Book: Home for Christmas

Summary: What began as an impersonal-but-cheerful holiday gift for a soldier far from home becomes so much more...Sergeant Tate McAuliffe, stationed in Afghanistan, opens his Christmas care package from Australia and is stunned by both its contents and the sender. Fun-loving Christmas tree designer Layla Preston is a breath of fresh air for loner Tate. Although they've never met, their email friendship quickly develops and their feelings for each other deepen. But Layla knows the heartache that loving a soldier can bring and when Tate is injured, her deep-seated fear drives them apart. With their relationship in tatters, can Layla and Tate work through their differences, so Layla can welcome Tate home for Christmas?


What I Thought: A different concept so I enjoyed that and got sucked in!

Book: Someone like you

Summary: When bestselling author, twenty-nine year old Hayley Stevens, walks in on her husband, Paul, and her best friend in bed together, she knows her life will never be the same again. One year later, Hayley stowed her last bag in her much-loved Audi Coupe and said goodbye to the city. She was excited to be heading west to Lochway, a small colonial village sitting on the beautiful Macdonald River. Wanting peace and quiet, Hayley had impulsively bought a cosy sandstone cottage there surrounded by lush rose gardens, with a small overseer's cottage - ideal for a writer's retreat.

What she didn't expect was the almost immediate 'gift' of a very noisy donkey named Errol. Nor did Hayley expect to meet her handsome new neighbour, Luke Mason, when she was covered in mud trying to drag Errol out of Luke's dam. The strange thing was though that Luke seemed very familiar to her. As Hayley slowly gains acceptance into her small community and starts writing again she becomes almost afraid of the inexplicable visions she sees. What does it all mean? And why does Luke refuse to listen to her?


What I Thought: I enjoy these books. Simple and not too deep. The right mix of escapism!

Book: Under Christmas Stars

Summary: Freya George was the local teacher for the rural community of Reedy Creek until a truck ploughed into her school commendation before Christmas. Drew Macgregor offered for Freya to stay at his home until repairs can be made on the Schoolhouse. Drew and Freya did not believe that staying at Drew Macgregor home would affect their lives so much...


What I Thought: Nice to head back to the same town. Love characters throughout multiple books.

Book: A Country Mile

Summary: When Sophie Copinni's love life turns sour, a trip to her hometown in Far North Queensland is the perfect time for her to take stock of her future. There, two weeks before she turns thirty, she finds a bucket list from her teenage years. Most of the challenges are fun, although one thing on the list scares the hell out of her: she is to reveal a long–held family secret – the very reason she ran away eight years ago.
A road trip home is Dylan Stone's chance to escape the shady operations he has uncovered at the Sydney tattoo parlour he runs. Surrounded by the landscape and loved ones he's missed so fiercely, Dylan starts to think that maybe it's time to make his homecoming permanent. But there is still the unresolved matter of Sophie – the woman who broke his heart and skipped town so long ago.
Dylan and Sophie try to keep their distance but they can't deny the intense chemistry between them. But if Sophie tackles the scariest challenge on her list, will it push Dylan away forever? And will her family ever be the same again?


What I Thought: These are always light reads - enjoyable.

Book: Alex Rider - Scorpia

Summary: After a revelation with Yassen Gregorovich, Alex sets off with his friend Tom Harris in Venice to track down the mysterious organization known only to Alex as Scorpia. A chance encounter with one of the top agents of Scorpia reveals a sinister plot to change all of London. Now, Alex must return to his old life in MI6 and risk his life to save thousands of children. Will he stay with MI6, who have betrayed him, or join Scorpia and get his revenge?


What I Thought: I enjoyed how this explored a darker side.

Book: Mackenzie Crossing

Summary: It's 1939, and Neville, escaping an unhappy marriage and his memories of the Great War, finds himself in Mackenzie Crossing on the day of the terrible Black Friday bushfires. He meets the beautiful Georgie Mackenzie and in an instant knows that she is the subject he has been looking for. As the heat intensifies, Georgie and Pom begin to wonder if they have a future together; but first, they must survive the blaze.

Almost sixty years later, Sky Stewart returns to the area in search of her grandfather. Did he survive the Black Friday bushfires? Who is the exotic woman in the photograph she found? But when she arrives in Elysian, the closest town to where Mackenzie Crossing used to be, she finds more of her hidden past than she bargained for. A more recent past which she would prefer stayed forgotten...

What I Thought: Ooh I enjoyed this - a new author added to the list! 

Book: Alex Rider - Eagle Strike

Summary: Reluctant MI6 agent Alex Rider is relaxing in the south of France until a sudden, ruthless attack on his hosts plunges him back into a world of violence and mystery - and this time, MI6 don't want to know. Alex is determined to track down his friends' attackers, even if he must do it alone. But it's a path that leads to a long-buried secret - and a discovery more terrible than anything he could have imagined.


What I Thought: Another good read. Loving the series.