If You Were Me by Sheila O'Flanagan

I guest reviewed this book for www.bleachhouselibrary.blogspot.ie

 

You're engaged to a good-looking, successful man who adores you. You're on a countdown to the wedding day. Your family and friends are delighted, and excited.

You've long ago stopped thinking about your first love. The boy you never kissed. Even though he stole you heart and disappeared. You've grown up since then. You've put the past behind you. Love is more than a racing pulse and reckless passion.

But what happens if, even for a moment, that's what you feel?

Carlotta O'Keefe is about to - and soon she'll be facing the biggest decision of her life.

This is the first novel by Sheila O'Flanagan that I have read and I found it a light-hearted, enjoyable read. It is a real "what if" book which I'm sure the majority of women can identify with. What if I'd kissed that boy all those years ago? What if we hadn't lost touch? No matter how successful and happy a person is, everybody has a "what if?" I really connected with this book as it made me think of my own what ifs and remember things I had thought long forgotten.

I really enjoyed the descriptions of the different locations throughout the book especially the Spanish locations. At points I could almost imagine myself in Seville sipping sangria and eating tapas. The Spanish influence is felt throughout the book with each chapter title being a song title in Spanish. I didn't go so far as searching for these songs but I think it's a great idea to supply a soundtrack and if I ever reread this book I will be playing them to see how (and if) they compliment the story.

I found the characters realistic in that they were all flawed to some extent. Carlotta in particular I wanted to kick at multiple points as I found her incredibly irritating with her indecisiveness. I found it a bit incongruous that a very successful woman would dither so much. At the same time, this did make her more lifelike which is a good thing so even though I didn't like the main character, the characters are well represented. Also, who doesn't like a character like Luke - handsome, kind, generous with a hint of bad boy mystery!

If You Were Me is a well-written and enjoyable novel. It is quite predictable but there are enough little complications and twists to keep it interesting and the characters are well portrayed... I think my favourite is Chris's mother with her snide comments. I'd recommend this to anybody who wants a light read on a rainy Sunday curled up by the fireplace.

My rating:3.5/5

Despite the Angels by Madeline A. Stringer

Have you ever felt you know someone already, even though you only just met? Maybe you knew them in another life...

Lucy and David, who live in modern Dublin, first knew each other in Ancient Crete. They had a baby girl, but disaster struck, and their guardian angels have been trying to reunite the little family for 4000 years.

Despite the angels' attempts to be understood, humans often do not hear, and unwittingly can waste whole lifetimes...

Now in Dublin things are still not going to plan - Lucy is far too young, and David is marrying someone else.

Angels are optimists, so they are re-organising, but - Humans must listen to their angels.

I was given this book to review by Bleach House Library www.bleachhouselibrary.blogspot.ie

I will admit to being a bit wary of this book at first as, in general, I don't have much time for stories about guardian angels. I was wrong. Despite the Angels by Madeline A. Stringer was an absolute joy to read. It is well-written and incredibly enjoyable and combines all the elements I look for in a good book - romance, tragedy, humour, suspense and excitement.

From the very first sentence "My name is Jotin and I am exasperated with this "guardian angel" job.", I was intrigued and knew that this book was going to be different to how I had imagined.

The story centres around Lucy, David and their "angels" Jotin and Trynor. The narrative switches point of view between these characters and also switches between eras, as we see Lucy and David (and other more minor characters) in previous incarnations. While in some books too many changes of time, place and point of view could get confusing, Stringer manages it seamlessly and in such a way that it increases empathy for the characters and moves the plot along a good pace.

All the characters are interesting and engaging but my favourites are definitely Jotin and Trynor, the "angels". Their sections of the book were incredibly amusing and I loved how fallible they were. The wearied air about them was interspersed with incredible innocence and misunderstanding, leaving them seeming the most "human" of all the characters at times.

The only minor downside I found in this book was that in the second half it became a little bit repetitive and predictable. This was however, only a very minor flaw in an otherwise witty and engaging book and as such I rate it 4.5/5.