It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

So, it's almost Christmas.  One of my most favourite times of year.
I've just finished my partial for next years Christmas medical and the penny has finally dropped with what was wrong with another partial I was writing.
It needed a Christmas theme! Hooray!

So here is some Glasgow pictures.  My latest book Her Christmas Eve Diamond is set in Glasgow at Christmas and it's a fabulous place to visit at this time of year.

I want to wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year.  I'm signed for four new Harlequin Mills and Boon Medicals next year but have also completed another story with a Halloween theme for another publisher.
Once I've signed the contract for that one, I'll tell you a little more!

Happy Christmas!

The Next Big Thing

I've been tagged by the lovely Kate Hardy to be part of The Next Big Thing blog.  You basically answer a series of questions about your latest book.  But before I get to that I want to let you know that I was SUPER excited to find out my February release is going to be paired with Kate Hardy's next book.  I've read Kate's books for the last five years and she was one of the people who encouraged and inspired me to write for Mills and Boon, so sharing a book with her is just awesome!  Her Inescapable Temptation comes out in February.

But in the meantime on to The Next Big Thing

What is the title of your book?

Her Christmas Eve Diamond

How did you come by the idea?

I begged my editor to write a Christmas story as I love all things Christmassy.  I also wanted to set my story in Glasgow and introduce some Scottish words and foods!

What genre does your book fall under?

Medical Romance

Which actors would you choose to play your characters if it were a movie?

My hero is based on the delicious Bradley Cooper and my heroine on the actress Stana Katic who plays Kate Beckett in Castle.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

When The Grinch meets the Christmas Fairy who will come out on top?

Will your book be self-published or traditional?

It was published by Harlequin Mills and Boon in November in the UK, USA, Australia and France.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Around 2 months.  I tend to write 1000 words a day.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

My definite love of Christmas!  I'm just about to start next year's Christmas book!

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

This story also focuses on a dad who has been separated from his child and a woman who is struggling to adjust to her Gran's worsening dementia.

Nurse Cassidy Rae is a stickler for rules, but even she revels in the magoc of Christmas! This year, however, new registrar Brad Donovan's surfer-boy good looks and cocky charm are severely testing her goodwill to all men.  But in the festive season miracles can happen, and Brad's about to give Cassidy a Yuletide to remember...

New cover bonanza!

Do you remember a few posts ago I asked the question Who was my hero kissing?  (My heroine was a brunette and the woman being kissed was a blonde!)  Well, I can't quite believe it but I've had a cover change.  Isn't it gorgeous!

Then I have a new kindle cover for the UK

And a lovely french cover for A Bond Between Strangers.

I love a pretty cover!  What do you think??

Sunshine Award

 Romy Summer and Rachael Johns both nominated me for a Sunshine Award. So here goes!

1. What is your favourite Christmas/festive movie?
I have lots of favourite Christmas movies as it's one of my favourite times of year.  My all time favourite is probably Miracle on 34th Street and I must be the only person in the world who loves the second version with Richard Attenburgh, Mara Wilson and Dylan McDermott.
I also love The Grinch, Santa Claus the Movie, Elf, Home Alone and White Christmas.

2. What is your favourite flower?
It has to be Livingstone Daisies.  I try to grow them in my garden every year and fail miserably.  I love the bright array of colours and they always catch my attention if I see them growing in someone else's garden.  Might be a little strange as a favourite flower!



3. What is your favourite non-alcoholic beverage?
It has to Diet Coke or Diet Irn Bru.  For those of you who have not experienced Scotland's National Drink it comes with the slogan "made in Scotland, by Girders" it's bright orange and doesn't look all that great but tastes fab!
 
4. What is your passion?
This has to be easy. Writing and reading.  I never have enough hours in the day to do both.
 
5. What is your favourite time of year?
Even though I don't love the cold, and I like a summer holiday as much as the next person, it probably has to be winter.  I like snuggling up.  I like feeling cosy.  I have enough winter coats to open my own shop.  Ditto hats.  Ditto bags.  Ditto boots.  I love a cold, crisp winter morning with a nip of frost in the air without the danger of skidding and falling on my bum.  

6. What is your favourite time of day?
I used to say I was a morning person.  But I'm having to face up to the truth of that.  I can't write first thing in the morning.  I'm just not in the place I need to be.  I like mid-morning - I like morning coffee and cake.  I love lunches.  I should have been a 'lady who lunched' however finances dictate that I'm not.  My best writing time is afternoon, even though I don't particularly like that time of day.  By then I've done everything else I need to and I'm free to write.  
7. What is your favourite physical activity?
That's really easy.  None.  I wasn't designed for physical activity.  I've done Zumba and I used to swim half a mile a week.  But no.  Life has got in the way.  I'm not fat yet.  But the possibility is definitely there.
8. What is your favourite vacation?
I love a good holiday.  Loved Florida. Loved Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Francisco (that was more than 10 yrs ago now).  Loved New York - going back in February for my 40th.  Been two mediterranean cruises with my other half and the kids and loved them too!

So, if you haven't already been nominated for a Sunshine Award consider yourself nominated now!

Pink Inspiration

I am in the midst of book eight for Mills and Boon. This is my second CDC story and I'm currently in the middle of Nigeria with my characters Evan and Violet.  I still have another 15,000 words to write but should be finished in the next two weeks.

But my mind is beginning to plan ahead. I have another story to write for another publisher along with some other authors.  This will be a bit different from what I currently write and as I've already completed my partial I find myself looking on the Internet for inspiration.

Here's where my story starts.

Aren't they fabulous?  I'm not going to give the game away but they feature heavily in chapter one!

And what do think of this beauty? Can you imagine the rustle when this dress moves? I haven't quite figured out how it will happen yet, but you can bet my heroine will have cause to wear this dress.

And finally, what ring would capture my heroine perfectly? Why, a pink diamond of course.
So this ring will be working it's way into my story.  I currently have these three pictures printed and on my wall.
Waiting for my heroine to reappear.
And her name?
Well, I haven't given too much away so will tell you that the girl who will possess all these items is called Selena.

What do you think of her shoes, dress and ring?
I hadn't even realised a pink theme was going on until I collected my pictures together.  Selena, a pink girl?  Well, it I never knew it!

Who is the hero kissing????

Here is the cover of my next release in the US Her Christmas Eve Diamond. Whilst it's a nice scene it doesn't feel very Christmassy. But more importantly my heroine is a brunette - so just who is the hero kissing??!!!!!

The Reading List: An Update

A few months ago I did a blog called The Reading List about trying some new books.

I showed a huge list of recommendations and what I planned to read over the next few months.

So, how did I do?

Well, not too bad to be honest!  But I have to warn you that I'm going to be brutally honest about these books.
A Prayer for Owen Meany.  Well, I enjoyed the book overall.  It was pretty long and I did feel as if it could have been edited by 200 pages without losing any of the story or content.  My biggest gripe came with the description of Owen.  He was apparently so tiny that the kids could pass him around over their heads.  He was described as the size of a toddler.  Then he made it to 5ft to get into the US army.  It just didn't ring true.  The health visitor in me knows quite a lot about syndromes.  Not sure what Owen's syndrome was supposed to be, but it just didn't add up.

I'm going to do the next few all together.  Kristan Higgins Fools Rush In, Linda Howard Mr Perfect, Susan Mallery Under Her Skin.
I thought all of these books were fine, but none of them blew me away.  I'd heard lots of people rave about them but the truth be told, once I'd read them I didn't think about them again.
PS Still got Susan Mallery Only His to read.

When it came to Susan Elizabeth Phillips I cheated.  I was supposed to read Natural Born Charmer or Ain't She Sweet.  But I swapped them and read Call Me Irresistable instead.  I enjoyed this story and thought that she wrote a fabulous ending.  I have a lot to learn from this lady!






What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty was a recommendation by my Australian critique partner Rachael Johns.  And it was fabulous, loved every minute of it.  Just think, having an accident and forgetting 10 years of your life.  Really enjoyed this one!


And finally..............................the teenage fiction.

All I can say is WOW!!!!
I am so, so impressed.  The Gone series by Michael Grant.  Gone, Lies, Hunger, Plague and Fear.These books were absolutely fantastic.  The final book in the series Light is out next year and I will be fighting my 12 year old for it.  Blown away by how good these books were!!

 The Hunger Games.  I've had these books sitting in my house for months, but once I started reading them I absolutely couldn't put them down!  Talk about Page Turning Quality.  Really engrossing.

So what have I learned?  That I want to be a teenager again.  When I was a teenager I had Sweet Valley University and that was it.  The teenage books I have read have really taken it to a new level.  I have now invested in lots of new teenage fiction (obviously with intention of finding suitable reading for my 12 year old!) and reading these books are pure pleasure.

Maybe I should think about writing one???????

In the meantime I'm compiling a new reading list, including a number of books I've been meaning to read for the last few years.
The list this time will include - Jodi Picoult Lone Wolf, Susan Wiggs Marrying Daisy Bellamy, David Fiddimore The Hidden War, Teri Terry Slated, Anne O'Brien The King's Concubine and Elizabeth Noble Things I Want my Daughter to Know.

Happy reading!

Olympics and team spirit!

Well, it's all very sad.  The olympics are over.

I amazed myself.  For a woman with not the slightest interest in sport I spent night after night watching everything I could.
I could feel my heart thudding in my chest watching Mo Farrah win his races.  My heart thudded even heavier when I saw how heavily pregnant his wife was!
I nearly cried for Tom Daley.  I had to put my hands in front of my eyes for some of his dives.  I've never been so happy for a medal winner.  I kept whispering Come on Tom, you can do it!
Jessica Ennis was a spectacular role model for young women, as was all our competing athletes.  The south african boy swimmer, whose dad was interviewed on TV did make me smile and cry all at once.
But the closing ceremony certainly had me howling with laughter at some points.  Especially since my friend was there and kept sending me pictures.

The stadium looked amazing.

One Direction didn't look too bad either, if you can forgive the blip in the photo!

The Pet Shop boys were pretty spectacular.

As were the Spice Girls in their health-and-safety issues taxis!!!


I'm not going to say too much about the fact Noel Gallagher must have been killing himself laughing at Liam's nasal voice.  Or about Russell Brand's singing.

I'll focus on the joy that was Eric Idle and the palpable emotion in the air when Take That took to the stage.  Hats off to Gary Barlow.
My only regret that the ceremony wasn't closed by Take That singing Never Forget.  I think it would have been a fabulous end to a wonderful olympics.

And my only gripe???

Why is the flame extinguished when the Paralympics still have to take place??
I was a tiny bit uncomfortable about that and thought it would have been more fitting to extinguish the flame when both events had finished.
But then again, who am I?

The Holiday Reading List

 

I've been home for a few weeks and thought it was finally time I shared my holiday reading list.  In all I read 9 books the week that I was away.  But please be aware, I'm a really quick reader.
I really didn't have that much time to read.  We were visiting new ports every day and away on trips, then it was dinner at seven every night and few drinks or coffee in the bar later. 
Thankfully the kindle managed to hold it's charge for the whole week.  And there aren't any books on this list that were on my reading list at the beginning of the year.  I'll update on that list in a few weeks.

So what did I read????
Maureen Johnson 13 Little Blue Envelopes.  I'm  reading quite a lot of teenage fiction right now and was looking forward to this.  It was fine, but the execution wasn't quite as good as the idea itself and I was a little disappointed.

Darynda Jones First Grave on the Right.  I had noticed this on the Best First Book list on the RITA list, so had bought it.  And boy, was it worth it.  A fabulous book and I'll be crossing my fingers for it at the ceremony this weekend.

Paige Harbison Here Lies Bridget.  My third teenage read.  There were parts of this book I loved and parts I hated.  The overall premise was good but some bits left me a little disappointed.



Anne Patchett State of Wonder.  I enjoyed the medical elements of this book and it really did boggle the mind, but I didn't particularly enjoy the end. 


Doukakis's Apprentice Sarah Morgan.  Another book that had been nominated for a RITA I wanted to read.  I'm glad I did as I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Especially the bit about the tights!  I'll have my fingers crossed for this book over the weekend too.



Catch your Death by Louise Voss and Mark Edwards.  Really, really loved this.  Yes, I am a geek and it was the medical stuff that drew me to this book too,  But it was SO good.  I wish I'd written it myself. 



 The Girl behind the Scandalous Reputation Michelle Conder.  This was a debut book and I can see why this author has been picked up.  It was a great read and I look forward to more from her in the future.


Here Comes the Groom Karina Bliss.  You really can't go wrong with a Karina Bliss book and this was another good story from her.  My favourite is still What the Librarian Did.

Mr Right at the Wrong Time Nikki Logan.  I wasn't sure if I would like this one.  But Nikki really delivered.  There is an underlying issue of fidelity in this book as when the heroine meets the hero he's married.  But Nikki handles this really sensitively and really well.  I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this story.  But then, I always like her books.

So that's it.  The nine summer holiday reads.  I've still to update on the other list of recommendations I got at the beginning of the year and I'll do that in a few weeks.
So what have you been reading over the summer?

Home from the Conference

I'm blogging a little about the conference over at Pink Heart Society on Thursday, but wanted to give a little shoutout to all the wonderful people that I met.

First of all the Minxes of Romance!  Well, three of them.  It was lovely to see them and I can report I didn't see any bad behaviour at all!

Some fellow Mills and Boon authors, the lovely Kate Walker, Fiona Harper, India Grey, Natalie Rivers, Anne Fraser, Carol Townend and Louise Allen, Jennifer Taylor. Joanna Fulford.

Fiona Harper and India Grey

I also had the joy and pleasure of meeting with the Scottish contingent!  The lovely Jenny Harper - (who has the best business card I've seen in years!)  Anne Graham, Rosemary Gemmell and Janice Horton.

Some of the medical authors and editors from Mills and Boon, also Molly Hopkins

We flat-shared with Tamsyn Murray, Cally Taylor , Rowan Coleman.  There was certainly a lot of chat!

Part of the fun of the conference is the chance to learn something new and attend the talks.   Liz Fenwick and I took part in a session about the New Authors Scheme as we had both came through this.  Julie Cohen made everyone cry in the space of four minutes, a feat not lightly achieved.  Talli Roland gave a great talk around social media and promoting yourself.  (All with a beautiful baby bump!) and Kate Harrison presented her research on women's fiction which was fascinating.  I particularly enjoyed the profiles of the readers!

I've already been online to check out transport to Sheffield foe next year.  I'm trying to figure out why the train from Glasgow to London takes 4 and a half hours and the train from Glasgow to Sheffield six hours!

Home from holidays

Well, I'm back home.  To the place where no-one makes my breakfast, lunch and dinner for me and I have to do my own washing.
Take me back to the cruise ship please!

The land of Strawberry Daiquiri's is calling again!

After visits to Olympia, Bari, Athens, Santorini and surviving the Donkey Stampede, Corfu and Croatia, with a final sail up the Grand Canal in Venice, it's tough being home.

However in a few days time, it's the RNA Conference in Penrith.  In between that I've mountains of washing to do and another chapter of my next book to write.  It's time to get back to work!!

Interview on Youtube!

If you haven't already seen all my posts on Facebook, here is the link to the interview I filmed down in London at Mills and Boon Headquarters.


Scarlet Wilson Interview

Beginnings, Middles or Endings??

What's your favourite part of writing a book?  Is it the beginning - where everything is new and fresh and there is a whole world of opportunities?  Is it the middle where things are tying together, you have two fully-fledged characters that feel real?  Or is it the end - the happy ever after - the bit everyone is waiting for?
Or maybe you're a little bit bad.  And your favourite part is the big Black Moment.  That horrible bit of the book where it seems as if there is no return??

I'm in a happy place.  Last night I started a new book.  And you might have guessed it but my favourite part of the book is the beginning.  I love the ideas, the potential developments, the little sentences you drop in that let the reader know there is something in this characters back story that will stop his or her path to a straightforward happy ever after.

I also love the drama.  Starting in the middle of something.  And not always with the two main characters on the page.  My first book It Started with a Pregnancy, began with my hero and heroine meeting in a bar and a night of passion followed.  Not the most unusual start.  But I learned from this.  And I developed.

My second story had drama.  The Boy who Made Them Love Again started with my hero pulling up outside a small hospital with the First Lady in premature labour in the back of the car!  He comes face to face with the woman he walked away from five years earlier and so the drama continues.

My third book was a follow up - still using the President and First Lady.  In this one my heroine turns up at the police cordon, heavily pregnant and trying to reach the doctor that's looking after the President's premature daughter.  She promptly collapses and is taken inside to meet her ex - the hero - and the only man she can trust to rescue her much-wanted child.  Sigh.  I love a bit of drama.



Book four, A Bond Between Strangers, starts with my hero receiving a letter telling him there has been an IVF mix up.  The embryos that had been created for him and his wife (with his sperm and a donors egg) and were due to be destroyed, have been mistakenly implanted in someone else.  His wife is long gone - but this is his baby - and all he's ever wanted is a family.  Someone else is carrying his child.  And he wants it.

Book five is the christmas story.  Her Christmas Eve Diamond starts with my heroine going to get her fortune told with her friends.  She doesn't believe in all that and is less than impressed when the fortune teller predicts she will be a Christmas bride.  It's August and she doesn't even have a boyfriend.  What's more she's vowed her next man will be a fellow Scot, but the fortune teller has other things in mind.....

Book six is the cruise ship story.  An Inescapable Temptation.  This one starts with the hero jumping in to rescue a child in Venice harbour.  He gets knocked out and my heroine ends up resuscitating him!

As for Book Seven????  Well, I'm not going to give too much away.  But again there is drama.  My study currently has a very important algorithm for a certain disease pinned on my wall.  Something big is going to happen in Chicago - something very big!

So, you can see a pattern forming here.  It's a bit worrying to be honest.  Apart from my first story, do I know how to write a story with a quiet build up?  I try not to do the backstory dump thing, and I do always try to start in the middle of the action.

What's interesting is that the middle of the action doesn't always have the hero and heroine on the first page.  It was one of the things I noticed about the New Voices contest.  I wanted to see the hero and heroine together straight away and yet I don't always do it myself.  Granted, it happens within a couple of pages, but maybe I still have a few things to learn.

So what's your favourite part?  Are you all about the middle and the developing characters?  Are you a wrung-out sort of person and all about the Black Moment?  Or, are you hearts and roses and all about the Happy Ever After?  Or are you like me, all about drama and all about beginnings?

The Lucky Seven - Tagged!

Rachael Johns is in SO much trouble.

She's tagged me in "The Lucky Seven" challenge.  I've been kind of keeping my head down and avoiding this one but it's not to be!

The Golden Rules:

• Go to page 7 or 77 in your current manuscript (fiction or non-fiction)
• Go to line 7
• Post on your blog the next seven lines, or sentences as they are - no cheating.
• Tag 7 authors to do the same

So what am I currently writing?  That would be that cruise ship book.
Cue a nice picture of my other half and the kids next to our cruise ship two years ago (a purely research trip you understand!)

And I've just got a nice title for the cruise ship book.  It's going to be called An Inescapable Temptation.  What do you think?

So here we go Page 77, line 7 and the next 7 lines.

Gabriel was waiting in the Atlantis Bar.  His brain was not entirely sure what he was doing there.  Being one of the ship’s doctors had additional roles and responsibilities and he understood that.  He’d invited Francesca merely as a means of self protection.  And if he kept telling himself that he might actually grow to believe it.  He eyed his watch nervously – what if she changed her mind and didn’t come?    The cougars were already circulating.


And because lots of you have already been tagged I won't pick another seven, I'll just say if you've not already done it - now it's your turn!  So come back and tell me if you've done it!

Dear Julia Launch Wave - Stop Four

It’s launch day for Rae Summers’ new historical novella, Dear Julia, and to celebrate she’s having a Launch Wave of excerpts! You can keep up with the wave’s progress on the Twitter hashtag #DearJulia. If you enjoy the story, feel free to tweet your comments and chat to other wave surfers.

By clicking on the links below each excerpt, you’ll be able to follow the wave across 8 blogs to read the entire first chapter - or you can click on the buy links below to get your own copy!

* * *

Dear Julia is set in the English countryside in the early 1920s, and is part of the Love Letters series from The Wild Rose Press.

Read the opening extract here.

“She married an American during the war, I believe, and moved there with him. I’m not certain anyone around here would know where she is now, or even what her married name might be.” A thoughtful look crossed the vicar’s face, and Rosalie watched with interest as he debated with himself before casting aside whatever idea had occurred to him. “She was the last of her family, you know.”

“Mrs. Wallace said I look a lot like her.” She didn’t know why she said it, but she was glad she did. A startled expression sparked in the depths of his eyes, and he peered at her through his owlish glasses. “Yes, I suppose you do. She’d have been a little older than you, of course, but there’s an interesting resemblance.” He sighed.“There are some things, Miss Stanton, that belong in the past. Julia Fortescue is one of them. He...”

Rosalie’s skin prickled. When Mrs. Wallace had said “he” she’d thought the older woman meant the vicar. But perhaps there was someone else in the village, someone who had been intimately tied to the Fortescues? Someone neither Mrs. Wallace nor the vicar wanted to involve. Rosalie’s curiosity spiked.

The vicar pulled himself together. “I suggest you throw those items away, Miss Stanton. If Julia did not value them enough to take them with her when she left, then she wouldn’t care for them now.”

She wanted to tell him that Julia probably never knew of the letter’s existence, but she bit her tongue.

There was a finality in the vicar’s words that she wasn’t about to argue with. Not when she had a new idea growing.

“Thank you, Mr. Hemmings.” She rose from the seat. “I will see you in church on Sunday.”

“Feel free to visit any time, Miss Stanton.”

She returned home through the woods, walking slowly and thinking deeply. How could she find out who this mystery man was, without starting the village gossiping?

* * *

For the next instalment, click here to go to the blog of Harlequin Super Romance debut author Olivia Miles.

Here is the full list of participating blogs:

Stop 1 – Minxes of Romance

Stop 2 – Sally Clements

Stop 3 – Rachel Bailey

Stop 4 – you are here!

Stop 5 – Olivia Miles

Stop 6 – Jennifer Shirk

Stop 7 – Suzanne Jones

Stop 8 – Romy Sommer

Dear Julia is on sale through Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, AllRomance eBooks, and The Wild Rose Press. You can find out more about this novella here - and don’t forget to tweet your feedback using the hashtag #DearJulia.

Twitter-style Interview with Rachael Johns

 Today I am welcoming one my critique partners Rachael Johns for a twitter style interview.  That means that question and answer combined can be no more than 140 characters!  If you think it's easy, give it a try!
Rachael is celebrating the release of her new novel Jilted.  Read all about it down below.





 

About your book…….

1.       Describe what you write? Romantic Fiction – from Red Dust to Big Smoke!

2.       Five words to sum up your heroine? Hard-working, loyal, romantic, independent and fun!

3.       And your hero? Gorgeous, grumpy, misguided, besotted and protective!

4.       Your setting? – Small, close-knit rural community in rural Western Australia

5.       Where can we buy it? Online at Harlequin Australia or bookshops in Australia & New Zealand.

About your writing……..

6.       How long have you been writing? Too long! LOL. Seriously, I started at 17, so near on fifteen years.

7.       Do you have an agent? No, but I’m thinking of trying to get one for selling O/S. Any takers?

8.       How much time do you spend online? I’m rarely away from the net for more than ½ hr at a time. #addicted

9.       How much time do you write each day? I aim for a couple of hours.

10.   Plans for promotion?? Blog visits, signings in WA bookshops, library visits, talking to whoever will listen

Pick either and why…

11.   Beach or Lake? – Beach, but rarely. We live too far away.

12.   Sun or Snow? – Snow, I think. We don’t see snow much but I’m not a sun seeker.

13.   Cinderella or Rapunzel? – Can I say both? I love fairytales!

14.   Dogs or cats? – Definitely cats. They are smart, clean and have attitude!

15.   Chicken or steak? Always steak. I’m one of those strange people who can’t really stand chicken unless it’s very dry.

Nosey and personal questions…

16.   Any dating disasters? I told my hubby the wrong name of a restaurant on our 1st date. It was a food hall outlet and he tried to book us a table at a food hall!

17.   Kiss on the first date? Only on the cheek or hand! *smiles coyly*

18.   Hair dye? Used to, but am going au naturele in my old age J

19.   Biggest vice? Drinking Diet Coke!

20.   Best read of 2012 so far? The Next Always – Nora Roberts (despite the fact there was hardly a grain of conflict)!

Thanks Rach for the interview!  

She left him at the altar, but her heart was always his...

After more than ten years away, Australian soap star Ellie Hughes returns to the small country town of Hope Junction, determined to remain anonymous while caring for her injured godmother, Matilda.

But word spreads fast in the tight-knit community. It isn’t long before the people of Hope’s are gossiping about the real reason for Ellie’s visit and why she broke the heart of golden boy Flynn Quartermaine all those years ago.

Soon Ellie and Flynn are thrown back together again, forced to deal with the unresolved emotions between them. For Ellie is not the only one with secrets. Flynn has his own demons to battle, and Matilda is hiding something from her much-loved goddaughter.

When all is uncovered, can the ill-fated lovers overcome the wounds of their past? Or is Flynn destined to be jilted again?
Jilted is available to buy from Harlequin Australia, www.dymocks.com
www.booktopia.com.au

Having fun!

I'm just back from London and lying on top of my bed in a state of all-out recovery.

Thurday was a 5 am start to Glasgow airport, followed by the Stansted Express into London, a quick ride on a tube train to drop off my case at the gorgeous Charing Cross Hotel, then another ride on the tube to Richmond to reach..........

Mills and Boon Headquarters

I was a bit nervous at Mills and Boon headquarters.  I had arranged with my editor to film an interview to help publicise the Medical Fast Track coming up in June.  I also filmed some Love Bites segments that will be released in September when A Bond Between Strangers comes out, then again in November when Her Christmas Eve Diamond is released.

I was obviously in mid flow here!

I'm a bit worried people won't understand my strong Scottish accent but I'll just need to wait and see!

Next it was off to a lovely restaurant with my editor called Rock and Rose.  Very opulent!

There might have been cocktails......and wine......and lovely food......and then coffee and dessert.  But my lips are sealed!
Then it was a mad dash back to my hotel, then onto Waterstones in Piccadily for 5 o'clock as that's where the RNA members were meeting.

Talli Roland, Denyse King, me and Nina Harrington, who isn't paying attention!

Myself and Fiona Harper

It was then a quick (but not in my shoes!) walk along to the Royal Overseas League where the RNA Summer Party was being held.

Nina Harrington and Fiona Harper outside the Overseas League

The contenders for the Joan Hessayon award

The party was great fun with Evonne Wareham winning the Joan Hessayon award for her novel Never Coming Home.

Myself and my lovely editor Carly Byrne.

And after the party myself and my shoes disappeared for drinks with some fellow authors.

And whilst the shoes were beautiful, by this point my feet had died.  The lovely Anna Louise Lucia volunteered her silver sandals - well, actually I borrowed them as we walked back to the hotel.

Brigid Coady and Abby Green.

Abby and Heidi Rice.

At this point I had to don my shoes again and walk back to Charing Cross with Fiona, except we took the scenic route.  I could show you a photo of my feet but it isn't pretty!

And so I finished my visit to London the following morning by visiting my new nephew Oliver, who was born over a month ago and this was my first chance to see him.  Needless to say, he is gorgeous!