Life Between Pages: Coffee At Little Angels

Phillip, Sarah, Kaitlyn, Caleb, Maxine, Grant, Melanie and Josh grew up in a small town where they spent their high school years together as an inseparable clique. But high school has ended, and they are all living their own “grown up” lives, each under the impression that their group has basically come to an end. When Phillip dies in a hit and run accident, Kaitlyn summons the others to all come back home, forcing a reunion that no one is particularly interested in partaking in.

Coffee at Little Angels follows how each character deals with the death of a childhood friend while at the same time dealing with their own ignored demons after years of separation. Events unfold as the group tries to rekindle the friendship they once shared to honour the memory of a friend they will never see again. (via The Katalina Playroom)

This is the kind of story that anybody could relate to in one way or another. Each chapter is dedicated to the thoughts of one character, as they guide you through their perspective of the unfolding events. The alternation between these is clearly indicated, and they each have their own manner and voice, so you never get lost trying to figure out whose side of the story you're getting.

Though I felt that I couldn't fully relate to Coffee At Little Angels, having been fortunate enough to have not lost anyone that's ever been close to me yet (with the exception of some non-human family members), I could understand the tensions between these estranged friends. It's hard for them to see each other after so many years, especially as some parted under less than amiable terms. I can imagine that when you're back face-to-face under especially stressful circumstances, it would be near impossible not to resurface old feelings and unresolved issues. This is something that concerns me about my own future, when there's someone I must see again out of respect for another.

Overall, I felt that this was a good story with good intentions. There were parts of it that I thought could use some work and some characters who could've shared their perspectives more (Melanie in particular), but a valiant first novel from Nadine.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

If you would like to find out more about Nadine and Coffee At Little Angels, check out her guest post here.

A warm welcome to Nadine Rose Larter, my very first guest poster! She's here to talk about her debut novel, Coffee At Little Angels (review can be found here)...

Hi Book Lovers!

I must first thank Sophie for inviting me here to share a bit of my story. I am sure her kindness will not be overlooked by the cosmos

A bit about me...

My name is Nadine Rose Larter and I was born in a small South African town called Molteno, tucked between the mountains in the heart of the Karoo. After my last year of high school I moved with my family to the city of Port Elizabeth where I now live with my son, my fiancé, and my two step children. I’m a bit of a free-spirit and have never been happy having a “day job”. I spend my days writing, or thinking about writing. Sometimes I do a bit of work. Usually I just write and call it work.

I have always been a writer. I started writing poems and short stories when I was little, and I have intermittently kept diaries since I was about nine years old. In the last two years I have started taking my writing more seriously and have made the decision to become a full-time author. I have no formal education, aside from a year of Literature and Creative Writing study, but I am constantly trying to grow as a writer. Sometimes being a wife and mom makes fitting it all in a little tough but I am learning how to juggle it all slowly.

Next month, my first novel, Coffee at Little Angels finally comes out in paperback. I have worked pretty hard to get it all to this place and though I’ve done it mostly on my own, I would never have coped without the help of some pretty damn incredible friends and family members.

A bit about my book and why you might like to read it...

I wrote Coffee at Little Angels after a high school friend of mine died in a car accident. I locked on to the idea that had he died just two or three years earlier his death would have been even more excruciating to deal with. I was devastated by the loss of course. This was the boy who gave me my first kiss. He was a sweetheart with blue eyes and a beautiful smile. And he is missed by many. Including myself. But...in my case I don’t always miss him as though he is dead. I simply miss him as someone I haven’t seen in a while. Someone who I would love to catch up with sometime, should we be fortunate enough to bump into each other in the street. It often feels simply as if we no longer live in the same town.

I tried to write this book in a way that just about anyone can relate to it. It’s not aimed at any specific demographic and was not designed to carry across any specific message or agenda. You may notice that there are few proper nouns in this novel. There are no last names or town names. I didn’t forget to put them in. I left them out because I hope that Coffee at Little Angels will be the kind of novel that absolutely anyone can pick up and feel like they understand it. I hope that you will pick it up and feel like it could be about you. Other than that, Coffee at Little Angels is just a book. I do hope you like it, but if you don’t, I will simply try harder with the next one.

Download a sample chapter here: http://katalina.co.za/?page_id=198

Buy the ebook here: http://katalina.co.za/?p=387

Ebook will also soon be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBookstore and Sony Readerstore.

Other ongoing projects...

One of my biggest writing loves is an internet project I created called The Poetry Project. Basically The Poetry Project is a project where South African poets and photographers get together to express their works symbiotically. Through this project I have met some of the most incredible people in this country and it has truly been such a blessing to get to know these people. I have taken a giant break from The Poetry Project over the last couple of months because I have been so focused on getting my book out, but I will soon be reviving the project and injecting new life into it, with the help of some old friends and hopefully some new ones too. Once the first Poetry Project book is out I am even considering making it an international project because I think the comparison between different countries and different styles of writing and taking pictures could prove to be quite interesting.

For more information visit The Poetry Project online: http://www.thepoetryproject.co.za/

Otherwise my second home is The Katalina Playroom. Here I share my love for literature and writing. I do blog challenges and pretty much indulge in whatever takes my fancy at any particular moment. I like to think that it is a place where you can find some good inspiration as a writer. http://katalina.co.za/

Other contact info:

Follow me on twitter: @Nayes1982 & @KatalinaBooks

Say hi on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/nayes

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5012087.Nadine_Rose_Larter

LibraryThing: http://www.librarything.com/home/NadineRoseLarter

BookBlogs: http://bookblogs.ning.com/profile/NadineRoseLarter

Thank you again for having me here today. I wish you all day of happy surprises!