Review ~ A Way From Heart to Heart by Helena Fairfax

Accent Press 2014

Following her husband’s untimely death in Afghanistan, Kate Hemingway’s life is broken beyond repair, but the need to keep her young son’s life stable and secure gives her a reason to carry on. In the wake of this tragedy, Paul, her husband’s best friend, continues to keep contact with his godson, George, and yet, Paul has always been aloof and slightly reserved around Kate, and, as such, the relationship between them is rather strained. Helping other fractured lives helps Kate comes to terms with her loss and when she accompanies a group of troubled teenage girls to the Yorkshire Moors, she is unprepared, when Paul, in his role as newspaper reporter, asks to join the group. What then follows is a touching and beautifully written story about the power and healing nature of love.

The author’s light and easy style of narrative captures perfectly the emotional insecurity of someone devastated by loss, and of the indecision and uncertainty of growing sexual attraction. Kate’s struggle for control is something everyone can identify with, and her emotional journey is expressed with both warmth and understanding. The controlled passion between Kate and Paul is quite understated but no less powerful because of that, and their burgeoning relationship is a real joy to read.

There is a lovely tenderness to the narrative which I found rather refreshing, as all too often love stories can spend far too much time in the bedroom. In A Way From Heart to Heart, I enjoyed getting to know all about the characters; about the life experiences which had shaped their personalities and of their weaknesses and strengths. Of course, this is a love story, so it helps enormously that both Kate and Paul are attractive and likeable, and you can’t help but hope that everything works out for them.

I read this book almost in one sitting; it’s a great book to curl up with, preferably with a cup of tea and a packet of chocolate biscuits close at hand.

Amazon UK

Amazon.com

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

Come back on Monday 9th February when Helena will be talking to me about 

A Way From Heart to Heart

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Review ~ Cross Bones Yard by Kate Rhodes

Mulholland Books
2012

I read this one almost in one sitting, as once started I couldn't put it down, as the both story and writing drew me in from the beginning. Alice Quentin is a clinical psychologist living and working in London. She is a beguiling character, damaged by a traumatic childhood, she identifies with her patients on far too many levels. Her fear of commitment and her irrational need to, almost, go it alone, is a struggle which she faces on a daily basis. When she is drawn into a police investigation, almost by default, she finds that dealing with the fallout from a series of copy cat murders comes far too close to home for her own comfort.

What then follows is tight and cleverly complex murder investigation which has more than enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. The manipulation of both plot and malice is well thought out and even though, at times, I wanted to Alice to go in a different direction, I could understand why the author made her act in the way she did. Mostly, I can suss out the perpetrator quite early on, and in this one, I thought I had the killer in my sights only to be completely surprised by what happened.

As is the first in a series of crime books, which focus on Alice Quentin, there is an element of getting to know the main characters, however, I think the enjoyment in subsequent books will come in the way certain characters are allowed to evolve over time.

Book two - A Killing of Angels ( published 2013)

Book three  - The Winter Foundlings ( published January 2015)

  

About the Author

A bit about Cross Bones Yard.

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The Man in the Canary Waistcoat by Susan Grossey

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
2014

In this new mystery, Constable Sam Plank suspects there may be a link between a suicide, an embezzler, an arsonist and a thief. No corner of Regency London is untouched by these crimes, as he travels from the mansions of St James’s back to his own childhood haunts among the dank alleyways of Wapping. As his steadfast wife becomes involved in his investigations, and with a keen young police officer now under his command, Sam finds himself leading them all into a confrontation with some ruthless and brutal adversaries – one of whom he had hoped never to see again.

My Review 

Being in the company of Constable Samuel Plank is like walking the mean and moody streets of Regency London with a much loved and trusted friend. And in The Man with the Canary Waistcoat Sam uses all the skills at his disposal to determine why a suicide victim, an embezzler, an arsonist and a thief such wreak such havoc on his small community. Charged with the added responsibility of acting as mentor to the impressionable rookie constable, William Wilson, Sam is ever conscious of the need to pass on his methodical approach to policing to a new generation of police officer. As always, the interaction between Samuel and his good natured wife Martha ensures that the book continues its heart warming feel whilst never compromising on delivering a good story which abounds with treachery, deceit and engrossing police investigation.

From the beginning of The Man in the Canary Waistcoat I was immersed in good story telling. There is no doubt that the author has a clever way with words and shows a real empathy for her characters and truly makes them come alive on the page. The continuation of Sam Plank’s police journey and the evocative nature of the writing certainly makes the streets of Regency London into a vibrant and exciting place to visit. 

I look forward to seeing where Sam, Martha and William will go next.

The Man in the Canary Waistcoat is available here

About the Author

Susan Grossey is a self employed anti money laundering consultant. 

 She writes about Samuel Plank in her spare time.

You can read an interview with Susan here

***

Fatal Forgery



Samuel Plank#1

2013

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UKYA Extravaganza with Kerry Drewery

Today Jaffa and I are hosting a stop on the UKYA Extravaganza Great Big Book  Tour

UKYA Extravaganza is an event happening on 28th February in Birmingham and is showcasing 35 great YA authors from all over the country.

 It’s an opportunity to meet, mingle and chat about all things YA.

The tour runs through until 27th February.

Follow on Twitter

#UKYAExtravaganza

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Please welcome 

Kerry Drewery

the talented author of 

A Dream of Lights

Harper Collins Children's Books
2013

Yoora is a teenage girl living in North Korea, dreaming of the lights of foreign cities while eking out a miserable existence in a rural northern village. But then she makes a mistake: she falls in love. With someone far removed from her social class. Someone dangerous to know. When tongues start to wag, her father is executed and she is taken to a prison camp in the mountains. There, escape seems even further from her grasp. But Yoora is about to learn an important lesson: love can surprise you, and it can come in many forms

Welcome to Jaffareadstoo Kerry ~

What gave you the idea for writing A Dream of Lights

I've always been fascinated by North Korea.  It's such a strange country and the fact that it's so secretive just adds to the enigma.  The little I did know about it filled me with more questions - why do people live like that?  Why don't they try to escape?  Are the people happy? - but I wanted to know more.  A friend recommend a book to me - Nothing to Envy, by Barbara Demmick - which was utterly compelling yet shocking and I decided from that that I'd like to explore the idea of writing a story set there.

The reasoning behind writing A Brighter Fear was very similar - why were we being taken to war?  What did I think about it? - but ultimately, again, my real interest and where the story was for me, was with the people on the ground living it.

Tell us three interesting things about your novel which will pique the reader’s interest? 

Oh that's hard! I'm not very good at selling myself! OK...  Because it'll take you to a place you could never go and show you things you never thought could happen....Because you'll be inspired by some peoples strengths yet shocked by the inhumanity of others...Because it'll show you the power of hope and love...  I think technically that's more than three...I'm cheating...

What was the most difficult aspect of the writing the story? How did you overcome it?

The most difficult aspect of writing the story for me was the very beginning in the village.  I needed to get across as effectively as possible what their lives were like before the reader kind of 'defaulted' into their own ideas of village life, yet didn't want massive chunks of description.  Life in a North Korean village is almost akin to our medieval times with no cars, shops, and their homes very basic too.  It's written in first person too, so Yoora wouldn't be walking around describing the things she was seeing.  To get over it, I suppose I made sure that everything I was writing was there for a reason and doing its job - does that make sense?  And that the description and information I needed out there was shown alongside things that were happening.

In your research for A Dream of Lights did you discover anything which shocked you?

Yes, a lot, an awful lot.  And there were times it made me cry and times it made me sit back and just stare at the screen or book with my hand over my mouth.  You do 'de-sensitise' to it - I had too otherwise I could never have written the story!  I've had discussions with writer friends about how you feel about 'using' these, and I do think in covering such issues the writer has a responsibility to portray it right - I always wanted to make sure I didn't glamorise any of the violence or suffering, or use it gratuitously.  But also, you have to remember it's a story you're writing, not a non-fiction book, and as such, you can't include something just because you think you 'should' - after all the research is to serve the story.

It was much the same with A Brighter Fear, both when researching the actual war, and Saddam's regime.  I found this incredible story - that after winning an election, to celebrate and thank his people for voting for him, Saddam released ALL the prisoners from a jail.  It seemed so preposterous that I really wanted to include it - however, it did nothing for the story so in the end the chapter was cut.

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

I'm fortunate enough for writing to now be my job.  I have a very small office which has no windows so there's no distraction of watching birds or cats, or branches in the wind...  I do seem to gravitate to the kitchen table to work though, I think it must be because it's nearer the kettle and the biscuit barrel. 

Can you tell us if you have another novel planned?

I've just finished one and I'm really excited because it'll be going out on submission soon.  I'm also petrified!!!  It's really nerve-wracking waiting to hear what people think to your work.  But, yes, what's it about?  Oh, I don't know if I can say....death and love and lies...

A Brighter Fear

Harper Collins Childen's Books
2012

My thanks to Kerry and all the authors at #UKYAExtravaganza
for inviting us to join in with this blog tour.



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Review ~ The Ice Twins by S K Tremayne

Harper Collins
January 29th 2015

A year after one of their identical twin daughters, Lydia, dies in an accident, Angus and Sarah Moorcraft move to the tiny Scottish island Angus inherited from his grandmother, hoping to put together the pieces of their shattered lives.

There’s so much about this book which captured my imagination, but to reveal the plot would say too much and therefore deaden the impact of the story. Suffice it to say, that this is no ordinary book about twins and when the book is ended, and its story is told,  you will look on the whole concept of the irreversible bond between identical twins in a whole new light.

The power of the book, for me, came in the strength of the writing. This is obviously a writer who has the ability to manipulate a complex and convoluted plot, whilst at the same time allowing the emotional fragility of his protagonists to evolve. In setting The Ice Twins on the idyllic Isle of Skye, with its wild and windswept coastline and the intimidating closeness to nature only emphasises the inherent feeling of brooding menace.  And believe me the book is menacing, the irrational grief is palpable, and the loss and confusion of a family at odds with itself, is so beautifully done, that by the end of the story I was an emotional wreck.

Sometimes a book leaves such a strong impression, that even days after finishing the story, snippets of it come back to you and you wish that you could read the whole thing again in the hope that things might turn out differently. This is one such book.

I think this will be on my Book of the Year list for 2015.

***

About the Author

S. K. Tremayne is the pseudonym of a journalist and bestselling writer, who lives in London.

My thanks to  Louise Swannell and the team at Harper Collins for my ARC of this book.

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This book counts as one of my Read Scotland Challenge

Sunday War Poet ...

The theme for this month's WW1 war poems

is

 LOVE

Love, 1916

by

May Wedderburn Cannan

One said to me. ‘Seek Love, for he is Joy
Called by another name’.
A second said, ‘Seek Love, for he is Power
Which is called Fame’.
Last said a Third, ‘Seek Love, his name is Peace’.
I called him thrice,
And answer came, ‘Love now is christened Sacrifice’.

May Wedderburn Cannan (1893 -1973)

was a British poet who was active in World War I.
 In 1911 she joined the Voluntary Aid Detachment and trained as a nurse.
In 1918 she went to France and worked in the espionage department of the War Office in Paris.

--------------

This poem is also dedicated to the memory 

of

Frederick Arkwright

Driver RASC

Killed Antwerp, Belgium

1st February 1945

**

Seek Love, his name is Peace

Review ~ The Life I Left Behind by Colette McBeth

Headline Review
January 2014

I'm the only one who knows the secrets her friends have hidden, the mistakes the police have made.

I'm the only one who can warn her she's still in danger.

I know exactly who attacked her.

He's the same man who killed me.

The Life I left Behind is a clever psychological suspense story which takes the concept of a gross miscarriage of justice and turns it completely on its head by allowing the principle narrators to be the voices of two women, one of whom has already died, and the other who is so badly damaged by a traumatic incident that she has no recollection of what has happened to her.

The story is compelling on two levels. The first, is that the woman who has died gives a unique insight into the whys and wherefores of the case and second, is that the unreliability of the other narrator ensures that you are never really sure if her version of events is credible or not. Fleshing out the police procedural part of the story is a female DI who has more than enough domestic angst in her private life to make her question her judgement once the case is reopened in light of new evidence.

This is a real roller coaster of a read with more than enough twists, turns and red herring to keep you turning the pages. So many times, I thought I had figured out who the perpetrator was, only to have another spanner thrown into the works and for me to reconsider and go in a completely new direction.

I love books which allow me the luxury of reading something which keeps me guessing from start to finish, with characters that perplex and beguile in equal measure, and with dramatic content that makes me want to read on and on and on....

I am fast becoming a real fan of domestic noir and there is no doubt that The Life I Left Behind is up there with the best of the genre.

About the Author

My thanks to Book Bridgr and Headline Review for my copy of this book.


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