This week, two gay mystery romances (one in audio) and an absorbing fictionalisation of the story of the first Black women officers in the US army in WW2.
A satisfying story about a boy who disappeared fifteen years ago. Morgan can’t remember anything before he was eight and his memories of being passed from pillar to post in foster care are really messed up. Is he Sammy Calloway? Boyd was Sammy’s best friend and he doesn’t know either.
There’s angst, vulnerability and pushing people you’re falling in love with away before they can hurt you. There’s a rich backstory and cast of secondary characters and I like how some of the sub plots are left to spin themselves out in your head…you’ve got enough clues to work out what’s going on, but it’s not spoon fed to you. I recommend.
The story of the first Black women officers in the US army in WW2 through a fictionalised lens. An utterly absorbing story from the creation of the first Black unit in the WAAC, through recruitment, training and deployment to serving in France.
The women faced racism and sexism at every stage and came out triumphant. This book left me smiling– the two main characters are skilfully woven in among the historical figures of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and are sympathetic, flawed and very real. Just up my historical street and a joy to read–the writing is beautiful. Plus there’s a list of source material at the back which delighted my inner historical nerd.
This is already a comfort re-read for me and the audio lived up to my expectations. If you like your detectives with a side-order of sass and talking to dead people, this is definitely worthwhile, however you read it.
The narrator, Noah Michael Levine, hit the same note for the characters that I had given them in my head and I was able to go along for the ride. I often find I pick up details in the audio that I miss reading on the page and this was the case here…description of surroundings and what people are wearing that add depth and colour to the plot that I sometimes don’t absorb, as I read fast. I’m looking forward to listening to the other two in the trilogy.
This week we welcome Ana Night, who’s come to talk about her new release and answer some nosy questions! Welcome, Ana!
Thank you for having me! I’m here to talk about my newest release Avenging a Raider, book six in my Black Raiders series. This book is one I’ve wanted to write for quite a while, but it hasn’t been easy – anything that could get in the way would. So to finally have it done is just amazing and I’m so happy it’s out now!
So, on with the questions! What started you writing?
I think it was just one of those inevitable things. I’ve always loved stories, from having them read to me as a kid, to learning to read while listening to tapes of the book (I feel way older than I am writing that, by the way), to reading so fast and so much the local library couldn’t keep up. No matter what, if we were going on a drive, I had pen and paper with me and would be writing from the car started till it stopped. I started out writing fanfiction even though I had no idea that’s what it was, and I would rewrite the things I thought could be better and I guess that slowly led to me just wanting to write those stories from scratch. I have quite a few unfinished and/or unpublished books on my computer and I’m sure some of them date back to my early teens. It wasn’t until I was nineteen that I decided to give this whole being an author thing a try and I haven’t regretted that decision once. I absolutely love writing and sharing my stories with others!
Where do you write?
Usually at my desk or on the couch. If I’m feeling frisky, though, I’ll write on my balcony but only when it’s warm enough. That also puts me at risk of just working on my non-existent tan instead of writing, so not always a good idea. Yes, I know. I like to live my life dangerously! Or, really, just in danger of ending up looking like a lobster.
What do you like to read?
I only read MM and have for almost five years now. I mostly read romantic suspense, so it takes a lot for me to read things like fantasy and contemporary but if the writing style is a hit, then I’ll probably read anything by that author. I’m a lot more about the writing than the story these days if that makes sense? This is actually something that happened as I started to write. I became pickier with what I’d read, and I read a lot less now than I did just five years ago. Then again, I could read two to three books a day back then and I have no idea how I had that much time. I certainly don’t now! So I just really enjoy those few books that I do read.
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
I have a horse, so I spend a good amount of time at the stables. Besides that, I probably watch too many tv shows. No regrets, though! I also have a cat, but he lives at my parents’, so I only get to love on him a few times a week. Other than that, I read when I find a good book or one of my favorite authors has a new one out. I’ve also started sewing again which turns out to be a lot harder than I remembered, but a few broken needles won’t stop me! At least, it won’t stop me from breaking more… I try, though, and I really like making skirts and dresses so hopefully I’ll get better with time.
I like how you put ‘Do you like to exercise?’ in your suggestions for this question because hell no. I’m the biggest couch potato to ever couch potato (I don’t know if you can actually say that but if you ask me, I’ll claim wholeheartedly that you can!). I’ve even stolen my parents’ car— don’t worry. They have two—because it takes forever to take the train to the stables. Lazy? Maybe. I’ll probably have to aspire to be the couchiest potato ever but I’m okay with that.
Tell me a little bit about your most recent release. What gave you the idea for it? How long did it take to write? What did you enjoy about writing it? What did you hate?
As I said before, I’ve wanted to write this book for a very long time. Probably since I started on the first book in the series which is—god, where did the time go?—five years ago now.
I always wanted to pair up these two. Things always change from when I get an idea to when I’m actually writing the story but for the most part, there weren’t a whole lot of changes with these guys. I’m not entirely sure what gave me the idea except that it just made sense the more I wrote and fleshed out the first few books in the series. The more I knew about Will and Colt, the more I liked them together.
What I hate about this book is how long it took me to finish it. I didn’t write for two months this year because shit happened and then it was just so hard to get back into it, but fortunately the boys started talking to me again (they had some abandonment issues we had to work through) and I managed to finish the book in June.
Avenging a Raider
Eleven years ago, Lieutenant William Stanton’s entire world went up in flames. He lost his brother. His family. He left his old life behind to hunt down the people responsible. Avenging his brother was all he’d thought about, all he’d done, for a decade. A sexy little assassin shouldn’t be able to distract him from that goal, but he never counted on the feelings Colt would spark in him.
Colt ‘Shadow’ Castillo has a job to do. A very important one that could stop a terrorist, but he had to go rogue from the CIA to do it. His handler sending someone to retrieve him isn’t surprising. He never expected it to be the missing lieutenant of the Black Raiders, though. Teaming up with the man certainly wasn’t on his to-do list, but the attraction he feels for Will isn’t exactly driving him away.
With people to save, a job to do, and a terrorist to stop, can Colt allow himself to trust Will and the feelings he has for him? Can Will convince Colt he’s worthy of his love?
Ana Night is a writer of suspenseful gay romance. She’s an avid reader who has loved the written word since she discovered it. When she was a kid, she never went anywhere without a notepad. She was always writing, be it in the backseat of the car, between classes in school, or by the pool on vacations. When she’s not writing, you can find her with her nose buried in a book, singing and dancing, or watching her favorite TV shows.
Ana lives in Denmark where she spends most of her time running from her ninja kitty–that one goes for the ankles–and getting lost in the woods with her horse.
“What do you mean, I can’t go home?” Laurie was almost crying with frustration. “I can go home if I like!”
Sally glared at him. “And how are you going to get up and down the stairs? Or even down the hall to the bathroom?” she said. “And wash when you get there? And turn over properly in bed? And what happens if you actually fall out of bed in the night and can’t get up? And come to that, who’s going to take you home, you idiot? You can’t drive!”
He glared back. “I thought that you might!”
“No! Not me!” her glaring was so much better than his.
He pushed against the pillows, but because he was unable to brace properly with his weak leg, he couldn’t make himself sit up any further. She stood up and hauled him forward with competent strength, shoving more pillows behind him to support his bad arm and shoulder. Damn her.
When she sat back down, he lowered his gaze to his lap. His hand lay across his legs, curled and useless. He imagined moving his fingers and he felt it happening in his head. But in his lap, they lay dead and still, obvious betrayers of his helplessness.
“Laurie…,” her voice was kind. “You need to stay in here for a bit and let them help you. They say at least some of the use of the your arm and your leg should come back quite quickly, specially if you work at it. And then we can get you back home.”
As I may have mentioned in passing (SNORT), Taking Stock is out tomorrow. I am dropping in to chat to a few places over the next day or two, so please do come along and say hello!
8.20 to 8.40pm BST (15.20 EST): Bryce Winters’s Wildflowers. Bryce also has a release, today! So I’m popping in there for a bit to chat.
9 to 10pm BST (4pm EST) I’m at the Talking RoMMance with a British Accent group! I’m considering doing a reading. Maybe. If the kids have gone to bed. Perhaps.
Tomorrow the 19th, I’m at QueerRomanceInk from 9pm BST (4pm EST) for an hour for a chat. Sarcasm and prizes!
Today the lovely Charlie Cochrane is here to talk about her Cambridge Fellows, Jony and Orlando, her Lindenshaw mysteries and all sorts of other things, too!
So, Charlie, why are you ACTUALLY doing this interview? Apart from satisfying my nosiness!
Just for fun, of course, and because you’re someone I enjoy chatting to. Endearingly dotty, just like I am.
Having said that, I’m presently working on the next Cambridge Fellows mystery, so I thought it might be nice to give my sets of sleuths a bit of a mention. There’s Jonty and Orlando (the aforementioned Cambridge Fellows) whose romantic mystery adventures take place in the early 20th century. Despite the fact their first adventure came out in 2008, they always have new readers discovering them. If one of them drops me a message about that, it always makes my day!
Then I have the Lindenshaw series, which is contemporary and a sort of Midsomer Murders/gay romance crossover. Last, but not least, there’s my 1950s actor laddies who play Holmes and Watson both onscreen and off.
What started you writing?
I’ve always made up stories, either to amuse myself or my daughters. It seemed natural, once I had a bit of time to write, to start cutting my teeth on a wider audience. (Lordy, you sound like a vampire, Charlie.) Like many authors I know, I started by dabbling in fanfiction, which was a safe place in which to learn and hone the craft of writing.
I was specifically inspired to write the Cambridge Fellows stories by my love of Golden Age mysteries and the fact that there really needed to be some of them with gay characters. I couldn’t find any—well, no overt ones—so I had to create my own.
Where do you write?
Primarily in our study. While I can scribble things in a notepad almost anywhere, if it’s ‘proper’ drafting or editing, then I have to be either at the desk on the PC or working on my laptop in the dining room. When we were in lockdown I had to sometimes make do with my third option, which is at the breakfast bar in the kitchen, although that usually means covering over whatever jigsaw we have going! (Mad, crazy rock and roll life of the author…)
What do you like to read?
Loads of stuff. From WE Johns’ Biggles books, to non-fiction about the soldiers of World War One, through Golden Age mysteries, a smidge of gay historical romances and – when I can get hold of them – old ‘Victor Book for Boys’ annuals. I have binge read phases, where I work through everything I can get my hands on from a particular author. Patrick O’Brian and Jerome K Jerome are two examples of authors with whom I’ve gone on a reading bender.
I actually began reading before I started school by borrowing my big brother’s comics – The Victor, The Hornet, Superman and Batman DC comics. They were so full of action, with strongly drawn characters and plot lines. So much better than girls’ comics of the time. It’s no wonder I find it natural to write about men…
What are the three books you’d take to a desert island? Why would you choose them?
Mary Renault The Charioteer (original version). I reread this book every year and try to imagine what happened next to the three main characters, ending up with many variations on happy and not so happy endings. It’s a little gem of a story: Renault can say more in one word than many authors can in a page.
Michael Innes Death at the President’s Lodging. Again, a book I reread every year, it being a beautifully constructed mystery with several incredibly slashy scenes. There’s also something rather spooky about the book. It was written in the 1930’s, set in a fictional Oxbridge university, geographically half-way between Oxford and Cambridge. It’s location? Bletchley. Which is weird, given what would be happening there a handful of years later.
A book of Shakespeare’s sonnets. Plenty of food for slashy thought there and I guess I’d have plenty of time to study them on that island.
Writing is an intrinsically solo occupation. Do you belong to any groups or associations, either online or in the ‘real’ world? How does that work for you?
Yes I do and how does that work for me? It seems to involve a lot of raising of my volunteering arm! I’m a member of:
Romantic Novelists Association: which is mainly online at present but in normal times involves yer actual meetings. I’m the local chapter rep and have also been helping to assess pitches for their new online learning sessions.
Mystery People: this organisation was crucial in my involvement with The Deadly Dames and getting us started with the various gigs we’ve done at libraries, literary festivals and conferences. As you say, writing is a solo job and these days is mainly online, so getting out and doing these events, meeting other authors and readers, is a lifeline to normality.
International Thriller Writers: like the other groups, that’s involved a mixture of meetups and online activities. I regularly conduct interviews for their Magazine The Big Thrill with authors who have upcoming releases—through that I was introduced to the amazing Vaseem Khan Baby Ganesha books.
Oh, and I’m also on the organising committee for UK Meet…
What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
I like watching sport (on telly or, in normal times, live). I especially enjoy rugby but cricket and golf are pretty cool, too. I like the theatre, concerts, walking and playing indoor bowls—and if there’s a bingo night at hubby’s golf club, I’m in like Flynn. I’m also an active member of my local church. (Like I said, wild lifestyle.)
In terms of new things, during lockdown I’ve learned a lot about applying for grants, for example from the National Lottery, although that’s with my charity board hat on. I appear to have lots of hats…
Tell me a little bit about your most recent release. What gave you the idea for it? How long did it take to write? What did you enjoy about writing it? What did you hate?
My most recent release was the fifth Lindenshaw Mystery, A Carriage of Misjustice. The first book in the series began life as a script idea for Midsomer Murders and—long story short—metamorphosed into a cosy English mystery with a gay couple (cop and teacher) at its heart.
In a similar way, elements from A Carriage of Misjustice started off as an abortive romance story, based around a player suffering a life-changing injury at a rugby training session. It didn’t work, so I cannibalised the setting, with a murder happening on the same evening the injury occurred. While the romance was a non-starter, the murder plot flew along. It also involved me doing the best ever bit of research, contacting a company to find out what the item they manufactured was made of and whether you could kill someone with it.
A Carriage of Misjustice
Murder doesn’t care if you’re a newlywed.
Detective Chief Inspector Robin Bright and Deputy Headteacher Adam Matthews have just tied the knot, and all they want to do is sink into blissful domesticity. Unfortunately, there’s no chance of that when a chilling murder at a rugby ground takes Robin miles away to help his old boss solve it.
The mystery seems impossible to crack. Everyone with a motive has an alibi, and those without alibis don’t have a motive. Robin’s determined that this won’t be the case he’s unable to unravel. Not when he’s got his old boss to impress and a new team to lick into shape.
Back at home, Adam joins a fundraising choir to keep himself occupied. Surely a case that’s so far away won’t draw him in this time? Fate has other ideas, though, and danger turns up—quite literally—on his doorstep. He’ll need Campbell the Newfoundland for both company and protection this time around.
