I’m thrilled to welcome Holly Martin onto the Book Nook as part of my Valentines feature! Holly’s gorgeous book One Hundred Proposals was one of the best books I read last year, and now one of my favourite romances. The Christmas sequel was equally gorgeous, so I definitely recommend them both!
Today, she has very kindly agreed to answer some love-themed questions here on the Book Nook, so huge thanks & warm welcome to the lovely Holly Martin!
- What’s your dream date?
I think something fun, like sledging or bowling or ice skating, maybe something a bit different than just a meal in a pub, although those are good dates too when there’s time for talking. - What’s the worst/most embarrassing date you’ve ever been on?
I’m a big spiller, i always knock drinks over or spill food over myself. I once had a first date where I ordered a BLT that had so much mayo and sauce on it, that as I was biting into it, sauce was dripping all down my hands, over the table. I gave up eating in the end, but the damage had already been done and I never saw him again.
- What’s your favourite Valentines gift you’ve ever received?
It was a ring, it wasn’t anything flash or expensive, it was just something i had said i’d liked weeks before and he bought it for me.
- What’s your favourite thing about love?
Those wonderful butterfly moments, when you can’t stop smiling, even something as simple as a text can light up your whole day
- Can you describe what love means to you in three words?
Heartpounding, glorious bliss.
- What is your favourite memory of your wedding day OR what would be a detail of your dream wedding?
I’m not married but I have attended many wonderful weddings. One of my favourites was my two best friends who got married in a tiny castle in Wales. They had hired the whole place so we were the only ones there apart from the staff, we had every room to ourselves and we all stayed over there after. There was only about 40 guests and it was really sweet and intimate made all the more special because they were and still are clearly head over heels in love with each other. - What is your favourite romance novel?
Waiting for Prince Harry by Aven Ellis, there was something about Harrison that I absolutely fell in love with.
- Who is your favourite romance author?
So many, Aven Ellis writes the most gorgeous addictive stories, I love Jill Mansell too.
- What is your favourite romantic film?
Bridget Jones is fantastic and funny, The Holiday and Love Actually are super romantic. One of my favourite romantic films is The Truth About Cats and Dogs, i can relate with the girl in that film so much.
- What inspires you to write romantic fiction?
I love a happy ending and that ridiculously sublime head over heels kind of love, i could write about that kind of love all day long.
Holly’s Bio
I live in sunny Bedfordshire in a house with round windows. I studied media at university which led to a very glitzy career as a hotel receptionist followed by a even more glamorous two years working in a bank. The moment that one of my colleagues received the much coveted carriage clock for fifteen years service was the moment when I knew I had to escape. I quit my job and returned to university to train to be a teacher. Three years later, I emerged wide eyed and terrified that I now had responsibility for the development of thirty young minds. I taught for four years before History Off The Page came to my school to do a Tudor day. I now drive round the country in my little white van, dressing up as a Viking one day and an Egyptian High Priestess the next.
I love to write. The characters do exactly what I want them to do, most of the time. Sometimes they do seem to go off and do their own thing without my permission. It is complete escapism into a world where I have full control.
I’ve been writing for four years now, every spare second I have, I’m scribbling ideas in a notebook or typing a scene on my laptop. I have written three romantic fiction books. Changing Casanova and The Chainsaw Masquerade were recently shortlisted for the Festival of Romance New Talent Award. My short story, One Hundred Proposals, won the Belinda Jones Travel Club short story competition and was published in the Sunlounger anthology.
Connect with Holly
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