💕’Her love for all things Greek shines out from every page’. @GeorgiaRoseBook reviews My Corfu Love Story by Effrosyni Moschoudi @FrostieMoss, for Rosie’s #Bookreview Team #RBRT💕

Today’s team review is from Georgia. She blogs here https://www.georgiarosebooks.com

Georgia has been reading My Corfu Love Story by Effrosyni Moschoudi

It has been a while since I felt the Mediterranean sun on my skin and I have to say that was partly behind my decision to choose this book. I hoped it would be filled with wonderful descriptions that would give me a taste of Corfu, and I was not disappointed.

The love shines out from this short book. Spyri’s love for her grandmother (what a wonderful relationship they had), love for Corfu and the village of Moraitika, love for the food and of course love for the love interest, Markos.

There is also a super note from the author at the end with links to take you to discover more about Moraitika and Messonghi, as well as a family recipe.

Effrosyni Moschoudi is Greek and her love for all things Greek shines out from every page of this most enjoyable short read which I recommend to anyone who wants a break in the sunshine.

Spyri forever lives in the past, haunted by old memories. This summer, she meets a man she once loved, and he is about to change everything…

Spyri, a half-Greek restauranteur in her early thirties, is back on the island of Corfu, staying in her grandmother’s village home for a few days to decompress from her busy life in London. Her nostalgia for the good old summer days hit her upon her return. When she hears that Markos, the one she never forgot, is staying at the village, she becomes excited.

Sparks begin to fly when they meet, but Markos has his own hurts of the past to deal with…

AmazonUK | AmazonUS

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 14 #BeachBooks @TerryTyler4 #SundayBlogShare

 

It’s our final day of our holiday beach reads tour, time for a last ice-cream before packing our bags.

Today my guest is Terry Tyler.

Beach Reads

I’ve got the last day of the holiday fortnight, the one in which you’re desperately trying to make the most of every last minute!

Where would I be? I hate being overheated and dislike crowds of people, so no holiday hotspots for me. My ideal destination would be a Scottish or Scandinavian island, somewhere really barren and beautiful, where I could walk for miles on deserted beaches/over hills/through woods, then go back to a wonderfully cosy cottage or log cabin. I think late spring or September would be fine. Now that I’m fast becoming a grumpy old hermit, I’d like it to be within a couple of miles of a small town/village so I could go to stock up, but mostly I’d prefer it just to be me and my husband, with perhaps a visit from a couple of friends for a day or so. I want to go there NOW….!

A Fun Read 

For my ‘fun read’ I’ve chosen Knife Skills by Carrie Ann Lahain – I’ve bought this for my Kindle recently and plan to read it soon. I always loved working in restaurants and reading books about that life. I’m not much of a one for ‘fun reads’ generally, but I do like the look of this! Here’s the blurb:

It’s all burners on high for Chef Molly Price, about to start her first restaurant job on her aunt and uncle’s Long Island vineyard. They took Molly in as a child, and she’s determined not to let them down. But it’s hard to focus on the perfect bread pudding with a no-good ex who won’t leave her alone and a best guy friend who’s as cranky as he is kissable. Molly soon learns that, though her sauces never break, the same can’t be said for her heart.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book you’ve been meaning to read for ages 

I am so looking forward to having the time to listen to Queen’s Gambit by Elizabeth Fremantle. It’s a historical novel about Katherine Parr, the last wife of Henry VIII. I have an unquenchable thirst for anything about the Tudors, and when I was researching my novel Kings and Queens I discovered that Katherine interested me almost as much as Anne Boleyn; more so, in some ways, because I knew less about her. I’ve got it on audio book, and I would love to listen to it while striding along the aforementioned deserted beaches, early in the morning!

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book from your favourite genre 

I’m mad on post apocalyptic drama, zombie or otherwise, so I think that, to go with my deserted holiday location, I would choose to re-read (on my Kindle) Future Perfect by Katrina Mountfort. I recently read this for Rosie’s blog (review coming soon) and LOVED it. It’s set in year 2185, when the world has gone to pot and selected citizens of the UK now live in controlled ‘Citidomes’. But what of those who still exist in the outside world? I thought it was like a modern version of ‘1984’, and it’s all scarily feasible… it’s actually a YA book, but it would definitely appeal to all ages.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

A book you could truly escape with 

I had a long think about this, and eventually decided on three books that I first read in one hardback – The Suffolk Trilogy, or The House at Old Vine, by Norah Lofts. The first two are The Town House and The House At Sunset. It’s an incredible saga about a house, first built by one Martin Reed in the 14th century, and takes the reader through to the 1950s. Of course it’s not about the house so much as the people who lived in it, but in each one you are given glimpses of the past, and an insight into sociological changes. Fascinating, wonderful stuff; I’m currently re-reading the first part, holiday or not!

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Own book 

Rosie says that we can suggest one of our own books, so here’s Round and Round! It’s novella length, only 36K words long, and is probably the ‘lightest’ of my books. The plot in brief: Sophie Heron is approaching her fortieth birthday, and becoming obsessed with a time, sixteen years before, when she had the choice of four different men. Unhappy in her current relationship, she can’t help wondering what might have been … and, as luck would have it, she just happens to have a guardian angel who helps answer her questions. Yes, and I’d probably read it on holiday, too – I read one of my own books every few months and still enjoy them. I’m not sure if that’s weird or not!

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Time to go home, then, back to the dead plants, the pile of junk mail on the mat, and four loads of washing! Thank you, Rosie, for inviting me to take part in Beach Reads 2015.

Should you be interested, this is my blog, on which I write about reading, television, clothes, relationships, shopping, social networking, and miscellaneous moans 🙂

http://www.terrytyler59.blogspot.co.uk/

and my book review blog:

http://terrytylerbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/

Bon Voyage! If you are off on your own summer holiday’s soon – perhaps you’ll be taking some of the books from our Beach Reads book Tour with you – what ever your choices – HAPPY READING.

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 13 #Beachbooks @GreenWizard62

As thoughts turn to the end of our Beach Read holiday when suitcases need re-packing, we’re not ready to leave yet. My guest today is Mark Barry.

Rosie Amber Beach Reads 

My bucket list is currently full of cities at the moment, and I think San Diego would be up there. I would visit Santa Anita racecourse (and travel down the coast to Del Mar) and spend the evenings on a beach front bar talking books. What better place to talk horses and books than over a tall Mojito in the glorious sunshine!

 

I’m not a Kindle fan, so I would take several paperback books. I DO read Kindle books (many of my favourite authors and friends are e-book only), but it’s just not the same. It doesn’t have the same impact at all. I always leave books behind whenever I travel – sometimes my own.

 

I would leave Hollywood Shakedown of my own library. I wrote it in 2010 and it is intended to be an airport novel for intelligent people. Quite a few people think it’s my best book. It’s pretty unsung and I tend to scratch my head about how to market it as it is unlike my other books. It is also long enough for a week’s beach holiday!

Find a copy here form Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

A Fun Read 

After The Sucker Punch by Lorraine Devon Wilke

 

A sweeping, seventies, old school family saga that’s also long enough to engage you for a good week on the beach. In fact, it’s made for the beach and the airport. Beautifully written, light, accessible, I have yet to come across a book as good as this in Indie. In fact, you genuinely would not know this is an Indie book. It is sublime and – like many books we write – underappreciated, especially over here.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

A book from your favourite genre 

Warlock – The Complete Series

 

Put a bullet to my head and I would say that I prefer comics and graphic novels to books. I would have loved to have been a comic book writer. This graphic novel, written and drawn in the mid-seventies, by Jim Starlin is the finest epic saga. It’s scope is astonishing. The next Avengers film features Thanos, the scheming villain and servant of Death that Starlin invented, and he has never been better than he is here in this seminal appearance. I read this every year without fail.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

A book you would only read on holiday in a sun, sea and sand location 

Jackie Collins – Lucky

 

Every genre writer has a sneaky, guilty pleasure, and I like the work of Jackie Collins, who has the trashy, worthless, star-spangled celebrity bonk buster down pat. My favourite – and most people seem to agree with me – and best is Lucky. Surprisingly well written and incredibly easy to read, this is an ideal book to leave behind in some Tanzania beach hut. It will be read.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

A book you could truly escape with 

Music of Chance by Paul Auster

 

In any Desert Island quartet, you have to go for quality somewhere down the line and this is one of my favourite books from one of the world’s finest contemporary fiction writers. It’s not his best – you have to aim at something like Book of Illusions or Brooklyn Follies for that honour – but it packs the biggest punch. One of those books that you live rather than read. Hence the escape.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

 

 

 

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 12 #BeachBooks @lizzie_lamb

Day 12 of our lovely beach holiday where all we are doing is sitting back with a book or two.

My guest today is Lizzie Lamb.

A few lines about my ideal holiday destination where I can sit back and relax with a book

My ideal holiday destination where I can kick back, relax and read a book would be an air conditioned villa whose garden leads on to a tropical beach. That being unlikely in the grand scheme of things, I’ll settle for our caravan on the edge of a Scottish loch in high summer when it is possible to read out of doors without a light until well after 10pm.

 

The ideal format my choice of book would be available in (for me as a reader) –why?

I spend a lot of time in front of a screen – writing, texting, blogging etc. I have an array of glasses (and contact lenses) for distance, reading and using computer glasses. When I read, it’s the one time when I don’t need glasses and I prefer to get away from the screen and read a paperback, thus giving my eyes a rest. I don’t fare very well with audio books as they lull me to sleep! If I travelled abroad, I’d take my iPad and listen to audio books, read kindle downloads that way.

Link (s)

blog website: www.lizzielamb.co.uk

Amazon page: http://tinyurl.com/mpcv6bn

————————————————————————————————————————————

Rosie Amber’s blog – BEACH READS

All the books I’ve mentioned are available in both paperback and kindle form.

An Easy Read – Tristan and Iseult – Rosemary Sutcliffe

amazon.co.uk                    amazon.com

 

This is my comfort read, the one (along with The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer) I return to from time to time. I have read this story to the children I have taught (10+) and it holds the attention of boys and girls alike. Not the easiest of tasks. The children have often recommended it to their parents who have later commented to me how much THEY loved the story, too. I read it to remind myself what a great story teller Rosemary Sutcliffe was; her language is spare yet descriptive and it is hard not to be caught up in the romance of the times and the love between Tristan and Iseult. The end always has me in tears. Although once, when I closed the book and looked around the children sitting at my feet for a reaction, one boy put his hand up and asked: ‘is it playtime yet?’ Which just goes to prove, you can’t win ‘em all.

 A book from my favourite genre (rom com) – Notting Hell – Rachel Johnson

amazon.co.uk                    amazon.com

 

I’ve long been a fan of Rachel Johnson’s writing. I loved this book because I read it as I was writing Tall, Dark and Kilted – which opens in Notting Hill, and then moves on to Wester Ross, in the highlands of Scotland. Inspired by the novel, I took advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to look round the private gardens enclosed by Elgin Crescent, Rosemead Road and Ladbroke Grove – and sat on the bench featured in the film Notting Hill. I used the novel as a way of getting into the mind-set of the uber rich who inhabit the grand houses surrounding the communal gardens. And, in a moment of pure synchronicity, there was an article in the Times about the daughters of a certain nobleman who were causing mayhem while their parents were away. Just like the Urquhart sisters in my novel. A great summer read and one I return to many times.

 

A book I’ve been meaning to read for ages – River of Destiny – Barbara Erskine

amazon.co.uk                    amazon.com

 

I’ve been a fan of Barbara Erskine since The Lady of Hay (1986); over three million copies sold to date, so I’m not alone. I enjoyed this author’s books because they are (generally) time slip novels, meticulously researched, involve a high degree of the paranormal and the ‘heroine in jeopardy, trope. In particular, I want to read River of Destiny because I have visited the Sutton Hoo ship burial site, which is bordered by the River Debden, many times and thought what a great setting it was for a novel. I am also considering writing a paranormal/time slip and I can do no better than to immerse myself in Erskine’s great writing. Pleasure and research at the same time – a no brainer.

A book that interests me – The Goldfinch – Donna Tartt

amazon.co.uk                    amazon.com

 

I have added this to the list because I really do have to give Ms Tartt’s writing another go. I started (and later abandoned) her earlier books because they didn’t strike a chord with me. However, I am assured by friends that I will enjoy this one. Checking the amazon.co.uk reviews for Goldfinch (2346 – wow) I see that she has been awarded four stars overall, so it’s worth a punt. Tartt has also been awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, not just for this book but for her body of work. It’s a bit of a massive tome so I think I’ll take it on holiday with me to read when there are fewer distractions. I hope I do enjoy it and it doesn’t remind me too much of books I had to read when I was studying for my degree, many moons ago.

 

My own book – Scotch on the Rocks – Lizzie Lamb

Coming soon to Amazon

 

When I was teaching full time I was always on the lookout for feel-good romantic comedies which would raise my spirits at the end of a long, hard day. Now, as a writer, I want to create novels with the same ‘ahh’ factor, where my reader becomes so immersed in the story that she forgets her cares and woes for a time. As one of my reviewers said of Boot Camp Bride –“It’s impossible not to love the main characters and to dream you could live their story!” So, if you like love stories with a light, comedic touch, sexy Americans researching their Scottish roots and a hardworking, believable heroine you can root for – give Scotch on the Rocks a try.

 

And, if you’re still looking for some really great holiday reads, let me add the three books from the New Romantics Press, all of which are available on Kindle and in paperback.

 

An Englishwoman’s Guide to the Cowboy – June Kearns

Secrets of the Heart – Adrienne Vaughan

Twins of a Gazelle – Mags Cullingford.

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 11 #BeachBooks @june_kearns

It’s Day 11 of our wonderful book tour holiday, pull up a deck chair and feel the sand between your toes.

Today my guest is June Kearns.

 

Beach Reads Blog Tour

My ideal holiday spot for relaxing and reading? Cromarty. (From the shipping forecast? Forties, Cromarty, Forth, Tyne and Dogger.) The tiny historic town at the tip of the Black Isle, way up in the north of Scotland has warm seas (Gulf Stream), seals, kites and bottlenose dolphins. The rest of the family can swim, sail, fish, play golf, tennis and everything else that they like to do, while I sit in the sun with a book. Bliss!

 

A book I’ve been meaning to read for ages: Love & The Goddess by Mary Elizabeth Coen

I’d already spotted this and admired the cover, but it was the feature on A Woman’s Wisdom Blog that made me fly to the buy button on Kindle. Described as one of those Wonderful Feel Good Books, perfect for a lazy weekend or holiday read, and likened to Sex and the City meets Eat, Pray, Love (I loved both), made it irresistible.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book from my favourite genre: The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler

Fabulously funny, sad, sensitive – this book is all of those things. Was it the first Anne Tyler that I read, the one that hooked me in? I just love it, and have several paperback copies in case one is loaned or lost. A storyline about a man whose life goes into a tailspin after his son dies and his marriage breaks up doesn’t sound much fun, but the appearance of frizzy-haired dog-trainer Muriel from the Meow-Bow dog clinic, turns everything around. Gorgeous.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book I could truly escape with: The Republic of Love by Carol Shields

This is a book that I really did escape with on my first ever camping trip with family to the south of France. That first night, I lay on my little cot with flies circling overhead and thought: ‘Help! This is just like Tenko! ’ (TV series about a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp.) It’s such a wonderful read – a love-story, yes, but so fresh and sparkling and surprising. Love it. (I have 3 paperback copies of this one, too!)

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book that interests me from a genre I’ve never read: Two Rivers by Zoe Saadia

Although I have actually read quite a lot of historical fiction, Zoe Saadia’s books sound completely different to anything else. Instinct tells me to start at the beginning of the series and I’ve read some wonderful reviews of this particular book, (‘cracking good story,’ ‘writing flows beautifully’). I read a lot of Native American history when researching my first book and just wish I’d had access to Zoe Saadia’s series at that time, with all the information and history packaged in a really entertaining read. (On my Kindle)

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

One of my own books?

Well if like me, you’re a sucker for romance, threaded with history and humour – The 20’s Girl might appeal.

Even before the remake of Gatsby and advent of Downton, there was just something in the air about the 1920s – the music, style and fashion. The story was also inspired by a 1920s newspaper headline: ‘A million women too many! 1920 husband hunt!’ – about that generation of surplus women in England after the First World War, who were left with little hope of love or marriage. They were given advice: ‘If you’re hoping for a husband – be warned. Nice young men have no time for jazzing flappers.’

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

And if you’re still looking for some really great holiday reads, let me add the three latest books from my friends and allies in the New Romantics Press, all of which are on Kindle and in paperback.

Scotch on the Rocks by Lizzie Lamb, Secrets of the Heart, Adrienne Vaughan and Twins of a Gazelle, Mags Cullingford.

Happy Reading!

 

 

 

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 10 #Beachbooks @ProofreadJulia #wwwblogs

So we are 10 days into our Beach read holiday and by now we should be totally relaxed and rested.

Today my guest is Proofreader Julia Gibbs

My ideal holiday destination? I have a few! Some years ago, before my work life consisted of sitting on the sofa with my laptop, I visited many exotic locations in the course of my work (that’s a whole other story). So I have many to pick from, and I’d like to share some with you.

I prefer hard copy, paperback books. Yes, I know Kindle is more convenient, and I do have one, which I find very handy for plane journeys etc., but in an ideal world I’d carry an entire library with me, like the character in Somerset Maugham’s story, The Book Bag. (Read it, it’s haunting.)

My 5 book choices

A Fun Read

Chances by Jackie Collins. Set in New York, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. I first read it when I bought it at the airport in Las Vegas, having flown there to visit my friend who was a dancer in one of the shows. Nothing like reading about a glamorous venue when you’re actually in it! I consider this the best of her books, a real family saga. It’s got gangsters, intrigue, beautiful women, a charismatic hero – and is completely unputdownable.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A Fact/Guide book

For my 50^th birthday, I went to Manhattan for a week with a friend. Although I’d been there briefly before, I wanted to do a bit of research, find out how to walk around, what sort of thing I ought to know, which areas to visit, and all sorts of other things. An English friend who lives there recommended Frommer’s The Irreverent Guide to Manhattan. There’s a quote from the New York Times on the cover – ‘like being taken around by a savvy local’ – and so it proved to be! I really enjoyed reading the book and it all added to the fun of my holiday planning. I’ve lent it to friends since, and they all loved it.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book to truly escape with

About 15 years ago, I visited Singapore for a few days. I’d never previously been to anywhere as exotic as South East Asia, and was struck by the beauty of the place before I’d even left the airport. However, even though most of the population whom you will encounter speak English, Singapore is of necessity somewhere very alien to the Western experience, and you do wonder what goes on behind the façade. When I was invited to proofread Jake Needham’s The Dead American, I was immediately transported back to the Malay Peninsula, and also intrigued by the story that unfolded before me – as you will be, and you will not guess the ending, I guarantee.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A book from my favourite genre

My favourite genre, if I must pick one, is anything involving human relationships – and no, I don’t just mean romantic love, in fact a love story doesn’t even need to be included. I recently proofread Stolen Journeys by Sylvia Atipova, and had no idea what to expect as I started the book. This starts out in Bulgaria some years ago and then moves to England in the present day, and just as you’re beginning to work out how all the characters relate to each other, they creep into your consciousness and you start to care about what happens to them. They don’t occupy a big stage, but their actions and feelings are utterly realistic, and you can picture them as easily as if they were sitting across from you.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Another book to truly escape with!

Having mentioned Somerset Maugham in my opening paragraph, and told you about Jake Needham’s book, I must now turn to the former’s short stories. These are tales of love, passion, death, betrayal – just everything, really, and were written in the first half of the 20^th century. Some are set in England, but most take place in what were British Colonies in Asia before World War II. Some of the stories are about life or death themes, some are very funny, but all are compelling. These books belong to my mother, and the inscription inside is from my father, on their first wedding anniversary; I’ve been reading the stories over and over again since I was around 14 years old. Seldom have I been so immersed in another world.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Julia Gibbs

@ProofreadJulia

https://juliaproofreader.wordpress.com/

Beach Read Blog Tour 2015 Day 9 #Beachbooks @jontybabe @BrookCottageBks

Welcome to day 9 of the beach reads blog tour, everyone should be feeling lovely and relaxed now on our virtual holiday.

My guest today is Debbie Johnston from Brook Cottage Books

FOR ROSIE

Thank you to Rosie for inviting me to be a part of her Beach Reads feature. When it comes to thinking about my perfect holiday destination I am going to be greedy and list two! The first one would obviously be lying on a hammock between two palm trees on a desert island somewhere with cocktails close to hand. The sound of the sea would eventually soothe me to sleep! The second destination is a cabin or cottage beside a lake with a mountain back drop! Perfect! To date, my most perfect holiday destination has been Malta. Beautiful scenery and equally beautiful people!

 

My 5 holiday reads would be:

A Self Help / Inspirational book (which would get your mojo back for when you return home) 

On Writing by Stephen King. This book is an amazing insight into the great man himself, with stories about his childhood and his early writing career. The book offers really sound advice for those venturing into the world of writing. The format would have to be audiobook as its read by Stephen King himself and I guarantee you will instantly fall in love with his voice and the way he reads!

AMAZON BUY LINK

AMAZON.COM

 

A book that interests you although it’s from a genre you’ve never read.

Biocentrism by Lanza and Berman. This is from the Science / cosmology /physics / non-fiction genre. Definitely something I would never usually read! However the subject matter interests me greatly and I have actually bought this book already! The premise of the book is basically that consciousness is the key to reality. The universe exist through our minds! Talk about get your geek on!

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

 

A book from your favourite genre 

One of my favourite genres is the horror genre. I have chosen Misery by Stephen King as it was the first Stephen King book I ever read and from then on in I was totally hooked on the man! It’s so well written and super creepy. In the words of Annie Wilkes, the scary woman in the book, I am his ‘number one fan!’

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

 

A book you’ve been meaning to read for ages 

I have been meaning to read Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger after really enjoying her book The Time Traveller’s Wife. I have the book on my bookshelf staring at me and it really needs to go to the top of my TBR list! It sounds like quite a spooky read with a bit of a mystery behind it too. Just the sort of thing I love!

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

 

A Fun Read 

For fun overload I always recommend books by Carol E Wyer. Carol has such an hilarious way of looking at the world and her books always produce a bit of a giggle, especially her ‘grumpy’ series of books. Her latest book Grumpies On Board is on my TBR list at the moment and I am really looking forward to getting stuck in! It’s a light hearted look at the latest adventures for those of a certain age! Carol definitely believes in getting older rather disgracefully and with a bang!

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

 

Thank you Rosie for letting me take part in this feature. It was great fun! Not sure if you need all this but here it is anyway.

 

BIO

In the bookish world I am known by the name JB Johnston and this is the name I sometimes write under. I also work under the name Debbie Johnston!  I would love to be a writer but in the meantime, and until I actually get an ounce of talent, I review and promote books for various sites, publishers and individual authors.
I was an intern with Safkhet Publishing where I was a Marketing Assistant and Editorial Assistant and was the editor for Little White Lies and Butterflies by Suzie Tullett. I am also a book tour co-ordinator and organise and run virtual book tours for authors. If you have a book to promote then I can help you do that. I organise and co-ordinate online promotion parties for authors and publishers. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy! I am a beta reader for some authors which I really enjoy.

 

I review books from my own personal bookshelf also and support a variety of Indie authors. I am a monthly contributor on Siren FM radio for the show ‘Books Rock’ which is hosted by author Nicky Wells. I’m a Lifestyle reviewer for the award winning Loveahappyending Lifestyle magazine, which won the 2013 Romance Industry “Innovation in Romantic Fiction” award. I was shortlisted for Romance Blogger of the Year 2013 in the Romance Industry Awards.  I am involved with the Plum Tree  Books Group and regularly read and review books for www.lovereading.co.uk  where I am on the review panel.

 

Brook Cottage Books

FACEBOOK

BROOK COTTAGES ON TWITTER

JB JOHNSTON ON TWITTER

JB JOHNSTON ON FACEBOOK

Email: brookbooks@hotmail.co.uk

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 8 #Beachbooks @GeorgiaRoseBook

Week 2 and we are well into a holiday mood, with our reading.

Today’s guest on the Beach Reads 2015 Blog Tour is Georgia Rose

Beach Reads Blog Tour

I’d like to thank Rosie for inviting me on this tour. I imagine this is what it feels like to be chosen to go on Desert Island Discs and as it’s likely to be the closest I ever get to that I’m treating it the same and much like the choices there these have been hard to make – I didn’t think about that when I eagerly said yes! As an author Rosie has said that I can choose one of my own to promote but in an effort not to do an Elisabeth Schwartzkopf from the Roy Plomley era I shall not, though I will add that I do believe mine would make great beach reads and you can find out everything you need to know about them at Georgia Rose Books

Right onto the easy bit first, my ideal holiday destination. We stumbled upon the delights of Gozo a few years ago and have gone there ever since, not to the same villa or the same village mind, we’re not that predictable! Gozo is the tiny island off Malta, and with no airport of its own it’s reached by ferry, which starts the unwinding process. It’s the place I’d run to if, for some reason, I suddenly had to leave England…well you never know do you 😉 I’m not a great traveller but on Gozo I feel safe. The people are friendly, they actually like the British. They drive on the left and have the same telephone and post boxes as us, there are blue lanterns outside their police stations and being there puts me at ease.

So, onto my choices and I’ve had to go about making these in different ways as it has been so difficult. In the end I’ve chosen a book I’ve read before that I’d recommend, one from an author whose other work I have enjoyed, one I’ve had on my TBR list for ages but just haven’t got to from an author whose writing is new to me, an audio book chosen on recommendation and because of the narration and finally a book that from all I hear about it will be a good, fun read and is again from an author whose work I am yet to sample.

A book I would only read (listen to!) on holiday…Time Was: Time and Again Book 1 by Nora Roberts – Audio

I don’t get time to listen to audio books at home and I like the thought of having one to listen to whilst travelling or during those times on a sun bed when I’m completely relaxed and even holding up a kindle seems too arduous – I know #firstworldproblems…shaming. Anyway following reading a great post by Cathy on the Between The Lines Book Blog I’ve been inspired to try Time Was: Time and Again Book 1 by Nora Roberts.

This is from a genre I don’t usually read as it’s a time travel romance and in more ways than one as the book was originally published about 25 years ago.

The blurb reads – ‘Stranded in the present, time traveler Caleb Hornblower’s biggest problem isn’t returning to the twenty-third century – but falling head over heels for the beguiling Liberty Stone, who shows him a love more powerful than time itself. Though Caleb knows he belongs in the future, how can he leave the past, and Liberty, behind?’

What intrigues me most though, and the reason this is on my list, is that Cathy told me that listening to Luke Daniels (the narrator) is like listening to a play with a full cast and I’m looking forward to that.

Amazon UK

Amazon US

A book from my favourite genre…Carla by Mark Barry – Kindle

This was the first book by Mark Barry I read and it is a great introduction to his work and it was whilst I was on holiday last year. It’s psychologically dark, a harrowing romance and I loved it – these are all words which sum up my favourite type of reading matter, along with thriller. It’s the sort of book that leaves you breathless at the end…staring at the wall and I didn’t read anything more that day, I couldn’t, I knew nothing else would come close. I have the paperback but this is fine to read on the kindle though a word to the wise if you are planning on getting Barry’s The Night Porter (and I would if I were you) try to get it in the paperback – there are footnotes you see, to add to the pleasure.

The blurb for Carla:-

‘John Dexter has problems. Real problems. We’re talking episodes in psychiatric hospitals, and then some. Woe betide any woman he falls in love with. But he’s no mad stalker. He knows himself, understand his own motives and behavioural patterns all too well. The problem is, he can’t stop himself. Then he meets Carla. Twenty-two years his junior, with family problems of her own. CARLA is a novel of obsession, love and loss, exploring very real mental health problems. It centres around an average flat and an average pub in an average English town, but its originality, realism and edgy humour has earned it a certain ‘cult’ status in some internet circles.’

I only have to read the first page of this book and I am drawn right back in there, it is ripe for rereading!

Amazon UK

Amazon US

A book I’ve been meaning to read for ages…One Way Fare (Null City Book 1) by Barb Taub – Kindle

I have read the other two Null City books, Don’t Touch and Tales from Null City, and have wanted to tackle the first one for a while. These books are from a genre I wouldn’t usually choose, urban fantasy, but I’ve challenged myself to read many things since publishing and my eyes have been opened…as they say. Barb Taub is a terrifically engaging writer and her quick wit shines through in her stories so I’m sure I will be as absorbed by her first one as I have been by the others.

The blurb:-

A thrilling chase through time and space, Null City is only a Metro ride away, littered with slick rock stars, stoic warriors, and Nephilim – the descendants of angels. Superpowers suck. If you just want to live a normal life, Null City is only a Metro ride away. After one day there, imps become baristas, and hellhounds become poodles. Demons settle down, become parents, join the PTA, and worry about their taxes. Null City is the only sanctuary for Gaby Parker and Leila Rice, two young women confronting cataclysmic forces waging an unseen war between Heaven and Hell. Gaby and her younger brother and sister are already targets in the war that cost their parents’ lives. Should they forsake the powers that complete their souls and flee to Null City? Meanwhile, Leila has inherited a French chateau, a mysterious legacy, and a prophecy that she will end the world. Gaby and Leila become catalysts for the founding and survival of Null City. It just would have been nice if someone told them the angels were all on the other side.

Amazon UK

Amazon US

A book that I believe I could truly escape with is…Diamonds and Dust by Carol Hedges – Paperback

Like so many others when I pack for a holiday my books go in first. In these days of having a kindle packing is easier but I always take my ‘just in case’ paperback. I’m fearful of something going wrong with the kindle or of me not being able to lie near enough to the plug socket it is currently being charged at so I need a back up.

Now I’ve only heard good things about this book, about the writing, about its authenticity and I do love a good murder. I’m also not very good at choosing books set in the past yet always enjoy them when I do so what’s not to love here?

The blurb:-

When a horrific murder takes place on a dark night in 1860’s London, it changes two women for ever. New light is cast upon past lives they thought they knew so well, and suddenly their futures become intertwined. The death of her uncle will leave eighteen-year-old Josephine King an orphan, an heiress and the owner of a priceless diamond, The Eye of the Khan. For Lilith Marks, a chance finally arises to end her life as a highly paid prostitute and to prove herself as a serious businesswoman. Set against the backdrop of the great gas-lit city, the two women are drawn together in their quest to discover just who killed the man they both loved. Diamonds & Dust is a page-whizzing narrative, with an intricate and absorbing plot that entices you through the teeming streets of Victorian London. If Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle all washed up on a desert island, they might have come up with something like this.

Amazon UK

Amazon US

For my fun read, because from everything I’ve read it will be, I choose…Bootcamp Bride by Lizzie Lamb – Kindle

A few years ago I tried to read Emma by Jane Austen on a sun bed, what a mistake. I have learnt that holidays are not the time for trying to get into a book where the height of excitement involves a letter arriving in a village…at least not for me.

So as I’m not keen on fluffy romances or anything too lightweight I think this will hit the spot nicely – romance, suspense and danger, humorously told – what more could you want.

Take an up-for-anything reporter. Add a world-weary photo-journalist. Put them together . . . light the blue touch paper and stand well back! Posing as a bride-to-be, Charlee Montague goes undercover at a boot camp for brides in order to photograph supermodel Anastasia Markova. At Charlee’s side and posing as her fiancé, is Rafael Ffinch award winning photographer and survivor of a kidnap attempt in Columbia. He’s in no mood to cut inexperienced Charlee any slack and has made it plain that once the investigation is over, their partnership – and fake engagement – will be terminated, too. Soon Charlee has more questions than answers. What’s the real reason behind Ffinch’s interest in the boot camp? How is it connected to his kidnap in Columbia? In setting out to uncover the truth, Charlee puts herself in danger … As the investigation draws to a close, she wonders if she’ll be able to hand back the engagement ring and walk away from Rafa without a backward glance.

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Many thanks again Rosie for asking me on this tour, there are so many books I could have chosen and will indeed be carrying with me on my upcoming holiday but I hope that for the purposes of this tour I have chosen wisely J

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 7 #Beachbooks @LindleyE

So we are just ending our first week of our holiday beach reads, everyone should be enjoying some sun and kicking back for a good rest.

Today my guest is E.L. Lindley

Beach Reads Blog Tour

 

I’m not much of a beach person so my ideal holiday destination is always a city break. I’m not overly keen on flying these days either so I can’t think of anything better than taking the train to Paris and spending my holiday embracing the lovely cafe culture there. I would spend my days watching the world go by with a glass of wine and a good book. Wherever I go, I always have a paperback and my kindle in my bag so I’d have lots to choose from. My iPod is another permanent companion but curiously I have never listened to an audio book so this would be the perfect opportunity for me to give one a try.

 

A Fun Read – I think it would be a lot of fun to charge up my kindle and re-read one of my own books. The Georgie Connelly stories are light-hearted crime thrillers which would hopefully get me into a holiday frame of mind. I’d choose Business As Usual because it’s the first one in the series and introduces us to Georgie Connelly. It’s also the first book I ever wrote so it would be nice to re-visit it. I’d then like to spend the rest of the holiday channelling my inner Georgie as she’s such a lively, mad-cap character who’s up for anything.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 To be released soon

An Easy Read For Me – A book I’m really looking forward to reading is Thicker than Water by Georgia Rose, which I’ll be downloading onto my kindle the second it’s released. It’s the third book in The Grayson Trilogy and I know this will be an easy read for me purely because I enjoyed the first two books so much. The stories are exquisitely written and introduce us to Emma Grayson and Trent who, despite neither of them having had easy lives, manage to connect and nurture their feelings for each other. As Thicker than Water is the final part of the trilogy, I’m really hoping that things will work out for Emma and Trent. For me the strength of the stories lie in the fact that they’re not just love at first sight, happy ending style romance but deal with real issues such as bereavement and loneliness.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Georgia-Rose/e/B00I4YW2ZA/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1

 

A Book I’ve Been Meaning To Read For Ages – I’ve had a paperback copy of Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn on my bedside table for months. I loved Dark Places and Gone Girl and, everyone I know who has read them, keeps telling me that Sharp Objects is Flynn’s best novel. It’s the story of a journalist who returns to her home town after many years in order to cover the story of a missing girl. Flynn does seem to divide opinion, possibly because Gone Girl was such a phenomenal success, but readers seem to love or hate her. I’m definitely in the ‘love her’ camp and really enjoy her dark, spiky style.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 A Book From My Favourite Genre – My favourite genre is crime and so I’d get my kindle out to read Hollywood Shakedown by Mark Barry, which I really love. It’s a gritty, old school crime novel and has a wonderful cast of dysfunctionally loveable characters. Frustrated writer, Buddy Chinn is at the centre of the story and he’s the kind of character that readers will adore and want to kill in equal measure. He’s very much a laid back Los Angeleno and so would provide the perfect antidote to all that stylish Parisian glamour. The plot has lots of twists and turns and takes the reader from LA to Chicago and London with lots of hilarious cross cultural shenanigans. It’s the perfect accompaniment to a nice glass of chardonnay.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

A Book I Could Truly Escape With – I recently saw Far From The Madding Crowd at the cinema and it really made me want to read the book. It’s the story of Bathsheba Everdene, who’s trying to be an independent woman when it wasn’t really the done thing. She makes some terrible choices though and ends up in a bit of a pickle. I’m not a massive Thomas Hardy fan but I love The Mayor of Casterbridge because, when I was at school the teacher read it aloud to us and it was such a memorable experience. I think I would try and recreate that pleasure by listening to Far From The Madding Crowd on audio book. It’s really long so it would be perfect for the train journey from Sheffield to London and then onto Paris.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beach Reads Blog Tour 2015 Day 6 #BeachBooks @dino0726

It’s Day 6 of our Beach Reads Book Tour and today my guest is book reviewer Diane Coto from FictionZeal.com

FictionZeal’s ‘Summer Beach Reads’ Suggestions:

Some people like to travel to the mountains for a holiday, and I can understand why. In the heat, the trees often provide some much appreciated shade. However, I’m a beach goer. The ocean water totally relaxes me and if I have a book along … well, it really adds a whole other dimension to relaxing and enjoying the beach. I love sitting on the balcony with a book, feeling the ocean breeze; hearing the gulls and the ocean waves and families chattering below … it’s about as close to heaven as I can imagine while here on earth.

My preferred beach is Myrtle Beach, SC. It only takes about 2.5 hours to get there from our home. The beach is beautiful and kept-up very well. I’ve listed five books that I have thoroughly enjoyed and would recommend no matter where you choose to spend your summer vacation.

Mercy’s Rain by Cindy K. Sproles –

I read this only a few weeks ago. Set in the mountains of Tennessee in 1897, it is the story of Mercy Roller who had been abused by her father who was also the pastor of Wadalow Mountain. It’s her story of taking part in the killing of her father and being sent away by her mother. After traveling for a few days, she finds another pastor she calls ‘Preacher’. Why should she think he would be any better than her father? Once she gives herself a chance to get to know him, she finds out he is quite different. Link to full review on FictionZeal.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

The Reluctant Midwife (A Hope River Novel) by Patricia Harman –

This is also a historical fiction novel set in 1934 in the midst of the Great Depression. As the book begins, Nurse Becky Myers is driving from Percyville, VA to WV; Dr. Isaac Blum is her passenger. They are relocating as there is no work to be found. She is taking care of Dr. Blum who is catatonic, not having said anything since his wife’s death a year before. They begin to rebuild in Hope River, both taking help as well as giving it. It was a dire time in America and people had little choice but to pull together and assist each other in order to just have enough food to eat. Link to full review on FictionZeal.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Blackberry Winter by Sarah Jio –

Another historical fiction but with a twist. One story is about Vera Ray in 1933. An alternate story is about Claire Aldridge in current day. The setting is Seattle in early May in which there is an unusual snowstorm pattern nicknamed Blackberry Winter. Claire Aldridge is a newspaper reporter who is assigned with a story for the storm. Unhappy with the assignment, she finally stumbles across a small article about Vera Ray whose three year old son Daniel had gone missing. I loved watching both of these women as the novel alternated between the two. Link to full review on FictionZeal.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Virtues of Oxygen by Susan Schoenberger –

This would be classified as ‘women’s fiction.’ Vivian contracted polio at the age of six in 1955 .. about three years before a vaccine became available. She had all but lost the ability to breathe on her own, so she’s placed in an iron lung. The story of Vivian begins when she is 65. She’s managed to become very successful in the stock market. She’s still in an iron lung and the people in the small town she lives in volunteer their time to take care of her .. round the clock care. This could be a very boring and depressing story, but it’s not. The personality of Vivian makes up for her inability to get around. The author was inspired to write this story from the true life of Martha Mason who resided in North Carolina. She lived her life in an iron lung until she passed at the age of seventy-one. Link to full review on FictionZeal.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Shady Cross by James Hankins –

I was hard pressed for the fifth book as there are several more, but finally decided upon Shady Cross. I’m a mystery buff, yet this is the only mystery on my Beach Reads list. Stokes is not a good guy. He lies and steals, but he doesn’t kill anyone … until one day he caused a man to careen off a mountain road. Even then, he takes a bag full of money from the back seat of the ‘now dead’ driver’s car. On a bus heading back to town, a phone rings from inside the bag. As people get more and more annoyed, he has to answer the phone. A little girl says, “Daddy, … Are you there? Can you hear me? They told me you’re coming to get me soon. That if you give them money, they’ll let you take me home.”
Link to full review on FictionZeal.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com