Sunday, 13 July 2014

Sunday War Poet...

Jessie Pope


1868 - 1941



Socks


Shining pins that dart and click
In the fireside’s sheltered peace
Check the thoughts the cluster thick  -

20 plain and then decrease.


He was brave – well, so was I –
Keen and merry, but his lip
Quivered when he said good-bye –

Purl the seam-stitch, purl and slip.


Never used to living rough,
Lots of things he’d got to learn;
Wonder if he’s warm enough –

Knit 2, catch 2, knit, turn. 


Hark! The paper-boys again!
Wish that shout could be suppressed;
Keeps one always on the strain –

Knit off 9, and slip the rest.


Wonder if he’s fighting now,
What he’s done an’ where he’s been;
He’ll come out on top somehow –

Slip 1, knit 2, purl 14.


***

Jessie Pope was a poet and journalist. She is best known for her patriotic motivational poetry
which was published in the Daily Mail newspaper during WW1.

Pope was widely published during the war, apart from newspaper publication producing three volumes: Jessie Pope's War Poems (1915), More War Poems (1915) and Simple Rhymes for Stirring Times (1916)

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Saturday, 12 July 2014

Tea and books....

For me 

The perfect combination 

is

Tea and Books

and a

A little light reading 

in my garden




Whatever you have planned for the weekend ~ I hope you have fun.....

*~*~*

Friday, 11 July 2014

Six in Six .....2014

in 


This is a great idea of highlighting the books I have read during the last six months.
 It was started by 
There are lots of categories to choose from, or you can make up your own.
Books and authors can overlap categories.

It's up to you !

Here are my Six in Six for the first half of 2014.





Six new authors to me:

  1. Jan Ruth 
  2. Anna Hope 
  3. Emma Carroll 
  4. Keir Alexander 
  5. Ashley Hay 
  6. Audrey Magee 


Six authors I have read before:
  1. Sue Monk Kidd 
  2. Liane Moriarty 
  3. Elly Griffiths 
  4. Linda Gillard 
  5. Louise Douglas 
  6. Gillian E Hamer 



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

  1. Dark Aemylia by Sally O'Reilly 
  2. The Spice Merchant's Wife by Charlotte Betts 
  3. Sisters of Treason by Elizabeth Fremantle 
  4. The May Bride by Susanna Dunn 
  5. The Vanishing Witch by Karen Maitland 
  6. War of the Roses: Winter Pilgrims by Toby Clements 


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

  1. Written in my Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon 
  2. Cauldstane by Linda Gillard 
  3. The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths 
  4. In Her Shadow by Louise Douglas 
  5. The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman 
  6. Crimson Shore by Gillian E Hamer 


Six From the Non-Fiction Shelf:

  1. Harry's War by Harry Drinkwater 
  2. The Tudor Queens by David Loades 
  3. Margaret Beaufort: Mother of the Tudor Dynasty by Elizabeth Norton 
  4. Anne Boleyn by Elizabeth Norton 
  5. Scars upon my Heart edited by Catherine Reilly 
  6. Lionheart by Douglas Boyd 


Six books I have enjoyed the most:

  1. Frost Hollow Hall by Emma Carroll 
  2. The Undertaking by Audrey Magee 
  3. In her Shadow by Louise Douglas 
  4. The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman 
  5. Written in My Own Heart's Blood by Diana Gabaldon 
  6. Crimson Shore by Gillain E Hamer 



What are your favourites so far this year ?
*~*~*

Thursday, 10 July 2014

Review ~ The Railwayman's Wife by Ashley Hay


17405093
Allen and Unwin
2014

She had never appreciated before the lovely anonymity of the unremarkable life.’


The Railwayman’s Wife is an emotional and at times quite melancholy story which explores the effects of grief and the consequences of living life in the aftermath of devastating loss.

The coastal town of Thirroul is redolent with the smell of the ocean and the sound of its rail road, but beneath the shimmering surface of beach front and train track, three very different people clarify the meaning of loss. For Anikka Lachlan, the eponymous railwayman’s wife, the devastating loss of her husband means that life will never be the same again and yet life goes on for her and her daughter Isabel. War poet, Roy McKinnon has returned from fighting in the war in Europe but in his sadness he is now a poet without words and cannot find the inspiration he searches for so desperately. Doctor Frank Draper is haunted by what he saw when he helped to liberate the concentration camps and now his cold detachment disconnects him from those who seek to love him. Over the space of about a year, these three characters meet and form a relationship and it is their shocking stories which form the very heart and soul of the novel.

 Beautifully descriptive, the gentleness of the narrative is quite mesmerising and the tender exploration of lives deeply affected by unhappiness is done in a compassionate and sensitive way. There are some lovely lyrical moments which encompass the beauty of literature and poetry and the quiet homage to the writing of D. H. Lawrence, who visited this part of Australia in 1932, is done as a charming and unpretentious tribute.

I was quite enchanted by The Railwayman’s Wife; Anikka’s quiet dignity encapsulates the true strength of the novel and the fragility of her heartache combined with the stoicism of the ‘carry on regardless’ generation allows a thought provoking glimpse into the restrictions of grief and the vulnerability of the human spirit.

***

It must be said that there are mixed reviews about the ending of the book which I thought was in keeping with the overall 'feel' of the novel and as such was entirely satisfied with it ~ but as always ,I'll let you make up your own mind.


I read this book on behalf of Lovereading.co.uk as part of their reader’s review panel.

More panel reviews can be found here


The Railwayman’s Wife is available in paperback from all good bookshops






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Wednesday, 9 July 2014

New Release ~ Dark Water by Jan Ruth


30521902


The tragedy and comedy that is Jack's life; is there a future for him and Anna, or is the past too destructive?
Jack Redman, estate agent to the Cheshire set and skilled juggler of complex relationships. Someone to break all the rules, or an unlikely hero? In this sequel to Wild Water Jack and Anna return to discover that history repeats itself. Anna's long-awaited success as a serious artist is poised to happen, but her joy, along with her relationship with Jack, is threatened by old scores.
Simon Banks is a depressed and unstable man with a plan. He wants to wipe out his past by buying a brighter future, but Jack Redman stands in his way. Will Jack ever escape the legacy of lies and deceit left by his ex-wife? Can Jack and Anna hold it all together, or will tragic repercussions from Jack's past blow them apart forever?



I already have my copy - if you want your copy go to :





Extract from DARK WATER:


She knelt on the cold tiles and buried her face in his coat. It seemed cruel that it was still so vibrant and luxurious other than a light greying around his muzzle, and yet everything inside was breaking down. The top of his head smelt intoxicating, of grass and adventure, of selfless, unconditional love. Did love have a smell? And it smelt of home, faint traces of lavender from his newly washed blanket.

Jack was on the phone in the hall, his voice low, words indistinguishable.

It was a beautiful summer day, full of rolling clouds, light and shade. It was like the day he’d been born, she said. Jack carried him to the apple trees fluttering with white ribbons, horseshoes and hearts. As they neared the right spot, hundreds of crows took flight. She sat propped against one of the twisted trunks and Jack struggled to put the dog down on the ground next to her. Then he kissed her face and went to fetch her some coffee.

They settled together in the long grass and Benson’s nose twitched as she talked.

Presently, two vets arrived, one of them a young trainee, who kept staring at her soiled dressing gown and all the crazy decorations in the garden. They examined the dog and the older vet said he’d likely had a stroke and did she still want to go ahead with euthanasia? They were gentle without being sentimental. She nodded, Benson’s head in her lap, his useless limbs spread on the grass. Jack was silhouetted against the sky, chewing a nail. The trainee vet shaved a neat patch of hair from Benson’s foreleg, while the other one hunkered down next to her with some paperwork.

‘Miss Williams, I need you to understand that once I have administered this injection, your dog will be clinically dead.’

Jack muttered some expletive and turned away. She knew he was wiping his eyes.

‘I understand,’ she said, and signed somewhere in the indicated box.

One hand on his beating heart as the lethal drug seeped into his bloodstream, both eyes on his. He licked her hand, almost twice, and even then it seemed apologetic, as if he was trying to comfort her.

I’ll see you on another dappled lawn, or a bright sunlit mountain under a thousand cloudless skies.

His silent heart, his soulless eyes. Instant, the giving and taking of pain. Now, all the pain was hers, and weirdly, there was some comfort in that.....

© Jan Ruth all rights reserved.



If you haven't read book one then take advantage of its special price on Amazon but hurry as this price is only for a short time.


WILD WATER (Part One)

30521869





The tragedy and comedy that is Jack's life; secrets, lies and family ties.


Jack Redman, estate agent to the Cheshire set. An unlikely hero, or someone to break all the rules? Wild water is the story of forty-something estate agent, Jack, who is stressed out not only by work, bills and the approach of Christmas but by the feeling that he and his wife, Patsy are growing apart. His misgivings prove founded when he discovers Patsy is having an affair, and is pregnant. At the same time as his marriage begins to collapse around him, he becomes reacquainted with his childhood sweetheart, Anna, whom he left for Patsy twenty-five years before. His feelings towards Anna reawaken, but will life and family conflicts conspire to keep them apart again?


Buy it here :



My thanks to the author for sharing her books with me.



*~*~*

Tuesday, 8 July 2014

Review ~ What a Girl Wants by Lindsey Kelk


Harper
17th July 2014


From the author of the best selling Heart series

On the surface Tess Brookes seems to be your average girl next door, she’s quirky and funny and sometimes just downright loopy. She’s been in love with her friend Charlie forever but on a holiday to Hawaii, Tess meets Nick and that’s when her life starts to get really complicated. And as she faces the dilemma of either staying in London or of travelling to Milan to take on a new assignment, she needs to decide what's going to happen with Charlie and what on earth is going to happen with Nick!

This is a warm and witty look at the problems all too often encountered in relationships, of those we know we will win and those we know we won’t, but through it all, Tess and her best friend, Amy, have just the right amount of irreverent charm to keep the story fun and entertaining. I really enjoyed the story. The plot moves along at a quick pace and although there were times when I found Tess to be a bit irritating, on the whole, I liked the way the story drew me in and how the characters felt realistic without being overly sentimental or overly dramatic. Amongst all the angst and girlie gossip is the story of the complicated process of finding the right person and I suppose the ultimate moral of the story is that what a girl wants is sometimes not always the answer to the question.

Lindsey Kelk’s writing is as warm and witty as ever as those who have read her work before will testify. Fans will recognise a continuation of  Tess’s story which started with the 2013 release of About a Girl, but for those readers who are new to Lindsey’s writing it is quite easy to pick up this latest story without having read the first book.

So, it’s a definite thumbs up from me for What a Girl Wants; it’s a perfect read for a sunny afternoon by the pool or in the garden, preferably with a nice glass of sparkling rosé close to hand.



*~*~*

There's a chance to win a copy of this lovely summer read in my giveaway


  

What a Girl Wants Blog Tour 2014

I am delighted welcome to the blog







Synopsis

Tess Brookes was the girl with a plan. Now she's the girl with a choice. Should she stay in London and start her own advertising agency with her best friend and potential boyfriend Charlie? Or should she head to exciting Milan to pursue both a new career as a photographer and a new man, the enigmatic and elusive (and highly irritating) Nick? For the first time, Tess has to choose between the life she always dreamed of and a future she never imagined possible. With her heart and her head pulling her in different directions, Tess has to make a life-changing decision about What a Girl Wants.


Lindsey ~ welcome to Jaffareadstoo and thank you for inviting us to be part of your blog tour to celebrate


What do you love about writing?

I love telling stories, I love making up people and places and trying on lives that aren’t my own. It’s like reading a book but better, because you’re making it up as you go.


What scares you about writing?

The fear that it will go away. I get so scared that one day I’ll just wake up and I will have completely forgotten how to do it.


Do you write stories for yourself, or other people?

For myself. I've learned the hard way that you can’t please everyone and at the end of the day, I need to be able to close my laptop and know that I feel good about the work that I’m doing. It’s much easier to deal with the criticism if you know that you believe in what you’re doing.


When do you find the time to write, and do you have a favourite place to do your writing?

I write all the time! I've been on constant deadlines for maybe the last two and a half years so there aren’t many days when I'm not working away at something. Mostly I write in my apartment, parked on the sofa or curled up in bed. I spent an obscene amount of money on a beautiful desk to break my bad habits and I think I've sat at it maybe twice…


 Can you tell us what you are writing next?

Yes! Right now I’m finishing up the Jenny Lopez Saves Christmas ebook and then it’s onto my new novel, out next spring.





Lindsey ~ It's been a real pleasure to host this interview, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions.

 Jaffa and I wish you much success
with your blog tour.

***



My thanks to Amy Winchester at Harper for organising this Blog Tour
and for generously providing 2 copies of

What a Girl Wants in this fabulous Giveaway.

***



Good Luck Everyone

*~*~*