Guest Review: The Illusionist: The True Story of the Man Who Fooled Hitler By Robert Hutton

Cairo, 1942: If you had asked a British officer who Colonel Clarke was, they would have been able to point him out: always ready with a drink and a story, he was a well-known figure in the local bars. If you then asked what he did, you would have less success. Those who knew didn't tell, and almost no one really knew at all.

Clarke thought of himself as developing a new kind of weapon. Its components? Rumour, stagecraft, a sense of fun. Its target? The mind of Erwin Rommel, Hitler's greatest general. Throughout history, military commanders have sought to mislead their opponents. Dudley Clarke set out to do it on a scale no one had imagined before. Even afterwards, almost no one understood the magnitude of his achievement.

Drawing on recently released documents and hugely expanding on the louche portrait of Clarke as seen in SAS: Rogue Heroes, journalist and historian Robert Hutton reveals the amazing story of Clarke's A Force, the invention of the SAS and the Commandos, and the masterful hoodwinking of the Desert Fox at the battle of El Alamein. The Illusionist tells for the first time the dazzling tale of how, at a pivotal moment in the war, British eccentricity and imagination combined to thwart the Nazis and save innumerable lives - on both sides.

Review: Dudley Clarke (1899-1974) was an officer in the British Army, a pioneer of military deception and an advocate of special forces. Robert Hutton has written this biography, using recently-released documents. I listened to the audiobook version narrated by the comedian and historian Al Murray.

Dudley Clarke was born in South Africa and experienced the Boer War during his early childhood. After the war, the family returned to England where Clarke attended school and military college before receiving a commission in the Army. Too young to serve on the frontline during the First World War, he joined the Royal Flying Corps and completed his flying training in Egypt, starting an affinity for the Middle East. He remained in the Army after the First World War and served in a number of posts in the Middle East. During the early years of the Second World War, after the British had been forced to retreat from mainland Europe, one of the means of striking back at the enemy was small raiding parties. Clarke, having been impressed by the guerrilla tactics employed by the Boers in South Africa, suggested these raiding troops should adopt the name commandos, after the Boer units.

Towards the end of 1940, Dudley Clarke was posted to the Army headquarters in the Middle East in Cairo as an intelligence officer. His principal role was to develop deception plans to fool the enemy as to the strength of the Allied forces and when and where an attack may come. His methods involved feeding small pieces of information, such as orders to fictional units, using double agents, and visual deception such as dummy vehicles, over a period of time. In this way, the enemy was allowed to assemble the pieces like a jigsaw. He always emphasised that what mattered was not making the enemy think what you wanted, but making him do what you wanted. One of the fictional units he created in January 1941 was the Special Air Service (SAS) Brigade. He persuaded two soldiers to wear uniforms bearing airborne forces insignia and spend time in bars in Cairo and Alexandria where they would be seen. Later that year he met David Stirling who had come up with the idea of forming such a unit and Clarke persuaded him to use the SAS name for this unit. One of Clarke’s most important deceptions was to persuade the Germans that an attack at El Alamein in 1942 was not imminent but, when it came, would be at a different area of the front, ensuring the element of surprise.

However, Dudley Clarke’s most infamous moment came in October 1941 when he was arrested by Spanish police in Madrid whilst dressed as a woman. The British authorities managed to secure his release and get him to Gibraltar, but no explanation was offered for this behaviour.

Throughout the book the author uses comparisons with stage magicians or illusionists who try to mis-direct their audience’s attention in order to pull off a trick. This was very much the approach adopted by Clarke and his disciples, hoping to divert the enemy’s resources away from where an attack would take place. As a highly entertaining account of a shadowy and unsung figure, and a fascinating insight into the world of military deception, I would recommend this book.

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Guest Review: Match of the Day Football Almanac: Six Decades of Trophies, Tournaments, and Timeless Moments By Nick Constable

Do you remember the Battle of Old Trafford? Shearer's dream debut hat trick? Or how many goals Haaland scored in his first Premier League season? Hope, heartbreak and victory, over the past 60 years Match of the Day has shown it all.

From bombastic debuts in August to May’s nail-biting end-of-season title races, the football calendar is filled with legendary moments. Packed full of stories from 60 years of football history, The official Match of the Day Football Almanac is your ultimate guide to the highs and lows of the football season.

With a foreword from Gary Lineker and featuring the most legendary footballing stories from the last 60 years of Match of the Day, this month-by-month guide includes giant-killing FA Cup battles, the birth of the Premier League and the dawn of VAR, all culminating in legendary World Cup and Euros tournaments – with stats and insights from the experts at Match of the Day along the way. This is the perfect gift for any football fan, and a fitting tribute to our favourite football programme.

Review: In August 1964, the first transmission of a football highlights programme “Match of the Day” was broadcast on BBC2. Since then, the programme has become a Saturday night institution in England and Wales. This book, published in 2024, celebrates 60 years of this iconic programme.

Initially available only to a limited audience in the London area who had access to BBC2, the programme featured highlights of a single match in the English Football League First Division. It then moved to BBC1 and gradually expanded. In 1992, the breakaway Premier League was formed and nowadays the programme will feature extended highlights of one main match, followed by briefer highlights of all that other day’s fixtures in the Premier League. The book is divided into 12 chapters, each focussing on one month, beginning with the season’s opening fixtures in August. Hence, the chapters cover: dream or nightmare debuts as the season kicks off in August; managers’ fears of the sack (not from Santa) in December; giant killing acts as the FA Cup 3rd round pits lower league clubs against the top league clubs in January; and possible title deciders in May. The chapters relating to June and July cover the performance of England men’s and women’s teams in international tournaments (spoiler alert - the chapter on the Lionesses’ achievements is now out of date).

As an interesting review of the history of “Match of the Day”, including its presenters, commentators and pundits, over its first 60 years, I found this to be highly informative. It should appeal to all football aficionados.

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Guest Review: I’ll be Home for Christmas by Helen Rolfe

Chrissie used to love Christmas in her Swiss childhood home… until she lost her husband eight years ago. Add in a prolonged conflict with her sister Meg, and the holidays in the snowy Alps are just too hard to face. Now she’s in quiet Oxfordshire, focused on her daughter Sarah’s wedding.

But when Sarah runs away to her grandparents’ chalet just weeks before the big day, Chrissie heads to the mountains to help – and finds her estranged sister Meg there too. Usually in London at the helm of a thriving chocolate shop, Meg’s hiding the troubles of a tough year.

Trapped by snow in Winterbruck, the sisters must face old tensions, support Chrissie's daughter, and discover that family –and a little chocolate – can make even the coldest Christmas cosy.

I absolutely adore Christmas books and was excited to find this one from Helen Rolfe the first of many to appear in my kindle library this year. She is an author who always produces a heartwarming festive tale in an interesting setting. This story is set in Switzerland, and, I must warn other readers, is full of chocolate goodies as well as oodles of snow. It should really be read by a warm fire with a box of the confection close by.

This is very much a family story, featuring three generations. In the Swiss town of Winterbruck, grandparents Earl and Astrid (Grump and Nanna) are pleasantly surprised to receive a letter from granddaughter Sarah asking to come and stay over Christmas. She is due to get married on New Year’s Eve but her elderly grandparents will not be able to travel to England for the wedding, so they will be delighted to see her. Another surprise visitor turns up slightly after Sarah in the shape of her aunt Meg, who she has barely ever seen due to an estrangement between her and Sarah’s mother, Chrissie. Then, sensing that something is amiss with her daughter, Chrissie arrives on the doorstep. It is a long time since Chrissie has visited her childhood home, as it reminds her of her husband who she lost several years ago. The chalet is filled with tension as Earl and Astrid wonder what is going on with their daughters and granddaughter. It takes a near disaster for everything to come out in the open and begin to heal all the troubles.

This was a truly uplifting story brimming with family and friendship. In contrast to the cold snowy landscape outside, the Winterbruck chalet was full of warmth and love. I loved Sarah’s grandparents who looked on their family with affection and fed them lots of lovely local homemade favourites while they all worked out their problems. It was entertaining each time there was a knock at the door to guess who was there next. There was quite a crowd by the time the story ended. I liked the way in which the reader gradually learns what caused the estrangement between sisters Meg and Chrissie and what each of them has been doing in the interim. Sarah’s story also emerged in time. Being trapped by heavy snow was definitely beneficial for everyone to sort out their problems. The town of Winterbruck itself sounded absolutely amazing with its mountain views, snowy vistas and, importantly, chocolate shops; the author really had me wishing I could visit. I can highly recommend this as a book to add to your Christmas reading list.

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Guest Review: Cassino ‘44: Five Months of Hell in Italy By James Holland

There are no such thing as an easy victory in war but after triumph in Tunisia, the sweeping success of the Sicilian invasion, and with the Italian surrender, the Allies were confident that they would be in Rome before Christmas 1943.

And yet it didn't happen. Hitler ordered his forces to dig in and fight for every yard, thus setting the stage for one of the grimmest and most attritional campaigns of the Second World War.

By the start of 1944, the Allies found themselves coming up against the Gustav Line: a formidable barrier of wire, minefields, bunkers and booby traps, woven into a giant chain of mountains and river valleys that stretched the width of Italy where at its strongest point perched the Abbey of Monte Cassino.

It would take five long bitter winter months and the onset of summer before the Allies could finally bludgeon their way north and capture Rome. By then, more than 75,000 troops and civilians had been killed and the historic abbey and entire towns and villages had been laid waste.

Following a rich cast of characters from both sides - from frontline infantry to aircrew, from clerks to battlefield commanders, and from politicians and civilians caught up in the middle of the maelstrom - James Holland has drawn widely on diaries, letters and contemporary sources to write the definitive account of this brutal battle. The result is a compelling and often heart-breaking narrative, told in the moment, as the events played out, and from the perspective of those who lived, fought and died there.

Review: This book is an account by the military historian James Holland of the five months’ attritional battle that took place south of Rome between January and May 1944 as part of the Second World War Italian campaign. Following their success in North Africa, the Allied forces invaded Sicily and southern Italy in the summer and autumn, respectively, of 1943. The Italian dictator Mussolini was deposed and the Italian government signed an armistice. The Germans subsequently occupied the northern part of Italy, whilst the Allied armies pushed northwards with the aim of seizing the capital Rome, expecting little resistance. At the start of 1944, resources were diverted from Italy to England in preparation for the D-Day landings in France scheduled for late spring/early summer of that year. The campaign in Italy continued, with the objective of diverting German resources from France and the Eastern Front.

The mountainous terrain of the Italian peninsula lent itself to a defensive campaign in which the Germans could establish blocking lines in the mountains from where they could overlook Allied movements in the valleys below. By January 1944, the Allies had reached one of the strongest of these defensive lines, the Gustav Line, centred on Monte Cassino, with the town of Cassino at its foot and a Benedictine abbey at its summit. The book, based on diaries, letters, contemporary accounts and interviews with survivors, describes the successive attempts to break through. The amphibious landing at Anzio north of the Gustav Line, in an attempt to draw some of the defenders away from Cassino, is also described. As well as the commanders, such as Field Marshal Albert Kesselring, commander of German forces in Italy, General Harold Alexander, commander of Allied forces in Italy, and General Mark Clark, commander of the United States Fifth Army, the book follows the fortunes of rank and file soldiers and airmen, as well as civilians caught up in the conflict. The Allies finally broke through the Gustav Line and broke out from the Anzio bridgehead in May. On 5th June, Mark Clark led his Fifth Army into Rome. The following day, the D-Day landings in Normandy took place and the Italian campaign was consigned to the back pages. Interestingly, Mark Clark has been criticised heavily for his decision to turn the Fifth Army towards Rome rather than encircle the German forces retreating from the Gustav Line, but the author presents a strong argument that there were sound military reasons for this decision.

The book is a well-researched and detailed account of this part of the Italian campaign and included numerous photographs and maps. However, I found some of the maps confusing since not all the symbols are explained in the keys to the maps and there appear to be some typographic errors in the names of some of the locations. A further geographical error occurs in the extensive notes and bibliography in which initially the town of Otley is stated correctly as being in West Yorkshire, but later on its location is described as Lancashire. These are minor criticisms, however, and this highly detailed account of a gruelling battle will appeal to all interested in military history.

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Guest Review: The Villa of Secrets by Emma Burstall

Can a stay at a magical villa help her find her way to start again?

When Cleo arrives at Villa Ariadne on the sun-drenched island of Crete, she’s hoping for space to breathe – and perhaps some clarity about the life she no longer recognises. Newly divorced and estranged from one of her children, she’s not sure what comes next.

Sharing the villa with a small group of women, each carrying their own private heartaches, Cleo is drawn into the gentle rhythm of island life. Beneath the lemon trees and endless blue skies, friendships begin to form and long-buried hopes stir.

But when an unexpected event shakes their peaceful escape, the women are forced to come together in ways none of them anticipated. And as Villa Ariadne works its quiet magic once more, Cleo may discover that even in uncertainty, second chances are still possible.

Review: Like the last book I read from this author (Beside the Turquoise Sea), this one features the Villa Ariadne, a large, luxurious and somewhat magical villa on Crete. As well as being reacquainted with the villa itself, it was nice to catch up with some of the local people from the seaside village near to it.

In this story, Katerina, the elderly lady who owns the Villa Ariadne, has been persuaded to rent it out for use as a wellness retreat. It goes on to follow the fortunes of the first group of women who have arrived to spend a week at the retreat. Taking centre stage is Cleo Frobisher, who, like others in the group, has been having a tough time lately. She is recently divorced, and her daughter has suddenly been avoiding contact with her. The other women also have their tales of woe which emerge gradually. As the week progresses, friendships form within the group and everyone relaxes aided by the peaceful atmosphere, sunshine and good food. However, the peace is suddenly shattered by an unforeseen event, forcing the women into difficult situations and they find themselves doing things they never imagined they could.

This was a very enjoyable and compelling story with a twist in the middle. Like the characters who arrived at the Villa Ariadne, I relaxed in the peaceful atmosphere of the picturesque Greek island so vividly described by the author and could imagine the taste of the mouthwatering dishes being served up. I really liked the way in which the friendships among the women and also with some of the locals developed gently. At the same time, stories of their lives were revealed. When their calm visit became a bit of an adventure, everyone learned more about themselves than they expected when they set off from home. Definitely a book I would recommend for anyone looking for a bit of escapism.

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Nationalities in the Title

 

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This is a fun one because I feel like there are more of them than we realise...I hve extended to all place names but taken it a bit further back to include some of my favourites!

Bonus title that has not yet been released...

Guest Review: A History of the World in 47 Borders: The Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps By Jonn Elledge

People have been drawing lines on maps for as long as there have been maps to draw on. Sometimes rooted in physical geography, sometimes entirely arbitrary, these lines might often have looked very different if a war or treaty or the decisions of a handful of tired Europeans had gone a different way. By telling the stories of these borders, we can learn a lot about how political identities are shaped, why the world looks the way it does - and about the scale of human folly.

From the Roman attempts to define the boundaries of civilisation, to the secret British-French agreement to carve up the Ottoman Empire during the First World War, to the reason why landlocked Bolivia still maintains a navy, this is a fascinating, witty and surprising look at the history of the world told through its borders.

Review: This is a popular history book by the journalist Jonn Elledge in which he provides short accounts of some of the more unusual facts behind the borders of continents, countries, cities and seas. It comprises, as the title suggests, 47 chapters each discussing a particular border, but with a bonus 48th chapter regarding Poland and its chequered history and shifting borders. The book is divided into three sections: the first on historical borders; the second on the legacies resulting from the drawing of borders; and the third on less physically defined borders such as maritime borders and the International Date Line.

I found the book to be very readable with short chapters and humorous comments scattered throughout. One criticism I would make however is that, although many of the chapters are illustrated with maps, there are no maps in approximately half of the chapters. For a book discussing lines drawn on maps, more illustrations would be an improvement. However, overall I found the book to be an interesting introduction to the subject that should appeal to all map addicts.

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Guest Review: Blue Skies Ahead by Jessica Redland

 Leaving behind everything she thought she knew, Grace arrives at Hazelwick Farm with her teenage daughter, Maddie, and her mother, Frances, ready to build a new life together.

Grace has dreamt of fresh air, open skies and days filled with taking care of the animals while building a family business together. But starting over isn’t as simple as she hoped.

Maddie has barely spoken to her since the divorce from her father and Grace doesn’t know how to fix what she doesn’t fully understand. Between strained silences at home, and the demands of getting the farm ready to open for business, Grace begins to wonder if she’s made a mistake.

Yet life at Hazelwick Farm has its surprises. Grace keeps crossing paths with handsome tenant, Caleb, whether she means to or not. Could this unexpected connection be the start of something she never saw coming?

Review: This is the first book in a new series from Jessica Redland, one of my favourite authors known for many other excellent collections. Her books tend to feature locations in the north of England, this one being no exception.

The story focuses on the fortunes of equine-assisted therapist Grace and her family. Grace is having a difficult time, as her husband of 27 years has ended their marriage without explanation, meaning that the family house in Berkshire must be sold, she has been given notice at work and her teenage daughter, Maddie, is acting quite out of character, making Grace very upset. When Grace takes Maddie to visit her mother, Frances, in Northumberland for a break, they come by chance upon a property for sale that looks ideal for them all. Hazelwick Farm is now a visitor attraction with horses and goats as well as a small cafe and a couple of letting cottages. Grace can see that she would be able to run her business there, while Frances with her baking skills could manage the cafe and all three women could live comfortably in the farmhouse. However, it is not as attractive a proposition as Grace imagined when she discovers that the actual property and the business have not been properly managed. However, with hard work and encouragement from her close friend and Caleb, the tenant of one of the cottages on the farm, she goes ahead with readying Hazelwick Farm Animal Encounters for opening to the public. Can she reverse her fortunes and enjoy life once again?

I really enjoyed this book, which makes a wonderful start to this new series. It is certainly a book for animal lovers, with all the horses, goats, cows and even guinea pigs cropping up throughout. I can see that the author must have done a lot of research, given all the facts that I learned as the story progressed. As well as the stunning countryside scenery described in the book, I loved the characters, even Maddie at her teenage worst. Grace was an amazing character, with such bravery and determination to succeed. She was also lucky to have the backing of her mother and best friend, and, eventually, the handsome Caleb. I am already looking forward to the next book in this series and wondering which direction that will take.

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Was Reading On This Day Over the Last Ten Years

 

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Ok so I'm a couple of weeks behind with this one but I thought it was really cool so I wanted to do it!

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018 

2017

2016

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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