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One of the world’s most successful novelists, the prodigious Danielle Steel presents another simply crafted yet hugely readable tale with her latest book, First Sight.
The story is centred on a female protagonist, the hard-working fashion designer and businesswoman Timmie O’Neill, whose work takes her to Milan, London, New York and Paris, and whose life offers small snippets of personal comfort coupled with seismic downturns and despairs.
A dashing French doctor, JeanCharles Vernier, comes into her life when she falls sick suddenly during Paris FashionWeek. At first Timmie and Jean-Charles are only patient and physician. But they become confidants and friends, corresponding at a safe distance between Paris and Los Angeles once she goes home.
Are they brave enough to face what comes next? Romance, death, rejection, vilification, hope; it’s all here, wrapped in a pageturning bundle of ‘hope for us all’.
Whatever the formula is, Steel has got it, and although First Sight may never be considered in the ranks of the greatest of romantic fiction, it will certainly please the millions of Steel fanatics.
Touché, Danielle, yet again. Since the recent revelation that The Cuckoo’s Calling was penned by none other than JK Rowling, interest – and sales – have rocketed. But this book shouldn’t now simply be known for its hype, it should also be known for being a strong and enticing read.
On a chilly winter evening, a glamorous supermodel’s life is tragically cut short after she falls from the balcony of her Mayfair apartment. A thorough police investigation concludes suicide, but her brother John Bristow believes otherwise and persuades private investigator Cormoran Strike to look into the case.
A reluctant Strike promises to review the evidence and the notes made by a very meticulous Bristow, but as he and his assistant Robin dig deeper, discrepancies emerge, and soon more murders come to the surface. The case plunges Strike into the world of multimillionaire beauties and desperate designers.
It’s a gripping tale set in the bustle of London, taking us from the elegant streets of Mayfair to the backstreets of the East End, and the author – whether called Galbraith or Rowling – demonstrates superb flair as a mystery writer. Judy Astley returns with her 18th novel In the Summertime, a long-awaited sequel to 1994’s Just for the Summer.
It doesn’t matter if you haven’t read the first tale. In the Summer Time tells the story of divorced single mother-of-two Miranda, who returns to Cornwall after 20 years away to go on holiday.
Miranda holds a lot of memories of Chapel Creek. It’s where her mother decided to spread the ashes of Miranda’s stepfather, and the links don’t end there, as she meets up with her old friends Jessica and Andrew and her first love Steve. But while the cove seems just the same as ever, the people are different – more smart newcomers, fewer locals and more luxury yachts in the harbour.
Bringing her teenage children Bo and Silva along, Miranda feels long-buried memories bubbling to the surface as she shows them the resort that is so familiar and yet so different to her.
Fourteen-year-old Silva wants to break free and create her own extraordinary memories, rather than hanging out with her mum, aunt, brother and grandmother.
This is a perfect read for the beach or to get you in the mood for your holiday.