BOOKSIMO

Description *Preorder the new book in Julie’s bestselling series for a slice of escapism at the turn of a page!* ‘Up there with the best of them… A big, fat five stars from me ’ Sue Moorcroft ‘An  irresistible slice of escapism ’ Phillipa Ashley It’s time to pack your bags and head to the breathtaking, snow-covered peaks of the Swiss Alps for velvety hot chocolates, delicious cheeses and a gorgeous love story… Food technician Mina has always believed that chocolate will solve everything – and it’s just what she needs when her latest relationship mishap goes viral! So with her bags packed and a new determination to sort her life out, Minna decides to drown her sorrows with the best hot chocolate in the world at her godmother’s cosy Swiss chalet. Chocolate: yes. Romance: no. Until she has a run in on an Alpine train with a mysterious but oh-so-gorgeous stranger… Review What's not to love? Julie Caplin + new book in the "Romantic escapes" series + chocolate - it's a matc

  Description Will all three women have their Christmas wishes come true? Christmas is coming and best friends  Chloe ,  Jules , and  Lucy  are needing change… so swapping homes for the holidays could be the perfect present for all of them! Australian  Chloe  spends her Christmas in a sleepy village in Oxfordshire, England. She is totally star-struck when she discovers who lives across the road. Lucy , who has jetted off to snowy Colorado for her dream-come-true white Christmas, is taken into the fold of Jules’s loud and brash family, discovering more about herself in a few short days than she has in years. And  Jules  leaves the cold climes of Colorado to spend her Christmas on a beach with Chloe’s friends in Melbourne, finding that time away is just what she needed. The only thing better than one Christmas romance is three, and this wonderful festive novel is perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan, Holly Martin and Karen Swan. Review If you are looking for a little Christmas escapism with

  Description Claire Wilcox has been a curator of fashion at the Victoria and Albert Museum for most of her working life. In  Patch Work , she steps into the archive of memory, deftly stitching together her dedicated study of fashion with the story of her own life lived in and through clothes. From her mother's black wedding suit to the swirling patterns of her own silk kimono, her memoir unfolds in spare, luminous prose the spellbinding power of the things we wear. In a series of intimate and compelling close-ups, Wilcox tugs on the threads that make up the fabric of our lives: a cardigan worn by a child, a mother's button box, the draping of a curtain, a pair of cycling shorts, a roll of lace, a pin hidden in a seam. Through the eye of a curator, we see how the stories and the secrets of clothes measure out the passage of time, our gains and losses, and the way we use them to unravel and write our histories. Review I love fashion, sewing and the V&A - so I was delighted t

Description After the break-up of her marriage, Imogen escapes to her aunt's converted lighthouse on Beachy Head. Writing for a tedious online magazine but hoping to start a novel, she wants to be alone until she finds an entrancing flamenco CD in her borrowed car and contacts the artist via Twitter. It turns out that actor-musician Santiago needs help with English, and is soon calling her profesora. Through her window, the other lighthouse winks at her across the sea. The one where her father was a keeper until he mysteriously drowned there in 1982. Her aunt is sending extracts from his diary, and Imogen is intrigued to learn that, like her and Santi, her father had a penfriend. Meanwhile, despite their differences, Imogen is surrounded by emotional and geographical barriers, Santi surrounded by family and land-locked Madrid their friendship develops. So, she reads, did her father's but shocking revelations cause Imogen to question whether she ever really knew him. Two stories

  Description After a spate of terrible boyfriends, Jess is sure she’s found her perfect man in dependable – but occasionally dull – Tim. But when her grandmother, tasks her with retrieving a family heirloom from a local auction she finds herself face to face with a charming stranger, Guy. Guy has already bought her grandmother's precious necklace and whilst Jess desperately tries to buy it back from him, he somehow convinces her to go out on a date instead. Ridiculous. But Guy has the necklace and Jess’s grandmother’s health is declining rapidly. Jess has no choice but to indulge Guy and go on a date with – if only to get the necklace back. But when she and Guy hit it off on their date Jess’s dependable happily-ever-after is thrown off track… Review This is the second book by Louisa Leaman I've read and loved - the first was  The Perfect Dress . Louisa seems to be able to create a world I instantly want to fall headlong into and what's more contains all my own interests. I

  Description Convenience Store Woman  meets  My Year of Rest and Relaxation  in this strange, compelling, darkly funny tale of one woman’s search for meaning in the modern workplace A young woman walks into an employment agency and requests a job that has the following traits: it is close to her home, and it requires no reading, no writing – and ideally, very little thinking. She is sent to a nondescript office building where she is tasked with watching the hidden-camera feed of an author suspected of storing contraband goods. But observing someone for hours on end can be so inconvenient and tiresome. How will she stay awake? When can she take delivery of her favourite brand of tea? And, perhaps more importantly – how did she find herself in this situation in the first place? As she moves from job to job, writing bus adverts for shops that mysteriously disappear, and composing advice for rice cracker wrappers that generate thousands of devoted followers, it becomes increasingly appare

  All profits from the sale of this anthology will be donated to frontline domestic abuse charities DESCRIPTION IT WOULDN’T BE CHRISTMAS WITHOUT A LITTLE CRIME… A Christmas dinner takes a murderous turn, a friendship group loses the festive spirit, and a young girl goes to extreme measures to keep a beloved dog . Afraid Of The Christmas Lights  is a collection of gripping, sometimes funny, and always festive short stories from a group of bestselling crime writers. From the hilarious to the macabre, there’s something for everyone – whether you’re a Christmas convert or a bit of a Grinch. From a detective tracking down missing Christmas geese, to a cat lady who goes on a date in order to keep Santa Paws well fed, this anthology is the perfect gift to cosy up with this year. REVIEW I read this anthology of short crime stories all with a Christmas theme courtesy of Pigeonhole. All the profits from the sale go to frontline domestic abuse charities, so well worth buying. Some of the authors