May’s Newsletter
Hi there.
Well, my biggest baby got married and it was the most joyous, love-filled day I could possibly have imagined. She smiled from start to finish and I couldn’t have been prouder of her. Here the happy couple are just driving away from the church. If you didn’t see it, there’s a little compilation of her friend’s stories over on Instagram here and because I know you’ll all be wondering what I wore, here I am with my family and my new son-in-law.
So now that I don’t have to madly watch the weather app or pray that I will still fit into my dress on a daily basis life feels much calmer!
Book news!
Well, the eagle eyed amongst you may have spotted that the new Izzy Bromley title The Bed in the Shed is starting to appear. It will be out on 21st June in paperback, ebook and audiobook and you can preorder the ebook here. I’m delighted to announce that the wonderful Imogen Church has narrated this one as she did the others and has done another fabulous job.
In case you haven’t already seen it, here is the cover and the book description.
Carrie Bradley is done.
Done with the dishes, the laundry, the packed lunches and, most of all, with being taken for granted. So when her husband cancels their family holiday for a boys’ trip to Vegas, Carrie takes a stand – by moving into the garden shed.
What starts as a quiet protest soon spirals into full-blown family drama – with domestic chaos, media attention and a surprising path to self-discovery. With her sister Bex crashing in her guest room and her family in meltdown, Carrie might just find the one thing she’s been missing all along… herself.
Funny, uplifting and relatable, this is a heart-warming story about reclaiming your space – inside and out.
Also out this summer is the new Imogen Clark title, In Another Life, also available to pre-order. I shared the cover with you last month so I won’t do that again but I have a date for your diaries. There will be a launch evening at The Grove Bookshop in Ilkley on Thursday 4th September at 7 pm. Please come along to hear me talk about the book. There’ll be fizz and I’ll be signing copies. (They make great presents!) The event hasn’t yet appeared on the bookshop’s website but tickets will be free so grab one when they’re available.
What am I writing?
I’m currently having great fun with the Izzy title for next year, The Glamp Site. I’m learning lots about planning and pigs and getting to know my characters. I’m about a quarter of the way through so far and I’m very much enjoying myself.
And when I have finished that I will be starting the Imogen book for 2027 which feels like a scarily long way away. I have the idea for the book so when I’m not writing about glamping in Driffield, I’m getting to know my characters for that one.
I’m going to be doing a Q and A soon so if you have any burning questions that you want answering please email me at imogen@imogenclark.com and I will add your questions to the list. More information about that coming soon.
Where have I been?
This month has mainly been about the wedding but I have also been to Wells and have been in training for the autumn’s big event. I will be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in October. At 19,341 ft, it’s the highest peak in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world. I am dragging two friends along with me who I picked for their mental fortitude. (They laughed when I told them that.) My brother in law died a few days before Christmas last year. He was only 56 and had been raising money for Yorkshire Cancer Research so I want to carry on his good work with my walk. Many people don’t make it to the top because of altitude sickness but I’m hoping that I will manage it. More about this in later newsletters.
In the meantime, more wedding photos and a picture of the mountain!
What have I read?
Too many books to choose from this month so it was hard to pick my top four but here they are.
Nephthys by Rachel Louise Driscoll is set in Victorian England and Egypt. Clemmie is fascinated by all things Egyptian as a child and learns much about its ancient civilisation. But then her father inadvertently unleashes a curse on the family and Clemmie has to travel to Egypt to try and undo the damage he has done and its a race against time to save her sister’s life. I love ancient civilisations and so I found this book fascinating.
Albion by Anna Hope is a story of family and inheritance. The Brookes are gathering in their twenty bedroomed country estate to bury their father. Frannie, the eldest has inherited the crumbling estate and is trying to do right by it but her siblings all have their own ideas about what should happen to the land and the house, none of which accord with one another. It’s a compelling read about family, class and coming to terms with one’s heritage and I was spellbound.
Flesh by David Szalay is about István, a Hungarian boy who lives with his mother. The story follows his life through school, the army, working in security in London until he is moving among the very highest echelons of society. The story is fast-paced, slipping easily through the decades. István is a charming character who seems a little bewildered by his life much of the time. He trusts people he meets and does his best but does not always get what he deserves in return. I loved how very matter of fact he is about his fate.
Consider Yourself Kissed by Jessica Stanley is a delightful love story told against the backdrop of the politics of the 21st century Britain. We have Brexit and Covid and Boris Johnson in and amongst the struggles of a woman trying to work and be a step parent and a parent whilst dealing with challenging parents and former partners. It’s a light read but I very much liked the main characters and it was interesting to shine a spotlight on that very turbulent part of our recent past.
And that’s everything for this month. Next month we have the launch of The Bed in the Shed and I am walking in Lake Garda, Italy so expect news of that.
In the meantime, for more please follow me in all the usual places on social media and don’t forget to email me with any questions you would like to be included in my Q & A session.
And so until next month, happy reading.
