One Plus One by Jojo Moyes

Synopsis from Goodreads:

One single mom. One chaotic family. One quirky stranger. One irresistible love story from the New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You.

Suppose your life sucks. A lot. Your husband has done a vanishing act, your teenage stepson is being bullied and your math whiz daughter has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you can’t afford to pay for. That’s Jess’s life in a nutshell—until an unexpected knight-in-shining-armor offers to rescue them. Only Jess’s knight turns out to be Geeky Ed, the obnoxious tech millionaire whose vacation home she happens to clean. But Ed has big problems of his own, and driving the dysfunctional family to the Math Olympiad feels like his first unselfish act in ages . . . maybe ever.

My review:

Every time I think Jojo Moyes cannot possibly write a better book than the last one, I am proved wrong. After breaking my heart with Me Before You I picked this book thinking 'This sounds like a lovely, easy to read story!'. And it was. And it still made me cry and laugh and think myself lucky and take another look at myself and my family. Jojo Moyes has this gift of getting right under your skin with her words and I applaud her once again for a fabulous book.

Jess is an inspiring character. Single mum of two, working two jobs, but staying optimistic throughout the crappiest things that happen to her family. Ed on the other side is a hardworking rich guy that made a mistake and is now paying for it. They seem to be miles away in their situations, but they soon realise that they have a lot to learn from each other and sometimes the best thing you have is your own strength.

The kids are awesome. Tanzie is a lovely, geeky, maths addict who gets an offer to attend a prestigious private school with a ninety percent scholarship. Jess just needs to find the rest. Easy, right?

Nicky is a gothy teenager and a victim of being different in a small-minded world. Seriously bullied, taking anxiety drugs and not able to fall asleep without smoking a joint.

Then Jess and Ed make separate decision to take hold of their lives which bring them together for a journey to Scotland for Maths Olympiad in order for Tanzie to win the big bag of prize money that would enable her to go to the dream school.

The journey is full of learning, emotions, love, arguments, sick and one smelly dog, but it is also the best time the four people ever have. Things go right and things go wrong. They all make mistakes, but in a way they all save each other together.

This book is such a lovely romance about hope, family, optimism and just trying to the right thing. It's unselfish and by no means ordinary.

My rating: 5/5

The Lessons by Elizabeth Brown

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Question: What happens when a thirty-year-old virgin hires a sex surrogate to take care of her "little problem"?

Answer: Lots of laughs and tons of heat. You'll be left wanting a Dr. Ryan Andrews of your own.

My review:

The story was a novelty concept for me, but one I really enjoyed. I must admit that I have not researched sexual surrogates, but I am quite sure they exist. Therapy delves into so many subjects these days I would be utterly surprised if it didn’t fulfill the most primate needs of human beings.

That aside, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought all characters in this book were likable and realistic. The book was funny and emotional and just made a lovely, if unusual, love story.

Both Natalie and Ryan keep secrets from one another and should not continue any kind of professional relationship, but breaking the rules of professional therapy and facing the consequences is the lesser evil when compared to never seeing each other again.

This is an easy to follow story with just enough drama and depth to keep the reader going. Not too many twists so as a reader you are still able to keep your focus on the main point of this book, which is the blossoming forbidden fruit of an emotional relationship between a therapist and his client.

I liked it. A lot actually.

Another good book so many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in return for this honest review.

My rating: 4/5

Sovereign (Acquisition #3) by Celia Aaron

Synopsis from Amazon:

The Acquisition has ruled my life, ruled my every waking moment since Sinclair Vinemont first showed up at my house offering an infernal bargain to save my father’s life. Now I know the stakes. The charade is at an end, and Sinclair has far more to lose than I ever did. 

But this knowledge hasn’t strengthened me. Instead, each revelation breaks me down until nothing is left but my fight and my rage. As I struggle to survive, only one question remains. How far will I go to save those I love and burn the Acquisition to the ground? 

My review:

Third and final book in the Acquisition series and what a read it was. After managing to obtain the first two books through NetGalley and enjoying the series I purchased the third book as I couldn’t wait to read it. The series for me finished with in great style hence my mark of 5/5 stars.

The whole concept of this series is this dark society run by some of the most perverted people you can imagine, but it didn’t make me feel as uncomfortable as I thought it would. Let’s be honest, most of us has seen Hunger Games and how many millions of people has been watching Game of Thrones? This is just another way of showing the twisted, dark drama genre we have all come to enjoy.

After the two trials that Stella and Sin have gone through I was a little afraid of what was to come, however the last two trials were so bad. I mean that in the way that the previous ones were based on sex and rape, the last two trials were based on something Stella had had – strength and determination to survive.

The Vinemont family survival hangs on the shoulders of this one girl, but they all come together through love and bonds that cannot be broken by violence and brutality. You get to love all the family members including Sin’s brother Lucius, Teddy and even their mother Rebecca.

They learned from each other, from themselves and from their surroundings and all receive some important life lessons throughout the process.

This was an existing series and I am gutted that it’s reached its end.

My rating: 5/5