels, it might be details about a little-known event.

Sometimes, however, I learn something more profound about myself that I did not expect. That was the case as I read The Forgotten Wife.

Amazon: http://bit.ly/36n0arl
Kobo: http://bit.ly/38v5L0e
Apple Books: https://apple.co/30NEYJU
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2Ro4NNz

On the surface, it is the story of two women who find strength in each other as they transition from being new neighbors to good friends. I liked how each of the women, Shelley and Lara, were fully realized characters with distinct personalities. I appreciated how the author crafted their introductions so that the reader got to know the women gradually (as they did with each other). It made me feel like I was a third party to their friendship, not just an outside observer.

I also thought the author did a fantastic job of keeping the realism in the women’s stories, again, rolled out naturally as one would divulge in a new friend. Both women had revelations and realizations about each other and themselves as they opened up to each other. But this is where it got interesting for me.

I have been fortunate never to have experienced either of the events that affected these women, which allowed me to read their stories without becoming emotionally involved. That’s not to say that I didn’t empathize with them, because I absolutely did. But I did not have the background that would have hit me on a deeper level. I have read comments on this book where people were bawling their eyes out or so emotional that they had to stop reading for a time.

I found that this stopped me in my tracks. After thinking about it for a while, I realized that I was one of the people who Shelley and Lara both knew. The person who was aware of what happened to them, but didn’t have a personal connection to the event itself.

This struck me as strange because I still felt for them. I enjoyed being a part of their bonding (loved the clothing scenes) and experiencing their joy  (see what I did there?) and sadness.

I’m not doing a good job of describing this. Let me see if I can summarize it better.

The author made me feel like I was experiencing the growth of their friendship right along with them, but with a bit of detachment from the deep emotions they both went through.

I find that to be an exciting talent of the author. It is difficult to make people care about characters they have little in common with, but this author succeeded. I was rooting for both women, even as I had no real affinity for either one.

Still not sure I did a great job of explaining my thoughts. But I did thoroughly enjoy this book and loved seeing both women overcome their hurdles and (hopefully) move on to happier times. I also found out something about myself: that a personal connection to a book doesn’t always happen in the same manner and doesn’t have to be deep and meaningful to lead to the enjoyment of said book.

Author Bio

Emma Robinson is the author of five novels about motherhood and female friendship including The Undercover Mother.

Her fifth novel – The Forgotten Wife – will be out in January 2020.

When she is not writing, Emma is an English teacher and lives in Essex with a patient husband and two children who are an endless source of material.

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Books On Tour (Review): The Perfect Sister by Sheryl Browne

Talk about a page-turner! This book was full of several twists and turns, right up to literally the last page. Trust me; you don’t want to miss this one.

Amazon: http://bit.ly/36n3y5x
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2tEc8zM
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2Ro7ui9
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2vjrnhW

The author tells the story from alternating points of view of multiple characters. In spite of the constantly changing focus, the narrative runs smoothly. The shifts always make sense in the story and the changing perspectives give the reader more insight.

I thought the author did a fantastic job of keeping multiple balls in the air, illustrating how much Claire (the main character) had to juggle to maintain some semblance of normality. Not only was she dealing with her father whose dementia symptoms were increasing, but her husband also was non-supportive (to say the least)…and she still had a four-year-old daughter to keep safe.

The action took off almost right from the beginning, with important people and events rolled out gradually in the course of the story. There were no “gotcha!” moments that came out of left field; everything had a purpose. However, the twists were good ones and always occurred at just the right moment.

I will admit, some passages were difficult for me to read, but that is only because the author treated dementia with such care and detail. My father went through a similar decline, so a lot of memories were dredged up. As hard as that was at times, it also caused me to have more sympathy for Claire as I remember the strain that caring for Dad put on both my mom and me.

Claire’s vulnerability (borne from sheer exhaustion) makes it difficult for her to tell up from down and her emotional responses to events felt real and raw. The sudden appearance of someone with a shared past doesn’t help matters, especially when that person’s motives are questionable at best.

Without giving too much away (I hope), the author tackled the current hot topic of “believe every victim” with a deft hand in a way that fit the narrative. The blind trust we tend to put on one person’s retelling of events was on stark display, and how easy it is to manipulate people in this manner should make people think carefully.

I thought it was an excellent book with a timely perspective and lots of good psychological twists. You won’t be disappointed.

AUTHOR BIO

Sheryl Browne writes psychological thriller and edgy contemporary fiction. A member of the Crime Writers’ Association, Romantic Novelists’ Association and awarded a Red Ribbon by The Wishing Shelf Book Awards, Sheryl has several books published and two short stories in Birmingham City University anthologies, where she completed her MA in Creative Writing.

www.sherylbrowne.com
https://www.facebook.com/SherylBrowne.Author/
Twitter: @SherylBrowne
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Books On Tour (Review): Her Daughter's Cry by M.M. Chouinard

I read a lot, as those of you who have followed me for a while can tell.  Many of the series are crime or psychological thrillers. Over time, I have found a few favorite characters, and I get more excited when a new book in the series is released. M.M. Chouinard’s Detective Jo Fournier is one of those. Even though it’s only the third book, there are several reasons I like her so much.  

Amazon: https://geni.us/B081RQX56RSocial
Apple Books: https://apple.co/338xC3h
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2KHLATk
Googleplay: http://bit.ly/2s7LSfW

I appreciate that Jo is a fully-realized character, and the author does a fantastic job of balancing Jo’s work and personal life. Everything about her seems real. In the last book, she had to deal with her dad’s cancer. The curveball she gets thrown in this book is a real doozy. The thoughts she ponders and some of her concerns made her more relatable in this book (at least to me) because we are of a similar age, and I could understand her thought process.

In spite of the complications, she still gives total focus to the case at hand, which is realistic as well. And this case is a good one. It starts as a simple memory loss/Jane Doe (even though she is covered in blood – so maybe not so simple). But it quickly becomes apparent that there is more depth to the case than there initially appears to be.

I liked the structure and varying points of view the author used. There were no indicators on the individual chapters to tell whose perspective it is from, but it was always evident. I think the narrative flowed smoothly without the abrupt changes from person to person.

Another reason this worked is that the book is divided into sections. Part One is mostly establishing the case and is from Jo’s point of view. Part Two switches to the Jane Doe – and this is where it gets interesting. We learn a lot more background since she focuses on trying to track down her memories. There are a few interspersed chapters from another perspective, but I’m not going to give that one away.

The second half of the book picks up speed as clues are followed (both by the Jane Doe and by Jo and her squad). It turned into a page-turner, especially since I was waffling about who the culprit actually was. That’s another strength of the author: giving just enough information that I questioned what I already knew.

Her Daughter’s Cry was a great read, and I would recommend the whole series (just to get caught up).

Author Bio

M.M. Chouinard’s first fiction story was published in her local paper when she was eight, and she fell in love with Agatha Christie novels not long after. While pursuing a Ph.D in psychology and helping to found the first U.S. research university of the new millennium, the stories kept rattling around inside her skull, demanding to come out. For sanity’s sake, she released them. She’s currently at work on her seventh novel.

Website: www.mmchouinard.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mmchouinardauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/m_m_chouinard
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Blog Tour w/Review: Watch Over Me

What a page-turner this one was. There was so much going on that it has taken me some time to process it and unpack it all. I’ll do my best to share my thoughts here, but there was a lot to take in.

On the surface, it’s a simple tale of a couple who adopts a two-year-old who had been “rescued” from an abusive home. But is it as abusive as the social worker makes it appear? That’s just one of many questions that arise throughout the book.

What secret is the adoptive mom hiding? Who is the mysterious neighbor who insinuates herself into the family’s life? Are the members of the birth family as awful as they appear to be? Who is the real brain of that family?

These (and many more) are answered in their own time. The author does not rush anything in this book and the drawn-out nature builds the tension. I appreciated this, even as it kept me reading into the night.

Another thing that caught my eye right away was the Table of Contents. When I saw that there was a “Glossary of Scottish Slang” (and saw how long it was), I got excited. I figured that nobody would go to that much trouble for just a few words here and there…and I was right.

I thoroughly enjoyed the chapters from the Johnson family point of view. The author chose to write those passages in the full dialect (hence the need for the glossary). I liked this for two main reasons. One, I enjoy “hearing” accents when I read. I am the type of person who will hear a British accent if a book takes place in London, or a Southern accent if the characters live in South Carolina.

Having the accent right there as I read made it so much easier to “hear,” not to mention the detail that went into writing in that manner. I appreciate the time it must have taken to portray the dialect accurately.

Writing those chapters in that manner also illustrated the difference between the two families vying for Bekki/Beckie. The “proper English,” as opposed to the rougher Scottish slang, was stark in the differences, which added to the gaps between the families.  

I’m not going to give anything away, because this is definitely one that you will want to read on your own to get the full impact of the twists the author cleverly puts in the story, and there are more than a few of them. This is one book that you will not want to miss!

About Jane Renshaw

As a child, Jane spent a lot of time in elaborate Lego worlds populated by tiny plastic animals and people. Crime levels were high, especially after the Dragon brothers set themselves up as vets and started murdering the animals in their ‘care’. (They got away with it by propping the victims up with Plasticine and pretending they were still alive…)

As an adult, she is still playing in imaginary worlds and putting her characters through hell – but now she can call it ‘writing’ and convince herself that she is doing something sensible. In real life, she has a PhD in genetics and copy-edits scientific and medical journals.Jane is the author of The Sweetest Poison, a crime thriller. WATCH OVER ME will be her first novel published with Inkubator Books.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JaneRenshaw10
Website: https://www.janerenshaw.co.uk/
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