Blog Tour: Barefoot on the Beach by Katlyn Duncan

Renee Clarke is perfectly happy just the way she is…

Renee may be thrilled to be planning her sister’s wedding, but after witnessing her mother’s two failed marriages, she has always vowed that she is better off on her own.

But when Renee discovers that Luc Hardy has moved next door, her world is knocked off kilter. Luc was her whirlwind summer romance as a teen and, more importantly, her first love. Now he’s back in West Cove, looking more handsome than ever.

There is no escaping the romance in the air this summer. With the wedding planning in full swing, Renee begins to believe that she might be able to put her childhood reservations about marriage aside.

Yet when her mother arrives, she stirs a torrent of emotions in Renee’s heart. She’s up to her old tricks again – boasting about her latest conquests – reaffirming Renee’s lack of faith in love.

As Renee’s happily-ever-after hangs in the balance, will Luc be able to convince her that true love can last forever?

A totally heart-warming summer romance you won’t want to put down! Perfect for fans of Jenny Hale, Susan Mallery and Lucy Coleman.

Buy it on Amazon: US | UK | Canada 

Review:

Renee's ordered life is first knocked off balance when her sister requires help planning her fast-approaching wedding, and then upturned completely when her first summer fling moves back in next door. Over the course of the summer, she has to confront her choices and wonders if she's really as happy as she thinks.

Despite the age of these characters (I think Renee's in her mid-thirties), this almost feels like a coming of age book as Renee learns to set boundaries and let go of her painful past. I loved how her relationship with Luc grew naturally from the awkward re-meeting to adults having honest conversations about feelings and a future together. By the end of the book I had fully bought into them as a couple.

In fact, I was pleasantly surprised at how uplifting this book is. It's a sunny, optimistic cloud of a book full of sisterhood, family, and friendship. There's no clear antagonist, scheming exes, or even particularly catty women. The biggest barrier to Renee's happiness is herself which is both rare and realistic.

However I have to say I was not a huge fan of Renee's sister Cait. She came off as a bit selfish and rather manipulative especially in her dealings with Renee. While most of her actions came from a place of youthful naivety, I found myself getting more and more annoyed with her - and by extension, with Renee for putting up with her. Some of those boundaries Renee needed definitely related to her sister and I can't help but wish they'd had a proper conversation about that and cleared the air, rather than Renee squashing her feelings. After all, good boundaries also include realising when something is someone else's fault and not yours.

Despite my annoyance with Cait, this was a charming, uplifting read, perfect for the beach (or when you wish you were on one!)

Four stars.

Blog Tour: A Thoughtful Woman by KT Findlay

They say revenge is a dish best served cold, but where's the fun in that?Artist Sally Mellors has planned the perfect revenge, but with two secret agents on her tail, and her best friends running the police investigation, getting away with murder is going to be tricky...
Everybody loves Sally. She's a funny, generous, warm hearted friend, without a nasty bone in her body.
Isn't she?
Unknown to her friends, Sally's discovered another side to herself, cool headed and relentless, as she hunts down the three men who killed her husband. But Sally's not the only one with an interest in the trio. Unknown to her, two agents have arrived in town, urgently hunting a missing man and his diary, which could blow their organisation apart. Their best leads are the very men that Sally's hunting, and she's getting in the way...
The inspiration behind A Thoughtful Woman.
The justice system is an intriguing beast. We expect it to be fair, which is why we allow it to resolve our disputes instead of simply taking revenge ourselves, but watch an individual case play out in court and it can seem more like a high stakes game between lawyers than the pursuit of absolute truth. And if you think it's a game, do you still accept the result if you lose? Is that still justice? At what point will a perfectly normal, perfectly decent person snap, and what happens when they do? Is it possible to plunge into the darkness of revenge and remain the normal, decent happy person you were before you started? Sally Mellors is about to find out.

Review
When the courts fail and two women take justice into their own hands, the line between right and wrong starts to blur.
Sally Mellors befriends Emma Nixon when the drunk driver who killed Emma's husband walks away scot-free. A few years before, his father did the same thing after killing Sally's husband, and was acquitted with the help of the same lawyer and crooked cop. For the deaths of their husbands, Sally and Emma are going to make them pay.
While this story started quite slowly, once the revenge killing begins, the plot speeds up and simply won't stop. As we follow the police investigation, we're blindingly aware that killing is wrong and we're struck by the callousness of Emma and Sally, and yet a small part of us wants them to get away with it. The dual perspective maintains this tension as Sally's friend Peregrin heads the investigation in classic murder mystery style even as she plots her next move.
The tension is ratcheted somewhat higher by two mysterious agents searching for a missing man, but in the end it seemed like they were only there for exposition. No major characters ever become aware of their motivations nor do they have any impact on the plot whatsoever. They come, they spy, they sneak, they talk, and then are recalled to headquarters and thus could well have been cut.
There is also plot-relevant BDSM that may not be to everyone's tastes and felt a little gratuitous. A good portion of this could have been skimmed over or shortened without affecting the tension.
In the end, I was surprised by how much I could root for a killer, even while disliking them. While Emma is hesitant and plays more of a supporting role, Sally is cold as ice and chillingly calculating. Their motivations are solid even if their alibis are not, and I was surprised by how much they got away with - though perhaps I'm biased when coming from a place of knowledge, unlike poor Peregrin. I'd be interested to read more about Sally Mellors.
Four stars.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book via Rachel's Random Resources; all opinions are my own.

Blog Tour: The Gin Lover's Guide to Dating by Nina Kaye (with giveaway!)

When life gives you lemons... add a splash of ginTwo parts sparkling comedy. One dose of romantic tension. Mix well with a second chance, a splash of mystery, and garnish with a twist of fate...

When Liv's high-flying career goes off the rails, she finds herself working at a glitzy new gin bar to pay the bills. Yes, she's got a knack for reading the customers, she's finally got time to have some fun, and she might have just found some real friends - but it's just until she gets her life back on track, right?

But between humiliating encounters with her old workmates, one very hot bartender, and a lot of soul searching to do, Liv's life is even more muddled than a Blackberry Bramble...

Can Liv face up to her past, seize her future, and mix her own recipe for happiness?

A hilarious, feel-good romantic comedy for fans of Mhairi McFarlane and Sophie Ranald

Review

This light-hearted rom-com is just begging to be made into a movie. It hits all of the classic beats - an unceremonious tumble from grace, a new life situation that might just be better than the first, personal growth with the aid of friends, old and new, and more than a hint of romance.

Surprisingly, it doesn't stop there. While Liv's initial misfortunes aren't her fault, she makes a few decisions later that you know are totally going to come back to bite her. It had me yelling at my screen in the way that is usually reserved for splitting up in horror movies. Even so, there are a few twists and turns that keep you (or at least me) guessing until the very end. I don't want to spoil anything, but I can tell you that not only is there a happy ending, all of Liv's decisions have realistic consequences and the plot threads are wrapped up in a satisfying manner.

The gin thread is also nicely woven in - from Liv's new job to her start-up blog, the little drips of it here and there have me just dying for a drink. For a fizzy little rom-com with a twist or two, pick up this book - best paired with your drink of choice.

Four stars

Now available at Amazon (US); Amazon (CA), Amazon (UK), or anywhere else you get your ebooks

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