Paperback: 242 pages. Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction Publisher: Lake Union Publishing, 2014 Source: Author in return for an honest and unbiased review. First Sentence: ' I bet you were a really cute kid.' Review Quote: ‘The No-Kids Club is another winner by Talli Roland! It was well-written and fast-paced, and enjoyable to the very last page.’ —The Book Chick My Opinion: I have been reading and reviewing the writing of this talented author since 2010, when she asked me to review her first novel, 'The Hating Game'. Since the publication of her first novel Talli has embraced the importance of social media as a marketing tool for her novels as that is where she finds her target market. I am probably one of her older fans but 'The No-Kids Club' is the seventh title I have read and once again she has not failed to make me smile. A good enough reason in my opinion for me to continue to enjoy her writing! I found this to be another amusing and light hearted read and as both my daughters are still childless from choice and in their thirties slightly relevant! There is a serious underlying subject of infertility in the storyline which Talli manages to tackle in a sensitive manner. Recommended to fans of contemporary romantic fiction, it will not fail to make you smile. Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: At almost forty, Clare Donoghue is living child-free and loving it. Then her boyfriend says he wants kids, breaking off their promising relationship. And it’s not just boyfriends: one by one, her formerly carefree friends are swallowed up in a nonstop cycle of play dates and baby groups. So Clare decides it’s time for people who don’t have children to band together. And so the No-Kids Club is born. As the group comes together—Anna, who’s seeking something to jump start a stale marriage, and Poppy, desperate for a family but unable to conceive—Clare’s hoping to make the most of the childless life with her new friends. Will the No-Kids Club be Clare’s route to happiness, or will the single life lose its sparkle?
Talli Roland was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, by the age of 13, she’d finished her first novel and received very encouraging rejections from publishers. Talli was very athletic at school and university, achieving provincial records and becoming a Canadian university champion in the 4 × 400 meter relay. After getting her BA, she turned to writing again, earning a Masters in Journalism. A few years later, she left Canada behind and settled in London, where she now lives with her husband and their young son. Her début novel, The Hating Game, was short-listed for Best Romantic Read at the UK's Festival of Romance, and her second, Watching Willow Watts, was selected as an Amazon Customer Favourite. You can learn more about Talli in the About Me section of her website. Biographical, other information and photo are with thanks to the following links where you can find out more about Talli Roland. Talli Roland Official WebsiteGoodreads Author ProfileAmazon - Author Profile
Paperback: 376 pages Genre: Romantic Historical Fiction Publisher: Orion Publishing Group 2015 Source: From the Author in return for an honest and unbiased review. First Sentence: Connie Byrne, the Queen's Nurse, midwife and district nurse sister responsible for the Highway and Ratcliffe area of the St George's and St Dunstan's Nursing Association, secured the bandage with a safety pin. My Opinion: I first discovered this author in 2011 and have kept up with her writing since then. Her latest novels are an excellent well researched series about nursing in post WWII in London. As well as finding them interesting from a historical point of view, I have found them to contain characters that one is drawn to and a realistic picture of life in the years after the war. Changing times for the country generally and professionally for nurses and the women who worked in the profession. So much more than just a romance and I recommend this series to anyone that enjoys social history in general and nursing stories in particular. Fans of 'Call The Midwife' take note! Précis: Courtesy of Goodreads: London, 1945 and as the end of the war is declared and the troops start returning home, the nurses of the East End are joining in the celebrations. For Nurse Connie Byrne the end of the war signals the beginning of a new chapter and as the revelries go on around the city, Connie's mind is on another celebration that she'll be able to arrange - the wedding to her sweetheart, Charlie, set to take place as soon as he arrives home. But when Connie meets Charlie off the train at London Bridge, she finds that his homecoming isn't quite going to go according to plan...
Connie's busy professional life, and the larger-than-life patients in the district, offer a welcome distraction, but for how long? If nursing in the East End has taught Connie anything, it's that life is full of surprises...
Jean Fullerton was born into a large, East End family early one August she grew up in the overcrowded streets clustered around the Tower of London. She still lives in East London, just five miles from where she was born. After working for the London Metropolitan Police, she retrained as a nurse and worked as a district nurse in the East End for sixteen years. She now teaches healthcare and nursing. Jean feels that it is her background that gives her stories their distinctive authenticity. Passionate about historical accuracy, she enjoys researching the details almost as much as writing the novels. The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. Jean Fullerton - BooksOfficial Author WebsiteFacebook - Jean Fullerton AuthorGoodreads Author Profile
Paperback: 403 pages Genre: Romantic Historical Fiction Publisher: Orion Publishing Group 2014 Source: From the Author in return for an honest and unbiased review. First Sentence: Millie Smith, senior sister and midwife at Munroe house, Stepney, picked up her leather nursing bag and set it on the floor under the kitchen table beside her lunchbox. Review Quote:Plot strands are drawn together and resolved masterfully as she and Alex re-establish their friendship. Millie's admirable, turbulent story is packed with evocative post-war details and is fast-paced, plausible, and highly engaging, though the complexities of the issues covered lend the story a darker, serious tone. Highly recommended. (HISTORICAL NOVELIST SOCIETY) My Opinion: I first discovered this author in 2011 and have kept up with her writing since then. Her latest novels are an excellent well researched series about nursing in post WWII in London. As well as finding them interesting from a historical point of view, I have found them to contain characters that one is drawn to and a realistic picture of life in the years after the war. Changing times for the country generally and professionally for nurses and the women who worked in the profession. So much more than just a romance and I recommend this series to anyone that enjoys social history in general and nursing stories in particular. Fans of 'Call The Midwife' take note! Précis: Courtesy of Goodreads: Nurse Millie Sullivan is now Nurse Millie Smith, having married aspiring MP Jim Smith. The war has ended and the NHS has just come into action, so the nurses are busier than ever as the community realise that they no longer have to pay for the services. Minor ailments need attention, babies need to be helped into the world and some of the larger-than-life characters need keeping in line so Millie has enough drama to deal with without having to deal with more from home...and Alex Nolan, her ex-fiancé, is back in town. I have also read and reviewed two of Jean Fullerton's previous novels on this blog. Perhaps TomorrowCall Nurse Millie Author Profile
Jean Fullerton was born into a large, East End family early one August she grew up in the overcrowded streets clustered around the Tower of London. She still lives in East London, just five miles from where she was born. After working for the London Metropolitan Police, she retrained as a nurse and worked as a district nurse in the East End for sixteen years. She now teaches healthcare and nursing. Jean feels that it is her background that gives her stories their distinctive authenticity. Passionate about historical accuracy, she enjoys researching the details almost as much as writing the novels. The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. Jean Fullerton - BooksOfficial Author WebsiteFacebook - Jean Fullerton AuthorGoodreads Author Profile
Genre: Autobiography Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton 2011 Source: Tywyn Public Library First Sentences:'So when am I going to see you on the goggle-box?' my father said to me when I left drama school. Sadly he never did. Review Quote: For tasty gossip, Celia is the hottest ticket in town...The Happy Hoofer is backstage gossip from the premiere league. (Robert McCrum, Observer) My Opinion: What a strong spirited woman Celia Imrie is and funny as well a great combination. As a great fan of her work I laughed my way through much of her autobiography, hers has not always an easy life either. Recommended to her fans and to those that are not especially but want to know more behind the person, reading this may well change their opinion of this talented and delightful lady. Précis Courtesy of Goodreads : One of the UK's favorite comedy actresses—with starring roles in Calendar Girls, Acorn Antiques, and Dinnerladies—tells her extraordinary and highly entertaining life story. Celia Imrie was born one of five children to an aristocratic mother who married beneath her station. Desperate to be a ballet dancer, Celia was told by the Royal Ballet School that she was too big and in a desperate effort to lose weight Celia became anorexic. She underwent highly controversial ECT and brainwashing treatment. It didn't work and she eventually cured herself. YouTube : Official Trailers:
These videos of Celia Imrie talking about her life are well worth watching. Author Profile:
Celia Diana Savile Imrie (born 15 July 1952) is an Olivier Award-winning English actress. In a career starting in the early 1970s, Imrie has played Marianne Bellshade in Bergerac, Philippa Moorcroft in Dinnerladies, Miss Babs inAcorn Antiques, Diana Neal in After You’ve Gone and Gloria Millington in Kingdom. She has been described as “one of the greatest British actresses of recent decades”. Photographs and biographical information courtesy of the following sites. Celia Imrie - Official WebsiteCelia Imrie - WikipediaTwitter - Celia Imrie
Paperback: 272 pages Genre: Psychological Thriller, Contemporary Fiction. Publisher: Weidenfeld and Nicolson 2014 Source: Tywyn Public Library First Sentences: It's Her. I'm almost sure of it. Favourite Quote:“Over time, I’ve come to see that so much of a personality boils down to confidence: whether you have it, or not.” Review Quote:The exquisitely sinister psychological thriller that is going to take us all by storm this summer, Harriet Lane's Her, has a Notes on a Scandal-type relationship between an exhausted young mother and her rich sophisticated neighbour. (Amanda Craig - Daily Telegraph) Literary Award:The Encore Award Nominee (2014) My Opinion: I read this for my book club back in June and thoroughly enjoyed it and the discussion we had about it afterwards. An intriguing novel about the two female protagonists Emma and Nina, whom despite not seeming to have much in common, become friends. There is a sinister undertone throughout which will keep you turning the pages and wanting more even after you finish the last page as the ending leaves you wondering. Well worth a read. Précis: Courtesy of Goodreads: You don't remember her--but she remembers you. On the face of it, Emma and Nina have very little in common. Isolated and exhausted by early motherhood, Emma finds her confidence is fading fast. Nina--sophisticated, generous, effortlessly in control--seems to have all the answers. It's easy to see why Emma is drawn to Nina. But what does Nina see in her? A seemingly innocent friendship slowly develops into a dangerous game of cat and mouse as Nina eases her way into Emma's life. Soon, it becomes clear that Nina wants something from the unwitting Emma--something that might just destroy her. YouTube : Official Book Trailer
Author Profile:
Harriet Lane has worked as an editor and staff writer for both The Tatler and Observer. She has also written for The Guardian, Telegraph and Vogue. She lives in north London. The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. Harriet Lane - Official WebsiteGoodreads Author ProfileAmazon Author Page YouTube Trailer - Her
