Books and Bites Bingo - Category 4 #BooksandBitesBingo2020

This bingo challenge is with Facebook group Books and Bites with Monique Mulligan

This week I will be completing the 'Set in Europe' category.

Set in Europe:

For this category I have chosen 'Grown Ups'

Grown Ups is set in Ireland and Marian Keyes has written her characters so well I could hear the Irish accents as I read. I enjoyed the bits of Irish slang and sayings that I wouldn't normally see in Australian novels.

You can read my full review here 

#BooksandBitesBingo2020 
 

Book Review & Giveaway: Just an Ordinary Family by Fiona Lowe

Just an Ordinary Family

by

Fiona Lowe

Publisher: Harper Collins Australia 
Imprint: HQ Fiction - AU
Publication date: 24th February 2020
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Women's
Pages: 528 
RRP: $32.99AUD
Format read: Paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

Alice Hunter is smarting from the raw deal life has thrown her way: suddenly single, jobless and forced to move home to her parents' tiny seaside town. And now she faces an uncomfortable truth. She wants her twin sister Libby's enviable life.

Libby's closest friend Jess Dekic has been around the Hunter family for so long she might as well be blood. She's always considered herself a sister closer to Libby than Alice ever could be...

Libby Hunter has all of life's boxes ticked: prominent small-town doctor, gorgeous husband and two young daughters. But when she is betrayed by those she loves most, it reveals how tenuous her world is...

For Karen Hunter, her children are a double-edged sword of pain and pride. She's always tried to guide her girls through life's pitfalls, but how do you protect your children when they're adults?

As the family implodes, the fallout for these four women will be inescapable...

Since reading ‘Birthright’ Fiona Lowe has become one of my must read authors. She has the ability to write about family dramas without them becoming overly dramatised. The families she develops and their problems are relatable. They could be families you know or even your own family.

Just an Ordinary Family follows the Hunter family; Karen, Peter and their twin daughters Libby and Alice and Libby’s long time best friend Jess. Lowe’s characters are flawed; there are arguments, jealousies and misunderstandings, which in turn make the characters real and relatable.

Alice at 33 and with a recent failed relationship behind her, is worried she won’t find a partner and start a family before her biological clock runs out. Libby is desperate for another child but is this unfulfilled longing affecting her marriage? Their mother, Karen, still worries about her grown daughters and Alice now back in her parent’s home finds her mother’s concern can be stifling.

Libby’s best friend Jess is happy to be back in her home town and part of a real family as the Hunters welcome her with open arms. Libby and Jess are the best of friends almost like sisters and they have shared everything all their lives. Libby is happy to have Jess and her baby boy back in her life.

Secrets will be revealed that will rip families apart and also answer lingering questions. There is a lot of own voice facts about sex and couples counselling which fits into the story well as this is an area that Lowe can write about with some expertise.

Fiona Lowe has written a compelling story about trust and betrayal, regret and forgiveness, fertility, motherhood and family ties, bringing to the fore many issues that are pertinent to women everywhere making this a book not to be missed.

                            🌟🌟🌟🌟 

My rating  4/5

 FIONA LOWE has been a midwife, a sexual health counsellor and a family support worker; an ideal career for an author who writes novels about family and relationships. She spent her early years in Papua New Guinea where, without television, reading was the entertainment and it set up a lifelong love of books. Although she often re-wrote the endings of books in her head, it was the birth of her first child that prompted her to write her first novel. A recipient of the prestigious USA RITA® award and the Australian RuBY award, Fiona writes books that are set in small country towns. They feature real people facing difficult choices and explore how family ties and relationships impact on their decisions.When she's not writing stories, she's a distracted wife, mother of two ‘ginger' sons, a volunteer in her community, guardian of eighty rose bushes, a slave to a cat, and is often found collapsed on the couch with wine.

Click the book cover to read my review of Home Fires.

 

This review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie Author Challenge 

and the Australian Women Writers challenge

#AWW #AusBookBloggers

I have one paperback copy of Just an Ordinary Family to give away. Entry via the form below.

 

This giveaway is now closed and the winner was Naomi P 

 

Book Review: The Last Paradise by Di Morrissey

The Last Paradise

by

Di Morrissey

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia 
Publication date: 24th October 2019
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 416
RRP: $34.99AUD
Format read: Hardback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 n the ashes of her marriage, she finds the truth about his past and the courage to start again in . . . The Last Paradise.

Grace has the perfect life: a job she loves, a beautiful daughter and a rich, successful husband. But one night, when their world falls apart in a shocking disaster, Grace suddenly sees what she couldn't admit - her marriage and her husband are a fraud.

With the life she knew in tatters, she takes an assignment promoting the launch of a unique luxury hotel, hidden in a stunning, untouched oasis in the heart of tourist-crazed Bali.

Here, in this last paradise, Grace gathers the strength to take charge of her world. And, inspired by a woman's story from long ago, she discovers a path to a future she'd never dared to imagine . . .

The Last Paradise is the latest novel by prolific best-selling author Di Morrissey. With the majority of the story set in Bali, Morrissey brings to the fore her powerful ability to evoke a sense of time and place.

Grace has lost everything, her house, her car, her every possession in a devastating house fire. She takes her young daughter to live with her mother whilst her husband moves closer to his place of work. Away from her husband’s ever controlling presence Grace starts to see that a lot of things about his life don’t add up.

Through Grace we see how a lot of women can become controlled and repressed, especially when they leave their jobs to care for a new baby. Grace had slowly surrendered all decisions over to her husband. Some because she simply didn’t have the time and others to avoid another argument.

Now in desperate need of money Grace secures an advertising job which requires her to spend time in Bali. We watch as Grace grows in confidence as she embraces her job and knows this is something she is good at. As she battles her husband for custody of their daughter Grace grows strong and resilient.

Morrissey’s descriptions of Bali are vivid, with mentions of Bali in the 70’s before it become a cheap haven filled with noisy holiday makers. The island becomes as much a part of the story as the characters. Morrissey’s aim is to show her readers the other side of Bali, without the buckets of alcohol but with exotic food and pristine beaches.

Some history of Bali is introduced with excerpts from Revolt in Paradise by K’tut Tantri. I found myself interested in K’tut’s story and more so after the introduction of Tim Lindsey who wrote The Romance of K’tut Tantri and Indonesia, after her death.

I enjoy a good mystery so I would have liked the mystery surrounding Grace’s husband. Lawrence, to have been a bit more fleshed out and it was wrapped up much too quickly.

Morrissey has given her readers a world that embraces the true Bali, showcasing a connectedness to the land, and where love and hope ultimately triumph.

🌟🌟🌟

My rating  3/5

Explaining my 3 star rating: As much as I loved Di Morrissey’s writing and I think The Last Paradise will be a huge success, the setting of Bali just didn’t, doesn’t, will never interest me and the setting is a large part of this story.

Photo credit: Coastbeat - Aaron Cuneo

Di Morrissey is one of the most successful and prolific authors Australia has ever produced. She trained as a journalist, working in newspapers, magazines, television, film, theatre and advertising around the world. 

Her fascination with different countries, their landscape, their cultural, political and environmental issues, has been the catalyst for her novels which are all inspired by a particular landscape. 

Di lives with her partner, Boris Janjic, in the Manning Valley, NSW. 

In 2017, in recognition of her achievements, Di was inducted into the Australian Book Industry Awards Hall of Fame with the Lloyd O'Neil Award. In 2019, she was made a Member of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours. 

This review is part of the  Australian Women Writers challenge #AWW2020
the Booklover Book Review Aussie author challenge

  

 

Winner of a Kindle copy of House of Wishes announced

A big thank you to everyone who entered my giveaway for a copy of House of Wishes . The giveaway closed on the 12th February and the winner was randomly selected (using Random org) from all correct entries. 

Congratulations to.....    Michelle Parker

Please see my Giveaway tab for more chances to win great books.

Spotlight: I Asked the Wind - A Collection of Romantic Poetry by Valerie Nifora

 

There is no better day than Valentines Day, the day of love, to spotlight this beautiful collection of romantic poetry.

I have asked author Valerie Nifora to  share with The Burgeoning Bookshelf her favourite poems and what they mean to her.

I Asked the Wind: A Collection of Romantic Poetry

by

Valerie Nifora

Publisher: The Unapologetic Voice House LLC
Publication date: 3rd December 2019
Genre: Poetry
Pages: 108

Book Summary:

I Asked the Wind: A Collection of Romantic Poetry is a journey into romance, love and loss through poetry. The poems published in this collection span over 15 years of writing. Often starting with short rhythmic patterns, each poem’s lyrical tone is filled with inspired words to express the deep emotion experienced in the intricacies of romance.

Handwritten in a journal and hidden away until this publication, the poems chronicle the journey into and out of love. Written in three parts, the book enables the reader to transverse the intensity of romantic love, from the first moment of falling in love, to the intense pain of heartbreak.

Beautiful and powerful in its lyrical and simple verse, the reader is immediately immersed in a world of sensuality, passion, desire, and innocence; all woven together into a tapestry of human emotion. Each poem transports the reader to a story through the art of poetry. Drawing on natural elements such as the sun, sand, wind and moon, this collection explores the light and darkness of romantic love, leaving the reader questioning if love was ever real at all.

A selection of poems chosen by the author and why they have special meaning to her:

LET THE CLOCK HAND KEEP ITS TIME
Let the clock hand
Keep its time
Let its bell ring
Let it chime .
Let the moon face
Pass above
Let it watch us
Close, my love.
Let the darkness
Come and pass
Let it creep
Through window glass.
Let the seasons
Change and turn
Let them make
This hard earth yearn.
Let them all do
As they need
Mind them not
Pay no heed.
Let us stand here
Heart made whole
Bound together
As one soul.

I was listening to the ticking sound of the clock on the wall while I was writing this one. I was hoping to capture the sound of the metronome... methodical, perpetual, ceaseless ... It had been a long time since I had seen this person and it was painful. That sound... the counting the minutes until he arrived. So I thought, you know.. what if I turn that around and say that this love will outlast time? And this waiting is inconsequential.   

SWING ME ROUND
Swing me round
In this dance
Leave me breathless
In a trance
Let the laughter
Spin us still
Round and round
Against our will.
Let the light
Flash on by
To fill the darkness
In the sky
Let us fall
Still in embrace
To vanish slowly
Without a trace.             

This is one on my husband's favorite pieces. I wrote it for him. We had just started dating and I thought how much fun it would be to go to a square dance in a barn. The poor man! It was Halloween and I glimpsed over and saw him swinging a woman dressed as a cow and I thought to myself -- this man must really like me! I spent the entire evening enamored with his kindness and wonderful spirit, and I knew in my heart this was it. 

I LOVE YOU. ETERNAL.
I love you. Eternal.
Until time does cease.
For in your soul,
I have found,
Perfect peace.

This is how I start the collection. For me, that's what true love is about -- finding peace in another and knowing this is love. As Saint Thomas Aquinas once said, “Love is willing the good of the other.”

Praise for I Asked the Wind: A Collection of Romantic Poetry

“...a breathtaking compilation of tender poetry .“

- Jessica Tingling, The San Francisco Book Review

“Valerie’s poetry evokes images of tangled butterflies caught in a breeze, leaves falling too soon, and speaks with a deep, deep tenderness.”

– Troy Turner, Poet

“A beautiful tribute to reflective thoughts of love and losses suffered…this was well done… ”

– Wanda Firman-Cooper, Reviewer

“Valerie’s poems are not only magnificent to read, but they stick with you.”

– Robert Robinson, Executive Producer, The Dinner Salon

“In today’s age of fast-food thinking, attention-deficit scanning, and thumb scrolls past click-bait, it’s refreshing to find a relatable, digestible read that harkens back to an era of leather-bound literature’s reign in terms of meter and word choice.“

– Amaani F. Lyle, Military Journalist

“Val’s poetry goes deeper…into a mosaic of sensuality that leaves you hearing love as if it were a song.“

– Myra Jo Martino, Writers Guild Award Winner for Ugly Betty

About the Author, Valerie Nifora

Valerie Nifora was born and raised in New York to Greek immigrant parents. For over twenty years, Valerie was Marketing Communications Leader for a Fortune 50. She served as a ghost writer for several executives and has executed award-winning campaigns using her special gift as a storyteller to inspire. Her first book is a collection of romantic poetry that explores innocence, sensuality, passion, desire, heartbreak and loss through the lens of her personal experience spanning over 15 years. Her beautiful and powerful voice immediately calls forth a time of leather-bound books and invites the reader to find a comfortable chair and begin their journey through the powerful human emotion of love. Valerie holds a B.A. in Communications from Emerson College and an M.B.A. from Fordham University. She is married and a mother of two amazing sons.

FOLLOW THE WOW! WOMEN ON WRITING TOUR FOR MORE REVIEWS, INTERVIEWS & GIVEAWAYS.

 

#BlogTour  #IAskedtheWind  @WomenonWriting @BeingtheWriter @vnifora

 


 

Mailbox Monday - February 10th

Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog. Head over and check out other books received during the last week. 


Happy Monday!

We finally got that rain we have all been praying for. And has it rained! We have had torrential rain for about a week now so we have gone from drought conditions to floods. My husband has taken water off the pool three times today as it has threatened to overflow (it was only a week ago that we were having to top it up). He will need to take more off before we go to bed to ensure it doesn't overflow during the night.

As we are now in February the days have started to fall back into their usual routine as the year's activities restart.
Yoga started again for the year and I am grateful to be able to sleep well at night without being in pain.
To finish off the holidays we have been doing lots of craft activities and made cupcakes and Dot gave me some beautiful flowers and chocolates.
Dot started school for the first time. It was a big day and she had a great time, made some new friends on her first day and got an award for not talking in class (talking is her favourite thing).
Ditto also started preschool two days a week. He is a very outgoing boy so he loves to be around all the other kids and enjoys going.

 

Books received over the last two weeks:

From the publisher:

The Cobra Queen by Tara Moss

In the months since Pandora English left the small town of Gretchenville to live with her mysterious great aunt in a supernatural Manhattan suburb, her whole world has been turned upside down.

Pandora has discovered she is the chosen one, the Seventh Daughter of a Seventh Daughter, and during the impending Revolution of the Dead, she alone will have the power to save all life as we know it. The Agitation is unfolding, building towards the Revolution, and Pandora can no longer deny the truth in these incredible prophecies. But what will she do when the moment comes? How can she stand against the army of the dead?

Pandora’s relationship to her spirit guide, Lieutenant Luke, is intensifying. She’s had to grapple with ghosts, vampires and necromancers. Now, with the Blue Moon approaching and a new exhibition opening at The Met, which celebrates an ancient female pharaoh done wrong in antiquity, powerful forces threaten to upend the balance of life and death. Pandora is given the chance to find out what happened to her parents all those years ago, but first she must put her own supernatural gifts to the test.

 The Gilded Cage by Camilla Lackberg

All that glitters…

People would kill to have Faye Adelheim's life. She lives in an ultra-swanky apartment in the most exclusive area of Stockholm, she has a gorgeous husband who gives her everything she's ever wanted, and she has an adorable daughter who lights up her world. Faye's life is perfect.

So how is it, then, that she now finds herself in a police station?

The truth is that Faye's life is far from what it seems. The truth is that Faye isn't even her real name. And now she's been caught out. There's no way she's going to go down without a fight. The only question is – who will escape with their life? 

 
Books I have won:

From the Ashes by Rowena Holloway
 Journalist Charlotte Ashe has sacrificed her credibility, her friendships and her career. With no job and no prospects and a soon-to-be invalid working visa, she needs a big story. Fast. Her single lead is Blaxon Hall, a private brain injury clinic owned by Tyrone Garner.

And Tyrone Garner has become an obsession…

When Charlotte uncovers mystery surrounding the recent deaths of residents at the Hall, she knows she’s found her story. Are the deaths natural or murder? Does a killer lurk at the Hall? And why is Garner determined to keep his past, and his visits to the Hall, a secret?

But the closer she gets to the truth the real question becomes whether she can trust what she sees. Is she exposing the truth or is it all a figment of her overwrought imagination?

Then Blaxon Hall is consumed by fire. And one of the missing is Charlotte Ashe.

The Lost Summers of Driftwood by Vanessa McCausland
Phoebe's life has fallen apart and there's only one place left to go. Alone and adrift after a failed marriage proposal, she flees Sydney to her family's abandoned holiday cottage.

On the slow-moving river Phoebe is confronted with the legacy of her older sister's suicide, a year before. Why did Karin leave a note written in flowers and walk into the water?

Phoebe's childhood love, Jez, has moved back to the beautiful old house, Driftwood, one jetty down. He's married now and the home has become a refuge for an unlikely little community.

As the river begins to give up its secrets, Phoebe finds herself caught up in old feelings and new mysteries.
Books I have purchased:

Ebook purchase:
February or Forever by Juliet Madison

Yoga teacher and single mother, Chrissie Burns has a plan: move into the rundown beach house left to her by her deceased aunt, renovate it, sell it, and move on. The scene of a terrible accident years ago, the house needs to get out of Chrissie's hands as soon as possible.

But Tarrin's Bay, where the house stands, has more to offer than bad memories. The town is lovely, the people friendly, and even Chrissie's young son finds friends and begins coming out of his shell. Employed at Serendipity Retreat as a yoga instructor, Chrissie is shocked to be given the role of private teacher to Drew Williams, Australia’s top singer/songwriter for the month.

Relationships between instructors and clients are strictly forbidden, but Drew draws happiness out of Chrissie with his down-to-earth nature and sense of humour. Days of stretching and bending may bring Chrissie unexpected peace and strength, but she knows that this interlude must end, and there's no pose or position to aid her when Drew walks away and leaves her broken-hearted. 

 I was extremely fortunate to receive a bundle of last year's ARC books from my local bookstore. I felt like I had won the lottery! I won't list them all but here is a photo.