A Very Coco Christmas by Robert Bryndza
Series: Coco Pinchard
Genres: Contemporary Romance
‘A Very Coco Christmas’ book extract and giveaway
Hello Brook Cottage Books. I’m so pleased to be visiting you! Today I have an extract from A Very Coco Christmas, the ‘prequella’ to my best selling Coco Pinchard series. I’ve called it a ‘Prequella’ because it’s both a novella and a prequel. It can also be enjoyed as a cosy stand-alone Christmas treat!
A Very Coco Christmas
The Blurb
It’s 1985, and eighteen-year-old Coco is home in London for Christmas after her first term at Aberystwyth University. She has started to write, and fallen hopelessly in love with Daniel Pinchard, a devilishly handsome musician from the wrong side of the river.
But Coco’s overbearing mother has other plans and resumes her campaign for Coco to meet and marry the ‘right sort of man’, preferably Kenneth, son of her best friends Adrian and Yvonne Rosebury, who will be joining them for Christmas.
As snow falls softly over the city, and Coco tries to juggle a series of hilarious events, the stage is set for a Christmas lunch like no other. A Very Coco Christmas is a delicious, stand-alone ‘prequella’ to the smash-hit Coco Pinchard series, with a glorious cast of characters including Daniel’s mother Ethel, sister Meryl – and a turkey called Jean Paul Belmondo...
Extract from A Very Coco Christmas
Monday 23rd December
The doorbell rang early in the afternoon and I heard a familiar voice start to sing Good Kind Wenceslas. I came down the stairs two at a time and Daniel was standing in the open doorway his dark handsome face framed by his gorgeous long hair. He was singing beautifully, his voice carrying through the cold still air. I came to the bottom of the steps and joined Mum who was rapt with attention, actually clasping her pearls in joy. I’m sure if she’d known that this was the boy I had spent many a night lying underneath she wouldn’t have been so joyful, but I just watched, grinning knowingly at him as he entertained my mother.
When he came to the end of the carol there was a brief silence as his voice faded, until we became aware of the sounds from outside once more, the cars rushing past at the end of the road, a bus hissing and roaring as it changed gear.
‘Thank you young man,’ said Mum. ‘What a lovely rendition of Good King Wenceslas…’
‘Thanks,’ said Daniel. ‘I’m studying for a degree in music.’
‘How impressive,’ said Mum. ‘I’ve always thought it’s a very broad subject, classical, modern…’
‘I’m studying classical, the history of music. Do you know how Good King Wenceslas liked his pizza?’ said Daniel.
‘No I don’t,’ said Mum.
‘Deep and crisp and even,’ grinned Daniel. I burst out laughing but Mum looked blank.
‘It was a joke Mum,’ I said cringing.
‘Oh, yes… Look I don’t usually do this, but come into the hall a moment out of the cold.’ Daniel came in and wiped his feet on the mat. Mum closed the door behind him.
‘Karen just stay here with…’
‘Daniel.’
‘Just stay here with Daniel whilst I find him something to be on his way with.’ She adjusted her cardigan and went off down the hall to the kitchen. The door swung closed behind her.
‘What are you doing?’ I said thrilled to see him.
‘You didn’t ring me Coco, and when I phoned you, your mum kept saying you weren’t in.’
‘Did she now,’ I said darkly. ‘I thought you’d gone off me… I lost my handbag on the train with your number in and…’ It was odd and thrilling to see Daniel standing in the hallway of my house in London. His presence was sexy and dangerous against the pastel flocked wallpaper. He leant in and kissed me. His mouth was a mixture of hot and cold and he tasted of cigarettes and sweets. His stubble rubbed against my chin and I felt warmth flood through me. We jumped apart as the kitchen door opened and Mum came back. This is ridiculous I thought, and I stood up straight in preparation to tell her that Daniel was my boyfriend.
“Here we are, I’ve popped in some vegetables we’ve got spare…’ She handed Daniel a package wrapped up in the pale pink of the Financial Times and tied with string. It was a food parcel. Everything about it screamed charity.
‘Um… Thanks,’ said Daniel trying to hide his embarrassment.
‘I thought it was the least we could do, in the cold, well – it should keep you going.’ Daniel looked like he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him. Mum leaned round him and opened the latch on the door.
‘Do you have a phone number?’ I said.
‘Karen!’ shrilled Mum.
‘What? He’s a musician, we might know people who need a carol singer…’
‘I don’t think so Karen.’ Now the sound of his beautiful voice had faded, Mum saw she had an oik in a leather jacket perilously close to her Laura Ashley wallpaper.
‘It’s Catford 67932…’ said Daniel quickly.
‘Catford 67932,’ I repeated.
‘Merry Christmas,’ he said and he walked off down the steps trying to regain his composure.
‘Oh Karen,’ said Mum closing the door. ‘He’s nice to look at but you could do so much better. Kenneth, for instance.’
‘Why are you so obsessed with Kenneth? Do you fancy him?’
‘If I were lucky enough to be young like you I’d be thrilled to have the pick of an eligible young man like Kenneth. And his father Adrian is a meat distributor and Yvonne tells me the Masonic Lodge are interested in him.’
I started to tell her about Daniel but the phone rang, and it was one of her reptilian Joan Collins friends who she talked to for nearly two hours. Which was long enough for me to lose my courage.
However, Daniel still loves me!!!!
Robert Bryndza was born in the UK and lived in America and Canada before settling in Slovakia with his Slovak husband Ján. His debut novel The Not So Secret Emails of Coco Pinchard became an Amazon bestseller and two sequels have followed, Coco Pinchard’s Big Fat Tipsy Wedding and Coco Pinchard, The Consequences of Love and Sex. A Very Coco Christmas, is a delightful introductory novella to the Coco Pinchard series. When he’s not writing Rob is learning Slovak, trying to train two crazy dogs, or watching Grand Designs – all in the hope that he’ll be able to understand his mother-in-law, build his dream house, and get the dogs to listen.
Author Links
Website www.robertbryndza.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/bryndzarobert
Robert Bryndza on Goodreads
Robert Bryndza on Twitter @robertbryndza
Coco Pinchard on Twitter @CocoPinchard
The Very Coco Christmas Giveaway
Enter at the widget below to win a signed copy of A Very Coco Christmas, a limited edition Coco Christmas mug filled with chocolate sprouts, and a £25/$25 Amazon gift voucher
a Rafflecopter giveaway
‘A Very Coco Christmas’ book extract and giveaway
Hello Brook Cottage Books. I’m so pleased to be visiting you! Today I have an extract from A Very Coco Christmas, the ‘prequella’ to my best selling Coco Pinchard series. I’ve called it a ‘Prequella’ because it’s both a novella and a prequel. It can also be enjoyed as a cosy stand-alone Christmas treat!
A Very Coco Christmas
The Blurb
It’s 1985, and eighteen-year-old Coco is home in London for Christmas after her first term at Aberystwyth University. She has started to write, and fallen hopelessly in love with Daniel Pinchard, a devilishly handsome musician from the wrong side of the river.
But Coco’s overbearing mother has other plans and resumes her campaign for Coco to meet and marry the ‘right sort of man’, preferably Kenneth, son of her best friends Adrian and Yvonne Rosebury, who will be joining them for Christmas.
As snow falls softly over the city, and Coco tries to juggle a series of hilarious events, the stage is set for a Christmas lunch like no other. A Very Coco Christmas is a delicious, stand-alone ‘prequella’ to the smash-hit Coco Pinchard series, with a glorious cast of characters including Daniel’s mother Ethel, sister Meryl – and a turkey called Jean Paul Belmondo...
Extract from A Very Coco Christmas
Monday 23rd December
The doorbell rang early in the afternoon and I heard a familiar voice start to sing Good Kind Wenceslas. I came down the stairs two at a time and Daniel was standing in the open doorway his dark handsome face framed by his gorgeous long hair. He was singing beautifully, his voice carrying through the cold still air. I came to the bottom of the steps and joined Mum who was rapt with attention, actually clasping her pearls in joy. I’m sure if she’d known that this was the boy I had spent many a night lying underneath she wouldn’t have been so joyful, but I just watched, grinning knowingly at him as he entertained my mother.
When he came to the end of the carol there was a brief silence as his voice faded, until we became aware of the sounds from outside once more, the cars rushing past at the end of the road, a bus hissing and roaring as it changed gear.
‘Thank you young man,’ said Mum. ‘What a lovely rendition of Good King Wenceslas…’
‘Thanks,’ said Daniel. ‘I’m studying for a degree in music.’
‘How impressive,’ said Mum. ‘I’ve always thought it’s a very broad subject, classical, modern…’
‘I’m studying classical, the history of music. Do you know how Good King Wenceslas liked his pizza?’ said Daniel.
‘No I don’t,’ said Mum.
‘Deep and crisp and even,’ grinned Daniel. I burst out laughing but Mum looked blank.
‘It was a joke Mum,’ I said cringing.
‘Oh, yes… Look I don’t usually do this, but come into the hall a moment out of the cold.’ Daniel came in and wiped his feet on the mat. Mum closed the door behind him.
‘Karen just stay here with…’
‘Daniel.’
‘Just stay here with Daniel whilst I find him something to be on his way with.’ She adjusted her cardigan and went off down the hall to the kitchen. The door swung closed behind her.
‘What are you doing?’ I said thrilled to see him.
‘You didn’t ring me Coco, and when I phoned you, your mum kept saying you weren’t in.’
‘Did she now,’ I said darkly. ‘I thought you’d gone off me… I lost my handbag on the train with your number in and…’ It was odd and thrilling to see Daniel standing in the hallway of my house in London. His presence was sexy and dangerous against the pastel flocked wallpaper. He leant in and kissed me. His mouth was a mixture of hot and cold and he tasted of cigarettes and sweets. His stubble rubbed against my chin and I felt warmth flood through me. We jumped apart as the kitchen door opened and Mum came back. This is ridiculous I thought, and I stood up straight in preparation to tell her that Daniel was my boyfriend.
“Here we are, I’ve popped in some vegetables we’ve got spare…’ She handed Daniel a package wrapped up in the pale pink of the Financial Times and tied with string. It was a food parcel. Everything about it screamed charity.
‘Um… Thanks,’ said Daniel trying to hide his embarrassment.
‘I thought it was the least we could do, in the cold, well – it should keep you going.’ Daniel looked like he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him. Mum leaned round him and opened the latch on the door.
‘Do you have a phone number?’ I said.
‘Karen!’ shrilled Mum.
‘What? He’s a musician, we might know people who need a carol singer…’
‘I don’t think so Karen.’ Now the sound of his beautiful voice had faded, Mum saw she had an oik in a leather jacket perilously close to her Laura Ashley wallpaper.
‘It’s Catford 67932…’ said Daniel quickly.
‘Catford 67932,’ I repeated.
‘Merry Christmas,’ he said and he walked off down the steps trying to regain his composure.
‘Oh Karen,’ said Mum closing the door. ‘He’s nice to look at but you could do so much better. Kenneth, for instance.’
‘Why are you so obsessed with Kenneth? Do you fancy him?’
‘If I were lucky enough to be young like you I’d be thrilled to have the pick of an eligible young man like Kenneth. And his father Adrian is a meat distributor and Yvonne tells me the Masonic Lodge are interested in him.’
I started to tell her about Daniel but the phone rang, and it was one of her reptilian Joan Collins friends who she talked to for nearly two hours. Which was long enough for me to lose my courage.
However, Daniel still loves me!!!!
About the Author
Author Links
Website www.robertbryndza.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/bryndzarobert
Robert Bryndza on Goodreads
Robert Bryndza on Twitter @robertbryndza
Coco Pinchard on Twitter @CocoPinchard
The Very Coco Christmas Giveaway
Enter at the widget below to win a signed copy of A Very Coco Christmas, a limited edition Coco Christmas mug filled with chocolate sprouts, and a £25/$25 Amazon gift voucher
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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