+ childhood, community, family, feel-good, female friendship, fiction, friendship, healing, journalist, motherhood, retreat, review
Garden of Her Heart by Zoë Richards
An uplifting story of healing and recovery that will warm your soul…and get you into the garden.
Eleanor Oliphant meets The Authenticity Project on a well-being retreat in this story of one loner, two secrets and three weeks at Pinewoods Retreat.
When Holly Bush (yes, she still hasn’t forgiven her mother for that combination) is made redundant with gardening leave, after a brutal attack, she decides to visit a retreat not far from home. There she finds friendship and a garden in need of love, she ends up doing literal gardening leave, bringing the community of guests together. Journaling her way through her holiday, Holly works on both her mental and physical scars and discovers an inner strength as her secrets are revealed.
Perfect for readers who enjoy an uplifting story of self-love, friendship and community, with a hint of romance.
My Review
I’m totally in love with this book. It’s not my usual genre, but I just adore it. I even woke up in the night and read it. Maybe it’s because I would love to go to a retreat like this. The only retreat I have ever been on was at my Catholic Convent School when I was 16, and the priest told us that animals didn’t have souls. My flirtation with Catholicism was well and truly over.
My friend goes to Champneys all the time, but it’s not the same, is it. Wearing an oversized towelling robe and slippers for bigger feet than mine, lolling around in the sauna and having facials and pedicures. Pinewoods is more spiritual. It’s a place where people go to find themselves (without sounding pretentious).
Holly’s life is on hold. After a tempestuous and traumatic childhood, and an attack which has left her with a facial scar, she is made redundant from her job of 15 years in a travel agents, and put on gardening leave. She had been living with her grandparents since a teenager, but they have both died and she is alone in the house they left her.
In order to sweeten the bitter pill of redundancy, she is offered a holiday anywhere in the world but instead she chooses three weeks at Pinewoods retreat just up the road in Formby. It is here that she makes friends with Bex and journalist San, the owners Lorraine and Dee, and discovers a garden that needs a lot of love and care.
But what will she do about the dreadful Dylan, another journalist, but unlike San, who is only there to write about the retreat, he has decided to rake up Holly’s past, because it is in the ‘public interest’. They will want to know what happened to her. Except they really don’t.
And is romance in the air? Or in the sand dunes more likely. We’ll have to wait and see.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole, the author, and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.
About the Author
Zoë Richards was inspired to write Garden of Her Heart by being a suicide survivor from which she learned the healing that worked best for her, which is not the same for everyone. Dog walks around the Formby pinewoods, not far from her home, gave her the location, in an area known locally as The Lost Resort, a town that never came into existence, close to the sea. In the woods there is a sole Victorian house, standing alone on a cinder track, and this is the inspiration for the location of Pinewoods Retreat.
She lives in Southport, near Liverpool, has been married to Rob for 34 years, and they have a grown-up daughter and a cockapoo who will never grow up. She worked for the NHS as an improvement programme manager, reforming how children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities are supported in healthcare. Writing gives her an escape from the intensity of work and from caring for her elderly mother.
+ community, feel-good, fiction, friends, friendship, humour fiction, loneliness, marriage, revenge, review
How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley
A senior citizens’ center and a daycare collide with hilarious results in the new ensemble comedy from New York Times- bestselling author Clare Pooley
When Lydia takes a job running the Senior Citizens’ Social Club three afternoons a week, she assumes she’ll be spending her time drinking tea and playing gentle games of cards.
The members of the Social Club, however, are not at all what Lydia was expecting. From Art, a failed actor turned kleptomaniac to Daphne, who has been hiding from her dark past for decades to Ruby, a Banksy-style knitter who gets revenge in yarn, these seniors look deceptively benign—but when age makes you invisible, secrets are so much easier to hide.
When the city council threatens to sell the doomed community center building, the members of the Social Club join forces with their tiny friends in the daycare next door—as well as the teenage father of one of the toddlers and a geriatric dog—to save the building. Together, this group’s unorthodox methods may actually work, as long as the police don’t catch up with them first.
My Review
How To Age Disgracefully is my third book by this author and I really loved it. It has an eclectic mix of characters, just like the other two books.
Of course the first has to be Daphne, a glamorous but ill-tempered 70 year old, with whom I have literally NOTHING in common (I’m 71). What would I think of her if I met her? I certainly wasn’t sure at first.
Then we have Art, a failed actor, who at 75 is way past his sell by date, thespianly speaking, and whose personal hygiene is dubious, to say the least. His best friend since childhood is William.
Lydia is my favourite character (apart from Maggie Thatcher – more in a bit). She runs a Senior Citizens’ Social Club three afternoons a week for the over 70s at the local community centre, but hasn’t got a clue what she’s doing. She has no natural authority, and the olds run rings round her, as does her ghastly husband Jeremy. But her heart is in the right place – she just needs a bit of encouragement, and maybe a kick up the bum where J is concerned. And a little less obsession with macrame plant holders.
Ziggy is doing his A levels at school, but has a baby daughter called Kylie, following a disastrous one-off shag in the stationary cupboard with Jenna who doesn’t want the baby. He wants to go to University, but how will that ever be possible?
When one of the group collapses and dies at the first meeting, Lydia ends up fostering her scruffy terrier Margaret Thatcher, who makes up for her unusual appearance by being extremely clever. But what is going to happen to her in the long run?
The actual story revolves around the Community Centre itself, which is going to be demolished, to make way for yet more unaffordable housing, Together with a few more pensioners, the kids at the nursery where Kylie goes and various other groups who meet there, how can they save it before the bulldozers arrive? They need to raise at least £100,000 in two weeks.
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole, the author, and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read. I absolutely adored it.
About the Author
Clare Pooley graduated from Newnham College, Cambridge and spent twenty years in the heady world of advertising. Clare’s memoir – The Sober Diaries – has helped thousands of people around the world to quit drinking. The Authenticity Project, Clare’s first novel, was a New York Times bestseller, a BBC Radio 2 book club pick, and winner of the RNA debut novel award.
Clare’s second novel – The People on Platform 5 in the UK, and Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting in the USA – is out now. How to Age Disgracefully is her third novel.
+ childhood, Dorset, female friendship, fiction, friendship, Ghost story, grief, lies, loss, love, murder, mystery, review, secrets, supernatural
Vex Not Her Ghost by Gill Calvin Thomas
Caitlin was four years old when her mother died in mysterious circumstances.
Thirty years later she comes into possession of her family home in Dorset.
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As she slowly recovers memories of her past, she becomes convinced that her mother’s ghost is warning her of impending disaster.
Aided by Charlie Bond, a private investigator, an enthralling story of deceit and deception unfolds as Caitlin and her friends expose the ultimate truth.
My Review
I love the cover, the title of the book and the supernatural element. I love a good ghost story and Vex Not Her Ghost did not disappoint.
Caitlin Rose has inherited her mother’s house, a run down manor house on the Dorset coast. My favourite part of the country. Lucky Caitlin, except it’s not that simple. The house not only holds many secrets, it is also haunted by her mother’s ghost. Her mother died when Caitlin was four years old. So why is she still here and is she trying to tell her something? Was she murdered? And by whom?
Of course, most people are going to think that Caitlin is going round the twist, but there are some who believe in her. Her friend Sally and Bob the gardener (I’m glad he’s not the builder), who may be a little in love with her, are just two.
Caitlin is in a relationship of sorts with hunky Dennis, but he’s actually a real love rat and she eventually decides to give him the heave-ho. Unfortunately, he’s inveigled his way into her home and got his slippers firmly under the coffee table.
The plot is pretty complicated, so I’m not going to try and go into more detail, but suffice to say there are lots of strange things going on, such as a mysterious cousin called Arabella she’s never heard of, and some financial irregularities revolving around Caitlin’s Trust Fund, and her late father George Rose, as well as her mother’s death.
So Caitlin decides to hire a private investigator, initially to take pictures of Arabella and try to discover whether she really is a long lost cousin. The investigator – Charlie Bond – turns out to be a woman and rapidly becomes my favourite character, more so than Caitlin I’m afraid, who is rather strange and secretive at times.
It’s a really good book, great for taking on holiday – I would read it on the plane if I was travelling – it will keep you riveted for the duration of the journey.
Many thanks to @ZooloosBT for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.
About the Author
Gill Calvin Thomas has retired from academic life and lives with her husband in Swanage, Dorset. She finds inspiration while walking in the Isle of Purbeck. Here, she is able to escape into a world of her own making, getting to know her characters, whilst she plans the next twist and turn of the plot. As writing has become a major part of Gill’s life, she has withdrawn from taking a leading role in many community volunteer activities, although she has retained her interest in local and national politics. A lifelong feminist, Gill likes nothing better than a spirited debate on the issues of the day with family and friends. As her writing career develops, she hopes to explore those issues in her stories. Vex Not Her Ghost is Gill’s first novel and she is currently working on her second.
Gill’s Social Media
Website: https://gillthomas.co.uk/
Blossom Spring Publishing’s Social Media
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Website: https://www.blossomspringpublishing.com/
Book Links
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/211755390-vex-not-her-ghost
Purchase Link: https://mybook.to/vexnotherghost-zbt
+ family, female friendship, fiction, friendship, Ghost story, grief, loss, love, review, romance, secrets, supernatural, Sweden
Echoes of Drowning by Lis McDermott
It is 2018, and Jess is delving into the mysterious and tragic events surrounding the sinking of the Aliciana in 1915. Her only link is Amy, who, although now deceased, survived only to mourn the loss of her husband, Will.
Following her mother’s death, Jess and her father, Danny, move to Llaneirw on the Welsh coast. Both grieving, Danny begins renovating their new house in a desperate attempt to make it home. But the onset of recurring nightmares leads Jess to realise they have a spirit in their house and a mystery to solve.
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A short break to Anglesey with Lukas sees the mystery deepen when Jess is unnerved by his grandfather and distressed when she catches sight of a photograph of his great-grandfather. Jess soon discovers that uncovering the reasons for her reaction to the image will help in solving the mystery. But first, Jess must find a way of convincing those around her that her dreams are, in fact, the truth.
My Review
This started out as one thing and ended up as something far more intriguing. At first it was a simple love story – a heartbroken father and daughter, following the death of her mother. They’ve moved to Llaneirw on the Welsh coast to get away from the sad memories at their home in Liverpool. Jess is reluctant to move, but father Danny can’t face waking up every day in the place where his wife died.
But the cottage in Wales is not what it seems. It has a resident ghost and another love story. In 1915 the Aliciana was sunk and while Amy survived, her husband Will died, his body never found. All Amy wants is to be reunited with Will, but she lives on for many years. However, when she passes over, she can’t find Will? Why is his spirit not at rest? Or hers?
It all revolves around the mystery of the Aliciana. Unfortunately for Jess, Amy is trying to show her something, but it involves terrible nightmares and the feeling that she was there. Then she takes a trip with potential boyfriend Lukas to visit his grandfather in Anglesey and the mystery deepens.
The biggest problem for Jess (apart from the nightmares and real bruises) is that no-one believes her. It’s all ‘woo woo’ as her father calls it. But as she makes new friends, it seems they don’t think she’s gone crazy with grief, and things start to fall into place,
I really loved this book, particularly the second half, when it got far more interesting. I don’t really ‘do’ romance, but I love a good ghost story, and there was so much to love here.
Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours
About the Author
Lis McDermott spent thirty-four years working in music education, latterly as a schools adviser and Ofsted inspector, before leaving education in 2008 to set up her own photography business.
In the 90s, during her time in education, she co-wrote Nelson Music, a series of books to support the classroom music curriculum. She published her first solo book in 2014, a photography book called Headshot Diva: why your business profile affects your bottom line.
Having awoken another passion, she has now published an autobiography – a book of short stories and four poetry anthologies. Her first novel, He is Not Worthy was published in 2022. She also mentors others to write their books.
Lis lives in Royal Wootton Bassett with her husband Conrad, with whom she shares a love of music and films.
+ anthology, care home, crime fiction, dark humour, fiction, lies, murder, murder mystery, police drama, review, short stories, short story, thriller
Killing Nan and other crime short stories by Keith Wright
Following on from the previous ‘Killing…’ series of short story anthologies ‘Killing Nan and other crime short stories’ has twelve stories each with a sting in the tail.
Killing Nan
The Care Home staff picked on the wrong old lady.
A Family Gathering
A School trip reveals a heartbreaking family secret.
The Beast
The reason for the poor man’s disfigurement and increasing insanity becomes clear in devastating ways.
A Life Sentence
There is more than one way to deal with an intruder in the dead of night.
Old Mother Hubbard
Det Insp ‘Old Mother’ Hubbard seeks answers to the mystifying murders of young ladies who are fished out of the river.
All In The Mind
A man suffering mental torment in an unhappy marriage seeks a final solution.
Genre: Crime Fiction
Pages: 293
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L’eau de Murder – The Perfect Crime
Secrets lead to betrayal and sometimes even murder. The perfect murder.
Bringing The Curtain Down
A despicable criminal preying on children gets his comeuppance in the most bizarre way.
Morto!
If you find a lot of money in a bag when on holiday in Sicily, it’s probably best if you don’t keep it.
Titfer Tat
The modern police are so much better today than their Victorian forefathers. Aren’t they?
A New Flame
A woman trapped in an abusive marriage finds a way out with a new flame. But tragedy lurks.
Grampa’s Chest
What was found in Grampa’s old tin chest after he died? Could it lead to a Christmas murder?
My Review
As a writer of short stories, I don’t really read that many. I like to get my teeth into a full-length novel and remain gripped to the end. However, every now and then I read a collection of short stories (usually crime or ghost stories) and Killing Nan did not disappoint.
There are twelve stories in all, and they are actually not that short in comparison to a lot of others. Each one is a ‘meaty’ crime tale in itself, with lots of twists and turns and some great characters.
The first story – Killing Nan – is the title story and I have to admit it wasn’t my favourite. A couple more and then we have A Life Sentence, which was initially my favourite, as game old bird and ex-High Court Judge, Althea, is not one to be threatened by anyone, not even burglar and all-round baddie ‘Snake’. How she deals with it interesting to say the least.
But it was followed by Old Mother Hubbard, which took over at the top of my list. Det Insp ‘Old Mother’ Hubbard is investigating the strange case of four young women, pulled out of the river, naked and very dead. But is it murder? There are no obvious signs, but it’s too much of a coincidence for it not to be. But it was the brilliant description of the mortuary that drew me in. It sounded so personal, straight from the heart. “It was not a place for the faint-hearted,” observes Hubbard.
What I also like is that each story is totally standalone, so you can dip in and out whenever you fancy a bit of mini-crime.
Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #KillingNanBlogTour.
About the Author
Former Detective Keith Wright’s books achieved critical acclaim in The Times, Sunday Express and Financial Times. Murder Me Tomorrow won the prestigious Independent Press Awards 2021 for best crime novel.
His first novel One Oblique One was shortlisted for the Crime Writers Association Award for the best debut crime novel of the year. Keith’s novels are a period piece of no-nonsense detective work and the activities and culture of a pre-digital age – the 1980s. They are an incredible snapshot of a period before the internet and political correctness. How times have changed. Fair Means of Foul achieved ‘Distinguished Favorite’ in the New York City Big Book Awards 2020.
Keith joined the police in 1979 and quickly became a Detective on CID, then being promoted to Detective Sergeant and dealing with all major crimes such as Homicide, Armed Robbery and Rape, and everything else in between. Keith spent 25 years in the police service, retiring in 2005 as a Detective Sergeant. He then began working for a global pharmacy business, leading the Serious and Corporate Investigations Unit investigating sensitive cases, such as bribery blackmail allegations and death of customers. He lives in Nottingham and is married to Jackie. He has four wonderful children; Chris, Andy, Harry, and Lily.
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+ adventure, child abuse, devil worship, family, fiction, gothic, Historical fiction, literature, London, loss, love, obsession, sisters, twins
The Fascination by Essie Fox Paperback Out Now
Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn’t grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father’s quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘Captain’.
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Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name. Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts.
But it is Theo’s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a dark web of deceits, exposing unthinkable secrets and threatening everything they know…
My Review
This was one of my favourite books of last year. I simply adored it. I don’t read that much historical fiction, but when I do it has to be unique and something special and this is. It’s the third book I read last year which involves music halls, entertainers and ‘freak shows’, and The Fascination did not disappoint.
It’s mainly the characters – Theo Seabrook, disowned grandson of Lord Seabrook, the twins Keziah and Tilly, sold by their quack medicine-man father to the mysterious ‘Captain’, Aleski Turgenev based on real-life Fedor Jeftichew, better known as the Dog-Faced Boy, a sideshow performer in Barnum’s circus, Martha who hid her face because of a disfiguring harelip and Dr Eugene Summerwell, owner of the Museum of Anatomy in London, who becomes Theo’s employer.
But it’s not just the characters. The setting is just as important. Dorney Hall is the seat of Lord Seabrook, with its freakish exhibits, its dark secret corridors and the ‘satanic gatherings ‘where ‘persons of quality’ would meet to engage in sordid practices akin to the real stories of the Hellfire Clubs of the eighteenth century. Linden House is where the twins, Captain, Aleski and Martha reside, while the aforementioned museum contains strange items like swan’s wings for sale and displays so-called freaks of nature. The music halls and theatres such as the famed Royal in Drury Lane is where Tilly performs.
For those still inclined to witness the bizarre, Victor Wynd’s Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art and Unnatural History can be found in East London, while equally macabre displays are to be found in the Hunterian Museum, currently owned by the Royal College of Surgeons. With thanks to the author for these and many more historical details.
The story follows Keziah (the first person narrator) and her twin sister Tilly from when they were assisting their father in selling his ‘elixir’ said to cure all ills. Their mother has died and Pa has found himself another woman. The girls are displayed with claims that Keziah, who took the elixir was grown to a ‘normal’ height, while Tilly refused and was now the size of a small child. In fact it was the other way round and Tilly was hooked on the medicine (probably a mixture of laudanum and other substances).
When one night the twins decide to escape, Pa catches them, thrashes them and finally sells them to the ‘Captain’. In the meantime, Theo (he is narrated from the third person point of view) has been thrown out of his home, because his grandfather has taken a new wife, who has produced a legitimate heir. Theo is the bastard son of Lord Seabrook’s dead daughter, Theodora.
Theo goes to live with his governess Miss Agnes Miller, but after a few years finds employment with Dr Summerwell at the museum. And so the links between Theo and the twins begin to reveal themselves, together with all manner of dreadful secrets and terrible goings-on at Dorney Hall.
The story is interwoven with the tale of Snow-White and Rose-Red as Keziah remembers her Ma saying that it was ‘a mirror of their own lives’.
Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours
About the Author
Essie Fox was born and raised in rural Herefordshire, which inspires much of her writing. After studying English Literature at Sheffield University, she moved to London where she worked for the Telegraph Sunday Magazine, and then book publishers George Allen & Unwin, before becoming self-employed in the world of art and design. Essie now spends her time writing historical gothic novels. Her debut, The Somnambulist, was shortlisted for the National Book Awards, and featured on Channel 4’s TV Book Club. The Last Days of Leda Grey, set in the early years of silent film, was selected as The Times Historical Book of the Month. Essie is also the creator of the popular blog: The Virtual Victorian. She has lectured on this era at the V&A, and the National Gallery in London.
Orenda Books is a small independent publishing company specialising in literary fiction with a heavy emphasis on crime/thrillers, and approximately half the list in translation. They’ve been twice shortlisted for the Nick Robinson Best Newcomer Award at the IPG awards, and publisher and owner Karen Sullivan was a Bookseller Rising Star in 2016. In 2018, they were awarded a prestigious Creative Europe grant for their translated books programme. Three authors, including Agnes Ravatn, Matt Wesolowski and Amanda Jennings have been WHSmith Fresh Talent picks, and Ravatn’s The Bird Tribunal was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award, won an English PEN Translation Award, and adapted for BBC Radio Four ’s Book at Bedtime. Six titles have been short- or long-listed for the CWA Daggers. Launched in 2014 with a mission to bring more international literature to the UK market, Orenda Books publishes a host of debuts, many of which have gone on to sell millions worldwide, and looks for fresh, exciting new voices that push the genre in new directions. Bestselling authors include Ragnar Jonasson, Antti Tuomainen, Gunnar Staalesen, Michael J. Malone, Kjell Ola Dahl, Louise Beech, Johana Gustawsson, Lilja Sigurðardóttir and Sarah Stovell.
+ adoption, brothers, child abuse, childhood, crime fiction, cult, family, fiction, kidnapping, murder, mystery, private investigator, review, satanism, secrets, thriller
The Advocates Conviction by Teresa Burrell
Sabre Orin Brown’s clients keep disappearing.
With seemingly no connection between the cases, Sabre enlists the help of her southern PI friend, JP, and her best friend, Bob, to find each of them–before it’s too late. In her race against the clock, Sabre must determine whether contemporary horrors are being buried in the shadow of dark traditions–or if it’s something else at work.
Genre: Thriller | Mystery
Pages: 327
Publisher: Silent Thunder Publishing
A conspiracy years in the making, secrets hidden for decades, and the twisted work of a mysterious society have all come together in the ultimate test of the strength of Sabre’s conviction.
My Review
Sabre Orin Brown is a Child Advocate Attorney, working with the courts. She has a lot going on, but in this story, the third in the series, we concentrate on two particular families.
Bailey is 14 years old and her home life is a nightmare. Her mother Karen is constantly high on some drug or other, while her mother’s boyfriend Scott is a total scumbag, who supplies her. Bailey is removed from the family home and sent to stay with a foster family. Cole is the eldest of the five Johnson children, but when their mother finds herself with problems, the children are split up and put into care.
Sabre’s problems begin when both Bailey and Cole run away, particularly Cole as he is only eight years old. He could be in serious danger.
Sabre has two colleagues to help her find the children – Bob who is also a Child Advocate Attorney and JP Torn, a Texan ex-police officer turned private investigator. JP is by far my favourite character with his ‘sayings’ and his stetson, because people are more likely to trust a cowboy.
But the issues with the missing children are just the tip of the iceberg, because something far more sinister is going on. The so-called ‘Devil House’ has been all over the news, complete with a pentagram drawn in blood and various other indications of satanism. But are Bailey and Cole somehow involved? Or is this just mass hysteria, whipped up by the media?
This is a very fast-paced book, which can easily be read as a standalone, with three likeable main protagonists and plenty of intrigue and suspense. I really enjoyed it.
Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #TheAdvocatesConviction #BlogTour.
About the Author
Teresa Burrell has dedicated her life to helping children and their families in both the courtroom and the classroom. She taught elementary school in the San Bernardino School District for twelve years before going to law school. As an attorney in San Diego, Burrell maintained a private law practice for twelve years, which specialized in domestic, criminal, and civil cases. Her work in juvenile court focused on representing abused minors and juvenile delinquents. Burrell has received several awards and special recognition from the San Diego Volunteer Lawyers for her countless hours of pro bono work with children and their families.
Burrell has also enjoyed a satisfying career as a teacher. She has taught children of all ages with diverse backgrounds and special needs. After creating an after-school program that kept kids off the street, she received a community service award.Now in semi-retirement in California, Burrell continues to educate groups about social issues impacting children and write novels, many of which are inspired by actual legal cases. She is the author of The Advocate Series which now contains fourteen novels all listed above. Teresa has a second series with a character named Tuper from The Advocate’s Felony. She has four books in that series. She also co-authored a legal-suspense novel with L.J. Sellers called NO CONSENT. Burrell has three children’s books in her Gaspar series that are fun for the whole family. Teresa’s favorite part of this profession is meeting her readers at events. She is available for speaking events such as book clubs, women’s groups, retired teachers, book events of all sorts, conferences, and anywhere that readers go. Please contact her if you’re interested.
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Lonely heart Barry thought Gina might be too good to be true. He was right.
Gina preys on vulnerable older men through online dating sites. She lures them in, uses them to set up a financial scam and then vanishes without trace.
But when an angry victim of her fraudulent scheme comes looking for Gina, Barry is drawn into deadly danger. He faces having to kill – or be killed.
The 23-Day Girlfriend will be published on Tuesday June 18. Here is the fabulous cover:
About the Author
Mark Eklid was an award-winning regional newspaper sports journalist before switching from cricket to crime thrillers.
The 23-Day Girlfriend is his sixth. His first novel was Sunbeam in 2019, followed by Family Business and Catalyst. The Murder of Miss Perfect and Blood on Shakespeare’s Typewriter were published through SpellBound Books.
All six are fast-moving, plot-twisting crime thrillers set in the city of his birth, Sheffield. Mark lives in Derby with his partner, Sue. They have two adult sons and have been adopted by a cat.
Website: markeklid.com
Facebook: @meklidauthor
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Instagram: @mark.eklid
A witty, fast-paced thriller, with a dash of mathematics and a large dose of danger.
Tom Winscombe and his ex-girlfriend Dorothy Chan are on a mission to crack a code – a code embedded in a chip inside two alpacas that used to belong to the famed dead mathematical geniuses, the Vavasor twins.
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Their search leads them to a secretive mathematical retreat at a country house. While there, various members of the party succumb to a succession of bizarre fatal accidents. Will Tom and Dorothy succeed in their mission – and get out alive?
Join Tom and a cast of disreputable and downright dangerous characters in this witty thriller set in a murky world of murder, mystery and complex equations.
My Review
“She dies from food poisoning and leaves everything to her cat…”
“What happened to the cat?” I said.
“….someone stole her just after Mrs Standage died.”
“Right,” said Dorothy. “But what if the cat were to turn up again?”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem,” said Munt. “She was a very old cat.”
“But what about any kittens she might have had?” said Dorothy.
Munt was temporarily lost for words. At this point, so was I. I knew this book was going to be good.
Fast-paced and often shocking, The Code Of The Vavasors is a hilarious romp into mathematics and murder. A strange combination, I know. This is actually the sixth book in the Vavasors series, but a lot of the previous goings on are briefly alluded to throughout the story, so it’s relatively easy to keep up.
Apart from the cat (which we don’t really hear much about later on), the book also includes two alpacas – Stephen and Dolores – who appear to have some kind of chip inside them, plus a bluetooth-enabled alpaca figurine, and an Angora rabbit called Mr Snuffletrousers. The figurine is up for auction, and our two main protagonists – Tom and Dorothy – try to buy it, because it is highly collectible by Vavasor fans. This is after they try to break into a cottage previously owned by the Vavasor twins where they find a dead body. The first of many I hasten to add. I may be getting confused here, but hopefully you are getting the gist.
Eventually they succeed in inveigling themselves into a mathematics-themed Vavasports weekend on a remote island, owned by a collector of Vavasor memorabilia, where hopefully they can recover the alpaca. The body count rises and it’s touch and go whether our intrepid heroes can get away with their deception. I’m exhausted just thinking about it, I probably need to go and lie down. Brilliant book – enjoy!
Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours
About the Author
Jonathan Pinnock is the author of Mrs Darcy versus the Aliens, the Scott Prize-winning short story collection Dot Dash, the memoir Take it Cool and the poetry collection Love and Loss and Other Important Stuff.
Northern California, end of summer. Fire Hazard Severity Zone: Very High.
A mysterious death.
On the anniversary of her mother’s death, CEO-in-waiting Robyn Sandoval goes for a morning run. She knows her father – a local fire fighting hero – is desperate to speak to her, to tell her something he wants her to know before she starts her new job leading the corporation that owns most of their Northern Californian town of Destino. But when Robyn arrives, she finds him dead.
A devastating fire.
Meanwhile, after months of drought, a freak forest fire ignites on the mountain ridge looming over the town. Destino has never burned; its unique position protected by the seemingly insurmountable barrier of the ridge, a favourable wind direction, and a belief long held by the community that they are categorically safe.
A life split in two.
Robyn is shaken to the core by her father’s death, and her life is shattered in two, the fabric of her reality shorn by the sheer force of her grief.
The next time she wakes, everything is different: her father is alive, and there’s no sign of the fire on the ridge.
To understand what is happening, she has to confront not only the secrets of her past but both versions of her present. Because back in her world, the fire is spreading and the time to find answers is running out…
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SALVATION HAS A PRICE.
An enthralling murder mystery with a vividly realised future world, forcing readers to grapple hard hitting questions about the climate crisis, our relationship with Artificial Intelligence and the price we would be willing to pay, as a species, to be saved. Perfect for fans of Blake Crouch, Neal Stephenson, Philip K Dick, Kim Stanley Robinson and RR Haywood.
Genre: Crime | Thriller | Mystery
Pages: 386
Publisher: Chainmaker Press
It’s 2050, a decade after a heatwave that killed four hundred million across the Persian Gulf, including journalist Marcus Tully’s wife. Now he must uncover the truth: was the disaster natural? Or is the weather now a weapon of genocide?
A whistleblower pulls Tully into a murder investigation at the centre of an election battle for a global dictator, with a mandate to prevent a climate apocalypse. A former US President campaigns against the first AI politician of the position, but someone is trying to sway the outcome.
Tully must convince the world to face the truth and make hard choices about the future of the species. But will humanity ultimately choose salvation over freedom, whatever the cost?
My Review
This brilliant book is now out in paperback!
I’m a huge fan of crime fiction and mysteries, but I don’t usually read techno thrillers. However, this one revolves around the climate crisis and what might happen if we don’t tackle it now. And that is something I am very interested in.
I don’t know anything about AI though and I found some of the concepts like ‘egospace’ and NR (Neuro Reality) a bit beyond me. Someone I was chatting to tried to explain that it’s like a TV series I’d never heard of and a bit like those virtual reality headsets. Well, I’m still none the wiser, but I think I get the egospace. It’s your own personal space, like the desktop on your computer before you go into the apps.
But back to the plot. Basically, it’s 2050 and a heatwave has killed four hundred million people across the Persian Gulf. Journalist Marcus Tully believes that it wasn’t inevitable – it was ‘pushed’ there from the US – and he has a vested interest in uncovering the truth. His wife Zainab died, carrying their unborn child. Were scientists and politicians using the weather as a weapon of mass destruction?
By now, the world will be governed by a single dictatorship, with just one leader. But who will it be? There are two candidates left from the original twenty – the former US president Lawrence G. Lockwood and Soloman, a highly sophisticated ‘artilect’, the first AI politician in the world. Which one would you trust? Imagine Lockwood was Donald Trump or Boris Johnson, but your only other choice is basically a machine, a robot to you and me, however cleverly put together.
I’d love to say this is total fiction, but it could really happen if we don’t address the climate crisis now. Instead of nations and religions fighting against each other, we all need to work together. But do we need a single dictator in charge of our salvation, or is that too high a price to pay? I’m not sure any price is too high if the alternative is the end of our species. Or is it?
For fans of technology, there’s a lot to get excited about, but whether they happen or not, they are just a distraction. The real crux of the story is the climate crisis. Followed by Artificial Intelligence (because it does have a good side), and the loss of our freedoms (will they be taken away if we keep making bad decisions). This book will certainly make you think.
Many thanks to @LiterallyPR for inviting me me to be part of the #ArtificialWisdom paperback blog tour.
About the Author
“I write stories about tomorrow to help make sense of today. My debut novel, Artificial Wisdom, launches in the UK in October 2023. Aside from writing, I’m a tech entrepreneur. My last startup was acquired by Just Eat Takeaway; my new one is still in stealth but backed by a major Silicon Valley tech accelerator.”
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Amateurs by Gill Oliver
Beth Collier, up-and-coming composer, is shamed into acting as accompanist for her mum’s amateur choir.
And yes, they have a lot to teach her. There’s no monopoly on talent, though; Alice, her brain-injured twin, has quite a voice, and leads her own band. But as the truth about the sisters’ upbringing unfolds, Beth confronts big questions about her own identity.
Genre: Contemporary | Humour | Disability Fiction
Publisher: Ah But Books
Set in the months before lockdown, against the backdrop of the bars and church halls of a great musical city – where everyone makes art and joking is a serious business – this novel takes you back to where the music started. In the heart.
With amateurs and professionals from formal and informal musical traditions, the playlist ranges from Rachmaninov to Mersey Beat. Alongside music, there’s the word, and Beth will have to overcome some issues there… The thrills and spills of language – loved, shared, sometimes lost, often misunderstood, but never owned – are constant themes, as a wide range of characters from different cultural tribes stumble around in search of what connects them.
My Review
Maybe it’s because I’m not a professional musician (or any sort of musician), that I find Beth’s constant negativity and wittering quite annoying. I wish I had her talent. She’s envious of her disabled sister, snobby about working with amateurs, but too full of self-doubt to put herself out there.
Beth is not a performer, she’s a composer, but when she doesn’t win a competition everyone thought she had in the bag, she starts to question her life. Then her mother asks her to play the piano for her community choir, the Lyceum Singers, and she reluctantly agrees. She’s known most of the singers all her life, they are lovely, but they are still ‘amateurs’, and she’s not too keen on the conductor. Until he leaves and is replaced by Theo. Then everything changes. Her ‘proper’ job is working for renowned composer Petra Laing at the university.
When Beth and Alice were five years old, Alice had a terrible accident which left her in a wheelchair, but also with a degree of brain damage. She’s much feistier than Beth and never turns down an opportunity. Alice would say, ‘Go for it, who cares about the rules.’ She says yes to everything. Good on you Alice. That’s my girl. Beth would be ‘Ah, but what if?’ Alice has her own band called Sky Blue Pink. They play covers and busk on the street. Alice is a brilliant singer. Beth is afraid of ‘words’. She likes her music ‘pure’.
As an aside, her ex Jaz Ander (I call him Jazz Hander) moved out after they tried living together for two weeks. She couldn’t stand him in her ‘space’ and constantly going on about the book he was writing. He found her annoyingly obsessive about her ‘space’. Then he wrote a piece for the Echo (he’s a journalist) about her relationship with her mother, which became known as the ‘Tiger Mother’ article and they both went ape. I don’t blame them.
Being a ‘Southerner’, the Liverpudlianisms (is that even a word?) went a bit over my head (there’s even a reference to people from the South of England at one point), as did a lot of the musical references, but don’t let any of that put you off. Amateurs is warm, funny and entertaining, and should be savoured over coffee (or tea) and biscuits. With friends, or even by joining a community choir (I did – just avoid the elitist chamber music) and sing your heart out to something like Les Mis or Phantom of the Opera. And if your choir needs a ‘kick up the butt’ (mine definitely didn’t), let them know discreetly by introducing new ideas.
Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #Amateurs blog tour
About the Author
“I was born in Liverpool, so I grew up with the belief that you could laugh at just about anything, starting with yourself. My earliest attempts at fiction were bedtime stories for my brothers and sister, which carried on long after they’d fallen asleep. Too much Chekhov at an early age meant I ended up studying Modern Languages instead of Eng Lit. I had to earn a living and found I loved teaching. I’ve worked in the Midlands, Essex and Dorset in a variety of roles, publishing teaching materials along the way.
“In fiction, I’m drawn to issues that trouble, inspire or amuse me. And I love language, so I might just play with that. I feel a responsibility to reflect the way we live now, rather than leaving it to some future historian. It’s not just a question of ‘writing what you know’ – in fact, it’s a good idea to write about what you want to know. But I have this delusion that in reflecting on the present, we help shape the future. It’s hard to find an art form which is better adapted than the novel to examining the light and shade of human experience, and taking us beyond events into the thoughts and feelings of others.
“I’m interested in real people, who find themselves in real situations. Pace, surprise, emotion, humour, crisp description – these are all things I aim to create. And to have fun doing it.”
Author’s Website: gilloliverauthor.com
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