Maddy's Book Blog

  Still the One by Aimee Brown I had never heard of the author, and chose this book purely based on the blurb, and I am so glad I did. It was right up my street and kept me captivated until the end. Eve and Foster had a whirlwind affair and married within a month. Unfortunately, they broke up almost just as quickly breaking both their hearts in the process. Foster rode motorbikes for a living, and spent his life travelling the world, and risking his neck on evermore dangerous stunts. Everyone knows the daredevil, handsome rider – or at least they thought they did. The two had no contact until Foster arrived, close to death in the ER of the hospital where Eve worked as a nurse. When Eve started to work on the seriously damaged biker, and realised who he was, her world, once again, tipped upside down. This is a will they/won’t they love story, but so much more. Well written, with great characters. I really loved it. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7014279784

  Into the Storm by Cecilia Ahern I have enjoyed several Cecilia Ahern books previously and I was intrigued at the premise of this book. Dr Enya Pickering is driving home in the pouring rain when she is flagged down by a taxi driver. On the floor she sees a boy, who looked uncannily like her son, who had been knocked over. She performs CPR on the boy until the ambulance arrives and so saves his life. Her life then falls to pieces – her husband, also a GP in the same practice wants her gone, and her beloved son won’t speak to her. When her father tells her about an opening for a GP in a remote village in Ireland, she decides that it’s fate and takes the job. However, is everything as it seems and will the past catch up with her? I really enjoyed this story. It’s somewhat of a ‘whodunnit’. It has great characterisation and shows how people are not always inherently good or inherently bad, but more all a bit of a mixture. A great, well written story. https://www.goodreads.com/...

  Escape for Christmas by Phillipa Ashley Who doesn’t love a Christmas love story at this time of the year, and this one is up there with the best of them. It’s a lovely story with some good twists. After an awful break up, Sophie leaves the Christmas shop she ran with her ex, and fulfils her lifelong ambition to run a guest house in Cumbria. She decides to fill her guesthouse, over the festive period, with others like her who want to get away from celebrating Christmas. Unfortunately, all doesn’t go to plan. Luckily their lovely neighbour, the vet, is on hand to help out. However, is he as nice as he seems? This was a lovely, feel-good book, full of fabulous characters, beautiful scenic descriptions, and I’d love to book into her Cumbrian guest house myself! https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6992578914

  By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult I have really enjoyed many of Jodi Picoult's books, and this is up there with the best of them. This is a book calculated to make you think. If someone told me that this was based on a true story, as believable as the characters are. This was so well researched, and a really stunning read. The story is told by two amazing women. In 1580s England we meet Emilia Bassano who is sold as a mistress to a much older man, by her cousin. The one thing that keeps Emilia going is the fact that she is a playwright and writes plays and poetry. Unfortunately in those time women were not allowed to write plays - so she sold them to Shakespeare to pass off as his own. In the current day her ancestor is also having problems -    Melina Green is also a playwright. She is having similar problems in that she believes that her plays will not be taken seriously as they are written by a woman. When she writes her best play, about her ancestor Emilia, her ...