BLOG TOUR: The Year of Starting Over by Karen King

I'm thrilled to be able to join in the blog tour for Karen King's delightful The Year of Starting Over! I was able to read it in advance thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture and absolutely flew through it.

The book starts with poor Holly and her miserable waste of a boyfriend whom she's certain is "The One" in spite of the protests of her mum, best friend, and beloved grandfather. After her grandfather dies and wants her to use her inheritance on herself and her dreams she begins to really take stock of her life and, hence, begins her year of starting over.

Haven't we all felt that desire to just start over at one point or another? I was super-jealous of her ability to make a bucket list that she would now have the means to tackle! I was especially jealous that she had friends in Spain who would let her stay with them rent-free for months! I need to get me some of those.... but at least I got to live vicariously through Holly for the couple of days it took me to fly through her story. Once I really got into it, I didn't want to put it down. (Just ask my boss .... she knows all too well!)

It was a joy getting to know Holly as she got to know herself. Along the way we also get to know  her friends Fiona and Pablo and watch them turn their run down estate into a fabulous artist retreat. Of course, there's also Matias and Luna. I absolutely fell in love with Luna! Matias? Well, he took some warming up to ... for myself and for Holly. I'll let you read for yourself how that all plays out.

Make sure you check out what everyone else is saying about this fabulous book!

The Year of Starting Over: A feel good novel about second chances and finding yourself

Amazon: https://geni.us/B07KFGL5P2Social Apple: http://ow.ly/Mfgd30nBig8 Kobo: http://ow.ly/edYm30nBijM Googleplay: http://ow.ly/qTmS30nBi94

What if – to find yourself – you had to run away?

Last year was meant to be when Holly got her happy-ever-after. But stuck in a job that’s going nowhere, and a relationship that feels more like it’s going backwards… this year Holly hasdecided it’s time to change her life. She just has to:

– End the relationship with the commitment-phobic boyfriend
– Go on a proper adventure
– Learn to be herself again
– Definitely, categorically not fall in love.

Cramming her belongings into her little yellow Mini, Holly drives on to a ferry bound to Spain, to stay at a remote farmhouse near a beautiful village in the Andalusian hills.

But the day she arrives she nearly crashes her car into a gorgeous guy on a motorbike. He’s called Matias and their paths keep crossing, much to Holly’s irritation. Because as she learns to speak Spanish from the locals, finally starts laying out plans for her own design business, and sips sangria in the sunlit village square, Holly is beginning to remember who she is and what she wants.

So she won’t allow herself be distracted by Matias. Because this year – for Holly – there are more important things in life than love. And she won’t let yet another bad relationship ruin everything… will she?

A moving and uplifting romantic comedy about living each moment and learning to trust yourself again, for fans of Jenny Hale, Debbie Macomber, and Sophie Kinsella.

About the author

Karen King is a multi-published author of children's books, YA and romantic fiction. She has had 120 children's books published, two young adult novels, six romantic novels and several short stories for women's magazines.

'The Cornish Hotel by the Sea', published by Accent Press, became an international bestseller, reaching the top hundred in the Kindle charts in both the UK and Australia, and #2 and #3 in Holiday Reads respectively. Karen recently signed a two book contract with Bookouture, the first book 'Snowy Nights at the Lonely Hearts Hotel' was published in November 2018.

Blog Tour : The Runaway Children by Sandy Taylor

Sandy Taylor's When We Danced at the End of the Pier absolutely blew my mind and I still talk about it and recommend it often. I've still been holding off on reading the other books in that particular series because I've felt that there was no way that they could measure up. How could an author possibly pen multiple books that would both tear at my heart and make me laugh until I cried? Of course, then The Runaway Children was announced, and a spot on the blog tour opened up for my birthday, and I knew it was somehow fated. Somehow I knew that Sandy Taylor was once again going to keep me up at night, and her characters would become treasured loved ones.

I wasn't wrong at all.

The Runaway Children focuses on Nell Patterson and her little sister, Olive. They're evacuated from their home in the East end of London with their brother Tony -- leaving behind their mother, newborn brother, and everyone and everything they know and love. Like so many other children they were sent to the countryside in Wales. Watching the two girls adjust to their changing circumstances was as much of a roller coaster for me as it was for the characters. I grew attached to Taylor's villages and inhabitants -- most of them, anyway. Most of all, though, I grew attached to Nell and Olive and their amazing relationship. The age difference is significantly different here than it was between the sisters in When We Danced, but here it worked in making the relationship even more special. 

I don't want to say too much because I fear that if I truly start gushing about how perfect this book was, I won't be able to stop until I've given it all away. This is one that needs to be read rather than told.

*****

Visit the other tour stops:

UK 🇬🇧 http://amzn.to/2xAwtXf 
US 🇺🇸 http://amzn.to/2iDTz5i

A heart-wrenching, unforgettable story of two evacuee sisters during the Second World War… Perfect for fans of Orphan Train, Nadine Dorries and Diney Costeloe.

London, 1942: Thirteen-year-old Nell and five-year-old Olive are being sent away from the devastation of the East End. They are leaving the terror of the Blitz and nights spent shivering in air raid shelters behind them, but will the strangers they are billeted with be kind and loving, or are there different hardships ahead?

As the sisters struggle to adjust to life as evacuees, they soon discover that living in the countryside isn’t always idyllic. Nell misses her mother and brothers more than anything but she has to stay strong for Olive. Then, when little Olive’s safety is threatened by a boy on a farm, Nell has to make a decision that will change their lives forever…

They must run from danger and try to find their way home.

Together the two girls hold each other’s hands as they begin their perilous journey across bombed-out Britain. But when Nell falls ill, can she still protect her little sister from the war raging around them? And will they ever be reunited from the family they’ve been torn from?

An unputdownable novel of unconditional love, friendship and the fight for survival during a time of unimaginable change. The Runaway Children is guaranteed to find a place in your heart.

About the author: 

Sandy Taylor grew up on a council estate near Brighton. There were no books in the house, so Sandy’s love of the written word was nurtured in the little local library. Leaving school at fifteen, Sandy worked in a series of factories before landing a job at Butlins in Minehead. This career change led her to becoming a singer, a stand up comic and eventually a playwright and novelist.
https://twitter.com/SandyTaylorAuth
https://www.facebook.com/SandyTaylorAuthor/

Blog Tour : It Had To Be You by Keris Stainton

If I actually gave awards for "best ____ of the year," Keris Stainton's It Had To Be You would likely win for Best RomCom of 2017. There was so much that I loved about this book and it is definitely one that I can see myself re-reading any time I need a little pick-me-up.

Bea is a twenty-five year old hopeless romantic who has had a recurring dream for years about "The One" and exactly how she would meet him. She even moved to a specific part of London in order to see the dream become a reality. Her life basically lives like a romcom -- complete with an internal voiceover much like that in movie trailers. (I totally get it. The same voice has invaded my own head on more than a few occasions.) She has the odd mix of friends and housemates, the quirky bookstore job, and the lack of a clue about what she really needs and wants.

It ends up being pretty predictable fairly early on as to what should (and, ultimately, does) happen for not only Bea but for the supporting characters as well, but that takes nothing away from the joy and delight I had in reading it. After all, aren't all romcoms a bit predictable? Isn't that why we read and watch them? And yes, I've already worked on "casting" this one in my head -- Olivia Cooke as Bea? Sydney White as Freya? Matthew Lewis would definitely be a perfect Henry! Oh what a fabulous movie it would be to add to my collection!

Make sure you check out the other stops on the blog tour to celebrate the release of this fabulous 5-star read ... and, of course, buy the book!

Available now!

UK

🇬🇧

http://amzn.to/2ff3Nr9

US

🇺🇸

http://amzn.to/2BuvhTD

Twenty-five-year-old Bea is a hopeless romantic with a hopeless love life – until now. New beau Dan ticks all the boxes: he’s good-looking, kind and thoughtful. The complete opposite of Bea’s ex, who once threw her out in the middle of the night when she was ill so she didn’t disrupt his sleep.

So when her friends point out that she and Dan don’t have fireworks, Bea ignores them. Dan is the whole package. And yet Bea can’t stop comparing him to her best friend Henry… Because Dan doesn’t get Bea’s jokes. Or like books. Or make her laugh until she can’t breathe. Or become speechless when Bea puts on her favourite black dress for a night out…

As time goes on, Bea can’t shift the feeling that something just isn’t right. On paper Dan is the perfect man. But in reality… Will Bea be brave enough to ask for more from life – and get the fireworks she deserves?

A laugh-out-loud romantic comedy for fans of Giovanna Fletcher, Cate Woods, and Mhairi McFarlane.

About the author: 

Keris lives in Lancashire with her husband and two sons. She’s written a bunch of books for young adults and children, and is obsessed with Twitter, tea, and 1D.

www.keris-stainton.com

https://twitter.com/Keris

Tour! Rubies in the Roses by Vivian Conroy

In June I participated in the double cover reveal for Vivian Conroy's latest series.

In July I was able to share my love for the first in the series, Death Plays a Part.

Today I am beyond thrilled to be participating in the blog tour for the next Cornish Castle book -- Rubies in the Roses!

Once again, we're back at the castle in Cornisea where Guinevere is still trying to make some sense out of all of the books and documents that Lord Bolingbrooke needs catalogued ... as well as out of Lord Bolingbrooke's son, Oliver.

Oh, Oliver.

I have to hand it to Vivian Conroy. She definitely knows how to write a swoon-worthy male. I am absolutely torn between Oliver and Jake Dubois from her Lady Alkmene Callender series. It's almost as bad as my constant battle of whether I prefer Knightley over Tilney! Each one is rugged, serious without being too stuffy, mysterious in his own right and, at least in my head, ridiculously good looking.

And then she has to go and throw Max into the mix.

Max is a photographer staying at the castle with Bolingbrooke's old friend, Gregory Wadencourt. Wadencourt is a historian and treasure seeker who believes that there's a legendary wedding goblet on the castle grounds and he has every intention of locating it before an article about it's existence is published and hordes of tourists show up to search.

Of course, another murder takes place and thrusts Guinevere, her dog Dolly, and Oliver right into the middle of things. Having to figure out what happened in the past, in the present and what could possibly be happening in her future has poor Guinevere more than a bit frazzled. I honestly can't blame the poor girl!

History is obviously a dangerous thing -- especially on Cornisea. Luckily, Guinevere has the support of Inspector LeFevre again (and oooooh how I want to know more about him!) and, of course, her beloved Dolly. It almost makes up for the constant confusion being thrown at her from Max and Oliver!

It's another 5-star winner for me from Vivian Conroy and I can't wait to see what she has in store for us (and Guinevere) next!

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Get the first two #CornishCastle books now!

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Death Plays a Part

Welcome to Cornisea island and spend your summer holidays in a Cornish Castle.

Guinevere and her trusted dog Dolly have arrived on Cornisea island in Cornwall for the summer. But what should be weeks of cataloguing books and sunny walks on the beach turns deadly when murder strikes!

Amazon US

Amazon UK
Amazon Canada

Barnes & Noble
Google Play

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Rubies in the Roses

Welcome to Cornisea island and spend your summer holidays in a Cornish Castle.

Guinevere and her Dachshund Dolly are happily enjoying their summer by the Cornish coast - sun, sea and delicious food. Until a long-lost treasure and a mysterious death turns her holiday into a search for justice!

Amazon US

Amazon UK
Amazon Canada
Google Play

Death Plays a Part by Vivian Conroy (Tour, Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

Just under a month ago I was thrilled to be part of the double cover reveal for Vivian Conroy's new Cornish Castle Mystery series and I still can't get over how cute the covers are -- especially now that I know how perfectly the first one, at least, matches what's inside!

Today the first in the series, Death Plays a Part, is finally being released and I'm so flipping excited for you all to finally be able to read it, too! I knew as soon as I saw the description that it would likely be one that my theater-loving Cornwall-obsessed self would love, and I wasn't wrong.

The first of Vivian Conroy's Cornish Castle Mysteries is yet another fantastic tale with characters I just can't get enough of!

Guinevere is absolutely my kind of girl. She loves books and history and the theater and her sidekick dachshund, Dolly. When faced with a locked-room murder happening right under her feet, she uses her knowledge of theatrics and mystery stories to come up with possible scenarios -- even acting them out with make-shift displays like one would use in order to plot out placements for a theater production. She's smart, she's spunky, she's caring ... and I could totally see us being friends.

That's one of the great things about Vivian Conroy -- whether she's writing about 1920s London socialites, or present day "normal" gals in Maine or Cornwall, she has a knack of being able to create heroines I would love to call my friends. She also adds the right combination of supporting characters to keep things interesting and the men? Well, let's just say that I would definitely trade shoes with Guinevere for a few pages if it meant quality time to be had with Oliver .... just like I still swoon with a mere thought of Jake from the Lady Alkmene books. I can't wait to revisit the castle, its inhabitants and their neighbors in Rubies in the Roses!

Basically, Vivian Conroy rocks my socks and this is definitely another book that I would highly recommend reading. You can order it now, and since it's Friday, I also get to give you a little glimpse or two as part of my usual Book Beginnings & Friday 56:

As always, Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice & Book Beginnings is at Rose City Reader.

Please visit the other stops on the tour! 

Clicking on the image below will take you to Conroy's 

Twitter and she always shares links to tour stops!

Curves, Kisses & Chocolate Ice Cream by Sue Watson (Tour, Book Beginnings & Friday 56)

I loved the first book in this series, Ella's Ice Cream Summer, so I was thrilled when I saw this follow-up on NetGalley! I was even more thrilled when I grabbed a spot on the blog tour for its release week. Curves, Kisses & Chocolate Ice Cream is fabulous!

We're back at the ice cream cafe and although most of the characters from the first installment are present here, this time our focus is on an employee of the cafe named Dani. Dani has a lot of issues with relationships and food and, often, they go hand-in-hand. Each chapter starts out with a diary entry of a diet she has been on -- and the man involved. 

(Can't get much more of a "Book Beginnings" than the table of contents, can you???
Book Beginnings is hosted at Rose City Reader)

None of her past attempts have ever worked as intended. Now she's almost 40, back home in Appledore, and working at the ice cream cafe where she had worked as a teenager. She's determined to celebrate turning 40 slimmer, healthier and happier but it's a daunting task since she despises exercise as much as she loves food.

She joins a local gym and she meets its owner, Chris. Inappropriate comments and mishaps abound, but it's all good. At least she's going, right?

(Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. This week's 56 is page 56 of the ePub from NetGalley.) 

Dani is snarky and sarcastic and tries to turn everything into a joke -- often at her own expense. I get it. Say something bad about yourself as a "joke" before someone else can say it and "mean it" (although, really, you mean it, too). Chris is super serious and determined to help her reach her goals, though -- especially because it would be great for the gym's reputation to have her as a success story.

It was such a joy to watch both of them transform over the time spent together. He loosened up and she got more serious about her life choices. Of course, being a Sue Watson book, there were some sad face sniffley heartbreak moments ... but there were so many more laughs and heartwarming moments that I smiled a lot more than I sniffled. I also craved a lot of ice cream. (Luckily, I embraced my inner Dani and hit the exercise bike instead of the box of ice cream ... except for a spoon or two!)

Absolutely a 5 star read!

❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤

Buy from AmazonUK 🇬🇧 http://amzn.to/2nD4RdH 

Buy from AmazonUS 🇺🇸 http://amzn.to/2thm4NR

❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤

Dani’s on a mission to get her life back on track by the end of the Summer. Running, rowing, aerobics and more, but perhaps all she needs are sweet treats and a second chance?

Twenty years ago, Dani fled Appledore with a broken-heart and a suitcase full of shattered dreams. Only now is she brave enough to put her past behind her and return for a summer selling homemade ice-cream and getting fit by doing sit-ups by the sea.

But the new-look cafe is filled with old memories of Jude, her teenage sweetheart-turned-sour. She thinks of him every time she swirls warm sauce onto a “chocolate-bockaglory” and even with the help of Chris, her gorgeous personal trainer, the urge to break her diet is everywhere she turns.

When Jude makes an appearance at the cafe on the eve of Dani’s birthday party, history threatens to repeat itself. Is Dani strong enough to say no? And is the love she’s been longing for much closer than she thinks?

A truly delicious, laugh out loud beach read that’s guaranteed to melt your heart. Perfect for fans of Lucy Diamond, Jenny Colgan and Debbie Johnson.

❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤

Buy from AmazonUK 🇬🇧 http://amzn.to/2nD4RdH 

Buy from AmazonUS 🇺🇸 http://amzn.to/2thm4NR

❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤🍦🍧🍨❤❤❤

Blog Tour! Mystery at Maplemead Castle by Kitty French

I have made absolutely no secret as to how much I adore Melody Bittersweet so when I was asked to participate in the blog tour for the second Chapelwick Mysteries book I jumped at the chance. The whole gang from the first book is back for another hauntingly hilarious tale that, once again, is as full of heartfelt "awwws" as it is belly laughs. It's always a joy to find a book that can make me laugh until I cry and then turn right around and break my heart. I honestly didn't think it would be possible to love this as much as I loved the first one. Truth of the matter is, I may have even loved it more!

Too many times a series can go on without much in the way of character development. Here, though, everyone has had a bit of a boost. (Well, except for Leo's maniacal fembots. I don't think they can get a boost without plastic surgery or Victoria's Secret being involved!) Artie is truly coming into his own even though he's still living at home with his mum; Marina is even more terrifying when she's in her defend-the-bestie mode; even the one-eared pug, Lestat, is becoming an actual part of the team! 

 
And then there's Melody. 

 
Dear, sweet, slightly messed up Melody. 

Melody Bittersweet, of course, is my BBGBFFL (best book ghostbusting friend for life). She's a geektastic spitfire full of spunk ... and pancakes ... and biscuits ... and cake ... and she has rather interesting taste in clothing and men. Of course, both her ex-boyfriend Leo AND her ... ummm ... well ... Fletch are back for this latest adventure. Her relationships with both go through quite a lot and it's really no surprise at all (to me, anyway) that a biscuit tin is almost at the ready. 

This time the three of them (plus respective teams) are at Maplemead Castle in order to assist the new owners with their not-so-little ghost problem that includes an all-too-lifelike (for those who can see it) lion. Yes, ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages .... the circus is in town! 

There are twists and turns galore -- of both the physical and metaphorical variety. It took a while to know what the real issue being investigated was and I totally did not guess the outcome until it was right in front of my face in all of its glory. I think maybe I was too delighted to just lose myself in the story to bother trying to get a step or two ahead of it. Or, maybe I was distracted by the latest love polygon to have put all of pieces together in the right spots. Or, just maybe, I was too busy expanding my vocabulary (I found myself calling someone a "hippocrocotwunt" the other day with great delight!).

Whatever. 

I am ever-so-grateful to Kitty French for writing such phenomenal stories, to Bookouture for being brilliant enough to publish them, and to NetGalley for existing so folks like me have an easier time getting our grubby little mitts on the awesomeness in advance. 

The world needs more awesomeness like all of them and, most of all, more Bittersweet! 

More books... 

A TV series... 

A t-shirt line... 

Action figures... 

Cartoon knickers... ???

All of it!

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Buy from Amazon UK  http://amzn.to/2kQqows

Buy from Amazon US  http://amzn.to/2kd2Qjp

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Welcome to Chapelwick, a leafy English town in the hills of Shropshire, where chocolate pecan cookies come with a helping of sabotage.

Maplemead Castle is crawling with ghosts, and the new owners need them gone. When Melody Bittersweet and the Girls’ Ghostbusting Agency arrive on scene, they quickly identify the troublemakers swinging from the chandeliers… literally.

A century ago, stunning trapeze artist Britannia Lovell plunged to her death, and has done every night since. But did she really just fall, or was there something more to her demise?

Forced to work with Leo Dark, her scoundrel ex, and infuriating, irresistible reporter Fletcher Gunn, Melody’s investigative powers are under strain (i.e. lost in a pink mist of lust and confusion). She needs her team on top form, but best friend Marina’s cake pipeline goes AWOL, assistant Artie’s distracted by a giant sausage roll, and the pug is scared witless by a lion.

Somewhere, hidden in the castle, is a heart-breaking secret, but what will it take to find it? And is there a chance it could set Britannia free, or is she doomed to repeat her last fateful act forever?

An utterly hilarious, gripping, spooktastic read for fans of HY Hanna, MC Beaton, Gina LaManna and Jana DeLeon.

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Buy from Amazon UK  http://amzn.to/2kQqows

Buy from Amazon US  http://amzn.to/2kd2Qjp

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Be sure to visit the other tour stops, too!