And yes, I know it’s more than a week away, but down here in Dorset the leaves are falling, the blackberries and apples are ripening and there’s that feeling in the air. Or maybe it’s just me? Maybe no one else has this feeling that the year is turning and every day you can be outdoors is precious and yet at the same time an urge to do what I can only call nest.
I’m thinking about checking the heating over, about putting away the solar fountains and replacing them with pot plants. About sowing bulbs for next spring, which this year is a little different. I’m going to be sowing 225 bulbs in little 3” pots, stuffed 5 or 6 to a pot. And then, once I’ve enjoyed them flowering, I’m going to be planting them in the gaps between the bluebells so that next year they’ll come up while the bluebell foliage is barely poking through, flower and remind me that spring is on its way and then their foliage will be hidden beneath the bluebells. I saw Adam Frost doing this on Gardeners World and it didn’t seem like so very many when I pre-ordered them. Now it’s hitting me that that means 45 pots, which is fine because I’ve got them, just like I’ve got plenty of my own compost and a big bag of horticultural sand to improve its drainage. And if I plant 5 pots a day then it’s only 9 days so really it’s no big deal.
More to the point, September is officially the start of the reading season according to the experts. (And thanks to all my lovely readers who haven’t stopped reading for the summer.) If I’m being honest, I can’t imagine ever not reading. Or writing. Or researching things that interest me, such as local history, or the local wildlife or how to improve my photography or my garden or my cooking or any of the hundred and one things that I want to learn to do better. And yes, it probably is just me, but if I’m having fun and not hurting anyone else then does it really matter? I like it when people walk down the lane behind the house and stop to see what I’ve done with the garden now. I like the conversations I have with people when I’m out and about and the feeling of being part of a community. I love it when they tell me stories about the past or point out the best places to take pictures or, like yesterday, tell me I need to come down in winter so I can see the seals. Now, isn’t that something to get excited about?
Today’s picture is of a rather gorgeous juvenile herring gull. Yes, I know, they’re vermin, and pasty stealers in some places, but here, at least, they are cheeky and engaging and have a freedom and confidence I thoroughly envy.
So on to the business side.
On Thursday, there’s a second anthology of Amy Hammond books 4 -6 called ‘Why does she keep finding trouble?’ It contains the Prodigal Daughter, A Prayer for Peace and To Have and to Hold, which tells the story of Amy’s niece, Bethany and starts to explain why Amy has started finding trouble after living a blameless and boring life.
There’s also the last current book for now in my Eleanor Neville ‘Shadows’ series, abotu a secret department of British Intelligence. (Make your own jokes here if you want to…) A little bit grittier, a little bit sexier, but still with my feeling that most people are good and that life is much better if lived with people who love you…)
Enemy Within tells the story of linguist Vee McKenzie and bomb disposal officer Colin Samuels. Col’s assigned as Vee’s boyfriend so they can protect a politician’s daughter who happens to be one of Vee’s oldest friends, and Vee discovers that the adventure she’s always longed for is a lot more complicated than she’d thing and the price is potentially far higher. She and Colin come from very different worlds and have very different natures, but when the spark is there, it’s there… The question is, will they live to turn the pretence into reality.
Special offers this week are all for the US, as I finish my aligning and explore the exciting world of Amazon special offers with their unpredictable dates. Someday soon, I’ll have it all sorted out, but please, don’t hold your breath!
Wasted on the young, Up the Garden Path and A Stitch in Time
The first three books about an unlikely investigator who never means to find trouble. Featuring sewing, cooking, avoiding housework, good intentions and unexpected death!
The toddler and the tough guy and the Wrong Twin
Sweet, cosy romances featuring small children. Royal Marine Drew thinks he can handle anything until he has to take on responsibility for his 3 year old niece when her parents die. Childminder Lisa is there to guide him; but he’s on a steep learning curve and so’s she. And Juliet Saxon is in a mess because her famous actress twin stole her identity to give birth and registered her son in Juliet’s name. Now she’s dead, and the father’s family have tracked her down. What will she be prepared to do to keep Ben safe?
So happy end of summer till we meet again, and if your children or grandchildren are heading back to school then good luck to them and please, take a well-earned break!