Glowglass by Kirkland Ciccone

Review by The Mole

Starrsha Glowglass's face is on the front page of every newspaper. She isn't a model, Vlogger, or reality TV show contestant. Starrsha is famous for something darker: she survived a massacre that claimed her Brothers and Sisters. Hers was no ordinary family. They were The Family Glowglass - a religious order set up by an eccentric businessman as a tax dodge. One morning the parishioners sat down to breakfast...Most didn't get back up. Only Starrsha and her mute Brother, Simon, survived. Both now have a chance to lead an ordinary life. For Starrsha that means high school. Can a videotape bring back the dead? What's behind the red door? Why won't Starrsha's best friend reveal her true sexuality? When is a poster on a wall actually a trap? Will My Chemical Romance reform? Why is Father obsessed with vintage technology? Why does Barbie freak out Starrsha? How many rich husbands has Aunt Imelda bumped off? And why is God crank-calling Starrsha? All will be revealed when someone presses PLAY...

Ciccone's books have all been unusual in some way and this is no exception. A single video tape is left and Starrsha keeps adding parts of the story to it until the 3 hour tape is full and we know the complete story from Starrsha's point of view. And it's not what I expected.

We know of the deaths in the cult and we know of the how but "who"? Only Simon and Starrsha survived... coincidence or planning - that's what we need to find out and this tape contains Starrsha's confession. Or does it? This young impressionable childlike girl is too naive for anything so horrendous surely?

I was sceptical of the format at first but found that it worked well. Very well. Having just the one voice throughout taking the story forward and backward before reaching the conclusion felt very genuine - no contrived conversations using second voices that didn't really gel. We do hear from other characters but they are retold by Starrsha in the words she chooses and so we see how the characters come over to her and not to each other.

The reader also gets an insight into cults and modern day slavery - or at least one aspect.

This is, once again, another great story told in the author's distinctive style. It sounds like a YA book but, frankly, apart from the very young, this book will sort all ages and genders and I'd recommend widely.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - YA/Adult/Thriller

Follow Me by Victoria Gemmell

review by Maryom 


17 year old Kat Sullivan is trying to move on after her twin, Abby, committed suicide, but she just can't accept that Abby would have done such a thing. They weren't as close as they had been when younger, but surely a twin would have some inkling if her sister was distressed or depressed in any way? Yet Abby had seemed her normal happy self right till the end.
 She wasn't the only teenager to die this way in their small town, in fact she was the fifth in a year, and Kat can't help but believe there's more behind these events that people seem prepared to admit. When she's introduced to The Barn, a secret hangout where older school kids mix with students from the local uni, Kat's suspicions are aroused, for although it seems on the surface to be just a cool place to meet up, there seems to be dark undertone to the place, and an underlying obsession with celebrities who died young.

Follow Me is an excellent teen/YA thriller; the sort of book that quickly grabs the reader and keeps them reading. The story is told in the first person from Kat's perspective, so the reader shares her grief, her belief that there is more than meets the eye to this series of suicides, and her determination to pursue anyone who may have encouraged Abby. The characters are well-drawn and believable, from Kat's parents who have now turned understandably over-protective of their remaining daughter, her friends, who don't know how to talk to her since Abby's death, to Michael and Rob who run The Barn, and could be hiding who knows what in the way of secrets.
As a fairly short read, just over 200 pages, the plot moves along quickly - fortunately, as I was desperate to know what Kat would uncover - with Kat's suspicions veering one way then another but with less of the twists and turns of an adult thriller; even so it's an unputdownable read.

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Strident 
Genre - teen/YA thriller

Talisman by Paul Murdoch

Review by The Mole

James Peck's dad has walked off into the sunset. His mum, a woman with a local reputation for being bossy and controlling, doesn't seem to care but James is convinced his dad hasn't run off but is in need of finding to help him to safety.

Escaping from gossips in the local shop, James follows a stranger to a weird location and meets Mendel - a wizard from another world who is trapped in another body and needs help to save his own world - Denthan. James agrees on condition that Mendel will help him find his father. So they set off to Denthan but a real best friend doesn't let you enter such adventures alone so Craig forces his presence into the scene - with Bero, his dog.

James's first task is to find a talisman to control the power of an invading wizard - hence the title.

Reading this as an adult - one who grew up living the space race - I found the world created difficult to accept, but that's a "me" thing. It's better to think of Denthan as another dimension - one where the laws of physics are completely different because, after all, they have magic and wizards.

There are, apparently, 7 books in the series and if I had to level criticism it would really be that we stop before we know the role of all the characters in the book - a group enter Denthan quite late and we don't really have any idea why.

Having said that this story is not like any I've read before in that the second group is a motley crew and you are genuinely left wondering what they can hope to achieve.

An excellent story that will delight the younger reader and have them looking for book 2 immediately. Well it was published in November so it's there for the asking.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Children's (9+), fantasy

North of Porter by Kirkland Ciccone

Review by The Mole

Porter's parents decide to move to Castlecrankie because they see an opportunity. He arrives in a car he can't get out of because his parents have removed the door handles to ensure he doesn't escape. Porter's life is not a happy one - but you can guess that. Castlecrankie is a placed troubled by strikes, mysterious deaths and Aliens. But that is why his parents have taken him there; they see an opportunity to make money out of this and Porter will help them - whether he wants to or not.

Porter is a child who doesn't make friends easily and is on medication after his breakdown - a breakdown not helped when he discovered his brother in a suitcase.

With this, Ciccone's third book, the plotting is stronger (not that it was ever weak!), the story more believable and the characters more easily identified with.

I loved the quirkiness of this story - not humorous fantasy, which is a genre I love - but more conspiracy theory put into context. Porter has personal issues. And voices. It took me a little while to understand that the speech that was crossed out in the text is actually the voice inside his head - is it his brother? And Porter is OCD and it manifests itself, in part, by a terror of walking on cracks in the pavement. And Porter makes a friend at his new school - a full-on kleptomaniac who tries to shoplift an ironing board!

Quirkiness and bizarrity in every corner of this book but it's a serious story, told with a little humour, that will have you sitting back and wondering about the ending.

Well done Kirkland - another great story very well told.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - YA/teen horror, mystery

Penance by Theresa Talbot

 review by Maryom

TV journalist Oonagh O'Neil is on the trail of a story about the scandal of the Catholic Church's Magdalene Institutions, particularly one in Glasgow, but her investigations are thrown off course by the sudden death of a potential informant Father Kennedy. Her private life is in turmoil as well, as her married lover doesn't seem to accept that their affair is over .....and, when the police begin to think there may be a link between him and Father Kennedy's death, things are going to get even worse for Oonagh...

With a considerable cast of characters, and events unfolding in both 2000 and in flashback to the 1950s, I found this a little difficult to get into at first. Once people and events were straight in my mind though, I could hardly read fast enough! I really wanted to leap to the last chapter, or even the last page, to find out whodunnit without having to go through all the twists and turns and red herrings. As you might guess from that, the plot is far from simple - a different culprit presents themselves almost every chapter - and keeping track of everyone  - Oonagh, her lover Jack, her friend Catholic priest Tom Findlay, sleazy journalist Charlie Antonio, DI Alex Davies in charge of the investigation plus other supporting cast - remembering what they know, where they've been, who they've seen and talked to - is enough to leave your head buzzing.

Oonagh is the sort of female character who gets labelled as 'feisty', sometimes too feisty for her own good I rather thought, but, like any good journalist, once she's given a lead she won't put it down until she's followed it to the end, no matter how bitter.

Maryom's review - 4 stars
Publisher - Strident
Genre -adult crime

Endless Empress by Kirkland Ciccone

A Mass Murder's Guide to Dictatorship in the Fictional World of Enkadar 

Review by The Mole

Portia was attacked by a serial killer as a child but managed to escape with her life after being tortured. Now she is suffering from the effects of Post Traumatic Stress and has created an imaginary world - Enkadar. Slowly she has drawn her friends into her imaginary world.

Being "different" at school is always troublesome and Portia, the now self-styled Endless Empress, is bullied and ridiculed along with her friends. Revenge is on the cards and did I tell you that this group of friends contains the academically astute in the school? Revenge will be planned, revenge will be sweet, revenge will be awesome and deadly.

With over one thousand dead in the school will the real world let it stop at that or are Enkadar and The Real World of Milordahl at war? And where will it stop? Will it stop?

Many moons ago I was walking in Glen Nevis with the family when I stepped between some tall rocks and there before me was a hidden valley - it was a shock and a truly awesome moment and Kirkland's first book Conjuring The Infinite contains such a moment when the book suddenly, within a paragraph, swings around. It did go on to win a Catalyst Award. This being Kirkland's second book I was intrigued as to what I would find - more of the same? Travelling to that hidden valley a second time was nothing like as impacting.

What I got was something totally different but still as mind-jangling. Mind-jangling and frightening at the same time. Frightening? We have all known Portia at some point in our lives... that kid who is "different" to the point they are best avoided for our own comfort - although they are often made fun of and bullied. What if they decided to take revenge?

Molly, a self styled journalist, acts as a focus to gather the history of the Endless Empress together and to try to find her because while some say the Empress is dead, many say she is not. It's difficult to understand at first why Molly is so persistent but let's not discount the X39 bus either.

The story has many threads winding through it and as a reader I found it confusing to follow each thread into the next knot for Molly to untie but when she does all becomes clear except that there is another knot looming. Lots of action and explosions and sandwiches - there really is something for everyone in here.

A second book every bit as good as the first but every bit as different too. I absolutely loved it and expect it to do as well as his first. Brilliantly conceived and executed.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - YA/teen horror, Fantasy

The Curse of Can-Balam by Matt Cartney

Review by The Mole

Danny Lansing Adventure number 3

While talking to a friend via a video link Angus and Danny witness the kidnap of Dr Gordon Campbell, an archaeologist working in Belize on finding lost Mayan treasures. The police are getting nowhere and so Angus decides they will travel to Belize to help look for him.

No ransom demands and no contact with the kidnappers starts to raise questions of why this has happened. When they pick up the trail of what they hope is the kidnappers, Angus and their guide are kidnapped and Danny is left alone in the rainforest to fend for himself against the many predators that the jungle harbours.

Danny sort of "comes of age" in this book and things are all the better for it. Here he recalls the training Angus has given him in the previous stories and uses that to survive. He is now more confident, not overly though, and makes more positive contributions to the adventure. I would stress that he is not a superhero and still unsure of so many things but finds ways to use what he knows to best effect.

The book launches straight into action and it twists and turns with tension right down to the last page.

I truly loved this book - and I'm not it's target audience! I was unable to leave it alone for very long and was left wanting more - although I think Danny had been through enough for one book. An excellent sequel that will again delight his many fans and maybe win many more. I look forward to reading more of Danny in the future.

Previous Danny Lansing Adventures Sons of Rissouli, Red, White and Black

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Boy's Adventure

Icefall by Gillian Philip

review by Maryom

Seth MacGregor and his clan have been kicking their heels in exile in the mortal world for too long. Both they and their arch-enemy, Sithe queen, Kate NicNiven are growing bored and restless. The Veil which separates the two worlds is weakening with time but Kate still needs the powers of the Bloodstone to destroy it and see her world domination plans come to fruition. With this is mind she's attacking Seth's clan in the mortal world, picking them off one by one, with the hope of provoking a retaliation that will put them all back under her control. Power seems to have gone to her head though since we last encountered her, and she's no longer satisfied with the idea of ruling both Sithe and mortal realms but wants to be worshipped as a god - and is prepared to strike a deal with anyone or anything, no matter how evil, to achieve it.

I started Icefall with more than a little trepidation - I've loved the Rebel Angels series but it's always been billed as four books in length, and here we are at Book 4. It'll all end happily, won't it? The hero and his lady-love will walk off hand in hand into the sunset? Well, unfortunately that's not the Gillian Philip way; Icefall means another round of pain and suffering, anguish and heartache for characters and readers alike.
If anything, this felt grimmer than the previous books; the habitual violence of the Sithe spilling over into the 'real' world and, with Kate slowly draining Seth's soul away, emotionally bleak. It's a book where happiness is brief and only come by at great cost, so 'enjoyed' isn't the best word to describe it. Nonetheless, it's a gripping, fitting end to the story. I'm just sad to leave the Sithe and their world.

The problem always with reading a series as it's written, so to speak, is that there are inevitable gaps while waiting for the next book to be published. So in a way I envy the readers who are discovering the series for the first time - they can pick up the first book Firebrand, and work their way through with no long pauses.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars
Publisher - Strident
Genre - fantasy, teen/YA /adult

Buy Icefall (Rebel Angels) from Amazon

Don't Judge Me by Linda Strachan

review by Maryom

We all make snap judgements - about our friends, people we meet and other people's motives.
But what if we're wrong? And what if a life depends on getting it right?
Take 4 teens, an arsonist, an unreliable witness and four different motives. With life and death on the line - Don't Judge Me.


Linda Strachan certainly knows how to open a story with a bang - Spider started with crazy joy-riding; Dead Boy Talking with a teenager lying bleeding in an alley - and she's done it again here; a block of flats on fire and a baby having to be thrown to safety!
Now, I know The Mole has already reviewed Don't Judge Me  - though I'm still not sure how he got to read it first - but, as I'm off to see Linda Strachan at Edinburgh Book Festival, I thought it was high time I read this too.

It's a brilliant mix of whodunnit - as the reader sifts through the evidence to pick the culprit - and social commentary - challenging stereotypes and our inclination to label people at first glance.Against the background of the police enquiry, with an unreliable witness making snap judgements about who was responsible, the story unfolds from the points of view of the four teenage suspects. The reader is quickly and easily pulled into the story and soon learns that appearances aren't quite what they seem to be. 
Don't Judge Me is a great book for teens - either as a 'whodunnit' or a more thought-provoking read.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars

Publisher - Strident Publishing

Genre - Teenage/YA, crime

Buy Don't Judge Me from Amazon 

Conjuring The Infinite by Kirkland Ciccone

Review by The Mole

The Cottage is a home for troubled teenagers, ones who haven't fitted in to other care institutions - a last resort - and it's run by a woman known only as Mother. One of their number, Seth Kevorkian, has been murdered and after the funeral the staff and residents start to open up about the Seth they knew - the Seth Mother thought was faultless and kind. But it appears that Seth was planning some form of Armageddon and has it started?

This book was very different to the book I expected. I can find it very hard to write a review for a book I liked - does that sound silly? It's easy to write a glowing review as a sycophantic favour but here we won't do that so when you get a book you really enjoy then how can you underline sincerity? Let's try.

The story starts a little slowly and we meet each of the characters one at a time and unlike so many books I found I couldn't 'get inside their heads'. As I read on I realised that was because Ciccone didn't want us going there - these teenagers were mentally damaged we weren't welcome. As the story builds up we get swept into believing the story as the plot unfolds. I found myself expecting, and wondering how Ciccone was going to manage this, when suddenly one of the characters enters again and Ciccone manages to somehow use this person to make fun of the whole thing. Or does he? Or does Seth get the last laugh?

A real breath of fresh air in the horror story line. Tense and exciting yet down to earth and realistic with perhaps just an inkling of satire at the same time - and maybe a little more horrifying for that. Described as Young Adult/Adult or 'crossover' I found this really worked for me. But unlike so many books that you put down and you want to know more and keep reading I felt that I knew enough, thank you, if not too much. Pass me a book on comic Guinea pigs please!

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - YA/Adult horror, Fantasy

Buy Conjuring the Infinite from Amazon

Bree McCready and The Realm of the Lost by Hazel Allan

review by Maryom

Bree McCready thinks she's had enough of fantastical adventures - after all, along with best friends Honey and Sandy, she's saved the world twice already! But then as Halloween approaches strange things begin to happen .... Halloween will coincide with a lunar eclipse and the veil between worlds disappear. It's time for Bree to get out the Half-heart Locket and the magical book, and travel with her friends to the other realm where hopefully they can put an end to the evil Thalofedril and his plans forever.

Bree McCready and the Realm of the Lost is another exciting fantasy adventure from Hazel Allan. The action is almost non-stop as Bree, Honey and Sandy battle their way to Thalofedril's stronghold Castle Zarcalat encountering new horrific monsters along the way but also finding helpful allies. Definitely a book that once the young reader's picked it up, they won't want to put down.

This is a must-read for anyone who's read the earlier two Bree Mccready stories but although the plot is self-contained it references the earlier books so much that I'd recommend reading those first.

Maryom's review - 4.5 stars

Publisher - Strident Publishing

Genre - Children's Fantasy and Adventure 9+

Buy Bree McCready & the Realm of the Lost from Amazon

Windscape by Sam Wilding

Review by Maryom

Financial difficulties are forcing Jenny MacLeod's father to agree to having wind-turbines built on their Harris farm but Jenny doesn't want them to spoil the view across the beautiful Hushwish Bay. When a confrontation with protesters leads to her father being taken away to hospital in Glasgow, Jenny is taken in by Mr Murdoch, the neighbouring farmer behind the wind turbine project.There she discovers letters that should have been sent to her father and that may make all the difference to his acceptance of the wind farm plans. Determined to show them to him, she sets off for Glasgow with her faithful collie, Lord, and their new friend Pavel, pursued by the Murdochs. There are plenty of others along the way trying to stop Jenny, so will she be able to reach her father in time to save the beauty of their farm?

Windscape is an exciting children's thriller set against the backdrop of the debate about windfarms. Almost everyone has an opinion on whether wind turbines are beneficial or an eyesore; they may be an environmentally friendly way of producing electricity but should they be allowed to clutter up the countryside and spoil the view? Sam Wilding manages to discuss the arguments both for and against them while keeping up the pace of the action. Jenny is a very determined young heroine, not easily distracted from her goals, helped along by the more street-wise Pavel - making this a book that should appeal to both boys and girls.
An excellent adventure story for the 10 plus range with the added bonus of introducing environmental issues in an accessible, easy to understand way.

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Strident
Genre - children's, thriller, 10+,

Buy Windscape from Amazon

Cat's Cradle by Nick Green

Review by The Mole

The third book in The Cat Kin trilogy sees Tiffany on a mission to stop the illegal trade in big cat parts. The trouble is that Ben would rather not risk splitting his family up again but also doesn't want Tiffany putting herself in danger. With such divided loyalties Ben and Tiffany end up  going it alone to tackle the ancient god Set now that Mrs Powell is dead. The problem is that just two of the Cat Kin against the whole army of the Set have no real chance!

I jumped in and read this book by Nick Green having read neither of the first two books and was very surprised that it can be read as a one off. Having said that while everything needed is explained it leaves you wanting to go back and read the rest. Yes, there are one or two spoilers in this one but they don't feel like big ones. The plot rises and falls with action and then pauses but always manages to hold your attention and enthusiasm. When we get to the end... was I expecting it? I was expecting lots of different things but not that!

The story contains wild action and excitement that felt quite mature at times but will still be loved by it's target audience.

You can read the start of Cat's Cradle in a sampler just here

Publisher - Strident
Genre - Children's action adventure

Buy Cat's Cradle (Cat Kin trilogy, book 3) from Amazon

Don't Judge Me by Linda Strachan

Review by The Mole

A group of teenagers out on the street of an evening and there is a fire in a flat. It's arson and someone is critically ill. Did one of the teenagers do it and if so which? There is no shortage of motives but surely there is only 1 person responsible?

Strachan has done it again - a story that brings real teenagers to the page, caught in situations that they really find themselves, showing decision making, reasoning and judgements that they actually make.

As I read this I witnessed the teenagers judging their peers and found myself party to those judgements. The thing was the only evidence we saw was even less than circumstantial. And when we finally learn what really happened - and everything falls into place - we suddenly understand the thinking of the teenagers and that our judgements were unfair.

Another excellent story of contemporary issues affecting the young adults of today.

Publisher - Strident
Genre - YA, crime fiction

Buy Don't Judge Me from Amazon

Red, White and Black by Matt Cartney

The Adventures Continue
Review by The Mole

Danny and his Uncle Angus learn of a war time briefcase lying buried on a Norwegian mountainside and tempted by the adventure of finding secrets that must no longer have value except as a story for the newspapers they set out to find it. Before long they are pursuing "Adler Kommando",  a group of terrorists that are about to threaten the lives of thousands of people.

For those who haven't read Sons of Rissouli you won't have met Danny Lansing - a young boy who has been orphaned and now lives with his Uncle Angus. Angus is an investigative reporter who travels the world pursuing stories and takes Danny with him - regardless of the school calendar!

Readers of Danny's first adventure will find his second adventure even better and this time we go from the the hot deserts of the the first story to the cold snowy wastes from Norway to the Alps and to Poland (occasionally returning to Angus's home in Dunkeld, Scotland). I found myself wanting to be there because so much of Danny's adventures are accessible - if you're fit and adventurous then you could be out there doing them, apart from coming up against terrorist organisations... please keep well clear of them!!

Absolutely fabulous adventure once again from the "Boy's Own" era that will have readers hankering to learn to ski and climb and get out there and do it.

Highly recommended to ALL readers of adventure stories. And apparently girls love Danny too!

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Boy's Adventure

Buy Red, White & Black (Danny Lansing Adventures) from Amazon

The Enchanted Riddle by Charlotte Kandel

Review by The Mole

Thirteen year old Daphne is an orphan living in St. Jude's orphanage and has a love of dancing. In fact it's more an all-consuming passion to be a ballerina. However a convent orphanage is not a place to be taught ballet and although Sister Mary Euphoria encourages and supports Daphne, that is as far as her dancing goes. Then one day a parcel arrives for Daphne containing a book called How To Teach Yourself Ballet and some stockings. Hand written inside the book is a riddle that Daphne feels she must get to understand. But who could have sent the parcel? And why to her?

I have to admit that I was taken aback by this book but knowing the publisher to be Strident, I shouldn't have been. The formula says the magical stockings make everything OK and she goes on to become the world's best ballerina, but not so. Throughout most of the book I wondered what the point of the stockings actually was!

This is a story of ambition, hard work, set backs and small successes. Despite the stockings she is told she is not good enough yet she continues to pursue her dream and works long hard hours, on her own, making her feet bleed, to improve with the help of the book only to be turned down yet again.

In these reviews I always try, but don't always succeed, to avoid reusing words but this book is magic, magic, magic! It shows a child who pursues her self belief, her ambitions, her dreams and how this all consuming goal can wreck friendships, families and trusts - or it can strengthen these bonds.

A wonderful story that will delight children, I'm sure, whether they have dreams yet or not.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Childrens' fiction (9+)

Buy The Enchanted Riddle from Amazon

Wolfie by Emma Barnes

The Ultimate Pet
Review by The Mole

Lucie loves her Uncle Joe because he always brings presents and one day he brings her a dog. Only Lucie can see it's a wolf not a dog, despite everyone insisting it is a dog. Then one day people start to notice that Wolfie might be a wolf, despite Lucie insisting he's a dog - and there is great danger for Wolfie because of it.

Emma Barnes has created some great characters in this story and I especially like the parents who come over as out of touch and unbothered - but are in fact, very typical modern busy parents seen through the eyes of a child. There is Marcus, a neighbour, bully and sneak who must always be the centre of attention. Alexis is the big brother type - protective and kind. Then of course, there's Wolfie. Wolfie is magical in that she can talk, but she is also a great friend and protector of Lucie - the perfect friend let alone the ultimate pet.

I simply loved Lucie and Wolfie and their magical relationship which sort of just happens from the moment they meet (I have a dog like that!) and I'm sure that children will love them too.

At 132 pages in length, the story is the perfect length to attract the 7+ reader and printed in an inviting format that makes an easily read book for younger readers. Although the main characters are female, because the story is about a 'dog', well a pet I suppose, it will appeal to boys and girls alike. Throughout the story there are delightful black and white illustrations by Emma Chichester Clark which add appeal for the younger reader.

Throughout the reading I found myself imagining this as a screenplay of some sort - everything just sort of fitted. A book I really enjoyed, and one that would be great as a bedtime read - although there are cliff hangers that may keep them awake!

All in all a delightful story of love, loyalty and trust and told with magic and fantasy that will captivate children of all ages.

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Childrens' fantasy

Buy Wolfie from Amazon

Keith Charters - Author/Publisher interview

When in Edinburgh we arranged to meet and share a pizza with Keith Charters. He was very approachable and our teen was delighted that he was not just book orientated but also showed an interest in her music. We are delighted that he managed to find time to be interviewed by us.

You worked in London as a stockbroker before taking up the pen and producing "Lee And The Consul Mutants". What was the inspiration behind Lee and why this particular story subject?
Actually, I ran a sales team involved in what are known as the wholesale financial markets – essentially where banks trade with other banks in financial products. Some, such as foreign exchange, were simple; others, such as credit default swaps, less so.
Did this have anything to do with Lee and the Consul Mutants?
No.

And yet yes – indirectly. By day I was Sales Director. By night I was a would-be author, with all the usual traits: a desk in my bedroom; an irrepressible need to write most evenings despite long hours at work; the same need on planes when I should have been trying to catch up on lost sleep. I started writing psychological thrillers, and they were okay – importantly they improved the more I wrote.
My oldest kids (twins) were aged about 9 at the time the idea for Lee and the Consul Mutants popped into my head. They’d been having a great laugh reading the likes of Michael Lawrence’s The Toilet of Doom. I loved that books were entertaining them in that way and thought I’d try writing a few lines about a boy whose appendix had exploded. Before I’d even finished the first page I knew it was what I should have been doing all along. It was so much fun!

When did you decide to leave stockbrokership and was it to become a writer or a publisher?
I’d already left to give myself some concentrated writing time. A brave/risky/stupid move, of course. I might have come to naught. But it didn’t. Sometimes putting yourself in the position of needing to make something work means you make it work. So I started as an author and at that point had no thought of becoming a publisher.
So how did I end up a publisher too? Well, my first publisher was small and I had a background in business. That meant I learned a lot. And after they’d expressed an interest in signing up Lee Goes For Gold and Lee’s Holiday Showdown (both of which I’d written by the time Lee and the Consul Mutants was published) I thought: could I do what my publisher is doing? And, perhaps because I’d done much of the marketing myself, I decided that I could…with help. Because I didn’t (and still don’t) know it all. But I’d found some great people who knew some of the bits I didn’t know. So we formed a team, each of us with different strengths.

It’s worth saying that from the outset we were focused on building a strong list. The fact that my books – already validated in the market – happened to be on it was incidental. But it was a neat starting point. Now, of course, they’re an increasingly small part of what we publish. I can’t write quickly enough for it to be otherwise!

You formed Strident Publishing in 2005. What was your first publication under this brand?
D A Nelson’s DarkIsle in October 2007. I remember the launch well. I’m sure Dawn does too – she was about 8 months pregnant by then. Helpfully, the book won the 2008 Royal Mail Awards for Scottish Children’s Books and promptly sold (mostly to parts of Random House) all around the world in rights deals.

At what point did you decide to move the Lee stories in-house?
From the outset. In fact, we bought back the rights to the first Lee novel to ensure we’d have control over the full series. My original editor also came over. That was important because she was used to telling me when my writing worked and when it didn’t, and she just carried no doing that. It meant we kept objectivity and that was important to me.
Many of the titles you publish are specifically for the 8-12 year old reader and recently you have published books by Emma Barnes, again aimed at that age group, was this reader Strident's original target market?
We originally saw our market as those of school age. Actually, we’ve avoided the 5-6 sector and gone for 7+. And whilst we didn’t expect to publish books for adults, the likes of Gillian Philip’s Firebrand and Bloodstone, and Janne Teller’s Nothing, having taken us there by virtue of their strong crossover appeal.
So, Emma’s novels (How (Not) To Make Bad Children Good and Jessica Haggerthwaite: Witch Dispatcher, both for ages 7+) are very firmly targeted at our core market.

Strident’s "Mission Statement" is 'Strident aims to produce books with a bit of spark; books that give young people a kick out of reading. They will be bold and modern and will cry out to be read and discussed.' How well do you feel Strident is achieving this?
Hopefully very well! In fact, although we have one list, there are two distinct parts to it. Our 7+ titles have a ‘modern classic’ feel – Paul Biegel’s The King of the Copper Mountains and Emma Barnes’s novels. Beyond 9+ the titles become increasingly feisty. Nick Green’s The Cat Kin and Cat’s Paw definitely fit that description and Linda Strachan’s Spider and Dead Boy Talking only take it a step further. Then there’s Janne Teller’s controversial and philosophical Nothing; and finally there’s Gillian Philip’s Firebrand and Bloodstone. I sometimes think the word ‘feisty’ was invented with those last two in mind.
And then come writers like Linda Strachan writing for the teen market, and Gillian Philip's "Bad Faith" and then... The Rebel Angels series. This series has appealed to the adult reader, although mostly the female readers. Did this take you by surprise?
We were delighted that Linda Strachan’s Spider won the 2010 Catalyst Award. Her teen/YA fiction is short, accessible and thought-provoking. We’ve always believed that would be a winning combination.

Then, as you say, along came Gillian’s Rebel Angels series. Now that has taken us to a new part of the market. The series was originally written as YA fiction, but as anyone who’s read Bloodstone will know, they are at least as much adult as YA. In fact we had a dilemma when publishing the first book: should we launch it into the main (i.e. adult) sci-fi fantasy market or into YA? Ideally we’d have gone for both, but retailers’ systems won’t allow that. It has to be listed in one or the other. Gillian had already been building a reputation in YA (she was Carnegie Medal nominated for Crossing The Line, and Bad Faith was very well received) so we eventually opted for that category. However, just to prove the extent of its crossover appeal, Tor in the USA have bought the entire 4-book series for their adult fantasy list, while Ravensburger in Germany are publishing it as a YA title.

Do you now have any intentions of publishing for the adult market?
Well, we didn’t, but we effectively do because of Firebrand, Bloodstone and Nothing. It’s not quite the same as having an adult list, of course. Do we plan one? Not quite yet.

As a keen gardener do you have any plans for horticultural books at all?
‘Keen gardener’. I like that description. It’s an improvement on my wife’s ‘obsessive veg planter’.
Of course, growing plants is like growing stories: you start off with the seed/seed of an idea, ensure it has the ideal growing environment (compost/coffee and cake) and then hope for the best. And there’s also an element of creating something out of nothing about both.
Do we have plans for horticultural books? If the right project (and people) came along we would certainly consider creating a separate imprint.
Would you rather be known as an author or a publisher?
I don’t see it as a choice between the two. Indeed, I would argue that both are essential to what I/we do. I meet a lot of authors because I’m an author myself and that’s been the channel through which many of our titles have come to us. Plus, presenting to young people gives me a keen sense of what they want. That informs our editing and the titles we acquire. And, on the other side, being involved in acquiring and shaping the books of others helps me focus on what I need to do with my own writing. Yes, there’s only one of me (don’t believe any of the claims that I’ve been cloned), but I manage to fit in publishing, presenting, writing (occasionally, and always on trains) and a few other things to boot.
A different – but relevant – question might be: which am I likely to become known for. Again, I hope both, with the answer being dependant upon who’s being asked. I’d hope that those in publishing would know me best for publishing; whereas I’d hope that young people aged 9+ would know me best for my Lee books and lively, humorous author sessions.

Many thanks for finding the time to answer our questions and best wishes for both projects in the future. And if there is an imprint for horticulture please remember - we also review non-fiction.
If you would like to follow Lee then he can be found at leenovels.blogspot.com

Bloodstone by Gillian Philip

A Heart-wrenching, Gut-mangling Read
review by Maryom

For this, the second in the Rebel Angels series, we're back with Sithe half-brothers, Conal and Seth, exiled in the mortal world until they can find the Bloodstone with which their Queen Kate NicNiven seeks to control both Fairy and Mortal worlds. Don't for a minute though confuse these 'fairies' with gossamer winged creatures of children's picture books. They're rough, tough fighting men - and women - with an ability to enter, and sometimes alter, minds - mainly keeping to their own side of the Veil.
Centuries have passed in the mortal world since the events of Firebrand. Seth, the hotheaded rebellious youth of Firebrand is older, not necessarily wiser, more wary of committing his affections, not quite bitter but someone who has been involved in many of mankind's wars and seen too much of the dark side of man to remain unscathed.
There are new characters though for Seth to share the limelight with - Finn MacAngus has been raised in the mortal world, as a fully mortal child, unaware that her family are Sithe exiled from the Fairy Realm on the other side of the Veil. When she accidentally ventures through, she feels that at last she has found a home, a place where she truly belongs - unfortunately not all the Sithe are as trustworthy and honest as Finn believes. Dragged along with her is Jed Cameron, a full mortal strangely at home there and his baby half-brother, in whom manipulative Queen Kate NicNiven seems a little too interested..

Bloodstone is yet another powerful dramatic read from Gillian Philip. She's not an author to let her characters, or her reader, off lightly and there's no pulling of punches when it comes to making them suffer. When you think the characters have all the emotional and physical turmoil they can stand - there's more to come! There was one certain passage at which I called a temporary halt to reading - put the book in the freezer for a while, as Joey from Friends does - because it didn't seem right and proper to carry on without a pause, so much was I involved with the characters, their pain and grief.

I missed the scenery, the dazzling seascapes of Firebrand, but as this book is set in winter under dull leaden skies and horizontal drizzle that's perhaps to be expected.

A heart-wrenching, gut-mangling read, aimed at teens/YA but as the series develops I'm convinced it's one that will increasingly appeal to adult readers. Parents - buy it for your teen and 'borrow' it!

Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Strident
Genre - fantasy, teen/YA /adult

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Lee On The Dark Side Of The Moon by Keith Charters

Moon Here We Come
Review By TheMole

Lee has entered a competition on the back of a cereal packet and has the opportunity to become the first boy to land on the moon. After under going a weeks extensive training he finds himself not as prepared as he would like and wishes he had listened more. Things don't go as planned and Lee has to make decisions which could leave him a hero but in the meantime he causes worldwide panic with gurus predicting the end of the world.

I have to admit to not having read any 'Lee' books before but then I am not the target readership group. My first impression was I found it difficult to read without laughing out loud all the time! The story is fast moving and humorous and written and printed in form that would make it very appealing to it's target audience, which I would anticipate as being the 6-8 year old early readers, although I don't see why older pre-teens wouldn't enjoy it. The humour, while sometimes lavatorial, is spot on for the age group and such that adults, if reading to children, don't feel embarrassed about either.

My only regret with this book is that I don't have a little one to read it to. This book is brilliant and pretty accurate as it also contains a lot of accurate facts about the moon missions. The one point it doesn't make is about sound not travelling in a vacuum. I have always wondered then why vacuum cleaners make so much noise? Perhaps Lee could tell me?

Publisher - Strident Publishing
Genre - Children's Adventure/Comedy

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