Tag: Reading Between the Lines

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Books Reviews

A Gentle Nudge

I’m delighted to take part in the blog tour for:

A Gentle Nudge by Mason Bushell.

The blog tour is organised by the lovely Lynsey Adams of Reading Between the Lines.

About the Book

Stories to soothe your soul.

In a world drowning in negativity and dark events, we all need a little light and hope. With a little adventure, romance and even music, these short stories will give your hopes and dreams a nudge as they draw a smile.

A Gentle Nudge by Mason Bushell wraps you in calm.

LINKS TO BUY 

About the Author

Author Mason Bushell, is a naturalist, chef and writer from Norfolk in the UK. He loves nothing more than to write among the trees, near his home. He is an avid short story writer and is always working with his characters unless Lucy Dog steals his laptop for a walkies!

My Review

I’m sure many people have occasional days when they feel overwhelmed by events and only want to escape the real world with a book. What sort of book do you read in those circumstances? I’ve found romances to be eminently suitable for the purpose. But having read this book of short stories, I think they are just as good. The advantage of short stories over a novel is that the reader can dig into a story whenever they have a few minutes free, and never lose the thread or forget which character is which.

The stories in this collection are sweet. Some include romance; others involve children and animals. Sometimes disaster strikes, but I hope I’m not giving anything away when I say all the stories have happy endings.

The characters in these tales are kind. They often go beyond all expectations to help people in need of support. When bad characters appear, they always get their just deserts. The stories provide satisfaction.

The real world, as we know, is not always like this. It would probably be correct to say it’s not usually like this. But the world of these stories is one we should aspire to. If the real world were like this, we wouldn’t need these stories. As it is not, we very much do.

Categories
Books Reviews

Hunter’s Blood Blog Tour

I’m delighted to be able to participate in the blog tour for Hunter’s Blood, the 4th in a series of crime novels set in Edinburgh by friend and author, Val Penny.

The blog tour is organised by the fabulous Lynsey Adams of Reading Between the Lines.

About the Book

DI Hunter Wilson never has just one problem to solve.

Three elderly women he knows have died in mysterious circumstances. Hunter appears to be the only link.

A little girl goes missing on a cold winter’s night. When his team discovers cocaine hidden at the farm where she was living, the search becomes even more urgent. 

Why did the women die? And what did the child witness?

Hunter must find the answers to these questions to ensure his family and his city are safe.

You can find Hunter’s Blood on Amazon.

About the Author

Val Penny has an Llb degree from the University of Edinburgh and her MSc from Napier University. She has had many jobs including hairdresser, waitress, banker, azalea farmer and lecturer but has not yet achieved either of her childhood dreams of being a ballerina or owning a candy store. 

Until those dreams come true, she has turned her hand to writing poetry, short stories, nonfiction books, and novels. Her novels are published by SpellBound Books Ltd. 

Val is an American author living in SW Scotland. She has two adult daughters of whom she is justly proud and lives with her husband and their cat.

You can find Val Penny on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, on her website and her Amazon Author Page.

My Review

This is a great series. Like all the other novels in the series, this one is easy to read, and even I sped through it. Val Penny has some great ideas and weaves them together into a believable and exciting story, while introducing new characters and bringing back familiar ones. I had no idea ‘who done it’ until the very end, and yet the resolution fitted the plot perfectly.

By the way, Val Penny has appeared on this blog several times and I’m sure she’ll be back soon. She has also been kind enough to host me on her blog.

Categories
Books Reviews The writing process

Creativity Matters

This post is part of the blog tour organised by Reading Between the Lines.
It’s a post I’m pleased to have been invited to write, and one that I now tackle with enthusiasm and, well… embarrassment, but only a little.
Read on…

The blog tour is for the book Creativity Matters: Find your Passion for Writing, which is compiled by Wendy H. Jones.

The Blurb

Have you always thought about writing a book but don’t know where to start? Are you an experienced author and want to spread your wings? Are you looking for inspiration for every step in your writing journey? This is a book for everyone who wants to write, whether history or contemporary, science fiction or humour, local fiction or set in a made-up world, fiction, non-fiction, memoir, there’s something here for you. Join thirteen authors as they share their passion for why you should write in their genre and find your own passion as you read.

It’s time for you to spread your wings, follow your dreams and find your passion for writing.

My Review

Here begins the embarrassing part.

You see, when I was asked to take part, I was away, hiking in the Bernese Oberland and other parts of Switzerland. I know, I haven’t blogged about that yet, but I plan to. I digress.

Since returning home, my time hasn’t been my own. I’ve had to attend to family matters and in particular to culinary matters, and the result is that I didn’t spend much time on creative matters and I
Didn’t finish reading the book.

However, I did warn the organiser in advance, and I’ve read enough of the book to have something to say about it, which is this:

I love it and am looking forward to reading the rest. All the participating authors are clearly passionate about writing in their particuar genres, and their enthusiasm is catching. Each one answers the question ‘why write?’ rather than ‘how to write?’ and yet the ‘how to’ question is answered in a ‘show don’t tell’ sort of way – by example.

The chapter on writing drama particularly appealed to me because it was written as a drama. I’ve never even considered writing drama before, but this might even get me started. All I need is time!

If you have time and want to write in any genre or to switch genres, this book will spur you on.

Links

Amazon buy link for Creativity Matters
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Amazon Author Page
Instagram