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A watchful eye as a marriage falls apart. The phone call, the rows, and the split are all observed by the family Labrador. He knows the habits and senses the moods of his beloved family members. Seeing them unhappy and hurting each other is unbearable. Where did his perfect life go?
Her marriage to Phil in crisis, two children at the challenging teenage stage, and a close friend in peril, Meriel’s world is falling apart. She finds solace in the arms of another man, but is this the answer for her? It is her stubbornness that threatens the family’s future together, until a major loss has a life-changing effect on her. A sliver of hope returns.
Like a fly on the wall, Benji the dog sees it all.
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Q&A
Did or do you like to read comic books/grapic novels? Which ones?
Not particularly, only when I was a child I liked the annuals of the comics I read.
Whom did you inherit your love for books/reading from?
My mum. In her 70s she read a book a week.
When you need a murder victim or someone you can diagnose with a serious disease or someone who is involved in a fatal accident do you sometimes picture someone nasty you have met in real life and think ‘got you’ LOL?
Not sure how I would write this, because I don’t like reading or writing this kind of book. But I imagine I would make it a very imaginary person.
How do you come up with the names for your characters?
They tend to come to me.
Do write other things beside books (and shoppinglists 😉 )?
I have been a journalist since I was in my early 20s so the list is long. As a teenager I always wrote a diary entry every night, loads of jottings and poetry. Numerous articles (non-fiction) for magazines and national UK newspapers. Oh yes, lists and lists including for shopping and Christmas presents, and what do for work/writing.
If a movie or series would be made from your books, would you be happy with the ‘based on’ version or would you rather like they showed it exactly the way you created it?
I’d just be delighted whatever they did!
Who would you like/have liked to interview?
Paul McCartney, who, as a girl, I used to think was gorgeous, and who is extremely interesting.
Do you have certain people you contact while doing research to pick their brains? What are they specialized in?
Not for fiction. Yes for non-fiction usually in the natural health sector.
Is there someone you sometimes discuss a dilemma with?
Friends – several of them. I would choose which one(s) according to the subject. My husband too.
What is more important to you : a rating in stars with no comments or a reviewer who explains what the comments they give are based on (without spoilers of course).
Good reviews, not ones that seem to miss the point of it all!
Thank you, Frances Ive and Rachel’s Random Resources
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About the author
A career as a journalist/PR led to health writing for UK nationals newspapers and consumer mags. Out of the blue I was inspired to write my first novel, Finding Jo, which I self-published in January 2021. Brown Eyes is my 2nd novel, written a few years ago. It was inspired by our black Labrador Benji. Before Finding Jo, I previously had only non-fiction books published, including One Step Ahead of Osteoarthritis (2019), a positive approach to staying mobile.
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Author Links
Twitter: @healthysouluk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FindingJoFrancesIve
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fivewrite/
Website for books: www.fivewrite.co.uk
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Book Links
UK Kindle – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09Q3N3D15
UK Paperback – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1739976800
US Kindle – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q3N3D15
US Paperback – https://www.amazon.com/dp/1739976800
B for Bookreview 