Library of Clean Reads: England

Showing posts with label England. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Love, Second Time Around by Penny Appleton (Review)

Read this book to see if love is possible the second time around.

Book Details:

Book Title: Love, Second Tim Around by Penny Appleton
Category: Adult Fiction, 176 pages
Genre: Sweet Romance
Publisher: Curl Up Press
Release date: April 27, 2017
Content Rating: G

Book Description:

Maggie Stewart is a retired lawyer, working to preserve the heritage of her little English cottage in Summerfield village. Her children have grown and she's content to ride horses in the countryside and enjoy her retirement. Except she needs money for her renovations – and she's lonely. When she joins her old environmental team to go up against an oil company, Maggie finds herself working in opposition to a man she once loved from afar, many years ago.

Idaho ranch owner Greg Warren is rich and entitled, with a dark past that he hides behind a professional smile. But inside, he struggles with loneliness after the loss of his wife, and the rage of a wild daughter who won't let him move on. Love blooms as Maggie and Greg take a chance on a new start, but can they find a balance between their two worlds? In this sweet romance, set between the English countryside and the mountains and farmland of Idaho, can Maggie and Greg find love second time around?

Buy the Book:

Amazon

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My Review:

Reviewed by Sandra Olshaski

Retired lawyer Maggie Stewart lives in charming 300-year-old Square Cottage in Summerfield, England - "it (the cottage) looks like a cottage teapot without a handle or a spout." Maggie is divorced with grown children. And more or less happy with her lot in life, albeit a bit lonely. Upon attending an environmental conference in Edinburgh Maggie reconnects with rich, handsome 60-ish Greg Warren from America, a heartthrob from the past. Mutual attraction rekindles, and the story begins.

I enjoyed the London landmarks the author referenced - the Tate Museum, the Globe Theatre, the Thames, and St. Paul's Cathedral, among others that lent authenticity to the story.

Both Maggie and Greg are sympathetic characters. When obstacles to the growing relationship arise, Maggie is pragmatic and upbeat, "...when the hope of another partner is gone, there's room for smaller delights: luxuriating in the bath, the song of the robin outside, visiting friends....I'm free to do whatever I want to do." Maggie is a strong, independent woman.

I appreciate the historical references to the Nez Perce in Idaho (where Greg lives), the wolf program in Yellowstone Park and the Appaloosa horses that authenticate the American part of the story.

I can wholeheartedly recommend this clean, romantic novel.

Disclosure: Thanks to the author for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

About the Author:

Penny Appleton is the pen name of a mother and daughter team from the south-west of England. We both enjoy traveling and many of the Summerfield sweet romance stories contain aspects of our adventures. We both enjoy walking in nature, and a gin & tonic while watching the sun go down.

Some of our favorite romance authors include Danielle Steele and Nora Roberts, plus we love The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCulloch, as well as Jane Austen and Stephenie Meyer. Our favorite movies include Legends of the Fall, A Room with a View, and The Notebook.

We are good friends … although sometimes we want to strangle each other! Family relationships are at the heart of our books.

You can find all the books and sign up to be notified of new releases at: www.PennyAppleton.com
or check out the author's pictures pictures on Facebook.com/PennyAppletonAuthor.

Monday, July 10, 2017

Savoring the Seasons (Chilton Crosse Book 4) by Traci Borum (Review)

This is a charming, contemporary love story set in a quintessential English village.

Book Details:

Book Title: Savoring the Seasons (Chilton Crosse Book 4) by Traci Borum
Category: Women's Fiction, 321 pages
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing , LLC
Release Date: June 28, 2017
Content Rating: G

Book Description:

Julia Bentley spent her fortieth birthday doing what she always does, baking treats for the customers in her Cotswold bakery and taking care of her elderly father. She doesn’t realize how stagnant her life has become until a younger man, Tristan Hannigan, moves to the village and shows interest in her. As Julia becomes closer to Tristan, he begins to season her mundane days and to challenge how she views the world.

The relationship is threatened when Julia’s doubts and insecurities overwhelm her, and the secret she’s afraid to reveal creates a wedge between them. Will Julia choose the easy route, slipping back into her daily routine and living without love? Or will she find the courage to follow her heart and accept the love she deserves?

Buy the Book:

Amazon

Add to Goodreads

My Review

Reviewed by Sandra Olshaski

This is a gentle love story. Almost-forty, Julia, runs the village bakery and is a caretaker for her father. Enter handsome, kind, twenty-nine-year-old Tristan who seems to be interested in her.

The story takes place in a quintessentially English village, Chilton Crosse. The author is a Texan, but quite convincingly evokes life in a British village. I like the development of the camaraderie between the people.

The two main characters, Julia and Tristan, are complex and believable, each with their respective baggage. But, sensible, dutiful Julia is slowly falling in love with Tristan – "she would happily place herself under Tristan's delicious spell." Doubts and secrets, however, threaten to keep them apart.

Although the pace is slow-moving as one would expect of life in a village, it deals with real issues – overcoming fears, taking charge of one's life, taking a chance on love. Grab a big mug of tea, imagine yourself in the English countryside and savor this lovely, clean romance.

Disclosure: Thanks to the author for sending me this book. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

About the Author:

Traci Borum is a writing teacher and native Texan. She's also an avid reader of women's fiction, most especially Rosamunde Pilcher novels. Since the age of 12, she's written poetry, short stories, magazine articles, and novels.

Traci also adores all things British and is completely addicted to Masterpiece Theater---must be all those dreamy accents! Aside from having big dreams of getting a book published, it's the little things that make her the happiest: deep talks with friends, a strong cup of hot chocolate, a hearty game of fetch with her Corgi, and puffy white Texas clouds always reminding her to "look up, slow down, enjoy your life."

Visit Traci's official website and sign up for her newsletter here:
http://www.traciborum.com/p/newsletter.html

Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Conversations with Tom by Angela Lockwood (Review)

Meet a sympathetic ginger feline!

Book Details:

Book Title: Conversations with Tom by Angela Lockwood
Category: Adult Fiction, 282 pages
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Publisher: self-published
Release date: January 31, 2017
Content rating: PG-13 (plenty of f-bombs)

Book Description:

When Jeff and his wife Lisa adopt a kitten named Tom, they have no idea their marriage is in trouble. When the fluffy kitten turns out to be a boisterous cat, hell-bent on destroying furniture, Lisa realises life isn’t turning out the way she’d planned. Tom’s conviction that 4am really is the best time of day, plus her husband’s disastrous business sense, soon drives Lisa into the arms of another man. Newly single, and at a loss, Jeff turns to his cat for a sympathetic furry ear. The witty and convincingly cat-like character he imagines becomes the friend he so desperately needs. But as his owner agonises about love and life, Tom concerns himself with more important matters, such as soliciting tuna and how to get better acquainted with the neighbour’s rabbit. Although they don’t always understand each other, Jeff and Tom form an unbreakable bond – until a trip to the vet changes everything…

My Review:

Reviewed by Sandra Olshaski

This is a very charming tale, partly narrated by Tom, a ginger cat, who is a compelling character. If you are a cat owner, you will recognize the descriptions of Tom's behavior. I didn't care for any of the other characters as much as Tom. Jeff is lazy and self-centered, but he does love Tom, which sort of redeems him. Jeff does, however, grow into a better person by the end of the story.

It is well written, flows smoothly and is witty and funny. "It's a little-known fact that to alleviate boredom, cats like to create lists." One of my favourite parts is when Tom remembers his trip to the vet for neutering and wonders if aliens have experimented on him. And the whole tuna thing made me laugh.

All in all the author has written in a way that elevates a story that could easily have been silly. Cat lovers will enjoy it. I just wish she hadn’t peppered her story with so many f-bombs – entirely unnecessary. In my opinion it takes away from an otherwise delightful novel.

Disclosure: Thanks to the author for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

About the Author:

Angela Lockwood-van der Klauw was born in the Netherlands. She learned her trade as a jeweller and gemmologist at the Vakschool Schoonhoven before moving to Edinburgh as an apprentice jeweller. There she met and later married her husband Adam. Angela ran her own jeweller’s shop in Edinburgh for ten years before she and her husband moved to the south of France in 2011. Like Cameron, Angela prefers the climate there, but often thinks about the town she left behind and its people.

Cameron’s story was born in the spring of 2013, a very wet spring during which Angela found herself climbing the walls, frustrated that she couldn’t go out and have her usual long walks along the seafront. Seeing his wife’s frustration, Adam suggested ‘Why don’t you write a book?’

Angela thought about it for a few days, then switched on her laptop and started writing. Language in the Blood (Book1) was her first book. She has since published two more titles.

Thursday, April 23, 2015

The Vagabond Vicar by Charlotte Brentwood

The Vagabond Vicar by Charlotte Brentwood
ISBN: 9780473302696
Published: Oct 15, 2014

Kindle edition

My Review
Reviewed by Sandra

It’s 1805 London. William Brook, a young vicar wants to serve humanity by going to far-flung lands. What he actually gets is a “living” in the English countryside at a village called Amberley. He quickly becomes a person of interest to the local mothers looking for an eligible man for their unmarried daughters. He’s not interested, but somehow Cecilia, a pretty young woman keeps catching his eye, although she herself is not looking for a husband. Her mother, however, has other plans, wanting a secure future for her daughter, preferably to a man from a rich, prominent family. A vicar will never do. It’s a pure Jane Austen feeling.

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Wednesday, April 1, 2015

The Tapestry by Nancy Bilyeau (Review & Giveaway)

The Tapestry by Nancy Bilyeau

ISBN: 978-1476756370

Touchstone Publishing

Published: March 24, 2015
UK Publication Date: April 24, 2015

Hardcover, 390 pages

Review
Reviewed by Sandra

Is it possible that this third book in the Joanna Stafford series of fantastic historical fiction is the best yet? If you have read The Chalice and The Crown you may wonder how it could get any better, but it has.

Joanna Stafford, former Dominican novice, is pursuing a quiet life of weaving tapestries for a living in her beloved Dartford, England circa 1540 when a summons arrives from her distant cousin, King Henry VIII to appear at court. Henry offers her a commission to weave a custom tapestry for him, as well as become Tapestry Mistress, ie, oversee, maintain, and add to Henry’s 200-odd tapestry collection. When she finds out that the face of her friend, Catherine Howard is to feature in the tapestry, Joanna has a sinking feeling that 19-year-old Catherine is the 57-year-old King’s next conquest/wife. Enter Thomas Culpepper and the rest is history, as they say. This novel traces the events that swirl around this couple, set against a backdrop of religious intolerance in all its forms, political intrigue, and social unrest.

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Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Mist of Midnight by Sandra Byrd

Mist of Midnight (Daughters of Hampshire) by Sandra Byrd

ISBN: 9781476717869

Howard Books

Published: March 2015

Paperback, 384 pages

My Review
Reviewed by Sandra

It’s 1858 in Bombay. Rebecca Ravenshaw leaves her beloved India following the murder of her missionary parents in the Indian Mutiny, to return to Headbourne, in Hampshire, England. She expects to be welcomed to her former home, income and safety but finds that someone else has claimed her inheritance. Moreover, the “other Rebecca” has recently died under suspicious circumstances (why was she buried at midnight?) and Captain Whitfield, a distant relative, who happens to be handsome, charming and eligible, now lives in the family home. The real Rebecca must prove her own identity, confront the growing unease she experiences while doing so and cope with her attraction to the Captain. All the elements of a fantastic read! And what a beautiful, haunting book cover!

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Monday, July 7, 2014

St Bartholomew's Man by Mary Delorme

St Bartholomew’s Man by Mary Delorme

ASIN: B005DEY0UA

Published by: Jon Delorme

Published: July 18, 2011

Kindle edition, 253 pages

This historical fiction set in 12th century England follows the life of Rahere, court minstrel/jester and monk, who founded the famous hospital for the poor, The Royal Hospital of St Bartholomew in London. St Bart’s is the oldest hospital in Europe, founded in 1123, and the oldest in Britain that still occupies its original site.

The author transported me to medieval England as she describes the clothes, contemporary names like Ranulph and Leofric, monastic life, the Benedictine monks’ care for the sick and poor, musical instruments – a psaltery is an ancient stringed musical instrument resembling a zither - and the archaic language.

I became fully absorbed in the surroundings and life at the time, cringing when I read of the oppressive rule of King William Rufus, breathing a sigh of relief when King Henry 1 succeeded him, and wondering how ordinary people survived the turmoil between Stephen and Maude for the throne. It’s obvious that the author has done her research and is fully engaged in life in medieval times.

I liked the character development. All of the main ones came through as real people, even though Rahere seemed too good to be true at times. I was reminded of how faith played an important role in daily life in earlier times. I liked the description of the healing methods used by the monks and the building methods of the time, marveling at the ingenuity, the human talent, of people who were able to produce such great buildings that have weathered time and events.

I highly recommend this excellent historical novel.

Note: This book is rated C = clean read.

Reviewed by Sandra

Disclosure: Thanks to Jon Delorme for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

The Pauper by May Nicole Abbey

The Pauper by May Nicole Abbey

Published: March 27. 2014

Published by: River Valley Publishing

e-book, 253 pages

I love the idea of time travel. I love to read about it. I’d love to be able to travel through time myself. That being said, I was excited at the prospect of reading The Pauper.

The book synopsis promised:

A mysterious stranger

A desperate mission

A grueling journey through time and space

Life had always been an exciting adventure to Heather Higgins. Even after the death of her father, the loss of a fortune, and a disappointing proposal, she yet sees the future as bright and full of possibilities. As the miraculous appearance of a mysterious man with piercing green eyes and a powerful intellect, Heather knows she has met her destiny. Whether he likes it or not.

This is Book 3 in the The Fall Series. Though it is considered a stand-alone novel, it really isn't, in my opinion. I felt that I was dropped into the middle of a story, the plot of which was complicated and disjointed. The dialogue was not really believable - way too 21^st century for me, considering that it starts out in 1714 and then goes back to ancient Egypt. But perhaps that is what time travel is all about!

Unfortunately, I was disappointed in this book.

Note: This book is rated C = clean read.

Reviewed by Sandra

Disclosure: Thanks to Sage Adderley from Sage's Blog Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.