An Autumn Crush by Milly Johnson

An Autumn Crush by Milly Johnson

The tag line is 'As summer ripens to autumn, will friendship blossom into love?'

Eek I thought!  It's a Mills n' Boon rip off.   I'm not saying I hate Mills and Boon, but you have to admit they're kind of predictable.  So, with very little enthusiasm I started turning the pages, after all Simon and Schuster were kind enough to send me the book:  the very least I could do was read and review it.  I expected a plot line you could fit on the back of a business card, but..........in actual fact the plot line could have been written on the back of maybe two business cards - this was forgivable though as it was a downright enjoyable read.

The characters are very likable and the situations they find themselves in are believable too.  I found the pace of the book good and wasn't tempted to skip pages at any point, and was really quite on the edge of my seat every now and then.  I'm not saying this is Tolstoy or anything, but this isn't bog standard crappy romance either.  Milly Johnson has a sense of humour which is reflected in her writing, and many of the situations had me chuckling away to myself.  She also writes with an enthusiasm that bounces you along with the plot. 

My only criticism is that there's too many wrestlers in it!  Yes I know that sounds bizarre.  From reading the intro to the book it seems Milly is a huge fan of wrestling and you can tell!  Towards the end of the book I began to wonder if the town they lived in was solely populated by wrestlers, even the florist was a wrestler! I know the main characters move in wrestling circles, but it all gets a bit much.  

Briefly summarised Florence, a writer of poetry for a card distributor, moves in with Juliet, an office worker who quietly lusts after her boss.  They become close friends and through a couple of plot twists and turns Juliet begins a relationship with Steve and Florence falls in love with Guy.  This is after they both experiment with Internet relationships that turn out to be rather dramatic dead ends. 

All in all, I had fun reading this book.  It had me smiling and laughing and I liked the characters. 'An Autumn Crush' is a lovely way to spend a good couple of hours curled up in front of a warm fire - ideally in Autumn when I should have reviewed this. (I am a bad book blogger! *slaps hand* 

If you would like a copy of this book it is published by Simon and Schuster and will set you back just £4.89.  It's a great read, even with all the wrestlers. 

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

'Me Before You' by Jojo Moyes

If you only read one book this year, I recommend this one.  It is an absolute gem of a book and one that took me on a rollercoaster of emotions.  It truly is a 'I can't put it down, even to scratch my nose' kind of book. Loved it, loved it, loved it!

It's a little difficult to write about it in too much detail without spoiling the story for you, but I'll do my best.

The main characters are Lou Clark, a small town girl looking for a job; and Will Traynor who is a quadraplegic in need of constant care. As far as Lou is concerned she is employed by Will's mother to care for Will, make sure he's kept company and to do what she can to make his life comfortable.

Will is cast in a very tragic position, due to a horiffic accident where he was an innocent bystander.  He is left with almost no movement at all, from being a high powered company manager with a very active lifestyle and a new relationship he has become a prisoner in his own body unable even to feed himself.  Constantly ill, in pain and alone apart from carers and his immediate family, he is a shadow of his former self.

Gradually Lou and Will become friends and Lou begins to understand his situation a little more.  Eventually they become very close, and it becomes clear to both of them that they care more for each other than they would like to admit even to themselves.  In an attempt to restore Will's faith in life Lou arranges to take him on holiday to Mauritius where they realise that they cannot live and cannot live without each other.

This book is beautifully written and the characters become more alive on every page.  Lou is uncertain about herself and her abilities, but has untapped reserves of resilience, adaptability and a fabulous sense of humour.  She is also incredibly determined.  Will is a broken man, despite this he still retains a wry wit and an inquiring mind - which Lou does her best to fuel in an attempt to give him hope.

The tragedy is that there is no hope with this kind of injury and Will is trapped in his useless body.  He sees his only way out as death.

I laughed at the many jokes and funny situations in this book, I sobbed my heart out at the end and loved the characters as if they were friends of mine.  Me Before You is touching, tackles a very difficult subject, namely euthanasia, and is heartbreaking whilst still remaining life affirming.  I didn't think those two themes could work side-by-side, but they do here.  Perfectly.  Read it!

Many thanks to WHSmith for sending me this book as part of the Richard and Judy Book Club 2012, you can buy your own copy HERE for just £3.99 (on Sale).