Bonjour Fiction Fans! More short fiction for your daily coffee break. Enjoy!

Value For Money – Daily Della #09

Third in a series of Twist-in-the-Tale Daily Dellas – five short stories, each with an unexpected ending.

Value For Money; Sarah’s next-door neighbour, Nick, is a dab hand at DIY. Unfortunately, her boyfriend, Danny isn’t, but that doesn’t stop him trying to outdo Nick. Sarah is desperate to prevent Danny’s DIY disasters, although it takes her a while to come up with the perfect solution.

The Best Laid Plans; Katie doesn’t plan on spending her 25th wedding anniversary in bed – well, not in a hospital bed anyway. But then perhaps she shouldn’t be surprised as she and Paul don’t have a very good track record when it comes to anniversaries. But Paul has a plan. Can he carry it out before fate intervenes?

The Forgery; Jason is thrilled when Grace Harding brings a valuable Stubbs Painting into his antique shop, offering it for sale. He tells the old lady it’s not worth that much – as it’s an excellent forgery – although it does still have some value. Jason isn’t the only one who’s not being completely honest, but who will get the better of who?

Horse Sense; Sarah loves horses, but hasn’t wanted anything to do with them since she broke up with her farrier boyfriend, Micky. The associations are just too painful. But then her sister, Carol, asks her if she’ll help her out with her horse and she grudgingly agrees. Can she learn to move on?

The Homing Instinct; Tara, who owns an animal sanctuary, thinks Ben Anderson is the perfect owner for one of her dogs. But Albert, who works for Tara, has other ideas. So what exactly is going on that Tara doesn’t know about? And should she be as worried as Albert is?

Only £1.53 (or local equivalent)
Read the first few pages for free
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See all the books in the Daily Della series here

This week’s Daily Della is ready for your downloading pleasure!

One Step Ahead – Daily Della #08

Second in a series of Twist-in-the-Tale Daily Dellas – five short stories, each with an unexpected ending.

One Step Ahead; Maggie isn’t best pleased when her son tells her she’ll no longer fit into a size 12 dress, especially when he puts his money where his mouth is. “I bet you a fiver you won’t buy anything in a size 12 when you go shopping for the dinner dance, Mum.” Maggie’s confident she’ll prove him wrong when she sets out. Didn’t she read somewhere recently that dress sizes have gone up in line with British women getting larger? But who will win the bet and who will get the last laugh?

Hearing Voices; When Emma joins Talking Dates, she finds herself conjuring up images of what her dates will look like by how they sound. Surely it figures that a man with a gorgeous voice will be – well – gorgeous. But Emma is in for one or two surprises.

Mother Love; Family weddings are difficult at the best of times, and when the bride’s parents have both married someone else they are even more complicated. But it should be possible to put aside your doubts and jealousies for just one day, shouldn’t it?

My Gran; Sherry loves going to her gran’s for lunch on Fridays, even though sometimes it’s a huge effort. Like today – when she’d rather be chilling out at home. On the other hand they’ve made many a memory in her gran’s house, even though things have never been quite what they seem.

Car Trouble; Agreeing to car share with her teenage son was never going to be a wise move, especially when Dianne remembers her own teenage car sharing experiences. Things went badly wrong back then and it looks like history is going to repeat itself. It doesn’t help that her mother can’t wait to say, I told you so.

Only £1.53 (or local equivalent)
Read the first few pages for free.
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

See all the books in the Daily Della series here

If you’re a regular visitor to the blog (you can subscribe for free to this blog using the yellow ‘RSS’ heart icon over on the right and have new posts delivered to you via email) you’ll know all about my short story e-book anthology ‘Daily Della’.

Until now I’ve been choosing stories from my extensive collection of short romantic fiction, but from today, and for the next four weeks, each edition of Daily Della will feature five twist in the tales – five stories, each with an unexpected ending! Well, they were unexpected to me so hopefully they will be to you 🙂

Educating Nita – Daily Della #07

In Educating Nita, Lynn and Ian are beginning to get exasperated. Nita cannot decide which college course is best for her – Accountancy or Art? She keeps changing her mind. AlthoughLynn is a little more sympathetic than Ian because she remembers how hard it was to choose when she did the same thing. Not to mention how unhelpful her parents were. Surely the most important thing is that Nita is happy. Isn’t it?

Seeing Red; Gordon cannot understand why he is failing to get his features published – his writing class tell him they are spot on. Neither can he understand why Chloe Bennett, editor of Prime of Your Life, seems to enjoy torturing him so much. Then he discovers she is doing a talk at his local library. So he goes along to ask her – and finds out the shocking truth.

4 Oaks Drive; When Carol’s, boss asks her to show Mr and Mrs Hardy around 4 Oaks Drive, she is none too pleased. They are the prospective buyers from hell and complain loudly (in front of the owners) about every property they view. Will4 Oaks Drive prove to be the exception – or does she have to resort to plan B which is to murder them and bury their bodies beneath the ornamental patio?

Facing The Truth; Helen’s new man works in a health and fitness centre and he likes her to look good. But Liz, Helen’s elder sister, thinks his suggestion Helen has botox is a step too far. She goes to his workplace to give him a piece of her mind – with surprising results.

The 100-Metre Race; Carol’s son Toby is worried about Sports Day – or to be more specific the 100 metre race.
“I’m competing against Jack Wilson,” he confesses, “and he’s hot favourite.”
“Yes, but the taking part is more important than the winning,” Carol tells him firmly. But Toby still looks very worried. Because Jack’s dad has told him something entirely different.

Only £1.53 (or local equivalent)
Read the first few pages for free.
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

See all the books in the Daily Della series here

Just in case you haven’t noticed there are two more Daily Della anthologies available for your Kindle-enabled device – Try Me, and The Piano Man (The FREE Kindle reader app is available for all smart phones, tablets, PCs and Macs. Download it here.)

If you haven’t tried a Daily Della maybe I can twist your arm. Each anthology contains five of my favourite short stories, ideal for your daily coffee break, hand picked by myself from my twenty-five years of writing for magazines.

If you’re really quick you can get Daily Della #4, Can’t Buy Me Love, for FREE from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com – but be quick, the offer ends this Sunday.

Below is the current list of Daily Della titles, but to be informed of Daily Della titles as they come available subscribe to this blog via email for free by clicking here.

Happy reading!

Love, Della

TRY ME – Daily Della #00

This promotional ‘Daily Della’ is a special cut-down, cut-price version, designed to give you a taster.
In this issue:

When Emma and Jilly see an advert for NUDE male cleaners they wonder whether it’s genuine. Emma decides there’s only one way to find out – she has visions of naked men ironing her clothes – and despite Jilly’s protestations, she rings the number, in The Naked Truth.

The last place Karen expects to find herself on her thirtieth birthday is stuck up a tree, but thanks to her niece and nephew, ten year old twins, Conrad and Sarah that’s exactly what happens. They tell her not to worry, Tom will get her down and they disappear to find him. Then to make matters worse it starts to rain and Karen’s left worrying about the identity of the mysterious Tom, in On One Condition.

Debs and her friend go to see a Welsh male voice choir and Debs falls in love with a gorgeous tenor, third row, fifth from the left. When they play her favourite hymn, ‘When the Saints Go Marching In’ she begins to feel like a sinner herself. Especially as she’s married to Andrew who’s waiting patiently for her back home, in Saint or Sinner.

Only 77p (or 99c)
Read the first few pages for free.
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Lessons in Love – Daily Della #1

In our very first issue we bring you a touch of romance.

In Lessons in Love, Kate discovers that Martin, her new client, is not quite the dating beginner he’d like her to think.  The Colour of Love explores what happens when you hear voices in colour and see people as different tastes on your tongue.  A Right Time for Everything is a story about healing and renewal and House Rule Number Three is a light hearted tale about the dangers of falling for your lodger.  Finally, do questions get simpler or more difficult to answer as we grow older?  Especially when they’re to do with matters of the heart.  Della’s story, A Blue Moon, may just help you to decide!

Only £1.53 (or $2.99).
Read the first few pages for free.
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

Waiting for Love – Daily Della #2

Daily Della Two brings you another selection of romance.

Waiting is a poignant story about what happens when you fall in love, but you’re both married to other people, and you don’t believe you have the right to tear lives apart.
Who are the mysterious couple who dance in the sunset on the edge of the corn field? Find out in The Last Dance.
In The Mood for Love is a light hearted tale about expectation and a ring that can predict the wearer’s moods? Roots is about belonging, and learning to feel at home, both with places and with people. And In The Longest Journey Becky knows that other women lust after her man. Jake is so gorgeous he can take his pick. But will he succumb to temptation?

Only £1.53 (or $2.99).
Read the first few pages for free.
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

More By Love Than Judgement
– Daily Della #3

More By Love than Judgment is the story of a girl who loves elephants. Romeo and Juliet and the Peanut that Changed History, is a tongue in cheek look at Shakespeare’s famous story while Reasons for Marriage is about two best friends reflecting on their relationships. What happens when you’re in love with your best friend but can’t tell him? Find out in Presents. And The Guitar Man is an epic love story set on the Devon coast.

Only £1.53 (or $2.99)
Read the first few pages for free
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

Can’t Buy Me Love
– Daily Della #4

Can’t Buy Me Love is the story of Lissa, who’s obsessed with her career until the day her world crashes and she finds solace in the rhythms of a ferry – and its ferryman. Losing her job and her man at the same time isn’t fun, but then Karen meets David and it begins to feel like Luck Or Destiny. You can tell a lot about a man by his taste in candles, Katie reckons, Is she right? Find out in Candles. A mysterious blind date gets more mysterious by the second in An Angel Saved My Life. And finally, Murphy, this story holds a rather special place in my heart. In twenty-five years it’s the only short story I’ve written, which resulted in three fan letters. And reading it again just made me cry. That’s all I’m going to say!

Only £1.53 (or $2.99)
Read the first few pages for free
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

Pictures of Love
– Daily Della #5

In Pictures Of Love Nikki is worried she might not be marrying the right man. Can her best friend and a mud-covered dog reassure her? Learning to swim at the age of 45 when you’ve been terrified of water all your life is a big deal. But Claire soon finds out that both swimming and love are simply A Matter of Trust. Apple Dumpling Pie is the story of how a supermodel and a very overweight man find the love they’ve always dreamed about. What do you do when you’re cleaning a second floor window and you’re confronted with a very attractive naked man? Falling off your ladder is just the beginning of the drama in Window Cleaners and Romantic Heroes. Janine is Dreaming of Dinner For Two when she hits on a creative idea. Her community centre has a table which sells items for charity. Maybe she could sell herself – in the nicest possible way, of course!

Only £1.53 (or $2.99)
Read the first few pages for free
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

The Piano Man – Daily Della #6

In Daily Della #6 we bring you…

The Piano Man: Alone in Spain, and recovering from a traumatic divorce, Chloe finds peace in the music of a gifted pianist, who entertains the tourists nightly. Neither of them is looking for love, but then they spend a night together that both will remember for ever.

Not Quite The Orient Express: Abbey’s best friend, Joanne, persuades her to celebrate her thirtieth birthday in style with a luxury four-course dinner on a restored steam train. Abbey’s more at home in jeans and trainers than short skirts and high heels, especially when there’s some climbing around on footplates to be done – and a rather fit man looking on.

Shower Power: Andrea reckons you can tell a lot about a man by his bathroom. And she should know. She’s an expert on bathrooms – her job is to design and install them. Her latest client, flirty Ben Stickland, makes choices that reveal him to be a laid-back guy who’s into comfort and style. Andrea thinks they have a lot in common, but then his wife turns up.

Never Too Late: Kieran is about to meet Megan, the prettiest girl in Ireland, but he’s worried she’s out of his league. As he walks through the cemetery to meet her beneath the village clock, he’s racked with doubt. Maybe he should forget the whole thing.
But a hundred years earlier, Dillon Grady, whose grave Kieran passes, was late meeting the girl of his dreams and he’s spent several decades regretting it. Dillon is determined to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself.

The Juggler: Carol has a boyfriend who calls her C – she suspects because he can’t be bothered to say the rest of her name. Dennis is learning to juggle with fire because his fiancé thinks he is boring. Both of them dream about having a more fulfilling relationship. But love, like fire juggling, is always a risk. Do either of them have the courage to change?

Only £1.53 (or $2.99).
Read the first few pages for free.
Purchase it now from amazon.co.uk | amazon.com

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