A Review of No One Like You by Kate Angell - Five **

A Review of No One Like You by Kate Angell - Five **

Blurb:

No One Expects a Curveball

For Rylan Cates, the gloriously sunny beachside town of Barefoot William may be home, but the pro baseball player needs to focus on spring training. Hiring a personal assistant to keep him and his four dogs organized for the next eight weeks is the first step--and Beth Avery is the perfect pinch hitter. 

Beth is still looking for her place in the world, and a couple months caring for Rylan's two dachshunds, his golden retriever, and a Great Dane named Atlas should shore up her finances before she moves on. Except it's Atlas who won't budge, pushing her toward tanned, scruffy, sexy Rylan every chance he gets. One more strike and she's calling the dog out--unless she and Rylan admit that the attraction they're feeling is a game-winning grand slam. . .

Review:

This was a lovely story. Being English, the baseball side didn't mean much but that really didn't matter.

The growing attraction between Beth and Ry was very well written and told from both sides. The characters around the central pair were fantastic, particularly the other players in the team and I was delighted to find that this is the start of a series.

The dogs were amazing. I work with dogs so any book which has a larger-than-life dog with a larger-than-life character is always going to be hit with me!

It was a quick read - nothing too taxing and I enjoyed the setting too. Yes, they all seemed to lead somewhat charmed lives - but isn't that part of the reason for reading? To escape from our own realities?

I really look forward to reading the next book in the series and shall look out for more Kate Angell books.

Amazon UK: No One Like You

Amazon US: No One Like You

Sue Moorcroft's first two Middledip series books are just 99p on Amazon UK: Starting Over and All That Mullarkey

Grab them while you can!!

A Review of Girls on Tour by Nicola Doherty - Five **

A Review of Girls on Tour by Nicola Doherty - Five **

Blurb: 

Four girls. One year.

Five fabulous destinations.

Poppy is bound for Paris, the City of Love. Could this be her chance to end her epic dry spell?

Lily is en route to her cousin's wedding in LA, where she's willing to break a few rules to land her dream role.

Maggie can't wait for her romantic ski holiday in Meribel - until it goes seriously off-piste.

Rachel packs for a glamorous Roman holiday, but a blast from the past is about to sabotage la dolce vita.

The girls get together and fly to Manhattan. But someone's been hiding a big secret in the Big Apple...

Hilarious, romantic and unputdownable, Girls on Tour is an irresistible series of interlinked stories about four ordinary girls who have extraordinary fun in faraway places. Follow them in an unforgettable year that includes breaking up, making up, new jobs and some big surprises ...

Perfect for fans of Lindsey Kelk's I Heart ... novels. Previously published as five e-novellas, now in one volume with fabulous brand new material.

Review:

What fun this book is! It is a travelogue, a collection of love stories, empowerment - all rolled into one! The central cast - Lily, Poppy, Maggie and Rachel are all very different women wanting very different things in life. 

As they travel the world and have new experiences, their views change - they gain friends and men and lose friends and men. The descriptions of their habits and characteristics make for some very funny reading! There are exes, current boyfriends and future boyfriends in the story - all crossing over in time and space! 

I loved Poppy and Charlie's story and enjoyed the ending for that reason. (No spoilers!) I'd read Maggie's skiing trip previously but it was still good second time around.

Amazon UK: Girls on Tour

Amazon US: Girls on Tour

A positive article about chick lit :)

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/apr/22/is-romantic-fiction-a-dangerous-passion

Special news!  

Feeling very happy that I've been auto-approved to review pre-publication books from Choc Lit on NetGalley!!

Review of Game of Scones by Samantha Tonge - Five**

Review of Game of Scones by Samantha Tonge - Five**

(Samantha has the honour of being the first UK author for whom I have reviewed 2 books!)

Blurb: 

A story of icing and flour…and how love doesn’t always go to plan!

Growing up, Pippa Pattinson’s summers were spent in the idyllic Greek island fishing village of Taxos. There she spent many long hazy days determinedly ignoring thoughts of the life her parents had mapped out for her (a dreary-but-secure accounting job and obligatory sensible husband!) Instead she daydreamed of running her own tea shop – serving the perfect scones – with mocha-eyed childhood friend Niklaus by her side…

Arriving back in Taxos for the first time in years, with suave boyfriend Henrik, Pippa barely recognises the tired little town – but is relieved to catch glimpses of the quaint, charming village she’s always loved. Together Niklaus and Pippa put together a proposal to save Taxos from tourist-tastic ruin, and at the heart of their plan is Pippa’s dream project: The Tastiest Little Tea Shop in Taxos. It’s time for Pippa to leave her London life behind and dust off her scone recipe that’s guaranteed to win over both locals and visitors. And amidst the rolling pins and raisins, it seems romance is blossoming where she’s least expecting it…

Don't miss this sizzling new summer read from bestselling author Samantha Tonge, perfect for fans of Mistletoe Mansion, Always the Bridesmaid and Summer at Shell Cottage

Review: 

Oh wow! How I loved this book! Read it in two sittings and was so sad when it ended. It has everything - 2 leading men, a lovely heroine, beautiful setting, fabulous Greek families and a baddie! 

Halfway through the book, I could not see how the problems could possibly resolve themselves but Samantha put a couple of twists in the plot and hey presto! The tension builds slowly through the book and the end is such a relief! 

I would love to read a second book set in Taxos - with some recipes this time! Those scones sounded wonderful!

I received an ARC from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon UK: Game of Scones

Amazon US: Game of Scones

Thanks to everyone who entered the competition on here and on Facebook. 

Absolutely right - Dog is a Border Collie!

Drum roll and Trumpet Fanfare....................... And the winner is.................

Kaewink!!!

Please email me your details and I will get the book in the post to you.

Last chance for entries into the Trisha Ashley Competition!

Win yourself a copy of her book Creature Comforts!!

Just tell me what dog does Trisha have?

Comment below or on my Facebook page: Annie's Book Corner

I will do the draw tomorrow evening :)

A review of The Edge of Dark by Pamela Hartshorne

A review of The Edge of Dark by Pamela Hartshorne - Five **

Blurb: 

Jane believes in keeping her promises, but a deathbed vow sets her on a twisting path of deceit and joy that takes her from the dark secrets of Holmwood House in York to the sign of the golden lily in London's Mincing Lane. Getting what you want, Jane discovers, comes at a price. For the child that she longed for, the child she promised to love and to keep safe, turns out to be a darker spirit than she could ever have imagined.

Over four centuries later, Roz Acclam remembers nothing of the fire that killed her family - or of the brother who set it. Trying on a beautiful Elizabethan necklace found in the newly restored Holmwood House triggers disturbing memories of the past at last - but the past Roz remembers is not her own . . .

A dark and twisted tale from Pamela Harshorne, author of The Memory of Midnight and Time's Echo, and a perfect read for fans of Barbara Erskine and Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series.

Review:

Pamela has written another winner. Her books are time slip stories set in York in the present day and in Elizabethan times. The Edge of Dark is a real mystery thriller, both in the present and the past. Roz is the lead in the present and Jane in Elizabethan England. 

Their stories run parallel to each other and are full of tension and fear. I held my breath at times! 

Pamela offers a fascinating insight into the life and times in the 16th century - the first time we meet Jane is one of the most upsetting scenes I've ever read and I have no doubt that it is accurate!

The book is also about families and rejection and the consequences. If you have a fear of fire then this might not be the book for you!

Amazon UK: The Edge of Dark

Amazon US: The Edge of Dark

A Review of The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable - Three **

A Review of The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable - Three **

Blurb:

How can a memory so vivid be wrong? 

I tried to remember the first time I’d been here and to see the tree through Izzie’s eyes. The oak stood on a rise just above the path; not too tall or wide but graceful and straight, its trunk covered in what I can only describe as offerings – pieces of ribbon, daisy chains, a shell necklace, a tiny doll or two and even an old cuckoo clock. 
"Why do people do this?" Izzie asked. 
I winked at her. "To say thank you to the fairies." 

In the summer of 1986 Robin and Izzie hold hands under The Faerie Tree and wish for a future together. Within hours tragedy rips their dreams apart. 

In the winter of 2006, each carrying their own burden of grief, they stumble back into each other’s lives and try to create a second chance. But why are their memories of 1986 so different? And which one of them is right? 

With strong themes of paganism, love and grief, The Faerie Tree is a novel as gripping and unputdownable as Jane Cable’s first book, The Cheesemaker’s House, which won the Suspense & Crime category of The Alan Titchmarsh Show’s People’s Novelist competition. It is a story that will resonate with fans of romance, suspense, and folklore.

Review: 

This is the story of Izzie and Robin. How they met, split and re-met years later. It is a very emotional book and describes depression very well - particularly from the point of how people have come to have more tolerance and understanding of it as an illness.

Izzie has been recently widowed and when shopping with her daughter Claire,she bumps into a tramp and recognises him as her former lover, Robin. They meet again and restart their relationship. The interesting part is that they have completely different memories of their relationship at the beginning and this is not explained until fairly near the end.

I was, however, disappointed in the lack of magic/paganism in the novel, despite the promise of the blurb. It also seemed very long-winded in places and overly long as a whole.

Claire is a wonderful character - older than her years and a loyal supporter of both Izzie and Robin. Robin is also beautifully written and I felt so sorry for him as the depression overtook him time and time again.

But Izzie, who should have induced sympathy as well, just irritated me in the end. Her lack of understanding of other peoples' points of view didn't fit with the rest of her character. Her mental crisis is well written but the alcohol dependency was skimmed over.

Overall I was disappointed.

Amazon UK: The Faerie Tree

Amazon US: The Faerie Tree