A bakery at the little duck pond cafe

                                                                                                 

                                                                                                

A Bakery at the Little Duck Pond Cafe

Ellie’s dreams of opening a bakery in Sunnybrook are finally coming true and best friends Fen and Jaz are happily rallying round, helping her to plan a fabulous grand opening day. Everything in their garden seems to be rosy – until the arrival of a newcomer brings chaos to the village and tests relationships to the limit. Can the bakery succeed in the face of such upheaval? And more importantly, can firm friendships survive?

Pre-order Links 

UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bakery-Little-Duck-Pond-Cafe-ebook/dp/B07MLF2N6T

US- https://www.amazon.com/Bakery-Little-Duck-Pond-Cafe-ebook/dp/B07MLF2N6T

Author Bio

Rosie Green has been scribbling stories ever since she was little. Back then they were rip-roaring adventure tales with a young heroine in perilous danger of falling off a cliff or being tied up by ‘the baddies’. Thankfully, Rosie has moved on somewhat, and now much prefers to write romantic comedies that melt your heart and make you smile, with really not much perilous danger involved at all, unless you count the heroine losing her heart in love.

Rosie’s brand new series of novellas is centred on life in a village café. Confetti at the Little Duck Pond Cafe will be the sixth in the series

Twitter - https://twitter.com/Rosie_Green1988

Breaking News - Coming Soon – Confetti at the Little Duck Pond Café 

With Ellie and Zak’s Big Day on the horizon, the sun is shining brightly on the Little Duck Pond Café community. But as dark clouds begin to roll in, threatening more than one close relationship, will the wedding of the year take place at all?  

Follow Rosie Green on Amazon to hear when its published and available for purchase - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rosie-Green/e/B07CZYV7DW

My review

I loved meeting up with the characters from the little cafe and the little bakery. This time it's new character Kate, or rather Katja, whose story unfolds. Pitted against the glamourous but intimidating  Madison, Kate has to fight not only for her job but also for love. These are super, multi-dimensional characters with baggage, whose secrets and fears are revealed only at the end. Kate's grandmother is pretty brilliant too. Throw in a circus background, lots of lovely food and a gorgeous puppy and you have a memorable and engaging story.

The Abandoned Daughter

                                                                               

The Abandoned Daughter by Mary Wood is the second book in The Girls Who Went To War series.

Voluntary nurse Ella is haunted by the soldiers' cries she hears on the battlefields of Dieppe. But that’s not the only thing that haunts her. When her dear friend Jim breaks her trust, Ella is left bruised and heartbroken. Over the years, her friendships have been pulled apart at the seams by the effects of war. Now, more than ever, she feels so alone. 

At a military hospital in France, Ella befriends Connie and Paddy. Slowly she begins to heal, and finds comfort in the arms of a French officer called Paulo – could he be her salvation?

With the end of the war on the horizon, surely things have to get better? Ella grew up not knowing her real family but a clue leads her in their direction. What did happen to Ella’s parents, and why is she so desperate to find out?

The Abandoned Daughter by Mary Wood is the second book in The Girls Who Went To War trilogy.

Mary lives in Blackpool and enjoys researching the history of her home town, coming up with some surprising facts and excited to uncover material for future books. 

Born the 13th child of 15 children, Mary experienced life at the raw end. Though she says of her childhood that though poor they were happy and were rich in love. 

Mary writes full time now having ended her 9 - 5 working life in the Probation Service. This experience gave the grittiness she brings to her writing as Mary says she feels compelled to tell it how it is. 

Website

https://www.authormarywood.com

Twitter

Authormary

My Review

This is Ella's story, one of three friends we met in 'The forgotten daughter'. From the start, we see that Ella has to deal with the effects that being a volunteer during the war has on her and her friends as well as the personal consequences of what Jim does to her. As always, this is a true- to- life, gritty story that holds no punches - it is hard to imagine how much suffering one person can endure. This book draws you into Ella's circle as one by one her friends and family are taken from her or use her badly. Having to rely only upon herself, we see her inner strength as she deals with each misfortune that life throws at her. There is light at the end of the tunnel and told in Mary Wood's inimitable style, the reader is there beside Ella all the way.

The Teashop Girls

The Teashop Girls is a warm and moving tale of friendship and love in wartime, by the bestselling author of the Woolworths series, Elaine Everest.

It is early 1940 and World War Two has already taken a hold on the country. Rose Neville works as a Lyon’s Teashop Nippy on the Kent coast alongside her childhood friends, the ambitious Lily and Katie, whose fiancé is about to be posted overseas in the navy. As war creates havoc in Europe, Rose relies on the close friendship of her friends and her family.

When Capt. Benjamin Hargreaves enters the teashop one day, Rose is immediately drawn to him. But as Lyon’s forbids courting between staff and customers, she tries to put the handsome officer out of her mind.

In increasingly dark and dangerous times, Rose fears there may not be time to waste. But is the dashing captain what he seems?

The Teashop Girls is the new book by Elaine Everest, much-loved author of the Woolworths Girls series. Available on Amazon

ABOUT ELAINE EVEREST

Elaine Everest, author of bestselling novels The Woolworths Girls, The Butlins Girls, Christmas at Woolworths, and Wartime at Woolworths was born and brought up in North West Kent, where many of her books are set. She has been a freelance writer for twenty-two years and has written widely for women's magazines and national newspapers, with both short stories and features. Her non-fiction books for dog owners have been very popular and led to broadcasting on radio about our four legged friends. Elaine has been heard discussing many topics on radio from canine subjects to living with a husband under her feet when redundancy looms.

When she isn't writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school at The Howard Venue in Hextable, Kent and has a long list of published students. Elaine lives with her husband, Michael, and their Polish Lowland Sheepdog, Henry, in Swanley, Kent and is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, The Crime Writers Association, The Society of Women Writers & Journalists and The Society of Authors.

Twitter 

Facebook

My Review

The Teashop Girls introduces us to a new set of friends, Rose, Lily and Katie who work for the Lyons Tea Shop in Kent. Set against the background of WW2, it deals with the ups and downs of life during this period as well as the personal ups and downs of the girls' lives. it is an engrossing read and I loved how everything came together at the end - in the true spirit of wartime, the Lyons Tea Shop does its duty to provide food for the soldiers during the Dunkirk evacuations. The only downside for me was that the Polish character, Anya, didn't quite ring true but I loved her anyway along with the other friends of the girls.

Blackpool's daughter

              
                                                                                             

Bestselling author Mary Wood writing as Maggie Mason
***Previously published as BLACKPOOL EVACUEE in hardback only***

England, 1940

Clara is forced to flee her home as the Nazis invade the beautiful island of Guernsey, leaving her mother Julia behind. She's scared and alone, but her spirits lift a little when she learns she's headed for Blackpool. 

Her slight hopes are crushed however when she is housed with and at the mercy of a cruel shopkeeper, Miss Brandon. Clara is worked like a dog, but the warmth of some newly made Blackpool friendships will go far to save her. 

Separated from her beloved daughter, Julia heads to London to try and track Clara down but she is thwarted at every turn. With no idea where her daughter is, and the trials of war keeping them far apart, will they ever be reunited?

‘Blackpool’s Daughter’ is available to buy from Amazon UK:-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blackpool-Evacuee-Maggie-Mason/dp/0751573191

About Maggie Mason

 

Maggie Mason is a pseudonym of author Mary Wood. Mary began her career by self-publishing on kindle where many of her sagas reached number one in genre. She was spotted by Pan Macmillan and to date has written many books for them under her own name, with more to come. Mary continues to be proud to write for Pan Macmillan, but is now equally proud and thrilled to take up a second career with Sphere under the name of Maggie Mason. A Blackpool Lass is her first in a planned series of standalone books and trilogies set in her home town of Blackpool.

Mary retired from working for the National Probation Service in 2009, when she took up full time writing, something she’d always dreamed of doing. She follows in the footsteps of her great-grandmother, Dora Langlois, who was an acclaimed author, playwright and actress in the late nineteenth – early twentieth century.

It was her work with the Probation Service that gives Mary’s writing its grittiness, her need to tell it how it is, which takes her readers on an emotional journey to the heart of issues.

Links

Website – https://www.authormarywood.com/

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/HistoricalNovels

Twitter – https://twitter.com/Authormary

My Review

Previously published in hardback as 'Blackpool Evacuee' this book by Maggie Mason drew me in from the start. The story opens in Guernsey as Claire is sent over to the mainland to avoid the German Occupation. The author's gritty style and hard-hitting plot will pull on your emotions. There are several threads within the book and the theme of friendship dominates. Totally absorbing yet easy to read, this book will keep you enthralled to the end. I read it over a weekend and loved the attention to detail, the historical research and the characters who jump off the page.

Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace

She’s taking her life back, one step at a time… Grace thought she had it all. Living in the beautiful village of Little Ollington, along with head teacher husband Mark and gorgeous son, Archie, she devoted herself to being the perfect mum and the perfect wife, her little family giving her everything she ever wanted. Until that fateful day when she walked in on Mark kissing his secretary - and her perfect life fell apart. Now she's a single mum to Archie, trying to find her way in life and keep things together for his sake. Saturday nights consist of a Chinese takeaway eaten in front of the TV clad in greying pyjamas, and she can’t remember the last time she had a kiss from anyone aside from her dog, Becks… Grace’s life needs a shake up – fast. So when gorgeous gardener Vinnie turns up on her doorstep, his twinkling eyes suggesting that he might be interested in more than just her conifers, she might just have found the answer to her prayers. But as Grace falls deeper for Vinnie, ten-year-old Archie fears that his mum finding love means she’ll never reconcile with the dad he loves. So when ex-husband Mark begs her for another chance, telling her he’s changed from the man that broke her heart, Grace finds herself with an impossible dilemma. Should she take back Mark and reunite the family that Archie loves? Or risk it all for a new chance of happiness? A funny, feel good romance about finding your own path and changing your life for the better – readers of Cathy Bramley, Jill Mansell and Josie Silver will love this uplifting read.

Purchase Links Amazon: https://amzn.to/2MIAM7k Kobo: http://bit.ly/2GeKm0D Apple: https://apple.co/2MMvJD2

Author Bio

Kim Nash lives in Staffordshire with son Ollie and English Setter Roni, is PR & Social Media Manager for Bookouture and is a book blogger at www.kimthebookworm.co.uk. Kim won the Romantic Novelists Association's Media Star of the Year in 2016, which she still can't quite believe. She is now quite delighted to be a member of the RNA. When she's not working or writing, Kim can be found walking her dog, reading, standing on the sidelines of a football pitch cheering on Ollie and binge watching box sets on the TV. She's also quite partial to a spa day and a gin and tonic (not at the same time!) Kim also runs a book club in Cannock, Staffs. Amazing Grace is her debut novel with Hera Books and will be out on 10th April 2019

Connect with Kim on Social Media here: Twitter: (@KimTheBookworm) https://twitter.com/KimTheBookworm Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KimTheBookWorm/ Instagram: @Kim_the_bookworm

My Review

A lovely, feel-good rom-com that will warm the cockles of your heart. As the mum of an eleven-year-old son, I could readily empathise with Grace as she suddenly feels ancient compared to the other school mums. I have to say that I have a good few years on her though so imagine how old she made me feel? Her best friend is a breath of fresh air and the kind of friend we all need in our lives. I also appreciated the messages from Grace's mum from the other side - perhaps we've all hoped for that when we've lost someone close, even if the conversations are just in our head?
The characterisation is excellent and at times I found myself wondering how Mark ever became a head teacher as he is such a jerk! I couldn't believe how much his behaviour annoyed me. Vinnie, on the other hand, well - a girl can dream, eh? Seeing his sister and the cafe made him a well-rounded character and even the dog, Becks, has a personality all of his own. An excellent debut novel.

Chickens eat pasta

Chickens Eat Pasta: Escape to Umbria

Not just another romance, but a story of escapism, coincidences, friendship, luck and most of all... love.

Chickens Eat Pasta is the tale of how a young Englishwoman starts a new life after watching a video showing a chicken eating spaghetti in a mediaeval hill village in central Italy. 

“Here I was, 26 years old, alone and numb with boredom at the prospect of a future which until recently had seemed to be just what I wanted.”

Unlike some recent bestsellers, this is not simply an account of a foreigner’s move to Italy, but a love story written from the unusual perspective of both within and outside of the story. As events unfold, the strong storyline carries with it a rich portrayal of Italian life from the inside, with a supporting cast of memorable characters. Along the way, the book explores and captures the warmth and colour of Italy, as well as some of the cultural differences – between England and Italy, but also between regional Italian lifestyles and behaviour. It is a story with a happy ending. The author and her husband are still married, with three children, who love the old house on the hill (now much restored) almost as much as she does. 

Chickens Eat Pasta is Clare’s autobiography, and ultimately a love story – with the house itself and with the man that Clare met there and went on to marry. If you yearn for a happy ending, you won’t be disappointed. It’s a story that proves anything is possible if you only try.

Purchase Links 

UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chickens-Eat-Pasta-Escape-Umbria-ebook/dp/B012GZXOPY

US - https://www.amazon.com/Chickens-Eat-Pasta-Escape-Umbria-ebook/dp/B012GZXOPY

UK Audiobook  - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chickens-Eat-Pasta/dp/B07BYLZX3X

US Audiobook - https://www.amazon.com/Chickens-Eat-Pasta/dp/B07CBJRG9C

About Clare Pedrick

Clare Pedrick is a British journalist who studied Italian at Cambridge University before becoming a reporter. She went on to work as the Rome correspondent for the Washington Post and as European Editor of an international features agency. She still lives in Italy with her husband, whom she met in the village where she bought her house.

You can follow Clare on her Facebook Book Page, her own Facebook page and on Twitter.

Read her blog about life in Umbria here

Giveaway to Win an audiobook copy of Chickens Eat Pasta (Open Internationally)

·      Winner gets to pick between audible and ibooks audio code

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494211/?

My review

If the title of the book doesn't grab you, the descriptions of the beautiful Italian countryside, not to mention the delicious food, most certainly will. as you might expect there are some wonderful village characters as well as some faux pas by our heroine, all of which add a touch of authenticity to the account. Although the memoir opens with the author about to leave the wonderful house she has renovated in a remote Italian village, the reader can't help hoping there will be a different ending. Amusing, easy to read and a great insight into the Italian way of life - which it appears mostly revolves around cooking food, eating food or talking about food, this is a lovely, escapist read.

The Inheritance

The Inheritance – The Guernsey Novels book 7

1862 Young widow Eugénie faces an uncertain future in Guernsey when her husband dies at sea. A further tragedy brings her to the attention of Monsieur Victor Hugo, exiled on the island and living in his voluptuous house only yards away from Eugénie. Their meeting changes her life and she begins working for him as a copyist, forming a strong friendship with both Hugo and his mistress, Juliette Drouet. 

2012 Doctor Tess Le Prevost, born in Guernsey, now living in Exeter, is shocked to inherit her Great-Aunt’s house on the island. As a child she listened to Aunt Doris’s tales of their ancestor, Eugénie, whose house this once was, and who, according to family myth, was particularly close to Hugo. Was he the father of her child? Tess doubts it, but inheriting the house allows her to make a fresh start in her beloved island. 

Will she discover the truth about Eugénie and Hugo? A surprise find may hold the answer as Tess embraces new challenges which test her strength – and her heart.

Purchase Links:

UK- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Inheritance-Guernsey-Novels-Book-ebook/dp/B07PC3F8TG

US - https://www.amazon.com/Inheritance-Guernsey-Novels-Book-ebook/dp/B07PC3F8TG

All the other 6 titles in The Guernsey Novels are only 99p/c across all ebook retailers until 15th April while The Inheritance is only £1.99/$2.99 until that date. 

Here's the link for all titles on Amazon: http://Author.to/AnneAllen

Author Bio – 

Anne Allen lives in Devon, by her beloved sea. She has threechildren,and her daughter and two grandchildren live nearby.  Her restless spirit has meant a number of moves which included Spain for a couple of years. The longest stay was in Guernsey for nearly fourteen years after falling in love with the island and the people. She contrived to leave one son behind to ensure a valid reason for frequent returns.

By profession,Anne was a psychotherapist,but long had the itch to write. Now a full-time writer, she has written The Guernsey Novels, six having been published and the seventh, The Inheritance, is due out in 2018.

Social Media Links – Website:www.anneallen.co.uk

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Anne-Allen-Author-176883759173475/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnneAllen21

Giveaway to Win a copy of The Inheritance and a notebook (Open Internationally)

1^stPrize – Signed copy of The Inheritance and notebook

2^ndPrize – E-copy of The Inheritance and notebook 

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494210/?

My review

This book very cleverly blends fact and fiction and weaves it into two memorable stories. Although much about Victor Hugo's stay is based on fact, Anne Allen has created a fictional character Eugenie as Hugo's copyist - although she too is based on a factual character - and we discover her story through the eyes of her descendant. I loved the fact that many of the characters we have seen in the previous books in the series are gradually introduced giving some continuity, although each book reads well as a standalone. Thoroughly researched, we have a glimpse into a Guernsey of the past, the mind of a great author as well as romance in the modern timeline. Whether you are fascinated by history or just love a good story, this book is a fascinating read.