Posted in Adult Fiction, Blog Tour, Historical Fiction

If you love historical fiction pop over to my blog and check out my review for The Mothers Day Club by Rosie Hendry

My second review today is for a totally different genre as we step into historical fiction with The Mothers Day Club set at the beginning of World War II.

My Review

I love historical fiction based in this era and was excited to see this pop up in my inbox as I have previous read Rosie Hendry and loved her books.

I have read lots of books covering this era but have never read one about the expectant mothers being evacuated and am not sure I was even aware that they were. I loved being swept away to Norfolk and getting to read about the expectant mothers who were unsure about leaving London and the bustle of the city for a much quieter location.

This is a story that reinforces the links with our past, whilst circumstances and locations might be fictitious these stories stop us forgetting the wonderful men and women who sacrificed so much for us. I loved the characters in this story, Thea and her siblings are wonderful and it was great to get to know them. They had all suffered a great loss during the Great War and lots of feelings were highlighted as to how those who had already survived the Great War felt at the outbreak of World War II.

The lead mother Marianne was such a lovely character who was trying to start a new life for her and her baby away from where she knew people in the hope that she could stop her child feeling judged by others. Through reading this book I experienced a range of emotions as there were some highs and lows for all concerned, I also learnt more about the conscientious objectors and gained the insight into how these cases were handled through going to trial.

A truly wonderful read brimming with wonderful characters that I highly adding to your TBR pile!

Book Blurb

Meet the women on the home front . . .

1939. When the residents of Great Plumstead offer to open up their homes to evacuees from London, they’re preparing to care for children. So when a train carrying expectant mothers pulls into the station, the town must come together to accommodate their unexpected new arrivals . . .

Sisters Prue and Thea welcome the mothers with open arms, while others fear their peaceful community will be disrupted. But all pregnant Marianne seeks is a fresh start for herself and her unborn child. Though she knows that is only possible as long as her new neighbours don’t discover the truth about her situation.

The women of Great Plumstead, old and new, are fighting their own battles on the home front. Can the community come together in a time of need to do their bit for the war effort?

Available to purchase here

Meet the Author

Rosie Hendry lives by the sea in Norfolk with her husband and children. A former teacher and research scientist, she’s always loving reading and writing. She started off writing short stories for magazines, her stories gradually becoming longer as her children grew bigger.

Listening to her father’s tales of life during the Second World War sparked Rosie’s interest in this period and she’s especially intrigued by how women’s lives changed during the war years. She loves researching further, searching out gems of real life events which inspire her writing.

When she’s not working, Rosie enjoys walking along the beach, reading and is grateful for the fact that her husband is a much better cook than her.


Social Media Links

Twitter @hendry_rosie

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RosieHendrybooks

website www.rosiehendry.com

Instagram rosiehendryauthor

Many Thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation to join the blog tour. Please remember to like and share to help spread the book love

Thanks for visiting Love the Smell of a Book today and I hope you have a great day!

Daisy & Kel x

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Posted in Adult Fiction, Blog Tour, Chick Lit, Publication Day

Happy Publication Day to the lovely TA Williams who releases Second Chances in Chianti today!!

I am very excited to be celebrating publication day for one of my favourite authors when it comes to escapism reads in wonderful locations.

My Review

I am loving the Escape to Tuscany series and am always excited to see this author is releasing a new book. His books always offer escapism as well as a wonderful insight into local history of the area and lots of exploration. I honestly feel like I have been on holiday, especially with the wonderful sunny locations we have been treated too recently and who doesn’t love Italian food. A perfect read for a cold and wet February afternoon to help add some vitamin D to my life.

In this story we meet Alice who has left the high life in America and returned to the UK to finish the degree she had previously started. We quickly gained her back story as to how she ended up in America and what she had been doing in life over the past 5 years, which is where her previous and her new life start to bleed together as she receives an invite to meet the cast members in Italy. A story packed with wonderful characters and the adorable Guiness who straight away I wanted to know more about. As you read you gain a wonderful insight into the varying relationships both personally and for the on screen characters. I found Alice a lovely down to earth character and I loved spending time with her exploring and sharing her love of history.

A book featuring a range of emotions, with both romantic and platonic relationships dotted throughout the story. A lovely light hearted read that I reached the end of far too quickly as I read into the evening after being captured by the story of the lovely Alice.

Book Blurb

Alice thought her future was set in stone, until her past came knocking…

Alice Butler starred in a successful US sitcom until tensions in the cast and crew caused the show to be cancelled. Now, five years later and working towards her dream job in art history, she’s called back for a revival of the show. It can only end in disaster, surely?

Flown to a villa in Chianti to meet with the rest of the cast, Alice must decide where her future lies – with her boyfriend, David, who laps up the Hollywood company, or with the mysterious Matt, who shies away from public attention?

Available to purchase here

Meet the Author

I’m a man. And a pretty old man as well. I did languages at university a long time ago and then lived and worked in France and Switzerland before going to Italy for seven years as a teacher of English. My Italian wife and I then came back to the UK with our little daughter (now long-since grown up) where I ran a big English language school for many years. We now live in a sleepy little village in Devonshire. I’ve been writing almost all my life but it was only seven years ago that I finally managed to find a publisher who liked my work enough to offer me my first contract.

The fact that I am now writing romantic comedy is something I still find hard to explain. My early books were thrillers and historical novels. Maybe it’s because there are so many horrible things happening in the world today that I feel I need to do my best to provide something to cheer my readers up. My books provide escapism to some gorgeous locations, even if travel to them is currently difficult.

Social Media Links

Website: www.tawilliamsbooks.com

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/tawilliamsbooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrevorWilliamsBooks/

Many Thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation to join the blog tour. Please remember to like and share to help spread the book love

Thanks for visiting Love the Smell of a Book today and I hope you have a great day!

Daisy & Kel x