JUST FOR THE HOLIDAYS- PB

Leah accompanies her sister on holiday, driving over in her Porsche Cayenne, whilst the family members travel in the Pink Pig people carrier (yes, it’s pink!). But this is not a run-of-the-mill family vacation, because sister Michele and brother-in-law Alister are in the final throes of their marriage, one last joint holiday for the 2 children, Natasha and Jordan. Leah’s role is part interlocutor, part cook and bottle washer (she is after all a creative genius when it comes to delicious puds) and part dilutor of marital distress. Leah is certainly thrown in at the deep end – just how do you cope with 2 teenagers, who hook up with a third young man from next door, when you have focussed solely on work and cars and given little – actually no – consideration to parenting!As it happens there is a potential love interest in the shape of Ronan next door (father of aforementioned young man), who is a helicopter pilot recovering from a shoulder injury sustained from a forced landing. He is currently on sick leave, renovating their summer house.There are quite a few unfortunate developments on their holiday – potentially making it the holiday-from-hell for Leah – but she is a likeable and resilient young woman who thrives in adversity; and keeps the show on the road for the others who are all grappling with their own emotional turmoil and wimping out.The setting is delightful and as a reader I was there in the gîte, with Leah and co., soaking up the French atmosphere, food and ambience. Enjoy!

If you love France, have always wanted to fly in a helicopter and fancy a laugh, then you are going to love this novel. The author really did her research with the helicopter thing – the story of how is funny in itself – the ends to which a writer will go to!Leah, the main character, has some guts – she loves Formula 1, drives a fast, posh car herself, eats chocolate for a living and is about to come into contact with the aforementioned flying machines. I want to be her.There’s a lot of Alsace to enjoy in this novel – from the scented fields as evoked on the cover to the French flair which is woven throughout the novel. This is not so much French France but the part where Germany and so many nuances of both cultures combine in a flammenkuche of literary delights.Oh and you will need to be eating when reading this novel – probably chocolate. Or at least have tissues to hand to curb the drooling this book will create.

Just for the Holidays, Sue MoorcroftReview from Jeannie Zelos book reviewsGenre: General Fiction (Adult) I wanted something light, after a few dark, heavy reads and this was perfect, letting me relax while reading, lifting my mind up to bright and happy. Its not all smiles though, there's some pretty sad moments, very real issues that will face many of us at some point in our lives.So we start on holiday with Leah, and her sister's family. It ought to be wonderful, relaxing, lazy days by the beach followed by nights spent with good food, wine and conversations. Well, that's what * should * have happened. Instead poor Leah finds herself being a temporary parent to teens Jordan and Natasha, while her sister makes sporadic, desultory attempts to sort her life out, and her brother in law is mending a badly broken ankle....Thankfully next door provides a distraction in the shape of hunky Ronan and his teen son Curtis. Michele, Leah's sister is a selfish woman. She's two lovely teens - well, lovely as teens can be ;-), a husband who's a kind, caring, responsible man and yet like many she's discontented, has thrown herself into an affair with a younger man. Now she's pregnant with her formerly happy, easy life strewn around her in ruins, blaming everyone but herself. I was so angry with her.I haven't patience with the "we just fell in love" mantra. There's always a point when the harmless glances and occasional flirty chat moves forward, and its at that point a spouse should stop. Its not hard. just do the right thing.Of course that's not what they want, and Michele moves forward telling herself they can't help it, ignores the heartbreak she's going to rain down on her lovely family.Sort your family issues out first is my solution, then once you're separated there's time for someone new. And that's my rant over, but you can see why I was so angry at Michele.Right from the start she's leaving Leah to do everything; shopping, cleaning, cooking, looking after the kids, citing morning sickness and feeling unwell as an excuse to stay away from anything resembling work/responsibility.She's actively jealous of Leah's career, her child free life, but as Leah reminds her, she chose a different route, she shouldn't be expecting Leah to take over her life now she doesn't like it. Her husband Alister is a lovely man, adores his kids and is trying hard to be civil, but his world has crashed and Michele isn't making things any easier.The kids were great, typical teens, ever hungry, full of energy - until they're asked to do something of course, and they adore Leah. Until now she's been cool auntie but now she's a mum substitute, and after Alister's injury a dad one too...Teens are a mix, grown and wanting to be adults one moment but still kids inside and Michele's actions have a huge impact on them. Then there's the family next door, Ronan and his son Curtis.Curtis soon throws in with Jordan and Natasha, and the three are together having fun most days - and evenings.Leah's cooking is fantastic, she's a trained chef, and soon they're spending mealtimes with the family.Ronan and Leah are attracted but the course of true love and all that...hasn't hardly time to run smooth here with all the things being thrown up against it. Its a fabulous read, heady warm summer days abroad, fabulous food - and lots of decadent chocolate desserts. The characters are a real mix of families, ones we all know, issues many of us have faced one way or another, and throughout I was rooting for Ronan and Leah, they're two great guys and deserve each other. They've both been let down badly by others in the past, Leah especially is affected still by a past relationship that went bad, so though I wanted them to be together I kind of sympathised when I could feel her drawing barriers up. A story that was fun, felt very summery, with real characters, ones we know, can feel have genuine issues and problems that face many of us at some points in out lives.  Stars: five, a fabulous summery read, with real people and genuine scenes.ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

A month long holiday in a gite in an idyllic part of France might be anyone’s idea of a perfect break. But not for our heroine Leah. Reluctantly persuaded to join a family holiday with her sister Michelle and her husband – whose marriage is in its death throes, plus their two young children, Leah goes along however its not quite the relaxing time that she envisaged.Unexpected events mean that Leah goes from being ‘Cool Auntie’ to ‘Deputy Mum’ and for a thirty something singleton by choice who cherishes her independence, this is not what Leah signed up for. I did feel for her, I really did. The thought of being responsible for two quarrelsome teenagers would send me running for the hills, however Leah steps up to the mark admirably. Her cooking skills do help and win her some brownie points; her job as a chef/chocolatier enables her to rustle up a meal in a heartbeat and her chocolate distraction techniques save the day more than once. She has some unexpected distraction in the form of Ronan, the rather handsome next door neighbour and a helicopter pilot no less, who is recuperating following an accident. Ronan has his teenage son Curtis with him and whilst all three teenagers hang out together, they seem to be on a mission to stop Leah and Ronan doing the same!Don’t get the impression that this is a fluffy rom com; although it is humorous, it has much more depth than that, covering more serious subjects as infidelity, pregnancy, bankruptcy but it also has just a little raunchiness to add to the romantic interest.Sue Moorcroft has a talent for making her characters engaging or unlikeable (in this case, for me, there were both), but whichever, they are always completely believable and with storylines that reflect issues that could face any family. The family dynamics here are very well written as is the emotional turmoil and consequences that our characters have to deal with, particularly those affecting the children.I liked Leah and full credit to her for just getting on with the job and for not bailing out but my favourite character was Ronan – mostly for the obvious reasons! To add to his apparent gorgeousness, he’s intelligent, fun, considerate but also very responsible. He has plenty of problems of his own to deal with and it transpires that a moody teenager turns out to be the least of his worries!I always enjoy this author’s books and Just for the Holidays is no exception. It’s a perfect read to get you in the mood for a holiday, or just a perfect read at any time really. Sue Moorcroft takes her research very seriously and at the end of the book she describes her helicopter flight that includes a pretend crash. Now that’s dedication for you!

Just for the Holidays is about Leah Beaumont who accompanies her sister, Michele, to France to enjoy a lovely, relaxing, summer basking in the sunshine and lazing around. Well, maybe not so much of the lazing. Or the relaxing. There are three teenagers there too. And Michele's husband - who she is divorcing. Oh, and Michele is pregnant. A surprise pregnancy which she hasn't yet told her children about. Hhmm. Yes, not quite what Leah signed up for.Not only did she not sign up for it, she didn't expect that she would end up trying to hold it all together and stop everything from totally falling apart. But, hang on, that next door neighbour - yes, the pilot....a very handsome pilot.....well, might he help distract Leah from the drama of her family and allow her a little bit of fun?This is the first Sue Moorcroft book I have read but I can definitely see why they are so popular and why she has such a loyal fan base. I was struck by the energy of the storyline. The balance between character development, action and plot is well judged so it is well paced and speeds along but, unlike Leah's driving, there is enough time to take in the scenery around you and build definite pictures of all the characters who fall and crash through the pages.Leah is our protagonist and she is very likeable. We empathise with her and admire her tolerance, patience and persistence with her sister and her nephews and nieces. I think a lot of readers will relate to her and she offers a more grounded perspective against her sister's antics. Well, most of the time. When she's not speeding or the few other things she does that reveal a slightly more unexpected side of her character!Michele made me smile. She occasionally veered towards becoming a little irritating but Moorcroft steers her back quickly so actually she is just rather selfish and short sighted rather than unpleasant or too caricatured. I found her very easy to visual and thought the dynamics between the sisters was interesting and perhaps a little more complicated that the reader first assumes.It's a fun read but it does touch on a lot of issues that are important, emotive and serious. There are some more poignant moments and like all good books, there's enough ups and downs, twists and turns that you won't notice when the sun is beginning to set and your champagne needs refilling (oh, ok, you might notice that but you'll probably take the book with you while you wander to the fridge so you don't have to leave the family alone for too long!).So this book really has everything you would want from a holiday read. There is sun, there is chocolate - not sure how practical this is in the hot sunshine but oh my gosh you will be rummaging in the kitchen cupboards afterwards to make a cake after reading about Leah's bake offs! There are cocktails, laughter, heartache, tears, drama and love. There's a good cast of characters and I was also impressed with Moorcroft's dialogue and authentic portrayal of the voices of the teenagers as well as the parents. It's a quick read. It's an easy story. It does the trick. Add it to your suitcase and make sure it's there just for the holiday!

Having read all of Sue Moorcroft's other books, I was looking forward to Just For The Holidays with great anticipation. Happily, having devoured it in a few sittings over just two days, I can safely say it was everything I could have wished for... and more. The cover is gorgeous and gives a lovely taster of the contents inside, and Sue's descriptive writing style made me feel like I was on summer holiday too. The storyline - independent and very single Leah helping out with her sisters' mess of a life including a not quite dispatched ex and teenage kids in the depths of France - was spot on, with plenty of drama and intensity, combined with lighter moments, cake and laughter to give it a perfect balance. Throw in a brooding and gorgeous injured pilot with his own teenage son and other worries to contend with as a great love interest for Leah, and the story really came to life.This was a brilliant summer read, and Sue described the blend of love and angst we have for our families perfectly. I can't wait to get a paperback copy, sit in the sun with a glass of wine and read it again :)I can't wait for Sue's next novel, which I hear is a Middledip book (Yes!)

I'm a fan of Sue Moorcroft's books in general, but I think this one is my favourite.Leah agrees to help her sister and estranged husband out by tagging along on their family holiday and being the 'Cool Auntie' to their two teenagers. Poor Leah. I felt so sorry for her as things started off bad and got worse... and worse.Ronan is recovering from a shoulder/collarbone injury after a helicopter crash and spending some quality time with his son Curtis.I loved that Leah was happy with the single life and that she was a complete petrol head. I also liked the way the teenagers kept getting in the way of ... well, everything.You really feel for both the main characters.I really enjoyed this book. Highly recommended.Disclaimer as always - I know Sue Moorcroft through the Romantic Novelists Association. I am also a fan of her books.

A highly recommended summer read.The setting is France, in a gite, and in an area of France that I know (near Strasbourg) With two sisters, Leah and Michelle, forced through an injury to Michelle's ex-husband, to take on wholly unfamiliar tasks and responsibilities for Michelle's children..Enter a new neighbour, helicopter pilot Ronan and his son, and you have a delightful mix. If it can go wrong, then it generally will, and sometimes relatives behave SO weirdly.But never mind - it can' last forever - in fact it can only be "Just for the holidays"Or can it?