The Lonely Man

The action begins with a safe blowing at a large publishing house.

Conspiracy and murder scenes are just as compelling, along with intelligence and mastermind criminals.

All the characters race against time and are determined not to be murdered, delivering all the storytelling twists that readers will want more of.

The Lonely Pea

Parents, have you ever noticed that even when you’ve really gone to a lot of trouble cleaning up after dinner, there always seems to be a single pea left behind? One pesky pea that refuses to meet his fate on the plate.
And have you ever imagined how that pea must feel?
No? Just me?
Well, let me enlighten you...

The Lonely Potoo

There once was a lonely potoo.

The other animals would giggle and cry,

‘Oh look, it’s the ugly potoo...I can’t be friends with you!’

One day, the potoo was tired of feeling gloomy and down.

So he flew from his tree, hoping a friend could be found.

Will the clever potoo be able to trick the other birds using a not-so-perfect disguise?

The Long Road to Freedom

People in my position must often ask themselves what the answer is? How did I get here? At what cost?

And how did I finally come out on the other side, into a world where the grass is green and smells fresh. And where life is worth living and relishing for every last facet of its existence - a place where utopia can exist for the simplest of men.

It is ironic that what finally triggered my debut book was being handed the psychiatric report on our youngest daughter’s suicide.

People always say that inside every good journalist is a book, and I always joked that that ruled me out in that case.

But then I thought about what everyone is looking for - the secret of a happy life. And this story is about the journey that it took to get there.

We will never be able to bring her back. Obviously. But we can take massive strides towards rebuilding a family that was once so strong, and bringing it back to a time when laughter really was the most valuable thing we had.

You will laugh and you will cry in equal measure, and hopefully somewhere along the way you will be inspired.

But what you could not do, no matter how you tried, is make any of this stuff up.

The Long Shadow

The pandemic is over. Humanity is saved. The misery is over. Or is it?

From the wreckage of the old world, a new order has arisen. On the banks of the Borava River, a city stands divided between two oppressive civilisations engaged in an endless struggle with one another. Under the callous rule of their power-hungry overlords, the people long for liberation yet can find no cause for hope or redemption.

Amidst the contradictions and hypocrisies of this decaying world however, a string of unexplained murders ignites a spark of renewed enthusiasm as an investigation unfolds in a desperate search for answers to the murderous mystery.

It is an endeavour which will lead straight to the grim and uncomfortable truth lying at the very heart of this post-pandemic civilisation, a truth which is better left unknown...

The Long Shot

High stakes gambling, murder and cricket. An unlikely mix? Perhaps in the genteel days of games on the village green, but not so now. The introduction of sports betting has changed the game for players and fans alike. 

Millions change hands with every match. As the financial incentive grows, so too does the temptation to cheat. 

Perhaps even to commit murder?

A brilliant young South African batsman, Winston Olonga, is assassinated in a Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Enter Lucas Fox, commentator and private eye, who witnesses the killing and sets out to find the culprit.

The Long Wave

The Long Wave

This little book of poems will bring you love and comfort, reassurance and hope.
It will lighten your saddest moments and enhance those happiest memories.
Surely, some of these poems will make you smile at life’s sillier moments.

The Lost Man and Other Tales

When our two children were small, we lived on a small farm near Exeter. The farmyard was immediately outside the house which meant I could spend a little time with our two sons at their teatime and go indoors again when they were bathed and put to bed. My wife would read to them, and then I would. As they got older, I would tell them stories too, often involving input from them too. Hence, the idea of creating stories as well as just reading other people’s writing.

A few years later, I felt the need for the extra income, so I did a one-year teacher training course at St. Luke’s College and took a part-time job at our local secondary school, teaching slow readers. A colleague there, a teacher of English, heard of my occasional scribblings and asked for some short stories for her to use in class. This worked surprisingly well.

For a number of reasons, we sold the farm in 1978 and moved to a house with a three-acre paddock near Kingsbridge. I became a full-time teacher with multiple handicapped teenagers. Not much time for writing. Also, in later years, when we were gardening beside the River Dart a few miles downriver from Totnes, there was no time for writing.

However, when we sold our smallholding and retired to Totnes in 2000, I took up writing again and got down to it more seriously. This book is the result of my scribbles over the last 20 years.

The Lost Shell

“The Tantrum” is no stranger to most of us!

In supermarket queues the sight and sound of a prostrate three-year-old giving it all in the pursuit of emotional release, is not something to forget! Yet, this plucky little person is expressing how it feels to be in the grip of a tangle of unidentifiable emotions, unable to communicate when asked “What’s the matter?” In the simple story of The Lost Shell, a Granny uses story to find a way through the confusion of a child’s pent-up emotions, preceding the birth of a sibling. The Lost Shell is designed to be enjoyed by carer and child together, and allows the child to read the pictures and tell the story in their own words.

In talking about the story and pictures the child may identify with some of the emotions shown there. Among the possible feelings may be anger, sadness, loss, separation, love, comfort, change, joy, friendship, co-operation, curiosity, generosity, kindness, fear, achievement, and satisfaction in initiating bonding (making friends) with another. A child may recognise only a few of these feelings, but the list might prove useful to the carer, perhaps in identifying some familiar feelings of their own! We are never too old to learn. How many of us “grown-ups” have nearly “lost it” on occasion and even sensed the tantrum at our shoulder! The Lost Shell can become a delightful resource to share over and again, building mutual self-awareness while fostering the emotional intelligence, vital to navigating the future - without running aground on Tantrum Island!

The Lotus Petals

Is our fate predetermined or can we carve our own path in life? Fariba, the protagonist of this captivating novel, lives a carefree life, blissfully unaware of the changes happening around her and the impact of her own actions on the world.

But when a small event alters the course of her life, Fariba is forced to confront the idea that perhaps our destinies are not set in stone. As she navigates the unpredictable twists and turns of fate, she begins to question the very nature of existence and the role of free will in shaping our lives.

The Love Path

The Love Path presents a radical, new, and exciting theory about the evolution of human love consciousness.  The author postulates that The Love Path is one of four developmental routes that can assist us to become who we want to be.  The other routes are The Truth Path, The Peace Path, and The Warrior Path. While we can change direction at any time and experiment with different modes of being, those who choose to focus on the developmental tasks of The Love Path right to its completion become Masters of Love.  

The first part of the book outlines key concepts which form the building blocks to the author’s theory, and explains why modern love relationships have become increasingly complex.  

The second part of the book is a step-by-step practical overview of how love consciousness can grow through four maturational stages of human experience: 

1. Sensuality, 2. Sexuality, 3. Advanced Intimacy, and 4. Compassion.

Individually, The Love Path offers followers happiness and inner peace.  Collectively, The Love Path is a guide for those wishing to create Eden on Earth.  The choice is ours.

The Luggage Lifter

Meet Harold, a young man who occupies a room in a bleak tenement in the edgy Blitz-damaged East End. Harold’s good humour and air of optimism belie the unfortunate circumstances which blighted his childhood, left him orphaned and shaped his view of the world. An intelligent, resourceful and amiable character, operating around the London hotels and railway stations, he turns luggage lifting into an art form. When he discovers a stash of letters in a leather steamer, an act of kindness sets off a chain of events which gathers its own momentum and leads to romance. But the escalation in his criminal activities, together with the finding of a large haul of used banknotes can only spell trouble. The attention of the police and the menace of the Moretti brothers, who claim the money, coincide, and arrest seems a safer outcome for Harold. He survives a prison term but soon learns that shaking off his unresolved past is more difficult, especially when trying to do the right thing leads to complications in his love life. Just when a sense of well-being beckons, matters spiral out of control and push Harold to the brink…