Today, I want to share a gallery with you. When I was in London briefly in February, we stayed in Drury Lane, and as we only had a day and two evenings there, we stayed around the Covent Garden area. While there, I attempted to take some photos of places mentioned in the Clearwater, Larkspur and Delamere mysteries, and so, what I have today are some of them, with notes to explain what they are.
Before you venture into the gallery, though, you might like to know I have, this morning, completed work on ‘Acts of Faith’ and will be sending it to the layout team later today. They are going to do their best to have it back to me in time for me to send up to Amazon on Wednesday – but they are busy, and I may yet find issues with uploading (rare, but not unknown). All being well, you’ll be able to start on it next week. So, here’s the gallery in no particular order.
Bow Street Magistrates Court and police station. This appears in several books, but Fallen Splendour in particular, when Silas is arrested. I think it is now some kind of hotel or restaurant, and there is/was a police museum there too.The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. This is the setting for the grand finale of ‘Unspeakable Acts.’Neil having lunch at La Garrick, not, sadly, the Garrick Club which you can see through the window. Archer, Lord Clearwater, is a member of this club.Charing Cross railways station features in several of the books.This is beneath Charing Cross station. The row of arches used to house the entrance to the famous Heaven nightclub, but also, still houses the entrance to what was the Charing Cross Music Hall, as visited by Jack Merrit and Max Pascoe where they interview Marie Lloyd in ‘Follow the Van.’A bust of WS Gilbert on the Embankment, near the Savoy Theatre.The Embankment looking downstream.A plaque on the side of the Savoy Theatre, the venue for the climax of ‘Speaking in Silence.’The cobbles of Covent Garden that Silas, Micky-Nick, Fecker and other homeless lads would have walked back in the 1880s.The Palace Theatre, Cambridge Circus. Now home to a Harry Potter play, Clearwater and others including Jasper Blackwood, attended the opening performance of ‘Ivanhoe’, by Sir Arthur Sullivan in 1891.A Penhaligon’s shop in Covent Garden. Archer and Silas both wear Penhaligon’s, and when I was there, I was very tempted to buy the perfume they wear, Hamam Bouquet, but the only size they had was too big for my carry-on luggage, and the price too big for my pocket. I went for a smaller bottle of Halfeti instead.This isn’t London. In fact, it is the proposed interior of a block of flats in Folkestone. However, it is/was the auditorium of the theatre I worked in back in the late 1970s, The Lease Pavilion Theatre. The gallery and arches are the same, and form a classic music hall style setup, as often described in my stories.
Today, I’m sharing with you the mockup of the full cover of Acts of Faith. I am currently doing my last read through and will book the interior layout process tomorrow. I am still aiming to have the book go live around 26th March. It would be slightly sooner, but I have to be away all day today, so things have got knocked back – but keep an eye out, and there will be more news at the weekend.
As you can see from the cover, Baxter ends up in the Thames not far from where Tower Bridge is still under construction, and if you want to know where the climax of the book takes place more precisely, get a map and have a look for the River Neckinger. This was, apparently, the area in which Dickens set Oliver Twist, and Fagin’s lair in particular. Not that that has anything to do with my story or Baxter being in the river, it’s just something to mention.
So, not long to go now. Thank you, as always, for your continuing support.
Today, I can reveal the cover of the Delamere Files book seven, Acts of Faith.
There is a link at the bottom of the page that will open the full image. If you have signed up to my monthly newsletter, you might have already seen the cover, as this time, I released it to subscribers first. Today, though, everyone can see it. The MS is with the proofreader, the illustration is done, and I am just waiting to get the full cover from Andjela, and then the MS, and… Well, you shouldn’t have to wait too much longer.
As usual, I have added a few author’s notes to the end of the book, and this time, the subjects cover some of the locations I’ve placed the characters at, including some theatres that get a mention. Then there’s the Criterion Restaurant, Piccadilly, the Illustrated Police News headlines and stories (1888 and 1893), the London Fire Brigade, the law regarding breach of promise (of marriage), the Thames Torso Murders, and Tower Bridge.
Now then, that odd collection of topics might whet your appetite and have you wondering what on earth the story is about. I’ve left out one subject which is the villain’s modus operandi, because I don’t want to spoil the surprise for you. Talking of which… Here is the blurb and the front cover. I am aiming to have the book out before 26th March, so watch this space (and my Facebook page and Bluesky. Links at the bottom of the post).
Acts of Faith The Delamere Files Book Seven Jackson Marsh
When the Commissioner of Police assigns a personal case, failure is not an option. However, what begins as a simple mystery soon turns into something far more complicated. An opera singer dead in her bath, a Smithfield butcher skinned alive, a dentist locked inside a steam engine… What is the connection?
With Baxter’s help, the Clearwater detectives begin investigating the gruesome and seemingly unrelated murders, fully aware that failure could spell disaster for the agency.
As Baxter strives to prove his worth as a detective, he finds himself falling for a young police constable, but his search for love and success takes a chilling turn when he makes a horrifying discovery: the killer may be closer than he thought.
Click Ben Baxter to see the full cover Facebook page Bluesky
A slight change in tack today. I have an update for you and news about the cover reveal, but first, I wanted to draw your attention, and your click, to a collection of varied titles by authors such as Mary Crawford, and RD Kardon. These titles fall under the categories of women’s literary fiction and biographies.
Judging from the covers, many appear to be love stories, but there is also an element of time travel or adventure about them. (I love the tag line for ‘Head Lion’ by Neil Peter Christy, ‘Fasten your deceit belts.’) I can’t vouch for the quality of every single one, but those I have dipped into read well. The proof of the pudding is in the reading, so take a look, and if anything takes your fancy, you will find books are available on various platforms, including B&N and Kobo, depending on each title.
‘Acts of Faith’
Now, to return to my usual Wednesday update… The full MS of the next Delamere book is going off to my proofreader this weekend. All being well, it will be back by the following weekend, and out before the 26th March. Depending on how fast you read, you could start the story on, say, the 24th (as long as it’s ready), and finish on the 26th (Clearwater’s birthday) which happens to be the date of the climax of the story.
Is it a thrilling climax? Is it in the usual Jackson Marsh style of build to the unlocking of the mystery only to discover someone’s in trouble like, right now? You will have to read it and see. So far, it’s got a thumbs up from my husband in its Beta stage, but he may be biased.
As for the cover reveal, I will do this on Saturday. If you are on my newsletter mailing list, you should have already had the monthly newsletter and seen the full cover. The link is on the bottom of the newsletter. If you are not on the mailing list, sign up via the simple box at the top of the right-hand column here. You will ned to verify it’s you and you’re okay to join as it’s not an automatic sign-up thing.
So, why not read some of the titles from the above fiction list while you wait for ‘Acts of Faith’ and why not call back on Saturday to see Andjela’s cover which shows Benny Baxter doing something dramatic, but where…?
Hi. Today, I am taking a quick break from talking about the Delamere Files and my other Victorian MM Mystery series, because I want to highlight a book I published back in 2018.
Having read all four novels in author Jackson Marsh’s “mentor” series this, the third book on the surface seems to be the most straightforward m/m romance but believe me it’s not, the story has so much depth to it I am still thinking about it.
The blurb:
Burnt out from his life as a musician and record producer, 35-year-old Matt Barrow takes on Lonemarsh House, an isolated manor in the Kent marshes. When he meets 23-year-old Jason Hodge, a brilliant violinist, Matt knows this is the young man he wants to share his new life with. But Jason is closeted and at the mercy of his treacherous friends.
Jason is trapped by fear and Matt may be his escape, but should he jeopardise his safety for the love of an older man?
I’ve no special reason for mentioning this MM romance today except as a way of highlighting a promo that another of my romances is taking part in. This selection of titles is all Romance, and why I didn’t put Lonemarsh House into it, I cant remember. Maybe I will push that one next month. For this month, we’ve got ‘The Students’ highlighted over at the Friends-to-Lovers: Romances promo. There, you will also find roommates, boyfriends, firefighters, sportsmen, athletes, students and billionaires falling into friendships that lead to love, which is kind of what happens in Lonemarsh House.
Click the banner to find all the books on offer
My romances (and I admit, they are not full-on MM heat and humping ‘romances’ of the naked-chest-on-the-cover ilk) tend to be more about plot than simply boy meets boy etc. Lonemarsh house not only takes the older/younger theme, but also burn out, prejudice, and isolation. As that review says, there’s some depth to it and, to my mind, it’s my most romantic book to date, as in typical romance, rather than romance as a general style.
This week’s update is about the cover for Acts of Faith. Andjela has again come up with a brilliant cover for the story, and this time, it’s a scene from the climax of the tale. I will be revealing the full cover in due course, but looking at it made me wonder about previous covers and what they showed. It also made me ask the question, should a cover show a scene from the story, or a representation of it as a whole?
When I was looking for a cover for my mystery, The Saddling, the designer (not Andjela) came up with an image of a pagan festival wreath and that kind of summed up the story nicely. I, though, wanted someone walking into the action, and to feature a scene from the village where the story is set, and we ended up with a man, Tom Carey, innocently walking into the village through the mist and heading to the church where… You’ll have to read it to find out.
Then, looking at the Clearwater series I realised we have a mix of covers. Deviant Desire shows the two main characters with the threatening evil behind them, Twisted Tracks shows them running for a massive locomotive, the third book shows a mix of story moment and main character (Silas Hawkins), and the fourth cover, Fallen Splendour, has a grabbing image that also sums up the story. And so on through all books to the Clearwater Inheritance which shows us the Orient Express (kind of) charging through snow which is in fact music.
I often have a person on the cover as I think that helps link the reader to the characters, even though it’s only my image of what a character looks like. In the Larkspur series covers, we see (in order), Joe Tanner, Joe again (on horseback), the baddie for book three, the ghost for book four, Edward Hyde for book five, evil again for six, and finally, the Legacy, Clearwater’s ship.
The theme continues with the Delamere Files, where, so far, we have: Larkin Chase and Jack Merrit, Jack and the four old-school boys from the story (including Larkin when younger), Jack and his brother Will Merrit on book three, Will alone for ‘Where There’s a Will’, the villain and Ronny on book five, Jack and Baxter on ‘Grave Developments’, and, for ‘Acts of Faith, we have…
(Cropped from the cover)
You’ll have to wait for the full cover reveal in a week or so. Meanwhile, I can tell you that my target today is to finish the last chapter of the first draft. This one has taken a while to get down because of Christmas, a trip away, illness and my knackered shoulders, but we’re getting there.
Before I go, I know people are switching off from Amazon and KU because of the far right politics of the USA, but I must continue to use it because it is from where I get 75% of my income, and I couldn’t survive without it. So, if you’re still okay with supporting authors who have to rely on Amazon, you might like to look out for some new series starters from this list. Click the banner to take a look at all the titles.
This website uses cookies to provide you with the best browsing experience.
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.
