Author Archives: Jack Marsh

What a Year!

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About the Books

Today’s blog post will be the last of this year, so I want to take the opportunity to thank all my readers for their support through 2025. It’s been a very productive year for me, starting in March with the publication of Acts of Faith (Delamere seven), followed by Holywell Street, Snake Hill, and recently, A Depraved Indifference (Delamere 10). What next for Jack Merrit and Co.? I shall have a think while I am away on our Christmas tour of Europe.

I wasn’t only working on the Delamere series, though. I very recently launched 1893 on the world, and that is now on the Clearwater Tales series page. As that has only just come out, there are no reviews or ratings yet, but I had a lovely comment from a reader who had just read the Barrister’s Tale and described it as reminiscent of an Ealing Comedy. Brilliant! Exactly what I wanted to hear.

Also, during the year, I tried out with some moving book covers, and I continued with my promo activity, hoping to promote other indie authors while also promoting myself. Again, you are a great help with this. The more clicks my promos get, the better reputation I have in the indie community as someone willing to help promote others.

I also signed up to BookBub and Bluesky, so if you haven’t connected there, here are my profile links:

Follow me on BookBub
Follow me on Facebook
Follow me on Bluesky
Find me on Goodreads

About the Personal

The Christmas adventure I mentioned starts next Friday. Me, husband, godson and his mum are heading off on a tour of Europe (buts of). This year, instead of spending a fortune on presents and one feast at home, we decided to spend several fortunes on a 12-day trip and have Christmas elsewhere. This isn’t a quick flight to an all-inclusive hotel somewhere, though, oh no. It’s partly ‘The Clearwater Inheritance’ and partly ‘The Larkspur Legacy’ except without the mystery or schooner. Here’s a brief itinerary:

I will be posting photos and updates on my Facebook Page, with special posts in my Facebook Group, Jackson’s Deviant Desires.

Rhodes flight to Athens, Athens flight to Milan. Quick train to Verona for a couple of nights, so we can get it a day in Venice. (Neil as booked us half an hour with a gondolier – I think he meant gondola.) From there, to see the Tyrol and Innsbruck, then on to Salzburg, and from there to Prague for three days over Christmas. Thence, to Transylvania on an overnight train via Budapest and Vienna, for a few days in Romania (hopefully seeing the castle that’s on the front of ‘Inheritance’), and New Year’s even in Bucharest before flying back home. Phew!

For now, though, that’s it. I’m off! Thanks again, and let’s keep in touch via my Facebook and/or Bluesky. JM

Nearly Ready for You

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Hi. The news today is that the current Work In Progress, ‘1893’ is nearly ready for you. The MS is with the proofreader, I’ve sent the back cover text to the designer to sort that, and the boys are ready and waiting to do the layout as soon as needed.

With any luck, you should find ‘1893 The Clearwater Tales, Volume Two’ on your Amazon hit list by the end of next week.

The last time I posted here, I gave you a shot of one of the characters (Creswell) and some of his story. Today, I have the cover for you. I’ll also put a link to the series page on Amazon.com, though you can find it on most Amazon shops. When 1893 is ready, it will be added after 1892.

Here’s the cover:

The Clearwater Tales series page

PROMOS and Newsletter

Don’t forget to sign up for the newsletter for news of promos, new titles and sometimes giveaways.

I have several promos this month, but as I will be away from around the 18th onwards, I won’t have time to post them here week by week. So, you’ll get all the news in the newsletter on Saturday, and then, I will schedule Facebook posts to bring reminders of these great promos, where many of the books are reduced in price. Today, I’m kicking off the month with something spicy…

Hot MM Books
Genres: General Fiction / LGBT, Romance / Active/Erotica, and Romance / LGBT

If you like a little spice in your mulled wine, then this promo will do it for you. Yes, it’s all going to be a little hot and spicy (maybe a lot hot and spicy), with 100 titles to browse through, and all kinds of tropes and niches are covered, from vampires to coming out to ‘The Mentor of Wildhill Farm.’

Click here for spicy MM romance

Work In Progress: ‘1893’

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To be honest, I am now working on only one thing, and when that is done, I won’t be working on anything else until the New Year. I believe I have said before, I aim to have ‘1893’ ready for you before Christmas.

A quick summary:

Five characters meet in a fog-bound railway station the night before Christmas Eve, 1893, and there, they are catered for by the stationmaster, Harry Carnforth. Their onward train is delayed, so they spend the night telling each other stories. There is also a plot surrounding these shorts, so the book, like ‘1892’, is a set of short stories set within a novella, I suppose. It, like its counterpart, should run to about 60,000 words.

I am currently up to 51,000 words, but I still have a way to go, so there will be editing involved later.

I have given myself until the end of this month to produce a decent second draft, so I need to get on with it, as there are still two stories to complete, plus the rest of the outer story which wraps them.

To, hopefully, keep you interested, here is another quick snippet, this time from (the unedited) ‘The Barrister’s Tale, Part One.’

Chapter VI
THE BARRISTER’S TALE, PART ONE

Hard leather soles clacked on the marble tiles as the defence barrister (to be) hurried to the robing room. With his morning’s brief under one arm, and his beloved copy of Blackstone’s under the other, he shouldered his way backwards through a pair of double doors, and clacked his way into another, longer and more hallowed marble corridor. There, a murder of hooded crows flitted this way and that, stopped to peck over some titbit of a case, or hung around the alcoves smoking pipes, but mainly, they were in the process of finding a place to settle for the morning; a courtroom where they could caw and crow and jabber and feel very important because they knew the law.

Creswell, head down, knew exactly what room he was making for, and also knew that the slightest delay would cause him to be late. All the same, there were rituals to follow, and they began with the ancient Rite of the Unnecessary Greeting, where each exchange was accompanied by a brief nod.

‘Creswell.’

‘Blinkinthop.’

‘Creswell.’

‘Smitherston-Minor.’

‘It’s Smitherson-Major, actually.’

‘That’s a matter of opinion. Mackay.’

‘Creswell.’

‘Creswell… Blithering idiot, that’s a mirror.’

The robing room was just as hectic, but also a place where the Rite of the Unnecessary Greeting became expanded.

‘Creswell.’

‘Jones.’

‘Are you well?’

‘Well enough. What you got?’

‘Theft. It’s all theft this morning.’

‘Morning, Creswell.’

‘Larrow.’

‘I think you’re up against me.’

Creswell was, because he was reaching over the man to collect a book.

‘Who do we have to entertain this morning, Mr Larrow? Any idea?’

In Creswell’s opinion, Larrow had very little idea about anything, certainly not the law. How he ever became a barrister was beyond Creswell’s ken, and he had hoped for a more worthy opposition in the, hopefully, last case of his pupillage.

‘No, I have no idea,’ the prosecution replied, donning his wig to become more like a white-headed woodpecker than a hooded crow. He certainly had the nose for it. ‘Clerk told me a name, but it’s not one I know. He’s coming in from out of town, they say. The Honourable…’ he examined a docket, ‘Sir Barkley Sproot, but no-one seems to have heard of him.

‘Then I, alas, am also no-one,’ Creswell said, fixing the last of his plumage. ‘Let’s hope Sproot’s a hoot, eh?’

‘Hoot is the word,’ Larrow quipped as he headed for the door.

‘Oh? Why?’

‘Read your brief, Creswell,’ the opposition replied and was lost to the flock.

PROMO

MAYHEM & MOTIVES: Mystery, Thriller, & Suspense Reads

Genres: Mystery & Suspense, Mystery & Suspense / Cozy Mystery, and Mystery & Suspense / Thriller

Here’s my monthly return to a favourite place, and this time, there are 77 titles in the list. Not necessarily gay, these thrillers and action novels are all promoted by the mighty Book-Mojo. I have two pen names on the go in this one, so if you can check both, that would be ideal.

Let’s Talk Smut

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Did you know there’s a ‘Smutfest’ running this weekend, where 40+ books are being offered either at a reduced price or for free for this weekend only? I have the link for you below.

I have a title in this collection, ‘The Mentor of Wildhill Farm’ was the first book I wrote when I decided to become Jackson Marsh, and it’s a far cry from what I am currently writing. (More news about the current Work in progress for you on Wednesday, and it’s exciting news, too.)

‘Wildhill Farm’ is probably the smuttiest book I’ve written, although ‘smut’ doesn’t seem quite the right word; sexiest, naughtiest, the one with the most erotic encounters in it… Something like that. When I set about writing it, I thought more about the characters and what they would get up to rather than a plot or similar. Unlike other Mentor books, there’s no villain, as such, and there’s no great storyline other than the one outlined in the blurb.

The Mentor of Wildhill Farm

Camden Stevens, a forty-two-year-old writer with a passion for younger men, is invited to mentor four gay youths at an isolated farmhouse. His students are budding writers in their late teens, all keen to explore their creativity — and sex. Camden must mentor them in both, and expects them to work hard.

What he doesn’t expect is a youth like Gabriel, and what he doesn’t know is that the man who set up this fantasy-come-true has a motive of his own.

[Here’s the universal link to the book itself, currently available for free until Sunday night. The Mentor of Wildhill Farm]

To Chest or Not to Chest?

When you take a look at the list of titles in this weekend’s special promo, you’ll see an awful lot of bare chests. The book covers should come as no surprise, as they are classic staples of gay erotica and spicy romance genre cover images that we’ve come to expect. Bare chests (muscled, of course, have you ever seen a larger model on such a cover?), handsome face, usually young, chiselled features, braces, firemen, etc., and behind it all, some much-loved tropes and themes. MMM Straight to Gay. First time. BDSM. Vampires. Holiday romance. Age gap (like ‘Wildhill Farm’). Dark taboo… Everything you could want. Click the banner to find the Smutfest and fill your kinky boots with loads of free/reduced-price reading.

Click the banner

1893

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I’ve been tinkering with some ideas for another Clearwater Tales. This time, it would feature five characters from stories from Clearwater, Larkspur and Delamere, and a station master. So far, I have managed to write one complete story, and the prologue. I wanted to have this ready for Christmas, but I fear that it may be next Christmas, as another Delamere idea is starting to form, and I may have to work on that instead. So, I am dithering, and ‘1893’ is not progression, but it might.

That is currently where I am at with writing anything, pottering with bone and researching another. We have a trip coming up over Christmas so I will be away, and I will probably get straight back to the next story after that, and continue to potter in the meantime.

1892, The Clearwater Tales, Volume One

Five characters from the Clearwater, Larkspur and Delamere Mysteries find themselves taking the train to Cornwall for the 1892 Larkspur Hall Christmas Eve ball. To pass the time, they each tell a story from their past.

1892 can be read as a short, standalone novella, and there’s no need to have read the Clearwater, Larkspur or Delamere series to enjoy the story. However, you might gain more from reading 1892 if you already know the characters and their histories.

Read, 1892, The Clearwater Tales, Volume One.

In the meantime, why not read the opening of Baxter’s tale (very much a first draft), and then have a browse through the promo at the bottom of the page, and after that, have a good weekend.

THE INVESTIGATOR’S TALE

That was the year of the dear Queen’s Jubilee, and I was sixteen. I’d not long been chucked out of me home by me dodgy parents, and it was a bit before me mum got done in and my dad went off the wrong end of mental. I’d got myself all set up with some, er, night work that we’ll say no more about, but thanks to that, I was able to afford a room in a court in Bluegate Fields.

Now then, that’s not an area for everyone. Well, you’d think it was an area for everyone in the flippin’ city, what with the rooms kipping ten bodies, and the kids at your feet like swarms of hungry ants. So many people crammed in, finding a room wasn’t easy, but I managed it. Yeah, so they called it a slum, and a couple of years ago that Booth do-gooder called us all “lowest class, vicious, and semi-criminal,” but there you go. Anyway, he didn’t know what he was talking about. We might have been low class and some of the Irish girls were vicious, but no-one was “semi” criminal. We were all good at what we did. Not only that, but we didn’t mind the noise and the stink; you got used to that in Shadwell. So, I moved in.

Thing was, the place was not far from St George’s church, and the bells kept me awake at first. Mind you, so did the fights downstairs.

Mrs Scratch, see, she’d somehow got the whole ground floor where she had a kitchen she let the others use. She rented out the rooms down there to a couple of Polish in with a German family, and Stalking Ken, the yard-docker who did the fencing, was down the other end, sharing with a horde of little whatnots he’d got from somewhere dreadful. France, probably. Oh, and her name wasn’t really Mrs Scratch. I never knew her real name, but she used to scratch herself around the madge area. Sniffy Sid, one of the whatnots Stalking Ken had taken in, he used to stand at her kitchen door all day watching her thump bread dough about, scratch her whatsit, sniff her fingers and get back to work. He was fascinated, young Sid. So fascinated, he came to think it was what every woman did when they were making bread, and when he was eight, he got himself a job sweeping the bakery floor. That’s the big one off Cable Street. Still there should you want to visit. They’ve stopped putting chalk in the flour now, so the bread’s almost acceptable.

Anyway, Sniffy Sid, he sniffed himself to work on his first day, sometime around three in the morning, I think, because I was just coming in from turning a few bob, and I wished him luck. Well, he didn’t have much of it, but then, he didn’t have much of a brain either, not Sid. There he was, sweeping up, when he sees one of the women has started banging her dough about, and that’s not a euphoniumism, I meant she was knocking back her bread. Seeing that her hands were covered in flour, Sniffy Sid gave a sniff and went into action. Knowing women liked to scratch down there when baking, and seeing as she couldn’t, he did it for her.

Next thing he knows, he’s dazed, bleeding, and out on the street. Poor lad, and all that before four in the morning. Some people, eh?

PROMO

MM Romance & Fiction Pure MM romance is on the cards with this select selection of titles from some old friends, such as Anne Barwell and Jem Wendel.

What Next?

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With ‘A Depraved Indifference’ now out there and available, I start to wonder, ‘What next?’

I am currently writing notes and drafts for another collection of shorts to make up a Clearwater Tales Volume Two, and have the prologue, half of one character’s story, nearly all of another’s, and no idea what the other three stories and the through-line will be. Also, I am talking things slowoy at eth desk for a while, thanks to various repateteive strain injuries. We’re going away on a trip in just over six weeks, so there will be a two week break over Christmas, a break from everything for a change. I am usual here on Christmas Day checking emails and sales, but not this year. I shall be elsewhere.

Meanwhile, though, the first review of ‘Indifference’ is in, and the reviewer was not indifferent at all.

The book is also currently #21 in LGBT + Mystery on Amazon, doing better than some books that have (allegedly) more than 24,500 star ratings. How does any book get that many, I wonder?

Talking of reviews, I found this one for Deviant Desire today, and I wish there was a way of replying to the reviewer. This is a great idea for another Clearwater prequel, though it would mean some intense research in naval procedures, ranks and all that, and a bit of imagination, but I am used to that.

Dear Mr. Marsh: I would love to read a back story prequel on Simon Harrington, the guy who was apparently All That and a bag of chips. Three men fell deeply in love with him, fought viciously over him, and two of them went insane because of him. That’s a story I’d love to read.

I shall have a think and add it to my list of possibilities for the future. Or maybe I could include the story in the next Clearwater Tales, the one I am tinkering with right now? There’s a thought… I’d better get writing.

PROMOS

Here’s today’s list of books for you to browse and consider.

LGBTQIA+ Characters in Romance (All Pairings Welcome)

General Fiction / LGBT, Romance, and Romance / LGBT

There are 62 titles in this collection of new books and old, with top-name authors taking part, such as Ann Lister, TL Travis, and, oh, me!

Here’s the link. One click and it’s free to browse.

Cover Reveal: A Depraved Indifference

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Something simple today. The cover for the Delamere Files Book Ten, ‘A Depraved Indifference,’ as created by the wonderful Andjela K.

All being well, the book will be published this week, so keep an eye on your Amazon notifications and my Facebook page.

UPDATE: 29th October. The Kindle version of the book is now available. Click here.

If you have not yet subscribed to my newsletter, you can do so here and be among the first to receive news of my books and other authors’ work in special free-to-browse promos. Talking of which, I have another for you after the cover reveal, which I will do after reminding you of the blurb:

A Depraved Indifference

The Delamere Files Book Ten

Jack Merrit longs for a case more challenging than burglaries and missing jewels, and when someone finds a skeleton inside a pipe organ, his wish comes true. At first, the strange discovery in the church of St Clement Danes seems like a prank, but when Jack’s next call is to a crime within earshot of the bells of St Martin’s, an uneasy pattern emerges.

Oranges and lemons say the bells of St Clement’s
You owe me five farthings, say the bells of St Martin’s

And then, the murders start.

If the first is chance, a second becomes a coincidence, but a third? That’s a pattern, and these are no ordinary murders. They involve diabolical contraptions that kill seemingly random victims. Asked by both London police forces to investigate without being told why, Jack and his men embark on an investigation knowing where the killer will strike next, but not when.

When the killer invites Jack to join his game, a contest of intellect begins, and knowing failure will lead to disgrace, he pits himself against his most cunning adversary so far.

PROMOS

MM Romance & Fiction There are 22 MM titles here, some, like mine, you may already know, but there are others I’ve not seen advertised before. Plus, there are some new authors to explore and a variety of niches within MM romance.

LGBTQIA+ Characters in Romance (All Pairings Welcome)

There are all manner of pairings within the realm of queer romance. KC Karmine is doing things with tentacles, Ann Lister is Pitch Perfect, and I have the Mentor of Lonemarsh House in the list. It’s a trifle awkward that on the row below that book is another using the same model in the same pose (it’s the same stock photo). Strangely, the book is called ‘Without Respect,’ which I find strangely fitting for the placement of our two novels.

A Thriller of a Blurb?

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Hello!

I have the blurb for ‘A Depraved Indifference’, the Delamere Files, Book Ten. The MS is with the proofreader, who has already attended to the blurb and author’s notes for me, and I am also talking to Scott about a map for the front of this one – so, as they say, it’s all go!

I also have another great collection of thrillers and mysteries to share with you, and I’ll put the link at the bottom of this post.

Meanwhile, here’s the blurb:

A Depraved Indifference
The Delamere Files Book Ten

Jack Merrit longs for a case more challenging than burglaries and missing jewels, and when someone finds a skeleton inside a pipe organ, his wish comes true. At first, the strange discovery in the church of St Clement Danes seems like a prank, but when Jack’s next call is to a crime within earshot of the bells of St Martin’s, an uneasy pattern emerges.

Oranges and lemons say the bells of St Clement’s
You owe me five farthings, say the bells of St Martin’s

And then, the murders start.

If the first is chance, a second becomes a coincidence, but a third? That’s a pattern, and these are no ordinary murders. They occur in churches named in the rhyme, and they involve diabolical contraptions that kill seemingly random victims. Asked by both London police forces to investigate without being told why, Jack and his men embark on an investigation knowing where the killer will strike next, but not when.

When the killer invites Jack to join his game, a contest of intellect begins, and knowing failure will lead to disgrace, he pits himself against his most cunning adversary so far.

Thriller, Mystery & Suspense – Huge promo

You can click on either or both of these links; they will take you to the same place, but either James or Jackson will get the kudos (and score) generated by your click.

The 51 titles in this promo take us mainly into the world of straight adventure, mystery and thrillers. I had a look, and I think my ‘Finding a Way’ is the only gay and historical offering, but you never know, it might pick up some new readers.

The same goes for my ‘The Saddling’ which is in here. (Note: I must get Andjela to design me a new cover.)

The Saddling              James Collins

Finding a Way             Jackson Marsh

Very Nearly There

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WIP

I am very nearly at the end of editing ‘A Depraved Indifference,’ and will be sending it to be proofread and checked in a day or so. Meanwhile, I am waiting to hear from Adnjela about the cover ideas, and Neil is beta-reading it for me. His comments so far include, ‘This would make a great horror film.’ I know what he means, but it isn’t a horror story, though some of what takes place is horrific, as you will see. I have one major change to incorporate today, and about 30 pages to read through, but as I have very little else on my plate today, I should be able to round this one off and start thinking about the next one tomorrow.

It’s been an interesting ride. If I turn to my ‘A Depraved Indifference’ folder, I can see some of the research materials I have collected while writing the book. These include a cover of the Police Illustrated News from 1888, various articles from London newspapers of 1893, a map or two of the city with churches marked on it, a map of the Old Nichol rookery in Shoreditch, plans of various London churches, and a photograph of a now destroyed pipe organ.

I’ve shown you this before. It is where the investigation begins with the finding of something very unusual…

I hope to have a cover idea for you soon, and I am aiming to have the book out around the end of the month. Fingers crossed!

PROMO
If you like a spicy MM read, then this promo is for you.

Spicy MM Books in Kindle Unlimited

All these titles fall under the ‘spicy’ heading, which means there’s nookie in them, and that’s fine. That’s what this promo of 55 books is focusing on. My Mentor of Wildhill Farm is in there, my spiciest novel outside of writing for the adult industry, and there are plenty of different niches, all with spicy MM romance involved.

These are all available on Kindle Unlimited too.

Click to browse for free

WIP: A Depraved Indifference

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I’m now onto draft two/three of this one, and Neil is about to start beta reading for me. I know I have some tidying up to do, and I must go through the entire thing again, all 100K words of it, before sending it to my lovely proofreader. Once that’s on its way, I will turn my attention to what comes next… Whatever that may be.

A Depraved Indifference has an open ending, as you will see, so it is definitely not the last Delamere File, but before I get to whatever comes next for Jack and Co., I was thinking about another small collection of short stories. My thinking cap is on!

Meanwhile, here’s a promo you can support:

Queer Romance Is Resistance

This promo is being hosted by the lovely Elle Keaton, who has appeared on my blog in the past. There are 45 titles to explore here, and covers suggesting firemen in love, daddies, dragons, mystical places, and good old MM romance.