Guest Review: The Hotel by the Sea by Julie Caplin

Rebecca needs to escape. After making a complete fool of herself watching the man she's secretly loved for years run off with someone else―she jumps at a temporary job at the family-run Quinta do Mar hotel. Sun, sea, and a fresh start sound perfect.

What she doesn't expect is Felipe Rebelo.

Charming, infuriatingly confident, and always ready with a flirty quip, Felipe seems to have life sorted. But beneath his carefree exterior lies a man carrying the weight of his entire family. The last thing he needs is another responsibility. Especially one who challenges him at every turn, makes him laugh, and is dangerously easy to fall for…

Review: This is part of the Romantic Escapes series of romantic comedies from this author. The stories in this series are set in a variety of countries and settings, this time in Portugal. Since I have read all the books in this series, I was confident when I sat down to read that I was going to be taken on a journey to a fabulous destination and meet some entertaining characters. I wasn’t wrong….

This story centres on Rebecca, who has run as far as she could and taken a job in the family-run Quinta do Mar hotel in the Algarve, having made a fool of herself over a man who took her for granted for years. She has only just arrived at the hotel when she meets Felipe, handsome and charming and full of himself. Rebecca enjoys flirting with someone she assumes is a lazy individual content to be looked after by the female members of the family. However, she eventually discovers that he is the head of the family, and the person working hard to keep the business afloat and the family safe. Even though Felipe knows that he has more than enough on his plate, he is seriously drawn to Rebecca. Equally, although she is still thinking about the man she left behind, she is finding herself falling for Felipe as well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this light-hearted and easy to read romance. It was uplifting to watch as fiery and independent Rebecca and confident Felipe, at first fiercely competitive, gradually came to understand each other and themselves. I was cheering them on to find a way to be together. I very much enjoyed being taken on a tour of the area and Lisbon in particular, as well as reading about the local dishes and wines Rebecca was introduced to. The glimpses into family life at the hotel were highly entertaining, particularly scenes involving Felipe’s young cousins who he obviously adored. I thought this book was a great addition to the Romantic Escapes series and think it would make a lovely summer read.

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Guest Review: Victory ‘45: The End Of The War In Eight Surrenders By James Holland and Al Murray

From the Italian Alps to northern Germany, to London, New York, Washington and Tokyo, Victory ’45 tells the story of the extraordinary summer when the greatest conflagration the world had ever known finally came to an end after eight surrenders that heralded the Allied victory.

Comprised of eight chapters based around each of those surrenders and the victory celebrations which followed, it will be rich in character and human drama with revealing stories and perspectives behind the end of the war not yet told before. Each chapter will follow the viewpoints of a number of key characters as they traverse these world-changing events – from ordinary servicemen and women and civilians to generals and political leaders.

What took place during the negotiations of those surrenders and the terms that were agreed there would determine the directions the participating countries would take in the years that followed and ultimately the shape of our current world.

Review: How do you end a World War that has raged for almost six years across different continents and oceans? This is the question that the joint authors James Holland and Al Murray have set out to address in this book. Each having written individually historical accounts relating to the Second World War, and having collaborated on a podcast series “We Have Ways of Making You Talk”, this is their first collaborative book, published in 2025 to coincide with the eightieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War.

With Allied forces fighting in Northern Italy, closing in from the east and west on Germany’s capital Berlin, and fighting in Asia and the Pacific, the end of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan appeared imminent by the beginning of 1945. However, there had to be a series of negotiations to end hostilities on the various fronts and the Allies had agreed previously that nothing less than unconditional surrender would be acceptable. This book describes the processes and the personalities involved in these surrender agreements, starting with the surrenders of Nazi forces in Italy, Germany and Austria and ending with the surrenders of Japanese forces in Japan’s capital Tokyo and the Philippines. As well as the main protagonists, the book also provides accounts of some of the ordinary soldiers and civilians caught up in the events. One such intriguing account concerns a female interpreter in the Soviet Union’s Red Army tasked with examining captured documents and interrogating prisoners. However, she was also involved in locating and identifying the body of the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler following the latter’s suicide.

I found the book an interesting and highly readable account of events that have, in the main, received little attention. I should add a warning that there are details concerning the liberation of concentration and prison camps that are quite graphic. With photographs, a timeline detailing the sequence of events and a detailed bibliography, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of the Second World War.

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Guest Review: Beside the Turquoise Sea by Emma Burstall

Can one magical Crete villa change everything?

Now her children have moved out, Edie has begun to feel lonely in the home she shares with her husband. She hopes returning to Crete, where she and Ralph spent their honeymoon, will help heal the growing rift between them.

And when Edie stumbles upon the website for the Villa Ariadne, with its breathtaking views and peaceful surroundings, it feels like the perfect place to spend a week together, along with their closest friends Mac and Hannah. But then, Edie invites a fifth guest: her feisty, independent colleague Jessica, with unexpected consequences.

It's clear from the moment they arrive that the villa is special, and under the golden Greek sun, Edie hopes to rekindle the relationship she’s felt slipping away from her. But when conflict arises between two of her fellow guests, will Edie be prepared for revelations that could change her life forever?

Review: I have read, and thoroughly enjoyed, Emma Burstall’s books set in Cornwall and a few since. The amazing cover of this book, combined with the title, drew me to it, looking forward to a trip to a sunny Mediterranean beach - perfect for reading on these cold spring days. The storyline drew me in from the start and I found it a quick read.

In this summery tale, the reader first meets teacher Edie, who is feeling rather stale, the children having left home and her relationship with husband Ralph rather flat. She decides that a holiday somewhere warm and sunny is just what they need. An advert for a villa in Crete catches her eye; it looks lovely and the price is really reasonable. Edie and Ralph honeymooned on Crete, and she hopes to inject some sparkle back into their marriage. She invites their best friends Hannah and Mac to join them, then, on a whim, asks fellow teacher Jessica to come along as well. The Villa Ariadne proves just as luxurious as it looked, but there is something about the owner and some of the villagers that is a little strange. More serious for Edie are the heated arguments among the others in the group, and the devastating secret that is ultimately revealed. This is not at all the restful holiday that she had planned.

This book was not quite what I was expecting, but not in a bad way. The sun, sea and rugged but beautiful Cretan landscape were all there, but the happy travel party were anything but. The amicable relationship usually enjoyed by the two couples apparently could not withstand the addition of a fifth person. The atmosphere throughout the story was tense and brilliantly built up by the author until I was just waiting for an explosion. It certainly kept me coming back to the book every chance I got. I could definitely not foresee the twist that also caught many of the characters by surprise. I would have to say that, with the exception of Edie, I was not actually drawn to any of the characters in the story; they all had personality traits that were not altogether attractive. However, they stayed with me long after I had read the last page of the story. I can certainly recommend this entertaining and immersive book. Another book featuring the Villa Ariadne is to follow this one and I can’t wait to see what is in store for its visitors this time.

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Guest Review: Coming Home: Moments that Made Me By Freddie Flintoff

 In Coming Home, Freddie Flintoff zeroes-in on the crucial moments that made him - some highly celebrated, others less well-known, away from the cameras, but all pivotal in shaping the man he is.

As a boy, growing up in Preston, Fred fell in love with the game of cricket. It gave him his route through life; out on the pitch he felt at home. Through his eyes we see him picking up a bat for the first time, his early years on the field; that incredible performance to win the Ashes against the Aussies in 2005; face-downs with rivals; run-ins with the media; the doctors telling him he can't continue to play. On and off the pitch, in and out of the spotlight, Fred tells the whole story.

After retiring, Fred thought he'd left the game behind, relaunching himself in the world of entertainment, but following the car crash that turned his life upside down, it was cricket to which he returned.

Coming Home is a reflection on a unique life, a story like no other, and a love letter to the game that made him. Honest, open, reflective and funny, like the man himself, this is Freddie Flintoff, in full, in his own words.

Review: Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff (he was given the nickname at school because of the resemblance of his surname to the cartoon character Fred Flintstone) played cricket for Lancashire and England. Probably his greatest achievements came during the 2005 and 2009 Ashes-winning Test series against Australia. Following his retirement from playing professional cricket, he pursued a varied career in television, radio and on the stage. His television appearances include “A League of Their Own” and “Top Gear”. It was as a presenter in this latter programme that he was involved in a car accident in 2022 in which he was seriously injured. This, his latest book, is a reflective look back at his life and the decisions that shaped his career.

He talks candidly about his struggles with mental health and the eating disorder bulimia. He also discusses the problems he had with injuries during his playing career and also coming to terms with the after effects  following his car accident. He has latterly turned to coaching cricket, being part of the England coaching set-up and coaching one of the teams in the “Hundred” competition. He has also coached youngsters who hadn’t had the opportunity to play cricket before, this forming the basis for the television series “Field of Dreams”. It is this return to cricket in a coaching capacity that he refers to as “Coming Home”.

I found the book, with its short chapters, very readable. Although cricket features strongly, it is not just about cricket but is more a reflection of what opportunities and decisions can occur during one’s lifetime. As a candid account of a person’s life, I would recommend this book.

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Guest Review: The Harbour House by Rachael Lucas

Bestselling author Flora Douglas has the perfect life - or that's how it looks from the outside. Her grown-up children have flown the nest, her divorce is amicable (even if her ex still can't figure out the boiler) and she's ready for the second act of her life. The only problem is - she's stuck.

With her book deadline looming, one impulsive decison changes everything - and she finds herself booking a six month stay in the house she grew up in.

The Harbour House doesn't look like her childhood home. It's been renovated beautifully - erasing every trace of the place where she grew up in foster care.

She hasn't returned for thirty years, but the village hasn't forgotten her - and neither has Tor Wilson, the boy whose careless teasing was the final straw that sent her running.

Now Flora and Tor are forced to face the question they've both been avoiding - who are you when everything you've built falls away?

As Flora reluctantly teaches a creativity workshop and Tor builds a space for lonely men to find friendship and purpose, the two of them discover that healing the past might be the only way to move forward.

Review: This book is part of the Applemore Bay series written by this author. Applemore Bay is a fictional small fishing village in the Scottish highlands. The books in this series feature people or places in the village, with a growing list of recurring characters with each one. They can all be read as a standalone.

This story features successful author Flora Douglas, who is returning to Applemore Bay where she grew up after an absence of more than thirty years. Luckily, she is able to rent Harbour House, the very house where she grew up. She is suffering from writers’ block and hoping that a change of scene might help. Unfortunately, one of the first people she encounters in the village is Tor Wilson, whose teasing made her life a mystery when they were at school. Flora is not able to forgive him for ultimately driving her away from Applemore Bay all those years ago. Unable to come up with ideas for her book and with her publisher hounding her, she is persuaded to run a creativity workshop for local people which proves a great success and gives her ideas for taking her writing in a different direction. Meanwhile, Tor is facing the imminent departure of his son for university and looking for ideas to fill his spare time. He comes up with a notion that he might create a space where men like himself could meet and work on projects, sharing their skills. As Flora realises that she must move forward and forget the past, she hopes to be able to let Tor into her life and perhaps the pair can anticipate a happy future.

I very much enjoyed and confidently recommend this latest book in the Applemore Bay series. As always, the setting was so well described that I could well picture the village, typical of many in that part of Scotland. Although, like the other titles in the series, this story is complete in itself, I like to revisit the characters I have got to know in previous parts. I felt for Flora suffering from writers’ block, with her next book overdue and her agent and publisher nagging her. I’m sure many authors recognise that scenario. I thought that the other central character, Tor, was a great single dad, who brought his son up to be strong and independent. Tor’s idea to establish a place where men could pass a few hours together using their skills to help others was inspired. I was hoping that Flora and Tor could settle their differences and maybe some romance would follow. As anyone who has read any previous parts of the series will be aware, there are many eating establishments in Applemore Bay, so there was some delicious food throughout the story.

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Guest Review: Second Chances at the Hopeful Hearts Bookshop by Debbie Johnson

Single mother Jane can’t believe it when an invitation to Bonnie Bay falls from the pages of a book: the Scottish village she was supposed to run away to with her first love. Until he broke her heart, that is. But he’s far away now – and why shouldn’t she spend a summer there, daughter Beth in tow? They’ll snuggle up reading, stroll by the wild sea, and maybe even banish Beth’s teenage grumps.

But arriving in the charming village, Jane’s jaw drops when she sees a familiar pair of green eyes… it’s Rory Callaghan, her first love, and the boy who broke her heart. The problem? Rory is now very much a man. He’s taller, broader. His Irish lilt still makes her weak at the knees. And the sizzling spark between them crackles just like it used to.

Rory might be a long way from his Irish hometown, but he’s made a new home right here. The cozy bookshop is his refuge, and owner Moira his replacement family. So when Jane arrives it’s like an arrow through his heart. She’s still gorgeous, still his Jane. And the fierce look in her eye tells him she’s just as passionate as he remembers.

After promising to help Moira turn the bookshop into a community hub, and with Beth making friends, Jane can’t walk away. Soon, days at the bookshop turn into very late nights with Rory. And with them both spilling secrets, the real reason they broke up soon comes to light… but will this summer adventure turn into a second chance romance? Or will their hearts end up broken all over again?

Review: This is the second book in the Bonnie Bay series from Debbie Johnson. Bonnie Bay is a small fishing village in the north of Scotland with a wonderful community and, famously, the Edge of the World Bookshop, known locally as the Hopeful Hearts Bookshop with its reputation for bringing people together. Having read book 1, I couldn’t wait to dive into this sequel and reacquaint myself with some of the amazing characters I had got to know. As with the previous book, this one bears a highly colourful cover depicting components of the story.

This story concerns single mother Jane, who is surprised when a card falls from the book she is reading on which is written an invitation to visit Bonnie Bay, and particularly the bookshop there. By an amazing coincidence this is the very village where, as teenagers, she and her boyfriend, Rory, planned make a new start. All those years ago, he had broken Jane’s heart when he left her alone. Now, she and her teenage daughter, Beth, decide to take up the invitation and travel to Bonnie Bay. Jane gets a big surprise when one of the first people she meets in the village is Rory, who has settled there and is now a successful artist. Her first instinct is to leave the village, but she soon gets pulled into the community and involved in their plans for extending the bookshop into a hub and gallery. Even her grumpy daughter is happier there. When Jane finds out that Rory didn’t abandon her as she believed, she realises that she still has feelings for him and he for her. Could they have an opportunity for a second-chance romance?

I loved this compelling romance just as much as the first in the series. Once again, I was treated to a whole host of entertaining characters in an absolutely idyllic setting. I was truly invested in Jane’s story and willing her to make a home with the gorgeous Rory in this wonderful village. I really enjoyed meeting up with various characters from the first book and finding out what had happened in their lives in the intervening period. However, you wouldn’t have to have read the first book to follow events in this one. On the other hand, why not read both? I highly recommend these books to anybody who would enjoy escaping for a while to an absolutely marvellous and magical village. I’m hoping that there will be a Bonnie Bay book 3 soon!

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Review: Don't fall In Love With Me by Paige Toon

 What if the person you love the most is the one you can’t have?

Grace has loved Jackson since she was fifteen – when they spent every childhood summer exploring France's breathtaking Ardèche region together. They were best friends, until life took its course and Jackson married someone else.

Years later, Jackson re-enters Grace’s life with an irresistible offer: her dream job in the very town where their story began. And he’s newly single.

As memories from those idyllic summers flood back, Grace encounters an old friend Étienne, who proposes a plan to help make Jackson jealous. But as their scheme unfolds, Grace finds herself questioning if the sparks between them might not be so pretend after all…

Unbeknownst to Grace, Étienne is harbouring a secret that could shatter her world.

Will learning the truth finally set her heart free?

Or is this the beginning of a love story bigger than she ever imagined?

Review: Don't Fall in Love with Me was an absolute treat to read, and I loved getting to know Gracie from the very first chapter. She's such a driven, determined protagonist, and I was immediately invested in her journey after watching her heart get her heart broken right at the start of the story. Rather than letting that define her, Gracie's experiences become the catalyst for something much bigger, making her someone I couldn't help but root for from beginning to end.

Paige Toon has created two wonderfully realised love interests in Jackson and Etienne, and I genuinely found it impossible to choose between them. Both possobilities felt authentic and compelling in their own ways, so I never found myself firmly on one side. Alongside the romance, I adored being transported to the French countryside. The beautiful settings, delicious food and relaxed atmosphere made this the perfect escapist read. As always, Paige Toon's signature passion for cars is woven effortlessly into the story, which felt particularly fitting as I finished the book during the British Grand Prix weekend.

What I loved most, though, was that this never felt like a story that was solely about choosing between two people. At its heart, it felt like a journey of self-discovery, with Gracie learning who she was and what she truly wanted from life. I honestly think I would have been happy whichever way the romance ended—whether she chose Jackson, Etienne or even herself—because the emotional journey was so satisfying. I was completely swept along for the ride, and by the final page I didn't want to say goodbye to these characters.

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