I’m so pleased that my new Linda’s Book Bag feature Staying in with… is proving popular and today, I’m delighted to welcome back Maggie Christensen to stay in with me and tell us about her book, Champagne for Breakfast as I think that’s a habit I could get used to! Previously on the blog Maggie kindly agreed to be interviewed to celebrate her novel The Good Sister and you can read that interview 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 Maggie Christensen

Welcome back to Linda’s Book Bag, Maggie. 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’m bringing along is Champagne for Breakfast and, of course, I’ll be bringing along a bottle of champagne with it.

I’ve chosen this book to take all those in the Northern Hemisphere to a sunny place for the New Year. The book is set in Noosa on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, close to where I live. And the champagne is to go with the title.

Thanks Maggie. I’d loved to be transported to a sunny place – I much prefer the summer to the winter.

What can we expect from an evening in with Champagne for Breakfast?

You can expect to be whirled away to Queensland’s sunshine with a heartwarming story. This book will make you believe in second chances no matter how old you get and help you realise that just because you may be over 50, it doesn’t mean there isn’t any romance or fizzle left.

As someone well over 50 I have to say I agree with you completely Maggie!

What else have you brought along and why?

I’ve brought a very good bottle of champagne!

That sounds like an excellent addition. Like Rosa in Champagne for Breakfast I celebrated my 50th birthday with champagne. The trouble was, I don’t drink much and hadn’t had alcohol for several months. After over a bottle and a half to myself I couldn’t walk straight to make my way back to our hotel room!

Thanks so much for staying in with me Maggie.

Champagne for Breakfast

Rosa Taylor is celebrating her fiftieth birthday with champagne. By the river. On her own.

After finishing her six-year long affair with her boss, Rosa is desperate to avoid him in the workplace and determined to forge a new life for herself.

Harry Kennedy has sailed away from a messy Sydney divorce and is resolute in kick-starting a new life on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Thrown together at work, Rosa and Harry discover a secret. One that their employer is desperate to keep hidden. To reveal it they must work together, but first they must learn to trust not only each other but their own rising attraction.

Are these two damaged people willing to risk their hard won independence for the promise of love again?

Champagne for Breakfast is available for purchase here.

About Maggie Christensen

After a career in education, Maggie Christensen began writing contemporary women’s fiction portraying mature women facing life-changing situations. Her travels inspire her writing, be it her frequent visits to family in Oregon, USA or her home on Queensland’s beautiful Sunshine Coast. Maggie writes of mature heroines coming to terms with changes in their lives and the heroes worthy of them.

From her native Glasgow, Scotland, Maggie was lured by the call ‘Come and teach in the sun’ to Australia, where she worked as a primary school teacher, university lecturer and in educational management. Now living with her husband of thirty years on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, she loves walking on the deserted beach in the early mornings and having coffee by the river on weekends. Her days are spent surrounded by books, either reading or writing them – her idea of heaven!

She continues her love of books as a volunteer with her local library where she selects and delivers books to the housebound.

A member of Queensland Writer’s Centre, RWA, ALLi, and a local critique group, Maggie enjoys meeting her readers at book signings and library talks.

You can follow Maggie on Twitter @MaggieChriste33, find her on Facebook and visit her website. You’ll also find Maggie on Goodreads.

As the festive season already seems a distant memory, it’s time to look ahead and think about books again properly. Today, I’m delighted to welcome back Georgia Rose to Linda’s Book Bag to stay in with me and tell us about her book, Parallel Lies.

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.

This is a welcome return visit for Georgia and you might like to see her previous guest post all about Cat here.

Staying in with Georgia Rose

Welcome back to Linda’s Book Bag Georgia 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?

Thank you for inviting me round, Linda. I have brought you Parallel Lies. It is my most recent release, coming out last September, as well as being my most ambitious book to date and the hardest of all of mine to write.

What can we expect from an evening in with Parallel Lies?

Well, Linda, you can expect an evening with a complicated heroine with attitude. Madeleine, or Maddy for short…

‘Unfortunately, on that occasion I’d arrived at the same time as one Letitia Pritchard and not knowing any better had had little chance to get away once she’d pounced on me. Rather disconcertingly, as I was an innocent of village life then, she’d already known where I’d moved into and although I’d introduced myself clearly enough she’d bustled me into the hall and announced me to the assembled throng as Maddy, thereby assuming an intimacy we did not have.

My name is Madeleine, Madeleine Ross. It is a name chosen with thought and because it is classy, and that is what is needed here, so I’d disliked Letitia from that moment on for two reasons. Firstly, for taking the liberty with my name and secondly, because it irritated the hell out of me that I actually liked the shortening, but did not care for the fact she’d been the one to impose it.’

Maddy is living more than one life as well as hiding in plain sight from another. All is gradually revealed but when her past catches up with her it looks like everything she had hoped for in her future is about to unravel.

Told in the first person, as with all my books there is a blending of genre so this is best summed up as a romantic, crime, thriller and the line from a review that tells you that little bit more is ‘For those who admire character-driven thrillers, who can handle brief but shocking violence, and who enjoy beautiful writing, I can’t recommend Parallel Lies enough.’

I think Parallel Lies sounds hugely entertaining and different. 

What else have you brought along and why?

I’d love to have brought round my editor actually, Mark Barry. He is a huge supporter of this book and speaks far more eloquently about it than I could ever do, however he’s a little busy at the moment so instead I bring food, drink and music!

Madeleine loves her food and while she shares a particular meal with one of the other characters, at home she will be found eating macaroni cheese (preferably Charlie Bighams!), much like myself whenever I can get away with it!

(Oh! I haven’t had macaroni cheese for years. I feel the need to have some right now!)

For a young woman she drinks secretly probably more than she should, and she keeps her favourite tipple to herself as it is not in keeping with her new life. Just between ourselves though I’ll treat you to a bottle, Linda, whether you choose to partake is another matter.

(Rather depends on what it is as I can’t drink ordinary wine any more because it makes me ill – though sparkling wines, champagne and cocktails are all fine!)

There is one song which for me fits Maddy perfectly – it is Arms by Christina Perri. When I first heard it I knew I’d found her.

(Brilliant choice Georgia. I love that song. For those who don’t know it, you can listen here.)

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

Thank you so much for inviting me round, I’ve had a delightful evening in with you.

Parallel Lies

‘My name is Madeleine, Madeleine Ross. It is a name chosen with thought and because it is classy, and that is what is needed here…’

Madeleine Ross has life exactly as she planned it.
Cosy cottage, friendly village, satisfying job.
Company… when she wants it.

It’s an enviable existence for an independent young woman, and one she’s keen to protect.

Enter Daniel – strong, dependable and a danger to everything she’s built. He’s not something she was looking for, but hearts can’t be controlled and maybe, just maybe he might be worth letting into hers.

But, all is not what it seems. Because Madeleine is hiding a lifetime of secrets. Deep secrets.

And they never stay buried for ever.

Her darkest secret returns, like the proverbial bad penny. He is her first love, shadowy, dangerous, the baddest of bad boys. No matter how far she runs, or how well she hides, she can never escape him.

Or her past.

Here he is, on her doorstep, with a proposition she is powerless to resist but which could devastate the future she hoped to have.

Can Madeleine satisfy the old love while keeping the new?

You can’t always get what you want but, desperate to preserve the life she has worked so hard for, Madeleine is willing to risk everything to prove that she can.

Parallel Lies is available for purchase on Amazon and if you’re quick it’s on offer at 99p/99c until 7th January!

About Georgia Rose

Georgia’s background in countryside living, riding, instructing and working with horses has provided the knowledge needed for some of her storylines; the others are a product of her overactive imagination!

Following a long stint working in the law Georgia set up her own business providing administration services for other companies which she does to this day managing to entwine that work along with her writing.

Her busy life is set in a tranquil part of rural Cambridgeshire where she lives with her much neglected family of a husband, two grown up children and two dogs.

You can find out more about Georgia Rose on her web site and on Facebook. You can also follow her on Twitter. You’ll also find all about Georgia on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

When Three Things About Elsie arrived courtesy of lovely Ann Bissell at Harper Collins in return for an honest review I was utterly delighted because I think Joanna Cannon is one of the most talented authors we have. I previously adored and reviewed Joanna’s The Trouble with Goats and Sheep here.

Three Things About Elsie will be published on 11th January 2018 by Borough Press, an imprint of Harper Collins, and is available for pre-order here.

Three Things About Elsie

There are three things you should know about Elsie.
The first thing is that she’s my best friend.
The second is that she always knows what to say to make me feel better.
And the third thing… might take a little bit more explaining.

84-year-old Florence has fallen in her flat at Cherry Tree Home for the Elderly. As she waits to be rescued, Florence wonders if a terrible secret from her past is about to come to light; and, if the charming new resident is who he claims to be, why does he look exactly a man who died sixty years ago?

My Review of Three Things About Elsie

Florence has had a fall and whilst she waits for someone to find her in her sheltered accommodation, she thinks about her past.

I think I can sum up Three Things About Elsie in two words. Sheer perfection. Joanna Cannon has the unerring ability to look into our very souls and hold up a mirror to who we are and who we might become. There is such beauty and wisdom between the pages of Three Things About Elsie that its resonances will stay with me always.

The language perfectly matches the characters so that I felt as if I were eavesdropping on their conversations and thoughts. It was as if I were listening to someone speaking to me rather than as if I were reading a book and it felt as if Joanna Cannon had crawled into my head and described flawlessly my perceptions about people I know, articulating them far better than I could ever hope to do. I loved every word as the characters of Flo, Elsie, Jack et al were built and revealed. It felt so real and vivid to me I had to keep reading passages aloud to my husband to share the glorious beauty and truth of the writing, especially those elements steeped in humour.

The plot surprised me. I was expecting fabulous and emotional writing, but not quite the wonderful degree of mystery so that Three Things About Elsie can be enjoyed on many, many levels. The themes of love, identity and friendship wove a magical web of enchantment around my heart as a reader, but it was the exploration of who we are, who we become and how we value or demean the older members of our society that truly spoke to my soul. Flo’s experiences and her story could belong to any one of us. I was left with an understanding that we do not have to loom large in the world to leave our mark. Our very ordinariness can be the catalyst for more than we might ever imagine. I ended the book simultaneously in tears and completely uplifted.

Three Things About Elsie is funny and poignant in equal measure. It is beautifully and sympathetically written. It left me feeling we all have positivity and worth and we can make a difference. I thought it was utterly, utterly sublime.

About Joanna Cannon

Joanna Cannon graduated from Leicester Medical School and worked as a hospital doctor, before specialising in psychiatry. She lives in the Peak District with her family and her dog.

You can find out more about Joanna Cannon via her website and you can follow her on Twitter. You’ll also find Joanna on Facebook.

I’ll let you into a secret. I actually read The Place We Met by Isabelle Broom just before Christmas but as I loved it so much and I know I’ll want it be on my list of favourite books for 2018 I have waited to post my review – I know that’s cheating but it’s my blog and I can make my own rules! I’d like to extend my enormous thanks to Izzy for sending me a copy of The Place We Met for review.

You can read also my review of Isabelle Broom’s My Map of You here and of A Year and A Day here.

Published by Penguin on 30th November 2018, The Place We Met is available for purchase through the links here.

The Place We Met

Lucy may have suffered her fair share of bad men, but now she has Pete. Finally, a man worth sharing her favourite place with, Lake Como. That’s if she can put mysterious phone calls and glamorous ex-girlfriends out of her mind.

Taggie is rushed off her feet, but distraction is exactly what she needs to forget why she fled England and the sadness she left behind. She certainly doesn’t have time for infuriating stranger Marco. A man is the last thing she needs right now.

Lucy and Taggie might not know it, but their lives are about to collide. The New Year might begin with fireworks – but how will it end?

My Review of The Place We Met

Taggie, Pete and Lucy can’t imagine how a stay at Lake Como can affect their lives.

Oh my heavens I enjoyed The Place We Met. I thought it was absolutely wonderful. Even when the emotions the characters feel are negative ones I experienced sheer joy in reading The Place We Met. It had everything I adore in fiction, from a setting so vivid it feels as if I’m actually there, through wonderfully depicted characters that are living, breathing humans, to a narrative that draws in the reader so thoroughly that they are completely absorbed in, and almost part of, the story.

I have no idea if the authorities in Lake Como are aware of The Place We Met, but they should be giving Isabelle Broom an Order of Merit for her portrayal of this area of Italy. I feel utterly compelled to be there, preferably in the winter. There’s a magic to the descriptive writing that sparkles and dances until my heart ached with the need to see the same sights as Taggie, Pete and Lucy.

The narrative occurs over Christmas and the New Year, but reading this story would be perfect at any time. Isabelle Broom explores themes of love, relationships and, most importantly, being ourselves when we so often lose sight of who we are, so beautifully that I found reading The Place We Met achingly emotional. I was swept away in the romance, the emotions and the sheer gorgeousness of the writing so that I didn’t want the experience of reading this book to end. I know it will become a book I return to frequently.

I think what Isabelle Broom does so outstandingly when she writes is to keep a relatively small pool of characters so that each one is entirely realistic. I found Pete a complex individual and now I’ve finished reading the book I still feel I’d like to meet him in person and look him in the eye to make my final judgement, but I was in love with Marco from the moment he was introduced.  However, it was Lucy and Taggie who made the book so perfect for me. Taggie’s heartbreak is uncovered with consummate skill and Lucy’s insecurity is a trait so many can identify with. I felt I wanted to gather them both into my arms and reassure them of their worth and future happiness.

Whether I’m thinking about plot, setting, character, style or theme, I thought The Place We Met was unmitigated perfection and I loved it. I was transported by reading it and feel blessed to have had it in my life. Just wonderful.

About Isabelle Broom

Isabelle Broom was born in Cambridge nine days before the 1980s began and studied Media Arts at the University of West London before starting a career first in local newspapers and then as a junior sub-editor at Heat magazine. She travelled through Europe during her gap year and went to live on the Greek island of Zakynthos for an unforgettable and life-shaping six months after completing her degree. Since then, she has travelled to Canada, Sri Lanka, Sicily, New York, LA, the Canary Islands, Spain and lots more of Greece, but her wanderlust was reined in when she met Max, a fluffy little Bolognese puppy desperate for a home. When she’s not writing novels set in far-flung locations, Isabelle spends her time being the Book Reviews Editor at Heat magazine and walking her beloved dog round the parks of north London.

You can follow Isabelle on Twitter @Isabelle_Broom and find her on Facebook.

One of the very first books I read when I began blogging was The Dress by Kate Kerrigan and you can read my review here. I was thrilled to be part of the celebrations of another of Kate’s books, It was Only Ever You with an extract and my review you can read here. Consequently I’m absolutely delighted that my first post of 2018 on Linda’s Book Bag is to start off the celebrations for Kate’s latest novel That Girl with an extract for you to read and an e-book giveaway.

That Girl is published today, 1st January 2018, by Head of Zeus and is available for purchase on Amazon, Kobo and iBooks.

That Girl

You can escape a place. But you can’t escape yourself.

Hanna flees the scene of a terrible crime in her native Sligo. If she can just vanish, re-invent herself under a new name, perhaps the police won’t catch up with her. London seems the perfect place to disappear.

Lara has always loved Matthew and imagined happy married life in Dublin. Then comes the bombshell – Matthew says he wants to join the priesthood. Humiliated and broken-hearted, Lara heads to the most godless place she can find, King’s Road, Chelsea.

Matthew’s twin sister, Noreen, could not be more different from her brother. She does love fiance John, but she also craves sex, parties and fun. Swinging London has it all, but without John, Noreen is about to get way out of her depth.

All three girls find themselves working for Bobby Chevron – one of London’s most feared gangland bosses – and it’s not long before their new lives start to unravel.

An Extract From That Girl

Chapter one

HANNA

Sligo, Ireland, 1961

It was her first visit to Dr Dorian Black’s surgery, and Hanna liked him straight away.

She had only been living in Killa for a few weeks at the time. After her father died suddenly, two years before, her mother Margaret decided they needed a new start and rented a small cottage in Killa, a fishing village on the north-west coast of county Sligo. Margaret hoped proximity to the sea would help heal their ongoing grief. Indeed, Margaret’s spirits lifted as she began a new life among people who knew little or nothing about her, fitting easily into the friendly new parish. Hanna, just thirteen, had settled well into the local convent school. Their home was at the end of the pier, and Hanna developed an appetite for the fresh, salty air, spending hours sitting on the front wall reading and watching the sea. However, this time spent in the chilly air had also resulted in a nasty cough. Margaret, overly protective of her only child, had brought her straight up to the local surgery where she had been greeted by this kind, handsome Dr Black.

‘Now, we’re going to have to take a little look in your mouth, Hanna. Can you open wide for me?’

Hanna opened her mouth widely and he peered in. He smelt of soap and she felt strangely pleased to be in the company of a nice man, even if he was only their doctor. Most of the men they knew from home were farmers, rough and ready, smelling of manure or beer. This man was clean and gentle, like her father. She missed him. It had been two years now and Hanna had started to find it hard to call his face to mind.

‘Now, that doesn’t look too bad.’ Dorian leaned back and took his stethoscope from around his neck. Hanna smiled at him. His accent was refined, barely detectable as Irish. She reminded him of a Jane Austen hero, handsome and dapper like Darcy, but friendly and open too, like Bingley.

‘Well, young lady,’ he said, ‘I think you’ll live.’ Hanna laughed.

Then he turned his attention to Margaret. ‘But, I am writing you a prescription for some antibiotics to clear this nasty cough.’

‘Thank you, Doctor,’ Margaret said.

‘Please,’ he said, smiling, ‘call me Dorian.’

‘Thank you, Dorian.’

Hanna noticed her mother blushing. Margaret was taken with him and, for a moment, Hanna felt pricked with possessive irritation. She reminded herself that her father was dead and it was nice, after all, to see her mother smiling.

As they were leaving, Dorian signalled Margaret to stay back for a private word. For a split second she had a dreadful feeling that there was something wrong with Hanna. After losing Liam, she knew she had become unnaturally attached to her daughter. There was just the two of them now. She couldn’t face it if Hanna were sick.

‘I was wondering,’ Dr Black said, his eyes downcast in shyness, ‘if you would do me the honour of allowing me to take you and Hanna out to dinner this evening.’

*

Over the coming weeks, Dorian courted Margaret. It was like a dream. This charming, erudite man had come into their lives after all the pain, hurt and shock of the last two years. She could hardly believe her luck in finding love again and, although she was as head over heels as a schoolgirl, it was Dorian’s kindness towards Hanna that truly won Margaret’s heart. Most men would have baulked at taking on another man’s daughter, but every time they went out for a drive, to a nice hotel for dinner or to a movie theatre, he always made sure to invite Hanna. Even when they went to Dublin for a weekend, Dorian insisted she and Hanna shared their own room in the Shelbourne rather than have Hanna enduring the upset of her mother being with another man.

That, he said, was the reason for his marriage proposal just two months after their initial meeting.

Giveaway

For your chance to win an e-copy of That Girl by Kate Kerrigan click here. Open internationally, this giveaway closes at UK midnight on Sunday 7th January 2018.

About Kate Kerrigan

Kate worked for many years as a magazine journalist and editor before her first book, Recipes for a Perfect Marriage was published in 2006 and shortlisted for the Romantic Novel of the Year, translated into 25 languages and optioned for film. Her next novel The Miracle of Grace, was also turned into a screenplay, but it was her next project, the Ellis Island Trilogy, featuring feisty heroine Ellie Hogan, that made her a New York Times bestseller. The Lost Garden, The Dress and It Was Only Ever You followed, all to critical acclaim and achieving bestseller status.

You can find out more by following Kate on Twitter and visiting her website. You’ll also find Kate on Facebook and there’s more with these other bloggers:

Yesterday I launched a new Linda’s Book Bag feature called Staying in with… because I wanted to afford authors the opportunity to showcase one of their books to blog readers. You can see the details here.

I’m delighted to be starting that feature with lovely Patricia Furstenberg. Pat has been on the blog before when I reviewed her book Puppy: 12 Months of Rhymes and Smiles here and with a couple of guest posts. One of those was about the importance of reading that you can find here and the other about how we celebrate diversity in children’s fiction blogged here.

Staying in with Patricia Furstenberg

Happy New Year! I’m delighted to be starting my new feature with you Pat. Which of your books have you brought along to share with me and why have you chosen it?

Happy New Year, Linda, from me and Joyful Trouble, the book based on the true story of a dog enlisted in the Royal Navy.

Joyful Trouble is dear to my heart and a book I planned to write, although in the spur of the moment, being my entry in the 2017 Kindle Storyteller competition. It did so well, the friendly Great Dane with a heart of gold made it in the Top Reviewed and is still featured under Literature and Fiction on the Kindle Storyteller’s Amazon page.

Joyful Trouble was a Hot New Release, it reached No.1 in Children’s African Historical Fiction, No.1 in Children’s Dog eBooks, No.1 Best Sellers  in Africa for Young Adults, was Most Gifted in the Young Adults category and the Large Print edition of Joyful Trouble went up to #31 in Amazon UK Spiritual and Historical fiction

The friendly Great Dane wins everybody’s hearts, yet it does make you wonder what’s his secret, why his inexplicable affection for sailors?

What can we expect from an evening in with Joyful Trouble?

Expect to be surprised. Here are some of the things readers have been saying: “I picked up this book intending to just read the first chapter to get a feel for it. I was utterly sucked in and I am completely in love with Joyful Trouble – what a dog!”

Joyful Trouble is a “quick and very delightful read” enjoyed by children: “I love this book and it made me happy and, at some parts, sad. It is also a bit funny” and adults alike: “It is a story that will stick with you long after you read it”, “I absolutely love the way this is told – it rings true for many grandparents and their grandchildren”, “Despite this being a book for children I found myself chuckling at times.”

Dog lovers poured over it, “being a dog person myself, I absolutely loved this book”, but cat persons too – as we do need diverse books!

“It warmed my heart. A super book to be enjoyed by any age.”

“I laughed with this book and shed a tear or two as well. Overall this was a. Even though this book is tagged as a children’s book, I would recommend it to all.”
“Endearing Story of a Remarkable Dog”

As well as Joyful Trouble, what else have you brought along and why?

I’m bringing along cozonac and champagne. Cozonac is a Romanian traditional desert that goes so well with a book – and with champagne!

Oh – I love champagne and that cozonac looks fabulous. Thanks Pat!

Happy New Year Linda and wonderful Linda’s Book Bag readers! Wishing you all a happy and prosperous 2018, filled with good health, joy and books!

Many thanks Patricia and a happy, healthy and successful 2018 to you too.

Joyful Trouble

Joyful Trouble was published on 16th April 2017 and is available for purchase in e-book and paperback here.

A humorous read about an incredible dog and how he found his true, yet unexpected calling.

A dog. A friendship. A purpose.

Proven to warm your heart, Joyful Trouble is a fast-paced, engaging and funny story.

Patricia Furstenberg paints a charming portrait of the bond between a small girl and boy and their much-loved Grandad. This book takes readers on an unbelievable journey, tackling universal themes and voicing animal rights and the importance of fighting for what is right.

When a Great Dane arrives in a Navy base nobody expects him to win everybody’s hearts, although breaking some rules along the way. But things soon turn sour as somebody threatens to put him to sleep. Who will stand up for this four-legged gentle giant?

A charming celebration of innocence.

About Patricia Furstenberg

Patricia Furstenberg came to writing though reading. After completing her Medical Degree in Romania she moved to South Africa where she now lives with her husband, children and their dogs. Patricia became taking writing seriously  after becoming one of the WYO Christie winners. She enjoys writing for children  because she can take abstract, grown-up concepts and package them it in attractive, child-friendly ways while adding sensitivity and lots of love.

All of Patricia’s children’s books are available here.

You can follow Patricia on Twitter, find her on Facebook and visit her website. She’s also on Goodreads.

Happy New Year everyone. I wish you all a happy, healthy and successful 2018. I’d like to thank each and every one of you who has visited Linda’s Book Bag, shared a post, or has been the subject of a blog post with a review, an extract, interview, guest post, spotlight or giveaway. I truly appreciate all the support I’ve had. I cannot express how grateful I am for all the books that have arrived in my inbox or through my letterbox so unexpectedly.

I only have one real blogging regret since I began in February 2015 and that is that kind authors, other generous bloggers and hardworking publishers have sent me so many books that have never reached the top of my TBR pile and I wish I could feature them all. So, I’ve been wondering how I can put that right and have had an idea prompted by the fact that not everyone will want to be out partying tonight on New Year’s Eve. It’s called Staying in With… and the idea is that over 2018 authors can imagine they are staying in with me to tell me about one of their books.

There will be three simple questions:

Which of your books have you brought along to share with me and why have you chosen it?

What can we expect from an evening in with (book title)?

What else have you brought along and why?

If any authors would like to take part either email me using lindahill50(at)me.com or send me a direct message on Twitter @Lindahill50Hill and I’ll try to get you on the blog as soon as I can.

In the meantime, Happy New Year everyone. Let’s hope 2018 is good to us all!

Linda xxx

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed returning to reading poetry this year and so I am incredibly grateful to Isabelle Kenyon for a copy of her anthology This is not a Spectacle in return for an honest review.

This is not a Spectacle is available for purchase here.

This is not a Spectacle

This is not a Spectacle explores human curiosity towards strangers and investigates where curiosity becomes fascination with another’s grief or misfortune from afar.

The poems range from my experiences of a car accident, my own fascination of others and strangers’ impressions of me.

It is an expression of anger from those who least want to be stared at and be put on display.

My Review of This is not a Spectacle

All of society is laid bare in the poems of This is not a Spectacle.

I really enjoyed reading this anthology. I wouldn’t say that the imagery and syntax are polished and refined, but that is the appeal of these poems. Isabelle Kenyon writes with a raw honesty that conveys true emotion and belief.

The different sections explore the underside of humanity and identity, frequently raising the issue of how we mis-treat others in society, from the bullying of someone because of their name, through mixed race relationships and the depersonalisation of the elderly in care homes to the violence of sexual abuse so that any reader can find a poem to make them think, to question their beliefs and to consider their own attitudes and positions. This is not a Spectacle is very much an anthology that feels personal to the poet, Isabelle Kenyon, but at the same time is no less resonant to the reader.

I found the poems set in India fascinating and will return to them after my visit there later in next year to see if they match my personal reflections. I especially loved the poem Identity – Granny Olga, particularly the last two lines as I felt they conveyed such love and optimism. I was curious throughout about the title This is not a Spectacle and when it became clear at the end of Letter To My Younger Self I almost punched the air in triumphant affirmation. This is a poem all young people could benefit from. There is quite an abrasive undertone to many of the poems, with quite a feminist perspective that I think will enlighten many readers too, especially those poems with quite strong expletive language or a quite disjointed physical structure on the page that reflects the subject matter.

This is not a Spectacle is an interesting and insightful collection that considers humanity from many angles. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

About Isabelle Kenyon

Isabelle Kenyon is a poet, blogger and book reviewer. Her poems have published online for Bewildering Stories and as a Micro Chapbook for Origami Poetry Press. Isabelle has also featured in poetry anthologies such as Anti Heroin Chic, Literary Yard, the Inkyneedles anthology, Poetry Rivals, and the Great British Write Off. Isabelle has won awards and commendations from The Wirral festival of Music, Speech and Drama,the Festival of Firsts, the Langwith Scott Award for Art and Drama and the Visit Newark Poetry competition.

You can follow Isabelle on Twitter @kenyon_isabelle and visit her website. You’ll also find her on Facebook.

When I was teaching I have to admit there never seemed to be a moment for myself. I once felt so ill I saw my GP and described my symptoms and he told me I was suffering from ‘total exhaustion’. I remember saying, ‘Don’t be ridiculous. I haven’t got time to be exhausted.’ Consequently, when I was asked if I’d be willing to review A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers by Alice Langholt I readily agreed!

A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers is available for purchase from your local Amazon site.

A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers

You will need 30 seconds. That’s all.

Start at the beginning, or turn to a random page. Every page has a title, a benefit, and simple directions. Read and complete the task on the page.

If you know that you are in the mood for a creative, confidence-boosting, stress-releasing, or peace-promoting task, use the Index at the back of the book to choose the one that fits your interest.

Notice the positive changes you go through because you took that 30 second break. Many of these tasks can also be shared with your students, allowing them to benefit too.

The changes you’ll experience will last for far more than 30 seconds. You’ll find yourself gaining more presence, patience, confidence and becoming much happier if you do this regularly. The energy in your classroom will positively change, and your students are sure to notice too. Using this book could become a wonderful little daily ritual.

By the way, the writing tasks have a blank page beside them for jotting your notes. This means that all you need for those is a pen. If there isn’t a pen nearby, use a pencil. Even a broken crayon will work. You probably have plenty in your classroom. It’s ok to write in the book. Later, when you read what you wrote, it will become part of your reflective process, displaying how you’ve grown.

My Review of A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers

Teaching can be tough and teachers can lose sight of the positives. Alice Langholt has some exercises and techniques to bring back the joy in teaching.

I really enjoyed this book and think it would have been useful to me when I was teaching.

There’s a good range of things to do from jotting down ideas and making affirming statements to practical activities that encourage positive reflection so that the reader can see just what they have achieved. One of these, a jar into which to place a quick note of something positive that has happened that can then be reviewed at the end of a term I’m going to adopt for 2018, spending a few minutes each week looking back over the good things that have happened. I’m also going to set my timer when I’m sitting at my desk so that I can carry out the 30 second Cross March technique. I always feel slightly embarrassed saying mottos and positive statements aloud and I’m not sure I’d use those, but they will suit other types of reader. The index at the back of the book enables different kinds of readers to find the types of techniques that suit them easily as well as letting them explore those they might not usually use.

And this is what is so helpful about A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers. I think it could easily be called A Moment for People: Self-Care for Busy People because it gives really good advice about how we can reinforce the good things in our lives as well as encourage those around us. Substitute the word ‘student’ for partner, sibling, friend, relative and the same ideas and techniques apply. I must admit the ‘Just For Today’ section brought me up short. I tend not to listen with ALL my concentration and often do something else when someone rings me for example. As a result of reading A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers, I’m going to give others my full attention from now on.

I really enjoyed the simplicity of the ideas from Alice Langholt that can fit into any busy life and make a really positive change. I thought the use of white space in the book was inspired. Readers are encouraged to scribble down their thoughts (and these don’t have to be neat and tidily presented), to complete acrostic poems and make notes in answer to the activities suggested. As an avid reader I especially liked the advice to read for fun.

I began A Moment for Teachers: Self-Care for Busy Teachers thinking it might be saccharine and exaggerated and ended up feeling it is a helpful and uplifting book that could make a positive impact in any life – not just that of a teacher. It’s well worth dipping into and I really recommend it.

About Alice Langholt

Alice Langholt is a Reiki Master Teacher, the Executive Director of Reiki Awakening Academy School of Intuitive Development (website here), and the founder of Practical Reiki, a strong, simple Reiki energy healing method. She is the author of the award-winning book, Practical Reiki for balance, well-being, and vibrant health, A guide to a strong, revolutionary energy healing method, The Practical Reiki Companion workbook, and a deck of cards, Energy Healing Cards and app.

Alice also authored the A Moment for Me 365 Day Self Care Calendar for Busy People, A Moment for Mom, A Moment for Us, and A Moment for Success (AMoment4Me.com). Alice teaches holistic topics, and offers workshops on 30 second methods of self care online and in the Washington, DC area. Alice lives with her husband and their four children in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Visit the AMoment4Me Facebook page or website for more details. You can also follow A Moment for Me on Twitter @amoment4me.

Everyone knows I love travel as much as I love books. In 2014 I was fortunate enough to spend three weeks visiting Lao, Vietnam and Cambodia so when C.L. Hoang’s Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees was offered to me for an honest review I couldn’t resist despite promising myself I wouldn’t take on any more books. In fact, the lanterns on my Goodreads profile are those C.L. Hoang has himself photographed in Hoi An.

My photo of paper lanterns in Hoi An

Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees is available for purchase in e-book from your local Amazon site.

Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees

Have you ever wondered what Vietnam is like some forty years after the war has ended? Then come along with the author as he returns to visit his ancestral homeland for the first time after a decades-long absence.

Retrace his steps with him around his former hometown of Saigon in the south, and then follow him along on an itinerary of discovery to other unique destinations throughout the country: Hoi-An, the best-preserved medieval seaport in Southeast Asia; Hue, the ancient capital of imperial Vietnam, on the central coast; Halong Bay, a world-renowned natural wonder; and Hanoi, the country’s thousand-year-old capital, in the north.

Filled with historical and cultural tidbits and personal reminiscences, and illustrated with over forty photographs, Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees offers the reader an insightful and fascinating glimpse of this tropical land.

My Review of Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees

After years away from his native Vietnam C.L Hoang finds much has chanced and much has stayed the same.

I thoroughly enjoyed this intimate travelogue. I was captivated from the first few pages as C.L. Hoang arrives at the hotel where we had breakfast on the first morning of our trip, The Hotel Continental. Indeed, C.L.Hoang visits so many of the places I’ve been that I felt truly transported back to the trip I took. I think I must have stood in the same spot to take many of the same photographs and these images add to the reader’s understanding of Vietnam as a country as well as providing visual enhancement to the text.

Whilst I think I particularly enjoyed Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees because I did have a knowledge of so many of the settings, I don’t think anyone who hasn’t been to Vietnam would be disappointed either. Certainly this is a personal journey, but it is also an excellent travelogue. C.L. Hoang writes with incredible perception and an easy, fluid style that makes it feel as if he is chatting with the reader about his trip rather than writing about it. The present tense adds to a sense of immediacy so that the book feels very fresh as well as being highly entertaining. It is impossible not to see the places he describes in your mind’s eye even if you haven’t visited personally.

Aside from the personal diaried entries, Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees provides considerable narrative texture through the political, geographical and historical detail that is woven throughout. This is a book any traveller – real or virtual – can immerse themselves in and enjoy. As the author himself says, ”There’s still so much of the country to explore and enjoy‘ and having read Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees I really want to return to Vietnam. Smashing stuff.

About C. L. Hoang

C. L. Hoang was born and raised in Vietnam during the war and moved to the United States in the 1970s. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, and earns his living as an electronic engineer, with eleven patents to his name. Books, history, and travel are his hobbies. His first book, Once upon a Mulberry Field, is an award-winning novel set in Vietnam at the height of the war. It is followed by Rain Falling on Tamarind Trees, the travelogue of his recent return trip to the ancestral homeland.

You can find out more by following C. L. Hoang on Twitter @clhoang, finding him on Facebook and visiting his website.