I am so pleased to be taking part in the Blog Tour for Never Again by Nicky Clifford. First of all let's take a look at the book and then you can read on for my review. There is also a lovely Q&A with Nicky Clifford.
About the book:
Mountains, Mystery, Romance: Can you run from your past?
Harriet Anderson’s life is spiralling out of control. Unused to such mayhem, she ditches her high-powered job to take refuge in the Swiss Alps where she meets Philippe Smith, a crime writer with a dark and shadowy past. Thrown together by chance, is their fate intertwined? Will the karma and romance of the mountains and the quaintness of the Alps soothe their troubled souls?
Or will their rocky paths create avalanches that cannot be avoided...
Harriet Anderson’s life is spiralling out of control. Unused to such mayhem, she ditches her high-powered job to take refuge in the Swiss Alps where she meets Philippe Smith, a crime writer with a dark and shadowy past. Thrown together by chance, is their fate intertwined? Will the karma and romance of the mountains and the quaintness of the Alps soothe their troubled souls?
Or will their rocky paths create avalanches that cannot be avoided...
Buy here
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My Review:
The interactions between Harriet and Philippe were well written. I especially enjoyed their first couple of meetings they were both fiery and lots of fun to read. To start with both of their pasts are hinted at and I thought that things were revealed along the way perfectly.
A special mention has to go to Elspeth she really was the voice of reason. Greg is a nightmare and at times I felt like yelling at Harriet to stop falling for his lies and emotional blackmail.
At the heart of this story is a sweet and loving romance. There are however other things at play such as grief, alcoholism and trust issues.
The setting for the book was wonderful and I felt like I was right there at times with the beautiful descriptive writing. I have to say that I definitely had cravings for hot chocolate!
Overall:
If I could have read Never Again in one sitting I would have done. However two young children, a part time job and sleep of course made this impossible. I did read this over two days which is still pretty quick.
The characters and story held my attention throughout and I can't wait to read Nicky Clifford's next book!
So sink into a comfy chair, grab a hot chocolate and read this beautiful story!
Five stars from me!
Thank you to Nicky Clifford for my copy, this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
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About the author:
Writing has always been
a passion for Nicky Clifford and as a student she penned poems, short stories
and articles, many of which were successfully published. But a lack of
confidence in her novel writing led her to follow a different career path and
for many years she worked in the corporate world of HR & Training.
Now
with her sons having reached their teens and with her husband’s encouragement,
Nicky has decided to focus on her writing once again and, glued to her writer’s
chair, has completed three novels. Her debut novel, Never Again, is the first to be published and hits the contemporary
romance shelves this autumn. The book is set in her home county of Berkshire
and also in the Swiss Alps where Nicky has many happy memories, having worked
there in her student days.
As well as dedicating her time to writing, Nicky also
works part-time for a local charity. She will make a donation from the book
royalties to the charities, Auticulate
and Childhood Tumour Trust. Having
completed a writing course at Reading University, she is a member of her local
writing group which she says, were staunch in their support and have helped
enormously in encouraging Nicky to launch her first book.
Nicky was a keen
ice-skater, managing to perfect backwards crossovers, mohawks and one foot
turns, but has recently hung up her boots to spend more time relaxing with her friends
and family at home in Berkshire.
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Q&A with Nicky Clifford
Thank you to Nicky Clifford for kindly taking the time to take part in this little Q&A.
So lets start...
What do
you like to do when you're not writing?
Due to
health issues, I recently hung up my ice-skating boots; I must admit I do miss
gliding around the ice trying to perfect new moves. Instead, my husband and I
go cycling along the Kennet Canal in Berkshire, although the highlight has to
be the pub lunch at The Row Barge in Woolhampton at the half-way point! Having
a cappuccino and a slice of gluten-free cake with friends at Nibsy’s, my
favourite café ever, also features regularly on my calendar.
If you
were stranded on a desert island what three books would you want with you?
The
‘Language of Letting Go’ by Melody Beattie because it contains daily
inspirational readings to keep me on the right track – if I was left alone in
my own head on a dessert island for hours, days, weeks, months at a time, I
reckon this book might well be the one thing that keeps me sane!
Any book
by Jodi Picoult. She always tackles difficult and often contentious subjects so
cleverly that you can’t help but be swept up in the emotional journey she takes
you on. I admire the way she writes in the first person with different
characters narrating different chapters. I would find it impossible to pick out
one of her novels as my favourite.
My late
grandfather’s self-published autobiography. He lived an incredible and
inspiring life in the RAF. His Irish sense of humour and modesty at his many achievements
shine throughout the book. Not only would this entertain me for hours at a
time, but it would help me to feel close to my family as there are plenty of photos
and anecdotes to bring back fond memories.
What
was the last book you read?
‘Coffee, Tea,
the Caribbean and Me’ by Caroline James. It swept me away on a wave of
adventure, which was packed full of interesting characters, dramas, romance and
humour. I vicariously drank up the sun, the beach, the sea and the atmosphere
as I chilled out, book in hand, during the damper days in the UK – I loved it!
What
did you enjoy most about writing Never Again?
‘The
End’! No, seriously, I loved it when my writing flowed and I lost myself for hours
at a time typing away furiously at my desk in the corner of our spare room.
Although the editing can be gruelling, it was so satisfying seeing my novel
improve as I acted on feedback from friends and members of my writing group. I am
always astounded and in awe of my characters and how they take on a life of
their own and pretty much write the story for me…
Chatty.
Enthusiastic. Tenacious. (My husband said: “lovely”, but he is biased, and I’m
far too humble to include that!)
So just for fun I also asked Nicky some quick fire questions where you only pick one answer.
(answers in bold and underlined)
Paperback or ebook
Classic
novel or Contemporary novel
Cinema or Theatre
Night out
or Day out
Thank you
again to Nicky for taking part in the Q&A, it is much appreciated!
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Why not follow along with the rest of the Never Again Blog Tour
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