On Thursday last week I had a fantastic time at @TeamBATC #SpringBloggerEvening2018  event run by Books and the City @TeamBATC for Simon and Schuster. There were so many lovely blogger friends whom it was wonderful to catch up with and to see many of the lovely publishing team behind the books. Even better though was meeting all ten – yes ten – of the fabulous authors, some who I now know well and some whom I hadn’t met before.

With Sara-Jade (our very own book minx @BookMinxSJV ) starting off proceedings, Jo Dickinson took over to grill our wonderful authors.

Each author responded to Jo’s often tricky questions with some surprising information. Who knew Holly Hepburn finds icing biscuits so difficult or that Penny Parkes tends to forget the characters in her books are not actually real people. I think the best advice of the evening came from Heidi Swain who said, ‘If you want to be a writer, write!’

The Authors and Their Books

(In the order of the evening!)

Random Acts Of Kindness Part 3: Crossroads by Victoria Walters

Welcome to Littlewood, a small town community with a big heart. 
Abbie and her boyfriend Jack are about to start their own PR company in London, but there are so many unanswered questions about their past and Abbie begins to question her decision to leave Littlewood… Will Thomas manage to hold onto Huntley Manor without her, or has her departure ruined his chances…?

After a shaky start, Eszter is determined to show her daughter Zoe that it doesn’t matter where you are from, that we are all the same. With a little help from Brew cafe, they decide to run a cake baking class for the local children to help her make some friends. But as the summer goes on, their return to Hungary looms over them… Will they go back and leave Zoe’s granny, Anne, all on her own? Or is life in Littlewood the perfect fit for their newly formed family…?

Having pushed Alex away, Louise finds herself battling with jealousy when she sees him with her colleague. But when tragedy strikes, Louise is confronted with how precious and short life can be… Is she ready to tell Alex how she really feels or will she lose him for good?

Random Acts Of Kindness Part 3: Crossroads by Victoria Walters is available here.

Our House by Louise Candlish

FOR BETTER, FOR WORSE.
When Fi Lawson arrives home to find strangers moving into her house, she is plunged into terror and confusion. She and her husband Bram have owned their home on Trinity Avenue for years and have no intention of selling. How can this other family possibly think the house is theirs? And why has Bram disappeared when she needs him most?

FOR RICHER, FOR POORER.
Bram has made a catastrophic mistake and now he is paying. Unable to see his wife, his children or his home, he has nothing left but to settle scores. As the nightmare takes grip, both Bram and Fi try to make sense of the events that led to a devastating crime. What has he hidden from her – and what has she hidden from him? And will either survive the chilling truth – that there are far worse things you can lose than your house?

TILL DEATH US DO PART.

Our House by Louise Candlish is available here.

The Sunday Lunch Club by Juliet Ashton

The first rule of Sunday Lunch Club is … don’t make any afternoon plans.

Every few Sundays, Anna and her extended family and friends get together for lunch. They talk, they laugh, they bicker, they eat too much. Sometimes the important stuff is left unsaid, other times it’s said in the wrong way.

Sitting between her ex-husband and her new lover, Anna is coming to terms with an unexpected pregnancy at the age of forty. Also at the table are her ageing grandmother, her promiscuous sister, her flamboyantly gay brother and a memory too terrible to contemplate.

Until, that is, a letter arrives from the person Anna scarred all those years ago. Can Anna reconcile her painful past with her uncertain future?

The Sunday Lunch Club by Juliet Ashton is available here.

You Me Everything by Catherine Isaac

You and me, we have history.
We have a child together.
We have kept secrets from each other for far too long.
This summer, in the beautiful hills of the Dordogne, it is time for everything to change.

You Me Everything by Catherine Isaac is available here.

And if you want to know why so far You Me Everything is my book of the year, click here!

Starry Skies at Castle Court by Holly Hepburn

Sadie is a single mum, nursing a broken heart. Cat is burned out from working long hours as a chef. They decide to invest in their dream – running their own handmade biscuit shop in gorgeous Castle Court, a three-storey food court tucked away behind Chester’s bustling streets.

They soon discover that Castle Court has its own community – a little haven of delight against the stresses of the outside world. But not everyone welcomes the new business; the patisserie owner is less than pleased by what she sees as direct competition and Greg, who runs the fancy bistro that dominates one end of the courtyard, doesn’t think Sadie and Cat have the talent or business acumen to succeed. Luckily, there’s support in the form of the delectable Jaren, who owns the Dutch waffle house opposite Smart Cookies, and Swiss chocolate-shop owner, Elin. And if all else fails, the friends can drown their sorrows in the cocktail bar that overlooks the court.

Starry Skies at Castle Court by Holly Hepburn is available here.

Five Years from Now by Paige Toon

For the next two decades, fate brings Nell and Van together every five years, as life and circumstance continue to divide them. Will they ever find true happiness? And will it be together?

‘One day, maybe five years from now, you’ll look back and understand why this happened…’

Five Years from Now by Paige Toon is available here.

Sunshine and Sweet Peas in Nightingale Square by Heidi Swain

Kate is on the run from her almost-divorced husband who is determined to have her back, and she has found the perfect place to hide… a little cottage on Nightingale Square in Norwich, far away from her old life in London. But the residents of Nightingale Square don’t take no for an answer, and Kate soon finds herself pulled into a friendship with Lisa, her bossy but lovely new neighbour.

Within a matter of days Kate is landed with the job of campaigning the council to turn the green into a community garden, meanwhile all the residents of Nightingale Square are horrified to discover that the Victorian mansion house on the other side of the square has been bought by developers. But when all hope is lost, the arrival of a handsome stranger is sure to turn things around!

Sunshine and Sweet Peas in Nightingale Square by Heidi Swain is available here.

Best Practice by Penny Parkes

Love and laughter with the residents of Larkford is exactly what the doctor ordered!

Dr Alice Walker has become accomplished at presenting a façade to the world – to anyone watching, she is the epitome of style, composure and professionalism. But perhaps it was to be expected that the cracks might begin to show at some point. Thankfully Grace is on hand to offer both friendship and support when it’s needed most.

Meanwhile, Dr Holly Graham has her hands full both professionally and personally. Planning a wedding with Taffy Jones is challenging enough, even before some surprising news changes everything. At least beloved Larkford resident, Elsie, still has a few tricks left up her sleeve!

Best Practice by Penny Parkes is available here.

The Temptations of Gracie by Santa Montefiore

Never give up on your dreams, no matter how long you hold on to them . . .

When Gracie Burton stumbles upon an advertisement for a weeklong cookery course in the heart of the Tuscan countryside, she cannot resist, and ploughs her life savings into the trip.

Her only family – daughter Carina and granddaughter Anastasia – are hesitant about what has prompted this seemingly random venture.
But they have no sense of Gracie’s past; of what could possibly be calling her to Italy. They have no idea that Gracie is harbouring the secret of an extraordinary life that preceded them . . .

The Temptations of Gracie by Santa Montefiore is available here.

The Truths and Triumphs of Grace Atherton by Anstey Harris

Between the simple melody of running her violin shop and the full-blown orchestra of her romantic interludes in Paris with David, her devoted partner of eight years, Grace Atherton has always set her life to music.

Her world revolves entirely around David, for Grace’s own secrets have kept everyone else at bay. Until, suddenly and shockingly, one act tips Grace’s life upside down, and the music seems to stop.

It takes a vivacious old man and a straight-talking teenager to kickstart a new chapter for Grace. In the process, she learns that she is not as alone in the world as she had once thought, that no mistake is insurmountable, and that the quiet moments in life can be something to shout about …

The Truths and Triumphs of Grace Atherton by Anstey Harris is available here.

After a break for cakes, nibbles and plenty of Prosecco, we were all delighted to chat with each author and get our exclusive spring blogger booklet signed.

At the end of the evening we all took home a fantastic goody bag (@TeamBATC always do the best ones!). The @TeamBATC #SpringBloggerEvening2018 was an absolute joy and I loved every moment of it. Thanks to all who made it such a brilliant evening.

And here’s another exciting thing. SJV is giving away some goody bags just like the ones we were given.

If you want to win one of the fabulous goody bags we lucky bloggers received, head over to Twitter here before 13th April where SJV is giving away 7 of them.

Can’t wait until next year’s event. Until then, I’m off to read the books!

Regular Linda’s Book Bag readers know how much I love to travel. Russia is one of the destinations on my wish list, so when I was approached by Angela Melamud at Inkshares to see if I would like to review Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid by Sergey Grechishkin I was so sorry I simply couldn’t fit it in to my reading schedule. However, I was able to ask Sergey to stay in with me to tell me more about it!

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

Staying in with Sergey Grechishkin

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

Thank you. The pleasure is entirely mine.

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

Frankly, it wasn’t hard to choose which of my books to bring this evening. This is my first and only book in English. It’s called Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid. It’s both a memoir and a social history book — a light-hearted worm’s-eye-view of the USSR through one Soviet childhood in the 1970s – 1980s. It’ll be released from Inkshares in March. (By the way, that pretty little girl on the cover is me.)

(Oh my goodness. I really did think that was a girl on the cover! Weren’t you cute? I hope you won’t mind me sharing this other photo your publishers, Inkshares, sent me as I think you look more like a boy in it!)

What can we expect from an evening in with Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid?

I hope that anyone who is interested in Russia or the Soviet Union will like it.

First, there is a lot of information on the day-to-day middle-class life in the Soviet Union, which was so drastically different from the life in the Western countries at that time. Here is a short quote:

Scarcity meant that running a Soviet household demanded endless improvisation. Our parents didn’t have the slightest clue about modern conveniences like trash bags, wet wipes, paper handkerchiefs, disposable diapers, shaving gel, and tampons (or any other types of female sanitary products). Until the mid-1970s, there wasn’t even such a thing as deodorant. (Just try to imagine rush hour on a crowded public bus in the middle of summer! On second thought, don’t.) There was no such thing as either sunscreen or soothing aloe gel, so when kids came home sunburned, they were smeared with sour cream. The universal solution to minor external abrasions, from skinned knees to hemorrhoids, was marigold ointment.

There were only three kinds of soap: ‘hand soap,’ used for washing people; ‘children’s soap,’ used for washing babies; and ‘household soap,’ used for everything else—cleaning floors, countertops, clothes, and dishes, which of course had to be washed by hand. Household soap was made of brownish-gray lye, and it smelled terrible.

And then there was baking soda. That stuff was practically magic…

(I’m desperate to visit Russia and this vivid writing makes it an even more interesting destination Sergey.)

Second, living oppressed behind the iron curtain, Soviet people developed a very dry and sarcastic sense of humor. I tried to inject it into the book. A lot of early readers found it quite funny.

(I should think you probably needed that sense of humour!)

What else have you brought along and why?

I was agonizing for a while on what to bring — a bottle of vodka, a Kalashnikov machine gun, a piece of household soap? But then settled on this: a Soviet toy from my childhood. I found it in a park when I was three-years-old and it has been with me for the last 44 years.

(With the deprivations you’ve described, Sergey, this little car must have been so special to you.)

Thank you so much for staying in with me to tell me about Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid Sergey. I am even more determined to get to Russia one day and it’ll be interesting to see how much has changed since the setting of your book.

Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid

Everything is Normal offers a lighthearted worm’s-eye-view of the USSR through the middle-class Soviet childhood of a nerdy boy in the 1970s and ’80s. A relatable journey into the world of the late-days Soviet Union, Everything is Normal is both a memoir and a social history―a reflection on the mundane deprivations and existential terrors of day-to-day life in Leningrad in the decades preceding the collapse of the USSR.

Sergey Grechishkin’s world is strikingly different, largely unknown, and fascinatingly unusual, and yet a world that readers who grew up in the United States or Europe during the same period will partly recognize. This is a tale of friendship, school, and growing up―to read Everything is Normal is to discover the very foreign way of life behind the Iron Curtain, but also to journey back into a shared past.

Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid is published by Inkshares and is available for purchase here.

About Sergey Grechishkin

Life’s journey took Sergey Grechishkin from a communal flat in Leningrad, through studies in China and France, and on to top banking jobs in London. Today he splits his time between London and Singapore and juggles his work and three children with teaching, investing into early-stage businesses, and writing. Everything is Normal: The Life and Times of a Soviet Kid is his first book.

Lovely Sam Missingham of Lounge Marketing recently invited me to act as an expert blogger for an author group she runs where I was delighted to ‘meet’ Nick Jones, author of  the children’s book Sarah’s Shadow. Nick kindly sent me a copy of Sarah’s Shadow in return for an honest review.

Sarah’s Shadow is available for purchase here.

Sarah’s Shadow

If you could change something about yourself, would you do it?

When Sarah Simpkins is teased about her shadow in the school playground, she finds herself wishing she didn’t have one. That night she has the chance to make the wish come true.

But will losing her shadow really make her happy?

My Review of Sarah’s Shadow

When Sarah wishes away her shadow she realises you sometimes don’t want what you wish for after all!

Sarah’s Shadow is utterly delightful. Firstly I must say something about the quality of its production. A generous size, Sarah’s Shadow is printed on thick paper that will be durable for many, many readings and feels like a luxury product. The illustrations by Si Clark are really super and bring life and added depth to the narrative. I thought the balance of text to image was perfect.

The story of Sarah’s Shadow is a lovely one. Beginning with teasing in the playground it will afford excellent discussions about how we might deliberately, or inadvertently, hurt another person’s feelings and I think will bring considerable comfort to children on the receiving end of bullying, especially when the final message of the story is that Sarah has a fantastic quality that is part of her regardless of what other people think. As Sarah also goes on a school trip that holds some anxieties for her, I think reading Sarah’s Shadow would give primary age children the opportunity to express any similar fears they may have too, making this a book that does much more than merely entertain – which it also does brilliantly.

With carefully crafted dialogue, and a variety of sentence length which models excellent writing practices so that children learn from their reading, the language of Sarah’s Shadow is simple enough for children to read independently, but would be a lovely story to share as a bedtime read with an adult. Parents beware though – I actually got a lump in my throat when Sarah’s shadow waved goodbye to her so sadly.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Sarah’s Shadow because it’s a book written for children by someone who obviously understands them completely and who is a cracking story-teller into the bargain. I can’t recommend Sarah’s Shadow highly enough. Brilliant stuff.

About Nick Jones

Nick Jones is an author based in Congleton, Cheshire, but originally from Bristol. He has written a series of joke books and an illustrated children’s book.

His first joke book, Gagged and Bound, was written during the summer of 2014 and was published by Full Media Ltd later in the year to much critical acclaim, garnering positive reviews from numerous book review websites such as Reader’s Favorite and The Bookbag.

A follow-up, Gagged and Bound 2, was released a year later and received a similarly positive response, and in 2017 Nick returned with the third instalment. Described by one reviewer as a ‘master gagsmith’, Nick’s joke style is heavily pun-based and has been compared to Tim Vine, Milton Jones and Stewart Francis.

Nick has also written an illustrated children’s book called Sarah’s Shadow, which was published in December 2017.

You can follow Nick on Twitter: @nickjonesauthor and find out more on his website.

A little while ago I went to a book event, Warming the Blood, where I was introduced to lovely Rebecca Tinnelly and we were able to chat for a while. However, it simply wasn’t long enough so I invited Rebecca over to stay in with me and bring a book along. I’m delighted that she accepted the invitation.

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

Staying in with Rebecca Tinnelly

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag. Thank you for agreeing to stay in with me. It was so good to meet you in person recently. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve bought my first novel, a psychological suspense entitled Never Go There. It follows Nuala Greene, a young widow desperately seeking some sense of family and stability in the wake of her husband’s death. She travels to his home village in Somerset, a place he begged her never to go. What ensues is a twisty, turny exploration into dark, village life and the secrets no one wants to be uncovered.

(I love a twisty thriller Rebecca and am so glad I have Never Go There on my TBR.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Never Go There?

Reader’s so far have all agreed on two things; the novel is very, very dark and it’s hard to tear yourself away from. One reader described it as being more addictive than a pot of Pringles!

(Now that IS saying something in this household – help yourself to those over there!)

The setting is deepest, darkest Somerset at the beginning of winter; the trees have lost their leaves, the wind is beginning to bite and the nights are drawing in. Nuala is a town girl through and through, not used to living in the countryside at all and the setting takes her by surprise, as this extract, taken from the first chapter of the book, shows:

It wasn’t like she had imagined. The pictures online had been blue-skied, not night-dark. The branches above her car, those thin wire fingers from the stunted oaks, hadn’t featured at all. But here they were – this was the road, the hill, the place.

A crack and scrape of metal, a rock hitting the car’s underside. She wasn’t even driving on tarmac anymore, just dirt, the creaking sound reminding her of the letterbox opening that morning.

She felt for the letter on the passenger seat, the paper already soft from re-reading despite having had it for just a few hours, her finger tracing the words in the dark.

The trees were close, the half-moon hidden by their thin branches, twisting to meet each other inches above the car. She could feel the thud and bump of the aerial bristling against bark. No leaves, of course, not in November with the wind lashing the hill. She knew about that, the wind. But she had always, regardless of his warnings, expected sunshine. Her fault for leaving London so late in the day. Her fault for waiting until November when she should have come in May, but it had taken her months to stockpile the courage.

(Fantastic! This is so atmospheric – I’m off to bump Never Go There up the TBR pile. Back in a minute…)

Nuala discovers that the village her husband grew up in is somewhat different to the place she imagined. If you go on to read the novel you will unearth a range of secrets, heartache, murder and a twist that, so far, no one has managed to predict.

(It really does sound a brilliant read.)

What else have you brought along and why?

Well, you can’t have an evening in without a tipple or two. I’ve brought along one of my favourite gin and tonic combinations; Cotswold’s Gin with Fevertree tonic water. Add a wedge of lime, a stick of cucumber and a couple of ice cubes and you’re in G&T heaven.

Writing is a very solitary pursuit and I live in a remote village in Somerset myself, hence the setting for Never Go There, so it can often get rather isolated. Whenever I get lonely or crave company I like to have a small G&T because it reminds me of my sisters, Hannah and Alice, who converted me to gin years ago. Whenever I have a sip I always feel closer to them. I’ve poured us both a glass… chin, chin!

(Oh thanks Rebecca – I’m quite partial to a G+T and haven’t tried this one though I have found where I can buy it – here!)

I’ve also bought a photo along to get you in the mood for the creepy setting of Never Go There. I live in a fantastic part of the country, the Quantock Hills, and they have a unique and varied landscape, full of twisted, close-growing oak trees that look so eerie and yet so beautiful. They never fail to inspire me:

(Gosh yes. They are creepy and quite primeval I think. I spent a lot of my childhood holidays in Somerset so the Quantock Hills are very familiar to me as we used to go walking there.)

I’ve always been an avid walker, ever since I was a child and my parents’ took me on walking holidays to the Lake District, Scotland and Wales. When I first moved to Somerset from London I was awestruck by the scenery on my walks and it’s definitely infiltrated my work.

The last thing I’ve bought is my yoga mat. I spend my days and evenings writing very dark, twisted stories, but I also have two children; it’s so important for me that, once I’ve stopped writing, I leave my work on the page and can be the cheerful, calm, attentive mother my children deserve. Yoga helps me make that transition from writer to parent. You can never switch either role off completely, I am both all the time, but yoga refocuses my mind, lets me leave all thoughts of plot and character with my book and brings me back into the real world. I’ve been doing it every day now for a few years and, along with mindfulness and meditation practices, it helps me achieve a positive work/life balance.

So, Linda, if you want to don your lycra leggings and give yourself a stretch, we’ll begin with downward facing dog…

(Ah! Well! You see, lycra isn’t really my thing… However, my husband and I have just started adding stretching into our daily exercise routines so I’m happy to try the yoga. Last time we tried it, doing the clock and knowing the lion pose was coming, we laughed at each other so much we had tears running down our faces so I might need a bit of encouragement…)

Thanks so much for staying in with me and telling me more about Never Go There Rebecca. It was lovely to have a bit more time together.

Thank you so much for having me this evening, Linda! I’ve thoroughly enjoyed myself, I hope you have too.

I have!

Never Go There

He told her that she must never, EVER go there…

Nuala knows nothing of her husband James’s past. He made her swear that she would never contact his family or visit the place he was from. But now James is dead, and Nuala is alone. Grieving and desperate, she decides to ignore his warning.

But was he protecting her… or himself?

Nuala is about to find out that some secrets are better left buried – and that uncovering the truth about the man she married will have terrible consequences…

Never Go There is published by Hodder and Stoughton and is available for purchase here.

About Rebecca Tinnelly

Rebecca Tinnelly lives amongst the twisted sessile oaks of the Somerset coast with her two children and two cats. No doubt fuelled by the stories she was told by her stepmother, a consultant pathologist, Rebecca is most interested in writing about the darker side of society and family life.

After a successful career in sales, most recently selling wicker coffins, she waved goodbye to the office to pursue a career in writing. And, when not writing, enjoys baking the odd cake or two. Never Go There is her debut novel.

You can find out more by following Rebecca on Twitter @RebeccaTinnelly, or visiting her blog.

I am delighted to welcome Gail Aldwin to Linda’s Book Bag to stay in with me today because Gail is a new to me author and it feels a real privilege to ‘meet’ so many wonderful writers through this feature that I wouldn’t otherwise have known about.

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

Staying in with Gail Aldwin

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

Thank you for inviting me to stay in with you, Linda. I’m looking forward to sharing a splendid evening.

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

Paisley Shirt is a collection of short fiction published by Chapeltown Books. It contains twenty-seven fascinating stories that reveal the extraordinary nature of people and places. Through a variety of characters and voices, these stories lay bare the human experience and what it is like to live in our world. You can immerse yourself in Paisley Shirt one evening or dip in and grab a satisfying story to read during a coffee break, while a child naps or between train stops on a journey.

(I love short pieces of fiction like Paisley Shirt, Gail, as I feel I have achieved a real read completing a story in a short while.)

What can we expect from an evening in with Paisley Shirt?

All the stories in this collection are themed around the quality of resilience and you’ll find reflection, humour, surprise, intrigue and more. Maria Donovan, author of The Chicken Soup Murder, says the stories in Paisley Shirt are ‘sensitive, surprising, unnerving, tender and crucial.’

(What a wonderful description.)

Here is a taster of one of the very short stories.

Stone

The dining room is laid with paper cloths and napkins. In my pocket, the stone slips between my fingers, the surface smooth and cold. I found it in the garden as I shuffled along the path. I think of Laura and her clear gaze, her eyes watching my mouth as she tries to understand the words I dribble. I place the distorted heart on the table where she sits, a stone love letter.

(That’s so effective in just a short paragraph Gail. Lovely.)

A review by Tracy Fells on Amazon says this story ‘gives a lingering punch to the heart.’

(And I quite agree with Tracy.)

What else have you brought along and why?

The title for this collection comes from one of the stories. A caller to the home of Auntie Maggie wears a paisley print shirt, which reminds her of an earlier relationship. The history of paisley pattern is fascinating. The droplet design originally appeared on shawls made in Kashmir, which were brought back to the UK as gifts by soldiers returning from India. Later, the East India Company began importing shawls and due to their popularity, production of woollen shawls began in the small town of Paisley in Scotland. Paisley print shawls became a must-have item for Victorian women. As a reflection of their popularity, I have brought with me this evening a painting called Paisley Shawl by Robert Lewis Reid (1862-1929).

(How fascinating. I love hearing how titles and inspiration for writing happens. I’m off to India soon too so I shall look out for a paisley shawl.)

Although the paisley pattern fell in popularity over the years, there was a revival in the late 1960s when the print became fashionable for men and women to wear.

I hope you enjoy reading Paisley Shirt and that it will fire you with enthusiasm to read other flash fiction collections published by Chapeltown Books.

Thanks so much for staying in with me to tell me all about Paisley Shirt Gail. If your sample story is anything to judge by, I can’t wait to read the rest of the collection.

Paisley Shirt

‘Paisley Shirt’ is a fascinating collection of 27 stories that reveal the extraordinary nature of people and places. Through a variety of characters and voices, these stories lay bare the human experience and what it is like to live in our world.

Paisley Shirt is available in Kindle Edition and paperback from Amazon UK and Amazon US. The paperback is also available from all good bookshops.

About Gail Aldwin

Gail is a prize-winning writer of short fiction and poetry. Her work can be found online at Ink, Sweat & Tears, Slamchop and Words for the Wild and in a range of print anthologies including Flash Fiction Festival One (Ad Hoc Fiction, 2017), Gli-ter-ary (Bridge House Publishing, 2017) and Dorset Voices (Roving Press, 2012).

As Chair of the Dorset Writers’ Network, Gail works with the steering group to support the skills and confidence of writers across the county by connecting creative communities. She is also a visiting tutor to undergraduates of creative writing at Arts University Bournemouth. In 2017, Gail co-wrote Killer Ladybugs a short play that was staged by Cast Iron Productions (Brighton). Paisley Shirt, Gail’s collection of short fiction is published by Chapeltown Books.

You can follow Gail on Twitter @gailaldwin, find her on Facebook, and visit her blog: The Writer is a Lonely Hunter.

It’s always so exciting to be part of a new book’s publication day, and I’m thrilled to have an extract from The One by Maria Realf to share with you on Linda’s Book Bag.

Published by Harper Impulse, today 22nd March 2018, The One is available for purchase here.

The One

Lizzie Sparkes should be the happiest girl in the world – she’s three months away from marrying The One in the wedding of her dreams! But then The One before the One walks back in to her life with a bombshell.

Alex’s unexpected return changes everything and now Lizzie faces an impossible dilemma. Because how can you leave the past behind you, when it’s standing right in front of you…asking you for one more chance?

An Extract from The One

13 weeks to go . . .

Finally, I’ve found The One! Lizzie Sparkes gazed at the full-length mirror in the changing room, hardly daring

to believe that it was her own reflection staring back. The Grecian gown was perfect, with tiny beads twinkling along the asymmetric strap, and a delicate train skimming the carpet as though it was practising for the Oscars. It wasn’t too tight, it wasn’t scratchy and it didn’t make her look like a human doily. The only downside was the eye- wateringly expensive price, but she had decided to overlook that part. It’ll be worth it when Josh sees me walking down the aisle, she reassured herself, a lump rising in her throat. I look almost . . . beautiful.

She was afraid to step out from the safety of the cubicle, in case the look on her mum’s face – or Megan’s – betrayed the fact that they didn’t feel the same. They were both polite when it came to watching her try on wedding gowns, and had patiently sat through some 30 or so now, but she knew them well enough to read the signs. When her mum wasn’t keen on a dress, she blinked three or four times in quick succession, while Megan pulled a weird half-smile that made her look as though she’d had a dodgy facelift. It was a total giveaway, every time.

Lizzie drew a deep breath and swept back the purple velvet curtain. She took a slow step out into the centre of the boutique, her dark hair swishing loosely behind her like a glossy veil. ‘W-O-W,’ said Megan.

Her mum promptly burst into tears, which was a more confusing reaction.

‘Mum? Don’t you like it?’

There was a long pause while Lynda Sparkes rummaged through her overcrowded handbag, before pulling out a crumpled tissue and nearly poking herself in her right eye. ‘Oh, Elizabeth,’ she sniffed, mascara smudging into her crows’ feet. ‘You look like a movie star.’

Yep, this is definitely The One . . .

The store manager tottered over in her nude skyscraper heels, clearly anticipating a hefty commission. ‘That dress looks amazing on you,’ she gushed. ‘It fits so well, you’d hardly need any alterations. We could maybe just take it up an inch or two.’ She bent down and folded the hem with her hands by way of demonstration, though it didn’t seem to make a great deal of difference. ‘What do you think?’

‘I’ll take it.’ The words popped out of Lizzie’s mouth before she had a chance to peek again at the price tag.

‘Excellent!’ The manager clapped her manicured hands loudly and two blonde minions, one tall and one tiny, raced over. ‘Let’s open some champagne, please, for Ms . . .’

‘Sparkes. Soon to be Cooper.’

‘Of course. I assume we’re all having some bubbly?’ ‘You assume right,’ said Megan. She was not the kind of girl to turn down champagne at any hour, especially if it was on the house.

‘Marvellous.’ Moments later the two blondes reappeared, one bearing a tray of glasses and the other carrying a bottle of fizz. The manager made an elaborate show of popping the cork and pouring it out with a flourish. ‘Well, congratulations!’

‘Thank you,’ smiled Lizzie, edging away from the drinks so as not to spill anything down the pristine white silk. After six long months of searching, she was still in shock that she had found the dress of her dreams. Everyone kept telling her that she would know the right one when she saw it, but she’d been starting to suspect that might be a bridal myth. Last week she’d had a nightmare that she arrived at the wedding in a gown made from loo roll, which began to unravel in front of all their guests. She’d woken up covered in sweat and couldn’t get back to sleep, but Josh thought it was hilarious when she relayed the story the next morning. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll still marry you if you turn up in Andrex,’ he joked. ‘And think how much money we’d save . . .’

It was easy for him to laugh, of course; he’d chosen his suit after just two shopping trips and looked like a male model in it, the slimline cut complementing his lean, athletic build. ‘You’re not supposed to upstage the bride,’ she’d only half-joked when he tried it on, feeling the pressure to pick an equally special outfit increase tenfold. It was a huge relief to have finally found something so perfect. ‘I can’t believe you’re getting married!’ squealed Megan, the bubbliness of the champers already kicking in. ‘And in that fabulous dress.’ She glanced over at Mrs Sparkes, who had finally managed to stop sobbing long enough to take a sip of her drink. ‘Mrs S, we’re really going to have to get you some waterproof eye make-up.’

‘Oh, I don’t think I can manage anything else today, love. I’m completely shopped out.’

‘Fair enough, but you’ll want some for the wedding. I’ll see what I can find at work.’ Megan was a journalist for a popular style website, and was sent so many samples that her bathroom was starting to resemble the cosmetics hall at Harrods. The retail worth of her monthly beauty booty was probably twice her modest salary.

She turned her attention back to her friend. ‘You’ll need to start thinking about bridal make-up too, Lizzie – plus there’s hair, underwear, shoes, not to mention my brides- maid’s outfit . . .’

‘I think I’d better get out of this dress first,’ said Lizzie. ‘Can you give me a hand, Meg?’

‘Sure, no problem. As long as I don’t have to help you to the loo on the day.’

Just then Megan’s mobile squawked like a melodramatic duck, and they both burst out laughing. ‘What on earth is that?’ asked Lizzie.

‘It’s my new email alert,’ grinned Megan, reaching for her phone. ‘It quacks me up.’

‘Oh, please stop. I swear your jokes are getting worse.’ She waited for the witty riposte, but suddenly realised her friend was no longer smiling. In fact, all the colour had flooded from her face, leaving her skin whiter than the row of wedding dresses behind her. ‘Megan? What’s wrong?’

The sound of her name seemed to snap Megan out of her trance, and she shook her curly blonde bob. ‘Nothing. It’s not important. Now, where were we?’ She put on her most lopsided smile, and Lizzie knew she was lying.

‘You were about to stop being weird and tell me what’s going on. Is everything OK?’

‘Yes, everything’s fine. I’ll fill you in later.’

‘Please fill me in now. You’re starting to freak me out.’ Megan looked around nervously, as if hoping someone might interrupt this awkward exchange, but Mrs Sparkes was deep in conversation with the manager, waffling on

about her own 1980s bridal gown. ‘Megan! What’s going on?’

‘Alright, I’ll tell you, but promise you won’t stress out, OK?’

‘Stress out about what?’

There was an uncomfortable pause. ‘Alex is back.’

(Now isn’t that tempting?)

About Maria Realf

Since graduating with a degree in multi-media journalism, Maria Realf has worked for many of the UK’s best-known magazines, including The Mail on Sunday’s YOU Magazine, Cosmopolitan, Cosmopolitan Bride, Fabulous, Marie Claire, Now and You & Your Wedding. In her spare time, Maria is also an all-round movie obsessive, theatre lover and karaoke enthusiast.

Find out more at on Facebook or via Maria’s website.  You can follow Maria on Twitter @MariaRealf.

It’s such a busy publication day today and I’m thrilled to have been asked to share an extract from one of the latest books; The Love Factory by Elaine Proctor.

The Love Factory is published today, 22nd March 2018 by Quercus and is available for purchase here.

The Love Factory

You can control want, but desire controls you

When literary writer Anna falls on hard times, she tries her hand at erotic fiction to make money, and faces an uncomfortable truth. Though she’s a wife and mother of two, her stories fail to fly because she’s never experienced true sexual desire. Even her Sicilian grandmother – wearer of diamante sunglasses and knock-off Louis Vuitton – knows more than she does about real passion.

Anna turns to her friends for inspiration. As secrets and desires are revealed, she discovers more about the people close to her than she ever knew. When one of them suggests she borrow an alter ego to banish her inhibitions, a new world opens up, and The Love Factory – a group of writers penning ever more successful sexy stories – is born.

Yet Anna knows that she can’t rely on borrowed passion and an alter ego forever. For her tales to truly sizzle, she needs to find a true love of her own.

An Extract From The Love Factory

Anna and Nadia found Bouchra in bed with her head under the pillow, her grand, obsessively pristine bedroom sullied by an anthill of dirty laundry in the middle of the floor.

‘This is not a sight I ever thought I would see,’ said Nadia as they took in the mess.

Anna and Nadia sat on the bed.

‘Go away, you two,’ came a muffled voice from beneath the pillow.

Anna felt something under the sheets and pulled out a bottle of single malt whisky. It was half finished. ‘You drank this?’ she asked.

Bouchra emerged from hiding and gripped her head. ‘Ow, ow, ow,’ she moaned.

‘Oh shit,’ said Nadia. ‘The teetotal is a soak.’

Bouchra looked up at them both and, out of nowhere, asked, ‘Did you go to Bhavin’s without me?’

‘What? No!’ said Anna.

‘Never,’ said Nadia.

Once a month, after Wednesday yoga, the three friends made the pilgrimage to Bhavin’s, the great Indian grocery store in South London, to buy spices and the sweetest mangoes in the city.

The last time they’d visited, Bouchra had gone, unusually, into the shop next door, stacked floor to ceiling with roll upon roll of fabrics, and settled in amongst the silks, saris and fine hijabs.

Anna had found her there, holding a length of transparent silk up against the light.

‘Bouchra?’ said Anna.

Her friend had looked up, startled.

‘Nadia wants to know if you want a box of mangoes?’

‘It looks like how I am, Anna.’

‘What?’

‘Invisible.’

Bouchra let the silk fall.

‘I don’t know what’s happening to me. I feel like someone has taken out my insides with an ice-cream scoop.’

Bouchra’s children had long ago left for university in America and her empty nest filled her with a bewildering vertigo. At first, they’d come home in their holidays, but of late the other calls on their time won out: internships, boyfriends, work.

Some days, if she was alone too long, Anna could tell that her friend found it hard to string a sentence together, as if her brain was softening like an underused thigh muscle.

To Anna, Bouchra and her husband Majd had a somewhat mysterious relationship. It was evident that they colluded in the business of rising-up in the world, but if you asked her what he did for a living she would shake her head and say, ‘There are some things I need to know and others I need not to know.’

At a dinner party, not long after they first became friends, Anna had asked him, ‘So, what do you do, Majd?’

He had glanced at her and said, ‘I steal from the poor and give to the rich. You?’

‘I write books nobody reads.’

‘Ah, then we are both selfish bastards.’

It had stuck in her gut, that phrase.

About Elaine Proctor

Elaine Proctor was born in South Africa. She became involved in the anti-apartheid movement as a teenager and filmed several political documentaries up until 1986, when the political situation made it impossible for her to continue and she left to study at the National Film and Television School in Britain. She has made several films, including On The Wire (winner of the British Film Institute’s Sutherland Trophy) and Friends (selected by the Cannes Film Festival and winner of the Mention Speciale – Prix de Camera D’Or), has written a series for the BBC and published two novels, Rhumba and The Savage Hour. She sits on the chapter for screenwriting at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and is a member of the Writer’s Guild of Great Britain. Elaine lives in Queen’s Park, London.

You can find out more by visiting Elaine’s website and following her on Twitter @ElaineProctor2.

I so enjoyed The Rosie Project and The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion, that when I heard Two Steps Forward by Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist was available for request on Netgally I broke my own self-imposed ban and requested it. I was, thankfully, approved, but even better, the day after, an advanced reader copy arrived unexpectedly and I would like to thank Two Roads books and Rosie Gailer for sending it to me.

Two Steps Forward will be released by Two Roads Books on 5th April 2018 and is available for pre-order here.

Two Steps Forward

Zoe, a sometime artist, is from California. Martin, an engineer, is from Yorkshire. Both have ended up in picturesque Cluny, in central France. Both are struggling to come to terms with their recent past – for Zoe, the death of her husband; for Martin, a messy divorce.

Looking to make a new start, each sets out alone to walk two thousand kilometres from Cluny to Santiago de Compostela, in northwestern Spain, in the footsteps of pilgrims who have walked the Camino (the Way) for centuries. The Camino changes you, it’s said. It’s a chance to find a new version of yourself, and a new beginning. But can these two very different people find themselves? Will they find each other?

In this smart, funny and romantic journey, Martin’s and Zoe’s stories are told in alternating chapters by husband-and-wife team Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist. Two Steps Forward is a novel about renewal – physical, psychological and spiritual. It’s about the challenge of walking a long distance and of working out where you are going. And it’s about what you decide to keep, what you choose to leave behind and what you rediscover along the way.

My Review of Two Steps Forward

Zoe and Martin have very different reasons for beginning the walk to Santiago de Compostela, but their paths might just overlap.

I’m not usually overly fond of narratives structures that alternate from one protagonist to another but I thoroughly enjoyed Two Steps Forward. It was everything I hoped it would be from Graeme Simsion and his wife, Anne Buist. The structure is perfect as the two ‘steps’ or threads of the story reflect the rhythm of putting one foot in front of the other to walk the Camino. I love the fact that the story has arisen out of the authors’ own experiences walking the same route as Martin because there is a realism and a vividness to the writing that places the reader on the route too. The landscapes, villages, hostels and bars come to life with wonderful accuracy so that I could picture exactly what I read. In fact, reading Two Steps Forward has made me want to head off and complete the walk myself.

However, Two Steps Forward is so much more than a rather good travelogue. It is a beautifully written and cleverly constructed love story that embodies all the emotions that a reader would want. I was, at times, completely frustrated by Zoe and Martin’s fluctuating relationship and I think this is exactly as it should be. It means I experienced the same emotions they did and made for a very personal reading experience. I ended the story feeling quite in love with both of them myself. I really enjoyed meeting all the various characters as they wove in and out of the story, creating their own tapestry that the reader is privileged to enjoy.

But for me, the wonderful element of Two Steps Forward is its ability to make the reader consider their own values and lives. There are so many levels to this narrative. Partly it is a highly entertaining and frequently humorous story, especially through the wickedly droll depiction of the different nationalities, but also Two Steps Forward reveals the way in which we hurt ourselves as well as others, how we need to be kind to, and honest with, ourselves and how spirituality and contentment are not found in buildings or places, but within ourselves. The metaphors of jettisoning baggage both literally and emotionally are sensitively handled so that Two Steps Forward (and its implied one step back) never feels priggish, but rather is refreshing, human and captivating.

Two Steps Forward is a delightful book. It affords the reader an insight deep into the souls of two very human characters, Zoe and Martin, and allows them to share a very personal and, actually, very moving story. I highly recommend it.

About Graeme Simsion and Anne Buist

Graeme

Graeme Simsion is a former information technology and business consultant, who specialized in data modeling, information management and consulting practices.

He is now a full time writer of fiction. His first novel, The Rosie Project was published in Australia by Text and Michael Joseph (Penguin) in the UK.

You can find out more by following Graeme on Facebook and Twitter @GraemeSimsion and by visiting his website.

Anne

Anne Buist is the Chair of Women’s Mental Health at the University of Melbourne and has over 25 years’ clinical and research experience in perinatal psychiatry working on cases of abuse, kidnapping, infanticide and murder.

She is married to novelist Graeme Simsion and has two children.

The first novel featuring forensic psychiatrist Natalie King, Medea’s Curse, was published in the UK by Legend Press in 2016. The UK edition of Dangerous to Know, Anne’s follow-up novel, was also published by Legend Press March 2017.

You can follow Anne on Twitter @anneebuist and find her on Facebook. She also has a website.

Since I began blogging I’ve been so privileged to interact with a wide range of other bloggers, readers, authors and publishers and it gives me very great pleasure to welcome Kate Foster, Editorial Director (and angel) of Lakewater Press to the blog today to celebrate Lakewater’s second birthday.

An Interview with Lakewater Press

Hi Kate. Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag. I’m delighted to welcome you here today to celebrate Lakewater Press’s second birthday.

Thank you so much for having me!

Firstly, could you tell us a bit about Lakewater Press?

Yes, of course. Lakewater Press is small, micro really, but still a traditional press in that we DO NOT and NEVER WILL charge authors to publish their work. We are about quality not quantity, with a side mission to publish debut authors who’ve written wonderful books that deserve to be read. All of our books go through a minimum of three thorough edits before we set a publication date and every author receives continued marketing and branding support throughout the term of their contract. We love reading great books and so birthing those we truly adore and are proud of is a blessing.

(What a wonderful philosophy!)

How are you celebrating your second birthday?

Naturally we’re having a book sale and a few giveaways! Chances to win copies of our books, book vouchers, as well as some extra sweet treats too. Readers should check out our blog for details. But also, we’re celebrating by launching book 2 in the Friends series, A Forsaken Friend by Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape, sequel to the sharp and witty A Falling Friend. Teri and Lee, the stars of this series, are the Cagney and Lacey of academia.

(Oh yes! I know all about this as Sue and Susan are also on the blog today and readers can see that blog post here.)

What is the biggest challenge in being a small independent publisher?

Growing our audience and reaching readers – the problem that most authors and publishers have. It’s happening, slowly, and we’re pretty chuffed with how far we’ve come in such a short amount of time. We have great products; we’re confident of that. And, although we’re not silly enough to think every reader in the world will fall head over heels in love with our books, we know each title is beautifully written, is current, but will also stand the test of time. Our books and our authors deserve to be read.

And what is the best aspect?

Being able to work so closely with the authors and involve them in every aspect of their book’s life. Also, for our staff and authors to become friends and support one another in promotional efforts. We want this process to be enjoyable, exciting, and we’re all about making it collaborative. As a small press we can do this.

Lakewater Press has the motto ‘Great Books, That’s All‘ but we know there’s more to it than that in getting a book from submission to publication. Could you explain the process for us please?

Yes, I’ll try to be as brief as possible! Each of our acquisitions staff has a list of likes and dislikes and what we’d like to see in our inboxes. So, initially, whoever the author submits to needs to have an interest in this genre or content – there’s really no point in sending me a historical novel, for example, because in general it’s just not what I enjoy reading. Then, of course, there’s that connection thing; the editor needs to be engaged and hooked from the opening pages and, most importantly, to the voice. Sometimes we can’t explain why we don’t like a well-written book with a strong story. It can come down to simply not caring enough about the characters or not being swept up in the rhythm of the voice. But, before rejecting submissions we each of us consider if a colleague might be a better fit first.

Once we have a manuscript we love and can’t stop thinking about, we take it through to acquisitions – which basically means sharing the book with the other Lakewater editors and trusted team of readers to make sure we’re all passionate about it and have a good idea of the areas that need work and development.

And then we hope the authors are as excited to join our team as we are to have them! We don’t hide anything and we make sure the author knows we expect hard work on their part and plenty of dedication to promoting their books. It’s that team effort again! At this point, once contracts are signed and deals are announced, we get down to business. Editing, designing, creating, chatting, and celebrating. It’s a lot of fun.

(I love the collaborative approach you have Kate.)

You take a personal approach to dealing with your authors. What is the Lakewater philosophy for publishing that sets you apart from all the others?

It’s a team effort – staff and authors. Pretty much everything is talked through with at least one other member of the team and the author. Everyone gets to be included in every decision – from the editing to the creative element to promotion. A new creative direction or promotional idea or anything really can come from anyone at any time, so we take time to discuss the books, not just when they’re pre-release, but post-release too.

Although you’re a small independent publisher, you have quite an eclectic catalogue. Could you tell us a bit about your books please?

As booklovers, our collective tastes are eclectic and this will always reflect in our catalogue. We have gorgeous, rich fantasy (WITCHBREED series), gritty and edgy thrillers (JAKE CALDWELL series), intelligent and sharp diva lit (FRIENDS series), haunting and refreshing YA sci-fi (METAMORPHOSIS series), terrifyingly real technothrillers (CYBER WAR series), warm and inspiring women’s fiction (THE SUMMER SPRINGSTEEN’S SONGS SAVED ME), and disturbing and heart-pounding YA thrillers (THE LIFE GROUP). And these are just the books published! (I *might* mention our forthcoming titles in a moment…)

(What a wonderful selection of books, Kate.)

Many bloggers wonder if our blogs make a difference to publishers and their authors. What would you say to that?

Absolutely. Book bloggers are the royalty of the book world. Without your love and passion for discussing and sharing books, your honesty and opinions, publishers and authors often wonder what seasoned readers truly think of their work. We, like the authors, can get so wrapped up in the love for our books that we often can’t see the wood for the trees. So readers’ opinions – good and bad – are so important for us to hear so we know what works and why, but also what doesn’t work and why.

There are so many debates about the longevity of ‘real’ and e-books. What is your view from a publishing perspective?

There’s a place for both physical and e-books in the world. They will co-exist happily and there will always be a place for both. I think it was Stephen Fry who made this comparison to elevators and stairs. Why can’t we have both? Just because elevators came along it didn’t mean stairs had to go! Of course, some books sell better than others as e-books and others as physical copies, and trends always change, so it’s important for us to ensure both digital and physical copies are available to readers for all of our books.

(Quite right too. Whatever format doesn’t take away from the effort an author has had to put in to writing it!)

What are you most excited about for Lakewater Press in 2018?

Well, lots! We have some amazing books coming out this year, obviously starting today with A Forsaken Friend of which feedback so far has been remarkable! We think this might just be better than A Falling Friend… But also this year we have another instalment coming in the JAKE CALDWELL series – fans are becoming pretty impatient so James L. Weaver has been busy writing two books – the sequel to Butterfly Bones, Butterfly Blood, in the METAMORPHOSIS series by Rebecca Carpenter – and it’s an absolute beauty! – another adult thriller called The Foster – guaranteed to leave readers super creeped out – a YA LGBTQ called All Boy by the wonderful Mia Kerick – which is not only very important but melted our hearts! – and very possibly the third and final book in the WITCHBREED series – and we have no idea how RL Martinez plans to end this yet! Plus, we’re revamping The Life Group – new cover, new marketing plans – and we cannot wait!

Lakewater Press is 2 years old. What do you think Lakewater might look like by the time of its 10th birthday?

I hope much the same, but with more stunning books, more avid fans, and more brilliant and talented authors as part of the Lakewater family. We’re here for the duration and hope to evolve and learn from what works and what doesn’t. Life is an education.

(I’m sure you’ll go from strength to strength Kate.)

Is there anything else we should know about Lakewater Press that you haven’t told us so far?

Erm, we love books and authors and readers. That’s if you didn’t figure this out already! And we want to take this chance to thank those who’ve already purchased and read our books, to ask those who have to please, please leave a review so we know how you felt about our products, and finally to invite you to connect with us and our authors! We’re a nice bunch.

Great advice Kate. We should always leave a review of a book if we can as it helps spread the word. Thanks so much for being on Linda’s Book Bag today and Happy Birthday! 

Thanks Linda!

About Lakewater Press

Launched in 2016, Lakewater Press is a small independent publishing company with a philosophy of publishing entertaining and engaging books for adults and young adults alike, preferring quality to quantity.

To find out more about Lakewater Press, follow them on Twitter @LakewaterPress, visit their website or find them on Facebook.

It seems absolutely ages ago that I was able to have lunch in real life with two smashing authors, Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape and I’m absolutely thrilled that today they are staying in with me to chat about one of their books, A Forsaken Friend which is published today. I’d like to thank fellow blogger and Random Things Tours organiser Anne Cater for inviting me to be part of this tour.

It seems especially exciting to invite the ladies over to stay in with me because Sue and Susan are published by Lakewater Press and as Lakewater Press is two years old I’m interviewing their Director Kate Foster today too in a post that you can read here.

Staying in with Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape

Welcome back to Linda’s Book Bag Sue and welcome for the first time Susan.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?

Sue: This was a no brainer: our new book A Forsaken Friend, which was published today (March 21). Don’t you just love the beautiful cover?

(I do indeed and a Happy Publication Day to you both!)

Susan: It’s a sequel to our first novel A Falling Friend, which was published two years ago by Lakewater Press.

(When A Falling Friend, was published, lovely Sue wrote a guest post for Linda’s Book Bag that you can read here.) 

Sue: We started writing together about 13 years ago, but we actually met when my youngest daughter was seven months old. She’s now 28 – so a long time ago.

Susan: We were introduced by my then boyfriend, now my husband, who knew Sue was looking for a job share partner to work with her producing in-house magazines and video programmes for a privatised utility company. I was living in Wales at the time but wanted to return to Leeds so, since my background was also in journalism, he suggested we might be a match.

Sue: We hit it off straight away and have been pals ever since.

Susan: After five years, we both decided to move on and both ended up studying English Literature as mature students, before re-inventing ourselves as university lecturers. Sue taught journalism at Sheffield Hallam and I taught at Leeds Trinity.

Sue: We kept in touch – in fact, Susan was instrumental in getting me my job at Hallam – and regularly met up for lunch (we like to lunch!) and a gossip. On one of these meet-ups we were chatting about the various how-to-write-like-a-journalist books on the market…

Susan: …and because none were quite right for our students we decided to write the book we wanted our students to have…

Sue: … so I went home and emailed four academic publishers and by teatime two of them had expressed an interest in seeing a detailed proposal.

Susan: We went down to London to meet one of the editors and twelve months later, our first text book, Newspaper Journalism: A Practical Introduction was published by Sage. It was followed a year later by our second book, Feature Writing: A Practical Introduction, also published by Sage.

And then, as one does, we decided to write a novel, which eventually, after a number of false starts, became A Falling Friend.

(What a story Susan!)

Sue: We’ve just given the book a bit of a makeover with a lovely new cover to tie in with the release.

I can’t decide which cover I like best. What do you think?

(I definitely like the new one best Sue.)

What can we expect from an evening in with A Forsaken Friend?

Susan: The Amazon headline describes it as witty and intelligent chic lit with attitude. I’m glad people think our heroines Teri Meyer and Lee Harper are spunky, funny and clever women, but since neither they (nor us!) are quite young enough to be chicks, we prefer the label #diva lit.

Sue: Or even just women’s contemporary fiction.

After all, we’re two women writing about the ups and downs in the lives of another pair of women. Men and jobs and family matter – and Teri and Lee have their share of fights – but their friendship is the backbone that enables them to take whatever life throws at them.

Susan: Something which is true for very many women.

(Absolutely!)

Sue: A Forsaken Friend picks up where A Falling Friend left off: as the book opens things can’t get much worse for Teri. She’s lost her job at the university, as well as the regular allowance from her dad’s factory, and now her ex-best friend has gone and stolen her ex-husband!

Susan: Teri decides to hell with them all and heads off into the countryside to spend some time at her brother’s smallholding where the gorgeous and god-like neighbour helps lift her spirits.

Sue: But back home in Yorkshire she’s still got newspaper editor Declan, and a guy she calls Duck’s Arse (because of his weird hairstyle), on hold…

(I wonder why an image of Donald Trump has just popped into my head?)

Susan: Meanwhile, her best friend Lee is feeling a bit guilty about falling in love with Teri’s ex-husband. But, she’s also rather enjoying the fact that, for once, her love life is looking up…

Sue: …except for all the elephants in the room – Teri being the biggest – and not to mention Lee’s mother’s views about her dating a twice-divorced man.

Susan: In other words, things aren’t as rosy as she first thought.  So Lee’s beginning to wonder if sharing her life with a man is such a good idea.

Sue: When we wrote A Falling Friend we thought it would be a standalone novel but then lots of people started asking us what happened next…

Susan: …and we realised we weren’t quite ready to let Teri and Lee go so we decided to move their story along. It took us eight years to write A Falling Friend – we were both working full-time and juggling busy lives – but we finished A Forsaken Friend in eight months.

(Wow!)

Sue: And then spent another eight months-or-so re-writing and editing. A lot of writers don’t like this part of the process but I don’t mind because I’m a bit of a tinkerer and polisher. I’m not so sure about Susan though…

Susan: …it can be a bit frustrating, especially when I’m buzzing with ideas for our next novel which will be the last in the trilogy, but we’ve got a brilliant editor and copy editor, and the changes we’ve made at their suggestion have made A Forsaken Friend a much better book.

Sue: We’ve already written a dozen chapters of the next one – and have a pretty good idea of what’s going to happen to Teri and Lee next. But, no doubt, they’ll swing a few surprises…

Susan: …they always do. It’s lovely when an email pings into your inbox and the next chapter arrives and then, of course, we’re straight on the phone to each other. My husband says he always knows when I’m talking to Sue because of the shrieks of laughter from my office.

(This sounds such a wonderful working relationship ladies.)

What else have you bought along – and why?

Sue: We’ve brought a selection of goodies: a bottle of wine, because, just like Teri and Lee, we like a good bottle of wine and, because I think you’ve said before that you don’t drink alcohol, a packet of my favourite China rose petal leaf tea from the world famous Betty’s tea room in Harrogate, and a box of their Yorkshire Fat Rascal scones.

(I DO drink alcohol (though I prefer tea) but, you’re right, wine doesn’t agree with me. I love those scones from Betty’s and have found I can buy them here too!) 

Susan: We’ve also brought a little photo album of some of the Yorkshire settings that feature in our books. We’re going to post the pictures on our blog so readers can see them too but, in the meantime, you can have an exclusive preview.

(How lovely. Your friendship really shines through.)

Sue: And while you flip through the photographs, we’ll tell you how we make writing together work, how Twitter helped us find Kate Foster, our lovely editor and publisher, and why we avoid using the word ‘looked’.

Susan: We might also, if you’re very discreet, tell you what inspired the Friends trilogy and, though none of our characters are based on real people, we’ve both worked in universities and the local media so we might share some snippets of gossip…

I’m always ready for a bit of gossip. Thanks so much to both of you for staying in with me to tell me all about A Forsaken Friend. I’ve really enjoyed it. I hope you have a wonderful publication day.

A Forsaken Friend

No-one said friendship was easy.

Things can’t get much worse for Teri Meyer. If losing her job at the university and the regular allowance from her dad’s factory isn’t bad enough, now her ex-best friend has gone and stolen her ex-husband! Well, to hell with them all. A few weeks in the countryside at her brother’s smallholding should do the trick – and the gorgeous and god-like neighbour might help.

But then there’s Declan, not to mention Duck’s Arse back in Yorkshire…

It’s not as if Lee Harper set out to fall in love with her best friend’s ex-husband. But, for once, her love life is looking up – except for all the elephants in the room, not to mention Mammy’s opinion on her dating a twice-divorced man. Perhaps things aren’t as rosy as she first thought. And now with one family crisis after another, Lee’s juggling more roles – and emotions – than she ever imagined.

Maybe sharing her life with a man wasn’t such a grand idea.

The Friends trilogy continues in this heart-warming and hilarious hoot as two best friends navigate men, careers, family and rock bottom in this brilliant sequel to A Falling Friend.

A Forsaken Friend is published by Lakewater Press today, March 21 2018 and is available for purchase here in paperback and here in e-book.

About Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape

Sue Featherstone and Susan Pape are both former newspaper journalists with extensive experience of working for national and regional papers and magazines, and in public relations.

More recently they have worked in higher education, teaching journalism – Sue at Sheffield Hallam and Susan at Leeds Trinity University.

The pair, who have been friends for 25 years, wrote two successful journalism text books together – Newspaper Journalism: A Practical Introduction and Feature Writing: A Practical Introduction (both published by Sage).

Their debut novel, A Falling Friend, published by Lakewater Press, has been followed by a second book, A Forsaken Friend, in their Friends trilogy.

Sue, who is married with two grown-up daughters, loves reading, writing and Nordic walking in the beautiful countryside near her Yorkshire home.

Susan is married and lives in a village near Leeds, and, when not writing, loves walking and cycling in the Yorkshire Dales. She is also a member of a local ukulele orchestra.

They blog about books here.

You can find both Sue and Susan on Twitter: @SueF_Writer and @wordfocus.

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