Book giveaway: The Forgotten Summer by Carol Drinkwater

[TinaMumsnet]

With Mother's Day fast approaching, we've organised a book giveaway you can share.

We're giving away 100 copies of The Forgotten Summer to 50 lucky readers - one for you, and one for your mum. Go to the giveaway page to apply for your free copies now and share the joy of reading on 6 March.

If you're lucky enough to receive a free copy, we'd love to hear what you and your mum thought about the book, but you don't have to win a free copy to take part in the discussion.

Anyone who has read The Forgotten Summer can also post their feedback on the thread. All who post feedback before 4 April will be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 Love2shop voucher.

Don't worry if you haven't finished reading. Feel free to drop in at whatever point you've got up to and give your fellow readers your first impressions about the story, characters, writing style.

This giveaway is sponsored by Michael Joseph

I'm now on chapter 6 and the past few chapters have been quite dramatic. I'm looking forward to finding out what happened when Jane was 14.

Started and so far I'm enjoying the scene and character setting. The author has a very descriptive writing style which I like. I would agree with some previous posts it's a little slow to get started but I am sticking with it when normally I probably wouldn't.

I couldn't sleep last night so read on and now at chapter 12 and hooked! I love the style of past and present to unfold the story! Just a little sad about Walnut 🐾

Now received a copy through a kind mumsnet reviewer. It was a light summer read as it's title hinted. And I did think the story was stretched in places and it could have been a shorter book. However I did enjoy the ride and an ideal book for a summer holiday.

I hadn't read anything by Carol Drinkwater before so was pleased to receive two free copies of this book. I knew that she lives in the South of France and that she has written a series of novels set there. My only slight concern on receiving the book was that it might be too "fluffy" and romantic as the cover seemed to suggest that.

I'm glad to say that my fears were unfounded and that I found the book gripping and not at all "fluffy". The plot (of which I won't reveal much of here for fear of spoiling someone else's enjoyment of the book) deals with family tragedies, secrets and coming to terms with the past. There are twists and turns which don't always go the way you would expect, and though sometimes I felt I was a step ahead of Jane (the protagonist) at other times I was discovering things at the same time as she was. She is a sympathetic character who is at times puzzling, but as we discover more about her past life we are able to fill in the blanks and find out why she is as she is.

The same can be said of her mother-in-law Clarisse who could easily be interpreted as a stereotypical wicked character, but again as the reader learns more about her we begin to see how she has been shaped by her past and how, in turn, she has shaped those in the generations which follow her.

The South of France setting is beautiful and the author gives us all the sights, sounds and scents of the countryside, as well as the daily routine of cultivating vines and living off the land. This landscape is contrasted with London and Paris, which each have their charms, but pale beside the vineyards and olive groves of southern France. Fittingly for a book dealing with history, the story is told over several time periods, one of which concentrates on the flight of French nationals from Algeria in the 1960s following the war of independence. This isn't something I've seen dealt with in novels in English so it was definitely interesting.

I did feel, however, that one element of the book wasn't as successful as the rest - Jane's husband Luc's work to make a documentary about France's part in the Algerian War and his working partnership with cameraman Dan. This material didn't seem as fleshed out as the rest of the book, and gave the impression of trying to be a spy or conspiracy type plot which ultimately didn't succeed.

Having said that, I enjoyed the vast majority of the book and am glad that I read it. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys something with a bit more depth than the average "women's fiction" novel.

Finished this last night. After a slow start, I got into it. Enjoyed the drama and the twists. The descriptions of the region were lovely. The characters were believable. A good read, not chick-lit. 7/10.

This is an enjoyable read that really makes me feel like I was in Provence and although it is not the style of writing I would normally choose I will stick with it.

What can I say? Firstly, thanks for the 2 free copies. Forgotten summer is not the usual kind of book I go for, but it has me gripped. The descriptions of France make me believe I am there and the characters are genuine and believable. So many twists that I did not see coming. Looking forward to finishing this book. Would highly recommend.

I loved this book being French Algerian it made me giggle when I first found out. I have spent many summers in France but am also stuck to the UK so related a lot. I think it really kept me wondering, there were a lot of unexpected twists which is what I loved about it, it wasn't an obvious book. I think it's well written and delves into a lot of issues that people may have.

I enjoyed this book - it was well written. Carol's descriptive writing is excellent and I could really imagine myself in the various places - the vineyard, Paris, London.

I thought Clarisse was an amazing character and I enjoyed seeing the way in which Jane changed.

It was a bit of a slow starter for me and I found it hard at first to warm to Jane but it definitely picked up and was worth persevering with. The location descriptions were excellent. I was a little confused with the Algerian section (still not 100% sure the reasons why Luc's father met his end).

DM is still ploughing through her copy. She's finding it a bit slow-going (but is more of a thriller/detective novel fan).

Thank you for the books!

Thank you everyone for your feedback on The Forgotten Summer. I'm glad so many of you were able to share the reading experience with your DMs.

Congratulations to cookiemonster66, who wins the £100 Love2Shop voucher!

Hi I'm very disappointed I never received the book & one for my mum who I told won one ! I emailed Sorcha to let her know & never received a response.

Very disappointed overall to be honest !

Snowie2

I found this book very hard to get into. It was quite slow going at the beginning. I did however warm to the characters and found myself wanting to read on. The descriptions are believable and you find yourself imaging the scenery. It became a very enjoyable book as the plot unfolds. I would recommend this book but not as an easy quick read.