The Stasi Game

David Young 

FOR nearly five years, crime thriller fans have shared the trials, tribulations, and infrequent triumphs, of Karin Müller, an officer with the German Democratic Republic’s People’s Police during the dark days of the Cold War.

This atmospheric, prize-winning series is steeped in the suspicion and paranoia of East Germany and comes from the pen of Yorkshire-born author David Young (pictured below), whose aim is to show what life was like ‘on the other side of the Anti-Fascist Protection Rampart,’ the German Democratic Republic’s favourite term for the Berlin Wall.

And it is the physical and ideological division between East and West which has provided the springboard for a raft of stunning novels centred on the chilling powers of the Stasi, the notoriously ruthless official state security service which used informants to spy on its own population and which has been described as one of the most effective and repressive intelligence and secret police agencies ever created.

At the heart of these hard-hitting stories is the increasingly sceptical, and recently demoted, Hauptmann Karin Müller, whose tension-filled battles with the Stasi have led her to some unnerving corners of state control, and whose new case, the author hints, might just be her final flourish. It’s a murder mystery that sets the intrepid Müller and her team on the trail of events in Dresden during the last year of the Second World War… and on a collision course with both the Stasi and  MI6.

In 1982, People’s Police homicide captain Karin Müller from Berlin has been given a roving brief since her demotion for scandalous events three years ago. It has meant that she sees little of her five-year-old twins, Johannes and Jannika, who have been selected for sports scholarships at a state boarding school.

When Müller is called out to investigate a murder on a building site in Dresden, she discovers a man’s body buried in concrete in the new town district, a place still overshadowed by the wartime bombings and a skyline of ‘half-destroyed Baroque ruins.’

The man is inside the concrete, with only his arm sticking out ‘like a snapshot of a drowning man at sea,’ and all his identifiable features have been removed, including his fingertips.

But more disturbing for Müller is the fact that the Stasi are interested in the body of what the police are now calling ‘Concrete Man,’ and all the indications are that the secret police already know not just who he is, but how he came to be dead.

The deeper Müller digs, the more the Stasi begin to hamper her investigations. And when her enquiries lead her to an English historian called Arnold Southwick and a woman called Lotti Rolf who survived the Dresden fire-storm, Müller soon realises that this crime is just one part of a clandestine battle between two secret services – the Stasi and Britain’s MI6 – to control the truth behind the wartime bomb attacks on the city.

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For those brought up after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the word ‘Stasi’ may not conjure up the same cold chill but in this cracking series, Young has brought to vivid life the organisation’s devastating

Fool Me Twice

Jeff Lindsay

ART thief Riley Wolfe is a master of his nefarious trade but stealing a priceless fresco from the wall of the Vatican is surely mission impossible… or is it?

Jeff Lindsay (below), bestselling US author of the brilliantly macabre Dexter Morgan novels, is back to thrill, chill and make us grin with the second book in his full-throttle and wonderfully bone-crunching new series starring a heist artist and thief extraordinaire whose undercover antics would make even the great James Bond tremble with fear.

With his eye fixed firmly on outrageous entertainment rather than recognisable authenticity, Lindsay takes readers on the wildest of rides through deadly danger, devious double-crossing, some eye-watering violence, and villains of the darkest hue as Riley employs all his guile and wit just to stay alive.

After the daring theft of a Rothschild Fabergé Egg at the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, art thief and master of disguise Riley Wolfe hardly has time to congratulate himself before he is drugged, kidnapped and transported to a remote island.

Riley’s mantra is ‘there’s always a way’ but this time his blind optimism doesn’t sound very convincing because his kidnapper is Frenchman Patrick Boniface, an arms dealer whose ruthlessness and violence are so extreme that it even terrifies other dealers.

Boniface, who doesn’t negotiate and doesn’t back down, wants Riley to steal ‘something special.’ It’s a priceless fresco, The Liberation of St Peter by Raphael, which is painted on a wall in the Vatican in Rome, a place with the highest security in the world.

But before Riley can even devise a cunning plan, he is kidnapped again by Bailey Stone, another arms dealer with the ‘collecting bug,’ who demands that Riley switch allegiance and deliver the fresco to him.

The stakes have never been higher, particularly as Riley’s art forgery expert, friend and sometime lover, Monique, will be part of the dangerous heist. And with the added complication of FBI agent Frank Delgado hot on Riley’s trail, this is going to be the hardest challenge yet for the crafty crook.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

This super-charged sequel to Just Watch Me delivers the same visual theatrics and dark, wisecracking comedy that hooked in thousands of readers last year and made a star of the

Murder at the Castle

M.B. Shaw

A COMMISSION to paint a young woman’s portrait turns out to be murder for artist Iris Grey when she heads off to a castle in the wilds of Scotland.

If you haven’t already met the irresistible Iris, then now is the time to curl up with this delightfully contemporary amateur sleuth whose entertaining mysteries possess all the cosy charm and clever intrigue of the Golden Age of detective fiction.

Murder at the Castle is the second Iris Grey Mystery from the pen of bestselling author Tilly Bagshawe (below), writing under the pseudonym of M.B. Shaw, and it’s a fun and fast-paced reading experience as we are immersed in a world of hidden lies, village gossip, family feuds and murder.

In the star role is the likeable Iris whose sharp eye and artistic flair are matched only by her incisive wit and dogged determination as she picks her way through a maze of twists and turns, red herrings and shifty suspects, to dig out the truth behind some buried secrets.

There could be a lot worse commissions for Iris than a stay at Pitfeldy Castle on the coast of Banffshire in north-east Scotland. Her latest patron is the castle’s owner, Baron Jock MacKinnon who has hired Iris to paint a portrait of his fiancée Kathy Miller – an American socialite who is decades younger than the elderly Jock – ahead of their forthcoming wedding.

Jock’s letters haven’t been exactly warm and welcoming so Iris is not sure what to expect when she arrives at the castle – whose chilly atmospherics are ‘less Downton Abbey and more Scooby Doo’ –but soon Kathy, who persuaded Jock to commission Iris for the portrait, is taking the artist into her confidence. Kathy has received a series of threatening notes telling her to call off the wedding and it’s soon clear that the family are not overjoyed about the planned nuptials, not least Jock’s ‘dark and vulpine’ son Rory and frosty daughter Emma who both hate Kathy ‘with a passion.’ As Iris begins to investigate the menacing notes, human remains are discovered in the grounds of the castle and she fears for Kathy's safety. With the wedding fast approaching, can Iris uncover the truth before it is too late?

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Murder at the Castle is the perfect companion for long winter evenings… an addictive mystery that sweeps us from the chilly coast of Scotland to the beauty and wonders of Venice as Iris battles a dense web of secrets and lies to find justice for the dead.

With a cast of colourful characters to enjoy, a gripping plot that keeps the pages turning, and an atmosphere redolent of all that’s best about nostalgic crime fiction, Shaw’s multi-layered mystery is a fabulous, festive treat.
(Trapeze, paperback, £8.99)

Oxford crime series to be adapted for TV

FROM a leafy corner of Oxford, author Cara Hunter (right) has found a comfortable perch on the upper branches of the flourishing crime-writing tree, penning chilling, thrilling and gripping novels set in the city that spawned the unforgettable Inspector Morse.

Steeped in gritty reality, spine-tingling tension and clever, complex detective work, rendered so authentic that you feel like you are tagging along with the murder squad, Hunter’s crime series has won widespread acclaim for its artful plotting and an original narrative device which features news reports, social media posts, police interviews and scene-of-crime evidence, allowing readers intriguing insights into a police investigation.

The result is superbly crafted, fast-paced mysteries starring a cast of compelling characters from all walks of life, contemporary issues that are often hard-hitting and deeply emotive, and stories with more twists and turns than a snakes-and-ladders board.

And now the bestselling DI Fawley series is to be adapted for the small screen by television producer and screenwriter Daisy Coulam – best known for writing ITV smash hit Grantchester and Channel 4’s Deadwater Fell ­– in tandem with production company Castlefield TV.

The DI Fawley series success story began in 2018 with Close to Home, which was a Richard & Judy Book Club pick, shortlisted for Crime Book of the Year in the British Book Awards 2019 and became Penguin Random House UK’s biggest selling e-book of 2018.

The series has now sold over 1.1 million copies across all formats, with a Cara Hunter book bought every two minutes in the UK. And the fifth book in the series, The Whole Truth, is set to be published on March 18.

Commenting on the adaptation, Castlefield directors Simon Judd and Hilary Martin said Daisy Coulam was the dream choice to bring Adam Fawley and his team to life on screen.  Coulam added: ‘From the moment I picked up the first novel in the DI Fawley series, I was hooked. Cara’s books are deliciously dark and visceral, delivering twist after shocking twist. I can’t wait to bring DI Fawley and his team to the small screen.’

Hunter, who lives in Oxford on a street not unlike those featured in her books, is delighted at the news and commented: ‘First Castlefield and now Daisy Coulam. This is a dream team and no mistake.’

Piece of My Heart

Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke

ONLY days away from her wedding, TV producer Laurie Moran’s plans are thrown into chaos when her fiancé’s seven-year-old nephew is kidnapped.

The answer to the boy’s disappearance could lie buried in secrets from the past, but it will be a race against time to dig out the truth and rescue the child.

Piece of My Heart is the sixth, and possibly last, novel in the gripping Under Suspicion series, written in a dazzling collaboration between veteran bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark (pictured below), who died in January this year aged 92, and trained lawyer and thriller writer Alafair Burke (at foot of page).

For decades, Clark delighted readers with her smart, beautifully written murder mysteries, and co-author Burke brought a fresh and exciting element to the Under Suspicion ‘cold case’ series. Together, these two talented writers proved a formidable team, harnessing Clark’s powerful storytelling and experience with Burke’s gift for suspense and authenticity.

New York television producer Laurie Moran’s reality drama, Under Suspicion, is proving a big success. The cold case TV series revisits unsolved true crimes by recreating them with the family of the victim and others involved in the case in the hope of finding new evidence.

And widow Laurie’s personal life has also never looked better. Engaged to her show’s former host and now federal judge, Alex Buckley, Laurie is counting down the last few days to their summer wedding, followed by a honeymoon in Italy.

In the meantime, the couple’s two families are meeting up in the Hamptons to celebrate Alex’s fortieth birthday and the forthcoming nuptials. But the sunshine break takes a dark turn when Alex’s seven-year-old nephew, Johnny Buckley, vanishes from the beach.

Witnesses spotted Johnny playing in the water and collecting shells, but no one remembers seeing him after the morning. At first, the families hope that Johnny got distracted and wandered off but when the boy’s bodyboard washes up on the shore, everyone realises that the worst could have happened.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

When Laurie’s first husband, Greg Moran, was murdered seven years ago, their young son, Timmy, witnessed the horror and the killer threatened to return for the boy. And as Johnny bears a strong resemblance to Timmy, Laurie starts to fear that the kidnapping was a case of mistaken identity and her own child is also in danger.

As events from years ago are slowly revealed, it becomes clear that the answers to Johnny’s disappearance lie in a family’s long-buried past… and the clock is ticking.

This delightful series has invested much in not just the compelling mysteries but in the warmth and charm of the regular players who cannot fail to win hearts with their vibrant personalities, their endearing sense of camaraderie, and the domestic complexities that make them so authentic. And emotions certainly run high in this simmering new suspense-packed story which delivers a cast of beautifully portrayed characters, some unexpected twists and turns, and plenty of drama, red herrings and fascinating detective work. 

With its chilling theme of child kidnap and a compelling exploration of family dynamics, Piece of My Heart plays out much closer to home for Laurie and her husband-to-be Alex as they race to track down little Johnny and empty a closet full of skeletons. Ideal as a standalone or as a fitting final flourish…
(Simon & Schuster, hardback, £20)

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: Rail travel wonder, sky high adventure and classic comedy

Travel the world to discover the rich history of trains, meet a plucky little robin on a dangerous rescue mission, and take your seats for a hilarious performance of a classic Shakespeare play in an entertaining line-up of children’s books

Age 8 plus
Tales of the Rails: Legendary Train Routes of the World

Nathaniel Adams
and Ryan Johnson

HANDS up if you like trains? There will be a bulging trainload of takers for this exciting visual journey through the rich history of rail travel as top team, author Nathaniel Adams and illustrator Ryan Johnson, take youngsters (and adults!) on a fantastic thrill ride. Share the addictive sense of adventure as you are transported across the world, taking in thirteen impressive rails routes in the company of drivers, conductors, passengers and a cast of diverse characters on board who are waiting to guide you through the book.

Learn about Japan’s record-breaking Bullet train, then slow down a little on the Caledonian Sleeper to experience an overnight journey on one of Britain’s last sleeper carriages, and see if you can spot the bears out of the window during a trip through Canada’s wilderness. Marvel at the famously steep rack-and-pinion Snowdon Mountain Railway which functions with a special ‘gripper’ rail, see the Northern Lights on the Arctic Circle Train, and cross Asia on the world’s staggeringly long (5,772 miles!) Trans-Siberian Railway.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

Studying where and why these routes exist, and discovering facts about the people that keep the engines running, this beautifully illustrated, fun and fact-filled book is a nostalgic and heartfelt celebration of the golden age of train travel. And with its stitch-bound cover, charming, easy-to-read format, and adventurous approach to learning, this is the perfect gift for train buffs of every age.
(Little Gestalten, hardback, £16.95)

Age 9 plus
Tik Robin and the Krismas Goblin

Anthony Paul Sergeant
and Erica Louise Sergeant

LET your imagination take flight with an enchanting story inspired by the beauty of nature, wildlife… and birds of every size, shape and colour. Tik Robin and the Krismas Goblin – a wonderful, world-building novel about a little robin’s valiant battle to rescue his best friend – has been a ten-year labour of love for Tony Sergeant, a Lancashire author and former primary school teacher who is in remission from a two-year battle with CNS Lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. 

With the help of his supportive wife Erica, who also illustrated the book cover, Tony has finished and published the story which, he says, he is now enjoying reading with his eldest son Edward who loves both the book and sharing wild adventures.

Star of the story is the adorable Tik Robin who is looking forward to Krismas in the town of Chestnuttington, one of the Six Settlements which are surrounded by the Lawless Lands, wild places where the law of nature is the only covenant to live by. But these changing times are rife with conflict as wild creatures come to terms with the choice between a wild, free but albeit uncertain existence, or a tame, tedious yet altogether safer life within one of the settlements. And out of myth and legend, an ancient foe has risen, threatening all life across the Six Settlements and lawless lands alike. In the Whispering Woods, Kyfe Rabbit knows every tree and every bush. It’s a place where he’s never been afraid… until now.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

Something is stirring there and even though he has a deep mistrust for other creatures, he knows he must sound the alarm and get the message out. As creatures far and wide prepare to fight for survival, the reluctant Tik Robin is facing a desperate challenge of his own as he attempts to rescue his forlorn friend, Mickey Wren, from a life of brutal slavery. Across the mountains and the moors, Tik’s quest becomes bigger than just a rescue bid as he discovers a shocking secret which could turn the tide in the war to come… either way, it’s going to be a Krismas to remember.

Packed with drama, danger, a delightful cast of animal and bird characters, and with a superbly imagined ‘other’ world of wildlife, this is a well-plotted story of friendship, resilience and courage which succeeds in inspiring both children and adults to love and engage with nature, and to keep on fighting to save our own planet. And with three more books planned in the Tik Robin series, this is a story that is set to run far beyond the going down of the sun on the Whispering Woods.
(Edmenry Press, paperback, £7.99)

Age 8 plus
Rock Bottom: A Midsummer Nightmare

Ross Montgomery and Mark Beech

IF your Christmas plans have hit rock bottom, take a seat and enjoy a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream as you have never before seen it! Award-winning children’s author Ross Montgomery puts cheer and charm into the Christmas season with this hilarious twist on Shakespeare’s classic comedy in a brilliant, illustrated caper that will have youngsters giggling all the way to the final curtain.

Nick is truly, madly in love with Jessie Stone, and she doesn’t even know his name. In a ploy to win her heart, he plans to star alongside her in the school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream but when he’s cast as the foolish Bottom instead of the romantic lead, his whole world comes crashing down. Enter Robyn, school mischief-maker, who has some crafty tricks up her sleeve. With her help, Nick is sure he can get Jessie to notice him just as long as his grand plans don’t go up in smoke…

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

The course of true love certainly doesn’t run smooth in Montgomery’s fun-filled parody of the Bard’s famous play-within-a-play as friendship, true love, and a completely disastrous school Shakespeare production take centre stage. With Mark Beech’s gallery of bold and anarchic black and white illustrations to bring the cast and action to life, and published in Barrington Stoke’s trademark dyslexia-friendly format, this is wonderful entertainment for both regular and reluctant readers.
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £6.99)

Age 8 plus
Queen of King Street

Tom McLaughlin

LEARNING to be ‘normal’ proves to be a harder task than one imagined in a right royal romp from author and illustrator Tom McLaughlin. Queen of King Street is the author’s sparkling debut for dyslexia-friendly publisher Barrington Stoke and as someone who has struggled with the reading disorder, McLaughlin’s carefully produced book has a special place in his heart. So head off to the palace and discover how the royals fare when the Queen’s prodigal brother gambles away the family fortune, leaving both the cupboards and the bank balances decidedly bare.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

Unlucky Bertie has only gone and gambled away the family’s jewels, palaces, crowns and titles on a series of disastrous card games. It’s the last in a long line of disasters, and nobody is going to save the Montgomery family this time. But this is no ordinary family…this is the royal family, and Bertie is the Queen’s brother. So it’s goodbye to the palace and hello to a little house on King Street for these royals. Who knew that getting jobs, learning to live like normal people and fitting in with the neighbours could be so hard? It’s time to sink or swim!

With its clever political and satirical twist, a cast of characters you won’t forget in a hurry, lots of hilarious mishaps, and McLaughlin’s comical illustrations, Queen of King Street is guaranteed to please both commoners and royals!
(Barrington Stoke, paperback, £6.99)

Age 7 plus
The Adventures of Harley and Lucy: The Marshland Rescue

Maria Atlan and Adriana Santos

JOIN a nervous former military dog as he prepares for retirement, and life with a brand new family. Maria Atlan, a former military officer herself, and a writer of poetry, short stories, and all things conservation-related, brings young readers a delightful and thoughtful adventure story with animals and conservation at its beating heart.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

Harley, a retired military service dog, is looking forward to starting a new life with the Lacey family, but when he arrives, he discovers he has a new sibling… a tiny, bushy tailed, tri-coloured cat called Lucy. And even worse than a cat for a sister, is the news that the local developers are planning to tear down the Old Ashley Place marshlands, home to countless animals, to begin building work. Can Harley and Lucy settle their differences in time to take part in an amazing animal escapade to save the marshland from destruction... and can cats and dogs ever become true friends?

With illustrations by Adriana Santos and an exciting, race-against-time story to enjoy, this is ideal reading for both animal and adventure lovers.
(Little Steps Publishing, paperback, £6.99)

Letters from the Dead

Sam Hurcom

HAUNTED by terrifying visions of the dead, pioneering forensic police photographer Thomas Bexley is struggling to stay sober… and sane. But when a former friend and mentor falls under police suspicion for a string of sinister kidnappings in London, Bexley becomes determined to shake off his torpor and prove the man’s innocence.

If you missed Sam Hurcom’s (pictured below) spectacular and highly acclaimed gothic debut, A Shadow on the Lens, last year, dive into this unmissable new case and be prepared for a chilling, thrilling ride to the dark side of the early 20^th century.

Tingling with skin-crawling vibes, and steeped in an atmosphere so malign that the pages are often turned with a trembling hand, Letters from the Dead is a raw and riveting reading experience, best consumed amidst the gloom of a winter’s night.

Daring to take the spotlight in a landscape rendered base and brooding is our unique protagonist Thomas Bexley, a flawed and fascinating man scarred by the horrors he has witnessed, and constantly teetering on the edge of madness… but still with his sights set on truth and justice.

In London in 1905, a year after the horrific ‘affair’ in Dinas Powys in Wales, Bexley is on extended leave of absence and has become a drunkard and recluse, haunted by terrible visions of the dead. His days are spent contemplating suicide or drinking himself into oblivion to escape his living nightmare.

But when he is summoned to a meeting with the Metropolitan Police, Bexley learns of a spate of extraordinary kidnappings by ‘an unknown foe’ which is paralysing the city. There have been eleven kidnappings so far and the police fear the victims are all dead, even though their bodies have not been found.

Some believe the kidnapper, dubbed the ‘Wraith of London,’ is not truly human but a phantom, an ungodly being with the power to move unhindered through walls and locked doors. And what shocks Bexley even more is that his dear friend and former mentor in the Forensic Crime Directorate, Professor Elijah Hawthorn, is the main suspect in this ‘monstrous brutality.’

Discovering a plea for help from Hawthorn amongst some of his unread mail at home, in which the professor claims to have unearthed a ‘deep corruption’ at the heart of the Metropolitan Police, Bexley embarks on a journey to Scotland to try to prove Hawthorn’s innocence. But wherever he goes, Bexley is still followed by the dead, and as the mystery of Hawthorn’s disappearance deepens, so too does his apparent insanity. How can Bexley be certain of the truth when he can’t trust anybody around him… not even himself?

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

Travelling alongside Bexley is like entering a parallel universe where the grit, grime and earthy realities of the Edwardian period form the compelling backdrop to a plot dripping in mystery, malevolence and hideous supernatural apparitions. 

Hurcom’s moody, descriptive writing, and a finely tuned sense of the macabre, underpin all thought and action as readers are carried along in the wake of a man whose unreliability as a

The Jam Factory Girls

Mary Wood

WHEN two factory girls form an unexpected friendship with the daughter of their boss, it binds them all together in ways they could never have imagined.

Inspired by her own early years in the East End of London, bestselling author Mary Wood sweeps us away to the struggles of three young women in London’s Bermondsey in the time leading up to the First World War for a story full of love, loss, hardship and hope.

Wood, who lives in Blackpool during the summer and Spain during the winter, worked in the probation service in both Lancaster and Blackpool and her hard-hitting and emotional historical sagas reflect her own experiences with people from all walks of life, helping her to bring a realism and grittiness to her writing.

In The Jam Factory Girls, it’s 1910 and we meet 18-year-old Elsie Makin whose alcoholic mother Kitty has to work on the streets because she has no other way to help feed and clothe her children. Two of Elsie’s brothers, 17-year-old Cecil and four-year-old Bert, are robust boys but eight-year-old Jimmy is always ailing.

HARD-HITTING STORY:
Mary Wood

Caring for her siblings and working long hours at Swift’s Jam factory in Bermondsey is exhausting but, thankfully, her lifelong friendship with workmate Dot Grimes, whose dad regularly knocks her about, helps to smooth over life’s rough edges.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

When Elsie and Dot – whose factory tasks involves the back-breaking work of washing jam jars and sorting through the fruit to be bottled ­– meet headstrong Millicent ‘Millie’ Swift, they are nervous to be in the presence of the boss’s daughter but Millie is eager to learn about jam making.

And against all expectations, Elsie and Dot are surprised to feel so drawn to Millie who is shocked to discover the conditions under which some of her father’s workforce live and the hardships they suffer on a daily basis. As their clandestine friendship grows, Elsie and Dot begin to wonder if two East End girls should be socialising in such circles but when disaster strikes,

Nurse Kitty’s Secret War

Maggie Campbell 

ESCAPE into a drama-packed saga based on the pioneering doctors and nurses who worked at England’s first ever NHS hospital… the Trafford General in Greater Manchester.

Maggie Campbell – who grew up in Manchester at a time when the city was still on its knees after the Second World War, and can just about remember the end of rationing – retrained as a midwife after decades working as a seamstress in factories. The Trafford General, originally called the Park Hospital, was opened in 1948 by Aneurin Bevan but during the latter years of the war, the hospital was transferred to the US Army, becoming the 10th US Station Hospital and treating service personnel from across the world.

Nurse Kitty’s Secret War – an uplifting and emotional story inspired by the hospital’s real history – stars a feisty young nurse determined to protect her patients in the first months after the end of the war. It’s May 1945 and at 3pm, nurse Kitty Longthorne and the other surgical staff at South Manchester’s Park Hospital, listen to Winston Churchill’s broadcast on the radio announcing that Germany has signed a declaration of complete surrender. The war is over in Europe and the day of victory is to be celebrated as VE-Day.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

The mood in Park Hospital – still full of wounded American soldiers – is jubilant and hopeful, although Kitty is anything but. Her secret boyfriend and the man she hopes to marry, handsome young surgeon Dr James Williams, has been giving her the cold shoulder for the past week, and she can’t work out why.

Kitty knows James is busy campaigning for the future of Park Hospital but he’s also working closely with Nurse Violet Jones, Kitty’s friend and colleague, whose privileged background is

The Glasgow Girl at War

Eileen Ramsay

EILEEN Ramsay, who grew up in Dumfriesshire and is the current Chair of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, sweeps us away to 1930s Scotland and into the life of an ambitious young woman who dreams of becoming a lawyer.

Previously published as The Quality of Mercy, this is a beautiful, heartwarming and inspirational tale set at a time when women’s career prospects were limited by marriage, motherhood, and age-old expectations and traditions. 

At the heart of the story is Ferelith Gallagher who grows up in a convent orphanage in Glasgow in the 1930s but never stops dreaming of bigger and better things.

Ferelith, who was born out of wedlock, has no money behind her and no family to speak of, so she leaves the orphanage and travels to Edinburgh determined to study to be a lawyer even though it is a brave choice for a woman in the Thirties.

ROLLERCOASTER TALE: 
Eileen Ramsay

And when she falls in love with a young fellow student, she thinks she has finally found a home. 

But after a brief and disastrous marriage, Ferelith swears that she is through with love, and buries herself in her studies, striving to become the first female senior advocate in Scottish history.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review
 

But love hasn't finished with Ferelith and when she finally meets a man she knows she could be happy with, she finds herself torn between love and her burgeoning career. 

And when war breaks out, she knows for certain that life will never be the same again…

Ramsay delivers an emotional rollercoaster story which explores the difficult choices facing women in the battle to move beyond domestic roles and pursue their dreams of forging a career, particularly in professions like the law.

Full of the author’s natural warmth, superbly drawn characters, and wonderful storytelling, The Glasgow Girl at War is the ideal curl-up-and-relax book for fireside reading.
(Zaffre, paperback, £7.99)

CHILDREN'S BOOKS: The tree of life, wordplay wonders and a couch potato

Enjoy a beautiful Christmas tale of friendship and new beginnings, share tears and tantrums with the Queen of the Dorks, get lost in a magical world of verse, and meet a couch potato who can’t peel himself away from the sofa in a super selection of children’s books

Age 4 plus
The Robin and the Fir Tree

Jason Jameson

LIFE and its blessings of hope and continuity take centre stage in an exquisitely illustrated tale inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale, The Fir Tree. This beautiful, though-provoking retelling is the work of Jason Jameson who has over 15 years of experience in concept and character development, design and animation direction, and is co-founder and creative director of Unanico Group, an award-winning media company.

Jameson, who is currently working on a short film of The Robin and the Fir Tree, brings us a lyrical story with an uplifting message about friendship and new beginnings, brought to vivid life by a stunning gallery of Pre-Raphaelite inspired illustrations.

Click HERE for Lancashire Post review

The fir tree grows in a forest far away from the bustle of the town. It is a beautiful place, but he dreams of the excitement of the outside world. His friend the Robin tells him stories of the places she has seen, and the forest animals dress him up with berries and leaves, but he is still not happy. One day he is cut down and taken away to be a beautiful Christmas tree in the middle of town. He thinks his dreams have come true, but what will happen when his decorations are finally packed away?

The Robin and the Fir Tree speaks loudly to readers young and old about love, renewal and the cycle of life, and is the ideal gift book for the season of sharing, caring and remembrance.
(Templar Publishing, hardback, £14.99)

Age 9 plus
Double Dork Diaries: Frenemies Forever and Crush Catastrophe

Rachel Renée Russell

NIKKI Maxwell, Queen of the Dorks, is back for a special bumper edition of dorkiness featuring a bind-up of two brilliant books from the blockbuster bestselling Dork Diaries series. Nikki and her BFFs Zoey and Chloe are the giggling, gossiping stars of Rachel Renée Russell’s much-loved Dork Diaries series which chronicles the daily dramas of the 14-year-old’s life inside (and outside!) school.

Russell, a US lawyer who prefers writing children’s books to legal briefs, also illustrates the fabulous Dork Diaries, filling Nikki’s entertaining meanderings with drawings, doodles and comic strips.

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In Crush Catastrophe, it’s the countdown to the end of the school year and Nikki is juggling some big questions about how she will spend her summer. She is also facing an unexpected crush catastrophe… there’s a new kid interested in Nikki but the last thing she wants to do is accidentally hurt Brandon. It all comes down to the very big decision Nikki has to make, and drama like she has never faced before!

And in Frenemies Forever, Nikki is spending a week at North Hampton Hills as part of the school transfer programme. The good news is that NHH is super-cool and preppy. The bad news is that Nikki’s nemesis MacKenzie started there two weeks ago! But, faced with NHH queen bee Tiffany, who takes meanness to a whole new level, Nikki might need to work WITH MacKenzie if she’s going to survive the week! Can Nikki and MacKenzie overcome their differences and become BFFs… Best Frenemies Forever?! Friendship, fun and boyfriend gossip… what more could any teen girl want?
(Simon & Schuster, paperback, £8.99)

Age 7 plus
Saturdays at the Imaginarium

Shauna Darling Robertson
and Judith Wisdom

ESCAPE into the magical worlds and imaginative wordplay of Northumberland-born poet Shauna Darling Robertson in an excitingly original book of verse which comes beautifully illustrated by Judith Wisdom. In her first book of poems for children, Darling Robertson – whose work has been performed by actors, displayed on buses, used as song lyrics and turned into short films – celebrates creative thinking, encourages curiosity and revels in the pleasure of looking at things from a different angle. Between the pages of this book, you can discover a world where ordinary things like eating and adverts seem quite preposterous, while absurd things such as teacups feeling unloved are fairly commonplace.

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Thoughts fly around like mosquitoes, a day lasts longer than a year and the weather forecast predicts an ear-to-ear grin nearly two miles high. Meet a child who catches her dreams in a net, a polite rebel who asks nicely before overwriting history… and undercover magicians who operate on every high street.

Inventive, provocative and entertaining, Saturdays at the Imaginarium uses language and thought in an extraordinary way to ask big questions about how we think about ourselves, each other and the world whilst inviting children of all ages to explore the possibilities of their own vastly creative minds. The perfect book of poetry to inspire young minds…
(Troika, paperback, £7.99)

Age 4 plus
The Couch Potato

Jory John and Pete Oswald 

WHEN you love being a couch potato, going out to play seems like a half-baked idea… But peeling yourself off the sofa when a power cut strikes turns out to be just the start of a big outdoor adventure in the fourth, fantastic picture book from author Jory John and illustrator Pete Oswald, bestselling creators of The Bad Seed, The Good Egg, and The Cool Bean.

This terrific top team can’t put a foot wrong when it comes to conjuring up child-friendly stories with important life messages carefully wrapped up inside lots of John’s warm and witty wordplay, and Oswald’s captivating, high-energy artwork.

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So get ready to giggle and gorge on the antics of the Couch Potato who has everything he needs within reach of his comfy, cosy couch... a remote control, a games console, headphones, popcorn and a shimmering wall of screens. But when the electricity suddenly goes out, Couch Potato’s slouching on the couch ends abruptly and he dares to leave the comforts of his lounge and venture outside. And when he does, he realises fresh air and sunshine could be just the thing he needs!

Little ones will soon be laughing along as their new spuddy buddy learns that balancing screen time and playtime can be the root to true happiness. After all, there’s a big, wide world out there just waiting to be discovered. The perfect gift book to egg on your own couch potatoes… and watch them scramble for the door!
(HarperCollins, hardback, £12.99)

Age 5 plus
The Tooth Fairy and the Home of the Coin Makers

Samuel Langley-Swain
and Davide Ortu

EVERYONE'S favourite Tooth Fairy is braced for a magical transformation in a new series of colourful, rhyming picture books created in an exclusive partnership between Owlet Press and The Royal Mint. This inventive books present the Tooth Fairy as you have never before seen her as she shares adventures with a pair of inquisitive twins whose wobbly teeth provide the portal to the magical place where all Tooth Fairies are trained… The Royal Mint!

With the vibrant illustrations of artist Davide Ortu and fast-paced, rhyming stories by Samuel Langley-Swain, these books offer a fresh, contemporary twist on the much-loved Tooth Fairy and fascinating insight into the work of the original coin-maker.

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In the first book in the series, The Tooth Fairy and the Home of the Coin Makers, twins Ollie and Grace are delighted to both get their first wobbly tooth at exactly the same time. After Grandpa tells them to expect a visit from the Tooth Fairy, they wake the next morning to find a glistening coin under their pillows. 

When they rush to Grandpa’s amazing collection room, he explains that coins come from The Royal Mint where Tooth Fairies are trained. Maybe one day Ollie and Grace will see this magical place for themselves!

And in The Tooth Fairy and the Magical Journey, Ollie and Grace both lose their teeth and put them under their pillows with a trap to catch the Tooth Fairy. Imagine their surprise when they wake to find a Watch Mouse named Wensleydale walking around their bedroom. Not only that, he knows their grandpa! 

They learn how Watch Mice help Tooth Fairies by checking that children are fast asleep. And soon the twins are travelling through magical underground tunnels to The Royal Mint where they meet the Chief Tooth Fairy herself who is waiting with a special gift.

Also in the series is Dilwyn The Welsh Dragon, a new and exciting story about the origins of the Welsh Dragon, written by Langley-Swain and illustrated by Jessica Rose. In the valleys of Wales, everyone at The Royal Mint is hard at work making coins. But one night, a baby red dragon hatches from a magical egg. 

The makers name him Dilwyn and take care of him until he’s big enough to guard their coins. Every night Dilwyn sleeps high up in the rafters keeping watch… until two robbers foolishly try to break in and discover that Dilwyn has a mighty roar and a fiery breath!

With exciting tales of treasure, shiny coins, watch mice, dragons and timeless tooth fairies, these are enchanting books to read aloud and share, and to help develop reading skills in young children.
(Owlet Press, paperback, £7.99 each)

Age 3 plus
How To Be a Bug Warrior

Written by The Parent-Child Dino Research Team and illustrated
by Loyal Kids

GETTING health and safety messages across to your little ones during the ongoing pandemic is a tricky task for parents and teachers… So turn learning into fun with this clever picture book which blends practical tips about staying safe with an engaging child-friendly story, and provides gentle reassurance to youngsters who are worried by the disruptions to their daily life.

Danny Dino is not feeling well. What can he do to protect himself and others from getting sick? Dr Pterosaur tells Danny Dino and his friends how to prevent the spread of germs and bugs through correct hand washing, and other useful tips. Can you do the seven step super handwash just like Danny Dino?

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How To Be a Bug Warrior was written by the Dino Parent-Child Relationship Research Team, which is composed of experts on early childhood psychology and early childhood education in domestic universities. By analysing early childhood behaviours, it studies the characteristics of early psychological development, and provides parents with professional advice on understanding their children. With a colourful array of illustrations by the Loyal Kid company, a simple question and answer quiz to reinforce advice given throughout the story, and tips on how to protect yourself and others, this is an invaluable teaching tool for both parents and schools.
(Little Steps Publishing, paperback, £6.99)

Age 3 plus
Detective LB and Hopper:
The Case of the Missing Chocolate Frogs

Janey Gaston and Anil Tortop

WHEN some very special chocolate frogs go missing, solving the mystery could well lead to meltdown! Author Janey Gaston and illustrator Anil Tortop blend their talents on a fun-filled picture book starring two star sleuths who are determined to solve a sweet dilemma with just with two magnifying glasses, a hat, two comic books and three carrots.

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So step inside the adorable Bunnybugs Detective Agency and meet Detective LB, the brainy ladybug detective, and her partner Hopper, a comic-loving, all-action rabbit. There haven’t been many cases to solve recently but that all changes when Mr Poppy from the Poppycat Candy Company arrives with a baffling case. An important consignment of extra delicious chocolate frogs, which should have been delivered to Grandma Rose, has mysteriously disappeared, and silky smooth Mr Poppy is convinced someone is stealing them. Can LB and Hopper solve the case?

Any child with a sweet tooth and a fascination for mysteries will love this superbly illustrated, chocolate-coated story which packs in lashings of laughs, miles of mishaps… and an unexpected superhero! The perfect stocking filler and fun for all the family…
(Little Steps Publishing, paperback, £6.99)

Dark Tides

Philippa Gregory

WHEN two unexpected visitors arrive at a ramshackle warehouse on the ‘wrong’ side of the River Thames in London in 1670, they set in motion a tale of greed, passion, lost love, and a lust for wealth, played out across two continents.

In the second book of her dark and atmospheric Fairmile series, Philippa Gregory turns her historian’s keen eye and novelist’s vivid imagination to a thrilling story that sweeps us from the poverty and glamour of England’s tumultuous Restoration period to the golden streets of Venice and the bitterly contested frontier of early America.

After the dramatic events in the remote coastal marshes of Sussex which featured in Tidelands, this gripping new historical odyssey skips forwards twenty-one years to catch up with the lives of Alinor Reekie, a healer and descendant of wise women, her daughter Alys Stoney, and Alinor’s brother Ned, a fierce Parliamentarian who fled England after King Charles II was restored to the throne. And in her trademark style, Gregory delivers a seething, smouldering, stunning tale steeped in mystery, menace, mind games, and the challenges facing women in a prohibitively patriarchal world where to be strong or ‘different’ can only spell danger.

COMPELLING PLOT:
Philippa Gregory

On Midsummer Eve in 1670, Alinor Reekie, still suffering ill health after her cruel witch ‘ducking’ two decades ago, and her tough, uncompromising daughter, Alys Stoney, are earning a living as wharfingers on the riverside in Bermondsey.

From their little house next to the stinking mud and river’s ‘piers of weedy ramps,’ they witnessed the restored King Charles II sail by to his glorious court at Whitehall, but the family, which includes Alys’s adult twins Johnnie and Sarah, clings on to the old Puritan principles of hard work and thrift.

The arrival of two strangers on the same day causes a stir in the household… the first is Sir James Avery, the man who betrayed Alinor all those years ago in Sussex but still longs for her every day, and who instantly stands out as ‘a rich idler’ among the wharf’s labouring men.

James has returned as a widower and a wealthy man, hoping to find the lover he deserted and the son he believes was born to Alinor after she and Alys fled to London. He tells Alinor he now has everything to offer, including the favour of the king, but there is one thing that his money cannot buy… an heir.

The second visitor is a beautiful widow from Venice in deepest mourning. The Nobildonna Livia da Ricci claims Alinor as her mother-in-law and the grandmother of her baby son Matteo, and has come to tell Alinor that her beloved son Rob, who was a practising doctor, has drowned in the dark tides of the Venice lagoon.

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But all is not as it seems and Alinor spells out her fears in a letter to her brother Ned who is newly arrived in Connecticut in faraway New England, and trying to make ‘a life of his own, without