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Today sees the celebration of World Book Day 2011 in the UK and Ireland while in most other countries World Book Day is held on 23 April every year. It is a partnership of publishers, booksellers and interested parties who come together to promote books and reading for the personal enrichment and enjoyment of everyone. A main aim of World Book Day in the UK and Ireland is to encourage children to explore the pleasures of books and reading. But it’s not just for children, World Book Day celebrates the joy of reading and there are many activities and events organised around the country for both adults and children. I was fortunate enough to be involved in World Book Day 2008 when my crime thriller novel , In Cold Daylight , was shortlisted for the World Book Day Prize 2008. Sadly the competition is no longer running but it was a great way to involve the public. In Cold Daylight reached the Top Ten Best Reads voted on by the public and made it to number three in the charts. I gave a...

I'm pleased that two of my crime novels have been selected as Hot Holiday Reads on The Book Depository's web site. The Suffocating Sea , the third Inspector Andy Horton marine mystery crime novel, is featured along with one of my stand alone crime thriller novels, In Cold Daylight . The Book Depository has some great prices and free delivery worldwide. You can read more about The Suffocating Sea on my official web site.  Earlier in the year it was selected by The Book Depository as the 'Best of British Crime Fiction'. On my web site, you can also read chapter one, or listen to me reading from The Suffocating Sea. The Suffocating Sea  is also available in Large Print and as an audio book and download and e book. In Cold Daylight  is a fast-paced thriller ideal for reading on the beach or in the garden.  Or on a flight or cruise to summer sun somewhere. If you want a taster, visit my web site where you can listen to me talking about the inspiration ...

Yes, it's the day when the short list will be announced for the TOP TEN books for World Book Day, Spread The Word 2008. Will In Cold Daylight be on that list? Have I got enough votes to take me through? All this waiting is agony, can't work for thinking of it. But I know so many of you have voted for In Cold Daylight for which I heartily thank you. And I've had e mails of support from American fire fighters who are raising money to research into fire fighter's cancer. I'll post more on that later but those of you who have read In Cold Daylight know that it is a thriller about Adam Green's quest to find out why his best friend Jack Bartholomew died. “Before fire-fighter Jack Bartholomew can reveal the cause of his own – and his colleagues cancer- he is murdered and silenced forever. But in a cryptic message he orchestrated before his untimely death, he has left a trail of clues that will lead his best friend into a labyrinth of lies, secrets and government conspi...

There's still time to vote for In Cold Daylight for World Book Day 2008 . The voting closes at mid day on 25 January, so click on the link above or to the right to register your vote. If you're not sure how to vote then I've explained the process further below. If you've been reading this blog you cannot fail to have missed the fact that my hard-hitting thriller based on the tragic true story of the mysterious deaths of fire-fighters has been selected as one of the top 100 'Books to Talk About' for World Book Day 2008. The ten books which receive the most votes will be promoted via the bookshops and across 3,500 libraries, before an overall winner is selected for World Book Day on 6 March 2008. So there is a big prize at stake and if In Cold Daylight can make it to the top ten and then wins, the £5,000 prize money will be donated to the Fire Service National Benevolent Fund in recognition of the great job our fire-fighters and all those who work within the fire...

Then all will be revealed. Has In Cold Daylight made it to the Top Ten of the World Book Day, Spread The Word Prize? Have I mustered enough votes to get through? It's nail biting time and I thought I'd reproduce here an article I wrote on how it feels as an author to be in the running for this prize. This article is published in a magazine called Book Time. It is a free publication and very professionally produced by the book wholesaler, Bertrams. You can pick up a copy in the UK from any independent book shop or from your local library. The Spread The Word article is on pages 28 and 29 where ten books are featured, including: In Cold Daylight “Before fire-fighter Jack Bartholomew can reveal the cause of his own – and his colleagues cancer- he is murdered and silenced forever. But in a cryptic message he orchestrated before his untimely death, he has left a trail of clues that will lead his best friend into a labyrinth of lies, secrets and government conspiracy.” "Have I ...

Time to dust off the new calendars and ditch the old ones, read your horoscope and wonder what 2008 will bring. For me 2007 was a very exciting and enjoyable year, one in which my Marine Mysteries gained new readers, and were featured in major promotions and my thriller, In Cold Daylight, reached the long list for World Book Day, Spread The Word 2008 Prize. So what's in store for 2008? In January the voting will continue for World Book Day Spread The Word Prize. Will In Cold Daylight make it into the Top Ten to be announced in February? Will it be up there on World Book Day on 6 March 2008? Who knows? But fingers crossed. The Marine Mystery Deadly Waters is released in paperback in March and the third DI Andy Horton Marine Mystery called The Suffocating Sea is published in hardback in April. So there will be some book signings to undertake and the chance to meet readers. And the fourth Andy Horton Marine Mystery will be finished by March. Then there's the London Book Fair i...

As result of a conference talk I gave in November to a very nice group of administration officers from schools in my area (at which I sold tons of books and ran out of copies) the good organiser of the conference volunteered to circulate an order form for my marine mysteries to all delegates who attended. So today I toddled off to a lovely little infants school in the Hampshire countryside to sign pre-ordered copies of my novels, (including my latest, Deadly Waters , which is in hardback) and write personal inscriptions for those who wanted them. I was truly delighted that so many people wanted to buy my novels either for themselves or as Christmas presents. I hope they enjoy reading them. The voting is continuing for World Book Day Spread The Word 2008 and I'm busy drumming up as many votes as I can from anyone who has the misfortune to speak to me. I stopped short of telling the dustmen this morning, but if I don't get enough votes to get into the TOP TEN then maybe I will. D...

In Cold Daylight has not only made it onto the World Book Day list, and the Shedworking site, http://www.shedworking.co.uk/ but has now reached the beautiful shores of New Zealand where Graham Beattie, who runs a very entertaining and informative book blog, http://www.beattiesbookblog.blogspot.com/ has written about it. What's more, In Cold Daylight, follows on from an interview with Ian Rankin. Eat your heart out kid, I'm coming up fast behind you! ( If only). Now if I had his sales perhaps I could afford to fly to New Zealand and say hi to the tons of relatives and friends who seem to be escaping Britain's green and pleasant land for a new life over there. But I'm forgetting that not only do I dislike flying and airports, but that after wittering on in the Sunday Times a couple of weeks ago about the environmental issues surrounding the expansion of Heathrow Airport it would be hypocritical of me to take to the air. However, a round-the-world cruise wouldn't ...

Yes, Adam Greene of IN COLD DAYLIGHT fame has made it to the headline on the wonderful site http://www.shedworking.co.uk/ . The World Book Day Spread The Word race to find THE Most Talked About Book 2008 is on and let's hope Adam, my reluctant hero in IN COLD DAYLIGHT, is in with a chance of getting into the Top Ten. If he wins then I have pledged to donate the £5,000 prize money to the Fire Service National Benevolent Fund, because In Cold Daylight is about fire-fighters and dedicated to fire-fighters and the inspiration for the thriller came from my husband, an ex fire-fighter. Thanks also to Wightlink ferries, who have agreed to get behind Adam and steer him to safe harbour. A grand crew at Wightlink, and I had a fantastic day signing books on one of their ferries in May as it traversed the Solent to and fro the Isle of Wight. Thanks also to all of you so far who have taken the time to vote and leave some lovely comments on the World Book Day spread the word web site www.worl...