Let’s talk about love triangles…
Scenario #1: A woman loves her husband very much but they have become comfortable. She meets a man on a work trip and becomes embroiled in an affair. Scenario #2: A girl has been with her boyfriend for 3 years and they are the best…
What is “adult” fiction?
Revolutions, family dinners, tyrannical fathers, faery courts, dimension hopping, bad boys, murder, scandal, history, cryogenics, revenge, weirdness, laughter, genetic engineering, family obligations, death, gods, the underworld, top secret magic schools, A CUDDLY TOY, lost memories, multiple personalities, secret government organisations, mind control, grief, hidden worlds,…
Some wandering thoughts on crime fiction
Those of you who pay attention to me may have noticed I’ve been in a bit of a grump regarding crime fiction. It partly stems from all the review requests I get for crime as well as unsolicited copies of books I just have no…
Where has all the horror gone?
The Guardian posted an article today which implied the horror genre was all a bit crap. I’m not going to address that directly (no book can be judged by genre alone) but it did get me thinking what the definition of horror is. And if…
Campaign for Real Books: Apocalypse Edition
An argument for paper-based books in a post-apocalyptic world… Insulation The next ice age is upon us, make sure your home is properly insulated, or at the very least line your walls with books. The dense paper will help keep what heat you have inside….
Why we still need the gatekeepers
With all the discussions flying around about self-publishing, the evil of Amazon and the future of the industry, I feel the need to stick my head above the precipice and shout “what about us?” You know, the readers, the people that buy these books. In…
An Unlikely Saviour
It would seem to many that Amazon are determined to take over the publishing industry what with their take-over of The Book Depository, selling the latest Kindle at a loss, control of pre-release reviews via the Vine program and the start of their very own…
Travels With My Kindle
So I’m heading off to the Scottish Borders today. Don’t worry, I’ll still be blogging here and there, I’m staying with my parents so I’m sure they won’t mind me tapping away for a bit each night. This is the time where the Kindle comes…
Chick-Lit is Not a Bad Word
Everyone now and then, someone gets their knickers in a twist over the use of the term “chick-lit” and it being demeaning to their work. It’s certainly not the readers of the genre, who use it with affection. We can’t blame the marketing people for…
Who Ordered Rain?
It just took me five hours to get home from Andover on the train, a journey which usually takes two. I can’t even blame the rain, the wind blew down a tree onto the rails, but the rain made the wait even worse. And to…
