Show 13: the romantic novelist on her current top reads...
Described by The Independent as “Jilly Cooper for the grown-ups”, Katie Fforde’s books are largely humorous, romantic (and extremely successful ) novels, and the books currently propping up her bedside table are not that far removed from her own work…
"I like to read every spare moment I have; I read in bed, in the bath; in the loo; upstairs, downstairs, and sometimes even when I'm cooking. My most favourite time to read is in bed, in the morning, so you're not tired, but you're very comfortatable: that's a real treat."
Heaven Sent by Christina Jones
Clemmie has a problem: she's had almost as many jobs as she's had birthdays and her lovelife is on the critical list. But with the big 3-0 looming she's determined to transform herself from unemployed singleton to loved-up success. The trouble is that Clemmie's dream job would be working for local entrepreneur Guy Devlin, owner of the famous pyrotechnics company, The Gunpowder Plot. He'd also be high on her list of candidates for significant other too. But Guy has a whole veritable cargo hold of baggage: an avaricious ex-wife and a host of monster ex-step children. He's not even looking for an assistant. And if he was a quirky amateur firework maker with a penchant for cream cakes and big explosions wouldn't be high on his list…
Hurting Distance by Sophie Hannah
Three years ago, something terrible happened to Naomi Jenkins: something so terrible that she never told anybody. Now Naomi has another secret: the man she has fallen passionately in love with, unhappily-married Robert Haworth. When Robert vanishes without trace, Naomi knows he must have come to harm. But the police are less convinced, particularly when Robert's wife insists he is not missing. In desperation, Naomi has a crazy idea. If she can't persuade the police that Robert is in danger, perhaps she can convince them that he is a danger to others. Then they will have to look for him, and urgently. Naomi knows how describe in detail the actions of a psychopath. All she needs to do is dig up her own troubled past...
Lord Rayven’s Revenge by Trisha Ashley
Alys Weston secretly writes Gothic novels, while her widowed father drinks away her tiny inheritance. After a disillusioning early encounter with the rakish Lord Rayven in Harrogate - in which he came off the worst - she is quite resigned to being a spinster. Several years later, she meets him again in London and he makes it clear that he has not forgotten her: indeed, he dogs her footsteps. But is it for revenge, or some other reason? Is he the hero or the villain of the piece? As Alys becomes unwittingly embroiled in the dark and dangerous rites of a hell-fire club, her very life could hang on the answer...