[Official Blurb] Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature / weekly meme created by The Broke & the Bookish. The meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke & the Bookish. We’d love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your Top 10 Lists! In January, 2018 this meme is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.
[Topic of 28th January, 2020:
The Top Ten Most Anticipated New Releases for 2020! (thus far!);
Today’s entry was inspiring to me for the following reasons:
I’ve been wanting to showcase the STORIES I’ve had my eye on reading for quite a few years now; as each New Year when #TopTenTuesday is hosting one of these lovelies, I’ve wanted to dive into the topic and settle my thoughts on a selection of stories I would most desire to read or would be planning to read in the timeline of the topic’s originating post.
This year is quite special as I came to find out about several #newbooks by already beloved authors which are coming out in early 2020. Some are #newtomeauthors carried forward from [2019] and others are #newtomeauthors arriving in my bookish life in [2020!]; uniquely enough! (big smiles) Several are past, present & forthcoming featured guests on @SatBookChat (the Romance & Women’s Fiction chat I host on Saturdays semi-weekly – at least twice monthly) – whilst one release in particular is a celebration of one author’s adventurous journey in Japan whilst healing and recovering from Cancer.
Each of these stories attracted my eyes for different reasons – which I’ll be happily discussing and revealling throughout the post. Kindly let me know in the comments if I’ve struck your own keen eye of interest and if perhaps we share any mutual #mustreads for 2020 in common OR have any authors we share in our readerly lives we’ve previously discovered!?
I’ll be re-routing through the original post for #TopTenTuesday when this topic originated whilst including it on this week’s linky for everyone to seek out to find.
Let’s all have a rockin’ blast this first half of 2020!
Stay bookishly curious
& may your readerly adventures be as blissful as my own!
DUE NOTE: all the authors and books on this list are a combination of the stories I have the pleasure of meeting as a book blogger (ie. blog tours, publicists, publishers or direct from authors themselves) with the exception of Kate Elliott, of whom I discovered as a seventeen year old who joined the Science Fiction Book Club (it was mail-order book catalogue club) and found “King’s Dragon” (Book One of the Crown of Stars Saga). Two of these authors are #newtomeauthors – both of whom are upcoming guests during @SatBookChat – Jenni Fletcher and Emma S. Jackson.
Each of the books represented here are stories I hand-picked to be of interest to my own readerly wanderings this first half of 2020 – the press materials featured were given to me to use on this post to celebrate the stories themselve with full permission of the authors who wrote the stories.
In regards to my personal connections to these authors, I have maintained contact with Kate Elliott off/on via Twitter whilst keeping my eyes on her current series and releases; inasmuch as the fact that I had the pleasure of getting to know certain ChocLit authors as we communicated and shared our bookish and writerly lives through my chat (@SatBookChat) – Christina Courtenay, Clare Chase and Janet Gover. With Ms Kaine, I have tried to keep in the loop with her releases but I haven’t had the chance to interact with her as much as the other writers I’ve mentioned.
Susan Spann and Jennifer Silverwood I’ve considered friends over the years where their path and mine have continued to cross. I originally met Ms Spann in @LitChat before reading the very first Shinobi Mystery which was “Claws of the Cat”. Silverwood and I have the same literary wanderings and interests as fellow readers and writers which is why we forged a friendship due to so many mutual interests we have shared. Ms Bacarr and I remained in contact between my first meeting with her during #HistFicChat and after I had read her novel “Christmas Once Again” – happily having her as a featured guest on @SatBookChat this past November, 2019.
I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with these authors through our respective love & passion of reading inside the twitterverse whilst I host #SatBookChat and having previously read their stories. 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 or continuing to read their releases as they are available. This also applies to when I am discussing their stories outside of featuring a review.
The Lawson Sisters by Janet Gover
20th January, 2020 (Digital First Release)
A heartfelt and compelling story of family, secrets and second chances, set in the heart of the beautiful Hunter Valley of NSW, from an award-winning voice in Australian fiction.
Family, fortune and holding on to what counts…
For many years Elizabeth Lawson has battled single-handedly to run the family’s historic horse stud in memory of her beloved father. But a devastating loss puts her dreams at risk. With no options left, Liz is forced to turn to her estranged sister Kayla for help.
Kayla has built a new life in the city as a wedding planner, far removed from the stable yard sweat and dust of her rural upbringing. She never thought she’d go back. But when Liz calls out of the blue, Kayla forms a plan that could save their childhood home.
Kayla’s return forces Liz to confront her past … and her future, in the shape of Mitch, her first and only love, who still watches over her from the other side of the creek.
But Liz still hides a terrible secret. When Kayla learns the truth, will the Lawson sisters find common ground or will their conflict splinter the family once again?
I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! HFVBTs is one of the very first touring companies I started working with as a 1st Year Book Blogger – uniting my love and passion with Historical Fiction and the lovely sub-genres inside which I love devouring.
It has been a wicked fantastical journey into the heart of the historic past, wherein I’ve been blessed truly by discovering new timescapes, new living realities of the persons who once lived (ie. Biographical Historical Fiction) inasmuch as itched my healthy appetite for Cosy Historical Mysteries! If there is a #HistRom out there it is generally a beloved favourite and I love soaking into a wicked wonderful work of Historical Fiction where you feel the beauty of the historic world, the depth of the characters and the joyfulness in which the historical novelists brought everything to light in such a lovingly diverse palette of portraiture of the eras we become time travellers through their stories.
I received a complimentary ARC copy of “Project Duchess” direct from the publisher Zebra Books (an imprint of Kensington Publishing), in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
On why this story appealled to me:
For readers & regular visitors of Jorie Loves A Story – you know that for most of the life of my blog I’ve been showcasing and reading Romances and/or Women’s Fiction on Saturdays –
I have been an avid and ardent reader of Historical Romances longer than I have been intrigued by Contemporary Romances – a choice which first started to enter my readerly life as a child as I was shy of the age of ten by a year or two when I read my first Regency Romance; set at Christmas and penned by Mary Jo Putney. This goes back to when they had those omnibus Regency Romances for Christmas!? I truly loved them – I was swept into the era and the fashions, alongside the characters of course who charmed me about the Regency overall. From there, I would continue to seek out Historical Romances – from the wilds of the West to more Regencies until I discovered the Victorian era of Romances; at which point my trajectory looked more like a ping pong table of rotation! Laughs with mirth.
What can I say? I love the historic past and although Margaret Kaine was one of the authors who solidified my admiration for the Edwardian era, I find myself musefully drawn back into Regencies!
This is why when I saw some Historical Romances going on tour this Summer, I thought why not? It has been quite a bit of time since I’ve soaked inside one and although I had heard of Sabrina Jeffries collective works, I must admit this was the first time I had the pleasure of reading one of them! I used to regularly read the Word Wenches blog and I’m sure in the back of my memories I am remembering seeing her name and stories pop up on their musings as well. She was definitely on my long list for books I need to be reading for #HistRom and it is a joy this Summer I finally had a chance to dive into one of her Regencies – especially one of the auspiciously brilliant launch of a new series! And, you *know!* how wicked addicted I become to serial fiction!!
From New York Times bestselling author Sabrina Jeffries comes a sparkling new series about an oft-widowed mother’s grown children, who blaze through society in their quest for the truth about their fathers . . . and in the process find that love just might conquer all . . .
A series of stepfathers and a difficult childhood have left Fletcher “Grey” Pryde, 5th Duke of Greycourt, with a guarded heart, enviable wealth, and the undeserved reputation of a rogue. Grey’s focus on expanding his dukedom allows him little time to find a wife. But when his mother is widowed yet again and he meets the charmingly unconventional woman managing his stepfather’s funeral, he’s shocked to discover how much they have in common. Still, Grey isn’t interested in love, no matter how pretty, or delightfully outspoken, the lady. . .
Beatrice Wolfe gave up on romance long ago, and the arrogant Duke of Greycourt with his rakish reputation isn’t exactly changing her mind. Then Grey agrees to assist his grief-stricken mother with her latest “project”: schooling spirited, unfashionable Beatrice for her debut. Now that Beatrice is seeing through Grey’s charms to his wounded heart, she’s having trouble keeping him at arm’s length. But once Grey starts digging into her family’s secrets, she must decide whether her loyalties lie with her family . . . or with the man whose lessons capture her heart . . .
Converse via: #HistoricalRomance OR #HistRom with #Regency
Read more about Sabrina Jeffries | Alyssa J. Montgomery’s blog
the Duke Dynasty series:
Project Duchess (book one) Beatrice’s story – 25th,June, 2019
A Perfect Match (novella) Cassandra’s story – 24th September, 2019
The Bachelor (book two) Gwyn’s story – 25th February, 2020
Available Formats: Mass Market Paperback, Ebook and Audiobook
About Sabrina Jeffries
Sabrina Jeffries is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 novels and works of short fiction (some written under the pseudonyms Deborah Martin and Deborah Nicholas).
Whatever time not spent writing in a coffee-fueled haze is spent traveling with her husband and adult autistic son or indulging in one of her passions—jigsaw puzzles, chocolate, and music. With over 9 million books in print in more than 20 languages, the North Carolina author never regrets tossing aside a budding career in academics for the sheer joy of writing fun fiction, and hopes that one day a book of hers will end up saving the world.
I truly would like to take a moment to thank everyone who has dropped by over the past week to *vote!* on the hour in which #ChocLitSaturdays the weekly Twitter chat will meet! I have appreciated your feedback and have had the difficult choice in sorting out what to trust more: the top vote cast in the Poll itself OR knowing the reality of the time zones! Therefore, let me break everything down and let you know how I came to my conclusion!
The final results of the Poll:
Screen Capture of Poll Results to determine #ChocLitSaturdays Twitter Chat Hour
And, therein lies the dilemma for me!
California | New York | London | Europe | Australia
8a | 11a | 4p | 5p | 1a = 30%
9a | Noon | 5p | 6p | 2a
10a | 1p | 6p | 7p | 3a = 15%
11a | 2p | 7p | 8p | 4a
1p | 4p | 9p | 10p | 6a
Noon | 3p | 8p | 9p | 5a
3p | 6p | 11p | Midnight | 8a
5p | 8p | 1a | 2a | 10a = 15%
Of the majority votes, my own personal inclination is to host #ChocLitSaturdays at either 11a OR 1p as it is more agreeable for my own time zone. Of the two choices, I cannot in my heart host the chat at 1p because asking someone in Australia or New Zealand to pop online after 3a in the morning is beyond inconsiderate! Moreso, I could theoretically yield to 11a as being a night owl (and many writers will agree with me!) 1a is not too late for a chat if you are regularly up past midnight!
On the flipside, as a lot of ChocLit authors are located in England, the reverse is equally plausible if the chat is held at 8p, as it would be 1a for them! My heart tells me that a more convenient hour for everyone concerned is actually going to be:
#ChocLitSaturdays Twitter Chat & Blog Feature of Jorie Loves A Story
My Inspiration for #ChocLitSaturdays Twitter Chat:
By uniting readers & writers alike in a conversation where we can talk about why we love Romance and the kind of stories which encourage our spirits & hearts, as much as give us a calming balm when we sit down to read. I know the chat will expand and grow as time shifts forward however, I’d love to invite ChocLit authors to drop in if they were available to do so, as much as welcome other writers to join in on the fun too! I see it as a celebration of Romance for all that Romance offers but at the same time have it a bit hinged to the book I am reviewing that particular Saturday and use the themes inside the novel as a jumping off point of what to talk about in the Romance field in general.
I have been wanting to incorporate what the tagline on my #ChocLitSaturdays badge declares: romance, chocolate, and a cuppa tea is simply divine on the weekends! I’d love to talk and share about our favourite bits of chocolate, romance reads, and which cuppa tea or tea latte works brilliantly with the book in our hands! I’d like to start off the chat with the focus on the recent ChocLit novel I read and then, segue from there to talk about the themes inside it before going into the Romance genre as a broad stroke of conversation. Again, I’d like to offer the authors of ChocLit a chance to drop in and converse with us as well.
And, I look forward to seeing you on the morrow: 26 April, 2014! We will be discussing the thematic complexity of “The Maid of Milan” as well as delving into how other romance writers have treated the same elements of psychological suspense & the depth of deceit. Be sure to read my book review ahead of joining in on the conversation as a ‘head’s up’! Thank you for your support!
The following is a guide to know when the book reviews will alight on my blog!
{Sources: #ChocLitSaturdays collage was created by Jorie in PicMonkey. Book Covers for ChocLit novels provided by ChocLitUK and used with permission. Jorie Loves A Story badge created by Ravven, with edits by Jorie in Fotoflexer. Screen capture of #ChocLitSaturdays Poll results via PollDaddy.com provided by keyboard shortcuts & edited in PicMonkey. #ChocLitSaturdays Twitter Chat Badge created by Jorie in PicMonkey.}
Whilst hosting #ChocLitSaturdays since January 2014, I have noticed that I would love to find a way to bring more awareness to the ChocLitUK novels I am reading & reviewing as much as I wanted to engage with romance readers who are seeking wicked sweet quality romances which are uplifting in scope, inspiring to read, and focus on the relationship side of romance rather than superficial lust and/or causal dating where the heart of the story is not hinged to the connection between the couple. I love ChocLit novels as much as I love the Inspirational Romances I read because they each in their own way give the reader a well-rounded story full of dynamic heroes and heroines who are just as strong as their male leads! I like the dimensional quality to the blokes and the way in which the stories are paced. I’ve been toying with hosting a weekly ‘chat’ on Twitter ever since I first started to discover weekly Twitter chats,… I love the community aspect of them & I love being able to connect to book bloggers, avid readers, emerging & new authors, writers working on manuscripts, and published authors who are receptive to chatting with the readers who adore their stories. I felt it would be a great bridge into my Saturday Feature as well as expand the knowledge of the feature itself. This is the short story of how it started to evolve,..
The idea to host a chat on Twitter on *Saturday* has been nibbling around my head for a little while now, not more than a week, but not a full seven days either! Then, inside #StoryDam tonight something quite magical happened as when I went to respond to a tweet within the conversation at hand, I somehow slipped this IDEA out into the open, and it felt like it was the right thing to do even though I was hesitating at the same time! For starters I had not run this past ChocLit yet, but I felt confident they would appreciate the gesture as in my mind the whole basis of the #ChocLitSaturdays chat would be to not only expand the knowledge of the books I am being blessed to read & review, but to incorporate a genuine love of reading *romance!*
By uniting readers & writers alike in a conversation where we can talk about why we love Romance and the kind of stories which encourage our spirits & hearts, as much as give us a calming balm when we sit down to read. I know the chat will expand and grow as time shifts forward however, I’d love to invite ChocLit authors to drop in if they were available to do so, as much as welcome other writers to join in on the fun too! I see it as a celebration of Romance for all that Romance offers but at the same time have it a bit hinged to the book I am reviewing that particular Saturday and use the themes inside the novel as a jumping off point of what to talk about in the Romance field in general.
I have been wanting to incorporate what the tagline on my #ChocLitSaturdays badge declares: romance, chocolate, and a cuppa tea is simply divine on the weekends! I’d love to talk and share about our favourite bits of chocolate, romance reads, and which cuppa tea or tea latte works brilliantly with the book in our hands! I’d like to start off the chat with the focus on the recent ChocLit novel I read and then, segue from there to talk about the themes inside it before going into the Romance genre as a broad stroke of conversation. Again, I’d like to offer the authors of ChocLit a chance to drop in and converse with us as well.
Everyone in #StoryDam & a few in #ChickLitChat tonight were encouraging me to think I was onto something with this idea, and therefore, I am launching this post as a way to get feedback before proceeding forward! I have written up a Poll on ideas for when I can host the chat but please, if your time zone is awkward to meet-up on the options I have given, in the comment threads I welcome feedback on which hours is best for everyone!
I also want you to take a moment in the comment threads to respond to my loosely conceived ideas & let me know if you would like to spend an hour with me on Saturdays talking about ChocLit, chocolate, tea, romance, heroes, heroines, and the joy of reading romance! Readers & writers will always be welcome but I’d love to keep the focus on reading romance and not turn this into a ‘how to write’ romance chat. We can always talk about the craft of writing as it organically evolves, as chats tend to organically go here or there naturally, but I simply meant, I wanted this to be from the reading point of view verse the writing perspective.
I am going to keep the Poll up for a week, but if enough of you respond by midnight Friday the 18th, I might surprise you and host my first #ChocLitSaturdayschat THIS Saturday! Go! Vote! Write me in the comment threads! Let’s pull this idea of mine together! Tweet & share this with your bookish friends! Help me get the word out and let’s see where this off the cuff idea of mine leads!
Be sure to read my contribution to Mailbox Mondays from the 14th,
First hour is EST USA | Second hour is England | After most votes are cast I might create a second as I had accidentally forgotten to account for the time differences! You’d think I’d remember the five hour time difference by now! Therefore, you can vote more than once, if you already voted cast a second hour you’d be available!
{SOURCES: Jorie Loves A Story badge created by Ravven with edits by Jorie in Fotoflexer. Book covers for ChocLitUK novels provided by ChocLitUK for promotion & reviews; used with permission. The collage of book covers & the notice for #ChocLitSaturdays was created by Jorie in PicMonkey.}
It is my pleasure to welcome Ms. Kaine to Jorie Loves A Story this Saturday, as I ask her questions revolving around her writing life and her Edwardian debut novel with ChocLitUK “Dangerous Decisions” of which was reviewed previously on 8th February, 2014!
I selected her novel as one of the first four *ChocLit* novels I would review on behalf of Indie Publisher ChocLit! My heart has become quite endeared focusing on ChocLit novels standing out from the crowd of romance on the market today; giving uplifting stories full of heart, soul, and strong relationship-based romances full of thoughtful narrative, intrigue mixed with suspense, joy, and the inertia of bliss when two hearts align towards a match!
I spoke about my affection for ChocLit throughout my first four ChocLitSaturdays feature showcases. However, it came to a bit of a head whilst spotlighting inspirational romance author Sandra Leesmith’s Cover Reveal. As I wanted to let inspirational readers know that there is this amazing Indie Pub (Publisher) in the mainstream who is knitting together gentle stories of love overcoming intense odds and whose stories lift my spirits in the same way as an inspiriational! Plus, it’s the dedication of the team behind ChocLit to bring quality stories to the forefront of romance readers that nearly makes me swoon each time I see a parcel arriving with new ‘ChocLit’ inbound!
Therefore, if you’re new to picking up a romance novel by this wicked sweet British Indie Press, I implore you to keep an eye on my hashtag #ChocLitSaturdays, to seek out when new novels will become featured here! Whilst you await the books perhaps reading over my notes and recollections of my previous selections will whet your thirst as well!?
Today, Ms. Kaine is going to be introducing us to her passion for writing historical romance set in the Edwardian era! Dear hearts, if you follow my Twitter feeds for JLAS, you might already be aware of my dedication to “Downton Abbey” up until this last series on Masterpiece Theatre where my heart for the series expired before the Christmas Special! Stories like Ms. Kaine give me new hope in finding writers who can unlock my joy of the Edwardian era in new ways, giving me a glimpse into the world lived both upstairs and downstairs outside the realm of Julian Fellowes.
Author Biography:
Born and educated in the Potteries in Staffordshire, Margaret Kaine now lives in Leicester. Her short stories have been published widely in women’s magazines in the UK, and also in Australia, Norway, South Africa and Ireland. Ring of Clay, her debut novel, won both the RNA’s New Writer’s Award in 2002 and the Society of Authors’ Sagittarius Prize in 2003. She has now published seven romantic sagas about life in Staffordshire between the 50’s and 70’s. Dangerous Decisions is Margaret’s debut novel with Choc Lit.
Project Duchess
