Writing
Complete Novels and Works in Progress
TAKE HER BACK book 1:
The Girl with the Green Eyes
Long-listed for The Bridport Prize 2020
“Bella is defective. You need to take her back.”
Nine-year-old Bella D’accourt has always known she was different; she was born into a controversial ‘designer baby’ eugenic programmme, difference is in her DNA. Bella has been designed to be exceptionally beautiful, but when she uses her sadistic, manipulative charm to seriously injure another child her mother brings her back to her creators and demand they “fix her”.
Thus begins Bella’s new life among scientists and other eugenic ‘Subjects’ at the mysterious Aspira Research Centre in Cumbria. But an enemy lurks in the shining laboratories set among idyllic mountains; an obsessive, murderous enemy who will, years later, drive Bella from all she has worked for and into a desperate, night-time flee across the country with her daughter, whom she will protect at all costs.
But Ariana, 12, isn’t so sure she wants to be protected by Bella anymore.
Length: 97,000 words
Status: Published by Bad Press Ink on 5/1/21
Long-listed for The Peggy Chapman-Andrews First Novel Award as part of The Bridport Prize 2020
Part one of TAKE HER BACK trilogy
Reader reviews:
'A superbly written and engaging book and a genre I would never normally read.'
'An absolutely intriguing story line that hooks the reader in from the first page. The characters are complex and interesting.'
'For fans of science fiction stories, I’m sure this will be a book to be sought after and enjoyed. The writing within it is sublime.'
'A solid speculative-fiction piece of work covering aspects of eugenics and genetic engineering and the ways they can be mishandled with tragic results.'
'The science fiction element is not obtrusive and is completely believable, while giving the story its sharp edge.'
'This is a spine tingling, thought provoking, exciting exploration of eugenics set against the backdrop of a Cumbrian research facility ... a superbly written and engaging book and a genre I would never normally read.'
'Couldn’t put it down. Gripping. The more I read, the more I was intrigued.'
TAKE HER BACK book two: The Child Left in the Dark
November 5, 2022
‘There’s something growing in her that’s going beyond us. Some sort of darkness, a confidence… the more it emerges, the more she seems to just... disappear.’
It has been six months since Bella and her daughter Ariana were driven into a desperate flee across the country. Six months since the explosive events at the Futura Laboratory changed their lives forever. Bella must live with the impossible decision she made back in the autumn, even if the consequences are monstrous. She will do whatever it takes to keep Ariana safe, even from herself. Especially from herself.
Ariana, meanwhile, cannot escape the nightmares of the terrifying creatures she saw at the lab. Struggling with the reality of a life out of the shadows, Ariana cannot help but feel more alone than ever. Except for the voices, of course. The whispers of a creeping, dark blankness growing within her. Everyone tells her she is normal. Everyone is lying.
An empire built on robotic slaves, marketed as the ultimate workforce. Heinous human/animal experimentation performed in the name of science. A mother and daughter ripped apart by a reckless decision made in a garden in Cumbria more than 30 years ago.
Part two of TAKE HER BACK trilogy, The Child Left in the Dark is the follow-up to the Amazon Bestseller and Bridport Prize long-listee, The Girl with the Green Eyes.
Pre-order your copy HERE.
TAKE HER BACK book 3
Title TBA
An angry adolescent with unprecedented power and no idea how to control it.
An empire of robotic slaves and hybrids.
Bella is in more danger than she has ever been before.
Length: 130,000 words
Status: Draft complete, editing in progress
The Thing About Amelia
Long-listed for the Mslexia Children's Novel Competition 2016
When 15-year-old Pip is accused of attempting to murder her bully, Sienna, the only person she can turn to is her twin sister, Amelia. Amelia is everything Pip isn't – confident, loud and completely self-assured – unfortunately, she's also imaginary.
Once invited in, Amelia is reluctant to let go of her newfound control over Pip's thoughts, actions and voice and it's not long before Pip begins to lose her grip on reality. But imaginary friends - even imaginary sisters - can't actually kill you, right?
Length: 61,000 words
Status: Complete, unpublished