Nothing Important Happened Today by Wil Carver. #Review #BlogTour #BloodyBrilliant

Nine suicides
One Cult
No leader
Nine people arrive one night on Chelsea Bridge. They’ve never met. But at the same time, they run, and leap to their deaths. Each of them received a letter in the post that morning, a pre-written suicide note, and a page containing only four words: Nothing important happened today. That is how they knew they had been chosen to become a part of the People Of Choice: A mysterious suicide cult whose members have no knowledge of one another. Thirty-two people on that train witness the event. Two of them will be next. By the morning, People Of Choice are appearing around the globe; it becomes a movement. A social media page that has lain dormant for four years suddenly has thousands of followers. The police are under pressure to find a link between the cult members, to locate a leader that does not seem to exist.
How do you stop a cult when nobody knows they are a member?
A shocking, mesmerisingly original and pitch-black thriller, Nothing Important Happened Today confirms Will Carver as one of the most extraordinary, exciting authors in crime fiction.

Review

I have been simultaneously excited and terrified about writing this review, because this book is so different from any book I have ever read.

Lets take the basic premise of the story Nine suicides, One Cult, No leader. A group of people have been chosen to be members of a cult they are not even aware of, until a letter arrives and they join together to leap to their deaths.

So why is it fabulous and as another reviewer called it a mind-melting read? Because it pulls no punches, from the first page to the last it challenges the reader. Not a wham bam feeling, more like a sickening punch to the stomach, that leaves you reeling, but with a compulsion to read on, an intrinsic need to discover what compels these strangers to join together and leap to their deaths!

There was for me no attempt to shock for shocks sake! The intelligence of the writing is that it draws a very plausible story from the midfield that is social media and gives it a life within the pages of Nothing Important Happened Today. Many of us have become immune to the warning that social media can be a source of harm and this novel does something many articles can’t, it takes you deep into the dark labyrinth of the minds of people like you and me and explores their darkest thoughts and its shockingly addictive. Way would people who seem to have so much to live for take their own lives like this? What is going on behind the doors of people whose lives seem so perfect and why do we increasingly feel compelled to compare our lives to the ever increasing ‘perfection’ seen on sites such as Instagram and Facebook?

It’s dark yes, its thrilling indeed, a thought provoking and provocative thriller, but what makes it different, is the place it took me as a reader! I was scared reading it! I normally avoid books that scare me, that force me to face my inner demons, that take me to dark places I would prefer to avoid. Nothing Important Happened Today took me to those places, it left me feeling shaken and chilled, it made me sit back and think, not many books do that.

It made for a read that will forever stay with me, that is so perplexing, so haunting, I may feel tormented by it forever. As A Song For Achilles will always be the book that broke my heart, this novel will always be the book that troubled me and that is a magnificent thing to say about any book. It made me feel and I adored it for that.

You can purchase Nothing Important Happened Here from Waterstones, Amazon and directly from the publisher Orenda Books.

About the author

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his two children. Good Samaritans was book of the year in Guardian, Telegraph and Daily Express, and hit number one on the ebook charts.

 

Stay Mad, Sweetheart by Heleen Kist #Review #BlogTour #ReadIndie #MeToo #MustRead #BookLovers

THERE’S A FINE LINE BETWEEN INNOCENCE AND GUILT. AN EVEN FINER LINE BETWEEN JUSTICE AND REVENGE.
Data scientist Laura prefers the company of her books to the real world – let alone that cesspit online. But when her best friend Emily becomes the victim of horrific cyberbullying, she makes it her all-engulfing mission to track down the worst culprits.
Petite corporate financier Suki is about to outshine the stupid boys at her firm: she’s leading the acquisition of Edinburgh’s most exciting start-up. If only she could get its brilliant, but distracted, co-founder Laura to engage.
Event planner Claire is left to salvage the start-up’s annual conference after her colleague Emily fails to return to work. She’s determined to get a promotion out of it, but her boss isn’t playing ball.
As the women’s paths intertwine, the insidious discrimination they each face comes to light. Emboldened by Emily’s tragic experience, they join forces to plot the downfall of all those who’ve wronged them.
But with emotions running high, will the punishments fit the crimes?

Review

Sometimes it is hard to write a review and do the book the  justice it deserves, to find the right words to sum up how it made you feel and why others should read it. It is often a gut reaction that is hard to put into words! But I’m going to give it a go, because the writer deserves recognition for a book that is both a fabulous read and a clarion call to all living in the ‘Me to era.’

Stay Mad, Sweetheart is a book of its time, it is defined by the quality of the story and the way it sums up how generations of women have felt over many, many years.

It takes the premise of three women who become friends and sisters-in-arms, when a young women becomes the victim of vicious and targeted cyber bullying. It is part thriller, part social commentary on the subject of consent and best of all the celebration of the power of women to take control of their own lives.

When I first started this book, is wasn’t sure, but as the pages turned, I became addicted to the storyline and like another reviewer, the lovely Sharon Bairden said so eloquently on her blog, Chapterinmylife, I was fist pumping the air as Laura, Suki and Claire rose up and sort justice for all the wrongs they had faced.

It was exhilarating and also liberating to read a story that had three remarkable and powerful female leads. I loved that the writer that given us a story that called out to women of all ages and said, you don’t have to be the supporting cast member in own life and you certainly don’t have to be in literature of any kind.

People often ask me why I still love Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, citing it as portraying women in an age where they had such little power over their own lives? I was a teenager when I read it and fell in love with this determined brave heroine. Bronte had given us a female lead with an indomitable spirit, who courage knew no bounds. Stay Mad, Sweetheart especially in the female characters, gives us a engrossing thriller, with twists and turns that keep you reading, cheering them on, at the same time provides readers the same type of female character that Jane Eyre championed, determined, passionate and brave.  It’s the type of literature I want my god daughters and niece to grow up and read, because it gives a voice to women that refuse to be silenced or side-lined and does it within an exciting, thrilling story.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this novel to any reader.

Many thanks to the author and publisher for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

You can buy from Hive , directly from the publisher and from Amazon.

About the author

Throughout her life, Heleen Kist has been fondled, patronised and ordered to smile by random men. So she wrote ‘Stay Mad, Sweetheart’, a feminist tale of revenge, out November 19th 2019.Whilst her professional knowledge of technology start-ups fed the novel’s setting, its theme of insidious harassment and discrimination required no research: it is familiar to all women.

Heleen was chosen as an up and coming new author at Bloody Scotland 2018. Her first novel, ‘In Servitude’ won the silver medal for Best European Fiction at the Independent Publishers Book Awards in the USA and was shortlisted for The Selfies awarded at London Book Fair.

A Dutch strategy consultant living in Glasgow and married to a Scotsman, she’s raising their son to be a good man and their daughter to kick ass.

Heleen hopes you enjoy her writing, and would love to hear from you on twitter (@hkist), Faceboook (@heleenkistauthor) or Goodreads. You can also sign up to her newsletter on http://www.heleenkist.com.

 

 

Free Lunch by Rex Ogle #Extract #BlogTour

(New York, NY—August 2019): In FREE LUNCH (Norton Young Readers; on-sale 9/10/19), debut author Rex Ogle vividly conveys the immediacy of physical hunger and the humiliation of revealing it every day in the school lunch line, along with a more profound hunger: that of a child for love and care from his parent. This story rings so true in its portrayal of poverty and the familial strains that can result from living in the economic margins, because it is. This is Rex’s story.
But this is not Rex’s story alone; 43.1 million people are living in a state of poverty, 14.5 million of them are under the age of 18. But when he was embarking on his sixth-grade year in Texas, Rex had no idea that there were also other children, let alone millions of others, in such need.
“The worst part of living like this is thinking as I did—that I was alone, that I was shameful, and that I had less worth because of the situation into which I was born,” explained Rex. “But that couldn’t be further from the truth. No child should feel alone. Or ashamed. Or worthless. They need to know that their circumstances are not their fault.”
This moving memoir covers Rex’s journey through his first semester of middle-school as he navigates the inherent physical and emotional growth pains that come with this phase of life, along with the societal pressures he feels showing up at school in worn clothes that don’t fit properly and with the occasional black eye he receives from speaking his mind at home —all in addition to requesting free lunch. Rex is now an adult who traversed middle school and found his way out of poverty, but the struggles of his youth have shaped who is as a man today, and how he views the world around him.
“One day, when I was riding on the subway in New York City, I saw a little girl tug on her mom’s sleeve and heard her say, ‘I’m hungry.’ Her mom hugged her, but didn’t say anything,” explained Rex when asked why he decided to write Free Lunch. “I didn’t know their situation, but it struck me that my story needed to be shared. I wanted other kids to know that it’s okay to be hungry. That they are not alone. And there is hope.”
Rex is a former book editor who now lives in Los Angeles with his partner. He enjoys hiking with friends and his dog, devouring books, and cooking.
Free Lunch is unsparing and harshly realistic. It is also frequently funny, and threaded with hope and moments of grace. Free Lunch is a welcome addition to the growing cannon of youth memoirs, and Rex’s powerful, lyrical storytelling shines a light on those living in the shadows.

I’m delighted to welcome author Rex Ogle to Booksaremycwtches with an extract from his book Free Lunch.

Extract

It’s raining cats and dogs this morning. I don’t have an umbrella. By the time I get to the school bus, I’m soaked through. At first I think it’s kinda funny. I squish under my arms and make fart noises and everyone on the bus laughs. An hour later, at school, I’m still wet. My shoes squeak loud when I walk, and my fingers are all wrinkled. My first class, the room is freezing, like how I imagine the North Pole in the dead of winter, Santa’s elves hiding for cover. The giant Texas- sized air conditioners hum loud, but I can barely hear anything over the chattering of my teeth. Shivering so hard I think my goose bumps are gonna stay there forever. Finally the bell rings and I run to the bathroom. My lips are blue in the mirror so I take off my clothes and run them under the heated hand dryer. Every time someone comes in, they look at me like I’m crazy. When I get to third period, Mrs. Winstead says, “You’re tardy.”
“What’s that mean?” I ask.
Everyone laughs at me. Turns out tardy is some dumb, fancy way of saying late. I don’t know why she couldn’t just say that. At least it’s Friday. It’s been a sucky first week. I’ve barely seen my friends from last year. Todd and Zach have different schedules. So does Liam, but he saves me a seat at the
lunch table when he can. In fifth grade, the four of us had Mrs. Kingston. We goofed off every day together. During and after school. Now we don’t have any of the same classes. “Ogle!” I turn around and it’s Zach. We bump fists. I was just thinking about him, but I don’t say that. Don’t want to sound, you know, gay or something.
He says, “I haven’t seen you all week. Where’ve you been hiding?”
“Nowhere. This school is ginormous. There’s so many students.”
“Tell me about it. Hey, you heading to lunch? Let’s sit together.”
I’m excited to sit with Zach. I hope we can find Liam and Todd. We can sit together, like old times. Then I remember the whole Free Lunch thing. Zach is hilarious, but he makes fun of people for just about anything. Last year, he found out I still played with action figures and he never let it go. He still brings it up. If he finds out about my being in the Free Lunch Program, I’ll never hear the end of it.
Maybe if I go after him, and he doesn’t wait for me—
“Ladies first,” he says as we get in the lunch line.
I start sweating. I say, “Then you should go first.”
“No way,” Zach says. “You’re more girly than me.”
“No, I’m not!” I snap. More defensive than I mean to be.
Zach copies me, but in a high girl voice. “No, I’m not!”
The two seventh graders behind us laugh. I can feel my face burning red. I hate this. I’m not even hungry now. I feel sick. If I stay, Zach will make fun of me. If I leave, he’ll make fun of me. So
I stay. I stand up a little straighter and push my chin out, the way Zach stands.
He notices and says, “Don’t copy me, weirdo.”
“I’m not,” I sneer. I pick up the plastic lunch tray and go through the line. I nod to the lunch lady. “I’ll take the chicken nuggets.”
“I’ll take the chicken nuggets,” Zach repeats in his high girl voice. Last summer, I would’ve thought that was funny. But not now. Everything feels like it sucks these days. When I’m about to pay, I say: “I forgot my silverware. I have to go back and get it. Why don’t you pay, and go find us a table,
I’ll catch up.”
“OK, stupid,” Zach says.
I take my time picking out a fork, watching as Zach pays the
cashier and leaves. Then, I get back in line.
“Two dollars,” the cashier says.
I try hard not to roll my eyes or growl or snap. Every day, the cashier and I have the exact same conversation. Why can’t she just remember? “Free Lunch Program,” I say as quickly and quietly as
possible. The two seventh graders behind me are talking, but I’m pretty sure they exchange a glance.
“Name?” the cashier asks.
“Rex Ogle.”
She adds the checkmark.
Walking to catch up with Zach, I finally catch my breath again. I wonder if I’ll have to go through this every single time I want to have lunch with a friend.

You can purchase Free Lunch from Amazon

Killer Queen by T S Hunter #Review #BlogTour #SohoNoir #RedDogPress #LGBT

It’s 1988. A mild summer after a turbulent political year for LGBT rights. While working as an assistant to a successful Theatre Director, Joe Stone finds himself unwittingly embroiled in another murder investigation.
Lexi Goode, a young, up and coming actress has her bright future cut short when she is found murdered in her exclusive top floor apartment in the posh end of Soho. Knowing that the police are as racist as they are homophobic, Joe and Russell inevitably take it on themselves to investigate what happened to the young woman.

Along the way they discover illicit liaisons, a string of admirers, a secret life that was helping to pay for the glamorous lifestyle no young actress should have been able to afford. But who would want to kill Lexi?

Finding the answer to that question puts Joe in mortal danger and a young police officer in an awkward position.

Review

I must make a confession, I feel the need to unburden my soul, to be totally honest with you from the start of this review! I flipping love this series of novellas. In fact I don’t think love is a strong enough word!

I’m passionate about them.

In fact, I am infatuated with them.

I feel an impassioned need to shout about them from the roof tops!

I’m crazy about the whole series, mad about the stories, the characters, the setting, the writing, everything about them and Killer Queen, which is part five in the Soho Noir series just fills my reading obsessed heart with joy.

Why? Oh that is a hard one to put into words, it’s a feeling, it’s the simple pleasure of overwhelming excitement, when the publisher announces a new book in one of your favourite series.

Killer Queen doesn’t disappoint, it’s exciting, perfectly written and packed for me with emotional moments.

The emotion comes from my love of the main characters Joe and Russell. Despite the fact that the story is set in 1988, turbulent times for the LGBT community, when Margaret Thatcher introduced Section 28 of the Local Government Act, they are portrayed as proud, determined and positive. Russell remains very much in love with his boyfriend and the younger Joe as free to explore his sexuality. I love that in Killer Queen relationships are not portrayed as smooth sailing for Joe, it gives the story an element of angst, yet T S Hunter teases at a potential love interest for him and it made me a very happy reader. I got quite emotional at how he is growing as a man, feeling his way in a world that seems to reject him, but never allowing it to damage his image of himself. Prefect characterisation that takes both characters forward and tells us more and more about them as the series progresses.

The story is like all the others perfect. I delighted in how T S Hunter took us back to this period of change and yet managed to keep the story contained within this short novel. He takes us into the world of theatre this time and the murder of a young actress, tackling racism and as well as homophobia, but tying it all up in a story that is strong, tense and exciting. I’m a big theatre fan and the thrill of the off-stage theatrics kept me devotedly absorbed reading it in one thrill filled evening. My favourite part being how the writer teases us with the possible killer of Lexi and I admit I was a bag of nerves as Joe puts his life in mortal danger trying to bringing them to justice.  It’s entertaining and edge of your seat stuff. In fact if you had been looking at me while reading, my eyes felt like they were popping out of their sockets.

Yet at the same time T S Hunter kept the sense of warmth and familiarity that saw me falling in love with the Soho Noir series from book one. It’s like taking an adventure with an old friend, you know it is going to be exciting, yet you also feel safe among with them. Yes I know they are fictional, but they are utterly and totally some of my favourite characters of all time and I loved having the chance to spend more time with them.

You can purchase Killer Queen from Amazon and directly from Red Dog Press. 

About the author 

Claiming to be only half-Welsh, T.S. Hunter lived in South Wales for much of his latter teens, moving to London as soon as confidence and finances allowed. He never looked back.

He has variously been a teacher, a cocktail waiter, a podium dancer and a removal man, but his passion for writing has been the only constant.

He’s a confident and engaging speaker and guest, who is as passionate about writing and storytelling as he is about promoting mainstream LGBT fiction.

He now lives with his husband in the country, and is active on social media as @TSHunter5.

Lottie Sparkles Magical Discovery by Petra Quelch #RevBlogTourTour #ChildrensFiction.

Lottie Sparkles Magical Discovery
Who wouldn’t like a magical jacket?
Lottie Sparkles is a little girl who loves everything sparkly,mainly clothes. Anything plain or dirty is a disgrace in Lottie s mind! When Lottie is sent to spend time with her lovely grandparents in the countryside, she is furious because that essentially means smelly animals, lots of puddles and hard work!But what she certainly didn’t count on was coming face to face with a magical object.

Review

Lottie Sparkle’s Magical Discovery is a sweet and charming story about a young girl who is obsessed with sparkly things. Horrified she is sent to spend time with her grand parents on their far from sparkly farm.

The joy of this book comes from the message it gives out to young readers, that sparkle and fun can be found in places we least expect. It took me and Lottie on a journey of discovery. I love that this book doesn’t suggest that loving sparkle is bad, in fact it does the opposite and shows us all, we should embrace the sparkle in our lives, even if our surroundings are far from glamorous, because happiness and being yourself can be found wherever you are. It’s about embracing yourself and the people you love for who they are. Lottie comes to understand that she can come to enjoy spending time with her grandparents and still wear cloths that embrace her love of glitter.

It is a sweet and fun tale, with lovely illustrations that accompany the story perfectly. hopefully Lottie will take on more adventures in her lovely sparkly cloths soon.

You can purchase this book from Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Giveaway to Win 1 x signed copy of Lotties Sparkles Magical Adventure (UK / Europe Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK / Europe entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

To enter follow the LINK

 

About the author

The author loves everything sparkly and glittery but hopefully,she says, she is not a diva like Lottie from her book. Aside from all the glitz and glamour,she is a collector of magical books, tea sets, movies and a huge fan of chocolate. She has two little girls also known as “The Little Book-Fairies” with a BIG imagination.

You can the author on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

The Snow Killer by Ross Greenwood #Review #BlogTour #Thriller

‘Fear the north wind. Because no one will hear you scream…’

A family is gunned down in the snow but one of the children survives. Three years on, that child takes revenge and the Snow Killer is born. But then, nothing – no further crimes are committed, and the case goes cold.
Fifty years later, has the urge to kill been reawakened? As murder follows murder, the detective team tasked with solving the crimes struggle with the lack of leads. It’s a race against time and the weather – each time it snows another person dies.
As an exhausted and grizzled DI Barton and his team scrabble to put the pieces of the puzzle together, the killer is hiding in plain sight. Meanwhile, the murders continue…
The first in a new series, Ross Greenwood has written a cracking, crackling crime story with a twist in its tale which will surprise even the most hardened thriller readers. Perfect for fans of Mark Billingham and Stuart MacBride.

Review

I’ve been trying to think about words that really sum up The Snow Killer by Ross Greenwood! What I came up with are gripping, exciting, addictive and electrifying.

Why?

The sense of atmosphere. Ross Greenwood gives us a story in The Snow Killer that feels threatening and claustrophic, by using a killer, who only attacks their victims when the city is blanketed by snow. It’s inhabitants trapped not only by the weather, but by a killer they can’t see and fearful of the next snowfall. It makes the story feel closed it, oppressive, chilling and as a reader that panic which simmers below the surface of the story, made me feel exposed and vulnerable. It made for a compelling read, one I refused to be torn away from, virtually consuming it in a few short days.

The story, which exposed many feelings in me as a reader. Sadness for the traumatized child that survived the gruesome murder of their family. A complicated mixture of  understanding that they would seek revenge, yet horror that they were capable of such retribution, when I could never inflict such violence. I followed their journey as the urge to kill again grows stronger, fascinated by their tortured mind and left floundering when I felt sure I knew the identity of the killer. Only to be deceived by a writer who played cat and mouse with me and I came off the loser. He had me hoodwinked and I had to consider again all my percetions of the killer.

The characters are superb. Ross Greenwood doesn’t present us with a monster, he gives us a deeply damaged individual whose sense of justice is skewered by his past. Part of you understands this quest for revenge and that is because The Snow Killer is embued with a flash of humanity. It makes him the perfect villain opposite the hero DI Barton, who is himself not perfect, but he is warm a cares and cares about his team. He understands that the villains he chases are often victims of circumstance, that doesn’t mean he won’t seek justice, because he and we know, there is always another path.  But that for some, life gave them lives that almost defined them from birth. He sees life for what it is and I loved him. I can’t wait to read more stories with a man who is not cliched and taciturn as so many detectives in thrillers are.

This is a brilliant start to a series of books by Ross Greenwood and I’m super excited about what is to come next.

You can purchase The Snow Killer from Amazon

About the author 

Ross Greenwood was born in 1973 in Peterborough and he lived there until he was 20, attending The King’s School in the city. He then began a rather nomadic existence, living and working all over the country and various parts of the world.

He found himself returning to Peterborough many times over the years, usually when things had gone wrong. It was on one of these occasions that he met his partner about 100 metres from his back door whilst walking a dog. Two children swiftly followed. He still a little stunned by the pace of it now.

Fifty Years of Fear book was started a long time ago but parenthood and then after working in sales management all my life, he randomly spent four years as a prison officer. Ironically it was the four a.m. feed which gave me the opportunity to finish the book as he unable to get back to sleep, completing it in the early morning hours.

He now written five further books. His second book, The Boy Inside, was picked up by a publisher, and Lazy Blood is also out. All his books are thought provoking, and are told with a sense of humour.

The first three books are stand alone, however, some of the characters cross over, and you can see how at times, their lives overlap.

Abel’s Revenge is something a bit different. It’s a modern day love story set against the backdrop of an escalating serial killer. There’s a whodunnit element to it, and some smiles along the way.

Shadows of Regret was inspired by his time on the women’s side of the jail in Peterborough, and analyses the close relationship between victim and villain. You won’t have read a book like it.

The author can be followed on Twitter

 

Brad Was Sad by M C Goldick. #GuestPost #Blog Tour

Brad was Sad

Did Brad’s dad make him sad? Brad thought he had…until his dog, Plaid, proved he could choose his outlook & feel glad.
Kids learn best through stories. Empower your child to own their feelings with this beautifully illustrated picture book by award-winning author, M.C. Goldrick.
Brad’s dog Plaid shows him how to feel and deal with emotions. Though Brad is having a bad day, Plaid shows him that it’s in his power to choose his perspective and his feelings.

Guest Post

Power Lessons
By award-winning Kid-Lit Author M.C. Goldrick

A comment I’ve repeatedly heard in response to my book, Brad was Sad, is that it contains a lesson that adults could stand to learn as well. How to own your emotions.

We all know people who blame others for how they are feeling. Maybe, we are those people.

Maybe when it’s a grey, drizzly day we blame the weather for our lack of get up and go.
Maybe when our boss is irritable we blame them for our crankiness.
Maybe when our kids don’t listen we blame our nagging on their lack of response.

Do you see yourself in this at all? No? Well then, you’re probably lying. Tell the truth!
We all do it sometimes.

I admit that I do. But not often. And when I do, I catch myself quickly and course correct.
I know I can do better. So I do.

I invite you to do this too. Course correct as you go.
If you catch yourself playing the blame game, don’t add extra blame beating yourself up about it either. Be kind to yourself. No blame and no shame. Just choose again.

When we blame others, we are giving away our inherent responsibility for our hearts and minds.
These are our hearts. Our minds. We’re the ones living in our bodies. Not them.

What they choose to say, think, or do can land in our awareness. We can see them. Hear them. Read their criticisms. But what we choose to feel in response is all ours. There is a freedom in that knowledge.

It is assumed that we adults should know better. That this is something that we should have learned by now. But who was supposed to have taught us this? Our parents? Who quite often modelled conditional affection? Is this really something taught to most children?

Our cultural narrative is that we are responsible for the happiness of others and that we need external validation in order to feel good.

Most parents will teach their children not to hurt other people’s feelings. Their intentions are good. We should be kind. It is important to be empathetic to the emotions of others and to take their feelings into consideration.

However, this is based upon a faulty premise. The belief that someone else can make you feel something. That is an impossibility. They technically can’t.

No one can make anyone else feel anything. The emotions we feel we are fully in the domain of the individual.

People can certainly act displeasingly, but we are not bound to respond in a certain way.
There is always choice.

We may not choose what happens but we do choose how we respond. It may not come naturally. We might have to make the extra effort, but like anything, the more you do something the easier it becomes.

When we teach our children that they have autonomy over their hearts and minds we gift them. The gift of knowing they have the power to choose their outlook. And our outlooks are everything.

Pessimists and optimists live in very different worlds, this extends far beyond half full or empty glasses. Everything, every experience, is coloured by the lens through which we view it.

Imagine a generation of children growing up to be adults who own their emotions and are empathetic to those around them.

Instead of waiting for someone to make them happy, they just are happy.
Instead of yearning for the latest gadget or bobble to fill the void, there is no void to fill.
They fill their own cups.

How do we teach this?
We teach by example. Books like mine help, but the best way to teach children, and adults to own their emotions is by modelling, by living it.

We can show kids that we are feeling an initial reaction and then selectively choosing our response. We can say I don’t like that. I feel upset but I’m choosing to relax and look for a solution.

So the next time you wake up to grey skies, a snappy boss, and kids with selective hearing, feel however it makes you feel. But then once you’ve felt the emotion, make a choice.

It could be to be sad or mad, there’s no need to fake glad.
Just know that the choice is yours. You have the power to choose.

As Glinda, the Good Witch says in the Wizard of Oz, “You’ve always had the power, my dear, you just had to learn it for yourself.”

You can purchase this novel from Amazon UK and Amazon US

About the author

Award-winning author & mother of two, M.C. Goldrick sees feelings as our first language. Through her books she helps us identify and own our emotions. Her acclaimed Juvenile fiction series TIMEFLIES is an example of how stories can both enrich and entertain. She lives in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada with her family.

About the Illustrator

Rebecca Alexander, mother of two now-grown-up boys, is an accomplished artist with a private gallery. Her work has been featured on Canada Post Christmas Cards & stamps. She lives in St.Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

Social Media links – Facebook and Instagram

Left For Dead by Paul J Teague #Review #BlogTour #Suspense #Thriller

A return to the past. Two guilty secrets. A memory that won’t stay buried …

When Charlotte and Will Grayson return to the seaside resort where they met as teenagers, they hope it’ll help to heal the wounds in their marriage.

But visiting the dilapidated holiday camp where their relationship began brings terrible memories back from the past.

The man who’d once made their lives hell has come back to find them – only, the last time they saw him, they’d left him for dead on the beach.

As the threats to their new life become more severe, Charlotte and Will discover that they were mistaken about what happened to Bruce Craven on that fateful night.

And now he’s returned to finish off what was started thirty years ago.

Sometimes the past is best left alone

Left for Dead is the first book in the Morecambe Bay Trilogy.

Left For Dead was a very enjoyable, top notch thriller. It read like a dream and had oodles of tension. From the first page to the last it was a thrilling and had a storyline that was gripping and intensely addictive.

The mood it conveyed to me as a reader and one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much, was a feeling of impending danger, from the moment we meet Charlotte and Wil.  That feeling was built upon as the story progressed and it meant that it was hard to put the book down, the sense of unease following me around, meant I felt an intense need to swallow it all up in one sitting. That was the only way I could only be sure that my feelings of imminent jeopardy were right or wrong!

The story itself was complex and had just the right amount of supporting characters, not enough to make is impossible to follow, but ample to have me constantly and incorrectly blaming each in turn for visiting such danger on the Charlotte and Wil. The writer had me wrong footed on each twist in the storyline, so when the reveal actually happened I was caught off guard.

All in all, I found it a highly enjoyable read. I’ve been finding it hard to read lately and that this book kept me turning the pages, summed up how good it was.

You can purchase this novel from Amazon.

Book 2 is Circle of Lies and will be published on Monday 9th December 2019.

Book 3 is Truth Will Out and will be published on Monday 6th January 2020.

About the author 

Paul Teague writes thrillers, sci-fi and non-fiction books.

Writing as Paul J. Teague, he is the author of the Don’t Tell Meg trilogy as well as several standalones such as Dead of Night, Two Years After, Now You See Her (with Adam Nicholls) and So Many Lies.

His latest thriller trilogy is set in the coastal town of Morecambe in the UK.
Paul studied, lived and worked in Lancaster and Morecambe between 1983 and 1991 and the books draw from his personal experiences and knowledge of the area.

The first book – Left for Dead – is released in November 2019 and the follow-ups – Circle of Lies and Truth Will Out – will be published in December 2019 and January 2020 respectively.

Paul is a former teacher, DJ, waiter and BBC radio producer, presenter and journalist.

You can follow the author on Twitter, Facebook and his Website

 

The Purple – Bellied Parrot from William Fagus. #Extract #BlogTour

Discover … The power of the ‘HhhuuuUUTTT!’Ever feel you are living the wrong life? Ever feel another life, your should-be life, is out there waiting for you, if only you had the courage to …Do you like tinned pineapple chunks? Have you answered yes to any of those questions? Then follow the Purple-Bellied Parrot on a rip-roaring, globe-spanning adventure packed with unforgettable characters. His quest to live his should-be life.It Begins: In the sterile apartment of a city executive with unruly nasal hair where the Purple-Bellied Parrot cannot even do the very thing he was born to do. It Ends: On the shores of a distant land after an epic journey which tests his courage, his ingenuity and the bonds of friendship — to the limit.The Purple-Bellied Parrot is a spell-binding, life-affirming tale, with the power to evoke laughter and tears from readers 11-100 years old. (Parental Note: contains occasional mild imprecations.)

Today I’m delighted to welcome author William Fagus to booksaremycwtches with an extract from his book The Purple – Bellied Parrot.

Extract

The Purple-Bellied Parrot finds himself on the winter streets, naked because he has pulled out his feathers due to boredom. A gang of sparrows (spuggies) have found him.

The spuggies squeezed in even tighter to the Purple-Bellied Parrot and began a conflab.
‘We got to get him warmed up, but we can’t hang about here all day.’
‘Might be a moggie about.’
‘And I for one is getting peckish.’
‘I know, what if he jumps up and down to get isself warm?’
‘What — and he does that all day does he?’ said Gert.
‘Think!’
‘Think!’
‘Think!’
‘I am thinkin!’
‘I know! We’ll stand him on top of a chimeney pot — be warm as toast up there.’
‘And leave him a sitting duck for all the passing maggies and spugghawks? Why don’t you give him a lil dinner bell to ring anall?’ said Vera.
‘Think!’
‘Think!’
‘Think!’
Then Chalkie cried, ‘Got it!’ and with a cheep he was gone.
He came back a few moments later, a huge fluffy red thing flopping about in his beak. It was playing havoc with his aerodynamics, and when he landed on the edge of the bush he was fagged out.
‘Give us hand you lazy sausages!’ he gasped.
The spuggies hauled the fluffy red thing into the safety of the bush.
‘Well?’ said Alfie.
‘Well what? It’s a sock,’ said Chalkie.
‘I can see it’s a bloomin sock. You’ve been raiding them washin lines again. But how does that help us out of our present predickybirdament?’
‘He wears it don’t he. We put it on him.’
‘We put it on him? And then what? He just sits there all day does he, wrapped head to toe in a sock?’
‘Look like a big fat sausage he will,’ said Betty.
Chalkie slapped his forehead with his primaries. ‘Watch,’ he sighed.
He dragged the sock over to a puzzled Purple-Bellied Parrot. ‘Give us hand then!’
Ada and Flo twigged what was happening and helped him lift the sock over the Purple-Bellied Parrot’s head. They pulled down hard until it reached his legs. The sock bulged tight over his head and beak.
‘His hooter looks even bigger like that don’t it!’
‘Now then ladies and gents,’ said Chalkie. ‘Feast your mincey pies on this!’1
Whistling as he worked, Chalkie snipped a hole into the top of the sock. Once the hole was complete, he said, ‘Righto. Pull!’ and the three of them pulled down again. The Purple-Bellied Parrot’s head popped out, and soon they had the sock all the way down to his toes.
‘But …’ said Alfie.
‘Crikey, enough buts. Just watch!’
Chalkie nodded to Flo and they snipped two long holes into the sides of the sock. Then he whispered into the ear of the Purple-Bellied Parrot. It was a struggle, and Flo and Ada had to tug hard, but the Purple-Bellied Parrot soon had one wing shoved through. The other soon followed, and the Purple-Bellied Parrot stood in his woolly tank top and flapped his wings. It was so warm, his beak instantly stopped clacking. He was about to say thank you again — but then thought better of it.
‘Voila!’ said Chalkie.
‘You what?!’ they all chorused.
‘It’s your French lingo,’ said Chalkie.
‘But …’ said Alfie.
‘But? But what? Gawd, what’s wrong now?’
‘Erm … Well … ahem … The colour? Spose red was all what was h’available.’
‘Why?’
‘Well, if you want him to stand out like a sore bum to every hungry moggie, maggie and spugghawk in the vic-hinity — then there’s nothing bloomin wrong with it. I mean, I’m sure a bird with a green head and a huge hooter poking out of it wearing a red tank top — whom, I may add can barely flap his delicious little body off the ground — won’t attract any h’unwanted h’attention at all. While we’re at it, why don’t we shove a ruddy great olive in his cakehole and sprinkle some salt and pepper on im?’ Alfie was puffing his breast out now. If he’d had lapels, he’d have been tucking his alulae behind them.2 ‘Do me a bloomin favour. He’ll be pooed-out on some bin’s titfer before you can say Cock Robinson.’3
Alfie let his oration hang there for a moment. Some spuggies cheeped agreement.
Chalkie remained unruffled. ‘Well done Alfie. Well done chaps and chapesses. Glad you spotted that,’ and with a ‘cheep’ he was off again.

You can purchase this novel from Amazon

About the author

The publicity-shy William Fagus lives in a remote location in an upturned fishing smack with a parrot and sundry antique musical instruments and carpentry tools.
The redoubtable Mrs Lush, his cleaning lady and confidant, is his most frequent visitor.
William Fagus’s biography, of uncertain origin and dubious veracity, is available here: http://www.williamfagus.com/fagus_biog.html

 

 

The White and Gold People by Segun Starchild #BlogTour #Extract

The White & Gold People
A dress causes a huge debate across the world as some see it as black and blue and others see it as white and gold. The white and gold people suddenly start to get even stranger visions and develop super human abilities making the black and blue people seem old and inadequate. The government try to quarantine and control their power but the white and gold people react setting the stage for a war between the rival groups.

 

Excerpt 1 – From Chapter 1 – The Awakening
The dress goes viral
After waking up to a debilitating eye condition where their eyes are engulfed in an illuminous bright yellow light, the Goldies stare at the sun to heal their eyes. After the solar gazing is complete they have awakened their powers, now almost anything is possible for them.

“Believe,” Angie shouted.
Laura really believed.
After what seemed like an eternity (but what was actually one minute) her eyes seemed to have adjusted and the yellow light disappeared, as if someone had just turned the lights off.
Laura stopped screaming.
A few neighbours looked out of their windows and came out of their houses, worried at the sound of a female voice in excruciating pain. The animals also got involved, making noises of barking, chirping, howling and running around frantically. Somehow, they could feel the energy, the change in consciousness, the change of vibration.
The sun shone bright and majestically. It was as if it was emitting holy rays and Laura sensed the difference. The energy made the flowers blossom and heal the entire Earth like an orb bathed in crystal waters. A New Age had ascended onto the world and mankind would be thrust into the epicentre head first.
Laura held her hands out and took deep breaths in through her nose, harnessing the energy and becoming one with nature. After what seemed like an initiation into a secret society of
eternal spirit beings, Laura felt refreshed, energised and blissful like never before.

 

You can purchase this novel from Book Website, Amazon and Kobo.

Giveaway to Win a T-Shirt, in the colours of the dress, in either white and gold or blue and black. (UK Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

To enter follow the LINK

About the author

Segun Starchild is a writer whose previous works include ‘Black Egyptians’, ‘The Capability Test’ & ‘Kamun vs. Leviathan’. He is a self confessed seeker of ‘The Truth’ and has a great hunger to know the mysteries of life. He has studied the esoteric mysteries of great sages to gain a reputable amount of wisdom and has the blessing of taking a journey through life with confidence and true knowledge of self and kind. He hails from the Yoruba tribe in Nigeria and is for the unification of the African continent. Segun currently lives in London, working in IT Development and Support and the director of Akasha Publishing Ltd