The London Flat: Second Chances

Book excerpt: For fans of The Holiday & Letters to Juliet. Remember what it was like to feel twenty-one again . . . but with all the wisdom of thirty-five. Book 2 of The Irish Heart Series Original Trilogy. Elizabeth Lara has just finished her tour of Ireland. She’s moved on to London, but the dashing Connor Bannon isn’t far from her thoughts as she searches for Mags’ lost love. From dinner with the Queen, to an unexpected encounter with someone from her past, to the tabloids—London proves to be more excitement than she expected. Will she find Mags’ Matthieu? Will Connor be able to win her back or will she choose her gorgeous friend Wes? Both men will take her to exclusively exotic locations and bring her face to face with royalty. Find out what happens next in Beth’s life as she travels, experiences more romance, makes her way through the box of seventeen letters—and continues to find the missing pieces to her life. Come journey with Elizabeth in a story that explores the twists and turns of life and the magic of reconnection. This is more than a romantic story—it’s an invitation to rediscover life’s possibilities. Lose your way and find your life in The Irish Heart Series. READING ORDER: The Irish Heart Series Original Trilogy: The Irish Cottage: Finding Elizabeth (Book 1) The London Flat: Second Chances (Book 2) The Paris Apartment: Fated Journey (Book 3) . . . and for the readers who wanted more . . . 5 years later . . . The Irish Heart Series Continuing Trilogy: The Irish Castle: Keeping Elizabeth (Book 4) The Irish Secret: Wild Fire (Book 5) The Irish Wedding: A Novel Romance (Book 6) Juliet Gauvin’s books are feel-good romantic women’s fiction. They include international travel, holidays, contemporary women, and epic love. INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR Q: How did you come up with The Irish Cottage? Juliet: Well the story came together in pieces. I love Ireland, I've always been attracted to the country, the people, the music, the dancing. I've spent time traveling the country so I knew I wanted to set the book there. And then the character of Elizabeth was based on a lot of the experiences I had when I was in law in San Francisco. When I was immersed in that world--it was a very dark time, and I really did lose my way--like Elizabeth. I even let long-time relationships die because I was in such a dark place, it was difficult to see anything past my own nose. So yeah, I knew I wanted my heroine to be a "recovering attorney" and I knew that I wanted her to have this great love affair in Ireland that would open her up to the truly great possibilities life has to offer. Q: And what about Connor Bannon? Is he based on anyone? Juliet: Ummm...he might be an amalgamation of several people, but I think I'll refrain from commenting further--have to keep some of it to myself, don't I? Q: Why did you elect to write romantic women's fiction as opposed to traditional contemporary romance? Juliet: I knew I wanted to write in the romantic women's fiction space because writing a story where the heroine's evolution is paramount--not just her relationship with Connor--is what really gets me, drives me--I love those types of stories. I like writing herstory--women's lives and journeys are so complex--I wanted to write a series that included a great love story, but didn't sacrifice the heroine's journey in any way. It's about Elizabeth finding her way--we all need to find our way. Sometimes people help with that, but ultimately each of us has to find our own path...and we all need love too. Q: Why London and then Paris? Juliet: I lived in London for a time--I love it so much. It's one of the best cities on the planet, really. When I closed my eyes and thought about where Elizabeth's journey would take her I knew London would be next. And Paris--I lived in Lyon for a time as well and I've spent a lot of time in Paris so it seemed only natural for the final book to be set there. I also set certain things in motion in The Irish Cottage that make it impossible to end anywhere else--I knew I wanted to end it in France. Plus, Elizabeth has a major sweet tooth, like me, and Paris has the most amazing dessert masters in the world. I spent many hours pouring over the websites of my favorites and discovering some new ones. Those were the hardest and best research nights--I'm nocturnal, I write at night--and pouring over the websites of my favorite masters was heaven and hell. I wanted to get on a plane already. My sugar intake definitely went up while I was writing The Paris Apartment--and my waistline with it.