Today my author spotlight shines on ....Annemarie Neary

I am delighted to welcome Annemarie Neary to Jaffareadstoo and to congratulate her on the publication of her second novel.

**Happy Publication Day**

Hutchinson ( Penguin Random House UK)
24 March 2016

A warm welcome to you Annemarie and thank you for spending time with us today...

Tell us a little about Annemarie Neary, author.

I’m about to publish Siren (my second novel, but my first psychological thriller), which is coming out on 24th March; I signed a 2-book deal with Hutchinson, an imprint of Penguin Random House UK, last year. My first novel, A Parachute in the Lime Tree, was published by The History Press Ireland in 2012. I also write short stories, I’m working on a tricky first draft of one at the moment. 

How long have you been writing and what got you started?

I first started writing seriously in about 2008. I took an extended career break when my 3rd son was born, and I’d been back at work for about 2 years when it became obvious that the whole juggling work/home thing wasn’t going too well. I conceded defeat, stopped work, then felt like a bit of a failure. I realized then that if I was ever going to write, this was the moment. I developed the habit of working to competition deadlines — write, edit, send, repeat — until I started to get somewhere. 

Where do you get your inspiration for a story from – are you inspired by people, places or do you draw purely from your imagination?

Place is a big factor for me, especially when it comes to short stories. It’s important is to be open to things; observe, eavesdrop, wonder about people, take notes when you can. Also, if you come across something that piques your interest, try to catch it before it disappears — pin it down in some form, even if it’s only a note on your phone. And don’t be afraid to combine disparate things – often that’s where the interesting stuff begins. 

What inspired you to write Siren , and what can you tell us about it that won’t give too much away?

I find the genesis of ideas a bit of a mystery, and one I hesitate to interrogate too closely in case the ideas stop coming! With Siren, I began with a short story that centred on the protagonist, Róisín, during a night out that goes unimaginably wrong. For the moment, that was that. But even though the story was finished, I couldn’t let Róisín go. I became fascinated by the potential ramifications of that night. What would Róisín’s future hold?

What keeps you motivated as a writer?

Deadlines are good! Having a book published is an exciting, exhausting, anxiety-provoking business; it’s also quite addictive. Having said that, writing has become so integral to my life that I’d write even if I weren’t being published. The great thing about writing is that nothing need ever be wasted. Every frustration, boredom, sorrow and joy can be turned to use. 

Do you have a routine when you’re writing?

It depends whether I’m writing raw or editing. I find writing new material quite a difficult process. I’m never sure whether something is going to work until I’ve found the shape of it, and that’s often not until I’m quite a way in. I tend to be a night owl, so I love to write late at night when everyone else is asleep. A lot of people say you should write your raw material first thing in the morning while you’re still adjusting to the day, almost in dream mode. Colm Tóibín says to ‘Stay in your mental pajamas all day’ which might be a bit of an ask for those of us with jobs and families! However, the vast majority of my writing work constitutes editing, so that can be done any time. 

What do you hope that readers will take away from your books?

That’s a very interesting question, and not one I’ve thought about before. I don’t know that I do have something I want readers to take away, partly because every book or story is different, and partly because I’m not directing my characters to behave in any particular way. I place them in peril or temptation or in the midst of a moral dilemma and they cope according to their personalities, desires, needs. 

In Siren, Róisín reaches a crisis in early middle age that leads her to do something that is brave and foolhardy but absolutely essential for her emotional and moral wellbeing. I suppose I’m interested in courage, and what it takes to behave well in extreme situations. In fact, It’s just occurred to me that both Róisin in Siren and Oskar in Parachute fail to act with courage at a particular point of crisis then spend the rest of the book determined, if not to replay things, to do better next time. 

Thanks so much for your questions, Jo, and for inviting me to the blog. 

It's been a real pleasure Annemarie, do come back and see us again soon...

About the Author 

Irish-born, Annemarie was educated at Trinity College and King’s Inns, Dublin and the Courtauld Institute, London. A former lawyer, she lives in London with her husband and sons.

Annemarie’s short fiction has won awards in the UK, Ireland and the US. Her UK debut, Siren, is forthcoming from Hutchinson (Penguin Random House UK) in Spring 2016. A Parachute in the Lime Tree was published by The History Press Ireland in 2012.

Find AnneMarie on her website
Follow on Twitter @AnnemarieNeary1

Amazon UK

Siren is available to buy online and from all good good book shops from


24 March 2016 

~***~

My author in the spotlight is...Annemarie Neary

I am delighted to welcome back to the blog, the author, Annemarie Neary on publication day of her latest novel, The Orphans 

Welcome back to Jaffareadstoo, Annemarie and thank you for spending time with us today

What inspired you to write The Orphans and how many rough drafts did it take before you were happy with the story?

The Orphans opens when the parents of two young children vanish on a Goa beach. Years ago, a friend told me about a woman she’d come across whose parents had vanished in similar circumstances. According to the story, the woman had fared OK, but her brother had floundered. Something about that floundering brother stayed with me. Years later, I was walking across the Common where I live in South London when I noticed a tall, very pale, young man standing by the side of the road. He was wearing a hi-vis vest that looked much too big for him and was staring fixedly at the parents and children leaving the school opposite. Right away, I had a character and the story went from there. I think I had about seven or eight drafts.

The Orphans explores the concept of abandonment. How did you research this and were you surprised by anything you discovered?

I focused on trying to get inside the characters. I did do some research, case studies and the like, but really I think you have to imagine the emotional impact from the inside out. You need to put yourself into the position of those children and the adults they might become. In the case of Jess, I suppose I worked backwards. I selected a risk-averse, cautious woman whose life choices have been built upon the desire to neutralise chance. I think there are a lot of people who try to control life like that, who are fearful, and I thought Jess might well have been similar. What I did research, however, was the particular psychology of her younger brother, Sparrow (Ro). I hope he’s convincing! 

Whilst you are writing you must live with your characters. How did you feel about them when the book was finished?  Did they turn out as expected?

I wanted Jess to be able to change over the course of the book. I knew she would have to move out from behind her defences, though I wasn’t sure how that would play out. As for Ro, I was surprised at how attached I became to him, despite the terrible things he does.

How did you go about creating such a strong sense of time and place?

I’ve lived on a south London common for twenty years, so all it took was to keep my eyes and ears open. My previous novels have entailed much more location research – Berlin and Dublin during WW2, Belfast during the Troubles, an offshore Irish island in the recent past. The locations in my short stories are even more far-flung, ranging from Venice, Sarajevo, Algiers to entirely imaginary places. This is the first time I’ve had the luxury of just wandering across the road.

When you started writing The Orphans did you already know how the story would end?

No, I had no idea. When I started, all I had was those golden children on a Goa beach (and a strange young man twenty-odd years later in a high vis vest). 

And finally, what can we expect next from you?

I’m working on a suspense novel. It’s set overseas, at the shadowy margins of the oil industry, in a world of fixers and deal-makers, bluff and counter-bluff. Needless to say, my POV character finds herself seriously out of her depth.  It’s still early days, and I don’t want to jinx it, so I’d better just leave it at that.  

You can find out more about Annemarie and her writing on her website by clicking here

Follow on Twitter @AnnemarieNeary1

My thanks to the author for answering my questions about The Orphans so thoughtfully and also to Laura at Penguin Random House for my review copy of this book.

My thoughts about the book

Hutchinson
July 27th 2017

The opening chapter of this thought-provoking novel really draws you into the story and sets the scene for what is to come. The idea that two young children can play happily on a sun drenched beach, only to have the realization dawn on them, particularly on the elder child, that their mother and father have quite simply disappeared, doesn't bear thinking about. What then follows, for both Jess and Ro (Sparrow), is their constant sense of searching, each taking a very different path, as they learn to cope, in their own very individual way, with such a devastating loss.

The Orphans is a story about family and of the ties that bind us together. It's about expectations and the dreams of securing a semblance of hope when dark shadows of the past continue to influence the future. In many ways, it's a deeply contemplative story, consisting of many layers, which when peeled back reveal more and more facets of the effects of abandonment, of loss and unresolved grief. Thoughtfully created, both Jess and Sparrow have been irreparably damaged by their childhood experiences. With thoughtful precision and clever writing, we learn what makes Jess and Sparrow act and react, and always, I think, regardless of the fact that we see them as adults, that there is always a sense of the abandoned child about them.

I can remember very vividly as a young child turning in a busy department store and not being able to see my mother, that heartrending lurch of the stomach and the overwhelming sense of panic that resulted when I searched and searched and couldn't find her. I remember being taken by the hand and led to a cluttered office where an appeal was made over the tinny PA system and the relief when my mother arrived filled with her own sense of panic.

To lose someone and never to find them is unimaginable, that constant feeling of searching must be so very difficult to accept. In The Orphans, the author fills this novel with that devastating and incomprehensible sense of loss and abandonment in a suspenseful story with all the fundamental principles of family at its heart. Beautifully written, cleverly crafted, and with a fine eye for detail, this is another great story by a talented writer.

The Orphans by Annemarie Neary is published by Hutchinson in eBook and hardback priced £14.99.

The Orphans is published today - 27th July 


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Guest Author - Annemarie Neary

It is with great pleasure I introduce 

Annemarie Neary

Photo courtesy of the author

Author of

A Parachute in the Lime Tree

Published by The History Press Ireland
2012

Synopsis

April 1941. German bombers are in the air, about to attack Belfast 

Oskar is a Luftwaffe conscript whose sweetheart, Elsa, was forced to flee Berlin for Ireland two years before.War weary, he longs for escape.

In remote Dunkerin, Kitty awakes to find a parachute trapped in one of the lime trees. When she discovers Oskar, injured and foraging for food in her kitchen, he becomes a rare and exciting secret.

But Ireland during the ‘Emergency’ is an uneasy place, and word of the parachute soon spreads.

Meanwhile Elsa is haunted by the plight of the parents she left behind. With the threat of Nazi invasion, she feels far from secure.

A chance encounter with Elsa, and Charlie, a young medical student, finds himself falling in love.

Oskar, Kitty, Elsa and Charlie. Their lives intertwine in a climate of war, exile and ever-uncertain neutrality.

Annemarie welcome to jaffareadstoo ...

What inspired you to become an author? 

I always wrote a bit but only started taking it seriously about 4 years ago. Now, I can’t imagine not writing – I'm obsessed with it. I don’t really see myself as an author. Somehow, that seems too big a word for what I do.

Where did you get the inspiration for A Parachute in the Lime Tree?

I grew up in Ireland and it always seemed to me that we were at the edge of things. Ireland was neutral during the war and that sense of being on the periphery is fertile territory for fiction. All my stories start with a ‘what if?’ In this case, what if a man fell from the sky?

 

What comes first the plot, or the people?

For me, the people come first (or perhaps, the dilemma). The plot emerges by pulling coherent strands out of a large mass of material once the initial splurging has taken place. 

Where did your research for the book take you?

I read a huge amount about the period, most of which I never even used. I also spent at lot of time in the newspaper library – photos and small ads are so illuminating. I corresponded with various people, both on and offline (a former Luftwaffe crew member, the widow of a German internee in Ireland, people who just lived in Ireland during that time.)

Do you have a special place to do your writing?

I work at home most of the time – at a desk overlooking Clapham Common. That means red buses, dog-walkers, and the thump of footballs. I work in the London Library too because sometimes it’s best just to turn your head to the wall.

Can you share with us your next writing project?

I have finished a second novel, working title Siren. I hope to send it out on submission very soon. I have also got enough stories for a Venice collection and I'm developing ideas for a couple more. I love writing short stories, but each one takes a huge amount of work as I do a lot of re-writing. I'm roughly 35,000 words into third novel. I haven’t looked at it for several months, so I hope it’s still bubbling away inside somewhere.

And finally for fun.. 

What books are on your bedside table? 

I have an awful lot of books on my bedside table that I never seem to get to. My husband sleeps like a cat, 

so it’s hard to read in bed without waking him. However, these are the books at the top of my pile 

The Truth Commissioner by David Park, 

The Light Between Oceans by M L Stedman, 

The Bees by Carol Ann Duffy, 

The Lighthouse by Alison Moore 

The Gilded Lily by Deborah Swift. 

Annemarie , thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions and for giving such a fascinating insight into the writing of your book A Parachute in the Lime Tree.

Jaffa and I wish you continued success with your writing.

Find out more about Annemarie on her website

My review 

Review ~ Siren by Annemarie Neary

Hutchinson
2016

 A bit of blurb..

Róisín Burns has spent the past twenty years becoming someone else; her life in New York is built on lies. 

A figure from her Belfast childhood flashes up on the news: Brian Lonergan has also reinvented himself. He is now a rising politician in a sharp suit. But scandal is brewing in Ireland and Róisín knows the truth. 

Armed with the evidence that could ruin Lonergan, she travels back across the Atlantic to the remote Lamb Island to hunt him down. 

But Lonergan is one step ahead; when Róisín arrives on the island, someone else is waiting for her.

My Thoughts...

The beginning of the novel is both disturbing and intriguing and undeniably sets the scene for a tense and often violent look into the shadowy world of Ireland's past.

Róisín Burns seems to have left the past behind her, but as with all things in her life there is only so far and so fast that she can run to outwit her demons. When she discovers that someone from her past has resurfaced she realises that the only way to exorcise her demons is to confront them. Returning home to Ireland is never going to be easy but in this one thing Róisín doesn't really have any option.

I thought that the book was really quite gripping, with a fast and furious narrative which doesn't pull any punches. The author writes with fascinating conviction and opens up to scrutiny the whole idea of conflict and of the effect that the Irish troubles had on those growing up during the worst of the violence.

Siren is one of those books that, once you start, you can't put down. Its high octane realism keeps you on the edge of your seat and doesn't let up until the story is concluded.

Best read with ...two fingers of Irish whiskey and a guest house breakfast..

About the Author

Annemarie is an Irish-born, London-based novelist and short story writer.

Visit her website by clicking here 

Follow on Twitter @AnnemarieNeary1

My thanks to the author for sharing her book with me 

~***~

Friday Recommended...

Published March 2012
The History Press Ireland

A Parachute in the Lime Tree

by

Annemarie Neary


This beautifully written novel explores the lives of four young people whose stories intertwine during WW2. Oskar is a Luftwaffe conscript who finds his role in the war abhorrent, and as the dreams of his first love, Elsa, overshadows his hope for the future, he makes a dramatic and startling decision. Left behind in Berlin, Elsa faces a bleak future until she is safety moved to Ireland as part of the Kindertransport, where the dream of playing music carries her through the uncertainty of not knowing whether her parents remain alive. In rural Ireland, Kitty finds Oskar trapped in his parachute in one of the lime trees in her garden, and from the beginning is determined to keep him her own special secret. Meanwhile, Charlie, a young medical student, becomes enamoured of Elsa when he hears her play beautiful music on her piano.

I was completely drawn into the story from the beginning, the characterisation is truly excellent and thanks to some skilful storytelling we get to know Oskar, Elsa, Kitty and Charlie very well. The story moves adeptly through their lives, intertwining where it can, but also focusing on their individual stories, which I found deeply moving. From the sleepiness of rural Ireland, to the horrors of Berlin, the story captures time and place perfectly, where the indecision of youth is combined with the uncertainty of living through the horror of war.

Without doubt, Annemarie Neary has a real talent for writing; her ability to weave together all the strands of the story is evident in her thoughtful  narrative, and with meticulous care and attention she brings the story to a fitting and emotional conclusion, which saw me reaching for the tissue box. 

I loved it.

5*****

My 12 in 12 in 2017...

As the end of my reading year approaches these are my much anticipated

12 in 12

Twelve authors who were new to me:

1. Catherine Ryan Howard - Distress Signals
2. Liz Trenow - The Silk Weaver
3. Clare Swatman - Before You Go
4. Lucy Daniels - Summer at Hope Meadows
5. Beatrice Colin  - To Capture What We Cannot Keep
6. Sarah Pinborough - Behind her Eyes
7. Juliet Greenwood - The White Camelia
8. Matthew Sullivan - Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore
9. Nancy Revell - Secrets of the Shipyard Girls
10. Magdalena McGuire - Home is Nearby
11. Victoria Walters - Second Love of my Life 
12. Carrie Elks - A Winter Tale

Twelve authors I have read before:

1. Angela Marson - Evil Games
2. Simon Toyne - The Boy Who Saw
3. Jane Cable - Another You
4. Dina Jefferies - Before the Rains 
5. Jan Ruth - Strawberry Sky
6. Anita Shreve - The Stars are Fire 
7. Robert Thorogood - Death Knocks Twice 
8. Annemarie Neary - The Orphans
9. Guy Fraser Sampson - A Whiff of Cyanide
10. Marina Fiorato - Crimson and Bone
11. MJ Arlidge- Love Me Not
12. Katie Fforde - The Christmas Stocking and Other Stories

Twelve books from authors I know will never let me down:

1. The Phantom Tree - Nicola Cornick
2. Felicity at the Cross Hotel - Helena Fairfax 
3. The Trophy Child - Paula Daly
4. The Friend - Dorothy Koomson
5. The A-Z of Everything - Debbie Johnson
6. Meet Me at Beachcomber Bay - Jill Mansell
7. The Thousand Lights Hotel -Emylia Hall  
8. Pocketful of Dreams - Jean Fullerton 
9. The Breakdown - B A Paris
10. Small Great Things - Jodi Picoult 
11. Blood Sisters - Jane Corry
12. Merry and Bright - Debbie Macomber

Twelve Audio books I have enjoyed listening to:

1. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon (Audible)
2. Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon(Audible)
3. Sweet Tooth - Ian McEwan (BBCR4)
4. Blood and Beauty - Sarah Dunant (BBCR4)
5. Midwinter Break - Bernard Macaverty (BBCR4)
6. Burning Bright - Tracy Chevalier (BBCR4)
7. The Deathwatch Journal - Ian Rankin (BBCR4)
8. Murder on the Orient Express - Agatha Christie(Audible)
9. Crossing the Whitewash- Nick Rippington(Audible)
10. A Discovery of Witches - Deborah Harkness (Audible)
11. The Monster Collection - Audible Original( Audible)
12. Apprentice-Scarlet City -Part 1 - Rebecca Gable (Audible)

Twelve authors I am looking forward to reading more of :

1. Beth Underdown
2. Helen Steadman
3. Nicola Pryce
4. Victoria Cornwall
5. Minette Walters
6. Carrie Elks
7. Merryn Allingham
8. Nicola Cornick
9. Amy Engels
10. Sarah Pinborough
11. Lisa Mary London
12. Angus Donald

Twelve books that took me by the hand and led me into the past:

1. The Vanishing - Sophia Tobin
2. The Witchfinders Sister - Beth Underdown
3. Widdershins - Helen Steadman
4. The Thief's Daughter - Victoria Cornwall
5. Sleeper's Castle - Barbara Erskine
6. Under the Approaching Dark - Anna Belfrage
7. The Wild Air - Rebecca Mascull
8. The Last Hours - Minette Walters
9. The Captain's Girl - Nicola Pryce
10. The Butcher's Block - Lucienne Boyce
11. Last Christmas in Paris - Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb
12. The Second Blast of the Trumpet - Marie Macpherson

Twelve books that took me into a world of crime and psychological suspense:

1. Turning Blue - Benjamin Myers
2. Earthly Remains - Donna Leon
3. The Bone Field - Simon Kernick
4. Copy Cat - Alex Lake
5. The Ice Beneath Her - Camilla Grebe
6. Maria in the Moon - Louise Beech 
7. The One - John Marrs
8. Into the Water - Paula Hawkins
9. Obsession - Amanda Robson
10. The Other Twin - L V Hay
11. The Chalk Pit - Elly Griffiths
12. Deaths in December - Susi Holliday

Twelve books that surprised me.....in a good way:

1. Jerusalem Ablaze - Orlando Ortega Medina
2. The Roanoke Girls - Amy Engels
3. Baby Doll - Holly Overton
4. Ginny Moon - Benjamin Ludwig
5. Relativity - Antonia Hayes
6. Reality Rehab - Lisa Mary London
7. The Possessions - Sarah Flannery Murphy 
8. The Last Act of Hattie Hoffman - Mindy Meija
9. Handcuffs, Truncheon and a Polyester Thong - Gina Kirkham
10. The Ludlow Ladies Society - Ann O'Loughlin 
11. The Book of Forgotten Authors - Christopher Fowler
12. Making Space - Sarah Tierney

Twelve Books Considered Literary Classics:

1. Anne of Green Gables - L M Montgomery(Audible)
2. Bleak House - Charles Dickens (Librivox)
3. The Alchemist - Paul Coelho (Audible)
4. Moonfleet - John Meade Falkner (Librivox)
5. What Katy Did - Susan Coolidge
6. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
7. The Railway Children - E Nesbitt
8. Testament of Youth - Vera Brittain
9. Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
10. Dracula - Bram Stoker
11. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
12. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

Twelve Books which took me to places far away:

1. I Know My Name - C J Cooke (Greece)
2. The Honeymoon - Tina Seskis (Maldives)
3. When the Future Comes too Soon - Selina Siak Chin Yoke (Asia)
4. Missing Pieces - Heather Gudenkauf (America)
5. Octavia's Journey - Miguel Bonnefoy (South America)
6. The Silent Kookaburra - Liza Perrat (Australia)
7. Under a Sardinian Sky - Sara Alex (Sardinia)
8. Dark Clouds Over Nuala- Harriet Steel (India)
9. The Ice Beneath Her - Camilla Grebe (Scandinavia)
10. The Monster's Daughter - Michelle Pretorious (South Africa)
11. The Dragonfly - Kate Dunn (France)
12. Wolves in the Dark - Gunnar Staalesen (Norway)

Twelve books from my Non-Fiction Shelf:

1. Hitler's Forgotten Children - Indrid Von Oelhafen
2. Pirates : Truth and Tales - Helen Hollick
3. Centaur - Declan Murphy with Ami Rao
4. Warriors and Kings - Martin Wall
5. To Catch A King - Charles Spencer
6. Thinking Out Loud - Rio Ferdinand
7. Verdi - John Suchet
8. In the Footsteps of the Wives of Henry VIII - Sarah Morris and Natalie Grueninger
9. Spell of the Horse - Pam Billinge
10. Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosties - Paul Anthony Jones
11. Best Loved Poems - Anna Sampson
12. Forgotten Histories - Jem Duducu

Twelve books to be published in 2018 that I can't wait to talk about and which are already on my to be read pile:

1. Anatomy of a Scandal -Sarah Vaughan
2. Traitor - David Hingley
3. A Map of the Dark - Karen Ellis
4. Three Things about Elsie- Joanna Cannon
5. Aphrodite's Tears - Hannah Fielding
6. The Coffin Path - Katherine Clements
7. The Homecoming -Rosie Howard
8. Fairvale Ladies Book Club - Sophie Green
9. The Immortalists - Chloe Benjamin
10. Only Child - Rhiannon Navin
11. The Last Day - Claire Dyer
12. Six Tudor Queens: Jane Seymour - Alison Weir

A MASSIVE BIG THANK YOU


 to these talented authors for sharing the gift of their imagination with me. 


Your books have taken me on the most wonderful adventures in 2017


Come back tomorrow my favourite reads of the year ....

Thanks to Jo at The Book Jotter who  inspired this meme...

~****~

End of Year ~ THANK YOU

It's that time of year again when we count our blessings and give a whopping 

BIG 


THANK YOU !

To 203 amazing authors for writing 203 incredible adventures

 in the books we have read this year

To ALL who have been our guests on the blog

Paula Martin

Martin Edwards

Paula Daley

Kirsten Mackenzie

Angela Marsons

Cath Staincliffe

Michael Wills

Faith Hogan

Sarah Jasmon

Liza Perrat

Caroline James

Debbie Johnson

June Taylor 

Nicci Rae

Pauline Barclay

Linda Swift

Kirsty Ferry

Kate Rigby

Claire Brown

Barbara Copperthwaite

Gina Kirkam

Jan Ruth

Claire Coombes

Wendy Unsworth

Carys Bray

Donna Morrissey

Helen Irene Young

Sue Featherstone

Amanda Brooke

Cath Staincliffe

Caroline Wallace

Anna Belfrage

Beth Underdown

Wendy Unsworth

Helena Fairfax

Victoria Cornwall

Linda Hooper

June Francis

Isabella Davidson

Mark Wesley

Rebecca Mascull 

Sharon Booth

Elizabeth Ashworth

Helen Gudenkauf

Susan Pape

Susanna Bavin

Jane Beehmah

Jane Corry

Carol Cooper

Anna Belfrage

Annemarie Neary

Jane Cable

Harriet Steel

John McKay

Linda Green

Anne Stormont

Kate Marsh

Lynda Stacey

Kate Bufton

Glynn Holloway

Emma Curtis

Katherine Sunderland

Emma Curtis

Katherine Sunderland

Helena Fairfax

Anne O'Brien

Susan Grossey

Alyson Rhodes

Lainy Swanson

Helen Giles

Gordon McGhie

Selina Siak Chin Yoke

Sheryl Browne

Elisabeth Carpenter

Katerina Diamond

Lucienne Boyce

Ana Sampson

Victoria Cornwall

Jean Fullerton

Silvia Forrester

Kathryn Freeman

Nicola Pryce

Virginia Moffatt

David Matthews 

Anne Allen

To the Authors and Publishers who have invited us to be part of some splendid Blog Tours


The Alibi - Jaime Raven

The Bone Field - Simon Kernick

Tell Me A Lie - C J Carver

Lady Cop Makes Trouble - Amy Stewart

Books for Living - Will Schwalbe

The Button Maker's Daughter - Merryn Allingham

The Silk Weaver - Liz Trenow

Relativity - Antonia Hayes

Corpus - Rory Clements

The Watcher - Ross Armstrong

Evil Games - Angela Marsons

Burned and Broken - Mark Hardie

The Yorkshire Shepherdess - Amanda Owen

Another You - Jane Cable

Secrets We Keep - Faith Hogan

Before You Go - Clare Swatman

The One - John Marrs

The Damselfly - S J I Holliday

What You Don't Know - JoAnn Chaney

The Devil in the Snow - Sarah Armstrong

Jerusalem Ablaze - Orlando Ortega-Medina

Stasi Wolf - David Young

Her Perfect Life -Sam Hepburn

The Orphan's Tale - Pam Jenoff

Before the Rains - Dinah Jeffries

One Last Wish - Ella Harper

Let the Dead Speak by Jane Casey

The Silent Fountain -Victoria Fox

Roanoke Girls - Amy Engel

An Unsuitable Marriage - Colette Dartford

The Last Act of Hattie Hoffman - Mindy Mejia

The Witchfinder's Sister - Beth Underdown

Foxes Unearthed - Lucy Jones

The Possessions - Sara Flannery Murphy

Boundary - Andree A Michaud

Good As Gone - Amy Gentry

My Name is Leon - Kit de Waal

Under A Sardinian Sky - Sara Alexanader

The Body in the Ice - A J Mackenzie

Time to Win - Harry Brett

The Shadow Queen - Anne O'Brien

The Stars are Fire - Anita Shreve

Hitler's Forgotten Children - Ingrid Von Oelhafen & Tim Tate

The Other Us - Fiona Harper

Obsession - Amanda Robson

The Butlins Girls - Elaine Everest

The Leopard at the Door - Jennifer McVeigh

Making Space -Sarah Tierney

Wolves in the Dark - Gunnar Staalesen

Ginny Moon - Benjamin Ludwig

All the Good Things - Claire Fisher

The Mayfly - James Hazel

Widdershins - Helen Steadman

I Know My Name - C J Cooke

Do Not Become Alarmed - Maile Meloy

Second Chance Cafe - :Lilly Bartlett

Skin Deep - Laura Wilkinson

The A-Z of Everything - Debbie Johnson

The Importance of Being me - Caroine Grace Cassidy

The Little Kiosk by the Sea -Jennifer Bohnet

Sweet Little Lies - Caz Frear

Blood Sisters - Jane Corry

To Kill A President - Sam Bourne

The Ludlow Ladies' Society - Ann O'Loughlin

Not A Sound - Helen Gudenkauf

The Other Twin - L V Hay

Death Knocks Twice - Robert Thorogood

Woman in the Shadows - Carol McGrath

A Message from the Other Side - Moira Forsyth

Unforgivable - Mike Thomas

Andalucian Fiesta - Hannah Fielding

The Way Back to Us - Kay Langdale

When the Future Comes too Soon - Selina Siak Chin Yok

Dan Knew - Fiona Curnow

Maria in the Moon - Louise Beech

The Spell of the Horse - Pam Billinge

Copy Cat - Alex Lake

99 Red Balloons - Elizabeth Carpenter

The Waterway Girls - Milly Adams

The Angel - Katerina Diamond

Bluebird, Bluebird - Attica Locke

Home is Nearby - Magdalena McGuire

Blood is Game - Angus Donald

The Book of Forgotten Authors - Christopher Fowler

Invisible Women - Sarah Long

Christmas at Conwenna Cove - Darcie Boleyn

The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosties - Paul Anthony Jones

Last Christmas in Paris - Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb

Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe by Melissa de la Cruz

Legacy of Spies - John le Carre

Wilde in Love - Eloisa James

The Man in the Needlecord Jacket - Linda Macdonald

Sweet William - Iain Maitland

Merry and Bright - Debbie Macomber

Just One Time - K S Hunter

East End Angels - Rosie Hendry

Anything for Her - C J Minett

And a very special thank you to all the bloggers who continue to support Jaffareadstoo with 

their wisdom when things go a bit off kilter


and who retweet and share my blog posts on a daily basis


A BIG shout out to Book Connectors on Facebook, thank you - you're all amazing.


Thank you everyone for being part of Jaffareadstoo's bookish journey in 2017


we couldn't do this without you.

Here's to another amazing literary journey in 2018.

Happy Reading


~***~

Author Interview and Giveaway - Gillian E. Hamer

I am delighted to introduce

Gillian E. Hamer

© Gillian Hamer

Author of The Charter

G.E. Hamer (3 May 2012)

The legend of The Royal Charter is almost as famous as the story of the dead girl who wanders the cliffs at Point Lynas – a victim of the 1859 shipwreck.

After more than a decade away, Sarah Morton must return to her childhood home in Anglesey to bury her father. It’s her chance to say goodbye, and good riddance, to her past.

Yet her father leaves her a legacy. A letter. And a safe full of documents about the ancient shipwreck.

The Royal Charter had been carrying gold. Huge amounts of it. And her father’s death suddenly looks like murder.

Determined to discover the truth, Sarah is dragged into a dangerous journey, discovering she and the girl on the cliffs have more in common than she could ever believe.

Set along the dramatic and dangerous Anglesey coastline, The Charter is a story of greed and forgiveness – when the treasures of the past evoke the crimes of today.

Gillian has very kindly taken the time to talk about her book and has given a fascinating insight into what inspired her to write the story of The Charter.

Tell us about your novel The Charter.

The Charter is a crime thriller with a twist – an added paranormal thread with a dollop of historical fiction too!

I think it’s called mixed genre, and in terms of getting published down the traditional route that was The Charter’s downfall. Crime should be crime, ghost stories should stay separate. And no publisher wanted to take a risk, so I formed Triskele Books with other writers who were in the same position as me.

The Charter’s roots go way back to my childhood, scouring Red Wharf Bay for washed-up treasure with a family friend who owned a metal detector and had a passion for retelling local legends. Since then I've visited Llanallgo Church where the victims were buried, and spent a lot of time at Point Lynas and Moelfre researching the tragedy.

I felt the story of The Charter deserved more recognition, but I also wanted a way to bring it full circle into the modern day.

When I wrote the novel, I had no ideas about mixed genre, or any preconceptions about getting it published. I just wrote the story I’d had in my head for many years.

What inspired you to become an author?

In truth I'm not sure I ever felt inspired by any one thing. I've always loved to read. I started with Enid Blyton at a very young age, and then moved on to read every Agatha Christie in our local village library.

I always enjoyed English at school and moved into writing long stories as a hobby. In fact, my earliest claim to fame was winning a Blue Peter Competition when I was eleven, and to win I had write an episode of Grange Hill. I have a photograph somewhere of myself in the local newspaper but unfortunately I had mumps at the time and was absolutely terrified!

Writing has just been something I've always been able to do. However, it’s taken me the best part of a decade to get to this level and I'm still learning every day. It’s one thing to be able to write – it’s a totally different thing to get a book published. But I love every aspect of writing – from plotting to editing and everything in between.

Do you have a special place to do your writing?

Not one special place as I kind of move around a lot. I can write anywhere, even in front of the television if need be! Although I do like to write late at night in bed, when the house is silent and I can focus and let my mind go. I lose hours when I'm writing, and it’s a really odd sensation.

But I do prefer to do most of my thinking and plotting and researching at our cottage up on Anglesey. I have a small study with a beautiful view that, whatever the weather, never fails to inspire me.

What are you writing next?

My next book with Triskele Books is another crime and paranormal mix based on and around Anglesey called, Closure, and will be released on 1st December 2012.

Sneak peek of the back cover blurb below:

            Helen West is coming to terms with her husband’s death and trying to cope with her six-year-old son’s grief. Jake suffers from nightmares, and visions of what he calls his ‘other life’. He talks about a boy called Jacob and a place known only as ‘the island’.

Helen’s journey to find the source of Jake’s torment leads them to North Wales, where the university town of Bangor is in lockdown following a series of student abductions.

When Jake’s nightmares start to mirror the abductions, Helen begins to believe her son might have second sight. But what could Jake’s ‘island’ possibly have to do with these crimes? And how can they help without putting their own lives in danger?

It seems that decision will be Jake's alone.

Set along the beautiful North Wales coastline, Closure is a story of belief, revenge and repercussions of the past.

And finally for fun....What books are on your bedside table?

I always have a huge reading backlog! I have MargaretAtwood’s, Blind Assassin and the latest Philippa Gregory ready to read. And I'm also really looking forward to J K Rowling’s new novel as I was a massive Harry Potter fan! At the moment, I'm reading a novel by a new author – A Parachute inthe Lime Tree by Annemarie Neary.

While I used to read predominantly crime, I've now spread my wings a little and have discovered some really fascinating authors over the years. I think every writer must be an avid reader; it’s a constant source of inspiration. Not to mention when reading really good writing, it ignites something inside me that really fires me up to improve my own writing.

Gillian - Thank you so much for taking the time to visit jaffareadstoo, and for all your insightful answers to our questions. We wish you much success in your writing career, and are already looking forward to reading your next book Closure, when it is published in December 2012.

Gillian has very generously offered to give a kindle ecopy of her book The Charter to one lucky winner of this week's giveaway.

International giveaway is open to all.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Here is my 5***** review of The Charter

Sarah Morton returns to the Anglesey village of Moelfre to attend her father’s funeral, and as she goes back to the brooding house on the edge of the cliffs, she begins to realise that long buried secrets threaten, not just the present, but also the past. Beautifully written, this story literally bounds along at top speed, there is never a lull in the narrative as with expert skill the author combines historical legend, with a modern day murder mystery. The Charter works so well on all levels, the historic legend of the Royal Charter forms the basis of the story, but the present day murder mystery is equally compelling, and just as absorbing. The rapport with the characters is instantaneous, they are so finely drawn you can almost imagine them as people you know, and as the gradual layering of the present and the past combine, the stark truth begins to emerge of lives ruined by grief and despair.

With the author’s fine attention to detail, the stark coastal beauty of Anglesey comes gloriously alive. The legacy of the shipwreck lives on, and as the story unfolds, you can easily imagine that you are standing on the edge of the cliff path looking out over Dulas Bay, with the tang of salt and seaweed in the air, and the beleaguered ship, The Royal Charter, being tossed like a puppet in the churning waters of the Irish Sea.

It’s not often that a book comes along which covers all your favourite genres in one fell swoop, but, for me, The Charter is definitely one such book. Gillian Hamer writes with the passion of one who knows Anglesey well, and with great skill and imagination has turned this passion into a cracking good story.

I look forward to reading more novels from this talented author

.