End of 2021 update – reading and writing

Hello and Season’s Greetings! I don’t usually do update posts but wanted to shout about some of the things I have been reading, listening to and writing this year. I am leaving for the UK on December 22nd, to visit my Mum for the first time in two years – so please keep your fingers crossed for me as it is quite an endeavour with lots of Covid related hoops to jump through. I expect my blog will be fairly quiet while I am away apart from the weekly Indie Spotlights which are ready to auto post on the two Thursdays while I am away.

Now for the update:

I wasn’t really into audiobooks until a few months ago as I get easily distracted while listening to them. I decided to give them a try back in April when I was offered Loners by D.B. Bray. The narration by Walt Allen was hysterical in places and great for listening to on a long journey. My favorite audiobook this year has without a doubt been Truth and Other Lies by Lyra Wolf. The narration by Casey Eade is absolutely amazing and puts this way ahead of any of the other audiobooks I have listened to.

I also enjoyed the audiobook versions of Lee C. Conley’s two Norse zombie fantasies: A Ritual of Bone and A Ritual of Flesh and Bloodlines by Peter Hartog.

In terms of reading, my favourites this year (in no particular order) have been:

The Wild Court by E.G. Radcliff

Of Honey and Wildfires by Sarah Chorn

The Iron Crown by LL McRae

Legacy of the Brightwash by Krystle Matar

In the Orbit of Sirens by T A Bruno

The Order of Chaos by Lyra Wolf

The Goddess of Nothing at All by Cat Rector

Windborn by Alex S. Bradshaw

Sairō’s Claw by Virginia McClain

The Living Waters by Dan Fitzgerald

Jati’s Wager by Jonathan Nevair

Miss Percy’s Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons by Quenby Olson

The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

Shards of Earth by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Shackled Fates by Thilde Koldt Hold

My book Lucky Jack (1894-2000) came out in November and has been well received by reviewers so far. If you would like to review it please let me know and I will send you a digital copy.

Blurb:

“One of the perils of being a sniper during the First World War was the likelihood of a grenade going off right next to you and burying you alive”.

Meet Jack Rogers. Born in 1894, he once locked eyes with Queen Victoria and was one of the first travellers on London’s ‘Tube’. An early car owner, he had many escapades on his days out to Brighton, including a time when his brakes failed and he had to drive through central London without them!

His skills as an entertainer earned him popularity throughout his life, and kept him out of the deadly mines while a prisoner during the First World War. At the tender age of 103 Jack earned the title of ‘The World’s Oldest Columnist’ as he began dictating his life’s exploits to a reporter from the local newspaper.

Accompanying photos can be found here

I also had two short stories published in December (one was an excerpt from Lucky Jack) in an anthology put together by Robert Fear called 40 Life Changing Events.

Blurb:

.In our constantly evolving world…

…where the unforeseen lies in wait.

Surprises abound.

In this latest anthology, 25 writers share events that have changed their lives. Some stories are tragic, others full of joy, but they all encapsulate the tenacity, resilience, and self-belief of the human spirit.

During these challenging times, with the world in turmoil, it is stimulating to learn from other people’s experiences.

What will you take away from these exceptional recollections that span the generations?

This fascinating compilation will encourage you to pause and reflect, with tales that offer much needed motivation and inspiration.

Get it now.

What’s next?

Another story I wrote called The British are Coming!, about my move from UK to US and all the changes we encountered, is to be included as an extra story in the box set of Alyson Sheldrake’s travel anthology trilogy: The Travel Stories Collection. The box set is due out on December 26th and I am extremely excited to be included as one of 17 bonus stories only available when buying the box set..