Book number six of 2016 is Montana Cherries by Kim Law.  This book follows Dani Wilde, a young woman who gave up her life in the wake of her mothers death to look after her father and brothers.

Ben Denton, a family friend and now famous photographer, returns to the Wilde family in Montana upon the discovery of the four year old daughter he didn’t know existed. He seeks their help in becoming the father that he did’t know he could be.

Ben and Dani have a history of friendship and one single night together.  That history returns with Ben, as Dani seeks to finally leave Montana and find her own destiny now that her brothers have all grown up.  As both Ben and her families Montana cherry farm seek to keep her, what she gave up drives her forward.

This novel is a good example of a romance in a family setting.  For me, the romance actually takes a back seat.  The way a family cares for one another and protects each other really takes centre stage.  The novel also focuses on issues of mental health, something that I truly believe should be talked about and not hidden away.  Only by talking about it, can stigma be removed.

Rating: 3 and a half stars out of 5

So, this review actually covers books three, four and five of 2016! I read Sleigh Bells in the Snow by Sarah Morgan, which is feel-good book full of Christmas! Kayla is a workaholic Briton, living and working in New York City.  She avoids all things Christmas, which prompts her to take on a difficult job at this festive time of year to help Jackson O’Neil and his family save their business.  Snow Crystal is a family resort in Vermont that has been owned for generations by the O’Neil family.  Due to Jackson’s father lacking a business mind, the resort is failing and so Jackson hires Kayla for her exceptional PR skills.  What Kayla doesn’t expect is that Snow Crystal, the O’Neil’s and Christmas go hand in hand.

Wow.  I have to say that I read this as a little light relief and I truly loved it.  The characters are so very likeable, and the snowy setting is enchanting.  I really felt that I was able to immerse myself in the story, and despite the fact that I read it outside of the Christmas period I loved the trees, the snow and the family love.

I loved this story so much that I immediately read Suddenly Last Summer, quickly followed by Maybe This Christmas; the former follows Jackson’s twin brother Sean and the latter their younger brother Tyler.  The love stories of the three O’Neil brothers, all centred around Snow Crystal, are enthralling as is the magical location.

Despite the fact that Christmas is but a distant memory, I cannot recommend this trilogy enough.  I do enjoy a good chick lit, and this definitely fits the bill.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Book Number two of this years book reviews is Graeme Samson’s The Rosie Project.  The blurb reads:

Love isn’t an exact science – but no one told Don Tillman. A thirty-nine-year-old geneticist, Don’s never had a second date. So he devises the Wife Project, a scientific test to find the perfect partner. Enter Rosie – ‘the world’s most incompatible woman’ – throwing Don’s safe, ordered life into chaos. But what is this unsettling, alien emotion he’s feeling?

I read the first chapter hearing Don Tillman with the voice of Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock – strange but true!  Don Tillman see’s everything in a very logical, organised way making him incredibly socially awkward.  He starts The Wife Project as a way of finding his life partner after conventional methods don’t seem to work for him.  A chance meeting with Rosie however puts The Wife Project to one side as he works to help with her own problems.

I loved this book.  I loved how honest Don is with everyone, even if it did mean he struggled to make and keep friends.  This book showed how love and life is not easy for everyone, but how people persevere, no matter how difficult it is for them.

Read this book!

Rating: 4 and half stars out of 5