Book Break Episode 7

Pan Macmillan has started their own web show called Book Break. This exciting new monthly show offers exclusive interviews with authors and book reviews. This months show will be broadcast on Friday and it can be viewed below or on the YouTube channel.

Book Break #7: M.J. McGrath, Emily St. John Mandel, Nickolas Butler are in the spotlight! We’ll be talking about writing rituals, inspiration and methods. – and will be broadcast live on 31/10/2014 :: 12:30 BST. Click on the image below to start player.

 

 

 

BOOK BREAK – the online book show series – Episode 7

Log on during your lunch hour for the latest Book Break episode where author Alexandra Heminsley is joined by M.J McGrath and Emily St. John Mandel who will be talking about their latest titles and their writing quirks, inspirations and methods.

 

Broadcast date: Friday 31^st October
Broadcast time: 12:30pm 

In episode seven of BOOK BREAK, anchored by author Alexandra Heminsley (Running Like a Girl), we are joined by M.J. McGrath, an award winning writer and journalist, and Canadian author Emily St. John Mandel to discuss North American literature, dark locations and even darker plots.

 

M. J. McGrath joins us to discuss the location that inspired her latest title The Bone Seeker, a gripping, atmospheric thriller set in the Arctic’s long white nights; the very personal murder of a young girl will explode a decades-long tale of the very darkest betrayal.  Mel shares her experiences of writing journalistically, non-fiction and fiction, and the future for her Edie Kiglatuk Mystery series.

 

While Emily St. John Mandel shares insight into her new release ‘Station Eleven’ and find out what drove her to write this post-apocalyptic narrative. Station Eleven, her fourth novel,begins with a dramatic end.  The Georgia Flu explodes over the surface of the earth like a neutron bomb. Thrilling, unique and deeply moving, this is a beautiful novel that asks questions about art and fame and about the relationships that sustain us through anything – even the end of the world.

 

We’ll also hear from Nickolas Butler in our writer’s room segment to get an insight into his perceptions of the novel form as a debut novelist, and take a sneak peek into the celeb-filled Taking Hollywood launch party

Follow #bookbreak on Twitter, subscribe to the Pan Macmillan’s YouTube channel or watch the broadcast right here at 12:30pm on Friday 31^st October. 

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT

 

Website: http://www.panmacmillan.com/

 

Hashtag: #bookbreak

 

Just in case you missed episode 6, here is your chance to catch-up:

Jane Lark’s Summer Extravaganza

Jane Lark’s Summer Extravaganza  + Giveaway!

No.1 best selling author Jane Lark is off on a Summer Extravaganza Tour! Writing in both the historical romance and new adult genres, Jane’s books have resonated with readers around the world, securing her a large fan base who eagerly await each of her new releases.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the tour will be visiting some of the finest blogs on the block with reviews of the romantic Marlow Intrigues series and the gritty Starting Out books. You’ll also find some guest posts from Jane and an exciting giveaway.

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Today’s stop is focusing on historical romance so make yourself comfortable and prepare to swoon

The Illicit Love of a Courtesan

What they say:

‘In the eyes of the ton, Ellen Harding lives a charmed life – she is the beautiful, exquisitely adorned mistress of Lord Gainsborough.

But on the inside, behind her glamorous façade, she is empty – a vessel – deaf to the voice of morality and blind to shame. Unable to escape the gilded cage she has been trapped within.

Kind, gentle Edward Marlow could prove to be her salvation… With one look he gives her hope. With one touch he sets her senses alight.

Lose yourself in the passionate intensity of this stunning debut from exciting new talent Jane Lark.’

The illicit love of a Courtesan, is exactly what a Regency Romance should be! Exciting with the perfect amount of steam. Jane Lark’s writing is so emotive, her book left me with butterflies in my stomach. 5 stars just isn’t enough for this wonderful series.

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Like what you’ve read so far? Check out Jane’s books over on Amazon

The Illicit Love of a Courtesan | The Passionate Love of a Rake | The Scandalous Love of a Duke |

Capturing the Earl’s Love | The Lost Love of a Soldier

Author Bio: 

Jane is qualified to the equivalent of a Masters Degree in People Management and is fascinated by the things that craft people’s personalities, so she has great fun exploring these through characters. She lives in the United Kingdom near the Regency City of Bath and has just bought her 400 year old dream home. History has always tempted her imagination and she loves researching and also exploring ruins and houses to get ideas. She equally loves a love story. Jane has always aspired to writing a historical novel so when she was thirty she put it on her ‘to do before I am forty’ list. She completed her first novel ten years ago, never sent it anywhere then started the next. She’s not stopped writing since, and escaping into a mental world of fiction is a great painkiller to help fight off her Ankylosing Spondylitis.

Twitter | Facebook | Website 

***GIVEAWAY***

Enter to win an antique necklace and signed copies of all the historical books out in paperback

Please visit Jane Lark’s website to enter the Rafflecopter competition

Feature: Carol E Wyer

Challenge Carol!

Humorous author, Carol E. Wyer has just taken launching a new book to a new level. To coincide with the forthcoming release of her seventh book, Carol will be taking on some unusual challenges including belly dancing, a ‘Bush Tucker’ trial, zorbing and zip lining while playing a kazoo and indoor skydiving.

Carol says, “After completing the book I suddenly had an urge to have a go at some of the challenges that the characters face. So, I thought, why not? The inner child in me went crazy with delight and encouraged me to commit to a few mad challenges before I remembered how old I really am. It’s too late to back out now so, we’ll have to see how they work out.”

The first challenge is in London at GoApe where she will attempt to zipline while playing a kazoo and try not to land on her publisher who is accompanying her. You can see the results at her blog or YouTube.

Her latest release, Three Little Birds due out August 15^th is a tale of friendship, self-discovery, romance and topped with lashings of the by now familiar humour we have come to expect from this author.

 

Three Little Birds 

If your friend challenged you, would you dare?

Charlie Blundell cannot get over the tragic death of her only daughter. She drifts between her job at the Art cafe and her hospital radio show, the only things which give her life purpose.

Her best friend, the madcap Mercedes, cajoles Charlie into writing a ‘carpe diem’ list, but then swaps Charlie’s list with her own. Now, each must complete the other’s challenges, and the outcomes will astound both of them. The challenges begin as a series of relatively harmless, fun activities. Soon, though, the stakes increase when Charlie has to complete her challenges to save the hospital radio station.

As the tasks become more demanding, a handsome stranger takes an interest in her, but he is not what he seems. One challenge causes a secret buried deep within her to surface, which may prove to be her undoing.

Three Little Birds is a story of love, friendship and discovery, laced with hilarity and topped by a wickedly funny parrot called Bert.

Three Little Birds is published by Safkhet Publishing and released August 15^th

Purchase links on Safkhet website and Amazon UK

 

Carol E Wyer is an ex-teacher and linguist who lives in rural Staffordshire. Having written a series of educational yet amusing books for children, she turned her attention to the adult market in 2010 when her son flew from the nest.

Her best-selling novels have won several awards for humour and much attention from the media. Since then, she has appeared on over thirty BBC radio stations, several international radio stations, NBC television and BBC Breakfast television discussing age-related subjects such as ‘Irritable Male Syndrome’. Her writing style has been described frequently by the media as ‘witty’ or ‘humorous’ and has even been compared to the acerbic wit of Jeremy Clarkson and the humour of Robin Williams.

Carol has written articles for and featured in several national women’s magazines including Take A Break, Choice, Woman’s Weekly and Woman’s Own who also wrote about her journey to becoming a best-selling author.

Last year, she took a crash course in stand-up comedy and has performed her comedy talk Smile While You Still Have Teeth to sell-out audiences in Lichfield, The Black Country and will be on main stage the Isle of Wight Literary Festival in October along with big name celebrities, Alan Titchmarsh, Katie Price, Sheila Hancock and novelist Katie Fford

Follow Carol on Twitter @carolewyer or Facebook Carol E Wyer

Review: A heat of the moment thing by Maggie Le Page

A heat of the moment thing by Maggie Le Page
“Becky Jordan has had it with relationships. From now on her time and dedication won’t be lavished on her latest Mr. Wrong—or, worse, Mr. Hell-No!—just the dream travel job which has unexpectedly leapt into her lap. Finally, life is looking great.

Unfortunately, not as great as her sizzling-hot, take-charge new boss. Matt Frobisher is everything she doesn’t want him to be, but if anyone thinks she’ll risk her career on a workplace fling they can think again. No amount of Superman behaviour from him will make her roll over and play Lois.

At least, that’s what her head says. Her heart, however, doesn’t do logical. In desperation she finds herself a Mr. Distraction, one with no strings and plenty of appeal. But Mr. Distraction also comes with unforeseen complications. Kryptonite complications, like Becky’s sister. And when she shows up there’s only one sure thing: not even Superman can prevent the Disaster Fest that’s about to blow Becky’s life apart.

Warning: contains one guy determined to win the girl, one girl determined not to be won, and plenty of heat in the middle.

(This book is intended for readers aged 18+.)

“A heat of the moment thing” was a fabulous read. I identified with Becky’s disastrous love life as if it was my own. What really hit a cord with me was that Becky, wasn’t perfect, she made her mistakes and paid the consequences- just like in real life. That is what endeared “A heat of the moment thing” to me, it wasn’t based in some fairy realm where everything works out magically; this was set in reality, where we have to work our bums off to get what we want.

I loved the writing style of the book. Becky’s first person narrative, it made her leap from the page and feel like real person. Although, Becky did some things I may not agree with, the novel was so well written – I immediately understood why she did those things and empathized with her.

“A heat of the moment thing” isn’t just your run of the mill chick lit book, it is a refreshing, witty, humorous novel that many of us will relate too from being there ourselves. Becky sure made me laugh and go down memory lane to revisit my own relationship disasters.

Maggie Le Page’s stunning debt is a must read. It is perfect for fans of Jenny Colgan and Sophie Kinsella. I highly recommend this enjoyable light-hearted read.

Author’s Bio:

With a career that morphed from finance to education to small business, writing fiction is about the last thing her training prepared her for, but Maggie Le Page has never been one to let a little thing like you’re-not-trained-for-this stop her.

When she left full-time work for motherhood she put those sleep-deprived nights to good use, writing (and rewriting) her first book. She published A Heat Of The Moment Thing last year and hasn’t looked back.

These days Maggie lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with her partner of fifteen years and their two children, juggling 

family, part-time work and writing. It’s fair to say her life tends towards ‘chaotic’.

Maggie loves travel, reading and lazy hazy beach days, preferably presented to her as an island holiday combo. She regards a full night’s sleep as a novelty, a whole day spent writing as a luxury, and an evening with great friends, great food and great wine as one of life’s greatest pleasures.

 

Elder Park Book Reviews: What inspired you to write?

Maggie Le Page: Actually, it was more a ‘who’ than a ‘what’. I was travelling with my partner, and we went armed with plenty of books (as you do). We had stopped at a breathtaking little village in the Swiss Alps called Lauterbrunnen and decided to camp there for a few days. That first night I finished a book by Carole Matthews called “A Minor Indiscretion” (fantastic title!) (fun read!) and I thought, hey, I could write something like this. In my defence, Lauterbrunnen is at quite a high altitude…

Long story short, I decided to start writing my own book then and there. I bought an exercise book and started writing by the campfire every night. Needless to say, I soon learned just how hard it is to write a book that reads as effortlessly as Carole Matthews books. So I credit her as my inspiration–and blame her!

EPBR: Do you have a sequel planned for A Heat Of The Moment Thing?

ML: Yes! I have two novels and a novella in the planning stages. They’ll be stories of secondary characters we’ve already got to know quite well in A Heat Of The Moment Thing. 🙂

EPBR:  Which character would you most like to be stuck on a deserted island with?

ML:Definitely the hero, Matt. Not only is he gorgeous 😉 but he is also kind, determined, physically able, and knows how to get the best out of people. With that combo he’s sure to find a way for us to get rescued, or to rescue ourselves. And if not . . . well, at least with him there it won’t be quite such a hardship.

EPBR: I so agree. Matt is a wonderful character is now my new literally crush.

 

EPBR: What are you working on next?

ML:I’m putting the finishing touches on my second novel, The Trouble With Dying, which will be released later this year. I can’t wait! Here’s the blurb:

 

When Faith Carson wakes up on a hospital ceiling looking down on her body in a coma, it’s a bad start to the week. A very bad start. She has no idea who she is or how she got there or why, and the biggest mystery of all is why she married the schmuck who wants her ventilator switched off.

 

As if that’s not enough Faith has a dead gran haunting her, a young daughter missing her, and one devilishly delicious man making her wish she could have a second chance at life.

 

And maybe she can, if she finds a way back to her body and wakes up by Friday. But if she doesn’t, this will be her last bad week–ever.

 

Nate Sutherland decided long ago he’d settle for friendship if he couldn’t have Faith’s heart. But now, as she nears death, he’s going to have to listen to his feelings in a whole new way–and act. Because if he doesn’t, this week will be the worst damn week of his life. He’ll lose everything he’s ever loved.

 

Guest Post: Annie Lyons

The Moment I Knew I Wanted To Be A Writer

I don’t know if many people’s dreams are born in a poorly-lit classroom in one of the more salubrious parts of south-east London, but mine was. I had enrolled on a creative writing course at my local adult education centre when my second child was eight months old. I felt that my brain was beginning to fester like something lurking at the back of the fridge and I needed to re-engage with people over the age of two. I can’t tell you how exciting those first few hours were back in the company of adults. The world seemed bright with possibility. My classmates were as diverse a group as you could ever hope to meet, each bringing a different spark of insight on the world. It was like returning to school but in a good way because we all wanted to be there. I sat with my fellow writers (for that’s what we instantly became) during the tea-break, nibbling a flapjack and sipping weak coffee from a Styrofoam cup and fell in love with the world again.

There were exercises to stimulate the imagination, books to read and homework! I loved the homework. One week we were given an open brief: write a short story about anything you like, to be circulated for review. This was an enjoyable task, particularly when you got to scrutinise other people’s work – everyone’s a critic after all. However, when it came to the week when you were put under the spotlight, well that was a different matter. Our group consisted of serious writers, part-time scribblers and those who wanted to give it a go but didn’t think they’d be any good and probably needed to be shaken by the shoulders and told to get on with it. I was a founder member of the third category. ‘Just write about what you know,’ said my ever-patient husband. ‘I only know about fish fingers and sippy-cups,’ I wailed. ‘Well write about those then.’ I didn’t. I wrote a story about a man who is granted three wishes by a belligerent fairy he meets in the pub one day. I submitted it to my writing colleagues and waited a week, trying to dismiss the churning fear that I would be laughed out of the classroom. It turned out they liked it. One classmate berated me for using bad language. Fair enough. Another suggested building the characters a little more. Duly noted. One man, the most critical of our number and someone who always had a lot to say turned to me, his face impossible to read. ‘I have to tell you,’ he began. I held my breath. ‘That I just wish I could write something as good as that.’

And that was the moment. The moment I realised that I might have a future with this writing lark; that I might have finally found something I was good at and would love to do as a job. ‘Brilliant,’ I thought as I drove home that evening. ‘I’ll become a writer then.’ It would take another five years and two books before I felt confident enough to call myself a writer again. But that’s another story…

Annie Lyons is the best-selling author of Not Quite Perfect (now available in paperback) and Not Quite Perfect Christmas (A Short Story). Her new novel Dear Lizzie is published by Carina and is available as an eBook.

http://www.carinauk.com/annie-lyons

http://www.facebook.com/annielyonswriter

Twitter @1AnnieLyons

https://www.goodreads.com/annie_lyonswrites

Review: Deadly Curiosities by Gail Z. Martin

Cassidy Kincaide owns Trifles & Folly, an antique/curio store and high-end pawn shop in Charleston, South Carolina that is more than what it seems. Dangerous magical and supernatural items sometimes find their way into mortal hands or onto the market, and Cassidy is part of a shadowy Alliance of mortals and mages whose job it is to take those deadly curiosities out of circulation.

Welcome to Trifles & Folly, an antique and curio shop with a dark secret. Proprietor Cassidy Kincaide continues a family tradition begun in 1670—acquiring and neutralizing dangerous supernatural items. It’s the perfect job for Cassidy, whose psychic gift lets her touch an object and know its history. Together with her business partner Sorren, a 500 year-old vampire and former jewel thief, Cassidy makes it her business to get infernal objects off the market. When mundane antiques suddenly become magically malicious, it’s time for Cassidy and Sorren to get rid of these Deadly Curiosities before the bodies start piling up.

Deadly Curiosities, is a curiosity in its self. There are many Urban fantasy facets to the novel and plenty of new twists.
Cassidy is a psychometric, which means she can touch things and know where it is has been and its history. She runs an antique shop in Charleston, South Carolina called Trifles & Folly as cover to trace and neutralize magically artefacts. With her group of friends/employees and help of an ancient vampire they hunt down possessed antiques.
There are a few Scooby -Doo moments but over all, it had a cozy feel to it. It is labelled Young adult, which may explain why it never went truly to the dark side.
Charleston is portrayed as a village in a city and every magically being seems to know each other and there was a great sense of community.
I did enjoy Deadly Curiosities, I thought the characters were rich and fleshed out and plenty of new takes on supernatural powers to keep this novel innovative.
What disappointed me, was there was no romance- not even a hint of sexual tension between the characters. I think that is why this book lacks a certain pizzazz.
With that being said, Deadly Curiosities isn’t a run of the mill UF or YA book for that matter, and definitely a worthwhile read.
I am a big fan of Gail Z. Martin and I will be looking forward to the next book in the series.

Down Under: Georgina Penney

 

Unforgettable You by Georgina Penney

“After months working on an oil rig in the Atlantic Ocean, engineer Jo Blaine can’t wait to get home. Her job is tough, and she is desperate for some long overdue girl time. The last thing Jo needs when she walks through her front door is to find a strange man staying in her house. When she learns that her uninvited guest is none other than Stephen Hardy, she’s tempted to head straight back out to sea.

Stephen has always felt guilty for the part he played in ruining Jo’s life years earlier and immediately jumps at the chance to make things up to her by looking after her apartment and her giant cranky cat. It takes some fast talking, but Jo is finally convinced to let him stay. And by the time she leaves for her next shift at work, they’re both eagerly anticipating her return.

But as they grow closer, it soon becomes clear Jo is hiding something about her past that is coming back to haunt her. After a lifetime of taking care of herself and her sister Amy, Jo isn’t used to sharing her problems, especially when they involve her messy family history. But when threats start to escalate, Jo must decide whether to trust Stephen before her stubborn independence places them all at risk. “

“Unforgettable you” is the prequel to “Irrepressible you”, where we were first introduced to the sisters, Amy and Jo. Amy is the wild child with her 1950’s pin-up flare and Jo is the sensible, oil rig worker with stoic charm and sensible shoes.

In “Unforgettable you”, it explores Jo’s vulnerable side. She is much more sensitive than her tomboy appearance lets on. Jo meets Stephen when she returns home on leave from her oil rig and runs into to Stephen after many years and a lot of water under the bridge.

Their romance heats up and blossoms into true love. Stephen brings out all those hidden emotions that Jo has spent most of her adult life suppressing. There are some unsettling family issues but Georgina Penney tackles them with realism and tact.

Jo and Stephen were a corner-stone couple in “Irrepressible you”. It is wonderful to hear their story, and see how they got from an awkward start to the rock solid couple they became. You don’t have to read “Irrepressible you” to enjoy “Unforgettable you”-  it is a stand alone novel in many way. It is recommended that you do read Irrepressible you because it is very enjoyable.

As always, Georgina Penney infuses her outrageous humour and style to create the most unforgettable characters. The only problem I found with these books is, which one I loved more!

 

Irrepressible You by Georgina Penney

“You don’t become a notorious British celebrity without rubbing a few people the wrong way, which is why writer and comedian Ben Martindale has decamped to Australia until the latest media frenzy dies down.

When he meets Amy Blaine, a perky blonde who dresses like a 1950s pin-up girl, he knows he’s hit the satirical jackpot. He begins to fill his weekly London column with snarky observations about her life, clothes, and even their most intimate moments. It doesn’t occur to him that Amy, who is letting her guard down for the first time in her adult life, might be upset – after all, it’s hilarious, and his readers love her!

It isn’t until Amy discovers the extent of his betrayal that Ben begins to realise just how badly he’s cocked up the best thing that ever happened to him. But is it too late?”

Set in the sunny port city of Perth, Australia, this stunning debut has style. I loved Amy. I thought she was funny cute, sassy and clever. I am a big fan of the 1950’s style of dress and wished I had her wardrobe.

Everything has such personality in this book, from the outdoor plumbing to Gerald, the dog and his testicle implants.

There are plenty of false starts for Ben and Amy and at times it feels as if someone poured a bucket of water over you. When they do get together it is very saucy. In all honesty, it is racy but it is done tastefully. I blushed myself a few times, and needed a cold shower by the time it was over.

This book is a breath of fresh air and I highly recommend to anyone who is looking for an out of the ordinary story with loads of style.

 

 

NEW- EPISODE 3

Down Under Resources:

New on Naughty Ninja’s : “Win not one but two books!”

Not to miss on Steamy Puddings: “The War On Waxing The Weasel: Why is masturbation so taboo (still) in romance?”

Don’t forget to listen to the Bookish Tarts Podsnuggle, we got a mention !

Elder Park Books is happy to announce a new feature, Hot Down Under.  It is a great new showcase for the more Spicer adult books and today is the first post featuring Kate Belle.

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The Yearning by Kate Belle:

It’s 1978 in a country town and a dreamy fifteen year old girl’s world is turned upside down by the arrival of the substitute English teacher. Solomon Andrews is beautiful, inspiring and she wants him like nothing else she’s wanted in her short life.

Charismatic and unconventional, Solomon easily wins the hearts and minds of his third form English class. He notices the attention of one girl, his new neighbour, who has taken to watching him from her upstairs window. He assumes it a harmless teenage crush, until the erotic love notes begin to arrive.

Solomon knows he must resist, but her sensual words stir him. He has longings of his own, although they have nothing to do with love, or so he believes. One afternoon, as he stands reading her latest offering in his driveway, she turns up unannounced. What they choose to do next will haunt them until they meet again twenty five years later. Read an extract.

Available to purchase at :Amazon– Kobo –iTunes– Barnes and Noble

Now an exclusive interview with the author of the Yearning, Kate Belle:

EPBR: What inspired you to write The Yearning?

KB: The Yearning began life as a series of half written (badly written) and fairly pointless short stories. I used to write in short bursts, capturing a single disembodied scene at a time. When I decided to take my writing more seriously I gathered all these random bits together and a theme began to emerge: a woman who craved to be reunited with a lover, who was tortured by unrequited passion. This was something I felt was important to write about as so many people have a story about the ‘love that got away’ or the ‘love that could have been’.

Over four years I drew the threads of the stories together and filled in the gaps. I developed the character of the woman, who remains nameless throughout the entire book, and the philandering, free-spirited man she falls for (who happens to be her teacher).

So many women fall into the trap of falling for the charms of an older, experienced man when they are young. At the time it’s exhilarating, but it often ends in tears – usually the young woman’s. While the fantasy of the perfect lover is enticing, the mark these relationships leave on women can affect the rest of their lives. I wanted to explore the boundaries between sex, desire and love, and the power young women hold over older men (she is the one who actively seduces him). The Yearning also raises the question of ‘age of consent’. The protagonist in The Yearning is of consenting age when she loses her virginity to Solomon Andrews, but she is in no way ready to embark on a mature, fully sexual relationship. It was an interesting book to write and has inspired many questions for those who read it.

EPBR: What made you chose Erotica as a writing genre?

KB: I didn’t so much choose Erotica as my genre as that’s where my work fits. The truth is my work crosses genres and is hard to slot into just one. The Yearning has shades of New Adult, Erotica and general Women’s Fiction.

I like to write about the secrets people have, the inner struggles we keep to ourselves because we are too ashamed to talk about them. Sex, desire, love are aspects of our lives and selves often kept private, so my interest is naturally drawn to those topics.

I also think there is too much emotionless sex in books. I want write the kind of love scenes I like to read, to see the love put back into ‘making love’. I draw a lot from Trantric and Taoist practices so my writing focuses more on making love than sex. I enjoy exploring what goes on emotionally when we feel that incredible pull toward another human being, the dominating attraction to a beloved, the longing to possess a lover as our own. I love emotional intensity so that’s what I write about.

EPBR: You were nominated for a ARRA award, what did that honour mean to you?

KB: The Australian Romance Readers Association is a volunteer run, not-for-profit group of romance lovers based in Australia (of course!). Members are a combination of readers and writers and the organisation is hugely supportive of Australian romance authors and the romance genre in general. The group is very active. They have a great blog with release day posts, reviews, interviews and author guest posts. They host a convention every two years and member nominated annual awards for the best romance books in 12 categories.

I’m so pleased that The Yearning was nominated (along with about 10 other books) for Best Erotic Romance in 2013. This is a great honour because the nomination came from readers, ARRA members themselves. It means that the romance community loved the book enough to nominate it out of the dozens, sometimes hundreds, of books they read in 2013. I’m very grateful they selected my book as one worthy of a nomination. For a debut novel, I couldn’t have asked for more.

EPBR:What are you working on next?

KB: My second novel, Being Jade, will be released in Australia/New Zealand on 1 June 2014. It’s a very different book to The Yearning, more contemporary women’s fiction with erotic themes than erotica. Again, it is about love, sex and desire, but this time from the inside of an unusual marriage between very ordinary Banjo and his extraordinary artist wife, Jade. Here’s the blurb:

“A tragic death. A family divided. One truth can set them free.

Banjo Murphy is killed on the night he finally walks away from his wife Jade after twenty five years of adultery. In the aftermath, Banjo is bewildered to discover he still exists, and in despair he watches Jade collapse into deep depression and his daughters, Lissy and Cassandra, struggle with their unexpected loss.

Lissy is tortured by the mystery surrounding her father’s death. What compelled Banjo to leave the night he died? Why won’t Jade talk about what happened? Despite their volatile relationship, Lissy believes her parents’ love to be enduring, but sensible Cassandra sees things differently. When Cassy discovers a sketch book chronicling Jade’s affairs, the truth of their parents’ relationship begins to unfold and Lissy’s loyalties are divided.

Searching for answers, Lissy contacts Jade’s ex-lovers. Watching from afar, Banjo aches as he discovers what these men meant to Jade – until Lissy’s quest with Jade’s long line of lovers uncovers an explosive truth …

One that will finally set her family free.”

The good news is that Being Jade is doing the rounds in the US at the moment looking for a potential publisher. With a bit of luck she might make it to your shores in the near future.

I’m also working on an erotic romance series titled Master of Love. It features a Don Juan type of character, the hot-blooded and charismatic Ramon Mendez, a masterful lover of women. I’m hoping to have that series finished and with a publisher by the end of this year.

Kate Belle Author Bio

Kate is a multi-published author of dark, sensual love stories that will mess with your head. Her interests include talking to strangers, collecting unread books, objectifying men much younger than her and ranting about the world’s many injustices. She blogs regularly about women, relationships, sexuality and books on The Ecstasy Files (and anywhere else who’ll have her). She is also the creator of the Eros in Action writing sex workshop.

Kate lives, writes and loves in Melbourne with her small family and very annoying pets. The Yearning was released in 2013 to rave reviews. Being Jade is her second novel.

You can contact Kate via:
Blog/website | http://www.ecstasyfiles.com

Facebook | http://www.facebook.com/katebelle.x

Twitter | @ecstasyfiles https://twitter.com/ecstasyfiles

Goodreads | http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6572571.Kate_Belle

The Reading Room | http://www.thereadingroom.com/kate-belle/ap/2394119

I hope you enjoyed our first Hot Down Under post, I know I did- There will be another one in two weeks. Next week is a special paranormal Down Under, so join us then.

Breakaway Creek by Heather Garside

“Two city women – a century apart – find love and adventure with rugged men in the Queensland outback.
Two love stories; two parallel lives; two destinies.
Set in the 19th and 21st centuries, Heather Garside’s debut novel is a passionate rural romance of love and its consequences.
Shelley and Emma are separated by time but bound by a dark secret to a place called Breakaway Creek.
Betrayed by her long-term boyfriend, Shelley Blake has fled the city to return to her home town. Her interest in a photograph of her great-great-grandparents is piqued by her family’s reticence about the mystery couple, and a search for answers takes her to the cattle station Breakaway Creek.
Here she meets Luke Sherman, a man embroiled in the bitter ending of his marriage and a heart-breaking separation from his two small boys.
Shelley resists an instant attraction to Luke, as neither is ready for a new relationship.
And, while Luke struggles to reclaim his children, Shelley uncovers the truth about her ancestors, Alex and Emma.
A story of racial bigotry and a love that transcends all obstacles takes the reader back to the pioneering days of the 1890s.”

Breakaway Creek is a stunning debut by Heather Garside. It is a finely crafted dual time-line story that is breath-taking. More often than not, dual time-line stories are hard to do right but Heather Garside does it with precision.

Queensland is described so vividly that you feel immersed in the story, and the beauty of Breakway Creek is a character of its own.

There is so much heart and soul to this history steeped story, from racial tensions of the past and present, heart-break, new love and finding out secrets from the past. Breakaway Creek leaves you wanting more- I know I didn’t want the book to end.

I highly recommend Breakway Creek because it was an engaging, compelling, beautfuly written novel that will wrench your heart as well as warm it.

Heather Garside’s current work-in-progress is a rural romance and, like Breakaway Creek, is a dual-timeline story.

Holly Colter has left her career in nursing to work with her grandparents on their Queensland cattle property. But she hadn’t bargained on Jesse Kavanagh, the boy who broke her heart and ended up in trouble with the law, being back next door. To make it worse, her grandfather accepts his offer to help with the cattle muster.

While doing her best to avoid Jesse, Holly indulges her interest in family history by trying to uncover the truth about a murdered ancestor.

1895:

Mercy Forbes is shocked but hardly grief-stricken when she finds her abusive husband murdered. Sergeant Jake Morrison is determined to find the killer, despite his suspicions of Mercy and a growing attraction to her that threatens to undermine the case and his policing career.

You can get in touch with Heather Garside at her Face Book page by clicking the icon to the left or at her websites:

www.heathergarside.com www.heathergarside.wordpress.com

Lamingtons are a quintessential part of every Australian’s childhood. The little sponge cake is dipped in chocolate icing and then rolled in desiccated coconut.

These little treats are sold at school fairs and bake sales around the country.

These days Lamingtons are also commercially produced however they don’t taste as good as the homemade versions.

Down Under: Alissa Callen

 

Beneath Outback Skies by Alissa Callen

“A captivating rural romance featuring an indomitable young woman determined to save her family farm, and the city-boy who is not all he seems…Paige Quinn will let nothing and no one distract her from caring for her wheelchair-bound father, Connor, and fighting for her remote, drought-stricken property, Banora Downs. Least of all a surprise farm-stay guest named Tait Cavanaugh, whose smooth words are as lethal as his movie-star smile. Except Paige can’t help noticing that, for a city-boy, Tait seems unexpectedly at home on the land. And he does ask a lot of questions.It doesn’t matter how much he helps out or how much laughter he brings into her life, she soon suspects he is harbouring a big secret – the real reason he has come to Banora Downs.”

 

 

Beneath Outback Skies was a wonderful rural Australian novel. Alissa Callen has a way of describing things that you can almost feel the red Outback dust on your face and smell the diesel fumes of her Ute.

Reading the from grey skies of a spring that is yet to sprung; Beneath Outback skies transported me to a drought ridden Banora Downs with no rain in site. Alissa Callen give real gravitas to the drought that plagues most of the Outback. It is the realism that strikes me because most of us never have to worry about where to get the next drink to survive from.

Paige and Tait’s relationship slowly builds over the course of the book and in true country style, love set its own pace. Of course the path of true love is never easy. Tait has a hidden secret that when found out could ruin everything. Paige’s life is just as complex. Her father is stuck in a wheel chair from a farming accident and is of limited help to her.

Paige is such a strong female character, who knows exactly what she wants and refuses to settle for anything less. Since her father’s accident she has almost single-handly taken over running her families farm and I think that made her a bit isolated.

I loved this book. I loved Paige and Tait, and I loved peaking behind the curtain of Outback life. I found Beneath Outback skies tender and touching romance. I fell in love with Banora Downs, Glenalla and all its inhabitants.

Also by Alissa Callen and featuring “Glenalla”:

Down Outback Roads by Alissa Callen

“An enthralling rural love story. Sometimes you need to give yourself permission to fall in love.Kree Garrett’s younger brother Seth is all the family she has left, so when he goes missing in the Australian outback, she doesn’t think twice about leaving her American home to find him. When Seth is rescued Kree vows to find a way to thank the small town of Glenalla. It isn’t long before she falls in love with the tight-knit rural community. But is it really the town she’s falling for?Ewan Mackenzie has given up everything for his brother’s family, but he can never give enough to assuage his guilt at what happened one dark night, years ago . . . Ewan knows he doesn’t deserve a second chance at happiness, but when beautiful, open-hearted Kree stays to fight to save his home town, he finds it hard to keep his distance. Can Kree and Ewan leave their pasts behind for long enough to find a future together?”

There is no place like Glenalla….

Thrown right into the middle of the action, this book hooks you in from the first line. Kree travels to Australia to find her brother who went missing while backpacking. She soon finds her brother and the beauty that is the Outback of NSW. While stepping into her brother shoes while he recuperated to full fill his commitments to a local family; she experience Glenalla first hand. Kree going to Glenalla was no mistake- it was her destiny.

She hatches a plan to save the very town that came to her aid when her brother was in life threatening peril, and along the way discovers her own family’s secrets.

Ewan and Kree’s attraction brews slowly like an electrical storm, building in intensity; but he quickly puts on the breaks as he feels he is unworthy of her.

Ewan is a flawed character who blames himself for his family’s misfortune. He resigns himself to live the bachelor life as a penalty- that is until he meets Kree. They have issues getting off the ground but there was no denying they were in love.

Glenalla was first featured in “Beneath Outback Skies”. Although, I suggest you read that book first, it isn’t necessary- “Down Outback Roads” is a stand alone novel.

Glenalla is such a wonderful setting, full of down home charm and community spirit. Come and fall in love with Alissa Callen’s Glenalla for yourself.

I loved Alissa Callen’s books so much that I had to find her to do an interview. I was very lucky that Alissa Callen found time in her busy schedule to answer all my Glenalla questions:

EPBR: What was your inspiration for Glenalla?

AC: The small town of Glenalla, and the surrounding red earth countryside, is very much based on my local area. I live in rural Australia and even a trip to my grocery store provides inspiration. It isn’t unusual to see a horse truck parked in the car park or hear talk about how much rain people have, or haven’t, had. Australia is a land of great natural beauty but also a continent of extremes. Living where I do, I’ve experienced floods, drought and fires plus also the resilience, cohesiveness and compassion of outback communities. All of these things then seep into my writing. I hope readers enjoy visiting Glenalla as much as I enjoyed bringing this fictional town to life.

EPBR: You were a 2013 ARRA Finalist- what did that honour mean to you?

AC: It was a thrill to final once, let alone four times, but at the end of the day a reader leaving me a face book message about how much they loved my book makes me feel just as honoured and as thankful.

EPBR:What are you working on now?

AC: In between playing taxi to my kids, I’m working on two things. I’m planning another full length novel set around Glenalla plus a series of small town novellas set in the rugged snow-dusted mountains of Montana. The hemispheres may be different, but the challenges rural and remote towns face are very similar as too are the qualities that make close-knit communities such a special place to live.

When Alissa Callen isn’t writing she plays traffic controller to four children, three dogs, two horses and one renegade cow who really does believe the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. After a childhood spent chasing sheep on the family farm, Alissa has always been drawn to remote areas and small towns, even when residing in the US and UK. Once a teacher and a counsellor, she remains interested in the life journeys that people take and her books are characteristically heart-warming, emotional and character driven. She currently lives on a small slice of rural Australia in central western New South Wales, Australia. You can visit her blog for more news and updates on your favourite town and characters.

 

NEW- EPISODE 2

Resources Down Under:

On Steam Puddings : “Rachael Johns Drops By And Talks Writer’s Block (And There’s A Competition Too!)”

Over at The Naughty Ninja’s blog : The Rhyll ‘the Lady’ Biest and Cate ‘Man-eater’ Ellink get married”

Here are a few Aussie to Pom translations:

Pom: Stands for Prisoner of the motherland or person from the UK

Akubra: A felt hat often worn in the Outback

Esky: An Eskimo cooler container

Smoko: Teabreak, or smoking break but since smoking is now passe- any kind of break will do.

 

Who remembers Rebecca Gibney from The Flying Doctors? For some years she has been staring in a family drama called “Packed to the Rafters”. It is avaible on DVD in the UK if you can find it, but has never been televised in the UK. If you can get a hold of it, I thought it was a very entertaining series:

 

Flight to Coorah Creek by Janet Gover

“What happens when you can fly, but you just can’t hide?
Only Jessica Pearson knows the truth when the press portray her as the woman who betrayed her lover to escape prosecution. But will her new job flying an outback air ambulance help her sleep at night or atone for a lost life?
Doctor Adam Gilmore touches the lives of his patients, but his own scars mean he can never let a woman touch his heart.
Runaway Ellen Parkes wants to build a safe future for her two children. Without a man – not even one as gentle as Jack North.
In Coorah Creek, a town on the edge of nowhere, you’re judged by what you do, not what people say about you. But when the harshest judge is the one you see in the mirror, there’s nowhere left to hide.”

 

 

The first thing I said when I finished Chapter One was Wow!. From the first line you were transported right into the middle of the action. Within a few pages, you felt like you knew these characters and were revisiting old friends.

Queensland is described in such vivid details that you can almost feel the heat of the sun and the outback dust in your throat. The Outback is like a character in its own right because it is depicted with it is own personality and vibrancy.

I felt immersed into Coorah Creek’s world. It is a world where life has a slower pace, neighbours care about each other and good old fashion country charm – that never goes out of style.

The main characters are all impossible to believe they are fictional. I identified and bonded with Jess immediately, because we all know what it is like to be in love and blind. Dr. Adam, all I’m going to say is I wish he was my doctor. Watching Jack and Ellen’s romance unfold was breath-taking. I don’t believe in spoilers, but there were a few times I cried.

Janet Gover’s writing is phenomenal, she can make something as complicated as flying a plane easy to understand and visualize.I didn’t even feel like I was reading a book because a film played in my head. It was a perfect book from the start to the last line “…broken only by the distant laugh of the kookaburra.”

I fell in love with Coorah Creek and it’s in habitants and so will you. This book has the Wow factor.

 

 

 

 

Soul Mates: Romancing the Soul by Sarah Tranter

Romancing the Soul by Sarah Tranter

“Your Soul Mate is out there! Let a past life lead the way
Rachael Jones hasn’t exactly chosen an average career path. She’s a ‘past-life regressionist’ and is now hoping to help her clients find their Soul Mates through reconnecting them with their past lives. But despite her best intentions, there are problems. Rachael made the mistake of regressing her best friend, Susie Morris, who has since been haunted by events that occurred in her past life.
When Susie meets Hollywood actor, George Silbury in unlikely circumstances, she is completely unprepared for her reactions. There’s an intense mutual attraction that neither can explain nor ignore.
Can George help Susie to overcome the sense of desolation she feels as the result of her past-life regression or will history’s habit of repeating itself ruin all chances of her finding happiness? “

 

Romancing the soul is one of the most unique reads I have read in a long time. I found the subject matter of past life regression so riveting. The fact that you could possibly find your soul mate through past life regression was even more fascinating.

Sarah Tranter has such a distinctive writing style that you feel as if you were in her characters head willing them on. She blends heart wrenching drama with her own quirky humour. She used the phrase “The nutty regresser” to describe Rachael and I have to say I chuckled all day about it.

George Silbury leapt off the page and stood out for me. Although, as a Hollywood actor, you would expect some sort of inflated ego but Sarah Tranter gave him depth. When he meets Susie, there are fireworks. The only way I can describe Susie and George’s interactions is passionate.

Romancing the soul stands out from the crowd. Sarah Tranter’s laborious research into past life regression is clear. This book exceeded any expectations because Sarah Tranter took a speculative subject matter and made it a real possibility.

Whether you are sceptical about Soul mates or a believer, this book will convince you that there is some gravitas to the notion. Past life regression is something I always heard about but never understood but after reading Romancing the Soul, I feel it is worth finding more about.

Sarah Tranter finely crafted novel offers us an extraordinary romance that will stay with you long after the book is read. Romancing the soul is what all good romance stories should be, clever, emotional, with an unforgettable story line with twists and turns.

After reading her début supernatural romance “No such thing as immorality”- I am very eager for the authors next book. Once you pick up a Sarah Tranter book, they are very hard to put down.

I highly recommend this book for a great holiday read.

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to Choc Lit’s latest discovery Clare Chase, and she is here  now to tell you a little about herself and what a soul mate means to her:

EPBR: What does a soul mate mean to you?

CC: A soul mate is a very beguiling idea. It’s someone with whom you have a deep connection. You don’t have to have known each other for years; there’s something innate that links you. For me, it’s someone whose eye you catch, because you both find something funny at exactly the same moment. In song, it’s summed up by Alanis Morissette’s Head over Feet. Soul mates understand each other’s subtext without having to ask. And in a romantic relationship, passion is coupled with this close understanding, making for a heady mix.

It’s also a connection that won’t fade with time, which means it has excellent potential for drama in fiction! If circumstances have kept soul mates apart, a chance reunion after they’ve each developed independent lives can have unpredictable consequences.

EPBR: Tell me about your debut novel for Choc lit?

CC: It’s a romantic thriller called Anna in the Works, which was shortlisted for Novelicious’ Undiscovered competition. It’s set in London and the Lake District.

Anna’s being followed by a man she met at her friend’s art gallery. She fell for him on sight, but that was before she knew he’d given her a false name. Torn between backing off and allowing him to explain, Anna gets drawn in. It’s a decision that will put her life on the line…

EPBR: How has signing with Choc Lit changed your life?

CC: Knowing Choc Lit’s tasting panel really liked my novel has been the most incredible boost. I’m so grateful to them for giving my work their seal of approval. Joining Choc Lit’s existing authors is also brilliant – I love their work, so I’m proud to be amongst them, and they’re also a very friendly and supportive group.

In addition, having a publishing contact means I’ve become pretty busy! I’ve been working on things like an author’s page on Facebook and a re-jig of my website. Alongside that, I’m just finishing work on my next novel – another romantic thriller, set in Cambridge, UK. It’s very exciting to be writing for an audience now, not just for my own pleasure!

I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for “Anna in the Works”! While we impatiently wait, you can visit Clare’s website for more information and news.

 Visit Clare on FaceBook by clicking the icon or follow her on Twitter @clarechase.

 

Dancing in the Rain is not a traditional Soul mate book, but I have included it because Jacob’s and Rosenya’s relationship is that of a soul mate experience.

Dancing in the rain by Amanda James

What if the responsibility for preventing a major disaster lay with you?

“Jacob Weston has felt like he doesn’t belong for as long as he can remember and the strangely vivid dreams he experiences only serve to make him feel more alone. But when his job in research science takes him thousands of miles away from what he thought of as home, Jacob finds the mystery of his past begin to unravel. A trip to the breathtaking Monument Valley and an extraordinary encounter with a Navajo guide seem to hold the key to who Jacob really is.

After meeting the beautiful Rosenya Neboyia, Jacob feels he may have found what he’d been searching for. But with this meeting is the discovery that his dreams come with a responsibility, and that responsibility is bigger and scarier than he could have ever imagined”.

Dancing in the rain is an immense drama that hooks you in from the very first line. It is so beautifully written, the pages fly by without blinking. It is truly a testament to Amanda James’ talent.

The painstaking details of the Navajo nation has the intricate details that only an insider on the reservation would know. The Authors description of the locations are breath-taking and that world comes to life on the page in vivid ochres and dessert sands.

Amanda James is such a brilliant writer, she is able to invoke the tastes and the delicious scents of wild sage with ease. My mouth watered when Jacobs first Navajo meal was described; I could taste the sweetness of the butter-nut squash myself.

In this epic saga, that spawns from WW2 to the Welsh valleys and concluding in the American South West-,Jacob follows his heart and goes on a vision quest. He discovers the family he never knew and his Navajo cousins- the Redbirds. That kind of Native American Mysticism is what makes Dancing in the Rain so magical.

Jacob is a wonderful character who battles with what he was raised to believe and the truth of his real heritage. He tries to find his identity and place in the world, and ultimately himself along the way. Slowly he realises through Matthius Redbird that it was always his fate. A fate that includes his people’s salvation. Believe me that part of the story arc is fast paced and full of explosive action.

When Jacob meets Roseyna you can feel the electricity of love at first site and it is a stunning description of two souls bonding. There is also some very steamy scenes between the both of them.

Today’s Quiz is “What is the name of your Soul Mate?”

Our Soul mate feature for this week is over, but it will resume next Tuesdays with three more great books by the incredible Christina Courtenay. Tomorrow we will feature our next “Down Under” feature and friday I will bring you two new releases.

Don’t forget to visit our sister site Project Nemesis for our special Zombie week. For now I will leave you with a beautiful song sung by the adorable Robert Downey Jr., and it is from his reincarnation/soul mate film “Chances are”. Enjoy!

 

Review: A Darker Music by Maris Morton

A Darker Music by Maris Morton

“When Mary Lanyon takes on the job of temporary housekeeper at Downe, a famous Merino stud, she is looking forward to staying in a gracious homestead with the wealthy Hazlitt family. The owner’s wife, Clio, has been ill, and Mary’s task is to get the house back into shape in the lead-up to the wedding of the only son and heir, Martin.

When she arrives, however, Mary realises things are not right. Clio Hazlitt rarely ventures from her room. The house is shabby, redolent of dust and secrets. As a friendship develops between the women, Mary discovers answers to the questions that have puzzled her: What is the nature of Clio’s illness? What has caused the grim estrangement between Clio and her husband? And why did Clio give up playing music, when she says it meant so much to her?

A Darker Music is a gripping mystery that takes you into the heart of rural Western Australia, and into one family’s troubled past.”

 

The only way to describe A darker music is by calling it “Australian Gothic”. The sun is shining but you can still feel the darkness and oppression of isolation. It is has the feeling of Jane Eyre Down Under.

Maris Morton paints a unique picture of an Australian winter, a phenomena unknown to us in the Northern Hemisphere; To most of us Australia is a dry, heat soaked desert.

Mary starts to unravel family secrets as she sets about setting the farmstead to rights. There is a gentle unfolding of events with a strong palette of near gourmet food and classical music.

Mary is an incomer and she acts as an observer to a family who’s lives are tainted my tragedy; something Mary is very familiar with. Although there is a lot of sadness to this book, there is also a glimmer of hope for healing.

Clio and Paul are like the walking wounded. Their relationship and lives was irreversibly shattered – and you can see them just going through the motions of everyday life; Unable to offer each other the comfort they both crave.

There is so much in this subtle family drama: loss, mysteries, heartbreak and estrangement; That left me the feeling of a haunted abandonment that Clio felt.

A darker music has a pace consistent to country lifestyle, and it adds an air of anticipation for what events are to come.

What I loved about this book was that Maris Morton showed me a West Australian lifestyle, that I was able to experience through her eyes; Something I would never be able to experience on my own.

A darker music is on par with the likes of Mary Stewart for highly enjoyable new Gothic fiction. It was a unique novel that stands out from the crowd and one not to be missed.

EPBR: What inspired you to become an Author?

MM: I’ve always been a devoted reader, particularly of crime and mystery novels, but never seriously contemplated actually writing one myself – I lacked the confidence, for one thing, and was busy earning a living.

This changed in the late 1990s when I was nearing retirement age. I’d taken on the challenge of nurturing a fledgling public art gallery in a country town and eventually succeeded beyond expectations, with a new gallery now in a state of the art building that is the pride and joy of the local community. Having achieved this, my confidence reached new heights.

Another factor was the nature of my work at the gallery, which demanded constant interface with colleagues and the public, and left me pining for a place of my own where I could quietly concentrate on some project that would satisfy my latent creativity. I tried pottery and artwork, which I’d enjoyed in the past, but once I made a serious effort to write there was no holding me – I was hooked!

That started a long, slow process of teaching myself the craft. I wrote a novel, then short stories (some of which won prizes), listened to publishing professionals and learned the harsh realities of the business, collecting countless rejections along the way, until I started to wonder whether I was wasting my time. Then one magical day I learned that I had won the inaugural Scribe/CAL Fiction Prize — out of 535 entries —with A Darker Music! There was a cash prize as well as publication. Naturally this gave me all the encouragement I needed to go on, although there were many more rejections to be faced.

EPBR: Why did you want to write fiction?

MM:  Apart from the pleasure of manipulating words to communicate actions and emotions, over my life I have worked in such a wide variety of jobs in many places that I have accumulated countless stories that only have to be patchworked and polished to make them into readable fiction. I have worked as a teacher (including teaching English as a second language to Cocos and Christmas Islanders); public servant; art curator and art gallery director, as well as exhibiting artist and art restorer; shearers’ cook and shed hand; journalist, and book and restaurant critic; cook and housekeeper. I’ve also been a wife and mother. Now I’m in the fortunate position of being able to mine my past experiences for the raw materials of fiction; scraps of memories of people and places I’ve known can be cut up and stitched together to form new fabrics.

During the 1970s and ‘80s I lived in Western Australia, most of the time in the small country town on which I based my fictional Berricup. There I got to know many farmers, and to appreciate how different their lives are from those of typical suburbanites.

Most of my writing is concerned with aspects of country life (with the exception of Portrait of the Artist as a Dead Man, which is set in Perth). Although I grew up in the suburbs of Melbourne I have always preferred country life; I’m still a dedicated gardener, and live now in sub-tropical rainforest in the far north-east corner of New South Wales, where the loudest sound is birdsong.

The germ of the idea behind A Darker Music was formed many years ago when a farmer’s wife told me that before her marriage she’d been a keen violinist. When I asked her whether she still played she said ‘No,’ then told me that one of her sons had accidentally smashed her violin. I never discovered why she didn’t get another one — her husband could easily have afforded it — but the sadness of that tale stayed with me. I made the farm where Clio lived more remote, so that Clio’s isolation was more complete, setting it in countryside that was familiar to me.

The genesis of The Herb Gardener was different, bringing together a number of incidents and characters from my past and combining them to make the drama. The farm is based on one which belonged to old friends; I went back and stayed there to get the feel of the place again. The olives, the sandalwood and the dam — and the dead kangaroo — were all real.

My present project is another crime novel titled Meadowcroft (isn’t that a lovely word?). It’s based on my experiences of working as a cook, back in the 1980s, in an establishment very like Meadowcroft. This one also features my ongoing character Mary Lanyon, an Australian widow who now works as a temporary housekeeper; she appears in Portrait of the Artist and A Darker Music. While she is no modern Miss Marple, Mary is perceptive (and curious) enough to help solve the mysteries she encounters during her work in various households.

 

Also by Maris Morton:

The Herb Gardener by Maris Morton

 

Still hurting after a painful divorce, Joanna leaves the city, moving with her six-year-old daughter Mia to a country town. She’s looking for a better, happier life, and when she meets farmer Chris Youngman, she discovers the possibility of a future as a farmer’s wife.

Joanna is at first dismayed by the unexpected isolation of the farm, but Chris’s affection helps her to adjust. Then the unexplained death of a young farm worker brings complications she could never have imagined, and Joanna has to fight for her happiness, her family, and even her own life.

 

 

I am a big fan of Australian fiction and this book exceeded expectations. It was the perfect blend of mystery and romance. From the start you are dropped right in the middle of the action. Slowly you get to know these characters by deed and reaction; It is very refreshing not always to have to be told.

The countryside is beautifully described and comes alive on the page. It made me want to look up Berricap on a map to see if that town really exists.

The Herb Gardener is one of those book that the sub plots are so tightly knitted together that everything mergers with the main plot and keeps you riveted right until the end. It is really hard not to give anything away, but this book has one of the most unique endings I have ever read before.

This is an undiscovered gem of Australian fiction, as well as being a great mystery that will keep you guessing until the end.

 

Portrait of the Artist as a Dead Man – A Mary Lanyon Mystery by Maris Morton

Mary Lanyon enjoys her work as a temporary housekeeper, a role that brings her into contact with many interesting people. Detective Sergeant Des Honeywell was one man Mary met in a difficult time, and she is ambivalent when she meets him again. He has a corpse on his hands – a man Mary knew, an artist.

Honeywell knows nothing of the art world, and takes the opportunity to involve Mary in his investigation. Mary has to revisit her relationship with the dead artist, the good times and the bad, to work out how he was killed and by whom, while Honeywell pursues his own agenda.

A message from Maris : If you Google maris+morton you’ll find heaps of stuff on me. My publisher, Michelle, has set up a blog tour for The Herb Gardener but I don’t know the details. My website is: www.marismorton.com. Please visit her page for all her great new releases.