Will she captivate you too?
1880
A young woman sits for the painting of a miniature portrait – a fashionable betrothal gift – while secretly contemplating a terrifying decision that will change everything.
This Year
Freya Wetherby’s life is falling apart. Her jewellery business has failed and her boyfriend has betrayed her. Then she discovers a Victorian portrait miniature in her late mother’s belongings. Who is this intriguing young woman? Why is Freya becoming so obsessed by her?
As she embarks on a quest to discover the girl’s identity, a meeting with an art historian draws her into a fascinating but sinister series of salons where the Victorian art world is uncannily brought to life.
Past and present become dangerously blurred as Freya begins a perilous search for the truth about the portrait miniature – and herself.
Front cover image: Keith Corrigan/Alamy Stock Photo. Original oil painting by Arthur Hughes, 1864.
“The author’s insider knowledge of the London art world give an enticingly authentic flavour and the intricacies of jewellery design are fascinating… a thoroughly engaging mystery.” – Financial Times
“Fascinating… a modern mystery with a distinctly Victoria flavour.” – Nigel West
“An ingenious plot, masses of fabulous detail, a compelling mystery and, at its heart, a vindication for the rights of the female artist. Brava.” Elizabeth Buchan, author of Bonjour Sophie.
“A splendid, mysterious tale about Victorian art in which people are not quite what they seem.” Adam Hart-Davis, presenter of BBC TV’s What the Victorians Did for Us.
One of FAD magazine’s “top books for Autumn”
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
Meet Figgles, a very sad elephant, and Flo, a very wise old dog
Sad times can be so hard to go through and even harder to understand. That’s when we need a bit of extra help. In this touching story from Families in Grief, lonely Figgles learns to remember the good times with the people he has loved, and to look forward to new possibilities, through the kindness of his friend Flo.
Join two irresistible characters as they explore the journey of healing and get ready to make new memories.
“A beautiful, helpful and emotional story filled with understanding and hope for any child (of any age) dealing with grief. Just wonderful.” Linda Hill, book reviewer and blogger, Linda’s Book Bag
“A beautifully written and illustrated book for children who have suffered a loss in their lives.” Jackie’s Reading Corner
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
What would you do if you had more time? If you could hold the essence of time itself in your hands? Well, 12-year-old Krish is about to find out as he travels from world to world to collect the Myrthali – The Sands of Time – to save his mother’s life.
The Boy Who Stole Time and The Dream-Pedlars’ Parade are the first two books in the four-part YA fantasy series, Myrthali – a heart-racing adventure saga with a dyspraxic main character full of heart and humour for fans of Philip Pullman and Terry Pratchett.
In The Boy Who Stole Time, Krish travels to the tiny desert world of Ilir where a cruel king sets him three impossible challenges to win the Myrthali. He’ll dive into the Night Ocean, stumble upon the Breathing Palace, be pursued by creatures of shadow who appear every time he shuts his eyes, and witness the birth of FireHawks in a burning sky. He’ll be accompanied by the razor-tongued wizard Balthrir but his friendship with her will be tested to its limits…
In The Dream-Pedlars’ Parade, Krish journeys to KnockThrice, a gigantic Victoriana city the size of a universe where no one dreams, just as NightTime is declared. Once a year, dreams can be sold legally at The Dream-Pedlars’ Parade, and three rare dreams will lead Krish to discover the key to unlock the safe containing the Myrthali. With the help of a ShadowThief and a girl who can feel one hour into the future (and possibly an old friend too…) Krish will embark on a heart-racing journey across the darkened city.
Praise for The Boy Who Stole Time
‘An exhilarating, absorbing read. Full of wonder and adventure.‘ Irenosen Okojie
‘A tale of wildest imagining with unforgettable characters. This a masterful tapestry of great storytelling.‘ Jessica Martin
‘Fizzing with energy throughout. Twisting and turning from one adventure to the next, this is a truly magical book, masterfully written from a remarkably astute storyteller.‘ Ashley Hickson-Lovence
Praise for The Dream-Pedlars Parade
‘Heart-racing, heart-breaking and heart-warming – I couldn’t put it down!‘ Emma Brand
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
Get all three highly-praised short story anthologies, Taking Liberties, Order and Chaos and Elemental in paperback for the special price £14.99 (postage £4.99) and all three in ebook for £4.99 – these would make fantastic gifts for the readers in your life! Wonderfully eclectic dip-in-and-out-of reading and literary palate-cleansers and a fantastic introduction to authors you may not know yet.
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
from fire in the heavens to the water of life, from atoms and molecules to modern relationships, seventeen authors explore ‘the elements’ through the form of the short story.
Whether in the building blocks of the universe or the climatic conditions that sustain us, whether in the finer points of music and desire, or in the perfect conditions for creating wine and wonder, these are the fundamentals that shape who we are and how we live.
Playfully working with mystery and humour, poignancy and myth, futurism and the ancient past, the magic of fiction has the power to enlighten a deeper sense of truth.
Contributors: Zena Barrie, Mark Bowsher, Stephanie Bretherton, Jamie Chipperfield, Sue Clark, Jason Cobley, Stevyn Colgan, Samuel Dodson, Elena Kaufman, A,B. Kyazze, Pete Langman, Virginia Moffatt, Ivy Ngeow, Penny Pepper, Eamon Somers, Nicole Swengley, Damon Wakes
“Elemental is an exhilarating and enormously varied anthology of short stories from seventeen previously published authors. At times savage and riddling, at others gentle and profound, these tales deliver short, sharp shocks of literary brilliance.” Jude Cook, novelist and literary critic
“Elemental is the third book of short stories from Breakthrough Book Collective and again, a fantastic job has been done. It’s a collection of 17 thought provoking short stories, all truly entertaining and well written from 17 obviously immensely talented authors. There’s humour, there’s mystery, there’s sadness. You’ll laugh, you might even cry.” David Brockway, book blogger
Cover design from the artwork A Storm in Heaven and Hell by J B Wiskey www.wiskey.art
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freedom is met in a dozen different guises and in worlds where nothing is quite what it seems. Mirth and myth, mystery and magic, noir and memoir lay the imaginative ground from which this often surprising collection has emerged.
There’s plenty more to come from our nascent publishing venture (and this website) so we hope you’ll consider Taking Liberties for your bookshelves… and joining us on our journey!
“A cornucopia of delights. From the very first story I was struck by the skill and literary nature of the writing. Many have plots that would translate brilliantly into television dramas or films, with so much packed into them. An intelligent, carefully crafted and rewarding collection with something for every reader.” Linda Hill, Linda’s Book Bag
“Although very different, the stories are all extremely well written and elicit a plethora of emotions in the reader. All of human life is here, and you will be delighted by the variety of approaches the writers have taken.” Julie Morris, A Little Book Problem
“A brilliant collection of short stories and slices of life that will stay with you and leave you wanting more!” Ste Sharp, author
Contributors: Stephanie Bretherton, Jamie Chipperfield, Sue Clark, Jason Cobley, Stevyn Colgan, Samuel Dodson, A.B. Kyazze, Virginia Moffatt, Ivy Ngeow, Eamon Somers, Paul Waters and PJ Whiteley.
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
a disappearing boyfriend and AI with daddy issues, a balloon bound for icy danger and a mysterious theft at the museum, a sinister woodland cabin and a pleasure house that’ll cost much more than you can afford.
Raiding parties in dystopia, art classes in the city, opposites attracting and love catching fire. Separations and siblings, life and death decisions, flying into trouble and traveling to self-discovery…
Which comes first, chaos or order? The cycles between may seem inevitable, and change may be the only constant, but what does that mean for the human experience?
Sixteen authors from the Breakthrough Books collective explore our relationships with nature and technology, science and the sacred, each other and ourselves, offering an array of stories as individual as every reader.
Contributors: Eli Allison, Mark Bowsher, Stephanie Bretherton, Jamie Chipperfield, Jason Cobley, Stevyn Colgan, Sue Clark, Samuel Dodson, Miles Hudson, A.B. Kyazze, Pete Langman, Virginia Moffatt, Eamon Somers, Nicole Swengley, Damon L. Wakes, PJ Whiteley.
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
A young woman walks alone through a barren landscape in a time before history, a time of cataclysmic natural change. She is cold, hungry and with child but not without hope or resources. A skilful hunter, she draws on her intuitive understanding of how to stay alive… and knows that she must survive.
In the present day, geneticist Dr Eloise Kluft wrestles with an ancient conundrum as she unravels the secrets of a momentous archaeological find. She is working at the forefront of contemporary science but is caught in the lonely time-lock of her own emotional past.
Bone Lines is the story of two women separated by millennia yet bound by the web of life. This intriguing tale of love and survival, of courage and the quest for wisdom also explores the nature of our species and asks what lies at the heart of being human.
Book 1 in The Children of Sarah series, look out soon for The Fire In The Eyes…
“Gracefully written… a brave and moving adventure of the imagination.”
Lindsay Clarke, author of The Chymical Wedding
“Terrific scope and a powerful narrative that keeps you turning the pages, while throwing up profound questions about humankind. Bravo – a great debut!” Jane Johnson, author and editor
“A brilliant, genre-defying read, Bone Lines deftly unravels the wonder of oneness.”
Barbara Bos, Editor, Women Writers, Women s Books.
“Ambitious and brave yet effortlessly pulled off… Like Sapiens… if fictionalised and seen through the eyes of two fierce and admirable women.”
Sarah Wingfield, Zero Filter Books
“A monument to the timelessness of human nature, and a work of art… a masterpiece of pacing. Bretherton ignites her characters with a life, complexity, a personality with which any number of readers will identify and empathise.”
Naomi Moore, Editor, New Orbit literary magazine
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
and a man on the edge. Where there is war, natural disaster or political crisis, Malek is in the midst of it, but years of conflict reporting have taken their toll and he is slowly unravelling.
Born a Muslim but an atheist to his core, Malek’s voyage takes him around the world and back in time to ancient Babylon, as he finds himself arguing with a God in whom he does not believe. A keen reader, his ‘madness’ is heightened by a strange book that keeps appearing on his Kindle, telling the stories of people he has briefly encountered during his career.
In Truth, Madness takes place in the Middle East, South Asia and London against a backdrop of war, religion, political skullduggery and emerging love, taking the reader on a tumultuous journey through the most dangerous arenas of modern culture and the ancient world.
Is Malek losing his mind, or is he experiencing an astonishing kind of truth?
“A beautifully written, magical tale of mental health and international news.” — Dareen Abughaida, principal anchor for Al Jazeera English
“Unusual. Intriguing… I couldn’t put it down.” — Barbara Mainville, book critic.
“Funny, clever, relatable and deeply moving.” — Horia El Hadad, documentary maker
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
shares the inspiring story of Africa Bridge, a pioneering social enterprise that has developed an independently validated model for lifting rural African communities out of extreme poverty.
Founder Barry Childs understood that to transform vulnerable children’s lives a secure revenue stream was needed, enabling them to be nurtured and educated, and offering realistic opportunities to achieve their potential. Africa Bridge establishes agricultural cooperatives and children’s committees, by actively empowering village women, to generate sustainable incomes while meeting social needs. This community-based, child-focused approach provides a blueprint for ethical development.
Barry’s personal journey from son of an agricultural officer to visionary leader dedicated to service (and winner of the Purpose Prize) is compellingly described in the book. Backed by academic research, it provides not only a proof of concept for Africa Bridge, but a promising blueprint for meaningful development work. For anyone interested in the future of equitable development, And the Children Shall Lead Us offers an eye-opening and engaging read.
Also available from all good book retailers, but thank you for directly supporting Indie authors and publishers!
An ancient cave newly unearthed in Yemen.
A scientific research facility in the Norwegian Arctic.
A fertile valley, home to an isolated tribe in prehistoric Kenya.
In book two of The Children of Sarah series, Dr Eloise Kluft is wrenched from a life filled at last with love to join the battle against a new biological threat.
In a distant era, an ageing shaman must draw on inherited gifts and hard-earned wisdom to face the terrifying dangers foreseen for her family.
Looking to an uncertain future, a hopeful young couple navigate the fraught path to parenthood in a world where nothing makes sense except the courage to love.
The Fire in Their Eyes follows characters first encountered in Bone Lines, as they negotiate life’s risks and joys, and as the heritage of our remarkable human journey is passed along.
“An engrossing, urgent, polyphonic novel about the connections between the planet’s deep past and our present unstable, unpredictable world, driven by a memorable cast of characters. A joy to read.” Jude Cook, novelist and literary critic, including for The Guardian
By Wilf Blackburn
With a Foreword by Professor Andrew Scott, London Business School
The high profile of a Chief Executive Officer, and the strong results of the best-performing businesses, give an impression that business leadership constitutes the art of maximising: of short-term revenues, of pace of change, of employee engagement. Serial CEO Wilf Blackburn explains how effective organisational leadership involves an optimal blend of apparent opposites: humility and confidence, delegation and decisiveness, reliability and innovative capability. This builds a culture that combines high performance and psychological safety.
Such findings are not new – yet they are not universally applied. Optimal Leadership includes a discussion on why progress on implementing the evidence base for the high-performing workplace has been patchy. He addresses the real difficulties a CEO faces, and offers practical advice on how to implement the principles. In an age in which we have learned that resilience is as important as innovation, Optimal Leadership is an essential guide.
‘After reading this book you will be armed with the tools and questions to succeed but above all with the confidence and clear-mindedness to tackle the task.’ – Professor Andrew Scott, London Business School
‘After reading this book you will be armed with the tools and questions to succeed but above all with the confidence and clear-mindedness to tackle the task.’ – Professor Andrew Scott, London Business School
The Fire in their Eyes, by Stephane Bretherton, the sequel to her Kindle-bestselling debut, Bone Lines,
plus re-issues of
The Continuity Girl by Patrick Kincaid
and
Killing Beauties by Pete Langman.
As seen at Margate Bookie on Friday 20th October.
‘Authors Take Control’ – 4pm in Droit House
