Review: The Christmas Promise by Sue Moorcroft
Avon, December 2016
I am now a Master Milliner…well, perhaps not, but I know a whole lot more about hat creation than I ever did before. They go on your head. Correct?
Here I am, fresh from having survived the new Sue Moorcroft novel, The Christmas Promise. Don’t get worried, by survived, I mean that Sue’s stories are always emotional roller-coasters, she’s that good.
Lucky enough to obtain an advance copy of this novel, I settled down to immerse myself, knowing that my attention would never be allowed to wander, no chance of skipping even a word here and I wasn’t disappointed.
All wrapped up in a snowy cover, don’t be fooled. Sue is a master of emotions and here, you’re going to be pulled left, right and centre before the conclusion; actually, afterwards too however, you’ll need to read the book for that little Easter egg.
Ava is to a degree, damaged emotionally, as are all good characters and we follow her in a journey of trust, who to trust, how much to trust them, learning to trust herself even. She dislikes Christmas due to her parents attitude to it when she was growing up and now finds herself caught up as the victim of Revenge Porn. Riding to her rescue is Sam. Ah, to have his qualities would be wonderful…I digress. Stumbling into each other, attraction is mutual but Sam is just as traumatised as Ava in his own way and so we watch them bond over his mother’s cancer struggle, Ava’s feelings of perceived guilt over those pictures, getting close but neither feeling able to make that final step that will enable them to become the couple we know they should be.
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Novel Kicks Writing Room: Looking Ahead
Tuesday 27th September 2016: Future Predictions
Today’s Prompt is looking into the future of your characters.
Make a list of your main characters in a work in progress or favourite novel.
Pick a year in the future (make it at least thirty years.)
Write about what the world would be like?
What will your characters be like?
What would they be doing?
Is it a future where technology has expanded even more? Has everything gone back to basics? Dystopian? Expanded to other planets?
by 25 Bookish Facts About Me
I’ve seen people do this tag on You Tube and it looked pretty fun so I thought I would give it a go. It’s the twenty five bookish facts about me. If you fancied doing this too, please do in the comments box below. I love tags like these. So here we go…..
Fact one: Despite all of the books I’ve read in my life so far, I can actually be quite a slow reader. It can take me quite a while to get through some books. It’s usually a sign that there is something about the book that I am not quite gelling with and that I am finding it hard going. Sometimes it’s because I keep falling asleep as I tend to read before bedtime.
Fact two: One of my favourite book series growing up was The Sweet Valley High series. I adored them and I think they are pretty much all I read for a good couple of years. I was very much an Elizabeth in that I loved writing and books but I wanted Jessica’s confidence. I loved the TV series too. Anyone now got the theme tune in their heads?
I am surprised I didn’t start writing Sweet Valley High fan fiction. I was so excited to get my hands on the new book in the series that came out a while ago. It was good to find out what happened to these characters I grew up with.
Fact three: I have many favourite characters from literature but I think one of my absolute favourites (because Harry Potter can’t be my answer for everything,) is Don Tillman. Don is the main character from The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion. Don doesn’t really do subtle but he is such an adorable man. His heart is in the right place. He has a lot of charm and is loveable. Despite the bluntness he displays sometimes, he is a very good man.
Penguin
Fact four: OK, so you know when I said that I can’t include Harry Potter in every answer and fact? Well, this one was unavoidable because the fictional world I want to visit is Hogwarts. I want to go to school and learn potions, transfiguration, charms and play Quidditch. OK, I am more likely to be in the crowd cheering having fallen off the broom too much to be able to play but it would be so cool.
Fact five: I am trying to write my first novel and have been for a while (and could if I got out of my own way.) It’s called The Back Up Plan and currently focuses on Carrie, Dylan and Sarah.
Fact six: The first book I read that made me go wow as I made my way through it was The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. I read it when I was sixteen and it made such an impact on me that even now, it is a book I still think about a lot. Whenever I hear The Day We Find Love by 911 and A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton (yes I know, my music taste hasn’t improved with age either,) I think of this book as these were two songs I was listening to a lot when I was reading this novel.
Fact seven: My favourite place to read is in bed. This is one of the reasons I actually quite like winter evenings. It’s the perfect excuse to snuggle under my duvet, stay warm and make my way through a good book. I find it really relaxing.
Face eight: My favourite things to eat and drink when reading is a mug of tea and biscuits. My tea of choice is good old Tetley or everyday brew from Tea pigs. I also collect mugs and I love going to my shelf, picking a mug and making some tea. It’s the small things. Ha ha. My favourite biscuits are chocolate digestives or hobnobs and jammie dodgers (unless I have Fox & Son’s Jam creams,) and yes, I dunk!
Egmont Children’s Books
Fact nine: My favourite book is The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams. I really do wish I had discovered this book earlier than I did. It’s such a beautiful story and has such a lovely message. I will forever own a copy.
Fact ten: I’ve previously never been too keen on audiobooks. In the past, I have tried and failed to get through an audiobook. I am trying to improve. I am currently making my way through The Glittering Art of Falling Apart by Ilana Fox and really enjoying it so I am coming around to the idea. I am trying to make more of an effort to listen to them and are finding they are great in the car.
Fact eleven: I struggled deciding on the contents of this fact as I love so many but If I were only allowed to own three books (which was be a sad state of affairs indeed,) they would be Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K Rowling. This is my favourite Potter book and I can’t imagine not owning one, Bridget Jones Diary as Bridget is a wonderfully flawed character who I imagine would be great to hang around with and Bookends by Jane Green. I read this when I was living by myself in London so it reminds me that I can do things that scare me and get through the experience.
Fact twelve: If there were no intervening factors getting in my way, the characters I would most like to have around for a dinner party would be Severus Snape (just so I could listen to the voice,) Elphaba from Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (as I relate to her a lot,) Aslan, as he is just a cool dude and also a big cat and I love cats and finally Becky Bloomwood from the shopaholic series as I imagine she is just really great fun to talk to.
Fact thirteen: I collect bookmarks (as well as mugs.) I have all the bookmarks my Nan collected in her lifetime from all the places she has visited and when I can, I’ve carried on the tradition.
Fact fourteen: Although I have tried to, I very rarely re-read books once I’ve read them.
by A Moment With Laura Briggs: Self Publishing Vs. Traditional Publishing
I’m happy to be welcoming a fellow Laura to Novel Kicks today. Author, Laura Briggs talks about Self Publishing vs. Traditional Publishing and the pros and cons of each. Over to you, Laura.
First of all, thanks to Laura for inviting me to appear on Novel Kicks with a post on self-publishing vs. traditional publishing. I’ve learned a little about both in recent years and hope my experiences may prove useful to some of you reading this.
Let me start by saying that my publisher, Pelican Book Group, is nothing less than excellent. I love working with them and plan to submit more manuscripts to their company in the future. I also love self-publishing and am grateful to have the opportunity for both.
Now—let’s get to some pros and cons on publishing!
The Pros of Traditional Publishing:
•Professional Editing: This is an obvious one, but I can’t stress it enough. Freelance editors cost a few hundred on average, so yes, professional editing gives traditional publishing an edge.
•Professional Cover Design: Another obvious one, I know, but important. Not everyone has the software, or the know-how to make a good cover, even with so many high quality images available via sites like Dreamstime. The cover often serves as your book’s first impression, so it needs to be good.
•Professional Marketing: Let’s face it—marketing is tough. And hugely competitive. Book review bloggers are swamped with requests and even buying ad space from a popular service like Bookbub is difficult to achieve. Some publishing companies have better methods of getting your book out there. Some don’t. It depends on the publisher, and of course, even authors with a traditional publisher must still do some of their own marketing.
•It Has More Options Than Before: There are many small and up-and-coming publishers who will take unagented submissions from writers these days. There are even divisions of bigger publishing houses, like HarperCollins, I believe, that welcome unagented submissions. They may not pay author advances like big companies do, but some are quite generous on the royalties.
by Novel Kicks Fiction Friday: Planets Meeting
Fiction Friday is our weekly writing prompt. The aim is to write for a minimum of five minutes and then keep going for as long as you can. Once you’ve finished, don’t edit, just post in the comments box below.
Today’s prompt is about the planets around us.
The planets are all getting together for their annual solar system conference. What they talk about and where they meet is up to you.
However, the only rules…. Venus likes Mercury. Jupiter is grumpy and Neptune doesn’t like Earth (is jealous of earth,) so they can’t sit next to one another.
by Book Club
