It’s Monday again and it’s time for another instalment of A-Z: My Favourite Authors & Books. I’ve really been enjoying going back through my Goodreads and rediscovering so many amazing authors & books.
Today’s letter is K and I’ve got 3 x favourite authors with surnames beginning with K: Elle Kennedy, Marian Keyes & Sophie Kinsella.
Today’s post really encapsulates why I wanted to write this series of blog posts because I was 19 and 22 when I first read Sushi for Beginners by Marian Keyes and Can You Keep A Secret? by Sophie Kinsella and seeing them again now reminds me of why I fell in love with reading contemporary women’s fiction in the first place. They haven’t dated at all and if I’m ever feeling uninspired by my TBR, ‘Sushi for Beginners’ is one of my go-to re-read. Don’t get me wrong, I still spend a lot of time making lists of books I want to read that haven’t been released yet (and they also tend to get the most attention online) but there are so many really great books already out there just waiting to be (re)discovered.
Don’t forget you can find links to all my previous A-Z: My Favourite Authors & Books posts in the Archives.
AUTHOR: Elle Kennedy (Website / Instagram)
A New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Elle Kennedy grew up in the suburbs of Toronto, Ontario, and holds a B.A. in English from York University. From an early age, she knew she wanted to be a writer, and actively began pursuing that dream when she was a teenager.
Elle writes romantic suspense and contemporary romance for various publishers. She loves strong heroines and sexy alpha heroes, and just enough heat and danger to keep things interesting! (Author Website)
Books I’ve Read by This Author: 11
BOOK: The Chase (Briar U #1) (2018)
Series: The Risk (#2), The Play (#3) & The Dare (#4)
Briar U is a spin-off from the Off-Campus Series and Summer from ‘The Chase’ is the younger sister of Dean from The Score (Off-Campus #3).
Everyone says opposites attract. And they must be right, because there’s no logical reason why I’m so drawn to Colin Fitzgerald. I don’t usually go for tattoo-covered, video-gaming, hockey-playing nerd-jocks who think I’m flighty and superficial. His narrow view of me is the first strike against him. It doesn’t help that he’s buddy-buddy with my brother.
And that his best friend has a crush on me.
And that I just moved in with them.
Oh, did I not mention we’re roommates?
I suppose it doesn’t matter. Fitzy has made it clear he’s not interested in me, even though the sparks between us are liable to burn our house down. I’m not the kind of girl who chases after a man, though, and I’m not about to start. I’ve got my hands full dealing with a new school, a sleazy professor, and an uncertain future. So if my sexy brooding roomie wises up and realizes what he’s missing?
He knows where to find me.
Tags: Brother’s Best Friend – College – Favourite Series – Sports Romance (Ice Hockey)
WHAT’S NEXT? We’re heading back to Briar with the new Campus Diaries Series beginning with The Graham Effect (31 October 2023).
AUTHOR: Marian Keyes (Website / Instagram / Twitter)
Marian Keyes is an Irish novelist and non-fiction writer, best known for her work in women’s literature. She is an Irish Book Awards winner. Over 22 million copies of her novels have been sold worldwide and her books have been translated into 32 languages. She became known worldwide for Watermelon, Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married, and This Charming Man, with themes including domestic violence and alcoholism (Goodreads).
Books I’ve Read by This Author: 16
BOOK: Sushi for Beginners (2000)
If you’ve read My Favourite Retro Chick Lit, you’ll know that my 1st ever grown-up book (i.e. not Sweet Valley) was Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married. I remember reading it on the train from Manchester to Sheffield and laughing so hard I disrupted the entire carriage (oops!). Choosing my favourite was really difficult because I really love the Walsh Family and Again, Rachel (Walsh Family #6) was one of My Favourite Books of 2022 but ‘Sushi for Beginners’ is one of My Top 5 All-Time Favourite Re-Reads.
Lisa Edwards: This Prada-wearing magazine editor thinks her life is over when her “fabulous” new job turns out to be a deportation to Dublin to launch Colleen magazine. The only saving grace is that her friends aren’t there to witness her downward spiral. Might her new boss, the dishevelled and moody Jack Devine, save her from a fate worse than hell?
Ashling Kennedy: Ashling, Colleen’s assistant editor, is an award-winning worrier, increasingly aware that something fundamental is missing from her life — apart from a boyfriend and a waistline.
Clodagh “Princess” Kelly: Ashling’s best friend, Clodagh, lives the domestic dream in a suburban castle. So why, lately, has she had the recurring urge to kiss a frog — or sleep with a frog, if truth be told?
As these three women search for love, success, and happiness, they will discover that if you let things simmer under the surface for too long, sooner or later they’ll boil over.
AUTHOR: Sophie Kinsella (Website / Instagram)
Sophie Kinsella is a writer and former financial journalist. She is the number one bestselling author of Can You Keep A Secret?, The Undomestic Goddess, Remember Me?, Twenties Girl, I’ve Got Your Number, Wedding Night, My Not So Perfect Life, Surprise Me, the hugely popular Shopaholic novels and the Young Adult novel Finding Audrey. She lives in the UK with her husband and family. She is also the author of the children’s series Mummy Fairy and Me and several bestselling novels under the name of Madeleine Wickham (Amazon).
Books I’ve Read by This Author: 4 (3 x Sophie Kinsella & 1 x Madeleine Wickham)
BOOK: Can You Keep A Secret? (2003)
Like ‘Sushi for Beginners’, ‘Can You Keep A Secret’ was also included in My Favourite Retro Chick Lit. I can’t believe it’s been 20 years since it was first published.
Meet Emma Corrigan, a young woman with a huge heart, an irrepressible spirit, and a few little secrets: Secrets from her boyfriend: I’ve always thought Connor looks a bit like Ken. As in Barbie and Ken. Secrets from her mother: I lost my virginity in the spare bedroom with Danny Nussbaum while Mum and Dad were downstairs watching Ben-Hur. Secrets she wouldn’t share with anyone in the world: I have no idea what NATO stands for. Or even what it is. Until she spills them all to a handsome stranger on a plane. At least, she thought he was a stranger.…Until Emma comes face-to-face with Jack Harper, the company’s elusive CEO, a man who knows every single humiliating detail about her…
I also really love the movie Can You Keep A Secret? (2019) starring Alexandra Daddario & Tyler Hoechlin and you can check out the trailer below:
WHAT’S NEXT? The Burnout (12 October 2023)
Louise Hall 
4 thoughts on “A-Z: My Favourite Authors & Books – K”