R Cawkwell

Review: ‘Duck Egg Blues’, by Martin Ungless

Published By: Independently Published

Publication Date: 25th May 2017

Format: Paperback

I.S.B.N.: 978-1521495919

Price: £8.99

Blurb

This perfect slice of ‘cozy crime’ is narrated in the voice of a pre-war English butler and concerns a rich and powerful businesswoman whose daughter goes missing from their country house estate. That the story- teller is a robot belonging to an impoverished detective brings a fresh and original take on ‘cozy’, and as for ‘crime’… well, it does begin to escalate, what with MI6, criminal gangs, corrupt police, and that’s not to mention international cybercrime!

As the plot strands weave together, we discover that behind one mystery lurks a greater threat. No one is safe, not even PArdew…

This is without doubt the robot-butler-detective thriller you have been waiting for!

Continue reading “Review: ‘Duck Egg Blues’, by Martin Ungless”

Blog Tour Calendar: ‘The Bespokest Guide To London’, organised by #rararesources

I’ll be doing a ‘Q&A’ post for this tour, because I didn’t think I’d have time to review – I only have a MONTH to finish my dissertation. Reading the ‘Q&A’ I’ve been sent, I wish I did have the time to read the book. It’s too funny! But you’ll see on my tour stop what I mean. I’m posting on the last day of the tour, so feel free to have a gander at some of the earlier posts.

A little about the book

The Bespokist Society Guide to…London

“sparse… some glaring omissions” FoodPorn London

“only page 23 is of mild interest” http://www.londonpetlover.com

“Wow!!! A genuinely bespoke city guide!!!” Tommy Sponge, Chairman, The Bespokist Society

You have in your hands one of the most curated city guides ever created. As the first travel book produced by the hugely influential Bespokist Society, this handy guide takes you to a London you’ve never seen: a London of challenging Etruscan restaurants, edgy branding parlours, emoji hotels and hidden Icelandic communities; a London where 8-ply toilet paper is a thing.

On the way, meet an eclectic band of inspiring Londoners – from scriveners to socialites via urban wordsmiths and coffee preachers – and see why London is now the global epicentre of Bespokist consciousness, community and culture.

Purchase Link – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bespokist-Society-Guide-London/dp/1912615142/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523828780&sr=8-1&keywords=bespokist

And about the author

The Bespokist Society Guide to London is a work of fiction written by born and bred Londoner, Jeremy Liebster. Somewhat surprisingly, Jeremy is also a city lawyer – formerly at DLA Piper and now a General Counsel within a large private equity group. Jeremy is utterly obsessed with travel books and although he might poke fun at urban fads, hipster fried chicken is his guilty pleasure. He also has an unusual interest in clothes hangers.

Social Media Links – @TheBespokist www.bespokistsociety.com

Blog tour calendar: Duck Egg Blues, by #UnglessM, organised by #rararesources

I’m taking part in this blog tour and I rather enjoyed the book so I can’t wait to tell you about it. Anyway, here’s the calendar or the tour. I’m one of the first to review so if you’re interested you can read what others thought of the book too.

Here’s some information about Duck Egg Blues and author Martin Ungless:

Duck Egg Blues is funny, sad, mysterious and thrilling. “A robot butler detective, what’s not to love?”

Martin Ungless is a WCN Escalator Prize winning author who has twice been shortlisted by the Crime Writers’ Association for their Debut Dagger Award.

What the CWA Judges said about his work:

‘A clever and ambitious story’
‘I was laughing and crying and hugging the sheets to my chest’

This perfect slice of ‘cozy crime’ is narrated in the voice of a pre-war English butler and concerns a rich and powerful businesswoman whose daughter goes missing from their country house estate. That the story- teller is a robot belonging to an impoverished detective brings a fresh and original take on ‘cozy’, and as for ‘crime’… well, it does begin to escalate, what with MI6, criminal gangs, corrupt police, and that’s not to mention international cybercrime!

As the plot strands weave together, we discover that behind one mystery lurks a greater threat. No one is safe, not even PArdew…

This is without doubt the robot-butler-detective thriller you have been waiting for!

Purchase Link – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Duck-Egg-Blues-PArdew-Book-ebook/dp/B071226XSW

For the duration of this blog tour, Duck Egg Blues will be on a Kindle Countdown Deal, so if you are tempted, purchase before the price rises

Author Bio – Following this year’s success, Martin Ungless had now been shortlisted three times by the Crime Writers’ Association for their Debut Dagger. He has won a WCN Escalator Award, and been successful in a number short-story competitions. Martin started life as an architect though now lives in the Norfolk countryside and writes full time. Martin is currently studying for the prestigious MA in Fiction (Crime) at UEA.

Social Media Links – https://twitter.com/UnglessM

#BlogTour Calendar: ‘The Cheesemaker’s House’, by Jane Cable #Rachel’sRandomResources

The Original Cheesmaker’s House that inspired the story.

I’ll be taking part in the blog tour for ‘The Cheesemaker’s House’, by Jane Cable. August marks the 5th anniversary of the publication of Jane’s first novel, and I’m happy to help her celebrate. The book is lovely to hold, by the way. I’m one of the last bloggers to review so take a look at the others on the poster if romantic suspense novels are your thing.

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Ignore the pacing, tapping and twitching, I’m just stimming.

This week I’m going to write about stimming. The calendar asks the questions what is stimming and how is it related to masking.

Stimming is autie slang for those things we do to self-sooth when anxious, among other things.

I have a variety of stims. I flap my arms, like a confused penguin, usually when I’m in the chemists and waiting for my medication. It works particularly well when I’m wearing my waterproof jacket, because it makes a rustling sound that I like. I rub my hands on my thighs especially when I’m wearing jeans. The texture and movement is soothing. Texture seems to be important for me, rough textures work well. I also like physical actions, like throwing a ball at the wall and catching it. Crafting is possibly a stim too. It’s a socially acceptable stim to crochet or sew in public.

Why do I stim? Because I get anxious and I need to send the energy somewhere, I suppose.

What has stimming to do with masking?

If I can redirect the anxiety to an activity I can hold up until I get home. It helps me maintain the facade of calm and attention, except when I can’t and then I stim because I need to. That’s when the mask drops in public and I get funny looks. That’s not fun. Especially as I think some of my behaviours that might have been stimming as a teenager were the reason some people bullied me at school. It was twenty years ago but the worry is still there that someone will attack me for doing what I need to do to be comfortable.

So that’s my take on stimming and masking.

Anyway, I’ve discovered this evening that Monday evening after 8 pm is a good time to go shopping. There was only two other people in the shop when I went to get my food shopping. It was great. No queue at the tills, no children getting too close, hardly any staff getting in the way with containers. It was great. Plus I had an audio book on my tablet, with the volume quite high. I’m going to end up deafening myself.

Review: ‘Whiskey Tango Foxtrot’, by Gina Kirkham #LoveBooksGroupTours

Publication Day: 19th July 2018

Publisher: Urbane Publications

ISBN: 9781911583813

Price: £8.99

Blurb

The laughter continues to flow in Gina Kirkham’s brilliant sequel to the wonderful Handcuffs, Truncheon and a Polyester Thong.

Our hapless heroine Constable Mavis Upton is preparing to step down the aisle with her fiancé Joe, but has to deal with her temperamental teen daughter, as well as investigate a serial flasher on a push bike. Throw a diva drag queen into the mix and readers can expect the usual hilarious Mavis mishaps that made the first book such a hit.

Revel in Gina Kirkham’s humorous, poignant and moving stories of an everyday girl who one day followed a dream.

Continue reading “Review: ‘Whiskey Tango Foxtrot’, by Gina Kirkham #LoveBooksGroupTours”

Pass my Mask, I need to leave the house

So, the delightful ladies and gent on this poster are doing a thing under the tag TakeTheMaskOff. I recommend following them on social media, they’re very interesting people.

Anyway, I thought I’d contribute in my own small way, with a blog post. I don’t know whether I’ll be doing one every week, it depends on what else I’ve got on.

Continue reading “Pass my Mask, I need to leave the house”

Blog Tour #LoveBooksGroupTours

Coming up, I will be taking part in a blog tour for WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot, by Gina Kirkham.

Whiskey tango

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot-Adventures-Constable/dp/1911583816/ref=sr_1_cc_4?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1528645901&sr=1-4-catcorr&keywords=whiskey+foxtrot+tango

Synopsis

The laughter continues to flow in Gina Kirkham’s brilliant sequel to the wonderful Handcuffs, Truncheon and a Polyester Thong.

Our hapless heroine Constable Mavis Upton is preparing to step down the aisle with her fiancé Joe, but has to deal with her temperamental teen daughter, as well as investigate a serial flasher on a push bike. Throw a diva drag queen into the mix and readers can expect the usual hilarious Mavis mishaps that made the first book such a hit.

Revel in Gina Kirkham’s humorous, poignant and moving stories of an everyday girl who one day followed a dream.

Third time lucky… Applying for PIP again

Now that I have a diagnosis, a support worker and I’m seeing a clinical psychologist every couple of months, I might make some progress this time.

Continue reading “Third time lucky… Applying for PIP again”

Review: ‘Faerie Stones’, by Ceri Norman

Moon Books sent me this book in return for an honest review. They’re probably going to wish they hadn’t.

Faerie Stones Published by: Moon Books

Publication Date: 30th Marc 2018

Format: Paperback

I.S.B.N.: 9781785357190

Price: £13.99

Blurb

Faerie Stones explores the Faerielore and Folklore associated with different stones and various crystal formations, from the ancient Neolithic arrows known as Elfshot to magical Faerie dusted geodes known as Fairy Cavern Quartz. It deals with the metaphysical aspects of the stones, their traditional uses and healing qualities, and discusses which types of Faerie and which Deities/Faerie Monarchs are associated with each stone. It also offers practical tips and two meditations for working with Faeries and stones for spiritual development. Aimed at all those who love Faeries and Crystals, it is ideal for the beginner or the more experienced practitioner.

Continue reading “Review: ‘Faerie Stones’, by Ceri Norman”