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HOTEL PORTOFINO by J. P. O’Connell It’s Italy in 1926 and an English woman called Bella Ainsworth has recently opened the Hotel Portofino. As the guests arrive, we learn their stories alongside the problems Bella faces too, and also the rising tensions of the political movements in Italy itself. The back cover of the bookContinue reading “Hotel Portofino by J P O’Connell”

Barb the Bird of Hope – written and illustrated by Zowie Norris This tells the story of a beautiful bird called Barb who lives in a laburnum tree in Bretton Park. The bright yellow bird with purple tail feathers is the star of both the story and the gorgeous illustrations in this book. Her differenceContinue reading “Barb the Bird of Hope”

Christmas Carols and a Cornish Cream Tea by Cressida McLaughlin Meredith Verren is 27 and works in a gift shop called Cornish Keepsakes in Port Karadow, Cornwall. She lives alone with her dog and cat and enjoys an outdoor swim in the sea every morning in a place she calls Charmed Cove. She has aContinue reading “Christmas Carols and a Cornish Cream Tea”

A Cornish Christmas Murder (A Nosey Parker Cozy Mystery) by Fiona Leitch Our heroine Jodie Parker has returned from London to Penstowan in Cornwall to set up her catering business, after leaving the police force. But somehow, she always seems to find crimes which need investigating and this time is no different. The catering vanContinue reading “A Cornish Christmas Murder”

MY REVIEW Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is one of my all-time favourite books, so I was keen to read Cassandra, which is inspired by it and features many of the characters we know and love from the classic novel. In Cassandra (The Cousins of Pemberley, Book 1) the story begins in Newcastle inContinue reading “Cassandra (The Cousins of Pemberley, Book 1) by Linda O’Byrne”

THE STEPSON by Jane Renshaw MY REVIEW The book tells the story of Nick Clyde. When he was sixteen, he came home from a day out with his friend to discover their house was empty, his family had disappeared – his father, stepmother and little sister. Now, in 2019, he’s grown up, successful, wealthy, livingContinue reading “The Stepson by Jane Renshaw”

The New Friends by Daniel Hurst MY REVIEW This book tells the story of an ordinary couple called Becky and Jamie, who go on holiday to Spain and end up chatting to a couple called Phil and Mel. Thinking they have found some lovely new friends, they agree to meet up back in England afterContinue reading “The New Friends by Daniel Hurst”

A Not So Quiet Christmas by Suzie Tullett Antonia is 34 years old and after her friend Jules breaks her leg, she is persuaded to spend Christmas in Jules’s aunt’s cottage in Little Leatherington, taking her mate’s dog Frank along with her. She loves London and busy cities and hates the quiet life of theContinue reading “A Not So Quiet Christmas by Suzie Tullett”

The Golden Girls Getaway by Judy Leigh 104 Drayton Mews in London is three flats occupied by three single women. Vivienne Goldman is 71 and lives in the top flat. She’s an actress in a TV soap called The Edge of Edgeware. Her co-star Lennie is her ex-boyfriend. Gwen Prichard is Welsh, 74 and aContinue reading “The Golden Girls’ Getaway by Judy Leigh”

A Winter Wedding at Mistletoe Gate Farm by Helen J Rolfe Tilly is thirty years old and owns a shop called Tilly’s Bits ‘n’ Pieces in Heritage Cove, a village on the east coast of England, where the novel is set. (This is Book 4 in the Heritage Cove series, but works well as aContinue reading “A Winter Wedding at Mistletoe Gate Farm”