Guest Blogger - Karen King

A warm welcome to the fabulous Karen King and her shiny fun new book,The Runaway Wives. Here is the back cover blurb: 'We’re leaving. And there’s nothing either of you can do about it!’ When the surprise holiday Dee thinks her husband has booked for her sixtieth birthday weekend turns out to be yet another solo golfing break – it’s the last straw. Meanwhile her best friend Babs’s other half has decided to move to Spain and is acting like he doesn’t need to consult anyone. Not even Babs! Well, if their husbands think they can do what they want, so can their wives. So, with that thought, the two best friends leap into Dee’s trusty car and head for the seaside, and an adventure they’ll never forget. Back home their furious husbands want them to return immediately. But – as they begin to enjoy their newfound freedom – will either of the runaway wives ever want to come back home again? An absolutely hilarious, uplifting, escapist story, perfect for fans of Maddie Please, Judy Leigh and Dawn French.

Doesn't that sound fun? I asked Karen to tell us the inspiration behind the book: As a ‘golden yearer’ myself, I love the present trend to base stories around older characters, to show them dealing with life’s problems, coping with relationships, having fun and just generally living their life. I’ve written a few romcoms where the main characters are in their twenties or thirties and I really wanted to change that so was delighted when Boldwood offered me a three book contract to write ‘golden years’ women’s fiction. The Runaway Wives is the first book in this contract. I really enjoyed writing this book. I had so much fun writing about Dee and Babs, the main characters, who set off for a week in Cornwall when both their husbands make selfish decisions without consulting them. I’ve always loved Cornwall, regularly holidaying there when my four daughters were young, and finally moving there in 1999. I lived in Cornwall for several years and have some wonderful memories. It’s the ideal place for getting away from it all and was perfect for Dee and Babs to ‘run away’ to and have some fun together. It was a nostalgic trip down memory lane to write about the cobbled streets, sandy beaches and picturesque harbour in the fictional village of Port Telwyn. As the week goes by Dee and Babs both have to come to terms with the fact that their long marriages might be over. People often stop in relationships that aren’t really working for many reasons, maybe they feel that they’re too old to start again or they feel a loyalty to their partner because they’ve been together so long, but then something happens and they have a tough decision to make. Do they trudge on miserably or go it alone? That’s what both Dee and Babs have to decide. I firmly believe that it’s never too late to have a second chance at life. I myself remarried at fifty-eight and moved to Spain with my husband Dave when we were both in our sixties. You’re never too old to start over and try something new. About Karen: Karen King writes psychological suspense and women's fiction and is celebrating her fortieth year of publication. She has also had 120 children’s books, two young adult novels, and several short stories for women’s magazines published. Her early writing career was spent writing for Jackie and other teenage and children's magazines including Winnie the Pooh and Barbie. Her suspense novels The Mother In Law, The Perfect Stepmother and The Stranger in my Bed and her romantic novel The Cornish Hotel by the Sea all became International Amazon bestsellers and several of her books have been translated into other languages. You can get your copy of The Runaway Wives HERE