A hugely enjoyable debut novel. Christine Stovell eloquently depicts the events and settings in her Little Spitmarsh, a beautifully-depicted backdrop of a down-at-heel coastal village.
For five years Harry Watling has been looking after her father’s legacy, his boat-yard and is happy trundling along in life in Little Spitmarsh. Until property developer Matthew Corrigan comes calling, wanting to buy Harry’s land so he can build a housing complex to go alongside his new swanky restaurant. Harry is determined to fight Matthew tooth and nail in her bid to keep Little Spitmarsh as it is until she learns Matthew has the means to quite literally force her out. As she tries to save her ailing business and stop Matthew Corrigan, she also has to fight her building feelings for the man who is making her life a misery. Throw in some family secrets, and a bit of romance and it’s a fantastic book well worth reading.
All's fair in love and war? Depends on who's making the rules. Harry Watling has spent the past five years keeping her father's boat yard afloat, despite its dying clientele. Now all she wants to do is enjoy the peace and quiet of her sleepy backwater. So when property developer Matthew Corrigan wants to turn the boat yard into an upmarket housing complex for his exotic new restaurant, it's like declaring war. And the odds seem to be stacked in Matthew's favour. He's got the colourful locals on board, his hard-to-please girlfriend is warming to the idea and he has the means to force Harry's hand. Meanwhile, Harry has to fight not just his plans but also her feelings for the man himself. Then a family secret from the past creates heartbreak for Harry, and neither of them is prepared for what happens next...
Since launching back in 2009 Choc Lit has received some impressive quotes for their publishing efforts and for the authors, including:
“I've been consistently impressed by the standard of the books they publish”. The Bookbag
‘Impressively accomplished’ Single Titles
‘If Turning the Tide and Trade Winds are anything to go by, I can see myself going through their entire selection box’ The Nut Press
‘a good book to snuggle up inside with’ News of the World
Author
About Christine Stovell
Christine Stovell was born in Epsom, Surrey and now lives in Wales.
Winning a tin of chocolate in a national essay competition at primary school inspired her to become a writer, an ambition she neglected for far too long thinking she had to have a proper job. After graduating from UEA, she took various jobs in the public sector writing research papers and policy notes by day and filling up her spare drawers with embryonic novels by night. Losing her dad to cancer made her realise that if she was ever going to get a novel published she had to put her writing first.
Setting off, with her husband, from a sleepy seaside resort on the east coast in a vintage wooden boat to sail halfway round Britain provided the inspiration for her novel ‘Turning the Tide’. Christine lives on the beautiful west Wales coast where long-distance running helps her plan her plots. Half marathons, like novels, both begin with small steps. She is married to the artist, Tom Tomos, and is enormously proud of her two daughters and two stepsons.
