Review + Extract + Giveaway: Ninja School Mum by Lizzie Chantree

Ninja School Mum by Lizzie Chantree

Release Date: 30th January 2018
Publisher: Crooked Cat Books

Genres: Chick Lit / Romance

Obsessive-compulsive school mum, Skye, is a lonely elite spy, who is running from her past whilst trying to protect the future of her child. She tries hard to fit in with the other parents at her son’s new school, but the only person who accepts her unconventional way of life is new mother, Thea.

Thea is feeling harassed by her sister and bored with her life, but she suspects that there is something strange about the new school mum, Skye. Thea has secrets of her own and, although the two become unlikely friends, she hesitates to tell Skye about the father of her own child.

Zack’s new business is growing faster than he could have dreamed but, suddenly, he finds himself the owner of a crumbling estate on the edge of a pretty village, and a single parent to a very demanding child. Could he make a go of things and give his daughter the life she deserved?

When three lives collide, it appears that only one of them is who they seem to be, and you never know who the person next to you in the school playground really is.

EXTRACT

CHAPTER 1

Skye tapped her feet impatiently as she looked at the ominous grey clouds hovering above the playground and tried to rein in the anger she could feel blazing in her chest. She had learned the skill of outwardly controlling her emotions and appearing like she hadn’t a care in the world long ago, but if her son came out of school crying because a more boisterous kid had poured water on his head, or scribbled all over his carefully written work again, then she would struggle not to pick the culprit up by his leg and throw him into the neatly manicured flowerbeds that surrounded the glossy green windowsills of the school building.

She noticed the quiet red-haired woman who was sitting on a nearby bench, glancing longingly at the same group of school mums again. They were all huddled together like a rugby scrum, chatting busily about their day. Skye wondered why the redhead didn’t get up and join them if she wanted to be part of the group so badly, but she could tell from the woman’s body language that it was never going to happen. She obviously lacked the confidence or courage to break into such a tight-knit group of friends.

A movement to Skye’s left caught her eye and she noticed the woman with the mop of curly hair and inquisitive eyes watching her again. She was frowning in concentration before realising that she had been spotted and seamlessly blended back into the throng of people waiting for their children to appear.

For every mum or dad that has stood at the school gates on their own just watching the 'mum scrum' huddled together in those little closed groups, excluding everyone from their conversations, the Ninja School Mum will so appeal to you.

Skye has uprooted herself and her son for a new life in a place where nobody knows her. She's running away from her past and an old life that she doesn't want for her son. She lives a pretty reclusive lifestyle, hidden away in a secluded cottage on an estate with the back story that she is an author who values her privacy. However, deep down she is lonely and knows that her son deserves more than the life he is currently offering him.

One day at the school gates, Skye notices another mum who also seems to be on the outside looking in. A chance encounter later in a clothing store has them both reeling with laughter and soon becoming firm friends. Like Skye, Thea is lonely with a past she'd rather forget too. United in their dislike for the mum scrum and a child called Miles, the pair form an unlikely alliance despite the huge differences in their personalities. Skye appears confident and strong and Thea is completely lacking in confidence and desperately trying to please her control freak sister. Throw into the mix the totally yummy Zach and a bit of romance to further complicate their lives.

I absolutely adored this book. It had everything for me. A cracking good story, really likeable characters with interesting back stories and meanies that everyone loves to have in a book! There's romance, mystery and some interesting and important themes covered - loneliness, bullying, grief and a desperate desire to not let the past define you. However, leaving the past behind isn't as easy as that!  Different characters all have secrets and a past they'd rather forget and lovely plot twists had me wanting to read more from Lizzie Chantree. There are little teasers throughout the book hinting at something more going on. Not everyone is being honest about themselves! So difficult to write a review without giving too much away because this book has lots of secrets to reveal! This is a brilliantly written book with a well paced plot. My only criticism is that it had to end! I need more Lizzie Chantree books in my life! A highly recommended read from me!

 

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ABOUT LIZZIE CHANTREE

 

Award-winning inventor and author, Lizzie Chantree, started her own business at the age of 18 and became one of Fair Play London and The Patent Office’s British Female Inventors of the Year in 2000. She discovered her love of writing fiction when her children were little and now runs networking hours on social media, where creative businesses, writers, photographers and designers can offer advice and support to each other. She lives with her family on the coast in Essex. Visit her website at www.lizziechantree.com or follow her on Twitter @Lizzie_Chantree https://twitter.com/Lizzie_Chantree

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