Hello, Hello, I hope you are well. First of all, apologies for the lack of post last week, it was for a very exciting reason namely that we were on holiday. We stayed on the beautiful Kalamota Island, which is a 30 minute gentle boat ride from Dubrovnik. We did see a bit of Dubrovnik which looked absolutely stunning. (Game of Thrones fans will recognise the setting for many scenes from the series). The weather was lovely, 25 degrees which meant we could sit outside in our swimwear comfortably.

Read about the Woman and Home Summer Book Festival

The only downside which actually ended up being an upside was that I came down with a nasty cold on the journey out. (There are lots of bugs doing the rounds). This meant our days looked slightly different from waht we had planned, with reading in the morning by the pool and sleeping in the afternoon. Heaven. I also got to people watch my fellow holiday makers, and can confirm that the downfall of civilsation as we know it will be caused by a hotel toaster. Honestly! I have never seen such confusion over putting two bits of bread on a rotating toaster!

Today I'm going to review the books I read on holiday. I am a little behind with my reviews, so this is a nice way to package a few of them up together. Let's get stuck in....

Village Centenary by Miss Read

I am carrying on reading my Miss Read Fairacre in semi order, and this was a lovely one. Set over the course of a year, Miss Read is shocked to learn that the village school is due to celebrate it's centenary. as Miss Read wracks her brain as to how best to celebrate this monumentous occasion, the villagers of Fairacre and Miss Read reflect on what the school has come to mean to them, as well as celebrating other village events. A lovely read and I felt expressed what the stories about Fairacre's village school have come to mean to us the reader. Good friends, comfort and a smile or two, a lovely way to start my holiday reading.

Bring Me Sunshine by Alex Brown

This is a new to me author and I will confess I bought this book as one of my friend's husband is called Alex Brown. Whenever the author Alex Brown brings out a book, we message my friend to let her know that her husband has written another bestseller! What a delight this book was. Think Mamma Mia crossed with Shirley Valentine and you get the picture.

Gina leaves her husband after 27 years' marriage and heads to Greece for a long-promised 2 week holiday. Having spent time there as a youth, enjoying her first romance, she returns and meets 2 new friends Rosie and Deedee. Together the women help Gina find her spark again, whilst also looking for Nico. I really enjoyed this, the descriptions of the island and the hotel meant I could feel the heat on my bones and the smell of the scent of Bougainvillea. I also want to try a Raspberry Ouzo cocktail! I loved how this was about women helping women, and indeed the romance feels almost secondary to the novel. Loved it!

The Holiday Escape by Heidi Swain

Ally and her Dad run a creative retreat, Hollyhock cottage. However Ally wants a completely different life for herself, so when she goes on holiday to Barcelona, she pretends to be the version of herself she has always wanted to be - working with art in Spain, wearing chic clothes. And there she meets Logan. After returning home, Ally is shocked to find that one of their guests is non other than Logan, but he thinks she is someone else. I've described this very badly, but I can heartily recommend the novel! It was a lovely, summer beach read and is a reminder that sometimes what we want is staring us right in the face. Another great novel to add to Heidi Swain's collection!

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves

I started this whilst at the tail-end of our holiday and finished it at home. After the lovely, light summery novels, this book had ALL the atmosphere. It is a Matthew Venn novel and can be read as a standalone. Local celebrity Sailor, Jem Rosco blows into Greystone Town one day. A couple of weeks later, following a call out to the RNLI during the titular Raging Storm, his naked body is found in a dinghy off Scully Cove. With the community populated by the Barum Brethren, doors are closed to the police and secrets abound. Meanwhile the storms continue. This was a wonderful, atmospheric crime read and I struggled to put it down. It is a very bleak read, and you can the tension and the weight on your shoulders as Matthew conducts his investigation. I am vey much enjoying the Matthew Venn novels.

And that is everything I read on holiday, a rather good selection of books. I will be back soon this week, as I am still catching up with reviews. In the meantime have a good week!