#Review by Lou of Wild About You by Sophie Loxton #SophieLoxton @bookminxSJV #TeamBATC @TeamBATC #Blogtour #SummerRead #Rewilding #RomanticFiction #BookRecommendation

Wild About You
By Sophie Loxton

Written by Louise Cannon

Re-wilding, people-pleasing and changes to life circumstances is explored in this book that takes you outside big country house and grounds, the type you go and visit. Discover more in the blurb and then my review below…

Blurb

Anna Whitlock is a people-pleaser, but she is done saying yes. Now she has to learn how to put herself first…

After splitting up with her fiancé and ready for a new start, Anna takes a job rewilding the glorious Stonemore Estate in Northumberland.

But when she arrives the only thing driving Anna wild is her boss: the sexy, but emotionally unavailable Jamie, who is hellbent on making Anna’s job – and her life – as difficult as possible. On the plus side, there’s Callum, the gorgeous estate manager, her best friend Fi, and an enthusiastic beagle called Hugo.

When romance with Callum blossoms, is Anna’s resolve to stop people-pleasing about to falter? And why can’t she stop thinking about Jamie? Can she truly put herself first and say yes to the thing which will make her happiest, falling truly madly wildly in love…?

Review

Set in Northumberland, North England in the gloriously picturesque surroundings of the Stonemore Estate, is quite the behind the scenes tour of a big country house as it were as, through Anna and her newfound colleagues. It’s an interesting tour in a way and a glimpse into the lives, in a fictional way of those involved in the upkeep. It does have an air of authenticity and originality in setting about it.

Anna Whitlock is a people-pleaser who, I’m sure many people with this personality will recognise a bit of themselves in. She’s said yes to so many things that now she feels “done”. She now has a desire to take care of herself and learn how to put herself first. In order to do this, to a certain extent, she’s got rid of her fiancé and started a new job on a re-wilding project on the Stonemore Estate, Northumberland.
The author has taken great care not to give Anna a job title that has just the topic of the moment in it, but has given it a bit of depth so readers can pick up bits here and there about what re-wildling means, the eco-system and more… Smartly, Loxton has made what appears to perhaps be one of her passions, engaging as she wraps it up with other life circumstances.

There’s some good, well-written comedy as romance becomes once again a thing to creep into Anna’s life, as does a dog, who wants to steal the scene at times.
Anna has dilemmas and choices to make in this new life she’s carved out for herself, but who will she end up with? Will the emotionally unavailable, enticingly sexy Jamie get it together and be with her or will the rather good-looking manager, Callum be the one?

Wild About You is a slow-burn romance that compellingly unfolds in a gorgeously setting that holds an interesting premise. It’s a book that will warm your heart, uplift your spirits and create a desire to explore the great out doors and grow your own.

Thanks to Simon &Schuster, Books And The City for a review copy and a pack of seeds. The wildflower seeds are showing, so look out for a further post about this book when they are in full bloom. All opinions on the book are my own and whether the seeds fully grow or not are down to how green-fingered I am this year. My review isn’t influenced by a pack of seeds. Wildflower growing happens in my garden, but it is a welcome and beautiful extra.

#Review by Lou of The Revenge Club by Kathy Lette @KathyLette #TheRevengeClub @RandomTTours #BlogTour

The Revenge Club
By Kathy Lette

review written by Louise Cannon

Revenge is sweet, best served cold. The Revenge Club is deliciously wicked. It’s a book that can’t be helped but devoured. Clink the glasses and move on down to the blurb and my review below…

Blurb

Four scorned women. One perfect plan.

When the odds are against you, it’s time to get even.

Best friends Matilda, Penny, Cressida and Jo are approaching their sixties with flair until, one by one, their bubbles are burst.

Matilda, a bestselling novelist, is dropped by her publisher; Penny is cut from her prime-time TV show in favour of her male co-host; Cressida’s acting agent can only offer her female incontinence adverts and Jo… well Jo realised it’s still a man’s world a while ago.

Confronted by a society that believes they’re all past their amuse-by dates, the friends vow to face their non-entity crises together. Each has been trampled on by men, so it’s time for a little revenge.

Let the games begin!

Review

Wickedly witty, Kathy Lette has written an escapist page-turner. Once started, it’s hard to put down.

It all begins with a reunion of Matilda, Jo, Penny and Cressida at a rather posh hotel in London. Jo is running late, but a mysterious man rocks up, taking the seat at the table… or is there something more familiar to him than first realised?

These are women who feel hard done by in society. They’re peri-menopausal women who’ve tried to succeed in life, making their way through a male dominated world and now in-return of their strife, want their revenge on the males who could’ve done better, but instead wronged them.

It would make a brilliant summer film. The interactions and plotting of the revenge is sublime!

The writing is hilarious in many moments, which captured me. To create a book that’s so funny and addresses the issues of the day and probably beyond and what’s gone before is no mean feat. The interweaving of this humour with the serious topics of women’s lives is compelling and very well-written.

It’s a sparkly, satisfying read that’s perfect for a warm summer day with a cocktail or favourite wine.

#Review by Lou of The Coffee Shop Masquerade By T.A. Morton @TAMortonWriter @Earnshawbooks @RandomTTours #Blogtour #TheCoffeeShopMasqerade #Coffee #Books

The Coffeeshop Masquerade
By T.A. Morton

Coffee shops, most of us do love them, whatever the coffee type we order, from our favourite latte to cappuccino, flat-white and more, but this one is different from any you’d have stepped into before. This is a coffeeshop masquerade, this is when a cup of coffee isn’t just a cup of coffee, it’s much more, but still one for the coffee lovers. Discover more in the blurb and my review below as I close the blog tour.

Blurb

A mysterious mask abandoned in a Hong Kong coffee shop eavesdrops on the lives of those who enter, asking, who are we beneath our masks?

The Coffee Shop Masquerade is a captivating exploration of transient lives seeking meaning amid everyday encounters, much like the alluring cup of coffee that unites and intrigues us all.

As the enigmatic forces inspired by the Tao Te Ching loom over them, choices must be made, secrets revealed, and unexpected bonds forged—all under the watchful gaze of a mysterious mask.

Review

A cup of coffee isn’t more than what you think it is in The Coffee Shop Masquerade. Have you ever sat in a cafe and looked around at its customers and wondered who they are, what brought them there, what they do? In a coffee shop in Hong Kong, there’s a mask that observes everything and everyone. It’s a great way of creating people’s lives and answering all those questions and this mask is used to great effect, bringing depth of life to the people who come and go. It makes for a quirky read with a great premise. It’s a bit different from what I imagined it to be as it isn’t some big masquerade ball, the masquerade comes from the mask that links all these transient lives together. It carries an air of mystery about it.
The stories that people think are hidden are all there in coffee shops and the Tao Te Ching knows all their secrets, their loves, their sadness and happiness. Each persons lives give thought-provoking snapshots, with each chapter starting with an interesting quote.

Sit with a cup of coffee to feed the body and allow curiosity to takeover to feed the mind. Be enthralled by people’s lives and beware, the mask observes all.

About the Author

T.A. Morton is an Irish/Australian writer.

Previously, she worked as a journalist and editor for Longman Pearson in Hong Kong.

In 2020, she was shortlisted for the Virginia Prize for Fiction and the Bridport Prize.

She has a Masters in Crime and Thriller writing from the University of Cambridge.

Her novel Someone is Coming was published by Monsoon Books in August 2022 and has been optioned for television.

#Review by Lou of The Bleed by Paul Barrell

The Bleed
By Paul Barrell

The Bleed is a thriller inspired by true events. See the blurb and my review as part of the random t tours in below.

Blurb

THE BLEED A GRIPPING NEW CRIME THRILLER . SET IN SOUTH

LONDON, INSPIRED BY REAL EVENTS.

MARC MADISON IS A GHOST

AND YOU CAN’T KILL A GHOST

Marc Madison is a lovable rogue, with a flawed addictive

personality, but he had never been sacked for being prudent

with the truth, smoking a little weed or nursing the hangover

from hell. He is also one of the Mets top undercover and has

been tasked with bringing down the the drug KIngpin of

south London.

With the help of bad boy dealer Christian Marc Madison has

successfully infiltrated a maintenance firm he is getting ever

closer to The Duke Of York, the head of the OCG.

Until, one evening on the way home he suffers a cardiac

arrest and as he drifts between life and death, a strangers

touch miraculously brings him back to life. Although from

that moment something in Marc changed. Something that

went all the way back to his childhood and his twin brother.

When a chance encounter introduces him to Eva Chan a high

class Chinese masseuse, Marc feels strangely drawn to her

but has no idea Eva is embedded deep within the claws of

the drug gang.

With Eva a willing Bonnie to his Clyde, Marc is dragged

deeper into the south London drug world, a place where, in

the search for the truth about his brother, the stakes escalate

with each crime he is forced to commit

Review

The Bleed is a fast-paced, darkly gripping thriller that takes readers to the depths of a gang in London, 2018. Inspired by real events, it shows how flawed humanity can be and how deeply dark and dangerous some people can be when they’re part of a gang.

In comes Marc Madison, who’s also deeply flawed and had a massive heart attack, but nonetheless is determined to infiltrate the gang and bring them down.

There’s also a plot to find out who killed one of his family members.

Each part weaves seamlessly to create interesting characters in a space where fiction and true events collide, giving a great story and picture of what goes on. It’ll open your world to the darker side of society and make you more aware, a bit like what Adolescence does on Netflix.

Check it out for a tense must read thriller.

#Review by Lou. Moulin Rouge the Stage Musical, setting theatres on fire with Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love @moulinmusicaluk #MoulinRouge

Moulin Rouge – The Musical

written by Louise Cannon

Moulin Rouge “sets the world on fire” or at least Edinburgh Playhouse until June in a UK tour travelling further than there. The real Moulin Rouge celebrated its 135th anniversary in 2024. Like the film, the stage does it proud. I was pleased to have purchased a ticket.

High Can-Can kicks, amazing costumes, huge sets that look like pictures which people have stepped into and music galore to tell the story of the Moulin Rouge, Satine, Toulouse Le-Trec, Satine and more…
It fills your heart with lots of emotions and leaves your heart with joy in it as you exit the auditorium. Can-Can down to the rest of my review and tour dates for one of the hottest tickets you’ll handle this year!

Enter the powerful, emotionally charged, colourful Moulin Rouge, full of dancers that are as colourful as a “firework” and stories to tell. Look into the streets, that look like moving paintings that people have magically stepped into (they’re not, the set artistry is just that incredibly created) where the Bohemians are sitting, contemplating life, that they’re “the children of the revolution” and Montmartre.

The songs are a mixture of newer, up-to-date songs and those in the film (which you may notice some of in my review). The story remains and is beautifully presented in awe-aspiring glory. Many, many medleys of various songs are expertly put together to tell the story of “Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love” of the Moulin Rouge. A fantastically brilliant part is a romance scene where spoken word and song are weaved together, championing the idea of love. Is there “tainted love” or “bad romance”or “everlasting love” in the air?

The emotional end is simply beautifully conveyed.

All the cast exceeded expectations in dance, song, acting! They’re all ones to watch out for. Special mention to a few in some main parts:

Verity Thompson brings energy, power and emotion as she conveys Satine’s complex life. Christian, played by Nate Landskroner plays well to show love for Satine and plays off the complexities, together showing how love isn’t straight forward.
Kurt Kansley brings the bohemian, arty world to the fore in the form of Toulouse-Lautrec, conveying all the bohemian beliefs that would make anyone run off with him and join the bohemian movement.
James Bryers as the Duke brought intrigue, wealth, a bit of menace, driving the plot forward, creating great tension.

You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll want to join both the bohemians and the dancers in the Moulin Rouge.

By the end of the Moulin Rouge effect is “Never Gonna Give You Up”.

“Come What May”, this is “Your Song” and a musical not to be missed!

Will you go “Rolling in the Deep” or be found swinging on a “Chandelier” when you discover touring details? Join the artists, lovers and bohemians here: Moulin Rouge Tour

*please note I am not affiliated with any company or production.

*Photos are taken by me and are encouraged before the show begins. I bought a ticket and chose to review.

#Review by Lou of Favourite Daughter by Morgan Dick @Jmdwrites @morgandick_author @VikingBooksUK #FavouriteDaughter

Favourite Daughter
By Morgan Dick

Life, it can be challenging, whether you’re a therapist by profession or not. Favourite Daughter weaves plausible characters with wit and issues. Having watched (perhaps discovered it quite late), In Treatment, this book intrigued me and feels very real with a rather different take on family drama. Find out more in the blurb and the rest of my thoughts in the review.

Blurb

‘He left you some money.’

Mickey felt her mouth drop open. The first half of that sentence had rung clear and true. The second half had not. Her father was one to take, not give.

After he left them for his new family, Mickey resolved never to think of her father again. She’s fine without him; yes, she drinks, but only sometimes and, really, she can’t not.

But with only $181 to her name, she’s not above attending some mandated therapy to access her inheritance. She’ll kneel at the Kleenex alter and soon be bingeing Bridgerton with a bottle of Russian Standard, five million dollars richer.

Arlo has more issues than most of her clients. Being a therapist has not prepared her for grief. She adored her father – his laughter, his charm, the smell of his cologne. She thought he adored her, too, but now he’s given his inheritance to a daughter no one knows, and Arlo is at a loss.

Two sisters are unknowingly thrown together for the first time.

It’s crazy, it’s unethical.

It’s perfect.

Review

Meet Mickey, she’s resolved never to talk to her father again. Harsh? Maybe a little, but when you read her story, you can totally see why she’s taken this stance when you know the choice he’s decided to take. The further unfortunate thing is the impact of her decision hasn’t gone without its own consequences. Mickey chooses a combination of alcohol, Bridgerton and lots of Kleenex tissues. It’s quite the combo binge, enough perhaps for anyone to wonder if she had shares in them all.

Who is really interesting is Arlo, the therapist who is enlisted, but doesn’t know she’s stepping into the unethical territory because she doesn’t know who her new client really is. Arlo also shows that therapists are perhaps not super-human and they have their own issues in life. Arlo certainly has them in spades.

Favourite Daughter is an immersive family situation with an array of emotions to get caught up in.

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*please note I’m not affiliated with any company.