Book-Mad-Mum

What Holly's Husband Did by Debbie Viggiano My rating: 4 of 5 stars What hasn’t Holly’s husband done?! All is revealed at the end, but you’ll have an enjoyable time getting there, and when you do, you’ll gasp! Holly has been married to dentist Alex for 15 years and they have one teenage daughter Sophie. Last Christmas when Alex popped out to get some milk for the custard, Holly discovered some suggestive texts on Alex’s phone. Every bone in her body was chilled when she read them, and when she confronted him, he explained that it was a patient who was sending the texts, and he was keeping them on his phone in case things escalated. But Holly couldn’t move on and kept looking for signs that her husband was having an affair. Deciding to take her mind off things, she throws herself head first into planning a surprise 40th birthday party for Alex at the local golf club. That in turn presents more problems. With the help of her best friends Jeanie and...

One Way or Another: An absolutely hilarious laugh out loud romantic comedy by Colleen Coleman My rating: 2 of 5 stars Katie Kelly is the main character of this book, and we meet up with her when life has gone wrong. She’s split up from her boyfriend Ben, her restaurant which was her pride and joy has gone bust, and now to make ends meet she’s working in a kitchen at an old people’s home, while sofa surfing on her friend’s couch. One of the residents Martha, suggests that Katie applies to work for one of the best chefs in the country, and so she starts to go through the application process when she discovers a fellow contestant, is her ex Ben, but there can only be one winner. I am going to start by apologising, as I know that books are difficult things to write, and an author will pour their heart and soul into it and lay themselves bare for everyone to either love or hate you, (preferably love you!) but I didn’t like this book at all. To begin with,...

Forever at Conwenna Cove by Darcie Boleyn My rating: 4 of 5 stars In this book, we return to Conwenna Cove, my favourite fictional holiday resort! This time we are introduced to Zoe with a secret past that she is coming to terms with but who has found sanctuary in the little village. As the owner of the local diner, and a lover of greyhounds, the story starts with Zoe grieving for the loss of her rescue dog, Raven. Local surfer Nate wants to experience life before it’s too late. He wants to surf the waves in Oz and see the world. With a reputation as a lady’s man, when he teams up with Zoe to organise a fun raising event for the local greyhound sanctuary, she keeps him at arm’s length, but destiny has other ideas. I am a massive fan of this series of books, because each one feels like a holiday. The descriptions in the book are fantastic, and really lift off the page, this isn’t a travelogue, it’s a story told from the heart. As for the characters yo...

You Me Everything by Catherine Isaac My rating: 5 of 5 stars When writing a book review, I never know where to start - with this one, I know exactly what to say at the beginning, and really, it's all you need to know about the book IT'S BLOOMIN' BRILLIANT!! I've read many books this year, and I always finish them and think "that's my favourite book so far this year" but honestly - this one is up there in my top 5, but a good indicator is that it only took me three days to completely devour this book. The story starts with young Jess giving birth to her son William, with her Mum at her side as her partner Adam, the baby’s father, is off galivanting with another woman. Then we roll forward ten years, Adam and Jess have gone their separate ways, she now lectures at a Sixth Form College and Adam has moved to France, where he has bought a run-down Chateau, renovated it, and turned it in holiday accommodation. With her mum now...

The Sunday Lunch Club by Juliet Ashton My rating: 4 of 5 stars Every few weeks, Anna and her siblings, their partners and sometimes ex-partners meet for Sunday lunch. They talk, sometimes they fight, sometimes they interfere in each other’s business, but they always eat. When Anna unexpectedly falls pregnant during a one-night stand in her gay brother’s Utility Room, she has to come to terms with impending motherhood at the age of 40. Sitting at the lunch table wedged between her ex-husband Sam, his new girlfriend Isabel, Anna’s new partner (not the father of her child!) Luca, things could be awkward but also at the table are her ageing grandmother, her promiscuous, hippy sister, her flamboyantly gay brother, his lovely partner Santi and their adopted daughter Paloma. A letter has been hand delivered to Anna's house that is going to change the family forever and will make Anna face up to her painful past. I will admit and say that initially I was...