Book Review: Hope on the Range by Cindi Madsen

This is a sweet hometown cowboy love childhood sweetheart kind of story and I wish there was a movie filmed based on this book. I did not read the first book but it can be a read as a standalone

Ireally love the romance between Brady and Tanya. They were friends since childhood and are in charge of their family ranches. I love how the story develop between them, both of them like each other but are unaware of the mutual feelings involved. It also shows how Tanya fought to gain courage to put across her ideas for the ranch to her disapproving father.

Brady and his brother are also in charge of a reformed youth programme at the range, as they bring in a bunch of kids, there is another cute couple – harlow and maddox . This was a cute relationship as well

Overall i give it 4.5/5

Book Review: Better than Fiction by Alexa Martin

This book was easy to read, but it wasn’t that interesting for me. The plot is quite predictable. Drew Young inherited a bookshop from her grandmother but she is adverse to reading as she does not believe in the good endings in books. Along the way we meet her grandmother’s group of friends, known as the dirty birds. In order for the bookshop to survive, Drew decide to hold a famous author event – Jasper Williams. And of course, their attraction is immediate. Because Jasper wants Drew to be interested in books, he come up with a plan in which he recommends a book which she has to read , and she bring him to the favourite scenic and interesting places. At the same time, she has to deal with her father, who is only bent on taking over her shop and also with her half-sister.

As the story progresses, we get to see an in depth look into Drew’s emotions on how she tackle the grief and emotions and also the way the relationship develops.

Overall i would give it a 3/5

Book Review: Christmas by the Candlelight by Karen Swan

I really loved this book and i finished in one sitting! Can you believe it? hahaha that is why everytime when i read Karen Swan i read it on days when i am free.

This book wasn’t a christmassy book. It dealt with a dual timeline – 2014 and 2023, and with 6 housmates. Libby, the protagonist with her boyfriend max, arrives at her university reunion. Over there she meets her best friends and tensions and secrets began to surface

I actually avoided reading this book at first because the reviews were saying that it was not christmassy but the story was good, Im a fan of christmas books. So when i started reading, the story flowed naturally, and yes though there were a bit of tension here and there, but it was quite predictable who will end up with who. The only grip i had with this book was that there was not enough description of christmas even thought the title is christmas by the candlelight.

Overall, 4.5/5

Book Review: The Book Lover Retreat by Heidi Swain

I am a big fan of Heidi Swain and this book was really good as usual 🙂

Emily , Rachel and Tori have booked a holiday to Hope Falls, a place which a film adapation based on a book they love was filmed. Along the way Tori had to drop out, and Alex replaces them.

This story flowed so naturally it felt like i was part of the group and experiencing the vacation myself. This is one of the rare times when i come across a guy who really love a book so much that he would go on the vacation to experience himself. But as we go deeper into the story, we understand why Alex was so adamant on going to this vacation. The relationship between Emily and Alex was also a nice progression. Emily’s own business, i feel in reality might not have such an explosion of popularity but hey that is why it is a story right? I really like Rachel because she is a supportive best friend, as what best friends are.

Overall, 4/5

Book Review: The Cafe at Beach End by RaeAnne Thayne

This book got me hooked from the beginning. It shows Meredith moving to Cape Sanctuary for a fresh new beginning and helping out at a cafe which she co-owns with her cousin – Tori after their grandmother, Frances has passed.

I really enjoyed this book. It shows how family is thicker than water, that no matter how deep the rift between family members are, as long as you have the right heart and compassion and understanding, problems can always be solved. As the story progresses, the relationship between Meredith and Tori is being slowly restored, with a bit of hesitation from Tori at first.

Liam’s character is also interesting, because he came to Cape with the intention of getting close to Meredith to find out how to recoup the lossess his grandmother had when she trusted Meredith’s ex-husband in an investment scam. Thus, misunderstandings happened between Meredith and Liam as well as their relationship further develops from a friendship.

Overall the book is 4/5

Book Review: A Winter in New York by Josie Silver

10 stars . This book is worth a 100 stars. I laughed,  I cheered, i cried, i was rooting for Iris all the way. This book captures all kinds of emotions that a reader can have.

I love Josie silver books. Iris decides to move to new york to escape an abusive relationship. New york was a chosen destination as it was where her mum and her lived, and where her mum thrived as a young woman and Iris hopes to find her path there as well.

As she chances upon the gelato that opened up the key to her mother’s past, Iris discovers the meaning of strength, family and love

Gio was a very good and patient guy, one who really loved Iris, and would do anything just to be with her

The relationship that Iris had with her mother was a very close bond. The way Iris managed to hold her mother’s secret because she love her mum so much ; despite it causing regrettable potential consequences to her relationship with Gio, made me admire her more. When she finally let go of her mum ashes, i teared at that scene because i know how it feels like…

The supporting characters in the Belotti family were so awesome and supportive as well. They contributed in different ways  to the story, adding different kind of insights to the unique yet fascinating family. Sophi Bella Santo Fellipe all held their own as characters as the story develops

At one point , the way Santo wanted Iris to make a certain decision – it was kind of frustrating but understandable , and the author was able to capture that complexity of emotions so fluently

I love this book and I hope it will become a movie one day as well

Overall rating : 5/5

Book Review: Autumn Dreams at Mermaid Point by Sarah Bennett

What a lovely story. I love how the book captures the emotions of the characters, especially how the children felt while going through transitions.

I did not read the 1st book and this book works well as a standalone. I love how Dr Tom Nelson manages the emotional outbursts from his two children , Emily and Max ( but both valid due to the loss of their mother). Nerissa and Tom are both introduced into each other’s lives, at the right place and right time as both needed each other. Nerissa is a lovely woman, managing her own emotions, her own circumstances but still manage to be positive albeit the various emotions.

Overall, the story has a nice and easy-going pace, with in-depth issues covered.

Rating 4.5/5

Book Review : Book lovers by Emily Henry

I really love this book that each time i pick it up to continue reading from where i left off, i am always fully absorbed into the story and unaware of how fast the time passes.

Nora is an exceptional literary agent and a successful one indeed, who by the push of her sister, goes with her to the sunshine falls for a holiday and keeps bumping into charlie, an editor.

The chemistry between and Charlie is sizzling and hot, and it engages the reader to want to know more. One thing unique bout Emily’s books is that she goes in-depth into the emotions of the characters, and so it makes the reader fully involved in the character’s life and emotions.

There are also many witty and humorous lines which only Emily can provide

Overall 5/5 stars

Book Review: Escape to the Swiss Chalet by Carrie Walker

This book has a very gorgeous cover. I love the pink and purple background and the snow that complements it.

Holly , Luca, Xavier and Liv. These 4 form the main people of the book. I love the friendship formed between Holly, Xavier and Liv. The friendship is genuine and well-crafted.

The romantic relationship wasn’t well-developed , and the pace of the relationship was quite slow or rather predictable. There was not much depth to relationship development.

One thing i really love about the book was the description of the settings. Verbier sounds so beautiful and makes me feel like i am being transported there 🙂

Overall i rate it 3.5/5

Book Review: Someone just like you by Meredith Schorr

Jude and Molly – their rivalry stem all the way from childhood till now. Their families are close , with few blocks in between them

This story is really engaging and cute, their banter was amazing. And because im a recruiter myself i could relate what Molly was going through when she had to inform a candidate on whether to take a job or not. Watching suitz currently also help me to understand more about the legal world, so it was a delight to read how Molly still manages to be in the law industry, somehow.

The relationship between Jude and Molly grows from rivalry to friendship to lust to love. The story yes is abit predictable, but there are some twist and turns that help to add layers to the characters of Jude and Molly

Overall, 4.5/5