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Last night I attended a reunion.  They're not usually my scene, but this one was different.  It was in the fire station in Southsea and it was members of my husband's former watch, Red Watch, who had come together to wish one of their colleagues good luck as he retires from full time service to take a job share with another fire fighter (a new innovation in the fire service) as a fireman. It was a moving experience to step inside the fire station again, I haven't been there for a few years, and to see again all the wonderful firemen my husband used to work with over the years of his career in the service cut short because of a knee injury. It was like being wrapped in a warm blanket.  What struck me was the kindness, friendliness, humour, camaraderieship of those there.  I shouldn't have been surprised because I have witnessed all of these traits for years along with these men's dedication and commitment to their work and ...

I’m often asked by readers whether my tough, earthy character, the flawed and rugged Inspector Horton in my marine mysteries , is based on anyone I know. Well the inspiration for Andy Horton comes from my lifelong love of heroes both fictional (James Bond for one) and real, in particular my fire fighter husband and the men I have met on his watch and in the Hampshire Fire Service. These fearless men also provided me with the idea for my crime thriller novel, In Cold Daylight which is in fact dedicated to them and to all fire fighters, ‘the true heroes.’ Fire fighters go in to dangerous situations and risk their lives when everyone else is rushing away and my husband has had some very near misses in his career. Inspector Andy Horton is like this. He fearlessly charges in and gets himself into all sorts of difficulties in order to see that justice is done. He’s fit, brave, and a maverick, but he’s also self-contained and controlled with a disturbing past that has made him reluctant to ...

I am pleased to announce that through the sale of my thrillers, In Cold Daylight and In For The Kill in November and December I am able to donate £250.00 to The Fire fighters Charity in respect of the Steve Morris Appeal. Steve Morris, a fire fighter from Green Watch, Bolton, (UK) attended a fatal incident on 23 June 2008 in which three fire fighters received burns, Steve received 50% burns. A special web site has been set up to record Steve’s progress and the views, feelings and support of his family, friends and colleagues. http://www.fireservice.co.uk/steve/index.php My husband is a former fire fighter from Red Watch, Southsea and my thriller, IN COLD DAYLIGHT, is dedicated to fire fighters and was inspired by a true and tragic story, which I heard on the Watch one day about the high number of fire fighters contracting cancer. I took this idea and weaved it into a fast-paced thriller, which was shortlisted for the World Book Day Prize 2008. I would like to thank everyone who bough...

I have just received the Polish copy of my thriller, In Cold Daylight , renamed Fire and Water in Poland (Ogien i Woda) and it looks fantastic. The cover image is very impressive and the book is a cross between a hardback and paperback with a very unusual flap extending from the front and back cover which you can use as a handy bookmark - a brilliant idea. There is a lovely illustration of a lighthouse at the top of chapter one and an image of a boat at the top of the pages on the following chapters. Red Horse Poland have really embraced my concept of Marine Mysteries. On the back flap of the cover they have shown a picture of my thriller, In For the Kill (Uwiklany) with details about it. Fire and Water ( In Cold Daylight) is dedicated to my sister Chrissy - she'll be thrilled - and to my mum, to fire-fighters everywhere - the true heroes and especially for Bob (my husband) and Red Watch, Southsea (his former fire fighting colleagues). Thanks guys for all you do. So here is the de...

Many crime writers take their themes for their novels from real life incidences and when I wrote In Cold Daylight it was based on the tragic true story of a group of fire fighters from one watch in Portsmouth all contracting cancer. My husband was a fire fighter at Portsmouth. Many believed their cancer was contracted from exposure to hazardous chemicals in the line of duty but this has never been fully investigated. I decided to blend what I heard into a dramatic fictional plot, unaware then that a major International disaster on a massive scale (9/11) would be the catalyst to spark studies in the USA into this controversial area. Since writing In Cold Daylight what was speculation amongst the fire fighters has become fact in the States, at least. The UK still has to wake up to this! The most recent research from the States confirms that fire fighters are at greatly increased risk from work-related cancer. This was first highlighted in a study by the University of Cincinnati , and...

Well almost. After four months of agonising over votes for the World Book Day Prize, it has finally finished. Voting closed at mid day today (29 February 2008), but the nail-biting continues because we haven't reach the end of the road yet. The winner of the World Book Day Prize will be announced on World Book Day 6 March 2008. Talk about building suspense! But whatever happens, I can no longer bully, persuade, cajole, bribe or influence any of you into voting for In Cold Daylight. It's been an interesting few months to say the least. As many of you know, if by some miracle, I do win the World Book Day Prize then the £5,000 will go to the Fire Service National Benevolent Fund because In Cold Daylight is dedicated to fire-fighters and about fire-fighters. I would like to thank everyone who voted for In Cold Daylight and for those of you have taken the time and trouble to leave a comment on the World Book Day web site . The site is still open and you can continue to leave comment...

I'm privileged to have been asked to join the UK Fire Service Forum http://www.fireservice.co.uk/ and I've duly posted my introduction piece. Carl, a fire fighter in Greater Manchester, runs the web site and has been a great supporter of my novels. It's a fantastic web site packed full of information for serving fire fighters and aspirational fire fighters. And why, might you ask have I joined such a grand bunch of lasses and lads? Well for those of you who have been reading my blog, you'd know by now that my thriller, In Cold Daylight, is based around the mystery of the tragic true story of fire fighters... My little poll has now closed. I invited people to cast their vote on the question of "will the e book ever replace the printed book?" Here are the results: Yes 11% No 88% The "NOs" have it. Here's to Shedworking Shedworking are running a competition on In Cold Daylight . To win a copy of In Cold Daylight you need to answer a simple ques...

Over the weekend we heard the tragic news of the fire fighters killed in a suspected arson attack in a warehouse in Warwickshire. We all know they risk their lives to save others. They, and my fire-fighting husband, have been the inspiration for some of my characters in my novels. They were also the idea behind my crime/thriller IN COLD DAYLIGHT. In this novel fire-fighters are dying long after the heat of the blaze has been extinguished, why? The idea for IN COLD DAYLIGHT came from a story my husband told me of several men all on the same watch contracting cancer, and the same kind of cancer, around the neck and ears. What if they had all gone into a fire where they were exposed to a dangerous chemical ? In the book, fire-fighter, Jack Bartholomew dies in an arson blaze in a derelict building, and marine artist, Adam Greene, his best friend, receives a postcard from the dead man with a cryptic clue written on it. When Jack's house is ransacked on the day of the funeral, Adam can...

Having been married to a fire fighter for over twenty years, and knowing the risks they face when they courageously and unquestioningly go into blazing buildings to save people who might be trapped, I just wanted to say how sorry and sad I am to hear of the tragic loss of those fire fighters in Warwick. My heart goes out to their colleagues and family. In Cold Daylight is dedicated to you all - "For fire fighters everywhere the true heroes."