Kate Frost

I was first introduced to Kate Frost with [b:The Honeysuckle Dream|51214776|The Honeysuckle Dream (The Butterfly Storm #3)|Kate Frost|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562617709l/51214776._SX50_SY75_.jpg|71839790], book 3 in the Butterfly Storm series which made me a fan of her work. Then I read Lottie’s story and it stirred up so many emotions concerning my choice of a child-free life and the rude and thoughtless comments I have dealt with over the show more years. More power to Lottie and Eleni for speaking up for a woman’s prerogative to not have children.

As you’ve guessed, I admire Lottie’s independence, honesty, and forthrightness. I have been in her shoes in so many ways including the cheating ex leading to the loss of self-confidence and the loss of myself. When she takes her friend’s advice and books a six-week sabbatical to a beautiful Greek island to find a boy from her past, the results aren’t what she expects.

Lottie’s decision to chase a memory and insert herself into a family that may resent her intrusion is both brave and impertinent. She is welcomed, but not by all, at first. The memories she stirs up for Max, Artie’s twin brother, are upsetting and he handles it badly, but his grand gesture is unexpected and necessary for both of them to get to know each other away from the past.

The complex relationship between Lottie and Max is unique. Their lives are very similar when it comes to their careers and some personal choices, but Max has some very deep-seated emotions when it comes to his home and family on Paros which he definitely needs to address in a more mature way. Eleni, Max’s mother is kind and generous and only wants the best for her sons. Zach, Max’s older brother, is a nice man but has a lot of baggage with an angsty teenage son and an ex-wife which understandably Lottie doesn’t want to go down that path again.

Ms. Frost’s vivid descriptions of the beautiful Greek Islands of Santorini and Paros made me feel like I was there enjoying the blue skies and warm breezes while relaxing on the beach.

Overall, this is an introspective and engaging story about taking stock of your life and finding a new path that makes sense for your own happiness and peace of mind. Recommend highly!

Thank you to Ms. Frost for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less

Okay, so I wanted to read the book that 25 out of 25 British children thought was super cool. Winner of The Wishing Shelf Book Awards, Time Shifters is, in fact, super cool. The historical bits worked as both setting and character to define the odd mix of isolation and adventure that carries the plot forward. Is it strange to say that I enjoyed the Great London Fire of 1666? Maybe let’s not say enjoyed then. How about relished? Savored? Yeah, I’m not sure any word works there. Let’s show more just stick with super cool.

Hopefully in the sequel we’ll get more information about the bad guys. Keeping them all vague and unnamed was my one nitpick in this otherwise wonderful book. Knowing your enemy would have heightened the tension. The usual time paradoxes endemic to time travel novels were avoided until the end and then dealt with nicely by keeping the result ambiguous. I look forward to the next installment. Hopefully this book will get more traction before then. It deserves to be read. show less

Leila appears to be a confident, independent wedding planner, but she is a train wreck of irresponsible and misguided personal decisions unconcerned with the consequences. Until the accident…

Sophie grew up and somehow I never did. I was forever chasing something I couldn’t hold on to: my youth, or inappropriate men. History repeated itself so many times, and yet there’s never been anyone I love as much as Elliot.

Ms. Frost’s unusual tale is told in three decades of Leila’s life from show more her affair with a married man, to her life as a teenage single mother, from nights of meaningless sex with the wrong men, to her falling out and reconciliation with her daughter. Can she become the woman she is meant to be and forget her past and find true love?

Though I am not a big fan of Leila and her irresponsible choices, she is strong and raises her child on her own terms. Her bluntness is sometimes funny, sometimes inappropriate, but you can’t fault her ability to tell it like it is. Her daughter Sophie is pretty well adjusted and more mature than her mother in many ways, and Leila’s friend Robert is a saint who I would have snatched up in a minute.

Overall, this was an interesting read for me considering I’m Leila’s age and understand some of the less-than-stellar decisions she made in her earlier years. Though I normally don’t enjoy books that jump back and forth in time, Ms. Frost does a good job keeping the reader eager to find out how Leila’s story unfolds.

Thank you to Ms. Frost for giving me the opportunity review this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less

It’s a no-brainer. Stay in the crowded and hectic city of London where she can’t move on emotionally from the loss of her best friend or escape to a beautiful island in the Maldives and follow her dream to manage a barefoot bookshop. With a passion for books and a need to get away, Freya is chosen from thousands of applicants as she starts a new chapter in her life to find peace and solitude.

As Freya adjusts to her decadent life as the new barefoot bookseller of Love Island she realizes show more it would be hard to go back to London after her nine-month contract. She has made new friends with the island staff, particularly her warm and gregarious roommate Drew, and the handsome and charming dive instructor, Aaron who she is developing feelings for. And then there is her handsome boss, Zander Cohen, the infamous multi-millionaire former boy band member, and resort mogul. Her original perception of Zander was of a wealthy arrogant womanizer who the media wanted her to see, but as she spent more time with him to get the bookshop up and running she discovered his passion for books and his lonely existence that equaled hers.

The relationship between Freya and Aaron develops fairly quickly which didn’t seem credible to me. Especially, when he takes her to meet his mother after just a few weeks. And, that meeting does not go well at all because Aaron keeps a secret from her that changes everything. If that isn’t enough, her beloved bookshop is burned down by an unexpected arsonist which brings her to the brink of her sorrow. She has lost so much including her friend, Amber, her ex-Owen who did not understand her grief, her relationship with Aaron who lied to her, the bookshop, and now possibly her job. But Zander helps her through her grief and listens to her story as he opens up to her about his rise to fame and fortune while dealing with loss and friendlessness. In addition, he sets up a makeshift bookshop for her to manage while the original one is rebuilt. Their relationship blossoms as they find comfort in each other’s company while dispelling the loneliness they endured in the past.

I love the idea of having a cozy bookshop on a beautiful island with book-themed cocktail events. It’s a book lover’s dream.

I recommend this lovely novel to book lovers who enjoy beautiful places and uplifting stories.

Thank you to Ms. Frost for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less