The Library of Unrequited Love - Sophie Divry

Translated from the French by Sian Reynolds

'To know your way round a library is to master the whole of culture, i.e. the whole world.'

I think this is a beautiful book inside and out. A lovely little hardback with a very attractively designed dust jacket, and inside a wonderful novella filled with remarkable, striking observations about books, libraries, love and life.

Sophie Divry's debut is written in the form of a monologue delivered by a librarian in the provinces who one morning discovers a reader in the library who has been locked in there all night. This reader is on the receiving end of the librarian's thoughts; subjected to hearing all about the things she loves, the things that anger and irritate her, and the person who has caught her eye. 

I read this book in just a couple of sittings, and many readers would probably finish it in just one. It's a charming and insightful little story featuring a passionate but anxious, troubled and lonely lady. The librarian feels invisible and is unhappy with the Geography section that she has been allocated, longing for her preferred section, History; indeed she divulges some of her views about this topic too. She shares her disapproval of the hierarchy of staff within the library, and her disgruntlement at readers who come to the library and simply make a mess. Whilst she complains about many things to her captive listener, she nevertheless has a strong affection for libraries and books and this shines through.

She has been hurt in love and tells us she avoids it now, with her job helping her cope with all that bothers her: 'the library works like an anaesthetic for my hang-ups.' She reveals that she has noticed a man, Martin, who has been coming to the library, and he is evidently in her thoughts a good deal - she movingly discloses how beautiful she finds him, but her past hurt holds her back, and she seeks safety and solace in books:

'So men, no, that's all over. Love, for me, is something I find in books. I read a lot, it's comforting. You're never alone if you live surrounded by books. They lift my spirit. The main thing is to be uplifted.'

The author has captured the magic and joy of books and reading and the pleasure found in a library and conveyed this so well through the librarian. Her voice held my attention throughout. I think most bookworms will find elements here that they agree with, or that make them smile or chuckle, or ponder - I certainly did. All in all this is a lovely little book with much that will resonate with keen readers.

I marked and noted so many little passages as I read this book that I must share a couple more of my favourites here at the end of this review - there are so many perceptive gems to be discovered in Sophie Divry's writing.

'You know, in my job, there's nothing more exciting, to make you feel more wanted, than to be able to size up the person in front of you, guess what they're after, find the book they need on the shelves and bring the two together. Book and reader, if they meet up at the right moment in a person's life, it can make sparks fly, set you alight, change your life.'

'I prefer the company of books. When I'm reading, I'm never alone, I have a conversation with the book. It can be very intimate. Perhaps you know this feeling yourself? The sense that you're having an intellectual exchange with the author, following his or her train of thought and you can accompany each other for weeks on end.'

Published by Maclehose Press

Thanks very much to the publisher for kindly sending me a copy of this book to read and review. 

This book is another read for me in the 2013 Translation Challenge

Dangerous Waters - Anne Allen

‘Was it a real memory or was her mind playing tricks on her?’

We meet writer Jeanne Le Page as she is on the ferry returning to her home on the island of Guernsey for the first time in many years. After the mysterious death of her parents, a riddle that has still never been solved, she is revisiting the place to sort out affairs after the death of her Grandmother who has left her old cottage to Jeanne. Having experienced a difficult, unhappy time in her life recently, Jeanne might be glad of the escape from England. However there are so many ghosts and traumatic memories for her on Guernsey that it is certain to be a difficult return; ‘the ghosts of the past were not going to lie down quietly.’

Jeanne initially intends to simply sell her inheritance and leave, however she makes a discover in the cottage relating back to the time of the German Occupation, and that makes her want to find out more and then she has to determine whether there is any future for her on Guernsey, whether she can come to terms with the events of her past there, and find some peace and a new life:

‘Would Guernsey be able to offer her the healing she so badly needed? She had loved it once. Perhaps the spark was still there.’

We follow Jeanne as she sets about the updating and renovation of the home left to her by her Gran, meeting up with old friends who are a great support to her, in particular Molly and Peter, and rekindling old acquaintances from school days. As she begins to establish herself on the island, the intriguing discovery she made will set in course a new and exciting writing project for her, and Jeanne wonders if she can finally lay the past to rest. But there is one thing that remains unsolved, namely the mystery surrounding her parents’ death, and the disturbing flashbacks that Jeanne experiences from time to time. And whilst this is unanswered, there seems to be an element of danger for Jeanne herself, too, in knowing who to trust. Molly offers to use her experience with hypnotism to help Jeanne revisit her memories and try and unearth the truth.

This is an enjoyable and intriguing read by Anne Allen, full of romance and mystery, and the setting of Guernsey is well evoked. Jeanne is a likeable main character; she is talented, brave and resourceful but also apprehensive and unsettled by recent and past events, and seeks to create some stability and normality in her life. She has suffered much pain and at times it overwhelms her.

I liked the author’s inclusion of historical aspects alongside and within the modern day story, which added to the intrigue and revealed more about Jeanne’s family heritage, as well as adding colour to the island’s past during the German Occupation. I also liked the mystery of the room in Jeanne’s Gran’s cottage which always held a chill for Jeanne whenever she entered. I wondered what it was that she sensed there. I was drawn into Jeanne’s life and her friendships on the island, and I found the story regarding her Gran interesting and moving. I enjoyed reading this atmospheric novel with its combination of love story and mystery. 

Published by Matador, an imprint of Troubador Publishing

Thanks to the author for kindly sending a copy of this novel to read and review.

You can find the author on twitter @AnneAllen21  and visit her website here.

Red Joan - Jennie Rooney

‘Nobody said what they did during the war. They were different times.’

Joan Stanley is an eighty-five-year-old grandmother living in south-east London. One morning she reluctantly answers the door to find the Security Services have come to question her about her past after all these years.

The dual time narrative structure of the novel is employed very effectively here, with the now elderly Joan recounting her story to the MI5 operatives, so that we move from the present to the past and back with her as we read.

We are transported back to 1937, Joan Robson is a student at Cambridge, where she meets and befriends Sonya Galich and her cousin Leo. Her friendship with them will shape her life. They are supporters of communism and Joan becomes involved with their activities though never commits herself wholly to the cause. When World War Two begins, Joan is recruited to work with scientists in a laboratory on the ‘Tube Alloys’ project – developing an atomic weapon. Over the coming years, as old friends leave and re-enter her life, and the war comes to a close with events she had hoped never to see, her character and her loyalties will be severely tested.

This spy novel which spans the period from the late 1930s to the time of the Cold War was inspired by a true story of a British spy who was unmasked after many years as having worked for the Soviets.

Red Joan boasts a gripping narrative and a compelling lead character. The intrigue builds and I found the progression of the plot towards the ending fascinating. I was engrossed and intrigued by Joan; she is at once an intelligent yet naïve character. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her life and about society then, Joan’s position as a woman working in a scientific field, pursuing studies and a career despite her mothers wishes, falling in love and learning for the first time how it felt to be truly loved in return, yet fraught at the situation she finds herself in, torn between loyalty to her country and the deep need to do what she feels is right. We see her grow convincingly as she learns from what has happened in her life. In a very fitting use of language, Joan ponders: ‘How strange the human mind is, she thinks. Unknowable and unpredictable, its thoughts whizzing like electrons inside an atom. Invisible to the human eye.’

This is an absorbing and accomplished novel and causes us to ask ‘Where does responsibility begin, and where does it end?’

Published by Chatto & Windus on 7th March 2013


I originally reviewed this novel for We Love This Book - thanks to them and to the publisher for a copy of this novel to read and review.

The Night Rainbow - Claire King

‘I fly up into my head to play with my thoughts.’

Pea (Peony, or Pivoine), spends her days playing with her little sister Margot in the sprawling countryside around her home in the south of France. It is summertime when we meet her, and we learn that her Maman is heavily pregnant. Sadly she lost her previous baby, as Pea explains, telling us ‘she didn’t bring back a baby like she promised. She left it at the hospital, along with her happiness.’ Pea wonders at the sadness inside her Maman, so deep that she cannot reach in and bring her back to them no matter how she tries.

Pea tells the story throughout and she captivates the reader. Her five year old voice is completely honest; at times so delightful in her observations, yet at other times so fearful and sad, and prone to moments of darkness. Her imagination is her strength and the key to a part of this story.

She is insightful in her observations; on one occasion, seeing the swallows, she recalls when she saw them in their nest, and now they are out in the world, no longer fed by their mother but having to fend for themselves. I felt that Pea and Margot were like these little swallows, having to do things for themselves, as the mother bird was no longer able to always be there for them at the moment. In this way, Pea is strongly bound up in the life and nature around her.

The sense of place is strongly evoked and provides an important backdrop to Pea’s adventures and exploring. I felt I could picture the meadows and trees, the little village market, and the family home.

Pea and Margot befriend Claude and his dog Merlin, who are both an integral part of their countryside surroundings. They find companionship and wisdom; Claude advises Pea that ‘you can’t mend everything that gets broken.’ Claude is an intriguing character; I wondered at his past and his life now.

Claire King has crafted a very special tale and told it beautifully. It is a tale of sadness, grief and loss, and of friendship, belief and hope. Surely an author to watch. 

I must add, I absolutely love the cover of this book, so beautiful and attractive and fitting.

Published by Bloomsbury

Thanks to the author and the publisher for a copy of this novel to read and review.

You can follow the author on twitter @ckingwriter  and visit her website here

Author in focus - Susan Buchanan

I am pleased to welcome author Susan Buchanan to the blog today!

Susan's first novel is Sign of the Times, and her latest book is The Dating Game.

Hi Susan!

I'd love to know about the inspiration for The Dating Game.

Inspiration for The Dating Game was easy. Sometimes all it takes is a flyaway comment. A friend of mine had split up from her long-term boyfriend a few years previously, but what with having a child to take care of and work to juggle, was finding it difficult to meet men. She joined a dating agency for professional people in Glasgow. Quite frankly, although Gill, my protagonist has a lot of ups and downs, her dating agency experiences are far better than my friend's were! Gill is single and doesn't have kids, so it's plain to see that I took only the germ of the idea and ran with it. I had noticed there were some internet dating novels around at the time, almost four years ago, when I had the idea, but no-one appeared to  have written about dating agencies and The Dating Game was born, although I didn't get past chapter 3 until Mar 2012!

What are you working on at the moment? (If you are writing at the moment!)

My current WIP is What If. Its progress is slower than I had hoped, simply because I am now 7 months pregnant and can't whizz around at my usual 100mph - my nickname is Speedy Gonzalez! Plus I keep falling asleep all the time!

I hope to release What If in the autumn. It's going to be kind of bloke lit written by a chick. Basically my main character wakes up and wonders if he is leading the life he should be. He realises he is no longer content with his lot, which is a shock to him. He's not in a relationship and starts back-tracking through his past relationships and decisions in general. What if he had made a different decision? I'm having a lot of fun with it! 

There will still be plenty of relationship based stuff, in fact that's the crux of the matter and you will still see inside the heads of the women involved, but the protagonist, Cameron is a travel agent and 100% male! (just in case anyone got confused with Cameron being a girl's name, too!)

Where do you write - do you have a special place or do you like to vary where you do your writing?

To be honest, I am quite naughty. I have incredibly bad posture from sitting on my sofa for too long with my laptop on my Cushdesk (best invention ever!). When I am 'in the zone' I behave better and write in my office for a few hours, stopping only to be lured to the kitchen by cups of tea. I am not really one of those writers who misses meals as they are so engrossed - I love my food too much for that (as can be seen in both my novels!) It's surprising really, that pregnancy aside, I am not normally the size of a house! I used to write on holiday all the time, but as I now write full-time, last year was the first year I didn't write. I tend to write in the home office and edit/redraft with a printout on my sofa and several highlighters and different coloured pens!

Is there a typical writing day for you? Do you have a routine - are you quite disciplined when you have a book on the go?

Generally speaking I am more disciplined. Again the pregnancy thing has thrown that out the window. I have worked from home in international sales roles even before I was writing full-time, so I am well accustomed to having to be very disciplined. The biggest drain on my time is social networking. I was so busy blogging and marketing Sign of the Times, it took me longer to write The Dating Game than I wanted and it was a mad rush at the end - I was working 16 hours a day to get it ready for the launch and even then, I had to move it out by a week. But, when I sat down to write The Dating Game with a vengeance, I was pretty disciplined. I was allowed 1-1/2 hours of Twitter in the morning and then maybe again at 5pm or so. Housework, going out with friends, etc went by the wayside and my Other Half, who is a better cook anyway, basically made most of the meals, so I could write. It took almost as long in hours to redraft as to write! Procrastination and being able to do household/admin stuff as I work from home are problems, but once I get started, everything just flows. I will be writing later today - promise!

What sort of books do you most enjoy reading?

Mainly I read chicklit, women's contemporary fiction, crime, thrillers and legal dramas, although I dabble with politics, business books and world affairs too. I like to know for example, what will happen with the two emerging superpowers of China and India. But to relax I read chicklit like Sophie Kinsella, Cecelia Ahern and Maeve Binchy. I've even read a few romantic suspense recently which I have thoroughly enjoyed such as Terry Tyler's books. I also read some dramas, family-based, eg Joanna Rees' A Twist of Fate and Maria Savva's Coincidences. I can't see past John Grisham or Michael Connelly and I used to feel the same about James Patterson, but ever since he started releasing a book every six weeks and co-writing, where he only writes the 40 page outline, I have given up on those. It was costing me a fortune in hardbacks!

I also particularly enjoy novels set in different countries, whether it's historical fiction, such as Susan Louineau's The Chapel in the Woods, or the more contemporary (relatively) Joanne Harris' Chocolat, to Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian (about the real tale behind Dracula) and Carlos Ruiz Zafon's wonderful The Shadow of the Wind set in Barcelona. I am fortunate enough to be well-travelled and I love reading about places I have been and imagining myself there, within the context of the book. I also love reading about places I haven't been, but which interest me and make me want to visit!  I'm also a fan of some of the Swedish crime writers, like Jo Nesbo and Camilla Lackberg and from a psychological thriller point of view, Sophie Hannah. I discovered an awful lot of new authors last year, both indie and traditional. Now I just need time to read them!

About the author

Susan Buchanan lives in Central Scotland with her partner, Tony. The Dating Game is her second novel, released 2nd Nov 2012. Sign of the Times, her first novel, was published in Mar 2012. She will shortly start work on her third novel, due for release Autumn 2013.

Links

Twitter - @susan_buchanan

Facebook - www.facebook.com/susan.buchanan.author

Blog - www.susancbuchanan.blogspot.co.uk

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4216164.Susan_Buchanan

Book links - Sign of the Times - http://amzn.to/GKqZGd (UK) http://amzn.to/IYN0Fc (US)

The Dating Game - http://amzn.to/RuSl7Y (UK) http://amzn.to/WZQtZK (US)

Thanks for being the author in focus on my blog today, Susan!

Journey into the Past - Stefan Zweig

Translated from the German by Anthea Bell

‘Ah, the dark, endless years between then and now, a grey sea between shore and shore, between heart and heart!’

This novella by Stefan Zweig is so beautifully written and even in a short work such as this, there were so many sentences and passages I found myself marking to return to and enjoy again.

The story is of a man born into poverty, working for little money as a private tutor, who takes up a position offered to him by a famous industrialist which enables him to raise up from his humble beginnings, and whilst employed he meets and falls deeply in love with the wife of his employer. He is given a great career opportunity, which involves relocating overseas for two years, to Mexico. Despite his love, he goes, and the two keep in touch by letter, focused on meeting once again once the two years have passed. However, the onset of World War I then serves to keep the two separate for many years longer.

Eventually they meet again, and the novella begins with them taking a train journey together again after all the years apart. As they travel, the recollections begin to flow and the reader learns how they met as he embarks on the journey into the past.

‘And while the rattling wheels invisible below them rolled onward, into a future that each of them imagined differently, the thoughts of both returned in reverie to the past.’

At times the feelings expressed and the behaviour are so deeply romantic; I was struck by the lengths he goes to in order to keep her letters safe and dry and close by him all the time whilst he is in Mexico. Zweig uses language so effectively to capture and convey human emotions and passions. The translation reads very well throughout.

Journey into the Past took hold of my heart and drew me into the intensity of feeling that once existed between this man and woman; it made me curious as to whether all that remained between them now was nostalgia or whether any of that once deep connection remained. I find the author’s words captivating and his understanding of human relationships and human nature so true and believable.

I have previously read The Post Office Girl, and Journeys, by Stefan Zweig, and next on my list of his works to read is Chess. 

Published by Pushkin Press

I bought my copy of this novella.


Read as part of the 2013 Translation Challenge 

All Fall Down - Louise Voss & Mark Edwards

We first met talented virologist Dr Kate Maddox in 'Catch Your Death', and two years on from her narrow escape in that book, we meet her again here, now living with her partner Paul and her son Jack in the UK, and hoping for a normal life. However her peace is about to he shattered, as a man connected to that terrible episode from her past appears and informs her of the horrifying news that a suspected new strain of the killer virus that Kate's parents died from is now on the loose in Los Angeles. Then there is worse news as a bomb goes off in a hotel in America killing the top scientists that were meeting there and thereby reducing significantly the chances of a cure to the outbreak being found. 

As one of the leading expert’s in the world on the Watoto virus, Kate is called upon to travel to the USA immediately to a top secret laboratory in California to assist a special team in desperately trying to find a cure for the virus and help to stop it spreading any further. Reluctantly she takes Paul and Jack with her to the US, sending Jack off to stay with his father Vernon, whilst Paul embarks on his own determined if ill-advised pursuit of an enemy from the past, still intent on revenge for the death of his twin-brother.

This is another exciting, scary page-turner from the able pens of crime writers Voss and Edwards; it is packed with action, adventure, intrigue and terror. I was intrigued as to the outcome and liked the way the story moved between the different strands in alternate, short chapters, so that the tension in what was happening to Kate was maintained as we were taken to find out where Paul was, and then on to what was happening with the killers, keeping all parts of the story in play and ratcheting up the interest for the reader.

The threat of the deadly virus escaping into the wider world is ever-present and drives the urgency for Kate to discover a cure, and the authors keep the pace of the story and the action pounding along to reflect this. The truly frightening killers behind this release of the virus are certainly unusual and different to your average crime villain and they have their own strong cult-like beliefs driving their actions, aiming to start the world anew. There were parts of the story where I felt I had to suspend my disbelief a little, or found myself wondering if something would really have happened that way, and I was also a little apprehensive about the violence at times. These are minor quibbles overall though. I think if you’ve enjoyed the previous two novels by this author team then you should definitely read this one too. Although this isn’t my personal favourite novel by them – that would be Killing Cupid – I would still recommend it as a fast and furious thriller with some very unusual killers and a tense, exciting plot throughout. You don’t need to read Catch Your Death before reading All Fall Down, although I would recommend reading CYD simply because it’s a very good read!

Published by Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins

Thanks to the authors and the publisher for kindly sending a copy of this novel to read and review. 

You can find the authors on twitter @mredwards and @louisevoss1 and visit their facebook page here and their website here. 

You can read my reviews of previous novels Catch Your Death and Killing Cupid by clicking on the book titles.

The Girl Below - Bianca Zander

'I had the strangest sensation then that I had somehow left the real world behind, and had gone to a place that didn't exist.'

Suki Piper returns to her childhood home in London after an absence of twenty years, the last ten of which she has spent in New Zealand. Recognising a familiar name on the doorbell to one of the neighbouring flats, she pays a visit to the now very ill lady, Peggy, who still lives there and whom she remembers. As a girl Suki was influenced by Peggy’s children, in particular her daughter Pippa, and Suki gets back in touch with Pippa to find her struggling with the unruly behaviour of her sixteen-year-old son Caleb.

Suki feels displaced in London, not quite at home anywhere, drifting without a job, her thoughts often returning automatically, and sometimes involuntarily, to the past. She never seems to have settled into her own life, escaping it through drink and drugs, often feeling lonely and still looking for a healthy loving relationship.

It is a rather unsettling read at times, with episodes that are eerie and dreamlike; Suki recalls dark memories and experiences glimpses into her past, to a party over twenty years ago in her parents’ garden, and she is drawn again and again to the haunting recollection of events in an old underground air-raid shelter, and there is also the ornamental figure of a girl which always haunted Suki. She has the feeling that she 'was trespassing across space and time.'

The chapters alternate between her past and present, and between London, New Zealand and Skyros, and we gain a fuller picture of her unsettled life to date.

It’s a very well written debut; Suki is portrayed convincingly as a flawed and troubled narrator and I was absorbed in her world and her troubles. In many ways she isn’t a likeable character yet I had sympathy with her and I felt moved at how alone she was, often seeming very unhappy, unstable and confused, battling with life and being defeated. The novel left me thinking about Suki, wondering what might happen next in her life.

Published by Alma Books on 28 February 2013

I originally reviewed this book for We Love This Book. Thanks to them and to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel in advance of publication.

Lydia Bennet's Blog: the real story of Pride and Prejudice - Valerie Laws

‘Well it seems to be a given, when a bloke’s made his pile (or waited for his Pa to peg it), he’s ready to commit longterm and install some ‘lucky’ woman to like, run his crib and die having his babies.’

Recognise this? Or think it sounds familiar in a strange sort of way? Welcome to the blog of Lydia Bennet. This book rewrites the much-loved story of Pride and Prejudice from the viewpoint of Lydia, who is a thoroughly cool and fashionable fifteen-year-old girl with a very modern turn of phrase. She introduces us to the idea behind her ‘blog’: ‘Well, me and my buddies on the Net are wayyy too cool to read or write those boring ladylike journals! That’s ‘buddies’ from ‘rosebuds’, we being young, sweet, innocent maidens (irony alert!). So we started to write our goss and news in our own style, in our ‘buddies’ logs’ or ‘blogs’ for short, and pass them around our Network, or ‘the Net. Geddit? Readers are therefore immediately aware of their very hip and with-it narrator from 1811!

Lydia proceeds to guide us throughout the story we know and love so well, putting her own unique and honest perspective on people and events. She is obsessed with the arrival of the soldiers in Meryton, in particular Mr Wickham, ‘who’s hotter than a heatwave in hell’, and tells us about the much-anticipated arrival of ‘Blingley, as I like to call this loaded incomer.’ Lydia comes across here as a smart, sassy and sussed teenager, or at least that’s what she seems to think of herself! And what is her first impression of the esteemed Mr Darcy? ‘Darcy. Arsey more like. Oh dear, he thinks he’s all that, and with reason to be honest. Handsome, if you like them snooty, looking down on us all and not just because he’s tall.’ As Kitty races to tell her sister, ‘he’s dead loaded! He’s got ten big ones a year!’ Money is as always the driving force behind the matchmaking here.

Valerie Laws has successfully employed the speech and behaviour of a modern teenage girl and incorporated this into the character of Lydia living back in the early 1800’s, making her story an amusing mixture of the historical and the humourous. There are some interesting new ideas about Mr Collins and Charlotte Lucas, and when Lydia refers to what Jane or Elizabeth have said, the words she reports that they used will often be more in the style of the original text, making clear the contrast with Lydia’s style. The Lydia we meet here is cheeky, clever and at times sneaky, as well as being very funny in her observations and remarks. The author displays an impressively thorough knowledge of the original material in her retelling.

If you are open to the idea of such a classic being handled in this way, you might find this, as I did, a clever, funny and entertaining read, cleverly adapted by the author to put the story into the hands of Lydia and show everything through her unique eyes with a very modern touch that had me laughing at times.

If the idea of it really doesn’t appeal, fair enough. I must admit I don’t particularly seek out books that look at the classics in a new or different way; without wanting to prejudge them, I usually prefer to read the original books. However, the author approached me to read and review this book and I was amused, entertained and impressed by it. I thought some aspects were very cleverly done, and above all it reminded me what a wonderful and timeless story the original novel offers us and how much I love that book.

Thank you to the author for kindly sending me an ebook copy of this novel to read and review.

You can visit the author's website here.

Lydia Bennet's Blog: the real story of Pride & Prejudice is Valerie Laws's eleventh book, and her first e-book as an indie author.

Blog Tour Guest Post - Sheryl Browne

Today I am really pleased to welcome author Sheryl Browne to my blog as part of her book launch tour for A Little Bit of Madness.

Hi Lindsay! 

Thank you so much for inviting me to share a little bit about myself and my newly released book. OK, where to start? Well, today is my birthday(!) and I can’t think of a more fabulous present than having my fourth book published and out there, all wrapped up in a gorgeous cover featuring multi-talented author, Carole E Wyer, whose own books are aimed at people facing big birthdays, i.e., of a certain age, and are absolutely hilarious.  A little plug for Carol there but it does bring me to my own book, A Little Bit of Madness, which features a colourful cast of eccentric ‘older people’ who are central to bringing our main love-torn couple together.

So what inspired me to write about older people, you might ask.  Why not, would be my answer.  Has anyone not watched Downton Abbey? Would anyone deny that the wonderful Dame Maggie Smith, Dowager Countess of Grantham, was central to the plot and an absolute joy to watch? 

Quoting this fabulously talented actress, who also recently starred spectacularly in Quartet, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, I think stories need to be written around older people, catering for shifting population demographics.  Readers want to read about people they identify with.  In A Little Bit of Madness, I aimed for a multigenerational read, if you like, combining younger ‘boy gets girl, despite all obstacles’ romance with the relationships, lives and loves of older people.  People of the Queen’s generation, or as Celia – our heroine – prefers to call them, her elderly independents, people who have life skills you couldn’t possibly learn from a book and who still have lives to live and something left to give.

Of course, I do have a hunky, flawed and hurting younger hero in there too. And a multi-faceted, multi-talented, feisty, yet vulnerable heroine. 

To sum up, I like to write romantic comedy because I hope to allow people a little escapism that leaves them with that all-important feel-good factor.  In my mind, a smile a day keeps the gloom away.  I do, however, like to write about real people, dealing with real life events, someone the reader identifies with and wants to get to know.  A ‘boy meets girl, boy gets girl, despite all obstacles’ story portraying characters readers can relate to and hopefully laugh with as they fall over those obstacles – because the reader is empathising with the character, because they’ve been there. 

Have I succeeded?  Well…?  Here’s a little snippet from a beautiful, heart-warming review of one of my previous books, Somebody to Love, which had me whooping. 

This author shows a true understanding and appreciation of how rewarding relationships between humans and animals can be. She writes about relationships convincingly, and has created warm, likeable, but flawed and therefore very human characters in Donna and Mark. Equally, Sheryl Browne writes with sensitivity and understanding regarding Karl, and with authority and insight as to the possibilities an autism assistance dog can offer a child's life.  I feel that this story has been written with real warmth and heart, with a wry humour at the ups and downs that life throws at people.  The Little Reader Library

Ultimately, it’s the reader who decides. Thank you, Lindsay! Thank you, too, to all those people who have purchased and reviewed my books, shared my ramblings, and offered me unstinting support. I couldn't have done it without you!  

Sheryl's book launch tour is hosted by Fiction Addiction Book Tours

~~~~~

Sheryl Browne grew up in Birmingham, UK, where she studied Art & Design. A partner in her own business, a mother and a foster parent to disabled dogs, Sheryl has also been writing for many years, the road along the way often bumpy.  She was therefore thrilled beyond words when Safkhet Publishing loved her writing style and commissioned her to write her debut novel. Recipes for Disaster - combining deliciously different and fun recipes with sexilicious romantic comedy, is garnering some fabulous reviews and was shortlisted for the Innovation in Romantic Fiction Festival of Romance Award.  Sheryl has since been offered a further three-book contract under the Safkhet Publishing Soul imprint. Somebody to Love, a romantic comedy centring around a single father’s search for love and his autistic little boy, launched July 1. Warrant for Love, Blackmail, lies, adultery, entrapment - three couples in a twisting story that resolves perfectly - released August 1 and A Little Bit of Madness -White Knight in Blue rescues the Harbour Rest Home - released Valentine’s Day 2013.

Links:

Sheryl’s Website

Safkhet Publishing

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com

Author Facebook     

Romantic Novelists’ Association

Sheryl is a loveahappyending featured Author and Editor.

Twitter: @sherylbrowne