This year didn’t start out the way I hoped. In fact, it kicked off with a digital disaster of epic proportions. I thought I’d lost Flora and the Longbottoms—a heartwarming chick lit / cozy mystery I’d been working on for years—along with all my other files. Yep, everything: master book files, covers, works-in-progress, design projects, photos… gone. Just like that. It was like someone had taken a giant creative eraser to my entire hard drive.
Every. Single. File.
Gone were all my master book files, every cover I’d designed (including the ones I was trying to sell), countless works-in-progress, graphics, photos… just vanished into the great digital void. Honestly, I still can’t quite believe it happened. One minute, I was happily organising files like the responsible grown-up I occasionally pretend to be… the next, it was all dust. My external hard drive crashed and no matter what I tried, was just not rescuable. And then to top it all off, my other back up (in the cloud) simply decided to delete itself too. WTF?
Now I didn’t cry. I didn’t reach for the wine either (surprisingly). But I was gutted. Totally lost for a while. Because how do you start again when everything’s been wiped out?
But then—out of the blue—I remembered something. A chick lit / cozy mystery I’d been working on years ago. I’d emailed a copy to a friend. Just one file. One sliver of hope.
I rummaged through my inbox like a woman on a mission, and… I found it. Flora and the Longbottoms was still alive.
I’ve spent the last few months polishing it, giving it the love it deserved, and last week—without any grand announcement or confetti cannons—I quietly hit publish on Amazon. Flora and the Longbottoms is part of the Frambleberry series, just like Aphrodite’s Closet—each one a standalone story set in the same delightfully quirky village.
Here’s what it’s all about:
Flora and the Longbottoms
Flora Fitzgerald’s life is quiet, predictable, and blissfully drama-free—until one simple act of kindness catapults her straight into Frambleberry’s biggest scandal.After handing a tissue to a tearful stranger in the park, Flora finds herself mistaken for the close confidante of Elizabeth Longbottom, the high-society darling who’s just been spectacularly fired from the Van Loon Art Gallery. Overnight, Flora becomes headline news—chased by persistent reporters, whispered about by nosy neighbours, and hounded for gossip she doesn’t even have.
And when she literally falls into the arms of Jamie Longbottom—Elizabeth’s charming, infuriatingly handsome brother—the situation takes an even more complicated turn.
But beneath all the laughter, glamour, and small-town gossip, something darker is unfolding. Who’s behind the carefully timed media leaks? Why is someone determined to ruin Elizabeth’s reputation? And when scandal turns sinister, who can Flora really trust?
What began as a comical misunderstanding spirals into a gripping tale of betrayal, secrets, and small-town mystery. Flora must navigate friendship, family loyalties, and a budding romance—all while deciding if she’s ready to step into the spotlight… or if she should run a mile in the opposite direction.
A heartwarming romantic comedy blended with an edge-of-your-seat cozy mystery, Flora and the Longbottoms is perfect for fans of intriguing scandals, slow-burn romance, and one delightfully soggy picnic.
While all of that was going on, I also decided—since I’d lost every last master file—it was time for a proper refresh. So I’ve been redoing my book covers, and if you’ve got a keen eye, you might have noticed a few changes on my blog sidebar already. Aphrodite’s Closet, Willow Tree Farm, and Little Shop of Borrows have all had little glow-ups.
There’s still more to come… including a little something about two Raven Witch Saga books that were caught in the great file disaster. But I’ll save that tale for now.
So if you fancy a feel-good mystery with a bit of scandal, a splash of romance, and a lead character who stumbles into drama like it’s her full-time job—go and check out Flora and the Longbottoms. I’m chuffed it finally made it into the world.
