Love, Lies & Promises — Joanna Lambert

1968: With Christmas approaching, Ella Kendrick is looking forward to the return of Matt Benedict and his band, the Attitude, from their UK tour. She hopes to use the festive season to stir a little romance into what has been up to now just a friendship with the quiet, shy songwriter. But her plans run into trouble when the band is rerouted to Switzerland for special performances, keeping them out of the country until the New Year. Matt and Ella eventually get together in the Spring of '69. But the romantic reunion does not quite live up to her expectations and on returning home she discovers the reason - he is planning to marry someone he has met in London, where he now lives. Her dream finally over, Ella tries to put the pain and disappointment behind her. She gives all her concentration to setting up her business, unaware that behind the scenes her devious mother Mel is finalising her plans, pushing her towards a match with local rich bad boy Andy Macayne, the man she has always wanted her daughter to marry. A year later Ella is convinced she has it all - a handsome husband who loves her, a beautiful home and a thriving business. With all of this she finds it easy to forget the past and move on. But when 'happy ever after' goes wrong and Ella returns to the village where she grew up, looking for support from her grandparents, she has no idea her past is about to come back - with devastating consequences. Love, Lies and Promises is the second book of the BEHIND BLUE EYES trilogy.