What I read in April
Two quite lovely, quite emosh book recs
*Just a little post this week, and this one is scheduled because I’ve got stuff on, but much like what keeps me learning French with Duolingo, I wanted to keep my streak!*
This Spring (my second favourite season, in case you were wondering) has been uncharacteristically chilly here on the south coast, but the bluebells are out, and the cygnets have hatched, so that’s magic. And my husband and I have been taking a lot of lovely evening walks now the days are longer. Anyway, here’s a little peek into my Kindle for April.
The Love of My Life - Rosie Walsh
Lisa Jewell called it dazzling, and my dudes, she was not wrong.
Emma loves her husband Leo and their young daughter Ruby: she’d do anything for them. But almost everything she's told them about herself is a lie.
And she might just have got away with it, if it weren’t for her husband’s job. Leo is an obituary writer and Emma is a well-known marine biologist. So, when she suffers a serious illness, Leo copes by doing what he knows best – reading and writing about her life. But as he starts to unravel her past, he discovers the woman he loves doesn’t really exist. Even her name is a fiction.
When the very darkest moments of Emma’s past life finally emerge, she must somehow prove to Leo that she really is the woman he always thought she was . . . But first, she must tell him about the love of her other life.
I devoured this book. Rosie Walsh has this incredible ability to write love stories like they are thrillers and just like The Man Who Didn’t Call, this had my heart racing and I stayed up far too late finishing it. It’s pacy, twisty and intriguing. I also really love it when a writer highlights unexpected and unassuming places. It piques my interest, and now I want to visit Northumberland and see Coquet Island for myself.
You should read this book. And, if you haven’t read The Man Who Didn’t Call, well, you should read that, too.
The Dinner List - Rebecca Serle
What if your dream dinner party were to actually happen? For New Yorker Sabrina, fantasy becomes reality when she arrives at her thirtieth-birthday celebration to find not only her best friend but also her long-dead father, her admired philosophy professor, the love of her life - and silver-screen icon Audrey Hepburn. Unbelievable though this may seem, as the wine and conversation start to flow it becomes clear that these individuals have each played a crucial role in the course Sabrina's life has taken - and that they have come together at this moment in time for a reason...
Another book I really enjoyed having previously read In Five Years.
It’s a cool premise - who hasn’t thought about their dream dinner party? And I loved the whimsy of having Audrey Hepburn in attendance. And here’s the thing, I didn’t find the love interest particularly likeable, but the story was written so well that I didn’t see the twist coming, and when it did, it was like a punch to the heart. Actually, I was going to say how it made me feel, but that would be akin to a spoiler. And much like The Love of My Life, I really do recommend you read this book!
In querying news: 3 rejections. One that really bruised to be honest. All initial queries - no news on the fulls.
I have had another idea though, something that came from an interaction I saw at my co-work space. Think The Startup Wife x The Hating Game. I’m gonna do it; I’m gonna write a romcom about a pair of rival tech startup CEOs. Competing IP and a shitload of chemistry!
That’s it for this week. Told you it was just a little one. Bye! x