Woah, the last few months have been fast and fabulous with the release of books one and two in my new Cupid Country series. And now today marks the day when book three Cupid Country Crush lands on virtual bookshelves the world over. Much excitement!

As always, exactly when the book goes live or your pre-order (thank you!) zooms into your e-reader depends on your time zone, but you can be assured it’s a-coming.

I can’t wait for you to read this one. I know I always say how much I love the characters, but I really loved Eden and Humphrey. Probably because they were horsey people, and I’ve been horse mad since birth.

But I digress. You’re here to know more about Cupid Country Crush and learn six secret things about the book.

First up, the cover, blurb and buy links:

Grumpy meets sunshine in this small-town age-gap romance.

Eden Jones has loved fellow showjumper Humphrey Taylor-Martin since she was sixteen years old. Except Humphrey is convinced their age gap is a bigger problem than any romantic feelings he might be hiding and refuses to be anything more than friends.

That doesn’t stop Eden from trying to change his mind. But when yet another emphatic rejection sends her reeling, Eden vows it’s time to move on. She’ll go on dating app Cupid Country and schedule a date a week for the whole of the showjumping season, until her Humphrey crush is cured.

Humphrey should be relieved when he learns of Eden’s plan. He might crave her as much as she craves him, but bright, funny Eden deserves someone her own age, not a grizzled, grumpy old man. But as the showjumping season edges on, and Eden keeps dating, Humphrey’s feelings only deepen and threaten to expose his true heart.

Can he keep his distance until the end of the season, or will one precious night change their lives forever?

Amazon US  |  Amazon AU | Amazon UK  |  Apple Books  | Google Play | Barnes & Noble

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And now the list you’ve been waiting for:

Six Secret Things About Cupid Country Crush

1/. The theme song for Cupid Country Crush was ‘Someone You Loved’ by Lewis Capaldi. It had the right tone and sentiment and seemed to reflect Humphrey’s changing emotions perfectly.

2/. Eden and Humphrey were originally named Gaby and Duncan, but it soon became obvious that those names weren’t right for the characters.

I knew I wanted something old-fashioned for Humphrey. Something that reflected his family and the man himself. Humphrey popped up almost immediately and seemed a solid choice. It suited his Hump the Grump character and was a nice fit with his hmphs.

Eden’s name took longer. With nothing springing to mind, I started writing lists and waited for something to stick, and that happened to be Eden. A pretty name with a double meaning.

It takes him a while, the silly moo, but Humphrey does eventually find his own Eden.

3/. Researching Humphrey’s horse truck was like indulging in a teenage fantasy. Horse-mad younger me had many, many daydreams about competing around the countryside with beautiful horses loaded into an equally beautiful truck.

Mind you, back then I had only a vague idea of the costs involved. Though a bit more aware these days, researching Humphrey’s horse truck still gave me great pleasure. There are some amazing horse transports out there, more like luxury homes and stables on wheels.

Here are a couple of inspirations for Humphrey’s truck, one from Rivenlee and another from Krismar.

4/. If you want to check out Eden’s (and Niamh’s) bridesmaid dress for Amber and Tom’s wedding, visit this online store. Such a clever dress and gorgeous colours.

5/. Humphrey’s brother was Mungo until the very last edit when he became Montgomery/Monty.

6/. Though she plays a significant role in the story, I never considered Mandy Nolan, Eden and Humphrey’s fellow showjumping competitor, as a future heroine until my editor made the comment that she “needed a bell”.

Mandy has an uncanny habit of sneaking up on and startling both Eden and Humphrey and the more I think about it, the more it makes me laugh. I’d had another character in mind for the next story, but now I wonder if Mandy doesn’t deserve a story of her own.

We shall see!

And a bonus secret thing:

7/. Humphrey bears more than a passing resemblance to former Geelong and Hawthorn Australian Rules Footballer Isaac Smith, although Smith smiles a great deal more than Humphrey.

A simple google of Isaac Smith AFL will give you plenty of pics. Enjoy!

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I hope you found this behind the scenes look at Cupid Country Crush entertaining. You’ll find the ebook at your favourite retailer either now, or coming very soon (as the world turns).

Those links again:

Amazon US  |  Amazon AU | Amazon UK  |  Apple Books  | Google Play | Barnes & Noble

Aren’t a fan of ebooks? Never fear, I have you covered with Cupid Country Collection, a paperback bind-up of the first three books in the Cupid Country series, and also releasing today.

That’s Cupid Country Chance, Cupid Country Challenge and Cupid Country Crush all in one beautiful print edition. And a very attractive print edition it is too.

You can order copies direct from me right now through my online store here (Australian addresses only). They’ll also be available from other online stores in the future. But order via me and you’ll score a special Cupid Country Collection bookmark and you can asked for your copies to be personally signed.

Happy reading!