Book review Swept Away by Beth O’Leary #romance #tuesdaybookblog

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I was lucky enough to have Beth O’Leary come to a town near me and take part in a talk and Q&A about her recent book – Swept Away. It was an enjoyable evening, made all the better because I loved the story.

Thanks to Staines Library and Waterstones book shop in Staines for running this event.

I really enjoy seeing authors talking about their books, especially as an author myself. It’s eye-opening to see how their process differs from mine and I enjoy getting an insight into the publishing process from their experiences.

Blurb for Swept Away

Lexi is looking for no-strings-attached fun.

Zeke is looking for love.

Neither of them were looking for a one-night stand to become their one and only lifeline.

But when they wake up after an unforgettable night together, the houseboat they stayed on has been swept out to sea. There’s no signal, no steering and no sign of rescue.

And as the waves pick up and supplies run low, Zeke and Lexi realise there’s much more on the line than their new relationship.

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I love this cover. It’s colourful and perfect for the story.

My Review

The main characters Lexi and Zeke are loveable but with flaws and scars from the past they are both struggling to deal with. They meet for a one-night stand before things take the most unexpected turn. I started reading this without even reading the blurb so, I was as shocked as they were when they looked outside and found themselves floating out at sea.

I was able to get in both of their heads as the story is written in first person from both Lexi and Zeke’s viewpoint. They share alternate chapters, so it’s never confusing who’s head you’re in and I found it an immersive and page-turning experience. It was also nice to have an older woman / younger man dynamic to the relationship.

I don’t want to give too much away but I will say that although it may sound like it could be a very static storyline as two characters are trapped on a boat out at sea, there was no boring moments. In fact, there were plenty of life and death moments to keep you reading. It’s very much a love story at heart, and there were secrets to be revealed and past hurts to face up to and to heal from.

I loved the twist, which broke my heart at first, but the end couldn’t have been more perfect.

I hope my vague review has intrigued you enough to check out this book. I’m so happy I read Swept Away and highly recommend it.

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Thanks for reading.

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The Writer Blog Prompt Project – Content Warnings

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Week 3 of the prompt project sees us tackling the subject of Content Warnings, which is not something I’ve given much thought to.

Over the years I’ve read widely in horror, thriller, psychological thriller, crime, fantasy and romance. Most of these genres you expect dark and sometimes grisly themes, so the idea of content warnings seems unnecessary. However, in recent times I’ve noticed it becoming more accepted to offer these warnings.

I’ve had reviewers mention things in my books that might be a trigger to others. Sometimes these are small plot points that don’t seem relevant to me as an author, but clearly they could be issues for readers. I’ve entered competitions where they ask you to list all triggers that might affect the judges. The same goes for book review sites. These all make sense as having the wrong readers for your books will only hurt both parties. But doesn’t having content warnings take away the mystery of picking up a brand new book and just diving straight in?

I’m really on the fence about this and haven’t put content warnings on my books yet.

What do you think as a reader or an author? Are these warnings necessary?

I can only think of one time when the content of a book stopped me reading on. Not the book itself, but I didn’t continue with the series after book 1. It was Mark Lawrence One Word Kill. The teenage character is dying – which it states in the first line of the blurb, so no surprises there. But at the time of reading my son was the same age, and I just found it too uncomfortable imagining him going through cancer treatment etc. It was a good book and well written as are all Mark Lawrence’s books (and some of his books have very DARK themes) but this one was not for me.

Would a content warning have stopped me picking it up? No. I didn’t realise I would be triggered by anything like this and I probably wouldn’t be now. It was just how I felt at the time.

Do you have triggers that you’d rather not read about? Or do you go into a book open minded and take what the author throws at you?

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Thanks for Ari for suggesting this interesting topic in her Writer Blog Prompt Project. Here is a link to Ari’s post on content warnings where she will also add links to any other blogs that decide to take part this week.

The next topic up for discussion – D is for Drop Caps.

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The Writer Blog Prompt Project B is for Book Trailers

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Last week the prompt from Ari Meghlen was Book Trailers – now that is a subject I didn’t expect to be writing about at the moment. But I want to take part in the weekly blog challenge so here goes…

I don’t see many book trailers. I guess I don’t hang out where they are shown and I don’t go out of my way to find them. But they do have a place and, done right, can be a real game changer for authors. There is no doubt the world of social media has become very visual, so authors need to move with the times.

When I bring out my romance series later this year I will be using all forms of promotion to reach readers and that will include book trailers.

My son is a music production graduate. He makes amazing music so I will be commissioning his help for that. My daughter is learning digital art so I’m also hoping she will be able to help in some way as well. It would be great to work on the project as a family – though not just for the free labour! (only joking, I would pay them for their time.)

I have dabbled with book trailers in the past, well I had one made for me to promote the audiobook of The Lost Sentinel. The narrator’s wife put together a video on Youtube. It was fun to see my book brought to life in a different medium, but it’s no longer available to watch so I can’t share the link.

I don’t feel very qualified to talk about book trailers but I’m excited at the prospect of doing my own and seeing what works.

As I planned out this blog post I listened to Radioactive by Imagine Dragons and one line in the song stands out ‘…welcome to the new age…’. I suppose that’s how indie authors need to look at book trailers and everything involved in publishing our books.

Later this week the topic of choice is Content Warnings.

Here is the link to Ari’s post on Book Trailers. She shares some great tips, so it’s worth having a read.

Until next time…

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See my book catalogue on the Suzanne Rogerson Collection

The Writer Blog Prompt Challenge – A for Achievement

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This is the start of a 26 week blog challenge set by Ari Meghlan. I think it’s a great idea and have decided to play along. This week’s word is Achievement.

My big achievement is the fact I’ve been an indie author for 10 years!

This milestone passed by very quietly on 16th November 2025. I suppose I wasn’t feeling very successful and didn’t want to advertise the fact that I’m not yet a big name in the book world, nor am I able to support myself with writing alone.

But now I am ready to celebrate it, because although there have been a lot of challenges, it can’t be denied that I have achieved one of my dreams…

I am a published author with 4 full length novels and 4 short story collections to my name.

I have plans to write and publish a lot more over the next 10 years. My books have been downloaded by thousands of people and I’ve hit a few bestseller lists on Amazon, albeit briefly. My books have had lots of wonderful reviews, and I’ve even had the amazing experience of being called a reader’s favourite author. In 2021 I was a finalist in the book bloggers novel of the year with The Lost Sentinel, and the opening of my romance novel Secrets and Love Songs at The Mermaid Hotel came second in the flash 500 novel opening competition in 2023.

One of the biggest achievements came early on when I was contacted by a publisher and had my debut, Visions of Zarua, translated into Czech. I travelled to Prague, visited my publisher and the local bookshops to see my books on the shelves.

The last 10 years have involved a lot of learning, and plenty of tears, but I wouldn’t go back and change it. This is my achievement and I am owning it today.

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Thank you to Ari for starting off this challenge. Here is a link to her post on Achievement where she shares her thoughts on the subject and also links to anyone else who has decided to take part. Please take a look and join in if you feel inspired.

Next week B is for Book trailer.

A new look for the website and questions on an author rebrand

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I’ve been messing around with the website headers and how the site looks on WordPress. This is a snippet of its current new look.

It’s temporary because I will hopefully have some romance covers to share soon. I love all shades of purple, so this appealed to me and the sunshine reminds me of the happiness of spring.

What I’m finding really difficult is getting a look that says I’m a writer of both fantasy and romance. Maybe I need to split the header into two and showcase both sides of my writing. It could end up looking messy, so I will do some experiments and maybe share the results here to get feedback.

The next few months will be all about defining my author brand ahead of the launch of The Mermaid Hotel Series.

Whilst experimenting on Canva with graphics, I will need to ask myself: should I come away from my fantasy books completely for now and rebrand as a romance author? Is it viable to do both on the same website? Should I have two websites dedicated to each genre? These are hard questions, and I’d love to know what other authors have done.

Also, what other softwares are out? I’ve dabbled with the free versions of Canva and Book Brush. Is it worth the monthly subscription?

I thought it would be fun to look back on the banners my website has used over the years, starting at the beginning. When I first started out, I used my own pictures to make banners. These were a couple I played with.

When I started publishing books, they took centre stage for a while.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the evolution of my website. It’s been fun looking back, especially seeing all the pictures I’ve used and being reminded of the posts they relate to. I hope to do a post looking back at those favourite images soon.

Until next time…

Book Review Christmas at the Cat Cafe by Jessica Redland #romance

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Well, this book just wowed me. I have to say it was probably one of the best books I read in 2025, though technically I finished it at the beginning of 2006.

Blurb

It’s the most wonderful time of the year on Castle Street, and there’s a paw-some new business opening….

It had always been Tabby’s dream to work with cats and an inheritance from her beloved nanna has finally made that a reality. Idyllic Castle Street in Whitsborough Bay couldn’t be a better place for pastry chef Tabby to open a cat café with her boyfriend, Leon.

But when Leon leaves her in the lurch, the pressure mounts for Tabby. With Christmas fast approaching, she has to open the café on her own – a daunting prospect, especially when she’s been hiding her health issues from the ones she loves.

Faced with local resistance to the café – and somebody seemingly determined that she won’t succeed – Tabby will need her friends, family and cats more than ever to recover her broken Christmas spirit and pull together for a Christmas miracle.

Will the cat café bring the festive joy to Castle Street as Tabby had hoped or will it be a cat-astrophe? And can the magic of Christmas on Castle Street mend Tabby’s broken heart as well as her business?

My Mini Review

I loved every moment spent with Tabby and her trials with both her health, heartache and opening a very special cat cafe. The slow burn romance, friends to lovers trope and lots of furry friends made for the purrfect festive reading!

I really enjoyed the friendship and chemistry between Tabby and Tom, and loved their cute nicknames for each other; Tabby-cat and Tom-cat. The cats were all stars of the story as well.

Learning about Tabby’s chronic heath condition was interesting and felt completely believable and integral to the storyline. At no point did I find it too much, it made the story more interesting and made the relationship between Tom and Tabby even more special. I loved their connection. I shed tears quite a few times reading this book, Jessica is a master at getting to you feel the character’s emotions.

It really was a top read for me and I highly recommend it.

Check it out on Amazon.

Book Review A Mistletoe Miracle Emma Jackson #romance #romcom

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I know it’s not Christmas time anymore, but I still enjoyed reading this festive story. Well, actually I loved this book and it led to some late nights staying up reading.

Blurb

A Mistletoe Miracle is the cosy festive romance from best-selling author, Emma Jackson, guaranteed to have readers feeling the joy amidst the chaos of Christmas, and the heady rush of falling in love.

Heartwarming and hilarious, get ready for a generous sprinkling of snowflakes, mayhem and kisses…

Nestled in the sleepy, snow-covered village of Holinton, the Everdene Hotel should be the ideal setting for a perfect Christmas… But for Beth, returning to her childhood home looking for a chance to heal in peace after a disastrous break-up, it’s more of a fiasco than a festive fantasy.

With her mum stranded in a blizzard and most of the hotel staff off sick, Beth is forced to take the reins, impress a mystery hotel reviewer, and figure out if her attraction to Nick, the very grumpy – and very gorgeous – pilot who is staying for the holidays, is the real deal or a rebound headed for disaster.

Between mince pie emergencies, deadly decorations, and two dozen disgruntled guests, Beth needs to find a miracle under the mistletoe if she’s going to survive this Christmas…

Perfect for fans of Laurie Gilmore, Heidi Swain and Tarah DeWitt.

Mini Review

I loved the story of Beth and Nick, from the way they literally bumped into each other, right up to their last moment on the page together.

Beth has to cope with running the hotel when her mother is stranded miles away because of the snow. She does an amazing job of juggling a dozen tasks at once and still somehow manages to find the time to fall for one of her grumpy guests.

The festive feel to the story lifts your spirits any time of year. And as the blurb states so perfectly, there are plenty of mishaps to keep everyone, especially Beth, on their toes.


I’m pleased to find out there will be a sequel following two of the other guests, though I shall miss the Everdene Hotel and all of Beth’s antics.

This is my first read by Emma Jackson and it won’t be my last!

5 star read!

Check it on Amazon here.

New Year Plans 2026 #indieauthor

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We’re already over halfway through January, so I’m a bit late with my New Year plans. I don’t like to waste an opportunity, so I’ve made myself a brief list of tasks that will help me reach the big goal – publishing The Mermaid Hotel Series in 2026. I have a rough publishing schedule in my head, though I’m not ready to announce it yet. Instead, I’m focusing on the steps I need to follow to reach my goals.

Book 1 – Get a cover, proofread, start the publishing journey including blog tours, ARC copies etc.

Book 2 – Get feedback from my critique partner, edit, get cover, send to my editor, edit, proof read, prepare to publish.

Book 3 – Read and edit prior to sending to a professional reader within the New Writers Scheme as part of my Romantic Novelist Association membership. Then the usual, edit, critique route as per book 2.

Book 4 – Send monthly installments to my writing group, edit and get a critique / edit etc.

Book 5 and beyond – Plan the books and prepare to write them as soon as possible.

Winter Warmers series – Write 8 to 10 cosy Christmas stories and publish in October / November.

Back catalogue – I want to go through all my published books and update the content, ensuring they all have links to my other books, social media etc.

Author profile – I need to improve my author presence on social media, work on my website and restart my newsletter. I’ve looked at Substack and want to figure out how it works before I start posting there.

I plan to attend some in person events this year, including ALLi Indie Author Lab in March and the Romantic Novelist Association bi-annual conference in July. I’m signing up to plenty of online webinars as well, trying to increase my knowledge of current indie publishing trends and marketing opportunities.

I’m hoping to have more time this year to dedicate to all things writing. I need it if I’m going to achieve this huge list. As much as I just want to write stories, I know I need to get a business head on and think about reaching readers. I hope to share more of this journey here.

Any tips will be greatly appreciated!

Have you set any resolutions or goals for 2026, realistic or otherwise?

Audiobook tour wrap up for A Little Christmas Magic #shortstories

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Happy Christmas Eve everyone!

Yesterday was the last day of the Audiobook tour run by Love Book Tours. It’s been great to read the reviews and pick out little snippets to share here. I’ve loved seeing how my stories have resonated with people and how reviewers have picked different favourites for their own reasons. With a book of 8 stories, it shows me that I’m doing something right!

Book A Holic 17 “I loved the different themes within this collection – although all festive – each one showed what the festive period really means to different people in different situations – reminding us to think of others at this time of year too.”

caits reading nook “I enjoyed the hopeful themes of each of these stories and how they feature multiple generations.”

amornia carlton “This was an incredibly beautiful listen for the holiday season! The title is absolutely perfect and fitting. The collection of short stories really is an examination of different kinds of ways that Christmas – or life in general, but during the holiday – can be magical.”

East Yorkshire bookworm “The audiobook contained stories of love, family, hope and reunions. I think my favourite was Poppy’s Christmas Wish.”

Pixies book blog “The voice actor if these stories really pulled you in, a very soothing voice. It caught me hookline and sinker!”

bookwormwhitlock86 “…a beautiful selection of fun, magical, festive and unique short stories perfect for Christmas.”

For the last time this year I get to share the blurb for A Little Christmas Magic.

From a much-loved family pet that goes missing to a neighbour in need.
Chance meetings and the kindness of strangers.
Overcoming trauma to help others and being prepared to make sacrifices.
A father rushing to get home to his kids in time for Christmas.

Dive into a short and sweet story to get you in the festive spirit.


Eight Stories

Poppy’s Christmas Wish
Last Minute Dash
Driving Home for Christmas
The Honeymoon Period
A Christmas Toast
The Last Train Home
The Wrong Post
Taking Care of Belle

Available as audiobook, ebook, paperback and hardback on Amazon.

If you’re struggling on Christmas Eve, why not stick on the audiobook and let Colette’s soothing voice help you through your preparations.

Have a good one, everyone.

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#Audiobook tour review snippets for A Little Christmas Magic

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I just love sharing these reviews. They really inspire me to keep writing and make me want to hurry up and produce the third short story collection in The Winter Warmer Series. That’s one of my big goals for 2026!

The Book Junction says “The overriding theme across these stories that stands out to me is CONNECTION. The power of human connection makes these stories feel like little Christmas miracles.”

A Felton Says “…from kindness to friends to remembering your youth and I loved the messages that came with this book. Really makes you think and I’ve been doing a lot of that this holiday season!’

Tabatha reads books “…I enjoyed these so much and even felt the tug to my heart strings!”

Reading on the brink “I loved listening to Colette Davies-Kerwin’s soothing voice as she narrated these beautiful short stories that share the magic of Christmas.”

Quiet time reading “This was a cute and quick read for the holidays.”

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A Little Christmas Magic is available on Amazon in paperback, ebook, hardback, and of course Audiobook. Narrated by the wonderful Colette, who will help you escape the madness of Christmas for a few hours and relax!

You can also check out The Winter Warmers Collection on Amazon.

I’ll be back on Christmas Eve with the last of the review snippets. I also plan an end of year wrap up and will hopefully look back at the books I have read over the last year.