Book Excerpt: Sherlock Holmes & the Singular Affair by M. K. Wiseman
I am pleased to be welcoming M. K. Wiseman to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the book birthday blitz for her book, Sherlock Holmes & the Singular Affair.
Before Baker Street, there was Montague.
Before partnership with a former army doctor recently returned from Afghanistan, Sherlock Holmes had but the quiet company of his own great intellect. Solitary he might be but, living as he did for the thrill of the chase, it was enough.
For a little while, at the least, it was enough.
That is, until a client arrives at his door with a desperate plea and an invitation into a world of societal scandal and stage door dandies. Thrust deep in an all-consuming role and charged with the safe-keeping of another, Holmes must own to his limits or risk danger to others besides himself in this the case of the aluminium crutch.
M.K. Wiseman has shared an extract from Sherlock Holmes & the Singular Affair with us today. Enjoy!
*****beginning of extract*****
Having undertaken Miss Eudora Frances Clarke’s missing man case, Sherlock Holmes does a bit of research and formulates a disguise by which he will get close to the man in question.
Chapter 6:
An overcast late-afternoon sky witnessed me leaving my rooms. Quick strides took me around the corner and up the steps of the Museum. Though the esteemed institution had never availed itself of my services—that great case was, yet, in my future—there were several present amongst the warders who knew me by sight and reputation. Thus, though in fact I carried within my pocket my pass for admission, mine was a face which could pass unchallenged when gaining entrance into that great house of culture.
Divested of coat and cane, I hunted about the large, domed room for a seat—not an easy task at such a late hour—and then took myself to the perimeter to select the materials by which I might fill my time and satisfy my brain. Not all of my aims were satiated by easy and accessible reference, however, and I was forced to make a request from one of the attendants. Passing him my form, I returned to my seat and amused myself by discerning various details of my fellow bookworms while pretending to read.
by 
NK Chats To… Kerena Swan
Hi Kerena, thank you so much for bringing your blog tour for Driven to Novel Kicks. Which part of the writing process do you enjoy most?
I like planning the novel and defining the character traits but I sometimes struggle with writing the first draft. I always think it’s complete rubbish but once I re-visit it and start tweaking and editing it (a process I really enjoy) I then find it’s not as bad as I first thought. When I was training to be a social worker, we had to write assignments of 750 words. This sounded easy but in truth it was doubly difficult. Every word had to count so I used to write 2,000 words to get all the necessary facts and theories in then I’d have to cut out nearly two thirds of it. I learned to enjoy the challenge, though, and the skill has really helped me in my writing. I have to write council tenders for my care agency and the word counts are tight. I enjoy cramming loads of information into short paragraphs.
Some authors don’t read their reviews. Do you read yours?
For me, the most rewarding part of the whole writing process is reading the reviews. Whilst they may not always be positive – although all my books have ratings of 4.3* or above – I’m just thrilled to know that people are reading what I’ve written. What would be the point otherwise? Negative reviews that give reasons are really useful as they help me to improve. Also, if someone has taken the time to write a review the least I can do is read it.
In several of your books you feature a man with Down syndrome. Do you have personal experience with people with Down’s?
by Cover Reveal: The Venice Secret by Anita Chapman
I am pleased to be helping reveal the cover for The Venice Secret by Anita Chapman.
One hidden painting. Two women born centuries apart. A secret uncovered.
In 2019, Rachel is stuck in a rut when she discovers what appears to be a Canaletto painting in her grandmother’s loft along with a note addressed to Philippa in 1782. With help from Jake at the local art gallery, Rachel endeavours to find out if the painting is an original and uncovers a secret from the past.
In 1780, governess at Chipford Hall, Philippa is offered the role of mistress by Earl Rupert. She escapes to Venice as companion to bluestocking, Lady Cordelia who reveals a secret that changes both their lives. They do their best to keep the secret from Lady Cordelia’s social circle, but their nemesis is determined to reveal all and ruin them.
OK, so here we go. Can we get a drumroll….
by Book Review: Christmas on the Riviera by Jennifer Bohnet
I am happy to be welcoming Jennifer Bohnet to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her book, Christmas on the Riviera
As a toddler Elodie Jacques was abandoned by her mother and left in the care of her French grandmother, Gabriella in Dartmouth, Devon.
Now 24 years old, Elodie struggles to reconcile the deep anger for the mother she has never since seen.
When Gabriella unexpectedly announces she wants the two of them to spend Christmas and her 70th birthday in her home town of Juan-les-Pins in the South of France Elodie is thrilled.
Gabriella meanwhile has her own ulterior motives for wanting to return after 40 years, a daunting homecoming potentially filled with memories, secrets and recriminations.
With Juan-les-Pins pulsing with lights, decorations and the festive spirit, Christmas promises to be filled with fun. But when Elodie learns there is the possibility that her long absent mother may join them she hides her feelings behind a show of indifference and animosity.
Will there be the reconciliation that Gabriella longs for – or will the spirit of Christmas fail to work its magic?
*****
It’s been many years since Gabriella has visited the place where she grew up in the South of France. Now, as her 70th birthday and Christmas approach, she has reason to return.
Her granddaughter, Elodie is nursing her own anger and hurt. Can this trip work its Christmas magic and they both find something they are looking for?
it didn’t take me long to fall into this story. Gabriella and Elodie are great, likeable characters. The supporting cast is wonderful and I wanted everything to work out well.
by A Moment With… Jessie Wells
I am pleased to be welcoming Jessie Wells to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her book, The Good News Gazette.
Because we all need something to smile about!
She may be down but don’t count this determined single mum out just yet…
Nine years ago, Zoe Taylor returned from London to the quiet hamlet of Westholme with her tail between her legs and a bun in the oven. Where once her job as a journalist saw her tearing off to Paris at a moment’s notice after a lead, now the single mum covers the local news desk. At least, she did…until she’s unceremoniously let go.
When Zoe invites her friends over to commiserate, wine and whining soon turns into something more… and before the night is out she’s plotted her next step: The Good News Gazette.
Now, as a developer threatens to force Westholme into the twenty-first century, Zoe’s good news movement finds her leading a covert campaign as a community crusader. She may have started The Good News Gazette as a way to save herself, but she might just be able to save Westholme in the process…
*****
To talk about why ‘writing about what you know’ could be the best advice you’re ever given, it’s over to Jess.
For the past two decades, I’ve been toying with the idea of writing a novel. As a former journalist and avid reader, I’ve always loved words, so wasn’t daunted by the thought of writing lots of them. There was just one problem that kept cropping up; what the topic should be.
‘Write about what you know,’ was the advice that I kept being given, and in theory the adage makes sense. By writing about what they know, a writer can bring so much depth, emption and realism to a subject matter. They can inspire, inform, bring a new perspective to issues and lived experiences which have been under-represented or, worse, misrepresented.
But as a mum of two young children who was lucky enough, in my role as a freelance writer, to work from home, what could I possibly bring to the table? What could I have to say that women all the world over didn’t already know, or hadn’t already experienced, other than my top tips for how to get felt-tip out of fabric couches or how to deal with a rewritten Christmas list on the morning of Christmas Eve?
Plenty, as it turns out.
I can’t remember when, exactly, the idea for The Good News Gazette – a story about a single mum who starts up a good news newspaper to provide an antidote to the constant flow of bad news – came to me. What I do know is that, for some time, I’d had an increasing sense of fatigue about the negative news that, thanks to our 24-hour, multi-media news access, seemed ever-present – and that was before anyone had even heard of Covid.
by Book Club
