Uncategorized

by

October recommendations, 2023

An October apple crop opposite a friend’s house.

TV and films

Wheel of Time Season 2***** Amazon Prime.I hope they continue for the originally planned 8 seasons since I can’t see how they could finish the story in the currently committed three. So far from the books that I’m getting confused but it’s still splendid. The locations and costumes are superb and the story, though confusing at times, is intriguing. Sometimes when you know the book that isn’t the case, but here they’ve tweaked just enough to retain interest in what happens next.

Amazing Railway Adventures with Nick Knowles: Romania***** Ch 5. The presenter brings a really personal touch to his travel stories and visits some iconic places. I particularly liked this episode with Dracula’s castle, but all the series is worth watching.

The Tape ***** YouTube. We rewatched this delightful romance set in Cornwall. The director and the lead actors are friends which is why we watched it initially but it was really good.

Books

Highly recommended

Disrupted Engagement by Nicky James (V&D)***** I think this series just gets better and better. The character development is superb, and the cases that accompany the romance are nicely complex and always solved. However, I understand from her newsletter that the next volume will not have any police work in it which is a shame, even though I love the characters and will be interested in their wedding planning.

Equinox by Eli Easton and RJ Scott**** Another mystery for the sheriff and the man he is beginning to care for, this time involving wolves. Great follow-up to Solstice.

The Village Healer’s Book of Cures by Jennifer Sherman Roberts***** Excellent historical with paranormal elements and an unexpected (m/f) romance. Based around Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder.

Lightning Strike Blues by Gayleen Froese ***** Refreshing take on superhero theme. Hints of a happy ending for Gabe though there is no in-book romance. This was an ARC and I have reviewed it in more detail elsewhere.

Recommended

I followed Twist in the Tale on RJ Scott’s website, which had various authors writing short stories on the Halloween theme. I didn’t read them all – I tend to back away from horror, and from stories set in series I’m not familiar with, but enjoyed those I did read. There’s something for everyone but I think she’s taking the series down at the end of November so hurry! I must recommend: Heart-shaped Box by Suki Fleet.**** The story is exciting. It references and uses minor characters from Foxes but you don’t need to have read that.

Home Improvement by Tara Lain**** Basically just a nice romance but mixed with rock star problems of fame which made it interesting.

Morning Report by Sue Brown.**** A nice mix of angst and romance for ranchers Luke and Simon. Sue’s stories are mostly UK based so a ‘western’ series is a new treat. Hunted Mate by Sue Brown**** An excellent first book in what promises to be an interesting series, providing safety for shifters on Sapphire Ranch which, whilst set in America and on a ranch is not particularly ‘western’. The focus in on the shifters who are in danger and their human mates.  I intend to follow the series.

Alec by Kaje Harper**** This is an exciting romance/thriller in the Single Dads of Gaynor Beach series by various authors. I might try some of the others. The Rebuilding Year by Kaje Harper**** Why did I think I’d already read this? Great story with a lot of excitement though I could have done without the fire which is a personal trigger and not a criticism.

The Long Game by Ellie Thomas**** Beautifully written mm romance set in eighteenth century Britain, featuring  a Black protagonist and his extended family. Also A Marriage for Three by Ellie Thomas **** I bet Georgette Heyer would like to have written this! A regency romance with a difference. This was another ARC and a very welcome one.

Tinker’s Apprentice by Jordan Castillo Price **** Quirky novella with some unusual mechanical magic and strange ‘counterparts’ (soulmates?) called auxiliars.

Can’t fool me by Fiona Glass **** Fun short story which is a sequel to Ghosts Galore. Just right for Halloween. Free to download at https://www.prolificworks.com/author/fiona-glass

Out of the Shadows by Jamie Lynn Miller**** Nice story about a cop and an actor abused by his ex. The story explored the reasons people sometimes stay with abusers.

by

New free ficlet in my Living Fae universe.

I’ve just uploaded a ficlet in the Living Fae series to my Free Stuff page. It’s called The Party and was written for a Dreamwidth group who celebrate Monsterfest every October. This week’s prompt was Shifters and whilst I don’t see the shifters in my stories as monsters in any sense, the story immediately sprang to mind. This was pleasing because I have recently had a dearth of ideas…

I won’t be writing during November despite the common Nanowrimo vibe of the month, mainly because I’ll be concentrating on reformatting a novel for Smashwords. Cue groan. I moved The Skilled Investigators into KU and of course had to remove them from Smashwords. I realised I’d have to change the back matter in my books to reflect the fact that from a Smashwords point of view The Skilled Investigators no longer exists. Oh well, I thought, I might switch back again or I might move other books, and I might write more. So I carefully, or so I thought, composed a section for the back matter that told people how and where to find my books without committing the heinous crime of mentioning Amazon on Smashwords or vice versa. I edited the Smashwords versions with no apparent problems. Then Smashwords assured me that two novels now needed total reformatting before they could be sent to other sites. I’ve done one and had it accepted. Now for the other. It’s very boring and time consuming work but I hope to finish it in November. Meanwhile, the novel is still available on Smashwords but I’m not sure in which formats. And since epub are the ones refusing the new versions, and Amazon are switching from mobi to epub, watch this space. Maybe it’s a good job I have no plot bunnies desperate to be written at the moment!

by

A Romance for Halloween

This is not my photo – I got it from Wikipedia – but I have one the same only my scanner isn’t working.

Some years ago I posted about my own slightly spooky experiences at the site of Hitler’s Wolf’s Lair in Eastern Poland https://wordpress.com/post/jaymountney.com/594 This year I’ve turned that and our subsequent travels in the region into an mm romantic ghost story for a FB group I belong to.

All the details about Poland and Germany are as I recall them but I was there with my husband and we started off with a trip along the Baltic coast, only visiting Berlin on the way home. We used the ferry via Hamburg, not Hull.

The story is now ‘live’ on my ‘free stuff’ page, https://jaymountney.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/the-invitation-halloween-2023.docx so if you want a Halloween romance or just want to follow my trip round Poland and ignore the romance, or both, go ahead and download!

by

A brief coda to The Skilled Investigators series

The image is public domain from clipart

I belong to a writers’ group on Dreamwidth and every October they run a ‘Monsterfest’ with prompts to inspire ficlets. A recent prompt was ‘dragons’ and Scratch’s voice from my fantasy detective series was very insistent in my head. This is the result. It will lack something if you aren’t familiar with the novels, but to some extent I hope it stands alone. I have also put a link to it on the relevant page (see the tabs at the top of the blog). There is a better illustration on the linked document, also from clipart.

The Treatment of Prisoners

Scratch surveyed the chaos. Elves were really quite stupid at times. Why had the criminals thought they could outrun a dragon and hide their stash of drugs? They must have realised he was a registered and qualified Skilled Investigator from the Guild. He proudly wore a lanyard announcing his status and he had shouted to them on his public broadcast wavelength, suggesting fairly forcibly that they should surrender.

However, they had run instead, and now they were scattered around the field where he had caught up with them, all lying on their backs staring up at the angry dragon, their packages strewn around them. There was a small firepit in the centre of the field. He had merely wanted to frighten them into submission but it seemed he had terrified them so that they all collapsed, just as though they were theatrical puppets and their strings had been suddenly cut. He sighed and reminded himself to see the farmer later to compensate for the field damage. He called for back-up. He had a new partner, someone he was learning to communicate with privately. Alvon evidently heard his mental message and was soon with him. Alvon carried handcuffs and made short work of restraining the drug dealers. Scratch carried cuffs too but was still nervous about injuring someone if he tried to cuff them and they resisted. He gave Alvon his cuffs – neither carried enough for this group.

They really were puppets, Scratch reflected. The puppeteer was still a shadowy figure and he hoped they would be able to get one of this crop of villains to tell them enough to work out who was ultimately responsible and where they could be found. He suspected, however, that the mastermind was human and comparatively safe in the human realm.

The dragon, like his fellow investigators, felt angry about drugs. They were a human thing, not an elvish one, but they had recently crossed the border into The Kingdom, no doubt lining the pockets of those who manipulated the dealers who themselves were greedy and uncaring about the distress they sold. The users were elves who wanted release from grief or depression and did not understand that human drugs would provide neither. The usual effects on elves were a worsening of either or both but by then the dealers were long gone.

Scratch wished he had Genef by his side but she was off with her new husband, Vikor, enjoying what both humans and elves called a meadseason. Why mead was involved he couldn’t imagine but he hoped there would be eggs. He half understood the explanation given frequently and patiently that elves and humans did not lay eggs as dragons did, but surely eggs must be involved somehow. Otherwise, how could there possibly be baby elves? In any case, Genef was unavailable and Rath, who had been a superb mentor to both of them, was abroad doing something complex and dangerous whilst his husband was desolate and lonely at home. So Alvon had volunteered to work with Scratch and although they got along well, Alvon was not Genef and Scratch felt somehow adrift.

He created a cage with his talons and Alvon ushered their captives into it. He would take them back to the Guild House and get others involved in interrogating them. He couldn’t be expected to question a dozen of them all by himself and Alvon was not experienced enough yet to conduct an interview without his mentor present. In some ways Scratch wished he could be that mentor. Then he would have more control over Alvon’s training and time management. But he knew he wasn’t yet at a stage where he could mentor anyone, and he supposed he should just be glad someone had offered to take Genef’s place temporarily and that their mentor had liked the idea.

He delivered his load of prisoners to the Guild House quite roughly, simply opening his talon cage and tumbling them out onto the central courtyard. He didn’t much care if they were bruised or shaken. They had caused a great deal of distress and deserved a little bit of misery in return.

He messaged Fel to say he’d soon be back at the apartment he shared with Fel and Rath. At least, he occupied the roof. First he would stop for some of those delicious pebbles on the shore. He needed to recharge his fire, after all. He could also catch some fish for supper though he would keep his own share back. Fel would only ruin them with cooking. Why elves liked burnt food was beyond him.

“One consignment of drug dealers,” he told the elf on duty at the Guild House doors. “They’ll all need to be interrogated and I just hope we can find their overall leader.”

“Could be human,” responded the elf and Alvon, who had also arrived, nodded. Scratch had already come to that conclusion but he nodded too, noticing that the prisoners shivered when they saw his great head bobbing.

“I could find him, her, them,” he said. “I could snatch them and bring them here.”

“Maybe,” said Alvon, “but wait till you have permission.”

Scratch sighed. Once upon a time he would have gone ahead and done whatever his dragon soul deemed appropriate to people who hurt other people whether the victims were elf, human or dragonkind. But he knew he must stick to the rules of the Guild. After all, he was a fully accredited Investigator now.  

The link to the PDF is now live at the very bottom on the page on The Skilled Investigators. It took me days to work out how to do it…

by

September recommendations

September fruit. A poor harvest this year – the blossom and the insects didn’t come at the same time!

Recommended viewing:

The Woman in the Wall BBC***** Excellent drama based around the people and communities involved in the Magdalen Laundries in Ireland.

DNA Season 2**** Enjoyable follow up to Season 1. BBC iPlayer

Into Death Valley with Nick Knowles. Ch 5. **** Fascinating.

BBC Proms especially Chineke with Akugbo playing Haydn’s trumpet concerto. Mostly on iPlayer. I won’t give the series stars because it really does depend on your tastes so check the programmes before watching.

Recommended reading: (a good crop for September – better than the pears)

Fiction:

Mr Mercedes by Stephen King***** for the writing but I didn’t personally like it and particularly hated the planned attack on a concert which mirrored, for me, the attack on the Manchester Arena so recently.  

Just Stay Away by Tony Wirt***** Gripping thriller where a young boy threatens the main character’s sanity. Amazon freebie when I got it but it’s cheap and it’s on KU.

Midnight in the Renaissance Elevator  by various authors ***** Excellent anthology centred round a misbehaving elevator at a writers’ con which inspired the collection. There’s a mix of heat, paranormal elements, etc. but the standard is consistently high and I can guarantee that you’ll enjoy at least the majority, whatever your personal tastes. However, I ought to warn you that Remi Varlow’s story is a teaser for a series and not just a story set in the ‘verse of a series so unless you know their writing and think you might continue, you could skip it. The anthology is sold in aid of a charity, The Trevor Project.

Woods of the Raven by Mary Calmes***** A small town witch deals with incursions by evil fae. Good use of myth and legend, and a nice slow burn romance.

Stone Heart by Jenn Burke***** A lovely ending to the gargoyle trilogy.

Magic Burning by Kaje Harper***** Superb addition to the Carnival of Mysteries series.

Gluttony and other hungers by TJ Nichols***** Bittersweet finale to the Mytho series though I believe there’s to be a spin-off novel about two minor characters. The focus here was mostly on the wedding (plus the hate crimes surrounding it) and was a fascinating look at cultural differences.

Speaking in silence by Jackson Marsh***** Excellent mystery for the Larkspur Academy men. This time, an earldom for Archer is at stake.

These Toxic Things by Rachel Howzell Hall**** Excellent crime story despite being written in present tense. Unusual main character who creates memory banks with holograms etc.

Roustabout by Morgan Brice (Carnival of Mysteries)**** A great addition to the series. Both MCs are also people with magical powers so it’s just that bit different.

Repairing Destiny by Geneva Vand**** Nicely told YA mm fantasy adventure involving a prince and his mate.  Reviewed in more detail for Scott Coatsworth.

Non-fiction:

The Fallen Stones by Diana Marcum**** (Non-fiction) Fascinating account of a journalist’s sojourn in Belize, writing about a butterfly farm that supplied the living butterfly exhibits worldwide. It was made more interesting in that it brought real life elements to Julie Bozza’s The Butterfly Hunter trilogy and NR Walker’s Imago series both of which I loved.

Factfulness by Hans Rosling**** (Non-fiction).Interesting explanation of why we get the wrong impressions about various world issues. I got more than an average score on the initial questions so maybe I’m not the target audience. For those I got wrong my guesses (which might still have been wrong) were mostly informed by more up to date data. The book was published pre-covid and pre the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the war in Ukraine.

by

August 2023 viewing and reading

In our August garden

I’ve been watching (other than news and sport)

Earth. BBC. **** Chris Packham presents a history of origins in David Attenborough style. Worth viewing.

Why buildings collapse BBC **** Frightening look at why some building collapse without apparent warning. The focus is on the apartments in Florida but the current situation with RAAC in UK makes it compulsive viewing.  

I’ve been reading a lot (the Brit summer didn’t happen) and can highly recommend the following:

Wrath and other Troubles by TJ Nichols***** Lovely (as usual) volume in the Mytho series. After the vote as to whether the paranormals are human…

Seeing through Shadows by Jackson Marsh***** Great addition to the Larkspur Mysteries – Chester (new character) and Frank Andino.

To love the dragon king by Antonia Aquilante ***** A new writer to me. Gorgeous mm fantasy romance with enough thriller element to counteract sweetness. This was an ARC but I’m very happy to promote it. I’ve reviewed it in more detail for Scott’s review site.

Defying Logic by Nicky James***** Excellent missing persons mystery in the Doyle and Valor series with Quaid and Aslan developing their relationship and their lives in the aftermath of the previous book. I don’t think it would be as good if not read in order.

Help Wanted by Marshall Thornton***** Nice addition to the series (Pinx Videos in LA). Javier is wrongly accused.

Solstice by Eli Easton and RJ Scott***** Will definitely follow the series! Sheriff and animal behaviourist investigate murder with help from a dog.

The Blue Bar by Damyanti Biswas***** Another new writer to me. Gripping crime story set in Mumbai. Will order the sequel when it comes out. Interesting to see similarities and differences between Indian and UK police (with their common origin).

Sapphire Water by Adam J Ridley***** This rounds off the series with the siblings getting jewels and having to deal with various paranormal problems. This time it’s a ‘lost’ half brother. It was good seeing all the characters again and watching the town develop. Satisfactory conclusion to the story arc.  

Stardust Wake and Jurassic Dark by Si Clarke. ***** Quirky shorts in the Starship Teapot ‘verse including how Lem got Spock!

Tracefinder: Contact by Kaje Harper. ***** Totally intriguing story about an undercover cop (Nick) and a guy with the ability to ‘find’ people (Brian).  The series continues with Changes**** and  Choices**** Well worth following the whole story.

by

A flash fic for you – and links to some more

The Romantic Reads group I belong to is running a summer flash fic challenge, based on photographs voted on by the group. My fic got its outing today, and I hope you’ll like it and also have a look at the others posted so far. It’s been an interesting thing to do. Some time ago I was in an online writing group where we wrote weekly flash fics to a prompt and critiqued each other’s work; I learnt a lot from that experience. It really is a challenge to produce a story that contains all the information you need about the world and characters in less than a thousand words and make the plot interesting too.

Summer Flash Challenge #3: Jay Mountney
by

Recommended viewing and reading from July 2023

Those Easter lambs grew up and are indistinguishable from their mothers apart from the fact that the mothers are shorn.

Just recommendations again, with one warning.

TV

There she goes. **** BBC iPlayer David Tenant in a fascinating series about  a family with a severely learning disabled child.

Umbrella Academy Season 3**** Netflix How dark can it get? And now we have to wait till 2024 and hope the actor/writer strike doesn’t make it even further away.

Books

The Butterfly Hunter boxed set by Julie Bozza**** Trilogy of novels plus a short story.A lovely mm romance set mostly in the Australian outback with elements of paranormal or at least a nod to Dreamtime stories.

Dead Souls by Ian Rankin.**** Gripping novel in the Rebus series – one I’d missed!

Power of Zero series by Jackie Keswick****

I’d read the first in this series and finally got to the rest!

House Hunt**** Jack goes UC re drugs, then gets kidnapped during investigation re break ins at Nancarrow Mining. Quite tense and complex.

Swings and Roundabouts **** More excitement for Jack and Gareth. Murder mystery in Sweden.

Dating Games ****  shorts set during the other novels

Apidae by Xenia Melzer**** Possibly the last in a great series about a detective who can communicate with insects, spiders, etc. .

Unstable Connections by Nicky James**** Discoveries re Juniper in the Doyle/Valor series.

Inevitable Disclosure by Nicky James***** Really gripping plot and the Doyle/Valor relationship is progressing nicely.

The Altered 3 by Anabelle Jacobs**** This finishes the story arc nicely. An interesting shifter mm trilogy.

The Distant Echo by Val McDermid**** It was weird reading something I watched on TV ages ago. Some differences – I think due to them wanting to give detective Karen Pirie a greater role in this first of a TV series.

Overdue and Occultism by Jamie Sands**** Sweet mm story featuring a witch and a ghost hunter in a haunted NZ library.

The Clockwork City by Shelley Adina **** Excellent addition to her steampunk universe, plus a murder investigation. An ARC read which I have reviewed for Scott Coatsworth

Luck of the Draw by Addison Albright**** Nicely told story of an arranged marriage but a bit short. Another ARC read with a review for Scott

The Untouchable Sky by Will Forrest* One star because it ended on a cliffhanger without ever having referred to a series. Quite an intriguing story about a young man who learns about his magic in adulthood after having been treated as insane. Included here as a warning. By all means read it if you’re happy to read the entire series.

by

Some reviews for June 2023

I happily rewatched Casablanca, and saw a lot of the coverage of Glastonbury. Nothing else of note.

Books

A stand-alone non fiction book:

The Vanishing Triangle by Claire McGowan*** An absorbing look at crime against women in modern Ireland but it was rather repetitive. Written by a crime author rather than a journalist it was surprisingly poorly structured. Very thought provoking, and has broader implications for other countries too.

Some series:

I really enjoy good series, and find a great deal of pleasure in getting to know the characters, both major and minor, in detail, and being immersed in the location.

General fantasy

Empire of Grass by Tad Williams**** General fantasy. This volume hooked me into the universe just as much as book 1 but I resented the way it ended on cliffhangers for virtually all the main characters. Plus the sequel is priced higher for the ebook despite a font problem which had me nearly giving up with the first book which I had in paperback.

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett**** Fascinating magic and world building. There is a  sequel. This is not an mm series but there is a delightful ff pairing of minor characters which is treated as perfectly normal and adds to the pleasure of the story.

Series with mm focus:

Broadway Butchery by CS Poe***** Book 3 in the Memento Mori series. I find both Larkin and Doyle totally fascinating, and the mysteries are nicely complex as is their relationship. Highly recommended. .

Eruca by Xenia Melzer**** Good second investigation for this pair. Andy’s ability to communicate with insects is both helpful in terms of police work and devastating for him.

Elusive relations by Nicky James**** I am following this series set in Toronto about this couple of detectives in an enemies to lovers situation.  

Ellery Mountain series by RJ Scott****  There are ten books altogether and I have now read them all. It’s nice to follow multiple characters and get to know the town plus following the setting up of a retreat for veterans. Each story is ‘just’ a pleasant and well written romance but the series as a whole deserves four stars for the world building and the way even minor characters are developed so that the reader cares what happens to them.

Hidden Gem by Lissa Kasey. **** I like Lissa’s writing. This is an mm series. Worth wading through the mild bdsm to get the fascinating sci fi plot. I might read book 2 but suspect a lot of the story has already been covered, briefly, and it’s about minor characters from book 1 rather than more about the main pairing, which I liked.

by

Recommendations from May 2023 viewing and reading

Flowers bought to add cheer to a cool wet May.

I found my extensive lists were getting in the way of my writing, so will, for the time being, just entio things of real note.

Viewing:

Unforgotten Season 5. ITV . I had been sad to lose Cassie as the lead detective but thought her replacement was great. Jessie is an interesting character with her own set of personal problems and this helped develop Sunny’s character too. A strong plot with a clever ending enabled the series to branch out from the old formula which I thought was getting a bit tired.

Annika Season 1. BBC. Where Nicola Walker ended up after Cassie ‘died’ in Unforgotten! Interesting police drama with quite a lot of the main character, Annika, ‘speaking’ her thoughts to the audience which was a new ‘breaking the fourth wall’ departure for cop shows in my experience.  Nice locations from Glasgow out to the islands.

Reading

The Witchwood Crown by Tad Williams. This is the first novel in the new series (The Last King of Osten Ard) set in the kingdoms familiar from Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. I’d read the bridging book, The Heart of What was Lost. I don’t think anyone who hadn’t read the first series or the bridge would have the slightest chance of understanding what was going on, but I was completely hooked and drawn back into the world. Simon, hero of the first series and now high king, is reaching the end of his reign but old problems are returning. Fabulous cast of well developed characters, and some superb world building. I really feel as if I’d been in Osten Ard. I have already bought book 2 – in ebook format this time. Book 1 was a requested gift, in paperback format, and the font was so small I had serious problems reading it but had to know what happened.