Hannah Fielding's Blog, page 86

Indiscretion – the book trailer

I’m thrilled to be able to share with you today the trailer for my novel Indiscretion, which will publish next week!

Indiscretion Blog Tour: The Secret Writer and Bluestocking’s Place

It’s the final day of the tour, and today you can find me at The Secret Writer: http://thesecretwriterblog.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/indiscretion-blog-tour-stop-official.html



And at Bluestocking’s Place https://ov099.wordpress.com/2015/04/02/feature-indiscretion-by-hannah-fielding/

Indiscretion Blog Tour: Review by Books with Bunny

“If you like your romances filled with smouldering Mediterranean men, secrets and lies, then Indiscretion could be the perfect read for you this Easter.” Today you can read a review of Indiscretion over at Books with Bunny: http://bookswithbunny.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/indiscretion-hannah-fielding-blog-tour.html

 

Andalusian memories

With my new novel out now, what better way to set the mood for this passionate, fiery, epic love story than explorethe beautiful region of Spain in which it is set: Andalusia. I first visited as a young woman, when after university I went travelling around Europe, and since then I have returned several times. For Andalusia is not a place you visit once; it gets under your skin, and calls you back.

In the words of the hero of Indiscretion: 

Andalucia is a blessed place. According to Islamic legend, Allah was asked for five favours by the people of El Andalus – clear blue skies, seas full of fish, trees ripe with every kind of fruit, beautiful women, and a fair system of government. Allah granted them all of these favours except the last … on the basis that if all five gifts were bestowed, the kingdom would become an unearthly paradise.

All I need do is close my eyes to return to this earthly paradise – and I wanted the readers to have the same ability. So I weaved into the book vivid description to really give a feel for Andalusia. To write such detail, I undertook research, but I also relied heavily on my memories, my impressions and the notes I made on my visits to Spain. These are the aspects that most stand out for me, that spring to mind when I think of Andalusia, and that I hope to convey in Indiscretion:

Bright and eye-catching colours: From the Moorish-inspired architecture to floor tiles, from the traditional dress to the blood-red cape in the toreo, from abundant flora and fauna to the very bluest of seas beneath the clearest of skies.
Culture: This is the home of those most famous of Spanish cultural pursuits: flamenco and bullfighting; this is the heartland of the famous Spanish passion; this is where many old cultures assimilate into one, unique, multi-faceted whole. So many wonderful musicians, singers, dancers, film-makers and artists have taken inspiration from the region; one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Picasso, was born and lived and worked here. And, of course, everywhere the influence of the Moors who once ruled Andalusia is evident, in stunning architecture (for more details, see my recent post ‘The Moors of Spain’).
Cuisine:What amazing meals I’ve had in Andalusia! The ingredients are of such a high quality: langostino de Sanlúcar (prawns), jamón serrano and jamónibérico (cured meats), gazpacho (cold soup), alboronía (like ratatouille), and amazing sweets, like the merengadas and amarguillos(biscuits) – all accompanied by a little jerez (sherry) or local wine.
Spirit of the people: Andalusia is an autonomous community, and it is more populated than any other autonomous community. So there are many people who are very proud of their Andalusian nationality. The geographical location of Andalusia, on the south coast with a coastline on both the Mediterranean and Atlantic, has made it a popular place for holidaymakers, and I found a real sense of ‘fiesta’ in the places I visited, and an intensity: as Salvador says in the book: ‘Everything we Andalucians do, we do with intensity.’ Plus the temperate climate makes for such a wonderful life enjoyed in the warmth and beneath glorious blue skies (the dry area of Andalusia enjoys some 300 days of sunshine per year!).

Have you ever been to this region of Spain? Would you like to visit (again)? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Indiscretion Blog Tour: The Best Things about Writing Romance

Today I’m over at Reading in the Sunshine, sharing the five best things, for me, about writing romance novels: https://readinginthesunshine.wordpres...

Indiscretion Blog Tour: Book Babe Q&A

Find out about my new book, Indiscretion, over at Book Babe today… http://wwwbookbabe.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/q-with-hannah-fielding-author-of.html

 

 

 

Indiscretion Blog Tour: My Imaginary Bookshop

Today you can find me over at Writer’s Little Helper describing my imaginary bookshop: http://writerslittlehelper.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/guest-post-hannah-fieldings-imaginary.html



 

Letting the cat out of the bag: On spoilers

Do you ever have a week when synchronicity leads you to keep encountering a term or idea, causing you to stop and give it some thought? This week, I have ‘spoilers’ on the brain.

First, authors accidentally dropping spoilers. One poor author has spoken of her distress when she realised that in a quickly worded comment to a reader of her blog she had given away the big twist at the end of her crime thriller – and before she could remove the spoiler, it was out across the internet. Not ideal, perhaps, but I wonder: perhaps the publicity did not hurt, but helped. After all, how many readers knew already that Dumbledore would not survive The Half-Blood Prince thanks to spoilers galore, but still read the book avidly?

Next we have readers giving away juicy details. I was reading a discussion between a group of authors on the subject of reviews of their books. Spoilers, it was clear, were a big problem: a small number of reviewers had given away plot twists in their reviews without giving fair warning that they were doing so. A little more research uncovered that this is quite a problem in the publishing community. A few of my own readers have included spoilers in their review, but thankfully they’ve always included the ‘Spoiler Alert!’ tag that means a reader who wants to be surprised can still be.

Finally, we come to on-screen adaptions spoiling books. There has been the ongoing debate about the Games of Thrones books versus the television show. Basically, the show has galloped along at such a pace that it’s about to catch up with George RR Martin’s writing – and surpass it. The final season is due to air in two years’ time, before the final two books in the saga, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring.­Readers are up in arms: major plot developments on screen before in print? How can that be when the book was the foundation, the genesis? But this week the show’s co-creator David Benioff said in a talk at the Oxford Union:

‘I kind of wish that there were some things we didn’t have to spoil, but we’re kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place. The show must go on. . .and that’s what we’re going to do.’

What do you think of the spoiler issue? Should there be a bigger outcry? Should a book’s twists be safeguarded more closely? Should you, for example, be able to report a review to Amazon or Goodreads as containing spoilers without the proper warning? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Finally, on the subject of spoiling… Veronica Roth, bestselling author of the Divergent series, has been in the news recently for allowing the producers of the film based on her second book, Insurgent, to depart quite some way from the book itself. The film, according to some fans, has spoiled the story. The author has spoken out about the differences between the film and the book in an interview for Vulture magazine, and it’s an eye-opening account of trying to make a story in words translate to a story in film. Well worth a read if you have a few minutes.

Indiscretion Blog Tour: Long Ago Love

Today I’m hosted over at Long Ago Love: http://historicalromancebooks.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/indiscretion-by-hannah-fielding.html

 

Venice in the Moonlight by Elizabeth McKenna

From the blurb:

After her husband’s untimely demise, Marietta Gatti is banished from the family’s villa by her spiteful mother-in-law. She returns to her hometown of Venice and her only kin—a father she hasn’t spoken to since her forced marriage. Her hope of making amends is crushed when she learns she is too late, for he recently has died under suspicious circumstances. Grief-stricken, Marietta retraces her father’s last night only to discover someone may have wanted him dead—and she may be next. When the prime suspect turns out to be the father of the man she is falling in love with, Marietta risks her future happiness and her life to avenge the death of a man she once hated.

Elizabeth McKenna’s latest novel takes you back to eighteenth century Carnival, where lovers meet discreetly, and masks make everyone equal.

I’ve had this book on my ‘to read’ list for a while now, because I love Elizabeth’s writing and because I adore the setting: Venice. But I put off reading it until now because my last novel, The Echoes of Love, is also set in Venice, and I didn’t want to confuse myself in my writing. I’m so glad I kept hold of the book because I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

There is so much emotion; from the opening, when we encounter the heroine trapped in a loveless and cruel marriage, I was so engaged that I could not put the book down. I very much liked Marietta, and her spirit in striking out alone in a man’s world and trying to seek justice for her father. So much passion and strength of character.

Thank goodness the horrendous husband does not stick around for long in the story, leaving the path clear for Marietta to find someone new – something worthy of her. I really liked Nico, the man she falls in love with. He has steel in him, but his own struggle to fight as well: he is losing his eyesight, and is desperate to seek out a miracle cure.

The Venetian setting is wonderful, so atmospheric and vivid that I could really imagine it in my mind as I read. I adored the use of Carnival masks, those iconic objects of beauty that allow all manner of subterfuge and passion. I also loved the cast of characters in Venice, which felt true to the time, especially Casanova. The Venice of 1753 that the author describes so well comes across as small, claustrophobic even, where everyone knew each other’s business and cunning and debauchery were rife.

Art is important in the narrative. Marietta is distraught when her mother-in-law burns her paintings (a terrible moment), and her poor father had struggled to paint after his wife’s death. I very much enjoyed the references to art; and what better location for a story around art than Venice, which has inspired so many great artists in history?

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and recommend it to those who, like me, love the city of Venice and are swept away by the intrigue and romance of the place, while also having a willingness to look beneath her beautiful, exotic mask to see what lies beneath.

Venice in the Moonlight is available now from Amazon; click on the book cover below to visit the store.