The Sun's Shadow by Sejal Badani - #bookreview

The Blurb

Celine’s life is spiraling out of control. She’s in danger of losing the beloved equestrian farm that was her childhood home. Her distant husband, Eric, is devoting a suspicious amount of time to a stunning new colleague. Then her young son, Brian, receives a devastating cancer diagnosis. As her life falls apart, she faces an impossible fight

Felicity has uprooted her career and her teenage son, Justin, to get closer to Eric. She’s tired of keeping his secrets―that Eric’s frequent “business trips” have been time spent with her and Justin. Felicity is determined to get her happily ever after, even if it means confronting Celine at a delicate time.

But when Brian’s prognosis worsens, and a transplant from Justin becomes his best chance at survival, Felicity must make a wrenching decision about her son’s well-being―and Celine must accept that the “other woman” is her only hope.

In another life Celine and Felicity might have been friends. Can they put aside the pain between them to do what’s best for their families―and their own futures?

My Review

This is a very heartfelt story which tugs at the heartstrings.

It is an extremely moving story about the main character, Celine who is about to lose it all; her business, her husband and her beloved son. Losing a child is every mother's nightmare, and this made Celine very relatable and definitely made me count my lucky stars that my own children grew up to become healthy young men. Her circumstances seem overwhelming, particularly as she discovers that her husband has another family. Add to that a business that is going to be taken away from her, and her life certainly seems to be spiralling out of control.

Most of the chapters are written from Celine's perspective, but the occasional chapter is written by Felicity who is the 'other woman' in this scenario. She was a very interesting character and I very much enjoyed observing how the circumstances allowed her to mature and become more self-aware.

It is a very thought provoking read and it was impossible not to question myself as to how I might react in this situation. She was enduring a truly awful set of circumstances. Celine demonstrated courage, bravery and determination and I admired her for that. 

It was well written with a clever emotive plot which the author brought to life on the page extremely well. As a reader, this book takes you on quite a roller coaster of emotions. It reminded me of novels that I have read by Jodi Picoult and if you enjoy her fiction then I think you will like this one too. It was immersive to read and although its themes were challenging ones it was ultimately a story of hope and positivity. I thoroughly recommend this book.

Book Details:

ISBN:  978 1662509735 

Publisher:  Lake Union Publishing

Formats: e-book, audio, hardback and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages:  333 (paperback)

Purchase Links

Bookshop.org

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About the Author

Sejal Badani is the Amazon Charts, USA Today, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Storyteller’s Secret and Trail of Broken Wings. She is also a Goodreads Best Fiction award and ABC/Disney Writing Fellowship finalist whose work has been published in over fifteen languages. When not writing, she loves reading and traveling. Bruce Springsteen, Beyonce, and Ed Sheeran are always playing in the background.

You can find Sejal at:

Author Website

Tik Tok

Pinterest

Instagram

Twitter / X

(ARC courtesy of the publicist)

(media courtesy of the author's website)

(all opinions are my own)

(bookshop.org affiliated)

Dark Times for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis - #blogtour #bookreview

 

"What are you thinking, Louisa? You can't wear that for church. Go and put your Sunday dress on," her mother ordered...

***

The Blurb

1916: As fighting in Europe continues, the Clarks Factory Girls find themselves caught in a divided community...

With the country in the grips of conscription, the pacifism at the heart of Street village comes under scrutiny, and when Kate befriends Gerald, a young Quaker arrested for refusing to fight, she starts to understand the true dilemma the community finds itself in.

Still grieving the loss of her sweetheart Mattie, Louisa finds herself at odds with her parents, who refused them the chance to marry. As her mother’s attempts to find Louisa a husband show no signs of abating, Louisa takes solace in her friendship with Jeannie’s brother Lucas, but could an unexpected opportunity offer a solution to both their problems?

Meanwhile, Jeannie finds herself torn between her heart and her faith. With each other’s help, can the girls hold true to what they believe in, even as the village enters its darkest days yet?

My Review

This is the third book in the Clark's Factory Girls series. I have previously read the other two books in the series, The Clark's Factory Girls at War and Courage for the Clark's Factory Girls both of which I enjoyed immensely.

I was delighted to be able to spend more time with the three main characters of this book, best friends Kate, Jeannie and Louisa. The book picks up where the previous book left off with the stand off between Louisa and her parents. Having said that, this book works well as a standalone novel by explaining the background if you have not read the previous books.

The strongest theme that runs through all of these books is the strong bond of friendship that the three women have. Each of them are different but it is easy to identify with aspects of all three of them. In their own ways they each demonstrate courage and the conviction of their beliefs. 

Set during the First World War, we as readers have the benefit of hindsight that the characters do not. We are aware of when the war will end but, of course, the characters do not and it was easy to understand how they must have felt like the war had been going on for such a long time, living in fear of friends and loved ones who are away fighting on the front. The author depicts the time period extremely well and portrays the stresses and strains on people of the time.

This is an excellent book and series in the historical saga genre and I highly recommend it.

Book Details

ISBN:  978 1835330395

Publisher:  Boldwood Books

Formats:  e-book, audio, and hardback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages:  288 (hardback)

Purchase Links

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Waterstones

Blackwell's

About the Author

May Ellis has been a legal executive, registered childminder, professional fund–raiser and a teacher. She has travelled the world, including trekking in mountains, deserts and the Great Wall of China, as well as helping build a house in Thailand. 

She went to university in her forties and gained a first class degree and an MA while still working full – time. Her first book, a contemporary romance, was published in 2014. Since then she has had five more novels published, including another romance and a YA time travel adventure. The last three are gritty dramas set in the 1960s/70s published by Darkstroke Books. 

She lives in Somerset, within sight of Glastonbury Tor, volunteering at her local library and for the Alfred Gillett Trust (custodians of the Clark’s archives). Her current series, based on the factory workers at Clark’s Shoes was inspired by her move to the area and her love of social history.

 

(ARC and media courtesy of Rachel's Random Resources)

(all opinions are my own)

​

How Not to Murder Your Ex by Katie Marsh - #bookreview #blogtour

 

On the many occasions Clio had imagined murdering her husband, it had never been anything like this. Her mind's eye had always turned away from what came next - avoiding the gore that would accompany the click of a trigger or the scream that might follow his flailing body after it was pushed from a cliff. She had never been serious, anyway. Everyone knew that. It was just Clio saying her piece, moaning about Gary the way she always did. People thought it was funny - last week her darts team had even stuck his picture over the bullseye for their Friday night match...

***

It is 5:30 am on Clio's forty-fifth birthday and her hated ex is lying dead on her doorstep. Even worse, this is no accident. Someone’s killed him...

When single mum Clio’s ex Gary turns up dead on the doorstep of her caravan – the one she’s been forced to live in ever since he stole every penny she had – there’s only one suspect. Her.

What’s more, she doesn’t remember much about the night he was killed – not just because of the forgetfulness that’s been plaguing her along with the hot flushes – but because she definitely had one too many cocktails with her two best friends Amber and Jeanie.

Clio does remember them talking about how much they all hated him though. And, in the frame for murder, she has to ask herself – if she didn’t kill Gary, who did? One of his many enemies? Or someone a little closer to home? And can she and her friends find the real killer before it’s too late?

***

This is an excellent book about the friendship of three women, Clio, Amber and Jeanie. It is about the lengths they will go to protect their friend when she is wrongly accused of murder.

In fact, whilst there is much to recommend this book, it is the friendship between the three women that is to the fore. They never doubt one another, and at all times the bond between them is their focus, sometimes to the detriment of their own families. At other times, it is the wider family that drive their actions and cement their bond even further.

Throughout the book, the chapters are presented from the perspective of each of the three women which provides further insight into their thoughts and actions. However, the are also chapters devoted to the perspective of the murder victim, Gary. He was not a character that the author intended us to like. In fact, the insight into his mind and conceitedness was sufficient to make us sympathise with Clio even further.

There were sufficient twists and turns in the mystery element of this book to keep me guessing. In fact, it was only shortly before the reveal that I realised who the murderer was.

The book finished at a point where there is ample scope for this to become a series. I sincerely hope that the author does continue with this as the book was both engaging and entertaining and I would love to read more of these characters.

ISBN:  978 1785138768

Publisher:  Boldwood Books

Formats:  e-book, audio and hardback

No. of Pages:  308 (hardback)

About the Author:

Katie Marsh wrote five bestselling, uplifting women’s fiction novels before turning to cosy crime for Boldwood. Previously published by Hodder, the first in her new crime series  How Not To Murder Your Ex, following the fortunes of the Bad Girls Detective Agency, will be published in December 2023.

(ARC and all media courtesy of Rachel's Random Resources)

(all opinions are my own)

The Husband Criteria by Catherine Kullman - #BookReview #BlogTour

 

It is the undisputed ambition of every mother to see her daughters and, to a lesser extent (for a daughter-in-law may one day supplant her) her sons, suitably married. The eligibility of potential matches is determined by an arcane logarithm setting his station, wealth, and personability against her beauty, fortune, and station. Although there is no Euclidean exposition to assist in the application of this tool, matrons of all classes are expert in evaluating a man's worth, and the likelihood of their daughter successfully attracting his attention.

***

London 1817

The primary aim of every young lady embarking on the Spring frenzy that is the Season must be to make a good match. Or must it? And what is a good match? For cousins Cynthia, Chloe and Ann, well aware that the society preux chevalier may prove to be a domestic tyrant, these are vital questions. How can they discover their suitors’ true character when all their encounters must be confined to the highly ritualised round of balls, parties and drives in the park?

As they define and refine their Husband Criteria, Cynthia finds herself unwillingly attracted to aloof Rafe Marfield, heir to an earldom, while Chloe is pleased to find that Thomas Musgrave, the vicar’s son from home, is also in London. And Ann must decide what is more important to her, music or marriage.

And what of the gentlemen who consider the marriage mart to be their hunting grounds? How will they react if they realise how rigorously they are being assessed?

A light-hearted, entertaining look behind the scenes of a Season that takes a different course with unexpected consequences for all concerned.

***

This historical romance very much had an Austensque/Georgette Heyer feel to it. Indeed, the opening lines (above) reminded me of the opening paragraph of Jane Austen's, Pride and Prejudice. Through this the author is nicely indicating the type of story the reader is about to embark on.  

The story portrays three friends who are also cousins, who are termed, the three graces, during a London Season in 1817. This forms part of a marriage market where the girls embark on finding a suitable match. However, Ann, Cynthia and Chloe are slightly different to the average young woman they will encounter at balls and parties, because when younger they had compiled a list of characteristics that they wished their future husband to have, hence the titular husband criteria. Not only was this entertaining but this aspect made me smile as I remember my best friend and I do something similar when we about twelve or thirteen. I so wish I had kept that list as I would love to look at it through more mature eyes. All I remember is that I wanted him to be blonde with blue eyes and my husband does indeed have those attributes (well, his hair is more grey than blonde now!)

At the beginning of the book, there is a useful list of the characters as there are many. Personally, I would have preferred to read this in a physical form rather than an e-book. A physical copy provides easier opportunities to flick back to the list and would have enhanced my enjoyment of the book. It does soon become apparent who the main characters in the story are but I found many of the secondary characters more difficult to pin down.

This is the third book in The Lorings series. However, it works perfectly well as a standalone book and did not affect my enjoyment of this novel.

Readers who enjoy classic historical fiction will enjoy this book. Happy reading!

ISBN:  978 1913545901

Publisher:  Books Go Social

Formats:  e-book, hardback and paperback

No. of Pages:  297 (paperback)

About the Author:

Catherine Kullmann was born and educated in Dublin. Following a three-year courtship conducted mostly by letter, she moved to Germany where she lived for twenty-five years before returning to Ireland. She has worked in the Irish and New Zealand public services and in the private sector. Widowed, she has three adult sons and two grandchildren.

Catherine has always been interested in the extended Regency period, a time when the foundations of our modern world were laid. She loves writing and is particularly interested in what happens after the first happy end—how life goes on for the protagonists and sometimes catches up with them. Her books are set against a background of the offstage, Napoleonic wars and consider in particular the situation of women trapped in a patriarchal society.

She is the author of The Murmur of Masks, Perception & Illusion, A Suggestion of Scandal, The Duke’s Regret, The Potential for Love, A Comfortable Alliance and Lady Loring’s Dilemma. 

Catherine also blogs about historical facts and trivia related to this era. You can find out more about her books and read her blog (My Scrap Album) at her website. You can contact her via her Facebook page or on Twitter.

(e-book and all media info courtesy of The Coffee Pot Book Club)

(all opinions are my own)

The Testing of Rose Alleyn by Vivien Freeman - #BookReview #BlogTour

 

Along with grey clouds and a consequent drop in temperature, there comes the return of what is never far away in these parts, a keen easterly breeze. Borne upon it, the plaintive sound of a concertina makes me think of the cold sea even further east. The tune reaches its conclusion as I draw level with the church and glimpse beyond it, in the school playground, a Maypole with its rainbow of ribbons. The end of each ribbon is held by a child who stands still in his or her starting place, returned from all the weaving intricacies of dance.

***

After her mother's death in January, late in her twentieth pregnancy, sixteen-year-old Rose had resolved never to marry. Defying expectations, she has escaped the same fate as her siblings in service, and left her rural home for the market town of Widdock. Here she now works as the assistant in a bookshop owned by inspiring and charismatic Leonard Pritchard, with whom she shares a love of poetry. At Apple Tree House, where she lodges, Rose has forged strong friendships with the other young women residents and with the hostel's cultured owner, Mrs. Fuller.

Rose enjoys her independence. But as her relationship with her employer deepens, her joy is tempered by reawakening fears about the reality of women's lives. Preoccupied, Rose is unprepared for trouble when it strikes. Coming from the least likely source, one in which she has always found solace, it threatens the very person now closest to her heart. How can words prove to be so damaging and dangerous? What can she do? As the storm gathers, will she ride it?

***

Set in 1900 the author has captured the period perfectly. It is slow paced to echo the time period and it would be easy to believe that this had been written contemporaneously.

Rose is a very likeable character and it is easy to sympathise with her fear of pregnancy and child birth. Consequently, when she falls in love and she is forced to confront those fears, the reader can engage with and understand her apprehension.

The setting is nicely described, and the author provides telling descriptions of the environment. It was very easy to share Rose's appreciation of the rural countryside. When there is a heatwave it was easy to identify with the feelings that they all shared.

I enjoyed reading about her life in the young woman's hostel. Mrs. Fuller, the proprieter, was an enjoyable character to get to know, as were the other young ladies who resided there.

For me, the main theme of the book was that of a young woman of her class and experience being able to break free of the expectations that were placed upon her. Like the rest of Rose's family, she had been expected to go into service. That she was able to secure employment as a book shop assistant speaks volumes about her character.

I think anyone who enjoys the gentle pace of fiction set during the turn of the twentieth century will enjoy this book.

ISBN:  979 8770841268

Publisher: 186 Publishing

Formats: e-book and paperback

No. of Pages:  269

About the Author:

Vivien Freeman grew up in North London and graduated in Art History from the University of East Anglia before settling in Ware, Hertfordshire. A published poet as well as a novelist, she taught Creative Writing for many years and has an M.A. in Scriptwriting from Salford University. She now lives in rural Wales in the Vale of Glamorgan with her husband, the poet, John Freeman.