I'm 47, married to Steve (50), Mum to two (24 & 23) and a Shih Tzu called Bella (13). I'm our Church Treasurer (on a voluntary basis) since July 2014. I started my Book Blog in October 2015. I created Bowen's Book Publicity in June 2020. I love to #sharethebooklove 💕
Before I Let You In is a compelling psychological thriller. One that held my interest throughout and kept me guessing to the end.
The story begins when Karen (a psychiatrist) meets a new client for the first time, Jessica. Something is off about Jessica from the get-go, and it soon becomes apparent that she knows Karen and her friends etc. Karen is faced with a dilemma. She should refer her to a different psychiatrist really, but curiosity gets the better of her.
I can’t say I warmed to Karen. She comes across as a bit of a control freak, but I did enjoy the dynamic between her and her friends. They couldn’t be more different to each other. I found them all fascinating, and I couldn’t wait to see where the story would lead.
Jessica put me on edge. I desperately wanted to learn her story!
This book is pacey, with short chapters which add to the pace and tension. It succeeded in shocking me and I loved it!
** I read the paperback edition of Before I Let You In. I’m not sure where I bought it from though as it wasn’t Amazon. Unless it was sent to me via my Wishlist at some point. Thank you if you sent it to me **
She knows you better than you know yourself.
Karen is meant to be the one who fixes problems.
It’s her job, as a psychiatrist – and it’s always been her role as a friend.
But Jessica is different. She should be the patient, the one that Karen helps.
But she knows things about Karen. Her friends, her personal life. Things no patient should know.
And Karen is starting to wonder if she should have let her in . . .
Escape Beyond the Tide is the first book I’ve read by N Dune, and I’m impressed!
I think it must have been sent to me as a gift via my Amazon Wishlist as it isn’t in my orders, so thank you to whoever sent it to me 😊
Lou is an immediately likeable character. My heart went out to her as, when we first meet her, she’s trying to find the right time to leave her abusive boyfriend. The boyfriend who has always promised her one thing. He would find her if she ever tried to leave him. Thankfully for Lou he never showed any interest in her life before him, so where she runs to is an obvious choice.
Jay is the most delightful character! It’s easy to see why Lou would run to him. Not so easy to understand why she didn’t cling to him in their younger years. They are so obviously made for each other. He has been in love with Lou forever, and the way he instantly welcomes her back into his life is incredibly heart-warming. The chemistry between them is off the chart. He is patient with Lou though. He knows she’s obviously been through something horrendous even if she doesn’t want to tell him straight away. They have a beautiful friendship which is destined to develop into a scorching hot partnership. Will Lou ever be able to fully relax though, with Damon’s promise echoing in her ear!?
I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I loved the unconditional friendships, the understandable jealousy from certain characters, the way others in the Cornish community welcomed Lou back into their lives and helped her to heal, the chemistry between Lou and Jay….
It made me sad, and angry, and it shocked me at times. My heart was in my mouth at one point! However, mostly, it made me smile.
I look forward to reading book 2 before too long.
I remember like it was yesterday, how he promised he would find me if I ever tried to leave him… Lou has only one plan-run as far away as possible from her abusive boyfriend. She chooses the only place he wouldn’t think to look. Seeking refuge with the only person who has ever made her feel safe. As Lou tries to put the broken pieces of herself back together, a need for her best friend reignites. Jay has loved Lou since they were building sandcastles on the beach. When fate throws them back together, he is determined not to let her go a second time. Can he keep her safe and convince Lou that she belongs on the Cornish Coast with him? . Escape Beyond the Tide is a friends-to-lovers, second chance romance and book one in the Beyond the Tide trilogy, which should be read in order. Trigger warning: This book contains references to and some scenes of domestic abuse and violence.
Wow! What can I say about The Island Love Song which would do it the justice it deserves!?
I could talk about it for hours to be honest with you, but I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn’t read it yet.
First, as I’ve said before, I’ve never been to Greece, but I honestly felt like I was in Greece whilst reading this novel. I felt the same when reading Emma Cowell’s previous novels. I would really, really love to go to Greece now and experience the beauty of the country Emma portrays so enticingly. The food sounds amazing also! I love that food plays its part throughout the story. I think I actually drooled at times. lol!
Anyway, this story is about sisters Ella and Georgia. They lost their Mum and are returning to Hydra to scatter her ashes in the sea. They have a rich history of happy memories with their mother there. As if that isn’t heart-wrenching enough, there has also been heartbreak for Ella and guilt for Georgia over secrets she’s carried for years.
The sisters are like chalk and cheese. Ella is very much a free spirit. Tied to nothing and no-one following an extremely traumatic experience. Georgia is the organised, dependable one, who’s life she has dedicated to her husband and bringing up their daughter, Phoenix. Neither of them is particularly happy though, nor have they had a close relationship, so coming together for two weeks on the Island of Hydra was never going to be straight forward.
I couldn’t wait to find out where their story would take me, and I was completely invested in the emotional journey I was taken on.
I liked Ella immediately and my heart broke for her as I learned what she had been through.
Georgia isn’t as easy to like, but I came to understand her more as the story progressed, and I did really feel for her in the end.
Phoenix is a beautiful character. Oh, to be so young and self-assured!
Harrison is a fascinating character and one I warmed to quickly despite his history with Ella.
There are other beautiful characters in this book too, all who add their own little something special.
This is a compelling tale about grieving sisters, the devastation secrets and lies can cause, the power of true love, and the true meaning of family.
I absolutely LOVED it! It’s just beautiful!
** A big thank you to the author and publisher for my review copy of The Island Love Song via NetGalley **
Escape to the beautiful Greek Island of Hydra with this moving novel, filled with family secrets and romance
Emma Cowell, author of THE HOUSE IN THE OLIVE GROVE, returns with her brand new, emotional and romantic novel set on an idyllic Greek Island.
Hydra, the picturesque Greek island, is a paradise for most, yet for sisters Ella and Georgia, it is a place where their darkest secrets dwell. And now the time has come for them to confront their past as they return to Greece to scatter their mother’s ashes.
Ella is haunted by a love song that was written for her by the man who broke her heart years earlier and she longs to find peace so she can move on with her life.
Georgia pretends everything in her life is perfect, but she is plagued with guilt. If what she’s kept hidden for decades was revealed, their family would never be the same again.
The island is urging the sisters to confront the truth, but can they build a future on the ruins of their past?
I Know What You’ve Done is the third book I’ve read by Dorothy Koomson. I’d be lying if I said it was my favourite so far, but it did keep me intrigued enough to really want to find out what was going on.
There are a lot of characters to keep track of. All of whom live in close proximity. It did make me wonder who could potentially be watching your every move. None of us knows what goes on with our neighbours behind closed doors.
Some of the character’s behaviour was difficult to understand, although none of us know how we would deal with a situation until you find yourself in said situation. I enjoyed the realistic variation of characters. I wouldn’t want to live in their street though!
I didn’t guess the twist at the end, but I can’t say I found it shocking either.
Overall, an enjoyable read but maybe a little underwhelming for what I expected. I will certainly be reading other books from Dorothy Koomson as I really enjoyed the first two books I read a while ago.
The Long Way Home is a beautifully written book. The first by this author for me but hopefully not the last.
Set in Liverpool in the early 1900s we meet Amy when she is just ten years old and doing a grand job of looking after her mother and her ten siblings whilst her father goes out to work. Her mother is ill, with tuberculosis, and is unable to leave her bed often. Can you even imagine living like that these days. Thirteen people to one bedroom! People seemed to just get on with things in those days, doing whatever they had to do to survive. No such thing as universal credit or such like back then. You worked whenever work was available, made the best of what you had, and older children helped to bring up the younger children. Everyone mucked in. Despite this they quite often came across as happier and closer as a family.
Unfortunately, Pa’s wealthy sister, Aunt Zillah is unable to carry a child to term so she decides she is adopting Amy and plans to bring her up as her own. With his wife now in hospital and him having to work to keep food on the table, Amy’s Pa allows it as Zillah has promised him money to move to better housing and support for the other ten children.
Amy is understandably traumatised by being dragged from the family she loves, to a massive unfamiliar house, by her aunt who blatantly doesn’t have a maternal bone in her body. My heart broke for her, and I prayed she might escape the claws of her aunt one way or another.
I was engrossed in her story as she grows into a beautiful young lady who never gives up hope of finding her family again. I love how her relationship with Joe grows as they grow. However, Zillah has other ideas and what she puts Amy through at only sixteen years old is horrific.
Zillah’s husband, Caleb, is a much more likeable character. I’m so glad Amy has him to help protect her from his heartless wife. Whatever he saw in Zillah I’ll never know, but quite often in those days people of wealth married for money and the hope of suitable heirs rather than for love didn’t they. I can’t even imagine.
Amy’s story is one of true resilience. With her aunt, an abusive husband, and a war to contend with it seems as though happiness is impossible, but true love always wins.
There are so many beautiful characters throughout this book, including some of the staff at the Seymour home (which reminded me of Downton Abbey). It’s such a rollercoaster of emotion and is so full of love. Love for family, love between friends, and fighting for the love of your life. I absolutely loved it!
** I read the paperback edition of The Long Way Home. I have no idea where I bought it from though. It’s been on my bookshelf for years. Published in 2008, I assume I bought it from a book sale some time ago **
Amy Pearson’s family is desperately poor – even by the standards of Edwardian Liverpool – but they have each other. Until Amy is torn from her home by her rich aunt, a woman obsessed by religion and snobbery who wants a girl she can mould as she wishes. Clever and pretty, ten-year-old Amy is perfect for her purposes. It is the beginning of a long journey for Amy, as she desperately searches for the family she lost, and a home where she can be free at last from her aunt’s possessive tyranny. But she will have to endure a forced marriage and a tragic war before she can at last find what she seeks.
The Reckoning is another excellent read in the Secrets of Redemption series. It is the second book centred around Charlie’s story and it answers a lot of questions!
Another book full of suspense and tension. I can’t seem to get enough of this series. I’m already reading book 6! I look forward to picking my kindle back up each evening to see what might happen next.
It’s a long time since I read a series of books one after the other, but I am really invested in these characters and their stories.
Lisbon ’41: Amongst the spies and the intrigue of wartime Lisbon lies a deadly secret. (The Lisbon Novels Book 1)
by Malcolm Havard
Wartime Lisbon. Ex-cop, Dinis Lopes just wants to be left alone. The state has other ideas…
A VIP visitor to Portugal has left behind a deadly secret that can change the course of history. Lopes is tasked with finding it – without knowing what he’s looking for.
” A little bit Gamache. A little bit Frost. A little bit Wallander. And I can’t wait for the sequel.” ARC reviewer.
The Summoning is another excellent book in this brilliant series. This one is a prequel, so I got to learn more about Aunt Charlie and how she ended up in Redemption. Just brilliant!
I’m thoroughly enjoying spending time with these characters!
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