Blog Tour: Saving Starlight Hall by Debbie Viggiano

 

Last year I read and enjoyed the first book in Debbie Viggiano's Starlight series, so I was pleased when I saw that the second book was coming out.

Starlight Croft is a small village where everybody knows everybody and they all know each other's business, especially Hetty who seems to have the sight and has been known to make pronouncements about the future. Jen Armstrong is doing everything she can to avoid Hetty because she has secrets, big secrets that she cannot share with anyone. Her husband Peter has recently died, and it's fair to say that the biggest emotion that Jen feels is relief. She and her two grown children can now begin to plan for their new life.

Jen is also conscious that she has to get involved in the fight to save Starlight Hall, the place in the village where weddings are celebrated, parties are held, and where the village comes together regularly. One of the people interested in buy the Hall is property developer Liam Lancaster. Despite being the bad guy in this scenario all the town women agree that he is a very, very handsome man, including Jen. 

With her husband having only recently passed away, the last thing Jen expects is to feel something for another man, but she needs to keep her feelings hidden because she could not put up with another philanderer! Can Liam convince her that he is a decent man, despite his plans for the village hall.

There are lots of fun secondary characters including Jen's friend Alice and head of the Saving Starlight Hall activities and pub owner, Cilla. There were some slight references to the previous book, but not enough to make you feel like you would be missing out if you haven't' read it. 

Having now read two books by Debbie Viggiano, I can say that she has a very distinct voice in her writing, which is definitely playing for laughs. And it works. I definitely smiled my way through this book, but was also surprised by a couple of the events in the book, especially near the end. If you like a British style of humour, then it is definitely worth giving her books a try.

I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews. Thanks to the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy. Check out the other stops on the blog tour as well!

Rating 4/5

About the book

Saving Starlight Hall

Nestled deep in the countryside lies Starlight Croft – population small, gossip levels high, and secrets harder to hide than a cow in a phone box.

Jen Armstrong thought she had life more or less under control – marriage ticking along, teenagers on the right side of the law – until hubby Peter unexpectedly demises leaving Jen suddenly single, hugging a secret, and trying very hard not to fall apart in front of the entire village.

Just when things couldn’t get messier a For Sale sign appears. The community centre – the only place big enough to host Pilates and the local psychic’s séance nights – goes up for sale.

Cue The Starlight Society: a mismatched crew of locals with hearts of gold, questionable strategies and Jen reluctantly roped in to assist. Their mission? Raise the cash to save the hall before a charming-but-infuriating property developer named Liam Lancaster possibly turns it into a boutique hotel with mood lighting and tufty towels.

Can they pull it off? Will the hall survive? Might a secret be unwittingly revealed? And can Jen resist throttling an enemy who has the most annoyingly twinkly eyes?

A feel-good romantic comedy where love, lies, and livestock collide.

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Saving-Starlight-Hall-Book-ebook/dp/B0FSL3NZ2B

https://www.amazon.com/Saving-Starlight-Hall-Book-ebook/dp/B0FSL3NZ2B

About the Author 

Prior to turning her attention to writing, Debbie Viggiano was, for more years than she cares to remember, a legal secretary. She lives with her Italian husband and a rescued pooch from Crete. Occasionally her adult children return home bringing her much joy... apart from when they want to raid the fridge or eat her secret stash of chocolate. Tweet @DebbieViggiano or follow her on Facebook!



Social Media Links –

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DebbieViggiano

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbie.viggiano.5

Instagram: debbieviggiano

Blog Tour: Starting Over at Starlight Cottage by Debbie Viggiano

 

Tilly Thomas knows that her marriage is floundering. It's all a bit staid, so she decides to surprise her husband with a date night. She turns up at his office with tickets to the theatre in hand. Unfortunately, the surprise is on her when she discovers Robin in a compromising position with his personal assistant, Samantha.

Tilly still goes to the theatre, but in her emotional state, she nearly runs over a handsome man. He may look good, but his attitude sucks and they verbally spar.

Suddenly Tilly is facing a divorce, and Samantha has set her sights on the family home, so Tilly (and her dog Cindy) are going to have to move in with her bestie into her cramped flat, which gets even more crowded when Lisa meets the man of his dreams.

Tilly and Lisa work in a real estate agency, and so get to see the upcoming listings before the general public. As soon as Tilly sees the listing for Starlight Cottage, she knows that she wants it! Only problem is, her divorce isn't finalised and so it will take her some time to get her finances sorted. As soon as the listing goes public there are several interested parties, including Milo Soren, who does have all his finances in order and can make a cash offer.

Despite being disappointed, Tilly can't help but still visit the picturesque village of Starlight Croft and she gets to know some of the locals. She also can't help but clash with Milo!Yes, this is an enemies-to-lovers story. It turns out that Milo has more to him than just his good looks.

In the meantime, Tilly has a secret from her past that she has never told anyone other than her dog, Cindy. Not her husband, or Lisa, or anyone. When the past meets the present, Tilly has a lot of explaining to do. Cindy is actually the keeper of many of Tilly's secrets. Tilly and Cindy have many conversations about all sorts of things, some of which occasionally happen out loud (on Tilly's part at least) which can cause some confusion. Tilly also has a tendency to get lost in her daydreams and jump ahead to the future very quickly. One of the advantages of reading a book rather than watching a movie is that you do get to hear the inner thoughts, but there were times when there was a bit much of this. For the most part, though, there were a lot of fun interactions between Tilly and Cindy, that left me smiling.

Since I have been doing the blog tours for Rachel's Random Resources, I have discovered a lot of British authors, and many of those have become auto-read authors. Given that a lot of these authors are putting out at least one book a year, sometimes two or more,  I have to make a conscious decision to take a chance on new authors. I guess it helped that I had a bit of space in my reading schedule which allowed me to take a chance on Debbie Viggiano!

 The end of this book has definitely laid the groundwork for the next book in the series. I loved reading about the village of Starlight Croft, and I enjoyed meeting many of the secondary characters who I am sure we will see more of in the next book, especially as they come together to try to save the village hall.

I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted by The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews. Be sure to check out other stops on the tour shown below. Thanks to the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy. This also counts for the 12 Books of Christmas Challenge

About the book

Starting Over at Starlight Cottage

49-year-old Tilly Thomas would never have known any different if she hadn’t unexpectedly turned up at hubby Robin’s office to surprise him with an off-the-cuff evening at the theatre. Instead, the surprise is on Tilly when she interrupts Robin and his young PA in a compromising position.

Stumbling from the office, blinded by tears, Tilly thanks God she was never gifted the children she once craved and is spared explaining why Mummy and Daddy will now be living apart. Instead, Tilly has an adopted daughter – but this little girl has a wet nose and warm heart.

Mongrel Cindy is privy to all her mummy’s hopes and dreams as Tilly prepares to start over in the village of Starlight Croft. Thank goodness a dog can’t speak because Cindy knows things her mistress has never shared, including a secret that once broke Tilly’s heart.

As Tilly prepares to embrace an unknown future and make peace with her past, she discovers that sometimes difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations…

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Starting-Over-Starlight-Cottage-Book-ebook/dp/B0DJMS57V1

https://www.amazon.com/Starting-Over-Starlight-Cottage-Book-ebook/dp/B0DJMS57V1

About the Author:

Prior to turning her attention to writing, Debbie Viggiano was, for more years than she cares to remember, a legal secretary. She lives with her Italian husband, a rescued pooch from Crete, and a very disgruntled cat. Occasionally her adult children return home bringing her much joy... apart from when they want to raid the fridge or eat her secret stash of chocolate. Tweet @DebbieViggiano or follow her on Facebook!

Social Media Links


Twitter @DebbieViggiano
Facebook https:/www.facebook.com/debbie.viggiano.5/
Instagram debbieviggiano