Louisa George's Blog, page 4
September 5, 2017
Crochet is the new black!
Did you know that crochet is the new black? Everyone’s doing it and loving it! The choices of yarn are growing and people are wanting to get back to that ‘homemade’ feel. It’s all part of the ‘maker movement’ that artists, musicians and writers are embracing.
It’s the first day of spring here in New Zealand and the sun is shining, giving a lovely warm glow to everything. That hasn’t been the case for the last few months…winter had definitely come!! I’ve been very lucky in that I’ve done lots of traveling and managed to keep away from the cold for a while. But on those dark cold nights I’ve been at home I’ve been very self indulgent and finally got around doing something I’ve been meaning to learn for years- crochet! I’ve watched a ton of YouTube videos, my favourite teachers on there are Bella Coco and Jayda In Stitches who I watch over and over so I get things right (or wrong as the case may be!! LOL).
Isn’t she lovely? So nice and friendly!!
My first attempts have been wobbly and wavy but I’m definitely getting better! I’ve managed a couple of scarves, a blanket and lots of hats (if you stand still for long in my house you’ll get a hat!). We go on a group holiday for a week once a year and myself and two friends are trying to crochet hats for all 35 of us!! Just a bit of fun! Trying to match the colours to a particular thing the wearer is interested in: football teams/cricket/ etc… Here are just a few of them: L: is my hat, I just love the pink and grey combo! R: Blue and white stripe for my Manchester City loving son! Bottom L: A cricket themed hat for a New Zealand fan! Bottom Right: Red, white and blue for my boy who is going to live in England early next year.
Don’t look too closely! There are beginner mistakes!
Currently I’m making a beach bag using up all the bits of yarn leftover from the blanket. I’ve got a way to go yet but I’m loving all the stripes! I’ve bought some navy buttons I’m going to add to the straps. Question: do I use one block colour for the straps? If so, what? I’m thinking either the dark blue or the denim one. Or do I do another stripe?
Do you have a hobby that keeps you entertained? Do you love crochet or knitting? What are you making right now?
August 31, 2017
TGIF!
Man, I’m so glad it’s the weekend! It’s been a long week…in fact a long month. Since the beginning of August I’ve been to Florida (for a Romance Writers of America conference), The Bahamas (because we were in Florida, so why the heck not?), back to New Zealand and then a tiki tour round NZ with my visiting brother from the UK, a road trip to a Romance Writers of New Zealand conference in Rotorua and then a flight down to the bottom of the world (aka Dunedin) and a 1575kms road trip back with my son who has left university.
I’m blessed to have a flexible job and understanding husband but now I’m craving three consecutive nights in my own bed (yes please, it’ll be tonight!). I’m hoping September won’t be as busy as there are words to write for my new book which has the working title of Something Beginning With Mistletoe from my Something Borrowed series and I’m fast running out of time before the deadline of October 1st.
Plus…the crazy rollercoaster that is menopause is making a visit again, which is making me very happy indeedy (not). Who knew it was possible to have PMT and a hot flash at the same time? The fun just keeps on going…
This is how I’m feeling today: all zen one minute and frazzled the next. I’ll just leave this here:
Have a great weekend! Any plans other than my stay in bed and not get up until Monday morning ones?
February 9, 2017
TOP FIVE SEXIEST TV DOCTORS (SEXY MEN ALERT!)
Let’s face it, we love them for their unswerving altruism and the life-saving drama. But it’s not just their work that has our pulses racing.
Who have I left out? Did your favourite make my top 10?
The original McDreamy, Patrick Dempsey
By David Merrett at http://www.flickr.com/photos/davehamster [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)], via Wikimedia Commons
Doug Ross (aka George Clooney)
By derivative work: Gary King (talk) Fcad.jpg: Efloch (Fcad.jpg) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)], via Wikimedia Commons
John Carter (Yes, I LOVED ER!!!) aka NoahWyle
By Noah_Wyle_Reminds_Obama_of_His_Promises_for_Peace.jpg: CODEPINK Women For Peace derivative work: RanZag [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)], via Wikimedia Commons
Grumpily irritable House (Hugh Laurie)
By jmb1977 at Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/jmb1977/9678...) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)], via Wikimedia Commons
Finally, the one and the only true Doctor, utterly bonkers and utterly gorgeous, David Tennant
DavidDjJohnson at English Wikipedia [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...)], via Wikimedia Commons
Some of my personal favourite book doctors:
Irresistibly grouchy Matteo Finelli, Renal Transplant surgeon, from Tempted By Her Italian Surgeon
I fell totally in love with Matteo and his strength of character and wit.
The doctor everyone’s talking about!
When a deliciously naughty photo of paediatric transplant surgeon Matteo Finelli goes viral, social media expert Ivy Leigh is called in to discipline him. It will be a challenge, especially as Ivy is far from immune to Matteo’s charismatic charm herself!
Dedicated doc Matteo doesn’t care about social media policy — he’s far more interested in uncovering the warm, vulnerable heart Ivy hides beneath her suit jacket. The chemistry between them is sizzling, but can he persuade ever-cautious Ivy to take a risk and give into an irresistible temptation?
Gorgeous sports doctor, Zac Price in The Last Doctor She Should Ever Date (there are also some very lovely rugby players there too)
It’s been four years since infamous party girl Daniella Danatello brought her powerful family the wrong sort of publicity. Dani’s desperate to get back in their good books, so accepts a job as a physiotherapist on her father’s rugby team.
There’s just one thing — one man — standing in the way of earning back her self-respect: the team doctor, Zac Price. With killer abs and infuriatingly sexy arrogance, Zac is one massive distraction — and now that she’s his colleague, any involvement with him would break all the rules. Dani’s determined to keep away…but Zac’s just too tempting to ignore!
And last, but not least, dedicated plastic surgeon, Declan Underwood from The Shameless Maverick 
One kiss she didn’t forget!
Junior surgeon Kara Stephens has been assigned her first high-profile case to help an injured princess. Great news – if she wasn’t working with hot-shot Irish surgeon Declan Underwood, the man she kissed at the hospital ball! Declan’s notoriety with women is rivalled only by his reputation as the best reconstructive surgeon around! But his glamorous life in London is a far cry from his poverty-stricken childhood and Kara’s about to discover that there’s more to her charismatic maverick than meets the eye…
Who’s your favourite TV doctor and why?
October 12, 2016
Preventing writer’s bum….
In a desperate attempt to stop the spread of my bottom over my chair I am trying to do an hour of exercise 5-6 times a week. So that I don’t get bored and my body doesn’t get used to just one type of exercise (as if!), I’m shaking things up a bit.
Monday- weights
Tuesday- Step
Wednesday- am 5km run, pm Zumba
Thursday – X55 (something hideous but hurts so it must work-toning and cardio)
Friday- Zumba
Saturday- 6Km run
Step is something I did in the 90s in a leotard and tights. It is also something I’m not very good at. Like, why is everyone going one way when I’m going the other? How is everyone turning right when I’m turning left? You get the picture.
My body is hurting in places I don’t think I even have muscles. But I’m feeling good. Tired, but good.
What do you do to get your heart racing?
September 7, 2016
The Secret Art of Forgiveness is out…
I’ve been a little quiet because I’ve been nursing a heavy cold and haven’t been able to think straight this week, but the good news is that THE SECRET ART OF FORGIVENESS launched last Thursday and the reviews have been great! (So far, so good!)
I was a little anxious about how people would react to this book as it’s a bit of departure for me…much more women’s fiction than a romance (although there are romantic elements). The premise is about a woman living in New York who is asked to go home to help look after her sick step-father. Once there she has to face the issues that had alienated her from her family and from the village. I wanted to tackle issues that face a lot of us living far away from family–the guilt at not being there when people need us, the choices we have to make about whether we do best by us or by them, and how people cope when faced with challenges that make them re-evaluate their lives and careers and dreams. It’s a story about growing up, but more, it’s a story about hope.
Here’s the blurb:
Living in a big city, means you can escape your past…
Until Emily Forrester is called back to Little Duxbury, the chocolate-box English village where she grew up – though it was anything but idyllic for the tearaway teenager. Her estranged step-father, a former high-court judge, is unwell and her step-sisters need her help.
It’s just a week, Emily tells herself, but faced with the lies – and hard truths – that drove her to leave in the first place is difficult enough. Having to cope with a step-father (and the only parent she has left) who is so unlike the man she remembers pushes Emily’s emotions in ways she hasn’t been tested in years – since her mother’s death.
They say home is where the heart is – but by the end of the week, Emily isn’t entirely sure which home that is.
A beautiful and unforgettable romance that will have you laughing and crying.
Here’s what the reviewers are saying… “This book was written so beautifully, with so much love that I felt every bit of the emotion towards home and how Emily felt about her life. It was so perfect for me to read right now, another great example of books finding you when you need them most.”
“There was so much rawness and emotion, it took my breath away.”
The Secret Art Of Forgiveness is available as an ebook from all e-tailers, but here’s a couple of links to get you started:
Until next time, happy reading!
Louisa xx
August 4, 2016
New Releases
It’s been a busy year, in fact a spectacularly busy three months. I’ve had three releases (one a month) these past three months. Added to that I’ve been away for a holiday to Tahiti and to a conference in San Diego, you could say, life’s been a little topsy turvy!
So, to the releases….
May 2016 was Tempted By Hollywood’s Top Doc (a Mills and Boon medical romance)
Here’s the blurb…
Behind the scenes…
Top-of-his-game neurosurgeon Dr. Jake Lewis has thrown himself into work in a bid to forget the past. Now, used to high-octane medical emergencies, he’s furious to be temporarily assigned to pander to LA’s biggest diva!
Yet when he meets headstrong assistant-to-the-stars Lola Bennett, their instant chemistry makes his new job much more tempting! He’s working with her on set in the sultry Bahamas, and it’s just a matter of time before that chemistry reaches the boiling point…
Available from all good online book stores
June 2016 saw the release of Baby, It’s Hot Outside (a Weddings on Waiheke novella)
This was part of the Lovecats Anthology, but is now available as a stand alone. Here’s the blurb…
She broke his heart once, now she’s back to do it again…
When rugged cop Daniel Wade agrees to help organize his friend’s Christmas wedding it brings him face-to-face with the bridesmaid, his estranged wife. Emma is determined that divorce is on the cards, but sometimes all it takes is a second chance to get things right…
Available from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk and all other Amazon online worldwide stores.
July 2016 was release month for my romantic comedy novel, Something Borrowed (Book One of the Something Borrowed series)
Here’s the blurb:
Something old. Something new…?
When Chloe Cassidy is jilted at the altar it’s all her nightmares rolled into one. Her mother is convinced she’s the victim of the family curse. Her sister believes she just hasn’t found The One yet. But Chloe’s not listening; she’s too busy taking her humiliation out on the infuriating best man, Vaughn Brooks.
Three months later, Something Borrowed—her wedding planning business— is failing. In a last ditch attempt to save it, Chloe is forced to swallow her pride, and work with the enemy: too-hot for his own good, award-winning chef Vaughn. She soon realizes the sparks flying between them are nothing to do with their dubious past, but from something else altogether…
This fun perfect summer read features one sizzling chef, one spicy heroine and a whole lot of tasty trouble.
Available from Amazon.com Amazon.co.uk and all other online Amazon stores worldwide
But wait!!! There’s more….!!
September 2016 sees the release of my women’s fiction book, The Secret Art of Forgiveness
No blurb as yet… but available for pre-order from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk
February 2, 2016
Back at the desk!
It’s been a hectic few weeks what with summer and holidays and having the boys at home and we’ve had a ball travelling to Sydney, Australia to stay with relatives and camping with friends in a variety of places around New Zealand.
But now it’s time to get the bum back on the seat and to kick start the writing routine.
Why is it always so hard to get back into a routine, and yet so easy to fall out of one? (same goes for diets, eh?)
Here are a few photos of what we’ve been up to…in the meantime I’ll try to remember what I was writing before Christmas so I can continue it now…(plays elevator music while dust bunnies fly out of laptop…)
Camping at amazing Home Bay on Motutapu Island, Auckland
Camping at Waipu Cove, Northland, NZ
Hiking on the West Coast, NZ
At Wildlife park in South Sydney
Sydney Opera House
I hope you had lovely holidays too- chat soon!
Louisa xxx
May 17, 2015
Hello
Hello!
I hope 2015 has been good to you so far. I can’t believe we’re into the fifth month already- nearly half the year! Time certainly flies.
I’ve been busy! I have two releases coming out this month. The first is out already (from the 1st) and is a medical romance:
Tempted By Her Italian Surgeon
Here’s the blurb: The doctor everyone’s talking about!
When a deliciously naughty photo of paediatric transplant surgeon Matteo Finelli goes viral, social media expert Ivy Leigh is called in to discipline him. It will be a challenge…especially as Ivy is far from immune to Matteo’s charismatic charm herself!
Dedicated doc Matteo doesn’t care about social media policy – he’s far more interested in uncovering the warm, vulnerable heart Ivy hides beneath her suit jacket. The chemistry between them is sizzling, but can he persuade ever-cautious Ivy to take a risk and give in to irresistible temptation?
So far I’ve been thrilled by the reviews it’s been getting. Seems everyone’s partial to an Italian hero!
Available to purchase from all good book stores including:
Now….drumroll please…I have an exclusive subscriber COVER REVEAL for my second May release-my first ever novella- (due out on May 29th!).
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…
A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
Isn’t he absolutely blimmin’ GORGEOUS?
A Deal With The Devil
This story is a bit of departure for me as I don’t usually write ultra alpha heroes, but Rey was asking for his story to be told and I really enjoyed exploring the whole alpha world- plus, he’s a boxer who owns a casino…who’s not going to be fascinated by that? On sale from 29th May from…
Here is a wee excerpt….Set-up: Undercover journalist, Kate, has taken a job as a waitress at Rey Doyle’s casino. She wants to get close to him to exact her revenge for her brother being beaten-up at an illicit fight club. Here she meets Rey for the first time:
Excerpt begins…
A frisson of change in the atmosphere, like a sudden electric charge, had her turning to the entrance where two beefcakes dressed in expensive-looking dark suits flanked a similarly attired man who … she inhaled sharply, her heart rate faster now. My God… Famously camera-shy, there had only been grainy photos of Rey Doyle via Uncle Google, but nothing had prepared her for what he was like in real life. As he came closer he loomed larger and broader, his coiled, energised presence filling the space. The man was tall. Big. And, unexpectedly, almost arrogantly … beautiful.
She’d been expecting a shorn bulkheaded Neanderthal, not … not a man with a riot of unkempt dark hair that was scraggly, yet somehow perfect. A face that bore scars of his boxing days, a nose bent out of shape at some point made him appear more rugged, more masculine, raw. Cheekbones slashed across his face, high and sharp, emphasising a strident jaw.
His hands were rough, but not unattractive. In fact, there was something about them that had her transfixed as he straightened his cuffs and secured gold cufflinks, those hands would save you, she thought, if you fell. A safe haven. Although, they’d ended many a man’s career in one way or another; almost ended a few lives too, as she knew to her cost. She thought about turning away, she even thought about leaving, right now, but for some reason she went right on looking, taking him in, all of him.
As if he sensed her gaze on him he turned. Cold grey eyes caught on hers, a look of surprise flashing momentarily, then it was gone, banished. He didn’t like to show emotion, Carlos had said, but for one tiny second she’d caught Rey Doyle off guard, and that fuelled her confidence.
For a foolish moment she noted that the gunmetal-coloured shirt he wore gave his eyes a deeper, more dangerous edge. Then she pulled herself together. She hadn’t been a small-town journalist writing soppy copy for a year now; she was hard-hitting, serious and undercover. And while she was also a hot-blooded woman with fully working ovaries, she refused to find anything about Rey Doyle that she liked. Nothing would distract her from this story. She hesitated to call it revenge: he would just be getting what he deserved.
Yet, as her eyes met his, a rush of something she couldn’t describe chased through her. His easy stance screamed confident and calculated, but a keep-out sign might well have been tattooed on his scarred forehead. There was caution there, mistrust- an altogether different vibe, guarded. And still her heart jittered with something akin to excitement.
She put it down to the adrenalin spike of being in her adversary’s lair.
(End of excerpt © Louisa George 2015)
CONTEST & GIVEAWAY
Don’t forget my ‘Out in the Wild’ competition! Send me or message me on Facebook with a photo of one of my books in the wild and I’ll put you in a draw for a copy of one of my backlist books! PLUS! Because I have two books out this month and I feel like celebrating- I will send one subscriber (drawn from the subscriber list)- one copy of a book from my backlist- your choice! I will announce the winner in a week or so.
As always, I love to chat with readers on Facebook twitter or through my website www.louisageorge.com -so please pop by anytime and say hi!
Until next time, Happy reading!
Louisa xx
Copyright © 2015 Louisa George, All rights reserved.
This post was originally sent as a newsletter to my subscribers- if you want to be first to hear my news subscribe to my newsletter…scroll down THIS page and enter your email addy in the subscribe box!
Hello!
I hope 2015 has been good to you so far. I can’t b...
Hello!
I hope 2015 has been good to you so far. I can’t believe we’re into the fifth month already- nearly half the year! Time certainly flies.
I’ve been busy! I have two releases coming out this month. The first is out already (from the 1st) and is a medical romance:
Tempted By Her Italian Surgeon
Here’s the blurb: The doctor everyone’s talking about!
When a deliciously naughty photo of paediatric transplant surgeon Matteo Finelli goes viral, social media expert Ivy Leigh is called in to discipline him. It will be a challenge…especially as Ivy is far from immune to Matteo’s charismatic charm herself!
Dedicated doc Matteo doesn’t care about social media policy – he’s far more interested in uncovering the warm, vulnerable heart Ivy hides beneath her suit jacket. The chemistry between them is sizzling, but can he persuade ever-cautious Ivy to take a risk and give in to irresistible temptation?
So far I’ve been thrilled by the reviews it’s been getting. Seems everyone’s partial to an Italian hero!
Available to purchase from all good book stores including:
Now….drumroll please…I have an exclusive subscriber COVER REVEAL for my second May release-my first ever novella- (due out on May 29th!).
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…
A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
Isn’t he absolutely blimmin’ GORGEOUS?
A Deal With The Devil
This story is a bit of departure for me as I don’t usually write ultra alpha heroes, but Rey was asking for his story to be told and I really enjoyed exploring the whole alpha world- plus, he’s a boxer who owns a casino…who’s not going to be fascinated by that? On sale from 29th May from…
Here is a wee excerpt….Set-up: Undercover journalist, Kate, has taken a job as a waitress at Rey Doyle’s casino. She wants to get close to him to exact her revenge for her brother being beaten-up at an illicit fight club. Here she meets Rey for the first time:
Excerpt begins…
A frisson of change in the atmosphere, like a sudden electric charge, had her turning to the entrance where two beefcakes dressed in expensive-looking dark suits flanked a similarly attired man who … she inhaled sharply, her heart rate faster now. My God… Famously camera-shy, there had only been grainy photos of Rey Doyle via Uncle Google, but nothing had prepared her for what he was like in real life. As he came closer he loomed larger and broader, his coiled, energised presence filling the space. The man was tall. Big. And, unexpectedly, almost arrogantly … beautiful.
She’d been expecting a shorn bulkheaded Neanderthal, not … not a man with a riot of unkempt dark hair that was scraggly, yet somehow perfect. A face that bore scars of his boxing days, a nose bent out of shape at some point made him appear more rugged, more masculine, raw. Cheekbones slashed across his face, high and sharp, emphasising a strident jaw.
His hands were rough, but not unattractive. In fact, there was something about them that had her transfixed as he straightened his cuffs and secured gold cufflinks, those hands would save you, she thought, if you fell. A safe haven. Although, they’d ended many a man’s career in one way or another; almost ended a few lives too, as she knew to her cost. She thought about turning away, she even thought about leaving, right now, but for some reason she went right on looking, taking him in, all of him.
As if he sensed her gaze on him he turned. Cold grey eyes caught on hers, a look of surprise flashing momentarily, then it was gone, banished. He didn’t like to show emotion, Carlos had said, but for one tiny second she’d caught Rey Doyle off guard, and that fuelled her confidence.
For a foolish moment she noted that the gunmetal-coloured shirt he wore gave his eyes a deeper, more dangerous edge. Then she pulled herself together. She hadn’t been a small-town journalist writing soppy copy for a year now; she was hard-hitting, serious and undercover. And while she was also a hot-blooded woman with fully working ovaries, she refused to find anything about Rey Doyle that she liked. Nothing would distract her from this story. She hesitated to call it revenge: he would just be getting what he deserved.
Yet, as her eyes met his, a rush of something she couldn’t describe chased through her. His easy stance screamed confident and calculated, but a keep-out sign might well have been tattooed on his scarred forehead. There was caution there, mistrust- an altogether different vibe, guarded. And still her heart jittered with something akin to excitement.
She put it down to the adrenalin spike of being in her adversary’s lair.
(End of excerpt © Louisa George 2015)
CONTEST & GIVEAWAY
Don’t forget my ‘Out in the Wild’ competition! Send me or message me on Facebook with a photo of one of my books in the wild and I’ll put you in a draw for a copy of one of my backlist books! PLUS! Because I have two books out this month and I feel like celebrating- I will send one subscriber (drawn from the subscriber list)- one copy of a book from my backlist- your choice! I will announce the winner in a week or so.
As always, I love to chat with readers on Facebook twitter or through my website www.louisageorge.com -so please pop by anytime and say hi!
Until next time, Happy reading!
Louisa xx
Copyright © 2015 Louisa George, All rights reserved.
This post was originally sent as a newsletter to my subscribers- if you want to be first to hear my news subscribe to my newsletter…scroll down THIS page and enter your email addy in the subscribe box!
October 4, 2014
Learning new things
Yesterday I went to an amazing talk (given by Shay Barratt) at my local writing chapter. It was about using social media as an author, and one of the points she made was to include inspirational messages that talk to my readers. So I’m going to have a play with some of the tools she suggested using. Don’t be surprised if the odd quote pops up on here! Like this one: made from one of my photos, which I think is a nice twist on the usual phrase. I have to admit I’m enjoying playing more than writing right now!!
