• Blog Tour,  Reviews

    Blog Tour Review: The Enigma Game by Elizabeth Wein

    Summary:
    Windyedge Airfield, Scotland. World War II. Louisa Adair, newly orphaned and shunned for
    her mixed-race heritage, has come here to the edge of the world to look after an old lady with a dark past. Jamie Beaufort-Stuart is a flight
    lieutenant whose squadron is posted to the airfield over winter. Ellen McEwan is a young woman held hostage by the German pilot who
    lands at Windyedge one wild stormy night carrying a terrible secret.
    Three young people desperate to make a difference in a war that has decimated their families, friends and country. When the means to
    change the course of history falls into their hands, how will they use it? And when the enemy comes looking for them, who will have the courage to
    strike back?
    A thrilling story of wartime secrets, international intrigue and wild courage from the award-winning
    author of Code Name Verity, with three young heroes you’ll never forget.
    Information about the Book
    Title: The Enigma Game
    Author: Elizabeth Wein
    Genre: YA Historical
    Publication Date:14th May 2020
    Page Count: 424
    Publisher: Bloomsbury
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51228682-the-enigma-game
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Enigma-Game-Elizabeth-Wein-ebook/dp/B0844KCGRW


  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Brilliant Baxter by Carol Cordrey

    Title: Brilliant Baxter at the Funfair
    Author: Carol Cordrey
    Illustrator: Tim Bulmer
    Genre: Picture Book
    Publication Date: 7th May
    Page Count: 20
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53327925-brilliant-baxter-at-the-funfair  
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Brilliant-Baxter-At-Fun-Fair/dp/1912850583
    Summary: An exciting visit to the Funfair for Eliza, her grandmother, Grinny, and their much loved Labrador, Brilliant Baxter. This story’s easy rhyme and vibrant illustrations are certain to delight both children and adults.

     


    FIVE FAVOURITE BOOKS FOR CHILDREN

    Where’s Spot is etched on my memory because it played such a key role in encouraging both our daughters to love books.  When our elder daughter was under two years of age, she seemed to become disinterested in books and bedtime stories This book’s bright illustrations, simple language and sweet story about a puppy,  brought to life through lifting flaps, was an instant success with her and it rekindled an interest in books which has lasted her entire life.  

    Peter Rabbit is an ideal book for a young child because they can relate to its main, mischievous character with such ease and they never forget him as they grow up.  Also, Beatrix Potter’s beautiful pictures are so gentle in style and she cleverly attached just enough narrative on each page to maintain the interest of both child and adult without exhausting them, particularly at the end of a tiring day. The background to Potter publishing this book which has achieved global popularity made me realise that with enough determination and skill, a woman can influence the entire world from the comfort of her own home.

    Mr Men on Holiday is among my favourite books for children because it makes a child look forward to fun, active family holidays.  Short but sweet, it manages, also, to convey empathy, good friendship, humour and gratitude in the most easily absorbed manner which both children and adults can appreciate. The colourful images of happy, smiling characters are so strong that they print themselves (and those of the other Mr Men books) on memories forever, indeed, Little Miss Sunshine looks like it was an inspiration for today’s internationally popular Smiley Face Emoji. 

    Swallows & Amazons relies on text and not imagery to encourage children to enjoy the great outdoors, not least of all during school holidays.  It shines a healthy light on team – even gang –  membership, provided that good intentions and natural rivalry lie at the heart of it all.  The story is distinctive because of its exciting narrative and elements of risk which demonstrate how imaginative, creative and daring children can be and that sometimes adults would be wise to listen to them, instead of those roles always being reversed. 

     Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes was bought for our daughter when she was around 10 years of age and she loved the rhymes and the unusual, cartoon style of illustrations by the imaginative Quentin Blake.  The simple rhyme and good rhythm made it possible for her to memorise some of the stories, so much so that she used to enjoy reciting sections!  Equally engaging was Dahl’s innovative and distorted perspective on traditional children’s stories which taught his young readers that satire is a brilliant tool to see life and people through a different and sometimes clearer lens. 


    Author Information

    Carol Codrey has a strong history within the art world, starting out as an Art columnist before becoming an Art Editor for Sheengate Publishing Ltd. For Guildford Borough Council she created and marketed the annual Guildford Calendar for five years. She was also an Art Columnist and Critic and then Art Editor for Run Wild Media Ltd. She was on the judging panel for the annual international Wildlife Artist of the Year competition for five years. She has also written art features for the Home supplement of the Financial Times, the NADFAS Magazine – now re-titled The Art Society Magazine – and the National Trust Magazine. She has been repeatedly invited to be the sole judge of the Post Office and British Telecom Art Club’s annual art exhibition. She is a longstanding member of the Royal Automobile Club and has written varied features about the Club’s art collection for its members’ magazine, Pell Mell & Woodcote. She was also the founder and co-creater for six years of the annual and unique London International Ice Sculpting Festival.

    During the past eighteen months, Carol has fused her experiences of family life with her combined love of writing and art. The results are a series of short story books for young children, written in rhyme and illustrated by a successful artist and illustrator who has brought the characters to life. The books are ideally suited to children of pre-school age as well as to early readers as she is very enthusiastic about encouraging all children to develop a love of language and art. Carol is married and has two adult daughters.

    Twitter: http://twitter.com/carolcodrey1 

  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Charles Dickens My Life by Derwin Hope

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Charles Dickens My Life by Derwin Hope and I am bringing you a guest post. Enjoy!


    Title: Charles Dickens: My Life
    Author: Derwin Hope
    Genre: Non-Fiction
    Publication Date: 5th May
    Page Count: 536
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53217644-charles-dickens 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B087TF1J8H/
    Summary: When Charles Dickens died prematurely on the 9th June 1870 aged only 58, he left behind a legacy unsurpassed in English fictional literature. But he also wanted to write his true life story and this remained undone. 150 years on from his death, I have found that sufficient material has now been uncovered to enable that narrative of his life story to be produced for the first time. Research amongst 15,000 of his letters, journalistic articles, documents and other relevant material connected to him have all combined to make it possible for me to piece together that evidence and, guided by the way he wrote his two travel books, has resulted in the production of this personal story in his own words that he so desired to tell. It shows exactly how, from difficult beginnings, he descended into acute humiliation and abject poverty, before then emerging due to his talent and incredible resolve, into one of the most famous men and popular authors the world has ever known. It chronicles his enormous public triumphs and his profound private turmoils, as well as the secret life he led when, on his own admission, he became “seized with lunacy”. It includes his two momentous visits to America, and his withering and radical opinions of institutions and situations he found there, as well as those he encountered at home – all expressed in his own inimitable style. This is his compelling and personal narrative, put together for the first time in a way that he wished his legacy to be told. It is the real and true story of his life.


  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Dad You’ve Trumped by Andrew Rogerson

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Dad You’ve Trumped by Andrew Rogerson and I am bringing you a guest post. Enjoy!


    Title: Dad You’ve Trumped
    Author: Andrew Rogerson
    Illustrator: Christopher Dodd
    Genre: Picture Book
    Publication Date: 14th May  2020
    Page Count: 34
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53348627-dad-you-ve-trumped   
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dad-Youve-Trumped-Andrew-Rogerson/dp/1913136655/
    Summary: This is the story of how a dad tries to explain away his moments of flatulent indiscretion to his daughter Poppy who is five. These are real moments. They are real excuses!


  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Walk a Narrow Line by Rod Graham

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Walk a Narrow Line by Rod Graham and I am bringing you a guest post. Enjoy.


    Title: Walk A Narrow Line
    Author: Rod Graham
    Genre: Non-Fiction
    Publication Date: 5th May 2020
    Page Count: 156
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53348878-walk-a-narrow-line 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Walk-Narrow-Line-Because-You-ebook/dp/B086BLNBZ4
    Summary: Driven on unrelentlessly not to be beaten down by failure, this is one man’s extraordinary true-life story, which highlights the ever-present need to find your way in the world. Across the diverse life adventures over a seventy-year period, a picture is painted of a life that has led from neglect to success and from abuse to knowledge. This book will inspire those who read it to do better.

     


  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Change Leadership by Bill Mann

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Change Leadership by Bill Mann and I am bringing you a guest post. Enjoy.


    Title: Change Leadership
    Author: Bill Mann
    Genre: Non-Fiction
    Publication Date: 21st April 2020
    Page Count: 116
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53348772-change-leadership 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Change-Leadership-people-through-change-ebook/dp/B08572TDB5/ 

    Summary: 80% of change projects fail. It’s a staggering amount. The most common reason is a reluctance to change by the people involved. It’s not surprising really: people make up a business and it’s those same people who must accept and adapt to change. The difference between change management and change leadership is making the connection between organisational change and the human impact on all involved. This book will show you how to lead change, not just manage it. Bill Mann, founder of The Keep Calm Guy, has learnt the hard way about change. After a long career delivering change projects for many businesses it was his personal experiences of coping with the trauma of a suicide bomb attack, and losing his wife to cancer, that taught him how to find a path through change that other people will follow.  www.thekeepcalmguy.co.uk


  • Blog Tour

    Blog Tour: Dawn of the Patriot by Okimi Peters

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Dawn of the Patriot by Okimi Peters, and I am bringing you a guest post. Enjoy.


    Title: Dawn of the Patriot: Heart of Ziik
    Author: Okimi Peters
    Genre: Graphic Novel
    Page Count: 30
    Publisher: Independently Published
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53216974-dawn-of-the-patriot 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dawn-Patriot-Heart-Okimi-Peters-ebook/dp/B0856Z5YNT 
    Summary: Plagued by the mysterious death of his older brother, the unassuming yet highly spirited 19 year old Ziik will be thrust on the daunting path to becoming a vigilante in the Third World. Progressively finding himself as a symbol of light through the shadows of Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria, Ziik must not only weave through the present day complexities of his homeland on his quest for justice; he must also learn to overcome himself to find peace.

     


  • Blog Tour

    Blog tour: The War of the Snakes by Julian Cheek

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for The War of the Snakes by Julian Cheek, and I am bringing you an extract from the novel.


    Title: The War of the Snakes (Ethereal Series #2)
    Authors: Julian Cheek
    Release Date: 7th April 2020
    Genre: YA
    Page Count: 600
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52935003-the-war-of-the-snakes 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/War-Snakes-Julian-Cheek/dp/1913340066/ 
    Summary: “Dreams can’t be real, can they?”

    Such is the gnawing question reverberating through Sam’s head as he battles with a dilemma, which refuses to be ignored.

    In his dreams, he is always confronted by one simple point: Muanga-Atua exists! And for some un-asked for and un-wanted reason, he – Sam – is expected to save this place from the calamity that engulfs the people of the Turangai. Not only that, but he is also supposed to have some sort of incredible power by which he is expected to destroy both the Bjarke and their leader, Lord Elim, the Turangai’s oppressors.

    “But that is ridiculous! Right?”

    Determined to ignore all that occurs in this so-called ‘dream world’, he does nothing. That is until one cold, grey, autumn morning a TV news flash captures a shocking series of events, which leads to one undeniable truth; what he has tried to ignore all along in Muanga-Atua has somehow incredibly exploded into his world and it is searching… Searching for him.

    His do-nothing approach is just not good enough. Not now. He will have to go back to Muanga-Atua to seek out this power he was supposed to have obtained. Find the power, accept what it can do through him, and go out into that awful place to do battle with someone, or something that makes his very blood run cold.

    But how? How can he go into this world and be all that the Turangai think he is, when he still cannot accept the truth? That he is ‘The One’. Sam, Wielder of the Staff of the Ethereals and saviour of their world. And now, apparently, of his own as well.


  • Blog Tour,  Reviews

    Blog Tour Review: Rebel With A Cupcake by Anna Mainwaring

    Hey guys. Today is my stop on the blog tour for Rebel With A Cupcake by Anna Mainwaring, and I am bringing you my review of this book. Enjoy.


    52914309Rebel With A Cupcake by Anna Mainwaring
    Genre: Contemporary
    Published by: Firefly Press
    Pages: 233
    Release date: 02/04/2020
    Rating: ★★★☆☆
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52914309-rebel-with-a-cupcake 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rebel-Cupcake-Anna-Mainwaring-ebook/dp/B07WDFM66Q
    Summary: Jesobel Jones is bold and beautiful. The daughter of a hand model and a washed-up rock star, she sees no need to apologise for her rambling house, her imperfect family, her single status … or her weight. Jess makes her own cupcakes and she eats them, too. That is, until Own Clothes Day when a wardrobe malfunction leaves Jess exposed, and a mean girl calling her the one thing that’s never bothered her before: fat.


  • Blog Tour

    Blog tour: The Loss of Some Detail by Mandi Martin

    Hey guys. Today I am kicking off the blog tour for The Loss of Some Detail by Mandi Martin, and I am bringing you an interview with Mandi. Enjoy


    Title: The Loss of Some Detail
    Authors: Mandi Martin
    Release Date: 17th March 2020
    Genre: Historical Fiction
    Page Count: 162
    Publisher: Clink Street Publishing
    Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52044366-sully-s-glow 
    Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Loss-Some-Detail-Mandi-Martin/dp/1913340376
    Summary: Forget all you know, for all you know might well be false.

    That is how is often seems to asylum worker James Grey as he tends to the patients abandoned to Oculus Mentis, an austere asylum lost to the world. His day to day quite literally forgettable.

    Until now.

    Slowly the world around him starts to change. Plagued by lucid dreams, a haunting drawing and visions of a pleading female he feels his mind is dissolving.

    Aided by the enigmatic Silas and silent Marianne he seeks to solve the mysteries that are tormenting him.