books | Bookseeker Literary Agency

March 25, 2018
by bookseekeragency

“Reading ‘Split Decision’ is the best decision you can make.”

Jack Woodward

Recently broadcaster Jack Woodward came across a copy of Carmen Capuano‘s novel Split Decision. Here’s what he had to say about it.

I thought this was a compelling and enthralling read, from beginning to end. We’ve all had ‘sliding doors’ moments in our lives ( though not many with quite such dramatic consequences I hope! ), and the two parallel stories were superbly and sensitively told.

Lots of surprises, twists and turns along the way and excellent use of language to convey the emotions, also covering a range of issues, from friendship to family, loyalty to jealousy.

For the whole book to be based on a time period of less than 24 hours was a challenge but it worked well, written in such an intelligent way that flitting between the two narratives is in no way confusing for the reader, it actually helps build the suspense.

split I’m one of those people who likes to read a couple of chapters a night but I just couldn’t put this one down and had to keep going right through to the nail biting finale. Riveting and remarkable, this author really knows how to get you right on the edge of your seat.

In fact, reading Split Decision is the best decision you can make.

August 26, 2017
by bookseekeragency

Edinburgh International Book Festival 2017

Paul writes:

The Edinburgh International Book Festival is in its last few days. I have spent a great deal of time there this year, but instead of writing about it, I’ve decided to compile a kind of photo-essay of the people and views I came across. Enjoy.

My first day in Charlotte Square Gardens this year started damp, so here’s a monochrome study to start you off.

Professor Sunil Khilnani, writer and academic.

Jackie Kay, Scotland’s ‘Makar’ (our Poet Laureate).

Jackie is a charming person who interacts with genuine friendliness with her readers.

Every year, photographer Chris Close makes portraits of visiting authors and speakers, stringing the results up around the Festival’s walkways. There’s a small sample below.

Left to right. Top: Ade Edmondson, Liu Zhenyun, Greg James & Chris Smith. Centre: Simon Armitage, Ehsan Abdollahil, Mariana Enriquez. Bottom: The Last Poets, Paul Auster, Andy Hamilton.

Magnus Mills

10 Nick Barley, Misha Hoekstra, Daniel Hahn

Festival Director Nick Barley with Misha Hoekstra and Daniel Hahn – members of the panel for ‘The Power of Translation’.

28 Children's bookshop

Braving the video camera.

Penny Pepper. I love the control knob on her wheelchair!

Sometimes a shot of the professional photographers is too good to miss…

… here they are, capturing American literary giant Paul Auster.

Hanif Kureishi in conversation with a reader.

Sir Charlie Stinky Socks proudly showing his author’s pass.

Laura Hughes and Pip Jones.

Leon Morocco.

The Edinburgh Gin Tent, just outside the main book-signing venue, is many people’s favourite place to relax and chat about Festival stuff.

Academics Josie Billington and Rick Rylance, who were at the festival to talk about ‘Is Literature Healthy?’ and ‘Literature and the Public Good’.

John Banville.

“Gimme Five!”

Karl Ove Knausgaard.

The profits from the bookshops here at the Festival all go back into Festival funds.

Author Robert Muchamore drew a large crowd of secondary school students to his book-signing.

I’m not the only person who goes around getting ‘atmosphere shots’ in Charlotte Square Gardens.

An animated Doug Johnstone.

“Who are we now?”

Alex Scheffler.

Professor Richard English, who spoke about the controversial issues raised by his new book ‘Does Terrorism Work?’

Late afternoon, and shadows begin to lengthen in Charlotte Square.

__________

The copyright of the images on this page rests with the photographers; no reproduction may be made without written permission.

January 10, 2017
by bookseekeragency

‘The Solar Wind IV’ finds a place in the heart.

Reviewer Colleen Chesebro recently had the following to say about the fourth in the Solar Wind series by Lyz Russo:

Volume Four brings the pirate assassin, Federi, and his wife, the lovely genetic engineer/musician, Paean, back together at long last. When these two are apart, the Solar Wind never rides smooth on the waves beneath its bow. Something is off, though, and Federi’s gypsy intuition is pushed into overdrive to figure out what is wrong.

Suddenly, a new threat surfaces when Dana, an alien from the planet New Dome, arrives aboard the ship with an agenda all her own. The hauntingly beautiful Dana disrupts the newfound relationship between the Captain and Perdita when it is revealed that she is Rushka’s mother. Perdita is stunned and watches, filled with fury, as the Captain succumbs once again to Dana’s evil charms. Meanwhile, Rushka, pregnant with her first child remembers the cruelty she suffered at the hands of her alien mother when she was a young child.

And, if that wasn’t enough drama, mutant creatures are menacing the crew, threatening their very lives. The beings can’t be destroyed, and they regenerate themselves from a single living cell. They multiply into the thousands with only one thing on their mind – to kill. When one of the creatures attacks Federi, the team battles for his and their lives looking for solutions to save the world from certain destruction.

Lyz Russo

Perdita is the key to protecting humankind from Dana’s malevolence. If they can save Federi, there is still hope…

I have been reading the Solar Wind Series for some time now, and I must say, I enjoyed Book IV, Raider, the best! The characters have long ago found a place in my heart. Once again, it is the relationship between Paean and Federi that steer the crew into new adventures. The addition of space travel and the ability to beam to any location in an instant added another layer of mystique to the plot.

Lyz Russo has created a science fiction series that continues to entertain and invite the reader into the world of the Solar Wind, and its crew. This futuristic pirate fantasy is one of my favorites!

Read more about Solar Wind IV here.

December 6, 2016
by bookseekeragency

“Snappy dialogue and excellent writing – worth trying!”

A recent reader’s opinion of Carmen Capuano’s Split Decision:

Snappy dialogue and excellent writing – worth trying! Looking at this because I like Carmen’s The Owners series. Not sure whether it’ll appeal to male readers as much as female but she can write and her dialogue is spot on – she makes her conversations sound real…

August 30, 2016
by bookseekeragency

Edinburgh International Book Festival

1.1 I have just spent a long fortnight in and out of the International Book Festival in Charlotte Square, Edinburgh. this has become an annual thing for me, and I have a whale of a time even though I’m actually engaged in hard work. while I’m there I’m writing, tweeting, talking, taking photos, so when I get back I don’t really want to write any more. So here’s an essay in photographs rather than words, about the scenes and faces at this year’s festival.

The photos were taken on a bog-standard Nikon D50 or an iPad.

Graham Swift

Ian Goldin

Ali Smith

A wave of beards swept through Charlotte Square. I think that’s author Philip Ardagh on the right.

Iain Macwhirter

Chris Close’s excellent photo-portraits of visiting writers etc. were on display again this year. The exhibition was better than ever – here are just a few faces, including Alexander McCall Smith, Gavin Francis, Joan Bakewell, Wilko Johnson, Ruby Wax, and Attila the Stockbroker. Thanks for letting me use these, Chris.

4.1 Alexander McCall Smith & Gavin Francis

4.2 Joan Bakewell & Wilko Johnson

4.3 Ruby Wax & Attila the Stockbroker

And back to my own pics…

1.4 Book Shop

1.5 posing

Michael Scott

Thomas Clark

Zaffar Kunial

Relaxation…

Photo call

Scots ‘Makar’ Jackie Kay

Roy Hattersley

1.8 staff

Louis de Bernières

Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown

Richard Susskind & Daniel Susskind. In the background is journalist Lee Randall, who chaired their event.

Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy

Roger Mason

1.9

Late in the day we heard that actor Gene Wilder had left our world of pure imagination, maybe to watch from this cloud.

June 18, 2016
by bookseekeragency

And another great review!

This time for the short story collection Mercury Silver, which features the work of several clients.

June 13, 2016
by bookseekeragency

A great review for Lyz Russo’s ‘Freedom Fighter’!

Lyz Russo’s Solar Wind novels form a series of futuristic adventures – it would be unfair to hang the simplistic label ‘fantasy’ on them – that take its principle characters on a journey of piracy and political intrigue, mystery and mayhem, revolution and romance, through an unfamiliar seascape. Latter-day Romany errants cruise the currents of the yet-to-come, running from and striking back at the world’s ruthless rulers, the Unicate. That, and more, is what the reader gets in the pages of these books. The original Mystery of the Solar Wind was the book that the word ‘unputdownable’ was invented for, and each sequel has pushed the envelope a little further.

The third book in the series, Freedom Fighter, was recently put under scrutiny by writer and reviewer Colleen M. Chesebro, and it received an almost perfect score, 4-and-a-half stars! Believe it. Click on the picture below to read the review for yourself on Colleen’s lively blog…

June 9, 2016
by bookseekeragency

Carmen Capuano secures a publishing deal with an American publisher

carmen2 We’re very pleased to announce that Carmen Capuano (pictured right) has secured a publishing deal for her novel Ascension. The book will be released by American publisher Uncial.

We’ll give you more details when we have them.

Meanwhile Carmen has been hard at work giving talks to the public and readings from Split Decision. We hope to continue to have good news to pass on about Carmen, and about our other authors.

May 20, 2016
by bookseekeragency

A review of ‘The Assassin’by Lyz Russo

It’s well worth sharing this review of Lyz Russo’s novel, part of her wonderful fantasy series. The review comes from the ‘Goodreads’ site.

Captain Radomir Lascek and his band of unruly pirates, sailing upon his ship, the Solar Wind, continue to hide from the Unicate and their evil associates. However, there is more at stake now. Two data capsules in the Captain’s possession explain that the Rebellion is on a similar path as the Unicate, and both forces could spell the end of the world if the Captain doesn’t act soon.

When the Captain’s secret station in Antarctica is attacked, he is forced to take matters into his own hands. He employs Federi, the part-time gypsy chef/master assassin and Paean, a ship’s musician and budding genetic scientist to embark on a mission to assassinate as many of the top Unicate Officials as they can. Reluctantly, Federi teaches Paean the art of killing, something the fifteen-year-old finds to be a necessary evil in this futuristic world they are forced to survive in.

Struggling to deal with the burgeoning feelings he has for Paean, Federi confronts the “killing animal” that dwells within his heart. He knows he has the soul of an assassin. His greatest fear is that he will lose the love and admiration from the young girl, a certain loss he knows he could not endure.

As the story unfolds the reader discovers Federi and Paean share a type of gypsy intuition, a mystical connection that belongs only to them. This psychic ability blossoms into a deep love between the two, even though Federi is much older than Paean. This is gypsy love at its finest, and I was bewitched by the touching love story that drew me deeper into the adventure.

The book is long but filled with so much intrigue and suspense you gladly read on to unravel the various mysteries that are part of the whole adventure aboard the Solar Wind. For me, this book delves deeper into the characters and gives you a glimpse into the mechanics of their personalities. I like these pirates. Their humanity speaks to me. I can’t wait to dive into the third book in the series, Freedom Fighter. Stay tuned…

March 15, 2016
by bookseekeragency

A connection with the creator of Dracula…

cmt pic The agency is now representing Scottish-based writer Elizabeth Mostyn. Elizabeth says she has been a writer by calling from an early age, having swapped her swing for a typewriter at the age of five! The daughter of an Isle of Man TT racer, and a descendant of Bram Stoker, she is a graduate of St Andrews University. After a career specialising in dementia, she did postgraduate study at Aberdeen, and is now pursuing her Doctorate at Newcastle University where her thesis will be on Phenomenology.

Elizaberth’s debut novel, Wisp, is set in Scotland. She says of it:

At the heart of this novel is a topical issue in that Wisp is concerned with people suffering from microcephaly – the phenomenon which has recently been connected with the Zika virus in Brazil. It is a novel which will, additionally, appeal to a core audience of readers who appreciate character-led fiction as well as those interested in the workings of modern science. Set in the ancient University of St Andrews, it features the everyday subjects of personhood, consciousness, religion, ethics, genetic engineering, afternoon tea, mushrooms, and magic.

Her second novel, Men who Play with Lightning, is currently being prepared. It is the story of a conscientious objector in World War II who joins Bomb Disposal. The agency is very excited about having this excellent writer with us.

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