Last month I wrote a list of the ten ‘chick lit’ books that  I can’t wait to read this year. Lindsey Kelk’s summer release I Heart London was on the list so you can imagine my excitement when I saw that the cover has been released. I’ve loved all of the covers in this series and this one is gorgeous too – I can’t wait to find out what happens to Angela when she’s back on home turf!

Home is where the heart is. Right?

Angela Clark has fallen in love with America – and it’s starting to love her back.

Throw one expired visa into the mix, and things quickly take a turn for the worse.

Now, there’s another wedding in the offing – and everyone remembers how well the last one went . . .

Last year I chose my five most anticipated chick lit reads. This year I’ve gone for bigger and better with ten titles I can’t wait to read – there are so many great books coming out in 2012! Some of the later books don’t have much detail yet but I’ll update this post as and when more information becomes available.

I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella (Bantam February)

After reading all of the Shopaholic books as a blogging challenge a couple of years ago, I’m a big fan of Sophie’s books. I’m looking forward to meeting new characters in her latest standalone novel.

I’ve lost it. The only thing in the world I wasn’t supposed to lose. My engagement ring. It’s been in Magnus’s family for three generations. And now, the very same day his parents are coming, I’ve lost it. The very same day. Do not hyperventilate, Poppy. Stay positive!!

A couple of glasses of bubbly with the girls at a charity do and Poppy’s life has gone into meltdown. Not only has she lost her engagement ring, but in the panic that followed, she’s lost her phone too. As she paces shakily round the hotel foyer she spots an abandoned phone in a bin. Finders keepers! Now she can leave a number with the hotel staff. It was meant to be!

Except the phone’s owner, businessman Sam Roxton, doesn’t agree. He wants his phone back, and doesn’t appreciate Poppy reading all his messages and wading into his personal life. As Poppy juggles wedding preparations, phone messages and hiding her left hand from Magnus and his parents, can things get any more tangled?

The Out of Office Girl by Nicola Doherty (Headline, March)

This sounds like a fun debut and perfect summer read!

From London ….

Alice Roberts is having a rubbish summer. She’s terrified of her boss, her career is stalling, and she’s just been dumped – by text message. But things are about to change …

… to Italy

When her boss Olivia is taken ill, Alice is sent on the work trip of a lifetime: to a villa in Sicily, to edit the autobiography of Hollywood bad boy Luther Carson. But it’s not all yachts, nightclubs and Camparis. Luther’s arrogant agent Sam wants him to ditch the book. Luther himself is gorgeous, charming and impossible to read. There only seems to be one way to get his attention, and it definitely involves mixing business with pleasure. Alice is out of the office, and into deep trouble …

… with love

Welcome to Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop of Dreams by Jenny Colgan (Sphere March)

I love the cover for this book and it sounds like a lovely story.

Rosie Hopkins is about to face major upheaval. Her elderly aunt Lilian – feisty, independent Aunt Lily who never talked about her past – needs her help, so Rosie is moving to the depths of the countryside for a few months to look after her. Plus Rosie will be away from Gerard, the man she hopes to settle down with soon, and they’ll miss each other dreadfully . . . won’t they? Lilian Hopkins has spent her life running Lipton’s village sweetshop, through wartime and family feuds. As she struggles with the idea that it might finally be time to sell up, she also wrestles with the secret history hidden behind the jars of beautifully coloured sweets. And the longer Rosie and Lilian spend together, the more they realise they can learn from each other . . .

White Wedding by Milly Johnson (Simon and Schuster, April)

I read my first Milly Johnson book last year and loved it so am very much looking forward to her next offering!

It’s the day they’ve always dreamed about. But will it turn out to be a nightmare …?

Bel is in the midst of planning her perfect wedding when disaster strikes and everything she thought she knew is turned on its head. Can she hold it all together and, with the help of her friends, and a mysterious man she meets unexpectedly, turn disaster into triumph?

Bel’s best friend, ice-cream parlour owner Violet, is engaged to Glyn, who is besotted by her although Violet fell out of love with him long ago. But however trapped she feels in the relationship, she can’t quite say the words, ‘I don’t want to marry you anymore.’ Then, just when she’s about to give up and resign herself to married life, she finds love in the most surprising of places. Will duty rule her heart or will she allow herself to be swept off her feet?

Their childhood friend Max was planning a quick registry office do with her fiance Stuart until she sees a TV programme about traveller brides and becomes determined to have the most extravagantly glitzy wedding ever. But in all the excitement has she lost sight of what’s really important? Does she want the wedding more than she wants the groom?

And as all three friends find the dress of their dreams at the White Wedding bridal shop, its owner, the lovely Freya, guarantees that her gowns will bring them happiness – though maybe not quite in the way they expected …

The Charm Bracelet by Melissa Hill (Hodder, May)

I have a charm bracelet that I add charms to, to mark important events in my life so I love the premise for this story – it sounds like another gripping read from Melissa.

Every charm bracelet tells a story and Holly O’Neill knows this better than most.

Years ago, at a difficult time in her life, a silver bracelet in a pretty wrapped box was delivered anonymously to her, a single charm attached. Some time later, another mysterious charm appeared, and the same thing happened many times over the years. Each charm proved to be significant in her life, as if her unnamed benefactor understood she needed some kind of talisman to help her through challenging times.

Since then, she has added her own charms – special reminders of the most important events in her life. Her bracelet makes memories tangible – spelling out the nuances of cherished moments through the shorthand of each tiny charm. For this reason, Holly’s charm bracelet is her most prized possession.

So when one day, she stumbles across a bracelet that somebody else has lost, she recognises a lifetime spelt out through the very different charms, and knows she must try to reunite it with its owner. In order to try and track this person down, she uses each charm to help discover more about them.

But as Holly gradually begins to piece together the details of this person’s life, her quest leads her somewhere she never expected.

One Perfect Summer by Paige Toon (Simon and Schuster May)

My favourite chick lit author – can’t wait to get my hands on this book!

‘Do you still love him?’ Every second of every minute of every hour of every day…Alice is18 and about to start university while Joe’s life is seemingly going nowhere. A Dorset summer, a chance meeting, and the two of them fall into step as if they have known each other forever. But their idyll is shattered, suddenly, unexpectedly. Alice heads off to Cambridge and slowly picks up the pieces of her broken heart. Joe is gone; she cannot find him. When she catches the attention of Lukas – gorgeous, gifted, rich boy Lukas – she is carried along by his charm, swept up in his ambitious plans for a future together. Then Joe is there, once more, but out of reach in a way that Alice could never have imagined. Life has moved on, the divide between them is now so great. Surely it is far too late to relive those perfect summer days of long ago?

Summer Daydreams by Carole Matthews (Sphere, May)

This really appeals to me as someone who is always trying to juggle family, work and a million other things!

What if you had always dreamed of something more…? Nell McNamara has a happy life: her boyfriend Olly adores her, their four-year-old daughter Petal is the centre of their world and Nell has a steady job in the local chip shop. When the chippy needs a makeover, Nell jumps at the chance to unleash the creativity fizzing inside her. Inspired by what she can achieve – and encouraged by the best friends a girl can have – Nell is determined to try something new and starts making her own line of must-have handbags, which are soon flying off the shelves! It seems Nell’s dreams are finally coming true, but her success doesn’t come without a price. Before too long, Nell has to ask herself if it’s really possible to have it all… Full of fun, love and laughter, soak up the sunshine with Summer Daydreams.

I Heart London by Lindsey Kelk (Harper, June)

The fifth in the I Heart Series sees Angela back in London!

Angela’s visa has expired and it looks as though she’s going to have to set foot again on home turf where further romantic trouble awaits. She has to face the ex-boyfriend she ran out on, her best friend’s new baby, and her mum. Is she now a New York girl through and through or can London win her heart again?

When I Fall in Love by Miranda Dickinson (Avon, November)

No synopsis for this one yet but I’ve loved all of Miranda’s book so far and am eagerly anticipating this one!

From Notting Hill to New York… Actually by Ali McNamara (Sphere, November)

Scarlett goes to New York – yay!!

Are your favourite authors on my list? Which books are you looking forward to reading this year?

Today I’m very excited to be interviewing the fabulous Lindsey Kelk, author of the ‘I Heart…’ series and The Single Girl’s To-Do List. Lindsey is originally from England but now lives in New York. Not only does she write excellent books but she also has a column for Marie Claire UK, a beauty blog (http://beautymecca.blogspot.com/) and edits children’s books! Today sees the publication of her fifth novel, I Heart Vegas so please join me in wishing Lindsey a very happy Publication Day!

Your latest novel, I Heart Vegas is set at Christmas but to have a book released at this time of year you must be writing/editing during the summer months; how do you get yourself in the festive spirit when writing out of season?

I love Christmas. Seriously. From January 6th when the tree comes comes down, I count down the days until I can put up my tree, so it wasn’t a hardship. I am constantly in the festive spirit. It’s harder to put yourself in a Vegas spirit when you’re not there, so obviously, I had to go.

What is your top tip for surviving the festive season?

Pace yourself. It’s always been a hectic time for me as my parents divorced when I was little so I’m used to spending a lot of the holiday period in a car. Now I’m in the US, it’s even more crazy, and if that wasn’t enough, I’m usually working on a book at this time. Try not to spread yourself too thin, make some time for yourself and prepare early. Online shopping helps, drink lots of water in between parties and remember, it’s a fun time of year!

What is or would be the best book-related Christmas gift that Santa could deliver to you?

I love the elves to have finished I Heart London for me. Last year I was so busy working on The Single Girl’s To-Do List, I literally took Christmas Day and Boxing Day off. I even stayed in and worked New Years Eve. I’d like that not to happen this year…

You live in New York; what’s your favourite thing about the city at Christmas?

Everything. Everyone is in such a good mood and we really take advantage of the city at this time of year – ice skating at Rockefeller, Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall, all the store windows on Fifth Avenue… it makes me SO happy.

Which Christmas tune would be your choice for Karaoke?

Christmas Wrapping by The Waitresses. I like to challenge myself.

Imagine you are settling down with a lovely Christmas read … what is your perfect Christmas reading setting/scenario?

This year it’ll be snuggled up on a plane, heading back to the UK, my head buried in all the books I’ve missed over the year – I’ve had The Tiger’s Wife to read, forever. I actually don’t get a lot of reading done at this time of year because I’m out and about so much.

Who is your favourite Christmas book character and why?

I used to work on Dr Seuss when I was in publishing so it’s got to be The Grinch. Love.

And finally … what can readers look forward to next from Lindsey Kelk?

If I ever get it finished, I Heart London! I’m also working away on my Marie Claire column which should tide you over between books and then… lots of exciting new projects on the horizon…

Thanks Lindsey – have a great Christmas!

You can find out more about Lindsey and her books on her website: http://lindseykelk.com/and at: http://www.iheartnewyork.co.uk/

Just four books on my December wish list and I can’t wait to read them all!

Build a Man by Talli Roland
Released 7th December
Published by Notting Hill Press
Website: http://talliroland.blogspot.com/

This one is actually already out as an ebook but the official launch date is 7th December. It sounds like another fun read from Talli who has certainly been busy this year!

How far would you go to create the perfect partner?

Slave to the rich, rude and deluded, cosmetic surgery receptionist Serenity Holland longs for the day she’s a high-flying tabloid reporter. Unfortunately, every pitch she sends out disappears like her clients’ liposuctioned fat, never to be seen again. Then she meets Jeremy Ritchie — the hang-dog man determined to be Britain’s Most Eligible Bachelor by making himself over from head to toe and everything in between — giving Serenity a story no editor could resist.

With London’s biggest tabloid on board and her very own column tracking Jeremy’s progress from dud to dude, Serenity is determined to be a success, even going undercover to gain intimate access to Jeremy’s life. But when Jeremy’s surgery goes drastically wrong and Serenity is ordered to cover all the car-crash goriness, she must decide how far she really will go for her dream job.

Build a Man is available for Kindle (link goes to amazon.co.uk)

Confessions of a Karaoke Queen by Ella Kingsley
Released 8th December
Published by Sphere
Website: http://www.littlebrown.co.uk/About/Imprints/Sphere

This one sounds like lots of fun and is Ella Kingsley’s debut.

Maddie Mulhern is suddenly in charge. Her parents – former 80s pop duo Pineapple Mist – have left for the summer on a nostalgia tour, entrusting her to manage their struggling karaoke bar, Sing It Back. Panicking over the dodgy finances, Maddie takes a gamble: she signs up for a fly-on-the-wall reality TV series. With her faithful staff (divalicious drag queen Ruby, shy barman Simon and wannabe actress Jasmine) she’ll transform the bar into a huge success. Simple. Right? Executive Producer Evan Bergman knows that scandal sells. It’s no coincidence that he hires cool, attractive Nick Craven as director. Evan wants drama on screen – and he’ll do anything to get it. As the series builds to a live finale, will Maddie see the truth in a Careless Whisper? Will Nick be able to keep his Poker Face? One thing’s for sure: we all do things at karaoke that we regret …

Confessions of a Karaoke Queen is available in paperback and for Kindle (links go to Amazon.co.uk)

I Heart Vegas by Lindsey Kelk
Released 8th December
Published by Harper
Website: http://www.iheartlindseykelk.com/

I’m a huge fan of this series and can’t wait to read the fourth installment of Angela’s adventures. Gorgeous cover too!

Angela Clark loves her life in New York. She a Brit who’s conquered the Big Apple. Unfortunately, she’s also a Brit who’s lost her job. And when, just a couple of weeks before Christmas, the immigration department gets wind of this, Angela needs to find a new job urgently. Or a husband. And she doesn’t think her boyfriend Alex will be keen.

A girls’ weekend in Vegas with her best friend Jenny seems the perfect way to forget her troubles. From the minute they arrive Angela is swept up in a whirl of cocktails, outrageous outfits, late nights and brushes with the chapel of love. But rather than escaping trouble, Angela is up to her neck in it….

But what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas – right?

I Heart Vegas is available in paperback and for Kindle (links go to Amazon.co.uk)

Manhattan by Ronni Cooper
Released 22nd December
Published by Sphere
Website: http://www.ronnicooper.com/

New York is my favourite city so this had to be on my list and it sounds like a real page turner!

Raine: Born in Brooklyn, the undisputed queen of the City, Raine owns the sexiest, starriest nightclub in New York – and no one is ever going to take her crown. Mei-Lin: The beautiful, enigmatic madam moves in all the right circles – but it wasn’t always that way. Now her American dream has become a nightmare and she may have to pay the ultimate price for freedom. Stevie: Once the lead singer of the biggest female rock band in the world, Stevie is now flying solo – but she has a secret that could destroy her. Now all three women are about to discover that payback is the biggest bitch of all…

Manhattan is available in paperback and for Kindle (links go to Amazon.co.uk)

Some sequel news for this week’s book news:

A Discovery of Witches – the movie and the sequel!

I loved A Discovery of Witches when I read it earlier this year and have been eagerly awaiting news on the second book in the series which should be out next year. On Thursday Deborah Harkness made two big announcements on her Facebook page; the first, that the sequel will be called Shadow of Night and the second that Warner Brothers has acquired the rights to develop A Discovery of Witches as a series of films. You can find out the full details of the possible films on Deborah’s Facebook Page. The casting stage is still a long way off but feel free to leave your thoughts on who should play Diana and Matthew on the big screen in the comments box below!

For those of you who haven’t read A Discovery of Witches yet, the paperback is out in September with this lovely cover showing some of my favourite Oxford buildings.

Lindsey Kelk Hearts …

… Vegas! I’m so excited about this one – the next novel in Lindsey Kelk’s ‘I Heart…’ series will be I Heart Vegas and the book will be out just in time for Christmas with a release date of December 8th. I can’t wait to find out what happens to Angela next and I love the fact that the book will be set at Christmas too!

Angela Clark loves her life in New York. She loves her job, her friends and her gorgeous musician boyfriend, Alex, who is finally ready to move in with her and start planning their future together. Everything is perfect.

But, after Angela loses her job, her world starts to crumble around her – her visa is revoked and she’s given the disastrous news that she must leave New York and her life behind and go back to London.

Confused, heartbroken and desperate to stay, the last thing Angela needs is a girls’ trip to Vegas just before Christmas – especially when Manhattan at Christmas is so perfect that she never wants to go home…

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky to attend my second blogger event of the summer. Hosted by Harper Collins (thank you Kat and Elinor!) the first part of the event found me enjoying a delicious ‘Not Afternoon Tea’ at the Oxo Tower with fellow bloggers  and authors David Nobbs and Fanny Blake. I reviewed Fanny’s debut novel What Women Want back in April and was very excited to get my copy signed. David was celebrating a new release, It Had to be You which I’m looking forward to reading soon having really enjoyed one of his previous books Going Gently.

With lively chat covering blogging, twitter and writing it was a lovely afternoon with two great authors and a nice opportunity to catch up with Mel (High Heels and Book Deals), Talli (http://talliroland.blogspot.com/) and Jackie (Farm Lane Books) who I’d met at previous events and to meet fellow bloggers Elaine (Random Jottings of a Book and Opera Lover), Simon (Stuck in a Book) and Claire (Paperback Reader).

Following tea we hopped (ok, stepped slowly in my case) onto the river taxi and headed to the Tower of London where we attended the launch event for Sarah Gristwood’s debut fiction novel The Girl in the Mirror. Sarah gave a fascinating talk on the latter days of Elizabeth I’s reign and her relationship with the Earl of Essex including some delightfully horrific details of the beheadings that took place not far from where we sat that evening! Of course I couldn’t resist buying a copy of the book and getting Sarah to sign it too and went home one very happy blogger.

As well as the books featured above there are some fantastic titles being released by Harper in the latter half of 2011 so I thought I’d share with you my July-December highlights (click on the thumbnails to see the full covers)

Last Dance with Valentino by Daisy Waugh (August)

One night. One dance. One love to last a lifetime. 1916. Leaving war-ravaged London, Jenny Doyle sets sail for New York where she is to work for the de Saulles family. Their home, Gatsby-like in elegance, is rife with intrigue and madness. Only Jenny’s friendship with dancer Rodolfo offers escape… until, one tragic day, the household is changed forever.1926. America booms, prohibition rules and Rodolfo has taken his place on the silver screen as Rudolph Valentino. Will the world’s most desired film star and his lost love have their Hollywood happy ending, or will the tragic echoes from their time with the de Saulles thwart them one last time?

The Very Picture of You by Isabel Wolff (September)

A forbidden love, a life-long secret, and one chance to make the right decision. Ella has always been an artist, jotting down pictures from a young age, and now in her thirties she has made it her profession. Commissioned to capture memories, fading beauty and family moments, her sitters often reveal more about themselves than merely their outward appearance.When Ella’s younger sister Chloe asks her to paint a portrait of her new fiancé Nate, Ella is reluctant. He is a brash American who Ella thinks has proposed far too fast, so the thought of spending many hours alone with him fills her with dread. But before long Ella realises there is more to Nate than meets the eye. Inter-weaving the stories of Ella’s sitters – from the old lady with a wartime secret, to the handsome politician who has a confession to make – with Ella’s own hunt for her real father and slow realization that she is falling in love with the wrong man; a truly unforgettable portrait of the many aspects of love.

The Noble Assassin by Christie Dickason (October)

Court beauty, Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford, feels frustrated by life with her weak husband. Poverty stricken, they are confined to their country estate and excluded from court life in London after he disastrously allies himself against Elizabeth I.Now, some years later, James I is seated on the English throne. His daughter, Elizabeth Stuart, former confidant of Lucy, has married the King of Bohemia. The precarious political situation in Europe is fraught, setting father against daughter. When Elizabeth and her husband are deposed, exiled and forced on the run, James is in no mood to come to Elizabeth’s aid.Hearing of Elizabeth’s predicament, Lucy sees an opportunity to re-establish the Bedford name and offers herself as a peace envoy between the two parties. Setting out on a daring mission across the channel, Lucy discovers she is being manipulated by unscrupulous men, not least the calculating and darkly handsome Duke of Buckingham.Can Lucy tread this most dangerous path, or by risking everything, will she pay the ultimate price?

The Time of My Life by Cecelia Ahern (November)

Dear Lucy Silchester,You have an appointment for Monday 27th July 2011.Yours sincerely,Life.Lucy Silchester has received an appointment card. Actually, she’s been invited along a few times to this appointment, but she keeps brushing the gold embossed envelope under the shag pile carpet. She’s taken her eye off the ball and has busied herself with work (a job she doesn’t love), helping out friends, fixing her car, feeding her cat, seeing her family and devoting her time to their life dramas.But Lucy is about to find out that this is one appointment that she can’t miss. And she can’t escape it either. Her Life is about to catch up with her in the most surreal of ways…

It Started With A Kiss by Miranda Dickinson (November)

How far would you go to find the man of your dreams? Romily Parker is a woman on a mission. On the last Saturday before Christmas, (shortly after disastrously declaring her undying love for her best friend, Charlie) Romily has a sudden, brief encounter with a gorgeous stranger who might, just possibly, be the man of her dreams. It only takes two small words – ‘Hello, beautiful’ – and one, heart-stopping kiss to make up her mind: she has to find him again.Giving herself a deadline of the following Christmas Eve, Romily commits to spending a year searching for the stranger – a decision which divides her family and friends.A sparkling, romantic comedy about an English girl who won’t give up on her dream of love.

The Scarlet Contessa by Jeanne Kalogridis (November)

Daughter of the Duke of Milan and wife of the conniving Count Girolamo Riario, Caterina Sforza was the bravest warrior Renaissance Italy ever knew. She ruled her own lands, fought her own battles, and openly took lovers whenever she pleased.Her remarkable tale is told by her lady-in-waiting, Dea, a woman knowledgeable in reading the ‘triumph cards’ – the predecessor of modern-day Tarot. As Dea tries to unravel the truth about her husband’s murder, Caterina single-handedly holds off invaders who would steal her title and lands. However, Dea’s reading of the cards reveals that Caterina cannot withstand a third and final invader – none other than Cesare Borgia, son of the corrupt Pope Alexander VI, who has an old score to settle with Caterina. Trapped inside the Fortress at Ravaldino as Borgia’s cannons pound the walls, Dea reviews Caterina’s scandalous past and struggles to understand their joint destiny, while Caterina valiantly tries to fight off Borgia’s unconquerable army.

I Heart Vegas by Lindsey Kelk (December)

Angela Clark loves her life in New York. She loves her job, her friends and her gorgeous musician boyfriend, Alex, who is finally ready to move in with her and start planning their future together. Everything is perfect.But, after Angela loses her job, her world starts to crumble around her – her visa is revoked and she’s given the disastrous news that she must leave New York and her life behind and go back to London.Confused, heartbroken and desperate to stay, the last thing Angela needs is a girls’ trip to Vegas just before Christmas – especially when Manhattan at Christmas is so perfect that she never wants to go home…

Today is my one year blogoversary (although I only realised this evening – I thought it was tomorrow!) so I thought I’d mark the occasion with a look back at my first year as a blogger and say thank you to everyone who has been so friendly and supportive over the last year by doing a little giveaway.

It’s been quite a year; I started this blog as an online book journal, mainly for me to put my thoughts out there on the books I read and hopefully find some like-minded people who might chat about books with me. I admit that when I wrote my first post I didn’t really know what I was doing or what a huge and wonderful community of book bloggers I was about to become part of. I’m still amazed every time someone follows me on Twitter or here on the blog, comments on my posts or an author or publisher asks me to consider a book for review.

I’ve written 178 posts in the last year and almost 2,500 tweets. I’ve reviewed 81 books Not huge numbers compared to some but impressive to me! I’m hoping I can continue to blog and review just as much in the next year but as some of you already know, I’m expecting my second baby in August so things may slow down for a little while (at least on the blogging front!) at that point but I’m almost as addicted to my blog as I am to books now so I won’t be away for long!

There are so many people I’d like to say thank you to and I don’t want to miss anyone out so ‘thank you’ to everyone who has Tweeted, commented and followed over the last year and a special mention to Keris Stainton and Dot Scribbles – thank you for being the first people to comment on my blog exactly a year ago today!  Thanks also to all of the authors both published and unpublished for writing brilliant books and to the amazingly generous publishers who I’ve come into contact with in the last year. I have discovered so many amazing books because of all of your recommendations that my ‘to be read’ pile is now completely out of control but I wouldn’t have it any other way

Finally, because a birthday should always involve presents and as a little thank you to my followers here and on Twitter, I have a copy of  The Single Girl’s To-Do List by Lindsey Kelk to give away which is one of my most anticipated chick lit books of 2011:

Rachel Summers loves a to-do list:

• Boyfriend
• Flat
• Great job

NOT on the list:

• Being dumped

Best friends Emelie and Matthew ride to her rescue with an entirely new kind of list – The Single Girl’s To-Do List. Rachel doesn’t know it, but it will take her on all kinds of wild adventures – and get her in some romantic pickles too. And then it won’t be a case of what but who she decides to tick off…

• Mr. bendy yoga instructor
• Mr. teenage sweetheart
• Mr. persistent ex
• Mr. deeply unsuitable

The Single Girl’s To-Do List gives Rachel the perfect heartbreak cure – and proves love is out there if you’re willing to take a chance.

This is just for people who follow me already here on One More Page or on Twitter as a thank you for your support over the last year. To enter leave a ‘pick me’ comment in the box below or send me a Tweet and I’ll pick a winner from the entries using random.org after the closing date. This giveaway is open worldwide until midnight (UK) on Sunday 26th June.

There are lots of fab summer books being released in June but I’ve narrowed it down to six of my favourites …

Love and Freedom by Sue Moorcroft
Released 1st June
Published by Choc Lit
Website: http://www.suemoorcroft.com/

I absolutely love the cover for this book and the story sounds great too!

New start, new love. That’s what Honor Sontag needs after her life falls apart, leaving her reputation in tatters and her head all over the place. So she flees her native America and heads for Brighton, England. Honor’s hoping for a much-deserved break and the chance to find the mother who abandoned her as a baby. What she gets is an entanglement with a mysterious male whose family seems to have a finger in every pot in town. Martyn Mayfair has sworn off women with strings attached, but is irresistibly drawn to Honor, the American who keeps popping up in his life. All he wants is an uncomplicated relationship built on honesty, but Honor’s past threatens to undermine everything. Then secrets about her mother start to spill out … Honor has to make an agonising choice. Will she live up to her dutiful name and please others? Or will she choose freedom?

The Beach Cafe by Lucy Diamond
Released 2nd June
Published by Pan
Website: http://www.lucydiamond.co.uk/

I’ve not read anything by Lucy Diamond before but I’ve heard lots of good things about her books and I love Cornwall so this sounds like a good summer read.

Mad Love by Suzanne Selfors

The Single Girl’s To-Do List
Released 9th June
Published by Harper
Website: http://www.lindseykelk.com/

The third book on my ‘Most Anticipated Chick Lit Books of 2011‘ list. I’ve been looking forward to this one for a long time – it sounds like a perfect summer read

Meet Rachel Summers: a twenty-something make-up artist whose life is very much going to plan. She has a job she loves, a lovely long-term boyfriend, a great flat in north London and some fabulous friends. The next phase in her masterplan is to buy a house, have a baby, move to a bigger house, have another baby, get a 4×4. Simple.

Well, not quite as Simon, Rachel’s boyfriend, suddenly decides that they should take a break. Rachel’s convinced it’s just a three-year itch but, four months later, they are still living under the same roof but sleeping in separate bedrooms.

It’s time for an intervention as Emilie and Matthew, Rachel’s best friends, can no longer bear to watch Rachel suffer anymore. As they try to convince her to move out and move on, they come up with the ultimate break-up cure – the single girl’s to-do list. A list of of all the things Rachel should see and do in her newly single life.

But nothing could have prepared them for the hilarious adventures that are about to unfold as the to-do list takes them around London and abroad, and proves to them all that love is out there if you’re willing to take a chance on it…

Witches of the East by Melissa de la Cruz
Released 21st June
Published by Sphere
Website: http://www.melissa-delacruz.com/

I’m a huge fan of Melissa’s Blue Bloods series so was very excited when she announced a spin off adult series about witches set in the same world.

It’s the beginning of summer in North Hampton, and beautiful Freya Beauchamp is celebrating her engagement to wealthy Bran Gardiner, the heir to Fair Haven and Gardiners Island. But Freya is drawn to Bran’s gorgeous but unreliable brother Killian, and sparks fly when the two decide to play a dangerous game, following an ancient story of love, betrayal and tragedy that harks back to the days of Valhalla.

Witches of East End follows the Beauchamp family—the formidable matriarch Joanna and her daughters Freya and Ingrid. Freya, a sexy bartender, has a potion to cure every kind of heartache, while Ingrid, the local librarian, solves complicated domestic problems with her ability to tie magical knots. Joanna is the witch to see when modern medicine has no more answers; her powers can wake the dead. Everything seems to be going smoothly until a young girl, Molly Lancaster, goes missing after taking one of Freya’s irresistible cocktails. As more of the town’s residents begin disappearing, everyone seems to have the same suspects in mind: the Beauchamp women.

About Last Night by Adele Parks
Released 23rd June
Published by Headline
Website: http://www.adeleparks.com/

The plot for this book has me really intrigued – I can’t wait to read it!

For thirty years, best friends Stephanie and Philippa have been practically inseparable. There’s nothing they would not do for one another. Until a few simple words change everything. I need you to say that I was with you.’ Steph, eternally solid, considerate and dependable, is begging her best friend to lie to the police as she’s desperately trying to conceal two shocking secrets to protect her family. Pip, self-consigned to the role of scatty, frivolous hot-head is overwhelmed; she’s normally the one asking for help in a crisis although never anything as catastrophic as this. Both women have always believed that friendship is built on mutual selflessness, compromise and trust. Are those beliefs now to be tested beyond endurance?

Those are my hot picks for June – what are you looking forward to reading next month?

Jenny Lopez is miserable. Having spent the summer working in LA, she’s back home in New York, and missing the three key elements in a girl’s life – a roommate, a job and a boyfriend. Jenny formulates a plan; surely someone must need a roommate and surely someone must need a girlfriend? By the end of the day, she has arranged a viewing for a potential roommate, the gay blond aka the Sex God, secured two dates, and work looking after a top supermodel. Things look like they are back on track; everything is going to work out great. If only life was so easy…

This is more of a mini-review as this is a short story and I don’t want to give away the plot but I wanted to say how much I enjoyed this book. It made for a very pleasant couple of hours reading on my train journey the other day and I really enjoyed being back in Angela’s world.

For those who haven’t read Lindsey Kelk’s I Heart … series (books set in New York, Hollywood and Paris), Jenny Lopez is main character Angela’s best friend, the one who picks her up and puts her back together when she first arrives in New York and the girl who is always there for her. We didn’t see much of Jenny in the last book (Paris) so it was lovely to catch up with her on her move back to New York.

This book is an easy, fun read and Jenny’s adventures over the course of just one week made me smile. I thought it was great to get to know a secondary character in more depth and I can’t wait to find out what happens to Jenny next.

If you haven’t read any of the series yet, don’t worry – this short story stands on its own and is a good taster for the I Heart … books and if you have read and enjoyed books in the main series, you’ll definitely want to catch up with Jenny.

5/5

Jenny Lopez has a Bad Week is out now as a free digital download available from Amazon or iBooks. Lindsey Kelk’s new standalone novel The Single Girl’s To-Do List is released on 9th June.

This week’s book news has a New York theme …

Free e-book by Lindsey Kelk!

Focusing on Jenny, Angela’s best friend in the ‘I Heart …’ series, Lindsey Kelk has published a short story called Jenny Lopez has a Bad Week and the even better news is that it’s free to download until May 23rd! You can find it on Amazon or iBooks. I’ve downloaded my copy and will hopefully have a review up later this week.

Jenny Lopez is miserable. Having spent the summer working in LA, she’s back home in New York, and missing the three key elements in a girl’s life – a roommate, a job and a boyfriend. Jenny formulates a plan; surely someone must need a roommate and surely someone must need a girlfriend? By the end of the day, she has arranged a viewing for a potential roommate, the gay blond aka the Sex God,secured two dates, and work looking after a top supermodel. Things look like they are back on track; everything is going to work out great. If only life was so easy…

From Notting Hill with Love… Actually … the sequel!!!!

I’m so excited about this snippet of news from Ali McNamara. I loved From Notting Hill with Love …Actually and I’m even more excited that the sequel is going to be set in my favourite city, New York. Just thinking about the huge number of brilliant films set there, I cannot wait to find out what Scarlett gets up to! Ali announced the news on her new website which looks great and the lucky lady is going to New York for a research trip soon. Have a fab time Ali!

Cover Love: Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? By Claudia Carroll

I was browsing Amazon earlier and this cover caught my eye. The plot has me intrigued so this is another book added to the summer reading wish list. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? is released on August 18th.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder…doesn’t it?

What happens when two people decide to give themselves the year off…from each other?

Annie and Dan were the perfect couple. But now the not-so-newly weds feel more like flatmates than soul mates and wonder where all the fun and fireworks went …

When Annie lands her big break in a smash-hit show that’s heading for the bright lights of Broadway, she’s over the moon. Goodbye remote Irish village of Stickens, hello fabulous Big Apple! But with their relationship already on the rocks, how will Annie and Dan survive the distance?

They’re hitting the pause button on their marriage. One year off from each other – no strings attached, except a date to meet in twelve months at the Rockefeller Centre to decide their fate.

Will they both turn up? Or is it too late for love?