Cover Reveal: Under the Apple Blossoms ~ A Lake Harriet Novel

I'm thrilled to share with you the

cover of my upcoming 

romance novel

UNDER THE APPLE BLOSSOMS

the 4th book in the

Lake Harriet Series

Coming March 2020!

Beautiful Cover Design by Deborah at Tugboat Design

Book Description:

Sometimes the only one standing in the way of your happiness is you.

Debbie Adams has never thought of herself as beautiful or witty. Her short, curvy stature has always made her feel self-conscious. As the owner of Deb’s Bridal Boutique near Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, Debbie runs the business she’d inherited after her mother’s death. But owning a bridal shop has never been her dream—it had been her mother’s. And as the years go by, Debbie sees friends and neighbors pairing off and building a future while her life remains stagnant. Then, one March day, frantic to get in shape before a friend’s wedding, Debbie forces herself to go biking. As she rides along the icy lake path, she’s startled by a runner and slips and falls. Regaining her bearings, she looks up into a pair of warm, brown eyes and the most handsome face she’s ever seen. Could this tall, extremely fit, and good-looking man be her destiny?

Marc Bennett’s life is amazing. He owns a chain of fitness centers around the Twin Cities and lives in a beautiful mansion that overlooks Lake Harriet. The only thing missing from his life is a wonderful woman to share it with. Not that he’s lacking in applicants for the position. He’s a handsome man with a warm, caring personality and women flock to him. But at thirty-six, he’s had the shallow relationships and he’s not in a hurry to commit to anyone. Then one crisp, spring day, as he’s running the lake path with his dog, Bernie, he literally crashes into a woman on a bike. As he attempts to help her up, he finds himself looking into the most beautiful pair of blue eyes. Eyes he can’t seem to get out of his mind.

Release Date: March 17, 2020

Preorder now:

Amazon Kindle

Coming soon to:

Paperback 

Audiobook

Book Review: The Queen of Paris: A Novel of Coco Chanel by Pamela Binnings Ewen

The Queen of Paris:

A Novel of Coco Chanel

Pamela Binnings Ewen

Book Description:

I’ve done terrible things, I know that now. But really, I had no choice.— Coco Chanel

The Queen of Paris is an amazing novel about Coco Chanel as she fights to protect her legend and secrets during the Nazi occupation of Paris in WWII. Love, espionage, murder, greed. A private war on a new front. And her weapons of choice: power and perfume.

This book is from an author with a literary pedigree and several awards of her own. Pamela Binnings Ewen is the latest writer to emerge from a Louisiana family recognized for its statistically improbable number of successful authors including cousin, James Lee Burke, Andre Dubus (Best Picture Oscar nomination for The Bedroom; his son, Andre Dubus III, author of The House of Sand and Fog, a Best Picture Oscar nomination and an Oprah pick; Elizabeth Nell Dubus (the Cajun trilogy); and Alafair Burke, just starting out with the well received Samantha Kincaid mystery series.

Publish Date: April 7, 2020

Historical Fiction

Blackstone Publishing

Preorder now:

Amazon Kindle

My 5-Star Review:

As WWII looms over Paris, Coco Chanel is faced with the unexpected defection of the man she is in business with to produce her most famous product of all—her perfume, Chanel N° 5. In an attempt to get back her rights to the perfume, she will agree to do anything. But is it worth it in the end?

The Queen of Paris explores the life of Coco Chanel through the occupation of Paris during the war. This picture of Chanel is not a pretty one. It shows how she will do anything—even if it means going against her beloved France—to keep what she has built and protect the ones she loves. Glimpses into her past give you a clearer picture of why she became so motivated to be successful, and why it is so important for her to cling to what is hers. A beautifully written story. Perfect for readers of historical fiction.

About the Author:

Pamela is the author of six books published by B&H Publishing Group, including the non-fiction Faith on Trial (1999) and the novels Walk Back the Cat (2001) (re-released in 2010 as Secret of the Shroud),The Moon in the Mango Tree, (2008) (a 2009 Christy Award Finalist), Dancing on Glass (2011) (a 2012 Christy Award Finalist, and winner of a Single Titles Reviewers Choice Award); Chasing the Wind (2012), a Top Pick by RT Book Reviews, and An Accidental Life (2013).The Moon in the Mango Tree was honored with the 2012 Eudora Welty Memorial Award, given by the National League of American Pen Women.

Happy Holidays Reader Appreciation Giveaway!

Update: The Giveaway has ended. Three lucky winners have been chosen:

Mick M. - $50 Gift Card
Jeanne K. - $25 Gift Card
Still waiting on response from 3rd winner.

Thank you all for entering! 


The Holiday Season is here

and I'm thrilled to annouce the 

2019

Happy Holidays

Reader Appreciation Giveaway!

As a way of thanking all my amazing and supportive readers, I want to give you a chance to win one of three Amazon Gift Cards.

Prizes:

1- $50 Amazon Gift Card

1- $25 Amazon Gift Card

1- $25 Amazon Gift Card

Dates:

November 29th - December 20th

Enter by using the Rafflecopter below. The more entries you have, the greater the chance of winning!

You can also leave a comment on this post to enter if you'd rather.

U.S., UK and Canadian Entries Only. 

GOOD LUCK!

And have a wonderful holiday season!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review: Woman on the Edge by Samantha M. Bailey

Hi all,

This debut novel by the talented Samantha M. Bailey is going to keep you on the edge of your seat. Be prepared to be taken for a bumpy ride! Here are my thoughts.

Woman on the Edge

Samantha M. Bailey

Book Description:

A moment on the subway platform changes two women’s lives forever—a debut thriller that will take your breath away.

A total stranger on the subway platform whispers, “Take my baby.”

She places her child in your arms. She says your name.

Then she jumps...

In a split second, Morgan Kincaid’s life changes forever. She’s on her way home from work when a mother begs her to take her baby, then places the infant in her arms. Before Morgan can stop her, the distraught mother jumps in front of an oncoming train.

Morgan has never seen this woman before, and she can’t understand what would cause a person to give away her child and take her own life. She also can’t understand how this woman knew her name.

The police take Morgan in for questioning. She soon learns that the woman who jumped was Nicole Markham, prominent CEO of the athletic brand Breathe. She also learns that no witness can corroborate her version of events, which means she’s just become a murder suspect.

To prove her innocence, Morgan frantically retraces the last days of Nicole’s life. Was Nicole a new mother struggling with paranoia or was she in danger? When strange things start happening to Morgan, she suddenly realizes she might be in danger, too.

Woman on the Edge is a pulse-pounding, propulsive thriller about the lengths to which a woman will go to protect her baby—even if that means sacrificing her own life.

Psychological Thriller

Publish Date: November 26, 2019

Buy now:

Amazon Kindle U.S.

Amazon UK 

Paperback (Releases 3/3/20)

My 5-Star Review:

Morgan Kincaid’s life has already been set in a tailspin from her deceased husband’s dealings and all she wants is for her life to be normal again. But while waiting on the platform for the train, a frantic woman she’s never met before shoves her small infant in Morgan’s arms and asks her to take care of her baby. Then, in an instant, Morgan’s life changes forever when the woman falls in front of the moving train. Soon, Morgan finds herself a suspect in the woman’s death as strange details come to light. Desperate to clear her name, she begins to unravel the woman’s last days before she died to prove her innocence. But unraveling the web of deceit and lies is more difficult that Morgan could have ever imagined.

Woman on the Edge is a tightly-woven, edge-of-the-seat psychological thriller that you will not be able to put down. The twists and turns in this story will keep you guessing until the very end. A brilliantly written debut novel by the talented Samantha M. Bailey, this novel is a must-read for all thriller fans.

About the Author:

Samantha M. Bailey is a Toronto-based novelist, journalist, and freelance editor. Her work has appeared in NOW Magazine, The Village Post, and Oxford University Press, among other publications. She was a writer-in-residence for Kobo Writing Life at Book Expo America 2013. She is the co-founder of BookBuzz, a promotional and interactive author-reader event held in New York City and Toronto. Woman on the Edge is her debut novel. Connect with her on Twitter and Instagram @SBaileyBooks and on her website at SamanthaMBailey.com

Book Review: Stay by Catherine Ryan Hyde

If you read my reviews at all, you already know I’m a huge fan of Catherine Ryan Hyde. Her novels portray everyday people in difficult situations that most people can relate to. STAY is yet another wonderful novel by this talented wordsmith. Below is more about her latest novel and my thoughts.

Stay

Catherine Ryan Hyde

Book Description:

In the summer of 1969, fourteen-year-old Lucas Painter carries a huge weight on his shoulders. His brother is fighting in Vietnam. His embattled parents are locked in a never-ending war. And his best friend, Connor, is struggling with his own family issues. To find relief from the chaos, Lucas takes long, meandering walks, and one day he veers into the woods.

There he discovers an isolated cabin and two huge dogs. Frightened, he runs. And the dogs run with him. Lucas finds unusual peace in running with the dogs, and eventually he meets their owner, Zoe Dinsmore. Closed off and haunted by a tragic past, Zoe has given up. She doesn’t want to be saved. She wants out. But Lucas doesn’t want her to go, and he sees an opportunity to bring more than one friend back into the light. It’s either the best or worst idea he’s ever had, but Lucas isn’t giving up on Zoe or Connor.

Their unexpected connection might be the saving grace that Zoe thought she’d lost, that Connor needs, and that Lucas has been running toward.

Release Date: December 3, 2019

Lake Union Publishing

Buy:

Amazon Kindle

Paperback

My 5-Star Review:

Fourteen-year-old Lucas is worried about many things in the summer of 1969. His older brother is fighting in Vietnam, his parents fight constantly, and his best friend is growing more and more reclusive. Lucas is worried about everyone, and wants to fix their problems, but is unable to do so. As a release, he’s started running. He runs in the woods behind his house, finding it calming. Until one day he come upon a small cabin that he’s never noticed before and two very active dogs. After days of running with the dogs, he meets their owner, Zoe, who lives isolated from everyone. After a near-tragedy, Lucas’s friendship with Zoe grows, and an unusual connection is made that will touch everyone in Lucas’s life, especially him.

I love stories where unexpected friendships grow to be so much more. Catherine Ryan Hyde is an expert at developing flawed characters who somehow find each other and learn to live to their potential. It’s people helping people, even the most broken of us. Set in the turbulent era of the Vietnam War, when knowing right from wrong was difficult, this book pulls at your heartstrings. This novel is one of my favorites by this amazing author.  

About the Author:

Catherine Ryan Hyde is the author of more than thirty published and forthcoming books. An avid hiker, traveler, equestrian, and amateur photographer, she has released her first book of photos, 365 Days of Gratitude: Photos from a Beautiful World.

Her novel Pay It Forward was adapted into a major motion picture, chosen by the American Library Association (ALA) for its Best Book for Young Adults list, and translated into more than twenty-three languages for distribution in over thirty countries. Both Becoming Chloe and Jumpstart the World were included on the ALA’s Rainbow List, and Jumpstart the World was a finalist for two Lambda Literary Awards. Where We Belong won two Rainbow Awards in 2013, and The Language of Hoofbeats won a Rainbow Award in 2015.

More than fifty of her short stories have been published in the Antioch Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, Ploughshares, Glimmer Train, and many other journals, and in the anthologies Santa Barbara Stories and California Shorts and the bestselling anthology Dog Is My Co-Pilot. Her stories have been honored in the Raymond Carver Short Story Contest and the Tobias Wolff Award and nominated for the O. Henry Award and the Pushcart Prize. Three have been cited in The Best American Short Stories.

She is founder and former president (2000–2009) of the Pay It Forward Foundation and still serves on its board of directors. As a professional public speaker, she has addressed the National Conference on Education, twice spoken at Cornell University, met with AmeriCorps members at the White House, and shared a dais with Bill Clinton.

For more information, please visit the author at www.catherineryanhyde.com.

Book Review: The Lost Daughter by Gill Paul

Hi all,

I’ve been reading a great many books about the Romanovs, some non-fiction and some fiction – so believe me when I say that this historical fiction novel about what might have happened to one of the daughters – Maria – is excellent. Here is more about this novel and my review.

The Lost Daughter

Gill Paul

Book Description:

1918: Pretty, vivacious Grand Duchess Maria Romanov, the nineteen-year-old daughter of the fallen Tsar Nicholas II, lives with her family in suffocating isolation, a far cry from their once-glittering royal household. Her days are a combination of endless boredom and paralyzing fear; her only respite are clandestine flirtations with a few of the guards imprisoning the family—never realizing her innocent actions could mean the difference between life and death

1973: When Val Doyle hears her father’s end-of-life confession, “I didn’t want to kill her,” she’s stunned. So, she begins a search for the truth—about his words and her past. The clues she discovers are baffling—a jewel-encrusted box that won’t open and a camera with its film intact. What she finds out pulls Val into one of the world’s greatest mysteries—what truly happened to the Grand Duchess Maria?

Buy on Amazon:

Amazon Kindle

Paperback

My 5-Star Review:

The Romanov family never expected what would happen to them until up to the very last minute. History proves that to be true. So as the Tsar and Tsarina and their daughters and son waited under house arrest, they had no idea what was to be their fate. Maria, with her vivacious personality made friends with her captors, often spending time with the guards and getting to know them. But then when the family’s tragedy occurred, she wasn’t ready for what was to come.

Without giving away the story – I’ll just say that decades later, a women discovers her father’s past is nothing like she’d been told. With a few clues to guide her, she researches his past – and what she finds is extraordinary. And what we learn may have happened to the Grand Duchess Maria is also shocking.

This is a well-crafted tale that you truly do not want to put down. I was enthralled by the history woven with the fictional story, and one could believe that it may have happened this way. A wonderful story that historical fiction readers are sure to enjoy.

About the Author:

Gill Paul's historical novels have reached the top of the USA Today, Toronto Globe & Mail and kindle charts, and been translated into twenty languages. They include two bestselling Romanov novels -THE SECRET WIFE and THE LOST DAUGHTER - as well as WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST, which was shortlisted for the 2013 RNA Epic Novel of the Year award, NO PLACE FOR A LADY, shortlisted for a Love Stories award, and ANOTHER WOMAN'S HUSBAND, about links between Wallis Simpson and Princess Diana.

Gill also writes historical non-fiction, including A HISTORY OF MEDICINE IN 50 OBJECTS, and she speaks at libraries and literary festivals on subjects ranging from the Titanic to the Romanovs.

Gill lives in London, where she is working on her tenth novel, and she swims daily in an outdoor pond.

Chasing Bailey Release Day!

Release Day!

I'm so excited to share that it's Release Day for my new romance CHASING BAILEY! 
CHASING BAILEY is the third book in The Lake Harriet Series, but can be read as a stand-alone novel as well. Grab it now on Amazon in Kindle or Paperback formats. 


Chasing Bailey (A Lake Harriet Novel)

First we met Kristen and Ryan in Walking Sam. Then we met Mallory and James in As the Snow Fell. Now, we'll meet two more residents of the Lake Harriet neighborhood and a wiley dog named Bailey in the sweet romance, Chasing Bailey.

Book Description:

A Lake Harriet Novel

In the charming Lake Harriet neighborhood where we first met Kristen, Ryan, and their dog Sam in Walking Sam, two people are struggling to put their lives back together with the help of a rambunctious dog named Bailey.

Lisa Evan’s life has been in turmoil since her husband, Andrew, left her nine months earlier. With two-year-old Abby to care for and a new full-time job as a school nurse, she’s just trying to keep her head above water both emotionally and financially. It didn’t help that her ex-husband gifted a rambunctious puppy to Abby for her second birthday. But Abby instantly fell in love with Bailey, so Lisa didn’t have the heart to say no. Even though Lisa’s quiet neighborhood is a great place for kids and dogs, there’s one neighbor who isn’t thrilled about Bailey—the hermit across the street. And try as she might, Lisa can’t keep the dog from digging his way out of the yard and running to the hermit’s house. But after one particularly nasty clash with the hermit, Lisa discovers that maybe the man across the street isn’t as terrible as she’d once thought.

Avery McKinnon moved to the quiet neighborhood to hide out after an extremely nasty divorce. In one year his entire world has fallen apart. His wife left him, he lost his house, and his novels are no longer selling as well as they used to, taking a bite out of his income. He’s bitter and angry and the last thing he wants is to become chummy with all the annoyingly happy people in his neighborhood. When the puppy across the street keeps running over to his house and digging up his yard, Avery explodes. Can’t that annoying woman across the street control a puppy? But when he finally sees Lisa for who she is, he realizes that maybe he’s been angry long enough. Maybe it was time to let someone back into his life. And then her ex-husband comes back into the picture and ruins everything.

Contemporary Romance

Sweet Romance

Buy now on:

Amazon Kindle U.S.

Amazon Kindle UK

Amazon Kindle AU

Amazon Kindle Canada

Paperback Now Available

Audiobook coming soon.

Book Review: The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman

Hi all,

I was lucky enough to read an advanced copy of Alice Hoffman’s newest novel, The World That We Knew. Here is more about the book and my thoughts.

The World That We Knew

Alice Hoffman

Book Description:

In 1941, during humanity’s darkest hour, three unforgettable young women must act with courage and love to survive, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Dovekeepers and The Marriage of Opposites Alice Hoffman. 

In Berlin, at the time when the world changed, Hanni Kohn knows she must send her twelve-year-old daughter away to save her from the Nazi regime. She finds her way to a renowned rabbi, but it’s his daughter, Ettie, who offers hope of salvation when she creates a mystical Jewish creature, a rare and unusual golem, who is sworn to protect Lea. Once Ava is brought to life, she and Lea and Ettie become eternally entwined, their paths fated to cross, their fortunes linked.

Lea and Ava travel from Paris, where Lea meets her soulmate, to a convent in western France known for its silver roses; from a school in a mountaintop village where three thousand Jews were saved. Meanwhile, Ettie is in hiding, waiting to become the fighter she’s destined to be.

What does it mean to lose your mother? How much can one person sacrifice for love? In a world where evil can be found at every turn, we meet remarkable characters that take us on a stunning journey of loss and resistance, the fantastical and the mortal, in a place where all roads lead past the Angel of Death and love is never ending.

Publish Date: September 24, 2019

Preorder now on:

Amazon Kindle

Hardcover

My 5-Star Review:

Alice Hoffman has once again written a novel that mixes reality with magical elements and brings unforgettable characters to life. The World That We Knew centers around the tragedy of WWII in Germany with Jewish characters fleeing to survive while others in the resistance fight against the Nazis. The characters are woven though the story, connected in ways but not always together. It’s an amazing story of love, sacrifice, and loss – a story so deep that you will be touched by it long after you put the book down. Do not miss out on this novel – highly recommended!

About the Author:

Alice Hoffman was born in New York City on March 16, 1952 and grew up on Long Island. After graduating from high school in 1969, she attended Adelphi University, from which she received a BA, and then received a Mirrellees Fellowship to the Stanford University Creative Writing Center, which she attended in 1973 and 74, receiving an MA in creative writing. She currently lives in Boston and New York. 

Hoffman's first novel, Property Of, was written at the age of twenty-one, while she was studying at Stanford, and published shortly thereafter by Farrar Straus and Giroux. She credits her mentor, professor and writer Albert J. Guerard, and his wife, the writer Maclin Bocock Guerard, for helping her to publish her first short story in the magazine Fiction. Editor Ted Solotaroff then contacted her to ask if she had a novel, at which point she quickly began to write what was to become Property Of, a section of which was published in Mr. Solotaroff's magazine, American Review. 

Since that remarkable beginning, Alice Hoffman has become one of our most distinguished novelists. She has published a total of eighteen novels, two books of short fiction, and eight books for children and young adults. Her novel, Here on Earth, an Oprah Book Club choice, was a modern reworking of some of the themes of Emily Bronte's masterpiece Wuthering Heights. Practical Magic was made into a Warner film starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. Her novel, At Risk, which concerns a family dealing with AIDS, can be found on the reading lists of many universities, colleges and secondary schools. Her advance from Local Girls, a collection of inter-related fictions about love and loss on Long Island, was donated to help create the Hoffman (Women's Cancer) Center at Mt. Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA. Blackbird House is a book of stories centering around an old farm on Cape Cod. Hoffman's recent books include Aquamarine and Indigo, novels for pre-teens, and The New York Times bestsellers The River King, Blue Diary, The Probable Future, and The Ice Queen. Green Angel, a post-apocalyptic fairy tale about loss and love, was published by Scholastic and The Foretelling, a book about an Amazon girl in the Bronze Age, was published by Little Brown. In 2007 Little Brown published the teen novel Incantation, a story about hidden Jews during the Spanish Inquisition, which Publishers Weekly has chosen as one of the best books of the year. In January 2007, Skylight Confessions, a novel about one family's secret history, was released on the 30th anniversary of the publication of Her first novel. Her most recent novel is The Story Sisters (2009), published by Shaye Areheart Books.

Hoffman's work has been published in more than twenty translations and more than one hundred foreign editions. Her novels have received mention as notable books of the year by The New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, The Los Angeles Times, Library Journal, and People Magazine. She has also worked as a screenwriter and is the author of the original screenplay "Independence Day" a film starring Kathleen Quinlan and Diane Wiest. Her short fiction and non-fiction have appeared in The New York Times, The Boston Globe Magazine, Kenyon Review, Redbook, Architectural Digest, Gourmet, Self, and other magazines. Her teen novel Aquamarine was recently made into a film starring Emma Roberts.

The Women of Great Heron Lake Giveaway

We have two winners! 
Rita W. and Susan C.

Thank you to everyone who entered. 

The Women of Great Heron Lake

Giveaway!

August 16th - September 10th 

In anticipation of the release of

The Women of Great Heron Lake

I'm having a Giveaway!

Enter below using the Rafflecopter insert. 

Or, you can leave a comment below to enter.

Winners will be randomly chosen on 

September 10, 2019

Good Luck!

And don't forget to preorder your copy of 

The Women of Great Heron Lake!

Amazon Kindle

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal & Preorder: Chasing Bailey (A Lake Harriet Novel) by Deanna Lynn Sletten

Hi everyone!

I'm so excited to finally share with you the cover of my upcoming contemporary romance novel 

CHASING BAILEY

A Lake Harriet Novel

Book 3

The cover was created by my amazing designer

Deborah Bradseth of Tugboat Design

First we met Kristen and Ryan in Walking Sam. Then we met Mallory and James in As the Snow Fell. Now, we'll meet two more residents of the Lake Harriet neighborhood and a wiley dog named Bailey in the sweet romance, Chasing Bailey.

Book Description:

A Lake Harriet Novel

In the charming Lake Harriet neighborhood where we first met Kristen, Ryan, and their dog Sam in Walking Sam, two people are struggling to put their lives back together with the help of a rambunctious dog named Bailey.

Lisa Evan’s life has been in turmoil since her husband, Andrew, left her nine months earlier. With two-year-old Abby to care for and a new full-time job as a school nurse, she’s just trying to keep her head above water both emotionally and financially. It didn’t help that her ex-husband gifted a rambunctious puppy to Abby for her second birthday. But Abby instantly fell in love with Bailey, so Lisa didn’t have the heart to say no. Even though Lisa’s quiet neighborhood is a great place for kids and dogs, there’s one neighbor who isn’t thrilled about Bailey—the hermit across the street. And try as she might, Lisa can’t keep the dog from digging his way out of the yard and running to the hermit’s house. But after one particularly nasty clash with the hermit, Lisa discovers that maybe the man across the street isn’t as terrible as she’d once thought.

Avery McKinnon moved to the quiet neighborhood to hide out after an extremely nasty divorce. In one year his entire world has fallen apart. His wife left him, he lost his house, and his novels are no longer selling as well as they used to, taking a bite out of his income. He’s bitter and angry and the last thing he wants is to become chummy with all the annoyingly happy people in his neighborhood. When the puppy across the street keeps running over to his house and digging up his yard, Avery explodes. Can’t that annoying woman across the street control a puppy? But when he finally sees Lisa for who she is, he realizes that maybe he’s been angry long enough. Maybe it was time to let someone back into his life. And then her ex-husband comes back into the picture and ruins everything.

Contemporary Romance

Sweet Romance

Release Date: October 8, 2019

You can Preorder now on:

Amazon Kindle U.S.

Amazon Kindle UK

Amazon Kindle AU

Amazon Kindle Canada

Paperback and Audiobook Coming Soon!

If you loved WALKING SAM and AS THE SNOW FELL, you will love CHASING BAILEY!

Book Review: Meet Me in Monaco by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

Book Review

Meet Me in Monaco

Hazel Gaynor

Heather Webb

Book Description:

"A fragrant French bonbon of a book: love, glamour, perfume, and paparazzi all circling around the wedding of the century..."--Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of THE ALICE NETWORK and THE HUNTRESS.

Named one of InStyle's best books to put in your tote bag for the summer!

Named one of Popsugar’s best books to put in your beach bag this summer and one of the best books of July!

Set in the 1950s against the backdrop of Grace Kelly’s whirlwind romance and unforgettable wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco, New York Times bestselling author Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb take the reader on an evocative sun-drenched journey along the Côte d’Azur in this page-turning novel of passion, fate and second chances...

Movie stars and paparazzi flock to Cannes for the glamorous film festival, but Grace Kelly, the biggest star of all, wants only to escape from the flash-bulbs. When struggling perfumer Sophie Duval shelters Miss Kelly in her boutique to fend off a persistent British press photographer, James Henderson, a bond is forged between the two women and sets in motion a chain of events that stretches across thirty years of friendship, love, and tragedy.

James Henderson cannot forget his brief encounter with Sophie Duval. Despite his guilt at being away from his daughter, he takes an assignment to cover the wedding of the century, sailing with Grace Kelly’s wedding party on the SS Constitution from New York. In Monaco, as wedding fever soars and passions and tempers escalate, James and Sophie—like Princess Grace—must ultimately decide what they are prepared to give up for love.

Buy now on:

Amazon Kindle

Paperback

My 5-Star Review:

Movie star Grace Kelly takes Cannes by storm when she arrives at the film festival, followed by the paparazzi hungry for photos. But as the film star is trying to avoid the press, perfumer Sophie Duval has more serious problems on her mind—saving her family business. By luck, Grace Kelly ducks into Sophie’s tiny shop to escape one determined photographer and Sophie hides the actress and confronts the pushy man herself, sending him away. What Sophie doesn’t realize yet is that photographer, James, and Miss Grace Kelly herself, will shape her future in more ways than one.

MEET ME IN MONACO is a delightful novel full of interesting characters and plots that keep the reader turning pages. The glitter of a Hollywood star, the romance of a starlet and prince, and the love story of two people who meet at an inopportune time but so desperately wish to be together. What more could a reader want? A lovely, enjoyable novel.

About the Authors:

Hazel Gaynor: Hazel Gaynor is the acclaimed New York Times, USA Today and international bestselling author of A MEMORY OF VIOLETS and THE GIRL WHO CAME HOME, for which she received the 2015 Romantic Novelists' Association Historical Novel of the Year award. Her third novel, THE GIRL FROM THE SAVOY, was an Irish Times and Globe and Mail bestseller, and was shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards Popular Fiction Book of the Year. In 2017, she published THE COTTINGLEY SECRET, and LAST CHRISTMAS IN PARIS (co-written with Heather Webb). Both novels hit bestseller lists, and LAST CHRISTMAS IN PARIS won the 2018 Women's Fiction Writers Association Star Award. Hazel's most recent novel, THE LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER'S DAUGHTER, was an Irish Times and USA Today bestseller. Her latest novel MEET ME IN MONACO (co-written with Heather Webb) will be published in July 2019. 

Hazel was selected by Library Journal as one of Ten Big Breakout Authors for 2015 and was a spring 2015 WHSmith Fresh Talent pick. Her work has been translated into ten languages and is published in seventeen countries to date. She is co-founder of creative writing events The Inspiration Project, and lives in Ireland with her husband and two children. She is represented by Michelle Brower of Aevitas Creative Management, New York. 

For more information, visit www.hazelgaynor.com 

Heather Webb: Heather Webb is the international bestselling author of six historical novels set in France, including her latest Last Christmas in Paris, which became a bestseller and also won the 2018 Women's Fiction Writers Association STAR award. In 2015, her novel about famed sculptors Camille Claudel and Rodin called Rodin's Lover, was a Goodreads Top Pick. Next, check out her novel inspired by Grace Kelly's royal wedding called Meet Me in Monaco, co-written with bestselling author Hazel Gaynor. To date, Heather's novels have sold in a dozen countries worldwide. She is also a professional freelance editor, foodie, and travel fiend. She lives in New England with her family and one feisty rabbit.

Heather is a member of the Historical Novel Society, the Women's Fiction Writers Association, and Romance Writers of America.

Book Review: Secrets of the Chocolate House by Paula Brackston

Hi all,

I fell in love with Paula Brackston’s novels a few years ago when I was reading her “Witch” novels – The Witch’s Daughter, Return of the Witch, The Silver Witch, The Midnight Witch, and The Winter Witch. She has such a beautiful way of writing that I was thrilled when she began a new series starting with The Little Shop of Found Things. This latest one is the second book in that series, and is just as amazing as the first. Here is more about this novel and my thoughts.

Secrets of the Chocolate House

Paula Brackston

Book Description:

The second novel in a bewitching series "brimming with charm and charisma" that will make "fans of Outlander rejoice!" (Woman's World Magazine)

New York Times bestselling author Paula Brackston’s The Little Shop of Found Things was called “a page-turner that will no doubt leave readers eager for future series installments” (Publishers Weekly). Now, Brackston returns to the Found Things series with its sequel, Secrets of the Chocolate House.

After her adventures in the seventeenth century, Xanthe does her best to settle back into the rhythm of life in Marlborough. She tells herself she must forget about Samuel and leave him in the past where he belongs. With the help of her new friends, she does her best to move on, focusing instead on the success of her and Flora’s antique shop.

But there are still things waiting to be found, still injustices needing to be put right, still voices whispering to Xanthe from long ago about secrets wanting to be shared.

While looking for new stock for the shop, Xanthe hears the song of a copper chocolate pot. Soon after, she has an upsetting vision of Samuel in great danger, compelling her to make another journey to the past.

This time she'll meet her most dangerous adversary. This time her ability to travel to the past will be tested. This time she will discover her true destiny. Will that destiny allow her to return home? And will she be able to save Samuel when his own fate seems to be sealed?

Coming October 22, 2019

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My 5-Star Review:

Charming, magical, delightful! Author Paula Brackston does not disappoint in this second novel in the Found Things series, Secrets of the Chocolate House.

In this sequel to The Little Shop of Found Things, the reader returns to Xanthe and Flora’s antique shop in their quaint little village. With her special power to time-travel, Xanthe hears the song of the copper chocolate pot and knows she must follow its call. But when it brings her back to a familiar time, and familiar people, she finds herself embroiled in another dangerous adventure that may change the course of her life forever.

Secrets of the Chocolate House is another wonderfully woven tale by the talented Ms. Brackston. I enjoyed this story immensely, and look forward to the next one. If you love fiction with a magical touch, you’ll enjoy this story.

About the Author:

Paula Brackston lives in a wild, mountainous part of Wales. She has an MA in Creative Writing from Lancaster University, and is a Visiting Lecturer for the University of Wales, Newport. Before becoming a writer, Paula tried her hand at various career paths, with mixed success. These included working as a groom on a racing yard, a travel agent, a secretary, an English teacher, and a goat herd. Everyone involved (particularly the goats) is very relieved that she has now found a job she is actually able to do properly. 

When not hunched over her keyboard in her tiny office under the stairs, Paula is dragged outside by her children to play Swedish tennis on the vertiginous slopes which surround them. She also enjoys being walked by the dog, hacking through weeds in the vegetable patch, or sitting by the pond with a glass of wine. Most of the inspiration for her writing comes from stomping about on the mountains being serenaded by skylarks and buzzards.

In 2007 Paula was shortlisted in the Creme de la Crime search for new writers. In 2010 her book 'Nutters' (writing as PJ Davy) was shortlisted for the Mind Book Award. Last year she was selected by the BBC under their New Welsh Writers scheme.