“How weird that you could push open your front door and know in an instant that something was wrong.”
From Rumor Has It by Jill Mansell

When Tilly opens the door to her flat she finds out her boyfriend has left. He didn’t even bother to tell her but his items are missing and her neighbor tells her she saw the moving van. Oddly enough she doesn’t feel as devastated as she thought she would.

Instead, when she’s visiting her best friend Erin in a small town in the Cotswolds she begins to think about ditching her life in London and starting over. In Roxborough she can be near her best friend, escape the high rents and enjoy small town life. Quickly she finds a job working as an assistant to interior designer, Max Dineen.

What Tilly didn’t expect though was the rumor mill and much less to become a part of it. A lot of the gossip centers on who will win Jack Lucas’ heart. Tilly admits to herself that she likes him but has no interest in becoming just another of his conquests but how can she put him off when he is so nice and seems genuinely attracted to her.

Although this is certainly Tilly’s and Jack’s story what I really enjoyed was that there was a strong cast of characters and all of them also going through their own ups and downs thanks to that rumor mill. While the novel may be lighter fare I also liked that there were some more serious issues brought up and handled nicely without being shoved aside or bringing the book down.

If you haven’t decided on a book for your summer reads you can’t go wrong with this one. You’ll enjoy reading how love lives get sorted out and people are given second chances. And, you’ll probably also have some good laughs. I know I’ll be adding more of Jill Mansell’s book to my radar for when I need a good, comfort read.

Source: Advance Review Copy

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful weekend. Mine was great but of course not long enough. I got to do some biking, bookbinding, reading and got to see a wonderful demonstration on glass blowing at Wimberley Glassworks. Oh and there was quite a bit of book shopping done as well but I’ll tell you about that another day because tonight I want to mention some of my thoughts on Bad Blood by Lorna Sage which the Slaves of Golconda are discussing.

This memoir is a look at Lorna Sage’s lfie growing up in the small town of Hanmer, on the border between Wales and Shropshire. When I first started reading the book I got the impression that Lorna’s grandmother was a bitter woman but quickly I understand why she behaves the way she does.

Lorna’s grandfather, the vicar of the small village, is a womanizer and a drinker, who I thought seemed to cast himself in the role of victim but perhaps that was his excuse for his behavior. As Lorna’s grandmother finds out about his ways she begins to make his life difficult by blackmailing him and basically the whole family gets a front row seat to the fights.

Meanwhile Lorna thinks her parents also aren’t that suited for married life. Her father is a workaholic and her mother is a terrible housekeeper. The one thing she dreads most is what to cook for her family which ends up in her serving unappetizing meals and wishfully thinking of a meal that could be served in a pill form.

As Lorna grows older she finds it hard to navigate relationships with boys and even girls. It seems she’s most comfortable with her books and and getting in to trouble no doubt, as her grandmother says, it’s the bad blood she inherited from her grandfather.

Despite this being a memoir of Lorna’s growing up I had a bit of a hard time getting to really know her. I felt I was more in tune with her grandmother, perhaps because I just felt like she never had a chance with that husband of hers.

I’m looking forward to sharing more thoughts on this with the Slaves of Golconda. If you think this sounds interesting pop on over at the forum to read more and feel free to join us!