Falling for You

Heidi Swain

HOMELESS and jobless, Skylar Shawe’s life in North Yorkshire is looking nothing like the one she had envisaged so to re-think her future, she is moving in (only temporarily!) with the father she hardly knows… and falling in love is definitely NOT on the agenda.

All Skylar knows is that she is heading for a cosy house in a hidden corner of the bustling city of Norwich. What she doesn’t yet know is that her father’s home holds a secret that only the residents are aware of… whenever someone moves into Nightingale Square, love almost inevitably follows!

If our wet autumn is dampening your spirits, pour a glass of your favourite tipple and escape into the warmth and wonder of a reading happy place with the queen of feel-good Heidi Swain as she serves up a sizzling friends-to-lovers story exploring what happens when the lives of two people – both seeking peace and solace – collide in a place where love blossoms whatever the season. 

Swain (pictured below), who lives with her family in picturesque south Norfolk, has won thousands of adoring readers with her enchanting stories set in the fictional Fenland town of Wynbridge and the wonderfully imagined resort of Wynmouth on the glorious Norfolk coast.

But this idyllic city hideaway in Norwich is also proving rich territory for Swain’s heartwarming and entertaining stories which showcase her talent for blending escapist romance, domestic drama and a perfectly imagined cast of characters with real-life challenges in the modern world.

So if you yearn to catch up with some familiar names from past novels like Sunshine and Sweet Peas in Nightingale Square, Poppy’s Recipe for Life, The Winter Garden and The Summer Fair – and a delightful bunch of new ones as well – meet Skylar who is longing for a break from the chaos of real life.

When the elderly owners of Highfell Hall announced they were shutting down their hospitality business, 30-year-old Skylar lost both her job as events organiser and the place that has been her home for the last ten years. To give herself some respite and time to rethink her future, Skylar is moving in with her father Rafe in Norwich. The two hardly know each other as Rafe, an award-winning crime writer, only recently moved back to the UK after living in America for many years but Skylar knows from occasional visits that he is a kind and thoughtful man and that he is currently suffering from writer’s block.

Skylar hopes moving to Nightingale Square will be the fresh start she needs and a chance to connect with her father. But she doesn’t plan on this being her ‘forever home,’ just a much-needed break and the perfect way to catch her breath.

But then she meets Erik, the brooding but wildly handsome neighbour with a past that he is still trying to come to terms with. Once an international and well-known rugby hero, Erik Svensson now faces life on unfamiliar terrain after suffering a career-ending injury. Unsure of the man he has become, Erik is determined to live a peaceful life while he climbs out of the ‘deep pit’ he has fallen into.

What he doesn’t expect is to find himself drawn to Skylar. They agree that neither is looking for a serious relationship so determine to be each other’s ‘platonic plus one.’ But sometimes, life – and love – has a way of sneaking up on you. As they navigate their new lives and their own troubles, they discover that healing isn’t just about moving on… it’s about letting someone in. And in each other, they might just find exactly what they didn’t know they were looking for.

Whatever the setting, Swain’s stories always have a strong sense of community, family and friendship, and this sparkling autumn-themed feast, packed full of hope, healing, tough endings and new beginnings, is guaranteed to wrap itself around readers like a blanket of love, caring, kindness and laughter. With high emotions, unexpected dramas, and the likeable Skylar and guarded Erik’s heart-fluttering, slow-burn relationship all playing leading roles, Falling for You proves to be a tasty concoction of real life woes and heart-fluttering romance… with the added bonus of a feline comedy support act courtesy of Rafe’s pampered cats, Socrates and Plato.

Heartwarming, comforting and with the promise of a happy-ever-after ending, this new visit to the residents of Nightingale Square is the perfect way to fire up the autumn season!
(Simon & Schuster, paperback, £9.99)