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<\/p>\nA Liverpool mum has become an Amazon bestseller with her debut novel about \u201890s Liverpool.<\/p>\n
Rachel Fegan, 53, from Mossley Hill, started writing her book, The Wonder Bra Years, during Covid after a challenge from her daughter Abby.<\/p>\n
And just over a month after it came out, she\u2019s already been named Number 2 bestseller in women\u2019s fiction on Amazon \u2013 and is about to be sold in America.<\/p>\n
Rachel says:<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unbelievable. I would never have imagined this in a million years, and I still keep having pinch-me moments. It\u2019s just amazing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt shows what you can do if you get out of your comfort zone and give something a go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got a whole new career and it\u2019s a dream come true.\u00a0 That\u2019s why I do get a bit emotional.\u201d<\/p>\n
The mum of 21-year-old twins Abby and Lucy used to work in insurance before becoming an administrator for a number of Merseyside companies, but around 10 years ago Rachel was forced to step back for medical reasons after being diagnosed with a series of autoimmune conditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suffer, among other things, with rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis so in lockdown I was forced to isolate,\u201d continues Rachel. \u201cAnd I just got bored!<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d always said \u2018I could write a book about that\u2019 as a response to so many things, so my daughter Abby said \u2018well then, you know that book you\u2019re always saying you could write? Now\u2019s the time to do it\u2019!<\/p>\n
\u201cI just thought why not?\u00a0 I\u2019ll give it a go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paying homage to the boosting bra which was a sensation when it was relaunched in 1991 amid much hype and a traffic-stopping ad campaign starring top model Eva Herzigova, The Wonder Bra Years focuses on a teenage girl growing up in Liverpool in the early \u201890s.<\/p>\n
It begins with 18-year-old Nicky \u2013 her only confidence boost is her Wonderbra \u2013 once again waiting for the phone to ring after a whirlwind holiday romance.<\/p>\n
Navigating her new job at Liverpool\u2019s hottest cocktail bar Labello\u2019s, a girls\u2019 trip to Crete has introduced her to the charming Steven, but disappointment follows. And back home, a wild stag night with Joe leads to unexpected \u2018betrayal and desire\u2019.<\/p>\n
Rachel says: \u201cI loved the \u201890s, and the fact that there was no phone, no social media, and no internet.<\/p>\n
\u201cI used to work in a wine bar called Labinsky\u2019s in Matthew Street, which is what Labello\u2019s is based on, and I loved all the cocktails there and the way women in Liverpool used to dress up \u2013 and still do.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThere was More Cherubs, Drome, and Wade Smith which pioneered the fashion trainer\u2026 and of course, I always remember the Wonderbra.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s written in first person and about 50% of it is about me and my life, although I\u2019m obviously not going to say which bits; about 25% is made up for entertainment purposes, and about 25% is what maybe happened to people I know.\u201d<\/p>\n
All the \u201890s references are there from Club 18-30 holidays to travel giant Lunn Poly, along with Asian Blue mascara and Avon\u2019s Arabian Glow bronzer.<\/p>\n
And there are mentions of all the shops and bars anyone living in the city at the time will remember to create a nostalgic backdrop to Nicky\u2019s rollercoaster of a life.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a bit of a history lesson in Liverpool and a nostalgic look to a different time,\u201d says Rachel. \u201cIt was a joyous time \u2013 you could spend \u00a3100 on an outfit and, because there was no social media, you could wear it again three weeks later and no-one had seen it!<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s also about the people and their kindness and generosity which is the same even now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes I\u2019d start writing and a memory would come back and I\u2019d think \u2018oh my God\u2019, and that would spark another.\u00a0 I\u2019ve had a lovely time reminiscing.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd everyone\u2019s said the details are spot on \u2013 and that makes me really happy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like many of us Rachel might not always love social media, but it\u2019s played its part in making sure more people know about her novel: \u201cI sent it to influencers like former Hollyoaks actress Davinia Taylor, and within one hour of her post, I\u2019d sold another 300 copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her publishers Foreshore have already commissioned a sequel \u2013 she got a two-book deal \u2013 and Rachel is planning a children\u2019s novel.\u00a0 The Wonder Bra Years is also set to be sold in the US too by Barnes and Noble.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo have written an Amazon Number 2 bestseller is incredible and I love the fact that it shows being ill doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t do things.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it\u2019s about believing in yourself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy life has totally changed \u2013 and all because my daughter joked \u2018that book you said you could write? Go on then\u2026\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut look who\u2019s had the last laugh,\u201d she grins.<\/p>\n
You can buy a copy of The Wonder Bra Years here<\/a>. Find out what\u2019s good up North on our new platform, The Northern Guide.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n From the best hotels, beauty spots, days out, food and more up North \u2013 visit\u00a0thenorthernguide.com<\/a>\u00a0and follow The Northern Guide on Instagram\u00a0HERE.<\/a><\/p>\n
\nFind all the latest Liverpool news here<\/a>. <\/p>\n