I’m back with another great blog tour review for my friend, Susan Buchanan and her latest release, A Taste of Christmas Spirit.
The Blurb
The Sugar and Spice bakery sparkles with holiday spirit as Jacob serves up more mouthwatering festive treats, and Christmas spirit, Lara tries to sprinkle her magic over those who find the time of year difficult.
Ollie is at his wits’ end. A debt from years ago comes back to haunt him just as he and his girlfriend are buying their dream home.
Rose is dejected as her boyfriend has dumped her in their final year at university. She’s not looking forward to Christmas alone, nor her twenty-first birthday on Christmas Eve.
Sacha has recently moved to Winstanton following the failure of his business. He’s too embarrassed to confide in his family, but can he find the friendship he so desperately needs and begin to trust again?
Diana tries to find her new normal after the unexpected death of her husband earlier this year. All her plans for retirement have been thrown out the window and she feels lost. She needs a renewed sense of purpose and to find her place in the world.
Can Lara provide the answer to a joy-filled Christmas?
A story of hope, love, friendship, community, and of course, Christmas spirit.
For fans of Sarah Morgan, Philippa Ashley, Jenny Colgan and Cathy Bramley.
A Taste of Christmas Spirit is a lovely story in the lead-up to Christmas, focusing on several people in the small Scottish village of Winstanton, with The Sugar and Spice Cafe as the backdrop for many scenes. We meet Ollie, Sacha, Rose, and Diana; four people very different in their own ways, with concerns that mar their enjoyment of the festive period, as they get to know one another and become involved in the local spirit of things. Then there is Lara, the little Spirit of Christmas, who is trying to sprinkle her magic across people’s lives in her own way. It was a lovely, cute story, and left me feeling warm and snuggly, ready for the festive period! Now, I have read none of the other Christmas Spirit books; however, this in no way detracted from the story. In fact, it’s made me want to read them so I can learn more about some characters mentioned in this one.
About The Author
Susan Buchanan writes contemporary romance and women’s fiction, usually featuring travel, food, family, friendship and community.
She is the author of The Leap Year Proposal, The Christmas Spirit, Return of the Christmas Spirit, A Little Christmas Spirit, Just One Day – Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn, The Dating Game and Sign of the Times.
As a freelance developmental editor, copyeditor and proofreader, if she’s not reading, editing or writing, she’s thinking about it.
She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, the Society of Authors and the Alliance of Independent Authors.
She lives near Glasgow with her husband, two children and a crazy Labrador.
When she’s not editing, writing, reading or caring for her two delightful cherubs, she likes going to the theatre, playing board games, watching quiz shows and eating out, and she has recently discovered a love of writing retreats.
Giveaway to Win a signed and dedicated paperback of A Taste of Christmas Spirit (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Gleam box below. The winner will be selected at random via Gleam from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
I’m back with another great blog tour review for my friend, Susan Buchanan and her latest release, You Can’t Hurry Love!
The Blurb
A delicious friends to lovers, forced proximity, workplace romance for 2025.
A 30th birthday celebration. A sloth sanctuary in Costa Rica. A split-second decision.
When Kat MacDonald takes the trip of a lifetime to Costa Rica, she doesn’t count on ditching her dead-end job, sending her uber-controlling boyfriend packing and volunteering at a sloth sanctuary. But when she finally meets the swoon-worthy assistant manager Dexter, the chemistry between them is unmistakeable and sparks fly. Despite a rival for his affections, and her ex’s inability to know when to give up, she and Dexter are drawn to each other like magnets. Just as she’s settling into life at the sanctuary and making friends, a letter arrives from back home in Scotland. A letter which could both upset her new plans and give her everything she has ever wanted. Everything except Dexter. Kat is should she stay in the tropical rainforest paradise with her beloved sloths, new friends and the delectable Dexter or pursue her lifelong dream? Or can she find a way to have it all?
A fun, escapist read full of romance, beautiful scenery and humour, perfect for fans of Emily Henry, Beth O’Leary Leonie Mack and Portia MacIntosh.
I must admit wanting to move to Costa Rica and see the Sloths! That, Susan Buchanan, is because of you and your fantastic book! Kat is in Costa Rica on the holiday of a lifetime. True – she’s not there with the person she wanted. That would have been Dad, with whom she shared many passions, including travel and sloths. She should have been there with her best friend in his absence, who ended up in a cast at the last minute and could not travel. That left her boyfriend, Aiden. Sounds like a dream holiday. Beautiful tropical beaches, fantastic food, the love of your life by your side… However, things go awry when a particular person begins to show his true colours. In Costa Rica alone, Kat wants to continue to honour the memory of her dad by doing all the things she promised herself she would do, including going to the Sloth Sanctuary. I’m not going to recount the whole story for you now. Kat’s adventure is longer than planned, and she finds herself in many beautiful places, in fantastical situations with someone rather gorgeous! It’s never smooth sailing for her, though. Kat ends up with some decisions to make, and because of being burned far too much in her near past, she sometimes allows that to dictate her plans, without putting the proper thought into things. I don’t envy Kat. Well, the Kat at the beginning, anyway. Grief is complicated to deal with, and a broken relationship on top of that is not going to make it any easier. But, as she grows within the story and begins to experience things she never would have thought possible, that Kat, I envy! The Gorgeous person I mentioned earlier, Dexter, is a beautifully sensitive soul, and a typical man. Seriously, why can they never say what they mean? Still, everything was described in such a way that as I said at the start, I just want to go and see this gorgeous country, and get to know some sloths, with whom I had no affinity before! A wonderful read!
Susan Buchanan writes contemporary romance and women’s fiction, usually featuring travel, food, family, friendship and community.
She is the author of The Leap Year Proposal, The Christmas Spirit, Return of the Christmas Spirit, A Little Christmas Spirit, Just One Day – Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn, The Dating Game and Sign of the Times.
As a freelance developmental editor, copyeditor and proofreader, if she’s not reading, editing or writing, she’s thinking about it.
She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, the Society of Authors and the Alliance of Independent Authors.
She lives near Glasgow with her husband, two children and a crazy Labrador.
When she’s not editing, writing, reading or caring for her two delightful cherubs, she likes going to the theatre, playing board games, watching quiz shows and eating out, and she has recently discovered a love of writing retreats.
Giveaway to Win a paperback of You Can’t Hurry Love (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
Today, I am thrilled to welcome amazing author Susan Buchanan to my blog for a cuppa and a chat about all things writerly, especially her latest release, Leap Year Proposal.
Thank you so much for having me Ritu.
Hello, and welcome to But I Smile Anyway, Susan! Let’s get you set with a drink first. Would you prefer a coffee, a cup of tea, or, to be brave, traditional homemade Indian masala tea?
Thanks for having me, Ritu. Lovely to be here. Normally, I’d go for a latte or even a hot chocolate (loaded, of course!), but I like to embrace my inner adventurer, so let’s have some of that homemade masala tea, please.
If we’re having masala tea, I can make samosas and pakoras (fried potato and vegetable fritters), but I also have homemade shortbread cookies!
You may have to win me over on having those with tea, to be honest, but I do like them – usually with a glass of milk on the side actually! And, c’mon, I’m Scottish. Of course, I like Shortbread! If I’m superb, can I have both?!
Absolutely!
Now, it’s so lovely to have you on my blog, Susan! And this visit hits a bit differently since we met in person at the 2024 RNA Conference last year. I don’t often get to say that I have sat alongside many of my Book and a Brew friends! How has writing life been treating you since August?
Yes, it was lovely to meet you and what a gorgeous location for the conference at Royal Holloway. Writing life has calmed down a little now as I switch my focus to the business side of writing given the launch of The Leap Year Proposal and the launch in a few months’ time of You Can’t Hurry Love. But when we last met, I hadn’t even decided to write A Little Christmas Spirit yet so September onwards was pretty intense, although mostly in a good way. I’m actually trying to carve out some time between launches to work on the next two books. I live in hope!
Where do you like to write? Do you have a writing room at home, or are you a nomadic writer, taking your notebook and pen or laptop to different places?
I think where I like to write and where I do write are not actually necessarily the same place! If I could, I’d be in a café (which I have done in the past) being supplied with copious amounts of hot chocolate and cheese toasties when needed, so I could simply focus on writing. (Idyllic!) However, when the kids are at school, I tend to write on my laptop on a lapdesk in my living room, on my recliner sofa, with my Labrador, Benji, taking up 90% of the sofa. When the kids are home, I either do the same and put headphones on (!) or I retire to my office. I don’t like writing in bed. I have to say I have, in the past done a lot of my writing in bed!
Are there any of your books with a special place in your heart? I know that is a toughie, as they are all our book babies, aren’t they?
Prior to this year, I’d have said no, as, as you rightly say, they are all our book babies. However, given the impact The Christmas Spirit and indeed the Christmas Spirit series has had on so many readers, and the amount of positive feedback I’ve had from readers about that book, telling me how it made them find their Christmas spirit when they weren’t feeling it, how they’d wanted to ignore Christmas this year, or how it just gave them a lift, I’d have to say The Christmas Spirit. What wonderful feedback to have had!
Correct me if I am wrong, but is this your tenth book now?
Yep, book 10. Kinda exciting, actually. It’s also funny how it wasn’t the tenth book I wrote. For various reasons, books aren’t always released in the order you write them! Apart from The Leap Year Proposal, I have two series and two other stand alones.
Let’s return to your latest release, Leap Year Proposal. I love romance, and you had three very different relationships within this book. How easy was it to weave the three stories together to make one book?
Well, to be honest, that’s what I love the most. And for anyone who has read my Christmas Spirit books, they’ll know that having multiple points of view is something I enjoy writing. However, this book has had so many permutations – a couple of publishers asked for quite major changes. Some I made, some I didn’t. But the one thing I would not back down on was the three female protagonists. To do otherwise would have been a different book.
I have to admit that I am one who loves to both read and write multi-POV stories. My series all have at least three POVs, and it really helped me create the characters which my readers then develop feelings for, and they want to know more. I think it’s why the first book became a series, because I had so many people asking me about the other characters!
I may well release chapters of the original to my subscribers at some point as I cut/changed a lot of the original book. Secondary characters were cut, locations were changed and even occupations. I loved the original book too, but I do love this version.
What was the inspiration for the whole leap-year proposal idea? It seems archaic, now, for women to wait for 4 years before they can officially propose to a man!
Ha! Now there’s a story, so I’ll give you the short version. Years ago, I remember hearing of it and thinking it was romantic. Nine years ago, I remember hearing it on the radio and thinking, ‘Aw, that’s nice.’ Fast-forward 4 hours and I’d proposed! My proposal and our story has nothing to do with the book, but it gave me the germ of the idea for the story. And of course, women can propose whenever they like, but I think 29 February is a special day, simply because that day only exists once every four years!
What a brilliant story! I love it! You old romantic, you!
Jess being a dog walker, I also got my fair share of furry buddies being mentioned! Do you have a pet, at all? I love animals, and we have two cats here who are equal parts love and mischief!
Yes, the crazy Labrador, Benji. He’s actually part polar bear. He’s enormous. But a big teddy! And greedy as heck!
Gorgeous! We have big cat and little cat, Sonu Singh, who is 11 and Minnie Kaur aka The Minx, who is one next month!
I must tell you I devoured your latest offering in pretty much a day, because I really enjoyed the premise of the story. Plus it was based in Scotland! I’ve never been before. Are all your stories set there?
Aw, thank you. I’m so glad you liked it. I can’t believe you’ve never been to Scotland. Get up here! No, in actual fact, my first book, Sign of the Times, is set in Scotland, Switzerland and Italy; my second book, The Dating Game, is set in Scotland and Spain (Barcelona, where I used to live); two of my Just One Day series books are set in Scotland, and Italy and Spain (Bergamo and Madrid) and the other two are set solely in Scotland, and two of my Christmas Spirit series are set in Scotland. The Leap Year Proposal has a section in Italy, and my next book is set in Costa Rica, and the one after that in France. Did I mention I love travelling?! Readers can also expect many more books set in European and faraway locations!
Well, I’m going to have to get up there, somehow, aren’t I? And yes, I can definitely tell you love your travel!
And what is next for Susan Buchanan?
Ah, that’s what I get for jumping the gun – see above! My next book will be out on 6th May, the one in Costa Rica. It’s set in a sloth sanctuary – which I visited and loved, many years ago. The title is You Can’t Hurry Love, which appealed to my sense of humour since sloths are not known for their speed on land! There will be another Christmas Spirit book in 2025 and possibly A N Other book, but I haven’t decided which yet, or indeed if I can manage the timescales. Suffice to say, there will be at least 3 books from me in 2025!
That sounds amazing! You are one busy lady!
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful writing world with us, Susan!
Thank you so much for having me today. 😊
Good luck with your latest release!
The Blurb
Three women. One crazy hen weekend. A life-changing decision.
When three women meet on a mutual friend’s hen weekend on the Scottish island of Arran, they get more than they bargained for when one of them has the genius idea of proposing on 29 February, like the age-old Irish tradition.
High-flying businesswoman Anouska and boyfriend Zach are deliriously happy and madly in love. If only they had more time together. But now she’s pregnant and doesn’t know how to tell him since having kids hadn’t featured in their plans.
Dog walker Jess lives with her childhood sweetheart, but they’re already like an old married couple, without the romance, or the wedding, or the ring. When Mark doesn’t propose on New Year’s Eve, Jess is gutted and decides to take matters into her own hands.
Ellie and Scott still live apart after six years, and his lack of commitment is a sore point. She’s up for a huge promotion which involves moving country. It’s make-or-break time. She needs to know he’s worth turning down the job for.
The women meet weekly, helping each other with decisions big and small, becoming each other’s support system in the run-up to ‘the big ask’.
Will love conquer all or will their hopes and dreams come crashing down around them?
I love romance, and it’s a treat to have three tied into one book, along with a little tradition that they decide to see through. Three women, strangers to one another, all in relationships but very different situations, meet at a mutual friend’s hen weekend and, for whatever reason, decide that they will all propose to their partners on February 29th, as it is a Leap Year, and the woman proposing on that day is an age-old tradition. Split into three POVs, the story follows Anouska, Jess, and Ellie over a couple of months as they build their friendship and experience the trials of planning secret proposals. The thing is, nothing is going to go smoothly, is it? Especially when there are little secrets, doubts and confusion in the mix! I read this story in about one day, thoroughly enjoying each woman’s story. I also loved the blossoming friendships that developed throughout the book. Another Scottish-based book makes me want to visit all the more! Many thanks to the Author and Rachel’s Random Resources for providing an ARC
About the Author
Susan Buchanan writes romantic comedy, contemporary romance and women’s fiction, usually featuring travel, food, family, friendship, community – also Christmas!
Her books are Sign of the Times, The Dating Game, The Christmas Spirit, Return of the Christmas Spirit, A Little Christmas Spirit and Just One Day – Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn.
As a freelance developmental editor, copyeditor and proofreader, if she’s not reading, editing or writing, she’s thinking about it.
She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, the Society of Authors and the Alliance of Independent Authors.
She lives near Glasgow with her husband, two children and a crazy Labrador.
When she’s not editing, writing, reading or caring for her two delightful cherubs, she likes going to the theatre, playing board games, watching quiz shows and eating out, and she has recently discovered a love of writing retreats.
Giveaway to Win a signed paperback of The Leap Year Proposal (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
But I Smile Anyway... 