Book Review: Secrets of a Happy Marriage by Cathy Kelly

"Bess is hoping to show everyone just how happy her recent marriage is, but behind all the party-planning the cracks are beginning to show. Why is joining a family so difficult?

Jojo, Bess's stepdaughter, has a point to make. Bess is not her mother, and she won't replace the one she's been missing every day for the last two years. And will she ever get the chance to become a mum herself?

Cousin Cari is a fierce career-woman who isn't unnerved by anything - apart from facing the man who left her at the altar, and he's on the guestlist. Her job has been a safe place to hide ever since - but is it time to let love into her life again?

Thanks to laughter, tears and one surprise appearance, the Brannigans might just discover the secrets of a happy marriage . . . But will they find out before it's too late?"

Rating: 5/5

I was recently sent a copy of Cathy Kelly's brand new book Secrets of a Happy Marriage for review, and very much looked forward to reading it. Cathy's stories always make for wonderful reading, and the past few books I have read by her have been great, and so I had high expectations for this one. This book centres around one family - the Brannigan's, and the various people within that family. There's Bess and her new husband Edward, her step-daughter Jojo who is struggling with her own issues as well as the death of her beloved mother, her cousin Cari who is getting over her own heart-break, and a few more besides. With a big birthday celebration approaching, can Bess sort out the Brannigan's issues, or is it going to end in disaster?

I found this book very easy to get into from the beginning, despite the large amount of characters going on throughout the book. The Brannigan extended family is quite large, and they all make appearances throughout the book, and tell us about their various stories. The main ones throughout the book are Bess, Cari and Jojo, although the others pop up during the story. I liked Bess a lot, and felt quite sorry for her. Her only crime was to marry the man she loves, Edward, after years of being alone, and doesn't feel at all welcomed into the family by her new step-children and others. She was a strong woman outwardly, but you could tell she was crumbling inside. It was horrible to read but of course this is a common theme.

However, I could also understand Jojo's point of view, because she is still not over the shocking death of her wonderful mother, and doesn't want anyone replacing her in her father's affections. She's also struggling in her own marriage to Hugh, not telling anyone about their difficulties, so is shouldering the burden of it all by herself. It's quite a sad situation in many aspects because these women could get so much from each other if only they'd allow themselves to. Finally, there's Cari, another strong Brannigan woman who has had her heart broken by a man. Left at the altar, Cari is sure she will not ever make the mistake of falling in love again, but of course there are surprises around every corner.

I loved that Cari was a book editor, passionate about books and finding exciting new authors, and the book really showcases the job of a book editor, which is eye-opening if you don't know much about the process. Cari was very nuturing, excellent at her job, and certainly doesn't deserve how she is treated throughout the book by her colleagues, and I was really hopeful she would come out of it better off by the end. The relationship the family has with each other was lovely to read. Cari and Jojo were very supportive of each other, even if they do have their little tiffs and you can see how much Jojo adores her father, and her brother. Poor Edward was trying to juggle everyone and keep them happy, so I did have a lot of sympathy for him too.

Cathy Kelly's writing throughout the book was really good, I found myself being drawn into the world of the Brannigan's and their many dilemmas, and I always wanted to keep reading, to find out if the rifts would ever be healed. The book doesn't preach about how to have a good marriage, but highlights the importance of talking to each other, being honest and truly caring about the person and their wellbeing. Things like that can go a long way, as the characters in this book often discover. I thought all of the characters were excellently written, the drama is there throughout, and a surprise entrance near the end of the book is heart-warming and so well done. I really loved this book, and I think it's one of the best I have read by Cathy Kelly in recent years. A thoroughly enjoyable read, and one I can definitely recommend.

Blog Tour Book Review: Between Sisters by Cathy Kelly

"Cassie has spent her married life doing everything right - making sure her children have the perfect life, being a devoted wife to her husband and a dutiful daughter-in-law to his mother, even when her patience has been tested. Although it has left her so exhausted that 'wine o'clock' comes a little earlier each afternoon. But she wouldn't change a thing, she's certain, until temptation comes her way...

Her sister Coco runs a vintage dress shop and sure, she's shied away from commitment over the years. It's just that Coco believes men complicate things more than necessary, and she's got enough to contend with looking after her business and her staff, who seem to rely on her more and more for relationship advice. But who is she to give advice, when her own life is so simple?

Watching over them is grandmother Pearl, tucked away in her little house in Delaney Square with her chickens, busy with her poker club and a secret lover. But something is keeping her awake at night. Was she right to do what she did all those years ago? Surely, if she were right, she wouldn't be thinking about it so often now...?

And then there's Elsa, the polished face of daytime TV, who's battled demons of her own in the past and come out on top. Now Elsa faces one final battle - but this one will require more bravery than anything that's come before."

Rating: 4/5

I'm a fan of Cathy Kelly's book, and was very pleased to be asked to be part of her blog tour for her brand new book Between Sisters. The paperback release sees a new cover look for Cathy, and I actually really like this one, its simplistic but eye-catching. This story centres around one family - the Keneally's. Grandmother Pearl is the matriarch of the family, and has brought up her granddaughters Coco and Cassie by herself after their mother disappeared when they were very young. But the girl's lives aren't exactly plain-sailing at the moment. Cassie's relationship with her husband is going from bad to worse, Coco is working away in her vintage shop, having left behind the one relationship that could have turned into her happy ever after, and Pearl is hiding a secret she knows she can't reveal. Are the Keneally sisters going to be able to move through their bad time and into a happier future?

I love books centred around families, so this one really appealed to me from the beginning. At first, we just meet Coco and Cassie, and spend time between their two stories, but as the book progresses, we meet more characters who become involved with the women. The focus, however, stays on Coco and Cassie, and how their past and the abandonment by their mother has affected them. For some, this will be a bit cliché, with the story being a bit predictable and I could see the end coming as I read, but it didn't stop my enjoyment of the book because I sometimes like a story where I can see a happy ending coming!

Coco and Cassie were very different characters, but I found myself warming to Coco more. She was more likeable in my eyes, scared of making a commitment after having her heart-broken before, but strong when she needed to be. There is a sub-plot involving Coco's best friend Jo and her young daughter, and this was a really enjoyable part of the story for me. Cathy Kelly writes these relationships really well, and how it progressed felt really believable. It was emotional, and tackled some strong issues very well.

Cassie, on the other hand, I found it harder to like. She struggles more with the abandonment of her mother, as she was older when her mother left, and this really affects her as an adult, perhaps more than realises. Her husband Shay is quite beholden to his own mother, and the angle this story takes is very interesting. I think I sided with Cassie here, because his actions did start to become unacceptable, but I did feel sorry for Shay too as he was being pulled in two very different directions. Again, this part of the book was very emotive, Cassie really struggles to deal with what is happening in her marriage, but I found myself rooting for the pair to work it out, and put their family back together again. She relies heavily on her grandmother Pearl, who is a typical older wise grandmother character, but I really enjoyed her advice, and Pearl's own story too.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable book, but not my favourite of Cathy Kelly's. As I said, it felt quite predictable almost from the beginning, you could sense how things were going to end up, and although I enjoyed that, there will be readers out there who prefer to go into a book which is a little less predictable. However, what this book has is the heart of Cathy Kelly's writing - warmth, love and heart, it's all of these things which make Cathy's books so readable, and enjoyable. The characters were interesting to read about, the setting was just right for the book, and it was a very enjoyable read from start to finish. Recommended.

Book Review: Once In A Lifetime by Cathy Kelly

The town of Ardagh in Ireland loves its local department store, Kenny's, run by David Kenny. But things to do with the people aren't all rosy. David's wife Ingrid, a politics TV Presenter is juggling her family life and work life, but she soon unearths a secret that will shatter her world. Kenny's employee Natalie is starting to question her father about her long-deceased mother, and finds out some shocking revelations that rock her. Charlie Fallon, a make-up guru at Kenny's is in despair at her rocky relationship with her mother, but loves her own husband and son. She's determined to make it right with her mother, but are they both too stubborn? And finally, Star Bluestone who provides tapestries for the store, holds the knowledge to help all these women in their hours of need. Star knows how important it is to these women to find closure... but will they let her provide it?

Cathy Kelly is a very popular Irish author, and amazingly this is the 11th book she has released. She's been writing since 1997, but since I was only 11 years old then, I've only just really got into her work, my first Kelly novel being her previous release, Lessons in Heartbreak (reviewed of course). I wasn't overly impressed but hoped that this one would be more enjoyable for me. When I read the blurb, I wasn't too sure as it sounded like a lot of characters and would therefore require a bit more concentration that I liked to give a book but still I was willing to give it a real go and head into it with an open mind. It was a rather chunky book, so was one that would take me a while, and consequently give me a chance to really get into it.