Yield by Claire Dyer BLOG TOUR @ClaireDyer1 #Yield @TwoRiversPress #Poetry

 

Three definitions of the word Yield give meaning to the odyssey undergone in Claire Dyers third collection: a journey which sees a son become a daughter, and a mother a poet for both of them. 

Charting these transitions, the poems take us through territories known and familiar landscapes of childhood, family and home into further regions where inner lives alter, outer ones are reimagined. Whether evoking clinic visits, throwing away old boyhood clothes, grieving over whats lost, these honest and unashamed poems build to celebrate that place at the heart of motherhood where gender is no differentiator and love the gain.

Yield by Claire Dyer was published on 21 February 2021 by Two Rivers Press. My thanks to the author and publisher who sent my copy, for this Blog Tour.

Three years ago I was delighted to welcome author Claire Dyer to Random Things. She talked about the books that were special to her in a My Life in Books feature. This was to celebrate the publication of her novel The Last Day

Claire is a talented author, and this poetry collection took her six years to write. It is an emotive and honest collection of poems that capture her emotions throughout an incredible journey. As Claire's son transitioned to become her daughter, she put her deepest thoughts into these words.

I have read this collection many times since Christmas. I feel such a fraud, being asked to review a collection of poetry, as I'm really not an expert and rarely read poetry at all. However, every time that I've read these, I've found something new. At first read, I struggled a little, but as I absorbed the words and deduced the meanings, I began to feel more comfortable, and more aware.

There are emotions within these poems that are heartbreaking to discover. The author has not glided through this journey easily, and the poem entitled 'Fury' is an example of the darker times, but a declaration of love too.

'If you love me enough, he says, you will comb the furious seas in this savage darkness.'

I will continue to read this collection, and I will continue to learn. I can't say that I've found this an easy experience, but my God, it's not been as difficult as the times that the author has lived through.

I admire and praise her. There's an honesty that runs through this collection that cannot have been easy to express, but it's done with such passion and beauty. 

There will be other reviewers of Yield who will be more eloquent that I am, but these are my humble thoughts. I only wish I could do more justice to Claire and to this collection.

With Claire's permission, I'm delighted to share one of her poems with you here


Doing Cartwheels at The Ritz

Walk in like you own the place, I said and,

leaving the low hum of Piccadilly behind us

we did, and sat in chairs like thrones,

ordered wine which came in glasses

as wide as our cupped hands.

As we drank we laughed - the carousel

of baby grand and waiting staff nodding

small and tight to one another

as they passed by. In time, two perfect people

on the catwalk of the main salon:

stylish, moneyed, wearing tiaras of happiness.

Husband. Wife. In front of them, a child. - 

a cream lace dress - doing cartwheels

down the centre aisle as though this was a parade

and they the spectacle the crowds

had been waiting for. We smiled,

our years together bursting through

the mirrored walls in lick of magenta flame.

Cinematic and extravagant, we saw your birth, 

first words and steps, the skim of stones

on a turquoise sea, your awkward

boyhood years. Come, I said, let's do the same

and, putting down our drinks, we did:

through the onlookers,

through the music, the towers of flowers,

all the chandelier light of that particular,

wondrous night, you and I did cartwheels at The Ritz,

setting free the inner girl in both of us.

Claire Dyer’s poetry collections are published by Two Rivers Press, her novels by Quercus and The
Dome Press. 

Her novel, The Significant Others of Odie May is forthcoming from Matador in 2021. 

She curates Reading’s Poets’ Café, teaches creative writing and runs Fresh Eyes, an editorial and critiquing service. 

She has an MA in Creative Writing from Royal Holloway, University of London and is a regular contributor on BBC Radio Berkshire. 

Her website is: www.clairedyer.com

Author Page on Facebook

Twitter @ClaireDyer1

Fatal Isles by Maria Adolfsson @AdolfssonMia BLOG TOUR #FatalIsles @ZaffreBooks @Tr4cyF3nt0n #Extract

 

In the middle of the North Sea, between the UK and Denmark, lies the beautiful and rugged island nation of Doggerland.

Detective Inspector Karen Eiken Hornby has returned to the main island, Heimö, after many years in London and has worked hard to become one of the few female police officers in Doggerland.

So, when she wakes up in a hotel room next to her boss, Jounas Smeed, she knows she's made a big mistake. But things are about to get worse: later that day, Jounas's ex-wife is found brutally murdered. And Karen is the only one who can give him an alibi.

The news sends shockwaves through the tight-knit island community, and with no leads and no obvious motive for the murder, Karen struggles to find the killer in a race against time.

Soon she starts to suspect that the truth might lie in Doggerland's history. And the deeper she digs, the clearer it becomes that even small islands can hide deadly secrets . . .

Fatal Isles by Maria Adolfsson is published today, 18 February 2021 by Zaffre. I'm delighted to share an extract from the book with you today, as part of the Blog Tour, organised by Tracy from Compulsive Readers.

Extract from Fatal Isles by Maria Adolfsson

She knows before she even opens her eyes. This is wrong. All of this is terribly wrong. She should be in a different bed, any bed, just not this one.

The light snoring from the other side should be someone else’s, anyone’s, just not his. And with an absolute certainty that slices through all other thoughts, she knows she has to get out. Immediately, this second, before he wakes up.

Slowly, and as silently as she can, Karen Eiken Hornby folds back the duvet and sits up without glancing towards the other side of the wide bed. She scans the hotel room, registering her knickers and bra on the floor next to her bare feet, her dress next to her green suede jacket in a pile on the coffee table, her handbag discarded on an armchair. Beyond them, she can just make out her trainers, peeking out behind the half-open bathroom door.

She plans every movement in order to get out of the door as quickly as possible, listening to the deep breathing behind her back, her own silent and shallow. She does a quick run-through of the necessary steps in an attempt to quell a wave of anxiety churning in her stomach. Then she takes a deep breath before breaching for her knickers and pulling them on in one motion. Carefully, to avoid jostling the mattress, she gets to her feet and feels the room spin. She waits, breathes. Then a series of hunched-over steps to snatch up her bra and tights with one hand and pick up her dress and jacket with the other. Nausea mounting, she continues into the bathroom and quietly pulls the door shut behind her. Hesitates for a split second, then turns the lock. She instantly regrets it when she hears the tiny click from the bolt, quickly pressing her ear against the door. But any sound on the other side is drowned out by her thumping heart and the blood rushing to her head.

Then she turns around.

The eyes that meet hers in the mirror above the sink are blank and strangely unfamiliar. Heavy with self-loathing, she studies her flushed cheeks and the mascara that’s flaked and settled in dark circles under her eyes. Her brown hair is hanging limply on one side, while the rest is still tied back. Her long fringe is sticking to her clammy forehead. Resignedly, she studies the devastation and whispers with a gluey, dry mouth: ‘You fucking idiot.’

Something turns in her stomach; she only just has time to bend down over the toilet before the vomit starts coming. This’ll wake him for sure. She listens helplessly to her own retching, panting as she waits for the next cascade, closing her eyes so as not to have to look at yesterday’s left overs in the toilet bowl.

Gives it a while longer, but her insides seem to have calmed down. Temporarily relieved, she straightens up, turns on the tap and fills her cupped hands. Rinses out her mouth and lets the water cool her face, realising it will probably make the black circles under her eyes worse and deciding it doesn’t matter. There are no limits to this particular hell. At almost fifty, she’s really reached new lows this time. She feels like seventy.

A quick escape is all she has left to hope for now. To get home so she can lie down and die. In her own bed. But first, she has to get out of here, get in her car and go straight home without talking to anyone, without being seen by anyone. Then a faint glimmer of hope when she realises that on this particular day of the year, she might have a chance of slinking out of town unseen. At quarter past seven in the morning, the day aft er the oyster festival, all of Dunker is out cold.

She fills one of the toothbrush glasses with cold water and downs it quickly while she disentangles her hair tie with the other hand, noting that it pulls a few long hairs out with it. She refills the glass, pulls on her dress, shoves her bra and tights into her handbag and is just about to put her hand on the door handle when she stops. She has to flush. Even though the sound is bound to wake him, she has to; she can leave no trace of herself behind. With eyes screwed up tightly and a grimace of dread, she listens to the sound of water rushing down into the bowl, followed by the sound of the cistern refilling. She hangs back for a few more seconds, until the sound has subsided to a soft tinkling, then pulls the strap of her handbag over her shoulder.

Then she takes a deep breath and opens the bathroom door. He’s on his back with his face turned to her and for a second, she freezes. Backlit, he looks like he’s watching her. But then another thunderous snore fills the room; she jumps as the spell is broken.

Six seconds later, she’s gathered up her shoes and opened the door to the hallway. And there, on the cusp of freedom, something makes her turn around. Driven by the same kind of compulsive urge that people have when they pass an accident on the motorway and don’t really want to look but have to anyway, she lets her eyes take in the man in the bed. Studies the slackly open mouth, listens to the faint gurgling that accompanies each exhalation.

With a feeling of unreality, Karen studies her boss for three seconds before closing the door behind her.

Maria Adolfsson (b. 1958) lives in Stockholm where she, until recently, worked as a communications
director and now writes full-time. 

The Doggerland series has been sold in to 18 languages to date, and has sold over 250 000 copies in Sweden alone.

The Coven by Lizzie Fry @LizzieFryAuthor #TheCoven @BooksSphere @_FrancescaBanks #BookReview

 

Imagine a world in which witchcraft is real. In which mothers hand down power to their daughters, power that is used harmlessly and peacefully.

Then imagine that the US President is a populist demagogue who decides that all witches must be imprisoned for their own safety, as well as the safety of those around them - creating a world in which to be female is one step away from being criminal...

As witches across the world are rounded up, one young woman discovers a power she did not know she had. It's a dangerous force and it puts her top of the list in a global witch hunt.

But she - and the women around her - won't give in easily. Not while all of women's power is under threat.

The Coven is a dazzling global thriller that pays homage to the power and potential of women everywhere.

The Coven by Lizzie Fry is published on 25 February 2021 by Sphere. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review.

I have to say, right from the start of this review, that this book took me way out of my comfort zone! I was hooked by the premise and the whole blurb. A book that pays homage to the power of women has to be just for me. I was expecting a thriller, instead I got an intriguing mix of magical realism and witches with an intelligent and prescient, prophetic look at social issues.

This is clever novel. It is written with such care; care for the reader and the characters created within the pages.  Some will label this as a dystopian novel, and of course, it is set in an imagined society with many injustices, however it's quite close to the truth in many ways. Take out the witchcraft and the unearthly powers of the women in the novel, and you will find so many similarities to today. The continued oppression of females, the ever increasing criticism of any female who may have power in what is still, very much, a man's world. 

In The Coven there are females who practice 'spellbinding', or witches. There are three types of witch and all of them have been outlawed, silenced and heavily punished. These measures were taken by men and are enforced by more men, known as the Sentinels. Three types of witches and three types of punishment; prison, correctional camps, or death.

Chloe is 'The One', the most powerful witch, and the one person who may be able to unite the power of these women.

The author takes her readers on Chloe's journey, accompanied by a varied mix of characters, including my favourite character; Daniel, her father. The united front that these diverse 'gang of four' create is so well developed and it's interesting and refreshing to find a male lead character of Chinese descent who is not a martial-arts practising warrior, veering toward the bad. Instead we have, in Daniel, a trust worthy, wholesome character who is loyal and not afraid to buck the trend.

At it's heart, this is a story about powerful women and how weaker men, who have gained powerful positions through contacts and money, are frightened. There are scenes with the US President, who whips his followers into a frenzy that are oh so familiar, and turned my blood a little cold when reading. 

A wonderfully executed mix of fantasy, magic and social issues. For me, a challenging read, but one that I'm happy to have read. I have learned from and enjoyed this reading experience. There's a massive audience out there already for books like this, and I'd also recommend it to anyone who wants something that's a little out of their usual reading habits. It's well worth the the gamble. 

Lizzie Fry is the pseudonym of an internationally acclaimed author and script editor. 

As well as working with numerous film production companies, she is a core member of the London Screenwriters' Festival board.

Twitter @LizzieFryAuthor

The Virus of Beauty by C B Lyall BLOG TOUR @cblyall #TheVirusOfBeauty @RandomTTours #Extract

 

Ugliness is power, and the Virus of Beauty is spreading causing panic throughout the witch population.Wilf Gilvary is a teenage wizard who is terrified of using magic. When his father dies under mysterious circumstances, Wilf is plunged into the middle of a political struggle between the witches and wizards in the Magical Realm. He’d rather play soccer than practice magic, but he’s forced to make a choice between the life of a normal Hong Kong teen and one of wizardry after a powerful virus begins to decimate the witch community. The cure is spellbound in a journal Wilf inherited from his father and when his friend Katryna contracts the virus, Wilf understands that he must overcome his fear of magic to unlock the journal’s secrets – but will it be too late to save her?

The Virus of Beauty by C B Lyall was published on 13 November 2020 by Hazel Publishing Company. I'm delighted to share an extract from the book with you today, as part of the #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

Extract from The Virus of Beauty by C B Lyall

Chapter One – Gilvary Store, Hong Kong

Wilf waited in bed until he could no longer hear his father’s footsteps on the stairs of their Hong Kong apartment. If he was lucky, he could sneak out and avoid another confrontation.

The shooting star tattoo on the back of his right hand pulsed. He scrunched his eyes. Beads of sweat collected on his forehead and trickled down his face. The pain became impossible to ignore, and he cracked open his eyes.

A long, trembling sigh escaped him. For the second time this week, his bedroom had transformed overnight from orderly to resembling the aftermath of a major typhoon’s direct hit.

He shivered from the sweat cooling on his body and the cold room. Grabbing a towel, he headed for the shower.

It had to be Myra messing his room during the night. Wilf tried to think of what he might have done recently to upset his stepsister, but nothing came to mind.

He stepped out of the shower, dried, and wrapped a towel around his waist.

Whatever it was, he’d better find out soon and apologize.

“You’re late,” Myra said, as he emerged from the steam-filled bathroom. “I know.” He took a deep breath. “Myra.”

She disappeared down the stairs, towards the kitchen.

Wilf padded along the landing, turned into his room, and stopped. A knot tightened in his stomach. She’d done it again: His room had magically been tidied. She had even laid out his clothes on the bed. He threw them on the floor. This was control on an unhealthy level.

She had no right to enter his room, let alone clear it up. If he wanted his room to resemble a catastrophe, why should she interfere?

He picked up the white shirt and dark gray pants off the floor. He hated the South Island School’s uniform. Next year, he’d be free to wear whatever he wanted, the privilege of being an upperclassman.

He shoved textbooks, binders, and his soccer kit into a backpack. Collecting his wallet from the nightstand, he checked inside for his Octopus card. Shit. It wasn’t there.

He picked up yesterday’s cargo shorts and checked all the pockets. It wasn’t possible he’d lost it so soon. His father would explode.

He tore the room apart looking for the card. Bedding lay heaped on the rug, and schoolbooks covered the mattress where he’d shaken each one. Gnawing the skin around his fingernails, he glanced towards the bedroom door.

He needed that card. Coach would check that he had it. If he didn’t, he’d have to clear up after soccer practice and then he’d be late for school, which would put him in detention. Not to mention that the stupid thing was the only way to register attendance and pay for lunch and the bus home.

He repacked his backpack and ran down to the kitchen.

“Have you seen my Octopus card?”

“No.” Myra stepped away from the fridge. “You haven’t...?”

He threw his backpack under the table, grabbed a hand towel, and took

the stairs two at a time.

The apartment where they lived stood above his family’s souvenir store.

He let the front door bang shut and cursed. Standing on the street in front of the store’s entrance, he swallowed, trying to ease his dry throat.

There was only one place left to look: under the counter, and his father would already be at work in the basement workshop. It was either risk his father going ballistic or have the rest of his day ruined. With any luck, his father would be busy on a call or in the middle of some experimental magic.

CB Lyall grew up in Stockton-on-Tees in the North East of England. 

Since then she has lived in India, Belgium, Hong Kong and the United States. 

She currently resides in the Hudson Valley, north of New York, with her husband. 

She has three sons and one grandson

https://cblyall.com/

Twitter @cblyall

Housewife Writes Bestseller by Ann Victoria Roberts BLOG TOUR @Ann_V_Roberts #HousewifeWritesBestseller @RandomTTours

 

One Thursday in July, 1989, beneath the headline, 'Obsession That Became A Bestseller,' the Daily Mail featured a photo of a young woman looking like a lottery winner. The Sun’s piece was cheekier: 'Mum Makes A Million,' appeared beside the boobs on Page Three. Ann Victoria Roberts hadn’t posed naked and hadn’t won a fortune. She’d written a novel that prompted a bidding war for publishing rights across the world. In the eyes of the press, the fact that Ann was not a career woman, but simply a wife and mother, was newsworthy. In this memoir, the author reflects on the joys, travels and heartaches of her life as a sea-captain’s wife – and the decade of coincidences and lucky strikes that led to the writing of two big historical novels, 'Louisa Elliott' and 'Liam’s Story'. Amidst the fanfares and famous names, and the journey that took her from York to Australia and back, Ann reveals the work behind the success, and the truth behind her characters. As readers, we browse in bookshops, spot a favourite author or intriguing title, and take it home. Rarely do we consider the path that book must have taken from the author’s pen to a bookshop shelf. And yet the story behind it is often stranger than the fiction it contains.

Housewife Writes Bestseller : A Tale of Life and Luck by Ann Victoria Roberts was published on 27 November 2020. My thanks to the author who sent my copy for review, as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

Who can resist such a tantalising headline? 'Housewife Writes Bestseller' screamed out from the pages of the Daily Mail in July 1989. As a reader, this would certainly catch my attention, and this memoir from Ann Victoria Roberts details exactly how she became the subject of such publicity.

I have to admit that I've not read the books concerned. 'Louisa Elliott' and the follow-up 'Liam's Story' are the bestsellers that this book is about, and are the fruit of many years of research that the author undertook when she chanced upon an old diary when searching through the attic.

This is not just the story of the success of a book though. It's also the story of Ann's life; about her childhood, her dreams of being an artist, her marriage and her children. It's finely detailed and a wonderfully written story that will both inspire and encourage other writers. It is a study in determination and how one, ordinary housewife dealt with instant fame. Appearing in The Sun, along side a topless page three girl and talking to journalists, appearing on radio and TV, and yet surviving it all intact!

I enjoyed my trip into Ann's world, I especially loved the Yorkshire aspect. York and the surrounding areas are great favourites of mine and the familiarity of the settings were a delight. 

This is such a great idea for a book. A book about the birth and life of a book, and an insight into the personal life of the author too. Warm and entertaining, I enjoyed this so much.

Ann Victoria Roberts trained as an artist, but she was simply a Yorkshire wife and mother when her
success hit national headlines in 1989. 

Her first historical novels, Louisa Elliott and Liam’s Story, had just sold for what was then a record sum for a first-time author. 

As the wife of a sea-captain, Ann’s writing was often interrupted by visits to ships and journeys around the world – she even received news of Louisa Elliott’s acceptance while on the bridge of an oil tanker entering port.
Her fifth novel, The Master’s Tale, based on the life of Captain Smith of the Titanic, was inspired by little-known facts behind the disaster, and praised for its authenticity. 

A keen reader and researcher, Ann enjoys painting pictures with words and regards good historical fiction as a pleasurable way to discover the past. 

Her seventh book, Housewife Writes Bestseller – a Tale of Life & Luck, is a memoir of crazy days, huge upheavals, and the strange events that led to her success. 

Ann is now a grandmother, and lives in Southampton UK with her semi-retired Master Mariner husband.
Ann is a member of the Society of Authors and the Alliance of Independent Authors - she can be contacted through her website: www.annvictoriaroberts.co.uk and her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AnnVictoriaRoberts

Twitter @Ann_V_Roberts

Lady In Waiting by Anne Glenconner #LadyInWaiting @HodderBooks #AnneGlenconner #BookReview

 

Anne Glenconner has been close to the Royal Family since childhood. Eldest child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, she was, as a daughter, described as 'the greatest disappointment' by her family as she was unable to inherit. Her childhood home Holkham Hall is one of the grandest estates in England. Bordering Sandringham the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret were frequent playmates.

From Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation to Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, Lady Glenconner is a unique witness to royal history, as well as an extraordinary survivor of a generation of aristocratic women trapped without inheritance and burdened with social expectations.

She married the charismatic but highly volatile Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who became the owner of Mustique. Together they turned the island into a paradise for the rich and famous, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, and it became a favourite retreat for Princess Margaret.

But beneath the glitz and glamour there has also lurked tragedy. On Lord Glenconner's death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident.

Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life.

Lady In Waiting by Anne Glenconner was published by Hodder in hardback in October 2019, the paperback was published in June last year.

I bought this book way back in October 2019 when it was first published. I'd seen the author being interviewed on the Graham Norton show and was fascinated by her, and her story. Finally, I've read it and what an absolute treat it is. This is a heartfelt, honest, sometimes hilarious and often tragic story of a remarkable life, written by an incredible woman.

Anne Glenconner has lived a life that most of us can only imagine. She was born into the aristocracy. Her father was the fifth Earl of Leicester, she grew up in a stately home in Norfolk and our Queen and her younger sister Margaret were her playmates. 

Her heart was broken by the first man that she loved and she later went on to marry Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner. Whilst her husband was clearly a charmer, with a wide circle of friends and associates, he was also a very difficult man. His child-like mood swings were both frustrating and often dangerous. Many times throughout their marriage Anne was let-down, humiliated and embarrassed. However, she is a truly strong woman and she stayed loyal to her husband throughout the constant ups and downs of their marriage. Colin was unfaithful, he was a distant father, he was impetuous and self-centred.

Anne and Colin had five children; three boys and twin girls. Tragedy has followed her and her family around and as she relays the dreadful losses and the trauma of watching a son fight for life, the reader cannot help but feel total empathy towards her. 

Of course, it was her time as lady-in-waiting to Princess Margaret that the book concentrates on in the main and her honest and often laugh out loud account of working alongside the often difficult Margaret are really a joy to read. From the heady days of parties on the island of Mustique to the later years of the Princess' life, Anne was a loyal servant, and friend. The warmth of feeling between these two extraordinary women is palpable and also fascinating to read. 

Lady In Waiting is full of gossip and intrigue. It lays bare the inner workings of society and is also a heartbreaking story of a wife and a mother. 

Entertaining, well written, witty and honest. I loved this and would recommend highly.

Lady Glenconner was born Lady Anne Coke in 1932, the eldest daughter of the 5th Earl of Leicester,
and growing up in their ancestral estate at Holkham Hall in Norfolk. 
A Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation, she married Lord Glenconner in 1956. They had 5 children together of whom 3 survive. 
In 1958 she and her husband began to transform the island of Mustique into a paradise for the rich and famous. 
They granted a plot of land to Princess Margaret who built her favourite home there. 
She was appointed Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret in 1971 and kept this role - accompanying her on many state occasions and foreign tours - until her death in 2002. 

Lord Glenconner died in 2010, leaving everything in his will to his former employee.

She now lives in Norfolk, England.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wb8QqBKwYz4

Deity by Matt Wesolowski BLOG TOUR @OrendaBooks Guest Review #TheBloke @eksorsist #Deity #SixStories #OnlineLaunch @ForumBooks

 

A shamed pop star
A devastating fire
Six witnesses
Six stories
Which one is true?

When pop megastar Zach Crystal dies in a fire at his remote mansion, his mysterious demise rips open the bitter divide between those who adored his music and his endless charity work, and those who viewed him as a despicable predator, who manipulated and abused young and vulnerable girls.

Online journalist, Scott King, whose Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation, investigates the accusations of sexual abuse and murder that were levelled at Crystal before he died. But as Scott begins to ask questions and rake over old graves, some startling inconsistencies emerge: Was the fire at Crystal's remote home really an accident? Are reports of a haunting really true? Why was he never officially charged?

Dark, chillingly topical and deeply thought-provoking, Deity is both an explosive thriller and a startling look at how heroes can fall from grace and why we turn a blind eye to even the most heinous of crimes...

Deity by Matt Wesolowski is published by Orenda Books in paperback on 18 February 2021.

I'm delighted to host this guest review from #TheBloke (aka Martin Cater) as part of the Blog Tour today. Our thanks to the publisher who sent the copy for review.

A shamed pop star

A devastating Fire

Six witnesses

Six Stories………….. and now mine!

 

It is by now, no secret that I am something of a fan of Matt Wesolowski. I am not a voracious reader, but the ‘six-stories’ format has been something that has captivated me immediately. I started with the second novel ‘Hydra’ – more on this later, but since then have looked forward to, and devoured each one.

In these times of modern media, I am willing to bet there has been at least someone everyone can name, who rumour or allegations have surfaced about, and it has completely changed their perspective of that person – be it true or not.

 

Deity, the fifth in the series once again had me hooked right from the very opening pages. The ‘stories’ this time around, concentrate on the enigmatic ‘Zach Crystal’, a pop megastar who is mysteriously killed in a fire at his mansion ‘Crystal Woods’, situated in another one of those famed Wesolowski spooky forests! For me the description conjured up the image of a creepy ‘Neverland’  - designed by someone who didn’t get the chance to have a ‘normal’ childhood. Crystal himself conjures images of a certain other ‘enigma’. Accusations of sexual abuse and murder plagued Crystal before he died.

Our six accounts come from polarising sources as we try to uncover the ‘truth’ behind the mask. The author deals with catfishing, fan obsession, family and sibling rifts, and a healthy dose of folklore and creepiness in the form of the ‘Frithgast’. There is also the very clever re-acquaintance with a key character from a previous instalment; ‘Hydra’ – not that this requires you to have read the previous books, but if you haven’t ‘do it – do it now!’....

 

It’s another captivating, intriguing tale with an insidiously chilling twist. Very thought provoking and completely relevant in a world where ‘celebrities’ are under such scrutiny and everyone is so quick to have an opinion on their every move.

 

It’s interesting that Matt references a quote from a certain Brian Hugh Warner – AKA Marilyn Manson, in the opening pages. Another polarising enigma of music culture currently under investigation.

 

This has been our third and I have been Martin Cater….. Until next time!

Matt Wesolowski is an author from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in the UK. He is an English tutor for
young people in care.

'Six Stories' was published by Orenda Books in the spring of 2016 with follow-up 'Hydra' published in the winter of 2017, 'Changeling' in 2018, 'Beast' in 2019 and 'Deity' in 2020.

'Six Stories' has been optioned by a major Hollywood studio and the third book in the series, 'Changeling' was longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, 2019 Amazon Publishing Readers' Award for Best Thriller and Best Independent Voice.
'Beast' won the Amazon publishing award for Best Independent voice in 2020.

Twitter @ConcreteKraken

Instagram @mattjwesolowski

Author Page on Facebook

You are invited to the online launch party for Deity

Matt will be speaking to author Catriona Ward, the event is hosted by Jacky Collins

Tuesday 9 March at 7pm 

To book at ticke: email cole@orendabooks.co.uk

Signed copies of Deity can be bought from Forum Books