#bookstodon

See tagged statuses in the local Rambling Readers community

How many deaths to end a war? ‘Eyes Turned Skywards’ is a fast-paced thriller set mainly in northern Scotland during World War Two. It uses many real settings, transported eight decades back in time.

This modern image shows Dunrobin Castle railway station in Sutherland. It was built as a private station for Dunrobin Castle in 1902. It plays a background role as the story builds towards its climax.

Find out more on my website:
http://www.kenlussey.com/ets/index.html

Dunrobin Castle Station. The image shows a corner view of a black and white half-timbered chalet style building with a sheltered area to its front, or our left. There is a tarmac-covered area in front of it and a grassy area to its sides and behind, and leafless trees in the background. A sign in the bottom right of the frame says Dunrobin Castle in white on black. The front cover of ‘Eyes Turned Skywards’ is shown in the top right corner.

When the hunter becomes the prey. ‘The High Road’ is a fast-paced contemporary thriller set mainly in central Scotland and the far north-west.

Ullapool in Wester Ross has a background role in the story as it develops. The central character visits as major works on the inner harbour and Shore Street near completion. These are shown in this photograph which was taken at the time he was here.

Find out more on our website:
https://www.arachnid.scot/book-thr/index.html

The image shows a harbour in the foreground and on the right with a series of pontoons connected by a walkway and accessed by a ramp. Above and to the left is a quayside with red and white barriers visible and beyond that is a street with parked cars and mainly white two-storey buildings on its far side. The front cover of ‘The High Road’ is shown in the top right corner.

Happy Friday! 🥳

I've just published my latest blog post, where I not only offer updates on where my writing projects stand, but ALSO list several self-published books/short stories I've enjoyed this year.

🎁 It's my holiday wish that more self-published authors get some recognition this holiday season. If you're shopping for a reader this holiday season, help me make that happen! 🎁

https://sarahjhoodlet.com/blog/support-self-published-authors-this-holiday-season/

Oh hey! I published two short stories in 2024, and you can nominate them for things! They're even both free to read online.

Umbrella Luck (Issues in Earth Science): https://earthscienceissues.net/fiction_for_the_classroom

Drinking Down the Salt (Saturday Evening Post):
https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2024/10/drinking-down-the-salt/

Both are character-focused spec fic with environmental themes. Umbrella Luck is nominally hopepunk sci-fi while Salt is darker fantasy (it's actually pretty dismal if you read between the lines).

'Most indie stores will special order [small press books] for you, a service you should absolutely use if you feel so inclined. You can absolutely request your library carry a small press book. Both of these things are really good for the books, all told.

'First you have to know they exist.'

Molly Templeton focuses on the challenge of small press for SFF, but it's the same in any genre:

https://reactormag.com/small-press-sff-might-sometimes-be-harder-to-find-but-its-more-than-worth-the-effort/

@bookstodon

A game of secrets and lies. ‘Bloody Orkney’ is a fast-paced thriller set in Scotland, mainly in Orkney, during World War Two. It uses many real settings.

Ness Battery near Stromness helped guard the western entrance to Scapa Flow during the war and was visited by the book’s characters in November 1942. Three of the internal walls of the mess hall are covered by huge murals that depict scenes of rural Kent.

Find out more on my website:
http://www.kenlussey.com/blork/index.html

This modern image shows some of the murals painted in the mess hall during the war. The ceiling is off-white and supported by trusses and the floor is red. The lower walls are dark brown, but the upper walls are entirely covered by rural English scenes. The front cover of ‘Bloody Orkney’ is shown in the bottom left corner.