Hello! On today’s blog I share what I’m up to at the moment – writing, researching, editing, promoting. I have two books on the go, which makes life interesting! Firstly, I’m working on my new non-fiction book for Amberley Publishing, Illustrated Tales of Warwickshire. The fully completed manuscript has to be delivered by the endContinue reading “Illustrated Tales of Warwickshire, and Director’s Cut: Works in Progress”
Tag Archives: SC Skillman
Book Review: ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ by Anthony Doerr
Today I share with you my review of this immersive vision of life among the French Resistance in the 2nd World War. Review The story of All the Light We Cannot See tells of Marie Laure, a blind girl living in Paris in the 1930s with her father, a museum locksmith and miniaturist. Marie Laure’sContinue reading “Book Review: ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ by Anthony Doerr”
Book Review: ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ by Delia Owens
Today I share my review of this enchanting novel by nature writer Delia Owens. ‘Where the Crawdads Sing‘ by Delia Owens is set in the swampland of the North Carolina coast. Kya, the main protagonist, is abandoned by her family members one by one until, at the age of seven in the year 1952, sheContinue reading “Book Review: ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ by Delia Owens”
Book Review: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Today I share a review of this historical gothic fantasy set in1950s Mexico. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a rich feast for lovers of gothic sinister-mansion stories. Creepy, disturbing, sensuous, all the tropes are here. The story takes our main protagonist, Noemi Taboada, a lively socialite, into a truly menacing setting in a mountainContinue reading “Book Review: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia”
Book Review: The Thorn of Truth by S.L. Russell
Today I am pleased to be reviewing an Advance Review copy of the latest novel by author S.L. Russell: The Thorn of Truth. Having read three of this author’s previous novels I see her as a writer who opens up major ethical issues in our contemporary society, in such a way that they present aContinue reading “Book Review: The Thorn of Truth by S.L. Russell”
Book Review: Spirited by Julie Cohen
Today I share with you my review of Spirited by Julie Cohen, published by Orion July 2020. I loved this book; I found it enchanting, and it gripped me throughout. Set in the mid nineteenth century in England and India, the story covers spiritualism, so-called “spirit photography”, the oppression of women in Victorian times, andContinue reading “Book Review: Spirited by Julie Cohen”
Rescued Maori Meeting House in the Grounds of an English Stately Home
I was fascinated to see this Maori meeting house in the grounds of Clandon Park, Surrey. It immediately attracted me as I loved learning about the Maori culture in New Zealand during my November 2019 visit. I discovered that the original meeting house, Hinemihi, had been sited in an area of New Zealand’s North IslandContinue reading “Rescued Maori Meeting House in the Grounds of an English Stately Home”
Perfect Cottage Retreat in the Surrey Hills
Hello – I write on the first day of the relaxation of the lockdown here in the UK and we have travelled from Warwick in the Midlands to the lovely Surrey Hills, close to Leith Hill Tower with its wonderful views. This early 18th century cottage was originally a gamekeeper’s cottage and is hiddenContinue reading “Perfect Cottage Retreat in the Surrey Hills”
Book Review: ‘Hamnet’ by Maggie O’Farrell
I waited quite a long time for Waterstones to send me this book; and having received it, I spent the next few hours devouring this story of William Shakespeare’s family and the tragic death of his 11 year old son Hamnet. Living as I do near Stratford-upon-Avon I have visited all the Shakespeare properties aContinue reading “Book Review: ‘Hamnet’ by Maggie O’Farrell”
A Walk in Jephson Gardens Leamington Spa to Lift the Spirits
We are lucky to have many beautiful places to walk, in Leamington Spa Warwick and Kenilworth, with gardens, rivers, castles, historical houses and parklands. Each time I walk in Jephson Gardens, Leamington Spa, I see new delights. Throughout this pandemic, the natural world has upheld the spirits of so many – and the imagination, hardContinue reading “A Walk in Jephson Gardens Leamington Spa to Lift the Spirits”
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