Hall of Fame Review: From Notting Hill with Four Weddings... Actually by Ali McNamara (5/5)

Set in the world of all your favourite rom-com movies, this is the gorgeously romantic new novel by the author of From Notting Hill with Love . . . Actually

Movie addict Scarlett O'Brien is finally living the jet-setting life she's dreamed of - but it all hangs by a shiny, golden thread.

Flying between London and New York, running two businesses, planning her wedding to handsome fiance?, Sean, with best friends Oscar and Maddie - life couldn't be better.

But then Scarlett meets paparazzi darling, Gabriella Romero, and life suddenly becomes even more extravagant and glamorous. As she begins to experience the other side to being rich and famous, it's not only Scarlett's perfect wedding that's put in jeopardy, but her whole world.

Indulge in all your favourite rom-coms at once with this warm, fun tale of what happens when you really live the glitz and the glamour.

Guest Post: Setting a Crime Fiction Book in Liverpool by Luca Veste

I'm genuinely excited to be part of the blog tour for Luca Veste's second novel, The Dying Place. I am from and live in Liverpool and have always been disappointed by the lack of crime fiction set in the city. I read Dead Gone last year and knew I had found a new talent in Luca that could not only tell a fantastic story, but set it in Liverpool! Plus he's just been snapped up by Simon & Schuster which is massively exciting given the crime authors they publish.

You only have to read the Liverpool Echo to know there's plenty to write about if you set a crime novel in the city, yet Luca raises some interesting points in this guest post that definitely got me thinking.

I'll be sharing my review for The Dying Place on Thursday but until then enjoy this post.

Hall of Fame Review: My Side of Life by Shane Filan (5/5)

As a lead singer of Westlife, one of the most successful pop acts of all time, Shane Filan was on top of the world. Together with the band, he achieved an incredible 14 No.1 singles (a record beaten only by the Beatles) sold 44 million records and was adored by fans the world over.

Everything he touched turned to gold, or so it seemed. Like many others, he had piled his fortunes into the Irish property boom and when the bubble burst, Shane struggled with mounting debt. Just ten days after Westlife’s final farewell concert, in front of a sold-out crowd of 80,000 fans, Shane was declared bankrupt with debts of £18 million – losing everything.

But this wasn’t the end for Shane Filan – a devoted singer and family man, Shane circled back to his roots and a year later he launched his solo career. 

In My Side of Life Shane shares his story for the first time – his early years growing up as part of a large Irish family in Co. Sligo, the phenomenal success of Westlife and the ups and downs of their time together, the breakup of the band, his financial devastation, and finally going it alone as a solo artist.

This is Shane’s side of the story.

Review: The Killing Season by Mark Pearson (4/5)

DI Jack Delaney is trying to make a clean break. Tormented by his troubled past, he has taken his young family out of London, swapping the mayhem of London for the tranquil calm of the north Norfolk coast.

Except it's not so tranquil.

After a terrible storm hits Sheringham, a body is discovered beneath the rubble of a collapsed cliff. Natural disaster? No, this looks like murder, and Jack is the only local resident qualified to investigate.

But when more disappearances follow and the local police step in, Jack finds himself plunged dangerously deep into the investigation – and in the sights of the killer on the loose.

Review: Ghostman by Roger Hobbs (4/5)

'Fast, hard and knowing: this is an amazing debut full of intrigue, tradecraft and suspense. Read it immediately!' Lee Child (author of the Jack Reacher novels)

 

I make things disappear. It’s what I do. This time I’m tidying up the loose ends after a casino heist gone bad. The loose ends being a million cash. But I only have 48 hours, and there’s a guy out there who wants my head in a bag.



He’ll have to find me first. They don’t call me the Ghostman for nothing...

Review: Dark Tides by Chris Ewan (4/5)

When Claire Cooper was eight years old her mother mysteriously vanished during Hop-tu-naa, the Manx Halloween. At fourteen, Claire is still struggling to come to terms with her disappearance when she's befriended by a group of five teenagers who mark every Hop-tu-naa by performing dares.

But Claire's arrival begins to alter the group's dynamic until one year a prank goes terribly wrong, changing all their futures and tearing the friends apart.Six years later, one of the friends is killed on Hop-tu-naa in an apparent accident. But Claire, now a police officer, has her doubts. Is a single footprint found near the body a deliberate taunt?

As another Hop-tu-naa dawns, bringing with it another death and another footprint, Claire becomes convinced that somebody is seeking vengeance. But who? And which of the friends might be next? If she's to stop a killer and unlock the dark secrets of her past, Claire must confront her deepest fears, before it's too late.

The author of the bestselling SAFE HOUSE returns to the Isle of Man with a thriller that will keep you up all night.

Review: Our Life on Ice by Torvill and Dean (5/5)

When Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean collapsed to the ice at the climax of their routine to Bolero in the 1984 Winter Olympics, the judges could find no fault, awarding them 12 maximum scores of 6.0, while 24 million viewers watching at home in Britain simply looked on in amazement. Suddenly, we were all experts in figure skating, and we wanted to know more about the couple at the heart of it all.

Despite intense interest in them, Torvill & Dean kept their lives private, with many still wondering if the pair were really a couple. They turned professional and would eventually spend eight years working on ITV's Dancing on Ice, but still much of their story remained unknown.

Now, in Our Life on Ice, Torvill & Dean finally open up about the challenges they have faced and the pressures of life in the public eye: Jayne speaks candidly about her struggle with husband Phil to start a family, while Chris reveals the heartache in his family story. And of course, there is the skating, and the stories about what inspired their famous routines, and what the pair hope to achieve in the future as the approach their fortieth anniversary working together. It is the book their millions of fans have been waiting to read.