Over the past few weeks I’ve been interviewing some of the contenders for the Romantic Novelists’ Association Joan Hessayon Award for New Writers, and today Alison May is my last interviewee before the award is presented on Thursday at the RNA’s Summer Party. Can’t believe how the time has flown! I ran my first new…… Continue reading Good to meet you…author Alison May
This isn’t the definitive list, and everyone has their opinion, but here are ten British and Irish authors you should definitely try reading if you love romance. (I haven’t put Jane Austen or the Brontës on the list, as they’re a given.) So, here they are, in alphabetical order: Maeve Binchy is a best-selling Irish…… Continue reading Ten British romance authors you should read…
Well, perhaps this post is a little cynical for Valentine’s Day! I decided to write it, though, because a couple of weeks ago J.K. Rowling said she thought Hermione and Ron in the Harry Potter series are heading towards marriage guidance counselling and not a Happy Ever After. She explained how she brought Hermione and…… Continue reading Valentines or marriage guidance: which fictional couples really get their happy ever after?
If you follow me on Facebook you may already have seen some of my photos of Dorset on England’s south coast, where I spent Christmas. On Christmas Day we visited Lyme Regis, a small town in Dorset, by the seaside. I was most excited about this, as I’ve never been to Lyme before, and anyone…… Continue reading Jane Austen, Persuasion and the Cobb at Lyme Regis
Welcome to The Romance Reviews Fall Hop! Today I’m going to tell you about a romance novel I love. After that, there’ll be a chance for you to win a copy of one of my own romance novels. You’ll also be able to link to the next blog on The Romance Reviews Hop – where…… Continue reading The Romance Reviews Fall Hop (and a review of Longbourn)
I’m delighted to welcome a fellow Yorkshire writer to my blog today – the second Yorkshire author in a month! Maybe there is something in this northern English county of ours that’s inspiring people to write. I’d like to think it’s the windswept moors, so beloved of the Bronte sisters, or the Yorkshire Dales, or…… Continue reading Good to meet you…author Mike Evers
In previous posts I’ve covered a Mills & Boon novel of the thirties, and a romance of the forties. Today I’m moving on a decade to the 1950s, and to talk about Nevil Shute’s classic novel, A Town Like Alice. This novel doesn’t fall into the romance category in the way the other two novels…… Continue reading Why I love the heroine of A Town Like Alice
This week the brilliant Billy Bragg (see what I did with the poetic alliteration?) released a great new single. It’s called Handyman Blues, and here’s the clever clip that goes with it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=2YmHtISRcz0 A group of ordinary blokes are sat around in B&Q feeling down because everyone expects them to be able to do DIY,…… Continue reading Lovestruck poets or DIY handymen? Romantic heroes take the Billy Bragg test
I’m delighted to welcome a fellow Irishman today, and I’m looking forward to chatting about books and writing and all the places in the world he’s visited. Philip Coleman is a fellow author at MuseItUp Publishing. To try and make Philip feel at home in my English county of Yorkshire, I’ve cooked up a big…… Continue reading Good to meet you…author Philip Coleman
Yay, it’s Friday! Tonight I’m going to sit down with a big bar of Cadbury’s Dairy Milk and a glass of wine, and I’m going to watch a programme I’ve been looking forward to for ages. It’s called Pride and Prejudice: Having a Ball. The programme recreates in full the dramatic events of the Netherfield…… Continue reading Etiquette, flirting and hidden passions: all the thrill of the Regency ballroom
Helena Fairfax 