Having just interviewed Hannah Gold for the I’d Rather Be In Deeping magazine (interview here) and with Hannah being a local to me author who, along with Elly Griffiths, is one the Deepings Literary Festival children’s writing competition judges, I was thrilled when Tina Mories of Harper Collins Children’s Books asked me if I would like a copy of Hannah’s The Last Bear for review. With an endorsement by Michael Morpurgo on the front cover to The Last Bear how could I refuse? I’m delighted to share that review today. I was reading a proof copy with artwork by Levi Pinfold to come, but you’ll find examples of the wonderful illustrations here.

The Last Bear is published by Harper Collins Children’s Books on 18th February 2021 and is available for pre-order through the links here.

The Last Bear

Imagine making friends with a polar bear… The Last Bear is perfect for readers of 8+, beautifully illustrated throughout by Levi Pinfold – winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and illustrator of Harry Potter 20th anniversary edition covers.

“This is an important first novel, important for us, for polar bears, for the planet. It is deeply moving, beautifully told, quite unforgettable.” Michael Morpurgo.

There are no polar bears left on Bear Island. At least, that’s what April’s father tells her when his scientific research takes them to this remote Arctic outpost for six months. But one endless summer night, April meets one. He is starving, lonely and a long way from home. Determined to save him, April begins the most important journey of her life…

This moving story will win the hearts of children the world over and show them that no one is too young or insignificant to make a difference. The Last Bear is a celebration of the love between a child and an animal, a battle cry for our world and an irresistible adventure with a heart as big as a bear’s.

My Review of The Last Bear

April’s father has a new job in the Arctic Circle.

I’m slightly at a loss to know how to review The Last Bear. It is one of the most glorious children’s books I’ve ever read, with a depth and understanding shining through Hannah Gold’s writing that is enormously affecting. The Last Bear deserves to take its place alongside the canon of the best of children’s fiction. Add in the breathtakingly beautiful illustrations by Levi Pinfold and this is a book to gift, to cherish and to return to time and again.

Firstly, the plot is gripping, fast paced and totally believable, despite the unusual premise of a small 11 year old girl befriending a polar bear, so that even the most reluctant of young readers cannot fail to be ensnared and captivated. It isn’t just the narrative proper that holds such power, but the death of April’s mother in the past, and the potential for events in the future that leave the reader thinking about The Last Bear long after the final page is read.

The environmental aspect of The Last Bear is, of course, vital to the plot and overall message that humans need to do more to protect the environment. Shrinking ice caps, plastics in the sea, and the negative impact of humans on the natural world underpin the story. However, whilst this might sound as if The Last Bear is preachily worthy, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Hannah Gold integrates these aspects so naturally and so brilliantly that they have incredible power almost without the reader realising. Through April’s adventures, The Last Bear inspires readers to want to make a positive difference to the planet.

It comes as no surprise to me to learn that Hannah Gold has worked in film and magazine industries because the sensory elements of her writing make the story leap from the page. Every sense is catered for so that the reader is placed alongside April, experiencing life on Bear Island with her, just as vividly as if they were actually there. I was totally transported by this aspect of The Last Bear.

The characterisation in The Last Bear is stunning. With most of the narrative involving April and Bear with her father alongside, there is the opportunity to see right into the soul of these characters because they are presented with such humanity and insight in a totally accessible manner. April is not easily accepted by her peers and those children who feel as if they are slightly an outsider will find solace and inspiration in April’s story. I love the fact that she has an affinity with nature, that she illustrates that although she’s an 11 year old girl she has the ability to affect change and be interested in the world around her. However, it was the intimacy of her relationship with Bear and her father that almost broke me. Her need to be loved, her desire for attention from her heartbroken, grief stricken, work obsessed father and the way she listened to the natural world had a physical effect on me. There’s a profound sadness that made me weep and an ultimate feeling of hope that imbued me with positivity. I’d defy a reader of any age not to be moved and affected by this book.

With websites for further investigation and a letter and note from the author too, The Last Bear is a book that speaks directly to children of all ages and makes them part of the story, not just of this bear, but of the planet as a whole. I feel it might just be one of the most important children’s books of the decade. It’s beautifully written, exciting and moving to read and as close to perfect that a children’s book can be. I thought it it was wonderful, utterly outstanding, and cannot recommend it highly enough.

About Hannah Gold

Hannah Gold worked in the film and magazine industries before taking time out to pursue her dream of writing. She lives in Lincolnshire with her tortoise, her cat and her husband.

For more information, visit Hannah’s website, follow her on Twitter @HGold_author, or find her on Facebook and Instagram.

I first encountered The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr when I ‘attended’ The #Quercus2021 Word of Mouth event last October. I wrote about that event here. I was delighted that The Prophets was included in a goody box I was sent prior to that event because I studied slavery and emancipation in the USA as part of my degree and am thrilled to share my review today.

The Prophets was published by Quercus imprint Riverrun on 5th January 2020 and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Prophets

In this blinding debut, Robert Jones Jr. blends the lyricism of Toni Morrison with the vivid prose of Zora Neale Hurston to characterise the forceful, enduring bond of love, and what happens when brutality threatens the purest form of serenity.

The Halifax plantation is known as Empty by the slaves who work it under the pitiless gaze of its overseers and its owner, Massa Paul. Two young enslaved men, Samuel and Isaiah dwell among the animals they keep in the barn, helping out in the fields when their day is done. But the barn is their haven, a space of radiance and love – away from the blistering sun and the cruelty of the toubabs – where they can be alone together.

But, Amos – a fellow slave – has begun to direct suspicion towards the two men and their refusal to bend. Their flickering glances, unspoken words and wilful intention, revealing a truth that threatens to rock the stability of the plantation. And preaching the words of Massa Paul’s gospel, he betrays them.

The culminating pages of The Prophets summon a choral voice of those who have suffered in silence, with blistering humanity, as the day of reckoning arrives at the Halifax plantation. Love, in all its permutations, is the discovery at the heart of Robert Jones Jr’s breathtaking debut, The Prophets.

My Review of The Prophets

The Halifax slave plantation, Empty, seethes with emotions from love to hate, fear to triumph, guilt to joy so that Robert Jones Jr has woven a searing tale that unsettles, educates and leaves the reader reeling.

I think The Prophets might divide reader opinion and I have to admit that it took me a while to settle into the narrative style, but I ended up completely mesmerised. I did not find The Prophets an easy book to read for several reasons. Structurally it is complex and although the narrative is essentially linear with a pace that races along, there are layers of religion, history, myth and black culture outside my white, middle aged, British perspective and experience. With many voices and perspectives, it needs the reader to concentrate; to listen as closely to what isn’t said or written, as much as to what is uttered aloud or evident on the page, so that it’s a book that obfuscates and reveals in equal measure. This is by no means a criticism, but rather equates to one of the book’s strengths. Robert Jones Jr ensures his reader questions their beliefs, their assumptive understanding of the past and people, and gives them food for thought long after they have closed the pages of The Prophets. I found it disturbing, enlightening and completely, horrifyingly compelling.

Robert Jones Jr’s writing is sumptuous, even when he is describing the most unpalatable scenes or truths. Descriptions are vivid, poetic and haunting and each seems imbued with emotional depth making for a truly remarkable read. The slave plantation may be called Empty, but life here is so clearly depicted that I felt The Prophets had an astounding visual quality that made it tangible.

Similarly, the characters are a kaleidoscope that shifts and changes with each twist of the narrative. Sexuality and gender is blurred and fluid so that kings can be female for example, adding to the depth and mystery in the writing. Although Samuel and Isaiah’s homosexual relationship is the catalyst for much of the action precipitated by Adam, I found the women the most compelling characters. Maggie and Essie in particular illustrate all the oxymoronic explorations of power and subjugation that Robert Jones Jr weaves through the story.

Themes of betrayal, race, sexuality, guilt and all forms of love are so intricately woven in this narrative that it holds the reader spellbound. I can’t profess to having understood every nuance or sentence in The Prophets, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t left me moved, appalled and enthralled. Sometimes I felt a visceral response without truly comprehending why. Not all readers will find The Prophets accessible but I would urge them to read it nonetheless. It’s an astounding book.

About Robert Jones Jr

Robert Jones, Jr. is a writer from Brooklyn, N.Y. He earned both his B.F.A. in creative writing and M.F.A. in fiction from Brooklyn College. His work has been featured in The New York Times, Essence and The Paris Review. He is the creator of the social justice social media community, Son of Baldwin. The Prophets is his debut novel.

You can follow Robert on Twitter @SonofBaldwin for more information and visit his website. You’ll also find Robert on Facebook and Instagram.

My enormous thanks to Michelle Stannard at Digivolve Media for putting me in touch with Tom Brown so that we can stay in together to chat all about Tom’s brand new book. I love finding out about unusual texts and I think Tom’s book fits that perfectly! Let’s find out what he told me:

Staying in with Tom Brown

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

Thank you for having me Linda.

I rather think I know Tom, but tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought The Corporate Menagerie. The Corporate Menagerie is a book about people, their behaviours and relationships and uses animals and other creatures as the human analogies. This anthropomorphising seemed to me a neat way of achieving my twin objectives for the book, which is to educate and entertain, and to reach the widest potential audience. Most of the characters are known to me – and indeed will be recognisable to many readers – as people I have met, worked with, or enjoyed a relationship with during my lifetime, many through business, hence the title.

The Corporate Menagerie sounds fascinating Tom and I understand it is out today so very many congratulations. What can we expect from an evening with The Corporate Menagerie?

My inspiration and motivation for The Corporate Menagerie derives from my experience of working with a diverse range of individuals over the years, which has given rise to a deep-seated belief that many have a limited understanding of how to relate to people on an individual level or to manage, motivate, and collaborate with others.

Ha! Having worked with literally thousands of people through my own career Tom, I totally agree! 

I wanted to produce something different from the academic, technical approach and the plethora of books on the subject of human behaviour and to strike a balance between knowledge and enjoyment. To elaborate on the uniqueness of The Corporate Menagerie, the narrative is provided in verse, and the challenge here was to use different poetic styles and length to maintain interest and enjoyment for the reader.

That sounds quite a challenge. I’m intrigued by The Corporate Menagerie. What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I’ve brought a couple of illustrations as I decided at the outset that The Corporate Menagerie needed to be illustrated to enhance its appeal. I did not want to use cartoon type illustrations as I felt this might reduce the integrity of the content and I managed to find an excellent illustrator who understood my desire for classy illustrations that would illuminate the message from each character.

Thanks so much for staying in with me to chat about The Corporate Menagerie Tom. Happy publication day and I hope it does really well for you. 

Thanks Linda. It feels quite daunting putting my book up for evaluation by experienced, qualified people and I will keep my fingers crossed that it has some appeal for you.

I’m sure it will! Let me give blog readers a little more information:

The Corporate Menagerie

The Corporate Menagerie is a study in human behaviour and relationships, which uses animals, birds, insects and even the odd dinosaur to portray the diverse human characters whom Tom has met throughout his life and his work.

Here, you will explore a wide range of ‘people’ issues from leadership, personal development, emotional intelligence, and some of the more sensitive topics such as diversity, bullying and absence management.

These creature analogies combine serious topics in a poetic, thoughtful and light-hearted way, to highlight issues that affect us all. The Corporate Menagerie is a great learning tool or simply an entertaining and enjoyable read.

The Corporate Menagerie is available for purchase here.

About Tom Brown

Tom is a Chartered Banker (MICBS) by profession and spent 28 years working for RBS until 1997, latterly as Chief Manager (Retail Banking).

Since then,  he has been owner/manager of Training Concepts (TCL), which specialises in the design and delivery of soft skills development programmes. During this time, the Company has gained four National Training Awards.

Additionally, from time to time, Tom has acted as an external student project evaluator at Edinburgh Napier University Business School.

In tandem with Tom’s work for his business, and being a prolific reader, he has, since leaving the financial services industry, cultivated a keen interest in writing, particularly poetry, which has resulted in him producing a number of short stories and poems, none of which he has, so far, sought to publish.

Tom did, however, in 2018, self-publish a niche Book, Pride of Lions, which captured Celtic Football Club’s unique and successful pursuit of the European Cup in 1967 which stills sells steadily. As a result of this relative success, Tom undertook to produce The Corporate Menagerie which he is once more self-publishing. He did not pursue a publishing deal for either Book.

Tom is 69, and lives in Edinburgh with his wife, Alison. He has four grown up children and five grandchildren and enjoys all sports, especially football and cricket, reading and music. Writing is Tom’s passion.

You can find out more by visiting Tom’s website, finding him on Facebook or following him on Twitter @TomBrownAuthor1.

 

It’s no secret that romantic novelist, the lovely Annette Hannah is a personal friend and so it gives me enormous pleasure to support her latest novel, The Cosy Little Cupcake Van by sharing this cover reveal today. I also have a gorgeous extract for you too!

I last featured Annette here on Linda’s Book Bag when we stayed in together and I reviewed her fabulous debut Wedding Bells at the Signal Box Cafe. I can’t wait to read this new book too.

Let’s see what Wedding Bells at the Signal Box Cafe has to offer!

The Cosy Little Cupcake Van

A deliciously feelgood romance, perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley, Ali McNamara and Rebecca Raisin!

Camilla’s delicious cakes are the talk of her village. If you need a perfectly iced mouthful of joy, Camilla “Cupcake” is your woman. But after losing her mother, she finds her home and her business in jeopardy. She needs a little helping hand…

Thankfully her friends are always there for her, and when she is given an old ice cream van, Camilla’s dream of a cupcake delivery service is born. Now she can bring happiness – and buttercream frosting – to the whole town.

But when her ex Blake appears back on her doorstep, Camilla must decide if she can trust him again or if her heart might belong to someone else…

Bursting with romance and sprinkled with humour, this is a deliciously feel-good story about one woman putting her life back together, one cupcake at a time.

Published by Orion imprint Dash on 22nd March 2021, The Cosy Little Cupcake Van is available for pre-order here.

An Extract from The Cosy Little Cupcake Van

Chapter 1

Six months later

‘Camilla Lockley?’ asked the heavyset man who towered over her, blocking out the light as she placed the second of the boxes in the back of the car.

‘Yes, that’s me. Can I help you?’ She slammed the boot shut and made her way to the driver’s seat.

‘I’m from Bingley and Dobbs and I’m afraid we are repossessing this vehicle due to non-payment. The details are all here.’ He shoved a couple of scary-looking legal documents into her hand.

She tried to make sense of them, but the words seemed to dart around the page like ants on a pavement as her nerves got the better of her. The red stamp saying ‘Repossession’ across it though made it quite clear.

‘Can I have the keys please?’

‘Look, there must be some misunderstanding. I’ll be getting paid for this wedding cake in a couple of hours, so I’ll be able to pay this month’s instalment.’

‘I’m afraid it’s gone beyond that, miss, so can I just have the keys and I’ll be on my way?’

Resigned to the fact that this was a fight she couldn’t possibly win she lifted the two square white boxes from the boot, one by one, and carefully rested the heavier one on a sturdy hedge with the smaller one next to it.

‘I don’t suppose there’s any chance you could give me a lift is there?’ She gave him an exaggerated smile that she imagined made her look more delirious than friendly. He didn’t bother to respond and closed the boot with a slam. ‘Would you consider a cake in lieu of payment?’ she shouted to what used to be her little pink Fiat 500 as it sped off.

*

I’m really looking forward to finding out what happens next to Camilla!

About Annette Hannah

Annette Hannah is a Liver Bird who relocated to leafy Hertfordshire in the 80’s and now lives near a river with her husband, two of their three grown up children and a crazy black cocker spaniel. She writes romantic comedies in settings inspired by the beautiful countryside around her and always with a nod to her hometown. As an avid reader she became a book blogger and eventually realised her dream to become an author in 2020.

She loves long walks along the river, travelling to far flung places, the odd glass of Pinot Blush and spending time with her friends and family.

You can find out more by visiting Annette’s blog or website and following her on Twitter @AnnetteHannah.

My enormous thanks to David Borrowdale at Reflex Press for a copy of Straw Gods by Tom O’Brien in return for an honest review. I don’t read enough novellas or flash fiction and Straw Gods is the perfect way to combine the two!

Straw Gods is available for purchase here.

Straw Gods

A straw man hung above my door like a ward of protection. Really it was a lure to charm my dead husband back. But it, like my other delusions and lies, drew lightning.

Ten years after the death of her husband, Rosa struggles to move on and takes solace in rituals and superstition. Sol, a young fisherman, braves the sea to prove himself to an absent father. As a storm rips through the small community, disaster lays bare old secrets. Rosa and Sol’s lives tangle in tragic circumstances, forcing them to face the truth about themselves and the ones they loved.

Straw Godsis the debut novella-in-flash from Tom O’Brien, a heart-wrenching drama both moving and exhilarating, perceptively exploring the effects of grief and the lasting bonds of family and friendship.

My Review of Straw Gods

39 flash fictions making a complete narrative.

If I said I had no intention of reading Straw Gods when I did, but I thought I’d look at the first entry and was so incredibly moved and mesmerised by Tom O’Brien’s writing that I simply couldn’t tear myself away until I had consumed it all – twice – you’ll understand what a special book Straw Gods is. It is absolutely magnificent and will be heading straight onto my books of the year list for 2021.

The intensity of emotion is Straw Gods is physical. I could feel Rosa’s grief as acutely as if it were my own. And yet Straw Gods is not a depressing read despite the visceral depth of feeling. Tom O’Brien articulates so beautifully how grief can affect us, through his poetic and enchanting writing, that he brings comfort to the reader in knowing others have experienced such feelings too. Reading Straw Gods is cathartic as much as it is captivating.

Each of the individually titled chapters or flash fictions works as a complete piece that can be appreciated alone, but added together into the riveting, fast paced narrative Tom O’Brien provides in Straw Gods, they become breath-taking. There were moments when I gasped aloud as read. I wept too – not just for Rosa and Sol, but for myself and all those who’ve encountered grief in their lives. This really is a book that delivers far more than might be expected. I thought of each entry a bit like a diamond that sparkles and gleams perfectly well alone, but when added to all the other pieces, becomes dazzling so that I could not tear myself away from Tom O’Brien’s words.

Rosa is such a vivid character that I felt less that I was reading about her and more that I was experiencing every nuance of emotion she experiences. This effect is achieved through her compelling first person voice. Bordering insanity in her grief, Rosa distils grief into behaviours and feelings any reader will relate to and this is surprisingly comforting. I loved the way she reaches her personal nadir but is not entirely defeated.

Obviously grief is a major theme in Straw Gods, but there is so much more besides woven into the writing. Themes of marriage, family, self-deception, community, friendship, nature and superstition are just few aspects of this glorious text that hook the reader.

I’m finding it difficult to convey how wonderful I think Straw Gods is, but I would say please don’t let it be a quiet book that few read. Tom O’Brien’s exquisite skill needs lauding from the rooftops. In this slim volume is the essence of humanity, of grief, of honesty and of hope. Straw Gods is utterly fantastic and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

About Tom O’Brien

Tom O’Brien is an Irish writer living in London. Having had film scripts optioned and produced he moved across to prose where he’s been widely published and anthologised in print and online. He’s been long and shortlisted for the Bath Flash Fiction Award, Ellipsis Zine Flash Collection Competition and the Colm Tóibín Short Story Award, amongst others.

Follow Tom on Twitter @tomwrote or visit his website for more information.

One of the pleasures of blogging is being acknowledged by authors. Consequently, I simply had to invite thriller writer Gordon Bickerstaff onto Linda’s Book Bag today to tell me about one of his book because, as well as hearing readers rave about Gordon’s books, Gordon is an author who promotes and supports bloggers. I wanted to return the favour. Luckily he agreed to stay in with me!

Staying in with Gordon Bickerstaff

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

I’ve brought along the third book in my series of standalone thrillers from the Lambeth Group series, The Black Fox. I am particularly pleased with this one because I loved writing it, and I am especially proud because it won several awards.

Congratulations on your success with The Black Fox Gordon. I’ve read rave reviews of your books so I’m not surprised to hear they are award winning. So, tell us a bit about the The Black Fox.

The idea for the book came to me when I was a fresher student at Heriot-Watt University in the early 1970s. Excitedly, I went along to a seminar to see the Loch Ness Monster. It was a talk given by Tim Dinsdale, and sure enough he showed us a picture of the Loch Ness Monster. Well, sort of; it was a picture of a fin. He also showed convincing sonar evidence taken by a top-notch research team from the USA as evidence.

Oh. I wouldn’t have expected that. I bet that made you think!

Now, everyone in Scotland knows that the Monster is a tourist attraction for the Scottish Highlands. So, I began to wonder what the Americans were doing in Loch Ness with sophisticated strobe-light cameras and state-of-the-art sonar equipment.

I’ve brought along the famous picture of the Tim Dinsdale’s Loch Ness Monster, or rather a fin, which he said at the time measured six feet in width. Reportedly taken deep in the bowels of Loch Ness by the American team using a motion-activated strobe-light camera.

I think that looks quite creepy Gordon.

Then, by chance, I read about the bizarre unexplained mystery surrounding Rudolph Hess. On May 10th, 1941, Rudolph Hess, the Nazi Deputy Leader, flew a Messerschmitt to central Scotland on a secret mission. He had maps of Inverness. He ran out of fuel because of zigzag manoeuvres to evade detection, parachuted out, and a farmer captured him. The British could have made great propaganda from the capture but instead, kept him in strict isolation.

Crikey!

After the war, he was convicted of conspiracy, and sentenced to life in Spandau Prison. His secret mission remained undiscovered, so in a bizarre situation, the four Allied powers managed his imprisonment in rotation: France, Britain, the US, and the Soviets. Then at the ripe old age of 94, and very feeble. He hanged himself. The USA was guarding him when he died. So, I pondered over these mysteries, which link America to Rudolph Hess to Scotland and Loch Ness. I stirred in a healthy dose of fiction, and a great story came out of the pot.

Wow. That sounds brilliant. I love fiction founded in fact. I must get round to reading The Black Fox. As well as gthe Loch Ness still, what else have you brought along?

I’ve brought along a picture of Urquhart Castle beside Loch Ness. The final climactic scene is set here.

If the book is as dramatic as the landscape, readers are in for a treat. I know The Black Fox is part of a series. Can it be read independently of the other books?

The Black Fox is the third in the Lambeth Group series. These thrillers are standalone stories that can be ready in any order, but if read in order, development of the main characters builds through the series.

That’s good to know. How would you define the series?

I’m asked from time to time if the stories are crime thrillers. They are not police procedural or detective stories. The Lambeth Group is a secret government department, which brings academics and special forces operatives together to work undercover on specialist criminal and conspiracy investigations deemed too secret and too dangerous for the public judiciary system.

The series take inspiration from the 1970s TV series ‘Doomwatch’. A secret government department, which deploys scientists along with intelligence operatives to investigate, neutralise, and protect the national infrastructure of the UK.

The principal characters are special forces-trained, Zoe Tampsin and university academic, Gavin Shawlens. One Amazon reviewer described the series as Mission Impossible meets James Bond with Zoe as Ethan Hunt and Gavin as Benji Dunn. All the books except the first (Deadly Secrets), feature Zoe as a smart and capable undercover intelligence operative who uses brains and cunning to overcome her adversaries.

I think The Black Fox – and, indeed, the entire Lambeth Group Series – sounds thrilling. Thanks so much for staying in with me to chat about it Gordon.

The Black Fox

Readers’ Favorite Book Awards 2019
Gold Medal Winner in Thriller/Espionage.
A full package of action, adventure, mystery, and thriller suspense with an exhilarating female lead.

Zoe Tampsin is resourceful, smart and special forces-trained, but she has been given an impossible mission. She must protect scientist, Gavin Shawlens, from assassination by the CIA, and discover the secret trapped in Gavin’s mind that the CIA want destroyed.

As the pressure to find Shawlens escalates – the CIA send Zoe’s former mentor to track her down and her fate seems sealed when he surrounds Zoe and Gavin with a ring of steel. With each hour that passes, the ring is tightened, and the window for discovering Gavin’s secret will shut. Zoe is faced with a decision that goes against all of her survival instincts. If she is wrong -they both die. If she is right – she will discover the secret and become the next target for assassination. Run for your life…

The Black Fox is available for purchase here.

About Gordon Bickerstaff

Gordon Bickerstaff hails from Glasgow. He taught biochemistry at several Scottish universities, and undertook laboratory research on enzymes. After thirty years of university teaching and research, including 25 years as an Open University tutor, he retired his academic pen, and picked up a fiction pen.

Gordon lives with my wife in central Scotland where corrupt academics, mystery, murder, and intrigue exists mostly in my mind. He enjoys reading, writing, walking in the hills, 60s & 70s music, and travel.

For more information, visit Gordon’s website, find him on Facebook and Amazon or follow him on Twitter @GFBickerstaff.

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been suffering FOMO. All round the country are wonderful wintry scenes and here in South Lincolnshire it has remained stubbornly snow free. And then I remembered that the lovely Alison Menzies from Elliott and Thompson has sent me a surprise copy of Fifty Words for Snow by Nancy Campbell and so I’m delighted to review that book today.

Published by Elliott and Thompson, Fifty Words for Snow is available for purchase through the links here.

Fifty Words for Snow

Snow. Every language has its own words for the feather-like flakes that come from the sky. In Japanese we find Yuki-onna – a ‘snow woman’ who drifts through the frosted land. In Icelandic falls Hundslappadrifa – ‘big as a dog’s paw’. And in Maori we meet Huka-rere – ‘one of the children of rain and wind’.

From mountain tops and frozen seas to city parks and desert hills, writer and Arctic traveller Nancy Campbell digs deep into the meanings of fifty words for snow. Under her gaze, each of these linguistic snow crystals offers a whole world of myth and story.

My Review of Fifty Words For Snow

Fifty international words for snow.

My goodness, Fifty Words for Snow is a beautiful book in every sense of the word. It is glorious to look at with stylised blue and white frost inspired end papers that match the cover and a sensational snow crystal image on a contrasting blue background to accompany every one of the fifty entries. But physical attributes aside, the written contents are just wonderful. Beautifully researched with references at the end of the book so that readers can extend their enjoyment beyond the pages of Fifty Words for Snow, it was Nancy Campbell’s Prologue that initially captured me, her dedication to Anna and the intensity of emotion behind the book that made it all the more special.

There’s science, geography, ecology, religion, language, literature, history, philosophy, myth and culture and so much more weaving through every entry so that the reader is taken on a fascinating exploration of the world. Nancy Campbell’s writing is poetic and gorgeously descriptive. The opening paragraph to her entry 39. Ttutqiksribvik if presented physically differently on the page would make a glorious poem, for example, and I spent quite a long time rereading the words and visualising them as poetry rather than prose. And I think that’s one of the joys of Fifty Words for Snow. It certainly instructs and entertains, but Nancy Cambell’s writing has a quality that mesmerises even when, as an illustration, she is describing the reason for a 25 km/h lower speed limit in Estonia in her Jäätëë entry.

Fifty Words for Snow is magnificent. It transports the reader far from their own lives into other places from the comfort of their own home. Nancy Campbell’s writing educates subtly even as it distracts the reader, providing so much more than the sum of its fifty entries. I thought it was wonderful.

About Nancy Campbell

Photo by Annie Schlechter

Nancy Campbell is an award-winning writer, described as ‘deft, dangerous and dazzling’ by the Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy. Her travels in the Arctic between 2010 and 2017 have resulted in several projects responding to the environment, most recently The Library of Ice: Readings in a Cold Climate, which was longlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize 2019. Her previous book on the polar environment, Disko Bay, was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection in 2016. She has been a Marie Claire ‘Wonder Woman’, a Hawthornden Fellow and Visual and Performing Artist in Residence at Oxford University. She is currently a Literature Fellow at Internationales Kunstlerhaus Villa Concordia in Bamberg, Germany.

For more information, visit Nancy’s website. You’ll also find her on Twitter @nancycampbelle and Instagram.

It’s far too long since I featured Ruth Ware on Linda’s Book Bag. I was lucky enough to hear Ruth speak at Capital Crime in September 2019 and wrote about that occasion here. Prior to that I featured Ruth’s The Lying Game here and reviewed In a Dark, Dark Wood here. Today, I’m delighted to share my review of Ruth’s The Death of Mrs Westaway which is my book group read for January and was actually my choice!

Published by Penguin imprint Vintage, The Death of Mrs Westaway is available for purchase through the links here.

The Death of Mrs Westaway

When Harriet Westaway receives an unexpected letter telling her she’s inherited a substantial bequest from her Cornish grandmother, it seems like the answer to her prayers.

There’s just one problem – Hal’s real grandparents died more than twenty years ago.

Hal desperately needs the cash and makes a choice that will change her life for ever. She knows that her skills as a seaside fortune teller could help her con her way to getting the money.

But once Hal embarks on her deception, there is no going back. She must keep going or risk losing everything, even her life…

My Review of The Death of Mrs Westaway

Hal needs money – fast!

In the interests of complete honesty, I must confess that I was a little unsure initially that I was going to enjoy The Death of Mrs Westaway as much as I had anticipated because it felt slow at the beginning as Hal’s background is established and I wasn’t sure how it was going to evolve. How wrong can a person be? I loved it! That more measured start is actually essential in drawing in the reader and feeding them information that will prove vital to the plot, but perhaps not in ways they realise – though obviously I can’t say more for fear of spoiling the read. If others have those initial misgivings like me I’d urge them to read on. The Death of Mrs Westaway is a captivating story.

There’s a real sense of the Golden Age of crime writing underpinning modern events like loan sharks, that gives The Death of Mrs Westaway a fresh, yet timeless appeal. The book feels eloquently crafted and so carefully plotted, with a tension that increases as the narrative progresses so that I found myself wondering what was happening with Hal when I wasn’t reading about her and frequently couldn’t set the book aside even when I was supposed to be doing something else. I was drawn into the story until I actually dreamt about it, finding myself in sinister corridors with a threatening sensations in my dreams. Echoes of du Maurier’s Mrs Danvers through the character of Mrs Warren, of Agatha Christie in plotting and setting, and of Shakespearean themes of greed, murder, tyranny and guilt, layer The Death of Mrs Westaway with a fascination that I found completely compelling. I thoroughly enjoyed the slightly mystical and gothic sensation created by the iterative image of tarot and the magpies too. Ruth Ware knows exactly how to enhance her atmosphere by seeping into her reader’s psyche and drawing on their own superstitions and experiences to make her story all the more creepy and hypnotic.

I really enjoyed Hal’s character. Her tenacity when faced with adversity coupled with her sense of right and justice make her an interesting person to read. I felt the way her full name, Harriet, is condensed to Hal brilliantly represented her core strength because she is more powerful than she looks. However, what I enjoyed most about the characterisation in The Death of Mrs Westaway was the way Ruth Ware used those not actually present to drive the narrative. Both Hal’s mother and Mrs Westaway are dead from the outset and yet they have a presence that lingers and shapes in a fascinating way so that the reader realises how even a past we didn’t know we had might affect us in our present and future. Indeed, The Death of Mrs Westaway is one of those books that offers more, the more the reader engages with it.

The Death of Mrs Westaway was not what I was expecting. From an unsure start I was drawn into a tale of intrigue, lies, twists and manipulation that was hugely entertaining and that I thoroughly enjoyed.

About Ruth Ware

Ruth Ware is an international number one bestseller. Her thrillers In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Woman in Cabin 10, The Lying Game, The Death of Mrs Westaway and The Turn of the Key have appeared on bestseller lists around the world, including the Sunday Times and New York Times. Her books have been optioned for TV and film and she is published in more than 40 languages. Ruth lives near Brighton with her family.

For more information, visit Ruth’s website, follow her on Twitter @RuthWareWriter , or find her on Facebook and Instagram.

Now that we are back in lockdown and travel denied us once again, my thoughts turn to the far off places I’ve had the chance to visit in the past. One of the countries I loved was Cambodia where, in spite of its quite recent history, I found the people to be utterly charming. When I realised that Gabrielle Yetter’s book Whisper of the Lotus could transport me back to Cambodia and its people I simply had to ask Gabrielle to write a guest post for Linda’s Book Bag.

Whisper of the Lotus was published on 22nd October 2020 and is available for purchase here.

Whisper of the Lotus

A buzz sounded from inside Charlotte’s handbag, so she stopped and fumbled for the mobile phone she’d switched on after landing. Surely nobody would be contacting her here.
Her fingers curled around it and she flipped open the case and checked the message: Welcome to Cambodia, Charlotte. You have 57 days

Sometimes you have to go a long way from home to come full circle back to discover what was right in front of you..

Charlotte’s mundane, dead-end life lacked excitement. She never imagined that sitting on a plane to Cambodia, struggling with her fear of flying, would lead to her being befriended by Rashid, an old man whose tragic secret would take her on a mystery tour of discovery.

In a land of golden temples, orange-clad monks, and smiling people, Charlotte discovers nothing is as she’d expected. She also never imagined the journey would take her back to the night when her father walked out on the family.

And who was Rashid? Was he just a kindly old man, or was there something deeper sewn into the exquisite fabric of his life?

From the author of The Definitive Guide to Living in Southeast Asia: Cambodia and Just Go! Leave the Treadmill for a World of Adventure, Whisper of the Lotus is a multi-layered story about friendship and family, love and identity, set in an exotic, magical country in Southeast Asia.

Deeper Than Words

A Guest Post by Gabrielle Yetter

The first time we met SomOn was in June of 2010. My husband, Skip, and I had just flown across the world to begin new lives in Cambodia, and SomOn’s face was the first we saw. He stood at the airport gate, clutching a board displaying our names, ushered us into his bright orange tuk-tuk, and drove us to the simple guesthouse that would be our first port of call.

Ten years later, when I published Whisper of the Lotus, SomOn was one of my central characters. His sunny personality and childlike spirit embodied so many of the people we met during our four years in Cambodia and it was only fitting he’d be part of the book.

The story is about the journey of a young woman named Charlotte who goes to Cambodia to visit her best friend and escape from personal challenges back home. On the way, she meets a mysterious old man who changes the direction of her life, causing her to question everything she’d ever believed in. And, when she arrives in Phnom Penh, guess who drove the tuk-tuk that came to meet her?

When Skip and I settled into Cambodia, SomOn’s role became as significant in our lives as it was in Charlotte’s fictional world. A sole breadwinner and father of two beautiful children, SomOn always had a smile on his face and a moment for anyone in need. Once, when visiting a local zoo, we noticed a blind beggar playing a flute nearby. SomOn leapt up, reached into his pocket, and handed him a bundle of notes. Another time, he swerved in the middle of the street, backed up the tuk-tuk and handed money to a widow who was squatting on the corner of the road. This, from a man who made nine dollars on a good day. He would return our cash if we mistakenly overpaid him, invite us to his one-room home for dinner, bring us “happy new year” gifts, and unfailingly show up at our front door every day for almost three years to drive us to work.

In Whisper of the Lotus, he’s Charlotte’s guide and watchdog. He’s also the embodiment of typical Cambodian quirkiness. He speeds through Phnom Penh, “dodging cars and SUVs like an ant between elephants”, insists Charlotte visits the horrifying Tuol Sleng genocide museum on her first day, and tells her “not to worry” when the tuk-tuk becomes trapped in gridlocked traffic on the way to the airport.

Charlotte gasped as they narrowly missed a dog, then groaned out loud when they were forced to stop at another traffic light. Cars, buses, and bikes streamed across the road in front of them, jamming the passageway. The light turned green. Nothing moved.

She leaned forward again. ‘SomOn, how much farther to the airport?’ Her palms were sweaty. This wasn’t looking good.

‘Not long. You fine.’

Aware of the Cambodian tendency for understatement, she looked at her watch. ‘I don’t think we’re fine at all,’ she said. She scanned the street for any sign of traffic movement and saw none. They were stuck.

Since Skip and I left Cambodia five years ago, SomOn has kept in touch through Facebook. He updates me in broken English about his new venture into the guesthouse business, tells me about the challenges of the recent flooding, and sends photos of his family and their activities. So, when I sent him a note telling him I’d written a book and that he was in it, his reply was “Ohh really I’m very happy to hear that,” with two smiley-face emojis.

The following day, his Facebook profile photo had changed. It now showed a smiling SomOn holding a copy of Whisper of the Lotus in front of the Phnom Penh riverside. And even though we may not speak the same language, I know our communication goes deeper than words.

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That’s just wonderful Gabrielle, thank you. Finding out about SomOn brings back many happy memories for me, such as racing through the streets of Phnom Penh in a rickshaw being driven by a manic, laughing one eyed driver who couldn’t keep up with the rest of the group, as well as the more sobering ones of visiting the genocide museum and the Killing Fields. Hearing about SomOn has made me desperate to read Whisper of the Lotus too.

About Gabrielle Yetter

Gabrielle Yetter has lived in India, Bahrain, South Africa, Cambodia, England and the USA. She worked as a journalist in South Africa, owned a dining guide in San Diego, wrote a cookbook about traditional Cambodian desserts and freelanced for publications and online sites in the US, The Netherlands, South Africa, and Southeast Asia.

In 2010, she and her husband, Skip, sold their home in the US, quit their jobs, gave away most of their possessions, and bought a one-way ticket to Cambodia.

In June 2015, she co-authored Just Go! Leave the Treadmill for a World of Adventure, with Skip. In May 2016, she published her first children’s picture book, Ogden, The Fish Who Couldn’t Swim Straight followed by Martha The Blue Sheep in 2017.

She lives in Eastbourne, England and her first novel, Whisper of the Lotus, was released in November 2020.

For more information, visit Gabrielle’s website, find her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @gabster2.