I can't believe it's October tomorrow, and it's nearly a month since Stable Mates was published! I've got to apologise for not posting a news update lately, but I've had a chaotic couple of months.

On the 12th September I whizzed down to Leighton Buzzard for the day, for the Festival of Romantic Fiction (if you've never been, keep a look out next year as it's great fun). I shared a stall with my great friend, and fellow Harper Collins author, Jane Linfoot, and we had a fun day chatting to people and signing copies of our books. If you've not come across Jane's book before I can recommend them, check out her website here.

There was the added bonus of meeting up with lots of other author friends as well as wonderful bloggers and readers, and my wonderful editor Charlotte was there to share the bubbly with us at the end of a busy day.

Whilst I've not been posting here, I have been busy on a virtual book tour, so if you want to find out more here's some of the highlights -
Meet the Stable Mates men! - In Tippermere they work hard and play hard, in Kitterly Heath they’re rich and famous. Finding a fit man isn’t difficult…the trickiest part is knowing which one could be your perfect Stable Mate… 
In Praise of the Older Character - from teenagers to grandparents, the characters in Stable Mates span the generations. 
Pretty Feet - talking boots, bonkbusters and naughty ponies (a lot of those funny bits in the book are based on real life!)
Hump Day Hunk - why Rory is a perfect hero
Book Boyfriends/Hot men in books - what makes that man truly hot?!

(Plus check out the 'Tippermere' tab under 'Blogs' at the top of the page to find out about the inspiration for the people and places.)

Keep an eye out for the paperback version of Stable Mates, which is already up for pre-order, and will be published on 20th November. If you've already bought an e-copy, I'd love to know if you enjoyed it (reading lovely reviews is one of the nicest things about being an author), and if you'd like one of these gorgeous bookmarks for your paperback copy leave a comment with an email address so I can contact you, or send me a message on Facebook or Twitter, or email. I will send one to the first 10 people to contact me!

I'm busy working on a follow up book at the moment, plus I've been working on a secret project (more news soon!) and have a Christmas story out in a HarperImpulse anthology - no rest for the wicked!

Thanks for reading,
Zara x

Cariad means love, and Cariad Romance is Xcite books new imprint.... which means 'Spice It Up' has got a gorgeous new cover!

It's Book 9 in the 'Cariad Singles collection of spicy romances' - which seems pretty apt.

If you want to find out more about the collection then pop over to the new Facebook page, or you can buy a copy of my novella at a bargain price of 77p from Amazon.




Food critic Ellie Chiltern isn’t happy when she’s sent to review Pinchos tapas bar, the waiter is more Birmingham than Barcelona and the tapas are as lukewarm as her last relationship. She’s struggling to find a positive, until she’s confronted by the only authentic piece of Spain in the bar – Lucas.

When Lucas Martinez sees Ellie, he realises she could be the final nail in the coffin – or the ideal person to help turn the place and its image around. But persuading her to trust him isn’t easy – especially when there’s something burning between them that’s far spicier than the food ever was. 

Enjoy a hot and spicy summer!
Zara x

I was busy over the weekend taking part in the FIRST EVER virtual romance festival. There was an amazing line up of over 100 authors who write for Harper Collins, Piatkus and Mills & Boon, plus several successful self-published ones. Plus, chats with agents, cover designers, bloggers and readers.

With Google hangouts, Twitter interviews and Facebook question and answer sessions, the two days were packed with information for readers and writers alike. And there were lots of useful articles, plus information about all the authors posted on the blog.

The festival was also totally free! If you missed it, but would like to find out more then you can check out interviews and chats on the Facebook page, and the Twitter stream (use @RomanceFestival and the hashtag #Romance14) or have a look at the blog.

But I must admit, it was extra special for me because the cover of my next book was revealed! If you missed it then you can read my post 'The Brilliance of the Bonkbuster: Essential Summer Reading', or just check it out below! I've always been a great fan of Jilly Cooper, Jackie Collins and more recently Victoria Fox and Fiona Walker, and so when my editor asked if I fancied writing a bonkbuster of my own then I jumped at the chance!

More news will follow soon, but I can promise a fun, racy read that will be ideal for reading on the beach! I just love this story, and the fabulous cover, and I hope you will too.

Zara x

Ever wondered what it looks like inside the offices of publisher Harper Collins (and what a group of authors get up to when they meet up!)?

Well, for starters, on the left is the awesome sight that meets you once you've got through the gates and the incredibly fast moving revolving doors (I wouldn't like to do it after a few too many glasses of prosecco!).

On Friday HarperImpulse was celebrating - it's one year since their first two titles hit the e-shelves. And what a year it has been for all of us who've shared it with them. So, being the lovely bunch of people they are, they invited their authors down to London to share in the celebrations.

After lunch and a glass of wine with amazing authors Mandy Baggot, Jane Linfoot, Eve Devon and Linn Halton (and plenty of gossip), we headed for HQ and were whisked up to the boardroom which is right at the top of those incredible stairs.

After coffee, enormous cupcakes and more talk, we got on to discussing some of the exciting things HI have up their sleeve for later in this year (watch this space). Then it was time for an author update, some advice on marketing and popping of prosecco cork for a toast.


Check out the lovely photo (courtesy of author Wendy Jones) below, of just some of the fabulous authors that HI have signed this year, plus of course the lovely Kim and Charlotte who have worked hard to make this first year the incredible success it has been.
Check out my facebook page if you'd like to see more photos.

See you soon, 
Zara x

Good news has been coming thick and fast the last few months. I am excited that I can finally share my really big news,  'Riding High' is heading state side! It's going to be released by a New York publisher, in paperback, in July 2014 and just take a look at the gorgeous cover - my hottest yet!

The wonderful Harper Collins have also announced that 'Summer of Surrender' (which features James, who first appeared in Riding High) will be out in paperback on 29th May, and a month later on 26th June 'Love Is A Four Letter Word' will be out in print.


Thanks to all my readers, you're the best, these deals wouldn't have happened without your support. If you'd like a signed copy of any of these books, don't forget I'll be at the Festival of Romantic Fiction in September in the UK, but will hopefully have more dates to share soon. Bring your copy - or buy one there (a limited number of copies will be available).






So, it's back to the writing for me now - and a story that is a little bit different but every bit as racy as you've come to expect! More news soon, I promise!


Zara x

It's the last day of February - and the month had gone out on a high. I absolutely love the fabulous cover that HarperImpulse have designed for my latest story - which hit the e-shelves yesterday!

It started to zoom up the Amazon UK charts straight away - so thank you to everyone who had purchased a copy. I hope you love my biker boy, Jake, as much as I do!

If you've not already bought a copy, then do check out the books page for buy links and an excerpt - and if you enjoy it, I'd love it if you'd share by posting a review.

Meanwhile, myself and fellow HI author, Eve Devon are running a blog hop, which runs from 27th February - 5th March, there's a lovely Goodie Bag up for grabs, plus a book voucher every day. Pop over to my blog for full details of where we are, and how to enter!

I'm now well into writing my next book - which is a bit different! If you like long 'bonkbusters' (that are ideal to take on the beach), featuring English countryside, horses, gentry, hot horse riders, scandal and heat then keep an eye out for the first exclusive extract!

So, it's March tomorrow - and Spring is just around the corner. I love it when the greenery and flowers start to appear - plus of course the sunshine! I've spent quite a bit of time in Barcelona recently - time I've decided to document on my blog, so do pop over if you love the city as much as I do. So, I'm slightly ahead on spotting the sun - but I can't wait to see a bit more of it over here.

I hope you enjoy the competition, back soon with more news!

Zara x

Wow, what a whirlwind year this has been - and with Christmas on my mind it means there is less than a month until a New Year sweeps in with all its promise of resolutions, bright and shiny new ideas, and hope for the future.

On the writing front, 2013 crept in quietly! In April I had two new releases hit the shelves - on the 1st of the month 'Spice It Up', my erotic romance novella, was published by Xcite, which captured my love of tapas, wine and all things Barcelona!  A day later, 'Good Enough to Trust', the second book in the Good Enough series hit the e-shelves, a much more thought provoking story with a backdrop of the often stormy Cornish coast. North Cornwall is an evocative part of the country for me, the passion of the coastline, dramatic scenery, pagan rituals, colourful history and temperamental weather make it a place I want to return to and explore time after time.

The autumn brought my exciting new contract with HarperImpulse (Harper Collins). My first release with them, 'Summer of Surrender', is out now (still on offer at 99p in the UK as I write!), my second is on my editor's desk awaiting her verdict. With both these books I had the chance to combine my love of horses with my passion for sexy heroes - a win, win situation!

My publishing year ends with the release of 'Making It Good Enough', the third and final book in the series. I will be so sad to leave Holly, Sophie, Dane and Charlie. I've had so much fun writing about, and sharing, them with you - and I've been overwhelmed at how people have taken them into their hearts. To hit a best seller list on Amazon in both the UK and the US has been a dream come true! Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, or just chatted to and supported me!

So what does 2014 hold? If it is anywhere near as good as 2013 I will be happy. I'm over on the HarperImpulse blog next week - chatting about what (who!) I'd like to find in my Christmas stocking. Please pop over if you have time and join in the discussion! 

Meanwhile, I am eagerly awaiting edits on my bad biker boy story (well, more cheeky than bad!), and then have an exciting new project to work on with Charlotte, my editor at HarperImpulse. I also have an awesome new cover for 'Riding High' which will be out in paperback next year - keep an eye out for it!

I will be around and about on my blog, facebook, twitter and other places on the internet during December - but this is my last update here. So here's hoping you have a wonderful Christmas, with good company and many kisses under the mistletoe - and that your dreams come true in 2014.

Thank you for sharing 2013 with me!
Zara x

Wow, how is that for an introduction?

The sexy James, and fun loving Kezia will be hitting the e-shelves on 7th November 2013, with a paperback out at a later date. I will keep you informed! And, before release date, I will be posting an excerpt on my free reads page - don't miss it!

The acquisition announcement and cover reveal was made by HarperImpulse on Tuesday - you can read it here.
And if you haven't read my 'call story' and would like to find out more then click here to see the post on my blog.

The weather has cooled down over here in the UK, which means more days spent cuddling round the log fire and writing my next book - I do love this story of a bad boy biker and a rich girl with attitude! I hope you will too!

In the meantime, I hope you've had a brilliant summer where you are - why not extend it a bit by reading a hot story of summer surrender....?  Pre-order from Amazon (UK), Amazon (COM)

What do you think? I have to admit I just love any picture of Jimmy Thomas, but this one just captures the book perfectly. Love it, love it, love it!

'Making It Good Enough' is the third book in the Good Enough series, and will be available before Christmas.

There are three books in the series, and this is the final one. So, if you've been waiting to find out if Charlie and Anna stick together, and if Holly and Dane work out their problems - you won't have to wait much longer!

I really loved writing this book - there are rampaging cows, weddings being gate-crashed by unwelcome guests, a shock visitor for Holly and of course the gorgeous Dane - who has the power to make Holly's cowboy fantasies come true with a rope and a camp fire! Enough teasing for now?

'Good Enough to Share' -

Morning! I can't believe it's the 28th August already - where did that summer go?! I've been mad busy for the last couple of months, but thought I should launch my revamped website and new blog with a short post explaining a few why's and what's!

Why the new blog? If you already know me, then you will probably be aware that I've had a 'blogger blog' for some time (well, two actually). The other blogs aren't going - you can find the links to them under the heading 'More'.
I will still use my original blogs in much the same way I do now - I'll feature some of my wonderful author friends and tell you about their books, I'll share snippets from my books, reviews, and on the Susie Medwell blog continue to share occasional craft posts and update the list of publishers open to submissions.

Over here I will give you all my book news - cover reveals, news on contracts, release dates, stories I'm working on and any events I will be attending as an author (such as November's Festival of Romance in Bedford).

Summer has certainly whizzed by. Here's a quick run down of mine! I've been away a couple of times (to Barcelona - one of my favourite cities) and topped up the tan, my son had his GCSE results (which were brilliant - I'm a proud mum!) so we had to celebrate those, I've finished the much demanded story about James (from Riding High) and Book 3 of the Good Enough series will be off to the editor soon.

I've had some very exciting news on the publishing front - but I can't share yet, which is murder because I really, really do want to spill the beans! I'l be sharing as soon as I can!

I hope you've had a great summer - let me know what you've been up to :-)