Book Review: The Island Affair by Helena Halme (Blog Tour) #BookReview #BlogTour #TheIslandAffair #GeneralFiction

The Island Affair by Helena Halme book cover

I am so honoured to participate in The Island Affair blog tour.
I want to say thank you to Anne Carter from Random Things Tour for inviting me.
I enjoyed reading this novel as it reminded me of something that felt like home, even if I’ve never experienced anything similar to characters from this novel.

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About the book:

Can one summer mend a broken heart?

After the tragic loss of their 17-year-old son, journalist Alicia and surgeon Liam struggle to keep their marriage afloat. During their usual holiday to Åland, the Nordic islands where Alicia grew up, the rift between the couple deepens.

Enter tall, blonde Patrick, with the most piercing blue eyes Alicia has ever seen. When Patrick confides in Alicia about the near loss of his daughter and the breakdown of his marriage, Alicia is surprised to feel an affinity with the Swedish reporter. He’s the only person who understands Alicia.

But secrets held by people close to Alicia give her life another surprising turn and she finds there is a reason to live – and love – again.

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My Review:

The Island Affair is a story about loss and grief, about love and betrayal. It is a story about life.

When I first heard about The Island Affair (thanks to Anne Carter) I had a strong feeling this book would be perfect for me.
It’s been a while since I read good quality general fiction, and I craved for some!
This book came to my life just when I needed it.

I loved many things about this story, but what I liked the most was the setting. I think the author captured Nordic islands perfectly.
Even if I’ve never been there myself, the whole time I was reading The Island Affair I had a feeling I was somewhere else.

This novel felt like home to me, but not because I experienced something similar in my real life, but because it reminded me of a tv show I like to watch: The Affair.
Guys, I think that the same muse who visited creators of that show visited Helena Halme as well!
The similarities are undeniable, even though they are two different stories.
Maybe some readers will not be thrilled with that, but to me it was a plus.

The story is written in third person, following mostly Alicia’s perspective, but we do get rare chapters with other characters’ viewpoints.

The Island Affair has an interesting, unhurried plot, but it is mainly character driven story.
It explores people’s reactions in certain situations, their way to deal with emotions and the progress of healing and letting go.

As I already stated, it’s been a while since I read good story that explores emotions and inside worlds of people, and this novel reminded me why I love this type of stories.

The Island Affair is the first book in the series, and I would like to continue with it if the next book also follow the same characters.

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Sunday Post (Weekly Wrap Up March 11th-17th) #SundayPost #Bloggers #WrapUp #Reading

Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

This meme was created for bloggers to spotlight posts they published in the week, as well as to talk about what they plan to write in the week that’s coming.

Sunday post is also great opportunity to showcase books we got in the week behind us.

Hi Guys!

I feel like it’s been ages since the last time I did my Sunday Post.
There aren’t many good excuses to use in this case, except that I write my Sunday posts always on Sundays, and lately I had busy Sundays.

Anyway, this week was pretty… messed up I guess?

I was pretty depressive at the beginning of the week (to be honest, I was depressed last week too), but with each day I felt better and better.
I feel hopeful and motivated now, so don’t worry!
I think my depressive phases come from my hormonal disbalance.

In other news, I am slowly but surely making steps to rebranding Book Dust Magic, so this will no longer be book blog only, but also lifestyle blog, and I will cover different topics I feel passionate about.

If you wonder why I decided to do it, I will probably write a post about it pretty soon.

Last week on Book Dust Magic:

Monday: I took a part in the She Lies in Wait blog tour, and posted my review for this crime novel

Wednesday: I reviewed Written from the Heart by Trisha Ashley

Thursday: I took part in the Lucky Leprechaun Giveaway Hop

Friday: I reviewed An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

Next week on Book Dust Magic:

Upcoming reviews:

The day we met by roxie cooper cover The Island Affair by Helena Halme book cover

I will also talk about books that I plan to read this Spring.

Book Haul:

This week I was approved for the two books I requested via Netgalley:

The Country Rivalry by Sasha Morgan book cover A country escape by katie fforde book cover Book Dust Magic

Currently reading:

The Island Affair by Helena Halme book coverI am opening the blog tour for The Island Affair by Helena Halme next week (aka tomorrow) so I’ll be finishing this novel soon. If you wonder, it is really relaxing and beautiful prose.

Giveaway:

There’s a giveaway going on here on Book Dust Magic right now, and you can win yourself a book of choice. It is international, and you can enter here.

That is it!
Let me know what’s been going on with you, what you’ve been reading or watching this week and feel free to leave your links so I can visit you.
Have a lovely Sunday!