Happy Publication Day
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| Spark Furnace Books 3 June 2021 My thanks to the author my my copy of this book |
Twenty years ago, Hugo and Ash were on top of the world. As the acclaimed rock band Ashbirds they were poised for superstardom. Then Ash went missing, lost in a mountaineering accident, and the lives of Hugo and everyone around him were changed forever. Irrepressible, infuriating, mesmerizing Ash left a hole they could never hope to fill.
Two decades on, Ash’s fiancée Elza is still struggling to move on, her private grief outshone by the glare of publicity. The loss of such a rock icon is a worldwide tragedy. Hugo is now a recluse in Nepal, shunning his old life. Robert, an ambitious session player, feels himself both blessed and cursed by his brief time with Ashbirds, unable to achieve recognition in his own right.
While the Ashbirds legend burns brighter than ever, Elza, Hugo and Robert are as stranded as if they were the ones lost in the ice. How far must they go to come back to life.
My thoughts..
Twenty years after hearing the devastating news that her fiancée, Ashten Geddard had been lost whilst climbing Mount Everest, Elza is still mourning his loss, caught up in the limbo of never having full closure. At the time, Ash's disappearance sent shock waves around the musical world as he was the frontman of a phenomenally successful rock duo whose music is forever locked in time. Ash's partner in the duo is Hugo who, twenty years on, remains in Nepal, as much caught up in the tragedy as if happened yesterday. With a resurgence of interest in the Ashbirds, Robert once a session musician, finds himself caught with questions of what might have been if Ash had not disappeared.
Ever Rest opens up to scrutiny all the minutiae of what is left behind when someone leaves us, and shows that even after a number of years have elapsed, closure can be just as ethereal and out of reach as it was at the start. Each of the main characters in Ever Rest are beautifully described and the question of unresolved grief comes up time and time again. There is so much to be explored in all the relationships especially that between Ash and Hugo but also in the indecision which still surrounds, Robert and the way in which Elza finds it difficult to leave behind her memories of the charismatic, but somewhat mercurial, Ashten Geddard.
The author writes well and with an empathic way with words she describes the minutia of living life under the spotlight with a keen eye for detail and an interesting look at the shaping of lives as each of the main characters have their own particular memories and are all carrying their own burdens of loss and that age old questions of what might have been. Ever Rest is an interesting look at the vagaries of the music industry, the grief of those who are left behind, and of those who want to manipulate and exploit that loss.
About the Author
Roz Morris writes fiction and essays about unconventional ways we can be haunted and how we seek people and places we belong with. Her work has been profiled by The Guardian, Literature Works, the Potomac Review, Foreword Reviews, Rain Taxi and BBC Radio.
Her fiction has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide, although you won't have seen her name on the covers - she began her career in secret, ghostwriting fiction for big-name authors.
Now she's coming out of the shadows. Her own novels have been described as 'profound tales and compelling page-turners', with fine-honed language, unforgettable characters, and gripping, unusual storylines. Plaudits include a top-ranked title in the American Library Journal programme, a longlisting for an international award alongside Neil Gaiman and a finalist position in the People's Book Prize 2017.
She is also a fiction editor and writing coach. She teaches creative writing masterclasses for The Guardian newspaper in London, based on her series for writers, Nail Your Novel.
If you want to get to know her a little better, drop in at www.rozmorris.wordpress.com and her blog www.nailyournovel.com - or sign up for her newsletter about creative life . Her latest novel, Ever Rest, releases on 3 June 2021.
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