beate251's reviews
414 reviews

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

Emmaline (Emmie) Brown, 26, is adopted and has been working with her mother Nell in their pasty shop at a small Nottinghamshire airport since she was 13. Two years after Nell suddenly died, she's continued with the shop on her own but has become increasingly unhappy and wants to find what else is out there.

She has a crush on Pip Hawkins, an agricultural student from the Isle of Siskin which must be fictional as Google gave me nothing. He comes through the airport quite often and always buys one of her pasties.

While looking through her mother's things, she finds letters from a "G" who seems to have been her husband and linked to that island - a fact that Emmie was entirely unaware of. She decides to find out more and buys an open end ticket to the Isle of Siskin, on the same flight as Pip - her first flight ever. 

While there, "Pasty Girl" gets drawn into Pip's big family straight away (there are three sisters and all the women have flower names), stays at his sister Lily's B&B and helps organise her wedding, while falling more and more in love with Pip. But not everybody is happy to see her - in fact there is one person trying to actively get her in trouble and leave the island. Will she overcome the hostility and find out the secrets from her mother's past?

I didn't like how the islanders, both in the past and present, are described as hostile and insular and being prejudiced against island/mainland relationships. I found those scenes quite upsetting.

However, as suffocating as I would find it having everyone in my business, the description of the landscape and food was enticing, and both Emmie and Pip were great characters. I loved how she courageously tried new things and  that after her return to the mainland she didn't wallow in self pity but spent time looking for her mother's family and finding out what she wanted to do with her life, drawing up a plan together with BFF Blessing.

This is an uplifting story of self-discovery, family secrets, loss, friendship and second chances that resonated deeply with me and had a heartwarming ending. I also loved the gorgeous cover. Recommended if you love uncovering old secrets and enjoying new challenges.

After many miscarriages and IVF, Joanne, 46, finally seems to have a pregnancy going to full-term. She and husband Alex are ecstatic. Joanne never knew her mother Grave who died 1975 while giving birth to her. Her father Mike remarried and his wife Lou has been like a mother to Joanne. 

One day Joanne finds a baby album that disputes her father's version of events - her mother is alive in some of the photos with her. A death certificate duly ordered states that Grace died in 1977 in a mental hospital, which is two year after Joanne's birth.

When questioned, Mike and Lou totally clam up, hide in their house or outright lie to Joanne. It falls to heavily pregnant Joanne to investigate what really happened and find out why no one wants to tell her the truth. Her husband isn't much help, just constantly tells her she needs to rest. Let me tell you something, guys, if a pregnant woman wants to do something, you better let her!

I found this story infuriating. In a dual POV and timeline we get Grace's side of the story - a postpartum psychosis that in the 70s wasn't as understood and treated as it is now, landing her in a mental asylum. That is bad enough, but her family's embarrassed reaction towards Joanne is almost worse - her father in particular could have spared her a lot of anguish and stress simply by being truthful, especially as it could have repercussions for Joanne's own pregnancy. 

I understand wanting to tell a story about mental health and how much of a stigma it still is, but none of the actions felt normal, like parents hiding in their house just to avoid talking to their daughter, and at the other end, a government official showing Joanne official documents she wasn't permitted to show. And where was Grace's family in all this? It's not logical that they never knew anything and are as baffled as Joanne - did they never try to find her in the 70s?

This is an important story bogged down by too many illogical happenings, but I enjoyed Grace's POV. The men in the story were annoying but it was interesting to see how convincing false memories can be.

Emily's sister Vivi has very suddenly died of a brain aneurysm and she is now guardian of her nephew Felix, 9 1/2. It coincides with her going freelance as a dressmaker and vintage dress repairer, with her BFF Lizzie the model  for her clothes. She ends her two year relationship with boyfriend Rory who is in her eyes not mature enough to deal with a child in his life - he parties and drinks too much, and has a too close for comfort relationship with friend Anna.

Unfortunately, this means three people are now unhappy for various reasons, and there is a lot of anger, shouting and tears between Emily and Felix, with laundry basket raiding and knicker-chewing sausage dog Baxter not exactly helping to keep the tension down.

Felix adores Rory. Unbeknownst to Emily, Rory has taken him to his secret hobby for months as sort of penance to his dead brother Lawrence, so when he realises that Emily still loves Rory he hatches a plan to bring them back together before Christmas. An innnocent trip to London to see the Christmas lights turns into a snowy roadtrip between Brighton, London and Leeds, where Rory now lives. At the same time Rory realises he still has a necklace that Vivi asked him to buy for Emily, so he sets off to give it to her personally. Will they manage to meet or pass like ships in the night?

I loved how they meet various people en route, and their stories get told too. It almost makes me want to park myself in St Pancras Station to people watch at Christmas.

The story is told in multi POV, with Emily, Felix and Rory all getting their say. I loved Felix having a voice too, and his video recording everything for his dead Mum was beyond adorable. Emily fixates a bit too much on a woman who is posting about looking forward to a third date with Rory. Why would anyone post every detail of their love life on Facebook anyway?

This story touched me deeply. It was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. It's a story of loss, grief and second chances and how to cope when your life is suddenly upended. All three characters have a lot to deal with, but they learn that it helps to confide in others about their traumas, and that people can step up to an altered reality.

It might be a bit too angsty for some but I loved that it wasn't too fluffy and gave us great characters to root for and emphasised the importance of Christmas traditions. Recommended as a festive read to remember.

Billy McQueen grew up in Northern Ireland in the 80s, a gay teenager who desperately had to hide who he was and his love for fellow teenager Conor Doherty, who vanished without a trace in July 1989 when they were both 16.

Billy moved to Margate as soon as he could but never had much luck in life. He swore he would never return to Carrickfergus but it's now 2023, he is 50, and his old neighbour Bev tells him that his Mum who'd disowned him for being gay has had a bad stroke.

So he returns, reconnects with best friend Aine (and Big Gay Willy) and while he's there, tries to find out what happened to his first love Connor. The story hops between 1989 and 2023 and I have to admit I preferred the present day one - the 1989 one made me too angry.

Now, the 80s were my era and it's brought to life vividly - the music, the pop culture references, the fashion, the mix tapes, but also the politics - Thatcher, the Troubles and section 28 that forbade "the promotion of homosexuality". The homophobic vibes are strong in this, from various parents and step-parents to the church.

This is a story of acceptance, friendship and forgiveness that will surely shake you up, especially when the mystery of Connor's disappearance is revealed, and the role of Billy's religious stepfather Mervyn in it. My heart broke for quite a  few people. The cover is also outstandingly beautiful but I didn't know some of the Northern Irish expressions and had to look them up, like "taking a redner," which means being embarrassed.

I like everything Jenny Colgan writes but this wintery novella is a jewel. I saw it offered as an Amazon First Reads and couldn't click on it fast enough. It was an excellent choice.

The hunt is on for a very special book - a unique edition of Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses with illustrations by Aubrey Beardsley. I don't know whether this book is really rumoured to exist but that's not the point. For terminally ill Violet it represents her childhood and memories of her father and she would like to see it one more time.

Mirren loves her great-aunt and would do anything for her even though this seems very much a wild goose chase. Enter Theo, who is the nephew of an antique bookshop seller in London. His uncle wants that book at any cost and tells Theo to shadow Mirren in her quest.

The two of them go up and down the country, from London to Hay-on-Wye to Edinburgh, getting closer each day - but can Theo be trusted?

This book is a romance but more than that it's a declaration of love to antique bookshops that evoke childhood memories and are fabulous treasure troves. It's just what a bookworm needs this Christmas, and with a gorgeous cover to boot.

"It smelled not unlike Great-aunt Violet; an aura of books, of reading, of curling up and being cosy, of deciding, in a queue or on a train or a bus, just to step out of your normal world for a little while, go visit Narnia, or medieval England, or Persia, or the cockpit of a fighter plane; a hot air balloon; crime-ridden streets of Victorian."

Tilly works for a letting agent, and when her divorce leaves her broke, she starts living temporarily in one of her agency's empty holiday rentals with dog Smoosh. 

Unfortunately, the owner dies and the new owner George comes to check out the property. A cat and mouse game of hide and seek starts until George falls off a ladder and Tilly drives him to hospital and starts looking after him. 

Forced proximity is a popular trope and it works well here. I liked the main characters, the story is well-rounded and Christmassy and the romance is believable if predictable. You could do a lot worse with this novella.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC.

Tessa is a romance author who has writer's block after being cheated on by her ex Joe. They were due to go to Paris on a short vacation in February so now she is going on her own, after a bit of pushing and shoving from best friend Carly.

However, the apartment with a gorgeous view onto the Eiffel Tower is not empty - Joe's best friend Ethan has been given the use by him without Joe thinking of informing Tessa. As the whole of Paris seems to be booked out solid, the two of them try to share the impossibly pretty but bijou one-bed property. Ethan is doing a cookery course and showing Tessa around Paris, who slowly starts getting inspired to write again.

I was really enjoying the book, I liked the characters, the scenery and the story, they were watching Ratatouille together and it was cute and then, two thirds in, Tessa does something so ludicrously stupid that the book went from 4 to 3 stars right there and then. My most hated trope came into play - miscommunication and misunderstandings. It's like drama has to be artificially created just in case there isn't enough plot.

I don't mind a romantic story being predictable but I've had enough of grown-up characters who have no self-confidence and don't think they're good enough for anyone. It's ridiculous. Also, Joe is a coercive controller and gaslighter and needs to be called out for that.

I'm sure a lot of readers will love this and also enjoy the spice, but it wasn't for me in the end, which is a shame because it started so well. However, I did like the cover which captured the setting well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this ARC.

Ava Monroe works in a coffee shop in London. One day she meets Finn who grew up in lots of different places and has travelled extensively. His time in London is limited but he has a bucket list of touristy things he wants to do before he leaves for the US. Ava's blind flatmate Josie encourages her to make more friends so she reluctantly agrees to help Finn out.

Both of them have mental scars - Finn feels abandoned by his parents and Ava doesn't permit herself to get too close to people since her twin brother Max got cancer, but luckily survived.

Ava and Finn start spending more and more time together, roaming through London, Finn's sunshine being the perfect antidote for Ava's grumpiness. They become firm friends - but can they ever be more than that?

This story of a slow-burn romance is told in dual POV. I loved all the characters but once it was established that Ava and Finn liked each other but held their feelings back because of the aforementioned problems, the story dragged a little.

I live in London and while there were a few nice things on Finn's bucket list (Up at the O2 is definitely a highlight!) I would have loved to give my own recommendations (why didn't they go to the Sky Garden or had a Sunday Roast?)

But that aside, I liked the chemistry between the two main characters and how they were there for each other emotionally, worked through their problems and tried to discover what they really wanted to do in life. And for once, there was no sibling rivalry, just love!

Altogether this is a lovely, fun-filled story with lovable characters that will tug at your heartstrings. Recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster UK for this ARC.

Elinor Coombes is 19 when she marries into English aristocracy in 1910. Unfortunately, her husband only married her for her father's money, and an heir, whose life she would have had no say in. But then comes the maiden voyage of the Titanic, and her life changes forever.

I loved this book. It was well-paced and each part was interesting and felt well-researched. First we get the life on a cold, crumbling aristocratic estate with cold, unsympathetic people, then the fateful voyage on the Titanic, followed by Ellie's attempt on a new life with young son Teddy, impersonating her deceased maid Molly Mortimer and finding a new start with her lovely relatives - Ruth, Per, Anna and the kids Micke and Lena.

Elinor/Molly has a lot of spirit and get up and go which was suppressed in England but serves her well in New York. The life she had in England was one of tradition and being stuck in the past but now she can look forward to better times. However, she does suffer from PTSD - and then the past comes back to haunt her and threaten her new life.

I enjoyed the writing style immensely and loved our heroine. There are a few repetitions where the author is making the same point over and over in the same words but I was engrossed to the end and read it in one go until late into the night. The beautiful cover adds to the atmosphere of the story.
 
This is historical fiction but the Titanic and its fate is merely the backdrop for this mesmerising immigrant story of second chances and beginning again. Read it if you love strong women making their way in a new world. I will certainly read more from this author!

"People aren’t supposed to be happy, they’re only supposed to want to be happy, because how otherwise are you supposed to be able to sell things to them?"

Lucas loves Pad Thai with peanuts, drinking wine and playing video games. What he doesn't love is having people around him. He is happy on his own, until a frying pan ruins his life as it brings him into contact with his frustrating neighbours (memorised not by their names but colours they are wearing).

I adore Fredrik Backman's books, and this short story is no exception. It is as absurd as it is hilarious, while saying interesting things about loneliness, bureaucracy, Facebook groups and cults. It is full of enjoyably smart quotes about the ridiculousness of life and makes a case for living on your own. I bet the author wrote it after a row with his partner about loading the dishwasher incorrectly!

This is a lovely, funny and palate-cleansing  Amazon original story which has the added bonus of only being 68 pages long so can be read in an hour, just in case you're trying to get your book total up before the end of December.

"Love isn’t powerful enough. But spite? Spite can change the world."