#SoCS – Feb. 12 2022 – Fortune

12 Feb 2022 40 Comments

by Ritu in #SoCS Tags: Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Fortune, Linda G Hill, Socs

Linda’s SoCS prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “fortune.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

I’m a little late with my SoCS post this week, because I have just finished what feels like the longest term in history!

And now I am fortunate enough to have a week’s break, thank goodness!

Anyway onto the main prompt.

We are ordering Chinese. Well, actually, we have already ordered, and unless I’m lucky, the doorbell will end up interrupting my post writing!

It isn’t here, yet, but one thing I lament is that here, in the UK, you seem to rarely get fortune cookies with your meals.

I do love a good fortune cookie, don’t you?

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Feb. 12, 2022

Em & Me by @BethMorrey #BlogTour #BookReview @harperfiction

11 Feb 2022 7 Comments

by Ritu in Thoughts Opinions & Memories

I am thrilled to be a part of the blog tour for the wonderful book that is Em & Me, by Beth Morrey. I was asked to read an early arc, and now, on the release of this book, here I am, again, with all the blurb, and my own review, too!

First, the blurb…

You can’t change your past
But what comes next is up to you

That’s what life turns on, isn’t it? The choices and moments that change everything

Once upon a time, Delphine Jones had big dreams. Clever, beautiful and ambitious, she was going to get an education, travel the world, make her mark. But somewhere along the line, it all went wrong… Now Delphine is a struggling single mum, serving coffee for a living, fishing coins out the back of the sofa to make ends meet. All she wants is a safe place for her and her daughter Em, yet nothing she does makes a difference.

But there is one thing she never gave up: hope.

When a brief reprieve from her daily grind forces her to look outwards, she begins to remember who she is and what she’s capable of. Her world opens up, offering new opportunities, adventures – even love – if only she can put the past behind her.

Can hope bloom into something more for Delphine and Em?

And my review:

Okay, so, although it took me a little time to read, (life, not the book’s fault!) I truly loved this new release by Beth Morrey.
Delphine Jones is a relatively young woman, in her late twenties, already with the weight of the world on her shoulders. Having been a teen-mum, reeling from the loss of her beloved mother and caring for her grief-stricken father, as well as looking after her twelve-year-old daughter, life hasn’t dealt her the best cards, but she’s trying to make the most of it.
She keeps things afloat with a waitressing job and a long term cleaning gig for an old friend of her mother.
The thing is, there was always meant to be more to the life of Delphine Jones, or Fifi as her dad calls her.
This isn’t a romance, though there is so much love within the pages of this book.
I was immersed in the story of Delphine, as she slowly begins to bring back the unravelled threads of her former self, and starts to reach for the dreams she had all but given up on, in order to keep existing.
Fifi was a bright student with so much to look forward to until she fell pregnant at sixteen. Then all the confidence seemed to have been knocked out of her.
I loved how the different people around her built her up, in their own ways, so each part of her life starts to make sense.
Her ‘teacher’, Ros, who encourages her to study again.
Letty, her elderly French companion, who teaches her to take every opportunity while she can.
Dylan, who shows her she is not dead inside.
Sanjay (and Dylan, again) who brings music back into her life.
Her father, who finds his strength again, through her, then becomes her support.
Selassie and Abrihet, who take her into their little restaurant, and treat her like their own daughter, giving her encouragement, and nourishment she didn’t know she needed.
And Em. Beautiful Em Jo, her daughter, who is her whole reason for living and being.
A story filled with soul and hope.

About the Author

I’m a TV producer, but not the kind where you wear headsets and say ‘cut’. More like Alan Partridge pitching monkey tennis. I dream up ideas for TV programmes, pitch them to channels and mostly get roundly rejected. My working life is very W1A.

For a long time, I was Creative Director of Development at RDF Television, where I was involved in numerous productions – I helped create The Secret Life of Four Year Olds series on Channel 4 and devised 100-Year-Old Drivers for ITV. Now I am a freelance development producer, so if you need a treatment re-writing 33 times, or some research on Texas body farms, then do get in touch.

I’ve been trying to write a novel since my early 20s when I wrote a spin-off from Mary Poppins called Sister Suffragette, which was all about Winifred Banks’ adventures when she wasn’t at home singing. It’s probably for the best that it’s still in a drawer somewhere.

In my spare time, I enjoy running, cooking curries, admiring my dog everyday and Christmas once a year.

Golden Healer by @Marjorie_Mallon #BlogTour

09 Feb 2022 42 Comments

by Ritu in Blog Tours Tags: Blog, Blog Post, Blog Tour, Blogger, Blogging, Marjorie Mallon

I am always excited to be able to feature a dear friend on my blog, and today is the turn of the lovely and most talented Marjorie Mallon!

Now, I have to tell you, I have waited a good few years for this sequel to Marje’s first book, Bloodstone, and thought I read an early first draft of the new book, I was extremely privileged to read the finished product, which continues the story of Amelina in her quest to break The Curse Of Time!

Golden Healer is The 2nd in The YA Paranormal Adventure Series – The Curse of Time.

I didn’t think my life could get any weirder, until the dreaded rollercoaster…

Amelina Scott’s destiny is to be a Krystallos: a magician of light, chosen to learn the ways of crystal magic on her 16th birthday. Located on a river pathway in a mysterious part of Cambridge, the Crystal Cottage is guarded by mythical beings.

Unfortunately, there are those who seek to harm this haven of light. Learning of Ryder – a Shadow Sorcerer with hypnotic powers – Amelina discovers that her own magic is now threatened, and that the Curse of Time might be unleashed again.

As secrets abound and the creatures of the Chronophage come alive, can Amelina become the true magician she needs to be?

A unique, imaginative mystery full of magic-wielding and dark elements, Bloodstone is a riveting adventure for anyone interested in fantasy, mythology or the world of the paranormal. NOTE: this book contains mention of self-harm, mental health issues and alludes to the potential dangers of sexual attraction, which may trigger younger/sensitive readers.

Buy Here!

The Series is inspired by:

The Corpus Christi Chronophage clock on King’s Parade, Cambridge. Find out more here:

http:// http://www.johnctaylor.com/the-chronophage/

https://mjmallon.com/2017/09/17/poetry-inspiredby-the-dragon-chronopage-colleens-weekly-poetrychallenge-no-50-haiku-tanka-haibun-voice-watch/

And Juniper Artland – artist Anya Gallaccio’s sculpture The Light pours out of Me. https://www.jupiterartland.org/art/anya-gallaccio-the-light-pours-out-of-me/

And the 2nd book Golden Healer mentions a popular old haunt of Cambridge which has since closed down – Clowns Cafe.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

My alter ego is MJ – Mary Jane from Spiderman. I love superheros!

M J Mallon was born in Lion city Singapore, a passionate Scorpio with the Chinese Zodiac sign of a lucky rabbit. She spent her early childhood in Hong Kong. During her teen years, she returned to her father’s childhood home, Edinburgh where she spent many happy years, entertained and enthralled by her parents’ vivid stories of living and working abroad. Perhaps it was during these formative years that her love of storytelling began bolstered by these two vivid raconteurs. She counts herself lucky to have travelled to many far-flung destinations and this early wanderlust has fuelled her present desire to emigrate abroad. Until that wondrous moment, it’s rumoured that she lives in the UK, in the Venice of Cambridge with her six-foot hunk of a rock god husband. Her two enchanting daughters have flown the nest but often return with a cheery smile.

Her motto is to Do what Your Heart Desires.

And her favourite genre to write is fantasy/magical realism because life should always be sprinkled with a liberal dash of extraordinarily imaginative magic!

Accolades: M J is a finalist in the Fantasy category of N. N. Light’s Book Award for her novel Bloodstone and a finalist in the International author. She has also contributed best-selling short stories to Dan Alatorre’s Box Under The Bed anthologies.

Winner of the Blogger’s bash blogging prize with her flash fiction piece The Queen’s Dress Down Day. https://mjmallon.com/2018/03/21/the-bloggers-bash-blog-post-competition-2018-the-queens-dress-down-day/

Winner of Carrot Ranch Flash Fiction Contest with her murderous piece: Mr. Blamey https://carrotranch.com/2017/12/19/winner-of-flash-fiction-contest-7/

One-Liner Wednesday – #Cake

09 Feb 2022 51 Comments

by Ritu in #onelinerwednesday Tags: #jusjojan, Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Cake, One Liner Wednesday

“I had cake and I ate it…all!”
Ritu Bhathal (Stuffed )

This is what happens when all the rest of the family have birthdays in February. We’re a week in and we’ve cut three cakes already. No wonder my clothes are groaning, because I am far too good at eating said cake!

https://lindaghill.com/2022/02/09/one-liner-wednesday-the-stuff-you-make/

Chai And A Chat #172 #ChaiAndAChat

07 Feb 2022 43 Comments

by Ritu in Chai and a Chat Tags: Blog, Blog Post, Blogger, Blogging, Catch Up, Chai and a Chat

Yes, indeed, February is most definitely here and we are in the throes of birthday month in our family! But work keeps getting in the way!

So, drinks at the ready?

If we were having chai I’d begin as always, with school. It’s been an interesting week, to say the least. We have had staff leaving (not in my team), staff interviews happening (one for my team!), children having meltdowns, children off with the dreading C virus, and that encompasses Chicken pox to add to Covid, and Cold, and many staff off, having tested positive (including a student in my class and one of my one to one TAs. Yes. That much fun. Is it any wonder that I an shattered at the end of each day? Still we plod along… trying our hardest to stay safe, and stay open for the children, because, whatever anyone says, remote larning is not the best thing for little ones. Roll on Friday and half term, is all I can say!
If we were having chai I’d tell you that the other day I managed to squeeze in a few words one of the week day evenings, and it ended up being a rather intimate scene… I was kind of nervous, but got there in the end, I think…

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If we were having chai I’d say that for the first time in months, I am seeing a little daylight as we leave in the mornings, and in two evenings it was still light when we got home! That was a good feeling! I do love to appreciate the changing colours of the sky in the later hours.

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If we were having chai I’d tell you that the weekend was a time to experiment. I had my first go at online grocery shopping! Now, I have been put off doing this for a long time, as I am terrifed, (and probably a bit of a control freak), of ordering and getting the wrong things sent to me! I remember my sis in law using the system a good few years back, and ordering ketchup, and being seng mayo as the substitute! However, I am a converted woman! I ticked the no subs boxes on most of the items, and as I wasn’t wandering through the aisles, I didn’t pick up excess items, which was definitely easier on the wallet! There ended up being 5 items unavailable, and none of them were urgent, so, win win, I think!
If we were having chai I’d mention that as I was feeling so tired, coupled with a very erratic night of sleep on Saturday. words didn’t flow as well as the weekend before, but along with organising my Scrivener cork board, I did around 1,000 words this week, so not all bad!

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If we were having chai I’d end with our gorgeous Feline baby, as always, who is posing as DJ Sonu Singh, here! God, I do love him!

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This week, along with the pressures of even less staff in, during the week, we have Hubby Dearest’s and my mother-in-law’s birthday, too, so fingers crossed, I continue to stay negative, and that we can have our little celebrations with the family, with no worries, as well as getting tp the end of the week, so I can enjoy a (rather busy) week off!

And while you’re here, did you sign up for my mailing list? I am in the middle of writing an exclusive Chickpea Curry Lit story for my subscribers, and there will be news, tips and even recipes! You know you want to join… go on! Click the pic below to sign up!