New Book Release Spotlight with Author Guest Post: Unbound Ties by Liz Mistry

Including Covid in Unbound Ties

Recently in various Facebook book groups there’s been a lot of talk about whether books written during the current pandemic should mention Covid 19 or not. As always with these things there have been mixed reactions and it left me in two minds about whether to include any mention of Covid 19 in Unbound Ties or not.

Harper Collins HQ Digital, who publish my Nikki Parekh books suggested I don’t mention it at all in my new Nikki novel, Dark Memories which isn’t due out until 2^nd Dec this year. As I wrote Dark Memories mostly in January/ February and because no one knew quite how bad things would become, I was happy to do this and so although Dark Memories is released after Unbound Ties, it includes no Covid References.

The thing is – it’s easy for an author to write a contemporary novel and omit to reference tragic notable events if they only affect a small number of people or a small area of the world. But Covid 19 has had such a far reaching effect on the entire world – no-one, literally no-one, has been unaffected by it. Likewise, I appreciated that many readers wanted their reading worlds to be a Covid free zone. So I decided to crack on with the writing and see what happened

When I began writing Unbound Ties in July, I realised that, having lived with Covid for a few months, I couldn’t really pretend it didn’t exist and that it could possibly be merged into the story line in a non-intrusive way. However, I was really wary of making it a dominant feature of the novel, so was at great pains to reference it sparingly and according to some of my ARC readers, I managed that quite successfully (huge sigh of relief). The way I did that was to occasionally mention social distancing or the wearing/or not wearing of masks in a way that didn’t interfere with the narrative.

That said, there were two areas where I felt duty bound to mention the effects of Covid rules on policing, because they really intrigued me as I was writing the story and because it fed so well into the plot.

The first was when Gus had to interview a grieving spouse at the police station. In this scene I focussed on the way social distancing and mask wearing affected both the grieving husband and Gus. The masks made interviewing and reading facial expressions of the interviewee difficult for Gus, but also he found it difficult to show his human side through a mask. Where normally they could offer water and express their concern through a well meant touch of the arm, a smile, or even just their close proximity, that was now impossible. The lack of human contact in this circumstance really affected Gus and I’m sure for the grieving man it only added to the stress and anxiety he felt.

The second big reference to how mask wearing caused issues for policing was from the serial killer’s point of view. The acceptable wearing of a mask indoors and outdoors combined with non-descript dark clothing and a hoodie made him almost invisible- a fact that he revelled in. CCTV became a less effective means of tracing possible criminals and afforded my killer the anonymity he needed to use public libraries and shops and to stake out his targets with nobody able to identify him.

Although I used these two examples in Unbound Ties, I deliberately kept my Covid mentions to a minimum. Unbound Ties isn’t about Covid – it’s about Gus’s mum and her past as a young black girl growing up in mono-cultural Scotland in the 60’s. It’s about family and secrets and lies and how they can all converge into an explosive finale when the sociopathic killer decides to get his revenge and gain notoriety.

I hope you will enjoy Unbound Ties as much as I enjoyed writing it. I found it therapeutic to write it during Lockdown and the storyline and words were fairly free flowing. I hope you find it as therapeutic to read.

Thanks so much

Unbound Ties book 7 in the DI Gus McGuire series by Liz Mistry

DI Gus McGuire Book 7

When the past unravels, all that’s left is death.

Lavender’s blue, dilly dilly,

When DI Gus McGuire is called out to the murder of a pregnant woman, the crime scene tells him that this killer is not only taunting them … he’s also just getting started.

Lavender’s green,

With ritualistic precision, the killer has placed a series of clues beneath the victim’s feet. Gus soon realises that these clues link back to his mother’s past as a child in foster care in Scotland.

When I am king, dilly dilly,

Troubled by his mum’s secrets, Gus is in a dark place. Side-lined from the main investigation, Gus works another murder, not realising that the two are linked and that the killer is closer than he realises … Dangerously close.

You shall be queen.

Then the killer begins to target people near to Gus. Angry and determined Gus races to unravel the past and catch this sadist before the loss is too much for him to bear.

The seventh gripping thriller in the DI Gus McGuire series, for fans of Angela Marsons, Val McDermid and LJ Ross.

 mybook.to/UnboundTies

Born in Scotland, Made in Bradford sums up Liz Mistry’s life. Over thirty years ago she moved from a small village in West Lothian to Yorkshire to get her teaching degree. Once here, Liz fell in love with three things; curries, the rich cultural diversity of the city … and her Indian husband (not necessarily in this order). Now thirty years, three children, two cats (Winky and Scumpy) and a huge extended family later, Liz uses her experiences of living and working in the inner city to flavour her writing. Her gritty crime fiction police procedural novels set in Bradford embrace the city she describes as ‘Warm, Rich and Fearless’ whilst exploring the darkness that lurks beneath.

Struggling with severe clinical depression and anxiety for a large number of years, Liz often includes mental health themes in her writing. She credits the MA in Creative Writing she took at Leeds Trinity University with helping her find a way of using her writing to navigate her ongoing mental health struggles. Being a debut novelist in her fifties was something Liz had only dreamed of and she counts herself lucky, whilst pinching herself regularly to make sure it’s all real. One of the nicest things about being a published author is chatting with and responding to readers’ feedback and Liz regularly does events at local libraries, universities, literature festivals and open mics. She also teaches creative writing too. Now, having nearly completed a PhD in Creative Writing focussing on ‘the absence of the teen voice in adult crime fiction’ and ‘why expansive narratives matter’, Liz is chock full of ideas to continue writing.

In her spare time, Liz loves pub quizzes (although she admits to being rubbish at them), dancing (she does a mean jig to Proud Mary – her opinion, not ratified by her family), visiting the varied Yorkshire landscape, with Robin Hoods Bay being one of her favourite coastal destinations, listening to music, reading and blogging about all things crime fiction on her blog, The Crime Warp.

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Publication Day Push with an Extract: the Cornish Key To Happiness by Laura Briggs

The Cornish Key to Happiness by Laura Briggs

Past secrets return to complicate Maisie’s future with the charming Sidney Daniels in the final installment of the Cornish romance series.

Picking up where book seven left off, Maisie’s plans to celebrate her book’s thrilling news remain on hold after Sidney has vanished from Port Hewer overnight, following a brush with his secret past. His departure leaves Maisie with a head full of questions and a heart torn in two, made even worse by the rumors flying about him through the town. Where and why has he gone? Will he ever come back again? And—foremost in Maisie’s mind—was the heartache from his younger days somehow to blame for his sudden and mysterious flight?

But when Dean convinces her that Sidney may be facing a choice that could ruin his life, Maisie must set out to find him, once again leaving behind the Cornish seaside haven of Port Hewer she’s come to think of as home, and leaving behind the answer to a secret she’s been longing to know since the beginning. Not knowing when or if she’ll return, she’s taking the biggest risk with her heart so far...and the truth she discovers waiting for her at the end of her journey will make her wonder if things can ever possibly be the same as they were before.

Questions are answered, secrets are spilled, and the biggest reveal of the series is finally unveiled as A LITTLE HOTEL IN CORNWALL reaches its exciting conclusion.

https://smarturl.it/cornishroad

Thank you so much to Ellesea for letting me drop by and share an extract of my new book with her readers! Called The Cornish Key to Happiness, it is the eighth book in my series ‘A Little Hotel in Cornwall’ and concludes the story of Maisie Clark, a wannabe writer who chased her dreams all the way to Cornwall and a quirky hotel by the sea. The following scene finds Maisie on a train bound for London, though, where her boyfriend Sidney is confronting the past he’s kept concealed from her, making Maisie wonder what his actions mean for their future as a couple.

Long train journeys give one plenty of time to think, which wasn't what I wanted, though I knew I needed it. Reflection brought uncertainty and anxiety, as if I was barreling towards a messy failure I would never be able to control. Telling myself that it would all be fine was not working, for at the back of it all was the fear that Sidney had made exactly the choice he wanted, the choice he needed, even if Dean was right about the mother's reasons.

What if Sidney has decided he doesn't belong in Cornwall anymore? I would look ridiculous, sitting in his living room, telling him it was his true role in life to play handyman at the vicarage for room, board, and pocket change, just so stray dogs had a place to call home, and stray people with loneliness in their lives had him to fill the gap. But it was more than Dean who needed him right now — it was people like frail Mrs. Primmer and elderly Mr. James, who looked forward to having someone young and cheerful patch their homes and surprise them with kind gestures. Someone else could take his place, but it wouldn't be him anymore, friendly, thoughtful, and capable in nearly any situation.

What if he thought I was asking only for myself? Because I loved him deeply, and life in Cornwall would never be the same without him. It would be easy to believe, because it would be easy for me to betray that fact, compared to the two days I spent numb and helpless to understand why after he left.

The train stopped with a low, grinding whine, a station of people moving to and fro outside my window, seeming a hundred miles away. It sped on a moment later, as I pretended to take an interest in the copy of the real Tam Lin myth I had brought with me, though I opened its cover just to give myself something to do.

A faded daisy from this summer past marked one of its pages. I twirled it once between my fingers, remembering how Sidney had picked it for me, tucking it in my hair when we went for a picnic by the ruins of an old tin mine on a day we were both free. I had pressed it between the book's folds when reading became less interesting than playing with his fingers, his arm wrapping me close against him. We watched seabirds swooping for our leftover crusts, laughing about something silly that happened in the village recently.

Four hours to London, where I would look into those hazel eyes and see if what he wrote in his letter was true or only words. This time, no Cornish sunlight turning those unruly curls to red gold, no grass stains on his faded cotton shirt, imbued with the scent of field clover and hay when I nestled my face against his shoulder. It would be unromantic reality, probably in a living room decorated with modest furniture and strangers' photos.

And what if everything changed? What if that magic doesn't exist outside of Cornwall?

Laura Briggs is the author of several feel-good romance reads, including the Top 100 Amazon UK seller 'A Wedding in Cornwall'. She has a fondness for vintage style dresses (especially ones with polka dots), and reads everything from Jane Austen to modern day mysteries. When she's not writing, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, caring for her pets, gardening, and seeing the occasional movie or play.

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