#BlogTour: Swallowtail Summer by Erica James @TheEricaJames @orionbooks @Tr4cyF3nt0n #SwallowtailSummer

Book Synopsis:

They thought they were friends for life – until one summer, everything changed . . . 

Linston End on the Norfolk Broads has been the holiday home to three families for many years. The memories of their time there are ingrained in their hearts: picnics on the river, gin and tonics in the pavilion at dusk, hours spent seeking out the local swallowtail butterflies. Everyone together.

But widower Alastair has been faced with a few of life’s surprises recently. Now, he is about to shock his circle of friends with the decisions he has made – and the changes it will mean for them all. For some, it feels like the end. For others, it might just be the beginning . . .

Swallowtail Summer is available in all formats now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

I’m a huge fan of this author so you can imagine my excitement when I was invited onto the blog tour for her latest book, Swallowtail Summer.

The thing I most like about Erica James’s books is how they make you feel. They are fantastic books to just relax into and enjoy while curled up on the sofa or on a sunbed somewhere. This one was no exception and I found myself drawn into the story with the fabulous sunny day descriptions, sighing every now and again as I wished I could be there too.

The story does start off slow but soon builds to a deliciously absorbing and dramatic tail that is surprisingly gripping. There are some quite dark moments in this book especially those involving being on the water at night, a new dear of mine now, which seemed worse next to the almost idyllic summer days the author describes. There are also some great unpleasant characters that I loved to hate and made me want to keep reading to find out if they got their comeuppance! Whatever made the lovely Alistair get with Valentina is beyond me but it does make the book very enjoyable.

Overall I thought the Swallowtail Summer was an uplifting and heartwarming read that brought to mind the lovely warm endless summer days you can get in Britain. It’s also a fantastic story of love, friends and family which is a hugely enjoyable read that kept me firmly absorbed. I can’t wait for her next one!

Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orion for my copy of this book via Netgalley.

About The Author:

With an insatiable appetite for other people’s business, Erica James will readily strike up conversation with strangers in the hope of unearthing a useful gem for her writing. She finds it the best way to write authentic characters for her novels, although her two grown-up sons claim they will never recover from a childhood spent in a perpetual state of embarrassment at their mother’s compulsion. 

The author of many bestselling novels, including GARDENS OF DELIGHT, which won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award, and her recent Sunday Times top ten bestsellers, SUMMER AT THE LAKE and THE DANDELION YEARS, Erica now divides her time between Suffolk and Lake Como in Italy, where she strikes up conversation with unsuspecting Italians.