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MoMoBookDiary (20 KP) rated One Day in December: A Christmas Love Story in Books

Oct 1, 2018  
One Day in December: A Christmas Love Story
One Day in December: A Christmas Love Story
Josie Silver | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
10
8.6 (8 Ratings)
Book Rating
I loved the idea of this book and it sounded just my perfect romance read.  However it was so much more than I could have hoped for!  I read it in one sitting and found the lovely sunny day had gone dark and wet by the time I moved from the sofa - but oh! what a day I had in the world of this amazingly beautiful love story!

The story is told over a ten year period, beginning in December 2008 which is where the Christmas part comes in.  The story is told in sort of diary form from the characters perspectives and jumps many months at a time so you get the good bits whilst the story unfolds. 

It sounded like it could be yet another love triangle with the obvious difficulties however it is so unlike anything I have read before.  It is a book for all ages – no nasty double crossing, no detailed erotic sex scenes or nasty, bitchy comments we are so used to being part of daily lives – however, there  are many tear-worthy moments in this absolutely wonderful true love story. 

The author has found a way of telling a story in today’s times without having all the drama that we are so used to seeing in these types of situations.  Everyone deals with events in a very mature way and forgiving way which ensures that whilst reading you can live in a feel-good bubble.  I did plenty of bubbling while reading and many sharp intakes of breath at times too.  It is a story of love, heartache, friendship and the unbreakable bonds.

I can honestly say I will be recommending this to everyone I speak to in person, on twitter, Facebook and anywhere else that I can.  It’s amazingly beautiful – you really should go read it!

Thanks to Josie Silver, NetGalley and Penguin for giving me the opportunity to read and review prior to the paperback release in October 2018.
  
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ClareR (5970 KP) rated The Witch Elm: A Novel in Books

Oct 16, 2019 (Updated Oct 16, 2019)  
The Witch Elm: A Novel
The Witch Elm: A Novel
Tana French | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry
8
6.8 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
A psychological thriller that had me guessing along with the main character!
After a night out with his friends in Dublin, Toby Hennessy walks home alone and goes to bed. He’s woken up in the early hours by two men burgling his flat and when he confronts them, they attack him viciously and leave him for dead. He doesn’t die, and after a long period of time in hospital, he returns to his flat, clearly suffering from PTSD and a brain injury. Luckily for him (but not so lucky for his uncle) his uncle, Hugo, is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. So Toby and his girlfriend Melissa move in to help keep him company, and ultimately to care for him.

They’re a close family, who meet every Sunday for dinner, and Toby and his cousins Leon and Susanna spent every summer at their Uncles house, living pretty much unchecked - every teenagers dream.

This idyllic life is brought abruptly to an end when a skeleton is found inside the trunk of one of the Wych elms in the back garden. It’s complicated further by the fact that Toby’s head injury from the burglary means that his memories are ropey, to say the least.

I really liked this book: I liked the slow build up and learning about the family and the relationship between the cousins. As for the skeleton, well that mystery had me guessing right up to the end.

Incidentally, this is sold as ‘The Wych Elm’ in the UK - ‘Wych’ is an alternative spelling in old English of ‘witch’, and it also means pliant or supple. The words ‘wicker’ and ‘weak’ come from this word too (yes, I looked it up, and this will join all of the terribly interesting, yet relatively useless, information that accumulates in my head 🤷🏼‍♀️).

This is my first Tana French novel, and based on this book, it won’t be my last.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for my copy of this book.
  
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