The Harper Collins review for The Assassins’ Village.

Well, what a fantastic, exciting week I’ve just had. I’ve seen the launch of my latest book, The Assassins’ Village in Amazon’s Kindle (Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk And Amazon.de), and received my long-awaited review from Harper Collins.
The review reads very well; constructive, full of praise and very positive – thanks HC! I’ve included the highlights here for you to see;

The Assassins Village.

‘The Assassin’s Village’ is a traditional murder mystery, set in Cyprus. It centres on the brutal murder of Mr Leslie, an expatriate whose Lothario ways, military past and cavalier demeanour have earned him no shortage of enemies among the villagers. It is a novel written very much in the style of Agatha Christie: a classic who-done-it, in a small, gossiping, rural village. The prose is brought up-to-date with the fairly explicit themes of sexual liberation and exploitation.

As a thrilling read, ‘The Assassin’s Village’ certainly fits the bill. I flew through the first 19 chapters. The prose is easy to follow, and dramatic in duly regular intervals. I was particularly engaged by the different perceptions of Mr Leslie. We are already interested in the character, knowing from the prologue that he is to be our victim, and the author cleverly throws our judgment of him with every new perspective. Particularly endearing is the relationship between Antigone and Mr Leslie. Indeed, the sequence of chapter seven, where Antigone watches her brother hunting, is by far the strongest in the novel so far. It illustrates all of the strengths of the writing, the prose is obviously impeccably researched, and brings in a political element that raises the calibre of the story; the setting is evocative; and the characterisation is strong and feels fresh…

…I should say that, I really like the way you subverted normal linear chronology to lay out the events. It is, clear that you are capable of presenting the clues very well, and I particularly liked the way you used Diana’s sketching to map out the facts and unlock the possibilities.

From here I would consider the relevance of everything in the plot. There are many motifs centred on the play, Macbeth – the suggestions of occult activities, the play being put on by the villagers, the quotes prefacing each chapter, the relationship between Antigone and Mr Leslie, and Mr Leslie’s endearing side in general, the political history, and the parallels of Diana’s writing to the unfolding of the broader plot are all strong – these are all interesting themes…

... Overall, there is a lot to commend in this manuscript. Editor, Harper Collins.

Fine praise for, The Assassins’ Village indeed. So now there’s nothing to stop you from going out and buy your Kindle copy – just £0.69p or $1.14. Now that is not going to break the bank is it?!

Just a word…if you don’t have an e-reader of some sort you can still read, The Assassins’ Village. Simply download a free application to enable you to read e-formatted books from your search engine, then download The Assassins’ Village from Amazon and presto – you can read it on your pc.

Now something even sweeter; try this recipe for perhaps the best pudding of them all:

Lemon Delicious Pudding

This is a classic and, in many families, the ultimate pudding - the golden sponge topping hiding a creamy lemon sauce. Lemon delicious belongs to the era when a roast was invariably followed by a hot pudding. Making 2 dishes rather than just 1 would have been seen as a sensible way of utilising the heat from the oven.

Serves 8

    2 lemons
    60 g butter
    1 1/2 cups castor sugar
    3 eggs, separated
    3 tablespoons self-raising flour
    1 1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 180°C and butter a 1 litre oven proof basin or serving dish. Zest 1 of the lemons and juice both. In a food processor, cream butter with zest and sugar, then add egg yolks. Add flour and milk alternately to make a smooth batter. Scrape mixture from sides of processor bowl and blend in lemon juice. Transfer to a clean basin. Whisk egg whites until creamy and firm and fold gently into batter. Pour batter into prepared basin. Stand basin in a baking dish and pour in hot water to come halfway up sides of basin. Bake for 1 hour. Allow to cool a little before serving. I like lemon delicious best with pouring cream.

Have a great day!

Faithx

Wow! What an exciting day. Yesterday, The Assassins’ Village was loaded onto the Amazon site and less than twenty-four hours later there it is – all spanking brand-new on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. And, it was relatively easy and quick.

I know I’ve already one book published in paperback and e-format, but after months of writing and editing, seeing your ‘baby’ in a published form, whether it be paperback or e-format, still gives me as an author an incredible feeling. As I said in a previous blog post this week, letting the populace get their hands on your work is a bit scary. Yes, I’m sure there will be a few grammar mistakes despite the endless hours checking over the manuscript, and everyone has their own opinion over how a book should be written – but hey! It’s my book, my pride and joy and now, I’m going to love sharing it with you all.

For the next few weeks The Assassins’ Village is available on Amazon.co.uk for the amazing introductory price of just 0.69 pence! Yes, 93,000 words for less than a £1.00!

A brief word about The Assassins’ Village; it’s a murder-mystery-thriller set in Cyprus. When the first body is discovered, all the villagers are understandably horrified. Who, living in their quiet, picturesque little village could commit such a foul crime? Amateur sleuth Diana, in true Agatha Christie-like fashion sets out to discover who the murderer is, and consequently lands herself in mortal danger… Find out for yourself who and why the murders were committed.

Go on give yourself a treat this spring; PLEASE buy a copy.

Once you’re read it, please, if you have the time write a review on Amazon. All writers need feedback, so we can take in readers’ likes and dislikes and it gives us some idea of what you’d like to read next.

Thank you for reading this and Happy Reading!

This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.