Happy October, everyone! Season of mists and falling leaves, and fires against the darkness. I’m back in the Shed, working hard on the copy-edits of the new book.
And to celebrate, Amazon are offering BROKEN LIGHT for just 99p on Kindle UK!
Happy October, everyone! Season of mists and falling leaves, and fires against the darkness. I’m back in the Shed, working hard on the copy-edits of the new book.
And to celebrate, Amazon are offering BROKEN LIGHT for just 99p on Kindle UK!
VIANNE is now out in the US: and doesn’t it look fantastic?
Plus it has been getting some brilliant coverage in magazines and on podcasts, including Zibby’s fall list, the Oprah Daily fall list, and People Magazine. I’m really looking forward to my trip to Boston in October, too – I really hope I’ll see some of you there!
And here’s a piece I wrote for the Literary Hub on coming back to Vianne – read it here!
I’m really enjoying your reviews of VIANNE: over 400 of them on Amazon so far, with 76% of them five stars!
And I’ve noticed VIANNE’S CONFESSION getting some very nice reviews recently: here’s one from the wonderful Jo Fairlie, and another from the excellent Stephan Matthews, both of whom have a nose for an original scent…
Want to try it? You can buy it here…
Those of you who follow Test Match Cricket may have heard me being interviewed in Headingley last weekend, chatting with the wonderful Aggers in the viewing box about cricket, chocolate, VIANNE (and why Dickie Bird still owes me a fish supper).
Missed the live broadcast? it’s now available as a podcast and on BBC Sounds here…
As you can see, it’s going to be a busy month! I’ll be talking about Vianne, VIANNE, chocolate and CHOCOLAT; I’ll be doing readings, scenting books; I’ll be handing out bookmarks and merch, and generally celebrating 26 years of literature’s favourite chocolatiere.
Is there an event near you? Everybody welcome…
Meanwhile, to get you in the mood, here’s a list of great books about food.
Bon appétit!
6 Great Books About Food
You all know how I feel about scent.
Well, a couple of weeks ago I went to see perfumer Sarah McCartney of 4160 Tuesdays to help create a bespoke scent to illustrate the new book. I had a wonderful time in Sarah’s lab, trying different scents and raw materials, talking about the background to the book; the location (Marseille in late summer and autumn) and the pictures I wanted the scent to paint. The result is called VIANNE’S CONFESSION: part chocolaterie, part confessional, with all the darkness and light of the Old Quarter of Marseille, with its steep little cobbled streets, its planters of geraniums, and the basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde, sheltering the city.
I’ll use the scent to spritz books, scent bookmarks and hopefully, explore in readings. You’ll be able to try it too: it’s launching on May 22nd, the same day as the book. And here’s a secret discount code – Vianne – to get £25 off an advance order for the first batch!
Here’s Sarah in her lab, talking you through the process of building a scent from scratch…
And here’s a link to pre-order a signed copy of the book from a series of indie bookshops…
ORDER YOUR SIGNED COPIES FROM THE FOLLOWING INDIES…
On the evening of July 4th, a young woman scatters her mother’s ashes in New York and follows the call of the changing winds to the French coastal city of Marseille.
For the first time in her life, Vianne feels in control of her future. Charming her way into a job as a waitress, she tries to fit in, make friends, and come to terms with her pregnancy, knowing that by the time her child is born, the turning wind will have changed once again.
As she discovers the joy of cooking for the very first time, making local recipes her own with the addition of bittersweet chocolate spices, she learns that this humble magic has the power to unlock secrets.
And yet her gift comes at a price. And Vianne has a secret of her own; a secret that threatens everything…
Out on May 22nd, 2025.
Remember Faith and Hope, the two indomitable ladies of the Meadowbank Retirement Home? Well, I have good news for their many fans: there’s a brand new, exclusive Faith and Hope Story out right now in December’s edition of GOOD HOUSEKEEPING. It’s called FAITH AND HOPE AND THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT, and I wrote it just for you…
And there are three special offers on Amazon UK this month: THE STRAWBERRY THIEF, A NARROW DOOR and THE LOLLIPOP SHOES are all priced at just 99p until the end of the month, so get clicking!
A lovely endorsement of THE MOONLIGHT MARKET from the wonderful Maggie Aderin-Pocock, which absolutely made my day...
Finally, MAIDEN, MOTHER, CRONE is out in paperback – and just in time for Hallowe’en, the natural home of these dark and magical stories.
It’s a bumper collection of my three novellas, A POCKETFUL OF CROWS, THE BLUE SALT ROAD and ORFEIA, plus some brand-new, unpublished short stories, and all of Bonnie’s amazing illustrations. Treat yourself, or a loved one. Best enjoyed with a cup of mulled wine, spiced cider or chocolate…
Have you ever felt as if you were not quite a part of this world? As if the reality you knew were only a shadow of something else, waiting to reveal itself, like a photographic negative? Have you ever been in love – a love beyond doubt, beyond question? A love that feels impossibly old, though her face is that of a stranger?
And to celebrate the launch of the new book, here’s BROKEN LIGHT for just 99p on Kindle UK for the rest of the month!
Imagine if Carrie White had suppressed her paranormal abilities.
Imagine if she’d lived a normal life: a house, with a husband, a son, a job in an indie bookshop. Not a very happy life, but a normal, boring, suburban life in a busy part of London.
Now imagine if her powers emerged, not with puberty, but with – MENOPAUSE…
“Bold, brave and timely.” (Sarah Pinborough)
Here’s something nice for November, everyone: THE LOLLIPOP SHOES for just 99p on Kindle UK all this month…
And here it is! The gorgeous omnibus edition of my three folk-inspired novellas, with a new intro by me, cover art by Sue Gent, glorious illustrations by Bonnie Helen Hawkins and THREE brand new short stories set in my HONEYCOMB world…