Stephanie Cage - Writer

How I Wonder What You Are by Jane Lovering My rating: 5 of 5 stars Despite its nursery-rhyme title, 'How I Wonder What You Are' is a sophisticated read. I wanted to say 'adult' but that would imply a 50 shades-esque level of steam, whereas 'How I Wonder' simmers gently with sexual tension throughout. Molly finds Phinn lying naked on the moors and carts him home with the help of an obstructive pony named Stan, so she knows a good deal from the start about his impressive physique. However, despite his high public profile as a professor of Astrophysics, Phinn turns out to have secrets galore, while Molly herself isn't quite the open book she pretends to be. Like so many of Jane Lovering's books, this is a story of two wounded souls finding healing through a relationship which is by turns hilarious and touching. The romance is always front and centre, and plays out against a delightful backdrop of village life and the quest Phinn and Molly share,...

Falling Apart by Jane Lovering My rating: 5 of 5 stars Like several other reviewers, I couldn't quite imagine how Falling Apart would live up to the promise of Vampire State of Mind. So Jess and Sil are fabulous characters, but hey, once you've saved the world from demons the first time, then anything else starts to look a bit tame in comparison. Shoes and paperclips are all very well, but they just don't set the heart beating in quite the same way as magic and mayhem. However, Falling Apart has all the magic and mayhem a girl could wish for. From the start, it's obvious to the reader that there's a good reason for Sil's bad behaviour (and I don't just mean the flirting with anything in skirts variety, more the dangerous blood-letting sort), but it's equally clear why Jess assumes the worst of him. There's high drama both in the relationship stakes and on the streets of York, and Jane even manages to sneak in the odd political point (I think, ...

I always love the Romantic Novelists' Association Conference, and this year was no exception.  The setting was Sheffield Uni's lovely halls of residence (yes, this picture really is the grounds of the University, although I think it could easily be taken for the Yorkshire Sculpture Park).  The company was, as always, wonderful, the seminars thought-provoking, the bookshop well-stocked and the goody bag generous.  My second picture is one of the books I bought - Jane Lovering's Hubble Bubble - together with the accompanying 'goody' - a pretty pink bath heart.  I was also lucky enough to receive in my goody bag a free book which was already on my wish list - Kate Morton's The Secret Keeper .    Standout talks for me a few weeks after the event were Julie Cohen's on theme, Catherine Jones' on character, Fiona Harper's on romantic structure, and Janet Gover's very hands-on session on TV and radio interviews.  I was able to put my newl...

Yesterday I was at Doncaster Central Library with the Doncaster Writers' Group as part of the ' Turn the Page ' festival, about which I'm sure you'll hear more as it continues for another week.  We were asked to introduce ourselves and the genres we wrote, which prompted me to put together this quick list of my favourite romance authors and books for anyone who wanted to know more.  It's hugely personal and idiosyncratic, but if you read romance, do have a look and see if you've missed any treasures, and I'd love to hear if you agree or disagree with my choices.  You can use the comment space below, or comment privately through the 'contact me' page of my website.  Louise Bagshawe – I love ‘The Movie’ and ‘Tall Poppies’ – contemporary chick-lit from another Oxford-educated author.   I’m also a fan of some of her later books, ‘Passion’ and ‘Desire’, which are more romantic suspense.   I've mentioned 'The Movie' in a previous po...

Today I'm delighted to be welcoming Jane Lovering to my blog.  Jane won the Romantic Novel of the Year award for her wonderful love story, 'Please Don't Stop the Music', and after I heard her talk to the Romantic Novelists' Association about her success, I managed to persuade her to answer some follow-up questions for me.  Humour in writing obviously comes naturally to you, but what advice would you give someone who’s not a naturally funny writer? Firstly I would say, think very carefully about whether or not you want to write humour, because people expect you to live up to their expectations of being ‘a funny person’.  If your natural bent is to be slightly depressive, you may have to cultivate a new persona when appearing in public (just remember, if you are old enough, how disappointed the public used to be in comedians like Tony Hancock, a depressive man but a funny performer – all right, he didn’t write his own material, but the comparison...

On the eleventh day of Christmas, the kindle store brought to me... one of the cleverest and most intriguing romances of the year, with a huge dose of fantasy and fun.  Jane Lovering's ' Vampire State of Mind ' is a witty take on the ever-popular vampire theme, based on the idea that if vampires truly did exist, they would surely attract just as much bureaucracy as every other health and safety risk known to man. Jess knows all about that bureaucracy.  She's the vampire liaison officer for York City Council, and since vampires are now governed by a treaty controlling their behaviour and movements, she should be quite safe admiring her sexy vampire ex-colleague from a distance.  But when York is chosen as the venue for a mysterious gathering of Otherworlders, her safety seems threatened from all directions.  Jess suddenly finds herself playing a bigger role than she's ever been prepared for.  Is Sil everything he seems?   For that matter...