What Remains By Tim Weaver . Review

This is a big book , almost 600 pages , and I read it one day , it was that good! 

Meet Colm Healy, he was once involved in working at a tragic and gruesome crime involving twin girls and their mother . What he saw that day at the crime scene  would alter him for  the rest of his career and he would have to leave the force . Trying to come off the drink while being helped financially by another friend in the police force he 

asks for help to look into this case again. 

A lot bothered Colm about this case, things did not add up and it looked in many ways like the mother that was murdered may have known who her attacker was. Being urged by his friend to forget it Colm takes things into his own hands. 

There was a lot of twists and turns here with many genuine surprises . I think if you love mysteries and thrillers then this really fast paced plot will tick all those boxes . I recommend this to any thriller fan as Colm is a very determined man with an admirable sense of duty and he will go to all lengths needed to get his man!

I received this book for review from the lovely people over at Lovereading.co.uk. 

This book will be published October 2015 and will be available from Lovereading and all other good bookstores then. 

Below please find a link to this book on the Lovereading website. 

http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/14553/What-Remains-by-Tim-Weaver.html

Shopaholic To The Stars by Sophie Kinsella . Review

Becky is back again and shopping once again ! Hollywood is the setting in this story as Becky's husband Luke is working there managing famous actress Sage Seymour much to Becky's delight and frustration as Luke is doing everything he can to discourage the two ladies from meeting. Minnie has started in a very elite playgroup where Becky comes across a dreaded blast from the past! Yikes! 

If you are familiar with this series you will know Suze , she is Becky's best friend and her husband Tarquin . They come over to America to visit with varying degrees of success. 

This was another great addition to this series and you can't help but want to both shake Becky and give her a hug. Likeable ,funny , clumsy , and down right lucky , Becky is an awesome character and this series is feel good central. This book had a lot going on, a mystery with Becky's dad and an old friend, Elinor is also back on the scene, there are celebrities acting up, friendships going haywire and misunderstandings galore ! 

If you enjoyed previous books in this series then you will enjoy this latest book.

Dangerously Dark by Colette London. Review

If you are a fan of chocolate and mysteries then this book combines both of these perfectly. The main character of the book is chocolate goddess Hayden Mundy Moore  . Hayden is well known as an expert in fine chocolate circles and she has to travel a lot with her work so  when her dear friend gets engaged , Haydon comes to Portland Oregon to the party where something dreadful happens! Her friends fiancé is found dead and it brings up many questions about who could have done it and why. Now her friend needs someone to stand in for her recently deceased fiancé and do his work and Hayden is the first person that comes to mind .. Of course a little snooping is also in order if she is going to find out why someone would go to the big risk of a skilled murder . 

I loved the foodie community and setting in this second book in this series as well as learning all about how chocolate is harvested and made into the chocolate we all enjoy . It really was fascinating and a lot of skill is needed when working with chocolate to get it to top class standards. 

It was impossible to read this without a mug of hot chocolate in my hand and 

at the very end of the book it contains delicious ,mouthwatering recipes that I can't wait to try out . They were a great little added extra! This was a very enjoyable read . 

I received my review copy through Kensington books on Netgalley . 

This book is being published September 2015 and will be available where all good books are sold. 

You can find Colette :

Facebook

http://facebook.com/colette.london.books

Website

http://www.colettelondon.com/

How To Get Ahead In Television by Sophie Cousens . Review

This is the story about a young woman called Poppy Penfold who dreams of working in television. Living at home with her mother constantly nagging at her to try for a real job and a man ,she could easily lie down and give up but Poppy is not one to give up on her dream job so she sends loads of CV's out in the world and is fortunate enough to get a trainee runners job on RealiTV. Poppy is hilarious and clumsy and unfortunate in a loveable way so you can't help but wish her well as she stumbles through her new job with many ups and downs , meeting a whole host of interesting and excentric characters along the way. I really enjoyed this book and I would recommend this to fans of Sophie Kinsella as it has so many laugh out loud moments!

I received this book for review from the lovely folks over at Lovereading.co.uk. 

This book is being published September 2015 and will be available from Lovereading and all other good bookstores then. 

Below please find a link to this book on the Lovereading website.

http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/14805/How-to-Get-Ahead-in-Television-by-Sophie-Cousens.html

Pre-Loved Book Haul

It's been a while since I uploaded a book haul so here we go with my pre-loved book haul :0)

The Perfect Murder by H.R.F Keating.

Playing Dead by Julia Heaberlin

Then We Came To The End by Joshua Ferris

A Most Peculiar Malaysian Murder by Shamini Flint

Girl In Translation by Jean Kwok

Gerald's Game by Stephen King

Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen

Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris

In My Mailbox

I received this review book , What Remains by Tim Weaver. This is definitely an eye catcher! 

The side of the book looks like this. Awesome!!!!

The top and bottom of the book looks like this.

The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths. Review

This is book 1 in the Ruth Galloway series . The setting of this story surrounds the Saltmarsh , a bleak and historic place that the main character and Archeologist Ruth Galloway worked on many years previously , the author describes this place so well that you really get a vivid image of it as grey and dangerous as it can be. Something has been found at the Saltmarsh , bones , and with a missing local child everybody is worried. Detective Chief inspector Harry Nelson is on the case and he calls for Ruth's professional help in identifying how old the bones are. 

I loved this tale of mystery and history !

Ruth is a strong female character who shows empathy and intelligence while being brave in difficult situations . Nelson and Ruth make a good team so even though the storylines are serious they are interesting together  , there is respect there for each other and it will be interesting to see if that will go somewhere in future books in this series. Trying to guess who the bad guy was had me guessing right to the very end and there was a few surprises thrown in too so I did not put this book down until I finished it in one go. Loved it! I will now go back and read the other books in this series as I really did enjoy it. If you liked Kathy Reichs or Patricia Cornwell then perhaps check this series out. 

I received this book for review from the lovely people over at Lovereading.co.uk This book has been published. 

The 7th book in this series The Ghost Fields is going to be released October 22nd and will be available from Lovereading.co.uk and all other good bookstores then. 

Below please find a link to this book on the Lovereading Website.

http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/3555/The-Crossing-Places-by-Elly-Griffiths.html

Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs . Review

This is book 15 in the Temperence Brennan series . This is one of the more grizzly disturbing stories where there is a missing mother and dead babies . I read the majority of this story in one sitting as I had to find out why this mother did this , and if it was her who killed her babies or if In fact they were her babies at all. 

This was fast paced as Tempe and the law are in hot persist of this woman and as they close in on her the story gets darker and darker and it seems the woman they are looking for is going under a few different names making it even more difficult to track her down.

This was a real" keep you on the edge of your seat" book ! A must read for all fans of this series! I really enjoyed this! 

My Garden

As you may know we have been getting a lot of rain this summer in Ireland but when I got a few nice days it was the perfect time to try and tackle the weeds and pots and baskets in the garden. 

Look at that sky!

Old skool flowers . Oldies but goodies!

Bright colours 

Budding

Pale pink fushia

Flowers are popping up everywhere! 

Trimming grass and borders 

Raindrops

Blue skies and old fashioned climbing roses 

Hedges blossoming 

Fushia !

Reading This Week

I have quite ambitious plans for my reading this week and below are the books I am hoping to get through. There is a mix of mystery , thriller , female fiction   and horror . I cannot wait to dig in to these awesome books !!!!!!

The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths.

How To Get Ahead In Television by Dophie Cousens.

The Three by Sarah Lotz

Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs

The Music Of Love by Kate McCabe

Shopaholic To The Stars by Sophie Kinsella.

Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz.

Revival by Stephen King

A Beeline To Murder by Meera Lester . Review

This is book 1 in the Henny Penny Farmette Mystery Series featuring former police officer Abigail Mackenzie or Abby as she is known to her friends. Abby had to leave the force due to an injury so she completely changed her career when she took up farming and Bee keeping in the scenic Bay Area town of Las Flores where life has a laid back feel to it. 

When one of Abby's regular honey customers is suddenly found dead by Abby her former police instincts come back into force and it's not long before she can add slueth to her daily routine of farming and collecting honey  as she tries to find out why her friend died and how . Having friends in the police force is going to come in very handy when it comes to finding a low down criminal! 

I loved this mystery! Abby and her friend Kat make a great team at solving crimes and all the characters are interesting and the setting was awesome ! The added extras at the beginning and or end of each chapter with tips about farming/ life or recipes made this even more enjoyable and I would highly recommend this to any mystery fan ! 

I received this book through the lovely people at Netgalley. 

This book is being published September 2015 by Kensington Books and will be available from all good book stores then. 

Below please find links to this book.

Meera Lester

 http://meeralester.com/mlls/

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24388455-a-beeline-to-murder

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00RRT32FW?ie=UTF8&redirectFromSS=1&pc_redir=T1&noEncodingTag=1&fp=1

House Of Windows by Alexia Casale

Meet Nick. Very smart , fifteen , and off to Cambridge University to carry on his education there among those who are all older then him. It's a big change and he does not know how well he is going to fit in here. Nick does not have the best relationship with his father as his father spends as little time with him as possible so Nick does all he can to get his attention . Nick wants for nothing financially but what he is severely lacking is friends and a social life , here is where Cambridge can teach him things he won't learn about in a classroom.

I really liked Nick , he is super smart but shows great empathy with those less well off then him making him very likeable . He is vulnerable and makes mistakes but he keeps going . This was a lovely feel good read that I would recommend to anyone especially if you have ever struggled with understanding family members . 

I received this book for review from the lovely folks over at Lovereading4kids. 

This book is being published this month August 2015 , and will be available from

Lovereading4kids and all other good bookstores then. 

Below please find a link to this book on the Lovereading4kids website.

 http://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/book/11668/House-of-Windows-by-Alexia-Casale.html

In My Mailbox

Review book The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai. Review

I was a little familiar with Malala's life from what I had seen on television and newspapers but reading about this young lady was quite surprising and educational . I think reading about someone else's' couture is always fascinating but I find as a female learning about what life is like for another female in their country is even more intriguing . Malala describes very well the history of her country , it's people , politics , it's beauty and traditions making this young woman seem older then her years. As a lover of books from a young age I found Malala very relatable , she too loved books and her love of learning and education was inspiring . Malala comes across as sensible , strong , fierce and fair , and after reading everything her and her family went through I can only hope they are happy and well in their new country and that life will be good to them . 

In My Mailbox

Review book House Of Windows by Alexia Casale .

Finders Keepers by Stephen King . Review

(Book 2 in the Bill Hodges Trilogy)

Can I start this review with some gushing!!!

I loved this story!!! Nope... I adored it! 

I almost don't know where to begin , but let's give it a try. 

I was advised to read  Mr Mercedes before starting this as some of the details / characters in this book will be familiar to those who read that book,  but as I had not yet I give it a go anyway as the synopsis of this story sounded so good! 

One of the things I love about Stephen Kings books is that they are often interlinked making it fun to find previously known characters in new plots. Kind of a where's Waldo of sorts that is just plain awesome even if some of those characters are downright nightmare inducing! 

At the beginning of this story we meet a famous reclusive writer who is old and living in a big old house without close neighbours ...he likes his privacy ! He has unpublished stories that are part of his famous series of books locked in his safe In his house when one night three men enter and aim to steal money and these handwritten stories written in moleskin notebooks. 

After this scary opening part to the story the story goes back and forth in time featuring one of the thiefs and what he stole and the person who found what he stole. This eventually begins a horrific game of cat and mouse where there is more then the odd vomit inducing scene that will have you reading from behind a large fluffy pillow. There are vivid violent descriptions throughout which King is a master of, some of these will haunt me as many of his previous books have. You don't forget a Stephen King character or his scary scenes in a hurry let me tell you!

Would I recommend this? I certainly would, any fan will enjoy this awesome book that will leave you with a sense of unease told in his matter of fact way that I just love! Go read immediately!

Stephen's website

http://stephenking.com/

Goodreads 

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22453035-finders-keepers

A Cherry Cola Christmas by Ashton Lee . Review

This is book four in the Cherry Cola Book Club Series set in Small town Cherico , Mississippi featuring main character Newly wed Maura Beth who is just back from her honeymoon with husband Jeremy McShay . The staff at the library have kept everything afloat since she was gone but she is only just back when the Mayor requests her presence and needs her help! Businesses in this quaint town are suffering with the downturn in the economy and the Mayor needs her help to lift spirits. 

While Maura Beth is getting used to life as a newly married woman and juggling her work and the  book club someone in the town is on a crime spree making everyone just that little bit more uneasy especially when local businesses get targeted . The book club members all have their own woes too which makes a special Christmas event of the book club open to the public a necessity to lift everyone's spirits , and remind them all what this time of year is all about. 

This was a sweet and perfect cozy read that would make great reading anytime but especially at Christmas. Definitely add this to your TBR list! 

I received this book throughout lovely folks over at Netgalley.

This book is being published by Kensington books September 2015 and will be available where all good books are sold. 

Below please find all the links :

Kensington Books 

http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/author.aspx/26171

Goodreads

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5822079.Ashton_Lee

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Cola-Book-Club-Novel/dp/075827341X

In my Mailbox

 

In my mailbox today review book How To Get Ahead In Television by Sophie Cousens

The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley . Review

The Loney is a place where this one family makes a yearly Easter pilgrimage , two children, one of them mute , six adults and a priest . This place is a dark and rather depressing place to spend anyone's holiday but the family seem to really look forward to their holidays there , where religion and hope  are strongly surrounding their trip . Things are not quite as they seem here, there is a much darker element to the story that is not really talked about but merely hinted at .

It is quite unnerving and I ended up going back over what I read to see if I really did understand what had just happened . The horror here is subtle which is what makes it so unnerving , surprising , and impossible to put down . I recommend this to fans of The Woman In Black or similar stories. It is guaranteed to cause you unease.

I received this book from the lovely people over at Lovereading.co.uk.

This book is being published in September 2015 and will be available from Lovereading and all other good booksellers then. 

Below please find a link to this book.

http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/14796/The-Loney-by-Andrew-Michael-Hurley.html

Murder At Redwood Cove by Janet Finsilver. Review

This is the first book in a new series by Janet Finsilver . Kelly Jackson has arrived in Mendocino County to manage the Redwood Cove Bed and Breakfast as the last manger,  Bob , was found dead .They urgently need someone to fill in , and as Bob was very well thought of where he worked Kelly has big shoes to fill esp now that the Bed and Breakfast is hosting a Wine and Chocolate festival . With no time to waste getting used to the run of the place , the staff are more then happy to help her out as well as Bob's retired friends The Silver Sentinels as well as catching her up on all the local gossip . 

Kelly originally thought Bob's death was natural but after talking to his friends she is not so sure , and begins to snoop around herself. When her own life is quickly put in danger it becomes clear that something is definitely wrong in this scenic place ! I loved this book and characters , especially Kelly,  Tommy and the Silver Sentinals . I recommend this to all mystery fans as it has a great setting, fun characters , and plenty of red herrings to keep you guessing!

I received this book from Netgalley.

This book is being published in October 2015 by Kensington books , and will be available from all good booksellers then. 

Below please find links to this author. 

Kensington Books

http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/author.aspx/31695

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13508214.Janet_Finsilver

Amazon

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00TNBLYD4?ie=UTF8&redirectFromSS=1&pc_redir=T1&noEncodingTag=1&fp=1

Dial Om For Murder by Diana Killian . Review

This is book two in the Mantra For Murder Mystery Series with main character A.J Alexander , owner of the Sacred Balance Yoga Studio. 

The yoga studio is usually a calm environment to work but when you have two Divas at each other's throats it does not make for a relaxing work day. 

During one of her busy days A.J goes above and beyond for one of her A list clients only to meet a grisly discovery . 

With camera crews breathing down her neck thanks to one of her clients A.J tries to stay below their radar as she investigates this curious crime much to the dismay of her boyfriend who happens to be a detective! Not being one to give up quite so easily she using her head and her mothers advice and sets of in search of a criminal!

This was great fun and it also includes a recipe and a yoga pose at the back of the book. 

Below please find a link to Diana's website :

http://www.dianakillian.com/dial_om.html

Fans Of The Impossible Life by Kate Skelsa

This is a story about three teens who come from very different backgrounds yet somehow they fit perfectly together as friends . These three, Mira , Jeremy and Sebby all have their own problems in life and because they come from such different backgrounds I at first could not understand what they saw in each other but it soon became clear why. These friends need each other, they support each other and do their best to protect each other from harm , the only thing is as close as they all are they are all hiding something from each other. Mental health, sexuality and friendship are strong themes in this well written book that makes you appreciate your own life that little bit more . I would recommended this book to everyone!

I received this book for review from the lovely folks over at lovereading4kids.co.uk. This book is going to be published September 2015 and will be available from Lovereading4kids and all other good booksellers then. 

Below please find a link to this book on the Lovereading website. 

 http://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/ebook/9781509805150/eanrd/Fans-of-the-Impossible-Life-by-Kate-Scelsa.html

Pane And Suffering by Cheryl Hollon . Review

This is book one in a new series based in a glass shop in St . Petersburg featuring main character Savannah Webb. 

Savannah is back in town because of the sudden death of her much loved father John. John's death has left her with a lot of work on her plate as she tries to sort out her dads business , this is made even harder when her first day running the shop is met with a dead body . If that was not bad enough she has potential buyers bothering her too! 

I really enjoyed this book ! There were so many red herrings in here that it was difficult to try and figure out who the bad guy was , and for what reason , making this a one sit read . Savannah , Edward and Jacob were my favourite characters and it was fun getting to know more about stained glass and how delicate an art it is. This is definitely a series worth following! 

I received my copy of this book through Netgalley.

This book is going to be published by Kensington Press in September 2015 and will be available from all good booksellers then . 

Below please find all the links:

Cheryl's website

http://cherylhollon.com/

Twitter

https://mobile.twitter.com/cherylhollon

Facebook

https://m.facebook.com/cheryl.hollon?refsrc=http%3A%2F%2Fcherylhollon.com%2F

Demon Road by Derek Landy . Review

Okay, prepare for gushing! I loved this! Meet Amber , a pretty normal teenager with pretty normal parents and life ... Or so it seems. When one day her world is torn apart by huge changes she has no other option but to make a run for it with the help of some very unlikely friends. 

Amber's family are not exactly who they at first seem but instead are very powerful influential Demons. 

Knowing the danger she is now in she runs away and makes a deal with the one person who can stop her parents from harming her , but he is the last person that Amber every dreamed she would meet because he does nothing for nothing and if she does not do his bidding then a nasty quick death could be in her very near future if she is lucky! It really could be worse ! Vampires, Witches , and Demons , basically all manner of unfriendly being is lurking on Demon Road and Amber , Milo and Glen need to find the evil one they seek on that road so that Amber will stay safe. It's a hell of a journey ! ;0) 

I received this book for review from the lovely people over at Lovereading4kids.co.uk. 

This book is being published August 2015 and will be available from all good booksellers then. 

Below please find s link to this book on the Lovereading4kids website .

http://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/book/11649/Demon-Road-by-Derek-Landy.html

Scrapbook Of The Dead by Mollie Cox Bryan . Review

This story centres around the Cumberland Creek Scrapbooking Crop and in this book it's coming up to Halloween and almost everyone is having fun making their Halloween themed book. When a woman's body is found dead in a freezer and another one soon after it by the creek it soon becomes clear that there is a link and that this Halloween could be an even more scary one if they don't catch who the killer is. 

Most of the Scrapbooking crop have their own problems going on too , each supporting each other while trying to help the family of the deceased by finding a killer. 

The closeness of the group and the setting is really appealing , Cumberland creek has small town charm making it the perfect cozy book to sit down with , plus it has tips at the end of the book for Scrapbooking,  but you don't need to be a scrapbooker to enjoy this mystery. Read and enjoy! 

I received my copy through the lovely folks on Netgalley.

This book is being published September 2015 by Kensington Books .

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23360000-scrapbook-of-the-dead

Kensington Books

http://www.ekensingtonbooks.com/book.aspx/31753

Isabelle Day Refuses To Die Of A Broken Heart by Jane St Anthony. Review

When Isabelle's father dies Isabelle and her mother move from Milwaukee to Minneapolis , they move into a duplex that has two elderly ladies living upstairs  called Dora and Flora. These two women are no strangers to grief and so they do their best to look after young Isabelle who is struggling with losing her beloved father. 

At school Isabelle meets Margaret and Grace who help her get adjusted to life in a new area , through all this help she is beginning to get through each day taking it one step at a time. 

This was a touching story about grief and the journey of how to survive it once you have lost a loved one. A beautiful story !

I received this book through Netgalley.

This book is being published by The University of Minnosota Press on September 1st , and will be available from all good booksellers then. 

University of Minnosota Press

https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/isabelle-day-refuses-to-die-of-a-broken-heart

Goodreads

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25362768-isabelle-day-refuses-to-die-of-a-broken-heart

My Due Date

Today was the day I was due to have my baby.if you are new to my blog then perhaps go back to the beginning of January posts and read those first.  I was on medication to sustain this pregnancy so this pregnancy had a lot of hope behind it. I could picture the day I would hold my little bundle in my arms. My weeks started over on Saturdays so I would always stay up to midnight to see each new week change over . A little relief would flood my body with each day and week passing and I would sleep better those nights. I woke up this morning and the first thing I did was cry in the bathroom where I could not be seen or heard. My stomach was in knots and I kept thinking what it would be like to have my baby to hold in my arms that I had given birth to ... to kiss its head and cuddle it close . 

My four babies died at 12 weeks , 10 weeks, 8 weeks, 10 weeks. Their due days are very hard to get through , and for some people it can take you by surprise how much you feel that day. People may wonder why put up pictures or mention it ?  Well , for me it is to acknowledge that my little one was here and alive , there is a picture, I heard their heartbeat I went through all this emotional and physical pain of hoping they would not die and then learning they did , having my baby at home , rushed to hospital then surgery , home , then hospital again . 

The lines have faded since November but they are still there. 

Physically I have recovered but emotionally,  no. I don't know if I can go through a pregnancy for a 5th time and risk losing another child. 

But for now , today , it's about Grace and hoping that my four babies are together in heaven and maybe they can help me get through today . I should have four children here with me and today the pain of you all not being hear really hurts. Xxxxxxxxxxxxx