The Rhythm of Murder is now available for download…

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Well, The Asharton Manor Mysteries series continues at a storming pace. Number 3 in the series, The Rhythm of Murder, is now available at Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Scribd and Page Foundry.

The blurb:

**Please note, this is a novella-length piece of fiction – about 20 thousand words**

It is 1973. Eve and Janey, two young university students, are en route to a Bristol commune when they take an unexpected detour to the little village of Midford. Seduced by the roguish charms of a young man who picks them up in the village pub, they are astonished to find themselves at Asharton Manor, now the residence of the very wealthy, very famous, very degenerate Blue Turner, lead singer of rock band Dirty Rumours. The golden summer rolls on, full of sex, drugs and rock and roll, but Eve begins to sense that there may be a sinister side to all the hedonism.

And then one day, Janey disappears, seemingly run away… but as Eve begins to question what happened to her friend, she realises that she herself might be in terrible danger…

I’m pleased to say that it’s already charting in the Amazon genre charts for Historical Mysteries. Just waiting for the first review!

The final book in the series will be finished (first draft) tomorrow and available to buy towards the end of August, along with the boxed set of all four books. I’ve so enjoyed writing these – I kind of wish I’d planned for a longer series. But, never mind – the new Kate Redman (Book 5) is next on my list, ready for a September release to keep the fans happy :)

Having said that, I think I’ll be writing a special Halloween novella to add to The Asharton Manor Mysteries series so watch this space…

I’m such a neglectful blog owner!

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Oh help, just realised that it has been simply eons since I’ve updated this poor little blog. Unfortunately it is always lowest on the list when it comes to things to do, writing new books being right at the top. Anyway, enough excuses. Here’s what I’ve been up to…

   

The first and second in The Asharton Manor Mystery series are now published and available on Amazon, iBooks, Barnes and Noble and Kobo. I’m currently writing the fourth in the series while the third is being edited. On course for my release schedule which was one a month between May – August. Phew…

Kate Redman fans will be pleased to know that Chimera (Book 5) is well underway and due for an autumn release (sorry but I’m not giving any firm dates as I may as well add the coda n.b. I will wildly miss this deadline and have to give you several new ones :) best to keep it vague!)

I’m planning for one more Kate Redman and the boxed set of numbers 4-6 to be released by Christmas. Let’s see if I can keep up the pace!

 

 

 

Death at the Manor is here!

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Thanks to all my keen readers who have already downloaded Death at the Manor,  which is now available on most of the big bookselling channels. The blurb:

**Please note – this is a novella-length piece of fiction (about 20 thousand words)**

It is 1929. Asharton Manor stands alone in the middle of a pine forest, once the place where ancient pagan ceremonies were undertaken in honour of the goddess Astarte. The Manor is one of the most beautiful stately homes in the West Country and seems like a palace to Joan Hart, newly arrived from London to take up a servant’s position as the head kitchen maid. Getting to grips with her new role and with her fellow workers, Joan is kept busy, but not too busy to notice that the glittering surface of life at the Manor might be hiding some dark secrets. The beautiful and wealthy mistress of the house, Delphine Denford, keeps falling ill but why? Confiding her thoughts to her friend and fellow housemaid, feisty Verity Hunter, Joan is unsure of what exactly is making her uneasy, but then Delphine Denford dies…

Armed only with their own good sense and quick thinking, Joan and Verity must pit their wits against a cunning murderer in order to bring them to justice.

Death at the Manor is the first in the Asharton Manor Mysteries series: a four part series of novellas spanning the twentieth century. Each standalone story uses Asharton Manor as the backdrop to a devious and twisting crime mystery, from bestselling crime writer Celina Grace, author of The Kate Redman Mysteries.

You can download from Amazon here, iBooks here, Nook here and Kobo here. Please do leave me a review – this is a bit of a departure from my normal genre so I’m really interested to discover what readers think – and you’ll be pleased to know that the second in the series is half written and due for an end of month release. Stay tuned for the final release date, coming soon!

 

Death at the Manor – cover reveal!

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Death at the manor CG

Yes, yes, yes, it is here! I am so excited to be able to show off the new cover for Death at the Manor, the first book in the new series of historical mysteries, The Asharton Manor Mysteries. As with all my covers, it is the work of the extremely lovely and talented Chris Howard of Blondesign, who just manages always to come up with something so faithful to the genre and yet still make it fresh and interesting and pertinent to the story.

The Asharton Manor Mysteries are a series of four historical crime mysteries, all set in the same location (a beautiful manor house in the west of England) but at different points in the twentieth/twenty-first century. Death at the Manor will be released very shortly… sign up to my mailing list to be the first to know when it’s ready for downloading and to get it at a special promotional price!

And just to whet your appetite even further, here’s the blurb…

**Please note – this is a novella-length piece of fiction (about 20 thousand words)**

It is 1929. Asharton Manor stands alone in the middle of a pine forest, once the place where ancient pagan ceremonies were undertaken in honour of the goddess Astarte. The Manor is one of the most beautiful stately homes in the West Country and seems like a palace to Joan Hart, newly arrived from London to take up a servant’s position as the head kitchen maid. Getting to grips with her new role and with her fellow workers, Joan is kept busy, but not too busy to notice that the glittering surface of life at the Manor might be hiding some dark secrets. The beautiful and wealthy mistress of the house, Delphine Denford, keeps falling ill but why? Confiding her thoughts to her friend and fellow housemaid, feisty Verity Hunter, Joan is unsure of what exactly is making her uneasy, but then Delphine Denford dies…

Armed only with their own good sense and quick thinking, Joan and Verity must pit their wits against a cunning murderer in order to bring them to justice.

Death at the Manor is the first in the Asharton Manor Mysteries series: a four part series of novellas spanning the twentieth century. Each standalone story uses Asharton Manor as the backdrop to a devious and twisting crime mystery, from bestselling crime writer Celina Grace, author of The Kate Redman Mysteries.

 

 

Lost Girls now available for 99c / 77p!

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Today I’m running the last ever Amazon – exclusive promotion for my twisty psychological thriller, Lost Girls. For the next couple of days, you can grab your Kindle download of the book for a very budget-friendly 99c / 77p.. so what are you waiting for? ;)

Lost Girls hit the Top 100 UK Bestsellers list on Amazon in 2013 (the giddy heights of #39, if I remember rightly). It tells the story of Maudie Sampson, whose best friend Jessica disappeared at the age of ten…

A haunting? A hallucination? Or something even worse?

Twenty three years ago, Maudie Sampson’s childhood friend Jessica disappeared on a family holiday in Cornwall. She was never seen again.

In the present day, Maudie is struggling to come to terms with the death of her wealthy father, her increasingly fragile mental health and a marriage that’s under strain. Slowly, she becomes aware that there is someone following her: a blonde woman in a long black coat. As the woman begins to infiltrate her life, Maudie realises no one else appears to be able to see her.

Is Maudie losing her mind? Is the woman a figment of her imagination or does she actually exist? Have the crimes of the past caught up with Maudie’s present… or is there something even more sinister going on?

Writing news

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Well, the first in my historical mystery series, Death at the Manor (the first in the four of the Asharton Manor Mysteries) is off to my editor for proofreading. I’m anxiously awaiting the covers for the series from the lovely Chris Howard (from Blondesign – he does all my covers).  I’ve never written any historical mystery before but I’ve absolutely loved it – writing Death at the Manor was one of those rare writing experiences when it was almost effortless and the words just flowed out of my fingers.

I’m currently writing the second in the series, which jumps in time from the 1920s to the 1940s. This whole series is a little bit of an experiment, to be honest; yes, it’s a series in that it’s set in the same location (and each story will have a little link to the one before it, except the first – obviously!) but apart from the location, in each novella are all new characters, new plots, new era. Anyone who’s read The House series by Nora Loft (really good) will know the sort of thing I’m trying to achieve.

Oh, and Kate Redman fans will be pleased to know that the next book in the series (Chimera – No. 5) is currently being written, set for an autumn release AND I already have the basic plot down for Book No. 6. Hurrah!

It’s here! Get your copy of Snarl (A Kate Redman Mystery: Book 4) now!

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It’s heeeeeeere! Finally! Better late than never… and all that. The brand-spanking new Kate Redman Mystery, Snarl, is finally available for download from Amazon (am currently awaiting publication on the other channels such as iBooks – I’ll keep you posted when it becomes available there).

Even better, for the next three days, you’ll be able to grab it at a bargain promotional price of £1.85 or $2.99. But hurry, because the price goes up to the normal amount of £2.99 / $4.99 on Monday 14th April…

I’m pleased with this one. It’s slightly longer than the other books, introduces a brand new character and, I think, has a nicely convoluted plot (hence the title) which should keep you guessing. But do please leave me a review or drop me a line here or on Facebook or Twitter and let me know what you think.

And most excitingly of all, Snarl is already charting on TWO genre lists in the UK: No. 13 in Cosy Crime and No. 57 in British Detectives. Amazing :) Ooh, and I’ve just checked the US site – No. 72 in British Detectives over there too! Hurrah!

Celebrate! Snarl is off to the editor…

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Well, after another week of rewriting (the final scene is particularly took AGES – those darn characters just would not do what I wanted them to – most annoying…), Snarl (Kate Redman Mystery Book 4) is now winging its way to my editor and we’re on course for a publication date of about two weeks time.

The day after finishing a book is always a bit strange. I sort of potter about feeling a bit bereft but also quite a bit relieved! I’ve also now got time to devote to my next series; the four novelettes/novellas about the West Country mansion and the various dastardly deeds that take place there throughout the twentieth century. First one will be out….soon…

Final words of Snarl have been written!

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snarl_CG_final

Yeeehaaa! Today I wrote the final words of the first draft of Snarl (A Kate Redman Mystery: Book 4). Happy days! I’ll be editing all week and then the MS will go off to those professionals who can bully, beat and whip my words into decent shape. So I’m on track for an early April release for the finished product, which admittedly is two whole months after I originally said I’d have it published. Oops. Sorry readers. I hereby swear that I will never again set ridiculous deadlines for myself – I always break them!

I’ll keep you posted on a final publication date – sign up to the newsletter for a special promotional price when the book is actually released…

Cover Reveal! Snarl (A Kate Redman Mystery: Book 4) is here!

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snarl_CG_final

I am so excited to be able to share the new cover for the upcoming new Kate Redman Mystery, Snarl, the fourth in the series. Designed by the ultra-talented Chris Howard of Blondesign (who does all my super covers), this is the first time it’s been revealed to the world. What do you think? Of course, I personally love it :)

The book itself is nearing completion and should be available for release towards the end of March/early April. Yes, I know I said February at the end of Imago, but as my faithful readers will know, I ain’t very good with deadlines. Henceforth, I’ll be saying things like ‘released in Summer 2014′ rather than give an exact date!