Book Brief: No More Mulberries

No More Mulberries
by Mary Smith
Genre: contemporary fiction
Word count: 94,000 (approx)

Set mainly in Afghanistan and spanning the years from the Soviet occupation to the rise of Taliban, No More Mulberries tells the story of Scottish-born midwife Miriam and her Afghan husband Dr Iqbal who work in a remote village in rural Afghanistan. Miriam is concerned about how her husband has changed towards her but doesn’t understand why. She accepts a request to attend a medical teaching camp as a translator for the foreign doctors in attendance she ignores Iqbal’s anger at her going against his wishes. She hopes time apart might help her to understand the cause of their problems.

When a figure from her past, Ismail, arrives at the camp Miriam undertakes a journey into her past. She realises she has never come to terms with the devastating loss of her first husband, who had been killed and sees how her own actions have damaged her relationship with Iqbal. She resolves to try to put things right between them but fears she may be too late.

No More Mulberries is about love, commitment and divided loyalties across a cultural divide. It also provides the reader with an authentic insight into how ordinary Afghan men and women live their lives against a backdrop of war.

This title is available from W H SmithAmazon US, Amazon UK, Smashwords, and Barnes and Noble. Continue reading “Book Brief: No More Mulberries”

Book Brief: Crazy Heat

Crazy Heat
by Francene LaDue
Genre: Crime
77,846 words

After twenty years of covert rescues, retired Air Force Special Ops vet, Bobby Egan is struggling to find his place in civilian life. Egan has spent the last two years working a dead-end job at the 24 Hour MiniMart in Tucson, but all that’s about to change thanks to friends and acquaintances, presenting some strange opportunities. It isn’t long before Bobby realizes he’s entangled in a dangerous triangle of romance, friendship and business. Everybody’s got an agenda they aren’t sharing with Bobby and the only way out is to trust his instincts and experience even if it means breaking the law and using deadly force to stay alive.

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Book Brief: The Bloody Mary Club

The Bloody Mary Club
by Debbie Dyke
Genre: Fiscal thriller
394 pages

An all women investment club meets in historic Old Town, Alexandria, in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol. The friends, caught up in a ruthless bank takeover, uncover accounting fraud and trading irregularities.

When the tight circle faces off against greedy executives sitting on millions of dollars worth of stock options their financial security blanket is ripped away. The ladies become the target of a predatory national bank. As the intrigue and violence escalates so does the vodka in their namesake drink, Bloody Marys.

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Book Brief: Hope Road

HOPE ROAD
by John Barlow
Genre: Crime thriller
Word count: 80,000

John Ray, son of crime boss Antonio ‘Tony’ Ray, is the straight one of the family. With a successful business and a lifestyle to match, he wants nothing to do with his father’s criminal world. But what does that world want with him?

A young prostitute is found dead in John’s car, and Freddy Metcalfe, his best friend and employee, is framed for her death. Freddy denies everything but it’s an open and shut case: he’s going down for murder. John sets out to find the real killer.

But things get complicated. A stash of counterfeit money was also found in John’s car, and the police seem more interested in that than in the dead girl. Then Lanny Bride turns up; one of the north’s most ruthless criminals (and an old friend of the Ray family), Lanny is desperate to know who killed the girl. But why? Meanwhile, Freddy is too scared to talk to anyone, even his lawyer.

John’s girlfriend, Denise Danson, is a cop. She’s been warned off the case by her bosses. But she doesn’t believe Freddy is guilty, and secretly helps John look for the murderer. The problem, though, is that uncovering the shocking truth about the girl’s death will force John to confront his own criminal past and risk destroying his future, as well as losing the only woman he’s ever loved.

This title is available form Amazon US, Amazon UK, Smashwords, and Barnes and Noble. Continue reading “Book Brief: Hope Road”