Tag: romance

#BookReview The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger by Suzanne Fortin @Aria_Fiction

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Arthur Pettinger Blog Tour

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger by Suzanne Fortin. My thanks to Vicky Joss at Head of Zeus for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my limited edition proof copy. The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger was published as an ebook on 4th March and will be available in paperback on 10th June 2021.

The Forgotten Life of Arthur PettingerAbout the Book

Sometimes the past won’t stay hidden, it demands to be uncovered…

Arthur Pettinger’s memory isn’t what it used to be. He can’t always remember the names of his grandchildren, where he lives or which way round his slippers go. He does remember Maryse though, a woman he hasn’t seen for decades, but whose face he will never forget.

When Arthur’s granddaughter, Maddy moves in along with her daughter Esther, it’s her first step towards pulling her life back together. But when Esther makes a video with Arthur, the hunt for the mysterious Maryse goes viral.

There’s only one person who can help Maddy track down this woman – the one that got away, Joe. Their quest takes them to France, and into the heart of the French Resistance.

When the only way to move forwards is to look back, will this family finally be able to?

Format: ebook (379 pages)           Publisher: Aria
Publication date: 4th March 2021 Genre: Historical Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Romance

Find The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger on Goodreads

Purchase links
Hive | Amazon UK
Links provided for convenience only, not as part of an affiliate programme

My Review

The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger is one of those books that offers something for just about every reader:  there are elements of domestic drama, such as the family tensions caused by caring responsibilities; scenes of wartime adventure and romance; and a search for a long lost love.

I loved the touching and very natural relationship that develops between Maddy’s daughter, Esther, and her great-grandfather, even if Arthur does occasionally struggle to recall Esther’s name (although he never seems to forget that his favourite biscuits are digestives).  It’s a neat echo of the close relationship Maddy remembers having with Arthur herself when she was younger.  As it turns out, affection for Arthur is not the only thing Esther has inherited.  She also has the same inquisitive nature and independent instincts as her mother.

The book eloquently conveys the challenges of caring for someone with dementia, although Maddy’s sympathetic response and greater understanding of Arthur’s need for routine proves much more successful than that of her half-sister, Hazel, who previously cared for him.  (Arthur privately christened Hazel ‘Moaning Minnie’). Although Maddy recognises the role photographs and music can play in provoking what memories are left, she knows it’s only a matter of time before Alzheimer’s claims Arthur completely. I’m sure many readers can empathize with Maddy when she thinks, “It was so cruel, so painful this long goodbye, watching her grandfather slowly disappear in front of her…”.

The author finds imaginative ways to allow the reader inside the mind of Arthur and witness his own frustration at his declining memory. “It was all muddled up in his mind like a heap of spaghetti and he didn’t know where the strands of thought started.  They were a jumbled mess of words and images, fragments of memory and snatches of thought – all knotted up together.”

The details of Maddy’s search for Maryse, assisted by investigator and ex-boyfriend, Joe, and the difficult moral dilemmas thrown up along the way, will be familiar to fans of TV programmes such as Heir Hunters or Long Lost Family. Trust me, as the book nears its conclusion, you’ll find yourself in complete agreement with Arthur as he thinks, “He wished he knew how his story ended and what happened to those he loved”.

For me, the ending, although bittersweet, was the perfect conclusion to the story. After all, there’s more than one way to be reunited.

In three words: Touching, emotional, poignant

Try something similar: Endless Skies by Jane Cable

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Sue Fortin July 20 a - Sue FortinAbout the Author

Suzanne Fortin is a USA Today and Amazon UK & USA best selling author, with The Girl Who Lied and Sister Sister both reaching #1 in the Amazon UK Kindle chart in 2016 and 2017 respectively. Her books have sold over a million copies and translation rights for her novels have been sold worldwide. She was born in Hertfordshire but had a nomadic childhood, moving often with her family, before eventually settling in West Sussex where she now lives with her husband and family.

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#BlogTour #Extract Until We Can Forgive (The Derwent Chronicles 3) by Rosemary Goodacre @HeraBooks

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Until We Can Forgive

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Until We Can Forgive by Rosemary Goodacre. Until We Can Forgive is the third and final book in The Derwent Chronicles series. Rosemary sadly died recently; you can read a tribute from her publishers, Hera Books, here.

I was looking forward to sharing my Q&A with Rosemary but instead I have an extract from the book for you to enjoy. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting to participate in the tour. On behalf of Rachel and Hera Books, I’d ask you, if you can, to share this post and those of the other book bloggers taking part in the tour, in memory of Rosemary. If you are minded to purchase a copy of her book or the previous books in the series, even better.

Until We Can Forgive FINALAbout the Book

They survived the Great War, but will life ever be the same?

Spring 1919: WW1 is over and a fragile peace has descended over the country. Now living in Cambridge with husband Edmond, Amy Derwent is settling into her new life as wife and mother to little Beth. But the shadow of the Great War looms large, particularly as the injuries Edmond sustained at Ypres still take their toll on him today.

Edmond’s cousin, Vicky, has now grown into a fine young woman, eager to help her country. Throwing off her privileged background to train as a nurse, she spends her days tending to the many soldiers still suffering the after-effects of their time on the battlefield.

Meeting Maxim Duclos, a young Frenchman who has arrived in Larchbury, fills her heart with joy – but when it is discovered that Maxim may be hiding the truth about his past, Vicky is faced with an impossible choice. Follow her heart’s desire and risk her family’s disapproval or keep her family – but deny herself the chance of true love?

The war may be over, but Edmond, Amy and Vicky must all face a new battle, finding their own peace in a country wounded by loss.

Format: Paperback (336 pages)           Publisher: Hera Books
Publication date: 15th October 2020 Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

Find Until We Can Forgive (The Derwent Chronicles #3) on Goodreads

Purchase links*
Amazon UK | Hive (supporting UK bookshops)
*link provided for convenience not as part of an affiliate programme

Extract from Until We Can Forgive by Rosemary Goodacre

‘Is this car all right?’ Amy asked as they set off for The Beeches for Easter.

‘It’s in good order,’ he assured her. ‘Don’t worry, darling! It’s all fixed and we can travel properly, with Beth and some luggage!’

‘You won’t need the motorbike any longer.’

‘Perhaps I should keep it for a while longer, just for emergencies.’ He had first ridden a motorbike in France, and she knew how he loved it.

There were around a hundred miles to travel, so they stopped the car at a modest inn just north of London for lunch. They continued, skirting the capital to the east and crossing the Thames by the Woolwich ferry before continuing into Sussex. By late afternoon they were driving into Larchbury. Now we’re back we’ll be staying with Edmond’s family, but we’ll be able to visit my parents too, Amy thought.

Soon Edmond was driving up the avenue of great beeches towards his family’s imposing stone house. On the hill ahead was the forest, mainly of pines, from which the family made their business. Back to The Beeches, Amy thought. How I used to long for us to leave there and get a home of our own!

For much of her married life Edmond’s mother and sister had been distant towards her. Not only was she not of Edmond’s class, but they disapproved of her pre-war involvement with the Suffragettes. She did not regret demanding the vote for women, but wished she had stopped short of joining friends in a provocative prank. They had broken into the cricket pavilion and scrawled slogans there, which had led to her having to serve a week in prison.

As Edmond parked the car in front of the house, Pa came out to greet them. Mr Derwent had encouraged Amy to call him Pa, and his wife Ma. He had been the first one of Edmond’s family to accept her, and she greeted him warmly as he said a smiling hello to Beth and looked over Edmond’s Ford car a little dubiously. It was clear that the bodywork had been patched up here and there, in some workshop where the mechanic was prepared to make a quick but adequate repair to keep costs down.

In the hall, Ma greeted them brightly.

‘You’re looking much better now,’ Amy said. She was no longer thin and drawn, as she had been after the influenza. However, her face still looked a little pasty.

‘I believe I’m almost recovered now.’

Beatrice, Edmond’s sister, smartly dressed as usual in a blouse and skirt which showed off her good figure, also hurried to greet them.

‘Auntie Bee-trice!’ cried Beth, happy to receive a cuddle from her.

Before long they were sitting in the wooden-panelled dining room and Cook was serving vegetable soup. In the middle of the table was a splendid arrangement of pink tulips, which could only be the handiwork of Beatrice.

‘Beth has grown so much since I last saw her,’ Ma said, smiling at the plump-faced little girl.

Until We Can Forgive Portrait Rosemary GoodacreAbout the Author

Rosemary Goodacre previously worked in computing and teaching. She had a novella published, entitled A Fortnight is not Enough, and a science fiction story in the anthology Telescoping Time.

Her father’s family came from continental Europe and Rosemary always loved languages and travel. In her spare time, she enjoyed country walking, bridge and classical music.

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