Today I am delighted to bring you an extract from Emily Benet's contemporary novel, Tipping Point which was published on 5th May. First, here's a little about the story:
The sun ... the ocean ... the farmhouse ... the scammer...
the police... the 3-legged dog?
George and Ellen have retired to sunny Mallorca. Social
butterfly Ellen is itching to make yacht-owning friends while George's heart is
set on a secluded farmhouse in the country. In fact, now that they're no longer
living busy London lives, they're beginning to realise they have very different
ideas of happiness.
Private investigator Salva specialises in cases of adultery.
That's why it's particularly embarrassing that he didn't realise his long-term
girlfriend has been cheating on him. He has no time to nurse a broken heart,
since his family are the victims of a property scam they urgently need him to
solve.
Robyn Chase is giving talks on her self-help book, No More
Toxic Relationships - 7 Years, 7 Lessons. She's finding it awkward being a
relationship guru when her own boyfriend is avoiding her.
The sun is shining in Mallorca and everything looks
beautiful. But the residents of one particular apartment block are about to
discover it all might be too good to be true.
Extract from Tipping Point with Introduction by Emily Benet
Trouble in Paradise
Ellen and George have retired to the sun-soaked island of
Mallorca. Picture coves of crystalline waters, gleaming white yachts on the
horizon and sundowners at Mediterranean chic beach clubs. At least, that's what
Ellen is daydreaming. Her husband, however, is set on a much less glamorous
lifestyle in the rural Mallorcan countryside. What do you do if you escape to
paradise only to realise your spouse has an opposing vision? This is one of a
number of conundrums the four main characters will need to solve in the novel
Tipping Point.
EXTRACT:
Ellen squinted through the spy hole, a glass of white wine
growing warm in her hand. What had all that noise been about? She didn’t know
if she should be alarmed or pleased. The apartment block had felt like a mausoleum
recently. She rather fancied some action.
Most of the flats were holiday homes belonging to people who
clearly never took a holiday. It was June, for goodness’s sake. What were they
waiting for? It couldn’t possibly get any hotter. She was having four showers a
day. Her feet and hands were swollen; her wedding ring looked like it was
circling a chipolata.
Of course, George was thrilled by the excessive peace and
quiet. He was on a mission to view a falling-down farmhouse in the middle of
nowhere. The property had popped up in his inbox one morning and renewed his
flagging enthusiasm. Estate agents had insisted there was nothing available for
less than a million. Well, it appeared there was, and George wasn’t going to
rest until he had seen it.
Who retires to a Mediterranean island to live as far away
from the sea as possible? It was true that sand was tedious, but her idea of
making fancy yacht-owning friends had kept her going while they were packing up
their home back in Kent. She’d daydreamed of sipping cocktails on the sunny
deck of a sleek vessel; the men dressed in white linen, the women in oversized
sunhats. She’d made the teachers at St Joseph’s green with envy, talking about
it in the staff room. They had organised a surprise leaving dinner for her at
the OXO Tower in London. Her presents had been a beautiful silk sarong, some
diamante flipflops and a fifty pound voucher for a new swimsuit. Ellen didn’t
see much point in getting a glamorous bikini if no one was going to see it.
That was why her plan had to work.
She turned away from the door and headed on to the balcony,
topping her glass up on the way. It was a relief not to have George around
making disapproving remarks about her drinking. It was their first month in a
foreign land. She’d been taken away from her friends, removed from all that was
familiar, and they were staying in temporary accommodation. If that wasn’t
grounds for a few extra glasses of Chardonnay, she didn’t know what was. She
felt better after the second glass: strong and optimistic and capable of
carving out a stylish and entertaining future. In her mind, plain rural became
rural chic. Her eyes narrowed as she recalled the photographs George had shown
her of the country house. For starters, she would turn those chicken coops into
Moroccan chill-out areas with twinkly lamps and gigantic cushions. Guests would
like that. They wouldn’t want a petting zoo; the only livestock she would
consider was lobster.
If that has whetted your appetite, here are the book links:
Amazon UK | Amazon US
About the Author
Emily Benet is a journalist, award-winning blogger and
author of contemporary fiction. Her books include the blog-to-book Shop Girl
Diaries, Wattpad hit Spray Painted Bananas and social media romcom
#PleaseRetweet. She lives in Mallorca with her husband and daughter and the
sunny island is the setting for her latest novels The Hen Party and Tipping Point.
She writes regularly for the luxury lifestyle magazine abcMallorca.
You can follow Emily here: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
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