When troubled teenager Immy disappears, she leaves her widowed mother Bea completely devastated. Bea pours her love into her six-year-old niece Phoebe, even taking her in when her single father Ewan takes a job abroad.

Then Immy returns, in desperate need of her mother’s help and love. But Ewan is clear: he will never let Bea see Phoebe again if she welcomes her daughter back.

As Bea grapples with this impossible choice between two girls who sorely need her, a long-buried secret comes out that changes everything – and Bea must fight harder for her family than she ever thought she could.

Her Daughter’s Secret

by Lisa Timoney 

my review

Her Daughter’s Secret is a compelling family drama.

Bea is an easy character to like. She is trying to live a life after unimaginable grief. My heart went out to her. I can’t imagine losing my husband so young, let alone not knowing where my daughter is. She certainly has a lot to contend with.

I loved Bea’s close relationship with her niece, Phoebe (who is just the cutest character). I think her dedication to the child is heart-warming.

I can’t say I warmed to Ewan (her brother-in-law) or his mother. Although the old lady grew on me towards the end.

This book is full of emotion, tension, and suspense. I was intrigued by Immy especially. I knew there must be more to her story. I could understand Ewan’s feelings towards her to some degree, but I can’t imagine asking anyone to choose between her own daughter and the niece she adores. It’s just heart-breaking.

Neither could I have imagined in a million years the direction the story would take!

Such clever writing!

A brilliant end to a brilliant story.

I highly recommend.

**Many thanks to the author and publisher for my review copy via NetGalley**

pre-order now

(Out 15th September 2022)

happy reading! 🙂

Hi, and welcome to my Flashback Friday feature 🙂

On the first Friday of each month I like to have a look back at the books I was reading during the same month in previous years, since starting my blog.

Please do join in if you have the time, I’d love to see your posts.

Thanks to those of you who regularly join in 🙂

Here are my reviews from September 2021, plus a link to previous September FBFs –

have you read any of the above?

From the author of the globally bestselling, multi-million-copy classic, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, comes its astonishing and powerful sequel.

Ninety-one-year-old Gretel Fernsby has lived in the same mansion block in London for decades. She leads a comfortable, quiet life, despite her dark and disturbing past. She doesn’t talk about her escape from Germany over seventy years before. She doesn’t talk about the post-war years in France with her mother. Most of all, she doesn’t talk about her father, the commandant of one of the most notorious Nazi concentration camps.

Then, a young family moves into the apartment below her. In spite of herself, Gretel can’t help but begin a friendship with the little boy, Henry, though his presence brings back memories she would rather forget. One night, she witnesses a violent argument between Henry’s mother and his domineering father, one that threatens Gretel’s hard-won, self-contained existence.

Gretel is faced with a chance to expiate her guilt, grief and remorse and act to save a young boy – for the second time in her life. But to do so, she will be forced to reveal her true identity to the world. Will she make a different choice this time, whatever the cost to herself?

All the Broken Places is a devastating, beautiful story about a woman who must confront the sins of her past and a present in which it is never too late for bravery.

All The Broken Places: The Sequel to The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas

by John Boyne 

my review

I read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas back in April 2015 and it’s a book I have never forgotten. It is one of the most emotional books I have ever read. If you have never read it, you really should consider adding it to your list.

I was intrigued to read All The Broken Places to say the least.

This sequel tells Gretel’s story.

Gretel is 91 years old and has lived in her London apartment for over sixty years. She keeps herself to herself. However, she hasn’t always led such a quiet life. She has a dark past and painful secrets.

She is the daughter of a commandant of a Nazi concentration camp.

She would prefer no-one ever found that out. Especially now she has more than just herself to consider.

She has never got past the guilt she feels regarding her father’s crimes. She was just a child at the time. Should she share responsibility for his actions?

At 91 she is confident now that she will take the secrets of her past to her grave.

That is until a young family move in to the flat below hers and turn her quiet world upside down.

I really enjoyed how Gretel walks us through her story. Switching between the present day and earlier years of her life. Unravelling the tale chapter by chapter. Keeping me glued to my Kindle.  I can’t say I found her to be a likeable character or a particularly unlikable one. She is somewhat standoffish but as we get to know her it’s easier to understand why. She is undoubtably fascinating.

This is such a heart-wrenching and thought-provoking story. A powerful tale of living a life weighed down by grief and guilt. So beautifully written I can’t imagine anyone not finding it completely compelling.

I could never have imagined the way things would turn out! The ending gave me goosebumps.

Just brilliant!

Another one of John Boyne’s books I am sure will stay with me for many years to come.

I highly recommend!

**Many thanks to the author and publisher for my review copy via NetGalley**

Pre-order now

(Out on 15th September 2022)

She’s the perfect host. He’s the perfect victim.

Someone is hunting Connor. Alone, freezing, in the wilderness of Bodmin Moor, on an elite Special Forces training exercise, he’d be a fool to scorn the kindness of a local stranger. Wouldn’t he?

At first, Eilidh seems to be an impeccable host. She offers Connor food and a warm bed – he finds it nearly impossible to leave her charming farmhouse.

But the choice isn’t his to make.

There have been others before. None, though, as perfect as him.

Why would she let him leave?

You Can Stay

by Elle Connel 

my review

WOW! What an astounding read this is!

Talk about creepy and totally captivating!

Connor and his colleague are out on Bodmin Moor, on selection training. It’s cold and wet. They’re freezing, hungry, and exhausted. When a local woman offers Connor warm refuge at her cottage, he decides it’s worth the risk for a few hours of comfort. Eilidh seems nice enough and assures him she won’t give up his location for the £50 reward. Connor soon wishes she had!

Eilidh is an intriguing character who put me on edge from the very beginning. She is fascinating from a psychological point of view. You never call tell what goes on in someone else’s head and what might go on behind closed doors!

This story is as gripping as they get. I was glued to my kindle at every opportunity. It’s one of those books I was thinking about whenever I rudely had to do other stuff which prevented me from reading it. I couldn’t wait to find out how it was all going to turn out.

OH. MY. GOODNESS! That ending!!! It made my blood run cold. Very, very clever writing!

I highly recommend!

This book reminded me so much of a very well-known book which I won’t mention as I don’t want to give anything away. I wasn’t surprised to see it mentioned in the acknowledgements at the end of the book!

I’ve added this author’s other books to my reading list.

**Many thanks to the author and publisher for my review copy via NetGalley**

treat yourself

happy reading! 🙂

Brand new from the bestselling author of Under One Roof.

One lost suitcase. Two strangers. And a notebook that will change lives.

For almost fifty years, sisters Dolly and Greta have lived together – getting each other through the good times and the bad.

Except this year, Greta isn’t there and Dolly is feeling lost and alone. In memory of her sister, Dolly heads to the lost luggage auction where she and Greta go each Christmas. But her bid reveals a gift she never imagined.

Amongst the clothes is the notebook of a reclusive woman who has hardly been outside for an entire year, but who isn’t ready to give up on life. The notebook’s contents resonate with Dolly. With the support of her neighbours, retired Leroy and eleven year old Flo, Dolly decides to take on the year of firsts Phoebe had planned.

But, can you have a year of firsts when you’re seventy-two? And is Dolly ready to discover the notebook’s secrets, or are some secrets better left lost at the airport?

Lost Luggage

by Samantha Tonge  

my review

Lost Luggage has been such a joy to read! I have LOVED every page!

I love Dolly! She is such an adorable character. I love that she has spent a contented life with her older sister, Greta, having been let down years before by the love of her life. I did feel sad for her though as she has so much love to give and never found another man to share her life with. Not that we all need a man to fulfil us, but I feel sad that she has missed out on that love and companionship, especially as she finds herself alone, at 70 years old, following the sudden passing of Greta.

I love the idea of buying lost luggage and wondering about the people it belonged to. Although I do feel sorry for the original owners. Are lost luggage auctions a real thing?

I love the idea of a year of firsts. I might have to see if my husband fancies creating our own.

I love the friendships Dolly shares with Leroy, and Flo, and Maurice! These characters add so much extra warmth to the story.

I loved following Dolly’s story as she discovers more about the owner of her most recent lost luggage purchase and the secrets it holds….

It’s a beautifully intriguing story full of gorgeous characters, happiness, heartache, and hope.

I highly recommend!

treat yourself

(Out on 22nd September 2022)

happy reading! 🙂

Gatlin – a leafy, affluent town: Chelsea tractors and ladies who lunch. However all is not as it seems. Drea, a most unnatural mother, struggles to find private school fees for her step-daughter Ava after her boyfriend leaves her for another woman. Watching the yummy mummies she becomes inspired, hatching a daring and criminal plan…unleashing all hell in the quiet town of Gatlin. Can Drea survive the fallout and the wrath of the PTA? A satirical and hilarious black comedy about love, motherhood and the human condition.

The Good Enough Mother 

by Anoushka Beazley 

my review

Well, talk about a rollercoaster of emotions.

Drea is not an easily likeable character. Her behaviour at times is questionable at best. However, I couldn’t help but feel for her. She is dealing with a debilitating grief. Grief no one should ever have to face. On top of that she has just been dumped and left to fend for herself and her stepdaughter. A stepdaughter with £15,000 school fees!

Her get rich quick ideas leave a lot to be desired! I can’t even imagine, but desperate times call for desperate measures as they say. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever read anything like this before.

There is such a lot going on throughout this story. It’s heart-wrenching at times but laugh out loud funny. This author has incredibly sharp wit and a talent for making the most desperate, and sometimes violent, situations comical. It really is clever writing.

I loved the relationship Drea shares with her stepdaughter, Ava. Drea is far from a typical mother (whatever one of those is) but she has Ava’s best interests at heart and Ava loves her. Ava is often more like the parent though.

Drea’s Papa is funny! Loved him!

Hilarious but desperately sad at the same time. I found The Good Enough Mother a highly entertaining and thought provoking read.

treat yourself

happy reading! 🙂

My twelve months of sacrifice…

…or temptation?

My foster mother’s will states that I, Summer, must live with her grandson, infamous billionaire Edward Fitzroy, for one year on her Scottish estate or we forfeit our inheritance! Years ago, scared of our intense connection, I left without saying goodbye… Now I’m completely unprepared for how devastatingly attractive Edward’s become—and how he still makes me feel. We’re from different worlds—surely this can’t work? But it’s oh-so-tempting to give in to the sparks flying between us…

My Year With The Billionaire

by Rachael Stewart 

my review

My Year with the Billionaire is such a gorgeous read!

Edward and Summer are both gorgeous characters who I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know.

From the very beginning I felt the grief they are both suffering. Grief that has brought them back together after so many years. Their lives couldn’t be any more different, but the chemistry between them is obvious from the start. They have a difficult history though. One Edward seems unable to forgive and one Summer is determined to apologise for.

I loved the uniqueness of this romance. Two people brought back together via the last will and testament of a loved one. Matchmaking from heaven. I love it! Sometimes other people know us better than we know ourselves, and some people need a bit of a push in the right direction to realise how easily happiness can be found if they just allow it to happen. In this case it is a rather large push in the right direction, and I was on Gran’s side the whole time. Edward and Summer took a little more convincing though. I absolutely LOVED their story.

Rachael Stewart’s books always make my heart happy and this one was no exception. I finished it with happy tears streaming down my face.

Just beautiful!

Second chance romance at its very best. I highly recommend!

**Many thanks to Rachael Stewart for my ARC**

treat yourself

(Out 1st September 2022)

happy reading! 🙂

Hi, and welcome to my Flashback Friday feature 🙂

On the first Friday of each month I like to look back at the books I was reading during the same month in previous years, since starting my blog.

Please do join in if you have the time. I’d love to see your posts!

Here are my reviews from August 2021 + a link to previous August FBFs….

August was obviously a quiet month for me last year. Hopefully I’ll have read more than two books by the end of this month!

happy reading! 🙂

BLOOD CONTEST: A STORY OF POWER, SEX, AND MURDER
JERSEY MURDER SERIES — BOOK 1
AN EXCITING MURDER-MYSTERY THRILLER.

MURDER WAS JUST THE BEGINNING.

When the governor’s son is murdered in front of his children on Christmas Day, Detective Pete Mueller is named a lead investigator of the brutal crime.

For Mueller, it’s a plum assignment except for one thing – he’s broken. Years after his service in Iraq, wartime horrors still haunt his nights. As an idealist, he struggles to fit into the state police, but his commander wants him gone. And nothing is going right with his case.

The governor wants the murder solved now, but a baffling conspiracy blocks the investigation at every turn. Mueller’s commander pushes him in a direction that seems wrong. Leaks to the media are sabotaging his work. More people are dying. And the murderer is now targeting the governor himself.

But when Mueller uncovers the destructive secret surrounding the murder, it’s not the end. The killer doesn’t want his secret exposed. He has tried to assassinate the governor. He won’t stop at killing a detective.

Blood Contest (Jersey Murder Series Book 1)

by P. K. Abbot

My review

Blood Contest is an excellent start to a new series. I read it whilst on holiday in the Isle of Wight, last week, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Detective Pete Mueller finds himself investigating the murder of the governor’s son. He was killed in front of his two young daughters on Christmas Day. I can’t even imagine the trauma that would cause the family, the daughters especially. The girls identify a woman, but the evidence points elsewhere. The truth, as it is revealed, is both shocking and sad.

This is a fast paced read with many a twist and turn. Interesting characters and an intriguing plot made it difficult to put down.

I have pre-ordered book 2.

Currently FREE on Kindle

(Correct at time of posting – 5th August 2022 – not sure how long it will be free for)

treat yourself

happy reading! 🙂

A beautiful, eerie hotel in the Swiss Alps, recently converted from an abandoned sanatorium, is the last place Detective Elin Warner wants to be. But her estranged brother has invited her there for his engagement party, and she feels she has no choice but to accept.

Arriving in the midst of a threatening storm, Elin immediately feels on edge. And things only get worse when they wake the next morning to find her brother’s fiancée is missing. With access to the hotel cut off, the guests begin to panic.

But this is only the first disappearance. Everyone’s in danger – and anyone could be next . . .

The Sanatorium

by Sarah Pearse 

my review

What an immensely creepy story The Sanatorium is!

The fact that an abandoned Sanatorium has been renovated into a luxury hotel is creepy enough. I’m not sure it would be somewhere I would want to stay but I can understand the curiosity it might arouse in others.

When we first meet Elin, she is travelling with her partner, Will, to this very hotel to celebrate the engagement of her brother. His fiancée is one of the managers of the resort. I don’t think it’s somewhere she would choose to go either, but Will is fascinated by the architecture of the place. Elin finds it unsettling. Little does she know what she’s walking in to.

Already on leave from work as a detective Elin has had a rough time, work wise and with the loss of her younger brother. She’s a troubled soul. This break and celebration should be a perfect opportunity to relax and unwind, or so Will keeps telling her. However, when her brother’s fiancée goes missing all hope of a relaxing break disappears. Adding to that a snowstorm cuts off all access to the hotel. They are trapped.

The story that follows is nothing short of terrifying.

This book is so brilliantly written. It had me hooked from the very beginning and I could have quite happily ignored everything else and read it from cover to cover in one sitting. It’s atmospheric, chilling, and heart wrenching. And that ending! WOW! It gave me goosebumps.

I can’t wait to read book 2, The Retreat. Off to purchase now!

** Many thanks to the author and publisher for my review copy via NetGalley although I did end up reading a paperback copy which I won via a giveaway**

Treat yourself

happy reading!