– The Magic of Wor(l)ds is a hobby, reviews and other bookish stuff on this site are done for free.I’m grateful of receiving a free copy from the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review of this book. –
Today I’m delighted to be on the ‘The Gentleman of Holly Street’ blogtour, organised by Rachel’s Random Resources.
To promote this book I’ll be sharing an extract, but first I have some information
About the Author :
Lotte James trained as an actor and theatre director, but spent most of her life working day jobs crunching numbers whilst dreaming up stories of love and adventure. She’s thrilled to finally be writing those stories, and when she’s not scribbling on tiny pieces of paper, she can usually be found wandering the countryside for inspiration, or nestling with coffee and a book.
Social Media Links:
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About the Book :
Will this Christmas…
Change their lives again?
When self-made gentleman Freddie Walton rescued penniless Philomena Nichols at Christmas eight years ago, he never imagined that he would build his empire with her. Yet whilst they have created a life together as friends, Freddie can’t let their special connection become more than that. Not when his dangerous past continues to haunt him… But what happens when Freddie’s feelings for Philomena also refuse to stay hidden?
And now it’s finally time for the
In this extract, we follow Freddie as he returns to London after a long voyage across the Atlantic, just in time for Christmas with Philomena – the Christmas which will change everything for them both…
All those years ago, he’d made building this company, this venture, his purpose. It had demanded all the focus, all the energy, he had. And somehow, it had grown beyond him. In a sense, his success had freed him to…
Do what?
‘Mind yerself, sir,’ one of the stevedores shouted as the men prepared to haul crates out with the winches.
Freddie waved, and, shaking his head at himself, took himself well out of the way of those actually working.
Those actually serving a purpose.
In fact, he took himself off the wharf entirely, and was not even spared a second glance, though some he passed tapped their caps or nodded. As he crossed the gates securing his enterprise, joined the bustle of the streets, and began to make his way home, Freddie felt glad, actually, that he didn’t have any more work to do this evening. Well, at least nothing pressing that would delay him any longer. And, shaking off the earlier melancholy thoughts, he reassured himself that the loss of old responsibilities only meant he would have time for new ones. He had money and influence now. He could find new ways to yield it. Perhaps politics.
Perhaps not.
Though it was tempting, to think he could make change that way, it didn’t quite fit.
What does?
Right this moment, Freddie couldn’t think of anything. Likely because of the toll of his journey. Though every step that brought him closer to Holly Street seemed to belie that summation that he was tired. Because with every step, he felt…lighter. Excited, happy, really. To be home. To be going home.
A smile even lifted the corners of his lips as he weaved around dockers and merchants, shoppers, and visitors. As he dodged coaches and carriages and fishmongers and women of the night. The brisk, somewhat foul air was a tonic, a balm, reminding him that he was home.
Right on time.
As promised.
A light dusting of snow began to fall, tiny little flakes that would likely not survive the night, but then, more would follow soon enough. A shiver ran through him, turning his mood and making his gut clench, and he ignored the prickles at the back of his neck, though he did glance over his shoulder.
Merely the cold, he reassured himself, spotting absolutely nothing out of the ordinary as he tightened his scarf. And he didn’t mind the cold, nor the snow for that matter; it was certainly better than London in the summer, and, well, it never ceased to remind him of his first night at Holly Street.
Of Mena.
Yes, very soon now, he would be home. And then, everything would be right again. Everything would come together, somehow, and he would be able to see, and plan for his future, with clarity, good sense, and verve.
Back where it all began…
The perfect place to begin again.
The Magic of Wor(l)ds
MJ Porter is the author of many historical novels set predominantly in Seventh to Eleventh-Century England, as well as three twentieth-century mysteries. Raised in the shadow of a building that was believed to house the bones of long-dead Kings of Mercia, meant that the author’s writing destiny was set.
Erdington, September 1944
Ellie Joyce was born and raised in Belfast. She holds an A.L.A.M. (Dip. Acting) from The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She and her husband have four children and live in Leicestershire. Young Eagle Rising is her debut novel. 
Ireland 1735. Thirteen-year-old William Baxter has a grandmother with peculiar powers – so peculiar he believes she must be a witch. Taking this secret with him, he reluctantly sails with his family to the New World and the promise of a better life.
Dick Harrison is hoogleraar geschiedenis aan de Universiteit van Lund in Zweden. Hij schrijft blogs, artikelen, romans en non-fictieboeken en maakt tv-documentaires over Europese en Zweedse geschiedenis. Zijn werk is vertaald in het Deens, Noors, Duits en Nederlands. Eerder verschenen van Harrison bij Omniboek onder andere De Dertig Jarige Oorlog en De Zwarte Dood. 
Honderd jaar na de ontdekking van het graf van Toetanchamon
Lida Dijkstra studeerde kunstgeschiedenis en archeologie in Leiden. Ze werkte in een museum, maar is inmiddels fulltime schrijfster. Ze heeft boeken voor alle leeftijden geschreven en won tweemaal een Vlag en Wimpel en eenmaal de eerste prijs van de Vlaamse Kinder- en Jeugdjury.
In stilte zwoer ze een eed:
K.T. Lee is a writer, mom, and engineer who grew up on a steady diet of books from a wide variety of genres. She’s the author of multiple books, including those in the Riverbend K-9 Series and The Calculated Series.
Elise Butler is a wildlife biologist who enjoys her stable (if somewhat predictable) job in finance at the World Wildlife Trust. However, when the veterinarian at Riverbend Animal Conservation Center goes missing, Elise offers to help the unlucky wildlife Conservation Center get back on its feet. Not only will the job in Riverbend, Indiana let her get back to her roots of working with animals, but it’s also a short drive from her sister’s workplace at Riverbend K-9 Academy, a training center for some of the FBI’s best explosive detection dogs.
Award winning author Suzie Hull lives in Northern Ireland with her family and numerous rescue cats.
The answers to her past and present lie far across the ocean…
Hello. I’m Helen Golden. I write British contemporary cozy whodunnits with a hint of humour. I live in small village in Lincolnshire in the UK with my husband, my step-daughter, her two cats, our two dogs, sometimes my step-son, and our tortoise.
Is the Wedding Between Sir Hewitt Willoughby-Franklin’s Step-Daughter and Billionaire’s Son Off?
John Reid is the creator of the DCI Steve Burt series of thriller and suspense crime fiction at its very best.
A Metropolitan Police detective about to be dismissed is given a second chance by his old boss, who is now a police commander. He’s given a new unit to run and two misfit detectives to assist him. All three know their status is temporary.
Birmingham, England, 1943.
The Magic of Wor(l)ds 