tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-129679207432925692024-03-16T01:10:47.963+00:00Ramblings of a Frustrated Crime WriterTales and thoughts from the coal face of writing and life from Scottish crime writer Jennifer Lee Thomson.Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.comBlogger295125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-6712785237356054462024-03-13T17:00:00.001+00:002024-03-14T06:25:47.138+00:00She was wearing a violent jumpsuit - 5 Lessons I've learnt writing a novel (so you don't have to)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Writing a novel can seem like an arduous task.But there are ways to make it easier, especially with a bit
of pre-planning and organisation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is what I learnt writing <st1:place w:st="on"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" target="_blank"><st1:placename w:st="on">Vile</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City</st1:placetype></a></st1:place>,
the first book in my Detective in a Coma series.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OMOVJYvPtNU/WQksNY7HOqI/AAAAAAAATO0/-eLSzXg6SaEbbEPbJitcphIvSzMJaGY3QCLcB/s1600/plan.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OMOVJYvPtNU/WQksNY7HOqI/AAAAAAAATO0/-eLSzXg6SaEbbEPbJitcphIvSzMJaGY3QCLcB/s1600/plan.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Plan or you'll fail.</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">1. You need to be
able to tell at a glance what's in every chapter. That includes plot and
character development. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Unless you're blessed with a photographic memory (if you
are, I envy you) there are a few ways to do this. You can have a timeline on
paper or a spreadsheet on your computer. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I prefer to have a summary to go with each chapter on a Word
document. I constantly update this and when I’m editing I print it out and
constantly refer to it. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T7KZcnJrgcc/WQkrXj8PTkI/AAAAAAAATOs/O4GOtDRxkkMt6cslZQ5ZeucrJXIRWNghwCLcB/s1600/faceless%2Bman.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T7KZcnJrgcc/WQkrXj8PTkI/AAAAAAAATOs/O4GOtDRxkkMt6cslZQ5ZeucrJXIRWNghwCLcB/s1600/faceless%2Bman.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Get those character details right, or they'll be trouble.</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">2. If your characters
are going to be in a series do a character profile for each character. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This should cover character, background and appearance. I
reserve several pages in a notebook I keep for DI Waddell, his coma stricken
pal DC Stevie Campbell (who talks to Waddell even although nobody else can
hear) & Co for each character in my Detective in a Coma books. I add
details as I write each book. I've just finished book three. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">You need to have pertinent details of your characters
quickly to hand so you can access them without slowing down your writing by
having to search through text for that one detail that you need. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">How many times have they been married? Do they have kids and
if so what are their names? If they were in an accident who'd be their next of
kin? What colour is their hair?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">You need to know these things so you won't suddenly change
your balding, thrice divorced, childless bachelor into someone with enviable
hair, two kids and a first wife.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">3. Keep a firm grip
on the continuity.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">You need to be consistent. No changing characters names
halfway through your book. Keep an eye on the details - is your character
sitting down when they've recently complained of a back injury and said they
couldn't sit down? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In one of my earlier versions of <st1:place w:st="on"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" target="_blank"><st1:placename w:st="on">Vile</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City</st1:placetype></a></st1:place>,
I had Shelley Craig who gets kidnapped in the book, deliberately leaving behind
a necklace with a charm based on a Monopoly playing piece in one of the places
she'd been kept. When my main character DI Waddell finds it the charm on the
necklace had changed. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">4. Save your first
draft and subsequent drafts to at least three places (or four or five...).<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We've all done it haven't we - toiled over our writing only
to forget to save the new changes we've made or lost it all when our computer
went nuts/was hit with a virus/decided that it hated us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There is nothing worse than losing hours, days and even
weeks of hard graft and somebody saying: "Hey didn’t you back it up?"
when you sit there looking sheepish because you haven't. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">That's why it's important to save your work at least once a
day to at least three places - I send my work to two different emails, save it
to Dropbox and save it on my laptop and tablet. That way if something goes
wrong I won't lose work. I also save my WIP to all these places every time I do
any revamping or substantial writing. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">5. Always edit on
paper.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Trust me on this, when you read on a laptop or tablet screen
you miss mistakes and because it's your writing your brain can trick you into
thinking you've written something different to what you have. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For example - I once wrote that a character was wearing a
violent jumpsuit rather than a violet one. Major difference. Don’t let your
jumpsuit get violent:)</span><br />
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Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-60161805448956906132023-12-16T06:27:00.001+00:002023-12-16T06:27:03.588+00:00Justice finally for Caroline Glachan, aged 14<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigJ9JGfzdASZ6Tfoc75GYsJJBF-REsaV9SIoA8qolxao6eZ3Qps-x2U04m59ntZBiC0Zx0k5s5koMhyphenhypheniWvi1bdVzmH0tmVcBR4iXGHERVEdGKM7rswtPnqDSVmG8XppjdswXSl-wtxOdVt8HJaKJFrCd2EjcbF3UfDQ0TqGk8NDfpBq6wpii_0TjRtUpQ/s1600/Caroline%20Glachan.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigJ9JGfzdASZ6Tfoc75GYsJJBF-REsaV9SIoA8qolxao6eZ3Qps-x2U04m59ntZBiC0Zx0k5s5koMhyphenhypheniWvi1bdVzmH0tmVcBR4iXGHERVEdGKM7rswtPnqDSVmG8XppjdswXSl-wtxOdVt8HJaKJFrCd2EjcbF3UfDQ0TqGk8NDfpBq6wpii_0TjRtUpQ/s320/Caroline%20Glachan.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caroline was a vibrant young girl with her whole life ahead of her</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">When 14 year old Caroline Glachan set out one night to meet her friends in West Dunbartonshire, she wasn't to know that would be her last night alive.</span></p><div data-dcy-id="0.7663206381738985" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">She was found later face down in a burn with horrific injuries. She had at least ten head injuries and her skull was fractured in several places. It was described as a 'horrific and violent attack' by the prosecutor. Mercifully, experts think she was unconscious when she was put in the water. She drowned. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5509895069527608" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.34786094058319805" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Police investigation found that Caroline had been besotted with a boy named Robert O'Brien. He was a few years older than her and she'd gone to meet him on a bridge that fateful night. She left her home just before midnight.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.04687693953786076" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">She was never seen alive again. At least not by anyone who loved her. The last person to see her were her killers. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.11621256023840076" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.4621246343267529" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It took 27 long, heartbreaking years but when Caroline's mum Margaret McKeich stood outside the High Court in Glasgow and announced that her daughter could finally rest in peace, it was a day she worried she would never see. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5460017644858604" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6539221764152479" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">For 27 years, her wee girl's savage killers had been free to enjoy their lives. To enjoy family events and special occasions like birthdays, weddings and Christmases. Caroline's mum couldn't even enjoy her birthday. Not when her daughter had been brutally murdered and the date on her death certificate was her 40th birthday. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.3983181364946553" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5575443860798772" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Unknown to the 3 monsters who'd killed her - all teenagers when they murdered Caroline - the clock was already ticking. It took nearly 3 decades but the countdown to them being punished for their evil crime had begun.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.859373472973886" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.14491384493502246" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It was police re-interviewing witnesses in 2009 that snared Caroline's killers. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6989405166236256" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.2424630332666442" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The testimony of a 4 year old boy helped convict the evil trio. He didn't testify at the trial but there was a police recording of the captivating little boy being interviewed 27 years ago where he spoke of seeing a 'lassie get battered' and fall in the water helped convict the vile trio.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5571314424276284" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9047442246069042" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The killers had been babysitting both him and his brother when they'd taken them to the spot where they'd met Caroline. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9047442246069042" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9047442246069042" dir="auto"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvmM7FvzCHu0lUI42n3EEpMABpayFeeMPyjYotUowEb6nGB6-tNn3M80f0ujIw4WO-UzRvi3E4Y5ytstvaTGOp9gyc1Gz9Is0TEIKJi1fcrSOtp1mFy8iUc2rzYGJ14QL0S_sVLk9uGzWQ3XJY6J8vMV81XFQpO3gWbwcF0vlwn7TkJORYFxqLwUrFzjU/s1600/Caroline%20Glachan%20killer.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvmM7FvzCHu0lUI42n3EEpMABpayFeeMPyjYotUowEb6nGB6-tNn3M80f0ujIw4WO-UzRvi3E4Y5ytstvaTGOp9gyc1Gz9Is0TEIKJi1fcrSOtp1mFy8iUc2rzYGJ14QL0S_sVLk9uGzWQ3XJY6J8vMV81XFQpO3gWbwcF0vlwn7TkJORYFxqLwUrFzjU/s320/Caroline%20Glachan%20killer.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robert O'Brien was 17 when he murdered 14 year old Caroline<br />It was a brutal, unprovoked attack.</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.18498962534213947" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.41871964425685615" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It would end with Robert O'Brien* who was 4 years older than the dead girl, Andrew Kelly and Donna Marie Brand being found guilty by a jury of their peers. Their motives for attacking the 14 year old were never fully established.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.21512871099315478" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Now that countdown is over and Caroline finally has her justice that was denied for so long.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.21512871099315478" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.21512871099315478" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">*Thug and heroin addict O'Brien had been sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2006 for the attempted murder of a stranger near his home. He had a lengthy criminal record. </span></div><div class="yj6qo"></div><div class="adL" data-dcy-id="0.660164137756645" dir="auto"><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-46225815745902616192023-09-15T11:00:00.000+01:002023-09-17T03:22:47.513+01:00Butcher City (Detective in a Coma Book 2) - the follow up to Vile City - is available now<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Butcher-City-2/dp/1915649153" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="311" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtwQK8durv7iuLfGEEzFfmkCQmPkwhqqKLxbO_obpo05T9RToiQk9YcA04E9iC4a0Qd78DXsi6oqR3IxDnNt2dDxIrUMZzcqN8r-cCxnq4ca0RhjjAYH1ic1_bs9qv7e-_bOVJhE32xu0bQrPvWlN_eGIcMKLM5TwgS_WImjqb5_ZXb4f1COyLzJo/w249-h400/Butcher%20City%20cover.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-weight: 400;">"Sometimes the monsters are real."</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">Out now Detective In a Coma book 2 </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: medium;">"A tough case and your partner is sleeping on the job."</span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A killer is stalking victims on Glasgow’s streets. Men are being abducted, tied up, force-fed, then strangled and their livers removed.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;">DI Duncan Waddell is facing his most bizarre case yet. Meanwhile, his best friend and colleague Stevie, is comatose in Inten</span><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;">sive Care. But talking to him, and only him.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;"><br /></span></div><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;"><div style="text-align: justify;">A career criminal comes forward claiming he was targeted by the killer but managed to get away.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><span face=""Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #0f1111; text-align: start;"><div style="text-align: justify;">Is this the breakthrough the team needs? Is this witness a genuine link to the disturbing madness of the case?</div></span><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">~Out now from Jennifer Lee Thomson @jenthom72 and Diamond Crime~ </span><br /><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">#ButcherCity </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">the follow up to VILE CITY</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B0BGQ4Z7WD" target="_blank">Amazon UK Kindle </a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /><span><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Butcher-City-2/dp/1915649153" target="_blank">Amazon UK Paperback</a></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">#Kindle #paperback</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhp-lYZ6GsqJUSXw-tJdeC0yTr33FMjbXPzMr01PVgmzx5RyetfFK-ucw3N_Ux3Eq-f-05ZrUV2hZYGZs0BvI0Gxfyc4buTy2ljqHuApIxn9UjTI2OidWPWdentlehoeyUTG5uEXX4pomh2SmXDeafpzAd9Lmslc-UfpdIN0iN65Lp6MRC5rrP4YY/s960/Butcher%20City%20back%20pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhp-lYZ6GsqJUSXw-tJdeC0yTr33FMjbXPzMr01PVgmzx5RyetfFK-ucw3N_Ux3Eq-f-05ZrUV2hZYGZs0BvI0Gxfyc4buTy2ljqHuApIxn9UjTI2OidWPWdentlehoeyUTG5uEXX4pomh2SmXDeafpzAd9Lmslc-UfpdIN0iN65Lp6MRC5rrP4YY/w400-h640/Butcher%20City%20back%20pic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-13221868200883052612023-09-14T01:47:00.000+01:002023-09-17T03:23:14.872+01:00Who was Peg Entwistle the Hollywood sign (jump) girl?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'd heard the story of the actress who's said to have jumped from the H of the Hollywood sign to her death. But until I watched the Netflix miniseries <i>Hollywood</i>, I hadn't delved into what happened. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Why would a beautiful, young, rising star in Hollywood who starred in a stage play with one of the greatest actors ever Humphrey Bogart throw herself from the very same Hollywood sign that had so first entranced her when she'd arrived in town as a teenager brimming with dreams?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />The full story of what I discovered both fascinated and saddened me because I felt as if I was reading the story of an actor who died too soon. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Peg's parents, both actors, had a very acrimonious divorce where - according to the BBC - her mother stated that she'd never loved her husband or her five-year-old daughter.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The psychological impact that might have had on such a young child can only be guessed at but can't have helped her mental state. But that wasn't tragic Peg's only heartbreak. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b>Triple heartbreak for Peg </b></span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 1921 her stepmother actress Lauretta Ross died from meningitis. Peg adored her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 1922, 6 years after they'd immigrated to New York from the UK, Peg's beloved father Robert was killed in a hit and run. Peg was 13 at the time. Her uncle, an agent to an established Hollywood star took her and her two step-brothers who were now orphans into his home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />At the age of just 19, Peg married actor Robert Keith, a man who she later divorced for cruelty and failing to tell her he'd been married before and had a little boy who was 6*.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Behind the Hollywood glamour <br />
there's heartbreak</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In a career path full of disappointment and backstabbing, Peg might not have had the tools necessary to deal with disappointment even although she was used to it in her turbulent personal life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />But what led her to leap to her death (no foul play was ever suspected far less proved) at the point where she was starting to make it in Hollywood?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Peg was cast in her first and only movie <i>Thirteen Women</i> but after test audiences watched it her role was cut back. Even worse, her contract with film studio RKO was cut leaving her demoralised and penniless. The die had been cast.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Leaving a note saying she was off to visit friends, Peg made her last, tragic climb. She wasn't found for two days and only after another woman found her shoes and bag near the famous Hollywood sign along with a jacket that contained a goodbye note.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />One thing they can't take away from Peg Entwistle is her influence on Bette Davis, one of the biggest Hollywood stars of all time. She credits seeing Peg acting in the theatre play <i>The Wild Duck </i>as her inspiration for becoming an actress herself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Without Peg Entwistle, we might never have got to see Bette Davis's eyes light up the screen. But the</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> main reason Peg Entwistle will never be forgotten is that maybe in her crushed dreams we see our own. </span></div>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">*Tragically his son, Brian Keith, later ended his own life using a shotgun at the age of 75. He had lung cancer and had lost his daughter Daisy to suicide. He has a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. </span></span></h4>
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Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-88078853677447576132023-06-12T07:35:00.002+01:002023-06-12T07:38:19.849+01:00The suspicious death of Scottish independence hero Willie McRrae - murder, cover up or suicide you decide<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4WfgEyKx2HfXObOW-7EWxbPRJHbDVgPwk7Awyt3MJWOHXpWnptP7R4KAzSyv2fy2fJBynQj0p7u327Er3hJT16v0clcaPFutZPnS5xiXv9jdQrxWDQeraRu4-eRGCXC5ECRSRxzhsH9RlvUOKVmWSJv8mbIPqFj_-yjF1dyjvox2-bmcR5TdZzPFp/s358/willie%20mcrae.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="214" data-original-width="358" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4WfgEyKx2HfXObOW-7EWxbPRJHbDVgPwk7Awyt3MJWOHXpWnptP7R4KAzSyv2fy2fJBynQj0p7u327Er3hJT16v0clcaPFutZPnS5xiXv9jdQrxWDQeraRu4-eRGCXC5ECRSRxzhsH9RlvUOKVmWSJv8mbIPqFj_-yjF1dyjvox2-bmcR5TdZzPFp/w320-h191/willie%20mcrae.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>charismaticWillie McRae</b></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I have always been fascinated by conspiracy theories even if I don't believe most of them. There is a fair few going around after former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's arrest and subsquent release in connection with alleged missing funds from the SNP an accusation which she vehemently denies. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I can't comment on that when it's an ongoing police inquiry but many people I have spoken to don't trust the police and that's hardly new.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">One of the many mysteries/conroversies that has always interested me was the death - or was it murder or execution of - Scottish independence hero Willie McRae. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Who was Willie McRae?</b></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Born in Falkrik, he was a razor sharp prominent lawyer and politician who had won cases against the then English based UK government (remember, this is many years before devolution). He didn't want Scotland used as a nuclear dustbin and was an advocate for Scottish independence. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">He also wasn't as cosetted as so many of today's politicians having served in WWII as a naval officer and then in the Royal Indian Navy. He was also an advocate for Indian independence.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Against nuclear power and pro- independence for both his beloved Scotland and India, these were considered dangerous views by some back then. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><br /></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.26885662386113585" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>The car crash?</b></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6206223660496772" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.03649022007921299" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In 1985, Mr McRae's apparently crashed car was found by two tourists who flagged down a passing car driven by Dr Dorothy Messer. Immediately, the doctor attended to the man inside the car, noticing that </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Willie McRae </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">was still breathing but suspecting he might have brain damage, probably from the crash.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.928632019881537" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.2463374164471246" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It was only in hospital when a nurse was washing Mr McRae's head that a bullet wound was found. He'd been shot. An x-ray proved this to be the case. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">What had first appeared to be a car crash now became something more sinister. Who shot Willie McRae? Or, did he really shoot himself? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Suicide was suspected but the gun was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't until later it was found 60 feet away from the car's supposed resting place in a burn. How had it got there?</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There were two theories - </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">1. The car had been moved by the police and that's why the gun wasn't next to the car. Well, dead men can't throw guns away after they shoot themselves in the head can they? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Note - later it was claimed that the police assumed the car has been in an accident and had it moved but they moved it back once they discovered McRae had been shot. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">If that was the case, it sounds like a sloppy investigation right from the start. Can we trust the findings of such sloppy police work? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">2. Someone else had shot Mr McRae. Friends believed the secret services had been following him. To give that theory credence, a former serving British police officer (at that time there was no Police Scotland) who had become a private investigator insisted he had been hired to keep tabs on Mr McRae. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There was good reason to believe that Mr McRae had been got at.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">A man of strong principles and an even stronger constitution, he was a boil on the backside of the pro-nuclear British establishment and a fervent believer in Scottish independence. Firmly anti-nuclear, he was credited with almost single-handedly having plans to dump nuclear waste in the Galloway Hills of Scotland turned down by the local authority. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Could he have brought down the Thatcher government? </b></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There were rumours McRae had evidence of a paedophile ring at the heart of the Thatcher government which would be bad enough to bring down the whole English government. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.7989389671748057" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">He was also currently working on stopping even more nuclear waste being dumped in Scotland. He was so paranoid about what he was working on that he carried a copy of his files around with him at all times. No such paperwork was found in the car. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.32660636956340916" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5226800697342471" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Had it been removed by someone else? Or had he suspected he'd been followed and hidden it somewhere?</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5226800697342471" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.38570083360703555" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Stolen files before his death</b></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.38570083360703555" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5011682991170487" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">To make it even more suspicious, it was claimed the only other copy of his files had been stolen in a break-in at his home before his death. Nothing else had been stolen. Coincidence or something more sinister? Will we ever know? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yet more questions that still haven't been answered. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Questions still abound and it doesn't kill off the conspiracy theories when those seen as part of the establishment have refused to - </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">1. hold a FAI (Fatal Account Inquiry)</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.2482715657773007" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">2. give them investigator Winnie Ewing who was a qualified lawyer and SNP President a copy of the police files.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.8521607150018227" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">3. meet with Fergus Ewing the son of Winnie. He requested a meeting with the Solicitor General for Scotland and was rebuffed. The Official Secrets Act may have been quoted. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.7779313486816861" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9854739761390001" dir="auto"><b><span style="font-family: georgia;">What do they have to fear from the truth? </span></b></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5225120478676462" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.688440536015632" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Then there was the investigation into his death conducted by 'A Justice for Willie' group. In the report in 2016 they said there was nothing to suggest that his death had been anything other than a suicide. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.8992326053757693" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6605813803085219" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Did that investigation put the tin lid on it? Well, sadly not.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6605813803085219" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6605813803085219" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>The nurse who says someone shot McRae</b></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9001720555324886" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9444355126743473" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In 2018, one of the nurses who treated the dying man, insisted that the bullet wound had been to the back of his head and not his temple. It's not completely impossible that someone could shoot themselves in the back of the head or neck but less likely than putting a gun to the temple of their head or the gun in their mouth and then pulling the trigger. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9444355126743473" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9444355126743473" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Also, why would a man who respected the rights of other people to live their lives shoot himself whilst driving his own car, something that risked injuring or killing someone? </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.23841495476326613" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5029468213956856" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: georgia;">With time marching on, maybe we will never find out the full truth of what happened to Willie McRae on that lonely road. The one thing that is certain is that he was a great loss to the Scottish independence movement of which he was a strong advocate. </span></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-8715756532285757892023-05-15T06:05:00.000+01:002023-05-17T07:54:14.700+01:005 things telenovelas can teach you about writing <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi7eLLupdQx5svtFL8C0kqZRGr4Enjf5YlKcnhptYQTZweV3kVIGGzol3V2Ohaolp6HR5cNUAp9fRktvB1bJu8Mpf_7CC1gL9GKg4KjRq0oM1p-Gft5wjlPMYz1lEwxZJeJuefVq8aHbjpfMM9kQfuLTrMrieHJO4ql7jPLhEKTB0WYNYRjsQBlL8I" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img data-original-height="700" data-original-width="1400" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi7eLLupdQx5svtFL8C0kqZRGr4Enjf5YlKcnhptYQTZweV3kVIGGzol3V2Ohaolp6HR5cNUAp9fRktvB1bJu8Mpf_7CC1gL9GKg4KjRq0oM1p-Gft5wjlPMYz1lEwxZJeJuefVq8aHbjpfMM9kQfuLTrMrieHJO4ql7jPLhEKTB0WYNYRjsQBlL8I=w400-h200" title="Kate del Castillo the Queen of telenovelas" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Kate del Castillo the Queen of telenovelas </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">(Photo (c) Netflix)</span></div><p></p><div data-dcy-id="0.10193866118022288" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.621141755861556" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">I came across some telenovelas on Netflix - and now I'm hooked. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9884843051232828" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.5457150986710306" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9750139233253501" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.36366364293564923" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">In case you don't know what a telenovela is, it combines the words television and novel for good reason. A telenovela is a serial drama mainly made in Latin America so usually in Spanish. Usually there's a hint of soap opera about them and they are very dramatic. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6583305899181857" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.5457150986710306" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.8679458324495675" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span data-dcy-id="0.26851296124316026" face="tahoma, sans-serif">My favourites so far have been Ingobernable (starring Kate del Castillo the Queen of telenovelas as the </span><span data-dcy-id="0.14082690177625912" face="tahoma, sans-serif">First Lady of Mexico), La Reina del Sur (the English language version is Queen of the South and it's about Teresa Mendoza who goes from grieving woman to drug lord - also played by Kate del Castillo) and The Marked Heart (A woman who's given the heart of a young mother who is murdered for her organs becomes part of her reluctant donor's family life). </span></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.4179956589580389" dir="auto"><span face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.0801948584925114" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.3094907104164166" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">Watching them isn't just entertaining, it's also taught me a few things about writing - </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.0801948584925114" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.3094907104164166" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.0801948584925114" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.3094907104164166" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjFHIiA6QMV-YpeoYP_ZQRzEW2YunsXnwnJY-L7ZWK0o8Z1G7HFrG1qYi_ujLggjgmojzNa-dCjowlxNiO8xQcuJHb03gDBwq6xBys9scm8hLZFSG9qMTi9lJjaAds4CoGr9XtTBkiCx1w6igppY4EUGPKginfSFktH4xOrPEto7lBc8yowbHFZW5M" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="360" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjFHIiA6QMV-YpeoYP_ZQRzEW2YunsXnwnJY-L7ZWK0o8Z1G7HFrG1qYi_ujLggjgmojzNa-dCjowlxNiO8xQcuJHb03gDBwq6xBys9scm8hLZFSG9qMTi9lJjaAds4CoGr9XtTBkiCx1w6igppY4EUGPKginfSFktH4xOrPEto7lBc8yowbHFZW5M" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Telenovelas have lots of "WOW" moments </div><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.09095428453912224" dir="auto"><span face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9726654122147349" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.22087629111420726" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">1. How to keep people interested by using twists and turns - telenovelas seem to have a twist every 5-minutes. There is never a dull moment. If a telenovela was a book you would never put it down. At least not because you were bored. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.37081328358672705" dir="auto"><span face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5449902229654393" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.48574494719167793" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">2. Having lots of characters isn't necessarily a bad thing - when it comes to the plot it gives you much more room for manoeuvre. Characters that seem like peripheral ones at the start can be given more of a storyline that can be just as good as the main storyline. Many characters means lots of threads to pull. Lots of subplots. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5449902229654393" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.48574494719167793" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5449902229654393" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.48574494719167793" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.4560672097407934" dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjPQpuW8yrZ4_79Rxp2FHZuNtC1ZTuM2hDycFbGehhHCbOjW0ylprGtYthdzd4D7zKQwnBoAw7mZCPmv8YEKFFin7XxXoXkxfOxXdOA6GJLqLTwnvP-RZDwNG8B0mSD4fIf7t3HW8zPFvcdnOId8ETIFo_7CFmT1eN6Or_NlCd-PtYV1gPV5TUxC3E" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjPQpuW8yrZ4_79Rxp2FHZuNtC1ZTuM2hDycFbGehhHCbOjW0ylprGtYthdzd4D7zKQwnBoAw7mZCPmv8YEKFFin7XxXoXkxfOxXdOA6GJLqLTwnvP-RZDwNG8B0mSD4fIf7t3HW8zPFvcdnOId8ETIFo_7CFmT1eN6Or_NlCd-PtYV1gPV5TUxC3E" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Too much telling not showing in dialogue</span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.3001295761196068" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span data-dcy-id="0.5624860404347127" face="tahoma, sans-serif">3. How not to write dialogue - one thing that's very noticeable about telenovelas is the use (or should that be abuse?) of information dumping in dialogue.</span><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.10314635959436047" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.5080496558341272" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">Example - "I know that you found the letter in the jewellery box and read it and found out about me stealing the baby from the woman who lived downstairs."</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9218669662572516" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.49243374440154186" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9218669662572516" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.49243374440154186" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhyZ3-Lg7JHE1aFpVxExGOCeUZqObHk4VfjVCdaMX-l6vlusDyoYdycJSpWv3JiksW3DNmzPqhfvWjVTyIJ1qWek86BNcggdY54XmPOAEE3ELRJMRmHThHhhP88aSS4shviGsA-XfNxHtDHVv1YAZB2uJhqZwiEiAMS6nj03SjpK3KyfSXS1obwDOY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="560" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhyZ3-Lg7JHE1aFpVxExGOCeUZqObHk4VfjVCdaMX-l6vlusDyoYdycJSpWv3JiksW3DNmzPqhfvWjVTyIJ1qWek86BNcggdY54XmPOAEE3ELRJMRmHThHhhP88aSS4shviGsA-XfNxHtDHVv1YAZB2uJhqZwiEiAMS6nj03SjpK3KyfSXS1obwDOY" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Give your big reveals time to breathe</div></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9218669662572516" dir="auto"><span data-dcy-id="0.49243374440154186" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9596991286741294"><span data-dcy-id="0.9495650832739717" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">4. Give your big reveals time to breathe - they don't tend to do this in telenovellas which often means the big "WOW" moment you get is so fast you don't get to savour it. When writing your novel, give readers the chance to think, "WOW, I didn't see that coming" and to react to their surprise and absorb what it means for the story. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.40741002590504016"><span data-dcy-id="0.8915344392192881" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.055839044188239484"><span data-dcy-id="0.7357094629267329" face="tahoma, sans-serif" style="font-family: arial;">5. Think about the music that would accompany the scenes in your novel - Telenovelas make use of music to illustrate what's happening in the story very well. </span></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-38115595668165458012023-03-05T05:10:00.000+00:002023-03-05T05:10:10.586+00:00Girl in the picture: Review - one of the most remarkable true crime documentaries you will ever watch<p><span class="s-0" color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)" face="Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont" nr-s="0" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitgWmVukAGl0trhOseROyqp1xMhFh3MrxqAShzw4gG1bEW9BXSvCbl2Y8M1UMjT59Djunm436OR-TXWOSCCNTAwBH3NJ0G-1d8XzoHldKjzRlAh4DFtm9W3rsboogXV6WAa0CsRyUPhjLqDmy3uArKOjZg_HuPNbhdQfXa8wqSlLuOI9rmGqV7SJk" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="852" data-original-width="1280" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEitgWmVukAGl0trhOseROyqp1xMhFh3MrxqAShzw4gG1bEW9BXSvCbl2Y8M1UMjT59Djunm436OR-TXWOSCCNTAwBH3NJ0G-1d8XzoHldKjzRlAh4DFtm9W3rsboogXV6WAa0CsRyUPhjLqDmy3uArKOjZg_HuPNbhdQfXa8wqSlLuOI9rmGqV7SJk" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Photo: Netlix</div><p></p><p><span class="s-0" color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)" face="Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont" nr-s="0" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Girl in the picture is one of the most remarkable true crime documentaries you will ever watch. </span><span class="s-1" color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)" face="Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont" nr-s="1" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">It does something that not all true crime does and brings to life the person who was murdered to such an extent that you almost feel as if they are sitting watching it with you and saying "</span><span class="s-2" color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87)" face="Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont" nr-s="2" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">this is my story."</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.3870144384998657" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-3" nr-s="3" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">In this documentary, they speak to the woman's friends and the love and admiration for her shines out in amidst all the darkness of what happened to her. </span><span class="s-4" nr-s="4" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Despite the grim details of her life she was a good friend, vivacious and kind and everyone who met her instantly loved her whether it was at high school, the trailer park where she lived for a time,</span><span class="s-5" nr-s="5" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> or the strip joint where she was forced to work by the man who always told her he was her father. </span></p><p data-dcy-id="0.3870144384998657" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-6" nr-s="6" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">She was super smart, driven and it was obvious she would have achieved amazing things. </span><span class="s-7" nr-s="7" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Had she lived long enough.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.45153968067813866" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-8" nr-s="8" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b>Best thing is you probably won't remember the killer's name</b></span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.16206870050845446" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-9" nr-s="9" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Another thing Girl in the Picture does amazingly well is put the perpetrator very much in the background. </span><span class="s-10" nr-s="10" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">This documentary is no glorification or attempt to understand an evil man's actions. </span><span class="s-11" nr-s="11" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">It's more a testimony of how a beautiful person inside and out with an intelligent mind, who had a scholarship to one of America's top colleges, was robbed of her future by a paedophile.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.4421686546617116" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span class="s-12" nr-s="12" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><b>A truly shocking tale</b></span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.6637947757074798" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-13" nr-s="13" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The story doesn't seem that unusual when you first hear it. </span><span class="s-14" nr-s="14" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">A woman is found seriously wounded after a suspected hit and run. </span><span class="s-15" nr-s="15" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">It seems like a straightforward case. </span><span class="s-16" nr-s="16" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">But when the police try to identify the woman who later dies of her injuries after battling against the odds to stay alive for 5 days,</span><span class="s-17" nr-s="17" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"> so begins an investigation with a plot more complex than any crime thriller I have ever read.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.9751839489200553" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-18" nr-s="18" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The police visit the lady they believe to be this young woman's mother to tell her that her daughter is dead which comes as a surprise. </span><span class="s-19" nr-s="19" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Her daughter died at the age of just 18 months. </span><span class="s-20" nr-s="20" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The woman on the road can't be her daughter so who is she?</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.09892657641245384" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-21" data-dcy-id="0.07284023417862295" nr-s="21" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">And so begins a search for the truth that last for years with so many twists and turns at times you feel giddy. </span><span class="s-22" nr-s="22" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Imagine being the young woman who had to live through that all. </span><span class="s-23" data-dcy-id="0.6080755866459833" nr-s="23" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">And we do. Every vile detail feels like a boot in the gut.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.40844425912377225" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-24" data-dcy-id="0.6461406940331529" nr-s="24" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The search reveals some horrifying details of the horrendous cruelties inflicted upon this young woman by a stepfather who abducted her when she was just 5 years old and later kidnapped and murdered </span><span class="s-25" nr-s="25" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">her 6-year old son.</span></p><p data-dcy-id="0.40844425912377225" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-25" nr-s="25" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span></p><p data-dcy-id="0.40844425912377225" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 18px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4Qe2ZLzlXKoy59gbAS-SYyqvATRoUwtE0XXcv8oT0vsLQZdfKuCDsMtqSdGApah2knIwgrx25EUqHWhH5XS9uVXYPLxjETH9cgU658_01JoWzUkXskwYx_A4IrXdwyOuC9ZRrug78dLKytV1lNvozta_F3DNpvj61I8icrj3pKLaS1qPDSHpjeY/s300/girl%20in%20the%20picture.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4Qe2ZLzlXKoy59gbAS-SYyqvATRoUwtE0XXcv8oT0vsLQZdfKuCDsMtqSdGApah2knIwgrx25EUqHWhH5XS9uVXYPLxjETH9cgU658_01JoWzUkXskwYx_A4IrXdwyOuC9ZRrug78dLKytV1lNvozta_F3DNpvj61I8icrj3pKLaS1qPDSHpjeY/s1600/girl%20in%20the%20picture.png" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 18px; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Suzanne was adbucted when she was 5</div><span class="s-25" nr-s="25" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><br /></span><p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.5506220453220141" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-26" data-dcy-id="0.7595908037891215" nr-s="26" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">In case you haven't watched the show, I won't give the game away about what transpires. </span><span class="s-27" data-dcy-id="0.5470930240472385" nr-s="27" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">So, no spoiler alerts needed.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.38964240372305636" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-28" data-dcy-id="0.22683078662069311" nr-s="28" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Thanks to these dedicated people who stopped at nothing to get to the truth, both law enforcement, jornalists and resaearchers, Suzanne Sevakis finally has her real name on her gravestone. </span><span class="s-29" data-dcy-id="0.36450943273749625" nr-s="29" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">She has people who truly mourn her. </span><span class="s-30" nr-s="30" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Her daughter can visit her mom's grave.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"></p><p data-dcy-id="0.6818176898687611" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-31" data-dcy-id="0.027715811038739657" nr-s="31" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Yet, still you are left reeling with a feeling of deep sadness that this amazing young woman never got to fulfil her potential because of a sick psychopath. </span></p><p caretat="true" data-dcy-id="0.5089905835055974" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); font-family: Poppins, Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont; font-size: 18px; letter-spacing: 0.5px; margin: 0px 0px 12px; padding: 0px;"><span class="s-31" data-dcy-id="0.8386492871157532" nr-s="31" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Girl in the Picture is on Netflix. </span></p>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-38177248106978846582023-03-05T05:09:00.000+00:002023-03-05T05:09:41.600+00:00Why my latest killer force-feeds their victims in Butcher City - Detective in a Coma Book 2 (the follow up to Vile City)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uP_AFD7XYI/XpIQz3lLQ4I/AAAAAAAAcRY/--GAeM6ed_QoGhbVJFvBEVwdhtwn5dYzgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Screenshot_2020-04-11-15-05-59-1-1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="681" data-original-width="584" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uP_AFD7XYI/XpIQz3lLQ4I/AAAAAAAAcRY/--GAeM6ed_QoGhbVJFvBEVwdhtwn5dYzgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screenshot_2020-04-11-15-05-59-1-1.png" width="274" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />In Butcher City the killer's victims are force-fed in a similar way<br />Suffragettes were before they're killed</span></td></tr>
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<span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Y</span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">ears ago I lived on an island. Not one of those remote Islands but one of the most accessible ones you are likely to get. One day I was walking past a local restaurant and I was shocked to see something on the menu that's so cruel the production of it is banned in my country but not the sale. </span></span><br />
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<span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">You can read about what happened next on my companion blog for my book Living Cruelty Free: Live a more Compassionate Life <a href="https://greatestguidetolivingcrueltyfree.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">here</a> </span></span><br />
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<span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">That product was Foie gras which is made by ramming a metal or plastic pipe down a duck or goose's throat so their livers swell abnormally to around ten times their normal size. </span></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><br style="overflow-wrap: break-word;" />Foie gras is French and translates as fatty liver. </span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><br style="overflow-wrap: break-word;" />There's never been an appetite for reversing the ban on producing it in the UK where I live because even farmers who could make money out of producing this vile 'foodstuff' find the cruelty involved too much. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4vro1sINTog/XpIdWeTn1aI/AAAAAAAAcRs/cR48P01ttNsGCW2C7yzBwFogkdAqKsBWwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_20180919_195609%2B%25281%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1037" data-original-width="1280" height="259" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4vro1sINTog/XpIdWeTn1aI/AAAAAAAAcRs/cR48P01ttNsGCW2C7yzBwFogkdAqKsBWwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20180919_195609%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />I<span style="font-size: small;">n Butcher City, DI Waddell investigates a sinister killer who's killing <br />people and removing their livers</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><br style="overflow-wrap: break-word;" />When I was writing book 2 in the Detective in a Coma series (the follow up to Vile City) I wanted to do something a bit different. Come up with a different method of murder whilst also letting people who don't know into the sick little secret of how cruel a 'food' Foie gras is. </span><br />
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<span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">In Butcher City, my killer craves Foie gras but is so sickened by how it's obtained he decides that he'll make a human version instead. Pretty gross but as well as coming up with a more novel way to kill people, it also gives folk an insight into one of the cruellest things humans eat. </span></span><br />
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<span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">A food so cruel that when Scottish tennis star Andy Murray discovered what it was he banned it from being served in the hotel he owns. </span></span><br />
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<span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">If you want to see how it's used in <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B0BGQ4Z7WD" target="_blank">Butcher City</a> you can check out the book now.</span></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B0BGQ4Z7WD" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="311" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Xot2yROrGwpMYr9vtrXW-Lm-IrVtLO7B3lOD8CDQI2KFpzufLauzzyHKm0SfsLP-CLn_1T_g0GB51sNVxmsmVxoukOd8Dbv_ogYLnuoQ0o-54S-NDnvfGntFwliiKf2avBjf4lsJJFRp3_xSozhS7-vJGkq0lzSnwrQLoVY0R6dFdU3Nb7tBIKM/w249-h400/Butcher%20City%20cover.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>A killer is stalking his victims on Glasgow's streets.</b></span><br />
<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><b>Men are being abducted, kept tied up for weeks and force-fed, then strangled and their livers are being removed.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">~from Jennifer Lee Thomson @jenthom72 and Diamond Crime~ </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">#ButcherCity Detective in a Coma Book 2, </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">the follow up to VILE CITY is out</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;">now-</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B0BGQ4Z7WD" target="_blank">Amazon Kindle</a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Butcher-City-2/dp/1915649153" target="_blank">Amazon paperback</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><br /></span><span>#Kindle #paperback</span></span></div>
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Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-85237863691716197132023-03-05T05:08:00.000+00:002023-03-05T05:08:50.896+00:00SOLVED: The tragic case of Renee and baby Andrew MacRae - murdered by his own father<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">SOLVED - ONE OF SCOTLAND'S MOST BAFFLING UNSOLVED MURDER CASES dating back to 1976 has now been solved. </span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">In September 2022, William MacDowell, who was the man Renee MacRae had been having an affair with and allegedly meeting on the night of her death, was convicted of her murder and the killing of her 3-year-old son Andrew who was also his son. Their bodies have never been found. </span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">MacDowell who tried to blame the dead woman's husband for her murder, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">was given a minimum sentence of 30 years. As he's 80 years old, he's expected to die in prison. </span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Renee who was described as a devoted mum, left behind an older son. Rennies sister and the police I have called on the callous killer to reveal where the bodies are buried.</span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;">Read on if you want to know more about the tragic case- </span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CwrpRLAtF6Y/WT9TsL9dcYI/AAAAAAAATq0/29ok1czpYxgFb1YGQTbqOmNytcKUkDHtACLcB/s1600/Renee%2BMacrae.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="300" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CwrpRLAtF6Y/WT9TsL9dcYI/AAAAAAAATq0/29ok1czpYxgFb1YGQTbqOmNytcKUkDHtACLcB/s1600/Renee%2BMacrae.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The last picture of Renee and little Andrew</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br />
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Usually when a child goes missing they don't have either of
their parents with them. But in the case of the longest open missing persons
case In Britain's history, 3-year-old son Andrew was with his mother Renee
MacRae when he disappeared along with her, way back in 1976.</span></div>
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<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Renee was separated from her husband Gordon and dropped her
oldest son Gordon who was 9-year-old off at her husband's in <st1:place w:st="on">Inverness</st1:place>.
She was meant to be going to see her sister in <st1:place w:st="on">Kilmarnock</st1:place>
and she was heading that way in her BMW when she was last seen. </span></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WAQK3DPvbx0/WT9UwqN0ioI/AAAAAAAATrA/0GEd4_cqHj0_yPLuqdX4yweMArGFdtY1QCLcB/s1600/burning%2Bcar.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="212" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WAQK3DPvbx0/WT9UwqN0ioI/AAAAAAAATrA/0GEd4_cqHj0_yPLuqdX4yweMArGFdtY1QCLcB/s320/burning%2Bcar.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>The burning car</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">12 miles away that very same night, a train driver spotted a
burning car in an isolated lay-by. It turned out to be Renee MacRae's car.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">No trace of either her or the little boy was found. All that
police found was a rug stained with blood that was tested and matched MacRae's
blood type.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>What happened to Renee and little Andrew?</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So, how did a car carrying a mother and her child end up on
fire and more importantly, where were Renee and little Andrew? Despite an
intensive search no trace of either them was ever found.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>The Sightings</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Witnesses spotted a man dragging what looked like a dead
sheep along the road where the mother and child were last spotted driving
along. Renee MacRae was wearing a sheepskin coat when she was last seen. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Other witnesses saw a man with a pushchair near the quarry.
Could it have been the little boy's?</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Th_vjkd_Ek/WT9VbIk2WKI/AAAAAAAATrI/zJdYgq5aXzonvwMjjHpGX0y5QM6t5HVUgCLcB/s1600/qyestion%2Bmark.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="230" data-original-width="219" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Th_vjkd_Ek/WT9VbIk2WKI/AAAAAAAATrI/zJdYgq5aXzonvwMjjHpGX0y5QM6t5HVUgCLcB/s200/qyestion%2Bmark.jpg" width="190" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>The Theories</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">Unbeknown to her husband Renee had been having an affair
with a married man called Bill MacDowell who worked for her husband. According
to Renee's best friend she'd been going
to see him that night and not her sister as she claimed. </span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><br /></span>
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif">What's more she confided in her friend that wee
Andrew was her lover's son. This friend claimed that Renee was planning to
start a new life with her lover.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If that was true, Renee never got the chance of happiness.
Her little boy never got the chance to enjoy his childhood. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Whatever happened to the pair that night it seems certain
that they were murdered. Will their bodies ever be found so they can rest in
peace? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>Some hope</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The man in charge of the search, Detective Sergeant Cathcart
was convinced he'd found Renee and Andrew in a quarry after removing the
topsoil and being hit with the stench of what he believed to be corpses. He
hired a bulldozer, but was ordered to stop digging by a senior officer because
the vehicle had to go back to the contractors due to lack of money. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Over twenty years later, the quarry was dug up again but
there were no sign of any bodies. Had they been removed? We'll never know.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8s6hK2nbcvA/WT9UL5Ir7wI/AAAAAAAATq4/1wXZZSBUPZwYUonSKYcL7HSzpuetLlO2QCLcB/s1600/road%2Bsign%2Bon%2Bthe%2BPerth%2Bto%2BInverness%2BA9%2Broad_.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="620" height="192" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8s6hK2nbcvA/WT9UL5Ir7wI/AAAAAAAATq4/1wXZZSBUPZwYUonSKYcL7HSzpuetLlO2QCLcB/s320/road%2Bsign%2Bon%2Bthe%2BPerth%2Bto%2BInverness%2BA9%2Broad_.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Could the tragic pair be buried beneath this motorway?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>The prime suspect</b></span><br />
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Bill MacDowell, Renee's lover was the main person of interest. At
one stage he went into a police station to make a statement, but was dragged
out by his wife. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Had he been about to confess? He denied any involvement in Renee and Andrew's murder.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span face=""verdana" , sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The prevailing theory appears to be that mother and child
were killed and buried under the A9 motorway that was being upgraded. If that
is this case, maybe one day future roadworks will give all unearth the tragic
pair.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Update - </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span>See "Suspect in MacRae case fled to US <a href="http://www.scotsman.com/news/suspect-in-macrae-case-fled-to-the-us-1-4383307">http://www.scotsman.com/news/suspect-in-macrae-case-fled-to-the-us-1-4383307</a></span><br />
<br />
UPDATE - On September 2019 a 77-year-old man later named as William MacDowell was charged with the murders of Renee and little Andrew. MacDowell is allegedly the man Renee was having an affair with and who she was meant to be travelling to meet on the fateful night she went missing. There were rumours he was little Andrew's biological father.</span></div>
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Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-46127246241067576202023-02-07T06:12:00.002+00:002023-02-07T06:16:22.248+00:00How Kirsty Gets Her Kicks gets the review treatment over at the fantastic Mystery People<div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kirsty Gets Her Kicks gets the review treatment over at the fantastic Mystery People. </span></div><div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div></div><div dir="ltr"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here's what Dot Marshall-Gent had to say - </span></div><div dir="ltr"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><h3 class="post-title entry-title" data-dcy-id="0.30249243883236887" itemprop="name" style="background-color: #c0a154; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 30px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative; text-align: start;">‘How Kirsty Gets Her Kicks’ by Jennifer Lee Thomson</h3><div class="post-header" style="background-color: #c0a154; color: #997755; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 12.88px; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1em; text-align: start;"><div class="post-header-line-1"></div></div><div class="post-body entry-content" data-dcy-id="0.9082797943269585" id="post-body-424768786042709991" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: #c0a154; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; line-height: 1.5; position: relative; text-align: start; width: 488.333px;"><p><b><span style="background: white; color: #002060; font-size: 14pt;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS_0cnYlcWcpCwVCO--7OlkYyzUWl7KC8IiT6s5RfprAPyIJPW4O2Axjhu8lf0jYeYG7-afEzf8VgZVvmCfVUjdcOV8iOUDkuJBhovaSZrDDTDy6rUKV4PkxHvtZTPrSiuluEDzUU_z0_C6_MyIqL01s3CeM6kbggtuaTPDx2kVQOAAeQEZdEoVDJl/s499/How%20Kirsty%20gets%20her%20kicks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #cc3300; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-dcy-id="0.5349406236279683" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS_0cnYlcWcpCwVCO--7OlkYyzUWl7KC8IiT6s5RfprAPyIJPW4O2Axjhu8lf0jYeYG7-afEzf8VgZVvmCfVUjdcOV8iOUDkuJBhovaSZrDDTDy6rUKV4PkxHvtZTPrSiuluEDzUU_z0_C6_MyIqL01s3CeM6kbggtuaTPDx2kVQOAAeQEZdEoVDJl/s320/How%20Kirsty%20gets%20her%20kicks.jpg" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: none; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="201" /></a></b></div><b><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;">Published by Shotgun Honey,<br />13 June 2019.<br />ISBN: 978-1-6439-6005-0</span></span><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i> </i></span></span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;">(PB)</span></span></b></span><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></i><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">'Wow. You took out one of McPhee’s boys with one bloody leg. Awesome.'</span></i><i><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 11pt;"></span></i><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></i></p><p><i><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 11pt;"></span></i><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;"></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.8205235250656577"><span data-dcy-id="0.7411100859900686" style="font-size: 11pt;">Kirsty explodes onto the opening page of this outrageous thriller as a thug makes the mistake of getting too fresh with her. She’s not the sort of woman who takes kindly to such behaviour. She <i>is</i> the sort of woman who deals out her own justice. Kirsty may be a below-knee amputee, but whatever anger she feels about her disability, she channels into her overwhelming desire to succeed in a life that has dealt her some cruel blows. Having stopped the would-be attacker in his tracks, she allows herself a moment of self-congratulation. Then, as she considers her next move, Kirsty makes the unwelcome discovery that Jamie, another member of the bar staff, saw everything. The annoying voyeur reveals that the guy she just flattened is an “enforcer” employed by their boss, Jimmy McPhee. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">McPhee is a career criminal who controls much of the illegal activity in this area of Glasgow. He has friends in high places, including the local constabulary, and enough dirt on the city’s bigwigs to ensure that his nefarious endeavours are kept well below the law’s radar. As if Jamie’s presence at the scene of her crime was not enough, it then turns out that the hapless-looking witness seems to want to join forces. This is the first of many conundrums that our anti-heroine faces in the novel but, rest assured, she’s rarely out of ideas to deal with the most impossible of situations.<br /><br />The pace of the narrative is fast and gets faster as Kirsty uses her quick mind and laudable resilience to face and overcome countless challenges that confront her as the story progresses. Her true north may be slightly off when compared with that of the average citizen, but Kirsty’s backstory is harrowing, and she can be forgiven the odd offence. Her proclivity to inflict grievous bodily harm is restricted to those who have done far, far worse. Kirsty does have a softer side which, when it shows, elicits empathy. The writing has humour too, but it’s never cosy.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.09133757137935183"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">How Kirsty Gets Her Kicks </span></i><span data-dcy-id="0.65872649442249" style="font-size: 11pt;">is a tongue-in-cheek thriller with an unbreakable and unstoppable hard-boiled protagonist taking a rip-roaring ride in a wild and wind-blown tide. If you like tough and gritty this is for you. Expect the unexpected in this adults-only novel and you’ll still be shocked. Enjoy it, I did!<br />------</span><br /><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Reviewer: Dot Marshall-Gent</span></i></p></div></div><div dir="ltr">Note - review is copyright (c) of Mystery People.</div><div dir="ltr"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://viewbook.at/KirstyGetsHerKicks" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="313" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzz4gEY2jQeXLenIF6FsiW9Qn4-HnQ6Rwoqn2Tq7FKF7fkQcYeDFBq0Nz1lDWQkmORRR8H_wi6xtP7hMw41FMJTLubtAOsZ54QJw0fYwSnD5fSHOn8qWMFaCucSvMiZ7T7kzhmIL2QbCWWN3k_2Mxay9khhHgvZ8sLuBjVyrSg6beSl6tvwKhgWb4/s320/Kirsty%20book%20cover%202022.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">click on cover to find out more:)</div><div><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.873266475259932" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.873266475259932" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;"><b>What's it about then?</b></span></div><div><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.873266475259932" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.873266475259932" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">A tale of skullduggery that plays out on the mean streets of Glasgow…</span><span data-dcy-id="0.6197083114883115" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />One-legged barmaid Kirsty is in a shit-load of trouble after she kills one of gangster Jimmy McPhee’s enforcers with a stiletto heel to the head after he gets a bit too handsie.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />Now she’s on the run from the gang boss who loves to torture his victims before he kills them, with a safe-load of cash she stole from him and a hot gun. And she has company—a choirboy barman Jamie who just happens to be the only witness.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />She needs to survive long enough to spend the cash.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />How difficult can it be to catch a “daft wee lassie with one leg?” Glasgow hardman Jimmy McPhee is about to find out. Kirsty’s made a laughing stock out of him and he doesn’t like that one wee bit.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />Bring together a one-legged barmaid who’s legged it with a safe load of dirty cash, a spurned gangster’s wife who wants a walking womb for her mail order sperm, a giant birthday cake and a mad chase to the end, and you’ve got </span><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.6123055802926469" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">How Kirsty Gets Her Kicks</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">: one freaking minute at a time.<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />Praise for HOW KIRSTY GETS HER KICKS:<br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />“A high-kicking, double-barrelled, blast of grindhouse pulp.” —Paul D. Brazill, author of </span><span class="a-text-italic" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">Last Year’s Man</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" />“</span><span class="a-text-italic" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">How Kirsty Gets Her Kicks</span><span data-dcy-id="0.30262952992916414" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"> hits the ground running and does not let up for a single breathless second. I tore through this in one sitting, and it’s a hell of a ride filled with colourful characters and casual violence—everything I look for in crime fiction—not to mention a lead character that takes everything thrown at her and just keeps on coming. This is a great story, and Jennifer Lee Thomson is a great story-teller.” —Paul Heatley, author of </span><span class="a-text-italic" data-dcy-id="0.8310176474163253" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">Fatboy</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">, </span><span class="a-text-italic" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: italic !important;">Guillotine</span><span style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">, and the Eye for an Eye series</span></div><div><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.9202542671780956" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.9202542671780956" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b>******************************************************************************************</b></p><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.9202542671780956" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b>You can find out more about Mystery People here - </b></p><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.9202542671780956" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "New serif";"><a href="http://www.mysterypeople.co.uk/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="color: #196ad4;" target="_blank"><span data-dcy-id="0.9604427279531011" style="color: blue;">www.mysterypeople.co.uk</span></a></span></b></p><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.22311159748712073" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b data-dcy-id="0.8786039664026728"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "New serif";"><a href="http://www.promotingcrime.blogspot.co.uk/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="color: #196ad4;" target="_blank"><span data-dcy-id="0.39023069369249486" style="color: blue;">www.promotingcrime.blogspot.co.uk</span></a></span></b></p><p class="yiv4762521348MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.9516665153418737" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "New serif";"><a href="mailto:mysterypeople@outlook.com" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="color: #196ad4;" target="_blank" ymailto="mailto:mysterypeople@outlook.com"><span data-dcy-id="0.7573339992040693" style="color: blue;">mysterypeople@outlook.com</span></a></span></b></p></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-77117925689625892142022-12-07T06:38:00.000+00:002022-12-07T06:38:11.548+00:00 It could happen to you - online fraud - it happened to me<div data-dcy-id="0.5916164593010582" dir="ltr"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ca3kA8NvLBzYWkr-XPM5ZA9wkHEePn9kq09DBxa4UAldKzN3zqCE-qM8Hj5Oh839LotVHmrxEX1mRnV3xLWHFoe30s8K_0cEcsHWhUeH7gsdnbgbWPGcICLn-Ywz0Er-llhoWkq-Y17sBu5PTojZJ9nnRQYworhzDGdG_SWfulfM8ZrZLCv8pvo/s259/download.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ca3kA8NvLBzYWkr-XPM5ZA9wkHEePn9kq09DBxa4UAldKzN3zqCE-qM8Hj5Oh839LotVHmrxEX1mRnV3xLWHFoe30s8K_0cEcsHWhUeH7gsdnbgbWPGcICLn-Ywz0Er-llhoWkq-Y17sBu5PTojZJ9nnRQYworhzDGdG_SWfulfM8ZrZLCv8pvo/s1600/download.jpeg" width="259" /></a></div><br /><div data-dcy-id="0.2778639936533449" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.22836614981036485" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">It was in the wee small hours of Sunday when the email came through from PayPal. It said that there was a payment that I needed to authorise. A money request in other words. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.240594399505631" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9030345300325429" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Because I was exhausted and I had searched all over the PayPal site and couldn't find a phone number anywhere (seriously PayPal where the hell do you hide the contact details - if I had seen your number I would have phoned that instead and I wouldn't have almost been scammed), I stupidly phoned the number on the message (see photo) that was sent to my PayPal account. And so the scam was on..</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.11590286518862869" dir="auto"><br /></div><h1 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">It started with a Paypal money request </span></h1><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh---bMEz6ToQqtLM6XSu6rlT5W_RwcaNHtYgBnxMfoPAFKj2JgDVOjpaap3MqEVQ8_IyCD7p3Mm2AJlq_6rFdvbEJeZU2RcAm2UKb28p-tbgfH8mf9JymSPuUQHeGQQSZ0tEYYczK2Y7rQQoQyQ0YEALotsWLHR8n4u9MWlvQcZ_YsIWovxzK58-E/s1280/Screenshot_20221207-062446.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="576" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh---bMEz6ToQqtLM6XSu6rlT5W_RwcaNHtYgBnxMfoPAFKj2JgDVOjpaap3MqEVQ8_IyCD7p3Mm2AJlq_6rFdvbEJeZU2RcAm2UKb28p-tbgfH8mf9JymSPuUQHeGQQSZ0tEYYczK2Y7rQQoQyQ0YEALotsWLHR8n4u9MWlvQcZ_YsIWovxzK58-E/s320/Screenshot_20221207-062446.png" width="144" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.09750105796195352" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Under the guise of being customer service at PayPal, I was put through a process of confirming my account which was very similar to checks I'd had before when I was the victim of fraud and contacted by the police. On that occasion, I had made a purchase from an online store and their receipts had been stolen during a break in - someone who worked in the shop had written down full card numbers with expiry dates and security codes. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.03978607142516544" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.17604534555000662" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">This time, I was asked for things like the last transaction date and amount paid. I was told this was to verify my Identity and so the customer service person I spoke to could find any other fraudulent activity on my account. According to him, there were half a dozen other payments on my account that looked suspect. Throughout this all, the person I was speaking to came across as professional and caring. He even gave me advice on how to avoid my phone being hacked in the future. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.3734852460451268" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.042477621026905776" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Surprisingly, at no point was I asked for any password. Maybe they didn't ask for any log in details because they quite rightly thought I would be suspicious. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.4726016706008327" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It's a con</b></span></h3><div data-dcy-id="0.4726016706008327" dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05zPYdAnKgU_MN9Bec65ocqdGx_qHU0vFtv2Lv_Y3nEw-mcpFCzdHs6FeCH0MJo0osyZ1ZuN-GqUFPg95YHmAmBASB1KCMAyGF1LgQOka68Z1VsQxoaP8-pvh2pJlCIiihrTFW83KsuV-2XypUy36Fu0z0csNf6szRZJbxWhr9_S3iCvsOS_eeLY/s4000/IMG_20220905_051830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05zPYdAnKgU_MN9Bec65ocqdGx_qHU0vFtv2Lv_Y3nEw-mcpFCzdHs6FeCH0MJo0osyZ1ZuN-GqUFPg95YHmAmBASB1KCMAyGF1LgQOka68Z1VsQxoaP8-pvh2pJlCIiihrTFW83KsuV-2XypUy36Fu0z0csNf6szRZJbxWhr9_S3iCvsOS_eeLY/s320/IMG_20220905_051830.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div data-dcy-id="0.4726016706008327" dir="auto"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">When I realised it, I wanted to hide away</div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.7493734199015523" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">I only realised I was being scammed when the man on the phone told me he had sent a request to my bank to cancel all of the past payments to a certain person in Germany. To do this I had to log into my banking app. When I did that it was very clear to me that instead of helping me to cancel transactions he was trying to get me confused enough to authorise a transaction of over £700.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.5109053292505477" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.17144782422557192" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Feeling like a prized eejit (idiot) I hung up the phone and immediately signed into my banking app to cancel my card and have a new one sent out. I had been one step away from being conned by a fraudster. I was equally angry with myself and with the scam artist for trying to do that to me. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.0430067067029849" dir="auto"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJVJFESkvNjuF_qrR-Iw32uWSSoMIxOq6ua3Hb1MaunbHbDjZ7XBtXWR6vbMGK3i9UkgKqzHe1_K-wu1k3v5bZAmsaaD0db7msaQBpg9nPZ1s2at2kICqs1BEJbRZS8j_RASfLjNcagf8Re3QeyQdRIRHGqv3vi3mGHgdPwioPc2DWvob6p5l0xX4/s1280/Screenshot_20221207-062344.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="576" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJVJFESkvNjuF_qrR-Iw32uWSSoMIxOq6ua3Hb1MaunbHbDjZ7XBtXWR6vbMGK3i9UkgKqzHe1_K-wu1k3v5bZAmsaaD0db7msaQBpg9nPZ1s2at2kICqs1BEJbRZS8j_RASfLjNcagf8Re3QeyQdRIRHGqv3vi3mGHgdPwioPc2DWvob6p5l0xX4/s320/Screenshot_20221207-062344.png" width="144" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Another example of a scam email</div><br /><div data-dcy-id="0.0430067067029849" dir="auto"><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>If this happens to you...</b></span></h2><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>😱😱😱😱</b></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.881068098647346"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.2525094347871655" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">STOP THEM GETTING YOUR MONEY</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.2525094347871655" dir="auto"><br /></div><div data-dcy-id="0.18789000119437005" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">There's no point beating yourself up about it as it's happened. You need to take urgent action. PDQ. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.0041530661654771706" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.08428992545984948" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">In my case, I stupidly gave them my debit card number which is linked to my main current account after they said they would need it to track all of the transactions I hadn't authorised. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.9688827336529149" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.1772185109266189" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Thanks to the wonders of internet banking and apps I was able to cancel my card and have another one sent out to me in a matter of seconds. In the not so good old days, I would have had to wait until the bank opened on Monday to do that and run the risk of my card being used to run up a huge bill. But then, back in those days there was no PayPal and no one paid for things online so there was less chance of fraud.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.21982625164157166" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">Getting a new card meant my old card number would be useless to the fraudsters as they wouldn't have the expiry date and a security code needed to make any payment. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.21571013475903444" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.04801926865115469" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">I also have strong reason to believe that my Amazon account was hacked. In this case the one I opened in Australia so that I could track all my books on sale there. The financial details that the fraudster had all seemed to be in that account including two credit cards that were out of date a long time ago. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.05434525550000191" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6441472664881782" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">To be on the safe side, I changed my Amazon password and PayPal password.</span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.7148407481492938" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><h2 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: medium;"><b>What I have learnt </b></span></h2><div data-dcy-id="0.6745705485393279" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">1. I have no doubt that the person I spoke to on the phone had at some point worked for a bank. He was articulate and knew the process banks put you through when you phone up to say your card has been lost, stolen, or misused. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.24728839837296346" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.07877534992482471" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">2. Most people have a PayPal account so you're just as likely for scammers to target that as you are your bank account.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6555923878625511" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">3. Scammers make it sound as if they're doing you a favour. In my case, he claimed he was going to stop any unauthorised future transactions and past ones. He even advised me to use a VPN as he claimed my phone had been hacked. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6555923878625511" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6555923878625511" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">4. If something doesn't feel right, trust your intuition. Hang up that phone. </span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6555923878625511" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div data-dcy-id="0.6555923878625511" dir="auto"><span style="font-family: arial;">5. Tell other people what happened so they can avoid it happening to them. It's us vs the scammers. </span></div></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div class="gmail_quote"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" data-dcy-id="0.4884275764400552" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"><div dir="auto"><div data-dcy-id="0.4110137138267391" dir="auto"><br /><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" /></div></div></blockquote></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-62141605053795725052022-10-01T20:54:00.006+01:002022-10-02T02:42:30.956+01:00Thanks to Mystery People & Dot Marshall-Gent for their review of Vile City <p> <span style="font-family: georgia;">Vile City got the review treatment in the latest edition of Mystery People.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here's what reviwer Dot Marshall-Gent said -</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-oh23pyRLOL_MKzdDt8GEJpZOZDZeNsNkaPoVVIsjOqe2dno0BH98vWu7OglF8XlUeXjk4w2iDU85e1UgunPPCm2ub1Ox7Jt9M3yEFnosttDmTapHKcl6rdLQMSov0I73fX2Yvbx7XZczzu-8-WwBrA9DTYmpoeQopkz13zvwO2aVQ3DMnYx2LNs/s1245/Vile%20City%20Mystery%20People%20review%20Oct%201st%202022.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="874" data-original-width="1245" height="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-oh23pyRLOL_MKzdDt8GEJpZOZDZeNsNkaPoVVIsjOqe2dno0BH98vWu7OglF8XlUeXjk4w2iDU85e1UgunPPCm2ub1Ox7Jt9M3yEFnosttDmTapHKcl6rdLQMSov0I73fX2Yvbx7XZczzu-8-WwBrA9DTYmpoeQopkz13zvwO2aVQ3DMnYx2LNs/w566-h373/Vile%20City%20Mystery%20People%20review%20Oct%201st%202022.png" width="566" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><br />Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-44868506082376680592022-09-19T17:56:00.003+01:002022-09-19T17:56:17.412+01:00"The contrasting viewpoints create a plot that is fast, forceful, and absorbing" - Vile City review from Dot Marshall-Gent <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">A new review for Vile City on <a href="https://promotingcrime.blogspot.com/2022/09/detective-in-coma-vile-city-by-jennifer.html" target="_blank">Promoting Crime</a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">"the writer creates two intriguing characters who often defy readers’ expectations."</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><h2 class="date-header" style="background-color: #c0a154; color: #997755; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; min-height: 0px; position: relative;"><span data-dcy-id="0.2057085229403981">Thursday, 15 September 2022</span></h2><div class="date-posts" style="background-color: #c0a154; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 12.88px;"><div class="post-outer" data-dcy-id="0.9294360976578775" style="background: url("https://resources.blogblog.com/blogblog/data/1kt/watermark/post_background_birds.png") left top repeat scroll transparent; border: 1px dotted rgb(204, 187, 153); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 0px 0px 0px; margin: 0px 0px 25px; padding: 15px 20px;"><div class="post hentry uncustomized-post-template" data-dcy-id="0.39020600445286946" itemprop="blogPost" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="http://schema.org/BlogPosting" style="min-height: 0px; position: relative;"><a name="2001465462947040003"></a><h3 class="post-title entry-title" data-dcy-id="0.21402128922862396" itemprop="name" style="font-family: Georgia, Utopia, "Palatino Linotype", Palatino, serif; font-size: 30px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;">‘Detective in a Coma: Vile City’ by Jennifer Lee Thomson</h3><div class="post-header" style="color: #997755; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1em;"><div class="post-header-line-1"></div></div><div class="post-body entry-content" data-dcy-id="0.39612938810312937" id="post-body-2001465462947040003" itemprop="description articleBody" style="font-size: 13.524px; line-height: 1.5; position: relative; width: 488.021px;"><p><b><span style="background: white; color: #002060; font-size: 14pt;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYSWtI-zATjWJr6iBD44qGT3MdKLraFuyaMjlxzQ8H48jzLk4ki39a3wFP2kLo8KjM7XzRQJGv5pph0mMB9tFKc7DRxnflTugEG0bkb8Q2vx-QXwhzR-l6t6CtkuTis4g8J6mhZJA-xB8h9h9Y4k_0p5suZE9FtDnGsjdo6iHqOgm0uoF9_3z28mqY/s1024/Detective-in-a-Coma-Front-Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #cc3300; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-dcy-id="0.8328235537837836" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="641" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYSWtI-zATjWJr6iBD44qGT3MdKLraFuyaMjlxzQ8H48jzLk4ki39a3wFP2kLo8KjM7XzRQJGv5pph0mMB9tFKc7DRxnflTugEG0bkb8Q2vx-QXwhzR-l6t6CtkuTis4g8J6mhZJA-xB8h9h9Y4k_0p5suZE9FtDnGsjdo6iHqOgm0uoF9_3z28mqY/s320/Detective-in-a-Coma-Front-Cover.jpg" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: none; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="200" /></a></b></div><b><span style="color: #073763;"><span data-dcy-id="0.9723115643686844" style="font-size: large;">Published by Diamond Books Ltd,<br />24 November 2021.<br /></span></span></b><span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>ISBN: 978-1-83840268-6 (PB)</b></span></span><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" data-dcy-id="0.7353236245071038"><span data-dcy-id="0.5658952759066456" style="font-size: 11pt;">When Detective Sergeant Stevie Campbell is assaulted on duty, he cheats death, but only just, and whilst he languishes in hospital, DS Brian McKeith has taken his place on Detective Inspector Waddell’s team. McKeith has yet to impress his new boss who is wading through the in-tray from Hell that includes a spate of robberies as well as two missing women. To make matters worse, the new DS has just informed Waddell that another woman has disappeared. This time, however, there is a witness. Shelley’s boyfriend was also attacked, and the detectives are hoping that he might be able to give them a lead.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span data-dcy-id="0.2389559828671286" style="font-size: 11pt;">The third person narrative moves primarily between the perspectives of Waddell and Shelley, though other points of view are also related. This juxtaposition creates an almost cinematographic feel to the story as it flips from the police investigation to the description of the imprisoned woman. Waddell’s team must first determine whether there is a link between the women who have disappeared. Shelley on the other hand does not wait for the cavalry to arrive and makes a series of valiant attempts to escape her captives. By foregrounding these two points of view, the writer creates two intriguing characters who often defy readers’ expectations.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The contrasting viewpoints create a plot that is fast, forceful, and absorbing. There are several scenes of brutality and some graphic depictions of sex trafficking, that are hard to read. Crucially, though, the writer has provided female characters who are combative and resourceful. There are also moments of poignancy. For example, when Waddell visits Stevie in hospital he is clearly traumatised to see his erstwhile partner’s condition; sometimes he believes he is conversing with his old pal, and this causes him to doubt his sanity. Similarly, Shelley’s valiant attempts to escape provoke empathy as well as admiration.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><i>Detective in a Coma: Vile City</i> is a tough Scottish thriller that explores the appalling trade in human beings. It also examines how resilience and determination can carry us through the worst of times. If gritty crime is your thing, you’ll enjoy this book. I did, particularly the deliciously, dark twist at the end.<br />------</span><br /><i><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Reviewer: Dot Marshall-Gent</span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9cCTh1NbcLCp0yjTFTkHaaF8lZx77So8FSaw3F8EpSx4ZsEpENYCFZxhOk9YZESNbh-wmta4C4VqaxCyzG_bFH78rEFv6iB77cSU3S7UmXvux7TpTnZ2pDexPTmn_KfEk_eisAUiG9-3Her7WRDHBWFFDw6D86ZEB0B6XuPTDiTf1SgtDyb-IrLF/s255/Jennifer%20Lee%20Thomson-Colour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #cc3300; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="255" data-original-width="222" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM9cCTh1NbcLCp0yjTFTkHaaF8lZx77So8FSaw3F8EpSx4ZsEpENYCFZxhOk9YZESNbh-wmta4C4VqaxCyzG_bFH78rEFv6iB77cSU3S7UmXvux7TpTnZ2pDexPTmn_KfEk_eisAUiG9-3Her7WRDHBWFFDw6D86ZEB0B6XuPTDiTf1SgtDyb-IrLF/w142-h152/Jennifer%20Lee%20Thomson-Colour.jpg" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: none; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="142" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: red; font-size: 14pt;">Jennifer Lee Thomson</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> is an award-winning crime writer who has been scribbling away all her life. She also writes as Jenny Thomson and is an animal and human rights advocate.</span></p><span lang="EN-US"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: red; font-size: 14pt;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uz3QaHHxR1lrcXMOLvLg4H2F6a3ntE1b7jJhXl8muK6E9GXIbAgIC12yJhfpeL1G4Gp9cFPn4j1_KV2Vw4s8HlgNgU_qhb3YLWZyitOAvh5YCyggb89T7T_DfmZbP_QwXEeSiL4ADW7G7hr1ugfvDkVIAYKbg8U3VtbTo7U19qaKq17OC7mD2L_q/s200/dorothy.marshall-gent.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; color: #cc3300; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uz3QaHHxR1lrcXMOLvLg4H2F6a3ntE1b7jJhXl8muK6E9GXIbAgIC12yJhfpeL1G4Gp9cFPn4j1_KV2Vw4s8HlgNgU_qhb3YLWZyitOAvh5YCyggb89T7T_DfmZbP_QwXEeSiL4ADW7G7hr1ugfvDkVIAYKbg8U3VtbTo7U19qaKq17OC7mD2L_q/w144-h145/dorothy.marshall-gent.jpeg" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: none; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="144" /></a></b></div><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Dot Marshall-Gent</b></span></span> <span data-dcy-id="0.8270727722861286" style="font-size: 11pt;">worked in the emergency services for twenty years first as a police officer, then as a paramedic and finally as a fire control officer before graduating from King’s College, London as a teacher of English in her mid-forties. She completed a M.A. in Special and Inclusive Education at the Institute of Education, London and now teaches part-time and writes mainly about educational issues. Dot sings jazz and country music and plays guitar, banjo and piano as well as being addicted to reading mystery and crime fiction. </span></div></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thanks to Mystery People and Dot Marshall-Gent. You can check out the Mystery People website <a href="https://www.mysterypeople.co.uk/" target="_blank">here</a></span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://www.mysterypeople.co.uk/" target="_blank"><br /></a></span><br /><p><br /></p></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-62684323908686008352022-07-28T04:00:00.000+01:002022-08-22T05:44:24.915+01:00What happens after abducted Shelley Craig wakes up in Vile City?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><strong style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; color: #444340; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></strong><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kbDDYsDSbAo/WUCKPPuSVxI/AAAAAAAATsI/6SZCbLVxv3osa72iozzMJMIpvPY9Q_MFQCLcBGAs/s1600/unconsciousbfquote.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kbDDYsDSbAo/WUCKPPuSVxI/AAAAAAAATsI/6SZCbLVxv3osa72iozzMJMIpvPY9Q_MFQCLcBGAs/s320/unconsciousbfquote.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_kuJL7JQ0BQ/WUCLxlPtATI/AAAAAAAATsU/HRhVOdCOyRQHtSzYFBa_PL4Nng5iMOESQCLcBGAs/s1600/Vile%2BCity%2Btwitter%2Bpic.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1024" height="160" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_kuJL7JQ0BQ/WUCLxlPtATI/AAAAAAAATsU/HRhVOdCOyRQHtSzYFBa_PL4Nng5iMOESQCLcBGAs/s320/Vile%2BCity%2Btwitter%2Bpic.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>What happens after Shelley Craig wakes up in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Vile</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City after she's been abducted and her boyfriend left for dead</st1:placetype></st1:place>? </b></span><br /><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span><span face=""verdana" , sans-serif"><b>Here's an extract -</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">When Shelley came to, her throat was raw. Water. She needed water. With one hand, she groped for the glass she always kept on the bedside table.</span><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Damn, it wasn’t there. Must have moved it.</span><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">She pulled herself into a sitting position. When she moved her head it was as though a part had broken off inside. She flopped back down. What had she done last night to get into this state? She hadn’t changed out of her work clothes; she was wearing her work trousers that pinched at her calves because Stuart hadn’t noticed the ‘dry clean only’ label and they’d shrunk in the wash.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Trying to dredge up the last thing she remembered made her head hurt. Her disorientation wasn’t helped by being unable to see properly because her eyes were stuck together by the glue of sleep. She must have forgotten to take her contact lenses out.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Wherever she was, it wasn’t at home. She was lying too low down and the place smelt of unwashed laundry and mould.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Maybe she was sleeping on some pal’s floor after one cocktail too many. That had to be it. Think, damn it, think.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">When some light permeated the darkness, the jolt it gave her was a bolt of electricity to her brain.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Stuart. He’d been attacked. Was he okay?</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">A sob wracked her body as she forced herself to sit up. This wasn’t the time to get hysterical. She could do that later when she was safely at home.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">She rubbed her eyes with her fingers, picking away the sleep until she could see clearly. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">She was on a bare mattress on top of a rusty old bed frame, in a strange room with torn wallpaper and flaking paint on the wall. The bed creaked whenever she moved and she wanted to tell it to shut the hell up. She didn’t want him to hear.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">She remembered his voice in her ear, saying he’d kill Stuart unless she cooperated. Had he hurt him? That thought made her sob.</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">He’d know she was awake and then what would he do – rape her? She didn’t think he’d done it already. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; text-align: center;">Surely, she’d be able to tell, wouldn’t she?</span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">***TO BE CONTINUED***</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="vj1ztqYx3mzFZnwod355G7qPqjqfr04Z1JACl8NbVKOkIUcJXclm57xI1hFKqllEZNwyxM5wEa8WiQaF8UbGAPO5oI0Fbwiv4iZWpB0stFIJTkWy4WLtlRlQfN10GXUu61pb1NDW_QTecs/s1280/Vile%20City%20long%20twitter%20well%20written.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="426" data-original-width="1280" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9wo5GIWRhkAKKAFe6zcILlhXbVGLTyE-yAeRdpqi2gvj1ztqYx3mzFZnwod355G7qPqjqfr04Z1JACl8NbVKOkIUcJXclm57xI1hFKqllEZNwyxM5wEa8WiQaF8UbGAPO5oI0Fbwiv4iZWpB0stFIJTkWy4WLtlRlQfN10GXUu61pb1NDW_QTecs/w400-h134/Vile%20City%20long%20twitter%20well%20written.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div></div><div dir="ltr" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Vile</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">City</st1:placetype></st1:place> is available now </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Amazon <st1:country-region w:st="on">UK</st1:country-region> </span><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.co.uk/<wbr></wbr>Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-<wbr></wbr>Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Amazon .com </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com/<wbr></wbr>Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-<wbr></wbr>Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Amazon <st1:country-region w:st="on">Canada</st1:country-region> </span><a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.can/<wbr></wbr>Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-<wbr></wbr>Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Amazon <st1:country-region w:st="on">Australia</st1:country-region> </span><a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com.au/<wbr></wbr>Detective-Coma-Jennifer-Lee-<wbr></wbr>Thomson-ebook/dp/B09M3YNLL2</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div></div></div></div></div><div><div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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</div></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-36898351806778997582022-06-04T04:48:00.000+01:002022-06-05T03:29:58.852+01:00Making a Murderer - the Night Stalker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aNi8fcJa_IM/YAZepJ6g5UI/AAAAAAAAhAY/4lEb9rwA-vEc2tXYsNdlVtBAsGgNNufywCNcBGAsYHQ/s600/63c6c5_eef720cf544a42aeb4504b974dc6c310_mv2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aNi8fcJa_IM/YAZepJ6g5UI/AAAAAAAAhAY/4lEb9rwA-vEc2tXYsNdlVtBAsGgNNufywCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/63c6c5_eef720cf544a42aeb4504b974dc6c310_mv2.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Are some people born evil?</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br />The question is often asked whether the monsters who commit evil crimes are the product of nature, i.e they were born that way and nothing could have prevented their evil course, or nurture, i.e their life experiences shaped them into who they were. </span></p><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In the case of Richard Ramirez otherwise known as the Night Stalker, the subject of a gripping Netflix documentary outlining how he was caught, it would appear at first that he was born evil incarnate. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Those who were raped, bludgeoned and stabbed and throttled by one of the most notorious serial killers to have ever scorched this earth, would probably say he was the devil. That the devil came to their homes. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But on watching the Netflix documentary there were a few throwaway facts about Ramirez that were never fully explored, possibly because no one wanted to make any excuses for such a unapologetically sick killer. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">These facts that would point to Ramirez being the result of nurture, or in his case the lack of any decency in those who should have taken care of him.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hAxfrTdSsII/YAZfwjljFkI/AAAAAAAAhAs/xcHfvOQRs34QvhnQhElkXgY0-22rXOV3ACNcBGAsYHQ/s1969/8a4be32a-ec28-406b-85f8-cc5edf1f5ea1-nightstalker.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1109" data-original-width="1969" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hAxfrTdSsII/YAZfwjljFkI/AAAAAAAAhAs/xcHfvOQRs34QvhnQhElkXgY0-22rXOV3ACNcBGAsYHQ/w400-h225/8a4be32a-ec28-406b-85f8-cc5edf1f5ea1-nightstalker.jpg" title="A product of his environment or born evil?" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Fact 1 - When Ramirez was just 12 years-old, his cousin Miguel (known as Mike) would show him pictures of war crimes he says he committed whilst in the US army. Those pictures are said to have included ones of a dead Vietnamese woman he raped. She'd been decapitated.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Could that be the source of Richard Ramirez's sick compulsion to rape and brutalise not just women but children? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Could being shown such vile images at a young and impressionable age have led Ramirez to think that sex and violence were intrinsically linked snd resulted in him recreating the kind of brutality and inhumanity his uncle had shown his alleged victims? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Fact 2 - The very same vile cousin Mike shot his wife in the face and killed her in front of the young Ramirez. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Again, we have someone young and impressionable seeing someone he looked up to commit cold-blooded murder. A man who would smoke cannabis with the boy. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Is there a possibility that had he not been shown any photographs or seen his cousin murder his wife, he wouldn't have gone on on to become one of them worst human beings to have ever lived? </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The answers is we will never really know. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Lessons on breaking into homes </span></b></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Fact 3 - After his cousin killed his wife, Ramirez was sent to live with his sister and her husband. Her husband was a peeping tom and used to take Ramirez with him as he peeped on women. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Is that how the man also known as the Walk-in Killer was able to sneak into his victims homes? Had he not been shown how to creep about undetected by his brother-in-law would he have been able to sneak up on his victims?</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The making of a serial killer</span></b></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">If there was ever a set of circumstances that created a serial killer Ramirez's would be almost textbook. And that's before we even looked at his childhood brought up in a home with a violent father.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Whether Ramirez was made and not born a despicable human being, his being dead makes the city he held in the grips of fear, Los Angeles a much safer place. </span></div><div dir="auto"><br style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;" /></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-45182797667420821272022-06-01T01:53:00.001+01:002022-08-22T05:42:28.702+01:00Thanks to Kim Basinger people know the truth about my agoraphobia<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-agdQpapLdAe2eugFXWlJDIoVC1LHXrPLYSB6LG_uuY85GsLqOJuw1v1Tfr_rlmtUNGwSZlFLDD2D1jkGBYeA1T9B6yl43X5KuE1BPsbxy1RiiCyjbsPycvrHMSMisv6XUT-7JQMPQmbjdzDQb58NPJ75yYc2yvpC1hgcNQFbpidqbQaUgtOto9A/s275/download%20(2).jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-agdQpapLdAe2eugFXWlJDIoVC1LHXrPLYSB6LG_uuY85GsLqOJuw1v1Tfr_rlmtUNGwSZlFLDD2D1jkGBYeA1T9B6yl43X5KuE1BPsbxy1RiiCyjbsPycvrHMSMisv6XUT-7JQMPQmbjdzDQb58NPJ75yYc2yvpC1hgcNQFbpidqbQaUgtOto9A/s1600/download%20(2).jpeg" width="183" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">The actress recently revealed she has agoraphobia</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">‘Why do you have to be like this - you know you're just making things difficult for yourself?’</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">As someone with agoraphobia, I have heard that a lot. There's a misconception amongst some people - not everyone - that a phobia is just something you can easily get over. Just try facing up to your fear/s by doing some anti-sensitivity training. Force yourself to face up to whatever it is you fear whether that's spiders, heights, or in my case the fear of open spaces and people. Then your phobia will be gone. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">If only it were that easy. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">It seems that sometimes the only time some people acknowledge that you have a genuine health problem is when a celebrity has the same thing. In my case, Kim Basinger's recent revelation that she suffers from agoraphobia has shone the light on a condition that so many people have in the UK. According to the NHS, 2% of people in the UK have a panic disorder with a third of them having agoraphobia. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">When I was growing up in the 80s (I'm showing my age now) Kim Basinger was one of the best-known actresses. She was beautiful and had an amazing smile and a lot of women wanted to have hair like her. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">In recent years, she disappeared from public view. I thought she'd chosen to take time away from acting or had been the victim of Hollywood's ageism where leading men get to age whilst the women they star opposite get younger. I had no idea that this beautiful, outwardly self-confident woman had something in common with little old me, namely that she has agoraphobia.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">That wasn't until recently when she appeared on Jada Pinkett's Red Table Talk with her daughter Ireland Baldwin to talk about the anxiety that left her struggling to leave her home. I found myself for the very first time in my life identifying with a beautiful Hollywood actress as she spoke about the paralysing anxiety.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">I'm not a movie star (I wish) but I know exactly what she's going through. For over 20-years I have also suffered from agoraphobia and anxiety. I can leave my house but only if accompanied by other people or my rescue dog Harley, a huge goofy hound who is my untrained therapy dog. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtwdgXOgahEkef2LKCWT0fCjfrnxhD3vMkPNvTV7ojbivpIRAS7jMWQb2EjdA0KQd_6zE3QJT8AD3_HfP5o8lRc03EXMgG1aiZS62IQQxt58--wQ_n7E06ACnlrP1Pt6vxB0a-iditE-KsaFtlg5aBoRZAIcTonLnlgZAh2E89G5n6eGKOIlyBgc/s3061/Harley%20Harlequin%20pic.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3061" data-original-width="1656" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtwdgXOgahEkef2LKCWT0fCjfrnxhD3vMkPNvTV7ojbivpIRAS7jMWQb2EjdA0KQd_6zE3QJT8AD3_HfP5o8lRc03EXMgG1aiZS62IQQxt58--wQ_n7E06ACnlrP1Pt6vxB0a-iditE-KsaFtlg5aBoRZAIcTonLnlgZAh2E89G5n6eGKOIlyBgc/s320/Harley%20Harlequin%20pic.jpg" width="173" /></a></div>My therapy dog<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">On the very rare occasions I do try to venture out alone I am struck by a paralysing fear that sends me spiralling and I have to get home. I struggle to breathe and feel as if I'm having an asthma attack that no medication can help with. My heart is pounding and my chest feels fit to burst. A friend who witnessed this once thought I was having the worst panic attack should have ever seen. She was so worried she wanted to call an ambulance. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Basinger says her anxiety was triggered when she visited a health food store in California and was overcome by overwhelming anxiety that caused her to flee the store. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>What started it all</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">In my case, I know exactly what the trigger was but not when - the bullying I suffered at school and home during my teenage years. Unlike the Oscar-winning actress, I can't pinpoint one single event that caused it, just a multiple series of events that eroded my confidence and feeling of self-worth. I became scared to go out. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Agoraphobia is much misunderstood. I've had some people tell me I should just pull myself together as if I have chosen to be this way. Relatives have also told me just to dope myself up with medication so I can attend family events. Again, they don't understand. It's not as if I don't want to go out, it's that I can't. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I have tried therapy, both cognitive-behavioural research and hypnotherapy (I wasn't very good at getting hypnotised apparently), meditation and reading various self-help books but nothing has helped. I can also confirm that the drugs don't work - at least for me. I've been on various medications for years and there's no change. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">For me, the cognitive behavioural therapy that seems to be successful with lots of other people, actually made my condition worse. Before CBT, I'd had OCD and hypervigilance as part of the side effects of my agoraphobia. After having the cognitive behavioural therapy, they were worse. Like they were on steroids. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">When I had the honour of having the book launch for what was then my first novel Vile City, the first book in my Detective in a Coma series at the architecturally stunning Waterstones store in Glasgow Argyle Street, I couldn't even enjoy my big night. My doctor had given me tranquillizers and anti-anxiety medication but my nerves were still shot. During what should have been a night of celebration I just felt terrified and wanted to go home. I was constantly in the grip of panic. </span></p><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk47dH9XesDBkA7u4YRTXb9d9k-UhwGn8QVKgDZ9srV4p5-c25KHVus3KmddsRAiuPFV4IekMaVCIRdkAtHa9xRcSje3vAvIGazhbk3gl1P0FhfmMCXhSFRFmWPANBH8bMWgzmoOpIYrWf9P_KisqOqrgNLi-BVFJE_NZbktwcJN0Z030mzl8q9KM/s304/shocked_71917%5B1%5D.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="304" data-original-width="300" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk47dH9XesDBkA7u4YRTXb9d9k-UhwGn8QVKgDZ9srV4p5-c25KHVus3KmddsRAiuPFV4IekMaVCIRdkAtHa9xRcSje3vAvIGazhbk3gl1P0FhfmMCXhSFRFmWPANBH8bMWgzmoOpIYrWf9P_KisqOqrgNLi-BVFJE_NZbktwcJN0Z030mzl8q9KM/s1600/shocked_71917%5B1%5D.jpg" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">I won a novel writing award but couldn't go to collect my trophy<br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">A few years before that when I won an award for my first crime novel, I couldn't even attend the prize-winning ceremony. Agoraphobia made me a prisoner in my own home and continues to do so. The late great Alanna Knight was going to hand me the prize that night but even knowing that wasn't enough to get rid of the black cloud that was hanging over me. I couldn't attend. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">‘What were you like before you had this wrong with you’ one of my writing friends online recently asked. I honestly don't know because it was so long ago. With something like agoraphobia, once it gets its tentacles on you, it's hard to get it to let go. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">As for the future who knows. It isn't as if I can just snap out of this as it’s a family member once said. If only it were that easy. But at least thanks to a certain actress family and friends know what a struggle things are for me. </span></p><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-7981216275106210662022-03-17T05:46:00.007+00:002022-03-17T05:48:21.724+00:00the book trailer for Vile City<p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgMn340PG3vqO5r95mUBEMMb1nPzkqpwQ0M1SDp03WNx3eqA2mh--o7pOkeb_zWdg8wEGeCSrcP_JTeapq-h607fNQPnKOrWAm8JZkh4rJ_iT2J97nPswWt_aXnz45Am_t0erLLPyN-RS4ZrqJp2EDc7LliYasEaAJNqVQDVDwL-VLNOUxXNLdN7hcU=s2560" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="Vile City crime scene" border="0" data-original-height="1921" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgMn340PG3vqO5r95mUBEMMb1nPzkqpwQ0M1SDp03WNx3eqA2mh--o7pOkeb_zWdg8wEGeCSrcP_JTeapq-h607fNQPnKOrWAm8JZkh4rJ_iT2J97nPswWt_aXnz45Am_t0erLLPyN-RS4ZrqJp2EDc7LliYasEaAJNqVQDVDwL-VLNOUxXNLdN7hcU=w320-h240" title="Vile City crime scene" width="320" /></a></p><p></p><br /><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: center;"><span face="sans-serif">Vile City crime scene</span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face="sans-serif">I</span><span face="sans-serif" style="font-size: large;">t ain't Spielberg. </span></span></p><p><span face="sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It isn't even a 5 year old with a mobile phone. </span></p><p><span face="sans-serif" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here's the book trailer for Vile City. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyhzmJ_eB4LiWYkGUtHCT6tUBIM42Gw3HAurdjyaZnz8M9aFpyfKM8tR8h4PtO-fkso2AvfZU4ifQYTL9fv' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><span face="sans-serif" style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Read it and help abducted Shelly get home. </span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Vile City is available now, just click <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">here </a></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">#Glasgow</span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> #crime</span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> #thriller</span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> #bookTok </span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Out now from Diamond Crime @diamond_crime </span></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-8525162144719785782022-03-15T02:52:00.000+00:002022-03-17T05:40:17.359+00:00Coping With Rejection really sucks but you can get through it<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It used to come as the sound of your manuscript in a brown envelope thudding as it hit your doormat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now its more likely to come as an email which in a way makes it worse because until you've read it there's this tiny glimmer of hope that its going to be a yes and that in a minute you will be dancing around the rooming yelling, "Ya, beauty." (I'm Scottish and that's how I celebrate). </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAQKKqv_dLPJtFyRISZV6R1HcnCOa36J3bR2aaUAewZ8dEn-rGGMYnLSR9Qf3TW-NGJVW-jI4d70qc6wseP-k9aBOOf9fSx27_khg11Yq1gS9H2On6zStbgH3yJE0q9qg2DzVJkXxc5ZM/s1600/61a8ee0629aa3cb20036dc81aebb4214.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAQKKqv_dLPJtFyRISZV6R1HcnCOa36J3bR2aaUAewZ8dEn-rGGMYnLSR9Qf3TW-NGJVW-jI4d70qc6wseP-k9aBOOf9fSx27_khg11Yq1gS9H2On6zStbgH3yJE0q9qg2DzVJkXxc5ZM/s320/61a8ee0629aa3cb20036dc81aebb4214.gif" width="252" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They'll be no happy dance:)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">You read the email and usually the phrase you get is "it's not for us" or "thanks for sending this to us but you weren't successful on this occasion." Your head dips, your heart sinks and all the other cliches happen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So, how do you get through this crushing sense of failure?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">First off, don't see it as failure. Its usually someone's opinion - just one person. Do we all like the same things? Nope. So, why would we like the same books?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Besides, failure isn't trying and getting knocked down. Failure is not trying and putting yourself in a position to fail.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">How many people do you know who say they're writing a book who never actually write a book?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Too many.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJD0_KU_wPU/VrAX_Sj1CjI/AAAAAAAASJw/0pECiK10hes/s1600/img_1454380964728.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJD0_KU_wPU/VrAX_Sj1CjI/AAAAAAAASJw/0pECiK10hes/s320/img_1454380964728.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What else helps when you get that disappointing no?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Well, I like to watch comedies. After yesterday's thumping disappointment I binge watched Parks and Recreation.</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_LzxHxK6uic/VrAY6WQygsI/AAAAAAAASJ4/KDU5OtvXKJw/s1600/download.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_LzxHxK6uic/VrAY6WQygsI/AAAAAAAASJ4/KDU5OtvXKJw/s400/download.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Laughing away the tears helps</span>.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Chocolate also helps. Probably so does wine but I'm teetotal and it would be too easy to drown your sorrows. If you know when to stop, you go for it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Talking to other writers might help. My favourite forum is the TalkBack one from Writer's News. </span></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Most importantly if you got any feedback at all treasure it. Publishers and agents don't say things they don't mean. My latest rejection said they liked the idea behind my submission.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Be kind to yourself, folks. Remember the path to a writer's success is paved with rejection slips and emails. It shows you've been brave enough to get your work out there. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">CARRY ON WRITING.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-14747214689000142172022-03-01T06:41:00.006+00:002022-03-01T06:41:00.164+00:00"intriguing and hard-hitting story that gets dark and gritty in places but tickles my funny bone" - Sharon Beyond Books - Vile City Review<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> Writers love reviews. Each is a gift. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here's one for Vile City (Detective in a Coma Book 1) from <b><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://twitter.com/ShazzieRimmel">@ShazzieRimmel</a> at </span></b><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="https://t.co/HcmMeNAobw" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">https://sharonbeyondthebooks.wordpress.com/2022/02/23/jennifer-lee-thomson-detective-in-a-coma-volume-one-vile-city/</a><b> </b>who took part in my blog tour. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thanks, Sharon. You made a writer smile today😀</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Book 2 in the series that was once called Cannibal City will be out soon under the new name of Butcher City. Also from Diamond Books. You can see more of their titles at <a href="https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/">https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/</a> and on Twitter @diamond_crime</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiansPQpIl4dOgwoYagBb3TxmpyrSxF6PVJ6OKhc5Xbngx3LGt0lX4phO5urDsYDp0IonypGDtT_-9j51d6aQeWe8KQWy3a7jFA53_65IvHUotF46aHMSuN2ZnDyxagTZQOlzckFeI-StMERt4mtEYfpntvUiR0Qwnsl94UjgZuibx-YG0OnY96Q89G=s1280" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="936" data-original-width="1280" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiansPQpIl4dOgwoYagBb3TxmpyrSxF6PVJ6OKhc5Xbngx3LGt0lX4phO5urDsYDp0IonypGDtT_-9j51d6aQeWe8KQWy3a7jFA53_65IvHUotF46aHMSuN2ZnDyxagTZQOlzckFeI-StMERt4mtEYfpntvUiR0Qwnsl94UjgZuibx-YG0OnY96Q89G=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Imagine my surprise. I am invited to a blog tour of a book by an author. I recognise, go to check everything out and discover I have read the second book already AND loved it! Well, that made this book a pleasure to read, and I was super happy to have the first book to read as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I do like a bit of Scottish crime writing and feel the standard is set high, too. This is an intense, multi layered, fast-paced story. Jennifer Lee Thomson keeps you on the edge of your seat through. As you think you have got it cracked, she cranks it up again and blows everything out of the water.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">I was glad to be able to feel like I knew DI Duncan Waddell. His partner is in a coma, and Waddell thinks he is talking to him. It was great to delve into this book, as it felt like I was getting to know more of the DI’s background. The issues that are handled in the book incorporate the sex trafficking trade and the demeaning and horrific acts that are inflicted upon the women.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><b>"intriguing and hard-hitting story."</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Even with the heavy subjects that this book deals with, Jennifer Lee Thomson has balanced it out with humour and strong women throughout the story. It is an intriguing and hard-hitting story that gets dark and gritty in places but tickles my funny bone, too. The detective in a coma for me plays a large part in Waddell’s life. The fact that I have already read Cannibal City gives me a sort of insight to Waddell and Campbell that some won’t have.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">A brilliant start to a series that I know I enjoy so much. Anyone who loves a dark, gritty, but funny too series!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b></p>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-41677240907594297452022-02-28T05:22:00.002+00:002022-02-28T05:22:42.896+00:00Who'd live with a writer? We're all nuts. <p> This piece was first published in Red Herrings, the Crime Writers Association @the_cwa in the March 2022 issue:)</p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Who’d live with a writer? – We’re all nuts <o:p></o:p></span></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">By<o:p></o:p></span></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Jennifer Lee Thomson <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">"For goodness’
sake. Where have you been? I'm freezing out here."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I flash my partner of
over 20 years a wry smile. "Sorry, I had a chapter to finish. I
wasn't long, was I?"<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">He takes a sharp
intake of breath and breathes the air out his nose like a raging
bull. "Of course you bloody were. What else would you be doing for 20
minutes, in the public toilets as I stand out in the snow shrivelling and
shivering."<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">I fight back the desire
to congratulate him on his fine alliteration but think better of it. I've
stretched his patience already. He's a rubber band about to snap.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We're meant to be on a
Christmas shopping trip. He'd envisioned being warm inside a shopping
centre drinking a cup of hot chocolate with a touch of ginger and eating a
cinnamon bun, reading his paper as I went round the shops. Not standing
outside in the snow.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We hadn't even made it
to the shopping centre before inspiration had struck and I used the excuse of
going to the toilets to get it down on my phone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">That's the trouble
with living with a writer. There's a lot of standing around waiting as
they finish that last sentence, that last paragraph, that last chapter.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">"Just give me a
few moments. I need to do this now." Those are probably the two phrases I
use more than any other.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Who in their right
mind would want to live with a writer?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">We're an annoying
bunch. We're a slave to our writing. When we're deep into it, we wouldn't
notice if the house was burning down.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Our life is all about
deadlines. The deadlines we are given and the ones we set for ourselves.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Our writing is a time
stealer - thieving huge chunks from family and friends.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In my case, I'm always
asking stupid questions seeking the male point of view.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The questions we ask
are completely insane. And if we weren't writers we would probably be
reported to the police or the anti-terrorism unit.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Questions like would
curling tongs on a man's bits hurt and can you get rid of a whole body in a
wood chipper?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">There isn't a piece of
paper or a notebook that's not written on in our homes. We devour
paper like termites. And at least in my case I'm told I horde all
the pens. Well, how else do I make sure I always have one (or six)
at hand?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Let's salute them;
those who live with writers. Mentioning them in the acknowledgements
of our latest book or article isn't much of a reward for all that they do.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Just ask my other half
who has spent far too long standing outside different establishments whilst I
finish the last line.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: georgia;">BIO<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Jennifer is the author of several books
including fiction and non-fiction. Her most recent books are the pulpy crime
fiction novella How Kirsty gets her Kicks from Shotgun Honey and Vile City
(Detective in a coma book 1) from Diamond Books. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In Vile City, DI Duncan Waddell thinks he’s
losing his mind when his best friend and colleague Stevie Campbell who’s in a
coma starts to talking to him. But only Waddell can hear him. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Twitter @jenthom72 <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Blog https://ramblingsofafrustratedcrimewriter.blogspot.com/<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgns-uCC-nBLyTl__ypFEEQzwdmD-cApSjapTbl2NUKtEuv-eWWBB9pj_3IuPeZfdlGd6MO0JGThYzMg6OCFdJwecc6lbBwRJCaDaZlgmdTpRAwMJryQldFfDqeo6a2QPtsR8CmKHwOdLUAfJXipaHNOWuYSkGn5d_K9Egfs9DZ9qLlg10CytqTlpY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgns-uCC-nBLyTl__ypFEEQzwdmD-cApSjapTbl2NUKtEuv-eWWBB9pj_3IuPeZfdlGd6MO0JGThYzMg6OCFdJwecc6lbBwRJCaDaZlgmdTpRAwMJryQldFfDqeo6a2QPtsR8CmKHwOdLUAfJXipaHNOWuYSkGn5d_K9Egfs9DZ9qLlg10CytqTlpY" width="240" /></a></span></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></o:p></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia;">You can visit their website at </span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://thecwa.co.uk/">https://thecwa.co.uk/</a></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Happy crime reading, viewing and or watching. </span></o:p></p><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-85510811866438731442022-02-22T05:43:00.003+00:002022-02-28T06:52:41.350+00:00"The plot is full on intense" - Donna's Book Reviews on Vile CIty <p>Delighted with this review from Donna's Book Reviews for Vile City.</p><p>Thanks, Donna for such an insightful review😀</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Review </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'm a big fan of Scottish crime, and the crime writing standard in Scotland is particularly high. I had never heard of this author, but the title and blurb sounded intriguing, and I was right to take the plunge. The story follows Di Waddell, who has to investigate missing women in the city of Glasgow. His partner and friend is lying in hospital in a coma, so he has to work with McKeith. He is already up against it, not being the man Waddell wants, but his is also gangly and clumsy, but luckily does provide some useful insights. Their pairing made for an entertaining read. Waddell alone is exactly the type of character I love to read, he has a sarcastic humour and it certainly endeared me to him almost immediately.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Shelley is the woman who is abducted, and you follow a lot of the story through her eyes. It shows the abduction and captivity from her point of view. It was difficult to read at times, but Shelley's strength shone out. She was determined to survive the ordeal and wouldn't be broken no matter how much they tried.</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>"The plot is full on intense"</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The plot is full on intense, it goes all over the place, not confusing, just breathtaking in its speed and multi layer. approach. You are kept guessing, and even when you think the case is finished and passed over, the author laughs and throws a grenade in to blow everything wide open again. It covers the sex trafficking trade, and discusses many of the awful acts that are inflicted on women, but on the other hand there are a cast of incredibly strong women to balance this out.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The detective in the coma remains so throughout the book, and does rather make you wonder why he gets the title, but it does intrigue me as to what will be done with his character as the series progresses. He will clearly have been able to hear what has been discussed with him, but whether his condition leads to any useful outcome remains to be seen.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Whatever happens I will be reading more from this author, I will look forward to re-inserting myself in the tough Glaswegian streets, amongst this great team, to see what they get up to next.</span></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhd9MD7N2ACKo9SVh4m_sbgiw-dRQje6-PQyQozyw0bAnLWEkLJ8xYSs35t__nIr5guouWsktvTLJgN75Z1xau5CwI2-f-bu9hR2UfSFMqjBqcxRlxYYU8fTEk9P1geGygEHvIdLsZJ_ocvShqNfYRwd8QV804lbQgV2XHTNinde58R0jso1460XSo=s940" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="940" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhd9MD7N2ACKo9SVh4m_sbgiw-dRQje6-PQyQozyw0bAnLWEkLJ8xYSs35t__nIr5guouWsktvTLJgN75Z1xau5CwI2-f-bu9hR2UfSFMqjBqcxRlxYYU8fTEk9P1geGygEHvIdLsZJ_ocvShqNfYRwd8QV804lbQgV2XHTNinde58R0jso1460XSo=w434-h243" width="434" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1520" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhacfj4ugFK4iRRyWNMuf21s21gJUiX8uDYnU5O3S3vlt4yVQJShSUd7RuvbSgZPvYrXfMfPfZTWJ1TJihYPFRFfqMhjfdOlOAMLc8bLSQWPMkySBbfybBBS_cStNICb1b81gVjfx0vZatcCz7PnAlUtTw7RRIuzhFPpwPKjaeup6TfLWA3GaQ5Gsg=s320" width="152" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">What's it about then?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Detective Inspector
Duncan Waddell has his hands full. A wave of burglaries in Glasgow has targeted
the elderly. Two young women have gone missing, and a report has just come in
about a third victim. He is training his new partner, DC Brian McKeith. He and
his wife are raising their children. It is no wonder that he visits and talks
often with his former partner.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">His former partner,
DC Stevie Campbell, is lying comatose in the hospital, with no sign that he
will ever recover enough to wake up. Stabbed by a criminal with a broken
bottle, he now lies inert, fed intravenously, turned regularly to prevent
bedsores. Waddell visits him, shares details of cases with him, jokes with him
and reads to him, hoping against hope that he can somehow hear him despite
there being no evidence of this.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Until the day that
Stevie sits up and talks to him! Except, no one else can see him. There is no
medical sign that he ever moved, no one else heard him, and when the nurses
come into the room to check on him he is as deep in his coma as ever. Only
Duncan can hear him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Read an extract<a href="https://ramblingsofafrustratedcrimewriter.blogspot.com/2021/11/who-took-office-worker-shelley-craig.html" target="_blank"> here </a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Buy it on Amazon <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">here</a></p></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">Book 2 in the series that was once called Cannibal City will be out soon under the new name of Butcher City. Also from Diamond Books. </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">You can see more of their titles at </span><a href="https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/" style="text-align: left;">https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/</a><span style="text-align: left;"> and on Twitter @diamond_crime</span></span></div><p><br /></p>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-46442366118093052302022-02-20T05:11:00.003+00:002022-09-20T02:24:03.105+01:00Scotland's Missing Crime Files: The disappearance of devoted mum Arlene Fraser<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>This is another case that has always haunted me
and inspired to write crime like <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">Vile City</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sbuRBS2nr5k/WKp1KKsd1YI/AAAAAAAATA0/LJ6IGzLzieEGKMFsC-fqBZX_9bTtrvopwCLcB/s1600/Arlene%2BFraser.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sbuRBS2nr5k/WKp1KKsd1YI/AAAAAAAATA0/LJ6IGzLzieEGKMFsC-fqBZX_9bTtrvopwCLcB/s320/Arlene%2BFraser.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: small;"><b>Tragic Arlene - was she killed by her husband Nat Fraser?</b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Pretty mum-of-two Arlene Fraser was just 33-years-old when
she was last seen in the Scottish town of <st1:city w:st="on">Elgin</st1:city>
in 1998. Since that day she was never seen again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
Picture the scene in Arlene's house. It looked as if it'd been abandoned
suddenly. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
The vacuum cleaner was still plugged in and the washing machine had been
recently used.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Could Arlene have left and be living somewhere else?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">This was a theory that was touted by Nat Fraser and his
defence. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
If Arlene had left she hadn't been prepared. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
Her medication for Crohn's disease, her glasses and contact lenses were still
in the house.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Would she really leave home without her children? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Then there were her children. Would the devoted mum have
left without them? Not by choice.<br />
<br />
Just weeks before her disappearance, her violent husband Nat Fraser had
throttled her for coming home late. He was sentenced to eighteen months for
that assault but that only happened two years after the assault on his wife
which was first treated as attempted murder. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
Had he been convicted sooner she might not have been killed.<br />
<br />
Tragically, Arlene had been set to divorce her violent husband and start a new
life. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
She was never given that chance.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
<span><br /></span>
</span><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S6Y_Zpbt0dY/WKp4iHnkAxI/AAAAAAAATBM/1qiwdt90NFMGcnznIUJSx7Xar6jdp0vaQCEw/s1600/question%2Bmark.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S6Y_Zpbt0dY/WKp4iHnkAxI/AAAAAAAATBM/1qiwdt90NFMGcnznIUJSx7Xar6jdp0vaQCEw/s1600/question%2Bmark.jpg" /></span></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>What happened to Arlene?</b><br />
<br />
Initially her disappearance was treated as a missing persons case. The
detective in charge of the case, Detective Chief Inspector Peter Simpson said:
"Something criminal has taken place here. Arlene has been the victim of a
crime. I am of the opinion that she's dead. There's no indication that she's
living somewhere else."<br />
<br />
The police believe Nat Fraser paid someone to wipe his wife off the face of the
earth. During the search for her, he was accused of not being interested in her
whereabouts as if he already knew where she was.<br />
<br />
In 2003, he was convicted of her murder and sentenced to 25 years in jail.<br />
<br />
In 2011, he successfully challenged his conviction and it was quashed. But in
2012 in a new trial he was again convicted of Arlene's murder. In 2013, he lost
yet another appeal. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>DOUBT </b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">So, why was there so much doubt over the husband's
conviction?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">There was no body and Nat Fraser did not commit the murder
himself. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
The prosecution argued that Nat Fraser accused his wife of having a lover and
decided that he wanted her dead to avoid giving her half his fortune. What's
more Fraser was willing to pay someone £15, 000 to kill her.<br />
<br />
Weeks before she vanished, Nat Fraser is alleged to have said to his wife:
"If you are not going to live with me, you will not be living with anyone."<br />
<br />
Chillingly that came true.<br />
<br />
After she went missing, her son Jamie, who was only ten at the time, left a
heartbreaking note for his mum. It read."Mother, where are u?"<br />
<br />
He'd never get an answer to that question.<br />
<br />
Arlene's body has never been found so her children and the rest of her family
don't have a grave to visit. It's believed that her body was disposed off after
she was murdered. Maybe even fed to pigs or burnt. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>What do Arlene's family think? </b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Arlene's mother Isabelle Thompson spoke after Fraser's last
appeal: "Hopefully we can get on with our lives, it's been
never-ending."</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">In a shock documentary on Channel 4, in 2013 Arlene's
daughter Natalie Fraser who was just five-years-old when her mum went missing,
said she was "100 per cent" sure that her dad's friend Hector Dick
and not her dad Nat Fraser, who was guilty of killed her mum. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
Hector had testified against her dad. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><b>Why would Hector Dick kill Arlene? </b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;">Did he think he was doing a friend a favour? Or, did he fall
for Arlene and get upset when she spurned his advances? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
There has been no evidence pointing to that.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
All of the evidence points to Nat Fraser arranging the murder of his
wife. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />
Read about the documentary <a href="http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/murdered-arlene-frasers-daughter-accuses-2039489">here</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">
</span></div>
Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-82952511542042745132022-02-18T20:36:00.008+00:002022-02-28T07:00:18.659+00:00A review of Vile City by Scintilla - "I can't say enough about the protagonist who is a good man facing a lot of evil."<p><span style="font-family: arial;">Thanks to the awesome @Scintilla_Info Scintilla.info for agreeing to be on my Blog Tour and for such an insightful review of Vile City (shown below).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Why not stop by her wonderful <a href="http://scintilla.info/2022/02/18/detective-in-a-coma-vile-city-jennifer-lee-thomson/" target="_blank">website</a>? </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjKQG4fYj8GUyP9w1IqwdkW4wzaR9jjujB4l8F4SyI5FLo7O94C8lpXJYTQcHp5_mpolOxtSDmhSeIilGnJG5QCT3RpOP8I_oNO8amyv8khqC_r64kT5dzdYBFN2w3chrZCwsiuAz2gXKeghenypMn2NGyrtl6hjX4N6PLJGv2A0GJowW2jsiSyacI=s1037" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1037" data-original-width="1036" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjKQG4fYj8GUyP9w1IqwdkW4wzaR9jjujB4l8F4SyI5FLo7O94C8lpXJYTQcHp5_mpolOxtSDmhSeIilGnJG5QCT3RpOP8I_oNO8amyv8khqC_r64kT5dzdYBFN2w3chrZCwsiuAz2gXKeghenypMn2NGyrtl6hjX4N6PLJGv2A0GJowW2jsiSyacI=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1520" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjYfeYZFCFTcWsv8kdQBmyliGdjF4OyiwY59736emWCEGOIiLf_n4wZCsc3WB9lsUIl3jIElB_M8Lba38mF50IJHGRRlvcUfLlBuYbgSH5XBNd5YbO8NSFxeYtPc6YwhDWvFz4cSMTc0yEF1kgogR3wvFjJtuHLpQ8TV3FmX-yt0JeBQbs6IewGe-c=s320" width="152" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Vile City is available on <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">Amazon </a>and in all good book stores</div><p><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Mystery: <span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Detective in a Coma: Vile City</span>, <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Detective in a Coma Book 1</em>, Jennifer Lee Thomson</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Blog Tour February 18, 2022</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Detective Inspector Duncan Waddell has his hands full. A wave of burglaries in Glasgow has targeted the elderly. Two young women have gone missing, and a report has just come in about a third victim. He is training his new partner, DC Brian McKeith. He and his wife are raising their children. It is no wonder that he visits and talks often with his former partner.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">His former partner, DC Stevie Campbell, is lying comatose in the hospital, with no sign that he will ever recover enough to wake up. Stabbed by a criminal with a broken bottle, he now lies inert, fed intravenously, turned regularly to prevent bedsores. Waddell visits him, shares details of cases with him, jokes with him and reads to him, hoping against hope that he can somehow hear him despite there being no evidence of this.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Until the day that Stevie sits up and talks to him! Except, no one else can see him. There is no medical sign that he ever moved, no one else heard him, and when the nurses come into the room to check on him he is as deep in his coma as ever. Only Duncan can hear him.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Did we mention how much pressure DI Waddell has been under?</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">Jennifer Lee Thomson’s plot is intense. Kidnapped women, sex trafficking, rape and other kinds of violence. The “Vile” part of the title </span><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Detective in a Coma: Vile City</span><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"> definitely lives up to its placement. Waddell tries very hard to shelter his family from the ugliness he sees every day. When he comes home, though, he has to take a long, hot shower to wash away both the grime on his body and the darkness in his spirit before he can trust himself to spend time with his children and his wife. It is a perilous internal struggle, one that he has mastered but which takes an awful toll on him.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><b><i> "DI Waddell is committed to bringing in some light where he can."</i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", HelveticaNeue-Light, "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.625; margin: 0px 0px 20px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;">I cannot say enough about Thomson’s painting of this protagonist. He is a good man facing a lot of evil but determined to make a difference. He loves and protects his family, he visits and talks with his fallen friend, and he manages to see the positives in DC McKeith despite an occasionally intense desire to kick him back to handing out parking tickets. Glasgow seems to have many dark corners. DI Waddell is committed to bringing in some light where he can.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEia2CJBu7HxLp59qbDSCynRfLJJVKWPvfFsPYtfgV1gPUM4E9vRKolOgMD6RohNxMHWJO-xsgc02P-arTFXEnjOUxaKyf3y_dnpGQe8MPZHCu2eEcE2jcHoqSTzyRZaraICx94cw7x4s7aqvi6DU7iXRpdYwB4Kfu7Cl1Ttmc8Vdab36-aeGqq0CRY=s1600" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="720" height="607" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEia2CJBu7HxLp59qbDSCynRfLJJVKWPvfFsPYtfgV1gPUM4E9vRKolOgMD6RohNxMHWJO-xsgc02P-arTFXEnjOUxaKyf3y_dnpGQe8MPZHCu2eEcE2jcHoqSTzyRZaraICx94cw7x4s7aqvi6DU7iXRpdYwB4Kfu7Cl1Ttmc8Vdab36-aeGqq0CRY=w503-h607" width="503" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">You can read an extract</span><a href="https://ramblingsofafrustratedcrimewriter.blogspot.com/2021/11/who-took-office-worker-shelley-craig.html" style="font-size: 16px;" target="_blank"> here </a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Buy it on Amazon <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">here</a></span></p></div><div style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">Book 2 in the series that was once called Cannibal City will be out soon under the new name of Butcher City. Also from Diamond Books. </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">You can see more of their titles at </span><a href="https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/" style="text-align: left;">https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/</a><span style="text-align: left;"> and on Twitter @diamond_crime</span></span></div></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-57610909051751755162022-02-17T05:41:00.006+00:002022-02-28T07:07:24.911+00:00Vile City (Detective in a Coma book 1) is on tour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzzQVG0HEHYVWzK3m3K2mmbvQb-CXslgt4yCE45ArmW1LR_62Cnp2-J6J3aIKa-lUJGcGXcqpVxHk8UV8Q3CepRBlsfgaCRna5wRFUT3sj1iCSIuHY1d9wqsEhP8_L_YJCRwodirduc-nGghBRMBoFpxAebETh5UnhbYwhVqgGn54yazZVZ4WzRiI=s487" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="486" data-original-width="487" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzzQVG0HEHYVWzK3m3K2mmbvQb-CXslgt4yCE45ArmW1LR_62Cnp2-J6J3aIKa-lUJGcGXcqpVxHk8UV8Q3CepRBlsfgaCRna5wRFUT3sj1iCSIuHY1d9wqsEhP8_L_YJCRwodirduc-nGghBRMBoFpxAebETh5UnhbYwhVqgGn54yazZVZ4WzRiI=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Together with it's stars DI Duncan Waddell and Shelley Craig, Vile City is going on tour thanks to the wonderful Random Things Tours. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here's the schedule - </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEip4kYGNBhakKNKv3Ikiljc-Dec8TC5ISFp5IonFcj7rX9INa4eFUgqdTooBkE4GBYrx93mnq_vkyrW2eF6fvxInH3oLHrSEyWuQxVU5pFsqa0bt8GZlTm8coYPV4Y36mL_vzQr7sJE1TVH6m15r669LRTYf4k5wUEBgj4GlfkvZ0OqEOyYLMa4DWo=s1280" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="936" data-original-width="1280" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEip4kYGNBhakKNKv3Ikiljc-Dec8TC5ISFp5IonFcj7rX9INa4eFUgqdTooBkE4GBYrx93mnq_vkyrW2eF6fvxInH3oLHrSEyWuQxVU5pFsqa0bt8GZlTm8coYPV4Y36mL_vzQr7sJE1TVH6m15r669LRTYf4k5wUEBgj4GlfkvZ0OqEOyYLMa4DWo=w400-h293" width="400" /></a></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Perhaps you can stop by? We'd love to see you 😍</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Vile City is available on Kindle and in paperback -</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09M3YNLL2" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09M3YNLL2">Amazon.com</a> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin: 0cm;"><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">~About Vile City~</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Vile City tells the parallel stories of snatched Shelley Craig and DI Waddell who'll do anything to find her. </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">It's the first book in the Detective in a Coma series. </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here's the blurb - </span></span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px 0px 14px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">DI Duncan Waddell is on the brink of a nervous breakdown – he thinks his best pal DC Stevie Campbell, who’s been in a coma since he was attacked by a suspect, is talking to him.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 14px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">When office worker Shelley rushes to her boyfriend’s aid after he is attacked, she is abducted. She wakes up in a strange room with no memory of how she got there.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 14px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">On the case, Waddell finds himself in a desperate race against time to uncover the truth behind the abduction.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">To do this, he and his team must delve into the seedy underbelly of Scotland’s swingers’ scene and a world where women are tricked into the sex business and traded like cattle.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjHXvgI85tOezZdKDgY0KTrGEE1e_uwbPyGA6TNZPFkoatkE3M9Sg8Uztw8JtTH14JiorSi5frMKglRRQwpsdNX_BkarC_TUSkdApgDirP2-nA-0drWuvnXUiwNXZkDRHyJkzeT4hOj8A8LB0W5ZQLj34ho5ZPGv-W1JlX3Ho0E0CULlvEahgWAZo4=s2560" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="This is where Shelley is kidnapped" border="0" data-original-height="1921" data-original-width="2560" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjHXvgI85tOezZdKDgY0KTrGEE1e_uwbPyGA6TNZPFkoatkE3M9Sg8Uztw8JtTH14JiorSi5frMKglRRQwpsdNX_BkarC_TUSkdApgDirP2-nA-0drWuvnXUiwNXZkDRHyJkzeT4hOj8A8LB0W5ZQLj34ho5ZPGv-W1JlX3Ho0E0CULlvEahgWAZo4=w320-h240" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><b>This is where Shelley is kidnapped</b></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">You can read an extract</span><a href="https://ramblingsofafrustratedcrimewriter.blogspot.com/2021/11/who-took-office-worker-shelley-craig.html" style="font-size: 16px;" target="_blank"> here </a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Buy it on Amazon <a href="http://viewbook.at/VileCity-Coma_1" target="_blank">here</a></span></p></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">Book 2 in the series that was once called Cannibal City will be out soon under the new name of Butcher City. Also from Diamond Books. </span></span></div><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0f1111; font-family: "Amazon Ember", Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: -4px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: left;">You can see more of their titles at </span><a href="https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/" style="text-align: left;">https://diamondbooks.co.uk/library/</a><span style="text-align: left;"> and on Twitter @diamond_crime</span></span></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12967920743292569.post-72221444391998400642022-02-15T01:30:00.005+00:002022-02-15T02:07:10.321+00:00Delighted to appear in Mystery People <span style="font-family: georgia;">This month I'm excited to be featured in the Mystery People newsletter, the publication "for writers and readers of mystery" talking about my former island life. </span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">You can read more about them <a href="http://www.mysterypeople.co.uk" target="_blank">here</a><br /></span><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg6fYrH1h3wR9PhrcR2WklPbdUKXWf1QkGfRJljomWG-3X5Bd86jKeJEGpbrdgKLOxt9A4mDl0fcO-prYeIeJh0bjloC0464NSM-y7sgRIYL0J7HPeI_RS9mX9BpxIezdlJPBNq2O5ZdZsJ2_MQV3usQhtbW0WyPCBcyox8Ds8YM7yi_9LlxN-U8yw=s3509" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3509" data-original-width="2481" height="1055" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg6fYrH1h3wR9PhrcR2WklPbdUKXWf1QkGfRJljomWG-3X5Bd86jKeJEGpbrdgKLOxt9A4mDl0fcO-prYeIeJh0bjloC0464NSM-y7sgRIYL0J7HPeI_RS9mX9BpxIezdlJPBNq2O5ZdZsJ2_MQV3usQhtbW0WyPCBcyox8Ds8YM7yi_9LlxN-U8yw=w657-h1055" width="657" /></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></div></div>Jennifer Lee Thomson, Jenny Thomsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07999487852799181636noreply@blogger.com0