A Winter Flame - Milly Johnson

 

Description

Tis the season to be jolly… But can Eve find happiness through the frost?

Eve has never liked Christmas. So when her adored elderly aunt dies, the last thing she is expecting is to be left a theme park in her will. A theme park with a Christmas theme …

And that's not the only catch. Her aunt's will stipulates that Eve must run the park with a mysterious partner, the exotically named Jacques Glace. Who is this Jacques, and why did Aunt Evelyn name him in her will?

But Eve isn't going to back down from a challenge. She's determined to make a success of Winterworld, no matter what. Can she overcome her dislike of Christmas, and can Jacques melt her frozen heart at last?

Review

I'm working my way through the back catalogue of Milly's books that I haven't yet read.

If you want a book that you can settle into and not worry about who's who, and the action just flows instead of flip flopping about, then this is a book for you.

A nice straightforward tale (or so it seems) of  Eve who inherits a half share in a Christmas theme park. Except it's not yet built and she knows nothing about the Jacques Glace who she is sharing her inheritance with. Is he some shady character who has tricked her Aunt before she died?

Eve has a dislike of Christmas and so to her the theme park must be only Winterworld, no mention of Christmas. She has a broken heart and nothing will mend it, so she just throws herself into work and now into building Winterworld. Her friends and now Jacques are trying to coax her back into the world and to also maybe love Christmas once again - but will they succeed?

Lots of well written characters and a nice easy to follow read. When you just want to relax and sink into a good book that could be read at any time of the year.

I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars.

The Long, Long Afternoon - Inga Vesper

 

Description

From the publishers of The Familiars by Stacey Halls comes Manilla Press's biggest debut launch of the season - and your next obsession in reading group fiction.

Yesterday, I kissed my husband for the last time . . .

It's the summer of 1959, and the well-trimmed lawns of Sunnylakes, California, wilt under the sun. At some point during the long, long afternoon, Joyce Haney, wife, mother, vanishes from her home, leaving behind two terrified toddlers and a bloodstain on the kitchen floor . . .

A beguiling, deeply atmospheric debut novel from the cracked heart of the American Dream, The Long, Long Afternoon is at once a page-turning mystery and an intoxicating vision of the ways in which women everywhere are diminished, silenced and ultimately under-estimated.

Review

I just loved this read. The style of writing drew me in from the very first paragraph.

Joyce Haney appears to have the perfect life and home as do all the residents of Sunnylakes, California, in fact it's a little bit of a Stepford Wives community it seems. 

This is the 1950s so prejudice abounds in all manner of ways. Ruby, the help, is arrested even though she only found the blood on the kitchen floor. No one is interested in what she has to say except a Detective from Brooklyn who isn't as immersed in the California treatment of others as his colleagues are. 

I found the character of Ruby so well drawn and felt for her as one after another prejudices and physical attacks were hurled against her. It really brought to life for me how awful it was. Bit by bit we discover that Joyce, although more privileged, was in a living hell of her own. 

For some reason I wasn't expecting the mystery element of the book and the good old fashioned detective work. I became immersed in the 1950s and didn't want to leave despite it not being a nice place a lot of the time. 

I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. My thanks to netgalley for the ARC to review.

Olive Again - Elizabeth Strout

 

Description

Olive, Again follows the blunt, contradictory yet deeply loveable Olive Kitteridge as she grows older, navigating the second half of her life as she comes to terms with the changes - sometimes welcome, sometimes not - in her own existence and in those around her. 

Olive adjusts to her new life with her second husband, challenges her estranged son and his family to accept him, experiences loss and loneliness, witnesses the triumphs and heartbreaks of her friends and neighbours in the small coastal town of Crosby, Maine - and, finally, opens herself to new lessons about life. 

Review

I didn't realise this was a follow on book, but it was a stand alone read for me. I listened to it on audio, I'm not sure I would have stuck with it as a book.

I thought the book would be told throughout by Olive, so when it began with Jack who becomes her second husband, I thought I had the wrong idea about the book. Eventually we got to Olive and then other characters that hadn't even been introduced started to share their stories, I got confused. I went with it and up would pop Olive at some point in their story, she was their old teacher or some such thing.

The story covers Olive's later life beginning when she is about to marry her second husband. It's really the tale of everyday life of different people in the book, what they are thinking about things and how others might perceive them and their ideas. Many subjects are covered in the book and some choice language occurs - so not for you if you are easily offended.

It was a little sad at the end when Olive is an old lady and loses some of her independence. Especially as she wasn't someone to suffer fools gladly and was very independent. I liked her straight talking in the main, although at times it got a little maudlin. 

My thanks to my local library and Borrowbox for the loan of this title.

the One Hundred years of Lenni and Margot - Marianne Cronin

 

Description

An extraordinary friendship. A lifetime of stories. Their last one begins here.

Life is short - no one knows that better than seventeen year-old Lenni Petterssen. On the Terminal Ward, the nurses are offering their condolences already, but Lenni still has plenty of living to do.

When she meets 83-year-old Margot Macrae, a fellow patient offering new friendship and enviable artistic skills, Lenni's life begins to soar in ways she'd never imagined.

As their bond deepens, a world of stories opens up: of wartime love and loss, of misunderstanding and reconciliation, of courage, kindness and joy.

Stories that have led Lenni and Margot to the end of their days.

The One Hundred Years is a celebration of life, hope and kindness. The perfect read to shine a light on dark days.

Review

You might think a novel set on a hospital terminal ward would be a little depressing - but this book is far from that. It's a brilliant uplifting tale with laugh out loud moments.

The 100 years comes from the ages of Lenni 17 and the friend she makes in hospital called Margot who is 83 years old. They attend an art class in the hospital and decide to paint a picture for each of their years. Through the book we get to read about moments from their lives as they paint.

One of the things I liked most about this novel is Lenni. She is a wonderful character who despite having a terminal illness has a wicked sense of humour and is always ready to speak her mind. She does this the most with the priest at the hospital chapel, she certainly challenges him on one or two points.

There was one part near to the end of the book that had me in floods of tears, it didn't involve death but the scene was so realistically written. The whole book I found has a real honesty to the writing.

Unlike anything I have read before I am giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. My thanks to netgalley for the ARC to review. The book is out on 18 February 2021.

Heads You Win - Jeffrey Archer

 

Description

Heads You Win is the incredible and thrilling novel by the master storyteller and bestselling author of the Clifton Chronicles and Kane and Abel, Jeffrey Archer.

Leningrad, Russia, 1968. Alexander Karpenko is no ordinary child, and from an early age, it is clear he is destined to lead his countrymen. But when his father is assassinated by the KGB for defying the state, he and his mother will have to escape from Russia if they hope to survive. At the docks, they are confronted with an irreversible choice: should they board a container ship bound for America, or Great Britain? Alexander leaves that choice to the toss of a coin . . .

In a single moment, a double twist decides Alexander’s future.

During an epic tale of fate and fortune, spanning two continents and thirty years, we follow his triumphs and defeats as he struggles as an immigrant to conquer his new world. As this unique story unfolds, Alexander comes to realize where his destiny lies, and accepts that he must face the past he left behind in Russia.

With a final twist that will shock even his most ardent fans, this is international number one bestseller Jeffrey Archer’s most ambitious and creative work since Kane and Abel.

Review

It's many years since I read Kane and Able and really enjoyed it,  I thought this might be just as good. Unfortunately although for most of the book I saw a glimpse of the great writing, at times it was rambling, especially the parts involving politics. This is a long book at 600+ pages and some of those could have been cut out.

I got very confused about who Sasha was - it seems he is a sliding doors version of Alexander who ends up in the USA, whilst Alex ends up in London. I guess it would have been too confusing for them to have the same name, but at times I found it hard to recall who had which storyline. 

I enjoyed the book at times, especially the rags to riches stories of the characters. However, towards the end some strange things happen which just took the book into another dimension and I had to re read them to ensure I understood what had happened. To say more would just be a plot spoiler.  I was then just super confused by the ending - maybe me, but it just became even more fantastical, which didn't fit with the overall book.

I'm giving this book 3 out of 5 stars. My thanks to netgalley for the ARC to review.

Space Hopper - Helen Fisher

So happy to be on the blog tour for this brilliant book today.

Description

They say those we love never truly leave us, and I’ve found that to be true. But not in the way you might expect. In fact, none of this is what you’d expect. 

I’ve been visiting my mother who died when I was eight. And I’m talking about flesh and blood, tea-and-biscuits-on-the-table visiting here. 

Right now, you probably think I’m going mad. Let me explain… 

Although Faye is happy with her life, the loss of her mother as a child weighs on her mind even more now that she is a mother herself. So she is amazed when, in an extraordinary turn of events, she finds herself back in her childhood home in the 1970s. Faced with the chance to finally seek answers to her questions – but away from her own family – how much is she willing to give up for another moment with her mother? 

For fans of The Time Traveler’s Wife comes an original and heartwarming story about bittersweet memories, how the past shapes the future, and a love so strong it makes you do things that are slightly bonkers.

Review

I love time travel books - I've read so many, and this is up there amongst the greatest plots of them all.

Faye finds a Space Hopper box from her childhood - it turns out it's a "time machine" and she can travel back to the 1970s - not only that but, she can see her Mum who died when she was young and who she never really got to know. 

Faye works at the RNIB and Louis who also works there is blind. Of course this is part of the plot device as you will discover, but it was also so well written and sensitive to the life of someone who cannot see. I loved how colours were described to him in terms of feelings. 

One of the things about this book is that it's written as if  Faye is actually talking to you, the reader. You get addressed directly by her and the style of the writing is just that of a chatty friend.  I really liked the feeling that we were in this together. Hence #JumpWithMe. It's not just light hearted though, there is some real world life advice within these pages and such tender writing.

I had mixed feelings about Faye travelling in time, what about the "butterfly effect"? and her life and family in the present day? Around half way the book took an almost mystery style plot and I finished the rest of the book in one sitting, totally absorbed in what was happening. 

The ending was so beautiful! I keep thinking about it now - it's just genius. One of those books that until you reach the end and reflect back, you just don't realise how good it was.

I'm giving a very solid 5 stars to this book. My thanks to Random Things tours for a copy of the book to review.

Author

Helen Fisher spent her early life in America, but grew up mainly in Suffolk where she now lives with her two children. She studied Psychology at Westminster University and Ergonomics at UCL and worked as a senior evaluator in research at RNIB. Space Hopper is her first novel.

Four Minutes to Save a Life - Anna Stuart

Description

When supermarket delivery driver Charlie is assigned the Hope Row street, he realises there are a lot of lonely people out there - and for some, he's their only interaction.

The supermarket boss tells Charlie he's a driver, not a social worker - but Charlie's tough exterior begins to soften, and he can't help show a little kindness to the Hope Row residents, helping them find their place in the world once more.

But will his helping hand make everything worse?

Review

Charlie is a new supermarket delivery driver and he's allowed 4 minutes per customer for a delivery. As his boss tells him, he won't need longer, he's not a social worker.

This was a truly delightful tale of Charlie and his interaction with the different residents of Hope Street his delivery run. As Charlie begins to deliver to the residents of Hope Street we get to know a few of them a little better and what happens before and after Charlie does his delivery to them.

I'm making a trigger warning here for suicide and also the death of a child. Which may be a little spoiler but I feel the need to point it out. On the whole the book is so uplifting and charming. Just a really pleasant read. 

I really liked Charlie as a character and was intrigued as to how he ended up being a delivery driver. Maybe I should have seen it coming, but the outcome of the book was a complete surprise to me. I think the great story telling just had me so engrossed I never thought to try and work it out.

I'm giving this book 4 out of 5 stars. My thanks to Netgalley for the ARC to review.