Hello book friends, how are we all doing so far with the lockdown?
I hope that you are all safe and reading some great books.

One that you won't go far wrong with, is this one.

OK, before we start, I need to make something VERY clear, although I occasionally pop in a trigger warning or two if I think a book warrants it.

This one has TRIGGER WARNING written in capital blinking red flashing lights - If you do not like reading about the following, then I would steer clear of this one if it is a trigger for you.

Child abuse
Rape
Manipulation
Grooming
Gas lighting
Emotional abuse

That being said, I still gave this book 5 stars.

It is story told from the POV of Vanessa, it flips between now and then, then being when she was a 15 year old school girl.

If you are not aware of the context of the book, here we go!!

Vanessa is 32 years old, and still really struggling with life, she hasn't settled down with anyone, and finds it incredibly difficult to hold down any kind of relationship with a man. She is in a spiral of drink, drugs and one night stands, that is because she always finds herself drifting back and daydreaming about her ex lover Jacob Strane.

This love affair would be all very well and ok, BUT this love affair happened when she was 15 years old, and Strane? Well Strane was her Forty Two year old teacher, that she is still in contact with today.
Yes you read that right!

Even though we know, and can clearly see the red flags waving helplessly in our faces as we watch 15 yr old Vanessa fall in love with her teacher, he is a master at manipulation, gas-lighting and grooming her, so much so, that she believes that this "relationship" is absolutely real, and when he tells her that he loves her, she doesn't think anything different, why would she?

His hand slips out from under my skirt and he slides like liquid out of his chair and onto the floor. Kneeling before me, he lays his head on my lap and says, “I’m going to ruin you.

Strane is an English teacher, who likes to flaunt his cleverness at Vanessa, but also like to make her feel 'special' by giving her presents, like a book for example, I mean, what student wouldn't be happy with a copy of Lolita *insert Eww face here!!*
But to Vanessa, that book reads like a love story, their love story!!

And this is why Vanessa can not see what is happening to her, even though you as a reader are SCREAMING at her to run, to just tell someone, ANYONE!!

But now Vanessa has reached 32, and Strane is contacting her about a possible sexual abuse case that he is being accused of, but obviously she wasn't abused, she was different, wasn't she? And if she is a victim, what does that make her now?

I can’t lose the thing I’ve held onto for so long, you know?” My face twists up from the pain of pushing it out. “I just really need it to be a love story, you know? I really, really need it to be that.”
“I know,” she says.
“Because if it isn’t a love story, then what is it”? I look to her glassy eyes, her face of wide open empathy. “It’s my life,” I say. “This has been my whole life.”

Despite the subject content, which is sometimes very graphic (you have been warned) I couldn't stop listening to this audiobook, the narration was brilliant, and the story was very complex and beautifully written.

I absolutely disagree with the people saying that they are conflicted, was it love or was it abuse?, and did she instigate it or was she manipulated? The answer to both of these questions is SHE WAS 15 YEARS OLD!!!

This book will certainly make you uncomfortable, and that is good, because it also shows us that the world through a teenagers eyes are sometimes not as cut and dry as we think, sometimes they don't even know what they are getting themselves into, sometimes they think that it *is* love.

I would highly recommend this book, especially in audio form

Yeah, I thought that I was going to love this one as I had previously loved Vicious by this author, but I now know that any books with Magic in it, is always going to be a Nope from me.

So unfortunately, I could only give this 3 stars, but don't listen to my opinion at all with this book, I am a weirdo when it comes to certain genres, Fantasy is one of them, please read someone else's review on this book before you sweep it aside Xx

It's over

This was such a heartwarming, and also heartbreaking read.

It follows the story of a married couple, Frank and Maggie, seemingly going about their normal day, the book jumps right in to Maggie preparing the evening meal for her and Frank, it then takes a bit more of a sinister turn, when Maggie just sits down at the kitchen table and starts emptying multiple packets of sleeping pills to take. Frank is unaware of what his wife is doing, and he is upstairs playing solitaire on his computer.

You see, even though Maggie and Frank have been happily married for 40 years, for the last 6 months, they haven't spoken to each other, at all!

When the smoke alarm goes off and doesn't stop, Frank goes to investigate, and finds Maggie slumped in her chair, with the packets of pills beside her.
After being rushed to hospital she is placed into a medically induced coma, and Frank is told that she might not pull through and that he should encourage her to wake up by talking to her.

But what do you say to someone that you haven't spoken to for 6 months?

And so Frank begins to tell Maggie the story of them, how they met, and all that has happened in between, but can he eventually tell her why they stopped taking?

We see Maggie and Frank through both of their eyes, and the story they tell is so beautiful, and heartbreaking, and so cleverly written, I was genuinely invested in their marriage.

Please grab this one when you can, you will not be disappointed!

**Many thanks to Netgalley, Cornerstone, and the Author for the digital copy of this book**

When you get a Lauren Blakely book, you always know that you are going to be sitting with a huge grin on your face for the whole time, she does romance and witty banter like no other.

This book was not exception, if you love a fake-fiancé trope then you are in for a treat with this one.

Narration by Joe Arden and Vanessa Edwin was a match made in heaven, and I hope she pairs this couple up again soon.

Second chance romances are one of my favourite troupes, and I was so excited to listen to this one.

Childhood sweethearts Kat and Bryan's are just swoonsome together.

After splitting up and leading separate lives for years, Kat bumps into Bryan again as he is assigned to be her mentor in one of her classes.

But as Bryan broke Kat's heart years before when they dated, can he bring back the magic of what was lost between them?

Narrated by Emma Wilder and Zachary Webber, this one will have you melting into a pile of sweet sweet goo!