Seven-Week Itch is finally up on Kindle, something very strange went on with the formatting but it seems to have been sorted out now. Much to my surprise as I’ve barely even told my nearest and dearest that it’s gone live it’s already sold a few copies. Not a lot but every little helps!
I love this cover by Theo Wayte;
the ram has a small but important role to play in the plot so fully deserves his place on the front cover, and he’s such fun too.
In many ways I’m fondest of this book of all that I’ve written because it was so easy. I started it high on the excitement of having a proper two-book contract and it simply flowed out, I was writing 2-2,500 words a day without pushing myself, I’ve never managed that sort of output again. I still like it, it’s unashamedly light and I really enjoyed editing it for this edition.
I’m come across a couple of on-line reviews that give it a thumbs down because it’s about ‘big country houses’ which is strange, as it isn’t. Susie, my heroine, is living in a tiny cottage and while it’s true that her wayward friend has married someone with a big house the story isn’t about the house. I can only presume it’s Owl Criticism (a brilliant idea coined by Charles Baxter here) which goes, ‘There’s an owl in the book and I don’t like owls…’
Oh well, I trust I don’t have too many potential readers who suffer from country-house phobia, sadly there isn’t a specific word for it though a phobia about houses is the splendid oikophobia, so perhaps the mansion version could be called ‘big-oikophobia’?
Victoria Corby 