More on chocolate …

 

Chocolate Box

I’m indebted to my mate Jan Jones for this picture of something new to me in chocolate – and I didn’t think there were many!

This is a dessert called The Chocolate Box from the Galleria Restaurant by the river in Cambridge. The outer casing is a light sponge and the  inside is filled with chocolate mousse and caramel. I had to give the blob of cream away, as cream is yuk, to me. But the rest was just sublime …

Choc Lit, who are publishing STARTING OVER on November 30th, ask for all their heroes to be likened to chocolate. Miles Rattenbury is a Lion Bar because he’s spiky and roars a bit. Now I’m working ALL THAT MULLARKEY and finding myself wondering what kind of chocolate I’ll choose for Justin. Can’t, offhand, think of chocolate that equates to a mercurial temperament that’s usually set to ‘laughing’ but does take dives in the other direction.

Do feel free to leave suggestions!

 

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Lunch in Soho

Yesterday, Midas Books put on a great lunch in Soho House for journalists from women’s monthly magazines to launch the anthology written by members of the Romantic Novelists’ Association to celebrate the Association’s fiftieth anniversary, LOVES ME, LOVES ME NOT. As you can see, it’s a handsome volume.

And I might be biased but I think it contains some fabulous stories – 44 of them, in fact.

It was a great lunch – any lunch featuring chocolate brownies has my vote – and terrific company. I sat between Cath Burke, the editor at Mira who has nursed the project through with unflappable enthusiasm, and Fanny Blake from Woman and Home magazine and across the table from Victoria Gallagher, book news editor of The Bookseller.

Katie Fforde, the RNA’s chairman, Adele Parks and Judy Astley represented the contributors to LOVES ME, LOVES ME NOT. A few of us went on to celebrate with a further glass of wine – blagging our way into a part of the club that is for members only – and rounded the day off as we British must, with a pot of tea.

No more brownies, though. Curses.

Judy Astley, Katie Fforde and Adele Parks

Katie's speech

Cheers, Judy!