Cover Reveal! ‘Strand of Faith’, by Rachel J. Bonner

Today I’d like to present the cover of Rachel J Bonner’s new novel, Strand Of Faith.

Blurb

When the choice is between love and life, how can anyone decide?

A girl and a monk, both with extraordinary mental powers, have compelling reasons not to fall in love.  But those from whom they expect support are manipulating them both because their choices will have consequences for the rest of the world.

After a stormy youth, Brother Prospero has found comfort and fulfilment in the monastery.  That is, until he discovers something that forces him to reconsider his whole vocation.  To follow his heart, he’ll have to face his demons again, outside the security of the monastery. Is it worth the risk?  Can he beat them this time? Or will they finally destroy him?

Orphaned and mistreated, Leonie has found sanctuary and safety at the abbey.  All she wants is to learn how to manage her unusual abilities so that she is not a danger to those around her.  When she comes into contact with Prospero everything threatens to spiral out of her control.  Whether she leaves or whether she stays, how can she possibly avoid destroying – yet again – those she has come to care about?

Abbot Gabriel is faced with an impossible choice.  He can do nothing and watch the world descend into war.  Or he can manipulate events and ensure peace – at the cost of two lives that he is responsible for.  He knows what he has to do but is he strong enough to sacrifice those he loves?

Continue reading “Cover Reveal! ‘Strand of Faith’, by Rachel J. Bonner”

Blog tour calendar: ‘Mrs Bates of Highbury’, by Allie Cresswell

Mrs Bates of Highbury Ful Tour Banner

I’ll be reviewing this novel on the 25th, and I shall be happy to share my thoughts with you about this ‘Emma’ prequel.

Blurb

The new novel from Readers’ Favourite silver medalist Allie Cresswell.

Thirty years before the beginning of ‘Emma’ Mrs Bates is entirely different from the elderly, silent figure familiar to fans of Jane Austen’s fourth novel. She is comparatively young and beautiful, widowed – but ready to love again. She is the lynch-pin of Highbury society until the appalling Mrs Winwood arrives, very determined to hold sway over that ordered little town.

Miss Bates is as talkative aged twenty nine as she is in her later iteration, with a ghoulish fancy, seeing disaster in every cloud. When young Mr Woodhouse arrives looking for a plot for his new house, the two strike up a relationship characterised by their shared hypochondria, personal chariness and horror of draughts.

Jane, the other Miss Bates, is just seventeen and eager to leave the parochialism of Highbury behind her until handsome Lieutenant Weston comes home on furlough from the militia and sweeps her – quite literally – off her feet.

Mrs Bates of Highbury is the first of three novels by the Amazon #1 best-selling Allie Cresswell, which trace the pre-history of Emma and then run in parallel to it.

Purchase from Amazon UK –  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mrs-Bates-Highbury-prequel-inspired-ebook/dp/B07GJM2K4W

Mrs Bates Author PictAuthor Bio –

Allie Cresswell was born in Stockport, UK and began writing fiction as soon as she could hold a pencil.

She did a BA in English Literature at Birmingham University and an MA at Queen Mary College, London.

She has been a print-buyer, a pub landlady, a book-keeper, run a B & B and a group of boutique holiday cottages. Nowadays Allie writes full time having retired from teaching literature to lifelong learners.

She has two grown-up children, two granddaughters and two grandsons, is married to Tim and lives in Cumbria, NW England.

You can contact her via her website at www.allie-cresswell.com or find her on Facebook

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/alliescribbler/

@alliescribbler

For the duration of the blog tour, Allie Cresswell has five hard copies of Game Show and five hard copies of Tiger in a Cage, all signed, available for £5 plus p & p to UK addresses. If you are interested then please get in touch and I’ll give you her contact email.

Cover Reveal! ‘The Stepsister’, by Jenny O’Brien

Today I’m pleased to bring you a cover reveal for a new thriller by Jenny O’Brien. It looks like a good one, so I’ve included a bit of blurb, and the links for the book and author.

Continue reading “Cover Reveal! ‘The Stepsister’, by Jenny O’Brien”

Blog Tour Calendar: ‘Survive’, by Stephen Llewelyn

Survive Banner2.png

This should be fun. The book arrived a week or so ago, but I haven’t started it yet. Looking forward to it though, the blurb sounds …interesting.

Blurb

A young man and his mother fight to leave tragedy behind. Striving for a new life on Mars has cost Tim and Patricia everything, but as even their future is taken from them, their past is just beginning.

Earth: population 50 billion. Pollution, crime and scarcity are out of our control. Instantaneous travel provides hope for the terraforming of another world.

A terrorist attack. An explosion at the event horizon of a wormhole. A murder. A trail of clues, misinformation and sabotage. Nothing is as it seems as an old enemy returns from the shadows. 100 years from now, the 100 souls aboard the USS New World are thrown back 100 million years to the deadly Cretaceous Period. From there, an epic fight to save humanity begins; but first, they must survive.

A multi-national, eclectic crew; among them the good, the not so good and the no damned good at all. Loss, courage, genius and sheer bloody-mindedness bind them. NASA Captain, James Douglas, and his first officer, Jill Baines, expected a taxi run to Mars. Now they must escape a fearsome Mapusaurus pack, survive natural disasters, brutal discoveries and treachery.

 

Bonus Review #2: ‘Kitchen Witchcraft: Spells & Charms’, by Rachel Patterson

Kitchen Witchcraft: Spells & CharmsPublished By: Moon Books

Publication Date: 27th July 2018

I.S.B.N.: 978-1-78535-768-8

Format: Paperback

Price: £6.99

Available here

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb

There are a lot of things in the universe that we don’t understand. When something is meant to happen, it will whether you cast a spell or not. But you can help it on its way by guiding and encouraging it and maybe even tweaking events a little too. A spell can be worked in many ways, from a simple pointing of the finger to a complicated ritual involving lots of herbs and crystals and, of course, any variation in between. What will happen for sure is the boost of confidence and happy buzz you will receive as you cast the spell, as well as the positive vibe you get from putting something into action.
Kitchen Witchcraft: Spells & Charms is a the first in a series of books which delves into the world of the Kitchen Witch. Each book breaks down the whys and wherefores of the subject and includes practical guides and exercises. Other titles include Garden Magic, Altars & Rituals and The Elements.

Continue reading “Bonus Review #2: ‘Kitchen Witchcraft: Spells & Charms’, by Rachel Patterson”

I have questions…

Specifically, questions about the universe.

Right, so the universe is expanding. Current theory and available data suggests this.

My question, a question I’ve had for about 20 years, is, what is the universe expanding in to?

This is another of my ‘brain won’t shut off’ thoughts.

I was trying to visualise it all last night but I struggled with something. When people refer to ‘the universe’ do they mean the mass and energy created in the Big Bang, that now forms the galaxies of the universe? Or are they referring to everything, all that is?

I tried to come up with a way to visualise what I mean and I’m struggling. The best I’ve got so far is a balloon. At Big Bang, the singularity of energy that ‘exploded’ to produce all the energy and matter in the universe, is represented by a flaccid balloon. It starts to inflate and expands as air is forced into it, representing the expansion of the universe. There’s lots of energy produced, formation of stars, dark energy etc.

Now, what is that balloon expanding into?

Is there a reality outside of the universe, a box the balloon is expanding into? If there is, does the ‘box’ grow to fit the ever expanding balloon, or is there a limit that the balloon will reach? And what is the nature of that box? And, if we continue the analogy, will the balloon burst at some point in time, stretched to breaking point by the mass and energy that makes it?

Say there isn’t a ‘box’, what is there? Does something come into being with the expansion of the universe into that space? What is the nature of that space?

It’s all so confusing!

My confusion was added to when I read an article in New Scientist a few years ago about bubble universes. What’s in the space between?

See, this is why I never got anywhere as a scientist, my brain gets distracted by probably pointless questions that others have probably already answered. In the other hand, it does provide me with inspiration for writing. Got something bubbling away.

I am almost definitely not a great loss to science

I was having one of my ‘can’t turn brain off’ nights last night. I had a few thoughts, like autistics are about 1% of the population, add the other neurodivergents and that probably comes to 5 – 10% of the human population. Maybe there was a evolutionary advantage to having a small number of people in a group that thought and processed the world differently.

And then I got up this morning, did my usual Twitter, Facebook and WordPress gander and realised, it’s all been thought before and articulated better, by people much more intelligent than I am.

So I think I’ll go back to writing stories.

Bonus Review #1: ‘Elysium’s Shadow’, by Matthew Munson

Published By: Inspired Quill

Publication Date: October 2015?

Format: Paperback

Price: £9.99

I.S.B.N.: 978190860069

Bought from here

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb

“It’s been a hell of a first day.”

Jon May has been the Governor of Elysium for a few hours, and he’s already facing a belligerent Chief of Security, an ex-Operations Manager imprisoned for killing the previous Governor, and an amorphous energy mass that has its own agenda.

So now Jon has to decide who to trust; his Security Chief will barely talk to him, and his only allies people who are, according to the Republic, dangerous criminals.

With less than 48 hours to delve into the shadows surrounding Elysium’s recent but tumultuous past, May is about to uncover more about this job than he bargained for.

Continue reading “Bonus Review #1: ‘Elysium’s Shadow’, by Matthew Munson”