Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury has been languishing on my book shelf for over 40 years and this month it is the book selected by my U3A reading group so I have finally read it. The copy of Farenheit 451 I have read, via the library service (leaving my own in pristine condition), is the 50th anniversary edition published in 2008 by Harper Voyager, an imprint of Harper Collins. It has an introduction and afterword by the author and is available from all good book sellers and by following publisher links.

Farenheit 451

The hauntingly prophetic classic novel set in a not-too-distant future where books are burned by a special task force of firemen.

Guy Montag is a fireman. His job is to burn books, which are forbidden, being the source of all discord and unhappiness. Even so, Montag is unhappy; there is discord in his marriage. Are books hidden in his house? The Mechanical Hound of the Fire Department, armed with a lethal hypodermic, escorted by helicopters, is ready to track down those dissidents who defy society to preserve and read books.

The Classic novel of a post-literate future, Fahrenheit 451 is part of the Voyager Classic series. It stands alongside Orwell’s 1984 and Huxley’s Brave New World as a prophetic account of Western civilization’s enslavement by the media, drugs and conformity.

Bradbury’s powerful and poetic prose combines with uncanny insight into the potential of technology to create a novel which, forty years on from first publication, still has the power to dazzle and shock.

My review of Farenheit 451

In an inverted world where firemen burn books (and people) instead of saving them, an encounter with Clarisse changes Guy Montag’s perspective on life and truth.

It’s quite difficult to convey what an outstanding read Farenheit 451 is and equally difficult to review it without being derivative. I adored every word. The prose is taut, affecting and beautiful. At times it is like reading a horror story with mechanical dogs that never fail to kill their target and at others reading Farenheit 451 is like encountering the most stunning poetry. I even found myself copying out lines and arranging them as poems to see the effect. I also selected a quotation to be used at my funeral (though I’m hoping I won’t be needing it for a few decades yet!); ‘Stuff your eyes with wonder… live as if you’d drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.’

The characterisation is amazing given the brevity of the novel. Clarisse is a catalyst for the action of the novel, and just the smallest word or action conveys the most intimate detail about those in the story. The relationship between Montag and his wife is sad, not unexpected and utterly heartbreaking. But it was the character names that enthralled me. I am certain Clarisse is so named because she is bright, clear and shining, that Guy Montag is Guy to be a possible Everyman and Montag is the start of the week – Monday in German – so that he is seen as the start of a change in the world. I’m sure Faber must have been named after the publishers of some of the most prestigious writers we’ve known. It was these small details and the snatches of half-remembered quotation from my own reading history that really drew me into the novel.

What stunned me about Farenheit 451 was the frightening potential of its contents. The intrusive screens in our homes, the way it can be a battle to get people to read, our disregard for life and property – themes that, whilst written about in 1953, resonate with modern society. But what I loved most was the sense of hope. There are Fabers and Clarisses in the world and we do have humanity and books.

I can’t believe my own copy of Farenheit 451 has remained undisturbed on my shelf for all these years. I urge you to read it if you haven’t already, or re-read it if you have. It’s incredible.

There is more about Ray Bradbury on the official website.

My grateful thanks to Jess Duffy at MacMillan for an advanced reader copy of Christmas at the Cat Cafe by Melissa Daley in return for an honest review. Christmas at the Cat Cafe will be published by Macmillan in e-book and hardback on 20th October 2016 and is available from a variety of retailers by following the publisher links.

Christmas at the Cat Cafe

The Costwolds’ town of Stourton-on-the-Hill has its very own cat café. Resident cat Molly, and her kittens, live here in feline paradise, while owner Debbie serves the locals home-made goodies. But even in the most idyllic surroundings, things don’t always go to plan . . .

When Debbie’s heartbroken sister Linda arrives at the café, Debbie insists she move in. But Linda is not alone, and the cats are devastated with the arrival of Linda’s dog, Beau. Sadly, Beau’s arrival is not the only bombshell – now Molly’s home is also under threat when a rival cat moves in on her turf.

With Christmas approaching, Molly is unsettled, barely roused by the promise of tinsel to play with. Fearing for her feline family she hopelessly stares out of the café window searching for an answer. Only a Christmas miracle could bring everyone together . . .

My Review of Christmas at the Cat Cafe

When Debbie’s prickly sister, Linda, arrives from her broken marriage at Molly’s, the cat cafe, life is about to be disrupted for everyone, both human and feline.

I am an obsessive cat lover and with a character as my namesake I was really looking forward to Christmas at the Cat Cafe but I have to be honest and say I was slightly disappointed. It might be that I have just read two Christmas books that I felt were stunning, or it might be because I haven’t read the first of the books, Molly and the Cat Cafe, but I struggled to engage emotionally with the story, despite its absolutely fabulous cover. I felt I had to make a conscious effort willingly to suspend my disbelief at the anthropamorphic first person feline narrator. Perhaps wrongly, I kept thinking of hygiene and I found I couldn’t set aside my prejudiced attitude to cats in a cafe, even though I know there are establishments like that. I also thought that maybe Christmas at the Cat Cafe would be better suited to a younger audience, making a great present for a KS2 or 3 reader.

However, although that sounds quite critical, I did think Christmas at the Cat Cafe would be a wonderful read for others. It is well written and soundly plotted with a full and varied exploration of emotions and family relationships – it’s just I would have liked those relationships to have been more weighted towards the humans in the story. The narrative is heartwarming and cosy so that those looking for a feel-good read will love it.

The cat characters are incredibly well presented. I could recognise at behaviour and attitudes that I have witnessed in my own cats extremely well. Any cat lover would find resonances there that they’d really enjoy.

Christmas at the Cat Cafe will be a lovely read for the right reader and I did enjoy it but not as much as I had hoped.

You know a book is going to be special when a publisher sends you teasers about it all week and then provides two wonderful covers that I’m delighted to be revealing tonight. Perfect Remains is the debut novel by Helen Fields. Perfect Remains will be published by Avon, an imprint of Harper Collins, on 26th January 2017, and is available for pre-order here.

Perfect Remains

On a remote Highland mountain, the body of Elaine Buxton is burning. All that will be left to identify the respected lawyer are her teeth and a fragment of clothing.

In the concealed back room of a house in Edinburgh, the real Elaine Buxton screams into the darkness.

Detective Inspector Luc Callanach has barely set foot in his new office when Elaine’s missing persons case is escalated to a murder investigation. Having left behind a promising career at Interpol, he’s eager to prove himself to his new team. But Edinburgh, he discovers, is a long way from Lyon, and Elaine’s killer has covered his tracks with meticulous care.

It’s not long before another successful woman is abducted from her doorstep, and Callanach finds himself in a race against the clock. Or so he believes … The real fate of the women will prove more twisted than he could have ever imagined.

Fans of Angela Marson, Mark Billingham and M. J. Aldridge will be gripped by this chilling journey into the mind of a troubled killer.

About Helen Fields

Helen Fields herself is a force to be reckoned with. An ex Criminal Barrister, she’s used her experiences dealing with some of this country’s most terrifying criminals to create a killer who will strike fear into your soul. Not only that, but she now runs her own film making company (aptly named Wailing Banshee).

Beyond writing, she has a passion for theatre and cinema, often boring friends and family with lengthy reviews and critiques. Taking her cue from her children, she has recently taken up karate and indoor sky diving. Helen and her husband now live in Hampshire with their three children and two dogs.

You can follow Helen on Twitter.

I’m very pleased to welcome Alison Brodie to Linda’s Book Bag today. Alison’s new novel Brake Failure will be released on 9th January, 2017 and is already firmly on my TBR pile. Brake Failure is available for pre-order here.

With Brake Failure on its way, I wanted to ask Alison about her writing history and she has been utterly honest in the telling me about it. I’m delighted to share her personal guest post all about second novel syndrome with you.

Brake Failure

“Is it too late to tell him you love him when you’re looking down the barrel of his gun?”

Ruby Mortimer-Smyth is an English debutante, destined for Lady’s Day at Ascot and taking tea at The Savoy. She knows the etiquette for every occasion and her soufflés NEVER collapse.

She is in control of her life, tightly in control … until fate dumps her down in Kansas.

Ruby believes that life is like a car; common-sense keeps it on the road, passion sends it into a ditch. What she doesn’t know is, she’s on a collision course with Sheriff Hank Gephart.

Sheriff Hank Gephart can judge a person. Miss Mortimer-Smyth might act like the Duchess of England but just under the surface there’s something bubbling, ready to explode. She’s reckless, and she’s heading for brake failure. And he’s not thinking about her car…

The Nightmare of Second Book Syndrome

A Guest Post by Alison Brodie

Imagine this:  going into the major book shop of your local town and seeing your book in hardback set out along the shelves.

This is what happened to me.  I hadn’t been expecting this display and I was stunned.  This was MY book!  I walked out of the shop in a daze and moments later I felt the tears crawling down my cheeks.  My friend asked in shock:  “What’s wrong?”  And I said, blubbering:  “I am so happy.”

So how did that dream become a nightmare?

Let’s start at the beginning.  I’ve never had writing lessons, heck, I’ve never had much of an education, but I’ve always liked the look and of paper, with the urge to write something on it.  It wasn’t until I was on a modelling assignment in the Highlands of Scotland that a story came to me.  The landscape was breath-taking, the owner of the house that we stayed was also breath-taking; although a wee bit dour at having these London folk invade his territory.

Everything went wrong on that assignment, the weather, mostly.  I was with another model, Pierra, and she was such a prima donna!  Complaining at the least little thing, and waving her arms about like someone from a tragic opera.  I did think she was wonderful, though.  When someone is that beautiful you can forgive a lot.

Naturally, our dour Scottish host and Pierra struck sparks off each other.  It was funny to watch, although the photographer and assistants didn’t seem to notice; they were too busy worrying about the light.

When I returned to London I started writing what would become Face to Face.  It was a hobby; although I didn’t tell anyone what I was doing.  Out of curiosity, I sent it off to an agent, Dinah Wiener.  Within two weeks she secured me a two-book deal with Hodder & Stoughton.  That was it!  I was a writer!  I was going to be famous.  Nothing could stop me.

Immediately I sat down to write my second book.  It was going to be so easy.  The first one had written itself; in fact, I had enjoyed every second of it.  I put pen to paper and waited, and waited … and waited.

Nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.

My mind was a total blank.  Panic set in.  I had a two-book deal with a top publishing house and they wanted the second book at the end of the year!  Fear clouded my brain.   Desperately, I started writing; slowly coming to a halt when I realised it was rubbish.

There were no characters in my head.  No dialogue.  No LIFE!  I got 80K words down but it was rejected.  I tried again.  This time they published, but not to the fanfare that they had given me first time round.  The book was called Sweet Talk.  I don’t know if anyone bought it … somehow I don’t think so.

The experience put me off writing.  I went to live in America for 2 years, and one day an idea for a story came into my head.  I couldn’t ignore the characters who were desperate to be heard, so I started jotting down notes, reluctant to take it further.  My characters continued writing the story in my head and I began to write it all down until I had The Double.

I sent The Double (it was called Famous Last Words at that time) to my agent, Dinah Wiener, and she immediately sent me an email saying, I quote:  “It’s a really good read, a page-turner with good characterization and a splendid plot.  I look forward to offering it, and to representing you again.”

Writers, I believe, have big egos.  I immediately thought:  this is it, I am back on track.  Sadly, Dinah couldn’t find anyone who wanted to publish it.  Was it because my second book had bombed?  Probably.  Publishers put a lot of money in publishing a book and they need to be confident that their writers can deliver the goods.  At the time, the publishing industry was at an all-time low.

That’s why I advise new authors to have that second book tucked away before signing a contract.  And if you are not ready to fulfil a two-book deal, admit it.

So there I was.  I had no agent, no publisher.  But I carried on writing because I HAD to.  Characters appear in my head and want to be brought to life, they want to tell a story.  So I just carried on writing … for fourteen years.

Last year, I became an indie author.  I HAD to:  I had so many manuscripts lying about doing nothing!

I published Wild Life, then The Double.  In January 2017, I will publish Brake Failure, then Zenka in September.  After that, I will publish the rest.

So here I am, an indie author (or am I a hybrid?).

What have I achieved so far?

I have entered a world where I have been embraced by fellow writers and book bloggers, finding friendship and support in places as far away as Brazil and Australia!  I have overcome my techno phobia and become rather nifty on my laptop!  With regards to publishing:  I think one person bought a copy of Wild Life.  I had some good reviews for The Double, ie, “The Double is another addition to author Alison Brodie’s body of work, and proof of her genius in writing fiction.” –San Francisco Book Review.  (I think I might have sold 5 copies of that one.)

Now I have become a general pushing his troops to the front line of battle!  I’ve got all my guns out!  I am doing all I can to get Brake Failure noticed.  I am sending review requests to EVERY blogger, networking on social media, everything!  At the time of writing, it is 3 months before the release and already I have reviews, all of them five 5-stars, from professional reviewers.

“Everyone needs to read this book.  It’s blooming brilliant.”  -The Reading Shed

“A laugh-out-loud tale that will keep you flipping the pages.” –Tome Tender

“Hilarious.” –Lauren Sapala, Reviewer and Writers’ Coach

“5/5  Empowering … comical … refreshing.”  -San Francisco Book Review

“OMG…I LOVED this book…going on the list of one of my favorites of 2016!” –Star Angel Reviews

This is going to sound like a big fat lie, but it’s not:  what I want the most is not the money (although it would come in handy) it is actually getting my words in front of readers and knowing those readers have enjoyed my book so much, the world around them ceased to exist.

I hope, one day, I can contact Dinah Wiener and show her my reviews so that she knows that her faith in me all those years ago was justified.

(And we readers hope so too Alison.)

About Alison Brodie

Alison Brodie is a Scot, with French Huguenot ancestors on her mother’s side.  Alison was a photographic model for a wide range of products, such as Ducatti motorbikes and 7Up.  She was also the vampire in the Schweppes commercial.

Alison lived in Kansas for two years.  She loved the people, their friendliness, the history and the BBQs!  Now, she lives in Biarritz, France with her rescue mutt, Bayley.

You can see what early readers think of Brake Failure on Goodreads.

Alison loves to hear from her readers.  Find out more by visiting her website or following her on Twitter. You’ll also find her on Facebook.

All of Alison’s books are available here.

You know, I love being a blogger, because I get to interview all kinds of wonderful people and I’m delighted to welcome Karen Aldous to Linda’s Book Bag today to tell me about her writing and her latest book One Moment at Sunrise. One Moment at Sunrise was published by Carina in e-book and is available for purchase here.

One Moment at Sunrise

Nothing will ever be the same again…

Evie Grant has spent two years hidden away in a quiet French village, longing to escape her beautiful villa with its blue-shuttered windows. Maybe this summer, the father of her child will keep his broken promises and return to whisk her away to another life. One way or another, Evie’s determined to stop feeling like his dirty little secret…

Yet when a mysterious stranger almost knocks Evie off her bicycle early one morning, her world begins to change in ways she never expected. Embarking on a painful journey of self-discovery, Evie begins to face her darkest fears and rebuild her fragile dreams. But can she ever truly break free from her gilded cage and learn to love again?

An Interview with Karen Aldous

Hi Karen. Thank you so much for agreeing to answer some questions on my blog about your writing  

Firstly, please could you tell me a little about yourself?

Hi Linda, it’s a pleasure, thank you so much for featuring me on your lovely blog. I am tucked away in a village in Kent with hubby and most of my family and friends close-by. When I’m not writing, much of my time is spent with them; I’m so lucky to have four gorgeous grandchildren who I adore, along with my rather large yellow Labrador who loves taking me for walks. My other passion is travel, Europe being a particular favourite.

When did you first realise you were going to be a writer?

It finally dawned on me when I was in my late teens. I’d always had a penchant for pens, pads, typewriters and stationery, writing poetry and regularly writing letters to pen friends. I was also one to take myself off to the library after school when I was a junior, but reading novels on my commute to work each day created the biggest itch and I began writing short stories, even attempted a novel (an outline and four chapters), but I never had the confidence to send anything out.

(I think an awful lot of bloggers are addicted to notebooks and stationery too!)

How much did joining the Romantic Novelist New Writers Scheme affect your writing?

When my mum was terminally ill, it made me realise how limited time really was. I made up my mind that I was going to write the novel I’d always promised myself and try to get it published. From subscribing to writing magazines, I’d learned of the scheme and after completing the first chapters of my novel, I applied to the scheme and was successful. I had eight months to complete it. The following day I also enrolled in a local creative writing class and discovered many like-minded writers, some of whom were also on the scheme. It was as though the classes were made for me and when I received an encouraging report from the RNA NWS, I immediately began editing my first three chapters and entered them into a Writing Festival competition. Although I didn’t win, it led me to a meeting with an editor who liked it, and asked for more. That’s how I received my publishing contract. I believe joining both of these organisations were instrumental in their help and support; drumming up my own belief whilst giving publishers and agents the signal you are seriously committed to your writing.

To what extent do you think studying psychology has impacted on your writing?

First and foremost, studying for the degree really boosted my confidence. Graduating with a BSc Honours was a huge achievement for me. Because my parents were not great believers in further education, I was expected to find a job at sixteen which I did, then married at nineteen, children at twenty-two. As my children grew, I began exploring my own path. The course I chose tied in with my fascination for people and understanding behaviour differences, the why’s and what lies beneath. It gave me a deeper insight into individuals’ psychological make-up. I would say it has created quite an impact on my writing particularly when creating my characters and understanding their motivations as well as providing confidence within myself as a writer.

If you hadn’t become an author, what would you have done instead as a creative outlet?

I’d like to think either photography or being a musician. I enjoy taking photographs and invested in a brilliant camera a few years back which I’m still learning to use effectively. Predictably, I love to capture beautiful scenery such as lakes surrounded by mountains like those of Lake Leman in Switzerland or Lake Como in Italy but I also love to capture faces or profiles close-up, particularly my grandchildren. There’s something magical about catching expressions. And music. I used to play in a band and I love the lift you get from playing ensemble and in harmony. Although I’m a crap singer, I often sing to the grandchildren and they love it, (well they laugh and join in) but such fun!

France features quite heavily in your novels. Why have you chosen this particular location?

Put simply, France provides me with so much inspiration. Particularly the south of France. The beauty of much of its landscape, the language and culture, the food and wine, and of course, the ambience. From tiny scenic villages to thriving cosmopolitan towns, it has everything I could want as a writer and I could feed off it for years. I would love a base there and have easy access to Italy, Switzerland and Greece, my other favourites. I find these destinations relaxing whilst enticing in so many ways. Wherever you stay in Europe, there is so much history, people and places to visit you could never be short of material for novels.

How do you go about researching detail and ensuring your books are realistic?

Naturally, I visit a location to experience it for myself before I write or it has inspired me to go there. Sometimes, I might discover something which is a real surprise. For example, my latest book, One Moment at Sunrise, was inspired when visiting the Canal-du-Midi. However, as soon as I began researching more about the canal, visiting sites and museums etc., once home, I found an un-notable mention about Pyrenean mountain woman being involved with its construction. I just had to dig out more. I discovered an academic work which provided so much relevant evidence and material to suggest that Paul-Pierre Riquet, the visionary responsible for its success, had employed peasant woman for their numerous methods of channelling water in the mountain regions but, from this research discovered these women’s names had been taken off the payroll and have never been credited for their significant input.

Which aspects of your writing do you find easiest and most difficult?

The aspect I find easiest is ideas. The hardest is in the execution and how those ideas are going to be portrayed and written. As my writing has progressed I’ve found that I’m fascinated by women in history and what they’ve achieved and I find I want to include them. I also find myself reading so many beautiful writers that I want to improve my writing too and all the time I find I’m challenging myself to expand my knowledge on all fronts.

What are your writing routines and where do you do most of your writing?

I prefer to write in the mornings and evenings where possible. I think the mornings is when my mind is freshest but evenings when I can escape to my study and find the quiet to get into the zone.

When you’re not writing, what do you like to read?

My favourite books usually have a strong setting and historical elements such as Victoria Hislop’s The Island, Rosanna’s Ley’s The Villa, Leah Flemming’s The Girl Under the Olive Tree, Dinah Jeffries’ The Tea Planter’s Wife, Erica James’ The Dandelion Years, Elena Ferrante’s  My Brilliant Friend. I also enjoy dual time lines like Iona Grey’s Letters to the Lost, Kath McGurl’s The Pearl Locket and, psychological fiction such as Lisa Hall’s Between You and Me.

(Oh! Fabulous books there Karen. I’ve read all your choices or got them on my TBR.)

The covers of your books have exactly the kind of image that attracts me as a reader. How much involvement have you had in their creation?

Aww thank you, the cover designers are amazing but I have little input apart from the story itself. I leave it to the experts.

The title of your latest novel, One Moment at Sunrise, suggests that life can be affected in an instance. How far do you believe this to be true?

An interesting question, Linda and I would say I think there are moments in our lives which ignite something within us. As stated earlier, when at the hospital with my mother; that moment I had when reality hit that life is actually rather short and we are all volatile, and if I was going to get my novel published I would have to change some things. It was a catalyst to change. Also, when I discovered I was having twins at twenty weeks during my second pregnancy, I remember the moment even now. I had been worried sick about how we were going to manage financially having a ten-month old son already, so I was forced to think differently and creatively to manage. Having experienced such moments, I must be confident that we can be affected in an instance.

(I can empathise with that entirely, Karen. In the last ten months my husband has had cancer, my father has suffered a massive stroke and my great niece, Emma Faith, was still born at full term so I accept entirely that we need to make the most of our chances.)

If you could choose to be a character from one of your novels, who would you be and why?

Oh don’t do this, it’s like choosing one of your children! Ok, I’ve come back to this because I think Evie in One Moment at Sunrise has much more potential as a person and as a writer, developing film scripts. I would love to see where she heads next. It would certainly be a dream for me to see something I wrote on the big screen.

If One Moment at Sunrise became a film, who would you like to play Evie and why would you choose them?  

Either a younger Reese Witherspoon or a blonde Gemma Arterton. They are both stunning but they have a vulnerability about them like Evie. And those mischievous eyes, I’m thinking humour and seduction. Evie is also very bright albeit a little naïve in that she likes to please. I think both these actresses could pull off that quality.

If you had 15 words to persuade a reader that One Moment at Sunrise should be their next read, what would you say?

Evie has everything; successful man, a house, beautiful daughter, so why is she so unhappy?

(Good question – we’ll all have to read One Moment at Sunrise to find out.)

Thank you so much, Karen, for your time in answering my questions.

My pleasure, Linda. Thank you.

About Karen Aldous

Karen Aldous enjoys village life on the edge of the north-downs in Kent with easy access to the buzz of London. Not only does she love the passive pleasures of reading and writing, she also craves the more active pursuits with her family and friends such as walking, cycling and skiing especially when they involve food and wine!

You can follow Karen on Twitter, find her on Facebook and Pinterest and visit her website.

You can find all Karen’s wonderful books here.

When we were married my husband and I had our honeymoon in Paris and we retuned for our silver wedding anniversary. Oliver Cable has recently written Fresh Air and Empty Streets set in that very city and the cover alone evokes many memories for me. As a result, I had to ask Oliver to tell me a little bit more about Fresh Air and Empty Streets.

Fresh Air and Empty Streets was published on 29th July 2016 and is available for purchase in ebook here.

Fresh Air and Empty Streets

Fifteen years ago, Alexander left his wife and small child behind to pursue the life of an artist in Paris. Now all grown up, Felix travels to Paris to meet his elusive father. On a journey through smoky jazz bars, artists’ studios and along the banks of the Seine, Felix discovers more and more about Alexander, calling into question his long-held beliefs.

An Interview with Oliver Cable

Hi Oliver. Thank you so much for agreeing to answer some questions on my blog about your writing and Fresh Air and Empty Streets in particular.

Firstly, please could you tell me a little about yourself?

I’ve had a pretty international upbringing. I grew up in Holland but have spent time living in France and Malaysia too. For now, I’m in London. I’m 26.

When did you first realise you were going to be a writer?

Only after I’d been one for a third of my life! I wrote my first poem at the age of 14 but it was always a case of just writing individual pieces when inspiration struck, rather than any concerted effort to write. I followed a Creative Writing course at the University of East Anglia and made a promise to continue writing. Two years later, Fresh Air and Empty Streets was published.

When you’re not writing, what do you like to read?

I read literary fiction on the whole. Master writers and master storytellers: Jack Kerouac and Haruki Murakami are two whose styles I admire. There’s so many classics that I can’t keep up with the new styles.

Does that put you at a disadvantage as a writer?

I don’t think so – I write what I want to write, not necessarily what’s selling.

If you hadn’t become an author, what would you have done instead as a creative outlet?

I love painting and music as two forms of expression, and by music, I mean jazz in particular. I think that’s why the two play just a major part in Fresh Air and Empty Streets. I drum, but I’d love to learn double bass or saxophone. It may be too late now.

(No, it isn’t Oliver! It’s never too late to try something new!)

How and why did you choose Paris for the setting of your novella Fresh Air and Empty Streets?

On a trip to Paris with two friends (one of whom ended up painting the cover), a number of plot elements floating around in my head just fell into place, with the city as a natural backdrop. On one hand, it’s true to Paris, while on the other; it’s a Paris I hope once existed.

How did you go about researching detail and ensuring Fresh Air and Empty Streets is realistic?

I wrote intensively during that first trip, and drew heavily on those notes (scribbled notes of life from our days in the city) in writing the first draft. When I reread it, I realised the piece needed some accurate descriptions of Paris. So I booked a flight and an Airbnb, sat down and wrote what I saw.

Which aspects of your writing do you find easiest and most difficult?

Descriptions are my forte. A number of readers have commented on how poetic the descriptions are in the novel. It’s what happens when a poet becomes a novelist, I suppose.

What I found hardest (and this is more during the editing than the writing process), was knowing when the piece was ready. I went through it at least six times after I’d finished writing it, changing bits every time I went. At what point can you then say the book is finished? It’s procrastination coupled with fear – as long as you’re still editing, they can’t criticise. At some point you just have to say enough is enough and move onto the next stage. Reading back, there’s still bits I’d edit. But can a piece ever really be finished?

(I think that’s often something writers struggle with – the letting go of their work.)

What are your writing routines and where do you do most of your writing?

My writing routine was a little unorthodox, in that I wrote the whole thing in a month alongside a full-time job. So my life looked like: wake up early, write for an hour, go into work, write on my lunch-break, come home, eat dinner, write for an hour, sleep, repeat. I mainly wrote at my desk in my room, but my office has meeting rooms with great views across the Thames for my lunchtime sessions. Wrong city perhaps, but it certainly helped me write.

Why did you decide to publish a novella rather than a full novel in Fresh Air and Empty Streets?

I didn’t ever really decide to! It was only when I was submitting to agents that the term ‘novella’ was used to describe it. They suggested extending it, but for me the story was finished. To add any more would be superfluous.

The cover of Fresh Air and Empty Streets reminds me so much of the paintings to be found in Paris where the book is set.  How did that image come about and what were you hoping to convey (without spoiling the plot please!)?

The process of creating the cover took almost as long as the writing of the novel itself. It started off as a picture of a street that I took one morning. To cut a long story short, Ron, who was on that initial trip to Paris, painted it, and Mark Ecob took the painting and designed a beautiful cover for the book.

The painting mirrors the whole feel of the book: an artistic life.

(I think it’s certainly very evocative of Paris.)

If you had 15 words to persuade a reader that Fresh Air and Empty Streets should be their next read, what would you say?

Art, jazz and Paris. A hundred readers before you have flown through it in a day.

Thank you so much, Oliver, for your time in answering my questions.

About Oliver Cable

Oliver Cable was born to English parents in Holland and currently lives in London. As a result, he’s not entirely sure where he’s from. In the ten years since writing his first poem, he’s written short-form poetry and prose, inspired and influenced by jazz, travel and the absurdity of daily life. After following a Creative Writing course at UEA, he turned his hand to writing longer pieces, but to this day still enjoys a good four-line poem. Fresh Air and Empty Streets is his debut novel.

You can find out more about Oliver by following him on Twitter.

I am thrilled to be part of the launch celebrations for The Christmas Promise by Sue Moorcroft. The Christmas Promise was published yesterday, 6th October 2016, by Avon Books, an imprint of Harper Collins, and is available in e-book and paperback from your local Amazon site and by following the publisher links here.

Sue Moorcroft has previously been kind enough to give an interview to Linda’s book Bag which you can read here. Today, Sue has provided a highly thought provoking guest blog on the dangers of over-sharing.

As part of the celebrations for The Christmas Promise, I’m not only reviewing but I’m making my own promise too:

The Christmas Promise

For Ava Bliss, it’s going to be a Christmas to remember …

On a snowy December evening, Sam Jermyn steps into the life of bespoke hat maker Ava. Sparks fly, and not necessarily the good ones.

Times are tough for Ava – she’s struggling to make ends meet, her ex-boyfriend is a bully, and worst of all, it’s nearly Christmas.

So when Sam commissions Ava to make a hat for someone special, she makes a promise that will change her life. She just doesn’t know it yet…

Over-sharing Can Be bad For You

A Guest Post by Sue Moorcroft

Has anybody shared anything of yours without your permission? I don’t mean taken a bite from your Mars Bar or borrowed your best dress for a date. I mean taken an image of you and posted it on social media? It’s a situation I use in The Christmas Promise, combined with a vengeful ex-boyfriend.

Celebrities come up against this issue all the time. They’re out having a particularly junky junk-food meal with their kids; they’re having a row with their partner in a park; they’re letting their cellulite wobble on a beach … and somebody takes a picture on their phone. Time was, the person taking the pic would have hoped to make money out of it by selling it to the tabloid press (and maybe they still do that) but by far more common is that they simply set it free in the wilds of social media.

Before they know it the celebrity’s trending with a hashtag before their name because the image has awoken some emotion in people: sadness, laughter, resentment, schadenfreude, anger. It has been retweeted, it has been captioned, opinion has been passed. It’s been made into a meme or is the subject of blogs.

This may come with the territory for celebrities, who know that fame has its downsides. And no publicity’s bad publicity, right? Hey, their publicity department might even have helped this to happen as ‘going viral’ can be a publicity dream.

But what if you’re not a ‘’sleb’? What if you feel safe to sun yourself in your bikini in a private garden and your friend takes a pic showing your stretch marks and varicose veins in glorious detail, the chilled wine’s so refreshing that you’ve drunk a bottle each so you’re howling with red-faced laughter and her camera-work’s shaky.

And what seems absolutely hilarious to your friend at that moment … is to post that image on social media.

What?

You begin to sober up. Seriously? She didn’t really just do that, did she? She did. And she’s tagged you so it will appear on your timeline and all your friends can see it. All her friends can see it. Friends from both accounts begin sharing it and all their friends can see it. Your colleagues. Your kids, nieces and nephews. Maybe even some of your clients/customers/students/lecturers.

You make your friend delete it instantly and you do the same. Your friend’s full of shamefaced apologies. You vow never to get yourself in that situation again.

But once that image is up on the internet it has gone from your control.

All you can usefully do is wise up for the future by combing through your settings for useful features.

• Limiting your posts to ‘friends’ can slow the spread of material through your account but even then, is having your boss as a social media friend such a good idea?
• You can untag yourself from pictures you hate so anybody searching your name or your timeline won’t stumble across them.
• Changing your settings so that you have to approve tagged posts before they appear on your timeline can keep your own timeline from being sullied by the bad stuff.
• Selecting ‘private’ in settings wherever practicable is a good baseline from which to work. Social media’s default setting is rarely private but it doesn’t take long to make manual changes that will make you more comfortable.
• Remembering that you have the power to block people and report them can save you anguish. Do it if you feel the need!

It’s wise, of course, not to make yourself vulnerable in the first place (especially to that hopefully mortified friend) but so many hands hold camera phones every day that images are bound to go astray. Just look at the trouble Ava gets into in The Christmas Promise! #MyPromise is that the situation seriously gets away from her.

My review of The Christmas Promise

When her ex-boyfriend won’t take no for an answer, her finances are at rock bottom and her least favourite time of the year, Christmas, is looming, Ava thinks life can’t get much worse. She’s wrong.

I cannot believe that The Christmas Promise is my first Sue Moorcroft book. Am I mad? Chick-lit, women’s fiction, romance, call it what you will, The Christmas Promise is the perfect embodiment of fabulous story-telling and I utterly adored it.

Firstly, The Christmas Promise deals with topical and moving themes of finance, health and the abuse of social media so that there is a depth and quality to the writing I wasn’t expecting. I actually learnt a lot from reading this book. The quality of research that has gone in to the theme of millinery, for example, is so impressive and enhances the experience of reading, but it is the salutary lesson about the use of social media that really packs a punch. Those who read this book might just find themselves safer online – and know what to do if things go wrong.

The characterisation in The Christmas Promise is wonderful. I loved Ava and Sam especially, but even the smallest supporting character felt very real so that it was as if I was reading about people I knew. I even shed a tear over Wendy. If I said I wouldn’t mind meeting Sam in a darkened room you’ll know what I mean. The romantic passages were just lovely and very natural and sensual so that I could imagine myself as Ava.

The plotting is incredible. I felt as if I couldn’t bear what was happening to Ava and yet I was transfixed and couldn’t stop reading on. My heart went out to Ava, Wendy and even the awful Harvey in some ways because Sue Moorcroft has presented their lives and actions so convincingly. Just when I thought there was a resolution to their problems, off we went again so that The Christmas Promise was exciting as well as emotionally satisfying.

The Christmas Promise is a wonderful read, and not just at Christmas. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

About Sue Moorcroft

Award winning author Sue Moorcroft writes contemporary women’s fiction with occasionally unexpected themes. The Wedding Proposal, Dream a Little Dream and Is This Love? were all nominated for Readers’ Best Romantic Read Awards. Love & Freedom won the Best Romantic Read Award 2011 and Dream a Little Dream was nominated for a RoNA in 2013. Sue’s a Katie Fforde Bursary Award winner, a past vice chair of the RNA and editor of its two anthologies.

Sue also writes short stories, serials, articles, writing ‘how to’ and is a creative writing tutor.

You can find out more about Sue on her website, blog, Google+, LinkedIn, Goodreads, Take Five Authors, Facebook and her Facebook author page. You can also follow Sue on Twitter. There’s more with and from Sue by following the #MyPromise and with these other bloggers too:

I love featuring authors I’ve met and I was fortunate to meet lovely Anne Coates and her wonderful publisher Matthew Smith from Urbane Publications at a recent event. Anne’s book Dancers in the Wind will be released in e-book and paperback exactly a week from today on 13th October 2016 and is available from Urbane, Amazon, Waterstones and all good book sellers.

As I was chatting with Anne we were talking about books in general and I asked if she would like to write for Linda’s Book Bag about the books from her past that have led her to being a writer. Luckily she agreed.

Dancers In the Wind

SHE IS HUNTING FOR THE TRUTH, BUT WHO IS HUNTING HER?

Freelance journalist and single mother Hannah Weybridge is commissioned by a national newspaper to write an investigative article on the notorious red light district in Kings Cross. There she meets prostitute Princess, and police inspector in the vice squad, Tom Jordan.

When Princess later arrives on her doorstep beaten up so badly she is barely recognisable, Hannah has to make some tough decisions and is drawn ever deeper into the world of deceit and violence. Three sex workers are murdered, their deaths covered up in a media blackout, and Hannah herself is under threat. As she comes to realise that the taste for vice reaches into the higher echelons of the great and the good, Hannah realises she must do everything in her power to expose the truth …. and stay alive.

On Reading and Writing

A Guest Post from Anne Coates

My mother was such a huge influence in my life as she taught me to read before I started school. Oscar Wilde featured early in my life when an older cousin passed on an audio recording of The Happy Prince, which came with a book of beautiful illustrations. I can still recall the thrill I felt every time the narrator said, “Turn the page”. I took great pleasure in introducing my own daughter to his children’s stories and I still get a lump in my throat reading the conclusion of The Happy Prince.

Enid Blyton’s Secret Seven and Famous Five series were staples in my childhood. Maybe it was The Mystery of the Pantomime Cat that engendered my love for crime. While at primary school, I had a “secret” club, which met in our garden shed. We went off on our own “adventures” one of which led to a crime – or did it? I’m still trying to work that perplexing memory into a story.

Our home wasn’t filled with books but my mother filled it with a love of reading and we visited the library every week and borrowed the maximum number of books. She set the example of sitting reading for hours… I read everything I could lay my hands on. Any money I was given for birthdays and Christmas was spent on books. I loved the idea of creating my own library.

Having read the Chalet School books I was delighted a few years ago, to find myself in a hotel, which once was the farmhouse where author Elinor M. Brent-Dyer wrote. I also was a devotee of the Anne of Green Gables and What Katy Did series and like many girls who grew up to become writers I identified with Jo in Little Women.

Alice in Wonderland has always had a special place in my heart as my mother read it to me. Her readings were always captivating performances and this continued when she read to my daughter. I also studied Alice during my degree and I have loved seeing all the various and creative interpretations on TV, cinema and theatre since then.

Just after I had hit my teens, I was seriously ill with double pneumonia and pleurisy. When I was well enough to read, I borrowed my mother’s copy of Gone With The Wind – probably not the best choice as so many characters died of … pneumonia. The Regency romances of Georgette Heyer were far less disturbing on that score.

I had a long period of reading nothing but sci fi and then horror. Dennis Wheatley’s The Devil Rides Out still haunts me – garlic and a crucifix accompany me everywhere. Not really – I carry a gun with the silver bullet.

Which leads me nicely into crime.  There’s something about everyday minor crimes, which escalate into something far more sinister that fascinates me. A twist of fate and lives are irrevocably changed. One of my favourite Robert Frost poems, which I was introduced to at school, is “The Road Not Taken” and this encapsulates the way I begin writing – taking a germ of an idea, a scene or an encounter and then ask “what if..?”

About Anne Coates

Anne Coates is a freelance editor and author. While editing and abridging other peoples’ novels and non-fiction, she has contributed short stories to magazines like Bella and Candis and wrote two novels that never saw publication. One afternoon she re-read the second one, saw its potential and rewrote it, restructuring the narrative and adding and subtracting scenes. This work became Dancers in the Wind to be published by Urbane Publications on 13 October, 2016.

Some of her short stories appear in two collections: A Tale of Two Sisters and Cheque-Mate and Other Tales of the Unexpected both published as e-books by Endeavour Press. Anne has also written seven non-fiction books ranging from a history of Women in Sport (Wayland) to Applying to University (Need To Know) and Living With Teenagers (Endeavour Press).

Anne lives in London with three cats who are all rather disdainful of her writing as they have yet to appear in her fiction although a dog has!

You can follow Anne on Twitter and visit her website.

I’m delighted to be spotlighting Christmas at the Dog and Duck by Jill Steeples which was published in e-book by Aria on 1st October 2016. Christmas at the Dog and Duck is available for purchase here.

To celebrate Christmas at the Dog and Duck I have three e-copies to give away at the bottom of this blog post and you can read an extract to get you into the Christmas spirit.

Christmas at the Dog and Duck

Ellie Browne has left behind her high-flying job in London to return to the charming Buckinghamshire village of Little Leyton. Working shifts at The Dog and Duck and running her own doggy-day-care business, Ellie’s looking for a much simpler way of life and a good old fashioned Christmas.

But Little Leyton’s landscape is changing; Johnny Tay, Ellie’s ex, wants to pick up where they left off; sultry property developer Max Golding, has moved into the village and is ruffling feathers; and rumour has it that the pub, which holds a special place in Ellie’s heart, might be sold. Suddenly, life’s looking a whole lot more complicated…

Can Ellie juggle her emotions and commitments in time to celebrate Christmas?

An Extract from Christmas at the Dog and Duck

‘There you go my lovely. These are for you, Ellie.’

It was the start of my shift the next day and Polly Samson from the flower shop next door was standing in front of me holding a bunch of assorted beautiful blooms.

‘Wow! They’re stunning. Thank you.’

‘No problem. I hate to see any flowers go to waste and I know you’ll find a good use for them.’

I took them from her, found a vase and placed them in the fireplace, standing back for a moment to admire them.

‘Perfect! I was going to take them home with me, but I think they’ve found their rightful place there, don’t you?’

I loved the quiet of the early evenings in the pub when I had the opportunity to potter and chat properly with any customers who popped in. Often, later in the evening, I was too busy to even draw breath so I always made the most of the quiet times when I could.

I plopped some ice into a glass, poured in some orange juice and handed the drink to Polly. Immediately she took a long sip, her eyes brightening as the refreshment hit the desired spot.

‘So no regrets then?’ she asked. ‘About coming back here? I should imagine life in Little Leyton must seem tame after living in London for so long.’

Polly was a friend who I’d known since my schooldays. We hadn’t been close back then; she’d been in the year above me and we’d mixed in different circles, but recently, with her working next door, we’d got to know each other better and had grown much closer as a result.

‘It’s different, I’ll give you that, but this is very definitely my home. Where I belong. I love the sense of community here. You don’t really get that in London. Or else I didn’t find it. My life seemed to consist of early starts, long days and late nights. It’s only now that I’m away from it that I realize how burnt-out I was. I’d gone straight from university into my job, doing my accountancy exams at the same time, and it was really pressurized. Losing my job like that, so suddenly, was devastating, but in some ways I see it as a blessing now. It’s given me the chance to step back from it all and decide what I want to do next.’

Polly nodded, taking another sip from her drink. She wriggled her shoulders and exhaled deeply, the tensions of her day seeping from her body. ‘Well I hope you’re here to stay now, Ellie? I do love having you around. You’ve brightened up this place that’s for sure.’

Such a lovely thing for Polly to say. She was tiny in stature, but had a huge heart. With her blonde hair cut into a swingy bob and bright blue eyes that shone keenly as she spoke, my mood always lifted just at the sight of her. With her being only next door, I often popped into her shop before or after a shift to have a natter and a cup of coffee. I’d perch my bottom on one of the stools behind her counter and watch transfixed as her fingers tended her flowers, creating pretty bouquets and baskets with expert ease.

‘I’m not sure how long I’ll be around,’ I told her now. ‘I love working here and doing the dog-sitting, but I don’t see either of them as long-term careers. I’ll probably have to go back into accountancy at some stage, it would be a waste of my degree otherwise.’

Which was absolutely true, so why, as I said the words aloud to Polly, did I wonder, not for the first time, if I really wanted to pick up that lifestyle again. Thinking about it, I’d been feeling the strain for months and a stirring of disquiet rumbled in the depths of my stomach as I wondered if the career I had chosen, the one I’d worked so long and hard for, was really meant for me after all.

‘So you didn’t leave anybody behind in London then?’ Polly shifted her bottom on the stool – they weren’t the most comfortable seats in the world – and the corners of her mouth twisted in an enquiring smile.

I tilted my head, deliberately misunderstanding the question.

‘I wondered if it might have been a man that brought you back here. If you weren’t trying to escape a broken heart?’

‘Ha! No,’ I sighed. ‘Four years in London and I don’t think I could have had more than a couple of dates.’

‘Really?’ Polly’s mouth gaped open. ‘And I thought my love life was in the doldrums.’

About Jill Steeples

Jill lives in a small market town in Bedfordshire with her husband, two children and a high maintenance English Pointer called Amber.

When she’s not writing, Jill loves spending time with family and friends, and enjoying books, films, musical theatre, walking, baking cakes, eating them and drinking wine.

You can follow Jill on Twitter, visit her website and find her on Facebook.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

Giveaway

To enter for a chance to win one of three e-copies of Christmas at the Dog and Duck, click here. Ends UK midnight on 13th October 2016.

I’m very pleased to be part of the launch day celebrations for The Taken by Casey Kelleher. The Taken is published today, 5^th October 2016, by Bookouture and is available for purchase in e-book from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

To celebrate The Taken‘s release today I’m delighted to bring you an extract from the book.

The Taken

When you’ve lost everything, you’ll do anything to survive.

Saskia Frost’s world is blown apart when her dad dies. Without any family, she’s on her own now and up to her eyeballs in her father’s debts. He owed a lot of money to some very dangerous men – Joshua and Vincent Harper. Before long, aspiring ballerina Saskia finds herself lap-dancing in a London club to survive. A club run by the infamous Harper brothers. Saskia is now their property and they’re going to make her pay every penny back.

Teenager Lena Cona has fled a cruel and controlling marriage. She arrives in England with her newborn daughter, desperately relying on strangers for help. But she soon learns that not everyone can be trusted as she finds herself caught in the clutches of Colin Jefferies, a twisted individual obsessed by his own sinister secrets. As the sickening truth is revealed, Lena is forced to fight for her life – and her baby’s.

When their worlds collide, Lena and Saskia form an unlikely friendship. But with the terrifying Harper brothers on their tail, as well as Lena’s vengeful and violent husband, can they escape with their lives?

An Extract from The Taken

Prologue

Albania: One year earlier

‘Tariq?’

Whimpering, Lena Cona looked down at the ground to where her brother lay.

The two men were shouting now, their voices angry, intimidating.

She tried to comprehend what they were saying, but their jumbled words were muted, merging into background noise as her ears began to ring loudly, a high-pitched screech filling her head.

She was in shock.

Unable to think straight, Lena tried to move, but she couldn’t.

Her legs were shaking, but her feet felt weighed down, as if her shoes were filled with lead.

She was afraid. Paralysed to the spot, all she could do was stare; her eyes fixated on the thick stream of blood that oozed out from the gash at the back of Tariq’s head.

He’d been hit.

The taller of the men had whacked him around the head with the butt of his gun.

They had a gun!

Panic ripped through her at the sudden realisation.

Lena tried to shout out; opening her mouth, a strained squeak barely louder than a whisper was the only noise that crept out.

‘Get in the car.’

The man pointed his gun at her now. Aiming it straight at her. His words were devoid of emotion, reflecting the same vacant hollowness that she could see in his eyes.

Stepping closer, he shoved the barrel against Lena’s chest.

‘Now!’ This time he bellowed, his face twisting in anger as he pushed the gun harder against her skin.

Lena could see his finger hovering threateningly over the trigger. This wasn’t an empty threat. She knew he was dangerous, but still she couldn’t move.

A few minutes ago she and her brother had been laughing and joking together.

Tariq had been walking her home from school.

That was her parents’ order: that her brother would walk her to and from school every day.

Lena had thought her parents were overreacting. Of course there were risks, but they didn’t apply to her, surely. Now she’d realised she’d been stupid, naïve. She remembered, with increasing terror, Néné’s harrowing tales of girls from Shkodër being snatched. Abducted and taken to the city’s main port, Vlorë, before being shipped off on speedboats across the Adriatic Sea, never to be seen again.

Her parents had pleaded with her to stay at home, to accept the traditional life of a normal Albanian girl just as many of her peers had done, but Lena was anything but normal.

Strong-willed. Defiant. Unlike most of the other girls in her class who had left school at the age of twelve or thirteen due to the pressures that their families had bestowed on them, Lena had refused to follow suit, insisting on completing her education. Why should she be penalised just for being born female? Why should she submit to a life doing what was expected of her? Instead, adamant to remain, schooled in a classroom of eleven boys, Lena had strived to be top of her class.

Not only had Lena excelled in mathematics, but she was also fluent in English. Her teacher had been impressed. He had told Lena that she had mastered the language so well that, eventually, she’d be able to teach it herself.

Lena had loved that idea. Travelling the world, working as a teacher or a translator. Practising daily, she’d even started to educate her parents and her brother. Just the basic words of salutation, or naming the food they ate.

She wanted to learn as much as she possibly could, so that, one day, she could have more than just what her parents had chosen for her. She didn’t want to be stuck here in Albania as just somebody’s wife, or somebody’s mother.

It may have been enough for Néné, but it would never be enough for her. Lena wanted so much more: to be treated as an equal; to experience the same opportunities and freedom that her brother had.

Unwilling to back down, she’d argued so intently that her parents had finally given in; insisting, in the end, that if Lena must continue with her schooling until she was nineteen then she could, on the condition that Tariq chaperone her.

Only now it seemed that fate had played out a cruel hand. Staring down at him she could see that Tariq was hurt, maybe dead.

And it’s all my fault, a voice screamed in Lena’s head.

‘Help me! Please, somebody?’ Shouting hysterically, Lena finally found her voice as she prayed that someone would come to her aid.

‘Help me, please… ’

Lena caught the gaze of a woman across the road, her eyes pleading with her to help her, but all that stared back at her was the woman’s fear. With an apologetic look, the woman put her head down and kept walking, pretending that she hadn’t seen.

Crying now, desperate, Lena scoured the street, looking for anyone that might help her, but the dusty road was almost deserted. School had finished; people were already indoors, evading the mid-afternoon scorching heat.

A single car passed by. Slowing down, the people inside stared out from behind the glass windows, but they didn’t stop to help her. They didn’t dare.

‘Pick her up,’ the taller man shouted now, directing the shorter man.

He did as he was told: grabbing her roughly from behind, clamping his hand over her mouth to mute her cries.

Lena saw their car. It was a battered-looking bright blue Mercedes, covered in flaky patches of orange rust. The back door was wide open; the engine running.

They are going to take me?

Gripped with fear, Lena dug her heels into the dry mud, trying her hardest to resist as one of the two men tried to grab at her feet, but it was no use. The men were much stronger than her.

Overpowering her, they lifted her off the ground, hauling her over to their car.

A hand came from behind her, clamping tightly across her mouth, making her gag for breath. Silencing her. Lena struggled to break free but her attempts only caused the men to hold on to her tighter.

‘Stay still, you stupid bitch!’

The man’s voice was commanding. He was losing patience. The sternness of his tone indicated that he’d had enough of her not complying. ‘Do as you are told, or you will be punished.’

Punished?

Lena twisted her head back to where her brother lay sprawled out on the ground, motionless.

Hadn’t they punished her enough already?

She had no idea who they were or what they wanted. All she knew was that she couldn’t let them take her.

Her brother needed her. Despite feeling helpless, Lena couldn’t just leave him like this.

Kicking and clawing at the men like a wildcat as they tried to force her onto the back seat, her body convulsing, Lena fought to break free from her abductors.

If she got inside this car, maybe she’d suffer the same fate as all the girls before her.

She had to fight.

Kicking out her heel, her foot connected with the shorter man’s face. She startled him, just enough for him to lose his footing and his grip. Stumbling, he dropped her legs. But her small victory was short-lived.

A massive thud exploded at the back of her skull. The almighty blow from the man behind her immobilised her in an instant.

‘I warned you.’

Lena flopped forward like a rag doll.

She felt the man grab at her roughly, breaking her fall just before she hit the ground.

She felt herself being lifted up, thrown into the back of the car. She was dizzy, her head pounding.

A sharp burn of her scalp as the man seized a fistful of her long auburn hair. Wrapping it around his fist, he twisted her around to face him.

He was just inches away from her now; his face almost touching hers. He was so close that she could smell his stale rancid breath, see the glistening beads of sweat forming on his forehead. His face was puce from the heat and the struggle to get her into the car.

Still woozy from the blow she’d received to the back of her head, she tried to focus. Her vision blurred; she was surprised at how young her abductor looked. She had expected someone older. This man looked only a few years older than Tariq. No more than twenty, she guessed.

‘So, you think you’re a wild one huh?’

The man’s steely grey eyes flickered then, and Lena thought that she saw the tiniest hint of amusement behind them as he yanked at her hair even harder, ripping a clump from her scalp as he did so. The pain so acute, it forced Lena alert once more.

‘Well, it won’t take me long to tame you.’

Lena kept eye contact. Refused to let him see her pain; she stared back at him with nothing but pure contempt.

‘Stupid little girl.’

He punched her again, this time his fist locking hard with her cheek, her neck snapping back, her head smacking against the window behind her.

Slumped in the car now, Lena had nothing left. She was exhausted; her body weak and broken.

‘Tie her up,’ the man commanded, as the shorter of the men slid in beside her.

The man did as he was told. He bound her legs together tightly with coarse brown rope before wrapping thick black strips of tape firmly around her wrists. He was obviously taking no more chances with her.

The car began to move.

Petrified, Lena sat slumped in silence as she stared out of the window. Her gaze fixed on Tariq’s body, motionless, on the ground.

Move! Please, let me know that you’re okay?

Only Tariq didn’t. He remained completely still, lifeless, as the car continued off into the distance.

Lena watched until her brother was completely out of sight. All hope from her now gone.

She could feel the stream of blood pouring from her nose; the metallic taste mixed with the saltiness of her tears, filling her mouth.

Silent tears ran down her face as she wondered what fate was ahead of her.

She thought of Néné’s words once more.

About those girls. About what happened to them after they were taken.

How they were trafficked around Europe like cattle.

Her mother hadn’t been able to bring herself to tell her young daughter why the girls had been taken, but Lena knew. Rumours in Shkodër were rife. People in the village had spoken of how the girls that were taken were used for sex. Forced to earn money for men in ways so disgusting it was almost unimaginable to Lena.

Except maybe now she didn’t have to imagine it.

Maybe she was destined to experience the horror of it all herself, first hand.

Lena sobbed as she thought how she should have listened to her parents.

They only wanted the best for her, to keep her safe, but she’d been so foolish, so pig-headed. She’d put Tariq in danger.

These men were savages, animals.

Capable of anything.

Resting her head on the window as the car made its way out of Shkodër, out towards the rural mountains of the countryside, Lena closed her eyes and said a silent prayer.

She had no idea what fate lay ahead of her, but one thing she knew for certain, her nightmare was only just beginning.

About Casey Kelleher

 

Born in Cuckfield, West Sussex, Casey Kelleher grew up as an avid reader and a huge fan of author Martina Cole.

Whilst working as a beauty therapist and bringing up her three children together with her Husband, Casey penned her debut novel Rotten to the Core. Its success meant that she could give up her day job and concentrate on writing full time.

You can find out more by visiting Casey’s website, finding her on Facebook and following her on Twitter.