Old Favourites

Sometimes, in the pursuit of the next new shiny thing, the back catalogue kinda sits on the shelf gathering dust. So here's a big-up for some of the books which have never had their full share of the spotlight.

First off is Death Wishes - a semi-autobiographical story about a maths teacher who becomes a writer!!! I know someone exactly like that.

Inspired by Nick Cage in City of Angels, Brad Pitt in Meet Joe Black and Alan Rickman in - well, anything, this quirky tale inspired one reader to give this praise: "Her humor sparkles, her passion sizzles and her image of the bureaucracy of Heaven is truly unique (and hilarious)."
A romantic fantasy featuring a hot angel and Stonehenge. What’s not to like?

You can find out more here.


The next three are all the stories for Jukebox Musicals - think "We will Rock You," "Rock of Ages" and "Mamma Mia." Instead of Queen/Abba, the songs are from Journey and City Boy (remember 5705?)
They have an 80s/90s feel, full of engaging (British) characters and oodles of FUN!

Warning: The storylines are proper implausible because they are based on song lyrics. To get the best out of them, you have to suspend disbelief completely (just leave it at the door - you can pick it up on the way out).

Being novellas, they are ideal for a train/plane journey, and you can find out more (including the full track listings) here.

We start with Don't Stop Believing by the phenomenon that is Journey.

Here's the elevator pitch:
A failing marriage. A union separated by distance. An accidental encounter. Can the Edinburgh Fringe Festival work its magic?

In this rock-music-inspired tale, three love stories intertwine amid the riot of colour and noise of Scotland's premier festical of the arts. Challenging situations and horrible histories force each player to take stock of their lives and discover what is truly important.

Next is Young Men Gone West by the vastly underrated City Boy.

And the elevator pitch:
A naive British lad. A sultry math teacher. An unexpected trip to Vegas.
What happens in Vegas ... you know the rest.

This outrageous, sleazy story is based on a Jukebox musical featuring 18 of City Boy’s wickedly quirky songs (including some of the naughtiest). It’s not for the fainthearted – the inside of an 18-yr-old boy’s head and sweet, clean read do not good bedfellows make.

And finally, The Day the Earth Caught Fire, another City Boy beaut from the 80s. Although this has only gathered dust for seven months.

Back on that elevator:
A spoilt millionaire actress. A hunky Scottish mechanic.
A relationship heading for disaster - all reported in the New York Times.

This distinctly weird tale has all the quirky humour of other jukebox musicals. Part romance, part disaster movie and part psychological thriller, it is glued together with great characters, twists, turns and an over the top HEA ending.



And for those of you not exactly used to lengthy absences, it's all been about Jacky's books for the past few months. And you must be used to me hibernating at winter ...