16 Monday Jul 2018
An explanation: this review is about a book – but it’s also about a film. It’s a film review – but the film is an adaptation of the book – and it mentions the book too. OK?
The film is The Bookshop, currently doing the cinema rounds, and based on the book of the same name by Penelope Fitzgerald. The original was published in 1978 and shortlisted for the Booker – and I simply can’t understand why I hadn’t heard of it until now. Continue reading
02 Monday Jul 2018
Posted in Authors' tips
Sue and I learned something interesting about Author Talks recently: don’t do them – or rather, do them at your peril.
No! I’m only kidding – well – half-kidding if faced with the type of event we recently encountered. Continue reading
26 Tuesday Jun 2018
I’d been wanting to get hold of a copy of this since first reading about television producer Jane Fallon’s latest book. It was the title that did it: Faking Friends.
Anything to do with ‘Friends’ is of interest to my co-author, Sue, and I, given that we’re soon to complete our Friends trilogy, which so far consists of A Falling Friend, A Forsaken Friend and the third which has the working title of A Forgiven Friend. Continue reading
24 Tuesday Apr 2018
Posted in Meet the author
AJ (Alison) Waines is a hugely successful author, she has sold over 450,000 books worldwide and topped the UK and Australian Kindle Charts in two consecutive years with her number one bestseller, Girl on a Train.
Following fifteen years as a psychotherapist, she is now a full-time novelist with publishing deals in the UK, France, Germany, Norway, Hungary and USA (audiobooks).
Her fourth psychological thriller, No Longer Safe, sold over 30,000 copies in the first month, in thirteen countries.
Her most recent book is Don’t You Dare, a thriller that explores the dark side of a mother-daughter relationship when pushed to the limit.
Continue reading
17 Tuesday Apr 2018
Posted in News
Sue and I are increasingly being asked to give talks about our writing and answer the question: how do two people write together? And we love it. It means we get to meet lots of keen readers, people who have read our books, or people who want to buy our books.
And it has involved quite a bit of travelling. Continue reading
22 Thursday Feb 2018
Posted in Viewpoint
I love radio – listening to it and appearing on it. I love watching television too, but I’m not quite so keen about appearing on TV – not that I’m asked often. But radio? Yes, give me a radio appearance any day.
I’m still feeling tense about the recent TV recording Sue and I did – more of which when the programme is screened. Until then, our lips, brightly coloured and contoured by the make-up department, are sealed.
As well as having to perform well under bright studio lights and in front of a live audience, we had to take different outfits. The idea was that the wardrobe people would pick those which would look good under studio lights. Continue reading
12 Tuesday Dec 2017
Eleanor Oliphant taught herself how to survive – but she doesn’t know how to live. This unsettling story shows an extraordinary young woman locked in a way of life that provides the only sort of security she knows.
It’s a life of absolute routine: wearing the same clothes every day, eating the same meal deal at lunchtimes, and drinking two bottles of vodka every weekend. Continue reading
27 Monday Nov 2017
Posted in Reviews
Books featuring children don’t feature highly on The Novels I Have Read list, and books featuring children coping with grief are similarly low on my To Be Read pile.
So it was a surprise to enjoy two books which both have young girls as their central character and grief as the main premise.
And if it seems odd to enjoy books about grief, let me add that although there were moments of touching sadness in both novels, there was also wisdom and humour. It seems there is much to be learned about grief, love and life – by adults as well as by children. Continue reading
16 Thursday Nov 2017
Posted in Viewpoint
I’ve a new respect for people who take part in televised events. Sitting on the sofa at home watching the box, it all looks so easy: participants chat happily, respond calmly to comments and answer questions.
But let me tell you – when you’re in the sights of a studio camera, complete with hot lights and an audience, it’s nerve-racking.
And the worst of it is deciding what to wear. Continue reading
16 Monday Oct 2017
Posted in Viewpoint
Have you ever been described as ‘depressing, judgmental and ignorant’ and then been accused of being a dummy?
Well, actually, you might have. If you saw one of the glossy magazines that came with a particular Sunday newspaper yesterday, you could have looked at the so-called fashion spread where a coat costing nearly £3,000 was featured with matching £1,000 trousers (mentioned but invisible as they’d been cropped out of the photo), and asked: ‘Who spends that kind of money on clothes?’ Continue reading
