The Series Expands

What am I up to now?

With the second book in the series, The Nor'easter, safely in the hands of my editor, Janet Laurence, I have about four weeks before I receive her full assessment. I have picked up writing on the third book in the Shaun Young series, The Whistle Blower (if you click on the cover pages graphic above, a larger version appears - it's pleasing to see them lined up as a series)

What is the third book about?

While watching the news about the devastating coastal erosion taking place along the Norfolk and Suffolk coastline - places like Hemsby, Happisburgh and Hopton - I began wondering who had lived in these homes by, and soon to be in, the sea. One shot of a back garden falling away over the cliff edge onto the beach below was particularly striking. It showed grassy lawns churned up on the beach and fence posts hanging precariously from the precipice. Then a thought struck me - what if a skeleton was found amongst the rubble? What a story that would be. Maybe an old cottage that had been rented out to many different people over the years, all with a story to tell, and some with secrets they'd rather keep buried. This became the spur for the third Shaun Young book which I'm currently writing (the cover and back page blurb can be found here).

How does it all fit in?

I've walked the headland and beaches of many areas under siege by the environment and I know them well. I've done a lot of research into why it's happening, what can and can't be done to protect the areas but it is a very expensive and in some cases a hopeless exercise to hold back the destruction - mother nature is a powerful force. While this will help with the background, I'm mainly concerned with the lives of those who lived in the cottage before, during and after these events. I have my cast of characters set - the existing CID team with their professional and personal baggage, the owner, the individuals and families that have lived at the cottage over the years - and I am now drafting the main story and sub-plots.

When will it be released?

I am confident that The Nor'easter will be published in September and I am pushing to complete The Whistle Blower by Christmas - may be a little ambitious, but it's good to have a goal to work to. I will be keeping you all updated via the website on my progress with the publishing and writing, but if you want any updates in between, you can send me an email, a message on Facebook or Twitter or leave a comment below and I'll get back to you.

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