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I invited her in by Adele Parks

‘I invited her in… and she took everything.’
When Mel hears from a long-lost friend in need of help, she doesn’t hesitate to invite her to stay. Mel and Abi were best friends back in the day, sharing the highs and lows of student life, until Mel’s unplanned pregnancy made her drop out of her studies.
Now, seventeen years later, Mel and Abi’s lives couldn’t be more different. Mel is happily married, having raised her son on her own before meeting her husband, Ben. Now they share gorgeous girls and have a chaotic but happy family home, with three children.
Abi, meanwhile, followed her lover to LA for a glamorous life of parties, celebrity and indulgence. Everything was perfect, until she discovered her partner had been cheating on her. Seventeen years wasted, and nothing to show for it. So what Abi needs now is a true friend to lean on, to share her grief over a glass of wine, and to have some time to heal. And what better place than Mel’s house, with her lovely kids, and sup…
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Buffy the vampire slayer picture book

The cult classic ’90s TV show is now a charming book for the youngest fans in the Buffyverse!

In this new picture book story brought to life with enchanting, colorful illustrations, kid readers can learn about what the world’s strongest vampire slayer was like when she was a kid! What’s that strange sound coming from inside the closet? Join little Buffy, Xander, and Willow as they investigate bumps in the night, seek advice from their school librarian Giles, and encounter all your favorite Buffyverse monsters. Complete with gorgeous illustrations by Pop Classics artist Kim Smith, this sweet, silly, and not-so-scary book makes a perfect bedtime story.

This is the cutest thing in the world. If you love Buffy you'll adore this and making squealy sounds as you read it and then want to buy numerous copies for all of the small people you know to share the Buffy joy.
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No fixed address by Susin Nielsen

Twelve-and-three-quarter-year-old Felix Knutsson has a knack for trivia. His favorite game show is Who What Where When; he even named his gerbil after the host. Felix's mom, Astrid, is loving but can't seem to hold on to a job. So when they get evicted from their latest shabby apartment, they have to move into a van. Astrid swears him to secrecy; he can't tell anyone about their living arrangement, not even Dylan and Winnie, his best friends at his new school. If he does, she warns him, he'll be taken away from her and put in foster care.

As their circumstances go from bad to worse, Felix gets a chance to audition for a junior edition of Who What Where When, and he's determined to earn a spot on the show. Winning the cash prize could make everything okay again. But things don't turn out the way he expects. . . .

Susin Nielsen deftly combines humor, heartbreak, and hope in this moving story about people who slip through the cracks in society, and about…
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Rosie loves Jack by Mel Darbon

Rosie loves Jack. Jack loves Rosie. So when they're split up, Rosie will do anything to find the boy who makes the sun shine in her head. Even run away from home. Even cross London and travel to Brighton alone, though the trains are cancelled and the snow is falling. Even though any girl might find that hard, let alone a girl with Down's syndrome. See the world through new eyes in this one-in-a-million story about fighting for the freedoms that we often take for granted: independence, tolerance and love.

I raced through this book and it is just really awesome.

Rosie loves Jack is the story of Rosie a downs syndrome main character. Her boyfriend Jack has recently been moved across the country and Rosie is very upset about this and resolves to find her own way to visit him despite her parent's best efforts to stop her for making contact.

I really enjoyed it as Rosie managed to find her way to Brighton using public transport. For me what this book highlighted is the way…
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Review: Turtle Bay Norwich

Last week I was lucky enough to be invited along to Turtle Bay Norwich to review their new menu.

The meal my husband and I had was excellent. Both of us have recently discovered in the last month or so that we have food intolerances. He is gluten intolerant and I am lactose intolerant. As we have quickly discovered working round those while eating out has been a bit of a challenge. However we were excited to see, when looking at the menu online in advance, that there were lots of options for us. The website has a full allergens menu which specifies which allergens are in which dish along with options of how to make some dishes allergen free with a small modification which was reassuring information to have in advance of our visit.


 We arrived a Turtle Bay and was promptly shown to our table. We started by ordered cocktails. We arrived during happy hour (11:30 - 7pm and 9:30pm onwards Thurs to Sun and 11:30pm - 7pm and 10pm onwards Fri- Sat) which meant all cocktails were served as 241…
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Can't wait to read

These are the latest books to be added to my wishlist. I can't wait for them all.

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox


Two centuries after the Salem witch trials, there’s still one witch left in Massachusetts. But she doesn’t even know it.

Take this as a warning: if you are not able or willing to control yourself, it will not only be you who suffers the consequences, but those around you, as well.

New Oldbury, 1821

In the wake of a scandal, the Montrose family and their three daughters—Catherine, Lydia and Emeline—flee Boston for their new country home, Willow Hall.

The estate seems sleepy and idyllic. But a subtle menace creeps into the atmosphere, remnants of a dark history that call to Lydia, and to the youngest, Emeline.

All three daughters will be irrevocably changed by what follows, but none more than Lydia, who must draw on a power she never knew she possessed if she wants to protect those she loves. For Willow Hall’s secrets will rise, in the end…

This looks epic. 

Th…
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Review Books I've read this summer: YA fiction

I've read lots of awesome YA fiction for review over my summer holidays. These are the ones I loved.

You only live once by Jess Vallance


The start of a hilarious new teen series for fans of Geek Girl.

Gracie Dart has always worked hard and she's got a wall covered with revision timetables and French verbs to prove it. But now GCSEs are behind her and she suddenly starts to think: what was the POINT of it all?

When Gracie thinks she's dying of a disgusting tropical illness, she starts to worry she's been wasting her best years being sensible. It's like people say: you only live once - so isn't it about time she started LIVING?
(OK, so the tropical illness turned out to be a fake-tan miscalculation. Anyone could make the same mistake.)

When Gracie decides to do something, she does it properly. Gracie Dart is about to live out her dreams. However embarrassing.

I enjoyed this book because it was funny and sweet. The main character has just finished school and i…
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