‘Climbing out the window in her dress and tiara wasn’t exactly how Frankie imagined her wedding
day…’
Runaway bride Frankie Ashford hops a plane to Norway with one goal in mind - find her estranged mother and make peace with the past. But when a slip on the ice in Oslo lands her directly in Jonas Thorsen’s viking-strong arms, her single-minded focus drifts away in the winter winds.
When it comes to romance Jonas knows that anything he and Frankie share has an expiration date - the British heiress has a life to return to in London that’s a world away from his own. But family is everything to Jonas and, as the one man who can help Frankie find the answers she’s seeking, he’ll do whatever it takes to help her reunite with her mother.
Now, as Christmas draws closer and the northern lights work their magic Frankie and Jonas will have to make a choice...play it safe or risk heartbreak to take a chance on love.
Today I am pleased to welcome Darcie Boleyn to my blog as part of her blog tour to celebrate the publication of 'Love at the Northern Lights', her latest release, which is the perfect read to get into the winter reading, with part f the book set in the snowy scenery of Oslo, getting us readers ready for the gorgeous festive reads.
The book starts with a comedic scene as Frankie is taken on her hen night celebrations with friends. The police arrive but is all as it seems? Fast forward to Frankie's wedding day and there is a real experience of second thoughts as she shares a heart to heart with her father - will she go ahead with the weding?
The subsequent story is a really great read. I loved the whole story and I have found myself ready to start reading the long list of festive reads that publishers have started to release to book bloggers to review ahead of the festive period. It is one of those books that I can curl up with over a weekend and savour in its entirety. There is everything within it that I love in a good read: humour, family upset, a romance and link this with beautiful scenery and a strong male character in Jonas and I am very happy!
The publishers, Canelo, have shared with me the opening scene of the book to share with my blog readers, enjoy ……………………..
‘Oh my God, Frankie, we’re being arrested!’
‘What?’ Frances Ashford looked up from the flute of champagne she’d been nursing for the past hour, and peered through the dimly lit VIP section of the exclusive London club.
‘Get up! It’s the police.’
Jennifer Prescott, Frankie’s best friend, grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet, causing her to spill the remains of the champagne down the front of her pink silk dress.
And sure enough, six burly police officers were heading their way.
‘But why would they arrest us?’ she asked Jen, looking first at the men in their black shirts and trousers with black baseball caps on their heads, then at the rest of her hen party.
‘Because we’ve been very naughty.’ Lorna Cartwright, another of Frankie’s bridesmaids, smoothed her sleek black hair then adjusted the low neckline of her barely there black dress. She giggled then held up her hands. ‘I’m here, officers. Please be gentle with me.’
‘This is a prank, right?’ Frankie nudged Jen as the men closed in on them.
‘Oh, Frankie, darling… just go with the flow. This is your hen night and it’s time to have some fun.’ Jen cocked a perfectly manicured blonde brow at her, then held up her hands in the same way as Lorna and the other three bridesmaids
Frankie scanned the club, wondering if she had time to make a run for it, but suddenly handcuffs were locked around her wrists. One of the officers gruffly informed her of her rights, then she was led down the stairs from the VIP area and across the dance floor, as her friends squealed and giggled around her.
Ten minutes later, Frankie found herself squashed onto a narrow bench, between two of the rather brawny police officers in the back of a transit van. Jen and Lorna were with her, but the others had been stuffed into a different van outside the club. It was clearly hen night high jinks, but even so, her pulse was racing and her mouth bone dry. She hadn’t wanted any of this, hadn’t even wanted a hen night, but Jen and the others had insisted. Frankie had agreed on the condition that it would be a quiet night of drinks at a club followed by a meal at The Ivy. However, it seemed that her friends had ignored her wishes and come up with something completely different.
The air in the van was stuffy and the heavy aroma of cheap aftershave hung around the hot, bulky bodies either side of her. Didn’t these men know that less was more when it came to cologne? How anyone could find this exciting, Frankie had no idea. The urge to stand up, kick open the back doors of the van and jump out was building, and she pressed her long French-manicured nails into her palms to try to stay calm. Surely this torture would soon be over?
She looked over at Jen who was smiling up at the officer at her side. He stared straight ahead, as if he’d been instructed to ignore the prisoners, but his lips twitched as Jen whispered something in his ear.
‘Jen?’ Frankie couldn’t bear it any longer.
‘What?’
‘How long will this last? It’s just…’ She glanced either side of her. ‘I need the loo.’ It was a lie, but if it meant this would end sooner, then she’d put on her best full bladder performance.
Jen rolled her eyes. ‘Why didn’t you go in the club?’
‘I wasn’t exactly given a chance, was I? It all happened a bit too quickly.’
‘Cross your legs, hun. We won’t be long, so try to relax and enjoy yourself.’ Jen flashed her a smile.
Each jig of the van as it drove through the London streets, made Frankie realize that her bladder was actually quite full now, and that she’d need a comfort break soon. Perhaps it was the shock – and horror – of being subjected to this.
Perhaps it was the water she’d been discreetly drinking to avoid getting a headache from the bubbly.
A squeal of tyres brought the van to a sudden stop and the officers jumped up, but because Frankie had been so tightly squashed between them, she was thrust forwards. She raised her arms instinctively to cushion her fall, but the handcuffs kept her wrists together, so she was winded as she hit the carpeted floor. She lay still for a moment, her forehead resting against the itchy carpet that reeked of the adhesive that held it in place, trying to catch her breath as hell broke out around her.
‘What the f—! How is that acceptable?’ It was Jen. ‘Frankie? Are you OK, darling?’
Frankie nodded as best she could, then strong hands took hold of her arms and lifted her to her feet. She sagged, her stomach aching from her fall, as she tried to suck in breaths.
‘You absolute idiots! You’re meant to look after your clients, not beat them up. You wait until I post a review about your beastly company.’
‘Look, love, no harm meant. We weren’t to know she’d lose her balance.’
Frankie watched the officer at her side, whose squeaky voice seemed incongruous with his size, as he tried to reason with Jen. ‘We’ll do you a discount.’
Jen sniffed then flicked her long blonde hair over her shoulders. ‘You’d better and a jolly good one at that.’
The van doors swung open and the officers leapt out then helped the women down. Frankie had finally caught her breath but knew that her stomach would be tender for days, the same as when she caught a hockey stick to the gut at boarding school.
To her relief, they had stopped directly outside The Ivy Kensington.
‘Come on, Frankie, let’s get a drink.’
‘Was… that it then?’
‘What do you mean?’ Jen frowned.
‘Being arrested. You haven’t arranged for strippers or anything as well, have you?’
Jen sighed then hooked her arm through Frankie’s. ‘The night is young, darling. The night is soooo young.’
Frankie suppressed the urge to scream ……
Thank you to Canelo and Darcie Boleyn for inviting me to take part in the blog tour in return for an honest review.
