Sarah-Kate Lynch

House of Daughters
When Clementine's cranky papa dies, she thinks finally her miserable life will start to improve. Now, it's just her and her precious grapes. But then her half sister Mathilde appears on the scene, fresh from Manhattan and no less biting a wit than she was the last time the sisters were together. And to make matters worse, it turns out there's a third sister that neither of them knew about: sweet little Sophie. Can she stay sweet surrounded by so much bitterness, that's the question. And will the lack of effervescence in this dysfunctional family unit stick a cork in the future of the House of Peine champagne? Or are there more bubbles to come for these three lost souls?

The House of Peine
Clementine has had a miserable life but assumes it will get better when her cranky Papa meets his maker. Finally, she assumes, the failing family Champagne House will be hers and she can restore it to its former glory when Russia Tsars begged for it and English Kings toasted with it. Then out of the blue comes her half-sister Mathilde, claiming her share of the inheritance and reminding Clementine of the bitterness and betrayal in their past. Then, as if that isn't bad enough, another sister, Sophie, arrives on the doorstep all wide-eyed and innocent but claiming her piece of the pie. This is not the future of which Clementine has so long dreamed! Will Clementine ever have get she wants? Or does she have it already...

Eating With The Angels
Taste means everything to restaurant critic Connie Farrell, so when her husband Tom fails to turn up for their second honeymoon in fairytale Venice, she's rattled but she doesn't lose her appetite. Indeed, handsome gondolier Marco sates her with all manner of mouth-watering delicacies, including himself. And then there's the silver-haired Luca, mature and oh, so tasty. Come to think of it, every second honeymoon should be so sweet...

But all turns sour back home in New York when Connie is dealt the cruellest blow imaginable. Suddenly, there's nothing on the menu but heartache and sorrow. Her marriage is over, her lover's a stranger, her mother is poinsonous and no porcini veloute, no thrice-roasted duck, no hot chocolate upside-down souffle can fix all that because Connie can't remember what she truly finds delicious.

By Bread Alone
Esme has an adoring husband, a wonderful son, an evil goat, some angry bees and a suspicion that she will never be happy again. Even baking her precious sourdough no longer works its usual magic. All it does is transport Esme back to the salty little French bakery where she found and lost her first true love, Louis, the village boulanger. Published in the UK in early 2004, to be published in the US by Warner Books later in 2004.

Blessed Are the Cheesemakers
Ancient Irishmen Corrie and Fee need help to keep Coolarney Cheese the most delicious in the world. Add Abbey, her heart trampled in the tropics, and Kit, burned out and harboring a nasty secret. Mix in the sun, the rain, whatever you’re having yourself and then sit back and wait.

Finding Tom Connor
When jilted bride-to-be Molly Brown arrives in the seemingly sleepy Irish seaside town of Ballymahoe, she has greasy hair, a fractured arm, a broken heart, three extra kilos and no time at all for the charm of the locals. It’s been a crappy few days and her wedding dress is starting to smell so if she could just find Tom Connor, perhaps everything, herself included, could return to normal.

Bosom Buddies
The women in this collection of short stories have different dreams but ones that we can immediately recognise. We can understand as they battle with their bodies, such as Lucy in Emma Neale’s ‘Real Pregnancy Tales’ who ‘was sick every time she smelled her husband’s breath’ or Emily in Sarah-Kate Lynch’s story who ‘found a lump’. A donation of NZ$3 will be made to The Breast Cancer Research Trust for every copy sold.

The Modern Girl’s Guide to Life
Sarah-Kate Lynch’s plans to marry the crown prince of an obscure European principality were abandoned in 1999 when she started writing a regular column for the New Zealand Woman’s Weekly. Since then she has written about knickers, diets, baldness, barbecues, girly weekends, cocktails, Christmas and personalized plates. And that’s just in a single column.