Flora's Lot

Katie Fforde simply cannot write and publish fast enough. I have enjoyed every one of her books. The only difficulty is that they are sometimes published under different titles in the US and the UK. As a result, I have a couple of duplicates. Oh well, I'll simply pass them on the a lucky friend to enjoy.

If you are a Katie-holic like I am, you are going to eat this book up with a spoon. Like all her books, Bidding for Love is a sugary concoction, light on substance, heavy on delicious guilt. Because honestly, all her books are pretty much alike, and honestly, they say little--but in such a captivating, wonderful, can't-put-it-down way! And this one is truly one of her best, I don't know why, because all the characters in her books characters are charming, and all her plots are equally lovely--but this one has KITTENS in it! We meet Flora on page one. A beautiful young trendy Londoner with a closet full of designer clothes and a social life full of the best clubs and restaurants, she has sublet her flat and come to a sleepy countryside village to check out a business she has inherited from an uncle. Stanza and Stanza is a struggling auction house, and Flora now has more than 50% ownership. The other owner is her unbearably stuffy distant cousin Charles (Fforde often has people named Charles in her books!), who loathes Flora on sight, and ditto. But Flora is more than she seems. And she is determined to learn the business, take an active hand in it no matter what Charles (and his horrible fiancee Annabelle) has to say--and to make sure that her pregnant cat Imelda (because she loves shoes!) has her kittens in peace. All of this fluff comes together for a perfectly satisfying ending, and of course it is happy, this is Katie Fforde! A perfect summer read. Simply lovely.

Katie Fforde writes lighthearted and fun romances, often with a small village theme or some other 'hook' to add a bit of interest. Flora's Lot is about Flora Stanza, a Londoner through and through, who inherits the controlling share of an auction house business in the west country and decides to spend a couple of months working there to see how it all works. Of course she's a decidedly spare part, knows nothing about antiques or auctions and discovers that the other director, her sort-of cousin Charles, is firmly wrapped round the thumb of the horsy Arabella, to whom he is engaged. Neither Charles nor Arabella want Flora - they want her to sell a few of her shares to Arabella and trot back to London. Flora, evidently a recalcitrant young woman, decides to stay and help out around the office as a kind of office junior, something for which she is apparently qualified. And despite her cousin and his fiancée wanting her to leave, they provide her with both accommodation (a holiday cottage in the middle of a wood in the middle of nowhere) and a land rover to use when her car is damaged. A few more people join in the plot - Henry, a mysterious local handsome man she keeps bumping into; William who sleeps on the holiday cottage's couch occasionally; some of the staff of the auction house and the choir that Flora joins - and her cat Imelda's kittens who are born in her shoe cupboard. What was interesting about reading this book is that it felt very familiar... And I soon realised why. If any of you have read Georgette Heyer's "The Grand Sophy" you will find that this is a modern take on that story. The hero even has the same name! The events aren't exactly the same, of course, but the overall plot is very like The Grand Sophy. I think this is probably something Katie Fforde recognised as at one point she mentions, in a scene at the auction house, that someone had a whole series of first edition Georgette Heyer novels, perhaps a little nod and wink to those of us who spotted the similarities. Flora's Lot is of course a modern story - sex doesn't wait until marriage, people are seen wandering around in states of semi nudity, people get drunk and make improper advances. But it's a fun story with likeable characters, including the cat, and a satisfying, if slightly facile, resolution. Read and enjoy!

found it interesting one reviewer's horror at the thought of 'kissing cousins'.There are some countries that it is not considered incest-and they are civilised countries as well!Haven't yet read the book .But it's sure to be good.Katie fforde writes well.If you like this one, try Paradise Fields

Flora Stanza has inherited a major share in the family antiques business and is determined to prove that she is not just a pretty face and to contribute her share in making the business more profitable. She sub lets her London flat and settles into a tiny cottage in the country town where her distant cousin, Charles Stanza is presently running the antiques auction house with the aid of his horsey, dominating fiancee, Annabella. They, naturally, resent her being there, and do everything to convince her to sell her shares to them and move back to London. Flora takes to the trade at once and is determined to put up with any inconvenience to prove herself. There are lots of references to the TV shows, Antiques Roadshow and Bargain Hunt and to the real grinding slog of house clearing, including the disgusting filth of some of the premises that auctioneering firms have to endure. It's a chick lit book, light and amusing...lovely for an in-between read and I knew that I loved the author when I read her bio at the beginning of the book...."The authors' hobbies are housework and ironing, but, unfortunately, she doesn't have much time for either as she feels it her duty to keep a close eye on the afternoon chat shows!"