Last Orders

Last Orders:-The Seacastle Mysteries (Book 6)

By P.J. Skinner

Genre:-Crime Fiction

Pages:-239

Publisher:-Parkin Press

Blurb:-Local sleuth, Tanya Bowe, attends the long-awaited opening of the Surfusion restaurant. The unexpected arrival of a famous food critic raises the stakes for the owners and increases the buzz of excitement. The evening takes a dark turn when he collapses into his coffee, hours after a scathing review goes live on his blog. The owners are prime suspects for his murder, but Tanya is convinced of their innocence and vows to clear their names.

As Tanya digs deeper, what at first seems like an open-and-shut case unravels into a web of intrigue. Is the famous critic even the intended victim of the crime? Tanya Bowe has her work cut out for her as hidden motives lead to simmering tensions among her friends.

With time running out and Surfusion’s future on the line, can Tanya unmask the culprit before it’s too late?

Perfect for fans of cozy mysteries, this gripping tale of deception, friendship, and culinary intrigue will keep you guessing until the very end.

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My Review:-Last Orders is Book Six in 'The Seacastle Mysteries' series, I've been lucky enough in reading and reviewing all the other books in the series, so only to happy to read this one. Don't worry if you haven't read the other books, this can also be read as a standalone, as PJ Skinner adds all details you need to know. Tanya Bowe, along with her sister Helen and ex-husband George are at the opening of a new restaurant, Surfusion. Also at the opening was Leonard Black, the most famous restaurant critic in Britain, only problem was nobody knew who he is, he's an enigma as Rohan put it. But things don't go to plan when Leonard dies at Surfusion. It's up to Tanya and her trusted gang to look into it. As Tanya starts to look closer into the case, she notices that things aren't adding up and it's not as simple as first seemed. Will Tanya and the gang solve the case before the Surfusion has to close?

 I like PJ's story plots, she has so many little twists that it has you guesting the whys and who. I love everything about her books, along with the characters they all fit nicely together.

Ellie the Crocodile Goes To Gymnastics

Ellie the Crocodile Goes To Gymnastics

By Emily Bardwell

Genre:-Children's Fiction

Ages:-2-5 years

Blurb:-

Ellie’s plans for a fun day at the park are dampened by the rain. So when Patrick suggests gymnastics instead, Ellie embarks on a new adventure filled with trampolines, beams, and monkey bars.

Will Ellie have the courage to try something new?

This is a story about being brave, facing your fears, and believing in yourself.

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Buy Link-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ellie-Crocodile-gymnastics-Emily-Bardwell-ebook/dp/BODF5WC262

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/books/show/218130236-ellie-the-crocodile-goes-to-gymnastics

Paths Not Yet Taken

Paths Not Yet Taken

By Philip Rennett

Genre:-Contemporary/Satire/Humour

Pages:-344

Publisher:-Pea Arr Books

Blurb:-Set over five days of late summer, Paths Not Yet Taken is 340 intriguing, compelling pages of crises, action and emotional drama, punctuated by dry observational humour.

 A breezy satire that offers hope to us all...eventually.

In a Midlands food warehouse, a Government visit goes badly wrong. The prime minister vanishes without trace before he's had the chance to wave his German sausage at the gathered media. The consequent nationwide search creates massive issues for government, the security services, a local police force, and for a keyboard terrorist who finds the missing man.

 Chaos ensues involving drink, dogs, guns and golf. And that's just at one small end-of-terrace house. Elsewhere, a van explodes, a prospective leader loses it before he's even started leading, and an assassination attempt goes badly wrong. Twice.

 Ultimately, one man's spur-of-the-moment decision is the catalyst for others to reflect on their own lives and to consider decisive actions of their own.

Just try not to think about the sausage.

Paths Not Yet Taken-winner of the Literary Titan Gold Book Award

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My Review:-Not sure what I was expecting, but I'm glad I decided to read it. Simon Pope is a warehouse worker, but not just any warehouse worker, he was also known as Esteban Canafanta to his online brethren on @TheTrth, the dark web platform and to the intelligence service. When the Prime Minister goes missing on a visit to the Midlands food distribution centre where Simon works, a search is launch. How and why is Simon at the front of things? 

 I enjoyed the storyline with it's short, quick chapters and great believable characters. There are plenty of twists and turns, along the way with multiple threads.

A Few Words From An Absolute Nobody

A Few Words From An Absolute Nobody

By Ricardo Chin

Genre:-Spiritual Memoir/ Non Fiction

Pages:-320

Ricardo Chin tells his story honestly, no matter how raw it gets. Ricardo grew up in a strict poverty-stricken household, were violence was part of everyday life. Ricardo went from gangs, crime violence on the streets to the Royal Marines. To anyone looking from the outside saw a Royal Marine soldier fighting for his country, but it didn't feel the same for him. This is a really emotional story, that is inspiring and one of survival. Ricardo shows that no matter how your life is or was, you can get though it and come out the other side. A story of hope for anyone. This is a book I would highly recommend reading, if you think you can go no more, you can and will.

Blurb:-Born into a broken home in a run-down community marked by deprivation, crime, and violence. Ricardo Chin grows up with one thing in mind: inflicting suffering back on a world that's failed him.

 By his teens, he's fighting with inner-city gangs; by his early 20s, he's a newly trained Royal Marine Commando on his way to Afghanistan. In the eyes of the military, he's doing his duty; in his own troubled mind, however, he's a stone-cold killer out for revenge.

 Wounded in action on the battlefield, Ricardo moves into close protection in post-war Iraq but find the insecurities that have plagued him all his life soon follow, Embarking on a spiritual quest that leads to the ancient tribal wisdom of South America, he comes to realise there's a higher purpose to existence-one built on love, not hate.

 A Few Words from an Absolute Nobody is the record of one man's inspirational journey from unconsciousness to enlightenment, with profound lessons for all of humanity. It's only by stepping back from the mental warzones we inhabit daily that we will learn the fight for survival is already won. Beneath the uniform of our flesh lies an inextinguishable energy; beyond the personal hardships and challenges, a masterplan.

 The universe is calling to us...we just need to stop and listen

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My Review:-Ricardo Chin tells his story honestly, no matter how raw it gets. Ricardo grew up in a strict poverty-stricken household, were violence was part of everyday life. Ricardo went from gangs, crime violence on the streets to the Royal Marines. To anyone looking from the outside saw a Royal Marine soldier fighting for his country, but it didn't feel the same for him. This is a really emotional story, that is inspiring and one of survival. Ricardo shows that no matter how your life is or was, you can get though it and come out the other side. A story of hope for anyone. This is a book I would highly recommend reading, if you think you can go no more, you can and will.

The Accidental Plus One

The Accidental Plus One

By Alison Ripley Cubitt

Genre:-Non Fiction/Biography/Humour

Pages:-235

Blurb:-A burnt-out media executive. A chance to leave it all behind. Can she take that leap into the unknown, or is she doomed to fail?

 Alison was stuck going nowhere. Her shiny career had well and truly lost its lustre, despite the money her TV bosses were offering. Nothing would ever make up for the sacrifices she'd made in the past 15 years.

 When she spotted am opportunity for her other half on the other side of the world, could she leave behind a well-paid job and all that was familiar to up sticks? When the couple's dream home became a restoration nightmare, they were off once again, crisscrossing the planet in a whirlwind journey of love, life, and passports.

 The Accidental Plus One: Travel Tales from a Trailing Spouse is a heart-warming and humorous true story, that proves that sometimes love leads us on the most unexpected journeys.

 If you like stories about brave but foolhardy risk-takers, quirky characters, and amusing tales from departure lounges and arrival halls, you'll love this fun, globetrotting adventure.

Thank you #AD #Gifted #FreeHonestReview @randomthingstours

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My Review:-Moving across the world isn't an easy job as Alison finds out. Sorting out the dog came first, she couldn't leave it behind, followed by New Zealand Residency, selling the flat and a lot more. All this while sorting out her own wedding, a small simple one, with the help from her family and friends, everything sort of went ok, apart from almost no champagne. I love how Alison is prepared to move with her University Professor husband, not just once but many. Alison shares with us just what its like to pack up a house, finding a new house, as well as furniture, cars friends and a job for herself at times. Not everything goes to plan which we find out. The way the author has wrote the storyline, it was easy to picture just what was happening, Interesting, unique and funny all rolled into one book.

I Died At Fallow Hall

I Died At Fallow Hallow

By Bonnie Burke-Patel

Genre:-Classic Crime & Mystery Fiction/Psychological Thriller/Romantic Suspense/Narrative Theme

Pages:-256

Publisher:-Bedford Square Publishers

Blurb:-The classic Agatha Christie-style country house murder mystery combined with the subjective, searching, contemporary literary novel

Combines terrific plot twists, characters with a rich inner life and a dramatic outer life, and beautiful writing-a must for reading groups.

 Layered and subtle, with more than one crime at its heart; a police procedural but also a novel about identity and self-knowledge and much more.

Anna Deerin moves to a remote Cotswold cottage to become a gardener, trying to strip all her life as a woman striving for, craving the anonymity and privacy her new off-grid life provides. But when she claers the last vegetable bed and digs up not twigs but bones, the outside world is readmitted. With it comes Detective Inspector Hitesh Mistry, who has his own reasons for a new start in the village of Upper Magna.

 Drawn in spite of herself to this unknown woman from another time, Anna is determined to uncover her identity and gain recognition for her, if not justice. As threats to Anna and her new life grow closer, she and DI Mistry will find that this murder is inextricably bound up with issues of gender, family, community, race and British identity itself-all as relevant in decades past as they are to Anna today.

 Praise and reviews 'A hard-hitting mystery drama that simultaneously celebrates and skewers the country house tradition, Bonnie Burke-Patel's debut is beautifully written, told with empathy and a razor-sharp wit. I couldn't put it down'-Seth Insua, author of Human, Animal

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My Review:-Anna Deerin, once a ballerina until she got hurt. Anna now lives a simple life, off-grid on Upper Magna, a little village in the Cotswold. Anna Grows her own fruit and vegetables to sell at the weekly farmers market. While tendering to the gardens, Anna digs up more than just vegetables. The bones she finds are of a young female, but who is it? Detective Inspector Hitesh Mistry has been assigned to the case. It's not long before Anna and DI Mistry are trying to find out more about the body. But has someone got other ideas about them finding out more... Both Anna and DI Mistry have came here from London and have a past that they are happy to leave behind.

Gender, family, community, identity and race all related within this book.

X in Provence

X in Provence

By Tani Ruiz

Genre:-Women's Fiction/Erotic Romance/Erotic BDSM Fiction

Pages:-297

Publisher:-Austin Macauley Publishers

Blurb:-Escape to the beautiful lavender fields of Provence

 X in Provence is a novel about obsession, betrayal and survival set in a place that normally conjures up paradise. Soon after English journalist Rai leaves a thriving career in Hong Kong to live with Alain, a brilliant French sculptor in Provence, she is delighted to discover la dolce vita. But she also encounters a darker demimonde-the sex-sodden underbelly of this region of southern France. Call it the 'other' Provence. Rai is captivated by the novelty of it all and the loving reassurances of her charmer beau and is thrilled when he proposes. After marriage, however, Alain turns chilling, and conflict ignites between rai's intellect and her internal dysfunctions-a treacherous teetering depicted with stark clarity. Alain has a brother-two if you count the dead one-and the dynamics between these divergent characters deepen the plot. The novel offers a new take on an age-old theme: the perils of addiction to highly charismatic, highly narcissistic personalities and what women will do to cling on. Combining splashes of erotica, psychological suspense, mystery and wanderlust, X in Provence is women's fiction at its gripping best.

Thank you #AD #Gifted #FreeHonestReview 

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My Review:-X in Provence is Tani Ruiz's debut novel. Ravinia, is a English journalist. Ria decides to leave her career and home in Hong Kong to be with Alain, a French Sculptor in Provence. Her relationship with Alain is everything she could ask for, but after getting married things start to change. Alain and Provence both have a darker side, a side that Rai hadn't seem or wants to either. But how far will she go and how safe is she? A book of betrayal, obsession, vulnerability, survival and so much more. Even though it has a dark side and not everyone is going to like it, I found once I started reading I couldn't put it down. Beauty and the Beast combined with 50 Shades of Grey.

Trouble In Combe Tollbridge

Trouble In Combe Tollbridge

By Roseanna Hall

Genre:-Humorous fiction/Modern & Contemporary fiction/General & Literary/Family life fiction

Pages:_304

Publisher:-Farrago

Blurb:-Combe Tollbridge, on the Exmoor coast, is a quiet fishing village, always happy to welcome visitors for the sake of the local economy, but when an irritating journalist looks like staying overtime, a dine-and-dash couple plays tricks in the neighbourhood, and a family with more than one secret to hide features in the national news, the mixed blessing that is tourism becomes all too clear.

 Meanwhile Professor Tolliday visits the coastal village for the first time in fifty years with his family. The once irresponsible student has come back to make belated amends, but it is his mischievous little granddaughter whose holiday fun causes the most trouble for the village. Perfect for fans of Hannah Ellis, Rebecca Shaw, Alix Kelso, Tracy Rees, Miss Read, Carola Dunn.

 From the author of the bestselling Miss Seeton mystery series.

 'An entertaining, richly textured novel of village life that lifts the spirits and makes you smile. I loved the characters, learned a lot from their experiences and believed in them as people. I'm moving in as soon as the next cottage is on the market' Peter Lovesey, author of Showstopper.

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My Review:-This is Book Two in 'An Exmoor Harbour Tales' series. I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing book one 'Moving To Combe Tollbridge' last year, so when I seen this one I had to give it a read. It's that time of the year when everyone likes to go on holiday and it's no different in Combe Tollbridge. There are a few storylines within this book, from the tourist that have came for the first time to Professor Tolliday who hasn't been for fifty years and brought his family with him. Why has the Professor came back after so long? Not all the storylines have an ending in this book, so I think we might be seeing more about them in book three. 

 I have to say Combe Tollbridge sounds like a place that I would be happy staying at. I'm not one for a lot of people or noise. We go on holiday to the same little Welsh village every year and in the past 15 years nothing much has changed.

How To Make A Sandwich

How To Make A Sandwich

by Lorena M. Proia

Genre:-Children's Fiction

Ages:-3-7 years

Pages:-32

Publisher:-Lorena M. Proia

Blurb:-Making a sandwich is fun and easy! And Rae knows just how to do it. The bread is like the parents, it keeps the sandwich safe and happy. The turkey is the love, the lettuce is the fun. But every time Rae adds an ingredient, it disappears, and she soon realizes there is a sandwich-stealing thief intent on eating her creation!

 Will Rae ever get to eat her lunch? Suddenly making a sandwich isn't so easy after all!

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My Review:-My granddaughter Emily and I read this book together. Rae is just like any other little girl, she's a artist, scientist, a doctor, but today she's a chef. Along with her cat Nero Rae gets everything she needs to make a sandwich, but things don't go to plan when she puts turkey on her bread (which is the parents) and it disappears, Phebe her dog gets the blame for eating it. Then her mam and dad eat other parts of her sandwich, but her mam does say that there is avocado to use. Rae explains how a sandwich is like a family. We loved everything about this book from the adorable illustrations to how beautiful the story is. There is so much to talk about within each page. Emily decided that the avocado could be the glue to keep it together, but as she said not everything needs glue to keep it together LOVE is want is needed most. What do you think the avocado would be?

Past, Present and Hope

Past, Present and Hope (Book 2 of The Nicholas Trilogy)

ByOliver Crane

Genre:-Contemporary/Literary

Pages:-389

Publisher:-TBLOD

Blurb:-A journey of rediscovery,

The unravelling of secrets,

and painful echoes of yesteryear,

...set in the magnificent scenery of the Scottish Highlands.

 In hedonistic London, with his wealth and success, Gary Huges seems to have it all, yet, an unshakeable emptiness gnaws at his soul.

 On a quest to rediscover his lost purpose, he embarks on a poignant journey back to the rugged beauty of the Scottish Highlands, from where echoes of his youth beckon. Auchenmore, the quaint Highland village that once held a fleeting promise of love, now stands as a poignant reminder of an unresolved past. As Gary grapples with the ghosts of his youth, he finds himself entangled in a web of long-buried secrets and emotions, until he is finally faced with the ultimate question, 'Who am I really?'

 But Gary's quest is not solitary as the past also casts a long shadow over others. Miriam yearns to break free from its grasp, its memories haunt Dorothy, and Nicholas is inexorably drawn back into its folds.

Past, Present, and Hope is a story of intertwined lives, where the echoes of yesteryears threaten to unravel the fragile threads of the present: a gripping journey of self-discovery, redemption, and the enduring power of hope.

Thank you #AD #Gifted #FreeHonestReview @lovebookstours

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My Review:-This is book two in 'The Nicholas Trilogy'. I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing book one 'A Boy In A Storm.' I would highly recommend reading book one, but it can be read as a standalone. Along with some familiar characters we get to meet some new ones. Gary Huges takes us from London to Auchenmore a small village in the Scottish Highlands. Where Gary tries to reconnect with his past. Past, Present and Hope takes you on a journey of reconnecting, rebuilding and building new relationships. This is an exciting and amazing story, that you have to read. I can't wait to see what Oliver has for us in book three.

The Women Of Biafra

The Women Of Biafra

By Onyeka Nwelue

Genre:-Historical Fiction

Pages:-360

Publisher:-Abibiman Publishing

Blurb:-"The Women of Biafra" is set in 1967 during the tragic genocide against the Biafrans by Nigerian soldiers.

 The novel follows the harrowing journey of Ngozika, a young lgbo woman who endures unspeakable trauma at the hands of a Fulani man. Her plight takes a turn when Sola Adenubi, a compassionate Yoruba soldier, helps her escape with her twins.

 "The Women of Biafra" sheds light on a significant chapter of Nigerian history and celebrating the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

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My Review:-The story is set in 1967. It's the time of the Nigerian Civil War and during the brutal Biafran genocide. We are with Ngozika, a young Igbo woman, as she takes us with her on her journey a better life. Ngozika must keep her daughter Udoka and son Emeka safe at any cost. Ngozika decides to take her children to where her mother and brother are, a village called Ogwuma. With the help from a Yoruba soldier she manages to take a bus. Not long before Ngozika has to go back to sort things out, but leaves her children with her mother and brother. But things don't turn out right, on her return back to Ogwuma she finds out her brother has been killed and her children are gone. Finding out her children are now in Umuahia, she must get there no matter how hard it's going to be or how long it takes her. This is an emotional story, of not just one woman but of many, showing how The Women of Biafra take control after the husbands are either fighting or dead

The Company She Keeps

The Company She Keeps

By James Woolf

Genre:-Psychological Thriller

Pages:-352

Publisher:-Bloodhound Books

Blurb:-A spine-tingling suspense thriller that asks: How many bad men can one woman have in her life?

 England. 1979. After a childhood trauma, Rebecca struggles to build healthy relationships. Her on-again-off-again partner is a married police officer trying to catch the Yorkshire Ripper, who has just claimed his tenth victim.

 Then Rebecca meets Larry, a charming American with a troubled past. And of course there's Mervyn, the creepy journalist she ended a brief relationship with, who will do anything to keep her in his life...

 With three very different men craving her attention, and a serial killer on the loose, Rebecca soon finds herself in a twisted game of cat and mouse. Can any of these men be trusted? And could one of them in fact be a cold-blooded killer?

Thank you #AD #Gifted #FreeHonestReview @lovebookstours

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My Review:-This is my first book by Woolf, but it will not be my last. There's a serial killer out there, putting the fear into everyone, especially women, stopping them going out at night.

 Rebecca Ferguson is a successful brewery owner. Rebecca hasn't had an easy life when it comes to romance. She is trying to start over again but isn't finding it easy with the Yorkshire Ripper out there somewhere. Set in the 70s and 80s when mobile phones were not a thing, it's up to each person to trust their own feeling, but with Rebecca's past can she really do that and is it enough to keep her safe as well as finding that someone.

 we have great characters to go with a gripping storyline. It will have you guessing till the end

I Am Perfectly Flawsome

I Am Perfectly Flawsome

By:- Tom Collins and Michele Molitor

Genre:- Self help/Non-fiction

Pages:-

Publisher:-WME Books

Blurb:-Don't be a "Should-Head"!

 Stop listening to the voices telling you what you "should" be, or how well you "should" be doing-always harping that you're not good enough. Whether they originate inside your head or got planted there by well-meaning parents or less well-meaning social media, those voices are liars. They're harmful to your mental and physical well-being, and can lead to anxiety, depression, or worse, suicide.

 Instead, become a practicing Flawsomist!

In I Am Perfectly Flawsome you'll find real science and personal stories showing the perils of perfectionism. You'll explore ways to embrace imperfection rooted in Japanese philosophies and meet inspiring flawsome role models (both well-known figures and everyday people from the authors' own research).

 After reading. you'll want to make "I Am Perfectly Flawsome" your personal mantra.

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My Review:-I Am Perfectly Flawsome is set out in 10 chapters, each one having a 'Journal Prompts' along with wide margins to wrote notes as you go along. I love how it talks about acknowledging your flaws. Throughout the book there are anecdotes, scientific research and practical exercises. This is a book that could help so many people with mental health, especially with the number of younger people trying to cope with bullying and the stress of being in the 'in crowd'. I did like the 'Book Club Reader's Guide' at the back of the book, it's something you could do with friends and family.

 I have always told my children and grandchildren to be who they wany to be, not what others think they should be. We all have flaws, nobody is perfect no matter what they might think. Shine from both the inside as well as the outside.