Book-Mad-Mum

The Woman at 72 Derry Lane by Carmel Harrington My rating: 5 of 5 stars Stella and Rea are neighbours who appear to have nothing in common, but on closer inspection they have. Stella is trapped in a marriage she can’t escape and Rea is trapped in her house suffering from agoraphobia when fate throws them together. This is a story of loss and heartbreak but also features bravery and friendship which shine through in the characters. I loved this book – I loved the description of the family holiday, especially when they got the room upgrade, and then when I carried on reading the book the following day and realised what happened it took me completely by surprise and rocked me to the core. The writing, description and characters were written beautifully and a difficult subject was dealt with in a very emotional and sensitive way. Carmel Harrington is now one of my favourite authors and to see that the character Rea was named after a friend of mine was a ...

The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine My rating: 5 of 5 stars The story starts with Amber befriending wealthy golden girl Daphne who appears to have it all – the big house, the clothes, the loving husband, but Amber has plans. Bonding over their mutual grief for the loss of their sisters both the Cystic Fibrosis their friendship grows quickly but not all is as it appears. I’m not going to say any more as I would hate to spoil it for you, and you really need to read this yourself. Wow! What a book – I had read lots of positive things about this on social media, and to be honest, I resisted jumping on the band wagon for a while, but I truly wish I hadn’t. The story drew me in right from the start, it was dark and sinister in parts and had more twists and turns then a roller coaster ride at Alton Towers. I loved this book so much I am telling everyone I know to read it!!! Do yourself a favour, beg or borrow a copy and read this today – it’s a remarka...

A Perfect Cornish Summer by Phillipa Ashley My rating: 4 of 5 stars Ten years ago, Porthmellow resident Sam Lovell and her friends came up with the idea of holding a food festival to attract tourists to their town. Over the years, the festival evolved and drew the attention of celebrity chefs. Despite running her own catering business Sam and her team always pull out the stops but this year at the last minute their celebrity chef pulls out and committee member Chloe steps in and books a replacement who knows the area. The replacement turns out to be Gabe Matthias who left Portmellow several years before he became a famous chef. What Chloe doesn’t know is that Sam and Gabe already know each other, and she has inadvertently stirred to pot – will it all work out or will it be a recipe for disaster? I really loved this book and the characters were likeable and well written. The setting in Cornwall was fantastic especially as I read this on a rainy Sunday...