Water Under The Bridge is a debut novel by Kels & Denise Stone. This is a slow burn, contemporary, workplace romantic comedy. It’s book one of the Perks & Benefits series and can be read as a standalone. Aspiring writers need to read this book. It is a lesson in craft (conflict, POV, dialogue, and scene setting). And readers who enjoy small town romances will love getting to know the many Chalk Hill residents. Jake Honeychurch doesn’t want to sell his Nanna’s house, but circumstances force his hand. Listing the property with the rookie real estate agent in town, and asking a hefty price means it shouldn’t find a buyer. Perfect! Under the Bridge is a prodigiously researched and care­fully observed account of a senseless murder and its aftermath. Rebecca Godfrey brings a sympathetic imag­ination and a finely tuned ear for language to bear on a dark subject, with spectacular results."

These were the middle chapters which I kind of hated. Every now and then Kate would start fussing over something so silly and irritating like... Damn! I have HUGE respect for Jude who could handle her efficiently without killing her. But determination and persistence are traits Jake admires, and Ella has them in spades. After all, no one ever made an Olympic team by being a quitter. Ella's first job that she gets assigned to selling Irma Honeychurch's house. This house belongs to Jakes Nanna, Jake, who is a local farmer and owns the local hardware store. When Ella first meets Jake to discuss selling the house there seems to be a spark between them, but this won't help any when it comes to selling the house. Ella was really confident in selling the house, but Jake doesn't make it easy for her in not answering or returning her calls makes her job a lot harder. How do you sell a house if the owner really doesn't want to sell?

That Leaders Might Last - Dave Mann Transformed Lives - Bev Montgomery Growing Great Kiwi Churches - Gordon Miller Getting both of their POV was perfect, I feel like that really brought the book together as both characters have such strong emotions, it was nice to see how they both felt about things! The portrayal of Shasta, the ageing chorus-girl, is both brutal and sympathetic. She gives up her big break on the stage to take care of him all through the bleak years of the depression, but her resentment about this entrapment and the lost opportunities for fame and for love bleed through into hysterical rants which are legendary in the boarding house. When Neil comes home after the celebrations for the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1932, he is warned to be wary:

I really liked the fact that both the protagonists had their own POV’s and that had a good impact on the story.Gos wished he could look at the sun, get a sense of the time of day. He did not know it was 11:15. He knew only that they’d been underwater for almost an hour. He wanted to lift the seaweed, which was clammy and cold against his cheek, but to remove his hands from the rope would cause the line to flail, cause his partner to drift off his path. An impeccably well balanced rom com. Toe curling spice scene. Dialogues to leave you giddy and excited. Teasing. And a too good to be true love interest.

This was such a fun read! If you want to go in completely blind, I highly suggest not reading this review (or any others) until after you finish the book. That said... Under the Bridge was an insightful and eye-opening story that followed a senseless murder by teenagers who wanted to be gangsters. It looks at everything from all angles and the information comes across clearly. The writing style took some getting used to and the first part which was a ‘gett Water Under the Bridge is a contemporary story that’s been carefully plotted and populated with authentic and relatable characters (and not a cliche in sight). But what I really enjoy is the attention to detail Lily gives to each scene. You are never left wondering about what the character is doing, thinking, feeling (actions, expressions, and those character thoughts that make me giggle). Lily makes every word count (not a scrap of padding in this story) and each scene is cleverly choreographed so that as a reader I am a witness to every moment. (And there are some adorable scenes containing Lily’s deftness with dialogue and introspection.) Whilst I did like the residents a lot, I felt that they kind of used Ella's fame and expertise to get the town pool up and running again. Still, the oldies provided some very funny comic relief! What I learned from the podcast, and subsequently by poking around in my Oxford Companion to Australian Literature (1985 edition), was that one way or another, all Elliott's novels were autobiographical, featuring orphaned boys brought up by lone surrogate mothers. Elliott's own mother died young, leaving him to the tender mercies of the aunts who waged a custody battle for him as fictionalised in Careful, He Might Hear You. In Water Under the Bridge, the mother is careless of him, dumping him on a theatrical friend while she goes to nurse the husband by whom she so besotted that she barely notices the child's existence. Both of them promptly die of the flu epidemic, leaving him in the dismayed hands of the friend.

About the Author:

The line search continued until they had covered every inch of their planned path. The area under the bridge was still to be searched, but this search would require a new plan, for there were pillars to be navigated and the route was not as clear. Elliott remained in the United States for the remainder of his life, commencing a literary career in 1963 with his autobiographical novel "Careful He Might Hear You", which won the Miles Franklin Award and was subsequently made into a film. He published ten novels in total, several of which dealt with issues from his own childhood and experiences in Australia before the War. Although he increasingly developed a following among Australian readers, Elliott remained uncomfortable with his country of birth, in no small part due to his homosexuality, which had marked him out for difference during his youth. He spent his final years in New York City, dying of cancer in 1991. there was no breakup plotline!!!!! OH MY GOD THIS MADE ME SO HAPPY YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE. I've come to hate it so much when the characters break up over something stupid or miscommunication when the mark hits 75% and that's happened in almost all of the romance books that I've read and reading about a book with no breakup plotline just hits so different!!!! i will never get over this!!!!!!!!!!! A well written story that I was drawn to from the start and pretty much kept me hooked until the end. The front hall light had been left on for him which would mean sixpence would be added to the rent. The house had a peculiar smell of old carpet, frying and stale beer. The vestibule was a slight cut above the neighbours', with threadbare carpeting rather than lino. There was a lithograph of 'Hope' crouched blindfold in despair over the globe of the world, and a framed mirror that had tarnished into golden measles. On the fumed-oak dropleaf table was a bowl of dusty wax grapes that looked like tumours and a china Tyrolean couple probably won at Luna park years ago. Mrs Chauncey reluctantly took telephone messages and one or two of these were propped up against the grapes. One read 'Neil'.