I’m delighted to be supporting fellow blogger and friend Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources in bringing you the latest novel from Caroline James; The Best Boomerville Hotel.

Caroline has been a stalwart on Linda’s Book Bag, having provided her top ten writing tips here, when Coffee, Tea, the Caribbean and Me was published and allowing me to interview her here.  Caroline also told me about writer’s block and I reviewed her novel Jungle Rock here.

The Best Boomerville Hotel will be published by Ruby Fiction, the brand new imprint from Choc Lit, on 13th March 2018 and is available for pre-order from Amazon, Kobo, Ibooks/Google and Itunes.

The Best Boomerville Hotel

Jo Docherty and Hattie Contaldo have a vision – a holiday retreat in the heart of the Lake District exclusively for guests of ‘a certain age’ wishing to stimulate both mind and body with new creative experiences. One hotel refurbishment later and the Best Boomerville Hotel is open for business!

Perhaps not surprisingly Boomerville attracts more than it’s fair share of eccentric clientele: there’s fun loving Sir Henry Mulberry and his brother Hugo; Lucinda Brown, an impoverished artist with more ego than talent; Andy Mack, a charming Porsche-driving James Bond lookalike, as well as Kate Simmons, a woman who made her fortune from an internet dating agency but still hasn’t found ‘the One’ herself.

With such an array of colourful individuals there’s bound to be laughs aplenty, but could there be tears and heartbreak too and will the residents get more than they bargained for at Boomerville?

About Caroline James

Caroline James has owned and run businesses encompassing all aspects of the hospitality industry, a subject that features in her novels. She is based in the UK but has a great fondness for travel and escapes whenever she can. A public speaker, consultant and food writer, Caroline is a member of the Romantic Novelist’s Association and writes articles and short stories and contributes to many publications.

Her debut novel, Coffee, Tea, The Gypsy & Me is set in North West England, at the time of a famous gypsy horse fair.  The book went straight to number three on Amazon and was E-book of the Week in The Sun.

So, You Think You’re A Celebrity…Chef? was runner up the Winchester Writers festival for best TV Drama and takes a light-hearted look at the world of celebrity chefs as they battle it out for fame and fortune. Coffee, Tea, The Caribbean & Me was runner up at The Write Stuff, LBF, 2015 and is an Amazon best-seller and top recommended read by Thomson Holidays. Jungle Rock, a romcom novella set in Australia, revolves around a TV game show.

In her spare time, Caroline can be found trekking up a mountain or relaxing with her head in a book and hand in a box of chocolates.

You can find all of Caroline’s books on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

You can find out more about Caroline on her website and by following her on Twitter. You’ll also find her on Facebook.

Not long after I first began blogging I ‘met’ lovely Jane Lambert through social media and featured her in an interview on Linda’s Book Bag that you can read here. Since then I have met Jane in person and found her to be just as lovely in real life. Consequently, I’m absolutely delighted to welcome Jane back to the blog with a brilliant guest post to celebrate the publication of The Start of Something Wonderful. I really hope it is Jane!

Published by HQ Digital on 5th January 2018, The Start of Something Wonderful is available for purchase here.

The Start of Something Wonderful

Previously published as Learning to Fly

It’s never too late to follow your dreams…

Forty-year-old air stewardess, Emily Forsyth, thought she had everything a woman could wish for: a glamorous, jet-set lifestyle, a designer wardrobe and a dishy pilot boyfriend. Until he breaks up with her…

Catapulted into a mid-life crisis she wishes she’d had earlier, she decides to turn her life upside-down, quitting her job and instead beginning to chase her long-held dreams of becoming an actress!

Leaving the skies behind her, Emily heads for the bright lights of London’s West End – but is it too late to reach for the stars?

From Imagination to Publication

A Guest Post by Jane Lambert

Being an actress, I am used to rejection. With 92% of actors unemployed, you have to have a lot of self-belief and staying power to survive in this crazy profession. This determination has helped me enormously on my road to publication.

I first started writing my novel ten years ago whilst going through a painful divorce. Writing gave me something positive to focus on and helped me rediscover my love of life and sense of humour.

I sent my manuscript to several agents, but replies were rare and mostly negative.

I therefore decided to take matters into my own hands and self-published through Amazon KDP and Create Space, who were always on hand when I needed technical support.

The first time I held my book in my hand was a special feeling; it symbolised the new, independent, strong me. Now that I had a physical book to promote, I approached Blackwell’s in Edinburgh, who invited me to talk about my writing and to read a sample at Blackwell’s Writers at the Edinburgh Fringe. To see my book on display in their store and to hear the audience react so positively, was a huge confidence boost.

I organised a blog tour, was a guest on BBC Radio London, and my writing journey was featured in Spirit & Destiny magazine.

However, I hadn’t given up my dream of finding a traditional publisher and continued to submit my manuscript.

When I got the call from HQ Digital at Harper Collins, you could have knocked me down with a feather. They were so enthusiastic and encouraging about my book, that I convinced myself I was dreaming.

Only when I received the signed contract did I dare to tell my family and friends.

The title and cover were changed, and I was asked to make extensive cuts and rewrites: to introduce a character earlier, while removing another completely, which had a huge knock-on effect. I found myself culling scenes I had worked so long and hard on. At one point I lost my confidence and got into such a muddle with the sequence of events. I kept telling myself to trust the experts and not give up.

Then all at once inspiration started to flow, and I felt myself connecting with the characters more than ever before; so much so that when I read the final chapter aloud I burst into tears, as I knew I was saying goodbye to these people whose lives had become so much a part of mine.

I am so grateful to my editor, Charlotte Mursell at HQ for re-opening the door to my book and for showing me that there was so much more story to share.

To all aspiring writers out there – never ever give up, believe in yourself, and if opportunity doesn’t come to you, go to it!

Love & luck,

Jane

(Your post brought a tear to my eye Jane as I know how hard you’ve worked. I’m just thrilled for you that The Start of Something Wonderful is out there at last.) 

About Jane Lambert

Jane studied French and German, taught English in Vienna then travelled the world as air crew before making the life-changing decision to become an actress.

She has appeared in “Calendar Girls”, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time” and “Deathtrap” in London’s West End .

You can find Jane Lambert on Facebook and Twitter @JaneLambert22.

There’s more with these other bloggers:

I’m so frustrated that I haven’t been able to review for this Brook Cottage Books tour for The Long Walk Back by Rachel Dove but my towering TBR pile just wouldn’t allow it. However, I do have an extract from The Long Walk Back to share as well as a giveaway of a signed copy so all is not lost!

Published by HQ Digital on 11th January 2018 The Long Walk Back is available for purchase from Amazon UK, Kobo and Barnes & Noble. 

The Long Walk Back

Does everyone deserve a second chance?

As an army trauma surgeon Kate knows how to keep her cool in the most high pressure of situations. Although back at home in England her marriage is falling apart, out in the desert she’s happy knowing that she’s saving lives.

Until she meets Cooper. It’s up to Kate to make a split-second decision to save Cooper’s life. Yet Cooper doesn’t want to be saved. Can Kate convince him to give his life a second chance even though its turning out dramatically different from how he planned?

An Extract from The Long Walk Back

Kate was in a real mood; Trevor could tell from the way she pounded across the tent to him. He was doing his rounds, and they had had a good night. A good night here was when they still had the same number alive as the day before. A great day was when there were no casualties at all, but Trevor was hard pushed to remember many days like that.

‘Who’s upset you? Neil whingeing about doing the dishwasher again, is he?’ Trevor asked, and immediately regretted cracking the joke when the icicles from Kate’s frosty glare jabbed him in the chest.

‘Captain Cooper thinks he is hilarious. I’m just waiting for him to call me ‘toots’ and slap me on the behind,’ Kate said, seething. Trevor checked the vitals on his sleeping patient, and satisfied, made notes on his chart.

‘So he’s awake? That’s amazing! How is he doing?’

‘Oh he’s doing just fine, for a male chauvinist pig.’

Kate,’ Trevor admonished, trying not to laugh at her furious expression. ‘How are his vitals?’

Kate pursed her lips, taking a breath to focus on the job. ‘He’s stable, the chest drain is working well. I’m still concerned about his leg though. He has limited blood flow to the area, and I’ m worried about sepsis.’

Trevor nodded sadly. ‘So he will probably lose the leg, if we try to keep him alive.’ He rubbed at his temples. ‘Not told him any of this, have you?’

Kate shook her head. ‘I told him you would explain on this morning’s ward round. I wanted to go through everything again, monitor him closely for as long as we safely can before we make a decision.’

Trevor looked at her, his face unreadable. ‘It may not be our decision, it’s up to him.’

Kate looked nonplussed. ‘The evac chopper is coming in two days. At present, he’s too unstable to move. We need to get him home then, leg or no leg. A decision between losing a limb and dying is not a great thing to have thrust at you, granted – but he wants to live, surely?’

Trevor placed the chart at the foot of the bed and started to walk towards the next patient, issuing medication instructions to the nurse as he walked.

‘Kate,’ he began in a tone he might have used to tell his child that Father Christmas wasn’t real. ‘I have worked on men like Captain Cooper since this whole nightmare started. These are army men to the core. Sometimes going home means no family, no buddies, no job, and a lifetime of relying on other people. They are proud, and sometimes, to them, the reality is worse than death. Don’t take anything for granted when it comes to patient wishes.’

‘A boy died yesterday, to save these men. Surely that’s reason enough to want to live?’

Kate ran her fingers through her hair, suddenly feeling tired all over again.

‘Cooper knows that. Better than most, probably. It’s still his decision, he has to live with it. Understood?’ Trevor spoke firmly now.

Kate opened her mouth to argue, but she thought better of it. She respected her mentor, always had, and she didn’t want to argue. Not when the fact that life was so short and precious was evident in every face, every feature she saw over here. ‘Understood.’

About Rachel Dove

Rachel Dove is a wife, mother of two boys, perpetual student, avid reader and writer of words. She sometimes sleeps, says she always has eye bags and dreams of retiring to a big white house in Cornwall, with 2 shaggy dogs, drinking wine on her seafront balcony whilst creating works of romantic fiction. All done with immaculate make up and floaty dresses.

In the meantime Rachel nearly always remembers to brush her hair, seldom has time to look in a mirror and writes many, many to-do lists.

Rachel’s first solo novel, Crossing Life Lines is out now in Kindle and paperback format. She also has horror shorts, published through Bayou Brew Publishing: The House of Sugar Blood and Uni Assassin, out now, and a short story, Mallow Girl.

In July 2015, Rachel won the Prima magazine and Mills & Boon Flirty Fiction Competition, with her entry, The Chic Boutique on Baker Street, out now in ebook and paperback, and the follow up novel in the series, The Flower Shop on Foxley Street.

You can follow Rachel on Twitter @WriterDove, find her on Facebook and visit her blog.

The Long Walk Back Giveaway

For your chance to win a signed paperback copy of The Long Walk Back by Rachel Dove please click here.

(Please note: this giveaway is independent of Linda’s Book Bag.)

 

Running this new feature of Staying in with … on Linda’s Book Bag I’m getting to meet all kinds of authors and books I wouldn’t have otherwise come across. Today I have a very enigmatic guest to stay in with – Kirsten Nairn, author of A Sorry Affair. I don’t have an author image to share of Kirsten because no-one she knows is aware that she has written a book!

If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me and tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.

Staying in with Kirsten Nairn

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Kirsten, 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?

A Sorry Affair by Kirsten Nairn, is my first published novel, but not the first story I have written. I have a number of others which are in varying stages of completion and I tend to work on them all simultaneously. However, this was the first story I worked on until it was finished. Possibly like many new authors, I had no intention of going to publication, but once the story was finished I was left with an overriding feeling of what’s it all for if not to share? So here I am with my first publication.

As a new author I am keen to find out what people think of it.

(I think being a new author can be quite a daunting prospect actually Kirsten.)

What can we expect from an evening in with A Sorry Affair ?

Be prepared for romance, heartache and an ending which hopefully leaves the reader hanging, wondering about the next steps in the lives of the main characters and what they’d do in the same situation.

It is set in the beautiful city of Edinburgh, a city close to my own heart, a city which I consider to be more romantic than Paris, but then I am biased.

It’s a romantic novel which examines the complexities of relationships and the heartache which can often accompany love. The story is told from the perspective of the three main characters, Mack and Jen, the archetypical golden couple, together since they were students and Abbi, who Mack finds himself drawn to, and eventually falling in love with. He ends up unintentionally in love with two women. Powerless to do anything about it, watches his life slowly unravel before his eyes.

The idea for the story began as a simple question. What does it feel like to be the adulteress? To be the other woman? The sympathy, understandably, is always directed at the innocent party but what if there are two innocent parties? What if you are the ‘other woman’ and are completely unaware that you’re having an affair?

(Oo. Great premise for a novel, Kirsten.)

This story has been described as A beautiful story of pain and sadness as the ‘perfect’ engagement unravels: a tale of the unwitting downward spiral and destruction of a perfect relationship: emotional and full of suspense.

I would describe this is an ‘easy read’ but that’s not to say there’s no depth to it. My hope is that the reader will connect with all the characters and in doing so, be faced with the dilemma as to where their sympathies lie and ask themselves what they would do in a similar situation. The story is really based on the premise that for most people love is rarely black and white but varying shades of grey.

(Yes indeed it is, even in the most ‘perfect’ of relationships I think.)

The idea for the story came to me on train journey to Edinburgh on overhearing the conversation of a hen party who were enjoying a few glasses of prosecco. Thankfully the prosecco meant they weren’t talking as quietly as they thought they were, so I heard the story from start to finish. They had no sympathy for the adulteress which begged the question for me,  What does it feel like to be the adulteress in an affair? To be the other woman?

As the story unfolded in my mind I began to consider it from all points of view and wondered about the person committing the affair. What if he really didn’t mean to have an affair?

I immediately began tapping out the story on my mobile phone and wished I was on a much longer train journey.

(So not just a train journey, but a journey to publication too. How wonderful.)

What else have you brought along this evening and why?

Mmm, that’s tricky. There are so many things/ people I would like to bring along. Given that my husband and children don’t know I’ve written this or any other book, I think they’d be speechless (a first) if I brought them.

(Wow – you’d certainly surprise them!)

Sadly, my first thought was that I’d have to bring my phone and laptop since most of my writing takes place on these whilst waiting to pick my children up from various after school activities and I cannot underestimate the contribution they have played in enabling me to write anytime and anywhere! However, that would be pretty boring. I love to reminisce, and like the character Mack, I love nothing better than to pour a glass of red wine and rummage through all my old CDs, playing songs which remind me of my own student days in Edinburgh. So, after not too much deliberating, I’d bring wine and CDs (anything from the 80s onwards) and hopefully there would something we’d both like.

(I was a student until 1983 so I’m sure we’d find plenty in common Kirsten – as long as I can have some Roxy Music!)

Thanks so much for staying in and telling me about A Sorry Affair Kirsten. I’m intrigued as to whether you’ll ever tell your family that you’re a published author…

A Sorry Affair

Jen and Mack are the perfect couple; meeting at university, moving in together and engaged to be married.

Then, one day, Abbi turns up on their doorstep and throws a huge spanner in the works of their seemingly well-oiled relationship. On that day, Mack’s life is turned upside down and it seems there’s no way back. Resigned to the fact that the relationship is over and Jen is selling the house, Mack is forced to go back home and live with his parents. He comes to blows with his father, who was close friends with Jen’s father, and emotions run high when past hurts are revisited. Despite several letters from Mack, years pass without any word from Jen.

The reader is left in suspense, always wanting more and wondering if it really is the end for Jen and Mack.

A Sorry Affair is published by Austin Macauley and is available for purchase here.

About Kirsten Nairn

Slightly differently to usual, I’m letting Kirsten introduce herself.

I was born and live in Scotland with my husband, two young children and the usual array of pets which seem to accompany small children. The last thing I would describe myself as in ‘an author’, having studied science at Edinburgh University when dungarees were in fashion and Dexy’s Midnight Runners could still cut it with the young ones.

I’ve always had stories going on at the back of my mind though but just have never found the time to actually write anything down. I naively thought I might start writing when I was on maternity leave but now realise I was lucky if I was dressed before noon.

Many many years later I found myself at a ‘loose end’, opened the computer and put ‘pen to paper’ as it were. Once I started writing I just couldn’t stop. I found my first story unfolding in my head way faster than I could type.

Nobody knows that I write or that I have had a book published. Not even my husband or my children.

I don’t know why I haven’t told anyone. I carry it around with me like a guilty secret, well, more like a guilty pleasure actually. I fire up my laptop and pretend I’m working as I tap furiously away into the wee small hours. My husband occasionally remarks that I seem to have a lot of work to do in the evenings, but more often than not he’s completely oblivious, just raising his head enough to remark that my typing is noisy and somewhat distracting.

The biggest problem for me isn’t writer’s block, but physically and mentally finding the time to write. I am a full time working mum of two energetic children who have a hectic, action packed social calendar, which brings me full circle to the importance of all electronic gadgets. I would never have managed any of this with an old fashioned type-writer!

Kirsten has a Facebook page and you’ll find her newly arrived on Twitter @KirstenNairn.

I’m so enjoying these Staying in with… posts and today I’m delighted to welcome Karla Forbes to Linda’s Book Bag to stay in and tell me all about her novel Fallout which is the first in her Nick Sullivan Series of thrillers.

If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me to tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.

Staying in with Karla Forbes

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Karla 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?

This evening, I’d like to share with you a thriller called Fallout which is the first of eight books featuring Nick Sullivan. It is based on a rumour circulating during the cold war that Soviet scientists had developed a nuclear bomb that could be transported in a suitcase.

Nick is a man who, to begin with, seems to have it all: a fantastic wage as a hedge fund manager, a beautiful wife, a yacht and an Aston Martin. His charmed life comes to an abrupt halt one day when he and his friend are sailing in the English Channel and come across three men who, unbeknown to them, are recovering the plutonium from one of the suitcases that was lost at sea. During the encounter, Nick’s friend is brutally murdered and Nick becomes the Police’s only suspect. Within days, his perfect life unravels and he loses his job, his reputation, his friends and very nearly his liberty. He goes on the run but it isn’t long before the authorities realise that far from being a murderer, he is the only person in the country who can identify the three terrorists and prevent a catastrophic attack somewhere in Britain. They use every means at their disposal to hunt Nick down but, unaware of his importance, he remains in hiding as he doggedly pursues the three criminals in order to prove his innocence.

(Fallout sounds incredibly exciting. It just goes to show how lives can change in an instant.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Fallout?

Fallout is a fast paced thriller full of twists and turns that, as one reviewer observed will leave the reader attempting, but usually failing, to guess the direction the story is about to take. By the end of Fallout, I had grown too fond of Nick to let him go and I decided to make him the main protagonist in a series of thrillers.

Despite his undoubted courage and resourcefulness, Nick is no infallible superhero. He spends most of his time trying to placate his long-suffering girlfriend and his miserable and demanding boss and his love of adventure often spills over into recklessness causing him to make mistakes. As another reviewer observed, Nick’s stubbornness is both his greatest strength and his biggest weakness.  Overall though, he is a likeable hero who is often too clever for his own good but is stubborn enough to get the job done. In other words, if you are a criminal with Nick Sullivan on your case, you might as well give up now and save yourself a whole lot of time and trouble.

I think I’d rather like to meet Nick!

What else have you brought along and why?

Together with Fallout I’ve brought along my tablet armed with my Spotify list. I have varied musical tastes but one thing many of my favourite pieces have in common is that they have all served to inspire me and help the writing flow. All I need now is a box of Thornton’s Continental selection and the evening is perfect.

I’m afraid leaving me with a box of Thornton’s is a very bad idea! They have all gone!

It’s been great having you to stay in with Karla. Thanks so much for being on the blog.

Fallout

The British Government is being blackmailed by criminals who have got their hands on a quantity of plutonium left over from the cold war. Only one man knows their identity and can prevent a catastrophe but he is on the run for a murder he didn’t commit and has no intention of being found.

As the authorities attempt to hunt him down, the clock is ticking and they are running out of time. They pin their hopes on the fact that a bunch of amateurs won’t have nuclear technology and the worst they’ll come up with is a dirty bomb. With luck, the carnage can be limited. A few people might die in the explosion but the majority will run away at the first sign of danger and the radiation will drift harmlessly into the atmosphere.
But what if the terrorists have found a way of keeping the radiation near to the ground, encouraging people to hang around breathing in death and when they invite them to their own slaughter they come willingly?

They would be dangerous then…wouldn’t they?

Fallout is published by Williams and Whiting and is available for purchase here.

About Karla Forbes

Karla Forbes first began writing books when she was twelve years old. Heavily influenced by Ian Fleming, she wrote about guns, fast cars and spies. Naturally, she knew nothing of her chosen subject and was forced to use her imagination to make it up as she went along. These books, half a dozen in total, ended up being thrown out with the rubbish. Several years later, she dabbled in a futuristic sitcom and a full length horror story. Although both of these efforts were also consigned to literary oblivion, at least no one could have accused her of being in a genre rut.

She began writing properly more than fourteen years ago and her first book, The Preacher was published on Amazon in July 2011. Twelve books in total are available to download from the Amazon kindle book store. Other books will follow at regular intervals. She writes about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary situations and she aims for unusual but scarily believable plots with a surprising twist.

You can follow Karla on Twitter @KarlaForbes, visit her website and find her on Facebook.

One of the aspects of blogging that always confuses me is when writers don’t always have books out under their real names! With Riverside Lane written by Ginger Black I was surprised to find that one of the authors was actually Julia Thum! Julia has kindly agreed to stay in with me today to tell me a bit more about Riverside Lane and her collaborative writing with Gaynor Pengelly.

If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me and tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.

Staying in with Julia Thum

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Julia. Thank you for agreeing to stay in with me, even if you did totally confuse me! Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it? 

Hello Linda and thank you for inviting me to stay in with you.  I have bought you Riverside Lane which I co-authored with Gaynor Pengelly under the pen name Ginger Black.   Here’s a photo of the book – I’d like to claim that’s me reading it but I think we all know it isn’t!

(Now wouldn’t that have been a wonderful reader to have!)

What can we expect from an evening in with Riverside Lane? 

We will enjoy a cozy mystery and an evening of escape to an English village in springtime where curtains twitch behind perfect privets and everybody has a secret.  One reader called the novel “the literary equivalent of a glass of Pimms” and another “Agatha Christie on steroids” so I think that might give you a sense of what to expect.

(‘Agatha Christie on steroids’ – I love that definition. I can’t wait to read Riverside Lane now!)

What else have you brought along and why?

I’ve come with Gaynor, of course, and also a life-size cardboard cut-out of George Clooney.  Riverside Lane is set in our home village of Bray on Thames and Mr Clooney lives a few miles downstream from us.  We like to pretend he’s our neighbour so it seemed appropriate to bring him around to you and we have him in mind to play Riverside Lane’s mystery man, Luca Tempesta, when our novel is made into a film.

(I had no idea it’s possible to purchase a life-size cardboard cut-out of George Clooney on a well known online shopping site until this post, Julia!)

I’ve also bought a picnic basket containing Pimms, of course, as well as take away fish and chips from Heston Blumenthal’s village pub The Crown which features heavily in our novel as the site of all manner of shenanigans and gossip.

(I’ve been eating quite a lot of fish and chips when staying in with authors Julia, but these sound especially good!)

There’s also a manuscript of my new children’s novel, The Witches’ Punchbowl which will be out later this year – I’ve bought it simply because it’s just finished, I’m bursting with excitement about it and feel the need to wave it under everybody’s noses or a few weeks.

(Oo – I love children’s fiction so you’ll have to return when The Witches’ Punchbowl is published and we can have another, different, evening in together.) 

Then we have a huge bar of dark, dark chocolate for pudding and a massive, Alice in Wonderland proportion, pot of earl grey tea with three porcelain cups and saucers as I’m a firm believer that tea tastes better out of good china.

Tea and chocolate are two of my very favourite things so I’ll be inviting you back again to stay in again very soon. Thanks so much for staying in with me and telling me about Riverside Lane Julia.

Thank you so much for having me this evening Linda.  We’ve met on Twitter and through Facebook and it is lovely to finally get together and chat properly.  Good luck with this great new feature – I shall follow it with interest and look forward to the party when you get us all together – I’ll bring George if you like!

I’ll hold you to that!

Riverside Lane

After arranging a house swap with a debonair antiques dealer, a darkly handsome American named Luca Tempesta arrives in a quaint English village. Tempesta, who claims to run a detective agency in Los Angeles, is supposedly on holiday but the inhabitants of the village are unconvinced.

Yet, as they attempt to solve the mystery of the stranger in their midst, it gradually transpires that there are more than enough secrets to go around in the village itself, harboured by the local MP and his uptight, ambitious wife; the has-been former game show host; the respectable couple with the jailbird son; the hometown journalist, striving for a scoop that will rescue her from debt; and so on.

The place is revealed as a labyrinth of deception masquerading as a picture-postcard hamlet; tension begins to mount in between the dinner parties and evenings at the pub, and soon culminates in an unexpected death. Behind perfect privets and brightly painted front doors, the lives of Riverside Lane’s residents slowly unravel.

Tempesta, guarding his secrets with a vengeance, is suddenly threatened with exposure by the elderly religious zealot Ivy Midwinter, whose own past involved keeping professional confidences. When she challenges him in church, she learns that Tempesta will stop at nothing to protect his privacy …

Set against the exquisite backdrop of a gastronomic village by the Thames, Riverside Lane is a tautly paced page-turner that also gently satirises middleclass English manners: the upstanding denizens of the village watch and whisper behind a mask of English hauteur, whilst their own fragile lives come undone.

Riverside Lane is published by Momentum and is available for purchase here.

About Julia Thum

Julia grew up on a farm where she spent her formative years damming streams, riding ponies, losing her wellies in the bog and making tree houses. There was a boring chunk in the middle of life when she tried to be mature and sensible, then her kids came along and gave her the excuse to revert back to childhood.

Julia’s body lives with its family in Bray, on the river Thames, but her mind lives in a world of magical mystery, eccentric people and endless adventures that she shapes into compelling characters and intriguing stories.

Julia is happiest outdoors, on her kayak paddling up the Thames, jogging along the towpath or walking her dog Rumpole. She does occasionally do a bit of cooking and enjoys that, as well as helping the kids with their six tortoises and four rabbits that crawl and hop around our garden. Julia can also be found doing the odd headstand under a tree when the wind is in the east.

As well as writing adult fiction with Gaynor under the pen name Ginger Black, Julia reviews children’s books at Julia Thum, is a regular guest on BBC Berkshire’s Book Club and has just completed her first children’s novel, The Witches’ Punchbowl.

You can follow Julia on Twitter @juliathumwrites, find her on Facebook and visit her website.  You’ll also find Julia with Gaynor as Ginger Black on Twitter and Facebook as well as on their website.

I was so intrigued by the title of Kathy Sharp’s novel, Whales and Strange Stars, that although I didn’t have time to read it I was desperate to be part of the Brook Cottage Books tour and find out more.

Having spent my working life advocating that teachers and students should read as writers and write as readers, I’m also delighted to be sharing Kathy’s post explaining which other authors have influenced her work.

Published by Crooked Cat Books on 12th December 2017, Whales and Strange Stars is available for purchase from your local Amazon site.

Whales and Strange Stars

A sea captain passes through the forgotten port of Wych Ferry, and whiles away an hour relating his traveller’s tales to young Rosamund Euden. He tells her that the stars are different, if you sail far enough, that the horizon isn’t quite real, not when you get there; he speaks of sea serpents and whales, and mysterious islands.

To an impressionable girl who has never left her home, the whales and strange stars of his stories come to symbolise the great outside world she longs to see. The sea captain moves on, unaware of the dramatic events he has set in action as Rosamund’s search for adventure leads her into a world of dangerous secrets in the marshlands of eighteenth century Kent.

Torn between loyalty to her uncles, and her desire to discover what lies beyond the marshes, Rosamund seeks help from an unexpected source. But who can she really trust?

Which Other Writers Have Influenced My Work?

A Guest Post by Kathy Sharp

It’s a standard question, a cliché, even – but it’s worth asking, and answering, too. The absolutely honest answer, from me, is that it changes all the time. Every new book I read (and sometimes an old one that I re-read) will leave its mark on my writing. Every new way of looking at things, every unusual point of view, every fresh subject will show up in my own work to some degree. And every piece of writing that’s dull, sloppy or unimaginative will be a reminder to pull my socks up, too.

Having said that, there are indeed writers whose influence on me is more than just transitory. Patrick O’Brian is one of them; from his writing I learned that the interaction of the characters is the soul of a book. Charles Dickens is another. From Mr Dickens I understood how to use the oddities of human nature – I’m always on the lookout for a character with a Dickensian feel. And then there is Nicholas Montsarrat who taught me about the sea, and the importance of beautiful, clear writing. Among modern writers, I learned from J K Rowling that it is perfectly possible to inject a sense of humour into an essentially serious tale. And all four of these have helped me appreciate the art of storytelling.

Other writers have shown me that a book with minimal plot can be a page-turner if only the characters are interesting enough; that writing a novel entirely in the present tense requires great skill; that a book where the characters are kind to one another need not be dull. I could go on.

Every book I pick up, fact or fiction, teaches me something new. It’s one of the joys of the writer’s life that all reading is research and that the happy results of that research will bob to the surface of your own writing. Some writers are a little afraid of reading, of falling under the influence of another writer and losing their own originality in the process. Not me – bring it on, I say! And there are still so many books I’ve never read, so many more writers who will continue to teach and influence me. There is still so much I don’t know. So if you’ll excuse me, now, I have a book to read…

About Kathy Sharp

Kathy Sharp was born and brought up by the sea in Kent. Life took her inland, and she worked for many years as a desktop publisher for Surrey County Council, and as a tutor in adult education.

And then, one day, she visited a friend who had just moved to the Isle of Portland, Dorset, and fell in love with the place. She has now lived by the sea in the Weymouth and Portland area for more than ten years, and still loves it. The wonderful Jurassic Coast, and Portland in particular, were the inspiration for her Larus Trilogy of novels.

Kathy also sings with, and writes lyrics for, the Island Voices Choir on Portland, and is a keen member of local writing groups, as well as enjoying studying the local flora.

You can find Kathy on Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn and on Twitter @KathySharp19. Kathy also has a website and blog for you to visit.

Having stayed in with lots of female authors so far in my new Linda’s Book Bag feature Staying in with…, it’s about time I hosted a man! Today I’m delighted to welcome Phil Rowlands, author of Siena along to tell us all about his psychological thriller.

If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me and tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.

Staying in with Phil Rowlands

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Phil. I’m so pleased to be hosting a man for a change! Thank you for agreeing to stay in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share and why have you chosen it?

The book I would like to share during our evening together is my debut novel, Siena, which was published in August 2017 by Williams and Whiting. Although I have been a screenwriter for film and TV for many years, Siena is my first book and so introducing it to you is a real treat for me.

What can we expect from an evening in with Siena?

In Siena, I wanted to explore grief and loss, as well as love and retribution. Sara, the main character has to face the worst thing that could ever happen, happening; the unthinkable becoming a reality.

It is her journey from desolation to hope that is the theme of the book. How she gets there, who helps or hinders along the way is the heart of the story.

I wanted to set it in Wales, my homeland, and Siena, a beautiful and historic city and mecca for western artists. Each place has a special cultural and emotional identity. Sara is an artist and the glory of the art in Siena will help free her spirit and introduce her to those who will enhance, stimulate or distract her roller coaster search for truth and closure. The Palio, a race of huge passions, madness and history where the victor is all, is a perfect backdrop to Sara’s journey.

In Wales she meets a man who helps her find the courage, determination and strength to emerge from her darkness and go alone to Siena to find reasons to make sense of what happened to her family. There she will find it but it might not be the truth she seeks.

(Oh – this sounds really interesting Phil.)

Some of the review soundbites have been ‘gripping’ ‘a cracking read’ ‘a stylish and emotionally literate thriller’ ‘good read, gripping to the end’

(You must be delighted that Siena is being so well received.)

What else have you brought along and why? 

For this very special evening I would bring a couple of bottles of good Chianti, a vegetarian curry from Kerala, an EP of my singer/songwriter daughter, the Bruch violin concerto and a Caribbean fruit salad. My other guests would be James lee Burke, Claude Monet, Aphra Benn, and 1940s photographer Lee Miller – the sort of mix that would ensure a stimulating discussion on writing and art.

(I’m certain it would!)

I would also bring along a DVD of the Palio, and a selection of my photo collection of art from Siena and contemporary Wales to help explore my inspiration.

(I had never heard of the Palio before but I’d like to see that DVD. It sounds an exciting spectacle. My husband is Welsh and a photographer so we’ll let him share some photos of Wales with us too Phil!)

Thanks so much for sharing Siena with us Phil. I hope it sells really well.

Siena

Welsh artist Sara Llewellyn’s husband and young son are killed by chance during the shooting of a wealthy Italian in London. The killer disappears and Sara’s pain and grief drive her to the edge of madness. She hides away as her life spins out of control until she meets a Canadian academic researching his Welsh roots. He helps her find some balance and light and provokes a positive start to her recovery. She goes to Italy alone to find answers and is drawn into a world of art, culture, beauty and betrayal that leads to a shattering discovery at the explosive climax of the Palio in Siena.

Siena is available for purchase here.

About Phil Rowlands

Phil Rowlands loves telling stories, having written poems and stories since he was 12 . He has worked as an actor in film, tv, radio and theatre.

You can follow Phil on Twitter @PhilRowlands2. You’ll also find him on Facebook.

I am utterly delighted that I have a copy of The Cover Up by Marnie Riches on my TBR and that Marnie is returning to Linda’s Book Bag today to celebrate today’s publication of The Cover Up.

I’ve been so lucky to feature Marnie before on the blog. When The Girl Who Had No Fear was published Marnie provided a brilliant post on heroines in crime fiction that you can read here. I was also privileged to help reveal Marnie’s Born Bad and you can find out more about that book here.

Published by Harper Collins’ imprint Avon Books, The Cover Up is available for purchase through these links.

The Cover Up

Watch your back. Everyone else will be.

How far would you go to protect your empire?

Manchester’s criminal underworld is reeling from the loss of its leader, Paddy O’Brien. In the wake of her husband’s death, Sheila O’Brien takes charge of the city, and for once, she’s doing things her way.

But she hasn’t reckoned with the fearsome Nigel Bancroft, a threat from Birmingham who is determined to conquer Manchester next.

As a power tussle begins, Sheila is determined to keep control of the empire she has won – even if it means she has to die trying…

Crime Fiction – A Risk Free Walk on the Wild Side

A Guest Post by Marnie Riches

Around the time that my debut crime-thriller – The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die – was published, it came as a surprise when my editor told me that women are overwhelmingly the largest consumers of crime-fiction. I was surprised because, when you consider the content of crime fiction – violence, criminality and abuse – it didn’t strike me as sitting well with the stereotypical interests of women. And yet I am a woman who both loves to read and write crime fiction. I have always adored the genre, ever since I was a child. I loved children’s mystery books just as much as fantasy tales. In adulthood, my taste remains the same. So, why was I so taken aback by the statistics?

Well, for a start, for many years, the chicklit market reigned supreme among women. When I began to write in earnest just over a decade ago, the covers that dominated in bookshops and on supermarket shelves were all pink. Bridget Jones and Love Actually were still everyone’s favourite films. Kathy Lette had paved the way with Mad Cows, writing in the late nineties about a female protagonist who walked through posh shops with frozen peas on her sore, post-natal boobies. Women seemed to need that in their lives. By the mid-late noughties, it was all Sophie Kinsella. Romance. Girly laughs. Nothing really gritty. Except, I was reading the Stieg Larsson Millennium Trilogy and I’m not a fan of girly. I had little love for a “post-feminist” literary landscape that was getting right on my emancipated tits. Seems I wasn’t alone!

The popularity of ultra-feminine, romantic women’s fiction has seen a decline over the past few years with readers migrating to psychological thrillers like Clare Mackintosh’s I Let You Go, CL Taylor’s books like The Lie and The Escape and, of course, Paula Hawkins’ The Girl on a Train. It seemed that women no longer wanted to read romance or about hot vampires in quite such huge numbers. They wanted domestic abuse, twisty dark tales…they wanted to be thrilled and challenged. And it isn’t just psychological thrillers that float women readers’ boats. We love good old fashioned police procedurals and it would seem we also love gangland thrillers. Martina Cole – the godmother of contemporary gangland fiction – has sold tens of millions of copies of her books worldwide. The likes of Kimberley Chambers and DS Mitchell follow in her wake. All female authors. All writing about gangsters and organised crime.

It was my publisher that suggested I write a series of gangland thrillers set in Manchester. The world of commercial fiction didn’t yet have a series set in the North West that would appeal to all those millions of Martina fans. I was delighted to take them up on their challenge, knowing that what readers and I would both enjoy was a walk on the wild side with absolutely no risk. This is why I think that the crime genre remains so popular and why readers – male and female – gravitate towards the sort of books I write. You can inhabit my protagonists’ bodies for a few hours and see what it’s like to live on a rough estate and work on the wrong side of the law. You can wield a gun to get what you want – in your imagination. You can drive that pimped up Porsche Panamera or the Mercedes 4 wheel drive and wear the Louboutins. You can be the boss! You can dole out death sentences and count the piles of cash, all the while, perhaps sitting in your kitchen in your pyjamas with a bag of frozen peas clutched to your chest!

(I think I’ll forego the frozen peas Marnie, but The Cover Up is something I’m definitely hanging on to!)

About Marnie Riches

Marnie Riches grew up on a rough estate in Manchester. She learned her way out of the ghetto, all the way to Cambridge University, where she gained a Masters degree in German & Dutch. She has been a punk, a trainee rock star, a pretend artist, a property developer and professional fundraiser. Previously a children’s author, now, she writes crime and contemporary women’s fiction.

Marnie Riches is the author of The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die – the first installment of the George McKenzie crime thriller series, published by Maze and Avon at Harper Collins.

In her spare time, Marnie likes to run (more of a long distance shuffle, really) travel, drink and eat all the things (especially if combined with travel) paint portraits, sniff expensive leather shoes (what woman doesn’t?) and renovate old houses. She also adores flowers.

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

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

Some Linda’s Book Bag visitors feel like old friends and lovely Kathryn Freeman, author of Before You is one such visitor. Consequently, I’m delighted to be staying in with Kathryn today.

As well as reviewing Before You (here) I’ve been lucky enough to feature another of Kathryn’s books, Search for the Truth here, and to host a brilliant guest post from Kathryn all about the difficulty of making things up when you’re a writer. You can read that post here. In addition, when A Second Christmas Wish was released recently, Kathryn kindly told me about her Christmas wishes here.

If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me and tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.

Staying in with Kathryn Freeman

Welcome back to Linda’s Book Bag Kathryn. Thank you for agreeing to stay in with me.

It’s not often I’m invited to stay in with an RNA media star winner, so believe me, the pleasure is all mine. Thank you for inviting me :-).

Ha! Thanks Kathryn. I still haven’t got used to the idea of being award winning! So tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought Before You, because one of my favourite pasttimes is staying in with a racy romance – and the hero in Before You is a Formula One driver. I know, I know, that’s a terrible pun, but it is true. In fact give me a book to read (preferably a hot romance) and a glass of champagne (I brought some along, because you can’t read about Formula One without it) and I’m in heaven. Add some fish and chips, and you’ll never get rid of me…

(Books, champagne AND fish and chips! Love that combination.) 

What can we expect from an evening in with Before You?

Along with the romance (all my books are, at heart, a romance) you can expect a whirlwind tour of some glamorous places (Melbourne, Monte Carlo, Barcelona to name a few) and to learn how tough it is to be a racing driver. I thought they just drove a car, albeit a lot faster than I did. I didn’t realise that, because of g-forces and cockpit heat, each race is like running a marathon. But if life for my hero is tough on the track, it’s even harder off it. Especially when distractions come in the form of his smart-mouthed, very pretty, PR officer, and a troubled young boy. ‘Sexy, funny, romantic and glamorous’ is how one kind reader described it.

(Oh yes, I remember Aiden very well!)

What else have you brought along and why?

I’ve snuck in the cardboard cut out of Jenson Button that usually stands by my desk, because then we can say we had an amazing night in, drinking champagne with Jenson Button. And I confess, he was also the inspiration behind the book. it’s impossible to have JB’s handsome face looking down at you and not be inspired to write a romance featuring a racing driver!

I’ll let you have Jenson if I can have Bryan Ferry… Thanks so much for staying in with me (and Jenson) Kathryn!

Before You

When life in the fast lane threatens to implode …

Melanie Hunt’s job working for the Delta racing team means she is constantly rubbing shoulders with Formula One superstars in glamorous locations like Monte Carlo. But she has already learned that keeping a professional distance is crucial if she doesn’t want to get hurt.

New Delta team driver Aiden Foster lives his life like he drives his cars – fast and hard. But, no matter how successful he is, it seems he always falls short of his championship-winning father’s legacy. If he could just stay focused, he could finally make that win.

Resolve begins to slip as Melanie and Aiden find themselves drawn to each other –with nowhere to hide as racing season begins. But when a troubled young boy goes missing, everything is thrown into turmoil, including Aiden’s championship dream.

Before You was published by Choc Lit on 7th June 2016 and is available for purchase on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

About Kathryn Freeman

Kathryn was born in Wallingford, England but has spent most of her life living in a village near Windsor. After studying pharmacy in Brighton she began her working life as a retail pharmacist. She quickly realised that trying to decipher doctor’s handwriting wasn’t for her and left to join the pharmaceutical industry where she spent twenty happy years working in medical communications. In 2011, backed by her family, she left the world of pharmaceutical science to begin life as a self-employed writer, juggling the two disciplines of medical writing and romance. Some days a racing heart is a medical condition, others it’s the reaction to a hunky hero…

With two teenage boys and a husband who asks every Valentine’s Day whether he has to bother buying a card again this year (yes, he does) the romance in her life is all in her head. Then again, her husband’s unstinting support of her career change goes to prove that love isn’t always about hearts and flowers – and heroes can come in many disguises.

You can follow Kathryn on Facebook, on Twitter @KathrynFreeman1 and visit her website.