What now? Another good book!

And relax! One Step Too Many, the latest Meredith & Hodge novel is now available as an eBook – initial downloads look promising. Antony at Freshly Squeezed has produced a fab full cover for the paperback, and I await the physical proof, so with a fair wind that should also be available in a couple of weeks. Lots of Facebook & Twitter friends are sharing the news, so huge thanks for your kindness, and I must continue with my feeble attempts at promotion. You can buy it HERE by the way     But, promotion aside, here’s the question I’m faced with: What now?

Try as I might, I simply can’t concentrate on any of my writing projects – as you know I usually have at least two on the go, so, if one isn’t working I can get on with the other. It’s disjointed but it works for me. However, at the moment I’m lucky if I can get a sentence down without being distracted, and I have many distractions, Ted, Archie, Molly, (my pups), work, cooking, cleaning, Facebook, Twitter…the list is endless, but that’s always been the case, and it usually helps. I work far better leaving something half done, because it gives me time to re-think it, and when I go back to it it’s all there waiting to come out – whatever the latest distraction. I wrote most of Tin Soldiers with new puppy Molly on my lap. It’s not as though I’m stuck on the storyline, or how a character might react, I simply have an inability to bring it all together at the moment.

My solution? I’m going to read instead! I’m always in the middle of reading something, but where I used to get through several books a month, I’ve probably only read four books in the last six months, and I’m determined to change that. I have a Kindle full of books waiting for me, most by other indie authors who have caught my eye, some by my old and trusted favourites, and some by those who fall in between. I’ve already made a start by reading Diamonds & Dust: A Victorian Murder Mystery by Carol Hedges. What a good choice that was! I ‘met’ Carol on Twitter, she is witty, writes a great blog, and is forever doing battle with Harpenden Town Council.

Diamonds & Dust transports you back to dank, smelly, smoggy, Victorian London. Our heroine Josephine has already had a tough life, and when her uncle is brutally murdered she is devastated. Determined to get to the truth she becomes involved in the investigation. Wonderfully atmospheric, and written in the present tense, you join Josephine observing, and having to overcome, the cruel inequality of class and gender. Refreshingly, rather than deliver clichés, Diamonds & Dust provides us with unlikely bravery and steadfast resolve from some wonderful characters, my particular favourite was Oi. The story is littered with little snippets of humour, which creep in when you are least expecting them and add to the pleasure of an already entertaining story. I had no idea what to expect and was not disappointed, a five star read! I will certainly be adding Carol Hedges to my ‘must read more of’ list.

Go and take a peep – you can find Diamonds & Dust here: http://bookgoodies.com/a/B00H0C9JG2

 Together with another of Carol’s novels, I’m also going to re-read some of my classic favourites, starting with A Kind of Loving by Stan Barstow. This was the first ‘grown-up’ book I can remember reading, probably when I was about thirteen – a kind sixth former borrowed it from the school library for me. Not that Agatha Christie, wasn’t grown-up of course, but Poirot and Marple didn’t get into messy relationships, those leading a working class life were generally only mentioned fleetingly, and they all had a satisfactory or happy ending. I’m keen to see if my memory serves me well. Following that, the other novel I’ve chosen is Lost Boys by Mackenzie Brown, another author I ‘met’ via Twitter. I chose this because the description of the story was short, sharp and intriguing – once more I have no idea what to expect, but will let you know in the fullness of time.

That’s it for now – I’m off to roast a leg of lamb, and then settle down with another good book, and as always will leave you with a picture of the Three Pupperteers, as taken by daughter Ellie, and tweaked with a magic app!

Happy reading,