BOOKSIMO

Description EVERYONE’S INVITED. EVERYONE’S A SUSPECT. AND EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT IT. ‘ Ripping, riveting ’ A. J. Finn ‘Clever,  twisty  and sleek’  Daily Mail ‘ Unputdownable ’ John Boyne ‘ Foley is superb ’  The Times ‘ Chilling ’ Adele Parks ‘Terrific,  riveting ’ Dinah Jefferies In a remote hunting lodge, deep in the Scottish wilderness, old friends gather for New Year. The beautiful one The golden couple The volatile one The new parents The quiet one The city boy The outsider The victim. Not an accident –  a murder  among friends. Review It's taken me a while to get around to reading this book. I initially didn't buy it because of all the hype and some comparisons to Agatha Christie, which I couldn't believe it would be as good as her work. Well I was wrong! Move over Agatha Christie this is the best writing I have read that could really knock Agatha Christie off the Queen of crime throne. The books has a set of characters that are as unlikeable ...

Description Two women. A dying wish. And a web of lies that will bring their world crashing down. Nina and Marie were best friends-until Nina was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Before she died, Nina asked Marie to fulfill her final wishes. But her mistake was in thinking Marie was someone she could trust. What Nina didn't know was that Marie always wanted her beautiful life, and that Marie has an agenda of her own. She'll do anything to get what she wants. Marie thinks she can keep her promise to her friend's family on her own terms. But what she doesn't know is that Nina was hiding explosive secrets of her own. Review This was a book with so many twists and turns. I changed my mind several times throughout reading the book about what was happening and who was doing what.  Initially  I had very little sympathy for Marie, could you trust anything she told you as she was the narrator of the story and a self confessed liar. It was quite scary the way Marie had decided ...

Description A stray cat dances through Tokyo, connecting a group of apparent strangers, in this inventive literary debut. In Tokyo - one of the world's largest megacities - a stray cat is wending her way through the back alleys. And, with each detour, she brushes up against the seemingly disparate lives of the city-dwellers, connecting them in unexpected ways. But the city is changing. As it does, it pushes her to the margins where she chances upon a series of apparent strangers - from a homeless man squatting in an abandoned hotel, to a shut-in hermit afraid to leave his house, to a convenience store worker searching for love. The cat orbits Tokyo's denizens, drawing them ever closer. In a series of spellbinding, interlocking narratives - with styles ranging from manga to footnotes - Nick Bradley has hewn a novel of interplay and estrangement; of survival and self-destruction; of the desire to belong and the need to escape. Formally inventive and slyly political, The Cat and T...

Description One week in Italy. One week to make her dreams come true . . . Romance is the last thing on Charlotte Alexander's mind. Her perfume business is flourishing. And a glamorous new life in New York awaits. Just one more thing is needed: a supply of artisan lavender for her trademark scent. But when Charlotte stumbles across the infuriating and infuriatingly handsome Alessio Rossini, her plans begin to fall apart. With New York finally in reach . . . should she follow her dreams or her heart? A captivating, feelgood summer romance set in the beautiful Italian countryside. I'm so thrilled to be on the Book Tour today. Review With a Jack Vettriano painting on the cover, I just knew I had to read this book. I loved every minute of it, just pure escapism into fantastic settings with wonderful writing. Charlotte has created a fabulous perfume and she needs to secure a lavender field to supply the demand for the scent in her creation. She's ...

Description How far would you go to maintain the illusion of  The Perfect Life ? Appearances can be deceptive… Molly Chatwell has  a beautiful house, a handsome husband, two children and a job she likes . It all seems so perfect but when her two children leave for university, she realises  her life has become dull and empty . When her husband refuses to go away with her, Molly decides to go alone.  But  what should have been a relaxing break turns into a nightmare.  Back at home in London, Molly tries to put it all behind her but when the police arrive at her door and tell her that a body has been found with connections to her, Molly realises that her  perfect life is under threat …  Review What I liked most about this book was the dialogue - it really felt true to life and so did the day to day activities of the characters. I got a real feel of understanding for all the characters but most of all for Molly. The book begins with Molly having to ec...

Description Do you remember the best summer of your life? New York City, 1945. Marjorie Jacobson and her best friend, Marty Garrett, arrive fresh from the Kappa house at the University of Iowa hoping to find summer positions as shopgirls. Turned away from the top department stores, they miraculously find jobs as pages at Tiffany & Co., becoming the first women to ever work on the sales floor--a diamond-filled day job replete with Tiffany blue shirtwaist dresses from Bonwit Teller's--and the envy of all their friends. Hart takes us back to the magical time when she and Marty rubbed elbows with the rich and famous; pinched pennies to eat at the Automat; experienced nightlife at La Martinique; and danced away their weekends with dashing midshipmen. Between being dazzled by Judy Garland's honeymoon visit to Tiffany, celebrating VJ Day in Times Square, and mingling with Cafe society, she fell in love, learned unforgettable lessons, made important decisions that would change her ...

Description ' A sweet, genuinely funny, banter-filled delight of a rom-com. I absolutely loved this modern day  You've Got Mail '  Kerry Winfrey, author of  Waiting for Tom Hanks Love can happen when you least expect it . . . Dumped by his fiancée, Miles is reduced to couch-surfing across Manhattan and using a local café as his office. Also, he no longer believes in love - not exactly a good look in his line of work. Zoey's eccentric L.A. boss sent her to New York to 'grow'. But beneath her chill Cali exterior, Zoey's terrified to venture beyond the café across the street. Miles and Zoey have absolutely nothing in common. The only thing they share is their daily battle for the café's day-old biscotti. They don't know they're both ghost-writing 'authentic' profiles for rival online dating services. Until they meet online, pretending to be other people . . . As their clients head for dating disaster, Miles and Zoey spend their virtual time ...

Description Elaine Napier, an investigative journalist who is made redundant from her job, decides to record a true crime podcast. All she needs is a story. When Elaine stumbles upon the five-year-old cold case of Katrin, she begins an investigation that will quickly become a fixation. After an early breakthrough, Elaine’s investigation leads her to Hannibal Heights, an apartment building that Katrin helped to design. The building is home to a sinister taxidermy museum, a host of intriguing residents, and more than its share of secrets. But despite the obvious danger, Elaine’s obsession continues to grow. As her investigation threatens to spiral out of control, Napier receives threats and police pressure to shut the broadcast down. Can Elaine solve the mystery and keep her own sense of right and wrong intact? Or will the shocking truth distort everything Elaine holds dear? Review The book centres around Elaine Napier and her quest to find out what happened to a girl called Katrin sever...

Description A devoted wife… A year ago, Gemma met the love of her life, Danny. Since then, their relationship has been perfect. But one evening, Danny doesn’t return home. A missing husband… Gemma turns to the police. She is horrified by what she discovers – a serial killer is on the loose in Bristol. When she sees photos of the victims she is even more stunned…they all look just like Danny. Who would you believe? But the police are suspicious. Why has no one apart from Gemma heard from Danny in weeks? Why is there barely a trace of him in their flat? Is she telling them the truth, or is this marriage hiding some very dark secrets? Review I've read Jackie's previous books which are in the cosy crime genre and loved them. I wasn't sure what to expect from this book but she has come up with a real tale. This book had me believing one thing and then another, I was trying to second guess what was going on throughout the book. My theories changed minute by mi...

Description Giving up? Or moving on? That’s the question for thirty-something Marsaili McKenzie. Ten years after fleeing her tiny coastal village for dreams of fame and fortune in the big city, she finds herself on the brink of an existential crisis. Far from being the star actress she once imagined, she’s still working as a barmaid in a Glasgow theatre while all around her, her friends and family are getting engaged, pregnant or promoted. It’s all she can do to keep her head above water. But as a new year approaches, she resolves to give her acting dreams one last shot. That is, until a couple of unexpected distractions arrive on the scene. Will Hunter is undeniably handsome, as well as being aloof, socially awkward, posh and in the middle of a nasty divorce. And to make things even more complicated, he’s also her new boss. Local boy made good, soap star Euan Campbell, is the epitome of a charismatic leading man. His easy-going charm soon sweeps Marsaili off her feet, but is there mor...

Description A perfect summer. A perfect stranger. A perfect nightmare. When British twenty-somethings Ruth and Adam are offered the chance to spend the summer housesitting in New York, they can’t say no. Young, in love and on the cusp of professional success, they feel as if luck is finally on their side. So the moment that Eden turns up on the doorstep, drenched from a summer storm, it seems only right to share a bit of that good fortune. Beautiful and charismatic, Eden claims to be a friend of the homeowners, who told her she could stay whenever she was in New York. They know you’re not supposed to talk to strangers—let alone invite them into your home—but after all, Eden’s only a stranger until they get to know her. As suspicions creep in that Eden may not be who she claims to be, they begin to wonder if they’ve made a terrible mistake… Review I just loved this book, the first by this author that I have read and it won't be the last. I settled down to read and was straightaway t...