I was fortunate to meet Kathy Joyce at a local book signing where she kindly gave me a copy of her book in exchange for an honest review. ‘Thicker Than Soup’ is published by Troubador on 28th June 2015.

‘Thicker Than Soup’ follows the lives of Sally and John as they struggle to juggle careers and their relationship through the difficult times of Thatcher’s 1980’s Britain. Events lead them physically and emotionally into their pasts to try to discover who they really are.

‘Thicker Than Soup’ is a really interesting debut novel. Kathy Joyce gives the reader an incredible insight, particularly into life in Pakistan and she weaves an engaging story. I’m certain the author’s own experiences have added a real depth to her descriptions and it is the small details like ‘piles of shiny peppers’ that create a strong visual image.

‘Thicker Than Soup’ is written with compassion as, in a twisting plot, Kathy Joyce explores adoption, abandonment, redundancy, culture, race, HIV and the basic human need for love. The reader is moved as they read. There are immense themes here. I couldn’t decide if I found the end of the novel profoundly sad or profoundly optimistic and I think that’s part of the success of the writing – the sense that life isn’t straight forward and that we sometimes make choices that reverberate a long way into the future.

Initially, I didn’t particularly warm to John, despite the fact that the novel opens with him being wronged by Sally, but as I came to know about his background and to understand his insecurities I found him much more engaging and deserving of empathy.

Alongside highly competent story telling, an aspect that really brought the novel alive for me was the reference to food. Chapters are headed by dishes and I became increasingly hungry as I read! When or if you’ve read the novel you’ll understand why I have the overwhelming urge for a slice of banana cake!

This is such a gorgeous book (see my review lower down this blog), that when the opportunity arose to attend the launch of ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ by Rebecca Mascull in Lincoln’s Waterstones, I jumped at the chance.

Waterstones was packed with Rebecca’s friends, family, fellow authors, bloggers and fans. Rebecca made sure she spoke to everyone individually, making them feel welcome and important and showing what a lovely person she is. She’d even made cakes that represented the book’s gorgeous cover to go with the other drinks and nibbles.

Francine Toon, Assistant Editor at Hodder and Stoughton, began the launch before handing over to Rebecca who gave her thanks to all those who had helped to bring ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ to publication. Rebecca then treated us to a reading from the beginning of the novel.

We also heard to a beautiful song written and performed by Amy Naylor which had been inspired by her reading of the book.

It was a really lovely event and although I stayed until the official end time, there was still an enormous queue of people waiting to have their books signed with personal messages from Rebecca.

I envied those who haven’t read ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ yet as they are in for an amazing experience. It was also lovely to meet Rebecca’s rightly very proud Mum.

‘Song of the Sea Maid’ is available in all good bookshops and on Amazon.

My enormous thanks to Bookbridgr,Tinder Press and Katie Bradburn at Headline for my review copy of Sarah Winman’s ‘A Year of Marvellous Ways’ which was published in hardback on 18th June 2015.

‘A Year of Marvellous Ways’ is, quite simply, a book of marvellous writing.

Mavellous Ways is an 89 year old woman waiting for something. Francis Drake (and he’s heard all the jokes) is a young man devastated by both world and personal events in the Second World War. When he arrives a broken man near Marvellous’ home in his attempt to deliver a letter from a dying soldier, both he and Marvellous find something they didn’t entirely know they were looking for.

It is difficult to express what a gorgeous book this is. Both magical and mystical, the exploration of grief and longing is completely absorbing so that I felt subsumed into the story rather than reading it. It is fortunate that it is divided into short chapters as I found I’d almost been holding my breath as I read and I needed time to recover from the depth of emotion before reading on. Sarah Winman conveys intense grief, loneliness, sorrow and love. Her writing is utterly moving. I found that I made comparisons with the best of Dylan Thomas’ writing when I read her prose.

The reduced palette of characters is wonderful. Marvellous in particular is such a strong presence that I didn’t just like her, I almost wanted to BE her. She teaches life lessons and we discover that love doesn’t have boundaries and isn’t constrained by horizons.

‘A Year of Marvellous Ways’ is one of those stories I shall return to when I need a book to reaffirm the best in life. In the mean time, I’m off for a sloe gin, but you’ll have to read the book to find out why!

Many thanks to Nikki Barrow at Sceptre and Bookbridgr for my review copy of David Mitchell’s ‘The Bone Clocks’. It is out in paperback on 18th June 2015.

Following the central character Holly Sykes, ‘The Bone Clocks’ is a vast tale spanning from 1984 to 2043. After an argument with her mother, Holly runs away from home and so begins a story that tracks her life as it is mysteriously linked to a small band of beings attempting to rid the world of a soul decanting foe.

It is impossible to categorise ‘The Bone Clocks’. I don’t usually enjoy fantasy fiction and there is a good proportion in this novel, but what makes it so much better than merely a fantasy tale is the skill with which Mitchell weaves fantasy elements into the real world so that they are utterly convincing. So too are the characters, and readers can identify totally with Holly Sykes. Her responses to the action of the book mirror those of the reader so that we are almost part of the story, receiving the same shocks and jolts along the way.

There are massive themes explored here – from loyalty to evil, climate change to murder, love to life-threatening illness and all are woven together in a manner that I found captivating almost in spite of myself. I loved the structure of the six separate sections which could almost be read as stand alone short stories.

‘The Bone Clocks’ is not like reading an ordinary novel. I found it more of an experience than a read. My mind was assaulted by humour, empathy, shock and fear and just as I felt I had a grasp on the plot, another twist would send my understanding spiralling in a different direction with a different narrator pulling me along. David Mitchell is an extraordinary writer.

If I had any criticism at all it would be that occasionally I felt some of the cultural references were a little self conscious but they added so much context and colour to the novel I understand their inclusion.

I’d defy anyone reading ‘The Bone Clocks’ by David Mitchell not to be amazed by his skill as a storyteller. I can’t wait until his next novel ‘Slade House’ is out in October.

I was really lucky to be able to read and review ‘Six Month to Get a Life’ by Ben Adams a little while ago and so I was delighted when he agreed to be interviewed for Linda’s Book Bag.

Here’s what Ben told me (and as an ex-English teacher I had to hold my head in shame…):

You’ve recently decided to write full time. How did it feel on your last day in your previous job and your first one as a full time author?

Linda, firstly, thanks for inviting me on to your great blog.

‘Six Months to Get a Life’ was written while I was still gainfully employed in my full-time local government job. I would get up early and write before work. The writing process was so much fun that, even before I had finished the book, I knew I would quit my day job and give it a go full-time.

My last day in my old job was fantastic. Not just because I could turn up in jeans without too much fear of being sacked, but because my colleagues pulled out all the stops to make it a memorable day. They didn’t seem too offended by my leaving speech either, which was nice of them.

My first day as a full-time author was an absolute nightmare.  I blame my work leaving party for that…

What is your earliest memory of writing? Was it something you were good at in school?

My mother showed me one of my old school reports the other day. “At least you are good at Maths,” was my English teacher’s verdict on my performance in her class in 1982.

Despite my English teacher’s opinion, writing has always been a hobby of mine. At school, a group of us were obsessed with ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’. We fancied ourselves as the next Douglas Adams (no relation by the way). We didn’t show our finished product to anyone, but my friends and I loved the writing process.

What is your writing routine and where do you write?

It has only been six weeks since I started writing full-time. My routine is evolving, but I seem to be at my most productive and most creative in the mornings. I see my boys off to school and sit down at my laptop in a little room at the front of the house, looking over my front drive. I wanted to write facing my garden but the desk I bought wouldn’t fit through the house!

If you’re not writing what do you like to read?

Crime thrillers used to be my reading genre of choice. I tried to write one once, but soon realised that I don’t know the first thing about police procedure, forensics or how to commit the perfect murder. These days, I pretty much alternate between a good courtroom drama (Scott Turow is the master) and an entertaining bit of contemporary fiction (Nick Hornby). I have even been known to read a hefty chunk of chick lit.

What (apart from ‘Six Months to Get a Life’) is your favourite book?

Picking one book out above any other is really hard, but my favourite author is certainly Roald Dahl. Dahl is pretty much single-handedly responsible for my love of reading. And his work is timeless too. My own boys love Fantastic Mr Fox and Danny the Champion of the World almost as much as they love Harry Potter.

In ‘Six Months to Get a Life’ Graham is suffering a bit of a mid life crisis. How much is there an autobiographical element to his character?

Without giving too much away, I am familiar with the emotions that divorced dad, Graham Hope, experiences in the book. But when I sat down to write Six Months…, I knew I wasn’t writing a memoir. Writing a book about my ex, my children and my friends would have been wrong on so many levels.

Instead, I made up a new ex, new friends and new scenarios they could all get caught up in. The inventiveness of it all was great fun. Many of the emotions Graham experiences are genuine though.

Graham’s relationship with his sons is very important. Why did you make this such a central part of the book?

Because I was speaking from the heart on that bit.

If ‘Six Months to Get a Life’ became a film, who would you cast as Graham and why?

I asked a friend that question. She suggested Benedict Cumberbatch.  If I’m honest, I didn’t delve too deeply into her reasons, but I like to think her answer had something to do with his good looks, combined with the obvious intelligence of the characters he plays…

If you had six months to get a life, what would you do first and why?

I’d shut myself away and write a book about it. That’s pretty much what I did do.

I read recently that you’d just killed a character in the book you’re currently writing. How did that feel?

Spoiler alert, spoiler alert!

Killing characters is a tricky subject. Personally, I don’t mind a bit of tragedy in a book. It makes the book live longer in the memory.  ‘One Day’ was a fantastic book, despite or maybe even partly because David Nicholls killed off a significant character.

Fans of ‘Six Months to Get a Life’ will definitely want to read’ Six Lies’. Can you tell us a little bit about it (without giving too much away of course)?

Writing a book is just like reading a book, only better. The characters are with me for longer and I am never disappointed with the way it ends . I have loved writing ‘Six Lies’ just as much as I enjoyed constructing ‘Six Months…’

I haven’t written the blurb to ‘Six Lies’ yet. My description of the book still needs honing, but basically it is about a man who discovers after her death that his mother wasn’t actually his mother after all. The book follows Dave Fazackerley as he goes in search of the truth. Oh, and of course there is your standard rom-com goings on too.

If you had a one minute speed date with a reader, what would you tell them about yourself and your writing?

Nothing. I’d ask them about themselves. I’m a better listener than I am a talker.

I’d really like to thank Ben for taking the time to answer my questions. The lively answers are a really good clue as to Ben’s style of writing and I’m sure you’ll want to know more about Ben and his writing so here are some links:

Website: http://www.benadamsauthor.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ben-Adams/582854708503738?fref=ts

Twitter: @BenAdamsAuthor

‘Six Months to Get a Life’ is available in paperback and Kindle on Amazon

I am very grateful to Emma Daley at Hodder for providing an advanced reader copy of ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ which is released on 18th June 2015.

Living in the middle of the 18th century, foundling Dawnay Price confounds conventional expectations of women by being intelligent, strong willed and a natural philosopher. ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ charts her rise from street urchin to a respectable woman challenging the beliefs of the time.

I had absolutely no expectations of this novel except that I thought the cover was beautiful and enticing. It took me about three sentences to realise the prose has exactly those same qualities. This is a beautifully written book.

I found the experience of reading ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ more like listening to the entrancing voice of Dawnay weaving a narrative through conversation. I loved the authenticity of language throughout. The technique of using the continuous present tense and the first person means that there is an intimacy with Dawnay as a person and a vibrancy to following her experiences. I found real pace and exhilaration as I read. Each chapter seems to end with an enticement to the reader to carry on and it was difficult to tear myself away.

Rebecca Mascull provides a feast for the senses in ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ and her descriptions are exquisite. Gorgeously plotted, the novel is incredibly well researched and I have learnt a great deal from reading it, although I never found the information stuffy; merely erudite and literary. It felt as if I was reading a work by a modern and accessible Dickens.

‘Song of the Sea Maid’ is a highly intelligent novel – a feminist text, a scientific text, a philosophical text, a love story and an historical novel. However, above all else it is a fabulous blend of all these genres into a wonderful and hugely satisfying read. ‘Song of the Sea Maid’ enriches the reader’s life.

I can’t thank Alison Davies and Corvus books enough for providing an Advanced Reader Copy of Cesca Major’s The Silent Hours which is published on 11th June 2015. The Silent Hours is available for purchase here.

The Silent Hours

An epic, sweeping tale set in wartime France, The Silent Hours follows three people whose lives are bound together, before war tears them apart: Adeline, a mute who takes refuge in a convent, haunted by memories of her past; Sebastian, a young Jewish banker whose love for the beautiful Isabelle will change the course of his life dramatically; Tristin, a nine-year-old boy, whose family moves from Paris to settle in a village that is seemingly untouched by war. Beautifully wrought, utterly compelling and with a shocking true story at its core, The Silent Hours is an unforgettable portrayal of love and loss.

My Review of The Silent Hours

‘The Silent Hours’ is a tragic story based on the true massacre that took place in Oradour-sur-Glane on June 10th 1944 and is constructed around three main characters, Adeline, Sebastien and Tristan.

I’ve been sitting staring at the screen wondering how to review this incredible book and finding it difficult to write as my eyes are still blurred by tears. I think what makes it all the more emotional, taking nothing away from the fantastic writing and storytelling, is the fact that it is based in a true event.

Told partly through the first person voices of Adeline, Sebastien and Tristan, Cesca Major weaves a spellbinding narrative by adding layer upon layer of information and detail through memories and letters alongside these three main voices so that ‘The Silent Hours’ becomes an intimate, haunting and utterly compelling read. Whilst their tone is often conversational with humour, the writing manages to be intense and personal at the same time. It is sheer genius.

The settings are vivid and evocative, like looking at a film clip rather than merely reading words on the page. The writer has the ability to alter the reader’s emotions through one simple word or phrase and I would urge readers to return to the quotations at the start of the book once they have read it to understand fully their meaning and impact.

The further I read, the more involved with the characters as real people I became. I could not bear the ending of this novel and my heart was pumping with fear and horror.

The themes here resonate still – love, loss, guilt and the desperation of ‘if only…’ and ‘The Silent Hours’ is a book I will remember for a very long time.

My huge thanks go to Natasha Harding at Pan Macmillan for providing a review copy of ‘Frank Derrick’s Holiday of a Lifetime’ by J B Morrison.

82 year old Frank Derrick has a daughter with cancer in Los Angeles and decides he needs to see her, so he sets off without really thinking through the implications of his actions. The story tells us of his adventures.

Not having read the first of the Frank Derrick books by J B Morrison (‘The Extra Ordinary Life of Frank Derrick, Age 81’), I had no expectations about ‘Frank Derrick’s Holiday of a Lifetime’ but I absolutely loved it. There is a warmth and wittiness that ranks alongside one of my favourite books ‘A Man Called Ove’ by Fredrik Backman and readers who’ve enjoyed Backman’s books will adore ‘Frank Derrick’s Holiday of a Lifetime’ too.

Frank Derrick made me laugh out loud with his pragmatic and straightforward approach to life – even when he’s trying to avoid telling the truth. Indeed, all the characters in this highly entertaining novel are incredibly well drawn and human – including Bill the cat. Alongside the humour is wonderful depth of feeling. There are some moments so touching they brought a tear to my eye.

The plot is simple – Frank goes to stay with his daughter and grand daughter for a couple of weeks and they show him around the sights of LA. However, that is not to say the plot is simplistic. J B Morrison creates scenarios that are entirely plausible but hugely enjoyable – even taking a passport photo becomes like sharing a joke with an old friend. The skill of the writing is in making the reader want to know what happens next and drawing them in to Frank’s life so that they don’t want to leave. I will be reading the first book about Frank’s life as soon as I can.

I can’t recommend ‘Frank Derrick’s Holiday of a Lifetime’ highly enough for those who want a book to lift their spirits and make them feel all is right in the world. It’s genius.

I am extermely grateful to Netgalley for a copy of ‘You, Me and Other People’ by Fionnuala Kearney which is out in Harper paperback on 18th June 2015.

Adam has been unfaithful to Beth – again. And this time it looks as if their lives are irreparably changed. They both need to learn what is important in life and finding out may not be easy.

At the start of the novel I hated Adam. I thought he was a complete idiot who didn’t recognise what was important in life. His cynical betrayal of Beth and their marriage, hurting their daughter Meg in the process, made me glad when his life began to free-fall.  Fionnuala Kearney, however, had other ideas. She wanted me to be drawn to Adam, to understand him and to care about him and such is the skill of her writing I did just that.

‘You, Me and Other People’ is a super summer read. It has everything a reader wants to engage them. Kearney explores human nature and love in all their flaws and triumphs so that the reader totally believes in each of the characters and understands why they behave as they do.

The plot is fast paced and totally gripping. The structure of switching chapters alternately  between Adam and Beth from their first person point of view keeps the writing fresh and interesting. I found it hard to believe that this is a debut novel.

The novel does not end as I wanted it to (but I’m not going to spoil the plot by saying more). It did, however, end with humanity, realism and a desperate need in this reader to know what happens next!

I can totally recommend ‘You, Me and Other People’ as a wonderful summer read.

Having read a review of ‘Bomber Boy: Rise of the Underwear Bomber’ by Ike Pius on another blogger’s site (Sarah Hardy’s https://bytheletterbookreviews.wordpress.com/)  I commented that I didn’t think this was a book for me. As a result, Ike Pius contacted me and suggested I read it and then decide. I was happy to do so.

Farouk Omar Muttab is on a suicide bombing mission to destroy North-Western Airlines Flight 253. When his bomb fails to detonate, he finds he has some serious choices to make.

The story is a quick read as it was initially intended as a magazine or radio feature and so the prose is quite sparse which adds to the effect of speed in events. This means that it feels more like a screen play than a narrative and I would have liked more development of the prose, but the story is interesting and engaging.

There are some serious themes that are obviously very close the the author’s heart and Ike Pius is not afraid to explore how we give our loyalties and our lives to a variety of causes. As a result of ‘Bomber Boy: Rise of the Underwear Bomber’ the reader is challenged to question their own attitudes and beliefs.

I felt ‘Bomber Boy: Rise of the Underwear Bomber’ has real potential and think it could be developed into a very successful full length thriller.

You can get a copy here in the UK and here in the US.