I’m helping Kaff out at The Nut Press today. (Yes, believe it or not, VIS’s like me do sometimes have to get their paws dirty and do some work!) It doesn’t feel very much like work though, ‘cos we’re hosting one of my lovely writer friends, Christina Courtenay. (You’ll remember that I met the lovely lady earlier this year up in Abergavenny.) She’s kicking off the blog tour for her latest novel, Highland Storms, a sequel to her terrific debut novel, Trade Winds. As you can see from the photo, I scampered out among the heather in my full tartan glory earlier today to have a read and it is excellent. Here’s a taster for you:

Betrayed by his brother and his childhood love, Brice Kinross needs a fresh start. So he welcomes the opportunity to leave Sweden for the Scottish Highlands to take over the family estate.
But there’s trouble afoot at Rosyth in 1754 and Brice finds himself unwelcome. The estate’s in ruin and money is disappearing. He discovers an ally in Marsaili Buchanan, the beautiful redheaded housekeeper, but can he trust her?
Marsaili is determined to build a good life. She works hard at being housekeeper and harder still at avoiding men who want to take advantage of her. But she’s irresistibly drawn to the new clan chief, even though he’s made it plain he doesn’t want to be shackled to anyone.
And the young laird has more than romance on his mind. His investigations are stirring up an enemy. Someone who will stop at nothing to get what he wants – including Marsaili – even if that means destroying Brice’s life forever …

There’s an interview that Kaff’s done with Christina and there’s also a competition to win a copy of Highland Storms over on The Nut Press and I’m going to be judging it. All you have to do is to make up a book title including a place name and a type of weather. I’ll pick a winner from all your fab entries on Thursday. (See? I just never stop, do I? Such is the life of a celebrity squirrel.) So, why not scamper over there and check it out?

Highland Storms (ISBN: 978-1906931711) is Christina’s third novel and is out next month. You can read the first two chapters here and it is available to pre-order from Amazon UK, Amazon.com and The Book Depository. Christina’s previous novels Trade Winds and The Scarlet Kimono are also available from Choc Lit and all good booksellers. Trade Winds was short listed for the Romantic Novelist’s Association’s Pure Passion Award for Best Historical Fiction 2011. To find out more about Christina, you can read her Author Page, visit her Author Website or Follow Christina on Twitter.