Our almost endless summer continued, with day after day of warmer than average temperatures and endless speculations as to when and if the rains would come. In a dry land like Australia, those rains are important to fill the dams.

TV provided few distractions to my reading. In the lead-up to the launch of The Regent’s Menagerie I had some proof reading to do. Lucky I did, as I found a mistake and I hate seeming those in a finalised book. It happens , even in books by well known publishers.

The Booklovers Retreat by Heidi Swain

One long summer. One perfect setting. Can fiction inspire real life…?
Sometimes a book grabs you by the heart and grows to mean everything to you. That’s what Hope Falls is to friends Emily, Rachel and Tori. So, when they get the chance to spend a whole summer at the cottage in Lakeside where the film adaptation was located, they know it is going to be the holiday of a lifetime.
Spending six weeks away will give them a chance to re-evaluate their life choices. For Emily to decide which way her career will go – the safe route, or the more risky creative option? And for Rachel to decide whether to move in with her partner Jeremy. Then Tori has to drop out at the last moment, and her space is offered to another Hope Falls afficionado, Alex.
But when Alex turns out not to be who they expected, the holiday takes an unforeseen turn. And as the summer develops, so does their friendship. Could this be where they uncover their future selves, find love in all its forms and where their lives will change course forever. First published April 13, 2023

My Review

The book didn’t surprise me there were a couple of scenarios which I saw coming up, but I found it an enjoyable read. The book that inspired them all Hope Falls was made into a film and has achieved cult status. The Holiday Cottage has a waiting list of devoted fans all wanting the Hope Falls experience. Can anything live up to the hype?

Return to Half Moon Farm – Spring Fever by Holly Hepburn.

**PART ONE in the brand new series from Holly Hepburn, perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley and Katie Fforde**

When Daisy’s mother falls ill she is forced to return home. With her twin sons in tow, she moves back to Half Moon Farm, her family’s ancient hop farm.  
But a new life in the Kent countryside isn’t necessarily as idyllic as it might seem. Daisy’s relationship with her mother is complicated and the tumbledown farm isn’t the only thing that needs rebuilding. Daisy and her sons must adjust to life with estranged family, a leaking roof, and no Wi-Fi.
Luckily for Daisy, she might yet find some distraction in silver fox farmer, Drew, or in the haughty heir to the nearby estate, Kit, who she can’t seem to avoid.
Daisy must learn to juggle her new life, the boys, and the daunting task of updating the farm. But there are secrets lurking in her family’s past that might throw everything into further disarray…

 81 pages, Kindle Edition Published May 11, 2023

My Review.

I really should look before I leap!  I got this from my library’s online book collection without realising it was only part one. To me, this is an annoyingly ridiculous concept. Why would I only want to read part of a book? Having said that it’s a good beginning and I will access the other sections.

Percy’s Bus by Susan Briars

“If you are smiling, you can’t be crying”. That was the motto of Percy Taylor, the father of Susan Briars.

Using a century of journals written by Susan Briars’ father, Percy, and grandfather, Ernest Taylor, this book chronicles the everyday lives of her extraordinary, extended family, as told from her father’s viewpoint, covering the war years and observing the changing society.
The narrative begins his life in the austere Edwardian period, going through his time in service and then onto his many years driving buses and coaches. Here we meet a myriad of interesting characters and find out just what real life is like “on the buses”.

My Review.

This was another e-book from the library collection. Anyone who expects to learn a lot about buses may well be disappointed. There are some anecdotes from Percy’s driving career, but much of the book is from a family perspective. A portrait of a bygone era.

The Novel Project by Graeme Simison.

‘Writing is easy: all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.’ Variously attributed to Thomas Wolfe, Paul Gallico and Ernest Hemingway, the quote portrays writing as mysterious, romantic and, implicitly, unteachable. This book is about another approach, based on established theories of creativity and design—and on the experience of authors who have adopted a more structured and reliable process.

It’s aimed at those who want to write a book for publication, or at least one that others will want to read. It could have been called What They Don’t Teach You in Writing School, because its focus is on the writing process as a whole: it treats writing a book as a step-by-step project.

Easy to follow, practical and highly entertaining, The Novel Project is the inside scoop from an author who started his writing career at fifty and whose novels have sold millions of copies around the world. It will help you craft the best book you’re capable of—no blood on forehead required.

208 pages, Paperback Published March 1, 2022.

My Review,

A highly logical and practical approach to writing a novel or even a memoir. It will suit those who appreciate such a structured method. Intellectually I  know that it makes sense , but it didn’t resonate with me.

The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden.

A gripping and atmospheric debut that is at once a chilling gothic mystery and a love letter to Victorian fiction.

Nobody ever goes to Hartwood Hall. Folks say it’s cursed…

It’s 1852 and Margaret Lennox, a young widow, attempts to escape the shadows of her past by taking a position as governess to an only child, Louis, at an isolated country house in the west of England.

But Margaret soon starts to feel that something isn’t quite right. There are strange figures in the dark, tensions between servants, and an abandoned east wing. Even stranger is the local gossip surrounding Mrs. Eversham, Louis’s widowed mother, who is deeply distrusted in the village.

Lonely and unsure whom to trust, Margaret finds distraction in a forbidden relationship with the gardener, Paul. But as Margaret’s history threatens to catch up with her, it isn’t long before she learns the truth behind the secrets of Hartwood Hall.

My Review.

I found the first half of the book more engaging than the second. It certainly hit all the tropes for Victorian melodrama. Margaret is a puzzling character at once strong-willed and determined but then put in an invidious position by a servant.

Interesting story line with an unexpected twist.

Love From Scratch by Amy Hutton.

Opposites attract in this laugh-out-loud rom-com about a heart-throb actor, the grumpy woman who minds his beloved dog, and the cat that steals his heart.

Ethan James has a problem: he’s about to start shooting a movie and he needs someone to mind his anxious dog, Harry. This film could make or break Ethan’s career, and he knows he has to give it all his attention, but Harry’s new minder turns out to be more of a hindrance than a help. She’s gorgeous and funny and throws so much shade in his direction that Ethan can’t think straight.

Hazel Conor has a problem: she’s just lost her job as a sous chefat the fancy beachside restaurant she uphauled her life for. And if she doesn’t get another job soon, she won’t be able to afford food—or worse, cat food, and then her grouchy cat Kevin will finally murder her in her sleep. So, when she sees an ad for an easy dog minder job, she goes for it.

Hazel finds everything about Ethan annoying; he’s flashy, flirty, and a total charmer. She probably wouldn’t look at him twice if it wasn’t for her cat. Because Kevin, the cat who hates everyone, is totally smitten with Ethan James.

And with each purr, cheek rub and head bump that Kevin bestows on Ethan, Hazel begins to wonder if there’s something her cat can see that she can’t.

288 pages, Kindle Edition   Expected publication June 5, 2024

My Review.

If you are a fan of Grumpy/sunshine, you will adore this book. It’s amusing and heartwarming and you will probably fall just a little in love with Ethan yourself.

Kevin the cat is the archetypal aloof cat, yet he’s kittenish with Ethan. Is Hazel the only one who doesn’t fall for Ethan’s charm?  What if two ambitious people want their careers and love? I enjoyed it.

 Angelique De Xavier 2

The Sacred Art of Stealing by Christopher Brookmyre

 

Let us prey …
The press tend to talk about bank robberies as being daring, ingenious and audacious. They don’t describe many as Dadaist, even the ones who know what ‘Dadaist’ means. But how else does one explain choreographed dancing gunmen in Buchanan Street, or the surreal methods they use to stay one step ahead of the cops?
Angelique de Xavia is no art critic, but she is a connoisseur of crooks, and she’s sure that the heist she got caught up in wasn’t the work of the usual sawn-offs-and-black-tights practitioners indigenous to the parish. She knows she’s dealing with a unique species of thief, and it’s her job to hunt him to extinction – though the fact that it’s not just his m.o. that’s cute might prove a distraction.

This thief, however, has greater concerns than his own safety, and a secret agenda more valuable than anything he might steal. He can afford to play cat and mouse with the female cop who’s on his tail; it might even arguably be necessary. What he can’t afford to do is to let her get too close; he could end up in jail, which holds terrors enough; but even more scary, he could end up in love.
Honesty is a virtue. Deceit is a talent. Theft is an art form.
The Sacred Art Of Stealing: prepare to be misled. 410 pages, Paperback First published January 1, 2002

My Review.

A friend recommended this book It is the second in a series, the first book is called A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away. You don’t have to have read that, but it would add more context. I hadn’t read book one, but I intend to.

Unlike anything I’ve ever read, clever, cynical, dark and brutally funny. It will either grab you or you will wonder what the hell it’s all about.

Summer Love by Holly Hepburn

**PART TWO in the brand-new series from Holly Hepburn, perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley and Katie Fforde**
When Daisy’s mother falls ill she is forced to return home. With her twin sons in tow, she moves back to Half Moon Farm, her family’s ancient hop farm.  

But a new life in the Kent countryside isn’t necessarily as idyllic as it might seem. Daisy’s relationship with her mother is complicated and the tumbledown farm isn’t the only thing that needs rebuilding. Daisy and her sons must adjust to life with estranged family, a leaking roof, and no Wi-Fi.
Luckily for Daisy, she might yet find some distraction in silver fox farmer, Drew, or in the haughty heir to the nearby estate, Kit, who she can’t seem to avoid.

Daisy must learn to juggle her new life, the boys, and the daunting task of updating the farm. But there are secrets lurking in her family’s past that might throw everything into further disarray…

86 pages, Kindle Edition Published July 6, 2023

My Review.

Continues the story and adds more complications, an old mystery surfaces and now two men are on Daisy’s radar. Of course, I will get part 3.

A Devil of a Duke by Madeline Hunter

 Decadent Dukes Society 2

 New York Times bestselling author Madeline Hunter comes the latest sexy tale of three untamable dukes and the women who ignite their decadent desires . . .

HE MAY BE A DEVIL

He’s infamous, debaucherous, and known all over town for his complete disregard for scandal, and positively irresistible seductions. Gabriel St. James, Duke of Langford, is obscenely wealthy, jaw-droppingly handsome, and used to getting exactly what he wants. Until his attention is utterly captured by a woman who refuses to tell him her name, but can’t help surrendering to his touch . . .

BUT SHE’S NO ANGEL EITHER . . .

Amanda Waverly is living two lives—one respectable existence as secretary to an upstanding lady, and one far more dangerous battle of wits—and willpower—with the devilish Duke. Langford may be the most tempting man she’s ever met, but Amanda’s got her hands full trying to escape the world of high-society crime into which she was born. And if he figures out who she really is, their sizzling passion will suddenly boil over into a much higher stakes affair . . .

249 pages, Kindle Edition First published April 24, 2018

My Review.

Initially a bit of a slow start to this one.  It has all the elements, but somehow for me ,it dragged in places. Gabriel is an appealing hero and is well-matched with Amanda and the sexual tension sizzles.

Fallen Angel by Christopher Brookmyre. 

To new nanny Amanda, the Temple family seem to have it all: the former actress; the famous professor; their three successful grown-up children. But like any family, beneath the smiles and hugs there lurks far darker emotions.

Sixteen years earlier, little Niamh Temple died while they were on holiday in Portugal. Now, as Amanda joins the family for a reunion at their seaside villa, she begins to suspect one of them might be hiding something terrible…

And suspicion is a dangerous thing.

My Review.

A domestic noir with a dual mystery at its heart. Has the past influenced the present?  Can an outsider (Amanda) see more than the others?  Kept me guessing , while  admiring the writer’s versatility.

My Review.

A domestic noir with a dual mystery at its heart. Has the past influenced the present?  Can an outsider (Amanda) see more than the others?  Kept me guessing , while  admiring the writer’s versatility.

 Autumn Dreams Return to Half Moon Farm 3

When Daisy’s mother falls ill she is forced to return home. With her twin sons in tow, she moves back to Half Moon Farm, her family’s ancient hop farm.

But a new life in the Kent countryside isn’t necessarily as idyllic as it might seem. Daisy’s relationship with her mother is complicated and the tumbledown farm isn’t the only thing that needs rebuilding. Daisy and her sons must adjust to life with estranged family, a leaking roof, and no WIFI.

Luckily for Daisy, she might yet find some distraction in silver fox farmer, Drew, or in the haughty heir to the nearby estate, Kit, who she can’t seem to avoid.

Daisy must learn to juggle her new life, the boys, and the daunting task of updating the farm. But there are secrets lurking in her family’s past that might throw everything into further disarray…

112 pages, e book Published September 14, 2023

My Review.

As the story continues, we learn more about a past romance that may still affect the present .Daisy chooses one of the men, but has she made the right choice?

News

Excitement is mounting for the June 21st release of the dual set of The Regent’s Menagerie. There are both sweet and spicy versions depending on your preference. Or why not indulge yourself and treat yourself( or a pal) to both?

After June 21st the price rises to $4.99 so grab your copy now. Slightly later paperbacks will be available. Based on the page count they will be the size of standard brick!

And now I’m onto my next project, which I will tell you more about next time. Until then Happy reading.