Two to Tango by Laura Carter~Blog Tour

 Publisher: Boldwood Books

Publication Date: 11th September 2023

Genre: Romantic Fiction

Summary:

The secret to Brooks’s success as a Manhattan gym owner? Being motivated to disprove everyone who ever doubted him. So he’s not about to let a perky newcomer like Izzy tarnish his reputation. Even if watching her lead a salsa class on his premises gets his own heartbeat raised…

His beautiful British rival

Every time influencer Izzy slams Brooks in her fitness blog, her book sales soar. But when their escalating media feud forces them to be up-close-and-personal for two weeks, she realizes there’s much more to Brooks than that lean and muscled body.

And a competition that’s got their hearts racing…

Soon Izzy and Brooks are finding all kinds of creative ways to work up a sweat. A passionate workout is easy, but can their rivalry give way to a lasting partnership?

Review:
Firstly thank you to Rachels Random Resources, Boldwood Books and Laura Carter for having me on this tour and sending me the book.
I do love a good romance and the enemies-to-lovers troupe is always a fun one to get stuck into. I laughed out loud so many times reading this one, their banter was brilliant. Both Izzy and Brooks had points where they weren't very likeable but a lot of that was perception and often once we'd seen both perspectives we suddenly realised that they weren't so bad. I got so into reading it that I actually finished it in an evening, it was such an easy read that I flew through it enjoying every page. I enjoyed it so much that I've gone back and got book one and I really regret not signing up for the tour of book three! But I  guess ill just have to buy it when it comes out.
The group of friends Brooks has and then Izzy gains were brilliant, I loved the banter and ribbings that Brooks often got and how welcoming of Izzy they were. I really hope we get to see more of them in future books.
I did spend a lot of time telling Izzy off about her healthy weight loss ideas, I'm most definitely on Brooks' side with that one!
As I said I loved reading this book and gaining a new series to read and I will definitely be recommending it to anyone thats a romance fan.

Krystina xx

Gods Galore by Rupert Stanbury~Blog Tour

 

Publisher: Matador

Publication Date: 19th October. 2021

Genre: Humorous Fiction

Summary:

The Olympian Gods have made it to the 21st century AD. We may not have heard much about them in the last two thousand years, but they’re still controlling what we humans are up to – or at least they think they are.

The reality is that the Gods are like us – they’ve got problems!

Zeus is still Top God on Mount Olympus, but he’s got issues with many of the younger gods. His brothers, Hades and Poseidon, have issues with themselves – they’re getting too set in their ways ruling the Underworld and the Seas; they probably need a job change.

But help is at hand from an unexpected source – we humans.

It’s surprising what a dose of good common sense can do for even the most powerful of the gods, especially when it comes from a couple of teenagers!

Review:
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Matador and Rupert Stanbury for having me on the tour and sending me the book.
Now if you remember not that long ago I reviewed The Four Horsemen, the second book in this series, and I may have ever so slightly gone on about how much I loved it. Well, prepare for more of the same because this is another amazing book.
The cover is again that slight Pratchett cartoon style which really suits the writing style, as I said last time it's very much reminiscent of the late great Terry Pratchett. Fantastically clever with very witty things thrown in that you take a minute to register. One of those made me stop and think for a moment, we had the very brilliant Vesta being shown around the torturing department by Mr Atilla ( yes the Hun) and in Vlad's area they come across two men being impaled called Harold and William and I stopped for a moment before carrying on to see if I could figure out which historical figures they were before I found out by reading. And I loved that I did that throughout the book and I lost count of the amount of times these little things made me laugh out loud, I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this book.
And for once I actually found myself tabbing a book so I could remember things I wanted to tell you all in the review(I've never understood tabbing a book before now) because we start with a list of Principal Characters and the detail added into their little one-line explanation is fantastic. Some of my favourites are Homer-Once a writer, now head librarian ( ok so not so much detail there but it made me really giggle) and Mr Wong- Works in the kitchens, having once run a Chinese restaurant in Alderley Edge, England.
Once again I loved reading this book, and I'm off to go re-read The Four Horsemen now because I do so love this series and I'm eagerly awaiting the next book, with the hopes that we have many more to come.
Btw if you think you know who Harold and William were, comment and let me know!

Krystina xx

All The Worlds a Stage by Guy Hale~ Blog Tour

 Publisher: Whitefox Publishing Ltd

Publication Date: 25th May 2023

Genre: Humorous Parody

Summary:

In the final instalment of The Comeback Trial trilogy, Jimmy Wayne has set off on his major tour of Europe, selling out the likes of the Royal Albert Hall and Zenith, Paris. While Jimmy's fame is reaching dizzying heights, behind-the-scenes crime bosses, Jack Lantern and George Digbeth, are scheming ways to bring him crashing back down to earth. But it's not just these two he should be worried about. Jimmy's adventures in Europe have drawn the attention of crime families across London, Paris, southern Italy and Madrid and everyone is battling for a piece of the action. From recovering valuable stolen artwork to his mother's romantic escapades, will Jimmy survive the mayhem of this whirlwind tour or will the dubious, murderous circumstances to which he owes all his success, be exposed, for once and for all...?

Review:
Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Guy Hale and Whitefox Publishing for having me on this tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.
I mean I've said it twice already but ill say it again, this is a brilliantly written series. I spent the first four chapters laughing like a loon at what I was reading (I even disturbed the dog I laughed that hard at one point), it's full of joyously dark humour and I can't get enough of it. It's a shame it's only a trilogy because id happily read more.
Ma Lantern is a complete nut job but I actually really liked all the wedding planning bits with her and the off-the-wall ideas she had for it. Jimmy's dreams were weird but so well written, I love that Wendy and John get random costumes!
I've loved reading this series and I have a feeling ill be reading it again soon because that dark humour was just the right level for me and gave me so many moments where I couldn't stop myself from laughing out loud that I know ill be going back to it again.
This is defiantly a series that I highly recommend picking up, and now I'm off to go find Jimmy Wayne's album ( there's a QR Code in the book to it ) and sing some dark and mildly depressing songs.

Krystina xx

Blood on The Tracks by Guy Hale~Blog Tour

 Publisher: Whitefox Publishing Ltd

Publication Date: 17th November 2022

Genre: Humorous Parody

Summary:

Jimmy Wayne is headed for LA to make the new album that will hopefully make him a star. In a quiet, deserted canyon a few miles outside Blackjack lie the bodies of his victims who inspired each song - all his secrets are buried in that dry and arid ground. Can he leave his past behind or will the ghosts of his past come back to haunt him?

Review:
Firstly thank you again to Random Book Tours, Whitefox Publishing and Guy Hale for having me on this tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.
So I jumped straight from Killing Me Softly to Blood on the Tracks, I couldn't wait to dive in. And this is just as good as book one, if not better! We get to meet some new characters as well as the same group from book one (yes Wendy is still about!) and I love all the new ones. Aksel has to be one of my favourites, I just love his complex background and his gold mining operation him and Kid are defiantly people id love to hear the backstories of!
I found I loved the fact that Jimmy started to find his songwriting groove without having to commit murder, it's very interesting and so is John R Real. 
Ma Lantern is so scary! I actually found myself feeling sorry for Jack and how he was brought up, the poor guy never stood a chance!
Once again the writing is beautiful and full of dark humour, I've really enjoyed reading this series. 

Krystina xx

Killing Me Softly by Guy Hale ~Blog Tour

 Publisher: Whitefox Publishing

Publication Date: 26th May 2022

Genre: Horror Parody

Summary:

In the town of Blackjack, Nevada, washed-up singer Jimmy Wayne is down on his luck, playing covers to a limited and uninterested audience in a third-rate casino. One morning he awakens to find that everything has changed. Not only has he accidentally murdered Wendy, his girlfriend, but he’s also written the best song he’s ever produced. Is it the act of killing that helps him create his finest work? And if it is, should he go for a full album? Wrestling with his desire for success, his grasp of morality and haunted by his past mistakes, Jimmy starts searching for the most terrible people he has ever known.

Review:

Firstly thank you to Random Things Book Tours, Whitefox Publishing and Guy Hale for having me on this tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.
Now this is the first part in the trilogy and I actually have the whole trilogy to review today so this is the first of three posts you'll get to read about Jimmy and his Comeback.
I have to say the first chapter had me in giggles and I'm not sure I stopped giggling much throughout the book. It's a really funny book and there are so many humourous lines sprinkled throughout, a lot of them coming from Wendy. Yep, Wendy comes back as a ghost and I love the sarcasm that comes with her! She dips in and out of the book and I actually think she is my favourite character in it. I love how she effectively guides Jimmy along his newfound path to songwriting and stardom, and all the while Jimmy isn't 100% sure she is not just a figment of his guilty conscious.

It's a really easy-to-read writing style and I often planned to just read one more chapter and found myself an hour later many more chapters in and hooked on the plot and wanting to just see what Jimmy would write next. It's so wonderfully well written and I couldn't wait to keep the story going.
I have to say my favourite bits to read were the Jimmy/Wendy conversations, their back and forth was so snappy at times and her digs at his lack of knowledge were well done.
It was just the book I needed to break my run of thrillers and I highly recommend reading it as a nice funny read I guarantee you'll be hurriedly getting the second book because you don't want to stop reading.


Krystina xx

Moorewood Family Rules by Helenkay Dimon~Blog Tour

 Publisher: ‎ Avon

Publication Date: 8th June 2023

Genre:Romantic Comedy

Summary:

Knives Out and Ocean’s 8 meets The Nest in this hilariously twisty novel by award-winning author HelenKay Dimon, about a woman who returns home from prison to her dysfunctional con artist family and tries to get them to go legit.

One day a con man met an heiress, wooed her, married her, had two kids…and kept on conning. Jillian Moorewood is the oldest child from that meet-cute-gone-wrong marriage. The stable one. The sensible and dependable one. The one who protects and fixes. The one who went to prison to save their sorry butts. Now, thirty-nine months later, she’s out and she’s more than a little pissed.

Finally home she finds the scheming clan in full family fleecing mode. They all claim they didn’t really agree to Jillian’s previous go-legit-or-else ultimatum before she went away. They viewed it as a “suggestion” then ignored it. So, business as usual. But Jillian is done with the lies and fakery. She demands the whole messed-up crew clean up its act, and this time she’s not kidding—she has the leverage to make it happen.

Problem is, her life is in shambles, but with the help of a great aunt (crooked but loveable), a bodyguard (who is a nice surprise after three years in prison), and a few allies (all working undercover), Jillian starts to put her life back together. She kicks out a few mooching relatives living under her roof, sets limits on everyone’s access to the money, ducks from their various attacks, and sees if that bodyguard is maybe interested in sticking around for a while. For the first time, she’s Jillian Moorewood, her own woman, and she’s ready to figure out who she is. 

Review:
Firstly thank you to Random Things  Book Tours, Helenkay Dimon and Avon for having me on this tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.
There were so many things about this book that I enjoyed. The family dynamics for one, I loved all the backstabbing, plotting and trying to outsmart each other. The fact that everyone had two separate agendas, one they sure as heck let everyone know about and the other kept very close to their chests. All the undercover family members working different angles and playing different hands at different times was like watching a game of chess, everything was perfectly planned. I loved the Moorewood family rules at the beginning of each chapter, some even made me laugh out loud, though Jillian's final rule is the best one. I did not expect who dobbed Jillian in to be who it was! I was fully expecting any other member of the family but them, so that took me by surprise. I loved the banter between Jillian and Beck, it flowed so well and it was a nice interlude between family plotting sessions.
Its a really well-written book, with clever characters that makes it something you don't want to put down(I was up til 2am finishing reading it because I didn't want to put it down)
It's a perfect summer read so if you looking for something to take with you on holiday this year, this is the book to take!

Krystina xx

The Writer's Guide to Obscurity by John Steinberg ~Blog Tour

Publisher: 2QT Limited (Publishing)

Publication Date: 28th February 2023

Genre: humorous fiction

Summary:

Norman was born to write, but doesn't know his destiny is written in his DNA, inherited from generations of earlier Normans who yearned to put pen to paper - once those items had been invented! Yet with nothing to show for all his literary endeavours and struggling to pay the rent, he tells himself there must be easier ways of making a living. It's only when

Norman discovers his descent from a long line of wordsmiths who'd experienced many of the same setbacks as himself yet had found the resolve to keep on going, that he wants to know:

'What was their secret?'

The Writer's Guide to Obscurity is an illustrated record of Norman's research into his vast family tree, sharing with us his predecessors' trials, triumphs and absolute catastrophes through the centuries, before bringing us back to Norman today - and the twist in his own tale.

Review:

 Firstly thank you to Zoo Loos Book Tours and John Steinberg for having me on this tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.
It's a very short and sweet little book, we follow Norman through the ages and his ancestors to find out the history of writers in his family. It's full of quirky little illustrations that I loved, the family tree at the beginning is brilliant. It's a very cleverly written book, I did enjoy the writing style a lot. The little subheadings between paragraphs to let us know where in the Norman line we are and the little illustration of the correct norman ( personally I really enjoyed Norman Norman) were clever and didn't break the flow of writing.  It's exceptionally funny, I had a lot of moments where I laughed out loud. Like I said a short and sweet book filled with humour, which means its a very short review but a very positive one.

Krystina xx

The Four Horsemen by Rupert Stanbury ~ Blog Tour

 Publisher: Independently published

Publication Date: 17th April 2023

Genre: Humorous fiction

Summary:

ALL THE ROYALTIES RECEIVED BY THE AUTHOR WILL BE GIVEN TO SUPPORT THE UKRAINIAN PEOPLE

The Four Horsemen is the second book in the Gods Galore series about the Olympian Gods in the 21st Century AD.

The gods are still trying to control what we humans are up to. Unfortunately, they’re not being particularly successful. The world is experiencing both plague and famine which Zeus and the Gods’ Council never approved. What’s going on?

Athene’s determined to find out, but before she can get going the God of War initiates an attack on Poseidon’s realm. It’s now all out conflict and the gods are taking sides – one side, in particular.

Wherever there’s a fight, Hebe’s involved. She soon signs up to an army regiment which is full of soldiers even smaller than she is. But war these days involves brains and not just brawn and there’s plenty of both ready to be deployed in this fight!

Review:

First off thank you to Random Books Tours and Rupert Stanbury for having me on this tour and sending me a copy of the book to review.
I have to say I loved it! I wasn't sure I would because if I'm honest I wasn't keen on the cover ( and yes I prejudged on the cover and I know I shouldn't) But once I started it I devoured it. I've really enjoyed the writing style, it's so easy to just sit and read and the humour in it really reminds me of Terry Pratchetts Discworld books. 
I've enjoyed having moments of "OMG that's who that is" because the author has cleverly woven in historical figures and other literary works into it that which just meant I spent the book smiling at the references and laughing out loud( Zeus and modern technology is a constant giggle)
Now I don't normally add spoilers but I just want to highlight some of my favourite little bits in the book. I so enjoyed having Vlad in Impaler as head of torturing in the underworld, and the Renaissance painters as the painting team in the construction department, as I said it's so very cleverly written.
We start off with the brilliant notion of Death (one of the four horsemen and hard worker of the underworld) telling Hades that he'd quite like to someday have a Mrs Death and maybe retire to Bournemouth and pass the family business onto Mister Death, and it was just so absurd that it was brilliant and I can't wait for more of this series.
In fact, I've got book one in my basket awaiting payday! And I'm looking forward to the day I can share the books with my small ones because this is such a fun read.

Let me know if you've read this book and if you have tell me your favourite bits!

Krystina xx