Book Review – Page 117

Book Review – The Three Loves Of Sebastian Cooper By Zoe Folbigg

As friends and family gather for the funeral of charming and charismatic Seb Cooper, three women sit in the congregation, mourning his loss.

First there is Clair, Seb’s wife and partner of twenty years, and mother of his two children. Furious at Seb for dying and leaving their children without a father, Clair isn’t sure of her place, and has been left baffled and bemused by the conflicting stories of Seb’s last days.

Then there’s Desiree, the woman Seb left Clair for. Heartbroken, self-conscious, and wondering if she made a mistake coming today.

And the third and noisiest mourner of all is Noemie – Seb’s lover and the last woman to see him alive.

Three women who loved Seb in their own different ways.

Three women whose lives have now changed forever.

But only one woman knows what really happened at the end…and only one truly had his heart…

Published Date: 27 September 2022

My Review

The story started with Sebastian’s family gathered at his funeral with everyone have in the same question in their ind, how does it happened. As the story progresses, we were introduced to the 3 women in his life; Claire, Desiree and Noemie. The story was told from these 3 women’s perspective and essentially the story of Seb’s life. Claire is his ex wife and partner for 20+ years and mother of his 2 children. Desiree is the women he left Claire and Noemie, Seb’s lover and the last women who the last saw him alive.

Honestly, from the title and synopsis of this book, it was not something i would pick for myself but i m glad that i did. It is a family drama and i love the narrative alternating from present to past and from each character’s point of view which allow the reader to understand how thing really are which unfortunately the character is not privy do. Overall it is a well constructed story that weaves between the main characters.

My Rating

Book Review – Hate, Rinse, Repeat By Whitney Dineen & Melanie Summers

Christmas is a time for hate…

Maisy Moore is not looking forward to the holiday season. As owner of the only hair salon in Gamble, Alaska, she’ll be run off her feet helping her clients get dolled up for Christmas and New Years Eve parties. Parties she’ll never be invited to.

But that’s not the worst of it. As a single mom, she knows she still won’t be able to give her seven-year-old son, Jack, the kind of magical Christmas his classmates get. Telling him how much she loves him will only get a kid that age so far. If only she could give him what he really wants—to know who his dad is.

The last thing Maisy needs is for NHL star Chase Evans to come waltzing back into town like he’s God’s gift to women. But that’s exactly what he does.

After a taking a crosscheck from behind, Chase’s season is over. Instead of scoring goals, he’s recovering from shoulder surgery, and according to his mother, there’s no better place to recover than home. Because let’s face it, basking in the glow of local adoration won’t be too bad. There are no fans quite like hometown fans.

Chase doesn’t expect is to find Maisy Moore still single. When he does, he decides to see if maybe they could rekindle their brief romance that occurred the night of their ten-year high school reunion. But when he tries to talk to her, he discovers Maisy’s feelings of lust have turned to loathing. And he’s determined to find out why.

Will Maisy manage to keep the identity of her son a secret? Will there be a holiday miracle that will reunite two hard-headed lovers? Will the BOGO special on shampoo and conditioner be a hit?

Published Date: 27 October 2022

My Review

Maisy is a single mom to a seven year old son who live in her small town and own a beauty salon. No one know who is her son father and she guarded the info tightly. After a bad injury, Chase Evans is back in town after his career as a pro hockey player ended. He and Maisy has met at their class reunion and it was there that Jack was conceived. Chase have no idea that he have a son. With Chase back in town, Maisy found it hard for her to continue with the secret and she could not bring herself to tell Chase who Jack is. Maisy is a victim of bully and as a result, she have low self esteem. She have trust issue and for her, relationship is alien to her.

The story is about insecurity, fear and miscommunication in a relationship and how it has cause trouble between 2 individual and preventing a relationship from developing. The banters between Maisy and chase will make you angry and sad. Every page have something that will keep your interest going. Overall this book is a heartwarming story to me.

My Rating

Book Review – A Secret Escape To Sunshine Island By Georgina Troy

Welcome to the sunshine island – where the beaches are golden, the lifestyle is perfect and anything is possible.

Popstar Matteo Stanford is eager to escape to the sunshine island to catch up with his old friend Alex and secretly film his latest music video. But within moments of landing, the location for the shoot is leaked to the press, and his island escape and video might be over before they start.

Not to be defeated, Alex’s girlfriend Piper recruits her two best friends Casey and Tara, who run the Smoke and Mirrors stall at the The Cabbage Patch market. It doesn’t take Casey more than a moment to realise the perfect setting for Matteo’s video is Gorey castle, but securing the venue means Casey is soon planning a secret wedding, finding an actress and becoming a set designer!

It’s chaos and crazed fans, peppered with the sweetest moments she’s ever experienced. But could a popstar really fall for island girl Casey Norman?

Published Date: 17 November 2022

My Review

Matteo is in Sunshine Island scouting for place to shoot his music video and visit his best friend, Alex. Unlike other famous celebrity, he seem to really down to earth. Casey is a sweet lady who are willing to find a new location for the shoot and organise it for Matteo. Both Casey and Matteo attracted to each other but their relationship have its complication: Matteo is a celebrity and Casey, just a normal girl from a small town.

The story focus on Casey and Matteo and how their story developed. It is a really good chemistry depicted between them in the story despite their different background. Storyline move on at an excellent pace with focus on family and friendship and lovely sense of community . Overall it is a delightful read to me.

My Rating

Book Review – Hammer My Heart By Michelle Angelle

All’s fair in love and war until your heart is on the line.

Max blames himself for losing his family home, but when he’s cast on the popular reality show, Go Hard or Go Home, he can’t believe his luck. If only his competition wasn’t a gorgeous woman in work boots and tight overalls.

Sam’s often underestimated because of her looks, but she’s determined to sweep the competition. Not even a cute guy in Clark Kent glasses will distract her. Will her mad woodworking skills and charisma be enough to win over the social media crowd?

Sam and Max should hate each other, but they can’t deny the chemistry simmering between them. When the competition heats up, they must decide if they’ll follow their hearts or fight for the renovated farmhouse. There can only be one winner in this game, but is the prize worth the cost of victory?

Published Date: 28 May 2022

My Review

Max and Sam won the right to compete on Go Hard or Go Home reality competition show. Both of them have their own reason for entering this competition. Max and Sam met at 3rd round auditions and take an immediate dislike to each other. As the two of them fall in love with each other, they felt trapped in the competition facing an obnoxious and manipulative hose

This story is about enemies to lovers theme. The banter between Max and Sam is amazing and I love how both of them trying to help each other eve though they are a competitor against each other. Love the reality concept storyline. There are many twists and turn which keep me turning the pages. Overall it is a pleasant quick read for me.

My Rating

Book Review – Marrying The Billionaire Best Friend By Holly Kerr

Mase Stirling—with his balls and his billions—might be the perfect leading man for some.

Not Fiona.

Mase is a baseball player, billionaire’s son, and all-around fun guy. He collects names and numbers as easily as his father pays the bills, sliding into DMs as smoothly as he slides out of their lives. He’s a player both on and off the field and all the tabloids stories prove that he likes it that way.

Fiona prefers the quiet life, happy to watch her friends fall in love like one of her favorite romance novels. Mase, with his leading man looks, isn’t the type to be a knight-in-shining-armor—at least not until he swoops in to rescue Fiona from a panic attack in the middle of a Las Vegas nightclub, But after a few Alabama Slammers, some dance moves even better than Sam Rockwell, and her own Pretty Woman shopping spree, Fiona realizes there’s another side to the scoundrel Mase Stirling.

A side she might actually be falling for.

But when family and furious ex-girlfriends get involved, Fiona’s happily ever after is threatened. Will Mase be able to rescue her again, or will she have to save herself?

Marrying the Billionaire Best Friend is the fourth book in the Suitor Science Series, a sweet romantic comedy with a billionaire bad boy and the sweet, shy girl next door proving that opposites do attract, and true love might be found in Las Vegas.

Published Date : 25 October 2022

My Review

Fiona and Mase are in Las Vegas to celebrate their best friend’s engagement. Fiona is a scientist and struggle to find love while her friends around her have found theirs. Mase is a billionaire playboy. Fiona dislike Mase for his reputation based on the scandal that she read from the tabloids. Things started to turn around when Mase showed his protectiveness over her at the engagement events. They spend the night away understanding each other and ended with them leaving the Elvis Wedding Chapel wearing wedding rings. They decide to keep it a secret as they don’t want their wedding spoilt their friend’s engagement weekend.

From the start of the book, I loved Mase and having him and Fiona as the main character feel like adding chaos instead of picture perfect into the story but it ended well. Love how Fiona took the step to confront Mase’s grandfather which really amazed me. Love how the dialogue was scripted too. Overall it is a sweet and heartwarming romance story to read

My Rating

Book Review – Sugar And Spice By Kimberly Kincaid

Ingredients:

One by-the-book cake caterer

One rule-breaking hotshot pastry chef

One prize in a Christmas cookie competition that will skyrocket both of their careers

Mix well and add a whole lot of heat that doesn’t stay in the kitchen.

Serve with a side of opposites attract, holiday cheer, and a hard-fought happily ever after.

Published Date: 15 November 2022

My Review

Pete have an aim to be a Pastry Chef @ L’Orangerie and he will do what it take to get the position. In order to bring him closer to his ambition, he need to win the cookie competition. Lily on the other hand, want to own a bakery shop as baking at home is getting harder for her and when she hears about the cookie competition, she knew winning would make pave the way for her.

They started as fierce competitors but it doesn’t take too long for the sparks to fly. Both of them are thrown together during the competition a number of times as team mates, Lily started to get to know the real Pete and she likes what she see very much.

Overall, it is a quick to read love romance definitely full of sugar and spice.

My Rating

Book Review – How To Kiss Your Grumpy Boss By Jenny Proctor

Perry Hawthorne is my boss. Only my boss. And I do NOT have a crush.

When one of THE Hawthorne brothers—known by their chiseled jawlines and their family-run farm and event center—hires me to be his virtual assistant, I do everything I can to keep him firmly in the work zone.

His grumpy demeanor helps.

His smoking hot profile picture does not.

But even if I do have a crush (a very tiny one), I can’t catch real feelings for a million different reasons.

Besides the whole business part of our relationship, I’m a single mom. I have to think about what’s best for my son, Jack. And my grumpy, divorced, humorless boss isn’t exactly giving me “ready to be a stepdad” vibes.

When Perry upgrades me from virtual to in-person assistant, I wonder if I’ve gotten him all wrong. He’s actually pretty great with Jack. And with me? Let’s just say the chemistry crackling between us might vaporize all my reasons for keeping my distance.

Trouble is, after his messy divorce, I’m not sure Perry’s ready to bet on a new relationship. But it isn’t just my heart that’s on the line. It’s Jack’s, too. And after everything we went through before my husband died, I’m not sure that’s a gamble I’m ready to take, no matter how desperate Jack is for a daddy.

Published Date : 1 November 2022

My Review

Lila was hired by Perry to be his virtual assistant to help him get organised. Perry is a serious and grumpy boss but he is hardworking and very protective of those that he loved. Lila is a single mom who has been through a lot and is determined to provide a better life for her son, Jack. Everything seem to be going well until he meet Lila in person.

The book carry a messy yet complex storyline. Not just with both characters having a very different personality but when there is a child involved. When they finally meet face to face, there is an instant sparks between and I love their amazing banter. As the story develop, their instant connection grow into something wonderful to read. The character is well developed and I truly love them very much.

My Rating

Book Review – The Wrong Bridesmaid By Lauren Landish

Opposites don’t just attract—they ignite—in a flirty against-all-odds romance by Wall Street Journal bestselling author Lauren Landish.

Wyatt Ford hightailed it out of Cold Springs to get away from his influential family and the unwanted privilege that came with it. Returning for his brother’s wedding dredges up every reason he left. One unexpected bright spot: a curvy knockout who slings burgers, hustles pool…and hates the last name Ford.

Hazel Sullivan is fiercely independent and happy to be maid of honor for her best friend’s wedding, but she isn’t looking for romance. Especially not with a man whose family is dividing her town into a battleground with their development plans. Fighting the family is easy. Fighting Wyatt? Not so much. Why does the enemy have to be so drop-dead gorgeous?

The sparks that fly between Hazel and Wyatt might start out as combat, but one kiss and it’s total surrender. How is a happy ever after even possible for two people with so little in common? Except, of course, for an overwhelming attraction and that growing temptation to say “I do” themselves.

Published Date : 25 October 2022

My Review

Wyatt left Cold Spring to get away from his uncle’s manipulative way and to escape his family’s legacy. To him, this is the only way out for him to prove himself to his father his worthiness. He have no intention to return to Cold Spring up to until his brother’s plea for him to return to witness his wedding.

Wyatt met Hazel upon arriving in town and the attraction is immediate. Hazel is going to be her best friend’s bridesmaid and as both of them prepare for their roles in the wedding, they keep trying to avoid each other but to no avail.

This book is funny and sweet and I like reading the way Wyatt and Hazel’s relationship develop. Love the banter and chemistry between them. Wyatt is rough on the outside who isn’t bad after all and Hazel being sassy and sharp tongue who put people on their place.

My Rating

Book Review – Just Say Yes By Maxine Morrey

Wedding planner Madeleine lives in a picture-perfect thatched cottage, in a picture-perfect English country village.

There’s only one problem – dream cottages take a lot of work, and with a leaking roof, and not enough money to pay for it, what Maddie needs now is a big wedding to plan.

So she’s delighted when she takes on the wedding of Californian heiress Peyton, to all-round good guy Patrick. She’s less delighted to find out that she’s going to have help – from the admittedly gorgeous, but equally maddening, tall, dark and handsome best man Lorcan.

The wedding is set to take place in a castle in rural Ireland, and so, in no time, Maddie and Lorcan are on their way to Ballalee. Life hasn’t always been easy for Maddie, and work has become her refuge. But soon the warmth and humour of Lorcan’s Irish family and friends start to chip away at Maddie’s walls. And as the big day approaches, it might be time for Maddie to focus less on her clients’ love life and more on her own…

Published Date: 8 November 2022

My Review

Madeline is a wedding planner who was engaged by Peyton to plan her wedding to Patrick. As they are around for the wedding, Patrick’s good friend Lorcan agreed to help with the wedding detail. As they travel to Ireland and spending time together, they get to know each other and not long after, Madeline found herself to be attracted to him.

The characters are well developed with great chemistry. Madeline is strong l,focused and determined character who thrives on routine while Lorcan is laid back and compassionate. They have this wonderful opposites attract. Overall it is a light hearted relationship romance that i enjoyed.

My Rating

Book Review – The Lost Letters Of Ireland By Susanne O’Leary

Edwina is looking for a fresh start. So when a friend suggests she renovates a series of coastguard cottages in the tiny village of Sandy Cove, she wonders if the beautiful Irish seaside town might be her chance for a new beginning.

Soon after she arrives, Edwina meets Shane O’Flaherty, a charming local doctor, with whom she feels an instant connection. As the pair walk the streets of the picturesque village together, Edwina’s feelings grow stronger, and she begins to wonder whether Sandy Cove might be the place she can finally call home.

But when Edwina discovers a message in a bottle, written twenty years ago and washed ashore at Wild Rose Bay, she is haunted by its contents. Touched by the heartbreaking letter, Edwina resolves to find the person who wrote it.

As she begins to uncover the identity of the person who wrote the letter all those years ago, everything Edwina thought she knew about Shane changes in an instant. Has she unearthed a secret that should never have come to light? And does her heart still lie in Sandy Cove?

Published Date: 20 October 2022

My Review

Edwina is at a cross road that is her life. Edwina just resigned from her job and broke off with her boyfriend. On advice from her financial consultant, Edwina purchased five cottages in Sandy Cove to renovate and refurbish. She does not want the people to know as she foresee the people in town will double the integrity and purpose for the purchase. She also does not want to face her brother Max. She meets the town’s Doctor, Shane and his teen son Daniel whom she find an instant connection. She found a message in a bottle from a young man named Pearce and together with Daniel, she uncover the story of the bottle

This is a story about a new beginning and finding a place to call home.I was drawn to Edwina story as she discovers family secret and along the way finding the true meaning of family and love. Overall, it is a good read to me.

My Rating