Book after Book

Welcome to the blog tour for Stay  by Jane Bailey! More about the book… I simply slung my rucksack on my shoulder and climbed into the car - and into the life - of perfect strangers. It was meant to be Caitlin's perfect summer, but betrayed by her best friend and her boyfriend, she finds herself hitchhiking home alone, heartbroken, and penniless. When a smiling family pulls up on the roadside to help her on her way, she's relieved - they seem so friendly, safe. And when they offer her a warm bed in their isolated house for the night, she's grateful not to have to travel back alone in the dark. In any case, she's in no rush to get home, where a grave secret is lying in wait to blow her family apart. One night soon turns into two, and then three. The increasingly spellbinding couple wants her to stay, and why shouldn't she? Their children need a tutor, and the longer she can avoid home, the better. But then an older member of the household warns her to leave immediate

Welcome to the blog tour for Murder in the Bookshop by Anita Davison! More about the book… 1915, London: Working in the dusty bookshop that her Aunt Violet mysteriously inherited, Hannah Merrill is accustomed to finding twists in every tale. But discovering her beloved best friend Lily-Anne – with a paperknife through her heart – in the middle of the bookshop, is not a plotline she saw coming. The case is anything but textbook. With the discovery of a coded German message, and Hannah’s instinct that Lily-Anne’s husband is keeping secrets, she determines to get to the bottom of it. She can’t do it alone though. To crack this case, Hannah will need the enlist the help of her outrageous, opinionated, only-occasionally-objectionable Aunt Violet. They think they’re making progress until one of their chief suspects is found dead. And Hannah realises that she is herself now in the murderer’s sights. Will the final chapter be the ending of a killer… or just a killer ending? More about the aut

Welcome to the blog tour for Norah’s Ark by Victoria Williamson! Published on August 29th, it is a middle grade book about friendship and I can’t wait to read it. In the meantime, find out more about it below! More about the book… Two very different lives. One shared hope for a brighter future. No time to waste. The flood is coming... Eleven-year-old Norah Day lives in temporary accommodation, relies on foodbanks for dinner, and doesn't have a mum. But she's happy enough, as she has a dad, a pet mouse, a pet spider, and a whole zoo of rescued local wildlife to care for. Eleven-year-old Adam Sinclair lives with his parents in a nice house with a big garden, a private tutor, and everything he could ever want. But his life isn't perfect - far from it. He's recovering from leukaemia and is questioning his dream of becoming a champion swimmer. When a nest of baby birds brings them together, Norah and Adam discover they're not so different after all. Can Norah help Adam f

Welcome to the blog tour for The Low Road  by Katharine Quarmby! More about the book… Norfolk, 1813. In the quiet Waveney Valley, the body of a woman – Mary Tyrell – is staked through the heart after her death by suicide. She had been under arrest for the suspected murder of her new-born child. Mary leaves behind a young daughter, Hannah, who is later sent away to the Refuge for the Destitute in London, where she will be trained for a life of domestic service. It is at the Refuge that Hannah meets Annie Simpkins, a fellow resident, and together they forge a friendship that deepens into passionate love. But the strength of this bond is put to the test when the girls are caught stealing from the Refuge's laundry, and they are sentenced to transportation to Botany Bay, setting them on separate paths that may never cross again. Drawing on real events,  The Low Road  is a gripping, atmospheric tale that brings to life the forgotten voices of the past – convicts, servants, the rural poor

Welcome to the blog tour for Fayne by Ann-Marie MacDonald! More about the book… In the late nineteenth century, Charlotte Bell is growing up at Fayne, a vast and lonely estate straddling the border between England and Scotland, where she has been kept from the world by her adoring father, Lord Henry Bell, owing to a mysterious ‘condition’. Charlotte, strong and insatiably curious, revels in the moorlands, and has learned the treacherous and healing ways of the bog from the old hired man, Byrn, whose own origins are shrouded in mystery. Her idyllic existence is shadowed by the magnificent portrait on the landing in Fayne House which depicts her mother, a beautiful Irish-American heiress, holding Charlotte’s brother, Charles Bell. Charlotte has grown up with the knowledge that her mother died in giving birth to her, and that her older brother, Charles, the long-awaited heir, died at the age of two. When Charlotte’s appetite for learning threatens to exceed the bounds of the estate, her f

Welcome to my review of  The Good Liars by Anita Frank! More about the book… In the summer of 1914 a boy vanishes, never to be seen again. Now, in 1920, the once esteemed Stilwell family of Darkacre Hall find themselves struggling with the legacy of the First World War. Leonard bears the physical scars, while his brother Maurice has endured more than his mind can take. Maurice's wife Ida yearns for the lost days of privilege and pleasure and family friend Victor seems unwilling to move on. But their lives are thrown into further disarray when the missing boy's case is reopened - and this time they themselves are under police scrutiny. As the dead return to haunt the living, old resentments resurface and loyalties are tested, while secrets risk being unearthed that could destroy them all. More about the author… A farmer’s daughter from Shropshire, Anita studied English and American History at the University of East Anglia before moving to London to work in media analysis and co

Welcome to the blog tour for The Paris Model  by Alexandra Joel! More about the book… After a shocking discovery, Grace Woods leaves her vast Australian sheep station and travels to tumultuous post-war Paris in order to find her true identity. While working as a mannequin for Christian Dior, the world's newly acclaimed emperor of fashion, Grace mixes with counts and princesses, authors and artists, diplomats and politicians. But when Grace falls for handsome Philippe Boyer she doesn't know that he is leading a double life, nor that his past might inflict devastating consequences upon her. As she is drawn into Philippe's dangerous world of international espionage, Grace discovers both the shattering truth of her origins - and that her life is in peril. Inspired by an astonishing true story,  The Paris Model  is a tale of glamour, family secrets and heartbreak that takes you from the rolling plains of country Australia to the elegant salons of Paris. More about the author… Al

Welcome to the blog tour for Free Fall  by Sherry Hostler! More about the book… Ellie is feeling alone and unhappy in her marriage. Her husband no longer shows any interest in her and is constantly travelling for work. So, when Saul, a handsome stranger, offers her everything she’s been missing, what starts as a harmless flirtation quickly grows into something deeper. Before it can go too far, however, Ellie comes to her senses and ends the burgeoning relationship. It’s over – or is it? A series of unexplained and sometimes threatening events soon lead Ellie to believe that maybe Saul isn’t as out of her life as she’d thought. More about the author… Sherry is the author of the psychological thriller ' Hypnotic '. From the age of about 5 years old she would always tell people that her dream job was to be a writer.  Well, either a writer or maybe a trapeze artist.  She couldn’t decide.  Obviously, instead of doing either of those things, she decided to follow her parents’ advice

Welcome to the blog tour for Fair Rosaline  by Natasha Solomons! More about the book… Romeo Montague is handsome and charming and the first time he sees young  Rosaline Capulet, who has secretly snuck into his family's masquerade summer ball, he falls instantly in love. At first  Rosaline is unsure of Romeo's attentions but with her father determined that she join the nunnery, Romeo offers her the chance of a different life. Gradually he convinces her that only true love could make him feel this way, that he is enraptured by her beauty. Indeed, he cannot live without her! And so begins the story of Romeo and  Rosaline. These star-crossed lovers must keep everything hidden from  Rosaline's family, at least until they are wed. But when a destitute young girl appears, claiming to be carrying Romeo's child,  Rosaline starts to doubt all that she has been told. And as whispers of more girls reach her ears, what once felt like a courtship begins to feel more like a pursuit. A

Welcome to the blog tour for The Continental Affair  by Christine Mangan! More about the book… Meet Henri and Louise. Two strangers, travelling alone, on the train from Belgrade to Istanbul. Except this isn't the first time they have met. It's the 1960s, and Louise is running. From her past in England, from the owners of the money she has stolen―and from Henri, the person who has been sent to collect it. Across the Continent―from Granada to Paris, from Belgrade to Istanbul―Henri follows. He’s desperate to leave behind his own troubles and the memories of his past life as a gendarme in Algeria. But Henri soon realises that Louise is no ordinary traveller. As the train hurtles toward its final destination, Henri and Louise must decide what the future will hold―and whether it involves one another. More about the author… Christine Mangan is the author of the national bestsellers Tangerine and Palace of the Drowned. She has her PhD in English from University College Dublin, with a f

Welcome to the blog tour for The God of No Good  by Sita Walker! More about the book… Traversing decades and continents – from Iran to India, Sri Lanka to the Czech Republic, Adelaide to the Torres Strait –  The God of No Good  is a beautifully lyrical and funny intergenerational memoir about six women and how their lives intertwine. Filled with wit and wisdom, it is a story that only Sita Walker could tell, but it will resonate with readers everywhere. It’s  Wild Swans  meets Nora Ephron. This is not a book about divorce. It’s not a book about God, either. You might think it is a book about goodness and what it means to be a good person, but it isn’t. Like everything else, this is about love. Sita Walker was raised by five strong matriarchs who taught her to believe in God and to be good. Her grandmother, mother and three aunts believed in their unshakeable Bahá’í faith, in the power of prayer, in sacrifice, in magic, in the healing of turmeric and tea, and the wisdom of dreams. But a

Welcome to the blog tour for I Know It's You by Susan Lewis! More about the book… Marina Forster has left her past behind. She is happily married with two twin daughters and holds a senior position at a leading publishing company. She never thinks about what happened fourteen years ago, about the scandal, the trial, the trauma that nearly broke her. When a new fiction submission lands on Marina’s desk, she at first thinks nothing of it; That Girl is just another novel by another aspiring writer. But as she reads on, the parallels between the novel and Marina’s own past become ever clearer. At first, she is unnerved; then, she is terrified. Who is writing this? What do they want? And how do they know what happened all those years ago? Increasingly paranoid and unsure who to trust, Marina fears the past may be about to repeat itself. She must put a stop to this before it’s too late – but who will believe her this time? More about the author… Susan Lewis is the internationally bestse

Welcome to the blog tour for Scrap  by Kathy Biggs! More about the book… Life has become stale for best friends Mackie and Sharon, who never imagined they’d end up working in a scrapyard. Sharon has dreams of becoming a cruise ship star, while a browbeaten Mackie cares for his wayward daughter’s twins. But fate takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious kid is discovered in the boot of a car. He has a remarkable gift—he can draw visions of the future, and this opens up new avenues that neither could have foreseen... Scrap  is a modern fable about the human capacity to overcome the hand life deals us and start afresh. More about the author… Kathy Biggs is originally from Yorkshire. She took a summer job in Mid Wales in 1985 - and never left. She has two grown children and lives with her husband, Paul. After studying a number of Creative Writing courses linked to Aberystwyth University, she discovered a talent for writing. The Luck was her first novel. My impressions… Put together a bun

Welcome to the blog tour for The Last List of Mabel Beaumont by Laura Pearson! More about the book… Mabel Beaumont’s husband Arthur loved lists. He’d leave them for her everywhere. ‘Remember: eggs, butter, sugar’. ‘I love you: today, tomorrow, always’. But now Arthur is gone. He died: softly, gently, not making a fuss. But he’s still left her a list. This one has just one item on it though: ‘Find D’. Mabel feels sure she knows what it means. She must track down her best friend Dot, who she hasn’t seen since the fateful day she left more than sixty years ago. It seems impossible. She doesn’t even know if Dot’s still alive. Also, every person Mabel talks to seems to need help first, with missing husbands, daughters, parents. Mabel finds her list is just getting longer, and she’s still no closer to finding Dot. What she doesn’t know is that her list isn’t just about finding her old friend. And that if she can admit the secrets of the past, maybe she could even find happiness again… More

Welcome to the blog tour for Goddesses  by Nina Millns! More about the book… Ayesha is just about finding her feet on the London stand-up scene, but when her response to a sexist heckler goes viral, she finds herself drawn into an exclusive group of activists: a sacred circle of change makers, each woman with a specific gift to contribute to the cause. The circle draws in her friend Yaz too and they are both invited to an intimate hen do, except it’s not a hen do – it's a Goddess Retreat. While Ayesha, longing to find her tribe, tries desperately to fit herself into a shape that the women will accept, Yaz treats the entire ‘itinerary’ with open disdain. But the Goddess Retreat is no laughing matter. As the weekend descends into chaos, they’ll need to stick together if they want to get out alive. Goddesses  is a bitingly brilliant novel that explores the power dynamics of sisterhood and activism, the dark side of white feminism and the importance of making your voice heard. More abo

Welcome to the blog tour for Eternal  by Lisa Scottoline! More about the book… What war destroys, only love can heal. Elisabetta, Marco, and Sandro grow up as the best of friends despite their differences. Elisabetta is a feisty beauty who dreams of becoming a novelist; Marco the brash and athletic son in a family of professional cyclists; and Sandro a Jewish mathematics prodigy, kind-hearted and thoughtful, the son of a lawyer and a doctor. Their friendship blossoms to love, with both Sandro and Marco hoping to win Elisabetta's heart. But in the autumn of 1937, all of that begins to change as Mussolini asserts his power, aligning Italy's Fascists with Hitler's Nazis and altering the very laws that govern Rome. In time, everything that the three hold dear--their families, their homes, and their connection to one another--is tested in ways they never could have imagined. As anti-Semitism takes legal root and World War II erupts, the threesome realizes that Mussolini was only