What an absolute privilege to be taken out of my reading comfort zone and to review Saturnalia by Stephanie Feldman for My Weekly magazine online.

Published in paperback by Verve on 26th October 2023, Saturnalia is available for purchase through the links here.

Saturnalia

Doors open at 7. The sacrifice is at 9. The dress code is, as usual, black tie.

It’s the winter solstice in a Philadelphia that has been eroded by extreme weather, economic collapse, and disease-carrying mosquitoes. The Saturnalia carnival is about to begin – an evening on which nearly everyone, rich or poor, forgets their troubles for a moment.

For Nina, Saturnalia is simply a cruel reminder of the night that changed everything for her. It’s now three years since she walked away from the elite Saturn Club, with its genteel debauchery, arcane pecking order, and winking interest in alchemy and the occult. Since then, she’s led an isolated life, eking out a living telling fortunes with her Saturn Club tarot deck.

But when she gets a chance call from Max, her last remaining friend from the Saturn Club, Nina will put on a dress of blackest black and attend the Club’s wild solstice masquerade, the biggest party of the year, on a mysterious errand she can’t say no to.

Before the night is over, she will become the custodian of a horrifying secret – and the target of a mysterious hunter.

As Nina runs across an alternate Philadelphia balanced on a knife’s edge between celebration and catastrophe – through parades, worship houses, museums, hidden mansions, and the place she once called home – she’s forced to confront her past so she can finally take charge of her own, and perhaps everyone else’s, future.

My Review of Saturnalia

My full review of Saturnalia can be found on the My Weekly website here.

However, here I can say that Saturnalia is astonishing and I’m not entirely certain I’ll recover from reading it because I found it so unsettling. It’s dark, disturbing and very, very entertaining!

Do visit My Weekly to read my full review here.

About Stephanie Feldman

Stephanie Feldman is the author of the debut novel The Angel of Losses, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection, winner of the Crawford Fantasy Award, and finalist for the Mythopoeic Award. She is co-editor of the multigenre anthology Who Will Speak for America? and her stories and essays have appeared in Asimov\’s Science Fiction, Catapult Magazine, Electric Literature, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, The Rumpus, and Vol. 1 Brooklyn. She lives outside Philadelphia with her family.

For further information, visit Stephanie’s website, follow her on Twitter/X @sbfeldman or find Stephanie on Instagram.

I feel very privileged to count Anne Coates as a personal friend of some years and she has appeared on Linda’s Book Bag many times in the past. However, I have never quite got round to reading and reviewing one of Anne’s books. Consequently, I am delighted to put that right today by sharing my review of Anne’s latest Hannah Weybridge book, Murder in the Lady Chapel.

I also send Anne my very best wishes for a speedy recovery for her recently fractured shoulder!

Published on 21st November 2023, Murder in the Lady Chapel is available for purchase here.

Murder in the Lady Chapel

“All that is now hidden will some day come to light. If you have ears, listen! And be sure to put into practice what you hear.” Mark 4, verse 22

A chorister is found dying in the Lady Chapel when the Reverend Peter Savage is about to begin morning prayers. It’s a suspicious death and no one seems to know much about the victim. The vicar implores Hannah Weybridge to find out what she can.

Little did the journalist know that this investigation would have her joining the choir in preparation for the Christmas services or that her daughter, Elizabeth, would be so enchanted by the church.

Hannah soon discovers that the deceased, Daniel Lyons, seems to be a man without a history and that’s suspicious in itself. Apparently, an insurance fraud investigator, he leaves no records: even his landlady knows little about him.

But, as Hannah discovers, someone does know him – and he was definitely not who he seemed to be…

And while she investigates, someone is trying to intimidate Hannah in a series of seemingly unconnected ways. The past as well as the present haunts her. Will she be able to solve the mystery before Christmas is ruined?

My Review of Murder in the Lady Chapel

A man has died in church.

I really enjoyed this book, because, filled with intrigue from the off, Murder in the Lady Chapel draws in the reader to the fast moving narrative and keeps them guessing throughout. Short, brisk chapters add to the pace but also skilfully drop in details from Hannah Weybridge’s past so that although I haven’t read the other books in the series I didn’t feel at a disadvantage at all. Rather, this had the effect of making me want to go back and read the series from the beginning. I also very much appreciated that, whilst there is drama and violence to create excitement in the story, Anne Coates includes it without recourse to gratuitous blood and gore, which has the effect of allowing the reader to use their imagination, drawing them into the narrative still further. 

Hannah Weybridge is a complex and well rounded character who is a nuanced mix of strength and vulnerability that makes her highly relatable. I’m not sure I’d have reacted with quite such equanimity as she does at times! One of the elements that surprised me about reading Murder in the Lady Chapel was how much I enjoyed the balance Anne Coates presents of the prosaic nature of Hannah’s home life as a single mother, bringing up Elizabeth, in contrast to her investigations into the death of Daniel Lyons. I’m not keen on children in real life and rarely find them realistic in literature, but I found Elizabeth an important and engaging individual.  Her inclusion made me think about those in the real world juggling difficult jobs and family life. Indeed, one of the themes in Murder in the Lady Chapel is a sensitive exploration of how little we often truly know about those in our lives, how they are living and what constitutes our real identity.

Consequently, aside from a highly entertaining story, there are some interesting themes in Murder in the Lady Chapel with the place religion plays in society, a sense of community and friendship as well as threat and deception so that the story gives the reader plenty to think about. I thought the scenes set in the church were particularly vivid and authentic.

I thoroughly appreciated the backdrop of the festive season that pervades the story. At times Christmas acts as a catalyst for action, at times it illustrates the normal elements in Hannah’s life, and on other occasions it gives effective contrast to the dramatic events of the narrative. As a result, Murder in the Lady Chapel would make a fabulous story to curl up with on a winter’s afternoon, especially as Anne Coates keeps the reader guessing throughout. There are several mini-reveals that had me exclaiming aloud and I loved the way that I was never entirely sure who I could trust in this story. 

I finished Murder in the Lady Chapel feeling I had been thoroughly entertained, completely absorbed, sometimes rather duped and manipulated, and, ultimately, determined to get to the other books in the Hannah Weybridge series just as soon as I can. What a satisfying read!

About Anne Coates

Anne says, ‘As I publish the sixth book in my Hannah Weybridge series, Murder in the Lady Chapel, I realise how fortunate I am to be doing something I love. Authors often go through periods when they feel like giving up but the thought of not writing spurs them on. Writing and creating Hannah Weybridge’s world in 1990s London has been a fabulous experience for me especially when characters, who have become my imaginary friends, take me on so many unexpected journeys. And then there are those precious moments when a reader tells you how much they enjoyed your last book or a friend says how much they are looking forward to your next book and any doubts evaporate – for the time being!’

Writing short stories was Anne’s way into fiction and she had those published in major women’s magazines as she continued as a freelance journalist, working on national newspapers, magazines and in-house publications, and as an editor for Reader’s Digest abridging fiction and narrative non-fiction. Anne’s journalism and editing have both inspired ideas for for her crime thrillers as well as her seven non-fiction books with various publishers.

The first four Hannah Weybridge Books were initially published by Urbane Publications until they ceased trading in April 2021 and new editions were published by Red Dog Press along with the fifth in the series, “Stage Call”, published in January 2022. In June 2023 Anne took her rights back and her series is now published by her imprint Urban Fox Books.

Anne lives in SE London with a large ginger cat and enjoys going to the theatre and cinema and socialising with family and friends.

For further information, you can follow Anne on Twitter/X @Anne_Coates1 and visit her website. You’ll also find Anne on Facebook and on Instagram.

A little while ago, thanks to lovely Chloe Rose, I received a surprise copy of The Real Happy Valley by Alice Vinten and was so intrigued that I simply had to invite Alice onto the blog to tell me more about it. Luckily she agreed to be interviewed. Before I share that with you, let me tell you about The Real Happy Valley.

The Real Happy Valley by Alice Vinten was published by Penguin on 23rd November 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Real Happy valley

A collection of real-life cases showing the bravery of female police officers.

Former Police Constable Alice Vinten shares the stories of brave policewomen who spent their entire careers at the sharp end of crime-fighting.

The Real Happy Valley reveals what life on the beat is really like. From dealing with domestic abuse cases to facing personal assaults, gang crime and murder, these courageous women stop at nothing to bring criminals to justice, never failing to put others’ safety before their own.

Gripping and inspiring, The Real Happy Valley is a celebration of our finest policewomen’s extraordinary courage, and their peerless commitment to protect and serve.

An Interview with Alice Vinten, Author of The Real Happy Valley

Hi Alice. Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag. Congratulations on your recently released book, The Real Happy Valley. Could you tell me a bit about it please?

The Real Happy Valley is a collection of real-life stories from experienced Yorkshire policewomen. I’ve interviewed these women in depth, and really focused on bringing their thoughts, feelings and actions to life, so that reading The Real Happy Valley is like taking a walk in their boots. The stories include tough subjects like murder, domestic abuse and police assault, but this isn’t a ‘dark’ book – it’s a celebration of women in policing, and what they can achieve.

With women at the heart of The Real Happy Valley – the book is dedicated to those who’ve lost their lives in the course of police duty – why did you feel it important to share the experiences of police women particularly?

Despite improvement in recruitment, policing is still a male dominated profession, with women making up around a third of the ranks nationwide. I’d like to see the amount of women in policing increase to at least fifty percent. Women bring a unique skillset to the role, and are absolutely as capable as men. I am hoping that by sharing these inspirational stories, more young women will be encouraged to sign up. I’m also deeply inspired by Sally Wainwright’s writing, and her focus on women’s stories, and the women in The Real Happy Valley have remarkable stories to tell!

I imagine they do. The stories in The Real Happy Valley are anonymised versions of real events. What were the challenges of turning such events into accessible narratives?

The first challenge was anonymising the officers, victims and specific areas involved. This was extremely important to me, as I did not want the family members involved in these, often traumatising, incidents to recognise their loved ones in the book. I have merged the separate forces of West Yorkshire Police, South Yorkshire Police, North Yorkshire Police and Humberside Police into one force – Yorkshire Police Service. Locations were generalised, and some details of the crimes themselves were changed. It was critical for me to convey the real feelings of the police officers – their actions and reactions, in tough situations, had to remain authentic. It was a tricky balancing act to disguise the incidents whilst keeping the stories factual.

I can imagine this took incredible skill. 

The stories are presented in the continuous present tense. Why did you choose this?

I wanted the reader to feel like they were, if not walking in the officer’s boots themselves, at least walking next to them. It’s important for me as a writer that my readers feel surrounded by the action of the scene, that true immersion is achieved. It’s also the way of writing I find most natural. I always start in the middle of the action, and work outwards from there. When someone picks up The Real Happy Valley, I’m hoping they won’t be able to put it down again.

I have a feeling you have succeeded in that brilliantly Alice!

You’ve worked on various police dramas and television documentaries. How far did that experience impact the writing of The Real Happy Valley?

I’ve found it really useful to be able to discuss policing  with a wide range of professionals. Every person brings a different point of view, and life experience, to the discussion on law enforcement. I’ve learnt a lot about pacing, dialogue – balancing action-packed scenes with quieter, more reflective moments – particularly when working as a script advisor on television dramas. I’ve been able to take that knowledge into my interviews with real policewomen, and shape their real stories into compelling, authentic chapters in The Real Happy Valley.

We have become voracious consumers of crime fiction and television. How do you think that has affected public perception of real crime?

I absolutely love thrillers, crime novels and dramas. Whilst TV crime dramas make captivating viewing, they often portray the world of policing as more advanced and resourced than it is in reality. Detectives in fictional murder squads seem to have immediate access to every forensic investigation they need, sit in plush offices with top of the range IT equipment, and rush off to arrest their murder suspect in a fancy car with a spotless interior. Whereas real police cars are usually messy, real murder squad offices are often in dire need of redecoration, and real officers are often overworked and underappreciated. The Real Happy Valley gives readers not only the action, but also the real life challenges and lack of resources that officers often face.

Having been a lay visitor for Cambridgeshire Police Force Alice, I can vouch for the fact that custody suites are often far less appealing than shown on TV!

You previously worked in The Metropolitan Police Service as a constable. What was it like working in an institution that has since been subject to accusations of misogyny?

I enjoyed working for the Metropolitan Police Service. In my ten years there, I met many dedicated and kind officers, and I genuinely believe that the vast majority of police officers are good people, doing their best in an extremely difficult job. However, I did experience misogyny and I have spoken out about some of these experiences in the media. I do believe that there is a culture of sexism within UK police forces.  I feel sad that the Met is still struggling to right these issues, but encouraged by their current efforts to expose all forms of sexism, racism and homophobia. I think women have an important role in shaping the future of policing, which is another reason that it was so important for me to write The Real Happy Valley – to encourage them to join the change.

I think you might be right. If we complain, we need to be prepared to help shape change too.

What challenges do you think still remain for the kind of women in the police force that you write about in The Real Happy Valley?

I think everyone, no matter what job they do, will at some point have to work with a colleague who is bad at their job or outwardly discriminatory. There are people like this in all walks of life, however, it is of enormous importance to make sure that these people are weeded out of policing. I think that having the courage to speak up about instances of inappropriate, unprofessional behaviour will always be challenging, but the officers I wrote about in The Real Happy Valley are no nonsense, strong women, who tell it as it is. They wouldn’t – and didn’t! – stand for anything but the best from their colleagues.

The Real Happy Valley illustrates the unselfish commitment to duty of police women. What traits do you feel such women possess?

The women I interviewed for The Real Happy Valley are not only inspirational, but strong – both mentally and physically – honest, and are determined to achieve justice for the victims they support. As well as all of these qualities – and perhaps more importantly – they seem to have an endless supply of kindness and compassion. Kindness is a strength that is often overlooked when we think about the traditional, tough police officer, but it is, in my opinion, a quality that every police officer must have.

I could not agree more. I have a vivid memory of interviewing an emaciated heroin addict in police cells who told me that ‘they always treat me nice when I’m in here. They know how many sugars I like in me tea’ and that has stayed with me ever since.

What advice would you give to a young woman thinking of joining the police force and becoming part of The Real Happy Valley of police work?

Go for it! It is an eye-opening, fun, challenging and rewarding career. When times get tough – and they will – remember why you joined – to help people. It is easy to become cynical when you deal with criminals day in and day out – guard your compassion, and keep it burning for those who need you.

That might just be a mantra for everyday life too Alice!

Finally, for those considering reading The Real Happy Valley what would be your elevator pitch to persuade them to do so?

The Real Happy Valley – gripping true stories of crime and heroism from Yorkshire’s frontline policewomen, including murder investigations, domestic crimes, an unofficial plan to save a woman’s life, and an officer who is forced to fight for her own.

Sounds fantastic. I’m so glad I have The Real Happy Valley on my TBR. Is there anything else you’d like to add about The Real Happy Valley?

The Real Happy Valley would be the perfect Christmas gift for lovers of crime TV dramas, as well as true crime readers, crime fiction addicts and memoir fans.

Thank you so much for answering my questions Alice. I think The Real Happy Valley sounds like a fascinating and inspiring read.

About Alice Vinten

Alice spent over eleven years in the Metropolitan Police Service as a constable. Her memoir about life on the beat, On The Line: Life – and Death – In the Metropolitan Police (Two Roads), received excellent reviews and led her to becoming a crime and police commentator for national media, as well as working with the BBC and other television production companies on various police dramas and documentaries. She lives with her children near the sea in Essex.

For further information, follow Alice on Twitter/X @AVintenAuthor, or find her on Instagram and Facebook.

It’s my privilege to help close the Random Things Tours blog tour for Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life by Helen Fisher. My thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me to participate and to Becky Hunter for originally sending me a copy of Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life. I’m delighted to share my review today.

I previously reviewed Helen’s Space Hopper for My Weekly Magazine in a post you’ll find here.

Published by Simon and Schuster on 9th November 2023, Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life is available for purchase through the links here.

Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life

Joe loves predictability. But his life is about to become a surprising adventure.

Joe-Nathan likes the two parts of his name separate, just like his dinner and dessert. Mean Charlie at work sometimes calls him Joe-Nuthin. But Joe is far from nothing. Joe is a good friend, he’s good at his job, good at making things and good at following the rules, and he’s learning how to do lots of things by himself.

Joe’s mother knows there are a million things in life he isn’t prepared for. While she helps guide him every day, she’s also writing notebooks full of advice about the things she hasn’t told Joe yet, things he might forget and answers to questions he hasn’t yet asked.

Following her wisdom – applying it in his own unique way – this next part of Joe’s life is more of a surprise than he expects. Because he’s about to learn that remarkable things can happen when you leave your comfort zone, and that you can do even the hardest things with a little help from your friends.

My Review of Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life

Joe likes his routines.

Oh my word. Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life is utterly beautiful. I absolutely adored it. I’d heard nothing but positive things about Helen Fisher’s latest book, but that didn’t prepare me for the total joy in reading Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life. It completely filled my heart with happiness.

The plot is relatively gentle as Joe learns that change can be good, but it also embodies powerful and dramatic themes that illustrate to perfection how judging others and making assumptions can make us blind to the truth of their lives – and of our own. It’s no exaggeration to say that I wish every world leader, every person in a position of power and influence, could read Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life so that they come a little bit closer to the human compassion and understanding displayed by Joe and Janet. 

Joe is a wonderful creation. He is quirky, funny, and absolutely the most engaging character in fiction a reader might wish to meet. I loved all the characters – even the noxious Owen who adds balance to the kindness of others. The fact that there’s a limited number of characters, most of whom work at The Compass Store, gives an intimacy that enables the reader to know them thoroughly. Chloe is a complete triumph. Her sweary and abrasive nature ensures there’s no cloying sentimentality in Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life, but rather a finely tuned balance of imperfection that makes the book so affecting, so beautiful and so unforgettable. 

With themes of friendship and love, bullying of various kinds and loyalty and compassion, Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life can be read on many levels. At its simplest it’s an entirely entertaining story about a person slightly different to other people. However, that is to do a disservice to this gorgeous story. Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life is a story about humanity. As Helen Fisher peels back the layers of Joe’s personality, so she illustrates profound kindness and understanding, making the reader laugh aloud and shed a tear on the way so that this is a book not to be forgotten. It’s a stunner.

I could not have loved this book more. I finished it with a smile on my face, an almost physical ache in my heart and a moistness in my eye. Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life is just fabulous. Read it. 

About Helen Fisher

Helen Fisher spent her early life in America, but grew up mainly in Suffolk where she now lives with her two children. She studied Psychology at Westminster University and Ergonomics at UCL and worked as a senior evaluator in research at the RNIB. She is now a full-time author. Space Hopper was her first novel.

You can follow Helen on Twitter @HFisherAuthor and find her on Instagram.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

I always think it’s such a privilege as a blogger to be in at the start of a book’s life and today it gives me enormous pleasure to welcome Lesley Eames to Linda’s Book Bag as she has a brand new book in her Wartime Bookshop series out in paperback today. Let’s find out more:

Staying in with Lesley Eames

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

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

I’ve brought Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop. It’s my latest book but I’ve also brought it because a Christmas story creates a cosy atmosphere for a wintery night in. Slippers, elasticated waists, chocolate …

Those things sound perfect to me. And I understand Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is out in paperback today so Happy Publication Day! What can we expect from an evening in with Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop?

Well, we’ll be taking a peek at the Hertfordshire village of Churchwood during World War II. I’ve brought the third book in the Wartime Bookshop series but each book can be read as a standalone. We’ll be able to see what Alice, Kate and Naomi are up to, along with a whole host of other characters, not least big, bearlike Bert and land girls, Ruby and Pearl. Here comes village gossip, Marjorie Plym, as well but quick! Let’s hide and maybe she won’t notice us.

Funny she’s called Marjorie – so’s my Mum…

We’ll also be answering questions. Like how is the bookshop thriving? How are the loved ones who are away at the war? Who is the mysterious person who’s stealing milk from doorsteps? Will Naomi’s awful husband try to cheat her out of money? And what’s that in the sky? A spitfire or – Oh, crikey!

This all sounds wonderful Lesley. How have readers been responding to Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop?

I’m thrilled by readers responses to the book so far. One reader actually wrote:

“Joyfully diving into Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop. I was swept away once again by the magic of Lesley Eames’s storytelling prowess. Having been absolutely enchanted by The Wartime Bookshop and Land Girls at the Wartime Bookshop, Eames has once again outdone herself with this third book, which, I dare say, shines even brighter than the others!”

I feel humbled, honoured and even a little tearful when I receive nice reviews!

How brilliant to have written books with that kind of response. 

What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

I’ve brought tissues as we might have a little cry as we settle down with the book though we should have a giggle too.

I love a book where I can have a good cry Lesley!

I’ve also brought those absolute essentials for a night in: tea and chocolate. Oh, and what’s this? A bottle of wine! Chablis. My favourite. Why not? It’s Christmas (almost).

You can keep the wine Lesley as it makes me ill, but with tea and chocolate in the offing you’re welcome back here any time!

I’ve also brought the last Christmas card my mum sent me as she died last year on her 91^st birthday.

Oh I am sorry to hear that. My Mum Marjorie is approaching 91 too!

My mum was a child in the war and was in her grandmother’s house in Birkenhead near the docks when it was bombed. She was lucky and survived without serious injury but a 14 year-old aunt was killed and another aunt had her legs crushed. I think it was hearing about my mother’s wartime experiences that got me interested in writing about the home front in WWII. Such a resilient generation!

And such an inspiration for your books Lesley. I’m delighted to have been able to spend time on publication day with you, so thank you for staying in with me. You pour me a tea and get yourself a glass of Chablis whilst I share a few more details about Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop and a smashing extract too.

Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop

Alice, Kate and Naomi want to keep the magic of Christmas alive in their village of Churchwood but a thief in the area and a new family that shuns the local community are only the first of the problems they face.

Naomi is fighting to free herself from Alexander – the man who married her for her money, then kept a secret family behind her back. But will she be able to achieve the independence she craves?

Alice‘s dreams came true when she married sweetheart Daniel. Now he has returned to the fighting, but Alice is delighted to discover that she’s carrying his child. Will the family make it through the war unscathed?

While Kate’s life on Brimbles Farm has never been easy, she now has help from land girls Pearl and Ruby. But what will it mean for them all when Kate’s brother returns from the war with terrible injuries? And why has pilot Leo, the man she loves, stopped writing?

As ever, the Wartime Bookshop is a source of community and comfort. But disaster is about to strike…

Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is the third novel in the uplifting Wartime Bookshop series, perfect for fans of Donna Douglas and Elaine Everest.

Published by Penguin today, 23rd November 2023, Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop is available for purchase through the links here.

An Extract from Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop

Chapter one

Naomi

September 1941

Churchwood, Hertfordshire, England

 

There was a thief in Churchwood.

‘He’s struck again, madam,’ Suki announced.

‘What has he taken this time?’

‘The same as before. A full pint of milk. He left this behind.’ Naomi’s little maid held up a posy of green­ery bound together with ivy. Since Naomi recognized the greenery as having been taken from the trees, bushes and ivy in her own garden, the posy was hardly fair compen­sation for the theft, but perhaps the thief had nothing else to give.

‘I’ll be walking into the village later so can buy more milk then,’ Naomi said. ‘Can Cook manage without it this morning?’

‘She says so, madam.’

‘Very well. Thank you, Suki.’

The maid nodded and left the room.

Suki was a sweet girl, and Naomi would miss her if they had to part. Of course, the parting might arise from happy circumstances. Suki wasn’t courting yet, as far as Naomi knew, but one day she might leave to get mar­ried. Or she might go off to help the war effort through factory work or by joining one of the services, in which case Naomi would admire her pluck and wish her well. But there was a more depressing reason they might have to part, one that was weighing heavily on Naomi’s mind. Soon, Naomi might simply be unable to afford to keep paying her staff – Suki, Cook, Sykes the gardener and Beryl the cleaning lady. It grieved Naomi to think that losing their jobs could cause them real hardship.

Naomi might have to give up her home, too. Foxfield, the house she loved.

Restlessness brought her to her feet, and she paced the sitting room, a space she’d always preferred to the grander drawing room when she was alone or entertaining close friends. Pacing wasn’t enough to settle her, though, so she called to Basil, her faithful old bulldog. ‘Let’s go for walkies.’

Basil heaved himself up willingly. He always seemed to sense her mood and offer sympathy. They’d been companions for many years, and Naomi often thought that they were alike in appearance as well as temperament, both having heavy jowls, wide hips and short legs. Catching sight of herself in the mirror above the mantelpiece now, Naomi winced. She was forty-six but, with furrows of worry creasing her face, she was sure she looked much older.

They left by the front door but walked around to the back of the house where the gardens spread into the dis­tance, testimony to Sykes’s skill and care. There were two acres of them in total, comprising green lawns, herbaceous borders, a walkway where roses grew in beds throughout the summer, and a pergola that was festooned in wisteria in May and June. As well, there were trees. Magnificent trees – tall, noble oaks; sycamores; horse chestnuts; copper beeches; cedars; laurels . . . The approach of autumn was beginning to turn some of the leaves from green to yellow and soon the trees would be ablaze with oranges, reds and russets too.

How beautiful it all was.

****

About Lesley Eames

Lesley was born and brought up in Manchester but now lives in Hertfordshire where The Wartime Bookshop series is set. She has had a wide variety of jobs including waitress; barmaid; cinema usherette; shop assistant; solicitor; Groups and Corporate Manager for an events company and  Marketing and Fundraising Development Manager for a charity. She has always wanted to be a writer, though.

Beginning with short stories for magazines, she has now written seven novels, the latest being the Wartime Bookshop series. Along the way, she has been honoured to win awards such as the Festival of Romance New Talent Award and the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Elizabeth Goudge Cup. She is also a creative writing tutor, mentor and editor.

Lesley loves working from home because she can share the adventures of her characters while wearing slippers and drinking copious cups of tea.

For further information, visit Lesley’s website, follow her on Twitter/X @LesleyEames, or find Lesley on Facebook.

I’m delighted to share the latest of my My Weekly online reviews. Today I’m reviewing the second Mallory Dawson thriller, The Sixth Lie by Sarah Ward.

The Sixth Lie was published by Canelo Crime on 2nd November 2023 and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Sixth Lie

Six lies killed Huw Jones.

On New Year’s Eve 2010, Huw Jones disappeared from his bedroom while his father and five friends were downstairs. His body was later discovered on the nearby cliffs at St Non’s.

That night, all six friends lied in their statements to the police.

Over a decade later, Huw’s mother, Heledd is found dead.

Mallory Dawson must uncover the lies lurking in the tight-knit community of St Davids. But someone has kept their secrets for years, and they would kill to protect them…

My Review of The Sixth Lie

My full review of The Sixth Lie can be found on the My Weekly website here.

However, here I can say that The Sixth Lie is a compelling, engaging and thoroughly enjoyable thriller that made me want to find out more about Mallory Dawson. I really, really enjoyed this one!

Do visit My Weekly to read my full review here.

About Sarah Ward

Sarah Ward is a crime novelist who writes gothic historical thrillers as Rhiannon Ward. The Shadowing, her most recent gothic novel, was a Daily Express book of the year. The Birthday Girl, the first book in her new Welsh based series, was published in April 2023 and was described in the FT as ‘channelling Christie-esque tropes’ . The second in the series, The Sixth Lie, is out now. She has also written Doctor Who audio dramas.

Sarah is Vice-Chair of the Crime Writers Association and Treasurer of Crime Cymru, the Welsh crime writing collective.

For further information, visit Sarah’s website, follow her on Twitter/X @sarahrward1 and find Sarah on Instagram and Facebook.

Tim Walker has featured many times on Linda’s Book Bag in posts you’ll find here and today he’s back with an extract from his latest book London Tales.

London Tales was published on 9th November 2023 and is available for purchase here.

London Tales

This collection of eleven tales offers dramatic pinpricks in the rich tapestry of London’s timeline, a city with two thousand years of history. They are glimpses of imagined lives at key moments, starting with a prologue in verse from the point of view of a native Briton tribeswoman absorbing the shock of Roman invasion. The first story is a tense historical adventure set in Roman Londinium in 60 CE from the perspective of terrified legionaries and townsfolk facing the vengeful Iceni queen, Boudica, whose army burnt the fledgling city to the ground.

Further historical dramas take place in 1381 during the Peasant’s Revolt, the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the last ice fair on the frozen Thames in 1814. These are followed by a romance set during the Blitz in 1941, then the swinging Sixties and wide-flared seventies are remembered in the life story of fictional policeman, Brian Smith. Moving on, an East End family get a fright from copycat killings that are a throwback to the 1888 Jack the Ripper murders.

There’s a series of contemporary stories that reference recent events, including the London terrorist bombings of 2005, a literary pub crawl and a daring prison break, building to the imagined death throes of London in a chilling, dystopian vision. These stories are loosely inspired by the author’s personal experiences and reflections on his time living and working in London in the 1980’s and 90’s. Adaptability, resilience, conformity and resolve are recurring themes.

London Tales evokes the city’s rich history and the qualities that were needed by Londoners at various times to survive and prosper – from the base and brutal, devious and inspired, to the refined and civilized.

Available from Amazon in e-book, paperback, Kindle Unlimited and audiobook formats, London Tales is a companion volume to Thames Valley Tales.

An Extract from London Tales

Mac the Ripper

It’s 2016 and East End family, the MacMullens, react in different ways to the news that a copycat Jack the Ripper is on the loose in the streets off Brick Lane…

“Here, love, look at this in The Standard.” Tom’s dad, Billy, looked over the top of his upright tabloid.

“What is it?” Mel drawled, as she dished up the chicken Kievs with oven chips and baked beans.

“Look, there’s been a murder not far from here. ‘Woman Slain in Frenzied Knife Attack’ it says.”

She took the paper off him and read. “Oh yes, and right next to my hairdressers. Wonder if I knew her, poor cow.”

“There won’t be any details for a few days,” Billy offered, as if an expert in these matters.

“The police have got to do their forensics thing and interview any witnesses, and then tell the victim’s family before they go public. I’ll ask around down the bookies tomorrow.”

“Oh, you will, will you? Any excuse to throw our money away! You’d be better off going to the DIY place to buy some shelves and put them up in the spare bedroom. Do something useful on your day off…”

He lifted his newspaper again and tuned out from her nagging. She plonked the plates on the table and gazed out of the kitchen window to their brick-walled yard, as night descended on Whitechapel.

“Makes you wonder who’s out there,” she said as they settled down to eat.

The next morning, Tom went to school, Mel went to work, and Billy wandered off to find out what he could about the brutal murder so close to home. The man behind the counter in the corner shop said he’d heard that it was a young Bangladeshi woman, not from his community, mind, who’d had her throat slashed and body dismembered, in a recreation of the 1888 Jack the Ripper murders. Not only that, but it took place in the same courtyard where one of the original murders had taken place, over a hundred and thirty years ago. He told Billy that the most detailed report was in The Times and sold him a copy with a sly wink to the other man in the shop. Billy reluctantly parted with the money – he’d become used to picking up a free copy of The Standard from outside The Underground.

Billy MacMullen had lived in the East End all his life and had seen a lot of change. The new wave of immigrant settlers were Indians and Bangladeshis, the latter predominantly Muslims. An old Christian church had been converted into a mosque, with a neon-lit minaret now dominating Brick Lane. The Eastern European Jews and French Huguenots had dissipated into the grey, misty air over the years, to be replaced with Irish and Commonwealth settlers. He stopped to look at an estate agent window. The next stage, if the estate agents had their way, would be to gentrify the area and sell tiny flat conversions to eager City workers.

“Progress, they call it,” Billy muttered under his breath. “But with property prices creeping up, I could sell up and join my mates in Essex.” He pushed through the door of the White Hart and ordered his first pint of the day.

It was eleven o’clock and he was the first in. Spreading The Times on the counter, he thumbed straight to the murder story. Tomasz, the young Polish barman, came over to see what he was looking at.

“A young woman has been murdered near here,” Billy said, screwing up his eyes to read the small print size in the posh newspaper.

“Oh yes? Who was she?” Tomasz poured a pint of foaming ale and plonked it on the bar towel in front of him. It was happy hour for pensioners, and Mac Senior had previously shown his bus pass as proof of his qualification to the otherwise unfazed barman. He had stopped work early with bad feet and was sensitive to the fact that he looked a bit young to be retired, his brown hair only just showing signs of giving way to grey.

“It says she was a young woman from the Indian or Bangladeshi community, wearing a blue, patterned sari. Victim of a sustained and vicious knife attack that has the MO of the original Jack the Ripper murders.”

“What is MO?” Tomasz asked.

“Modus Opera… well, it means how it was done. It’s a copycat murder, in effect.” Billy took a mouthful of ale and wiped the froth from his mouth with the back of his hand.

“What have cats got to do with it?” Tomasz asked.

“It’s just a saying, you know, how we say things. “Copycat” means it’s been copied in the exact same way. You see, in Queen Victoria’s time, there were five horrific murders of women in the streets around here. Grisly murders.

Tomasz raised an eyebrow and asked, “When was that?”

Billy frowned at the small print again. “1888, it says here. In fact, one victim left this very pub just before she met her end in a dark alley.” Billy paused for dramatic effect, but Tomasz had his back to him. “The paper says this latest murder was done in exactly the same way. Get it? Somebody’s pretending to be Jack the Ripper. It could be someone who frequents this very pub.”

Tomasz busied himself, with a concerned look on his face now.

Billy went on, his eyes scrunched over the paper, “And some people think the original killer was a Polish immigrant called Aaron Kosminski, so you’d better get your alibi straight.”

“… Or the artist Walter Sickert.” A hand fell on Billy’s shoulder, which made him jump.

“Oh, it’s you, Don!” Billy said, turning to face his grey-haired friend.

“I saw a TV documentary on the Jack the Ripper suspects and there’s an American artist who painted a picture in 1888 called, Jack the Ripper’s Bedroom. Now there’s this famous novelist, a woman, saying she’s convinced he was yer man,” Don said, pointing to the pump handle of his favourite beer. The hovering barman nodded and proceeded to pull a frothy pint.

“Patricia Cornwell,” said another customer at the bar. “I watched that.”

Don took his place on a barstool next to Billy. “Sounds about right.”

“Well, whoever it was, it seems that his ghost is back and at it again. Have you read this?” Billy showed the newspaper report to his friend and ordered him a drink.

****

Author’s Note:

In 2017 I went on a Jack the Ripper walking tour around the side streets off Whitechapel in London’s East End. The sites of Jack the Ripper’s grisly 1888 murders can all be reached within an hour and a half’s tour. Although Brick Lane is now dominated by Indian and Bangladeshi restaurants, the side streets still have a Victorian feel with the terraced workers cottages lit by period street lamps (see my photo on the Mac the Ripper artwork). Popular with film crews, our guide quipped. Much has been written about the Ripper murders over the past 120-odd years, and there has been plenty of speculation as to the possible identity of ‘Jack’. It remains the most fascinating and high profile unsolved series of murders attributed to one killer in London’s history.

In the days following the tour I composed this short story. I decided to make it a contemporary tale centred on a white working-class family living there, adjusting to the revolving door of new waves of immigrants crowding into relatively low rent accommodation in the streets off Whitechapel and around Brick Lane.

About Tim Walker

Tim Walker is an independent author living near Windsor in the UK. Although born in Hong Kong in the sixties, he grew up in Liverpool where he began his working life as a trainee reporter on a local newspaper. After attaining a degree in Communication Studies he moved to London where he worked in the newspaper publishing industry for ten years before relocating to Zambia where, following a period of voluntary work with VSO, he set up his own marketing and publishing business. He returned to the UK in 2009.

His creative writing journey began in earnest in 2013, as a therapeutic activity whilst recovering from cancer treatment. He began writing an historical fiction series, A Light in the Dark Ages, in 2014, inspired by a visit to the part-excavated site of former Roman town Calleva Atrebatum at Silchester in Hampshire. The series connects the end of Roman Britain to elements of the Arthurian legend and is inspired by historical source material, presenting an imagined historical fiction of Britain in the fifth and early sixth centuries.

The last book in the series, Arthur, Rex Brittonum, was published in June 2020. This is a re-imagining of the story of King Arthur and follows on from 2019’s Arthur Dux Bellorum. Both titles are Coffee Pot Book Club recommended reads. The series starts with Abandoned (second edition, 2018); followed by Ambrosius: Last of the Romans (2017); and book three, Uther’s Destiny (2018). Series book covers are designed by Canadian graphic artist, Cathy Walker.

Tim has also written two books of short stories, Thames Valley Tales (second edition 2023), London Tales (2023); a book of verse, Perverse (2020); a dystopian thriller, Devil Gate Dawn (2016); and three children’s books, co-authored with his daughter, Cathy – The Adventures of Charly Holmes (2017), Charly & the Superheroes (2018) and Charly in Space (2020).

Tim took early retirement on medical grounds and now divides his time between writing and helping out at a Berkshire-based charity, Men’s Matters.

To find out more you can visit Tim’s website.  You can follow Tim on Twitter/X @timwalker1666 and you’ll find him on Instagram, Amazon and Facebook.

Recently I had a lovely surprise pack of children’s books published by Pan Macmillan children’s imprint Two Hoots Books and it’s my pleasure to share my reviews of two of those books today.

Firstly, I’m looking at The Ogre Who Wasn’t by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by Emily Gravett which was published by Two Hoots on 5th October and is available for purchase through the links here.

The Ogre Who Wasn’t

The fresh and funny story of a little princess who hates the stuffy palace, but loves the creatures she meets in the garden, from the award-winning duo Sir Michael Morpurgo (Children’s Laureate 2003-4) and Emily Gravett.

Clara is a small, strong-willed princess who likes running wild, jumping ditches and climbing trees . . . but most of all, she loves collecting creepy-crawlies and making them her friends. That’s not easy with a bossy butler and a pernickety nanny always on your case. When Clara discovers that an ogre she keeps in her shoe under her bed isn’t an ogre at all, he offers her a way out of her predicament. There’s only one thing she needs to do . . .

The Ogre Who Wasn’t is a lesson in kindness and a celebration of the natural world written by one of Two Hoots’s most acclaimed authors and illustrated by the award-winning Emily Gravett: the marvellous partnership who also created the bestselling picture book, A Song of Gladness.

My Review of The Ogre Who Wasn’t

Clara keeps an ogre under the bed!

What a charming book. I loved this story. In The Ogre Who Wasn’t Michael Morpurgo acknowledges the traditional concept of a princess who is pretty and demure and turns it on its head with Princess Clara who is scruffy, always active and very determined. She’s a great character.

I thought the balance of text to the fantastic pictures from Emily Gravett was perfect. The story is wonderful for reading aloud, but the language is accessible for young readers whilst having a variety of sentence structure that enhances independent writing as well as reading.

I thought the themes were simply fabulous. Through The Ogre Who Wasn’t Michael Morpurgo affords the opportunity for young children to express and understand grief and loneliness, independence, happiness and love. The ending is poignant and I thought the fact that the illustration suggests Clara’s new Mum appears to be of a different ethnicity is so important in today’s society. It’s also so heartening that the ogre turns out to be a simple toad, which teachers children not to judge by appearances.

However, it’s the whole package of The Ogre Who Wasn’t that is so pleasing because there is a feisty girl who acts as a role model for young children. There is a child whose mum has died and a father who is often absent for work so that ordinary families are represented. There is an appreciation and respect of nature and the understanding that riches don’t equate to happiness. There’s the acceptance of who we are and how others can improve our lives. There’s a celebration of love and family too. It’s all just lovely and enhanced by the beautiful illustrations.

I thoroughly recommend The Ogre Who Wasn’t!

About Michael Morpurgo

Michael Morpurgo is one of Britain’s best-loved writers for children. He has written over 130 books including War Horse, which was adapted for a hugely successful stage production by the National Theatre and then, in 2011, for a film directed by Steven Spielberg. Michael was Children’s Laureate from 2003 to 2005. The charity Farms for City Children, which he founded thirty years ago with his wife Clare, has now enabled over 70,000 children to spend a week living and working down on the farm. His enormous success has continued with his novels Flamingo Boy and The Snowman, inspired by the classic story by Raymond Briggs. He was knighted in 2018 for services to literature and charity.

You can find out more by visiting Michael Morpurgo’s website.

About Emily Gravett

Emily Gravett has a rare talent for creating exceptional books for children. The winner of two CILIP Kate Greenaway Medals, her skill and wit are second to none. Emily first sprang into the limelight with the ground-breaking Wolves, which has been followed by such modern classics as Meerkat Mail, Little Mouse’s Big Book of Fears, Monkey and Me and Again! and the fabulous Bear and Hare series for younger readers, as well as the beautiful Tidy, Old Hat, Cyril and Pat and Meerkat Christmas. Each book is unique and different from the last – and each features endearing, beautifully drawn characters that touch the heart and tickle the funny bone. Emily lives in Brighton with her family.

For further information you can fine Emily on Facebook and Instagram.

****

A second lovely children’s book that arrived was Wolf and Bear by Kate Rolfe.

Wolf and Bear was published on 14th September and is available for purchase through the links here.

Wolf and Bear

A heartfelt story about a playful young wolf and her best friend, Bear.

The two best friends always play together, whether it’s paddling in the stream, skidding in the snow, or tumbling in the falling leaves. But sometimes Bear feels sad and wants to be alone . . .

Wolf and Bear is a beautiful tale of kindness and hope, exploring the topic of depression. Authentic and sensitively illustrated, this picture book gently introduces young children to a topic which can often be difficult to discuss.

Written and illustrated by the hugely talented Kate Rolfe, winner of the V&A Student Illustrator of the Year Award 2022.

My Review of Wolf and Bear

Bear sometimes feels very sad.

Oh come off it! How can a simple children’s book aimed at 3-6 year olds reduce a middle aged woman in her 60s to tears? That’s exactly what Kate Rolfe’s Wolf and Bear did because it’s so emotional.

Beautifully illustrated in blueish tones that perfectly echo Bear’s sadness and depression Wolf and Bear is a wonderful book for children. Wolf and Bear have a close friendship but at times life is too much for Bear and he needs space to be alone. This makes Wolf sad, but she sings her sadness and gradually draws Bear back into the light from the darkness he is feeling. Importantly, this is not a quick fix and Bear still has times when he simply wants to sit rather than play.

I loved the way Wolf and Bear is a story that allows children to explore their own difficult emotions in a safe environment. At one point Bear roars his answer to Bear with terrible anger, but Kate Rolfe helps young children understand that anger can come from a feeling of sadness so that this is a book that supports and helps the mental health of young readers.

Simply written, with plenty of repetition to support young readers and emergent writers, Wolf and Bear is not only a lovely book, it’s an important one. Through the story of Wolf and Bear, young children can learn to accept their own feelings and to understand how friendship can help as they empathise with others. I thought Wolf and Bear was just brilliant. It’s beautifully written and illustrated with an important message at its heart. Don’t miss it.

About Kate Rolfe

Kate Rolfe is an author and illustrator living in Suffolk who studied Animation at Plymouth College of Art, BA (Hons) Film Production at Northern Film School and graduated with an MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art in 2022. Aside from writing and illustrating her own ideas, she works in textile designs, teaches illustration and runs drawing and writing sessions online. Kate has won many awards including New Talent in Children’s Publishing at the World Illustration Awards 2022 and Student Illustrator of the Year 2022 at the V&A Illustration Awards. She has also received awards for her works Wiggling Words and Wolf and Bear, both of which are being published by Two Hoots under Macmillan Children’s Books.

For further information, visit Kate’s website and follow Kate on Twitter/X @KateRolfeArt. You’ll also find Kate on Facebook and Instagram.

I have absolutely no idea how Women Who Won by Ros Ball illustrated by Emmy Lupin arrived in my post box or who sent it, but my huge thanks. I’ve had the book a couple of months, have been gradually reading each of the entries and am delighted to share my review today.

Women Who Won was published by Unbound on 7th September 2023 and is available for purchase here.

Women Who Won

Did you know that Sirimavo Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka was the first woman in the world to become a democratically elected prime minister? That Tina Anselmi was a wartime resistance fighter who became the first woman to serve as a cabinet minister in Italy? Or that Sylvie Kinigi of Burundi was the first woman to serve as a prime minister in Africa? It is high time these extraordinary women who helped shape our world became household names, and this book brings them at last to the fore.

Women Who Won is a celebration of 70 women from the last 100 years: politicians from around the globe who fought for election in a man’s world… and won. Beautifully illustrated by artist Emmy Lupin, it features well-known figures, including Kamala Harris, Benazir Bhutto, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Jacinda Ardern and Julia Gillard, alongside lesser-known women whose stories are ready to be heard:

• Shidzue Katō, one of the first women elected to the Diet of Japan
• Yulia Tymoshenko, the first woman prime minister of Ukraine
• Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to the US Congress
• Peri-Khan Sofieva, the first democratically elected Muslim woman
• Ethel Blondin-Andrew, the first Indigenous woman elected to Canadian parliament

Women of the past, but also women of the present and future. Women who smashed the political glass ceiling. Women who fought to leave a positive legacy for future generations. Women who paved the way for girls of today to become women who won.

My Review of Women Who Won

A collection of biographies about inspirational women.

You know, one of the things about Women Who Won that struck me immediately was the sad fact that not only do we need a book with a focus on women in political situations, but that if I’m totally honest I hadn’t heard of the vast majority of the seventy women here. I was immediately moved by the reference to Jo Cox at the start of the book and by the time I had read each of the entries I felt humbled, uplifted, educated and informed. Women Who Won is an important book.

Each entry is accompanied by a glorious full colour portrait from Emmy Lupin that held a resonance of the work of Frieda Kahlo for me. They truly helped bring these amazing women to life.

Covering countries from across the world, each randomly organised entry begins with a summative sentence and includes footnotes and references that lead the reader to further research. Ros Ball manages to distil both detail and information into concise and accessible prose that is so informative and interesting. I’d defy anyone reading Women Who Won not to find someone whose personality, situation or beliefs resonates with them, so that it isn’t just geography, ethnicity and sexuality that’s inclusive here, but the opportunity to discover a like-minded individual. I also found reading the list of contributors who have helped crowd fund Women Who Won incredibly diverting and it meant that Women Who Won gave me more to discover, researching some of them after I’d finished reading about the seventy people included here.

It’s quite hard to explain the impact of Women Who Won. It’s fascinating. It’s informative. And, surprisingly, it’s quite emotional to discover these amazing women who have striven against all manner of adversity to be beacons for us all – regardless of gender. I thought Women Who Won was beautifully produced, enduring and absolutely needed in a world that sometimes feels dominated by men hell bent on destroying us all.

About Ros Ball

Ros Ball is an author and former BBC broadcast journalist, working for many years on politics in Westminster. In 2017 she published The Gender Agenda, a first-hand account of how boys and girls are treated differently. She currently works on equalities policy for women and girls.

For further information, follow Ros on Twitter/X @rosball or find Ros on Instagram.

  About Emmy Lupin

 Emmy Lupin is a freelance illustrator from Nottingham, based in London. Specialising in digital illustration that’s big on pattern and colour, Emmy’s work is inspired by looking at life through a female lens. She has been commissioned by the likes of Adidas, TikTok, Stylist Magazine and SEGA, to name a few.

For further information visit Emmy’s website and find her on Instagram and Facebook.

I’m really trying hard not to take on blog tours at the moment in order to read some of the wonderful books I already have, but when Anne Cater of Random Things Tours invited me to participate in the tour for Solstice by Helen Steadman I simply couldn’t resist. You see, Solstice is book three in the Widdershins trilogy and I loved the first two books so I’m delighted to share my review of Solstice today. 

You will find my review of Widdershins here and of Sunwise here.

Published by Bell Jar, Solstice is available for purchase through the links here.

Solstice

England, 1673. Still a world of witches, witch trials and witchfinders.

When a new vicar arrives to take over the parish of Mutton Clog, the village finds itself in the grip of puritan fever, and suspicious eyes are turned on Rose Driver.

Rose’s mother, brother and grandmother were all put to death by the fanatical witchfinder, John Sharpe.

Almost quarter of a century after the Newcastle witch trials, Sharpe is no longer a threat. Rose should be safe in her quiet village, but is history about to repeat itself?

Find out in Solstice, the powerful conclusion to The Widdershins Trilogy, which tells the story of one woman’s struggle for survival in a hostile and superstitious world.

The Widdershins Trilogy was inspired by the little-known Newcastle witch trials, where fifteen women and one man were hanged for witchcraft on a single day in August 1650.

My Review of Solstice

The Leaton Family are moving parish.

Solstice might have the persecution of witches at the heart of the narrative, but Helen Steadman’s story-telling is bewitching in its own right. From the very first page it is as if the reader is being addressed directly, by their own personal storyteller, with the effect that it is impossible not to be drawn in instantly. The tone is perfect for the era so that every aspect of Solstice feels authentic and beautifully crafted. I thought it was wonderful.

The plot is fast paced, riveting and compelling. Whilst Solstice is the third book in a trilogy, it can be read as a stand alone story with no prior knowledge of the other books, because Helen Steadman weaves in any knowledge needed with such skill. It’s six years since I read Widdershins, but several hundred books read later, Solstice not only brought that earlier book flooding back, but was written in such a way that it is totally accessible, understandable and mesmerising, independently of anything else. I thought this quality of story telling was magnificent.

The characterisation is superb. By the time I was 50 pages into the story I was ready to climb into the pages and give Patience a violent and thorough shaking. She made my blood boil! Indeed, I’d defy anyone not to be thoroughly enraged by the injustice displayed by those supposedly superior in status to others. Steeped in history, Solstice is also a book about people, about unselfish love, family, betrayal and spite so that the characters become completely convincing. Indeed, considering Patience and her strong narrative voice I had to question whether my hatred of her was fair or whether she simply wasn’t in her right mind. Helen Steadman might entertain brilliantly, but she causes her readers to think too.

In contrast to my abhorrence of Patience, I adored Rose. She is by no means perfect, but she has a strength and integrity that I admired without reservation. What comes across so vividly through Rose is the ease with which an individual can be vilified and persecuted, but also how resilient we can be in the face of adversity. Solstice is historical fiction of the very best kind, being assiduously researched and accessibly presented, but the treatment of, and by, characters has resonance in today’s world of trial by social media. I found this element of the story so important and convincing. 

Solstice is one of those stories that gets under the reader’s skin. I thought about the people of Mutton Clog when I wasn’t reading about them. I pondered themes of religion, superstition, and family and I was totally immersed in history. In case you haven’t realised, I thought Solstice was brilliant. Don’t let this series pass you by.

About Helen Steadman

Helen Steadman’s first novel, Widdershins and its sequel, Sunwise were inspired by the 1650 Newcastle witch trials. Her third novel, The Running Wolf is about a group of master swordmakers who defected from Germany to England in 1687. As well as carrying out in-depth archive research and visiting forges in Solingen to bring her story to life, Helen also undertook blacksmith training, which culminated in making her own sword. Helen’s fourth novel, God of Fire, is a Greek myth retelling as seen through the eyes of Hephaestus, perhaps the least well known of all the Olympians. Helen is particularly interested in revealing hidden histories and she is a thorough researcher who goes to great lengths in pursuit of historical accuracy. To get under the skin of the cunning women in Widdershins and Sunwise, Helen trained in herbalism and learned how to identify, grow and harvest plants and then made herbal medicines from bark, seeds, flowers and berries.

You can follow Helen on Twitter @hsteadman1650 and visit her website. You’ll also find her on Instagram and Facebook.

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