Happy Canada Day!

I first read The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields over 20 years ago and was captivated by her writing style so I am delighted to be revisiting some of her works as they are rebranded by World Edition Books to celebrate Canada Day. To find out more about World Editions Books follow them on Twitter, visit their website and find them on Facebook.

Four of Carol Shield’s Books are being rebranded by World Edition Books:

Mary Swan

Mary Swann is the story of four individuals who become entwined in the life of Mary Swann, a rural Canadian poet whose authentic and unique voice is discovered only hours before her husband brutally murders her. Who is Mary Swann? And how could she have produced these works of genius in almost complete isolation? Mysteriously, all traces of Swann’s existence—her notebook, the first draft of her work, even her photograph—gradually vanish in this engrossing novel exploring the surprising afterlife of a murdered poet. Full of mischief, Mary Swann is a novel about life, death and the ideas that live on after us.

The Republic of Love

A celebration of love in its many guises, The Republic of Love recounts the heartfelt tale of two of life’s unlucky lovers: Fay, a folklorist whose passion for mermaids has kept her from focussing on any one man; and, right across the street, Tom, a popular radio talk-show host who’s been through three marriages and divorces in his search for true happiness.

Touching and ironic, The Republic of Love flies the flag for ordinary love between ordinary people.

The Stone Diaries

The Stone Diaries, a fictionalized autobiography, chronicles the life of Daisy Goodwill Flett, a Canadian woman born in 1905 out of love and tragedy, and follows her life through marriage, motherhood and widowhood, as she ages with the century. A subtle but affecting portrait of an everywoman reflecting on an unconventional life.

Happenstance

These two companion novels tell the stories of Jack and Brenda Bowman during a rare time apart in their many years of marriage. In The Husband’s Story, Jack is at home coping with domestic crises and two uncouth adolescents while immobilized by self-doubt and questioning his worth as a historian. In The Wife’s Story, Brenda, travelling alone for the first time, is in a strange city grappling with an array of emotions and toying with the idea of an affair. Happenstance is a profound portrait of a marriage and of those differences between the sexes that bring life – and a sense of isolation – into the most loving relationships.

About Carol Shields

Although born in Illinois, Carol Shields is best known as a Canadian writer. Her writing is renowned for its understanding of human nature.

Carol Shields (1935-2003) was an award winning American-born Canadian author. She is acclaimed for her empathetic and witty, yet penetrating insights into human nature. One of her most famous novels, The Stone Diaries, won both Canada’s Governor General’s Award for Fiction and The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. It was nominated for the Booker Prize in 1993 and won the National Book Critics Circle Award in 1994.

You can find out more about Carol and her books here.

Having met lovely Cathy Bramley a couple of times in person I am so excited to be part of the launch celebrations for The Plumberry School of Comfort Food which was published in paperback by Corgi, an imprint of Penguin Books, yesterday 30th June 2016. The Plumberry School of Comfort Food is available for purchase on Amazon and from Foyles, Waterstones, Hive, W H Smith and from all good bookshops.

To celebrate the publication of The Plumberry School of Comfort Food, fellow blogger Zarina asked Cathy some questions and Cathy is answering them across a range of blogs. You can see yesterday’s answer with Zarina here and read today’s answer below.

The Plumberry School of Comfort Food

Verity Bloom hasn’t been interested in cooking anything more complicated than the perfect fish finger sandwich, ever since she lost her best friend and baking companion two years ago.

But an opportunity to help a friend lands her right back in the heart of the kitchen. The Plumberry School of Comfort Food is due to open in a few weeks’ time and needs the kind of great ideas that only Verity could cook up. And with new friendships bubbling and a sprinkling of romance in the mix, Verity finally begins to feel like she’s home.

But when tragedy strikes at the very heart of the cookery school, can Verity find the magic ingredient for Plumberry while still writing her own recipe for happiness?

A Question for Cathy

After self-publishing your first novel, Conditional Love, you’ve had such incredible success. Besides, of course, getting your book deal, what has been the most exciting part of this journey so far?

Thank you. Actually, I find the whole publishing process exciting right from when I first get the seed of a new idea for a book, right through until I see the finished book on the shelf in store. But if I had to pick one moment, it would be just after Wickham Hall came out and it made number 16 in the UK paperback charts – that was pretty exciting!

About Cathy Bramley

Cathy is the author of the best-selling romantic comedies Ivy Lane, Appleby Farm, Conditional Love, Wickham Hall and The Plumberry School Of Comfort Food. She lives in a small Nottinghamshire village with her husband, two teenage daughters and Pearl, the Cockerpoo.

You’ll find all Cathy’s lovely books here.

You can find out more about Cathy Bramley on her website and you can follow her on Twitter or use #Plumberry, but there’s lots more with these other bloggers too:

I’m thrilled to be part of the launch celebrations for The Caller by M.A Comley and Tara Lyons, because they are both such talented writers individually so a collaboration is twice the success. I have been fortunate to ‘meet’ Mel and Tara via The Book Club on Facebook.

The Caller was released on 16th June 2016 and is available on Amazon UK and Amazon US. The Caller is the first gripping book in The Organised Crime Team series by NY Times bestselling author of the Justice series, M A Comley and co-author Tara Lyons, author of In The Shadows.

You’ll find the Justice series here and In the Shadows here.

The Caller

When The Caller rings… what would you do?

The Organised Crime Team is a newly-formed unit with one of the toughest tasks in London. Led by DI Angie North, their first investigation is a cold case that has foxed several officers in the Met for months.

After Angie holds a TV appeal regarding the case, a number of similar aggressive attacks are brought to her attention. The team call on their contacts on the street for help. Their interest is sparked when several local names surface.

To bring the criminals to justice a member of the Organised Crime Team is asked to risk their life in a dangerous covert operation.

Three Callers

To celebrate the publication of The Caller I asked M.A Comely and Tara Lyons which three people they would like to call. This is what they told me:

Tara:

1. My grandad – I’d love to know if he’s proud of me and if he’s happy with the decisions I made after he passed away.
2.  J.K Rowling – I think she has such an inspirational story, from where she began to where she is now, and I’d love to hear all about it.
3. Truman Capote – In Cold Blood was one of the books I based my university dissertation on and I would love to have a chat with him about that story.

Mel:

1. James Patterson – I’d ask if he fancied getting Lorne and Alex Cross together in a collaboration project.
2. Linda Prather – For five years we’ve supported each other as authors, we met through Facebook but have never met in person as she lives in America.
3. My ex-husband – Chiefly so I could slam the door in this face after I shouted: “I told you I’d be a success one day.” He had little faith in my abilities as a human being, let alone a writer. There’s nothing more satisfying in this life than proving someone wrong.

My Review of The Caller

When women are attacked in their own home in broad daylight, newly promoted Angie North’s Organised Crime Team need to act fast.

I wasn’t entirely certain whether I would enjoy The Caller as the opening is quite violent and aggressive, but the pace was so fast that I didn’t have time to think and I was instantly drawn into the world of organised crime so effectively depicted. I really enjoyed the read.

The Caller is an exciting and captivating book that draws the reader into the corrupt and violent world of Brixton and its environs. What I found so interesting is that this world could be replicated all over the country.

As this is the first in a new series, there’s quite a bit of establishing new characters that I thought was deftly handled and the narrative ending leads brilliantly into the next book. I thought the pace was incredible, with events piling on top of one another at break neck speed so that The Caller was a thrilling read. I was also fascinated by the effect of the collaborative writing and found it seamless – I certainly couldn’t distinguish which elements had been written predominantly by which author. This partnership is obviously going to be an explosive one.

I thought the dialogue was highly realistic so that I believed what characters were saying and I loved the way chapters were short to maintain the pace and ended with mini-cliffhangers so that the reader is compelled to read on. The only aspect I would have liked done differently would have been to have slightly more description of the settings so that I had a clearer picture in my mind’s eye of Brixton, Angie’s home and some of the crime scenes, but I think that’s inevitable when establishing such a highly character and plot driven thriller at the start of what is bound to be a highly successful series.

Aside from the pacy plot, I really liked the portrayal of Angie as she is very human and realistic. She made a refreshing change from the curmudgeonly and bitter male characters of so much crime fiction. I also appreciated understanding how the foul Tyler’s character came about because of his background. Reading The Caller gave me more empathy with him than I would have expected. I wonder whether Mel’s experience of writing romance as well as crime has helped to temper this aspect so that we have more humane and believable characters.

I also thought The Caller had a serious message as well as being a cracking story. I’m not sure I would have thought twice about someone ringing to check about a delivery before reading this. I will now!

The Caller is a great story, full of excitement and action. I can’t wait for the next one!

About Mel and Tara

Mel and Tara have previously collaborated on a novella Web of Deceit and you can find it here.

Find out more about Mel on her website, find her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

Find out more about Tara on her website, find her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

You can see more about Mel and Tara and The Caller with these other bloggers: