Wednesday 22 April 2020

The Cornish Confetti Agency - Daisy James



Welcome to The Cornish Confetti Agency!

When the grand finale of Lexie Harrington’s catwalk show ends with a disastrous twist on the ‘ice bucket challenge’, she was expecting her highly-strung boss to fire her on the spot. What she wasn’t expecting was to bump into her fiancĂ© cosied up with an attractive blonde in the restaurant opposite their apartment!

Desperate to escape her heartbreak, Lexie flees to her childhood home of St Ives to hold the fort at The Cornish Confetti Agency for her best friend Freya, leader of the yummy mummy network and firm believer in ‘happily ever afters’. Little did she know that delivering a Caribbean-themed wedding in sunny Cornwall would rival the fashion industry for drama, tantrums and mysterious goings on.

Who is responsible for dousing the bridesmaid’s dress with tomato ketchup? Or hiding the bride’s beloved Jimmy Choos? Or attaching googly eyes to everything in sight?

The perfect Cornish wedding? Is there such a thing for The Cornish Confetti Agency?


My Review:

A fun filled read that will make you laugh and keep you guessing. A lovely book that's a nice quick and easy read, a great distraction in times of worry. 


Lexie is quite the character, hit by disaster after disaster. Poor thing – everything seems to go wrong at the same time so I cannot blame her for wanting to get away from it all. Lucky her best friend happens to have a great solution for her.


Disaster seems to follow her around though and nothing she does goes smoothly; helping organise a Caribbean themed wedding sounds simple enough but not when things seem to be going wrong and it becomes very apparent someone is against the wedding taking place!


She turns detective to find out what exactly is happening and who is causing so much drama. Who does not love a little bit of mystery thrown into a feel-good story? It’s all on her to ensure this wedding takes place and she forms an unlikely partnership that is beneficial for her in more ways than one.


A lively set of characters that made me laugh out loud at times, full of lovely descriptions and a wedding theme that I was quite envious of! It is the first in a series I believe so will be quite fun to see what happens next time. A fun read!

Available HERE


Daisy James is a Yorkshire girl transplanted to the north east of England. She loves writing stories with strong heroines and swift-flowing plotlines.

When not scribbling away in her peppermint-and-green summerhouse (garden shed), she spends her time sifting flour and sprinkling sugar and edible glitter.

Follow Daisy on Twitter

Saturday 18 April 2020

The Secret Seaside Escape - Heidi Swain

Escape to the seaside with the brand new novel from Heidi Swain, the Sunday Times bestselling author of feel-good women’s fiction!
 
Tess Tyler needs a break. Weighed down by her high-pressure job and her demanding father, she’s left little time to take care of herself. But after a shocking discovery sends her spiralling, she flees to Wynmouth, the seaside town she fell in love with as a child, to escape it all.

With its sandy beaches, stunning rock pools and welcoming community, Tess feels like she can finally breathe again. And as she grows ever closer to local barman Sam, she dares to dream that she might never return to her real life. But when a familiar face returns to town, Tess realises that there are secrets in Wynmouth too, and that her own past may be about to catch up with her . . .  
The Secret Seaside Escape  is the perfect read this summer, promising sandy beaches, stunning rockpools and breath-taking romance. Perfect for fans of Carole Matthews and Sarah Morgan.


My Review:


I’m a #swainette through and through...
This fantastic new book from Heidi Swain is perfect for a mental break away, given current circumstances this is the perfect read if you want to escape for a little while.
After reading (devouring) the book I just wanted to go and escape to the seaside myself (I wish), I’d love to fall into a community with characters like Heidi creates. All of Heidi’s books have such wonderful communities – as you may know if you’ve read any of Heidi’s other books – but this is a brand new one with wonderful new people who feel like friends by the end.
Tess is fed up working hard for her father and not getting the appreciation she needs. She takes herself away to the seaside, Wynmouth, the place she spent so much time growing up. Awakening old memories and secrets, Tess has decisions to make about her future but will the heart rule the head, especially when she realises her feelings for a certain local.
I love Tess. She’s sweet, kind and gets involved in the community straight away which I like. She soon settles into place and its clear she feels at home there with some brilliant friendships made early on. A great character! There is a whole host of supporting characters who add to the fun, George and his meddling, Sophie, Hope, Joe and of course, Sam.
Easy to be charmed by the amazing writing and descriptions, you will feel like you are part of the idyllic seaside neighbourhood. I loved the development, the twists that were unexpected but interesting. It’s a wonderful tale of friendships, community spirit, forgiving the past and learning to accept what is meant to be. Romance is as always a theme running throughout the book, but it isn’t the main focus, personal development and fixing relationships is in my opinion – although in my opinion a little bit of romance is always welcome.

I cannot recommend this enough, as I would any Heidi Swain book. A feel good, cosy read that will entice you in and leave you wanting more. Treat yourself to a trip to Wynmouth, you won’t be disappointed. Fingers crossed for a return trip!!
Available to purchase NOW: Amazon

About the Author:


Sunday Times Best-selling author with a passion for vintage, hearth & home.

Creating wonderful communities and characters. Find out more -


Check out the blog: http://heidiswain.blogspot.com/

 

Sunday 12 April 2020

That Night in Paris - Sandy Barker




Note to self: don’t sleep with your flatmate after a curry and three bottles of wine… especially if he’s secretly in love with you and wants you to meet his mum.

Cat Parsons is on the run. She doesn’t do relationships. After ten years of singlehood even the hint of the ‘L’ word is enough to get Cat packing her bags and booking herself onto a two-week holiday.

A European bus tour feels like a stroke of genius to dodge awkward conversations at home. But little does Cat realise that the first stop will be Paris, the city of love itself.

Joined by new friends, Cat has got two weeks, eight countries and a hell of a lot of wine ahead of her. As they discover hidden treasures and the camaraderie of life on the road, will Cat find a new way of looking at love?

Discover the beauty of Europe’s most romantic cities in this uplifting and laugh-out-loud novel for fans of Samantha Parks, Alex Brown and Mandy Baggot






My Review:A brilliant, whistle-stop tour of some of Europe’s iconic destinations. Main character Cat signs up to a packed coach trip across Europe – rather her than me! Although she makes amazing friends along the way, I must admit some of the places they had to stay would be like torture to me, so I am very pleased to live this experience through these characters. Cat has run away on this coach trip after sleeping with her flatmate – he wants more, and Cat does not. Cat’s a nice character, she is decisive, opinionated and funny, although at times immature and quite bitchy. She is a right little horny devil though, it was a bit excessive at times for me – I mean calm it down love, we get it you fancy the bloke! In the end I found it funny really. I do like how she and bus buddy Lou decided to make the most of all the time they had in each place.Cat and friends bump into the gorgeous French man who is someone Cat used to know well, and the trip really starts to get exciting for Cat then. I don’t want to say to much about the story but it’s fun, the friends she makes on the coach each have their own reasons for being there, all running away from something. Their friendship was the winning element of the story for me – it was nice she found kindred spirits!
I
enjoyed the descriptions of the scenery and iconic places with each city, we had more from some cities than others, but I guess that is in-keeping with the amount of time the coach tour had in each place.
A fun filled, laugh out loud read that is a wonderful escape. A great summer read to get stuck into. 


About the Author:
Sandy Barker is an Australian writer, traveller and hopeful romantic with a lengthy bucket list and a cheeky sense of humour.
Many of Sandy’s travel adventures have found homes in her writing, including her debut novel, a contemporary romance set in Greece, which was inspired by her true-life love story.

Follow Sandy on Twitter:
@sandybarker

Thursday 2 April 2020

My Greek Island Summer - Mandy Baggot

Two weeks. One unforgettable trip to Corfu. A chance to change her life.


Becky Rose has just landed her dream job house-sitting at a top-end villa on the island of Corfu. What could be better than two weeks laying by an infinity pool overlooking the gorgeous Ionian waters while mending her broken heart.

Elias Mardas is travelling back to Corfu on business whilst dealing with his own personal demons. Late arriving in Athens, Becky and Elias have to spend a night in the Greek capital. When they have to emergency land in Kefalonia, Becky's got to decide whether to suck up the adventure and this gorgeous companion she seems to have been thrown together with or panic about when she's going to arrive at Corfu...

Finally reaching the beautiful island, Becky is happy to put Elias behind her and get on with her adventure. Until he turns up at the villa...

My Review:


I am honoured to be kicking off the blog tour for this book, especially on publication day! I am a massive fan of Mandy’s work, a Corfu wannabe (I will get there one day!!) and an absolute lover of the wonderful scenes and characters created.


So, My Greek Island Summer - what a gorgeous book. Mandy never fails to deliver especially where Corfu is concerned. With its gorgeous locations described in dreamy detail, I felt like I was right there with Elias, Becky and Petra. What an absolute adventure they had before they even reached their destination. I wanted to pack my case and head off and see these places myself. With current circumstances it is the perfect way to escape, a read that can transport you away from all the anxieties and worries we find ourselves living through.


A classic Mandy Baggot book with much talk of wonderful sounding foods, so well described my mouth was watering! Whether it was Becky thinking about sandwiches or Eleni preparing food, I was hungry throughout.


Becky lands a great job house sitting in Corfu. She wants to relax, enjoy some luxury, swim and hit the beach for two weeks. She meets Elias and neither are quite as honest as they should be; if only they had the opportunity to get to know each other some more.


I love the characters, a variety of people who are funny or stubborn, selfish or immature, carefree and stressed. All looking at making more of themselves, being happy or needing to see ways to change. So much can happen when people learn to accept the past and look forwards.


A read that transports you to another place, with people you’d love as friends. I couldn’t put this one down! You can feel the sun on your skin, hear the noise of island life; Mandy’s love for this special place shines through and just makes this an absolute smash.

I cannot recommend highly enough – enjoy! 


ORDER HERE:


About the author

Mandy Baggot is an international bestselling and award-winning romance writer. The winner
of the Innovation in Romantic Fiction award at the UK's Festival of Romance, her romantic comedy novel, One Wish in Manhattan, was also shortlisted for the Romantic Novelists' Association Romantic Comedy Novel of the Year award in 2016. Mandy's books have so far been translated into German, Italian, Czech and Hungarian. Mandy loves the Greek island of Corfu, white wine, country music and handbags. Also a singer, she has taken part in ITV1's Who Dares Sings and The X-Factor. Mandy is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and the Society of Authors and lives near Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK with her husband and two daughters.

Follow Mandy:   
Facebook: @mandybaggotauthor
Twitter: @mandybaggot