Thursday 13 September 2007

Er... still no writing....

Events seem to be rather conspiring against me in the work department this week. First there was the inconvenient matter of having been turned into an anti-social, maternally dysfunctional, monosyllabic slacker by Amanda Ashby's fantastic book, then there were the two days with daughter #1 off sick from school.... and then yesterday saw the arrival of two cheery chaps from British Gas who came to drink gallons of tea, tell long, rambling anecdotes and slightly rude jokes, and dig up my kitchen floor.

It emerges that the lovely under-floor heating effect I've been enjoying so much on these cold mornings is not entirely a good thing, as we don't in fact have under-floor heating. What we have instead is leaking hot water pipes.

As a result the kitchen now looks like something from an early Tudor peasant dwelling with a bare earth floor, and while I'm a great fan of period features it's not a look I'm very thrilled with. It's got to stay like that until it's all dried out, which could take 'a while' apparently. Perhaps I should strew it with herbs and weave a rush mat or two.

Speaking of 'not very thrilled,' in the midst of all this-- and much to the amusement of the Gas Men-- the advance copies of book 2 arrived. I'm not really feeling the love for the cover, which depicts a staid-looking couple having a snog over the back of an uncomfortable sofa in a terribly smart sitting room. Since most of the action in the book takes place on a yacht I'm slightly puzzled. Oh well. It's an excellent excuse to post another picture of the lovely Alex Pettyfer, whose fallen-angel looks inspired Angelo (who of course, is older and colder, but just as beautiful...)


Here's the book. It's out in January in the UK, and at no point in it does the hero wear a beige shirt, I promise...







7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Massive sympathy on the kitchen floor front, sounds awful and (sharp whistly intake of workman's breath), lengthy. Still, this is a completley legitimate reason to cease all pretence of housework, no point until all the mess is cleared up is there? Don't suppose Mr Gas is of any use on the hero inspiration front as well? Aquiline nose,shoulders filling door frame etc?
I've been peering very closely at the cover of your new book. Now, my glasses are grubby and my eyes bleary from the unseasonal pollen we have floating around these parts, but can I see a silky stripe down our hero's trouser leg? Indicative of a dinner suit/tux type outfit? If so, his choice of the beige shirt does take some explaining! They do seem to have some strange wardrobes at M&B. At least he's not wearing that pair of tight cream trousers I've seen at least twice (both Greeks I think)Bleuch!
Rach.

Amanda Ashby said...

I shouldn't laugh, I know I shouldn't, but I fear that not only is that a beige shirt, but that it might be made out of polyester as well. On the plus side, your heroine is wearing some killer heels so perhaps she can use them to rip a hole in it when no one is looking??? And boo on the leaking pipes but at least you've got an excuse not to cook dinner and that's got to be a good thing!!!!!

Kate Hardy said...

Hugs re the kitchen floor.

And even bigger hugs on the cover. (But then again, you have quite a way to go before you beat my gardener cover - so you can rest assured there...)

Unknown said...

I know, I know... It's all a bit grim, so thank you for understanding! I think the glimmer of shiny fabric you've spotted on the chap's trousers is probably just down to the fact that they're made of nylon Rachel, and as such go perfectly with his beige polyester shirt. (I suspected as much too, Amanda. Don't beige shirts only come in polyester?)
All in all, Kate, I think it does give your gardener a bit of a run for his money. At least the girl on your cover looked like she was enjoying herself (a little too much, some might say...!)

(Rachel, the gas man wasn't exactly my idea of hero material, being elderly and balding... But pop him in a pair of tight cream trousers and he could have a great career as a cover model!!)

Michelle Styles said...

Yes, it does look like a reguee from an early 80s soap opera. BUT they are going to buy on the killer title -- Captive Virgin.\

I suspect the yacht might not be there, because there is a certain school of though that boats don't do well in romance.

And remember, you are responsible for the content and not the marketing.

Anonymous said...

ok, the cover isn't that bad. She's just a bit buxom, nothing wrong with that, maybe she was kneeling down saying her rosary before Mr Beige happened upon her and caused her bosom to heave even more? And it's probably not beige, that's just the lighting...that's in the very overdone room...that's not on a yacht. Perhaps this is the gas man come to try and seduce her away from the hero, which would explain why she's kneeling on a sofa to get away from the floor which has been ripped up...?!
x Abby Green

Unknown said...

I'd heard that about the boats Michelle. (Unfortunately not before I wrote the book!)

Abby-- what a relief to have an explanation at last. It all makes perfect sense now!!