Mix together a group of mature students:
A culinary Sloane, a take-away cook and a food journalist.
Add in:
A handsome host
Season with:
A celebrity chef
Bring to the boil:
At a luxurious cookery school in France!
Waltho Williams has no idea what he’s letting himself in for when he opens the doors of La Maison du Paradis, his beautiful French home. But with dwindling funds, a cookery school seems like the ideal business plan.
Running away from an impending divorce, super-snob Caroline Carrington hopes a luxurious cookery holiday will put her back on her feet. Blackpool fish and chip café owner Fran Cartwright thinks she’s won the lottery when her husband Sid books her on a week working alongside a celebrity chef. Meanwhile, feeling she is fading at fifty, journalist Sally Parker-Brown hopes her press week covering the cookery course will enable her to boost her career.
But will the eclectic group be a recipe for success, or will the mismatched relationships sink like a souffle?
Whip out an apron, grab a wooden spoon and take a culinary trip to La Maison du Paradis, then sit back and enjoy The French Cookery School!
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Extract
I am delighted to be on your wonderful blog and thank you so much for taking part in the tour. This extract is from my new novel, The French Cookery School and here cookery school guest, Caroline, reluctantly finds herself in an adjacent room to the effervescent Fran…
‘If only that simple, transformative state could work for me.’
Caroline stood in her room on the first floor of La Maison du Paradis. Her fingers traced the pale blue shutters as she stared out at the cameo scene ahead. Pale muslin drapes fluttered in a cooling breeze that whispered from the garden below, where the view beyond was idyllic. The soft fabric caressed her arm like a lover’s kiss, and Caroline sighed and rubbed her skin. She could hardly remember what a kiss felt like, nor the last time Stanley had shown her any affection.
Years ago, he’d been discreet and Caroline had ignored Stanley’s extra-marital affairs. She’d moved into a separate bedroom, choosing lifestyle over emotions, for living in Kensington suited her well. If he decided to play away, she’d been happy to overlook it. But as she kicked off her jewelled white sandals, she sighed and wondered if she would have continued the farcical marriage had Stanley not wanted out.
Stepping barefoot across lime-washed pine flooring, Caroline stood on a balcony, where a wrought iron table and matching chairs, covered with pale pink cushions, sat in one corner. A pretty pottery vase had been placed in the centre of the table, filled with sweet-smelling lavender. Caroline sat down and, raising her sunglasses, studied a field of sunflowers. Mesmerised by the blanket of gold swaying gently, she watched the sturdy stalks reach towards the sky. Their energy was almost tangible, and she considered the wonder of nature that created something so beautiful.
‘If only that simple, transformative state could work for me,’ she sighed.
Caroline’s shoulders relaxed for the first time in what felt like forever. The balmy air and heady scent from the garden were hypnotic, and it was all she could do to stay awake. How wonderful it would be to lie down, pillowed by feather down, on the deep mattress of the carved bed in her room and let her cares drift away. Caroline’s lids felt heavy, and her head slumped forward.
No more anxiety over her errant husband, no more financial difficulties and no business worries to disturb her sleep. Her eyes closed, and Caroline snoozed, vaguely aware of distant sparrows chirping in the hedgerows.
As the birds dive-bombed across the pool’s surface, an elderly cat lay in the hot sunshine on a pathway beneath Caroline’s balcony. Its body lazily stretched, old bones benefitting from the warm sun and fur glistening as it soaked up the sun. An occasional twitch of a tabby tail was the only acknowledgement of its presence. Under a cloudless sky, the garden shimmered in the heat, and the humid air almost vibrated with untapped energy as though waiting for La Maison du Paradis to come to life.
‘Cooee, Caro! Hello, duckie!’
Caroline’s head jerked up at the sound of Fran’s loud voice. Disorientated, she blinked as she looked around.
‘Over here!’ Fran called out. She flapped her hands and waved.
Grabbing the table, Caroline steadied herself. She realised that Fran was standing on an adjacent balcony.
‘What’s your room like?’ Fran called out. ‘Mine’s got a fancy roll-top bath!’
Caroline’s fingers smoothed her blonde bob, cut stylishly to enhance high cheekbones, and highlighted to remove any traces of grey. ‘It’s very nice,’ she snapped.
Damnation! The irritating woman was on the other side of the wall. Rigid with anger, Caroline stepped into her room, turning away from Fran. Her case sat on a luggage rack, and flinging it open, she began to unpack. As Caroline smoothed and hung her outfits in a pine armoire, she wondered if Fran would hound her throughout their stay. It felt alien to be with someone so upbeat. How would she avoid Fran if they shared almost every waking hour together in the kitchen or during activities and meals?
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I do hope that you enjoy The French Cookery School and I wish you and your visitors many happy reading hours. Warmest wishes, Caroline xx
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About the author
Caroline James always wanted to write, but instead of taking a literary route, followed a career in the hospitality industry, which included owning a pub and a beautiful country house hotel. She was also a media agent representing celebrity chefs. When she finally glued her rear to a chair and began to write, the words flowed, and several novels later, she has gained many bestseller badges for her books.
The French Cookery School is Caroline’s tenth novel. Previously, The Cruise, described as: ‘Girl power for the over sixties!’ was an Amazon Top Ten Best Seller. Caroline’s hilarious novels include The Spa Break and The Best Boomerville Hotel, depicted as ‘Britain’s answer to the Best Marigold Hotel’.
She likes to write in Venus, her holiday home on wheels and in her spare time, walks with Fred, her Westie, or swims in a local lake. Caroline is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association, the SOA, ARRA and the Society of Women’s Writers & Journalists. She is also a speaker with many amusing talks heard by a variety of audiences, including cruise ship guests.
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Author Links
Website: www.carolinejamesauthor.co.uk
Twitter: @CarolineJames12
Facebook: Caroline James Author
Insta: Caroline James Author
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Book Link
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B for Bookreview 