Firstly I have to say a big ‘thank you’ to Debs for allowing me into the shed today, although the Lloyd Loom chair is not quite equal to both of us and I have had to stand in the doorway. It’s very nice to be here, and the cup of tea and Nice biscuit were most welcome.
Ow. Hold on, got myself hooked on the door handle. Think I might have spilled some tea on Grumpy, sorry.
Now, where was I? Ah, yes. I’m here, covered in tea stains, to tell you about my latest novel from Choc Lit, ‘Please Don’t Stop the Music’. But first of all, to whet your appetites, here’s the blurb.
‘How much can you hide?
Jemima Hutton is determined to build a successful new life and keep her past a dark secret. Trouble is, her jewellery business looks set to fail - until enigmatic Ben Davies offers to stock her handmade belt buckles in his guitar shop and things start looking up, on all fronts. But Ben has secrets too. When Jemima finds out he used to be the front man of hugely successful Indie rock band Willow Down, she wants to know more. Why did he desert the band on their US tour? Why is he now a semi-recluse?
And the curiosity is mutual - which means that her own secret is no longer safe ...’
I know they say all writers fall in love with their heroes, and I am no exception. Well, Ben is gorgeous and troubled and poetic and all that, but he is also a touch on the unconventional side of good looking. Put it this way, he doesn’t have a face that looks like it’s been hewn straight from a quarry and he doesn’t have shoulders so wide that he has to turn sideways to go through doors. Because I have to admit a certain..ahem.. unconventional taste in men and this tends to rub off on my fictional heroes. Men in real life who suffer ...I mean, who are subject to my attentions, tend to be more on the slender and diffident side. Not for me the alpha male with the bruising kisses and the punishing gaze (always wondered about punishing gazes. Really long eye lashes that can whip you from nine yards or something?). No. My ideal man is a little bit more.... all right.
To give you a taster of my kind of hero, here are a few. Tony Robinson (yes, really). David Mitchell, Matt Smith, Peter Capaldi. I hope you can find it in your hearts to understand.
And so, for a chance to win a copy of Please Don’t Stop the Music,
please leave a comment and confess...I mean, tell me about any of your more – shall we call them unusual heroes. I promise not to laugh. Come on, I told you about Tony Robinson....
Oh, and if anyone fancies meeting me in the flesh (and there’s quite a lot of flesh to meet), I shall be signing copies of Please Don’t Stop the Music at Waterstones in York, on Saturday 12th February,2-5pm and I would love to see you there! If you need an additional lure (apart from me, that is) there will be chocolates!
Please Don’t Stop the Music is published by Choc Lit Publishing on 01 February. Jane can be followed on Twitter @JaneLovering, or you can find her at www.janelovering.co.uk. And, usually, behind the fridge with a guilty expression and an empty box of Thorntons' chocolates.
Thanks to Jane for coming by my rather untidy shed and for writing such a fabulous book.
PS, I'm lucky enough to have read Please Don't Stop The Music and have reviewed it for Novelicious. Although I'll link to my review when it's posted, I have to tell you that this is a great book with an easy to fall for hero and definitely a book I'm sure you'll enjoy.
PPS The winner of the copy of Please Don't Stop The Music is Karen. Jane will be contacting you. Congratulations.
18 comments:
As I'm in Cornwall I'm afraid I won't be able to come to the booksigning but hope all goes well, Jane. As for heroes - well I would have to say my late husband but in a fictional sense, I would say Mikael Blomkvist.
Wow, I definately need to find out more about your hero - Im with you 110% on Matt Smith! So far I have adored the books you have recommended Debs, so think this is a must purchase!
Yay to get my hands onto a new novel that sounds devine.
Thanks for this interesting post.
I used to like Nice biscuits, but Rich Tea were always my favourites. Are they served at the shed too?
All the best, Boonie
Flowerpot - I had to look up Mikael Blomkvist, but have to agree with you, he'd make a good hero.
Rach - :)
I'm sure you'll thoroughly enjoy this book and am glad you're going to buy a copy.
boonie - any biscuits you choose, I have a wide selection.
Thank you for the loan of the shed, Debs! I love hearing about the people that other women find attractive, we all have such different tastes, which is a good job too, or there would be one very happy man in the world and a lot of women fighting over him.
Jane, I love your title, blurb and not so standard hero! This books sounds like it is just right for me. My family is in the music business. Yeah, I know about heroes like yours-- in real life! I'd love to know more about your interest and involvement in the crazy world of rock.
Thanks for sharing Jane with us, Debs. What a treat!
Jane sounds fun, and so does the novel :o)
I must confess to having a secret 'thing' for Eddie Izzard - don't tell anyone.
Looking forward to reading your novel. I must say that if you can fit behind the fridge to eat your chocolates then you are not eating enough chocolate!
And i had a thing for Des Barnes (Corrie) once until he asked me out!!
Dont know why that memory popped into my head!
@Kaye, yes, the rock world is never as glamorous as it seems from the outside, is it?
@Karen - I quite understand the Eddie Izzard thing, actually. I have entertained a 'moment' about him myself!
@DJ, thank you! My fridge occupies a prime position in the centre of the room since the Christmas chocolate-binge incident, of which we do not speak.
@Casdok - probably because we're talking about unlikely heroes? :)
And why is my 'capture' word hawni?!
I've always had a thing about Gerard Depardieu, even though he has a big nose and is a fair bit older than me. Charisma and passion play their part I think. I would love to win a copy of your book and read about your hero.
Oooh, Meat Loaf (sigh) - gorgeous man. Saw him once in Glasgow, we were in the mosh pit and I elbowed my way to within 20 feet of the stage. Could almost have touched him. And I quite like Alan Rickman (even when he's being Severus Snape).
This sounds like a great book.
XX
@Rachel - Gerard Depardieu has had his moments with me too, but he's a bit on the burly side for my tastes.
@Suzanne - Alan Rickman, oh yes! It's his voice that does it for me, when he does that sarcastic thing..
Jane, Jane. Again with Tony Robinson?! *shakes head*
Jane's book is just brilliant - I loved it! I see that she's as clumsy here, as she was at The Nut Press where she sat and trampled on no end of the squirrels' nuts.
My hero? The one I don't like admitting to... Bernhard Langer, the golfer. I used to have a real thing for him when I was a teenager and he was the only reason I watched the golf. I am over that now, I hasten to add. Completely cured!
I've really enjoyed reading about all your different heroes. There are some interesting ones here and I have to admit my favourite out of all those mentioned probably has to be Alan Rickman.
I for one will never stop playing the music.
My fav was and is Sean Connery.
Right from James Bond days till date.
what a man.
haddock - Sean Connery was definitely the best bond, well until Daniel Craig *am ducking*
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