Book Review – ‘A Summer to Remember’ by Sue Moorcroft ~ @SueMoorcroft @AvonBooksUK

Following on from my post this morning promoting ‘A Summer to Remember’ by Sue Moorcroft, I am back reviewing this book.  I would like to thank Sue and Avon Books for sending me a review copy.

Before I tell you all what I thought about ‘A Summer to Remember’, here’s the book blurb again.

 

Book Blurb

COME AND SPEND SUMMER BY THE SEA!

WANTED! A caretaker for Roundhouse Row holiday cottages.

WHERE? Nelson’s Bar is the perfect little village. Nestled away on the Norfolk coast we can offer you no signal, no Wi-Fi and – most importantly – no problems!

WHO? The ideal candidate will be looking for an escape from their cheating scumbag ex-fiancé, a diversion from their entitled cousin, and a break from their traitorous friends.

WHAT YOU’LL GET! Accommodation in a chocolate-box cottage, plus a summer filled with blue skies and beachside walks. Oh, and a reunion with the man of your dreams.

PLEASE NOTE: We take no responsibility for any of the above scumbags, passengers and/or traitors walking back into your life…

GET IN TOUCH NOW TO MAKE THIS A SUMMER TO REMEMBER!

 

My Review

I thoroughly enjoyed ‘A Summer to Remember’. No, actually I loved it. It was everything I expected it to be and so much more besides. From the very first page I knew this book was for me. Sue Moorcroft’s descriptions of Nelson’s Bar and the surrounding areas were simply breath-taking, and I could picture the village in colour in my head. It sounded like the ideal place to escape to away from the hustle and bustle of daily life and technology.

There were some truly wonderful characters in this story including Dilys and Ernie. They literally couldn’t live with each other but at the same time they couldn’t live without each other. It was quite sweet in a way.

Clancy was such a warm and lovely person and I found myself liking her instantly. Circumstances left her with no other option but to start afresh somewhere else which didn’t seem at all fair at first, especially when what happened was hardly her fault. Nevertheless, she got on with life as best as she could. I really liked Clancy’s spirt and how she was always there for others.

And of course, how could I forget Nelson the dog. He was just so adorable. I think it’s so nice when there’s a pet included in the story. That’s very important as they are characters in their own right.

Relationships and break-ups played a key part in this story. It took a lot to confront the truth and realise that sometimes things just weren’t meant to be. Hearts broke and life didn’t feel worth living but at some point, something or someone better was bound to come along as Clancy was about to discover.

I really recommend reading ‘A Summer to Remember’. I guarantee that it’s a story you won’t forget in a hurry.

Sue Moorcroft is now on my list of favourite authors. She is an amazing writer and her books are magical.

 

‘A Summer to Remember’ is available to buy from:- 

Apple iBook: buy
Amazon UK: buy
Kobo: buy

Don’t forget that the eBook is currently 99p.

 

Book Promotion: Guest Post – ‘A Summer to Remember’ by Sue Moorcroft ~ @SueMoorcroft @AvonBooksUK

If you are a fan of Sue Moorcroft’s books then I have some brilliant news for you.  Her latest novel, ‘A Summer to Remember’ is currently on promotion at only 99p for the eBook.  How good is that!  I can tell you now that you are in for a real treat.

Sue Moorcroft has written a guest post for my blog.  First though, here’s what ‘A Summer to Remember’ is about.

 

Book Blurb

COME AND SPEND SUMMER BY THE SEA!

WANTED! A caretaker for Roundhouse Row holiday cottages.

WHERE? Nelson’s Bar is the perfect little village. Nestled away on the Norfolk coast we can offer you no signal, no Wi-Fi and – most importantly – no problems!

WHO? The ideal candidate will be looking for an escape from their cheating scumbag ex-fiancé, a diversion from their entitled cousin, and a break from their traitorous friends.

WHAT YOU’LL GET! Accommodation in a chocolate-box cottage, plus a summer filled with blue skies and beachside walks. Oh, and a reunion with the man of your dreams.

PLEASE NOTE: We take no responsibility for any of the above scumbags, passengers and/or traitors walking back into your life…

GET IN TOUCH NOW TO MAKE THIS A SUMMER TO REMEMBER!

 

Guest Post

Dealing with the exes

In A Summer to Remember the ex-fiancé of Clancy and the ex-girlfriend of Aaron played pivotal roles.

Will, Clancy’s ex, was comparatively easy. He was ex at the beginning of the book because he’d been caught with another woman. The other woman, Renée, had come storming back at him from his past: the love of his life, now single and returning the love he felt for her, marrying Clancy could only be wrong. Nevertheless, readers weren’t meant to feel much sympathy for him when he was intimate with Renée before ending his engagement to Clancy. It was made hard for Clancy to remain in the business in which they were both partners. She was the innocent victim, but Will didn’t leave the biz and their home to make it easy on her. In fact, Will’s behaviour is increasingly self-serving throughout the book until, some might consider, he gets a bit of a comeuppance.

In writing terms, it was beyond easy to encourage the readers not to sympathise with Will.

Genevieve, Aaron’s girlfriend at the beginning of the book, I found trickier to handle. Essentially, she did nothing ‘wrong’ – at least, she didn’t cheat or lie. Genevieve, as so often in real life, made a mistake. Instead of continuing to be the independent woman Aaron had been enjoying being with for the past year, she tried to move their relationship on and move in with him. I think Aaron would have handled this better if she hadn’t hung this change on the fact that she had to move out of her cottage for building work. The more he told her it was the wrong reason for moving in with someone the more she seemed to realise that actually, she wanted to commit.

Sadly, Aaron didn’t.

It made him realise that not only was Genevieve not ‘the one’ but that his preoccupation with Clancy, with whom he’d shared one hot kiss, one blazing row and then six years of stilted emails, was altogether too much on his mind.

The problem, I found, was in making Genevieve nice enough for Aaron to have been with her for a year but not so nice that he’d remain with her when she gave him an ultimatum. At the same time, I didn’t want to make my hero look bad … I fought the Genevieve character throughout the book and finally got her where I wanted her. She played a pivotal part in the ending of the book and yet, I hope, the readers don’t hate her because it’s easy to see where she went wrong – she loved someone more than he loved her.

 

About Sue Moorcroft

Sue Moorcroft is a Sunday Times and international bestselling author and has reached the coveted #1 spot on Amazon Kindle. She’s won the Readers’ Best Romantic Novel award and the Katie Fforde Bursary, and has been nominated for several other awards, including the Romantic Novel of the Year Awards.

Her short stories, serials, columns, writing ‘how to’ and courses have appeared all over the world.

Part of an army family, Sue was born in Germany and lived much of her childhood in Malta and Cyprus before setting in the UK.

 

Links

Twitter: @SueMoorcroft

Facebook: SueMoorcroftAuthor/

Instagram: @SueMoorcroftAuthor

 

The A Summer to Remember UK ebook is currently on 99P PROMO!

Apple iBook: buy
Amazon UK: buy
Kobo: buy

 

Look out for my review of ‘A Summer to Remember’ this evening.

 

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