Guest Review: The Best Days of Our Lives by Lucy Diamond

When 35-year-old Leni McKenzie is knocked off her bike, her family's world is turned upside down.

Leni and her sister Alice were best friends as well as siblings. But did they know each other as well as Alice thought? In the hope of coming to terms with her grief, she tries to piece together Leni's last weeks - but her discoveries only lead to more questions. And that's before the surprise reappearance of someone from the past. Life is certainly getting very complicated ...

Meanwhile, the rest of the family seem to be falling apart. Belinda, Alice's mum, has developed an unhealthy obsession with a clairvoyant, and Tony, her dad, is stressed about becoming a father all over again, what with three failed marriages stacking up behind him.

As for Will, the youngest McKenzie, he's in denial, having hopped onto a plane to Thailand days after the funeral. Secretly, he's tormented by the part he played in Leni's death ... and the thing about secrets is, they always come out eventually ...

Review: I am a great fan of Lucy Diamond’s books. Like this one, they tend to be full of family drama, populated by many interesting characters. This story was a little different, and I have to confess to finding it a little difficult to get into, but once I did it held my interest right to the end. Not surprisingly given the subject, many tissues were required during the reading.

The story centres on Leni McKenzie, although the reader meets her in person only briefly since she is knocked over while riding her bicycle and killed before chapter one. Her already broken family are struggling with coming to terms with her death, each dealing with it in their own way. Her younger sister, Alice, is trying to piece together Leni’s last few weeks with the aid of her sister’s diary and recollections from her friends. Her mother, Belinda, is spending a fortune on the phone to a clairvoyant who claims to be channeling Leni’s thoughts. Trying to hide from his feeling of guilt, Leni’s brother, Will, has taken himself off to Thailand, where he is struggling to make a living. Then there’s estranged father Tony who has different guilty feelings and the stress of his new family and a baby on the way.

I didn’t find this undoubtedly well-written book the easiest to read. Death is a difficult subject to write about I’m sure, but the author found what I considered an interesting angle from which to approach it. The reader is privy to the thoughts of the different family members, each of whom has their own way of dealing with their loss. Although Leni’s fate is central to the story, each family member is continuing with their own life, details of which lent extra interest to the book. Even though I met Leni only fleetingly, I really got to know and like her as the story progressed. I wasn’t sure how I felt about some of the other characters to start with, but they too grew on me with time. This is definitely a book which could be classed as a weepy, but there is a message of hope there too.

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Guest Review: An Almost Perfect Holiday by Lucy Diamond

The holidays are here, and down in Cornwall Lorna’s cottages are fully booked. The sun loungers are lined up beside the swimming pool, the sky is blue and a new set of arrivals are on their way . . .

Em’s planned the perfect break with her teenagers plus her new boyfriend, George . . . but now his difficult six-year-old is coming too. Will their romance survive the realities of parenthood?

Maggie’s hoping a seaside holiday will bring her and her daughter closer together, but when her ex makes a surprise reappearance, it changes everything. Can she trust the man who broke her heart?

Olivia has escaped the domestic grind, only for the past to catch up with her. Maybe the time has come to confess all – if she can find the courage . . .

Meanwhile, the teenagers are running wild and love is in the air. With friendship, heartache and secrets in the mix, will this holiday turn out to be a scorcher – or simply too hot to handle?

Review: I have read and enjoyed quite a few books by Lucy Diamond, so when this new title popped up, it was an automatic purchase for me. The book has a very attractive cover, promising a seaside holiday with lots of sunshine, something we could all do with from time to time. Once I opened the book and started to read, I found a group of three holiday cottages set around their own exclusive pool and with views over the fields down to the sea where I was sure I could spend an enjoyable summer holiday. The story of the visitors to these holiday homes was really absorbing, making the book a quick read for me.

What could be nicer than a family holiday in a luxury cottage in the Cornish countryside? That is what has attracted two mothers here to spend a fortnight of the summer holidays with their children. In the case of Em, she has arrived with not only her teenage children, Izzie and Jack, but also her boyfriend and his 6-year-old daughter. She’s hoping that they are all going to get along. Maggie, on the other hand, has come with her teenage daughter, Amelia, thinking that some time together might give them the chance to build some bridges. The third cottage in this small development was to be occupied by a young couple, but they have cancelled at the last minute, and instead Olivia has arrived out of the blue, escaping from a very stressful life she suddenly couldn’t cope with, and bringing with her memories of the area. A combination of teenage pranks, long-held secrets and interfering ex-spouses could conspire to spoil things, but how will these three ladies feel about their holiday when it’s time to go home? There is also a fourth woman on the scene who is struggling with her own problems. Lorna, the owner of the cottages, is grieving for her son as it approaches the 20th anniversary of his death.

I very much enjoyed and would thoroughly recommend this book. The story deals with four very different women, each dealing with challenges in their lives, but brought together by their choice of holiday venue. I liked that although each lady had their own storyline, their paths kept crossing. I’m sure that lots of readers would be able to identify with at least one of these women, pulled as they were in many directions at once due to demands of children or just life in general. There was a gamut of emotions in play here, problems ranging from bringing up or being a teenager to living in a blended family to coming to terms with loss of a child. Lucy Diamond dealt with all of these skilfully and sensitively.

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Review: Something to To Tell You by Lucy Diamond

When Frankie stumbles upon an unopened letter from her late mother, she’s delighted to have one last message from her . . . until she reads the contents and discovers the truth about her birth. Brimming with questions, she travels to York to seek further answers from the Mortimer family, but her appearance sends shockwaves through them all.

Meanwhile, Robyn Mortimer has problems of her own. Her husband John has become distant, and a chance remark from a friend leads Robyn to wonder exactly what he’s not been saying. Dare she find out more?

As for Bunny, she fell head over heels in love with Dave Mortimer when she first arrived in town, but now it seems her past is catching up with her. She can’t help wondering if he’ll still feel the same way about her if he discovers who she really is – and what she did.

As secrets tumble out and loyalties are tested, the Mortimers have to face up to some difficult decisions. With love, betrayal and dramatic revelations in the mix, this is one summer they’ll never forget.

Review: Wow this book contains one secret revelation after another after another. But at the heart of it all though is Lucy Diamonds unfailing potimism and a hugely strong sense of family and family ties. 

When I began reading this book, I couldn't work out how the three main storylines were connected or how they weer going to come together but then I began to work out who was who and how they related to one another and the storyline began to weave before me. This book really does have a large cast and so you may was to take reference as you are reading so as not to loose track. The main storyline though concerns three mothers and their love for their families. Not only do these women love their families though, they recognise the importance of their own identity and not losing that and so their stories are really quite empowering. 

I loved the way these characters all related to each other as the story unfolded and there were definitely a lot of 'ah ha' moments from me as it progressed. I listened to this one on audio and so that might be why I had trouble keeping track of who was who initially. Some of my favourite characters were Bunny, a slimmer of the year with some serious skeletons in her closet, Frankie, someone who is really struggling with her identity since a whole host of ghosts from the past have come to haunt her and Paula, the one who is just trying to do the right thing and keep it all together. 

Yes this story is sometimes complicated but that does make for a whole host of drama. With revelations taking place left right and centre, there is never a dull moment in this book and it will definitely keep you guessing as to how it is going to conclude. 

The majority of this book is set in a part of the world I am very familiar with, North Yorkshire and so it was great to be reading it here in Denver and getting a little taste of home, I even gave a cheer when Knaresborough was mentioned. I can definitely recommend the audiobook as it was well narrated and allowed me to read 'on the go' but if you have trouble keeping track of a large cast of characters then perhaps the hardback would be a better purchase so you can refer back to whole belongs to who if you get lost! I can't wait to find out what Lucy Diamond throws at her characters next!

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