Portobello Book Blog

I’m very pleased to be joined by Hannah Pearl on publication day for her latest novel Mistletoe and Mayhem at the Little Shopping Mall. As she says, it starts in October and so, like us now, the book also has a big run up to the special day! It’s on my reading list for November. In a twist on the usual format, Hannah is sharing three lots of ten things she loves.

Ten programmes I’m looking forward to/ enjoying currently

Great British Bake Off

She Hulk

Ghosts

Only Connect

Strictly Come Dancing

Doctor Who

All Creatures Great and Small

Thor Love and Thunder

I’ve been really enjoying rewatching some series that I used to love that my children have just discovered including Friends & Brooklyn 99

I always love having a series that I can binge watch on bad days. At the moment I’ve just finished watching Castle, the final season of Grace and Frankie (sob), and currently I’m bingeing 911 Lone Star. In the past I’ve been through all of the Star Trek Voyager and Enterprise series, as well as Vampire Diaries, Bones and New Girl. I loved Catastrophe,  Episodes and Santa Clarita diet.

Ten writers I love

Harlan Coben

James Herriot

Lee Child

Donna Andrews

Kathy Reichs

Charlotte Hughes

Robert Crais

Faye Kellerman

Jonathan Kellerman

The lovely authors with my publishers 🙂

Ten foods I love

Chocolate

pizza

veggie burgers

chips

bagels

cakes

Mango

Strawberries

crunchy grapes (can you tell the point in this list when I realised that I ought to include something healthy!

About the Book

Countdown to Christmas with mistletoe, mayhem, meddling friends and mystery men …

There’s a saying about all work and no play – but there’s never a dull moment for Caroline working at Holly Walk Mall, especially at Christmas. When she’s not dealing with orders from Ian, ‘the manager who can’t manage’ as her friend Rachel puts it, she’s overseeing the usual late-night shopping sessions, Santa’s grotto construction and, most importantly, the sampling of many delicious festive treats at the Italian café her friends Nina and Marco own.

But when a new jewellery shop moves in and brings ‘mysterious guy with the cute bottom’ to Holly Walk, Caro isn’t yet aware just how much mayhem she’s in for in the countdown to Christmas. With strategically placed mistletoe, revealing cowboy outfits and even a bit of sleuthing, could this festive season turn out to be the liveliest yet for both Caro and her beloved Mall?

You will find buying options on the Ruby Fiction website here:
Mistletoe and Mayhem at the Little Shopping Mall

More About the Author

Hannah Pearl was born in East London. She is married with two children and now lives in Cambridge.

She has previously worked as a Criminology researcher, as a Development Worker with various charities and even pulled a few pints in her time.

In 2015 she was struck down by Labrynthitis, which left her feeling dizzy and virtually housebound. She has since been diagnosed with ME. Reading has allowed Hannah to escape from the reality of feeling ill. She read upwards of three hundred books during the first year of her illness. When her burgeoning eReader addiction grew to be too expensive, she decided to have a go at writing. In 2017 she won Simon and Schuster’s Books and the City #heatseeker short story competition, in partnership with Heat magazine, for her short story The Last Good Day.