Recipes for Melissa by Teresa Driscoll

Description : 

Is it ever too late for the gift of goodbye?

Melissa Dance was eight years old when her mother died. They never got to say goodbye.

Seventeen years later, Melissa is handed a journal. As she smooths open the pages and begins to read her mother’s words, she is instantly transported back to her childhood.

But returning to her past is painful and memories of her mother’s beautiful face are a cruel reminder to Melissa that she’ll never see her again.

As Melissa slowly makes her way through the precious book, reading the snippets of advice and cooking the dishes from the recipes she is also shocked to learn of her mother’s secrets – secrets that if shared, could change Melissa’s world forever.

  Publish Date : 5th June 2015

Published By : Bookouture

Format : Kindle Edition

* Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing this copy in exchange for an honest review*

My Thoughts : What a truly delightful read this was.

Melissa is 25 and has just received a journal her Mother wrote for her while she was dying from cancer when Melissa was just 8 years old.

A lot of the book is set in journal style and as you may have guessed from the title there are recipes, these aren't just recipes though, they are stories that bring back many memories that Melissa has put to the back of her mind since her Mothers death.

On reading the blurb I thought this book would be a tear jerker and I was right in a way, although I shed a few tears it was also so much more. The story is about rediscovering and healing and the love Eleanor has for her daughter Melissa shines through, it's beautiful.

Teresa has written a beautiful heartfelt story with wonderful characters that will stay with me for a long time to come. I'd wholeheartedly recommend this book to everyone but just make sure you have a box of hankies and plenty time to read as once you start you won't want to stop until the end.

The Summer of Secrets by Sarah Jasmon

Description : One day she was there . . .

and the next day, the day after the fire, she was gone.


In the summer of 1983, when Helen is sixteen, Victoria Dover and her eccentric family move in next door, at once making her lonely world a more thrilling place. But the summer ends with a terrible tragedy, and everyone involved – her father and the entire Dover family – simply disappears.

Then one day, thirty years later, Victoria comes back.



A suspenseful, spell-binding coming-of-age story about young friendship, damaged families and how one simple action on a long, sultry summer can echo through the years. Perfect for fans of Louise Doughty's Apple Tree Yard, Liane Moriarty's The Husband's Secret and Helen Dunmore's The Lie.

Publish date : August 13th 2015
Published by : Transworld Digital
Format : Kindle Edition

* Thank you Netgalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Black Swan for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest opinion. *

My thoughts :  This is a slow moving story, but it's beautifully written and thought provoking.

Set in the summer of 1983 and interwoven with the year 2013 we read about the main character Helen, a bored and lonely 16 year old girl and her neighbours the Dovers who suddenly appear cause a whirlwind and just as suddenly disappear leaving Helen confused and still wondering 30 years on what happened.

Sarah Jasmon tells a wonderful descriptive story, the canal side comes to life as you read and the characters are believable. There's secrets and twists but if you're looking for a fast paced book this isn't for you. Instead we get a slow moving yet intensely thought provoking story that captures you from page 1 and slowly twists its way through to the end where you are desperate to find out what happened on that fateful night in the summer of 83.

I really enjoyed The Summer of Secrets and it's a fantastic debut novel from Sarah and I really look forward to reading more by this author.