Title: The Runaway Year
Author: Shani Struthers
Release date: July 2, 2013
Review Copy provided by Publisher: Omnific Publishing
Age Group: Adult
Genre: Contemporary romance
Tour organized by: AToMR Blog Tours
Where to Buy:
Book Description:
Dumped by her hotshot boyfriend and boss, Layla Lewis quits her job and heads to Trecastle to house-sit for a friend. Trecastle isn’t new to her; it’s a place where she holidayed regularly with her now-estranged mother. It’s also the home of Hannah McKenzie,her childhood friend. Hannah has tempted her with a place to live and a job in the local pub. Needing time to nurse her battered heart and escape her “real life” for a year, Layla accepts.
Hannah is a talented artist as well as a barmaid. She lives in the village center with her boyfriend Jim, a singer in a local band. They are happy together, or as happy they can be, considering. Hannah loves Jim, but there is someone she loves more: her old boyfriend Joseph Scott, who is also Jim’s best friend and soon to be Layla’s neighbor.
Meanwhile, Layla’s fiery yet loyal friend Penny seeks revenge on her behalf, sending a forged email that could damage her ex’s business prospects. Penny wonders if she has gone too far but is soon preoccupied with her own problems: the sizzle has fizzled in her marriage, and she feels neglected. After getting frisky with Dylan one night, she confesses all to her husband—and he’s been like ice ever since.
Over the course of a year, there is laughter and heartache as all three endeavor to reign in their love lives—discovering you can run all you like, but you just can’t hide.
Review:
The Runaway Year is a very entertaining summer read! If you like a little escapism with your reading, this book is for you. I absolutely loved the Cornwall beach setting, which was the perfect background for the romantic escapades of our three heroines.
There is some steam in The Runaway Year, between Layla and her very hot neighbor Joseph. The author does a great job with their romance, and I would love to see more between these two in the future! Layla undergoes an emotional journey throughout the book and I was really rooting for her to open her eyes and appreciate what was right in front of her.
I really loved all three friends, but I most loved Layla’s story. Another stand-out for me was the somewhat magical beach setting. I have always wanted to visit Cornwall (it was the setting of many romance novels I read as a young girl) and the author does a wonderful job of making the setting a crucial part of the story.
I highly recommend this book if you want a bit of romantic escapism and a fairly light but very entertaining summer read. I am very much looking forward to reading more from Shani Struthers!
About the Author
One of those rare creatures—a true Brightonian—Shani was born and bred in the sunny seaside town of Brighton on the UK’s south-coast. One of the first literary conundrums she had to deal with was her own name: Shani can be pronounced in a variety of ways, but in this instance, it’s Shay-nee not Shar-ney or Shan-ni, although she does indeed know a Shanni—just to confuse matters further! Hobbies include reading, writing, eating, and drinking—all four of which keep her busy enough. After graduating from Sussex University with a degree in English and American Literature, Shani landed a job at a well-known holiday company. Although employed as a Brochure Production Executive, she promptly reinvented herself as a Copywriter, a new position they were happy (if a tad bewildered) to concede to. At twenty-four, Shani became a freelance copywriter and has been one ever since, in-between writing novels, that is. Contemporary romance The Runaway Year is her first book and set between Brighton and North Cornwall, the latter a home-from-home for Shani, her husband, and three lovely kids. She also has a penchant for Glastonbury, another magical place, and don’t even get her started on Scotland—we’d be here all day!
Author Social Media links:
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Facebook
Website
Tour Sweepstakes/Giveaway:
(10) eBook copies of The Runaway Year – International
(1) Swag Bag includes:
Postcards of places mentioned in TRY
A coaster with Gull Rock
Brighton Rock (of course!!)
A beautiful polished shell from a Cornish gift shop (and hopefully from a Cornish beach too!!!)
Fairy dust (so you can make like the Smoke Fairies and sprinkle some magic into your life).
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