Many of you will know my lovely guest today as author Rhoda Baxter and I’m really lucky to have some of Rhoda’s Smart Girls books waiting for me to read on my Kindle. Today, however, we’re celebrating a brand new book under her name Jeevani Charika. Let’s find out more:

Staying in with Jeevani Charika

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

Oh, thank you. Staying in is one of my favourite things. I have hot chocolate and a fluffy blanket.

You’re my kind of guest. You can come again! Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?

I’ve brought along a copy of Playing For Love, which comes out today – the 11th of February.

I chose it because it’s my latest book (and therefore my current favourite). Also, it has a very cheery blue and yellow cover. Look.

It is gorgeous. And happy publication day. What can we expect from an evening in with Playing For Love?

Playing For Love is a contemporary rom com about two people with secret online gamer identities. She fancies him online. He’s in love with her in real life.

Oo I like the sound of that! Tell me more.

I’m hoping it will make you laugh a bit, keep you on the edge of your seat wondering when they’ll realise that the person they’re in love with in one world is the same person they keep turning down in the other world … and end up feeling warm and fuzzy about how it all ends.

[*whispers* – there’s a happy ending…  you knew that, right?]

I should hope so too. There’s enough misery in the world so it’s good to know we readers are going to be left happy reading Playing for Love. What else have you brought along and why have you brought it?

Cake. I have brought a chocolate cake, with chocolate fudge icing and white chocolate shavings on top. With hindsight, I should have brought some paper plates and forks too. And maybe a bib. Sorry about the mess.

Don’t worry about that. Er, I might have helped myself to some of the white chocolate. Daft question but why bring cake?

Why have I brought it? Well, I like cake. I feel it’s a nice, celebratory sort of food. Not as useful as biscuits, which are my go to food for writing. Biscuits require less commitment from you than cake, so you can eat a packet couple of biscuits while typing. More, if you’re just thinking about the plot, obviously, because your hands are free.

You really are my kind of woman Jeevani!

I don’t play a lot of computer games (although, others in my family do) and I didn’t know that much about Gaming YouTubers.  So when I was writing Playing For Love, I watched a lot of YouTube videos about people who played computer games on YouTube – which got a bit meta after a while. The biscuits really helped me through that. Yay biscuits.

Yay biscuits (and cake) indeed! I think you need at least two cakes to celebrate today’s publication of Playing For Love Jeevani. I think it sounds wonderful. Thanks so much for staying in with me to chat about it. Now, you slice the cake and I’ll give Linda’s Book Bag visitors a few more details:

Playing For Love

When Sam’s not working on her fledgling business, she spends her time secretly video-gaming. Her crush is famous gamer Blaze, and she’s thrilled when she’s teamed up with him in a virtual tournament.

But what Sam doesn’t know is that Blaze is the alter ego of Luke, her shy colleague – and he has a secret crush too.

Luke has a crush on Sam.
Sam has a crush on Blaze.

How will this game of love play out?

Published today, 11th February 2022, by Harper Collins’ imprint HQ Digital, Playing for Love is available for purchase through the links here.

About Jeevani Charika

Jeevani Charika writes multicultural women’s fiction and romcoms. She also writes under the pen name Rhoda Baxter. Her books have been shortlisted for various awards. One of these days, she’ll actually win one.

Jeevani is British-Sri Lankan. She loves all things science geeky. She also loves cake, crochet and playing with Lego.

You can find out more about her (and get a free book!) on her website, or follow her on Twitter @rhodabaxter and Facebook.

I’m thrilled to have a copy of The House of Sorrowing Stars by Beth Cartwright on my TBR ready to read on my holidays. Even better, I have an exclusive extract to share with you today too.

Beth Cartwright last featured on Linda’s Book Bag when I was lucky enough to share an extract from Beth’s debut novel Feathertide here.

Published today, 10th February 2022 by Penguin imprint Del Rey, The House of Sorrowing Stars is available for purchase through these links.

The House of Sorrowing Stars

How do you heal a broken house?
First you unlock its secrets.

Alone on an island, surrounded by flowers that shine as dusk begins to fall, sits an old, faded house. Rooms cannot be rented here and visits are only for those haunted by the memory of loss.

When Liddy receives an invitation, she thinks there must be some mistake – she’s never experienced loss. But with her curiosity stirred, and no other way to escape a life in which she feels trapped, she decides to accept.

Once there, she meets Vivienne, a beautiful, austere woman whose glare leaves Liddy unsettled; Ben, the reserved gardener; and Raphael, the enigmatic Keymaker. If Liddy is to discover her true purpose in the house, she must find the root of their sorrow – but the house won’t give up its secrets so easily . . .

An Extract from The House of Sorrowing Stars

From the Prelude

The quiet is deep this evening. It arrives on tiptoes, but if you listen carefully enough you can still hear what it leaves behind. Fading light holds the wispy notes of birds as they finally settle to sleep. The water is calm, but it gently laps the shore. Her window is ajar and the scents of hibiscus and oleander drift in from the garden below. I listen for every small sound she makes: a gentle sigh, the shuffle of paper on the desk where she is sitting, the tapping that her feet make upon the wooden floorboards. She is restless, and uncertain; I can tell. She is taking her time. She picks up her pen and dips it into a pot of the finest blue ink. After a moment’s hesitation, she begins. She has written letters before, but something about this one is different. There is more thought and deliberation, as though she is hoping to impress the recipient, or perhaps convince them of something. Usually a letter is finished faster than it takes a pot to boil on the stove, or for the leaves to be swept from the path, but not this one. I can hear the scratches made by the nib as the words emerge across the thick vellum paper; it is like the quiet, purposeful rustle of a nesting mouse. There is a deftness, an assuredness to her stroke, but then abruptly she stops. The pen lingers a little too long on the page, leaving a dark clot of ink behind. I hear her tut as she lifts the pen from the paper and sets it down. It rolls along the desk and she is too slow to catch it before it clatters to the floor. Instead of stooping to search for it, she leans back in her chair and closes her eyes, exhausted by her own words. Fine lines pattern her pale marble face and speak of things lost. She lifts her hands and wipes them across her cheeks as though she could rub the lines away, but grief cannot be erased so easily. Her once-bright eyes are tarnished, dulled by anguish, and I can see the swift clenching and unclenching of muscles in her firm jaw. There are so many words to be spoken, but there is no one to hear them.

Eventually the quiet music of the garden interrupts her thoughts; she opens her eyes, reaches down to retrieve her pen and continues her task. When she has finished, she pushes her chair back to stand. It scrapes noisily against the floor, disturbing the now resting birds, and a squabble and a flutter of annoyance come from the tree outside. Allowing the ink to dry, she walks across the room to the window and pushes it wide open. The air is still, warm and heavy with fragrance. There is little relief or, if there is, she cannot find it. She rests her elbows on the ledge and listens to the evening’s quiet incantations, breathing it all in, wondering. She looks more tired than usual – there is a strange transparency to her eyes, and the skin below them is a mottled lilac. Suddenly she splutters and then coughs, and then the cough turns into a spasm. Covering her mouth with the crook of her arm, she tries to muffle the sound, in case the Keymaker hears her. It is unlikely that he will come to see if she is well, but if he does, he could find the letter and she can’t let that happen. She waits for the coughing to pass. For a while it sounds like there are peppercorns loose in her chest, but eventually the rattling settles. When it does so, she pulls the window sharply closed and drops the latch with a gentle thud. Crossing back to the desk, she sees the little square of marzipan sitting there and holds it up between her fingers. She spends the next few minutes inspecting it carefully from all its different angles. To anybody else, it is quite ordinary and unremarkable – a table decoration, a birthday gift, a sweet treat – but to her it is so much more. When she puts it back on the desk there are small sugary granules still on her fingers and she brushes them away in mild irritation. Then she picks up the letter and wafts it in the air, like a white flag of surrender, before folding it and placing it carefully into a waiting envelope. She pauses. I can almost hear her mind whirring, as she wonders whether to read it one last time. Deciding against it, she reaches hastily for a taper. Like a drop of blood impressed with the image of a key, the wax safely seals the message within. The thrum of her heartbeat is soft and expectant, like the wings of a bird waiting for release, suddenly alive with possibility. She mutters something, half-prayer, half-spell, and I feel a strange flutter of hope. Letter in hand, she leaves the room. All we can do now is wait.

****

Isn’t that delicious? I can’t wait to read The House of Sorrowing Stars.

About Beth Cartwright

Beth Cartwright has taught English in Greece and travelled around South East Asia and South America, where she worked at an animal sanctuary. A love of language and the imaginary led her to study English Literature and Linguistics at university, and she now lives on the edge of the Peak District with her family and two cats. Feathertide was her debut novel.

You can follow Beth on Twitter @bethcartwriter and Instagram.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

I can’t believe I’m featuring lovely Rachel Brimble again today and I still haven’t got round to reading her! Last time Rachel was here we were ‘staying in’ to chat about A Widow’s Vow and Trouble For The Leading Lady in a post you’ll find here.

Today I have a special spotlight on Rachel’s latest book, A Very Modern Marriage as well as a giveaway that you’ll find further down this blog post.

My thanks to another Rachel, this time of Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to participate in this blog tour.

A Very Modern Marriage was published by Aria on 3rd February 2022 and is available for purchase here.

A Very Modern Marriage

He needs a wife…
Manchester industrialist William Rose was a poor lad from the slums who pulled himself up by his bootstraps, but in order to achieve his greatest ambitions he must become the epitome of Victorian respectability: a family man.

She has a plan…
But the only woman who’s caught his eye is sophisticated beauty Octavia Marshall, one of the notorious ladies of Carson Street. Though she was once born to great wealth and privilege, she’s hardly respectable, but she’s determined to invest her hard-earned fortune in Mr Rose’s mills and forge a new life as an entirely proper businesswoman.

They strike a deal that promises them both what they desire the most, but William’s a fool if he thinks Octavia will be a conventional married woman, and she’s very much mistaken if she thinks the lives they once led won’t follow them wherever they go.

In the third instalment of Rachel Brimble’s exciting Victorian saga series, The Ladies of Carson Street will open the doors on a thoroughly modern marriage – and William is about to get a lot more than he bargained for…

Giveaway

For your chance to win a £15/$15 Amazon Gift Card, please click here. Please note that this giveaway is run independently of Linda’s Book Bag under the following terms:

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.

About Rachel Brimble

Rachel lives in a small town near Bath, England. She is the author of over 25 published novels including the Ladies of Carson Street series, the Shop Girl series (Aria Fiction) and the Templeton Cove Stories (Harlequin).

Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association as well as the Historical Novel Society and has thousands of social media followers all over the world.

To sign up for Rachel’s newsletter, click here.

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

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

Well who would have thought it? I’m 7 today. Or rather Linda’s Book Bag is 7 – I’m actually 60, and hurtling towards 61, but the less said about that the better! It’s seven years ago today since I put out my first tentative blog post and little did I know how big a part of my life blogging would become.

At times it’s overwhelming and I feel completely stressed by blog tours, deadlines, requests and preparing blog posts aside form actually reading the books, but I wouldn’t change it because of the sheer joy in reading, making new friends and being part of a wonderful bookish community. I would, however, like to thank every author, publicist and publisher who offers or sends me a book, usually unsolicited, and who trusts me with their hard work and effort. I don’t review everything I’m sent. I can’t. As I set up this post, I have received 8 books today, only one of which I was expecting and there are insufficient hours in the day to read everything. But I must acknowledge the blood sweat and tears that go in to getting a book to a reader. Thank you for them all.

Celebration Time

I want to celebrate slightly differently this year, by looking back over the books I have enjoyed the most each year I’ve been blogging and with a small giveaway.

What I’d like you to do, is take a look at my books of the year posts by clicking the links below and deciding which of the books featured you would like most to read – it doesn’t have to be my top read of each year. Post a comment below telling me and I’ll put your name in the hat. If you’re the person chosen at random, I’ll send you either an e-copy or paperback depending on your preference and availability. Simple! It’s open to anyone worldwide as I’m delighted that Linda’s Book Bag has followers in over 200 independent states and countries.

2015

You’ll find my favourite reads of 2015 here (in a pretty ropey post. I think I’ve got better!). My overall favourite read of 2015 was Jakob’s Colours by Lindsay Hawdon and you can read my full review here.

Inspired by the lost voices of the Romany Holocaust this heartbreaking and tender novel will appeal to readers who loved Sophie’s Choice, Schindler’s Ark and The Book Thief.

Austria, 1944. Jakob, a gypsy boy – half Roma, half Yenish – runs, as he has been told to do. With shoes of sack cloth, still bloodstained with another’s blood, a stone clutched in one hand, a small wooden box in the other. He runs blindly, full of fear, empty of hope. For hope lies behind him in a green field with a tree that stands shaped like a Y.

He knows how to read the land, the sky. When to seek shelter, when not. He has grown up directing himself with the wind and the shadows. They are familiar to him. It is the loneliness that is not. He has never, until this time, been so alone.

‘Don’t be afraid, Jakob,’ his father has told him, his voice weak and wavering. ‘See the colours, my boy,’ he has whispered. So he does. Rusted ochre from a mossy bough. Steely white from the sap of the youngest tree. On and on, Jakob runs.

Spanning from one world war to another, taking us across England, Switzerland and Austria, Jakob’s Colours is about the painful legacies passed down from one generation to another, finding hope where there is no hope and colour where there is no colour.

2016

2016 was a particularly tricky year for me and reading became a much needed escape. You’ll find my 2016 books of the year here. My overall favourite read that year was The Day I Lost You by Fionnuala Kearney and you’ll find my full review here.

THE DAY I LOST YOU WAS THE DAY I DISCOVERED I NEVER REALLY KNEW YOU

When Jess’s daughter, Anna, is reported lost in an avalanche, everything changes.

Jess’s first instinct is to protect Rose, Anna’s five-year-old daughter. But then she starts to uncover Anna’s other life – unearthing a secret that alters their whole world irrevocably . . .

THE DAY I LOST YOU WAS THE DAY YOU TORE OUR FAMILY APART

The perfect emotional and absorbing story for fans of Jojo Moyes and David Nicholls.

2017

It was a bumper year for fabulous reads in 2017 and my books of the year are here. My overall favourite read that year was Snow Sisters by Carol Lovekin and you’ll find my full review here.

Two sisters, their grandmother’s old house and Angharad… the girl who cannot leave.

Meredith discovers a dusty sewing box in a disused attic. Once open the box releases the ghost of Angharad, a Victorian child-woman with a horrific secret she must share. Angharad slowly reveals her story to Meredith who fails to convince her more pragmatic sister of the visitations, until Verity sees Angharad for herself on the eve of an unseasonal April snowstorm.

Forced by her flighty mother to abandon Gull House for London, Meredith struggles to settle, still haunted by Angharad and her little red flannel hearts. This time, Verity is not sure she will be able to save her…

2018

I did things slightly differently in 2018, moving to an ’emotional gut reaction’ scoring system out of 100 for my reading and as a result ended up with three books of the year here. They were You, Me, Everything by Catherine Isaac reviewed here:

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.

Peace Lily by Hilary Robinson, illustrated by Martin Impey, a children’s book, and you can read my review here.

Ever since she was small, Lily wanted to be a nurse. Her dream becomes real when she takes the brave decision to follow her childhood friends, soldiers Ben and Ray, to the dangerous battlefields of Western France. Will she ever see them again?

Peace Lily is the fourth story in the award-winning series by Hilary Robinson and Martin Impey, set during World War 1. It not only pays tribute to the valuable contribution of women to the war effort but also shows how, after the chaos and distress of the long and painful battle, peace is eventually found both on land and in hearts.

The final book in this delightful and moving series brings all four stories together in a celebration of life and in the eternal hope of a new beginning.

And a certain Fionnuala Kearney again with The Book of Love! You can read my review of The Book of Love here.

One love. Two people. Twenty Years.

From the moment they met, Erin and Dom loved each other too much, too quickly. Everyone said it wouldn’t last. But they knew differently.

A wedding present, a notebook, brings them together through the good times and the bad. On the blank pages of their love story, they write down everything they can’t always say – the secrets, the heartbreak, the highs and lows. It’s where they see the best and worst of each other.

Falling in love is easy but staying in love is where the story begins…

This is The Book of Love.

2019

2019 was a jam packed year and once again I failed to choose just one book as my overall favourite and again there was a repeat author in my choice! You’ll see all my favourite reads of 2019 here. The two books that really stood out for me were the short story collection Witches Sail in Eggshells by Chloe Turner, reviewed here:

‘Witches sail in eggshells,’ I heard Meg say from behind me, and I looked back. She was pounding the shells, hard, with the palm of her hand on the flat of a knife.

Bewitched by ‘the sort of girl who’d batter your heart like a thrush with a snail on a stone’, a woman overlooks the one who really loves her.

A seaside community is overwhelmed when the sea begins to expel its life forms. But the villagers would rather raise the sea wall, whatever the cost, than confront their past mistakes.

A woman’s beloved garden withers as the baby inside her flourishes. When the pregnancy reaches its end, the progeny is not as she expects.

A widower feels like his life might have been a quiet nothing, but he’ll end it with the flight he’s always dreamed of. Even that fails, but instead of indignity, in the attempt he finds peace.

Perceptive, intriguing, and beautifully told, Chloe Turner’s debut collection explores the themes of love, loss, the little ways we let each other down, and how we can find each other again.

And Messy, Wonderful Us by Catherine Isaac, appearing for the second year in a row! My full review is here.

One morning in early summer, a man and woman wait to board a flight to Italy.

Allie has lived a careful, focused existence. But now she has unexpectedly taken leave from her job as an academic research scientist to fly to a place she only recently heard about in a letter. Her father, Joe, doesn’t know the reason for her trip, and Allie can’t bring herself to tell him that she’s flying to Italy to unpick the truth about what her mother did all those years ago.

Beside her is her best friend since schooldays, Ed. He has just shocked everyone with a sudden separation from his wife, Julia. Allie hopes that a break will help him open up.

But the secrets that emerge as the sun beats down on Lake Garda and Liguria don’t merely concern her family’s tangled past. And the two friends are forced to confront questions about their own life-long relationship that are impossible to resolve.

The dazzling new novel from Richard & Judy book club author Catherine Isaac, Messy, Wonderful Us is a story about the transforming power of love, as one woman journeys to uncover the past and reshape her future.

2020

Well 2020 wasn’t quite what we expected was it? Looking back, here, I managed to do more in a pandemic than I might have expected. Books became even more important for us all and – you’re beginning to expect this now – once again I failed to choose just one as my book of the year. This time my top two reads were Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton reviewed here

Three hours is 180 minutes or 10,800 seconds.

It is a morning’s lessons, a dress rehearsal of Macbeth, a snowy trek through the woods.

It is an eternity waiting for news. Or a countdown to something terrible.

It is 180 minutes to discover who you will die for and what men will kill for.

In rural Somerset in the middle of a blizzard, the unthinkable happens: a school is under siege. From the wounded headmaster in the library, unable to help his trapped pupils and staff, to teenage Hannah in love for the first time, to the parents gathering desperate for news, to the 16 year old Syrian refugee trying to rescue his little brother, to the police psychologist who must identify the gunmen, to the students taking refuge in the school theatre, all experience the most intense hours of their lives, where evil and terror are met by courage, love and redemption.

And Amelia Henley’s The Life We Almost Had reviewed here.

This is not a typical love story, but it’s our love story.

Anna wasn’t looking for love when Adam swept her off her feet but there was no denying their connection, and she believed they would be together forever.

Years later, cracks have appeared in their relationship. Anna is questioning whether their love can really be eternal when a cruel twist of fate delivers a crushing blow, and Anna and Adam are completely lost to one another. Now, Anna needs Adam more than ever, but the way back to him has life-changing consequences.

Is a second chance at first love really worth the sacrifice? Anna needs to decide and time is running out…

A beautiful and emotional love story that asks, how far would you go for a second chance at first love? Perfect for fans of The Man Who Didn’t Call and Miss You.

2021

I don’t know about you, but I found 2021 a really difficult year. Despite all kinds of opportunities for which I should have been grateful, I was definitely depressed and struggled to engage in life, so books were a glorious escape (along with the motorhome). You’ll find my books of the year here. However, the one I loved the most was the wonderful Always, in December by Emily Stone and you can find out why I adored it so much in my full review here.

Heartbreaking. Life-affirming. Truly unforgettable.  Always, in December is the timeless, stay-up-all-night love story you’ll take straight to your heart.

If you loved One Day, Me Before You and the hit movie Last Christmas, this is the perfect book for you.

Josie Morgan never looks forward to December. It’s always a reminder of the life she lost, twenty years ago. Now, she always switches off the radio when Christmas music comes on. She always wants to tear down the tinsel her flatmate insists on pinning up. And she always posts a letter she knows will never be read.

Max Carter never expected to find himself stranded in London just days before Christmas. He never expected it would be so hard to say goodbye to a woman he hardly knows. Then again, he never expected to fall in love.

But, this December, when Josie’s letter leads her to Max, a chance encounter will change their lives in the most remarkable way. And their story is only just beginning . . .

From London to Manhattan, from Edinburgh to the English countryside, Always, in December is a romantic journey that’s impossible to forget.

****

So there you have them. My favourite books of the last 7 years. I hadn’t realised how much an emotional response is so important to my enjoyment of a book.

I hope that you’ll find a book you love that you’d forgotten about or had been previously unaware of. If you’d like to go in the hat to receive your chosen book from those I’ve featured, just leave a comment. If for some reason the comment box doesn’t work for you, you can always tell me on Twitter @Lindahill50Hill, Instagram @ljh50hill or comment on Facebook. Good luck.

Entries close at UK midnight on Friday 11th February 2022.

I wonder which book, or books, will end up on my list in 2022. Any suggestions?

I’m absolutely delighted to share my review of The Maid by Nita Prose for the blog tour today. My enormous thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for inviting me to participate.

Published by Harper Collins on 20th January 2022, The Maid is available for purchase through the links here.

The Maid

I am your maid.
I know about your secrets. Your dirty laundry.
But what do you know about me?

Molly the maid is all alone in the world. A nobody. She’s used to being invisible in her job at the Regency Grand Hotel, plumping pillows and wiping away the grime, dust and secrets of the guests passing through. She’s just a maid – why should anyone take notice?

But Molly is thrown into the spotlight when she discovers an infamous guest, Mr Black, very dead in his bed. This isn’t a mess that can be easily cleaned up. And as Molly becomes embroiled in the hunt for the truth, following the clues whispering in the hallways of the Regency Grand, she discovers a power she never knew was there. She’s just a maid – but what can she see that others overlook?

Escapist, charming and introducing a truly original heroine, The Maid is a story about how the truth isn’t always black and white – it’s found in the dirtier, grey areas in between . . .

My Review of The Maid

No-one notices Molly.

The Maid is utterly wonderful and I loved every moment of being in Molly’s company.

Molly’s narrative voice is glorious. Her attention to detail is so vivid that she places the reader in the room with her in a visual manner that is refreshing, entertaining and engaging. Her literal approach, especially to language, is witty, intelligent and innovative, making her such a memorable individual. Whilst some of the plot outcomes are obvious to the reader, the joy in The Maid is finding out how Molly finally understands what is happening to her. I found myself berating aloud some of the other characters in their treatment of Molly, cheering for her when events went her way and shedding a quiet tear at a particularly poignant moment or two. Her difference is what makes her so endearing.

Set over a working week the structure is perfect because it illustrates just how quickly lives like Molly’s can change. The ending to The Maid could not be better. I loved how the plot raced to its conclusion, leading me on so that I could not put this book down, savouring every moment.

Although The Maid is set predominantly in the Regency Grand Hotel, the cast of characters is relatively small so that the reader truly gets to know them. This has the effect of creating an intimacy between the reader and the narrative and enhances the plot brilliantly. Perhaps it is Gran who is the most pivotal character even though she is not physically present in the story. Her guidance for Molly is touching, endearing and pitched to perfection through Molly’s memories.

Nita Prose’s style is absolutely absorbing, and so diverting. I found myself reading with complete joy. However, The Maid might be quirky, funny and thoroughly entertaining – indeed it is all of those things – but underpinning the story are themes that made my blood boil. Molly’s exploitation by those she works with, Cheryl’s dishonesty, and the bullying, lack of understanding and unfairness directed at Molly made me seethe, so that reading this story had a depth and gravitas belied by Molly’s cheerful, direct persona. Identity and coercion in many forms, the blurred lines between right and wrong, justice, cowardice and bravery and so on are all present. All these elements make The Maid so much more than the cosy mystery I was expecting.

I adored The Maid. I hope this isn’t the last we hear of Molly. This dear girl is delightful. She feels like an old friend and I’d really rather like to enjoy her company further.

About Nita Prose

Nita Prose is a longtime editor, serving many bestselling authors and their books. She lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean.

For further information about Nita, visit her website or follow her on Twitter @NitaProse. and Instagram.

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It’s an absolute pleasure to welcome Alan Corcoran to Linda’s Book Bag today to tell me about an amazing sounding book.

Staying in with Alan Corcoran

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Alan. Thanks so much for staying 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 my debut book – Marathon Man: My Life, My Father’s Stroke and Running 35 Marathons in 35 Days. I chose to bring along Marathon Man because the critics (Kirkus, Reedsy, LoveReading and IndieReader) enjoyed my Irish yarn, and I hope your readers might like to give it a read too.

That’s an incredible title Alan. What can we expect from an evening in with Marathon Man: My Life, My Father’s Stroke and Running 35 Marathons in 35 Days?

Marathon Man is my memoir centred around family and sports. The story covers my formative years in Ireland, beginning in a traditional memoir format. As it’s my life story, there are some unpleasant topics – painful teenage acne, premature deaths and my dad’s stroke. Don’t let those severe subjects put you off. I’ve balanced the heavy with the light, sprinkling regular doses of humour. Laughter is necessary if you want to run long distances. Kirkus Reviews says, “Corcoran treads lightly, keeping his sense of humour throughout.” Canadian Running Magazine has said my story is “hilarious and painful, and the accounts of each daily marathon are written in a charming Irish vernacular, increasingly joyful as the project nears completion.”

It sounds as if the book has arisen out of some tricky times for you but that you’ve got the light and shade in the book just right.

It’s those challenging life moments that shaped my character and ultimately led me to dream of running a 1,500-kilometre lap of Ireland for charity.

Sorry! Did you say 1,500 kilometres? I need to pick up my jaw from the ground. Tell me more.

Many thought it impossible to run 35 consecutive marathons since I’d never run a marathon or even a half-marathon. I was out to test common sense thinking. I gave myself just eight months to execute the dream, the fear of a repeat stroke making the seconds tick as loud as a grandfather clock.

Wow!

I take the reader on my crash course – a rollercoaster of endurance running, health, adventure and charity fundraising.

I implode during my trial by fire, trying my first 42.2-kilometre marathon at the start of the process, without training. The Dublin City Marathon was a welcomed kick up the arse to show me what can happen if you don’t respect the challenging distance. With the blaze ignited, I was off to learn the trade, building from a fifty-kilometre training week to attempting five straight 300-kilometre weeks around Ireland’s coast.

I am in awe of you Alan. I used to find it hard driving that far in a week for work, never mind running 300 kilometres.

I was apprehensive about sharing my work at first, but I think it’s important. I’ve been encouraged to pursue my passions through reading books and watching documentaries. I wanted to be part of that. Thankfully, Reedsy rewarded my efforts with five stars. Kirkus Reviews featured Marathon Man in their January 2022 issue. Both LoveReading and IndieReader bestowed my book with their logos kept for their favourite books.

Now, I just need to get ‘Marathon Man’ to readers.

That’s just brilliant. Congratulations on the success you’ve had so far. I hope more readers find Marathon Man following our chat.

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

I’ve brought a photo of comedian Eddie Izzard. Eddie ran 43 marathons in 51 days, raising £250,000 for Sports Relief. This accomplishment was brought to my attention by a TV documentary series – ‘’Eddie Iz Running’. The achievement left me flabbergasted, and the story entertained and inspired me. It’s a pivotal part of my story. By publishing my tale, I hope to replicate Eddie, passing on the baton of inspiration and creating a few smiles along the way.

Isn’t Eddie an inspiration? I loved that documentary. I chose Eddie as one of my fantasy guests for a dinner party so perhaps next time all three of us can chat about Marathon Man. Thank you so much for staying in with me to tell me all about it. I think Marathon Man sounds a brilliant read. 

Marathon Man: My Life, My Father’s Stroke and Running 35 Marathons in 35 Days

Marathon Man is an uplifting story of an extraordinary achievement – all the more inspiring given that the author was an inexperienced long-distance runner and only 20 when embarking on his mission to run 35 marathons in 35 consecutive days. Alan Corcoran’s response to the shock of his dad’s stroke, was to get active, create positive from negative and raise money for charity.

Alan faced many obstacles along the road – beyond the sheer physical endurance challenge of running 1,500 kilometres around Ireland’s coast. He candidly submerges the reader into his world with an endearingly light touch, showing how through sheer perseverance, you can achieve your objectives. Alan’s Irish humour, positivity and pure determination shine through this new sports memoir.

Whatever your challenge, this motivational book will show you that you can succeed.

Marathon Man is available for purchase here.

About Alan Corcoran

Alan Corcoran is an Irish endurance adventure athlete. Competing as an Irish international track and field athlete as a juvenile, he switched to ultra-endurance at twenty, when his dad suffered a stroke. Alan has since fundraised €45,000 for stroke and cancer charities through his resilience challenges. Alan became the first person to run a lap of Ireland – 35 marathons in 35 consecutive days. On his second attempt, he became the first person to swim the length of Ireland – a 500-kilometre sea swim.

For more information about Alan, visit his website or follow him on Twitter @35MarathonMan, Facebook and Instagram.

I confess that I had no idea about The Novelry until Gabriella Drinkald at Midas introduced me to them. Now I have heard about what The Novelry has on offer, I’m delighted to participate in the blog tour by sharing a guest post Louise Dean as part of this year’s National Storytelling Week. Louise is the Founder of The Novelry. Offering support for beginner and established authors at any stage of their writing career, The Novelry will take writers from the very kernel of an idea through to a polished manuscript ready for literary agent submission. With mentoring from bestselling authors and editorial advice from leading industry professionals, The Novelry is the writing school recommended by leading literary agents.

Let’s see what Louise has to tell us:

Your Story – My Story:

Find the inspiration to start telling your story.

A Guest Post by Louise Dean

The theme of this year’s National Storytelling Week is Your Story, My Story, and that’s something we at The Novelry can really get behind. We believe strongly that everyone has a story to tell – no matter their background, status, or education level. We take beginner authors all the way through from coming up with that initial idea to a finished novel that they are really proud of. We work with them on writing the first draft, then we dig deep for a rigorous edit, and when they are ready, we help authors to land that dream agent and publishing deal. We are supportive and encouraging, and believe that magic happens when authors work collaboratively. You can tell the story you want to – you story – even if that feels daunting at first.

Every person’s story is unique – it’s unique to you. Here, I hope to inspire you to start finding that story, and I’m going to give you a few tips to get you thinking. Whether it’s a short story you want to write, whether you’re feeling inspired to give the oral tradition of storytelling a go, or whether you want to make this year the year you write a novel, hopefully this will get your brain whirring, start the trickle of an idea, or leave you inspired to have a go at telling that story.

Below are seven ways ‘in’ to finding a story. Often, it will be a combination of a few different ways in that leads you to finding the story – the one that really feels worth telling.

1. Dig deep into who you are. Ask yourself what you want, and what you fear – useful tools in crafting the perfect story. A storyteller works with the things that trouble them, to resolve their darkest predicament and put out a cry to the universe for help. Start with your fears and bring them to light.
2. Take the time to stop and wonder. Every time you do so, you’re starting to create the beginning of a story. When you see someone looking sad as they walk down the street, take a moment to wonder why. When a couple are sniping at each other in the supermarket, try to wonder what led them to this – are they always like this, is this a bad day? When we look at other people, we look at ourselves too. Only differently. That’s what we do in stories, when we put a main character, a ‘hero’ in place, they are standing in for us. We can’t tell our own story straight, you see. We never see the back of ourselves, just like we never see how we really look to others truly. So we play possibilities out through the three dimensions of others. The less they’re like us, the more the magic of transformation happens. That’s how stories are born. Right there. By imagining the lives of others.
3. Ask yourself ‘What If?’ What if X were to happen? What if Y were possible? Let’s take two examples. THE ONE: what if your DNA could match you with your one true love? THE LAST: what if you were the last survivors of the apocalypse – but discovered a murderer in your midst? Let your mind wander here – as your walking, driving, cooking dinner. Keep asking yourself what if and see where you get to.
4. Don’t sweat originality. Often, new writers are worried that their idea isn’t ‘original’ enough, or that it has been ‘done before’. But here’s the thing – almost all stories have been ‘done before’, they just have not been told in the exact same way that you will tell it. In fact, readers don’t want They (along with publishers, if that’s your goal) want ‘the same thing, but different’. A twist on a story that already exists. So yes, you might need a sprinkling of something new, but true originality, that’s something not worth worrying about. So, when trying to come up with an idea for a story, take something familiar, popular and well-loved. A story you know well – fairy tales can be good inspiration here! Then add to it something very unexpected. Something that does not go with it at all. In fact the more opposed it is, the more startling or alarming, the more exciting your idea is.
5. Character is key. Some storytellers like to come up with the premise or concept first (the ‘what if’), others like to build character first. Whichever way around you are, know that character is important. The protagonist – usually the main character in a story – is the reason someone will be interested. Whoever is engaging with your story will be doing so because they want to know what happens to the The main character should be someone the reader can identify with, in some way or another. They should also grow and change – whether from bad to good is up to you! – from the beginning to end of the story. So, take a character, and imagine what they are like as they pop into your head. What could be different about them? What could happen to them, to make them different? It’s ok to borrow people you know here! You can take elements of people that you know, as long as you change names and the odd detail. Sometimes, when starting out, it is easier to pull from real life to create a believable character. As Hans Christian Andersen said, ‘Most of what I have written is a reflection of myself. Every character is from life. I know and have known them all.’
6. Or listen! If you want to be a novelist, then you need to read – and if you can read, then you can write. If you enjoy reading, you might very well find that you enjoy writing. And by that virtue, the type of stories you like will probably be the type of stories you like to tell. Read books that are inspiring and comforting. You need both things really because sometimes aspiring writers feel crippled by fear. No one starts writing like Chekhov. My own mother told me my writing was awful when I started, but I wanted to learn. If you read you can learn. At The Novelry, we offer an accelerated learning process, but no matter what stage you’re at, or whether you’ve decided to go this alone, it all starts with reading.
7. Be you, only more so. Your individuality will make your story better. Your personality, your experience, the essence of your time on this earth, is the gift you give your story. So long as you give yourself candidly and wholeheartedly your writing will be a triumph.

Perhaps the last and most important thing to remember here is that you can do it. It might not be easy and you might hit bumps along the road, but if you feel you have a story in you, and you want to tell it, then stop doubting whether you have the ‘right’, the ability, the background, to tell it. Even if you don’t know, yet, what the story will be – if it’s something that calls to you, then you will find inspiration. Ideas don’t (always) happen by magic – we have to go looking for them.

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Brilliant advice. Now all we need to do is get writing!

About The Novelry

Image ©Andy Lo Po/ The Novelry

If you want to have a look at the story behind The Novelry – and how it all began – then do take a look here and if you’re interested in signing up for one of their courses, then do feel free to book a free, no obligation chat with one of their fabulous tutors here.

You can follow The Novelry on Twitter @thenovelry, Facebook and Instagram and visit their website for further information.

There’s more with these other bloggers too:

Regular blog visitors will know how impressed I am by Full Media children’s books. It gives me enormous pleasure, therefore, to share my review of another of their books today. This time it’s What’s Troubling Tawny? by Emma Sandford and illustrated by Olena Osadcha, the second book in the Sumatran Trilogy. You’ll find my review of the first book, The Problem with Poppy, here. My enormous thanks to Nick Jones for d=sending me a copy of What’s Troubling Tawny?.

Published by Full Media on 20th January 2022, What’s Troubling Tawny? is available for purchase here.

What’s Troubling Tawny?

The second book in the Sumatran Trilogy!

Tawny longs to make friends with another rhino, but her shyness holds her back.

When she meets a hornbill called Tallulah, she is surprised to learn that she has a lot in common with the beautiful bird.

Will Tawny find a way to overcome her shyness, and can Tallulah help her find a companion?

My Review of What’s Troubling Tawny?

Tawny is too shy to make friends.

Oh my goodness. What’s troubling Tawny? is just lovely. Not only is it a beautifully illustrated, high quality book of the kind I’ve come to expect from Full Media, but the balance of text to picture means it has the kind of depth that will enable it to be read time and again because there is so much to discover.

The language is challenging enough to develop literacy but is encompassed in a context that also makes it accessible. The Sumatran setting affords lots of opportunity for educational use, with the oils from Tallulah and the mud baths of Tawny and Rusty giving impetus to discover geography and the natural world. I can see primary school teachers rejoicing at What’s Troubling Tawny? if they were to use it in their classrooms.

All that said, however, the greatest success in What’s Troubling Tawny? comes through Emma Sandford’s exploration of body image, similarities and differences, and friendship. The greatest lesson Tawny learns is that she is fine as she is and whilst her shyness is preventing her from making friends, it is equally true that others might be feeling exactly the same way as she is. Through What’s Troubling Tawny? children can learn body confidence, emotional resilience, and empathy, so that this is a book that not only entertains young children, but helps them cope in the world too. I genuinely think What’s Troubling Tawny? is a powerful tool as well as a fun story.

Indeed, What’s Troubling Tawny? is the most gorgeous story of friendship, self-confidence and fun. I loved it.

About Emma Sandford

For many years, Emma had wanted to write a children’s book that draws on her own experiences and helps young children overcome certain emotional issues they may have. The Problem With Poppy is a fun way of teaching kids that while everybody has a natural defence mechanism, there is a time and a place to use it.

You can find out more on Emma’s website or find her on Instagram.

About Olena Osadcha

Olena Osadcha is a Ukranian digital artist / illustrator based in Kiev. She is passionate about design and has a particular interest and love for children’s book illustration.

You can find her on Instagram and Facebook.

It was a real thrill to host an exclusive cover reveal for Michael Shotter’s previous book, The Nemesis Effect, in a post you can find here. Today, we are launching Michael’s latest book, Big Man Down and I’m delighted to share details of this latest work.

Michael has also stayed in with me on Linda’s Book Bag to chat about another of his novels, Shards in a post you can read here.

Let’s see what we have this time!

Big Man Down

A seasoned, wealthy, and powerful man, Alan Wells was poised to triumphantly enter the prime of his life when the death of his closest and dearest companion shook him to his core, leaving him in a vulnerable physical and mental state just as he became the target of a man eager to see him completely undone.

Can Alan recover and reach his full potential to defeat his greatest adversary, or will he find himself irrevocably broken and discarded, another “Big Man Down?”

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I think the concept of a Big Man Down couldn’t be more relevant to today’s society, don’t you?

Big Man Down will be released on 18th March and is available for pre-order here.

About Michael Shotter

Michael Shotter is a lifelong resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a lover of science, fiction, and fantasy, his first novel, The Big Men, explored the perceptions, manifestations, and consequences of power as wielded and coveted by particular men in the modern era. This all-new paranormal thriller continues the story of those “big men,” while standing alone as its own unique and distinct experience.

For more information about Michael and his writing, visit his Goodreads page, find him on Facebook or follow him on Instagram and Twitter @shotterwriting.

I’m offered so many wonderful sounding books and it’s a great sadness that I simply can’t read them all. Today I welcome Rana Bitar to Linda’s Book Bag to tell me about a book I really wish I had time to add to my TBR.

Staying in with Rana Bitar

Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag Rana 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 brought with me The Long Tale Of Tears And Smiles.

The Long Tale Of Tears And Smiles explores my journey as an oncologist, from growing up in Damascus, Syria, to going to med school, to immigrating to the US and starting my medical training, to becoming an oncologist caring for cancer patients and watching the field of oncology evolves throughout the years.

That sounds fascinating. It’s quite a journey you’ve been on. Tell me more.

The narrative interweaves my life’s stories with the stories of the patients I cared for. It reflects on how bearing witness to their survival or death inspired my life and changed it and how the lessons I learned from my patients enriched my life and influenced the way I raised my children.

That must feel very special.

I brought this book with me today to celebrate cancer patients’ difficult journey and to provide them with a refuge from the feeling of isolation and confusion at the time of crisis. I also brought it for caregivers and health care professionals to help shed some light on both the physical and emotional process of cancer diagnosis and treatment.

I brought this book today to share with foreign graduate students, so they could relate to the complexities, the obstacles, the triumphs, and the setbacks and encourage them to never give up. I also brought it for women who may stop and question if they should pursue their professional aspirations. I want to say it can be done: You can balance your family and professional life. I also brought it for people who want to learn about what it is like to be well-acquainted with death and what it is like to understand it and be so close to it.

I think that’s a really important message Rana. With one in two suffering cancer in their lives we need to speak more about it and demystify both life and death and the challenges facing those trying to start their lives afresh in so many ways.

What can we expect from an evening in with The Long Tale Of Tears And Smiles?

The book was inspired by my patients’ strength and perseverance. The stories show how their courage changed my life. Therefore, the book will highlight the premise that we can prompt togetherness, defy finality, and defeat loneliness with empathy and tolerance.

What a wonderful message.

I also think that in immersing in the stories of cancer patients’ struggles and triumphs, the reader will gain new insight into the relative gravity of their own challenges and will acquire a fresh perspective on their health and lives.

You may well be right. When my own husband was diagnosed with cancer it certainly altered our perspectives.

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

Photograph: Khaled Al-Hariri/Reuters

I brought with me a photo of my home: Damscus Syria: the world’s oldest inhabited city and where my story began.

It seems to me that your journey has been a very important one Rana. Thank you so much for staying in with me to tell me about The Long Tale Of Tears And Smiles?

The Long Tale of Tears and Smiles

The Long Tale Of Tears And Smiles explores an immigrant oncologist’s journey of triumphs and struggles, from growing up in Syria, to the tragic death of her brother, to her experiences as a young immigrant medical student and trainee in the USA. Walk through her anguish witnessing the civil war in Syria and its devastation; see her become a practitioner, watching the field of oncology evolves throughout the years.

This narrative-driven case study interweaves the stories of the patients Bitar has cared for with her own life stories; it reflects on how her patients’ lives and the stories of their survival or death inspired and changed her life starting and raising a family. Each patient’s approach to illness and end-of-life is as unique as they are, and each person’s journey contains unexpected lessons.

In the space between life and death, Bitar’s profession thrives; and in that space, she can search for the meaning of her existence.

Published by Global Collective Publishers, The Long Tale of Tears and Smiles is available for purchase here and on Amazon.

About Rana Bitar

Rana Bitar is a Syrian-American physician, poet, and writer. She earned her Master’s in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University.

​Her memoir, The Long Tale of Tears and Smiles, was published by Global Collective Publishers in August 2021.

She is the author of two poetry chapbooks, A Loaf of Bread (Unsolicited Press, 2019) and the forthcoming Hold Your Breath (Unsolicited Press, 2023).

A Loaf of Bread was a finalist in the “Concrete Wolf Chapbook Competition” in 2017 and won an honorable mention in “The 2017 Louis Award” for poetry.

Hold Your Breath is selected by The National Women’s History Museum to be on Exhibit for their Coronavirus Journaling Project.

Her poetry has appeared in many journals including, The Deadly Writers Patrol, DoveTales, Pittsburgh Poetry Review, Magnolia Review, El Portal, Pacific REVIEW, Black Coffee Review, The Phoenix, The Dewdrop, The International Human Rights Art Festival, The Charleston Anvil, Beltway Poetry Quarterly, The Sextant Review, The Nonconformist Magazine, and Seeing Things: Anthology of Poetry.

Her translation of Arabic poetry appeared in The American Journal of Poetry, The Nonconformist, Illuminations, and forthcoming in AGNI.

Her essays have been published in The Pharos Journal and Pink Panther Magazine.

She lives in upstate NY, where she practices hematology and oncology.

For more information, visit Rana’s website or find her on Twitter @RanaBitarBooks and Facebook.