Joanne Boden – The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings
Hello Joanne and thank you for popping by today to chat to me about your new book, The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings.
Joanne lives in Lancashire with her husband and their two sons. When she is not busy writing, she likes to take her boys to the local museums, cafes, and walks in the countryside.
She has published 4 non-fiction works aimed at parenting children on the Autistic spectrum, based upon her experiences as the mother of an autistic son. She has also self published a contemporary romance novel, Picking Up the Pieces.
Joanne writes contemporary romances with gorgeous heroes. Escape to Little Bluewater Bay was her debut novel with Choc Lit, followed by A Vacancy for a Village Vet. The Old Bookshop of new Beginnings is her third novel with them.
Tell us a little about your new book:
Can two lost souls find themselves in Little Bluewater Bay?In the space of a single day, Harry Taylor achieves the impressive feat of losing a girlfriend, his London flat and his bookshop job. So, when his cousin Lucas invites him to his home in the seaside village of Little Bluewater Bay to recuperate, Harry jumps at the chance.
Beth Smith works at a diner and is quickly overstaying her welcome sleeping on her friend’s sofa. Overhearing a conversation about Little Bluewater Bay reminds her of better times, and she decides to throw caution to the wind and try her luck for happier memories in the coastal village.
Could a bookish business proposal and oldest new bookshop in Little Bluewater Bay lead to the new beginnings Beth and Harry so desperately need?
I am so glad that we’re back in Bluewater Bay again for this one. It still feels like a perfect location and somewhere I’d very much like to visit.
Harry Taylor works in a bookshop. I always wanted to work in a library as a child. Can you tell us about the first job you wanted to do? Did you do it/or why not?
So did I? Isn’t that funny? The first job I really wanted to do was to teach. I wanted to be a drama teacher and so I went off to Uni and studied English Literature with Drama and Theatre Studies, but I never did my teacher training. The reason being I had a joint honours degree and the PGCE course I wanted to do at that time wouldn’t accept a joint honours degree. I was sad, but went on to do other things. I worked in a dental surgery for a while and completed my dental nurse training and then a few years later I embarked on my nurse training. I worked as a renal nurse for many years.
I loved Harry’s obsessions with ties. Describe his tie wardrobe.
Haha. Love this question. In my mind Harry has a LOT of ties. They are all mainly blue, black or grey and either spotty, striped or plain. I think that given time, Beth will inject a little colour into his wardrobe.
My only disappointment was to find Harry’s favourite Dickens book was Great Expectations.
I had to do it for O’Level and found it depressing and for years relegated Dickens to my never to read again shelf. Nowadays I guess Bleak House or David Copperfield would be my preferred choice. What about you?
I love Great Expectations which is why I chose it as one of Harry’s favourite books. Isn’t it funny how we all have a different take on books? I don’t find Great Expectations to be depressing at all. Although I probably should. My take is that it is a love story. Not only from Pip’s viewpoint towards Estella, but also the love that Joe Gargery has for Pip. I really do think that it is a story about love and guilt and the importance of family. (I also love David Copperfield – highly recommend listening to the audiobook narrated by Richard Armitage).
Ha ha Joanne, so can I!
Books are a really personal thing, so in a Desert Island Disc sort of way, if you could take the Complete Works of Shakespeare, the English Dictionary and one other book away with you, which book would you choose?
That is such a difficult question. Could I take my Kindle? (I suppose that’s cheating). From browsing my bookshelf I suppose if I could only take one book then it would have to be The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.
I bought the hardback from Ottakars the week it was published back in 2004. I can’t believe it’s nearly twenty years old!
I believe you like music while you write. Discman or IPod?
I always have music playing when writing. I find it very difficult to write in silence.
Discman or iPod? That’s a tricky one, although I never owned an iPod. I guess I’d have to go old school like Beth and go for Discman. There is just something so comforting about holding a CD case in your hands. Even better is an LP. Could I opt for a record player? I love that scratchy gravely gritty type sound it gives off.
Essential playlist to write a book by?
This very much depends on my mood and the book I am working on. But here’s a list of the songs/artists I’ve been listening to lately while writing my current manuscript.
Taylor Swift – all her songs
Randall King – Shot Glass
A dark academia playlist (classical music)
Alanis Morissette – Jagged little Pill
Tim McGraw – all his songs
Thomas Rhett – Where We Started
Chris Young – FamousIne Friends
Morgan Wallen – One Thing at a Time
Harry Styles – Harry’s House
James Taylor – all his songs
George Strait – all his songs
Journey – Freedom
Tyler Childrers – Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven
Orville Peck – Bronco
Ludovico Einaudi – In a Time Lapse
This is your third book with Choc Lit, with your first two released last year, do you have plans for a fourth? Can you drop any hints as to what we have to look forward to from Joanne Boden?
Yes, there are plans for further novels and one will be the third book in the Little Bluewater Bay series. After that, I don’t have any plans to write more books set in the bay, but you never know. At the moment I am working on the first in a new trilogy about three brothers who own a Bed and Breakfast. I am having the time of my life writing this book set in a friendly, sleepy village.
I can’t wait. Thank you for coming on to my blog today Joanne to talk about your new book. Good luck with it. Ax
Thank you so much for inviting me Anne. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed answering your questions.
Author Links:
Follow Joanne on Facebook and Twitter @JoBodenAuthor
Book Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Old-Bookshop-New-Beginnings-uplifting-ebook/dp/B0BRNVZDFL/
Kobo: The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings eBook by Joanne Boden – EPUB | Rakuten Kobo United Kingdom
Google: The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings by Joanne Boden – Books on Google Play
Nook: The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings by Joanne Boden | eBook | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)
Apple: The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings on Apple Books
Goodreads: The Old Bookshop of New Beginnings by Joanne Boden | Goodreads