Tag Archives: romance

Publication day celebrations with Marie Laval!

Guest Post, One Day Blog Blitz, , , , , , ,

Today, I am excited to welcome Marie Laval on to my blog, as she celebrates the release of A Paris Fairy Tale.

Thank you so much, Carol, for welcoming me on your blog on the day my latest contemporary romance, A PARIS FAIRY TALE, is published by Choc Lit.

Here’s the blurb:

Is Paris the city of happily ever afters?
Workaholic art historian Aurora Black doesn’t have time for fairy tales or Prince Charmings, even in the most romantic city in the world. She has recently been hired by a Parisian auction house for a job that could make or break her career. Unfortunately, daredevil journalist Cédric Castel seems intent on disrupting Aurora’s routine.

As Aurora and Cédric embark on a journey across France, they get more than they bargained for as they find themselves battling rogue antiques dealers and personal demons, not to mention a growing attraction to each other.

But with the help of a fairy godmother or two, could they both find their happily ever afters?

And I am delighted to share an extract from the novel:

Aurora glanced up, and met the amber gaze of a tall, dark-haired man who stood in front of her, blocking her view of the rest of the room.

He had high, sharp cheekbones, his mouth was set in a cynical smile, but it was his eyes that held her attention. They were the most fascinating colour, warm brandy with flecks of green. Immediately, the names of pigments she would need to paint them flashed into her mind – Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber and Verona Gold Ochre, with a touch of Cobalt Green or Malachite.

‘Castel,’ Nenachko snarled.

The newcomer ignored him and looked at Aurora, holding her captive in his intense, mesmerising scrutiny. ‘I see Nenachko lost no time in securing your services, Mademoiselle Black. I guess he needs people like you to help him plunder the museums and art galleries of Europe.’

Aurora drew in a shocked breath and snapped out of her trance. Straightening her back to make her five foot two appear taller, she pushed her glasses up and gave him the frosty look that caused her colleagues to call her ‘Black Ice’ – those who liked her, that is.

‘It’s Doctor Black, actually,’ she corrected, ‘and I do not help anyone plunder museums, nor do I condone those who do it.’ Never mind the colour of his eyes. Who was this man and how did he dare question her integrity?

He arched his dark eyebrows as if he didn’t believe her and turned to Nenachko again. ‘I hope you’re enjoying the party. There must be plenty of rich people you can swindle here tonight.’

Nenachko’s face flushed harder. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘Letting you know that I was back from my trip in the Mediterranean.’

The Russian’s blue eyes narrowed to slits. ‘Ah yes. I heard you were still on a crusade to rescue refugees. What a shame you didn’t drown… By the way, I didn’t see your name on the guest list.’

Castel shrugged. ‘That’s because it’s not.’

‘Then how did you get past security?’

‘I have my ways.’

It was like watching a verbal tennis match, Aurora thought as she glanced from one to the other. The Russian looked like a man it was dangerous to cross, but Castel, whoever he was, didn’t seem to care. Worse, he seemed to enjoy goading him into a dark rage.

A PARIS FAIRY TALE is released TODAY (July 23rd) and is available as an ebook and audiobook on Amazon and various other platforms.

Thank you so much for joining me on your special day, Marie, and for sharing this great extract!

About the author:

Originally from Lyon in France, Marie Laval now lives in Lancashire with her family. She works full-time as a modern languages teacher and in her spare time she loves writing romance and dreaming about romantic heroes.

She writes both historical and contemporary romance. Her historical romance The Lion’s Embrace won the Gold Medal at the Global Ebook Awards 2015 (category Historical Romance), and best-selling Little Pink Taxi was her debut romantic comedy novel with Choc Lit.

She is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Authors. Her native France, as well as her passion for history and research, very much influences her writing, and all her novels have what she likes to call ‘a French twist’!

You can find out more about Marie here:  Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest  – where you’ll discover the many beautiful photos of Paris and illuminated manuscripts which inspired the writing of A Paris Fairy Tale.

Here’s wishing Marie every success with A Paris Fairy Tale! I am looking forward to reading it soon. xx

 

 

Review of Tracy Bloom’s No-One Ever Has Sex at a Wedding

Book Review, , , , , , , , ,

The blurb:

In Katy’s opinion, weddings should follow some basic rules:

1) No-one should ever have sex. Of course. The married couple has the rest of their lives for that, and the guests should be too busy partying.

2) If you are heavily pregnant (as Katy is) you should obviously not be invited to three weddings in the space of one summer. Your husband’s accident-prone best friend, your attention-seeking colleague, your 73-year-old mother’s marriage to her Spanish toy boy – all without even an alcoholic drink to make them bearable.

3) During the speeches, it should not be revealed that you had a secret one-night-stand with one of the other guests.

4) Instead of laying bets on the length of the best man’s speech, guests should not be laying bets on whether a marriage will be in ruins before the end of the meal…

But this summer, Katy is lucky enough to be the special guest at the weddings that break ALL of the rules. What could possibly go wrong? 

This is a standalone novel that also features re-appearing characters from some of Tracy Bloom’s other books.

Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Literary Humour

My review:

I do love Tracy Bloom’s books. When I pick one up I know I am guaranteed an entertaining read that will make me smile. I have read all in this series (randomly except the first one – not sure how I missed that) and loved them. Revisiting the characters feels like catching up with old friends. The story progresses at a good pace, towards a fabulously over the top, but perfectly apt, ending. I smiled as I read, and laughed at the antics – a great summer read. I look forward to the next.

Click here to buy the book:

About the author:

Tracy Bloom started writing when her cruel, heartless husband ripped her away from her dream job shopping for rollercoasters for the UK’s leading theme parks, to live in America with a brand new baby and no mates. In a cunning plan to avoid domestic duties and people who didn’t understand her Derbyshire accent, she wrote her romantic comedy, No-One Ever Has Sex on a Tuesday. This debut novel went on to be successfully published internationally and became a #1 Best Seller.

You can find Tracy via her website | Facebook | Twitter

Thank you for the great read Tracy, my reviews are added to Amazon Uk and Goodreads. xx

*ONE WEEK TO GO* Maybe Baby, coming soon!

Writing & Reading, , , , , , , , , , ,

I am super excited to say there is just one week to go until the release of my latest romantic comedy novel, Maybe Baby, in audio and as an ebook!

For delivery on April 2nd preorder your copy here.

In case you’ve missed me shouting about it, here’s the blurb:

Just when you thought you had it all worked out …

Lisa Blake is back with her first love, she’s reunited with her best friend Felicity, and even her pet sitting skills are improving – everybody knows you can’t believe all you read in the local Gazette, don’t they?

Felicity is on the cusp of achieving her perfect wife-mum-life balance; Her husband, Pete, is being wonderfully attentive, and her four children are getting older and wiser (sometimes too much wiser) by the day.

But when Lisa walks in on a half-naked woman in her boyfriend’s flat and Felicity is left reeling from a shocking discovery, it seems life is nothing but full of surprises. Can love, laughter, and learning to compromise, help them achieve their dreams?

Genre: Romantic Comedy
Published by: Ruby Fiction

Maybe Baby is available in audio and as a paperback, buying links: Amazon | Kobo | Ruby Fiction 

Maybe Baby is the second book in the Lisa Blake series. While the story follows on from The Purrfect Pet Sitter (Lisa Blake book #1), it can also be read as a standalone novel.

Early reviews for Maybe Baby

As book bloggers begin to return their verdict from advance copies, I am delighted to say I am doing my happy dance. Here are just some of the lovely things that have been said on Goodreads:

“Heartwarming and uplifting … a delightful and fun story anyone can enjoy!”

“The pages just flew by … and I really enjoyed all the characters both human and furry!” 

“Cute story of friendships and new beginnings.”

“The story is zany, with a little screwball comedy, and a quirky cast of characters.”

“An enjoyable, happy-ending story of friendship and love.” 

Thank you to all who have taken the time to leave a review so far. For further reviews, don’t miss my blog tour, via Rachel’s Random Resources, from 3rd to 12th April! I am excited and nervous as it draws near, wish me luck.

Thank you so much to everyone who has preordered Maybe Baby, your support is hugely appreciated and with not long to go, I hope you enjoy it! xx

Author Jackie Ladbury is #SharingTheLove

Guest Post, , , , , , ,
As February is the month of love, I have a host of wonderful romance authors stopping by my blog to share flirty extracts from their novels! Well you know, any excuse 😉 

To kick us off I am delighted to welcome Jackie Ladbury who is #SharingTheLove with an extract from her novel, The Magic Of Stars … over to you Jackie!

The Magic Of Stars

“Their eyes locked as she looked up into his face.

‘Seatbelt?’ he asked, his voice unusually husky.

His fingers tightened their grip on her upper arms and she shivered at his touch. She’d never heard the word seatbelt sound so inviting.

‘Seatbelt,’ she repeated. The single word hitched in her throat as if she had run a marathon. ‘Right,’ she said, staying exactly as she was, pressed into Marco’s warm chest. Her shivering increased, but she didn’t think it was because of the cold. The urge to stay snuggled up to him was overwhelming, his touch sending vibes of tingling awareness radiating through her body.

Damn it, the breathiness was still there. Something shifted between them as she held his gaze. It was no more than a look, but it was enough to set Sapphire’s heart pitter-pattering.

Marco picked at a lock of wet hair that was sticking to her cheek and held it between his fingers for a second before tucking it behind her ear. Realising that he had behaved slightly inappropriately, he pushed himself forward to address the driver. ‘To the Caledonian, please.’”

Thank you for sharing your wonderful extract Jackie, I think my heart is pitter-pattering now too!

Discover more about The Magic of Stars:

Sapphire Montrose always felt like a loser in the struggle of life, but when she becomes the airline manager of a run-down airline she starts to believe she is a winner – until she unwittingly propositions her new boss and all her hard work is undone.

In a moment of recklessness air stewardess, Sapphire Montrose throws caution and her dress to the wind by propositioning a handsome stranger in a hotel in Florence, only to find herself waking up alone and embarrassed in her hotel room.

Unfortunately for Sapphire, it turns out that her new boss, Marco Cavarelli, is the man she failed to seduce and she is now fighting for her job and her self-respect when he tells her there is no place in his revamped airline for an alcoholic woman with lascivious tendencies. To make matters worse she is increasingly attracted to him and he seems to be giving out the same vibes. Or is he simply testing her? One wrong move could be the end of her career. But what if he really is offering love – and is he worth the risk?

Shortlisted in the Harper Collins Flirty Fiction competition!

Genre: Romantic comedy
Buy the book Amazon Uk | Amazon.com |

About the author:

Jackie Ladbury writes heart-warming contemporary and historical women’s fiction that is always guaranteed a happy ever after. From spending many years as an air-stewardess and seeing that it really is love that makes the world go around, she determined to put the same sparkle and emotion into her stories. Her life is no longer as exotic (or chaotic) as it was in those heady days of flying as she now lives a quiet life in Hertfordshire with her family and two cats, spending her days making up stories and finding excuses not to go to the gym.

You can follow Jackie, and find out more about her work here: Facebook | Twitter | website | Amazon

Don’t miss author Angela Britnell #SharingTheLove on my blog tomorrow. xx


Carol Thomas writes contemporary romance novels, with relatable heroines whose stories are layered with emotion, sprinkled with laughter and topped with irresistible male leads. Discover more here.

Review of Mhairi McFarlane’s Don’t You Forget About Me

Book Review, , , , , , , , , , ,

The blurb:

It began with four words: ‘I love your laugh. x’

But that was twelve years ago. It really began the day Georgina was fired from The Worst Restaurant in Sheffield (© Tripadvisor) and found The Worst Boyfriend in the World (© Georgina’s best friends) in bed with someone else.

So when her new boss, Lucas McCarthy, turns out to be the boy who wrote those words to her all that time ago, it feels like the start of something.

The only problem? He doesn’t seem to remember Georgina – at all…

Genre: Literary humour
Published by: HarperCollins

My review:

I have read and enjoyed all of Mhairi McFarlane’s books. I like her sense of humour and her ability, to sum up a situation in a single phrase. If you are a romantic comedy fan and you haven’t read her books you’re missing a treat.

Don’t You Forget About Me is a fabulous read. As you’d expect, if you’ve read Mhairi’s other books, there was a degree of humour, but more than that this book drew me in (literally I stayed up until 2am to finish it), it explored different relationships at different levels; it made me laugh, but it also made me cry. The ending was gorgeous and delivered all and more than I had hoped for. The main characters were brilliant. Georgina was wonderfully portrayed, and I loved Lucas, his dog and his brother, actually I could go on – they are a fabulous bunch of characters whose world you’re happy to inhabit for the duration of the book. I was excited when I saw this book was coming out and it didn’t disappoint. It was another wonderful Mhairi McFarlane read.

Buy the book.

About Mhairi McFarlane:

Mhairi McFarlane was born in Scotland in 1976 and got the fringe hairstyle locked down early so she could concentrate on wider issues affecting society, like why Cadbury’s don’t make plain chocolate buttons. Surely the demand is there. She writtes rom-com books and is trying to write another and not be distracted by Netflix or Twitter, with varying success.

You can discover more about Mhairi McFarlane via her website | Facebook | Twitter

Thank you for the great read, and for lovely Lucas, Mhairi, my reviews are added to Amazon Uk and Goodreads. xx