Blog Tour – ‘Dear Emmie Blue’ by Lia Louis ~ @TrapezeBooks @LisforLia

Congratulations to Lia Louis whose new book, ‘Dear Emmie Blue’ was published yesterday the 6th August 2020 by Trapeze Books in paperback.  It is also available in eBook and Audiobook formats.

It really is a pleasure to be taking part in this blog tour.  I would like to thank the publisher for inviting me to participate.

You will find out in a minute what I thought about ‘Dear Emmie Blue’.  In the meantime here is the book blurb.

 

Book Blurb

Emmie Blue has a secret…

A long time ago, Emmie Blue released a red balloon with a secret message hidden inside – and against all odds, across hundreds of miles of ocean, it was found on a beach in France by a boy called Lucas.

Fourteen years later, on the eve of her thirtieth birthday, Emmie hopes that Lucas is finally about to kiss her. She never expected him to announce that he was marrying someone else!

Suddenly Emmie’s dreams are shattered and the one person in her life she can rely on is slipping through her fingers. But what if Lucas isn’t her forever? What if her love story is only just beginning…

Don’t miss the love story that everyone is talking about this summer! Perfect for fans of Beth O’Leary, Josie Silver and Cecelia Ahern.

 

My Review

I thoroughly enjoyed ‘Dear Emmie Blue’.  I thought it was beautifully written and well presented.  This was a deliciously gorgeous story.  It took me a little while to get into it though, but after that I just wanted to carry on reading non-stop.

I really liked the plot.  It sounded like such fun which was why I was eager to read this book.  The idea of a balloon with a secret message being released to be found by someone else was just wonderful.

There were some great characters in this story.  Ones I won’t forget.  I warmed to Emmie straightaway.  She came across as such a genuine and lovely person who had had a bit of a rough deal.  I felt bad for her and what she had been through as a youngster.  I also really liked Rosie and Fox.  It was nice that the three of them got on so well together.  Lucas and his brother were really nice as well.  It was nice for Emmie that she formed a good solid friendship with someone she could rely on.  Someone who could make life that little bit more bearable for her.  And then there was Louise.  Such a dear and wonderful lady.

I totally loved the humour throughout.  The reference to avocados which Emmie made really tickled me.  I thought Rosie was a real hoot.  Some of the things she came out with.  She was just hilarious!

There was a lot of meaning to this story I felt.  Definitely a lesson or two to be learnt.

I have to say I had an inkling about what would happen, but it still made for an incredibly good read.

‘Dear Emmie Blue’ is a sweet, tender and heart-warming story.  If you love romance, then I recommend that you read this book.  You will be left with a big smile on your face.  I will definitely be reading more by this author.

 

‘Dear Emmie Blue’ is available to purchase from:-

Waterstones – https://www.waterstones.com/book/dear-emmie-blue/lia-louis/9781409184218

hive.co.uk – https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Lia-Louis/Dear-Emmie-Blue–The-gorgeously-funny-and-romantic-love-s/24955513

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dear-Emmie-Blue-gorgeously-everyones/dp/1409184218/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1596703900&sr=8-1

 

About Lia Louis

Lia Louis is a writer from Hertfordshire where she lives with her partner and three young children. In 2015, she won ELLE magazine’s annual talent competition with her contemporary love letter, #RelationshipGoals. Lia’s fascination with letters doesn’t stop with her writing: she also has a varied collection of old letters which are a source of inspiration to her. SOMEWHERE CLOSE TO HAPPY is her first novel.

 

Links

Twitter – https://twitter.com/LisforLia

Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18604096.Lia_Louis

 

Blog Tour – ‘A Christmas Gift’ by Sue Moorcroft ~ @AvonBooksUK @SueMoorcroft

‘A Christmas Gift’ was published by Avon as an eBook on the 4th October 2018 and will be out in hardback from the beginning of next month.  I was thrilled to be invited along to participate in this blog tour and would like to say thank you to Sabah Khan and also for my review copy which I got from NetGalley.  I have since received a copy in the post and I can tell you now that the hardback really is lovely.  As you can see from the poster above there are lots of bloggers taking part in this tour, so do check their posts out.

I can’t wait to tell you my own thoughts on ‘A Christmas Gift’.  First though, here’s what its about.

 

Book Blurb

Georgine loves Christmas. The festive season always brings the little village of Middledip to life. But since her ex-boyfriend walked out, leaving her with crippling debts, Georgine’s struggled to make ends meet.

To keep her mind off her worries, she throws herself into organising the Christmas show at the local school. And when handsome Joe Blackthorn becomes her assistant, Georgine’s grateful for the help. But there’s something about Joe she can’t quite put her finger on. Could there be more to him than meets the eye?

Georgine’s past is going to catch up with her in ways she never expected. But can the help of friends new and old make this a Christmas to remember after all?

Curl up with the gorgeous new book from the Sunday Times bestseller, perfect for fans of Carole Matthews and Trisha Ashley.

 

My Review

I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘A Christmas Gift’ and absolutely loved Sue Moorcroft’s style of writing. I liked the opening of the first chapter and thought it to be very different. I soon found myself getting really involved in the story and the lives of the characters.

I warmed to Georgine straight away. I really liked her personality and her attitude in general. She put so much passion into her work and did a great job with organising the Christmas show. Left with a big financial mess to sort out which wasn’t even her own doing, Georgine got on with things as best as she could. She was just so lovely. I also really liked Joe. He didn’t have a very easy childhood and it was heartbreaking reading about what he went through. I’m so glad that his fairy godfather, so to speak, took him in and gave him a life he deserved, thus helping him to grow up into a responsible and caring adult.

I loved reading about the Christmas show and the rehearsals. It all sounded like so much fun as well as lots of hard work. But for Georgine, Joe, the rest of the staff and the students it was well worth it.

There were certainly a few shocks and revelations along the way. I bet Georgine wouldn’t have expected to find out what she did in a million years. I think her and Joe were a great help to each other as in they could finally face up to things that happened in the past.

‘A Christmas Gift’ deals with a number of serious issues such as debt, illness and alcoholism, but there is also lots of happiness thrown in together with a lovely magical ending. I really liked how Christmas seemed to bring people together.

I think it would be really nice if there could be a follow up to this book. I would love to know what happens with Georgine and Joe several years down the line.

~~~~~

‘A Christmas Gift’ is available to buy in eBook from Amazon UK:-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Christmas-Gift-bestseller-returns-romance-ebook/dp/B07C217BV1/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1540027915&sr=1-1

You can also pre-order it in hardback:-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Christmas-Gift-Sue-Moorcroft/dp/0008260079/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1540027915&sr=1-1

 

About Sue Moorcroft

Sue Moorcroft is a Sunday Times bestselling author, an international bestselling author and has held the #1 spot in the UK Kindle chart. She writes contemporary fiction with sometimes unexpected themes.

Sue has won a Best Romantic Read Award, received two nominations at the Romantic Novel of the Year Awards and is a Katie Fforde Bursary winner. Her short stories, serials, articles, columns, courses and writing ‘how to’ have sold around the world.

An army child, Sue was born in Germany then lived in Cyprus, Malta and the UK. She’s worked in a bank, as a bookkeeper (probably a mistake), as a copytaker for Motor Cycle News and for a digital prepress. She’s pleased to have now wriggled out of all ‘proper jobs’.

 

Links

Website – www.suemoorcroft.com

Twitter – https://twitter.com/SueMoorcroft

Facebook – facebook.com/SueMoorcroftAuthor

Instagram – suemoorcroftauthor

‘Me Before You’ by Jojo Moyes

Lovereading.co.uk were looking for people to review ‘Me Before You’ and I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this book.

This is a wonderful story.  It is romantic and funny at times, but also very sad.  The author has written about a very sensitive and controversial subject and done it really well.

Lou Clark has worked at The Buttered Bun tea shop for a number of years and enjoys her job.  However, her boss has decided to close down which means she will need to look for other employment.  Her boyfriend, Patrick is a personal trainer and keen runner.  Lou knows that she possibly does not love him.  But she has no idea what is round the corner.

Will Traynor, once a very active man was unfortunately involved in a motorcycle accident which has left him permanently in a wheelchair.  He no longer has any desire to live and knows what he wants to do and no one is going to change his mind.  What he doesn’t know though is that Lou is about to burst into his world.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and found it very hard to put down.  I really liked the two main characters.  I felt that Will gave Lou that much needed get up and go.  He wanted her to make the most of her life and to experience new things.  Lou in turn made Will happier than he had been in a while.  They were both so good for each other.

This story will stay with me for a while.

I give it 5 out of 5.