The House Of Hidden Letters by Izzy Broom

 

My thoughts

If you read one historical this year this is the one. It's so good. It has it all. History of course. A love story. Two timelines. Possibly murder. An abusive(albeit not in great detail.) A Greek island. A lottery winner. A group of people who come together for each other. No. Matter. What.

This is a book that will capture your heart. It will also leave you on pins and needles in places. Things happen to make you think. To make you appreciate what you have. Always keep your friends close. Even the ones you might have just met.

When Skye wins a lottery she knows it's her chance. Her chance to get out of a horrible relationship. Her husband, Martyn, is awful. He is not who she thought he was. They had a whirlwind relationship and marriage. He wanted her and he got her. 

Skye wins a house on a Greek Island. It's an older place that needs a lot of repair. It only cost her the price of a lottery entry. There are a few others who won houses too. Skye doesn't share any private things with the new neighbors. She keeps it to herself. Skye and her mother have problems also. 

When Skye finds letters hidden in her house and starts reading them you get to know more about the history of the island. What happened to the previous owners. 

Then we go to 1940 and meet Katerina. Katerina and Stefanos. They lived on the Greek island as the war starts. When Mussolini started taking over and started wars it was coming to Greece. To their peaceful island. Stefanos had to leave. He had to go defend their country. Katerina's sister's husband goes with him leaving the women behind. 

A lot happens in both timelines. It's very easy to keep straight though. This is such a good book. It has so many things to keep you turning the pages. Some edge of your seat things too. A few mysteries. The love story was beautiful. 

This book gave me a few feelings. Tears. Anger. Expectations. Hope. Love. Loss. It had it all. The writing was wonderful. This story will hold your heart. 

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishers for this ARC.

Five stars 

About

“A joy from start to finish.”—Alex Michaelides, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient

A beautiful and escapist novel full of heart, for fans of Elin Hilderbrand and readers who love book club fiction.

For Greek cottage. One euro.

Skye MacKinnon is desperate for an escape. When she wins a lottery to buy a run-down cottage on a Greek island for only one euro, Skye jumps at the chance to get out of England and start over. As she unlocks the tattered blue door of her whitewashed new cottage, the sun-kissed sea glinting in the bay outside her windows, Skye immediately feels like she’s found her true home.

Skye and the other lottery winners—the first residents in these houses since the 1940s—form a tight-knit group, finding in one another the strong relationships they’d been missing in their own lives. When Skye and local contractor Andreas find a set of mysterious letters, they begin to unravel the history of the prior residents, and the truth about life on Folegandros during World War II.

Sweeping, escapist, and full of heart, The House of Hidden Letters reminds us of the importance of human connection. Izzy Broom has written a poignant and hopeful novel for those who have found love and family in unexpected places.

The Last Daughter by Soraya M. Lane

 

My thoughts

This is the last in the series of Lost Daughters by this author. It's like the beginning that came at the end. The one that started the whole thing. It's beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. A story of love and loss. 

When Mia's Aunt dies she is left to close up Hope's House. Mia is Hope's great niece. This is the story of how Hope House started. Who helped Hope when she was at her very lowest. When she needed someone more than ever. It's also the story of Mia. How Mia goes searching for answers but finds love instead. Mia was the one who gave each box to each of seven young ladies whose grandmother's had left them behind. Each with a clue as to who they were and why they had to give up their baby.

Hope had to leave home because of her cruel dad. He was abusive to her mother and in time to her also. This was in the early 1920s. Before the war. Before women could have a say whether they got an education or married or had families. Hope left home because she didn't want to marry a stranger. She didn't want the kind of life her mother had. She wanted to paint. To live. To learn about life. She had hopes and dreams. 

Mia was going through her own sadness. She was somewhat of a reclusive young lady. She had lost the love of her life and didn't know how to move on without him. Even after so many years had passed. But when Mia had a chance to find out more about her Aunt Hope she jumped at the chance. 

Both of these women had a destiny of sorts. Hope to help unwed mothers. Mia to find love again. You get to know more about Hope and all she went through and it's heartbreaking. I hoped all the way for one thing to happen. Up to the very end I held on to that hope. Mia went on this journey and found a guy. Joe. Joe was a good man. He had his own bar and worked hard. He had some hardships he dealt with also. Maybe together they can find peace. Maybe they can find each other and the happiness each deserves.

This is the last in this series and it's so good. After reading the previous books and knowing this one had to come eventually it was kind of hard to see it end. I adored Hope. She was such a good person to do what she did. After all she lost she was still so kind to other women who came to Hope's House for help. Opening the house to help others helped Hope in so many ways too. 

A well written book about a subject that is so sad. How horrible women and girls were treated for simply having a baby and not a husband. What they had to go through. 

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for this ARC.

4.70 stars. 

About

Hope looked up at Gus, his fingers linked with hers as he smiled down at her. The wind whipped at her hair, cool against her skin, but all she cared about was the man standing in front of her. ‘I choose you, Hope,’ he whispered. ‘A thousand times over, I choose you.’

London, Present Mia clutches the last remaining box found at Hope’s House in her hands. For months she has been determined to reunite every box with its rightful owner. But now it’s time for her to discover Hope’s own heartbreaking story.

France 1938: When Hope meets Gus in the lively streets of Paris, she finally feels that she has met her kindred spirit. But as they plan their dream future together, it is clear that Gus’s father will never allow their romance to develop. Defying his wishes, Gus promises Hope that they will be together after his army training.

But with France on the brink of war, Hope travels back to London for safety, cradling a life-changing secret. Then devastating news arrives which threatens Hope’s future and shatters her heart. In the darkest days of war, will Hope find the courage to give others the chance of a brighter future? And will her own story of strength inspire Mia to follow her heart?

The utterly gorgeous and heartbreaking final novel in the Lost Daughters series will leave you spellbound and is the perfect read for fans of Santa Montefiore, Lucinda Riley and Victoria Hislop.