Kath Middleton's Blog, page 3

Changing names

This is the image that inspired the book I'm writing at the moment. I'm calling it The Angel Monument and it's set in 1824-25. I'm getting within sight of writing The End under the first draft.

I belong to a Facebook book club, the UK Crime Book Club, which recently passed the milestone of 5,000 members so we wanted to celebrate. We decided to have a month of fundraising in aid of two educational charities - how great to share our love of reading. They are The Lighthouse School (for autistic children) and  Dyslexia Sparks. Generous authors immediately leapt in with offers of signed books to raise funds for these two causes. As I don't write crime (though I read it!) the readers here are not really my audience. I decided to offer people the chance to have their name - or a relative's - used in this book. I now have a gentleman of mysterious background by the name of Joshua Stevenson, a young lady of honour and intelligence by the name of Caroline Maston, and a boot boy named Alfie Laidler who works in the big house and turns into a bit of a star.

I'm pleased to say that our total so far, after just over a week, is in the region of £700, with another week and a half to go. What an achievement. 

Blog Blitz - The Hammer Falls by Andrew Barrett

PLEASE NOTE, THIS BOOK WAS PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED AS SWORD OF DAMOCLES
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What's it about?

Some secrets, no matter how well buried, refuse to die.

When the remains of a woman are found in a burnt-out car, Eddie Collins reluctantly teams up with his enemy, DI Benson, to untangle the knot of lies behind this apparent suicide.

In the midst of all this, Eddie’s life grows more complicated by the day; his perfect relationship is suffocating him. As a CSI in the Major Crime Unit, he is also being forced to accept a promotion that he doesn’t want, leading a team that he can’t control or tolerate.

Even when the mystery is solved, proving it turns out to be deadly.

My review -

Scenes of Crime expert Eddie Collins is the real star of this novel. His private life is as hopeless as ever and he takes on his dad’s problems too. You know that situation when, an hour or so too late, you think of the great put-down, the witty riposte, but you weren’t fast enough? Eddie Collins is the man. He’s razor sharp and is no respecter of persons and we laugh with him while cringing as we watch him digging the hole deeper. He is also the newly-promoted head of his team and his methods of personnel management and team building are not the usual ones. He is a tragic combination of empathy and temper.
 
Eddie tackles a murder on his patch but he finds a connection with an unsatisfactory verdict of thirty years ago. His methods are irregular but as he’s meticulous and the best at the job, he finds the evidence from which the detectives solve their cases. The story lines weave together very well and the interplay between the characters is a delight. The ending knocked me over. I really love the complexity of these stories and I hope we’ll hear more from Eddie in the future. This story could be read as a stand-alone although it forms part of a superb series. Hard-hitting and imaginative, this book is an absolute cracker.

About the author -

​Andy has enjoyed variety in his professional life, from engine-builder to farmer, from Oilfield Service Technician in Kuwait, to his current role of Senior CSI in Yorkshire.
He’s been a CSI since 1996, and has worked on all scene types from terrorism to murder, suicide to rape, drugs manufacture to bomb scenes. One way or another, Andy’s life revolves around crime.
In 1997 he finished his first crime thriller, A Long Time Dead, and it’s still a readers’ favourite today, some 200,000 copies later, topping the Amazon charts several times. Two more books featuring SOCO Roger Conniston completed the trilogy.
Today he is still producing high-quality, authentic crime thrillers with a forensic flavour that attract attention from readers worldwide. He’s also attracted attention from the Yorkshire media, having been featured in the Yorkshire Post, and twice interviewed on BBC Radio Leeds.
He’s best known for his lead character, CSI Eddie Collins, and the acerbic way in which he roots out criminals and administers justice. Eddie’s series is four books and two short stories in length, and there’s still more to come.
Andy Barrett is a proud Yorkshireman and sets all of his novels there, using his home city of Leeds as another major, and complementary, character in each of the stories.

Where can I find the book?

The Hammer Falls is available from Amazon uk here and from Amazon dot com here. 

Blog Tour: Blue Murder by Mark L Fowler

About the book -

Fame. Fortune. Murder.
 
 
April 2003. Johnny and the Swamp Seeds are on the cusp of success when singer Johnny Richards goes missing. The body of a young man is found in the local canal.
But the dead man is not Johnny Richards.
DCI Jim Tyler leads the investigation into the brutal murder of Adam Lane, ex band member and friend of Richards since schooldays. Is the disappearance related? Is Richards alive or dead? Was he responsible for the death of his friend?
DS Danny Mills has concerns for DCI Tyler. The demons from Tyler’s past have caught up with him, threatening to tip him over the edge. Meanwhile, news of the singer’s disappearance has gone viral, sending the band to the top of the charts and turning a national spotlight on the case. Tyler is under immense pressure and Mills can see the cracks spreading.
Will Tyler and Mills find out what happened to Johnny Richards, and who killed Adam Lane – or is catastrophe looming for the stricken detective?

About the author -

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Mark is the writer of the crime series featuring Tyler and Mills. The first book to feature the detectives, RED IS THE COLOUR, was shortlisted for the 2018 Arnold Bennett Book Prize. The second book, BLUE MURDER, can also be enjoyed as a stand-alone novel. 

He is also the author of THE MAN UPSTAIRS, featuring hard-boiled detective Frank Miller, and SILVER, a psychological thriller. Mark's first book, COFFIN MAKER, continues to defy any attempts to categorise it. My review -

The story begins with the callous murder of a young man, and DCI Tyler and DS Mills have the task of discovering who killed him. He used to be in a band which is about to get its big break, but he left to start his university studies. He wrote one of the songs that his erstwhile best friend is claiming authorship of. There’s a tangled web between the young men involved, and two sisters who at various times have been the girlfriends of some of them. These lives and intrigues weave together to make a real knot, and it’s a job and three quarters for Tyler and Mills to untangle it.
 
Mark Fowler had given all these characters a reason to mistrust one another, in some cases even to hate each other. Yet is it enough to murder someone? Someone who wasn’t even in the band any longer? The more questions they ask the tighter the knot becomes. I found this intriguing and at times very exciting as the detectives, whose banter has now become more relaxed, work their way through conflicting evidence. Is anyone telling the truth? A very good read indeed.

You can find the book  here in the UK or here in the US. Mark's Amazon page can be found here.

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Blog Blitz: No Time to Die by Andrew Barrett

About the book -

When CSI Eddie Collins finds a dead woman in his house, he thinks life can’t get any worse, until a violent gang ties his hands together and puts a gun to his head. And this time there’s no way out.

Operation Domino is the investigation into gang boss, Slade Crosby, and his connection to an undercover officer’s death. But tampered evidence kills the investigation’s progress, and with Eddie gone, Slade is in the clear.
There’s only one way to get Slade in cuffs, but it won’t be easy…

​About the author -




Andy has enjoyed variety in his professional life, from engine-builder to farmer, from Oilfield Service Technician in Kuwait, to his current role of Senior CSI in Yorkshire.
He’s been a CSI since 1996, and has worked on all scene types from terrorism to murder, suicide to rape, drugs manufacture to bomb scenes. One way or another, Andy’s life revolves around crime.
In 1997 he finished his first crime thriller, A Long Time Dead, and it’s still a readers’ favourite today, some 200,000 copies later, topping the Amazon charts several times. Two more books featuring SOCO Roger Conniston completed the trilogy.
Today, Andy is still producing high-quality, authentic crime thrillers with a forensic flavour that draw attention from readers worldwide. He’s also attracted attention from the Yorkshire media, having been featured in the Yorkshire Post, and twice interviewed on BBC Radio Leeds.
He’s best known for his lead character, CSI Eddie Collins, and the acerbic way in which he roots out criminals and administers justice. Eddie’s series is four books and two short stories in length, and there’s still more to come.
Andy is a proud Yorkshireman and sets all of his novels there, using his home city of Leeds as another major, and complementary, character in each of the stories.


My review -

In this novel by Andrew Barrett we again meet Scenes of Crime Officer Eddie Collins.  He has stormed out of a crime scene and resigned, and has been recruited to the Major Crimes Unit.  Eddie is his usual self here – irascible, sarcastic, almost permanently angry and yet vulnerable.  He becomes involved in unravelling the deaths of an undercover policeman and his wife and with investigating the murder of one of the local gang members.  There’s unrest in the Crosby gang and there’s a territory fight between them and another local group.  There are sub-plots going on in the background, as you would expect if you’ve read any of the author’s previous work.  The story is sprinkled with clues – it’s up to us to link them together.  As always, Eddie’s heart is in the right place, but acting for someone else’s good results in some heart-breaking scenes.
 
This is an energetic and exciting novel which could easily be read as a stand-alone.  There are some heart-stopping moments here, which I read with a lump in my throat - if you read it you’ll find it hard to forget.  Amongst its other themes, it deals with rape, and its after-effects, and with male domination of women.  Hard topics to read about but as well as food for thought they provide a fast and thrilling story.  The book is at once gruesome and beautiful, containing as it does, violence, tough language, wonderful writing and some very poignant moments.  Amazing contrasts and thrilling highlights make this an utterly absorbing read.

It can be found on Amazon uk here, and on Amazon dot com here and will rush you a mere 99p ($1.31) for a great read.

Andrew's website can be found  here.

PLEASE NOTE, THIS WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED UNDER THE TITLE BLACK BY ROSE.
Personal observation here - in my view, this title change was unnecessary. Black by Rose is a unique book title and gave the reader that wonderful lightbulb moment when the reason for the name became obvious. There are lots of books on Amazon with the new title. Sorry, publishers, you've taken a backward step here.
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Writing Prompts

"How do you think up stories?"
"What inspires you to write?"

I have to say it’s holidays! Both this year and last I came home with a photograph that made me want to tell a story. Last year’s was the grotesque on the archway at Dunster Priory which led to The Novice’s Demon.


​This year it’s a ruined chapel in the grounds of a Teesdale stately home.
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With this one, I wondered why it had fallen into disuse. Many large estates had their own private chapel so the Lord and his family didn’t have to mix with the great unwashed. Without it, they’d have to travel and to worship with their social inferiors. Why did it become so ruined that a tree managed to grow up through it? The walls are standing, but what happened to the roof? And above all, why is there a small carving on the wall depicting three cherubs?


I’ve asked myself a few questions about this over the last day or two, and I’ve come up with an answer. It’s not the true answer, but it’s my answer, and I’ve begun to write it. This is the exciting part of the process. Creation.

Thanks for reading.

Kath

Reviews!

After two weeks in the big, wide world, The Flesh of Trees has gathered a few reviews. These are the lifeblood of writers, keeping them going on future books. Here are a few of the things readers have said.

beautifully crafted, ... A story of woe and a story of hope.

This is a fairy tale with teeth – a story that will make you laugh, cry and cheer in equal quantities. 

the best book yet from versatile author Kath Middleton.... the characters are entirely natural, sympathetically drawn and real.

an original and engaging story full of memorable characters and a lovely ending.

Modern life meets ancient beings from mythology who are defending their land.

this story raised the game, it has everything in it that I love ...

I will never go into a medieval wood again without giving the trees the respect they deserve.


Thank you to all those who have bought the book, and it's especially gratifying to see that some of you really loved it! 

New book - The Flesh of Trees.

​Thanks to my patient friend Jonathan Hill, I have a book cover for The Flesh of Trees. I said 'Left justify the title.' - I still can't tell left from right! How old? I also kept saying 'Move the title down a bit. No, down a bit more!' but finally he produced a great cover from my fleeting ideas. One that we're both very happy with. I thought you might like to see my original photograph from which this was created, so I'm showing you that, too. It's a photograph I took last year in Durham Botanic Gardens on a reunion weekend, so it's got extra memories attached.
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What's the book about - apart from trees? Here's the description -

“Don’t play in the Green Wood. Children disappear in there!”
 
All her life, twelve year-old Sylvie Hummel has heard these words, but still she disobeys her parents and enters the Green Wood. Now she knows what happened to the missing children.
 
Let in on the secret, her cousin Erik also falls under the spell of the forbidden wood. But soon a ruthless forest owner shatters the cousins’ lives, and when he threatens to fell the trees in the Green Wood, he discovers what Sylvie and Erik have long known: these trees have their own protection.


I'm hoping you won't have to wait long for the book itself. It's suitable for anyone whose age is in double figures - even if some of those are very big - like mine!

Blog Tour - The Prole Soldier by Oliver Tidy

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What's the book about?

The Prole Soldier is set in a dystopian near future

Theo lives and works in the Blue Zone of Rainbow City.

He is almost sixteen at which age he will begin four years conscription – military or mines. He wants neither. He hates his life and despises the cruelty, injustice and inequality that prevails.

When the opportunity arises for Theo to be involved in the fight for change he grabs it, knowing that failure will cost him everything.

My review - 

I came to know this author as the writer of crime/mystery/thriller stories. This isn’t so much a change of genre as a widening of the horizons, as there are crimes, thrills and mysteries enough for anyone in here.
 
This rather grim, futuristic story shows how people can be inured to injustice and feel unable to question their lot in life. If they have no rights, and have never had them, they have no belief in their own ability to take their futures in hand and make their own decisions. If they’ve been threatened by external forces and told that their needs are catered for and the authorities are protecting them, they come to believe it. All it takes is one boy with a belief in justice and a hard-won knowledge of the unfairness of the system and things can be changed. Theo is a catalyst for change and the story is totally gripping and has a few heart-stopping moments that I thought he could never come back from. The story ends in a satisfying way, but I’m so glad that this is the first part of a trilogy. I’ll certainly be reading more.
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Who is Oliver Tidy?

​Crime writing author Oliver Tidy has had a life-long love affair with books. He dreams of one day writing something that he could find in a beautifully-jacketed hard-cover or paperback copy on a shelf in a book shop. He’d even be happy with something taking up space in the remainder bin, on a pavement, in the rain, outside The Works.
He found the time and opportunity to finally indulge his writing ambition after moving abroad to teach English as a foreign language to young learners eight years ago.  Impatient for success and an income that would enable him to stay at home all day in his pyjamas he discovered self-publishing. He gave it go. By and large readers have been kind to him. Very kind. Kind enough that two years ago he was able to give up the day job and write full-time. Mostly in his pyjamas.
Oliver Tidy has fourteen books in three series, a couple of stand-alone novels and a couple of short story collections. All available through Amazon (clickable link to Am Author Page). Among his books are The Romney and Marsh Files (British police procedurals set in Dover) and the Booker & Cash novels, a series of private detective tales set in the south of England and published by Bloodhound Books. Oliver is back living on Romney Marsh in the UK. His home. He still wakes in the night from time to time shouting about seeing his books on a shelf in Waterstones.

You can buy The Prole Soldier from  Amazon UK here or from Amazon US here. 

New book - on its way!

Well, blow me down. I seem to have written a Young Adult novel. That's odd, since I wrote it for the entertainment of an old adult - myself! I think when the three main characters are aged between twelve and sixteen throughout two thirds of the book, it necessarily becomes a Young Adult story.

​The three young people, Sylvie, her brother Gregor and their cousin Erik need to think and speak in an age-appropriate manner. That doesn't mean that I, as the author, talk down to them. They came up with some surprisingly adult concepts.
Don't you think there's something mystical about trees? No? Just me, then? They are the biggest living thing that most of us come across in our daily lives. Don't you wonder what's going on in there? Together with the three children, trees are the stars of this story. I'm still in the polishing stage but soon I'll be able to tell you more, and maybe even share the title and cover with you.

Blog Tour - Crossed Out by Malcolm Hollingdrake

What's the book about?

DCI Bennett and his team are back and called to a house in Ripon that has collapsed into a sinkhole where a body is discovered.
Soon old weathered Remembrance Crosses are found dug up. Each one numbered.
DC April Richmond is assigned to help the team due to her impressive biblical knowledge and soon makes a startling discovery.
Meanwhile, Gideon Fletcher is walking around the streets of Harrogate distributing religious texts. Is there a link between Gideon and the crosses? Do the crosses have anything to do with the body in the house?
Bennett and the team find themselves wondering if the killer is exacting revenge or punishment and whatever the answer, they soon realise the clock is ticking.

My review -

When a book starts with missing persons, acid attacks, drugs and bodies, you know you’re in for a tangled tale. Cyril, his team augmented this time by a new girl, April, have their work cut out. April, as Cyril advises, occasionally goes with her gut. He is happy to follow it. His own past is further explored, and his relationship with Dr Pritchett deepens. Altogether, there’s a huge lot going on in here.
 
I really enjoyed this story. When you think you know what’s going on you’re thrown a curve-ball. The whole thing was tied together with biblical quotes as there’s a character who has taken on the task of correcting sinners. This was a complex piece of story-telling with a lot of characters but it all worked for me. A very enjoyable read.


The Author



You could say that the writing was clearly written on the wall for anyone born in a library that they might aspire to be an author but to get to that point Malcolm Hollingdrake has travelled a circuitous route. Malcolm worked in education for many years, even teaching for a period in Cairo before he started writing, a challenge he had longed to tackle for more years than he cares to remember. Malcolm has written a number of successful short stories and has seven books now available as well as Only The Dead and Hell's Gate also being available in Audio.
Presently he is concentrating on a series of crime novels set in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
Born in Bradford and spending three years in Ripon, Malcolm has never lost his love for his home county, a passion that is reflected in the settings for all three novels. Malcolm has enjoyed many hobbies including collecting works by Northern artists; the art auctions offer a degree of excitement when both buying and certainly when selling. It’s a hobby he has bestowed on DCI Cyril Bennett, the main character in his latest novel.

You can find this, and all Malcolm's books, here on his Amazon page, or here if you're in the USA.