It's been a while...

I could say I haven't posted for a while because I've been hard at work on the next novel, and that would be partly true. But it's also because it's too easy to get distracted in a literary city like Edinburgh.

Take this evening, for examp[e. National Library of Scotland hosted a 'New Voices' event featuring four debut novelists in conversation with literary agent Jenny Brown and reading from their books. Well, it would have been churlish not to attend, wouldn't it? But, of course, that now means even more distraction - all those new novels that need to be read: Shelley Day's The Confession of Stella Moon (matricide and family secrets - compelling, dark and left me desperate to read more), Allyson Stacks's Under the Heartless Blue (widowed book-keeper takes job in boarding house only to find it's a brothel) and Dorothy Alexander's The Mauricewood Devils (based on a real life, terrible mining disaster where the culpable were absolved of responsibility).

For those of you that have been counting, you're right - that's just three.  I've omitted Lesley Kelly's A Fine House in Trinity from my list because she hasn't added to my heavy work load; I've already read it, loved it and can highly recommend it, if you like your Tartan Noir with a healthy dose of humour.  

​Looking forward to the next New Voices event in November...