Blog Tour: Something Old, Something New by Darcie Boleyn

"When Annie Thomas agrees to give her ex away at his wedding to his boyfriend, she thinks she’ll be fine. With her three children at her side, she can handle anything. Then she finds out her gorgeous first ex-husband Evan Llewellyn is flying in from his glamorous life in New York to attend as well!

An unexpected pregnancy ended their relationship and as she stumbles through the ups and downs of life as a working single mum – helping everyone else find a happy ending along the way – Annie refuses to believe their old and incredibly hot spark can still exist.

It’s only when she and Evan are forced to face up to the past together that they’ll discover if they can have their own happily-ever-after too!"

Rating: 4/5

You can buy the book now.

I am really pleased to be part of the blog tour for Darcie Boleyn's new novel Something Old, Something New. I read her previous novel Wish Upon a Christmas Cake and thoroughly enjoyed it, so was thrilled to get a chance to read this one. I really liked the cover, it's bright and fresh and makes the book look like a fun read, which is certainly is!

Annie doesn't feel like life has gone the way she had always hoped - she was a teenager mother, and her first marriage to Evan didn't last, then her second marriage to Dex ended when he admitted he was gay and is now getting married to Trevor, and Annie is giving him away! Annie's exhausted as she's a teacher, bringing her up 3 children, and to make matters worse, her ex-husband Evan is back on the scene. As things suddenly start changing in Annie's life, and she is confronted with a shocking development from her daughter Janis, Annie starts wondering where she went wrong, and how she can find some happiness in her future...

The book is told in the first person from Annie's point of view, and we follow her throughout the novel. I found her to be a very likeable character, a single hard-working mum, and a bit perplexed as to how her life has got her to this point. She's lucky to have good relationships with her ex-husbands, but it doesn't stop the loneliness she feels at night, something I'm sure a lot of single parents can relate to. Annie is a lovely lady though, and her friendship with her best friend Cassie was lovely to read too, the women are there for each other through everything and certainly gave me a few laughs along the way!

The men in the book are lovely, and you can see why Annie was drawn to both of them at different times in her life! Evan sounds wonderful, and is a caring father despite the fact he works away, and both he and Annie are still fond of each other. I was hoping that the pair would be able to reignite their spark and get back together against the odds! Dex was lovely too, also a dedicated father, and I loved his wedding scenes in the book. Annie's children were also lovely, Janis, her eldest daughter was lovely, and her younger two were funny too, and Darcie has captured their personalities really well.

This a fun read from beginning to end and I thoroughly enjoyed the story. Darcie Boleyn's writing was very easy to read, and she really captured the emotion of the characters, the lighter moments and the more serious ones really well, and there's a lot to keep your attention hooked in the book. The story involving Janis was certainly interesting reading and I loved reading it from Annie's perspective and the array of emotions she goes through because of it. I would definitely recommend the book, the writing was great and I loved the characters, especially Annie who really deserved a happy ending! A wonderful read.

You can win 3 eBook copies of Darcie's book, just enter on the form below! Good luck!

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eBook Review: Wish Upon A Christmas Cake by Darcie Boleyn

"Katie Warham has just one wish this year…to have the best Christmas ever!

If only she could lock herself away in a cloud of flour and sugar at her cosy little tearoom, Crumbtious Cakes, instead of spending the festive season trapped with her judgemental mother, crazy Aunt Gina and loved-up celebrity brother Carl…

But Katie never expected her ex-boyfriend, widower Sam – and his two adorable children – to turn up on her doorstep. She didn’t think that any man could tempt her under the mistletoe this year, but Sam might just prove the exception! And as the snow begins to fall and Katie puts the final touches to her famous Christmas cake, she begins to wonder, could her Christmas wish actually come true?"

Rating: 4/5

Available to buy now.

Another festive read that has landed on my Kindle this year is the debut novel from author Darcie Boleyn. I feel it always bodes well when an author debuts with a Christmas novel because I do love a great Christmas story, and if they can make me fall in love with their festive story, then I'm definitely going to want to read more from them. I really like the cover for this eBook, I love that publishers are getting wise to the fact that eBook covers have to be just as attractive as traditional paperback covers, and this one certainly works for me. I enjoyed this story very much, its a wonderfully romantic tale that you will want to cosy up with this Christmas!

Katie is determined to have her best Christmas ever, and will do anything to make it so. She loves running her own tea room, Crumbtious Cakes, with her best friend, but knows she needs some downtime over the festive season, and drives off to spend it with her parents. Whilst the relationship between her and her mother isn't the best, Katie is going to put all her feelings aside to make this festive season the best she can. However, she doesn't count on her ex-boyfriend Sam making a reappearance at the venue, with two children in tow. Will Katie be able to put her feelings aside, and let this Christmas be her best one yet?

I really was able to get into this story from the very beginning, and became quickly invested in Katie's story. There's a bit of a mystery with her, why she and Sam split up many years ago, and I was curious to find out what happened between them. As it's revealed, you can understand why Katie is as she is in the book, and why it has so profoundly affected her. This was a serious side to the story, and I felt Boleyn handled it really well, tackling the issue sensitively, allowing the emotion to come through. Katie was very likeable and I really did care about her story.

My favourite character though was Sam. He's a father now, and clearly is close to Katie's family, and as the story goes on, we find out more about why he is choosing to spend time with another family instead of his own. I loved his story, it was so well written, and the scenes featuring him and Katie were so beautifully written, you could really feel the chemistry between the pair. I loved the realistic obstacles they come up against - the children being the main one, and it all felt very believable as I was reading.  Nothing seemed forced between the pair, their friendship from years ago was still very evident, and it the pace of it all was just perfect. The characters of Sam's children were just as well written too, sometimes children can be horribly written in novels but they were written brilliantly here, and the conversation between them and the adults felt so real, it was a joy to read.

I thought this was a very enjoyable Christmas read, and I became very involved in Katie and Sam's story. The fact it was set at Christmas made it perfect for me, and I enjoyed all of the festive touches that Boleyn described, from the walks in the snow, to the Christmas trees and cakes that were dotted throughout the novel. Boleyn's writing was really enjoyable to read, she really puts across the more serious side of the story with sensitivity and gentleness, showing a more vunerable side to these characters. This was a very enjoyable read, one that I can definitely recommend, and I'll be looking out for more from Darcie Boleyn.