Book After Book

Publication: 17th July 2025 – Simon & Schuster UK

Lily Brown is ready to turn the page and see what adventure awaits . . .

Lily Brown prides herself on her organised, surprise-free life. Whether it’s charity yoga for polar bears or crafting a ninety-six-piece balloon arch, Lily always goes the extra mile. But when her adoptive father asks her to reconnect with her birth mother, Lola Starr – a legendary pop punk singer who vanished from fame – Lily decides to venture off the well-trodden path.

With her best friend Seb, Lily tracks Lola to her humble hotel on the beautiful Isle of Skye in Scotland, far from the glamorous life she imagined. Hiding the truth, Lily gets to know Lola and finds a kind, free-spirited woman. If life wasn’t complicated enough – she meets Noah, a charming travel writer on a quest to discover hidden gems.  
As Lily takes a chance and embraces new possibilities, she begins to question whether the safe rules she’s built her life around are what she really needs.

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The Next Chapter is a beautiful and entertaining novel about second chances and facing the past. Lily Brown is a fantastic protagonist: funny, smart, and genuine, she is a fan of to-do lists, making plans, and eating super healthy. She is on numerous Whatsapp groups, she is looking for a stable and boring relationship and no surprises. However, her life is about to be full of surprises, when she finds a letter from her late adoptive father asking her to go and meet her birth mother, Lola Starr, a former rock star who disappeared from the music scene thirty years ago, around the time she was born. Convincing herself that she just wants to persuade Lola to let her write her memoir (which will also save her company), Lily and her best friend Seb travel to the Isle of Skye where Lola runs a hotel. Here, Lily not only will have the chance to connect with the woman she spent her entire life wondering about, but also it’s her opportunity to discover more about herself.

At times hilarious, at times emotional and heartwarming, I really enjoyed The Next Chapter. There is romance and comedy, found family and friendship, and also a new one for me, fake siblings, all framed in the beautiful setting of Scotland. The cast of characters is wonderful and authentic. On the Isle of Skye, Lola is not the only person that Lily will have to face. There is also Noah, the handsome and adventurous travel writer who convinces Lily to go on a motorbike and hike mountains even though Lily doesn’t have an adventurous bone in her body, so this creates some quite hilarious scenes, and Harper, the troubled teenager on holiday with her foster parents. The Next Chapter is a witty, immersive, and charming read that kept me immersed from the first to the last page!

A huge thank you to SJV and Simon & Schuster UK for inviting me to the blog tour and providing me with a proof of this wonderful novel.

Rebecca Ryan is the author of My (extra)Ordinary Life, The Philosophy of Love and The Next Chapter, although she can’t quite believe that she’s written three whole books. She left a career in teaching to pursue writing full time, and now mostly spends her days making up stories, replying to emails from her children’s school, or killing off brain cells watching reels on Instagram. Rebecca lives in Bradford with her three children, no small number of notebooks and an expansive collection of scatter cushions. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Publication: 17th July 2025 – Hodderscape

What if love is the best magic of all?

A witch has a second chance to get her magical powers – and her life back on track in this feel-good, whimsical new cosy fantasy from the author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

Once, Sera Swan was one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her powers, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her Guild. Now she helps Jasmine run an enchanted inn in Lancashire, where she deals with their quirky guests’ shenanigans and longs for a future that seems lost. Until she finds about an old spell that could restore her power . . .

Enter Luke Larsen, handsome magical historian, who might have the key to unlocking the spell’s secrets. Luke has no interest in the inn’s madcap goings-on, and is even less interested in letting a certain bewitching innkeeper past his walls. So no one is more surprised than he is when he agrees to help.

Running an inn, reclaiming lost power, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera is about to discover she doesn’t have to do alone – and that love might be the best magic of all.

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It’s been a long wait for this book, but it was worth it. After adoring The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, I have been waiting for the author’s new book and I wasn’t disappointed. A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping is another fantastic story of magic, found family, and second chances.

The story is well-developed, heartwarming, and immersive, but what I love most about this book is the cast of unique and adorable characters who live at the inn. The protagonist, Sera Swan, was once a witch prodigy until, when she was fifteen years old, she performed forbidden magic and she was not only banned from the Guild of witches, but also shunned from the entire magic world. Now, fifteen years later, Sera has been running, together with her great-aunt Jasmine, an inn that welcomes only the people who are in need. Amongst those there is Matilda, devoted to her vegetables and determined to convince Sera to adopt goats; Nicholas, who wears his knight costume even when he is not working at the medieval fair; Theo, Sera’s 11-year-old cousin from Reykyavic who moved to England because his parents couldn’t handle his magic; Clemmie, a witch trapped into the body of a fox who hopes that Sera will find a way to free her; and Luke, the handsome and grumpy magical historian, who arrives at the inn with his sister Posy intending to stay only for one night, but who can’t seem to be able to leave. Each character has their own story and their development, especially Sera who will have to come to terms with the decisions she made when she was only a teenager, but that have affected her whole life.

I so enjoyed A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping that I read it in one day. It’s witty, charming, and entertaining, there is a slow-burn romance that is not central to the story, but that still captured me, a fantastic magical setting, and a resurrected rooster that created quite a few hilarious scenes.

A huge thank you to Hodderscape and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this fantastic novel.

Sangu Mandanna is the author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, Kiki Kallira Breaks a Kingdom, and other novels about magic, monsters and myths. She lives in Norwich with her husband and kids.

Publication: 14th July 2025 – Boldwood Books

Paris, 1928: Agatha Christie and fellow writer Dorothy L Sayers board the Orient Express, bound for Constantinople. Christie in particular is looking forward to a break from recent dispiriting events in both her work and private life – the finalisation of her divorce from her philanderous husband Archie, and the miserly reception of her latest book.

But before the duo can settle in to enjoy the luxuries of their first-class journey, their journey is derailed when a fellow guest drops dead during the dinner service. And as the last person to speak to the victim, Dorothy finds herself a prime suspect in his murder.

As the train hurtles East, Sayers’ resourceful assistant Eliza and her friend Theo must navigate a maze of suspects. But with each passing mile, the stakes rise, and when another body is discovered, their search to find the killer before they reach their destination becomes increasingly complicated.

Can Eliza and Theo stay one step ahead, crack the mystery and clear Dorothy’s name? Or will this be one journey too far for the amateur sleuths?

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What attracted me first and foremost about this novel is that two of the characters are also two of my favourite real-life authors: Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers. A few years ago, I read and enjoyed all Agatha Christie’s novels and now I am reading the entire Peter Wimsey series by Dorothy L. Sayers and I am loving it. Also, the story is about a murder on the Orient Express (and Murder on the Orient Express is one of my favourite novels), so I knew I had to read it and I wasn’t disappointed.

Even though Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers have an important part inside the story, they are not the protagonists. The protagonists are Eliza Baker, former Scotland Yard detective, now Dorothy’s secretary, and Theo Sharpe, struggling author and occasional train steward. The Case of the Body on the Orient Express is the second book in the Detection Club series, and, although it can easily be read as a stand-alone, we know that Eliza and Theo have a past and the two of them haven’t seen each other in two years, leaving many feelings unresolved. However, it’s the murder on the train that is the focus of the story, as they team up to find out who killed someone from Dorothy’s past, why and how.

This was an entertaining and compelling read. There is mystery, intrigue, blackmail, criminal organizations, spies, interesting characters, especially Eliza and Theo. They are adorably obsessed with each other and I can’t wait to read how their story progresses. I am also looking forward to reading more about the mystery, because, even though the murder investigation is solved, there are still many things left open that make me quite excited for book 3!

A huge thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this fantastic novel.

Kelly Oliver is the award-winning, bestselling author of three mysteries series: The Jessica James Mysteries, The Pet Detective Mysteries, and the historical cozies The Fiona Figg Mysteries, set in WW1. She is also the Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University and lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Publication: 3rd July 2025 – Simon & Schuster UK

A party at sunset. A body at sunrise.

What happened that night in the woods?

ELLIE
When the body of a young woman is discovered in the woods the morning after Halloween, arranged with ritualistic precision, teenager Ellie has more reason than most to be afraid …

RACHEL
 As both Ellie’s mum and the local school counsellor, Rachel, must grapple with the terror gripping the community, a tough job that’s made even harder when she realises her daughter is keeping secrets …

BEN
Police detective Ben Chase is desperate to solve the murder, but with his daughter Ellie struggling and the noose circling ever tighter, can he catch the killer before they strike again?

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One Dark Night was, for me, quite a gripping and intense story. I read it in two sittings, quite absorbed in the story, the characters, and the atmosphere.

First of all, I loved that the story is told from different perspectives: from the teenager who never feels quite at ease in her new exclusive school and who is still dealing with her parents’ divorce; from the detective in charge of the murder investigation who finds himself questioning not only if his own daughter is involved, but also the life choices that brought him to his present situation; to the school counselor who is worried about her own daughter and her students and wonders if someone, in that beautiful school, is involved in the murder.

The plot is dark, suspenseful and full of twists. There are legends of haunted woods and ghosts, an Halloween party in the woods that ends with the school’s popular girl found murdered and covered in symbols the next morning, a complex murder investigation that turns personal for the detective in charge, two parents worried about their daughter, and teenagers keeping secrets. Also, I loved the dark atmosphere, the vivid descriptions, and the sense of dread that fills every page. I couldn’t put it down! 

One Dark Night is my first novel by Hannah Richell, but she is definitely an author I will keep following. I loved her writing style and her complex characters and how she develops the story and keeps me on edge as I am reading. Highly recommended!

A huge thank you to Simon & Schuster UK and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this gripping novel.

Hannah Richell was born in Kent and spent her childhood years in Buckinghamshire and Canada. After graduating from the University of Nottingham, she worked in the book publishing and film industries in both London and Sydney. She is a dual citizen of Great Britain and Australia, and currently lives in the South West of England with her family. Richell is the author of international bestsellers Secrets of the Tides (2012), The Shadow Year (2014), The Peacock Summer (2019) and The River Home (2020). Her work has been translated into twenty-one languages.

Publication: 19th June 2025 – Storm Publishing

A dead body in the study, a terrible wrong to put right, and a trail that leads to murder…

London, 1928. Mystery writer and amateur detective Marius Quin is reeling from his friend’s murder in his own home. Forced to stay away from the case, he’s in urgent need of distraction when fate points him towards Felicity Mortimer, a woman imprisoned for poisoning her husband fifteen years earlier.

Marius soon becomes convinced of Felicity’s innocence, and when he discovers a key witness with his throat cut, it’s clear that the real killer is still on the loose. Determined to uncover the truth, Marius drags his partner-in-crime-solving, Lady Bella Montague, (not to forget his basset hound, Percy) to a manor house deep within the New Forest. But what dark secrets are concealed at the picturesque estate where Felicity once lived?

As their search for answers stirs up more violence, can Marius and Bella expose a deadly plot before death stalks the halls of Rhinefield House… again?

A captivating and atmospheric 1920s mystery that will delight fans of Agatha Christie, T E Kinsey, and Lee Strauss.

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I have been reading the Marius Quin Mystery series since the first book and I am always looking forward to a new adventure, but I was especially excited about this fifth book because of the ending of the fourth book, A Body at the Grand Hotel. Mystery author and occasional private detective Marius Quin is back for another investigation together with his friend and former girlfriend Lady Bella Montague and his basset hound, Percy. However, following the shocking discovery at the end of the previous book (no spoiler!), the atmosphere is filled with tension and grief. 

Their new case is a fifteen-year-old murder in which a young woman was accused of poisoning her older husband. She was sentenced to prison, but Marius is convinced of her innocence and is determined to find out the truth. The mystery was quite intriguing and the author informs us that he was inspired by the real case of Florence Maybrick at the end of the 19th century, of which he gives us a detailed and interesting summary at the end of the book.

I adore this series. The writing style is entertaining and addictive and the characters are always interesting and well-developed. As always, Marius is endearing and witty, Lady Bella flawlessly manages every situation, and Percy is his usual adorable self.

Fast-paced, clever, and with a plot full of twists, Arsenic and Old Lies is another winner for me and with yet another ending that left me looking forward to the next book!

A huge thank you to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this fantastic novel.

I’m a Welsh-Irish-Englishman originally from South London but now living in Burgos, a beautiful medieval city in the north of Spain, with my French-Spanish wife and two our ridiculously international children. Writing has always been my passion. It was my favourite half-an-hour a week at primary school, and I started on my first, truly abysmal book as a teenager. So it wasn’t a difficult decision to study literature at university which led to an MA in Creative Writing.I grew up in a crime-fiction-mad family and had made a few clumsy attempts at writing one over the years before coming up with the idea for my contemporary whodunits “The Izzy Palmer Mysteries”. My second series, the 1920s-set “Lord Edgington Investigates…”, has been a great success, with each of the books making a mark on the mystery charts, and I’m about to launch a second historical series.If you’d like to tell me what you think about my detectives, my writing or the world at large, feel free to get in touch at www.benedictbrown.net where you can also download my free mystery novellas.

Publication: 3rd July 2025 – Hemlock Press

Met detective Eden Driscoll never wanted a child, but when his estranged sister vanishes from her sailboat, he is asked to look after her son Finn – the nephew he hadn’t even known existed.

Resettled in the seaside town of Teignmouth, Eden adjusts to his newfound parenthood. Then Finn disappears from school, and Eden knows something is dreadfully wrong.

When Eden’s sister’s body is finally found, floating in the sea, local police rule her death an accident, but Eden isn’t convinced. She was an experienced sailor and would never sail without a life jacket. Eden starts searching his sister’s life for answers, and what he discovers changes everything.

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The Red Shore is my first novel by William Shaw and it will not be my last. I read it in two days (unfortunately, work got in the way) and I loved it so much. The atmospheric setting, the complex and authentic characters, the twisty and suspenseful story, and the addictive writing kept me glued to the pages.

The protagonist of the novel is Police DS Eden Driscoll whose childhood and upbringing was as intriguing and intense as the mystery he must solve. At the beginning, he is a bit of a mystery, but slowly his past and his own character are revealed as he is called to the Devon seaside village of Teignmouth to take care of Finn, the nine-year-old nephew he didn’t know he had, following his estranged sister’s sudden disappearance. Eden hasn’t seen his sister, Apple, in more than 12 years, but when she disappears in the middle of the night while out in the sea with her boat, leaving behind her son, Eden not only must figure out what happened to her, but also take care of Finn, which is not an easy feat when Eden doesn’t want to be a parent and the only thing that Finn wants is his own mother.

The mystery of Apple’s disappearance kept me completely intrigued and the fact that almost every chapter ended with some kind of surprise or twist didn’t make it easy to stop reading it. I also loved the relationship between Eden and Finn: it’s difficult from the start, but I loved how Eden makes an effort to be there for Finn, even when Finn keeps pushing him away, and how their relationship develops.

I am hoping The Red Shore is going to be the first of a series featuring Eden Driscoll, and hopefully even Finn, and I am looking forward to reading more books by this author!

A huge thank you to Hemlock Press and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this fantastic novel.

William Shaw has been a journalist, writing for the Observer, New York Times and Wired, among others. He has written over 10 crime novels and has been shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger, longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year and nominated for a Barry Award. His new series features DI Eden Driscoll, and is set in Devon

Publication: 3rd July 2025 – Simon & Schuster UK

Their story might be scripted, but the chemistry is real.

When Cynthie Taylor gets her first real acting job, starring in a small British movie, she is over the moon. There’s only one problem . . . Cynthie’s arrogant and annoyingly handsome co-star Jack hates her, and the feeling is definitely mutual. While they may be at war behind the scenes, their on-screen chemistry is palpable, and the studio sees an opportunity – have the two young stars fake a romance that will charm fans and draw crowds.

Thirteen years later, Cynthie and Jack have successfully kept their promise to stay far away from one another, until a surprising offer comes to make a sequel to the cult classic that launched their careers. But there’s a catch: they must also rekindle their pretend relationship . . . and this time there’s a documentary crew following their every move.

Cynthie and Jack both desperately need this film to work, but can two ex-rivals ever really trust each other? And what happens when the roles they’re playing start to feel all too real?

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It’s my turn on the blog tour for Let’s Make A Scene, the incredible new novel by Laura Wood.

I first started reading Laura Wood through her YA historical novels which I enjoyed very much, but her adult novels made her one of my favourite authors, first with Clemmie and Theo’s beautiful love story in Under Your Spell and now with Let’s Make A Scene. It’s been a few days since I’ve finished reading it and I am still thinking about not only Cynthie and Jack’s swoony romance, but also the wonderful cast of characters who surround them. 

Let’s Make A Scene is an enemies-to-lovers slow burn romance told in two different timelines: thirteen years earlier, Cynthie Taylor and Jack Turner-Jones get their first important acting job, playing two star-crossed lovers in Regency England and, on the set, their chemistry was off the charts, but off the set their dislike for each other turned into elaborate pranks and continuous bickering; thirteen years later, Cynthie’s classy, understated, English rose image is marred by a scandal. To restore her image she needs to not only accept to make the sequel of the movie that made her famous, but also pretend to be dating her former enemy, Jack.

Once again, Laura Wood created an addictive, well-written, and wonderful story. I loved the characters of Cynthie and Jack. They feel relatable and authentic: Cynthie has always dreamt of becoming an actress, she is enthusiastic, lively, and resilient, and when her own family practically abandoned her, she created her own family through her friends. All his life, Jack had to deal with the expectations and criticisms of his overachieving parents and becoming an actor has always been his road. He is thoughtful, charming, and I just adored him: he reads Jane Austen and I kept imagining him either as Andrew Garfield or Jonathan Bailey.

There is second-chance romance, chemistry, friendship, witty banter and humor, character development, and Laura Wood neatly takes from the best romcom movies: there is the Bill-Pullman-Leaning scene from While You Were Sleeping, the wet shirt moment, the lift scene from Dirty Dancing, and she masterfully recreates the Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling’s Best Kiss Moment at the 2005 MTV Movie Awards. I can’t recommend Let’s Make A Scene enough and I can’t wait to read whatever she is planning next!

A huge thank you to SJV and Simon & Schuster UK for inviting me to join the blog tour and providing me with a proof of this wonderful novel.

Follow the rest of the blog tour:

Laura Wood is an author and an academic. Her debut adult novel, Under Your Spell, has sold into seventeen languages. Let’s Make a Scene is her second romance book for adults. She is also a bestselling and acclaimed author of children’s and young adult novels. Laura has a PhD in nineteenth century literature, and lives in Warwickshire with her husband and their dog, Bea. You can visit lauraclarewood.com and follow her on Instagram @lauracwood.

Publication: 19th June 2025 – Zaffre Books

In the quaint town of Hoslewit, the biggest names in crime writing have congregated to celebrate all things bookish and murderous. With a programme packed with seminars and signings, egos and alcohol, it’s sure to be a thrilling weekend.

Author Jane Hepburn is determined this is going to be her year. She’s not quite reached the heady heights of best-sellerdom yet, but is convinced that if she can just make the right connections at the festival, it could be the start of a whole new chapter for her and her books.

Then her literary agent is killed, and Jane’s plans are derailed. But if she can solve the murder, perhaps it will provide the boost her writing career needs? If she lives to tell the tale, that is.

Set in the world of books, and for fans of Richard Osman and Richard Coles, Janice Hallett and Nita Prose, A Novel Murder is the book you’ll be dying to read.

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Although I had a bit of a slow start, A Novel Murder turned out to be a fun and engrossing read. Set during a literary crime convention, it features murder, secrets, and an insightful look into the world of publishing.

The protagonist of the novel is Jane Hepburn, a struggling writer whose crime series hasn’t achieved the success she (and her agent and editor) hoped for. Awkward and not very good at socialising, Jane hopes that the Killer Lines Crime Fiction Festival in Hoslewit, in Cumbria, will give her a chance to make her books known to the people who matter in publishing, so, on the second day of the festival, she sneaks into one of the tents to put her books on display only to find the body of her own agent, stabbed with a dagger. Channeling the protagonist of her own book series, detective Sandra Baker, Jane starts investigating, first as a way to promote her books and then to find justice for a woman who very few people seemed to like.

Most of the story is told from the point of view of Jane, but we also get the perspectives of the secondary characters, from the two new friends Jane makes who help her investigate the murder to the various suspects who may have wanted to kill the victim. Jane is an interesting character. Socially anxious, eager to make new friends, but always doubting herself, we learn more about her life and her past throughout the novel, and we also see her develop into a more confident and determined character by the end of the story. 

The murder mystery is well-developed and full of surprises. Like Jane, I felt everyone could be a suspect and I enjoyed trying to solve the case with her. Well-written, witty, and compelling, A Novel Murder is a fantastic debut and I was excited to learn that there is going to be a sequel!

A huge thank you to Zaffre Books and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this novel.

E C Nevin is the pen name for Eve Hall, who is a fiction editor as well as a writer. Despite what A Novel Murder may imply, she really does like her book industry colleagues. Most of them anyway.
Eve lives in Bristol with her partner and two dogs.

Publication: 24th June 2025 – Headline Eternal

LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP is the second in a new Regency romp of a series from the author of the Merriwell Sisters series! In this hilarious historical rom-com, a single lord is forced to settle down…and when a houseparty brings a happy-go-lucky lady’s companion his way, his grumpy heart is unexpectedly warmed.

Nine years ago, Lord Guy Harrowby was publicly humiliated by a failed romantic gesture. Now, with the clock ticking on a promise he made to his mother to make her a grandmother by his thirtieth birthday, Guy is horrified to see his incorrigible mother taking matters into her own hands: she’s organised a week-long house party at his estate . . . with every debutante she can think of.

Lottie Travers is not a very good lady’s companion. Despite years of trying, she still climbs trees better than she embroiders, and would always rather be riding horses. But now, with her family’s finances relying on her wages, she’s determined to conquer her wildness once and for all.

Overwhelmed with eligible women, there is only one who catches Guy’s eye, no matter how hard he tries to deny it. For Lottie, succeeding in her job proves difficult when the Wennington estate is filled with horses and there is a definite spark between her and the grumpy lord.

Neither of them is quite what the other expected, but could they in fact be the perfect match?

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I adore the Miss Prentice’s Protegees series. Each character is unique and I love how their stories develop. Also, I am a huge fan of Virginia Heaths’ writing and she is one of my favourite authors when it comes to historical romance.

Look Before You Leap is the second book in this delightful series whose protagonists are the pupils educated at the prestigious school of Miss Prentice where they can learn to become governesses or lady’s companions. Charlotte “Lottie” Travers grew up on her family farm in Kent with her father and her four brothers, so she was quite surprised when she received the letter inviting her to attend the school. Over the years she may have adapted to city life, but her love for horses hasn’t diminished and she “borrows” a horse to go riding in the park whenever she can even if it gets her in trouble or fired. The hero of the story is Lord Guy Harrowby, Viscount of Wennington, who, after a humiliating and public declaration of love went horribly wrong, has retired to the family estate, refusing any attempts to find a suitable wife by his interfering mother. I love how these two characters clash from their first disastrous meeting riding in Hyde Park to Lottie’s getting involved in organizing his surprise birthday party full of debutantes hoping to become his wife.

Look Before You Leap is such a witty, delightful, and fun read featuring a grumpy vs sunshine romance, an interfering and headstrong mother-aunt duo, lots of banter, and wonderful side characters that made me laugh out loud. A fantastic addiction to this entertaining series that left me already looking forward to the next one!

A huge thank you to Headline Eternal and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this novel.

When Virginia Heath was a little girl it took her ages to fall asleep, so she made up stories in her head to help pass the time while she was staring at the ceiling. As she got older, the stories became more complicated, sometimes taking weeks to get to the happy ending. Then one day, she decided to embrace the insomnia and start writing them down. Twenty-one books and two Romantic Novel of the Year Award nominations later, and it still takes her forever to fall asleep.

Publication: 19th June 2025 – HarperCollins UK

The most romantic house in Cornwall has got a new owner…

Journalist Georgie Monroe has watched as it has been transformed into a high-tech glass palace, renovated by a mystery buyer.

When she’s invited to report on an event there, she comes face to face not only with her first love, architect Ethan Sparks, but also with their complicated past. Finding themselves trapped inside when the house malfunctions, Georgie realises that they ― and the house ― are still keeping secrets.

But have Georgie and Ethan left it too late to start again, or can they write the next chapter of their love story together?

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A Cornish Love Story is not my first Cressida McLaughlin’s novel, but, without a doubt, it’s my favourite. I read it in one day, completely engrossed in the two protagonists and their love story and drawn by the beautiful setting of Cornwall.

The story follows Georgie Monroe and Ethan Spark as their story alternates between the past and the present. Thirteen years ago, Georgie and Ethan, then eighteen-years-old, met and fell in love in their last year of school. Ethan is the new boy in town, while Georgie has lived in the Cornish village with her mother her whole life. Georgie is obsessed with a romance series by a local author and she dreams, one day, of becoming an author herself, while Ethan wants to be an architect. However, their love, young and authentic, is complicated by their families: Georgie is at her sick and overprotective mother’s beck and call, while Ethan often must rush away to help his rebellious younger sister. At the present time, Georgie still lives in town working as a part-time journalist for the local paper and a personal assistant for her idol, the author of the romance series she loved so much. She needs to cover the open house of a super high-tech mansion and Ethan is the architect behind all the work. They haven’t seen each other in 13 years, since they broke up, and there are many things that they have to face and resolve. Luckily, they have time as the super intelligent house, a house that had history with both her and Ethan, locks them in.

I loved this novel so much. The writing is captivating and I loved how the past intertwines with the present, how the characters develop and face their past and their story, and how it all ends beautifully, even though I never wanted it to end! Highly recommended!

A huge thank you to HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for providing me with a proof of this beautiful novel.

Cressida McLaughlin is a bestselling author of contemporary romance who has sold over a million copies of her books. Her feel-good, escapist fiction, featuring unforgettable characters who find their happy place, has established her as a firm favourite among readers and fellow authors alike.

Cressida lives in Norwich with her husband David and when not writing her bestsellers, spends her spare time reading, returning to London or exploring the beautiful Norfolk coastline.