I love featuring authors I’ve met so I’m delighted to be reviewing Comfort and Joy by Cathy Bramley as it is published today, 13th October 2016, by Transworld, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Comfort and Joy is available for purchase in e-book here.

Comfort and Joy

It’s been a busy year for Verity Bloom at the Plumberry School of Comfort Food, but Christmas Eve is finally here. With delicious treats all wrapped up and the ingredients packed away, Verity is looking forward to a relaxing few days with her new boyfriend.

Good food, family and friends – it’s a simple recipe for true comfort and joy, and all Verity’s friends in the village are full of excitement about the holidays too.

But the weather has other plans in store… Relentless rain leads to a power cut that spells disaster for many of Plumberry’s residents. It’s starting to look like this year’s celebrations could be a total washout.

With dreams of a perfect Christmas dashed, will the last of the festive cheer be swept away in the downpour? Or can the cookery school create a Christmas miracle for everyone Verity holds dear?

My Review of Comfort and Joy

It’s Christmas Eve for the inhabitants of Plumberry but Christmas might not be quite what they expected!

Comfort and Joy by Cathy Bramley should come with a health warning. The descriptions of food are so enticing and sumptuous that I felt ravenous the whole time I was reading. From fudge to turkey, champagne to truffles I could so easily imagine tasting the glorious food and drink presented in the writing. I’m not sure I’m going to be naming our turkey this year though!

This is my first Cathy Bramley read and I loved it. Considering Comfort and Joy is a short story I couldn’t believe how well developed and wide ranging the characters were. They became so life like as I read that I am now going to read the rest of the Plumberry stories about them as I want to know more.

I thought Comfort and Joy embodied the spirit of Christmas wonderfully, with a feel good element that wasn’t at all saccharine, but that was realistic and satisfying. I loved the balance between disaster and success and laughed aloud as well as shed a tear or two. The themes touched upon are so relevant to the season with relationships between parents and children, lovers and friends beautifully portrayed. But I loved too the elements of local and national relevance with floods, the homeless and the concept of charity all woven seamlessly into the plot.

A further element that I thoroughly appreciated too was the quality of the dialogue. I thought the separate voices were distinct and the speech natural so that I could hear the voices in my head.

In Comfort and Joy Cathy Bramley has created the perfect fireside read to touch the heart and make it truly Christmas. Read it!

About Cathy Bramley

Cathy is the author of the best-selling romantic comedies Ivy Lane,Appleby Farm, Conditional Love, Wickham Hall and The Plumberry School Of Comfort Food. She lives in a small Nottinghamshire village with her husband, two teenage daughters and Pearl, the Cockerpoo.

You’ll find all Cathy’s lovely books here.

You can find out more about Cathy Bramley on her website and you can follow her on Twitter. You’ll also find her on Facebook.

Those of you who know Linda’s Book Bag well will also know that I love to travel as much as to read (and if I can do both together so much the better). Next on my travel wishlist is India so I’m delighted to welcome Dianne Noble to the blog today. Dianne’s latest book A Hundred Hands is set in India and she has agreed to tell me a little more about the country as a means of inspiration.

A Hundred Hands will be published on 1st November 2016 and is available for pre-order until publication day at the special price of only 99p/99c from online sellers including Amazon.

A Hundred Hands

When Polly’s husband is jailed for paedophilia, she flees the village where her grandmother raised her and travels to India where she stays with her friend, Amanda.

Polly is appalled by the poverty, and what her husband had done, and her guilt drives her to help the street children of Kolkata. It’s while working she meets other volunteers, Liam and Finlay. Her days are divided between teaching the children and helping with their health needs. But when Liam’s successor refuses to let Polly continue working, she’s devastated to think the children will feel she’s abandoned them.

After a health scare of her own, she discovers her friend, Amanda, is pregnant. Amanda leaves India to have her child. At this time Polly and Finlay fall in love and work together helping the children. Tragedy strikes when one child is found beaten and another dead. Polly feels history repeating itself when Finlay becomes emotionally attached to a young girl.

Can Polly recover from her broken heart and continue to help the children, or will she give up and return home?

India

A Guest Post by Dianne Noble

The first time I visited India I was ten years old, flying back to England with my parents and brothers after a long tour in Singapore. Our RAF Hermes plane took almost three days, stopping in several countries to re-fuel, and de-ice the wings. We’d travelled out in a troopship – a whole month and school lessons every day – but the Suez Canal had been closed so here we were in Calcutta, as it was then known. I remember the heat, the highly spiced kofta they gave us for breakfast with a fried egg, which none of us could eat, the hole in the floor toilet we had to squat over while flies buzzed around us, the strange smells and sounds. How could I have known I’d begun a lifelong love affair with India?

A single parent for much of the time, I had to wait until my children had grown and flown before I could travel to Rajasthan, the princely state of maharajahs and palaces. Since then I’ve been all over the country, generally on India’s excellent trains, from Delhi and Agra in the north where the Taj Mahal reduced me to tears, to beautiful Kerala in the south, the temples of Bhubaneshwar in the east and vibrant Mumbai in the west, yet still, time after time I am drawn back. Next year I hope to travel the width of the country by train, up to its border with Pakistan and then into the Himalayas. My modest house – I spend all my money on travel – needs replacement windows but hey!

Ten years ago I volunteered to spend three months teaching English to street children in Kolkata. While there I realised what it is I love about the country –it’s the people. Despite great deprivation they laugh and are joyful. This time in Kolkata proved to be the hardest thing I have ever done. Broken, crumbling buildings sit amid lakes of raw sewage; filthy children encrusted with sores are homeless; families live on a patch of pavement so narrow they take it in turns to lie down. They give birth – and die – there. Yet their indomitable spirit shines through.

I feared I couldn’t do it, felt my resolve dying daily amid the horrors and hardship, but I started writing a journal and it saved me. Every night, no matter how dirty and exhausted I felt, I recorded one child’s progress with the alphabet, another’s disappearance, how many times I’d been hugged. It was a form of de-briefing but also cathartic. It got me through and these diaries formed the basis for A Hundred Hands.

About Dianne Noble

Born into a service family Dianne was brought up in Singapore, Cyprus and Yorkshire then went on to marry a Civil Engineer and moved to the Arabian Gulf. Since then, with sons grown and flown, she has continued to wander all over the world, keeping extensive journals of her personal experiences which she uses for her novels. Fifteen different schools and an employment history which includes The British Embassy Bahrain, radio presenter, café proprietor on Penzance seafront, and goods picker in an Argos warehouse, have resulted in rich seams to mine for inspiration.

You can find out more about Dianne by following her on Twitter, visiting her website and finding her on Facebook.

I have had Paris Mon Amour on my TBR for ages so I decided that whilst I was finding time to read it I’d ask the author Isabel Costello if she would be interviewed for Linda’s Book Bag. Luckily she agreed! Paris Mon Amour was published by Canelo on 13th June 2016 and is available for purchase here.

Paris Mon Amour

The first time I caused terrible harm to the people I love it was an accident. The second is the reason I’m here.

When Alexandra discovers that her husband Philippe is having an affair, she can’t believe he’d risk losing the love that has transformed both their lives.

Still in shock, Alexandra finds herself powerfully attracted to a much younger man. Jean-Luc Malavoine is twenty-three, intense and magnetic. He’s also the son of Philippe’s best friend.

With every increasingly passionate liaison, Alexandra is pulled deeper into a situation that threatens everyone she holds dear.

Beautifully told through the boulevards and arrondissements of the City of Light, Paris Mon Amour is a sensual novel about inescapable desire and devastating betrayals. It is the story of one woman and two men, and what happens when there is no way out.

An Interview with Isabel Costello

Hi Isabel. Thank you so much for agreeing to answer some questions on my blog about your writing and Paris Mon Amour.

Normally you’re the one featuring authors on your own blog, the Literary Sofa. How does it feel to have the tables turned on you today?

It feels great, thank you for inviting me! Like any writer I’m delighted when anyone takes an interest in my book.  And knowing how many debuts are out there at any given moment, I really appreciate the enthusiastic response from the blogging community.

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

I’ve always had a vivid imagination and a tendency to notice things – I loved reading and writing stories from a young age. But it wasn’t until my thirties, when I was busy with small children and had very little head space, that I felt a real need to write.  It became impossible to ignore and when I finally took it up aged 41, it was a huge relief.  It’s changed everything.

Why did you choose Paris as the setting for your debut novel Paris Mon Amour?

My lifelong connections with France run so deep I can’t imagine myself without them.  I’ve spent a lot of time in Paris and whenever I’m there (fortunately quite often) I get a strange sense of heightened emotion that unleashes inspiration and ideas. Whilst the sensual, romantic image of Paris makes an ideal backdrop for my fiction, life in any city has a darker dimension too and I try to reflect that.

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

The two kinds of research I enjoy are walking the streets, imagining my characters’ relationship with the setting, as distinct from mine – and talking to people, to further my understanding of a place or situation.  In the process of writing Paris Mon Amour several individuals confided very private experiences relevant to the themes and I was touched by that. Frankness is important to me – a lot of what makes a novel realistic and relatable comes down to emotional truth and things we usually keep to ourselves.

Which aspects of the writing process do you enjoy most/least?

I don’t enjoy producing first drafts and the inevitable obsession with word count, which has to be the least meaningful indicator of progress (or quality) there is.  I love all the technical components of fiction – characterisation, plot, dialogue, prose – I’ve been thinking about what makes a book work for most of my life so it’s exciting to put it into practice.  I thrive on the risky business of tackling taboo subjects: in my novel narrator Alexandra’s affair with the much younger son of her husband’s best friend falls into that category. Whatever the story, I have to feel absolutely compelled to tell it.

You’ve written quite a bit of short fiction as well as Paris Mon Amour. How similar or different did you find a full length novel?

Writing short stories is not only satisfying in its own right (you get to finish something in weeks rather than years) but it’s helped me a great deal with writing novels.  In the short form, every word, line and detail must justify its presence or face the chop, which I’ve realised is a great discipline to apply to any piece of writing: novels, features, reviews, even blog posts. So the two are not as different as they may appear; I’d encourage anyone who wants to work on their prose style to experiment with short fiction.

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

My taste is very broad, but I like books which make me think and are emotionally engaging.  Not too bleak or heavy – dark and deep is fine, as long as it’s balanced with some light or humour. Controversial or charged themes make for lively discussion, which I enjoy.  But what thrills me most is really good writing – it takes me less than a page to detect it.  If the style or voice grate, however, it’s unlikely I’ll make it past the first chapter.

In Paris Mon Amour you explore human nature and our inability to cease doing those things we feel guilty about. Did you set out to do this or did the themes arise naturally?

My fascination with human nature underpins everything I write.  I don’t set out to focus on guilt but it crops up every time; I mostly write from a female perspective and women are particularly prone to it. People are complicated and often fragile – it’s hard to reconcile all the factors that make us who we are and I’m especially interested in the ‘interior life’ behind the face we present to others. My outwardly conventional and respectable protagonist Alexandra is the last person anyone would expect to be unhinged by irresistible desire. The only conscious aim with this book was to challenge the myths and double standards surrounding female sexuality – there’s no separating that from human nature!

I thought the cover to Paris Mon Amour suggested the loss of innocence. How did that image come about and what were you hoping to convey (without spoiling the plot please!)?

The lilies have a symbolic meaning in the book and using them on the cover was the brainwave of my publisher Iain Millar at Canelo, brilliantly interpreted by designer Dan Mogford.  Although the shattered lily image looks like digital trickery, the truth is that Australian photographer Anna Thomas flash-freezes real blooms in liquid nitrogen and smashes them with a hammer! The cover has been a hit with readers and I do think it conveys the story very well, but to say more would indeed be a spoiler…

If Paris Mon Amour became a film, who would you like to play the main characters and why?  

Philippe is easy – Alexandra describes her husband as looking like ‘Vincent Cassel in a good suit’ (as opposed to when playing a gangster) – I’ll admit to slightly indulging myself there! Alexandra is more difficult – she’s 40 and definitely attractive, but most actresses still in the public eye at that point are only photographed in red-carpet mode and don’t look their age. For Jean-Luc, her lover, I’d cast Vladimir Perrin (as seen in the TV series Résistance and the Taylor Swift video Begin Again), although at 27 he’s already four years older, so interested parties please note that there’s no time to waste!

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

 

About Isabel Costello

Isabel Costello is a writer and avid reader of contemporary fiction, a keen traveller and a lifelong francophile.

Originally from Wiltshire, after studying modern languages she moved to London where she lives with her husband and teenage sons. Five years ago she started the Literary Sofa blog.

Her other interests include art, photography, theatre, cooking and wine. Isabel is also a great believer in the restorative powers of a long swim and a long bath.

You can follow Isabel on Twitter, find out more on her blog and visit her on Facebook.

I’m delighted to be featuring a guest post from Lou Kuenzler today to celebrate her latest children’s book Finding Black Beauty. Finding Black Beauty was published on 6th October by Scholastic and is available for purchase here and through the publisher.

I have previously featured Lou on Linda’s Book Bag when I thoroughly enjoyed reviewing another of her children’s books, Bella Broomstick. You can read my review here.

Finding Black Beauty

Told from the point of view of a young girl who masquerades as a boy in order to become a groom, this is the other side of the classic horse story Black Beauty. Aspiring groom Jo comes to love Beauty and when they are separated she travels to London to find him – on the way solving the mystery of her long-lost mother. A sweeping tale of a young girl and her love for a horse, and the circumstances that divide them.

Adapting a Classic

A Guest Post by Lou Kuenzler

Thank you Linda’s Book Bag for inviting me onto the blog to talk about my new children’s book Finding Black Beauty and to explore the relevance of adapting a classic novel for a modern audience.

I have never taken direct inspiration from a classic story before but, when invited to consider it by my publishers,  I knew at once that it would be Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty I would pick.  Growing up on a farm, I had loved the story myself. While some of Sewell’s language and episodic structure may be dated, and the levels of cruelty she exposes extremely shocking, I felt certain that the fast-paced adventure at the heart of the story was something that would definitely appeal to modern children – especially if told in a fresh new way.

I decided early on, in whatever way I tried to tackle the story, I would not attempt to tell it in Black Beauty’s own voice – Sewell does this so brilliantly, I felt Beauty’s viewpoint was best left as it was.  Also, with the benefit of hindsight and history, I found that was I drawn not only to the plight of animals in Victorian Britain but to the people – and specifically the children – too. Here I felt the murmur of untapped voices.

Jo, the young stable lad, began to whisper to me.  I know when I visit National Trust properties, or similar grand country houses, it is always the servants’ quarters I am drawn to.  There never seems to be quite enough emphasis on this – with kitchens and/or stables often having been turned into tearooms (not that I’m not a massive fan of good Victoria sponge!) and the attics and lofts out of bounds (perhaps for safety reasons).  It is as if a hundred hurrying footsteps have been hushed up. I think part of the huge appeal of Downton Abbey; for instance, was that we got to see life upstairs and downstairs.

I felt confident that contemporary children would be drawn to the story of a young stable lad –  pretty much the same age as the oldest of the primary school children Finding Black Beauty is aimed at.  Whilst they are thinking about SATS and the transition to secondary education, a working Victorian child would be earning a living.  To really explore this servant role, I decided to turn it on its head: my Jo is not only a girl (Josie) in disguise, she has also come from a privileged background and never had to consider the lives of those who have served her until now.  With the sudden and unexpected death of her father, Josie – already abandoned by her mother – is forced to see the world through very different eyes.

I felt that this switch in perspective would offer a way in for contemporary readers – they would be able to share fresh experiences and question social norms alongside Josie as she goes on a journey of self-discovery, seeing the world in a whole new, less sheltered, way.

Yet, while the character of my Josie is taken from the very few lines Anna Sewell writes about Jo, her stable lad; the arch of the plot has similarities – the plight of the magnificent horse is at the centre of both books.  Sewell’s story is a wonderful flat-out, galloping adventure. That, I felt, could definitely be revisited for children in any age.  My Josie’s story is laced with her growing self-knowledge, examining class and gender in the nineteenth century and – unavoidably – raising issues still of resonance for children today. But, at heart, Finding Black Beauty is about passion. It is the story of a young girl’s desperate attempt to protect a beloved horse. It is, I hope, life and death stuff – just as Anna Sewell’s wonderful, heart-rending original story was.

I had huge fun writing the book, researching Victorian life and creating fleshed out characters from those who appear only briefly in Black Beauty itself. Always having the original to refer back to was a wonderful support but I was always very aware that my new story needed to be more than a companion piece or sequel.  To draw in and then hold young readers, Finding Black Beauty had to be a compelling story in its own right.

About Lou Kuenzler

Lou Kuenzler was brought up on Dartmoor and moved to Northern Ireland to study theatre. She worked as a theatre director and drama lecturer before coming the writer of the Princess Disgrace, Shrinking Violet and Bella Broomstick series with Scholastic. Finding Black Beauty is her first retelling of a classic novel. Lou now lives in London with her husband and their two children.

You can find out more about Lou on her website, on Goodreads and you can follow her on Twitter. There’s more with these other bloggers too:

I’m so disappointed I haven’t had time yet to read Rose Alexander’s debut Garden of Stars as so many bloggers are telling me how good it is. Garden of Stars was published in ebook by Carina on 25th July 2016 and is available for purchase from Amazon and all other e-tailers.

Having loved Lisbon when I visited a couple of years ago, I invited Rose Alexander to explain how Garden of Stars has been inspired by Portugal.

Garden of Stars

The Alentejo, Portugal 1934

I am Inês Bretão and I am 18 years old. Now that I am finally an adult and soon to be married, I feel like my real life is about to begin. I have decided to document everything that happens to me, for my children and my grandchildren…

As Sarah Lacey reads the scrawled handwriting in her great-aunt’s journal on a trip to Portugal, she discovers a life filled with great passion, missed chances and lost loves – memories that echo Sarah’s own life. Because Sarah’s marriage is crumbling, her love for her husband ebbing away, and she fears the one man she truly loves was lost to her many years ago…

But hidden within the faded pages of the journal is a secret Inês has kept locked away her entire life, and one final message for her beloved niece – a chance for Sarah to change her life, if she is brave enough to take it.

Of the Past and Portugal

A Guest Post by Rose Alexander

“The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.”

So goes the quote from The Go-Between by L P Hartley, one of my all-time favourite books. And the idea of the past was one I wanted to explore in my debut novel.

Above all else, Garden of Stars is a love story – but the love is complicated by time. Time that’s passed, time that’s present and time that’s still to come. I find the whole idea of choices and decisions a fascinating one. What if I had gone to that university instead of this one? What if I had returned the phone call from that boy instead of pursuing the one who wasn’t interested? What if I had taken that job instead of this one? Life is full of turning points and it’s usually not until much, much later that the implications of the course one has followed become apparent. So it turns out for both Sarah and Inês, the lead characters in my book. Their lives have been defined by a series of actions taken, driven at the time by the belief that they were the right and moral choices, leaving regret to ferment and fester for years to come. Of course, that in itself wouldn’t be a very satisfying story. But, I hope, examining the fall-out from that regret, what they both do with it and where it takes them, is a tale that is worth telling.

Woven throughout the book is my deep love of Portugal, a country in which I have had the good fortune to spend a fair amount of time when I undoubtedly should have been doing something more useful and productive. University holidays spent on the Algarve and in Lisbon, my TEFL course completed at International House in the capital, holidays since in the beautiful, pristine central region, the north and Porto. So many, many lovely places to explore and get to know. In my twenties, I twice hitchhiked home to England and could probably write a couple of books about those experiences as well. (Trade secret: the truckers’ food and accommodation on Brittany Ferries is superb.)

One of the most important elements of the Portuguese economy is cork and the serene, ethereal cork forests that cover much of the Alentejo region are not only crucial for the bark they produce but also for the flora and fauna they support – and cork is central to the storyline of Garden of Stars. Because cork is left to do its own thing for years in between harvesting cycles, nature can burgeon undisturbed. It’s forbidden to destroy cork oaks in Portugal and hopefully the continuing development of new uses for this amazing natural material will ensure it has a future. In the novel, the cork tree’s lifecycle of growth, harvesting and renewal stands as a metaphor for love, loss, hope and new beginnings. Time, even if it doesn’t heal, changes things and leads us out of the past and into a future that we can, and should, shape for ourselves. Our experiences define us; it’s how we work with them that counts.

I hope that anyone who reads Garden of Stars enjoys it and gets something from it. It would be absolutely amazing if, whatever your thoughts about it, you leave a review on Amazon. Reviews are the lifeblood of authors, especially newbies like me, so help us out if you can!

Thanks for reading and enjoy.

Rose x

About Rose Alexander

Rose has had more careers than is probably strictly necessary, including TV producer / director making programmes for all the major broadcasters, freelance feature writer for publications including The Guardian and secondary school English teacher, not forgetting cocktail waitress, melon picker and interior designer.

Writing a novel is, however predictable the line seems, the realisation of Rose’s childhood dream and the result of finally finding ‘a voice’.  The triumph is that the voice was heard above the racket created by her three children plus rescue cat (tabby white, since you ask). Rose likens the experience of penning Garden of Stars, a multi-layered love story, to another recent achievement of learning to ice-skate: progress is two-slides-forward-one-back; insecurity, self-doubt and despondence reign supreme; onlookers laugh, mock or even worse, smile indulgently…. But the finished manuscript, polished and pristine, is like the perfect pirouette performed on freshly raked ice. (Rose can’t do pirouettes yet, obviously, they just made the best simile.)

Rose is currently working on several new projects including a novel based on a relative’s true story of an epic journey as a ‘flüchtlinge’, fleeing the vengeance of the rampaging Red Army as Nazi Germany collapsed.

You can follow Rose on Twitter and find out more on her website.

I’m delighted to be working with Brook Cottage Books in welcoming Jo Lambert back to Linda’s Book Bag today to celebrate Jo’s latest novel Watercolours in the Rain. A lovely contemporary romance, Watercolours in the Rain is available for purchase on AMAZON UK and  AMAZON.COM.

Not only do I have a wonderful guest post from Jo Lambert explaining about the challenges of writing three first person viewpoints in Watercolours in the Rain, but there is the opportunity to enter to win a dreamcatcher necklace (UK only) and one of two e-copies of Watercolours in the Rain at the bottom of this blog post.

Watercolours in the Rain

What happens to the future when past and present collide?

JESS:  Six years ago Jess’s relationship with Talún Hansen was torn apart by one night of deception. He disappeared from Lynbrook village and she headed for university vowing never to let anyone break her heart again. Now a teacher, Jess returns from holiday to an unexpected phone call and life changing news which will eventually bring her back home once more.

TALUN: Six years on Talún Hawkeswood, as he is now known, is heir to his grandfather’s Norfolk farming empire. When he hears of trouble in the village due to Lynbrook Hall being put up for sale, going back is the last thing on his mind. But staying away is not an option either, not when someone he owes so much to is about to lose their home and their livelihood.

LILY: Splitting with her husband after her son Josh’s birth, Lily now works as part of an estate agency sales team.  She has always held onto her dream of finding a wealthy husband and a life of self-indulgence. When the sale of an important property brings her face to face with Talún once more, she realises despite the risks involved, the night they spent together six years ago may be the key to making those dreams come true.

As Jess, Talún and Lily return to Lynbrook and the truth about what happened that summer is gradually revealed, Talun finds himself in an impossible situation. Still in love with Jess he is tied into to a trade off with Lily: his name and the lifestyle she craves in exchange for his son. And when a child is involved there is only one choice he can make…

Voices In My Head…Writing From The First Person

A Guest Post by Jo Lambert

When I began writing Watercolours in the Rain, I knew because this was the sequel to Summer Moved On, I would need to incorporate a certain amount of back story.   I discussed this with my editor, saying I thought it might be a good idea to begin the book with three short prologues from each of the main character’s points of view.  The plan was then to revert to third person narration for the rest of the novel.  We agreed this might be a good place to start, so I went ahead and completed the pieces and submitted them.  I had really positive feedback which was accompanied by the suggestion maybe it would work well if the whole book was narrated from Jess, Talún and Lily’s individual perspectives.  I wasn’t a stranger to writing in this way. Way back, my very first novel had been written through the eyes of a twenty something female. However that was then and this was now and getting into three people’s heads at the same time – and one of them male – threw up a whole host of different issues.  The one positive thing going for all of this was that as I had travelled with them through the first book, their characters were well known to me.

So with the prologue sections completed, I began to work on a task which I realised was very much a gamble…but it was also a challenge and I was determined to give it a try.  Writing from one person’s viewpoint is quite restricting; it narrows your story because you are only seeing what is going on from behind one pair of eyes. Writing from three, allows a broader view and is almost as good as writing from the third person.  However, it goes far beyond that as you are projecting each individual’s thoughts and emotions as well, which in some ways makes the book more human.

After a few initial hiccups, I eventually I settled down and began to enjoy what I was doing. It was great to be able to slip into someone else’s skin – almost like virtual acting. I had great fun with my female antagonist, bad girl Lily.  She was the perpetrator of some awful actions but in the end karma caught up with her.  I think the saying ‘be careful what you wish for’ was very relevant.  She got to live her dream but in the end it all went horribly wrong. I did have to sit for a while though, weighing up what would eventually be her fate. I could also see potential headache writing from a male perspective but then got totally caught up with his story – the discovery of a son he wasn’t aware of, the extremes he had to go to in order to secure him…and the way he became emotionally entangled with Jess. And as for Jess? Well as my central female character she was the easiest of the three characters. But that’s probably because in all my books I’m always very close to my heroine.

Would I do it again? Well I’m not sure. It was quite complex and far more difficult than writing from the third person. I don’t think I would have attempted it had I not had such a close knowledge of my char.  But I have to say it really did work for Watercolours in the Rain.  In fact I don’t think the book would have turned out as well had I written it any other way.

About Jo Lambert

Born and raised in rural Wiltshire, Jo Lambert grew up with a love of books and a vivid imagination. As a child she enjoyed creating her own adventure stories similar to Enid Blyton’s Famous Five. Writing always stayed with her, but college, work and eventually marriage found it was kept very much in the background. However in 2009 she finally had her first novel – When Tomorrow Comes – published. Three other connected books – Love Lies and Promises, The Ghost of You and Me and Between Today and Yesterday followed. They became collectively known as the Little Court Series.

In 2013 she decided to give up full time work to concentrate fully on her writing. Two other books have been written since – The Other Side of Morning which is the final book of the Little Court Series and Summer Moved On, a love story set in South Devon. Jo is about to publish, Watercolours in the Rain, and plans to begin work on her new book in early November 2016. She describes her writing style as drama driven romance.

Jo is married and lives in a village on the eastern edge of Bath with her husband, one small grey feline called Mollie and a green MGB GT.  She loves travel, red wine, rock music and has a passion for dark chocolate…

You can find Jo Lambert on Facebook, Google+ and her web site. You can also follow her on Twitter and read her blog.

Competition

For your chance to enter to win a dream catcher necklace (UK only) or one of 2 e-copies of Watercolours in the Rain, click here.

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.