Susie, Author at Allison & Busby

We say goodbye to Lara Crisp…

19 October, 2012

After over 8 years at Allison & Busby (time does fly) today is Lara’s last day the office. We are, of course, still in denial, and will probably remain so for a little while. Seeing as in this new office, we are separated over two floors, at least Susie, Lesley and I (who sit on […]

It’s just another manic Monday…

15 October, 2012

It’s 5.30pm and I’ve probably only spent about one hour at my desk today – just long enough to have a quick scroll-down and speed-read of my always-bulging inbox, post our Today’s Pick (did you see? Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, By Jamie Ford has been shortlisted for the Book of the […]

A peek at the new A&B office…crates and all.

2 October, 2012

Hello again blogosphere! We have survived The Great Office Move (just) and are now finally back up and running at 12 Fitzroy Mews. And I can tell you, it was not a feat for the faint-hearted! (A view that will be shared by one particular gentleman from the removals company who nearly passed out bringing […]

They say things always come in threes…

21 September, 2012

Yesterday I enjoyed a very jolly evening at Goldsboro Books who were hosting their annual History in the Court event which sees historical writers (of both non-fiction and fiction titles) flocking to the store to mingle with their fellow-writers and fans. I had the pleasure of chatting to our A&B authors Sangeeta Bhargava, Adrian Magson […]

Inspired by the book-loving man in Manila

20 September, 2012

We’ve heard about pop-up libraries and phone-booths that have turned into mini-book exchanges. But this story on the BBC today has to top it all: a man in Manila, Philippines, who turned his own home into a free public library. It began as a simple concept: sharing his personal stash of books with his community, […]

The Hunger Games: Film v Book

17 September, 2012

This weekend, I watched The Hunger Games. I was in the mood for a bit of action-drama, but not the stereotypical blockbuster (the testosterone-laden, shoot-em-up, blow-em-up, beat-em-up style movie), so this instantly appealed. I will immediately point out that I had not read the books (and still haven’t), knew little about the intricacies of the plot (still don’t, other than what I […]

Friday Fun: How a Book is Born

14 September, 2012

So you want to write a book? Well, before you put pen to paper and dream of a world where you think of a story, write it down, send it to publisher, publisher prints it, book goes into bookshops, and book sells millions, perhaps a reality check is in order. And no better one than […]

A new way to work

13 September, 2012

Our broadband has been down since yesterday morning – hence the silence on the emailing, blogging, tweeting, Facebooking front. (Don’t get me started on the reasons why our broadband is down, I’ve spent enough time yelling at the relevant Customer Services people and am trying a new Zen approach – which largely involves denial.) Fact is, it has become incredibly apparent […]

Friday Shot of the Day

7 September, 2012

Given that almost everyone owns a mobile phone these days, public phone booths will soon become obsolete. But I think we’ve already found a perfect use for them. Leave them be and turn them into public bookswap libraries. It’s already started you know… Chiara Priorelli, Publicity & Online Marketing Manager

The little things that inspire an author…

6 September, 2012

“How did you come up with that idea?”, “Is your main character based on anyone you know?”, “Why did you pick that setting?”. These are common questions authors get asked. And whilst, of course, a novel is for the most part the result of an author’s imagination, the building blocks often begin with little snippets of […]

How to mark this last day of summer

31 August, 2012

There you have it. Today is the end of the summer. There’s a new chill in the air, we’re past the last bank holiday of the year (no more quick summer escapes) and it’s the 31st August so you can’t really argue the point. So, how might you mark this last day of summer? 1. […]

Bradley Cooper is The Elephant Man

21 August, 2012

In an office made up of women, it’s probably not suprising that Bradley Cooper should come up in conversation. But before you think our discussion didn’t evolve past the word “Yum”, I will quickly say that our conversation did not, in fact, involve any lascivious comments (akin to those spoken by men watching beach volleyball […]

Getting lost (quite literally) in books…

16 August, 2012

The upcoming release of Killing the Emperors (the new satirical crime novel by Ruth Dudley Edwards featuring in the line of fire: the world of conceptual art) has had us girls in the office talking about the value, or lack of, (therein lies the debate) of modern art, the likes of Damien Hirst, the Turner […]

Where were the Fifty Shades readers in sunny Marbella?

7 August, 2012

Having just spent a week in Marbella, home away from home to TOWIE ‘stars’ and WAGs, I was fully expecting to see acres of Fifty Shades books on the beach. In past years the beautiful, and much-maligned, Costa del Sol town has been a great guage of what the world is reading. Two summers ago […]

Reading Statistics never looked this good…

3 August, 2012

I get sent a lot of emails from graphic designers or illustration agencies promoting their work (I think I’m on a listing somewhere…) but one graphic that did catch my eye this week was actually sent through by an American website OnlineTeachingDegree.com… summarising reading statistics in one eye-catching visual presentation. Created by: www.OnlineTeachingDegree.com Now […]

Art inspired by The Railway Detective

31 July, 2012

We love hearing from our readers and take great pleasure in getting news from our authors about particularly lovely fanmail they’ve received. In today’s world where everyone seems so busy, it’s nice that readers still find the time to write to the authors they love. And so we’d like to share this delightful illustration that […]

Review of The Dark Knight Rises

26 July, 2012

Last week I went to see the new Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, and promised you all a review. In a nutshell – I enjoyed it… for what it was…but it wasn’t anything special. As good as the previous two in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy? Absolutely not. The strength of the first film (Batman Begins) […]

Kjell Eriksson spotted in Nairobi airport

24 July, 2012

Yes, that’s a fact. The week before last, I spotted Kjell Eriksson in Nairobi airport. Well, not the actual man himself, but his books – but I was thrilled nonetheless. There I was, in this miniscule bookshop at 5am in the morning – passing the time waiting for my connecting flight – when I spotted […]

Bookswapping in Zanzibar

17 July, 2012

Back from my honeymoon in Tanzania. The first week was spent marvelling at wildlife on safari (6am starts and the joys are watching elephants amble by only 50 yards from our tent meant there was little time for reading). The second week however was spent melting on a beach in Zanzibar and a lifestyle that […]

Any good suggestions for good reads whilst on safari?

21 June, 2012

A brief summary of my current To Do List looks something like this: Pick up wedding order of service booklet from the printers Buy binoculars Pack far-too-small suitcase for a 3-week holiday Get married in Umbria (near my 104-year-old gran who always deserves a mention) Head off to African for honeymoon Avoid looking at bank […]

Could you take on 8 hours of Gatsby?

18 June, 2012

Many of you reading this blog will have studied The Great Gatsby, by F Scott Fitzgerald at school or read the book for pleasure and indeed may even have read it several times as one tends to do with classic books – rediscover them later in life to read them with a different perspective. You […]