US EVENT with Elin Hilderbrand on 29 October

On 29 October at 6pm ET, I’ll be discussing my new book, LOVE YOUR LIFE, with the wonderful Elin Hilderbrand, in partnership with Brookline Booksmith!

If you would like to join in and watch online, follow this link to buy a ticket!

Every ticket comes with a copy of Love Your Life*. You will receive the event link via email on the day of the event.

*SHIPPING – Have your book shipped via USPS priority mail. Shipping is only available in the United States.

Win a signed Christmas Shopaholic paperback

Christmas Shopaholic comes out in paperback this week, which is really super exciting. And normally I’d be out and about, and I’d be seeing readers. And I just realized that this is a great big hole for me this year.

So I thought, well, you know what? I will just pretend. I’ll put up a table, I’ll get some books, I’ll get my Sharpie, and I’ll pretend we’re having a signing.

So here I am, signing a book for all of you. And for your chance to win one of ten copies, dedicated to yourself or to a loved one, simply complete the form below and if you are one of the ten, I’ll be posting you a copy.

So it is a sort of signing. It’s just that you’re not here. I don’t know who you are yet. but I hope you love the book.

Sophie xxx

ENTER HERE

(UK) WIN a Love Your Life early reading copy

I was absolutely thrilled to receive my advance proof copies of Love Your Life through the post recently. Just look at that gold foil and the bright pink inside cover pages! And now my UK publishers are offering three of my readers the chance to receive an early copy to read for themselves!

For your chance to win simply fill out the form below before midnight on Sunday 30th August. Good Luck!

To find out more about Love Your Life click here.

Pre-order from Waterstones (signed copies available)

Pre-order from Amazon.co.uk

(UK) WIN a Dragonfly Necklace

This month in the UK, Twenties Girl is just 99p in ebook. So my UK publishers are running a competition to win this beautiful dragonfly necklace!

A dragonfly necklace has a starring role in the book and this one is extra-special because it’s designed by my wonderfully talented friend Claudia Bradby. The necklace is made using freshwater pearls and sterling silver; the dragonfly is made by hand in Thailand.

Claudia designs jewellery for strong, adventurous women who live life to the full. Just like Lara’s great aunt Sadie in Twenties Girl! Find out more about her jewellery on her website, claudiabradby.com

Here’s a photo of me and Claudia modelling the necklace back when Twenties Girl was first published. Some of my eagle-eyed readers will notice that I was expecting a baby at the time!

For your chance to win, just complete the form below.

And to find out more about the book and get the 99p offer, click here!

Extract: Mummy Fairy: Mermaid Magic

In Mermaid Magic, my fourth Mummy Fairy book (the series is called Fairy Mom in the US and Canada), Mummy Fairy and Ella decorate the kitchen with magic colouring pencils, catch a robber on Ella’s school trip – and swim with real mermaids!

Find out more about the book by clicking the image below.

Mummy Fairy and Me: Mermaid Magic

Lockdown Diary Part 2: Shopdown

Back by popular demand! I hope everyone is OK, sending out lots of love from me and from Becky….xxx

Becky’s Lockdown Diary Part 2: Shopdown

8 am OK. Don’t panic. Another day of lockdown. No problem. Bring it on!

8.15 am Luke says, ‘Are you OK?’ and I say bravely ‘Of course I am!’ Then a moment later I whimper, ‘No! I’m not! I’m so rubbish at this!’

8.20 am Luke tells me yet again it wasn’t my fault that the supermarket ran out of Easter eggs. And that the chocolate delivery company made a ‘substitution’ to my Easter egg order. And that I didn’t check it in time.

9 am Anyway. It’s all fine. Time for half an hour of exercise with Joe Wicks. No-one can feel down when they’re watching Joe Wicks!

9.10 am Suze texts: ‘Bex! Only just got your message! Of course I have spare Easter eggs, but too late now? What happened?’

9.15 am Text Suze: ‘Oh all fine, no worries!!’

9.30 am I’m not admitting I didn’t realise until too late that instead of ‘Kitkat’ and ‘Malteser’ eggs, the chocolate company sent two ‘Adult’ eggs with erotic pictures piped in white chocolate icing. (I mean, they looked fine once I’d hastily scraped them a bit. I told Minnie it was a drawing of an Easter chick.)

10 am I’m secretly in love with Joe Wicks. The way he bravely exercises with a broken arm and shouts out to all the children and does ‘spot the difference’ in the background of his exercise videos. It’s genius!

10.30 am Change from exercise outfit into gorgeous flowing leopard-print skirt and clashing tiger-print cardigan. Even though it’s lockdown and there’s no-one to see, I can still be stylish. Exactly. (Might text a photo of my outfit to Suze later).

11 am Ooh! Have a great idea and hurry into Luke’s office to tell him. Suggest he could do ‘spot the difference’ in his Teams meetings. He could add a vase or a book and everyone has to spot it! Luke says, ‘Maybe’ in a discouraging voice. Feel he isn’t entering into the SPIRIT of lockdown. Then he looks up, sees my outfit and adds, ‘Oh hi, Carole Baskin.’

11.30 am I do NOT look like Carole Baskin!! (I’ve changed my cardigan though.)

12 noon Gail from school WhatsApps: ‘Everyone’s going to record a line of “I wandered lonely as a cloud” and they’ll all join together to make one big poem!’

12.10 pm You see? That’s the spirit of lockdown. Collaboration. Connecting. Being purposeful. One big lockdown family.

12.20 pm As I’m trying to work out how to record a line of poetry on my phone, Mary from Pilates texts: ‘Everyone’s got to take a picture of their knees and send it in to make a Lockdown Knee Collage!’

12.30 pm Take a photo of my knees.

12.31 pm No. I’m not sending that photo anywhere.

2.00 pm Minnie says, ‘What can I do now?’ and I say ‘Colour in,’ automatically.

2.15 pm Oh God. Minnie’s coloured in all the colouring-in books. Even the freebie from the petrol station.

2.20 pm What do I do now? What?? This is a genuine emergency.

2.25 pm Colouring-in books are definitely an essential, I don’t care what anyone says.

2.30 pm Mum calls me on zoom: ‘Becky, love! Be careful! I just heard from Sheila across the road that you’re not allowed to look out of the window! If you do, a police drone comes and buzzes in your face!’

2.40 pm That can’t be true.

2.41 pm Shall I just Google it?

2.45 pm Googling ‘police drone window’ when I get a WhatsApp from Janice: ‘I’ve just read that you can cure the virus with maple syrup!’ What??? Noooo.

3 pm Composing reply to Janice when Jess sends a text. It’s a recipe for ‘Vegetable stew’ using carrot peelings, potato peelings and ‘old lettuce’.

3.05 pm Send her back a ‘Yummy!’ emoji.

3.10 pm Note to self: NEVER zoom with Jess in the kitchen where she may see fishfinger packets/emergency chocolate/bottle of Baileys.

3.30 pm Put on TV for Minnie and log onto children’s stationery supplies website. It’s like wandering through a sad, empty desert with only the odd poignant flower, valiantly blooming. ‘Out of stock’. ‘Out of stock’. ‘Out of stock’. The only thing in stock is glitter.

4 pm Order a bumper pack of glitter. I’ll just have to hide it from Jess.

4.15 pm Pop onto Net a Porter, because it would be rude not to while I’m here. But the ‘distribution center is temporarily closed’.

5 pm Is there ANYWHERE still left to shop?

5.30 pm Ooh! I found a hair accessories site!  Hair accessories are definitely essentials, because how are we all supposed to look after our hair without any hairdressers? Exactly. A beaded hairband is both essential and on-trend.

5.35 pm Oh. Delivery expected in three months’ time.

5.40 pm Luke comes by and I say plaintively, ‘Luke, when do you think shopdown will end?’ He just looks at me and says, ‘“Shopdown” or “Lockdown”?’ Oops. That’s what I meant.

6 pm WhatsApp from Suze: ‘Bex! I’m in the most brilliant Lockdown Crochet Challenge, you just have to crochet a London landmark, do you want to join in?’

6.10 pm Crochet a London landmark??

6.30 pm No. I don’t want to do that. I want a glass of Baileys and some Easter egg. And I’ve changed my mind about being ‘connected’ and ‘purposeful’. Sod that. Can’t my Lockdown Challenge be just: getting through Lockdown?

Becky’s Lockdown Diary

Hello everyone. I’m constantly thinking of all my readers in these strange and uncertain times and it’s so lovely to hear from you. A few of you have posted wondering, ‘What would Becky do?’ So here’s the answer…

With lots of love to you all

See you again soon

Sophie xxx

Becky’s Lockdown Diary

8 am OK. Don’t panic.

8.15 am Another day of lockdown. We can do this!!

8.30 am The trick is to find meaningful tasks to fill the day. I will… er… clear out the garage. Yes. Genius idea.

9 am Sort out garage with Minnie. Luke comes to lend a hand.

9.30 am Luke can’t believe how much shampoo we have. (Nor can I, I’d forgotten about the Tresemme.) Explain defensively, ‘I was not stockpiling, I was SHOPPING. It was in the Boots 3 for 2.’

10 am Exercise hour! Go up and down street with Minnie, leaving care packages of essentials at safe distance outside vulnerable neighbours’ houses. Each care package of essentials includes: L’Oreal moisturiser, shampoo, frozen smoked salmon, ‘#sprygge’ keyring.

11 am Arrive home. Oh my God, a delivery man is at our gate with a cardboard box. Back away, flustered. How much is two metres, again? Wave at him gingerly. Thank him fervently for his service.

11.10 am Notice Dr Patterson who lives across the street, leaving his house. Summon Minnie to the window and applaud him vigorously. Minnie blows her recorder. We both cheer and yell. Healthcare workers are our heroes. Feel quite tearful as he gets into his car.

11.30 am Text from Dr Patterson: I do appreciate your encouragement, Becky, but I find the daily applause from you and Minnie quite overwhelming. Perhaps you could stick to once a week like the rest of the country? With many thanks anyway. Stay well. John Patterson.

12 noon Text from Jess: do I want to join her in a’ plank challenge’? Text back regretfully: Sorry Jess, that sounds so great! But I’ve already taken my exercise hour.

12.10 pm Jess texts again: But you can do the plank inside, Becky.

12.15 pm I’ll pretend I never got that text.

12.20 pm Counsel Suze on phone, who is weeping about having to sacrifice her favourite pig, Ethel, ‘to the cause’. Tell her we haven’t quite got to that.

1 pm Tell Mum on phone: No, wine and cheese parties aren’t allowed if they’re ‘outside with plenty of fresh air’.

2 pm Suze suggests a Houseparty session where ‘all the children show off their craft projects’. Oh God. Why do all roads lead to craft projects??

2.30 pm Give Minnie some paper and glue and tell her to ‘express herself’.

3 pm Minnie runs into Luke’s office where he is on a Teams conference call and announces ‘I saw my daddy do a pee-pee!’ Six of Luke’s colleagues start giggling on screen.

3.10 pm Tell Minnie, that is not what I meant by ‘express yourself.’

4 pm Is it Minnie’s bedtime yet?

4.30 pm Google Is TV educational?

6 pm ‘Zoom and sherry’ call with Mum and Janice. Janice has started You Tube ‘lockdown make-up tutorials’. She says she wants to be an influencer and is going to sing ‘Songs from the Shows’ as she demonstrates her make-up, with Martin on tambourine.

6.30 pm Tell Mum: No, bridge parties aren’t allowed if they’re ‘outside with plenty of fresh air’.

7 pm Luke has finished work. I can’t offer him a gin and tonic, because we’ve run out. Nor do we have any wine.

7.15 pm Offer Luke a brilliant new cocktail I’ve invented, the ‘Sambuca and elderflower.’ He declines politely.

8 pm Minnie is in bed. Text from Tarquin: URGENT! Unmissable opportunity to watch Tristan und Isolde from The Met! Tonight!

8.30 pm Tell Luke about ‘unmissable’ opportunity to watch Wagner opera. We decide it is actually ‘missable’. Suze has told me about something called Tiger King.

10.30 pm It’s brilliant!!! I want to binge-watch the entire thing! Now! Ask Luke if he will bunk off work tomorrow. He just looks at me.

11 pm Well, here we are. Another day done. It’s a strange, weird, anxious time, but I’m just going to try to stay positive. Yes. And active. Exactly. Whether that’s through supporting my neighbours or improvising with limited stocks or staying in touch with loved ones and supporting their endeavours. Which reminds me, I should ‘like’ Janice’s make-up page.

11.10 pm Open my laptop just before bed and find Janice’s You Tube Page. Oh my God. She’s singing ‘A million dreams’ in a warbling voice whilst demonstrating blusher on herself. And everyone loves her!!!

UK Easter Egg competition

In uncertain times like these, there’s one thing you can always rely on – chocolate!

Easter is fast approaching and to mark it my publishers are running a UK competition to win a copy of I Owe You One and a Luxury Easter Egg from Hotel Chocolat! Who doesn’t like free books and chocolate?

Fill in the form below to enter. Good luck!

(The competition is open to UK residents only. You have until 11.59pm (GMT) on Monday 6^th April to enter)

Make Volcano Treats inspired by Mummy Fairy and Me!

If you’re looking for something fun to do with the children, why not make these easy-peasy volcano treats?

In Mummy Fairy and Me: Mermaid Magic, Ella makes a crafty volcano.

Let’s try making volcanoes that you can eat (with the help of a grown up)!

Then, you can share them to spread the lava.

Remember to wash your hands before touching any of the food or equipment!

Needaridoo!

Make sure you have the following ingredients (if anyone who will be eating these treats is vegan, you can find different options for them in the list)!

1. 1. • Rice pop cereal (90g)
      • Red, orange and yellow food colouring
      • 1 bar of milk chocolate (90g) Vegan? There are many vegan chocolate bars, like the one from Moo Free.
      • Half a bar of white chocolate (45g)
      • Butter (50g) Vegan? Try almond butter.

Instructionsaridoo!

1. Break your bar of milk chocolate into lots of pieces
2. Put the butter and pieces of chocolate into a heat-proof bowl (this is important as, otherwise, the bowl may crack!)
3. Ask a grown up to fill a pot with water, place it on the lit stove, and put your bowl of chocolate pieces on the pot
4. Carefully stir the chocolate pieces and butter until everything is melted and smelling delicious (if you stop stirring, the chocolate could become crusty)!
5. Ask a grown up to take the (very hot) bowl of melted chocolate off the pot (and remember to turn the stove off)
6. You can now add all the rice pop cereal and stir it together!
7. Once it’s all mixed, get a big plate or tray so that you can start putting your volcanoes together
8. Using your hands, pick up chunks of chocolatey cereal and mould it into a cone shape before placing it on the flat surface (try placing them down so they make the shape of a heart)!
9. Once you’ve used up all your mix, put the cones into the fridge (they need to cool down so that you can start decorating your volcanoes)!

Cleanaridoo!

This is a great time to help clean up any dishes you’ve used to make room for decorating (and to make sure the area is nice and tidy)!

Decorataridoo!

1. Break the white chocolate into lots of pieces
2. Ask a grown up to help you melt the pieces of white chocolate just like you did with the milk chocolate and, when it’s melted, pour it into three small bowls
3. Drip one food colouring each into each of the bowls while stirring (the food colouring is very strong so drip it little by little)!
4. After stirring the food colouring and white chocolate together to make three different coloured pastes, take your cones out of the fridge
5. Carefully drip some red chocolate onto the cones and let it harden
6. Do the same with the orange chocolate then the yellow chocolate, giving it time to harden each time
7. It’s time to have a blast with your mini volcanoes!

Read about Ella Brooks’ and Mummy Fairy’s adventure with Ella’s own volcano in Mummy Fairy and Me: Mermaid Magic!