The Bistro by Watersmeet Bridge by Julie Stock - Book Blitz + Giveaway
The Bistro by Watersmeet Bridge
When Olivia goes to manage Finn's failing bistro, will they end up sharing a table for two, or will it be a recipe for disaster?
Olivia Fuller longs to manage one of the restaurants in her father’s chain and to break free to live the independent life she’s wanted for so long. When her father finally puts his trust in her and sends her to a failing restaurant in Devon, she’s confident she can prove herself capable of doing the job.
Finn Anderson is about to lose his beloved seaside bistro, unless the bank can find a buyer to dig him out. When George Fuller offers Finn a deal, he has no choice but to accept if he wants any chance of getting his bistro back one day. And then the new manager arrives…
Even after meeting the prickly chef and discovering his complete lack of business skills,
Olivia is confident she can turn the struggling business round. But as Olivia and Finn start working together, a mutual attraction develops between them, and soon, nothing is going according to Olivia’s plan.
When there’s a real chance that the bistro might be sold off, Olivia and Finn determine to fight for it, united by their hard work and their growing feelings for each other.
But can they save the bistro and be together, or does destiny have a different path in mind?
A feel-good contemporary romance set in a bistro beside the sea in Devon.
Purchase Links
UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bistro-Watersmeet-Bridge-Julie-Stock-ebook/dp/B07V2K5K8S
Excerpt
Excerpt
This
is from the start of Chapter 3 just after Olivia has arrived to take over the
management of the bistro on behalf of her father’s company. She has asked Finn,
the chef, who her father has kept on, to cook her his signature dish, so she
can see if the reason the restaurant failed before was because his cooking was
no good.
Finn set off early the next morning for his
regular fish supplier in Barnstaple, just half an hour inland from Lynford. His
old Volvo estate was on its last legs but still managed to get him everywhere
he needed to go, and it had the space for him to carry most things he had to
purchase. He had a few recipes in mind. He thought about the ingredients he
would need for each one, depending on what fish was available at the
supplier’s. He was hoping to get some sea bass fillets to pan fry with wild
mushrooms and prosciutto, or failing that, some halibut.
It was a beautiful spring day as he drove
along the road away from Watersmeet Bridge and Lynford into town, and the
bright sky lifted his spirits. The prospect of cooking again had also cheered
him up and he wanted to make a good impression on Olivia. She’d got under his
skin yesterday, in an annoying way on the one hand, but there was no denying
her enthusiasm for the job in front of them. He shouldn’t be trying so hard –
he still resented the Fullers for swooping in and taking over his restaurant –
but he couldn’t help himself. Well, he would just make this one meal for her,
so she would know without any shadow of a doubt that he was a good cook, and
then he would get down to the business of working for her and her supercilious
father.
He was in luck at the supplier. They had
plenty of sea bass in, so he bought four fillets, in case anything went wrong,
and he also bought some samphire the supplier was keeping for regular customers
that day. He picked up the other ingredients he needed at the delicatessen and
at the greengrocer’s in Barnstaple before popping into the independent wine
merchant’s and buying a couple of bottles of sauvignon blanc from the Loire
Valley. He was on his way back to the restaurant a little after ten, happy at
the prospect of cooking in his kitchen again. Even if he was their employee, it
would always be his kitchen.
Once back at the restaurant, he did his prep
of the shallots, garlic, prosciutto and wild mushrooms. He took a tub of his
fish stock out of the freezer and left it on the side to defrost while he
peeled and thinly sliced a couple of potatoes. Once everything was ready to
cook, he took a short break to prepare a table for them to eat at when Olivia
arrived at midday. He covered one of the tables with one of his few remaining
tablecloths and put out napkins, glasses and cutlery. Satisfied, he then went
back to the kitchen to cook, just as Olivia knocked on the back door.
He greeted her cheerfully. ‘Morning.’
‘Good morning, Mr Anderson.’ She gave him a brittle smile, maintaining
her formality of the previous day. Today she was dressed in a tailored, dark
navy suit, looking every inch the businesswoman. She looked amazing. The suit
fitted her in all the right places, but she didn’t look like she belonged at
the bistro.
Author Bio –
Julie Stock writes contemporary feel-good romance from around the world: novels, novellas and short stories. She published her debut novel, From Here to Nashville, in February 2015 and her second novel, The Vineyard in Alsace in March 2017. Over You (Sam's Story) and Finding You (Jenna's Story), her follow-up novellas to From Here to Nashville were published in 2018, making the From Here to You series complete. She has also published a boxed set of the From Here to You trilogy of books. Julie’s next novel, The Bistro by Watersmeet Bridge, will be out in summer 2019. If you'd like to sign up to her newsletter list, you can do so here: https://mailchi.mp/f3a7d28c0ab8/julie-stockcouk . As a thank you, you'll be able to download Before You, the prequel story to the From Here to You series, for free.
You can connect with Julie via her website - www.julie-stock.co.uk , on Twitter - @wood_beez48, via her Facebook Author Page - www.facebook.com/JulieStockAuthor , and on Instagram - @julie.stockauthor. Julie is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and The Society of Authors.
When she is not writing, she works in communications. She is married and lives with her family in Bedfordshire in the UK.
Giveaway to Win Signed copy of The Bistro by Watersmeet Bridget and goodies (UK Only)
The prize will contain
· Signed paperback,
· Notebook with front cover on
· Postcard magnet with front cover on
· Bookmark with front cover on
· Bag of Devon fudge
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
2 Comments
Thank you so much for hosting me on your blog today Jasmine, and for sharing my extract 😊
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! :)
DeletePlease try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.