Tag Archive | Harper Collins

The Second Chance Supper Club by Caroline Roberts

Sep25

New Beginnings

The Second Chance Supper Club by Caroline Roberts is a very charming contemporary novel about new beginnings.

The novel is set in a small village in Northumberland as we follow the leading lady who is relocating from Leeds. We understand her fears of starting again but though the village is small, the welcome is huge.

There are an eclectic mix of characters, with the village shop very much at the heart of the village. “That little shop is more than just a store, it’s a kind of community hub.”  The young men who own the shop provide a warm welcome, and it is here that friendships begin. Characters drop in for more than groceries. For some, it is their lifeline, giving them conversation and care.

The leading lady and man are in their fifties. They prove that growing older does not have to mean, slowing down. He is passionate about cycling.

She misses her friends in Leeds. Following a divorce, she is brave enough to start the supper club which provides a camaraderie for a group of five as they share good food and lives.

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The Liar by Louise Jensen

Sep12

Superb

The Liar by Louise Jensen is a totally gripping psychological thriller that I read in just two sittings, pausing only to sleep.

Louise Jensen is masterful at the psychological suspense. Whenever I pick up one of her books, I know that I will be highly entertained.

The action is seen through various alternating points of view, in both the first and third person. The time periods are present day, recent past, and significant past events. Apart from the watcher paragraphs, the reader is told whose voice it is.

We join a social worker, her daughters, and her elder daughter’s friend and small son. They are a close unit, knitted together by a mother’s love. “Families aren’t always perfect and that doesn’t matter. It’s love that counts.”

The women in the novel are strong characters. They are closely woven together, standing united in the face of cruelty, abuse or indifference from various male characters.

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Our Beautiful Mess by Adele Parks

Sep4

Slaying Dragons

Our Beautiful Mess by Adele Parks is a marvellous contemporary suspense that gripped me from the start.

The novel opens with the ending before going backwards eleven days, and then working forwards. The reader knows what is coming and wonders what led up to that point, and how it is all going to end?

I thought the actual ending was superb – it came out of the blue and was serenely beautiful as the love radiated from the pages.

All the characters were well drawn and believable. We see the action through several alternating points of view enabling the reader to get to know the characters intimately.

This is a book about family. Family can be messy and complicated – but family is ultimately about love.

Life is tiring when children are small – but so much harder as they grow. Parents have to give their children wings to fly. “It was up to them to fall and flounder or fly and flourish. She was powerless… all they [parents] could do was stand back and trust that they’d given their kids enough guidance, resilience and basic common sense to get through.” We see that however old our children are, a mother will fiercely protect her offspring. “Her focus was on protecting Fran.”

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And Then There Was You by Miranda Dickinson

Aug28

Hope Lives Here

And Then There Was You by Miranda Dickinson is a very charming contemporary novel that I enjoyed.

The novel is set in St Ives, Cornwall. In the back streets there is a café that offers love, hope and care to all who pass by. Characters unite over food and music.

We see the power of music to awaken souls and memories. Music takes us back down the years. For the leading lady, a song transports her back to being seven years old again, the only time in her life when she really felt loved for two short years. She was given hope by a man who was the closest thing she ever had to a father. Whenever she hears a certain song, it is her heart’s cry to see him again. “I still have my memories, and they don’t require living space.”

When dreams are shattered, characters are broken, losing their sense of purpose. “I just want to feel like me again.” They need to re-connect with what they once loved, but in a new, different way.

The power of the sea draws people in. For some it is the surf; for others it is an early morning stroll. “The sea is a pull to people who need reassurance [and] hope.”

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