I always think it’s such a privilege as a blogger to be in at the start of a book’s life and today it gives me enormous pleasure to welcome Lesley Eames to Linda’s Book Bag as she has a brand new book in her Wartime Bookshop series out in paperback today. Let’s find out more:

Staying in with Lesley Eames

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Lesley and thank you for agreeing to stay in with me.

Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop. It’s my latest book but I’ve also brought it because a Christmas story creates a cosy atmosphere for a wintery night in. Slippers, elasticated waists, chocolate …

Those things sound perfect to me. And I understand Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is out in paperback today so Happy Publication Day! What can we expect from an evening in with Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop?

Well, we’ll be taking a peek at the Hertfordshire village of Churchwood during World War II. I’ve brought the third book in the Wartime Bookshop series but each book can be read as a standalone. We’ll be able to see what Alice, Kate and Naomi are up to, along with a whole host of other characters, not least big, bearlike Bert and land girls, Ruby and Pearl. Here comes village gossip, Marjorie Plym, as well but quick! Let’s hide and maybe she won’t notice us.

Funny she’s called Marjorie – so’s my Mum…

We’ll also be answering questions. Like how is the bookshop thriving? How are the loved ones who are away at the war? Who is the mysterious person who’s stealing milk from doorsteps? Will Naomi’s awful husband try to cheat her out of money? And what’s that in the sky? A spitfire or – Oh, crikey!

This all sounds wonderful Lesley. How have readers been responding to Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop?

I’m thrilled by readers responses to the book so far. One reader actually wrote:

“Joyfully diving into Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop. I was swept away once again by the magic of Lesley Eames’s storytelling prowess. Having been absolutely enchanted by The Wartime Bookshop and Land Girls at the Wartime Bookshop, Eames has once again outdone herself with this third book, which, I dare say, shines even brighter than the others!”

I feel humbled, honoured and even a little tearful when I receive nice reviews!

How brilliant to have written books with that kind of response. 

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I’ve brought tissues as we might have a little cry as we settle down with the book though we should have a giggle too.

I love a book where I can have a good cry Lesley!

I’ve also brought those absolute essentials for a night in: tea and chocolate. Oh, and what’s this? A bottle of wine! Chablis. My favourite. Why not? It’s Christmas (almost).

You can keep the wine Lesley as it makes me ill, but with tea and chocolate in the offing you’re welcome back here any time!

I’ve also brought the last Christmas card my mum sent me as she died last year on her 91^st birthday.

Oh I am sorry to hear that. My Mum Marjorie is approaching 91 too!

My mum was a child in the war and was in her grandmother’s house in Birkenhead near the docks when it was bombed. She was lucky and survived without serious injury but a 14 year-old aunt was killed and another aunt had her legs crushed. I think it was hearing about my mother’s wartime experiences that got me interested in writing about the home front in WWII. Such a resilient generation!

And such an inspiration for your books Lesley. I’m delighted to have been able to spend time on publication day with you, so thank you for staying in with me. You pour me a tea and get yourself a glass of Chablis whilst I share a few more details about Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop and a smashing extract too.

Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop

Alice, Kate and Naomi want to keep the magic of Christmas alive in their village of Churchwood but a thief in the area and a new family that shuns the local community are only the first of the problems they face.

Naomi is fighting to free herself from Alexander – the man who married her for her money, then kept a secret family behind her back. But will she be able to achieve the independence she craves?

Alice‘s dreams came true when she married sweetheart Daniel. Now he has returned to the fighting, but Alice is delighted to discover that she’s carrying his child. Will the family make it through the war unscathed?

While Kate’s life on Brimbles Farm has never been easy, she now has help from land girls Pearl and Ruby. But what will it mean for them all when Kate’s brother returns from the war with terrible injuries? And why has pilot Leo, the man she loves, stopped writing?

As ever, the Wartime Bookshop is a source of community and comfort. But disaster is about to strike…

Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is the third novel in the uplifting Wartime Bookshop series, perfect for fans of Donna Douglas and Elaine Everest.

Published by Penguin today, 23rd November 2023, Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is available for purchase through the links here.

An Extract from Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop

Chapter one

Naomi

September 1941

Churchwood, Hertfordshire, England

 

There was a thief in Churchwood.

‘He’s struck again, madam,’ Suki announced.

‘What has he taken this time?’

‘The same as before. A full pint of milk. He left this behind.’ Naomi’s little maid held up a posy of green­ery bound together with ivy. Since Naomi recognized the greenery as having been taken from the trees, bushes and ivy in her own garden, the posy was hardly fair compen­sation for the theft, but perhaps the thief had nothing else to give.

‘I’ll be walking into the village later so can buy more milk then,’ Naomi said. ‘Can Cook manage without it this morning?’

‘She says so, madam.’

‘Very well. Thank you, Suki.’

The maid nodded and left the room.

Suki was a sweet girl, and Naomi would miss her if they had to part. Of course, the parting might arise from happy circumstances. Suki wasn’t courting yet, as far as Naomi knew, but one day she might leave to get mar­ried. Or she might go off to help the war effort through factory work or by joining one of the services, in which case Naomi would admire her pluck and wish her well. But there was a more depressing reason they might have to part, one that was weighing heavily on Naomi’s mind. Soon, Naomi might simply be unable to afford to keep paying her staff – Suki, Cook, Sykes the gardener and Beryl the cleaning lady. It grieved Naomi to think that losing their jobs could cause them real hardship.

Naomi might have to give up her home, too. Foxfield, the house she loved.

Restlessness brought her to her feet, and she paced the sitting room, a space she’d always preferred to the grander drawing room when she was alone or entertaining close friends. Pacing wasn’t enough to settle her, though, so she called to Basil, her faithful old bulldog. ‘Let’s go for walkies.’

Basil heaved himself up willingly. He always seemed to sense her mood and offer sympathy. They’d been companions for many years, and Naomi often thought that they were alike in appearance as well as temperament, both having heavy jowls, wide hips and short legs. Catching sight of herself in the mirror above the mantelpiece now, Naomi winced. She was forty-six but, with furrows of worry creasing her face, she was sure she looked much older.

They left by the front door but walked around to the back of the house where the gardens spread into the dis­tance, testimony to Sykes’s skill and care. There were two acres of them in total, comprising green lawns, herbaceous borders, a walkway where roses grew in beds throughout the summer, and a pergola that was festooned in wisteria in May and June. As well, there were trees. Magnificent trees – tall, noble oaks; sycamores; horse chestnuts; copper beeches; cedars; laurels . . . The approach of autumn was beginning to turn some of the leaves from green to yellow and soon the trees would be ablaze with oranges, reds and russets too.

How beautiful it all was.

****

About Lesley Eames

Lesley was born and brought up in Manchester but now lives in Hertfordshire where The Wartime Bookshop series is set. She has had a wide variety of jobs including waitress; barmaid; cinema usherette; shop assistant; solicitor; Groups and Corporate Manager for an events company and  Marketing and Fundraising Development Manager for a charity. She has always wanted to be a writer, though.

Beginning with short stories for magazines, she has now written seven novels, the latest being the Wartime Bookshop series. Along the way, she has been honoured to win awards such as the Festival of Romance New Talent Award and the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Elizabeth Goudge Cup. She is also a creative writing tutor, mentor and editor.

Lesley loves working from home because she can share the adventures of her characters while wearing slippers and drinking copious cups of tea.

For further information, visit Lesley’s website, follow her on Twitter/X @LesleyEames, or find Lesley on Facebook.