Review: Kiss Me Under the Irish Sky by Karen Foley

 

She’s ready for an enchanting summer on the Irish coast.

Chicago graduate student Rachel Woods is determined to complete her degree and take her place in the family textile business. But when she learns her late father once spent a summer at a traditional weaving mill in Ireland, she decides to follow in his footsteps. Rachel’s a city girl at heart, but soon finds herself falling under the spell of the Emerald Isle—and the charming man who saves her.

Conall McDermott knows all about following your dreams. He left medicine to pursue his love of running and turned that passion into a nationwide retail business. When his local trail leads him to a beautiful American woman trapped in a bog, Conall rescues her and is smitten. She wants to learn about Donegal tweed, and since his family owns the local woolen mill, he happily introduces her to the local weavers, culture, and community.

When the opportunity of a lifetime arises sooner than expected, can Rachel ignore the powerful attraction she and Conall share, or will she let him—and Ireland—weave their magic around her heart?

 

My Review:

Home is where the heart is.

When Rachel Woods traveled to Ireland for an internship at McDermott Mills, she never imagined she would find the man she wanted to spend her life with, Conall McDermott.  Rachel was supposed to be focusing on her goal, to learn all she could about manufacturing tweed and luxury textiles, and then go back to Chicago to work as a designer for her uncle’s company.  Rachel and Conall fell hard for each other in the short time Rachel was there.  Will they be able to continue their relationship, or with they end up heartbroken, when it is time for Rachel to go back home. 

This is such a beautiful and hopeful story.  I loved seeing Rachel and Conall fall in love.  I also enjoyed the setting of the story.  The author wrote with such detail, I felt like I just took a little trip to Ireland along with Rachel.  This is the first in a new book series and I am already anxious to read the next book.

 

Review: The Perfectly Simple Complicated Life of Maggie Halloran by Trish Morey

Maggie Halloran’s life is finally perfect.

For recently retired Maggie Halloran, life in her renovated two-bedroom St. Ives fisherman’s cottage is picture perfect. With her daughter in London and her mother in Penzance, Maggie is free to enjoy the odd sleepover with her boyfriend, Nigel, visit galleries, or do her beloved sudoku.

When Maggie’s reserved mother falls giddily in love, Maggie takes it in stride. At the wedding, Maggie’s daughter, Alice, announces she’s pregnant and needs somewhere to live. Oh, and she has a new puppy, too…

Alice and Maggie have never been close, and Nigel’s allergic to dogs, but blood is thicker than your average Saturday night sleepover. Suddenly Maggie’s humouring her demanding daughter, fielding visits from her nostalgic ex-husband, and accommodating Alice’s baby daddy. And then Maggie’s mother arrives on the doorstep in tears, suitcase in hand, because she’s left her new husband. The only one keeping Maggie sane is Mitch, the builder converting the loft into another bedroom.

Maggie’s three-level terrace is now home to three generations—soon to be four—and her perfectly quiet, drama-free life is gone. The question is…does she want it back?

 

My Review:

I loved everything about this book.

Just when Maggie was enjoying retirement and living a quiet stress-free life in her cottage by the sea, her life suddenly upended.  First, her demanding, single, unemployed, pregnant daughter moves home along with her new puppy.  Then, Maggie’s mother leaves her husband and moves in.  What was once Maggie’s solitude became an overcrowded, noisy place and Maggie was no longer happy there.  Everyone expected Maggie to do everything for them and Maggie was at the end of her rope.  The only saving grace was Mitch, the handyman that Maggie used for renovations for her cottage when she first bought it.  If Maggie can find happiness with Mitch, surely there is a way to find happiness with her family even with the madness going on in her house. 

There is a lot going on in this story, but it didn’t bother me like some books do with a situation like this.  I found the story easy to follow.  I felt sorry for Maggie, but at the same time, I was also cheering her along, especially when she started to put herself first, even if it annoyed her family.  I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.  Hopefully there will be some updates on Maggie, Alice and Daphne.   

 

Review: Someone Missing from Malapais Mountain (The Accidental Detective #4) by Kris Bock

 

It’s hard to walk away from the truth when you need a cane…

Former international war correspondent Kate Tessler had to trade her illustrious journalism career for her childhood bedroom after a brush with death almost took her leg. But when the editor of a local newspaper asks for her help, Kate is drawn back into her old world. A journalist covering a sprawling story of political corruption may have uncovered explosive new evidence, but she was run off the road in a hit-and-run accident. Gabriella, Kate’s mentee, has been injured and can only communicate by blinking yes or no to questions. Meanwhile, another reporter is missing.

The editor is short-staffed, with no one experienced enough to handle something this dangerous. Kate can never give up on the search for truth, so with her trusty senior sidekicks and new PI partner—her sister, Jen—Kate takes the case. Can a fifty-year-old journalist still recovering from a war injury survive the dangers of the Arizona desert long enough to catch a killer?

 

My Review:

An exciting mystery.

Journalist, Kate Tessler, is back living at her father’s house in Arizona while recovering from an injury she suffered in the Middle East.  After an investigation at the nursing home, where her mother resides, she has found herself becoming a bit of a detective.   Kate and her sister are once again hot on the trail of solving a crime.  This time it’s a journalist who is seriously injured after a car runs her off the road.  Her passenger is missing. 

I always enjoy reading about Kate and her team of family and friends who work together to solve crimes. They might not always play by the rules, but they can solve the crimes just as good as the police.  Even though this book, and the series, is a bit on the serious side with the nature of the crimes, you can still find lots of fun banter and witty dialogue in the stories.