Review: The Life She Could Have Lived: A heartwarming, life-affirming love story about fate, friendship and the power of one little word – perfect for fans of One Day and Taylor Jenkins Reid

The Life She Could Have Lived: A heartwarming, life-affirming love story about fate, friendship and the power of one little word – perfect for fans of One Day and Taylor Jenkins Reid by Laura Pearson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Anna goes on a wonderful date with a guy called James, then never hears from him again. On 5 June 1992, her best friend Mia takes her to a fortune teller who tells Mia she will have one love and one child, and Anna that she will be with a man whose name begins with J who works in the food industry.

Fast forward eight years, it's Anna's first wedding anniversary to Edward, an investment banker and he suggests they have a baby. This is where Anna's life splits, in one universe she agrees, in the other she says no. We catch up with each version of Anna on her anniversary each year to see how her life changes based on that one decision. But not just hers, those around her too.

This is billed as One Day meets Sliding Doors, which it totally is. The downside is that so many things happen from year to year that you don't see, marriages, deaths, divorces, affairs, and because you are seeing two Annas it feels like you are skimming the surface, never really connecting properly.

Trying not to be spoilery, I don't know what the message was supposed to be, that your one true love might just be a matter of the time and the circumstances?

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Christmas at Hollybush Farm

Christmas at Hollybush Farm by Jo Thomas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jemima Jones works for a chain of hotels, planning events and holiday celebrations alongside her boyfriend Matthew who manages one of the hotels. The two of them have been given the opportunity to open and run the latest hotel in Seattle, so they have popped home to see Jemima's father on his farm to celebrate an early Christmas before the season kicks in properly. But when they arrive Jemima's father has had some sort of episode and the farm is in dire straits. Jemima has no choice but to pull on her (pink) wellies and muck in, she might have left the farm behind but she loves it too much to let it go.

But it's not just Hollybush Farm, the entire community is struggling, local shops have closed, people are on zero hours contracts, or unemployed. Jemima's father has been supplying potatoes from the farm cash-in-hand to the local café, which does a black-market trade in jacket potatoes rather than the microwave burgers and fries the new owner has put on the menu.

Frustrated that her family could have to give up the farm, or at least sell the land to developers for solar panels, and horrified that she was guilty of perpetuating the cheap food at any cost ethos, Jemima vents her frustration with a reel on social media. Soon she has accumulated a following, they call her the Social Shepherdess, and when the landlord closes the local café because he has sold it to a chain only a few weeks before Christmas the community comes together in protest.

This was sweet, heart-warming, and a perfect cosy Christmas small-town story. Very Jo Thomas. I must admit cynical me did wonder how someone could afford to run a generator but not be able to pay for a jacket potato for lunch, and wonder who was buying the ingredients for all the fillings, but that's a minor point.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Revolve

Revolve by Bal Khabra
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Two and a half stars.

Sierra Romanova is an Olympic hopeful whose figure skating dreams were crushed after a lift went wrong and left her in a coma, with scarring, and PTSD. She's trying to get back on the ice but she keeps getting flashbacks, added to which her boyfriend/skating partner not only dropped her literally but also figuratively personally AND professionally. Also, this late in the season there are no male skaters available to partner with.

Dylan Donovan is the good-looking party frat boy of the hockey team, but a weak moment after he hears some family news has led to a failed drugs test which gets him kicked off the team and puts his career in the NHL in jeopardy. A little known fact about Dylan is that he and his little sister Ada used to compete in figure skating, until they realised the person they were trying to impress never bothered to show up.

A deal is done, Dylan can skate ... if he agrees to partner Sierra.

This is a riff on the 1990s classic film The Cutting Edge and subsequent spin-offs. Its an opposites attract, enemies from the get-go, YA/NA romance. There was nothing wrong with the story, although I'm guessing this is part of a series as there seemed to be a lot of things that happened 'off stage', presumably in previous books, other than a lack of skating.

However, as the book went on I became more disturbed by the intimate scenes. I 'get' that possessiveness and being unable to keep your hands off someone is meant to be attractive but it just screamed red flag to me. Dylan tells her what to wear (and what not), not to answer her phone, he talks about breaking through anything to get to her, ruining her pussy (ouch), he slaps her thighs, pulling her fistful of her hair and yanking her back, saying she fucks like a porn star, and talks about stuffing her full of his cock - and a lot of this happens in just one scene! I 100% accept I am not the target demographic for this novel but this sort of thing worries me because it excuses abusive and controlling behaviour as 'love' and places unrealistic expectations on women.

So what would have been a pleasant enough three and a half stars got downgraded to two and a half stars because of the red flags and also because there was too much angst. She's got PTSD and doesn't think anyone would like her if they knew what she was really like. His parents are in an abusive relationship and he doesn't feel that anyone would like him unless he plays the class clown.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Revolve

Revolve by Bal Khabra
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Two and a half stars.

Sierra Romanova is an Olympic hopeful whose figure skating dreams were crushed after a lift went wrong and left her in a coma, with scarring, and PTSD. She's trying to get back on the ice but she keeps getting flashbacks, added to which her boyfriend/skating partner not only dropped her literally but also figuratively personally AND professionally. Also, this late in the season there are no male skaters available to partner with.

Dylan Donovan is the good-looking party frat boy of the hockey team, but a weak moment after he hears some family news has led to a failed drugs test which gets him kicked off the team and puts his career in the NHL in jeopardy. A little known fact about Dylan is that he and his little sister Ada used to compete in figure skating, until they realised the person they were trying to impress never bothered to show up.

A deal is done, Dylan can skate ... if he agrees to partner Sierra.

This is a riff on the 1990s classic film The Cutting Edge and subsequent spin-offs. Its an opposites attract, enemies from the get-go, YA/NA romance. There was nothing wrong with the story, although I'm guessing this is part of a series as there seemed to be a lot of things that happened 'off stage', presumably in previous books, other than a lack of skating.

However, as the book went on I became more disturbed by the intimate scenes. I 'get' that possessiveness and being unable to keep your hands off someone is meant to be attractive but it just screamed red flag to me. Dylan tells her what to wear (and what not), not to answer her phone, he talks about breaking through anything to get to her, ruining her pussy (ouch), he slaps her thighs, pulling her fistful of her hair and yanking her back, saying she fucks like a porn star, and talks about stuffing her full of his cock - and a lot of this happens in just one scene! I 100% accept I am not the target demographic for this novel but this sort of thing worries me because it excuses abusive and controlling behaviour as 'love' and places unrealistic expectations on women.

So what would have been a pleasant enough three and a half stars got downgraded to two and a half stars because of the red flags and also because there was too much angst. She's got PTSD and doesn't think anyone would like her if they knew what she was really like. His parents are in an abusive relationship and he doesn't feel that anyone would like him unless he plays the class clown.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: A Very Merry Murder

A Very Merry Murder by Kate Wells
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Jude Gray runs Malvern Farm, she has rented out her land for a beloved tv show (think Countryfile meets Richard and Judy) to do a live broadcast over a week just before Christmas. However charming the husband and wife who present the show may seem on the small screen, in real life they seem to be at odds with each other, and he may be having an affair with one of the camera operators. The director is a sleaze who tries to take advantage of women on the crew, the assistant director is a bully, and there is clearly tension between the wife in the presenting couple and the rest of the crew.

While Jude is being interviewed live on the first day one of the presenters nearly dies from anaphylactic shock after being given a cup of coffee which contains peanuts. Days later the camerawoman is dead. Was the death a tragic accident? Was she the intended victim, or was she mistaken for the female lead whose caravan she was using?

This is the sixth book in the series, but the first one I have read. It was the epitome of a cosy read, with Jude working hand-in-glove with two local detectives to solve the case whilst also taking her nephew sledging in the snow and helping her sister plan her Boxing Day wedding. I'd say I guessed the murderer but TBH everyone came under suspicion one way or another so there was an open field.

Pleasant, cosy, small town murder mystery.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: Beattie Cavendish and the White Pearl Club: The compelling mystery series set at the dawn of the Cold War

Beattie Cavendish and the White Pearl Club: The compelling mystery series set at the dawn of the Cold War by Mary-Jane Riley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Its 1948. After a war spent in the Resistance with the Secret Operations Executive, Beattie Cavendish has joined GCHQ and her first mission is to cosy up to Ashley Bowen, son of the Conservative politician and cabinet minister Ralph Bowen, because Ralph is suspected of being a communist sympathiser and could be passing secrets to Moscow.

When looking for clues in the Bowen's London house, Beattie stumbles across the body of the Bowen's young housekeeper Sofia in the study, with her throat cut.

Patrick Corrigan was special forces in the war and has the scars, a missing eye, and a limp to prove it. Now, an Irishman living in London, he's scratching a living as a private detective, following errant husbands and the like. Edwina Bowen hired Patrick to follow her husband Ralph for several nights, where he was seen to enter a club (The White Pearl Club) owned by a pair of Russians and known for prostitutes and homosexuals, then Edwina calls off the case, she no longer wants Ralph followed, turning up at the Bowen's mansion for an explanation Corrigan is narrowly stopped from being a convenient scapegoat for a detective who clearly wants to clear this up as quietly as possible.

In their own ways Beattie and Corrigan are incensed that a powerful family can just hush-up the death of an employee and are determined to uncover who killed this young Jewish woman who had escaped Nazi Germany with her younger brother while only a child herself and was trying to build a new life in England.

This started slow for me, nut it picked up speed and I enjoyed the to and fro as Beattie and Corrigan tried to understand how Sofia and the White Pearl club are connected, who is trying to hush things up, and who is trying to put them off the scent.

I would definitely be interested in reading more if this were a series.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.


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Review: Stranger in the Village

Stranger in the Village by H.L. Marsay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

At the end of the first book (view spoiler)[the body of Lucy's husband Rupert has been found in a cave, and the local MP had been arrested for stalking and threatening Lucy. Former London detective Jo, who is desperate to get back to the Big Smoke has evidence that Lucy hit Rupert with a spade on the night he disappeared, but she and Rachel swear he was alive when she left him, he was certainly gone when Rachel went back to retrieve the spade (hide spoiler)].

Meera and Rob return from their holiday in Scotland more loved up than ever, until Meera hears that a strange man has been hanging around the school asking about her son. Meera has an unexpected visitor.

Lucy seems to be making headway with booking weddings and filming at the Hall, until she finds out about the Inheritance Tax due following Rupert's official death, and gets a nasty surprise about their expenditure and also has an unexpected visitor.

Rachel is over her crush on Lucy and is loved up with the archaeologist Sarah, unfortunately Sarah has gone to Peru for the summer on a dig, but Rachel can't leave her mother, who seems to be getting increasingly forgetful.

Jo and Jack, the local publican, are getting friendly, he definitely wants more but he is just so nice (not her usual type) and she doesn't plan to stay in Hartwell so she is keeping him at arm's length, until an unexpected visitor makes her reassess her decisions.

This is the second book in a trilogy but so much happens you don't really notice its progressing lots of stories but not necessarily resolving any of them. Almost everyone has an unexpected visitor (aka stranger), some good, some not so much, but all of which are a catalyst for change.

Very enjoyable, might have to reread the third book to find out what happens - especially the secret behind Jo's necklace.

I received an ARC from the publisher via Bookfunnel.

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Review: One More Time

One More Time by Emily S. Morris
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Lucy is a professor at a small town university, on track for tenure. She is in Las Vegas for her daughter's week-long wedding extravaganza. Lucy's first ex-husband (yep, there are three) is a hedge fund millionaire who has bankrolled the entire wedding - hence why Lucy and her daughter (and most of the guests) are staying in a super high-end Vegas hotel in the sort of suite usually only for the mega rich. Despite the money being thrown at the party and the hiring of a wedding planner, Lucy is juggling willy toys and trying to find her room key when she literally bumps into Nicky Broome, lead singer of global rock band Super, who also happens to be her high school crush, who ghosted her after one incredible night together. Despite it being 28 years since they last spoke, and there is a 'thing' about that, Nicky and Lucy immediately recognise each other and are just as madly in love/lust as they were when they were teenagers.

Cue lots of flashbacks to discover how Lucy and Nicky broke up and the big secret they are keeping. There is some good stuff about the 1990s (mixtapes and the like) and also a lot of references to music/musicians - which may or may not appeal to readers.

Lucy has a sassy straight-talking BFF (since high school) who likes to give her advice at every opportunity, and her daughter isn't averse to putting Lucy into awkward situations eg inviting all three ex-husbands to be at the wedding!

Nicky didn't really get any character, he was a bit of a cardboard cut-out and because of that, of course he can't have any personal growth or change of heart it all has to come from Lucy. There is a reason why Lucy has three ex-husbands but it gave me the ick. Overall, I think there were lots of things that only seemed to be in the book to make a scene/plot device work rather than being integral to the plot (eg Lucy's ex-husband being so rich).

I found my biggest bugbear with this book was it wasn't really sure what it wanted to be. The cover gave off Annabel Monaghan vibes, but Lucy wasn't like one of her heroines. It sort of went down a 1990s music nostalgia route, like Nick Hornby, then dropped it. It wasn't spicy or sweet enough to fall into one category or another. There was a lot of personality dissection as if it were women's fiction, but then it had the rockstar romance in Vegas rom-com vibe.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: One More Time

One More Time by Emily S. Morris
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Lucy is a professor at a small town university, on track for tenure. She is in Las Vegas for her daughter's week-long wedding extravaganza. Lucy's first ex-husband (yep, there are three) is a hedge fund millionaire who has bankrolled the entire wedding - hence why Lucy and her daughter (and most of the guests) are staying in a super high-end Vegas hotel in the sort of suite usually only for the mega rich. Despite the money being thrown at the party and the hiring of a wedding planner, Lucy is juggling willy toys and trying to find her room key when she literally bumps into Nicky Broome, lead singer of global rock band Super, who also happens to be her high school crush, who ghosted her after one incredible night together. Despite it being 28 years since they last spoke, and there is a 'thing' about that, Nicky and Lucy immediately recognise each other and are just as madly in love/lust as they were when they were teenagers.

Cue lots of flashbacks to discover how Lucy and Nicky broke up and the big secret they are keeping. There is some good stuff about the 1990s (mixtapes and the like) and also a lot of references to music/musicians - which may or may not appeal to readers.

Lucy has a sassy straight-talking BFF (since high school) who likes to give her advice at every opportunity, and her daughter isn't averse to putting Lucy into awkward situations eg inviting all three ex-husbands to be at the wedding!

Nicky didn't really get any character, he was a bit of a cardboard cut-out and because of that, of course he can't have any personal growth or change of heart it all has to come from Lucy. There is a reason why Lucy has three ex-husbands but it gave me the ick. Overall, I think there were lots of things that only seemed to be in the book to make a scene/plot device work rather than being integral to the plot (eg Lucy's ex-husband being so rich).

I found my biggest bugbear with this book was it wasn't really sure what it wanted to be. The cover gave off Annabel Monaghan vibes, but Lucy wasn't like one of her heroines. It sort of went down a 1990s music nostalgia route, like Nick Hornby, then dropped it. It wasn't spicy or sweet enough to fall into one category or another. There was a lot of personality dissection as if it were women's fiction, but then it had the rockstar romance in Vegas rom-com vibe.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

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Review: The Inheritance

The Inheritance by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Where to start?

In a universe very similar to this one, a decade ago Earth suddenly starting spouting interdimensional breaches from which fantastical alien creatures were let loose creating havoc and killing indiscriminately. At the same time, in some kind of symbiotic yin yang situation, humans started developing new talents. They discovered that the breaches could be entered and mined for exotic minerals and plants to use against the creatures, they could also close the breach by destroying the thing which locked onto the earth.

Adaline is one of those new talented people, her marriage broke down after the first breach, her husband couldn't hack it and left her with two small children, now she works for the government, her new Talent' is that she can identify substances like metals and plants which are of use to Earth - she is one of the most valuable people who enters a breach.

But on what should have been a routine mission everything goes wrong, and the 'Tank' who was supposed to protect her with his life traps her in the breach in his haste to escape vicious creatures that kill the other team members. Alone, with only a German Shepherd puppy as company, Ada must find a way to leave the breach and get home to her children.

Meanwhile, the head of the Guild which was awarded the breach by the government must investigate how all but two team members were killed and how to recover the bodies of the other team members. They also need to understand how the Tank could have left behind the most important member of the team.

This started as a free serial on Ilona Andrews' webpage, but like everything else they do it snowballed and became a whole book, and the start of a series LOL. If you read the weekly instalments as I did then there is very little new here, but I can't wait for the next book - bet this turns into a six book series!

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Review: The Best of All

The Best of All by Karla Sorensen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Zoe Valentine is an accountant, after divorcing her narcissistic lawyer husband she bought a house next door to her best friend Amie and her husband Chris. Chris and Amie have recently died in a car crash and she is looking after their two-year old daughter Mira.

Liam Davies is an Englishman playing American football. Little does he know that his best friend Chris has awarded him joint custody of Mira with Zoe in his will. Liam has never wanted a family, he hated his own father, who played football (or soccer) for a Premier League club, and hates that he looks the spitting image of his father. I notice that in this and the previous book both men have Daddy issues BTW. At first Liam refuses to have anything to do with Mira, he just wants to write Zoe a check, but eventually he agrees to help and moves into Chris and Amie's spare room.

Liam and Zoe met over a decade ago at Chris and Amie's house, Liam was instantly smitten but pulled away the minute he saw her engagement ring, then when he met her fiancé he instantly realised the guy was a tool and made some very rude comments to Zoe which he couldn't walk back. Since then whenever they meet it has been antagonistic, even after her divorce, because Liam still has feelings for her.

Another belter, with a cute moppet thrown in for good measure.

Read on my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

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