My review…..

I am so glad I finally got around the reading The Hunt. I have LOVED it! I didn’t realise how much I had missed the banter between Hunter and the gang. Having read, and loved, Dirty Dix and Wicked Dix some time ago I was very excited to learn that Hunter was to have his own spin off novel.

I have to say, if you’re at all prudish and/or offended by swearing/explicit language then this is definitely not the book for you. Otherwise, I highly recommend you have a read for yourself. I don’t read many erotic romance novels which you will already know if you’re a regular reader of my blog, but maybe I should as this book was pure escapism. I think maybe I’m worried that others might not be so well written. Monica James’ books might be raunchy (to put it mildly!), but they’re beautifully written love stories, full of raw emotion, depth and lovable, interesting, believable characters.

I was totally immersed in Hunter’s story. Monica James has a way of writing characters who I instantly like and find myself easily caring about, (however much of a ‘manwhore’ they are!). I did want to bang Hunter’s and Mary’s heads together on more than one occasion and I haven’t felt that way whilst reading a book since….. erm……Dixon and Madison! I didn’t buy Mary’s hatred of Hunter for a second or Hunter’s attempt at hiding his true feelings for Mary. They are a prime example of people not communicating effectively. The sexual tension between them is palpable and as frustrating as they both are at times, their jealousy is also quite amusing. Some of Hunter’s jealous thoughts are hilarious and had me laughing out loud! As a woman I can totally sympathise with Mary’s fears and insecurities, but I was so routing for them both to get their acts together and just allow themselves to be happy.

I thoroughly enjoyed this emotional roller-coaster of a love story.

I think The Hunt can be read as a standalone, but I highly recommend you read Dirty Dix and Wicked Dix first, if for no other reason than because they’re just brilliant!

Previous posts featuring Monica James and her books…..

Dirty Dix by Monica James

Wicked Dix (A Hard Love Romance Book 2) by Monica James

Q&A with author, Monica James

Flashback Friday with @lucydawsonbooks @TAWilliamsBooks @monicajames81 @TanyaBullock15 @Marcie_Steele

I am delighted to be joining in with Nikki Crutchley’s Nothing Bad Happens Here blog tour! 🙂

Many thanks to Rachel.

Nothing Bad Happens Here

She looked away from his face and took in the clear spring night, full of stars. Her last thoughts were of her mother. Would she finally care, when one day they found her body, and a policeman came knocking at her door?

The body of missing tourist Bethany Haliwell is found in the small Coromandel town of Castle Bay, where nothing bad ever happens. News crews and journalists from all over the country descend on the small seaside town as old secrets are dragged up and gossip is taken as gospel.

Among them is Miller Hatcher, a journalist battling her own demons, who arrives intent on gaining a promotion by covering the grisly murder.

Following an anonymous tip, Miller begins to unravel the mystery of the small town. And when another woman goes missing, Miller finds herself getting closer to the truth. But at what cost?

Purchase Link –

Amazon: http://a.co/7y5bFY8

Author Bio –

After seven years of working as a librarian in New Zealand and overseas, Nikki now works as a freelance proofreader and copy editor. She lives in the small Waikato town of Cambridge in New Zealand with her husband and two girls. Nikki has been writing on and off her whole life and recently has had success in flash fiction. She has been published in Flash Frontier, Flash Fiction Magazine and Mayhem Literary Journal, and has also had a story published in the Fresh Ink Anthology. Crime/thriller/mystery novels are her passion. Nothing Bad Happens Here is her first novel, set on the Coromandel Coast of New Zealand.

Website: http://www.nikkicrutchley.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/NikkiCrutchleyAuthor/

Twitter https://twitter.com/NikkiCAuthor

Follow the rest of the blog tour with these awesome book bloggers for reviews and more!

Enjoy!

My review…..

If Ever I Fall has been sitting on my Netgalley list for far too long (my apologies to the author and publisher) so I thought it was about time I bumped it to the top of my list and I am very glad that I did. It isn’t an easy read by any means. It’s full of emotion and raw grief, but it’s quite beautifully written. It’s going to be one of those books which is hard to review though as it would be so easy to give too much away.

Maria and Dan have struggled with their marriage since losing their 14 year old daughter. I can’t even imagine how any parent copes with such a devastating loss. People handle grief differently so I found both of their ways of coping quite believable. Dan threw himself into work, which I think is fairly common, but he’s struggling. Maria feels alone with her grief. She spends her spare time writing letters to her lost daughter, as a sort of therapy. They have to try to cope somehow as they have a younger daughter to think about, but their marriage is breaking down. How do you move on as a family from something so horrendously heartbreaking?

Jack is an interesting character. He finds himself at a house with a bloke claiming to be a doctor looking after him after a fall, but he has no recollection of how he got there, why he’s there or anything about his past. He’s not even sure he believes his name is Jack and he’s determined to find out the truth.

I was intrigued as to how Maria & Dan’s and Jack’s stories would link and was surprised when I realised the truth.

Have a read for yourself. I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

*Many thanks to the author and publisher for my copy via Netgalley.*

Description…..

’A heart-breaking tale of love, grief and devotion’ THE SUN

‘Exceptionally beautiful, emotionally charged and inspirational’
MIRANDA DICKINSON, Sunday Times bestseller

‘A wonderfully told tale of devastation, grief and ultimately hope’
KATHRYN HUGHES, bestselling author of THE LETTER and THE SECRET

Is holding on harder than letting go?

Dan’s life has fallen apart at the seams. He’s lost his house, his job is on the line, and now he’s going to lose his family too. All he’s ever wanted is to keep them together, but is everything beyond repair?

Maria is drowning in grief. She spends her days writing letters that will never be answered. Nights are spent trying to hold terrible memories at bay, to escape the pain that threatens to engulf her.

Jack wakes up confused and alone. He doesn’t know who he is, how he got there, or why he finds himself on a deserted clifftop, but will piecing together the past leave him a broken man?

In the face of real tragedy, can these three people find a way to reconcile their past with a new future? And is love enough to carry them through?

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming John Mayer to Chat About Books 🙂 

Many thanks to John’s wife, Lizzie, for arranging the following interview.

Q. Could you tell us about yourself and your series of books?

A. I was born into severe poverty and malnutrition: which very nearly killed me. I mean that at aged only seven months and suffering from raging pneumonia, I was so near death that I wasn’t expected to last the night. I have a very rare blood type and the hospital I was in didn’t have any. I only survived because a visiting doctor did something quite unconventional. He hooked up a line between my mother and myself, then pumped her blood into me and my penicillin soaked blood into a bucket. I was allergic to the stuff they’d been pumping in to me. That was the first of several times that I’ve been close to death. For instance, I’ve been shot, twice; once in New York City and once in Glasgow. Don’t ask what happened to the other guys. Those experiences and being naturally clever and ambitious have led me through a very unusual life. Knowing that teams of doctors can be wrong, led me at an early age to always question authority. Later in life as an Advocate in Parliament House, when questioning expert witnesses, I never ask anything to which I don’t already know the correct answer and can prove it.

I’ve always been an outsider and rather enjoy my Parliament House nickname; which is Maverick. I believe that to be a really good writer of drama, one must not only master the syntactical craft, but also convey real events and not just imagined ones. When I started to write The Parliament House Books, I swore to myself that I would only fictionalise events which had really happened to me, my clients or other Advocates and their clients. I’ve varied that proposition somewhat as the series has developed, but a sense of that rule is at the core of every story I write. The actual Parliament House in Edinburgh houses Scotland’s Supreme Courts and is 500 years old. Hundreds of horrific and dramatic events have happened in that old place and after practising law there for twenty years, I know them all.

I am slightly autistic and believe my depth of perception is greater than people who aren’t. That leads me to observe people and events from the outside as well as the inside. When I was a kid, I was smarter than everybody else around me, which made many other kids jealous and led to so many fights I can’t remember them all. When I was older, I was more ambitious; in fact fiercely so. That too put me on the outside of the pack. I’ll always remember my English teacher, Mr Thomson, telling me that I was a born storyteller but there was more money in being a lawyer: ‘You could be either’ he said. I’m sure he’d be proud if he knew I’d been both.

Q. Are any of your characters based (however loosely) on anyone you know?

A. Oh yes. I’ve known some great characters; some who come from the slums of Glasgow but others who are aristocratic. Among both groups are people upon whom you could trust with your life while others are simply low life in high places. I have a soft spot for two of my supporting characters; both of whom are real. The first is Ababuo – an African child stolen for money and sent into prostitution. I acted for her in court and after winning her right to return home, I arranged for Richard Branson to fly her back to Africa on his inaugural flight from London to Johannesburg. The other character is also a girl. This one is only eight years old, the daughter of my neighbour. She’s a bright and precocious child, whom I like very much; so I extrapolated her life to age twenty four, made her an Advocate in Parliament House and made a key player in the central plot of The Trust. Others though are straight-out real. Tucker Queen for instance, is a character from my past who was a real gangland messenger who would put a big rat through someone’s door in the night with a message tied to its tail. Some of the Judges in The Parliament House Books are real. The good guys are only thinly disguised.

Q. Can you share your writing process with us, in a nutshell?

A. Sure. From reading about other successful authors, I’m fairly sure I don’t write in a conventional way. That’s no surprise to me because throughout my life I’ve never done anything in a conventional way. I don’t plot, I don’t plan, I don’t follow the usual Shakespearian three act play format. You’ll see reflections of these things in my stories, but

I’m not by any means a slave to format. Again, that’s because I’m a free man in every respect. If I feel like going out in a heavy sea to catch octopus from my fishing boat, then that’s what I do. I sometimes write when I’m quite drunk because I express the truth more brutally that way. I check what I’ve written when I’ve sobered up, but I rarely change much. My wife has barred me from social media because she thinks I reveal too much truth. I don’t think so, but marriage is compromise, so I only write mundanity on it. It’s actually quite a challenge for me to write mundanity, so it’s good for me in a ridiculous kind of way.

I start each book with a word. One single evocative word, which becomes the title: ie, The Cross, The Trial, The Cycle, The Order, The Bones, The Trust. I’m sure the fact that all of my titles begin with ‘The’ and the operative word has five letters has a lot to do with my autism. Each is a subject which is capable of developing many subordinate stories under an overarching principal event. I start with a feeling that the reader will enjoy a book about a particular subject. I then write a three line peripatetic scheme consisting of a Premise, a Development, and a logical Conclusion. Can you tell that I’m a big fan of Aristotle? If I can twist and stretch that scheme to my satisfaction, then I begin. I do enjoy writing ethereal chapters where it’s not clear who is dying, or feels guilty, or is making a decision. I also enjoy the thrill of sometimes unexpectedly, reaching a moral counterpoint between those in their ‘High Places in Parliament House’ and those – perhaps junkie parents – who are telling the truth. I don’t plan those chapters. In my crazy mixed up muddled up intellect, they just demand to be written. Many people in reviews have called that genius. It’s not. It’s just very unusual and quite attractive to readers, I suppose.

It follows, of course, that I don’t have any rituals about writing times or periods. I write when the mood takes me. If, instead of writing, I fancy going out to walk in the rain, then that’s what I do. I once wrote a very successful non-fiction book called Nuclear Peace and went on a ten-week promotional tour of America. My biggest audience was 44 million people; on American School Radio. Sometimes when I want to daydream, I imagine them listening to me reading from that book and remember taking their phoned-in questions. Well, this may have been a longer answer than you wanted, so I’ll stop there.

Q. If you could invite any fictional character for coffee, who would it be and where would you take them?

A. What a great question! It would be Josef K from Franz Kafka’s ‘The Trial’. I’d take him to the Reading Room of the Advocates’ Library in Parliament House in Edinburgh so that he could be imbibed in my world while I ask him questions about Eastern Europe in the late 1940s. I’d be fascinated to know more about how Kafka’s mind worked; though after writing my own novel called ‘The Trial’ as an homage to Kafka and now being in my fourth novel in The Parliament House Books, I think I know Kafka better than I did when I started.

Q. If you could meet any author, who would it be and what would you ask them?

A. It would absolutely have to be Franz Kafka, the day after I’d met his character Josef K in the Reading Room of Parliament House and of course, I’d have to ask him the same questions as I did his character the day before. That would deepen my insight into Kafka and nothing would give me greater pleasure. That was a very clever question. Thanks for asking it.

Q. Were you a big reader as a child?

A. No. Not at all. The thing I did read a lot of was comic books. I had thousands of them and used to go round to other kids’ houses to do swaps. We didn’t have TV and the radio was all politics and News. I won books as prizes at school but always found them boring. By the time I was a teenager I was hooked on Radio Luxemburg and my world was filled with Music Music Music. I loved the way some people like Paul McCartney could write songs. Songs were my big love, not the written word.

Q. When did you start to write?

A. Gosh, I’ve been writing for so long I’ve forgotten when I started. I’ve written all kinds of things from newspaper articles, journal articles, legal text books, my non-fiction book Nuclear Peace was published in hardback and I’ve written so many legal pleadings that I couldn’t count them all. I started The Parliament House Books series a little over three years ago and I’m loving it. It’s a thrill every time to get a five star review from a stranger.

Q. If you wrote an autobiography, what would your title be?

A. Second Class Citizen.

Q. What are you working on right now?

A. I’m working on the fifth novel in The Parliament House Books series called The House. This time the central character Brogan McLane QC is called upon to help his old community ‘The Calton’ in Glasgow which is facing demolition. But there’s more to the story than just the decision of Glasgow City Council that they want to extend a motorway link. Much more!

Q. Tell us about your last release?

A. The last book in The Parliament House Books series was The Trust. Trust is at the heart of every legal system and when it’s broken, many things jam up or collapse in pieces. The results can be catastrophic for the people involved: unless you have someone who’s prepared to risk all to put the shattered pieces of trust back together again.

Q. How can readers keep in touch with you?

A. Write a Review for Amazon.

FB https://www.facebook.com/theparliamenthousebooks/

Web : https://parliamenthousebooks.weebly.com/

E : johnmayerauthor@gmail.com

Q. Is there anything else you would like us to know?

A. Only that I’m grateful to all those who take the time to leave a Review on Amazon. These really are the life-blood of authors. I hope you enjoy The Parliament House Books.

Many thanks for taking the time to answer my questions, John 🙂

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John Mayer’s Amazon Author Page

Enjoy!

Today I welcome back Ammar Habib. You may remember our interview a little while back. If not, don’t worry, I’ll add the link at the end. In the meantime, check out his new release…..

Ana Rocha: Shadows of Justice

By

Ammar Habib & Glenda Mendoza

Logline:

Based on the experiences of a former narcotics officer comes this excited police novel!

Premise:

Ana Rocha is a woman on fire. Being talented and from a well-off family, Ana could have become anything. But driven by her sister’s murder, Ana chose the path of an undercover narcotics officer. Ana has made a vow to help clean up the streets of Houston. The journey her duty takes her on forces her to confront her worst nightmares and face the city’s most ruthless criminals. The further she goes down this path, the more the line between her two lives begins to blur. And soon, this journey brings her face-to-face with a monster from her past

About Glenda:

Glenda Mendoza has two decades of experience in law enforcement in the Greater Houston Area. She has served in many capacities, including working as a jailor, patrol officer, certified mental health officer, narcotics investigator, and special investigative unit (SIU) involving various vice investigations. Her experiences helped keep this novel authentic and ensured that Ana Rocha’s character remained true to life. Glenda currently works as a Threat Management Detective.

About Ammar:

Ammar Habib is a bestselling and award winning author who was born in Lake Jackson, Texas in 1993. Ammar enjoys crafting stories that are not only entertaining, but will also stay with the reader for a long time. Ammar presently resides in his hometown with his family, all of whom are his biggest fans. He draws his inspiration from his family, imagination, and the world around him. Ammar is currently continuing to further his writing career.

For questions or more information about the novel, please feel free to email Ammar at: ahabibwr@yahoo.com

Don’t forget to check out our previous interview ⇓⇓⇓

#AuthorInterview with Ammar Habib @AmmarAHabib1

Enjoy!

A Spell in the Country

“Dee is a Good Witch but she wonders if she could be a better witch.

She wonders if there’s more to life than Disney movie marathons, eating a whole box of chocolates for dinner and brewing up potions in her bathtub. So when she’s offered a chance to go on a personal development course in the English countryside, she packs her bags, says goodbye to the Shelter for Unloved Animals charity shop and sets a course for self-improvement.

Caroline isn’t just a Good Witch, she’s a fricking awesome witch.

She likes to find the easy path through life: what her good looks can’t get for her, a few magic charms can. But she’s bored of being a waitress and needs something different in her life. So when a one night stand offers her a place on an all-expenses-paid residential course in a big old country house, she figures she’s got nothing to lose.

Jenny is a Wicked Witch. She just wishes she wasn’t.

On her fifteenth birthday, she got her first wart, her own imp and a Celine Dion CD. She still has the imp. She also has a barely controllable urge to eat human children which is socially awkward to say the least and not made any easier when a teenager on the run turns to her for help. With gangsters and bent cops on their trail, Jenny needs to find a place outside the city where they can lay low for a while.

For very different reasons, three very different witches end up on the same training course and land in a whole lot of trouble when they discover that there’s a reason why their free country break sounds too good to be true. Foul-mouthed imps, wererats, naked gardeners, tree monsters, ghosts and stampeding donkeys abound in a tale about discovering your inner witch.”

Purchase Links

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B078NRFL93/

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078NRFL93/

Interview with Heide Goody & Iain Grant…..

For those who don’t know already, could you tell us about yourself and your book(s) please?

Hi, we’re Heide Goody and Iain Grant and we co-wrote ‘A Spell in the Country’. We write comedy novels together and A Spell in the Country is our tenth novel. In this book, three modern day witches – Jenny, Caroline and Dee – meet at a residential training course for witches. They’re there for very different reasons: Dee is looking for some self-improvement and some self-discovery, Caroline is just looking for a good time, and Jenny is on the run because some very dangerous characters are trying to find her. There’s laughs and adventures and a hidden mystery. It’s like an all-girl Harry Potter story for grown-ups.

Where did/do you get your ideas from?

We get ideas from everywhere. We like to start with a big concept for the novel. The concept for ‘A Spell in the Country’ started off as ‘Private Benjamin with witches’. I believe it came as a result of a train journey that we took together. We wanted to come up with some ideas for future novels so we jotted film titles on pieces of paper and then combined them to see what emerged. This is such good fun that we have now implemented a version on our website for anyone to play with. You can find it here: http://www.pigeonparkpress.com/random-story-generator

How do you pick your characters names?

We go through various processes to pick character names. We do believe that names should tell us something about the character, even if it’s only a hint at their age and social background. But, with A Spell in the Country, we did something we’ve never done before. We reached out to an on-line book group – THE Book Club on Facebook, which has over 8,000 members – and asked members if they would let us use their names for our characters. We had so many volunteers so we could really pick names that we felt matched the temperaments of our characters. So, when you read A Spell in the Country and the exploits of Jenny Knott, Caroline Black and Dee Finch, remember that those are real people out there in the world somewhere (although we cannot guarantee that they’re actually witches).

Can you share your writing process with us, in a nutshell?

We meet up to plan, but we do all of the writing separately.

We plan out roughly what will happen in each chapter, and then when we get close to writing it we brainstorm ideas and jokes for the chapter.

We have various models for working, but our favourite model is to write two chapters at the same time. One of us writes a synopsis for a chapter. We swap over so that we write a chapter based on the other’s synopsis, then we swap back for an edit.

Who are your top 5 favourite authors?

As a writing team, one of the first things we did was discuss which writers we both admire. We have been avid readers of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. If we could have but an ounce of the storyteller’s craft from one and the warm humour of the other then we’d be very happy

Were you a big reader as a child?

Iain: I devoured books as a child, two or three novels a week. I remember progressing from Enid Blyton’s Magic Faraway Tree books to the Target Dr Who novelisations to the fantasy novels of Tolkien, Anne McCaffrey, Terry Brooks and then Terry Pratchett who was clearly a big influence on the novels I enjoy writing today.

Heide: I also loved Enid Blyton as a child. I then found a huge stash of paperbacks in our garage. I read the James Bond novels and became hooked on The Saint books. I was a member of The Saint fan club as a sixteen year old!

When did you start to write?

Iain: I sometimes think that question should be ‘why didn’t you stop writing?’ because most children will write little books for their own amusement. I remember starting to write what I thought would be a novel at about the age of thirteen (I seem to recall it was about an evil bounty hunter called Scruncho!). I wrote my first actual novel at the age of nineteen, a futuristic murder mystery. I must have written at least five or six books in the years that followed until I wrote one that I thought was publishable (it wasn’t). Nearly, twenty years after thinking I could be a ‘proper’ writer, I wrote my first published novel, Clovenhoof, with Heide.

Heide: I have always written, but I made a decision around 1998 to take it seriously and I joined a local writers’ evening class where I learned a lot from tutor Keith Lindsay who’s a sitcom writer. Bringing up children distracted me for a while, but in 2010 I joined Birmingham Writers’ Group, which was an enormous boost. I finished short stories, finished a novel and started writing with Iain, who was also in the group.

If you could re-write the ending to any book what would it be and what would you change?

Heide: Would you believe the first money I ever made from writing was for doing just that? There was a competition to re-write the ending of a famous book. I chose Brighton Rock and changed the ending so it wasn’t so bleak for Rose. I won £100

What are you working on right now?

We’re always working on the next book or, more often, the book after the next book. We’re currently writing books 7 and 8 in the Clovenhoof series. Yes, we’re writing both at the same time. We hope they will be published later in 2018, although with the third book in our Oddjobs series and another comedy novel. 2018 could be the year in which we published five full-length novels. Let’s see!

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day?

There’s the public celebrations which are sometimes physical launch parties and sometimes virtual launch parties on Facebook (which are a lot of fun). There’s also the private celebration. We’ve instigated a celebration now referred to as the Spousemeal. Whenever we’ve finished a book, we take our spouses out and all go for a celebratory meal. At these, Simon and Amanda (our other halves) attempt to eat/drink all profits that our book might make. They sometimes succeed.

How can readers keep in touch with you?

We are on Facebook, under Clovenhoof Books, or take a look at our website http://www.pigeonparkpress.com/.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, Heide & Iain.

Author Bio –

Heide Goody is the stupid one in the writing partnership and Iain Grant is the sensible one. Together, they are the authors of seven novels, two short story collections and a novella.

The ‘Clovenhoof’ series (in which Satan loses his job and has to move to Birmingham) has recently been optioned by a Hollywood production company. Their latest novel, Oddjobs 2: this time it’s personnel, was published in August 2017.

Heide and Iain are both married, but not to each other.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Clovenhoof-Books-285544508177333/

Website: http://www.pigeonparkpress.com/

Twitter: @HeideGoody and @IainMGrant

Giveaway –

Win a Witch’s Pamper Package (Open Internationally)

The package, worth over £100 contains…

· A lacy gothic bracelet

· A witch’s hat fascinator

· A pair of green and black stripy tights

· A Yankee candle in “Forbidden Apple”

· A set of wand-shaped makeup brushes

· A gothic notebook (for spells!)

· A bookmark featuring a squashed witch (with just the legs sticking out!)

· A gemstone ring

· A gorgeous coffin-shaped vegan eyeshadow palette from Lunatick Cosmetic labs (with a bat-shaped mirror)

Enter here ↓↓↓

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

Follow the rest of the blog tour with these awesome book bloggers…..

Enjoy!

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Michael Bearcroft to Chat About Books as part of his Dangerous Score blog tour.

Many thanks to Rachel.

Interview with Michael Bearcroft…..

For those who don’t know already, could you tell us about yourself and your book(s) please?

I have been involved in soccer for all of my life, as a player, manager, sponsor, club director and chairman….so it made sense, when writing my first book, a thriller, ‘Dangerous Score’, to set it in the world of soccer.

Where did/do you get your ideas from?

I read two books a month, so I guess I have formed ideas from those, also from the changes I have seen and changes I would like to see happen in the future, whether it be from soccer, the business world, law or people in general.

Are any of your characters based (however loosely) on anyone you know?

Not on any one person in particular, but I have met so many different people from all walks of life during my lifetime which has certainly helped me to build the characters in the book.

How do you pick your characters names?

Soccer players usually have nick names within the team, so once I had decided the position, build and expertise of each player, I could then very easily put a name and nick-name to those players. Other characters were formed by their stature and looks and named accordingly. For instance the hero Jason resembled the celebrity George Clooney and the heroine Jessica was a Catherine Zeta-Jones look-a-like!

Can you share your writing process with us, in a nutshell?

I write a vague outline of the whole story then break it down to three parts, beginning/middle/end, then as I start to write, the characters themselves seem to drive the story forward, creating situations and reacting to them in the way their characters would. I found I was then following the story rather than writing it!

Who are your top 5 favourite authors?

CJ Sansom, Gregg Isles, Mark Gimenez, Antholy Horowitz and Harlem Coben.

If you could meet any author, who would it be and what would you ask them?

I would love to meet Anthony Horowitz whose memorable characters include Foyle from Foyles War and Sherlock Holmes from his novel Moriarty. I would ask him how it felt to be chosen to write a new Sherlock Holmes novel and how did he tackle it?

Were you a big reader as a child?

I have been an avid reader from the age of six….with a very eclectic mix in literature.

When did you start to write?

I wrote commercial copy as part of my career in sales and marketing. Later in life I penned murder mystery and pantomime scripts for both professional and amateur companies. Then following a triple heart bypass I decided to try my hand at a novel…to aid recovery!

If you could re-write the ending to any book what would it be and what would you change?

Dominion by CJ Sansom writes about a different WW11 scenario to the real one, a bit like SSGB by Len Deighton. I am not capable of improving a CJ Sansom ending….BUT….I would have liked to have known what happened to the central characters and what happened to the UK after the war.

Is there a book you wish you had written?

There are hundreds of books I wish I had written but most of all The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, which is such a timeless classic. I would’ve loved to have played ‘Toad’ as he was a wonderful character!

If you wrote an autobiography, what would your title be?

‘Variety Has Been My Spice of Life!’ which is also the title of my talk as a guest speaker for various organisations.

If you could invite any fictional character for coffee who would it be and where would you take them?

I would live to meet Flashman from the George Macdonald Fraser books and take him to Trellisick House in Cornwall where I think he’d be very much at home!

What are you working on right now?

I’m actually working on a second ‘talk’ to add to my Guest Speaker repertoire, based on business and charity working together, which I touch on in Dangerous Score.

Do you have a new release due?

I have no new release due at present as I am really busy with talks, interviews and promoting Dangerous Score before I pen the sequel.

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day

There was a press conference at Everton Football Club in Liverpool for Dangerous Score and an appearance on TV news, followed by a few glasses of champagne and a late night!

How can readers keep in touch with you?

Anyone can keep in touch via my website at www.dangerousscore.co.uk where they can contact me via Facebook, Twitter, email or phone.

Is there anything else you would like us to know?

Dangerous Score in either paperback or hardback can be bought from Amazon, or via my website where signed copies can be ordered. As human trafficking plays quite a big part in my book, I joined forces with the anti slavery charity Hope for Justice, so I hope that readers feel motivated to help organisations fighting this terrible injustice.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, Michael 🙂

Dangerous Score

Football hero Jason Clooney is riding high….until a date with a beautiful woman lands him in trouble with the media, and into battle with the criminal underworld.

Now against a backdrop of an uncertain professional future, Jason has to confront disturbing revelations surrounding his new girlfriend’s family. From football action on the pitch to behind the scenes plotting. To battles with a criminal gang and constant media attention, all adding to the toughest challenges he has ever faced in life, love, as a player and as a man.

Purchase from Amazon:

http://amzn.to/2BAaf6j

About Michael Bearcroft

Ex Sheffield United Junior, former Chairman Corby Town FC Actor and stage director, former British Red Cross Regional Director

Website: http://michaelbearcroftdangerousscore.co.uk/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/dangerousscore/

Twitter – https://twitter.com/mikebearcroft1

Giveaway –

Win 3 x Signed Copies of Dangerous Score by Michael Bearcroft (Open Internationally)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

You can follow the rest of the blog tour with these awesome book bloggers…..

Enjoy!

For the first time ever on Chat About Books I’m delighted to share a DOUBLE cover reveal with you all! 🙂

Many thanks to Rachel.

A FALLING FRIEND

There are two sides to every friendship.

After spending her twenties sailing the globe, making love on fine white sand, and thinking only of today, Teri Meyer returns to Yorkshire – and back into the life of childhood friend Lee. Plus, there’s the new job, new man – or three – and the guaranteed lump sum of a bursary for her academic research piece on the way. Life is first-rate.

What could possibly go wrong?

Going out on a limb to get best friend Teri a job at the same university seemed like a great idea. But it doesn’t take long for Lee Harper to notice a pattern. Teri seems to attract trouble, or maybe she creates it, and Lee can see exactly where things are spiralling – downwards. But Teri’s not the sort to heed a warning, so Lee has no choice but to stand by and watch.

And besides, she has her own life to straighten out.

For fans of BRIDGET JONES, this ‘witty’ chick lit has been described as a ‘rollicking good read’ and is the first in the FRIENDS trilogy following the lives of two thirty-something women, who, despite their close friendship, don’t always see eye-to-eye.

Amazon US =

https://www.amazon.com/Falling-Friend-Sue-Featherstone-ebook/dp/B01CADXSTO/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1456884720&sr=8-8&keywords=a+falling+friend

Amazon UK =

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Falling-Friend-Sue-Featherstone-ebook/dp/B01CADXSTO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1456884839&sr=8-1&keywords=a+falling+friend

Barnes & Noble =

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-falling-friend-sue-featherstone/1123542570?ean=9780994451156

Goodreads =

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28791887-a-falling-friend?ac=1&from_search=1

A FORSAKEN FRIEND

No-one said friendship was easy.

Things can’t get much worse for Teri Meyer. If losing her job at the university and the regular allowance from her dad’s factory isn’t bad enough, now her ex-best friend has gone and stolen her ex-husband! Well, to hell with them all. A few weeks in the countryside at her brother’s smallholding should do the trick – and the gorgeous and god-like neighbour might help.

But then there’s Declan, not to mention Duck’s Arse back in Yorkshire…

It’s not as if Lee Harper set out to fall in love with her best friend’s ex-husband. But, for once, her love life is looking up – except for all the elephants in the room, not to mention Mammy’s opinion on her dating a twice-divorced man. Perhaps things aren’t as rosy as she first thought. And now with one family crisis after another, Lee’s juggling more roles – and emotions – than she ever imagined.

Maybe sharing her life with a man wasn’t such a grand idea.

The FRIENDS trilogy continues in this heartwarming and hilarious hoot as two best friends navigate men, careers, family and rock bottom in this brilliant sequel to A FALLING FRIEND.

Amazon.US –

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079KY1WF8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1517804411&sr=1-1&keywords=A+Forsaken+Friend

Amazon UK –

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B079KY1WF8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1517804278&sr=8-1&keywords=A+Forsaken+friend

About the Authors

Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape are both former newspaper journalists with extensive experience of working for national and regional papers and magazines, and in public relations.

More recently they have worked in higher education, teaching journalism – Sue at Sheffield Hallam and Susan at Leeds Trinity University.

The pair, who have been friends for 25 years, wrote two successful journalism text books together – Newspaper Journalism: A Practical Introduction and Feature Writing: A Practical Introduction (both published by Sage).

Their debut novel, A Falling Friend, published by Lakewater Press, has been followed by a second book, A Failing Friend, in their Friends trilogy.

Sue, who is married with two grown-up daughters, loves reading, writing and Nordic walking in the beautiful countryside near her Yorkshire home.

Susan is married and lives in a village near Leeds, and, when not writing, loves walking and cycling in the Yorkshire Dales. She is also a member of a local ukulele orchestra. They blog about books at https://bookloversbooklist.com/

You can find both Sue and Susan on Twitter: @SueF_Writer and @wordfocus

Check out this Giveaway…..

One winner will receive an e-book of A FALLING FRIEND and an e-ARC of A FORSAKEN FRIEND as well as a wine voucher!

Click here ↓↓↓

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Good luck!

Vicky & Lizzie’s First Period

Bloody Hell! All together now… There were two girls called Vicky & Lizzie Who kept the Academy busy Causing trouble and mirth For all they were worth Sending teachers right into a tizzy They kicked-off a false, nasty rumour That one of the staff was a groomer For everyone knows Gossip spreads out and grows But the school didn’t quite see the humour Would Vicky & Lizzie regret All the damage they caused? Nah, not yet Scheming, conniving The girls kept on vying A dangerous precedent was set Vicky & Lizzie delivered a blitz On a school at the end of its wits Did they care? Did they f**k They were common as muck Those nasty, vindictive young s#!ts This might cause upset and uproar It’s a musical satire, what’s more For the first time ever We promise you’ve never Read anything like this before So pick up your copy today Of a story about which you will say That I wanted to barf But so hard I did laugh Vicky & Lizzie have just made my day!

Purchase on Amazon:

http://amzn.to/2E6h5kO

Sneak preview…..

Lizzie slammed her rucksack on the wall outside the school. A torrent of students poured around them, making their way into the grounds.

Vicky pulled out her mobile phone and looked at the screen. ‘It’s only eight-twenty. We’re well early. How much did we get?’

Lizzie held up her hand and counted the gold and silver metal in her palm.

‘Dunno, hard to tell, I need to count it. Looks like about fifteen quid.’

‘It’s not enough, man,’ Vicky slapped Lizzie on the back. The brunette nearly dropped the coins to the floor. ‘We need to rake in some more cash.’

‘Be careful!’

The school buzzer blasted around the school ground entrance. Vicky looked over at the stone fountain that sat in the patio grounds. ‘Got any stuff left?’

‘Yeah, loads,’ Lizzie pocketed the coins and emptied the contents of her shirt into the rucksack. ‘Got all these fanny pads I stole, too.’

‘What are we gonna do with those, man?’

‘Dunno, yet.’ Lizzie zipped up her rucksack. She was about to lift it over her shoulders when a handsome young boy and his friend came into view.

Time seemed to slow down. The taller of the two boys, Jonnie Barron, shot Lizzie a shit-eating grin as they approached.

‘Hey, Jonnie,’ Lizzie said, fluttering her eyelashes at him.

Jonnie snorted and bopped his little bespectacled friend, Sam, on the shoulder. ‘Yeah, whatever.’

‘Have a good weekend?’

‘Yeah, mate,’ Jonnie chuckled. ‘Spent it wanking over your Skullbook photos, didn’t I?’

‘What?’ Lizzie gasped as Vicky burst out laughing. ‘That’s gross, man!’

‘Go fuck your Dad.’

Lizzie liked Jonnie, and made damn sure he knew that she didn’t appreciate his rude remark. Jonnie made amends.

‘I’m sorry, that wasn’t right.’

Lizzie looked up, ready to forgive his apology. ‘That’s okay, Jon—’

‘—I meant step-dad. He’s not your real Dad, is he?’

‘No.’

‘Cool. So you can fuck him and it won’t be against the law, then.’

Jonnie and Sam burst out laughing. They made their way past the stone font that stood in the grounds of the school.

Gobsmacked, Lizzie turned to her friend. She found the whole exchange riotously funny. ‘What are you laughing at, you cow? You think that’s funny?’

‘He’s such a prick.’ Vicky shook her head and made her way toward the school entrance. ‘Dunno what you see in him.’

‘He’s fit, that’s all.’

‘You can do better than Jonnie Barron, mate.’

Lizzie sighed and looked over her shoulder. She saw a little ginger girl run up behind her and whispered to Vicky. ‘Ugh, that little gingerbread doll’s seen us.’

‘Hey, Lizzie!’ Jody caught up to her, tightening a hair band around her ginger ponytail. ‘You okay?’

‘Uh, hey, Jody. Yeah, whatever.’

‘You hear from Layla?’ Jody asked. ‘She’s been off for a week, now.’

‘We ain’t heard shit from Layla Quick,’ Vicky said. ‘Where is she?’

‘She’s moved to another school, temporarily. Since that whole thing with Mr Galigan from Geography.’

Vicky, Lizzie and Jody pushed through the main school doors and into the entrance.

Staff members milled around talking to each other. Vicky turned to Jody as they walked. ‘What happened, then?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘With Layla and Mr Galigan?’ Lizzie butted in, losing her patience.

‘Not here,’ Jody whispered. She was scared members might overhear them. ‘I’ll tell you in tutor.’

The three girls made their way past the reception – and almost into the path of Mr Foster, the principal of the school.

‘Girls, mind where you’re going.’

Vicky made an apologetic face. ‘Yes, sir.’

‘It’s nearly twenty to nine. Go straight to tutor, please.’

‘Yes, sir.’

Vicky giggled to herself and winked at Mr Foster. He watched the trio walk toward the playground as the final morning bell sounded off.

‘What are you playing at?’ Lizzie asked Vicky.

‘What?’

‘Giving Foster the eye and being all like “sorry, sir,” like a proper teacher’s pet.’

Vicky pushed through the set of double doors that lead to the IT department staircase. ‘Oh, come on, Liz.’

‘What?’

‘Every chance he gets, he gawps at my legs.’

‘Eh? Does he actually?’

‘Are you really that stupid? He tries not to show it, but he’s definitely doing it.’

‘Ugh, that’s gross, man.’

Vicky and Lizzie gripped the stair rail and aided their two-at-a-time ascent up the stairs. Jody tried to enact the same but was far too small to keep up.

‘Wait for me, guys!’

‘Come on, you redheaded stepchild!’ Lizzie screamed after her. ‘Keep up!’

‘Don’t call me that!’

Jody reached the top step and disappeared into the IT corridor with her two chums.

The twelve-year-olds ran into the corridor with gay abandon. They were unaware that their lives – and the lives of the staff – were about to change significantly during the course of the week..

About Andrew Mackay

Some authors are afraid to cross the line. Me? Oh, I’m glad you asked! I make “the line” my starting point… My brand is satire. I hop between genres like madman on crack because my razor-sharp literary knife is hungry for political and social commentary. One genre just can’t cut it (if you’ll forgive the pun.) I’m obsessed, I tell you! I write straight-up humor and farce, horror, crime, romance… all under the banner of satire. My novels often contain a ruthless commentary on society, delving into the darker machinations of modern life. They can be uproarious, funny, outrageous and shocking. Make no mistake, though. They are this way for a reason, and always come equipped with a sense of humanity and wit. My influences include John Cleese, Tom Sharpe, Kurt Vonnegut, James Patterson, Hunter S Thompson, Douglas Adams, Imogen Edwards-Jones, Michael Frayn, Chris Morris, Jerry Sadowitz, Christopher Hitchins, Bill Maher, George Carlin, Jordan Peterson, Pat Condell, and writer/director Larry Cohen. My obsessions include (and are essentially limited to) obscene amounts of: smoking, drugs, alcohol, caffeine, sex, debating, daydreaming and writing about himself in the third person.

Website – https://chromevalleybooks.com/

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/chromevalleybooks

Twitter – https://twitter.com/Andrew_CVB

Join Andrew Mackay on Facebook for a virtual launch party tonight for a selection of author takeovers and giveaways.

17:00 – 20:00 CST which is 23:00 – 02:00 GMT (14/15 Feb) https://www.facebook.com/events/254661718405712/

Sharing the book love this Valentines Day…..

From Rebekah Louise…..

I am very excited to share this post with you. As most of you will be aware, I have published my latest book ‘The Bulletproof Proposal’.

This is my second book and I decided to write a novelette. I love the idea of a short story, the reader can enjoy it in one or two sittings, fitting it in around their hectic lifestyles.

The idea for ‘The Bulletproof Proposal’ came when a close friend of mine was waiting for her partner to propose. I thought about what someone might do in that situation and I think most people would try and gain control, giving rise to the idea for my new book.

This story was an exciting piece for me to write. I took on Lisa’s character with ease as she was fun to write about (I think I could also see some of myself in her). Authors will tell you to write about a topic that you would want to read yourself and this is a book that I would want to snuggle up with. I also love the cover, which I had great fun designing, and I am guilty of choosing a book by its cover, so I hope it will attract you too. My wonderful husband put together the book trailer and I think it is a wonderful teaser of what’s to come.

‘The Bulletproof Proposal’ was published in November 2017, and my hope is that you’ll enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing it. Please leave a review if you liked it, on either Amazon or Goodreads, and tell your friends and family about it, it would be much appreciated.

To Download ‘The Bulletproof Proposal’ for FREE (14th February only) click here:

Book blurb…..

After five years of dating Lisa is anticipating that all-important question, will you marry me?

Impatient, Lisa decides to take matters into her own hands and propose to Matt, after all it is the 21st Century.

Only she takes it one step further and with the help of her best friend Mandy, she prepares the ultimate proposal.

What she doesn’t know is whether this will be the beginning of her happily-ever- after or the beginning of the end.

Enjoy!