Emma's Review: The Once in a Blue Moon Guesthouse by Cressida McLaughlin

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Robin Brennan has come home to Campion Bay. Now her parents have retired, she’s set to become the new landlady of The Campion Bay Guesthouse.

Bookings have been as thin as the hand towels, and it doesn’t take long for Robin to realise that the place needs a serious makeover. Perhaps throwing herself into the task will help to heal her sadness at the tragic end to her dreams in London.

As she gives the guesthouse a new lease of life, Robin encounters old friends and new, including old flame Tim, who’d clearly like to reboot their romance. But what about Will, the new arrival at No. 4, who’s rocked up with the cutest dog ever?

Caught up in a flurry of full-English breakfasts and cream teas, Robin’s never sure what, or who, the next check-in will bring…

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

The Write Stuff with... Julia Roberts

Today it's my absolute pleasure to be handing over the reins of the blog to author Julia Roberts to talk about the inspiration for her latest novel.

Thanks very much, Sharon for welcoming me on to your blog as part of the tour for my latest novel Alice in Theatreland. Unlike my Liberty Sands trilogy, this is a standalone novel, although I have had people who have read the ebook requesting a sequel – we’ll see. 

The book is set in the long hot summer of 1976 and gives a glimpse of life behind the glitz and glamour of the red velvet curtains in a West End theatre. There is an element of romance running through the book, with Alice falling for her leading man after he shows her some attention, but the plot really centres around the highly dislikeable theatre impresario, Richard, and the lengths to which he will go to protect himself and his sordid secret. It is a dramatic baptism of fire for Alice where she is often unsure who to trust and with a sequence of events that will change her life forever. 

Celebrating 25 in 25 with Lesley Pearse

Today it's my pleasure to be hosting the latest stop on the 25 in 25 blog tour celebrating bestselling author Lesley Pearse and her 25 novels.  Each day a fact will be shared about one of Lesley's previous books as well as promoting her 25th novel The Woman in the Wood which is out this Thursday.  Today it's about Lesley's 11th novel Till We Meet Again.

She kills two people in cold blood - why?

Susan walks into a busy doctor's surgery and guns down two members of staff. Then she calmly waits for the police.

Beth is the lawyer assigned to defend Susan. But her client is uncooperative until both women realise that twenty-nine years earlier, they were childhood friends.

As the evidence against Susan mounts up, both she and Beth begin to talk about the secrets and the traumas that sent them down such different paths in life. Their friendship grows stronger. 

But for one of them, there can be no happy ending . . .

Giveaway: Win a copy of The Supremes Sing the Happy Heartache Blues by Edward Kelsey Moore

You might have noticed that it's been a bit quiet on the blog lately as sadly things have taken their toll on me recently and I've hit a bit of a reading/reviewing slump...  I've not read more than a page or two over the last ten days or so which is pretty unusual for me as I'm normally glued to a book or my Kindle 😢

Today I had hoped to have found the motivation to write a review to share with you all but the words are failing me as well so instead I've decided to do a Friday giveaway as a treat to say thank you to the loyal supporters of my blog.  So the book I've decided to promote and giveaway is another one of the books I received unexpectedly recently which realistically I'm not in a position to read for review The Supremes Sing the Happy Heartache Blues by Edward Kelsey Moore which was published yesterday.

When a late life love affair blooms between Mr. Forrest Payne, the owner of the Pink Slipper Gentleman's Club, and Miss Beatrice Jordan, famous for yelling warnings of eternal damnation at the Club's departing patrons, their wedding summons a legend to town. Mr El Walker, the great guitar bluesman, comes home to give a command performance in Plainview, Indiana, a place he'd sworn never to set foot in again.

Emma's Review: Always in My Heart by Pam Weaver

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

1939. When war is declared, twins Shirley and Tom are evacuated to the coastal town of Worthing. Almost fourteen, they are very close to their mother, but leaving London is the only way to keep them safe. Shirley is the bright one of the pair, whereas Tom is sometimes slow to understand the world around him. But Shirley helps him get by and is his best friend and ally.

The twins are taken in by a local farmer, but their new home quickly proves to be far from a rural dream. Tom is forced to do back-breaking work and sleep under the stairs each night. The farmer's wife is heavily pregnant, and seems to live in fear of him. She's refusing all midwives, so it will be up to Shirley, with no experience in the matter, to help her deliver her baby.

Their new teacher at the local school notices that something is not right with the children, but the farmer keeps the twins from seeing anyone, even their own mother. As the cold weather sets in and Tom falls ill, will Shirley be able to find a way out for them both? 

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

The Write Stuff with... Grace Lowrie

Today I'm handing the reins of the blog to author Grace Lowrie on the latest leg of her Safe with Me blog tour to talk about Writing a Setting.

Whether it’s the country in which a whole story takes place, or a small boat where just one conversation occurs, I’ve learned that the setting can make all the difference.

There are lots of options open to authors of fiction, even more for those of science fiction or fantasy, and yet when I’m enthusiastically scribbling down a first draft I still have to remind myself not to always necessarily go with my first idea. When coming up with a scene I now ask myself: Does this scene (for example, an argument between two characters) have to have to occur on the living room sofa? If so – fine, but what if they were actually on an aeroplane, or a remote mountain top, or in a shop selling lingerie? Would that make the scene more dramatic/interesting/awkward? As Ra’s al Ghul says to Bruce Wayne in the film Batman Begins: “Always mind your surroundings.” I now have this stuck on my wall to remind me.

As a starting point it is generally easier to write about places I’ve been to, or have experience of. Three of my books are set in Wildham, a fictional town somewhere north of London, but the town of my imagination is based on bits and pieces of real places – the market square, pubs and coffee shops – that I know well. Similarly Southwood’s Garden Centre, which features in Safe With Me, is fictional, but based on personal experience. My aunt and uncle built up their own successful nursery and garden centre from nothing, and I worked part-time in a garden centre for several years. I know first-hand the relaxed satisfaction of planting up hanging baskets; the tedium of dead-heading endless trays full of bedding plants, and the hours spent watering pots in the heat of the summer.

Giveaway: Win a copy of Anne Boleyn: A King's Obsession by Alison Weir

As much as I would love to, sadly I don't have time to read every single book that I receive especially when they arrive unexpectedly.  So instead I try to do promotional posts and/or giveaways for the books that I am not able to read for review.  One such book is the latest in the Six Tudor Queen series Anne Boleyn: A King's Obsession.

The young woman who changed the course of history.

The Write Stuff with... Kim Izzo

Today it's my pleasure to welcome author Kim Izzo to the blog to talk about the real life experience of her great-grandfather which inspired her latest book Seven Days in May.  

Seven Days in May is my first historical novel and it was inspired by a very personal connection. “My father jumped into the water with two children. He tried to save them but they both drowned.” I’d heard that story all throughout my childhood, told to me by my grandmother Muriel. My great-grandfather, Walter Dawson, was a survivor of the sinking of the Lusitania that was torpedoed by the Germans on May 7, 1915.

History’s great tragedies tug at our emotions, and retold years later they capture the imagination of new generations, binding us to another time, another place. These tales of human suffering, sacrifice and heroism endure, and when reimagined as a novel or film, our imagination takes us back in time.

Unlike that other famous ship, the RMS Titanic, which stayed afloat for over 3 hours, the Lusitania sank in approximately 18 minutes, taking with her 1,198 souls to the bottom of the sea. Among her most notable fatalities were American billionaire Alfred Vanderbilt, and Broadway producer, Charles Frohman, who had produced Peter Pan, among other hits.

Walter was not one of the wealthy passengers, a working class Yorkshireman who had immigrated to Boston the year before war broke out; he was heading home to join up alongside his two brothers.

Extract from The Farm Girl's Dream by Eileen Ramsay

Today it's my pleasure to be kicking off the blog tour for Eileen Ramsay's latest book The Farm Girl's Dream which is published this Thursday.

To young Victoria Cameron, Angus, Scotland is the most beautiful place on earth and she wishes nothing more than to stay on her little farm for ever. But the death of her beloved grandfather leaves her and her mother without a farm and struggling to make ends meet.

Never one to give up, Victoria soon finds work in a Dundee mill, while her mother supports them by taking in lodgers. Neither ever expected one of those lodgers would be John Cameron, the father that walked out on them so many years ago.

Victoria is torn about how to receive this stranger, and torn about the other man in her life - a young boy she thinks she could love if only he comes back from the war.

Priory Farm, Angus, 24th May 1900

Pain gripped Catriona. It tore at her angrily, as if punishing her for some unknown crime. Sweat broke out on her forehead and she tried desperately not to scream. She had never believed it would be like this, never. Was she not the daughter of farmers? Had she not seen birth a dozen times a year – a thing done privately, causing as little trouble as possible.

‘Ach, lassie, let it out. There’s no one to hear but me and auld Jock out there and he’d bear it for you, if he could.’

The voice was that of Maggie, employed by Jock Cameron as dairy maid and now midwife.

Catriona’s scream tore through the air and died to a gasping whimper. Maggie held her hand and, outside, Jock stopped his pacing and listened.

‘Dear God, help the lassie, as I’ve never been able to help.’

She was quiet. Was that it? Was it over? Was he a grandfather?

The Write Stuff with... Caroline Roberts

Today it's my stop on the My Summer of Magic Moments so I'm delighted to be handing the blog over to author Caroline Roberts with her tips for aspiring authors.

Hi, it took me quite some time to get published, it was a huge learning curve along the way and still is! But I got there, I somehow managed to hold on to the dream and believe in my stories, and I’m so proud that my fourth book ‘My Summer of Magic Moments’ is about to be published with Harper Collins. So here are my writing tips:  

Write what you are passionate about. If you love what you write this will make the writing process so much easier, and it will come through to readers (and hopefully publishers/agents if you are looking to be published) and spark their imagination and interest too.

Finish the book! Don’t pressure yourself that it has to be perfect, just keep going forward and get the story down. Make time to write regularly, and you will get there. Remember: ‘Don’t get it Right, Get it Written’. Editing is for later.

Emma's Review: My Summer of Magic Moments by Caroline Roberts

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

When a seaside escape spells a little romance . . .

Claire is ready for a bright new chapter. Winding her way to the coast for a cosy cottage retreat, she prays that three weeks of blissful peace and summer sunshine will wash away the pain of the last year.

Claire’s a survivor – she’s growing proud of the scars that prove it – and she’s determined to make the most of each and every day, to seize those little magic moments that give life its sparkle.

Her plan for peaceful solitude goes awry when handsome, brooding Ed turns up in the cottage next door. Will a little summer romance prove the worst distraction? Or might it be the perfect remedy?

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review:Confetti at the Cornish Cafe by Phillipa Ashley

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Cal and Demi are preparing to launch their beloved Kilhallon Resort as a wedding venue. Cakes are baking, Cornish flowers are blooming, and fairy lights are twinkling. With the cliff-top setting and coastal views, it's the perfect place for a magical marriage ceremony.

But their first clients are no ordinary couple. The bride and groom are internationally famous actors Lily Craig and Ben Trevone. Kilhallon is about to host a celebrity wedding . . .
With the pressure on, Demi and Cal are doing all they can to keep their guests happy and avoid any wedding disasters. But is the unpredictable weather the only thing standing in the way of the Big Day?

As secrets surface and truths are told, can Demi and Cal ensure that Kilhallon's first wedding is a success? One thing’s for sure, this will be a Cornish celebration to remember . . .

Amazon link: Kindle 

Emma's Review: The Summer Visitors by Fiona O'Brien

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Summer has arrived in Ballyanna, and so too has a mysterious visitor ...

American documentary maker Daniel O'Connell is renting the beautiful Cable Lodge for the summer. He's hoping that three months researching an old cable station in a remote village on the south-west coast of Ireland will help him and his traumatised son finally move on from the accident that killed his wife.

Meanwhile local hotel owner's daughter Annie Sullivan has communication problems of her own to deal with. Home on sabbatical from her life in London, she's keeping a secret from her dysfunctional family and trying to save them and the hotel from their latest drama.

As summer draws to a close in Ballyanna, both Dan and Annie are forced to confront the pasts they've been escaping. But will they be able to grasp the future that lies ahead?

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Debut Spotlight: Liz Lawler

Today it's the final stop on the Don't Wake Up blog tour so it's my absolute pleasure to welcome author Liz Lawler to find out a little more about herself and her debut novel.

Born in Chatham and partly raised in Dublin, Liz Lawler is one of fourteen children and grew up sharing socks, pants, stuffed bras and a table space to eat at. Liz spent over twenty years working as a nurse, and has since worked as a flight attendant and as the general manager of a five-star hotel. She now lives in Bath with her husband.

Don't Wake Up is her first novel.. 

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your writing journey? 
Writing for me began all of a sudden. It was not something that I had ever thought of doing. I’d just ferried the kids to school, first day back after the summer holidays and I came back to an untidy house with the intention of spending a good hard day cleaning. Instead, propelled by a need, I picked up a lined notebook that had some pages scribbled on or torn out and began to write a story. I spent the whole of that day writing and rose from the table exhausted, fingers stiff and unbending, yet exhilarated by the intensity of emotion I’d spilled out onto the pages since that morning. Days turned to weeks and weeks turned to months and by the end of the year I had filled more than a dozen of these notebooks. I then sat down to read them, at times barely able to decipher what I’d written, as I had either rushed or missed out a part of a sentence, and I could see a whole story had emerged, most of it about murder with characters that I could imagine as being real. 

For the next few years I resisted writing, but like an addict I eventually returned to it and for the first time in my life I went to university, accepted to do a MA in creative writing. I felt a fraud that very first day, sitting among the other students who already had BA’s and were journalists, radio presenters, English teachers, play writers and even actors. Each of them had already come from a world where writing was a part of it. I was a nurse and the only thing I had ever written was the story I wrote a few years back that had gained me a place on this course. I still don’t think of myself as a writer – it feels too premature - I’m just someone who likes to write. 

If you had to give an elevator pitch for Don't Wake Up, what would it be? 
Alex Taylor is a successful doctor; she is used to dealing with trauma and the unexpected on a scale that most people don’t ever imagine. Her world revolves around life and death situations every day. She is no stranger to the unimaginable, until it happens to her. Only no one believes the story she tells For Alex the real nightmare has just begun.

Debut Spotlight: Benjamin Ludwig

Today it's my pleasure to be shining the spotlight on Benjamin Ludwig and his debut novel Ginny Moon on latest leg of his blog tour.

Benjamin Ludwig is a middle school language arts teacher, who has been teaching both children and adults since 1997. He believes strongly in supporting the voiceless and the displaced, especially their need for attachment.  Shortly after he and his wife were married they became foster parents, and adopted their first placement: a teenager with autism and developmental disabilities. Ginny Moon was inspired in part by conversations he had with other parents at Special Olympics basketball practices. He hopes to adopt again after his daughter transitions into adulthood.  Benjamin lives in New Hampshire.

Can you tell us a little about yourself and your writing journey?
I started writing in fourth grade – when I was nine years old – and haven’t stopped.  It’s an addiction.  I’ve always been a reader as well, but once I was capable of writing my own stories I wrote a lot more than I read.  A story is a writer’s psychology, externalized. Writing became a way of thinking, a way of being for me.  Up until this year I was a public-school teacher, and I have children of my own, so the only time I could write was before the family woke up in the morning, and during my lunch break.  Now that Ginny Moon is published, I’m going to take a year to write my second book.  It’s going to be a new experience, writing all day! Very much looking forward to giving it a try.

Why’s Ginny Moon so original?
The original title of the book was The Original Ginny Moon, but “The Original” was nixed because her name (and voice) became a force unto itself.  But “The Original” was meant to reference the idea that now, in the present-tense of the story, she is reconnecting with who she used to be, and the circumstances that formed her.  

If Ginny Moon had a favourite book, what would it be?
Actually, Ginny Moon does have a favourite book.  She loves The Rosie Project, by Graeme Simsion.  She wrote him a letter about it – I’ll attach it here!  It might help to know that Graeme wrote an endorsement that appears on the cover of Ginny Moon. That’s what Ginny is talking about when she says, “I saw your name on it too…”

Emma's Review: A Daughter's Courage by Renita D'Silva

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

How much would you sacrifice to save your family?

1929. When a passionate love affair threatens to leave Lucy in disgrace, she chooses a respectable marriage over a life of shame. With her husband, coffee-plantation-owner James, she travels to her new home in India, leaving her troubled past behind her.

Everything in India is new to Lucy, from the jewel-coloured fabrics to the exotic spices. When her path crosses that of Gowri, a young woman who tends the temple on the plantation’s edge, Lucy is curious to find out more about her, and the events that lead her to live in isolation from her family…

Now. With her career in shatters and her heart broken by the man she thought was her future, Kayva flees from bustling Mumbai to her home town. A crumbling temple has been discovered in a village nearby, and with it letters detailing its tragic history – desperate pleas from a young woman called Gowri.

As Kavya learns of Gowri and Lucy’s painful story, she begins to understand the terrible sacrifices that were made and the decision the two women took that changed their lives forever. Can the secrets of the past help Kavya to rebuild her life?

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback 

Debut Spotlight: Kaela Coble

Today I'm delighted to be shining the spotlight on Kaela Coble and her debut novel Friends and Liars which is published in the UK today.

Kaela Coble is a member of the League of Vermont Writers, a voracious reader, and a hopeless addict of bad television and chocolate. She lives with her husband in Burlington, Vermont, USA, and is a devoted mother to their rescued chuggle, Gus. 

Friends and Liars is her first novel.

Website: https://kaelacoble.com
Twitter: @kaelacoble
Facebook: KaelaCobleAuthor 

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your writing journey?
I’ve always liked to write, but I never seriously considered writing as a career until after I had already graduated from college and started working in my first job in PR (and hated it). I was at a loss for what to do next so I saved some money, quit my job and went backpacking in Australia for four months - a little Eat, Pray, Love journey (before that book came out). It was such an amazing experience that taught me a lot about myself, and near the end of it I was sitting in front of this waterfall and it just came to me that I should write about it.

When I got home, I got work as an administrative assistant so I would have time and energy left to write, but it still took me two years after my trip before I actually started writing, and it took me at least two and a half years to finish my first book. I revised and queried and revised and queried and pitched and revised and queried, but in the end, it was a “stepping stone book,” -- it just wasn’t that good, but I needed to write it in order to get know that I could do it, and to get my writing muscles into shape.

I continued to query it, but I followed the advice I had read a hundred times to start work on your next project. So by the time I was finally ready to shelve that first book, I already had a first draft of a second one, which is what eventually became Friends and Liars. (Coincidentally, I also went through the query and revise, query and revise process for FAL for so long that I had a decent start on my next project before I got my agent).

I queried in the traditional way and eventually was offered representation by Stephanie Kip Roston at Levine, Greenbergy, Rostan Agency, and a few months later, I got a book deal with Corvus!

What inspired you to write Friends and Liars?
I grew up with a really tight-knit and interesting group of friends from childhood who remain friends to this day, and I always wanted to find a way to write about that kind of friendship but didn’t know what the plot would be. Then one day I was at my hairdresser’s sitting under the dryer flipping through a magazine, (the one time I allow myself to read trashy gossip mags), and I read a little blurb about the 30-year anniversary of the movie The Big Chill, which is about a group of college friends who come together after one of them dies, and I thought - that’s it! I just have to kill one of them!