It’s a real pleasure today to be helping launch the blog tour for Berlin Calling, the new steamy romantic comedy from Lilo Moore. Independently published today (19th January), it’s now available for kindle and in paperback via Amazon in the UK and US. My thanks, as ever, to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support.
Now, Lilo Moore might just be a new name to you, but her alter ego – Leonie Mack – might well not be, and I’ve certainly really enjoyed the books she’s had published with Boldwood. I adored her first, My Christmas Number One – such fantastic chemistry between the two main characters (you can read my review again here). And I enjoyed her second book, Italy Ever After, every bit as much (you’ll find my review here) – and then came A Match Made in Venice (review here) and We’ll Always Have Venice (review here), with their perfectly drawn setting and a pair of superb romances. And then there was Twenty-One Nights in Paris, last year’s Christmas release, an Aladdin-related story quite beautifully told, and very different (you’ll find my review here).
So why the change of name? Well, this one is even more different – while Leonie’s romance always sizzles, this one is clearly badged as “steamy”, and not part of her Boldwood contract. And while enemies-to-lovers, hot DJs and the thrills, spills and wardrobe malfunctions of the European song contest might have really appealed, I’m sorry but steamy really isn’t for me. But the author is so wonderful at writing convincing romance that I’m sure she’ll do it every bit as well as she’s done everything else she’s tried – and, if your tastes are a little different from mine, this book might well be right up your street.
Let’s take a closer look…
The song contest is hotting up, on and off the stage!
Rose writes twee pop, smiles a lot, and believes in magic and rainbows. When the cheesy love song she wrote is chosen for the European Song Contest, her luck seems to be turning around – especially when a chance encounter leads to the hottest one-night stand of her life. It’s almost too bad she’ll never see him again.
But then Rose discovers it wasn’t a chance encounter. The hot German DJ with the sexy deep voice is her rival for song contest glory.
Grumpy Emil is incredibly talented and the song he spins with his sister could be a winner, even if he doesn’t appreciate the playful spirit of the contest. As the continent falls in love with Rose and Emil’s competitive banter on social media, they must hide their history from the press or risk losing credibility – and a future songwriting career.
With an anonymous gossip out to ridicule the colourful contestants and a plot to undermine European public broadcasting bubbling under the shiny surface, Rose must be strong in the face of criticism and stand up for everything the contest means to her.
If this Canadian girl can save the contest, maybe she can believe that her feelings for Emil are the real deal.
So, no review today – but, with thanks to Lilo/Leonie, I’m delighted to share an extract. Main character Rose has had a busy couple of months with the announcement of the song she wrote as the UK’s entry into the European Song Contest and trying not to think about the hot German guy she hooked up with back in January. But she’s about to discover that meeting Emil was not a coincidence…
I nursed a Żywiec and fiddled with the laminated menu of the Polish restaurant while I waited for Benji one evening at the beginning of March. I was mildly alarmed thinking about his tone of voice when he’d phoned me an hour before, saying he had to show me something now.
But whatever he had to tell me, it couldn’t be worse than the rehearsal I’d just attended or the newspaper article about my song two days earlier that had been a complete burn. The problem with burns was that they continued to… burn for a long time afterward. I understood that popular music wasn’t always Mozart, but calling my song ‘trite and derivative’ got me in the chest. It could be damn hard to write a happy song, sometimes.
Benji arrived and his expression was even more alarming. He didn’t even wait to order, he just thrust his phone into my face.
Germany announces act for the European Song Contest
Huh. Benji thought I needed to know about the competition for the wooden spoon? The contest was only taking place there because Australia had won last year and selected Berlin as the host city. If Great Britain was the sore loser of the contest, then Germany was the laughingstock, although I’d kind of liked that enormous hand that had given everyone the finger in 2021. Why was Benji freaking out?
I paused after the first paragraph and the tingles of misgiving crept up my neck. It was a song called ‘Spend the night with me’ by someone called Milo K featuring Daria. There must be a million Darias in Germany. Well, not a million, but a couple of thousand at least, but Benji’s eyes were bugging out of his head and I had a very bad feeling about this.
Scrolling down to the photo, I was glad I hadn’t already eaten a plate of pierogi because my stomach lurched. Smiling out of the screen at me as though laughing at my discomfort, were Emil and Daria. Daria was making the ‘rock out’ sign with one hand. Her tank top was ripped and a few tattoos peeked out. Her clothes appeared to be splattered with paint. Emil was wearing a jersey cotton beanie and had a pair of chunky headphones around his neck. He was holding one hand up to point at the lens of the camera with that cocky smile that turned me into a syrupy puddle.
I looked up at Benji in horror, my mouth opening and closing. He clasped my shoulder in comfort. ‘Now is one of those times, Rose,’ he said with a sombre nod.
I slumped onto my elbows and my breath whooshed out on a, ‘Fuck.’ Fuck. The last time I’d said that word… didn’t bear thinking about right now. How had this happened? I felt so stupid. I’d been all happy dancing and self-absorption – and sexual deprivation, obviously – and all that time they’d been my competitors.
They couldn’t have known who I was. No one had, back in January. But it didn’t make anything better to admit that. I would be seeing them – him – again in the worst circumstances. And I’d snuck out of his bed in the early hours of the morning after giving him a fake number!
Looks good, eh? Maybe I should have read it after all… wishing you every success with this one, Lilo!
About the author
Lilo Moore is the steamy romantic comedy pen name of travel romance author Leonie Mack. She lives among vineyards in Germany, creating fictional worlds and counting down to her next trip.
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