Emma's Books of the Year 2022

It’s hard to believe another year is over and despite it being a tough year for us all we have made it through. I managed to reach my Goodreads goal of reading 100 books with just a few extras read as well and now I’ve looked back on what has been another fabulous year for books. I’ve discovered a number of new authors and once again loved books from some of my all time favourites. It was hard to narrow my choice down to ten but I have managed it and below you will find my favourite books of 2022. I just wanted to say a huge thank you to Sharon for her continued friendship and for hosting my reviews on the blog. 

I’m looking forward to what 2023 brings in terms of books and I already have a number of blog tours lined up for the new year. I think I’ve even already read a book which will feature on my 2023 books of the year but as to what that is I’ll leave you to guess. Perhaps put your guesses in the comments section. So without further ado here are my top ten books of 2022.

Andrea Mara is a queen at the top of her game and just gets better and better with each book she publishes. I already have her 2023 book – No One Saw A Thing on my TBR pile and know it will be just as good as Hide and Seek. This was a sublime read full of tension, suspense and twists and turns right until the very last page. There was a whirlwind of characters to get to know with suspicion falling in every corner as to what happened to young Lily Murphy whilst playing a game of hide and seek so many years ago. There is a creepy and unsettling feeling throughout as Johanna moves into the estate years later and discovers her house is where Lily once lived. Johanna can’t let sleeping dogs lie and she becomes dogged in discovering the truth of what happened and as a reader you are with her every step of the way in what was an utterly brilliant book which was extremely well plotted leaving you guessing until the last possible moment. My full review can be read here. 

I’ve loved all the books Tracy Rees has written in the historical fiction genre and was delighted to see last year she turned her hand to women’s fiction writing for my favourite publisher Bookouture. The Little House by the Sea is the first in what I hope will be a long series set in the village of Pennystrand. This is a gorgeous, warm and inviting read following Kitty Roberts as she up sticks and moves from London to the small village of Pennystrand. She gets work in an estate agents and her life is transformed and what a journey of discovery she goes on. It was fabulous to read of what she goes through and how she transforms into someone more confident and capable and someone who starts to believe in herself and her abilities. An exciting story awaits you between the covers of this wonderful book and I was sad to finish it and that’s why I hope there will be more to come from these characters and the fabulous setting. It’s a rare author that can write in multiple genres but Tracy Rees nails it and I know will continue to do so. My full review can be read here.

Emma's Review: The Little House by the Sea by Emma Crowley

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Thirty-year-old Kitty Roberts spends her days searching for the perfect home for two… until her boyfriend, the only man she’s ever loved, dumps her. Devastated to lose not only her first love but her best friend too, she flees to the tiny seaside village where she spent carefree summers as a child, before her family fell apart.

At first, Kitty’s escape proves to be exactly what she needs – golden sunsets over warm, sandy beaches, lovably eccentric new neighbours and even a blush-inducing run-in with Cory Hudson, a handsome, professional surfer with a heart-stopping smile.

But just as Kitty feels herself beginning to heal and allows herself to open up to Cory, he reveals that his time in the seaside village is nearly up. What’s more, some surprising reactions to Kitty in town make her wonder if her connection to this place might go deeper than she thought.

It seems there’s a secret in her family’s past that is about to turn Kitty’s life on its head once more… Is she ready for the truth? And will it bring her and Cory closer together, or drive them apart?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review: The Little Christmas House by Tracy Rees

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

It’s meant to be the most wonderful time of the year but thirty-year-old Holly Hanwell doesn’t really feel like celebrating… not after the bombshell news her boyfriend is leaving her to have a baby with someone else. So Holly’s organised a quiet Christmas in her cosy little house and plans to avoid the traditional village festivities, and anything resembling a man, at all costs.

That is until she bumps into sexy newcomer Edward. He recently bought Christmas House, at the edge of Hopley, but the renovations on the crumbling building are more than he’d bargained for. Sheltering from the snowy weather in the warm village café, Edward makes Holly laugh over delicious mugs of hot chocolate, topped with cream and sprinkles. Despite the spark between them, Holly knows she needs to protect her already fragile heart and she’s determined NOT to fall in love this Christmas.

But holiday magic works in mysterious ways and they keep crossing paths – at the nativity show, the carols, gift shopping – and then a festive crisis at Christmas House unexpectedly brings them together. Yet just as Holly realises her feelings are growing for handsome but complicated Edward she discovers a secret from his past which makes her question everything she thought she knew about him…

Will Holly and Edward’s December romance be over before it’s begun? Or will this be a Christmas to remember?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review: Hidden Secrets at the Little Village Church by Tracy Rees

 Reviewed by Emma Crowley

When tragedy strikes, twenty-six-year-old Gwen Stanley finds herself suddenly jobless and heartbroken. With nowhere to turn, she retreats to Hopley, a crumbling little village deep in the heart of the English countryside. Wandering the winding lanes and daydreaming about what could have been, Gwen feels lost for the first time in her life.

Until one day she pushes through the creaking doors of a tiny stone church at the edge of the village, empty and forgotten by nearly everyone. There she stumbles on a book full of local secrets and is instantly drawn into the mystery of who could have left them there, and why.

When she’s unexpectedly joined by handsome local artist Jarvis, Gwen is caught off-guard. He seems just as fascinated by what’s in the book as she is… but why? Can she trust Jarvis’s motives really are what he says they are? And are the butterfly flutters she feels whenever they’re together because she’s one step closer to learning the book’s secrets… or might the little village church actually hold the key to healing Gwen’s poor, trampled heart?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review: Darling Blue by Tracy Rees

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Blue lives a charmed life. From her family's townhouse in Richmond, she lives a life of luxury and couldn't want for anything - well, on the surface at least.

Then on the night of her twenty-first birthday her father makes a startling toast: he will give his daughter's hand to whichever man can capture her heart best in the form of a love letter. But Blue has other ideas and, unwilling to play at her father's bewildering games, she sets out on her own path to find her own destiny...

Amazon Affiliate Links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review: Florence Grace by Tracy Rees

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Florrie Buckley is an orphan, living on the wind-blasted moors of Cornwall. It's a hard existence but Florrie is content; she runs wild in the mysterious landscape. She thinks her destiny is set in stone. But when Florrie is fifteen, she inherits a never-imagined secret. She is related to a wealthy and notorious London family, the Graces. Overnight, Florrie's life changes and she moves from country to city, from poverty to wealth. Cut off from everyone she has ever known, Florrie struggles to learn the rules of this strange new world. And then she must try to fathom her destructive pull towards the enigmatic and troubled Turlington Grace, a man with many dark secrets of his own.

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Debut Spotlight: Tracy Rees

Today is the day... it's finally publication day for Tracy Rees whose debut novel Amy Snow won the Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller competition in October which earned her a publishing deal with Quercus.

Tracy Rees is a Cambridge graduate with a degree in Modern and Medieval Languages. She had a successful eight-year career in non-fiction publishing. She then retrained and worked as a counsellor for people with cancer and their families. She has run personal development workshops and taught counselling theory at Swansea University. 

In 2013 she had a short story published in the American literary journal The First Line, and was shortlisted for two poetry competitions, before being shortlisted for the inaugural Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller completion in 2014, which she went on to win. She lives in Swansea, and is now writing her second novel. 

Amy Snow is set in early Victorian England and will be published by Quercus on April 9th 2015. You can find out more on Twitter: @AuthorTracyRees.

Abandoned on a bank of snow as a baby, Amy is taken in at nearby Hatville Court. But the masters and servants of the grand estate prove cold and unwelcoming. 

Amy's only friend and ally is the sparkling young heiress Aurelia Vennaway. So when Aurelia tragically dies young, Amy is devastated. But Aurelia leaves Amy one last gift. 

A bundle of letters with a coded key. A treasure hunt that only Amy can follow. 

A life-changing discovery awaits... if only she can unlock the secret.

Can you tell us a little bit about your debut novel, Amy Snow?
Amy Snow is a novel set in the early Victorian era. Abandoned on a bank of snow as a baby, Amy is discovered by the beautiful heiress to the nearby Hatville Estate, Aurelia Vennaway. But Amy is despised by masters and servants alike and Aurelia is her only advocate. So when Aurelia dies young, Amy’s world collapses. But Aurelia leaves Amy a mysterious legacy which she must keep secret at all costs: a trail of cryptic letters leading one to the other. A life-changing revelation awaits - if only Amy can unlock the secret.

Guest Book Review: Tracy Rees - Amy Snow

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Abandoned on a bank of snow as a baby, Amy is taken in at nearby Hatville Court. But the masters and servants of the grand estate prove cold and unwelcoming. 

Amy's only friend and ally is the sparkling young heiress Aurelia Vennaway. So when Aurelia tragically dies young, Amy is devastated. But Aurelia leaves Amy one last gift. 

A bundle of letters with a coded key. A treasure hunt that only Amy can follow. A life-changing discovery awaits... if only she can unlock the secret.

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback