I’d been somewhat nervously awaiting this one, just because I love the first two covers in the series so much! When I had to fill in my cover art form for Lily and Alex’s story, all I could really think to ask for was: More of the same, please!

And that’s what Renee has given me, and more. I love the wedding theme, and the colour is just perfect.

In fact, I loved it so much, I thought it was time to give the rest of the site a spruce up not just in honour of the new cover, but for the two new books I have coming out this year.

I’ve rejigged the content a bit, added a page for my Harlequin Romance novels, which has a bit more detail about Luce and Ben, the stars of my September release, Stranded with the Tycoon, as well as pre-order links for the book. And, in case you hadn’t noticed, I’ve added a bit of colour to the site! Here’s hoping it’ll usher in a bright and sunny summer for us all, any day now…

Of course, if you’re missing the summer sun, you could always go read An A to Z of Love for scenes of seasides, smugglers and other things beginning with S. Warning: does contain seafood.

Unusually for us, we were at home for Easter this year, rather than up in Wales, because a very dear friend was getting married on Easter Saturday. We had  a wonderful, if chilly, day. A moving wedding service at a beautiful church, delicious food and better company at the reception, a flashmob style dance to Time Of My Life during which I managed to not actually fall over, and stunning fireworks. By the time we dragged the daughter off the dancefloor, we were all ready for bed.

The bride was beautiful, the groom looking very handsome, and yet the only photo I managed to take all day was of the husband and daughter. On the plus side, it’s the first photo in several months where she’s not scowling… 

Unfortunately, I was also on yet another book deadline this weekend, so have been alternating between edits and easter eggs for the last few days.

I handed the book in yesterday, just before sitting down to our Easter lunch – roast lamb, boulangerie potatoes, spring greens, all followed by banoffee pie. Then I collapsed, full, on the sofa and watched the latest episode of Doctor Who, thus making it feel far more like Christmas than Easter.

So today, I’m tidying up, catching up on admin (and this blog…) and starting work on a new project – the second of my contracted novels for Harlequin Romance. Which, I might add, is due in very, very soon indeed.

It’s going to be another busy month, but I’m going to take this afternoon off to relax, spend time with the husband and daughter, and possibly eat some chocolate.

The husband, by the way, did very well this Easter. After the utter present-fail of Christmas (when I ordered, collected, paid for and very almost wrapped my own present) he managed to buy me a ridiculously oversized chocolate egg without me noticing, or finding it hidden in the house. He also bought me a new mug, ready to start my new project, so he’s officially back in the good books.

Well, until my birthday, later this month, when we may need to reevaluate again…

As Easter Sunday drew to a close, I pottered upstairs last night to check if the daughter was asleep, only to find her sitting up in bed reading her book out loud to her Teddy. For the first – but almost certainly not last — time, I had to tell her “Ten more minutes reading then lights off,” just as my Mum did with me for years and years.

I texted Mum to tell her. I think she’s still laughing.

But it’s March 1st, St David’s Day, and surely it has to be spring by now, right?

Spring always makes me want to do things. Not clean, obviously, but other things. Start new projects, undertake new activities, make something.

In this spirit, the daughter is starting ballet class today – something she is beyond excited about. She’s been to a couple of taster classes with a friend and, while she might not have a natural genius for dance, she threw herself into it wholeheartedly. She’s been practicing her gallops ever since. It’s like taking a very small horse for a walk.

I, on the other hand, am in something of a holding pattern, unable to get going on all sorts of things. I’ve just finished up revisions on one book, and am now waiting for edits from my agent. I’m expecting content edits any day for Summer of Love, and copy edits for Stranded with the Tycoon. (There are a lot of edits in my future, it seems. Expect whining.) And then there’s my editor’s thoughts on my proposal for my next Mills and Boon novel, something I’m waiting very anxiously for!

So there’s a lot of hurry up and wait going on around here. On the plus side, we’re halfway through redecorating the study! The husband has painted and papered the walls, we’ve spent the obligatory five hours in IKEA choosing desks, shelves, lighting, desk chair and bookcase, and the very indulgent reading chair was delivered this morning… we’re just waiting for the carpet to arrive and get fitted before we can put it all together. Sigh.

If only I were a more patient person. Perhaps I’ll go outline another book while I wait…

Still, I wanted to update the blog with the latest dates and details for my upcoming releases…

Firstly, my debut Harlequin Mills and Boon novel! Titled Stranded with the Tycoon, this will be released as a Harlequin Romance novel in the US this September. It’ll also have a digital, hardback and large print release in the UK in the same month, although it won’t be available as a paperback over here. (Don’t worry! They promise my future releases will… And I’m really liking that assumed plural there!)

Secondly, the third part of my Love from Wales series, Summer of Love, is currently scheduled for release (digital only) from Lyrical Press on December 2nd. This is always subject to change until a couple of months out, but I’ll keep you updated on any shifts. I’m hoping that just as winter is beginning to bite, you’ll all be ready to read about a summer full of weddings, love and jewellery…

Right! Must get back to work. Many more books to write!

Not that I’m not behind with it. I am. Woefully.

I just, for the first year ever, don’t care. I’m having far too much fun enjoying the festive atmosphere to worry about it.

Because we always spend the Christmas holidays in Wales, with our families, we tend to put up our tree and decorations on the first weekend of December. And this year, that serendipitously coincided with a visit from my parents – or, as the daughter calls them, Nain and Pops – and Uncle Mike.

We bought and decorated a tree, suffered through another Welsh defeat in the rugby, had a lovely dinner out – and a lengthy, relaxing brunch the following morning. It was a lovely, lovely weekend, and now, my house looks like this:

As if that wasn’t enough fun, the Daughter also got invited to a birthday party for two of her friends. It was, in theory, a Pirate Party. Of course, the daughter insisted on going as a princess. (I lobbied hard for pirate princess, to no avail. She wanted to be the pink, flouncy Disney princess. Just like every other day.)

But by the time the party was over, and returned home with a pirate hat and a temporary tattoo in her party bag, her stance on the pirate princess thing had shifted:

She insisted on wearing the hat for breakfast the next day, too. The tattoo, I’m just thrilled to report, still hasn’t worn off.

But the fun wasn’t over yet. On Monday, the daughter had three of her friends, their younger siblings, and their mums over for the afternoon. I cunningly persuaded them that they really wanted to make me some Christmas bunting to add to my decorations, and there was gluing and sequins and pompoms galore. Also doughnuts.

Then, just when I thought we couldn’t take any more Christmas fun, we woke up yesterday to an unexpected winter wonderland! Not sure where the snow came from – it wasn’t forecast – and it’s already turned icy and treacherous, but it was fun while it lasted. We made a snow baby (the daughter got bored before I could make a fully fledged snowman) and wrote Christmas cards while watching Christmas movies and drinking hot chocolate.

So really, how can I worry about unwrapped presents (and, possibly, unbought ones) and all the cards I didn’t get round to writing yesterday? Or obsess about our travel plans and how we might not have enough warm clothes? Why worry about the husband’s birthday/Christmas party that we haven’t actually organised yet?

No, this year, I’m just enjoying the Christmas spirit.

(Of course, with the aforemention party, two Christmas concerts, three dinners out, a four hour journey to Wales and five birthdays still standing between me and Christmas, not to mention a book or two to finish, I’ll let you know if I’m still feeling so jolly come Christmas Eve…)

I hate to name drop (actually, clearly I don’t) but it was fantastic to catch up with the always lovely Lucy Felthouse, to meet Katherine Garbera, and Fiona Harper, and to have dinner with Talli Roland, Rachel Lyndhurst, Lynda Dunwell and Caroline Bell Foster. And so much fun to talk writers’ conferences with Charlie Cochrane, hear Nicky Wells belting out Bon Jovi and Miranda Dickinson reading from her new book (which features a choir that seemed oddly familiar…), and to discuss the importance of identifying yourself as a writer with Laura E James, amongst so many other conversations with so many other wonderful people.

I did two readings from An A to Z of Love, which weren’t the disasters my imagination had been helpfully suggesting they might be. There was plenty of cake – always a good sign – and perhaps the odd glass of wine as well. The conference on Sunday was interesting and insightful, and I also managed a very useful and exciting conversation with a delightful editor over a cranberry and brie panini and a cup of tea…

As I said, I am mostly photoless, but fortunately for me, a great number of other people actually managed to take their cameras out of their bags, and the official photographer got some great shots, too. You can see the official festival photos here, and I’m sure there’ll be plenty more photos popping up on many websites before too long.

My favourite, however, is always going to be this one of my friend Ally pretending to be a Blaze heroine at the Mills and Boon stand!

The Festival of Romance, held this year in Bedford, celebrates everything wonderful about romantic fiction. I’m one of over 40 authors taking part, and most will be doing readings and events at various venues across the weekend. There’s also a great presence from supporting publishers, too.

For the full programme, check out the festival website: http://festivalofromance.co.uk/

And don’t forget to stop by and say hello if you’re attending!

We spent October half term deep in the depths of Sherwood Forest with 22 of our nearest and dearest, where I got to: indulge my inner Maid Marion by picking up a crossbow (and being great at it, thank you), eat pancakes and fajitas and many, many other yummy things, go bowling for the first time in a decade, relax in the spa, kick through leaves wearing an amusing bobble hat, and generally have a wonderful time.

We also had a Halloween party, where three small witches (the daughter and her cousins) ran shrieking around the villa devouring chocolate for several hours.

At one point, we actually got them to all stand still at the same time:

Although not face the camera, obviously.

Usually, the end of a holiday is a bit depressing. But not for us! Because we were heading off to a Very Important Wedding, and spending the weekend with some of our dearest friends.

I’d share more photos, but most of them appear to involve people wearing a bright pink hat at a rakish angle, some time after the band packed up and went home…

When I did finally tear myself away from the party and made it to my hotel room, I found the most beautiful bouquet of flowers from the bride and groom, as an anniversary present. Clearly, the first weekend in November is the only one to get married on.

Back home, it was back to school yesterday and, of course, Bonfire Night! I’m not usually a fan of loud noises, but I do have a fondness for fireworks. Since we were all tired, we decided to just a have a few small, quiet fireworks in the back garden.

Of course, the husband then came home with a huge box of assorted fireworks and a packet of rockets.

The daughter sat through them with her bunny mitten hands clamped firmly over her ears, and decided she liked the sparklers best. As do I.

But now it’s back to work. I’ve got a lot coming up in these last six or seven weeks before Christmas – not least, attending the Festival of Romance in Bedford as a VIP author later this month. Expect much posting about that, and if you’re planning on being there, please grab me and say hi! I’ll be the one with the teapot earrings…

I’m also woefully behind with my 52 bake challenge, but I’m hoping the season of Christmas baking will help me catch up. In the meantime, here’s a sneak preview of the Speckled Mocha Cake I made to take on holiday, as being enjoyed by my brother, Uncle Mike, who also valiantly shared a room with the daughter for the week, and so had earned all the cake.

I’ll post the recipe on Friday, in an attempt to get back onto some sort of blogging schedule! In the meantime… revisions. Wish me luck!

Portmeirion, for those not in the know, is an incongruous Italianate village in the depths of North Wales, created by Clough Williams-Ellis for reasons I’ve never fully understood. And really, it doesn’t matter why, because it looks like this:

It was the setting of the cult TV show, The Prisoner, has a fantastic hotel and restaurant, and is so special to my family that my cousin Helen actually got married there, thus ruining all other future wedding venues for the rest of us.

It really is the most beautiful place. Normally, when we’re there, it’s pouring with rain. But this year, despite the abysmal summer, we had glorious weather. I was really looking forward to introducing the Daughter to the wonders of Portmeirion, especially after being away from her for the past week. She has been before, but not since she was a baby, as the Portmeirion Sunday tradition has proved difficult for us to take part in for the last couple of years.

I think her favourite part was the Wishing Well – she wished that she could be a fairy princess when she grows up. As usual. Here we are, tossing in our hard earned tuppences:

After a very leisurely and lovely lunch (with maybe just a glass or two of wine) she ran off to explore with first her Daddy, then Uncle Mike, then me, then Auntie Em, then Auntie Barbara, then her Pops… leaving me free long enough to accidentally buy all of the notebooks in the bookshop. And some new cupcake cases. Then the husband dragged me out before I bought anything else…

I wanted to make a cake for the weekend, as usual, and as I’d been pouring over my Grandma’s old recipe notebooks at Mum and Dad’s the weekend before, I thought one of her recipes might be nice. I settled on the gingerbread, mostly because I love ginger cake, my dad loves ginger cake, my Gran, who has developed the sweetest tooth ever over the last year, loves ginger cake, and because I could make it in a loaf tin and keep it there to transport it over the very bumpy Welsh hills.

The only problem was that when Grandma wrote these notebooks, she was scribbling notes for herself, rather than a future generation. The instructions aren’t always in order, or fully explained, and sometimes some of the ingredients are missed out in the method. So I had to make it up a bit, but it turned out well!

Grandma’s Gingerbread

Ingredients

• 4oz soft brown sugar
• 4oz butter
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of sofa
• 1/4 pint milk
• 6oz golden syrup
• 8oz plain flour
• 3 tsp ground ginger

Method

1. Put syrup, butter and milk in a pan and melt over a medium heat
2. Take off the heat and add the egg
3. Add the sieved flour, ginger and bicarbonate of soda and mix in
4. Pour into the centre of a greased and lined 1lb loaf tin
5. Cook at 180°C for 45 minutes, then turn it down to 170°C for another half hour (but check after 15 minutes)
6. Serve at the seaside, if at all possible

This cake went down so well, in fact, that I didn’t manage to get a photo of it. So instead, you can have a photo of what the Daughter and I did, as soon as we got back to the caravan after our Portmeirion lunch:

Rock pooling

A confession. I didn’t get to try any of these. Neither did the husband. But the daughter and her grandparents were very enthusiastic about them…

The daughter has been to the seaside with her Nain and Pops this last week, since we came home on Monday, and these are the cakes I made for them to enjoy while we were away. It’s given the husband and I three full days on our own, and we’re heading north again this afternoon for one last, very special, summer weekend in Wales. And to collect the daughter, of course.

Chocolate Smoothie

In her absence, we’ve been catching up on the very boring jobs that really needed doing but were nearly impossible while also entertaining her. Things like traipsing around IKEA for a day, looking at potential furniture for the new house. Catching up on paperwork for the move. Clearing out the music in the choir garage, ready for the new term, and tracking down copies of Christmas music. And writing the new book. Obviously. Mostly that.

Hot Chocolate After Swimming

The daughter, on the other hand, appears to have mostly been eating chocolate and playing in water. It’s the longest I’ve ever been away from her, but we’ve spoken every day (“Mummy? Do you know who you call if it’s an emergency?” “Um, Fireman Sam?” “Yes! And his number is Nine Nine Nine Nine.” Phone goes dead.) and Mum has been sending me regular photo updates, so I’m pretty sure she’s having a lot more fun than she would be here!

Especially since she has these cupcakes, and I don’t.

Maple Butterscotch Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

• 175g plain flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 175g butter (or dairy free alternative)
• 175g light muscovado sugar
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping

• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 25g unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp light muscovado sugar

Method

• Preheat oven to 190°C and put 12 large cupcake cases into muffin trays
• Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, add the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla and beat together with an electric mixer until smooth
• Spoon the mixture into the cases and bake for 15-20 minutes
• While they’re cooking, make the topping by mixing the maple syrup, butter and muscovado sugar in a small pan, heating gently until the sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil and cook, still stirring, for about a minute
• As soon as the cupcakes come out of the oven, prick the tops with a fork, several times, then drizzle the topping onto them so it soaks through into the cakes
• According to my parents, serve with morning coffee for best effect!