Category Archives: Book Review

Review Card & Book Review- Happily Ever After By Jane Lovering

Andi Glover loves nothing more than a good book.

Any book in fact because when you’re raised by unconventional parents who think school’s for squares, alongside a deeply conventional sister who escapes home as soon as she can, fiction is eminently preferable to reality.

The only problem is that fiction isn’t the best way to learn about the real world. When Andi starts her new live-in job at Templewood Hall for the eccentric Lady Dawe and her enigmatic son Hugo, it’s tempting to think she’s fallen into the pages of one of her favourite gothic novels.

But the plot twists at Templewood Hall are stranger than fiction and it’s not long before Andi questions if she’s living in a romance novel or a whodunnit. Bumps in the night, a missing heir, ghostly apparitions and secrets that have been kept for generations – the mysteries mount up. Then there’s the inscrutable gardener who seems to appear when needed – is Andi right to hope for a happily-ever-after end to her story?

About The Author

My Review

This quirky novel blends gothic mystery and self-discovery rather than traditional romance. Andi, a book lover with no formal experience, takes a job cataloging a collection for the wealthy and aloof Lady Dawe. Growing up with parents who traveled constantly for their TV show, Andi found solace in books but struggled to build a life of her own. Upon arriving at the eerie estate, she meets Lady Dawe’s handsome son Hugo, a rude housekeeper, a deaf gardener, and a cat named The Master.

Andi soon realizes she was really hired to locate secret diaries revealing a long-ago affair between Lady Dawe and her late father-in-law. Gothic elements—mysterious noises, flickering lights, and literary chapter titles like Rebecca—add intrigue. Though Andi is interested in Hugo, the novel focuses more on her personal journey. A subplot about Hugo’s struggles feels somewhat distracting but is handled well. While Andi doesn’t fully find love or her life’s passion, the story is humorous and engaging, with a fitting conclusion that leaves room for new possibilities.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review – What Happens In Paradise By Olivia Spring

What happens in paradise… stays in paradise!

Hotel guest relations manager Jasmine, also known as a Love Alchemist, adores her job at the exclusive Spanish Love Hotel. She prides herself on helping guests meet their perfect match. But matchmaking is absolutely forbidden between staff. And so Jasmine must resist the attraction she feels every time she’s around delectable sous-chef, Alejandro. The problem is, she knows the feeling is mutual. But she cannot jeopardise her job or break the rules.

Because all her hard work is about to be recognized when she’s asked to set up the new branch of the hotel in Jamaica. With an ocean between her and temptation, Jasmine is ecstatic. This is just the distance she needs to keep her feelings under control. But there is one kink in her plan… Alejandro has been asked to join her. For two whole weeks!

Under the sultry Jamaican sun, keeping it strictly professional becomes impossible when romance is literally all around them! So they agree a (secret) holiday fling may help satisfy their desires and then they can move on. After all, what happens in paradise stays in paradise… right?

About The Author

My Review

This is a heartwarming holiday romance set in the Love Hotel series. Jasmine, a gifted matchmaker and hotel guest manager, struggles with her attraction to sous-chef Alejandro, as workplace relationships are strictly forbidden. To avoid temptation, she accepts a role opening a new hotel branch in Jamaica, only to find Alejandro will be joining her for two weeks. Amid the tropical paradise, their secret romance unfolds, blending passion, self-discovery, and festive charm. Olivia Spring’s engaging storytelling, vivid descriptions, and emotional depth make this a delightful read for contemporary romance fans.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review – The Ex Effect By Jo Watson

They had a night to remember. For all the wrong reasons.

Thirteen years ago, Ash was planning the night of her life with her high-school boyfriend, Logan. They were madly in love, wild about each other, and had been waiting patiently for this moment. It was going to be perfect.

That is, until it went down in very unsexy flames. Logan disappeared and Ash was left, quite frankly – and very inconveniently – sexually cursed.

After years of disastrous dating and even more disastrous sex, cinematographer Ash has almost given up. But some seriously flirtatious emails with location agent Maximillian Adam, to set up a scouting trip, offer her hope. Because if rumor is to be believed, Maximillian Adam might just be God’s sexual gift to women.

Is Max going to be the one to finally break the curse? And, even better, break it over and over again?

Or when Ash and Max finally come face to face, will they both get so much more than they bargained for?

About The Author

My Review

Ash believes she’s cursed in love, tracing her bad luck back to a disastrous first time with her teenage love, Max. Now a successful woman, she unknowingly flirts with him via email at work, convinced he might be the key to breaking the curse.

When a work trip takes them across Africa, Ash is shocked to discover Max’s true identity. As they navigate their past, hilarious mishaps and deep emotions resurface. Max is determined to win her back, proving their love never truly faded.

Filled with humor, romance, and stunning travel scenes, this is a heartfelt second-chance love story.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review- The Love Intervention By Caroline Khoury

Science says love is the solution to her problems, but will she find the right formula?

Clinical scientist Laila has no time to date. Cooped up in a hospital lab all day, she’s busy working towards her five-year plan. But when her carefully structured world starts to crumble, her friends stage an intervention – a love intervention.

Their plan: remind Laila there’s more to life than work and reconnect her with the three men who stole her heart while she was studying in the States ten years ago – Austin, Edoardo, and Mateo. From California to Puerto Rico and Costa Rica, Laila reunites with her past and reignites passions she thought were long dormant.

But who will be the one to rewrite her five-year plan? And was it just her love life which needed an intervention?

A sparklingly fun love-square…

About The Author

My Review

Laila, a dedicated clinical scientist, has spent years prioritizing work and family over romance. Concerned for her, her best friends stage a “love intervention,” planning a three-week trip where she reconnects with three past loves—Austin, Edoardo, and Mateo.

From California to Costa Rica, Laila faces old emotions, rekindled passion, and long-buried guilt. As she navigates second chances and self-discovery, she realizes she’s been holding herself back. The novel balances romance, grief, and personal growth, with well-placed flashbacks linking past and present.

While Laila evolves, the male characters feel less developed, but this remains her journey. A fun, heartfelt read with engaging travel and emotional depth, it leaves readers eager for more.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review- Remember I Love You By Claudia Carroll

Recently-widowed father of one Luke is desperate for a sign.

Since his beloved wife Helen passed, Luke and six-year-old Amy are just about keeping the show on the road, but he’d do anything to have Helen near him again.

Connie’s much-missed mum was everything to her daughter. A friend, a cheer-leader, a comfort, and the best housemate Connie ever had. What she wouldn’t give to speak to her one more time…

Teenage twins Alex and Lucy both miss their dad desperately but neither have the words to put it right.

In the heart of Dublin, a quiet community is forming, drawn together by the loved ones they have lost, but kept together by friendship and laughter. As Luke, Connie, Alex, Lucy and the other patrons of the Leesom Street Café learn to smile again, none of them are quite ready for meeting the person who may be able to make all their dreams come true.

Because if you love and listen hard enough, goodbye might not be the end.

About The Author

My Review

This novel follows Connie, Luke, and Lucasta, three individuals navigating the complexities of grief. Though the story centers on loss, it is written with warmth, humor, and a sense of hope, making it an uplifting rather than sorrowful read.

The characters find solace at a Bereavement Café, which becomes a supportive space where they share their struggles and participate in spiritual activities led by a local celebrity author. As they bond, they begin to heal—helping each other through life’s challenges, such as returning to work, single parenthood, and selling a family home, all while the world continues moving forward.

What sets this book apart is its lighthearted approach to mourning. It embraces the idea that lost loved ones remain with us in unexpected ways, whether through humorous signs or fond memories. Rather than simplifying grief, it portrays the experience authentically, much like reminiscing with family and friends, sharing both tears and laughter. This heartfelt and relatable story reassures readers that while loss is inevitable, love and connection endure, making it a comforting read for anyone coping with bereavement.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review – Born For This By Caitlin Devlin

Harley Carmichael-Roth was born into money. She has everything a girl could dream of, except the one thing she really wants—a successful career as an actor. Harley’s aunt Rachael Carmichael went from silver screen legend to Hollywood recluse, and now Harley cannot get in the door. That is, until she is cast to play Rachael, a woman she looks so similar to but doesn’t know. Is this her chance?

Invited into Rachael’s world, Harley wants to uncover everything about her glamorous life during the nineties in London, her trips to Hollywood, her friendships and why Rachael retreated from the world after her divorce.

But the closer Harley gets to Rachael, the more she realises that her aunt’s story exposes horrifying secrets about their family. To embody her aunt on screen, Harley needs to understand Rachael’s life, in all of its beauty and tragedy. But is Harley ready to accept the truth about her past? And can Rachael forgive—or is it too late for them both?

About The Author

My Review

Rachel Carmichael, a former global movie star, disappears from the spotlight after her high-profile marriage ends. Her niece, Harley Roth, struggling to make it in Hollywood, sees an opportunity when a movie about Rachel’s life is announced. Hoping for her big break, Harley gets unexpectedly close to Rachel, who is finally ready to share her story. But in Hollywood, truth and illusion blur.

Told from both women’s perspectives, the novel explores fame, ambition, and identity, with twists that keep readers guessing. Rachel’s diary offers a raw and humorous look into her life, while Harley wrestles with her own motivations. A gripping and well-crafted story, this novel delivers both depth and drama.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review- The Kiss Lottery By Ilsa Madden- Mills

Roses are red, violets are blue—someone in Rose has feelings for you…

Yeah, bad ones. Everly Davis didn’t leave her tight-knit hometown on the best terms. It’s been ten years, but you don’t forget heartbreak like that. Then again, the anonymous invite to the annual Kiss Lottery in Rose, Tennessee, gives Everly content for her podcast. And she has a bone to pick with that old heartbreak anyway.

Beckett Whitfield has never left Rose—and he’s never forgotten Everly. He even named the villain in his latest bestseller after her. Turns out she’s not happy about that. Nothing about their reunion is particularly happy, and after the way they left things, what did he expect?

When the Kiss Lottery pairs them together, Everly and Beckett will have to confront old feelings that never went away and the secrets they never shared. But finally telling each other everything might be exactly what they’ve needed all along.

About The Author

My Review

It is a charming and heartfelt novella that delivers a delightful mix of small-town nostalgia, second chances, and sizzling chemistry. Everly Davis’s return to Rose, Tennessee, after a decade away, sets the stage for a story filled with unresolved feelings, sharp banter, and emotional depth.

Everly and Beckett’s reunion is both tense and tender. Their shared past—full of pain, misunderstandings, and buried affection—makes their journey from former friends and exes to reluctant partners in the lottery especially compelling. Ilsa Madden-Mills does a great job balancing angst and humor, and the layered dynamic between the characters keeps the story engaging despite its shorter length.

With its sweet themes of forgiveness, rediscovery, and belonging, it hits all the right emotional notes. It’s a lovely, quick read that will leave you smiling, especially if you enjoy second-chance romances with heart, heat, and small-town charm.

My Rating

Link To Purchase

Review Card & Book Review- If We Could Turn Back Time By Sian O’Gorman

Three generations. Two families. One secret.

After another relationship disaster Alice Littleton returns home to spend summer in Dublin’s Sandycove with her Mum, Ciara and beloved grandmother, Eva at their family deli and grocers.

As Alice settles back into her old life with best friend Becca and her new boyfriend Conal Blake, she begins to fall back in love with the everyday rhythms of their family shop and Irish life. Is this the tonic she needs to mend a broken heart?

Single and with mid-life looming her mother Ciara is consumed with running the family deli and feels life is passing her by until best friend Mary-Marg suggests they restart the disco they used to run as teenagers. Could this be what Sandycove’s millennials need or will there be murder on the dancefloor?

But it seems all small-towns have their fair share of secrets and ultimately the past will always catch up with you.

Why does Conal’s grandmother insist on meeting Alice and what happened between her and Eva?
And why hasn’t Ciara spoken to Conal’s father, Paddy, for thirty years?

Is it time for the truth to be told so they can change their future?

About The Author

My Review

If We Could Turn Back Time is a heartwarming story about family, friendships, and finding joy in the present. After spending ten years in Australia, Alice returns home to Sandycove, where she reconnects with her mother, Ciara, and grandmother. While life abroad had its appeal, being back home brings its own comforts. Alice helps run the family shop, giving Ciara the freedom to enjoy life more, especially with her best friend, Mary-Marg. Their friendship is a highlight, as they embark on plans to bring fun and excitement to the over-forty-five community in their town.

However, an old family mystery involving Alice’s and Conal’s families lingers in the background. As Alice settles in, questions arise about their past connection. When the truth is finally revealed, it brings a mix of emotions and challenges both families to confront their history.

Filled with warmth, humor, and heartfelt moments, If We Could Turn Back Time is an uplifting novel about second chances, love, and the importance of embracing the present. The charming setting of Sandycove and the engaging storytelling make it a perfect, feel-good read.

My Rating

Link To Purchase