Just reviewed 'The Needle's Eye' by Margaret Drabble at www.goodreads.com

Rose Vassilou inherited a fortune, and a family miserable enough to prove that love is more important than money. To make sure her children stay 'normal', she gives her fortune away and chooses poverty, only to have her own normality constantly questioned. When she meets overly-sensitive Simon, he instinctively understands her, and their relationship soon deepens. Yet Rose's selfish ex-husband wants his children back, and the one thing Rose can be sure to do is to put her own interests last.
By examining the ancient question 'Can you be both rich and good?', Margaret Drabble gives us a thoroughly modern and thoughtful look at money, love and marriage.
This is a book that does not date, whose odd characters and their stranger problems resonate through the readers' own life.

Making this blog public today.
Some old friends might find this a bit repetitious, but I'm hoping that there might be unknown people out there who like it too.

Today I submitted 'Mary Read - Sailor, Soldier, Pirate' to GOODREADS. Goodreads is a fantastic site, made for readers and writers to rate and share a huge number of books on all possible subjects. You can set up your own profile, citing your favourite genres - mine of course is historical fiction - and they give you recommendations of books you might like to read. You can also rate and, best of all, review your favourite books, so other readers can get a good idea of what they are like.
I am not a computer whiz kid, but once I was accepted as a Goodreads Librarian, submitting my book was really easy, as it is already listed on Amazon. 'Mary Read' appeared immediately on Goodreads, and now it needs rating and reviewing by people who have read and appreciated 'Mary Read'. Good reviews are essential to really blast this marketing campaign into the stratosphere.
Thanks to Russell's marketing on my behalf, over the last two weeks, the Author Marketing Club has promoted 'Mary Read' at the top of its Sunday Select Books promotion page, and this has also increased the number of sales.
Marketing your own book on the internet is a slow and steady process, but who else has the passion and commitment than the author? If it wasn't for the internet, 'Mary Read' would still be sitting in a box in the cupboard.

She gave me 5 stars!
Found a great review of 'Mary Read - Sailor, Soldier, Pirate' by Ashton Rae, a reader who really gets this book.
She wrote: I could not put this down!!! It took me less than a week to read it! I'm in love with the stories of Mary Read and Anne Bonney, and now you get upclose and personal with the two of them! So gripping and riveting! Really is edge of your seat gripping! Lots of action! (not just sword fighting either haha) I recommend this to all sea story lovers!!! It made me cry at certain parts. 
Thanks Ashton.
I wrote it for readers like you.

The Death of the Nordvag

Bad news came that day

and it was terrible for me:

the Norvag's been abandoned

to the mercy of the sea.

We once crewed a gallant ship

that sails my memory,

the broad and beamy Nordvag,

from the salty Baltic Sea.

In truth, she was a noble ship

well built of Baltic wood,

with Dragon carved in bulkhead,

copper Mermaids on her hood,

dolphins curved in bookshelves,

and dancing round her bow,

she was a sight with bellied sails,

when we stood at her prow,

but how I think we'd rant and rail

if we could see her now.

When she turned to face the storm

in the Caribbean Sea

off the Golfo de Pirates

she showed her quality.

When the ocean was a foaming hell

that made other vessels flee,

we surfed waves full masthead high

and lived triumphantly.

Now the Nordvag lies forgotten

At the bottom of the sea.

Every time I hear the sea

crashing on the shore,

I think of the Nordvag

and our blue water tour:

the mad adventures we survived

in our floating caravan,

the Nordvag riding on the waves

of unknown, foreign lands,

while we rested in the sun

on exotic golden sands.

When I was a wild gypsy girl

and the wicked world did roam,

the Nordvag was my soul's abode,

My only, ever home.

And when my life comes to an end,

we will together sail,

and roam the oceans always,

me at the wheelhouse rail.

For the Nordvag has a soul like mine:

unfettered, ever free,

and we cannot forget her,

and her gift of liberty.

But now its time to weep and wail

and write sad poetry,

for the Nordvag lies forsaken

in the cold and cruel sea.

Last week was really busy with an intense campaign promoting 'Mary Read - Sailor, Soldier, Pirate'. This included providing a free download of the ebook on Amazon Kindle, for two days over the weekend. We had set our target at 100 downloads, and were very pleased to find that we had well over this. There are now 100 plus people sailing against the Scottish Pretender, fighting the French in Marlborough's army, and signing up with the Brethren of the Coast. Thanks for the great reviews that have kept coming in - its that kind of feedback that makes all the hard work worthwhile.

Now listen up folks. My pirate novel 'Mary Read - Sailor, Soldier Pirate' will be available as FREE DOWNLOAD on Amazon Kindle Saturday 11th May to midnight Sunday 12th May PDT (Pacific Daylight Time) as part of a new promotion, and I am asking all you beautiful people to go over to Amazon and download a free copy even if all you want to do is have a cursory look. Just click on the link and you will be taken to the my book http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0042AMFHA  Remember this is Saturday and Sunday this weekend 11/12 May only. Before or after that date you will have to pay $3.99. If you feel like posting a review on Amazon after, I'd much appreciate it. Feel free to tell your friends and pass the link on. Happy reading.

Cherie