Dangerous Skies

Dangerous Skies is a well-plotted novel that is set against the backdrop of the dangerous skies of World War Two London.

Not all children were evacuated to the countryside or distant Canada or Australia. Many of them remained at home, sharing the dangers of the Blitz with their families, friends and neighbours. 

Brian James' novel follows the adventures of Alan and his mates Tommy and Alan's sometime bully Wilkie bunk odd school, explore the streets of their part of London, playing in bombsites and burnt out or abandoned houses.

Whilst they are merely having fun others out on the streets have far more serious and nefarious matters on their minds and they become enmeshed into the dark world of a gang of dedicated looters.

As the police close in on the gang Alan and his schoolmates are sucked into a deadly battle for survival by an evil killer and the police.

Can they escape the clutches of the gang? Return to the relative safety of their family bomb shelters as the bombs rain down on the civilian populace of London?

This is a gripping story and aimed at children who are at Keystage 2. Always provided they can rescue it from their parents and grandparents, that is!

It's published by the Claret Press and very well illustrated by Oscar Clarke.

It costs £8.99 in paperback at https://payhip.com/b/KEgl.

It is an ideal book for bulk purchase for schools and libraries and will make a fantastic Christmas stocking filler. 

Rufus Needs a Haircut

Rufus Needs a Haircut is a book for all lovers of shaggy dog stories from the pen of David Selby.

David has taken many shaggy dog stories and, assisted by the lock down period, has taken the time and effort to bring them to a new generation of book lovers and dog lovers.

There's the eponymous Rufus, who did, indeed, need a haircut. And what of of Britain's great heroes of yesteryear, Sir Walter Raleigh? You might be aware of his part in bringing potatoes and tobacco to the British Isles. 

But what of his search (ordered by no less a personage that Good Queen Bess) for the fabled and long lost bacon tree? Could the best ship in the Royal Navy crewed by the navy's 250 best sailors, captained by Sir Walter himself, seek out this mythical plant and bring it back home to his Queen?

Those of you old enough to know the end of this story, well, don't spoil the end of it, for the others, will you?

There's stories about prawns, the tale of the Bloody Red Night on the Bloody Red Horse. For this story at least, David Selby advises that the reader should provide their own sound effects. 

Read of a lone shark, odd doings at a library, auditions, and much, much more. And you'll be sure to admire the lovely line drawings of Katie Colquitt. 

Some of these will make you smile, smirk, guffaw or even groan. It'll be a great Chirstmas stocking filler for the lover of humorous writings in your family or circle of friends. 

 It's published by David Selby and is available from Amazon at £7.99 in paperback or £2.99 as an eBook. 

Vicious Cycle

Vicious Cycle is a very interesting book from cyclist and author Jim Rees.

It began its life as a book about a cycle race but over time it evolved and developed into a highly readable and very relatable book about the story of a life, or of life.

As well as being an outstanding athlete Jim is a highly respected executive coach and an accomplished author. When you buy this book you will see what I mean by that remark.

In his book Jim shows his readers to identify what a vicious circle is and how to avoid them.

It's a powerful and very important book that serves as something between a guidebook and a life script that readers can use to help them navigate their way through life. A sort if cycle path through the vicissitudes of life, if you will.

The following quote from Jim's book is a key part of why his book is a sure fire way of getting you were you should be: "Discovering who we are will force us to accept that we can do more than we think we can, we are only scratching the surface of our potential."

Jim has a heartfelt belief that literally every human being on the planet is "built for greatness" and that they can, potentially, be helped, encouraged and motivated to achieve this greatness.

Part memoir (learn of Jim's own struggles and his involvement in Ultra-Racing, plus how he has helped people achieve success and empowerment in his role as a life coach.

From fellow cyclists to senior executives, from athletes to health practitioners, Jim's helped many people from all walks of life. And he doesn't always charge.

The book is in hardback and is nicely illustrated with colour images.

It is published by The EI Guru Publishing at  £28.45, including £3.50 postage and packing.

https://www.theeiguru.com/bag.php

This book will make an excellent Christmas gift for the cycling enthusiast and life coaching aficionado in your life. Or a great self-gift, too. 

Plague

Plague is a stunning and tightly crafted thriller from Julie Anderson.

An ancient plague pit is discovered in London. This isn't an altogether rare occurrence, but there's something special about this plague pit. It's on the route of a Tube extension and civil servant and somewhat disgraced former GCHQ investigator Cassandra Fortune is tasked with the job of overseeing the discovery of the plague pit, liaising with the archaeologists and the construction crew.

However, there's also something unexpected about this ancient burial pit. Because for the first time in 360 or so years a new corpse had been added to it. But the victim hadn't died of the plague. He had been cruelly murdered. But Cassandra noticed something about the body that becomes an important clue.

The discovery of a further murder victim, with an apparent link to Cassandra and to the Palace of Westminster, found at another plague pit site, caused her remit to be changed. She had her high security clearances reinstated and her task was now to ensure that the integrity of the government was kept sacrosanct. If at all possible.

She teams up with a senior Scotland Yard detective and together they face a maelstrom of conflicting interests as the body count rises and it becomes clear that there's a secretive, highly dangerous criminal network for which money is all, and human life is of no importance. 

But who can be trusted in their search for the truth and for justice? Is a member of the House of Lords or a Knight involved in the murders? And who else is involved?

Who is orchestrating a media campaign to whip up public fear of the threat from the plague and briefing against Cassandra and the police? And who managed to defeat the electronic security measures at Cassandra's flat? Where they looking for something or sending her a message?

Can Cassandra and the police uncover the truth before they are stopped or murdered?

This book is a must have Christmas gift for the murder mystery lovers in your life. As a confirmed mystery fan I am pleased to announce that I have found another 'must read' author in Julia Anderson.

It is published by Claret Press at £9.99 in paperback (including postage? Bargain!) or 99p in eBook format.

https://payhip.com/ClaretPress/collection/julie-anderson. 

https://www.claretpress.com/book/plague

Gothic Ghost Stories

 

Gothic Ghost Stories is a new collection of ghost stories from Trevor K. Bell.

For some reason ghost stories have been popular at Christmas time since at least Victorian times. And this book will make a a fine Christmas gift for ghost story fans.

By the low light of their reading lamp, mince pies and sherry to hand as they sit before a cosy fire, they'll read of an enthusiast who buys a coveted model train. 

But would he have been so eager to make the purchase if he had known what the dealer and his wife knew about it?

There was the hotel that had once served as a waiting mortuary where the dead were taken to ensure they really were dead.

What could possibly occur to poor Mr Tulip? Who or what tickled his nose? Why was their the ringing of bells in his room all night?

Read of the fate of a tomb robber who comes across the very last person he would have wanted to meet.

There's a Doctor who has grand medical plans for both an orphan boy called Tom and for a Lord. But who will win and who will lose in the end?

Wonder about the possibilities of, ghostly apparitions, a very angry mummy,  the alternate visages of a man who, by turns, looked paternalistic or like a homicidal maniac. What did he do with his newly constructed wine cellar?

What had happened to Harold? And why did his fiancée apparently not care?

Why did the matching pair of apparently endearing French Dolls engender such feelings of dread in people caught in their proximity?

And what of the vengeful ghost of a deceased German soldier, of such a terrifying visage that the living would rather risk death by bullets from German soldiers? Would he obtain the vengeance  he was seeking?

There is also the strange case of Mad Allen, cheated of the love of his wife and of his wealth. He had pronounced a great and terrible curse against anyone who would disturb his last resting place. But surely nobody would be stupid enough to put that to the test? Would they? And if they did, what would occur? 

This is a wonderfully disturbing collection of stories that will leave a frisson of fear in the heart of the reader.

It is published by The Book Guild at £8.99.   

Storm Front

Storm Front is a mystery novel from R. S. Sutton, featuring a new character, private detective Valerie Stone.

Valerie has two things that are of value to her. An old watch and her vintage Jaguar motorcar.

She is addicted to French cigarettes and she lives on a Thames houseboat. She has male admirers but prefers to keep them at arm's length. Even, or perhaps especially, one particular suitor.

Times are a bit tougher than usual so the arrival of a commission to investigate a death on behalf of an insurance company has come at a very fortunate time.

After all, what's wrong with a bit of judicious expenses padding and some stretching out the billable hours, so long as she doesn't go overboard? At least not as overboard as the dead man, who apparently tumbled to his death from a yacht? 

Or did he? What if things were not quite as they seemed? What if the insurance company was right to be concerned, but perhaps not for the right reasons?

What is the link between a former Thames Estuary Word War Two fort, latterly used as the base for a pirate radio station in the 1960s?

And why did Valerie find herself a target of a covert group with mysterious connections to the government, who want her assistance in their parallel investigation into the mystery of the corpse? Can they be trusted? And had the deaths finished?

This is a very interesting and highly plausible detective thriller and I hope to see more stories about Private Investigator Valerie Stone in the future.

It's published by The Book Guild at £8.99. It will make a great Christmas gift for the mystery novel fan in your life. Or as a self-gift for you.

The Harvard Curse

 

The Harvard Curse is a new mystery novel from Martin Chevreau.

Two female students and a college lecturer have gone missing at the end of the 2019 Fall Term. The media have dubbed it The Harvard Curse and everyone has declared that the students, Clementine Miller and Eveline Macdonald were murdered and their remains spirited away by Professor Adrien Renard.

In fact, journalist Geoff Penn had been sitting long into the evening, rapidly typing up an article based on that very theme for the next day's Boston Herald. 

With an hour to go before the article would be sent off to the printers, Penn received a phone call at his desk. The voice on the other end was tense and stressed. He told Penn that he knew that Renard wasn't the killer. And that he wanted to meet him the next evening when he would reveal what had really happened.

So, if the mystery caller was correct, what, exactly, had occurred that December? If Renard had not been involved in the disappearance of the two students, who had? Were the student alive or dead? And what of Renard? Why had he apparently gone missing at the same time as the two students? Was it merely a coincidence?  Or had Renard met with the same, unknown, but strongly suspected, fate of the students?

Was the situation somehow linked to the tragic accident the previous year which had put Renard into a coma and caused the death of his wife?

And why was Clementine investigating the crash a year later?

Why was she stalking Renard? 

Who was murdered? Who did the killing?

This is an interesting mystery novel, published by The Book Guild at £7.99.