Six years sober, Alexandra Small has it all... and then one day, she very publicly doesn't.
When her perfect world crumbles, a face appears from Allie's drunken past, hell bent on revenge. Can she rebuild her life before a stranger destroys it forever? And should she spend three weeks in an overheated shed having colonic irrigation with daytime TV's Megan Macmillan?
In this laugh out loud treat of a novel, Mo Fanning tackles the difficulties and misadventures of work, love, and being seen for who you really are.
From the bestselling author of hit romantic comedy The Armchair Bride, comes 'Rebuilding Alexandra Small'. A hilarious story about the aftermath of a life falling apart.
Rebuilding Alexandra Small by Mo Fanning was published on 4 June 2021 by Spring Street Books.
As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour, I am delighted to welcome the author here today, he's sharing the books that are important to him, in My Life in Books.
I also have one paperback copy of the book to give away. Entry is simple, just fill out the competition widget in this blog post.
GOOD LUCK!
My Life in Books - Mo Fanning
Lockdown has been an endless surprise. Because my husband has an online shopping addiction, many random things are pushed through the letterbox (or deposited on our doorstep). But it’s a new book that lights up the day. The smell of printed paper, the joy of holding words in my hands. I’m no Luddite. I have the Kindle app and a library of books to go, but nothing beats going old school. Finding eight books I’ve loved wasn’t easy, but I hope you’ll give at least one from my list a go.
The late Tony Warren invented Coronation Street and this slightly autobiographical story features huge characters given the space and time to breathe often denied him in the confines of what was then a twice-weekly soap. Sorel is a magnificent creation, offset by her gay BFF Mickey. I’ve read this more times than I dare admit and was thrilled when the novel returned in eBook form a year or two back. If you only read one of my suggestions, make it this.
As a gay man in the making, Armistead Maupin’s Barbary Lane stories taught me life could come up roses. Even if one of the roses causes a violent reaction for one of his brilliantly drawn characters. I find it hard to pick one volume from the long-running series, that (probably) ended a year or two back, so I’ve chosen the starting block tale. But read them all. You’ll be so glad you did.
I worship at the tiny feet of Marian Keyes. If I hadn’t read ‘Watermelon’, I don’t believe I’d have ever started writing. Again, it’s tough to pick a single book from a stellar library of varied and heart-tugging stories. This Charming Man is epic and dealt with so many huge themes - as relevant today as in pre-MeToo times. Every man should read this, charming or otherwise.
Jane Fallon is the queen of the revenge novel, and whenever her books come out, I schedule downtime as I know I’ll be up late and awake early cramming her latest story into my head. Jane’s debut novel is another one I read over and again, marvelling at her craft and the wonderfully tense storyline. Nobody I’ve recommended the novel to has been disappointed.
I cherish this book and I adore Majella O’Neill. With a simple and small setting, Michelle Gallen tells the most enormous tale. By turns grimy and heart-warming. You sense an enormous world inside Magella’s tiny one, yearning to fly. As a piece of writing, the novel is remarkably ambitious. This is one of those books you treasure and keep for moments when you just can’t get into reading again.
The big mamma of a marketing trend that divided writers and readers. The film is good, but the book is so much more caustic and certainly not the soft edged romcom many might expect. Bridget Jones Diary is another one that started me writing and I won’t hear a bad word said about the book.
I’ve rarely been so uncomfortable for a lead character and willed someone to reform and let life in. It’s a cliché to suggest you find something of yourself in a story, but I’ve lived the prickly closed-off life Eleanor presents to the world. It takes a lot to resolve. I willed her to give Raymond a chance. If I could choose any of my eight and say I wish I’d written the novel, this is the one.
In the dim dark days of required reading that was my English Literature O’Level (I realise this dates me), ‘My family and other animals’ was the book that taught me how to have fun when you write. Books don’t have to be about kings, queens and daggers seen before you. I envied Durrell and his lifestyle and still harbour ambitions to set up my own zoo. I believe this story turned me into a nomad. I’m still looking for a place to call home.
The term ‘cosy’ fills me with dread, and yet, done right, cosy is life affirming. Long before Thursday became the night for Murder Club, this book proved life and love exist long after sixty. I read this whilst living in Amsterdam and craving somewhere like Edgecombe St. Mary – the rolling hills appealed - when you wake up every morning in some place as flat as the Netherlands, even a speed bump is cause for excitement. Pettigrew’s friendship with Jasmina warmed my heart, turning this into one of those unputdownable stories.
My Life in Books - Mo Fanning - June 2021
little else) in a telesales sweatshop, deep-fried scampi with lemon wedge for Little Chef, and flatly denies being in his fifties.
Mo's highly readable novels appeal to readers who enjoy books by Marian Keyes and Jane Fallon.
'The Armchair Bride' was shortlisted for the Arts Council England 'Book of the Year' award. As well as writing for several anthologies, Mo's work has appeared in The Observer, The Guardian and Irish Independent.
In 2021, 'Rebuilding Alexandra Small' will establish Mo as a purveyor of fine prose.
Mo supports a crippling mortgage in Brighton.
mofanning.co.uk for Mo's blog, newsletter and all kinds of other nonsense.
Twitter @mofanning
One copy of Rebuilding Alexandra Small by Mo Fanning
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