Last week, I attended a Waterstones run event: an evening with Giovanna Fletcher, Lindsey Kelk and Paige Toon. This event took place at St. James’s Church, Piccadilly, London.
My friend and I spent the afternoon exploring our favourite healthy food spots in central London and dipping in and out of some shops along the way as the talk was in the evening.
Giovanna Fletcher, Lindsey Kelk and Paige Toon joined together to discuss their latest novels. I really feel that they are a wonderful trio of bestselling authors whose books are full of warmth, laughter and romance. I love reading books that tackle reoccurring society issues and events, but ones that do so in lighthearted and uplifting way. I really enjoy going on the journey with the characters and discovering where they end up and what people they meet along the way.
Giovanna Fletcher is an author, actress, presenter, and vlogger. I have read all of her previous books, however I must say that her latest novel, Some Kind of Wonderful, is in my opinion, her funniest, freshest and best yet. I really got a sense of Giovanna’s wit and humour throughout the narrative and the fun read comes with a large dose of female empowerment. The book asks the question: when the love of your life says you’re not The One, who are you? Giovanna has been one of my favourite authors for quite some time now. I first fell in love with her novels after reading her book, ‘Billy and Me’, which was one recommended by the Zoella Book Club. The novel is still one of my favourites; I really connected with the characters. I also love Tom and Giovanna’s YouTube videos.
Lindsey Kelk is the author that I have most recently discovered. I am yet to get my hands on a copy of her latest novel, One in a Million, however this is on my list to read next. I have heard that it is a hilarious story of a challenge to make a random stranger Instagram famous in just 30 days: a My Fair Lady for the 21st Century. After the talk, I now want to check out her bestselling I Heart series, “Full of Heart,” which sits amongst her fourteen published books.
I have also read all of bestselling author, Paige Toon’s books. I’ve been trying to think about which of her novels is my favourite, however I cannot pick out one, I genuinely loved all of them, even the young adult narrative following Jessie Jefferson. Paige used to be the Reviews Editor at Heat Magazine, which I didn’t realise before the talk. Her latest novel, Five Years from Now, is a tender, heartbreaking and magical read in my opinion. It is filled with warmth and poignancy, exploring what happens when you meet the right person at the wrong time.
Although the space was quite large, the talk still felt very personal and intimate. The panel format was very laid back; I really thought it was like watching a podcast live, listening to three inspirational and talented women talk about all things books, future projects, cats, Love Island, favourite characters and Paige’s apparently very attractive husband! They all seemed very relaxed and comfortable and were very funny. It was equally lovely to watch them converse between themselves; they appear to have such a fun and tight relationship.
The talk lasted for around 40 minutes, meaning there was time at the end for audience questions. Although I didn’t ask anything myself, I really felt involved in the discussion and connected to everyone in the room. Everyone was there for the same reason, their love of books, reading and these authors; it was just such a warming and safe environment to be in. It really did feel like we were all just hanging out together.
After this, we were all invited to queue up to get our books signed by all three authors. Most of my books from the women are on my kindle so I just took a physical copy of Giovanna’s book, Dream A Little Dream, for her to sign. They were all so friendly and welcoming, giving each one of us a little of their time. I also asked Giovanna for a photo so I could remember the wonderful event.
This was my first talk and book signing so I honestly was a bit apprehensive about what to expect, however I must say I loved it and will definitely be going to more in the future. It was a truly special evening filled with smiles and laugher. It is just a shame that events like these rarely occur near where I live.
Rachel
rachelfoxweb.wordpress.com 