Jorie Loves A Story, is a blog that was inspired into creation due to a reader's love and passion for the written word. She reads bookish industry newsfeeds, keeps a pertinent eye on newly published authors, is readily eager to book travel to independent book shoppes, athenaeum libraries, historical landmarks of literary interest, and book festivals, conventions, or symposiums; absorbs herself into the written word, cherishing each book she comes across that has the ability to transport herself into another time, place, and world. This is her journey, as she uncovers one book at a time that leaves her musefully happy for the discovery.

Read my Introduction Post, to see where I am hoping to take Jorie Loves A Story. To help celebrate the launch of my blog, read my Launch Day post! Read how the Story of Jorie Loves A Story was knit together!

Visit my Guest Features, Interviews & Podcast Archive and learn about my style of betareading. Curious about my approach to reviewing books? Read my thoughts! *Hint!* it's hugged into my reaction of my first Gaiman essay! To gain perspective about how my readerly life changed a bit after my father's stroke, kindly read #StoriesOfJorie - specifically November 2016 + January 2017.

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At this point in time, I am selectively seeking referrals for books to review or contributing content for the blog. I will consider accepting *print and/or audiobooks* in exchange for an honest review on a case-by-case basis. I'd encourage you to take a look at my Bookish Events Calendar for 2019 before conferring with me about your request. My blog is actively booked throughout the year - sometimes up to 90 days in advance. I do work on tight deadlines outside this window, however, this will give you an impression of what is already scheduled.

I do encourage you to contact me, if after reading through my Review Policy, you feel that your book and my style of reviewing would be a good match. I discuss the books I gravitate towards and the ones I will not read. The reason I am highly selective in regards to referrals, is simply because I am sharing my reading life with those of whom enjoy reading: Jorie Loves A Story. I may seek out books to review on my own accord, which interest me, and I would welcome the chance to get to know!

IF you are still interested in contacting me, please view "My Bookish Life", to know a bit more about me before you read my Review Policy. My blog Disclosure is contained mid-way down under My Review Policy as well as seen in the sidebar of my individual posts. I do cross-post my reviews to LibraryThing as well as share my reviews socially through Twitter.

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Genre: Romance Fiction

Book Review | “The Rest of my Life” by Sheryl Browne #ChocLitSaturdays

Posted Saturday, 17 February, 2018 by jorielov ChocLitUK, Sheryl Browne, The Rest of my Life 1 Comment

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)

I feature Romance & Women’s Fiction authors during @SatBookChat.

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!

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. This is how I first came to find out about Ms Browne’s novels – whilst reconnecting with the author at Christmastime as we have kept up with each other through my bi-monthly chat (@SatBookChat) or outside of it; Ms Browne offered to send me a copy of ‘The Rest of my Life’ to read in the New Year. I had learnt through our conversation she has moved from ChocLit to Bookouture – the publisher I happily hosted a series of author interviews for in 2016. Previously, I had received “Learning to Love” via ChocLit when Ms Browne was still with the publisher in 2017. This marks my second reading of a Contemporary Romance by Ms Browne.

I received a complimentary copy of “The Rest of my Life” from the author Sheryl Browne in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I was interested in reading ‘The Rest of my Life’:

I had initially intended to read this novel ahead of ‘Learning to Love’ but as fates would intervene, I read them out of sequence as this one was the debut novel for Ms Browne with ChocLit. As I awaited the novels to be released in print, I happily celebrated them being released on Jorie Loves A Story whilst finding myself smitten with her writing life as she would share snippets of her bookish and writerly joy via #ChocLitSaturday which has now become re-named #SatBookChat in 2018. Through the convos and exchanges in our then weekly chat, I garnished an appreciation for Ms Browne’s writing style and the ways in which she develops her stories – I had a sinking feeling I was going to become wickedly delighted by what I’d find inside her Romances!

On the other hand, I also knew – from what I gleamed in our convos her intensified & grisly Crime Thrillers were not my cuppa. Hence why I am positively thrilled she loves to write heart-centred Contemporary stories befitting all readers who love reading both Romance & Women’s Fiction as to me, her novels are a smashing example of how you can write a hybrid styling of a story which can happily reside in both designations! She emotes the drama of real life with realistic characters and back-stories into the very fabric of her Contemporaries. You feel every raw emotion as her characters do whilst you walk away with your ruminative thoughts.

What I appreciated the most about the trailer is that it sets the story up for a curious reader as it’s a story where redemptive qualities in a flawed approach to life and romance can be re-approached differently when you meet someone quite unexpectedly right for you. I like how the bloke in the story is very atypical of a classic choice for a woman seeking romance; who purposely would find a womanizing fool?

It’s a turning of the tables for both of them; each of them has a burdened and/or difficult set of emotional baggage to shift through in order to make their relationship work – if there is a relationship to build upon and that provides the drama which lights the fuell of curiosity to read it!

I will be quite keen to see which direction Ms Browne leads us to go forth from here!

-quoted from my Book Spotlight for “The Rest of my Life”

For these reasons, I was delightfully humbled and happily surprised Ms Browne offered to send me The Rest of my Life – as with her transition to Bookouture, I knew it would be a considerable time until I could get to read this novel. Thus, I was truly blessed I could read it so early-on in the New Year. I am simply drawn to certain kinds of stories at certain moments and I knew it was time to read this second, er, first novel by Ms Browne! There is just something about her style of writing I feel I can attach my heart inside and for this, I am truly thankful I crossed paths with her on the beginning leg of her writerly career! I’ll be cheering from the sidelines now as she continues onward & upward with Bookouture!

On my connection to the author:

I happily have had the pleasure of interacting with Ms Browne through #SatBookChat (previously #ChocLitSaturday) the chat off/on for the past two years (or thereabouts). She is a delightful presence to have in the chats and I am thankful she found a niche where she felt comfortable chattering with fellow ChocLit authors, Romance novelists, book bloggers, readers, and other bookishly chatty spirits who alight on Saturdays!

I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with her ahead of reading her novels. I treat each book as a ‘new experience’, whether I personally know the author OR whether I am reading a book by them for the first time. This is also true when I follow-up with them on future releases and celebrate the book birthdays that come after their initial publication.

Learning to Love
Subtitle: When is it time to stop running?
by Sheryl Browne
Illustrator/Cover Designer: Berni Stevens
Source: Direct from Author

You can’t run away from commitment forever…

Adam Hamilton-Shaw has more reason than most to avoid commitment. Living on a houseboat in the Severn Valley, his dream is to sail into the sunset – preferably with a woman waiting in every port. But lately, his life looks more like a road to destruction than an idyllic boat ride…

Would-be screenplay writer Sienna Meadows realises that everything about Adam spells trouble – but she can’t ignore the feeling that there is more to him than just his bad reputation. Nor can she ignore the intense physical attraction that exists between them.

And it just so happens that Adam sees Sienna as the kind of woman he could commit to. But can he change his damaging behaviour – or is the road to destruction a one-way street?

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Find on Book Browse

Book Page on World Weaver Press

ISBN: 9781781892800

Also by this author: The Rest of my Life Cover Reveal, Learning to Love Cover Reveal, Learning to Love

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense, Women's Fiction

Published by ChocLitUK

on 21st April, 2016

Format: UK Edition Paperback

Pages: 352

In regards to the ‘heat’ of sensuality & sexuality explored in this novel, I felt I ought to let my readers know this one was at the upper tier of where I think Romance can almost be blurring the lines for what it can encompass, therefore for me personally, it was at the highest end.

Published by: ChocLitUK (@ChocLituk)

Available Formats: Paperback & E-Book

Ms Browne’s ChocLit Contemporary Roms:

The Rest of my Life (see also Cover Reveal w/ Notes)

Learning to Love (see also Cover Reveal w/ Notes) & (see also Review)

Converse via: #Contemporary #Romance + #ChocLit

Posted Saturday, 17 February, 2018 by jorielov in A Father's Heart, Adulterous Affair, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host & Reviewer, British Literature, Child out of Wedlock, ChocLitSaturdays, ChocLitUK, Contemporary Romance, Content Note, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Domestic Violence, England, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Fly in the Ointment, Green-Minded Publishers, Grief & Anguish of Guilt, Indie Author, Life Shift, Mental Health, Modern British Author, Modern British Literature, Modern Day, PTSD, Realistic Fiction, Romance Fiction, Romantic Suspense, Second Chance Love, Small Towne Fiction, Vulgarity in Literature, Women's Fiction, Women's Health

Author Guest Post | Jorie pitches a topic to Jackie Ladbury to better understand her character, Sapphire in her latest release “The Magic of Stars”!

Posted Tuesday, 30 January, 2018 by jorielov Jackie Ladbury, The Magic of Stars 0 Comments

Author Guest Post Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts!

As you might remember, I started hosting for Rachel’s Random Resources as [2017] was about to fold into [2018] whilst happily *celebrating!* the New Year with my first Mills & Boon Historical reading wherein I found I truly appreciated finding the writing style of Ms Catherine Tinley!

Today, I am spotlighting a Digital First release which I do hope goes into a print run in the future – allowing me to ‘meet it’ against the page properly – however, until the day arrives where it is released into more formats outside it’s digital debut, I wanted to ask the author a topic which would seek to better understand her character & the motivations of her character to grow through the journey she undertakes in this novel.

When I first read the premise – I was quite taken by the circumstances, as it’s not your traditional set-up and queue for a Rom Com nor for a Contemporary Romance novel – it has a few right angles inside it where you could see the character Sapphire truly has to sort out her life, put to rights the misunderstandings others have on her behalf and somehow, through it all in the end, find a reason to still have hope within her life for a happier ending than the rocky beginning she’s undertaken.

Lately, I have been keeping my eye out for Contemporary Romances and Contemporary Women’s Fiction stories – including those like Sapphire which might not be stories I might readily have sought out in the past, but ones I felt I might enjoy now in the present. When it comes to Contemporary stories, I tend to vacillate which ones I want to read because I’m quite particular about the kinds I enjoy reading. This one seemed to have something unique within it’s pages and therefore, I enjoyed assembling the guest feature for Ms Ladbury on today’s tour stop!

I hope if your a visitor through the tour route you’ll take a kind moment to leave the author a comment or question in the threads below; especially if this is a title you were considering to read yourself?

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Author Guest Post | Jorie pitches a topic to Jackie Ladbury to better understand her character, Sapphire in her latest release “The Magic of Stars”! The Magic of the Stars
Subtitle: Sometimes all you need is a little starlight to guide you home.
by Jackie Ladbury

Sapphire Montrose always felt like a loser in the struggle of life, but when she becomes the airline manager of a run-down airline she starts to believe she is a winner – until she unwittingly propositions her new boss and all her hard work is undone.

In a moment of recklessness air stewardess, Sapphire Montrose throws caution and her dress to the wind by propositioning a handsome stranger in a hotel in Florence, only to find herself waking up alone and embarrassed in her hotel room.

Unfortunately for Sapphire, it turns out that her new boss, Marco Cavarelli, is the man she failed to seduce and she is now fighting for her job and her self-respect when he tells her there is no place in his revamped airline for an alcoholic woman with lascivious tendencies. To make matters worse she is increasingly attracted to him and he seems to be giving out the same vibes. Or is he simply testing her? One wrong move could be the end of her career. But what if he really is offering love – and is he worth the risk?

Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Contemporary Romance

on 1st January, 2018

This is a Digital First Release | one which I hope goes into print!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Topic I selected to ask the Author:

What do you think grieved Sapphire the most for being impulsive rather than cautious when it came to having a fling with an unknown suitor especially in regards to when his true identity (as her boss) was revealed? Do you think this experience altered her perception about herself or how others are quick to judge her out of turn? What do you think changed her the most through this ordeal?

Posted Tuesday, 30 January, 2018 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host & Reviewer, Rachel's Random Resources, Reader Submitted Guest Post (Topic) for Author, Women's Fiction

Book Review | “His One and Only Bride” (The Business of Weddings series, Book Six) by Tara Randel A series by #HarlequinHeartwarming

Posted Thursday, 25 January, 2018 by jorielov Brenda S. Anderson, Harlequin Books, Harlequin Heartwarming, His One and Only Bride, Mary McNear, Sheryl Browne, Tara Randel, The Business of Weddings series 0 Comments

Acquired Book By: I started hosting with Prism Book Tours at the end of [2017], having noticed the badge on Tressa’s blog (Wishful Endings) whilst I was visiting as we would partake in the same blog tours and/or book blogosphere memes. I had to put the memes on hold for several months (until I started to resume them (with Top Ten Tuesday) in January 2018). When I enquried about hosting for Prism, I found I liked the niche of authors and stories they were featuring regularly. I am unsure how many books I’ll review for them as most are offered digitally rather than in print but this happily marks one of the blog tours where I could receive a print book for review purposes. Oft-times you’ll find Prism Book Tours alighting on my blog through the series of guest features and spotlights with notes I’ll be hosting on behalf of their authors.

I received a complimentary copy of “His One and Only Bride” direct from the author Tara Randel in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I was intrigued by this story-line:

I truly love wedding stories – when I caught sight of this title, I was instantly hooked – as I perused the synopsis this felt like the kind of story I needed right now. I was recovering from my virus (a three week affair, plus one week to recover my energy, focus and stamina!) when I first spied this blog tour – which is why unexpectedly I made a bit of a blunderment! This is a series in-progress! In fact, I originally thought this was the fifth book in the series but it turns out, it’s the *sixth!* and final story to anchour the ENTIRE Business of Weddings series together! Oy vie. As I mentioned in this tweet – sometimes a girl just needs to be #amreading!

Which was my way of overstating the obvious – I have missed being curled up inside stories these past four weeks with reckless abandon! I’ve only been able to dip my toes into a few novels, two suspenseful audiobooks and partially re-listened to a Cosy Mystery audiobook I’m finishing this week. I simply couldn’t focus on reading or dissecting what I was reading with any kind of regularity until after I recovered. Finding myself struck down by a migraine this past weekend (of the 20^th) was not exactly the step ‘forward’ I was hoping to have this side of the virus! Mind you, I wasn’t even going to attempt to read too much Non-Fiction (despite my shelves leaning in this direction!) as those take a bit more attention as I like to read those titles whilst analysing them from a different perspective altogether! Expect more of those kinds of ruminations sprinkled throughout the coming month of February and well into Spring!

However, despite the lows of spending most of the first month of the New Year quite muddled in health woes – I did capture a happy spirit for a few lovely exchanges of convo and delightful discoveries on Twitter! I even hosted my first Romance + Women’s Fiction chat of the year: @SatBookChat which happily has started on good footing for bringing readers and writers together! (smiles) On the foot-heels of this good news, I am thankful I can start resuming my Romantic Reads – as I do love a wonderfully light Rom, a historically intriguing Romance, a mind-tingling Rom Suspense or a dramatic Women’s Fiction story to thread through my yearly reads!

It is true – I do have a keen preference for reading serial fiction in order of sequence, except for when I make a gaffe like this and recognise sometimes it’s okay to read them ‘out of order’! Laughs with mirth. Part of the reason I think I have trouble discerning which novel is in sequence is because these are not always exclusively marketed by their sequencing – meaning, oft-times I do try to source their origins and numerical sequencing but still find myself falling a bit short of knowing ‘which came first’ and ‘which should I read next’! I wonder if there is a repository for all Harlequin (and Mills & Boon) titles in a database which catalogues their serial fiction?

Ironically or not, I also notice a bit of a pattern here – for the Harlequin and Mills & Boon novels I’ve been reading of late, I’ve been reading them ALL out of sequence! *le sigh* Apparently I keep ‘leaping’ before I double-check which book is in which order of their individual series! The only happy bit, of course, is being able to re-find these lovelies through my local library, inter-library loan and used book shoppes – as not all of these are kept in print past their initial print runs! More adventure for the bookish girl who loves a ready challenge in gathering books in sequence! Ha!

His One and Only Bride
Subtitle: The Business of Weddings
by Tara Randel
Source: Author via Prism Book Tours

He never thought he’d see her again!

After being reported missing, presumed dead, globe-hopping photojournalist Mitch Simmons never thought he’d see his estranged wife, Zoe, again. Yet here he is back in their coastal Florida town, where Zoe is mayor. Turns out she isn’t the only one he left behind.

Discovering he has a baby son awakens thrilling new emotions in Mitch. And there are his still-powerful feelings for the high school sweetheart he vowed to love and honor forever. Thankfully, they’ll have the chance to find the love that was always there…

Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1-335-63346-0

Also by this author: His Honor, Her Family

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Contemporary Romance, Foodie Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Romance Fiction, Suspense

Published by Harlequin Heartwarming

on 1st January, 2017

Format: Larger Print (Mass Market Paperback)

Pages: 384

Published by: Harlequin Heartwarming

Converse via: #Contemporary + #Romance and #HarlequinHeartwarming

The Business of Weddings Series:

Magnolia Bride | Book One | Synopsis

Orange Blossom Brides | Book Two | Synopsis

Honeysuckle Bride | Book Three | Synopsis

The Bridal Bouquet | Book Four | Synopsis

The Wedding March | Book Five | Synopsis

Read Excerpts via the author’s site

About Tara Randel

USA Today Bestselling Author Tara Randel has enjoyed a lifelong love of books, especially romance and mystery genres, so it didn't come as a surprise when she began writing with the dream of becoming published. Family values, mystery and, of course, love and romance are her favorite themes, because she believes love is the greatest gift of all. Tara lives on the West Coast of Florida, where gorgeous sunsets inspire the creation of heartwarming stories, filled with love, laughter and the occasional mystery.