Tag Archive | Net Galley

The Storyteller’s Daughter by Victoria Scott

Jan17

Secrets, Families, Ambitions

The Storyteller’s Daughter by Victoria Scott is a beautiful dual timeline novel that I loved.

The action is set in 1941 and 2008. The periods are united by a family house and woodland as we follow a young woman in 2008 and her aunt in 1941.

Both main characters are similar in personality and circumstances. Both have been pressured by their families, having their personal lives squashed.

In 1941 Nita was expected to marry the man her parents chose for her – but Nita had a strong personality and would not be hemmed in by tradition and circumstances.

In 2008 Beth has always done what her parents wanted and has worked in the family firm. It was never her dream and now she decides to branch out on her own, having been re-united with her aunt on her death bed.

The ambitions of both young women was to be journalists. Now seems the ideal time to pursue these dreams.

Secrets are buried deep in the past. A death bed cryptic clue sends Beth delving into her aunt’s wartime activities – it is amazing what she uncovers.

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Murder On The Marlow Belle by Robert Thorogood

Jan16

Engaging, Entertaining & Wholesome

Murder On The Marlow Belle by Robert Thorogood is a fabulous contemporary cosy crime novel that gripped me from the start. It is the fourth book in The Marlow Murder Club series but can be read as a stand-alone.

I enjoyed meeting up with familiar faces – the trio of women who are amateur super sleuths. On the surface they look quite ordinary but underneath – the seventy-nine-year-old, middle-aged lady and the vicar’s wife – have the extraordinary capacity to sniff out and solve murders!

Like the fictional Miss Marple, the three are relentless in their pursuit of the solution to the crime. They are the thorns in the side of local police woman Tanika – although she secretly approves and appreciates their puzzle solving abilities.

We follow some amateur dramatic actors following the murder of one of their own. No one seems to have been able to commit the crime but everyone has a motive – who could it be? Is the truth stranger than fiction?

The three leading ladies are a formidable team. They all have unique qualities and work well together. Their friendship proves that together they are stronger.

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Widows Waive The Rules by Julia Jarman

Jan16

All For One

Widows Waive The Rules by Julia Jarman is a wonderful contemporary novel that I absolutely loved. The book is part of The Widows Wine Club series but can be read as a stand-alone. I enjoyed meeting up with familiar faces.

Once more the widows are off on an adventure, travelling from Britain to New York on the Queen Mary II, arriving in time for Christmas. With comprehensive descriptions from the author, we share the experience of life on board the Queen Mary II – from staterooms to ballrooms, pubs, restaurants and on-board entertainment, there is something for everyone.

Planning for the trip began in the summer sunshine as the friends wanted to bring some life back into their recently widowed for the second time friend. “Grief doesn’t make you immune to grief. It piles it on, so you start to think life isn’t worth living.” Depression has robbed their friend of life as each day she is merely going through the motions.

Everyone needs good friends. Friends who support each other through all the seasons of life and who will go the extra mile.

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The Christmas Cottage by Sarah Morgan

Jan14

Jigsaw Pieces

The Christmas Cottage by Sarah Morgan is a most charming Christmas contemporary novel that I absolutely adored.

Once more Sarah Morgan has captured the essence of Christmas within her book. Christmas is family, fun, laughter – all things that had been missing from the leading lady’s life.

We see the loneliness of never having anyone to depend on, the feeling of utter abandonment as a character throws herself into her work. “When life is hard, it sometimes helps to have no time to think about it.”

When burnout is close, a character realizes that something must change. “You couldn’t undo the past, but you could do your very best with the future.” The past is gone, the future lies ahead. “The past was gone and she wasn’t going to let it contaminate the present.”

Everyone makes choices that have consequences. “The choices were their own and you had no control over that.” We are not responsible for the choices of others. We are only responsible for our own choices.”

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