The One Plus One

One single mum

With two jobs and two children, Jess Thomas does her best day after day. But it's hard on your own. And sometimes you take risks you shouldn't. Because you have to . . .

One chaotic family

Jess's gifted, quirky daughter Tanzie is brilliant with numbers, but without a helping hand she'll never get the chance to shine. And Nicky, Jess's teenage stepson, can't fight the bullies alone.

Sometimes Jess feels like they're sinking . . .

One handsome stranger

Into their lives comes Ed Nicholls, a man whose life is in chaos, and who is running from a deeply uncertain future. But he has time on his hands. He knows what it's like to be lonely. And he wants to help . . .

One unexpected love story

The One Plus One is a captivating and unconventional romance from Jojo Moyes about two lost souls meeting in the most unlikely circumstances.

Crikey Christmas is here already!!

Yikes! Christmas is nearly here. What on earth shall I do with myself? Presents, Puddings and of course Books! My favorite time of the year is upon us and I'm ready to make wish list starting with the two beauties below. Tali Roland never disappoints! I'm so excited *skips along the muddy, rainy wintry England roads* 

Marriage to Measure 

When Serenity Holland proposes to her long-time boyfriend Jeremy, she’s certain ‘forever’ is a perfect fit. As the wedding train steams forward, though, Serenity starts to wonder if they really are an ideal match. From a crusty old ring to a dilapidated house she’s left to renovate on her own – not to mention the appearance of Jeremy’s clingy ex-fiancée – engagement feels more like disengagement. 

Even worse, wedding planning’s like a bad hangover as Serenity juggles the wishes of family and friends with her bossy mother-in-law-to-be, resulting in a Frankenwedding nothing like the simple ceremony she envisioned. 

Can Serenity knit her relationship back together and fashion a celebration that suits, or will ‘I do’ become ‘I don’t’? 

Purchase

Married by Midnight 

Christmas is coming . . . and so is the biggest day of Kate’s life. 

While choosing a vintage dress for her Christmas Eve wedding, Kate finds a cryptic note pinned to the inside of a 1930s gown. As doubts about her own ceremony loom, Kate is determined to track down the dress’ owner and determine what became of her – and the marriage. 

Will Kate find the answers she’s seeking to propel her down the aisle, or will her discovery prompt her to call off the wedding for good? 

High Fidelity Quick Thoughts

Synopsos

Rob does. He keeps a list, in fact. But Laura isn't on it - even though she's just become his latest ex. He's got his life back, you see. He can just do what he wants when he wants: like listen to whatever music he likes, look up the girls that are on his list, and generally behave as if Laura never mattered. But Rob finds he can't move on. He's stuck in a really deep groove - and it's called Laura. Soon, he's asking himself some big questions: about love, about life - and about why we choose to share ours with the people we do.





Thoughts

So I finally read High Fidelity!! About time I hear you say. In my defense I started it a year ago but I couldn't get into it.  Nick Honby has never really been a favorite of mine, I'm a David Nichols kinda of "gurl", I find Nick Honby a bit too"guardian" too polished, like he's over thinking his jokes and failing miserably.  

But to my surprise once I picked this up again I couldn't stop! High Fidelity is brilliant. My opinion of Mr. Honby has improved, although I still find him a bit here and there, a Mike Gayle type of bloke with bits of funny escapism. 

I wont bother repeating the synopsis, that's a tedious exercise, read the synopsis above if you haven't already. What I would say however is that High Fidelity is funny, well written and not as self-obsessed as I originally thought.  This is one of his books I would recommend.  Now I'm off to eat crow. 

The Handmaid's Tale

Finally reading The Handmaid's Tale! It's getting me all excited about blogging again so here I am. Stay posted. I will try my best to Blog more..life willing.

Synopsis

The Republic of Gilead offers Offred only one option: to breed. If she deviates, she will, like all dissenters, be hanged at the wall or sent out to die slowly of radiation sickness. But even a repressive state cannot obliterate desire - neither Offred's nor that of the two men on which her future hangs. The Handmaid's Tale is a brilliant and astutely perceived evocation of twenty-first-century America.

It's Vintage's 21st birthday and we're celebrating by publishing twenty-one of our

most iconic books in a rainbow of beautiful colours. Treat yourself and make

your bookshelves happy.

This Family Life

Synopsis 

Things that might happen during your first year of parenthood: 

1. You’ll get covered in a ‘nuclear’ poo. 
2. You’ll be convinced your son is talking with a Japanese accent. 
3. You’ll worry that when your son waves, it looks like a Nazi salute. 
Of course, this might just be Harry Spencer. 

Taking up where This Thirtysomething Life left off, Harry Spencer and is wife Emily are back and trying to survive their first year of parenthood. It has its ups and downs (and a few bits in the middle), but along the way they begin to understand the true meaning of family and what it takes to be a parent. 

Featuring a hilarious cast of extras including Harry’s father-in-law Derek, who has a unique problem with Scotch, Steve and Fiona, the parents from children’s entertainment hell, and a yoga instructor with a prominent camel-toe, This Family Life is the ultimate comedy for anyone who is a parent, has a parent, or is thinking about becoming one. 

Purchase

Review

I read this a while ago, I loved it but for some reason life got in the way and I never got a chance to review it until now. Right, although The Family Life wasn't as funny as This Thirtysomething Life it left me with a cheerful and optimistic view of life especially as my view of marriage was skewed to begin with. I loved Spencer and Emily's relationship this time round, I thought he was a little bit more understanding and sexier.

I would recommend this as it's funny, lovely and the author does a good job of portraying a modern British family.  

Review: Broken #1

Synopsis

Caleb is perfect in every way, almost too perfect and Gwen has never felt so happy. He is hers and she is his. Life can't get much better and their love can't get any stronger. That is until mistakes are made and their world comes crumbling down. 

She's left alone with no money, no home and a growing person invading her stomach. How will she survive? 

Forced to leave culinary school, the job she needs and the home they made together. 

Gwen finds a knight in the most unlikely source. Caleb's brother Nathan. A complex man with a phobia she doesn't understand and mannerisms that aren't of this day and age, will she be able to melt his seemingly frozen heart and become his friend? Or will he forever push her away and wallow in his loneliness and self loathing? 

Review
Broken didn't have a great start. The beginning was a bit of a mish mash, a girl meets a boy on a beach and falls deliberately in loves, how gullible is she and how gullible does the author think we are that we would believe such nonsense? The beginning of this story would be a good story for a fifteen year old, its very unrealistically romantic, if not headache inducing. I was livid with the author for such a bad start.

However as the story progressed, I began to understand the characters. This author is good at characterization, in Lil Bits of Us, I loved Mia not because she was perfectly formed but because she was flawed, she was a young woman coming to terms with the death of the father and coming to terms with growing up. However in Broken Gwen is sappy, very weak and to a certain extent stupid. Towards the end I began to sympathize with her. Yes she needs to stand up for herself but I'm hoping she does this in the second book.

This isn't a story that rings true, it sounded as though the author thought about how great it would be to meet someone on the beach and she went for it. But Gwen and Caleb are not the kind of people I would have a drink with, they characters in a book and don't translate to real life. But I still think this author has potential,  the story is captivating enough, funny and there are elements of brilliance and I was entertained but I think the author needs to go back to the drawing board. Sort out the dialogue for example and create characters as great as Mia.

Question: Does anyone know an English Caleb, the name is very American. Sigh!

Ps. I was sent this book by the author. 

How To Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

Synopsis

The astonishing and riveting tale of a man's journey from impoverished rural boy to corporate tycoon, it steals its shape from the business self-help books devoured by youths all over 'rising Asia'. 

It follows its nameless hero to the sprawling metropolis where he begins to amass an empire built on the most fluid and increasingly scarce of goods: water. 

Yet his heart remains set on something else, on the pretty girl whose star rises alongside his, their paths crossing and re-crossing in a love affair sparked and snuffed out again by the forces that careen their fates along.