Tag: Mystery Fiction

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Ann's War

Ann Morgan Mystery Series – Cover Reveal

Here are the five covers for my forthcoming five story Ann Morgan Mystery Series. Set in 1944-5, these 15,000 word novellas will be set four months apart and published four months apart, starting in November 2017, so you can read them in ‘real time’ if you so wish. Each story will contain a complete mystery while the five stories will complete Ann Morgan’s story arc. Ann is a private detective’s secretary who, through a combination of circumstances, assumes the lead detective role.

I am delighted with these covers and only hope that my words can do them justice. More news about the series, including the offer of a free book, in the near future.

 

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Sam Smith Mystery Series

Free Book

I have teamed up with Author Reach 😃 What does this mean for you, dear reader? For a start it means a FREE book. Simply follow the link and you will receive a copy of Sam’s Stories, which includes the stories Over the Edge, A Bad Break and Of Cats and Men, chronicling Sam’s early days as an enquiry agent. You should receive a confirmation email followed by the book instantly, but please check your junk folder because sometimes emails wander into there. https://hannah-howe.authorreach.com

SAM'S STORIES

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Ann's War Sam Smith Mystery Series

Chess Kings and Detective Queens

Sam visits Tintern, in A Parcel of Rogues. The monastery at Tintern was the first Cistercian abbey founded in Wales, on 9th May 1131. In later centuries, after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, many poets and painters visited the abbey, including William Wordsworth and, in 1794, J.M.W. Turner, who painted the chancel.

Page One containing the historical background to my Ann’s War Mystery Series is now complete. This page tells the story of the 28th Infantry Division and their training in South Wales before embarking on the beaches of Normandy in July 1944. Some of the incidents mentioned on this page will appear in the series. Ann’s War: The Army Camp

kenfig_camp

Sam is in the Wye Valley in A Parcel of Rogues. In the eighteenth century, the Wye Valley witnessed the birth of British tourism when the words and pictures of poets and painters enticed those with spare time and money to visit. This railway poster, c1938, was aimed at ‘everyman’ as people from all classes of society flocked to enjoy the valley’s natural beauty.

(c) National Railway Museum; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation

Last week, I enjoyed coverage of the St Louis Rapid and Blitz chess tournament in which former world champion Garry Kasparov made a ‘comeback’. The event was won by one of my favourite players, Levon Aronian. You can catch up with all the dramatic action on YouTube

Sam’s home patch, Cardiff Bay

 

 

 

 

Categories
Ann's War

Betrayal Background

Betrayal is book one in the forthcoming Ann’s War Mystery Series. The series, set in 1944-5, will comprise five novellas, each containing an individual mystery. Betrayal will be published before Christmas, hopefully free. Amazon control the prices on their websites so I require their approval to make the book free. More news about this and background on the series in the near future.

anns-war-cover-master

While researching the Ann’s War Mystery Series, I discovered these fascinating stories. In 1944 this Centaur tank was deployed on Morfa Beach, a location in the Ann’s War Mystery series, in preparation for D-Day because the sand and clay of Morfa Beach was similar to the beaches at Normandy. As you can see from the second picture, the tank sank into the sand.

Morfa Tank

Morfa Tank Sand

Furthermore, in 1943, the propaganda film, Nine Men, was made on location at Morfa Beach by Ealing Studios. On this occasion, Morfa Beach represented the Libyan desert. Men from the South Wales Borderers and London Irish Rifles were employed as extras to play soldiers on both sides. In the closing scene, a company of these men relieved the nine men of the title who had been under attack from the ‘Italians’. You can see a short extract from the film, including a glimpse of the beach, below.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Sam Smith Mystery Series

Amazon’s #1 Private Investigator

Many thanks to all my readers for making Sam Amazon’s number one private investigator for the fourth time. As Joseph Conrad rightly said, “One writes only half the book; the other half is with the reader.” The Sam Smith Mystery Series goes from strength to strength, and this is due to my readers. So, once again, thank you.

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73 Free in Kindle Store
#1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery > Private Investigators
#5 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Women’s Fiction > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Women Sleuths
#15 in Kindle Store > Whispersync for Voice > Literature & Fiction