Monday 30 January 2017

How to Throw Your Life Away by Laurie Ellingham



How to Throw Your Life Away

by

Laurie Ellingham

has been HONOURED

with


Chill with a Book READERS' AWARD


"A fresh new voice in romantic comedy." Rachel's Random Reads

"A quality of style that enables the reader to be engrossed in the story and brilliantly entertained." Linda Hill, Linda's Book Bag, 5 stars

Have you ever wondered how much it would take to make you snap?
For thirty-two year old Katy Davenport it was the littlest thing...
All her boyfriend of five years had to do was answer her question about dinner. 
Not ignore her.
Not continue to watch the football like she didn't exist.

In that moment Katy snaps. One moment of insanity and Katy throws her life away. 

The policeman who arrests her laughs. Her best friend cheers. And her anger management counsellor insists on embarrassing her in front of the entire class. 
For Katy this is just the beginning as she struggles to find her place in a whole new world where her ex-boyfriend refuses to move out of her house, and Katy finds herself snapping again and again.

Will Katy be able to control her anger for long enough to pick up the pieces of her life?

HOW TO THROW YOUR LIFE AWAY  was read and evaluated by Chill's readers against a five point criteria

1.       Were the characters strong and engaging?
2.       Was the book well written?
3.       Did the plot have you turning the page to find out what happened next?
4.       Was the ending satisfying?
5.       Have you told your friends?



Tuesday 24 January 2017

Aurelia by Alison Morton



AURELIA

by

Alison Morton

has been HONOURED

with

Chill with a Book READERS' AWARD



Finalist, 2016 Historical Novel Society Indie Award



Late 1960s. Sent to Berlin to investigate silver smuggling, former Praetorian Aurelia Mitela barely escapes a near-lethal trap. Her old enemy is at the heart of all her troubles and she pursues him back home to Roma Nova but he has struck at her most vulnerable point – her young daughter.



Late 1960s Roma Nova, the last Roman colony that has survived into the 20th century. Aurelia Mitela is alone – her partner gone, her child sickly and her mother dead – and forced to give up her beloved career as a Praetorian officer.



But her country needs her unique skills. Somebody is smuggling silver – Roma Nova’s lifeblood – on an industrial scale. Sent to Berlin to investigate, she encounters the mysterious and attractive Miklós, a known smuggler who knows too much and Caius Tellus, a Roma Novan she has despised and feared since childhood.



Barely escaping a trap set by a gang boss intent on terminating her, she discovers that her old enemy is at the heart of all her troubles and pursues him back home to Roma Nova...
'Alison Morton handles this intriguing premise with her customary panache in AURELIA.' - Ruth Downie, author of the Ruso Medicus series


AURELIA  was read and evaluated by Chill's readers against a five point criteria

1.       Were the characters strong and engaging?
2.       Was the book well written?
3.       Did the plot have you turning the page to find out what happened next?
4.       Was the ending satisfying?
5.       Have you told your friends?



Tuesday 17 January 2017

The Loyalist's Wife by Elaine Cougler


THE LOYALIST'S WIFE

by

Elaine Cougler

has been HONOURED

with

Chill with a Book READERS' AWARD


When American colonists resort to war against Britain and her colonial attitudes, a young couple caught in the crossfire must find a way to survive. Pioneers in the wilds of New York State, John and Lucy face a bitter separation and the fear of losing everything, even their lives, when he joins Butler’s Rangers to fight for the King and leaves her to care for their isolated farm. As the war in the Americas ramps up, ruffians roam the colonies looking to snap up Loyalist land. Alone, pregnant, and fearing John is dead, Lucy must fight with every weapon she has.

With vivid scenes of desperation, heroism, and personal angst, Elaine Cougler takes us back to the beginnings of one great country and the planting of Loyalist seeds for another. The Loyalist’s Wife transcends the fighting between nations to show us the individual cost of such battles.

THE LOYALIST'S WIFE  was read and evaluated by Chill's readers against a five point criteria

1.       Were the characters strong and engaging?
2.       Was the book well written?
3.       Did the plot have you turning the page to find out what happened next?
4.       Was the ending satisfying?
5.       Have you told your friends?



Saturday 14 January 2017

The Seventh Son By Ashley York


THE SEVENTH SON

by

Ashley York

has been HONOURED

with

Chill with a Book READERS' AWARD



Drogheda Ireland 1076

An Irish beauty and a warrior betrayed, doomed in love from the start or does fate have something else in store for them?
The sixth son bears a curse as certain as the seventh son bears a blessing. When Tadhg MacNaughton’s betrothed is ripped from his arms and married to another, he believes the legend is true.

Tisa O'Brien's life slams into a downward spiral at the news she is no longer betrothed to the love of her life but to the tanist of a warring, prideful clan with dangerous political aspirations, the Meic Lochlainn. She faces her destiny with all the strength and dignity of her Irish heritage despite dealing with a husband who resents her, fighting off the lustful advances of her father-in-law, Aodh, and longing for the husband of her heart.

Tadhg MacNaughton makes a deal with the devil to ensure the survival of his clan as he is commanded to fight with Aodh who envisions himself the new Brian Boru, High King of Eire. Up close and personal, Tadhg must witness his true love's marriage and remain silent even as it rips him apart. When a sinister plot to over throw King William of England led by the exiled Leofrid Godwin and Clan Meic Lochlainn comes to light, Tadhg is faced with saving his clan or endangering his sister and her Norman husband.


An Irish beauty and a warrior betrayed, doomed in love from the start or does fate have something else in store for them?


THE SEVENTH SON was read and evaluated by Chill's readers against a five point criteria

1.       Were the characters strong and engaging?
2.       Was the book well written?
3.       Did the plot have you turning the page to find out what happened next?
4.       Was the ending satisfying?
5.       Have you told your friends?



Thursday 12 January 2017

Alvar The Kingmaker by Annie Whitehead


ALVAR THE KINGMAKER

by

Annie Whitehead

has been HONOURED

with

Chill with a Book READERS' AWARD


Alvar the Kingmaker is a tale of politics, intrigue, deceit and murder set in tenth-century England. Nobleman Alvar knows that securing the throne for the young and worthy King Edgar will brand him as an oath-breaker. As a fighting man, he is indispensable to the new sovereign, but his success and power gain him deadly, murderous enemies amongst those who seek favour with the king, and point the finger of suspicion when Edgar’s brother, the previous king, dies in mysterious circumstances. Alvar must fight to protect his lands, and his position, and learn the subtle art of politics. He must also, as a man of principle, keep secret his love for the wife of his trusted deputy. Civil war erupts, and Alvar once again finds himself the only man capable of setting a new king upon the throne of England, an act which comes at great personal cost. His career began with a dishonourable deed to help a good king; now he must be loyal to a new king, Aethelred, whom he knows will be weak, and whose supporters have been accused of regicide. Can he bring about peace, reconcile with his enemies, and find personal happiness, whilst all the time doing his duty to his loved ones? And what of the fragile Queen, who not only depends upon him but has fallen in love with him? 
Aelfhere (Alvar) of Mercia was known to the chroniclers as the "The blast of the mad wind from the Western territories" but also as "The glorious earl." This is his story, and it is an indieB.R.A.G. Gold Medallion honoree.


ALVAR THE KINGMAKE was read and evaluated by Chill's readers against a five point criteria

1.       Were the characters strong and engaging?
2.       Was the book well written?
3.       Did the plot have you turning the page to find out what happened next?
4.       Was the ending satisfying?
5.       Have you told your friends?



Tuesday 10 January 2017

Book of the Year AWARD 2016 - We've Come to take you Home by Susan Gandar



Standing ovation please...

BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2016

Goes to....


We've Come To Take You Home by Susan Gandar


"A stirring reminder of the horrors of war and a distinctive take on the timelessness of love." - Kirkus Reviews

It is April 1916 and thousands of men have left home to fight in the war to end all wars. Jessica Brown's father is about to be one of these men. A year later, he is still alive, but Jess has to steal to keep her family from starving. And then a telegram arrives - her father has been killed in action. 

Four generations later, Sam Foster's father is admitted to hospital with a suspected brain haemorrhage. A nurse asks if she would like to take her father’s hand. Sam refuses. All she wants is to get out of this place, stuck between the world of the living and the world of the dead, a place with no hope and no future, as quickly as possible. 

As Sam's father's condition worsens, her dreams become more frequent - and more frightening. She realises that what she is experiencing is not a dream, but someone else's living nightmare... 

We've Come to Take You Home is an emotionally-charged story of a friendship forged 100 years apart. 

“As Sam’s story collides with the past, the novel slowly becomes whole, leading to an eloquent and moving ending” – Kirkus Reviews


Amazon co uk
Amazon com






Monday 9 January 2017

Book of the Month AWARD for December 2016 is ...



Following the exciting announcement of two additional Awards; Book of the Month Award and Book of the Year Award, please put your hands together for

BOOK OF THE MONTH AWARD

December 2016


There Is Always More To Say by Lynda Young Spiro


Soho 1984: Two people meet and their worlds are changed forever. An unexpected meeting – a look that means their lives will never be the same again. In “There Is Always More To Say”, Lynda Spiro chronicles the lives of the couple through friendships, marriage, fleeting moments and snatched time. It is a passionate account about a connection between two people that never dies even when tested by distance and when life throws the unexpected at their feet. “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances. If there is any reaction both are transformed.” C G Jung


Amazon co uk

Amazon com






Sunday 8 January 2017

Book of the Month AWARD for November 2016 is ...



Following the exciting announcement of two additional Awards; Book of the Month Award and Book of the Year Award, please put your hands together for

BOOK OF THE MONTH AWARD

November 2016


We've Come To Take You Home by Susan Gandar


"A stirring reminder of the horrors of war and a distinctive take on the timelessness of love." - Kirkus Reviews

It is April 1916 and thousands of men have left home to fight in the war to end all wars. Jessica Brown's father is about to be one of these men. A year later, he is still alive, but Jess has to steal to keep her family from starving. And then a telegram arrives - her father has been killed in action. 

Four generations later, Sam Foster's father is admitted to hospital with a suspected brain haemorrhage. A nurse asks if she would like to take her father’s hand. Sam refuses. All she wants is to get out of this place, stuck between the world of the living and the world of the dead, a place with no hope and no future, as quickly as possible. 

As Sam's father's condition worsens, her dreams become more frequent - and more frightening. She realises that what she is experiencing is not a dream, but someone else's living nightmare... 

We've Come to Take You Home is an emotionally-charged story of a friendship forged 100 years apart. 

“As Sam’s story collides with the past, the novel slowly becomes whole, leading to an eloquent and moving ending” – Kirkus Reviews


Amazon co uk
Amazon com






Friday 6 January 2017

Book of the Month AWARD for October 2016 is...



Following the exciting announcement of two additional Awards; Book of the Month Award and Book of the Year Award, please put your hands together for

BOOK OF THE MONTH AWARD

OCTOBER 2016


The Forgotten Promise by Kate Ryder



"Irish lass, Maddie O’Brien, is living an independent, carefree life in London. She loves her work with a film production company but, as the years slip by, is increasingly aware of a nagging insistence for change.

During a film shoot in Dorset she is inexplicably drawn to a 17th Century cottage for sale. Although in a semi-serious relationship with Dan, Maddie takes the plunge and exchanges city life for country living. But all is not what it seems at the cottage and immediately after moving in she experiences visions and happenings which would have most people booking into the nearest hotel. Not so Maddie; she feels she has ‘come home’.

Embracing her new life she soon meets Nick, a local wood sculptor, and despite both being in relationships they are immediately attracted to each other. But who is Nick and what is it that draws them together?

And what is her connection with The Olde Smithy?

Little by little the cottage reveals its deepest secrets taking Maddie on a journey of self-discovery back to the dangerous days of the English Civil War, visiting the ghosts of her past.

Slowly her destiny is revealed and it would seem there is more than one restless spirit to appease…"


Amazon co uk

Amazon com




Thursday 5 January 2017

Book of the Month Award - September 2016 is...



Following the exciting announcement of two additional Awards; Book of the Month Award and Book of the Year Award, please put your hands together for

 BOOK OF THE MONTH AWARD

SEPTEMBER 2016


Broken Faces by Deborah Carr



Four years. Four lives changed forever.

‘As the weight of the plaster of Paris slowly increased on his face, he tried to steady his breathing and not give in to claustrophobia.’

November 1914
When Freddie Chevalier’s best friend, Charles, joins the cavalry and sets off to fight in the Great War he can’t help feeling he’s missing out. Until the war Freddie enjoyed his bucolic existence working on his parent’s farm on the island of Jersey, but now he yearns for excitement.

He’s always harboured a secret passion for Charles’ fiancée, Meri. She’s 'The Girl'. The one he loves but can’t have. Nothing compares to the guilt he feels when he and Meri betray Charles in the worst possible way.

Each will discover that they don't know the others as well as they thought. All of them will be forced to take charge of their lives and find ways to live with the consequences of the choices that they and their friends have made. And by November 1918 everything they thought of as familiar will have vanished.






Tuesday 3 January 2017

Exciting Changes to Chill’s Award!



Happy New Year! 

I am delighted to announce exciting changes to Chill’s Award for 2017. 
As well as the Readers’ Award, honoured for the best reads from Indie authors, there will be TWO more Awards: a Book of the Month Award and a Book of the Year Award

Each month all books honoured with a Readers’ Award will be nominated for the Book of the Month Award. The winner will be announced in the first half of the following month. 

All Book of the Month Awardees will be nominated for the Book of the Year Award. This means a total of thirteen new Awards. 

New Award buttons / emblems have been designed to cover all Awards by the brilliant, Cathy Helms from Avalon Graphics.

To ensure all Honourees from 2016 do not lose out on these extra Awards, Awards will be announced later this month for Book of the Month for September, October, November & December. Finally, a Book of the Year Award will be announced for 2016.

Chill’s exclusive Award is a badge of honour for Indie authors to be proud of receiving and for readers and the book world at large to see that Indie authors write and produce great reads.

If, as an Indie author, you would like to know more about the Award, please click here or email me.

It is going to be a very exciting 2017 at Chill with a Book for Indie authors.



Pauline
Author BA (Hons)
Founder of Chill  with  a Book!