A Well-Tempered Heart by Jan-Philipp Sendker

Paperback: 388 pages
Genre: Romantic Fiction
Publisher: Polygon 2014
Source: Tywyn Public Library
First Sentence: 'The deep blue morning sky was clear as a bell the day my life lurched off course'.
Favourite Quote: ''Not all truths are explicable and not all explicable things are true'',he once told me.
Review Quote: 'This is the kind of stunningly perfect novel that changes lives' --Claire Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author
My Opinion: .A sensitive and beautifully told story

I have been looking forward to reading this sequel to the touching love story that was 'The Art of Hearing Heartbeats' and it certainly has not disappointed me. The author has written a novel that will entertain and also make you think about the very meaning of our modern life style as it mixes Eastern and Western cultures. I was truly transported back to the wonderful country of Burma/Myanmar as I was in the previous novel.

A sensitive and beautifully told story about the protagonist Julia's quest for happiness, as despite a successful career as a lawyer she has much unhappiness in her private life. Niggling questions about her lifestyle play on her mind, leaving her feeling mentally and physically exhausted. With the help of a girl friend Julia decides that she should return to her father's homeland of Burma, which she had last visited ten years previously. Reunited with her half brother U Ba, she sets out to find answers to her many questions about life and love, that are manifesting themselves as voices in her head. Julia is very disturbed and it is some time before she reveals her worries to her brother. His way of helping her is to take her to visit a village elder and have her listen to the tragic story of her sister. An uncertain future, certain death and a tale of woe that gets under Julia's skin but helps her in her own search for peace of mind.

I found the romantic spiritualism in this book moving but if you are at all sceptical you may find this aspect of the story spoils the novel for you. Read with an open heart for this is a truly moving and sensitive tale, set in a place I have found to be as magical as it sounds on paper in real life.


My review of The Art of Hearing Heartbeats can be read here



Author Profile

Biography/Interview Courtesy of Amazon 

Jan-Philipp Sendker, born in Hamburg in 1960, was the American correspondent for Stern from 1990 to 1995, and its Asian correspondent from 1995 to 1999. In 2000 he published 'Cracks in the Great Wall', a non-fiction book about China. 'The Art of Hearing Heartbeats' is his first novel. He lives in Berlin with his family.

*Can you describe your book in 10 words or fewer?
A story about the magical power of love.

*Where did the idea for the book come from?
Very often people ask me how I got an idea. I always say: The ideas get me. I seriously don't know where they come from. That is part of the magic and mystery of being a novelist. Writing for me is like an adventure, a journey I take myself on hoping to learn and discover new things along the way.

*The Art of Hearing Heartbeats is your first novel. Have you always wanted to be a novelist?
Yes. Even as a thirteen year old school boy it was my dream to become a novelist. I wrote poems and started at least ten different novels when I was a teenager, never got beyond page 20. Discouraged I took a break for almost twenty years and started writing The Art of Hearing Heartbeats when I was 37 years old.

*Which writers do you think influenced you?
Many. Among them are Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Albert Camus, Arundhati Roy, Thomas Bernhard.

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 his writing.

Amazon Author Profile    Goodreads Author Profile    YouTube - The Art of Hearing Heartbeats

Jan-Philipp Sendker - Official Author Website

The Girl Who Wouldn't Die - Marnie Riches - Début Novel - Cover Reveal

 A sneak peek of the cover of The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die – the exciting debut novel from Marnie Riches.

The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die

HE’S WATCHING HER. SHE DOESN’T KNOW IT…YET

When a bomb explodes at the University of Amsterdam, aspiring criminologist Georgina McKenzie is asked by the police to help flush out the killer. But the bomb is part of a much bigger, more sinister plot that will have the entire city quaking in fear.

And the killer has a very special part for George to play…

A thrilling race against time with a heroine you’ll be rooting for, this book will keep you up all night!

Marnie Riches grew up on a rough estate in Manchester, aptly within sight of the dreaming spires of Strangeways prison. Able to speak five different languages, she gained a Master’s degree in Modern & Medieval Dutch and German from Cambridge University. She has been a punk, a trainee rock star, a pretend artist, a property developer and professional fundraiser. In her spare time, she likes to run, mainly to offset the wine and fine food she consumes with great enthusiasm.

Having authored the first six books of HarperCollins Children’s Time-Hunters series, she now writes crime thrillers for adults.

I was invited to join this cover reveal today, something I have never participated in before on the blog. However as I was asked especially to do so I decided why not.

I will of course be reading the novel and reviewing here at a later date as well.

The Separation by Dinah Jefferies

Paperback: 383 pages

Genre:  Historical Romantic Fiction.
Publisher: Penguin 2014
Source: Tywyn Public Library
First Sentence: The man smoothed down the lion's paws with a sponge he'd dipped in a bucket of water, then withdrew a knife from a leather pouch at his waist.
Review Quote: 'The tears are still streaming down my face ... I have three words to describe the book: Captivating, Powerful and Passionate.'
Deborah Rodriguez - author of 'The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul'.
My Opinion: A captivating début.


This début novel which I picked up recently at my local library, was as captivating as the blurb on the cover led me to believe it would be. Dinah Jefferies spent her own childhood in Malaya and was there at the time of the Emergency that took place there in the 1950's. The novel is set in this period and she freely admits that although the characters are imaginary she has of course drawn on her own experiences. It is these memories, plus her mothers memoirs and photographs that have helped make this novel feel so authentic in its 1950's setting. If you want to know more about the background I recommend you read the author's note at the end of the novel.

A heartbreaking story, as the novel opens it is Malaya in the mid fifties and Lydia Cartwright returns home from visiting a friend to find her home is deserted. Her husband, Alec and their daughters Emma and Fleur are not there. To make it worse the phone is dead and the servants have also disappeared. Lydia contacts her husband's boss only to be told he has been sent into the jungle on a posting. She cannot understand why her husband has departed without her and not even left her a message. Setting off on a dangerous journey through the war torn area to catch him up, she has to turn for help to a friend from her past, Jack Harding. Not a good idea as he is a man she had vowed to leave in her past, however she is prepared to sacrifice everything to be reunited with her family.
Lydia has secrets but she is about to face much worse a devastating betrayal! Encouraging you to read this for yourself, without spoilers is my policy, when writing reviews. 

Highly recommend this new author to readers that enjoy fairly contemporary historical fiction and those that like to be transported to foreign shores. I am already looking forward to reading The Tea Planter's Wife which is due for publication in August 2015.



Author Profile

Dinah was born in Malaya in 1948 and moved to England at the age of nine. In 1985, the sudden death of her fourteen year old son changed the course of her life, and deeply influenced her writing. Dinah drew on that experience, and on her own childhood spent in Malaya during the 1950s to write her début novel, The Separation.  She has worked in education, once lived in a 'rock 'n roll' commune and, more recently, been an exhibiting artist

Now living in Gloucestershire with her husband and slightly overweight Norfolk terrier, she spends her days writing, with time off to make tiaras and dinosaurs with her grandchildren.

I am not sure if this video will work here, but if not do visit the Amazon Profile Page where it can be viewed. Well worthwhile if you need further tempting to read and there are no spoilers.


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.

Amazon Profile Page   Goodreads - Dinah Jefferies - Author Profile

Twitter - Dinah Jefferies    Author Official Website

Summer at the Lake by Erica James

Hardback:  383 pages.
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction.
Publisher:  Orion Books 2013
Source: Tywyn Public Library.
First Sentence: It had been a mistake to open the envelope.

Review Quote: The Hidden Cottage is a heart-warming, romantic story full of engaging characters, an emotional rollercoaster. (DAILY EXPRESS)

My Opinion: Pure Escapism

I have been enjoying Erica James writing since 1996, so definitely consider myself a long time fan of her particular brand of escapism.  Contemporary romantic fiction with characters that one can often identify with people you come across in real life. This time set in Oxford and Lake Como both places I was instantly transported to with the authors realistic descriptions.

The three protagonists of the novel meet in dramatic circumstances right at the opening of the story. A group of individuals thrown together by fate Floriana, Esme and Adam find themselves surprisingly becoming firm friends. Florianna is involved in an accident and it was Esme and Adam that had rushed to her aid.
As the relationships develop between this unlikely group the life stories of the three of them unfolds. The three had kept in touch after the accident and found despite the fact that they were all so different that there was a strong connection concerning relationships and broken hearts. It seems as if they are all going to be of help to each other with regards putting their pasts to rest. Woven together seamlessly the characters stories made for a very engrossing read.

In conclusion then if you are looking for contemporary fiction that is pure escapism then Erica James will satisfy your requirements. According to the Guardian  Summer at the Lake was one of the 100 best-selling books in 2014. 

 I have reviewed some of her earlier novels on the blog. They are Tell It To The Skies,  It's The Little Things,   Hidden Talents, The Hidden Cottage and  The Real Katie Lavender

Author Profile

Erica James, née Sullivan was born in 1960 in Surrey, England, UK and she grew up on Hayling Island, Hampshire from the age of 4.  Now divorced, with two grown-up sons, Edward and Samuel, she divides her time between Suffolk, UK and Lake Como, Italy

 She began writing after attending a creative writing course at the Arvon Foundation, and published her first novel in 1996. In 2006, her novel Gardens of Delight won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award from the Romantic Novelists' Association. Erica James  is the author of sixteen best selling novels including her most recent, The Real Katie Lavender.

Apparently she has an insatiable appetite for other people's business and will readily strike up a conversation with strangers in the hope of unearthing a useful gem for her writing. She finds it is the best way to write authentic characters for her novels, although her two grown up sons claim they will never recover from a childhood spent in a perpetual state of embarrassment at their mother's compulsion.


The biographical information and photo used in this post are with thanks to the author's publicist and following websites, where you can also find more information about the author and her writing. 

Goodreads - Author Profile  Erica James - Official Author Website  Erica James - Twitter

Amazon Author Profile   Erica James - Facebook