But I Smile Anyway…

Firstly, sorry this is a tad later than the end of July, since I was busy sunning myself on my first beach holiday since 2004. Yes, you read that right. It’s been 20 years since I got on a plane to go away, purely for vacation reasons, and not family related ones! Lil Princess and I had a wonderful time in Gran Canaria, and I read lots and lots! It was much needed after a tumultuous academic year. I was totally exhausted, physically as well as mentally. It was a full on R & R & R time – Reading & Rest & Recuperation!

The big question is, what did I read, and did I continue to get words down?

I started the month with 10 NetGalley ARCs, and awaiting feedback on book 3 from some readers and my editor.

I wrote no new words, but I have submitted my manuscript for book 3, In God’s Hands, to my editor, and we have a prospective publication date of 5 November! I have been thinking up ideas for the next steps, though! Whether it will be connected to the first three books or a totally different project, I am not sure, but I have ideas for both!

I read 11 books, all of which were ARCs, and have a list of six left to read.

Definitely a 5 star read, but you’ll have to wait for the review, as I am inviting Lucy over around publication day to chat about her latest release!

Releasing 1st August, 2024

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

OMG, I’m not sure what else to say! The Rose Code was fantastic, so I knew I was in for something special, and I was right!
Brilliant book!
Set in the 1950s in Washington, Briarwood House is home to a woman and her two children and a boarding house for women and their lodgers.
She’s not a particularly lovely landlady, but her children more than make up for her lack of manners and humanity.
Her guests are a real mishmash of characters, each with a very different backstory, from immigrants with secrets to army wives to women with nowhere else to go.
They all keep themselves to themselves until the arrival of Grace March, an enigmatic woman with an air of je ne sais quoi about her. She slowly builds relationships in the form of The Briar Club, where the lodgers and the children meet in her room for an illicit dinner club while the landlady is away. This time, she thaws the ice that has been present between the residents and slowly builds relationships that help each woman in the end.
It is a complex story, with the POV of each character in the form of a chapter, where we learn their backgrounds and what they may be running/hiding from.
Even the house has its say as it tries to make sense of an incident that brings all the women and other key characters together.
The book is set post-WW2 but amid the Korean War, and that timing dramatically impacts the story. There is fear of communism and spies, as well as racism, that is rife at that time.
It’s a book you need to give your time to, too, but once you are in there, you will find yourself turning the pages faster and faster as you become consumed by the twists and turns.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for an ARC.

Releasing 18th July, 2024

The One That I Want by Sandy Barker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Another cracker continuing the Ever After Agency series by Sandy Barker.
Is it better to find love the organic way, or do we all need a helping hand sometimes?
The One That I Want brings us back to the Ever After Agency with another client for Poppy, one of our wonderful matchmakers, to concentrate on.
Greta is the editor of a new online magazine. She focuses on her work but finds it challenging to add relationships to the mix.
Her boss, Anjali, decides to intervene by employing the services of her friend’s agency to help her employee with things through an elaborate ruse of a series of articles about dating.
There are some funny dates, a whole heap of confusion and plenty of ‘oooh!’ moments.
On paper, Greta is a successful woman with a great job, a supportive family, and good friends. However, as we find out, things aren’t always as straightforward as they seem. She doubts herself so much. I just wanted to take her to one side and tell her to believe in her instincts!
Her best friend, Tiggy, was brilliant. Straightforward, loud and hilarious. We all need a Tiggy in our lives!
It’s the kind of story I have come to expect from Sandy, with a host of challenges that Poppy faces when trying to match her client while fulfilling her brief.
Since this is book 3 in the series, it was good to revisit a few characters to see how they were getting on, including Poppy and her relationship, but it is easily read as a stand-alone, too. You’ll want to return and get the other two after because it’s such fun!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.

Releasing 23rd July, 2024

First Comes Marriage: The perfect slow-burn romcom you won’t be able to put down in 2024! by Laila Rafi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve been looking forward to reading this book for a while and was not disappointed.
I am a huge fan of South Asian-based fiction, stories that resonate with me as a South Asian woman.
Laila Rafi’s story is a culturally sensitive Halal romance with many relatable points.
Zafar and Reshma were married using the traditional arranged marriage route. She has visions of romance and slowly falling in love after their nikkah. He’s just happy he’s ticked off a box—another thing required of him as a son.
A wedding from Reshma’s side in the gorgeous setting of Mombasa becomes the catalyst for them to truly get to know one another and find that connection they have been missing.
Zafar isn’t keen. Business is at the forefront of his mind as he strives to keep his grandfather’s dream alive. However, sometimes you have to accept that another person’s dream may not be the best for you.
I don’t need heaps of spice to keep me reading. This is a true closed-door romance, where you get the hints, which is enough.
It was good to see how both characters grew and changed through the story, learning about themselves and their families and how others have shaped their thinking, sometimes for the better and for the worse,
I enjoyed this, especially as it was mainly set in Mombasa, where I spent many childhood holidays!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Orion Publishing for an ARC.

Releasing 25th July, 2024

Death in the Air by Ram Murali
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have always liked to support South Asian authors, and when I was approached to read a copy of this book for the book tour, I readily agreed.
Murder mysteries aren’t my usual choice of genre, though I have been known to read them.
Ram Murali’s main character, Ro Krishna, is involved in work-related problems from the beginning of the book. He meets some shady characters mentioned at the beginning, but they seem to disappear until the end.
Taking a complete break from his usual life, he ends up at a spa resort in the Himalayas, Samsara. There, he meets a few of the other guests and meets new people from completely different backgrounds.
Then tragedy strikes and a body is found.
He ends up being involved in the investigations and tries to solve the mystery with some of the others and the Police.
Honestly?
I was intrigued to find out what happened.
Still, I did find it hard to get into because there were many references to fashion brands, sometimes unnecessarily, and not every situation was clear.
Ro has a crystal, Pendy, whom he talks to, and their communication isn’t always easy to understand.
I’m not sure the ending was as clear-cut as I had hoped.

Hello Little Girl by Kay Bratt
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Here we are, back at Hart’s Ridge with Taylor Gray and more cases for her to follow, although the story takes a slightly different slant this time.
In Hello Little Girl, we revisit a previous case that hasn’t been resolved: Lydia Grimes’s disappearance. Taylor is invested in this case, but this time, she is removed from it for a different mission: going undercover in one of the local women’s prisons.
It is another heartwrenching story where we learn more about Lydia’s incarceration, as well as the devastating news that another younger girl is in the situation with her.
As always, I love how these stories take root in reality, but the story itself is fiction.
Taylor’s experience was pretty horrific, too.
I missed having more contact with the Gray family in this book; however, given the ending, I am excited to read what happens next.
Nope, I am not spoiling it for you. I am just making sure you know to read the previous books, as they all build upon one another, which makes the anticipation even sweeter!

Swimming to Lundy by Amanda Prowse
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

BEAUTIFUL!
I say it every time I read an Amanda Prowse book, and I’m not scared to say it again: What a WONDERFUL story!
Swimming to Lundy is a dual-timeline story that converges at the end in a happy marriage of not necessarily happy events.
Told in the POVs of two women, we see two stories slowly unravel and reveal the ultimate knot that ties them together for good.
Tawrie Gunn is one of three generations of women who have lived in her home. Along with her loving grandma, Tawrie has her mother there with her. But she is in limbo. All three women are mourning the loss of over twenty years ago of Tawrie’s father. Unable to move forward, because of ties holding her back, Tawrie begins wild swimming, and the following events all tie in with her swimming.
Over twenty years back, we have the story of Harriet, whose life is turned upside down when she finds out about her husband’s infidelity. The upheaval of a family move to Ilfracombe seals the fate of her marriage and somehow sets a stone rolling which doesn’t rest for another two decades.
Amanda has a way with words, crafting real stories, tugging at the reader’s heartstrings, finding moments that are so believable, settings that will resonate with people, and sucking us into her ‘real’ fictional world.

Releasing 6th August, 2024

And So I Roar by Abi Daré
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

TW – references to FGM and rape.
Having read and loved The Girl With The Louding Voice in 2020, I was eager to read this next book by Abi Dare, especially since it is a continuation of Adunni’s story, the 15-year-old girl who escaped her life in the village after she was forced to marry an elder, to Lagos – where she was sold into domestic slavery to a woman who wasn’t good to her.
The story continues through her POV and Ms Tia, the woman who rescued her. Adunni’s life is set to change. She will start school as she has always dreamed, and Ms Tia will have the daughter she always dreamed of.
But nothing is that simple. A midnight disturbance finds men from the village clamouring to take Adunni back, as she is to be a part of a ritual sacrifice. There has been no rain, no crops, and animals are dying, and the blame lies on the shoulders of girls who have sinned.
Set over 24 hours, the story continues as Ms Tia follows her, and they get caught up in the tribal rituals the villagers follow.
Hearing about both Adunni’s and Ms Tia’s backstories, as well as the horrors of punishments bestowed upon girls for no reason and FGM, amongst other horrific customs, makes for a heartbreaking story filled with hope. It is a fantastic sequel, which is highly recommended.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an ARC

Releasing 8th August, 2024

Enemies to Lovers by Laura Jane Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’ve read all of Laura Jane Williams’s books. She is an auto-read author of mine, and I was lucky enough to have an arc of this book to take on holiday.
It is a fabulous blend of a great story, wonderful flawed characters, a great side cast, and just the right amount of spice! (“Though it can be a bit embarrassing to be reading a scene of that nature when by the side of the pool, with families surrounding you!
Flo is a woman who has been through the wringer, suffering a breakdown a few years previously. Her family still treat her like a fragile piece of china, wrapping her up in cotton wool. Well, alternating between that and her brother’s version of sibling-style care…
She’s on a family holiday and reeling from a rejection from someone she never thought would mean something to her: her brother’s best friend, Jamie.
Then, there he is, on her family holiday, to cause all manner of feelings.
I won’t go into it too much, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for an ARC.

Releasing 15th August, 2024

One Hundred Moments of Us: A gorgeously heartwarming, uplifting romance by Jon Rance
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a story that is reminiscent of One Day by Dave Nicholls, in the way we have revisited two people’s meetings and encountered them over a certain amount of years.
It includes the buildups, the near misses, and the highs and lows of Charlie and Ashley from 6th form, when Charlie has an unrequited crush on Ashley, to the present day.
Yes, there is happiness, but equally, as each relationship shows, there is sadness.
I almost gasped at the end, thinking we were looking at another tragic ending, like One Day, but no—we were saved, thank goodness!
A lovely story.

Releasing 22nd August, 2024

The Secrets of Flowers by Sally Page
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sally Page’s stories have captured me since I read her first one, so being allowed to read this would always be taken gratefully.
The Secrets of Flowers is a beautiful, intricate tale based on a real person, with hints of interest by the author, but its storyline and the main characters are fictional.
Emma is a woman who is coming to grips with the loss of her husband, who quite suddenly died. She is still young, but flo9undering in her existing life.
Taking a break from her normality as a scientist, she begins to enjoy a job at the small local garden centre, remembering her father’s love for flowers and immersing herself in good memories.
But she is still nervous about socialising and mixing with others.
A small chain of events leads to her burying herself in research about the Titanic, and a pull towards the flowers on board leads her towards Violet Jessop, the only woman to have survived three major shipwrecks, including the Olympics and the Titanic.
She can’t help but feel a connection to the woman but cannot figure out what it is.
Aided by Garden Centre owners Betty and Les and Tamass, their flower delivery guy, and a whole host of other people, they slowly piece together the life of a young woman and her role on the ships, revealing the connection that Emma felt so strongly with this woman.
It is such a beautifully told dual-timeline story.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Fiction for an ARC.

So, tell me what you have been reading, and what caught your eye from the above!