‘The perfect book to take on holiday!’ Pretty Little Book Reviews on Summer at 23 The Strand Escape to the seaside this summer! When Cara Howard’s husband passes away, she and her teenage daughter, Mae, are left with nothing except their beloved family home at Cove End.Overlooking the sparkling sea, Cara decides to renovate the house in time for the summer season, turning it into a gorgeous bed and breakfast for visiting tourists.But with the arrival of the B&B’s first guests and secrets tumbling out of the closets, it’s clear that everything could be about to change for Cara and Mae… Could this summer heal their hearts for good? A wonderfully uplifting holiday read, perfect for fans of Lilly Bartlett, Tilly Tennant and Eve Devon.

    Jilted in love, she needs a fresh start in her hometown. But she has no intention of offering beer, bait, and a bathroom to the fishing crowd. Appalled by their tacky windbreakers and baseball caps, Shasta resolves to bring the local fishing crowd high quality outdoor apparel. She may not know walleye from hip waders, but that doesn’t stop her from pouring her money and her heart into reinventing a bait shop and believing she knows what fishermen should want. While Shasta waits for customers to pull out their credit cards for her fancy vests and cashmere-lined gloves, Roger Shelton ties his aging fishing boat to her dock. A cop and weekend fisherman who rivals Mr. Darcy in reticence, he’s the opposite of the effusive petite blonde hawking overpriced apparel at the store where the sign still says “Bait Shop.” Although Roger’s general policy is staying out of everyone else’s business and letting them make their own mistakes, he’s intrigued by Shasta and her enthusiasm for offering advice to everyone—whether they want it or not. As the summer passes, Shasta gets fishing lessons from Roger’s brother and learns hard truths about what customers in her hometown want from the shop by the river. As she gradually adds minnows, bait, and a dreaded porta-john for the pleasure of the local fishermen, she also takes on another challenge: melting the ice around Roger Shelton’s carefully guarded heart.

    Embarking on a trip to the sunny beaches of Florida to care for her aging and eccentric aunt, Lydia wrestles with her own demons as she tries to build better relationships with her gossiping aunt and her troubled daughter.But when she stumbles upon the handsome and alluring Richard, she’s forced to question everything she knows about love. Richard is perfect in every way… but the thought of abandoning her husband, no matter how chaotic their marriage has become, gives her doubts.Can Lydia make the impossible choice between her shattered past and her hopes for a stable future? And can she find her dream romance on the sunny beaches of Miami?This heartwarming and wholesome romance collection will take you away on a beautiful trip to a beach where true love is possible and anyone can build a new life. With a host of eclectic characters and a gorgeous setting, the Miami Beach Series is one you won’t soon forget. Scroll up and grab your copy today!This is Book 5 of 5 in the series.

    Ellie and her twin daughters, Marie and Jessica, each have decisions to make as they forge new futures and let go of their past. They all know that the choices they make will impact on the whole family. Set in a beautiful Cotswold town these stories follow three contemporary women as they find their own way in life, maintain family bonds, and come to terms with change, endings and new beginnings. The Vintage Tea Room books contained in this collection: The Vintage Tea Room: end of an era and new beginnings When Ellie decides to sell the tea room she didn’t bank on her twin daughters showing up with ideas of their own. Ellie has been running the tea room for more than twenty years. Her daughters have both left home - Jessica is married and expecting her first child and Marie has built a successful career. She is ready for change and to leave the past behind however, her daughters are not. They still want the security of having their family home as a base to return to and yet seem reluctant to help with the day to day tasks of running the business. To complicate matters further Ellie meets Michael. She was not looking to meet a man but life occasionally throws in a few surprises. Maybe now is the right time to change more than just her work. Set in the beautiful Cotswold town of Cirencester the first book in the Vintage Tea Room series is a story of a mother ready to move on and forge a new future for herself and of her daughters who are not yet ready to let go of their past. If you enjoy reading about contemporary women finding their own way in life you will love this story of a family coming to terms with both endings and beginnings. The Vintage Tea Room 2: room for a small one Jessica is determined to put her stamp on the tea room by baking and offering a range of Artisan breads. She plans to launch the new menu before the arrival of her first baby – in less than one month. Jessica and Edward have recently taken over the tea room. Jessica soon realises that the customers love everything her mum has created – they do not want change - however, she wants to add something of her own. She decides that, despite having limited experience of baking, she is going to make bread. When her initial attempts do not turn out well it looks like she may have to rethink her plans. Even though Jessica has not yet prepared for the arrival of the baby she is convinced she still has plenty of time to get her new venture off the ground. Babies, however, have a habit of foiling even the best laid plans. The second book in the Vintage Tea Room series is a story of a young woman’s determination, with the help and support of her family, to make a success of her new business. The Vintage Tea Room 3: changing times and new opportunities Marie has a decision to make – take the job in Copenhagen and move away from her family or give up on her dream of being at the top of the advertising industry. When Marie arrives back in Cirencester for her mother’s wedding she can’t wait to share the news of her new job with her twin sister, Jessica. To Marie’s surprise Jessica is less than enthusiastic and gives her reason to wonder if now is the right time for such a move. Marie does not want to burden her mum with news of her job or the reason she is having second thoughts. She confides in Adam, the temporary chef at the tea room. Despite being unsympathetic he may have the solution to her problem.

    

    Save the galaxy. All in a hard day's work.  After 10 years of wandering the outer rim of the galaxy, Eddie Teach is a man without a purpose. He was one of the toughest pilots in the Federation, but now he's just a regular guy, getting into bar fights and making a difference wherever he can. It's not the same as flying a ship and saving colonies, but it'll have to do. That is, until General Lance Reynolds tracks Eddie down and offers him a job. There are bad people out there, plotting terrible things, killing innocent people, and destroying entire colonies. Someone has to stop them. Experience this exciting military sci-fi saga and the latest addition to the expanded Kurtherian Gambit universe. If you're a fan of Mass Effect, Firefly, or Star Wars, you'll love this riveting new space opera. This digital box set contains four exciting, action-packed books. Formation: Eddie, along with the genetically-enhanced combat pilot, Julianna Fregin, and her trusty E.I. named Pip, must recruit a diverse team of specialists, both human and alien. They'll need to master their new Q-Ship, one of the most powerful strike ships ever constructed. And finally, they'll have to stop a faceless enemy so powerful, it threatens to destroy the entire Federation.Exploration: Eddie and Julianna are hell bent on tracking down Vas and making him pay for his crimes. He’s armed and dangerous, and to make matters worse, he’s on the hunt for a devastating weapon that could bring destruction to the Federation and all its people.Evolution: After striking a serious blow to the Brotherhood, Eddie and Julianna have learned the name of their enemy: Felix Castile. He is a man of fortune, power, and madness, and his revenge is coming.Castile won’t be deterred so easily. His armory is already restocked and his resolve to take General Reynolds down reinforced. However, this evil mastermind makes a big mistake when he allows Knox Gunnerson to escape.Degeneration: No one is safe from Felix Castile who has the means to change the Federation, and not in a good way. Eddie and Julianna may not always see eye to eye, but they agree on one thing.  They will die to protect the general.  No matter the cost, no matter the sacrifice, one thing is certain. The Federation cannot be allowed to fall. Note: If cursing is a problem, then this might not be for you.

    

    Its task for the past six months has been reconnaissance and surveillance. The biggest danger the crew faced was running out of olives for their pizza. That all changed one morning, four days before the end of the Hampton’s tour. Halfway through the Captain’s first morning coffee, every system on the submarine shut down. No navigation, no communication, and no defensive measures. Within minutes, the sub began a terrifying descent through the murky greys and blacks of the deep Atlantic and settled to the ocean floor off the coast of Cuba and perilously close to the sub’s crush depth. When it missed its mandated contact, an emergency call went out to retired Navy intel officer, Zeke Rowe, top of his field before a botched mission left him physically crippled and psychologically shaken. Rowe quickly determined that the sub was the victim of a cybervirus secreted inside the sub’s top secret operating systems. What Rowe couldn’t figure out was who did it or how to stop it sinking every other submarine in the American fleet. Kali Delamagente is a struggling over-the-hill grad student who entered a DARPA cybersecurity competition as a desperate last hope to fund a sophisticated artificial intelligence she called Otto. Though her presentation imploded, she caught the attention of two people: a terrorist intent on destroying America and a rapt Dr. Zeke Rowe. An anonymous blank check to finish her research is quickly followed by multiple break-ins to her lab, a hack of her computer, the disappearance of her three-legged dog, and finally the kidnapping of her only son. By all measures, Rowe and Delamagente are an unlikely duo. Rowe believes in brawn and Delamagente brains. To save the America they both love, they find a middle ground, guided with the wisdom of a formidable female who died two million years ago. About the Author: J Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy. She is the author/editor of over a hundred books on integrating tech into education, adjunct professor of technology in education, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for TeachHUB, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, monthly contributor to Today’s Author and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. You can find her book at her publisher’s website, Structured Learning.

     When Cairo’s brother is snatched off the streets of Berlin it triggers a fast-paced hunt to locate an old Nazi map and discover the final resting place of the Staff of Moses. With her brother’s life hanging in the balance, Cairo must decipher devilish clues and battle a ruthless foe if she is to locate one of the oldest treasures on earth and save him. From English country mansions to Washington DC, from the canals of Venice to the slums of Kiev and beyond, this Joe Hawke-style adventure delivers a non-stop, rip-roaring chase as Cairo and her team step up to the fight of their lives. Working together, they soon realize they’re in a deadly race to find a far more notorious treasure, and along the way they discover an even more horrifying Nazi secret that threatens the lives of millions of people.

     Returning to the village where she grew up, Scarlett starts to put down new roots, working as a teacher at the primary school and throwing herself into rural life. When she’s not sorting out playground wars between competitive parents, making carrot costumes for Harvest Festival, or trying to avoid her mother’s well-intentioned but disastrous attempts at match-making, life is pretty good. All that changes after a series of anonymous phone calls and messages start to arrive, and Scarlett finds her comfortable new life under threat. When her husband, Luke, makes a sudden reappearance in Little Knollside, she hopes she can finally put the past, and the sinister threats she’s been getting, behind her. But when a terrible accident leaves Ava’s life hanging in the balance, and it seems that new boyfriend, Cam, is the only person Scarlett can trust, her past comes back to haunt her in a way she could never have imagined. Formerly published as ‘You, Me And The Class of 2003’ in February 2019.

    Life was going Boone’s way almost perfectly lately: he had plenty of healthy cattle, loyal and hardworking ranch hands, and he was able to work day in and day out with his younger brother, Bryce, by his side. His cowboy dream had come true and he wanted nothing, not even a woman, to alter the state of things. So when a terrified and enchantingly beautiful woman stumbles onto his ranch and begs him to bring her to safety, Boone does what is right and bravely defends her from a posse of brutes. Boone assumes he can help the poor woman and be done with the whole inconvenience in the same night, but try as he might, he can’t deny that Ally Winters has already found a way into his heart. Will Boone’s stubbornness and painful past demand that he stick to his simple life and avoid change? Or will Ally Winters spin his world upside down and show Boone what life and love are really about? Please enjoy Boone’s Bride, a sweet, clean, historical western romance.

    She left Queensbay, determined to leave her past behind. Now, after a mysterious inheritance she's back in town. And she's determined to make a new home for herself. Jake Owen's never forgotten his time with Colleen. It might have been ten years ago, but no one - no woman - has ever quite measured up. But he was - and is - a small town guy. And he wasn't good enough for her then. But can he show her that small town doesn't mean small time? Will he convince her that a small town guy holds the key to her heart - and her happiness? Find out if Jake Owen can win over Colleen McShane in book 6 of Drea Stein's Queensbay series.

    She suddenly decides it can. So she's making a list, and checking it twice - but it's not about who's been naughty or nice - it's to help her plan the perfect Christmas. Not for herself, but for her widowed mum, Samantha. And Halleday believes that what will really make Sam's Christmas perfect ... is a man to share it with.Arranging a surprise party for Sam's forty-ninth birthday five days before Christmas, and finding a selection of single men to attend is easy. Persuading Sam to take time out from the family farm for a complete makeover will be more difficult. And that's not the only problem - Sam hasn't worn a dress for years and no one can remember the last time she went on a date.But Halleday is determined. She'll get her mum a new man no matter what it takes and, with the help of her gran, Ruby, and best friend, Jasmine, she's sure she'll pull it off. This Christmas will be perfect because Halleday's made the perfect plan. Sam will receive the gift of love this Christmas whether she wants it or not. But ... will she be the only one?

    Amelia plans to stay only as long as it takes for her friend to marry. She has no interest in a life in Montana. That is, until she meets handsome lawman, Wilder Armstrong. And then everything changes. Wilder is on the trail of a criminal and travels to Montana Falls to see that justice is done. He doesn't bank on meeting the one woman who will persuade him that Montana just might be a place to settle down forever. Nor can Wilder let the best friend of the woman he has fallen for marry the very man he is investigating. Can two people united by destiny find true happiness? Can an instant attraction become an eternal love? Each story in the series is a full length complete standalone novel with a happy ending and no cliffhangers.

    While Matt is planning his lavish wedding to his model fiancée, James has vowed to have nothing to do with women ever again. So, when Great Aunt Milly dies and leaves her one-million pound share portfolio to whichever of the boys first marries and has a child, it's assumed the fortune will go to Matt. But add to the mix a sex-mad German, a gorgeous photographer, a matchmaking mother, and one very pampered pooch, and things don't run quite as smoothly as Matt would like ...