I have just finished reading the first book in the Behind Blue Eyes Trilogy by Joanna Lambert. After reading When Tomorrow Comes I have a sudden urge to watch Heartbeat!!
Plot
1967: When eighteen-year-old Ella Kendrick moves to the Somerset town of Abbotsbridge to live with her mother Melissa and stepfather Liam she is looking forward to getting to know someone who has been absent from her life for eleven years. Ella is intrigued by this glamorous, fashionable woman and hopes she holds the key to many unanswered questions about her childhood. However, living in the Carpenter household does not turn out to be the idyllic experience Mel has promised her daughter. Scheming and manipulative she has specific plans for Ella. Plans which do not include boyfriend Niall O’Farrell left behind in the village where she grew up with her grandparents, or the university place she hopes for.
After Ella loses Niall to her best friend and her career aspirations have been trimmed to a college course, ambitious Mel puts her main plan into action - finding her daughter a wealthy boyfriend. In doing this, she is looking for a marriage which will give her the right connections and help her own social advancement in the town.
But Mel’s plan stalls when on a cold January evening, local nightclub owner’s son Matt Benedict unexpectedly walks into Ella’s life.
Ella knows she will have to fight to stay with Matt, branded as most unsuitable by her mother; but it is not just Mel she is up against. Matt’s mother Faye has her own reasons for parting them, as does Andy Macayne, the rich, self-indulgent young man Mel hopes her daughter will eventually marry.
WHEN TOMORROW COMES is the first book in the Behind Blue Eyes Trilogy. Ella and Matt’s journey is about to begin………
My Opinion
The first book in this trilogy starts of back in the 60’s (the good ole days!) J.Lambert manages to bring this across to the reader in many minor points such as the change from the long skirts to the mini- skirts and also having to walk to a pay phone to phone boyfriends because of course in the 60’s teenagers didn’t have mobile phones glued to their ears!
I love the way J.Lambert uses her descriptive writing skills which brought the little village of Meridan Cross to life giving us the feel of being part of the close knit village. We are also given every type of love interest we need with the bad boy, the quiet boy and the ladies man but all the way through I never quiet knew who Ella was going to sway more towards in the end and even now I have finished the first book I am still wondering if there may be a change in direction when it comes to Ella’s love life.
There are a real mix of characters in this book each one completely different to the next . I do feel like I was a little over whelmed by the amount of characters in this book and I did get a few muddled up each time which would have me a little worried if this was a standalone book but my feeling is that as we progress to the second book we will be more familiar with the characters as we meet them again.
I did find that all of the main characters in this book were all well developed characters. I found that each of the characters where very realistic people in realistic situations which made the book a real page turner.
I will defiantly be reading the next book in the trilogy to see what path our lovely Ella’s life is going to take.
Plot
1967: When eighteen-year-old Ella Kendrick moves to the Somerset town of Abbotsbridge to live with her mother Melissa and stepfather Liam she is looking forward to getting to know someone who has been absent from her life for eleven years. Ella is intrigued by this glamorous, fashionable woman and hopes she holds the key to many unanswered questions about her childhood. However, living in the Carpenter household does not turn out to be the idyllic experience Mel has promised her daughter. Scheming and manipulative she has specific plans for Ella. Plans which do not include boyfriend Niall O’Farrell left behind in the village where she grew up with her grandparents, or the university place she hopes for.
After Ella loses Niall to her best friend and her career aspirations have been trimmed to a college course, ambitious Mel puts her main plan into action - finding her daughter a wealthy boyfriend. In doing this, she is looking for a marriage which will give her the right connections and help her own social advancement in the town.
But Mel’s plan stalls when on a cold January evening, local nightclub owner’s son Matt Benedict unexpectedly walks into Ella’s life.
Ella knows she will have to fight to stay with Matt, branded as most unsuitable by her mother; but it is not just Mel she is up against. Matt’s mother Faye has her own reasons for parting them, as does Andy Macayne, the rich, self-indulgent young man Mel hopes her daughter will eventually marry.
WHEN TOMORROW COMES is the first book in the Behind Blue Eyes Trilogy. Ella and Matt’s journey is about to begin………
My Opinion
The first book in this trilogy starts of back in the 60’s (the good ole days!) J.Lambert manages to bring this across to the reader in many minor points such as the change from the long skirts to the mini- skirts and also having to walk to a pay phone to phone boyfriends because of course in the 60’s teenagers didn’t have mobile phones glued to their ears!
I love the way J.Lambert uses her descriptive writing skills which brought the little village of Meridan Cross to life giving us the feel of being part of the close knit village. We are also given every type of love interest we need with the bad boy, the quiet boy and the ladies man but all the way through I never quiet knew who Ella was going to sway more towards in the end and even now I have finished the first book I am still wondering if there may be a change in direction when it comes to Ella’s love life.
There are a real mix of characters in this book each one completely different to the next . I do feel like I was a little over whelmed by the amount of characters in this book and I did get a few muddled up each time which would have me a little worried if this was a standalone book but my feeling is that as we progress to the second book we will be more familiar with the characters as we meet them again.
I did find that all of the main characters in this book were all well developed characters. I found that each of the characters where very realistic people in realistic situations which made the book a real page turner.
I will defiantly be reading the next book in the trilogy to see what path our lovely Ella’s life is going to take.
Lovely review Rea and I hear that Joanna Lambert is writing a fourth book! I can't wait to read this series myself and your review has reminded me to find some 'me' time and curl up to enjoy the delights of revisiting the 60's.
ReplyDeleteYou need to curl up and read this Linn it is a feel good book even though there is mixed emotions through out! 4th book!! Slow down hehe!! need to read the second book to this one but I am in the middle Of Scarlett Baileys new Christmas one so will start it after this one xx
ReplyDeleteGood review of a book I thoroughly enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteI love books that play with my emotions.
ReplyDeleteGreat review.
carol
Many thanks Rea for such a great review! My new book, Between Today and Yesterday will be out in the New Year and follows the characters into the early nineties. I guarantee it won't disappoint!
ReplyDeleteNice posting, what I am exactly searched is available in your website. Thanks Bye
ReplyDelete