The Paradise Hotel

 The Paradise Hotel

Tricia Stringer

Reviewed by Helen

Tricia Stringer has again taken me on a fabulous journey this time to a resort in the Kimberly’s and we meet up with Kathleen and Omar and meet some new characters, woman who are strong and caring come along and take a break with Kathleen, Beatrice and Nelda and the other fabulous characters.
Nelda is the manager of a luxury Kimberly resort and things have been a bit hard for a while now and she is a bit stressed and it can show in her mannerisms with the staff, she does have a lot on her plate and then when wealthy philanthropist, Beatrice Foreston arrives and her boss the owner Gerrard impresses upon her to ensure Beatrice is very well looked after this adds to her problems then Gerrard hires a new temporary assistant manager Kathleen and her partner Omar as a maintenance worker who Nelda is convinced will not work out and Gerrard has also dropped the bombshell that he is selling the resort and that a spy will be there checking the resort out for a potential buyer, that is the worse thought because Nelda’s secret could be uncovered and destroy the resort that she has worked at since it opened, can things get any worse for her?
As the days go by Kathleen is working out better than Nelda thought but she has big doubts about Omar when medical assistance is needed, and could Beatrice be the spy and when she thinks Kathleen is uncovering things Nelda must open up and Beatrice is there to hear all, this gives Beatrice a chance to help and get her mojo back after all she has been through and Kathleen as well is putting her past behind her and the three woman soon are making things right and bring this group of workers who really become family back together is such a lovely way.
I loved this one from start to finish, the setting, the characters and the story all come together with emotion and lots of ups and downs, I loved Kathleen and Omar in The Road Trip and I am so glad to have caught up with them again, Beatrice and Nelda both are woman who go out there and do what is needed, I do highly recommend this one another one for the keeper shelf.
My thanks to HQ Fiction and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 29, 2026 by HQ Fiction

The Cairo Bridal Shop

 The Cairo Bridal Shop

Tess Woods

Reviewed by Helen

This one took me a bit to get into at first, but it wasn’t long before I was getting to know the three sisters of The Albi Bridal Boutique set at the base of the pyramids in Cairo, Sarah, Aya and Lola and how their lives would change so drastically, the story is told by Sohiela the woman who has been with firstly their grandmother then mother and then them, come along for a trip to Egypt.

Mariam Albi the mother of three beautiful girls has designed six wedding dresses named for the female pharaoh kings but when she is killed tragically the running of the shop is taken over by Sarah the eldest daughter with the help of seamstress Sohiela, life is not easy for Sarah with her husband and his mother but still the shop keeps going and does well.

Aya is a political journalist and that can be a very dangerous position in Egypt these days but she is writing a story that is sure to make a name for her in the world of journalism but when one of her co-workers the Egyptian born/Australian Gamal is arrested after piece he has written Aya will risk her life to save the man she loves.

Lola is an arts student at university the youngest of the girls who has been keeping a secret and she is trying to find herself and when she start to find that person she also now finds herself in grave danger, will she lose the people she loves the most?

This story is written from the heart of the author who is Egyptian born herself, I don’t understand a lot of the Egyptian ways or language but was pulled into the story and there are some awesome characters in this book that I really felt for that being the girls and Sohiela but there are some not to snice people in this book who show that the world needs to change, I did very much enjoy this story and the emotions that come from the story telling that is so very good. I would recommend this one to anyone who loves a book that digs deep into family and love and loves a bit of history about the pyramids and the pharaohs.

4 stars

September 1, 2026 by Penguin Books Australia

The Frock Shop

 The Frock Shop

Sophie Green

Reviewed by Helen

This is another brilliant story from Sophie Green who I think has such and awesome voice for bringing her characters to life on the pages, the women in this story are all linked in some way to the local charity frock shop in the harbourside suburb of Mosman and I loved it from start to finish, come along and meet Daphne, Adelaide, Christina, Margot and Lucy these woman are different ages and have different backgrounds but friendship will bring them together and help them all find who they are.

Daphne is seventy one and has worked at this shop since it began as a frock shop many years ago, she is married to Hector has two adult children Noel and Janet and has always had a flare for knowing what woman should and should not wear, she also keeps her a few secrets.

Adelaide is a close friend to Daphne she is also a cellist who has been overseas for many years and travelling with orchestras but is home now and volunteering in the charity frock shop, there was a reason that had Adelaide fleeing Australia many years ago will it come back to cause problems now?

Christina grew up around here but has been in Hollywood for a few years now and is a well known actor but when she is forced to flee Los Angeles to her childhood home she finds herself volunteering in the frock shop and making a strong friendship with Daphne.

Margot is in all sorts of bother living in her big childhood home with only her elderly aunt although she is thirty six she has never worked and now her life is very different from what she thought it would be, could things turn around for her?

Lucy is a young teenager in her last years of school she works in her parent’s dry-cleaning business after school but is pulled towards the materials and the way clothes are made and she visits the frock shop and makes friends with Daphne and is learning a lot from her and she feels a lot safer here than she does at home or the family shop, will her dreams come true?

This story brings these woman together and the clothes play a big part in this story, Sophie Green never disappoints and this one is just so very good, I loved all of the woman in this story as I got to know them and was sad when the book finished I could have stayed with them for longer, I do highly recommend this one it is a must read.

5 stars

July 28, 2026 by Hachette Australia

A Far-Flung Life

 A Far-Flung Life

M L Stedman

Reviewed by Helen

This story was WOW for me, beautifully written it tells the story of the McBride Family, a family who have lived for generations on a million acres of land in the red dirt of Western Australia raising sheep, it is 1958 and we meet Phil and Lorna and their three children Warren, Rose and Matt and what happens to them after a devastating accident shatters their lives

The McBride Station is close to the small town of Wanderrie Creek and while Phil is driving his two sons towards town firstly to drop young Matt of at a young pastoralists meeting a kangaroo will change their lives for evermore, those left behind will do all they can to ensure they continue on the McBride family way looking after the station the sheep and the other people who live there, but it is not easy for any of them.

During the years that follow that accident many things will happen and change will come to the station in the form of mining and this brings new people to the station, relationships are made, more friendships but will they ever come to anything and change the direction that they are moving in?

This story is told in three parts and starts in 1958 and continues on till 2000 and brings more sadness to the family, it is a story of secrets and how people react when things have been done that shouldn’t have been do they find reasons for this, open up about them or do they bury secrets deep never to be told? The characters are wonderful and so real and I felt for them all, the author has dug deep into these characters and bought them all to life.

This is a story of resilience, love, and family and one that I loved very much and do highly recommend to any reader who loves a family saga that digs deep into emotions and what makes families who they are, a must read.

My thanks to Penguin AU for my ARC to read and review.

5 stars

March 3, 2026 by Penguin

The Drowning

 The Drowning

Fiona Lowe

Reviewed by Helen

What a fabulous one this is, wow I could barely put it down MS Lowe knows how to bring families to a head and she does this so well with her newest, come along and meet this family get to know the beach front house known as The Shack.

CC Cilento is a doctor, still single, she is an only child with Italian heritage she was privileged to have spent the summer and Easter holidays with her cousins James, Ollie, Lily and Felix Friend those days were some of the happiest of her life she loved the family and felt so close to them like siblings there was so much fun surfing, swimming running through the dunes, the older Friend family have since passed but still they normally spend the summer together when they can and now some with children of their own.

When CC is invited by Ollie for a special weekend at the Shack and the wills of Bert and Leo Friend are bought up and The Shack has been left to the four siblings but there is now a fifth share as CC has been included, CC is thrilled about this it makes her feel even closer to her cousins but maybe they are all not so happy about this will. James is a lawyer and executor of the wills and puts strict rules in place with how they can use The Shack and with a couple of them wanting to change things totally and some wanting to keep it as Bert Friend had built it originally for his wife Rosa and their family this of course leads to disharmony and CC is starting to wonder who she can trust.

Then a secret is revealed and this just hypes up the tension in the family tempers are flaring things are being said and CC really doesn’t know who to turn to and when a body washes up on the shore and this is going to change everything.

This is a story of family dynamics, trust, and power and is a page turner in my opinion how on earth will it all work out, what will happen to The Shack and how will CC go forward?
I do highly recommend this mystery, it had me on the edge of my seat so many twists and turns, don’t miss this one, thank you MS Lowe for another brilliant story.

My thanks to HQ Fiction for my ARC to read and review.

5 stars

February 24, 2026 by HQ Fiction

The Duke's Secret

 The Duke's Secret

Sue Williams

Reviewed by Helen

I loved this story, it is a story about the authors own family legend that has been passed down for seven generations and Sue Williams has put together a fabulous historical fiction with modern side to it set in two timelines starting in 1793 in Knightsbridge England and then in 2025 in Sydney Australia, a page turner.

1793 thirteen year old Mary Ann Marshall in working as a maid at Kingston House, here she meets one of the sons of the house Arthur Wesley, their first meeting was memorable and something that sparked a friendship of sorts all of those years ago, over the years Arthur became a British soldier and eventually became The Duke of Wellington, but their friendship remained strong, even after Arthur married Irish girl Catherine (Kitty) Pakenham and had two sons.

2025 Ash Washington is a young journalist for a Sydney newspaper and she is good at her job and has ambitions, she grew up with her Mum and stepdad always believing that her father died when she was two but when helping her mother clear her house to move she comes across a box of mail, unopened and addressed to her, it appears that her father is still alive and Ash is determined to meet him and when she does he tells her a family legend that they are descendants of the great Duke of Wellington, this starts Ash on the journey of a life-time to prove one way or the other if they really are.

What Ava discovers while traveling through different countries and researching brings to life the story of Mary Ann, their illegitimate daughter Elizabeth and Arthur and his family the betrayals the affairs that man had, it also brings to life his battles with Napoléon and what made him a hero to the people of England. This story is a history lesson and a moving family tale of legends carried down and the author has done it so well, I thoroughly enjoyed this one and recommend it t any lover of a good historical fiction with a lot of history.

My thanks to Allen & Unwin for my ARC to read and review.

4 stars

February 3, 2026 by Allen & Unwin AU

The Girl With Nowhere To Go

 The Girl With Nowhere To Go

Louise Guy

Reviewed by Helen

Another fabulous story from Louise Guy she brings life to the pages as you read her stories with characters who are real, the emotions and feelings are strong and this one is no exception I loved getting to know Rebecca (Bec) Sampson and her family, twins Hugo and Zara as well as Anna and Skye.

Bec has just lost her beloved husband Owen suddenly and she has made the move back to Melbourne with her twins to start over it has been over twenty years since she left Melbourne and her family after the death of her twin brother Chris, she has not been in contact with her parents since.

While at work she meets a young girl Skye and Bec knows in her heart that this girl needs help and she is determined to get to know her and help her. Having convinced Skye to attend a meeting with her, she starts to get to know her, Skye has just lost her mother and is now alone she has no family and foster care is something that Skye is not eager to be in, Bec takes her home and Skye meets Hugo and Zara a friendship starts.

Anna is a counselor who runs a meeting at Echoes and Bec and Anna are soon firm friends Anna having lost a brother to a car accident twenty two years ago they both still grieve for their brothers Anna is helping Skye and soon Anna takes Skye in for temporary foster care, could this be the best option for Skye after all she has been through?

Bec is now worried that her daughter is doing her best to get in contact with her parents and it is the last thing she wants and Anna is contacted by her old boyfriend her brother’s best mate the one who left after the death of her brother and Anna’s mother who has dementia keeps bring up the past and on investigation Anna finds out somethings about the night her brother died all those years ago. What will this information bring to everyone?

I loved this moving and emotional story that brings together the past and the emotions that go with grief, the characters are wonderful easy to get to know as I was turning the pages I felt their emotions strongly and there were tears from me, this is such a well written and beautiful story and one that I highly recommend, I loved Bec, Zara, Hugo, Anna and Skye as well as the other characters who made this story so good.

My thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

January 28, 2026 by Boldwood Books

Iluka

 Iluka

Cassie Stroud

Reviewed by Helen

What happens when siblings Helen, Sylvie and Brendan arrive at their grandparent’s house on the south coast of New South Wales after the death of their last grandparent Paddy, Iris had passed away five years previously a house built by their grandfather called Iluka.

The siblings arrive to clean the house and decide what to do with it Helen has her daughter Tegan with her and Tegan is going to film it all for an assignment for her university course, Sylvie arrives without her partner Lea and then Brendan arrives with his wife and stepdaughters the house is full and the cleaning starts what they discover is a box of letters from the mother they had been told had died when they were young and had been living with their grandparents.

The letters to not only them three but to their grandmother, Iris came after they had been told of her death, what was Iris hiding from them and as they read them their lives seem to implode in many ways, could their mother Marguerite still be alive and if she is do any of them want to meet her?

I am not sure how I feel about this story, the premise of the story is wonderful and I loved the setting but I did not connect with any of the characters in the story sadly. I do recommend this one to any reader who enjoys a family saga filled with many emotions.

My thanks to Harlequin Au for my copy to read and review.

3 stars

January 28, 2026 by Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd

Winds of Change

 Winds of Change

The Belleville Family Series #5

J Mary Masters

Reviewed by Helen

It is 1976 and the winds are changing in the Belleville family the Bellville grandchildren Paul, Anthony, Marianne and now John are starting to make their mark on the family with Julia building her new home on Prior Park a replica of the original, life is changing but is it for the better there seems to be a storm brewing with this younger generation how will things work out?

Paul and Amanda are having problems that stem back a few years with two children now, will their marriage survive?

Marianne and Alex also now have two children but again their marriage is on very rocky grown.
Anthony is doing well as an architect and has designed his Aunt Julia’s new home but will he find love?

When the building starts on the new home secrets are uncovered about the first Belleville, Louis and they learn their true origins.

This is a well written story that digs deep into a family with many scandals throughout the year’s lots of ups and downs but still the Belleville family is strong there are a lot of family members and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I am not sure that I am a big fan of all the characters but they are what makes this family and family need different personalities and opinions in them, I have still to read the first three books in this series and am looking forward to them, but this one was easily read with lots of background information and a summary of the family in the front of the book. I would highly recommend this one and the series to any lover of big family sagas that tell a story of a strong family in the times.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

4 stars

November 15, 2025 by PMA Books

A Haunting at Venus Bay

 A Haunting at Venus Bay

Julie Brooks

Reviewed by Helen

2025 Cass Shaw has decided that it is time to leave London and her heartbreak of a broken relationship behind and move to Australia, her brother Liam and his family live in Melbourne and she has purchased a house sight unseen on the coast of Victoria, a place that she spent many a holiday in her teenage years, as an interior designer Cass has plans to make this old house into a beautiful beachside home, but when she arrives and spends her first night there Cass is already having second thoughts there are so many strange things happening, but Cass is determined to make this place her home.

1953 Minna Topp and her mother had arrived in Australia from Germany after the war and have been travelling the East Coast of Australia from one fairground to another, when Minna meets wood-chopper Albert Adams she is soon whisked away from her mother and the life she knows to become Albert’s wife on a dairy farm near Venus Bay, it is not long before Minna realises that Albert just wanted a worker for the farm not a true wife and her life is nothing like she expected it to be.

Cass meets the local police officer Josh and they are becoming friends and soon she learns that both Albert and Minna disappeared twenty years apart never to be found and with a strange mirror in the house that seems to have shadows following her and a kewpie doll that moves by itself Cass wants to know more and while clearing the house she finds an exercise book that seems to have Minna’s story in it and the story unfolds.

This is a fabulous duel time story, the characters are fabulous and the setting just right for the atmospheric story, MS. Brooks pulled me into the story from the start and I felt like I was on the coast with all of the characters, no fault of the author but the formatting was terrible, but I loved the story and I do highly recommend this one.

My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

January 8, 2026 by Review

The Funeral Crashers

 The Funeral Crashers

Joanna Nell

Reviewed by Helen

WOW another totally awesome read from Joanna Nell, I fell into this one from page one and did not want to put it down, come along for a funny, emotional and moving story about an older couple who meet at a funeral that will change their lives.

Martin Pottinger is a retired academic, he has never married although it is something that he had planned in his younger days at Oxford but those days are long gone and he is back in Australia and now his mother Edwina and her cat Shirley Temple are living with him and she can be demanding, he does however have romantic hope for his former head of the Archeology department Mary Blake.

Grace Cavendish is a retired primary school teacher, she is still grieving the loss of her dear daughter a few years ago and spends her days not only weeding the local walkway but loves to help out at her church All Souls, sadly the minister, Hot Rod as he is known has the worst singing voice and Grace does what she can to drown him out, she meets a young local boy Hudson and soon his mother as well physic Rhondda does she really believe that Rhondda can speak to her beloved daughter?

When Martin and Grace meet at a funeral at All Souls after Martin takes Edwina along to, their singing brings them together and before long they are meeting at funerals of strangers becoming funeral crashers and using their voices to bring joy not only to themselves but everyone else, this ends up being life changing for them both, with many fabulous characters to meet along the way, their lives are changing fast there are a few ups and downs along the way that will make you laugh and cry.

This is a brilliant story so very well written with awesome characters, who would have thought that becoming funeral crashers would open up a whole new world for Martin and Grace, truly I laughed, I cried and I smiled throughout this one, I loved the cat, Shirley Temple, I loved Edwina and Hudson they are the best. I do highly recommend this one, it was not put downable a must read, heartwarming and fabulous.

5 stars

October 28, 2025 by Hachette Australia & New Zealand

Where the Birds Call Her Name

 Where the Birds Call Her Name

Claire van Ryn

Reviewed by Helen

Broome 2023 we meet Saskia she is married with a nine year old daughter Anouk, she is a teacher she has two younger siblings Violet and Lennon, she has just lost her mother Kiki free spirited and loved but when the will is read Kiki leaves Saskia her beloved caravan no one understands why, but while cleaning the van out Saskia finds a ticket for the ferry that crosses Bass Strait to Tasmania and her journal, soon Saskia and Anouk are taking a road trip towards Tasmania to uncover her mother’s mysterious past, not knowing what she will uncover.

Stanley, Tasmania 1968 Greta De Winter is sixteen years old her mother is a taxidermist and her father a local councillor Greta is drawn to what she and locals call the swamp but is the wetlands that creates the perfect environment for the animal life particularly the birds and Greta holds a passion for them. Her mother works on a diorama for the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, but inside the home of the De Winter family things are not what is seems. Things change dramatically when Greta does her best to save the wetlands.

When Saskia and Anouk arrive in Stanley they search for anything that will uncover her mother’s past and what they find makes Saskia think more about not only her parents but also herself is this the trip that she needed to find herself?

What a gorgeous story this one was the beautiful setting the wonderful characters and the wildlife that is bought to life on the pages, long held secrets are uncovered as the author takes her readers on this beautiful journey told in two timelines, it is a story that is evocative and haunting and one that I would highly recommend.

My thanks to Penguin Random House and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

March 4, 2025 by Penguin Random House Australia

The Lucky Sisters

 The Lucky Sisters

Rebecca Johns

Reviewed by Helen

WOW what a story, Rachael Johns you again have given your readers a story that is filled with emotion and so much else and I felt every one of them while reading this one, it was a hard book to put down as I got to know Nora and Stevie Lucky as well as Cherry, Santi and Felix and the other awesome characters that are so important in this story it is a must read.

Nora and Stevie are just about to celebrate the festival of fifty as they get closer to their fiftieth birthday, they were adopted at birth and they have had the best life with their adoptive parents Lillian and John, they have always been very close even if they are two very different people, but now that they have lost both of them Nora dearly wants to find their biological parents Stevie not so keen to do so but in the end she agrees and what they discover rocks their world.

Nora has been married for many years to Santi and they own and run a very popular restaurant in Perth called The Lucky Spaniard but now with her news Nora decides to change everything in her life from the perfect in everything to making sure she lives for herself. With Stevie who has just started a new relationship with Felix she is fun loving and a chocolate fiend she too changes how she does things but will it all be worth it for both of them?

For the first time ever the twins are drifting apart until an accident makes everyone re-think again.
This story had me yelling and cheering them on throughout as I felt every emotion, it takes in so much with totally awesome characters, I know when I pick up a Rachael Johns book that I am going to love it and I think this one might be her best yet, wow what a story, I absolutely loved it from page one and cannot recommend it enough, thank you MS Johns for a fabulous story.

My thanks to Penguin AU and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

October 21, 2025 by Penguin eBooks

The Road Trip

 The Road Trip

Tricia Stringer

Reviewed by Helen

This one had me turning the pages from start to finish, I have never travelled in a caravan but I enjoyed this trip ups and downs included, two caravans a married couple and a brother and sister start out on a trip of a lifetime but maybe not according to the females on board, how will it all turn out as they leave Adelaide for Broome stopping at many places along the way.

Sharyn Tregonning is just about to turn sixty and celebrate her thirty five wedding anniversary to Barry, she is dreaming of an overseas trip to somewhere fabulous, but with constant reminders about how bad Barry is organizing surprises she is worried and then totally shocked and disappointed when he surprises her with a caravan, bought at a good price for their six week trip and then to make things worse at their first stop they meet up with travelling companions Barry’s mate Ray and his mousy sister Kathleen.

Kathleen Allenby seems to have become a recluse these days after caring for three end of life family members she hasn’t got a job and is having problems with her neighbours, her brother Ray arrives to save the day and take her back to his house and then convinces her to come on a trip in his caravan with him and then knowing that they are meeting up with Barry and Sharyn makes things worse because Sharyn with her not very nice friends has never liked her, but off she goes on this trip wondering how it will all turn out.

What a trip it turns out to be, mystery, trust issues, mishaps and problems with toilets sets everyone on edge at different times and tempers are flaring but soon Kathleen and Sharyn are sharing a bottle of gin and making cocktails and they are talking and opening up about their lives and making friends, girl power, learning so much about the beautiful places they are visiting along the way and then one surprise will make them all smile until a body is found in the water and Kathleen lets go with her brother and soon Sharyn and Kathleen see that they might need to see the guys way a bit more than they are and enjoy.

This really is a fabulous book, I smiled and cheered them on as I travelled with them to some beautiful places, it is heart-warming, witty, and funny and tells a story of what friendship is all about and how families come together and work problems out when they are in close confines. I would highly recommend this one MS Stringer knows how to tell a story and leave the reader happy a fabulous story.

My thanks to HQ Fiction and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 30, 2025 by HQ Fiction

Love Lessons at the Seaside Salon

 Love Lessons at the Seaside Salon

Sophie Green

Reviewed by Helen

Set in the 1980’s in the small seaside town of Terrigal on the Central Coast of NSW, Sophie Green brings to life four woman working at or connected to The Seaside Salon all different ages and all in different stages of their lives, come along to meet them all and journey through four months of their lives, will they find what they want?

Trudy is 57 and she owns the salon and has done for years, she is a beautiful person and has a knack of making people feel loved and beautiful but for Trudy she feels down at times since the loss of her husband Laurie he was the love of her life and is struggling at times without him.

Anna is 42 married to Gary and they have two young children, Troy and Renee, she is a stay at home mum who takes in sewing and also spends time with her mother Ingrid, Gary is a solicitor and has his own firm and he works long, long hours and is hardly ever home so she kicks him out, is it time to start looking after herself instead of putting everyone else first, maybe a visit to the Seaside Salon with her mother might help.

Evie is 33, a single mum to young Billy and one of the hairdressers at the salon, although she has a son and is friends with his father she has never felt that buzz of real love and when a new hairdresser Sam starts at the salon, Evie feels that he is the one that starts the buzzing for her he is so lovely and good to her but is there a chance of a relationship with Sam?

Josie is 19 and starts as an apprentice at the salon, her mother is very controlling and Evie wants so much to become independent with her own car now and the job this is her first step and then when she meets a young man Brett who loves surfing and he seems very interested in her as she is in him but she knows her parents will not be happy, is there a chance for Evie and Brett?

This is another beautiful story from MS Green, it is moving and emotional and will pull you in as you get to know these woman, feel their emotions, the setting is fabulous not too far from me and it is one that I highly recommend to any lover of a good heart-warming story.

4 stars

July 30, 2025 by Hachette Australia

The Midnight Estate

 The Midnight Estate

Kelly Rimmer

Reviewed by Helen

In 2010 Fiona Winslow an historical architect has just purchased the house she grew up in from her cousin Jon she is hoping that this will help her get over the past year which really hasn’t been a good one but moving back to Forbes and Wurimbirra House built in 1860 is well known to be haunted might just open up a lot more than she was thinking.

Cleaning the house is going to be hard it has been locked up since the wake ten years ago of her beloved Uncle Tad a well-known writer, she finds a box of books that have been there since the wake unopened, curious she opens it and finds twelve copies of a book called The Midnight Estate by Charity Wilkes she has never heard of this author but thinks she might be a friend of her uncles she starts to read it and what she discovers is a mystery story that seems to be set around Wurimbirra has she uncovered a past that her family has kept secret since 1960 is it really about her family?

This story had me captivated with the book within the book, it is such a well told story and takes in three timelines across two countries so many wonderful characters and not so nice character, the relationship between Fiona and her mother is a very strained one and gets worse but will it finally be what they both want when the secrets are uncovered?

I thoroughly enjoyed this one and I highly recommend it, another fabulous read from Kelly Rimmer

5 stars

July 30, 2025 by Hachette Australia & New Zealand

The Watervale Ladies' Writing & Firefighting Society

 The Watervale Ladies' Writing & Firefighting Society

Mette Menzies

Reviewed by Helen

This is a beautiful and moving story about starting over in Watervale Downs a small country town in the heart of wine country in South Australia, four woman all so very different take up a course for writing that changes their lives, come along and meet them.

Matilda “Tilly” Marr is an international lawyer doing her best to make partner in her father’s firm she travels the world but when she is told by her father to drop the case she is working on and make her way to Watervale Downs to convince a local to sell her property for billions she is not happy at all but arrives in this small town and is soon known at the new solicitor and instead of a week is there for a month.

Bev Jackson matriarch of the town her huge property has been in her family for one hundred and fifty years and when a smart young lawyer arrives to do her best to convince her to sell, Bev sets Tilly a task stay for a month then she will discuss her offer.

Jane Robertson, the local librarian grew up in Watervale Downs her and her husband Tom who is a journalist have wanted a family of their own but sadly that has not happened and Jane is heartbroken but carries on as if all is good but she also has dreams of writing a book.

Fenna De Vries Fallen TV star she used to have her own gardening show but that has been cancelled and she has also walked away from a terrible marriage and has made her home on a property in Watervale Downs but making friends for Fenna is very hard.

These four woman come together at a writing course run by Viv who pulls them in to learning all about firefighting as well but this course brings them together in so many ways they are all soon confronting things from their past for Bev it is a secret that has been kept for sixty years, will Fenna decide that staying here and becoming part of the community is what she wants and Jane must now really think about her future and look to a different one and Tilly is the high flying lawyer is this the job she really wants or is it to live in Watervale Downs with the gorgeous barista the life that is best for her?

This is such a moving story, one that pulled me in getting to know these woman was fabulous, I felt their emotions the story is so well written, this story made me smile and cry it is heartfelt and uplifting and one I highly recommend, to any lover of a good story, it is truly a gorgeous story,

My thanks to the author and Harper Collins for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 1, 2025 by HarperCollins AU

The Lost Girl of Seahaven

 The Lost Girl of Seahaven

Temple River #5

Phillipa Nefri Clark

Reviewed by Helen

MS Nefri Clark tells the most beautiful stories, they are moving and filled with emotion, and this one is no different, a beautifully told story from the heart, a story of a little lost girl who went missing many years ago, I felt connected to the characters as I turned the pages, come along for a trip to Temple River and find out what happened all those years ago.

Angie Fairlie has returned home after a divorce that has changed her, but she is determined to make her future better and returning to her grandfather and the home she knew for many years, Seahaven, her grandfather is moving into the assisted living community and has asked Angie to clean up her author grandmothers writing room who passed away fifteen years ago, what she discovers in a box will have Angie taking over the search for a little girl lost especially after reading the book, The Loneliest Girl by the Sea that was there, she is sure this holds many keys to the search for the little girl lost back in 1952.

With the help of her neighbour Jack, who is getting back on track himself they find many clues and are feeling very close to getting answers but what Angie didn’t realise is the pain and memories that this will bring out in not only herself but other people as well, what are the answers, who was the little lost girl, you really need to read this one, it is a beautiful and brilliant story.

I highly recommend this one, it is heartfelt and heart-warming in so many ways, beautifully written with awesome characters, MS Nefri Clark just makes each story better, there were many tears from me for so many emotions, don’t miss this one.

My thanks to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

July 28, 2025 by Storm Publishing

Just a Regular Boy

 Just a Regular Boy

Catherine Ryan Hyde

Reviewed by Helen

This is the second book that I have read by this author and another five star read for me, I love the way the author brings to life her characters and the caring she shows with them, this is a heart-wrenching story but also heart-warming.

When five year old Remy Blake, who lost his mother eighteen months ago is taken to live in the wilderness with his father, his life would turn upside down when his father Roy Blake is determined to show his son about living a survivalist life, they need to hunt and fish for their food life is very strange and hard for Remy, he has no idea how long they have been living there he doesn’t even remember his age and then one day when Roy does not return to the cabin, Remy just knows he is on his own, Remy has no idea how long he was on his own but now he is starving, thirsty and scared and wanders into a small town.

Anne is a loving woman who fosters children her and her husband have two adopted children that they had fostered and when she hears about the wild boy living it the woods she is determined to find him and take him in, this child needs someone to love and care for him.

He is badly injured and just about feral and mute by the time Anne gets to him but there is a bond forming between them from their first meeting and over time Anne and her family learn a lot about young Remy and what happened to him but Remy also helps them learn more about themselves, he is one very special regular boy.

This is a story that I would highly recommend broke my heart and put it back together.

My thanks to Negalley and the publisher for my copy

5 stars

May 2, 2023 by Lake Union Publishing

Second Chance Family

 Second Chance Family

Barbara Hannay

Reviewed by Helen

What another fabulous story from Barbara Hannay, written with love and heart-felt emotion, this beautiful story brings to life Callie Madden and her three children fourteen year old identical twins Jenna and Grace and six year old Joey, Callie has been a widow for five years now after her husband Mitch died suddenly of a heart attack, come along to meet them all.

Callie is a photographer and works hard keeping everything going, grief still shows up here and there but by the time she works and gets the kids to their different sports etc. there is never much time for herself and then out of the blue a letter arrives from a solicitor up in far north Queensland saying that he would like to meet her regarding her being a beneficiary in a will from a man she has never heard of, this takes Callie on a trip up the mountains to get answers.

What she discovers could cause a few problems in the family when she learns she has inherited half of a one hundred acre property, Hawkridge high up in the mountains the other beneficiary is a Scotsman Ben Gailbraith, who has been working the property and gotten to know the owner well and that they must not sell the property for one year.

After Ben shows Callie around the property she is left in sixes and sevens as to what will happen, her life is in Townsville with her children and family but this will be a legacy for her children and with Ben moving back to Scotland in one year they work on selling in twelve months and deciding to do renovations, but she will bring the children up for four weeks during the Christmas holidays and those four weeks will change how Callie thinks about her future.

Could there be a future for Callie, Ben and the children her on Hawkridge?

This is a beautiful story that I loved, the setting is just gorgeous and the descriptions from MS. Hannay had me sitting around that table in the yard watching the sunsets and sunrises with the family. Callie and Ben are just awesome characters as are the children I loved Joey and the twins, they made me smile and yes there were tears happy tears while I was reading this one, so many emotions, a true story of family and love.

I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a good story.

My thanks to Penguin Random House AU and the Author for my ARC to read and review

5 stars

June 24, 2025 by Penguin