Kat Kinney - Dark (Blood Moon, Texas Shifters 1)

Paranormal

Romance

Wolves

Indie Author 

Sometimes, to paraphrase legendary singer Tammy Wynette, it's hard to be an independent author.  Giving all your love to a cast of characters, charting their flaws and weaving plots and subplots. Only to carve your way through book marketing with the equivalent of a pinky finger nail.   

But, the whole of April is dedicated to Indie April on social media, so I've tasked myself with reading and reviewing eight independently published books this month, to offer insights into writing so wonderful that you'll wonder when publishers are going to be biting at their heels. 

Which is the best kind of segue for my first book review of #indieApril, the fabulous paranormal wolf, shapeshifter romance of Dark. This is the first book in Kat Kinney's Blood Moon Texas Shifters series, and from the very first page I'm drawn into Hayden's new world of trying to survive a wolf bite.  

Feral, trying to avoid hurting anyone, including her sister, Ellie, Hays, the lead singer in a band, claws her way to Ethan.  The barista-artist with a troubled-past has watched daisy-loving Hayden from afar for years.  Now she's on his doorstep, snapping and needing help, if she isn't quite begging for it.  Although, the chocolate she eyes seems to be the only thing that quells her into submission.

The chemistry Kinney creates between Hays and E leaps off the page.  Told through dual-voiced chapters, this page-turner of a paranormal romance is the perfect introduction to Kinney's skills as a writer (I reviewed Dyrwolf earlier this year; the sequel, Darkwitch is due out on 29th April). Culturally-relevant descriptions are effortless presented, alongside plenty of drama - family and real - around the lycan pair, setting up plenty of future stories in the small town of Blood Moon.  

Do you read independent authors?  Do you have a series you love to binge-read? Share your stories in the comments...maybe I'll make room for a couple more reads this month? 

A.K. Ritchie - After the Party

YA 

Music

Romance 

Heartache

I recently discovered a new author on the twitters, A.K. Ritchie. 

Talk about keywords to pique my interest in a tweet: 

Music. 

Romance. 

I'm in. 

I loved After The Party,  A. K. Ritchie's debut.  This YA novel features believable lead characters, in music blogger Peyton and lead guitarist Chase, with a spotlight on their troubled pasts, and that of Peyton's roommate.  

This story offers heartaching scenes in the plot, against the backdrop of a Toronto music scene, which connects Peyton and Chase in more ways than they could have hoped. 

Romance, music and awesome storytelling... what else does a five star read need?

🎸✍

Enni Amanda - Tiny House on Wheels

Feel-good fiction

Slow burn romance

New Zealand location 

Book Review Dgtlwriter/Emma Jordan

Who hasn't dreamt of owning their own plot of land, and their own ... tiny home?  The tiny home movement is a unique way of home ownership, at a time when house prices are, well, just a tiny bit ridiculous.  

A Tiny House on Wheels, from the Finnish-born, NZ-based romance author Enni Amanda, has been on my TBR pile for a while. Those tiny home shows on YouTube are addictive!

This romance page turner had me hooked from the start, as Nina sobs in frustration over her dreams not exactly working out.  And I fell in love with farmer Jay as soon as he turned up to drag said tiny house (with his tractor, not his arms) to help out his new neighbour, Nina (his arms will help her out later).

There are wonderful moments of lifestyle decisions and dating adventures throughout the New Zealand-based book, for Nina and her friend La-La (brilliant name!) 

How gorgeous is the Yummy Covers cover of this book, too?  Also designed by Enni in her graphic-designer business.  A Tiny House on Wheels make a wonderful birthday gift for a romance reader (or buy a book cover for an indie author!) 

Anyway, 'm off to read about Nina's younger cousin now, in Coffee on Waihi Beach.

☕ 🏖

Jeevani Charika - Playing for Love

Feel-good fiction 

Tech-based startup 

Heartwarming

Romance 

Absolutely loved this sweet romance between Sam/Luke/Blaze/Bravura.

I'm not a gamer, but was drawn into this unique, realistic world of YouTube and headsets, created by Jeevani Charika, in Playing for Love.   

What does a busy bag-interior start-up do to relax and fall asleep?  Sam finds comfort listening to YouTube videos of her favourite gamer, Blaze, even if she isn't really a video-gamer.  

What does introverted tech-designer Luke do to bolster his confidence?  Why, upload videos to YouTube of his gaming, as alter-ego Blaze.

This was such a sweet romance, with both characters facing career decisions as well as matters of the heart.  Also,  really loved the 90s handbag references!  I had so many of them! 

Jenny Hale - Butterfly Sisters

Feel-good fiction

Heartwarming 

Cosy read 

I was gifted a free ARC ebook from Harpeth Road, the Nashville-based publishers of TheButterfly Sisters, by Jenny Hale.  All words and opinions are my own.

 

I’m relatively new to the novels of the USA Today bestselling author Jenny Hale, who has had her books turned into Hallmark movies – the type of heartfelt books that whisk me away to happy places, from around early October to mid-December!  But I am in love Jenny’s sweet, cosy, small town love stories!

 

In Butterfly Sisters, Jenny’s central character, Leigh Henderson, returns to the Tennessee cabin of her late grandmother, to meet up with her Mum and her flighty sister, Meredith.  Enter the former childhood sweetheart of Colton Harris and it’s very easy to disappear into the life around Old Hickory Lake. 

 

What I really love about Butterfly Sisters is that the two fictional sisters are the two sides to Jenny; academically driven and artistic.  And that this is a story about loving family first, paving the way for the romance to bloom. 

Can we also just take a moment to sink into those blissfully rich pink and purple colours of the book's cover?  Can you imagine holding this paperback in your hands?  And how many oohs and aaahs you'll receive from friends and family?! Talk about #bookenvy!

 

If you love happy-ever-afters, with heart-warming moments – Colton is often the balm between the two misunderstood sisters – and feel-good fiction, treat yourself to some reading time curled up under a blanket, with Butterfly Sisters. 

🦋

Enni Amanda - Hidden Gem

Romance 

Feel-good Fiction

Just absolutely gorgeous

New Zealand location

I loved the character of Marnie when she was introduced in Enni Amanda's earlier novel, Nest or Invest (also fabulous), the next-door neighbour best friend.  

In Hidden Gem we see the flaws and all side of approaching forty, with an incurable illness, a stroppy teenage child and the gift of love, in the form of Jason, a bit of an insomniac.  Their story is believable, fun and very sweet.  

This second novel in Enni Amanda's Love New Zealand series is a sweet romance, with a bit of bedroom action, brilliantly told, against the backdrop of a housing crisis, in New Zealand (though this also happens elsewhere in the world).  

Hidden Gem is a seriously honest and delightful second-chance romance that you need to read, once you've read Nest or Invest (that improv scene will floor you!).  

I'm off to pop book 3, Night and Day, on pre-order. 

PS - how beautiful are the covers of this series, from Yummy Book Covers?! 

Faridah Abike-Iyimide - Ace of Spades

14+

YA, Thriller

Drama 

LGBTQ+

Triggers, including: homophobia, racism, bullying, grief

I finally got round to reading Ace of Spades this weekend, the debut, and award-winning, YA book from the South-London based Faridah Abike-Iyimide, which had been on my TBR list for most of 2021.  

And wow.  

The nearing-500-pages novel features dual viewpoints from two Black students at the elite Niveus Private Academy, a US-based high school.  Their lives unfold slowly on the page, which allows for deeper character insights, before they ultimately connect.  

I couldn't turn the latter half of the novel fast enough, as I needed to know what happened next, who Devon and Chiamaka could trust next. 

Ace of Spades is a thought-provoking book about racism and sexuality with some chilling moments.  My bookworm of a 10 year old was intrigued by the plot, and by how fast I read the book, so I will use it as a basis of conversation with her about race and sexuality, over the next few years, as well as the inspiring story of the novelist who published this book whilst still studying for her English Literature degree.  

Rick Riordan - Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief

11+ (9+ if confident reader) 

Greek Mythology

Action, Humour

Relatable 

I bumped into Percy Jackson and The Lightening Thief in a Year 8 class, about five years ago, and was hooked immediately.  Finally, my daughter was ready to read this at bedtime with me, and we spent most of last autumn and winter learning about Greek mythology while following Percy around Olympus (New York) and the Underworld (LA).  

Percy is a relatable 12 year old kid, who seems to be a magnet for trouble.  He is also the first book-based hero I've read who has dyslexia and ADHD.  Riordan's action-packed book has a healthy dose of humour throughout, so the serious events were navigated wonderfully, enabling this to be read at bedtime. Usually with our hefty Usborne Book of Greek Myths book nearby to find out more about the characters Percy meets. Great for KS2 prediction in literacy, as well as developing reading for pleasure; MiniDgtl does tend to sleep surrounded by books. 

We're now onto the second book in the series, which should see us through to spring. 

5/5   

Janice Horton - The Backpacking Housewife (book 1)

 Feel-good Fiction

Travel - Southeast Asia 

Could you imagine running away from the UK and finding yourself in Thailand, after your marriage breaks up, with only your passport and a backpack (hastily filled at the airport)?  

One mum is leaving it all behind for the adventure of a lifetime…

Lorraine Anderson was meant to be making a Sunday roast, not swanning off to Thailand, backpack in hand! But when she finds her husband and her best friend in bed together there’s only one thing to do – grab her passport and never look back!

Now, with each mile travelled Lori sheds the woman she once was and finds the woman she was always meant to be. A woman of passion and spirit who deserves to explore the great unknown…and to indulge in the temptation she encounters along the way!

I was hooked on this book, feeling every unsure first step that Lori took as she navigated her way around Thailand (north and south) and Malaysia.  Such wonderful descriptions, that I really want to return to southeast Asia, as soon as it's safe to do so! 

Can't wait to read the other books in this engrossing travel-based, feel-good fiction, series. 

Emma Lynden - The Holiday Plan

Sweet Romance

Valentine's Day 

I’ve just curled up on the sofa, reading The Holiday Plan, the sweetest romance novel, from debut Harpeth Road Press author, Emma Lynden. And when I say sweet, I mean this Valentine’s Day-set love story gave me all the feels of joy, warmth and happiness.

Verona – Roni – Scott has been hurt by love in the past. She plans everything in life, including a plan to escape the February holiday and overcome her writer’s block by indulging in a week- long, five-star hotel stay. The Adirondack mountain resort, the Courtington Castle Hotel (yes, a castle-based romance) holds lasting memories of her late Aunt Theoni for Roni, as they visited there when she was a child. Surely, it’s the perfect place to concentrate on reviving her … writing?

Single Dad Troy Turner has been surrounded by love all his life, thanks to his parents, and his own, marriage. But after the death of his wife he took their shared dream of building a matchmaking business and, over the last four years, has become the successful coach for people looking for love. As he prepares for the biggest social event of his professional calendar, the only heart he is focussed on is that of his six year old daughter.

There are some stunningly beautiful moments in the happy-ever-after story, handled with much love from Lynden. My heart easily followed this slow burn romance between Verona and Troy, lightening with each magical moment they shared together.

I'm lucky enough to be a part of The Harpeth Road volunteer book reviewer team - come on, the company works out of Nashville, Tennessee; of course I was going to be intrigued.  I read an ARC of The Holiday Plan, and I was a little unsure at first - was this Valentine's Day story going to be too sugary sweet? I'm happy to report it really is not; I was won over by Lynden's storytelling and wonderful characters.  My heart lifted at all the right spots. I already can’t wait to read more sweet romance stories from Emma Lynden! 

Kat Kinney - Dyrwolf

Paranormal romance/Shapeshifter

I've just binge-read this thoroughly engaging, mesmerising, new world of the dyrwolf, from Kat Kinney.

Evocative description of the lands, woven with an intriguing plot and back story. Lea is the perfect kind of feisty heroine, struggling to overcome her taught beliefs with her instincts and visions of the white wolf.

Highly recommend this wolf-based YA novel, and can't wait for the sequel, Darkwitch.

5/5

Lucy Mitchell - Instructions For Falling In Love Again

Feel-good Fiction

Trigger: grief 

Oh, excuse me; I didn’t see you reading there, what with the wracking, happy sobs that Lucy Mitchell’s Instructions for Falling In Love Again has just put me through.  Oh, it’s ever such an unputdownable book of heartache and heartmake.  My family should know; they’ve had to fend for their own lunch and laundry whilst I binge-read the story of Pip and Mikey and Dan…there go the sobs again.

Emma and Mel and Helen and the four children in the story were wonderfully distracting secondary characters, too.  I confess that I’ve had this second-chance-at-love novel on my TBR list for almost a year.  And I’m already keen to wonder what’s happened to the characters since Lucy last wrote The End. 

I loved the dual POV from the two central characters, with well-timed instructions from the third (as an old friend in each of Pip’s and Mikey’s chapters).  And the duck-egg, and the cakes (who may not have had a voice, but had something to say). 

Anyway, what are you still reading my five star review of Lucy Mitchell’s heartwrenching and heartwarming novel for?  Go read it yourself, immediately.  Go on.  You’ll thank Lucy for her story, too.

 

Holly Bourne - Soulmates

Age 14+

After a chance meeting at a local band night, Poppy and Noah find themselves swept up in a whirlwind romance unlike anything they’ve ever experienced before. But while the odds of this happening are about as likely as being struck by lightning, when they do meet and fall in love, thunderstorms, lightning strikes and lashings of rain are only the beginning of their problems.

With a secret international agency preparing to separate them and a trail of destruction rumbling in their wake, they are left with an impossible choice between the end of the world, or a life without love…

Every so often, two people are born who are the perfect match for each other.

Soulmates.

At 544 pages this is a tome of a book, but it's an electrifying, pacey read from popular YA writer, Holly Bourne. This was her debut novel back in 2013, and great for older readers. Would make a great book club choice discussing the theme of first love and romance novels.

Michelle Quach - Not Here to Be Liked

 Age 14+

Diversity

In one afternoon, I devoured the debut novel from Michelle Quach, Not Here To Be Liked, quickly absorbed by the plot, fascinated by the characters and debating the important questions raised and the quote-worthy writing.  

 

Even if you only have fifteen minutes to read a chapter at a time, I highly recommend you do.  This, to paraphrase a quote, is a novel about a character, ‘who’s smart but a bit prickly, which is a combination the world could use more of right now’.

 

Set in an Asian-American school community of California, the story centres around Eliza Quan, as  she navigates what it means to be a young woman in the 21^st Century.  Is she a feminist?  Is she annoyed that she was overlooked to be Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper?  Is she something else? 

 

Along with older sister Kim, Eliza is the child of Chinese parents with Vietnamese heritage, and this book offers insights into both languages and foods, including a special relationship with Boba Tea, the milk and tapioca tea drink that originated in Taiwan and can be found in every corner of the world. 

Pitched against fellow newspaper writer and former baseball player, Len DiMartile, Eliza learns about ambition (with a little help from Macbeth) friendship and doing the right thing.

Not Here to Be Liked is suggested for readers age 14+, and would be a great book club read for older readers; discussion questions provided at the end of the novel.

£7.99 

 

 

 

 

Tamsin Winter - Girl (In Real Life)

Age 11+

About the Book:

What's it like to grow up online and have every tantrum, every spot - even your first period - broadcast to hundreds of thousands of followers?  A funny and heartfelt novel for fans of Geek Girl, from the award-winning Tamsin Winter. 

Most parents try to limit their kids' online exposure.  But not Eva's.  Her parents run a hugely successful YouTube channel, and Eva is the star of the show.  But Eva is getting sick of being made to pose in stupid mum-and-daughter matching outfits for sponsored posts.  The freebies aren't worth the teasing at school.  And when an intensely humiliating "period party" goes viral, Eva is outraged.  She's going to find a way to stop the channel, even if she has to sabotage it herself. 

My review: 

My daughter and I loved reading the contemporary Girl (In Real Life) from one of our favourite authors @tamsinwinterauthor
12 year old Eva has been the subject of her parents' YouTube channel, All About Eva, since before she was born, and she's had enough.

5/5 from us, for the opportunity to discuss the biological and emotional changes that occur between Year 7- Year 9, the relevance of social media in school, and just a brilliant book full of drama, great characters and cringeworthy moments with heart.

Disclaimer: we received a free paperback copy of this book from the publisher, @usborne_books in exchange for a review. All honest opinions are from me and my daughter.

Buy Girl (In Real Life) from my Usborne shop, Awesome Bookshop, £7.99

William Hussey - The Outrage

 William Hussey - The Outrage

LGBTQ

Age 14+

About the book: 

"You know, when you live in a time of progress, it seems that progress is the only possible way. The idea that everything we'd gained, all of those hard-won rights, could be taken away from us, and that open minds could be closed again? But then the Outrage happened."

Welcome to England, where the Protectorate enforces the Public Good. Here, there are rules for everything - what to eat, what to wear, what to do, what to say, what to read, what to think, who to obey, who to hate, who to love. Your safety is assured, so long as you follow the rules.

Gabriel is a natural born rule-breaker. And his biggest crime of all? Being gay.

Gabriel knows his sexuality must be kept secret from all but his closest friends, not only to protect himself, but to protect his boyfriend. Because Eric isn't just the boy who has stolen Gabriel's heart. He's the son of the chief inspector at Degenerate Investigations ­­­- the man who poses the single biggest threat to Gabriel's life.

And the Protectorate are experts at exposing secrets.

My review: 

I've had The Outrage on my bookshelf for a few months now, and finally started reading it at lunch time today. Four hours later I slowly closed the final pages on a stunning book, full of real friendships between The Rebels and the raw relationship of Gabe and Eric, plus also humour, warmth and edge-of-your-seat stuff. The dual timelines really helped to add poignancy to early events, whilst the current timeline kept the pages turning. Relatable references (early warning signs?) from literature, film and history added even more depth to a book that more people should be reading and talking about. Will recommend to my book club to read next month.

5/5

Buy The Outrage from my online Usborne shop, Awesome Bookshop, £7.99

Holly Bourne - The Yearbook

 YA Book Review 

Holly Bourne - The Yearbook 

Age 14+

 

About the book:

Finding your voice. Speaking the truth. Falling in love. All the biggest drama happens in high school...
Mean Girls meets To All The Boys I've Loved Before in this hugely relatable high-school takedown from the queen of UKYA.

Paige is used to staying quiet in the face of lies. Like how popular girl Grace is a such an amazing person (lie). How Laura steals people's boyfriends (lie). How her own family are so perfect (lie).

Now Grace and friends have picked their "best" high-school moments for Paige to put in the all-important Yearbook. And they're not just lies. They're poison.

But Paige has finally had enough. And as she starts to find love through the pages of a book, she finds her voice too. Now she is going to rewrite her story - and the Yearbook is the perfect place to do it.

My Review: 

I love Holly Bourne's relatable and insightful storytelling.  Her latest novel, The Yearbook, began unexpectedly, with the focus on home rather than school.  We learn more about Paige, and how she takes control over her life, this way.  Midway through the book we meet a wonderful character and I couldn't turn the page fast enough to discover how Paige's story unfolds.  

4/5 

Buy The Yearbook from my online Usborne shop, Awesome Bookshop, £7.99