Sunday 31 December 2017

My Favourite Books of 2017


Into the „draw“ for my ultimate FAVES came all my Books of the Month of 2017:

January:
·      Sister Sister by Sue Fortin

February:
·      A Song for Tomorrow by Alice Peterson

March:
·      Rome is Where the Heart Is by Tilly Tennant

April:
·   Spring at Blueberry Bay by Holly Martin
·   This Love by Dani Atkins
·   Meet Me at Beachcomber Bay by Jill Mansell

May:
·      The Last Piece of My Heart by Paige Toon

June:
·      The Summe of Impossible Things by Rowan Coleman
·    Summer at Buttercup Beach by Holly Martin

July:
·      Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood
·   Summer’s Lease by Carrie Elks
·   The Lost Wife by Anna Mansell

August:
·     The Honeymoon by Tina Seskis

September:
·      I Heart Forever by Lindsey Kelk

October: 
·      Annie’s Christmas by the Sea by Liz Eeles

November:
·      A Christmas Wedding by Paige Toon

December:
·     Christmas in St Ives by Miranda Dickinson
  

So, here are my books of 2017, in no particular order, it wasn’t easy, but I’m happy with my choices:

·      Sister Sister by Sue Fortin
·      A Song For Tomorrow by Alice Peterson
·      Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood
·      This Love by Dani Atkins
·      I Heart Forever by Lindsey Kelk
·      The Honeymoon by Tina Seskis
·      The Last Piece of My Heart by Paige Toon
·      A Christmas Wedding by Paige Toon
·      Summer’s Lease by Carrie Elks
·      Christmas in St Ives by Miranda Dickinson


Sister Sister by Sue Fortin


 Sister Sister is a thriller full of twists and turns and it includes family, love and friendship. These things all put together with great writing create a novel you can’t miss. I’m not that big on thrillers, but this one is fabulous!!! You don’t know which way the story is going and that’s fascinating! The storyline is very clever, gripping, riveting, spellbinding and mesmerizing. I got so hooked, because I just wanted to find out the truth. You can feel the tension through the words and you just can’t let go. 


A Song for Tomorrow by Alice Peterson


This book has so many great elements. Alice Peterson put a lot into this book, she based it all on a true story, added her own experiences and combined it all into spellbinding, inspirational, uplifting and heart-breaking story. The way she included a difficult topic like this in a story is very impressive. Make sure you have some tissues close by, because you definitely need them. Alice Peterson’s writing is touching, moving and very emotional. Already a definite contender for my Books of the Year!


Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood


The humor in this book is on point, the storyline has a wonderful flow, the characters are authentic and real, there are emotions and feelings included as well and it all has a deep meaning. There is also a lot of detail in the writing, which I always like and it just makes me sees the story as a movie as well. This story really touched my heart and I think it’s amazing that Kirsty Greenwood managed to make this book very emotional and yet very funny, it’s the perfect mixture! On top of that: it’s also romantic, so it definitely has everything you need in a perfect book! It really is perfect, read it now!


This Love by Dani Atkins


This story is a roller-coaster ride of emotions, feelings play a very important role in this book and Dani Atkins captured them beautifully. Dani Atkins created some wonderful characters here, full of heart and love. They are very well drawn out and seem very authentic. Through the writing I always felt really close to the story and what happened, it's captivating, spellbinding, heart breaking and poignant, I advise having a box of tissues close by, you are going to need them.


I Heart Forever by Lindsey Kelk


I was hooked from the start! I wanted to know, how the story continued every time I put the book down, but at the same time I didn’t want it to end. I loved being back with Angela, Alex, Jenny and Co. Lindsey Kelk created a fabulous world around these characters, it’s set in New York and it’s just AWESOME!!! I HEART IT!!!!!! SO MUCH!!!!!


The Honeymoon by Tina Seskis


I was hooked to this story from the start! It’s tense, full of drama, intrigues, lies and secrets. It’s def the best thriller I have ever read, very unpredictable and with a shocker of an ending! I was literally at the edge of my seat after every chapter and just wanted to find out what really happened. A brilliant book, cleverly written and JUST WOW!!!!!


The Last Piece of My Heart by Paige Toon


I couldn’t put this book down! There is enough drama included, some wonderful and beautiful scenes, a fab setting and so much more. I also think the title of this book is brilliant!!! I absolutely adore the world she always creates around her characters. The are also somehow connected to each other and if you have read her previous books, it’s just fabulous to read about certain characters again. The atmosphere and ambiance in this book was not to beat, that’s probably also why she is still one of my fave authors.


A Christmas Wedding by Paige Toon


This book is absolute perfection and it showed me once again, how talented Paige Toon is. The world she created around her characters is unique and I love, how they are all connected in some way. The ending is perfect and just makes me want to read another book by her. Her writing style is engaging, fresh, authentic, brilliant and just on point. BRILLIANT AND PERFECT!!!


A Summer's Lease by Carrie Elks


The setting is absolutely stunning, I felt at home immediately and that’s also thanks to Carrie Elks’s descriptive, sweet and passionate writing. I was hooked from the start and never wanted to leave the story. I’m so glad this is a series, can’t wait for the next book! I adore how this story touches different topics. Love obviously, but also family, self discovery, dealing with your job and dealing with failure. A very thrilling, fascinating and sweet story, I loved every second of it!


Christmas in St Ives by Miranda Dickinson


I absolutely adore Miranda Dickinson’s writing. It’s warm, passionate, full of details and just magical. I loved every second of this book and I just adored the characters. The story covers topics like love, family, relationships, friendship, trust, honesty and much more. The setting is absolutely beautiful and of course it includes a lot of christmassy elements, which is just fantastic. JUST MAGICAL!!




























Saturday 30 December 2017

My Highlights of 2017


I can’t believe it’s the end of the year. It has passed so quickly. This year has been full of exciting moments, some lows as well, but as I said I focus on the good things and I’d like to share them with you guys.

-       In April I travelled to Dallas to see my second mumma Wendy again. She truly is an amazing person, I loved talking to her and chatting about every possible topic, I got to know her family and of course enjoy some shopping and ice hockey, it was just fabulous.
-    Dallas Stars: Wendy took my to see a game and to a Stars practice. It was fab, being so close to the players, especially Tyler Seguin. We also got to meet some of the players after practice, that was so great. 
-       Shortly after coming home from Dallas, I went to Tenerife. It was actually my first time in Spain. Tenerife is beautiful. It has beaches, mountains, lovely cities and impressive nature. I really loved it.
-       In May I travelled to London to enjoy a few days with my bestie Maryline. We were finally able to catch up and talk about her wedding plans. She asked me the year before to be a bridesmaid, so seeing everything come together was fab. We of course enjoyed some shopping, went to see Matilda, went tot he Harry Potter studio tour, met up with other author friends and much more.
-       Seeing Matilda for the second time in London was fabulous and very special. I just adore this musical, it’s one of my faves.
-       I have wanted to go the the Harry Potter studio tour ever since it opened, but I always travelled to London with the wrong people. This time it was different. Maryline is a big Harry Potter fan as well, so I was finally able to go. It was INCREDIBLE!!! Seeing all the sights and sets, the props, the costumes, try butterbeer and so much more. I LOVED IT!!! Can I go back please?!
-       Author/Blogger meet up: While we were in London, we met up with some lovely author and blogger friends, which was fabulous. It’s just great to meet them all in real life and just chat.
-       Singing Messiah by Handel was a very special moment this year. We had our concerts back in June and the were amazing. The atmosphere was unique and it felt so great. We also recorded it and made a CD, we sound like a professional choir, which is just fabulous.
-       In summer I travelled to Lisbon with my mum. We travel to a city every year. Lisbon is beautiful: great architecture, it’s by the river, it’s so lively and much more. We walked a lot during that trip and saw a lot as well. It’s a wonderful city.
-       For my birthday my godmother invited me to FĂĽssen to see Ludwig 2. The area around the Forggensee is breath-taking. We also visited Neuschwanstein Castle. Just WOW!
-       Seeing WICKED for the second time! The UK touring company came to Zurich and since Wicked is one of my faves, I clearly had to go!
-       In December it was finally time for my bestie’s wedding. So I travelled to Belgium for three days and got to be one of Maryline’s bridesmaid. I’m so happy, I was able to be part of her special day. The wedding was beautiful. The other bridesmaid were so lovely and so much fun as well and her family too. The wonderful Holly Martin was there as well, so great to catch up with her too.
-       My team at work: They are fabulous, we get along so well and have so much fun, whatever we do.
-       My class for this school year is great too. It’s so much fun teaching them and seeing them learn new things.
-       Planning this year’s Christmas musical. We changed the concept a little bit, with different stations outside. It was new, challenging and we didn’t know what to expect, but it turned out to be a success.

I could add more here (like my Sushi nights, coffee dates with my girls etc.), but then I’d never stop. There were lots of little highlights as well, just as important as the others of course. I have them all in my heart and I think that’s the essential thing about them. There are also some highlights, I just don’t want to share on here ;).

What were your highlights of 2017?