Guest Post by Author Lily Byrne

Lily Byrne is the author of a number of fine novels written under her pen name Lily Byrne, and her real name Catherine Chisnall.  This post is about her latest, and why she wrote it. It's a sequel to "Ragnar the Murderer", which is set in 10th century Britain. I like her writing. I think you'll enjoy her post.

“Why I wrote an M/M romance”

I am just an ordinary married mum of one—why would a respectable type like me write about two hot guys getting it on? Many people have asked me that…

The main reason is that I like going out of my comfort zone. I like writing about subjects that—for me—are unexpected or make people about things they haven’t before. I’ve written about a relationship between a teacher and a student; people thrown together by a death; lovers from different cultures, in this case Saxon and Viking.  Subjects that readers wouldn’t expect me to write about.

My Saxon/Viking romance, ‘Ragnar the Murderer’, led to sequels following the characters, and I developed the idea to write an M/M romance set in 10th century Britain. The Norsemen had settled in Britain but were in conflict with the natives, it was an unsettled time full of dangers and risks. The Norse culture was extremely homophobic, unlike some other cultures of the time, so it was very interesting to research how gay Norsemen would be treated and what would happen to them. I didn’t intend any of my characters to be gay, but I just noticed one of them was. Various ways he behaved—constant bitchy comments, accusing everyone but himself of being gay, obsessive womanising—all added up. What would happen if I wrote in a boyfriend for him? The ‘what if’ was too tempting to ignore. So I followed it.

Another reason is obvious, I’m afraid. I like men, and as my friend and fellow author, Sessha Batto, says ‘one man is good, two is better.’ I had already written M/F romances, so I wanted to try M/M and see if I could do it, like a challenge to myself. Besides, I like my characters and want them to be happy—after a series of events testing them of course—so if the hero didn’t want a woman, I’d give him a man.

I enjoyed writing my first M/M romance. I’ll leave that to readers to decide if the story—and the romance—are convincing. My book will be published in October.

This is my blog (where my books are for sale):  http://blog.catherinechisnall.co.uk/  Really must get a better name :/

Here are my books:  http://www.amazon.com/Lily-Byrne/e/B005D4JBI0/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1347572356&sr=8-2-ent 

Taylor Street:  http://www.taylorstreetbooks.com/lily-byrne.html 

An engaging and unforgettable novel of love in a time of violence

“Duende” is a Spanish word that refers to the deeper, more earthy notes and sounds of life where all is not light. Set in Spain (mainly in Barcelona and Madrid) in the years between World War One and the Spanish Civil War of 1936, duende is a prominent presence in the novel as Spain devolves into increasing social discord and violence. Yet the novel isn’t only about that; it is also about one of the great love stories in literature as these two young men begin their careers and grow as life around them descends into the darkness of civil war and Francisco Franco’s fascist regime. 

Once I opened “Duende” and began reading, I found it impossible to put the book down. 

The story follows the lives of Antonio (“Nayo”) and José from their school days in Barcelona to their studies and developing careers in Madrid and does it so well that I felt I was there as Nayo painted and José studied and taught philosophy as their world gradually descended into violence. Reading “Duende” is more than reading about these two men and the world they lived in, it is being there, being inside their heads as they struggle to comprehend the forces that threaten to tear their world apart. I have seldom read a novel that is quite like this one, that includes in such detail the intellectual and creative struggles of its characters, and makes it so lifelike and lively that I felt a part of the story. How is it possible to include so much information about what a philosopher teaches and an artist struggles with and make it vitally interesting to a reader? Yet Lizzie Eldridge does it, does it superbly well, and does it in her debut novel. I am impressed.

The love between Nayo and José is tender, poignant, and beautifully drawn. I felt I knew these two men, that they’d be a joy to have coffee with, that I couldn’t wait until Nayo’s next exhibit (I even knew what painting I wanted), and I feared for them and their friends as the situation in Madrid worsened. 

Lizzie Eldridge is a writer to watch. I look forward to her next book. This one is a definite 5 star read.

An intriguing and spellbinding war story

In 1975, the Soviet Union and Communist China lay aside their differences and form an alliance. Their goal: to take over all of Europe and England. By early summer, 1980, “the combined Communist forces are poised for the initial assault.” From there, the action begins, and it is full-scale war, with all the explosiveness, viciousness and suspense that one expects, especially after an active Resistance movement is organized. Some of the scenes are gut-wrenching.

But the war story isn’t the only story. The other story, the underlying story, is that of the author himself, who discovers the manuscript in an old box file he hasn’t opened in thirty years, and comments on his novel and his editing of it between each chapter. As an author myself, as well as a devourer of books, I found this fascinating, almost like reading a second novel, one the “warp“ and the other the “woof” of the whole. 

What makes this so fascinating and so important is that this is the way we experience life, the warp of life and the woof of memory, interwoven into our daily lives.

My hat is off to Brendan Gisby, the author of several wonderful books,of which this is the latest. You have a gem here Mr. Gisby.

A definite 5 star read. 

One of the most tragic fairy tales in modern fiction

Kathleen McKenna is a writer who grabs me with the first paragraph and won’t let me go until I’ve finished her tale. And this tale was, for me, very difficult to read.

A sad, tragic story of a young woman who is born into unbelievable riches, was “the apple of her father’s eye” in the same way his football team was: As long as she is presentable and didn’t embarrass the family name, she is lavished upon. When she became “an embarrassment”, she is cast aside like an old, worn-out toy by family and “friends”. 

The first “embarrassment” is that she was born female, not the “promised” son that her father expected his wife to produce. The second “embarrassment” was her developing juvenile diabetes, for which she needs an insulin pump. Not only is she not male, she is “defective”, and treated that way. Instead of love, she is given every material thing she wants, no matter what the cost until they tire of her. And then they throw her away.

Is Caroline (“Carey”) Kelleher an appealing character? In a strange way, yes. She is so pathetically lonely, broken and needy, so abused by her know-nothing parents, favorite aunt and “best friends”, that you want to rescue her and give her the love she’s never had. 

This is an outstanding new novel by one of my favorite authors. But it is not an easy one to read; no tragedy is. Buy it and read it anyway; it’s a good reminder that what people really want and need is genuine love, not the toys that all the money in the world can buy you. Like a former millionaire I once knew said: “It’s all just stuff" and it didn’t bring him happiness.

An unqualified 5 star read.  

A chiller of a thriller that Alfred Hitchcock would love.

“Obsession”, by British writer Nigel Lampard, is an intense psychological thriller that would make an absolutely chilling movie. One day happily married Matthew Ryan returns from a business trip to the brain-numbing news that his wife, Emily, doesn’t. love him any more, wants a divorce, is pregnant, the baby isn’t his (she’s been seeing someone else), and she wants him to leave. Stunned, he does. Some time later, still bewildered, he hires ex-cop, lawyer and private investigator Laura to see how Emily and her daughter are doing, because he still loves her and wants to know if she is alright and if there’s the sign of a man living there. There isn’t, Laura reports, Emily and her daughter are doing fine, and Emily hates him. How does Laura know? “I’m a good investigator,” she tells him. Soon after, she becomes Matthew’s lover and moves in with him. And then the fun begins.

Someone begins sending her threatening letters, she’s hit by a car in a neighboring town and ends in the hospital with serious injuries, she is terrified, there's an inconclusive police investigation, yet ... there is something about her that isn’t quite right but Matthew, against his better judgment ignores. She is so seductive and ... what is it? There’s something that just doesn’t quite add up. Think of all the chilling psychotic, psychopathic characters in novels and movies that you've read and seen, and there you have Laura. If I were Michael Ryan, I’d sell my house, change my name, and disappear. People like Laura give me the chills. There's also a cop named Wendy that I'd be careful of, too.

Nigel Lampard, author of the thriller Pooh Bridge, is one fine writer, and Obsession is a book that you won’t be able to put down until the very end. Nor will you be able to forget Laura. Nor will you want to.

A 5 star read.

An honest cop with an attitude, a young woman in trouble, the mob, the feds, a dash of romance -- a winner!

I enjoy a good detective novel, and B. A. Morton’s “Mrs. Jones” is a gem. Detective Connell is an honest cop with an attitude about authority, a smart mouth and Irish charm.  Lizzie, aka Mrs. Jones is a young British woman in New York City on a mission she doesn’t understand who witnesses a hit-and-run her first day in town. When she and Connell connect with each other and the bad guys, a bought cop and the Feds, well, the story quickly becomes one I couldn’t put down until I’d finished it. I can see that B. A. Morton is going to become one of my favorite crime writers. I do like good crime novels with mouthy detectives.

I can hardly wait for the next one in the series, Molly Brown, which is due out sometime in 2012.

A very definite 5 star read.

Life, love, ghosts, wood spirits and demons in MIchigan’s Upper Peninsula.

When I opened P. D. Allen’s Tales of the Yoopernatural and began reading, I didn’t know who P. D. Allen was or what to expect from him. A few pages later, I was thoroughly fascinated and couldn’t put the book down. I didn’t know what “yoopernatural” was, or who the “Yoopers” were either. In case you don’t, they’re the residents of Michigan’s remote Upper Peninsula (the UP), and these are tales from that neck of the woods.

If you like stories about love, jealousy, small-town rivalry, ghosts, wood spirits,  what it costs when you get the spirits mad at you, demons, spelunking, haunted abandoned mines, old Indian grandmothers and the secret life of trees, you will love P. D. Allen’s “Tales of the Yoopernatural”. Told in a  series of interlocking stories set in Michigan’s remote Upper Peninsula. The last story, about a young Ojibway soldier in Iraq and the Beast of War who follows him there, is both chilling and poignant in its reality and its message.

From knowing nothing about P. D. Allen when I opened this book, I am now a fan, and looking for the next book to enjoy.

P. D. Allen is an exceptionally fine storyteller and writer. Check out his books on amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

This is a 5 star read.

An enjoyable tale of love and loss

A young war widow still grieving the loss of her husband sits alone in her house when a mammoth winter storm. The power flickers, then goes out. There is a tremendous crash. A massive tree has come crashing through the roof of her sunroom. What is she going to do? Then there is a knock on the door. Should she open it, or ignore it? Fearfully, she opens it, as it could be help. Standing there looking concerned is a very handsome fireman. On their way into the village and shelter, his truck slides into a ditch and he can’t budge it, so they make their way back to her house.

In the hands of a different kind of writer, this could be a horror story, or a maudlin tale of love and romance. In Jessica Degarmo’s capable hands, it is a well-written story about grief, loss, fear of letting go and moving on, and a growing love between Amanda Pickett and fireman Raif Weston. It is also a tale of small-town gossip, rivalry and jealousy.

If you’re looking for an enjoyable read,  pick up a copy of Jessica Degarmo’s The Storm Within. Jessica Degarmo is the kind of writer that can always be counted on to tell a good, well-written story that is a joy to read. 

A definite 4 star read.

Romance, sex, obsession and adventure

A long novel, Alexandra Sophia’s “Lover From an Icy Sea” is also a mesmerizing one. About a love affair between the stunning (and wealthy) fashion magazine editor Daneka Sorenson and photographer Kit Addison, it is much, much more than that. It is about a deeply damaged woman, obsession (“And now, he realized, he’d fallen in love, deeply in love, obsessively in love, with an illusion.”), sexual addiction and tragedy. From early in the story I saw Daneka as a deeply disturbed individual -- her excessive need to be in control, the obsessiveness of her sexual appetites, her obsessive cleaning, her rapid mood swings, her need to be in constant motion, moments of tenderness that she would rapidly move away from -- these were nightmarish.  Yet I couldn’t stop reading.

Alexandra Sophia’s prose is mesmerizing, whether describing sexual scenes or a beautiful seascape, where “tiny waves broke in muted applause along the shore, sending up their silver spray like handfuls of pocket change.”  

Near Daneka's cottage on a Danish island in the Baltic Sea there is a description of a forest scene that is one of the most exquisite pieces of writing I have ever come across. “In a clearing of not much more than two or three body lengths in any direction, a bed of velvet-soft moss -- pure Polytrichum -- tiptoed  up to a sheer and jagged granite wall Here and there in the moss carpet tiny poppied peeked through. Map lichen -- Rhizocarpon geographicum -- spotted the granite wall like forests made for Lilliputians. Water dropped down the face of the wall and dripped into a tiny pool. Kit looked into the pool to gauge its depth, but couldn’t discern a bottom. The water was blacker than any black he’d ever known. Emerald green bridal gowns of liverwort -- Conocephalum conicum -- covered trunks of trees surrounding the clearing, while their branches wrestled in wraiths of  Isotherciium stoloniferum, the color and texture of lime-green lace.” Every time I read that passage, I can smell that place and feel its coolness because, enchantingly, I am there.

“Lover From an Icy Sea” is an amazing novel in so many ways. Like life itself, it is also a deeply disturbing one.

A definite 5 star read.

A charming adventure set in Amazon's jungles.

“Edge of Extinction” is a charmer. A story about a hidden Indian tribe in Brazil’s Amazonian jungles is interesting enough. The fact that it is led by an unusual young man named Kianda Mala (”Mala” meaning “man” in the Chachinka language), the son of an English woman and a large monkey, makes it not only a unique story, but an unusual one. In most societies, an infant with a long, prehensile tail would be immediately killed as a demon. In this community, he is not only not killed, he is elevated to the position of Chaka (monkey god), and becomes the principle leader among his people.

This idyllic scene comes to an end when people begin dying, babies are born dead, and Kianda Mala discovers many dead fish floating downstream in the river that is their source of food and water. Seeking answers, Kianda Mala and two friends head upstream. Answers they do find, but they do not come easily. One of the men is shot to death, Kianda is captured, and the third escapes.

What becomes of Kianda Mala and his people? What do his captors make of this strange  young monkey man? Surely such a being cannot be ... yet he is. Finding out what happens to Kianda Mala, his people, and the polluters is an adventure you won’t want to miss. Heart-warming and at times poignant, it is one of the most enjoyable adventure tales I’ve read.

A definite ***** read.

A delightful Romance novel that lingers

If you’re looking for a delightful, romantic read that can be read in a day, this is a very clear choice. Set in England in the time of Angles, Saxons, Danes and invading Vikings, it is the story of a young Angle woman named Aelfwyn and a red-haired Dane named Ragnar, their clandestine love affair and their eventual wedding. It’s also the story of uneasy relations between Aelfwyn’s Angle community and a nearby community of Danes, whom they accuse of stealing their eligible women. And it’s a story of a murder, with Ragnar as the accused.

But did he do the dastardly deed. Aelfwyn doesn’t believe it, and neither does Ragnar’s best friend Bjarni. But who did, and what is the outcome? 

As with every romance novel I’ve reviewed, the sexual scenes are explicit ... and very well written. “[L]onging accompanied them, shadowing them like a spirit;” not only very well said, like the story itself, it lingers in one’s memory.

Delightful book. A very definite 5 star read. 

If you enjoy love and romance, you'll love this book by Jessica Degarmo

If you enjoy stories of love and romance, you will love this book by Jessica Degarmo.

When Caitlin Edison’s live-in boyfriend of ten years walked out on her because he was bored, she was devastated. If this was “love”, she wanted no more to do with it. Talking about it with her best girlfriends, one of them suggested a “sure-fire” cure she’d read about in a magazine. The cure? Go to a nice restaurant or bar, dress up fit to kill, and hook up for a one-nighter with the best-looking guy there. I couldn’t help but cringe.

Coming from a friend who was not only a virgin but a conservative, Church-going one at that, Caitlin is shocked. Hooking up for a one-nighter with a stranger? A sensible young woman, Caitlin rejects the suggestion. (I was relieved; having worked in the counseling field for years, I knew the suggestion was an accident guaranteed to happen, and I liked Caitlin.) But, since her mood doesn’t improve, she decides to give it a go. (My heart sank to my shoes.)

Dressed fit to kill, she goes to one of the next cafes in town, spots a melancholy handsome man sitting by himself, decides he’s the most likely candidate, walks up, introduces herself and suggests a tryst. (“Don’t do it!” I said. Rats! They go out the door and disappear. I wine, awaiting the recriminations and tears.)

Problem is, Jessica Degarmo is such a fine writer that I couldn’t put the book down and ended up falling in love with both Caitlin and her new beau Ryan.

If any two people have the personalities to make it work, Caitlin and Ryan certainly do. Does this mean the future is will be a bed of roses? Not at all. Custody disputes, learning to fit together as a couple, a toxic spouse and raising a child (and maybe more) are real life challenges that each of us face, have faced or will face.

Like I said at the beginning, if you enjoy stories of love and romance, you will love this one. I look forward to Jessica Degarmo’s next, to see where she takes couples on the seas of relationships, romance and marriage.

I give this a definite *****s.

Tulagi Hotel: First class storytelling at its best

A review of “Tulagi Hotel”, by Heikki Heitala and published by diiarts.com, 12 April 2010. Available in hard cover, paperback and Kindle

Heikki Heitala has written such a fine novel that spans World War Two in the South Pacific to the decade after the war when one of the fighter pilots, Jack McGuire, buys a surplus float plane and returns to the Solomon Islands to find a life for himself. Originally from a Nebraska farm and terribly shy, Jack’s one excitement in life has since boyhood been airplanes and flying. In WWII he goes into military service and becomes a fighter pilot.

There is no Hollywood glamour and action-for-action’s sake in this fine novel. These are real people with real lives and real feelings who live in a real world filled with the pains of growing up as a shy kid on a Nebraska farm, is a nice guy, becomes an ace fighter pilot, tries to find love and fails at it, lives what most of us would think of as an idyllic life on an island in the South Pacific, and like so many men in his position, finds his closest friend and confidant in a bottle of alcohol. Utterly human and likable in spite of themselves, this is a story that, once read, is not forgotten.

Heikki Heitala is a fine writer. I look forward to seeing a next book from him. This is an unqualified 5 star read.

An incredible blockbuster of a novel

I have just finished reading the most incredible novel. Georgia Daniels' The Wilful Daughter is lyrically written in a dramatic style that pulled me into the story, and so moving in places that I couldn't read because I couldn't see the page. Few books have had such a powerful effect on me. I felt that I was there, seated in William Brown’s home with his wife Bira, his five daughters and his son William (“Willie” to his youngest sister June), experiencing the power and forcefulness of his personality, his wife’s quiet forcefulness and the utter frustration of his five daughters who want lives of their own but must obey their father’s designs for creating happy lives for them. In William Brown’s house, it is William Brown’s way or the highway, and everyone knows it, including June and her crippled brother Willie.

Set in 1920s Atlanta, The Willful Daughter is the story of a black man’s triumph over poverty through hard work, good planning, will and the determination to create a safe, genteel life for his family by providing well for them and controlling their destiny. In 1920s Atlanta, that was no small feat. No one dares stand in his way or challenge him, and no one does … except for June, his youngest, most beautiful and willful child, who is at least as stubborn, willful and single-minded as her father. At six foot six and massively muscular, he is a force to be reckoned with; described as tiny, June seems an unequal match. Does she best him? You’ll have to read this unforgettable book to find out.

This is a blockbuster of a novel, so good that I see it as a major motion picture and on everyone’s Best Seller list. Available in Kindle. I’ve already put in a request to the publisher to bring out a paperback edition. This will be one of my all-time favorite books.

My rating: *****

An unforgettable, can't-put-it-down novel by a first rate writer

Sheila Doherty, Philomena (Phil) Maguire and Mary Branagh: you'll remember their names long after you've finished this wonderful first novel by award-winning Irish poet Gerry McCullough.   
Romance, thriller, political intrigue and murder mystery, Belfast Girls  is the story of modern Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic where drugs and drug gangs have infiltrated every level of society as they have everywhere else. 

Sheila, Phil and Mary are the kind of characters that stick in your mind and bring you back for further visits. They just stick with you. I know I'll be back to get to know them better in the weeks and months to come. 


Gerry McCullough is one fine writer. I look forward to her next novel.

A definite 5 star read.

A fascinating paranormal tale of romance, mystery, adventure and love

"I'm a Bringer. It's what I do, and have done since I've existed. I'm here to guide, to make humans feel as comfortable as possible through their ... transition from being alive to just being."

Bringers, who are not human, have only one purpose, and that is to accompany recently deceased humans to the gates of Heaven. This Bringer's name is Lucyna. She's been doing her job for millennia. Everything has gone smoothly until she is sent to bring Max to his eternal home. The problem is Max's son, James, who is devastated by his father's death. "I'm not asking for much," says Max; "Just every now and then check in on him, make sure he's doing okay." It seems like such an innocent request, one that she has been asked thousands of times before and has always gently but firmly refused. But for some reason, this time is different. The difference is Max's son, James. It's not just his emotional devastation; it's a mysterious light that emanates from him that gives her a powerful emotional jolt.

Who is this James, and why, for the first time in her existence, is she so drawn to him? Acceding to Max's request could jeopardize her existence. But she cannot resist the urge to find out who James is and why she is so drawn to him. This is the emotional core of this fascinating tale, and it kept me turning pages until I reached the last word on the last page.

Part mystery, part adventure, part romance and just plain fun, The Bringer is a book you will enjoy and return to. It's a clear 5 Star read.

"Pinpoint" -- an extraordinary novel by an a remarkable new writer

Strangeways Prison, Manchester, England (September 1994). “I’ve represented many murderers and am often surprised at how normal they appear. But this one is different. As he walks into the interview room he stops dead. His mouth drops open.  His eyes bulge. His elbows clamp to his sides as though a knife has plunged into his back. And he looks straight at me unlike most who bow their heads until I say something to make them feel at east, and who look past me when they tell me their stories. Not this one.”

Sam Smith is the name of this psychopathic killer, or is it? Could he be …? “There’s an almost imperceptible smile on his face. That smile. And those eyes. I grip the desk. I can’t breathe. My skin turns cold, clammy. My fingers tingle. A fragment of long forgotten memory skitters through my head then vanishes …” Who is he? No, it can’t be … but can it? Is he?

So begins this haunting, magnificently written tale of murder, intrigue, mystery, childhood sexual abuse, loss, survival and love. Solicitor Julia Grant’s job is to defend this psychopathic killer of young women. And she must find out who he really is because she is haunted. A widow with a six year old daughter, she has a busy, complicated life. Detective Chief Inspector Paul Moxon is there to help her. But she has to go it alone.

Pinpoint is one wonderful book, Julia Grant is one of the most memorable characters I’ve encountered, and Sheila Mary Taylor is one fine writer. I’m sure we'll be enjoying her books for many years to come. She has the kind of story-telling talent that not only has wide appeal; it lasts, like a good Agatha Christie tale. Even the title “Pinpoint” is shrouded in mystery.

This one is a clear five star book.
*****

A memorable story that you’ll want to read again and again

“I once believed soft, warm, beautiful things could never flourish in an environment of hard concrete and cold, dark bricks. In a tough paycheck-to-paycheck, hard-luck place with a name like Flushing, life’s finer things appeared only in dreams.”

So begins Tom Winton’s fine novel about a young high school student named Dean Cassidy, whose negative philosophy and grinding, dysfunctional family life appears both intransigent and rapidly headed downhill. I thought: “Can a story this gloomy be anything other than a really depressing read?” Yes it can, especially in Tom Winton’s capable hands. It’s a page-turner that I couldn’t put down.

Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty in Dean Cassidy’s young life that could easily sink his future – a clinically depressed mother, a crappy apartment in an old building, a frustrated father, alcohol, drugs – you name it … except that this kid just refuses to give up.

Then along comes Theresa, the dream of any hormonally charged, young man. She sees and homes in like a laser on his inner strength. How can these two lovers possibly make it with all the odds they face? Will they make it? If they do, what will their life be like? If they don’t, then what?

Do they make it and live happily together forever? You’ll have to read the book to find out. Does Dean achieve his great dream of being a writer? Does he have the stamina and the guts to stay at it, come what may? Again, you’ll have to read the book to find out. But here’s a clue: Everyone reviewing the book on Amazon.com gives it a 5-star thumbs up. That’s 19 people as of a moment ago, not including me. With my vote, that’s 20. Not surprising at all. I can’t wait to read his next novel.

*****

An Intriguing and Very British Novel

Tim Roux: Shade + Shadows. Night Publishing, using CreateSpace. May, 2010. Paperback 262 pages, $11.95

The novel opens on an argument/discussion between Jane and Alan Harding, a middle-aged married couple who are clearly fond of each other. They use this light-hearted spat to relax party guests and get them in a lighter mood. Alan calls these little spats “the cyclical celebration of [our] being a cohesive unit.” This is representative of his way of speaking and thinking: formal, bland and rather detached. In Alan’s words, his and Jane’s relationship is “impenetrably harmonious.” It makes their daughter Sarah crazy. If they would only show some level of irritation with each other, but they don’t. Most people don’t behave the way they do, but they are not most people, they are Alan and Jane Harding.

A very successful chiropractor, practitioner of alternative medicine and healer, Alan is able to cure everyone’s ailments by combining homeopathy, kinesiology, distance healing, prayer achieve miraculous results that even he sometimes doesn’t understand. Some of his methods, which would be illegal in any medical and psychological practice, present no problem for him due, it seems, to patient loyalty.

Then, halfway through the novel Alan’s idyllic world begins to unravel due to some hidden secrets in his life as a young medical practitioner stationed in Saudi Arabia. There are some very ugly people involved, it isn’t very pretty, and it challenges Alan’s detached manner. Is all lost? You’ll have to read the book to find out, as I’m not giving the secret away.

The only problem I have with the novel is its voice which, because it is Alan’s voice, is as detached and bland as he is. But it is very much in line with similar characters I’ve encountered in British literature, movies (“Remains of the Day”) and BBC sitcoms, some of them beautifully parodying them (“Fawlty Towers” and “Keeping Up Appearances” being two of my favorites). That aside, I think it is well-worth the read, and for readers who really like this style, very much worth it. The story itself is an interesting one.

Saving Nathaniel, A 5-Star, Can't-Put-It-Down new novel

Saving Nathaniel, by Jillian Brookes-Ward. Night Publishing, October 2010. 300 pages, paperback and Kindle editions.

My attention was caught by the novel’s first sentences: “She was wet. She was cold. She was late.” With that opening, my attention was captivated. In my opinion, it is one of the most powerful, attention-grabbing openings I have ever read in fiction, and I read a lot of it.

Saving Nathaniel is enchanting and powerful storytelling, with characters that are real people, not clichéd cut-outs. The personal struggles Nathaniel and Megan have are ones that most of us can identify with because most of us have had them at one time or another. I certainly have. But it’s the skill of the story telling that kept me engaged, as in one exchange with Nathaniel where Megan “gave him a look so cold it would have made a penguin reach for a muffler.” It’s the kind of laugh-out-loud remark that makes this story such a richly human one. The author tells the story of Meg and Nathaniel with compassion and skill that draws you in and keeps you there long after you’ve finished the last page. This is a wonderfully wise book. Hopefully it is the first of many by this fine writer.

I can see Saving Nathaniel as a movie, with Helen Mirren in the role of Megan. It’s definitely one I’d watch more than once.

 Five Stars.