Murder At Greysbridge: An Inishowen Mystery by Andrea Carter

(Thank you to Oceanview Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book!)

 

about book: (summary from Goodreads)

Summer has arrived in Inishowen and solicitor Ben O'Keeffe is greatly tempted by a job offer she's received from a law firm in America. 

Yet before making any life-changing decisions there is her friend Leah's wedding to attend at the newly restored Greysbridge Hotel, with its private beach and beautiful pier. It's the perfect location, everyone agrees, but the festivities are brutally cut short when a young American, a visitor also staying at the hotel, drowns in full view of the wedding guests. 

And when a second death is discovered the same evening, Ben finds herself embroiled in a real country house murder mystery, where all the guests are suspects . . .

my thoughts:

Murder At Greysbridge by Andrea Carter is the fourth book in her popular Inishowen Mystery series and it is excellent. I read it as a standalone, as it was my first time reading a book by Andrea Carter, and let me just say I LOVED it. The story had mystery, suspense, thrills, murder, and the perfect atmosphere of isolation and eeriness. Definitely a must-read for fans of Carter and anyone who loves a great murder-mystery. 

So, what's the book about? Well, it's about solicitor Ben O'Keeffe. She's just received a job offer in America and is definitely considering it. However, she's got to attend her friend's wedding first. It's being held at Greysbridge Hotel - newly restored and located right on the beach. Talk about an ideal wedding location. Except, turns out that murder doesn't care about beautiful weddings. Nope, there are two deaths on the same day. Yikes! Yep, looks like Greysbridge Hotel is housing some deadly secrets. Or at least the people staying there are. And, it's up to Ben to figure out what is going on and whodunit. 

Carter has written a terrific new addition to her series with this book. It is gripping, chock full of twists and turns, and the characters are unforgettable. I loved getting caught up in the drama and the mysteries surrounding the hotel. There are so many people to keep up with, but I enjoyed that chaos. And, I loved seeing Ireland through Ben's eyes. Such a great read!

I would happily recommend Murder At Greysbridge - you are going to LOVE this book and start adding the first three in the series to your TBR lists ( I know that I did ). Make sure to check it out!

Thank you to Oceanview Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book!

A Tidy Ending: A Novel by Joanna Cannon

(Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!)

 

about book: (summary from Goodreads)

From the bestselling author of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep and Three Things About Elsie, a delightfully sinister novel about a married woman living a nice, quiet suburban life—but things aren’t always what they seem…

Linda has lived in a quiet neighborhood since fleeing the dark events of her childhood in Wales. Now she sits in her kitchen, wondering if this is all there is: pushing the vacuum around and cooking fish sticks for dinner, a far cry from the glamorous lifestyle she sees in the glossy magazines coming through the mail slot addressed to the previous occupant, Rebecca.

Linda’s husband Terry isn’t perfect—he picks his teeth, tracks dirt through the house, and spends most of his time in front of the TV. But that seems fairly standard—until he starts keeping odd hours at work, at around the same time young women in the town start to go missing.

If only Linda could track down and befriend Rebecca, maybe some of that enviable lifestyle would rub off on her and she wouldn’t have to worry about what Terry is up to. But the grass isn’t always greener and you can’t change who you really are. And some secrets can’t stay buried forever…

my thoughts:

As a huge fan of Joanna Cannon's, I was thrilled to receive a copy of her latest book, A Tidy Ending. I just knew that I was in for a treat. Her writing is superb, her storytelling is top notch, and her characters are unforgettable - what more could I want? So, I grabbed a cuppa, a biscuit or three, and dove right in. And, let me just say...WOW! I absolutely LOVED A Tidy Ending!!

Linda is married, works at the local charity shop, and obsessed with meeting a woman named Rebecca. She's the previous tenant of the house that Linda and her husband Terry recently purchased just down the street from their old house. Some of Rebecca's post was delivered to the house and Linda couldn't help but find herself rifling through it, especially the glossy magazine with all the beautiful photographs of glamorous homes.  She's convinced that Rebecca is meant to be friend and is determined to track her down. Meanwhile, her husband Terry has been acting rather shifty lately. He's lying about his work hours and not being forthcoming with anything anymore. Linda starts to get suspicious, especially, when the news starts talking about young local women being murdered. Hmm...could Terry be responsible? As Linda finds herself stalking Rebecca, she can't help but find herself paying a bit more attention to Terry and she's not liking what she finds out about her husband. Yikes! And, that is all I will write about this delicious mystery. It is a book you MUST read for yourself - it is so damn good!

A Tidy Ending is a slow burn type of story and that is what makes it a thrilling read. As you get to know Linda and her past, you can't help but jump to all sorts of conclusions. Then as you get to learn more about Rebecca and Terry, well, you can't help but jump to even more conclusions. Talk about twists and turns! I enjoyed trying to piece together whodunit and what it is they've done exactly. And the characters, you can't help but fall in deep with them - they are relatable, unlikeable, flawed to the nth degree, and just fascinating to read about. All in all, this story is just terrific. 

I would happily recommend A Tidy Ending to fans of Cannon and anyone looking for their next great read - you are going to LOVE this book! Check it out ASAP!!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

The Narrowboat Summer by Anne Youngson

(Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!)

 

about book:

From the author of Meet Me at the Museum, a charming novel of second chances, about three women, one dog, and the narrowboat that brings them together

Eve expected Sally to come festooned with suitcases and overnight bags packed with everything she owned, but she was wrong. She arrived on foot, with a rucksack and a carrier bag. “I just walked away,” she said, climbing on to the boat. Eve knew what she meant.

Meet Eve, who has left her thirty-year career to become a Free Spirit; Sally, who has waved goodbye to her indifferent husband and two grown-up children; and Anastasia, a defiantly independent narrowboat-dweller, who is suddenly landlocked and vulnerable.

Before they quite know what they’ve done, Sally and Eve agree to drive Anastasia’s narrowboat on a journey through the canals of England, as she awaits a life-saving operation. As they glide gently – and not so gently – through the countryside, the eccentricities and challenges of narrowboat life draw them inexorably together, and a tender and unforgettable story unfolds. At summer’s end, all three women must decide whether to return to the lives they left behind, or forge a new path forward.

Candid, hilarious, and uplifting, The Narrowboat Summer is a novel of second chances, celebrating the power of friendship and new experience to change one’s life, at any age.

my thoughts:

What a story! I absolutely LOVED The Narrowboat Summer by Anne Youngson. I found myself falling in deep with the characters, their stories, and the idea of traveling on a narrowboat - how cool would that be? 

This is the story of three women who wind up helping each other discover the meaning of friendship and proving that second chances really do exist: Anastasia, Eve, and Sally.  Anastasia is sick and in need of a life-saving operation. She lives on her narrowboat and needs to get it repaired. Except, she can't. She's too weak and unable to handle the trip.  Eve has just been let go from her job and is looking to do something different and new. She's been working nonstop for thirty years and is ready for a change. Sally is not happy. Her marriage is not working. She can't take it anymore, so she decides to leave her husband. In need of a break, Eve and Sally agree to help Anastasia.  They will navigate her narrowboat through the English canals to get it to the the repairman for her. The only thing is that neither woman knows what they are doing - they're not narrowboat experts and winding the boat through those tiny looking canals is not going to be easy. However, they are willing to do it and Anastasia needs her boat docked. So, off they go on their adventure - one that will introduce them to new people, new places and new ideas about what they want for their futures.  

I absolutely LOVED getting to know these women and reading all about their trip through the English canals. I remember living in England and seeing these narrowboats and wondering about them - how big they seemed for such tiny canals. I thought it was so cool that people worked and lived on these boats. Reading about Anastasia's narrowboat was such a treat. I would most definitely recommend this book to fans of Youngson and anyone looking for their next great read - you will LOVE this book to bits!

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book!

Bronte's Mistress: A Novel by Finola Austin

(Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

Yorkshire, 1843: Lydia Robinson—mistress of Thorp Green Hall—has lost her precious young daughter and her mother within the same year. She returns to her bleak home, grief-stricken and unmoored. With her teenage daughters rebelling, her testy mother-in-law scrutinizing her every move, and her marriage grown cold, Lydia is restless and yearning for something more.

All of that changes with the arrival of her son’s tutor, Branwell Brontë, brother of her daughters’ governess, Miss Anne Brontë and those other writerly sisters, Charlotte and Emily. Branwell has his own demons to contend with—including living up to the ideals of his intelligent family—but his presence is a breath of fresh air for Lydia. Handsome, passionate, and uninhibited by social conventions, he’s also twenty-five to her forty-three. A love of poetry, music, and theatre bring mistress and tutor together, and Branwell’s colorful tales of his sisters’ elaborate play-acting and made-up worlds form the backdrop for seduction.

But Lydia’s new taste of passion comes with consequences. As Branwell’s inner turmoil rises to the surface, his behavior grows erratic and dangerous, and whispers of their passionate relationship spout from her servants’ lips, reaching all three protective Brontë sisters. Soon, it falls on Lydia to save not just her reputation, but her way of life, before those clever girls reveal all her secrets in their novels. Unfortunately, she might be too late.

Meticulously researched and deliciously told, Brontë’s Mistress is a captivating reimagining of the scandalous affair that has divided Brontë enthusiasts for generations and an illuminating portrait of a courageous, sharp-witted woman who fights to emerge with her dignity intact.

my thoughts:

Love, love, love!!  Finola Austin's debut novel, Bronte's Mistress, is AMAZING!! This is a story about Branwell Bronte and Lydia Robinson's passionate affair - and it is fascinating!!

Lydia is not a happy woman. She's suffered some losses, living with eyes watching her every move and a cold husband to boot. She's untethered and desires something more for herself. And then she meets Branwell Bronte; brother to writers, Anne, Charlotte, and Emily. He's going to tutor her son. He's young, handsome, creative,and lively. Lydia finds herself drawn to Branwell. Their relationship escalates from friendship to much more. And, soon the house is talking all about Branwell and Lydia. Uh oh. Knowing that she must do something quick to nix the rumors, Lydia finds out that she might just be too late. After all, writers must get their inspiration from somewhere and it may as well be from their own brother's love life.

What a book!! Austin has written an excellent story chock full of drama, romance, family, and friendship. It has heart, passion, and fascinating tidbits of truth. I just love reimaginings - they always add such depth and drama to a bit of history. In this case, we get some deliciousness in the form of a love affair and a family affair. It's just so much fun to read about the Bronte family and this scandal that their brother brought about. I enjoyed every minute with this book! I loved getting to know the characters and could not put down this book for anything. LOVED it to bits!!

I would happily recommend Bronte's Mistress to Bronte fans and to anyone looking for their next great read - you will LOVE this book!!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book!

The Past: A Novel by Tessa Hadley

(Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book:

Three sisters and a brother, complete with children, a new wife, and an ex-boyfriend’s son, descend on their grandparents’ dilapidated old home in the Somerset countryside for a final summer holiday, where simmering tensions and secrets rise to the surface over three long, hot weeks.The house is full of memories of their childhood and their past—their mother took them there to live when she left their father—but now, they may have to sell it. And beneath the idyllic pastoral surface lie tensions.

Sophisticated and sleek, Roland’s new wife (his third) arouses his sisters’ jealousies and insecurities. Kasim, the twenty-year-old son of Alice’s ex-boyfriend, becomes enchanted with Molly, Roland’s sixteen-year-old daughter. Fran’s young children make an unsettling discovery in an abandoned cottage in the woods that shatters their innocence. Passion erupts where it’s least expected, leveling the quiet self-possession of Harriet, the eldest sister. As the family’s stories and silences intertwine, small disturbances build into familial crises, and a way of life—bourgeois, literate, ritualized, Anglican—winds down to its inevitable end.

my thoughts:

British to the core, The Past by Tessa Hadley reads, speaks, tastes, and feels like England. I found myself lulled into the story with its rich, descriptive language.  I enjoyed the slow-going pace and the way it made me feel as if I were back in the English countryside writing my dissertation.  I could picture the little white house, the crumbling decay of its facade, the smell of must and old within the walls and furniture.  I could smell the grass, leaves, and sunshine beating down.  And I could see this family gathered together, trying to relive the glory days of their youth spent at their grandparents' country home.  The misunderstandings, the tensions simmering beneath a thin layer of pretend happiness, the slights and minor hurts that turn into cutting remarks and hateful thoughts.  Hadley lays everything out - from the present dilemma of whether or not they should keep their grandparents' home, to the past secrets that have long kept them divided.  The Past is a glorious exploration of a family's history, love, secrets, jealousies, memories, passions, etc.  I found myself spellbound by these unlikeable siblings and their children.  I liked how Hadley introduced us to them as adults and then as children in the second part of the story.  Being privy to their childhood, we are able to gain a better understanding of why they have become the adults we are left with in the end.  Talk about a mesmerizing read - I was hooked! 

I absolutely loved this quiet, riveting novel of a dysfunctional family visiting an old childhood home - it made for quite an unforgettable read.  I would happily recommend The Past to fans of Tessa Hadley and fans of Brit Lit.  

Here's the link to the TLC Book Tour schedule for: The Past

Thank you to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for providing me with a copy of this book!