The Folio Society Add To Their Crime Fiction Category With Three New Illustrated Classics

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Illustration by Alexandru Savescu from The Folio Society edition of Hide My Eyes by Margery Allingham © Alexandru Savescu 2018PIC

Is it only me who finds some books more than just books. Some are a thing of beauty,  something to treasure, even to salivate over. But no dribbling please. Seriously the Folio Society produce  just such treasures and have added a few more classic crime thrillers to their portfolio: Hide My Eyes, Goldfinger and Strangers On A Train each with brilliant illustrations for those who love to add high class and beautiful  publications to their library.

Margery Allingham’s Hide My Eyes. Illustrated by Alexandru Avescu

 

Illustration by Alexandru Savescu from The Folio Society edition of Hide My Eyes by Margery Allingham © Alexandru Savescu 2018PIC

Allingham is one of Frost Magazine’s all time favourites and she found a new audience on the TV with Albert Campion, played by Peter Davison, (formerly the chaotic Tristan Farnun in All Creatures Great and Small)  going about the business of solving crime.

In this particular novel, more a psychological crime, in which a grisly spectre of murder and greed hangs unseen over the tiny corner of London known as Garden Green. Brought in to investigate a number of apparently unconnected disappearances, Albert Campion finds himself faced with a series of ever more disparate clues: a country bus with a pair of unusual passengers parked outside a London theatre; a lizard-skin lettercase; a left-handed glove. Over the course of a single day, he must race to stop a singularly ruthless killer whose own complex web of deceit threatens to destroy those closest to him.

As with her all her crime novels, the plot is tight, complex and the tension is like walking along a high wire in the wind. Her characters are sharply observed, there is a unique psychological depth, and all is played out against a background of London in all its murky glory.

Hide My Eyes features illustrations by Romanian artist Alexandru Savescu. Longlisted twice in The Folio Society’s annual Book Illustration Competition, Savescu has provided a series of moody images that expertly capture the novel’s sense of creeping dread.

Hide my Eyes by Margery Allingham. Illustrated by Alexandru Savescu

Available exclusively from The Folio Society – www.foliosociety.com

Bound in Elephanthide paper printed and blocked with a design by the artist. Set in Utopia with Victoria display. 224 pages. 6 full-page colour illustrations. 9˝ x 5 ¾˝.

UK £29.95 | US $44.95 | Can $59.95 | Aus $59.95

Strangers on a Train  By Patricia Highsmith Illustrated by Geoff Grandfield

 

Illustration by Geoff Grandfield from The Folio Society edition of Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith © Geoff Grandfield 2018

Patricia Highsmith, author of the highly popular Ripley novels, is among the twentieth century’s greatest thriller writers. Her first venture into noir, Strangers on a Train, was published in 1950 and adapted into a major film by Alfred Hitchcock the following year. Taut, sinister and shocking, it still represents the benchmark for its genre.

The Folio Society edition features seven atmospheric full-page colour illustrations by Geoff Grandfield, and is a wonderful addition to any personal crime fiction library, as well as being a perfect gift for all mystery lovers.

 

Strangers on a Train is both a classic crime novel and a supreme psychological thriller. Ordinary people and the extraordinary depths to which they are capable of sinking define this dark world. Highsmith’s blending of the events and concerns of everyday life with the nightmarish thoughts and actions of her deranged protagonist is what make this book so remarkable.

 

Guy Haines and Charles Anthony Bruno are passengers on the same train. High-flying architect Guy is divorcing his unfaithful wife, and is manipulated by the psychopathic Bruno into swapping murders. ‘Some people are better off dead,’ Bruno remarks, ‘like your wife and my father, for instance.’ The chilling sequence of events which ensues demonstrates how, if the conditions are right, anybody is capable of murder

Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith. Illustrated by Geoff Grandfield

Available exclusively from The Folio Society – www.foliosociety.com

UK £34.95 | US $51.95 | Can $69.95 | Aus $69.95

Bound in blocked cloth. Set in Sabon with Adrianna Extended display. 280 pages.  7 full-page colour illustrations. 9˝x 6¼˝.

 

Goldfinger By Ian Fleming   Illustrated by Fay Dalton

Illustration by Fay Dalton from The Folio Society edition of Goldfinger by Ian Fleming © Fay Dalton 2018

Filled with characters, incidents and images which have made the Bond series iconic, Goldfinger reveals Fleming at the height of his powers. Opening with 007 enjoying what he believes is a simple game of cat and mouse, Fleming gradually heightens the tension until the reader, along with Bond, realises that the agent has fatally underestimated Auric Goldfinger – the strange, gold-obsessed millionaire. Terrorized by the implacable, cat-eating Oddjob, the agent scrambles to foil the plans of the horrifying Goldfinger, aided in part by Pussy Galore, the tough and canny leader of a team of female burglars.

 

Fay Dalton continues her acclaimed work for the fifth title in The Folio Society’s Ian Fleming series, producing seven exquisite colour illustrations that ooze with the glamour and dynamism of Bond. For the special illustrated slipcase, Dalton has recreated the infamous death of Jill Masterton, enshrined in shimmering gold.

 

In this book Fleming reveals a more contemplative side to his secret agent – Bond is a man who thrives on danger, yet in his quieter moments is troubled by the bystanders who bear the brunt of violence. While his adventures are often gloriously fantastical and populated with grotesque villains, Fleming maintains a steely reality through the relentless efficiency of his protagonist. For fans familiar only with the films, Goldfinger’s Bond will be a welcome revelation: deadly and unflappable, he is also a character of many layers.

Goldfinger By Ian Fleming   Illustrated by Fay Dalton

Available exclusively from The Folio Society – www.foliosociety.com

UK £34.95  US $62.95 | Can $69.95 | Aus $69.95

Bound in blocked cloth. Set in Miller Text. 288 pages. 7 full-page colour illustrations. Blocked pictorial slipcase. 9˝ x 6¼˝.

 

 

 

 

 

BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST, EVERYTHING – INDIE AUTHOR JULIE STOCK

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Julie Stock is an indie author of contemporary romance from around the world: novels, novellas and short stories. Her latest novel, Over You, is now available. Follow Julie on Twitter @wood_beez48

What was the first writing advice you were ever given?

The first writing advice I remember being given was in November 2013 when I attended a Festival of Romance in Bedford, near where I live. I’d been writing my début novel for about 8 months by then and I had about 80,000 words of my story written but I just couldn’t seem to finish it. I sought feedback from so many different places and my head was spinning from the conflicting advice I’d been getting.

I remember being so excited to find there was even going to be a Festival of Romance in Bedford, of all places! I went to a session in the morning where I saw Sue Moorcroft and listened to her reading from her latest book. Then I walked around the big hall in Bedford town centre, meeting romance authors who were selling their books. Straight after this, I sat down to listen to a panel of authors chatting about writing and publishing their books. Bravely at the end, I asked them for advice about my dilemma. That was when Phillipa Ashley and Rowan Coleman both advised me without a second’s hesitation to join the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme. I went on and joined in the January of 2014, and published that début novel the following year. I’m now an independent member of the RNA, and I wouldn’t have achieved that without their support.

 

What is the most recent writing advice you’ve been given?

Along with many writers, I suffer from doubts and insecurities about whether my writing is any good on a fairly regular basis! Usually, this happens when I’m struggling with a first draft or when I get feedback telling me that something in a book isn’t working. I find rewriting and editing the hardest job, and really have to force myself to do it. So, when I felt like this most recently and mentioned it to one of my writing friends, her advice was not to give up. She reminded me that I’d felt like this before and that I’d probably feel like it again.

It is hard to keep going when you’re finding it hard to write or to rewrite, but it is also true that you can find inspiration in the strangest of places. I know as well that rewriting has definitely made my books better, and sometimes this is all that keeps me going to get through to the end. Then when you publish and someone takes the time to tell you how much they enjoyed the book, it makes all the pain worthwhile!

 

What is the piece of advice you’d most like to pass on?

I didn’t start writing until I was in my late 40s. I was having a tough time in my job then and I began writing as a way of taking my mind off things. It became a form of therapy. When I started, I hadn’t even heard of self-publishing, although I had recently received a Kindle from my husband. Then I read Sealed With a Kiss by Rachael Lucas, and she explained how she’d self-published it. As I was approaching my 50th birthday by then, I didn’t want to waste any time approaching agents/publishers, I just wanted to get on and do it. And I did. So I think my advice is not to let yourself be put off from doing something you really want to do. Reinvent yourself if you want to – it’s never too late!

 

Advantages of the writing service

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From this article, you will get to know what main advantages of the writing service are and will discuss how and where you can order the college paper.

The paper is the small report of the certain theme or the discipline, where you will need to present it in the front of the audience and sometimes, even, with the presentation. The paper writing is a small preparation to more difficult and serious work like the thesis or dissertation. The work has to be interesting, unique, and with the proper content. The volume of the paper should be, on the average, 10-20 pages. The content of the information has to relate to the given topic. When you don’t have enough time to write or you don’t know how to write it, then the writing service will be the best place to buy college papers.

The reliability and the guarantor of the quality

Papers, tests, theses are usual tasks at the college and university, but students not always can fulfill them because they don’t have the opportunity or don’t have enough time. But on the first sight, on such easy task you may spend a lot of time for looking the information and analyzing it.

To make own life easier, students start to search the information and the ready paper on the Internet. You can try to find the one, but you also can have the opportunity to get the bad mark because the main requirement for the paper writing is its uniqueness.

Nowadays, there are a lot of writing services that offer to do it for you. When you ask professionals for the help, you can be sure that it will be written from scratch and will be absolutely unique.

What do you get?

If you buy the paper, you get:

  • the result according to all appropriate methodic requirements;
  • the use of actual resources;
  • the verification of the uniqueness;
  • the opportunity for free refinement of the work during the certain period of time.

Advantages of the writing service

There are some reasons why you need to buy the college paper and its advantages:

  1. The quick response to your request. You don’t need to wait for the letter or reply too long – they will respond right away;
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  3. The working experience. Asking writing service with years under the belt, you will face with professionals who will write it and you could be sure you’ll get the positive grade;
  4. The urgency. Your paper can be ready in a day!;
  5. The work will be unique and you don’t have to be afraid the teacher will tell that you have the same paper as your groupmate (because you copied or downloaded it from the same website);
  6. The use of the newest material as the resource for your college paper;
  7. The availability of the great number of specialists in different fields who work there for years. As the result, the work is done very fast and qualitatively;
  8. Reasonable prices. Every student is able to order a paper, moreover, he can get loyalty program;
  9. Free changes/rewriting. Sometimes when the paper is complete the teacher asks to add something or rewrite it because every teacher has his own requirements, so, it will be done for you for free;
  10. You can reach the manager anytime. You can call the manager and ask how everything is going on with your paper or if you need some additional information to be added, they can react in a moment;
  11. The offer of the original work. There are only creative and qualified people and all their works are original, they create individual texts and don’t just rewrite the information from the book;
  12. The quality is the priority! The client is satisfied when he gets the qualitative work. If you have some special requirements from your academic adviser – just tell them and everything will be done.

Anatomy of a Miracle: A Novel* By Jonathan Miles | Recommended Reads

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This imaginative book may be a new genre: a real life novel. About real life US army veteran Cameron Harris and how he miraculously learned how to walk again. Original and gripping. 

A profound new novel about a paralyzed young man’s unexplainable recovery—a stunning exploration of faith, science, mystery, and the meaning of life
 
Rendered paraplegic after a traumatic event four years ago, Cameron Harris has been living his new existence alongside his sister, Tanya, in their battered Biloxi, Mississippi neighborhood where only half the houses made it through Katrina. One stiflingly hot August afternoon, as Cameron sits waiting for Tanya during their daily run to the Biz-E-Bee convenience store, he suddenly and inexplicably rises up and out of his wheelchair.

In the aftermath of this “miracle,” Cameron finds himself a celebrity at the center of a contentious debate about what’s taken place. And when scientists, journalists, and a Vatican investigator start digging, Cameron’s deepest secrets—the key to his injury, to his identity, and, in some eyes, to the nature of his recovery—become increasingly endangered. Was Cameron’s recovery a genuine miracle, or a medical breakthrough? And, finding himself transformed into a symbol, how can he hope to retain his humanity?

Brilliantly written as closely observed journalistic reportage and filtered through a wide lens that encompasses the vibrant characters affected by Cameron’s story, Anatomy of a Miracle will be read, championed, and celebrated as a powerful story of our time, and the work of a true literary master.

Anatomy of a Miracle: A Novel* By Jonathan Miles is available here.

Ettore Sottsass The Glass:   editor Luca Massimo Barbero,

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‘In my life I’ve always sought … to design objects that were fixed and stable and in some way obliged people to be aware of their presence…’

Skira really does produce the most beautiful art catalogues and books, and this is no exception. Some have called this catalogue dazzling and I heartily agree, as it celebrates Ettore Sottsass’s glass and crystal productions – on the 100th anniversary of his birth.

I have had a passion for glass for years, ever since I really looked at stain glass windows as a child, and the images in this catalogue truly capture the texture, and brilliance of Scottsass’s work.

Born in Innsbruck in 1917, Ettore Sottsass, Jr. went on to become one of the most awarded and highest achieving architects and designers in 20th century Italy. Now, this new volume from Skira Editore presents the first scientific catalogue to focus entirely on Sottsass’s work in glass, beginning in 1947 and lasting until the end of his career.

Ettore Sottsass: The Glass documents the artist’s glass and crystal oeuvre in exquisite detail, from his 1970s series for Vistosi to the Memphis collections of the 1980s, the stunning constructions for Qatar’s Millennium House, and his famous Kachinas. Featuring nearly 600 colour illustrations — including those of previously unpublished pieces — and with comprehensive analysis by editor Luca Massimo Barbero, this gorgeous monograph offers a reference for scholars and art lovers wishing to further their understanding of Sottsass’s use of glass in architecture and design.

About the Editor Luca Massimo Barbero is the director of the Institute of Art History at Fondazione Giorgio Cini.

Published this month – March 2018.

With over 500 illustrations, this hardback catalogue is priced at £58.00

ISBN: 978-88-572- 3535-6

The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth: A Complete Labor and Childbirth Companion for Parents to Be

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Experienced doula, Linsey Bliss, shows you how to prepare physically and mentally for every element of having a child, from pregnancy to fourth trimester in The Doula's Guide to Empowering Your Birth. Lindsey Bliss, who has assisted as a doula at hundreds of births and is herself a mother of seven, reveals here all the wisdom and advice that doulas share with the new mothers who hire them. The Doula's Guide to Empowering Your Birth covers the period from pregnancy through labor and birth to fourth trimester healing. The focus, however, is on preparing for birth--including topics like how to pick the right childbirth class and the right birthing method. You’ll also see how to assemble the team of professionals, family members, and friends who will support you through labor and birth, and how to approach last-minute decisions about pain medications and cesarean sections. Bliss's tone throughout is at once authoritative and confident as well as warm and encouraging. Her concern in her practice as well as in these pages is to listen to and help secure each new mom's own personal vision of a birthing experience that is safe, fulfilling, and meaningful.

This is a truly wonderful book from a doula who really knows her stuff. Linsey Bliss has seven children. Six of those are biological and she has had two sets of twins. She has also assisted hundreds of births. This book tells you all you need to know about pregnancy, childbirth and even what happens after. This well-written book is enjoyable to read and is like having your own personal doula and best friend in one. Essential. 

Experienced doula, Linsey Bliss, shows you how to prepare physically and mentally for every element of having a child, from pregnancy to fourth trimester in The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth.

Lindsey Bliss, who has assisted as a doula at hundreds of births and is herself a mother of seven, reveals here all the wisdom and advice that doulas share with the new mothers who hire them.

The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth covers the period from pregnancy through labor and birth to fourth trimester healing. The focus, however, is on preparing for birth–including topics like how to pick the right childbirth class and the right birthing method. You’ll also see how to assemble the team of professionals, family members, and friends who will support youthrough labor and birth, and how to approach last-minute decisions about pain medications and cesarean sections.

Bliss’s tone throughout is at once authoritative and confident as well as warm and encouraging. Her concern in her practice as well as in these pages is to listen to and help secure each new mom’s own personal vision of a birthing experience that is safe, fulfilling, and meaningful.

The Doula’s Guide to Empowering Your Birth: A Complete Labor and Childbirth Companion for Parents to Be is available here.

 

Almost half of new mums suffer from frightening thoughts or hallucinations

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By Gemma Francis

Almost half of new mums suffer from frightening thoughts or hallucinations – but two thirds of these hide how they feel for fear of being judged negatively or having their baby taken away, a study has found.

The images – which include thoughts of killing or harming their child – are still taboo among mums with just 37 per cent admitting to others how they feel.

The most common thought is a fear that ‘something dreadful will happen to my baby’, with 62 per cent vividly feeling this.

A further 44 per cent were plagued by the belief their baby might die, while 13 per cent have imagined killing or harming their own child.

The study by parenting site ChannelMum.com also found one in 50 even believed ‘my baby hated me’ while one per cent were convinced their mother-in-law was trying to take their baby,

Others had visions of their child being eaten by a crocodile or snatched by the Grim Reaper.

Two in five (39%) felt their child and partner would be ‘better off without me’ and 16 per cent considered suicide.

An additional 31 per cent admit to having an irrational fear that someone ‘will steal or harm my baby’, making it impossible for them to meet or talk to strangers.

Yet despite 43 per cent of mums suffering these extreme thoughts, 65 per cent of those were never told pregnancy and parenthood could affect their mental health.

As a result, one in five (19%) feared they were ‘going mad’ when they fell ill.

Half (49%) of the mums who suffered were also scared of being ‘judged negatively’.

Forty three per cent believed others will think they are a ‘bad parent’, while 26 per cent were ‘ashamed’ of being mentally ill.

The stigma is so great that a disturbing 17 per cent of mums who fall ill admitted they thought about self-harm to try to cope, with one in 20 going on to self-harm.

One of the biggest barriers to getting help is the fear your child will be taken into care.

One in five mums (19%) who suffered mental illness after birth reported refusing to access help in case their child was taken away.

Official NHS figures show just ten to 15 per cent of mums experience serious mental health issues.

But as a result, some experts now believe there could be a ‘hidden epidemic’ of maternal mental illness, as 64 per cent of mums who fall ill never try to get a formal diagnosis so are missed by official figures.

Overall, the survey showed the most common mental health ailment suffered by new mums is anxiety, experienced by 68 per cent of women after birth, alongside 48 per cent who undergo insomnia due to worry.

A further 35 per cent battle Post Natal Depression, a third (33%) become agoraphobic and 23 per cent are hit by panic attacks.

On average, women’s symptoms lasted three to six months, but 29 per cent felt mentally low for a year or longer.

Women were five times more likely to spot their own symptoms with 69 per cent realising themselves they were ill, compared to just 14 per cent whose partners detected they were unwell.

However, almost two in five mums who become ill (38%) never tell anybody how they feel and just a third confide in their GP (33%).

The most common way mums covered up their feelings was to pretend to be ‘fine’ when quizzed on how they felt, with 94 per cent admitting they lied about their feelings.

Lack of sleep was seen as the main trigger for mums falling ill, with 55 per cent believing this contributed to their condition.

A further 54 per cent said they felt ‘emotionally overwhelmed’ as a new parent, alongside 39 per cent who admitted they tried to ‘be the perfect parent’.

Two in five (41%) blamed hormonal changes while 14 per cent pinned the blame on ‘the pressure of living up to others on social media.

As a result, a resounding 80 per cent of mums want society to be more open about maternal mental health issues and the extreme thoughts mums can have.

Seven in ten (69%) want ‘society to realise it can happen to anyone’ while 55 per cent seek reassurances that their child will not automatically be taken into care if they come forward for treatment.

ChannelMum.com founder Siobhan Freegard said: “If your body is broken after birth, everyone understand and supports you.

“But when your mind is broken, mums still feel they have to keep it hidden.

“These thoughts are disturbing and terrifying – but very often they are part of becoming a mum.

“We need to talk about it, normalise it and make mums realise they are not alone. You are not different or ‘going mad’ just because you experience it – but you may need professional care and help.

“I suffered from post natal depression and visualised extreme images after the birth of my first child then tried to cover it up, so I know exactly what women are going through when they hide it.

“There is so much pressure to cope and be the perfect parent that when you are crying inside while everyone around you is smiling, it makes you feel you are failing your baby and your whole family.

“Mums need to know they will get the right support and their baby won’t be taken away.

“With care, compassion and the right treatment, you can get better quickly, bond with your baby and go on to be the parent you want to be.”

ChannelMum.com psychologist Emma Kenny added: “This research has highlighted the plight of large numbers of mums in the UK and evidences that even in 2018 post natal depression is still no closer to being effectively dealt with.

“Good maternal mental health is something that every woman deserves, but due to the lack of knowledge and support this simply isn’t the case, leaving women to deal with some of the most terrifying and debilitating feelings at a time when they should be enjoying their positive new beginnings.

“We need to address this subject openly, removing the shame and stigma so that mums no longer feel that they have to cope alone.”

EXTREME THOUGHTS MOTHERS HAVE EXPERIENCED:
I believed my baby hated me and was trying to kill me
I planned jumping off the balcony with my baby
I thought my flat was haunted and would stay outside from dawn til dusk until my husband got home
I thought my baby would die if I didn’t wash up before my microwave pinged
I saw the Grim Reaper outside my bedroom door
I thought my twins weren’t mine
I thought that my mother in law was planning to take my baby
I thought that baby would die because of germs. So I made everyone disinfect themselves before they could touch him. Someone touched my pram in a supermarket once and I couldn’t move due to fear of contamination. I stood in the cleaning isle vigorously disinfecting my pram.
I believed if I went to sleep, someone would break in and smother us all to death
I wanted to throw my daughter out of the window
I thought a crocodile was trying to eat my baby
I wanted to drive the car into a wall and kill my baby and myself
I cut all my hair off as I thought my baby was eating it and making himself ill
I thought everyone would be better off without me
I imagined an iron melting into my baby’s face
Just blackness, despair like being trapped in thick mud.

 

With a Kiss and a Prayer By Ellie Dean | Recommended Reads

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THE FOURTEETH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEAN

Cliffehaven, May 1944

The tension is rising for Peggy Reilly and the inhabitants of Cliffehaven as the planes continue to roar above the town and there is still no news of the long-awaited Allied invasion into France. There seems to be no end in sight of this war which has scattered her family and brought conflict right to the door of Beach View Boarding House, but Peggy cannot work miracles and the toll of the war is beginning to weigh on her slender shoulders.

Meanwhile, Ron Reilly has landed himself in hot water with his sweetheart, Rosie – and this time, his Irish charm will not be enough to get him out of trouble.

The war has forever changed the lives of Peggy’s loved ones, but with the promise of an Allied invasion comes the hope that her beloved husband and family will at last be coming home. It will take an enormous amount of spirit to keep that hope alive and bring harmony back to Beach View.

FIND LOVE. FIND HOPE. FIND CLIFFEHAVEN.

With a Kiss and a Prayer is set almost exclusively in Cliffehaven in the heart of Ellie Dean’s world: the Beach View Boarding House. Available from www.amazon.co.uk