Published by St. Martin’s Press, 3rd Nov 2015, 352 pages, £5.18

Quick description: mysterious regency romance

Steam?: a lot

Plot: Bella Jones feels like a fish out of water in civilized England. Raised abroad by her explorer father, she’s amused by the very proper manners of the nobility. Nevertheless, to save her younger siblings from ruin, she must infiltrate a ducal household in order to find the map to an ancient treasure trove. Alas, the haughty, handsome duke stands in her way…unless she can tame his beastly temper, that is.
Miles Grayson, the Duke of Aylwin, prefers antiquities to, well, everything else. Especially prying females with their irksome questions. But Bella’s blue eyes and beguiling smile are improbably charming, and the temptation of her kiss is impossible to resist. As the pair is swept into a mystery that reaches back to their childhoods, Miles realizes that Bella has made the rarest discovery of all-the key to his heart…

This is my first time reading Olivia Drake and I must say its a very nice find. Its a good old regency romance with plenty of mystery thrown in. Lately, I have been veering into YA and General territories, so this book has grounded me back to solid romance and why I started this blog in the first place.

I must admit, the cover does not really do the plot much justice. And its these slightly cringey bodice-ripper covers that put women off reading romances- or admit to reading them. Do we need to be blatantly alerted that there’s sex in it? And who’s going to read the paperback on the tube? Although this feeling of embarrassment taps into a deeper problem related to female sexuality and literature, which is a whole other issue.

Anyway, this book is part of a series (Cinderella Sisterhood), but you do not need to have read the previous books to enjoy it. The plot description pretty much sells it all-a missing treasure map, ancient Egyptian mysteries and an undeniably handsome duke prowling around-  what more do you really need for a light read that helps you escape the drudgery of everyday life? How about if I say Bella is a lovely character. She lands in England, completely uncharted territory, having been used to living in Persia, and does not have a clue about social decorum. But she is brave, smart and knows how to survive. She is pretty much left with nothing and needs to support her younger siblings.

She enters the cold and dark Aylwin estate with her head held high and confronts the Duke to give her a job and would not take no for an answer. The fact that the place may hold the key to her father’s secrets was too tantalizing. Miles had been used to being alone with craters of artifacts, scrolls and sketchers. Bella is instantly a curious disturbance to his usual routine. For one thins she has a connection to his own father, and may be able to unlock mysteries that began when they were children. She is also the only other person his age that shares his passion with ancient history.

There’s no joke about it, he really is a beast. His aggressive manner and short temper instantly repulses Bella. And he does veer towards the rape-ish, but I do think the author quickly pulls it back in time before it gets disturbing. The chemistry between them is dynamite, totally swoon worthy. Bella gradually unveils that behind the monster is a sensitive man wrestling with the ghosts of his past. To complicate matters a murderer is on the loose, possibly someone close to them! So plenty to entertain yourself…

@OliviaDrake1

Thanks Amy Goppert at St. Martin’s for my review copy xxx

As you all know, I absolutely adore Mila Gray books, cannot get enough of them. Two words: HOT and HEARTBREAKING. Come Back to Me is about Kit, a marine home from leave and Jessa, a girl trying to break free from a father who has PTS. This is One Moment  is a spin-off about her best friend Didi who falls for Walker, a reserved ex-marine who has given up all hope in life. Both books will make you swoon, laugh, and ache at the emotions and revelations that explode.

Mila Gray is the pen-name for Sarah Alderson, who is better known for her YA thrillers, like Conspiracy Girl (which I have also raved about) and the Hunting Lila series. In 2009, she quit her job in London and took off with her husband and daughter on a round the world tour to find a new home. She stopped off at India, Bali and the search continues..

She has kindly agreed to talk all things NA and romance with me!

Published by Penguin Books, January 2015, 388 pages, £5.59

Quick Description: A book about love, suicide, mental illness and the coolest guy you will ever meet.

Steam?: yes, but nothing graphic.

Plot: Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.
 
Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister’s recent death.
 
When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink.

I am so happy to have read this book. This is a book that actually made my heart expand. You will see on twitter and instagram, fans saying that this book has changed them in some way. I get what they mean. It really is one of those books that, when you reach the last page, you feel like a completely different person from that first page. I even started reading the first few pages again to remind what my perspective was like then- which was only a few days ago, but felt like an eternity.

Ok- rewind. This book will introduce you to the most unique character ever- Theodore Finch, who I can only describe as a hot weirdo. This is wrong as he hates labels. But anyway, this dude is a hurricane. He is everything, all over the place, extreme, dangerous and fascinating. The author had seriously taken characters to a whole new level. At one point I even thought he was the new Edward Cullen- does anyone know what I mean or just thinks that’s weird??? Ok, I know Twilight is what it is now, but there was a time when it just belonged to us- the girls who read before school started. And Edward broke the mould (as far as my 15 year old self thought), and I think Finch does as well.

Anyway, the connection between him and Violet is pretty electric and I can promise you a lot of swooning. Violet is not as interesting as Finch. But she embodies the every girl. She’s smart, vulnerable and tough. Finch helps her to enjoy life after the death of her sister, and the two of them create their own little world. There are a few cliches: the quoting of literary greats, guitar playing, random and quirky activities in public. But altogether quite charming.

But I have to warn you. There are dark spots in the book. Finch has problems that are perhaps too heavy and late to solve. They start to expand and turn inwards, and it is a bit of a suck-zone towards the end of the book. I don’t want to give much away, but its not really for the faint hearted. Even though it made me sad, I wouldn’t want to be the person who I was before I read this book, before I met Finch. He really is quite special.

Thanks Penguin for my copy xxx

Published by Penguin (Viking), August 27th, 418 pages, £3.85.

Quick Description: history, mystery, drama and romance in an exotic setting.

Steam?: moderate.

Plot: Nineteen-year-old Gwendolyn Hooper is newly married to a rich and charming widower, eager to join him on his tea plantation, determined to be the perfect wife and mother. But life in Ceylon is not what Gwen expected. The plantation workers are resentful, the neighbours treacherous. And there are clues to the past – a dusty trunk of dresses, an overgrown gravestone in the grounds – that her husband refuses to discuss. Just as Gwen finds her feet, disaster strikes. She faces a terrible choice, hiding the truth from almost everyone, but a secret this big can’t stay buried forever . . .

This is such a great story!! Sooo much mystery… At a good 400 pages, it is not so much a saga that drags, but a good chunk of entertainment. It has really good pacing. Once the events start to unfold, I found myself digging ferociously a third into the novel.

First off the authors captures the POV of Gwen very well; a young English wife, still in her teens arriving in Ceylon to meet her husband, who she barely knows. So deeply in love with Laurence, her determination to become the perfect wife is very endearing. But her fears and anxieties are positively pulsing off the page, so much that the reader instantly cares about her and wants her to do well.

However, she is perfectly imperfect- if that makes sense. At times she is a selfless and courageous character who grows stronger from start to finish. Other times, she makes heavy mistakes (a massive one halfway into the novel) and spends the rest of the novel spiraling out of control to correct them. She is vulnerable to weak feelings like all-consuming jealousy and insecurity. After all who could really blame her? I kept having to remind myself that she is only 19 and having to deal with moving into a new world full of unanswered questions and secrets. Laurence got on my nerves a few times. I mean, why did the dude have to be so fricking distant all the time? You cannot just expect your new wife to arrive and not ‘interfere’ with everything. He did gradually get better and opened up. So the novel really did tease out the revelations.

Another wonderful thing was how I fell comfortably into the setting. There were so many vibrant places to imagine; the tea plantation and the bustling city in the 1920s. But it wasn’t just visual, the author conjured up the different aromas, temperatures and sounds. I actually felt at home with Gwen, in her house by the hills of tea fields. Real life events, like the violent racial tensions and the depression seep into Gwen’s everyday challenges. So there was an endless series of activity and hurdles to overcome for the couple. I also loved the other characters; Fran- Gwen’s cousin, Verity-Laurence’s sister (to name a few), who were all so different and eccentric in their own way. They really added their own colours to the mix.

The novel is also filled with so much sorrow and heart break. But it really isn’t a sob-fest. I don’t like those books, when you reach a depressing end, you think- what was the point of reading this? This book deals with sadness that is caused by very simple issues like miscommunication and insecurity. It is also caused by the dominating restrictions of society during that time. So who can really say they would not do the same unforgivable thing ? (got to read to find out;)) The novel really does leave you feeling just a little bit wiser.

Thank you Penguin, snagged my review copy during my intern days. xx

TB Published by Harlequin/Mira UK, 8th Oct 2015, 336 pages, £7.99

Quick description: a mysterious love story, a modern Great Gatsby.

Steam?: more sweet than steamy.

Plot: Family secrets. Forbidden love. And the true price of wealth.

Thomas is a small-town boy and when Lily invites him to a dinner party, he gains access to the exclusive upper echelons of Hollywood society. As he enters a world of private jets and sprawling mansions, his life and career take off beyond his wildest dreams.

Then he meets Matilda Duplaine.

Beautiful and mysterious, Matilda has spent her entire life within the walls of her powerful father’s Bel-Air estate and Thomas is immediately entranced by her. But what starts as an enchanted romance soon threatens to destroy their lives and the lives of everyone around them.

It is a real pleasure to be able to review novels like this. At first it was the unusual title and striking cover that drew me into requesting a copy from Mira UK. After reading the first few chapters I knew this was something quite special. I think this is a great debut. The writing is so lovely and poetic. It is very delicate and sensitive to the fine details of environment and characters.

It is likened to The Great Gatsby, which is one of my favorite novels of all time (so I was also interested because of that), and I agree. I do notice many echoes to the classic. Thomas Cleary is a shy, hardworking, mid-western young man who seems to stumble into a whole new world of class and wealth. But instead of being in East Egg Island, like Nick Carraway, we are in LA Hollywood. We see the never ending beauty and glitz bouncing off of Thomas’s enchanted POV, but also glimpse the dark cracks within the group that takes him in. The book doesn’t have the numbing melancholy that Gatsby has, but it is punctuated with bitter moments. Its pretty much the old- the rich are actually deeply unhappy because of things that cannot be brought. I like to indulge in messed up rich characters.

The mystery of who Matilda was and the secrets that had been buried years ago, really kept me reading at full pace. It was the sort of- reading late into the night and first thing in the morning- type. And Matilda as a character is really quite unique. A girl who has never left the confines of a luxury estate? Talk about messed up really. And Thomas himself. We begin to realize he is not the perfect gentlemanly man he himself prides in, he also has many imperfections like Nick. But both characters progress and move forward with a (sort of) happy ending (depends the way you look at it, and also don’t want to give any spoilers).

Simply special.

@alexbrunkhost1

Thank you Cara Thompson from Mira UK for my review copy xx

Published by Blink Publishing, 3rd August 2015, 256 pages, £6.29

Quick description: Non-fiction travel writing, collected blog posts.

Plot: Last week, I was sitting in seven layers (two of them thermal) next to a fire, with a blanket wrapped around me. Now, I am sleeping in kickers and a vest under a fan. Let the mosquitos bite me. They can have me … Can we live here? … If I dont become roadkill in the next few days, I ll let you know my thoughts. In 2009, Sarah and John Alderson quit their full-time jobs in London and headed off, with Alula, their three-year-old daughter, on a global adventure to find a new home. For eight months, they travelled through Australia, the US and Asia navigating India with a toddler in a tutu, battling black magic curses in Indonesia and encountering bears in North America asking themselves one defining question: Can We Live Here? Inspirational, hilarious and fascinating this is an unforgettable travel memoir and a unique guide to quitting your job, following your dreams and finding your home in a far-flung paradise.

If you have read any of previous posts you will know of my obsession with Mila Gray’s (aka Sarah’s) NA books. It started off with noticing Come Back To Me (Book 2/Spin off: This Is One Moment) in my local library. After devouring it in utter bliss, I learnt a bit more about the author’s life and the too-good-to-be-true journey she took with her husband to finding a new home in the tropics. My god I thought, you are actually living my dream… reading and writing YA and NA in Bali? Who could ask for more?

This book is brilliant. It goes into detail, starting from the seed of the idea of leaving London, to the travelling, to the settling and to what comes next. Its very easy to read and absolutely hilarious. The way Sarah writes- its like having a nice chat with a good friend and listening to the amazing but insane things she has seen and been up to. There are chapters on Indian railways, colonic irrigation in Bali (I’m actually so interested), ecstatic dancing and many more. It was such a treat, and so apt reading it on my tube journey to work.

There is also a lot of soul-searching. Sarah writes about the materialism, the tiredness and the cynicism that permeates life in the UK, especially London. Having recently moved to London, I know this on a daily basis. I am physically and mentally jogging to keep up with everything. The city is like a Twilight vampire, seductive and exciting, but draining all the energy from me. Soon I will be shriveled and bitter.

So if you’re out there and wondering whether working in an office for the rest of your life is it, or if you have an inkling that you could move to somewhere hot and figure out a way of making money that doesn’t require sitting in a management team meeting […] remember the power of saying ‘Fuck It’. That’s all we did.

Anyway, its not all sunshine and detox smoothies. Sarah does write a lot about the realities of emigrating and the anxieties that shadow it. But there were some moments that were really touching and made me look up from the page and actually think- what the heck am I doing? I am 15 chapters away from my dream- move it! But could I really quit a job that took forever to get (two degrees seemed to have shut doors rather than open them in my opinion)? Don’t I still want to do the Friends thing, the Sex and the City thing? I guess for now, but check up on me in a few months, because if I hear ‘signal failure’ one more time, I may pass out.

Wouldn’t it be more insane to keep on doing things I don’t like?

True that true…

I had the pleasure of meeting Sarah at Stanfords (Covent Garden) on the 13th August for her interview with Myanna Buring and had my book signed (yippee). To sum it up it was a great night and Sarah was just as cool and lovely as her writing is, although I may have been the only resident perv who was into Mila Gray- come on guys I know you’re all out there…

@SarahAlderson

www.sarahalderson.com

Published by PanMacmillan, January 6th 2015, 365 pages, £5.87 (Kindle).

Quick description: bog standard historical romance, pirates.

Steam: plenty, plenty..

Plot: A stormy heart…

Adventurous, outspoken, Payton Dixon has two passionate dreams…a clipper ship of her own and the love of Captain Connor Drake. But both seem impossibly out of reach, since her beloved captain is about to marry another, and worse, he’s been given her ship as a wedding present from her traitorous father.

A thwarted love.

Out to prove she has right on her side, Payton manages to unleash a scandal and ignite all sorts of trouble. As for Drake, he can’t decide whether to throttle the girl he’s grown up with, or make love to the beautiful woman she has become.

This is worth a read, but it is not as good as the other romances from Patricia Cabot, like ‘Educating Caroline’ (my favourite-makes-me-swoon-thinking-about-it) and ‘A Little Scandal’. There are two great characters: Payton is the typical Cabot heroine; smart, quick-witted, and gutsy. She can definitely take care of herself. Captain Drake is a larger than life, muscly sea captain, not much else to say there.

However, I feel the two lack the build up found in the other novels, which would have made their union much more satisfying. There is some tension and spark, but not so much the gradual progression of feelings and conflicts. I prefer it when the novel starts off with two characters not having much chemistry to bam!- total heat. Don’t get me wrong the book is definitely hot, the author delivers once again. But the plot doesn’t have as much of a twist and issues resolve themselves a little too easily. But we do have some great secondary characters and lots of funny situations. Plus its always interesting to know about Victorian era contraception, something I actually want to look up- and perhaps clear my browser history!

If you are a fan of Patricia Cabot, you wouldn’t really be disappointed, but if you have never read one of her romances yet, I suggest going with the earlier ones I have reviewed (scroll up! x).

Happy romancing y’all xxx

@MegCabot

Published by Harlequin UK/Mira UK, 30 July, 384 pages, £5.99

Quick Description: Historical romance, coming of age, passion and heart-break.

Steam?: moderate.

Plot: August 1940 and 16-year-old refugee Addie escapes Fascist Italy to live with her aunt and uncle in Atlantic City. As WW2 breaks, she finds acceptance and love with Charlie Connelly and his family. But war changes everything: secrets and passions abound, and when one brother’s destructive choices lead to the tragic death of another, the Connelly family is decimated, and Addie along with them.Now 18, she flees, first to Washington and then to war-torn London where she is swept up with life as a correspondent. But when Charlie, now a paratrooper, re-appears, Addie discovers that the past is impossible to outrun. Now she must make one last desperate attempt to find within herself the answers that will lead the way home.

It was super hard finding a book after Mila Gray… I was suffering from severe book hangover, nothing was sticking, or seemed like a good replacement. A few pages into the The Last Embrace, I felt at peace. This I knew, was going to be a good one. Just from the cover and title, you can tell this book is a tear-jerker. It is. But first, lets start from the beginning. Addie, a teenage girl that has just escaped from a torrid war zone, is both strong and vulnerable. You already love her and was scared for her from phase one. And if you have read a few of my posts, I absolutely adore coming of age.

The author writes beautifully. She skillfully tells the story through flashbacks and flash-forwards. The mix of memories, attraction and changes, makes the novel so emotional. I don’t want to give too much away, but the idea of place is crucial, as well as the different forms of love. Pam does: love at first sight, passion, endless love, and that type of love, where it was always around but you are blind to it until it is almost too late and it is the strongest of them all.

On top of this, you have the backdrop of war and its aftermath. Lots of different places (Philadelphia, Washington and London) different characters and events keep the whole tone upbeat and action-packed. Danger and heart-break was always round the corner. The novel can get quite predictable at times. I sort of had suspicions right at the beginning about how it might end. But I don’t necessarily think this is a bad thing. Basically, Addie has three men in her life (I know..). The first one is Charlie, the football captain/alpha male. The second is Teddy, a smart and snarky Oxbridge reporter (I am soo on team Teddy). The last man is a mystery- try and guess who it is during your read…

Addie struggles with who to choose. The confusion can get overbearing at times. But it makes us wonder. You can love more than one person, and keep loving someone even when you know its over and something else has begun.

Many thanks to Harlequin/Mira for my review copy xxx

Connect: @PamJenoff

Published by Pan Macmillan, 6th August, 384 pages, £4.31 (Kindle).

Quick description: Contemporary NA, ultimate swoon-fest.

Steam?: Plenty to go around, it is HOT in there…

Plot: A spin-off to the amazing Come Back to Me, also see my cover reveal for plot and information on the author.

Oh Sarah… how do you do it? The only complaints I have are- the book isn’t long enough and now I have to wait for the next Mila Gray book. This book is so good, so delicious, its one of those that you purposely stop so you can savor it as long as possible. Come Back to Me fans, enough said- you and I both know, you will not be disappointed with this. If you haven’t read the fist book, I think you would still enjoy this in its own right. However, I would highly recommend you reading it first, to understand the recurring characters and get the full impact of the environment. Last I heard it was only 49p on Itunes, so come on there’s no excuse really.

O.K, we are back in the military zone- the aftermath and healing that attempts to function after war. Sarah skillfully addresses serious issues like post-trauma, depression, family break-downs, which add a layer of complexity to the romance. There are some pretty heavy emotions swirling around which makes the story so interesting. It isn’t as much of a tear-jerker as Come Back, which does packs more of a punch.

Didi and Walker are fantastic. The best romances are the ones that start off with hardly any connection, to being inseparable. We get a glimpse of Didi in Come Back, but her character here was not what I expected. This book starts after Uni, she is more mature, experienced and has a strong career plan. There isn’t the stark vulnerability that Jessa had. But she is kind, thoughtful and struggles with many uncertainties.

Walker is reserved, unapproachable- almost aggressive, dealing with multiple ghosts in his past. The uncontrollable feelings Didi feels towards him is forbidden if she plans on becoming a doctor. What was it?-‘Attraction plus obstacle in the way equals the most erotic encounter’. This line in the novel, very meta, pretty much sums it up. There’s plenty of the latter… And its not that easy to create such a scenario and have your readers fall instantly in love with everything.

All I can say is one day I hope I can write like this.

Many thanks to PanMacmillan for my review copy xx

@Sarah Alderson

6 August 2015 by Hodder and Stoughton, 368 pages, £6.99

Quick Description: historical fiction mixed with fantasy and romance.

Steam?: moderate, but watch out for fish that’s all I can say…

Plot: Imagine a world where everyone is born with a ‘skin’ name. Without skin you cannot learn, you are not permitted to marry, and you grow up an outsider amongst your own people.

This is no future dystopia. This is Celtic Britain.

It is AD 43. For the Caer Cad, ‘skin’ name determines lineage and identity. Ailia does not have skin; despite this, she is a remarkable young woman, intelligent, curious and brave. As a dark threat grows on the horizon – the aggressive expansion of the Roman Empire – Ailia must embark on an unsanctioned journey to attain the knowledge that will protect her people, and their pagan way of life, from the most terrifying invaders they have ever faced… and it is this unskinned girl who will come to hold the fate of her people in her hands.

Following on from the Skin book party two weeks ago I couldn’t really wait any longer and bumped this up my reading list. If there ever was a book that was an eye-opener it would be this- such beautiful prose woven about a time I had never thought of and never will if Tampke hadn’t introduced it to me. Her meticulous research and dedication to detail transports us instantly into the setting. I was able to ease myself into the language, the rural homeland, the food- but the culture! A few pages in and I was like woah- that is something. So if you are squeamish, this novel may not be for you. It is full-blooded and dives head first into the customs and rituals of Caer Cad; some empowering, some brutal. Now I am so fascinated with ancestry, British history, just in time for the British Museum’s exhibition on Celts.

Many of you, like me, would have read the plot and was totally on board. There are so many YA post-apocalyptics that we sometimes forget the real deal. The concept of ‘Skin’ reminded me of a more extreme version of Zodiacs and Chinese star signs. The people of Caer Cad believe that you are born physically and spiritually. The animal identity of your soul determines your social standing and your fate. But I wouldn’t say that this way of living is dystopic. The Celts pay great respect to nature; the knowledge that is embedded in the earth. I was really interested in their reverence towards spirituality and religious figures (Druids) who still remain a mystery today. Tampke blends in fantasy and magic into Ailia’s story which both confuse and fascinate the reader.

Ailia is a strong protagonist; young, intelligent, kind and bold. She represents the idea that, even since AD 43, things have hardly changed today. She desires to belong, to love and be loved, and to know beyond the confines of her homeland. Having lived with the scar of being identity-less and invisible, strange things starts to happen as she reaches marriageable age: she meets a new comer who seems to have a vengeance for her but knows about her past, she falls into a love triangle (love it!) with two different men- a warrior who is seduced by Rome, and a mysterious and guarded figure she meets in a forbidden forest. As she starts discovering the secrets of her past and her own hidden abilities, the town prepares itself for an invasion that threatens to wipe off not only their people but their entire connection with the spirits. Exciting stuff!!

Connect: @ilkatampke