Review: The Time of Our Lives by Jane Costello

Imogen and her friends have had their fill of budget holidays, cattle-class flights and 6 a.m. offensives for a space by the pool.

So when one of the group wins a VIP holiday at Barcelona's hippest new hotel, they plan to sip champagne with the jet set, party with the glitterati and switch off in surroundings of unapologetic luxury.

But as they mingle with movie stars, mafia bosses and millionaires, it becomes clear - with riotous consequences - that even in the most glamorous of locations, things can go wrong. Very wrong . . .

Review: oh it was so nice to get back into one of Jane Costello's books again, it felt a bit like coming home. All of her books are the perfect mix of humour, love, real life and just the right percentage of eventfulness! This book was no exception! I raced through this novel because I was pulled in right from the word go and wanted so badly to find out what was going to happen that I ended up staying up really late just so I could finish it. I laughed really hard, I cried and I awed...

Imogen is just a gorgeous character, so down to earth and real it's actually amazing. I could identify with her so much. She is stressed out by work, loves her mates, loves her daughter and is a little bit scared of getting Into another relationship after her last big affair. I think it's just so great to read about a real character going through the kinds of things we all go through. Her friends on the trip are lovely as well and each have their own secondary story lines going on which is fabulous! Of course there is some male action too and there are one or two scenes which got seriously steamy thanks to the gorgeous hunk in glass Harry (loved him) he is a true gentleman and definitely my new book boyfriend! 

The storyline itself is light-hearted and yet seriously stressful at points. Because of Imogen's job, she seems to be constantly on call and at some points I really did want to just dump her phone in the sea! I was feeling the stress for her, but at the same time revelling in the sunshine and laughing at the capers her and her friends got into. There are more serious issues dealt with in the book and Jane Costello has written these very well indeed and intertwined them perfectly amongst the more serious storylines. 

Whilst I couldn't picture the setting as I haven't been to Barcelona, there was some wonderful description by the author that totally made me want to be there right now. The thought of an infinity pool, a sunny beach and a sun terrace filled me with energy, but because of that it was the perfect escapism from the British weather! This book would be a great introduction into Jane Costello's work if you've never read anything from this author before. If you are a fan of her work then you will love this new offering, the perfect summer affair and I guarantee you will not want to out it down! 

Review! Time After Time by Tamara Ireland Stone

Calling Anna and Bennett’s romance long distance is an understatement: she’s from 1995 Chicago and he’s a time traveler from 2012 San Francisco. The two of them never should have met, but they did. They fell in love, even though they knew they shouldn't. And they found a way to stay together, against all odds. 

It’s not a perfect arrangement, though, with Bennett unable to stay in the past for more than brief visits, skipping out on big chunks of his present in order to be with Anna in hers. They each are confident that they’ll find a way to make things work...until Bennett witnesses a single event he never should have seen (and certainly never expected to). Will the decisions he makes from that point on cement a future he doesn't want?

Told from Bennett’s point of view, Time After Time will satisfy readers looking for a fresh, exciting, and beautifully-written love story, both those who are eager to find out what’s next for Time Between Us's Anna and Bennett and those discovering their story for the first time.

Review: I was very excited for starting this sequel, having just finished reading Time Between us, I was desperate to find out what was going to happen between Anna and the lovely Bennett. I wasn't disappointed by what I found! Firstly I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this story was actually from Bennet's point of view-it was interesting to have a change of voice for the sequel! I had to adjust my focus having just finished reading about their story from Anna's point of view but if you read these books separately, this won't be a problem for you! It was wonderful hearing Bennett's thoughts on things that went on between him & Anna and I was delighted to find that he over thought everything as much as Anna did and he wanted things to work as much as Anna did!

In terms of the storyline, this sequel had just as much content and action as the first novel. If anything there is slightly more going on in this book because things have got a lot more serious and just a little darker! I liked the fact that the storyline was slightly more intense in this novel as I thought this was realistic in terms of this coues relationship. The issue of Bennett's time travel is also dealt with a little more in this novel, we get to hear about some of the pitfalls of his 'gift' and also what his family really think about his travel. Brooke becomes more of a main character this time around and I rely enjoyed learning a little more about her and what happens when she meets Anna.

Anna really comes into her own in this sequel, she seems to deal with everything that is thrown at her in a much more nature way than in the previous novel, she has grown up and seems much more trusting that Bennett will do the right thing. Emma and Justin are still around providing a little more comedy to counteract the darker aspects of the novel.

The storyline with Bennett and his grandmother is dealt with much more this time around and this, combined with some of the other darker areas of the novel, meant that I did shed a few tears, readers should be warned about this! Overall this was a rely great sequel, I am very disappointed that this is the end of the road for Anna and Bennett, I would love there to be another book to sort everything out. I'm sure, whilst not being disappointed with the ending, you will feel the same way too. A great sequel and a must read if you were a fan of Time Between Us, I thoroughly enjoyed my Tamara Ireland Stone Marathon!

Review! Time between us by Tamara Ireland Stone

Anna and Bennett were never supposed to meet: she lives in 1995 Chicago and he lives in 2012 San Francisco. But Bennett has the unique ability to travel through time and space, which brings him into Anna’s life, and with him a new world of adventure and possibility.

As their relationship deepens, the two face the reality that time may knock Bennett back to where he belongs, even as a devastating crisis throws everything they believe into question. Against a ticking clock, Anna and Bennett are forced to ask themselves how far they can push the bounds of fate, what consequences they can bear in order to stay together, and whether their love can stand the test of time.

Fresh, exciting, and deeply romantic, Time Between Us is a stunning, spellbinding debut from an extraordinary new voice in YA fiction.

Review: I was so surprised by how much I liked this book. I loved the sound of the blurb and I was urged to read it by a couple of other bloggers, but I just wasn't sure I would be able to get my head around the time travel aspect of it. What I found though was that the time travel part of this book was perfect and supported what was a gorgeous contemporary romance story, one which I simply couldn't put down! I began reading this book on a plane and was gutted when the plane landed because it meant I had to put it down! I had read over half the book in just over 2 hours! 

The characters in this book are really strong. Sometimes I find females in YA novels to be whiney and your typical teenage girls, but I really liked Anna. Although she did make some silly choices and react to things in typical teenage fashion occasionally, she was generally fairly sensible and a really likeable character. Bennet was a lovely character, mature beyond his years, he was the perfect pairing for Anna I think. I loved his name and his sense of decency not to break the rules of his time travel, I thought this was really cool! 

There were a host of great supporting characters too, I felt like best friend Emma was my best friend and could only picture her as I read...This to me is the sign of some good writing! I loved the settings in this book too. Mainly set in a frozen Michigan, but with trips to many other places inside and outside of the United States. Everything was well described and even when Anna and Bennett were in school, I felt like I was there with them! Despite it being set in a school, this really didn't feel like a clear cut YA novel. It had adult romance aspects and yet I raced through it at the pace I would a normal YA novel.

All in all I completely loved this book and am about to start its sequel Time After Time now, I love an author marathon! I think even those of you who don't normally enjoy YA or contemporary romance, will love this book and it is a real treat for any YA  fans! This book had a great storyline, totally believable and some loveable characters, I highly recommend it to anyone!