France 1944 and the streets are filled with swastikas. The story of a brave English girl behind enemy lines, a German soldier, and a terrible sacrifice…

When young English nurse Sibyl Lake is recruited as a spy to support the French resistance, she does not realise the ultimate price she could end up paying. She arrives in Colmar, a French town surrounded by vineyards and swarming with German soldiers, but her fear is dampened by the joy of being reunited with her French childhood sweetheart Jacques.

Sibyl’s arrival has not gone unnoticed by Commander Wolfgang von Haagan and she realises that letting him get closer is her best chance of learning enemy secrets. Yet despite her best intentions, Sibyl soon finds that betrayal does not come easily to her.

When Jacques finds that Sibyl is involved with the enemy, he is determined to prove himself to her with one last act of heroism. An act that will put all of their lives into terrible danger…

It is no secret that I am an avid reader of Historical Fiction, I have read many books set in the UK or from the point of view of allied soldiers. The Soldier’s Girl is new to me in the sense that it is told from the view of a SOE agent who is operating in occupied France. An area that is crawling with an enemy  she is forced to befriend to acquire crucial information by any means necessary.

Naturally, I thoroughly enjoyed The Soldier’s Girl, I found it to be very thought provoking and emotional. I could not help but stop and think ‘What would I do in Sybil’s situation?’ Not only is it a novel to devour but it is also an intelligent insight into the mind of a German Soldier, a man who appreciates literature, music, one who plans for his life after the war, who was just doing what he was ordered.

This has been my first Sharon Maas book but will by no means be my last, her writing is beautifully descriptive, enticing and will with out a doubt leave you wanting more.

I would highly recommend to fans of The Nightingale, The Lost Girls of Paris and The Letter.

Published by Bookouture and available in paperback, audio and ebook

Furloughed from their day job, Bristol-based mortgage advisers Stacey Campbell and Tracy Firks decided to use their time to create the ultimate ‘side hustle’. A chance comment over the office tea making duties set them on to the journey of becoming published authors. And not just any old published authors; creators of a trilogy of erotic romance novels, the first of which ‘The Director’ is available on pre-order from 14th February with a launch date of 31st March.

The Director is the first book in The Storm Trilogy series and is the story of single mum Chloe Taylor, who undertakes an emotional journey to reconnect herself and find her confidence. Old friends and past loves resurface in Chloe’s life and take her on a journey that leads to some wild nights and exciting adventures.

Stacey was inspired by a recently single friend,

“Having had many conversations with a good friend of mine about her divorce experience and recent return to the dating scene, I was telling Tracy about her comical and hilarious dates in the kitchen one day. Over the coming weeks and months of telling Tracy about each encounter, I made the statement ‘I could write a book about this’, to which Tracy encouraged me. I tried to convince Tracy to join me in writing the book on many occasions until she finally caved in and agreed.

After reading how Tracy wrote the example sex scene, we had much discussion about our writing style. We both write, with Tracy editing my writings into our writing style. We discuss every step of each chapter before it’s written.

When restrictions allow, you will find us spending our afternoons after work sitting in a local tea shop discussing the storyline, sex scenes and browsing sex toy websites as we wait for our cucumber sandwiches and multiple cakes to arrive. Everyone loves a bit of afternoon tiffin… cake.”

Tracy knows the series will be an entertaining read for many,

“If you are a reader of romance, erotic romance, funny filth, and love books and films like Bridget Jones, Sex and the City and Fifty Shades, then this is the book series for you. Follow Chloe on her journey of self-discovery after two men from her past pop back into her life, one of which was her first love. With hilarious steamy encounters of lust, nights in with raucous laughter and home truths with work colleagues and friends, Chloe needs to make a decision – what will she choose? Love or Lust? With steamy, emotional, and funny moments, it’s a trilogy not to be left on the shelf!

A romp, good fun, an antidote to Lockdown. This series must have been fun to write, and is certainly fun to read. Go for it.

The Director is available on Pre-Order: here

Facebook: The Storm Trilogy

Instagram: @the_storm_trilogy

Twitter: @TrilogyStorm

GET FIVE BESTSELLING BOOKS IN ONE BARGAIN BOX SET TODAY!
Nikki Galena Books by Joy Ellis 1 – 5 for only 99p/99c (90% off for a limited time.) With a new Galena coming very soon. Sounds like a winner of a deal with 5 stars reviews all round.

The Lost Brother. 99p/99c Susanna Beard

Ricky and Leonora are siblings, best friends, and allies in a loveless family. Disaster strikes when their father is murdered collecting Ricky from boarding school. Ricky is missing… Leonora puts her own life in danger to find her brother.  Very tense, page turning…

An Oxford Inheritance  Maxine Barry   £1.99 /$2.99

One of my favourites. Discover what happens to Harriet when she inherits a fortune in her long-lost aunt’s will and comes head to head with the Powell family.  Despite herself, Harriet can’t help but find herself drawn to the devastatingly good looking Giles Powell.

Oh ho.. Harriet, is it a happy ending, or not? Read it and see.

The Murder List  Roger Silverwood £1.99/$2.99

Women are living in fear that they’re next on the murder list… Bodies of women in their 60s keep turning up. Always the same disturbing pose. Oh crikey… hang onto your hats.

Crime in the College Catherine Maloney £1.99/$2.99

  (Fabulous jacket)  A trip down memory lane takes an unexpected turn as Detective Markham visits his alma mater at the University of Oxford – a builder discovers a body beneath a dilapidated staircase. Worse, it appears the woman is no stranger to Markham. Well paced, evocative and page turning… What more do you want. Ah, to know ‘who done it’… Read on. Enjoy.

And now –  a trip behind the scenes of Joffe to meet LAURA COULMAN – PROJECT EDITOR

WHAT I DO: I am addicted to reading and have always been that person with “her head stuck in a book”. Nowadays, I’m delighted to say it’s an important part of my working day. I love working closely with our authors and editors, and immersing myself in their wonderful manuscripts, helping each one to fulfil its potential before sending it out into the world. Which is always the proudest moment!

WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2021: I have so many hopes for this new year. Not least that our creative team will soon be able to regroup in the office (many a doughnut will be eaten). I’m also excited to think of all the talented new voices that we’re hoping to connect with and properly, deservedly spotlight in 2021.

FAVOURITE BOOKS: Oscar Wilde will always hold a special place on my shelf. I’ll never forget the first time I read The Picture of Dorian Gray. Everything about it — Wilde’s stunning language and the twisted fairytale at the heart of it — hooked me helplessly in and I couldn’t put it down. I also love The Great Gatsby, for its poignant emotional punch. I can also wholeheartedly recommend *anything* of Kate Atkinson’s. Not least the Jackson Brodie mysteries. I think she has the most incredible gift for storytelling.

Lots more on offer at Joffe Books.

Natalie Jayne Peeke continues her conversation with best selling author, Lysa Walder – A Paramedic’s Story. A book that moved, informed, and which she found unputdownable.

What was the most difficult story to share, Lysa?

No one story was the most difficult, but in general the situations where I could overlay the image of someone I loved on to the patient I was attending or their relatives (because they were the same age or had similar characteristics) always had the capacity to invoke a visceral response in me. So if the child affected was the same age as one of my own or the older man was the same age as my father I may have had an internal battle with my instinct, as a mother or daughter, to become emotionally involved. Hopefully I always maintained a professional demeanour despite any inner turmoil I may have been experiencing.

What advice would you give to anyone who is training to be a paramedic?

I think people don’t always appreciate the mental and physical toll being a paramedic can take. There is a fair bit of heavy lifting of both patients and equipment which can result in many injuries especially to the back and joints. The around the clock shift pattern can have a detrimental impact on health and family life. I missed out on so much; kid’s birthdays and other milestones in particular. Seeing extremely sad or horrific sights so regularly can contribute to anxiety, depression and PTSD.

On your hardest days, what kept you going ?

Our shifts are nearly always twelve hours long and clock watching is an occupational hazard. Sometimes the only thing that kept me going was thinking about the end of the shift when I would get back home to the family or my next day off. Occasionally we cross paths with our colleagues and have a chance for a laugh or informal debrief. A nice treat such as listening to music in the vehicle or a coffee & slice of cake can be good pick-me-ups to break up the day too.

What books or authors do you enjoy reading?

For a bit of escapism I enjoy reading novels in my free time (when it’s not nice enough weather to be outside) and I particularly enjoy Andrea Camillieri & Donna Leon, who write about their detectives Montalbano in Sicily & Brunetti in Venice respectively. Elena Ferrante’s novels that describe the bonds of female friendship and growing up in the tough streets of Napoli is a powerful read. Bill Bryson is about the only non-fiction writing that I enjoy, he manages to pack so much in and the mix of information and humour is just right for me.

What do you like to do in your spare time ?

I now live in Italy with my husband in an old farmhouse in the mountains north of Lucca with Mr Darcy the dog, Mr Grey and Toulouse the cats, Miss Havisham and Little Cosette the chickens. During free time we are kept occupied with maintaining the many terraces and the woodland around the house which keeps us extremely busy and reasonably fit. The great thing about living here is that so much of our socialising and general life is lived outside. I love nothing more than a nice long therapeutic walk in the surrounding forests and mountains with friends and dogs, it’s a fabulous way to really relax. I’m still learning Italian and writing in my free time to keep my mind active too. The only problem with living in Italy is being so far away from family and dear friends, though it never felt far away when we could still go to the UK and they came to visit us here frequently. Who could have known that the pandemic was looming and the devastating restrictions it would place on our travel.

If you could invite any 3 people, real or fictional , to a dinner party who would you invite and what would you serve ?

If I could invite three people to dinner as well as my friends and family I’d invite Dolly Parton, Michelle Obama and Graham Norton and serve up an enormous lasagna with lashings of wine. After dinner, which we would eat outside on the terrace, we’d have a good old sing a long with those that can, playing guitars. We have no near neighbours so this could be loud and continue well in to the early hours.

Fighting for you Life by Lysa Walder is available here

One of the first books that I read this year was the sensational and bestselling Fighting for your Life by Lysa Walder. I was absolutely blown away at how amazing it was to read but also everything that a paramedic goes through on a regular basis. Upon writing my review I knew I had to contact Lysa to see if she would be interested in doing a interview with little old me and I am not ashamed to say that I genuinely squealed when she agreed.

Lysa kindly took time out of her schedule to answer my questions. If you haven’t done so already then I urge you to pick up a copy of Fighting for your Life

Because we chatted for so long, I am dividing this interview , and part 2 will be published on Wednesday.

What prompted you to write a book ?

I wrote the book in 2008 primarily because I wanted my family and children to understand my work as a paramedic, which has been such an important part of my life for many years. Over the years I usually worked alone and I wanted to be able to ‘bring them along’ with me for the ride and for them to be able to visualise what it felt like to be me in those situations. They already know me as a mother, child, sister and I hoped that they would read my stories and get to know my professional personality as well. My unintended audience however, has been young people and students who are planning to study Paramedic Science at university – in particular young women. I imagine they Google the term ‘Paramedic’ and devour everything they find to satisfy the need to know as much as they possibly can before they commit. I am currently working on another collection of stories and I sincerely hope that this book will also be published.

How long did it take you to complete ?

When I wrote the book I used to get up extra early in the mornings and lay the bones of the story out and then I would usually put in the details during the evenings. I would hazard a guess that it took about 300 hours of typing time.

What do your family and friends think of your book ? Did they realise the extent of what a paramedic endures ?

My close family probably already had a fair idea of what types of calls we go to working in the ambulance service but some people did express surprise that our job entails, for example, witnessing the aftermath of brutal murder, dead or severely ill babies, delivering babies, major incidents and mental health crisis for example. I was very surprised that they were surprised by this as I didn’t think it was a revelation! We are usually called upon when someone is having a pretty awful day and we see the best and very worst of humanity. If you think about most of the nightmare scenarios that can happen in a person’s day it will normally result in contact with the emergency services.

What was the most difficult part of writing your book?

The most difficult part of writing my book was deciding how much of myself to put in there. Writing a biographical account means laying yourself bare and open to criticism and it scared me. For that reason, I held back a fair bit as an act of self protection. The other difficulty was that I found some of the stories were so incredible, so filled with coincidence, twists and turns that I felt people wouldn’t believe them, I had to leave a couple out for fear of undermining the credibility of the book. One other issue is that there’s a fine line when trying to introduce or include humour in to these types stories (not forgetting that humour is a necessary evil that gets us through some of the most dreadful situations) Patients say and do the most hysterical things and take my word for it, that’s a whole bookshelf in itself. However, describing these moments are really tough for me as I realise that they can easily descend in to ridicule or belittling of the patient which I would never intentionally do, so again these are the stories that I often avoided.

We will resume our fascinating chat on Wednesday.

Fighting for your Life by Lysa Walder is available here.

–

First a special offer: FROM CRADLE TO GRAVE  BY PATRICIA MACDONALD: Young mother Claire confessed to the double murder of her husband and newborn son.  Her best friend, Morgan, refuses to believe she could have done such a thing, but Claire’s perfect life is far removed from what it seems.
How well does she know her best friend? Morgan is willing to put her life at risk to find out the truth.

Out now. Half price for launch, get this gripping thriller for a bargain 99p / 99c.

The Tutankhamum Murder by Roy Lewis OUT NOW – £1.99 / $2.99

“Emotionally tense, suspense-filled thriller from a master of investigative crime.” Kirkus
“Lewis writes with muscular authority . . . an excellent piece of work that will please his any fans.” Tangled Web
“Roy Lewis is a writer who believes in keeping his readers on their toes with plenty of twists and surprises.” Daily Telegraph

A Vow of Obedience Veronic Black   £1.99 / $2.99

“Sister Joan remains the most refreshing and likable of the genre’s nun-sleuths.” Publishers Weekly 

A body is discovered in the convent’s schoolhouse. Dressed all in white, a garland of leaves has been delicately placed upon her head. A thin red line the singular disturbance upon the otherwise peaceful looking victim. Sister Joan finds herself torn between her religious duties and discovering the truth

Dying Bad by Maureen Carter £1.99/$2.99. A gripping police procedural by a best selling author.

Detective Inspector Sarah Quinn and her team are having a terrible week. A badly beaten man but no leads. Another victim is left in a coma. Violence is stalking the streets of Birmingham. Has D I Quinn got a grip on it?

Plus plus plus:  GET FIVE ACTION-PACKED THRILLERS IN ONE BARGAIN BOX SET TODAY!   99p/99m Silver’s an ex-mercenary who will do whatever it takes to see people brought to justice.

And now more about NINA KICUL   ASSISTANT EDITOR who Frost Magazine has come to know, and like enormously for her professionalism and willingness to respond quickly.

WHAT I DO: I consider myself to be very lucky as I have the pleasure of working across lots of different departments at Joffe Books. This inevitably makes it hard to explain what I actually do, as I wear many hats, but a key part of my role is to ensure everything is running smoothly (no pressure!). This could involve formatting manuscripts ready for the next step, taking in corrections from freelancers, designing book covers, awards management or discussing book launches with authors, there’s never a dull day at Joffe Books!

WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2021: Finding and publishing more great books for our readers to devour! We also have an incredibly exciting event in the pipeline for later in the year (virus permitting, more on this soon!) for our authors and loyal readers, which we hope we can go ahead with. I’m also looking forward to seeing my colleagues again and attending industry events and festivals.

FAVOURITE BOOKS: This question shouldn’t be allowed, it’s just too hard! Some of my favourite books are holocaust survivor stories like The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka’s Journey and The Choice. Although they’re harrowing, they also fill me with hope. Even in the darkest times we can still find some light and the strength to face our own demons and struggles – things can and will get better. Quite apt, no?

Find all these highlights, and the multitude of titles here Joffe

Frost Magazine was thrilled when Thirsk u3a contacted the team, wanting to tell them  about a speaker who had zoomed into their sitting rooms.

‘Hilarious, interesting.’

‘I reckon we have a few eccentrics here,’ said one. ‘But not me, I hasten to add.’

So Margaret hauled in Paul Robbins for a virtual chat. It seems Paul is a man on a mission. By his own admission, he is an obsessive when it comes to his determination to share the rich and varied history of our wonderful country with a new generation of listeners – from the ages of nine through to ninety.

Paul told me that having retired early from a career as a senior manager with one of the world’s largest IT company’s, he developed a series of talks about Britain’s past in a unique series called “Step back in Time” These online talks have won him many fans all over the country, and they are indeed innovative and enjoyable, as the reaction of Thirsk’s u3a proved.

Paul explained “ I want others to appreciate how diverse, unique and fascinating our history really is”. He added. “ It is a history that has shaped us all. We should own, know, and cherish it.’

It’s clear that the highlight of Paul series of talks is his hugely popular “Great British Eccentrics’ presentation which features some of the oddest people that have graced the pages of our history and who  just happened to have been British. After all,  Paul explains “If there was a World cup for eccentrics then Britain would win every time, other countries wouldn’t even bother to turn up.”

‘But how do you choose who to include when we seem to have so many?’ I asked. Indeed, that has been the challenge for Paul – who to leave out of this classic exposé of Britain’s oddest people. But apparently he has narrowed it to a pool of around 50, so each talk is varied in terms of who is featured.

Paul does, however, have what he describes as his crème de la crème of eccentrics whose stories defy belief including a UFO obsessed peer of the realm, a habitual drunken Lord as well as a resident of an old people’s home who, let’s just say, became a real life femme fatale. When he told me more about this particular femme fatale, I was on the floor, laughing. We hadn’t even got to the Grim Reaper appearance either.  

Despite this wealth of eccentrics, Paul is always on the look out for other Britons who can join this peculiarly unique band.

So, come on, Paul, what makes a good Eccentric? Paul believes it’s someone who truly believes their own strange ideas are perfectly normal and who think the rest of us are the odd ones. Heavens, this could describe your Frost Magazine editor.

One thing Paul is sure about is that eccentrics add much to our society and culture and Britain would be a poorer place without them. Sometimes, though, the audiences offer up their own Eccentrics. Paul recently overheard a lady member of his audience say to her husband of many years “You know your Father always struck me as being a bit odd, an eccentric”.

My own favourite is Sir George Sitwell who, so Paul said, put a sign on his gate which read: I must ask anyone entering the house never to contradict me in any way, as it interferes with the functioning of the gastric juices and prevents me sleeping at night: I put it on my gatepost, but as him indoors, was inside at the time he clearly hadn’t read it.

You can find out more about Paul’s great talks, by visiting his website.  

https://www.stepbackintime.org/

To find out about the u3a, or one near you, and hear about their monthly meetings, and interest groups, go to: https://www.u3a.org.uk/   To find out about Thirsk u3a click: here.