Welcome back to the blog tour to celebrate the launch of Cristina Hodgson's second Chantelle Rose novel, Valentina. Today, I have a great author post by Cristina to share with you, all about how to unwind on holiday, which I'm sure will strike a note with you. There is also an International Giveaway to win - a signed copy of Simply Anna. Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post.
Before we hear from Cristina, here's a little about the book:
Chantelle Rose is back. She has lived a fairytale. But will
she ever get her Happy Ever After?
To find true happiness, she must discover who Robbie and
Lionel really are. Their past holds the key to her future.
Her quest follows a trail that takes her to the depths of
the Pampas lands of Argentina.
There, the beautiful Valentina awaits – and holds the key.
But who is Valentina? What is the mystery surrounding her?
And why is she so important to both Robbie and Lionel?
Will Chantelle discover the truth? And, more importantly,
will she discover her destiny and the fidelity in her own heart?
Welcome to Books, Life and Everything, Cristina- over to you!
How to unwind on holiday...?
Now this is a good question! Any tips would be greatly
appreciated because I've just been on holiday and this has been my attempt at
de-stressing...
Day 1:
I love going for an early morning run, I know this might
sound a bit crazy, especially when you're on holiday, a lie in would probably
be the most popular option, and in hindsight, probably the wisest. But I find
waking up early and stepping outside with the early morning breeze caressing my
face almost therapeutic. It's just me and the open country lanes. As I run, the
early sun's rays gently kiss my skin, I feel free and my legs are light on the
tracks. I leave my phone and everything else that ties me to social media and
modern technology behind. It's just me and mother nature. No music blaring into
my eardrums, just the rustle of the leaves as the soft breeze gently shakes
them awake. I breathe in deeply, my blood now pulsing through my veins and I
feel peace.
It lasts for about ten minutes as I'm suddenly aware that
there is a wild horse galloping towards me, kicking up a cloud of dust and I
wonder if I can reach the nearest tree first and if I'd still have enough
energy in me to climb it. But of course I remind myself, trying to keep calm,
that it's bulls that charge, not horses. Or is it?
As the horse nears, I'm revealed to notice that I actually
know the horse and that it belongs to a friend of mine. It had obviously
escaped from it's coral somehow and was probably more nervous than I was, and I
was, at that point, on the verge of hyperventilating and passing out from the shock
of the sudden ambush.
I reach out my hand to calm the horse, who nervously snorts
through it's nostrils, calming as it takes in my familiar scent. I reach for my
phone, which of course I don't have with me and realise that I'm going to have
to make my way home as fast as possible to phone my friend to tell him his
horse has escaped and is a dangerous 1 mile away from the main highway. Horsey
thinks this is a great idea and decides to follow me, so I try to shoo it away
whilst at the same time try to keep it calm. Making for a very confusing
situation and this is just from my point of view.
I make it home almost setting a new PB for the mile on the
way and hunt for my phone, which of course, in my fluster, I can't find.
Finally I see in poking under a pile of clothes and frantically dial my
friend's number. Of course I'm the only nutter who is wide awake at the crack
of dawn on a Sunday morning, so it's a groggy voice that answers the phone and
it's a while before a comprehensive conversation takes place, me because I'm
still struggling to catch my breath after my two mile sprint and my mate
because he's probably been out all night and obviously thinks the whole
incident forms part of some weird dream.
Once I've confirmed that my friend has properly woken and is
aware of the danger his horse is in, I sprint back to where I'd left the horse,
who neighs loudly on seeing me and we wait for the owner to turn up.
I then walk back home, totally shattered. Promising myself a
lie in the following morning.
Day 2:
Nothing could be more relaxing than going to spend a day at
the seaside with the family. I've got my parasol packed in the car boot. Picnic
lunch. I've just bought two brand new Lilos to have a splash around on and a
nice new sun hat. My kindle is in my bag and the day stretches before me. When
I arrive at the beach, I realise that one of the brand new Lilos has a hole in
it and it's of no good. It flops to the floor, deflated and broken. One less
thing to carry to the beach I optimistically tell my children, who look at me
with huge unbelieving eyes, obviously not as convinced as I am.
I fight my way through the mob of people to get to the very
front of the beach, where the soft golden sand meets the turquoise sea. "Perfect" I say as I set up my florescent pink parasol and spread my
towels out. What I don't count on is on the turn of tide, so that by mid
afternoon I'm struggling to rescue my drowning beach towel, sun chair and
flip-flops. And what I certainly don't count on is for hubby to come down with
a stinking headache, annulling him for the rest of the day whilst I battle it
out single handedly with the tide, floating flip flops and soaking towel. Flip
flops rescued, I then spend the rest of the afternoon Googling and searching
for the nearest pharmacy to go buy some ibuprofen for hubby. But the time I get
back to the beach front, I've already taking half the box of painkillers to
calm myself down.
Day 3.
To end a stress-free holiday, nothing beats going with the
whole family and some friends to an attraction park. The list of petrifying
funfair rides is endless, and of course my kids think that all of them are
jolly good fun. Not quite so fun when an adult needs to accompany them on all
the rides and that adult in ME! Frankly, I would have preferred battling it out
with the waves and tide again, had it been a choice. I don't think my heart
beat went under 150 bpm all day! It was more stressful that marathon running
and you already know what obstacles I come across on my runs.
So at the end of the day, perhaps if you're looking for an
action packed adventure holiday, the above could actually be for you. In the
meantime I'll go back to relaxing writing at my desk...
Thanks, Cristina- it sounds like you need a holiday after all that...
About the Author
Cristina Hodgson, mother of two, born in Wimbledon, London, currently lives in southern Spain. Cristina had a long career in sport, reaching national and international level and still actively participates in Triathlon races and enjoys outdoor activities. In her spare time she also enjoys reading and writing. She won a sports scholarship to Boston College. After a period in Boston, she returned to the UK and graduated from Loughborough University with a degree in PE and Sports Science.
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Simply Anna ( free short story on Amazon) - Amazon UK
You can read my review of A Little of Chantelle Rose here and my interview with author Cristina Hodgson here. You can read my review of Valentina, here.
for a copy of the book and a place on the tour.
Giveaway (International)
To win a signed copy of Simply Anna by Cristina Hodgson, follow the link below and good luck.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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