Archive for September, 2010

Zoe Kidd loves being her band, Dirty Money, with her three girl friends, but they are really struggling to hit the big time. Despite the numerous letters and demos they have sent to record companies, they’ve never gotten further than the local clubs and pubs, and Zoe is sure Dirty Money is never going to be the global sensation she desperately wants. So when American hit maker Louis Castle insists he can help the girls go much further with the band, they snap him up. Unfortunately, it seems that Louis has other ideas about how to get the attention of the record company… and it doesn’t involve ALL the members of Dirty Money. Will Zoe be able to turn her back on the band she’s put her heart and soul into?

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Thanks to the lovely people at Little Brown publishers, we have 5 copies of Nina Bell’s brand new novel Lovers and Liars to give away to our readers! All you have to do is fill in the form below, and we’ll pick 5 winners using random.org next week. The competition is open until midnight on Sunday 3rd October 2010, and is open to UK residents only. Good luck!

This giveaway is now closed.

Comedienne Dawn French has her first fiction book out at the end of October, the 28th to be exact, and it’s called A Tiny Bit Marvellous. I found the cover on Amazon whilst browsing and have to say I don’t think it’s overly inspiring - it’s not a cover that would make me pick up the book at all. After reading the synopsis though, I do think it sounds great so here it is:

“Everyone hates the perfect family. So you’ll love the Battles. Mo is about to hit the big 50, and some uncomfortable truths are becoming quite apparent: She doesn’t understand either of her teenage kids, which as a child psychologist, is fairly embarrassing. She has become entirely grey. Inside, and out. Her face has surrendered and is frightening children. Dora is about to hit the big 18 . . . and about to hit anyone who annoys her, especially her precocious younger brother Peter who has a chronic Oscar Wilde fixation. Then there’s Dad . . . who’s just, well, dad. A TINY BIT MARVELLOUS is the story of a modern family all living in their own separate bubbles lurching towards meltdown. It is for anyone who has ever shared a home with that weird group of strangers we call relations. Oh and there’s a dog. Called Poo.”

In Chosen, a young caseworker becomes increasingly entangled in the lives of adoptive and birth parents, with devastating results.

It all begins with a fantasy: the caseworker in her “signing paperwork” charcoal suit standing alongside beaming parents cradling their adopted newborn, set against a fluorescent-lit delivery-room backdrop. It’s this blissful picture that keeps Chloe Pinter, director of the Chosen Child’s domestic-adoption program, happy while juggling the high demands of her boss and the incessant needs of both adoptive and biological parents.

But the very job that offers her refuge from her turbulent personal life and Portland’s winter rains soon becomes a battleground involving three very different couples: the Novas, well-off college sweethearts who suffered fertility problems but are now expecting their own baby; the McAdoos, a wealthy husband and desperate wife for whom adoption is a last chance; and Jason and Penny, an impoverished couple who have nothing—except the baby everyone wants. When a child goes missing, dreams dissolve into nightmares, and everyone is forced to examine what he or she really wants and where it all went wrong.

Told from alternating points of view, Chosen reveals the desperate nature of desire across social backgrounds and how far people will go to get the one thing they think will be the answer.

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Tara Heavey’s newest release, Winter Bloom is due out October 12, 2025, looks like the perfect blend of wintry weather and splash of spring. Not only that but the story of a mother moving forward with the help of friends and a hopeful garden sounds uplifting. Take a look at the synopsis and let me know what you think…

There would be tunnels of roses, beds of strawberries, fountains of overflowing herbs. And there might even be love. . . .

In the heart of bustling modern Dublin is a littered, overgrown garden of tangled weeds and a stagnant, hidden pond. Belonging to an iron-willed elderly lady named Mrs. Prendergast, who is rumored to have murdered and buried her husband there, the garden draws Eva Madigan, a young mother struggling to move on from the pain of her past. Eva is joined by Emily, a beautiful but withdrawn college dropout; Uri, an old-world immigrant; Seth, his all-too-handsome son; and occasionally even Mrs. Prendergast herself. But what drives Eva to transform the neglected urban wilderness? What makes the others want to help her? Even as Mrs. Prendergast puts the land up for sale, the thorny lives of all the gardeners are revealed and slowly start to untangle. Overgrown secrets are dug up and shared. Choices are made; a little pruning is in order. Now Eva is about to discover that every garden is a story of growth toward a final harvest. . . .

Brooke Alter has been married to Julian Alter for five years and their relationship is going great. Julian is a struggling musician, desperate to someday make it big in the music world, while Brooke works two jobs to make sure Julian can carry on making his music.

When Julian finally gets the chance to make an album, neither Brooke nor Julian expect just how much their life will change when Julian’s album gets the go-ahead, closely followed by trips to L.A and hotel stays in the Chateau Marmont, tours across America and more chat show appearances then you can shake a stick at.

Suddenly, Brooke’s world and everything she’s known is turned upside down as the bad side of celebrity begins to show and Brooke and Julian are suddenly hounded by paparazzi and journalists. When a compromising photo surfaces, Brooke and Julian’s marriage is put to the ultimate test, but will they be able to get over what happened that night at Chateau Marmont? And is this new lifestyle really the one Brooke wants?

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Orion has signed another two-book deal with bestselling chick-lit author Erica James. Deputy publishing director Kate Mills bought UK and Commonwealth rights excluding Canada through Jonathan Lloyd at Curtis Brown.

Mills said: “Every time Erica delivers a new book, I never know if I’m going to be laughing out loud or moved to tears. Often it’s both. Trends come and go in women’s fiction, but Erica proves that skilfully told stories about the lives of contemporary women are always in demand.”

The first book in the contract, The Real Katie Lavender, will be published by Orion next autumn, and James’ next novel, Promises, Promises, will be coming in hardback later this year. Orion has published all 14 of James’ novels since her debut, A Breath of Fresh Air, in 1996. James’ novel Gardens of Delight won the RNA Romantic Novel of the Year award in 2006.

Taken from the Bookseller!

I’ve not actually read any of Erica’s novels but I know she’s a staple with a lot of Chick Lit fans so this is undoubtedly fabulous news!

Chick Lit Classics is a regular feature on Chick Lit Reviews where we highlight the books we feel are classics of the chick lit genre. Feel free to discuss our choices in the comments section!

When choosing the Chick Lit Classic for this week, I found it really tough. I knew I wanted to highlight an older Melissa Hill title but I simply couldn’t choose one because they are all fantastic! In the end, I’ve opted for this one because it sticks in my mind so much because of the twists along the way. The ending, usually something I can guess in a book a few chapters before the end, took my breath away because it was so out of the blue and shocking, and that is exactly what I love about Melissa Hill’s books. Her stories always have some mystery to them that you don’t see coming until it’s revealed at the end, and it’s always a shocker. This book in particular has a superb one, and I urge everyone to read it just to find out what happens!

“Eve knows what she wants.
After nine good years and two kids together, it’s about time Liam made an honest woman of her.

Eve’s sister Sam knows more than she should.
Sam’s always thought Eve was too good for Liam. Then she learns the truth about his business trips to Australia, and her suspicions are confirmed.

And Brooke, safe on the other side of the world; knows nothing.
Until a mysterious delivery arrives for her and promises to change her life forever. It seems someone doesn’t want Brooke to be the last to know . . .”