My March Bookish Wrap Up!

Please note: if you don’t have the time to read through the post, the pics link to the reviews! Enjoy:)

Another good month in books! It all began with me giving my book of the year so far seal of approval to The Canal Boat Cafe book number 1: All aboard by Cressida McLoughlin, chick lit at its beautiful, descriptive, gripping best! I was torn on Sleepless in Manhatten by Sarah Morgan, which grabbed me with  its building a business form nothing storyline, kept me happy with its comedy, and yet didn’t quite hit the mark Christmas Ever After had done.

I was thrilled to be part of the Holding Out For A Hero by Victoria Van Tiem’s book tour with Hello Chick Lit, where 80’s was the era of the day, definitely one for any eighties fan! Tapestry by Elle Turner mesmerized me with its beautiful mixture of slightly dark stories, and, speaking of dark, I finally reviewed and raved about Room by Emma Donoghue.The Runaway Bridesmaid by Daisy James was a bit too flowery for me, I’m afraid, but I acknowledged that it could be a very popular book, as I did with Kitty’s Countryside Dream by Christie Barlow, which didn’t go the way I expected.

Natalie’s Getting Married gave me chick lit heaven, The Treachery of Trains gave me a lovely, slightly dark, european rom com, and Dear Dad by Giselle Green gave me a gorgeous rom com about three characters on a journey to find their place.

I had a lovely interview with Rosa Temple, and did my first, and only ‘Stacking the Shelves‘ Post (Unfortunately I’m trying to cut down on books at the moment, my volume books on Netgalley are weighing me down!). I also posted on the books I use for writing, which is starting to take off again, I’m currently 10,000 words into book 2, not much, but an achievement for me (I was 20,000 words into a different book 2 and it wasn’t working, so I put it aside and was feeling quite despondent but now I’m all excited again:)). I’m still trying to get it together in terms of a solid blogging presence, and figure out my timetable, but hopefully I’ll get there.

Hope you all had a great month too, let me know in the comments!

Bernadette:)

 

 

 

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Author Interview: Rosa Temple: Natalie’s Getting Married

Hi Rosa! So I had to start by telling you that I enjoyed this so much and was really sorry when it ended. I knew from the blurb it was going to be a goodie, but never guessed the many places it could go. Before I hop along and start to ask questions, can you tell me a little bit about ‘Natalie’s Getting Married’ in your own words?

Well this what I call my ‘feel good’ novel. But, like you say, it goes to many different places and not all of them are ‘feel good’. Natalie’s journey to find her happy ever after means she had to cry a few tears and kiss a few frogs along the way. It’s the story of a girl becoming a woman and trying to find her happy place in terms of her work, family, social and love life.

I’d love to know how much of the book was planned from the start: So you have multiple love stories in here, did you know they were all going to happen, or did your characters decide to mix things up a little?

I started with a seed of an idea. And though I thought I would be writing a convoluted romantic comedy, I was actually writing a coming of age story too. So, yes, a lot of things surprised me, not only in the characters choosing to do their own thing, but because of the plot twists that just needed to happen.

Jackson’s mother wasn’t very fond of Natalie, did you think it was a class thing or was nobody going to be good enough for her little boy?

In my mind it always about class. Mind you I think Mrs Humphries was in a class of her own. I’m sure if Natalie came from the ‘right’ family, she would have been happy (well I’d like to think so).

There are some gorgeous friendships in the book (Bella, Alissa and Gabriel were brilliant), did they take you by surprise or did you know they were going to happen?

There was one friendship I planned from the start – and that was the one between Natalie and Gabriel. I never knew that Bella would have such a big role to play but she was the perfect vehicle to show us who Natalie was. In a lot of respects, the same could be said of Alissa. Both Alissa and Bella are opposites to Natalie and you wonder how they’d ever get on. But somehow it works and, despite their faults, they’re a lovely bunch of people.

What did you think of Gabriel and Natalie’s friendship, did you think that any prospective partners had a right to be jealous of them?

In many ways, I could see how prospective partners could be jealous. The two of them were so close. They were the type you’d imagine shared ‘in jokes’ that no one else got. They hugged each other and slept over at each other’s houses. And though their relationship was purely platonic, a partner might find that hard to understand.

Can you tell us about Margie McGee (no spoilers)? Is the whole dress shop experience based on real life?

When I got married I went to a discount wedding suppliers in North London. My wedding was very small and done on a budget. My husband’s suit was more expensive than my dress, which is unheard of! But I remember that shop and how the dress I wore was perfect for me. Sadly there wasn’t a Margie McGee at the place I bought my dress. Margie was a made up character who in my head looked like Edna Mode in The Incredibles.

That is absolutely brilliant, she really is! Now there’s an image that’ll stick:) One more question: I loved Gabriel’s success, did you enjoy writing it?

As a writer just starting out I love the idea of a writer doing really well. I could have made him a struggling artist, like the rest of us, but I’m secretly in love with Gabriel and think he deserves to have been successful. He was a really great writer anyway.

(I was secretly rooting for him all along;)) Well, thanks so much for dropping by, Rosa, really, really enjoyed having you over:)

 

About the author (she says it best herself on her website here, so enjoy!:))

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Rosie’s Novella ‘Sleeping with your best friend’ on Amazon

Note: As always, the image leads you to the buy links for the book.

The Week Ahead In Books …

The Lost and Found of Rosy Bennett by Jan Birley

What they say: Rosy loved her London life – her job in a designer shop, her gorgeous West London family house and of course her gorgeous family (although young sons are enough to test anyone at times). All that disappears when, one unremarkable morning, after one unremarkable school run, her husband collapses on a crowded tube carriage and dies.
As she struggles her way through the grief, she discovers her husband’s secret life: secrets accounts, secret deals that their solicitor knew nothing of, secret debts and what looks like a secret “very close friend” at least.
Totally unprepared and suddenly in debt, Rosy is forced to leave London to start a new life with her incredibly reluctant boys in the countryside. Can angsty urban teenagers cope with farm life, let alone enjoy it? More to the point, can their mother? It’s certainly not going to be easy but when you are at rock bottom the only way is up.

Am on 60% of this at the moment and cannot tell you how this is totally doing it for me. Brilliant story-line, great great characters, coupled with an unusual premise … loving, loving, loving:)

Natalie’s Getting Married by Rosa Temple

What they say: Career minded, Natalie Spencer, had never been in love. She could never understand what all the fuss was about. But when she met Jackson Humphries during Fresher’s Week at university, that all changed.
Utterly infatuated, Natalie quickly discovers the meaning of love and, before she knows it, she’s heading up the aisle – for the first time, that is.
This is a tale about four wedding dresses, a runaway groom and a girl who got so carried away, she couldn’t see true love staring her right in the face.

I have heard so so much about this and was thrilled to be offered it to review. I adore wedding stories, and this sounds like the ultimate in matrimonial craziness. Happy? Me? Very:)

The Treachery of Trains by Sylvia Ashby

What they Say: Sky has made an abominable mistake at work. Something so awful she doesn’t dare stay in the HR office of XIM Technics for fear of being lynched by her colleagues.

So she gets on a train…

What happens when it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month, or even your year?

Sky Candy is about to find out.

Talk about a simple blurb that reels you in! When I was offered this I couldn’t jump high or fast enough! Really looking forward to it:)

 

The Wedding Date by Jennifer Joyce

What they say: Delilah James, singleton and smoothie-addict, has six months to find a date for her oldest friend’s wedding. Oh, and to prove to her ex, best man Ben, that she has totally moved on since he dumped her out-of-the-blue nine months, eight days and seventeen hours ago…

So, with her two BFFs playing Cupid, Delilah launches herself into the high-tech, fast-paced and frankly terrifying world of dating. Luckily there’s the hot new guy at work, Adam Sinclair, to practice her flirting on – even if, as a colleague, he’s strictly off-limits!

Yet time’s running out and date after disastrous date forces Delilah to tell a little white lie – and invent a fake boyfriend! But will her secret crush on Adam ruin everything? Does she even care about Ben anymore? And is it too late to untangle her web of lies and take a real date to the wedding…?

Have also started this, and as always, Jennifer Joyce is playing a blinder. Great characters, everyday normality tinged with a nice dash of nuttiness. Brilliant!

So there you go. My week ahead. Am looking forward to every single second of it (does a little happy dance)! Anyhoo, hope you all have good reading weeks, I’d love to hear what you’ve got planned, or indeed what you’re reading at the mo. Happy Monday everyone:)

Bernadette