Feature Friday ~ A Lady's Guide to Fortune Hunting by Sophie Irwin

 

Welcome to Feature Friday

It's a warm space to a highlight a book coming soon which is on my radar

and one I am looking forward to reading

Harper Collins
 12 May 2022

My thanks to the publishers for my invitation to read this book

The debut of the season

The season is about to begin – and there’s not a minute to lose...

Kitty Talbot needs a fortune. Or rather, she needs a husband who has a fortune. This is 1818 after all, and only men have the privilege of seeking their own riches.

With only twelve weeks until the bailiffs call, launching herself into London society is the only avenue open to her, and Kitty must use every ounce of cunning and ingenuity she possesses to climb the ranks.

The only one to see through her plans is the worldly Lord Radcliffe and he is determined to thwart her at any cost, especially when it comes to his own brother falling for her charms.

Can Kitty secure a fortune and save her sisters from poverty? There is not a day to lose and no one – not even a lord – will stand in her way…

~~~

Regency novels have long been my guilty pleasure ever since I read my first Georgette Heyer novel way back in my teens. I also like watching Bridgerton on Netflix so to have a Regency novel by a debut novelist to look forward too is a real delight - one to savour over Easter with a sneaky Easter egg!

So as they say...watch this space..

@jaffareadstoo #FeatureFriday #amreading

A Lady's Guide to Fortune Hunting is published on the 12 May and is available to pre-order from wherever you buy books.

Twitter @SophieHIrwin #LadysGuide 

@HarperCollins

📖 Review ~ Ten Poems of the Soil from Candlestick Press

 

Candlestick Press
April 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this anthology

Soil, earth, clay, sod, clod: there’s no shortage of one-syllable words for the stuff that gets behind our fingernails and sticks to our wellies. And it’s strangely enjoyable to say these words out loud – as if they remind us of childhood and sitting in the dirt to make mud pies.

This mini-anthology delights in all things earthy, including those often unseen creatures like moles and worms who live and work underground. There are also poems celebrating the human toil of keeping soil in good order and the satisfaction this brings:

“The sense that we have brought to birth
Out of the cold and heavy soil,
These blessed fruits and flowers of earth…”

from ‘The Diehards’ by Ruth Pitter

As we’re reminded elsewhere, “the soil never sleeps”. These poems recognise good earth as something that’s living and precious, which is why we’re delighted to include a message from the Soil Association about their important work.

Poems by Margaret Atwood, Verne Bright, Carl Dennis, Jacqueline Gabbitas, Adam Horovitz, Katie Hourigan, Yusef Komunyakaa, PK Page, Ruth Pitter and George Szirtes.

Cover illustration by Sara Boccaccini Meadows.

Donation to Soil Association.


📖 My Review...

Soil wouldn't be the first subject to come to mind when reading a book of poetry however, this latest collection by Candlestick Press has enough earthly elements to surprise and entertain. My father was a great respecter of soil - 'finest thing in the world' he would tell me as he prodded lettuce, onions and carrots into the soil to await the magic of growth. He passed this respect onto me as I'm always delighted, after a cold winter, to see my garden come to life, as delicate bulbs start to peep through the soil.

Soil, taken for granted and yet so perfectly described by Adam Horovitz in The Soil Never Sleeps;

"The Soil never sleeps

In its void, gas and waters gather

waiting for thirsty roots to crawl

down motorway tunnels dug by worms..."

Another personal favourite is The Mole by PK Page

"The mole is a specialist and truly

opens his own doors; digs as he needs them

his tubular alleyways..."

Lovely to see the indomitable Margaret Attwood's poem Mushroom take its place amongst the soil and also a beautiful poem simply called Jenny by Kate Hourigan

And this, which sums everything up so beautifully, from The Diehards by Ruth Pitter 

"The sense that we have brought to birth

Out of the cold and heavy soil

These blessed fruits and flowers of earth

Is large reward for all our toil."

From its stunning cover, complete with a little mole book mark, this delightful anthology of ten quite different poems shares the love of soil and the natural world and does so in a beautiful selection which make you stop , think, and consider about the world beneath our feet. Ten poems of the Soil would make a perfect Easter gift for any gardener, or lovers of the natural world. It's available to buy direct from Candlestick Press, or a good book retailer.

About Candlestick Press

Candlestick Press is a small, independent press publishing sumptuously produced poetry pamphlets that serve as a wonderful alternative to a greetings card, with matching envelopes and bookmarks left blank for your message. Their subjects include Clouds, Walking, Birds, Home and Kindness. Candlestick Press pamphlets are stocked by chain and independent bookshops, galleries and garden centres nationwide and available to order online.

Twitter @poetrycandle

Blog Tour ~ The Heeding by Rob Cowen : Illustrated by Nick Hayes

Elliot & Thompson
31 March 2022

My thanks to the publishers and Alison Menzies PR
for my copy of the book and the invitation to the blog tour

 

The world changed in 2020. Gradually at first, then quickly and irreversibly, the patterns by which we once lived altered completely.

Across four seasons and a luminous series of poems and illustrations, Rob Cowen and Nick Hayes paint a picture of a year caught in the grip of history yet filled with revelatory perspectives close at hand. A sparrowhawk hunting in a back street; the moon over a town with a loved one’s hand held tight; butterflies massing in a high-summer yard – the everyday wonders and memories that shape a life and help us recall our own.

The Heeding leads us on a journey that takes its markers and signs from nature and a world filled with fear and pain but beauty and wonder too. Collecting birds, animals, trees and people together, it is a profound meditation to a time no one will forget.

At its heart, this is a book that helps us look again, to heed: to be attentive to this world we share, to grieve what’s lost and to hope for a better and brighter tomorrow.

📖 My Review ...

This anthology of thirty-five beautifully formed poems takes us on an enlightening journey into the appreciation of what we have around us and of the resources we have within ourselves. During this recent global pandemic I think we have all learned to turn inward and reflect more about those who are close to us and what it means to have been isolated from those we love and the lives we lead.

The Heeding is an introspective look at the feelings expressed during the early stages of lockdown in 2020. I found the poem Noises Off encapsulated a world which had suddenly gone silent. Whilst Lost brought into stark focus the unreality of life in lockdown with face masks abandoned on the pavement, the frustration of keeping children amused when both parents are working from home and the mysterious phenomena of clapping for our NHS heroes. All now so ingrained into our collective consciousness that our lives will be forever changed. 

Learning to look at nature in a therapeutic way is something we can all identify with and there are references to nature scattered throughout the collection which made me aware of just how important the natural world is to us. I particularly enjoyed Starling which reminded me of the chattering group of Starlings which visit my bird feeder every morning, their noisy cheerfulness became such a highlight of my day during lockdown.

There's such an abundance of beautifully written verse that once I had finished the collection I found myself going back to revisit certain poems and even now days later I find that I can pick up the book, at whim, and find something to enjoy. Interspersed and very much an integral part of the anthology are the beautiful black and white line drawing illustrations which bring the meaning of the poems to life in both a poignant and mesmerising way. There's a delightful drawing of a fox hunkering down in its den which is simply magical.

📖 Best Read with... a slice of home made cake, lovingly made.

About the Author

Rob Cowen is an award winning writer, hailed as one of the Uk's most original voices on nature and place. His book Common Ground was shortlisted for the Portico, Richard Jefferies Society and Wainwright Prizes and voted one of the nation's favourite nature books on BBC's Winterwatch. His poems featured in Caught by the River and in Letters to the Earth . he lives in North Yorkshire.

About the Illustrator

Nick Hayes is a writer, illustrator and printmaker. He is the author of the Sunday Times bestseller The Book of Trespass: Crossing the lines that Divide Us. He has published graphic novels with Jonathan Cape and worked for many renowned titles. He has exhibited across the country, including at the Hayward Gallery. He lives in the Kennet and Avon Canal.

Twitter @robbiecowen #TheHeeding

#NickHayes

@eandtbooks

📖 Blog Tour ~ The Club by Ellery LLoyd

 

Mantle
Pan Macmillan
31 March 2022

My thanks to the publisher for my copy of this book
and the invitation to the blog tour

There’s no place like Home . . .

The Home Group is a collection of ultra-exclusive private members' clubs and a global phenomenon, and the opening of its most ambitious project yet – Island Home, a forgotten island transformed into the height of luxury – is billed as the celebrity event of the decade.

But as the first guests arrive, the weekend soon proves deadly – because it turns out that even the most beautiful people can keep the ugliest secrets and, in a world where reputation is everything, they'll do anything to keep it.

📖 My Review.. 

The Home Group is a series of exclusive getaways for the rich and famous, all of which have been the vision of CEO Ned Groom, the leading light in the company for the last thirty years. The Home establishments are situated in some of the world's most prestigious locations and entry is strictly by invitation only, so that no matter how famous you think you are you won't gain access to any of the Home's sumptuous venues without being on the 'in list'.

Island Home is the latest venture which threatens to surpass all other venues. An isolated island, just 90 minutes from London, which is accessible only at low tide, seems like the perfect hideaway. However, as we soon find out, all is not going well on this island paradise and even before the first of the celebrity guests start to arrive for the opening weekend, cracks have begun to appear behind the luxurious facade.

The story starts slowly with vibrant description of the island and a detailed introduction to each of the main narrators of the story. All of the major players have their secrets, which could easily bring ruin to this latest luxurious venture. I enjoyed getting to know the characters, and, it must be said, there are a fair few to get to know, some I liked more than others and some I frankly disliked however, that creative dynamic is what makes their story so readable. There are twists and turns aplenty and enough mystery surrounding the unexplained death of one of the characters to keep you turning the pages.

The Club is a cleverly put together murder mystery by a husband and wife writing duo who have succeeded in making this classic whodunit into a fun and entertaining read.

📖 Best read with..  a gin and tonic, heavy on the gin , light on the tonic.

About the author

Ellery Lloyd is the pseudonym for London-based husband-and-wife writing team Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos.

Collette is a journalist and editor, the former content director of Elle (UK) and editorial director at Soho House. She has written for The Guardian, The Telegraph, and the Sunday Times.

Paul is the author of two previous novels, Welcome to the Working Week and Every Day is Like Sunday. He is the program director for English Literature with Creative Writing at the University of Surrey.

Twitter @ElleryLloyd #TheClub

Website

@MantleBooks

🍴Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Brad Borkan

On this quiet Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

I'm delighted to welcome Brad Borkan to Sunday Brunch

Welcome to Jaffareadstoo, Brad. What favourite food are you bringing to Sunday brunch?

As an American living in London, I miss US-style pancakes for breakfast, so I’d happily bring along the ingredients to make those, along with jars of Canadian maple syrup and homemade blueberry syrup, created using a recipe handed down for generations… at least that’s what it said on the blueberry syrup recipe I found on the internet.

Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a glass of Bucks Fizz?

A few glasses of Bucks Fizz at brunch and I’d be happy, but useless for the rest of the day. From the list, a better choice would be English breakfast tea, though I’m partial to Irish breakfast tea. Btw, I might be the only American you’ll ever meet who has never had a cup of coffee.

Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio?

In nice weather, the patio. Otherwise, the kitchen table which is far more relaxed and conducive to chatting about life, books, decision making, relationships, writing and a whole host of other topics.

Shall we have music playing in the background, and if so do you have a favourite piece of music?

Light jazz, though having recently watched the Beatles documentary, I’m enjoying listening to songs from their early albums.

Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today?

I am enthralled by the writing of Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre. They co-wrote the unforgettable non-fiction books: “Is Paris Burning?”, “O’ Jerusalem”, and “Freedom at Midnight”. Their books, which document important moments in history, inspired me to become an author, and to write in partnership with someone else. I’d also invite the author Bill Bryson who is also an American living in the UK. I’ve read most of his books.

Which favourite book will you bring to Sunday Brunch?

Bill Bryson’s “One Summer: America 1927”. It’s about the summer of 1927, which Bill says is the most eventful single season in the entire history of the United States. It is a remarkable book about an extraordinary period. By coincidence, my father was born during in the summer of 1927.

Doubleday
2013

When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet!

I read a lot for pleasure. I also love audiobooks. For relaxation, I listen to rom-coms. Otherwise, I focus on action bestsellers, non-fiction books about creative people like Leonardo da Vinci, and books by mountaineers and adventurers. I also love reading manuscripts provided by friends who are authors in any genre. I am currently reading Nicola Rossi’s Rockstar Ending, a fascinating dystopian novel, and the new Shackleton biography by Ranulph Fiennes, and wish I had more time to devote to finishing both books.

Where do you find the inspiration for your books? 

I am inspired by great historical people and events, like the early Antarctic explorers’ quest for the South Pole and Theodore Roosevelt’s desire to build the Panama Canal. My desire is to help modern people improve their own decision making by showing how mighty endeavours were accomplished. The people involved were not perfect, and readers may not realise how often they faced set-backs and obstacles in their pursuit of success.

Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer?

I prefer the solitude of my office. While there are chapters in each of my books that are set in Antarctica, I prefer writing in the summer, since believe it or not, I hate being cold.

When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing?

With everything going on the world, focus is definitely challenging. If you discover the magic formula for staying focused, please let me know. The deadline is not the driver for my writing. For my co-author and I, our driver is simply: can we achieve the quality needed to bring the stories in our books to life for our readers?

Give us four essential items that a writer needs?

Firstly, you need a story so compelling and that you believe in so completely, that you are literally bursting to tell it. Writers also need a sense of optimism, a truly magnificent editor (thankfully my co-author and I have found several), and an intense desire to create something of high quality.

What can you tell us about your latest book or your current work in progress?

My latest book is “Audacious Goals, Remarkable Results: How an Explorer, an Engineer and a Statesman Shaped our Modern World.” It is non-fiction, and co-written with David Hirzel, a California-based historian.

The book tells the story of three unstoppable people, and their six extraordinary achievements.

They were:

Roald Amundsen — the Norwegian explorer

Isambard Kingdom Brunel — the greatest engineer the world has ever seen

Theodore Roosevelt — the cowboy turned statesman

Amundsen was the first through the Northwest Passage and the first to the South Pole. Brunel built magnificent tunnels, bridges, railways and ships, and Roosevelt was instrumental in the US National Parks and the Panama Canal.

The book reveals the outsized risks and setbacks each faced in their epic quest to change our world.

This past month we were thrilled to find out that it is a finalist in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards for non-fiction and has been shortlisted in the Chanticleer International Book Awards for insightful non-fiction.

More about Brad

Brad Borkan is the co-author of two books, “When Your Life Depends on It: Extreme decision making lessons from the Antarctic”, and “Audacious Goals, Remarkable Results: How an explorer, an engineer and a statesman shaped our modern world.” A former senior director at leading high tech companies, he is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Vice Chair of the Friends of the Scott Polar Research Institute, and a member of the Society of Authors.

Brad with Antarctic Flag

Brad has traveled to all 7 continents. He has presented at business and Antarctic conferences, appeared on US-based cable TV, and on numerous historical and business-focused podcasts. Brad’s expertise is in the themes of leadership, teamwork, and the modern lessons we can learn from people who dared greatly and succeeded against all odds.

Brad, where can we follow you on social media?

 Twitter @PolarDecisions

Facebook

Instagram

Website

Thank you, Brad for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo.

Follow us on Twitter @jaffareadstoo #SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo

📖 Hist Fic Saturday ~ Traitor in the Ice by K J Maitland

 

On Hist fic Saturday

Let's go back to ....England, 1607

Headline
31 March

Daniel Pursglove #2

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

Winter, 1607. A man is struck down in the grounds of Battle Abbey, Sussex. Before dawn breaks, he is dead.

Home to the Montagues, Battle has caught the paranoid eye of King James. The Catholic household is rumoured to shelter those loyal to the Pope, disguising them as servants within the abbey walls. And the last man sent to expose them was silenced before his report could reach London.

Daniel Pursglove is summoned to infiltrate Battle and find proof of treachery. He soon discovers that nearly everyone at the abbey has something to hide - for deeds far more dangerous than religious dissent. But one lone figure he senses only in the shadows, carefully concealed from the world. Could the notorious traitor Spero Pettingar finally be close at hand?

As more bodies are unearthed, Daniel determines to catch the culprit. But how do you unmask a killer when nobody is who they seem?

📖 My Review.. 

Traitor in the Ice is the second book in this historical crime series which sees Daniel Pursglove, once again, on a dangerous mission. This time is he charged with the task of infiltrating Battle Abbey, home to the staunchly Catholic Viscountess Montague whose impressive home is a hotbed of recusant activity. The last pursuivant to undertake this task has been found dead, in suspicious circumstances, so it is with some trepidation that Purslove enters the fray only to find that there are more secrets at Battle Abbey than he could ever have imagined.

Spending time again with Daniel Pursglove is a real treat especially as his unorthodox methods of investigation invariably draw him right into the centre of recusant conspiracy with, it must be said, devastating consequences. Add into the mix the country's growing resentment towards King James I, the gossip and intrigue of the Jacobean court, the inherent danger of being a Catholic in a Protestant land, and you have all the right ingredients for a lively and engrossing mystery.

Intelligently written, with a real sense of time and place, we go back to a time which has been so faithfully recreated it feels like stepping off a time machine into the age of the great frost of 1607 when the country was halted by a cold which cut so deep that people froze where they lay, and the equally chilling atmosphere of Battle Abbey, with its secret passage ways and strange portents, is brought vividly to life. The dangerous world of Catholic intrigue is very much the focus of the novel, placing those would hear the forbidden Catholic mass right at the centre of the story. Battle Abbey with its hidden priest holes and dark and shadowy corners is the perfect eerie setting for an engrossing novel which plunges you deep into the dark secrets of the past.

🍷Best Read with.. a cup of small ale, heady with yeast, and a bowl of mutton pottage

About the Author

K J Maitland is an historical novelist, lecturer and teacher of Creative Writing, with over twenty books to her name. She grew up in Malta, which inspired her passion for history, and travelled and worked all over the world before settling in the United Kingdom. She has a doctorate in psycho linguistics, and now lives on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon.

Twitter #KJMaitland #TraitorInTheIce #DanielPursglove

@headlinepg

📖 Featured Book of the Month ~ The Swallowed Man by Edward Carey

Gallic Books
4 April 2022

My thanks to the publishers for my copy of this book

A strange and beautiful take on the classic Pinocchio story by the acclaimed author of Little and B: A Year in Plagues and Pencils. 

I am writing this account, in another man’s book, by candlelight, inside the belly of a fish. I have been eaten. I have been eaten, yet I am living still. From the acclaimed author of Little comes this beautiful and haunting imagining of the years Geppetto spends within the belly of a sea beast. Drawing upon the Pinocchio story while creating something entirely his own, Carey tells an unforgettable tale of fatherly love and loss, pride and regret, and of the sustaining power of art and imagination.

📖 My Review ..

Edward Carey's imagination never fails to surprise me and in The Swallowed Man he gives full range to his creative process in his interpretation of the story of Geppetto who finds himself in the belly of a great sea beast. During this time Geppetto reflects on the profound loss of his son, which is all the more poignant when we learn that he has been searching for the boy he created out of wood. This son being, of course, Pinocchio, and in shedding light on an old tale, the author takes us deep into a story which is eerily beautiful and magically tender.

Filled with the author's own quirky black and white drawings, which do much to enhance the text, the story has all the trademarks of his fertile imagination. Dark, occasionally dismal, but always original, and highly inventive, The Swallowed Man is a creative delve into the profound effects of loneliness and loss.

Just because it's so quirkily different I am delighted to make The Swallowed Man my Featured Book of the Month for April.

*The Swallowed Man is to be published by Gallic Books on the 4th April and is available to pre-order from wherever you buy good books.

🍷 Best Read with.. a bottle of wine and some raisins

About the Author

Edward Carey is a novelist, visual artist and playwright. He is the author of three acclaimed novels, Observatory Mansions, Alva & Irva and Little. Born in England, he teaches at the University of Texas at Austin. 

Twitter @EdwardCarey70 #TheSwallowedMan

@BelgraviaB