JO LAMBERT

BLURB

The fun and games continue as Pann Haggerty travels around America with her ‘average’ Joe on their way to Las Vegas.  This time, Joe thinks he’s the one in charge, and able to handle his beloved quirky English rose.

Apparently not.  Surprises, secrets and wedding bells are in store.  Has Pann given Joe the answer to his big question? Read on in the second MisAdventure of Pann Haggerty.

Laugh at Pann’s antics, thrill to the romance, indulge in copious mugs of tea and try out the delicious recipes! Above all…enjoy.

EXCERPT ONE

“You know, Pann, this hand would look so much nicer with…”

“Don’t go down that route, Joe,” Pann scolded him. “I said I would give you an answer when I knew what it was. Why, are you feeling insecure, Joe?”

The waitress came back, pouring Joe his thick, syrup-like coffee and placing a tall frosted glass of pink milkshake, topped with whipped cream and a fresh strawberry, on the table.

Pann chuckled. What was this, a drink or dessert?

“Yes, I am,” Joe replied eventually, after taking a sip from his mug. “You are the only woman I’ve asked to marry me, and you won’t give me a definite yes or no. It feels like I’m being led around by the short and curlies.”

“Joe,” Pann admonished through gritted teeth. He sounded rather like her, and one certainly did not mention pubic hair in a dining establishment.

“Well what do you expect, Pann? I love you, and you say you love me. I can’t understand why you are dragging this on.”

“Dragging this on?” Her lips thinned with annoyance. “Joel. We are at a diner surrounded by others eating. This isn’t really the place to have this conversation.” She was trying to no avail to keep her voice calm.

“Shall we go back to the van and talk there?” Joe suggested. “I’ll make tea?”

“Sounds better than shivering in the sunshine, I guess.”

As they walked toward the van, Joe placed his arm around her shoulders. Instinctively she snuggled into his warmth, breathing in his fragrant masculine scent.  Pann placed her arm around his waist, and on impulse, her hand covered his jean clad bottom.  As she squeezed it, Pann smiled an impish grin.

“Wrong pocket, Pann.”

“I beg your pardon?” She tilted her head back to look at Joe.

“If you are after my wallet, it’s in the other pocket,” Joe quipped.

 

EXCERPT TWO

Pandora Haggerty, sorry…Harper sat in the back of the ambulance in a wheelchair all forlorn and feeling decidedly sorry for herself. Her plastered right leg was elevated, and despite Joe’s hand resting on hers comforting her, Pann’s spirits were low. She was jostled several times, wincing as the vehicle rode over several mountains in the road. Perhaps the pain medication was wearing off. Avoiding looking out the window, Pann kept her gaze on Joe’s steadfast one and the gleaming rings of gold that adorned her left hand. Beside her on the floor lay several packages, and from what she could make out, there was a Zimmer frame ready to be constructed.

“A zimmer frame, my arse,” Pann grumbled.

“What was that, darlin’?”

“Just talking out loud,” she murmured.

“Are you in any pain, honey?”

Pann shook her head. “Actually I’m starting to feel like a total prat,” she told him bluntly. “I cannot believe I managed to break my sodding ankle, and now I’m totally reliant on someone else to help me do everything. And I am not using a sodding Zimmer frame. What do they think I am, an elderly geriatric?” Then, turning her head…she noticed a chair behind her.

“That’s not a commode is it?” She asked incredulously in a high squeak. Joe nodded.

“You have to be taking the royal piss,” she exclaimed.

“No, that’s what the commode is for. So that you can—” Joe’s voice broke off.

“No chuffing way am I using a commode.”

“The doctor said you had to stay off that leg. This way you can use the toilet by simply lifting yourself from one chair to another,” he said soothingly.

Pann’s temper finally got the better of her. Humiliation, frustration and that nagging ache from her leg took over her usually sane-ish temperament. She squeezed Joe’s hand digging her nails in, almost breaking the skin. At this point, she really didn’t care if she hurt him or not. She was hurting. Why couldn’t he sympathize? It really wasn’t fair.

Pann sat complacently as Joe wheeled her into the now widened doorway of their motorhome. A strange smell assailed her nostrils. What on earth…could she smell?

“There’s a cat in here,” Pann announced, her eyes darting around the kitchen area. It had been widened for accessibility. As Joe closed the door, she caught a glimpse of a tray.

“What makes you think that?” Joe murmured, putting the brake on. He busied himself by putting the kettle on and preparing a drink for them.

“The litter tray behind me, and the two bowls on a mat just over there,” Pann pointed out. “You do know I still have a cat back in England, even if it is living with Mum now.” She sniffed again, wafting her hand in front of her nose. Several pots of fragrant violets lined the middle of the dining table. She hoped Joe had secured them with Velcro strips.

“Interesting and beautiful flowers, but no matter how many pots of violets you use, there is no cure for the niff of a farting feline,” she told him with a grin, using as many English terms as she could fit in. It was ridiculous, but in a way Joe had diffused her temper by diverting her attention onto something else. “So where is it?”

Joe put two steaming mugs on the table, fetched a plate of digestive biscuits and sat down next to her on the seat.

“Look up,” he suggested.

Pann’s head tilted back. On what had been her bed, two white fluffy paws and a nose with two black splotches were all she could see. All those awful feel sorry for herself feelings disappeared. Joe handed her the tea mug.

“So how did we end up with whats-his-face up there?”

“I have no idea. I picked up the van yesterday after the refit, and well, there he was,” Joe explained.

“He?”

Joe nodded. “I took him to the vet with every intention of handing him to a rescue center, but, I don’t know. There was something about him. It turns out he is a pedigree Ragdoll.”

Pann melted. “The ones that go limp in your arms. They are so soft and fluffy…Oh, Joe. Look at the splotches on his cute little nosey. Bloody hell. Is that the cat?” Her nose wrinkled. “Oh God, that’s foul,” she breathed.

“There is nothing wrong with that cat’s stomach. Apparently, some cats are prone to gas and this is one of them I’m afraid.” Joe chuckled. “So are we gonna keep him? I had him vaccinated, micro chipped and everything.”

“What have you called him?”

“I thought I’d let you name him,” Joe replied with a smile. “It’s taken you out of your bad mood hasn’t it?”

“Yes, you rat, it has.” Pann couldn’t take her eyes off the two fluffy paws and now emerging face over the edge of what had been her bed. “I’m still not using that commode, you know.”

 

BUY LINKS:

SECRET CRAVINGS PUBLISHING

http://store.sweetcravingspublishing.com/index.php?main_page=book_info&cPath=4&products_id=266&zenid=1jvq589pqg3v84sb9qe4ojnes6

AMAZON

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Viva-Pann-Vegas-Misadventures-Haggerty-ebook/dp/B00VDODDHE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428300850&sr=8-1&keywords=viva+pann+vegas

http://www.amazon.com/Viva-Pann-Vegas-Misadventures-Haggerty-ebook/dp/B00VDODDHE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428300909&sr=8-1&keywords=viva+Pann+Vegas

BARNES & NOBLE

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/viva-pann-vegas-amanda-ward/1121645620?ean=2940151638548

ALL ROMANCE

https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-vivapannvegas-1769243-177.html

SMASHWORDS

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/531723

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amanda Ward lives in Bedfordshire, England with her husband, three children and two insane cats. The expression ‘What you see is what you get’, sums her up perfectly. She is the author of the novel Without Saying A Word with Books To Go Now and The MisAdventures of Pann Haggerty with Secret Cravings Publishing.  She is a member of the Romance Novelists Association (RNA).  There is always some moment waiting around the corner to be written into a novel. Her interests include a passion for history and the royal families of Europe, romance novels, cooking, and science fiction including Doctor Who.  Of course not forgetting the great and wonderful Doris Day musicals and English costume dramas. A perfect afternoon for Amanda would be a pot of tea, plenty of biscuits with a Doris Day film on the telly. Shared with great friends and her amazingly tolerant mother in law.

Find out more about Amanda and her manic life at www.amandajward.weebly.com

Contact Links:

AMANDA WARDREFRESHINGLY ROMANTIC; QUINTESSENTIALLY QUIRKY!! – WELCOME

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/manda.j.ward

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/Augustmum

Blog:

http://kooks-kooksnook.blogspot.co.uk/

Google+

https://plus.google.com/u/0/+MandaWard71/posts

Email

mrsajward@hotmail.com

Today I’m really pleased to be able to introduce Laura Huntley who joins me for Tea and Talk at Sally Lunn’s to talk about her new YA novel Black Eyed Boy.

Laura welcome and now we’re settled comfortably can I first ask you to tell us a bit about yourself, where you live, family stuff, hobbies

I am a biased mother of three superstar children and I live in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. As well as writing, I run a writing group at the local library, volunteer my time to help put together a community festival and I make things to sell at craft fairs, mostly cushions, hair accessories and jewellery. I enjoy reading, Tudor history, horror films and I have a thing for high heel shoes.

What made you want to write and what was your route to publication?

I have always been interested in writing, for as long as I can remember. I was an avid reader as a child and I knew that was something I wanted for myself – a book with my name on the cover. At the age of nine, I wrote a fantasy novella, ‘The Odyssey’. I remember feeling tremendously proud of myself. I started taking writing seriously a few years ago and I was extremely fortunate to have several pieces of work accepted for publication almost immediately. Seeing my flash-fiction, short stories and poems within the pages of many anthologies spurred me on to finally achieve my lifelong dream: my first novel.

Black Eyed Boy was written with a young adult audience in mind as it revolves around a teenage character, Emily. It is a story about love, coming of age and deep, dark secrets.

Here is the blurb:

Emily is fifteen. She feels like a ghost in her own home as her parents seem increasingly lost in their own worlds, and only has her best friend, Billy, for company.  Then Emily meets Dylan, the mysterious and gorgeous new stranger in town. With his unusual eyes and irresistible charm, she is soon smitten. But with Billy’s growing jealousy and a series of devastating family tragedies, can they last? Should they?  Dylan is hiding a powerful secret; a secret that could change Emily’s life forever.

Which authors do you enjoy reading?

I do appreciate a good vampire. Dracula by Bram Stoker is my most favourite book of all. With that in mind, I am a huge fan of Anne Rice and her vampire chronicles, the research and thought that seems to go into each sentence is astounding.

If given the opportunity, is there any other genre you would like to write?

This is a very interesting question as I started out as a horror writer. Despite the fact that Black Eyed Boy is a romance, that is still how I view myself. Normally, the characters in my stories are vampires, zombies and witches. Yet, I seem to have stumbled, rather accidentally, into romance writing. I would like to, perhaps, combine genres more. For example, horror and historical. That would be just my cup of tea, actually.

If you could invite four famous people to dinner who would they be and why?

What a fun thought! I would have to invite Johnny Depp. It would be rude not to, I have had a crush on him for the longest time. Smokey Robinson (in the hope that he would sing to me), his voice gives me goose-bumps. Anne Rice, certainly, though I wonder if we would eventually bore our other guests as I am certain that we could discuss vampires all night long. To inject some fun, I would invite Amy Poehler, a very funny woman / actress / comedian.

What advice do you have for budding authors?

Go for it! Write down all your ideas, it is astounding how quickly you can forget things if you don’t. I would also say that you should try not to take rejections too personally. Just because your work wasn’t quite right for that person, it doesn’t mean that the next person won’t see your potential. Pick yourself up. Dust yourself off. Keep trying, you never know what might be around the corner.

Laura, thank you for joining me and good luck with the book.

Thank you so much for having me over, Jo.  I really have enjoyed myself.

For links to Black Eyed Boy and Laura’s other social media, please see below:

Links:

Buy Black Eyed Boy: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Eyed-Boy-Laura-Huntley-ebook/dp/B00V213GHK/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Twitter: https://twitter.com/laurahuntley

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraHuntleyWriter

Online Launch Party: https://www.facebook.com/LauraHuntleyWriter

Publisher: http://crookedcatpublishing.com/item/laura-huntley/

 

Author Bio:

Laura has written since childhood, her head has always been constantly filled with story ideas.

Living in Sheffield with her partner and three children, she is a huge fan of the charming and picturesque coastal town of Whitby, a jewel of North Yorkshire.

She runs a writing group at her local library, encouraging like-minded scribblers to put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard.

Laura’s short stories, flash-fiction and poetry have been widely published in many anthologies. Black Eyed Boy is her first novel. Currently she is writing the sequel, Green Eyed Girl. Emily and Dylan will return.

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CRASHING INTO LOVE

BY

MELISSA FOSTER

Only one woman could hurt ultra-alpha bad boy Jake Braden.

Only one woman can heal him.

Fiona Steele has arrived…

SYNOPSIS

Fiona Steele has a great career, strong friendships, and a loving family. To an outsider, her life appears happy and fulfilling. But the one thing that’s missing is true love, and the only man Fiona wants is the one she can’t have, sinfully handsome and seductively intense Jake Braden—the man whose heart she broke, which she has regretted ever since.

As an LA stuntman, Jake Braden’s at the top of his game. He’s hired for all the best movies, hooks up with the hottest women, and lives an unencumbered lifestyle where his needs come first—and where he doesn’t have to examine his life too closely. Except when he visits his family in his close-knit hometown of Trusty, Colorado, where he spends his time avoiding Fiona—the only woman who knows who he really is.

When Fiona’s best friend is hired to act in Jake’s movie, Fiona jumps at the chance to try to win him back. There’s no denying the white-hot attraction burning between them. With every encounter, Fiona hopes Jake can’t resist falling back into the love they once shared. But her well-orchestrated rendezvous doesn’t go over well with the brooding heartthrob. Living in the fast lane is perfect for a guy who’s buried his emotions so damn deep he’s not sure he can remember how to feel—and he’s not sure he ever wants to.

MY REVIEW

Fiona Steele  and Jake Braden were high school lovers. Fiona left him and moved on and Jake, now a movie stuntman who lives in LA, has never really recovered or trusted any woman since. He has a playboy lifestyle; his mansion is a 24/7 open house and he is never short of a woman in his bed.

A successful geologist, Fiona has returned to her home town where she knows Jake will be attending a family wedding. She has always regretted the break up, influenced by family issues and her mother. She realises he is the only man she really ever loved and she wants him back. Aided and abetted by friends she sets out to deliberately cross his path.

Although when they meet Jake finds he is still seriously attracted to Fiona, he remembers how painfully it ended all those years ago and he’s very cool towards her. Fiona, however, is determined to make him realise she is sorry and wants him back in her life. When they do eventually get together, however, the tables are turned as Fiona finds herself having to deal with the glitz and glamour of his movie lifestyle and the women who surround him. Women who appear to think although he is with her, he is still fair game.

Melissa Foster has written a hugely enjoyable romantic and passionate love story which shows no matter how far people drift apart, if they are meant to be together, it will happen. Dialogue, description, chemistry between the two lovers is all spot on. A great five star read which will keep you hooked all the way to the last page.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review

Melissa Foster is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling and award-winning author. She writes contemporary romance, new adult, contemporary women’s fiction, suspense, and historical fiction with emotionally compelling characters that stay with you long after you turn the last page. Her books have been recommended by USA Today’s book blog, Hagerstown Magazine, The Patriot, and several other print venues. She is the founder of the  World Literary Café and Fostering Success. When she’s not writing, Melissa helps authors navigate the publishing industry through her author training programs on  Fostering Success. Melissa has been published in Calgary’s Child Magazine, the Huffington Post, and Women Business Owners magazine.

Melissa hosts an annual Aspiring Authors contest for children and has painted and donated several murals to The Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, DC. Melissa lives in Maryland with her family.

Visit Melissa on social media. Melissa enjoys discussing her books with book clubs and reader groups, and welcomes an invitation to your event.

Authors Links:

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Pinterest

Goodreads

Sign up for Melissa’s newsletter to stay up to date with releases and giveaways

http://www.melissafoster.com/newsletter/

BUY LINKS

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ibooks

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For a chance to win one of three e-book copies of the previous book in the series DREAMING OF LOVE click on the link below:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4be0301741/?

 

After being made redundant from a seemingly secure job Jolene Carr takes a two week break in the sun. On the first day she meets Raquel, another hotel guest. Little does she realise how this apparently innocent acquaintance will lead to terrible and lasting consequences. After a frightening incident she hits a conspiracy of silence from the locals and over the rest of the holiday she feels herself slipping into a vortex of fear. Back home, the nightmare continues and she realises that Raquel is stalking her. Her hippie mother and her partner Mark tell her she is imagining it all. All certainties, even about relationships, become fluid and treacherous as her past begins to unravel. If it wasn’t for Rob, her ex-lover who Jolene thinks has his own agenda, she would be left to cope on her own. How much fear and betrayal can one person take?

MY REVIEW

Jolene has agreed with her partner Mark, who is a nurse, that she will take their scheduled holiday to Sri Lanka on her own as pressure of work means he cannot make the trip. On arrival she meets the exotic Zara who persuades her to visit a beach away from the hotel, only to abandon her and steal her purse and passport before disappearing.  Although befriended and helped by Seneka, who works at the hotel, there are aspects of him which cause Jolene to wonder whether he is really a friend or somehow connected to Zara. For the two weeks she remains on the island she is convinced Zara is still there shadowing her every movement.

When she returns home to Mark, strange things start to happen and she is convinced Zara is stalking her and intent on harm. Despite several unpleasant confrontations friends seem to find logical excuses for what is happening to her so Jolene enlists the help of ex-lover Rob to discover who Zara really is and what is motivating her behaviour.

This book pulled me in right from the start not only because of the story but also because of the author’s ability to create great atmosphere –  not only those tense and sometimes scary moments Jolene was going through but also in the detailed description of the world around her. I tend to live with a red hot Kindle – I’m always reading and if I hit descriptive overload I very often skim pages.  Here it was beautifully used to enhance the story and the characters  to give a thoroughly enjoyable and gripping five star read.

I would like to thank the author for a free e-copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review.

AUTHOR BIO

Amanda Sington Williams’ first novel, The Eloquence of Desire was published by Sparkling Books in 2010 and has been translated into Turkish. She won an award for this novel in 2007 from the Royal Literary Fund. Since 2006 when she first started writing she has had many short stories published, including: Growing Pains by Bridgehouse Publishing, A Mother’s Love by Indigo Mosaic, Two Orchids by Sentinel Literary Quarterly. Unseasonable Weather by Dead Ink Press, The Woman at Number Six by Writing Raw, and many more.

Her second novel, Just Two Weeks is a psychological suspense and won the IPR Agents Pick in 2013.

website: www.amandasingtonwilliams.co.uk

blog: http://singtonwilliams.wordpress.com

Twitter https://twitter.com/SingtonWilliams

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/amandainbrighton?fref=ts

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amanda-Sington-Williams-writer/298320619836

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3526510.Amanda_Sington_Williams

 

GIVEAWAY:

For a chance to win one of two e-book copies of Just Two Weeks please click on the link below

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4be0301732/?

BUY LINKS

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

GOODREADS

HIVE

OYSTER BOOKS

The Copia.com

B&N

CIANDO.COM

FOYLES

WATERSTONES

Dragons, knights and a boy who slips through a tear in the fabric of the universe into a fantasy medieval  world …

Gavin is an ordinary boy with problems like everyone else, when he finds himself in an extraordinary situation and facing the fight of his life.  People are calling him Gawain and sending him on a medieval quest.  How has he found himself on a horse when he has never ridden one before? How come he has a sword in his hand and terrifying creatures bearing down upon him? He seems to have slipped through into another universe. But can he win the battle of Good against Evil, and can he save the land of Unor   ̶   and more importantly, can he save himself?

MY REVIEW

Gavin lives alone with his mother, his father having left the family home.  He is daily at the mercy of school bullies and has only one true friend: Roly.  One night as he lies awake in bed the clock strikes midnight something draws him to the bedroom window.  Climbing out he finds himself in a time slip, taken to a land of adventure with knights and dragons where he wears armour, wields a sword and everyone calls him Gawain. This pattern follows on subsequent nights and he becomes involved in a quest to save the land of Unor from the evil that stalks the land. A quest only he can achieve.

This book has everything; adventure, magic, heart stopping moments –  a lovely  story beautifully woven. Although a children’s novel I found it a very enjoyable and entertaining read.

For a chance to win a copy click on the rafflecopter link at the bottom of this review,

I would like to thank the author for providing a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Julia Ibbotson is an author and academic, and lives in the middle of the English countryside in a renovated Victorian rectory with her husband, an orchard, a kitchen garden and far too many moles. Her four children are now grown up and she has four grandchildren. She was a school teacher for many years, teaching English and Drama, and trying to get kids to read lots and to write stories. She especially enjoyed reading out to her classes books that she loved herself. Then she became a senior university lecturer, researcher and writer. She loves travelling, choral singing, walking, sailing and swimming.

Author links

Webpage   www.juliaibbotsonauthor.com

Facebook   JuliaIbbotson author

Twitter   @JuliaIbbotson

Pinterest page:

http://pinterest.com/juliai1/

Goodreads author page:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6017965.Julia_Ibbotson

BUY LINKS

 

Available from Amazon (paperback and ebook editions) at           http://www.amazon.co.uk/S-C-R-S-Julia-Ibbotson-ebook/dp/B00PFUCGKW/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416342823&sr=1-1&keywords=julia+Ibbotson

 

GIVEAWAY INFO

The giveaway on this tour is 2 copies of the book. International winners will receive an ecopy and UK winners a paperback copy. Please use either the rafflecopter code below

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4be0301730/

 

As I’m psyching myself up to write the blurb for the back cover on my latest book – something which is the shortest but for me probably one of the worst parts of the writing process – I thought I would take a trip back down memory lane to where it all began.

When Tomorrow Comes was my very first novel. Published in 2010 it was the start of what became known as The Behind Blue Eyes trilogy set in West Somerset in the fictional village of Meridan Cross.  My childhood had been spent growing up in rural England therefore it seemed to be a good focal point to build a story around and also to follow the advice ‘write about what you know’. I was amazed at how the memories came back so clearly and enabled me to weave the characters into this beautiful rural backdrop. I based the location on where I currently live, where the village sits on the slope of a hill under a large sprawling wood. Road, rail and river run through the valley towards Bath, although in the fictional version  they run out towards the Somerset Levels.

The book  follows the lives of four very different girls – Ella, Jenny, Issy and Rachel, all friends growing up in the late 1960s.  It’s all about falling in and out of love, fashion and, of course, the music.

Most of my writing has a musical influence and that particular decade was awash  with great songs to use for inspiration while writing.  There are some good compilations available on DVD which accompanied me on my writing journey.  Central to the story was a club, The Mill and I got the feel for creating that whole environment and its atmosphere through the music.  However one of the most important tracks during my writing journey was from The Who’s 1971 Who’s Next album.  Behind Blue Eyes although written from a male perspective seemed to be the definitive song for Melissa Carpenter,  a woman pivotal to the story and it became the inspiration for the name of the trilogy.  Mel is the mother of the book’s central character Ella. An attractive, fashionable woman with striking blue eyes her arrival brings a touch of glamour to the provincial West Country town of Abbotsbridge.

As a young widow Mel mysteriously disappeared leaving Ella and her brother Nick,  to be raised by both sets of grandparents.  Now eleven years later she is back with a new husband in tow.  Her unexpected arrival has nothing to do reconciliation it is more about safeguarding her inheritance now her father, wealthy farmer Richard Evas,  is about to remarry. No shrinking violet, Mel immediately sets about interfering in everyone’s lives.  She takes over Ella’s life with disastrous consequences, disapproves of Nick’s choice of fiancée and stirs up the other women members of the Rotary Inner Wheel. And as if this isn’t bad enough, it automatically sets Faye Benedict on a mission to make sure her son Matt stays as far apart as possible from Ella.

She is the woman everyone loves to hate.  A totally self-absorbed individual, even the man she plans to leave her husband for is a means to an end in her bid for social advancement within the town.  While others see her as a vain spiteful woman – someone most people cross the street to avoid – she considers herself much smarter than all the other females around her.  In her eyes she is one of life’s winners; someone who is bold enough to take what she wants. Fortunately she doesn’t always get her own way  and as we reach the end of  book 3 The Ghost of You and Me  there are a few unpleasant surprises in store for her.

I followed the trilogy with two sequels: Between Today and Yesterday and The Other Side of Morning.  Both these novels had Cruella Devilles wreaking havoc with their own brand of unpleasantness.  I guess this controversial character has become a ‘must have’ for all my novels and specifically she has to be female.  In The Other Side of Morning I attempted to write a male equivalent but it simply did not work.  For me the female of the species is definitely deadlier than the male!

My current WIP although a completely new story has yet another scheming female there to cause chaos and stir up trouble.  However since my trilogy days my bad girls do things in a much more subtle way than Mel Carpenter ever did.

SYNOPSIS FOR WHEN TOMORROW COMES

1967: When eighteen-year-old Ella Kendrick moves to the Somerset town of Abbotsbridge to live with her mother Melissa and stepfather Liam she is looking forward to getting to know someone who has been absent from her life for eleven years.  Ella is intrigued by this glamorous, fashionable woman and hopes she holds the key to many unanswered questions about her childhood.   However, living in the Carpenter household does not turn out to be the idyllic experience Mel has promised her daughter.  Scheming and manipulative she has specific plans for Ella.  Plans which do not include boyfriend Niall O’Farrell left behind in the village where she grew up with her grandparents, or the university place she hopes for.

After Ella loses Niall to her best friend and her career aspirations have been trimmed to a college course, ambitious Mel puts her main plan into action – finding her daughter a wealthy boyfriend.  In doing this, she is looking for a marriage which will give her the right connections and help her own social advancement in the town.

But Mel’s plan stalls when on a cold January evening, local nightclub owner’s son Matt Benedict unexpectedly walks into Ella’s life.

Ella knows she will have to fight to stay with Matt, branded as most unsuitable by her mother; but it is not just Mel she is up against.  Matt’s mother Faye has her own reasons for parting them, as does Andy Macayne, the rich, self-indulgent young man Mel hopes her daughter will eventually marry.

WHEN TOMORROW COMES is the first book in the Behind Blue Eyes Trilogy.  Ella and Matt’s journey is about to begin………

Click on the Amazon button  below for more detail.

Tea and Talk  at Sally Lunn’s is usually all about chat over cakes and tea (or coffee).  Today, however, I’m doing something completely different.  It’s a shout out for Lynda Renham.  Lynda is not  only one of my author friends she is a great RomCom writer with a new book out TODAY.  Fudge Berries and Frogs Knickers is out today on e-book and will be available in paperback from 14th February.

 Want to know more?

Poppy Wellesley is rich. In fact Poppy Wellesley is very rich, so when her fortunes change from riches to rags Poppy has to start a whole new life. Put yourself in her Guccis as she swaps her penthouse apartment for a run-down houseboat on Regent’s Canal. Meet her dippy friend Chelsea, the infamous Jack Diamond (see The Dog’s Bollocks) and her hunky boat neighbour, Taylor. Will Poppy hold on to her millionaire fiancé or will Pug-face Pandora steal him from her? Can she avoid the advances from Balls (Lord Balthazar Wyndham-Price) or does she find true love on the canal? Fudge Berries and Frogs’ Knickers is a romantic comedy roller coaster ride that will put a smile on your face and a cheer in your heart.

Amazon UK Link for Fudge Berries and Frog’s Knickers:http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00SERPICQ

 

Lynda Renham is famous for her romantic comedy novels. She has been called A Comedian in a Book, Chicklit Royalty and A Comic Genius. Her writing style has been likened to Sophie Kinsella but is refreshingly down to earth with characters that become your friends. Lynda is a prolific writer, blogger and when not writing can usually be found wasting her time on Facebook.

She lives in Oxfordshire with her second husband and cat.

Also by Lynda:

 

Links: www.renham.co.uk and on Twitter: @lyndarenham’

 

 

SYNOPSIS

Drew Nelson did not plan to talk with anyone that morning. He did not plan to make a new friend. He certainly did not plan to fall in love. He resisted all of Amy’s attempts to draw him out− at the hotel, at the airport, on the airplane− giving hurried responses and burying his face in a pile of papers. It was only when the flight attendant offered coffee, and a muscle in Amy’s back twitched as she reached for it, and the cup tipped, and the hot liquid puddled in Drew’s lap that they began to talk.  Earlier in the year, each had lost a spouse of over thirty years. Drew’s wife had died of a brain tumor, Amy’s husband when his small airplane nose-dived to earth, the engine at full throttle − an accident, it was ruled. They live in the same city. Both have grandchildren. They are about the same age. Consciously, or not, they both are looking to love again.  But relationships do not exist in vacuums. Drew is wealthy, and Amy is middle class. Amy is “new” in town – she and her husband moved to Charleston twenty-five years ago – while Drew’s family has lived there for three centuries. Drew lives below Broad, a code word for high society, old families, power, and money. Amy’s home is across the river. Class warfare may be less violent than it was in the past, but when Drew invites Amy to the St Cecelia Ball, battle lines are drawn. In a city in which ancestry is important, the ball’s membership is passed from father to son, and only those from the oldest families attend. Family, friends, co-workers all weigh in on their relationship and choose sides. Allies are found in unexpected places. Opposition comes from among those who were thought to be friends. Though they are gone, even their spouses − through things they have done and things they have said − wield influence in the conflict that follows. Amy begins to suspect that Drew is one of them, the rich snobs who despise her, while Drew concludes that Amy neither trusts him nor cares for him. As each questions the other’s motives, their feelings for each other are tested, and Drew and Amy are challenged to consider if they truly want to fall in love again.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR – DAVID BURNETT

I live in Columbia South Carolina, with my wife and our blue-eyed cat, Bonnie. I enjoy traveling, photography, baking bread, and the Carolina beaches.

We have traveled widely in the United States and the United Kingdom. During one trip to Scotland, we visited Crathes Castle, the ancestral home of the Burnett family near Aberdeen.

My photographic subjects have been as varied as prehistoric ruins on the islands of Scotland, star trails, sea gulls, and a Native American powwow.

I went to school for longer than I want to admit, and I have graduate degrees in psychology and education. I was formerly director of research for our state education department.

We have two daughters and three grandchildren. To Fall in Love Again is my third novel.

MY REVIEW

It’s great to be reminded that you don’t have to be young to fall in love.  I warmed to Drew and Amy’s characters immediately.  Coming from different backgrounds and both having grown up families, it was obvious the course of true love was never going to run smoothly.

I was caught up with this story from the moment I started reading.   Beautifully written as it progressed you were able view events from both Drew and Amy’s perspectives – and experience all their highs and lows.   A great supporting cast too – I particularly disliked Barb, immature and vindictive with absolutely no redeeming features.

Drew is a kind, honest and caring man.  He isn’t worried  about their differences.  His family have accepted Amy and she makes him happy, that is all that matters to him.

I was amazed at Amy’s strength as she coped with some of the situations she found herself in.  There were so many negatives in her life: a dead husband whose will showed exactly the kind of rat she had been married to; so-called friends who had kept the truth hidden from her for years; a disapproving older daughter who was almost bullying at times and, of course, Barb the office bitch.  And as if this wasn’t enough, there were those acquaintances of Drew’s she met at the St Cecelia Ball who were keen to remind her she was an interloper who had no place in their world.

Things start to go wrong when a series of unfortunate incidents involving Drew add to Amy’s troubles. She begins to question his sincerity.  From the way she has started behaving Drew is also beginning to have his suspicions about her motives. Is her interest in him or his money? The situation comes to a head and the relationship ends.  They go back to their old lives, Amy angry, Drew hurt.  But is it really over or is there a possibility they can by some miracle fall in love again?

This was a complete departure from my normal choice of book but I would definitely like to read more from David Burnett.  Thank you! A brilliant five star experience…

I would like to thank the author for providing a free e-copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Links for David Burnett

BUY LINKS

 

AMAZON UK

 

AMAZON US

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS FOR DAVID

http://davidburnett.yolasite.com

http://davidburnettsbooks.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/David-Burnett-Author/447290468681693?ref=hl

 

If you would like the chance to win a copy of To Fall in Love Again click on the Rafflecopter link to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/4be0301728/

 

 

Yes, I’m back at Sally Lunn’s again.  I’ve not been here for some time but have re-opened this feature to talk to author Sheryl Browne.

First huge congratulations at being signed up by Choc Lit, you must be really excited.  Can you tell us how that came about?

Hi Jo and thank you so much! Thanks also for inviting me to partake of tea and essential brain food: cupcakes! After a trying year, which saw my partner diagnosed with prostate cancer (I mention this, because I ended up having to apologise all over the place for my constant state of befuddlement. I should also mention that his prognosis is extremely good after early diagnosis – and that he is now very positive, agreeing to share his progress with Prostate Cancer UK in hopes of encouraging other men to seek help early), I am over the moon about being signed by Choc Lit for my upcoming novel, currently titled The Rest of My Life. This development is all the more special because Choc Lit read the book on recommendation of someone, someone who restored my faith at a time when it was seriously wavering. Excitingly, the news was announced first in … The Bookseller! Wow! Little me rubbing shoulders with Burt Reynolds and Julian Clary (form an orderly queue, guys). The link to the Bookseller feature, where you can find out who that lovely someone is, is below. I owe this man a huge debt of gratitude for picking up my book, loving it, and being prepared to say so in the right ears. Having written seriously for fifteen years – yes, FIFTEEN whole years!, mystified agents, and achieved several near misses, this really couldn’t have happened at a better time for me.

http://thebookseller.com/news/choc-lit-signs-browne

When did you first decide you wanted to become a writer?

I think that was about the time I took leave of my senses. Haw, haw! I joke, sort of. Writing has always been my passion, since way back when a kindly English teacher gave me 22/20 for an essay, bless him. However, I started writing novels (as I grandly termed them) as a catharsis, in truth. Struggling with a major life event in my twenties, I just picked up the pencil – an actual pencil then – and started pouring out my feelings. It turned out to be a real antidote, because I found humour in the recollections around that life event.

Can you tell us something about the very first novel you wrote?

You mean my bestselling debut? Um, it didn’t … sell. I think the agent who’d hailed it as such went off in search of Prozac. I’d love to tell you about it but, unfortunately, I eventually tossed it in the bin. I can tell you the title though! It was called Loose Screws! Hmm? Not so sure about that now. However, silver linings, and all that: my book, Warrant for Love – published and currently touring with Hit Lit Pro, was based on that first book. Or rather what I could remember of it, mostly a hunky policeman in a bite-the-buttons-off blue uniform. Ahem. Advice to new writers, never throw away your first manuscript. It might need work but, as your writing grows, you can fix it!

What made you decide to take a Degree in Creative Writing?

I think because I could. I was a young mum (very young and, shortly after my second son’s birth, very single, sadly). Motherhood at a young age is not something I regret but, like many women’s, my other aspirations in life tended to get put on the back burner. As I wrote though, I realised I wanted to be the best I could possibly be. That’s not to say great (I wish), just better. I wanted to stretch myself, if you like, take a look at other aspects of creative writing, including screenwriting and stageplay. Also, I was lacking in confidence, so it really was a huge step enrolling on the MA Course. I had to force myself, but I am so glad that I did.

Has it changed your approach to writing?  If so in what way?

Well, it’s done my self-esteem the world of good, not just passing the MA, but mixing with other students, who simply filled me with awe and were massively supportive of each other. As part of my final project, I wrote one of my books, A Little Bit of Madness, to script for stage. The first scenes were performed at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, my leading man played by Dan Hagley from BBC Radio 4’s, The Archers. He was fabulous. I can’t thank him enough for his inspirational performance. I’m super-pleased to say the first scene has since been published in BCU’s 2014 Anthology, I am therefore I write. That exercise really made me think about superfluous narrative. Overall, the course, sharing my work, getting feedback and seeing how other hugely talented writers might tackle a subject, has opened me up to all sorts of possibilities. It’s definitely helped me to tap my inspiration.

Describe your typical day

Utter madness!

5.45am: try to get up. 6.00am: succeed, possibly.

6.00am: social media, promo, scheduling tweets.

7.30am: make tea for the men (partner and son), because I’m very kind. Rouse dogs, feed, dogs, shower, walk dogs. I’m not always completely successful there (I foster disabled dogs. Here, we have one three-legged dog, one OAP, and one extremely short-sighted dog. Guess which one has the sight problem?).

 

 

9.00am. EAT!! Thereafter, whilst juggling the various household chores, growling at the persistently ringing telephone or callers who dare knock the door, I try to dedicate most of the day to writing and go back to social media in the evening. I must admit I get a bit tired sometimes. If I go quiet, it’s because I’ve fallen off my chair. Blogs and posts I leave until the weekend, unless they are urgent.

What is the craziest thing you’ve ever done?

For charity. Need I say more?

If you were able to invite four guests for dinner who would they be and why would you invite them?

George, Ben and John. I’m taking it you don’t further explanations here either? Then I think I would maybe have Kathy Lette, Australian born uber-talented author, famous for such hilarious books as Foetal Attraction and Mad Cows, or possibly Ruby Wax or Dawn French to shake the guys up a bit.

Sheryl thank you so much for sparing the time to come and chat today  It’s been lovely having you here at Sally Lunn’s and good luck with the new novel The Rest of My Life due to be published soon..

Thank you to all those lovely readers, bloggers and author friends who have supported me. I would have been lost without you. Thanks, too, to my little muse, Snoops!

Heartache, humour, love, loss & betrayal – and a little Ohhhh la la! Sheryl Browne brings you edgy, sexy, poignant fiction. A member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and shortlisted for Innovation in Romantic Fiction, Sheryl has six books published with Safkhet Publishing and has now been signed with Award winning Choc Lit Publishing.

Where heroes are like chocolate – irresistible!

 

Recipes for Disaster – Sexilicious Romantic Comedy combined with Fab, Fun Recipes.

Somebody to Love – Sigh with contentment, scream with frustration. At times you will weep.

Warrant for Love – Three couples in a twisting story that resolves perfectly.

A Little Bit of Madness – White Knight in Blue rescues The Harbour Rest Home.

Learning to Love – Exploring the Fragility of Love, Life and Relationships.

The Edge of Sanity – How far would YOU go to protect your family?

COMING SOON from Choc Lit

The Rest of My Life – Two damaged hearts, a sizzling sexual connection. Can love find a way to bring Adam and Sienna together?

 

Author Links

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Buy | Buy US | Pinterest | Loveahappyending Lifestyle

Safkhet Publishing | Romantic Novelists’ Association

 

 

 

 

I recently joined the Facebook Group British Books whose members talk about their writng and post photos of places in the UK they have used as settings for their novels.  It’s a lovely opportunity for a glimpse into the world of other writers to see what inspires them.  Every novel needs a setting, whether it’s coast, countryside, town or cityscape and what better way to do this than to use places you are familiar with?  Today my post is going to be about one such place, but not only is it a where there’s a who  involved as well..

My first full length commercial novel was set to be just that; one book.  However once the writing got underway the whole thing simply took off.  When Tomorrow Comes finally expanded into Love Lies and Promises and The Ghost of You and Me – a trilogy based in the West Country in the late sixties/early seventies.  The story followed the on-off relationship between star crossed lovers Ella Kendrick and Matt Benedict.  At the start of the story twenty year old Matt, a gifted song writer, was part of a rock band who eventually found fame, taking him away from the provincial town he and Ella had grown up in.

Part of Matt’s gift was in the genes – his father Tad Benedict had been a well-known singer in the 1950s, a pragmatic businessman who had used the money from his success to give him an alternative career once his singing days were over.  As well as owning a string of small hotels he purchased local run down riverside tea gardens and converted them into a club – The Mill,.  This became a social hub where the emerging 1960s youth culture came to drink and dance. So was this something which I conjured up entirely from my imagination?  No, far from it. A venue similar to The Mill did actually exist and the inspiration for Tad was based on the man who ran it.

Keith Johnson, a Bath entrepreneur bought the Weir Tea Rooms in Bathampton on the eastern edge of the city in 1962.  He converted the old riverside building and The Keel Club was born.  At that time the only way the emerging youth culture could listen publicly to music was through live bands.  Playing recorded music was almost unheard of but Keith changed all that. Starting out with the 12 records he had in his possession he extended the collection, playing the latest chart sounds and adding a weekly promotional slot for live bands.

He was said to be the pioneer for shadow dancing, where two girls danced on stage silhouetted behind a  lighted screen.  His dancers also introduced him to a group of Bristol students who were developing some quite innovative lighting techniques which could be used in the club.  Spotted by a man from the ‘Beeb’  they eventually went on to work on  lighting for the BBC’s prime time chart show Top of the Pops.

In 1967 Thin Lizzy played their very first gig at the club, an event which nearly ended in disaster.  Keith’s advertisement for the band’s appearance was picked up by Bath Council’s Watch Committee.  He was contacted and told if Thin Lizzy appeared he risked having his licence revoked.  Why all the fuss?  Because the Committee had it in their heads it was the name of a striptease artist!

Annual membership was £5 a year and at its height of popularity the club had 16,000 members..  This was a totally unique venue, there was nothing like for miles and it pulled in people from all over the West Country.  By the early seventies the generation who had flocked there a decade before had moved on. They were married with mortgages and babies on the way, no longer having either the inclination or disposable income to visit the club. The new up and coming late teenage/twenty somethings had different tastes and demands on their pockets too.  Membership waned and Keith finally closed the club in 1974.  He reopened it shortly afterward as The Skanda  a restaurant offering genuine Scandinavian smorgasbord to its diners.  I followed a similar pathway to this in The Ghost of You and Me where Tad closes The Mill and reopens it as a dinner/dance club called Zefferelli’s.

In 1984 Keith sold out to one of the big breweries who did a complete refurbishment adding it to their Beefeater steak chain.  Today it’s still an eatery only now it goes under the name of The Bathampton Mill.

In 1994 Keith moved into up market bed and breakfast, converting part of his own home to start this new venture. That was when I actually got to meet him.  I was working for an international training college at the time and we were always looking for new local places out of the city to accommodate visitors.  He showed me around we had coffee and he talked about those amazing times when he ran The Keel Club.  Sadly he’s no longer with us but local people who remember him do so with great respect; he lives on in local musical folklore.  He was definitely a visionary; a man ahead of his time and of course I’m indebted to him too because without Keith Johnson there would have been no Tad Benedict.

British Books’ current group topic is Christmas and I guess although I’m not contributing directly to this having a shot of Bathampton Mill in the snow does go someway to embracing the theme!