Everyone knows that it is expensive to live in London, even in flats that are in less than trendy areas and that might not be the most modern space. Given that the two women who live at 42 Miller Avenue call their flat Mildew Avenue, it's clear from early on that this is not exactly des res. However, there are two other inhabitants in the flat. First, there is Nigel the debonair mouse, and Winston the spider.
For Daisy and Kate, Mildew Avenue is home. They can barely make ends meet, but they have each other. It is close to Christmas and Daisy is busy trying to wrap presents using pre used sticky tape and Kate is planning her next acquisition for her collection of crystal fairies.
Their equilibrium is shattered when their effusive landlady excitedly announces that she has found a new tenant named Maxi to help share the rent costs. However, it turns out that Maxi is a wannabe male model and to be honest, a bit of a tosser. He tells the girls that he is vegan but then eats their non vegan treats, leaving them to accuse each other.
When Daisy first meets Maxi, she sees a blissful future complete with wedding bells. For Kate, there is an equally instant reaction, although hers is more sexual in natures.
Soon, Nigel (the mouse) is despairing as the girls turn against each other, Maxi is revelling in being the centre of attention. Something needs to be done!
If I was challenged to review this book in only three words, then I would choose silly, fun and festive. Admittedly, silly might not always be a good thing, but I read this book straight after quite a heavy read and so it was the perfect palate cleanser. It was a quick read, and I literally laughed out loud at several scenes. It helps to have an appreciation for British humour!
There are several interesting choices that the author has made in this book. The most obvious is the inclusion of multiple points of views telling the reader about each event from their different perspectives, and yes, that includes Nigel.
This was a really pleasant surprise. Fun and festive. Just don't expect anything too serious!
I am sharing this review with New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog. Thanks to the publisher and Random Things Tours for the review copy. Be sure to check out other stops on the blog tour below.
Rating 3.5/5
About the book
The Christmas Rift
Christmas is coming... and so is the biggest rift this tiny flat has ever seen.
When Daisy and Kate's glamorous new housemate is announced, they picture another girl.
Instead, they get Maxi.
A ridiculously handsome male model with an ego the size of Lapland, an appetite that empties the fridge daily and a nasty habit of encouraging two best friends to compete for his attention.
Before long, Daisy's mentally picking out wedding dresses, Kate's having far less wholesome thoughts and the flat has descended into festive warfare.
Watching every drama unfold from the safety of the skirting board is Nigel, the house's delightfully eccentric resident mouse. Sporting an abandoned contact lens as a monocle and never knowingly short of an opinion, he's firmly convinced humans are the daftest creatures ever created.
He's probably right.
A laugh-out-loud Christmas comedy about friendship, festive disasters and why some housemates really should come with a warning label.
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0HF54P5FM
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HF54P5FM
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About the author
Karen (K.L. Crear) is an author, over-sharer, and walking cautionary tale. Think: a sweary teenager trapped in the body of a menopausal woman who can’t sneeze without risking a wardrobe malfunction. You’re welcome.
Once upon a time, she worked in banking, the Civil Service, and property management, or as she likes to call it, The Beige Trilogy. She spent decades being respectable (ish), responsible (occasionally), and quietly losing the will to live. Then one day she found herself broke, baffled, and built entirely out of biscuit crumbs and unresolved trauma. So she did what any sensible woman would do, she wrote it all down and flogged it in paperback.
Karen has battled cancer twice, and her coping strategy was to laugh at wildly inappropriate moments and shout “F*ck off!” at inspirational quotes. Spoiler: it worked. Her sense of humour is deeply questionable, but it’s kept her just about sane through grief, illness, love, lies, and the time she gave herself food poisoning with a dodgy prawn ring from Iceland.
After years of procrastination (and one too many vinos), she finally swapped Pinot for a pen. She now writes jaw-dropping memoirs and hilarious women’s fiction about women who’ve had enough, snapped slightly, and are thriving in spite of it all, usually with a glass in hand, some top mates, and a solid alibi.
Her hobbies include eating anything wrapped in pastry, shouting at the Real Housewives (“She’s definitely had something done - she’s melting!”), and threatening to adopt an axolotl because they look so absurdly cheerful. She once turned down hugging a sloth in Mexico, it dangles upside down, pees on itself, and honestly felt like a warning from the future.
Karen lives in a sleepy Northern town with her long-suffering husband (he’s partially deaf, which helps) and their cat Pickle, who looks permanently disgusted with their life choices and the ongoing Dreamies rationing.
A portion of every book sale goes to Women’s Aid, Great Ormond Street, the Epilepsy Society, and Macmillan. because she knows what it’s like to need help. The world’s a shitshow, but we can all make a little difference in our own way.
Social Media Links –
https://www.klcrear.com
https://www.facebook.com/klcrearauthor
https://www.instagram.com/klcrear_author
https://www.amazon.com/author/klcrear
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