Lucy Mitchell's Blog, page 18

#BookReview The Hunter’s heart – Love After Earth @Astrid_S_Author #romance

Calling all romance fans who fancy something intense and passionate – but with a science fiction twist.

There’s a new sci-fi romance author in town – Astrid Sharpe. You need to check out her debut book which launches today – The Hunter’s Heart – Love After Earth – book 1.

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Lately I have been talking about my trusty handheld fan being exhausted after some of the great romance books I have been reading. Good romances make me get a bit flustered on my sofa so my little hand held fan cools me down. Well – this book broke him – my fan! I kept urging him to go to a higher speed to combat my sweaty brow but he had nothing left in him so he fell apart. That’s how intense the romance is in Astrid Sharpe’s new book.

Here’s the blurb:

I thought my job sucked. But I’m about to be sold as a breeder to a seven-foot panther-man, so things can get worse…much worse.

Zensah is the reluctant leader of his nearing-extinction tribe. He’d thought he was paying the passage for willing settlers, not abducted females. If only he’d trusted his instincts and refused the trade. But then he would never have met Poppy, the brave human leader whose beautiful eyes burn with courage and defiance. She’s the only female he’s ever yearned to claim as his mate. But will she ever accept him?

When Poppy fights her captors, Zensah and his men help the humans escape, but find themselves stranded in the wild territories of his home planet. Determined to live independently, Poppy asks Zensah to teach her survival skills on their journey to her rendezvous with her fellow humans. She should hate him… Except she’s never felt so alive.

Reader advisory: This book contains scenes of abduction and some violence

Here’s my review:

This book was hard to put down. On a HOT romance scale this is a perfect 10. In addition it is very imaginative and descriptive so I guarantee a cinematic view in your mind. By half way you will be wondering whether you are in a cinema by yourself. Also the post book dreams are quite special too but don’t mention these to your loved one – hee hee.

The book has a great start – Poppy, a fish and chip shop owner, gets kidnapped and abducted by aliens on her way home. Along with some other women, who have been captured, she discovers they are about to be sold as breeders / mates to an alien species. However the human women decide to fight back and all hell breaks loose on this strange planet. The first few chapters are like something out of a film, action packed and a bit scary.

Things don’t go according to plan as the women put up quite a fight against their evil captors and end up being rescued by local tribesman Zensah and his men. Zensah and Poppy start off as friends and he starts to teach her how to survive on this new planet. Their love is a slow burn which I liked.

What I loved about this book is that it is dual narrated by Poppy and Zensah. This gives the reader an insight into what both characters are thinking but also it allows the author to bring a little humour into the story. Both Poppy and Zensah have different views on each other which is quite funny. He is in awe of this pale creature who at times can be quite rebellious and finds her screams so loud they ‘pierce his skull like blade.’ She has this great inner commentary. I was chuckling when she was wondering whether she needed to see a psychiatrist about her crush on a giant alien panther man.

The romance is once both Poppy and Zensah struggle to contain their strong feelings for each other.

This was an entertaining read. I loved the world building, the strong female characters, Poppy’s wit and the caring and gentle nature of Zensah. Looking forward to the rest in the series.

Who is Astrid Sharpe?

She writes fun, sexy science fiction romance, with seven-foot panther-men.Astrid has traveled all over the world, she’s obsessed with new places, science fiction films, and romance books. So, it seemed only natural to build incredible worlds with sexy, passionate characters who deserve only the very best happily ever after following their dangerous adventures. An Astrid Sharpe novel will give you out-of-this-world characters fighting for love in a wild and evocative landscape.

https://www.facebook.com/astrid.sharpe.14
https://twitter.com/Astrid_S_Author

Purchase links

https://t.co/kPuAWEe3tZ

How To Survive Writing Your Weird Story Idea #amwriting

You have no clue where the idea for your latest WIP came from.

When it first materialised inside your head your initial reaction was one of utter shock.

“Oh my goodness, this idea for a (in my case romance) story is weird,” you whispered.

A helpful loved one laughed and made the mistake of saying, “try me…I love weird stuff.”

So, you told them about your bizarre romance plot. Their wide eyes and gaping mouth said a lot.

So did their inability to say anything for five minutes once you had finished.

“But there is something inviting and delicious about about this bizarre romance,” you explained.

Your loved one scratched his head and cast you that familiar odd look. The same one he used to give you when you were belting out your karaoke Cher pop classic or clearing the dance floor at a party with your unique dance moves.

To try and justify your idea about a romance between two very eccentric and quirky characters you recited a quote you’d read:

“Fall in love with a weird one – someone not quite right in the head – life is far more interesting when love is odd.”

— Topher Kearby

As your loved one walked away shaking his head in disbelief you heard him say to the dog, “she has some really weird ideas about romance. I am just glad I’m the normal one in this marriage.”

When will our loved ones learn we are writers and we get our creative thrills from weird stuff?

So, what do I mean by a weird story?

This is fiction where the characters have either entered into a place unfamiliar to most of us, or they themselves are a little irregular. It could also be perceived ‘weird’ to others if you are breaking free from your genre comfort zone.

Before I talk about how you survive this literary challenge I want to tell you about the things you will encounter as you start to write.

Working on a weird story is a bitter-sweet writing experience.

I shall explain why:

Bucket loads of self-doubt. 

If you think the self-doubt levels are bad on a bulk standard story you should try writing a totally weird story. When writing an odd tale your inner critic will go wild. Seriously, they will explode.

Expect the following from your inner critic:

“Is this romance a joke?”

“You have really lost your marbles this time.”

“Excuse me – is anyone going to read this?”

Bucket loads of creative euphoria.

When you work on a weird tale you will experience crazy levels of creative euphoria.

Expect to mutter the following whilst at your writing desk:

“Why haven’t I written weird romance before?”

“The buzz I am getting from writing this weird story is better than… [enter favourite pleasurable activity].

“Characters who are a bit strange are AMAZING!”

The creative high you will get from writing a weird story will be like no other.

If you want to really enjoy yourself – write something a bit strange!

So, how do you survive writing the weird story?

Don’t over think the weirdness or you will end up writing nothing. Just stick with it and see where your story leads you.

In this life everyone is a little weird. You might consider yourself as ‘normal’ – but if you are really honest with yourself – you might even admit that you could be ‘slightly irregular’.

Remember what you think is weird might be normal to some readers.

Weird characters are interesting and are always bound to stick in the minds of your readers.

Stop questioning why you are writing something a little strange.

Sometimes the stories we write act like bridges to others. Maybe you need to follow this idea as it could lead to something else?

There is nothing wrong with exploring.

Read this amazing paragraph from an article on weird stories. It explains what writing about strange stuff is all about.

Just as in real life, things don’t always quite add up, the narrative isn’t quite what we expected, and in that space we discover some of the most powerful evocations of what it means to be human or inhuman. 

Embrace your weird tale and enjoy the creative ride!

#BookReview Italy Ever After @LeonieMAuthor #ItalyEverAfter #Italy

There’s a beautiful and unforgettable scene from this book by Leonie Mack where the character, Nick Romano, plays his violin amongst Italian olive trees. Lou, the main character watches ‘the music pour out of him.’ Nick is described so well; his ‘hair curling wildly, his body lurched with the music, energy rippliing through him.’ It really is a fabulous scene with limited dialogue and whilst he plays Lou starts to understand him as a person. I thought this was really clever and worth pulling out. Going to be hard to forget about that.

When he finishes Lou wants to kiss him ‘so very badly’ and I found myself wanting to do exactly the same.

Escape to the sun and head off to Italy, with the wonderfully warm and ever-so-page-turning Leonie Mack!

TV journalist Lou feels battered and bruised after her divorce from Phil, the father of her daughter Edie. Her confidence and sense of fun have steadily been drained away, and she isn’t sure who she is any more.

When the opportunity arises to accompany Edie on a music camp in Italy for a month in the summer, Lou jumps at the chance for new adventures, new horizons and new friends. The hazy warmth of the summer sun, shining brightly over the stunning Lake Garda, slowly brings Lou back to life.

Nick Romano, Edie’s music teacher, loves being home in Italy, but coaching his students for their concert in Milan, is bringing back difficult memories. His blossoming friendship with Lou is the perfect distraction, although a summer fling would be easier to conduct without the scrutiny of his mother Greta, not to mention the interference of his extended Italian family.

As the summer passes, full of sunshine and breath-taking scenery, gelato and delicious feasts, Lou and Nick get ever closer. But as the time for farewell creeps up on them, will they be able to say goodbye and leave their memories behind in the Italian sun, or can a summer romance last a lifetime?
Leonie Mack is back with a sizzling, sun-baked love story, perfect for all fans of Mandy Baggot, Jo Thomas and Carole Matthews.

Here’s my review:

A lovely heartwarming story which will leave you with a lasting smile.

Music always plays a key part in Leonie’s books. With this book it was a trip to Italy and a music camp in Lake Garda. The music theme is cleverly woven into the story and helps bring it to life. I always think that Leonie’s books should come with a free CD full of the music from the story. Leonie – if you are reading this I have your next book freebie idea sorted

I loved the characters of Lou and Nick. As the book progresses we can see they have both been hiding their talents and struggling with confidence. It was nice to see how the music camp and love brought out the best of them. Lou paticularly caught my attention as she had been through a rough time following her divorce. She has a great character arc and was a different person by the end. I also thought the character of Edie was great and the way the author made her light up the page.

The setting was beautifully captured and complimented the wonderful sounds coming from the music camp. The perfect backdrop to Lou and Nick’s blossoming romance.

Great job – Leonie!

Purchase Links: https://amzn.to/3qfXhDq

Author Bio:
Leonie Mack is a debut novelist whose first book My Christmas Number One was published by Boldwood in September 2020. Having lived in London for many years her home is now in Germany with her husband and three children. Leonie loves train travel, medieval towns, hiking and happy endings!

Social Media Links
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeonieJMack
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeonieMAuthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leoniejmack/
Newsletter Sign Up Link: https://bit.ly/LeonieMackNewsletter
Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/leonie-mac

#Amreading The 5 Stages of a Fictional Crush #Writerslife

This week I found myself battling with a powerful and lingering fictional crush on a male character from Zoe Allison’s latest novel, Second Chance At First Love.’ I’m still not over it yet and have had to pause my reading as every time I open another book I picture…Damon (sigh) and his mid-thigh navy swim shorts in my mind. If you read my blog post on Zoe’s book earlier this week you will know I struggled to keep the fire and heart emojis under control on my review blog post and I had to give my hand held electric fan a break as it was exhausted.

Fictional crushes on book characters can take several forms:

You are a bookworm who falls helplessly in love with a character in the novel you are reading. You are a writer and can’t shake off the fluttery feelings for the character you have just created. You are a writer and have a hot crush on the character your fellow writer friend has cast in her / his latest draft book which needs an intelligent critique.

Each type of crush will see you exhibiting that same sort of symptoms:

Feeling hot and flustered when your crush comes onto the page.Sleepless nights thinking about your book crush and knowing they don’t actually exist.Going bat crazy on a book review and letting your emotions run away. Picturing your crush in your day to day life; your crush smouldering in the frozen food section of your local supermarket, casting you a hot look in the butchers as you pay for your sausages and winking at you as they help you with putting out the recycling waste in the rain.You pestering your writer friend with emails titled with, I AM OBSESSED WITH [enter character name of choice], and, WE WILL HAVE TO FIGHT OVER [enter character of choice]. Being unable to stop tweeting about your book crush or making Insta stories featuring your dreamy face as you hug the book in question / your own manuscript or your friend’s draft novel.

So, here are the 5 stage of a fictional crush:

Go wild with a book / new story / your writer friend’s latest book. This is the stage where you realise you are on a fictional holiday in the story and for the next hour or two, free from the drudgery of your normal life. It is an amazing feeling to be stepping onto a fictional golden beach, looking out (through a character’s eyes) across a crystal clear blue sea and hearing that little voice inside you whisper, “think I am going to enjoy reading / writing this.” As the character starts to let their fictional hair down in the story and enjoy themselves – so do you in your armchair / writing chair. In your head you are this character rocking a new bikini, ignoring nagging doubts about wobbly bits on thighs and excited about dancing on tables later. Meeting Book Crush. This is the stage where you come face to face with your fictional book crush. The fluttery feelings in your chest will start the second they stride onto the page. You can expect the following to fall out of your lips without warning; OH HELLO, SEXY! This is where loved ones in your reading / writing vicinity could drop their tray of home baked cookies in shock as they think you’re lusting after them. If you are reading a character created by your writer friend this is where you will start frantically messaging them with the words; WHO HAVE YOU CREATED? They will be wanting you to critique their story but you will be obsessed with their character. After a few messages of excessive CAPITALS and heart emojis they will realise they are not going to get any sense out of you for a few weeks. Desperate to shove the other character out of the way. This is where your fictional crush on your book character starts. We are talking tingles in places I can’t mention on this blog, excitement coursing through your veins, swooning every time you turn the page and light headedness during fictional intimate moments. All this will result in you being desperate to climb into the story and shove the other character out of the way so you can have your crush all to yourself. The book’s romantic climax. This is where you enjoy the book’s romantic climax. Loved ones will be casting you odd looks as you gasp for someone to pass you your hand held electric fan. Soon you will be seen lying in state on the sofa with a cold compress across your forehead and whispering your fictional love interest’s name. Is it goodbye or see you again soon? You’ve reached the end of the book and its a sad time for you. Yes, you got a satisfying HEA ending but you’re going to miss your fictional crush a lot. In addition you will also be faced with the agonising task of going on social media and discovering…OTHER READERS ARE IN FICTIONAL LOVE WITH YOUR CRUSH. You will be seen shaking your head in disapproval at someone on twitter talking about their obsession for your crush’s mid-thigh swimming shorts, his muscular chest and his cheeky banter. Loved ones will watch your eyes flash with anger and you will mutter, GET IN LINE, HONEY. The only way to live with your suffering of not being with your fictional crush is to not say goodbye but whisper, SEE YOU SOON, TIGER.

To anyone out there experiencing a fictional crush – you have my sympathy. Hang in there, my friend.

Keep writing x

#Book Review Second Chance At First Love @zoeallisonauth1 #whattoread

My hand held electric fan is a shadow of its former self.

Warning – this book review contains a lot of and emojis, CAPITALS and exclamation marks. Obviously I have tried to keep my cool and my emotions in check whilst writing this review *sigh*

This book by Zoe Allison sent the temperature soaring here in Wales.

At about 20% through on my kindle I had to turn on my fan as the male lead, Damon, was making me feel warm. By 60% in I was flushed and sat with my face turned into my exhausted electric fan (which was on full blast). Damon is so Don’t get me started on what sort of state I was in at 75%.

This one should be on your TBR list (and high up too) if you are in need of some intense romance and you have access to a powerful electric fan!

Second Chance at First Love

Eva Mathers is a successful woman, except for when it comes to matters of the heart. When she returns home to Yorkshire as a pending divorcee, she realises her childhood friend and first love Damon Evans is also newly single. It’s a pity he’s never noticed her romantically and had no idea that she was in love with him at school. But at least they can support each other as friends again.
Damon is attempting to adjust to life sharing the kids with his ex. His reconnection with Eva is strong, but she was always too good for him and made her indifference clear after they drifted apart during their younger years. In any case, she still seems to be hung up on her charismatic ex-husband. Eva is hiding things from Damon, secrets from her past. He wants to be there for her, so why can’t she let him in?

Eva is dealing with trauma, but she won’t confide in her loved ones. Can Damon help her break down her walls before it’s too late and they miss their second chance at first love?

Here’s my review:

Wow!

This book took me to NEW romance reading heights. Have not read a romance like this one for quite awhile.

My favourite trope is second chance love so from the start when Eva met up again with her old school crush, Damon, I was HOOKED!

Zoe Allison writes this trope so well. The cheeky banter early on in this book between Eva and Damon is brilliant. They were exactly how I wanted them to be – joking about their school days and playfully teasing each other. Cheeky banter is a big tick for me in romance books.

I was captivated by these two school friends who had recently bumped into each other again. I loved their school history – how she had a crush on him and never thought he would be interested. Both had recently emerged from painful past relationships and both needed to mend their damaged hearts. All this was another big tick for me.

I have such a fictional crush on Damon now. My goodness he did things to me with his cheekiness, his mid-thigh navy swim shorts, his fashion sense and the love he had for his kids, Adele and Sam from his previous marriage.

It didn’t take long for my attention to be totally Damon focused especially when he joins Eva in a jacuzzi at the gym. Oh, Lord here come the emojis again *whispers ‘must stay in control of my emotions and not cover this review in *

Good supporting cast of minor characters. I loved the two mothers, Meena and Lily who did some cracking meddling to get Eva and Damon together.

With this book you also get the added bonus of a school reunion, old school friend gossip and a lot of romantic miscommunication – all big ticks for me!

*Wipes brow* All the stars possible on the online book review sites for me with this book. I went to bed (after a late night finishing it) with a smile and a naughty twinkle in my eye.

Meanwhile in hand held fan world…

Think my fan and I need to go lie down in a darkened room with a cold compress on my forehead.

Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Second-Chance-First-Love-Loves-ebook/dp/B08W5BG1M5
US – https://www.amazon.com/Second-Chance-First-Love-Loves-ebook/dp/B08W5BG1M5

Author Bio:

Zoe lives in Scotland with her husband and two children. A medic by day, she
started writing in her spare time as a means to counter burn out and found that this was a
balm for the soul.

She is a fan of the romantic genre and its ‘happy ever after’ ethos. A sharp contrast to what she can, at times, see in her day job. Zoe is keen for the female lead in romantic fiction to disabuse stereotypes and walk on an equal footing with her male counterparts. She prefers male leads
who do not display signs of toxic masculinity and believes that positive masculinity is
much more attractive to women and healthier for men.

Social Media Links:

Twitter: zoeallisonauth1
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/zoe.allison.9279
Insta: zoeallisonauthor
TikTok: @dr.zoe_writ

Author Interview – Bettina Hunt @BeautySwot #romance #amwriting

A few creative moons ago I read, Without a Hitch, by a romance author called Bettina Hunt. From the start of the book I loved her humour, her relatable characters and her take on romantic comedy. I went onto read one of her other novels; A Tempting Trio, and laughed so much at her hilarious book I nearly fell off my chair. Since then I have become a bit of a Bettina Hunt author superfan. She still hasn’t managed to shake me off – lol.

In real life she’s one of the funniest people I know and always makes me smile. Now that her fabulous new book, High Heels on the Beach, is out I have persuaded her to come on my blog.

I thought it would be fun to do an author interview so you can all find out more about Bettina Hunt.

Please welcome one of my favourite romantic comedy & women’s fiction authors, Bettina Hunt.

Hello, thanks for having me on your blog, it’s such an honour!

Bettina – can you tell us about yourself?

Such a difficult first question, Lucy!

I’m a forty something writer of romcoms and women’s fiction. I have two young boys and I can tell you that homeschooling them during Covid was certainly not an easy thing as one thing I’ve never wanted to be is a teacher, huge respect to those who are!

I used to work in product management however, at one time I was thinking of becoming a lawyer… that attention to detail that I learnt during my law degree has held me in good stead

As a gemini I have so many interests, I can be known to be indecisive but the one thing I knew was that I always wanted to write in some capacity. I started writing a blog about beauty and afternoon tea when I was at home with my eldest boy and then added a Friday Column so that I could share my poetry and short stories. My first book – A Tempting Trio – was originally a short story on my blog.

I’ve published four books and partially written another five. My ultimate dream is to have at least one of my books made into a film. I would also love to be part of a comedy writing team, writing either comedy sketches or a sitcom (i’m not fussy!) Sharon Horgan is one of my favourite writers and she’s written two of my favourite TV Shows – Catastrophe and Motherland. Most recently I’ve become obsessed with the BBC ONE series This Is My House. It’s a brilliant concept, so entertaining and funny.

Just before lockdown I also discovered Schitt’s Creek which is the ultimate heartwarming, feelgood comedy series. With perfectly written characters that evolve beautifully as the series plays out I laughed and cried. It’s the best series ever.

Tell us about your new book?

High Heels on the Beach is a heartwarming contemporary romantic comedy set in both London and the fictional seaside town of Sunny Bay. It tells the story of Becca who’s used to letting her bestie make decisions for her in a twist on the Choose Your Own Story books that they used to read. When her world comes crumbling down, Becca realises she needs to stop relying on others and take control of her own destiny. Her planned voyage of self-discovery is thwarted by the need for her to return to the one place she’s been avoiding, home. In Sunny Bay she’s forced to take on the running of the family’s B&B, bringing her face to face with old flames and adversaries and meeting a host of colourful residents at the B&B. The story follows Becca’s emotional journey and her struggle between the pull of her old corporate life and a new life in Sunny Bay.

Where did the idea for the book come from?

I actually got the idea when I was on holiday in Spain. I was looking around at the people by the pool and wondered how many of them were not looking forward to getting back to their jobs and the idea spiralled from there. I had planned to start writing it during NanoWrimo in November, however I felt compelled to write as soon as I got home and wrote 30,000 words during the Summer Holidays.

When you are not writing books what do you like doing?

Most of this hasn’t been possible since COVID struck but … I love going out for afternoon tea, eating out and enjoying cocktails. I love going on mini breaks. I love the theatre, the west end shows. I love watching comedy shows on TV to lift my spirits. And I LOVE to sing just for me mostly although I do lip syncs on Instagram too.

Best piece of writing advice you have ever been given?

You have to turn on the tap to let the water flow AND you can’t edit an empty page.

How long have you been writing books?

I wrote my first full book in 2015 but i’ve always had ideas bouncing around in my head. Still do. Every day in fact. Especially when I’m doing the washing up or in bed, trying to sleep.

What book are you reading at the moment.

I’m reading a romcom (not much of a surprise there!) called The Summer Job by Lizzie Dent. It’s made me laugh out loud so that’s a good sign.

Who are your favourite authors and why?

I love Lucy Vine for making me laugh out loud. Milly Johnson’s books are like a cuddle, warm and funny with fantastic characters. John Grisham for page turning suspense – My favourite book of his was The Runaway Jury. More recently I’ve discovered JP Delaney for thrillers. But honestly I read so many wonderful books that I wish I could give them all a shout out.

9.Favourite social media channel?

Twitter I think – I love how instant it is and I love to talk and chat, connect with people

Favourite romance film?

How can I choose! I love romantic films and even better if they make me laugh… But if I really, really, had to choose – Okay I have 3 films in mind.

Some Kind of Wonderful made me cry buckets and has some fantastic lines in it. My two favourite romcoms are Sweet Home Alabama and You’ve Got Mail. I could happily watch all three over and over again.

Decision shy Becca is used to her best friend making decisions for her, but after a disastrous 30th birthday, London living Becca realises she needs to stop relying on others and take control of her own destiny.

With her life plans in tatters, she’s forced to return home to the quiet seaside town of Sunny Bay and the family’s B&B, where the bedrooms are covered in chintz and her mother is still serving up culinary delights from the 1970s. Adamant that she’s not staying, Becca embarks on a soul-searching trip to Europe.

She’s barely stepped foot abroad before a family crisis sees her back in Sunny Bay and in charge of the B&B. Coming face to face with old flames and adversaries, Becca’s reminded why she left and is determined to get back to her old life in London.

But when the mysterious Madame DoTell, fortune teller to the stars, insists that home is where the heart is, Becca begins to wonder if she should listen…

If home is where the heart is, where is home?

High Heels on the Beach is a light-hearted and fun packed Summer tale perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Lindsey Kelk.

Book purchase link: click here.

#BookReview 📚 The Single Mums’ Book Club 🧸 @VictoriaCooke10 #whattoread

This book brought back my smile after a tough week of day job hell and teenage children. This book saved my sanity.

I think books which encourage smiles to return should be shouted about. After reading this story about friendship, a book club support system and a good helping of romance I felt like my old self again.

Here’s the blurb:

Three friends, three single mums, one quest to find love…

It’s 8:30am and I’m already utterly exhausted. My son has lost his football boots, my daughter is ready for school dressed only in her vest and knickers, and of course, my 1-year-old has filled his nappy for what feels like the tenth time this morning.

As for my husband? He’s decided marriage doesn’t suit him, and well… buggered off.

All hope of ‘me time’ has but dwindled to sipping half a glass of wine whilst shouting after the kids. But everything is about to change.

I’m taking control of my life! I’ve joined… a book club.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking. ‘Wow… live a little.’ But my fellow book clubbers, Amanda and Janey, are my lifelines. They understand the daily struggle because they’re mothers too.

And in between the prosecco, Doritos and googling everything about Mr Darcy on SparkNotes, they’ve convinced me to go on a date with my boss.
A single mum of three looking for romance… what could possibly go wrong?

A gloriously funny and relatable read for anyone who just needs a little more ‘me time’. Fans of Why Mummy Drinks and Has Anyone Seen my Sex Life? will snort with laughter at this utterly hilarious and heart-warming read.

Here’s my review:

Sometimes in life we all need a funny and uplifting book and this is just what you get with this from Victoria Cooke.

The standout is the way Victoria Cooke creates a book club lifeline for her character, Steph, who is in need of some friendship and moral support. Steph is deep in the childcare trenches with her three kids, has a ‘challenging’ ex-husband and is trying to find her way in the world again after becoming single. The friendship between the women in the book club is great and I loved the support and encouragement they give each other. They also had good reading tastes.

The humour in this book is great. Victoria’s take on mum life is brilliant, she really captures the comedy of chaos which comes with looking after what often feels like a small army of children. She knows about how going to the toilet is a break for some of us and how every day there is a family hunt for a missing trainers or clothing items.

There is a lovely slow burn romance in this book which is nice and well crafted, but for me the enjoyment from this story came from good friends helping each other sort out their lives in between talking about books. This is my idea of heaven.

Great read – especially if you are in need of a smile and a giggle.

Author Bio:

Victoria Cooke grew up in the city of Manchester before crossing the Pennines in pursuit of a career in education. She now lives in Huddersfield with her husband and two young daughters and when she’s not at home writing by the fire with a cup of coffee in hand, she loves working out in the gym and travelling. Victoria was first published at the tender age of eight by her classroom teacher who saw potential in a six-page story about an invisible man. Since then she’s always had a passion for reading and writing, undertaking several writers’ courses before completing her first novel, ‘The Secret to Falling in Love,’ in 2016.

Her third novel, Who Needs Men Anyway? became a digital bestseller in 2018 and her debut, The Secret fo Falling in Love was optioned in 2020.

Social Media Links –
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16345710.Victoria_Cooke
https://www.facebook.com/VictoriaCookeAuthor/
https://twitter.com/VictoriaCooke10
https://www.instagram.com/victoriacookewriter/

Romance Author Job Description #AmWriting #WritingRomance

I thought it would be fun to create a mini job description for a romance author.

Vacancy – Romance Author

Do you enjoy writing about the first flushes of love and want to excite millions of romance readers around the world?

Check out this amazing vacancy…

Hours: Can vary each week. Dependent upon the amount of romantic feelings, number of love songs on weekly playlist, hormonal fluctuations, writing confidence levels, quality of romance story ideas, social media activity, reading binges and marathon romcom film sessions on Netflix.

Location: Home based, although access to a few good people watching locations might be valuable.

Key Duties / Responsibilities:

You will spend huge chunks of time asking yourself the same question – what do I need to do to make it almost impossible for two people to fall in love?You will need to be able to turn on a cold heart to break up a much loved fictional character’s romance. You will be fluent in all love languages; verbal, non verbal, touching, gazing, buying gifts, texts, tweets and late night phone calls. You will need to be able to pitch a romance story idea to an uninterested loved one in the kitchen and be able to withstand the obligatory ‘ugh – you’re not harping on about romance again?’ *eye roll*You will have to respond to strong physical urges to go write some romance.You will believe in ‘the power of true love.’You will need to be able to daydream OFTEN about being asked to attend casting AND make the final decision on the hot male character if your romance novel was turned into a film.You will need to be able to wave a magical romance wand over the most unlovable and undateable fictional characters.You will need to have the flexibility to take regular naps as writing romance can be draining.You will need to be able to withstand romance story feedback from an uninterested loved one, who struggles with romance in day to day life, and is busy watching sport on TV, and shouts from the armchair ‘unrealistic!’You will need to be able to fall in fictional love with one of your characters.You will need to be able to deal with challenging issues like trying to write a slow burn romance with two characters who are all over each other the second your back is turned. You will need to possess a good level of ear wigging abilities. Listening into the relationship conversations of others in queues is vital.You will need to possess the inner strength to keep two flirty, love struck characters apart for eight chapters.You will enjoy creating punch-me-in-the-gut-it’s-so-raw-and-real romantic plot twists.

About You:

You will have been a fan of all things romantic since high school. You will have had your own heart-broken, split, fractured and mended countless times, at home and abroad and be able to draw upon this experience.You will have encountered in your own love life an array of romantic dirt bags, flirts, perverts, sirens, goddesses, dream boats, studs, stallions, geeks, randoms, sexy weirdos, smouldering strangers, hot food delivery people, heroic car mechanics and teenage crushes. Again, you will be able to draw upon these experiences.You will be able to cry with your heartbroken characters and rejoice when they find love towards the end of your draft novel.You will possess a strong desire to reach out to other romantic souls on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.You will love a bit of life drama.You will have a good working relationship with a brand of tissues.Your life motto will be, ‘everyone likes a bit of romance.’You will be willing to act out a few romantic scenes with your uninterested loved one in the kitchen, whilst they are busy making breakfast and not feeling in the slightest bit romantic.You will be an expert on coming up with different ways to describe lips kissing.

Perks:

You will get to watch a lot of romcoms.You will get to gaze GUILT FREE at loved up beautiful people and pass it off as research.You will get to spend your days, writing, dabbing your eyes and singing Eric Carmen’s ‘Hungry Eyes,’ all in the name of romance.You will give a lot of people hope with your stories.

#BookReview Lost Property @drhelenparis #LostProperty

This is a message for Dot Watson the main character in this book:

Dot Watson – what have you done to me?

I actually feel lost now without you in my reading life.

Can you stick a label on my coat and look after me?

Kind regards

Lucy x

Dot’s story tugged on all my heartstrings. It’s a story about loss, guilt, choosing life and the power of a little kindness.

Here’s the blurb:

Everything that’s lost belongs somewhere. Dot Watson just needs to be found.

Dot Watson’s life is stuck. She wasn’t meant to be single at this point, or still working in a temporary job she started ten years ago. She was supposed to be in Paris, falling madly in love, building an exciting career. Instead, every day in Baker Street’s Lost Property office, she diligently catalogues hundreds of lost umbrellas, lone gloves and an alarming number of shoes.

There’s a comfort in her routine that Dot has become quite attached to. But then Mr Appleby arrives at her work asking for help to find his late wife’s purse. Dot recognises his desperation and grief – and they stir something unexpected in her: determination. As she resolves to help Mr Appleby, what else might she find along the way?

Here’s my review:

Dot is a fabulous book heroine and I am so glad Helen Paris, the author, brought her to life. At the start of the book we find her working in a Transport For London lost property office. To others she’s perceived as a little pedantic and odd but I adored her quirky ways, her rules, her lost umbrella observations, her thoughts on her co-workers and her commitment to reuniting lost items with their owners.

Dot is also a bit lost with life, she’s lost her father, her relationship with her sister isn’t great and her mum is in a nursing home.

I loved how Mr Appleby and his search for his late wife’s lilac-blue purse sparked Dot’s journey of self discovery. She embarks on this trip, despite being jobless, to reunite Mr Appleby with the purse and along the way finds herself.

This book is beautifully written and I felt like someone had slipped me into Dot’s shoes. I seemed to go through her emotional highs and lows as she began to unpick her life.

In parts it was heartbreaking, This book covers some difficult subjects like dementia, bereavement and depression. It’s a poignant and emotional story however it’s also full warmth, wonderful humour and it carries such an important message; that even though you might feel lost in life, you can still be found.

Thank you, Dot

Purchase link. Click here.

About the author:

Helen Paris worked in the performing arts for two decades, touring internationally with her London-based theatre company Curious. After several years living in San Francisco and working as a theatre professor at Stanford University, she returned to the UK to focus on writing fiction. As part of her research for a performance called ‘Lost & Found’, Paris shadowed employees in the Baker Street Lost Property office for a week, an experience that sparked her imagination and inspired this novel.
Lost Property is her first novel.

Searching For a New Book Idea & Dating – The Similarities #AmWriting

Hunting for new book ideas can be tough especially if you don’t have a conveyor belt of shiny new ideas awaiting you. Often social media will make you feel like you are the only writer in the world who hasn’t got a GREAT idea to work on and that can cause you some creative suffering. Once you do find a cracking new book idea things don’t always go to plan. You might blow hot and cold with your new idea and quickly lose that loving feeling.

After a few creative dalliances with a couple of new story ideas, I have spotted some interesting similarities with dating.

Here they are:

Knowing your type of potential suitor / book story

When you start dating you have a good idea about the type of person you are looking for; gender, hair colour, personality, clothes, music tastes, humour etc.

When you start hunting for a new book idea you know what your story type looks like; in my case a romantic comedy, must be light & fluffy, needs to include a devilishly handsome male character and an interesting and relatable female character who finds herself over the course of the tale.

Unrealistic expectations

When you start dating someone you might have a head full of unrealistic romantic expectations; your date will definitely be ‘the one’, they will be perfect in every way (after date 1) and you will be whisked up that church aisle within a few months.

When you start work on a new story idea you might have a head full of unrealistic expectations too; you will write it in a matter of weeks, literary agents will be fighting each other to get their hands on it and your book signing event will definitely need some form of crowd control.

Trying to ignore the niggling issues

When you start dating someone you will at first ignore niggling issues; your date’s love of bad jokes, your date’s secret nose picks when they think you aren’t looking, your date’s decision to give themselves a severe side hair parting on date 3 (without any prior warning to you) and your date’s insistence on talking about themselves for more than ten minutes. At first you dismiss these niggles, but after a few dates you can’t stop feeling irritated at the mere sight of that side hair parting and you find yourself seriously considering buying them a joke book. It’s at this point you ask yourself – can I carry on dating in view of these niggling issues?

When you start a new story you also ignore niggling issues; the male character is a bit of a drip, the opening chapter start sounds a bit dark and your plot has a moon crater sized plot hole which is getting harder to ignore. At first you also dismiss these niggles but after a few writing sessions you can’t stop shouting at your drippy male character, you wonder whether you should do a promotional link up with an emotional help line to help your readers get through the first chapter and you can’t get to sleep at night without thinking about that plot hole. It’s at this stage you ask yourself – can I carry on writing this story in view of these issues?

Playing the field or going exclusive

When you start dating you might decide to play the field and see a couple of people at the same time. You might struggle to stop checking out other dating candidates.

When you start story hunting you might also decide to play the literary field and work on a few ideas at the same time. Whilst writing a new story you might struggle to stop eyeing up other story ideas.

Things going too fast

When you start dating things can get intense very quickly and then fizzle out. After date 2 you could both be considering booking a spring mini break together and by date 4 you could not think of anything worse than spending a long weekend in the other’s company.

When you begin a new story idea things can also get intense very quickly and then fizzle out. After laying down 4k words you could find yourself tweeting about how this will be a #literarygamechanger and by 10k words you could find yourself wishing you’d never even started it (deleting all your earlier tweets).

Too much advice

People will feel the need to give you dating advice and some people will feel the need to give you writing advice. Not every date you go on will be successful and not every story you start will be successful.

Coming with excuses to get out of things

You might make up some excuses not to go on a date; washing your hair, cleaning out the fridge or keeping your promise about playing scrabble with the cat.

You might make up some excuses about not writing some more of that new story; need to tweet random stuff, pick fluff out of a jumper or keep your promise about turning the cat into a star on Instagram.

Writing is tough and that’s why we love it. Keep searching for those new book ideas.