Hellllllo readers, hope you’ve had a wonderfully bookish day; I’ve got a really lovely review for you today I really think you’ll enjoy. Although I get to review some really fantastic books every so often one appears and it’s just, well, perfect for me as a reader and that has to be the best thing about book blogging; finding books I never would have done before. Today I get to share one of these with you; without delay the review.

Meet Emma Grayson, heroine of The Grayson Trilogy, a series of mysterious and romantic adventure stories.

‘The gun continued to be levelled at me. “Answer it…but don’t tell him I’m here or he’ll get to listen to you die.” That concentrated my mind considerably, and as I reached for my phone I came up with a plan…’

Emma Grayson was left devastated when her life was torn apart by tragedy and betrayal. Now someone believes it’s time for her to start again and puts an advert for a job through her door which leads her to the Melton Estate. Despite her desire for a solitary existence she finds herself discovering a life she could never have imagined, challenging her independence, her fears and her resistance to love.

As the blurb suggest Emma Grayson really needs a new start after a terribly raw personal event and in the midst of it all she manages to secure a job with Lord Cavendish of Melton Manor Estate working in the stables and taking care of the horses. Although Emma is desperate to keep herself to herself she finds herself becoming more and more involved with the tight-knit community found at the estate. Throw in the rather wonderful Trent who keeps getting in the way and sparks begin to fly. We follow Emma as she attempts to right herself and recover whilst also getting experience the hustle and bustle of the estate.

The tale is told on first person narrative which from the very beginning allows us to really relate and connect with Emma especially in the first few chapters where we are reliving the tragedy. I found myself immediately warming to Emma despite her colder attitude towards people. She is both a little stubborn and on edge but I found her growth throughout the book delightful to read about. Trent is just as well written; a bit aloof and full of himself but he has a warm persona that I adored reading about. Supporting characters could have featured more strongly in terms of characterisation but this may be built throughout the series.

In terms of writing the description of the surrounding landscape really helped to bring the tale to life and although there is a lot of detail about the stable work it didn’t overwhelm (I am honestly terrified of horses but I didn’t feel it was too much of a feature.) I thought the mystery about the manor intriguing and the trips Trent makes with Lord Cavendish helped to raise the suspense making the read all the more exciting.

There were a couple of wobbles for me; I couldn’t quite decide what the genre of the book was. This is often not a problem but it felt a little disjointed; mystery, romance? There is also a lot of the facts of Emma’s past thrown into the beginning of the story and although it’s good to learn so much I think it did cause the book to drag a little. I think dispersing it throughout would have helped with the suspense a little more and also push the story forward. This is also causes a bit of confusion when we start learning more about Trent’s back story and it feels a little clumsy.

However, this a lovely story to get you mitts on and throw yourself into. There are a few problems but that doesn’t distract from the wonderful writing style the deeply raw character back-stories and the strong plot-line. There are so many special moments and a real understanding of the story of life on the estate the caring for horses. The plot rises and falls and builds strongly rather than haphazardly and that really does bring about a really special story.

 Linnnnnks

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