Book Review: The Wish List by Martina Reilly

Allie and Tony have had their ups and downs throughout their marriage, but nothing prepares Allie for the awful shock she gets when she answers the door one day. Suddenly, the future, the home and the life she shares with Tony and their two sons Mark and Owen are uncertain and Allie doesn't know what to do.

Allie's eldest son Mark is inquisitive and wants to know what is going on with his dad, but isn't convinced by their fibs. He befriends the man who lives next door, Jeremy, and is pleasantly surprised by his secret - Jeremy is really Santa Claus! Mark confides his every worry in him but Jeremy is worried about to handle this messed up little boy. Is Allie going to realise that Mark is more troubled than she thinks, or is the worry about Tony all consuming, and will it destroy their family for good?

I've been a fan of Martina Reilly's book ever since I read her older work under the name of Tina Reilly quite a few years ago now. I also passed on several books of hers to my mum who also loves Reilly's work now, so she is definitely an author who appeals across the age ranges. The wish list is her fourth novel under her more serious moniker of Martina Reilly, and is out in large paperback, with the UK smaller paperback due out in January 2010. Reilly always deals with serious themes and issues in her books, and The Wish List is no different, covering topics from drug abuse to the effect this has on young children.

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Book Review: All I Want Is You by Martina Reilly

All I Want Is You tells us the story of Poppy Furlong. Poppy has grown up in a wealthy family, always having the best of whatever she wanted and never having to work for it either. But Poppy gets a shock when her husband Pete comes home one day with a shocking revelation about his successful Architects business. Poppy's life is thrown into disarray as she has to give up her beautiful house, settle in to a more surburban area than she is used to, as well as coping with her wild and difficult 6 year old. Poppy isn't used to being challenged, but she's about to face some pretty big ones...

Martina Reilly is actually the same person as writer "Tina Reilly", she has just changed her first name to apparently appear more grown-up, and has changed the cover style of her books from loud and garish, to more mature and chic. I wasn't too annoyed at picking this up thinking it was a new author to discovering it was someone I'd read much before as I did enjoy her books but I was unsure whether she would have changed her writing style as well as her name....

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Book Review: Second Chances by Martina Reilly

Lizzie Walsh is happy with her boyfriend Tom, and her job as a counsellor at Life, a counselling centre in Dublin, where she lives.

But behind her happy facade lies a deep and painful secret - her sister Megan was murdered as a teenager and Lizzie and her family have never got over it. The murderer, Joe Jones, was sent to prison for life after the crime, but one day Lizzie is horrified to see Joe on her way home.

She makes a decision to follow him and this spirals into an out-of-control obsession with revenge and growing hate. But is it ever going to be enough for Lizzie?

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