Jennie Ensor's Blog, page 5

Almost unbelievably, Not Having It All will be my third book in less than two years. (Publisher: Bombshell Books, publication date: 28 May 2019.) I feel a mixture of excitement, stress and occasionally panic as the day nears for NHIA to be opened by unsuspecting readers.

I’m pleased to say that the mood of the book is the total opposite to the dark tones of The Girl In His Eyes. It’s exuberant, upbeat, feisty, a little spicy – and sometimes, I must admit – downright brazen

Almost unbelievably, Not Having It All will be my third book in less than two years. (Publisher: Bombshell Books, publication date: 28 May 2019.) I feel a mixture of excitement, stress and occasionally panic as the day nears for NHIA to be opened by unsuspecting readers.

I’m pleased to say that the mood of the book is the total opposite to the dark tones of The Girl In His Eyes. It’s exuberant, upbeat, feisty, a little spicy – and sometimes, I must admit – downright brazen

Almost unbelievably, Not Having It All will be my third book in less than two years. (Publisher: Bombshell Books, publication date: 28 May 2019.) I feel a mixture of excitement, stress and occasionally panic as the day nears for NHIA to be opened by unsuspecting readers.

I’m pleased to say that the mood of the book is the total opposite to the dark tones of The Girl In His Eyes. It’s exuberant, upbeat, feisty, a little spicy – and sometimes, I must admit – downright brazen

Almost unbelievably, Not Having It All will be my third book in less than two years. (Publisher: Bombshell Books, publication date: 28 May 2019.) I feel a mixture of excitement, stress and occasionally panic as the day nears for NHIA to be opened by unsuspecting readers.

I’m pleased to say that the mood of the book is the total opposite to the dark tones of The Girl In His Eyes. It’s exuberant, upbeat, feisty, a little spicy – and sometimes, I must admit – downright brazen

Almost unbelievably, Not Having It All will be my third book in less than two years. (Publisher: Bombshell Books, publication date: 28 May 2019.) I feel a mixture of excitement, stress and occasionally panic as the day nears for NHIA to be opened by unsuspecting readers.

I’m pleased to say that the mood of the book is the total opposite to the dark tones of The Girl In His Eyes. It’s exuberant, upbeat, feisty, a little spicy – and sometimes, I must admit – downright brazen

An extraordinary novel: review of The Colour Of Bee Larkham’s Murder by Sarah J Harris #bookreview

My decision to write one-par book reviews from now on has been swiftly overturned by The Colour Of Bee Larkham’s Murder. I totally LOVED this book and felt sad on finishing it last week. I bought the novel after seeing the large number of rave blogger reviews last year (great cover too) and listened to it on Audible (by the way, an excellent solo performance by narrator Huw Parmenter).

[image error]The story is told from the pov of a isolated, parakeet-loving 13 year old boy, Jasper with face blindness and synaethesia (he sees colours when he hears things and associates colours with words and numbers) who tries to make sense of the world through his paintings. Jasper’s mother has died of cancer and this has left a huge gap Jasper’s life; at the start of the novel he and his father are struggling to get back to some kind of ‘normality’, and have moved from the south of England to the parakeet paradise of south west London (near Richmond Park).

Jasper’s voice is compelling and the story is riveting, tenderly told and rich with imaginative detail. I loved how people and actions are described via the ‘colour’ of their sounds – eg a dog is ‘Yellow French Fries’, the dour detective questioning Jasper is ‘Rusty Chrome Orange’. In Jasper’s words: ‘I can’t tell people’s faces apart but I see the colour of sounds and that is so much better.’

Jasper tells the story of the strange goings on in Vincent Gardens after the arrival of Bee (not Bea) Larkham, a free-spirited enigma of a young woman, along with a small colony of parakeets which nest in her front garden tree. Both woman and birds disrupt the lives of several residents, especially Jasper’s. He is immediately attracted to the colour of her voice, sky blue, which is close to the cobolt blue that his mother’s voice had. There are two timelines, one starting with her arrival, and the other shortly after her death when Jasper – ‘I can’t stop seeing the colour of murder’ – starts to be questioned by Rusty Chrome Orange.

This is a delicious variation on a murder mystery, but it is far more than that. It’s also a coming of age novel that explores the relationship between father and ‘differently abled’ son, the relationships that develops between Jasper and Bee Larkham, and between Jasper and other neighbours.

Through much of TCOBLM the reader is kept guessing about who caused the demise of Bee Larkham, and for what purpose – we see everything through Jasper’s eyes and along with Jasper we try to piece together the clues.

As the plot twists towards its dramatic denouement, the story becomes more and more unsettling and compelling – a definite 5 stars for the most original book I’ve read in a very long time.

How far can a comedy go? Getting my next book ready for publication

It’s been a while since my last post, as much of my energy lately has been directed to getting my upcoming book (NOT HAVING IT ALL: A brazen comedy about the perils of midlife) ready for publication. Alongside this I’ve been musing on my next novel (radically different from this one, of course), writing a few short stories, reading what I can and rehearsing for singing in two concerts.

The cover and blurb has been agreed on (for your amusement, below is one of my early cover ideas sent to the designer – actual one is under wraps for now), the blog blitz is being sorted, and yesterday I managed to send off the post-copyedit MS to be proofed and formatted.[image error]

Although it’s exciting to be sending my novel out into the world (two months to go!) and I can’t wait to find out what everyone thinks of it, I feel rather folorn at ending the close relationship I’ve enjoyed with my characters. (Much easier than real life relationships, it has to be said.) While they are certainly not angels, I’ve grown very fond of them all: the irascible, intolerant Kurt, old-fashioned therapist Mr Rowley whose latest patient Maddie is the most challenging of his career, risk-fearing insurance manager Col who works at the UK’s No. 1 Pussy Insurer, ditzy Allie who’s regretting her new life on a farm in the Australian outback – and last but not least, scientist mum Bea, who’s regularly distressed by the demands of her chauvinistic boss (the Prof), her aforementioned husband Kurt, their daughter Fran (the naughtiest little girl in Godalming) and their word-imperfect ex- au pair Katie and dog Big Ears (the naughtiest dog in Godalming).

Then there’s an extensive cast of minor characters (fewer have names now though, after I received a comprehensive style sheet from my copyeditor):

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How far can a comedy go? How brazen is brazen?

A question that’s been on my mind somewhat while making the last changes to my novel. Mindful of potentially alienating large swathes of people (Scots, Turks, Australians, Muslims, lesbians… to name just a few) I’ve tweaked a few sections. However, given that NOT HAVING IT ALL will be described on the cover as a ‘brazen comedy’, I reckon I have licence to go a bit further than most ‘serious’ books. So there’s still plenty of stuff left that is bound to upset a few people…

Plus there’s plenty of ‘OMG, can I really leave that in?’ bits, especially relating to spycams and sex toys! (I’ve been wondering what Mr E will make of the book.) Also wondering about the end result of my requests for various emojis (such as those below) and character-specific fonts and colours.

 

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I had so much fun writing this book, and hope that readers will have almost as much fun reading it!! This is my first (possibly last) foray into the genre of comedy. In contrast to my previous book The Girl In His Eyes, this novel is very much ‘uplit’ (uplifting, feelgood in case you’ve not come across the term), though there’s definitely a serious side, such as childlessness, workplace ethics, equality between men and women, and insider fraud. Like my last book, this one also has elements of family drama –  and unlike my last book, a sprinkling of romantic comedy.

One last thing. The book launch (for the paperback) will be held two weeks after the 28 May publication date, on 7-9pm 11 June 2019 at a Waterstones bookshop (London – Crouch End), I’m very pleased to say.  It will be a public event with limited seats, bookable in advance. I’ll do my best to make it a memorable evening, in a good way. More details later on.

Oh, nearly forgot. Here’s the official back cover blurb for Not Having It All.

Neuroscientist Bea Hudson fears she is a bad mother and that her career will be thwarted by family life. When her husband suspects Bea of having an affair with her best friend, a chain of events is triggered, leading to a crisis in Bea’s life.

Bea Hudson, a neuropsychologist living in Godalming, is struggling to cope with the challenging behaviour of her obsessive husband Kurt and their disruptive four-year-old daughter Fran. On top of this, her boss is pressuring her to get results from her research. Bea has her work cut out.

Things come to a head when Kurt goes away on an extended business assignment. While sacking staff and drinking heavily, Kurt’s insecurities run amok and he becomes convinced that Bea’s close friend Madeleine is seducing his wife and unduly influencing his daughter.

Meanwhile, childless artist Madeleine sees her friend torn between the demands of work and looking after Fran, and offers to help with Fran. But when she reveals a startling desire to her unsympathetic therapist Mr Rowley, he advises her to focus on the attention of Colin, a man she met in a lift.

Can Bea survive the demands of her career and the turmoil in her marriage without having a breakdown? Can Madeleine survive Kurt’s anger and find happiness with Colin? And can love survive marriage, middle-age, alcohol and ambition?

  Not Having It All is about a scientist torn between her stalling career and the demands of her family. With themes of trust, deception and obsession, it is a mercilessly playful take on modern friendships, relationships and family life.

 

 

Books I’ve read lately…

Welcome to my occasional posts discussing my recent reads – usually either particularly enjoyed books, or those that left a big impression on me. I’d recommend them all.

The Girl in the Letter by Emily Gunnis

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Published August 1st 2018 by Review

The Girl in the Letter was one of my favourite books of 2018 – listens, at first, only I switched to the Kindle version when I found myself constantly going back to previous sections to try to work out what was going on. Reading was so much easier than listening given the structure of the novel, with sections from the present day back to the 1960s, and multiple third person POV characters, some of whom don’t return and some who become important characters. Once I got into it though, this novel totally did it for me.

By the time I actually read it, I’d forgotten the blurb so had no idea what was coming. It seemed at first to be more of a historical mystery, then the suspense ramped up and it veered towards a crime thriller. (Though there are a few rather grisly moments, be warned, when certain characters meet their untimely ends. There’s also some highly atmospheric descriptions of nasty things happening in dark, murky, confined spaces…)

The novel’s subject matter is the dreadful treatment of unmarried mothers in ‘mother and baby homes’ run by priests and nuns in the 1960s, and the exploitation of those within for spurious purposes. The Girl In The Letter is centred around the fictional St Margaret’s Mother and Baby Home in Sussex; the author’s note suggests that institution she describes was inspired by actual ones which were commonplace in the UK as well as in Ireland.

Samantha is the main character in the present-day sections, a journalist hungry for a story that will lift her career past her death-knocking tabloidy job. She’s a battler, a more-or-less separated mum, living with her Nan and trying to look after her small daughter. Sam finds herself embroiled in a mystery when she discovers some letters at her Nan’s written by an Ivy, the ‘girl in the letter’. In them, Ivy begs her baby’s father to get her out of the hell hole of the mother and baby home she’s been incarcerated in – she was forced to work in the laundry after her mother can’t afford to pay the home’s fees, and to give her baby up for adoption.

Why the letters are at Sam’s Nan’s is part of the mystery, which is eventually revealed. As I read the last half of the book, I found myself impatient to find what was really happening, and the significance of certain characters and events. The Girl In The Letter skillfully utilizes the art of delayed gratification – the poor reader is kept hanging on for as long as possible!

I found the combination of in-depth characterisation and vivid descriptions compelling, to say the least. Emily Gunnis has the gift of making you care about her characters, and transporting the reader into her scenes. The descriptions of the nuns’ cruel treatment of the young women incarcerated within St Margaret’s was hard at times to read (especially the horrors of giving birth without sterile instruments, stitches, painkillers, etc). But for me, knowing that this kind of thing may well have happened made the book even more powerful. At times I yelled out in horror and outrage at what the characters had to endure, it felt so real!

Emily Gunnis has created an ingenious, twisty, dramatic and highly emotive debut novel that doesn’t flinch from exploring the psychological impact of the crimes committed in the name of religion and later covered up. It also reflects on who should be held responsible for the crimes committed in such places – the nuns and priests who were running the homes, or the adopting parents, doctors, social workers and everyone else who facilitated/turned a blind eye to what was going on? HIGHLY recommended.

Valentina by S.E. Lynes

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Published August 13th 2018 by Bookouture (and in 2016 by Blackbird)

First of all, I loved this book and will no doubt be reading all of S.E. Lynes’ novels at some point!

As the blurb says, the plot concerns a former career woman, Shona who is persuaded to move into a remote cottage in Scotland with her newish partner Mikey and their baby girl. Unfortunately, she finds out her partner is going to be away for long periods working on an oil rig. Then she meets the (at first) pleasantly distracting, elusive and rather enticing Valentina, who is a most welcome companion and antidote to the smothering isolation of the Aberdeen countryside.

Shona thinks she has the perfect relationship and the perfect family, which will withstand anything. But as Valentina slowly takes up residence in her life, the reader begins to guess that perhaps nothing could be furthest from the truth.

I enjoyed very much the deft way in which this story is told, with the ominous foreshadowing of a terrible ending, and first-person sections from both Shona and, later on, Valentina, which let the reader know more than Shona about what’s really going on. The novel has several plot surprises as it moves towards its high-drama ending. The ground is well laid though and even the somewhat unlikely scenario described at the end felt believable.

For me, apart from the wonderful sense of place, isolation and the eerie atmosphere of the cottage that is – and the great dialogue, I should add – the strongest element of the novel is the changing relationship between the two women. Lynes has nailed the complicated nature of female friendship with all its nuances, insecurities and paranoid moments.

Beautiful by Anita Waller

Published August 31st 2015 by Bloodhound Books

[image error]I found Beautiful thought provoking and at times disturbing – also, very well written. At the start we’re introduced to a small girl who’s been brutally sexually attacked by a stranger. Her parents who do their best to help her heal from her terrible psychological injuries. (There’s a minimum of explicit description thankfully.) I was pulled in from the start and had to find out what happens to her. The characters are well developed, the dialog convincing. There are some quite chilling moments from early on and a great twist later… (There are some annoying formatting issues in the version I read – the section breaks have not been marked.)

I have to say that I was shocked and quite disturbed by the ending – it certainly made a deep impression on me. The novel explores themes of responsibility and revenge. To what extent can we hold someone responsible for the crimes they commit, when they themselves have been deeply hurt by the crimes of others?

Highly recommended if you can take a novel that deals with dark subject matter – and doesn’t pull its punches!

Other books I’ve enjoyed lately: Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty (interested to see the TV version) and Don’t You Dare by AJ Waines.

Before I go, THE GIRL IN HIS EYES e-book is now discounted on Amazon for a limited time to 99p/99c (it’s also available on Kindle Unlimited). So, if you’re into chilling psychological suspense and haven’t bought TGHIE yet, this could be a good time to snap it up! Local Amazon store: http://hyperurl.co/0cx7pa

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#Bookreview Odette by @jessicaduchen

Book info

Publisher: Unbound Digital
Publication Date: December 2018
Author: Jessica Duchen

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Blurb

When a swan crashes through her window at the height of a winter storm, journalist Mitzi Fairweather decides to nurse the injured bird back to health. But at sunset, the swan becomes a woman.

This unexpected visitor is Odette, the swan princess – alone, adrift and in danger in 21st-century Britain, entirely dependent on the kindness of strangers. Bird by day, human by night, and with no way to go home, she remains convinced, to Mitzi’s distress, that only a man’s vow of eternal love can break her spell.

Mitzi is determined to help Odette, but as the two try to hide the improbable truth, their web of deception grows increasingly tangled. Can they find a way to save Odette before it’s too late?

My thoughts

Odette enchanted and captivated me from the first page to the last. This novel is a brilliant blend of fantasy and reality, I thought. It combines a coming-of-age tale with a love story and is also a truly zeitgeisty fable for our dark and uncertain times. I can’t think of a book quite like it.

The plot is a sort of meta-take on Swan Lake the ballet, and I spent a while wondering how it would diverge from the plot of Swan Lake. Right from the start, the events are simultaneously utterly surreal and yet grounded in the ordinariness of English life, making it a compelling read.

A swan crashes through Mitzi’s window during a storm, and is injured. She feels it’s her duty to help the swan, taking it to the vet and giving it shelter in her flat. Then suddenly, to Mitzi’s considerable consternation, the swan goes to the bathroom and emerges as a beautiful young woman who says she is a Russian princess called Odette – long ago she was turned into a swan (from dawn to dusk) by an evil Baron. So far, so weird. But Mitzi has to accept this bizarre story as it’s the only thing which fits all the facts. Frightened, confused and wondering if she’s going crazy, she decides to help this ‘swan girl’ settle into human life in 21st century England.

Mitzi is a well drawn, likeable character, an ambitious, serious-minded young woman, kind-hearted who’s somewhat wary of love. She’s a stagnating reporter on the local rag interested in reporting the news that gets left off the front pages (such as the exploitation of illegal immigrants).

Odette the swan girl, effectively a refugee from Siberia, knows nothing about modern life in Cyngford (a university town that sounds much like Cambridge) or modern customs such as dancing sans partner or e-books, and must fend off the local anti-immigrant yobs, suspicious neighbours and police – and the other swans when she flies around during the day because she is a Bewick’s not a mute. Unfortunately, she is attracted to Mitzi’s girl-a-week brother, and wonders if he may be the one who can help her to break the Baron’s spell by pledging his eternal love. Meanwhile Mitzi is trying to keep Odette from being arrested and wondering if she can trust the new man in her life…

The novel contains a couple of well executed twists towards the end. The ending is just fabulous and left me with tears in my eyes.

Odette is set in the weeks leading up to Christmas. With its themes of magic and transformation – in all senses of the word – it’s a perfect book for Christmas, indeed any time of year. Bravo, Jessica Duchen!

P.S. Odette the ballet is on soon in London, performed by the English National Ballet. I’m going to watch it with a particular interest this year! (there may be a few tickets left)

 

Top Tips For Surviving Christmas, my favourite books of 2018 & other seasonal musings

This is my Christmas and New Year blog post all rolled into one. If you should detect an oddly manic undercurrent, it’s induced by writing this at 5.30am this morning while contemplating all the Christmas cards I’ve not yet sent, presents not yet bought, domestic tasks not yet done, tax forms not yet completed, Facebook posts not read, Tweets not written, friends I haven’t phoned… and a blog post to write.

One thing I have been doing lately is writing my next novel (no. 4). After much mulling, plotting and replotting, I’ve taken the plunge and started the writing proper. I’ve been trying to write every morning, even during my recent holiday to a lush island with my husband, an unexpected source of inspiration. I hope to get this novel well underway before I take a break early next year to finish the edits of Book 3, a darkly comic family drama (to be published by Bombshell Books in May 2019).

[image error]One of the many beautiful flowers seen on holiday recently

As it seems to be the time of year for compiling lists of favourite books and whatever, here’s a couple of mine:

My most enjoyed books of 2018

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Note these are selected from the books I read this year, not necessarily published this year, and aren’t in any order.

Dangerous Crossing by Rachel Rhys
Valentina by S.E. Lynes
Odette by Jessica Duchen
The Girl in the Letter by Emily Gunnis
Don’t You Dare by AJ Waines
Sal by Mick Kitson
Duplicity by Sibel Hodge
He Said/She Said by Erin Kelly
Eleanour Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
Bellevue Square by Michael Redhill

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Books I’m most looking forward to reading

Over My Shoulder by Patricia Dixon
The Perfect Friend by Barbara Copperthwaite
The Proposal by S.E. Lynes
Malignant by Anita Waller
Echo Hall by Virginia Moffat
Keep You By My Side (and A Time to Change) by Callie Langridge
The Uninvited by J.A. Baker
The Lingering by S.J.I. Holliday
Sister, Psychopath by Maggie James
The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor
The Optician’s Wife by Betsy Reavley
The Fear by C.L. Taylor
The Attic Room by Linda Huber
The Tall Man by Phoebe Locke
The Doll Collector by Joanna Stephen-Ward
Maria in the Moon by Louise Beech
She Lies Hidden by C.M. Stephenson
Ripples on the Pond by Sebnem E. Sanders
Love Bites by Elena Kaufman
Fukishima Dreams by Zelda Rhiando
The Doll House by Phoebe Morgan

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To cheer up anyone else suffering from Festive Fractiousness, here’s my

Top Tips For Surviving Christmas

Tell your family, friends and loved ones that you’re not going to enter into any acrimonious discussions or joy-sapping arguments about domestic or political matters, especially B****t. Your home will be a haven of serenity and contentment for the duration of the festivities.
Greet all incursions with silence or a patient smile, or both.
Tell everyone you have become a strict atheist and on principle you will not be partaking in any socially-enforced, consumer-driven mass celebrations.
Withdraw to the shed/bathroom/office for some deep breathing.
If all of the above fail, set off alone to a remote hideaway with your favourite food and drink, and lots of books.

On Saturday evening I sang in a Christmas concert at Emanuel Church in West Hampstead (London).

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The choir:

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I’ll be heading to the French Pyrenees for Christmas and the first days of the new year, but this time with a larger than usual family gathering as my brother and his partner will be joining us, plus our dog. I wonder how we will all get on –– and where we will all sleep (the house is large but not that many bedrooms).

I must go and post some cards… Wishing you a contented, peaceful, inspirational and (at least occasionally) joyful rest of December and 2019.