British Chick Lit

 

The Mercury Travel Club
Mercury Travel Club #1
By Helen Bridgett
Publisher: Choc Lit (April 11, 2024)
Paperback: 300 pages
ISBN-10: 1781897018
ISBN-13: 978-1781897010

 Publisher’s Blurb:

Meet Angela. Over fifty. Divorced. Ready to start again.

 Angela's twenty-fifth wedding anniversary plans go up in smoke when her feckless now-ex-husband runs off with the caterer of their daughter's graduation party.

 Her besties Patty and Charlie persuade her to leave the house and her comfy cardies behind - and into the highest heels she can totter on. Wine bars, viral YouTubed karaoke nights, a book club. Angie's going to live like she never has before.

 Then during one of her new favourite nights - the book club with wine - she realises she can't be the only one. How many other newly divorced people are out there, waiting for adventure?

 She sets up the Mercury Travel Club - global getaways for the more 'mature' holidaymaker.

 Angie's holidays are a hit.

 Over the course of an 80s inspired cruise and a trip to New York, Angie begins to see there is a whole world waiting to be explored. And new love to be found . . .

 This laugh out loud feel-good romantic comedy of second chances is perfect for fans of Caroline James, Maddie Please, Jill Mansell, Shari Low, Judy Leigh and Jennifer Bohnet.

 My Thoughts:

This is not a romance. This is a story of a woman who finds herself in the wake of a divorce. Angela is a great example of figuring out how to move on with class and grace. She’s not without setbacks, but she shows so much growth throughout the story.

 Angie’s mother and best friend Pattie are kind of over the top, and would be exhausting to be around for any length of time, but Angie loves them and copes with them well.

 There are lots of fun moments. Really, for me, it’s the travel stories and the tours that they come up with that are the highlights. I’d totally be a customer for the Mercury Travel Club!

 This is a British book, so there are terms and references that may be unusual for the American reader. (I grew up with M&S, but you might not have!)

 

The Happiness Project
Mercury Travel Club #2
By Helen Bridgett
Publisher: Choc Lit (May 21, 2024)
Paperback: 262 pages
ISBN-10: 1781896992
ISBN-13: 978-1781896990

 Publisher’s Blurb:

It's never too late for a second adventure!

 Angie Shepherd is blissfully happy. She's running her own successful travel company. She has best friends to share karaoke nights and cocktails. And she has a gorgeous new man in her life - Michael.

 What she doesn't expect is her mum to want to join in the fun.

 She's written a bucket list. And she wants Angie's help ticking it off!

 Angie is very happy to help her mum have a makeover, ride a motorcycle and learn to waltz in Vienna.

 Life is all about taking chances after all.

 But now Angie's beginning to feel left behind. Her friends are heading off on a cruise, or getting married. Her mum is reinventing herself, and Michael has been avoiding her.

 Suddenly Angie is the one left on dry land.

Maybe it's time for her own journey of self-discovery . . .

 My Thoughts:

Where the first book definitely wasn’t a romance, this one has more romance to it, as Angie tries to start a relationship, and Patty dives into one of her own.

 Again, the stories about the tours that Mercury puts together are the highlight for me. They would be so much fun to go on!

 This book sees all of the characters develop a bit more. Angie’s mum is still kind of a nutball, but a lovable one who clearly loves her daughter.

 Angie works hard at her job and goes out of her way to bring happiness to her friends. She still battles her self-doubt a lot, but her intentions are good and her heart is huge. And this is what causes the problems with her fresh relationship with Michael—she is totally blindsided when it turns out that someone she looked on as a friend has betrayed her.

 I do question whether the author actually knows the difference between a trans woman and a drag queen. The drag queen in this story is ALWAYS in drag persona, and is referred to using they/them pronouns. The difference between trans and drag is an important one. (Just ask the national champion informative speaker, whom I had the pleasure of judging in finals at nationals last week. I would love to provide you a link to the speech, but it’s not released yet.)

 Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

 

The High Life
Mercury Travel #3
By Helen Bridgett
ASIN: B0D795N6QW
Publisher: Choc Lit Contemporary Romance: A Joffe Books Company (July 2, 2024)
Publication date: July 2, 2024

 Publisher’s Blurb:

Is the sun setting on the Mercury Travel Club?

Angie Shepherd is famous for finding fantastic travel destinations for her clients, offering the best culture, food, sun and sea.

Business is going swimmingly.

Until a new rival, Lorenzo, opens a travel agency opposite Angie’s beloved Mercury Travel Club. And he’s playing dirty in his bid to steal their clients.

There is nothing he won’t do to drive them out of business.

Desperate to save the Mercury Travel Club, Angie and her best friend Patty embrace their inner Thelma and Louise to test out a new road trip through beautiful Scotland.

From gorgeous beaches, to luxurious lodges — even a library hidden in the woods — they’ve found the idyllic destination.

Will the highlands of Scotland be enough to save everything Angie has built? Or has the Mercury Travel Club reached the end of the road?

My Thoughts:

I’ll say it again. I wish the Mercury Travel Club was a real thing. And their business-saving idea of a “treasure trail” mystery trip is just the icing on the cake! Also, I learned about Formentera, which is now on my travel bucket list.

In this installment, Patty is done performing on cruise ships, as her ship’s doctor boyfriend is taking up a land based position. When she wants to help out in the travel agency, Angie isn’t sure, but things turn out very well for everyone!

Watching what the characters go through when the new travel shop opens across the street is hard. No matter what they do, they just can’t catch a break. It almost ruins Angie’s relationship with Michael. In an astounding turn—they actually communicate with each other! I will admit, I figured out the twist a few chapters before it actually happened.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Possible Objectionable Material:

Lots of innuendo, a few curse words. LGBT+ characters. Drinking, sometimes to the point of getting drunk.  Infidelity. Unmarried sex.

Who Might Like These Books:

Those who like stories about women over 50 taking charge of their lives. Those who like travel.

 Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.