Jerusalem by moonlight

Jerusalem by moonlight is a novel from Roger Butters.

He takes an alternative look of the first ever Easter, from the perspective of the four Gospel writers.

It's the year 30AD and in Judea, the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate is worried. He is finding controlling the restless and potentially rebellious populous of the area he is charged with governing.

It's a terribly volatile location, freedom fighters (or terrorists as the Romans viewed them) are attempting to expel the Romans from Judea. 

Knife-wielding murderers are roaming the city during moonlit nights slaughtering those they view, rightly or wrongly, fellow citizens who are traitors or sympathetic in some way to the occupying Roman forces.

It's soon to be the feast of Passover. A time when feelings of Jewish nationhood and religious feelings are expected to be at their highest for years.

There's one man who could be a force for good or bad. The religious leader from Nazareth, Joshua bar-Josef. 

As a man who is preaching love, the forgiveness of sin and the soon-to-be overthrow of all temporal powers, what is it that the Jewish religious leaders find so problematic about him?

This is an interesting and well-written examination of that first Easter.

It's published by Troubador at £10.99.

The Judas Case

In The Judas Case, a novel set in ancient Nazareth, author Nicholas Graham ably recreates 1st Century AD Jerusalem.

After almost two years of hard work and planning a secret agent infiltrates the close entourage of a holy man from Galilee.

Yehuda of Kerioth was one of the most able spies that the harsh Temple Guard had ever created.

The Temple Guard wanted to know exactly what the intentions of Yeshua of Nazareth were. Did he really intend for his followers to take over and install him as King?

The spy pulled off the greatest task of his entire career. But he disappeared and two days later his corpse was discovered.

Was it suicide or was it murder? The Temple Guard needed to discover the truth about what had happened to their man, so they call back into service the retired spymaster Solomon Eliades who had a personal stake in this investigation, as he had recruited and trained the spy.

However, his investigation is fraught with problems from his own past within the Temple Guard and then another issue arises which impinges on the investigation. A very important corpse has gone missing.

It's a remarkably well-written novel which raises some interesting issues from those distant times.

It's published by The Book Guild at £9.99.

Coming Home to You

Coming Home to You is a book by Caroline Britton and illustrated by Alex Jones.

It's basically a guide for you, to help you nudge yourself, gently, back you your own self.

Feel disconnected from yourself? Unsure of where you should be, where you should be going?

If so, this book is for you.

It will help you to become truly honest with yourself, how to get back to yourself, how to learn to heal yourself, to grow, how to reflect on yourself, how not to allow other people to take you for granted, but, more importantly, how not to take yourself for granted. Are you taking yourself for granted? The chances are, you almost certainly are taking yourself for granted. And Caroline will show you not only how you are doing this, but also how to stop taking yourself for granted.

Are you demotivated, feeling lonely, exhausted, detached awash in a sea of negativity? Caroline can appreciate this and will be able to help you get beyond these problems and many more.

The book is published by The Unbound Press at £14.99.

https://www.theunboundpress.com/books.

Second Chances Don't Grow on Trees

Second Chances Don't Grow on Trees is an interesting book by Patrick J. McLaughlin.

It's a true story that is unusual and fun-filled and very well written.

It's even more interesting as the story is all 100% true!

It relates the story of how a former teacher, one Patrick "Paddy" McLaughlin, became responsible for looking after a disparate group of people all who are troubled in one way and another, all social misfits and troubled folks who are from a tougher-than-tough working-class slum area.

He works with them and for them to find redemption and rehabilitation, proving that they were worth much more than they thought they could ever be worth. And showing what a remarkable individual he is.

His job was to get them all, by a miracle, back into gainful employment and back into productive, settled lives.

However, as Paddy cheerfully points out he had some demons in his own life which he successfully battled against.

Paddy realised that the one common factor was that they had all been failed pretty badly by the education system.

He struck on the idea of launching his own specially created homemade small college, dubbed The People's College.

The curriculum of this remarkable college also includes a strong commitment to creative writing and also on cosmology, which has helped boost their sense of self-worth.

One of the key points was that Paddy was able to establish not what his students didn't know, but what they did know. Something that had never been done before.

It's an amazing book. Which raised an interesting question in my mind. Why aren't their more People's Colleges in the country?

If you work in education, especially people with who have previously been failed by the education system, then you must buy this book.

It's published by Troubador at £9.99.

Missing Presumed Missing

Missing Presumed Missing is a new novel from the pen of Paul Harris which is an adventure story aimed at children aged 9 to 11 years.

Michael, the protagonist of this novel is twelve-years-old. He's a somewhat anxious young man, he has a difficult relationship with his mom and dad and is suffering from bullying at school.

What does Michael find to worry about? Anything and everything, unfortunately!

One day he takes the fatal decision to take a short cut through the nearby Spinney Wood. Michael suddenly finds himself in a weird, parallel world which has some deep, dark secrets. For example, what had happened to all the children who had gone missing.

The biggest, most nasty bully at the school is called Jonty. He has gone missing. But Michael know where Jonty is. 

Michael has befriended Melanie and Ben and he decides to make the return to Spinney Wood, where he hopes he will be able to rescue Jonty and uncovering the truth of Spinney Wood.

Will the three friends rescue Jonty and return to safety with him? Will they even be able to make it home in safety?

What are the secrets of Spinney Wood? Will they be revealed at long last?

It's an exciting story which will be well-received by children aged 9 to 11, That is if their parents and older siblings will allow them to get the chance to read it!

The book is published by Troubador at £7.99.

Circle Dance

The protagonist in Circle Dance is Miranda. 

The novel is set in the London of the 1970s and Miranda is looking for something in her life. She wants romantic love and some purpose.

New Age activities are the buzzword of the times and such activities are becoming more and more popular and she throws herself with great gusto into a range of self-development workshops.

Into Miranda's life comes a healer and clairvoyant Cassie who predicts that Miranda will have a happy future.

Eventually Miranda joins a creative writing class which is run by Jocasta, who is, unfortunately, both manipulative and promiscuous.

Miranda finds herself  drawn into a love affair with Julian. Julian is a very talented poet, but he is very highly sensitive. 

Unfortunately when Miranda needs him most, Julian shatters her by an act of gross betrayal.

Thus begins a strange three person dance between Miranda, Jocasta and Julian. 

Why are two highly intelligent women drawn so inexorably into the orbit of such a troublesome and self-centred man?

How will this impact on the destiny of Miranda? Will her friend's predictions for Miranda's life come to fruition, or not?

With the assistance of the paranormal and Cassie, Miranda's future life takes shape.

The book is published by Troubador at £9.99.

Bertrand & Wally Tackle The Clove Hitch Virus

Bertrand & Wally Tackle The Clove Hitch Virus is a new story from the inventive pen of Eric Carroll.

It tells the story of a dreadful pandemic that threatens the very existence of the insect kingdom.

The deaths of many millions of insects are reported and Bertrand, who is a beetle, and his friend Wally, who is a woodland wasp meet up with famed earwig scientist, Professor Clapperstein after an exciting journey through Lower Tinklewigglebottom Wood, at the professor's important research establishment.

The professor has made a remarkable discovery at a human landfill site, a discovery that will take them all on a wild journey through both time and space.

They meet up with aliens and medieval knights, but can they find out about the Clove Hitch Virus and discover a cure for it?

It's aimed at younger readers but older readers will also enjoy this book as it is a really fine quirky delight of a read.

It's colourfully illustrated by Bryan P. Ceney.

It's published by The Bookguild at £9.99.