Billy and Me - Giovanna Fletcher

Sophie May has a secret.

One that she's successfully kept for years.  It's meant that she's had to give up her dreams of going to university and travelling the world to stay in her little village, living with her mum and working in the local teashop.  

But then she meets the gorgeous Billy- an actor with ambitions to make it to the top.  And when they fall in love, Sophie is whisked away from the comfort of her life into Billy's glamorous - but ruthless - world.

Their relationship throws Sophie right into the spotlight after years of shying away from attention.  Can she handle the constant scrutiny that comes with being with Billy?  And most of all, is she ready for her secret heartbreak to be discovered and shred with the nation?

I have to say I was a little apprehensive picking up this book knowing it had been written by an actress and journalist married to a pop star- would it really be as good as everyone was saying?  YES!  Giovanna has a lovely writing style and even though I wasn't drawn in completely for the first chapter I still wanted to read more and by the time Molly was introduced and Sophie landed her job at the teashop I was hooked.  The words flew off the page and even though the secret was nothing like I was expecting (although equally devastating) it was written very cleverly.  I liked the way Giovanna introduced other characters who added to the story but weren't essential and gave enough info without the need to fully introduce them.  

An excellent read. 

10/10

The Cult - Dariya Wilcox

January 1999: Cecelia Chase starts a job at the Institute, an organisation based near Mount Fuji. Her employer conducts research into deadly diseases. 

As the sultry Japanese summer approaches, Cecelia falls in love with Richard, a scientist co-worker. Their passionate affair threatens to distract her from the truth: her employer is a doomsday cult, co-workers have disappeared, and she has a peculiar feeling that she is being watched. One thing becomes clear: unless she does something, many people are going to die.

I read this book in 1 day and for those that know me know this is an extremely rare occurrence but the story was fast paced so I wanted to keep going and I really enjoyed reading this book, I found the insight into Japanese culture really interesting and the darker side fascinating as well and it complemented the story nicely.  The plot was great and had me eating up the pages to find out what was going to happen although I did feel the end and climax of the story came very quickly.  Some of the characters are really evil and written fantastically and I was constantly willing Cecelia and Richard to succeed making this a great thriller with a bit of romance on the side.  

8/10

Thanks to Dariya for sending me the book in return for an honest review, I will look forward to reading more.

You can buy The Cult here.

Fear the Worst - Linwood Barclay

Suppose you come to pick up your daughter from her job- and find that no one has heard of her and she's never worked there.  If she hasn't been working all day, what has she been doing?

Tim Blake's teenage daughter Sydney is staying with him while she works a summer job at a hotel.  But when one day she fails to arrive home from her shift and the staff at the hotel say they have no Sydney Blake working there, he begins to see his life going into freefall.

What could have made her step out of her life without leaving a trace?  Only one thing convinces Tim that the worst hasn't already happened- the fact that some very scary people seem just as eager to find her.

The question is: who's going to find her first?

This is the second book I've read by Linwood Barclay and it was a very good read, the characters are really well developed, the suspense is there although at times it does take a while to get to the point or next part of the plot.  I could identify with Tim and his frustrations with his ex wife, her new man, the police not believing him and his desperation to get his daughter back.  There are, as expected lots of twists and turns throughout the book, I did figure out a few seconds before I read the ending what was going to happen.  

7/10

You've Never Read....?!

For this post I was lucky enough to be asked to write something for the lovely Kate over at Books with Bunny, so to find out why I've never read Jane Eyre, click HERE

Thanks for having me Kate it was a blast, you can find Kate's fabulous blog here, she is also on Facebook and Twitter @bookswithbunny