Category: Publishers & Presses (Direct Reviews)

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “The French Wife” by Diney Costeloe

Posted Saturday, 9 May, 2020 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Stories in the Spotlight banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I am wicked delighted to be featuring a lovely #newtomeauthor today – as I recently had the chance to select quite a few Head of Zeus and Aria Fiction novelists to be spotlighting throughout the Spring months this year – wherein I was rather delighted finding so many keenly interesting stories to start seeking out to read! These are stories which dance between Romance & Women’s Fiction – from Contemporary to Historical settings. Being an avid reader of these genres I couldn’t miss the chance to bring the JOY of discovering these lovely authors to my readers of Jorie Loves A Story!

It is my intention to start requesting these novels via my local library if they are not available in audio formats via Scribd. At the moment my library is experiencing an unprecedented sabbatical on requests which put me in a bit of a pickle as I’m an active patron whose constantly requesting purchases every month – which is why I’m simply saving my queue lists and will turn them in once the services resume. For now at least – I can champion the discoveries and the joy of finding the stories whilst hosting the blog tours!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Why I wanted to host a spotlight & extract
for “The French Wife”:

As the founder and host of @SatBookChat – I am constantly seeking to find new stories featuring strong women in the centre of Romance & Women’s Fiction. I read an equal amount of Contemporary and Historical stories within these genres of interest whilst encompassing all the lovely sub-niches of their literary styles as well. This New Year 2020 I am also seeking out Feminist Lit which celebrates the kind of stories I am enjoying to discover as well. All of which I try to champion and showcase in the chats I host on Saturdays – wherein writers, readers, book reviewers, book bloggers and the rest of the bookish community on Twitter get to engage with one another. Thereby as a regular reader of these stories I was delighted to find a #newtomeauthor to start seeking out to read!

I personally adore reading as much Historical Fiction & Historical Women’s Fiction as I can get my hands on – there are new authors and voices in these two sections of Literature I am most keen on exploring further and most of them are from the UK. I have been appreciating my chance to spotlight these stories throughout the Spring of 2020 – whilst finding that quite a few of them are now available to be heard via Scribd! This helps me loads as a reader whose leaning on her libraries to help her source either print or audio copies of the stories she wishes to read – however, I hope there are similar streaming audio services aboard for those who don’t have access to Scribd. From what I understand it is available in most regions but perhaps not all of them.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

I happily found this novel is available via audiobook on Scribd! I immediately listened to the audio sampler to gather a sense of how the narrator Georgia McGuire approached her performance.

My thoughts on the story: This part of the story is involving the church and the duties of a priest. I can’t say it was the most exciting part of the story but it is how McGuire approached her delivery and what was happening behind the goings on of the clergy-house is what held me to the earphones. Towards the end of the sampler, things turnt a bit more dramatic – wherein someone is being put out of their job and they must find new accommendations – it seemed rather sudden and unexpected which given the timeline of the story, I was unsure where she would go from here. It was here where I drew closer to listening to the narrator as this was the kind of turning of events that gets rather exciting in a Historical novel!

My impressions of the narrator: McGuire has a strong and sharp voice which lends well for this story and the characters she’s bringing to life. I would consider this spoken narrative vs theatrical – wherein enjoying hearing her voice would be a joy as she had a nice cadence of rhythm in her performance. She has a keen accent as well – the kind of accent you love to find for British stories in narration.

As I listened to this sampler ahead of finding which extract I was given – it was quite champion to realise the two were connected in sequence of order within the story’s arc of disclosure!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Did I grab your eye and attention?

Sound like the kind of bookish read you’ve been needing?

Be sure to brew your favourite cuppa and enjoy this extract from the novel.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “The French Wife” by Diney CosteloeThe French Wife
by Diney Costeloe

Love, secrets and danger abound in the new historical novel from bestselling author Diney Costeloe, set in 19th-century France.

As the St Clair family prepare for the grand wedding of their daughter, Clarice, trouble is brewing. An old friendship, a new love and a dangerous secret threaten to destroy the life the St Clairs have built.

Their younger daughter, Hélène, became friends with orphaned Annette during the terrible events of the 1871 siege of Paris. Now they are reunited, with Annette working below stairs for Hélène's parents. But she is hiding a dangerous secret, which Hélène has promised to keep at all costs.

Meanwhile, Hélène has begun to fall in love with a young nobleman from England, whose family has plans which do not include their son choosing a French wife.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

Published by Aria Fiction

Published By: Aria Fiction (@Aria_Fiction)
a Digital First imprint of Head of Zeus (@HoZ_Books)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Available Formats: Hardback, Audiobook & Ebook

The Ebook & Audiobook released on 7th May 2020

Whilst the Hardback releases 6th August 2020!! (which is my 7th Blog’s Birthday!)

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Posted Saturday, 9 May, 2020 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Spotlight, Head of Zeus, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “A Shop Girl at Sea” by Rachel Brimble

Posted Thursday, 23 April, 2020 by jorielov , , , , 0 Comments

Stories in the Spotlight banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I am wicked delighted to be featuring a lovely author I’ve been dearly trying to read for quite a long time today – as I recently had the chance to select quite a few Head of Zeus and Aria Fiction novelists to be spotlighting throughout the Spring months this year – wherein I was rather delighted finding so many keenly interesting stories to start seeking out to read! These are stories which dance between Romance & Women’s Fiction – from Contemporary to Historical settings. Being an avid reader of these genres I couldn’t miss the chance to bring the JOY of discovering these lovely authors to my readers of Jorie Loves A Story!

It is my intention to start requesting these novels via my local library if they are not available in audio formats via Scribd. At the moment my library is experiencing an unprecedented sabbatical on requests which put me in a bit of a pickle as I’m an active patron whose constantly requesting purchases every month – which is why I’m simply saving my queue lists and will turn them in once the services resume. For now at least – I can champion the discoveries and the joy of finding the stories whilst hosting the blog tours!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Why I wanted to host a spotlight & extract
for “Home to the Hills”:

As the founder and host of @SatBookChat – I am constantly seeking to find new stories featuring strong women in the centre of Romance & Women’s Fiction. I read an equal amount of Contemporary and Historical stories within these genres of interest whilst encompassing all the lovely sub-niches of their literary styles as well. This New Year 2020 I am also seeking out Feminist Lit which celebrates the kind of stories I am enjoying to discover as well. All of which I try to champion and showcase in the chats I host on Saturdays – wherein writers, readers, book reviewers, book bloggers and the rest of the bookish community on Twitter get to engage with one another. Thereby as a regular reader of these stories I was delighted to find a #newtomeauthor to start seeking out to read!

This particular series by Ms Brimble has been on my bookish radar for quite a long while now – as I have hosted her a few times in the past on Jorie Loves A Story! In 2018 – I had the pleasure of interviewing her during a Brook Cottage blog tour for “The Mistress of Pennington’s” – wherein this series first began its journey into reader’s hearts. This was also a social tour I followed closely on Twitter – getting to chat with her during #HistFicChat and other places online as the book made its tour route to become a bit more known in social communities who appreciate Historical Fiction and/or Historical Romance. Being a regular chatter of these kinds of meet-ups I was truly grateful for the moments I was able to share with Ms Brimble!

The series itself has been given a bit of a re-branding and re-titling since it was first introduced to me – as I requested the first novel “The Mistress of Pennington’s” through my local library – of which I am happy to say they’ve added to the card catalogue – however, I’ve not yet had the pleasure of reading it in full as it has been readily checked out by other patrons who are just as eager to read it as I have been myself!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Did I grab your eye and attention?

Sound like the kind of bookish read you’ve been needing?

Be sure to brew your favourite cuppa and enjoy this extract from the novel.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “A Shop Girl at Sea” by Rachel BrimbleA Shop Girl at Sea
Subtitle: One journey of the Titanic. Three lives changed forever.
by Ms Rachel Brimble, Rachel Brimble

Bath, 1912.

Amelia Wakefield loves working at Pennington's, Bath's finest department store. An escape from her traumatic past, it saved her life. So when Miss Pennington sets her a task to set sail on the Titanic and study the department stores of New York, she couldn't be more excited – or determined!

Frustrated with his life at home, Samuel Murphy longs for a few weeks of freedom and adventure. Meeting Amelia on board the Titanic, Samuel can't help wonder what painful history has made the beauty so reserved. But he already has too many responsibilities for love.

Ruby Taylor has always kept her Pennington co-workers at a distance. Making sure her little brother is safe has always been her priority. But when that means accepting Victoria Lark's offer of sanctuary, more than one of Ruby's secrets is under threat of being revealed...

A riveting and uplifting saga, perfect for fans of Elaine Everest and Fiona Ford.

Genres: Feminist Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Women's Fiction, Women's Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1788546539

Also by this author: The Mistress of Pennington's, A Stranger in the Cove

Published by Aria Fiction

on 9th April, 2020

Published By: Aria Fiction (@Aria_Fiction)
a Digital First imprint of Head of Zeus (@HoZ_Books)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Pennington’s Department Store series

The Mistress of Pennington’s | A Shop Girl at Bath (book one)

A Rebel at Pennington’s | A Shop Girl gets the Vote (book two)

Christmas at Pennington’s | A Shop Girl’s Christmas (book three)

A Shop Girl at Sea (book four)

*to curb confusion for those of us familiar with the original titles, I’ve listed them alongside their newer titles in case you were late in gathering the books!

This also marks my 3rd Titanic story I’ve found in 2020!

Available Formats: Trade Paperback and Ebook

Converse via: #AShopGirlAtSea, #HistoricalFiction or #HistFicFun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com Read More

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Posted Thursday, 23 April, 2020 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Head of Zeus, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “The Spitfire Girl: Over and Out” (Spitfire Girl series) by Fenella J Miller

Posted Sunday, 12 April, 2020 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Books in the Spotlight banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

I am wicked delighted to be featuring a lovely #newtomeauthor today – as I recently had the chance to select quite a few Head of Zeus and Aria Fiction novelists to be spotlighting throughout the Spring months this year – wherein I was rather delighted finding so many keenly interesting stories to start seeking out to read! These are stories which dance between Romance & Women’s Fiction – from Contemporary to Historical settings. Being an avid reader of these genres I couldn’t miss the chance to bring the JOY of discovering these lovely authors to my readers of Jorie Loves A Story!

It is my intention to start requesting these novels via my local library if they are not available in audio formats via Scribd. At the moment my library is experiencing an unprecedented sabbatical on requests which put me in a bit of a pickle as I’m an active patron whose constantly requesting purchases every month – which is why I’m simply saving my queue lists and will turn them in once the services resume. For now at least – I can champion the discoveries and the joy of finding the stories whilst hosting the blog tours!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Why I wanted to host a spotlight & extract
for “The Spitfire Girl: Over and Out”:

As the founder and host of @SatBookChat – I am constantly seeking to find new stories featuring strong women in the centre of Romance & Women’s Fiction. I read an equal amount of Contemporary and Historical stories within these genres of interest whilst encompassing all the lovely sub-niches of their literary styles as well. This New Year 2020 I am also seeking out Feminist Lit which celebrates the kind of stories I am enjoying to discover as well. All of which I try to champion and showcase in the chats I host on Saturdays – wherein writers, readers, book reviewers, book bloggers and the rest of the bookish community on Twitter get to engage with one another. Thereby as a regular reader of these stories I was delighted to find a #newtomeauthor to start seeking out to read!

My first interest in reading and/or listening to an audiobook story about Spitfire Girls was interested by the release by Soraya M. Lane which was “The Spitfire Girls”. You might recall I have previously spotlighted Ms Lane’s novels whilst I also hosted her during #SatBookChat. I was meant to share a review of an mp3 audiobook version of her novel “The Girls of Pearl Harbour” however my personal health during a six month block of time from Autumn 2019 to Spring 2020 prevented me continuing to finish the novel until now. It is one of the stories I have requeued to finish this April.

I decided to see if one of the novels from this series (or the whole series really!) was available via Scribd and I was pleasantly surprised to find the first book “The Spitfire Girl” was listed!

The narrator for this novel is Sarah Ovens.

We first begin by having a smart introduction to the scene as it unfolds – Ellie has just returnt home from work at the airfield – her brother is on a 24 hour pass and her parents are experiencing the rougher edges of a marriage which most likely should have ended in either separation or divorce; theirs was not a happy union. Ellie looked the part with her coveralls and the kind of shine a girl would have working all day – a conflict for her mother who’d prefer a girl who looked less like a bloke and more dainty like herself.

You could feel the disapproving eye in Ellie’s mother – however, the joy for Ellie was the fact her brother was home, the fact he brought a friend notwithstanding and having to change for dinner was as much of a chore for Ellie as it were for her father! They both had a smart exchange before moving into their respective rooms – by the time we rejoined the brother and the mother, the sampler was nearly expiring and I felt it was quite a shame as I was already keenly locked into the drama as it was unfolding! Proving how thankful I am for samplers and how much I truly admire the work of narrators to bring to life the work of an author.

In regards to the narrator directly:

I found Ms Oven’s narration to be a smashingly classic voice for this kind of Saga – there is a particularly familiar intonation by narrators whose voices come from similar regions and as soon as I heard her voice narrating this story, I felt immediately drawn to Ellie and her family! I liked how she altered her voice between the genders – how her voice felt assured as a male and strong as a woman – the men of course in the story have quite a bit to contend with Ellie’s Mum and that of course came through by how she was narrating their parts. Her father seemed resigned to it and her brother was a bit more optimistic but Ellie herself was voiced with resignation at not wanting to humour her Mum; in any capacity! I was jolly happy with the sampler and was keen curious to finish off the story – as you just feel pulled into it!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Did I grab your eye and attention?

Sound like the kind of bookish read you’ve been needing?

Be sure to brew your favourite cuppa and enjoy this extract from the novel.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Book Spotlight | Featuring notes by Jorie and an extract from “The Spitfire Girl: Over and Out” (Spitfire Girl series) by Fenella J MillerThe Spitfire Girl: Over and Out
Subtitle: Is Ellie ready to fly one last time?
by Fenella J. Miller

All's fair in love and war for First Officer Ellie as she takes to the skies yet again in the final installment of Fenella Miller's Spitfire Girl series.

1943, White Waltham.

As Italy surrenders and victory looms on the horizon, Ellie's doing what she does best – flying. And this time, she's rising to the sky in four-engined Halifaxes. Determined to keep doing her bit, Ellie's successes in the airfield mount but so do tensions with her new beau, Squadron Leader Jack Reynolds.

When Ellie and Jack find their dream home, they discover they've bought more than they bargained for. With a cellar full of secrets, Jack and Ellie must stand united in the face of mystery, war and loss. And as family circumstance threatens to tear them apart, Ellie and Jack are stronger than ever.

Genres: Historical Fiction, War Drama, Women's Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ASIN: B0844S8B64

Published by Aria Fiction

on 19th March, 2020

The Spitfire Girl series:

The Spitfire Girl (Book One)

The Spitfire Girl in the Skies (Book Two)

A Wedding for the Spitfire Girl (Book Three)

The Spitfire Girl: Over & Out (Book Four) ← final installment!

Published By: Aria Fiction (@Aria_Fiction)
a Digital First imprint of Head of Zeus (@HoZ_Books)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Available Formats: This is a Digital First Release

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Posted Sunday, 12 April, 2020 by jorielov in Aftermath of World War II, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Spotlight of E-Book (ahead of POD/print edition), Head of Zeus, Historical Fiction, War Drama, Women's Fiction