Love You From A-Z - Linda Corbett

 

Experience has told Jenna Oakhurst that Happy Ever After may happen in all the best stories, but Happy For Now is the best one ought to expect in real life. Yet lately even that isn’t quite enough, so when a strange set of circumstances leads her to discover a mysterious letter in an abandoned storage unit, she takes the chance to embark on a journey into the unknown…just like the heroines from the storybooks.

Reaching out to the letter’s author, Henry Somners, changes Jenna’s world irrevocably and she starts to realise that the magic she believed in as a child might not be such a fanciful notion after all…

Purchase Link -mybook.to/LoveYouFromAToZ

My Review:

Love You from A-Z is a cosy read that is a hug in book form. I didn’t know what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised, it had loveable (and not so loveable) characters of human and furry variety – Jenna is our leading lady and is very organised and safe; she doesn’t want a life of risk but her partner seems to be the complete opposite and gets himself (and her) into risky, silly situations that she has absolutely nothing to do with but will always have to deal with the consequences. With each disaster or risk Jenna starts to realise they aren’t on the same page after all.

Soon Jenna finds herself in a whole different situation as well as living arrangement, but the positive in this is that she gets to meet Henry. He is confident, adventurous (in a good way) and could provide a more stable future but she really doesn’t know if he is just for fun right now or if it could work out in the long term.

Henry provides romance, safety and allows her to support her sister who’s guinea pig rescue is at risk. He learns the adjustments Jenna needs and brings her such happy times; it all seems too good to be true.

Jenna and her sister soon learn that appearances can be deceptive, but is there more to it than they think?

It is really refreshing to read a story with a main character with a disability, who needs an element of organisation and pre-planning in their lives yet still would like to experience things able bodied people do. Jenna is a good character and she wants it all, safety, security, romance and even adventure – she doesn’t want her disability to define her. The stories focus isn’t on her disability but is cleverly woven into it.

A lovely read with interesting characters and funny moments that will make you see guinea pigs in a new light.

Author Bio:

Linda Corbett lives in Surrey with her husband Andrew and three permanently hungry guinea pigs. As well as being an author, Linda is treasurer for Shine Surrey – a volunteer-led charity that supports individuals and families living with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. For many years she also wrote a regular column for Link, a disability magazine, illustrating the humorous aspects of life with a complex disability and she is a passionate advocate of disability representation in fiction. When not writing, Linda can be found papercrafting, cross stitching, or cuddling guinea pigs. Love You From A-Z is her first published novel.

Social Media Links –

Twitter:                https://twitter.com/lcorbettauthor

Instagram:          @lindacorbettauthor

www.facebook.com/lindacorbettauthor

Dear Rosie Hughes - Melanie Hudson

Available to order on Amazon

From Goodreads:

It’s been fifteen years since Aggie’s friendship with Rosie Hughes ended abruptly. But now she’s heard from the village rumour mill that Rosie is off to war, she knows her best friend needs her more than ever – despite what’s happened between them in the past.

As Rosie faces a desert full of danger and Aggie falls further from the path to love she’ so wants, the two friends write each other letters. The comfort in their shared words is an anchor to the life they knew before…and the only constant in a world as increasingly unpredictable as the wind.

My Review:

This is one of those books that will stay in my mind for a while. I don’t know what I was expecting but I got way more than I bargained for (in a brilliant way). I need to be careful as I don’t want to give anything away. You may believe it will the predictable story of lost friendships and renewed love, but it is more, and in my opinion, very well done. I had visions of how the story would go, and found myself surprised -at times.

The story is told through a series of letters, messages and emails, unusual but brilliant – it made me pay attention, focus on who was saying what and think about how their stories were playing out. I love the attention to detail and the little ‘tit-bits’ of back story every so often, enough to make you try and put the pieces in place but not too much to reveal it all in one go. I liked this, and I was eager to know why these two best friends, that seemed to slot back into each other’s lives very easily, could ever lose that relationship.  
 
I think the friendship between Rosie and Aggie was wonderfully written, funny and emotional. Aggie has a great sense of humour and is a character that I would love to have as a friend – cheerful and positive yet reassuring and full of love. Although she is outwardly confident, she does have a vulnerable and sensitive side, she’s really looking for love and has a difficult relationship with her Mum. Rosie strikes me as vulnerable too yet given the circumstances she’s showing how tough she can be.

With an eclectic mix of additional characters, you will read some light-hearted and comedic moments whilst overall the story shows how everyone has the capacity for kindness, love and that we all may find ourselves in a situation that leaves us feeling vulnerable and  in need of the care, loyalty and support of their loved ones.  I think some characters could have been included and developed more whilst some seemed a little redundant and a little unnecessary, but it didn’t ruin or distract.

 ‘Dear Rosie Hughes’ is a great read that I highly recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Impulse for allowing me an advanced copy to read so to provide an honest review.

He Wrote Her Every Day: A true story of love & courage in WW2 - Gail Lindenberg

Available on Amazon here 

In 1944, James William Hendrickson, Jr  received the news that his fighter-pilot brother, Bill, had been shot down over Germany and taken as a prisoner-of-war. Then and there, Jim decided to enlist and bring his brother home even though that would mean leaving his new wife, Irene, behind. He made her a promise - he would write to her every day while he was away.  Gail Lindenberg, their daughter, uses the original letters as well as conversations with her mother to dramatically retell their story - how one man was determined to survive the horrors of the Second World War to get back to the woman he loved. For me, this was so much more than a simple love story. Firstly we do see the pure love and devotion of one man to his wife, you can feel the adoration he has for her in the notes he wrote, you get the sense of her being his beacon of light in times that we know would have been hellish.

There is more though, a first hand glimpse into the lives these soldiers had to lead on a daily basis albeit from the perspective of finding 'lighter' things to write home to his wife about and not detailing the absolute horror he must have been encountering. 
As I read through the letters and retelling of his story,  I really was captivated by the unique descriptions of being in the army, his training and time spent travelling but also the camaraderie between soldiers that gave me a smile and is true testament to the strength of character Jim and his fellow officers had. 

This is a well written and cleverly put together memoir that lets us experience the war from a different perspective whilst giving us a beautiful story of love, separation and heroism. 
I received a free electronic copy of this from Netgalley, Gail Lindenberg, and Sapere Books in exchange for an honest review. 
 

Comfy Rating: 👍👍👍👍👍