Author Interview: The Fabulous Victoria Connelly

I am a big fan of Victoria Connelly, I have read A Weekend With Mr Darcy and The Perfect Hero, I loved them both so I was very excited to be offered the opportunity to ask Victoria some questions about her latest books. It's Magic is a collection of three romantic comedies which caused a bidding war between five publishers, Victoria tells us more about it:

1. Can you tell us about your latest publication, It's Magic?

It’s Magic is a collection of three novels which were originally published in Germany: Flights of Angels, Unmasking Elena Montella and Three Graces.  They’re all romantic comedies with a touch of magic and Flights of Angels was even made into a film in Germany which was incredibly exciting. 

All three titles are published as separate ebooks but I wanted to bring them all together in one collection too.

2. What led you to go in a different direction with your writing?

The three magical rom coms aren’t that different from my non-magical rom coms.  It’s just that they happen to feature naughty guardian angels, a magical Venetian mask and an opinionated eighteenth-century ghost!  I really love writing books with a fantastical slant.  I think writers should try different things and push boundaries and not be tied to writing the same thing over and over again.  It’s more exciting for both them and their readers.

3. Can you talk us through an average day for a best selling author?

I like to start writing as soon as I get up and aim to do a few hundred words before taking our dog for her walk and looking after our hens.  I’ll then return to the desk and work until lunchtime.  I like a long lunch break and then I get some more work done on the novel.  I try to finish the day’s work before the afternoon dog walk but that doesn’t always happen so I often work into the evening. 

Of course, a good day’s work is also interrupted by the presence of Facebook, Twitter and emails.  It’s easy to get distracted but writing can be very lonely and it’s always fun to chat away to other writers online and meet readers too. 

4. Your life in rural Suffolk looks truly idyllic but is there anything in particular that you miss about London?

I have to say that I miss very little about London.  I’m a country girl at heart – I grew up in several lovely villages in Norfolk and it was a bit of a surprise that I ended up living in the London suburbs for so long – it wasn’t me at all!  But I was at an interesting stage in my writing career and it was very handy to be able to hop on the tube and go into town to meet agents and publishers and other writers.  So I do miss the occasional launch party now but that’s about it. I love our new life in Suffolk.  We have a two hundred year old cottage in a quiet village and a gorgeous garden filled with fruit trees, roses and ex-battery hens!  You’ll never get me back to London!

5. Do you have any writing superstitions? A lucky pen? A special chair?

I don’t have any superstitions but I do have a routine when starting a new book.  I like a nice bright ring binder folder and I always make a spider diagram featuring the characters in my new novel.  I like to have that in front of me and think about the relationships between the characters.  I then fill the folder with notes and photos of the settings or maybe pictures of actors who could play my characters (my current obsession is Tom Hiddleston and I hope to cast him as a future hero soon!)  I also get very unsettled until I have all my characters named and I have a title I’m happy with.  It took me an absolute age to name Molly Bailey in Molly’s Millions – I drove my husband crazy trying to come up with a surname that fitted her character.  And A Weekend with Mr Darcy was originally called Bennets and Bonnets but nobody but me seemed to like that title!

6. It's Magic must be keeping you very busy  but can you tell us anything about your new book?

My next rom com out in the UK is Wish You Were Here.  It comes out in April and I’ve just seen the cover and it looks amazing!  I can’t wait to share it with you all.  It’s about a Plain Jane who suddenly becomes irresistible to men after making a wish on a statue of Aphrodite whilst on holiday in Greece.  There’s definitely a touch of magic in there somewhere!

I’m also working on a novella sequel to my Austen Addicts’ Trilogy - Christmas with Mr Darcy – which comes out in October.  It unites all the main characters from the trilogy as they meet at Purley Hall for a very special Jane Austen conference.

I’m also going to be publishing Escape to Mulberry Cottage – about our move from the London suburbs to rural Suffolk.  So, plenty to keep me busy for the rest of this year!

If you would like to find out more about Victoria Connelly and her fabulous books then check out her website or click here to follow her on Twitter!

Book Review: The Perfect Hero by Victoria Connelly

The circus has come to town...Die-hard romantic, Kay Ashton, uses her inheritance to open a B&B in the seaside town of Lyme Regis and is dumbstruck when the cast and crew of a new production of Persuasion descend, needing a place to stay. Kay can't believe her luck- especially when she realises that heartthrob actor Oli Wade Owen will be sleeping under her very own roof! 

Meanwhile, co-star Gemma Reilly is worried that her acting isn't up to scratch, despite landing a plum role. She finds a sympathetic ear in shy producer, Adam Craig, who is as baffled by the film world as she is. Kay thinks that the two are meant for each other and can't resist a spot of matchmaking. Then Oli turns his trademark charm on Kay, it seems that she has found her real-life hero. But do heroes really exist?

I read Victoria Connelly's first book, A Weekend With Mr Darcy and thought it was great. Although The Perfect Hero is not a sequel, it does still have a heavy Jane Austen influence on the form of her book Persuasion. Unfortunately Persuasion is the only Austen book I haven't read (this is soon to be remedied) but for review purposes I can say that this wasn't a bad thing as I don't think I missed anything in The Perfect Hero.
Kay is a very likable character, she hasn't had a great life so when she unexpectedly comes into some money, she knows she has to grasp the opportunity with both hands. She has always wanted to live by the sea and Lyme Regis has a particular pull due to it featuring in Jane Austen's Persuasion. Kay is a true Austen fan and her real passion is illustrating Austen's books. She knows that her illustrations are good but she hasn't found the courage to send them to any publishers yet.
Kay buys the B&B in Lyme Regis and hasn't even finished decorating when the cast of Persuasion check in. They are filming on location and Kay finds herself surrounded by film stars that she had previously admired from afar. Oli Wade Owen has Kay completely star struck and she soon has a full on crush. Oli is happy to turn the charm on but he isn't all he seems.
Gemma Reilly is playing the lead role of Anne Elliot but she is painfully shy. She has been pushed into acting by her famous mother but her heart really isn't in it. Gemma gets on well with Kay but is confused as to why she is trying to match her up with producer Adam when it is clear that he has had a crush on Kay from the very start.
I really enjoyed The Perfect Hero, it is very reminiscent of Austen, with the gossip, intrigue, mysterious male leads and misunderstandings in love. Victoria Connelly's writing is extremely witty and I love her enthusiasm for Austen and her ability to recognise and represent a true Austen fan,
I would highly recommend both of Victoria Connelly's books. I found The Perfect Hero to be very entertaining and it has finally made me put Persuasion at the top of my TBR pile.

Many thanks to Charlotte at Avon for sending me a copy of the book to review, The Perfect Hero is out today.

Book Review: A Weekend With Mr Darcy by Victoria Connelly

Katherine Roberts is fed up. As a lecturer specialising in the works of Jane Austen, she has come to realise that her ideal man only exists within the pages of Pride and Prejudice.

Austen fanatic, Robyn Love, is blessed with a name full of romance, but her life is far from perfect. Stuck in a rut with a bonehead boyfriend, she longs for an escape.

They both head to the annual Jane Austen conference, hoping to cast their troubles away. But as the chaos ensues, it seems as Austen weekend wouldn't be complete without a little intrigue and romance along the way...

I completely fell in love with this book. I am not an Austen fanatic but I am certainly a fan and this lovely book has made me want to dust off all my old copies and dive into the world of Austen all over again.
A Weekend With Mr Darcy revolves around two women, Katherine Roberts and Robyn Love. They are two very different women but they soon become friends and share a love and passion for everything Austen.
Dame Pamela Harcourt owns Purley Hall which is where the conference takes place, she was my favourite character; she is an old-school actress, complete with the grand entrances, dripping with jewels and full of pearls of wisdom.
All of the characters in this book are either lovely or highly entertaining. Given that the book is only set over one long weekend, we get to know the majority of them very well.
Victoria Connelly makes many references to Jane Austen's books and characters throughout so I think you would get the most from this if you have read at least a couple of Austen's books.
I know that this is a book that I shall read again in the future. I would highly recommend it, especially if you are an Austen fan and have the occasional dream about Mr Darcy!

A Weekend With Mr Darcy is published today, many thanks to Avon for sending me a copy to review.