Great joy this morning to discover a second five-star Amazon review (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dangerous-Man-Anne-Brooke/dp/0954594568/ref=sr_1_4/202-0915331-5590251?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1176559428&sr=8-4) for A Dangerous Man (thanks, Sue! Great pseudonym too!...), which I reproduce below:
"I thought the novel was suspenseful, unsettling and well paced and took me into a world that is totally alien to me; that of gay men and the art world. Although the main character, Michael, is not your normal type of hero - in fact he is a very dark personality indeed - I felt a real empathy for him and I found myself rooting for him until the end (even when he had stepped over the boundary into criminality). The final chapters of the book are gripping as the shadows that have been stalking Michael come to the surface and threaten to ruin his all too brief taste of success. There is a sense of foreboding as the reader realises that there is surely tragedy ahead for Michael and the people who surround him. I thought the writing throughout was excellent, particularly in the final more violent scenes, and I found it easy to visualise what was being played out in front of me. I was sorry to be coming to the end of the novel so I left the final few chapters until later in the day to savour reading them - what a sign of a good book that is!"
Glad you enjoyed it, ... um, Poohbunny(!), and thanks for putting it up there. Much appreciated!
I've also, much to my delight, had a request for A Stranger's Table (http://www.poetrymonthly.com), which has cheered me no end. Hey, someone out there likes poetry! So, many thanks, Richard - and a signed copy will be in the post to you on Monday. Finally, as the ultimate hat-trick, I see I am in this month's edition of Writers' News (http://www.writersnews.co.uk), and that Michael and Flame (http://www.flamebooks.com) are mentioned, so that's lovely too. All three of us are very pleased, I'm sure.
The rest of my day so far has been spent lolling around aimlessly and squeezing out some more words to The Gifting. I've also attempted to contact my agent, but at the moment it seems to be a one-way track so I'm not holding out a great deal of hope (John? Are you there? Come out if you're still in the building ...). Perhaps he'll show greater interest once I've completed the novel, especially as fantasy is his genre of expertise - there's always that hope anyway! And, of course, as I'm very much a Z-list author, I imagine there's not a deal of point in him spending much time on me until I can deliver the goods. So, don't wait up then, at least not in terms of the big publishers, methinks ... Sigh.
And I've just watched An American in Paris on TV - lost of fun with Gene Kelly, the joys of tap-dance and some good one-liners, though I could have done without the ridiculous dance schmalz extravaganza at the end. A wasted ten minutes there, to my mind. Though I loved the character of the cynical concert pianist - great!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Lord H has entered one of his periodic silent zones (more silent than usual anyway ...), during which he speaks to no-one, particularly me, and mooches round the flat sulking. I've learnt over the years that he's best left to it, and am hoping that he emerges from the male cave in a day or two. Question to the boys: just what is it you do in that darn cave anyway??! Last year, he actually managed a week, but then again I was out a lot in the evenings that time, so may not have noticed as much (bad wife! Bad wife!...). Still, we'll see, and if I want idle chatter, I can always switch the TV on. Or ring Mother (yikes! That's worse!). Mind you, the good thing is that during such times, he does get a lot of DIY done, and even now is doing something peculiar with a new bookcase. So it's not all bad news and lettuce. (Lord B-I-L: if you're there, and have any good family tips, don't keep them to yourself!!...)
Tonight, I'm hoping they'll show Dr Who and it won't be kicked out due to overtime in some silly sports match or other (pause for brickbats to be lobbed!...). And I might try for some more scribbling. Might even get to the end of a page - who knows?
Today's nice things:
1. The Amazon review
2. The request for A Stranger's Table
3. Being in Writers' News magazine
Anne Brooke
http://www.annebrooke.com
http://www.goldenford.co.uk
4 comments:
Ahhh THE Cave! All men have them - sometimes they are physical places such as a shed/allotment/computer room where men go to be still and to think. If their cave is invaded they growl like bears at he who dares to come into their territory.
Sometimes they are just 'in the cave in their mind' and you usually know when your man has crawled into his cave when you get 'yep', 'nope', 'ok' abrupt answers to every question you ask. In my experience the only way to temp one's man out of either type of cave and to communicate with you on any level is the offer of his favourite food! In Peter's case it's chicken - actually we are having chicken this evening and he's not even in his cave (but he may be if he comes back from football and his team have lost!)
I read once (in a self help book) that some men go into their cave after periods of great intimacy with their partners. Scenario - best sex in the whole world ever with big expressions of love from both partners - the woman feels on a high from it for days afterwards and feels extra huggy / touchy / smiley. Man enjoyed it too but feels uncomfortable with 'losing' himself and needs to go into his cave and do man things to re-establish his maleness and own identity again as an individual.
I remember reading this when I was having problems with a previous partner and having a eureka moment - it explained so much and stopped my thinking that I had done something wrong.
Maybe us women should have a cave -or maybe a spa would be better !
Ooh, glad it's not just me then, Sue!!! And I LOVE the idea of that spa - I'm right there with you on that one!!!
Meanwhile, Lord H still struggling with that bookshelf!...
:))
A
xxx
Congrats on your hattrick, Anne, and the great review.
As far as your yesterday's blog is concerned, I can't see why you are contemplating forcing yourself to go to the university bash. Cathy, I understand the point you are making, and it's dreadful to lose a good friend. But if the people at the reunion meant anything to you, Anne, you would make more effort to keep in contact with them. If they mean nothing to you, don't go.
Jackie
Thanks, Jackie! And good point indeed - something to ponder on.
A
xxx
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