The Irish Cottage: Finding Elizabeth

Juliet Gauvin

Nov 2015 · The Irish Heart Series Book 1 · Juliet Gauvin

About this ebook

A story about losing your way and finding your life. Book 1 of 3.
Elizabeth Lara built a perfect life as San Francisco’s top divorce attorney, but when she loses her great-aunt Mags, the woman who raised her, she boards a plane and leaves it all behind.

The Irish shores welcome her as she learns a shocking truth, kept secret for thirty-five years. Devastated and now alone in the world, Beth tries to find peace in a beautiful cottage by Lough Rhiannon, but peace isn’t what fate had in mind. Almost as soon as she arrives, Beth’s solitary retreat into the magic wilds of Ireland is interrupted by Connor Bannon. A man with light brown hair, ice blue eyes and a secret of his own. He’s gorgeous, grieving, and completely unexpected.  

With the help of Mags’ letters, the colorful townspeople of Dingle, and Connor, Elizabeth might just find a way back to the girl she lost long ago and become the woman she always wanted to be.

“It was like a drug that I couldn’t get enough of. The Irish Cottage started it all and now that I have finished all three, I’m starting all over.” -Amazon Reviewer

"I started this book and couldn't put it down. It brought me to Ireland and I never wanted to leave." -Amazon Reviewer

"There is so much to love in this, the first in the [The Irish Heart] Series...I wanted to look out my cottage window and see a Lough of my own and the pub was just asking me to come visit...This story pulled me in from the very first page and I'd highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys contemporary romance, stories of starting over, or romances set in other countries." -Goodreads

"Picked this up because it was set in Ireland, and it took me right back there. Wonderful writer, if you love Ireland and a good read I would recommend this book. I will most definitely be reading the rest of the series." -Amazon Reviewer

“I laughed, I cried, I hoped & dreamed. The series was beautifully told through poignant letters. A keeper of the heart.” -Amazon Reviewer

"Excellent book, one that was very hard to put down. Well-written, exciting, great author! I highly recommend this book to all...Get it then get comfortable because you will be in for a good long read, enjoy!" -Goodreads

"Great book! Elizabeth embodies strength and determination as well as compassion and forgiveness. The Irish Cottage combines the fairytale of Ireland with the real life struggles we all face." -Amazon Reviewer

"I bought the book yesterday and couldn't put it down. Very romantic, very sexy, with a heroine who can save her own bacon...and the wounded, hunky hero--be still my heart." -Goodreads

INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR

Q: How did you come up with The Irish Cottage?

 Jules: Well the story came together in pieces. I love Ireland, I've always been attracted to the country, the people, the music, the dancing. I've spent time traveling the country so I knew I wanted to set the book there. And then the character of Elizabeth was based on a lot of the experiences I had when I was in law in San Francisco. When I was immersed in that world--it was a very dark time, and I really did lose my way--like Elizabeth. I even let long-time relationships die because I was in such a dark place, it was difficult to see anything past my own nose. So yeah, I knew I wanted my heroine to be a "recovering attorney" and I knew that I wanted her to have this great love affair in Ireland that would open her up to the truly great possibilities life has to offer.

Q: And what about Connor Bannon? Is he based on anyone? 

Jules: Ummm...he might be an amalgamation of several people, but I think I'll refrain from commenting further--have to keep some of it to myself, don't I?

Q: Why did you elect to write literary women's fiction as opposed to traditional contemporary romance? 

Jules: I knew I wanted to write in the literary women's fiction space because writing a story where the heroine's evolution is paramount--not just her relationship with Connor--is what really gets me, drives me--I love those types of stories. I like writing herstory--women's lives and journeys are so complex--I wanted to write a series that included a great love story, but didn't sacrifice the heroine's journey in any way. It's about Elizabeth finding her way--we all need to find our way. Sometimes people help with that, but ultimately each of us has to find our own path...and we all need love too.
 

Q: Why London and then Paris? 

Jules: I lived in London for a time--I love it so much. It's one of the best cities on the planet, really. When I closed my eyes and thought about where Elizabeth's journey would take her I knew London would be next. And Paris--I lived in Lyon for a time as well and I've spent a lot of time in Paris so it seemed only natural for the final book to be set there. I also set certain things in motion in The Irish Cottage that make it impossible to end anywhere else--I knew I wanted to end it in France. Plus, Elizabeth has a major sweet tooth, like me, and Paris has the most amazing dessert masters in the world. I spent many hours pouring over the websites of my favorites and discovering some new ones. Those were the hardest and best research nights--I'm nocturnal, I write at night--and pouring over the websites of my favorite masters was heaven and hell. I wanted to get on a plane already. My sugar intake definitely went up while I was writing The Paris Apartment--and my waistline with it. 

 

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Ratings and reviews

The book kept me going...a real page turner first because I've been throwing myself into my Irish ancestry and second I was surprised at the contempory story line. To me...these days I find it sometimes difficult to read literature of today. It seems plastic and too "I can't really stomach this stuff anymore." You, the author were able to describe what humanity is going through as a whole organism with real heart felt life issues of our time where they don't sound hokey.

This was the first book that kept my interest to the very end in a really long time. I have been longing most of my life to feel all the essence of Ireland and see where my ancestors came from and I applaud you for you efforts. You completely nailed it I felt like I was there right with Elizabeth experiencing Ireland right with her. You my dear are an amazing talent! You have gained a new fan I caint wait to see how Elizabeth adventure continues in book 2 Be well in all you do, Victoria P.S I felt connected to this book because my sister that's no longer with us her name was Elizabeth as well and Mags well she reminded me of my great grandmother Dorisie Powell full of the same spunk Mags was..

I hope she’s okay with the comparison but Juliet Gauvin brings to mind so much of writers I’ve enjoyed like Nora Roberts and Maeve Binchy. The characters are believable, lovable and the dialogue is so true. I could picture myself there with them, although I’m sure it’s a wee bit different now than it was in The Quiet Man. (I couldn’t help picturing Connor as John Wayne though. Or Sam Heughan if he wasn’t a Scot :) I’m moving on to the next two books in this series and hopefully many more to come.

About the author

Jules is originally from California. She is a true, hopeless, all-in romantic. Her first kiss was with a Frenchman in Paris, her first love was an Eagle Scout, her first crash and burn was with someone from Harvard (Jules studied history at Yale--she should have known better).

The Irish Cottage: Finding Elizabeth was inspired by Jules' love for all things Irish. A love sparked in her teens by Riverdance; fanned into a flame when she befriended a group of Irish kids in France; and blazed into a wildfire by a visit to the Emerald Isle.

Earlier this year, an AncestryDNA test confirmed what Jules has suspected for a while: she's part Irish (one of her grandparents continues to be unknown, but as luck would have it, the test divined that he must have been an Irish-Scot-Swede).