Monday 11 March 2024

The Sea Captain's Wife

 The Sea Captain's Wife

Jackie French



Reviewed by Helen


This is a wonderful story, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed and I am not sure how I am going to review it, there are so many different characters and settings, but the sea plays a big part, but I have to say Mair McCrae is a character I will not forget easily, strong and so caring as her life changes in so many ways when she finds her husband, come along for an adventure in life, mystery, intrigue and love.

Mair lives on Big Henry Island it is 1870 and this island is mainly woman and they make the decisions and keep the island running well, they grow food, cook, they knit clothes with their family patterns their men are sailors and leave on ships when they arrive and return when and if they can, three years ago the wave took all of their fishing boats and men and Mair lost her fiancé. The woman need and want husbands they truly are a loving group, the island tradition of searching the beach for sailors washed up they call them beachies and often they stay and become husbands.

When Mair finds Michael Dawson washed up on the beach little does she know how her life will change in the weeks that it takes Michael to heal she gets to know him well, she learns about The Ghost and he is very well liked by the woman on the island and even though they know they are living on a volcano Old Henry just grumbles but Michael is worried that that will change and soon, he loves Mair and soon they are married and he and some of the older woman convince Mair to leave the island with Michael to start a new life, this is of course very scary for Mair.

When they arrive in Sydney Australia, it takes Mair a little time to settle in and for Michael’s family to accept her and of course Michael is eager to be off again to search for the elusive Ghost that he discovered before he went overboard all those months ago, when Michael departs on the new steam ship he does not expect it to be as long as it ends up being and as for Mair strange things are happening and Mair is convinced that the Dawson family are in grave danger, will they all be safe, will Michael ever return?

This is such a well told adventure story, so many fabulous characters, it has a little of everything and is sure to please any reader who picks this one up, the sea journeys are described so well and Mair’s amazement on her journey was eye opening, I do highly recommend this one.

My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

4 stars
March 1, 2024 by HQ Fiction

Monday 4 March 2024

The Last Duke She'd Marry

 The Last Duke She'd Marry

Scoundrels of Mayfair #3

Anna Campbell



Reviewed by Helen


I loved this one so much, Anna Campbell knows how to write sensual, moving and wonderful romantic stores, with heroes to die for and heroines who are strong, caring and know what they want and we all know that reformed rakes make the best husbands, but who will Lady Juliet Frain choose, the woman born to be a duchess, who has never put a foot out of line, when not one but two Dukes are at her family home, one staid and proper and one a wild rake?

With society awaiting the announcement of the engagement of Lady Juliet and The Duke of Granville and Juliet busy with her father’s plans for his Shakespeare Gala she is shocked when her father arrives at Afton Park with the notorious rake The Duke of Evesham who has been away from England for nine years to play Romeo opposite her Juliet and the sparks fly on their first meeting, Juliet has no understanding of how she feels, yes she wants to be a Duchess but who’s.

Lucas Hebden, The Duke of Evesham has finally arrived back in London after the huge scandal years before but he wants a quiet life now but when he is loses a bet over a card game he finds himself cast in the roll of Romeo for a gala event, expecting his opposite to be a plain jane he is shocked when he meets the beautiful Juliet and somehow he just knows that life is never going to be the same for him.

When Granville hears about the new Romeo, he insists on arriving at Afton Park and sparks fly between these two and Juliet is in the middle but her feelings towards Lucas run hot and she finds it hard to control them, but he is not who she had expected to fall for and when another scandal erupts life changes for Juliet and for Lucas.

Will they find their way to love and happiness, will Juliet learn to trust Lucas considering his reputation and after the exceptional time they have spent together? This is a story that I do highly recommend it is a beautiful story so very romantic and is sizzles with sensuality, I loved Lucas so much and Juliet is his perfect Duchess. I can’t wait for Portia’s story.

Thank you Anna for another keeper.

5 stars
February 29, 2024

Friday 23 February 2024

A Death in Chelsea

 A Death in Chelsea

Lady in Blues Mysteries #2

H.L. Marsay



Reviewed by Helen


Book two in this wonderful series and I was pulled in from the start, it was so good catching up with Dorothy, Nina, Margaret and Mary again as they continue to work as WPV, Woman’s Police Volunteer, the war is still going on and more woman are needed to help in this role and Dorothy is forever training new woman and wants to be out on the streets but her true desire is to be a police investigator when Margaret discovers her neighbours body in his yard.

Dorothy arrives to help not long before Inspector Derwent and his team arrive and she is offering her opinion as they search for clues and when they discover that the very wealthy neighbour’s will is missing a list of suspects grows and Dorothy is more determined than ever to show Inspector Derwent that she is very capable of being a very good investigator.

As another spanner is thrown into the works with a grandson and what has happened to him and then another death things are heating up and Dorothy is working hard to find the killer, there is unrest in her group of friends and with the news that a woman MPV member has been given a warrant card and authorized to arrest as needed, Dorothy’s hopes for herself are growing if she can prove herself this time.

This is another fabulous story in this series it is so well written that I felt transported to Chelsea 1915, I love the characters and the way Dorothy works through clues to get to the answers and her special way with witnesses especially female ones. This is one that I would highly recommend to any lover of a good historical mystery, I am really looking forward to the next one in the series I am sure we are going to see Dorothy excel.

My thanks to the publisher Tule Publishing for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars
February 27, 2024 by Tule Publishing

Tuesday 20 February 2024

Highland Heartbreaker

 Highland Heartbreaker

Highland Hearts #2

Steffy Smith



Reviewed by Helen


We are back in one of my favourite parts of the world The Scottish Highlands, we met Alex MacNichol on our last visit and he is one Braw Scotsman who flits from bed to bed he has no intention of settling down, that is until his King finds him a bride and not just any bride she is English.

Lady Grace Worthington is a quiet young woman who had been engaged to a Baron for a long time but when he is killed in battle a trade is made to try and keep the peace between the borders and she has been whisked away to the highlands to marry a Scotsman, she arrives with her Nanny and is battling her nerves, will she come through this?

Alex is not happy about who has been chosen for him but is willing to do as ordered, when his bride to be alights from her carriage he is stunned at her beauty she is not what he expected, but he also senses her nerves, he is determined to make sure she settles in.

With Jamie and Izzy at Balla Cloiche Grace soon settles and makes friends with Izzy and Alex’s sister Kenna she is also struck by the chemistry that sparks between her and Alex and she is soon craving things she has no idea about and Alex is just the man to teach her and soon the passion is soaring between them, but danger is brewing Alex has been warned about the message in the runes, will they find their true happiness?

This is a fabulous story, awesome characters and setting, sensual and filled with emotion and I loved seeing Alex and his true self fall head over heels in love with Grace, and seeing her truly find herself, she is so strong and shows her strength in so many ways, this is one that I highly recommend to any lover of historical romance. I am looking forward to the next one in this series.

5 stars
February 14, 2024 by Steffy Smith Books

Friday 16 February 2024

The Gunner Girls: Evie's Story

The Gunner Girls: Evie's Story

The ACK ACK Gunner Girls #1

Sylvia Broady




 Reviewed by Helen


This is the story of young Evie Sinclair, who wanted to do her bit for the war effort, she has just turned eighteen and leaves her Island home in Yorkshire to joins the ACK, ACK gunner girls, she meets up with two more young woman Lily and Gloria on the train and a friendship is formed.

The girls are thoroughly enjoying their the work they are doing although dangerous most times they all work hard and at local dance Evie meets RAF pilot Matt Goodwin, they soon are as close as can be, and on a visit home at Christmas Matt proposes, Evie says yes but after the war, they continue to meet as often as possible and the passion grows.

When Evie loses Matt and then finds herself pregnant and her mother sends her away, Evie is determined to keep her baby, but in these times that is not an easy task and Evie works hard to do so and then over time is more determined than ever to help other single un-wed mothers.
Will Evie succeed in her quest and will she find love and happiness after all she has been through and what of Lily and Gloria?

This is a lovely story, a little slow at times but it brings to life what is was like for unmarried mothers during the war years and is one that I would recommend to any reader who enjoys war time stories.

My thanks to the publisher Joffe Books and Netgalley for my digital copy to read and review

4 stars

February 13, 2024 by Joffe Books

Wednesday 7 February 2024

The Girl on the Boat

 The Girl on the Boat

Emerald Sisters #1

Kate Hewitt



Reviewed by Helen


Fist in a series and based on the true story of the SS St Louis that left Hamburg, Germany in 1939 with one thousand Jews on board, it is a beautifully told story of friendship and determination as we meet four young woman, Sophie, Rosa, Hannah and Rachel, this book is Sophie’s story and it is so very good.

Sophie arrives in Hamburg with her father, step-mother and young half-brother she is filled with hope that their lives will turn around in Havana and being away from The Nazis is just what her father and their family needs.

When she meets three other young woman she is thrilled that she now has friends and plans are made to enjoy this boat trip and that at the end they will meet for cocktails together ready to start a new life but things don’t go the way they planned when the ship is refused entry to Havana, her step mother insists that Sophie leave the ship and go to Washington and where a friend of her father’s is willing to take her in, it is the last thing she wants but she must go, she breaks up an emerald that belonged to her mother into four pieces and all girls have a piece with a plan to meet up in a Paris cafĂ© one year after the war.

Sophie gets on with her life in Washington, finding work and making new friends as war breaks out in Europe, it has not been easy for her being a Jew and wishing America would join the war, but she goes on worrying about her family and friends who are now in countries affected by war. When she is asked to take on a new role where she works she jumps at the chance to do her bit for the war effort she is determined to help no matter what.

This is an emotional story, I loved Sophie, everything she has gone through and still she cares and stays strong, I am eagerly awaiting book two now and continue this awesome story, I do highly recommend this one to any reader who loved a fabulous historical fiction.

My thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars
February 8, 2024 by Bookouture

Tuesday 30 January 2024

The Baker's Secret

 The Baker's Secret

Lelita Baldock



Reviewed by Helen


This is my first book by Aussie author Lelita Baldock but it won’t be my last, this story is heart-wrenching, it is also beautifully written with empathy and emotion, set during the occupation of Latvia during World War 2 first by the Russians and then The Nazis and South Australia 2018 as we meet sisters Estere and Zenta and their family.

Estere and Zenta work in the family bakery with their mother Darta and father Nikolai, their brother Tomass works on the dockyards, life has been good but with the war coming closer things are changing in their quiet town of Riga Latvia, when first the Russians take over there is much cruelty, then the Germans arrive and oust the Russians and things get even worse, Tomass is forced to join the army, rations are cut, the Jews are being rounded up and Estere leaves for a while, Zenta stops going to school and is working harder in the bakery, life in changing and getting more dangerous.

When Estere arrives back home pregnant she is determined still to fight for Latvia’s freedom with the Latvian Resistance as her father had done many years ago and soon convinces Zenta to help while delivering her bread to customers, she also delivers letters and supplies. But with Nazis appearing to lose ground the tensions are rising, Estere has her baby a little girl Aina and danger arrives on their doorstep, Zenta must run with baby Aina to save her life, leaving her family behind and life again changes so much for Zenta, not knowing what happened to her family she moves on to the other side of the world with a baby and starts a new life in Australia and holds a secret that will tear lives apart.

Decades later Zenta knows she must tell her secret before it is too late, the tears I shed the heartbreak I felt but I also saw the courage, strength and determination that kept Zenta going all of those years and Estere what she went through searching for her daughter, the things they both lived through was shocking. I loved Zenta so much, this is a story that I highly recommend to anyone reader who loves an excellent historical fiction story, this is one not to be missed.

My thanks to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for my digital copy to read and review.


5 stars
January 25, 2024 by Storm Publishing