Today, I am excited to welcome a first-time guest to my blog, Georgia Hill, to introduce three characters from her latest novel, New Beginnings at Lullbury Bay. Over to you, Georgia …

Thank you so much, Carol, for having me on!

My new contemporary romance, New Beginnings at Lullbury Bay, has just come out. I really loved writing it as there are some fun characters. Here’s my quick introduction to three of them. They all work in Va Va Bloom, the florist’s shop, which is at the heart of the book.

Meet Three Characters

Marion Crawford

Marion is the part-time assistant in the shop and is a monster. I had such fun writing her. She’s late forty-ish (never admits to her real age) and loves a spa, yoga with goats and a bargain designer dress. She’s always immaculately made up, is fond of a micro-bladed brow and doesn’t baulk at wearing stilettos for a job where she’s on her feet all day. She may be a monster, but she’s a magnificent one! She tolerates working in Va Va Bloom part-time as her children have mostly left home, and her husband works away. It means she can keep tabs on the town gossip, as she hates being the last to know what’s going on. Along with violently pink Moschino jumpsuits, gossip is her passion. Daisy, the owner of Va Va Bloom, puts up with her because, underneath all the caustic snobbery, lies a generous warm heart, a lonely soul and a genius for upselling!

Mia Lodell

Mia is a delight. She’s the possessor of fine intelligence and a fierce work ethic, and, along with jobs in a supermarket and at the local primary school, she squeezes in working at Va Va Bloom part-time. Now in her early twenties, she struggled at school, flunked her exams and is taking A Levels at evening class. She’s got her eye firmly fixed on university. As well as a passion for nineteenth century poetry, Mia’s the one who teaches the others all about the Victorian language of flowers. It’s a system of coded messages hidden in bouquets that any Victorian Miss would know. Want to declare your passion? Send red roses – but make sure the thorns are removed. Want to show disdain? A bouquet of yellow carnations will do the job nicely.

Daisy Wiscombe

Daisy is the owner of Va Va Bloom. Her father died when she was sixteen, just when she was at that crucial moment of choosing her academic future. To appease her grieving mum, she found herself becoming a science teacher. Several years in, Daisy realises two things: one, she’s a hopeless teacher and two, she’s desperate to do something else. In a huge, life-changing decision, she sets up Va Va Bloom. When the novel begins, she’s been running it for five years and is at that awkward stage of needing to expand the business but isn’t sure she has the finances. A workaholic, the early mornings and full-on Saturdays mean her love life is put on hold. And then, a handsome stranger pops into her shop. He’s wearing thigh-skimming chinos, has a head of luxurious wavy hair and a pair of dark eyes permanently on the brink of humour. Daisy’s rusty romantic muscles are twanged, and she’s instantly smitten. It’s just her luck, then, that he’s buying his girlfriend a bouquet of expensive flowers. Having had her heart broken, Daisy’s confidence in her sex appeal is low. What would a gorgeous man like Rick want with a scruffy Croc-wearing florist who frequently sports rose stalks in her messy hair?

About the book:

Va Va Bloom is the brand new florist shop in Lullbury Bay, run by the talented – and heartbroken – Daisy.
As soon as she set foot in Lullbury Bay, Daisy knew it would be the perfect place to heal from her past and rebuild her life. Working in her very own florist shop by the sea, life couldn’t be better.

Except… arranging beautiful flowers for the weddings of the seaside elite, including the coastal wedding of the year, she can’t help thinking about what could have been.

Then Rick comes into the shop one day, and she finds herself open to a new romance for the first time in ages. But as it turns out, he isn’t without his own baggage… Will love ever bloom again for Daisy?

New Beginnings at Lullbury Bay is out now! Click to find out more or purchase.

Thank you so much for your great post, Georgia. It has been lovely to have you and to meet Marion, Mia and Daisy. xx

About the author:

Georgia Hill writes warm-hearted and up-lifting contemporary and dual narrative romances about love, the power and joy in being an eccentric oldie and finding yourself and your community. There’s always a dog. It’s usually a naughty spaniel of which, unfortunately, she has had much experience. She lives near the sea with her beloved dogs and husband (also beloved) and loves the books of Jane Austen, collecting elephants, and Strictly Come Dancing. She’s also a complete museum geek and finds inspiration for her books in the folklore and history of the many places in which she’s lived. She’s worked in the theatre, for a charity and as a teacher and educational consultant before finally acknowledging that making things up was what she really wanted to do. She’s been happily creating believable heroines, intriguing men, and page-turning stories ever since.

Discover more about Georgia and her novels here: X/Twitter | Facebook | Website