"Clem Wentworth, cake baker and marketing extraordinaire, moors her beloved orange narrowboat, Florence, outside her late Great Aunt Maud's house to keep an eye on its renovation for her parents. With a canal-side trading spot secured nearby to run her new business, Clem's Coffee & Cakes, she's looking forward to a fresh start free from the corporate rat race.
Victoria Hargreaves is less than impressed when a bright orange boat disrupts the picturesque view of the canal from her home. She's even less pleased to find that its owner has set up shop outside Otterford Wharf, the struggling heritage center she manages, complete with its own café. The boat isn't just ruining her view—its owner and her mouthwatering cakes could destroy her livelihood.
A disastrous first meeting leads to a very public, and very soggy altercation that neither of them can easily forget. Then, one evening, Clem witnesses something unsettling at Victoria's home and realizes she can't ignore it. When she tries to warn her new adversary, she's met with a frosty reception and further retaliation.
With trust running low and tensions rising, the last thing either of them needs is a spark of attraction—and yet, denying it might be harder than they think. As the wharf's future hangs in the balance, Victoria realizes that Clem might just be the person to help, but with her own challenges to consider, will she be willing?
Can the pair navigate their growing feelings and work together to achieve their goals, or will fear and uncertainty sink them both?"
"From the multi-award-winning, bestselling author of Broken Beyond Repair comes a new sapphic celebrity ice queen romance — a standalone novel and the third and final instalment in the South Downs Romance series.
Gillian Carmichael is grieving, not for the loss of her husband, but for what his death has cost her — Kingsford Manor, her beloved home. To make matters worse, she can observe the new 'Lady of the Manor' from her small abode in Kingsford Lodge, and observe her, she does.
Viola Berkley, an internationally renowned classical singer, retreats to the quiet of the countryside after her mother’s sudden death, seeking peace and anonymity. What she finds is an unwelcome adversary in her outspoken neighbour Gillian Carmichael, who is quick to critique Viola's suitability for her new role and her lack of village sensibilities.
As their worlds collide, both women realise they have more in common than divides them, and the line between animosity and attraction begins to blur. With Gillian shackled to her past, unable to let go of the life she lost, and Viola carrying the weight of her grief, can the pair find a path forward, or will the shadows of the past keep them apart?"
"GOLDIE FINALIST 2024: CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE LONG NOVEL
From the multi-award-winning, best-selling author of Broken Beyond Repair comes a new sapphic celebrity ice queen romance — read as a standalone or as the second book in the South Downs Romance series.
Sculptor Arte Tremaine is thrown into the hospitality industry when her beloved late grandmother bequeaths her and her sister a charming yet rundown country hotel with zero guests. Arte is determined to make a success of the business, despite her sister snapping at her heels to sell it and painful memories confronting her inside.
Charlotte Beaufort, heiress to a hotel empire, television celebrity, and self-confessed city woman, hits the countryside to film an episode of her reality television show, Hotel SOS, where she immediately clashes with the overwhelmed Arte and her inquisitive Labrador, Rodin.
Arte doesn’t take kindly to Charlotte’s attitude and frank opinions about her hotel, but when they are thrown together, she begins to realise not everything is as it seems with her attractive nemesis. As Arte begins to chip away at Charlotte's icy exterior, both women begin to realise dreams and reality rarely entwine and that, sometimes, our dreams are not even our own.
Can the artsy dreamer and ambitious heiress face the reality of their situations and discover their true paths? And if so, can those paths lead them toward true love?"
"Spend Christmas in Nunswick with Trust in Truth, the enthralling follow-up to Lost in Love.
After the events of the summer, Katherine and Anna are looking forward to spending a quiet, cozy Christmas together before hosting a New Year's Eve party at Nunswick Abbey.
When a romantic weekend away for Anna's birthday doesn't go to plan, it proves to be the beginning of their Christmas woes, and as workplace pleasantries grow too friendly, a cloud of jealousy and suspicion forms.
As Anna plans the most important party of her career, can she convince Katherine their coworker has more than pub lunches on the brain? Can Katherine keep her composure as the tension rises at Abbey House?
As they count down to the New Year, will Anna and Katherine's relationship survive the calamitous Christmas season?"
"Join Anna and Katherine as Nunswick Abbey opens for the spring amidst building work, archaeological excavations, and vandalism.
When an old school friend returns to the village with her family, Anna begins to question her long held vision of her future.
Old wounds are reopened for Katherine when she's presented with an opportunity. Can Anna convince her to take it and finally confront her past head on?
With Anna dreaming of the future and Katherine consumed by the past, can they get on the same page and decide what life they want to build together?"
"A heart-warming, quintessentially English village novel, centered on the ruins of Nunswick Abbey . . .
Historical tour guide Anna Walker is determined to make a good impression on her new bosses, but juggling a full-time job with caring for her ailing father is putting her own health—and potentially his—at risk.
When she meets Dr Katherine Atkinson, a charming yet intimidating new arrival to the village, Anna is infuriated by the doctor's attempts to convince her that her father needs professional, full-time care. She's even more frustrated by her growing attraction to the classy, wealthy doctor.
Anna's determination to prove she can cope forces Katherine to divulge a painful event from her past that still haunts her, hopeful it will make Anna see sense before it's too late.
With Katherine's heart lost to the past and Anna's overwhelmed in the present, can the two women help each other overcome their struggles and move forward? Will a curtain-twitching busy body curtail any blossoming attraction before it even has a chance to bloom?"
"GOLDIE WINNER 2024: AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR (ANGELA DAWE)
GOLDIE WINNER 2023: THE ANN BANNON POPULAR CHOICE BRONZE AWARD
WINNER OF THE LESFIC BARD AWARD 2022: ROMANCE
WINNER OF THE LESFIC BARD AWARD 2022: COVER DESIGN
WINNER OF THE QUEER INDIE AWARDS 2022: CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
GOLDIE FINALIST 2023: CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE LONG NOVEL
An age gap, celebrity ice queen romance that will pull at the heart strings — even the icy ones!
Sydney MacKenzie, personal assistant to the rich and famous, is looking forward to a well-earned break to go travelling in her beloved VW camper van, Gertie — that is, until Gertie cries off sick. When her boss calls in a favour, one that will pay Sydney handsomely and put Gertie back on the road, she can’t refuse.
Internationally renowned actress Beatrice Russell — adored by her fans and despised by those that know her — is splashed across the tabloids, all thanks to her broken leg. She limps back to her palatial English country estate to convalesce for the summer, where she finds herself in need of yet another new assistant.
Enter Sydney, who doesn’t take kindly to the star’s demands, attitude, or clicking fingers — much less her body’s own attraction to the gorgeous diva. If not for that, and Gertie’s worn-out engine, she would leave tomorrow. Or so she tells herself.
As the summer heats up, the ice queen begins to thaw, and Sydney glimpses the tormented woman beneath the celebrity bravado, drawing her ever closer to the enigmatic actress — sometimes too close.
Can Sydney reach the real Beatrice and help heal her wounds before the summer ends and she returns to filming in the States, or is the celebrity broken beyond repair?"
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