It Started with a Kiss - Miranda Dickinson

More than a smidge self-indulgent, this festive novel certainly made easy reading but unfortunately teetered on the verge of the ridiculous. Wedding singer Romily kisses a stranger at a Christmas market (immediately after declaring her love for another man, the floozy!) then spends a year searching for him but finding herself, and keeping a blog. Very cheesy with a vastly overwhelming volume of characters (several seeming rather one dimensional due to their lack of development throughout the plot) this was chick lit at its fluffiest. An unimpressive ending too, which although “unpredictable” was a little too convenient. I was disappointed. 

Published November 2011, HarperCollins

Me Before You - Jojo Moyes

I loved The Last Letter to Your Lover and bought Me Before You from Amazon without even reading the blurb. I wasn’t disappointed. Heartbreaking, beautiful and poignant – I couldn’t put it down. I love how Moyes took an entirely original angle with this novel, with Will, a quadriplegic whose big life shrunk after a tragic accident, and Louisa, his newly appointed care companion. Will has a plan to give up so Louisa decides to convince him what’s worth living for. A controversial plotline (I couldn’t decide what I wanted to happen) and a rollercoaster of an ending. Read this now.

Published January 2012, Michael Joseph (Penguin)