ABOUT THE BOOK

Not Just Any Old Riches to Rags Story.

Heiresses, Evelyn, Georgia, and Olivia Belle, nicknamed The Southern Belles by the tabloid press, have everything they’ve ever wanted. Then, suddenly, on Evelyn’s 30th birthday, their father dies in a tragic road traffic accident, leaving a massive hole in his business’ finances. With the world’s media and the National Crime Agency looking on, their family home, cars and all other assets are sold at auction, leaving the sisters penniless, homeless and jobless.

Shunned by their celebrity friends, the Belle sisters must learn to fend for themselves for the first time in their lives. Evelyn, the eldest, knows how dire their situation is, and asks their father’s solicitor, who has kindly paid for their first two months’ rent on a rat-infested bedsit in Brighton, to look into their Father’s case, while they hunt for jobs to make ends meet, which inadvertently leads to them meeting new guys, falling in love, and learning along the way that the world doesn’t owe them a favour, and that money doesn’t buy you happiness.

MY REVIEW

Welcome to my spot on The Southern Belles Blog Tour hosted by Damppebbles Blog Tours. I chose this book because of the “riches to rags” theme and as a debut novel it is a heart-warming read about family and picking yourself up after a fall.

Three penniless heiresses. The responsible one, the rebellious one, and the flighty one.  The world was waiting for them to fail, but the Southern Belles rise to the occasion.

When the famous and wealthy Belle sisters become destitute after their father unexpectedly dies, they are forced to live in a hovel and find jobs to support themselves.  The book follows Evelyn, Georgia, and Olivia in their quest to make friends, and find love and happiness while dealing with dodgy people and overcoming obstructions and surprises in their lives.

The sisters are strong female leads with different personalities who stick together through thick and thin. The male characters are a little obtuse sometimes, but they come around and step up to help the sisters when they need them most.

This is a charming and engaging debut book full of laughter, sorrow, and surprises. If you like books about family relationships, give this a try.

Thank you to Katie Simpkins (aka Duncan Brockwell) for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Katie Simpkins is the pseudonym for 42-year-old dental technician Duncan Brockwell, from a town near Brighton, called Burgess Hill. Duncan works at Elite Dental Studios in his hometown during the day and writes in his spare time. He is the author of The Southern Belles, his debut novel. Since writing The Belles, he has completed a further four novels, the first sequel to the Belles, The Varndean Vixens, two crime dramas, Blood Bunker and Blood Lust, a horror novel, Hellingly, set in an abandoned mental asylum, and is currently writing his first action/adventure called Trailblazer, set in the American Midwest in 1976, about an aging country singer who is being pursued by the mob, the FBI and a nutty sheriff, while on tour with his band and getting to know his estranged daughter, Nancy. He is also attempting to write a comedy TV series script for The Southern Belles for a producer at Voyage Media.

Follow Katie, aka Duncan on his website, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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