Happy Families Collection 10 Books Set - Allan Ahlberg

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Really, she has everything she needs and she works very hard - no job is too big, too small or too high - but her children think that what she really needs is a boyfriend! Our team is made up of book lovers who are dedicated to sourcing and providing the best books for kids. The story itself didn’t grip me and the narrative is very meandering, seeming to flounder at points and I really think Julie Ma needed to make her aims for the novel clearer. There are a few others who had a stake in the early demise of the Mertons, giving us plenty of suspects to choose from, and what was really unique was that almost ALL of them were women! But her children think she deserves some attention too, so they decide to help her find a boyfriend .

I had a very interesting ending in mind that I was hoping would somehow be accurate (and provide me with the crazy twisted ending I was looking for) but it didn't come to pass. On the other hand, I still have answers as certain characters stories weren't fully completed which is rather irritating.and these family run businesses are cornerstones in any town - even outlasting the likes of Woolworths.

My only downfall for this story that it was a little too slow-moving for my liking, as many of the dramatic elements happen in the latter part of the book and I'm a little too impatient for so much context and background building. Everybody has something more to them than being a woman behind a counter in Next or a man on the till in Aldi. Sheila, his wife, is a cold and distant mother, and failed to protect the children from their father. But then grandma's horse gets a sore throat and Jimmy Jump gets a splinter in his bottom so she might get her chance at last.This is a QUICK read, I flew through the pages because I had to know who did it and what really happened. If you watched the brilliant series Kim’s Convenience on Netflix, you will instantly be enamoured by all the characters featured in this tale.

Julie Ma has had various careers since qualifying from Aberyswyth University before she finally ‘took up the helm at the family takeaway. i noticed in another book i read by this author that the plot twists at the end aren’t very twisty and in both books it was pretty obvious who it was and it was like the author was trying to throw you off on who it was, with both books. My tip would be, if you have a tin of paint , go and paint a wall, get yourself a chair and sit and watch the paint dry. It doesn't contain any unnecessary fluff or overwrought musings, so it jives well with the genre, enabling the action to take the front seat.Going for a story where the focus is family, you'd expect it to end up somewhere with the reader realising the importance of family and acceptance etc, but that mark is missed by a long shot.

I did enjoy this as I do most Lapena books but I will say that the reveal and the epilogue were disappointing to me. Eldest daughter Catherine and her husband, leave in a huff, followed closely behind by beleaguered middle child, Dan and his wife, Lisa. They gather together for the Easter dinner from hell, where Fred makes an announcement that has all the children leaving hurriedly, angry and upset. Based on the classic 'Happy Families' card game, this highly entertaining series is ideal for reading and sharing at home or at school. There were so many layers to this story, and so many characters all deftly woven together, but it never felt overly complicated or confusing to read which I am always grateful for with multigenerational stories.

Their feud and Amy's reason for leaving Cardiff are simmering secrets that soon come to fruition in the climax of the story. She didn’t do anything to protect them and now that’s how she got paid for herself: being strangled to death! When the family comes together for this particular Easter dinner, things get especially uncomfortable. I think after 5 books I finally figured out why I am middle of the road when it comes to reviewing her books: it is that her books read like a Wikipedia version of a good thriller. Yeah, their father was big bad wolf and their mother were mostly silent to his terrible actions against his children.