BOOKCLUB WITH CHARLOTTE HEATHCOTE Things we do for love
Long-buried secrets are unearthed in these two heart-wrenching tales
The Summer Trip by Isabelle Broom (Hodder, £7.99)
Eighteen years ago, Ava spent a summer in Corfu. It was a holiday that changed her life and she has never forgotten the events of those few months or the love she left behind.
Ava is now a single mum, living in Brighton with her 17-year-old daughter Rosie. But Rosie is preparing to leave home for university and Ava is wondering what her own future holds. Can she get back to the happy, carefree girl she once was?
Meanwhile, Ava’s sister Mattie is living Ava’s dream, married to a Greek man, living in Corfu, and helping to run the family taverna.
Before Rosie leaves home, Ava’s parents treat the pair to a flight to Corfu.
Ava’s entire family descend upon Mattie’s Corfu home, including her younger sister Ophelia, a hippy who flies in from Thailand with her irritating partner Ben.
But Ava knows the time has come to confront her past and try to mend her broken heart. And all these women have long-buried secrets that are about to come to light, with explosive results.
Isabelle Broom’s latest novel crackles with the heat of unresolved partings and it doesn’t take long for old sparks to catch fire. Set against a sultry backdrop with the bluest of seas, lively tavernas, and idyllic olive groves, The Summer Trip is drenched in the feel-good factor that always comes with a sun-soaked holiday. Beautifully written and gloriously escapist, this is an engrossing story of romance and self-discovery.
Anne Cater
The Love Of My Life by Rosie Walsh (Mantle, £14.99)
Emma and Leo have been happily married for 10 years and are proud parents to four-year-old Ruby. Their worlds centre on their small family. Emma has just been given the all-clear from cancer after a long round of treatment. She’s a marine biologist who found fame and a huge fanbase as presenter of a BBC TV programme. But Leo is an obituary writer for a national newspaper. And he was obliged to tackle the bleak job of writing Emma’s obituary in case the worst should happen. Initially, Leo was confident that he knew everything worth knowing about his wife. But then he stumbled upon a stack of paperwork in a spare room. The contents exposed a dark secret in Emma’s past and brought to light a desperate scheme that turned everything Leo thought he knew about his wife on its head. As Leo sets about uncovering the truth about who Emma really is, and he realises how much she has hidden from him, his life starts to fall apart. Complex and unpredictable, Emma is a brilliantly drawn character, and you’ll be rooting for the kindly Leo from the start. Rosie Walsh explores heart-wrenching issues in a gripping story of marriage and deception that delivers twist after twist.
Anne Cater