ASPIRING Stourbridge author Gemma Roman has realised a long-time ambition by publishing her first novel.

The 34-year-store manager's self-penned, self-published tale about life and love is available to buy online - and is already proving a hit with readers on Amazon.

The book, entitled The Years of Us, charts the friendship of five university pals and their bid to survive distance, career changes and love triangles post-education.

Gemma, who lives on the former Wordsley Hospital site, off Stream Road, said: "I've always liked the idea of writing a novel, it's something I've always wanted to do.

"I let family and friends read it first and the feedback was so positive that I went ahead and had it self-published.

"I'm not expecting to become a best-selling author, but I have to say the book has been selling quite well and I'm very encouraged to the point where I've already started to write another one."

She added: "Because I work full-time, progress might be a bit slow - but I'm trying to spread the word."

The book, priced £2.99 for the Kindle edition and £7.99 for a paperback copy, is available from amazon.co.uk