#Review: His First Lie by Mark Hill @markhillwriter @LittleBrownUK @millieseaward #HisFirstLie20/5/2018 Release date - 26th February 2018
Book length - 432 pages Publisher - Sphere Book Depository - www.bookdepository.com Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank Millie from Little Brown UK for providing me with a copy of this book for review. ABOUT THE BOOK Do you want a thriller that grips from the first line? Do you want a thriller to leave you gasping for air? Connor Laird frightens people: he's intense, he's fearless, and he seems to be willing to do anything to protect himself and those he loves. He arrives in the Longacre Children's Home seemingly from nowhere, and instantly becomes hero and villain to every other child there. Thirty years later, someone is killing all of those who grew up in the Longacre, one by one. Each of them has secrets, not least investigating cop DI Ray Drake. One by one the mysteries of the past are revealed as Drake finds himself in a race against time before the killer gets to him. Who is killing to hide their secret? And can YOU guess the ending? **THE GRIPPING THRILLER PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED AS TWO O'CLOCK BOY** MY REVIEW HIS FIRST LIE by Mark Hill is a gripping and haunting tale of murder and secrets that will keep you hooked from start to finish with plenty of twists in between. When DI Drake and new investigator, Flick, are called to the scene of a murder nothing prepares them for the grisly sight that is waiting for them - a family slain. As they begin to pick apart the evidence to catch the killer, Drake soon starts to suspect that this is somehow linked to his horrific childhood, but how? The last thing he wants is his past dredged up but Flick is determined to unearth the truth. Moving from the past to present we get to see a glimpse into DI Drake's haunting past which really adds a deeper layer of tension and uncomfortableness to the whole story. But nothing prepared me for the twists this book took or the ending!! Compelling, disturbing, and brimming with suspense HIS FIRST LIE by Mark Hill is a thriller that is sure to get under your skin even if you don't want it to. Definitely a must for thriller and crime fiction fans alike. AUTHOR BIO I've been a journalist and an award-winning music radio producer. I worked for about five minutes in PR. But I write the Drake and Crowley thriller series now, which is just as well, because I love writing. It's my dream job. For more information: Website - www.markhillauthor.com Twitter - twitter.com/markhillwriter Facebook - www.facebook.com/MarkHillAuthor/ Instagram - www.instagram.com/markhillwriter/
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Release date - 22nd March 2018
Book length - 560 pages Publisher - Simon & Schuster UK Book Depository - www.bookdepository.com Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com ABOUT THE BOOK On holiday with friends, young historian Briony Andrews becomes fascinated with a wartime story of a ruined villa in the hills behind Naples. There is a family connection: her grandfather had been a British soldier during the Italian campaign of 1943 in that very area. Handed a bundle of letters that were found after the war, Briony sets off to trace the fate of their sender, Sarah Bailey. In 1939, Sarah returns with her mother and sister from India, in mourning, to take up residence in the Norfolk village of Westbury. There she forms a firm friendship with Paul Hartmann, a young German who has found sanctuary in the local manor house, Westbury Hall. With the outbreak of war, conflicts of loyalty in Westbury deepen. When, 70 years later, Briony begins to uncover Sarah and Paul’s story, she encounters resentments and secrets still tightly guarded. What happened long ago in the villa in the shadow of Vesuvius, she suspects, still has the power to give terrible pain … MY REVIEW LAST LETTER HOME by Rachel Hore is a richly detailed novel with so much heart that it will surely worm its way into your own. When Briony Andrews inadvertently gets drawn into the history of an Italian villa while on holidays with her friends, it will soon consume her time and change her life in very unexpected ways. Moving from the past during WWII where a group of people from a village called Westbury struggle with the changes that are happening around them, to the present where Briony is determined to piece together the history of her own family in order to reveal the truth, this story will pull you into its world and you won't be able to put it down until you discover its secrets. My favourite part of this book were the chapters set during the War and I became attached to Sarah and Paul as I tried (in vain) to predict what would happen to them. The settings are wonderfully descriptive, even the more sombre and harsh scenes have their own type of beauty, and I really became invested in their story. I enjoyed the chapters set presently too but I didn't connect with Briony in the same way and found her own entanglements odd at times. LAST LETTER HOME by Rachel Hore is a tale that will capture your attention and is a perfect fit for historical fiction fans. AUTHOR BIO Rachel Hore worked in London publishing for many years before moving with her family to Norwich, where she teaches publishing and creative writing at the University of East Anglia. She is married to the writer D. J. Taylor and they have three sons. Her previous novels are The Dream House, The Memory Garden, The Glass Painter's Daughter, which was shortlisted for the 2010 Romantic Novel of the Year award, A Place of Secrets, which was picked by Richard and Judy for their book club, A Gathering Storm, which was shortlisted for the RONA Historical Novel of the Year 2012 and the latest bestseller, The Silent Tide. For more information: Website - rachelhore.co.uk Twitter - twitter.com/Rachelhore Facebook - www.facebook.com/RachelHoreAuthor/ Instagram - www.instagram.com/rachel.hore/ #Review: The Women of Heachley Hall by Rachel Walkley @RachelJWalkley #TheWomenOfHeachleyHall17/5/2018 Release date - 4th May 2018
Book length - 333 pages Publisher - Spare Time Press Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank the author, Rachel Walkley, for providing me with an e-copy of this book for review. ABOUT THE BOOK Miriam has one year to uncover Heachley Hall's unimaginable past and a secret that only women can discover. The life of a freelance illustrator will never rake in the millions so when twenty-eight year old Miriam discovers she’s the sole surviving heir to her great-aunt’s fortune, she can’t believe her luck. She dreams of selling her poky city flat and buying a studio. But great fortune comes with an unbreakable contract. To earn her inheritance, Miriam must live a year and a day in the decaying Heachley Hall. The fond memories of visiting the once grand Victorian mansion are all she has left of her parents and the million pound inheritance is enough of a temptation to encourage her to live there alone. After all, a year’s not that long. So with the help of a local handyman, she begins to transform the house. But the mystery remains. Why would loving Aunt Felicity do this to her? Alone in the hall with her old life miles away, Miriam is desperate to discover the truth behind Felicity’s terms. Miriam believes the answer is hiding in her aunt’s last possession: a lost box. But delving into Felicity and Heachley’s long past is going to turn Miriam’s view of the world upside down. Does she dare keep searching, and if she does, what if she finds something she wasn’t seeking? Has something tragic happened at Heachley Hall? MY REVIEW THE WOMEN OF HEACHLEY HALL by Rachel Walkley is a compelling and fascinating story brimming with mystery, romance, and that extra little something that I can't put my finger on which makes it a special read. Miriam has stood on her own two feet ever since her Mum died and she doesn't know too much about her family history, but that is all set to change when she inherits Heachley Hall from her Great-Aunt Felicity. But this inheritance comes with one strict condition - that Miriam must live in the house for one year and a day. It all seems pretty straightforward and with her career as an artist leaving her free to move, a change of scene seems like the perfect answer to Miriam. But Heachley Hall has been abandoned for quite a while and Miriam will have her work cut out for her to whip it into shape. And then there are the noises, and the rumours about the hall, and that strange dust that never seems to leave ... As Miriam gets to work, meets new people, and starts digging into her family past, will the secrets of Heachley Hall finally come to light? And will Miriam find more than she ever bargained for when she stepped over the threshold of her new home? This story had so much more depth and substance to it than I expected and I really enjoyed the historical aspects of the story as well as the contemporary plotline. Miriam is a great character and I loved the small town that knows everything and everyone. There are secrets, intrigue, a stunning old manor, and characters that make it all come alive, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading every page of THE WOMEN OF HEACHLEY HALL by Rachel Walkley. AUTHOR BIO Born in the Midlands, I grew up in East Anglia and am now firmly lodged in the North West of England. My first writing achievement was my Brownie badge and after that I've never let go of the dream of becoming of an author. Once a librarian and caretaker of books, I'm now a teller of tales and want to share with you the secrets that hide in the pages of my books. For more information: Website - rachelwalkley.com Twitter - twitter.com/RachelJWalkley Facebook - www.facebook.com/RachelJWalkley Instagram - www.instagram.com/raejcreations/ Release date - 24th April 2018
Book length - 286 pages Publisher - Ruby Fiction Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank Rachel from www.rachelsrandomresources.com for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour and for providing me with an e-copy of this book for review via Netgalley. ABOUT THE BOOK Introducing Lisa Blake, the purrfect pet sitter! When Lisa Blake’s life in London falls apart, she returns to her hometown rebranding herself as ‘the purrfect pet sitter’ – which may or may not be false advertising as she has a rather unfortunate habit of (temporarily) losing dogs! But being back where she grew up, Lisa can’t escape her past. There’s her estranged best friend Flick who she bumps into in an embarrassing encounter in a local supermarket. And her first love, Nathan Baker, who, considering their history, is sure to be even more surprised by her drunken Facebook friend request than Lisa is. As she becomes involved in the lives of her old friends Lisa must confront the hurt she has caused, discover the truth about her mysterious leather-clad admirer, and learn how to move forward when the things she wants most are affected by the decisions of her past. MY REVIEW THE PURRFECT PET SITTER by Carol Thomas is a heartwarming story about the importance of friendship, both old and new, and family. Lisa Blake didn't plan to end up living back in her childhood home in her childhood town but when her relationship and life in London don't go to plan, home calls out to her. But it isn't long before Lisa feels like everyone has moved on except her and with her new job as the 'purrfect' pet sitter a lot harder than it looks, life just doesn't seem to be panning out as she planned. But when Lisa bumps into her old childhood friend, and drunkenly Facebook friends her first love, she starts to realise how her actions have impacted those from her past, and whether or not it is possible to start afresh in a place that holds so many memories. A little slow to start, THE PURRFECT PET SITTER by Carol Thomas soon wormed its way into my heart and I was hooked on what was happening. While I liked all of the characters, Felicity was my favourite and I enjoyed learning about her life the most. There is canine capers, hurt feelings, some handsome admirers, and real friendship mixed throughout this story and it will definitely appeal to contemporary fiction fans who enjoy a rewarding story. Well worth a read. AUTHOR BIO Carol Thomas lives on the south coast of England with her husband, four children and lively Labrador. She has been a playgroup supervisor and taught in primary schools for over fifteen years, before dedicating more of her time to writing. Carol is a regular volunteer for Cancer Research UK. She has a passion for reading, writing and people watching and can often be found loitering in local cafes working on her next book. Carol writes for both adults and children: Her contemporary romance novels, have relatable heroines whose stories are layered with emotion, sprinkled with laughter and topped with irresistible male leads; while her children's books have irresistibly cute, generally furry characters young children can relate to. For more information: Website - www.carol-thomas.co.uk Twitter - twitter.com/carol_thomas2 Facebook - www.facebook.com/carolthomasauthor Instagram - www.instagram.com/carol_thomas2/ DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT ALL OF THE OTHER STOPS ALONG THE WAY!!! Release date - 17th May 2018
Book length - 400 pages Publisher - Orion Book Depository - www.bookdepository.com Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank Lauren from www.orionbooks.co.uk for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour and for providing me with a copy of this stunning book for review. I am also very lucky to have a guest post & a delicious recipe from Veronica (thank you!) to whet your appetite so happy reading and happy cooking!! ABOUT THE BOOK What's the secret ingredient to your happiness? Laura Griffin is preparing for an empty nest. The thought of Number 11 Lark Hill falling silent - a home usually bustling with noise, people and the fragrant smells of something cooking on the Aga - seems impossible. Laura hopes it will mean more time for herself, and more time with her husband, Dom. But when an exposed secret shakes their marriage, Laura suddenly feels as though her family is shrinking around her. Feeling lost, she turns to her greatest comfort: her grandmother's recipe box, a treasured collection dating back to the Second World War. Everyone has always adored Laura's jams and chutneys, piled their sandwiches high with her pickles . . . Inspired by a bit of the old Blitz spirit, Laura has an idea that gives her a fresh sense of purpose. Full of fierce determination, Laura starts carving her own path. But even the bravest woman needs the people who love her. And now, they need her in return . . . MY REVIEW Wow, did this book really get to me. Beautifully written, which we all know is a trademark of the fabulous Veronica Henry, A FAMILY RECIPE is so much more than a great story - the characters and everything that they have been through and are experiencing now comes alive in front of your eyes and I defy you not to fall in love with this family and everything it represents. Laura Griffin is a little lost now that her children have flown the coop. Having spent most of her time nurturing and worrying about her daughters, especially Willow who battles with asthma, Laura isn't quite sure what the future holds for herself and her husband Dom now that they have more time to rediscover themselves. But her life takes a sudden turn when she discovers something that threatens the foundations of her happy family. At least she can count on her wonderful grandmother, Kanga, who has been there for her every step of the way, a strong woman who survived the Blitz and oozes kindness and compassion. Maybe with the help of those she loves, Laura can find her own strength and forge a new path for herself and for her family ... The story moves from Kanga's past during the war to the present day which works really well as you get to see the foundation of Laura's family from the beginning, and Kanga is some woman, everything you would want and love in a friend and mother! A FAMILY RECIPE by Veronica Henry has drama, scrumptious food that will make your mouth water, love, friendship, heartache, and everything else that life can throw at you, all set against the stunning backdrop of Bath which will make you want to book a flight as soon as possible. I laughed, I teared up, and I felt the ups and downs of this beautiful family on every single page, and when I finished it I felt a little dazed at what I had read. And after all of my nattering on, this book can be summed up simply in one word: perfection. GUESTPOST & RECIPE I’ve always loved entertaining. From the age of about 15, I started giving dinner parties. What amuses me is how formal I was at that age – a properly laid table, and my friends always turned up dressed to the nines. Nowadays I prefer much more casual affairs. I never do a proper starter, but will do something delicious to pass around while people chat over a cocktail or a glass of wine: guacamole, or crab mayonnaise in chicory leaves, or little parmesan biscuits. Then it’s a one-pot dish – something like chicken with apples and cider and crème fraiche, or a big fish pie, with a pile of crunchy mange touts and broccoli. What I’ve realised is that as the meal wears on and the wine goes down, so people lose interest in the food. So I have long given up slaving over an elaborate dessert. Apart from anything I’ve lost interest myself by then! So I have acquired a collection of recipes for what I call ‘minimum effort; maximum impact’ puddings, and these lemon pots are my absolute favourite. They couldn’t take less time – just leave a couple of hours for them to set. The key is in the presentation. I have inherited my grandmother’s Waterford collection – dozens of crystal glasses which are stunningly beautiful but rather outdated and to be honest I’m too scared to use them to drink out of! But the shallow champagne coupes are perfect for these lemon pots. I put them on a white plate and serve with a crispy buttery galette or a piece of shortbread (shop-bought if time is short!). I serve cheese at the same time, mostly so there is no argument as to whether to do it the French way (cheese then dessert) or English way (dessert then cheese). People can choose their preference and the greedy can do both! LEMON POTS This fills six of my glasses but it is very rich so you could do even smaller portions. It’s very easy to double up or halve this recipe. 600 ml double cream 150g caster sugar Juice and zest of four lemons Dissolve the sugar very gently in the cream on a low heat, stirring all the while to make sure the bottom doesn’t catch. Then turn the heat up and simmer for about three minutes. Take off the heat and add the lemon juice and zest. Cool before pouring into glasses, then refrigerate until needed. The pots will set quite firm after a couple of hours. AUTHOR BIO Veronica Henry was a television script writer before turning her hand to fiction. She has published sixteen novels which she describes as realistic escapism - her setting are gorgeous, but her characters have problems and dilemmas everyone can identify with. For more information: Website - www.veronicahenry.co.uk Twitter - twitter.com/veronica_henry Facebook - www.facebook.com/veronicahenryauthor/ Instagram - www.instagram.com/veronicahenryauthor/ DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT ALL OF THE OTHER STOPS ALONG THE WAY!!! Release date - 10th May 2018
Book length - 208 pages Publisher - Melville House Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank Nikki from www.mhpbooks.com for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour and for providing me with an e-copy of this book for review. ABOUT THE BOOK Holly moved to Brighton to escape. But now she's here, sitting on a bench, listening to the sea sway... what is she supposed to do next? How is she supposed to fill the void Sam left when he died? She had thought she'd want to be on her own. Wrecked. Stranded. But after she meets Frank, the tide begins to shift. Frank, a retired magician who has experienced his own loss but manages to be there for everyone else. Gradually, as he introduces Holly to a circle of new friends, young and old, all with their own stories of love and grief to share, she begins to learn to live again. MY REVIEW LET ME BE LIKE WATER by S.K. Perry is a haunting and moving tale of love, loss, and grief but it also holds a very important message of hope. Holly is lost ever since the death of her boyfriend, the man she loved with her whole heart. Not being able to remain in London where all of her memories of him surround her she moves to Brighton where she finds some comfort in the waves lapping to the shore. But it isn't long before she is lost again. Until she meets Frank, an elderly man who seems to know more about her than is possible. As Frank draws Holly into his circle of friends, she meets people young and old who have their own stories to share, and slowly Holly begins to piece herself back together even though her love for him will never leave her. There is a captivating magic about LET ME BE LIKE WATER by S.K. Perry that is difficult to put into words but it is truly soul-stirring. The characters are fascinating, likeable, and engaging which is so important in a story like this that deals with such sensitive topics of grief and loss. Like the sea, there is a melodious quality to S.K. Perry's writing that allows this story to ebb and flows effortlessly and I highly recommend this story! AUTHOR BIO I’m Sarah, and I’m a fiction writer and poet from Croydon. My first novel, Let Me Be Like Water, was shortlisted for the Mslexia Novel Award and will be published by Melville House in May. I run creative writing projects that develop emotional literacy, and explore mental health, memory, and healing from violence. I’m interested in multi-lingual literature and translation, and how different languages live and are used in cities. I was the Cityread Young Writer in Residence in Soho in 2014 and I qualified on the Spoken Word Education Programme the following year. I’m involved in mentoring young poets’ collectives in Hackney, Glasgow, and Tegucigalpa, and I live in South London. For more information: Website - sk-perry.com Twitter - twitter.com/_sarah_perry Release date - 11th May 2018
Book length - 384 pages Publisher - HQ Digital Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I voluntarily reviewed this book from Netgalley. ABOUT THE BOOK Sometimes the things we never say are the most important. Fran loves Will with all her heart. They had a whirlwind romance, a perfect marriage and a wonderful life. Until everything changed. Now Fran needs to find her way again and teaching a yoga retreat in Spain offers her just that. Leaving behind a broken marriage she has some very important decisions to make. Will needs his wife, he needs her to open up to him if they’re to ever return to the way things once were. But he may have damaged any possibility he had of mending their relationship and now Fran is in Spain and Will is alone. As both Fran and Will begin to let go of a life that could have been, fate may just find a way of bringing them back together. Perfect for fans of Katie Marsh, Amanda Prowse and Sheila O’Flanagan. MY REVIEW THE THINGS WE NEED TO SAY by Rachel Burton is a powerful, emotional, heartbreaking, and inspiring story about love and all of its complications, and about life when it doesn't turn out as planned. Fran and Will love each other, of that there is no doubt. But after the heartache of the last few years, especially this past year, they are struggling to reconnect and recover who they used to be together. And when Fran discovers something that Will has been keeping from her, it is the final straw, and she is happy to leave for Spain where she is teaching at a yoga retreat as it will give her the time and space she needs to figure out her life. While Fran is gone, Will is forced to really look at himself and everything that has happened to them both in a different light. He loves Fran but he is terrified that too much heartache has happened for them to ever really recover but how could he ever live without her? Is it possible that love is not enough? Now I'm warning you that there is a very high chance of tears when you read Fran and Will's story and the heartache that they have endured, and as I hugged my kids goodnight after reading this story I definitely held them for a little bit longer than usual. The characters are relatable, flawed, and oh so very human and you cannot help but care for them as their story captures your heart and attention. Mistakes are made, grief is shared, and friendships are solidified in this beautiful story about finding your way in life when your future takes an unexpected turn, and I could not put this book down until I knew how it ended. THE THINGS WE NEED TO SAY by Rachel Burton is a stunning novel that brings grief, hope, strength, and love to the surface and I highly recommend it to fiction fans everywhere. AUTHOR BIO Rachel Burton has been making up stories since she first learned to talk. After many false starts she finally made one up that was worth writing down. After graduating with a degree in Classics and another in English, she didn't really know what to do when she grew up. She has worked as a waitress, a paralegal and a yoga teacher. She has spent most of her life between Cambridge and London but now lives in Leeds with her boyfriend and three cats. The main loves of her life are The Beatles and very tall romantic heroes. Her debut, The Many Colours of Us, was an Amazon Kindle bestseller. Her second novel, The Things We need to Say, is released on 11 May 2018. She is currently working on her third novel in which the heroine follows the love of her life to live in a city in northern England. It has no autobiographical elements at all.....maybe. For more information: Website - rachelburtonwrites.com Twitter - twitter.com/bookish_yogi Facebook - www.facebook.com/Rachel-Burton-353151308524664/ Instagram - www.instagram.com/bookish_yogi/ Release date - 7th May 2018
Book length - 244 pages Publisher - Bloodhound Books Book Depository - www.bookdepository.com Amazon UK - www.amazon.co.uk Amazon US - www.amazon.com I want to thank Sarah from www.bloodhoundbooks.com for the opportunity to take part in this blog tour and for providing me with a fascinating guest post from the author - thank you Leigh Russell. ABOUT THE BOOK Julie is devastated to learn that her husband, Paul, is having an affair. It seems her life can’t get any worse - until she comes home to find his dead body in their bed. When the police establish he was murdered, Julie is the obvious suspect. To protect her son from the terrible situation, Julie sends the teenage boy to his grandparents in Edinburgh while she fights to prove her innocence. With all the evidence pointing to her, the only way she can escape conviction is by discovering the true identity of her husband’s killer. But who really did murder Paul? The truth is never straightforward… GUESTPOST WRITING A STAND ALONE After focusing on writing series for several years, writing a stand alone has been an interesting experiment for me. Not content with a departure from the characters who people my series, I also decided to do something else that I hadn’t previously attempted, by writing in the first person. To begin with it felt strange to be doing that, but it’s exciting to set ourselves writing challenges, and sometimes they work out. The Adulterer’s Wife has only just been published, so it remains to be seen how successful my experiment will be. So far all my sixteen published novels have been written in the third person, and that has always been my preferred approach. Writing in the third person allows a writer the freedom to explore the narrative from different viewpoints. I like taking my readers inside the mind not only of my detectives, but also of my victims and, most especially, of my killers. The Adulterer’s Wife is written entirely from the point of view of one narrator. Writing in the first person like this has several drawbacks. The main challenge I faced was restricting the reader’s experience to just one narrative voice. Readers are only privy to that one character’s knowledge and ideas, which can be limiting. That one narrator is bound to be ignorant of so much that is going on in the minds of other key characters in the book. With multiple points of view, it’s relatively easy to let readers know more than the main character. So in my series books, the reader might know the identity of the killer, and who they are planning to murder next, and where, while the detective is casting around helplessly for leads. This can really help to increase the tension for the reader. It’s a slightly more sophisticated version of the technique exploited in pantomimes, where the audience can see that ‘He’s behind you’! Writing in the first person makes this difficult. Another new experience for me in writing The Adulterer’s Wife was the need to introduce a completely new set of characters. In my series, the main characters have already been established before I even start thinking my next book. I’m careful to ensure that each of my books works fine as a stand alone, so readers don’t need to have encountered my characters before, but I already know them. They frequently surprise me once I start writing, but there’s no denying that some of the ground work has already been done. My main characters have names and ages, personalities and relationships. They have homes and careers. Writing The Adulterer’s Wife, I was starting from scratch with all my characters. So, now that I have completed a stand alone novel, would I consider tackling another one? The honest answer to that is that I have absolutely no idea. I never intended to write even one stand alone, yet The Adulterer’s Wife is written. I’m still not quite sure how that happened. So it may well be that an idea for another stand alone novel will occur to me one day. It could happen tomorrow. I’ll genuinely know nothing about it until an idea hits me and I feel compelled to try and write it down. And it could be absolutely anything, and take my readers absolutely anywhere. Firmly wedded to my preferred genre of contemporary crime, I seriously doubt that I’ll ever write a humorous romance, or even a dystopian novel. But who knows? That’s another aspect of writing a stand alone that is new to me. With a series, I have at least a vague idea of where my characters may be heading in their next book. It doesn’t take a crystal ball to predict that my detectives working on the Murder Investigation Team will be looking into unlawful deaths, or that their families will continue to support or plague them, as they have done in previous books. The story is new each time, with a different killer driven by his or her own particular motivation, but my detective is a constant thread running through the series. And whenever I begin a new book, I have my main character waiting for me. By contrast, the characters in a stand alone have no existence at all, on the page or even in my imagination, before the book begins to take shape. Like all freedoms, that is both terrifying and exhilarating. So while I look forward to returning to my old friends, my series characters, I may take a holiday from them again one day and create a different set of characters, just for the fun of it. All it takes is one idea... and that may already be lurking at the back of my mind, waiting until I have time to work on it. AUTHOR BIO After many years teaching English in secondary school, internationally bestselling author Leigh Russell now writes crime fiction full time. Published in English and in translation in Europe, her Geraldine Steel and Ian Peterson titles have appeared on many bestseller lists, including #1 on kindle. Leigh's work has been nominated for several major awards, including the CWA New Blood Dagger and CWA Dagger in the Library, and her Geraldine Steel and Ian Peterson series are in development for television with Avalon Television Ltd. Journey to Death is the first title in her Lucy Hall series published by Thomas and Mercer. For more information: Website - www.leighrussell.co.uk Twitter - twitter.com/LeighRussell DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT ALL OF THE OTHER STOPS ALONG THE WAY!!! |
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