Five star review for Echoes of Blood

I'm glowing today, and not just because of the icy wind rushing past my face every time I set foot out of doors. This time it's because my new book Echoes of Blood has received its first Amazon review, and it's a really good one. The reviewer thoroughly enjoyed the book and has awarded it...

Two get hailed on in Keswick

We'd booked to go on a 'dark skies' event in Keswick on Saturday but it was cancelled on the day due to the terrible weather, flooding and state of the roads. We decided to hit the town anyway as it's a while since we last went and it's a good place for a mooch round...

Blue plaque for Helen Forrester

I was pleased to see that Liverpool author Helen Forrester (real name June Bhatia) has been honoured with a blue plaque on the house she lived in as a child. Forrester is most famous for writing the autobiography Twopence to Cross the Mersey, which tells of her growing up in the city during the Depression...

Too many spiders, not enough words

I'm sure all writers get days they'd rather forget. Today was one of them for me. I managed to add a whole 186 words to my current book, some of which are so useless I suspect they'll have to be changed again. Much of the rest of the day was spent vacuuming dead spiders and...

The Taxidermist’s Daughter review

I finished this Kate Mosse book a few days ago and enjoyed it overall, but with a few reservations. The description of the setting on the Fishbourne marshes and the dark, brooding atmosphere were terrific, but the characters were rather less so and the whole taxidermy aspect felt wasted. See my longer review over at...

Ahead of the storm… again

But less successfully this time. Last weekend we managed a nice walk in Ambleside before Storm Ciara hit. This weekend we knew Storm Dennis was on the way so drove to Glenridding, hoping to stagger up to Greenside mine for a leg-stretch. The drive over was spectacular with snow on the fells, the Kirkstone Pass...

Try before you buy: Echoes of Blood

Buying a book from an author you've not tried before - or even buying from an author you have read but in a different genre - can be a bit daunting. I know that lots of people don't know me from Adam (or perhaps Eve...) and those that do may not remember my gay romance....

A walk before the storm

The news has been full of dire reports of Storm Ciara for the last few days. We knew the main storm was due to hit on Sunday, so yesterday (Saturday) we popped out for some fresh air in case we're stuck indoors later. We had a few errands to run in Ambleside so sorted those...

New listing for Liverpool landmark

I was delighted to see the news that Liverpool's Philharmonic Dining Rooms, more usually known as the Philharmonic pub or even just "the Phil", has been awarded Grade I Listing for architectural and historic merit. Although I grew up near Liverpool and went to university there, I've only ever been inside the building once. My...