BLOG TOUR
When Stars Will Shine is a collection of short stories from your favourite authors who have come together to deliver you a Christmas read with a twist.
With true war tales that will break your heart, gritty Christmas crimes that will shake you to your core, and heart-warming tales of love lost and found, this anthology has something for everyone. And, with every penny made being sent to support our troops, you can rest assured that you’re helping our heroes, one page at a time.
From authors such as Louise Jensen, Graham Smith, Malcolm Hollingdrake, Lucy Cameron, Val Portelli, and Alex Kane, you are in for one heck of a ride!
When Stars Will Shine is the perfect Christmas gift for the bookworms in your life!
When Stars Will Shine is the perfect Christmas gift for the bookworms in your life!
A Note from Emma Mitchell:
As the blurb tells us, When Stars Will Shine is a multi-genre collection of Christmas-themed short stories compiled to raise money for our armed forces and every penny made from the sales of both the digital and paperback copies will be donated to the charity.
Working closely with Kate Noble at Noble Owl Proofreading and Amanda Ni Odhrain from Let’s Get Booked, I’ve been able to pick the best of the submissions to bring you a thrilling book which is perfect for dipping into at lunchtime or snuggling up with on a cold winter’s night. I have been completely blown away by the support we’ve received from the writing and blogging community, especially the authors who submitted stories and Shell Baker from Baker’s Not So Secret Blog, who has organised the cover reveal and blog tour.
There isn’t a person in the country who hasn’t benefited from the sacrifices our troops, past and present, have made for us and they all deserve our thanks.
It has been an honour working on these stories, and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have.
Full contents:
Fredrick Snellgrove, Private 23208 by Rob Ashman
Four Seasons by Robert Scragg
The Close Encounter by Gordon Bickerstaff
Believe by Mark Brownless
What Can Possibly Go Wrong? by Lucy Cameron
Mountain Dew by Paul T. Campbell
The Art of War and Peace by John Carson
A Gift for Christmas by Kris Egleton
Free Time by Stewart Giles
Died of Wounds by Malcolm Hollingdrake
The Christmas Killer by Louise Jensen
The Village Hotel by Alex Kane
A Present of Presence by HR Kemp
The Invitation by Billy McLaughlin
Brothers Forever by Paul Moore
Girl in a Red Shirt by Owen Mullen
Pivotal Moments by Anna Franklin Osborne
Uncle Christmas by Val Portelli
Time for a Barbeque by Carmen Radtke
Christmas Present by Lexi Rees
Inside Out by KA Richardson
Penance by Jane Risdon
New Year’s Resolution by Robert Scragg
Family Time by Graham Smith
BUY LINK
MY REVIEW
This was an absolutely brilliant anthology. I love anthologies as I get to read more of authors I love and of course I get introduced to new authors. There’s quite a few of these authors new to me which I’m delighted about as I can go look and see what else they’ve written.
This book has lots of different kind of stories for you. They are all really well written and in all honesty I can’t pick a favourite. Here is a few words of a review on each book.
Frederick Snellgrove, Private 23208 by Rob Ashman
Wow talk about an amazing start to this anthology. Rob Ashman put pen to paper and every word is true. I gasped when I finished this story. Short but effective.
Four Seasons by Robert Scragg
Well this was a nice surprise. In all honesty I didn’t know what direction the story was going. Great read.
The Close Encounter by Gordon Bickerstaff
This one messed with my head. Good story. Would love more but I’m greedy like that lol
Believe by Mark Brownless
I have no words. Tom so wanted to believe in Santa so he tried his hardest to stay awake Xmas eve. No words. After this read I’m curios to read more from this author.
What can possibly go wrong? By Lucy Cameron
Christmas is Geoffreys favourite time of year. When he heads home for the holidays he finds out that it’s down to him to organise the festivities. This is something he’s always wanted to do. What can possibly go wrong?
With a title like that I was reading it & waiting to see what was gonna go wrong. I felt sorry for Geoffrey. Good read.
Mountain Dew by Paul T Campbell
Mourne mountains, Newry Road, both familiar to me. This was a strange read for me. Think I need to read more by this author.
The Art of War and Peace by John Carson
This was a nice read with a little detective work thrown in. Will definitely be looking to read more from this author in the future.
A Gift for Christmas by Kris Egleton
This is real short but it’s a lovely read with a heartfelt message.
We all need to be loved.
Free Time by Stewart Giles
Yikes. I didn’t expect that. What would one do for Free Time? So so good.
Died of Wounds by Malcolm Hollingdrake
This was so sad. Written well but so sad. All those lives.....
The Christmas Killer by Louise Jensen
Oh this was so good. I can imagine it as a longer (or that’s me hoping) story.
The Village Hotel by Alex Kane
This is more on the creepy side. I of course loved it :)
A Present of Presence by HR Kemp
It’s hard moving on but maybe with time and understanding it can happen. Grief affects people in different ways and this story shows that. Lovely story.
The Invitation by Billy McLaughlin
Yikes what a starry. I absolutely loved this one. So heart warming and sad at the same time.
Brothers Forever by Paul Moore
Brilliant read. No more words from me.
Girl in a Red Shirt by Owen Mullen
The Girl in a Red Shirt has affected two men for many many years.
Very good read about struggling to leave the past in the past.
Pivotal Moments by Anna Osborne
Oh this was a great read. I was so sad that it ended. Definitely one of those stories where I’d love a full novel out of it.
Uncle Christmas by Val Portelli
When Jack had hardly anything he still did good. Life hasn’t been good for him but it looks as if when he hits rock bottom fate has a different road for him.
This is a lovely heart warming story that I really enjoyed.
Time for a Barbecue by Carmen Radtke
We get into the head of James a six year old who misinterpreted some advice and is left scared.
Christmas Present by Lexi Rees
A lovely read. Sometimes fate finds a way to make you realise what’s important in life.
Inside Out by KA Richardson
Lovely story about hitting rock bottom and allowing someone to help.
Penance by Jane Risdon
Crikey. After reading his I need to read more by this author. Oh so good.
New Year’s Resolution by Robert Scragg
While reading this I was expecting the inevitable but then there was hope.
I’ll definitely be looking to read more from this author in the future.
Family Time by Graham Smith
Superb story. Didn’t expect it to go the way it did so well done to the author.
Great end to a fantastic anthology.
Oh wow, thanks for taking time to review and comment on the stories. Much appreciated. Glad you enjoyed mine. Thanks for your kind words. Happy Christmas and 2020.
ReplyDelete