I have absolutely LOVED this book of short festive stories by Keith Bullock. I enjoyed it whilst touring the coffee shops of Stratford-Upon-Avon so, needless to say, I had a fabulous day!

If you’re looking for a good Christmassy read then look no further! These stories have it all. Some are funny, some are sad and others are quite heart-warming. They are so brilliantly written that I can’t see anyone not enjoying them as much as I have. Each one can be read during a coffee break too, so there’s really no reason why everyone shouldn’t give them a go.

The first story, A Match Made In Heaven, made me giggle.

The Reunion is sad.

Christmas Comes To Knarebridge was a short, sharp, shock and quite devastating.

Claus Noel is hilarious!

The Best Christmas Ever is comedy genius!

Christmas Alone is just genius!

The Real Father Christmas is another shocker.

Double or Quit is a unique little tale.

The Anniversary Trip is heart-breaking.

George Reed’s Christmas Tour is quite thought provoking.

Mummy’s Christmas Present is very clever.

Her First Christmas made me smile.

And The Boxing Day Treat! was a surprise. Not at all what I was expecting!

All intelligently written, compelling short stories which I can happily recommend to all.

Why not treat yourself this Christmas or grab a few copies for friends and family to enjoy this festive season.

Via AmazonUK…..

‘Twelve Christmas Crackers and a Boxing Day Treat’ is the ultimate escape kit from the rigours of the family festivities; a chance for you to take five and unwind before pitching back into the fray! These adult short stories will have you puzzling and pondering, laughing and crying, snorting and sighing. Most have a twist in the tail and will keep you guessing until the last line; all are themed around Christmas. ‘The Anniversary Trip’ has been filmed under the title ‘Second Honeymoon’ and was shown at the Cannes Film Festival. Keith Bullock is the author of two published novels: ‘Winning Ticket’ (2017) and ‘Beyond the Sad-faced Clown’ (2018). Work begins on a feature-length film of ‘Winning Ticket’ by award-winning director Kaush Patel, in the autumn of 2018. With this collection of short stories, Keith has set out to amuse and refresh the weary Christmas celebrant in need of a little escapism and “me” time and themes range between cold, blood-thirsty reality, wishful virtual reality and wild, unadulterated fantasy. Relax, turn over the pages and meet your perfect fireside companion.

Happy reading 🙂

About the author….

I grew up in a working class family in Birmingham. Thanks to my Mum, I was fed a weekly diet of comics and trips to the library and developed a lifelong love of stories and story-telling.
After being miserably misplaced in a technical school, I left with no qualifications and began working life at Cadbury Bros. Before too long, I took off with a guitar on my back, to see the world. It was the ‘swinging sixties’ and a little rock and folk music could always earn a dinner. For almost three years, I lived and worked in Iceland, Austria and Denmark and toured the rest of Europe in a beat up car.
A wonderful guy in Elsinore, Denmark, finally gave me a shaking and helped me through three ‘A’ levels which I took at the British Council, Copenhagen. The next five years were spent at the University of East Anglia, in the Scandinavian Studies Department and then it was marriage to a beautiful French girl (still my wife), three children and a career in Educational Management. I retired (early) as an Assistant Principal at Dudley College and began to write seriously.
Early modest success (whilst still working) had been an article in the BBC’s ‘Book of the Future’ (2003) and a short story ‘Second Honeymoon’ that was then scripted for award-winning director, Kaush Patel. The film he made was shown at the Cannes Festival (2008)
More recently, my first novel ‘Winning Ticket’ was published by Austin Macauley in 2017. It was followed by a second novel ‘Beyond the Sad-faced Clown’, with the same publisher in 2018. Director Kaush Patel intends to begin work on a feature film of ‘Winning Ticket’ in the autumn of 2018. My latest novel ‘Circuit’ is currently under consideration and I have just completed a collection of adult Christmas stories entitled ‘Twelve Christmas Crackers and a Boxing Day Treat’.

I have a fabulous cover reveal for you today! It’s an honour to be able to join in and help to spread the word 🙂

Check this out ⇓⇓⇓

She ruined their lives.  Now they’re going to destroy hers.  

‘Someone is recreating every traumatic point in your life.  They are doing this to make you suffer, to make you hurt and the only possible end game can be death.  Your death.’

On the fourth floor of Chaucer House, two teenagers are found chained to a radiator.  The boy is dead but the girl is alive. For Detective Kim Stone every detail of the scene mirrors her own terrifying experience with her brother Mikey, when they lived in the same tower block thirty years ago.

When the bodies of a middle-aged couple are discovered in a burnt-out car, Kim can’t ignore the chilling similarity to the death of Erica and Keith – the only loving parents Kim had ever known. 

Faced with a killer who is recreating traumatic events from her past, Kim must face the brutal truth that someone wants to hurt her in the worst way possible.  Desperate to stay on the case, she is forced to work with profiler Alison Lowe who has been called in to observe and monitor Kim’s behaviour.

Kim has spent years catching dangerous criminals and protecting the innocent.  But with a killer firmly fixed on destroying Kim, can she solve this complex case and save her own life or will she become the final victim?

The heart-stopping and totally addictive new crime thriller from multi-million copy number one bestseller Angela Marsons will have you completely hooked.

Read what everyone is saying about the Detective Kim Stone series:

‘Marsons for me is the QUEEN of this genre. She knows how to add the human touch to each story and I just adore her. Bloody FABULOUS.’ Postcard Reviews

I absolutely loved it!… one of the best crime thrillers I’ve read in a long time, and that includes mainstream authors such as James Patterson! Fiona’s Book Reviews

‘WOW! Did I just read what I thought I read?… I felt totally gut-punched when I finished. Came back to it a day later and re-read the entire book again just to make sure I had read it correctly the first time. Had the stuffing knocked out of me all over again… Totally in awe.’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars

‘It’s Angela Marsons, so five stars, ’nuff said… Gripping, intriguing, thrilling, addictive, fantastic… emotional and heart-breaking… I finished this late, sobbing my heart out… Read this book. Just do it… One of the very best detective series around.’ Deja Read, 5 stars

‘I truly don’t know what to say… Somehow Angela Marsons manages smash the brilliantness of the last book and better it tenfold… A first-class read that I feel will be difficult to top… This has certainly gone onto my 2018 MUST READ list’ ILoveReadinguk, 5 stars

⇓⇓⇓

Amazon Pre-order: 

http://geni.us/B07KYS8SPFCover

Still need to catch up with the previous books in the series?

You will find them all HERE

Happy reading 🙂

Interview with David Nolan…..

For those who don’t know already, could you tell us about yourself and your book(s) please? Where did/do you get your ideas from?

Black Moss is my first fiction book. I’ve written a dozen factual books previously. The ideas for those were largely practical – to earn money! I was supposed to be writing a factual book about historic child abuse, but it fell through. I was so angry I started taking it out on the laptop… and it turned into Black Moss.

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

Every single one of the characters is based on a real person. I’ve met a lot of journalists and police officers over the years and many of them are in Black Moss.

How do you pick your characters’ names?

Initially, I used the real person’s name, then I changed it by taking a first name and surname from two similar people. I like utilitarian, straightforward names.

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

Write whenever you can, even if it’s just a sentence. You don’t need writing rooms or mood music. Get you head down, do a shift.

Who are your top 5 favourite authors?

Harlan Ellison, Harlan Ellison, Harlan Ellison, Harlan Ellison and Harlan Ellison.

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

Probably…. Harlan Ellison. He died recently but I would have asked him: after thinking up the title ‘I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream’ what did he say to himself?

Did he say… ‘that’s a cracking title that is, Harlan’? I would have definitely said that!

Were you a big reader as a child?

There were hardly any books in my house when I grew up, so libraries were my window to the world. I remember being taken aside when I was at primary school and being asked why I was reading a book called ‘The Brave and the Bold’ when I should have been reading ‘Janet and John’.

When did you start to write?

I left school at 16 and started work as an apprentice journalist. I’ve written for a living all my working life – 37 years. Black Moss is the first thing I’ve ever written outside of ‘working’ writing though.

If you could re-write the ending to any book what would it be and what would you change? Is there a book you wish you had written?

I love Peter May’s ‘The Black House’ but the ending frustrates me. It feels rushed. I’d slow it right down. Tease it out a bit.

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

I sort of already have. I wrote a book about my schooldays called ‘Tell the Truth and Shame the Devil’. It’s what one of the teachers would say before he beat the pupils, although the beatings weren’t the worst part of being at the school. It was made into a documentary for BBC Radio 4. I think quite a lot of good has come from it.

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

I don’t drink coffee… so I’d take young Kes from ‘A Kestrel for a Knave’ for fish and chips and a can of Dandelion and Burdock at my local chippy. He looks like he needs a good meal inside him.

What are you working on right now?

A second novel. It’s. Really. Hard. I don’t want to jinx it by saying anything!

Tell us about your last release?

Most of my previous books have been about music. My last book was about the rock band The 1975. Rather handily, they are from just down the road from me. It’s great to write about music that you really love.

Do you have a new release due?

Black Moss, my first novel, has just been published. It’s set in the near present and during the Strangeways prison riot of 1990 in Manchester. All the good reporters are covering the riot, so a bad reporter is sent out to look at the discovery of a boy’s body at Black Moss reservoir in the hills above Oldham. He comes back to Manchester 26 years later to look at the case again. It’s a very personal book. It’s quite an angry book too. Nearly everything in it really happened in one way or another.

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day?

When the books arrive I purposely don’t open the package for as long as I can, to stretch it out. Then I place it very carefully on my shelf and look at it.

How can readers keep in touch with you?

On Twitter @nolanwriter or on Instagram.

Is there anything else you would like us to know?

No one is more surprised than me that Black Moss has been published. If I can do it, anyone can do it. Seriously.

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

Blurb

In April 1990, as rioters took over Strangeways prison in Manchester, someone killed a little boy at Black Moss.

And no one cared.

No one except Danny Johnston, an inexperienced radio reporter trying to make a name for himself.

More than a quarter of a century later, Danny returns to his home city to revisit the murder that’s always haunted him.

If Danny can find out what really happened to the boy, maybe he can cure the emptiness he’s felt inside since he too was a child.

But finding out the truth might just be the worst idea Danny Johnston has ever had.

Author Info

David is a multi award-winning author, television producer and crime reporter. He has written a dozen books including Tell the Truth and Shame the Devil, the true story of the largest historic abuse case ever mounted by Greater Manchester Police. He presented a BBC Radio 4 documentary based on the book called The Abuse Trial. It won both the Rose D’Or and the New York International radio awards in 2016. Officers involved in the case helped David with the police procedures featured in Black Moss, particularly the way the system deals with missing children.  

Buy Link

https://amzn.to/2RuWRaP  

Happy reading 🙂

Her Last Move by John Marrs

Why on earth have I never read a book by John Marrs before?? Her Last Move has been a compelling psychological thriller / police procedural with everything you could possibly want from this genre.

DS Becca Vincent is a very likeable character who is desperate to prove herself at work whilst trying to juggle a demanding career with being a single parent. Her presence at home becomes increasingly less as she is given the lead on a murder case and her mother makes no secret of her disapproval, adding to Becca’s guilt. She feels she has to fully commit to this case though and as victims are found in quick succession they have a race against time to find this killer, who doesn’t seem to fit any particular profile.

Joe Russell is a facial recognition expert and is to work with Becca on this case in the hope his work will prove more successful than any computer software could. He also has a lot to prove and they don’t get off to the best start, but soon learn how to work together. Joe is also a very likeable character whose backstory is quite devastating. He is struggling to let go of his difficult past, to the detriment of his work and his marriage. I really warmed to him, but found some his obsessive behaviour quite stressful. I could feel his desperation and couldn’t help but feel sorry for him whilst also wanting to shake some sense into him. None of us know how we would feel/act in the same circumstances though and I could empathise with his need for answers.

The killer is a very cleverly written character. He is always one step ahead and watching Becca’s every move. He is focused on revenge and will stop at nothing to bring those to justice who he feels have done him wrong. He is psychologically fascinating and proof of how dangerous someone overwhelmed by jealousy and obsession can become. It’s also quite scary to think how many people like him we could have passed in the street, or even spoken to, and not even realised.

This book is a roller-coaster of emotion and full of twists. The suspense kept me hooked and shortish chapters added to the tension, particularly towards the end which I totally did not see coming! Just brilliant! I highly recommend to anyone who loves a gripping crime thriller.

Many thanks to the author and to Emma Welton for my review copy.

Book Blurb:

She’s chasing a killer. He’s watching her every move.

He hides in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment. Each kill is calculated, planned and executed like clockwork.

Struggling to balance her personal and professional life, young DS Becca Vincent has landed the biggest case of her career—and she knows that it will make or break her. But she can’t catch the culprit alone. Together with facial recognition expert Joe Russell, she strives to get a lead on the elusive murderer, who is always one step ahead of them.

Time is not on their side. The body count is rising, and the attacks are striking closer and closer to home. Can Becca and Joe uncover the connection between the murders before the killer strikes the last name from his list?

About John Marrs:

John Marrs is the author of #1 bestsellers The One (soon to be made into a film with Urban Myth Films), The Good Samaritan (shortlisted for the Dead Good Reader Awards 2018), When You Disappeared, and Welcome to Wherever You Are. After working as a journalist for 25-years interviewing celebrities from the world of television, film and music for national newspapers and magazines, he is now a full-time writer.

Her Last Move is dedicated to John’s late father, Charlie, who was a police officer for 25 years.

Follow him…..

Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/johnmarrs1

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnmarrsauthor/

Website: https://www.johnmarrsauthor.co.uk/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnmarrs.author/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/John-Marrs/e/B00F1CRG9U/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Purchase Links:

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Her-Last-Move-John-Marrs-ebook/dp/B07CGXQH2Q/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Her-Last-Move-John-Marrs-ebook/dp/B07CGXQH2Q/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538908767&sr=8-1&keywords=her+last+move+john+marrs

Waterstones: https://www.waterstones.com/book/her-last-move/john-marrs/9781503948020

BookDepository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Her-Last-Move-John-Marrs/9781503948020?ref=grid-view&qid=1538908851944&sr=1-1

Publishing Information:

Published in paperback, eBook and audio formats by Thomas & Mercer on 8^th November 2018.

Follow the rest of the blog tour for other reviews, and more, with these awesome book bloggers…..

Happy reading 🙂

Welcome to my stop on J. F. Burgess’ The Killer Shadow Thieves blog tour with Love Books Group Tours!

Interview with J. F. Burgess…..

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

I grew up in Stoke-on-Trent and spent many years doing less than ideal jobs in and around the Potteries five towns, before finally taking the plunge and quitting work to follow my creative side. As a keen horse-racing fan, I started off in 2007 self-publishing betting how-to manuals.

Inspired by authors such as Mel Sherratt, Peter James, Val McDermid, James Oswald, Kate Ellis, and in need of a new challenge, I decided to try my hand at writing crime fiction.

After months of hard slog and sheer determination, I finished my first novel: The Killer Shadow Thieves. This is the first in a planned series of gritty crime fiction books set in Stoke on Trent, involving charismatic DI Tom Blake and his larger-than-life sidekick DS Jon Murphy.

The Killer Shadow Thieves…

Widowed detective DI Tom Blake sets off a chain of events that change his life forever, when the brutal murder of an alcoholic skinhead, and arrest of a vicious Turkish loan shark, unwittingly disrupts an international gang’s daring plans to steal the world-famous Staffordshire Hoard.

The follow-up, The Deadly Legacy, is a cult serial killer thriller, with a 200-year-old secret at the heart of a plot full of unexpected twists. This should be out in summer 2019.

In my spare time, I love to read, watch UK cop dramas and take walks along the canals of Staffordshire with my wife.

Where did/do you get your ideas from?

Most writers will tell you inspiration tends to come from many different places. I’m no different in that respect. Naturally, I read a lot of crime fiction, thrillers and also love historical and real crime books. Over the years I’ve put together a real crime reference section in my bookcase. Some of the crimes from the past are unbelievable and are a great source of material. My hometown of Stoke-on-Trent also provides plenty of inspiration. Its industrial past and unique make up makes it a great setting for gritty crime.

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

I suppose in a way they are. The people I meet can influence my characters to some extent. But I would say most of my characters are an amalgamation of different people: some from movies, books and TV dramas. In order to make a character believable/likeable I feel it’s important for them to have real human traits so the reader can connect with them, even if they love to hate them.

How do you pick your characters’ names?

Usually, I base names around the characters age, personality traits and ethnicity. For example, if a charter is 70-year-old white male, then he would have been born just after WW2 and his name should reflect this. So, I normally use online names popular at any given period. It’s interesting to see how name’s come and go in popularity.

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

I usually spend about two months outlining the whole plot, then put all the elements into Scrivener writing software, but also mirror that with index cards on a cork board. I find this more intuitive and it gives me a new perspective, after staring at a computer monitor all day. Although I’m swaying more towards the index cards, notes and picture these days, as its much nicer way to work. You can see everything as a whole and move things around quickly. This method give me an aerial view. You can’t really do that on a 20” monitor!

Who are your top 5 favourite authors?

I like James Oswald, Peter James, Val McDermid, Kate Ellis, Mel Sherratt and Elly Griffiths to name just a few. But I’m adding new upcoming authors to my to be read pile, all the time

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

Peter James. How did he manage to make his character Roy Grace so immensely charismatic and likeable

Were you a big reader as a child?

No, not really. I started when I was about thirty-five.

When did you start to write?

I’ve been writing for about twelve years but mostly non-fiction. But I’ve had the desire to write fiction since my early twenties

Is there a book you wish you had written?

Three spring to mind: Silence of the lambs, Gone Girl and The Girl with the dragon Tattoo

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

Blood sweat and tears or Enlightenment

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

Either Roy Grace, Tony Hill, or Tommy Shelby

What are you working on right now?

I’ve taken time out to market and manage the promotion of my debut THE KILLER SHADOW THIEVES, but the second book in the series, THE DEADLY LEGACY is a work in progress.

Do you have a new release due?

Not yet still working on it.

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day?

Spend most of the day replying to reader’s and fans kind enough to buy my book, and make sure there are no problems with any of the marketing channels, before winding down over a few beers with my wife and friends down the pub.

How can readers keep in touch with you?

Readers can join me on Facebook and Twitter, or sign up to my newsletter to get news about my future releases, book giveaways and competitions.  

Twitter: @burgess1012

Facebook: J.F. Burgess

Website: https://www.jfburgess.co.uk/ 

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions 🙂

A pleasure and thank you

Blurb

Widowed detective DI Tom Blake sets off a chain of events that change his life forever, when the brutal murder of an alcoholic skinhead, and arrest of a vicious Turkish loan shark, unwittingly disrupts an international gang’s daring plans to steal the world-famous Staffordshire Hoard.

In a cruel twist of fate, Blake’s daughter is kidnapped and the trail propels the bereft detective on a personal quest to Miami to save her life. Operating outside the law, he enters into an illicit showdown with a mysterious artefacts Collector, almost costing him his life.

As the body count rises, Blake and his team struggle to unravel the conspiracy of a shadowy killer who leaves no trace. With only circumstantial evidence against each of the suspects, they hit a wall, until twenty-six-year-old photographs linking them to the murdered skinhead emerge. It seems the victim’s depraved past is the key to identifying the killer.

Can the police uncover the truth through all the lies and deception, and crack the case before someone else gets killed? And will they recover a legendary national treasure, worth millions, before it’s lost forever?  

Buy Link

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Killer-Shadow-Thieves-compelling-mystery-ebook/dp/B07J2PPD55/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1540999261&sr=8-1&keywords=the+killer+shadow+thieves

Author Information

I grew up in Stoke-on-Trent and spent many years doing less than ideal jobs in and around the Potteries five towns, before finally taking the plunge and quitting work to follow my creative side. As a keen horse-racing fan, I started off in 2007 self-publishing betting how-to manuals.

This is my main business, but my real passion is for crime fiction, both reading and writing.

Inspired by authors such as Mel Sherratt, Peter James, Val McDermid, James Oswald, Kate Ellis, Martina Cole and Ian Rankin, and in need of a new challenge, I decided to try my hand at writing crime fiction.

After months of hard slog and sheer determination, I finished my first novel: The Killer Shadow Thieves. This is the first in a planned series of gritty crime fiction books set in Stoke on Trent, involving charismatic DI Tom Blake and his larger-than-life sidekick DS Jon Murphy.

The follow up, The Deadly Legacy, is a cult serial killer thriller, with a 200-year-old secret at the heart of a plot full of unexpected twists, which push the relationships of a rich pottery family into life-threatening conflicts.

I write tense, gripping, crime fiction mysteries with a twist – or urban crossbreed, as I call it. My thrillers take you deep inside the criminal mind.

I live with my wife and family in Stoke-on-Trent, England. You can find out more about me at http://www.jfburgess.co.uk, or on Twitter at @burgess1012. 

Check out the rest of the blog tour for reviews, and more, with these awesome book bloggers…..

Happy reading 🙂

Hi and welcome to my stop joining in with Urbane Publications’ celebrations! Keep on reading for a brilliant extract from James Silvester’s Blood, White And Blue.

Blurb

Love, deception and murder dominate as thriller writer James Silvester delivers the first in the Lucie Musilova series.

Britain is a hotbed of racial tension and economic uncertainty. Only Sir Geoffrey Hartnell, an ageing but hugely respected MP, can bring about a successful resolution to the talks. But a ghost from the past threatens to bring the UK to its knees.

Lucie Musilova meanwhile, is a young woman running out of places to hide. Half-British, half-Czech and rejected by both countries in the aftermath of Brexit, she meets ‘Mr. Lake’, the eccentric Head of a branch of the intelligence services known as The Overlappers, and is press-ganged into service on the Hartnell case.

As events spiral out of control it soon becomes clear it is not just the future of the nation that is at stake, but Lucie’s very life….

The new thriller from the bestselling author of Escape to Perdition and The Prague Ultimatum, is a gripping tale of corruption and perfect for fans of Luke Jennings, Daniel Silva and Stella Rimington. If you’re a fan of Killing Eve you’ll love this!

Extract…..

The Present Day –

The Ocean.

ONE
She’d been ready for them this time. This time, it was going down very, very differently. The previous night they had caught her unawares, the bastards in there with her; one of them grabbing her legs, another yanking back her long, dark hair and still another twisting her arms up her back; a filthy hand covering her mouth while another moved quickly and lecherously over her body, tugging at her white uniformed trousers, stained with that evening’s menu, until they gave way and the trio gorged themselves on her vulnerability. “Just having a laugh,” they’d jeered as they left her, humiliated on the floor outside her quarters. “Every newbie gets a debagging on their first trip,” they’d snorted as she tucked her legs up to her chest and wept tears of rage and anger, “We’re just the ship’s Equal Ops team, making sure everyone gets their fair share!” They’d laughed and crowed as they disappeared, and she’d laid there for an age, shaking and quiet, hating them for their actions and herself for her failure to prevent them. She had crawled into her bed, intending to weep herself to sleep but refusing, the moment her head touched the pillow to succumb to self-pity, instead calling upon the resolve that had pulled her from the mouth of the cave years earlier. God forgive and help them, she sincerely prayed as she finally closed her eyes, because they knew not who they dealt with. The smirks had still been on their faces as she’d entered the galley the next morning, tempered only by their obvious surprise that she had shown up at all. She bore no outward sign of the attack, her fresh uniform was pristine and the long, dark hair they had pulled the night before tied up beneath her chef’s cap. She had looked each of them squarely in the eye, not a word passing her lips as she took her place on the line and busied herself with breakfast prep, adamant in her mind that nothing they could do would prevent her from doing her job. Already alert to the likelihood of a repeated episode of their ‘banter’, it was the sudden silence as the chop of fruit and the clunk and splash of pot washing abruptly ceased that told her it was time for the next assault. This time she was ready. She stamped down hard onto the hand reaching for her legs, a loud crack accompanying the scream of its owner, and she twisted quickly around, bringing the kitchen knife in her right hand slashing down across the cheek of her nearest abuser, who dropped to his knees clutching his face. The third of the unholy trinity lurched forward, a blade of his own clumsily slashing the air until it was knocked from his hand by a panful of boiling water. “Fucking foreign bitch!” The would-be knife man thrust his scalded hand into the dishwater as she dragged the first of her felled attackers across the cramped galley floor towards the open hatch on the wall known to the crew as the gun-port door, in reality little more than a square hole through which the food waste and rubbish was deposited. Picking up the tub of peelings and leftovers from the side with one hand, Lucie tipped it to the edge of the hatch, spewing its contents into the ocean below. As if on cue, a succession of dorsal fins began to ominously rise from the depths, following hungrily in the ship’s wake, the trail of leftovers almost magnetically drawing them in. “Just banter mate,” Lucie Musilova spat with every ounce of her fury, as she dragged the struggling oaf to the hatch’s edge, her resentment and rage granting her the strength to lift him and force his torso through it, where she held him by his belt, the ocean – and the fins – only feet below, “I’m sure you understand.” His arms flailing, searching desperately for a non-existent hand hold, the hunter turned prey twisted his body to escape the woman with his life quite literally in her hands in sheer desperation, the anger in her voice enough to convey the unlikelihood that this was a bluff. “Fucking hell, you crazy bitch, you wouldn’t!” The two other cowed abusers stood nervously across the galley table, one still clutching his face and the other his hand, but both wearing expressions of shock and fear. “Come near me, and he drops,” she shouted defiantly at them, the frothing emotion within her rendering her unsure as to exactly how hollow a threat it really was. They deserved this, damn them. Each one of them deserved it, for what they had done to her and for all she knew every other woman who had ever sailed with them. But she couldn’t go through with it, could she? She’d been a Woman of God, someone who helped and forgave, not condemned to execution… It was only when her screaming quarry emphatically increased the strength of his squirming in response to the squat snout breaking water beneath him that reality clawed its way back into her mind; the potential of her role changing instantly from killer to saviour as the panicking man began to wriggle himself free of her grasp in terror, and she squeezed harder with her arms around his legs to try and keep him safe. The door to the galley slammed open and in poured a handful of wide-eyed crew, led by a middle aged, bearded Officer, a Commander’s rank on his epaulettes. “Lucie!” The Commander shouted, his own eyes as wide as his men’s and shock clinging to his voice as tightly as Lucie clung to her abuser’s legs. Her senses returned, and once more in control of her raging emotions, Lucie railed against the squirming of a body consumed by blind panic, his contortions loosening him once more from her grip. With a final effort brim full of resentment and stress, Lucie hauled the weeping man back, his fingers scrambling to the metal floor as she pulled him back through the hatch to safety, and she stood there, her body aching and her mind exhausted, staring in contempt at the figure on the floor, while the newcomers quickly swarmed around, though none immediately found the courage to apprehend her. The danger averted, the Commander crossed over to her, stopping only to stare in disgust at the two other injured attackers, curtly ordering them both to seek medical attention then consider themselves confined to quarters pending investigation. He stepped over the third member of the self-appointed ‘Equal Opps Team’, who still clung to the floor as though fearful it would give way, whimpering softly. “Get that man to sick bay,” he barked; two men instantly picking him up and half walk, half carrying him out of the galley. Standing in front of Lucie, his expression turned to one of sympathy and worry and he shook his head gently.
“Well, Lucie,” he sighed, his tiredness evident, “I’m afraid you’ve really fucked things up this time.”

Buy Link

https://amzn.to/2DONkbK

Tour Schedule

Please do check out all of the awesome bloggers’ posts and maybe give them all a like and share 😉

Enjoy!

Welcome to my stop on Ian Patrick’s Stoned Love blog tour 🙂

Interview with Ian Patrick…..

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

Hi and thanks for having me. I’m a retired Met Police DS having spent twenty-seven years serving London and the wider UK. Most of my police service was spent as an investigator in the Serious and Organised Crime Command. I now live in rural Scotland with my family and two dogs enjoying a slower pace of life. My books are set in London and focus on austerity and how this breeds corruption. I explore the issues through the eyes of a bent undercover cop called DS Batford and a professional and driven DCI called Klara Winter. Rubicon is my debut novel and Stoned Love the next in the series. The BBC has optioned Rubicon for a six part TV series and is currently in development.

Where did/do you get your ideas?

I stick with fictional situations while drawing on my police experience to provide realism and pace.

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

None. I prefer to use my overactive imagination to fill in the character traits and mannerisms.

How do you pick your characters’ names?

This is the toughest part for me. The lead, Sam Batford, was because I like the name Sam and was living in a place called Batford so the two came together!

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

My process is very loose. I always know the start of a story but that’s it. I don’t plan it out but go where my subjects take me. This is what happens as an investigator so I guess my mind has adjusted to that way of working. In my mind there’s no plan to life so why should writing be any different. It works for me, up to now, but who knows how it could play out in the future? Time will tell. I do write every day though but don’t focus on word count.

Who are your top 5 favourite authors?

In no particular order:

Ed Mcbain.

Cormac McCarthy.

Lynda La Plante.

Chuck Palahniuk.

Jane Isaac.

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

I’d love to meet Chuck Palahniuk and ask him for a signed severed arm! He had some made as a promotional tool for one of his tours.

Were you a big reader as a child?

I was a voracious reader. As a child I loved books by Sven Hassell, Enid Blyton and James Herriot. I spent a good amount of time in the local library so libraries and there survival is very important to me.

When did you start to write?

I’ve been writing for over twenty years. Policing is all about writing too so I got plenty of practice! As a kid I enjoyed English at school especially when we were tasked with a short story to write.

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

Is there a book you wish you had written?

Honestly, I wouldn’t change an ending to any book. The author works so hard in crafting a story and the end is as crucial as the beginning and one an author takes time in deciding. Some readers like cliff hangers others like it all wrapped up with a pretty bow at the end. Let the author decide, I say.

As for books I’d wish I’d written then The Road by Cormac McCarthy would have to be it. That book is incredible in the tension created with so little happening in the main narrative. Some people get it, like me, others think nothing happens. When you get it you just finish the book and are in awe at what McCarthy has achieved. Jane Isaac is another fan of this one.

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

Unassuming: A life with no expectation. Not exactly a headline grabber but it’s the way I operate.

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

I’d invite Tyler Durden from Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club. I’d get him to take me to the location where Marla and he sat in the closing shot of the film and witness it all over again.

What are you working on right now?

Right now I’m editing the third in the Batford series called Fools Gold.

Tell us about your last release?

Stoned Love continues where Rubicon left off and explores Batford as he pits his wits against DCI Klara Winter, who is still gunning for him, an Italian gangster who wants him to explain where his missing cocaine is and another criminal called Razor who is looking to get Batford deeper into his underworld.

Do you have a new release due?

Hopefully my publisher, Fahrenheit Press, will enjoy Fools Gold enough that they will want to publish it next year.

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day?

I take to Twitter and share the moment with my followers some of which are readers who make the process of writing all the more worthwhile. I don’t do much more and here’s why.

In the police when you have success in an operation you celebrate that success by going for a drink but after that you’re focussed on the next job.

So once a book’s out there then I’m on to the next one because that’s what the reader wants and I need to make sure I deliver something worthy of their time put aside to read it.

My job is to entertain and ensure time spent reading my work is a positive and enjoyable experience. If I achieve that just the once with someone I’ve never met then I will celebrate the books success. Until then it’s a waiting game of nerves and resilience!

How can readers keep in touch with you?

Readers can find me at https://twitter.com/IPatrick_Author I’m also on FB but spend more time on Twitter.

Is there anything else you would like us to know?

Yes. I’d like everyone that reads this and my books that I appreciate their time and I hope it brings them some enjoyment and respite from daily life.

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

Blurb

Detective Sergeant Sam Batford has been lying low at a remote safe house in the highlands of Scotland. He’s doing his best not to attract the attention of the enemies he made, on both sides of the law, during his last under-cover operation but Batford knows he’s just killing time until he’s called to account.

Inevitably the sharks begin to circle and as Batford is called back to front-line action in London he’s thrown into a deadly game of cat and mouse where it seems everyone is out to get him.

After having to endure a frustrating resolution to their previous undercover operation together DCI Klara Winter from the National Crime Agency is determined to prove that Batford has crossed the line into criminality and finally bring him to face justice.

All Sam Batford wants is to outwit his enemies long enough to stay alive and come out ahead of the game.  

Author Info

Ian spent twenty-seven years as a police officer, the majority as a detective within the Specialist Operations Command in London. A career in policing is a career in writing. Ian has been used to carrying a book and pen and making notes. Now retired, the need to write didn’t leave and evolved into fiction.

Rubicon is his debut novel published by Fahrenheit Press and Stoned Love the second in the series. Rubicon has been optioned by the BBC for a six part TV series.

He now lives in rural Scotland where he divides his time between family, writing, reading and photography.  

Buy Link

https://amzn.to/2OLpkuW

Happy reading 🙂

I am always SO excited when there’s a new DCI Ryan mystery to devour. I absolutely LOVE this series! L J Ross’s writing is just awesome and I know I’m in for a treat with each new addition to the series. The Hermitage (Book 9) is another brilliant addition and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. If you haven’t read this series yet, then why not? You really are missing out! Holy Island is book 1 if you’d like to start from the beginning, as I prefer to do. If you read that you will be hooked, like me, I’m sure!

First of all, that ending! So beautiful! It brought a tear to my eye and put a big smile on my face. What a lovely way to end such a tense story. I am so fond of some of the characters in this series now. It does feel like catching up with friends.

I have to say I have loved the fact that this book is set in Italy also. I SO want to go there. Even more so now! I’d love a villa like Ryan’s 😉 If only!

I was on the edge of my seat reading this story as Ryan fought to prove that Nathan Armstrong, despite being a famous author with a huge fan base, is actually a dangerous psychopath who has so far literally got away with murder. It was never going to be an easy task, especially with the Italian authorities not being convinced they have anything solid on Armstrong, but Ryan and his team are determined. However, they could not be prepared for what they would uncover during this investigation. Nothing is quite as it seems and each twist in the story is as shocking as the last. The truth is quite sad and highlights just how far some people will go for fame and fortune, not caring who they have to stamp on to get there. Also, how grief can consume some people until revenge seems like their only option to find peace and justice.

Brilliantly written, as always. Page-turner is an understatement! I can’t recommend highly enough! I can’t wait to read book 10!

Thanks SO much to L J Ross for my mobi and beautiful signed paperback copy (and chocolate!).

Via AmazonUK…..

FROM THE #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF HOLY ISLAND AND SEVEN BRIDGES

He thought he was invincible, but he was wrong…

When an old man is found dead inside the ancient hermitage at Warkworth Castle, Northumbria CID are called in to investigate. With no apparent motive, it’s their job to unravel why he was murdered – and this time they’re forced to do it without their star detective…

DCI Ryan is thousands of miles away. He’s tracked a killer across Europe and has sworn not to return until he has his man in custody. Nathan Armstrong is a dangerous psychopath but there’s just one problem – he’s also an international celebrity; a world-famous thriller writer with money and connections.

Ryan is a stranger in a foreign land, but he knows one thing – he’ll never give up.

Murder and mystery are peppered with romance and humour in this fast-paced crime whodunnit set amidst the spectacular landscapes of Northumberland and Tuscany.

“LJ Ross keeps company with the best mystery writers” – The Times

“LJ Ross is the Queen of Kindle” – Sunday Telegraph

About the author…..

LJ Ross is the author of the international #1 bestselling series of DCI Ryan mystery novels. Her debut, Holy Island, was released in January 2015 and reached number one in the Amazon Kindle UK best sellers chart.

Since then, she has released a further seven full-length novels in the DCI Ryan Series, all of which have been top three bestsellers. Cragside, Dark Skies, Seven Bridges and The Hermitage (due for release 20 October 2018) were all #1 in the UK on pre-orders alone.

The novels are available to purchase in e-book, paperback and audiobook formats on the Amazon store, as well as in selected independent bookshops. Holy Island is also available in German translation.

Louise was born in Northumberland, England. She studied undergraduate and postgraduate Law at King’s College, University of London and studied abroad in Paris and Florence. She spent much of her working life in London, where she was a regulatory lawyer for a number of years before taking the decision to change career and pursue her dream to write.

Now, she writes full time and lives with her husband and son in Northumberland. She enjoys reading all manner of books, travelling and spending time with family and friends.

If you would like to connect with LJ Ross, she would be very happy to hear from you:

https://www.facebook.com/LJRossAuthor
https://twitter.com/ljross_author
http://www.ljrossauthor.com
http://www.lovesuspense.com
lj_ross@outlook.com

Hi all! 

I am thrilled to be joining in with Shelley Day’s cover reveal for What Are You Like today 🙂

With thanks to Kelly @ Love Books Group Tours

What is What Are You like all about?…..

Blurb

These stories ask us: what are you like? Watch the characters grapple with what life throws at them, never quite sinking under the weight of it all. Shelley Day’s stories explore what we can’t quite grasp. They celebrate the uncertainties of language. The settings here are exquisitely imagined no-man’s-lands- at once strange yet oddly familiar. Here are worlds where the improbable becomes possible: a mother finds herself living on a library shelf, a diner finds words sliding from his menu into nothingness, a psychiatrist cracks up in front of his patient, and there’s a stain on the wall that won’t stop spreading. These extraordinary stories take us to the psychological hinterlands that make us who we are. What are you like? Do you know the answer?

Meet Shelley Day…..

Bio

Shelley Day is an award-winning writer, a European totally opposed to Brexit, a Geordie lass, a lapsed lawyer and academic psychologist. She was named as an Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature ‘emerging writer’ in 2013 and has since appeared at numerous literary festivals. Her debut novel The Confession of Stella Moon (Saraband, 2016) won the Andrea Badenoch Prize and was shortlisted for the Dundee International Book Prize. In 2015 she won a Northern Writer’s Award to support this debut short story collection. Represented by Jenny Brown.

Visit Shelley: https://shelleyday.com/

What people are saying about What Are You like…..

‘These are real short stories from a real writer: full of the telling detail, the betraying detail, the immaculately-rendered thought… The title work alone is a visceral, unforgettable, punch-drunk joy. Read this book.’

A L Kennedy, award-winning novelist and short story writer.

‘Lucid, vivid, quirky, these interlinking stories teem with the stuff of life – always making the reader ask questions about family, loss, love – what is said, and what is not. The voices in this tender collection come bristling to life, fizzing and full. Fabulous.’

Jackie Kay, poet, novelist, short story writer, and Scotland’s Makar

‘This coruscating collection beautifully showcases Shelley Day’s twisting and turning talent. In one volume, we are immersed repeatedly into her magical worlds, emerging reeling yet ready for the next dip.’

Angela Jackson, award-winning novelist and script writer.

Check this out ⇓⇓⇓

(The cover design is by OrnamentalConifer (Shelley Day’s son). He has a HUGE following over on Instagram.)

Don’t miss the blog tour, coming soon with Love Books Group Tours

The Janitor and the Spy

Baby wipes are not the best at cleaning up blood or what happened to Thornhill in Amsterdam.

They told Thornhill it would be a simple spy mission that he was more than eager to take on, but of course, it wasn’t.

It didn’t take long after meeting the contact for Thornhill to question if he or anyone else connected to him was going to be able to make it out of Amsterdam alive. Passing strangers on the streets became potential hitmen and dinner with criminals became safe heavens as Thornhill seeks to find answers from an old man named Golay.

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Janitor-Spy-Thornhill-Book-ebook/dp/B013KNYGVC/

US – https://www.amazon.com/janitor-spy-thornhill-book-ebook/dp/B013KNYGVC/

The Dragon and the Lumberjack

Thomas feared he played Jack too well…

The sequel to S. W. Ellenwood’s debut novel, The Janitor and the Spy, picks up six months after Thomas Thornhill’s nightmare mission in Amsterdam. On his own, he now goes under the alias of Jack Montferrand and seeks to gain entry into the oldest and most dangerous triad in Asia to find Them.

On the inside, he found the triad not as stable as he thought, forcing him to prove his trust and worth to them at every turn as new rivals sprout up. He plunges his hands deeper into the filth and the alias of Jack where he starts to wonder where Thomas ends and Jack begins.

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dragon-Lumberjack-Thornhill-Book-ebook/dp/B07JFCHTD4

US – https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Lumberjack-Thornhill-Book-ebook/dp/B07JFCHTD4

Author Bio –

S. W. Ellenwood is thankful to have a close-knit family of two parents, a brother, and two sisters. A homeschooler who graduated college from the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith, Ellenwood loves all forms and genres of stories and was inspired by The Lord of the Rings films and his parents to write. You can find Ellenwood writing his next novel at the local coffee shops or playing table top games with his best friends.

Social Media Links –

Twitter: https://twitter.com/swellenwood

Website: http://www.swellenwood.com/

Check out the rest of the blog tour for reviews, and more, with these awesome book bloggers…..

Happy reading 🙂