Rhoda Baxter's Blog, page 21

One Day to Fall by Therese Beharrie

One Day to Fall by Therese Beharrie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sophia is feeling suffocated by her family who keep comparing her to her ‘perfect’ big sister. The idea of sitting in a hospital waiting room for hours is too much to bear, so she runs away.
Parker is also running away from the same hospital. In his case, it’s from his mother’s diagnosis. Sophia jumps into his taxi and despite himself he cares that she might not be safe.
Eventually, they make a pact to have this one day to run away fr...

This Stolen Life is on the Not The Booker longlist

Eeep! This Stolen Life (written as my alter ego Jeevani Charika) is on the longlist for the Not The Booker. Every year, alongside the Booker Prize, The Guardian newspaper runs a parallel competition, where the books are nominated by readers. It’s not so much a competition as a bit of fun and a chance to make some noise about your favourite books.

The longlist is whittled down to a shortlist by popular vote. So if you’ve read This Stolen Life, I’d love to have one of your two votes. Voting clo...

Book review: One Night Wife by Ainslie Paton

by Ainslie Paton My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Finley’s charity is failing and she’s desperate enough to stand on a barstool and ask people to donate. That’s how she catches the attention of con man/ philanthropist Cal Sherwood. Cal and his family run a ‘rob the rich, give to the poor’ type enterprise involving elaborate investment scams. He’s a rogue, but such a charming one, with his heart in the right place, that you often forget that he’s a con man.
Cal ends up training Finley in the art of t...

Want to spend a morning talking plot?

It’s that time of year again. Jane Lovering and I are running our Plot Your Novel in a Morning workshop again.

[image error]Let us help your story come unstuck.

Plot Your Novel workshop with Jane Lovering and Rhoda Baxter

When: Saturday the 14th of September 2019. 9.30am  – 12pm.

Where: The Garden Room, Friargate Quaker Meeting House, Friargate, YORK, YO1 9RL

Cost: £35 (early booking discount: if booked before 12th of Aug it’s £30) 

Here’s some feedback from last year:

“Thorough and fun workshop run by t...

How To Write Romantic Comedy

Did I mention that I’ve got a new book out? It’s my first non-fiction book and it’s co-written with my friend and esteemed colleague Jane Lovering. It’s all about … how to write romantic comedy. We thought we’d go for the obvious title. (Discarded titles were ‘RomCom101’, ‘Three times round the car park and back in for another, Dammit, dammit’ and ‘Things to do whilst eating biscuits’).

There’s a lot about biscuits, but an awful lot more about writing comedy. Jane has won lots of awards for h...

Book Review: The Secret Ingredient by Nancy Naigle

The Secret Ingredient by Nancy Naigle My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a second chance romance, set in a small town, even though a lot of the key action takes place in New York.
Kelly and Andrew were engaged – they were going to get married and open a restaurant together. All that changed when Andrew was offered the chance of a lifetime to go to Paris and study under the greatest chefs in the world. They tried to make it work, but eventually, they had to give up. Kelly heartbroken, threw her...

Book Review: This Green and Pleasant Land by Ayisha Malik

This Green and Pleasant Land by Ayisha Malik My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book.
Bilal is a mild mannered accountant who lives in the quintessentially English village of Babbel’s End. He’s been an active member of the community and seems to be accepted by everyone in the village. Until he decides to honour his mother’s dying wish that he build a mosque in the village.

This book is largely about racism – the everyday, insidious kind that people aren’t even aware of, until th...

Book review: A Summer to Remember by Sue Moorcroft

A Summer to Remember by Sue Moorcroft My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Clancy is betrayed by her boyfriend and work colleagues, she takes up the job of caretaker for a row of cottages in Nelson’s Bar, which is a tiny village by the sea. There she find comfort and friendship amoung the locals and, of course, love.

A Summer to Remember is such a sunny book! The village, with its cliff top walks and lack on mobile signal or internet, feels like a character in itself. Clancy is very earnest and thoug...

Book review: Not Your Knight In Shining Armour by Kate Johnson

Not Your Knight in Shining Armour by Kate Johnson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh my word, I loved this book.
Scarlet is a plus sized heroine (she’d say ‘fat’). She’s been a rock and roll brat and done that. Now she’s relauching a career as her new, sober, self.
Tom is a mess. He’s suffering from PTSD, tends to drink too much and is often depressed. He has tried just about every treatment money could buy (and he’s a Prince, so he has the money to buy just about everything!) but it’s not helping.
He...

Bookreview: Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski

Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I first heard about this book on the Smart Bitches podcast and thought it sounded interesting, so when I saw it on Netgalley, I requested it immediately. I burned out last year and ended up leaving my job. Anything that would help with my recovery would be most welcome.
This book made sense. A lot of the stuff you get told to do to protect your mental health - meditate, take 'me time', colour in etc - an...