Book-Mad-Mum

The Year that Changed Everything by Cathy Kelly My rating: 4 of 5 stars Three women, Ginger, Callie and Sam are all at different stages of their lives. Callie, a 50 year old trophy wife, has her life turned upside down during her party to celebrate her milestone when her husband goes on the run from the police for fraud, leaving Callie and their teenage daughter Poppy behind to face the consequences and a completely different life. Sam is a veteran mum-to-be. After years of fertility treatment, she falls pregnant and eagerly awaits the arrival of her new baby. On her 40th birthday, her waters break and baby India enters the world kicking and screaming and upsetting the serene balance of Sam’s pre-baby world. Sinking lower and lower into depression, Sam feels like the world is swallowing her up and she can’t bring herself to admit motherhood isn’t quite what she thought it would be. Thirty-year-old virgin Ginger, is a larger than life journalist who h

Coming Home by Fern Britton My rating: 5 of 5 stars Coming Home is a stand alone story set in Cornwall which tells us the story of Sennen a young teenage Mum who runs away from her two young children, leaving them with their grandparents. She travels to Santander in Spain, along with her friend Rosemary, in search of their father, who she is naively convinced is in love with her, and will want to raise the children together as a family. When that doesn’t happen, and homesick Rosemary returns to Cornwall to face the music, Sennen knows that she can’t just return home after all the upheaval she caused, and so she continues running. Many years later a letter from Cornwall finds its way to her in India where she is now settled and she knows that she has to return home. I love Fern Britton books, they are always warm and inviting and so well written that you are transported to Cornwall, and the characters are like friends and neighbours. I especially loved Ella, the very

The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne My rating: 5 of 5 stars As a member of an online book club, everyone was absolutely raving about this book, and I felt that I jumped on the band wagon a little later than everyone else...but what the heck does that matter if the book is as brilliant as this one? If I'm honest, I've only read one other John Boyne book "The Boy In The Striped Pajamas" which literally had me sobbing on a packed commuter train at the end, so my expectations from Mr B were high...he didn't disappoint. It's 1945 in a small West Cork town called Goleen, where a young, single, pregnant woman, Catherine Goggin is literally kicked out of the parish by an evil, vindictive priest. Heading on a bus to Dublin, with just her growing bump and a few pennies in her pocket, she befriends Sean MacIntyre who offers her shelter with him and his friend Jack Smoot. One dark rainy evening, when Catherine is 9 months pre

Uncommon Type: Some Stories by Tom Hanks My rating: 3 of 5 stars I listened to this book on Audible and was very excited as Tom Hanks was reading it, however it was really disappointing. Its a series of short stories, all with a common thread typewriters, a passion of Tom Hanks. Sometimes, it felt that the thread was shoe-horned in, and other times a typewriter was constantly mentioned. The other thing that really annoyed me was the product placement. In one story alone, Johnny Walker Red Label was mentioned five times, which made me wonder if he was paid to advertise things within the stories. On a positive note, Hanks is a nice story teller, and I wouldn't mind reading a full novel of his, but for me, this series of short stories lacked substance. I couldn't relate to any of the characters, and they were instantly forgettable. View all my reviews