A hilarious feel good read about finding your feet when life pulls the rug out from under you.
Poppy Bloom planned to finish her PhD and walk straight into a job at her university. But here she is, unemployed, unceremoniously dumped by her boyfriend, and living back at her mum’s in her vampire-themed childhood bedroom.
Not exactly what she was hoping for.
But when Poppy sets her mind to something, nothing can stand in her way. She scores herself an internship at the hottest radio station in town, joins a netball team, and renews her friendship with her oldest friend Leanne. Spending time with Leanne’s gorgeous twin Tom is just a bonus…
But life has a way of tripping you up when you least expect it, and Poppy soon has to decide where her priorities lie… With new friends, a new career and a new romance, can Poppy keep everyone happy, or is everything about to tumble down around her?
A laugh-out-loud story about friendship, second chances, and new love, perfect for fans of Lindsey Kelk, Marian Keyes and Jane Costello.
I laughed out loud so much that I cried reading this book, but not because I was laughing at the main character, Poppy, but rather laughing with her. I felt that I could have written this book, and I just have to thank Colleen for FINALLY writing an honest book about what really goes on with graduates and people who all their life have done the 'right thing', played by the rules, right from Nursery (or Reception class in Poppy's case) and still get sh%t on! Thank you!
The plot is unique - in regards to anything I've ever read before, describing it as the perfect book for Lindsey Kelk fans is perfect, and I'd go as far as saying any Sophie Kinsella fans - particularly the Shopaholic series would LOVE this book if it's the humour, comedy and relatable characters that float your boat.
We meet Poppy who is getting her PhD and finally becoming Doctor Poppy. She thinks the skies the limit for her now, that she'll even be given a fellowship. But life - the crafty cunning swine has other plans for Poppy. At first I wondered if anything was going to go right - it was like all her bad luck came at once. The fellowship, the boyfriend and the best friend! And I know what that feels like!
But despite Poppy's bad luck, we get to go on a journey with her that sees her playing netball (after basically getting dragged out of bed by her team mates), take a shine to a blast from her past, grieve for someone close to her, and become quite the talent when it comes to radio...
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and really can't wait to see what comes next from Colleen - she's an author to watch & anticipate what follows. I wouldn't hesitate in recommending this book. I genuinely really enjoyed it.Thanks to Bookouture for the advanced press copy in exchange for an honest review.
THE NEW CHILLING, PROPULSIVE NOVEL FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLING BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.
If you can’t trust yourself, who can you trust?
Cass is having a hard time since the night she saw the car in the woods, on the winding rural road, in the middle of a downpour, with the woman sitting inside—the woman who was killed. She’s been trying to put the crime out of her mind; what could she have done, really? It’s a dangerous road to be on in the middle of a storm. Her husband would be furious if he knew she’d broken her promise not to take that shortcut home. And she probably would only have been hurt herself if she’d stopped.
But since then, she’s been forgetting every little thing: where she left the car, if she took her pills, the alarm code, why she ordered a pram when she doesn’t have a baby.
The only thing she can’t forget is that woman, the woman she might have saved, and the terrible nagging guilt.
Or the silent calls she’s receiving, or the feeling that someone’s watching her…
You won't be able to put down B. A. Paris's The Breakdown, the next chilling, propulsive novel from the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors.
This book is written by the same author who wrote the hugely successful and horrific Behind Closed Doors. I believe after reading The Break Down that it has the immense ability to be another HUGE bestseller. I’ve not read Behind Closed Doors yet – my Mum bought it some time ago but I've not got around to reading it. Yet!
Anyway, I started reading The Break Down and I got to over 70% by the time I’d snuggled into bed - although I did have the lights on. I finished the rest off in the morning whilst enjoying my morning cuppa.
This book was so fast paced, and so utterly gripping that I could not put it down – literally! It usually takes me about a week or thereabouts to read a book with all my studying and life stuff getting in the way, so for this to have taken less than 24 hours really tells you how amazing this book is. I slept with the table lamps on next to my bed and I still managed to have nightmares! It really scared the hell out of me!
The story centres on Cass as she’s on her way home from a party – but decides to take a route through the woods to get home which her husband has asked her not to go through for safety. She passes a car that’s pulled over in a lay-by, so she stops but as the driver does nothing to signal distress she drives on home. The next morning she discovers from her husband (who had called her the night before with a migraine so he slept in the spare room) that there was a murder along the road by the woods last night. A woman in her car was murdered in the lay by. Safe to assume Cass discovers the woman she passed in the car is the same woman that was murdered.
Cass then has to deal with the grief as she'd recently met this woman, along with the guilt of not doing anything. She thinks she’s going mad. She forgets things and as her mum had dementia, understandably her fear is that she has early onset dementia too. Her husband makes her go to the doctors and gets pills to help calm her down. (Jeez – i’m not doing this book half as much justice as it deserves! But I'm trying to keep it mainly spoiler free for you!) There is so much going on in the book which is why I simply couldn't put it down, I just had to keep on reading! A long story short – Cass discovers that the people close to her are not who she thought they were but with her ‘early onset dementia’ can she figure it out in time? And I don't think it's as straight forward as you may think!
What scared me the most whilst reading this was the fact that the more I read, the more I was ‘becoming one’ with Cass. What I mean by that is that I was terrified to walk around my house without shutting the curtains and locking the doors. I slept with the lights on. This for me is a huge testament to just how good this book is. When a writer can capture the characters so perfectly, and not only take you along for the ride, but to literally capture you as well, well that's a huge achievement isn't it?
I was just so desperate for Cass to figure it all out. I wanted her to be OK and I wanted to just know who the hell killed that woman. I had theories but I admit I was wrong - brilliant twist! I also wanted to know why it was having such an effect on Cass – because Cass had no idea, so we were all clueless.
The ending was absolutely bloody brilliant! I was squealing with delight and grinning from ear to ear as I got all excited. I reckon I must have looked like I was a cross between winning the lottery and needing the loo!!!
I definitely will read any future books by B.A. Paris now. Without question. What it has made me question even more is just how well I know people around me…I feel like I’ve become Cass in that sense (and no, it's not related to Mental illness on either part - mine or Cass's!). It just really made me question EVERYONE around me. How well do I really know someone? Really?
Whilst I’d like to follow her story and catch up with her in 5-10 years into her future, I just think she deserves a break. Boy does she deserve a break. She deserves to live her life in peace and be happy – I feel like I’ve intruded on her life far too much already…look at me talking as though she is real! Look what it’s done to me!!
Have you read The Break Down yet? Or have you read Behind Closed Doors? Is Psychological Thrillers your cup of tea? What do you think of them? I’d love to know if you’ve read either of these books…Thank you for reading my post about this book. Definitely highly recommend you read this book.
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