It seems fair to say that it’s the sign of a good book when it inspires countless spin-offs and adaptations, so by that reckoning L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a stonkingly-good read. I must admit I haven’t read the original story but feel like I’ve done the literary equivalent of osmosis […]
I went to Oxford last weekend to see my long time book buddy and university friend, Daisy. I never really realised we were book-mates until recently. We chat about everything under the sun, but the conversation always takes a literary turn. Every time we meet we swap books, tell of exciting new titles, moan bitterly […]
Saturday 1st June, 12:30-13:20pm CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL Satirical crime writer Ruth Dudley Edwards will be joining a panel entitled Violence, is It Ever Too Much? Ruth, the author of the hilarious and scathing satire Killing the Emperors, will be discussing the topic with M.R Hall, Simon Kernick and Kevin Wignall. For more information […]
Saturday 1st June, 9:00 – 9:50am, CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL A&B’s Zoe Sharp will be joining a panel called Guns For Hire: The Modern Adventure Thriller. She will be discussing the topic with fellow authors Jeremy Duns, M. R Hall and Simon Toyne. Zoe’s books feature the enigmatic ex-Special Forces soldier Charlie Fox in […]
It’s that time again: time to pick the Oddest Book Title of the Year. There have been some wonderful entries for the Diagram prize in the past (see here, here and here) and this year doesn’t disappoint. There’s the usual mention of at least one animal and one body part, but this year I found […]
Friday 31st May, 17:10 – 18:00 CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL A&B’S Satirical crime writer Ruth Dudley Edwards, author of Killing the Emperors, will be participating in a panel entitled Making Us Laugh About Murder. She will be joined by writers Declan Burke, Dorothy Cannell and Colin Cotterill. For more information about the event contact […]
Friday 31st May, 16:00 – 16:50, CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL Former A&B author Alison Joseph will be appearing on a panel entitled Adaptations – From Page To…? Her A&B crime books include A Violent Act, Shadow of Death and Darkening Sky. For more information contact Crimefest.
Friday 31st May, 9:00 – 9:50am, CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL Richard Jay Parker will be participating in a panel entitled Is it Rocket Science? The Joys & Pitfalls of & Technology in a Crime Novel. He will be joined by Alex Blackmore, Dean Crawford and L.A Larkin. Richard’s debut novel Stop Me was nominated […]
Thursday 30th May, 17:00 – 17:50, CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL A&B Crime authors Ruth Dudley Edwards, Adrian Magson and Zoe Sharp will be participating in a panel entitled Leslie Charteris & Other Forgotten Authors which will be moderated by Martin Edwards. With four A&B authors on one panel it’s sure to be a fantastic […]
Today is World Book Day! And what a day it is. The Biggest Book Show on Earth is about to kick off (11am today) to be broadcasted to cinemas nationwide and streamed live here; events will be taking place in schools, libraries and bookshops, eight £1 books have been released especially for the occasion; an […]
There are times when you spot a book cover that just fits so well that you would like to shake the designer by the hand. And then there are times where the realisation of their design idea is so astoundingly apposite that I’m tempted to adopt a ‘We are not worthy’ pose along these lines. […]
While I have no plans to get married any time soon, I have noticed that weddings seem to be in vogue lately. After Stylist Magazine’s recent article, ‘Is Marriage Back in Fashion?’, they’ve also added a wedding blog to their website. And it seems that wedding planning is now all over the Internet – sites […]
Friday 31st May, 12:30 – 13:20 CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL A&B Crime author Adrian Magson, whose titles include Death on the Marais, Death on the Rive Nord and Death on the Pont Noir, will be participating in a panel entitled Native & Outsider: Different Perspectives. He will be joined by Pierre Lemaître, M J McGrath, Dana […]
Thursday 30th May, 13:30 – 14:20 CRIMEFEST: BRISTOL MARRIOTT ROYAL HOTEL Adrian Magson, author of Death on the Marais, Death on the Rive Nord and Death on the Pont Noir will be moderating a panel entitled Free Agent or Secret Agent? He will be joined by Mary Andrea Clarke, Chris Longmuir, Roz Southey and Tim […]
Saturday 9th March, 1pm, WATERSTONES EAST KILBRIDE Author Alex Gray will be signing copies of her books at Waterstones East Kilbride, G74 1LW. Her titles include A Small Weeping and Shadows of Sounds, which feature dynamic Scottish detective DCI Lorimer who works in the gritty heart of Glasgow. Join her for an afternoon of crime […]
Last week I was reading A&B author Susanna Kearsley’s blog where she raised the issue of genre and suggested we should read books regardless of how they are pigeon-holed into a category. Similarly I have a friend who’s a bookseller and hates how certain books like Hilary Mantel’s are classed as Literary Fiction, while other […]
Recently breakfast has been much discussed in the A&B office. For a start, I have become quite evangelical about granola. I swear I’m super-powered after a bowl, Lesley to the power of N, if you can stomach such a thought. Then, Chiara has been making my mouth water (even more than usual) by describing her […]
This Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending the Romantic Novelist Association‘s Awards ceremony – a wonderfully jolly evening as romance novelists, publishers and agents, gathered at the RAF Club to support the nominees, applaud the winners and salute the genre in general. This year the awards were given out by none other than TV […]
It’s often interesting to compare the book covers produced by UK and US publishers; no matter how similar, there are always some subtle differences which perhaps say something about the disparity in our culture and attitudes each side of the pond. US literature website The Millions has recently posted its annual Judging Books by Their […]
I have an on-off relationship with poetry. I disliked it for most of my school days, thinking it was a bit stuffy and pretentious. Then I discovered the right poems and devoured as much as I could in my sixth form and university days. Now, though, I must confess that my poetry reading is in […]
Today marks the launch of Bitter Greens, by Kate Forsyth – a captivating novel that weaves together history and fairy tale in a unique retelling of the story of Rapunzel. The hardback is so beautiful, you may be tempted just to stare at it. But open the cover and you’ll delve into a world of […]