REVIEW - Rewrite the Stars by Emma Heatherington

I'm delighted to share my review of the latest novel by Emma Heatherington. This book explores the concept of fate and whether you can actually rewrite the stars. A concept I loved but for me whilst this had all the perfect ingredients for a great story overall I liked it rather than loved it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and publisher Harper Collins UK for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Released: 17 October 2019

The blurb 
From the moment they meet one December day there’s something between Charlotte Taylor and her brother’s best friend, Tom Farley. But Tom’s already taken and Charlie has to let him go. It’s another five years before their paths cross again only a secret from the past forces Charlie to make a choice. She promises herself she’ll never look back. The years pass and Charlie moves on with her life but she can never forget Tom. He’s always there whispering ‘What if?’. Can Charlie leave the life she has built for one last chance with Tom? Or is the one that got away not really the one at all?

In my opinion
This book is so much more than just a romance. Firstly, the author delivered a deeper exploration of love and relationships than your average romance novel. But, more significantly, it was really thought-provoking exploring a number of other themes and ideas alongside the romantic story line.

I absolutely loved the whole concept of this book regularly considering the idea of fate and destiny myself. There was a similarity with the film “Sliding Doors”, exploring the different paths that a woman's life might have taken depending on her reaction to one momentous event. For the record I believe in destiny and that everything happens for a reason. Although author Emma Heatherington says it better saying: “No matter how we try and shape it, fate will always make sure we end up exactly where we are meant to be.”

Love Interest #1 Tom is main character Charlotte’s first crush and soul mate. Five years later they bump into each other again on the same night that she meets Jack, Love Interest #2, for the first time. But, their reunion is short lived as a family tragedy forces them apart yet again. Charlotte then goes onto marry Jack but can’t stop wondering ‘what if’ with regards to Tom. Unfortunately it did mean though that the story was a bit repetitive at times as the main character continued to brood over her past, present and future.

Similarly, I was also captivated by the idea of life not turning out as we planned. As children we dream of being astronauts or doctors or whatever we want, we truly believe we can be anything we want. Which of course we can but the reality is that we often find ourselves on a different path for whatever reason. Like Charlotte who dreamed of being a singer songwriter but ended up as a teacher enjoying singing songs to a delighted audience of primary school children instead.

Lastly, deeper topics of mental health and family ties were explored. For me though, whilst I understood and emphasized with Charlotte’s brother’s mental health issues, the same couldn’t be said for my feelings towards the main character herself. Charlotte has a gorgeous, kind husband who adores her, idyllic country living in a beautiful cottage, a supportive circle of family and friends, and a rewarding career as a teacher – yet she is miserable. I understand that mental health doesn’t work like that and is extremely complex and uncontrollable but to me Charlotte just came across as a bit whiney and ungrateful rather than truly in a dark place like her brother. As such I couldn’t really connect with her.

And, because of that I just liked this novel rather than loved it. It had all the ingredients for a great story yet for me there was something slightly missing.

The author
Follow @emmalou13 on Twitter to find out more.

REVIEW - A Perfect Cornish Christmas by Phillipa Ashley

I love a heart-warming romance set in a charming village location and especially one set at Christmas. As such I was really excited to be given the opportunity to NetGalley and publisher Avon Books UK to read Phillips Ashley's new novel before publication.

Released: 31 October 2019

The blurb 
Christmas in Cornwall is just around the corner but after last Christmas revealed a shocking family secret, Scarlett’s hardly feeling merry and bright. All she wants this Christmas is to know who her real father is. So Scarlett heads to the little Cornish town of Porthmellow, where she believes the truth of her birth is hidden. She just didn’t bargain on being drawn into the Christmas festival preparations – or meeting Jude Penberth, whose charm threatens to complicate life further. Everything will come to a head at Porthmellow’s Christmas Festival … But can Scarlett have the perfect Christmas this year, or are there more surprises on the way?

In my opinion
As I said I love a heart-warming romance set in a charming village location and even more so one set at Christmas. And, this was exactly that. Like sisters Scarlett and Ellie I too fell in love with the Cornish seaside village of Porthmellow with its cosy cafes, welcoming pub, village traditions and bracing seascape. The sense of community spirit as all the locals got involved in the Solstice celebrations and annual Boxing Day swim was really inspiring and heart-warming. The characters were also all extremely likeable, from main characters Ellie and Scarlett to supporting villagers such as the Carman's. 

It was a bonus to be treated to not one but two budding romances, with both sisters falling for a hot, single local. However, this was also a slight negative for me as having two lead characters, along with a third person narrative, meant that it wasn't really anyone's story. As such, whilst I liked all the characters, I didn't really connect with any of them to any great extent.

The book started extremely dramatically and promisingly with Scarlett gate-crashing the pub's Christmas Day Lunch for the Lonely after a family history gift revealed her Dad wasn't actually her real Dad and her mum doggedly refused to comment. However, unfortunately this also set the scene for the rest of the book as her mum continued to remain silent, and continued and continued for chapter after chapter. As such the story was a bit slow and drawn out in places.

That said regarding the identity of Scarlett's father there were plenty of hidden twists along the way, and his eventual identity was completely unexpected, if a little far-fetched. However, after such a long build-up and such devastating effect on the family, surprisingly it was all over and done with in a matter of pages concentrating too much on the reveal rather than the back story. Similarly there were lots of other intriguing themes that were introduced, such as Aaron's post-traumatic stress, Auntie Joan's hedonistic lifestyle and Judge's jolting fiancee, but these were never really explored. I would have loved to have heard more on each of these.

Overall, this was an easy, enjoyable read but just not a must-read in my opinion. Because it was set over the course of a year it was sufficiently festive for a Christmas book but not so much that it couldn't be enjoyed at any time of the year. I believe this is the second of author Phillipa Ashley's novels to be set in Porthmellow, with some of the original characters making cameo appearances, but it

The author
Follow @PhillipaAshley on Twitter or find out more at phillipa-ashley.com

PREVIEW: Three hours by Rosamund Lupton

I'm delighted to share my preview of the forthcoming thriller by Rosamund Lupton. In a word.....wow! This book was unlike anything I've read. It was truly mind blowing and really got under my skin. I would urge anyone and everyone to read it!

Many thanks to NetGalley and publisher Penguin Books for giving me the opportunity to read this book prior to publication.

Expected: January 2020 

The blurb

Three hours to save the people you love.

From the Sunday Times bestselling author, Rosamund Lupton, comes an electrifying, pulse-racing new novel that takes us deep into the heart of what it means to be human.

Three hours is 180 minutes or 10,800 seconds. It is a morning's lessons, a dress rehearsal of Macbeth, a snowy trek through the woods. It is an eternity waiting for news. Or a countdown to something terrible. It is 180 minutes to discover who you will die for and what men will kill for.

In rural Somerset in the middle of a blizzard, the unthinkable happens: a school is under siege. From the wounded headmaster in the library, unable to help his trapped pupils and staff, to teenage Hannah in love for the first time, to the parents gathering desperate for news, to the 16 year old Syrian refugee trying to rescue his little brother, to the police psychologist who must identify the gunmen, to the students taking refuge in the school theatre, all experience the most intense hours of their lives, where evil and terror are met by courage, love and redemption.

In my opinion
First, I must first apologise, however, as it's actually quite hard to talk about this book without spoiling it by giving anything away. Anyway it wasn't just the story - of a school under siege by gunmen - that affected me but the clever telling of that story. Throughout there were references to real-life atrocities such as school shootings in America and other topics that we're familiar with from the news. Parts were narrated as text message extracts or newspaper headlines and parts from the perspective of the police investigation. And, I think it was these things that made it horrifyingly realistic. It invaded my consciousness in much the same way as a real rolling news story would - in that I couldn't stop thinking about the children and their families and my own loved ones until it was over. 

Author Rosamund Lupton somehow manages to write in a way that is both beautifully deep and emotional and yet at the same time thrillingly fast-paced and tense. She tackles a variety of difficult subjects with compassion and sensitivity including mental health, diversity, politics and relationships. Whilst each chapter focuses on a different time segment counting down from the first gun shot to the nail-biting conclusion three hours later. 

The story is told through the perspectives of a large cast of characters, each with their own stories which shape their behaviours and response to trauma, but all providing a fascinating and unique insight into the human psyche. Side by side are good and bad, brave and withdrawn, socially confident and awkward, those who've already faced adversity and those who haven't, and police, victims and perpetrators. For example, at one point you have the joyous relief of parents who hear their children have been evacuated to safety playing out in front of the anxious heart-broken families of those who don't yet know the fate of their children.

I liked this more than I can put into words. It was totally addictive - one where you're torn between enjoying it so much you never want it to end and being so gripped that you can't stop yourself from racing through the pages. A must read.

The author

Follow Rosamund Lupton on Twitter https://twitter.com/rosamundlupton or find out more at www.rosamundlupton.com.

Books vs E-books

I love my tablet and use it every single day. I also love books but by books I mean 'real' books aka paper books and as such have avoided e-books for the last x years since their launch. However, when NetGalley offered me the chance to e-read one of my favourite authors (Karen Clarke in case you're interested) pre-release I finally succumbed and downloaded my first e-book. So, am I now a convert?

The thing I struggled most with was not being able to gauge my progress. This is especially true with a print book towards the end, when the pages are getting fewer and fewer I want to keep reading until the big reveal in a psychological thriller or the happy every after in a romance. But, with the e-book I couldn't work out if I had time to read until the end, or even another chapter, as I had no idea how much was left. Was I nearer the beginning or end and how many pages even were there?

One of my favourite places to read is in the bath - a nice long soak in a hot bubble bath with a good book. But, that just doesn't work with an e-reader. It's too risky; I was worried about dropping it in the water in which case with a book it's simply annoying but with an electronic device it's game over. It's also impossible; wet fingers and scrolling just doesn't really work. 

Because of this, it meant that I started reading a paper book (in the bath) alongside the e-book (when not in the bath). For me though having more than one book on the go diminishes my enjoyment of both, with two stories and two sets of characters I just couldn't fully focus on either. So, whilst fans of e-books argue that e-reading is more flexible because you can carry around an entire library or books, if you so wanted, on one little device - the point is that I just don't want to. I'm strictly a one-book-at-a-time girl.

Similarly, fans argue that not only are e-books easier to carry around but they also take up less space in your house. True, but I like looking at my books. I want to display them, they are an integral part of who I am and what I like. My books aren't just for reading but are an interior design feature, decorating the walls of my house. Many of my books are treasured possessions, my favourite being an old edition of "Five Children and It" that won in a school writing competition. Others have been gifted to me by family or friends, perhaps with a meaningful inscription inside the front cover.

E-books just don't make good presents; you can't see them, they never really belong to you and often you can't even keep them as they expire or can't be transferred when you get a new device. If I love a book I either want to keep it to reread or share it with as many people as possible whether that's passing it onto a friend or family member or donating it charity for a stranger to enjoy, When I first started commuting into London my brother was quick to make sure that I understood that people don't like talking on the train (especially to strangers) so he was gobsmacked when one day I got chatting to somebody on the train about the book they were reading only for them to give me said book at the end of our journey.

I'm notoriously bad at charging things up so inevitably my reading kept being rudely interrupted by the low battery warning and on one occasion even cut short when I completely ran out of charge. Books, however, don't rely on battery power, chargers or WI-FI - they never disappoint but are like a faithful friend ready and waiting whenever you are.

This also leads me onto to my most powerful (get it power-ful - sorry but I couldn't resist) objection to e-readers. I spend so much of my time these days staring at a screen whether on a computer at work, on my tablet at home, on my mobile phone or even just controlling my heating with smart technology - that for me reading a good fashioned paper book is a chance to do something that doesn't involve screen time. Whilst I can lose myself in a book for hours, my eyes frequently tired when e-reading. And, we all know that doctors and sleep scientists recommend complete avoidance of screen time before bed (again another favourite time of mine to read).

As well as not wanting to be on-screen, I didn't actually even like e-reading. Despite really wanting to read and enjoying the book, I still found it really difficult to focus and stop myself scrolling and skim reading as I do online. With a paper book I read deeply, focusing on every little detail, committing it to memory and building an emotional as well as physical connection to the story and characters. I am totally immersed, I can feel the book in my hand as I turn the pages, I can smell the paper and I can see the words permanently imprinted on the page.

I also missed all the subtle nuances you get with a print book. With print, I love uniqueness of every book, knowing that the authors and publishers have carefully selected fonts and formatting to complement the story. For example, the book I'm currently reading, set in a bookshop, has used a beautiful old-fashioned shop sign style graphic for chapter headings. Another included scenic photographs as page fillers bringing the scenery and locations being described to life.

To be fair, my e-experience wasn't all bad. I did enjoy the immediacy; the fact that I could download a new book and start reading it within seconds - no need to visit a shop or wait for a book to be delivered. Although that said I love a bookshop; shelves and shelves of colourful covers catching my eye leading me to stumble across a novel or author that I otherwise would never have discovered.

As in this case, e-reading also offers access to writing that I otherwise might not be able to read; from pre-releases to short stories or independent, self-published authors. Of course, e-books are also considerably cheaper than their print counterparts. But, I would argue that you get what you pay for and for me paper books are worth every penny.

So, no I'm not a convert - although I wouldn't be as resistant to e-books in the future as I have been to date. But, e-books or print it really doesn't matter - the important thing is that we continue to love reading however we do so.