Wednesday 19 July 2017

Sharing the Book Love



Sharing the Book Love


There is nothing better than receiving books as gifts. Kindle (ebooks) are fine, but a proper physical book is magic. In my capacity as a book reviewer/blogger I am very lucky in that I receive a lot of books for free. Some are ebooks, some are paperbacks and some are hardbacks. I am fortunate enough to have author Heidi Swain as a best buddy too so I get her to sign my books by her too! Through book events I have been lucky enough to meet many authors like Milly Johnson, Jane Costello, Andy Jones, Isabelle Broome, Lucy Holliday, Juliet Ashton, Penny Parkes, Iona Grey and many more. They are a friendly bunch and regularly chat to their fans on social media - Twitter is their favourite.

Sharing the book love however is something I am passionate about. For me there is nothing nicer than giving somebody a well chosen book as a gift. It can be one I've read and loved - in that case you need to read it quickly so we can discuss it! - it could be one that I've heard about and know you will love or it could be something tied in with World Book Night/Day. 
I also have a page on Facebook Mary's Writing Page where I run lots of giveaways and that is also a great way to spread book love.

Recently I spoke to a few people I had gifted books to and it was lovely to hear that they had enjoyed their books. Last week I was asked by my friend Sammie for some reading recommendations as she is pregnant - YAY. She wants to get some reading done on her maternity leave. The obvious choice that sprung to mind was The Yorkshire Pudding Club by Milly Johnson. Luckily I had a spare copy so Sammie received one of those. I also had a spare copy of another favourite of mine Summer at Skylark Farm by Heidi Swain so Sammie is borrowing that too. It made me happy to give my friend books I had read and loved. Many of you know that Heidi dedicated Summer at Skylark Farm to me, so it will always hold a special place in my heart.


Sammie and Summer at Skylark Farm




                                            


The two friends who receive the most books from me - lucky things - are Tara and Emily. I met Tara through my part-time job for a large supermarket chain and Emily started out as my Macmillan nurse and then became a close friend.
Tara likes romantic comedy and women's fiction and I know if I give her a book I've enjoyed that she will love it. The other day I literally shoved a book under her nose from the shelf at work and told her to buy it and read it! She did and loved it. That book was The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances, it hooked me from the beginning and I would highly recommend it to thriller lovers.


Tara's book haul and a quote I gave her from our shared favourite Winnie the Pooh

Emily and I bonded over the love of our two favourite authors Jill Mansell and Tess Gerritsen. One very happy moment was when I asked Jill to send a signed postcard for Emily to me. I gave it to Emily and she was delighted, went goose bumpy and very nearly cried. How beautiful that an author and a gift can bring so much pleasure.


Jill Mansell

Tess Gerritsen


The other night I was able to give Emily a goody bag courtesy of Sara-Jade Virtue at Simon & Schuster/Books and the City. SJ is the most generous book giver I know and I am very lucky that she invites me to lots of lovely blogging events and author get togethers. Inside the bag were 4 books all of which I got signed to Emily and she was so excited she wanted to leave our table in the restaurant and go home to begin reading.
My lovely Mum in-law -Wendy- received a signed book from Santa Montefiore that I won in a Mother's Day competition. Since then we send her a lot of Santa's books and now that she lives in Ireland a lot of Irish authors have also appeared as gifts. Of course Wendy always receives Heidi's latest book.


Mum's collection - the newest Heidi is still to be sent!

We share a love of Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier and for one birthday we got her a vintage hard-backed copy. She has also had a beautiful copy of Jane Eyre too.


'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.'





So if ever you want to give somebody a present, give them a book. Even if they say they don't read a lot, there is a book out there for everyone.


I have included some messages below and books I have recommended to people, so if you see something you fancy then give it a go!

Rachel

You gave this book to me, and I have read it twice. It has also been passed around the females in the family and is currently being read by my mummy. My nan took it to Canada where she read it and then her sister read it. It is an easy read but is a real feel good book. It made me laugh as I could so relate to the characters pregnancy in the story. xxx




Maggie received the same book from me on World Book Night





My sister Linda read The Cherry Tree Cafe after I talked about it non-stop!

  OK then Mrs. Not exactly recommended to me by you but as you went on about it, then I thought I would give it a try lol! The Cherry Tree Cafe by Heidi Swain. A pleasant easy read with a light hearted story and a leading lady you could relate to. Lizzie makes a few wrong direction decisions but in the end love wins out and The Cherry Tree Cafe itself is described in such detail that I felt it was a real place and I really would like to go and visit there. Linda xx

Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley was recommended to me by the Marketing Director of Simon and Schuster Dawn Burnett and I loved it. I then lent it to my friend Heather who loved it too.

Letters to the Lost by Iona Grey. I recommend this book to everybody as I absolutely love it to bits. It is one of the best books I have ever read and if romance is your bag you must read this! It also won a Romance Novelists Association Award.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. A lot of people say they find this confusing as the timeline skips. My advice is make sure you read the chapter title every time. It tells you who is talking and the time they are set in, honestly if you read that you won't have any problems.

The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances. Another excellent thriller about a mother, son and his girlfriend and how toxic a relationship can become. I read it in one sitting.

Behind Closed Doors by BA Paris. I have texted 5 people today to tell them they must read this. I have never hated a character so much as I did in this book. The writing is intense and very disturbing. I read it during a thunderstorm and I felt very uncomfortable. I would give anything to be able to write as well as this.

ALL of Heidi Swain's books. I love them and plan to move to Wynbridge. I care not a jot that the town is a figment of Heidi's imagination, I'm off to eat cake at The Cherry Tree Cafe, drink cider and eat bacon from Skylark Farm, go and have Mince Pies and Mistletoe at the Christmas Market and visit the vintage camping experience at Cuckoo Cottage.


That's all for now, but if you fancy winning one of 4 books I have to give away then answer this simple question:

Which book by Milly Johnson did I recommend for Sammie to read during her pregnancy?


Answer either below in the blog comments or on my Facebook Writing Page here Winners will be announced on Friday 21st July.



Mary













Sammie reading pic

Wendy Heidi pic

Jo read Cherry tree

Heather read Lily and the octopus

Saturday 15 July 2017

Book Review - The Upstairs Room by Kate Murray-Browne

The Upstairs Room

by

Kate Murray-Browne


 Pre-Order here for release on 27th July 2017

Genre: Horror
Contemporary Horror
Adult Fiction

Eleanor, Richard and their two young daughters recently stretched themselves to the limit to buy their dream home, a four-bedroom Victorian townhouse in East London. But the cracks are already starting to show. Eleanor is unnerved by the eerie atmosphere in the house and becomes convinced it is making her ill. Whilst Richard remains preoccupied with Zoe, their mercurial twenty-seven-year-old lodger, Eleanor becomes determined to unravel the mystery of the house’s previous owners – including Emily, whose name is written hundreds of times on the walls of the upstairs room.


Thank you to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for this ARC, which I have reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

Now I don't mind admitting I am a total wimp when it comes to horror, so I was in two minds whether or not to read this book. I did obviously, but made sure I read it in the daytime or with the lights on. It doesn't help that my bedroom is the 'Upstairs Room' in my cottage either and so far - and believe me I have checked - there are no strange drawings on my walls.

Eleanor and Richard have bought a large house that needs a lot of work doing to it. They have two young children Rosie and Isobel. They rent their basement - a lounge, bedroom and shower room - to Zoe, a local young woman who works in a nearby art store.
Despite the estate agents claims the house looks like it hasn't been lived in for a long while and whoever did live there looks like they left in a hurry. The upstairs room has walls covered in strange drawings, shapes and over and over again the name Emily is written everywhere. There are also children's belongings in the room and a locked suitcase. The door has scratches all over it on the inside as if somebody has been trying to get out whilst on the outside of the door is a large bolt. Whoever tries to enter the room is always met with a strange feeling of pressure from the other side of the door, as if somebody or something is pressing against the door to prevent entry. Eleanor also finds with regularity pebbles ranging in size lined up neatly in the room and on the pavement outside the house. The pebbles make their way nearer and nearer to the house until eventually they are lined up on the doorstep. Richard insists it is just children messing about and nothing to worry about. Eleanor is not convinced and by now she has begun to feel very unwell. She has crippling headaches and vomits constantly. Her symptoms however improve dramatically the longer she is out of the house. Her toddler daughter - Rosie - is also showing signs of being affected by some unknown force. 
Rosie's temper tantrums have reached alarming levels and she has begun to bite Eleanor with a vicious force. Rosie prefers to be at nursery, going into meltdown at weekends when she has to stay at home. Then the night terrors begin and Rosie starts to talk about 'Girl', who is always to blame for any wrongdoing, mess or tantrum.

This book has the makings of an excellent, classic, horror novel. Not a psychological thriller, but a proper spine chilling, read with the lights on horror. However it seemed to lose it's way somewhat. A lot of time was spent going over Eleanor and Richard's past, how they met and so forth. None of this seemed relevant in my opinion, but the author could have been using the negative feelings and underlying tension to explain why the house felt haunted. After all it is claimed by those in the know that buildings pick up on the residents and that spirits can be unsettled by the forces around them.
Then there is their lodger Zoe. Again a lot of time is spent looking into her life, her ex-boyfriend, her Mother, her friends and her new relationship with a guy she has met through work called Adam. Again I wasn't sure why this and indeed the character of Zoe was included. Richard begins to have a fixation with Zoe, visiting her living quarters etc, but beyond that nothing appears to happen.
Zoe has had strange things begin to happen to her since moving into the basement. She wakes up feeling paralysed, unable to move as if there is a force sitting on her chest, she sleepwalks and is found by Eleanor in the upstairs room.

Eleanor tries to glean as much information as she can from the neighbours about the house and the previous owners. The only thing they all tell her is that the mother - Mrs Ashworth - always looks harassed, ill and scared and her daughter Emily was not 'all there'. 

When I got to the end of the book I was none the wiser who the 'Girl' or this spirit was, if there actually was a spirit or if the house was indeed haunted. Did Emily - the previous owner's daughter - have anything to do with it? Did her illness stem from the house or was she ok before they lived there.
I felt slightly cheated if I'm honest.

However in terms of horror writing Murray-Browne excels. I was absolutely petrified reading the descriptions of the strange goings on and I did feel the hairs go up on the back of my neck a few times.
I may devote some time to re-reading this book again and I would be interested to read reviews from other readers to see if their point of view helps me understand the story further. I wonder if the background stories of Eleanor, Richard and Zoe are more pivotal to the story than I gave them credit for.

I am giving this book 4* as the horror writing is fantastic and I really think it deserves another read by me!

Book Review - While You Were Sleeping by Kathryn Croft

While You Were Sleeping

by

Kathryn Croft


Purchase here

Genre: Adult Thriller
Psychological Thriller


Yesterday your life was perfect. Today you’ll find out that was all a lie.


A gripping, shocking psychological thriller, with a twist that will take you by surprise. For fans of Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train and Behind Closed Doors.

Tara Logan adores her perfect little family: husband, Noah, and two children, teenager Rosie and eleven-year-old Spencer. 

But her happiness is shattered when she wakes up one morning in her neighbour’s bed, with no memory of how she got there or what happened between them. And worse – he has been stabbed to death.

Convinced she didn’t kill Lee and scared of losing everything she cares about, Tara flees home and stays silent, holding her breath as the investigation grips the neighbourhood.

But as her daughter spirals out of control, and her husband becomes increasingly distant, Tara starts to wonder if someone in her life knows what really happened that night. When the police turn their questions towards her, Tara realises she has to find out. 

But what will it take to uncover the real story, and can she survive the truth?



Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for this ARC, which I have reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

A fast paced thriller that dives straight into the action. Tara has spent the evening with her neighbour Lee Jacobs, after she pops over to see his wife and her friend Serena. She is out on a hen-do, so Tara has a drink with Lee. The next morning Tara wakes up in Lee's bed, unable to remember anything at all. Lee has also been stabbed and is lying in the bed beside her. Tara has no blood on her at all. She panics, grabs her clothes and flees home. Tara's daughter Rosie has many issues and the family is used to treading on eggshells around her. Rosie becomes a suspect in the murder investigation and has both Tara and her husband Noah wondering if their daughter could be capable of murdering someone in cold blood.

There are many twists and turns in the book  a few too many where Rosie is concerned if I'm honest - but the book is well crafted.
The only criticism I have is of DCI Huny's character. I felt that he doesn't really bring much to the story and although a police involvement is needed, I am not sure if it needs his character.

All in all this was a very good thriller and the added bonus was I didn't guess the ending! 

Book Review - The Regulars by Georgia Clark



The Regulars
by
Georgia Clark





Purchase here
Genre: Contemporary fiction 




Best friends Evie, Krista and Willow are just trying to make it through their mid-twenties in New York. They're regular girls with typical quarter life crises: making it up the corporate ladder, making sense of online dating, and making rent.



Until they come across Pretty, a magic tincture that makes them, well ...gorgeous. With a single drop, each young woman gets the gift of jaw-dropping beauty for one week, presenting them with unimaginable opportunities to make their biggest fantasies come true.



But there's a dark side to Pretty, too, and as the gloss fades for these modern-day Cinderellas, there's just one question left: what are they prepared to sacrifice?

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for this ARC which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This book is not what I was expecting at all! Evie, Krista and Willow are 3 friends, average looking, trying to get on in a tough New York City. Evie is a copywriter for Salty magazine, Krista dropped out of law school - much to her Father's disgust - to follow her dream of becoming an actor and Willow is a photographer, desperately trying to step out of her famous film directors Father's shadow.
Evie is currently single and is bi-sexual. She can't seem to meet the right person, male or female. Krista is single and Willow is in a relationship with Mark, although nine months into their relationship Willow has only just begun to call herself his girlfriend.
All 3 women are convinced if they were a little more beautiful, a little more successful and had bubbly personalities all their problems will be solved. Then one evening in a bar Krista has a drink with the stunning Penny - although Krista doesn't remember her being stunning when she knew her years ago. Penny hands her a tiny bottle of liquid called 'Pretty'. This small, innocuous looking bottle has far reaching consequences for all 3 women.
Is being 'Pretty' or just a 'Regular' the best way to be?

I had been given an exclusive chapter sampler at a Blogger evening with Simon and Schuster/Books and the City and I was desperate to read more. The book like I said is not at all what I was expecting. I found some of the language difficult to understand when the characters were talking about feminism and sexual preference, but it didn't really detract from the story.
The story reminded me a little of the film 'Death Becomes Her' in the way that people can never be happy with their lot.

A good read all in all. 


Tuesday 4 July 2017

Book review - Last Seen Alive by Claire Douglas


Last Seen Alive
by
Claire Douglas


Pre-order here
Publication date: 13th July
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Woman's Fiction


She can run
Libby Hall needs to hide, to escape from everything for a while. Which is why the house swap is a godsend. The chance for Libby and her husband Jamie to exchange their tiny Bath flat for a beautiful haven on the wild Cornish coast.
But she can't hide
But before they can begin to heal their fragile marriage, Libby makes some disturbing discoveries about the house. And soon the peace and isolation begin to feel threatening. How alone are they? Why does she feel watched?

Because someone knows her secret
What is Jamie hiding? Is Libby being paranoid? And why does the house bring back such terrible memories? Memories Libby's worked hard to bury. Memories of the night she last saw her best friend alive . . . and what he did.


Thank you to Michael Joseph/Penguin and Netgalley for this ARC, which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

A psychological thriller with a difference. Libby Hall is married to Jamie, they have a dog called Ziggy and Jamie has an over bearing Mother and a snooty sister. The Mother and Sister are very close to Jamie's ex Hannah. Libby feels that she is not good enough for Jamie in his family's eyes, but Jamie loves her, chose her and married her.
Things haven't been going great for Libby and Jamie recently. They have lost their much wanted baby and Jamie's business isn't going as well as it should. 

So when Libby returns home to their basement flat and finds a flyer offering them a house swap in Cornwall, they decide it is exactly what they need. Phillip Heywood and his wife Tara need a flat near to Bath's hospital as their daughter needs a heart operation and it would appear that Libby and James' flat fits the bill.

They drive down to Cornwall and are surprised and astounded to see the Heywood's property is a huge house set atop a cliff with steps leading to the beach. 
Then things start to happen that leave Libby feeling uneasy. She is wary of sharing her fears as Jamie's Mother is a firm believer in 'sharing' whilst Libby likes to keep her problems to herself. Libby has the feeling they are being watched and at a visit to a lighthouse she notices a man training his camera on Jamie, the same man later shoves into Jamie, which in turn knocks Libby over and leaves her rolling towards the cliff edge. The same man is then seen in the garden of the house watching them while they walk Ziggy on the beach.
After Jamie ends up seriously ill in hospital with food poisoning they decide to return to Bath. Philip Heywood has telephoned to say that their daughter has been discharged and they have returned to their home in London.

More and more strange events occur including items being delivered to the flat that they haven't ordered and a man knocking on the door asking for sex with Jamie!
Libby is totally unnerved, is someone from her past trying to scare her? Why would Philip and Tara Heywood have an issue with them? Could Jamie's ex Hannah be involved?

So many questions that nobody can answer and Libby is afraid. Jamie is the only person she has, but someone is clearly trying to make trouble.

I really enjoyed this book. It had many twists and turns and I must admit I reread some parts to get clear in  my head who was talking. The story is set now and in the past when Libby was travelling through Thailand.
Claire Douglas describes the characters well and I found myself loathing Jamie's sister Katie and his ex Hannah. Libby bats away their snide comments like a tennis pro!

I look forward to reading more from Claire Douglas.

Clare can be found on Twitter

Book Review - Practice Makes Perfect by Penny Parkes



Practice Makes Perfect
By
Penny Parkes




Purchase here


The Practice at Larkford has suddenly been thrust under the spotlight – and its nomination as a ‘NHS Model Surgery’ is causing the team major headaches. Dr Holly Graham should be basking in the glow of her new romance with fellow doctor, Taffy – but she is worried that the team is prioritising plaudits over patients, and her favourite resident, the irreverent and entertaining Elsie, is facing a difficult diagnosis. Add to that the chaos of family life and the strain is starting to show.


Dr Dishy Dan Carter’s obsession with work is masking unhappiness elsewhere – he can’t persuade girlfriend Julia to settle down. It’s only as Julia’s mother comes to stay that he realizes what she has been hiding for so long. Alice Walker joins the team like a breath of fresh air and her assistance dog Coco quickly wins everyone round – which is just as well, because Coco and Alice will soon need some help of their own. Can they pull together and become the Dream Team that the NHS obviously thinks they are?


Thank you to Simon and Schuster/Book and the City Digital Originals and Netgalley for this ARC which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This is the second book by Penny Parkes based in the fictional village of Larkford, the first being Romantic Comedy of the Year award winning Out of Practice 
It was great to be back amongst the regulars again. Holly, Dan, Taffy and Julia are all GP's in the local surgery. Holly and Taffy live together along with Holly's twin boys from her marriage to Milo and Dan & Julia are also a couple. Julia is a TV star and a production company follow her around the surgery filming her consultations. Along with TV stardom to contend with the surgery has now been put forward as an example of how a modern surgery should be run. All four GP's are equal, there is no longer a Senior Partner, but is this workable? Not all is rosy behind the scenes, will this affect the surgery's future and that of it's staff?

Another delightful novel by Penny Parkes. I loved getting back in touch with the residents of Larkford to see what they were up to. There are some fantastic characters such as Elsie and the Major who make me chuckle. I hope that this is a book series that will continue.

Find Penny on Twitter


Saturday 24 June 2017

Book Review - The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances




The Girlfriend
By
Michelle Frances



Purchase here



A girl. A boy. His mother. And the lie she'll wish she'd never told.


The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances is a gripping and chilling debut psychological thriller, based on the fall-out following an unforgiveable lie. It looks at the potentially charged relationship between girlfriend, boyfriend and his mother, which most women can identify with, and locates it in an extreme but believable setting.

Laura has it all. A successful career, a long marriage to a rich husband, and a twenty-three year-old son, Daniel, who is kind, handsome, and talented. Then Daniel meets Cherry. Cherry is young, beautiful and smart but she hasn't had the same opportunities as Daniel. And she wants Laura's life.
Cherry comes to the family wide-eyed and wants to be welcomed with open arms, but Laura suspects she's not all that she seems.
When tragedy strikes, an unforgiveable lie is told. It is an act of desperation, but the fall-out will change their lives forever.





Wow! Straight away I was hooked. I began reading this book at about 5am after waking up during the hot and sticky weather and by 9am I was almost done. The book popped up as a recommendation for me and I am so pleased I bought it.

Being the Mum of a nearly 23 year old man who is my only child/son I could relate to Laura. Try as I might to get along with any potential future girlfriends, I know deep down I'll be suspicious of any woman my son brings home - sorry Glen!.

Laura's life is her son. Her husband has been having an affair for years and Laura lives for the times Daniel comes home from University. Laura has her own TV production company and a best friend Isabelle and along with Daniel that is it. They live an extremely comfortable life in South Kensington and have a swimming pool built underneath the house.

Cherry comes from a poor area in Croydon. Ashamed of her Mother - Wendy - a Checkout Manager in a supermarket. Cherry wants more, she did well at school and gained excellent grades in her A-Levels, but couldn't afford to go to University. She learnt French and other languages through language courses on the Internet to better herself. The internet became her friend and through that - along with a few embellishments to her CV - she landed a job as a trainee estate agent at a top agency in South Kensington. Now she was mixing with the right sort of people, now she could become something better than a Checkout Manager from Croydon. Then Daniel walked into her office and into her life looking for flats to buy.

Laura tries her hardest with Cherry. Laura had lost a baby girl in the past and hoped that Cherry may be a potential replacement daughter. She welcomes Cherry into the family, but after a disasterous holiday at the family villa in St Tropez Laura finds out that Cherry isn't trustworthy. Her first mistake was letting Cherry know she was on to her.


I really enjoyed this book. Michelle Frances describes the tension and the mood perfectly and her writing pushes you on devouring the book whole.

Highly recommended 5*



Book Review - The Honeymoon by Tina Seskis

The Honeymoon
by
Tina Seskis



Available to purchase here


There's trouble in paradise . . .
For as long as she can remember, Jemma has been planning the perfect honeymoon. A fortnight's retreat to a five-star resort in the Maldives, complete with luxury villas, personal butlers and absolute privacy.
It should be paradise. But it's turned into a nightmare.
Because the man Jemma married a week ago has just disappeared from the island without a trace. And now her perfect new life is vanishing just as quickly before her eyes.
After everything they've been through together, how can this be happening? Is there anyone on the island who Jemma can trust? And above all - where has her husband gone?

Thank you to Michael Joseph/Penguin and Netgalley for this ARC, which I have reviewed voluntarily and honestly.

The book begins with a woman sitting on a beach hoping to catch a glimpse of her husband in the sea. She sits there until the sun rises and then decides she needs to report him missing to the relevant authorities. The chapters move on and are set in the past and present. Jemma informs the resort's staff and another honeymooning couple Chrissy and Kenny.
The last thing Jemma said to her husband was 'I hate you' and the only thing missing from their villa is his mask and flippers. What has happened to Jemma's husband?
If I carry on, I will give two much away, so I won't!

To be honest I was getting a little bored with the book, but then it really picked up pace. I never in a million years would have guessed the ending and I was really pleased that I didn't. In the end the book entered very dark territory and made me think about these 'Honeymoon Paradise islands'. It must be almost overwhelming to be in the middle of nowhere, having to be romantic every minute. 
What if something did happen? - like in the book? I suspect you would feel very trapped and I wouldn't like that at all.

Thursday 8 June 2017

Book Review - Obsession by Amanda Robson

Obsession 
by 
Amanda Robson


Available to purchase here on Amazon


Two couples. A doctor’s surgery. A deadly obsession. Who’s telling the truth?
‘Who else would you go for, if you could? Give me a name, someone you quite like.’
He shrugs his shoulders. A jawline held tight.
‘I quite like Jenni. What about you?’
I don’t reply.

Carly and Rob, Jenni and Craig. Two couples, four friends. Betraying each other. Wanting each other.
All of them have access to prescription drugs through the medical practice where they work, and all of them are fighting their own demons.
But can any of them be trusted? And when the lies begin, can they ever be silenced?



I kept hearing about this book online and had read a few reviews so I purchased it on Kindle.

Carly and Rob  ------  Jenni and Craig

Carly is a practice nurse at the local surgery where Rob her husband is a GP. They have 3 children, but Carly's Mum - Heather does the bulk of the childcare. Carly's idea of childcare is to take the children to the local indoor play centre, push in earplugs and read the newspaper.

Rob is pretty easy going, he adores his curvaceous, flirty wife and loves his children dearly, Rob also has a close association with the church and finds much comfort in his faith.

Jenni is a member of Rob's church and her and her firefighter husband Craig met Rob and Carly at antenatal classes. The four of them are close friends and their children play together. 

Whilst on a camping holiday Carly asks Rob a question that many wives have asked their husbands, "If you could have any woman, who would it be?"
His answer is the catalyst to what happens next........


This book is surprising as I didn't like or identify with any of the characters. This doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the book, I did immensely. It is just very unusual not to like at least one of the main characters at some point through the book.
There is sex, drugs and murder and the ending was a surprise.

I would recommend this book if you enjoy psychological thrillers.