My enormous gratitude to Alice Jolly for a copy of Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile in return for an honest review. I have been privileged to read another of Alice’s books, Dead Babies and Seaside Towns and to interview her here, shortly after I began blogging, so when Alice asked if I’d like a copy of Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile I jumped at the chance.

Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile is published by Unbound on 14th June 2018 and is available for purchase here.

Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile

If you tell a story oft enough
So it become true

As the nineteenth century draws towards a close, Mary Ann Sate, an elderly maidservant, sets out to write her truth.

She writes of the Valleys that she loves, of the poisonous rivalry between her employer’s two sons and of a terrible choice which tore her world apart.

Her haunting and poignant story brings to life a period of strife and rapid social change, and evokes the struggles of those who lived in poverty and have been forgotten by history.

In this fictional found memoir, novelist Alice Jolly uses the astonishing voice of Mary Ann to recreate history as seen from a woman’s perspective and to give joyful, poetic voice to the silenced women of the past.

My review of Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile

Whilst caring for her ill master, servant Mary Ann Sate writes her life story.

Oh! Just occasionally there comes a work of fiction that is beyond definition and beyond superlatives. Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile is one such book. It is, quite simply, exquisite. I was spellbound from the first word to the last. Alice Jolly has not written a book about Mary Ann Sate; rather she has become Mary Ann Sate and bewitched me by her writing. Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile is, in fact, not merely a work of fiction, but is a work of genius. I am not sure where to begin to review it.

When I opened the book and saw that there isn’t a single full stop in over 600 pages I was initially daunted, but the moment I started reading I found the rhythms and cadences of the writing are like a beating heart that mesmerises and enthralls and I could not tear myself away. Set out rather like a ballad or narrative poem Mary Ann’s vernacular voice is rich and vibrant. Her emotions, her life and her personality shimmer and resonate so that it is impossible not to want to read the next section and the next.

So often I was reminded of the most meritorious work of our literary heritage because Alice Jolly writes with unparalleled skill. Wordsworth’s The Prelude, the poetry of John Clare and Gerard Manly Hopkins and so many more, echo through such is the richness of Alice Jolly’s words. Every word is carefully crafted and not a syllable is extraneous to this glorious tapestry of politics, medicine, education, social history, geography and humanity. The poetic quality of the writing conveys place especially well and I loved the colloquial spellings and style.

But alongside the dazzling literary merit that underpins Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile is fabulous storytelling, wonderful characterisation and a sense of place and history that is utterly beguiling. Mary Ann’s accounts of her love for Ambrose, the brutality of her early childhood, her gradual unfolding of events and the truth all make for a compelling narrative that entertains completely. I loved finding out about life at the time from the perspective of this very ordinary, and simultaneously extraordinary, woman. I feel changed by reading about her because of her gratitude for the precious drops of joy in life. So often her words conveyed so perfectly how I have often felt but have been unable to articulate.

I think the story works so incredibly well because it has its foundations in meticulously researched historical detail and whilst everything in the book is filtered through Mary Ann’s perspective, all of the remaining characters are still completely vivid and believable. I particularly loved the comic relief so often provided Nettie and I hated Freda Woebegone with a passion that surprised me.

I’m finding it impossible to convey what an amazing book I think this is. Mary Ann Sate, Imbecile is astounding. It is literary, accessible and absorbing. I think it may be the most remarkable book I have ever read and I feel privileged to have done so. I urge everyone to read it so that their lives can be enriched as mine has been.

About Alice Jolly

Alice Jolly is a novelist and playwright.

She has published two novels with Simon and Schuster and has been commissioned four times by the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham. She has also written for Paines Plough and her work has been performed at The Tristan Bates Theatre in Covent Garden and The Space, East London. Her memoir Dead Babies and Seaside Towns was published by Unbound in July 2015 and won the Pen/Ackerley Prize. In 2014 one of her short stories won The Royal Society of Literature’s V.S. Pritchett Memorial Prize.

She teaches creative writing on the Mst at Oxford University.

Find out more about Alice on her website or follow her on Twitter @JollyAlice. You can also find her on Facebook.

Here on Linda’s Book Bag I frequently mention my love of travel. Today I’m thrilled that my guest Ivy Ngeow is taking me off around the world again as we stay in to chat about one of Ivy’s books.

Staying in with Ivy Ngeow

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag, Ivy. 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 Cry of the Flying Rhino and I have chosen it because it is my debut novel and it won the 2016 International Proverse Prize.

(Oh! How exciting. Congratulations. I also understand more congratulations are in order as your new novel Heart of Glass was published earlier this week too and there is more information here.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Cry of the Flying Rhino?

Cry of the Flying Rhino is a modern novel set in the railway town of Segamat, which has already been deforested and turned into miles of plantation, and Borneo, whose jungles are under threat. It is written in multiple viewpoints and is set in the 1990s and 2000s. The Chinese GP, Benjie, has been forced to marry Talisa, a mysterious and tattooed teenager, and the adopted daughter of wealthy crass Scottish landowner Ian. Benjie has to discover for himself his wife’s true identity, when Minos and Watan, two Ibans who leave the jungle and appear in Segamat one day, looking for Talisa.

(This sounds very interesting Ivy.)

I am quite pleased that the writing has been compared to my heroes, amongst others, Orwell and Burgess:

Anyone impressed, anyone imprinted upon and inspired by Lalwani, Roy, Chatterjee, Burgess, Lowry or Orwell, will be correspondingly affected by Ngeow. – Professor Jason S. Polley, Department of English, Hong Kong Baptist University

(My goodness. That’s quite an accolade. You must be thrilled with the comparisons.) 

You will also find out in the book what is a flying rhino and why does it cry.

(And I’m very intrigued to do so Ivy!)

What else have you brought along and why? 

I have brought along some inciting photographs.

Cry of the Flying Rhino was written thirteen years ago after I made my one and only trip to Borneo with my mother. I was inspired by the dark, macabre and gothic nature of communal longhouse living and the tribal civilisation and culture which have been around for thousands of years.

Two things triggered some ideas. Firstly, during the trip, I saw a tattoo parlour called Headhunters. It piqued my interest in the traditional art and symbolism of Iban tattooing, performed manually with a hammer, steel pin and ink made from tree ash. Secondly, long after our trip, I dreamt of a girl in a longhouse with eyes as huge as the “hollows of the benuah tree”. Those words came to me in the dream. I wrote them down. She looked sad and haunted and there was also terror in her eyes. I did not know who she was or what the dream was about but something unpleasant and unusual had happened to her and I set about finding out about the Iban culture, which I later discovered, is based on dreams. That dreams were everything, our hopes, work, happiness and luck.

(Wow – that’s quite a stimulus for your writing.)

In exploring the two triggers above, I found out that indigenous cultures are threatened and dying, because of loss of habitat due to logging and deforestation, and due to the conversion of the Ibans to other religions. As a result, orang asli (original people) like the Ibans are forced to leave their habitat for the city because their livelihood, dependent on being able to survive in the jungles on the fat of the land, is diminishing due to the jungles being cleared. Their way of life which is so rich in folklore, superstition and traditions will soon be lost. Ultimately the rapid destruction of the jungles will impact upon the rest of the world via climate change and so on. I also found out that children tattooed children which ensured that the art would never die. If adults were one day wiped out by an epidemic or a massacre, the surviving children would all have learned and mastered all survival and artistic skills including tattooing.

(This is utterly fascinating Ivy. I’m thrilled you’ve shared these images and the information with us today.)

Ivy, thank you so much for staying in with me to introduce Cry of the Flying Rhino. I’m absolutely intrigued by what you’ve told me and I’m sure many blog readers will be too.

Cry of the Flying Rhino

Cry Of The Flying Rhino is set in 1996 Malaysia and Borneo, told from multiple viewpoints and in multiple voices.

Malaysian Chinese family doctor Benjie Lee has had a careless one night stand with his new employee – mysterious, teenage Talisa, the adopted daughter of a wealthy, crass Scottish plantation owner, Ian, in the provincial Malaysian town of Segamat. Talisa’s arms are covered in elaborate tattoos, symbolic of great personal achievements among the Iban tribe in her native Borneo. Talisa has fallen pregnant and Ian forces Benjie to marry her. Benjie, who relished his previous life as a carefree, cosmopolitan bachelor, struggles to adapt to life as a husband and father.

Meanwhile, Minos – an Iban who has languished ten years in a Borneo prison for a murder he didn’t commit – is released into English missionary Bernard’s care.

One day, Minos and his sidekick and fellow ex-convict Watan appear in Segamat, forcing Benjie to confront his wife’s true identity and ultimately his own fears. Are the tattoos the key to her secrets?

Cry Of The Flying Rhino is published by Proverse and is available for purchase here.

About Ivy Ngeow

Ivy Ngeow was born and raised in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. A graduate of the Middlesex University Writing MA programme, Ivy won the 2005 Middlesex University Press Literary Prize out of almost 1500 entrants worldwide. She has written non-fiction for Marie Claire, The Star, The New Straits Times, South London Society of Architects’ Newsletter and Wimbledon magazine. Her fiction has appeared in Silverfish New Writing anthologies twice, The New Writer and on the BBC World Service. Her story Funny Mountain was published by Fixi Novo in an anthology Hungry in Ipoh.

Ivy won first prize in the Commonwealth Essay Writing Competition 1994, first prize in the Barnes and Noble Career Essay Writing competition 1998 and was shortlisted for the David T K Wong Fellowship 1998 and the Ian St James Award 1999. Her debut novel, Cry of the Flying Rhino, won the 2016 International Proverse Prize.

Ivy has been a highly-accomplished multi-instrumental musician since childhood and won fifth prize (out of 850 entrants) in the 2006 1-MIC (Music Industry Charts) UK Award for her original song, ‘Celebrity’. Her second novel Heart of Glass, published by Unbound, UK, will be out from 5 June 2018.

To find out more you can follow Ivy on Twitter @ivyngeow and visit her website where you can also obtain signed copies of Cry Of The Flying Rhino.

You know, one of the absolute joys of being a book blogger is the opportunity it affords me to discover all kinds of new books and authors well in advance of their publication dates. Today I have one such combination as I stay in with Dean Mayes to discuss one of his books.

Staying in with Dean Mayes

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

Hi Linda. Thank you for having me.

Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it? 

This evening I’ve brought along my brand new contemporary romance, The Artisan Heart. It is my fourth novel for Central Avenue Publishing. After exploring slightly different genres over the past couple of releases (literary fiction and psychological thriller), it is nice to return to my romantic roots with this novel.

(I love books by men with a romantic element. I think The Artisan Heart would be my kind of read.)

What can we expect from an evening in with The Artisan Heart?

The Artisan Heart is unique, I think, in that I have crafted a romantic story in which the gender roles of the two protagonists are kind of flipped on their heads. Both Hayden and Isabelle come to the story, each recovering from fairly destructive relationships and they approach each other as equals rather than traditional man and woman.

In fact, as the story progresses, we find Isabelle taking the lead in the “dance” if you will, which I think is refreshing in romantic fiction. You could even call it a feminist romance.

(Hmm – you might just have coined a new genre there Dean!)

The Artisan Heart also portrays a character who is deaf. Isabelle’s daughter Genevieve has been deaf from a very young age and she communicates through sign language (AUSLAN sign language). This presented a challenge for me in that I basically had to learn a whole lot of signing dialogue and portray it as a natural part of the story, without making the character seem simple. That is probably one of the things I’m most proud of with The Artisan Heart.

(I’m always amazed by the amount of research and effort that authors put in to their work Dean. This must have been a really interesting challenge.)

What else have you brought along and why? 

So, I’ve brought along one of Isabelle’s delicious bread loaves to share with you. Isabelle is an Artisan baker and she’s trying to resurrect Walhalla’s long dormant bakery. This is pumpkin and poppy seed which is one of Isabelle’s signature loaves baked in her wood oven and she’s become renowned for it throughout the town. Isabelle recommends you slice it thick and lightly toast it before serving with lashings of butter.  One wonders whether her baking has magical properties. She is just so popular.

That bread is just delicious. I think I’ll have another slice! Thank you so much for staying in with me Dean, and telling me all about Isabella and The Artisan Heart. I’ve really enjoyed our evening.

The Artisan Heart

Hayden Luschcombe is a brilliant pediatrician living in Adelaide with his wife, an ambitious event planner. His life consists of soul-wrenching days at the hospital and tedious evenings attending the lavish parties organized by his wife.

When an act of betrayal coincides with a traumatic event at the hospital, Hayden flees. His destination is Walhalla, nestled in Australia’s southern mountains, where he finds his childhood home falling apart. With nothing to return to, he stays, and begins to pick up the pieces of his life by fixing up the house his parents left behind.

A chance encounter with a precocious and deaf young girl introduces Hayden to Isabelle Sampi, a struggling artisan baker. While single-handedly raising her daughter and trying to resurrect a bakery, Isabelle has no time for matters of the heart. Yet the presence of the new handsome doctor challenges her resolve. Likewise, Hayden is protective of his own fractured heart, but something about Isabelle awakens dormant feelings of his own.

As their attraction grows, and the past threatens their chance at happiness, both Hayden and Isabelle will have to confront long-buried truths if they are ever to embrace a future.

The Artisan Heart will be published by Central Avenue on 1st September 2018 and is available for pre-order here.

About Dean Mayes

Dean Mayes released his first novel The Hambledown Dream in 2010.

Dean lives in Adelaide, Australia with his partner Emily, their two children Xavier and Lucy. An Intensive Care Nurse with over 15 years of clinical experience in adult, paediatric and neonatal medicine, he can often be found lying on a hospital gurney at 3 in the morning with a notebook in hand, madly scribbling ideas while on his break.

You can find out more on Dean’s website, follow him on Twitter @Hambledown_Road and find him on Facebook.

I’m a strong believer in the idea that books, literature and reading can offer support and solace to many and be a force for good.

Last week I heard all about The Pound Project’s attempts to raise funds for The John Hewitt Society through a campaign in honour of Birmingham-based singer, poet, guitarist and actor Paul Murphy, who died of cancer aged 66. Unfortunately, with my laptop in for repair I wasn’t able to find out more until today.

The Campaign

Storyteller, author, actor, poet, musician, activist, teacher, troubadour, father, grandfather: the next story from The Pound Project is written by the late Paul Murphy (1949-2016).

To coincide with Paul’s birthday at the start of August The Pound Project are working with his family to release an exclusive, previously unpublished short story from the great man to raise money for the John Hewitt Society – a Northern Ireland based charity that supports writers with invaluable funding, teaching and advice.

The contents of the little book are top secret. However, it is a brilliant story of journeys and identity. There is also a prologue to the story written by Paul’s son Daniel.

The good news is that for just £1 you can read the story online or download the audio. For just £5 upwards The Pound Project will deliver a beautiful little printed book of the story right to your door.

I’ve opted for the £5 pledge and only wish I could afford to do more. If you want to know more click here.

You can follow The Pound Project on Twitter @_pound_project and find them on Facebook.

The John Hewitt Society

The John Hewitt Society provides opportunities for individuals across Northern Ireland to explore issues of difference and identity through literature and creative writing. Inspired by the ideals and ideas of the poet and political writer John Hewitt, The Society was established in 1987 to promote Hewitt’s ethos of utilising literature and the arts as a medium for tackling prejudice, exclusive concepts of identity, and sectarian hostility.

For thirty years The John Hewitt Society has developed a range of literary and cultural activities to break down parochialism, narrow, exclusive concepts of identity, and hostility towards the ‘other’.

You can visit the website and follow The John Hewitt Society on Twitter @The_JHS and find them on Facebook.

There are so many ways a book appeals to a reader, and I’m delighted to welcome Trevor D’Silva to stay in with me on Linda’s Book Bag today as he has so many elements in his writing that are my favourites. I can’t wait to find out more so let’s get going.

Staying in with Trevor D’Silva

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

Thank you for having me. It is my pleasure to be here with you and take this opportunity to talk to you about my love for history and fiction.

Two of my favourite subjects! Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it? 

I have brought my first novel, Fateful Decisions, which was published in October 2017. People love to read novels, as it allows them to forget the daily pressures of this world, helps them to relax, and slip into a different world. However, a lot of people do not like history. History was my favorite subject in school and I excelled in it. I love remembering dates and events and I can still recall them. Since I love reading novels and history, what better way to combine the two and make it an interesting read for people! They can enjoy the story and at the same time learn about the historical events that took place during the period the novel is set in.

(Brilliant! And as someone who loves both reading and history I think Fateful Decisions could be just my kind of book, Trevor.) 

My novel is set in America and Europe (England, France, and a small portion in Italy) between 1915 to 1946. Therefore, it is filled with historical events from that time period, starting with the sinking of the Lusitania, the Suffragette Movement, The Great Depression, The Russian Revolution and of course World Wars I and II. It is carefully researched (took me seventeen years to write it as I was concentrating on getting my degrees) and is full of historical facts, not usually taught in school.

(Crikey! That’s a lot of time spent researching. I’m not surprised though as Fateful Decisions seems to cover a very volatile and important part of our recent history. Sounds fascinating.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Fateful Decisions?

My book, Fateful Decisions, is a historical fiction novel. The book also contains romance, military history, suspense and also many thrilling events, which all come under the umbrella of historical fiction. The beauty of historical fiction is that, a lot of other genres can come under it and that is why it can appeal to people who love various other genres.

(Good point!)

It is about Rachel Williams meeting two men on the Lusitania in 1915. When the ship sinks, one of the men saves her. Two years later, she meets them at a fund raising event, when America goes to war. Both of them propose to her and she of course is in a dilemma and does not know whom to choose. She asks an elderly relative for advice and she is told to choose carefully. Here is an excerpt from the novel:

Rachel got up to leave and Aunt Victoria said, “My child, remember that the man you want to marry is your own decision, and that decision has consequences.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, about your life, the children you will have, and how everything will impact the world.”

Rachel smiled and went to her room. She knew that Aunt Victoria’s last piece of advice came from her wisdom, and she had to think carefully about making the correct decision. She had no idea that many years later, she would think a lot about this piece of advice.

(How intriguing. Of course, I want to know what happens to Rachel now… But I suppose that was your idea!)

She makes her decision and from then on, the story goes onto what happens to her, her family, the people that get involved with them, within a thirty year period. They too make decisions and their lives are altered due to the historical events they are involved in at that time. For example: one of the characters is stuck in Paris during the occupation by the Nazis and she has to make a decision whether to join the French Resistance or not. At the end of the novel, based on what has happened to her and to her family, Rachel has to come to a conclusion if she made the right decision to marry the man whom she chose to marry.

Now, from the synopsis or excerpt, most people would think it is a romance novel, solely for women. However, it is also for men as it contains suspense, thrilling episodes, and military history. From the reviews I have obtained, women usually tell me that they like Rachel and the men usually like the military history part and the main male character in the novel. The military history part takes place in Hawaii and in Europe. There are French and British characters featured in the novel along with the main American characters (real and imaginary). Many people told me that they could not put down the novel and it is pleasing to hear that I achieved what I set out to do with my first novel, which is, to write an interesting hard to put down novel, combining both history and fiction, set in the early part of the twentieth century.

(How lovely to have that kind of feedback Trevor. Congratulations.)

What else have you brought along and why? 

I like various kinds of food. So, I brought along some bread pudding because I have a sweet tooth and since wine is featured in my novel in more than one chapter, I brought one of the California wines which I love. You will have to read to see how wine plays an important part in my novel. I like lasagna and that goes very well with wine. Fresh salad with Romaine lettuce, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes and Catalina dressing.

(Oh! You can come back to stay in with me again Trevor if you’re going to bring food like this. Bread pudding is one of my absolute favourites!)

I read on your blog that you have just returned from India. I am originally from India and now live in America. If you want something spicier, I have brought basmati rice and chicken curry; simple but tasty. I know it is a lot of different foods, but like my story which has many genres, each dish has something to offer for everyone. All are welcome to join to eat while we discuss the book.

(I have indeed recently been to India and I can’t wait to return. I wouldn’t worry about the range of foods you’ve brought Trevor. I’m perfectly up to tasting them all except for the wine as it seems to make me ill these days.)

The photo that fits with an interesting part in the novel is the one of Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the balcony with the royal family on Victory Day in Europe when the war ended in 1945. The reason why I like this picture is because the character the men usually like and identify with, witnesses this event and also gets to dance with two people standing on the balcony. You will have to read to see who they are.

No, no, no Trevor. You can’t just leave us wondering like that. I suppose we’ll just have to read the book to get the answers! Thanks so much for staying in with me and telling me all about Fateful Decisions – and for bringing all that lovely food!

Fateful Decisions

It’s 1915 in the heat of WWI. Two friends heading to England aboard the British ocean liner, RMS Lusitania, meet and fall in love with a charismatic woman. After battling for her affection, Rachel Williams makes her decision, beginning a journey that no one can predict or soon forget. For the next thirty years, Rachel is forced to live with the choice she made, as the dominos fall around her, sequentially.

Is there a sinister force at work? Who can Rachel trust? Will Rachel ultimately regret her decision when she learns how it impacted others?

Set in America and Europe, history and fiction intertwine, commencing with the sinking of Lusitania. Historical events like The Russian Revolution, Prohibition, The Great Depression and World Wars I and II also play important roles in the lives of the characters and the decisions they make to love, betray, forgive, and reconcile.

Fateful Decisions is available for purchase from your local Amazon and on Barnes and Noble.

About Trevor D’Silva

Trevor D’Silva has a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering; M.S. degrees in Engineering Management, and Environmental Engineering; and an Associate degree in Accounting. He has lectured in mechanical engineering and environmental science subjects at various colleges. Fateful Decisions is his first novel, encompassing history and fiction from WW I to the end of WW II. He uses his free time to expand his knowledge in history and reading crime, thrillers, and mystery novels.

You can visit Trevor’s website for more details, follow him on Twitter @TrevorDAuthor, and find him on Instagram.

Everyone who regularly reads Linda’s Book Bag knows that I love travel as much as I love books so I was thrilled when Rosanna Ley wrote a fabulous guest post on Travel and Research when The Little Theatre by the Sea was published. You can read that post here. I also reviewed Rosanna’s Last Dance in Havana here and that book made it onto my favourite reads of the year here.

Today, as Her Mother’s Secret is about to be released in paperback on 14th June, I’m reviewing this latest book from Rosanna that transports me to another place once again. And if you have a look at this blog post, you’ll know why I’m thrilled to be featuring Her Mother’s Secret on the blog!

Her Mother’s Secret is published by Quercus and is available for purchase here.

Her Mother’s Secret

For many years Colette has avoided returning to her homeland – the magical island of Belle-Île-en-Mer in Southern Brittany – afraid to confront the painful memories she left behind. She is living on the Cornish coast when she hears about her mother Thea’s failing health and realises that the time has come for her to go home. But can Colette ever forgive Thea for what she has done?

Despite Colette’s wariness, romantic Belle-Île still fascinates her. She takes on the running of her mother’s flower shop and makes friends with Élodie from the Old Lighthouse where Thea once worked as a nanny and with the enigmatic Étienne who shares Colette’s mixed feelings about the island. As Thea opens up to her for the first time, Colette finds herself softening and being drawn back into the landscape of her past. But can Belle-Île also be a part of her future?

The ghosts of that past still linger. What happened all those years ago and how did it cause the rift between mother and daughter?

It becomes clear that the beauty of Belle-Île hides a devastating family secret – one that Colette is determined to unravel at any cost.

My Review of Her Mother’s Secret

Colette’s return to Belle-Île will bring more than just a reconciliation with her mother.

I expected that I would enjoy reading Her Mother’s Secret by Rosanna Ley, but I hadn’t realised just how much of a siren call this book would have. Life interfered so it took me a week to read it, but in between each reading session I found myself wondering how the characters were getting on without me and what was happening in Belle-Île.

The characters in Her Mother’s Secret are so three dimensional and realistic that it is impossible not to feel totally engaged with them. Indeed, although I understood Mark, I would quite happily have punched him quite hard on a couple of occasions and I’d like to have enveloped Étienne in my arms and held him close. Rosanna Ley employs the men partly as effective backdrops to the women in her narrative so that it makes them all much more vivid and human. I found it fascinating how Thea, who actually has little action as she is dying, is the glue that holds the whole story together, giving a coherence and emotion that ripples though every part of the book. What I found so moving is the exploration of how we not only deceive others, but often we delude and deceive ourselves too. There’s such a strong sense that life is for the living and a message that we need to make the most of our lives, to forgive others, and, more importantly, to forgive ourselves.

The plot is a cracker. So much guilt, so many half-truths and secrets swirl and settle, only to be shaken again, that Her Mother’s Secret is hugely entertaining and frequently quite mysterious. I thought the use of ellipsis was inspired as it tantalises the reader and the smatterings of French add authenticity and realism. Reading Rosanna Ley’s writing feels a bit like having silk next to the skin. It’s smooth and luxurious but a change of pace movement can create a gasp too! I also thought reading Her Mother’s Secret is a bit like watching the ocean around Belle-Île. It ebbs and flows like the tide. Occasionally it is calm and unruffled and occasionally stormy and tempestuous. It is ever changing and mesmerising. Her Mother’s Secret has a real ‘lingerability’ (and if you’ve read it you’ll appreciate that word) – through its story, but equally through its setting.

Rosanna Ley really has a skilful ability to transport a reader to another place. Every sense is catered for so that I genuinely felt as if I were in Belle-Île too as I read. The depth of research that has gone into the plant and flower references, the artistic elements and the geography and tradition of the region mean that the reader trusts the author entirely and can luxuriate in fabulous storytelling.

I so enjoyed this story. Her Mother’s Secret led me away from my own life for a while and I was completely absorbed by it. I think it is the perfect summer read because it has depth, emotion, a fabulous sense of place and, above all, wonderful storytelling. Don’t miss it.

About Rosanna Ley

Rosanna Ley is the bestselling author of novels including Return to Mandalay and The Villa, which sold over 310,000 copies. In February 2015 Return to Mandalay was shortlisted for the RNA Award for the Epic Romantic Novel. She has written numerous articles and short stories for magazines, and her novels have been published in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, Norway, Hungary, Portugal, Lithuania, Turkey and the Czech Republic. The Villa is also published by Quercus in the US.

Rosanna has also worked as a creative writing tutor for over 20 years. She has led courses for colleges and universities in England, and runs her own writing retreats in the UK and abroad in Italy and Spain. She has worked with community groups in therapeutic settings and completed an MA in Creative Writing for Personal Development in order to support this. She also runs a manuscript appraisal service to appraise and mentor the work of new writers.  She is married with children and lives in Dorset.

You’ll find out more about Rosanna Ley on Facebook and you can follow her on Twitter @rosannaley. You can also visit her website.

Often we hear about how we never finding out about our past until it’s too late and the people we want to speak with have left us. Today I’m delighted to welcome M. Mc Donald to Linda’s Book Bag as Maria has managed to write a book about her great-grandfather that she’s come along to share with us today.

Staying in with M. Mc Donald

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag, Maria. 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 Charlie Mac as it is my first novel.  It is semi-biographical, historical fiction based on the life of my great-grandfather, Charlie McMullen.

(It must have been fascinating to research then Maria.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Charlie Mac?

Charlie lived during the most turbulent time in Irish history.  Born at the start of the Home Rule campaign, he died just short of 50 years later after the campaign died with the partition of Ireland.

But this story is not about the events of those 50 years but about the ordinary people who lived through those extraordinary times.  Charlie was a Protestant from East Belfast who married a Catholic girl from the Mourne mountains.  Theirs was a mixed marriage in a sectarian city but they only cared about each other and their family.

This book is an easy read, a lovely story about good people trying to do their best for their loved ones during traumatic times.

(I think we all need books like Charlie Mac at times so that we can experience lovely stories.)

What else have you brought and why?

I used to watch my granny McMullen bake soda bread on her griddle pan as a child.  We ate it hot off the griddle with the butter melting onto our fingers.  I made some this morning and brought it with me.  It is just as good cold, with real butter and strong cheddar.

(Ooh. That’s definitely my kind of food Maria. Thanks for bringing it!)

We can eat while we listen to Brian Kennedy’s version of ‘You raise me up’, it is the most haunting rendition of that song.  Like myself, Brian is a Belfast native.

Great choice of music! Thank you so much for staying in with me to introduce Charlie Mac. Maria. I think your great-grandfather would be delighted to find himself the subject of a book.

Charlie Mac

Charlie was born in East Belfast in 1873, at a time when Belfast was one of the leading industrialist cities in the British Empire. He was born at the start of a very long-running Irish Home Rule Campaign and he died just short of 50 years later after that campaign died with the establishment of the border dividing Ireland. He married a country girl, Mary Jane from Annalong, County Down, who had a completely different upbringing. Brought up on a small holding on the lowest slopes of the Mourne Mountains, Mary Jane practised a different religion but they both thought that the love they felt for each other was more important than any differences in upbringing. Their families disagreed, their neighbours disagreed but they persevered, happily devoted to each other and devoted to their family.
This story follows Charlie and Mary Jane from they met and set up home together until Charlie died, three days after being shot in his own home as he sat in his favourite armchair. It follows their lives together bringing up their six children, one son who died at eight months and the pain that premature death brought on them, one son who was seriously injured in World War 1 fighting with the Royal Irish Rifles in support of Home Rule, two sons who fought in the War of Independence with the Irish Volunteers while their section of Ireland was in the process of partition, one daughter who lost her sweetheart at the Somme and argued with her brothers over their choices at every stage and one daughter who played peacemaker at every stage.
It follows the divisions that existed in Irish society at that time, the differences and the similarities of each opposing section and the effect on those living through it. Charlie and Mary Jane had a mixed marriage in a sectarian city, a city which was divided by religion and politics and eventually led to the division of a country. Theirs is not a story of rebellion and heroism, of freedom fighters or socialists; their story is not even a love story. This is just an ordinary tale of ordinary people trying to live their lives in extraordinary times.

Charlie Mac is available for purchase here.

About M. Mc Donald

Maria McDonald lives in Kildare, with her family, an avid reader who loves to write.  Maria’s debut novel ‘Charlie Mac’ is available on Amazon.  She has had several short stories and articles published in Woman’s Way and Ireland’s Own among others.  Maria also writes a weekly blog here. https://mariamcdonaldblog.wordpress.com/

You can follow Maria on Twitter @mcdonaldkildare and find her on Instagram and Goodreads.

My grateful thanks to the author Winnie Mak Tselikas for a prize copy of London Hat Hunting Mission and a wonderful Parth doll. I have a confession, I didn’t actually realise I was entering a competition! I was just sharing the book love! However, I’m so glad I did. I shall be passing on this prize to my great-nephew and I know he’ll be thrilled.

Winnie has kindly signed the book for Luke too:

London Hat Hunting Mission is available for purchase with all the dolls directly through the website.

London Hat Hunting Mission

Four little friends, Lea, Hope, Jun and Parth are exploring London to look for magic hats to cure Mr. Globe’s headache! Where will they visit in this multicultural city? Will they find all the hats they need?

While you read the story and role play with your children, they will get to discover iconic places in London and learn how different children can play and work together in harmony! The hard cover London Hat Hunting Mission is the first one in “The Adventures in One Dear World” collection and your children will be able to travel around the world with our dolls in our future stories.

My Review of London Hat Hunting Mission

Four culturally diverse children set out on an adventure in London to try to cure Mr Globe’s terrible headache.

What a charming and delightful book London Hat Hunting Mission is. Firstly, I must comment on the quality of the production. There’s a smashing mix of images of the four children alongside photographs of London so that children can really get to see the places in the story. It would appeal to children living in the capital, but also enable others to travel there vicariously too so that the setting is just right for all. The paper is glossy and thick and the hard cover very durable so that I think this is a book that will last well over many, many readings.

The language in the book is a super mix of accessible and challenging words so that children can have the satisfaction of reading the story to themselves or younger siblings as well as extending their own vocabulary. I thought the inclusion of some phrases in other languages than English was inspired too as these really underpin the message of celebrating cultural diversity and friendship. Equally, London Hat Hunting Mission would lend itself really well to being read to younger children.

The inclusion of the game in the end papers to follow where the four children have travelled gives added value to the book too. However, the most important aspect of London Hat Hunting Mission is its underlying messages. The fact that these four children come from different ethnicities and have equal status regardless of gender gives important signals to children about how we can live together harmoniously. I really appreciate the fact they are carrying out a good deed to help Mr Globe too as children can learn that kindness brings its own rewards and working in a team is beneficial.

I thought London Hat Hunting Mission was a smashing book and I thoroughly applaud the author in her mission to celebrate, support and extend cultural diversity through a lively adventure.

Alongside the book I also have a Parth doll who is utterly delightful, well made and perfect for children of all ages!

About Winnie Mak Tselikas

Winnie Mak Tselikas is a believer in diversity. Born and raised in Hong Kong, she studied engineering, worked in commercial sales and in 2011 switched to education upon moving to London. There, she met her half-French, half-Greek husband and they had a son, who now has family in China, France, Greece, HK, the UK and the US. Winnie considers her son to be a world citizen rather than of a particular nationality or culture. Inspired by her family and London’s diversity, she founded One Dear World and created the lovely adventures of Mr. Globe and the little Londoner dolls.

You can find out more by visiting the One Dear World website finding them on Facebook and by following Winnie on Twitter @OneDearWorld.

I’m ashamed to say that I don’t often feature fantasy on Linda’s Book Bag but I do love YA fiction so I’m delighted to have the chance welcome Maria Vermisoglou to the blog to stay in with me and enlighten me a bit more today.

Staying in with Maria Vermisoglou

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Maria. 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 carry with me the first adventure of The Cursed Girl series. It’s the first book I have ever published and I am very excited about it. I started writing it four years ago and in 1st April 2018 (Yes, it is a joke!) I finally published it. It was a hard journey since English is not my first language and knew nothing about the process but I managed.

(Gosh. It’s hard enough writing a book without doing so in another language. Congratulations.)

What can we expect from an evening in with The Cursed Girl?

You can expect just about everything from The Cursed Girl. Love, friendship, backstabbing, twists at every turn. It’s an epic fantasy story unlike anything else you have ever read.

(It sounds very exciting.)

Here are some of the recent reviews:

The Cursed Girl is a fantastic story, set in a well-crafted magical reality

I just finished reading the book today and it left me speechless

Good reading and the name itself makes the novel a top academic story

(You should be very proud of those reviews Maria.)

What else have you brought along and why?

I’ve brought with me a photo of Venice. I visited some time ago and was fascinated with it.

(Oh. Yes. I love Venice – such an inspirational place to visit.)

I also have with me one of my favorite scenes in the book.

And now you’ve made me want to read The Cursed Girl even more. Thank you so much for staying in with me to tell me more about it Maria. 

The Cursed Girl

Sixteen-year-old Eva is a witch who lived in Spain, in the year 1230. She met a boy named Jonathan who would become her whole world. Everything was normal until she was faced with challenges that would change her life forever.

As a healer, her job is to help people, but there are forces that will try to prevent that. There is a war coming and Eva and her friends must do everything they can to survive.

Can they fight their way against the dark forces that are surrounding them?

Her wits and inner strength helped everyone who encircled her to survive but will she be able to survive herself?

Supernatural creatures, royal backstabbing and many more await you in this thrilling novel that will take your breath away.

The Cursed Girl is available for purchase through the links here. There is a smashing trailer for The Cursed Girl here.

About Maria Vermisoglou

Maria Vermisoglou is a librarian who lives in Greece. She has been a booklover ever since she learned to read. Her vivid imagination helped her create the magic world of ‘the cursed girl’. She loves trips, books and walks with her friends. Not necessarily in that order.
You can find more about her upcoming series here and find her on Facebook.

My grateful thanks to Clara Diaz at Little Brown for a copy of Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van by Ali McNamara in return for an honest review. I so loved Ali’s The Summer of Serendipity, my review of which you can read here, that I was delighted to receive a copy of Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van.

Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van will be published by Sphere, a Little Brown imprint, on 14th June 2018 and is available for purchase here.

Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van

Welcome to the gorgeous Cornish town of St Felix, where there’s magic in the air…

When Ana inherits a broken-down camper van from her best friend, she takes the chance for a quick trip to Cornwall – some sea air and fish and chips on the beach is just the tonic she needs.

But St Felix has bigger plans for Ana. She discovers a series of unsent postcards, dating back to the 1950s, hidden in the upholstery of the van. Ana knows that it’s a sign: she’ll make sure that the messages reach the person that they were meant for. And as the broken-down van is restored to gleaming health, so Ana begins to find her way back to happiness.

My Review of Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van

When Ana inherits a wrecked camper van from her best friend Daisy, it will be more than the vehicle that needs fixing.

Now, in the interests of complete honesty, I have one small niggle that I am going to get out of the way before I review Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van properly. Occasionally, the tenses seem to wander a bit and it took me a while to tune in to how they are used.

That small aspect aside I absolutely adored Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van. Ali McNamara writes with such genuine compassion and love behind her words that reading is Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van an uplifting and joyful experience.

The Cornish setting of St Felix is so well described that reading the book is akin to taking a holiday and I genuinely felt refreshed after reading the story. It was as if it had taken me out of the mundanity of life into a slightly magical world for a while. The 1980s references were perfect for me too, as that is a decade I remember only too well, so that as well as enjoying a lovely story, happy memories were rekindled for me.

All the characters are absolutely delightful. What Ali McNamara has done is to create both setting and characters that are positive and agreeable without them being saccharine or unbelievable. Noah and Ana have their flaws but they are never deliberately unkind and this makes such a refreshing change. Malachi in particular is a gladdening creation and the mystery surrounding him works both on a mystical or conventional level so that the reader can bring their own feelings and beliefs to the story too and enjoy it on a very personal level. Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van allows the reader to escape real life for a while in a totally satisfying and absorbing read.

I loved the plot. The romantic notion of trying to track down the writer of undelivered postcards thoroughly appealed to the idealist in me and I so wanted that element to have a happy ending. You’ll have to read Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van for yourself to find out what happens.

As well as the positive, uplifting and frequently humorous elements (especially where Malachi is concerned) Ali McNamara doesn’t shy away from deeper and more difficult elements to underpin her narrative. Themes of identity, illness, death and grief, looking for happiness and relationships are all explored so that although I thought Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van would just be a light, entertaining but possibly insubstantial story, I was quite wrong. It’s certainly entertaining, but there are many levels on which it can be enjoyed because there’s so much more depth than anticipated, making it a fabulous read.

Daisy’s Vintage Cornish Camper Van is sheer, magical escapism and I loved it.

About Ali McNamara

Ali McNamara attributes her over-active and very vivid imagination to one thing – being an only child. Time spent dreaming up adventures when she was young has left her with a head bursting with stories waiting to be told.

When stories she wrote for fun on Ronan Keating’s website became so popular they were sold as a fundraising project for his cancer awareness charity, Ali realised that not only was writing something she enjoyed doing, but something others enjoyed reading too.

You can visit Ali’s website, find her on Facebook and you can follow her on Twitter @AliMcNamara.