If you have occasionally glanced at my blog posts over the past nearly two years, you will have noted one consistent fact: there have been none! The last post was back in the early part of 2015, after which my focus shifted more my writing and less to my site. Something of an omission, on reflection, and I’ve decided that this post, in the final hours (in UK) of 2016, will be the first of more frequent offerings.
And given the time, may I wish a happy new year to all those in the world for whom midnight has already passed, and the same to everyone else as your own time zone creeps up to that special moment.
Along with more frequent posts, I am changing the default home page to the blog page, on the assumption that casual visitors often read what pops up and move on. Only some will click around the site. I hope you are one of those since there is much about my books there.
Since my last post, much has happened in my writing world. My fourth book, Irrefutable Evidence was self-published on Amazon in February 2016 and a sequel is now almost ready. Irrefutable Evidence has received universally favourable comments from those who have read it and a limited number of reviews, all but one of which are five star (the one other was a four star review on Amazon US). You can learn all about it on the Books page.
You will notice in the banner that my latest book is called Unfinished Business. Actually, it isn’t! Recently, I’ve been reviewing the title — which is a good title reflecting what the book is about. The problem is that there are more than 20 books on Amazon with the same title. Bit of a crowd, so I’m currently looking for something that represents the book to the same extent. As soon as I’ve decided, I’ll post it, the banner will change and this paragraph will become redundant. Post Script! My latest book has now been renamed ‘Murderous Motives’. As of today, 4 Jan 2017, it is still going through the editing mill.
Apart from all the crap that’s been going on worldwide in 2016 which we see and read about ad nauseam on a daily basis and which I do not want to repeat here, from a personal point of view it’s been an interesting year. For various reasons, Gail and I have decided to spend more time in England — yes, in spite of the nightmare that is Brexit and all the shameless liars and cheats who claim to be our leaders. And in spite of Brexit, the place is still good – of course nothing has changed yet apart from a greater abundance of hot air wafting around the country. It’s been forty years since either of us has lived here for any length of time, and to become resident again is a good feeling. Are we masochists? you ask. How do you cope with the weather after years working in Hong Kong and years in retirement spend in the Tuscan and Phuket sun? Well, interestingly, we’ve found the cooler weather a pleasant change. Our last sojourn in Phuket was almost six months, and frankly, the heat became too much. Yes, the daily walks along the beach at first light were and always will be magical, but the heat of the day is, well, hot, and neither of us is a sun worshipper. Of course we haven’t given up either place – we’re off to Phuket again shortly, after which we’ll be back in our own piece of paradise in the Tuscan hills for the summer. After that, we’ll be back here again expanding on the many things this country has to offer.
So far, over the past few months, amongst other things, we’ve explored, briefly, the rugged coastline of Northumberland on a wild December day, the wonderful RHS gardens at Harlow Carr, other gardens nearer to our current home in Lincolnshire, and taken regular and often bracing cycle rides in the mercifully flat Lincolnshire countryside. We were in Edinburgh for Christmas and in London visiting galleries. So much to do!
As I write this, I’m listening to Tchaikovsky’s 2nd piano concerto (yes, 2nd). It has the most amazing and unusual second movement in that in addition to the piano, it contains the most poignant violin and cello solos taking you from almost weepy depression to uplifted hope that is then reinforced by the jaunty third movement. It’s wonderful stuff and goes with the mood of the day. If you don’t know it, call it up on whatever music streaming you use; you won’t regret it.
May I once again wish you a happy, peaceful, healthy and prosperous new year, and let’s hope that in 2017 some of the madness currently prevailing is tempered with common sense and tolerance for others. We all share a wonderful planet and none of us has any more right to it than any other, and none of us has the right to spoil it for our fellow humans or for the millions of other species who have the same right to call it home.
