TRIGGER WARNING: sexual abuse, rape, adoption
1920s Loftam, England. Simon finds out the truth about his parents when he receives a huge inheritance from his biological mother. He travels to Spain to sort out his new business affairs and falls in love with Elise. But he already has a sweetheart back home…
Spanish House Secrets is a dual timeline historical novel set in the 1920s and 2019, in England and Spain.
The main focus of the book is on the life and loves of Simon. He becomes trapped in a love triangle, unable to choose between the two women he adores. I have really mixed emotions about his situation. He goes through some big upheavals emotionally as he learns the truth about his parentage. However his lack of decision making with regard to Livvy and Elise mean that both women suffer. To be honest, the 2019 plotline has no real relevance to the book and I don’t think it needed to be included.
The historical and geographical elements to the book were interesting and I liked Simon’s sister Serena gaining independence. Power play and patriarchy underpin many of the interactions and relationships in the book and made it difficult for me to like Simon. The style of writing is easy to read and brings the characters and plot to life.
However there was a lot of repetition with secret babies, grief and then finding companionship and love (it all felt a bit convenient) and don’t get me started on Fur Elise mentions (thought I was going to go mad if it was featured again!) I felt so angry at Simon’s brother William and kept waiting for him to get his comeuppance so was disappointed by the ending. That sounds a bit negative but I really enjoyed the majority of the book and was swept up in Simon’s life.
Spanish House Secrets is an engaging historical novel about an impossible choice.
Spanish House Secrets
In 2019 Grace’s memories from childhood are stirred by the sound of a melody. Her home in 1950’s England was a Spanish House. A house with secrets.
1920’s England…loveable, likeable Simon receives a letter on the eve of his twenty-first birthday. A letter that will change the course of his life.
Dainty, demure Olivia has so much to be thankful for: a doting husband, a beautiful house and a thriving business…but a nagging doubt. In the last years of the Roaring Twenties this doubt is compounded by the discovery of a discarded item.
Elise has known many harsh blows in her young life. Returning to her home in Madrid in 1922, she knows she must pick herself up and move on. Can she continue to live in this Spanish House? The arrival of a visitor creates a new dimension for her.
Spanish House Secrets is a story of love, life, loss, jealousy and forgiveness set in the twentieth century.
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Author Bio – Susan Gray lives with her husband in northeast England. She has a son and daughter, both married, two granddaughters and a grand dog. After a career in primary teaching, she embraced retirement fulfilling her ambition to travel, attend Wimbledon and write a novel. She enjoys reading, walking, crafting, doing puzzles, catching up with friends over a coffee and being a gran. She has written several novels – Spanish House Secrets is the first to be published.
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I LOVE Sophie Kinsella but this is the first time I have tried her audiobooks… brilliant!
Effie’s parents suddenly split up and her dad decides to sell the family home to move abroad with his new love Krista. Effie has a fraught relationship with her dad and Krista, so she is not invited when they plan a party to say goodbye to the house. She is desperate to retrieve her precious Russian dolls so sneaks into the party to get them…
The Party Crasher is a humorous family drama with a splash of romance.
Effie was heartbroken when her parents split up. She thought they had the perfect relationship and suspects that her dad cheated with his new flame Krista. Krista sends invites to family and friends for a ‘house-cooling’ party to say goodbye to the family home. But Effie isn’t invited until she mentions popping by to get her dolls, and she responds by declining the forced invitation. Effie knows every nook and cranny of the house so she is able to sneak in. She does make contact with her brother and sister which reveals secrets that change her opinions. She also reunites with her old flame and finds her heart still belongs to him.
Some of the events are slightly madcap to add to the humour but the emotion of this book shines through. I am a very sentimental person so completely identified with Effie as she faces change with trepidation, even horror and grief.
I loved Effie’s character. She is vulnerable, impulsive and so easy to like as she faces the future and has to rethink her understanding of her family and experiences. Her interactions and relationships with others are a joy. I felt that the audio narration suited the book perfectly, bringing all of the characters to life but especially Effie.
The Party Crasher is a wonderful book about the humour and love in families that can get lost as changes happen.
The Party Crasher book blurb
It’s been over two years since Effie’s beloved parents got divorced, destroying the image of the happy, loving childhood she thought she had. Since then, she’s become estranged from her father and embarked on a feud with his hot (and much younger) girlfriend, Krista. And now, more earth-shattering news: Greenoaks, the rambling Victorian country house Effie called home her whole life, has been sold.
When Krista decides to throw a grand “house cooling” party, Effie is originally left off the guest list–and then receives a last-minute “anti-invitation” (maybe it’s because she called Krista a gold-digger, but Krista totally deserved it, and it was mostly a joke anyway). Effie declines, but then remembers a beloved childhood treasure is still hidden in the house. Her only chance to retrieve it is to break into Greenoaks while everyone is busy celebrating. As Effie sneaks around the house, hiding under tables and peeping through trapdoors, she realizes the secrets Greenoaks holds aren’t just in the dusty passageways and hidden attics she grew up exploring. Watching how her sister, brother, and dad behave when they think no one is looking, Effie overhears conversations, makes discoveries, and begins to see her family in a new light. Then she runs into Joe–the love of her life, who long ago broke her heart, and who’s still as handsome and funny as ever–and even more truths emerge.
But will Effie act on these revelations? Will she stay hidden or step out into the party and take her place with her family? And truthfully, what did she really come back to Greenoaks for? Over the course of one blowout party, Effie realizes that she must be honest with herself and confront her past before she’ll ever be able to face her future.
Twins Alex and Donna want to make some money so decide to start their own private investigation business. Their first case is a missing dog. Can they reunite Kiki with her owner?
Eye Spy is the first book in a children’s mystery series. I have previously read and reviewed the second book in the series, Haunted.
Ale and Donna are often in trouble and despair about their dad’s eccentricities. In order to make some money, the pair start to investigate a missing dog with a view to exposing a dognapping ring.
The book is written from Alex’s first person perspective and I felt that the childlike voice was authentic. This is a quick read for an adult but is a substantial enough chapter book for 9-12 years olds. The family and school life elements will resonate with children and help them to identify with the lead characters.
The missing dog case actually takes second place to the mystery about the twins’ mum as the plot prgresses. There is emotion as the twins wonder about their mother and this could be a trigger for some readers.
Eye Spy is an enjoyable mystery book for children.
Eye Spy
Over the course of ten days, the lives of thirteen-year-old Alex Macintyre and his twin sister Donna will change forever.
When Alex and Donna set up Eye Spy Investigations and start looking for a valuable missing dog, they soon have an interesting assortment of suspects. There is the mysterious man in the fur hat; a gang of bikers who hang out at the Starship Café; and Crazy Kath, the bag lady, who may know more than she’s letting on.
But as they struggle to make sense of the evidence, the twins begin to uncover an even bigger mystery in their own family. As events spiral out of control, can Alex resolve a family crisis, save Donna from imminent danger, and return the missing dog to its rightful owner?
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Author Bio:
Tessa Buckley was an inveterate scribbler as a child, and spent much of her time writing and illustrating stories. After spending fifteen years working for architects and interior designers. She took up writing again when her young daughter complained that she couldn’t find enough adventure stories to read. This led, in 2014, to the publication of Eye Spy, the first in a series of detective stories for 9-12 year olds, designed to encourage reluctant readers. The second book in the series, Haunted, was a finalist in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards 2017. She lives with her husband and a large white cat called Pippa in a town on the Thames estuary, which inspired the seaside setting for the novels. She also writes about family history, which has been her passion for many years.
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A killer is released from prison. A teenager goes missing. Did she run away or has she been abducted? Detective Ellie Reeves fears that this could be linked to an old murder case…
The Sleeping Girls is the 9th book in the Detective Ellie Reeves series. The case works as a stand alone book but there are personal relationship details that continue from earlier books.
Kelsey vanishes after arguing with her secret boyfriend. Her friends worry about her safety, especially after the release of intimate photos of the teenagers. She and her best friends were devastated by the social media trolling as well as dealing with tough problems with their families. Ellie Reeves needs to explore the risks that make the girls vulnerable while also trying desperately to find Kelsey.
The book is written from multiple third person perspectives. We witness Digger as he adjusts to life outside the prison and wonders about the past. Ellie is anxious to find Kelsey before it is too late. A killer plans his next victim, feeding off the thrill of his last attack. Ruby and June miss their friend whilst also dealing with their own home life issues.
The chapters are very short so the plot speeds along at pace. The girls’ unhappy backgrounds are very emotive and I also enjoyed the way the different viewpoints construct the narrative. The tension mounts as the plot develops. There are also personal elements to Ellie’s life as she considers her friendships and relationships. Other characters are also soul-searching about their choices and how these may impact their personal and professional lives.
The Sleeping Girls is a fast paced and engaging detective thriller.
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Book: THE SLEEPING GIRLS
Author: Rita Herron
Pub Day: JAN 22ND 2024
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About the Book:
The young girl looked so innocent, like a sleeping angel. Kelsey lay on a bed of white sheets, golden hair fanned across the pillow, eyes closed, pale lips pressed together. A white teddy bear was tucked under her slender arm… “My baby, she’s dead” her distraught mother choked out.
When the call comes in that fifteen-year-old Kelsey Tiller has gone missing from her bedroom in the middle of the night, Detective Ellie Reeves rushes to talk to her distraught parents. They tell her that Kelsey, a slender blond with green eyes and a timid smile, had plans to go shopping for her homecoming dress the next day, insisting she would have no reason to run away. But when neighbors report seeing Kelsey with a secret boyfriend, Ellie wonders how much Kelsey really told her parents.
Ellie is determined to find Kelsey’s boyfriend and interviews her friends and teachers at school. But just as she is making headway with the case, she receives some devastating news. Kelsey’s parents have received a photo of their daughter lying on a bed with white sheets over her body, skin ghostly pale under the freckles dotting her nose, her precious life snuffed out.
Desperate to find answers for those who loved Kelsey, Ellie studies the picture and realizes that her body has been posed in the same way as a teenage girl murdered ten years earlier. And when she learns Darnell, the killer in that case, has just been released from prison, fear crawls through her. Could Darnell have stolen another innocent life?
But just as Ellie thinks she has cracked the case, Kelsey’s best friend Ruby is snatched from her home, and Darnell has an unbreakable alibi. Haunted by Kelsey’s ashen face, Ellie knows she must race against time to find Ruby alive. And when she discovers one of her team is hiding critical information, she realizes she needs to act alone. But is she dealing with a twisted copycat killer or is the danger far closer to home?
A totally gripping and pulse-pounding crime thriller that will have you holding your breath as you race through the pages! Perfect for fans of Lisa Regan, Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh.
Author Bio
USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author Rita Herron fell in love with books at the ripe age of eight when she read her first Trixie Belden mystery. But she didn’t think real people grew up to be writers, so she became a teacher instead. Now she writes so she doesn’t have to get a real job.
With over ninety books to her credit, she’s penned romantic suspense, romantic comedy, and YA novels, but she especially likes writing dark romantic suspense and crime fiction set in small southern towns.
For more on Rita and her titles, visit her at www.ritaherron.com. You can also find her on Facebook/ritaherron.com and Twitter @ritaherron.
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Anna and Siobhan are cousins but haven’t seen each other for years. Anna is desperate to reconnect and envies Siobhan’s perfect life. But in reality, Siobhan has an enemy stalking her…
Your Perfect Life is a psychological thriller set in London.
Siobhan has a good career but Anna is unemployed. Siobhan seems to have it all and Anna wants to be part of her life, basking in her reflected glory. Yet Siobhan is spooked by the delivery of a dozen black roses and a sinister voice calls in to her radio show. Both characters hint at something from their past and it is not going to stay hidden any longer.
The book is written from the first person perspectives of Siobhan and Anna so we can experience their emotions and understand their actions. A quarter of the way through, there was a major shift in emphasis as we realise Anna’s darker side and this increased the tension as we anticipate what could happen as she grows closer to Siobhan.
I really liked the way the alternating chapters allowed us to get to know the two main characters. It isn’t easy to like either of the women although they felt authentic due to the narrative style. There are lots of clues about the past as well as shocking developments in the present day. I was swept up in the drama as the plot unfolded.
Your Perfect Life is an enjoyable psychological thriller with two strong lead characters.
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Book: Your Perfect Life
Author: Victoria Jenkins
Pub Day: Jan 19th 2024
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About the Book:
‘Your life is perfect.’ Anna says, smiling across my dining table. But something in her tone and the glint in her hazel eyes lets me know the comment is laced with jealousy. I sip my wine and smile. Soon she’ll learn that having this life costs more than she could ever imagine…
Everyone thinks I’m living the perfect life. I have my dream job, a stunning apartment, and glamourous friends – who know nothing about my dark past. So I’m shocked when I run into Anna, who I haven’t seen in eighteen years. Everything about her reminds me of the life I’ve left behind. But as her eyes fill with tears and she tells me she’s lost her job and can’t pay her rent, I reluctantly offer her my spare room.
Anna promises she won’t stay for long. But soon, I notice she’s wearing my designer clothes and has dyed her hair to match my exact shade of chocolate brown. As I watch her curled up on my sofa, my blood runs cold. Did Anna really come back into my life by chance? What is she hiding?
Then I receive a chilling anonymous phone call telling me my time is up. Memories of that terrible night that changed everything come flooding back. The flames. The thick smoke. Someone knows what I did, and they want revenge.
But whoever that someone is, they’ve underestimated how far I’ll go to protect my perfect life…
Author Bio and Social Media
Victoria Jenkins lives with her husband and daughters in South Wales, where her bestselling series of crime novels featuring Detectives King and Lane is based. The first in the series, The Girls in the Water is a top 5 US kindle bestseller. She has an MA in Creative and Media Writing from the University of Wales, Swansea.
Since the King and Lane series, she has written eight standalone psychological thrillers.
