Tishylou's World

    Welcome to my stop on the #NotJustForChristmas blog tour! I adored this continuation of the Tindledale series! It was a lovely, touching read and this post has got me feeling all festive!   So, join Alex and the gang and find out who picked who for the Secret Santa!   Tindledale’s Secret Santa To really get everyone in the festive spirit this year, Cher, the landlady of the Duck & Puddle pub on the village green, is running a Secret Santa evening.  Click on the character to see whose name they picked out of the Santa’s hat and the gift they bought for them. Sybil (manager of Hettie’s House of Haberdashery) picked Molly (the butcher’s wife) – knitted a little red jumper for her pet ferret. Cooper (Village Butcher) picked Basil (Sybil’s black Scottie dog) – six of his finest award-winning sausages. Lawrence (chair of the Tindledale Players Amateur Dramatics group) picked Mrs Pocket (Parish Council stalwart and village busybody)...

  Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Mistletoe on 34th Street by Lisa Dickenson! I am very excited by this tour as I adore Lisa and her fabooooolous books! What They Say: Full of romance and festive magic, Mistletoe on 34th Street is the funniest and most charming love story you will read this Christmas! Olivia has never experienced a snow-covered, ‘traditional’ Christmas before. Having grown up in a family that chose winter sun over decking the halls, she’s not sure what all the fuss is about. So when she and her colleagues are stranded in New York after a work trip, Olivia is perfectly happy spending the holiday season in the Big Apple. Jon, Olivia’s friend, on the other hand is desperate to get home in time for his big family get-together. Nevertheless, determined to make the best out of the situation, he sets out to show Olivia how enchanting Christmas in New York can be. And when handsome New Yorker Elijah is added to the mix, could the magic of the se...

Hello Lovelies! Thanks for joining me today! I'm super excited to welcome the sparkly loveliness that is Miranda Dickinson to my blog today as we celebrate her fantastic new book "Searching For A Silver Lining".  So, without further adieu, let's hand over to Miranda.     Meet The Cast - #4: The Silver Five   I always wanted to write about a road trip and when I created The Silver Five I realised their story would be perfect to tell using a journey. With lead singer (and now inimitable pensioner) Reenie Silver, the rest of the band lived out their dreams of stardom in the early part of the 1950s. Drawn to London from all over the UK, The Silver Five were put together in a group by enigmatic impresario and manager Rico, who promised them their dreams. I adored creating The Silver Five, not just as they are now but as the starry-eyed young hopefuls they were in the 1950s.   Reenie assumed lead singing duties, joined by talented nightclub singer June ...

Helloooo! It's been a long time since I wrote a post. Life has been moving along very quickly and very smoothly and I couldn't be happier with the way things are headed. So, what's been happening? Steve and I are completely and utterly engrossed in each other. I had a combined Birthday (I turned 39), housewarming (more about that in a bit) and meet Steve party in the middle of last month. It was lovely to have most of the people I love in one room at the same time. My friends have never met each other and have always been kept separate so it was nice to have them together for the first time ever. I 3 wore a dress and had my hair and makeup done. I felt like a Princess! Steve and I have been splitting our time between my new home in Lancashire and his in Birmingham. The week following my party, we came to Brum and I met up with a friend, Manda, who I haven't seen in 3 years. It was a brilliant day and it was so nice to have her meet Steve and share my happiness w...

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp!     The Blurb:     It was no secret that journalist Jack Sparks had been researching the occult for his new book. No stranger to controversy, he'd already triggered a furious Twitter storm by mocking an exorcism he witnessed.  Then there was that video: forty seconds of chilling footage that Jack repeatedly claimed was not of his making, yet was posted from his own YouTube account. Nobody knew what happened to Jack in the days that followed - until now.   Prepare for the cleverest, most addictive thriller you will read this year. This is the story of the ill-fated Jack Sparks - a man who plays with fire, and pays the price . . . What I Say: I was really intrigued by this book before I started reading. It sounds so bizarre. I wasn't sure if it was meant as a spoof or a real, genuine horror/thriller told from a very odd viewpoint. It was the lat...

Welcome to my Stop on the Blog Tour for the gorgeous Bookshop on Rosemary Lane by Ellen Berry!     I'm thrilled to be able to bring you an exclusive extract from this book! If this doesn't pique your interest, I don't know what will! This is a delicious story and the cover is divine!   Without further adieu, read this and go buy the book!!   ‘I meant,’ Roxanne said, as Della and Mark returned to the living room, ‘what are we going to do about Rosemary Cottage?’ Silence settled around the room. The twins, mercifully with headphones plugged in now, munched absent-mindedly on the remaining biscuits.  ‘There’s no rush, is there?’ Sophie asked with a frown. ‘I mean, we’ve only just had Grandma’s funeral.’  ‘Yes, but there’s no point in letting things drift on.’ Ignoring the pot of tea Della had brought through, Jeff topped up his wine glass. ‘When winter comes,’ he continued, ‘we’ll be talking frozen pipes and slates falling off that godawful r...

Welcome to my stop on the Willow Cottage Blog Tour! I'm very excited to bring you an exclusive extract from this fabulous book by Bella Osborne! The Blurb: Beth is running away. With her young son Leo to protect, Willow Cottage is the lifeline she so desperately needs. Overlooking the village green in a beautiful Cotswolds idyll, Beth sees a safe place for little Leo. When she finally uncovers the cottage from underneath the boughs of a weeping willow tree, Beth realises this is far more of a project than she bargained for and the locals are more than a little eccentric! A chance encounter with gruff Jack, who appears to be the only male in the village under thirty, leaves the two of them at odds but it’s not long before Beth realises that Jack has hidden talents that could help her repair more than just Willow Cottage. Over the course of four seasons, Beth realises that broken hearts can be mended, and sometimes love can be right under your nose… Exclusive Extract: ...

The Drowning of Arthur Braxton by Caroline Smailes THE BLURB: “An urban fairy tale.Arthur Braxton runs away from school. He hides out in an abandoned building, an old Edwardian bathhouse. He discovers a naked woman swimming in the pool. From this point on, nothing will ever be the same. The Drowning of Arthur Braxton is an unflinching account of the pain and trauma of adolescence and of how first love can transform the most unhappy of lives into something miraculous.” I have read all of Caroline’s previous books so I thought I knew what to expect when I started reading Arthur. I was wrong, oh so wrong! This was so much more than I could have ever imagined! You are transported to a magical world that is, at times dark and despairing, at others so full of hope and happiness. Laurel is an amazing character, I actually loved her. Arthur and Delphina are so touching and genuine. I couldn’t wait to finish this book but at the same time, didn’t want it to end...

Welcome to my Sweet Sixteen Party!   I actually can't believe that it was sixteen year ago today that me, my Mum, my Dad and my brother left our childhood home in Ontario, Canada and started a new life in Lancashire, England!   Leaving everyone and everything I knew behind was probably the hardest thing I've ever done. Starting over with virtually nothing in a country I didn't really know was daunting. But I still maintain it was the best thing I've ever done. I have always felt like I belonged here. Even when life got hard, when things got unbearably difficult, this was where I belonged. I have moments where I would give anything for some kind of Star Trek beam me up contraption and I could just be back home when someone needed me, but those are in equal measure with days where I am so grateful for the people I have in my life now because I am here. Does that make sense?     Before I moved here, the most difficult thing I ever had to deal wi...

  Welcome to my stop on the Blog Tour for the fabulous Would Like To Meet by Polly James!!!!   I'm so excited that I get to bring you an exclusive audio clip! So, sit back have a read, have a listen and enjoy!     WOULD LIKE TO MEET Polly James Publishes in eBook & Paperback: 30 th June   A hilarious, heart-warming read perfect for fans of Shirley Valentine and You’ve Got Mail. Could the worst thing that’s ever happened to Hannah Pinkman also turn out to be one of the best? She and her husband Dan have reached the end of the line. Bored with the same gripes, the same old arguments – in fact, bored with everything – they split up after a trivial row turns into something much more serious. Now Hannah has to make a new life for herself, but that’s not easy. She’s been so busy being a wife and mum that she’s let all her other interests slip away, along with her friends. And when Hannah is persuaded to join a dating site, her ‘b...