Book Synopsis:

Helen and Ben parted as heartbroken 18-year-olds and went their very separate ways.

Twenty years later, mother-of-two-teenagers Helen is still in Manchester, a part-time primary teacher, stunned by the behaviour of her love-rat husband. In an old T shirt and scruffy jeans, she feels at the lowest point in her life.

And suddenly, impossibly, Ben is standing on her doorstep. Tired maybe, lonely even, but clearly still the world-famous, LA-based multi-millionaire rockstar he has become.

Can you ever go back?

For Helen and Ben, so much has happened in the years between. But just to sit in the kitchen for a while and talk – that would be nice.

Before the world comes crashing in.

My Review:

Oh my goodness Mike has done it again as A Song For Me And You is a beautiful, heartwarming read that’s very emotional.

Firstly I really loved the characters in this book who were all very real and easy to warm to – apart from Helen’s horrible ex. I really felt for Helen as I think we’ve all been there at the low moment in life wondering what went wrong. I thought it was so lovely that Ben came into her life at the moment when she needed him the most. It was really nice to see them grow closer and I loved the fly on the wall glimpse the reader has of their relationship as we are witness to their most intimate conversations.

The author covers some quite thought provoking topics in this book which I’ve continued to think about long after reading. It was especially interesting to see the impact the breakdown of the marriage had on everyone, especially the children. It was very emotional to follow the characters through everything and watch them slowly heal.

The book has a great pace to it and I soon found myself absorbed into the story. There always seemed to be something happening to keep my interest and even in the slower moments I found I didn’t mind as I was so invested in the characters. I think I went through every emotion whilst reading, laughing one moment, feeling intense anger and then sobbing my heart out. The ending was quite bitter sweet and while I was hoping for a different ending, maybe that wouldn’t have made the story so real.

Huge thanks to Alainna from Hodder books for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Mike Gayle was born and raised in Birmingham. After graduating from Salford University with a degree in Sociology Mike moved to London with ambitions of becoming a music journalist. This didn’t happen however and following a slight detour in his five-year plan he ended up as an agony uncle for teenage girls’ magazine Bliss before becoming Features Editor on the now much missed Just Seventeen. Since those early days Mike has written for a variety of publications including The Sunday Times, The Guardian and Cosmopolitan.

Mike became a full time novelist in 1997 following the publication of his Sunday Times top ten bestseller My Legendary Girlfriend, which was hailed by The Independent as ‘Full of belly laughs and painfully acute observations,’ and by The Times as ‘A funny, frank account of a hopeless romantic.’

To date Mike is the author of twelve novels including Mr Commitment, Turning Thirty and Wish You Were Here. His books have been translated into over thirty languages.

You can read more about Mike’s books here.

After stints in Manchester and London Mike now lives in Birmingham with his wife, kids, two sheds and a rabbit.

Good morning everyone I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this fantastic sounding book this week. I seem to be enjoying reading historical fiction at the moment and, as I loved The Tenderness Of Wolves when I read it, I think I’ll have to bump this up my list to read really soon.

Huge thanks to the lovely Ana from Quercus for my copy of this book.

The Beasts Of Paris is out in hardback now!

Book Synopsis:

In Paris 1870, three wandering souls find themselves in a city set to descend into war.

‘A historical epic that Jessie Burton fans will adore’ GRAZIA
‘Exquisite, relevant and immersive’ ANNA MAZZOLA
‘A triumph’ GUARDIAN

Anne is a former patient from a women’s asylum trying to carve out a new life for herself in a world that doesn’t understand her. Newcomer Lawrence is desperate to develop his talent as a photographer and escape the restrictions of his puritanical upbringing. Ellis, an army surgeon, has lived through the trauma of one civil war and will do anything to avoid another bloodbath.

Each keeps company with the restless beasts of Paris’ Menagerie, where they meet, fight their demons, lose their hearts, and rebel in a city under siege.

A dazzling historical epic of love and survival, Stef Penney carries the reader captivated through war-torn Paris.

About The Author:

Stef Penney is a screenwriter and the author of three novels: The Tenderness of Wolves (2006), The Invisible Ones (2011), and Under a Pole Star (2016). She has also written extensively for radio, including adaptations of Moby Dick, The Worst Journey in the World, and, mostly recently, a third installment of Peter O’Donnell’s Modesty Blaise series.

The Tenderness of Wolves won Costa Book of the Year, Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year, and was translated into thirty languages. It has just been re-issued in a 10th anniversary edition.

Five facts about SP:

1. I like snow. There is a magic in cold landscapes that compels me more than any other. I’m the ultimate armchair explorer. In my mind this is linked to my former agoraphobia. Wide open, hostile places produce in me a visceral reaction; perhaps that’s why I can’t stop writing, or reading, about them. I’m drawn to what scares me – treeless wilderness, the open sea, Space…

2. I do zero-carbon research. Unlike the protagonist of Under A Pole Star, I haven’t been to the North Pole. I have been to the Scandinavian Arctic – which is totally different – but am unconvinced that being there has made my writing about landscape any stronger (I hadn’t been before The Tenderness of Wolves). Being there normalises a place; you are struck by differences, but even more by similarities: wherever there are people, there be dentists. Still, I have great memories of Lapland: picking sour blueberries from the banks of a mountain stream; cross-country skiing and realising that I could still fall over as safely as when I was a child; watching a Japanese contestant in the Air Guitar World Championships channel Star Wars; visiting Santa’s village and meeting the man himself – and sitting on his knee – in August…

3. I’m Scottish. I have a love-hate relationship with Scotland that is shared by many Scottish exiles. Elements of this: pride in its Enlightenment thinkers, its inventiveness and internationalism; love and awe of the landscape; nostalgia for chilly Highland summers; a sneaking pride in having endured games on frozen fields, in shorts, and endless walks in scenery obscured by drizzle. Then there’s the food: deep-fried Mars bar – delicious. Deep-fried frozen pizza, on the other hand… Scotland’s a great place. I’d probably want to live in it, if I hadn’t grown up there.

4. I’m a feminist. Doesn’t need saying these days, right? Or maybe it does. Writing about a female explorer at the end of the 19th Century, I’ve been more aware of it than ever. The protagonist struggles to be taken seriously with her ambition, of course, but something else happened in the writing process I didn’t expect: it became a deeply explicit love story. This felt like a political as well as a narrative necessity; there have been far too many vague, unconvincing and plain misleading sex scenes in books and films, and it felt vital to tell the truth – and for that, “Dot, dot, dot. Afterwards” was not going to cut it.

5. I have a degree in Philosophy and Theology. It made me unemployable. In my final year, I was browsing through the job pages when I came across my perfect job – Officer for Comparative Religions in a local authority. Hurray, I thought, finally, something that suits my skill set. Then I noticed that the advert next to it was for a Senior Carrot Inspector. I looked at the date – it was April 1st. Obviously, I had to become a writer.

Good evening everyone I’ve just finished reading The Perfect Golden Circle by Benjamin Myers which I read as part of the new Malvern Rossiter Book Club. I actually ran in this month and I really enjoyed it. Everyone was so nice and they all seemed really up for discussing the book which was really nice.

If you’re local and would like to join us let me know!

Are you a member of a bookclub?

Book Synopsis:

England, 1989. Over the course of a burning hot summer, two very different men – traumatized Falklands veteran Calvert, and affable, chaotic Redbone – set out nightly in a clapped-out camper van to undertake an extraordinary project.

Under cover of darkness, the two men traverse the fields of rural England in secret, forming crop circles in elaborate and mysterious patterns. As the summer wears on, and their designs grow ever more ambitious, the two men find that their work has become a cult international sensation – and that an unlikely and beautiful friendship has taken root as the wheat ripens from green to gold.

My Review:

The Perfect Golden Circle is a beautifully written, unique and intriguing read from a new author for me.

The story is told from the point of view of two characters Redbone and Calvert who are the only characters in the book for the majority of the story. The two are described as old friends but not much about their past is discussed and at one point it’s revealed that Calvert doesn’t even know Redbones first name. Their friendship seemed a bit distant at times as they don’t hang out other than doing the crop circles and don’t have much in common but, as discussed in the book group, maybe that’s just how male friendships are.

As someone who’s old enough to remember the crop circles craze I found it very interesting to learn more about how crop circles were made. I thought they were just made from stepping on the crop but there was actually a lot more to it then that. I especially liked that they created them in such a way that the crop wasn’t damaged. There are a lot more dangers to making crop circles then I thought which actually created some of the more hilarious moments in the book as the pair tackle fly tippers, poachers and even a drunk aristocrat. The way the pair handled these situations were brilliant to watch unfold and I actually laughed out loud several times as I read.

The book is divided into sections each describing a crop circle that they are creating. I found this very interesting and I enjoyed getting to know the characters in the intimate, close setting of their van as they travel to the crop circle sites. Some of this was quite repetitive but I actually liked this as it was quite soothing to know what was going to happen. My only slight niggle with this book is the rants the characters go off on at various points in the story. While I understand that they are important issues that the characters are discussing, it didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the stories sometimes and felt like the author was just trying to fit them into the story somehow.

Overall I did enjoy this book and felt sad leaving the two characters behind, particularly after that rather poignant ending. I’d highly recommend it as a bookclub read as we found there was lots to discuss.

About The Author:

Benjamin Myers is an award-winning author and journalist, whose work includes fiction, non-fiction, poetry and journalism. His novels have been translated into ten languages. He is the author of Cuddy, The Gallows Pole, The Offing, The Perfect Golden Circle, Male Tears and many more.

Good afternoon everyone here are some of the books I’m hoping to read in July!

⭐ After Anne by Logan Steiner
⭐ Conviction by Jack Jordan
⭐ The Fascination by Essie Fox
⭐ The Villa by Ruth Kelly
⭐ The Ghost Ship by Kate Mosse
⭐ Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong
⭐ From Now Until Forever by Rowan Coleman
⭐ The Illusions by Liz Hyder
⭐ The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons
⭐ The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry

I always struggle with these as I’m a bit of a mood reader and easily distracted so I might change my mind but these are the books I’d like to read soon as they sound fantastic!

Have you read any of these? What shall I start with?

Good morning everyone today on Two For Tuesday I’m featuring two of the Lovelight Farm books I received recently.

I love a good romance book! There’s nothing quite like snuggling up and living precariously through someone else for a little bit. When you’ve been married 13 years and have three kids there’s not much time for romance. This series sounds fantastic and I’m excited to read it soon – plus it’s being compared to Hannah Grace whose books I love.

Huge thanks to the lovely @libraryofchlo and @panmacmillan for sending me these books.

Do you read romance fiction? Who’s your favourite author?

Lovelight Farm by B. K Borison

Lovelight Farms is a wholesome rom-com featuring a handsome, freckled data analyst, a messy, optimistic Christmas tree farm owner, and a small town with the best hazelnut lattes on the east coast. This sweet and steamy romance, by B. K. Borison, is a holiday happily-ever-after for fans of Tessa Bailey and Hannah Grace.

In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a child, Stella enters a contest with insta-famous influencer Evelyn St. James. With the added publicity and the huge cash prize, she might just be able to save the farm from its financial woes. There’s just one problem. To make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on the application and said that she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only . . . there is no boyfriend.

Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just came home for some hot chocolate, and somehow got a farm and a serious relationship in the process. Will their fake love affair save Lovelight Farms in time for Christmas?

In The Weeds by B. K Borison

Evelyn St. James isn’t the kind of woman you forget. Beckett Porter certainly hasn’t. One incredible weekend in Maine and he’s officially a man distracted.

So when she suddenly appears on his farm as part of a social media contest, he’s . . . confused. He had no idea that the sweet and sexy woman he met at a bar is actually a global phenomenon: social media influencer Evelyn St. James.

Feeling disconnected from her work and increasingly unhappy, Evelyn is trying to find her way back to something real. She returns to the last place she was happy – Lovelight Farms and the tiny town of Inglewild. It has absolutely nothing to do with the hot farmer she spent two incredible nights with. Nothing at all . . .

In the Weeds is the second book in a series of interconnected standalones following the three Lovelight owners.

About The Author:

Amazon bestselling author B.K. Borison is fueled almost entirely by coffee and spends her days with imaginary characters doing imaginary things. She lives in Baltimore with her little family, including her giant dog.

Good morning everyone and happy Monday. As it’s Monday and the start of a new week I thought I’d do a little reading update:

Last – The Perfect Golden Circle by Benjamin Myers

I’ve just finished reading The Perfect Golden Circle which I read for my first book club for Rossiter Books. I’m actually leading it which I’m excited about. I really enjoyed this one and I’m looking forward to discussing it tomorrow.

Now – In Memoriam by Alice Winn & Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

I’m currently reading In Memoriam as a buddy read with some of my book friends on Instagram. It’s very good so far and I can’t wait to read more. I’m also reading Fourth Wing which is also a fabulous read and living up to the hype so far.

Next: Square Of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

I’m then hoping to read Square Of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson. I’ve loved all her previous books so I’m excited to read this one!

What are you currently reading?

Good morning everyone. These are some of the fabulous books I’ve bought or received this week.

⭐ After Anne by Logan Steiner
⭐ The Turnglass by Gareth Rubin
⭐ The Tortoise And The Hare by Elizabeth Jenkins
⭐ The Square Of Sevens by Laura Shepherd Robinson
⭐ The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry

The Birdcage Library I bought after seeing all the great reviews on here and The Tortoise and The Hare is for the VMC bookclub I’m part of on here. After Anne is for a blog tour and I’m really looking forward to reading it as I love Anne Of Green Gables. The others are proofs I received from work.

I’m working today which I’m excited about as it’s my first Sunday shift and the kids are going to the Cotswold Water Park so I know they’ll have a great time.

What are your plans today?

After Anne by Logan Steiner

A stunning and unexpected portrait of Lucy Maud Montgomery, creator of one of literature’s most prized heroines, whose personal demons were at odds with her most enduring legacy—the irrepressible Anne of Green Gables.

“Dear old world,” she murmured, “you are very lovely, and I am glad to be alive in you.” —L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables, 1908

As a young woman, Maud had dreams bigger than the whole of Prince Edward Island. Her exuberant spirit had always drawn frowns from her grandmother and their neighbors, but she knew she was meant to create, to capture and share the way she saw the world. And the young girl in Maud’s mind became more and more persistent: Here is my story, she said. Here is how my name should be spelled—Anne with an “e.”

But the day Maud writes the first lines of Anne of Green Gables, she gets a visit from the handsome new minister in town, and soon faces a decision: forge her own path as a spinster authoress, or live as a rural minister’s wife, an existence she once called “a synonym for respectable slavery.” The choice she makes alters the course of her life.

With a husband whose religious mania threatens their health and happiness at every turn, the secret darkness that Maud herself holds inside threatens to break through the persona she shows to the world, driving an ever-widening wedge between her public face and private self, and putting her on a path towards a heartbreaking end.

Beautiful and moving, After Anne reveals Maud’s hidden personal challenges while celebrating what was timeless about her life and art—the importance of tenacity and the peaceful refuge found in imagination.

The Turnglass by Gareth Rubin

Stuart Turton meets The Magpie Murders in this immersive and unique story for fans of clever crime fiction.

Imagine you’re holding a book in your hands. It’s not just any book though. It’s a tête-bêche novel, beloved of nineteenth-century bookmakers. It’s a book that is two books: two intertwined stories printed back-to-back.
Open the book and the first novella begins. It ends at the middle of the book. Then flip the book over, head to tail, and read the second story in the opposite direction.
Both covers are front covers; and it can be read in either direction, or in both directions at once, alternating chapters, to fully immerse the reader in it.

1880s England. On the bleak island of Ray, off the Essex coast, an idealistic young doctor, Simeon Lee, is called from London to treat his cousin, Parson Oliver Hawes, who is dying. Parson Hawes, who lives in the only house on the island – Turnglass House – believes he is being poisoned. And he points the finger at his sister-in-law, Florence. Florence was declared insane after killing Oliver’s brother in a jealous rage and is now kept in a glass-walled apartment in Oliver’s library. And the secret to how she came to be there is found in Oliver’s tête-bêche journal, where one side tells a very different story from the other.

1930s California. Celebrated author Oliver Tooke, the son of the state governor, is found dead in his writing hut off the coast of the family residence, Turnglass House. His friend Ken Kourian doesn’t believe that Oliver would take his own life. His investigations lead him to the mysterious kidnapping of Oliver’s brother when they were children, and the subsequent secret incarceration of his mother, Florence, in an asylum. But to discover the truth, Ken must decipher clues hidden in Oliver’s final book, a tête-bêche novel – which is about a young doctor called Simeon Lee . . . 

The Tortoise And The Hare by Elizabeth Jenkins

Imogen, the beautiful wife of barrister Evelyn Gresham, is facing the greatest challenge of her married life. Their neighbour Blanche Silcox, competent, tweedy, middle-aged and ungainly – the very opposite of Imogen – seems to be vying for Evelyn’s attention. And to Imogen’s increasing disbelief, she may be succeeding – for in affairs of the heart the race is not necessarily won by the swift or the fair.

The Square Of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

My father had spelt it out to me. Choice was a luxury I couldn’t afford. This is your story, Red. You must tell it well . . .’

A girl known only as Red, the daughter of a Cornish fortune-teller, travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient method: the Square of Sevens. When her father suddenly dies, Red becomes the ward of a gentleman scholar.

Now raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendour of Bath, her fortune-telling is a delight to high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him?

The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholomew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red’s quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads into her grave danger . . .

The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry

1932. Emily Blackwood, a young adventuress and plant hunter, travels north for a curious new commission. A gentleman has written to request she catalogue his vast collection of taxidermied creatures before sale.

On arrival, Emily finds a ruined castle, its owner haunted by the memory of a woman who disappeared five decades before. And when she discovers the ripped pages of an old diary, crammed into the walls, she realises a dark secret lies here, waiting to entrap her too…

The Birdcage Library will hold you in its spell until the final page.

Good morning everyone and happy Saturday. I was tagged by the lovely @herreadingroom to try the #booktitlesentence challenge. Here’s what I found:

⭐A Killer In The Family by Gytha Lodge
⭐ Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score
⭐As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh
⭐The End Of Us by Olivia Kiernan
⭐ Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson
⭐Are We Having Fun Yet by Lucy Flanagan
⭐ Gwen And Art Are Not In Love by Lex Croucher
⭐The Girl With The Red Hair by Buzzy Jackson
⭐ From Cornwall With Love by Cressida McLaughlin

Most of these are books that are on my tbr though I have read From Cornwall With Love. Apologies if some of these aren’t titles, I tried my best!

I have tagged a few people who might want to take part but, as always, no pressure.

Which book should I read first?

Good morning everyone and happy Friday! I can’t believe it’s nearly the weekend again. I was lucky enough to receive this fabulous sounding book this week. I absolutely love books set in world war two, especially if I learn something new from them so I can’t wait to read this book. It also reminds me of The Little Wartime Library which is one of my favourite books ever.

Huge thanks to the tagged publisher for sending me this book. Out 11th July 2023.

What’s your favourite genre (s)?

Book Synopsis:

As the bombs began to fall, the book club kept their hopes alive…

London, 1938. Bookseller Gertie Bingham is facing difficult times, having just lost her beloved husband, Harry, and with a lingering sadness at never having been able to have a child of her own. Struggling to face running the bookshop she and Harry opened together, Gertie is preparing to sell up and move away when she is asked if she would be willing to take in a young Jewish refugee from Germany. Gertie is unsure and when sullen teenager Hedy Fischer arrives, Gertie fears she has nothing left to give the troubled girl.

But when the German bombers come and the lights go out over London, Gertie and Hedy realise that joining forces will make them stronger, and that books have the power to bring young and old together and unite a community in need in its darkest hour…

About The Author:

After a career in bookselling and publishing, Annie Lyons became an author. She was shortlisted for the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel of the Year Award. When not working on her novels, she teaches creative writing. She lives in south east London with her husband and two children and puppy, Nelson.

Book Synopsis:

EDINBURGH, 1853.
In a city of science, discovery can be deadly . . .

In a time of unprecedented scientific discovery, the public’s appetite for wonder has seen a resurgence of interest in mesmerism, spiritualism and other unexplained phenomena.

Dr Will Raven is wary of the shadowlands that lie between progress and quackery, but Sarah Fisher can’t afford to be so picky. Frustrated in her medical ambitions, she sees opportunity in a new therapeutic field not already closed off to women.

Raven has enough on his hands as it is. Body parts have been found at Surgeons’ Hall, and they’re not anatomy specimens. In a city still haunted by the crimes of Burke and Hare, he is tasked with heading off a scandal.

When further human remains are found, Raven is able to identify a prime suspect, and the hunt is on before he kills again. Unfortunately, the individual he seeks happens to be an accomplished actor, a man of a thousand faces and a renowned master of disguise.

With the lines between science and spectacle dangerously blurred, the stage is set for a grand and deadly illusion . . .

My Review:

I’m a huge fan of this series and always look forward to seeing where the authors will take the story next. This book was no exception and I really enjoyed this fascinating and absorbing book which was a fantastic addition to a series that keeps getting better.

Firstly it was great to be back with the wonderful duo of Raven and Fisher, trying to solve another mystery alongside them. This time when we catch up with them we realise how much life has moved on for Will. He’s now a husband and a father, under pressure from everyone to start up a practice on his own away from Sarah which he’s not completely sure he wants. Sarah Fisher meanwhile is still struggling to be accepted by the medical profession and trying to find areas where women might be able to progress. Out of the two I’ve always preferred Sarah who is easy to like and sympathise with. She’s clearly very intelligent and I enjoyed following her throughout the story.

The story has a great pace to it and I soon felt absorbed into the story. I always love learning more about history so found a lot of the medical history mentioned in this book really fascinating. The author includes some real life historical figures and some forms of medicine that I hadn’t heard of before so I loved finding out more about them. There were lots of twists and misdirection that kept me guessing which I always love. I did guess part of the main twist but this didn’t stop me enjoying the book as I had to keep reading to find out if I was right. The ending was very clever and I liked how the author left it open so there are many different things that could happen next installment.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to the publisher for my copy of this book. If you are looking for an historical crime series I highly recommend this one.

About The Author:

Ambrose Parry is the penname for two authors – the internationally bestselling and multi-award-winning Chris Brookmyre and consultant anaesthetist of twenty years’ experience, Dr Marisa Haetzman. Inspired by the gory details Haetzman uncovered during her History of Medicine degree, the couple teamed up to write a series of historical crime thrillers, featuring the darkest of Victorian Edinburgh’s secrets. They are married and live in Scotland. The Way of All Flesh, The Art of Dying and A Corruption of Blood were shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year.
A Corruption of Blood was shortlisted for the CWAHistorical Dagger in 2022. @ambroseparry
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