Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape. There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone. I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha. I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then. When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time. I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.

Novel Kicks Writing Room: Structure

Published October 23, 2019 | By Laura

I am currently preparing for National Novel Writing Month. October is known as Preptober.

This got me thinking about structure and I have come across many variants of a three-act structure.

Take an idea you have and plan the plot using the following as a guide.

Act One:

1. Introduce your character and their world.
2. An event that sets the story in motion.
3. Determine what happens next.

Act Two:

4. Determine the goal that isn’t going to come easily.
5. The game changer.
6. The decision.

Act Three:

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Book Review: Reach For A Star by Kathryn Freeman

Published October 22, 2019 | By Laura

A lovely big welcome back to Kathryn Freeman. She is here today with the blog tour for her latest novel, Reach For a Star.

What if your dreams were so close you could reach out and touch them?
How could anyone resist Michael Tennant, with his hypnotic blue eyes and voice like molten chocolate? Jessie Simmons certainly can’t. But Jessie’s a single mum who can’t sing to save her life – there’s no way she’ll ever cross paths with the star tenor.

At least that’s what she thinks until she’s unexpectedly invited to take part in a new reality TV show. The premise? Professional singers teach hopeless amateurs how to sing. The surprise? Jessie’s partner is none other than Michael Tennant!

As she becomes better acquainted with the man behind the voice, will Jessie find out the hard way that you should never meet your idols? Or will she get more than she bargained for?

Jessie is a single mother of two, works as a pharmacist and knows she is a little tone-deaf (I can relate to that.) This doesn’t hold her back when she is watching the singing star, Michael Tennant on television and having a big crush on him.

When her sons put her forward for a singing competition, she is horrified but even more nervous when she is paired with Michael.

I have quickly got obsessed with Kathryn’s novels so I was so happy to be included in the blog tour for this novel.

I am not sure how Kathryn does it but I would like to know how she manages to get my hooked by the end of the first page every time.

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A Moment With… Farrell Keeling

Published October 21, 2019 | By Laura

Happy Monday all. I’m happy to be welcoming Farrell Keeling to Novel Kicks today. His book, Nathaniel Grey and the Obsidian Crown is the second novel in the Phoenix saga.

It’s been over half a century since the Phoenix rose in the City of Light. Accused of grave crimes against the Obsidian Throne, Nathaniel Grey is cast out of Obsidia and forced to seek refuge with his peoples’ sworn enemies, the Lycans.

With the Szar and Necromancers plotting in the shadows, Nathaniel must mount a swift return to his homeland before war breaks out between the Regals and Lycans.

Whoever bears the Obsidian Crown, shall hold the fate of Horizon in their hands…

Chatting about his journey into self-publishing, it’s over to you, Farrell…

When I first started writing, I never imagined that there would be anything as time-consuming and difficult as my chosen passion. Indeed, even when it came to the day of publishing – after months of editing and finding the right cover to slap over the manuscript – I remained blissfully unaware of what lay around the corner.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

How did I make the decision to go into self-publishing, you might ask? Well, to put it quite simply – through a complete lack of patience. Not to say that lacking patience can necessarily be a bad thing sometimes. Certainly not, when it comes to the seemingly unnavigable mire that is self-publishing.

Like many other aspiring authors, I finished summer with my first, brand spanking new novel, Thorne Grey and the City of Darkness, ready to send out into the world. I bought the latest edition of the ‘Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook’ and started compiling a list of the most relevant agents in my genre. For those determined to go through publishers, I would not discourage it, but I do feel personally that it can’t hurt to have someone experienced within the industry backing your submission.

I sent out a lot of emails – and I mean A LOT – quietly optimistic that I would at least get some feedback. It might not be the desired backing, but at least something that would help improve my manuscript. Around 40% never replied. Of those that did, the vast majority sent back short but polite refusals. However, I was fortunate enough to receive a couple of emails with positive, encouraging feedback.

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A Moment With… Nell Cook

Published October 18, 2019 | By Laura

I’m excited to be welcoming Nell Cook to Novel Kicks today to chat about her novel, A Georgie Up the Ganges.

IT’S CRUNCH TIME AND JENNIFER BARNES MUST SEIZE THE DAY

She’s stumbling through the mid-life crisis from hell…and then she receives a diagnosis that puts her future in jeopardy.

She has two choices. Crumble or follow the call of her heart. She chooses life, and embarks on an adventure trip to India armed with pick-pocket-proof knickers and a shewee.

To add to her woes she must travel with a group of seven strangers.

Among her travelling companions are an upper-class toff with bossy tendencies, and a wisecracking, gorgeous Glaswegian who says he’s in it for the adventure.

During the journey from one end of the Ganges to the other, Jen experiences the magic of the biggest festival on earth; rides the river’s rapids; and glimpses the wilder side of Varanasi.

Wanting pity from no-one, she hides her illness, and during the journey learns she’s not the only one with secrets.

Will opposites attract? Does Jen have the strength to resist the temptation of forbidden fruits? What will she discover about herself and others and, can she master the shewee?

Talking about her start as a writer, without further ado, over to you, Nell.

I’d like to welcome you with a quote from Ernest Hemingway.

“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed”.

Sounds easy doesn’t it? Yes, I thought so too.

Well, now I know why so many people who start writing a book never actually finish it.

The seed was planted six years ago when I wrote a blog about my adventure trip to India. I knew with my series of anecdotes I had a powerful story begging to be told. “I’ll write that book one day” I kept telling myself, and for four years my anecdotes gathered dust on the hard drive of my laptop. Then something happened out of the blue which changed everything.

Two years ago I got the exciting opportunity to help make a pilot television show, which involved pitching the idea of my story as a comedy drama series to a panel of tv experts. Although the pilot wasn’t screened the production company loved my story, and that was the catalyst which compelled me to pick up where I left off.

I stopped telling myself “one day blah, blah, blah” and my mantra became “now is the time”.

So, the spare room in our home became my writing cave, I put aside my obsession with photography and stopped watching television (apart from Game of Thrones of course).

I’ve learned to create and flesh out characters, master dialogue and outline compelling plot and structure. I’ve tested my writing mettle with descriptive prose, subtext and point of view. Crafting beginnings and endings and discovering theme and premise, I’ve found my voice.

I knew of the obvious trials and tribulations before I embarked on my writing journey; finding the time; writer’s block; self-belief; getting published amongst others. But I hadn’t anticipated the challenge of waking up in the dead of night when my Muse decides to burst into activity. Believe me, when that happens you can say goodbye to sleep – you’re not the one in control.

DECISIONS, DECISIONS

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Go Back and Read The Instructions

Published October 18, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Go back and read the instructions.

Your character has invented a time machine. Now it is time to write the instruction manual, including a content page.

For example:

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October: Recent and Upcoming Releases

Published October 17, 2019 | By Laura

Bantam Press

I am excited to be writing about a whole load of new novels being released soon and there are some fantastic sounding titles in my list this week.

Coming out on 29th October is the latest Jack Reacher novel from Lee Child. It’s called Blue Moon.

Two rival criminal gangs are competing for control. They have not counted on Jack Reacher.

He is trained to notice things; like the elderly man sitting near him on the Greyhound bus with an envelope full of money and the other passenger hoping to get rich. He had not counted on Jack Reacher either.

I have to put my hands up and admit that I have not read a Jack Reacher novel but I may have to start as this sounds brilliant.

I saw the movie and didn’t hate it as I know a few people did. Are you a fan of Jack Reacher?

Let me know why and which book I should start with in the comments below.

Headline

From Lee Child to the Queen of crime novels. The latest novel from Martina Cole, No Mercy has been released this week.

This is another author I don’t know a lot about which is strange considering I love my crime novels but my Mum loved her books.

In No Mercy, Diana Davies has been head of the family business since her husband died. She’s a woman in a man’s world but no one would dare mess with her.

Her only son is about to enter the business and even though he a born criminal, this doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have to earn his mother’s trust along with everyone else.

His blind spot is his wife and three children. He has a painful truth to learn.

The Puzzle of You is the latest novel from author, Leah Mercer and is due to be released on 1st November and is a book that sounds totally up my alley.

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Alphabet Story

Published October 17, 2019 | By Laura

Welcome back to another writing exercise.

Today, I wanted to do an alphabet story. This exercise sounds fun but also a challenge.

Write a story but start each sentence with a different letter of the alphabet. In order.

For example…

Albert heard a knock and immediately opened the door.

Beaming at him, Tina stood in the hallway, a bag of groceries in her hand.

‘Come in,’ he said, stepping aside and letting her into the flat.

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NK Chats To… Stephen Clark

Published October 14, 2019 | By Laura

Hi Stephen, thank you for joining me. Can you tell me about your writing day, where you like to write and do you have any writing rituals?

Thanks so much for having me. When it’s time to write, that’s when I hunker down in front of the TV or get on Twitter or remember that I have a wife and kid. Basically, I procrastinate as long as possible until the muse possesses me and compels me to burn the midnight oil in the solitude of my den.

It’s not that I like to write in my den or any place of isolation for that matter. But when I’m in the zone, it’s best to leave me alone. I don’t have any writing rituals per se, but I need to create some, especially when the muse goes MIA.

Your novel is called Hands Up. What is it about?

Hands Up follows three characters from different worlds on are on collision course after a deadly police shooting spins their lives into chaos. Officer Ryan Quinn is on the fast track to detective until he shoots an unarmed black male. Now he embarks on a quest for redemption that forces him to choose between conscience or silence.

Jade Wakefield is an emotionally damaged college student who lives in one of the city’s worst neighbourhoods. She sets out to find the truth and get revenge after learning that there’s more to her brother’s death than the official police account.

While mourning the death of his son, Kelly Randolph returns to his hometown broke and broken to seek forgiveness for abandoning his family 10 years earlier. But when he is thrust into the spotlight as the face of the protest movement, his disavowed criminal past resurfaces and threatens to derail the family’s pursuit of justice.

What’s your writing process like from idea to final draft?

It’s like a sausage factory on fire. It’s not pretty or safe. As Ernest Hemingway said, the first draft of anything is s***. My writing process aims to turn that s***, speck by speck, into gold.

What music would be on a playlist for Hands Up?

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Unexpected Speech

Published October 11, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Unexpected Speech.

Your character is walking along the street when they are called over by a person they have never met before.

Before they know it, they are being led, by this stranger down a narrow corridor, through a door and onto a stage where there is an unusual looking audience.

Your character is asked a question. All eyes are on them.

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Book Extract: One Christmas Star by Mandy Baggot

Published October 10, 2019 | By Laura

I am happy to be welcoming back Mandy Baggot. She is here with the blog tour for her novel, One Christmas Star.

Emily Parker is set to have the worst Christmas ever!

Her flatmate’s moved out, she’s closed her heart to love and she’s been put in charge of the school original Christmas show – with zero musical ability.

Disgraced superstar, Ray Stone is in desperate need of a quick PR turnaround.

Waking up from a drunken stupor to a class of ten-year-olds snapping pics and Emily looking at him was not what he had in mind.

Ray needs Emily’s help to delete the photos, and she needs his with the show.

As they learn to work together they may just open their hearts to more than a second chance…

To celebrate the release of One Christmas Star, Mandy and Aria have shared an extract today.

***** beginning of extract*****

‘Tangfastic?’

Before Emily had a chance to reply, the sharing-size bag of Haribos was pushed under her nose by Dennis Murray, the forty-something teacher of the Year Five class. He shook the plastic and all manner of gum, sugar, sweet and sour flew into Emily’s sinuses in one mammoth rush. She picked out a sweet simply to get the bag away from her nose. Popping it into her mouth, the bitterness hit her taste-buds straight off, contorting her expression. She watched, one eye squinted, as Dennis put five sweets into his mouth at once, double-chin wobbling. He was a walking, talking pick ‘n’ mix addict but still his capacity for sugary sweet treats astounded her. Simon had liked sweets – Maltesers, Minstrels, Mars Bites, all the chocolate. Simon had liked chocolate the way Emily liked cheese…

‘So, what do you think the budget meeting is going to be about this time?’ Dennis asked, nudging Emily’s arm as the other teachers joined them in the main hall used for assemblies, performances, lunch and meetings such as these. ‘Christmas cancelled? No unnecessary expense until we’re back in January?’

‘I don’t know,’ Emily answered. ‘But no matter what it is, I can’t protest.’ She lowered her voice and leant a little into Dennis’s personal space. ‘Susan caught me giving Jayden Jackson help with his project this morning and I bought him a bagel because I know he isn’t getting breakfast at home.’ She wasn’t getting breakfast at home herself, but only because the cupboards always seemed to be bare now Jonah had gone. Plus, really strong coffee almost counted as a meal, didn’t it?

Dennis sucked through his teeth, bits of gum crushed between his canines. ‘A double-whammy.’

‘I know,’ Emily said with a sigh. ‘I only narrowly managed to avoid the proverbial third thing because the Sellotape on the Christmas stars held out just long enough until Susan had closed the door behind her.’ But she knew she was under scrutiny and it made her nervous. She pulled at the sides of her maroon corduroy skirt, shifting her bottom on the too-small chair. Had she picked one of the children’s chairs and not a grown-up one. That was exactly how her luck was right now…

‘Definitely no extra baubles for the Year Six Christmas tree this year then,’ Dennis remarked, chewing on more sweets.

Emily’s phone erupted, tweeting like a bird, from inside her all-colours vintage carpet bag. It had been a bargain. Well, actually it had been quite expensive, but it was a genuine 1950s artifact. And she’d been quite emotional on that particular visit to the antique boutique. Emotion and her love of vintage were a heady mix…

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Book Extract: Magic Under the Mistletoe by Lucy Coleman

Published October 8, 2019 | By Laura

What better treat on a Tuesday than to have Lucy Coleman visit Novel Kicks with the blog tour for her festive novel, Magic Under the Mistletoe.

Christmas and romance are in the air…

It’s December 23rd and while everyone else is rushing home for the holidays, workaholic Leesa Oliver is dreading switching on her out-of-office for the festive season. And it seems her equally driven boss, Cary Anderson, isn’t relishing spending Christmas at his family’s country estate either.

So together, they draft an unexpected Christmas contract: They’ll spend half of the holidays with each other’s families, pretending to be a couple. Leesa knows the insufferably good-looking Cary will make her Christmas more bearable, but what happens after the last of the mince pies have been eaten…?

Leesa signed off on a sensible business agreement, but somewhere, amongst the fairy lights and carols something seems to have changed… It seems there might just be some magic under the mistletoe this Christmas!

Lucy and Aria have shared an extract with us today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

Standing beneath the steady stream of hot water without the overhead shower wetting my hair isn’t easy but it’s so refreshing. By the time I’ve dried, changed my underwear and donned the crease-resistant, long-sleeved top rolled up in my hand luggage, I at least have a bit of my sparkle back. A quick brush of my hair, a squirt of deodorant and then perfume, and I’m done.

Making my way back into the open area of the lounge and scanning around the sea of occupied seats, I look for Cary. His head appears above the crowded masses as he stands to wave at me and I head in his direction. He, too, is looking a little more refreshed, I notice as I sink down very gratefully into the squishy leather seat next to him.

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My Writing Ramblings: September Favourites

Published October 7, 2019 | By Laura

Before we get too far into October, I wanted to share some of my favourites/things I enjoyed from September.

My first favourite is series two of the Netflix show, Mindhunter.

OK so technically this was released in August but as I didn’t do a favourites for last month, I can give it a mention.

Series one, episode one had me totally hooked on this show. I pretty much bingewatched it over a day. I was beyond excited to get into the second series especially when you take into account how series one ended.

This was just as brilliant and amazing as the first and focuses on the Atlanta child murders whilst also continuing some plot points from the first series.

This series was incredible and I can’t wait for series three. It’s well written, has brilliant acting and is just… awesome. End of. If you’ve been wondering whether to give it a go, please do.

My second favourite is an app and it is Layton: Pandora’s box HD for mobile.

I have been a massive fan of the Professor Layton games from when it appeared on the Nintendo DS. I am not a big gamer but I love puzzle games and so this is right up my street.

Although I have played Pandora’s box before, it has been so long, it’s like playing a new game especially as I think they have added some new puzzles. I don’t remember playing them anyway so even if you’re familiar with the game, I think you will get something from this new format.

I was delighted to see it was available on the App Store and I love the fact that I can play it when I have a few minutes without having to carry the DS around.

The book I most enjoyed last month is I Wanted You to Know by Laura Pearson.

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Book Review: Creative Writing Skills: Over 70 Fun Activities For Children by Lexi Rees

Published October 7, 2019 | By Laura

I am pleased to welcome Lexi Rees to Novel Kicks with the blog tour for her non-fiction workbook, Creative Writing Skills which includes over 70 activities to help develop your child’s writing.

Discover the secrets to becoming an amazing author.

Find your creative spark.

Grow your skills and confidence.

Have more fun with your writing.

Packed with top tips, this awesome workbook has everything you need to know about creating colourful characters, perfect plots, dynamite dialogue, and lots more …

I have many ‘how to write’ books and I wish half of them were as fun as this book.

Creative Writing Skills contains exercises, tips from the author and fun illustrations. With it being a workbook, your child can engage with the exercises directly. There are also opportunities to draw as well as writing using prompts.

For me, it’s a really good grounding for your child to begin and further develop writing stories. Also, it will give them an understanding of the writing process which, as someone who is trying to write a book is something that is so important. I really wish I’d had this book as a child.

Topics include looking at characters and building a profile, descriptions, settings, structure (there is a fun rollercoaster diagram which I will be using myself,) themes, genres, voice/POV, dialogue and sparking ideas; everything they will need to develop their stories.

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Book Review: Wrapped Up for Christmas by Katlyn Duncan

Published October 6, 2019 | By Laura

A big hello to Katlyn Duncan and the blog tour for her novel, Wrapped Up For Christmas.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… but not for Angie Martinelli…

Having lost her boyfriend, job, and apartment all in the space of a week, Angie has no choice but to leave California and return to her family in New England.

Determined not to let life weigh her down, Angie finds work at the local mall where she worked as a teenager. After an embarrassing run-in with a handsome stranger, Nick, she’s convinced her luck is about to change.

But Nick has secrets of his own… and as the first flakes of snow begin to fall, Angie can’t help but wonder if she’ll ever find love.

Angie has found herself living back at her parent’s house in an attempt to escape a bad break-up and the loss of her job. Desperate to find work and having no offers in event planning, Angie takes a job as an Information Specialist at her local mall.

The need for this job becomes even more apparent when, at a café, her card is declined. This is where she meets Nick, when he kindly pays for her drink. Embarrassed, she leaves, knowing at least she will never see him again. That’s what she thinks.

One of the things I love most about this time of year are the Christmas stories that begin to appear on bookshelves. I know, I have mentioned this love before. I am Laura and I love Christmas. There, I said it.

I was excited to be reading Wrapped up for Christmas and couldn’t wait to start reading.

This book was so easy to fall into. Angie is a wonderfully open, endearing character. She has disappointments but she is resilient and I find that inspiring.

Nick is the perfect love interest. He is just what you want from a love story and I wanted things to work well for him, especially once you meet his Dad. Nick’s story is probably one a lot of people can relate to around this time of year.

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Pictorial Inspiration

Published October 4, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Pictorial Inspiration.

Write about what this picture inspires….

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Novel Kicks Book Club: Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Published October 2, 2019 | By Laura

Happy October.

October is one of my favourite parts of the year.

Not only is it my birthday month, it’s also Halloween so, for the book club, I wanted to pick something gothic and this one has been on my list for a while.

This month’s book is called, Coraline by Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by Chris Riddell.

Although it’s marketed at 9 -10 year olds on Amazon, for me, it has an interesting premise and is totally suited to the countdown to 31st October. The fact that there is a black cat on the cover had nothing to do with my decision. Cough. Haha.

Here’s a little about the book.

There is something strange about Coraline’s new home. It’s not the mist, or the cat that always seems to be watching her, nor the signs of danger that Miss Spink and Miss Forcible, her new neighbours, read in the tea leaves.

It’s the other house – the one behind the old door in the drawing room. Another mother and father with black-button eyes and papery skin are waiting for Coraline to join them there.

And they want her to stay with them. For ever. She knows that if she ventures through that door, she may never come back.

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Book Review: I Wanted You To Know by Laura Pearson

Published September 29, 2019 | By Laura

It is lovely to welcome back to Laura Pearson and the blog tour for her latest novel, I Wanted You to Know.

Dear Edie, I wanted you to know so many things. I wanted to tell you them in person, as you grew. But it wasn’t to be.

Jess never imagined she’d be navigating single motherhood, let alone while facing breast cancer. A life that should be just beginning is interrupted by worried looks, heavy conversations, and the possibility of leaving her daughter to grow up without her.

Propelled by a ticking clock, Jess knows what she has to do: tell her daughter everything. How to love, how to lose, how to forgive, and, most importantly, how to live when you never know how long you have.

From best-selling author Laura Pearson comes her most devastating book yet. Honest, heart-wrenching, and emotionally raw, I Wanted You To Know is a love letter to life: to all its heartache and beauty, to the people we have and lose, to the memories and moments that define us.

I Wanted You To Know is Laura Pearson’s third novel.

*****

Jess isn’t like other girls her age. Instead of being at university, spending time with her friends and enjoying her youth, she’s facing the fact that her baby daughter will probably grow up without her.

Jess has terminal breast cancer. As she tries to come to terms with her fate, she writes a series of letters to her daughter – to try and be there even when she can’t be. She wants to tell Edie everything and she doesn’t have long to do so.

Oh Laura, you did it to me again. You made me cry. I knew this would happen the moment I started reading and that was just the authors note. I like the fact that it’s a mixture of letters and prose; the style makes it easy to know what’s going on in Jess’s head. I got so invested in this story and have a massive book hangover.

I couldn’t help but feel such empathy and love toward Jess as a character. She felt so real to me.

To be honest, I don’t think there was a completely unlikable character in the whole novel. Everyone has their layers, complexities and flaws. It’s all explored so well.

Aside from what I’ve said already and as normal, I am not saying anything else about what happens to Jess and her loved ones. That is something I suggest you find out for yourself.

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Step Back in Time

Published September 27, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Step Back in Time.

Your character is disillusioned with life.

He or she is going through a marriage break up, the children don’t want to know them and to add insult to injury, they have lost their job.

They are sat drinking and then make a wish to be able to have a do-over.

When they wake up, they are eighteen again. Carry on the story…

Book Review: Four Christmases and a Secret by Zara Stoneley

Published September 27, 2019 | By Laura

Happy publication day to Zara Stoneley. I am happy to be hosting as part of her blog tour for Four Christmases and a Secret.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…

Except for Daisy Christmas means another of Uncle T’s dreaded Christmas parties, complete with Christmas jumper and flashing antlers. And Oliver Cartwright. Gorgeous Oliver Cartwright. Who she hates.

Every year Daisy has to face insufferable Ollie and hear all about how BRILLIANT he is. Whereas Daisy has no job, no man and no idea how to fix things.

This Christmas however Daisy is determined things will be different. There will be no snogging Ollie under the mistletoe like when they were teenagers. No, this year she’ll show Ollie that she’s a Responsible Adult too.

But as the champagne corks pop, and the tinsel sparkles, Uncle T has news of his own to share…and it could change Daisy’s life forever…

At eighteen, Daisy has a plan. She is going to be a vet, have a family and a life that she could be proud of. All would be good.

Even when her best friend, Ollie kisses her at his Uncle’s Christmas Eve party, it doesn’t knock her off her stride.

In the present day, Daisy is over thirty, renting a room in her friend’s house and she is back at Uncle T’s bookshop attending another Christmas Eve party, this time alone with no boyfriend, no home of her own and a dead-end job writing small ads for the local paper. She is certainly not living the life she thought she would be.

This is made worse when her perfect ‘old friend,’ Ollie, appears. In the years since she’s seen him, he’s turned from dorky teenager into a very handsome Doctor. He’s changed a lot. She can’t like him?… Can she? Not the boy she played and fought with as a kid?

I am so honoured to be part of the blog tour for Zara’s latest book especially as today is publication day for Four Christmases and a Secret.

Daisy is a lovely character. She’s endearing, makes mistakes and the fact that she doesn’t have her life completely together is one of the things I loved most about her. She has a contemporary Bridget Jones feel about her actually.

Ollie is the right amount of confidence and shy. This made him a very believable character. I championed him and Daisy. I am not saying anymore on the ‘will they, won’t they’ situation. I don’t want to give away the plot if I can help it.

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Book/Film Adaptations 2019

Published September 26, 2019 | By Laura

2019 has had its fair share of books being adapted into film.

There are varying opinions, of which I have a few, when it comes to moving a beloved novel to the big screen and which one is better. Personally for me, the novel usually wins.

Saying that, I wanted to share a list of film adaptations I am anticipating or have been wanting to watch this year.

Some have already been released, others are due out soon. Let me know in the comments what you think about the list as well as others you’ve enjoyed or are looking forward to.

Where’d You Go, Bernadette. (released August 2019.)

Released in August and staring Cate Blanchett and Steve Zahn, this has been adapted from the novel by Maria Semple.

I have to be honest, I have not read the novel. It’s been on my list for a long time so it won’t be long until I read it as I want to see the movie. For me, it has to be that way around.

I heard so many good things about the novel and the premise sounds so interesting.

Just in case you’ve not heard of this novel before, it’s about a mother who is compelled to reconnect with her creative passions after years bringing up her family. This takes her on an epic journey.

Little Women (release date: 26th December.)

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with adaptations of this novel.

The only one I ever vaguely liked is the one starring Winona Ryder. For the record, my best friend hates that version. It’s one of the few things we disagree on.

Nothing could really live up to the magic of the original novel by Louisa May Alcott but I will give this one a go, if anything because Meryl Streep is playing Aunt March and that should be good.

It’s also staring Timothée Chalament (Homeland and Ladybird) as Laurie, Emma Watson (Harry Potter,) as Meg, Laura Dern (Big Little Lies) as Marmee and Saoirse Ronan as Jo.

The Goldfinch (released September 2019.)

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Edit, Edit, Edit

Published September 25, 2019 | By Laura

For today’s exercise, I wanted to look at editing.

Rewrite the following passage. Write up to 500 words. Try making it less passive, adding more emotion and details.

How did you find it?

*****

Mark goes into the flat and he sat down.

It had not changed much since he’d left a year ago.

He listened to Beth, getting the tea ready in the kitchen, She didn’t know what he was going to say to her.

She carried the tray in and handed him a mug. His favourite mug.

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Confession

Published September 20, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Confession.

Your character is living in a country that, to the outside world is perfect. The truth is that the government is oppressing its citizens.

This character has lived in this country all their lives. Age, sex and life situation is your choice.

Your story begins when your character commits a serious crime.

Law enforcement is trying to get a confession and your character has been given a piece of paper and pencil.

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Book Review: The Flower Arranger from JJ Ellis

Published September 20, 2019 | By Laura

Agora Books, 26th September 2019

Today’s blog tour features the debut novel, The Flower Arranger from JJ Ellis.

And now he knew what was wrong with the arrangement. It was the Ma… the negative space… There was only one thing beautiful enough to fill it and — finally — she was with him. Ready, if not willing, to play her role.

Holly Blain wants to cover real news. The entertainment beat — pop stars and teen trends — was not why she moved to Tokyo. When she meets Inspector Tetsu Tanaka, head of Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police’s Gaikoku-jin unit, it might just be her big break.

Tanaka isn’t so sure. Always one to do things by the book, he’s hesitant about bringing this headstrong reporter into his carefully controlled investigation.

But young women keep disappearing and Tanaka is given no choice. He and Blain must trust each other if they are to stop a tormented killer from bringing his twisted plan to its shocking conclusion.

Filled with twists and turns, this unforgettable thriller is JJ Ellis’ first novel.

Holly Blain is quite new to Tokyo and wants to make her mark as a crime reporter. Covering the entertainment wasn’t exactly what she envisioned when she thought about her reporting ambitions.

She is delighted when she is introduced to Inspector Tetsu Tanaka from Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police’s Gaikoku-Jin unit. He could be her way to gain the scoop to further her career.

Tanaka isn’t so sure about Holly and keeps her at arm’s length.

Wow…. just wow.

The Flower Arranger is the debut novel from JJ Ellis but it won’t be the last I read from this author.

Told from the point of view of Tanaka, Holly and the killer, this book pulled me in from the moment I picked it up. I found it compelling and quite frankly unputdownable.

I had what I call itchy book fingers when I was forced to put it down. I just wanted to pick it up and continue reading.

The setting is so vivid. I have never visited Japan but I could see myself walking the streets with the characters. I felt totally emerged.

Tanaka is a strong and believable character. He’s an honourable policeman and wants to do his due diligence. He is one for the rules and his reaction to Holly was an interesting one. His relationship with her has a fascinating arc to it and I certainly want to see these two together in another novel.

Holly was more of an enigma to me. Not a lot is given away about where she’s come from and what has happened before she reached Tokyo. This is a book in itself I think and one that I would also read. There is certainly more to Holly than we see here. She and Tanaka are total opposites but they work.

It took me a few pages to get my head around who everyone was. Not a bad thing, just me.

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Upcoming Novel Releases

Published September 19, 2019 | By Laura

Chatto & Windus, Sept ’19

Autumn is on its way (even though the weather can’t quite make up its mind.)

What this does mean is a great list of fantastic novel releases and here is my first list of the books I am looking forward to reading.

The first book on my list has already come out but it is one I am incredibly excited about. It’s one I’ve been waiting years for… The Testaments by Margaret Atwood.

Ever since I read the Handmaid’s Tale when I was sixteen, I have been wanting to know what happened next. The TV show has been great for that but there is something for me about a novel straight from the original author that makes it extra special. I am also interested to read it having had the perspective from the TV show and the continued development of the characters from that. I have heard such good things about this book.

Released on 10th September, The Testaments picks up fifteen years after the end of the first book, Gilead maintains its power but there are signs that it’s beginning to crumble from within. Three women’s lives converge with explosive results.

HarperCollins, Sept ’19

The second novel in the list is another book I have been waiting so long for and that is Postscript by Cecelia Ahern. I have been fortunate enough to get an advanced copy and I am planning on reviewing soon.

I adored PS I Love You and so the sequel had a lot to live up to. I wasn’t sure how it was going to work. The first one had such a unique plot. How was the story going to carry on?

I won’t say too much now about my thoughts at this stage but a summary of the plot is that Postscript starts seven years after the end of PS I Love You and six years after Gerry’s last letter.

A group contacts Holly. They call themselves the PS I Love You club and they are asking her for help. She begins a relationship with the group and is soon finding herself drawn back to the feelings she thought she had left behind.

It has been released today (19th September) so is available to read now.

A Patchwork Family: Taking Chances by Cathy Bramley is part three in a four-part serial and is due to be released on 3rd October.

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Freewriting with Prompts

Published September 18, 2019 | By Laura

It’s another freewriting exercise today.

If you have something in mind already, then fantastic.

Write up to a 1000 words.

If you’re stuck as to where to start, there are five prompts below to hopefully inspire a story. You could always combine a couple if you like.

1. Write a letter to September.

2. Your character wakes up discovering that they are back at school.

3. You are stuck in a locked room alone with the person you despise the most.

4. You are confronted by the person you’ve been saying horrible things about online and they know it’s you.

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Book Review: We Met in December by Rosie Curtis

Published September 17, 2019 | By Laura

Hello to Rosie Curtis and the blog tour for her latest book, We Met in December.

What if you couldn’t get away from the one who got away?

This December, unlucky-in-love Jess is following her dream and moving to Notting Hill. On the first night in her new house-share she meets Alex, the guy in the room next door. They don’t kiss under the mistletoe, but there’s still a spark that leaves Jess imagining how they might spend the year together – never mind the house rule against dating…

But when Jess returns from her Christmas holiday, she finds Alex has started seeing Emma, who lives on the floor above them. Now Jess faces a year of bumping into the man of her dreams – and, apparently, the woman of his.

Jess is determined to move on and spend the year falling in love with London, not Alex – but what if her heart has other ideas?

We Met in December tells the story of Jess and Alex.

Jess has just moved to London after breaking up with her boyfriend. She is looking to go after the career she has always wanted.

Alex was a successful lawyer and has now given that up to re-train as a nurse. He has made a promise to himself that, after a break up with his fiancée, he would focus on his career. He did not count on meeting Jess.

First, I am completely in love with this cover. It is so beautiful.

We Met in December is told from the point of view of both Alex and Jess. I liked this as it gave me a better overall idea of what each were thinking. It’s proof that misunderstandings and assumptions can be the cause of many problems between people that’s for sure.

These two were both wonderful, compelling characters and I came to care for them a lot. I found them to be characters I really liked and want to spend time with in real life.

I also loved the supporting characters, especially Nanna Beth, Rob and Becky. I want to know more about their lives.

I became so invested in this story. I want to be a roommate in this house. It’s like a rom-com movie and I could see it as such.

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Book Extract: A Question of Us by Mary Jayne Baker

Published September 16, 2019 | By Laura

Hello to Mary Jayne Baker and the blog tour for her novel, A Question of Us.

Two best friends. Eight pub quizzes. One shot at love…

There are some people who seem like they have all the answers in life. Clarrie Midwinter isn’t one of them.

At the age of 26, tomboy Clarrie is still struggling to become a ‘proper’ grown-up.

She’s eternally strapped for cash, she hasn’t had a date in nearly a year and her attempts to quit smoking tend to take a nosedive after the second pint. Most annoyingly of all, her ladykiller best friend Simon just won’t stop asking her out.

The only thing keeping her sane is her pub quiz team, the Mighty Morphin Flower Arrangers.

But when Simon bets her a date their team will win the quiz league, Clarrie is forced to confront what she really wants out of life – and love. Is it finally time for her to grow up?

Mary Jayne and her publisher have shared an extract with us today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

‘The chances of me getting lucky with Sally Pemberton are slim to none,’ Dave said.

‘The chances of Si getting lucky with Sally Pemberton, and me therefore receiving the knock-on benefit of a faster pint, are about 99.9 per cent. I’ll take those odds.’

Clarrie was still squinting at the photo of the dog, which was small and Ewok-like with curly beige fur.

‘I reckon it’s a cavapoo,’ she said.

Si shook his head. ‘That’s not a thing.’

‘It is too a thing, the woman next door to my mum’s got one.’

‘What, so it’s half poodle, half fizzy wine?’

She nudged him, smiling. ‘Half Cavalier King Charles, you div.’

‘You know, dogs really went downhill when they started breeding them for comedy portmanteau purposes.’

‘Go on then, write it down,’ Dave said, rolling the pen to Clarrie. ‘You’re captain, you get final say.’

‘All right.’ She jotted it into the answer box. ‘But if it’s wrong, it’s wrong. I don’t want it following me to the grave like Sonny and the fifth Marx brother.’

Sonny scowled. ‘Do we have to bring that up every week? Anyone could’ve made that mistake.’

‘Very true,’ Dave said gravely. ‘I’m sure Karl had plenty of time after writing Das Kapital for a bit of slapstick fun with the family.’

‘Oh, knob off, can you?’ Sonny rubbed a V-sign at Dave against his cheek. ‘Eight years ago I got that wrong. Jesus.’

‘Still funny though,’ Dave said, grinning. ‘Right, I’m off to the bar. Same again, you lot?’

Jeff was half asleep again, but he flickered to attention when he heard the magic word ‘bar’.

‘Another Landlord for me, young Davy.’

‘Si?’

‘I’ll skip this round.’ Simon waggled his still half-full beer. ‘All right with what I’ve got for now.’

Clarrie glanced at the dregs of her pint. She had to work tomorrow. Probably should go easy…

Oh, what the hell.

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My Writing Ramblings: The Clerk

Published September 13, 2019 | By Laura

I am having one of those ‘eeeek’ moments with this post.

One of the things I try to encourage on this blog is sharing work. As writers, feedback is important but for me, also putting my work out there is one of my greatest fears.

Today, I am posting a short story I’ve written. It’s called The Clerk. This is probably the first one I have properly finished that hasn’t been part of a writing course assignment. It was originally written for a competition.

As a newbie writer, I have not had the courage to post anything like this on Novel Kicks.

You could say I am putting my money where my mouth is. So, here goes. I hope you enjoy it and if you don’t, that’s OK too.

I’m off to hide under my duvet.

***** Beginning of The Clerk*****

I open my eyes.

It takes moments to focus. Below my arms is the rough fabric of a green worn armchair. Around me, the windowless circular room is cluttered with endless piles of neatly stacked paper.

I can hear noise but I can’t see where it is coming from. When I manage to stand, I can just about see a typewriter that seems to be operating on its own.

I move around, not wanting to disturb anything. I don’t see a door.

‘Ah, there you are dear.’

A small, plump woman dressed in a black baggy cardigan, a long skirt with her hair pulled into a bun shuffles into the room. Placing the papers she is carrying down on the nearest table, she takes a seat, gesturing for me to do the same.

‘Come on girl, time is short.’

‘Where am I?’

A tea-tray appears and floats toward us. She hands me a cup.

‘I’m dreaming right?’

‘I suppose you are in a sense.’

‘Where am I?’

‘Not the most original of questions dear. You can do better.’

‘You don’t know me.’

‘I do my dear.’

‘I’m sure I’ve not met you before.’

‘I have known you from the moment you were born.’

She pours more tea.

‘Let me explain, dear. I’m Bertha. It is my job to document.’

‘Document what exactly?’

‘Your life my dear.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘I am a clerk. Everyone has one. I document all the events of your life.’

‘My…’

‘All this, she says, pointing to the papers, ‘is your life.’

Anxiety sets in, ‘how am I here?’

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Alphabet Sentences

Published September 13, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt: Alphabet sentences.

Your first sentence for today’s story is ‘All he could see was smoke.’

Now, carry on the story but with a little twist.

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A Moment With… Barbara Wallace

Published September 12, 2019 | By Laura

A big welcome to Barbara Wallace who is here to share some fun facts about her novel, One Night in Provence, plus she’s sharing a deleted scene!

Without further ado, over to you, Barbara.

Hi! Thank you for letting me visit.

I’m going to share with you a little secret. As much as writers love telling stories, the actual process of writing a book can be a long and boring process. After all, you try and spend months with the same two people in your head. Therefore we sometimes – okay I sometimes – make up little inside jokes and references as a way of making the work fun.

What I’d thought I’d do today is share some of those behind the scenes facts. I’m also sharing some of the great historical facts I learned while doing research. Provence and Nantucket are both rich with history. Because Philippe is an historian, I was able to weave in a few facts, but just as many ended up discarded. (Until now.)

Lastly, I decided to share a deleted scene with you all as well. I thought it might be fun for you to see the kinds of things that editors suggest we cut.

So, without further ado, let me present, Ten Fun Facts About One Night in Provence (whether you wanted to know them or not.)

The Destination Brides series was originally named Bucket List Brides. We conceived the idea during a brainstorming session on Facebook Messenger. It began as an excuse for Donna Alward, Nina Singh and I to work together on a project. We asked Liz Fielding to join us because working with her was on our personal bucket lists.

Jenna Brown and her colleagues Shirley and Donna were named for my fellow romance authors Jenna Bayley Burke, Shirley Jump and Donna Alward.
In the book, Shirley is dating a man named Joe. In real life, Shirley will be marrying her fiancé Joe this fall.

Chateau de Beauchamp is based on a real five star French hotel: La Bastide de Gordes. Sadly, I haven’t been there. Never been to Provence either. I’ve spent exactly eight hours in France. Long enough to do a hop on/hop off tour of Paris.

Equally sad is the fact that those eight hours are more than I ever spent in Nantucket – despite living four hours away. By the way, The Whaler Inn in Nantucket – the Merchant auction takes place – is also based on a real hotel. The Ocean House Resort in Westerly, Rhode Island. That hotel was recently named one of the best in the country. Oh yeah, and Taylor Swift lives down the street.

The White Terror that Philippe refers to when he first meets Jenna was an uprising staged by the royalists following the French revolution. Members of the noble classes briefly fought back by conducting nighttime terror raids.

The Tour Magne in Nimes is real and you can climb the stairs. It was built by the Romans in 15 BC.

Philippe’s apartment is located in Arles. Vincent Van Gogh also lived in Arles. In fact, I imagined Philippe’s apartment overlooking the park near Van Gogh’s famous yellow house. While living in the Arles, Van Gogh decided to focus many of his paintings on a single theme: Sunflowers. Arles is also where Van Gogh severed his ear.

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Putting an Idea Together

Published September 11, 2019 | By Laura

With National Novel Writing Month just over a month and a half away, I thought it would be nice today to generate some ideas using magazines as inspiration.

This part of the writing process has been scary for me but I also find it fun, especially when doing something like the following exercise.

Gather as many magazines as you can. Cut out any words, images and phrases that interest you/catches your eye for any reason.

Once you’ve done that, put them all in a hat.

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Cover Reveal: Coming Home to Merriment Bay; Part One: A Reunion by Emily Harvale

Published September 10, 2019 | By Laura

I am particularly excited to be helping to reveal the cover for Coming Home to Merriment Bay; Part One: A Reunion by Emily Harvale.

About Coming Home To Merriment Bay; Part One: A Reunion.

After eighteen years apart, reclusive Cat Devon still recognises her mum’s handwriting. Plucking up the courage to open the letter, its contents send Cat racing to Merriment Bay, the seaside village where she grew up.

On arrival, Cat and her teenage daughter, Kyra are shocked to find the situation is worse than expected. But despite everything, Cat considers herself to be an optimist at heart and Kyra takes after her. Looking on the bright side may not improve the situation, but it definitely can’t make it worse.

When clearing out the house that, even now, Cat fondly thinks of as home, she stumbles upon more than just memories in the battered leather trunk in Granny Viola’s bedroom. She discovers a faded photo of an RAF pilot, a pile of unopened letters, and a mystery waiting to be solved. Who is the man in the – clearly treasured – photo? Cat didn’t know her granddad. Could this be him? A man even her mum never met.

Cat and Kyra are intent on finding out. But that’s not all Cat’s determined to do. It’s time she came to terms with the issues in her past, and made peace with her mum and her gran. All the while avoiding bumping into the one man she never quite got over … and keeping a few secrets of her own.

Drumroll……….. here’s the cover.

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Book Extract: One Day in Winter by Shari Low

Published September 10, 2019 | By Laura

I am happy to welcome Shari Low back to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her book, One Day in Winter.

On a cold December’s morning…

Caro sets off to find the truth: has her relationship with her father been based on a lifetime of lies?

Cammy can’t wait to surprise the woman he loves with a proposal. All he needs is the perfect ring.

Lila can no longer hide her secret. She has to tell her lover’s wife about their affair.

After thirty years, Bernadette knows it’s time. She’s ready to leave her controlling husband… and never look back.

Over the course of twenty-four hours, four lives are about to change forever…

Shari and Aria have shared an extract today.

***** beginning of extract*****

Caro

‘No, please, you go first.’ The elderly man smiled gratefully, as the young blonde woman held the train door open for him. He’d read the Daily Mail. These… what was it they called them? Millennials? Anyway, according to the papers, the young ones these days were all supposed to be so entitled and self-centred that they didn’t give a hoot for anyone else, but this young lady certainly didn’t fall into that category. Actually, now that their faces were so close together, maybe not so young. Perhaps late twenties? Thirties? Pretty, and without all that make-up the young ones wear nowadays. Eyebrows like snails, some of them. But not this lovely woman.

Caro returned his smile and held the train door open until the gent had, painstakingly slowly, climbed the step on to the train. No hurry. She’d waited this long to make the journey south to Glasgow. Although, right now, there was a huge part of her that wanted to stay in the comforting cocoon of home city.

Aberdeen train station was bustling with commuters arriving from less expensive postcodes. A city with the third largest population in Scotland, after Glasgow and Edinburgh, in the heyday of the oil industry, this had been boomtown. The black gold that was pumped in from the oil rigs off the coast had seeped into every brick of the granite that lined the streets, bringing American oil companies, financial investment, big spenders and the air of confidence that it would last forever.

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Novel Kicks Book Club: To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

Published September 7, 2019 | By Laura

Scholastic Press, Aug 2014

Hello September.

When I was growing up, I really love this month. Yes, it meant going back to school which I never really minded, but it also was a chance to get new stationery. Fellow addicts will know what I am talking about.

The excitement over new pens and pencils, the feeling of a new notebook. All that potential. In-fact, I still have that feeling now.

Keeping with the theme of stationery and school, the book I have chosen this month is To The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han.

I’ve posted a question below to start the discussion. Anyone can take part so if you fancy reading along and commenting or have read it, I am looking forward to seeing you in the comments section.

About the book:

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Book Extract: Nadine by John Steinberg

Published August 30, 2019 | By Laura

A big hello to John Steinberg and the blog tour for his novel, Nadine.

London 1974 – and Peter Greenberg is riding high. Thanks to his magic touch, every play he puts on in Theatreland is a hit and the money is rolling in. The young man’s empire feels secure – but then everything changes. One evening, he calls in to see a rival’s musical and falls head over heels in love.

The beautiful Paris-born dancer who catches his eye is Nadine – a major star in the making. Like Greenberg, the young dancer too is in love – but with someone else. The eternal triangle is complicated by the birth of a child, and by tragic secrets that go back before World War Two; slowly, those secrets reveal themselves in a drama that out-performs anything on the West End stage or Broadway.

Nadine is a poignant story of unrequited love, a love that will one day be returned – and in a most unexpected way…

John has shared an extract today. Enjoy.

**** beginning of extract*****

INTRO

Greenberg has lost his theatre and his luxurious Georgian home. His wife has run off with his accountant with whom she’s been having an affair and he’s been relegated to living in a one bed flat above a North London Florists. With too much time on his hands, Greenberg is teetering on the edge of depression.

A phone call from an unexpected source, Nadine’s father, offers him a lifeline and a chance to salvage his reputation.

*****

Jacques Bertrand had described himself perfectly. Medium height, with a full head of white hair and a tanned complexion. He resembled Alan Ladd, the 1940s Hollywood actor, Greenberg thought to himself. They had arranged to meet at Nadine’s graveside. It was probably his last chance, Jacques said, to see where his daughter had been laid to rest and to beg for her forgiveness.

***

Greenberg couldn’t believe what the other man was proposing. The chance to put together a major musical production based on his daughter’s life seemed completely surreal. It was, in the old man’s words, his ‘last opportunity to try to make up for the despicable way he had discarded Nadine when she had needed him most’.

‘Alors, Monsieur Greenberg, do we have an agreement?’ the old man said, suddenly coming to life.

‘Jacques, it’s very kind of you, but I’ll need to give it some thought. What you are asking is a huge commitment.’

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NK Chats To… Laura Briggs

Published August 29, 2019 | By Laura

Hi Laura. It’s lovely to welcome you to Novel Kicks today and happy book birthday for A Wedding in Cornwall. Can you tell me a little about it and what inspired it?

Thanks so much, and very excited to share with your readers today! The romance read A Wedding in Cornwall is the first novella in a series that focuses on an American event planner’s adventures working at a Cornish manor house in a remote village. It was heavily inspired by other Cornish-themed stories, including the television shows Poldark and Doc Martin.

What’s your writing process like, from idea to final draft and how has it evolved from your first novel?

My writing process is actually much the same as when I first started. I usually start with brainstorming some notes, and then create an outline. This can range from anything from a few lines to describe each scene to a more full-blown, descriptive document outlining what happens in the story. From there, it’s just a matter of getting it all on paper and then onto revisions and editing for the final draft.

Where do you like to write, do you prefer silence and do you write longhand? Need coffee?

I work with a laptop, but my work station is most often in my living room (usually with a cat or two on hand for company!). I often work to music or sometimes a favourite television program, although silence is okay too. No coffee, but occasionally a cup of hot chocolate in the winter time!

What elements need to be in place for beginning a novel?

For me, the basic events of the story need to be outlined, so I don’t get too off track, so to speak! And I need to have some basic notes on character background too, even though certain things about both plot or characters may change as the story goes on paper.

Do you think plot or character is more important?

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Promises

Published August 23, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s prompt – promises.

Something happens to you. At first, you can’t talk about it. You’re frightened.

When you confide in someone, they say they believe you and promise to keep your confidence.

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NK Chats To… Ann Morgan

Published August 22, 2019 | By Laura

Photo credit: Steve Lennon

Hi Ann, thank you so much for joining me today. Your book is called Crossing Over. Can you tell me a bit about it and what inspired the story?

Thanks for having me! Crossing Over is the story of an unlikely friendship between an elderly woman living alone on the Kent coast and a traumatized Malawian migrant hiding in her barn. On the surface, the two characters have little in common and in some ways they can never fully understand one another, but through their interaction they gain new perspectives on their own experiences and uncover more similarities between their lives than you might expect.

For several years, I’d wanted to write about the little ships manned by civilians that were sent to rescue soldiers from the beaches in Dunkirk early in the second world war. I knew this would probably involve an elderly character who had been involved in the evacuation effort. Then, when reports started to surface of refugees attempting to cross the Mediterranean and more recently the Channel in small boats, the parallels and contrasts between the two types of crossings seemed powerful.

In addition, I’m fascinated by representing altered mental states in narrative and how mental illness affects storytelling (something I explored with bipolar disorder in my first novel, Beside Myself). Many therapies are built on the theory that telling a story can help a person move past a traumatic event – so what are the implications for people who are unable to articulate what has happened to them coherently? It struck me that bringing together two characters whose storytelling is compromised – one through PTSD and the other through dementia – might provide an interesting way to explore this.

What challenges did you face in regards to the themes of the book?

I was representing the story from the point of view of two characters with markedly different life experiences to my own. It required sensitivity and a great deal of thought. Indeed, for a long time I would have doubted my entitlement as white British writer to try and tell the story of a Malawian character.

However, recent books such as The Good Immigrant and Reni Eddo-Lodge’s Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race challenged my thinking on this and made me see that it’s important for writers of all backgrounds to do what we can to increase representation and diversity in storytelling.

The key is to do your best to do it well – in fact that is always a writer’s job. In the case of Jonah and Edie, this involved a huge amount of research and time spent talking to people with direct knowledge of and insight into many of the things I was writing about.

I then had to filter all this research through my own imagination and sensibility to try to make sure that it lived in the story as human experience, rather than two-dimensional information.

What’s your typical writing day like? Is there somewhere specific you like to write?

I get up very early and start at 5am in my writing room looking out over the hills and the white cliffs. Those early hours when the house is quiet are golden. If I have all day and am not going out for meetings, I will work in two- or three-hour stints, with breaks for meals and probably a run in the middle of the day, until around 6pm.

What’s your favourite word and why?

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: The Middle is now the Beginning

Published August 21, 2019 | By Laura

Today, I wanted to look at beginning in the middle.

Look through your current work in progress or your idea book, preferably picking something where you know how you want to begin.

As usual, if you’d prefer to use a book you’ve recently read, that’s OK.

Have a think about the three major events that will happen in the middle of your book. Pick one.

Now, write that scene as though it is the beginning of your story.

Write about 500-750 words.

How was it? What does it do to your plot as it stands?

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Book Extract: The Postcard by Zoë Folbigg

Published August 20, 2019 | By Laura

A big welcome back to Zoë Folbigg and the blog tour for The Postcard.

The sequel to the bestselling phenomenon The Note – based on the true story of one girl and her ‘Train Man’…

A year after the kiss that brought them together in a snowy train-station doorway, Maya and James are embarking on another journey – this time around the world. The trip starts promisingly, with an opulent and romantic Indian wedding.

But as their travels continue, Maya fears that ‘love at first sight’ might not survive trains, planes and tuk tuks, especially when she realises that what she really wants is a baby, and James doesn’t feel the same. Can Maya and James navigate their different hopes and dreams to stay together? Or is love at first sight just a myth after all…

Zoë and Aria have shared an extract from the Postcard today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

December 2015, Kent, England

‘Happy Christmas, James. Happy Christmas, girls,’ James’ mum says in a small voice as she raises an elaborately cut glass of sherry at the table. It’s the most flamboyant Diane Miller gets all year.

‘What about me?’

‘You too, dear,’ she says to her husband, as he scratches his white hair. ‘You too.’

James’ dad, Stuart, and his sister, Francesca, barely look up from their plates. Francesca’s wife, Petra, lifts her wine glass, closely followed by James, and they say ‘Happy Christmas’ in unison. ‘Cheers Diane,’ adds Petra. ‘Thanks for a beautiful lunch.’

The Christmas dinner table at the Miller home in Kent is quieter than the Flowers of Hazelworth. It is circular, covered by a neat tablecloth with holly embroidered onto it. I

n the middle, a metal Christmas carousel rotates, where angels chase – but never catch – each other, powered by heat rising from the candles around it. Gold crackers perch uncracked on beige linen napkins, and Diane’s late mother’s Denby ware pottery all still matches.

No one’s elbows knock into anyone else’s elbows. No one shouts ‘SPUDS TO THE NORTH END!’ over a clatter of crockery and glasses. Neither James nor Francesca flash a mouthful of food at their sibling.

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Book Extract: The Time of Our Lives by Abby Williams

Published August 18, 2019 | By Laura

Welcome to Abby Williams and the blog tour for her novel, The Time of Our Lives.

Two women from two very different generations are brought together through dramatic circumstances and help each other to forge new paths.

Twenty-six-year-old Erin has everything she’s ever wanted – a good job, a gorgeous fiancé and a best friend who’s always there for her. But suddenly her life comes crashing down around her. Unable to return home to her parents, she takes a room in a house nearby and her life starts over in the most unexpected of ways…

Seventy-six-year old Lydia, who, shocked by the sudden death of her husband, is devastated to discover that he has left her in crippling debt. With no choice but to take in a lodger, Erin comes into her life. When they find a letter hidden in the attic old secrets come to light and, with Erin by her side, Lydia finds herself going on a trip of a lifetime.

Abby and Aria have shared an extract with us today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

Brad and I had been together for three years, and now I was a fully qualified architect but still also worked as his PA. Watching him now as he walked along the open plan office towards me I felt my heart bang against my chest. Tall, with chocolate eyes and thick, black hair, Brad still gave me butterflies.

‘Erin, have you got my itinerary for the conference tomorrow?’ he asked, standing in front of my desk.

‘Of course,’ I replied, pulling out a glossy brochure from my in-tray and handing it to Brad. ‘I booked you into your usual hotel for two nights and I’ve arranged for the hotel business centre to set up your presentation material so you don’t need to worry.’

Brad smiled. ‘Thank you, that was very thoughtful.’

‘All part of the job,’ I replied sweetly.

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Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Nigel

Published August 16, 2019 | By Laura

It’s Friday which means it’s time to start writing some fiction.

Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt.

The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can.

Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.

Today’s Prompt – Nigel.

Your story this week is about a young man named Nigel, who has just arrived in a strange city.

Use the following words in your piece of writing – bloom, exercise, paperwork, continuation, speculate and uncle.

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: A Letter

Published August 14, 2019 | By Laura

In the writing group today, we will be writing a letter.

In this digital age, I am a little sad about the fact that the art of letter writing has diminished. I adore writing letters. There is something very personal about them.

Take two of your characters in your WIP or two of your favourite characters from fiction. You could even take a character from your WIP and an established fictional character if you wanted.

Write a letter from your main character to the other person about an event in your novel. Put in as much detail as you can. Once you’ve done that, write the reply.

Has this given you a new insight to these characters and how they react and feel?

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NK Chats To… Holly Tierney-Bedford

Published August 13, 2019 | By Laura

Hi Holly, I am so pleased you’ve joined me today. Can you tell me a little about your book, I Will Follow Him?

My story is about Francie, a private detective hired to follow a groom-to-be and his groomsmen as they go on a cruise. It’s a romantic comedy about a singles’ cruise, so there are lots of laughs, surprises, and (naturally) love.

What have been the challenges of writing within the Oceanic Dreams book series?

No challenges! It’s been great!

Do you need to have read the other books to read yours?

No. Every book can be read as a standalone story.

What is your writing process like, from idea to first draft? (If you are happy to provide a photo as an example of any part of the process, then that would be fantastic.)

I just jump in and start writing. I’m a total pantser, meaning I fly by the seat of my pants. Every story has a “feeling” to it, a mood, of those particular characters, setting, etc. When I signed on to the Oceanic Dreams project, I loved the light, fun premise. Although I didn’t have a particular plot or character in my mind until I sat down to write and saw what showed up, the series had been on my mind, percolating, for months before I started and I’m sure that helped me.

Is character or plot more important?

Character. I’d read a book about a fascinating person cleaning their house. I would not want to read a book with a great plot but characters who are boring.

How important is it to pick character names and how do you pick yours?

Important. I often change my characters’ names (find and replace) several times before I get it right.

Which authors do you admire?

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Book Review: Mrs Sommersby’s Second Chance by Laurie Benson

Published August 11, 2019 | By Laura

What better way to kick off a Sunday by welcoming Laurie Benson and the blog tour for her novel, Mrs Sommersby’s Second Chance.

She’s played Cupid for others

Now she’s met her own unlikely match!

The final book of The Sommersby Brides quartet. Widowed society matchmaker Mrs. Clara Sommersby thinks self-made businessman William Lane is just the man for her neighbor’s overlooked daughter. He’s successful and confident, if emotionally distant, until suddenly—shockingly—his attention turns to Clara herself!

She thought her days of romance were over, but is this younger man intent on giving her a second chance?

Mrs Sommersby’s Second Chance is a seasoned regency romance novel and the last in the Sommersby Brides series.

This was my first novel in the series and one of the things I loved was that the main character was in her forties. Prove that life doesn’t end simply because you’re not twenty.

As I said, this book focuses on Clara Sommersby who is drawn to a visitor to Bath, William Lane. Instantly they have an attraction to each other.

This can be read as a standalone novel but I will be picking up the others in the series when I can.

I immediately fell in love with the characters, the setting and the atmosphere in this novel. I love Bath and felt as though I was there observing the relationship that builds between Lane and Clara. I felt like I was stepping back in time with this magical love story.

I cheered for both Clara (who is a strong, independent woman,) and Lane who is a proper gentleman. Like Clara, Lane knows what it’s like to work hard for what you achieve and what it’s like to have little in the world and for the society around you to expect that you’re not capable of achieving anything.

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Book Extract: Mummy Needs a Break by Susan Edmunds

Published August 9, 2019 | By Laura

A lovely hello to Susan Edmunds and the blog tour for her latest book, Mummy Needs a Break.

With a devilish toddler and baby number two on the way, Rachel’s big dream is to one day go to the toilet on her own. So, she’s surprised to discover that her husband has found the time to have an exciting affair while she’s been bringing up their family.

Suddenly, Rachel is left wrangling with a child who will only eat crackers and a 35-week bump. She knows even Mumsnet isn’t going to solve this.

What Rachel needs is a handsome, good-with-children, single man. But she can barely leave the house without a stain on her top and child on her hip. How on earth can she claim her life back, let alone thinking about dating?

Susan and Avon have shared an extract today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

It was after 4 a.m. when I heard a key rattle in the lock as Stephen returned. I was still sitting on the couch, staring blankly at the almost-silent television, tracing patterns in the textured fabric of the cushions. I held my breath as he neared the living room door. The light was on – he would know I was inside. He paused briefly but then the door to the spare room clicked shut. I sat on the couch, my fingers tracking the movement of blood through my temples.

Questions were stomping around in circles in my mind: Was she someone I knew? What was going on? What the hell was I going to do?

I knew our relationship had changed. But whose doesn’t, when you have children? Years ago, I had a stash of hugely impractical, very skimpy lingerie that I brought out every night he stayed at my place. I crept out of bed sometimes before he woke to put make-up on and would go to a yoga class every night after work and twice at the weekends, coming home relaxed and stretchy. It had been a long time since I had crawled into our bed in anything other than my faded grey favourites and my yoga was now done most often in front of my laptop, with Thomas imitating alongside me, until he got bored.

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Book Review: The Moments by Natalie Winter

Published August 8, 2019 | By Laura

Life is made up of countless moments. Moments that make us who we are. But what if they don’t unfold the way they’re supposed to…?

What if you get on the wrong bus, or don’t speak to the right person at a party, or stay in a job that isn’t for you? Will you miss your one chance at happiness? Or will happiness find you eventually, when the moment is right?

Meet Matthew and Myrtle. They have never really felt like they fitted – in life or with anyone else. But they are meant to be together – if only they can find each other.

A powerful and emotional story about missed chances, interwoven lives and the moments that define us.

*****

The Moments is the story about two people as they go through significant moments in their lives. I’ve seen it described as a cross between One Day and Sliding Doors.

This story follows Myrtle and Matthew; two outsiders who have always felt as though they’ve never fitted in. The Moments is told from the point of view of both characters but it was made very clear which one I was reading about. This book was an interesting approach to the traditional love story. These characters have many chances to meet. I am not going to reveal if they do and in what circumstance.

Fate is so present in this novel and very much has its own agenda. The idea of meeting the right person at the right or wrong time. I find it fascinating.

It reminded me so much of my husband and I. Although we grew up at opposite ends of the country, he used to holiday/had family in my home town. His mother and mine were even in the same guide troop a couple of years apart. Although we didn’t meet until we were eighteen, I always loved the idea that, like this novel, we possibly crossed paths without even realising.

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NK Chats To… Sophie Tanner

Published August 7, 2019 | By Laura

Your book is called Reader, I Married Me (I love this title.) Can you tell me a little about it and what inspired it?

I wrote this book after going through a bad break up – being cheated on, lied to and rejected by the person I trusted the most. But, you know what, looking back I realise it was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Romantic love is wonderful and all, but realising that I didn’t need ‘another half’ to make me happy or ‘complete’ me was an awesome revelation to have. So much so that I decided to take vows of self-commitment and marry myself in Brighton! I know it sounds bonkers but the idea was to start conversations and ask the question ‘why shouldn’t self-love be AS important as romantic love?!’ After all, your relationship with yourself deserves as much attention as any other – and the more you deal with your own crap the less other people have to, right?

So, my new novel is loosely based on my own experience of sologamy because it turns out that loving yourself so publicly is not easy – in fact, it got me a lot of haters. Which kind of highlights the complex attitude our culture has to self-love in the first place! The title slightly adulterates the words of literary heroine Jane Eyre 🙂

What’s your favourite word and why?

Discombobulate. I love this word because it sounds amazing in your mouth and describes the rather marvellous state of being tumbled from your comfort zone. It kind of reminds me of how Winnie the Pooh thinks.

What’s your writing process like from idea to final draft?

Well, I’m still figuring that out actually. Writing the novel was such a great learning curve and I think the next book I write should be a lot more streamlined. Because there is a certain formula to plot and character development and I think if you can pin that down first then your writing becomes a lot less chaotic!

Where do you normally write and do you need coffee, silence, noise?

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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Contacts

Published August 7, 2019 | By Laura

Starting a contacts page in your notebook.

Today I wanted to look ahead and get prepared for what comes next. I know it is not a good idea to think too much beyond the completion of the book if you’re still working on the draft but I am hoping this is a helpful exercise.

It’s something I have been meaning to do for a while. If you’re a planner like me, then it’s an excuse to make a list.

With the genre of your book in mind, find five agents that handle the type of work you’re currently writing. Make a note of their postal address and e-mail too. The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook is good for this but obviously the internet may be more available to you.

Do the same with five publishers, whether they be a large or a small outlet. Be as specific as you can. Also, find the name of the person to whom you would submit the work. Like before, note down the postal address and e-mail address. Look for some online publishers too.

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A Moment With… Laura Bradford

Published August 6, 2019 | By Laura

Kensington Publishing (28 May 2019)

Laura Bradford is the author of A Daughter’s Truth and I am very happy to be welcoming her to the blog today.

Emma Lapp tries to be the perfect daughter, to earn the loving embrace of her family and her Amish community in Pennsylvania. Yet she can’t quite win her mother’s smile–or her forgiveness for a transgression Emma can’t quite place . . .
Emma knows she’s the source of her mother’s greatest sorrow, having been born on the same day Mamm lost her beloved sister. The one bright spot has been the odd trinkets anonymously left at her aunt’s grave each year on Emma’s birthday–gifts Emma secretly hides because they upset her parents. But the day she turns 22, a locket bears a surprise that sends her on an unexpected journey . . .

Searching for answers, Emma travels to the English world and finds a kinship as intriguing as it is forbidden. But is this newfound connection enough to leave behind the future she’d expected? The answers are as mysterious, and as devastating, as the truth that divides Emma from the only family, and the only life, she’s ever known . . .

Talking about the birth of a story, it’s over to you, Laura.

With thirty-three published books under my belt to date, it’s not any wonder that readers are curious as to how I get my ideas. Do I keep a notebook by the bed? Do I pick the brains of my friends and family? Do I spend hours thinking about the next book?

The quick answers are no, no, and…no.

My ideas generally are born on a conversation I’ve overheard, the juiciest part of a 30-second radio newsbyte that piqued my interest, and/or, oftentimes, my own imagination.

A conversation, you ask? Sure. I think it was the sixth book in one of my earlier mystery series that came about after listening to someone talk about a co-worker with a penchant for pinching things off people’s desks. There was more to this woman’s story than just that, but that initial nugget was enough to send my thoughts racing. By the time I was back home that afternoon, one of my beloved series characters had an elderly mother with that same affliction…

A 30-second radio newsbyte? Absolutely. Think about it. When you’re listening to a favorite music station on the radio, the disc jockey likes to share quirky little news stories between songs. And it’s always the juiciest part, because they don’t have time to drone on for too long. So when I heard a story about a decades-old letter found during the renovation of a post office, my personal antennae shot straight up. What was in the letter? Who had sent it? What did/didn’t happen because it had never reached its intended destination? These were the kinds of answers the newsbyte didn’t give, but that was okay. Because, once again, the writer part of my brain filled in the answers all on its own. And, before long, I had the plot for what became my first ever romance novel.

Fun stuff, for sure.

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Book Review: I Heart Hawaii by Lindsey Kelk

Published August 5, 2019 | By Laura

When Angela Clark’s best friend Jenny invites her to join a press trip to Hawaii, three days of sun, sea and sleep sounds like the perfect antidote to her crazed life.

At work in New York, she’s supposed to be the face of Having It All. But the only thing Angela feels she excels at is hiding in the printer cupboard, eating Mini Cheddars and watching Netflix on her phone and if this is living the dream, she’s more than ready to wake up.

A few days away with Jenny sounds like exactly what she needs but Angela’s talent for getting into a scrape guarantees nothing goes to plan – and not even the most beautiful beaches, blue skies and daiquiris will get her off the hook…

I have to say that I was sad to hear that this is the last in the I Heart series. I have enjoyed following Angela over the last few years.

Angela is still in New York. Alice is almost one, Alex is getting ready for a live show full of new material and our heroine has quit Spencer Media to go and work for her frenemy, Cici.

She has also been invited to meet with the exclusive Mothers of Brooklyn group which, on first inspection feels more like the mafia to Angela.

When Angela is given the chance to go on an all expense paid trip to Hawaii, she reluctantly goes, with a little arm twisting from Jenny.

Now, I can’t say much more without giving things away but if you are in any way familiar with Angela, you will know that hilarity and chaos will ensue.

I really enjoyed this novel and feel it was paced well. I was reading far into the night and couldn’t put the book down (the same as the rest of the books in the series.)

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Novel Kicks Book Club: The Flatshare by Beth O’ Leary

Published August 5, 2019 | By Laura

Hello August. It’s excellent to see you.

This month, I have chosen The Flatshare by Beth O’ Leary.

Tiffy and Leon share a flat
Tiffy and Leon share a bed
Tiffy and Leon have never met…

Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast. Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash. Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time.

But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window…

I have heard many good things about this book and I am looking forward to reading it and discussing it with you.

As usual, I have posted a question below to start the discussion. Anyone is welcome to join.

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My Writing Ramblings: Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday!

Published August 5, 2019 | By Laura

Today is a celebration for me. Novel Kicks is ten years old.

Back in 2009, it was a little different to what it has now become but the main focus of it remains the same. I wanted somewhere for people who like to write fiction and for people who love to read to come and discuss books, stories and the writing of them.

I hoped then that I would still be going for as long as I could so to have made ten years, for me, is amazing.

Some times it’s been hard, like when I have been trying to run the blog alongside night shifts for work or where the anxiety has been a little strong. The to-read pile is something that remains taller than me but I still love it.

I love posting about books I’ve enjoyed reading or a writing prompt to help writers like me who need a push to write that story.

I have had the privilege to question some of my favourite authors about their writing days, favourite authors and fictional characters – writers I have and continue to look up to like Lisa Jewell, Giovanna Fletcher, Jane Fallon, Cecelia Ahern and Jane Green to name but a few. Many of these amazing authors I have met in person too and yes, I got completely tongued tied on most of these occasions. I seriously fangirled myself to embarrassment. Haha.

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Book Extract: The Single Mums Move On by Janet Hoggarth

Published July 31, 2019 | By Laura

Today I’m welcoming Janet Hoggarth who is joining me with the blog tour for her book, The Single Mums Move On.

Can neighbours become more than good friends…

After her husband left her, Ali and her daughter Grace enjoyed living in what became known as ‘the Single Mums’ Mansion’. However, with her best friends Amanda and Jacqui moving on, it’s time for Ali and Grace to make their own way. Thankfully, a chance conversation leads to them moving into the infamous South London gated community known only as ‘The Mews’.

In ‘The Mews’ everyone lives in each other’s pockets and curtain twitching is an Olympic sport. The neighbours are an eclectic bunch – from Nick the alleged spy, Carl the gorgeous but clearly troubled Idris Elba lookalike, to Debbie who is about to face the hardest fight of her life, and TV agent Samantha who is not as in control as she likes to pretend.

Each day brings another drama, but along with the tears, real friendships grow. And her neighbours’ problems might unlock the key to something Ali has yearned for all along…

Based on a true story – you’ll never be able to look at your neighbours quite the same way again…

Janet has very kindly shared an extract with us today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

‘I hate everyone looking at me,’ Amanda said tremulously, holding on to her dad’s arm as we waited for the music to start in the antechamber of Rye Town Hall. ‘What if I cry?’

‘You’re supposed to cry at weddings!’ Jacqui said, rolling her eyes. ‘No one’s going to tell you off!’

‘Stop catastrophising,’ I said gently. ‘Just enjoy it. It’s your moment!’

However, when the time came to walk down the aisle, I hadn’t heeded my own advice. As soon as the impressively ornate doors opened and the town crier rang his bell to announce us, I spotted Ifan standing next to Jacqui’s Mark, his hand proprietorially on Grace’s shoulder, eagerly waiting. The first thought that burned in the back of my mind was: I can’t marry a shop assistant. I swiftly berated myself for being such a snob, but in reality, he didn’t earn enough money to support us if we had a child.

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Book Extract – Willow by Grace Parks

Published July 29, 2019 | By Laura

Grace Parks joins me today with the blog tour for the first book in the Pepper Lane Lane series, Willow.

Can a socialite and a technophobe fall in love?

A bubbly personality and a great job in social media didn’t mean that Willow Lawson had it all. Her love life was distant memory and her social life only work related. The maddening demands of life seemed to get in the way of finding time for herself or her friends.

She starts the Pepper Lane Club as a chance to step away from her busy schedule once a month to reconnect with her friends.

Thomas Greer, the proprietor of the Pepper Lane Café, annoys her. He’s her complete opposite; unsociable, serious, old-fashioned and dead set against social media.

Always game for a challenge, Willow decides to take him on as a client. She’s going to prove to Thomas that he needs her help. She knew she would be successful, she just didn’t know she would lose her heart along the way.

Can Willow fall in love with a man that doesn’t respect her profession? Will Thomas let go of his preconceptions long enough to get to know the real Willow? Enjoy this sweet romance as Willow finds love and friendship in the first book in the Pepper Lane Series.

Six women. Six stories. Six chances of love. One café.
The Pepper Lane Series follows the lives of six women as they share life, love and heartache once a month at the Pepper Lane Club. They might be an unlikely group of friends, but it takes all types to form a tribe.

Grace has shared an extract today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

The dress was what I referred to as my ‘chameleon’ dress because it somehow fit into any occasion. It was ever so slightly slutty, without being offensive, yet because there was nothing showing it still had an element of demure to it. I hadn’t worn it often, but when I did it was for one reason, and one reason only, to make sure I was in control of the night. Was I wearing it only because I hoped to meet the annoying Thomas Greer tonight? No, of course not. Was I lying to myself? Maybe.

Riley arrived five minutes early, as she always did. Not that I was surprised, she found lateness to be one of the rudest characteristics a person could have. “So, you find me rude?” I had asked her once. To which she had nodded. Twins, huh? They’re annoyingly honest with one another.

“Oh wow, you’re wearing your chameleon dress,” she said. “You look gorgeous. Hey, your hair! I didn’t know you dyed it. Suits the dress. You’re very coordinated today.”

I wiggled my red nails at her. “Why thank you. Only my underwear isn’t red, but nobody is going to see that tonight.”

“What about Thomas Greer?” she teased.

That made me laugh. “Gross. I’m not that desperate. Come on, let’s go.”

The Pepper Lane Club

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Book Review: A Cornish Affair by Jo Lambert

Published July 27, 2019 | By Laura

I am very happy to finally be welcoming Jo Lambert back to Novel Kicks with the blog tour for her new novel, A Cornish Affair.

Here’s a little about the book…

In the close-knit community of Carrenporth in Cornwall everyone knows everyone else’s business. Luke Carrack is only too aware of this. He’s been away for two years but nothing has changed – from the town gossips who can’t see past the scandal of his childhood, to the cold way he is treated by some of his so-called family.

The only person who seems to understand is local hotelier’s daughter Cat Trevelyan, although even Luke’s new friendship with her could set tongues wagging.

But Carrenporth is about to experience far bigger scandals than the return of Luke Carrack – and the secrets unearthed in the process will shake the sleepy seaside town to its core …

Luke Carrack is back in Carrenporth after a couple of years away.

He soon discovers that in the two years he has been away, not much as changed. There are still the village gossips and his Aunt and Cousin don’t like him much.

There is only one person he seems to connect with, Cat, who is the daughter of the local hotelier.

This book immediately pulled me in. This is partly down to the writing style and how it so easily got me absorbed into the story. Told from both Luke and Cat’s point of view, I really got an idea of what each one was thinking and feeling. The setting also sounds beautiful. I could see myself in this little Cornish town.

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Book Extract: I Can’t Tell You Why by Elaine Robertson North

Published July 27, 2019 | By Laura

Happy Saturday everyone and welcome to Elaine Robertson North and the blog tour for her novel, I Can’t Tell You Why.

Having an affair is inconceivable to Dani and yet she’s having one with Alex. He’s married, he’s an actor and she’s his agent.

Then Dani meets Sean, a paparazzi photographer with a formidable reputation. It’s a profession that makes him unpredictable at best. A dangerous trait when his motivation to expose becomes personal.

Dani knows she’s made mistakes. She also knows she’s not the first person who wilfully hurt someone they love and is simply unable to explain why.

Elaine has shared an extract with us today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

Dani is having an affair with Alex. He’s an actor and also married with children; she’s his agent. Their complicated relationship becomes even more so when Dani starts spending time with Sean, a paparazzi photographer. In this extract, Dani is heading home from an event with her two best friends, where the two men in her life – and Alex’s wife – have met for the first time.

Dani decided she’d well and truly had enough and leaving Sean to finish up his final obligation – a catch-up with the charity’s publicity team – she headed for the cloakroom for her coat. Much as she wanted to be alone, she couldn’t think of an excuse quickly enough to avoid sharing a cab with Billy and Amanda who had appeared beside her.

Within minutes, she found herself sitting in an uncomfortable silence next to Billy in the back of a cab with Amanda sitting opposite them, looking from one stony face to the other, wondering if she should attempt some conversation. She took a deep breath and smiled.

“Well that was fun!” She waited. Nothing. Not even a glance in her direction. Maybe she should just focus on Dani? She looked at her but her face was giving nothing away.

“You okay Dani?”

As the cab sped past a street lamp momentarily flooding them with light, Amanda couldn’t miss how Dani’s eyes were glistening, a clear sign that her friend was most definitely anything but. But those glistening eyes remained in a fixed stare, focused firmly out of the window while her body language was literally yelling a desperate plea to be left alone. Accepting defeat, Amanda sat back.

She had tried.

The silence continued until the cab pulled up outside Dani’s flat. She opened the door and, without a word or so much as a backward glance, she climbed out, closed the door behind her and headed inside. Billy watched her go as Amanda moved to sit next to him. She took hold of his hand and gave it a squeeze as the cab pulled away again. “You okay?”

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Book Review: Victory for the East End Angels by Rosie Hendry

Published July 25, 2019 | By Laura

Hello to Rosie Hendry. Today is publication day for Victory for the East End Angels, the last novel in the East End Angels series.

The war is almost over – and it’s up to the East End Angels to keep the home fires burning!

Frankie’s fiance, a doctor, is away looking after the troops in Europe – will he return safely home?

Winnie has a happy secret – but can she carry on at Station 75 when she’s going to have a baby?

Bella is intrigued by her new friend, a Polish airman.

As the war ends and victory is in sight, what next for the girls of Station 75?

Happy publication day, Rosie.

It is now 1944. The war is almost over but London and Station 75 are not out of danger yet.

Bella is still grieving over the loss of James but the promise of a new love means that she may finally be able to move on.

Frankie is worried about Alistair and what will happen to him once he heads back over to mainland Europe.

Winnie is in the same situation to Frankie. Mac is also due for deployment but something unexpected takes them both by surprise.

It was lovely to catch up with the inhabitants of Station 75. It’s like catching up with old friends. I found that I could identify with each of the four women (Bella, Franke, Winnie and Rose,) and I think that’s what makes them such wonderful, endearing characters.

Rosie is so good at pulling the reader into the setting. I could feel the atmosphere (good and bad.) At certain points in the story, I wanted to step into the pages and hang out with the characters for a while. The friendship these women share is the one everyone aspires to have.

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Book Extract: Truth or Die by Katerina Diamond

Published July 24, 2019 | By Laura

I am welcoming Katerina Diamond to Novel Kicks today and the blog tour for her latest novel, Truth or Die.

Their darkest secrets won’t stay buried forever…

The butchered body of a professor is found in a private office of Exeter University. It is the first in a spate of horrific murders that shakes the city to its core.

Who would target a seemingly innocent man, and why? DS Imogen Grey and DS Adrian Miles turn to his students for answers, but their investigation turns up no leads. Someone must know more than they’re letting on…

As the body count rises, the police have to look into the past to uncover the person responsible before it’s too late.

But are they brave enough to face up to the truth?

Katerina and Avon have shared an extract today. Enjoy.

***** beginning of extract*****

‘No, someone from the DCI’s old area. I think they wanted an outsider, someone who wasn’t caught up in any of the local shit,’ Adrian reassured her. Imogen herself had transferred from Plymouth under a bit of a black cloud and so he knew she wouldn’t appreciate working with any of her former colleagues.

‘Yet.’

‘Apparently she personally endorsed his transfer. The DCI has worked out all right. Maybe it’s a good move.’

‘Him? Is he hot?’

‘Why are you asking me?’

‘You can’t objectively say whether a man is attractive? Are you worried that I might think . . .’

‘Don’t finish that sentence. His face is very symmetrical, which suggests he is probably quite good-looking.’ Adrian smiled at her.

‘Wow. I’d hate to hear how you describe me.’ She gathered up her things to go.

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A Moment With… Julie Caplin

Published July 20, 2019 | By Laura

It’s finally the weekend. Julie Caplin joins me today with the blog tour for her novel, The Secret Cove in Croatia.

Sail away to beautiful Croatia for summer sun, sparkling turquoise seas and a holiday romance that’s forever…

When no-nonsense, down-to-earth Maddie Wilcox is offered the chance to work on a luxury yacht for the summer, she can’t say no. Yes she’ll be waiting on the posh guests… But island-hopping around the Adriatic sea will more than make up for it – especially when Nick, her best friend Nina’s brother, is one of them.

Sparks fly when they meet on board and Maddie can’t believe self-entitled jerk Nick is really related to Nina.

But in a secret, picture-perfect cove, away from the real world, Maddie and Nick discover they might have more in common than they realise…

Talking about the value of research, it’s over to you, Julie…

As I set my Romantic Escapes series in interesting, overseas locations, I’m often asked how I research my books.

These days with the internet at the tips of our fingers, it is so easy for authors to do their research from the comfort of their own homes and it is amazing what you can find out without ever having to leave home. However, as a writer, I’ve found that nothing quite beats proper first hand research thanks to those interesting little facts and insights that you pick up when you actually visit a place.

I’ve been to Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and Germany many times and I feel I have a reasonable understanding of the cultures of those countries, however when it came to writing my first book in the Romantic Escape series, The Little Café in Copenhagen, I had never been to Scandinavia let alone Denmark, so it felt really important that I visited Copenhagen to get a feel for the country and it’s people.

And it was exactly the right decision, I felt much more confident to write about the city once I’d been there.

With book five in the series, I decided to set the story in the beautiful country of Croatia. This was inspired by my lovely work colleague, Gordana, who grew up in Croatia. In our quieter moments (not many in a school office admittedly) she would show us the most wonderful pictures of the islands, the sea and the beautiful little towns. When my editor gave an enthusiastic thumbs up to Croatia as the next setting, I immediately knew that I needed a research trip to Croatia and specifically the Dalmatian Islands.

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