Book Extract: A Family Affair by Joy Wood

Published December 4, 2025 | By Laura

It’s so exciting to be welcoming Joy Wood to Novel Kicks today and the blog tour for her book, A Family Affair.

Odele Gardia . . . married to wealthy businessman Howard, is the hard-nosed matriarch of the family and will stop at nothing to achieve her goals. She’s ruthless in the boardroom and not afraid to lean on adversaries.

Sebastian Gardia . . . Odele’s brother and business partner. His wife, Freya, reveals that she is pregnant with their first child.

Elliot . . . the prodigal son, is returning from America with his girlfriend, intending to propose to her.

Business is booming, her brother is going to become a father, and her son is coming home – it’s surely a time to celebrate. But Odele is hiding a huge secret and is constantly looking over her shoulder. If the secret came out, it would destroy the family.

Jimmy Alder . . . booted out of the police force, has been paid to spy on the family. The discovery he makes could have catastrophic consequences for them all.

A dysfunctional family, protectors of their power, wealth and each other, have no warning of the revelations about to erupt and the cost to their dynasty.

Joy has kindly shared an extract from A Family Affair with us today. We hope you enjoy it.

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

Odele Gardia, matriarch of the family was sitting in their luxurious offices where her and her brother Sebastian ran a successful business selling upmarket properties in London. Seb is married to beautiful Freya who he is deeply in love with.

“Okay, what’s going on?” she asked.

“Freya and I have had a bust up,” his face crumpled as he scratched his forehead, “it’s a big one, she’s thrown me out.”

“Thrown you out? What the hell’s happened, Freya adores you?”

“Yeah well, not right now she doesn’t.” He took a deep breath, “She’s found out I’ve slept with someone.”

“You what!?”

“I know, I know, it was a one off. It just happened one night.”

“You bloody idiot! Why the hell would you do that?”

He shook his head but avoided meeting her eyes.

“You’re risking everything you’ve got for sex?” Her tummy clenched with anger and disappointment that he’d do such a thing. She scowled. “It’s no good shaking your head and looking all sorry for yourself, why would you do that to Freya? You have everything you want with her! Why?”

“You know why,” he looked vulnerable, like a lost little boy as his sorrowful eyes met her angry ones, “I haven’t got everything I want, have I?”

“There’s no point in going down that road again,” she snapped, “you’re married and have the best wife you could possibly have. How does she know about this so-called one night?”

“The hotel gave her some shoes she supposedly left behind the last time we stayed there. They weren’t hers.”

Odele glared in disbelief. “Are you serious? What are you saying, these shoes belong to this woman?”

“I don’t know. But they aren’t Freya’s.”

“Hotels don’t do that sort of thing,” she said, “they’re discreet, they have to be.”

“Yeah, you’d think so. To be perfectly honest, they don’t even look like the sort of shoes that she’d wear . . . they’re stilettos with red soles.”

Odele gasped. “So, you’ve had sex with a slapper! Have you asked her if they’re hers?”

“No. I don’t see her regularly. It was a night a month or so ago.”

“How well do you know this woman? Have you dumped her and she’s out for revenge because it sounds very much to me like you’ve been stitched up. Like I said, no hotel would do that.”

He blew out a breath, “You could be right. But why go to all that trouble, it wasn’t like it was going anywhere? She knew that.”

“Well, something isn’t right. And there are plenty of people that’d be happy to get to you.”

“Like who?”

“I don’t know. It could be anyone, you are pretty ruthless when you put your mind to it. My money is on this woman if you’ve treated her badly.”

“I don’t know,” he shook his head, “that seems far-fetched.” He leaned back in his chair, “I’m denying it, but Freya’s not stupid, and right now she won’t even discuss it. I booked into the Carlisle for a couple of nights, I’m hoping she’ll see sense and let me come home when she’s cooled down.”

Odele raised her eyebrows, “Let’s hope she does, then. The consequences of her not cooling down, don’t bear thinking about. We have the business to consider.”

He jumped to his feet. “Business! Is that all you can think about?” he made his way to the panoramic window overlooking the busy London street.

“Right now, yes, it is,” she swivelled her chair round towards him as he stared out of the window. “The last thing I want, or you for that matter, is for her to divorce you and take you for all you’ve got.”

He spun his head towards her, “Nobody’s getting divorced, trust you to think about that.”

“Yeah, well, somebody has to.”

“I love Freya, you know that . . .” He ran a hand through his hair. “There’s more.”

“More?” she shook her head. “What else could there possibly be?”

“Freya’s pregnant.”

“Jesus Christ Seb, you stupid, bloody fool. Have you got a death wish or something?” It was rare to see him so shaken, she should feel sorry, but because she was tired, her patience was thin. “So, what happens now with Freya?”

“I don’t know.” Anguish was etched all over his face. “I get the best news I could ever have and now all this. I’ve purposely done as she’s asked and packed a few things as I’m scared if she gets too stressed, she might lose the baby.”

“Well, at least you got that bit right. Look,” she stood up and moved towards him at the window. “I’m sure Freya will calm down given time, she loves you. But it must be a massive shock to her . . . it is to me. I’m . . . disappointed you would do that.”

“I know . . . and I’m sorry. It meant nothing, it just happened.”

She stared at the brother who she’d virtually brought up in the absence of their mother. Howard would joke that she was like a dog as far as Seb was concerned. He could commit a murder and she’d still love him. “Then you’ll have to do your best to put things right,” she squeezed his arm affectionately. “All marriages go through bad patches. You’re going to have to try hard to get through this.”

His eyes had taken on a faraway look. “We’ve so much to look forward to. I can’t believe there’s going to be a baby. I want to celebrate that with her and share in everything. If I could just get back into the house and talk to her, make her see it meant nothing.”

“You’ll need to give her time until she’s ready to talk, it’s the least you can do. And admit what you’ve done for a start. I don’t know why you didn’t in the first place. This woman’s shoes are compelling evidence as far as I can see.” She walked back towards her desk to check on an alert that had pinged on her phone. “I’ll go round and see her. Maybe Howard as well, you know, family unity and all that.”

“Yeah, that might help,” his eyes didn’t seem quite so forlorn. “She’ll listen to you.”

“Let’s hope so. But don’t you be thinking for one minute I’ll be siding with you. I love you, but sometimes I don’t like you.

*****end of extract*****

About Joy Wood –

Joy Wood has worked as a nurse most of her adult life and turned to writing to ‘see if she could.’ Her earlier work was adult romance and intrigue, but more recently she has switched genres to crime with a romance element which has paid off.

In May of 2025, Joy was the fortunate recipient of the RNA award in the crime fiction category for her book Whatever It Takes.

Joy lives in the small but charming seaside town of Cleethorpes in North East Lincolnshire and her writing ideas come from watching the tide turn daily, of course with the obligatory ice-cream – someone has to support the local economy!

Say hello to Joy via her website and on Facebook, X and Instagram.

A Family Affair was released in November 2025. Click to buy on Amazon UK and Amazon US.