Lincoln Cathedral, Death Valley on special, A moment of escape, and Book recommendations
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Hello from Bath, We've just had another heatwave in the UK so it's been a little challenging to do much, but I managed to finish the second exclusive short story for my collection, The Buried and the Drowned, coming soon on Kickstarter. The story is set at The Black Church in Iceland, which I visited on my 50th birthday back in March. It's in a stunningly isolated location near the ancient volcano that inspired Jules Vernes' Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Click here to read more and see photos from Iceland Death Valley, A Thriller.A merciless desert. An unstoppable storm. Time is running out.The Desert Sanctuary promises an exclusive escape for the ultra-wealthy, a five-star oasis in Death Valley's unforgiving landscape. But when a devastating sandstorm cuts the resort off from civilization, paradise becomes a prison—and then a killing ground. As the storm rages and the resort burns, eight lives collide in a desperate battle for survival. If you missed it earlier this year, DEATH VALLEY (ebook) is on special, free on Amazon for a limited time (15-19 July) "A relentless rollercoaster of action, mystery, and suspense that kept me turning the pages." Amazon 5 star review
Need a moment of escape?Come on over to my Books and Travel blog and podcast, where I share lots more behind the scenes research trips, and also interviews with other writers about the places that inspire them.
Book recommendationsHere are some of the books I've been reading recently. What do you recommend? Just hit reply and let me know. Eruption — James Patterson and Michael Crichton. A once-in-a-century volcanic eruption is about to destroy the Big Island of Hawaii. But a decades-old military secret could turn the volcano into something even more terrifying... Now it’s up to a handful of brave individuals to save the island – and the entire world. Epic thriller! Awakened — Laura Elliott. In a bid to make us more productive, to give us more time, science took sleep from humanity. But sleeplessness turned people into feral monsters and now a small group of scientists are trapped in the Tower of London, consumed by guilt at what they have done and desperately searching for a cure. Quiet horror, a different take on zombies. Orbital — Samantha Harvey. A team of astronauts in the International Space Station collect meteorological data, conduct scientific experiments and test the limits of the human body. But mostly they observe Earth below. A short contemplative book that will make you think about our place in the Universe. Scuttler's Cove — David Barnett. Scuttler’s Cove is a coastal Cornish fishing village, where life has gone on uninterrupted for centuries… until the seaside idyll is discovered by the rich. Now something old and terrible is awakening beneath the town’s hallowed ground. And with it comes a horror that the residents have fought for generations to keep a secret. Folk horror. Rose/House — Arkady Martine. A house embedded with an artificial intelligence is a common thing. But a house that is an artificial intelligence, infused in every crevice and corner with a thinking creature that is not human? That is something else altogether. That is Rose House. When a dead body is discovered inside, Detective Maritza Smith must investigate. A touch of sci-fi, but mostly murder mystery.
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J.F. Penn
For readers who want to escape ...
Hello from Bath, Spring is here and I recently attended a reunion back at my Oxford college, which was strange but also wonderful to see old friends and where they have ended up in life after 30 years. There was a moment in the old hall when a bell rung and Grace was said before dinner and the years fell away. Precious memories indeed, and you can read/listen to me talk about Oxford in this episode of my Books and Travel Podcast on Decadence, Discipline, and Dreaming Spires. Writing-wise, I...
Hello from Bath, One of the most common questions that authors are asked is: "Where do you get your ideas?" Well, for me, it's often about where I travel and what I find there. In 1999, I sailed on a tall ship from Fiji to Vanuatu in the south pacific, and something about that crossing never let me go. I just couldn’t find the right story for it ... until now. Bones of the Deep has finally arrived, with a setting that takes you out on the open ocean, the stolen bones of a merfolk culture, and...
Hello from Bath, It's spring here which is lovely, and I am in the final phases of preparing for the launch of Bones of the Deep, my next thriller, and also starting to research the next ARKANE thriller, Crown of Thorns. While you wait for those, you might enjoy my short story, The Black Church, now available in ebook and audiobook, human-narrated by me! It's free for a limited time from my store, linked below, and it's also in my 12-story collection, The Buried and the Drowned. A week alone...