Good Morning All!

Although my posts have been quiet lately, my reading has been in full swing. I had the pleasure of spending a week on holiday in Jamaica recently on a private peninsula with nothing to do but relax, eat, drink and read. The time out was a long time coming and was everything that I needed and more! It gave me a chance to recharge my batteries as well as indulge in some fairly easy going beach reads.

Rather than post individual reviews for each book that I read, I thought I’d some short and snappy reviews for each within one post. So here are my summer holiday read reviews…

The Other Woman by Sandie Jones

Emily meets what she firmly believes is her dream man and can’t believe her luck when he is just as interested in her as she is with him. However there’s a catch (isn’t there always?!) that she has trouble dealing with. Adam’s mother has such a tight bond with her son that apparently can’t be broken and this bond could end up ruining all of Emily’s dreams of happiness.

I picked up this book without reading the blurb or anything about it so I was surprised to find out the other woman was actually the guys mother. i went through this read in shock that someone would treat their child’s other half this way and constantly asking myself “what would I do?”. Honestly, I don’t I’d have hung around but Emily is seemingly a stronger woman than I.

Although I did fly through this read and kept reading because I wanted to know what happened, by about a third of the way through I did have my suspicions about the twist that was inevitably on it’s way. It turns out I had guessed right! I never know how to feel about that scenario. I don’t know if I’m happy I was able to call it, or disappointed that the writer wasn’t able to deceive me for longer!

All in all, a good beach read that had me shaking my head in disbelief at some of the antics and being grateful that I’m not Emily!

😍😍😍😩😩

The Break by Marian Keyes

Amy and Hugh have been together for years, but after Hugh’s father died, he’s not been able to pull himself out of his depression. So he insists on a six month break to go backpacking in south-east Asia, leaving Amy and their family behind. Is a break a break up? Or is it just a break? Whilst Hugh goes off to find himself, Amy realises this means she is also on a break. Will she and her family carry on business as usual? Or will everything fall apart without Hugh? Not only that, will Hugh even return?!

I knew a little about this book already as it has been highly advertised and I’ve seen it every time I go into Waterstones. I thought it would be perfect for a holiday read and give me some giggles along with potentially some romance; it didn’t disappoint. This book is the kind of stuff I love to read on holiday. I don’t have to think about it too much, just go along with the story. I loved Amy and Hugh’s family; especially Neeve. Her bratty, sassy character really gave me the giggles.

The only criticism I have for this book is the ending. I was hoping for something a little more dramatic rather than something neatly tied off and concluded. That said, it was such an easy and laid back read that was perfect for the timing of when I read it so I can forgive the lack of drama.

😍😍😍😩😩

The Girl Who Lied by Sue Fortin

Erin grew up in small town in Ireland but ditched the quiet life for city life in London when she was just sixteen. When her dad is taken ill, she is forced to return to Ireland but that also means returning to face the lie she took away with her when she left. Roisin (her childhood “friend”) is threatening to expose the truth which will cause devastation for so many people. How far will Erin go to protect herself and her family?

I’ve had this book sat in my bedside table for over a year, though I’m not really sure why I’ve never got around to starting it. Therefore I packed it up in my case and took 4500 miles away to give it a go and I’m glad I did. I was turning the pages in this book quicker than lightening to get to the big reveals and there are more than a handful of them. I can’t say I was totally shocked at them all, but there were some that made me do a little eyebrow raise.

Although Erin came across as a little cold at times, I really liked her character. If you’ve read my other book reviews, you’ll know I rarely favour the main character in a book, but this was different. For someone hiding a huge lie, as a reader I found Erin honest and transparent. I spent the whole book rooting for her and hoping that it all worked out in the end.

This was definitely a page turner for me and was perfect to pass away my 9 hour flight home!

😍😍😍😩😩

And there we have it; 3 reviews for the price of 1! Now that I have to stubbornly return to normal life, I imagine my reading will somewhat slow down again, but I have thoroughly enjoyed my summer holiday reads and have been grateful for some fab, easy going reads to accompany me in paradise!! 🏝