Book Review: Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams #BRPreview

Our Stop

by

Laura Jane Williams

What if you almost missed the love of your life?

Publisher: Harper Collins

Imprint: Avon

Publication date: 16th December 2019 ANZ

Genre: Romance/ Contemporary (RomCom)

Pages: 368

Format read: B-Format uncorrected paperback

Source: Courtesy of the publisher via Better Reading

Nadia gets the 7.30 train every morning without fail. Well, except if she oversleeps or wakes up at her friend Emma’s after too much wine.
 

Daniel really does get the 7.30 train every morning, which is easy because he hasn’t been able to sleep properly since his dad died.
 

One morning, Nadia’s eye catches sight of a post in the daily paper:

To the cute girl with the coffee stains on her dress. I’m the guy who’s always standing near the doors… Drink sometime?

So begins a not-quite-romance of near-misses, true love, and the power of the written word.

I really enjoyed this light and witty RomCom.

Twenty-nine year old Nadia has had a few hard relationships and is disillusioned with love. Will she ever find her perfect guy? Her life was a bit of a muddle but she had a new plan and she will become a beacon of organisation and the rest will fall in place.

On the first day of her new plan she sees an advert in the ‘Love Connections’ column in the paper talking about “the cute blonde girl on the 7:30 train.” Could this be her?

Daniel is a romantic at heart but he lacks confidence. Vowing not to remain the underdog he places an advert on the ‘Love Connections’ column hoping to get the attention of the cute blonde girl on his morning train.

It was fun to read their ads back and forward and see them have a few near misses as their paths crossed and almost crossed several times.

An important part of the story is friendship and looking out for each other. Nadia has her best friends Emma and Gaby who give support and encouragement but even best friends sometimes have minor fall-outs.

Williams covers issues like gaslighting, consent and toxic relationships without sounding too preachy. Lots of laugh out loud moments, as both Nadia and Daniel traverse the minefield that is dating, kept me invested and lightened the tone of the sometimes heavy topics.

If you enjoyed The Book Ninja by Ali Berg & Michelle Kalus you will love Our Stop.

                          🌟🌟🌟🌟.5

My rating   4.5/5

Laura Jane Williams is a writer from Derbyshire, England. Her work has been translated into ten languages in over 15 countries - and counting. She is 33.

Laura’s first book, memoir BECOMING, was an instant cult hit exploring her twenty-something heartbreak and finding peace with imperfection. This was followed by ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST, based on her thirty-something experience of overcoming millennial burnout through embracing her playful inner child. Her third book is OUR STOP, a novel about almost missing the love of your life, that Laura claims made her see love through a new, more hopeful paradigm.

She has just finished writing book four, non-fiction audiobook The Life Diet, and is about to start in on number five – a romp of a story that she lovingly thinks of as ‘Mamma Mia meets Kitchen Confidential’.

  

Book Review: The One by Kaneana May

The One

by

Kaneana May

Publisher: Harper Collins Australia 
Imprint: Mira
Publication date: 17th June 2019
Genre: Romance
Pages: 405
Format read: Paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

On the wrong side of thirty, Bonnie Yates wants a happily ever after. Problem is, she keeps choosing the wrong guys. When an ex returns to town with a fiance in tow, history and temptation collide. Unable to shake her inappropriate feelings Bonnie flees, becoming an unlikely contestant on popular dating show The One. Will she find what she's looking for?

Working behind the scenes, Darcy Reed is a driven young producer, dealing with a tyrant of a boss. Despite being surrounded by love at work, her own love-life with long-term boyfriend Drew is floundering. Producing a flawless season is her best chance at a promotion. But with the unrelenting demands of the show, how will she save their relationship while making that shot?

Penelope Baker has relocated to a small seaside town to hide away with her secrets and nurse a broken heart. But with The One beaming across the nation's televisions, she can't seem to quite escape the life she left behind...

I will start by saying I’m a bit of a Bachelor tragic. I like getting right into the drama of the show and trying to guess who will be going home each night, checking Twitter every few minutes to see what other viewers are thinking, which contestants everyone likes or dislikes. We viewers have very distinct opinions about everything that is said and done on the show.

I originally rated the book 4.5 stars because, for me, there wasn’t enough viewer participation in the story. However over the next few weeks I kept talking about The One to anyone within earshot and especially while I was watching episodes of The Bachelor. Which made me think this is definitely 5 star worthy.

The One follows three women during the screening of a reality TV series where an eligible bachelor dates a number of carefully chosen women, eliminating one each episode until he is left with ‘the one’ he chooses to spend his life with.

Darcy is a producer on the show, Bonnie a contestant and Penelope a viewer.

I loved all the behind the scenes producing of the show and all the drama between the contestants. It was exactly as I imagined it would be.

This is a cute and funny RomCom that highlights the ups and downs of love and the strain of long distance relationships and shows all we really want is our own happily ever after.

Kaneana May touches on topics of miscarriage, IVF and cancer with deep sensitivity.

The three main characters were very relatable. Darcy hides behind her work rather than taking the time to re-evaluate her relationship with boyfriend Drew. Bonnie’s anxiety and self loathing cause her to run rather than stand up for herself. Penelope shuts herself off from people as she has already suffered too much pain and loss.

The One is a romantic novel that reminds us that love may be where you least expect it. A story that had me laughing out loud and surreptitiously trying to hide my tears as I read the last few pages in a busy coffee shop.

I am eagerly looking forward to seeing what Kaneana May comes up with next.

                                                                                    

                            🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

My rating  5/5

This review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie author challenge

and book #29 in the Australian Women Writers challenge

 

 

Photo credit: Harper Collins

Kaneana May studied television production at university, graduating with first-class honours in screenwriting. She went on to work in television, including roles as a script assistant on All Saints, a storyliner on Headland and a scriptwriter on Home and Away. Since becoming a mother, Kaneana has turned her attention to fiction writing. Kaneana loves to read—mostly YA, romance and women's fiction—and also loves watching TV and films. Writing, boot camp, coffee, chocolate and champagne are just some of her favourite things. Kaneana lives on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales with her husband and three children.

  

 

Book Review: The Woolly Hat Knitting Club (Chick Lit)

The Woolly Hat Knitting Club

by 

Poppy Dolan 

 

Publisher: Canelo

Publication date: 25th September 2017

Pages: 300

Format read: eBook

Source: Courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley

Finding happiness one stitch at a time

When Dee Blackthorn’s brother, JP, breaks both wrists not only is he in need of a helping hand – or two – but the knitting shop he owns can’t function. Sisterly duties take Dee away from her demanding job and she is unceremoniously fired amidst rumours of inappropriate behaviour. Dee is certain that her hot-shot nemesis, Ben, is behind it all but has no proof.

When Dee bumps into an old friend who is new mum to a premature baby she convinces JP to enlist his knitting pals to make lots of tiny woolly hats. Then Ben turns up denying involvement in Dee’s sacking and she ropes him into helping the knitting cause.

But before long Dee’s good intentions backfire and she risks losing her friends, her family and Ben, who’s turned out to be not so bad after all…

A feel-good romantic comedy about learning what life is really all about, The Woolly Hat Knitting Club is perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley, Tilly Tennant and Carole Matthews.

 

Delilah, Dee to her friends and family, has a high powered corporate job that she loves. She knows she is the best at her job always working long hours, going above and beyond for clients. Work is her life!

Dee gets unexpectedly fired, over rumours of her behaving inappropriately, which leaves her free to help her brother with his knitting and haberdashery shop.

I really enjoyed Dee and JP’s relationship. Dee is the big sister and it was plain to see she would do anything for him. JP had found his niche in life after dropping out of the corporate world following a break down. Initially knitting was used as JP’s therapy but he loved it and was good at it. With Dee’s financial help he opened a haberdashery and also started a knitting blog called “About a (Knitting) Boy”.

Dee throws everything into helping JP boost his business. This is what she is good at. But she always thinks she knows best and forges ahead without consulting JP. Cracks start to appear in their relationship. Cracks she may not be able to mend.

Dee is still seething over losing her job. She knows exactly who back-stabbed her and she is going to make him pay. But is she right?

The Woolly Hat Knitting Club is the perfect read for any knitting enthusiast. The story is filled with knitting, humour, community spirit and a tiny bit of romance.

Dee catches up with a friend that recently gave birth to a premmie baby and a scheme slowly develops across the plot to knit hats for premmie babies, getting the whole community involved in the venture.

There are plenty of familiar features for knitters, like CraftCon, knitathons and beginner knitting classes. All with a good dose of humour included.

The main characters are all likeable and relatable. Dee and JP have a wonderful relationship, they tease each other and bicker occasionally but you can see the closeness there. Ben, Dee’s work nemesis, knows Dee doesn’t like him and can’t understand why. He never gives up on her. Best friend Beckie is the quintessential new mum; she is scared, tired, and rundown but totally in love with her new baby boy. Maggie, the adopted Grandma, is the epitome of selflessness; she looks after her own ageing mother but always has time for Dee and JP, never once complaining.

The Woolly Hat Knitters Club is a feel-good story about finding what makes you happy, with themes of knitting as therapy, new motherhood, premmie babies, judging people by appearance, work overload, community spirit and men who knit.

‘Turns out that knitting is pretty perfect for those times when your head is reeling and your hands need something to do.” – Dee Blackthorn

Do men knit? I think we all know that men knit but do they knit and blog? I thought I would do a quick Google search and this is the first one I found; Good for a Boy Knitting  www.goodforaboy.com  It’s definitely worth a look.

Content: Minimal swearing

                 Clean romance

My Rating    4/5       🌟🌟🌟🌟

Poppy Dolan is a rom com afficiando. After watching When Harry Met Sally at the impressionable age of 14, she’s never stopped dreaming of having the perfect ‘meet-cute’, that one-liner that steals your heart and the grand romantic gesture to end all grand romantic gestures. Since her real-life dating experiences were more often situated at Nando’s than the top of the Eiffel Tower, she turned to fiction and wrote romantic comedies of her own. She self-published her first novel,The Bad Boyfriends Bootcamp, in May 2012 and made it into the Kindle top 100.

Poppy lives with her other half in Buckinghamshire and now finds romantic value in a cup of tea appearing on her desk and someone who gives you the other bit of their Twix without being asked. Besides, the top of the Eiffel Tower is most likely very chilly and Ryan Gosling won’t return her calls.

Book Review: Who Killed the Movie Star? by Lily Malone

Title: Who Killed the Movie Star?
Author: Lily Malone
Series: Book #2
Publisher: Self Published
Publication Date: 7th July 2018
Pages: 170
Format Read: Paperback
Source: Courtesy of the author

It’s Sunday morning on a long weekend in the quirky little town of Cowaramup and Cally Minter and her best friend Sienna are about to host a new murder mystery game, Who Killed The Movie Star?

But before an arrow can be shot from its bow, the girls are in a pickle. The Sheriff of Nottingham has gone rogue; they’ve lost a Maid Marian, and someone keeps reporting them to the local police for shooting their guests.

In all the confusion, Lovely First Class Constable Daniel Reardon becomes a regular visitor to Butterfly House, and if Cally plays her cards right… whoever murdered the movie star might not be the only one in handcuffs by sunset.

Who Killed The Movie Star, the sequel to Who Killed The Bride, combines cozy mystery and comedy with a romantic twist.

Who Killed the Movie Star is the Second Butterfly House story by Lily Malone.

I absolutely loved Who Killed the Bride. It was a fun read with just enough action to keep the reader turning the pages.

Book two is just as much fun with plenty of laugh out loud moments. Cally is gorgeous and unquestionably a romantic at heart. You can’t help but like Cally, she says exactly what she’s thinking and quite often it’s something awkward, embarrassing and a bit odd.

Cally’s dad Paul Minter, a well known author, is staying at Butterfly House whilst he attends a local writers’ festival and an overzealous fan gives for some hilarious moments and disastrous misunderstandings which have the lovely First Class Senior Constable Daniel Reardon visiting Butterfly House on more than one occasion.

There is a bit of tension in this story as a long held secret is revealed but all ends on a good note making you see that the world really is filled with lovely people.

I love this book it gives you a nice warm feeling about life and love.

Thank you Lily for writing book 2, they are both books I will read over and over.

My rating 5/5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

This is book #19 in the Australian Women Writers challenge

and part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie Author Challenge.

Following is my review of Book #1 which I read before I started this blog.

Who Killed the Bride? Is a cozy mystery with laugh out loud moments and characters I’m sure Malone has grabbed straight from the streets of her own home town.

Cally has her heart set on starting her own business, a Cluedo style show and dinner combination. Her father thinks she is writing the next prize winning literary fiction.

Cally and best friend, Sienna, have been planning their first play, Who Killed the Bride, for months. Finally it’s the opening day, what could possibly go wrong.

I fell in love with the gorgeous Cally. What a wonderful, genuine character she is. She blurts out whatever is on her mind before she has time to think about it which is cause for some funny situations. The town of Cowaramup sounds like the most fun place ever, even though I have no idea how to pronounce it. Malone has included some real town events to colour this fictional world which gives it an added level believability.

Who Killed the Bride is filled with mystery, twists, suspense, some one sided romance and lots of humour. I think this would make a fantastic stage show.

I’m looking forward to the next Butterfly House mystery, Who Killed the Movie Star, and maybe a little more insight into the characters of Sienna and Tyson.

I would recommend this easy read to anyone that likes a bit of fun. 

Lily Malone might have been a painter, except her year-old son put a golf club through her canvas, so she wrote her first contemporary romance novel instead.


Lily loves wine,walking, gardening, (and walking in gardens, sometimes with wine) and many of her romances are set in the vineyards and wine regions of Australia, particularly in Margaret River and the Great Southern in Western Australia, and Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills in South Australia where she spent most of the 2000s.

Lily lives in Cowaramup with her very handsome husband, and two sons who take after their dad.


On a last note I would like to say how beautiful the covers are and how fantastic they look together.
Cover art by Kerry Sibly. You can see more of her work at Mukau Gallery