Watching What I’m Reading . . .

I tried to take Luke to the library to borrow some books a couple of weeks ago, but he told me he wanted to keep the books forever, so we didn’t go. I had a book to return yesterday, so I took him with me and he brought 4 books home, and suddenly it’s a really good idea to borrow books then take them back and swap them for new ones. These were his selections:

• 

Currently I am reading and loving Rabbit Hole by Mark Billingham. I can see myself reading late into the night tonight despite having an early start tomorrow so that I can get done what I need to before going for my Covid vaccination.

I am also reading A Vineyard Crossing by Jean Stone, a new author for me. I have to admit it was the cover that first attracted me. I just wanted to plonk myself down on the sand and soak up the view. The Adirondack chair? Am I the only person earth who finds these uncomfortable? It probably has something to do with my short legs…. But however I came select this, I am enjoying this warm, gentle read.

I am not currently listening to an audiobook, but I have All the Little Hopes by Leah Weiss ready to go.

Deep in the tobacco land of North Carolina, nothing’s the same since the boys shipped off to war and worry took their place. Thirteen-year-old Lucy Brown is curious and clever, but she can’t make sense of it all. Then Allie Bert Tucker comes to town, an outcast with a complicated past, and Lucy believes that together they can solve crimes. Just like her hero, Nancy Drew.

That chance comes when a man goes missing, a woman stops speaking, and an eccentric gives the girls a mystery that takes them beyond the ordinary. Their quiet town, seasoned with honeybees and sweet tea, becomes home to a Nazi prisoner-of-war camp—and more men go missing. The pair set out to answer the big question: do we ever really know who the enemy is?

This week I am planning on reading Stolen by Tess Stimson

You thought she was safe. You were wrong…

Alex knows her daughter would never wander off in a strange place. So when her three-year-old vanishes from an idyllic beach wedding, Alex immediately believes the worast.

The hunt for Lottie quickly becomes a world-wide search, but it’s not long before suspicion falls on her mother. Why wasn’t she watching Lottie?

Alex knows she’s not perfect, but she loves her child. And with all eyes on her, Alex fears they’ll never uncover the truth unless she takes matters into her own hands.

Who took Lottie Martini? And will she ever come home?

And The Noise by James Patterson and J.D. Barker

If you hear it, it’s too late. Can two sisters save us all?

In the shadow of Mount Hood, sixteen-year-old Tennant is checking rabbit traps with her eight-year-old sister Sophie when the girls are suddenly overcome by a strange vibration rising out of the forest, building in intensity until it sounds like a deafening crescendo of screams. From out of nowhere, their father sweeps them up and drops them through a trapdoor into a storm cellar. But the sound only gets worse .

I received 8 new ARCs this week 🤦‍♀️

Lil’s Bus Trip by Judy Leigh – I was excited by this as I have been requesting this author for some time, and this is my first approval.

The Sunshine Club by Carolyn Brown

Darkness Falls by David Mark

The Midnight Hour by Elly Griffiths

Plus Cause of Death by Jeffery Deaver. This is an excellent novella which I read last night. Watch for my review later this week.

The Noise by James Patterson and J.D. Barker which I am reading this week

A Vineyard Crossing by Jean Stone, which I am currently reading

And the audiobook All the Little Hopes by Leah Weiss, which I will start tomorrow.

I have travelled mainly in USA this week, Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; Porto Rico; Chappaquiddick Island, Massachusetts; Martinsville County, also Massachusetts; with side trips to Porthteal,Cornwall; and Hendon, a suburb of London. Where have you travelled this week?

Have you read any of the books I have coming up, or are they on your TBR? Or have I tempted you to add them to your TBR?

Have a wonderful week. Stay safe and keep on reading!❤📚

The Lights of Sugarberry Cove by Heather Webber

EXCERPT: Sadie – ‘… I still have family up that way. My older sister, her husband, and their little boy live up there. And my mother owns a bed-and-breakfast cottage on the lake, and my great-uncle, who’s more like a granddaddy to me, lives and works at the cottage, too.’ I bit my lip to keep from saying any more, from spilling my heart onto the cutting board next to the pecans. Why was I revealing so much?

But I knew why.

The water.

I missed Sugarberry Cove.

I missed my old home.

ABOUT ‘THE LIGHTS OF SUGARBERRY COVE’: Sadie Way Scott has been avoiding her family and hometown of Sugarberry Cove, Alabama since she survived a near-drowning in the lake just outside her mother’s B&B. Eight years later, Sadie is the host of a much-loved show about southern cooking and family, but despite her success, she wonders why she was saved. What is she supposed to do?

Sadie’s sister, Leala Clare, is still haunted by the guilt she feels over the night her sister almost drowned. Now, at a crossroads in her marriage, Leala has everything she ever thought she wanted—so why is she so unhappy?

When their mother suffers a minor heart attack just before Sugarberry Cove’s famous water lantern festival, the two sisters come home to run the inn while she recovers. It’s the last place either of them wants to be, but with a little help from the inn’s quirky guests, the sisters may come to terms with their strained relationships, accept the past, and rediscover a little lake magic.

MY THOUGHTS: How I loved the characters in The Lights of Sugarberry Cove! I wanted to move into Sugarberry Cove and be with them. This is a story of second chances, fresh starts, and the art of recognizing what is really in our hearts.

The story is told from the perspectives of Leala Clare, and Sadie her younger sister, both characters easy to relate to and emphasize with, both strong personalities, as has their mother Susannah. So you just know that there are going to be fireworks! Each one of them thinks that they know what is best for the others, and no one wants to back off.

The other characters – Uncle Camp, Teddy, Bree, Buzzy, Iona, Connor, Will and Tucker – all have their own important roles to play, and all are well portrayed and full-bodied. Each character has their own story and these are all woven together to form an intricate and detailed tapestry designed to delight.

The Lights of Sugarberry Cove is delightful, and entrancing, but I don’t think some of the magical aspects worked quite as well here as they have in this author’s previous books.

There is a lot to love about this read. I loved Sadie’s blog, A Southern Hankerin’, which explores family recipes, and the stories behind them. What a wonderful idea, and I do wish that recipes had been included.

There are lots of life lessons to be taken away from this read, but they work beautifully in with the story so that the reader is not being ‘lectured’. Some of them I have written down in my notebook, well, more than some. Sometimes I need to be reminded to count my blessings, to appreciate my family, my friends.

This story of grief, love, guilt, forgiveness and family will have you reaching for the tissues, but will leave you feeling warm and satisfied.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.4

#TheLightsofSugarberryCove #NetGalley

I: @booksbyheather

T: @BooksbyHeather

#contemporaryfiction #familydrama #fantasy #mystery #paranormal #romance

THE AUTHOR: Heather Webber, aka Heather Blake, is the author of more than twenty-five novels. She loves to read, drink too much coffee and tea, birdwatch, crochet, and bake. She currently lives near Cincinnati, Ohio, and is hard at work on her next book.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge for providing a digital ARC of The Lights of Sugarberry Cove by Heather Webber for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and Goodreads.com

Sunrise

I went to work early yesterday morning as I was going to pick Luke up and take him to his swimming lesson. This was the dawn that greeted me at work…

No Friday funnies this week as haven’t heard from Grumps. I guess that he is busy with his many grandchildren.

A Mother’s Lie by Leah Mercer

EXCERPT: Ali reached into the bag and pulled out a tiny onesie in a soft, buttery yellow. Her heart shifted, and she met Meg’s eyes. Meg was watching her with a smile. ‘I know,’ she said quietly. ‘It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? That the baby inside of you now, will one day – soon! – be in your arms.’ She reached out to touch Ali’s arm. ‘You’ll be her mother, her whole world. You’ll do anything for her.’ She smiled. ‘It’s wonderful, really.’

Ali nodded again, a moment of understanding swirling around them. Meg was right. Ali would do anything to keep her baby safe, away from anyone who might harm her. Wasn’t that the very reason she’d come here? In the midst of this turmoil, her daughter was the most important thing. This pregnancy was special, and no one should ruin that – nothing should ruin that. If Ali focused solely on her baby, she didn’t have to let even one day be darkened by fear or uncertainty.

‘Thank you,’ she said, then turned and went into the night, clutching the yellow onesie like a guiding light.

ABOUT ‘A MOTHER’S LIE’: My darling child… all I’ve ever yearned for. But how do I keep you safe?

When Ali retreats to her seaside cottage, all she wants is to be alone. To reconnect with a place that has always felt like home until her baby is born.

But then her life collides with the people living in the house next door, Michael and Meg, and she is immediately welcomed into their perfect life with their beautiful baby Jem. As they help her prepare for her own arrival, Ali knows she has made the right choice for her baby in returning to Seashine Cottage.

When Michael leaves suddenly for a work trip, and Meg impulsively invites Ali to move in, it becomes clear things aren’t as perfect as they first seemed.

Meg is holding on to a dark secret. And as her behaviour becomes ever more erratic – leaning on Ali for increasing amounts of help – while Michael shows no signs of returning, Ali begins to worry.

Does she need to protect herself and her unborn child from the new friend she thought would help keep her safe? And what about her own devastating secret… the one she’s been running from?

This book was previously titled ‘Safe From Harm’.

MY THOUGHTS: It took me a week to read A Mother’s Lie by Leah Mercer. I found it difficult to relate to the characters of Ali and Meg, even after the revelations. Ali’s and Meg’s stories were dramatic, but almost soap-operaish.

The most interesting facet of this book for me was Violet’s story, which both intrigued me, and broke my heart. Violet seemed very real to me, more so than Meg or Ali.

The story is told over two timelines: in the present by Ali, and 2018 from Violet’s perspective, her past being recalled in memories.

I’m sorry I didn’t like A Mother’s Lie so much, particularly as I loved Leah Mercer’s last offering, Ten Little Words.

I don’t recommend reading this book if you are pregnant.

⭐⭐.7

#AMothersLie #NetGalley

I: @leahmercerauthor @bookouture

T: @LeahMercerBooks @Bookouture

#contemporaryfiction #crime #familydrama #domesticdrama #mentalhealth

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Leah can’t remember a time when she didn’t love writing. From creating fake newspapers to writing letters to the editor, scribbling something was always on the agenda. Even the rejections she received after completing her first novel at age 13 didn’t dent her enthusiasm.

So it makes sense, then, that she pursued a career in anything but writing. Public relations, teaching, recruitment, editing medical journals — even a stint painting houses — until she finally succumbed once more to the lure of the blank page.

When she’s not being jumped on by her young son or burning supper while thinking of plot-lines, Leah can be found furiously tapping away on her laptop, trying not to check Twitter or Facebook.

Leah also writes romantic comedies under the name Talli Roland.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Bookouture via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of A Mother’s Lie by Leah Mercer for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and Goodreads.com

The Dating Duel by Christine Cameron

EXCERPT: ‘Come on. You’re missing this. He’s great.’

I thanked Margaret under my breath as I pulled layers of sparkly tulle around my face and peeked up at the stage. Garth Underwood, aka Jackson Ames, my husband and the reason I didn’t do country music, was too close for comfort. Dark brown hair hanging in soft waves above winter-grey eyes, an open smile and deep dimples you couldn’t help but touch had made him irresistible to me then.

It was still making a good case.

And at the front of the stage, at least a dozen of the women who’d undone another button hoping to catch his eye would find their partners lacking after tonight.

We hadn’t seen each other in five years and time hadn’t hurt him; almost six feet, with broad tattooed shoulders, jeans that fit so tight they should be illegal, and God help me, still wearing that damn hat.

ABOUT ‘THE DATING DUEL’: What are the chances?

Three weeks before her wedding to all-round good guy Kieran, Christy is dragged out for her hen’s night by flatmate and best friend, Sophie. The entertainer is none other than Jackson Ames, the man she met and married in a quickie wedding in Nashville, Tennessee. He was gone in the morning, and she has never seen him again, until now. What is he doing in Glasgow? And why now?

But, most important of all, are they still married?

MY THOUGHTS: Chic-lit is not my normal genre, but I loved this hysterical romp with Christy, Kieran and Jackson. A great alternate title for this would be ‘The Dilemma’, because that’s just what Christy finds herself in.

I loved the characters. Christy is impulsive but kind, and confused. Sophie puts her own life on hold to try and sort out Christy’s love life. But Christy is not the only one who has been keeping secrets; Sophie has a few of her own, and a definite bias towards one Christy’s suitors.

And the men? Well only one of them can win the hand and the heart of the woman they both love. But which will it be? Solid, dependable Kieran, who has dreams Christy knows nothing about? Or the charismatic Jackson, who has never forgotten the woman he married?

The Dating Duel is the third book I have read and loved by this as yet unpublished author. Yes, unpublished! If anyone reading this is in publishing, please take a look at her work. Christine never fails to entertain, amuse and delight me with her writing. It needs to be more widely read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.4

#TheDatingDuel

I: @booksshoeschocolateandcoffee

T: @Cinnamonhill11

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Christine Cameron is an as yet unpublished author who divides her time between Scotland and Crete.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to author Christine Cameron for providing a digital ARC of The Dating Duel for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter and Instagram

The Marriage Mender by Linda Green

EXCERPT: Polly turned to my form. It was only a matter of time before she found out now. I waited, watching her face for the sign. To be fair, she didn’t even flinch.

‘Ah, Alison, I see you’re a counsellor yourself. What sort of areas do you cover?’

I hesitated. Aware how utterly ridiculous it was going to sound. I thought of what Matilda always said when people asked her what her mother did. She called me a ‘marriage mender’. Said I kept people’s mummies and daddies together when they were arguing a lot. My stomach tightened as I wondered what on earth she would think if she could see her marriage-mender mummy right now.

‘Relationships,’ I said to Polly, trying to keep my voice as low and as even as possible. ‘I’m a relationship counsellor.’

The silence hung heavily in the air. Chris put his head in his hands.

I smiled weakly. ‘It is rather ridiculous, isn’t it?’

‘Not at all,’ said Polly. ‘I’m divorced. I’d say that’s more ridiculous.’

ABOUT ‘THE MARRIAGE MENDER’: The only relationship she can’t save is her own . . .
Alison is a marriage counsellor. Her job is to help couples who fear they have reached the end of the line. But the trouble with spending your time sorting out other people’s problems is that you tend to take your eye off your own. Even when her husband’s ex Lydia arrives on the doorstep demanding to see her son, Alison thinks she can handle it. But what Alison doesn’t realise is that Lydia is the one person who has the ability to destroy their perfect family. And sometimes the cracks can run so deep that even a marriage mender can’t repair them . . .

MY THOUGHTS: I read this in one sitting, and I loved every word. The Marriage Mender is beautifully written, it’s characters so very real that it is impossible not to care about them. I felt like I was right there with them as their family life fell apart after Lydia inserts herself back in Chris’ and Josh’s lives while Alison scurries about trying to keep everyone happy and hold everything together.

Dramatic humour abounds. I laughed. I cried. I gasped, both in horror and in astonishment. I threw up my hands in exasperation. I air punched in triumph, and groaned in despair. The Marriage Mender is a very emotive read.

All the way through I was rooting for Chris and Alison’s relationship. I wanted it to work out. They obviously love one another, deeply, passionately. But is that enough?

Complicated family relationships. Humour. Lies. Secrets. A delicious combination with enough twists to keep my mind spinning.

The Marriage Mender is not predictable. The outcome is up in the air until the very final page. A compelling and entertaining read, and one I wholeheartedly recommend.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.7

#TheMarriageMender #NetGalley

I: @lindagreenbooks @quercusbooks

T: @LindaGreenisms @QuercusBooks

#fivestarread #contemporaryfiction #familydrama #mystery #sliceoflife

THE AUTHOR: Linda Green wrote her first novella at age nine. Unfortunately the pony-based, time-travel thriller genre never took off. She did, however, go on to become an award-winning journalist and has written for the Guardian, the Independent on Sunday and The Big Issue. Linda lives in West Yorkshire, is married to a sports photographer for a national newspaper and has a six-year-old son.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Quercus Books via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Marriage Mender by Linda Green for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and Goodreads.com

The Heartwood Hotel by Kerry McGinnis

EXCERPT: ‘By the way, what’s Safi short for?’

‘Saffron,’ he responded. ‘Boy! That takes me back. She hated it – changed it when she was ten, if you can believe it!’ He chuckled suddenly. ‘She was the most pig-headed brat you ever saw. Call her Saffron and she’d just ignore you – even Mum.’

‘So . . . who is she, Charlie?’

There was a brief silence. ‘My – our – sister. I forgot you wouldn’t know. How did you come to hear about her, anyway?’

‘I found her photo. What’s the big mystery, Charlie? How come none of you boys, let alone Mum and Dad, ever mentioned her to me? Did she die?’

ABOUT ‘THE HEARTWOOD HOTEL’: The Heartwood is the core of this district. It always has been so, but it’s still just a building. It’s your family – you and Adam and old Tiger – who animate it, keep the heart beating, so to speak.’

In the abandoned railhead town of Tewinga, now almost a ghost town, Lyn and Adam Portman struggle to keep the Heartwood Hotel afloat. Lyn loves her husband and longs to be a mother. But she’s kept busy caring for her elderly father, her community, and Max, the young worker who reminds her of the brother she’s lost and dearly misses.

When he fails to return from a day trip, Lyn’s concern deepens as the length of his absence grows, the more so with rumours of criminal activity at a nearby station. Meanwhile, a chance meeting uncovers a family bombshell that leaves Lyn reeling. The community must pull together as never before, proving that sometimes the smallest towns have the biggest hearts – and hide the darkest secrets.

MY THOUGHTS: Set in the remote hinterland of Queensland Australia, somewhere between Hamilton and Charters Towers, Tewinga, home to a pub, with petrol, a one man Police Station, a general store and a camp ground, is the setting for this multi-layered outback mystery.

Who is Safi?

Where has Max disappeared to?

What is the secret behind all the wealth at one of the stations?

Tewinga may almost be a ghost town, but there’s always plenty going on. Monthly CWA dances, gossip in the bar. The way everyone pulls together when there’s a crisis. McGinnis has truly captured the spirit of the outback. I felt right at home here. The characters are so real that I’m sure I’ve met some of them on my travels.

An author I will be reading more of.

⭐⭐⭐.8

#TheHeartwoodHotel

I: #kerrymcginnis #penguinbooksaus

T: @PenguinBooksAus

#australianfiction #crime #familydrama #mystery

THE AUTHOR: Kerry McGinnis was born in Adelaide and, at the age of twelve, took up a life of droving with her father and three siblings. The family travelled extensively across the Northern Territory and Queensland before settling on a station in the Gulf Country. Kerry has worked as a shepherd, droving hand, gardener, stock-camp and station cook, eventually running a property at Bowthorn, near Mount Isa. She is the author of two volumes of memoir and now lives in Bundaberg.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to fellow Waitomo District Library Book Club members, Betty and Elsie, for recommending The Heartwood Hotel by Kerry McGinnis. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Instagram and Goodreads.com

Watching What I’m Reading . . .

After an absolutely beautiful summery (yes, even though it is the middle of winter here in New Zealand) morning, the wind is now whipping the trees, the temperature has dropped and rain is threatening. Of course,I was at work all morning….but at least the washing dried.

Where have you all travelled this week? I am currently in Sugarberry Cove, Alabama, courtesy of Heather Webber’s The Lights of Sugarberry Cove. It is an entertaining read and I really didn’t want to leave this wonderful family this morning to go to work.

I am still in the USA somewhere, I can’t pinpoint the location so if anyone can help me out here I would be grateful, listening to False Witness by Karin Slaughter.

Ànd I am also popping into Fairview near Hastings, England with Leah Mercer and A Mother’s Lie.

I have also been to the East Anglian Fens, Midgley/Hebden also near Hastings, England, and the Australian Central Queensland outback.

This week I am planning on reading The Dating Duel by Christine Cameron, an author ARC.

and The Butterfly Garden by Sophie Anderson which is requested after reading Carla’s wonderful review. (carlalovestoread.wordpress.com)

I blamed my son for the death of my daughter…

When twenty-five-year-old Erin flees London for Cornwall and takes a job at Hookes End, a huge house clinging precariously to the Cornish cliffs, all she knows about it are the stories people tell. The owner, reclusive novelist and butterfly enthusiast Maggie, has kept the curtains of her dusty house drawn for many years. But now she is dying, and Erin, seeing the shadows that cross Maggie’s face, wants to help in any way she can.

Years ago, Maggie’s only son Lucas ran away to the other side of the world and the searing heat of the Costa Rican jungle. Maggie is desperate to see Lucas again – there is something she needs him to know.

Erin wants to help Maggie find peace. But when she travels to the warm white sands and tropical butterfly gardens of Costa Rica to find Lucas, it becomes very clear that he is hiding something too.

As Erin unravels the webs of deceit entangling mother and son, she learns about the terrible tragedy that changed their lives forever: the night when a little girl in a fairy nightdress went missing. But with Maggie’s time fast running out, is it too late for them to find the forgiveness they need to move on?

What are you planning on reading this week?

I have three new ARCs this week: The New Home by Chris Merritt

The Unusual Abduction of Avery Conifer by Isla Evans

And Before She Disappeared by Lisa Gardner

Have you read any of these, or do you have them on your reading list?

Have a wonderful week everyone! I am heading back to Sugarberry Cove B & B to find out what is happening……

The Perfect Guests by Emma Rous

EXCERPT: January 2019
Wendy is as good as her word, and the Raven Hall invitation is delivered to Sadie’s flat the next day, along with an incredibly chic, old-fashioned suitcase with Sadie Langton printed on the luggage label. Sadie studies the front of the heavily embossed card: ‘You are cordially invited to play a game at Raven Hall.’ She flips it over to read the details: ‘Saturday 19th January. Chauffeur to collect you 5:00 p.m. Drinks in the drawing room from 7:00 p.m. Dinner and the game to commence 7:30 p.m. in the dining hall.’ Beneath this is a handwritten line in looping blue ink: ‘Thank you so much for agreeing to join us – it will be a weekend to remember!’

ABOUT ‘THE PERFECT GUESTS’: A very quick read that hooked me almost immediately. The Perfect Guests takes place over two timelines.

1988: Beth is an orphaned teenager who is fostered out to a couple with a daughter of a similar age, Nina. They live at Raven Hall.

2019: Sadie, a struggling actress, is offered the very well paid role of a guest at a murder-mystery weekend at….Raven Hall.

The story is told from the perspectives of Beth and Sadie, and occasionally from that of another character, whose identity is not revealed until over halfway through the book.

I really liked this book initially, it swept me along, my feelings of apprehension and anticipation skyrocketing. But then it all began to get a bit untidy, repetitive, and a little loose, for lack of a better word. It started to lack cohesion, became a bit random and awkward. And the ending? Yeah, okay, I might have rated it a little higher if it were not for ‘The Return to Raven Hall’ – the last two chapters were just a step too far.

BUT, I will be interested to see what this author comes up with next.

⭐⭐⭐.2

#ThePerfectGuests #NetGalley

I: @emmarousaithor @littlebrownbookgroup_uk

T: @EJRous @LittleBrownUK

#contemporaryfiction #crime #domesticdrama #mystery #suspense

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Emma grew up in England, Indonesia, Kuwait, Portugal and Fiji, and from a young age she had two ambitions: to write stories, and to look after animals. She studied veterinary medicine and zoology at the University of Cambridge, then worked as a small animal veterinary surgeon for eighteen years before starting to write fiction. Emma lives near Cambridge in England with her husband and three sons, and her rescue dog and cat.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Little Brown Book Group UK for providing a digital ARC of The Perfect Guests by Emma Rous for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and Goodreads.com

Friday Funnies . . .

• 

  Photo by Flickr on Pexels.com

Courtesy, as always of my Aussie mate, Grumps.

A Sign in a shoe repair store: 

We will heel you  
We will save your sole  
We will even dye for you. 
 

In a Podiatrist’s office:    
“Time wounds all heels.”  
 

On a Septic Tank Truck: 
Yesterday’s Meals on Wheels 
 

At an Optometrist’s Office:  
“If you don’t see what you’re looking for,  
You’ve come to the right place.”  
 

On a Plumber’s truck :  
“We repair what your husband fixed.” 
 

On another Plumber’s truck: 
“Don’t sleep with a drip. Call your plumber.” 
 

At a Tyre Shop in Milwaukee:  
“Invite us to your next blowout.” 
 

On an Electrician’s truck:  
“Let us remove your shorts.”; 
 

In a Non-smoking Area:  
“If we see smoke, we will assume you are on fire and will take appropriate action.”  
 

On a Maternity Room door:  
“Push. Push. Push.” 
 

At a Car Dealership: 
“The best way to get back on your feet – miss a car payment.” 
 

Outside a Muffler Shop:  
“No appointment necessary. We hear you coming.” 
 

In a Veterinarian’s waiting room: 
“Be back in 5 minutes. Sit! Stay!” 
 

At the Electric Company:  
“We would be delighted if you send in your payment on time. 
However, if you don’t, YOU will be de-lighted.” 
 

In a Restaurant window:  
“Don’t stand there and be hungry; come on in and get fed up.”  
 

In the front yard of a Funeral Home: 
“Drive carefully. We’ll wait.” 
 

At a Propane Filling Station: 
“Thank Heaven for little grills.” 
 

In a Chicago Radiator Shop:  
“Best place in town to take a leak.” 
 

And the best one for last:

Sign on the back of another Septic Tank Truck: 
“Caution – This Truck is full of Political Promises”

Have a happy weekend!