Book Review | “Follow A Star” (Book No.2 of the Little Spitmarsh series) by Christine Stovell #ChocLitSaturdays

Posted Saturday, 21 April, 2018 by jorielov , , , 3 Comments

ChocLitSaturdays Banner Created by Jorie in Canva.

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)
and created #ChocLitSaturday (the chat via @ChocLitSaturday):

I wanted to create a bit of a niche on Jorie Loves A Story to showcase romance fiction steeped in relationships, courtships, and the breadth of marriage enveloped by characters written honestly whose lives not only endear you to them but they nestle into your heart as their story is being read!

I am always seeking relationship-based romance which strikes a chord within my mind’s eye as well as my heart! I’m a romantic optimist, and I love curling into a romance where I can be swept inside the past, as history becomes lit alive in the fullness of the narrative and I can wander amongst the supporting cast observing the principal characters fall in love and sort out if they are a proper match for each other!

I love how an Indie Publisher like ChocLitUK is such a positive alternative for those of us who do not identify ourselves as girls and women who read ‘chick-lit’. I appreciate the stories which alight in my hands from ChocLit as much as I appreciate the inspirational romances I gravitate towards because there is a certain level of depth to both outlets in romance which encourage my spirits and gives me a beautiful story to absorb! Whilst sorting out how promote my book reviews on behalf of ChocLit, I coined the phrase “ChocLitSaturdays”, which is a nod to the fact my ChocLit reviews & features debut on ‘a Saturday’ but further to the point that on the ‘weekend’ we want to dip into a world wholly ideal and romantic during our hours off from the work week!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Acquired Book By: I am a regular reviewer for ChocLitUK, where I hand select which books in either their backlist and/or current releases I would like to read next for my #ChocLitSaturdays blog feature. As of June 2016, I became a member of the ChocLit Stars Team in tandem with being on the Cover Reveal Team which I joined in May 2016. I reference the Stars as this is a lovely new reader contribution team of sending feedback to the publisher ahead of new book releases. As always, even if I’m involved with a publisher in this sort of fashion, each review is never influenced by that participation and will always be my honest impression as I read the story. Whether the author is one I have previously read or never had the pleasure to read until the book greets my shelf.

I received a complimentary copy of “Follow A Star” from ChocLit in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Why I am enjoying my respite in Little Spitmarsh:

Not quite a village or hamlet, but in some ways it is both – if you consider how insular resorts can become when it feels like all of life is bubbling within it’s natural boundaries. I was quite delighted by the Prologue to cast a pointed eye on what Little Spitmarsh had been once in it’s heyday of popularity with visitors from away inasmuch as the cross-comparison of what it has become now; a sad remnant of it’s past. This is quite common I think, when urban and rural areas fall into decay from an absence of care – where it takes someone with vision to re-transitionalise the place into a new kind of beauty that will lure people back to a place they once knew. Although this isn’t merely a resort or a marina, it’s a small towne whose point of focus has fallen and whose re-development could change the way in which the townespeople will live in the future.

This felt like such an honest prospect of interest – right from the start – as who doesn’t like to see how developers with an eye for progress and a nod towards preserving certain bits of the past could lend a new lease of life on a place like Little Spitmarsh? Of course, that would be far too easy, of course! There was a small hinting of what would become fireworks (nearly certain!) lateron, as just because a land deal seems cut and dry on the offset doesn’t necessarily mean there aren’t hidden ‘obstacles’ that might test the patience of someone whose vision might be a bit misguided.

The scenery alone makes you hunger to visit this little niche of a small community if only for the pause of breath to drink in the natural joys you would be viewing. Stepping outside of civilisation where nature still had the larger bounty and has been allowed to thrive without too much interference are the places to cherish the most. They are kept away and hidden from the masses for a reason – to preserve what is able to be conserved. The book cover places you visually in the right kind of place that is being described inside the chapters as it truly is a place that hugs the water whilst ebbing you into a sync of natural harmony.

I liked too, how Ms Stovell has her own rhythm of threading a Contemporary with it’s own narrative pace and tone of telling a story set in such an interesting place. The setting and the vibe of the community have their own lifeblood in this Contemporary granting the reader a strong visual of not only the natural setting of how a harbour or seaside area can dictate but how a community is as quirky as it’s residents! The fuller personalities of how she rounded out her cast of characters and augmented such a normalcy out of the quirks of their everyday lives is part of what granted so much enjoyment to read the story! It’s truly a novel that paints it’s own portrait by how it’s writer chose to deliver it’s contents – loved her choices but also, the way in which she delves past the surface and digs in for the heartier story-line that is just bubbling under the drama.

-quoted from my review of Turning the Tide

I’ve taken my time to return back to Little Spitmarsh – I had aimed to continue my readings of this series closer to when I entered ‘Turning the Tide’, however, my own tides took me away from the series until now. Even over the past six weeks, where my health hasn’t been the best – I’ve had to put my ChocLit readings on hold, until I was in a better position to focus on reading again. One of the key issues was a relapse in my chronic migraines – I was able to handle listening to audiobooks here and there, but overall, reading and attempting to type on a screen was proving to be more than what I could handle.

There were a few moments where Twitter acted as a reprieve from my heath issues but even that has taken a bit of a backseat since my migraines resumed. I had planned to anchour April with a Georgette Heyer chat and a Women’s Fiction topical chat – however, just to return back into a ChocLit novel felt wonderful! I’ve also decided for the foreseeable future, the last two weekends of the month work best for me hosting @SatBookChat.

It is also coincidentally on the heels of helping to select the cover for the Little Spitmarsh novella “Moonbeams in a Jar”. Which I happily tweeted about previously as soon as I saw the release make it’s way into the twitterverse! Always a happy day celebrating a forthcoming release within a series you love reading!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Notation on Cover Art: Little Spitmarsh is unique setting where the water, the tides and the small community round out the appeal of living there. I liked how this cover focused on sunset, as there is something quite special about the setting of the sun – of how even after hard days or the uncertainties of futures, seeing the sun set and rise is a lovely moment where you can draw a breath of serenity and simply appreciate the scenery for how the colours play against the natural landscape.

 Book Review | “Follow A Star” (Book No.2 of the Little Spitmarsh series) by Christine Stovell #ChocLitSaturdaysFollow A Star

Sometimes your heart’s the only navigator you need

May Starling’s had enough of her demanding career and even more demanding ex. Responding to a ‘crew-wanted’ ad, she follows her dreams of escape only to find herself at sea with red-haired Bill Blythe.

Bill warns May that close-quartered living can create a boiling pot of emotions, but even May is surprised by the heat building up inside the vintage wooden boat. And when May and Bill tie up at Watling’s Boatyard in Little Spitmarsh, May’s determined to test her new-found feelings on dry land.

But May’s dream of escaping her former life is in danger of being swept away when several unwelcome blasts from the past follow her ashore, all seemingly hell-bent on reminding her it’s never that easy to clear the decks.


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Find on Book Browse

Book Page on World Weaver Press

ISBN: 978-1781891360

on 1st July, 2014

Pages: 336

Published by: ChocLitUK (@ChocLituk)

Available Formats: Paperback, Audiobook, Large Print & E-Book

Order of Sequence of Little Spitmarsh series:

Turning the Tide by Christine StovellFollow a Star by Christine StovellMoonbeams in a Jar by Christine Stovell

Read my review of Turning the Tide

Read the Synopsis for Moonbeams in a Jar

Converse via: #Contemporary & #Romance + #ChocLit #LittleSpitmarsh

About Christine Stovell

Christine Stovell Photo Credit: Tim Jones

Winning a tin of chocolate in a national essay competition at primary school inspired Christine Stovell to become a writer! After graduating from University of East Anglia, she took various jobs in the public sector writing research papers and policy notes by day and filling up her spare drawers with embryonic novels by night.

Losing her dad to cancer made her realise that if she was ever going to get a novel published she had to put her writing first. Setting off, with her husband, from a sleepy seaside resort on the east coast in a vintage wooden boat to sail halfway round Britain provided the inspiration for her debut novel Turning the Tide and Follow a Star. Turning The Tide was a top 100 Bestseller with Amazon Kindle and spent months in the Top 10 Chart for Adult Contemporary Romance. Christine has also published numerous short stories and articles. Christine lives in Wales. Christine novels include: Turning The Tide, Move Over Darling and Follow a Star (July 2014).

Photo Credit: Tim Jones

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

My Review of follow a star:

May Starling is definitely in for a penny, in for a pound kind of a gal! Not that she intended to be – no, she wanted a bit of fun with a slightly retired sea captain who could take her to Little Spitmarsh – instead, she ensnared herself into giving said sea captain a proper heartache! If the opening chapter wasn’t so seriously sad it would be hilariously humourous – given how the heartache was due to how well she answered an advert! She was simply ‘too much’ for the person who was receiving her reply and thus startled by the news of his hospitalisation, she presumed all bets were off, surely on the planned trip?! Of course, life has more ironies inside it than you can shake a stick at – this is something May learnt walking on a road whilst be stopped by the sea captain’s nephew. Most times you plan for one course of action to take you a certain ‘place’ is the reverse of what actually happens – in this case, what she envisioned isn’t quite the reality but nonetheless she owed it to herself and the captain to keep her plans.

Being stranded with heavy luggage on my own travels, I can well imagine how long and dreary walking an unknown highway would feel – you’d question what would give out first – your will to defy the odds of your present situation, your stamina or the fact you were slowly growing out of options of how to right your path back to something which made feasible sense and logic. May is quite the character, but Bill is the complete opposite. Self-assured, calming and bluntly to the point of reason speaks his mind and takes action of the scene as he arrives inside it.

As May took in her first night aboard Lucille, you could see why people love to be on the sea – even the companion tides of interior water routes would be ideal, if you had a steady eye for seafaring, a keen boat and enjoyed the comforts of what living on the water could provide. As we entered into the areas in which May would find herself living whilst travelling to Little Spitmarsh, you felt like pinching yourself you weren’t right there alongside her able to take the same journey.

Bill’s temper shouldn’t have made me smirk, but it did! Mostly as the ways in which his mannerisms and personality quirks were well intoned by Stovell, you could instantly gather why his hair coined more about his reputation than anything else! May was able to hold her salt against any fire he tried to breathe in her direction – something told me he wasn’t used to girls with moxie giving him a piece of his own pie every once in awhile! I was rallying behind May the whole time and just as incensed he was making accusations against her character which were not just unfounded but they were completely in left field. He clearly hadn’t heard the phrase, “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover” or in this case, don’t go off hot-headed about something you know so very little about without first gathering your facts! In this, May left him confounded for actually wanting to take a sea journey where work was intentionally part of the joy of taking the trip!

May’s Mum – such a saucy fifty-year old! She owned a brick and mortar store in a time of economic downshifting but she lucked out really when there was a changing of guard in landlords! The irony though, she’s as sensual as someone half her age with a naughty spark to her, too! You really can’t do much but laugh through what occurs during her rendezvous with her husband! I think what capped it for me is when Stovell coined the expression “a Miss Marple-alike” to refer to the pensioner who was not as shocked as Cathy might have preferred but rather keen on the performance which was invented out of air! Oy. She definitely lived her life to a unique tune – but it’s what her husband suggested – of carting themselves off in a travelling van, seeing the land, sorting out townes and finding a place they could call ‘home’ best is what caught me at ‘hallo’. Try as you can to find a place to relocate to based on virtual research (ie. the internet and phone calls to back-up what the net talks about an area) – nothing beats the good ole fashioned version: getting out on the open road and seeing what ‘fits’ you as you arrive.

Ms Stovell has turns of phrases I am simply in love with finding in the Little Spitmarsh series, such as the following from Follow A Star:

If Lucille hadn’t been as fretful as a hen on the wrong nest, agitated by a choppy current beneath her and a gusty wind above, May might have relaxed.

– quoted from Follow A Star by Christine Stovell, with permission of the publisher

Even before Bill could wrap his head round sailing with May, he had to get used to her in close quarters – how womanly she was on a boat and how without even trying to gather his thoughts towards anything remotely sensual, she simply had an allure about her which intoxicated him. Something he tried to broach with her before they pushed off, the night after the wreck of a storm, but found himself floundering miserably to achieve. You had to give it to him – he was almost tip-toeing round his emotions because he was afraid of where they could lead. Not just in the obvious sense, but you gathered he wasn’t the kind of bloke who saw himself settling down. He was a complicated bloke but at his heart, he was quite readable as an open book.

May, on the other hand, took a bit longer to realise how close quarters might affect her mood – on the level, she was finding her heart drawn to cross-comparing her past relationships and angst to her current ‘bloke’ who was close enough to not just  intrigue her but intoxicate her mind over. He was wholly different from her beaus but more to the point, she was worried what he would think of her if he knew the truth of who she was in the wider scheme of things. She was attempting to put off the inevitable even if there were those round who could ID her – something instinctive in her soul told her to toe the line carefully – to not go off rushing to explain herself or her reasons for pursuing this particular jaunt up the coastline. She was feeling wildly freer now – out on the sea, doing honest work and feeling as if she could place a firm ‘pause’ on the rest of her life.

Her Mum by comparison lacked the confidence in both her industry of choice, the stability of her marriage and the self-esteem a woman of her age ought to have had  in spades by now. She was successful in her own right but she felt underscored compared to others in her family; even a bit overlooked by her husband and definitely was sensitive round the edges about how she was looked on when compared to everyone else (overall). You felt for Cathy – she was practically going through a mid-life crisis of her own – murmuring over things she ought not worry after and not focusing on the things more important.

Getting to get caught up with Harry & Matthew in Little Spitmarsh felt like ‘old home week’ – especially when Harry’s blunted honesty came back in full force when she warmed to May in a sisterly conversation which proved to be a balm to May’s soul. Anything to temper the shock of finding her (supposed) ex had tracked her down would be a welcome relief! Imagine, trying to distance yourself from a bloke you were no longer interested in only to find he’s still smitten with you and won’t release you from your relationship? Aye. May’s in a pickle worse than a rind.

Fiona (who owned the B&B) seemed to be caught between a dream and the reality of what it was to live within the dream you planned but ended up with something altogether ‘different’ than you expected. She was also smitten with May’s ex, though blessedly saw his smarmy ways before she went over her knees to admire him. Her loneliness was abated a bit by the warmth of May’s conversation but you gathered the sense she was seeking something she couldn’t quite find – something which was missing in her life and needed to be found as quick as lightning.

Aiden – May’s ex was quite the character – slick, fast talking and had this whole snark of an idea about how to manipulate and control his girlfriend. In essence, he’s the kind of ick you’d shake just to feel ‘human’ again because he overtakes everything about the person he’s involved with as their own ideas aren’t good enough. He has to dominate their lives in order to feel confident – which gives you an insight into how hard it is to extract May from his clutches. Her awakening to realise (almost too late) how toxic her relationship had turnt was the first step but you stressed the most about how she would find wiggle room to circumvent his worrisome plans on her behalf. He wasn’t just snarky, he was downright vile.

I wasn’t expecting such a clever tie-in between the title of this sequel and the truer passion of May’s soul. It is wonderfully lovely being caught up in Ms Stovell’s vision for May’s metamorphosis – of how she sheds a new skin and renews her shattered spirit by keeping time with Bill. She was in dire need of a switch-up and this journey of hers to Little Spitmarsh is exactly what she needed to do in order to sort out her affairs; such as they were. In the progress of observing her transformation – we pull closer to understanding why sailing is dear to Ms Stovell as these truly are some of my favourite passages aboard a ship I’ve come to find in fiction! You feel perfectly comfortable next to May and Bill; even if you’ve never sailed a day in your life!

Complimenting this journey of self-evolution is a dearly quirky ensemble cast who are each going through their own transitions. As the support cast moves in and out of scene, you start to notice how Little Spitmarsh is the kind of small towne where it doesn’t matter where you’ve been prior to your arrival, it’s your intentions once you arrive which count more than ever, because this is a towne where transformatative experiences are the mainstay! You can easily see the appeal – understand the longing of the characters to seek out their personal niche of choice and to curl into their own rhythm whilst setting in this little unexpected hamlet which proves that sometimes the best places to call home are the ‘unexpected’ places off the beaten path!

Fly in the Ointment:

Causal vulgarity is one of the things I never understood – as instead of being enticed by emotions, it’s just inserted here or there with such a casual flickerment as to be taken as normal verbiage you’d overhear anywhere. Except, for me, it’s not as normal as it is for some – as I didn’t grow up in a family who used that kind of language nor spoke with that kind of forcefulness that came with such familiarity as I’ve seen in the stories I’m reading. The said thing is – each time I find a story which has a flickering of vulgarity in it – odds are in favour, the story could stand well on it’s own without the words included.

Contemporary stories are lit aflame with strong language – and it’s growing disheartening as a reader to even admit that, as it never used to be in such high frequencies of repeated appearances. I do wish writers could fall out of love with one particular word – it has such a strong edge to it and it’s the worst offender I believe in stories as it just cuts a story down to a place it doesn’t have to go.

*UPDATE: Blessedly, during #SatBookChat, I learnt a wonderful surprise: the new novella attached to this series is writ ‘clean’ without vulgarity! And, what surprised me the most – is how I am connected to the reasons behind the absence of words – more to the point, I am so itching to read or listen to this novella now moreso than I was when I helped select the cover art to grace it’s pages – I can’t even properly react. I do hope this will be in a new batch of #PocketChocLit!!

On the contemporary writing style of Ms stovell:

One thing I have appreciated about Ms Stovell’s approach to creating Romances set round the sea and the life therein, is how engaged you become with her characters even if you only have rudimentary knowledge of life at sea! I’ve felt I’ve become better acquainted lately through her stories and The Rest of My Life (by Sheryl Browne) which also took place round a harbour where sea life was the primary focus. I even gained a heap of insight through reading the Seven Sisters series earlier in the year. I used to read quite a bit of Nautical Fiction – with aspirations to read the entire Master & Commander series one day as well as Horatio Hornblower and other classics, but in lieu of those, I am appreciating being tucked into Little Spitmarsh.

You have to brace your heart and your nerves – there is far more danger at sea in this novel than you’d ever believe possible until you live through it as May does herself! I had moments of gasping for breath, as I was keeping myself so pinned into the scene and pages, I barely could find will to exhale before knowing how it would turn round for Bill & May! There were moments where you felt just the incredible bad luck of what was occurring to them but also, the tender moments of where two people put together quite unexpectedly start to feel something other than companionable friendship with one another.

Stovell blessedly confirmed to me during #SatBookChat (21st April, 2018) there are direct scenes within ‘Follow A Star’ based on her own life aboard ship. Some of them of course are my favourite sequences – especially when you feel the inertia of the emergency erupting in front of your eyes to where you’ve fashioned yourself glued to the words alighting off the page, if only to see how what turnt upside down can be righted once more. I loved chattering about the sailing bits attached to ‘Follow A Star’ as for me – despite the fact this novel (like all ChocLit novels) is blessedly layered – it is my love of open water and the idea of sailing which rooted me most into the narrative itself.

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

I happily review for ChocLitUK!

This book review is courtesy of:

ChocLitUK Reviewer Badge by ChocLitUK.Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

In case you’ve missed my ChocLit readings:

Please follow the threads through #ChocLitSaturdays!

And, visit my ChocLit Next Reads List on Riffle

to see which stories I fancy to devour next!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

My ChocLit readings this Spring 2018:

Hubble Bubble | No. 2 of the Yorkshire Romances  by Jane Lovering (review)

Follow A Star | No. 2 of the Little Spitmarsh series | by Christine Stovell

Please Don’t Stop the Music | No. 1 of the Yorkshire Romances by Jane Lovering

*Part of my focus on serial ChocLit Fiction!*

Sugar & Spice | by Angela Britnell

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

IF you love chatting about Romance & Women’s Fiction novels, #amwriting adventures and being in a wicked good circle of writers and readers joyfully sharing their writerly & bookish lives, I invite you to join us for #SatBookChat which is an extension of my reviews & guest features on Jorie Loves A Story which cover the same stories we’re chatting about bi-monthly!

All are welcome! Visit @SatBookChat for more details!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

I look forward to reading your thoughts & commentary! Especially if you read the book or were thinking you might be inclined to read it. I appreciate hearing different points of view especially amongst bloggers who picked up the same story to read.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

{SOURCES: Author Biography, Book Synopsis and ChocLit Reviewer badge were provided by ChocLitUK and were used by permission. Author photograph of Christine Stovell, Cover Art for “Turning the Tide”, “Follow A Star” & “Moonbeams in a Jar” were provided by the author Christine Stovell and used with permission. Post dividers by  Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo and Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Tweets embedded due to codes provided by Twitter. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: ChocLitSaturdays Banner (Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo)  and the Comment Box Banner.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2018.

I’m a social reader | I love sharing my reading life

About jorielov

I am self-educated through local libraries and alternative education opportunities. I am a writer by trade and I cured a ten-year writer’s block by the discovery of Nanowrimo in November 2008. The event changed my life by re-establishing my muse and solidifying my path. Five years later whilst exploring the bookish blogosphere I decided to become a book blogger. I am a champion of wordsmiths who evoke a visceral experience in narrative. I write comprehensive book showcases electing to get into the heart of my reading observations. I dance through genres seeking literary enlightenment and enchantment. Starting in Autumn 2013 I became a blog book tour hostess featuring books and authors. I joined The Classics Club in January 2014 to seek out appreciators of the timeless works of literature whose breadth of scope and voice resonate with us all.

"I write my heart out and own my writing after it has spilt out of the pen." - self quote (Jorie of Jorie Loves A Story)

read more >> | Visit my Story Vault of Book Reviews | Policies & Review Requests | Contact Jorie

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Posted Saturday, 21 April, 2018 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Britian, British Literature, ChocLitSaturdays, ChocLitUK, Debut Author, Debut Novel, England, Equality In Literature, Green-Minded Publishers, Indie Author, LGBTTQPlus Fiction | Non-Fiction, Modern British Author, Romance Fiction, Vulgarity in Literature




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3 responses to “Book Review | “Follow A Star” (Book No.2 of the Little Spitmarsh series) by Christine Stovell #ChocLitSaturdays

    • Hallo, Hallo Jamie!

      I’ve been happily reading commentary coming into my blog for the past few moments, however, as my health afflictions took such a lot out of me physically, I haven’t been able to offer proper replies until now. I wanted to wait til I felt more like ‘me’ again, where the joy of interacting with my readers and bookish friends could pick up from whence it left off! I also have had such a long delay getting back into :reading: it has been rather disheartening! Especially with my ChocLit reads – I had to keep pushing the last two :forward: as I had trouble getting re-aligned into reading print again! :( I have noticed the more my migraines cluster, the harder it is to read print afterwards – to where, I am thinking I might start shifting my reading habits to either 70/40 or 80/20 – the higher end being for #AudioReads vs print.

      Thank you for blessing me twicefold with your lovely note! Knowing how much I’ve sparked an interest in you to pick up a ChocLit novel is wicked brill but being prompted to join a blogger meme is equally as lovely! I’m working on my response and hope to run it this June! I hope you didn’t think I had forgotten – I just needed a bit of extra time to get in a position to where I could offer my own post to join in on the fun! I haven’t received an award like this since I first started blogging, my gratitude is yours!

      Similarly, did you get a chance to see my latest ChocLit review? I was reading another entry in the Yorkshire Rom series by Ms Lovering? This weekend, I’ll be reading and sharing my thoughts on Ms Britnell’s “Sugar and Spice” novel, as I previously :loved: reading a novella by hers (one of the few released in print!) called: “You’re the One that I Want”.

      I’ve been starting to read more Contemporaries myself, as they used to be regular reads of mine before I became (*cough*) addicted to Historicals! Part of the commentary lately on my blog is the shift in my admiration for Contemporaries from mainstream to INSPY markets; with a select few Contemporary novelists I still appreciate who write outside of INSPY. I first discussed this on my 5th Blogoversary post – where I read my first novel by Kellie Coates Gilbert, and soon to be released will be my first showcase on behalf of Becky Wade (as I’m finishing reading ‘Falling for You’). You might have seen the tweets this past week for #BeckyWade in my feeds! The last of which where I claim, I’m finally trying #CherryGarcia because of her?! lol

      Maybe we can discuss this further sometime or do guest posts about what we seek out of Contemporaries on our blogs!? I’d love that!

      Let me know which ChocLit novel you picked up – maybe it was one I’ve read or one I’d love to read next! Delighted you’ve stopped by and I am thankful to be getting back in touch now that my health has resolved the issues I’ve had since March! May your life be full of less strife than mine – happy reading, my dear friend!

      • Of course! Happy reading to you as well Jorie, and I completely understand I figured you’d had your hands full with your health. :) Switching to more audio over print may be a good idea, I’m sorry to hear about all the migraines! I’ve been somewhat in and out of blogging as of late just because I’ve been so busy with work and family.

        I’ll check out the historicals you mention, and I definitely will let you know which I pick up. :) I probably will soon now that I’m more stable.

        That’s a good idea, I am still new to contemporaries. I started from historicals and have shifted to some contemporary, so I was the opposite hah! Guest posts would be fun, I’ve never done them before. I’ll start coming up with some ideas. :)

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