Stephanie Dagg's Blog, page 3
November 5, 2021
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bar by Isabella May
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bar
River and Alice miss Somerset. Christmas isn’t Christmas without family and friends, even when you live in quaint Cornwall.
When River’s Aunt Sheba dies unexpectedly, leaving him her ancient VW campervan, nostalgia nudges him and Alice back to Glastonbury – and the surrounding villages – to rediscover their roots whilst serving the most decadent hot chocolate and delectable gingerbread from their renovated ‘bar on wheels’.
A bar on wheels complete with a fold-up stage to host local talent competitions rivalling anything Simon Cowell could dream up, even if he’d gorged on a truckle of Cheddar cheese!
As the villagers sip their cocoa and ice their gingerbread houses amidst the festive backdrop of song, dance, and slightly more unconventional talents, River and Alice find themselves in an unexpected race against time:
Zara, their chocolate supplier is leaving Glastonbury on the twelfth day of Christmas, keen to put a string of disastrous relationships behind her to make a fresh start.
Bruno, their gregarious and gorgeous baking supplier, is secretly smitten with Zara – ticking every box on her New Year’s wish list.
If only they can get them together for one experimental kiss under the mistletoe…
They’ve even enlisted their customers’ help in their mission to wrap this budding romance up in all the jingle bells and whistles. How hard can it be?
So, ho, ho VERY tricky, as it turns out…
My review
This is such a delightful book! It’s an absolute joy to read, with absorbing characters, an interesting story line, lovely settings and a big dollop of feel-good. That’s not to say it’s sunshine all the way as our protagonists face big choices and have wrongs to put right. The author tackles the sort of mistakes too many of us make: clinging onto something that’s obviously not working for too long, putting on a brave face but living a lie, and not being true to ourselves. You’re made to think while reading the novel.
The writing resounds with wit, sharp observations and enjoyable exchanges galore. The festive element is fun and atmospheric, and certainly puts you in a holiday mood.
Do treat yourself to this pre-Christmas treat!
Purchase Link – mybook.to/twinkletwinklelittleb
Author bio
Isabella May lives in (mostly) sunny Andalusia, Spain with her husband, daughter and son, creatively inspired by the mountains and the sea. She grew up on Glastonbury’s ley lines and loves to feature her quirky English hometown in her stories.
After a degree in Modern Languages and European Studies at UWE, Bristol (and a year working abroad in Bordeaux and Stuttgart), Isabella bagged an extremely jammy and fascinating job in children’s publishing… selling foreign rights for novelty, board, pop-up and non-fiction books all over the world; in every language from Icelandic to Korean, Bahasa Indonesian to Papiamento!
All of which has fuelled her curiosity and love of international food and travel – both feature extensively in her cross-genre novels, fused with a dollop of romcom, and a sprinkle of magical realism.
Isabella is also a Level 4 Pranic Healer and a stillbirth mum.
Social Media Links –
Twitter – @IsabellaMayBks
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/IsabellaMayAuthor/
Instagram – @isabella_may_author
October 16, 2021
Highland Games by Evie Alexander
Highland Games
A fiery heroine, a Scottish god, a cabin, a castle, and enough heat to warm the coldest Scottish winter…
Highland Games is an unputdownable, enemies-to-lovers, romantic comedy, with sparkle and sizzle and a guaranteed happy ending. This sexy, witty, debut from Evie Alexander will have you laughing, swooning, and staying up way past your bedtime…
If you’re looking for a riotous romantic comedy with plenty of heat, then Highland Games is for you!
Welcome to Kinloch, and the hottest winter Scotland’s ever seen.
Zoe’s always played it safe, just as her parents wanted. But when her great-uncle dies and leaves her a ramshackle cabin in the Scottish Highlands, she decides it’s time to change her life.
Upping sticks seems like a good idea in her cosy flat in London, but the reality is very different. There’s no electricity or running water, the roof leaks and there’s no front door. If that wasn’t bad enough, she’s moved up in the depths of winter and her scorching hot neighbour wants her out.
Rory’s got a fifty thousand tonne problem. If he can’t make Kinloch castle profitable, he’s out of a job. He needs a clear head, but there’s someone living in the cabin he saw as his own and she’s turned his world upside down.
Rory needs Zoe out of Scotland, and out of his life. The trouble is, she has no intention of leaving.
Let the games begin…
My review
Scotland seems to be THE place for book settings at the moment, and why not? The Scottish highlands are beautiful and remote, and life is somewhat more basic. This gives people breathing space and time to think and maybe even get their lives in order.
Our heroine Zoe is a refreshingly genuine, kind and independent. OK, headstrong! Likewise our hero Rory. Both are opinionated and a bordering on being rather too set in their ways, although they’d never admit to it. They get off to a bad start, and things go rapidly downhill.
But this is a delightful romcom, with added zing, so gradually events take us toward the only ending two such wayward, chalk and cheese characters deserve.
Thoroughly enjoyable!
Pre-order Link – https://amzn.to/3la37GY
Author BioEvie Alexander is the author of sexy romantic comedies with a very British sense of humour. She takes a method approach to her work, believing her capacity to repeatedly fail at life and love is what has given her such a rich supply of material for her writing.
Her interests include reading, eating, saving the world, and fantasising about people who only exist between the pages of her books. She lives in the West country with her family.
Website: https://eviealexanderauthor.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eviealexanderauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eviealexanderauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Evie_author
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21611777.Evie_Alexander
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/evie-alexander
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/eviealexanderauthor/
Giveaway to Win a signed copy of Highland Games, Shortbread and more… (Open to UK Only)
Prize is a signed copy of Highland Games, Exclusive postcard and bookmark, Personalised heart & Shortbread
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/disp...
October 14, 2021
The Winter Cottage by Rachael Lucas
Synopsis
When Rilla Clark’s long lost father dies, she leaves New England and heads to his cottage in the Scottish Highlands to sort out his affairs. Rilla’s determined that her visit will be a fleeting one. The little village of Applemore holds a lot of memories for her, but looking back might just open up her heart, which she’s kept well-guarded until now.
Lachlan Fraser is less than delighted with his inheritance. He left the grand, crumbling Applemore House as soon as he could, and he can’t see why his three sisters love it so much. Gathered together at their family estate, the battle of wills over what to do with the house is just beginning when into their life walks Rilla, who they haven’t seen for over fifteen years…
Old friendships and long-hidden emotions are rekindled as the romance of a Highland winter works its magic – will Rilla and Lachlan discover that home isn’t a place, but a feeling?
Full of warmth and romance, this is the perfect cosy escape to curl up with,
My review
I adore Rachael Lucas’s books and so I was delighted to join the blog tour for her latest one, Winter Cottage. This is a very enjoyable festive romcom, although the comedy element is beautifully subtle and with tiny hints of darkness as it’s deaths that bring our main characters together.
The setting is the Scottish Highlands and Ms Lucas transports us there instantly with all the sharply observed detail her readers are used to. We can practically feel Applemore House crumbling around us and can clearly see it in all its faded grandeur in our imaginations.
The cast of characters we encounter are fascinating. Each is uniquely different, and no one can be mistaken for anyone else. They complement and bounce off each other, providing us with lots of entertainment on the way.
The ‘foreigner abroad slash wanderer returns’ trope is a common one but it offers so much scope for fun and frustration that it never gets tired. Certainly here in Ms Lucas’s hands, where our wanderer is Rilla, it’s fabulous, with misunderstandings, misconceptions and a lot to catch up on.
In summary, this is a book you will lose yourself in for a few hours to resurface from feeling positive and festive, and looking forward to the next book by this lovely author.
About the author
Rachael Lucas has written ten novels for adults and teenagers, including the Carnegie nominated THE STATE OF GRACE, the top ten bestseller SEALED WITH A KISS and her most recent British bestseller THE TELEPHONE BOX LIBRARY. She is also the author (as Rosie Curtis) of sweet holiday romance We Met in December, an Amazon Editors’ Pick. Her novels have been translated into many languages, including Italian, Turkish, French, German, Latvian, Estonian, Danish, Norwegian, and more.
Sign up for Rachael’s newsletter at rachaellucas.com, follow Rachael on twitter at twitter.com/karamina, find her on Facebook at facebook.com/rachaellucaswriter and keep up with her day to day stories on Instagram – just search Rachael Lucas to find her!
Rachael lives by the seaside in the north west of England with her family and two very enthusiastic spaniels. When she’s not writing at the kitchen table with a coffee by her side, she’s out walking the dogs on the beach or the nearby pinewoods. She’s a huge Kindle fan – her ten year old self would have been over the moon to be able to carry a whole library around in her pocket – and a lover of sweet, romantic, small town stories, which is exactly what she likes to write. She’s a big Hallmark movie fan, wanted to be Anne of Green Gables when she was growing up, and Jo March was her literary heroine. (She still is.)
Rachael’s books are full of warmth and gentle humour, as well as beautiful small town settings which give her readers an escape from everyday. Rachael has been described as having “a gift for capturing complex emotion and both romantic and platonic intimacy” and writing which “exudes positivity and warmth” (Publisher’s Weekly). The Guardian called her “honest, romantic and hilarious”. Her teenage boys think she’s a bit disorganised, and that she forgets to cook dinner when she’s writing. (Luckily they don’t get to leave a review.)
July 19, 2021
Thirteen Stops by Sandra Harris
Thirteen Stops
There are thirteen Luas stops between Sandyford and St Stephen’s Green in Dublin and vice versa. The passengers all hunker down, folded tightly into themselves, eyes fixed on their phones, interminably scrolling, terrified of connecting with each other. Except . . .
Except, who’s that good-looking guy in the long dark coat who’s eyeing up selfie queen Laura? Could he end up as one of her terrible choices? Hang on, isn’t he the same guy who was ogling glamorous working-mum-with-a-secret Maroon before? And why is Jamie over there telling his life story to a complete stranger? What’s Fauve hiding in her handbag? It must be the crown jewels or an unexploded bomb at the very least, the way she’s hugging it so tightly to herself.
And why does Becks from two seats down look out the window so anxiously? Is she worried that Barry could be straying? Alight here for the inside track . . .
My review
This is a lively and enjoyable novel. It’s cleverly constructed using the route of the Sandyford to St Stephen’s Green Luas, and just as you go from one station to another, in the story we meet one character after another. They’re all connected in some way, which adds richness and complexity to the book.
We certainly encounter some interesting characters, all fascinating in either good or bad ways but usually a mixture of the two. We get to see what’s made them the way they are: why they’re obnoxious or strong or needy or selfish or kind.
There’s plenty of humour, some of it quite stark and cutting, also entertaining exchanges, some awkward encounters, betrayal and loyalty, and so much more to relish.
Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1781997489
US – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1781997489
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY OF SANDRA HARRIS.
Sandra Harris is a Dublin-based novelist, poet, short story writer and film and book blogger. She has studied Creative Writing and Vampirology. She has published a number of e-books on the following topics: horror film reviews, multi-genre film reviews, women’s fiction, erotic fiction, erotic horror fiction and erotic poetry. Several new books are currently in the pipeline. You can browse or buy any of Sandra’s books by following the link below straight to her Amazon Author Page:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B015GDE5RO
Her debut romantic fiction novel, ‘THIRTEEN STOPS,’ is out now from Poolbeg Books:
https://www.amazon.com/Thirteen-Stops-Sandra-Harris-ebook/dp/B089DJMH64
The sequel, ‘THIRTEEN STOPS LATER,’ is out now from Poolbeg Books:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1781994234
Social Media Links –
https://www.facebook.com/SandraHarrisPureFilthPoetry
http://sandrafirstruleoffilmclubharris.wordpress.com
https://sandraharriswrites.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/SandraAuthor
https://www.writing.ie/member-authors/sandra-harris-author
July 6, 2021
Death and Croissants by Ian Moore
Synopsis
Richard is a middle-aged Englishman who runs a B&B somewhere in the Loire Valley. Nothing ever happens to Richard, and really that’s the way he likes it.
One day, however, one of his older guests disappears, leaving behind a bloody handprint. Another guest, the exotic Valérie, persuades a reluctant Richard to join her in investigating the disappearance.
Richard remains a dazed passenger in the case alongside Valerie until someone also murders Ava Gardner, one of his beloved hens.
My review
This is an enjoyable cosy mystery set in France. There’s plenty of humour, a whole host of quirky characters (human and feathered), a delightfully rural setting and an imaginative plot that keeps you hooked.
What works best for me in the book is the atmosphere. Mr Moore lives in France and that’s obvious from his writing with all many little details that reflect all things French, and in particular the expat life in this lovely country.
The main character of Richard, who is slightly past his prime, makes a nice change in a genre that is awash with female sleuths, many of them young and glamorous. Also feisty, and that’s nothing something you could describe Richard as either. He’s likeable, steady, a trifle staid but chickens and glamorous French women bring out the slightly more daring and livelier side of him.
Plenty to enjoy, and since this is the first book in a series we’ll be meeting Richard in France again.
Author biography
Ian Moore is a stand-up comedian, known for his sharp, entertaining punditry. A TV/radio regular, he stars in Dave’s satirical TV show Unspun and Channel 5’s topical comedy Big Mouths. He is also the author of two memoirs on life in France. À la Mod and C’est Modnifique. Ian lives in the Loire and commutes back to the UK every week. In his spare time, he makes mean chutneys and jams.
Published by Farrago in hardback at £14.99
July 5, 2021
Angel of the Lost Treasure by Marie Laval
Angel Of The Lost Treasure
An ancient secret hidden within a mother’s song …
When young widow, Marie-Ange Norton is invited to Beauregard in France by the mysterious Monsieur Malleval to collect an inheritance, she has no choice but to accept.
But when she embarks on the voyage with her fiery-tempered travelling companion Capitaine Hugo Saintclair, little does she know what waits for her across the sea in turbulent nineteenth-century France on the eve of Napoleon’s return from exile. When she arrives, she is taken aback by Malleval’s fascination with her family – seemingly inspired by his belief they are connected to a sacred relic he’s read about in coded manuscripts by the Knights Templar.
As it becomes clear that Malleval’s obsession has driven him to madness, Marie-Ange is horrified to realise she is more the man’s prisoner than his guest. Not only that, but Hugo is the only person who might be able to help her, and he could represent a different kind of danger .
My review
Well, I’m not quite sure how to describe this novel, other than saying it’s hugely enjoyable. It defies easy categorisation as it has gothic, swashbuckling, supernatural, romantic and historic elements. The original mix works brilliantly! And there is so much action you’re left breathless.
The book entwines careful research with exuberant imagination. The setting and atmosphere are very convincing and give a real taste of France at a difficult and dangerous period.
Every character is fascinating in likeable or loatheable ways, depending on whether they’re a goodie or baddie, or somewhere inbetween!
A fantastic, energetic read.
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Angel-Lost-Treasure-captivating-romantic-ebook/dp/B08TX52MWK/ref
https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/angel-of-the-lost-treasure
Author Bio
Originally from Lyon in France, Marie has lived in the Rossendale Valley in Lancashire for the past few years. She writes both contemporary and historical romance. Her novels include best selling contemporary romantic suspense novels LITTLE PINK TAXI and ESCAPE TO THE LITTLE CHATEAU, which was shortlisted for the 2021 RNA Jackie Collins Romantic Suspense Awards, as well as A PARIS FAIRY TALE and BLUEBELL’S CHRISTMAS MAGIC. Her latest novel, ANGEL OF THE LOST TREASURE, was released in February 2021. Marie also contributes to the best selling Miss Moonshine’s Emporium anthologies together with eight author friends from Authors on the Edge.
Social Media Links –
https://www.facebook.com/marie.laval.9/
https://twitter.com/MarieLaval1
June 22, 2021
Publication Day for Happy Dreams at Mermaid Cove by Marie Laval
Today is the publication day for this fun, feel-good novel. Congratulations to author Marie Laval, who never fails to write rich, enjoyable books with rather more going on in them than you might think!
Happy Dreams At Mermaid Cove
From the big city to a little yellow mobile library on the Isle of Skye …
When Jenna Palmer agrees to the new position of mobile librarian on the tiny Arrandale peninsular of the Isle of Skye, she knows she’s signing up for difficult working conditions and mediocre wages. But Jenna needs to get away, and a little yellow mobile library called Buttercup could be her escape to happier dreams …
However, whilst Jenna can get to grips with foggy island roads, local mermaid legends and even big purple monsters, she never expected to have to contend with a boss as grumpy as Daniel McGregor, or a young book lover as enthusiastic as his niece, Katrina.
Arrandale might represent Jenna’s safe port in a storm, but could she and Buttercup also become a beacon of hope to Daniel, Katrina and the entire island community?
Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Happy-Dreams-Mermaid-Cove-uplifting-ebook/dp/B094RBWWCJ
US – https://www.amazon.com/Happy-Dreams-Mermaid-Cove-uplifting-ebook/dp/B094RBWWCJ
Author bio
Originally from Lyon in France, Marie has lived in the Rossendale Valley in Lancashire for the past few years. She writes both contemporary and historical romance. Her novels include best selling contemporary romantic suspense novels LITTLE PINK TAXI and ESCAPE TO THE LITTLE CHATEAU, which was shortlisted for the 2021 RNA Jackie Collins Romantic Suspense Awards, as well as A PARIS FAIRY TALE and BLUEBELL’S CHRISTMAS MAGIC. Her latest novel, ANGEL OF THE LOST TREASURE, was released in February 2021. Marie also contributes to the best selling Miss Moonshine’s Emporium anthologies together with eight author friends from Authors on the Edge.
Social Media Links –
https://www.facebook.com/marie.laval.9/
https://twitter.com/MarieLaval1
Giveaway to Win 2 bracelets with glass found on a Northumberland beach, a pack of pencils, a mystery gift and some chocolate. (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
June 18, 2021
The Awful Truth About The Herbert Quarry Affair by Marco Ocram
The Awful Truth About The Herbert Quarry Affair
With a jangle of keys, a door opened. Herbert clanked in, his arms locked to his sides, his ankles shackled, his face a Hannibal Lecter mask. He was overjoyed to see me.
“Marco, I’m jailed day and night with murderous thugs who can’t tell Schiller from Shakespeare. I’m desperate for intellectual stimulus—but you’ll do for now.”
TV personality Marco Ocram is the world’s only self-penned character, writing his life in real time as you read it. Marco’s celebrity mentor, Herbert Quarry, grooms him to be the Jackson Pollock of literature, teaching him to splatter words on a page without thought or revision.
Quarry’s plan backfires when imbecilic Marco begins to type his first thought-free book: it’s a murder mystery—and Herbert’s caught red-handed near the butchered body of his lover.
Now Marco must write himself into a crusade to clear his friend’s name. Typing the first words that come into his head, Marco unleashes a phantasmagorical catalogue of twists in his pursuit of justice, writing the world’s fastest-selling book to reveal the awful truth about the Herbert Quarry affair.
My review
To say this book is quirky is an understatement, but it’s also unfair. Alongside this off-the-wallness, t’s packed with joyous anarchy, crazy characters, all sorts of humour from tongue in cheek to slapstick to sharply witty, a tantalising cosy mystery, and on top of everything it offers an unforgiving deconstruction of literary creation itself. It’s loosely inspired by the best-selling The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair but, in my humble opinion, is altogether a far more enjoyable read.
Marco is one of our two central characters, Herbert, the man at the heart of this unfortunate sequence of events, being the other. Marco is the bumbling author attempting to write a book without any planning or even much thought at all, free or otherwise! He gamely plunges in and then on, first implicating his unlikely mentor Herbert Quarry in a murder and then attempting to clear him. But has our likeable incompetent bitten off more than he can chew?
There is so much more to the this intriguing and ingenious book than meets the eye. It’s impossible to do it justice in a paragraph or two, so the only thing I can recommend, very, very strongly indeed, is to read it for yourself and be thoroughly delighted and entertained.
Purchase Links
US – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08SJ6K62S
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08SJ6K62S
Author bio
Little is known of Marco Ocram’s earliest years. He was adopted at age nine, having been found abandoned in a Detroit shopping mall—a note taped to his anorak said the boy was threatening the sanity of his parents. Re-abandoned in the same mall a year later, with a similar note from his foster parents, he was homed with his current Bronx mom—a woman with no sanity left to threaten.
Ocram first gained public attention through his bold theories about a new fundamental particle—the Tao Muon—which he popularized in a best-selling book—The Tao Muon. He was introduced to the controversial literary theorist, Herbert Quarry, who coached Ocram in a radical new approach to fiction, in which the author must write without thinking—a technique to which Ocram was naturally suited. His crime memoir, The Awful Truth about the Herbert Quarry Affair, became the fastest selling book of all time, and made him a household name. It was translated into every known language—and at least three unknown ones—and made into an Oscar-winning film, a Pulitzer-winning play, a Tony-winning musical, and a Golden Joystick-winning computer game.
Ocram excelled at countless sports until a middle-ear problem permanently impaired his balance. He has yet to win a Nobel Prize, but his agent, Barney, has been placing strategic back-handers—announcements from Stockholm are expected soon. Unmarried, in spite of his Bronx mom’s tireless efforts, he still lives near his foster parents in New York.
Social Media Links – @denishaughnessy on twitter
June 2, 2021
Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson
About the book
Kerry Fuller has worked at Mama Joy Strong’s knitting shop – Strong Knits – for years. And she’s had a secret crush on Joy’s son, heartbreaker Jesse Strong, for even longer.
When Joy unexpectedly passes away, Jesse vows that he will keep the shop open, no matter what. And with no idea of where to start, he reaches out to Kerry for help. Soon Kerry is teaching Jesse all the knitty-gritty parts of the business – all the while trying to keep her heart from getting broken.
The longer they spend together, the closer they become. But Kerry doesn’t believe their relationship can last longer than she can knit one, purl one. It’s up to Jesse to prove her wrong…
My review
Real men knit? Of course they do! I have happy memories of being one of a group of knitting parents who helped teach this enjoyable and wonderful skill to various classes at my children’s school, rather a lot of years ago now! Boys and girls alike had a go, everyone achieved something and we all had a great time. I don’t know how many of those children, now adults, are still knitting, but I hope some of both sexes are. It’s lovely that it’s more usual for men to knit these days, thanks to knitter-designers like Arne and Carlos and possibly even more so to celebrities, such as Ewan McGregor and David Arquette, fessing up to their secret knitting habits!
The bonding element of knitting – a skill usually passed from one generation to the next or by one friend to another – comes through very strongly in this unusual novel. And it truly is a strong bond. Mama Joy Strong’s knitting shop brings immense richness to Kerry’s life, although not initially to Joy’s adopted sons. Her determined character is what has influenced them the most.
Without giving too much away, knitting eventually begins to matter to the young men too, especially one of them, and two of our characters cast on a new future together.
The pace, appropriately, is steady: reading, like knitting, is to be savoured and we need action and character development to build gradually, just like a garment or accessory gradually takes shape on a pair of needles. But it’s not all plain sailing with either pastime. Stitches get dropped or miscounted and even the most experience knitter makes a mistake in a pattern now and again. Similarly in our novel there are unexpected hitches and unforeseen consequences to surprise the reader and make them rethink a few things.
If you enjoy knitting, and even if – horrors! – you don’t, you’ll find this knitting-inspired novel will warm your heart even more than the cosiest knitted jumper.
About the author
USA Today bestselling author and native New Yorker, Kwana Jackson aka K.M Jackson spent her formative years on the A train where she had two dreams: (1) to be a fashion designer and (2) to be a writer. After spending more than ten years designing women’s sportswear for various fashion houses, Kwana took a leap of faith and decided to pursue her other dream of being a writer. A longtime advocate of equality and diversity in romance (#WeNeedDiverseRomance), Kwana is the mother of twins and currently lives in a suburb of New York with her husband. When not writing she can be found on Twitter @kwanawrites, on Facebook at facebook.com/KmJacksonAuthor, and on her website at www.kmjackson.com.
Real Men Knit published 27 May 2021 by HarperFiction £8.99
March 16, 2021
Victorine by Drema Drudge
Drema Drudge on Tour
March 17-April 13
with
Victorine
(literary/historical fiction)
Release date: March 17, 2020
at Fleur-de-Lis Press
362 pages
Buy It Here Amazon
***
SYNOPSIS‘Victorine, Drema Drudge’s debut novel, features Victorine Meurent, a forgotten, accomplished painter who posed nude for Edouard Manet’s most famous, controversial paintings such as Olympia and The Picnic in Paris, paintings heralded as the beginning of modern art. History has forgotten (until now) her paintings, despite the fact that she showed her work at the prestigious Paris Salon multiple times, even one year when her mentor, Manet’s, work was refused.
Her persistent desire in the novel is not to be a model anymore but to be a painter herself, despite being taken advantage of by those in the art world, something which causes her to turn, for a time, to every vice in the Paris underworld, leading her even into the catacombs.
In order to live authentically, she eventually finds the strength to flout the expectations of her parents, bourgeois society, and the dominant male artists (whom she knows personally) while never losing her capacity for affection, kindness, and loyalty. Possessing both the incisive mind of a critic and the intuitive and unconventional impulses of an artist, Victorine and her survival instincts are tested in 1870, when the Prussian army lays siege to Paris and rat becomes a culinary delicacy, and further tested when she inches towards art school while financial setbacks push her away from it. The same can be said when it comes to her and love, which becomes substituted, eventually, by art.
This book is a wonderful illustration of all that’s best about the historical fiction literary genre. It brings to vibrant, exciting life a period of history, namely the late nineteenth century and specifically in France, together with some of its very notable, creative people.
Victorine narrates the story to us, which gives us a fascinating insight into her mind as well as her life. She’s complex, ambitious, controversial, talented, beautiful, ahead of her time. She has to struggle to achieve anything in what is most definitely a man’s world and her energy and persistence despite many setbacks are laudable. She was further disadvantaged by not coming from a wealthy background. She had to battle every step of the way in her eventful life, and you can only admire her for that and be inspired.
To match the emotional rollercoaster that is Victorine is the vacillation between war and peace, between good times and bad in Paris against which the novel is set. The author has obviously done an immense amount of research into the period, the world of the artist and the persons she portrays. It’s detailed, compelling, but never overwhelming.
Victorine is a multifaceted, excellent book, equal parts absorbing, educational and inspirational.
Drema Drudge
suffers from Stendhal’s Syndrome,
the condition in which one becomes overwhelmed in the presence of great art.
She attended Spalding University’s MFA in Creative Writing Program
where she learned to transform that intensity into fiction.
Drema has been writing in one capacity or another since she was nine,
starting with terrible poems and graduating to melodramatic stories in junior high
that her classmates passed around literature class.
She and her husband, musician and writer Barry Drudge, live in Indiana
where they record their biweekly podcast, Writing All the Things, when not traveling.
Her first novel, Victorine, was literally written in six countries while she and her husband wandered the globe.
The pair have two grown children.
In addition to writing fiction, Drema has served as a writing coach, freelance writer, and educator.
For more about her writing, art, and travels,
please visit her website, and sign up for her newsletter to receive a free historical fiction story.
She’s always happy to connect with readers in her Facebook group, The Painted Word Salon,
or on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
or on any other book blog participating in this tour.
Visit/Follow the participating blogs on Facebook/Twitter,
as listed in the entry form below, and win more entry points! ENTER THE GIVEAWAY
Tweeting about the giveaway everyday of the Tour
will give you 5 extra entries each time!
[just follow the directions on the entry-form]
Global giveaway open to all
5 winners will receive an ecopy of this book
