A free ebook – 2016

5/5*

I need to start reading more short stories. I find them difficult to review without giving anything away.

Anyway, Political Suicide is full of action for such a short story! Well written, interesting characters and fast-paced. I like this authors style of writing and I’ll certainly be adding A Chaser on the Rocks to my TBR list!

Many thanks to Simon Maltman for my free e-book copy of Political Suicide. You can get a free copy too…..

From Simon’s Facebook page –

“I have a new free ebook story called ‘Political Suicide’. I’m making it available to be emailed and shared ahead of my debut novel, coming in a few months, ‘a Chaser on the Rocks.’ For a copy pm me your email address or email simonmaltman@gmail.com. I’m hoping to organically get this to as many as possible. If you like it please share and send on! Thanks!”

Why not check out Simon’s Facebook page for yourself HERE

Publisher: Penguin (2nd June 2016)

5/5*

What a beautifully written, moving story.

I have to say that the first thing to attract me to this book was the title – my twenty year old Step-son is called Leon. When I spotted it on Netgalley and read the blurb I was certain it would be a book I would love and I wasn’t wrong.

Leon is nine years old when his baby brother, Jake, is born. Jake has a different Dad though and his Dad isn’t a black man like Leon’s. Set in 1980/81 as the country prepared for the big Royal Wedding, there was still obvious tension between races.

Leon’s Mother, Carol, has mental health issues including severe post natal depression after the birth of Jake and Leon does his best to help out where he can. Circumstances aren’t helped by Jake’s Dad not sticking around. When social services become involved the boys are fostered and placed in the care of Maureen. Leon likes Maureen, but he’s desperate to be back with his Mum. It’s heart-breaking to read the obvious guilt Leon carries on his shoulders. He thinks he should have looked after his Mum better then they would all still be together. Imagine carrying such a massive responsibility at only nine years old! He is determined they will be a family again one day.

We follow Leon’s story as he deals with adjusting to life with Maureen and with losing his baby brother when he is adopted by a new family.

You can feel the bond between him and his mother the odd time she turns up for contact, she just isn’t capable of giving him the care and stability he needs and losing Jake forever has broken her heart. Leon seems very aware of the hole this has left in his mothers world and he’s desperate to fill it. Probably the most heart-breaking line of the book for me (and I hope I’m okay to quote) was….

“‘I could be him, Mum,’ he says. ‘You could come back for me and, sometimes, I could be him.’”

Absolutely heart-wrenching!

It’s so sad to think how many people go through what Leon and his family go through. I cannot begin to imagine having to give my children up or being so ill that they were literally better off without me. We can only be glad that at least the stigma surrounding mental health issues is decreasing as time goes on and more people are getting the support they need. It also highlights the importance of good and dedicated foster carers. They do such a fabulous job. Maureen’s commitment to Leon, despite her own health issues, is heart-warming. I loved the relationship she develops with Leon, along with her sister, Sylvia. I also enjoyed the relationships Leon forms with Tufty and Mr Devlin at the allotments.

My Name Is Leon is an emotional and gripping story which I am sure will stay with me for a very long time to come. I feel like I can’t express enough just how brilliant this book is! I will be more than happy to recommend it to anyone.

With many thanks to the Publisher and Author for approving my ARC via Netgalley.

My Name Is Leon will be released on 2nd June and you can pre-order your copy HERE

Description (via Amazonuk) –

A brother chosen. A brother left behind. And a family where you’d least expect to find one.

Leon is nine, and has a perfect baby brother called Jake. They have gone to live with Maureen, who has fuzzy red hair like a halo, and a belly like Father Christmas. But the adults are speaking in low voices, and wearing Pretend faces. They are threatening to give Jake to strangers. Since Jake is white and Leon is not.

As Leon struggles to cope with his anger, certain things can still make him smile – like Curly Wurlys, riding his bike fast downhill, burying his hands deep in the soil, hanging out with Tufty (who reminds him of his dad), and stealing enough coins so that one day he can rescue Jake and his mum.

Evoking a Britain of the early eighties, My Name is Leon is a heart-breaking story of love, identity and learning to overcome unbearable loss. Of the fierce bond between siblings. And how – just when we least expect it – we manage to find our way home.

Reviews

Publisher: Edward Allen Publishing, LLC (1st June 2016)

5/5*

Elise seemingly has it all with a successful career, her own home, car and cardiologist boyfriend, Darren, who is obviously besotted with her. However, he is waiting for the right moment to propose, but she is waiting for the right moment to break up!

Elise and commitment don’t gel!

I have to say that I didn’t warm to Elise at first, but as I learned more about her life growing up and her relationship, or lack of it, with her mother, I began to understand her more and she grew on me as the story progressed. I loved the relationship between Elise and her sister, Melanie. Also the relationship she has with her niece and nephew. The scenes where she has been left to care for them are hilarious!

I was a bit confused to start with about her relationship with Ben, as he was first introduced as the father of her sisters children, but all made sense soon afterwards.

I felt quite sorry for Elise and the way her Mothers selfishness had shaped her future. I was really routing for her when she went to see her Dad who she hadn’t seen since she was a little girl. She needed answers as to why he never tried to have any kind of relationship with her. She was not prepared for the truth.

I found myself wanting to shake some sense in to Elise where Ben is concerned as they are obviously made for each other, although I did feel sorry for Darren. You can’t make yourself love someone though, no matter how lovely they are.

This may be a love story with a happy ending, but it’s much more than that. It is very funny in parts and heart-breaking in others. A very well written romance with real and likeable characters you will care about. I’m sure many readers will relate to their stories.

I was only left with one question….. What is white gravy?

Many thanks to Julieann Dove for sending me an advance review copy of A Reason To Stay. I have thoroughly enjoyed it.

It will be released on 1st June 2016 and you can pre-order a copy HERE

Description –

Elise Newton has it all—a dream job, a house that’s all hers, and a boyfriend who’s a cardiologist. Darren has been carrying an engagement ring in his pocket for two months, waiting for the perfect time to ask her to be his wife. He has no idea Elise has been waiting for the perfect time as well—to break up.

You see, Elise has a fatal flaw. She cannot commit to love.

An early-morning call from her sister gives Elise hope. She’s needed back home in Kentucky, to care for their mother who’s recovering from surgery. It’s the break Elise has been searching for, a reprieve from the strain of ducking Darren’s declarations of love.

But along with Kentucky comes seeing Ben—her first love, the one who came closest to being her happily ever after. Now a single dad, Ben has moved on with his life. But has his love for her moved on as well?

When Elise discovers a long-hidden truth about her family—and the reason why she can’t commit—she must decide which man will give her a reason to stay.

About the author –

Julieann lives in Virginia, yet longs to live everywhere else. It doesn’t come as a surprise that along with her gypsy soul, comes an active imagination. That’s why she loves to write and invent worlds and people, so that she can formulate their happily ever after. Hobbies include cooking new recipes, sewing, and spending time with her cute boyfriend/husband and five fabulous children. Vacations happen in Nantucket or the Carolina beaches–anywhere there is inspiration for her next book. One day she hopes to travel to Italy, drive one of those little cars around the countryside, and speak the language fluently!

You can visit Julieann Dove’s author page here on AmazonUK

Published 11th May 2015

Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.

5/5*

Having read Cathedral Of Lies (Detective Inspector Doug Taylor Book 1) back in October 2013 (I can’t believe it was that long ago!) I downloaded Field Of Lies (Detective Inspector Doug Taylor Book 2) when it was released, which is now over a year ago. Where has that year gone!? Review commitments have prevented me from reading this sooner, but I can tell you it has definitely been worth the wait.

Field Of Lies is a hard book to review without giving too much away, but when a local man is found dead it seems like an obvious suicide. Some are happy to just accept this theory and wrap up the case, but others aren’t convinced it’s so straight forward. DC Geoff Deakin certainly isn’t convinced and is determined to find proof. However, Geoff suffers horrific injuries in a seemingly accidental explosion at his home. DI Doug Taylor is Geoff’s friend and colleague and he immediately smells a rat. He will find out the truth, by any means necessary. As he discovers the truth it’s much worse than they could ever have imagined.

Field of Lies is a fast-paced police procedural which will keep you gripped from the start. The characters are very real and (mostly) likeable. I love the relationships between the colleagues. I imagine Police Officers must form very strong bonds with those they work closely with and this shows in the book(s).

I also love that these books are set in and around my hometown. John Pye is a local-to-me author who introduced himself on the Facebook Book Club page I admin. If you haven’t already and would like to, you can see John’s author interview here Q&A with author, John Pye

If you haven’t already, you really should add this series to your reading lists. You won’t be disappointed!

You can buy Field Of Lies HERE

I would recommend that you read Cathedral Of Lies first though.

Exeter Crown Court – 1986 – a multimillion pound drugs trial. The blast from a powerful handgun brings a halt to proceedings.
Three days and two hundred miles separate the finding of a mutilated corpse in a Staffordshire beauty spot – there seems no connection.
Interesting police work and pathology establish a shocking and unexpected history to the corpse and then another body is discovered. Detective inspector Doug Taylor knows that plenty of long days lie ahead.
Sinister characters from different walks of life emerge as tales of rape, murder, corruption and horrific torture develop.
A vigilante chase crosses the North Sea. Peril and intrigue loiter at every corner as the struggle to determine the criminal mastermind’s objectives intensifies with terrifying events in two different countries.
Matters become all the more curious when a bizarre secret held by a cathedral and a church appear pivotal to the core of the affair – it is a secret surrounded by lies, a secret which stretches back decades and one which the main players will go to any lengths to obtain.
The story will reveal an amazing, true and unsolved crime. Once you have read the book you will be able to go to the book’s website http://www.cathedraloflies.com and unlock secret pages for a guided tour of some of the truths within the story. You will also be able to look at the intricacies of the actual monumental felony… perhaps you could solve the crime yourself!

You can buy your copy HERE

Cathedral of Lies was before I was blogging, but I did rate it 5***** on Amazon….

Also available (and currently on my TBR list)…..

A journey in time through the author’s career with Staffordshire Police – from cadet to inspector – from schoolboy to man.
‘It was the practical jokes and camaraderie which kept us sane.’
The book presents a cameo of some of the events which went on behind the scenes of policing in the seventies, eighties and nineties. A lifetime of side splittingly funny tales are mixed with some sad and tragic stories which made up the ‘policeman’s lot’ along with the black humour which often served to temper the emotions and relieve the stress.
Snippets of social history – now long forgotten are recalled – the ‘Policeman’s window’, the obsessive checking of property and other routines of the day. Most of all, the absurdly funny and unusual tales recalled from a career as a front line bobby:
Vampires in Stoke on Trent? Exploding treacle tins in Biddulph? A policeman caught short on duty? Naked constables in the back of van! Find the missing body!
It was all in a day’s work.

Buy your copy HERE

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming the very lovely Alison Lingwood to my blog. Alison is a local-to-me author and we’ve met a few times. Thanks for joining me, Alison.

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

My name is Alison Lingwood. I am an ex-lecturer and businesswoman living in north Staffordshire. I began writing when I retired and published my first book in 2012. My novels comprise a series of detective stories set in my home area, and explore crimes alongside the life of my detectives, their friends and families.

Where did/do you get your ideas from?

The ideas come from all sorts of places. The first novel arose from a post on the internet, which led to me thinking about how information shared on social media can be used and abused. The second book came from a phrase – which subsequently became the title – that I came across when planning a holiday to Bridport. Research showed me that the Bridport Dagger was a name given to a hangman’s noose and so the story began. Subsequent novels have been prompted by such topical issues as Equity Release and the proposed HS2 Rail Link, although such issues tend to provide the backdrop for the story rather than the main narrative of the plot.

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

Some characters, I think inevitably, are loosely based on the appearance, mannerisms and/or lifestyles of people I know. This is after all our own experience of life and the building bricks of making up a character – what they would look like, how they would act in certain situations etc. I haven’t based a character entirely on anybody specific – it tends more to be details I borrow from them. Sometimes too I have found that people “recognise” themselves in my characters – often wrongly.

How do you pick your character’s names?

The names are selected on a fairly random basis. I try to avoid names of family and friends for unpleasant characters so I don’t cause offence. My books tend to contain a lot of characters, and I now have lists of both Christian and surnames I have used already, and I do jot down ones I think of or see – perhaps on TV credits for example – that I may use in the future. I try to reflect the age of my characters where relevant, so older characters are Mavis or Queenie rather than Chantelle or Kylie! I like to include local names, so I’ve used Hanchurch, Bloor and Chell as surnames.

My leading detective is called Christopher Timothy, which name of course coincides with that of a well-known actor. Both are fairly common names so I kept them, but subsequently regretted this. The use of a Christian name as a surname prevents me from using the literary device of changing from one to the other to represent personal and professional strands of the storyline. For example in Lewis or Frost, the surname is used in the workplace situations but Robbie or Jack in a social context. I thought it would be too confusing for the reader if I sometimes referred to my detective as Chris and sometimes as Timothy.

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

The writing process is erratic. I have no agent or commercial publisher to pressure me with deadlines so I simply write when I have an idea for where I want the story to go. Sometimes this means I write 1000+ words in a day, sometimes I don’t touch the manuscript for a week or two. It’s a hobby and I want it to stay like that without the pressure imposed by commercial need.

Do you have a favourite author?

This is a difficult question for me to answer. I have some perennial favourites that I go back to time and time again, like comfort food. These include WJ Burley, Colin Dexter, Ruth Rendell, Agatha Christie and Elizabeth George. Other favourites vary from time to time. I’ve recently enjoyed reading Victoria Hislop, Mel Sharratt, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Shakespeare is a perennial favourite too, the plays by him and biographies about him. Next week my favourites may be different.

Were you a big reader as a child?

I was a keen reader as a child, and much more so as a teenager. One of my lasting memories is as a ten year old being read Prester John by John Buchan at school and being fascinated by the Afrikaans place name Blaauwildebeestefontein. I asked for my own copy for Christmas. Perhaps that started for me a love of playing with words.

When did you start to write?

I wrote and published my first novel when I was sixty. Prior to that I had often felt that I would like to try my hand at a novel, but the time, energy and inspiration never coincided until after I retired.

What are you working on right now? / When can we look forward to a new release?

I have just released the fifth Christopher Timothy novel in the series so it will be a while before the next! At the time writing the sixth consists of about twelve thousand words and a lot of half-baked ideas.

How can readers keep in touch with you?

I am quite a private person and don’t share a lot of personal information, but the books are available from amazon.co.uk in paperback and on Kindle. New releases are announced to friends on Facebook and on the Book Club page.

You can find all of Alison’s books on her AmazonUK author page HERE

I read Portal To Murder before I was blogging, but if you haven’t already and would like to, you can read my review for The Bridport Dagger here  The Bridport Dagger by Alison Lingwood

Many thanks again to Alison for answering my questions.

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Alex Marsh to my blog. Thanks for joining me, Alex.

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

Hello! I’m Alex Marsh. I live in a small village near the North Norfolk coast, with my family and eight chickens; my wife travels a lot, so you’ll generally find me juggling writing, my other job (which is also writing), school runs, cooking dinners, etc.

When we first came here – around fifteen years ago – I was in a bit of an enforced career break, so I started a blog which became a big success, then it became a book: ‘Sex and Bowls and Rock and Roll’, which was published by HarperCollins.

My new book, ‘The Resurrection of Frederic Debreu,’ follows Ted, newly-retired but still a big kid at heart, and his stoical wife Daisy.

Ted’s dream is to spend a ‘gap year’ living the good life in the French countryside. It’s a final fling of youth before they settle down together in a respectable bungalow for the rest of their days. But, of course, things don’t go to plan. Ted finds himself at the mercy of events over which he has very little control, and the village of Mailliot le Bois becomes as much a prison as it is a paradise.

This is a good time to say ‘thank you’ for your review – I’m genuinely chuffed that you enjoyed it.

Where did/do you get your ideas from?

I tend to think that ideas just appear; sitting down and thinking ‘must have an idea!’ is hopeless. ‘Debreu’ came to me out of the blue when I heard some French chanson; there’s a richness and atmosphere about that type of music that seemed to fit the sort of book I wanted to write – a book that gives you a big hug, whilst also having depth. And there’s also a hint of the disreputable, which I like…

Here’s Georges Brassens singing on YouTube, for some background music for the rest of the article… https://youtu.be/lQRgym8IDGM

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

There’s a character who has a knack of bringing every conversation, however irrelevant, back to their own achievements – I think we’ve all met one of those…

How do you pick your character’s names?

Setting something in a different country is a challenge in terms of getting the little social details right; I have a friend who has lived in France for many, many years; she gave me a huge amount of help on names and place-names. (‘No – so and so isn’t right; it’s slightly too old, or too middle-class, etc.) And then I became friendly with Damien Cabanis, who owns the most unbelievably fantastic and chilled out wine shop in Norwich – Les Garrigues. I’d ask him daily questions about regional specifics and idiosyncrasies.

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

I lie in the bath. Honestly. I do a lot of writing like that, just in my head; not just ‘big picture’ plotting, but writing dialogue, and getting to know the characters, and looking at things from different angles until they work. I’m always telling my kids to spend a bit of time thinking about their homework before they grab a pencil and start writing. But they ignore me, because that’s what kids do.

Aside from that, I have an office in my garden – or I take my laptop up to a café on the coast, if I feel I need some human company.

Do you have a favourite author?

It changes every day!

Of books of a similar genre to ‘Debreu’, the one which I’ve most enjoyed recently has been Matt Haig’s ‘The Humans.’ I sent him a slightly bashful email afterwards to say that I thought it was great. Not expecting a reply or anything, but because very occasionally I’ve had nice emails pop up out of the blue, and I don’t think people realise how much things like that can mean to an author – especially if they’re having a bad day.

Were you a big reader as a child?

MASSIVELY MASSIVE. The public library every Saturday afternoon to pick up my full quota; then returning them the following week to get more. Reading, to me, was just – amazing.

When did you start to write?

I was very young – I used to write stories at home. Then school magazines and the like, and, because I was the geekiest of geeks as a teenager, I had a column in a short-lived computer magazine. I picked writing up again when I started the blog, and started to get emails from all over the world, most of which went along the lines of: ‘oh, your poor, poor wife…’

What are you working on right now?

I’m mulling over what happens to the occupants of Mailliot le Bois! Without any spoilers, there’s a lot more to find out about them…

When can we look forward to a new release?

That depends on how ‘The Resurrection…’ goes! It’s very early days, but I’ve been utterly bowled over by the response to it so far, so…

How can readers keep in touch with you?

Visit my website: privatesecretdiary.com (there’s an email sign up for news posts); find me on Twitter at @jonnyb. Please do say hello!

I very recently read and reviewed The Resurrection Of Frederic Debreu. If you haven’t already and would like to, you can read my review here The Resurrection of Frederic Debreu by Alex Marsh

Publisher: RedDoor Publishing (5th May 2016)

Who wants a respectable retirement anyway?

Not Ted Prescott, genial visitor to Mailliot le Bois, here on an impulsive mission to seek out his past whilst heroically diminishing the sleepy French town’s stocks of red wine.

But once the locals discover Ted’s authentic renditions of regional hero Frederic Debreu’s songs, life is suddenly not so straightforward for the stage-shy Derbyshire guitar-maker.

Reluctantly persuaded that he might help put their town back on the map, Ted finds himself billed as humble French farm labourer ‘Edouard Prescote’. Nonplussed as his self-conscious performances strike a chord, Ted finds himself drawn into a web of well-intentioned deceit that he finds increasingly hard to unravel.

Haunted by the loss of his missing brother, and with the hopes of an entire community riding on him, it soon becomes clear that there are other, more important things that he hasn’t mentioned to his loved ones…

Purchase your copy HERE

Added to my TBR list…..

Publisher: The Friday Project (2nd July 2010)

The story of a man who gives up the rock ‘n’ roll dream… to play bowls.

Alex Marsh wanted to be a rock star – but it didn’t work out. Instead he toiled away in the big city – only to give up his career, move to rural Norfolk, and become a househusband. Only he isn’t a very good one. Whilst his pride won’t let him admit it, he struggles with the cooking, the cleaning and the isolation. He hires a cleaner without telling his wife, his repertoire of baked potatoes exhausts quickly. He becomes hooked on daytime television and computer solitaire. He is in danger of becoming weird.

So he takes up bowls. In Sex & Bowls & Rock and Roll we follow a season in the life of the village bowls team, a group of amateur sportsmen and mild eccentrics. In doing so we see this unfashionable pastime in a whole new light, and very funny it is too. But Alex hasn’t quite given up on his dreams of rock stardom. Discovering that some of his mates down the pub are a bit handy with bass and drums he makes one final stab at being in a band, with an eagerly awaited local gig. It is a complete disaster.

Join Alex has he comes to terms with life as a domestic disappointment, attempts to learn the fine art of bowls and finally realises that supporting the Sultans Of Ping at the Pink Toothbrush in Rayleigh really was the highpoint of his musical career. Sex & Bowls & Rock and Roll is a hilarious account of the life of a genuinely modern man. Everyone will recognise themselves (or their husbands) and you will be hard pressed not to laugh out loud.

Many thanks again to Alex for joining me on my blog.

Also to Anna at RedDoor Publishing for introducing me to Alex and his work.