I am thrilled to be part of the celebrations of Blood and Bone by Valentina Giambanco. Already available in hardback and e-book, Blood and Bone is published in paperback by Quercus Books on 25th August 2016 and is available for purchase on Amazon, from Waterstones and all good book sellers and directly from the publisher.

To celebrate the paperback publication of Blood and Bone, Valentina Giambanco is sharing a fabulous experience with us on Linda’s Book Bag today: Walking with Wolves.

Blood and Bone

Detective Alice Madison is back in a gripping new thriller, perfect for fans of Angela Marsons, Kathryn Croft and Sharon Bolton.

After two years in the Seattle Police Department, Detective Alice Madison has finally found a peace she has never known before. When a local burglary escalates into a gruesome murder, Madison takes charge of the investigation. She finds herself tracking a killer who has haunted the city for years – and whose brutality is the stuff of myth in high security prisons. As she delves deeper into the case, Madison learns that the widow of one of the victims is being stalked – is the killer poised to strike again? As pressures mount, Madison will stop at nothing to save the next innocent victim . . . even if it means playing a killer’s endgame.

Walking with Wolves

A Guest Post by Valentina Giambanco

You’re walking on a country path. It’s a sunny day; you’re at the edge of a reservoir and your dog – a black and white springer spaniel – it’s straining to get to the cool water. There are grassy hills all around you and no one else about except for a solitary fisherman a few yards away. The sky is blue and the mountains in the distance a dark hazy green. A perfect afternoon. Now, change a single minor detail: instead of the springer spaniel, at the end of the lead you have a hybrid wolf whose hackles come up to your hip, whose head is a third bigger than a German shepherd because his brain is thirty percent bigger, and whose back muscles are so powerful that there are two of you hanging on for dear life to the twenty foot lead. As he pulled to go forward, the panting from the wolf was deeper than a dog’s because their lungs are larger and their voices darker. It was an exotic sound and, for the first few minutes, not a little menacing. A week ago I went walking with wolves, and it is not a metaphor.

By the way, the wolf – Maska – was only humouring us by allowing us to hold the lead. We knew – and I think Maska knew – that he could shake us off in a nanosecond and go off his merry way.  My theory is that he did not out of respect for his two handlers and out of pity for us puny humans who had apparently joined his pack for the afternoon.

Why was I holding a strap attached to over 70lbs of wolf? Because I write novels set in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. and they have wolves there. My character, Alice Madison, is a detective in the Seattle Police Department Homicide Unit but a good chunk of the stories is set in the wilderness, in the forests of the Olympic peninsula and in the mountains on the border with Canada. Their wilderness has no comparison with ours and when I found out I had the chance to meet a wolf – two, actually, four year-old brothers – there was no way I would not.

Maska and Kajika’s owners/handlers have had them since they were puppies and have treated them like the wolves they are and not tried to turn them into pets (they are mostly wolf with a tiny genetic bit of wolfdog which makes it legal for us to meet them in this open manner).

There was a structure to our meeting: first, we had to be sniffed so that they would know who we were. Normally a wolf would greet another member of the family by licking around their face and mouth but since Health & Safety would have something to say about that kind of introduction I put my hands flat against the metal mesh at the back of the pick-up truck and the wolves darted forward and pushed their noses close to my skin.

When the door was opened the wolves jumped out so quickly it was a blur of grey fur. The first surprise was how big they were, the second how unlike dogs they behaved: dogs want you to like them, they interact with you and are determined to make friends – people made sure they behaved that way through centuries of breeding for that particular trait. Wolves don’t care about making friends.  Maska and Kajika were more interested in the surroundings, profiling the ground and the bushes around us, looking for voles and other small creatures that might cross their path. They were aware of everything, especially of each other. Kajika always walked a few feet ahead of his brawnier brother because he was higher in the family hierarchy. If we let Maska lead the small group we were told that the brother would put him in his place later. We were told that they are so close they would never stray more than a hundred meters from each other.

Once we were on the path and away from the road we were given the leash to hold and we started walking together. I asked if it was okay to touch them and, yes, it was. The tips of my fingers brushed the thick coarse fur. Maska did not react at all, he was heading for the lake and I was merely along for the ride.

For an hour we watched them run, dive into the water, play with each other and roll into the grass to dry themselves. On the way back, Kajika stopped by a gate and peered at a few cows at the other end of the field. ‘No, we don’t eat the cows today.’ Her handler said and gave a strong pull of the lead to let him know we should move on. The brothers eat four and half pounds of meet a day as it happens and need hours of exercise to keep them happy and interested – you really don’t want a bored wolf on your hands.

The truth is that it is far more likely to be bitten by a dog than by a wolf that would only attack a person if he felt the person presented a danger to the pack. People get bitten, and worse, by dogs all the time, sometime their own dogs.

The myth of the big bad wolf is still out there but for my part I found them a true marvel: beautiful and powerful, self-contained and yet bound by deep familial bonds; we even got to hear them howl when we said goodbye – the family bonding howl. Amazing.

I walked with wolves. I’m glad for the pictures I took or it would seem like a dream.

Maska and Kajika live in the ‘Predator Experience’ Zoo in Cumbria and their owners Daniel Ashman and Dee Ashman have years of experience in animal management, especially birds of prey.

About Valentina Giambanco

Valentina Giambanco was born in Italy. After her degree in English and Drama at Goldsmiths, she worked for a classical music retailer and as a bookseller in her local bookshop. She started in films as an editor’s apprentice in a 35mm cutting room and since then has worked on many award-winning UK and US pictures, from small independent projects to large studio productions. Valentina lives in London.

You can follow Valentia on Twitter and visit her website. There is also more with these other bloggers:

I am indebted to Karen Duffy at Atlantic Books for a copy of The Lovers’ Guide to Rome by Mark Lamprell in return for an honest review. The Lovers’ Guide to Rome was published by Atlantic in paperback on 12th August 2016 and is available for purchase from Amazon, Waterstones and from all good booksellers.

The Lovers’ Guide to Rome

This is the place where passions are aroused, senses inflamed, and lovers fall into each other’s arms. It all appears to unfold like magic – but I will tell you what really happens. Rome – glorious, eternal, intoxicating. Could there be a better place on earth to fall in love?

Young artist Alice has come to Rome for adventure before settling down with her safe boyfriend. But when fate intervenes to show her there really is such a thing as love at first sight, will she find the courage to follow her heart?

Meg and Alec fell in love in Rome many years before and have returned to rekindle their amore, but have they left it too late?

Connie and Lizzie are in Rome to scatter the ashes of Connie’s beloved husband Henry, who’s also Lizzie’s brother. But Lizzie doesn’t know the real story of how Connie and Henry met there decades before, nor what long-hidden secrets lie waiting to be unearthed.

And what of Rome itself? It turns out that the Eternal City has secrets only lovers can glimpse. The magic of Rome is also the magic of the human heart.

My Review of The Lovers’ Guide to Rome

There’s a presence in Rome that controls far more than Alice, Lizzie, Constance, Meg and Alec realise.

I absolutely loved The Lovers’ Guide to Rome. I was completely charmed by the quality of the writing. There’s an understated wryness that really appealed to my sense of humour, especially when quite startling details are dropped into the narrative as if in passing, but there’s also a depth of understanding and emotion too – especially in the relationship between Meg and Alec. I laughed aloud throughout the book and shed a tear at the end.

The Lovers’ Guide to Rome explores perfectly love at its beginning, its middle and its end. When I was reading I was reminded (if I don’t sound mad in putting it this way) of a waterfall with one sparkling moment, line or description cascading after another that held me captivated. I couldn’t wait to finish the story to find out what happened, but at the same time I didn’t want it to end.

I thought the characterisation was perfect. I found myself exclaiming aloud to them, so engrossed was I in their adventures, particularly when they made what I felt to be a mistake. I have every intention of becoming a ‘girlie’ like Lizzie or Constance. But it is Rome who (and I use ‘who’ advisedly) steals the scene. The way in which Mark Lamprell combines historical and geographical detail in with the flow of the narrative is pure genius. It is obvious that the author’s background in film and television has influenced the fabulous descriptions so that I could imagine every detail. There’s a cinematic feel where colour and sound reverberate and add depth to a fast paced and action packed story narrated by the somewhat capricious spirit of Rome.

I also thought the quotations at the start of each chapter were so well chosen to reflect the plot and they added to my enjoyment of the read because they were from so many of my favourite authors.

The Lovers’ Guide to Rome is witty, sharply observed and a delight to read. I highly recommend it.

About Mark Lamprell

Mark Lamprell works in film and television. He co-wrote the film Babe: Pig in the City and wrote and directed the award- winning feature My Mother Frank. His first novel, The Full Ridiculous, was published last year and has been sold to the United States, Canada, Poland and Israel. Mark has holidayed in Rome for many years.

You can follow Mark on Twitter.

I’m delighted to be sharing with you The Memory Box by Eva Lesko Natiello on Linda’s Book Bag today. I had hoped to read The Memory Box for review by now but events have somewhat overtaken life at the moment and I haven’t had chance.

The Memory Box is available for purchase in e-book and paperback from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo and Smashwords.

The Memory Box

What would you do if you Googled yourself and uncovered something shocking?

In this gripping psychological thriller, a group of privileged suburban moms amuse themselves by Googling everyone in town, digging up dirt to fuel thorny gossip. Caroline Thompson, devoted mother of two, sticks to the moral high ground and attempts to avoid these women. She’s relieved to hear her name appears only three times, citing her philanthropy. Despite being grateful that she has nothing to hide, a delayed pang of insecurity prods Caroline to Google her maiden name—which none of the others know.

The hits cascade like a tsunami. Caroline’s terrified by what she reads. An obituary for her sister, JD? That’s absurd. With every click, the revelations grow more alarming. They can’t be right. She’d know. Caroline is hurled into a state of paranoia—upending her blissful family life—desperate to prove these allegations false before someone discovers they’re true.

The disturbing underpinnings of The Memory Box expose a story of deceit, misconceptions, and an obsession for control. With its twists, taut pacing, and psychological tenor, Natiello’s page-turning suspense cautions:  Be careful what you search for.

About Eva Lesko Natiello

Eva Lesko Natiello is the award-winning author of the Number One bestseller The Memory Box, a psychological thriller about a woman who Googles herself and discovers the shocking details of a past she doesn’t remember. She is a speaker and essayist whose work can be found on her blog, Writing from the Intersection of Oops, Yikes & Awe where she writes about writing, creativity, parenting, food, fashion and humor. Eva is a former Estee Lauder communications executive and graduate of the University at Albany.

You can find Eva on Facebook, follow her on Twitter and visit her Goodreads page.

Today it is my very great pleasure to welcome Anoushka Beazley, author of The Good Enough Mother, to Linda’s Book Bag. Anoushka has kindly written a very personal piece all about how the lines between fiction and life become blurred – and how that experience might be just what we need.

The Good Enough Mother was published in e-book and paperback by Larchwood Press on 9th July 2016 and is available for purchase here.

The Good Enough Mother

Gatlin – a leafy, affluent town: Chelsea tractors and ladies who lunch. However all is not as it seems. Drea, a most unnatural mother, struggles to find private school fees for her step-daughter Ava after her boyfriend leaves her for another woman. Watching the yummy mummies she becomes inspired, hatching a daring and criminal plan…unleashing all hell in the quiet town of Gatlin. Can Drea survive the fallout and the wrath of the PTA? A satirical and hilarious black comedy about love, motherhood and the human condition.

How the Lines Between Fiction and Life Become Blurred

A Guest Post by Anoushka Beazley

Writing comes easily to me. There is much in life that does not. Like a sense of contentment. I often feel burdened by the necessity of life. The relentless way it seems to continue in the face of all that could deter it.

It’s no secret my experience of high school – formative years –  were hideous. Bullying is a bloodsport and the scars are indelible. I started writing as a young child and such escapism allowed me to leave my world and enter new ones where people behaved very differently. The characters I wrote about were witty, complex, vulnerable bleeding hearts and viewing them from an authorial perspective, honesty seemed their greatest virtue. People in the real world rarely said what they were actually feeling but creating a character and fleshing them out so they live and breathe from every angle meant that my characters were always saying what they were feeling.

Then there is the subject of pain. Wounds that don’t heal but that we learn to carry which are exorcised through embodying a character with your pain, your journey. Being in control of your fictional worlds can birth a disillusionment with the real world, the world we are expected to actually live in. A divine discontentment; G.K Chesterton writes, “That’s the feeling that there is more to this life than just living. It’s the nagging that this world is not our home. It’s the romance of the heart from the Almighty.”

My debut novel The Good Enough Mother, was born from such discontentment. When my father passed away nearly five years ago, through the tears I would drive my children to school every day, passing his house and the places he would walk. Needless to say, I started to hate the school run more than I did already. To distract from the unbearable and overwhelming pain, hoping for a moment’s reprieve from my own bleakness, I began to write, and, in a moment of ‘divine’ discontentment and as the lines between fiction and life blurred, my character Drea came into her own.

As a person, and I should point out at this juncture that I was an actress prior to becoming a writer but the artistic neurosis is the same, I have always oscillated between great highs and great lows and the parts at rest in the middle seem to create a sense of unease rather than comfort. In my experience my extremes are where I work best, where I am most frightened, where I am most happy, where I learn the most, where the lines are the most blurred and if I cannot tell which world I’m living in, fiction or reality, where I’ve got the best chance of feeling like I’m doing a bit more than just living.

About Anoushka Beazley

Anoushka Beazley, born Anoushka Kanagasabay and served for a while as Anushka Dahssi while treading the boards. A BA in Film Theory from the University Of Kent, a Postgraduate in Acting and a MA in Creative Writing makes for a life lived in fiction as much as written. She is currently based in London, England with her husband, three children and a posh cat.

You’ll find Anoushka on Twitter, Facebook and on her website.

 

I am indebted to Olivia Mead at Quercus books for a copy of Love Notes for Freddie by Eva Rice in return for an honest review. Love Notes for Freddie was published in paperback by Quercus on 28th July 2016 and is available from Amazon UK, Amazon US, Waterstones, WH Smith, directly from the publisher and from all good booksellers.

Love Notes for Freddie

Every ending is a new beginning . . .

No one expected Marnie Fitzpatrick to be expelled from school . . . but the aftermath will haunt her forever.
No one imagined she’d fall for the boy from the wrong side of town . . . until the day she saw him dancing alone.
No one could know she had the one thing he needed to capture his dreams . . . the courage to chase them.

My Review of Love Notes for Freddie

What a triumph of a book. I really enjoyed Eva Rice’s The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets, my review of which can be found here, but Love Notes for Freddie is in a different league altogether. It is more sophisticated, more intense and frequently beautiful in style.

Initially I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy the book that starts in a girls’ boarding school as it felt a rather alien world to me, but within a few pages I was completely hooked. The power of emotion conveyed by Julie Crewe’s memories of a lost love and Marnie’s sense of guilt and her passion for Freddy dances off the page in the way Freddy dances for real. There is apparent surface control but also an underlying abandonment that makes the reader understand exactly how the characters are feeling. As several truths are revealed the reader experiences the same sense of loss, shock, love or grief that the characters express. This is wonderful craftsmanship from Eva Rice.

In a sense, Love Notes for Freddie is all about passion and making the most of life, even when it throws the most unexpected elements at us. However, the plot is constructed so intelligently that the themes arise naturally and convincingly. I loved the concept that coming of age is not just the prerogative of the young. I thought the structure of the narrative was perfectly balanced but that the characters’ worlds could come crashing down at any moment – rather like life itself. Indeed, those characters felt real and human, even in their most stereoptypical presentation like Howard with his theatrical persona. Whilst there are echoes of Marnie in Miss Crewe and vice versa, they have distinct voices in their first person stories so that each has her own personality.

But for me, the aspect I enjoyed most was the quality of the writing. There’s a poetic nature to some passages and a staccato feel to others which mirrors the emotions presented at the time in a sophisticated style that I found very effective. I thoroughly enjoyed Love Notes for Freddie, and those who know me well will realise that a reference to Bryan Ferry, even in passing, always pleases!

You can follow Eva Rice on Twitter.

I’m delighted to be welcoming Chad Sanborn onto Linda’s Book Bag today to explain how he has created his character Billy Keene from All Debts, Public and Private. All Debts, Public and Private is available in e-book from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

All Debts, Public and Private

Billy Keene, a one-time high school sports hero, is now playing sheriff thanks to the small town power brokers who leveraged his local celebrity to set him up with the badge.

Billy knows he’s just a placeholder in the job. So does everyone else, including his undisciplined deputies.

When a young woman goes missing, everyone in town is telling their green sheriff how to do his job…or not telling him anything at all.

One person not saying much—the missing young woman’s newly-rich grandmother, Arlita Hardy. She has the means to resolve the situation outside the law.

Then there’s Horace Self, one of those town power brokers. As usual, he’s talking way too much. But he might not be as distraught – or innocent – as he puts on.

Time’s running out, Billy’s scrambling to find the missing young woman and her kidnappers are getting more brutal with each passing day. As Billy digs for the truth, he’ll come to question both his place in the town where he grew up and the people he thought he knew.

No Experience Required

A Guest Post by Chad Sanborn

How much does experience count for?

Not a lot, it turns out. At least, that’s what I decided when creating my main character in the Billy Keene Stories.

When you set out to create a series, the first challenge smacks you right in the face: You better conjure a main character with staying power.

Read enough series fiction of any genre and, generally speaking, you’ll come to recognize these Big Three requirements for the main character of a successful series:


– Your main character better be someone that readers want to spend time with. Readers don’t necessarily have to like the character – though it helps – but they do have to be engaged to the point that they want to hang around to see what happens next.

– Your character better be interesting enough that readers will want to come back again and again. In real life we call those kinds of people friends, and they’re rare and precious. So imagine how daunting it can be (if you let it) to make up one?

– Your character better be someone you really friggin’ like too. The two of you are going to be spending a lot of time together in your head. There’s enough boring people in the real world; no author needs them ratting around in his or her brain too.


A Nifty Trick 


Up to the point of creating the Billy Keene Stories, I’d only written standalone crime novels and stories. Most all were written from the criminal’s point of view. The characters were likable to some degree, certainly engaging and interesting enough to drive a story.

Still, in those stories I knew my protagonist could turn unlikable without fear of ruining a long-term relationship between the character and the reader. Once the story ended, the character went away and there was no need for them to ever bother readers again. A literary one-night stand, if you will.

But protagonists in crime/detective series usually are some variation of the Master Detective or Mast Criminal. They’re unchanging for the most part and therein lies their appeal. They’re familiar, so readers know what to expect. The character never lets the readers down because if they do, readers simply don’t pick up the next book in the series.

Billy Keene would be coming back again and again, but I knew I wanted something more than a static character. Otherwise I’d get sick of him even before readers did.

The most interesting people change, and I wanted to create a character who could grow too. (Cue high-pitched Pinocchio voice: “I’m a real boy!”)

That’s the nifty trick I was looking to pull off: Creating a repeatable character — with rock-solid traits, beliefs and quirks that become as familiar to readers as an old friend’s habits — yet give my character enough room to evolve over the course of the series.


It’s Not Easy Being Green 

I started by making Billy Keene green at his job and in life. Billy’s inexperience on the job – mixed with naiveté about the people he’s known all his life and they way they treat him now that he’s The Law – gives him a vulnerability readers can recognize, even empathize with.

But not too vulnerable. Nobody likes a wuss. People expect strength in their main characters, even if it takes time for that strength to show itself.

Then I decided to have all that vulnerability play out against Billy’s personal strength, his humor, his cool, calm manner in the face of small-town chaos, his commitment to action once he figures out what he should do—even if he’s at first unsure what to do (yet another note of vulnerability for readers to identify with).

The Fault In Our Scars 

I believe all of this together makes Billy Keene engaging and familiar character from book to book, yet one who over the course of the series comes to understand the role that the people need him, as their sheriff, to play in their community

My hope is that readers want to see what happens next, both in the individual stories and to Billy as he matures from book to book.

Because Billy’s not a grizzled veteran who’s seen it all, done it all and bearing the scars to prove it, the reader gets to go through the experiences too, earning those scars along with Billy.

Ideally, when the reader picks up the next book in the series, they’re greeted by the familiar Billy they know and (hopefully) love, but also recognize that he’s lost some innocence—because they were there when the innocence was slowly, painfully stripped away from him in the previous books.

Who knows, Billy may end up a grizzled old veteran. We’ll see what happened when we get there. The only promise I can make right now—I plan to put that poor bastard through some twisted situations.

And anybody who comes along for ride will be right there with Billy.

About Chad Sandborn

Sum total of Chad: Married, father of two and a dutiful son to his mother. Everything else is window dressing.

You’ll find more about Chad on his website and can follow him on Twitter. He’s also on Facebook.

I’m delighted to be welcoming Jane Lythell onto Linda’s Book Bag today as part of her summer blog hop. Jane’s latest novel Woman of the Hour was published by Head of Zeus on 14th July 2016 and is available for purchase as a hardback or an e-book on Amazon, Kobo and other good booksellers.

To celebrate Woman of the Hour Jane has kindly written a guest post all about creating a vivid setting.

Woman of the Hour

E-book and paperback cover

Meet Liz Lyon: respected TV producer, stressed-out executive, guilty single mother… woman of the hour.

StoryWorld is the nation’s favourite morning show, and producer Liz Lyon wants to keep it that way. Her job is to turn real-life stories into thrilling TV – and keep a lid on the scandals and backbiting that happen off-stage.

But then simmering tensions erupt at the station, trapping Liz in a game of one-upmanship where she doesn’t know the rules. As the power struggle intensifies, can Liz keep her cool and keep her job? Does she even want to?

In this gripping novel of power, rivalry and betrayal, Jane Lythell draws on her experiences of working in the glamorous, pressurised world of live TV.

Creating A Vivid Setting

A Guest Post by Jane Lythell

Setting is vitally important in a novel and I think about it a lot. It may be my background as a TV producer but I need to see very clearly the spaces my characters will move through. Only then can I write scenes that feel real. Sometimes I even sketch the locations out roughly to help me get it right.

In my latest novel Woman of the Hour I have created two main locations: a TV station housed in a converted Victorian warehouse on the river by London Bridge and a flat in Chalk Farm where my leading character, Liz Lyon, lives with her daughter Flo. How did I set about creating a visual sense of these two places?

Liz is a producer at the TV station and I wanted it to be a dramatic and visually striking place because it was going to be the cauldron where much of the drama would unfold. Liz likes the space where she works:

‘I’ve worked here for years yet I still find that the building gives me a lift when I arrive in the mornings. The architect who converted it used its space to great effect and there’s this dramatic light-filled atrium which you enter from the street. Off the atrium are the main studio, the small news studio, dressing rooms and the Hub, our staff café. There are two staircases, on either side of the atrium, which take you up to the executive offices above; features is on the left and news is on the right. It is a very showbiz building.

I included small details like the fact that Fizzy the TV presenter demands a posy of fresh flowers on the set every day; that the staff café has lime-green and orange designer tables and chairs and trendy lighting and that Julius Jones, the big boss, has the large corner office with the best views over the river and acres of polished oak floor. The reader needs to be able to see the building and believe that this is what a TV station is like. It is a glamorous building with an appearance designed to impress. TV is in the business of creating illusions and the impression it makes is more important than the reality.

In contrast Liz’s home is her personal space where you see the real, emotional Liz. You can reveal aspects of your character in their choice of home. After her divorce Liz is keen to have a nice home for her daughter so she takes on a mortgage that is too big for her. This means she can’t afford to leave her job even when the stress gets to her. Her flat is both a millstone around her neck and her haven:

          There’s not much of a garden, it’s more a patio with potted plants, but there’s room enough for Flo and me to have two deckchairs out there in the summer and to pretend we have a garden. It’s not a big flat inside either. It does have one beautiful large room, the living room, which is also our kitchen and dining room. There are doors at the far end which open onto the patio and I bought the flat because of this room. It’s costing me more than I can comfortably afford and a great slab of my salary goes on my mortgage every month. But my flat is my haven.

When Liz gets home from work she often cooks in order to decompress so I included scenes of her making macaroni cheese or flapjacks. I show her ironing. Her home environment is cosy with its squashy yellow sofa and the outdoor lights that twinkle along the garden wall.

Writing a novel set in a TV station and a London flat was not the easiest of settings to bring alive but it was important to try to do so. However with my second novel, After the Storm, I had a fantastic opportunity to create a vivid setting. The novel is about two couples who set off together in a sailing boat after knowing each other less than 24 hours to sail from Belize City in Central America to a paradise island in the Caribbean Sea called Roatan. I had made that sail of 138 miles and I could not have written After the Storm without that first-hand experience. It was a stunning place and I kept a journal and took lots of photographs. My journal was full of descriptions of the food I ate, the birds on the island and the fish I saw when I went snorkelling. These details helped me create the visual setting and as a result conch stew, cooking live lobsters in a boat, houses on stilts and pelicans landing clumsily on a mangrove tree all make an appearance in the novel.

By creating a vivid setting you can establish mood and atmosphere, you can reveal characters and you can make the world of your novel feel very immediate. You know you’ve got it right when readers say things like ‘I felt I was there’ or ‘It felt so real.’

About Jane Lythell

Jane lives in Brighton, UK andis a sea-lover, star gazer, film and football fan.She worked as a television producer for fifteen years. Jane then moved to the British Film Institute as Deputy Director, did one year as Chief Executive of BAFTA (miserable) followed by seven years at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (interesting). Jane now writes full time.

You can follow Jane on Twitter and find her on Facebook. She also has a blog. After the Storm was published in 2015 and is available here.

Stacy McWilliams is the mum of two boys, a wife and a writer. She loves reading a variety of genres and enjoy a diverse range of movies.

She writes paranormal romance and loves to meet new people.

Amazon Author Page

Facebook | Twitter

LinkedIn | Stacy McWilliams Newsletter

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Luminosity

Jasmine Johnstone’s life was relatively normal until she was forced to live with the Stevenson family. As she stayed she found she had no choice but to battle mythical creatures. Strengths she never knew she possessed began to surface, surprising those around her. Her only chance of surviving the rising tide of evil was Nathan Stevenson. Could she really trust him as he fought against his love for her? With the world against them and time running out, would their love be enough to defeat demons? (204 pages)

 

Ignition

Life has never been easy for Jasmine Johnstone, but failing for Nathan Stevenson brings a whole new level of difficulty. Since she arrived at his home he’s blown hot and cold with her, turned against her and revealed a deadly threat. He is sworn to kill her, and fights against his love for her more than ever, but he knows he can’t live without her.

As they run from monsters, and each other, can their love survive?

Time begins to run out and with new friends and enemies in the strangest places, will they learn who to trust in time?

With their love stronger than ever, but forces pulling them apart, is love enough to keep them together or will Nathan’s parents succeed in pulling them apart? (214 pages)

Candlelight

***This novella is the prequel to Luminosity****

Life was full of nothing but darkness for Nathan Stevenson until Jasmine appeared in his life. She brought his innermost desires to the surface. She burned her way through to his heart to become embedded in his soul. He knew she was dangerous but would she break down his wall as he dreamed of her touch and fought against the impulse to protect her? Would their love be enough to defeat his demons? Was he strong enough to resist her or would her light burn irrevocably? (95 pages)

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Here is an excerpt taken from Candlelight

School passed in a blur and that night, I spent my time catching up on all the work I had missed. The following day, an opportunity presented itself to me and I couldn’t resist getting my message across to that fucker.

James walked a little ahead of me during class time. It looked as if he headed to the library. He didn’t notice me as I looped around the corridor and caught him before he entered, pushing him into a disused office. I slammed him full force up against the wall and put my arm over his throat. I allowed my hands to morph into claws, holding them at a vein in his throat as fury pulsed through me.

I froze him with my powers. I could feel his powers trying to find a way around mine. I brushed them aside, as though they were no more than a fly in my face. Demon power raced through me and I stood tall before spitting out, “I know what you did and I know what you are trying to do. You won’t succeed. For every single time you try, I will ruin something you care about. You are not getting away with this; I will make sure of it…”

I broke off and turned my hand back to normal before I punched him full force in the nose. I relished the sound of the bone breaking. He would heal it in seconds, though he wouldn’t be able to get rid of the blood from Demon sight. Strolling towards the door, I called over my shoulder,

“Mop yourself up, you disgusting piece of filth.”

To request review copies, please stop by here.

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Quotes from readers:

Never have I wanted to ugly cry for someone then on the next page want to punch them before.

Anger at the Stevensons makes you love Jasmine even more.

by Lindsay Crook

Wildly addictive and uniquely captivating…a fantastic series

Katie Taylor

All the feels an author could possibly fit into a book, anger, angst, love, confusion……..if you can feel it, you will in Luminosity……addictive series

Alicia Huxtable

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GIVEAWAY

2x 1 e-book copy of Candlelight
2x 1 e-book copy of Candlelight & Luminosity
1x 1 e-book copy of Candlelight, Luminosity & Ignition

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’m delighted to be part of the launch celebrations for Dylan The Doctor by Guy Parker-Rees. Dylan the Doctor was published by Scholastic on 4th August 2016 and is available for purchase from all good bookshops, supermarkets like Sainsbury’s and online retailers like Amazon.

Dylan The Doctor

Dylan’s on his way – are you ready to play? Dylan The Doctor is the first picture book in a series featuring an exuberant stripy dog, who just loves to play. Created by bestselling illustrator Guy Parker-Rees, Dylan is a joyous new character who uses playing and fun to help toddlers explore and understand their world. Today Dylan is playing at being a doctor. He dashes about looking after all of his friends: Purple Puss, Jolly Otter and Titchy Chick. But who will look after poor, tired Doctor Dylan? All his friends, of course! Look out for Dylan’s friend, Dotty Bug, on every page, as she encourages readers to join in with the story.

My Review of Dylan The Doctor

Dylan the dog is playing at doctors and his friends are his patients.

What a super and vibrant picture book for young children. Dylan the Doctor has great value as it is the kind of book parents can share with their children several times. Firstly, there is the story itself which is fun and accessible as Dylan bandages, administers plasters and medicine and generally takes care of his friends.

The illustrations are lovely and there’s plenty to look at and discuss with children. Also, I really liked the inclusion of Dotty Bug who not only provides extra commentary but also speaks directly to children enabling them to play an active role in reading and storytelling as they answer her questions.

Another benefit of Dylan The Doctor is that it deals with the subject of doctors and hospitals in a way that is non-threatening and I think the book would make a wonderful gift for small children who are going in to hospital or visiting people there for the first time. Other themes that are positively represented are the importance of friendship and being kind to others which are valuable lessons for children to learn.

I have one small criticism (and this is with my ex-English teacher and inspector hat on) and that is that the Y in Dylan looks lower case in an otherwise uppercase word and I’d like it to be more consistent. That said, however, there are some super touches to promote literacy with the alliterative Purple Puss, the onomatopoeic nee-naw of the ambulance and the creative compound words such as Jolly Otter’s ‘Floppy-Wobble’ fever.

I think Dylan The Doctor is the start of a smashing new series that children will love.

About Guy Parker-Rees

Guy Parker-Rees is one of the UK’s best-loved children’s illustrators. His many successes include Giraffes Can’t Dance (Orchard) and Spookyrumpus (Orchard). Guy lives in Brighton. You can find all Guy’s children’s books here.

You can follow Guy on Twitter and find out more on his website. There’s more with these other bloggers too:

 

I have to begin this blog post with an apology to Jennie Ensor. I was supposed to be part of the launch celebrations of Blind Side which was published by Unbound on 22nd July 2016, but personal circumstances meant my life was turned upside down and I wasn’t able to take part. However, Jennie has agreed to tell me a couple of things about life since Blind Side was published and is sharing them with me today.

Blind Side is available in e-book from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Blind Side

Can you ever truly know someone? And what if you suspect the unthinkable?

London, five months before 7/7. Georgie, a young woman wary of relationships after previous heartbreak, gives in and agrees to sleep with close friend Julian. She’s shocked when Julian reveals he’s loved her for a long time.

But Georgie can’t resist her attraction to Nikolai, a Russian former soldier she meets in a pub. While Julian struggles to deal with her rejection, Georgie realises how deeply war-time incidents in Chechnya have affected Nikolai. She begins to suspect that the Russian is hiding something terrible from her.

Then London is attacked…

Blind Side explores love and friendship, guilt and betrayal, secrets and obsession. An explosive, debate-provoking thriller that confronts urgent issues of our times and contemplates some of our deepest fears.

Three Stars and a Wish

A Guest post from Jennie Ensor

First fantastic thing:

I can tell people I’m an author, such as my husband when he asks how much longer am I going to be stuck upstairs in my office. While I’ve not yet received any royalties and I may never make living from my writing, soon I’ll be earning enough to buy authentic HP ink cartridges J (I’m looking forward to claiming writing-related expenses on my tax return.) Also I can nip onto Amazon at any time and see my book listed there. Which may sound OTT, but after over a decade of writing novels and wondering when and how my first book would be published, this is a big deal to me!

(Linda:I can fully understand that Jennie)

Second fantastic thing:

I was over the moon that the early reviewers on the Blind Side blog tour had such good things to say about my book. It has also been great to have other people say they enjoyed this or that about the book, or that suspense was such that they had to finish the book in a day. That said, I know that Blind Side (a thriller infused with psychological suspense along with romance, sex, war, terrorism and a dash of politics) can’t possibly please everyone. I will have to learn to deal some bad reviews along with the good ones.

(Linda: The trouble with writers is that they tend to forget all the good reviews and beat themselves up about the odd poorer one!)

Third fantastic thing:

 No more rewriting of Blind Side!

This novel has been a long time in the making. I started it at around the end of 2004 and returned to work on it several times since Unbound accepted it for publication last year. I’ve lost count of how many times it’s been revised over the years (removing a work sub-plot, altering the ending and so on). On top of that I made substantial changes during the developmental edit. Some of these were quite tricky to do, such as moving parts of the plot forwards to quicken the early pace and adding to the terrorism-related aspects of the plot. Though I have to say, I loved writing some extra chapters in the voice of my character Julian. He’s got a rather unwholesome side to him to say the least, and to give vent to it was weirdly satisfying.

One thing I wish had been different: 

With hindsight I might have asked for the book to come out a few months later than it did (23 July 2016) so I could have been more prepared. Just before publication everything seemed to be happening at once and there was a fair bit that I had learn on the hoof (blog tours, for example). Also it might have helped to get going earlier on things like Goodreads and Twitter. Goodreads is scarily huge and takes time to explore. Re Twitter, I don’t really know what I’m doing much of the time – and cutting characters from the perfect but slightly long Tweet is so frustrating.

On the other hand, The Big Thing that was looming for ages is out of the way. Now at last I can relax and enjoy the rest of summer!

(Linda: And I hope it’s a happy and successful one for you Jennie!)

About Jennie Ensor

Jennie is a Londoner descended from a long line of Irish folk. For much of her life she’s been a wandering soul, but these days she lives with her husband and their cuddle-loving, sofa-hogging terrier. As well as from reading and writing novels, she loves poetry. Her poems, published under another name, tend to inhabit the darker, sometimes surreal side of life.

While on an extended trip to Australia, Jennie studied journalism and worked as a freelance print journalist, covering topics from forced marriages to the fate of Aboriginal Australians living on land contaminated by the British nuclear tests.

When not chasing the dog, lazing in the garden with a book or dreaming about setting off on a long train journey with a Kindleful of books, Ms E can be found writing or doing Writing Related Stuff. WRS can include singing and playing the piano (vital for de-stress) and watching TV spy/crime/costume dramas (research). Soon she will be hard at work getting her second novel ready for publication, a dark and unsettling novel of psychological suspense.

You can find out more about Jennie on her website and blog, by finding her on Facebook  and following her on Twitter and by using #blindsidebook.