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21 January 2016

Review: 'The Lonely Hearts Club - Destination Thailand' by Katy Collins (2016)

What if you had a second chance… to find yourself?

Instead of slipping on her something borrowed and tripping up the aisle to wedded bliss, Georgia spends her big day crying into a warm Sex-on-the-Beach, wondering where it all went wrong.

Forced to make a bucket list of her new life goals by best friend Marie, it’s not long before travel-virgin Georgia’s packing her bags for a long-haul adventure to Thailand.

Yet, Georgia’s big adventure doesn’t seem to be going to plan. From strange sights, smells and falling for every rookie traveller scam in the book Georgia has never felt more alone.

But the good thing about falling apart is that you can put yourself back together any way you please. And new Georgia might just be someone she can finally be proud of…

Today I've got a review of the first part of a new book series to share with all of you and it's a new series I am quite excited about! I first heard about 'The Lonely Hearts Travel Club' a few weeks ago, I think, and immediately loved the sound of the series. 'Destination Thailand' is the title of the first novel which is released by Carina today, January 21st. Author Katy Colins is known for her personal blog, 'Not Wed or Dead', and she has based part of her first novel on her own experiences of travelling around the world after having been jilted by her fiancee a month before her wedding. I already admired Katy after reading bits and pieces from her blog and was really curious to check out her book!

Georgia Green was supposed to get married to her long-term boyfriend, but instead life threw her a few curve balls and now she finds herself on a quick trip to Turkey, lying on the beach with her best friend Marie while crying her eyes out. When she also gets fired from her job, Georgia realises she desperately needs a break from everything, preferably as far away as possible. With a bucket list of things she wants to do, she decides to go on a six-week tour through Thailand. Georgia can't wait to leave Manchester behind and discover this strange land and meet some new people; it's an adventure she desperately needs. But as the trip seems to only go from worse to worse, Georgia starts to doubt whether she was really made to travel and perhaps this wasn't such a brilliant idea after all...

What a great and promising start to a new book series! Author Katy Colins used part of her own experiences to write 'The Lonely Hearts Travel Club: Destination Thailand' and this resulted in a fabulous chick lit novel I am sure a lot of readers will enjoy just as much as I did. Personally, I am not the kind of girl who has always dreamed of travelling to the other side of the world and if I'm honest the word 'backpacking' already makes me want to hide under my desk, but even if you're not a fan, main character Georgia will easily warm your heart and make you want to continue reading. She really is a great and admirable protagonist; a bit too naive at times, but that makes her real and flawed, just like all of us. I loved joining her on her adventure to Thailand and the storyline held my interest throughout the entire novel, especially since there were quite a few unpredictable things happening which I didn't see coming. 

Katy Colins' writing style is great; there's just the right amount of detail, dialogue, setting descriptions, and it's really well-paced. Next to Georgia, there is a fascinating group of secondary characters; a lot of them just make small appearances but still really add their own touch to the story. I particularly liked Georgia's parents and her best friend Marie, and the fact that there were also some characters to really dislike (I'm not going to mention names since I don't want to spoil anything!). The next part of the series is set in India and I already can't wait to read it. 'The Lonely Hearts Travel Club: Destination Thailand' is a feel-good, well-written and enthralling novel which I enjoyed from start to finish; the perfect escape to a bit of sunshine during these cold winter days!
Rating:9,5/10
 
For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

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