Island life has no room for secrets, but prickly Roddy's keeping something to himself. When his demanding ex girlfriend appears back on the island, Kate's budding friendship with her new boss comes to an abrupt end. What is Fiona planning - and can she be stopped before it's too late?

This funny, big-hearted novel is the perfect read for fans of Carole Matthews, Trisha Ashley and Katie Fforde.

Review: I can't believe it took me so long to finally read Sealed with a Kiss. What a beautiful story! But what I think stole my heart completely was the setting. All I want to do now is leave everything behind and live in a Scottish island with views to the sea and seals as my friends. Well, and if there's a gorgeous Laird too around, I wouldn't mind at all.

Kate is 26, jobless, homeless and boyfriendless (and a bit lost too) so when she reads an ad to be a Girl Friday in a remote island she takes it, even if she has no idea what a Girl Friday is supposed to do. Which doesn't impress her new boss at the slightest. But as the story unfolds, we see how Kate starts feeling a bit less lost and more at home at the island. She gains self-confidence and starts showing what she is capable of. She is such a lovely girl and I really enjoyed reading about her progress. 

But apart from the Laird himself, the island is full of fun, quirky characters that need to know everything about everyone but that also make Kate part of their big family. They were all so friendly. Well almost all, there was some bitchiness in the air too to make the story more interesting. But all in all, I think all the characters were believable and well developed and Rachael gave us snippets of their individual stories so they felt like old friends to me.

Sealed with a Kiss is a lovely and sweet story about finding your place in the world (in the most unexpected way), and believing in yourself and in love. A real feel-gooey-inside read with a stunning setting. I can't wait to read more by Rachael Lucas now. 

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This week and the next one, I am taking part in the HarperImpulse Fortnight so there are going to be some fun Q&As, Guest Posts and Reviews, all from this lovely publisher and their authors. Today, I am very excited to welcome D.R. Graham who is going to talk Rodeo!

Hi! My name is Danielle. I write about bikers and cowboys as D.R. Graham. RANK is a new adult contemporary drama about two brothers on the rodeo circuit in the aftermath of their dad's death. Although RANK deals with serious issues like mental health, and is set against the rowdy backdrop of the rodeo, RANK is also a sweet love story that everyone with a country side will hopefully enjoy. 

My first exposure to rodeo was at my grandparents' acreage in Regina, Saskatchewan. We visited in the summers growing up, and some of my very best childhood memories are from being at the ranch. This is my Papa barrel racing on his horse, 'Peanut'.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over there at The Broke and the Bookish. I'd love to share my lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This week you had to pick ten books with characters that had something in common. I decided to talk about books with bookworms. Being a bookworm myself, I always enjoy reading about characters who always have their noses on a book, work in bookstores or just love reading. 

Today I am very glad to share with you the cover for Appleby Farm by Cathy Bramley. After being published as a serialized 4 parts enovel, the complete Appleby Farm will be published August 13th both in paperback and ebook and I couldn't be more excited. Have a look at this beauty:

Appleby Farm is a charming, funny and romantic story for anyone looking for a feel-good, light-hearted read, from the author of bestselling Ivy Lane. 

Freya Moorcroft has wild red hair, mischievous green eyes, a warm smile and a heart of gold. She’s been happy working at the café round the corner from Ivy Lane allotments and her romance with her new boyfriend is going well, she thinks, but a part of her still misses the beautiful rolling hills of her Cumbrian childhood home: Appleby Farm.

Then a phone call out of the blue and a desperate plea for help change everything…

The farm is in financial trouble, and it’s taking its toll on the aunt and uncle who raised Freya. Heading home to lend a hand, Freya quickly learns that things are worse than she first thought. As she summons up all her creativity and determination to turn things around, Freya is surprised as her own dreams for the future begin to take shape.

Love makes the world go round, according to Freya. Not money. But will saving Appleby Farm and following her heart come at a price?


Cathy loves to hear from her readers. You can get in touch via her website, Facebook page  or on Twitter

Blurb: Jessica Beam is a girl who knows how to party. Only lately she's been forgetting to turn up for work on time. Or in clean clothes. Down on her luck, out of a job and homeless, Jess seeks the help of her long-lost grandmother.

Things aren't going well for Matilda Beam, either. Her 1950s Good Woman guide books are out of print, her mortgage repayments are staggering and her granddaughter wears neon Wonderbras!

When a lifeline from a London publisher arrives, the pair have an opportunity to secure the roof over their heads – by invigorating the Good Woman guides and transforming modern, rebellious Jess into a demure vintage lady.

The true test of their make-over will be to capture the heart of notorious London playboy Leo Frost and prove that Matilda’s guides still work. It's going to take commitment, nerves of steel and one seriously pointy bra to pull this off...

*First of all I would like to thank the publishers for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

Review: The Vintage Guide to Love and Romance is the book everyone is talking about, the book everyone is loving unconditionally. And now I know why. Do you want to know why too? Well, because it is da bomb! If you want to laugh uncontrollably for hours and fall in love with a book, a story, all its characters and its author, go get it immediately. By the end of this book all you'll be able to do is wish and pray to all gods that Jessica Beam was your best friend and maybe that you grandma was as ladylike and cool at the same time as Matilda Beam too. 

Jessica Beam is nothing like your regular Chick Lit heroine (which I think makes you love her even more). She's a party animal and doesn't know the meaning of the word responsibilities. So, when she loses her job and consequently her home (as she was working for her best friend and roommate) it's not hard to imagine all her friends (already married and with kids and very fond of the word responsibilities) turning their backs to her. So she ends up tracking down a long lost grandmother. 

Matilda Beam was every woman's (and man's) dream in the fifties. So she wrote a series of Good Woman guides to help women be ladylike and land a good husband and she became quite the celebrity. But now she has come down in the world and all she has left is a mountain of debts and a very naive but cute assistant. 

As you can imagine, if you mix together these two the result can only be a hilarious tale full of heart, corsets and some pointy bras that will capture you. I think there was not a thing in this book I didn't love. Also, every chapter started with a small piece written by Matilda in the fifties that relates to the chapter following. I found this detail genius as it also made you understand her better and see how different society was back then. 

I can't end this review though without mentioning the male characters (yes, plural, with Jessica, what did you expect?). Ok, mentioned. (To know more, read the book, you won't be disappointed).

The Vintage Guide of Love and Romance is like a breath of fresh air. Unexpected, quirky and hilarious, I am sure it'll be one of the books of the year (it'll certainly be one of mine). And Kirsty Greenwood will now have the privilege of being one of my favourite authors of all time. 

And the best thing is that there's more Jessica Beam to come! (Not as good is that we have to wait one year... but I'm sure it'll be totally worth it).

Rating: 

Welcome to Bookish Recipes, a feature on the blog where I cook or bake a recipe from a book I have loved and share the result with you. Last Thursdays was Sant Jordi's Day, a very special day for me because we celebrate love and culture exchanging books and roses with your loved ones. This is why this week I have decided to share with you a traditional recipe with a small twist. 

Basically, I've taken my mum's recipe for this cake that we call coc, and make it a red marble cake to match the colour of the roses. It's quite an easy and quick recipe to make and it always comes up really well. Have a look:

For the Ingredients, you'll need:

- 4 eggs

- 1 yogurt (and keep the recipient to measure the other ingredients - I used a 125g yogurt)

- Oil (1 yogurt)

- Sugar (2 yogurts)

- Flour (3 yogurts)

- Baking powder (1 sachet)

- 4 tbsp cocoa powder

- 1/2 red colourant

1) Preheat oven to 200º. Mix all the ingredients (except the cocoa and red colourant) and divide the dough in two.

2) To one of the halves add the cocoa and the red colourant and mix well.

3) Fill a mould (20 cm) with half of the white dough, then add half of the red dough and mix them a bit to give it a marble effect. Repeat again.

4) Bake in the oven for 25/30 minutes (at 180º).

5) To decorate, I printed the silhouette of a rose and filled it with icing sugar.

The 23rd of April is a very special day, Sant Jordi. As I said yesterday, it is one of my favourite days of the year because Barcelona transforms itself into a huge outdoor bookstore. I always enjoy having a walk around the city center, browsing the books and just enjoying the fantastic atmosphere. With all the roses and the books stalls it is so colorful! 

Another highlight of the day was that I won a competition run by the Catalan publisher of Robert Galbraith and I am now the proud owner of a signed copy of The Silkworm. 

Diada de Sant Jordi (Saint George's Day) is one of my favourite days of the year because we celebrate love and culture. It is tradition to give to your loved ones a rose and a book so in all towns you can find the streets full of stalls with the most amazing roses and books. If you ever have the chance to visit the 23rd of April, don't miss it because the city centre turns into a huge outdoor bookstore, flooded with stands of books with the latest works and many acclaimed authors signing copies of their books. 

Stay tuned because in the next couple of days there are going to be some posts about Saint Jordi with book hauls, recipes and some surprises! 

Giveaway:

To celebrate this fantastic day I've decided to run a little giveaway. Enter for a chance to win this Tote bag I made inspired by Sant Jordi's legend and this felt rose brooch (you can put it on the bag or wear it yourself).

The giveaway is open INT. The winner will be contacted via twitter or email and they fave 48h to claim their prize. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author: Cathy Bramley

Published:  February 26th 2015 by Transworld Books

Amazon | Amazon UK

Blurb: 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? 

Review: Ivy Lane was first released as a 4 parts serialized novel last year. Back then people started falling in love with this sweet story centered in the community of the allotments of Ivy Lane, with the lovely Tilly as the main character. When this year it was finally released as a complete novel I couldn't wait long enough to get my hands in a copy and I couldn't be happier than I did. Actually, it was the lovely Laura from Laura's Little Book Blog who got me a copy as part of the Ninja Book Swap. I think I did a happy dance when I saw this beauty in the parcel.

When I started reading I instantly liked Tilly, who after a horrible life experience has decided to move to a new place and start gardening and cultivating in an allotment. She thought that it would be the perfect quiet place where she could get on with her life and no one would bother her. We all knew though that this was not going to be the case. On her first visit to the allotment, she meets the lovely fireman Charlie (a fireman!) and soon enough she starts meeting the rest of this lively community who have no intention of letting her get on with her life quietly. From the talkative Gemma (who becomes a real friend to Tilly) and her active and persuasive mother to the sweet old Alf (who make me shade more than one tear), they all accepted Tilly as part of their big fun family and we had the privilege to see as she flourishes in time with her crops.

A real tale of friendship, love and family, Ivy Lane is a heart-warming novel that you cannot miss. I have always lived in a flat, so I've never had a garden (except for a year when I lived in a cute little house in England, but we had a gardener so I didn't get my hands dirty). But I've always wanted one and Ivy Lane has just reinforced my desire. Also, I wouldn't mind having an allotment if I get to meet such wonderful people and gorgeous men (yes, plural! Charlie is not the only one wandering around).

If you still haven't picked this sweet read, I don't know what you are waiting for. I am totally adding it to my favourite reads of the year. Also, I love it when books come with extras, in this case, Cathy has shared some recipes from food mentioned during the story with us. I cannot wait to try them all myself.

Rating: 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over there at The Broke and the Bookish. I'd love to share my lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This week's topic is my all time favourite authors. I think it's gonna be a bit difficult to narrow it down to 10 only. I have decided to include only authors I have read and loved at least in three different books (to make it easier for me, as I have read so many fantastic debuts lately that the list would go up to 50 otherwise). In no particular order:

Blurb: The second book in Angus Watson's epic Iron Age fantasy trilogy. 

LEADERS ARE FORGED IN THE FIRES OF WAR

Iron Age warriors Dug and Lowa captured Maidun castle and freed its slaves. But now they must defend it.

A Roman invasion is coming from Gaul, but rather than uniting to defend their home, the British tribes go to battle with each other -- and see Maidun as an easy target.

Meanwhile, Lowa's spies infiltrate Gaul, discovering the Romans have recruited British druids. And Maidunite Ragnall finds his loyalties torn when he meets Rome's charismatic general, Julius Caesar.

War is coming. Who will pay its price?

Review: Clash of Iron is the second installment in the Iron Age Trilogy by Angus Watson. The first book, Age of Iron, centered in the British tribes, especially Maidun. And we met the archer Lowa, now Queen of Maidun, Dug, a rather old warrior but still in great shape, and Spring, a girl with the ability to create magic never seen before. In Clash of Iron, the setting of the story expands to the whole of Europe as we read about the Romans and their ways of life in Rome and follow their General Julius Caesar in his battles to conquer the Germans and the Gauls. 

As a consequence, the story seems to forget a bit about our beloved main characters in the first third of the novel. During the first 200 pages the story had a slow pace for me. But then, as the Romans are getting closer to Britain, the story picks up and it seems like everything starts happening at the same time. Lowa and her tribe find themselves in the middle of what will probably be the most epic battle of the era. And after finishing this book I really can't wait to find out what happens in the last book of the Trilogy. 

One thing for sure though with the introduction of the Romans, the story gets a lot more horrifying and the gore details grow exponentially, with crucifixions, tortures and burying people alive. Enter here the crazy King of Eroo, who after conquering the whole Island, plans now on conquering the island of Britain too, or the even crazier Pomax, the Queen of the Murkans, another British tribe. Their ways are definitely not recommended for the lighthearted. I think I had never thought of how many ways there are of torturing and killing someone. Life was not really valuable back then. Also, the growing magic in the Druids, especially the dark magic, gives the story the perfect fantasy touch, making the battles unexpected and giving everyone something to fear the most, the unknown.  

There are two things that I am highly enjoying in this series. First, all the magnificent female characters, Lowa, Spring and Chamanca being my favourites. They are not seen as inferiors for being woman, quite the opposite. Having a woman rule a kingdom or directing an army was not an exception (quite different for the Romans, though). The second thing is the historical character of these novels, we know so much of the Romans and how they lived but have no idea who their opponents were and how they lived. I find reading about the British tribes, the Gauls and the Germans really interesting. 

Angus Watson is an author and journalist living in London. He's written hundreds of features for many newspapers including Times, Guardian, Financial Times and Telegraph, and the latter even sent him to look for Bigfoot. As a fan of both historical fiction and epic fantasy, Angus came up with the idea of writing a fantasy set in the Iron Age when exploring British hillforts for the Telegraph, and developed the story while walking Britain's ancient paths for further articles. 

Visit Angus on www.guswatson.com or follow him @GusWatson

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Blurb: When her husband Richard dies in a freak accident, Shelby Pomeroy is devastated. But his death reveals a horrible truth - Richard was a liar and a cheat. Now Shelby is left with the consequences - huge, terrifying debts and mounting proof that her late husband betrayed her in every conceivable way.

Heart-broken but unbowed, Shelby is determined to fix her problems - if only for the sake of her gorgeous little daughter Callie. Returning home to Tennessee and the family she thought she'd lost for ever, she discovers a new sense of strength and freedom. And hope, too, in the handsome form of carpenter Griffin Lott - a straight-dealing man who couldn't lie to her if he tried.

But not everyone is thrilled to see Shelby Pomeroy back in town. And when a shocking act of violence is traced back to Richard's shady business, it becomes clear that she is not safe from him, even in death. With her life in danger, Shelby must face the lies of the past - or lose everything.

*First of all I would like to thank the publishers for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

Review: The first thing I thought when The Liar landed on my hands was, gosh, this is a huge book. And after a really slow week with my reading I was afraid it was going to take me ages to finish this one. I could not have been more wrong. It's true that the first bit of the story is kind of slow, mainly because it's all about Shelby's shock after her husband's death and subsequent discovery that he was the biggest liar on earth and left her with huge debts. So she has to start dealing with all their possessions and try to sell all she can to start paying back. We already knew all this because of the blurb. But then, once she and her lovely daughter leave their old life behind and land in Tennessee where all of Shelby's family live, the story gets really intriguing, really.

There's an atmosphere of mystery surrounding his late husband's death that had me flying through the pages wanting to know what was going on. Every time I thought, nothing more can happen, it did. People kept appearing making Shelby's effort to build a new and fresh life very difficult. The narrative became really fast paced and I was totally immersed in the story.

It also helped that Shelby was a joy to read about. It was a pleasure to read how she, after such a horrible experience, started being her old lively self again. Surrounded by her loved ones, she was a force to be reckoned with. Ready to fight for what she deserved and not easily intimidated (which happened a lot, by the way). And Griff was ever so gentlemanly. I loved reading their scenes together, and even more with the little Callie. He had a golden heart.

The Liar really lived up to expectations and Nora Roberts did not disappoint with this intriguing tale about betrayal and abuse but also love and family. I highly recommend this read, and don't be afraid of the page count, it really is quite an addictive read.

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About the author: