The Last Lost Girl by Maria Hoey

This is a debut novel published by Poolbeg under their new Poolbeg Crimson imprint which offers 'Fiction with an edge'.  This is the story of Jacqueline Brennan. Set in two time periods; the long hot summer of 1976 when Jacqueline's sister Lily disappeared and years later when Jacqueline returns to her home at Blackberry Lane to look after her aging father. We learn that Jacqueline is the youngest child, the misfit, the loner. Lily was the beauty queen, while middle sister Gayle was the homemaker, the peacemaker. Jacqueline's family have never been able to shake off the sadness, the mystery surrounding the unexplained disappearance of Lily and one by one they had scattered, all except for her Dad who had remained in the family home, stagnant. When Jacqueline returns it as though time has stood still. In 1976 Jacqueline had tagged along after her older, glamorous sister, never quite accepted, a nuisance. Lily had been seeing a boy who worked at the carnival and he had been questioned by police but no-one was ever arrested and Lily's body was never found so Jacqueline has always harboured the hope that her sister simply ran away that she is out there somewhere, waiting to be found. An old postcard of an English seaside town gives Jacqueline a clue about where to start her search but Jacqueline learns as much about herself and her place in the world as she does about her missing sister. This is a beautifully written book about family, secrets and growing up. It's a thriller but it's also very much a family story. Excellent writing. I found it unputdownable.

Thanks very much to Poolbeg for a copy. The Last Lost Girl is out now in paperback. 

The Upstairs Room by Kate Murray-Browne Blog Tour; The Books That Made Me

A gothic and chilling debut from Kate Murray-Browne about a young family; Eleanor, Richard and their two young daughters who have just moved into what should be their dream home in Litchfield Road. Stretched to the limit, the renovations have to wait and they decide to get a lodger in to rent the basement, so they can afford the repayments. Eleanor feels the strange atmosphere almost immediately and begins to suffer with chronic headaches and vomiting. Richard is also affected but he is channeling his unhappiness into a Masters Degree that he hopes will change his life, his career and help him find that spark that his current role as a solicitor doesn't give him. The lodger Zoe has quit her job to work in an art shop and left her long term boyfriend. She is hoping to write, or draw or something. She too is seeking change. The Upstairs Room is left empty. It's walls covered in scrawls and pictures from the little girl who lived there before. Eleanor asks the neighbours and they tell her there was an accident, something bad happened in that house. As Eleanor becomes increasingly ill and starts to see her older daughter's behaviour changing she knows she must do something. This is a dark and clever book which uses the tropes of the ghost story to examine the anxieties of three people worried about the cost of housing, about being trapped by marriage, by jobs, by reponsibilities. This book will be published by Picador on July 27th in e-book and hardback. Thanks to Don Shanahan for an e-ARC.

I asked the author to take part in my Books that Made Me Series and here are Kate's choices.


The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James – I first read this when I was seventeen, which is maybe why James’s young heroine ‘affronting her destiny’ appealed to me so much. But it stayed with me, and the ideas about choice, limitation and thwarted desire (not to mention the potential disaster of marriage proposals) all found their way into my first novel, The Upstairs Room.

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters – I read this on holiday in Mallorca, basically the least spooky setting ever, and I was still terrified. I remember feeling very sad finishing it because I thought it was one of the best books I’d ever read, but there was no way I could read it again as it was so frightening. I have braved it since (during daylight hours) and found the evocation of the house and its inhabitants just as compelling and poignant, marvelling at how skilfully Waters manages the ambiguity of the haunting.

Things I Don’t Want to Know by Deborah Levy – there are lots of wonderful things about this autobiographical essay, but the thing that stands out for me is the way Levy writes about motherhood – I thought about it a lot when writing about Eleanor, one of my protagonist’s, experience of motherhood. I’m incredibly excited about the forthcoming sequel, The Cost of Living (and I half-wanted to steal the title for The Upstairs Room).

The Blog Tour continues see banner for details

Widdershins Blog Tour The Books That Made Me

As part of the Blog Tour to celebrate the release of Helen Steadman's first novel I asked Helen to tell me about some of her favourite books as part of my new series The Books that Made Me. Helen responded with three of her favourites from her teenage years and insists that she must have been a contrary young reader as they are rather surprising choices for a writer of historical fiction, nonetheless as the wonderful Meg Ryan said in You've Got Mail "When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your whole life does" So on with the books.

The Books Made Me: Helen Steadman The Teenage Years

1984 by George Orwell

‘Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimetres inside your skull.’

This was the most striking book I had ever read, and I don’t think any other book has ever had the same effect on me since. It was the first time I’d read a book underpinned by such enormous ideas. Sinister concepts like thoughtcrime and newspeak were terrifying, as was the totalitarian setting. This book made me think about the world in a different way. It should be compulsory reading for everyone.

Mort by Terry Pratchett

‘Alligator sandwich,’ he said. ‘And make it sna—’

One Saturday afternoon, I found a Discworld book lying in a puddle of beer in the Haymarket, a much-missed Newcastle watering hole. I was a bit bored, and it didn’t seem appropriate to whip out my knitting, so I read the book. It was hilarious and I was immediately hooked on Terry Pratchett. Of all his books, I have a soft spot for Mort, because I love Death as a sandwich artist. Finally, I owe Terry Pratchett because it was in his Discworld books that I first heard the word ‘widdershins’.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

‘Man, when you lose your laugh, you lose your footing.’

This book broke my heart when I first read it because it was so shocking that people should suffer like this, and it was my first real inkling of there being such a thing as mental illness. Beyond the shocking and upsetting subject matter, though, was Kesey’s writing. It was unlike anything I’d ever read previously, making me feel as though I was inside the head of someone mentally ill. He also captured language perfectly, so it felt very real and immediate.

In case you missed my review of Helen's outstanding book you can find it HERE

Thanks so much to Helen for taking part in The Books That Made Me 
Helen's book is published by Impress Books and thanks to Natalie for an early reading copy
The blog tour continues details below.

Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser

Song of the Current is the debut novel by Sarah Tolcser and it's a thrill a minute tale of river girl Caro and the cargo she must carry to Valonikas. The cargo however turns out to be a snotty, aristocratic although admittedly rather handsome boy. Chased by the Black Dogs Caro soon discovers that the boy is more than just a hindrance aboard her ship, he's much more important than he's letting on and by taking him upriver and being chased by Black Dogs she is endangering all their lives. I really, really enjoyed enjoyed this immersive and romantic fantasy tale. There is a diverse cast, lots of strong women and a great deal of witty rejoinders. Not to mention adventure on the high seas, battles, bullet wounds and dastardly magicians to contend with. A thrilling and fantastic debut. Aimed at the 14+ age range it will appeal to fans of Sarah J Maas, Laini Taylor, V. E. Schwab and Marissa Meyer.  Published in June by Bloomsbury Kids. Thanks to LoveReading for a copy. 

Widdershins by Helen Steadman

Widdershins by Helen Steadman is based on the Newcastle Witch trials of 1650. Very little is known of the event other than a list of names of those who were executed, and even that is disputed. With so little information it was a subject ripe for fiction and Helen Steadman has delivered a truly compelling and thrilling tale. Divided into two narratives; Scotsman John Sharp and apprentice healer English girl Jane Chandler are the fictional creations who become entangled in this all too tragic occurence. The 1650s were a time when puritan values took hold, when pastors preached fire and brimstone and the evils of the flesh and neighbour turned against neighbour. The depth of Helen's research is immediately apparent. This book is a treasure trove of the cunning woman's knowledge of herbs and healing, birth and death. (Image courtesy of publisher Impress Books)

Jane learns how to make infusions and syrups from a young age. She knows the right berries to pick and the right time to pick them. She doesn't think there is anything sinister in the salves and tinctures that she makes. Her mother makes them too as did her grandmother before her as does their neighbour old Meg. However this is a time of change when old superstitions start to become something else, something darker. Meg upbraids Jane for falling asleep beneath the elder tree in case she is snatched away by the little folk but around the same time John Sharpe is a witness to the trial of Kirstie Slater who is accused of picking bewitched fruit from the elder tree in the kirkyard in order to commune with the devil even Meg refers to the elder as the witch tree. Helen Steadman has placed her story just at the point where the old ways are being scorned and the Puritan ideal is taking hold. The research here is stunning and the story telling is compelling. Jane is a wonderful lively narrator and she grows from wild young girl to wise young mother while John crushed by cruelty early in life grows darker and crueler with time. This is essential reading for anyone with an interest in history particularly the history of the North East of England, the history of medicine, women's history and witchcraft in general. I cannot wait to see what Helen writes next. If you are a fan of Beth Underdown's The Witch Finder's Sister then you need to read this book. I would also recommend it to fans of Karen Maitland, Diana Gabaldon, Nicola Cornick and Hannah Kent. It is excellent. Thanks so much to Natalie at Impress Books for the chance to read an early copy. Widdershins will be published in July. 

Learn more about Helen at her excellent website    http://helensteadman.com/

Arrowood by Mick Finlay

Arrowood is the debut novel from Mick Finlay. It's set in South London in 1895 and it features a consulting detective, but this is not Sherlock Holmes. The tagline for this story is "London Society takes their problems to Sherlock Holmes everyone else goes to Arrowood." Arrowood is fat, balding, often drunk. He's a terrible brother an even worse employer and friend and he hates Sherlock Holmes with a burning passion. The police generally aren't interested in his help so he has to use unconventional or even illegal methods to find information but somehow he and his partner Barnett seem to get the job done. When a young French woman seeks their help in locating her missing brother Barnett and Arrowood soon find themselves embroiled in a mystery that includes a dangerous criminal gang, Irish American revolutionaries and corruption at the highest levels of power. The writing is furious and fast paced Finlay knows his way around Victorian London and like Arrowood he knows people; from the drunks at the bar to the kind hearted women like Arrowood's sister who nurse the sick and the destitute, to the servants quarters and flop houses this is a Victorian London that's richly peopled and beautifully drawn. If you a fan of Sarah Pinborough's Mayhem or if love the camaraderie of Frey and McGray in Oscar de Muriel's books then Arrowood is for you. If you are fan of Sherlock Holmes you will probably love it all the more. All the familiar Sherlockian tropes are there but they are subtle and carefully used and the whole story is also shaded with political ideas and a darker and grittier tone than Conan Doyle ever used. This is a fantastic start to what I hope will be a longer series.
Thanks very much to the team at LoveReading and to the publishers HQ (Harper Collins) for the chance to read and review this novel before release.
Arrowood will be out on 23rd March 2017 in hardcover

For the Most Beautiful by Emily Hauser

Emily Hauser's debut novel is a brilliant retelling of The Iliad from the point of view of Krisayis and Briseis who though central to the original story never get a chance to speak for themselves. The book is a wonderful story of love, loyalty and war. I really enjoyed revisiting this classic work and seeing the fresh perspective that the author presents. This is a real page turner with the Gods dabbling in the lives of mortals like a game and the mortal characters straining against their fate. This was an enthralling read with great detail about every day life in Troy, and though the research is thorough the detail is never laboured. I especially loved Krisayis and her determination to fight for her city and her people. The characters are brilliantly brought to life and the action and storytelling is fast paced and clever. I highly recommend this book. 

thank you to lovereading.co.uk for a reading copy of this book.

Lullaby Girl Blog Tour

Today I am delighted to be hosting the Lullaby Girl Blog Tour. Who is the Lullaby Girl? Get your hands or your kindle on a copy of this fantastic debut novel from Aly Sidgwick and find out. Aly's debut novel is a thrilling, suspenseful and intriguing tale of psychology, love and memory. A young woman is washed up on the shore of a remote Scottish loch. How did she get there? Who is she? She does not speak and she doesn't remember anything, but she sings a haunting Danish lullaby over and over. The Press christen her The Lullaby Girl and scramble for her picture and her story, but no family comes forward to claim her. When caseworker Rhona is assigned to look after the girl she is determined to find out who she is and where she came from. In Rhona's experience of dealing with patients suffering from trauma and breakdown the girl's loss of memory must mean that she has suffered terrible hurt. At the remote care home she is taken to the girl begins to remember and with memory comes fear. Interlacing the present day and the past this cleverly written tale is the most thrilling debut I have read this year and will appeal to those who loved the unreliable narrative of Gone Girl as well as those with a fondness for Nordic Noir.

The author Aly Sidgwick was kind enough to stop by and tell me about her dream cast if Lullaby Girl were made into a film. Here's what she said

I was asked who I’d like to play my characters if Lullaby Girl was ever made into a film. Wow, it’s been tough to decide! Okay...

Kathy

Kathy’s a difficult one, because the people I imagined her as are no longer the right age to play her. I think of her primarily as a young Kate Bush, with hints of PJ Harvey and Juliette Lewis. I like Rooney Mara but don’t know if she could do the right accent! Hmm, maybe Hannah Murray? She has the right look to her, and she has the slightly awkward, unusual manner that’s key to the character.

Magnus
Magnus is so difficult, too! His strong accent is important, so I’d prefer a Scandinavian actor, but can’t think of one who’d fit. They’re all a bit too bulky, whilst Magnus has a wiry, rock star build. I think of him as a cross between a young Vincent Gallo, Gustaf Noren and Nicke Hellacopter. Only one of whom is an actual actor, haha!
Gustaf Noren 

Rhona
Maybe Tamsin Greig? She has that down to earth quality, and she’s instantly likeable. Rhona is all about empathy, but she also has a fragilty in her that she tries to hide away. A psychiatrist friend told me that most counsellors require counselling themselves... So there’s a balancing act between weakness and strength in her. I can see Laura Dern as Rhona too.
Tamsin Grieg

Joyce
Joyce is an easy one. Tilda Swinton! I frickin’ ADORE Tilda Swinton. Everything she does is incredible. She’s so versatile she could probably play any of my female characters, but she would be my perfect Joyce.

Mary
Mary doesn’t speak, so there’s no problem with accents there! She has to look really innocent, so.... Maybe Lily Cole? Kate Micucci also has the ’Mary’ factor.

Mrs Laird
Maggie Smith, hands down.

Mrs Bell
Supergran! Or Grace Zabriskie.

Hans
I can totally see Hank Von Helvete as Hans. He has the crazy eye! Or Benicio Del Toro, but then the accent would be all wrong.

Kolbeinn
A cross between Udo Kier and Christopher Walken.

Tim
Tim is very warm, easy going and a bit scatty. Visually, I imagined him a bit like Jamie Bell or Matt Smith.

Lina
Lina should be classically beautiful, with piercing eyes. Emma Stone maybe?

Sølvi
Viktoria Winge in her teens would have made a perfect Sølvi.

and there you have it the dream cast now go and read the book. Thanks so much to Janne at Black &White Publishing for a copy of the book and for asking me to take part in the blog tour. Available now on kindle and in paperback.

For the love of Martha by Maria Murphy

Maria Murphy's debut novel is a romantic, atmospheric and haunting mystery. Set in two time periods; the book features two budding romances: Juliet a young photographer falls for handsome researcher Logan Pershaw when the two meet on holiday in Florence and in 1880 teenage governess to the Pershaw family; Martha White falls head over heels for the dashing new doctor. However although Martha is long dead her spirit does not rest easy and when Juliet visits Logan at his family home in County Monaghan she finds that not only is the house haunted but so is her young man. A search through the family archives reveals that for generations the Pershaw men have died young. Juliet must discover why Martha is haunting the Pershaw family if she is to have any hope of a future with Logan. This is a well written, fast paced and intriguing debut. If you enjoyed The Secrets of Armstrong House or Tyringham Park then you will love this book.

Vendetta by Catherine Doyle

This is the first in a thrilling new series from a superbly talented new author and is my other top teen debut of the year. A modern day Romeo and Juliet set amongst the feuding criminal gangs of Chicago. this is a tale of love, power, death and revenge. The story would make an amazing movie with breathtaking action, characters that leap off the page and a love story that will just about break your heart. I cannot wait for the next book.
Sophie thinks the summer is going to be long, hot and deathly dull especially as she and her Mum are coping with her Dad being in prison and having a lot less money as well as being social pariahs, but then not one but five hot boys move into the old abandoned mansion next door. Then Sophie meets Nic Falcone and sparks fly and by the time they learn the truth about each other's family it's too late. Aah just go and buy it okay. 

Author Spotlight

Hello again sorry for the unexpected absence but I have returned with an interview with the lovely Susan Lanigan.  

Susan is the author of the amazing White Feathers one of my favourite books this year.

White Feathers is the tale of Eva Downey, neglected daughter of  an Irish family living in London, bright, bookish and stifled she jumps at the chance to attend a school for young ladies in Kent. Here she learns to express herself, makes friends with the charming Sybil and finds a kindred spirit in teacher Christopher Shandlin. However Christopher is a conscientious objector and using the threat of not sending her beloved sister Grace for life saving medical treatment, Eva's family bully her into presenting him with a white feather, the symbol of cowardice. Eva is devastated and throws herself into war work. The impact of the white feather resounds through the years affecting Christopher, Eva and their families. This is a wonderful novel of love, war, family and duty and for me was one of the outstanding debuts of the year. I cannot wait to see what Susan will write next. If you haven't picked this book up yet then get it for Christmas for yourself or a friend and read it you won't be disappointed.


1. Do you plan your work in detail and then research or does your research spark and inform your ideas?

I tend to use the real events the way Tarzan uses ropes to swing from tree to tree – the real event being the next tree and my story being the ropes between. This is especially helpful in first drafts where the plot is coming into shape. For the first draft of White Feathers, I did a month of research and jotted down some notes, but it was hard to know exactly where I was going until I wrote it, and during that draft, the direction changed. There was a character who was only supposed to have one scene but he came in and utterly stole the show, and my heart, so he became a protagonist.

The real events stayed as absolutes. You can’t just move the battle of Loos…though I’m sure the many people who were butchered in that pointless caper would wish otherwise.

2. Do you think historical fiction is enjoying a resurgence and why is that?

At the most basic level – this would be my guess – historical fiction often focuses around dramatic events. This means that things happen, which is good for plot! The greater power struggles also provide a magnifying glass for the meaner, smaller ordinary abuses of power that take place. White Feathers is organised around an individual act of emotional violence that is perpetrated in the wake of a massive historical event, World War I. Everything is on a bigger scale, more dramatic.


3.What draws you to writing about the past?

I write about the past so that I can write aslant about the present. In one part of the book I have a character, Lucia, urging Eva, the protagonist, to “sing it straight” – that’s an operatic term which means without adornment or affectation.

Also the more I got into the characters’ minds, the more irritated I became with the idea that “we in the present” know so much better. What nonsense. These people are intelligent! They know what’s going on.

I have my characters battle emotional and physical violence because I see how power works, then and now. Although I am not writing about Ireland, the cruelty we Irish have inflicted on our own who in any way “let the side down”, or were different, kindles rage in my heart. Anger fires me. Love may light a candle in the darkness, but anger will plug you into the entire National Grid.

4. Do you have a typical writing day?

I never work in the mornings, mostly because all through drafts 1-4 of White Feathers, I had a job and all my energy was focused on getting out the door on time. The fifth draft was done with my editor and I took time out of the workplace for that.

I do everything from Dropbox so it won’t get lost. There is always a ritual to Opening the File. The time between my sitting down to write and Opening the File can be a good half an hour. This is not the fault of Dropbox.

I never work in silence. I always, always, listen to music. Characters have songs. Events have songs. I’m a very aural person.

5. What are you working on now?

Two stories are fighting each other: one is about the Sudetenland and a dangerous romance. The first draft is three quarters done. However a particular individual in White Feathers very much wants her own story and is staking her claim. She is a demanding but charming muse, and difficult to resist.

Friday Feature Author Caroline Sandon

Caroline's debut novel Burnt Norton now available in paperback from Head of Zeus is based on her own home and it's fascinating past. 

THE NOVEL
Gloucestershire, 1731. When his youngest son is killed in a tragic accident, Sir William Keyt, master of Norton House, busies himself in his fortune. The building of a second mansion on his grounds defies expense
and denies mortality; an emblem of the Keyt name for generations to come. Keyt can tolerate no obstacle to his desires - including his eldest son's love for a young maidservant. Molly Johnson has captured the heart of the heir to Norton House, dividing the household and the family she serves. Driven mad with lust and jealousy, Keyt sets about to destroy Molly's honour and her spirit, breaking the heart of his son, and ultimately, bringing about the ruin of his family. When the worlds above and below stairs collide, a family is destroyed, and a once-grand house is reduced to rubble. This is the tragic story of Burnt Norton.

THE AUTHOR
Caroline Sandon won her first national poetry competition at ten years old and from that moment dreamt of being a writer. Her life however took a different turn. At eighteen she began a law degree and only a
year later got married. She left the law to become a model working for many years in the fashion industry. As her family grew she moved on from modelling and founded an interior design company working on many
great and grand houses in England. In 1753 what remained of Burnt Norton and its grounds was bought by
Caroline’s husband’s ancestor Sir Dudley Ryder, Lord Chief Justice and the first Baron Harrowby. It has remained in their family’s ownership for over 250 years. Caroline has lived and raised her family there for 15
years. Burnt Norton is her debut novel.

Caroline's Five Favourite Books

Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre

Irene Nemirovsky, Suite Francaise

Isabelle Allende, The house of Spirits

Daphne Du Maurier, Frenchman’s Creek

Nicholas Evans, The Horse Whisperer.

Caroline's Top Writing Tips.



1.   In my humble way I try to follow the example of Ernest Hemingway. “If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows” I will write a long, wordy paragraph, finish it and then I will go back again and delete anything unnecessary. You must always allow the reader to use his or her imagination.



2.  Don’t write when you are exhausted or when you have writers block. Go away from your work, close your computer and come back to it refreshed. Sometimes it may take days but it doesn’t matter, start something else.



3.  Learn your punctuation and try to avoid spelling mistakes.
When you are sending your manuscript to a publisher they will be annoyed if it is littered with mistakes. They see hundreds of manuscripts; remember yours will need to stand out.


4. Nicholas Evans who wrote the Horse Whisperer told me to always start my story with a bang. You need to capture your audience within the first ten minutes otherwise they might put the book down and move on to another. The first chapter is the most important. In my novel ‘Burnt Norton’ Nick told me to move the carriage accident to the first chapter. I followed his advice.



5. A novelist girlfriend told me to make a plan of each character. Chart the colour of their hair, their eyes, their eating habits, their likes and dislikes. In other words get to know your characters, love them or hate them. I really disliked Dorothy Keyt, and this made her become real.

Q&A



1. Do you plan the story first and then do the research or does reading and research spark ideas?

To a certain extent I plan my novel and research my subject, but the research continues at every stage. As my characters develop, the story changes, obviously keeping within the historical parameters. New research throws up different ideas, different solutions.

2. Do you think historical fiction is enjoying a resurgence and why is that?


I am sure it is. More and more people are fascinated by the past, it draws us and why not?
It is a different world with different surroundings, but the characters live, think and breathe in much the same way as we do today.

3. What draws you to writing about the past?


I am intrigued by the past, what people wore, what they ate, what formed their opinions. I let my imagination take me into the past. In Burnt Norton Sir William Keyt burnt himself to death in the new mansion he had just completed on our lawn. What drove this man to make his greatest achievement his funeral pyre?

4. Do you have a typical writing day?


No I do not. It depends if I am on a creative roll. On those days I will write continuously, sometimes till four in the morning to the annoyance of the rest of my family who are food deprived and conversation deprived!!


5. What are you working on now?


My third novel ‘One More Day’. Even though it is in the first stages of creation I am very excited about it. My second novel Alessandra’s War is still in the editing process! Burnt Norton is out on the shelves and the screenplay for a four part television drama is being completed by Lynn Bointon.

The Visitors by Rebecca Mascull

This is my second post this week about Rebecca Mascull as I featured an interview on Monday Read the interview here. I hope to see a lot more from this author in future as I firmly believe she is one to watch. The Visitors is a wonderful and unique historical novel as it transports the reader not only to a different time and place but to an entirely new sensory experience, this is because the heroine is a deaf-blind girl born in the late Victorian era. Adeliza grows up on her father's hop farm and although she is born with some sight and hearing by the time she is three she is blind deaf and mute. She is locked inside her own head, feeling her way in the world, her only defender is her dear father, her mother has taken to her bed heartbroken after many miscarriages and the tragedy of Adeliza's disability. The servants find her hard work and are often rough. Adeliza is driven by basic needs hunger, thirst, tiredness. But she is not alone in her head she has the visitors; spirits who talk to her, trapped by their frustrations and unfinished business. When Adeliza is six she finds Lottie who teaches her to finger spell, finally allowing Liza to discover language and to interact with the world. From this moment on Liza learns everything she can like a sponge and so begin her adventures in love, war, learning, friendship and the truth about the visitors. I don't want to give away the whole story, this is not a long book but it is an utterly absorbing one and Rebecca's writing style is poetic and enchanting. If you enjoy top notch historical fiction like Lori Baker's The Glass Ocean and Elizabeth Gifford's Secrets of the Sea House then you will love this book.

Thanks to Francine Toon of Hodder who sent me a copy of this book. The Visitors is available in paperback from July 17th 

The Glass Ocean

Lori Baker who has won awards for her short stories is set to be a major literary star. Her first novel is a strange and dreamy tale of flame haired six foot two orphan girl Carlotta Dell’Oro. Carlotta’s tale begins as she sets out on a new adventure in a new land. She is the author of her own beginnings of how her parents met and their individual stories. Through her young narrator Lori Baker presents fascinating characters and recreates a Victorian world of stuffed animals, sea voyages, insatiable thirst for knowledge, creaking houses stuffed to the brim with clutter and a marriage of misunderstanding. Carlotta’s parents are thrown together by circumstance and they are distant both from each other and from their child. She grows up neglected and alone in a house full of curiosities from all over the world brought back from her grandfather’s travels and the glass which her father works in a constant search for perfection. This is a beautifully written novel full of loss and longing which can be summed up in Carlotta’s observation “It is interesting …how we always think most about the one who has gone away…and least about the one who has remained…” P.192.

Thanks to Stacey Bartlett of The Bookseller for the opportunity to read and review this title.

The Secrets of the Sea House

Elizabeth Gifford’s debut novel is an enthralling piece of storytelling set in the remote and beautiful Outer Hebrides and featuring family secrets, folklore and mystery. Ruth and Michael have bought the Sea House in Scarista, once the manse and home of the local minister, they want to renovate it and provide accommodation for tourists. Ruth’s heritage is Scottish though she grew up mostly in care in London after her mother’s death. As soon as work begins there is a grim discovery; the skeleton of a baby found beneath the floorboards, a baby with its legs fused together, a mermaid baby.

Ruth remembers the tales of mermaids from the islands that her mother told her and now she has two mysteries to solve; the origins of the baby and her own Island heritage. She discovers the notebooks of a minister who lived in the manse in the 1860s Reverend Alexander Ferguson; he was also interested in the mermaid folklore of the islands. Alexander’s story and that of his maid Moira are then interspersed with Ruth’s throughout the rest of the novel.

Elizabeth Gifford’s writing is poetic and haunting. The dual-time narrative is a device used here to great effect and the plot is well paced. This is a heartfelt story and a real page turner. Fans of historical fiction, folklore and Scotland will all enjoy this wonderful debut. Elizabeth Gifford is writer to watch.

Secrets of the Sea House will be published by Corvus on 6th August 2013.

The Herbalist by Niamh Boyce

 Niamh Boyce writes poetry and short stories, she won the Hennessey XO New Writers Award 2012 and has been shortlisted in the Francis McManus and Molly Keane awards among others. The Herbalist is her debut novel. The novel tells the story of four women in Ireland in the 1930s; Emily, Sarah, Carmel and Aggie whose lives are changed by the arrival in their small midlands town of an exotic herbalist. The women are all spellbound and excited to try out the herbalist's lotions and potions. 

Carmel is recovering from the loss of her baby and hopes that the herbalist's tonics will give her back her lust for life and help her have another baby. Sarah is a clever young woman forced to become a shop assistant and desperate to escape the town before her secret is discovered. Aggie is the town prostitute, living alone on the edge of town drinking herself to death and making predictions for women's futures. Emily is a young girl who falls for the charms of the exotic stranger only to discover that he has a darker side.

This is a wonderfully written exploration of women's lives in a time of narrow choices. Richly peopled with believable characters and beautifully constructed. The interweaving stories sit perfectly together and the pace never flags. While rural mid century Ireland is not new territory for writers Niamh Boyce approaches it with a fresh eye and her interest in women's lives and women's history shines through.

The Herbalist is published by Penguin Ireland and is available now in Trade Paperback.

Thank you to Cliona Lewis at Penguin Ireland for sending me an early reading copy.

Never Forget By Lisa Cutts

Never Forget is the first in a thrilling new detective series from a British author who is an experienced and serving police officer. The detective in question is DC Nina Foster who is drafted in to her first murder investigation after a young woman is found brutally stabbed. As the victims mount up so do the suspects and it soon appears that the crimes are linked to Nina’s own past and a traumatic event in her childhood. The action is fast and well paced, the characters interesting and believable and the storytelling is gripping. Lisa Cutts is a talented writer and she brings to life the reality of the Major Incident Room, the witty banter, the relentless paperwork and the genuine hard graft of real policing. Nina is a great character fond of a drink and often a disaster on the romance front and when the killer seems to be coming ever closer to home she proves herself a worthy heroine. I know this will appeal to a lot of crime fans who want to know more about the reality of crime investigation. Perfect for fans of Cath Staincliffe and Elizabeth Haynes.

Originally reviewed for http://www.welovethisbook.com/
Never Forget will be publised by Myriad Editions on July 11th and will be available in paperback and e-book formats.

A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea by Dina Nayeri

This is a wonderfully atmospheric and enchanting piece of storytelling in the tradition of Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns and Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis. Saba is a bright, brave and believable protagonist who is brutally and suddenly separated from her twin sister and her mother at the age of ten just as the Islamic Revolution in Iran was at its height. Saba and her father are Christians who move to their summer home in a small village in the North to escape the ever present dangers in Tehran. Surrounded by village women who become substitute mothers and by her friends Reza and Ponneh, Saba grows up cherished and a little spoiled but the loss of her twin sister Mahtab is so hard to accept that she invents a parallel life for her in America recounting the episodes of Mahtab’s journey through high school, dating and finally Harvard, like a modern Scheherazade. However the brutal realities of life for women are never far away and Saba must witness her best friend being beaten for wearing red shoes and a girl in the next village hanged for her involvement with politics. The hand of brutality also casts its shadow on Saba and feeling increasingly trapped in Iran her dreamlike Mahtab stories become increasingly radical. Finally through marriage love and friendship Saba learns to grow up and to move on. Dina Nayeri has written a strong and richly peopled narrative which readers will find hard to put down.

You can also find this review on lovereading.co.uk where I am on the reader reviewing panel
http://www.lovereading.co.uk/book/8382/A-Teaspoon-of-Earth-and-Sea-by-Dina-Nayeri.html