In August 2015, just six months after I’d started blogging, I went to an event where I met lovely Laurie Ellingham. At the time Laurie was just getting going in her writing career. Today, she is an established and greatly loved writer and I’m delighted to be part of the launch for her latest novel Ours is the Winter, in association with Rachel’s Random Resources as I consider both Laurie and Rachel as friends now too.

Life hasn’t allowed me to read Ours is the Winter yet, but I do have a smashing piece about self-publishing from Larie to share here, with a follow up piece on getting a book deal that you can see here, as well as my reviews of Laurie’s The Reluctant Celebrity here and How to Throw Your Life Away here.

Ours is the Winter is published today, 17th November 2017, by HQ Digital and is available for purchase here.

Ours Is The Winter

Journeying across the Arctic, their pasts are about to catch up with them.

Erica, Molly and Noah are embarking on the challenge of a lifetime, driving Siberian huskies across the frozen wilderness of the Arctic. Cut off from the world and their loved ones and thrown together under gruelling conditions, it isn’t long before the cracks start to show.

Erica has it all. A loving husband, a successful career and the most adorable baby daughter. But Erica has been living a double life, and as she nears her fortieth birthday her lies threaten to come crashing down.

Molly was on her way to stardom. But when her brother died, so did her dreams of becoming an Olympic champion.  Consumed by rage and grief, she has shut out everyone around her, but now she’s about to learn that comfort can come from the most unexpected places.

Noah has a darkness inside him and is hounded by nightmares from his past. Tortured, trapped and struggling to save his fractured relationship, he knows this journey is not going to help, but try telling his girlfriend that.

As their lives and lies become ever more entwined, it becomes clear that in the frozen wilds there is nowhere to hide.

You can watch a trailer for Ours is the Winter on Laurie’s Facebook page.

About Laurie Ellingham

Laurie Ellingham lives on the Suffolk/Essex border with her two children, husband, and cockerpoo Rodney. She has a First Class honours degree in Psychology and a background in Public relations, but her main love is writing and disappearing into the fictional world of her characters, preferably with a large coffee and a Twix (or two) to hand.

You can follow Laurie on Twitter @LaurieEllingham and find her on Facebook.

Earlier this year, when Bad to the Bone was published, I was fortunate to have a guest post from Tony J Forder on Linda’s Book Bag all about becoming a writer. You can read that post here. Recently I was thrilled to attend the launch of Tony’s novel Degrees of Darkness and when I realised what a smashing bloke he is, I had to invite him back onto the blog to celebrate his latest book, Scream Blue Murder. Luckily he agreed to come! Today Tony is telling us all about his writing comfort zone.

Tony’s launch (with fellow author Eva Jordan and me).

Scream Blue Murder was published by Bloodhound on 8th November 2017 and is available for purchase here.

Scream Blue Murder

Mike Lynch is going through hard times. But things get much worse when he witnesses a murder in a lay-by. Snatching the victim’s car in order to get away, Mike soon makes a shocking discovery – the victim’s young daughter and her nanny are hiding in the rear footwell. This is when the real trouble begins.

Mike wants to go to the police, but the nanny, Melissa, wants to delay until the daughter, Charlie, is somewhere safe. Mike agrees to this request before finding out the seriousness of the situation, and just how much danger they are really in.

Who exactly was the man he saw murdered? And who is the man he saw pulling the trigger?

In a situation where nothing is what it seems, Mike will have to fight for his life to protect a woman and a child he doesn’t know. And when the death count rises, he will discover what kind of man he really is.

When you can’t identify the victim, how can you find the killer?

Degrees of Darkness is published by Bloodhound and is available for purchase in e-book and paperback here.

Degrees of Darkness

Pre-teen girls are being abducted from their homes and their families murdered.  When

Frank Rogers, once a DI with the Met and now running his own debt collection agency, is told that his own daughter is missing, his son murdered, he naturally wants to become involved with the case.

Soon Frank’s face is all over the news. In an unexpected turn of events, the killer contacts the police and says he is willing to talk, but only to Frank.

When the body of the first abducted girl is discovered, Frank realises it is a race against time to save his daughter.

In order to solve the case, Frank must work out how the killer is picking his victims.

But how do you catch a murderer who is hiding in plain sight? And can Frank unravel the mystery, when he has so much to lose?

Am I Sitting Comfortably?

A Guest Post by Tony J Forder

I think the one thing I cannot be accused of is remaining within my comfort zone when writing. My first and fourth books are police procedural crime thrillers, featuring the same characters working out of my home city of Peterborough. Writing that second book of the series (as well as the third which I am currently eight chapters into) was like stepping into a warm and comfy pair of slippers. I knew the characters inside out – their strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes, knew what made them tick and drove them forward. In so many ways it was nice to be able to pick them up again and work with them in order to create another book which I hope will be as well-received as the first.

Sandwiched between books one and four, however, are two very different pieces of work. Degrees of Darkness, released in September this year (following April’s release of Bad to the Bone) is a very dark, psychological serial-killer book that is a study of the human psyche from mainly three very different perspectives – an abducted child, the father who will do anything to save her, and the killer who intends inflicting both emotional and physical harm. They each experience varying degrees of a very different level of darkness throughout the journey, and none are left unbroken by it. It is an uneasy read at times, perhaps, but I hope a rewarding one.

When I came to book three, not only was the story going to be different – a fast-paced, action-packed thriller – but I became convinced that I had to tell it differently as well. The first third of Scream Blue Murder was written from my usual third-person perspective, but as it unfolded I realised that it would be better served if told from the first-person POV. I re-wrote that first third, and moved on. About two-thirds of the way through I felt that I was not doing justice to the story, so I went back to third-person and re-wrote it again. But by the time I came to figuring out where the story was going to end, I had once again come to the conclusion that I really did need to step out of my comfort zone and tell the story as it was meant to be told – back in the first-person once more. It seemed to me that I had to move away from the familiar, that the nature of the book demanded the immediate perspective from the narrator’s viewpoint.

It was the first time I had attempted such a book, and the first time I had written anything other than a short story from the first-person POV. You will know how different these viewpoints are from reading books, but you may not be aware of the entirely different approach the author has to take when writing them. It requires a completely fresh mind-set, both in describing the story for your reader and in the way you portray the lead character and those around them. As my own worst critic, I am not best placed to judge how well I did. But with Matt Hilton, author of the Joe Hunter thrillers saying “Forder didn’t spare the horses when writing Scream Blue Murder. This book rockets along, a breathless action-packed ride. Perfect reading  for fans of Simon Kernick and Jeff Abbott.” and Mason Cross, author of the Carter Blake series of thrillers offering “An action packed, twisty thriller. Great stuff.” I could not be more thrilled with how it was received by writers whose work I respect and have followed for many years. Moreover, when writing Scream Blue Murder I was completely captivated by the process, loved every second of it, and I have to say it was by far the most pleasurable experience I have had when writing. It was a release, of sorts, enabling me to express myself in a wholly different way.

Scream Blue Murder, released on 8 November, was intended as a stand-alone book. However, long before the end I knew that I would be revisiting the main character again at some point in the future, that there was a series here if I wanted to go down that road. To that end, I have a storyline and half a dozen chapters already written, and they are proving to be extremely satisfying to write.

I don’t know what my own future holds, let alone the future of my characters. I think I have other stories inside me that I want to purge myself of, but having created these characters now, with readers enjoying them so much, I also want to keep bringing them back for further adventures. There are, of course, only a certain amount of hours in the day, and I cannot write everything at the same time. I need to knuckle down and prioritise, but not from the perspective of what I think might sell best – never that. As most writers do, I write for myself first and foremost. I have to continue doing that. So I enjoy my Peterborough series, I enjoy what I hope will be my second ‘series’ when following up on Scream Blue Murder, and even Frank Rogers from Degrees of Darkness may yet return. But if something else comes along, something that insists it be written, then I will slip out of that comfort zone once again and write it.

After all, I started writing because I have stories to tell. And that really is the reason why the next book will get written.

(Sounds like very exciting times ahead Tony. Good luck with all your books.)

About Tony J Forder

Tony is the author of the critically acclaimed crime thriller Bad to the Bone, the first in a series featuring DI Jimmy Bliss and DC Penny Chandler. The second book in the series, The Scent of Guilt, will be released in March 2018, with a third currently in progress.

On 19 September 2017, Tony’s dark, psychological crime thriller, Degrees of Darkness, featuring ex-detective Frank Rogers, was also published by Bloodhound Books. This was intended to be a stand-alone novel, but Tony is now considering the possibility of a follow-up.

Some years ago, Tony won a short story competition judged by an editor from Pan Books. The story, Gino’s Bar and Grille, went on to be published in Dark Voices 2, part of the celebrated Pan Book of Horror series. Three further short story sales followed: Book End, published in Dark Voices 4, Character Role, in FEAR magazine, and finally A Grim Story, which featured in A Rattler’s Tale. It was the start of Tony’s publishing journey.

Between April 2017 and March 2018, Tony will have had four novels published by Bloodhound Books, but believes there is much more to come.

You can follow Tony on Twitter, visit his website and find him on Facebook.

I love historical fiction so I owe enormous thanks to Matt Casbourne at Duckworth Books for a copy of Rivals of the Republic by Annelise Freisenbruch in return for an honest review.

Published by Duckworth Books Rivals of the Republic is available for purchase through the links here.

Rivals of the The Republic 

Using her supreme knowledge of the period, author Annelise Freisenbruch presents the great new heroine of historical fiction, Hortensia, who must navigate the male-dominated courts of law in her quest to uncover a sinister plot to overthrow the Republic.

Drawing from historical accounts of the daughter of famed Roman orator Quintus Hortensius Hortalus, Freisenbruch delivers an atmospheric, meticulously accurate and fast-paced story that will have readers craving more.

Rome, 70BC. Roman high society hums with gossip about the suspicious suicide of a prominent Roman senator and the body of a Vestal Virgin is discovered in the river Tiber. As the authorities turn a blind eye, Hortensia is moved to investigate a trail of murders that appear to lead straight to the dark heart of the Eternal City.

My Review of Rivals of the Republic

I love all things Roman. I have been on a dig, visited Roman sites and I collect Roman coins, so I had high expectations of Rivals of the Republic and I’m delighted that Annelise Freisenbruch met and exceeded every single one.

I have to admit that my heart sank when I saw the Dramatis Personae at the beginning as I thought my reading would be constantly interrupted whilst I had to keep checking who was who. Not a bit of it! The writing was so good and so effective that I didn’t need it at all because Annelise Freisenbruch has the ability to weave in character and plot smoothly and effortlessly. 

Aside from the excellent descriptions that truly place the reader in 70 BC Rome, the general tone and style are just perfect, with a formality that underpins the era wonderfully. I genuinely felt as if I were transported back in time and I found Annelise Freisenbruch’s setting so visual it was as if I were watching a film as well as reading a story.

I found the plot absolutely fascinating. It writhes along so that the reader doesn’t know what to expect next, even when they are aware of historical factual background. The political machinations of Rome flood the text with excitement and tension making for a highly exciting read. The Rivals would make a fabulous television series and I could visualise every element.

The characters created are three dimensional and realistic. Hortensia is a triumph. Her feminist approach to the patriarchal Roman society adds an extra layer of tension and detail that I loved. The quality of research that supports the narrative to bring alive both real and imagined people is outstanding. I am thrilled that The Rivals is the first in a proposed series as I’m desperate to read more about Hortensia and, if I’m honest, I’m a little bit in love with Lucrio and I definitely want to see more of him.

Regardless of whether the reader prefers history or thrillers, The Rivals is a novel of outstanding writing, exquisite research and fabulous storytelling such that all readers can enjoy reading it. I absolutely loved it.

About Annelise Freisenbruch

Annelise Freisenbruch received her PhD in Classics from Cambridge University. She has worked as a researcher for the BBC and has appeared in documentaries about ancient Rome for PBS and CNN. Her first book, The First Ladies of Rome: The Women Behind the  Caesars was published in the US and the UK to critical acclaim and has been translated into eight languages. Rivals of the Republic is her first novel.

You can find out more by following Annelise on Twitter @afreisenbruch and visiting her website.

My grateful thanks to Mikka Haugaard for a copy of Notes On My Family by Emily Critchley in return for an honest review.

Published by Everything With Words Notes On My Family is available for purchase here.

Notes On My Family

A vivid present tense account of life in a dysfunctional family told by a perceptive thirteen year old girl with a sense of irony and humour.

Lou, her sister Sarah – ‘for people who have been forced to share living accommodation for the last thirteen and half years, we have very little in common’- and her brother Mickey- ‘he’s gay but he doesn’t yet know it’ – discover that their parents are going to be doing a ‘trial separation with a view to permanent’, and that their dad is having an affair with a sixth former. ‘Thinking of my dad as anyone’s ‘lover’ is actually quite gross. ‘Boyfriend’ didn’t seem the right word for an adult who is fast approaching forty-seven and owns socks that are older than I am.’

Meet Lou, her siblings, her mum and dad, her nan who does seances , her friend Faith who has six mums and dads (all gay) and Hammy, the escaped hamster.

My Review of Notes on My Family

Louise Coulson doesn’t fit in with other thirteen and a half year olds at her school and life is about to get tougher.

Notes On My Family is a young adult book but I think it should be read by every parent and teacher as well as the audience it is aimed towards because of its wonderful insight into the mind of a teenage girl. I thought it was brilliant. Emily Critchley makes the reader think and question their own actions and place in society. This is an outstanding book about the nature of identity.

Emily Critchley writes with wry humour so that some of Lou’s thoughts and comments made me laugh aloud. However, what she does best is create a depth of emotion that made me completely entranced by Lou’s life. I was so absorbed and convinced by the writing that as well as leaving me feeling uplifted, it made me cry too.

The characterisation of Lou is wonderful. Her first person account allows the reader to see right inside her head and to understand not only Lou but others with similar personalities and minds. Totally convincing, Lou really is one of ‘the people who are different that make a difference’. She’s sensitive, intelligent and individual and she even left me wondering if I should allocate colours to days of the week and foods. It is the flawless quality of Emily Critchley’s writing in maintaining Lou’s persona that is so appealing.

There is a super plot that covers so many aspects young people will be only too aware of, from bullying to first love, from family break ups to first periods and Lou navigates a world of school and family in a way that would be of huge comfort to young people similarly struggling. These are universal themes personally handled making them accessible to readers of all ages through fabulously skilled writing. 

Notes On My Family may be marketed as a Young Adult read but it is a book that offers something for readers of all ages because of the superb characterisation and insight. I loved it and cannot recommend it highly enough. 

About Emily Critchley

Emily Critchley grew up in Essex. She left school at sixteen and worked in various shops and call centres where she jotted down ideas for short stories on scraps of till roll. She studied creative writing at London Metropolitan University and graduated with a first class honours degree. Her poetry and short stories have been published both online and in magazines.

Notes On My Family is her first novel for young adults.

You can follow Emily Critchley on Twitter @EmilyMCritchley, find her on Facebook and visit her website.

I’m delighted to be part of the launch celebrations for The Perfect Victim by Corrie Jackson because I love a thriller. Today I’m very excited to be bringing you a guest post from Corrie as she interviews her protagonist Sophie Kent.

The Perfect Victim is published tomorrow, 16th November 2017, by Bonnier Zaffre and is available for purchase here.

The Perfect Victim

Husband, friend, colleague . . . killer?

Charlie and Emily Swift are the Instagram-perfect couple: gorgeous, successful and in love. But then Charlie is named as the prime suspect in a gruesome murder and Emily’s world falls apart.

Desperate for answers, she turns to Charlie’s troubled best friend, London Herald journalist, Sophie Kent. Sophie knows police have the wrong man – she trusts Charlie with her life.

Then Charlie flees.

Sophie puts her reputation on the line to clear his name. But as she’s drawn deeper into Charlie and Emily’s unravelling marriage, she realises that there is nothing perfect about the Swifts.

As she begins to question Charlie’s innocence, something happens that blows the investigation – and their friendship – apart.

Now Sophie isn’t just fighting for justice, she’s fighting for her life.

Who Is Sophie Kent?

A Guest Post by Corrie Jackson

The Perfect Victim is the second thriller starring crime reporter, Sophie Kent. With killer instincts and a razor-sharp mind, she’s proven herself a force to be reckoned with. But what makes Sophie tick? This questionnaire sheds light on the star journalist…

Describe your appearance in three words.

Blonde. Pocket. Rocket. (I’m 5’2”!)

What does your business card say?

Sophie Kent

Crime Desk, The London Herald

Who are your parents?

My father, Antony Kent is the founder and CEO of Kent Industries. You know the type. Bullish. Old-school. Regularly appears in the Business section of the broadsheets. My mother, Kathy, is…a stay-at-home mum. Not in the cosy sense.

Are you married?

God, no. Single.

Which living person do you most admire?

Journalist Edna Buchanan. She ruled Miami’s police beat for two decades and won a Pulitzer prize in 1986. Edna once said: People who say, ‘Let me tell you the truth, won’t. When they say ‘Trust me,’ don’t.’ These words are on a Post-It Note stuck to my computer.

What’s your best trait?

My resourcefulness.

And your worst?

Not knowing when to quit (professionally and personally!)

What’s your greatest achievement?

I don’t know.  I haven’t done it yet.

You’re in a bar: what’s your poison?

Whatever’s nearest…I’m fickle.

Name one thing people don’t know about you?

My middle name is Imogen, after the Jilly Cooper novel. My mother is a devotee.

Sum yourself up in a hashtag?

#smallbutmighty

What do you dislike most in the world?

Injustice. And bad grammar.

What’s your most-treasured memory?

Climbing the large oak tree in the garden of my childhood home with my little brother, Tommy. I’d make up stories and we’d sit there for hours. Tommy’s wide-eyed curiosity spurred me on to become a better storyteller. I have him to thank for the path I’ve taken.

What’s your favourite hang-out?

The Anchor & Hart; an old man’s pub round the back of the London Herald in Kensington. It’s where all the Herald journos let off steam.

Do you ever lie?

What kind of question is that?

What takes pride of place in your house?

My London Herald printing plate. Every reporter is awarded the printing plate of their first front page. I’ve hung mine in the downstairs loo!

What one thing would you change about your appearance?

I wish I didn’t look so much like my father.

Best piece of advice?

Always know the line. If you can’t sum your article up in one sentence, you haven’t nailed it. My editor, Philip Rowley, told me that on my first day at the Herald.

Where would you like to live?

Exactly where I do. Bywater Street, London.

Who or what do you love most?

My brother, Tommy.

What do you consider the lowest depths of misery?

Helplessness.

What’s your biggest regret?

That I couldn’t prevent Tommy’s death.

When and where are you happiest?

At my computer, in the grip of a good story, fingers flying. Speaking of which, I’ve got work to do!

About Corrie Jackson

Corrie Jackson has been a journalist for fourteen years and has worked at Harpers Bazaar, The Daily Mail, Grazia and Glamour. After a sunny two-year stint freelancing in Los Angeles, she is now coming to terms with the weather in Surrey, England where she lives with her husband and two children.

You can find out more about Corrie on Facebook, Twitter @CorrieJacko and via her website.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

My enormously grateful thanks to the publishers, Avon books, for a copy of The Little Village Christmas by Sue Moorcroft in return for an honest review. Regular readers of Linda’s Book Bag might be forgiven for thinking I’m a bit obsessed by Sue Moorcroft as she’s such a regular feature! As a member of her street team it’s a real privilege to have access to Sue and her writing and I’m delighted to be reviewing The Little Village Christmas today. You can see other Linda’s Book Bag posts with Sue in the following links:

An interview with Sue Moorcroft

A guest post from Sue on over-sharing and my review of The Christmas Promise

A guest post from Sue on her fantasy holiday companions

My review of Just For The Holidays

A guest post from Sue on loving a village book

Published by Avon Books, an imprint of Harper Collins, The Little Village Christmas was published in e-book on 9th October and paperback on 2nd November. It is available for purchase here.

The Little Village Christmas

Alexia Kennedy – interior decorator extraordinaire – has been tasked with giving the little village of Middledip the community café it’s always dreamed of.

After months of fundraising, the villagers can’t wait to see work get started – but disaster strikes when every last penny is stolen. With Middledip up in arms at how this could have happened, Alexia feels ready to admit defeat.

But help comes in an unlikely form when woodsman, Ben Hardaker and his rescue owl Barney, arrive on the scene. Another lost soul who’s hit rock bottom, Ben and Alexia make an unlikely partnership.

However, they soon realise that a little sprinkling of Christmas magic might just help to bring this village – and their lives – together again…

My Review of The Little Village Christmas

When more than is anticipated results from the Middledip Community Wrecking Party, Ben and Alexia find their lives will change in ways neither could anticipate.

I adored visiting Middledip. I thought The Little Village Christmas was Sue Moorcroft at her very best, with exceptional plotting, wonderful settings and vibrant, flawed and believable characters whom I’d love to meet in real life. I can’t abide men with ponytails, but I thought Gabe was wonderful and as for Ben – well, who wouldn’t want to meet him! Alexia is a perfect embodiment of womanhood with just enough insecurity and self doubt alongside her feisty friendliness to make her someone I’d love as a friend. Even the animals Snobby, Barney and Luke deserve praise for their glorious contributions to the ambience and plot.

I thoroughly enjoyed the settings as many of the places like Yaxley, Peterborough and Crowland are within 10 miles of where I live so that I felt involved in the story on a very personal level and not simply as an impartial reader.

I was engaged with the narrative from the very first word until the very last. When I was reading The Little Village Christmas I genuinely resented real life interrupting me. I was always desperate to get back to the story and find out what was happening to people I had grown to know and love.

The only element I was less keen on was the title as I’m sure some readers will reject books they think are Christmas reads, but The Little Village Christmas is only marginally a book about that time of year. It’s more a book about friendship and family, mistakes and identity, individualism and community spirit – and most of all it’s a book about love in all its glorious forms.

I always enjoy a Sue Moorcroft story, but The Little Village Christmas touched me profoundly and is the perfect example of romantic fiction. I absolutely loved it.

About Sue Moorcroft

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

The Christmas Promise was a Kindle No.1 Best Seller and held the No.1 slot at Christmas!

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

You can follow Sue on Twitter @SueMoorcroft, find her on Facebook and visit her website.

Lovely Jan Ruth’s Wild Water series of books have been on my TBR far too long so when Jan told me she had a new novella, Away for Christmas, coming out I thought it was high time I gave Jan’s writing a go. I’m so pleased I did and you can read my review below. Thanks so much Jan for the opportunity to read Away for Christmas in return for an honest review.

Published on 13th November 2017, Away for Christmas is available for purchase here.

Away for Christmas

Jonathan Jones has written a novel. Losing his job a few days before Christmas means the pressure is on for his book to become a bestseller, but when his partner drops her own bombshell, the festive holiday looks set to be a disaster.

When he’s bequeathed a failing bookshop in their seaside town, it seems that some of his prayers have been answered, but his publishing company turn out to be not what they seem, and when his ex-wife suddenly declares her romantic intent, another Christmas looks set to be complicated.

Is everything lost, or can the true meaning of words, a dog called Frodo, and the sheer magic of Christmas be enough to save Jonathan’s book, and his skin?

My Review of Away for Christmas

Jonathan thinks losing his job just before Christmas is pretty bad news. Little does he know there’s much more to come.

Away for Christmas was not what I was expecting. I had anticipated a chick-lit style cosy romance, but although there are some of those elements present, they are minimal in comparison to what is a fascinating insight into being an author and a masterclass in characterisation.

I think it shows how well Jan Ruth writes that I hated Jonathan throughout and yet was still totally absorbed in the narrative. I found Jonathan self-absorbed, delusional and deserving of a really good shake. His attitude to bloggers riled me and his naivety in dealing with his publisher astounded me and yet he was completely believable and real so that he had my full attention throughout and even managed to redeem himself. In fact, I’ve just realised I’ve commented on him as a real person rather than a creation of Jan Ruth which illustrates how convincing a person he is!

Although I think it’s the characters that make Away for Christmas so successful, I was impressed too because although Away for Christmas is a novella, the plot is satisfying and well developed, giving plenty to think about in family and social dynamics, relationships and the way we find our place in the world, making the read both interesting and absorbing.

However, having enjoyed Away for Christmas as a highly entertaining story, I’d love to see it used as a training manual for aspiring and unpublished authors so that they don’t make the same mistakes as Jonathan and instead actually have a flying start in the publishing world. Great stuff!

About Jan Ruth

Jan Ruth’s real writing story began at school, with prizes for short stories and poetry. She failed all things mathematical and scientific, and to this day struggles to make sense of anything numerical.

Jan writes contemporary fiction about the darker side of the family dynamic with a generous helping of humour, horses and dogs. Her books blend the serenities of rural life with the headaches of city business, exploring the endless complexities of relationships.

You can follow Jan on Twitter @JanRuthAuthor, find her on Facebook and visit her website. You’ll find all Jan’s books here.

I am indebted to Emily Burns for a copy of All The Wicked Girls by Chris Whitaker in return for an honest review. I thought Chris’s first novel Tall Oaks was fabulous and you can see my review of that book here.

All The Wicked Girls was published by Bonnier Zaffre and is available for purchase here.

All The Wicked Girls

Everyone loves Summer Ryan. A model student and musical prodigy, she’s a ray of light in the struggling small town of Grace, Alabama – especially compared to her troubled sister, Raine. Then Summer vanishes.

Raine throws herself into the investigation, aided by a most unlikely ally, but the closer she gets to the truth, the more dangerous her search becomes.

And perhaps there was always more to Summer than met the eye . . .

My Review of All The Wicked Girls

I previously read and loved Chris Whitaker’s Tall Oaks so I had extremely high hopes for All The Wicked Girls. I’d thought Tall Oaks was exceptional but All The Wicked Girls surpasses it and is sublime. What a writer Chris Whitaker is. He can show such depth through even the shortest of sentences so that I found myself on a complete roller coaster of emotion. I laughed. I wept. My heart broke for so many of those between its pages that I’m not sure I’ll ever be the same again. Several times I exclaimed aloud, most frequently for Raine, Noah and Purv, but also for Savannah, Black and Peach and indeed for just about every character between the pages of All The Wicked Girls.

In the same way the storm cloud gathers, the pages glower with suppressed violence, secrets and tension so that it is impossible to stop reading. When I slept I dreamt of the characters as they had pervaded my soul so deeply.

The religious fervour and belief, the deceptions and the love that Chris Whitaker reveals are almost too much to bear. I found his writing utterly heartbreaking, especially through Raine’s desperation to find Summer and the relationship between Purv and Noah because they are indeed they are so brave, so fierce and so beautiful. I wanted to take these three into my arms and hold them close until all their hurts had gone.

The plot is fabulous. Small town America lends itself to the claustrophobic feel so that the events fit the setting perfectly. At times I almost couldn’t bear what I was reading. I can’t explain more about the plot without spoiling the read but rest assured it is gripping, absorbing and brilliant.

I defy anyone to read Chris Whitaker and not feel they have been touched by genius to their very soul. All The Wicked Girls is utterly, utterly wonderful and I don’t have sufficient words to do it justice.

About Chris Whitaker

Chris Whitaker was born in London and spent ten years working as a financial trader in the city. When not writing he enjoys football, boxing, and anything else that distracts him from his wife and two young sons. Tall Oaks was his first novel.

You can find Chris on Twitter.

My enormous thanks to Jaime Frost at Harper Collins for a copy of The Woman at 72 Derry Lane by Carmel Harrington in return for an honest review. I so loved Carmel Harrington’s The Things I should Have Told You and her guest post that you can read here, that I jumped at the chance to read The Woman at 72 Derry Lane despite another 900+ books in the queue!

Already available in e-book and audio, the paperback version of The Woman at 72 Derry Lane is published on 16th November 2017 by Harper Collins and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Woman at 72 Derry Lane

On a leafy suburban street in Dublin, beautiful, poised Stella Greene lives with her successful husband, Matt. The perfect couple in every way, Stella appears to have it all. Next door, at number 72 however, lives Rea Brady. Gruff, bad-tempered and rarely seen besides the twitching of her net curtains, rumour has it she’s lost it all…including her marbles if you believe the neighbourhood gossip.

But appearances can be deceiving and when Stella and Rea’s worlds collide they realise they have much in common. Both are trapped in a prison of their own making.

Has help been next door without them realising it?

My Review of The Woman at 72 Derry Lane

Stella’s abusive husband Matt wants the impossible – a ‘perfect’ wife according to his definition of perfection – but life isn’t always perfect.

Well, well, well. Carmel Harrington has done it again. I adored every syllable of The Woman at 72 Derry Lane from the surprisingly violent opening to the final, utterly satisfying, word.

What makes Carmel Harrington’s writing so fabulous for me is her ability to involve the reader completely in the story. Before I was half way through I realised I had experienced so many emotions I was wrung out. I’d felt fear, humour, happiness, love and grief as acutely as if they were happening to me, let alone Stella, Skye and Rea.

There’s an irony in reading The Woman at 72 Derry Lane, because although it is ultimately a wonderful, life affirming read it actually made me dissatisfied with my life. I want to live in Derry Lane with Rea as my neighbour and I want Charlie as my hairdresser and Stella as my friend. The characters Carmel Harrington creates are so vivid, so real and so human that it’s impossible not to view them as real people. I felt as involved in their lives as if I were reading about my own experiences.

There are so many glorious layers to this story too, so that although love is very firmly at the heart of what Carmel Harrington writes, she isn’t afraid to tackle issues that might affect any one of us or someone we know. I thought Rea’s agoraphobia and Stella’s compliance in an abusive relationship were perfectly presented and so sensitively handled so that I understood them fully and empathised completely. I adored the way the threads of the story were woven together and as I don’t want to spoil the plot, I’ll just say the historical event was written fabulously with just the right level of detail.

Carmel Harrington is one of the best writers of emotionally involving narratives around and The Woman at 72 Derry Lane is her writing at her most outstanding. I absolutely adored this book.

About Carmel Harrington

Carmel Harrington is the bestselling author of The Life You Left and Beyond Grace’s Rainbow, voted Romantic eBook of the Year 2013.

Carmel lives with her husband Roger and children Amelia and Nate in a small coastal village in Wexford. She credits the idyllic setting as a constant source of inspiration to her. Carmel has the nickname, ‘Queen of Emotional Writing’.

Carmel writes emotional family dramas that share one common theme – strong characters who find themselves in extraordinary situations. She loves to dig deep and see how they cope, as they grapple with life-changing moments.

She is a regular on Irish TV and radio. Carmel is also a popular motivational keynote speaker, at events in Ireland, UK and US.

You can follow Carmel on Twitter, Facebook and her website.

My grateful thanks to Hayley Camis at Little Brown for a copy of The Girl in the Fog by Donato Carrisi in return for an honest review.

The Girl in the Fog was published in the UK by Abacus, an imprint of Little Brown, on 2nd November 2017 and is available for purchase here.

 

The Girl in the Fog

 

Sixty-two days after the disappearance . . .

A man is arrested in the small town of Avechot. His shirt is covered in blood. Could this have anything to do with a missing girl called Anna Lou?

What really happened to the girl?

Detective Vogel will do anything to solve the mystery surrounding Anna Lou’s disappearance. When a media storm hits the quiet town, Vogel is sure that the suspect will be flushed out. Yet the clues are confusing, perhaps false, and following them may be a far cry from discovering the truth at the heart of a dark town.

My Review of The Girl in the Fog

Detective Vogel is searching for missing Anna Lou Kastner and he’ll stop at nothing to solve the case.

The Girl in the Fog is a cracker of a book. Sublimely plotted it takes the reader on a roller coaster of a narrative. Of course I had it all worked out and of course I was completely wrong. Donato Carrisi leads the reader to erroneous conclusions with the same skill Vogel leads his investigations. The tension builds so that I kept telling myself I’d just read one more page until the whole book was devoured. I also need to say something about the quality of translation as not once did it feel as if I were reading a translated story. The prose flowed effortlessly, creating atmosphere and character exceedingly well and this is partly down to the skill of Howard Curtis too. I so appreciated the image of the fog, from the actual weather conditions when Anna Lou goes missing through the obfuscation of fact and lies to the foggy memory Vogel appears to have at the start of the book.

It’s always difficult to review this kind of thriller without giving away too much of the plot, so I’ll just say that I found it tightly written and very disconcerting, particularly the ending. It’s safe to say that we never really know our fellow human beings.

What is so engaging and clever about Donato Carrisi’s writing is his ability to create tension. My heart rate increased towards the end so that The Girl in the Fog truly is a thrilling read.

Although Anna Lou is the catalyst for events, she is barely present. Instead we get a fascinating insight into the minds of several men, but especially Vogel. He is devious, intelligent and manipulative and makes the reader question morality and whether the end ever justifies the means. For me, the requirement to think, to judge and, ultimately to be duped, makes The Girl in the Fog a story I thoroughly enjoyed.

The Girl in the Fog is a really good thriller and I recommend it most highly.

About Donato Carrisi

Donato Carrisi was born in 1973 and studied law and criminology. He won four Italian literature prizes for his bestselling debut The Whisperer. Since 1999 he has been working as a TV screenwriter, and he lives in Rome.

You can follow Donato Carrisi on Twitter @DonatoCarrisi and visit his website.