Madame Burova is a riveting story and a gem of a read. One of my favourite books is The Keeper of Lost Things and this one is up there alongside it. It's the story of Billie, who's searching for her birth parents and Imelda Burova, the mystic who holds the key to her past, and it's all marvellously done. The way Ruth Hogan portrays her characters is just brilliant; not necessarily sympathetically, but so real that you can't help but care about them. I am still thinking about the story and what happened with the characters even after I have finished reading Madame Burova. This is incredibly good storytelling by Ruth Hogan so don't miss out!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from John Murray Press/ Two Roads via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I loved this book although took me a while to get used to the present time/ past. I loved getting to know all the characters and how their lives were intertwined with each other. Couldn't fault the story line at all. Lovely easy read book.

What an absolute joy is a new Ruth Hogan book to dive into. Madame Burova doesn't disappoint at all. 
As the blurb says Madame Burova - beloved Tarot reader, palmist, and clairvoyant - is retiring and leaving her booth on Brighton’s seafront, where she has spent her life practicing her trade. She has a secret from many years ago, that she can now reveal. Billie is brought to Brighton, following a sudden and startling discovery about her upbringing.  And Madame Burova can help.

I adored this book, as I have all of Ruth Hogan’s books. The characters are wonderful, including the canine ones, and I was totally wrapped up in finding out what happened and what secrets were being kept. I laughed out loud several times and also found the story very moving. I was fascinated by the history and detail around tarot reading and fortune telling. And I really want a vardo in my garden!

Read this book, you won’t regret it.

Thanks NetGalley, John Murray Press and the most talented Ruth Hogan for an ARC to review.
I have finished this book a while ago and didn't have enough time to post the review since then.
Ruth Hogan as usual creates her own unique magical world. The book takes you away to the year 1972 in a seafront holiday camp, among tarot reading, exotic performers and artists who formed a special bond over that time.
Meanwhile current time, Billie in London discovers a life shattering truth that takes her to Madame Burova's magical world.

I loved the book and would literally read anything Ruth Hogan writes.

I found this a wonderful read it takes you through two timelines following the lives of the same people and later the new additions
Madam Burova is just as exciting as her name suggests a crystal ball reader, tarot card reader and palmistry who also has psychic tendency. She has a booth in Brighton and one day a baby girl is found there by Imelda aka madam Burova and she hands the baby to the authorities to be adopted
She also keeps many secrets that are told to her in the booth
It is only years later when the girl Billies parents both died and they left her a letter saying she was adopted but that they know nothing else but Imelda can help her
And so Billie’ s journey begins and secrets will begin to unravel but will she find her true parents?

I am a big fan of Ruth Hogan’s, having adored all her previous books, so I was a bit nervous to read this after I was approved on netgalley and I put it off incase it wasn’t as good as previous novels. Well, I wish I hadn’t delayed reading it! It was bloomin’ fantastic and I read it all in one sitting! I love the way it flips between present day and the 1970s. I loved the character of Madame Burova. I felt for Billie. I loved the dogs. Oh, it was a wonderful read and kept me thoroughly entertained while I recover from side effects of dose 2 of AstraZeneca. If you’re a fan of Ruth’s, you don’t want to miss this one!

I was sucked into this wonderful story from the very beginning, the descriptive writing was fantastic and kept me wanting more throughout.

I completely lost myself in the wonderful characters and loved how in-depth they were. This is definitely a character driven storyline which I loved but may not be for all of you are more into the plot heavy side of things.

A certain magic was captured in this book unlike any other and for that I would highly recommend!

Madam Burova is a tarot card fortune teller of Romany blood, who has a stall on Brighton sea-front. She spends her time reading people's cards, and chatting to friends.

But her life had an exciting past. As part of a group of staff at a holiday camp, there was love, intrigue and hate.

In the present day, a woman named Billie finds out her deceased mum and dad aren't her birth parents, so she makes her way to Brighton to find the truth. There, she meets Madam Burova.

It's a little bit difficult to review this book. I found myself checking how many pages I had left to read, hoping something would happen. I was waiting for the big action. But it's not that kind of book. There aren't ample amounts of action. In fact, the few dramatic things that do happen occur "offscreen".

Having said that, Ruth Hogan is an absolutely incredible writer. She writes some beautifully poetic sentences, with the most delicious phrases.

For me, this novel isn't my usual genre to read. I think that's why I don't love it. It doesn't intrigue me very much, because I'm more into horror or thrillers.

However, I will happily continue reading Ruth Hogan's work simply because her mastery of the English language is something to behold.

Thanks to Ruth Hogan, NetGalley, and John Murray Press for this advanced copy.

I’m grateful to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of Madame Burova. Thank you!

I read another book by Ruth Hogan - ‘The Book of Lost Things’, and I have to say, I suppose I was expecting something similar as I loved that book quite a bit.

This wasn’t a book I loved, but I did enjoy reading it overall. It tells the story of Madame Burova, who is a Tarot Reader, Palmist, and Clairvoyant. In present times she is retiring from the many years spent reading people’s fortunes, but it jumps between the present day to when she first took over from her mother, Shunty-Mae. It delves into the life of both Madame Burova, but also a bunch of different characters who are entertainers at Larkins, a holiday camp, as well as Billie in present day. I have to say, one of the things I did like about the book was the array of different characters. They each had their own personality, and you could clearly tell the difference between all of them.

With Billie, I kept seeing her as a young person, whereas actually she’s approx. fifty years old, which was strange. Not sure if that’s how she was written, but in any case, I had to keep reminding myself she was older. I felt that there might have been something with Treasure, but it never materialised.

I quite liked the setting of the book, and definitely got a feel for the seaside resort, Madame Burova's Tarot Reading set-up, and the setting of Brighton - which I love Brighton and have been there a fair few times, so I definitely could imagine the setting very well.

I felt this was quite an easy read, easy to pick up and jump back into; it wasn’t a complicated plot. I guessed who the mother was certainly before the end, and even the father before it was materialised. One thing I didn’t like was how sudden the reveal of the father was! The ending seemed sudden and I was a bit disappointed over that.

So, if you’re after an easy holiday read, I recommend this book. The characters are vivid on the page, and I thought it was a nice touch with Imelda’s dogs! It’s certainly more chick-lit/popular fiction.

The Madame Burova of the title is Imelda, clairvoyant, palmistry and tarot reader. She has taken over the booth on Brighton's promenade from the original Madame Burova, her mother Shunty-Mae.
Imelda is a true psychic and is able to give her clients real insight into their problems and to keep their secrets.
Billie is one of Imelda's secrets and it takes time and lots of interesting characters to tell the whole story and to decide quite where Billie fits in.
There is Ruby who works with Imelda at Larkins holiday camp and Treasure, Ruby's son who has to deal with bullies. There are the mermaids who also work at Larkins with Jeanne who dreams of being a singer and Cillian, the Wall of Death rider.
This is such a warm hearted story. I loved all of the people in it; even Vivienne who was definitely trouble!

Absolutely beautiful book. I adore Ruth hogan she has an imagination that is like entering a dream space. I loved Madam and all the people in and around her life. So true so sad so joyous and so beautiful Thankyou

Imelda Burova is a Tarot Reader, Palmist, Clairvoyant and keeper of secrets. She is tired of keeping secrets and wants to retire, but first she needs to deliver two letters written a long time ago.

Billie has lost her job, marriage and discovers something that outs into doubt her identity and who she believes she is. She meets up with Madame Burova and together they piece together her story.

The story is told in two timelines and alternates between the two, which I am normally not a fan of but for this book it worked. It shows life in the 70’s and current times and different attitudes that were around at the time.

Will Billie get her answers, will Imelda get her retirement and fulfil her promises and will secrets come out or stay secret?

i really enjoyed Madam Burova by Ruth Hogan, Ruth is such a talented writer.

I really enjoyed the dual timeframe, it bought back lots of memories of the 1970s when I was a child.

Madam Burova is a gentle read which isn't to say it doesn't pack a punch sometimes.

Highly Recommended.

After reading and LOVING Hogan's The Keeper of Lost Things a few years ago, I was so excited to get my hands on the ARC for her latest novel, Madame Burova.
I am just starting out my reading career with regards to fantasy novels, and whilst this has some elements of magic in it, I expected more of the content to be centred around Imelda's clients and her readings, which it wasn't. Imelda was coming to the end of her career so it frustrated me a little when people's readings were glossed over. It was much more character driven and not as plot driven as I would have liked.
It has to be said, maybe my reading has altered over the years and I need more engagement or maybe I have less patience because my life restricts my reading more than it used to.
Ruth Hogan is a great writer and I continue to chase the wonderful qualities I found in The Keeper of Lost Things.

Refreshingly simple but enchanting.
Brighton seaside, lovely.
Switches between 1972 and present day.
Main character is Imelda, a fortune teller with a fascinating past.
There is a group of people who work at the local holiday camp, they are all talented and young, what happens to this group their friends and families is a well woven mystery, which keeps you guessing to the end.

A tale narrated in the ever popular 'Now and Then' format - a woman whose life has collapsed around her finds out that her beloved recently departed parents, weren't actually her birth parents. A mysterious letter leads her to Brighton and a fortune teller's caravan - all very exciting, yet reassuringly familiar.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, the holiday camp setting and the satisfying tying up up threads. A jolly good, warm bath of a read which gives you the sense that it will all be alright in the end.

This was such a lovely, uplifting, easy to read book. I found myself getting sucked in immediately, especially into the flashbacks of the old Larkins days - I only wish there'd been more of them. Imelda was such an interesting character, although I do wish we'd seen a little bit more of her life in the times in between. It seems like she only existed then and now. Overall though, such a beautiful read and really glad I had the opportunity.

A fascinating, beautiful, emotional rollercoaster of a book.
Whilst it took me a couple of chapters to get in to it, once it got hold of me I couldn’t put it down. I had a real job reading the last couple of chapters through tears!
I loved the dual timeline and how it all merged together. Finding out about Madam Burova and her job was fascinating. Billies journey to finding herself again is emotional and heartwarming. I especially enjoyed the two lead females friendship and watching it grow.
Madam Burova is really well researched and has a strong storyline with great characters and backstories throughout.
This is definitely a novel that will stay with me for a long time.

This story is split between two time periods and centring around two main characters, Madame Burova herself and Billie.

The 1970s timeline introduces us to a younger Imelda Burova as she takes over the family Tarot and Clairvoyant booth on Brighton seafront and joins the team at nearby Larkins Holiday Park on a part-time basis.

While the modern day timeline follows Billie who has recently lost her father and is confronted with new information which shakes her very existence. She begins an investigation into her past which takes her to Brighton and reunites us with an older Madame Burova and friends to solve the mystery.

I loved the shifts in timeframe, which were seamlessly done, and seeing how the characters had grown and changed from the young people they used to be. The supernatural/psychic elements were also really nicely incorporated and not too over-the-top.

As well as Imelda and Billie (who I both loved), Ruth Hogan also introduces us to an array of fascinating background characters, from Imelda’s quirky and determined mother, Shunty-Mae, to dashing Wall of Rider, Cillian, and sweet piano player Henry.

Such a lovely, nostalgic novel – perfect to read on a cosy evening!

This was a very simple and sweet story, very undemanding and easy to follow. I guessed who Billie's parents were quite early on so had no fervent interest in following the story line but as I say it was very easy to read and so decided to finish. This is a little more saccharine that I would normally read but was interested in the Tarot / Romany connection (and I live in Brighton so always like a book set in my home town).
I'm sure there is a very good Tarot novel out there waiting to be written, but not sure this was it. (and Ruth Ware's wasn't either!)