Book Review / Since Last Summer by Joanna Philbin

Please note that this is book 2 in a series, so the below may contain spoilers.

Rory McShane should be excited to spend the summer in East Hampton with Connor Rule, her generous, smart, cute boyfriend. After all, Rory's no longer the hired help at the Rule family mansion on the beach, and she and Connor have made it through a year of long-distance dating. But now, in the months leading up to college, Rory can't help but wonder if she really belongs in Connor's world.

Isabel Rule is still trying to get over Mike, the devastatingly sexy surfer who broke her heart last summer. Enter Evan, an aspiring filmmaker who's kind, funny, and crushing on Isabel. He'd be the perfect summer fling -- so why can't she seem to forget about Mike?

Set against a backdrop buzzing with the rich, the famous, and the wannabe rich and famous, Since Last Summer, a companion novel to Rules of Summer, is the perfect beach read.



Published:     3rd June 2014
Publisher:  Poppy
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 2, Rules of Summer
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

Now this story I was intrigued to picking up.  Having read and enjoyed the first book, Rules of Summer, I wanted to find out what happened next with the characters.

Again, we follow Rory as she returns to the Rules' house in the Hamptons but this time she is not going back to work.  She is going back because she is part of the family.  Interestingly, what I enjoyed the most in this story was following Isabel as she grows as a character and discovers that she may not be over her past love...

There were no surprises in this story and I do have to say that I was a little disappointed by what happens with Rory in this one but could understand where that had come from.  I was hoping for most from this story but it really was just an extension of the first story but with a bit more drama. I did enjoy reading it to follow more about the characters but wished there was more to the story.

Book Review / Rules of Summer by Joanna Philbin

There are two sides…to every summer.

When seventeen-year-old Rory McShane steps off the bus in East Hampton, it’s as if she’s entered another universe, one populated by impossibly beautiful people wearing pressed khakis and driving expensive cars. She’s signed on to be a summer errand girl for the Rules—a wealthy family with an enormous beachfront mansion. Upon arrival, she’s warned by other staff members to avoid socializing with the family, but Rory soon learns that may be easier said than done.

Stifled by her friends and her family’s country club scene, seventeen-year-old Isabel Rule, the youngest of the family, embarks on a breathless romance with a guy whom her parents would never approve of. It’s the summer for taking chances, and Isabel is bringing Rory along for the ride.

But will Rory’s own summer romance jeopardize her friendship with Isabel? And, after long-hidden family secrets surface, will the Rules’ picture-perfect world ever be the same?

Published:     23rd May  2013
Publisher:  Atom
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 1, Rules of Summer
Source: Owned

MY REVIEW

This was a re-read for me.  I had not realised that there was a follow up second book to this and can't believe that I hadn't picked it up already.  It had been a while since I had read the first book, so I thought I should start there first.   I had first read this back in 2018 and loved it back then, so I was intrigued to find out what I thought about it now.

We follow Rory in this story when, wanting to escape from her mother who was not the best of influences, she gets a job working in a house in the Hamptons.  Soon enough, she realises that there may be far more family at this house than back home.  

This was a fun read.  It was so great to be revisting this world again.  For me, the best part of this story was the relationship between Rory and Isabel.  You can see they might not be characters that get on at the start but circumstances change that.  Yes, this is very cliche and nothing was a surprise but it was still fun to read.   I am intrigued to find out where the second book takes me.

Book Review / A Painted House by John Grisham

"The hill people and the Mexicans arrived on the same day. It was a Wednesday, early in September 1952. The Cardinals were five games behind the Dodgers with three weeks to go, and the season looked hopeless. The cotton, however, was waist-high to my father, over my head, and he and my grandfather could be heard before supper whispering words that were seldom heard. It could be a "good crop."

Thus begins the new novel from John Grisham, a story inspired by his own childhood in rural Arkansas. The narrator is a farm boy named Luke Chandler, age seven, who lives in the cotton fields with his parents and grandparents in a little house that's never been painted. The Chandlers farm eighty acres that they rent, not own, and when the cotton is ready they hire a truckload of Mexicans and a family from the Ozarks to help harvest it.

For six weeks they pick cotton, battling the heat, the rain, the fatigue, and sometimes each other. As the weeks pass Luke sees and hears things no seven-year-old could possibly be prepared for, and he finds himself keeping secrets that not only threaten the crop but will change the lives of the Chandlers forever.

Published:     3rd February 2004
Publisher:  Bantam
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

What a beautiful story...   Continuing on my journey of reading all of John Grisham's novels, I was particularly looking forward to this one because by the description it had a similar feel to his first novel, A Time to Kill (which I loved).  This story has a different feel to his usual and well known theme of legal thrillers as it is more about the 1950s farming communities and what happens when things go right and wrong. 

In this story, we follow Luke Chandler (aged 7) who lives with his family on their farm in Arkansas.  It is coming up to farming season and we see how they prepare for this which includes a new season of new people being employed to come in and harvest for them (and earn money for them as well).

This is a more laid back relaxed style of story that should be enjoyed for the journey the author takes you on and watching each of the characters interact with each other.   But don't let this laid style fool you, there are aspects of dark secrets and even murder... 

Book Review / The Summons by John Grisham

Ray Atlee is a professor of law at the University of Virginia. He's forty-three, newly single, and still enduring the aftershocks of a surprise divorce. He has a younger brother, Forrest, who redefines the notion of a family's black sheep.

And he has a father, a very sick old man who lives alone in the ancestral home in Clanton, Mississippi. He is known to all as Judge Atlee, a beloved and powerful official who has towered over local law and politics for forty years. No longer on the bench, the Judge has withdrawn to the Atlee mansion and become a recluse.
With the end in sight, Judge Atlee issues a summons for both sons to return home to Clanton, to discuss the details of his estate. It is typed by the Judge himself, on his handsome old stationery, and gives the date and time for Ray and Forrest to appear in his study.

Ray reluctantly heads south, to his hometown, to the place where he grew up, which he prefers now to avoid. But the family meeting does not take place. The Judge dies too soon, and in doing so leaves behind a shocking secret known only to Ray.
And perhaps someone else.

Published:     27th September 2005
Publisher:  Delta
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

After a brief break from reading John Grisham's books, I was so glad to get back into it!

We follow Ray Atlee who is a professor of law at the University of Law.   He is not the only person in his family who deals with the law.  His father was a Judge back in his home town of Clanton, Mississippi.  His brother never followed that route and just delves into a mix of drug taking and rehab.   Both Ray and his brother Forest receive a summons to attend back at home to see their father.  Unfortunately, their father dies but leave a rather puzzling inheritance behind, which Ray discovers.

I really was not expecting the pace or plot of this story.  I was expecting a story that was heavy in law and maybe a court case or two but this story did not have a court case in sight.  I really enjoyed the slow pace of this story, which made me read even more slowly than I would normally do and thoroughly immerse myself in it.  I have to admit that I did suspect the twist in the plot nearer the end but that did not take away any enjoyment from this beautifully written story.

A slower paced thriller that will still keep you on the edge of your seat.

Book Review / Wild Horse Springs by Jodi Thomas (Book 5, Ransom Canyon)

In the heart of Ransom Canyon, sometimes the right match for a lonely soul is the one you least expect

Dan Brigman may not lead the most exciting life, but he's proud of what he's achieved: he's a respected lawman, and he's raised a bright, talented daughter on his own. But finding a lone, sparkly blue boot in the middle of a deserted highway gets him thinking maybe the cowgirl who lost it is exactly the shake-up he needs.

After losing her baby girl, Brandi Malone felt like her soul died along with her daughter. Now singing in small-town bars to make ends meet, she's fine being a drifter until a handsome sheriff makes her believe that parking her boots under his bed is a better option.

College grad Lauren Brigman has just struck out on her own in downtown Dallas when a troubling phone call leads her back home to Crossroads. Her hometown represents her family, friends and deepest hopes, but also her first love, Lucas Reyes. Will Lauren's homecoming be another heartbreak, or a second chance for her and Lucas?


Published:     24th Janaury 2017
Publisher:  HQN
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 5, Ransom Canyon
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

In this story, we are following Dan Brigman who is the office lawman.  We have seen him as a side character in the previous novels in this series but this time we get to learn a bit more about him, his life and his family.  We follow him as he meets someone who could change his life.  We are also following his daughter Lauren as she returns to town.  One thing leads to another and she sees her ex-boyfriend...

As I have probably said in previous reviews for this series, this is a series that you can dip in and out of with whatever book you want but to honestly get the full picture and truly appreciate the story for all it has to give, I would highly recommend starting from book 1 and going from there.   Although reading this book as a stand alone would have been fine but as I had read the previous novels and like to think that I know the characters of Dan and Lauren a little bit more than I would normally, I felt more for the characters and were already routing for them even before the story began.

With every book in this series, it is taking me further and further into this world and into the lives of all the residents here.  I can't wait to pick up the next one to see where that takes me!

Book Review / Sunrise Crossing by Jodi Thomas (Book 4, Ransom Canyon)

Return to peaceful Crossroads, Texas, where community comes first and love thrives in the unlikeliest places… 

Yancy Grey is slowly putting his life back together after serving time for petty theft. As he rebuilds an old house, he finally has a sense of stability, but he can't stop thinking of himself as just an ex-con. Until one night, he finds a mysterious dark-haired beauty hiding in his loft. But who is she, and what secret is she protecting?

The art gallery Parker Lacey manages is her life—she has no time for friends, and certainly not lovers. But when her star artist begs Parker for help, she finds herself in a pickup truck, headed for the sleepy town of Crossroads. A truck driven by a strong, silent cowboy…

Gabe Snow has been a drifter since he left Crossroads at seventeen after a violent incident. When he accepts a job in his hometown, he'll have to decide whether he can put the worst night of his life behind him and build a future in the community that raised him.

Published:     30th August 2016
Publisher:  HQN
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 4, Ransom Canyon
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

This is the story I have been waiting for in this series.  One of my absolute favourite characters, Yancy.   We first met Yancy in the first book in this series, Ransom Canyon.  He had wound up in the town having been in trouble in his past and wanting to escape.  He ended up being a 'care taker' for the older community.

In this story, we follow him after he had found out something really important about his history (and he still has a lot to learn in this story).  He is renovating a house that he wants to live in and in the process he meets a beauty who also has a complicated past.  We also follow and learn more about this new stranger and Parker Lacey who also come into town.

What I loved the most about this book is the romance.  Between not only one couple but more...

Book Review / Lone Heart Pass by Jodi Thomas (Book 3, Ransom Canyon)

Where family bonds are made and broken, and where young love sparks as old flames grow dim, Ransom Canyon is ready to welcome—and shelter—those who need it 

With a career and a relationship in ruins, Jubilee Hamilton is left reeling from a fast fall to the bottom. The run-down Texas farm she's inherited is a far cry from the second chance she hoped for, but it and the abrasive foreman she's forced to hire are all she's got.

Every time Charley Collins has let a woman get close, he's been burned. So Lone Heart ranch and the contrary woman who owns it are merely a means to an end, until Jubilee tempts him to take another risk—to stop resisting the attraction drawing them together despite all his hard-learned logic.

Desperation is all young Thatcher Jones knows. And when he finds himself mixed up in a murder investigation, his only protection is the shelter of a man and woman who—just like him—need someone to trust.

Published:     5th September 2017
Publisher:  Piatkus Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 45, In Death
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

This book was an interesting one for me as I did not recognise or remember reading about Jubilee, Charley and Thatcher previously.  I will be honest and say that this did throw me for a minute as the previous books were about characters that I had already read.  I thought I had missed something here (and maybe I have?) but that didn't mean I enjoyed this less.

We follow Jubilee as she returns to town having inherited a farm.  Being a city girl, it will certainly take her a lot of adjustment for her to run the farm but she was definately up for the challenge!  Thatcher Jones in this book was my favourite character and one of those characters were you see a lot of growth in his personality.

If I were to be picky I would have loved to have seen a lot more of the usual community in this story but nevertheless this was a great read!

Book Review / Rustler's Moon by Jodi Thomas (Book 2, Ransom Canyon)

On a dirt road marked by haunting secrets, three strangers caught at life's crossroads must decide what to sacrifice to protect their own agendas...and what they're each willing to risk for love.

If there's any place that can convince Angela Harrell to stop running, it's Ransom Canyon. And if there's any man who can reveal desires more deeply hidden than her every fear, it's Wilkes Wagner. Beneath the rancher's honorable exterior is something that just might keep her safe...or unwittingly put her in danger's path.

With his dreams of leaving this small Texas town swallowed up by hard, dusty reality, all Wilkes has to show for his life is the Devil's Fork Ranch. Though not one to let false hope seduce him, he can't deny the quiet and cautious beauty who slips into his world and changes everything.

Lauren Brigman finally has freedom at her fingertips. All she needs is Lucas Reyes's attention—a look, a touch, some sign that she's more to him than a girl he rescued one dangerous night. But now it's her turn to rescue someone, and the life-altering decision may cost her more than a chance with Lucas.

Published:     26th January 2016
Publisher:  HQN Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 2, Ransom Canyon
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

After reading so many thrillers, it is refreshing to pick up and start a new series that is not a thriller!  I always switch between thrillers and what this book is, a romance. I am going to preface this review by saying that I am not going to be spoiling any part of the story for those of you who have not yet picked up this series, but to explain more this series does not follow a story narrative from book 1 to whatever book it ends up at.  This series has a different story, more or less, with each book with featuring main characters from Ransom Canyon that we have seen before.  Some characters may appear in more than one book but every character has their own story.

In this story, we follow Angela who is running away and ends up at Ransom Canyon.  It is there that she meets Wilkes, a rancher at the Canyon.  Angela hopes that she has managed to get away from who she is running from, but she might not be that lucky.  We also follow Lauren who is the Sheriff's daughter who has to make a very hard decision.  Should she help someone? 

I am really starting to feel 'at home' in Ransom Canyon.  I feel like the first book was the 'introduction' to the Canyon and now we are really getting into the lives of some of the characters in it.

Despite stories being different in each book in this series, I would strongly recommend starting from the beginning, at book 1, and reading in order.  Yes, there are different main stories in each one but there may be characters that feature in book 1 but their main story is not seen until book 3.  You don't have to do this, but I would recommend it.

Blog Tour Book Review / The Silent House by Nell Pattison

If someone was in your house, you’d know.
Wouldn’t you?

But the Hunter family are deaf, and don’t hear a thing when a shocking crime takes place in the middle of the night. Instead, they wake up to their worst nightmare.

The police call Paige Northwood to the scene to interpret for the witnesses. They’re in shock, but Paige senses the Hunters are hiding something.

One by one, people Paige knows from the Deaf community start to fall under suspicion. But who would kill a little girl?

Was it an intruder?

Or was the murderer closer to home?



Published:     5th March 2020
Publisher:  Avon
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

After reading quite a lot of romance, it was great to get back to reading a good thriller.  In this story, we follow Paige Northwood.  Although she is not deaf, she grew up in a family who was and is now an self-employed interpreter for the emergency services.  There's a young girl who has been murdered and we need to find out whether it was someone she knew or an intruder.

The best part of this story for me was the actual mystery surrounding the young girl's death and who committed this crime.  I found it interesting to follow this story from an interpreter's perspective, given that she has history (which I would have loved to have had this explored a bit more in this story), but would have loved to have followed the police a little more and how they were investigating.

Don't get me wrong, this was a really great read and one that kept me turning the page until I found out what had happened at the very end but I would have loved to have had a bit more history of the character of Paige and follow the police a bit more.  I had also not read a story involving the deaf community before so this aspect of the story I did find fascinating. 

Blog Tour Book Review / Never Saw You Coming by Hayley Doyle

Some people go looking for love. Others crash right into it.

Zara Khoury believes in love – so much so that she flies from Dubai to Liverpool to be with a man she barely knows. It’s a risk, but she’s certain that uprooting her life for Nick is the new start she needs.

Jim Glover is stuck. Since his Dad died, he’s put his dreams aside and stayed at home in Liverpool to care for his mum. Trapped in a dead-end job, he’s going nowhere – that is, until he gets a phone call that just might change his life..

Zara and Jim aren’t supposed to meet. But then fate steps in, and when their worlds – and c




Published:     2nd April 2020
Publisher:  Avon
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Review Copy from Publisher

MY REVIEW

This book was so much fun to read!  In times like we are all experiencing right now, it was truly a breath of fresh air to get away from that and read a fun book that kept me hooked right until the last page!

What I loved about this book was the main character, Zara, and the character progression throughout the story.  For me, it was a story of hope and romance that just swept me away!

If you are a fan of stories from Sophia Kinsell and Cecelia Ahern, I would highly recommend this one!  I really can't wait to read more from this author!

Book Review / Winter's Camp by Jodi Thomas (Book 0.5 - Ransom Canyon)

New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas has captivated readers around the world with her sweeping, heartfelt family sagas. To introduce her brand-new series, Jodi tells the story behind the unforgiving Texas landscape and how one man claims Ransom Canyon—and a timid beauty—for his legacy…

A wanderer’s life was all James Randall Kirkland had known since he was an orphaned boy in San Antonio. And while years of adventure had satisfied his younger self, now he’s longing to put down roots of his own and is prepared to go it alone. But when he sees the Apache slave woman with the startling blue eyes, the course of his journey is changed forever.

Ever since the Comanche raided her village and took her for their own, Millie hasn’t known any kind of freedom. After years of being outcast, beaten and traded from tribe to tribe, she’s unprepared for James’s patient tone and gentle ways. Still, as her handsome savior slowly earns her trust, Millie struggles between desire and fear, sure it’s just a matter of time before James tires of her and her burgeoning feelings are nothing but another wasted memory.

Published:     1st August 2015
Publisher:  HQN Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 0.5, Ransom Canyon
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

Back at Ransom Canyon again with this novella.  In this story, we are taken back in history to the beginnings of Ransom Canyon.  We follow James Randall Kirkland (whose relative we see later on in the main story - Staten) wandering when he comes across an APache slave woman that catches his attention.  He decides to save her from a life of pretty certain death and 'buys' her from the camp and takes her with him but not as a slave but to give her some form of freedom.  

We slowly follow James and Millie as they get to know each other and both adapting to their new lives, learning who they are now and all about their past.  For me, this was what made this great for me seeing the natural progression of meeting someone, learning about them and forming some kind of relationship with them.

This novella is well worth picking up.  I would recommend picking this up after reading Ransom Canyon, the first book in the series.  That way, I think you will get more out of this book, Ransom Canyon and the entire series. 





 

Book Review / Ransom Canyon by Jodi Thomas (Book 1, Ransom Canyon Series)

From New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas comes the first book in a compelling, emotionally resonant series set in a remote west Texas town—where family can be made by blood or by choice…

Rancher Staten Kirkland, the last descendent of Ransom Canyon's founding father, is rugged and practical to the last. No one knows that when his troubling memories threaten to overwhelm him, he runs to lovely, reclusive Quinn O'Grady… or that she has her own secret that no one living knows.

Young Lucas Reyes has his eye on the prize—college, and the chance to become something more than a ranch hand's son. But one night, one wrong decision, will set his life on a course even he hadn't imagined.

Yancy Grey is running hard from his troubled past. He doesn't plan to stick around Ransom Canyon, just long enough to learn the town's weaknesses and how to use them for personal gain. Only Yancy, a common criminal since he was old enough to reach a car's pedals, isn't prepared for what he encounters.

In this dramatic new series, the lives, loves and ambitions of four families will converge, set against a landscape that can be as unforgiving as it is beautiful, where passion, property and pride are worth fighting—and even dying—for.

Published:     25th August 2015
Publisher:  HQN Books
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Book 1, Ransom Canyon
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

I am delving back into this series again.  It was one that I started to read back in 2016 but was only able to get so far because of the books I could get hold of at that time.  Now there are a lot more in this series and I can't wait to carry on reading!  I would normally review the series as a whole rather than each individual book but with this series and with each book you come across there is a different story covering different characters, so I am going to do a review for each one.

In this story, we follow mainly Staten Kirkland and Quinn.  Staten's wife, who was also Quinn's best friend, died a while back.  Staten and Quinn remained friends and, after five years or so, they are getting closer.   Quinn has a secret past that is stopping her from moving forward with her life.  We watch as she gets closer to Staten and decides to trust him with her secret.

We also follow a few other smaller stories including Lucas Reyes and Lauren and a couple of other friends who decide to investigate an old house but when they do tragedy happens.  There is also Yancy Grey who is running from a very troubled past but somehow lands in Ransom Canyon and gets a job as a handyman for the older communication in the Canyon.

What I loved the most about this story are the characters.  There are so many but the story has been written so well that I certainly would not forget any of them and what is happening with them.  All the 'main' characters are certainly rememberable and have their own stories that we get a glimpse of in this story.  I am guessing that as this series goes on and one we get to follow each of these and learn more about them.

Such an addicting story and what I would call a dramatic romance - not sure if that is the correct term but that's the one I am giving it!  You you love a bit of romance mixed in with the drama, you need to check out this series!

Book Review / Final Girls by Riley Sagar

Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout's knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media's attempts, they never meet.

Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past.

That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy's doorstep. Blowing through Quincy's life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa's death come to light, Quincy's life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam's truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished.

Published:     11th July 2017
Publisher:  Dutton
Goodreads :  Click here
Series or Stand-Alone:  Stand-Alone
Source:  Owned

MY REVIEW

This is the final Riley Sagar book that I can get my hands on at the moment but I really do wish there were a lot more - I can't stop reading them!

In this story, we follow Quincy who is a Final Girl which means the only survivor of a tragedy.  In this story there are three from different tragedies but we particularly follow Quincy in this one.  On first look, all seems to be going ok with Quincy but looks can be deceiving.

This one was definately a page turner for me but I do have to say that I was less surprised by a lot of the twists and turns in this one - having already guessed what was going to happen - but that didn't spoil the enjoyment of the story for me.  This was still good and most certainly one that kept me on the edge of my seat wanting to watch Quincy and other characters deal with what was put in front of them as the story goes on.

A great story - less about the surprises for me but more about the story and the characters progressing through what the have to deal with.