Author: whatcathyreadnext

Blog Tour/Q&A: The Note by Zoë Folbigg

whatcathyreadnext

I’m delighted to be hosting today’s stop on the blog tour for The Note by Zoë Folbigg, a delightful story about how a little note can change your life forever. I’m thrilled to bring you an interview with Zoë in which she talks about her book, love at first sight and juggling writing and family life.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

The NoteAbout the Book

One very ordinary day, Maya Flowers sees a new commuter board her train to London, and suddenly the day isn’t ordinary at all. Maya knows immediately and irrevocably, that he is The One. But the beautiful man on the train always has his head in a book and never seems to notice Maya sitting just down the carriage from him every day. Eventually, though, inspired by a very wise friend, Maya plucks up the courage to give the stranger a note asking him out for a drink. After all, what’s the worst that can happen? And so begins a story of sliding doors, missed opportunities and finding happiness where you least expect it. The Note is an uplifting, life-affirming reminder that taking a chance can change everything…

Format: eBook (293 pp.), paperback (304 pp.)                             Publisher: Aria Fiction
Published: 21st Sep 2017 (eBook), 2nd Nov 2017 (paperback)   Genre: Romance

Pre-order/Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk ǀ Kobo ǀ iTunes ǀ Google Play
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

 

Find The Note on Goodreads

Interview: Zoë Folbigg, author of The Note

Without giving too much away, can you tell us a bit about The Note?

The Note is a story about following your heart, taking a chance to make something happen. It’s about a woman called Maya, who’s 28 and works for a fashion retailer, who falls in love with a stranger from afar on her daily commute into London. The novel follows how she manages to pluck up the courage to give the handsome stranger a note – and the consequences when she finally does. It also follows her on the rollercoaster at work with crazy colleagues and the ups and downs of her friend’s relationships as a parallel to hers. It’s about being brave, it’s about love, and it’s about friendship.

So you obviously believe in love at first sight?

Yes I do! I was once a bystander in a crowded bar in a Mexican backwater with my English friend by my side when she locked eyes with a handsome Mexican across the room; he couldn’t take his eyes off her. They’ve been married almost twenty years. Then it happened to me with Train Man, although it took him a little longer to fall for me…

James, Maya’s ‘beautiful man on the train’, always has his head in a book. Why does being a keen reader add to a person’s attractiveness, do you think?

Well if you’re a book lover you’re more likely to find a book lover attractive. And I wanted to give the sense of what a quiet romantic James was, so it was helpful to do this through the books he reads on the train.

Who would be top of your wish list to play James and Maya in a film of The Note?

Ooh that’s a tricky question! Well if they were British it would have to be Tom Hughes for James – tall, dark, quiet and broodingly handsome. And I guess Jenna Coleman for Maya as their chemistry in Victoria is so charming. My dream Hollywood stars would have to be Ryan Gosling and… I think still Jenna Coleman. She has the spark that I intended for Maya.

You’ve had a very successful career in journalism but did you always want to write a novel?

Yes I did. I used to get home from school and write short stories for my best friends – usually involving them getting together with whichever pop star they most fancied at the time. Then when I was working on women’s magazines I saw many of my contemporaries (Katy Regan, Ali Harris, Erin Kelly, Dorothy Koomson…) release brilliant novels and I thought ‘Maybe I can do that!’

What was the biggest challenge you encountered when writing The Note?

Only having short windows in which to write because I have two young boys. So I had to fit writing into naptimes at first or three-hour windows when they were at nursery. It’s got a bit easier now I have a school day to write in, but still, it’s hard to turn on the creativity and write on demand because I know I won’t be able to write after 3pm.

Do you have a special place to write or any writing rituals?

Well, now both my boys are at school I have a ritual of dropping them off, going for a run or doing a workout, then using that exercise time to think through my structure/plot/whatever stumbling block I might be facing. Then I go home, shower and write, write, write until school pickup, refuelling with Green & Black’s throughout the day!

Which other writers do you admire?

I love Isabel Allende for her epic stories, romantic heroes, strong women and magical realism. And Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Laura Esquivel, Octavio Paz. Of my peers I love Katy Regan and Ali Harris, whose books are warm and witty and charming and uplifting. At the moment I mostly read children’s books – Andy Stanton is a current favourite. He has me and my sons in fits of giggles every evening with his Mr Gum books.

What’s your favourite type of book for a long train journey?

Well, I haven’t had a long train journey alone in almost eight years, as I’m always entertaining my children, so I have lots to catch up on: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy, and of course Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee, which I still haven’t read.

What are you working on next?

I’m writing my second novel, which is also about star-crossed lovers, falling in love in peculiar circumstances – although my second book doesn’t feature railways at all!

Thank you, Zoë, for those fascinating insights into the life of a writer. I’m sure the many fans of The Note are eagerly awaiting your next book.

Zoe FolbiggAbout the Author

Zoë Folbigg is a magazine journalist and digital editor, starting at Cosmopolitan in 2001 and since freelancing for titles including Glamour, Fabulous, Daily Mail, Healthy, LOOK, Top Santé, Mother & Baby, ELLE, Sunday Times Style, and Style.com. In 2008 she had a weekly column in Fabulous magazine documenting her year-long round-the-world trip with ‘Train Man’ – a man she had met on her daily commute. She has since married Train Man and lives in Hertfordshire with him and their two young sons. This is her debut novel.

Connect with Zoë

Website ǀ Facebook ǀ Twitter ǀ Goodreads

THE NOTE blog tour

Book Review: Mr Dickens and His Carol by Samantha Silva

whatcathyreadnext14 Comments

Mr Dickens and His CarolAbout the Book

Charles Dickens should be looking forward to Christmas.

But when his latest book, Martin Chuzzlewit, is a flop, his publishers give him an ultimatum. Either he writes a Christmas book in a month or they will call in his debts and he could lose everything. Dickens has no choice but to grudgingly accept…

 

Format: eBook (244 pp.), Hardcover (320 pp.) Publisher: Allison & Busby
Published: 31st October 2017                               Genre: Historical Fiction

Purchase Links*
Amazon.co.uk ǀ Amazon.com ǀ Barnes & Noble
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme

Find Mr Dickens and His Carol on Goodreads

My Review

For you, does Christmas not really start until you’ve read the words, ‘Marley was dead, to begin with’? Is for you the perfect wet, overcast Christmas afternoon spent watching your favourite adaptation of the ultimate feel good Christmas story (whether that’s starring Alastair Sim, Albert Finney, my own personal favourite Patrick Stewart …or even The Muppets)? Have you ever found yourself taking a second glance at a door knocker on a murky night because you fancy it has changed shape? Do the words, ‘I see a vacant seat…in the poor chimney-corner, and a crutch without an owner’ reduce you to a helpless blubbering wreck? If you can answer yes to any of those questions, then Samantha Silva’s Mr Dickens and His Carol is the book for you. It’s a full-on love letter to one of Charles Dickens’ most famous and best-loved books: A Christmas Carol.

It’s 1843 and Charles Dickens finds himself in the peculiar situation of no longer experiencing the literary success to which he has been accustomed.   Furthermore, he’s in danger of being overshadowed in the literary firmament by authors such as Thackeray. On top of all that, he’s weighed down by the financial burden of supporting his growing family, well-appointed house, impecunious family members and all manner of social causes. What’s more, Christmas is approaching when his purse seems to have ever increasing demands upon it.

When his publishers insist that he write a Christmas book (and do it the space of a few weeks), Dickens is initially appalled at the idea that he should write in response to public demand. “Well! From now on I should simply ask my public what it is they’d like to read.” When Dickens does eventually resign himself to the commission, he finds himself suffering an extreme case of writer’s block. I’m sure many authors will empathise with his efforts to overcome it.

‘When morning rounded the bend for noon, and the tempest outside blustered on, Dickens had a clipped conversation with The Master’s Cat (who offered no useful ideas at all), took three stretching breaks, a light lunch and a cold bath to clear his head. By late afternoon he had one half-written paragraph that was illegible for all the scratching-out, and barely good enough for the bin.’

A chance encounter during one of Dickens’ customary night-time perambulations through London finally brings inspiration. However, when the muse finally strikes will it be the A Christmas Carol we are familiar with or will Dickens first need to go on his own journey into his past, present and future?

The author really captures the atmosphere of Dickens in the descriptions of London. ‘The clusters of tenements and rows of lodging-houses looked cramped and unhappy, with dwarf doors and squeezed windows, broken shutters, if shutters at all, and more paper and rags than glass in them. There was a barber in one front parlour, a herring vendor in another, a cobbler visible through an opening out back.  A few rickety balconies leant hard on thin wood columns, like crutches, and threatened to drop at any moment.’

I loved spotting the passing references to A Christmas Carol dotted throughout the book – names, phrases or snippets of dialogue. I laughed out loud when the author made Dickens utter the phrase ‘Humbugs? Bah!’ and again when Dickens was allowed to indulge in the ultimate literary revenge towards a hapless autograph hunter.

The Dickens who emerges in this book is a family man, a loving if at times somewhat neglectful husband, a supporter of social causes, loyal friend and generous host. Clearly, there were other sides to his character. For instance, he would later very publicly separate from Catherine, his wife of twenty-two years, after becoming enamoured with a young actress. If you would like to explore this further, consider my ‘try something similar’ recommendation below which, on this occasion, is not very similar at all.

However, if you love A Christmas Carol or even (whisper) if you don’t but know someone who does, then Mr Dickens and His Carol would make the perfect Christmas gift.   Being in the former category, I absolutely loved it and I couldn’t imagine anything nicer than unwrapping the book with its gorgeous cover on Christmas morning.

I received an advance reader copy courtesy of publishers Allison & Busby in return for an honest and unbiased review.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

In three words: Charming, funny, uplifting

Try something similar…Catherine Dickens: Outside the Magic Circle by Heera Datta (click here for my review)

Samantha SilvaAbout the Author

Samantha Silva is a writer and screenwriter based in Idaho. Mr Dickens and His Carol is her debut novel. Over her career she’s sold projects to Paramount, Universal, New Line Cinema, and TNT. A film adaptation of her short story, The Big Burn, won the 1 Potato Short Screenplay Competition at the 2017 Sun Valley Film Festival. Silva will direct, her first time at the helm. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, she’s lived in London, Bologna, and Rome, is an avid Italophile and a forever Dickens devotee

Connect with Samantha

Website ǀ Goodreads

MrDickensAndHisCarol