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An interview with Taggie and Lucy from The Place We Met

Author Isabelle Broom poses five questions to the the two lead protagonists from her romance novel, The Place We Met.

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Who is the leading lady in your life?

Taggie: Other than me? It has to be Elsie. She’s one of those women who never takes no for an answer (a trait I obviously admire), and she’s been there for me during some of my darkest times. I don’t think you can live the life that Elsie has without learning lots along the way, not just about heartbreak, but about love, too. I wouldn’t be surprised if she adds a fourth husband to the roster at some point.

Lucy: I should probably say that I am, shouldn’t I? But I’m going to choose my sister, Julia, because she has always been the strong one – and I have always looked up to her. When my mum left my dad, Julia really stepped in and became the woman of the house, and it was she who picked up most of the pieces that Dad and I had fallen into. She’s a force to be reckoned with… a bit like someone else I know.

Taggie: Oi, I heard that!

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What is your dream holiday destination?

Lucy: I want to go to Zakynthos in Greece, but Pete’s is desperate to go to New Zealand, although I suspect it’s purely because he wants to watch loads of rugby matches.

Taggie: Don’t let him get away with that – make him take you to the Maldives!

Lucy: Or Sri Lanka. One of my patients, Max, just got back from there, and he says it’s amazing. I always have felt an affinity with elephants…

Taggie: Ahem, don’t be an idiot, woman! I don’t have a dream holiday destination, because I live in one. Why would I ever want to leave Lake Como?

And finally, what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

Taggie: Elsie once told me to think of my heart as an elastic band, because even when they break, they can still bounce back. That really helped me to let go of my own heartbreak and move forwards, and I have never forgotten it.

Lucy: I love that! I wish I had an Elsie in my life.

Taggie: You don’t need one – you have yourself.

Lucy: [Blushes.] My mum told me, ‘Nobody can be a better version of yourself than you.’ I go back to that any time that I’m having a self-confidence wobble. We are all unique and should embrace ourselves, bumps and flaws and mistakes and all, because everything we have been through makes us who we are – and we are the only one of us. That is beautiful, don’t you think?

Taggie: It really is. Here’s to being ourselves!

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