The People at Number 9 by Felicity Everett Book Review

Posted on May 5, 2017 by Catherine Balavage

The People at Number 9 is an engaging novel. It has all of the things that books need to have to be popular at the moment: characters that are complex and are not necessary likeable, some twists and turns and just enough suspense. I raced towards the end of the book, and was frequently irritated by some of the characters actions. The book is relatable: plenty of people get obsessed with neighbours and those who are not like them. Gav and Lou move next door and Sara gets obsessed with her new arty neighbours. They are everything her middle class privilege is not and she yearns to be part of their world. Little does she know this will have huge consequences for her family. This novel is dark and clever. When I got to the end I wanted to read it again. It has a bit of a twist which is written in a smart way. The People at Number 9 is a cautionary tale about getting- and not getting- what you wish for. But mostly, it is about the dangers of envy, betrayal and selfishness. A triumph.

Meet the new neighbours. Whose side are you on?

When Gav and Lou move into the house next door, Sara spends days plucking up courage to say hello. The neighbours are glamorous, chaotic and just a little eccentric. They make the rest of Sara’s street seem dull by comparison.

When the hand of friendship is extended, Sara is delighted and flattered. Incredibly, Gav and Lou seem to see something in Sara and Neil that they admire too. In no time at all, the two couples are soulmates, sharing suppers, bottles of red wine and childcare, laughing and trading stories and secrets late into the night in one another’s houses.

And the more time Sara spends with Gav and Lou, the more she longs to make changes in her own life. But those changes will come at a price. Soon Gav and Lou will be asking things they’ve no right to ask of their neighbours, with shattering consequences for all of them…

Have you met The People at Number 9? A dark and delicious novel about envy, longing and betrayal in the suburbs…

The People at Number 9 is available here.

We Know All About You: The Story of Surveillance in Britain and America Book Review

Posted on May 4, 2017 by Catherine Balavage

We Know All About You: The Story of Surveillance in Britain and America by Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones.

Privacy has become a big issue. Everything we do on the internet is tracked and even the NHS sells our records. We Know All About You is a book which charts the history of surveillance. From the first ID cards- given to slaves for passage- to McCarthyism and blacklists, and then Snowden and the NHS. A lot of it is shocking, if not surprising. The information of corporate blacklists that ruins workers lives is sad and damning. The real surprise comes from private surveillance however. I think most people are aware of times the government has abused its power, but private detectives and private video cameras are more popular than ever. In fact, most of the cameras around George Orwell’s home were put there by private citizens. Surveillance is bigger than ever before and it is mostly used to sell us something. It is all rather depressing and in my opinion there is no such thing as privacy anymore. We Know All About You is a brilliant and well-researched book. Entertaining and engaging, it tells the story of surveillance, a subject that could have been dull, in a compelling way. Highly recommended.

We Know All About You shows how bulk spying came of age in the nineteenth century, and supplies the first overarching narrative and interpretation of what has happened since, covering the agencies, programs, personalities, technology, leaks, criticisms and reform. Concentrating on America and Britain, it delves into the roles of credit agencies, private detectives, and phone-hacking journalists as well as government agencies like the NSA and GCHQ, and highlights malpractices such as the blacklist and illegal electronic interceptions. It demonstrates that several presidents – Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon – conducted political surveillance, and how British agencies have been under a constant cloud of suspicion for similar reasons.

We Know All About You continues with an account of the 1970s leaks that revealed how the FBI and CIA kept tabs on anti-Vietnam War protestors, and assesses the reform impulse that began in America and spread to Britain. The end of the Cold War further undermined confidence in the need for surveillance, but it returned with a vengeance after 9/11. The book shows how reformers challenged that new expansionism, assesses the political effectiveness of the Snowden revelations, and offers an appraisal of legislative initiatives on both sides of the Atlantic.

Micro-stories and character sketches of individuals ranging from Pinkerton detective James McParlan to recent whisteblowers illuminate the book. We Know All About You confirms that governments have a record of abusing surveillance powers once granted, but emphasizes that problems arising from private sector surveillance have been particularly neglected.

We Know All About You: The Story of Surveillance in Britain and America is available here.

Seizing the moment by Margaret Graham

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Margaret Graham

WORLD MONUMENTS FUND PRESENTS: THE PAST, TODAY Preservation during conflict: Seizing the moment – to protect the Middle East’s cultural heritage

With Zaki Aslan, Director of ICCROM-ATHAR (Sharjah United Arab Emirates) with introduction by Tracey Crouch MP

Royal Geographical Society, 1 Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR

Tuesday 16th May 2017, 7pm (doors open at 6.30pm)

If I wasn’t going to be abroad I’d love to go to this talk:

Conflict continues to dominate the Middle East and we regularly hear about cultural catastrophes as heritage is deliberately targeted by direct damage, looting, abandonment and neglect. Historic buildings, artistic treasures, monuments and neighbourhoods are repeatedly dismantled or destroyed. Alongside the physical destruction comes the loss of people to champion heritage and the expertise to conserve it.

As part of an important series of talks about heritage in conflict zones, World Monuments Fund Britain presents Zaki Aslan, Director of ICCROM-ATHAR – an international body that works to conserve cultural heritage in the Middle East. Zaki Aslan will provide significant insight into the state of heritage in the region and discuss how the world’s nations could help more with conservation. The evening will be introduced by Tracey Crouch, Minister for Sport, Tourism and Heritage at DCMS.

This event follows the 2015 inaugural talk World Monument Fund talk in which Professor Maamoun Abdulkarim, the Director-General of Syrian Antiquities, visited the UK for the first time. With the recent news that Palmyra in Syria has just been freed from ISIS for a second time, Maamoun Abdulkarim will join the lecture by video to give us the very latest position on his country’s besieged cultural heritage.

Zaki Aslan comments, World nations should unite for heritage protection as this is part of our human story. We are facing cultural cleansing in countries such as Iraq and Syria; images we’ve received are appalling. Destruction of heritage should be treated as a war crime by the international community at large. We need to plan well for the recovery phase guiding all parties involved in the reconstruction process.

World Monuments Fund is the leading independent charity devoted to saving the world’s most treasured places. Their programme of issue-based events brings speakers to London who are closest to the international heritage stories making the very latest news.

Photograph: © iStock RPMGas

Twitter @WorldMonuments, @JohnD_WMFB, #PreservationConflict Box Office Tickets are available for £20 (£15 for WMF members) from

www.wmf.org.uk/activities or 020 7251 8142

Be still my beating heart… Another Agatha Raisin… by Milly Adams

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Margaret Graham

Sometimes the Frost Review Team receive a real treat. This time, bagsy me.

Agatha Raisin, Pushing up Daisies arrived on the mat…

M.C. Beaton has done it again. She is my hero, my saviour, the writer who lifts my heart, the one I truly believe has looked in the window and created a detective who is as rude as I am. No, I am not always, but sometimes. Lovely, lovely Agatha does not have the filter that others do. She thinks something, and out it comes. Is it an age thing?

And no, it’s not nice, or kind, and my mum would have added, nor is it funny to be rude. It’s true that it’s not nice, not kind – but good grief, M.C. Beaton is certainly so very funny. There’s no faffing about calling a spade a nice little trowel. Not, it’s a shovel.

Lord Bellington, Carsley’s biggest landholder, has enraged locals with his plans to sell off their allotments to make way for a new housing development. So when he turns up dead, nobody mourns his passing.

Indeed, I should think not, having worked my very precious allotment alongside many others doing the same – if that had been in jeopardy from a dastardly developer, the list of suspects would have been huge.

The problem is, the body count keeps mounting in Pushing Up Daisies, and our hero, Agatha, has to weave her way through a world of petty feuds, while she herself is cast down by moments of self-doubt.

This is what is so glorious about Agatha. Not only does she blast her way through the sensibilities of some she meets, she is, also, beneath it all, rather a delicate flower. No, I need to alter that. Not delicate, but vulnerable, in her search for love, something which underpins all the wonderful books in the Agatha Raison series.

I had rather forgotten about these wonderful books as work pressures have mounted, but have been out and bought several to take on a week’s break before beginning another novel of my own for Arrow. People will wonder why on earth I am laughing aloud, and with fondness at this black comedy, unless of course, there are more Agatha Raison fans around at the time. Then they will understand and we’ll exchange knowing looks.

Buy it, enhance your life. And buy the next, and the… Well, you get the picture.

While you’re at it, don’t forget the Hamish Macbeth series too, also written by M.C. Beaton.

Pushing Up Daisies (Agatha Raisin) M.C. Beaton pb £7.99

Stagolee’s – superb fried chicken in Fulham

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Jack Shamash

Stagolee's - chicken and liquor restaurant in North End Road Fulham

Stagolee’s – the chicken and liquor restaurant in Fulham

The Southern USA is famous for certain things: swamps, alligators, country music and – of course – the best friend chicken in the world.

Stagolee’s – a new restaurant in the trendy part of Fulham – describes itself as a ‘chicken and liquor joint’. It’s relatively cheap, the food is great and if you’re hoping to go out with friends for a meal and some drinks, you could do an awful lot worse.

Fulham is one of those areas of London that most people don’t normally visit. It is in a bend of the river, so you’re not likely to happen upon it while travelling somewhere else. But it has some great nightlife, some lovely pubs and a real sense of community.

The restaurant itself is boisterous and lively, and it is decorated with a sort of industrial chic – the walls are covered with photos of the American south and the food is served on aluminium trays. It’s very friendly and the staff are American, so when you ask about the ‘Moonshine liquor’ or the ‘buttermilk biscuits’, they actually know what they are talking about.

The menu is small – but it’s all very fresh and beautifully cooked. There are some great starters – such as devilled eggs and spinach dips – but the most interesting stuff is the chicken. The Hot Chicken is brined – soaked in salt water – and then dipped in buttermilk and fried. It is succulent and really tasty with a crisp outer coating. If you’re feeling adventurous, you could go for the ‘Tom Devil’ very hot chicken, but we chickened out (sorry about the pun).

At some point in the meal, even the most refined eater will be tempted to pick up the joints of chicken and eat them off the bone. This is not a place for finicky eaters!

Normally you’d expect some kind of coleslaw with chicken. Stagolee’s have got a really fresh carrot salad, with raisins and plenty of sweetness – just to cool things down. The crinkle cut chips are good and crisp and – if you want a real taste of the south – there is also cornbread to wipe up the juices. This has a slight sweetness and slightly crunchy outer layer. For pudding, we had a key lime pie, which is like a cheesecake – but nicer!

Succulent chicken chips stagolee Fullham

Succulent chicken with really crispy chips

The drinks are wonderful. I had a selection of four single barrel bourbons, which were all light and beautifully balanced, with buttery flavours of oak and caramel. My wife had a Mountain Rita Cocktail, with moonshine liquor, lime and sugar – which was delicious but very potent. So don’t expect to drive home after a cocktail here! Our bill, incidentally, came to about £85, but most of this was on the drinks. If you’re teetotal, you can eat cheaply here.

Oh, and the place is named after the song about Stagolee – a gangster who killed one of his friends during a game of dice. I’ve put a link, so you can listen to the song while you’re deciding which friends to invite for a meal at this lively restaurant.

Business of Books: Jane Cable talks to author & book designer Christine Hammacott

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Jane Cable

the-business-of-books-interviewswithjanecable

Jane Cable talks to author and book designer Christine Hammacott

How much of your working life does the business of books take up?

The business of books is extremely varied these days. Being an author doesn’t just involve writing a book. It can involve research, editing, marketing and promotion, social media, blogging, events and book festivals, to name but a few – anything that can help raise your profile.

I’m an author and also a book designer. I run my own graphic design consultancy and spend a lot of time working on logos and brand development across all media both in print and online. Three years ago, I joined forces with a couple of other writing friends to set up a indie-publishing co-operative. We’ve published seven titles so far including my own book. As a result of this I’ve been asked by other authors if I would design their covers. So two years ago I added book design to my portfolio of offerings and word seems to have spread as I’m now constantly working with other authors.

My writing is a lot less disciplined than the design side, as I’m forced to write around family commitments, often snatching time at the laptop or with notepad and pen in car parks and corridors while my daughter is at one of her out of school activities. It isn’t ideal but it’s a one way of ensuring I have some regular time to write.

Jane Cable talks to author and book designer Christine Hammacott

What’s your business model for earning a living from books?

As far as earning a living from my writing goes I’m a long from doing that. I’m not convinced I’d actually like to solely write, although I would like to address the balance better. In an ideal world I’d like to spend the mornings writing and the afternoons designing with a walk with the dog in between.

I really enjoy designing book covers. My first job after art college was working for a publisher doing just that. I turn an author’s manuscript into a marketable ‘product’ that is visually appealing and conveys the genre and essence of the book. It can be quite difficult getting this across sometimes to an author but it’s important for a potential buyer to know immediately what they are buying and whether they want it.

I think authors like working with me because I’m an author too and therefore understand where they are coming from and that their work is precious. A lot of them haven’t published before and part of my role is to gently hand-hold them through the process.

What do you write and what do you consider your major successes?

Years ago when I first started writing, I entered a Writing Magazine short story competition and won first prize. That success gave me the confidence to believe in my writing and undertake something larger. I now write psychological suspense. I enjoy finding out how ordinary characters cope in extraordinary situations. My debut novel is about a young woman who just want’s to get back to some sort of normality after a devastating fire that has left her homeless and a neighbour dead. Only she then finds she has a stalker and begins to fear for her safety. It’s a genre I particularly like as it’s very easy to imagine myself in the protagonist’s position and that makes it scary.

Tell me about your latest project

I’m working on another psychological suspense. This one is set in the New Forest and is all about living with consequences, morality, family relationships and how easily a situation can get out of hand.

Amazon link https://www.amazon.co.uk/Taste-Ash-Christine-Hammacott/dp/1499590830/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491584065&sr=8-1&keywords=christine+hammacott

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25820474-the-taste-of-ash?from_search=true

website www.christinehammacott.com

www.artofcomms.co.uk

facebook christinehammacott.author/

twitter @ChrisHammacott

Can anything, really, make preparing and serving desserts easier? by Milly Adams

Posted on May 2, 2017 by Margaret Graham

My heart always sinks when I have to provide a dessert or a cheesecake for an group meeting, a WI meeting, or a family ‘do’ but having been sent the Delicake Non Bake Master for review I thought I’d give it a go.

They’re an all-in-one solution, or so the blurb says, and saves you time and effort.

So, does it?

Actually, yes. The Delicake Non Bake Master has a clever three-piece assembly so your cheesecake can be prepared, set and served using a single kitchen item. It is comfortingly robust, and best to use the spatula and knife that you can buy when preparing, and indeed serving, your dessert, or cheesecake.

There is a base, a sleeve and a lid. Mine is rectangular so the biscuit base serves many. The sleeve locks into the base, and contains the dessert without it sticking to the sides. Basically it is a mould, in which you prepare your masterpiece, and then this goes into the fridge.

When needed and when set, just take it out of the fridge, remove the sleeve and there it is, in all its glory, ready to serve.

If you’re travelling with it, the lid not only locks in freshness but also makes transporting easy. I was going to take a photo of my masterpiece at a village do, but it all went. First time ever. The group are bakers supreme, (let’s ignore the fact that I am not for the moment) and with summer and picnics beckoning I reckon we’re in for some treats.

I do recommend this. I was going to take a photo of my masterpiece but it got eaten, which for me is a rare and heart warming success.

Delicake Rectangle Master: £30.99

Delicake Circular Master: £24.99

Spatula: £2.99 Knife: £5.99

www.delicake.com.au/shop/

A lovely charity event at the Ferndown Fete

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Margaret Graham

On Saturday June 24th the Ferndown Pram Race is back. Bigger and better than ever. So if you don’t want to miss out on this fun packed event get a team of 5 together, 4 pushers and a baby and obviously you’ll need a pram too. Dressing up essential!

A very exciting new addition to this year’s Ferndown Fete on the Field is the 1st running of the John Thornton Pram Race. A route around the full King George V Playing Fields with a number of physical and mental challenges on the way.

If you feel like you are up for the challenge and maybe have the stamina, brains and passion to win, then contact the organisers for an entry form and enter your team today.

This event will be raising funds solely for the John Thornton Young Achievers Foundation.

Please contact pramrace@ferndownfotf.org to register your interest or call Pete on 07792 121 645 for more details. Visit the Ferndown Fete on the Field website to find out all about this great event and all the other activities which make it a Fern-tastic day out for the whole family.

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Monthly Archives: May 2017