The reflection of her face contorted into an ugly grimace.
“I was the fairest of them all, once,” Grimhelde addressed the terrified
frogs who were sat, frozen, on the lily pads, unable to move, in case she cast
a spell on them. “Yes, I was. Queen Grimhelde. That was me. The fairest, and
the most feared. People quaked in my presence. My dear King, oh how he loved
me. But he wouldn’t stop loving her.”
Grimhelde sneered as she continued. “Snow White. She was a harmless
child. No match for me. Or at least she wasn’t, until she grew up. Too pretty.
Eurgh! Sickly sweet, she was. And they all adored her.”
She sunk to the floor, grabbing a handful of grass and yanking it up,
out of the ground.
The frogs cowered.
“And I thought I’d got rid of her! But why I had to send Henry, that
daft huntsman, I don’t know. He was always too soft. A few flutters of her eyelashes,
and he let her go!” She slowly scattered the broken blades of grass on the surface
of the pond, fracturing the reflection.
“She lived. Those blasted dwarves saved her. Even my poisoned apple
didn’t work. Instead, she marries that soppy Prince and lives Happily Ever
After, and look at me. Stripped of my title and banished from the kingdom.”
She leant closer to the frogs, beckoning them to come closer. “Well
actually, they think I’m dead. Left my execution to that stupid, soft Henry,
didn’t they? He couldn’t kill his Queen, so he dropped me off here, as he had Snow
White. Thing is, I haven’t found a band of dwarves to help me out.” She raised
her hand, “I get left with frogs!” Grimhelde brought her fist down into the
water, sending ripples across the surface and scattering the frogs.
Colleen’s prompt this week is the mid month Photo Prompt:
Use the above photo as the inspiration for your poem. Ask yourself questions. Be creative! What does this photo say to you?
This challenge is for Haiku, Senryu, Haiga, Tanka, Haibun, Etheree, Nonet, Shadorma, and Cinquain poetry forms. Freestyle rhyming poetry is not part of this challenge. Thank you. ❤
A Message Delivered In a bottle By nature's postman Who's it for? Who's it from? A cry for help? Love letter? How long has this note been floating On the surface of the ocean deep? Time to open and reveal the secret
I am absolutely made up to be a part of the blog tour for this book!
Susan Lewis has been a favourite author of mine for many years, and to be asked to be a part of the promotion for her newest release was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up!
Let me tell you a little bit about the book first.
Home Truths
22nd August 2019
The emotional new novel from the Sunday Timesbest selling author Susan Lewis
Angie
Watts had the perfect ordinary family. A new home. A beloved husband. Three
adored children.
But
Angie’s happy life is shattered when her son Liam falls in with the wrong
crowd. And when her son’s bad choices lead to the murder of her husband, it’s
up to Angie to hold what’s left of her family together.
How far would you go to keep your
family safe?
Her son
is missing. Her daughter is looking for help in dangerous places. And Angie is
fighting just to keep a roof over their heads.
But Angie is a mother. And a mother does anything to protect her children – even when the world is falling apart.
My thoughts?
I have read a lot of Susan Lewis’s earlier books and was so pleased to be given a chance to read Home Truths as I have always loved her gritty yet realistic storytelling. And I was definitely not disappointed. We follow the story of Angie Watts, a woman who is thrust into the life of a widowed mother of two after the tragic murder of her beloved husband. The loss of her husband is heightened by the subsequent disappearance of her eldest son who has been swallowed up by gang culture and drugs. Spiralling into debt, Angie is faced with hard decisions, whether to feed her family or to pay those who are biting at her ankles for their money. Losing her home, the home her husband had lovingly created for their family, is the last straw. Until a saviour, or several saviours, enter her life, and help her rebuild her home and life. It sounds like a total fairytale, but it really isn’t. This story deals with gang culture, drug addiction, homelessness, mental health issues, grooming of young girls for sex work and loss. I was gripped. And I can admit to sitting on my sofa reading, and having to message a book group I am a member of, to say how that moment when you feel your lips turn up slightly, at the prospect of all the downs turning to ups, in a book your reading is my #perfectreadingmoment. And there were tears in my eyes at moments, of both sadness, but of happiness too. A must read!
Come and get to know Susan Lewis
Susan Lewis *
Susan Lewis is the bestselling author of over forty books across the genres of family drama, thriller, suspense and crime, including her most recent novel the Sunday Times bestseller One Minute Later. She is also the author of Just One More Day and One Day at a Time, the moving memoirs of her childhood in Bristol during the 1960s.
Susan has had quite the career. At 18 years old she got a job at HTV in Bristol and then four years later moved to London to work for Thames. She worked as a secretary in news and current affairs before training as a production assistant working on light entertainment and drama. Susan has lived in Hollywood, where she was neighbours with George Clooney, and the South of France, before moving to her current home in Gloucestershire which she shares with her husband James, stepsons Michael and Luke, and mischievous dogs Coco and Lulu.
But I Smile Anyway... 