Blog Tour: 'Among a Thousand Stars' by Jo Bartlett!

They say you'd do anything for love, but what happens when you don't believe it exists?
When her mother turns up naked and proud during her first term at college, Ashleigh Hayes assumes that life can’t get any more embarrassing. Ten years later, with best friend Stevie at her side, and a successful career as a freelance photographer for monthly magazine Glitz, it looks like she might have finally got the hang of things. Only she seems to have inherited the embarrassment gene from her mother and her every encounter with new boss, Tom Rushworth, looks set to send her career spiralling backwards. Getting past their shaky start, Ashleigh and Tom embark on a relationship that was only ever meant to be a bit of fun. But when life, paparazzi and love-sick Labradors get in the way, they suddenly find themselves caught in a roller coaster ride of emotions.
Jo Bartlett's novel 'Among a Thousand Stars' was released by So Vain Books on the 17th of June and I'm really excited to be part of the blog tour for the book today! Over the past couple of months I've had the pleasure of reading several of So Vain Books' romantic comedy releases and I've enjoyed all of them so far, so definitely looked forward to picking up 'Among a Thousand Stars' and giving it a chance! I also have a guest post from Jo Bartlett on the blog today to share with all of you, so be sure to scroll down to read both my review and Jo's own blog post!
Ashleigh Hayes has been friends with eccentric but loveable Stevie for a long time, ever since meeting one another at art school when they immediately hit it off. They now work together as a great team for popular gossip magazine Glitz; Stevie as a stylist and Ashleigh as a photographer. While Ashleigh loves her job, she isn't as lucky when it comes to romance. Her ex-boyfriend cheated on her and she's just not sure she will be able to find someone else who's right for her. When Glitz is taken over by PR company Rushworth Associates, Ashleigh and Stevie also get a new boss, the handsome and difficult-to-read Tom Rushworth. The sparks between Ashleigh and Tom are difficult to ignore, but things aren't that easy when careers, gossip, and life in general continue to get in the way...
'Among a Thousand Stars' is an entertaining and fun rom-com read by author Jo Bartlett; a novel which I really enjoyed from start to finish! The author's writing style certainly suits the genre, it flowed well and made it easy to just dive in and enjoy the story. One of the definite strengths of this novel has to be the friendship between protagonist Ashleigh and the flamboyant stylist Stevie. The two have known each other for years and that becomes evident in the way they treat one another. They are really different characters; while Ashleigh is the quiet one, Stevie definitely knows how to get a party started and they just complimented one another really well. 
I liked the storyline of the book and its main setting, the celebrity gossip world. There was a clear division between Ashleigh's working life in London and the peace and quiet at her home in Kent, near the beach. There was a good selection of secondary characters, such as Tom's lovely dog Bertie, his mother Isobel, and the rock singer and playboy Zac. While the story did seem to lose a bit of its pace and story towards the middle/end of the book, it was still a read I personally really enjoyed. Overall, 'Among a Thousand Stars' is an entertaining, fun, light-hearted read that is worth picking up if you're a fan of chick lit. A promising novel by Jo Bartlett and I look forward to hopefully reading more of her work in the future!

Rating:8,5/10

  For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Guest post by Jo Bartlett!

What makes a hero

When I was growing up with a sister two years older, there was a bit of sibling rivalry; especially since my sister got the looks, the figure and the sporting ability and, years later, I’m still trying to work out exactly what I got!  The sibling rivalry has long since passed, but I still find it amazing how we could be brought up side-by-side, with the same genes and yet end up so completely different.  Take our taste in men, for example… I’ve always been a beta girl myself, but my sister was attracted to a far edgier sort of man - the kind who you couldn’t be sure were going to turn up as arranged. There’s some excitement in that I guess, the thrill of the chase never quite going away.

With such differences between the opinion of two sisters, it’s impossible to write a hero who’s going to be every reader’s ideal man.  I didn’t want Tom in ‘Among a Thousand Stars’ to be a chest-beating alpha male but, of course, in a romantic comedy, true love can never be allowed to run too smoothly! So Tom ended up as exactly the sort of beta hero I could fall in love with myself – he cares about the people closest to him and keeps the promises he makes – but he’s complicated, wounded by his past.

That’s not to say that I don’t appreciate an alpha hero.  Back in those days of teenage sibling-rivalry, one of the heroes of commercial fiction who has always stuck with me is Rupert Campbell-Black, from Jilly Cooper’s “Riders”.  Yet, if, like me, you read the whole series of novels, you soon discovered even Rupert had his beta-side and as a reader I completely fell for the romance which eventually saw him tamed by true love.

Some might argue that fiction is the only place where such perfect matches exist – the couples who come together and smooth out one another’s broken edges.  It’s exactly the sort of partnership that Tom seems to need, but just can’t accept, in ‘Among a Thousand Stars’. Although I can’t tell you how that ends, of course. 

I don’t buy into the theory that it only happens in novels, though. I think the best relationships are the ones where a couple balance each other out.  As my sister will tell you, perfection is boring.  Whether your hero is alpha or beta, real or imagined, it’s those broken edges and the conflict they create which keep us turning the pages.

Thanks so much, Jo!

Blog Tour: 'Searching for Steven' by Jessica Redland!

When Sarah Peterson accepts her Auntie Kay’s unexpected offer to take over her florist’s shop, she’s prepared for a change of job, home and lifestyle. What she isn’t prepared for is the discovery of a scarily accurate clairvoyant reading that’s been missing for twelve years. All her predictions have come true, except one: she’s about to meet the man of her dreams. Oh, and his name is Steven.

Suddenly Stevens are everywhere. Could it be the window cleaner, the rep, the manager of the coffee shop, or any of the men she’s met online?

On top of that, she finds herself quite attracted to a handsome web designer, but his name isn't even Steven...

During this unusual search, will Sarah find her destiny?

On the 3rd of June, Jessica Redland's novel 'Searching for Steven' was released by So Vain Books and I am really excited to be part of the blog tour for this new release today! When I was contacted by So Vain Books about 'Searching for Steven', I straight away looked forward to reading the book because based on the lovely colourful cover and the book description I already had a good feeling I would end up enjoying it. I am always up for checking out a fun romantic comedy read and I hoped 'Searching for Steven' would end up to be just that. Next to a review of the book I also have a guest post by Jessica herself to share with all of you today, so be sure to scroll down to read it!

Sarah Peterson has just turned thirty and when her hopes of a proposal from her boyfriend Jason are smashed, she decides their relationship hasn't been going anywhere and it's time for them to go their separate ways. When her aunt Kay contacts her with the news she is going to travel the world and wants to give her flower shop to Sarah to run by herself, the timing couldn't possibly be more perfect. Sarah packs her bags and moves back home, closer to her family and friends, ready to start afresh. When she suddenly finds a tape of a clairvoyant's reading from when she was 18 (and too drunk to remember what she was told), she listens to it again and discovers the clairvoyant predicted almost everything that would happen to her in the upcoming years. So when she hears the love of her life is called Steven, Sarah decides to trust the clairvoyant's message and start the search for her very own Steven...

'Searching for Steven' turned out to be a really enjoyable and light chick lit read; another great release by So Vain Books. I straight away really liked the storyline; Sarah turning her life upside down, starting her own flower shop, and searching for her Mr. Right who has to be named Steven. Sarah is a lovely heroine who I instantly warmed to and started rooting for. I loved reading about the flower shop and how Sarah starts up her own business, and of course her search for Steven based on the clairvoyant's reading she finds on an old cassette tape, and all the people who help her along the way. From her friends Elise and Clare (who can't stand each other), Sarah's aunt Kay, and the handsome Nick who helps Sarah settle in as a business owner. 

Jessica Redland's writing fits the romantic comedy genre really well. It's light, easy to get through, and well-paced. I got the feeling the story became a bit too slow towards the ending of the book and perhaps this could have been written more compactly with a bit of extra editing. However, this didn't ruin the novel or reading experience and I already am excited to see what else Jessica Redland will bring us in the future. Overall, 'Searching for Steven' is a light-hearted, warm, fun romantic comedy that will leave you with a smile on your face; a worthwhile read for chick lit fans!

Rating:8,5/10

  For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Guest post by Jessica Redland!
I'm really excited to have a special guest post from Jessica Redland herself to share with all of you today!

I’m thrilled that my debut novel, Searching for Steven, is now available in paperback and eBook formats. I also have an eBook novella, Raving About Rhys, which came out last month. Rhys is set a few years before Steven but is a standalone prequel featuring a different heroine. Steven is the first in a trilogy of novels featuring the same cast of characters in the same seaside town setting, but it didn’t start life as a series. I only ever planned to write it as a stand-alone novel yet I’ve developed a trilogy and a novella. So how did that happen?
The heroine, Sarah Peterson, has two best friends. Elise has been her best friend since her first day at primary school and Clare has been her best friend since her first day at university. Unfortunately for Sarah, they don’t get on, so she often finds herself stuck in the middle of their squabbles.
It took me a long time to write Steven as I had many life changes during this time (marriage, baby, moving house twice, opening and closing a business, changing job several times) and therefore had huge gaps without writing. When I wasn’t writing, though, I was thinking about my characters and my plot and Elise and Clare quickly developed back stories that made their part in my story so much more significant than ‘just the best friends’. Giving them a sub-plot in Sarah’s story didn’t seem right as I didn’t want to detract from her story and I didn’t want to cover their stories in too little detail. A trilogy was born with a different friend being the main focus of each.
As soon as I made this decision, it felt like the characters of Elise and Clare really grew. It was almost as if they knew they were going to have the opportunity to take centre-stage and couldn’t wait to give me more to work with. The challenge at that point was to hint at their back stories in Steven but not give away too many spoilers. Not an easy task!
The second book in the series, Getting Over Gary, is Elise’s story. It picks up from the same point in time that Steven ends although everything is nicely wrapped up at the end of Steven; no cliffhangers to frustrate the reader! We get to follow Sarah into her happily ever after whilst Elise’s marriage falls apart. There’s a teaser chapter at the end of Steven if you want to know more.
The final book in the series is Clare’s story. This has a working title of Discovering David but this is likely to change as it doesn’t quite fit with the three-word titles of the other books. Clare’s a fascinating character with a mysterious past and we find out all about it in book three. Of course, we still follow what’s happening with Sarah and Elise as Clare’s story unfolds.
All three books include a romance as that’s the genre I write, but I attended a workshop on theme run by Julie Cohen at a Romantic Novelists’ Association conference a couple of years ago. It was an excellent session in which Julie shared that she tends to have identity as a theme in her novels, albeit in many different guises. I realised that my theme is friendship. It was very important for me that, as well as exploring the romances, I explored the relationships between the three women. I’ve always been fascinated by friendships and how some friends can come and go yet others are around forever. The strength of friendships can change depending on what’s going on in each person’s life at the time. Having a trilogy allowed me to explore this theme of friendship in a lot more depth than I’d have been able to in a stand-alone novel.
Last September, I received offers of two publishing deals. This was a very happy dilemma to be in, but I had to ‘do a Sarah’ (you’ll know what I mean if you read Steven) and get my post-it notes out to help me make my decision. I’d had quite a lot of email conversations with the publisher who gave me the first offer and I was a bit concerned at the suggestion that they wanted the books to be purely about the romance and perhaps lose the theme of friendship. In my heart of hearts, I didn’t want to do this as that took me away from what I was trying to achieve with my writing. So Vain Books loved the stories as they were with both themes so that was one of a number of reasons why I chose to accept their offer instead.
So Vain were keen for me to write a couple of short stories to help promote the launch of Steven, ideally based around characters in the book. I chose a character called Callie who is the sister of one of the main characters. She gets married at the start of Steven and I decided to tell the story of how she met her husband. Exactly as it had done with Elise and Clare, Callie’s character grew and grew and soon I had a novella instead of a short story! Raving About Rhys is available now, but in eBook format only with it being a novella. Thankfully, it only took me a month or so to write; nothing like my decade for Steven!
I’ve really enjoyed writing a series. It gives such a great opportunity to develop characters and their stories. I have ideas for a fourth full-length novel set in the same seaside town but with a new cast of characters. It will probably be a stand-alone novel, but I’m sure I’ll return to writing another series.
Thank you so much for having me as your guest. Happy reading everyone!
Twitter: @JessicaRedland Website: www.jessicaredland.com

Thanks so much, Jessica!

Review: 'Behind the Scenes' by Sophie Childs (2015)

Things are never quite as they appear.
Bethan Brooks works in London for the ultimate boss from Hell, trying to support her wannabe rockstar boyfriend. But are The Vampire Squirrels really ever going to make it big or is she doomed to be a secretary forever? Luckily, Bethan finds the perfect escape when going to the cinema. There she loses herself in another world and forgets all about the dreaded filing and monotonous office work. Imagine her surprise when one day she encounters her favourite actor on the Tube. Suddenly, she finds herself part of the glamorous movie world she only ever dreamed about. With more at stake than she could ever realise, does she really want to know what goes on behind the scenes?
Last week, on the 26th of February 2015, Sophie Childs' debut novel 'Behind the Scenes' was released by So Vain Books. Today I'm really excited to be part of the blog tour for Sophie's new release and I was lucky enough to receive a review copy of the book a few weeks ago. I straight away really liked the sound of the story and the cover caught my attention as well. I've enjoyed several of So Vain Books' releases in the past, so I also had high hopes for this one. If you want to read more about this book, be sure to visit some of the other blogs that are part of the blog tour; scroll down for the blog links!
Bethan Brooks has always dreamed of working in the film industry. Unfortunately, the closest she actually gets is going to the cinema by herself, dreaming away while watching all kinds of films. Though Bethan doesn't like her job as a secretary, it pays the bills and helps her support her boyfriend Lee who doesn't have a job because he is trying to make it with his rock band 'The Vampire Squirrels.' One day, the unexpected happens as Bethan bumps into one of her favourite actors on the Tube on her commute into work. One thing leads to another and this meeting suddenly means the start of big changes in Bethan's life. She finally gets the chance to experience what life is like behind the scenes of the film world. Question is, is this really what she wants and worth giving up her life for...?
The author of this novel, Sophie Childs, has extensive ghostwriting experience and I must say I'm really glad she decided to write her very own book because I really enjoyed 'Behind the Scenes.' The storyline was really interesting, the characters were well-drawn and the author's writing style was really easy to get into. It did take me a bit of time to really warm to the main protagonist, Bethan; she's a bit naive and I couldn't understand why she was still together with her lazy boyfriend Lee. At the same time, I guess we all have a friend who has fallen blindly in love with someone, or a couple that stays together because it's safe and familiar, so in that way I also think the situation might be familiar to readers.
While the storyline is a bit predictable in places, this didn't bother me at all while reading the book. I thought the story was really entertaining and I finished the book in 1 day, constantly curious to see what would happen next. As I mentioned before, the characters are well-developed and different (some of them you'll love and some of them are quite easy to hate!), and I specifically warmed to Vincent, the famous actor Bethan bumps into and who is just a great guy. This was just a really enjoyable read and I'm already curious about Sophie Childs' next release. Overall, 'Behind the Scenes' is an entertaining, fun and light-hearted story which I hope other chick lit fans will enjoy as much as I did!

Rating:8,5/10

  For more information about this book: Amazon.co.uk / Amazon.com / Goodreads

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

Be sure to visit the other stops on the 'Behind the Scenes' blog tour!   Monday 2nd http://aprillwood.wordpress.com/ http://aloverofbooks.wordpress.com
Tuesday 3rd http://crooksonbooks.blogspot.co.uk/ http://www.reviewedthebook.co.uk/
Wednesday 4th http://www.onmybookshelf.blog.pl https://alwayslovetowrite.wordpress.com/
Thursday 5th http://spoonfulofhappyendings.blogspot.com