Skip to main content

Featured

Christmas at Hollybush Farm by Jo Thomas #Review

    Welcome to another festive read by Jo Thomas. Christmas at Hollybush Farm was published by Penguin on October 9th.   Jemima Jones is driving home to her family's magical hill-top farm for Christmas…  And on arrival, she soon learns that her dad has been keeping a secret – all is not as it seems, and Hollybush Farm is struggling to make ends meet! Worried about losing the childhood home she loves, Jemima must pull on her winter wellies and get stuck in. Amid the chaos of chasing after escaping sheep and organising the Christmas tractor run, Jemima begins documenting her slice of farming life on social media. As she builds a supportive online following, she also forms an offline connection in the shape of charming, retired rugby player Llew, her very own Santa's helper.  With a sprinkle of festive cheer and a dash of goodwill, might the community pull together to help save the farm in time for Christmas? My Thoughts Jemima returns home to find that her w...

The Secrets of Summer House by Rachel Burton #Review

 


Today I have a wonderful read for you by Rachel Burton, The Secrets of Summer House  which was published by Aria on 21st April. 

An emotional, atmospheric summer read about family secrets and loyalty from the author of Kindle bestseller A Bookshop Christmas.

The secrets of Summer House are about to come out at last...

1976. Rushing out of the University Library, undergraduate Alice Kenzie bumps straight into PhD student Tristan Somers. There begins a whirlwind romance, and Alice falls pregnant and gives birth to a baby girl. Then Tristan is killed in a car accident. Unable to cope, Alice takes her baby to Summer House, Tristan's family home in Suffolk, leaves her there and disappears.

2018. Olivia Somers has always been told that her mother died in the same accident as her father. But when she finds a bundle of old letters in Summer House, everything she ever believed about her mother is called into question. Can she find her – and even more importantly, forgive her?

My Thoughts

I always enjoy a dual timeline story and this is no exception. You follow two generations, Alice who is a student in 1976 and Olivia in 2018. There are several similarities between the two women, principally their love of libraries and one in particular. Olivia, though, seems much more grounded as a person. When you first meet Alice, you are struck by her lack of confidence. She feels like an outsider amongst the affluent Cambridge students, but you also recognise in her a romantic streak.

    Olivia has been feeling detached from the family life which has been her centre. As she faces up to some shocking secrets from the past, you get to see how she is able to work through her own family issues. I found this to be an entertaining read as both stories fed into each other. It raised some interesting issues around motherhood, loss and grief which all seemed to swamp Alice. Whether you can ever forgive and put the past behind you are also questions which Olivia has to face. 

In short: secrets from the past emerge.


About the Author


Rachel has a degree in Classics and another in English Literature, and fell into a career in law by mistake. She has spent most of her life between Cambridge and London but now lives in Yorkshire with her husband and their three cats. She loves yoga, ice hockey, tea, The Beatles, dresses with pockets and very tall romantic heroes. Find her on Twitter & Instagram as @RachelBWriter or follow her blog at rachelburtonwrites.com

 

Social links: 

Twitter |  Instagram  |  Website   |  Goodreads  |  Facebook
 
 Aria links: Website  |  Twitter   |  Fiction   |  Instagram
 
Head of Zeus: Instagram  ||  Twitter |  Website  |  Facebook
 
Book links: Amazon UK  |  Kobo
 
Thanks to Rachel Burton, and Amy Watson of Head of Zeus  for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
 
Check out these great bloggers!



 

Comments

Popular Posts