Today we welcome the lovely Lauren Westwood and her most recent novel Finding Secrets, published 1st March 2017.
A country house, a precious jewelled locket, and a puzzle dating back to
the London Blitz and Imperial Russia. Utterly captivating, a fantastic romance
from beginning to end. Perfect for the fans of Carole Matthews and Milly
Johnson.
Alex Hart loves her dream job as manager of Mallow Court, a historic
Elizabethan house, even if her friends think she needs to get out more. But a
discovery in the pocket of an old coat – a jewelled mechanical locket shaped
like a bird – changes everything, and Alex discovers that things are not as
they seem.
From an old diary, to a handsome barrister, a mysterious clockmaker, and
the darkest hours of the London Blitz, Alex must follow the trail of the
jewelled bird to uncover the truth about the things she holds dearest – and
someone is determined not to let sleeping dogs lie!
Only by finding
the secrets of the past can Alex find the keys to her future – and her heart.
Lauren was kind enough to write us a guest post for today's stop.
The life in my men . . .
It's not the men in my life that count, it's the life in my men.
Mae West
I write a lot of posts
about my inspirations and writing, but let’s face it, most of us read romance
novels for one reason – the love story between the hero and heroine. It’s often
said that novels are ‘escapism’, but from what, dear reader, are we trying to
escape from?
I’m not a biologist or an
expert in human behaviour, but as a modern professional woman, I’ve ‘been there’
many times – I’ve done the dating thing, the settling down thing, the having
kids thing. I’ve done the toilet seat up or down thing, the washing his black
socks with my white shirts thing, the flowers and chocolate thing, the
arguments over money, schools, holidays, jobs, and you-name-it, thing.
And in the end, I’m happy
in real life. It’s taken me a lot of years to be able to say that, but for the
most part, it’s true. So why do I still like to read and write romance novels
and conjure up in my mind those scrummy heroes?
The answer is different
for everyone, I’m sure, but for me, it’s fun to dream and imagine ‘the road not
taken’. Every day when I’m commuting to work I pass hundreds of men – single,
in relationships? – for the most part I’ll never know or give it a second
thought. For most of us, chance, fate, and the elements have aligned in a
certain way, and that’s that.
But when you think about
it, there are so many tiny random elements that decide the who our life
partners are – who we meet and don’t meet, who we are attracted to and not,
who’s ready, willing, and at the same stage in life as you are. In theory, any
one of the men we pass on the street could have been ‘the one’, and we’ll never
know for sure what life would have been like if we were with them.
Romance novels give us
that chance to dream, that chance to explore other lives, other . . . ahem . .
. partners, and rekindle those flames that are challenged in our relationships
every day. Romance novels give us that little extra zest in our lives. While
some people say that this may be a bad thing – it gives us an unrealistic view
of love, life, and ‘happily ever after’ – I think it can be good too. Because
you and me, and every woman deserve a little extra love and romance in her real
life, and we shouldn’t be afraid to ask our partners to provide it.
So the next time he leaves
his dirty dishes in the sink or his pants on the floor, go out, buy yourself a
lovely new book, and give him a big hug and kiss. Because at the end of the
day, it’s up to us to make it happen for real.
About Lauren Westwood
Originally
from California, Lauren relocated to the UK in 2000. She works as a lawyer for
a renewable energy company. Lauren’s first novel, 'Finding Home' was inspired by
her family's 3-year search for a house that made them the bane of home county
estate agents. She currently resides in a pernickety 400-year old house in
Surrey with her partner and their three daughters. She enjoys travel, visiting
old houses, baking with her daughters, dance, playing piano, and hates tennis.
Follow Lauren
Twitter: @LWestwoodWriter
