Book Review: The Roadmap of Loss by Liam Murphy

 The Roadmap of Loss

by

Liam Murphy

Publisher: Echo Publishing

Publication date: 3rd January 2024

Genre: Literary Fiction  

Pages: 368

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher 

 

Review: The Roadmap of Loss

The Roadmap of Loss is an affecting story about loss and grieving. Liam Murphy's writing is lyrical and evokes a sense of melancholy.

 

Mark Ward has always struggled with his sense of self carrying the burden of guilt over his father leaving him and his mother when he was five years old.

 

After his mother's sudden death, Mark finds a bundle of letters from his father to his mother. Letters filled with love set against the landscape of his travels across the United States. Mark decides to take his father's letters, pack up his life in Melbourne and retrace his father's journey, 20 years on, hoping to find closure.

 

I loved that The Roadmap of Loss was set in the 1990's, no mobile phones and no GPS made road travel exciting, dangerous and often spontaneous.

Mark is a young man with an enormous chip on his shoulder; angry, abusive and sullen. Perfect characterization made me neither like or dislike him. He brought problems onto himself so there was no sympathy, which was something he didn't want anyway.

 

Mark reads each of his father's letters as he arrives at the next destination and in a unique writing style the chapters start again from number one after each letter.

The Roadmap of Loss is a sombre read however there are also unexpected snippets of humour that actually had me laughing.

 

Liam Murphy's plethora of memorable characters that come in and out of Mark's life make for entertaining reading as he travels ten thousand hard and lonely miles across America.

I never knew how the story would evolve as Mark had a low regard for his own life and often danced with the idea of ending it.

 

The Roadmap of Loss is an insightful exploration of grief and the restorative power of forgiveness. A great read for those that enjoy lyrical prose and literary fiction.

 

My rating 4 / 5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Review: Her Time to Shine by Fiona McCallum

 Her Time to Shine

by

Fiona McCallum

It's never too late to find your true self.

Publisher: Harlequin Australia

Publication date: 30th March 2022

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/ *Up Lit 

Pages: 432

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

*Up Lit: stories filled with kindness, optimism and heart

 

Review: Her Time to Shine

Her Time to Shine follows straight on from Trick of the Light. The story opens with Erica now living in the small country town of Melrose. She is about to start a new job in a funeral home. Erica is still somewhat amazed at the turn of events in her life as she approaches fifty.

 

Trick of the Light was my favourite Fiona McCallum book to date and Her Time to Shine is a fabulous follow up novel.

McCallum includes enough backstory to bring new readers up to date. I was already endeared to Erica from the previous book and within a few pages I felt the same about Walter, owner of the funeral home.

 

With the main setting being a funeral home there is a theme of death and loss, and McCallum delivers this with compassion.

 

I raced through this book! All the characters were likeable, interesting people. There is also a bit of a mystery running through the story with Erica having flashbacks of repressed memories.

 

Her Time to Shine is a heartwarming story about new friendships, facing your fears, taking new opportunities in life and never giving up on your dreams.

 

I highly recommend this uplifting read for anyone who likes characters that will make you smile and a story that is all wrapped up nicely at the end. Although not entirely necessary, I would suggest reading Trick of the Light first. You will love it too!

 

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

my review of Trick of the Light

Book Review: The Blue Gum Camp by Leonie Kelsall

The Blue Gum Camp

by

Leonie Kelsall 

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Publication date: 3rd January 2024 

Genre: Rural Romance

Pages: 419

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: The Blue Gum Camp

The Blue Gum Camp is Leonie Kelsall's fifth book featuring characters from Settler's Bridge and surrounds.

 

Charity Farrugia is persuaded to attend a B & S ball by her sisters, Faith and Hope. They feel the always serious and always responsible Charity needs to relax and have some fun.

 

Lachlan is only going to the B & S ball to keep an eye on his mischievous younger brother Hamish. Lachlan has been working the family farm whilst his father has become a curmudgeonly recluse since his mother's untimely death twelve months ago.

When Lachlan and Charity meet sparks fly but Charity isn't ready to let her guard down.

 

I enjoyed the different ways of thinking between Hope and her friends in their early twenties and that of mid thirties Charity. Having characters from different age groups adds diversity to the story. I loved all the sibling banter and light ribbing both with the Farrugia sisters and Lachlan and Hamish. It felt very natural and was filled with humour. The siblings' similarities and differences were perfectly portrayed.

If you have read the previous books you will see many well-known and much loved characters get a mention which adds a further level of connection with the whole community that surrounds the books.

 

Kelsall explores themes of running a farm, aging parents, early onset dementia, feeling responsible for siblings, cognitive disorders, loss and grieving.  

The Blue Gum Camp has slightly darker themes and more drama than most rural romance novels however the main theme is still one of rural life and the lack of potential partners in small country towns.

 

My rating 4 / 5  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Review: Dreaming by Starlight by Siobhan Curham

Dreaming by Starlight

by

Siobhan Curham

Friends make dreams come true.

 

Publisher: Walker Books

Publication date: 3rd August 2022

Series: The Moonlight Dreamers #3

Genre: Young Adult

Pages: 272

RRP: $16.99AU (paperback)

Source: Own purchase

 

Review: Dreaming by Starlight

Dreaming by Starlight is book #3 in The Moonlight Dreamers series. However reads well as a standalone as it centres on a different group of girls.

 

When Jazz's father gets a new job the family pack up and move across the globe to the UK, leaving behind everything that Jazz loves. Jazz soon starts at a snooty private school where no-one will talk to her. She doesn't fit in. She's not a rich girl. She's just a girl from the Gold Coast of Australia and she's missing her friends.

 

Jazz is miserable, but before her cousin Amber (from book 1 & 2) moves to Paris she shares with Jazz her unique way of connecting with people and making new friends.

Dreaming by Starlight is the most endearing story about the might of friendship and the power of dreams

Siobhan Curham has written a beautiful, uplifting and positive story about four teenage girls who felt trapped and unsettled with their current lives and needed each other to help bring out their true selves. A friend to listen to their dreams and fears.

As the chapters alternate between the four girls, Jazz, Allegra, Portia and Hope, we get to know more about their lives. There is also a little mystery and adventure thrown in.

Dreaming by Starlight is a story that will resonate with its intended audience.

Publisher recommended age 12+

my rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

Book Review: It's Probably You by Jayne Denker

 It's Probably You

by

Jayne Denker

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Publication date: 3rd January 2024 

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Pages: 320

RRP: $32.99AU (paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: It's Probably You 

It's Probably You is a funny, engaging and heartwarming enemies to lovers romance.

 

Gillian is comfortable with her life after 5 years divorced, but wouldn't say no to finding that someone special. After many disastrous dates via dating apps she's happy to work in her garden with her eye on winning the local gardening competition.

 

Noah has recently moved to town after a devastating break-up and decides the fixer-upper he has bought, sight unseen, is exactly what he needs to keep him busy. When he has an altercation with fiery neighbour Gillian, over a border hedge he removed, he knows she is trouble but he can't keep his mind off her.

 

I loved this sweet, slow-burn rom-com. It's probably You is filled with down-to-earth, relatable characters. Gillian is confident, smart, funny and sexy. We see Noah's confident side but not around Gillian. She undoes him and enjoys pushing his buttons.

I enjoyed the matchmaking trio of elderly women neighbours who weren't reticent in giving advice to Noah and eavesdropping whenever they got the chance. A vast array of supporting characters add plenty of humour and drama to the plot.

 

It's Probably You ticks all the boxes for the perfect beach read this summer. It is a sweet, slow-burn, closed-door, small town romance with a curvy female main character and an enemies to lovers trope. 

 

If you are after a book that will leave you smiling long after you have read the last page you can't go past It's Probably You by Jayne Denker

 

My rating 4 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Review: A Shadow at the Door by Jo Dixon

 A Shadow at the Door

by

Jo Dixon

Publisher: Harlequin Australia

Publication date: 3rd January 2024

Genre: Crime / Thriller

Pages: 373

RRP: $32.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: A Shadow at the Door

Remi has built a new life for herself since her marriage breakdown and thrown herself into renovating her dilapidated sandstone house. When her savings mysteriously disappear from her bank account and her ex-husband starts pushing her to sell the house Remi decides to take in tenants to cover her mortgage repayments. 

Josephine and Emerson, both women having moved to Tasmania to start a new life, move in.

 

A Shadow at the Door is a compelling domestic thriller. Jo Dixon once again immerses her readers in the beauty and seclusion of Tasmania, highlighting the bitter cold of a Tasmanian winter. The story held my interest as the multi-generational friendship evolved and inner secrets emerged.

 

Jo Dixon realistically depicts how online trolls can destroy a reputation and how years of emotional abuse can undermine a person's confidence and self-worth. I love how Jo Dixon built  empathy for her characters in A Shadow at the Door. I couldn't help but want them to succeed.

 

Told through multiple points of view Jo Dixon delivers a gripping thriller with an enticingly twisty plot and an underlying message of friendship.

 

A Shadow at the Door is a worthy second novel to Jo Dixon's block-buster debut The House of Now and Then.

 

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

 

Read my review of The House of Now and Then

Book Review: The Italian Marriage by Jenna Lo Bianco

 The Italian Marriage

by

Jenna Lo Bianco

An inheritance. A fake marriage. Must be amore.

 

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Publication date: 27th December 2023

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Pages: 368

RRP: $34.99AU (trade paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Review: The Italian Marriage 

I loved this book! The perfect beach read, even though I'm nowhere near a beach.

The Italian Marriage is so sweet I think I 'aawed' through the whole book.

The Italian Marriage is a fake marriage trope; he falls first, one bed, sweetly sexy, romance.

Matthew D'Adamo is set to inherit the family estate but first he needs a wife. The estate goes to the youngest 'married' D'Adamo male.

Sarah Browne, a free-spirited event manager, agrees to an air-tight pre-nup and is looking forward to a break from the emotional toll of her endometriosis. The first time the two meet is on the flight to Florence. When they arrive they find another claimant has surfaced and now they must spend a year together restoring a rundown hotel. Whichever couple is most successful after 12 months wins the family estate.

I loved both Sarah and Matthew! They were both so perfect; kind, accommodating and thoughtful. Sarah is fun, spontaneous and confident. The story introduces lovely friends that help them connect with the community and there are also those that are bent on thwarting them so there is loads of drama between all the sweet moments of Sarah and Matthew getting to know each other.

With chapter headings in Italian and lots of Italian interspersed throughout conversations it was very easy to connect with the location.

The Italian Marriage is steeped in the culture of Italy. The language, the food, the architecture is all vividly played out on the page.

If you are after a sweet romance with plenty of drama and a few little twists The Italian Marriage will not disappoint.

The Italian Marriage is destination romance at its best!

My rating 5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐