Here Come the Girls

by Milly Johnson

I could have chosen any of the books written by Milly Johnson as I am a big fan. I met her once at an author evening and she came across as a genuinely kind, funny, blunt, Yorkshire woman! She doesn’t mince her words; she can tell a lot of rude jokes but she seems to really care about her readers. I’ve also e mailed her a couple of times and surprisingly she has responded which I find quite incredible for a busy writer, currently producing two books a year.

Milly’s books always feature strong women. They may not necessarily be strong at the beginning of the story, but they certainly are by the end! They are books that you know will feature romance, humour, mishaps and mistakes and they always end happily for the heroine. They are very much like Milly herself – straight talking and does what it says on the tin! (If you get my drift.) The characters draw you in and however hard you try, you always end up wanting things to work out for them.

I have almost all her books – the latest two are on my birthday list! She has written around 24 novels, a book of poetry, a couple of E novels and hosts of short stories. ‘Here come the girls’ is one of her earlier ones and I’ve chosen it because of its holiday theme. Set on a cruise and involving four old school friends who left their school dreaming of romance, exciting futures and amazing jobs. Twenty-five years later, the reality is somewhat different. Olive is struggling with a lazy, out of work husband and an ill mother and is cleaning other people’s houses in order to survive. Roz was left with huge trust issues after a failed relationship and is struggling to show her emotions to her new loving partner. And Frankie? Well, she and Roz have fallen out - in a very big way.

Ven is desperate to reunite her friends and to carry out the dream that they had in school – to go on a cruise before they hit the big 4-0. It takes some organising and cajoling, but they make it and head off on their voyage across the high seas. The dilemma is, will the holiday of a lifetime, the blue skies and the beautiful sunshine distract them from all they have escaped from? And what will be waiting for them on their return home?

Milly has cruised numerous times after being persuaded by friends that it was an ideal holiday for a single mum with two young children and much easier than flying, and decided that it would be the perfect setting for one of her books, encouraging her readers to ‘travel along with the characters.’ I’d never been on a cruise before 2019, but when the opportunity came to try out a river cruise, this was one of the books I chose to take along with me! It seemed to fit perfectly.

It is a gentle read, a holiday read, a feel-good story and a great opportunity to settle down and relax in the sunshine, letting the day drift by (whether you are on a boat or just sitting in your garden!)