READ ALL ABOUT IT! (The Summer of Secrets - Martina Reilly)

Member Name: jojopillo

Product:	The Summer of Secrets - Martina Reilly
Date:	22/04/09 (377 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: WITTY, SHARP, TOUCHING!

Disadvantages: I MISS THE CHARACTERS :o(

I'd not read any of Martina Reilly's work before and only happened upon it while looking for another to fulfil my 3 for £4 paperback reads at Morrisons. I've no idea why I picked it either, it's not like the cover is pink with big swirly-girly writing (something that is normally first to catch my eye). To be honest I think it was the fact that my friend was looking at me as if to say, 'hurry up, everything in my trolley is defrosting!' Well, I'm so glad I did now! Isn't it often the case that some of the best things are discovered by accident?

Hope Gardner seems like a happy-go-lucky girl who shares a house, in London, with Adam and Julie. Originally from a place called Dunport in Ireland, Hope has no family back home and is a bit of a free spirit. Adam is a successful businessman and Julie is a school teacher. After Hope loses her job, she tells Adam that he'll have to rent her room to someone else as she thinks it's time to go away and start again. But, after a life-changing experience, she finds herself back in Dunport where she grew up, facing old places, faces, and memories.

The book is written in the first person, and this is an enjoyable way to read for me, because it seems more realistic; almost as if you're reading an autobiography. Sometimes it takes a chapter or two to really get the feel of a new read but this book had me gripped from the first few pages! The dialogue seems to be the foremost concern of the author and I think this is why it seems so realistic; it's almost like someone telling you a story. Obviously her ability to describe a scene is excellent too but she doesn't spend paragraphs setting a scene like some authors do.

It probably would be described by most as chick-lit (and I love chick-lit) but this book is deeper than that. We learn more about Hope's emotional side, rather than just focussing on a flowing story about someone hankering for the fittest-new-guy-at-work kind of tale.
You really get a feel for her personality, her feistiness and her fragility. I've read quite a few entertaining books in my time and quite often the author has made me giggle or chuckle but Ms Reilly actually made me laugh a hearty laugh out loud on many occasions. There are also parts in the book which are very sad, and I have often shied away from these kinds of books, as I don't really want to be depressed when reading, I want to be entertained.( I cut my literary teeth on Catherine Cookson so don't need anymore depression, lol!) Yet, somehow, Martina Reilly manages to take us through some sad moments, yet because you're so involved you can't help but empathise.

I fully recommend this book. I couldn't put it down, and found myself making time to read it rather than only reading it when I had time. The characters are absorbing and it's nothing like I've read before. I'm so glad I happened upon it!

I can wax lyrical all day about my favourite authors, Marian Keyes, Sophie Kinsella and Lisa Jewel, but look out girls, Martina is one to watch, and I will be looking now to read everything else she has done!

Oh, and by the way, the other 2 books in my 3 for £4 in case you're wondering were; The Gatecrasher by Madeleine Wickham (AKA Sophie Kinsella) and A Minor Indiscretion by Carole Matthews (with a girly-swirly cover, lol)

The book is paperback and has 408 pages.

ISBN 978-0-7515-3956-1

Published by Sphere 2007

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Update:

I was just looking to find some more of Martina's titles and discovered that she's also wrote as Tina Reilly, and I have read one of hers before, called 'Something Borrowed' (which I thoroughly enjoyed too!) Maybe that's why I subconsciously chose it!

Summary: GREAT BOOK, GIVE IT A LOOK!