Hand Me Down

by Michelle Holman

April Ritchie has a bad habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Take the night she was born ... When bad girl April Ritchie returns home to Pisa after a nine-year absence, not too many of the townsfolk are glad to see her back. April's spoilt-brat behaviour had never won her many friends, and her fast exit from town the night of her seventeenth birthday left more questions than answers. So it isn't too surprising that people get a kick out of seeing Daddy's little princess reduced to earning her keep as a kiss-o-gram girl in a red rubber dress. It seems everyone has a bone to pick with April, especially tarn Elliott, whose reputation she unfairly ruined. tarn has a score to settle. April has secrets she doesn't want to share. Can the good people of Pisa, and tarn Elliott in particular, see beyond the petite wee blonde's wisecracks to the real April underneath?

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Chick Lit

384 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 4, 2011

About the author

I live in Cambridge, New Zealand and write contemporary women's romance. My books have all been bestsellers so thank you to all those people who bought them. Cambridge is in the province of Waikato which is famous for cows and horses. We've got two of them - horses, that is. We've also got an over-energetic dog, and a cat that drinks out of the toilet. I'm a lapsed nurse (you never stop being one, you just lapse). I know that because I stand in supermarket queues and give people marks out of ten for how good their veins are and how easy it would be to get a line into their arms. If I'm making you feel faint - Sorry.

Reviews

[Carol, She's so Novel ꧁꧂ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The previous novel I read New Orleans Mourning the author didn't give any nuances in character development at all, let alone make any of them become likeable people. In Hand Me Down Ms Holman does this effortlessly and I really enjoyed the start of this story where a formerly spoilt princess returns to a home town, full of people who have good reason to not be able to stand her. Lots of witty lines and April and Tarn's early relationship sparkles.

Unfortunately it all turns to custard.

Maybe Ms Holman had to reach a minimum book length. Maybe she was planning a series with either the lively Gudsell family or some of Tarn's army buddies. Dunno, but suddenly there were way too many characters and the male lead started doing things that didn't make sense at all. Thirty pages from the end, this book became so ridiculous that I had to force myself to finish.

My copy mentions a new book coming out in 2012. This doesn't appear to have happened and the URL for Miss Holman's website is dead & her authorial Facebook page was abandoned in 2018 (although translations of her books were released in the 2010s.) I'm guessing that like many NZ authors in the early 2010s that Michelle lost her publishing contract and decided not to continue. This is a pity, as I have heard good things about her other titles and may read them in the future.

https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...

[Preet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Michelle Holman's latest release and I'm feeling sad now that I've finished it. It was just released a few months ago, so I know I will have at least another 8-9 months before the next one.

I've already mentioned that Michelle likes to favor her romance peppered with comedy and serious topics. This time she has spousal abuse, switching of babies at birth, and the wounds caused by going to war. It makes for a very fascinating and engrossing read.

April Ritchie is 26 years old. She's been married twice, well one marriage was illegal. She's not been home to Aurora in 9 years when it's rumored she ran away. Life hasn't been kind to April and when she realizes that coming home means she is going to have to see the people she hurt most, she's tempted to run away. One of those people is Major Tarn Elliot. It just so turns out that the one person she'd like to avoid most, is the new owner of what once used to be her home. Down on her luck April is unable to procure what brought her home, and she ends up doing menial labor for the retired Major, while trying to keep her defenses intact.

Once again Ms.Holman does a stupendous job at taking two hurt and flawed people and making them perfect for each other. Some of the things April experienced made me want to cry and I even got teary eyed in places. If you haven't read a book by Michelle Holman, I would strongly recommend you try one. She's a fantastic author from New Zealand and one worth reading.

[Zellian · Rating 3 out of 5]

April Ritchie has found herself in the small town of Pisa nine years after she first ran away, working as a Kiss-O-Gram after hitting bump after bump after bump in her life. The only reason she has chosen to return is the jewelry that has been hidden away for her at the Aurora Orchard Estate that she grew up in, now owned by a Military man she accused of having an affair with her mother, an accusation she knew was a lie. After the failed attempt to find the jewelry she's stuck in Pisa with nothing to her name, Tarn takes pity on the young woman who'd almost ruined his reputation and has her help on the now money draining Orchard that he knows nothing about. As they work away to get the Orchard back into its best shape, they find that as much as they try to ignore and one-up each other the more they truly need each other to find their happiness.

The book is an interesting read, a romance that deals with some pretty heavy topics. Babies that have been switched at birth, only to learn of their true parentage later. Dealing with the abuse that was handed by a spouse and the horrors of war. Even with these, the book is still quite a light read and has a lot of enjoyable back and forth between the characters. It doesn't purely focus on just the one character and you get a feeling for most of the central characters of the books without being confused or lost as you read on. A good New Zealand read to recommend to others.

[Rowlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a frivolous read. Not too bad.

[Minnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my usual read, but I’m a big fan of Michelle Holman’s books. They are charming, funny and very creative. This was no different. I was reading this as we were travelling through the Otago district for the first time, which added to my enjoyment - seeing the dusty hills and cherry farms was a plus.

[Amera Amer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tarn’s army contacts paid off. Sons and daughters of his soldier friends, on break from university or high school, began to arrive. He also hired a smattering of Israeli, German and Taiwanese workers. Within a few days he had enough people to start picking and to run the packing house.

Dnf after this paragraph
Israeli really ??
I can't with these people
I'm ashamed i even read to this point

[Mel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Michelle Holman has a way of writing her characters that you truly relate to them. The story gripped me from the first page and kept me there until the last.
Hunting down her other books right now!

[Anna Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, lighthearted read! Couldn't put it down.

[Tracey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Improbable but fun!

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun, and I enjoyed the New Zealand setting - even if I couldn’t quite believe that a Central Otago town would be called Pisa...!

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love everything about this book, great style of writing, great characters and great story.

[roni · Rating 3 out of 5]

honestly, the amount of books i shouldn't have read as a child is astounding

[Ebony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michelle is one of my favourite Chic Lit authors, love that she is a Kiwi and that all her books retain that NZ flavour.
This book was fantastic, it was funny and feisty. Like any good Chic read there was a few predictable (perhaps even unbelievable) moments but seriously what good chic lit does not :)
This is a definite feel warm and fuzzy read.

[Rochelle Elliot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished reading this great kiwi romp! Couldn't help but enjoy the sexy tension between Tarn and April, and it made for a great lazy morning in bed with a pot of tea, disappearing into the beautiful South Island and making some new friends!

The town of Pisa, with its interesting local characters, and skeletons in the closets made for a great backdrop to this modern romance.

[Mariana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read from Michelle Holman and I'm officially a fan. I enjoyed this light, easy read. The characters are really interesting and the style of writing doesn't encroach on the story (I always feel like there's an 'accent' to books that can be grating, but this one was good). I'm going to have to look out for the rest of her novels now.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second-favourite Michelle Holman book (my favourite is Bonkers). I wasn't sure what to expect after reading the blurb, but the main characters are very likeable.

I hope that Aaron gets his own book!

[Skye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Its was something different for me to buy. Im really glad I got it. Im kinda a sucker for covers. :D I will need to buy other books from this writer!

[Sienna12345 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book!

[Tania · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

first book I read by Michelle and it made me want to read the rest