It’s
been a while since you’ve seen me here and with good reason. Someone else, lots
of someone elses, have been doing my blogging for me and I didn’t want my
personal efforts to be lost in the crowd.
Three
weeks ago today The
Ghost of Glendale was published as an eBook, the paperback having
preceded it by three weeks. It was my first foray into the realms of
self-publishing and in a way I cheated in as much as I had others far more experienced
to do the work for me. I reaped the benefits of the professionalism of Rebecca
Emin (Gingersnap Books) and Cathy Helms (Avalon Graphics) who formatted the
book and produced the, in my opinion, spectacular cover.
Following
all that, Rachel Gilbey of Rachel’s Random Resources took me on a whirlwind
blog tour, hence the reason I haven’t posted myself. Rachel managed to assemble
a group of people for whom I have a newfound awe and admiration to read, review
and promote my book. Yes, folks, I’m talking about
THE BLOGGERS
that
amazing fraternity who give up their time for no reward other than their love
of reading. I have received some wonderful reviews for which I’m truly grateful
but the thing that struck me most has been the consistency of the comments. I’d
never written a mixed genre book before but it seems that romance and
paranormal can go together. For those with a love of the Regency, I am happy to
have portrayed the era effectively. To combine it with a ghost story was something else. Fortunately it seems I got the balance right. I had
so much fun writing this book and when more than one compared it favourably with Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen, well, I could ask for no greater praise. I
hope you enjoy reading it. Here’s an excerpt.
“It was fortunate indeed that you weren’t present for I
should certainly have given myself away, but I so wished you’d been there to
enjoy the joke.”
Phoebe and Duncan
were sitting again on the fallen tree where they had first met, the horses
standing contentedly by in the small clearing. He had thought she’d looked a
little overwrought when they’d met earlier in the stable yard but after a good
canter she was relaxed as ever in his company and smiling now as she related
what had happened at the table the previous evening.
"Does she
always rub you up the wrong way?”
"Almost
invariably, but when I stayed with her in London I was able to hold my tongue. I
was her guest and it would have been unforgivably rude of me not to.” Duncan
could appreciate her logic. “Here at Glendale I will not have her cutting up my
father’s peace. It seems to me that if I can inject some humour into the
situation, be she never so aware, I am able to restrain myself.”
"Is her
understanding so inferior then?”
"By no
means. She is intelligent enough. Just that she has no sense of the ridiculous.
I cannot believe how unalike she is to my mother who could make anyone laugh by
merely a word or even only a gesture.”
“I wish I
could have met her."
I hope you can join me again next time
