Elaine Everest - Wartime at Woolworths blog tour!

A huge welcome to Elaine Everest who is joining me today to celebrate this weeks release of

Wartime at Woolworths!

Amazon.co.uk

‘I’m sorry, Maisie, but I’m putting my foot down over this. You’re not taking our daughter up to the East End of London and putting her in danger,’ David said, slamming his newspaper down by the side of his armchair. ‘I thought we’d already discussed this?’

Maisie sighed. She’d cooked her husband a decent meal, although the small piece of steak was as tough as old boots and could possibly have been horsemeat. She’d hoped that after a long day at his desk in London doing God knows what for the RAF she could put him in a good frame of mind before breaking her news.

‘I mean it, Maisie, so don’t look at me like that. I will not be changing my mind over this,’ David fumed.

‘But—’

David raised his hand. ‘I’ll not be swayed on this. What if there’s an air raid? Where will you go with a pram and a young baby? It’s sheer lunacy. I’m amazed you’re even considering taking our child into danger.’

‘I want her to meet my parents and for them ter know I’m happily married and settled,’ she said quietly, feeling the sting of tears threatening to fall. She wasn’t one for crying but David’s words had really hurt. She held her head high but her chin started to quiver uncontrollably. ‘I’m sorry you think so badly of me,’ she gulped before turning to walk away.

David leapt from his chair as he saw how distressed his wife was. ‘Oh my darling, please don’t cry,’ he said, pulling her into his arms. ‘I don’t wish to see either of you in danger. How do you think I’d feel if I waved you off only to hear that the Luftwaffe had taken you from me?’

He caressed her hair as she clung to him and sobbed. ‘I’m sorry, David. I’m a bloody fool,’ she said when at last she could speak. ‘I just had this longing to see my mum and show her our baby. I wanted to tell her how I’d made good . . . and I wanted her to say she’s proud of me.’

Wartime at Woolworths by Elaine Everest is published on 3^rd May by Pan Mac (available in paperback and ebook, price £6.99)

 Links:

Amazon

Facebook author page

Twitter: @ElaineEverest

The Trouble With Words by Suzie Tullett - Blog Tour

Buy here at Amazon.co.uk

Annabel is desperate to have a baby – there’s just one problem. She’s single and after losing her husband in a hit and run accident, she’s just not ready for another relationship. 

Dan is on the hunt for the perfect woman but when his mother drops a bombshell, he starts to feel the pressure.

When Dan and Annabel’s worlds collide, both start to think that maybe they’ve found the solution to their problems. But things are about to get messy.

Can Dan and Annabel get what they want?

The story opens with Annabel breaking the news to her husband that is going to have a baby.

It's not the most conventional as it's at his graveside, and he's, well, dead. And another problem she has is at that moment she has not found someone to be the father.

I really felt for her as soon as I began reading and was drawn instantly to her character.

As the story progresses we meet Dan and his mum Gerry. She is desperate for Dan to find himself a wife and she needs to be sure it's the right woman for him, she has plenty of candidates lined up!

Dan and Annabel seem perfect for each other - if only they would realise it! With both of them having their own trials that seem more important than the dating game, things seem that they will pass them by, until fate intervenes...

There are some really sad, properly tear jerking moments throughout the book, all beautifully written and sincere enough to make you think you are in the room with the characters, to offset this there are plenty of laugh out loud moments to lighten the mood along the way.

The ending was poignant, satisfying and well written, as was the whole book. I find Tullett a master of writing believable dialogue that is read in your mind just as you would hear someone speaking it. The characters are well developed and seem to really grow in strength throughout the story, Gerry being my favourite - she definitely deserves Fictional Mother of the Year!

Congratulations to Tullett on providing another well written, perfectly researched and entertaining tale.

Many thanks to Bombshell Books for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.

About the author:

Suzie Tullett is an author of contemporary humorous fiction and romantic comedy. She has a Masters Degree in Television & Radio Scriptwriting and worked as a scriptwriter before becoming a full-time novelist. Her motto is to 'live, laugh, love' and when she's not busy creating her own literary masterpieces, she usually has her head in someone else's.

Suzie lives in a tiny hamlet in the middle of the French countryside, along with her husband and two Greek rescue dogs.

My Facebook Author page https://www.facebook.com/Suzie-Tullett-Author-221204154583599/

Twitter @SuzieTullett

My website Suzie Tullett

Instagram suzie_tullett 

5* Review: Ivy Lane by Cathy Bramley

Buy HERE from Amazon.co.uk

(Ivy Lane is currently in Amazon's 3 paperbacks for £10 deal!)

Tilly Parker needs a fresh start, fresh air and a fresh attitude if she is ever to leave the past behind and move on with her life. As she seeks out peace and quiet in a new town, taking on a plot at Ivy Lane allotments seems like the perfect solution.

But the friendly Ivy Lane community has other ideas and gradually draw Tilly in to their cosy, comforting world of planting seedlings, organizing bake sales and planning seasonal parties.

As the seasons pass, will Tilly learn to stop hiding amongst the sweetpeas and let people back into her life – and her heart?

Ivy Lane was originally published as a four-part serial. This is the complete story in one package.

Tilly Parker moves to the small market town of Kingsfield in desperate need of a fresh start. She's clearly been through something traumatic which remains a mystery until later in the book. I attempted several theories of what had happened to Tilly, none of which turned out to be correct which I loved, I get bored easily with predictable plots. 

Tilly finds a part time job teaching at a local infant school, and also feels the need to embark on a new hobby to get her out of the house. After a serendipitous moment when a flyer comes through her door advertising a vacant allotment, she decides to take the plunge. She assumed that gardening might be an easy, solitary pass time, one which she hopes that no-one will ask any awkward questions about her past.

The gardening fraternity quickly welcome her and she begins to forge new friendships, some keener than others! The Ivy Lane community is wonderful, each member with their own quirks. Their own stories weave nicely in with Tilly's first person narration; some sad, some funny, all heartwarming. 

As the seasons change we learn the tragic secrets of Tilly's past and follow her on her journey to rebuild her life, which is helped along when reality TV show Green Fingers come to film at Ivy Lane Allotments, along with dishy producer, Aiden. Through the seasons, The Ivy Lane allotments hold many functions and parties in which Tilly plays an active roll, it is like watching a friend rebuild their life which is quite wonderful.

I loved Ivy Lane, and I love Cathy Bramley's writing, I find her the most effortless of storytellers with total knack of drawing the reader in, her dialogue is so 'true', genuine and witty and her characters are extremely well developed. 

She has rapidly become one of my favourite authors, I could read her books every day, forever.

Read what other bloggers think of Ivy Lane and join in the rest of the tour:

Many thanks to Sarah at Transworld books for sending me a copy of Ivy Lane in exchange for an honest review.

Read my 5* review of Cathy Bramley's Appleby Farm part 1 here: http://bookishbits.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/appleby-farm-part-one-blessing-in.html