It gives me enormous pleasure today to welcome Ellen Alpsten to stay in with me to chat all about her latest book. I must thank Ellen for waiting so patiently for me to find time to have her over!

Let’s find out more:

Staying in with Ellen Alpsten

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Ellen.

Thanks so much for having me! It’s really the season for staying in, isn’t it? Light a candle and snuggle up with a cup of tea and a good book. There’s nothing nicer than that.

I could not agree more! Thank you for agreeing to stay in with me.

I thank you – once the task of writing and finishing a book (and hats off to ANYONE who does this, published or not!) is done and the book out there, there’s nothing nicer than to talk about it. I suppose that’s the strange JoJo existence of being a writer. For months, we are cooped up, writing away and pouring our souls onto the blank sheet of paper.  Then, suddenly, we are out there, presenting our baby to the world.

I think some authors find these aspects tricky Ellen. What about you?

To me, this is a double pleasure, as I focus on history’s hidden heroines in my writing. Like in any art, a writer has to hone a voice and – with a bit of luck and a LOT of elbow grease – become an instantly recognisable brand. Once you find your narrative, stick to it. There’s the ‘Defamiliar’ historical fiction novel, which Grand Masters of our genre such as Bernard Cornwell and Robert Harris choose. These authors implant their character into a known scenario. Think Alfred the Great halting the advance of the Vikings or a transgender Cardinal being victorious at a Conclave.

Oo. Interesting. What else comes to mind?

Also, the world’s bestselling historical fiction novel ‘Gone with the wind’ by Margaret Mitchell falls in this category. Then, there’s the ‘Historical Romance’. I grew up devouring Jean Plaidy or Victoria Holt and was enthralled by her typical heroine: an English gouvernante, who arrives at a huge Manor house, tames the stroppy off-spring of a widowed and darkly handsome Lord, and wins the said Lord’s heart (while seeing off a well-born, and murderous competitor.) Finally, there is what I love most: the ‘Cultural Retrieval’. It allows for a new spin on a known subject. Think Hilary Mantel’s ‘Wolf Hall’ trilogy and Philippa Gregory’s ‘The Other Boleyn Girl’, which both made a well-known story – Anne Boleyn’s rise and fall – fresh and fascinating. My own ‘Tsarina’ series were the first ever novels about the wild women of the early Romanovsand the making of Russia: they set the stage for Catherine the Great, but their own trial and triumph was unknown. If they had a voice, I amped up the volume: speak up, sister – shout your story from each of my pages!

Sounds brilliant! So, tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

My new novel, The Last Princess. It is the first in a planned trilogy, and has the subtitle ‘Daughter of the House of Dragons’. My gorgeous new girl is Gytha Godwinson, the last Anglo-Saxon Princess of England. In a time when women were perceived as cup-bearers, peace-weavers and memory-keepers, Gytha dares the unprecedented: she writes world-history. The Last Princess is stringent historical fiction that teems with trolls, fairies, giants, malevolent stars, nasty Norse sorceresses, handsome hunks and a beautiful princess that struggles to evade an evil spell – and it’s all true.

Wow! Tell me more…

The Last Princess is also spot-on: there is a HUGE William / Harold TV-Series coming up in 2025 and this year women marched alongside men at the Shetland Fire Festival for the first time ever, proudly celebrating their Norse and Anglo-Saxon heritage.  For Gytha Godwinson to become the heroine of my new novel The Last Princess, it was a long and laborious way. She lived a 1000 years ago, which is a huge challenge. But the harder the conquest, the deeper the passion. To me, her story is so much more than a ‘feminist retelling’ of the tumultuous events of 1066. It leads us from the candle-lit great Anglo-Saxon Hall of Modranecht, to a muddy field near Hasting and on towards the vast, and perilous unknown. The planned trilogy spans a huge arch across Europe of the High Middle Ages. Between King and Conqueror, Gytha takes the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom forward into the future. Her bloodline exists until today. From the ashes of her father’s cursed kingdom, she makes a new Empire emerge. Which one, you ask? Here, Gytha remains tight-lipped, as her quest for love and kingship is all-consuming. But she’ll get there. You’ll see once you read book two of the trilogy, which publishes next autumn: The Sunrise Queen.

Until then, let’s not spoil a surprise.

No indeed. But I’m thrilled to have a copy of The Last Princess on my TBR as it sounds essential reading for me. What can we expect from an evening in with The Last Princess?

The last Princess is Gytha Godwinson, the daughter of England’s true House of Dragons and Harold II. After surviving the ‘slaughter-stained’ year of 1066, she flees the Normans, becomes a Viking slave, and is caught up in a lethal conflict of faith and superstition, until a passionate love story lets her create an empire of her own – no less. Her story is about us, albeit an utterly surprising, shocking, seductive and hitherto unknown us. The novel’s accuracy touches on Ramirez’s  ‘Femina’, her epic sweep on Samantha Shannon’s ‘Priory’ work. Also, the book’s themes of loss, displacement, and betrayal are as ‘Zeitgeist’ as Gytha’s quest for trust, love and friendship. I try to write books that have a voice and that are relevant – my reader gives me their most valuable. And that’s not their money, but their time and attention: it’s almost as if an unspoken contract links us for that. I hope that The Last Princess offers what the finest historic fiction should: offering a new spin on a subject you think you know a lot about!

It certainly sounds as if it does!

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it? 

I had some fine Anglo-Saxon mustard and honey cocktail sausages, but the dog ate them.

Oh no!

Instead, we must be content with turnip crisps, and sweet hot mead.

Not sure that sounds quite as appetising Ellen. What’s that sound I can hear?

My friend plucks the stands of a lute and hums a song while sitting by the fire-place: he works the news of the day into his songs, which is so much more touching than any WhatsApp could be.

It is. But why is The Last Princess such an important story for you to tell?

We can be so cosy, as The Last Princess is a family affair: How did I find her? She’s a family affair. Putin’s invasion put an erstwhile end to the ‘Tsarina’ series. But only another of history’s hidden heroines would do. It was then that my Swedish father-in-law pointed her out to me: She is my husband’s ancestress, but 33 times removed. She is also a family affair because Gytha tells the truth about what happened in 1066 – William the Conqueror was but a symptom of the cause, a searing sibling rivalry. She speaks with a strong and modern voice – as modern as the then bustling town of Lundenwic, a Roman settlement on the Thames. The former Londinium is about to eclipse nowadays Winchester as capital of the kingdom. Just describing Gytha’s journey there – she rattles along the old ‘Stone Street’ together with the women of her family – took me five days of research. Five days in a long year of research, before I picked up the pen and began to write her story, which bridges myth and modernity. But there is another aspect of a family affair: When it came to choosing a cover for The Last Princess, discussions were long and heated. Nobody wanted yet another Anglo-Saxon Amulet or a Viking-style longboat setting sail into the unknown. We hit a wall around Christmas-time one year ago. It was excruciating. Which image could sum up the appeal of this novel, which bridges myth and modernity?
I went home for Christmas, which is forever changed since my mother died 5 years ago. I love that we can be together, but I also miss her so much, that I mostly sob into the gravy,  when on my own in the kitchen. It was when I checked the table linen that, at the very bottom of the drawer, I came across a small table-cloth, which my great-grandmother had embroidered for her trousseau in 1914. The wedding was arranged in great haste: WWI was looming and the Kaiser barred his officers from marrying just one month later: he was in no mood of paying more widow’s pensions that he had to. I stared at it in disbelief: it was a Wyvern, the two-legged crimson and winged creature, which is Gytha Godwinson’s heraldic beast. Did my Ua Alice do protest embroidery when choosing this unusual ‘Wyvern’ motive and embroidering the beautiful, blood-red surrounding floral patterns? Perhaps. But for me, there could be no other choice. Her work is at the heart of the cover of my new novel even though, in the book, Gytha’s own embroidery skills are abysmal! Don’t you love how there is always a good story hidden in a good story? So I do think of her, too, when reading The Last Princess and writing the sequel.

What fascinating and wonderful connections Ellen. And I think you have an extract to share with us too?

I have Linda:

An Extract from The Last Princess 

October 1066

The long-haired star does not come overnight. The tides of time make no haste, knowing of their power. It sneaks into our sky during the last days of summer, when our men line the South Coast, tirelessly on the lookout over the Channel. By the time the harvest beckons, and Father has no choice but to disband the army, it is still a speck in the sky. We think ourselves safe when we sample the first, fresh wines, pickle jars of plums and walnuts, and shelve apples for winter. Surely the light we see is the moon waxing or waning.

But once the star’s ungodly shine rims the horizon, my little sister Gunhild and I gather at our window in the women’s bower of Havering Palace.

‘What is this, Gytha?’

‘I do not know.’ I wish I had paid more attention to Grandmother’s lessons; lessons aimed at preparing me for either marriage or the monastery, whichever serves my family, and thus England, better.

When we go to bed, the star’s gleam pierces my eyelids and keeps me awake in the night hours. I try to settle, listening to Gunhild’s calm breathing. In vain. My thoughts race as my stomach knots. Despite the cool of the autumn night, I break out in a sweat. It is clear who has sent this star. The thought makes my heart skip a beat: how can we face her wrath? Not this, not now. The seidr Tora is taking revenge. She will show no mercy. A Norse sorceress never does.

The next night, as soon as our maids have retired, Gunhild and I drag our mattress – all heavy and stuffed with horsehair and straw – over to the window. We spread our blankets anew; their wool comes from our sheep that graze on meadows all over the country. But even their bearskin linings fail to warm us when the sight in the heavens chills us to the bone. A new fireball rules the sky, its size rivalling the sun. It makes the evening star pale and drags a devil’s tail of sparkling dust in its wake. Its fire sears the darkness and ploughs the night. In the meadows, the livestock stand awake, mooing and bleating in terror, joined by the geese’s honking. The villagers swarm from their houses. They push into the open palace gates, crying for help, and join the courtiers in the yard: staring, and sobbing. After what feels like too long a time, the chapel’s doors fly open; Stigand appears in his full regalia. The Archbishop of Canterbury preaches until his face pours with sweat. At his shouted sermon, his flock cup their faces, kneeling in the dirt, swaying, their bodies a wave of prayer. In a last, desperate stab, Stigand holds a small Cross carrying Christ towards the skies, his fat fingers moist, his hands trembling. He hopes to banish the apparition; but instead, its light first frames the Lord and then sets the Saviour himself aflame. I choke on my breath. Stigand halts, his chest heaving, his voice hoarse. He gives up.

We are dead on our feet, but unable to rest. When the door flies open, I cannot hide my relief, and turn: ‘Mother. Grandmother.’

‘Let’s stick together, girls.’ Grandmother’s voice, so used to giving orders, sounds brittle. The star’s threat burns her best-laid plans to ashes as Mother slips in behind. When she places her hand on her flat, bony chest, her bare fingers are pale and their every knuckle shows. She has given almost all her jewels to Wilton Abbey. ‘This is a curse. It is the hour of reckoning. Great change is about to happen in the Kingdom.’ It is startling to hear her speak after she has been silent for so long. For weeks, the only thing that has interested her have been Havering’s windows, where she stands, and stares.

I wrap my arm around her shoulders. Her body is bird-like, and I smell mead on her breath. I hold her close, never wanting to let go. I will keep her safe, no matter what.

‘What will happen to us, Mother?’ Gunhild’s blue eyes are wide. The walls of Havering Palace give no safety but offer us like choice morsels on a plate.

‘You are a child. No harm will come to you.’ Mother strokes back Gunhild’s thick blonde curls. Then she turns to me. ‘Come here, Gytha Haroldsdotter.’ She raises her veil, freeing its fabric from the neckline of her dress. Beneath, she finds a golden chain with a pendant. Once, her fabulous wealth was the base of Father’s power, giving him the fyrd, the simple soldiers ready to lay down their lives for him, and the geld, the rental income of her countless hides. If she should choose to travel from Loidis to Lundenwic or from Caernarfon to Canterbury, Mother sleeps every night under her own roof. Now this pendant is her last piece of jewellery: a Cross studded with a single ruby which is set on a backplate. The jewel has a stunning fire.

Grandmother tries to hold her back. ‘Have trust, Edith Swanneck. It is the Witan’s role to decide upon a King. The Royal Council chose Harold.’

‘Trust? Nothing has betrayed me more.’

Grandmother crosses her arms, her mouth a thin line. She is always hard to age, and the star’s white light makes her features look smooth as kidskin.

Mother fastens the clasp around my neck and our eyes meet. I am so similar to her: the fair skin, the faint freckles, the green eyes, the ginger curls. Our foreheads touch, as she says: ‘This is for you, Gytha. The ruby is the stone of courage and counsel. It will keep you safe.’

I shake my head. ‘But Father, Uncle Gyrth and Ulf will return soon. And Magnus and Edmond are here in Havering. The men of our family will keep us safe.’

‘The men of our family –’ The words hang in the air as Mother’s fingertips brush the pendant, taking leave of it. In the evening sky, the star glares with untold fury. ‘Without the men in our family none of this would have happened. Now, Tora is taking revenge. May my love protect you against everything, Gytha.’

My throat tightens. ‘Even her?’

Mother whispers: ‘Even her.’

My heart is a stone, weighing me down. If this is the end, then something else must begin. I melt into Mother’s embrace and as Gunhild joins us, we hold on to each other tightly. Only Grandmother chooses to stand by the window, looking out over the rolling hills: the star’s fire on their summits is the searing trail of Tora’s revenge. The future of our family, and England, will be decided on a field near Hastings.

I clutch the Cross. Already, the ruby’s glow is a secret source of strength.

Father must be back soon.

****

Brilliant. That’s a great piece. Thank you so much, Ellen, for staying in with me and captivating me about The Last Princess. It’s been lovely to have you here. Now, you pour some mead – I may as well give it a try – and I’ll tell readers a little more about The Last Princess:

The Last Princess

Young and beautiful Gytha Godwinson is the envy of England when her father Harold seizes the country’s crown in early 1066. However, treachery tears her house, her family and everything she holds dear apart. Soon triumph turns to terror as an evil star appears, heralding the end of an era and a new beginning for Britain. Her family and the realm seem cursed, but even as she suffers loss, betrayal and humiliation, Gytha is determined to regain what is rightfully hers. She survives the walk through the furnace that is the conquest and goes so much further.

In a stunning re-telling of 1066, international bestselling author Ellen Alpsten has created a captivating new heroine in Gytha Godwinson. Witness the demise of a cursed kingdom and the emergence of a new empire. The Last Princess bridges myth and modernity.

The Last Princess is available for purchase through these links.

About Ellen Alpsten

Ellen Alpsten was born and raised in the Kenyan highlands and holds a MSc from the IEP de Paris. She worked as a News-Anchor for Bloomberg TV before writing fulltime. Her debut novel ‘Tsarina’ and its sequel ‘The Tsarina’s Daughter’ (both Bloomsbury Publishing) is widely translated and were shortlisted for numerous awards.

For further information, visit Ellen’s website where you can sign up to her newsletter and find Ellen on Twitter/X @EAlpsten_Author and Instagram.

I’m relatively new to Karen’s Swan’s writing having only previously read and reviewed The Stolen Hours in a post you’ll find here. I loved that book. Consequently, I was delighted to be given the chance to review All I Want for Christmas as my latest online book review for My Weekly magazine.

My enormous thanks to Chloe Davies at Pan Macmillan for sending me a copy of All I Want for Christmas which was published on 10th October and is available for purchase through the publisher links here.

All I Want for Christmas

Three first dates and an art-world mystery – it’s going to be a busy Christmas for Darcy. All I Want for Christmas is the Sunday Times bestselling cosy winter romance from Karen Swan, author of Christmas By Candlelight.

Can she find love this Christmas?

Christmas in Copenhagen is a magical time of year but Darcy Cotterell isn’t feeling festive. Newly single, again, she’s not even going home for Christmas. Instead she will be spending her holiday finishing her art history PhD. Her best friend, Freja, has other ideas. She signs Darcy up to a dating app, determined that she won’t be lonely this Christmas.

Darcy agrees to three dates – but her mind is on work, not play: an unknown portrait by Denmark’s greatest painter has been found and she is tasked with identifying the woman in the painting. During her research, she encounters sexy, arrogant lawyer Max Lorensen – who happens to be bachelor number one! The attraction is instant but, knowing they must work together, they abandon the match. Or try to. But their feelings are undeniable – until Darcy discovers Max has an agenda . . .

My Review of All I Want for Christmas

My full review of All I Want for Christmas can be found on the My Weekly website here.

However, here I can say that All I Want for Christmas is a wonderful story of love, attraction, intrigue and history set against big business, and the art world, in the glorious city of Copenhagen. It held me utterly captivated and I loved it.

Do visit My Weekly to read my full review here.

About Karen Swan

Karen Swan is the Sunday Times top three bestselling author and her novels sell all over the world. She writes two books each year – one for the summer period and one for the Christmas season. Previous summer titles include The Spanish Promise, The Hidden Beach and The Secret Path and for winter, Christmas at Tiffany’s, The Christmas Secret and Together by Christmas.

Her books are known for their evocative locations and Karen sees travel as vital research for each story. She loves to set deep, complicated love stories within twisting plots.

Her historical series called The Wild Isle, is based upon the dramatic evacuation of the Scottish island St Kilda in the summer of 1930.

Foe further information, find Karen on Instagram @swannywrites, or Facebook, and follow her on Twitter/X @KarenSwan1.

I’m delighted to participate in the blog tour for Jacquei Bloese’s book The Secret Photographs by sharing some of the inspiration for the settings, because not only is it calling to me from my TBR plie, but I loved Jacqui’s The French House which I reviewed online for My Weekly  – you’ll find details of that review here. My huge thanks to Graeme Williams for inviting me to take part.

Previously released as The Golden Hour, The Secret Photographs is published by Hodder and Stoughton and is available for purchase in all formats through the publisher links here.

The Secret Photographs

England, 1895: In the bustling seaside town of Brighton, photography is all the rage. Ellen Harper assists her twin brother running one of the city’s seafront studios, where fashionable ladies and gentlemen pose in their finery to have their likeness captured forever in a silver frame.

But behind the façade of a respectable business, the siblings have something to hide. After the studio closes for the day, secret photographs are taken in the back room. There is money to be made from this underground trade, but if exposed to the light of day, these photographs would destroy them…

When newly married Clementine comes to sit for a portrait, Ellen learns she is looking for a lady’s companion. Longing for a life of her own choosing and freedom from the deals her brother has made, Ellen accepts the post. The new position transports her to a sweeping white-fronted townhouse on one of Brighton’s most prestigious crescents, full of every luxury imaginable.

But Clementine’s gilded world hides as much darkness as Ellen hoped to escape… What will happen when the secrets Ellen has left behind finally catch up to her?

Don’t miss this richly atmospheric and gripping historical fiction shining a light on the role of women in a world dominated by men.

This book was first published as The Golden Hour.

Five Brighton locations which inspired The Secret Photographs

A Guest Post by Jacquie Bloese

 1) The West Pier

“The band is mid-way through The Sailor’s Hornpipe when Ellen Harper first sees the girl.”

Sunday afternoon, a brass band, tuppence for entry at the kiosk. Lily, a laundry girl, eating a penny ice under the shelters, catches Ellen’s eye …

West Pier then

West Pier now

2) Lewes Crescent

“… the houses were so bright and sparkling that Lily was sure that if she licked one of the stately columns that flanked the entrances, she would come away with a mouthful of sugar”

Known as “The Crescent”, this sweeping Regency terrace is home to unhappy newly-wed, New Yorker Clementine Williams, her older husband Herbert (when he’s not in London ‘on business’) and his ward Ottilie.

Lewes Crescent

 

3) Empire Theatre, New Road

Much loved male impersonator Harriet (Harry) Smart performs at the Empire most nights, warming up the audience before the provocative ‘living statues’ at the end of each show. All attempts by the Vigilance Association to ban them have so far failed …

Vesta Tilley

4) Albion Hill

“…what’s the bleeding point in having a bath, Lily thinks, if she’s to spend the whole of Sunday dragging her skirts through the muck of Albion Hill”

Home to Lily and her long-suffering siblings, her mother … and her lascivious Uncle Jack.

Victorian slums

5) The Chain Pier

“the creaking chains of the pier glint in the sullen moonlight”

Now known as the Palace Pier, the Egyptian-inspired Chain Pier was rusting and condemned in the late 1800s, then washed away in the storm of 1896.

 Chain Pier

****

Don’t they look evocative? They’ve made me even more keen to bump up The Secret Photographs and read it as soon as I can.

About Jacquie Bloese

Jacquie is a writer of historical book group fiction, originally from the Channel Island of Guernsey. She draws her inspiration from atmospheric locations with intriguing histories, and people – both real and imaginary – whose stories are calling out to be told.

Her first novel The French House, set during the German Occupation of Guernsey in the second World War, was a Richard and Judy Winter 2022 book club pick, and a finalist in the Mslexia Novel Award. Her second novel The Secret Photographs is inspired by the seaside town of Brighton, where Jacquie currently lives, and tells the story of three women from different classes who become caught up in the underground world of erotic photography in 1890s Victorian England.

Jacquie began her professional life teaching English, in Turkey and Spain, before returning to the UK to work in ELT publishing for a number of publishers, including Scholastic, Oxford University Press and Penguin Random House. She now works freelance as an educational consultant, writer and editor.

In her spare time, Jacquie loves reading, walking, socialising with old friends and new, exploring new places & re-visiting old favourites, theatre, cinema, spending time in London, travel and daydreaming!

For further information, follow Jacquie on Twitter/X @novelthesecond and visit her website. You’ll also find Jacquie on Bluesky, Facebook and Instagram.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

I can’t decide if I’m very late to the hardback party for The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E by Claire Parkin, or very early to the paperback party, but either way, I’m delighted to share my review today.

The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E was released in hardback by Pan Macmillan on 24th March 2024 and will be out in paperback on 16th January 2025. See the publisher details here.

The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E

Ruth and Muriel are best friends. And often, worst enemies.

Inseparable since they were little, Ruth and Muriel have shared everything.

Now, fate has left them living together in a North London home, with Ruth caring for Muriel in her deteriorating health, playing Scrabble, arguing and making up, passing the days in monotony.

Until one afternoon, when Muriel makes an unexpected and sinister announcement: ‘In exactly seventy-two hours, I am going to die’.

The end might be in sight for Muriel, but that’s just the beginning of this story about two old friends who have seventy-six years of history – and more than one shocking secret – between them . . .

My Review of The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E

Ruth Donne has cared for her close friend Muriel Hinchcliffe for years.

What a deliciously toxic and entertaining read. I loved The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E because Claire Parkin gets right under the skin of who we are as humans and illustrates just how close we are to savagery and maliciousness even when we love someone and do our best by them. It’s a fabulous portrait of two friends and rivals who cannot be separated – even to the extent of marrying the same man!

The story is filled with intrigue, and twists and turns, so that it’s impossible to decide whether Ruth (Roo) and Muriel (Moo) adore or despise one another. Having been linked since their mothers gave birth to them minutes apart, they are defined by one another, their relationship and, crucially, the themes of motherhood, love (or lack of it) and control. Physically opposites, with Moo an It girl model and Roo a dumpy hobbit-like woman, they are almost two sides of the same person. Neither is averse to devious and controlling behaviour. Neither can forgive the other for the things they have done to one another, and neither can live without the other, so that when Moo announces her imminent demise, Roo’s life spins into freefall. The depth of emotion linking the two women is brilliantly depicted.

As well as this wonderful relationship, there’s mystery in The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E – but I can’t say anything further without spoiling the read. There’s criminal behaviour. There’s threat. There’s a smashing depiction of a small local community. Most fabulously, however, is the exploration of how one event leads inexorably to another beyond the intentions of the perpetrator. Through Roo’s first person narrative the layers of their lives are gradually revealed so that the reader becomes implicated in the story and vacillates between wide eyed shock and absolute admiration for the devious, manipulative and often unacceptable behaviour of the two women. It’s impossible to decide which of the two is the one to champion as they are equally well portrayed and equally culpable and forgivable!

I’m aware that this is one of my vague reviews that says very little, but it’s so hard not to give too much away. I thought The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe M.B.E was a brilliant book. I loved the intensity, the humour and the humanity and thoroughly recommend it.

About Claire Parkin

Claire Parkin was born in 1969 and brought up in a village just outside Cardiff. She graduated from King’s College London with an MA in 19th Century English and American Literature, before working as a journalist on women’s magazines – turning her hand to pretty much anything, from interviewing boxing champs and war correspondents, to learning how to pole dance and the correct way to iron a shirt. She turned to fiction after the birth of her son and daughter, and three of her short stories have been shortlisted for the Bridport Prize. The Final Hours of Muriel Hinchcliffe is her first novel.

Claire lives in north London with her husband and children.

You can find Claire on Instagram.

Regular visitors to Linda’s Book Bag will know that as well as loving books, I’m a keen (if rather hopeless) gardener. Indeed, the flower on my avatar is of personal significance as it’s the lily Forever Susan which I bought for my sister Sue’s 60th birthday, but she didn’t receive it as her birthday is in October and I didn’t think a dormant bulb was much of a gift – typically I hadn’t thought of that! Today, therefore, it gives me enormous pleasure to welcome Nick Hamilton, son of the television presenter Geoff Hamilton who formed the backdrop of all my Friday nights on Gardener’s World, to chat with me about The Right Jeans – a book all about his wonderful Dad.

Let’s find out more:

Staying in with Nick Hamilton

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Nick, and thank you for agreeing to stay in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought The Right Jeans. This is the second in the trilogy about Geoff Hamilton and Barnsdale. It takes the reader from the end of the last book where my dad had appeared for the first time, as a guest, on BBC2’s Gardeners’ World.

And The Right Jeans is out today. Happy publication day Nick. I’m really looking forward to attending the online launch later today. So what can we expect from an evening in with The Right Jeans?

This is the second in the trilogy about Geoff Hamilton and Barnsdale. It takes the reader from the end of the last book where my dad had appeared for the first time, as a guest, on BBC2’s Gardeners’ World.

As with the first book, The Right Genes, this is written in a light and humorous fashion with lots of stories even the most avid Gardeners’ World viewer would never know and very much shows the man behind the camera.

I can’t wait to read The Right Jeans Nick. Your Dad reminded me very much of my own and with Barnsdale just up the road from me I have a feeling I’ll love it. When my husband was a professional photographer we once did the wedding photos for a pagan wedding at Barnsdale so it has a special place in our lives!

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I have bought an aluminium takeaway food tray.

Ha! I can imagine Geoff using that for all kinds of things around Barnsdale. Thank you so much for chatting with me about The Right Jeans Nick. Have a brilliant publication day and I’ll ‘see’ you later!

The Right Jeans

There is no question that what you saw was what you got with my dad: the late, great Geoff Hamilton was as enthusiastic and likable in real life as he appeared every Friday night on the television programme Gardeners’ World. This book picks up where The Right Genes finished and continues his story through to his untimely death in 1996.

With the help of some extraordinarily talented BBC producers, Dad developed and presented gardening programmes of exceptional quality for seventeen years. His ideas were always original but practical enough for any gardener to adopt, and his warmth on screen gained him millions of fans.

Many of the stories in this book show how the programmes were made whilst others describe his life off screen; all of these anecdotes illustrate his dedication both to horticulture and to his followers.

Published today, 25th November 2024, The Right Jeans is available for purchase in all the usual places including directly from Barnsdale here.

About Nick Hamilton

(With thanks to Steve Hamilton for all images)

Nick Hamilton is a well-known horticultural expert, having trained at Writtle College before gaining experience at several wholesale nurseries before going into business with his dad at Barnsdale. They worked together for several years before Geoff’s death, after which Nick took on Barnsdale Gardens and opened them to the public in 1997. They continue to inspire, educate and enthral the thousands of gardeners and non-gardeners who visit every year. Nick is the author of The Right Genes and two organic gardening books, as well as writing for magazines and other publications. He has appeared on BBC2’s Gardeners’ World and several other television programmes and has regular gardening slots on BBC Radio Leicester and Rutland and Stamford Sound.

For further information, find Nick and Barnsdale on Facebook and Instagram and visit the Barnsdale website. You’ll find Barnsdale on Twitter/X too @barnsdalegarden.

As regular readers of Linda’s Book Bag will know, I’ve found 2024 somewhat challenging and I haven’t been taking on blog tours or very much new blog material, but with Sue Moorcroft one of my favourite authors I simply had to participate in this blog tour to celebrate Sue’s 25 novels. That’s quite some milestone. My huge thanks to Rachel of Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to participate in this tour today.

Why is Sue such a personal favourite? Every one of her books that I’ve read is imbued with a vivid and authentic sense of place. She writes with an evocative voice that draws in the reader and each of her characters feels real and relatable. Sue’s plots often have moral or ethical dilemmas that illustrate that life isn’t simply straightforward with a happy every after ending. I suppose I’d define Sue’s books as real. They draw me in and keep me hooked.

You’ll find my reviews of other of Sue’s books, along with interviews and features including Sue here on the blog.

I’ll be reviewing Sue’s latest book A Skye Full of Stars for My Weekly very soon and was recently thrilled to find myself quoted on the front cover of one of Sue’s foreign editions – The Danish version of The Little Village Christmas.

However, my focus today is on Sue’s A Home in the Sun which was originally published as Uphill All the Way and which had a wonderful cover makeover.

A Home in the Sun

Home is where the heart is…but what if your heart is broken?

When Judith loses her partner, she loses her life in Malta too – including the beautiful view from her sun-warmed balcony of the sparkling blue waters of Sliema Creek.

Back in England, Judith finds a spare room in her sister’s house where she grew up – but with it comes a whole host of family dramas.

Nursing a broken heart, Judith knows she must find happiness again – and rebuild her life on her own terms. Could an island in the sun be the answer she is looking for?

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Ironically, A Home in the Sun is one of Sue’s books I have yet to read! You can find A Home in the Sun for purchase here.

UK Giveaway

I mentioned Sue’s latest book A Skye Full of Stars earlier, and there is actually a giveaway running at the moment for a lucky UK reader to win a signed copy of the book, a bookmark and pen.

This is run independently of Linda’s Book Bag and I have these terms and conditions for you:

*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter link here.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

Good luck!

About Sue Moorcroft

Sue Moorcroft is a Sunday Times bestselling author. Her novels have been #1 on Kindle UK and Top 100 on Kindle US, Canada and Italy. She writes two books a year for publishing giant HarperCollins and has won the Goldsboro Books Contemporary Novel of the Year, Readers’ Best Romantic Novel award, two HOLT Medallions and the Katie Fforde Bursary. She’s the president of the Romantic Novelists’ Association.

Her novels, short stories, serials, columns, writing ‘how to’ and courses have appeared around the world.

For more information, follow Sue on Twitter/X @SueMoorcroft, or find her on Instagram and Facebook and visit her website. Better still, follow the rest of the tour:

It’s always exciting being in at the start of a writer’s journey, especially when I can review their book online for My Weekly. Today it’s my pleasure to share details of my latest My Weekly review of City of Silk by Glennis Virgo. My enormous thanks to Josie Rushin at Allison and Busby for sending me a copy of the book.

Published by Allison and Busby on 21st November 2024, City of Silk is available for purchase in all the usual places including directly from the publisher here.

City of Silk

Bologna, 1575.

A talented seamstress

A powerful merchant

A fierce battle of wills

Elena Morandi has gained a fragile foothold in the workshop of a master tailor, despite the profession being officially barred to her as a woman. But then a powerful man from her past crosses her path and threatens everything she has worked for. Antonio della Fontana has every corner of the city in his pocket and, as Elena knows all too well, he abused his position of power at the Baraccano orphanage. Driven to fight for justice against a man seemingly above the law, Elena hatches a plan to get retribution for herself, a lost friend and those still prey to Fontana’s abuses.

With sumptuous detail that brings the sights, sounds and textures of Renaissance Italy to vivid life, City of Silk is a breathtaking historical fiction debut.

Winner of the inaugural Debut Writers Over 50 Award.

My Review of City of Silk

My full review of City of Silk can be found on the My Weekly website here.

However, here I can say that City of Silk is a brilliant story, packed with authentic detail, fantastic characters and a wonderful plot. It’s hard to believe this is a debut novel and I have a feeling Glennis Virgo is going to be a future force to be reckoned with. This immersive and gripping story is just fabulous.

Do visit My Weekly to read my full review here.

About Glennis Virgo

Glennis Virgo started her career in education teaching classics before she became a primary school headteacher. Since her retirement, Glennis has spent her time improving her Italian, visiting Italy (especially Bologna) and writing. City of Silk is her first novel and it won the inaugural Debut Writers Over 50 Award. She lives in Essex.

For further information about Glennis, find her on Instagram.

It’s always exciting being in at the start of a book’s life and it’s my pleasure today to feature The Making of Brio McPride by R.A Ruegg. I’m delighted that this book is on my TBR and would like to thank Debbie at Cameron Publicity and Marketing for sending me a copy. What I think is so important about The Making of Brio McPride (aside from the fact that it is the inspiration for the movie Spiked, coming out in 2025) is the fact that 30% of royalties from the book are being given to mental health charities.

Let’s find out more:

The Making of Brio McPride

Sometimes to mend a broken heart, they have to blow your mind.

No matter how many shrinks they throw at him, fifteen-year-old Brio’s going to prove to his beloved Izzy that it’s not him who’s mentally ill, it’s the rest of the world.

Logie’s a different kind of psychotherapist, though, and a despairing Brio thinks that maybe this weird ‘narrative therapy’ actually could help him find the father he never knew. It might even stop him grieving for his mum and worrying he’s gay.

But behind Logie lurks a big-data giant that’ll stop at nothing to win approval for its Al-driven mental health platform, and all Brio really knows as he disappears into the hypnotic haze of his ‘deepmind parable’ is that it’s going to be a life-or-death mission like no story he’s ever written.

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That sounds very intriguing to me!

Billed as The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time meets Life of Pi, The Making of Brio McPride is available for order from all good bookshops and is also available for purchase here.

If you’d like to find out more, do visit the website for The Making of Brio McPride, where you’ll find extracts from the book, author interviews and so much more, including film information.

About R.A. Ruegg

R.A Ruegg is a professional ghost writer and advertising copy writer who grew up in Britain, read law at King’s College, London, then spent several years in the US and East Asia before emigrating to Australia.

It’s some months ago that I reviewed S.S. Turner’s The Connection Game in a post you’ll find here. I so enjoyed that book that when I heard his new book was out I simply had to ask him to stay in with me to chat all about it.

Let’s find out more:

Staying in with S.S. Turner

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag and thank you for agreeing to stay in with me.

Thanks Linda. It’s a pleasure to stay in with a book expert like yourself.

Crikey, I wouldn’t call myself that. I’m just a book lover! Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought along my novel The Last Toll Collector.

I’ve chosen it because it’s the most recent of my books, and it deals with a macro theme we’re all faced with these days: the growing dominance of AI over humanity. I think the arrival of ChatGPT has really highlighted to many that AI is here to stay and it’s already able to outcompete us.

I have a feeling you might be right there! How does AI impact your story?

After the novel’s protagonist Valerie Tobruk spends a full decade of her life being outcompeted by AI for jobs, she reaches the end of her tether.

Eager to escape the tech-dominated world, she moves to a remote part of Iceland where she starts a new nation called Tobruk where people are valued for their humanness. From there, the story grows into something much bigger and more mysterious.

That sounds highly relatable.

In my experience, a lot of people are likely to relate to Valerie’s plight in the tech-dominated world we all live in.

What can we expect from an evening in with The Last Toll Collector?

The first critic review of The Last Toll Collector by To Make Much of Time described the novel as “riveting, smart, and thought-provoking … a true page-turner.”

If it’s anything like The Connection Game I can imagine that’s a highly accurate assessment. 

You can also expect to find yourself embroiled in a story that asks big questions about the state of the modern world. You may well have been asking yourself similar questions in your own life.

I’m always asking myself questions about the state of the modern world. I’d just like a bit more kindness running through it… So, how would you sum up The Last Toll Collector in one sentence? 

Advance readers are comparing the book with Life of Pi and The Magus, so it’s full of surprises, twists, and a cast of memorable characters.

Crikey, that’s some comparison! I’m even more determined to get to The Last Toll Collector as soon as I can.

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I’ve brought with me an extract from toward the beginning of the novel when the protagonist Valerie Tobruk is arriving in Iceland to escape from the unhumanness of her life in San Francisco:

From above, Iceland presented as a green and rocky version of the moon where humans were a rounding error rather than the dominant organic species. To reinforce the point, there were thousands of fluffy-maned horses dotted throughout the fields as far as the eye could see—and not a single human.

When Valerie walked into Reykjavík Airport, the arriving planeload of passengers were the only people present beyond a few airport staff. She’d never witnessed such a quiet airport before. It was unnerving. She half-expected official-looking people to emerge from the shadows to create the illusion it was a safe place. Even out-of-work actors would suffice. Valerie recognised her symptoms as the warning signs they were: she’d been living for too long in an over-populated city overrun by over-controlling authorities.

As Valerie walked outside, the crisp, cool Icelandic air caressed her touch-deprived skin with sensory heightening expertise. She stopped in her tracks so she could breathe it all in. As that dose of old-fashioned fresh air reanimated her soul, none of the passers-by asked Valerie to get out of their way, as was the custom in San Francisco. That afternoon, no one even noticed the forty-something-year-old American woman standing in their pathway.

Valerie joined the short taxi queue nearby. Prior to leaving San Francisco, she’d calculated her remaining cash reserves would cover her food and accommodation costs in Reykjavík for a couple of weeks. So when Valerie reached the front of the queue thirty seconds later, she asked a friendly, baby-faced taxi driver with a bald head to drive her to the cheapest hotel he knew of in the center of Reykjavík.

“Are you staying long?” the driver asked her.

“I haven’t got a plan beyond the next two weeks,” Valerie said. “I’d like to get off the beaten track while I’m here.”

“Aha, you’re one of those,” the driver said with a knowing nod.

“One of who?” she asked, not ready to be put into any boxes.

“You’re one of the millions who’ve developed an obsession with Iceland by watching a TV series. Lots of people come here to experience the raw, powerful nature they connected with through their TV screens,” he stated with more than a hint of condescension.

Valerie felt uncomfortable. Was she a misinformed desperado who’d fallen for Iceland’s charms from afar? “I’m not one of those. My Icelandic friend Björn recommended I move here.”

The taxi driver nodded as though she’d confirmed his low opinion rather than contradicted it. “Did he recommend Iceland as the ideal place to become your authentic self?”

Valerie suddenly felt annoyed. “Listen, I’m not a cookie-cutter tourist who’s a replica of every other new arrival you’ve ever met.”

The taxi driver once again nodded, as though Valerie had confirmed his worst suspicions. She willed him silent. Thankfully, he complied.

What a great hook. Of course I now want to know what happens to Valerie! Thanks so much for staying in with me to chat about The Last Toll Collector. I think it sounds great. Let me give Linda’s Book Bag readers a few more details:

The Last Toll Collector

What would you do if AI outcompeted you so completely that it negated your role in society?

Welcome to Valerie Tobruk’s life. Her job as a toll collector on the Golden Gate Bridge was made redundant when toll collection was automated in 2013. Since then, she’s failed to find a job which AI can’t do better than her. She feels useless and lost.

To escape from her life, Valerie travels to the Westfjords, a remote part of Iceland where people go to disappear and nature reigns supreme. Once there, she discovers an abandoned herring factory where she decides to reside as the founder of a new independent nation called Tobruk where people are valued for their humanness.

Valerie doesn’t remain alone for long. A cast of lost souls descend upon Tobruk, as do a series of perplexing challenges presented by the outside world. But there’s worse to come. When the darkness of winter descends, the citizens of Tobruk must face up to their deepest fears if they are to survive.

Published by Fortis on 8th November 2024, The Last Toll Collector is available for purchase here.

About S.S. Turner

S.S. Turner crafts thought-provoking stories that explore the profound transformations his characters must undergo to navigate the complexities of modern life. His works are celebrated for their vivid storytelling, and the way his characters intertwine universal themes with personal growth. The author of Secrets of a River Swimmer, The Connection Game, Golden, and The Last Toll Collector he captivates readers with tales that resonate in today’s fast-paced, ever-evolving world.

For more information, visit S.S. Turner’s blog or follow him on Twitter/X @SSTurner7. You’ll also find him on Instagram and Facebook.

With Children’s Grief Awareness Week beginning today, I’m delighted to be able to give away a paperback copy of the fantastic children’s book, Figgles and Flo by Antonia Blackmore and illustrated by Sarah P Sharpe, to a lucky UK reader. My enormous thanks to Stephanie Bretherton for making this happen. You can enter further down this blog post.

I reviewed Figgles and Flo here but need to reiterate how wonderful a book it is (indeed, it’s one of my books of the year for 2024) and to remind Linda’s Book Bag readers that it was written in support of the charity Families in Grief.

Figgles and Flo

Meet Figgles, a very sad elephant, and Flo, a very wise old dog.

Sad times can be so hard to go through and even harder to understand. That’s when we need a bit of extra help. In this touching story from Families in Grief, lonely Figgles learns to remember the good times with the people he has loved, and to look forward to new possibilities, through the kindness of his friend Flo.

Join two irresistible characters as they explore the journey of healing and get ready to make new memories.

Figgles and Flo: The Elephant in the Room was published by Breakthrough Books on 17th October 2024 and is available for purchase here.

Giveaway

For your chance to win a paperback copy of Figgles and Flo, click HERE.

Please note that I’ll need the winner’s UK postal address to pass to the publishers for them to send the prize, but will not retain it beyond that action.

Giveaway closes at 11.59PM on Thursday 21st November and the winner will be selected at random and informed on Friday 22nd.

Good Luck!