Book Extract: The Heartpine Recipes by L.C. Fields
Please join me in welcoming L.C. Fields to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for their novel, The Heartpine Recipes.
It’s more than southern storytelling. It’s southern storytelling with a side of biscuits.
When Grace Collier comes back to Heartpine, Tennessee, she’s thinking about endings. The end of her job. The end of her engagement. Instead, she finds a new beginning. A journey of discovery that will reconnect her to her home place…as well as her own past.
Like so many southern tales, this one starts out in the kitchen. Grace’s Aunt Jess – the wise, loving woman who raised her after her parents passed – is collecting recipes for a new community cookbook. It’s not long before Grace finds herself an honorary member of the cookbook committee; and next thing she knows, she’s busy gathering up all the rich stories that come with those recipes. All the surprises, all the mysteries, all the memories. Along the way, she gets to know a townful of unforgettable characters. Stirs up a few old secrets. And comes to terms, finally, with her own legacy of loss.
It’s about the recipes, yes. But more than that, it’s about the relationships. It’s a journey that links families and generations. A journey of homecoming and redemption.
And just for fun, every chapter includes an iconic southern recipe – so you can cook them up yourself and see what all the fuss is about. From cornbread to collards, from pulled pork to pineapple casserole, you’ll find them here. There’s even a never-fail recipe for the best sweet tea you’ve ever tasted (not that a true southern cook would need a recipe for that, heaven knows!).
Touching, positive and uplifting, The Heartpine Recipes is a generous serving of warmth, humor and heart.
L.C. Fields has shared an extract today. We hope you enjoy.
*****beginning of extract*****
The next morning, we marshaled our bowls and beaters and measuring cups and racks, like generals preparing the order of battle. The kitchen was cleared of other clutter, and the stand mixer was moved front and center. This was serious business.
Oh, I know. All we were doing, when you reduced it down to the barest facts, was making a cake. But trying to reclaim anything that’s been lost, to drag it back out of the maw of oblivion? That’s not an easy thing.
by 
Book Spotlight: Neptune’s Secret Code by Genna Rowbotham
I’m thrilled to be welcoming Genna Rowbotham to Novel Kicks. Today we are shining a light on her book, Neptune’s Secret Code.
★ ★★ An Undersea Adventure filled with Magic, Friendship, and Bravery! ★★★
When Hannah is sucked into a vicious whirlpool in her effort to rescue kitten Leo, vshe finds herself entering Neptune’s Undersea Kingdom where she reawakens terrifying sea monsters from the depths of the sea.
The trouble is… Hannah is unable to return home until she’s overcome her fear of the water, defeated the sea monsters, and solved the code that she broke upon entering Neptune’s Kingdom.
With the help of her new friend, Marcie the Mermaid, will Hannah succeed?
Neptune’s Secret Code is due to be released by Adventure Scape Press on 12th June 2024. Click to buy on Amazon, Waterstones or via Geena’s website.
by Novel Kicks To… Kay Seeley
Hello Kay. Thank you so much for joining me today and inviting Novel Kicks onto your blog tour. Can you tell me about your novel, A Heart Full of Hope and what inspired it?
The story was inspired by the character, Charity. She’s the daughter of a bishop and wants to do something worthwhile with her life. Charity’s family want her to make a good marriage but she’s more interested in helping a small, mute boy she meets in a home for waifs and strays. A chance meeting with Jack Carter, the hotel housekeeper’s disreputable brother intrigues her and promises a different, more exciting way of life. The story was inspired by the two different worlds in Edwardian London.
What’s your typical writing day like? Do you have any writing rituals?
I usually begin with going through emails and getting the business side out of the way so I can concentrate on the creative side with free mind. I make a lot of notes about what I want to incorporate into the story. I don’t plot. I put my characters into difficult situations to see how they react. The story comes from the characters. I generally have a theme, but nothing concrete. It’s all very flexible. A lot of the story comes while I’m doing other things, like gardening, walking, or on the train into town. Then I work the ideas into the story.
What are the challenges you found when writing your novel especially when it’s part of a series?
by Book Review: Under The Summer Skye by Sue Moorcroft
We are so pleased to be welcoming Sue Moorcroft back to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, Under a Summer Skye.
A Scottish island. A stranger from the mainland. A summer of possibilities…
Escape to the Isle of Skye this summer with the Sunday Times bestselling author, and lose yourself in the first book of the Skye Sisters Trilogy.
A chance encounter is about to change everything for Thea Wynter.
The moment she arrived on the Isle of Skye, life changed for Thea. Running from a succession of wrong turns, she comes to the island in search of blue sea, endless skies, and mountains that make the heart soar. Here, she feels at peace.
As head gardener at Rothach Hall, life is exactly how she wants it, with her days spent working in the glorious clifftop garden and her evenings in the cosy village pub.
But an encounter with a stranger from the mainland brings with it an unexpected turn – and she is left wondering whether he is friend or foe.
It seems that even on Skye, life can catch up with you, and Thea is soon faced with the past she left behind – and with it, the family she’s never met…
From old lives to new beginnings, lose yourself on the beautiful Isle of Skye with Thea as she discovers how many possibilities life can truly hold if you look hard enough.
*****
One of my favourite authors is back, and with a bang and a gentle, woof! As I understand it, ‘Under a Summer Skye’ is the first book in a trilogy set on the Isle of Skye (this is up in Scotland, for those of you who don’t know where this real, spectacular place is).
by Book Review: Stars in the City by Krysten Lindsay Hager
I’m very pleased to be welcoming Krysten Lindsay Hager back to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, Stars in the City.
These stars seem to have it all…
Valeria Joseph seems to have it all: career as actress on the soap opera, Charmed Lives, and everyone wants to be her. Her so-star, Cecily Taylor, fixes her up with a rising pop star named Dex Doyle and suddenly Valeria has a bigger spotlight on her.
Then, on the busy streets of New York City, she runs into her first love, Davis, who she never got over. Davis is a college basketball player who is dealing with high pressure stressors of his own and they find themselves supporting one another and falling back in love.
But, just like being on a daytime soap is full of drama—so is the publicity that surrounds Valeria. Throw in a pop star who’s crazy about her, an award show event that trends on social media for all the wrong reasons, and tons of swoony moments. Can Valeria find true love in the big city?
*****
To the outside world, Valeria Joseph has it all. She’s an actress on the popular soap opera, Charmed Lives and has the attention of a handsome pop star. However, the life of an actress isn’t always as it seems and when Valeria runs into her old boyfriend, can she find something she thought she’d lost forever?
Although Krysten Lindsay Hager has previously featured on Novel Kicks, this is the first opportunity I’ve had to review one of her novels. I was excited to be invited onto the blog tour and couldn’t wait to get started.
Being targeted at 10 – 18 years, I am not the target audience in terms of age. However, I found myself enjoying this book very much. It had the feel of the Sweet Valley High books or the Sisters books by Marilyn Kaye but with a modern feel. It’s a book I would have picked up had I been that age and I hope to read more if this book is the first in a series.
by Book Club
