Book Review: It's Raining Men by Milly Johnson

"A summer getaway to remember. But is a holiday romance on the cards…? Best friends from work May, Lara and Clare are desperate for some time away. They have each had a rough time of it lately and need some serious R & R. So they set off to a luxurious spa for ten glorious days, but when they arrive at their destination, it seems it is not the place they thought it was. In fact, they appear to have come to entirely the wrong village… Here in Ren Dullem nothing is quite what it seems; the lovely cobbled streets and picturesque cottages hide a secret that the villagers have been keeping hidden for years. Why is everyone so unfriendly and suspicious? Why does the landlord of their holiday rental seem so rude? And why are there so few women in the village? Despite the strange atmosphere, the three friends are determined to make the best of it and have a holiday to remember. But will this be the break they all need? Or will the odd little village with all its secrets bring them all to breaking point…?"

Rating: 5/5

You can buy It's Raining Men as a paperback or an eBook now.

Milly Johnson is one of my most favourite chick lit authors, and I get really excited whenever she has a new book out! This book was delayed from an April publication date, so I've been really eager to read it as the story sounded brilliant! I was thrilled when a review copy landed on my doormat last week, and I got stuck straight in to it. The cover is lovely, simply and elegant but not too fussy, and certainly suits the title of the book well! I never go into a Milly Johnson book worrying that I won't enjoy it, and it was certainly true for this one, I couldn't put it down and couldn't wait for a few free minutes to pick it up again!

May, Lara and Clare are three hard-working women who are in desperate need of a break from their busy work lives. They've all had trouble in their respective relationships lately, and need some girl-time away from it all. They decide to go on a break today, and book a luxury spa. But things go awry when they end up in a tiny village called Ren Dullem, in the back of beyond and no spa in sight. However, Ren Dullem isn't the boring village it seems from the outside. Why are there hardly any women in the village, and why are the male residents of Ren Dullem so rude to the 3 visitors? Despite the frosty reception, the women are determined to have a great holiday in Ren Dullem, but secrets are they all about to uncover....?

As with many of Milly's books, it doesn't follow just one character, and this book treats us to three great female lead characters. There's Lara, who is living with her boyfriend James, a divorcee, and his two teenage children who she is sure hate her. But Lara doesn't let on to the other girls how bad it is, pretending that her ready-made family is just what she wants. There's Clare, in a relationship with German man Lud, but soon finds things become unsettled when she is offered her dream promotion which can finally impress her parents, but Lud has news of his own that could scupper everything. Finally, there's shy May, dating married man Michael, but all is not as it seems for the pair of them. I have to say I loved each of these characters, they are all very different in their own ways and Johnson writes each of them so believably, you really get caught up in their stories and the emotion of what happens to them.

I really liked the mystery of the town of Ren Dullem as well, and was honestly clueless as to where the story was going. I didn't know why there were virtually no women in the village, why the villagers were so horrible, and there was a strange little subplot involving a local landowner and a new face in town who goes to work for him, but clearly has ulterior motives. It all leads to there being something very odd going on, and when it became clearer, I was truly shocked. Milly throws you a bit of curve ball in this story, it's totally unexpected and nothing like I've read before, and I actually really enjoyed that! Everything from the village to the cottage they stay in to the villagers themselves are so well written and described that you can imagine them so clearly as you're reading.

It's Raining Men is an utterly charming and engrossing read that really takes you in, and I honestly loved every single page of it. Milly's writing is fantastic, she is so warm and funny that you certainly smile along as you're reading, and the real emotion of the story and characters comes across too. I loved reading about what Lara, May and Clare got up to, and I enjoyed discovering the secrets of the village of Ren Dullem along with them... Clare's lagoon was honestly just amazing, I want one! It's a magical read, one that mesmerised me, and it's definitely one of Milly's best books to date. It'll be one fans of Milly will love, and if you haven't read anything by Milly yet (where have you been?!), then you wouldn't go far wrong starting with this one. I loved it!