UK appreciation month: David Massey - Guest post and giveaway

One of my favourite places is Covent Garden, London. It’s the vibe. It’s the actor’s church, ST Paul’s, where the church cats are allowed to roam in and out of the services and sit on your lap. It’s the sound of opera that seems to seep out of the drains somewhere. Wander under the portico at the back of St Paul’s and you’ll find a street performers swallowing one of those long modelling balloons and pretending to extract it from where the sun doesn't shine or some clown teetering about on an impossibly tall unicycle whilst playing the ukelele. Seriously – it’s like attending an open air audition for Britain’s Got Talent. Cafes that have open air tables all year round crowd around the shops and next door to them is the market where you can get everything from a scarf to a bit of instant Chinese calligraphy to hang on your wall. If you ever go though, don’t make the same mistake that I did and attempt to take the stairs at Covent Garden tube station – big mistake. Those Victorians were fit. And they probably did it rising on clouds of soot and steam. And guess what, even the tube station has links to the boards and the grease-paint! It’s supposed to be haunted by the ghost of actor William Terriss who was stabbed to death by a fellow thespian.

Covent Garden and St Paul’s is where some quite terrible (and funny) events take place in Ben Aaronovitch’s crazy novel Rivers of London. The book is about a detective who discovers another side to the metropolitan police. Best described as Harry Potter meets The Sweeny, Rivers of London is written by a guy who penned the odd episode or two of Doctor Who. My kind of wacky  The book really has a feel for Covent Garden and I got a kick out of being able to identify with the setting in a way that I rarely do when reading a book. If you get a chance, and you don’t mind crowds then it’s worth a visit. The book is probably more of an acquired taste!

Torn

Afghanistan. In the heat and dust, young British army medic Elinor Nielson watches an Afghan girl walk into a hail of bullets. But when she runs to help, Ellie finds her gone. Who is she? And what's happened to her? What Ellie discovers makes her question everything she believes in, even her feelings for the American lieutenant who takes her side.

Win a paperback copy of David's book Torn and a copy of Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan.

(See Rachel Ward's guest post for the Numbers giveaway.)

-Giveaway is open to UK and IRE residents only.

-You have one free entry, following for extra entries are optional.

-The winner will be notified via email.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author bio

David Massey is the author of TORN (release date: August 2012) by Chicken House Books. When he is not writing his next novel he plays lead and classical guitar and runs an internet business with his wife, Debi. When he’s not doing any of those he’ll be thinking about walking Harvey or wondering where his next coffee is coming from...

Find the author 
Website
Facebook
Twitter

Blog tour: Torn - Interview

Hey guys, today I would like to introduce to you David Massey, debut author of Torn.

A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to actually meet David in person for an interview, thanks to the lovely people at Chicken house who arranged it for us! so, here's how it went down!

About the book

What made you want to write a book set in the middle of a war zone?

-Originally I wanted to write something with Valkyries - warrior women from Norse mythology who carried the souls of slain warriors to Valhalla - something that was real world but with a slightly other world feel to it. It did change a lot from that idea but still had the feel of war and something a little otherwordly.

Ellie becomes a medic and 'signs-up,' why do you think she has such a need to help people?

-I think because she has a deep concern for people and at the time she had seen statistics for young people in the army and was seeing just how many people were dying over there, so she wanted to help. 

If there was a soundtrack for Torn, what song do you think would fit it best?

-Folding stars by Biffy Clyro is what comes to mind first, I would listen to that a lot when I was writing it and it's a track I just think fits the book really well, especially as it mentions Elinor.

 Tensions are often high in the book, with a lot of battle scenes, were the intense scenes difficult to write?

-I don't think they were really, I found them easy to write. For me, the hardest thing was writing a girl, particularly with the romance side of things.

Ellie seems to have an instant connection with Husna and becomes very protective. Do you think he reminded her of her brother?

-Yes, I think he does, that's why I mentioned him [Jake]. Husna is younger than her brother but I really liked that relationship.

About you

You obviously seem to know about the weapons and technology the army uses, Did you have to do a lot of research before?

-Yes, a lot of my research was done on the internet but I also had some experience when I worked in Africa at a radio station, feeling the atmosphere and I saw young soldiers with guns there.

Why did you decide to write a female narrative instead of male?

-Because there were already so many books out there like this that were told by male characters, and I think because the subject was war, I wanted to tell it from a female. 

Torn is your debut novel, had you always wanted to write?

-Well, I suppose really I'm a musician but that's such a hard market to get into, I mainly just play for myself now.

What's next for you?

 -I am working on another book, it's set in Uganda, it's about some kids that are on a trip in Africa and are kidnapped... and that's all I can say about that right now.

I loved the comraderie between the characters, was this based on any real friendships you have?

-I suppose it was at the end of the day, some came from my kids and some from people I've worked with here and in the States, but the rest is made up!

Random

What's your favourite fruit?

-Banana 

CDs or MP3s?

-MP3s, they're easier. 

Why is a boxing ring square?

-(Laughs) I don't know!

If you could go to outer space, which planet would you visit?

-Mars, because it is a possibility, they're already making plans to go there.

Are you a Bookaholic?

-I suppose I am! I don't think I'm as much of a Bookaholic as you but I do read a lot of books.

 And there you have it, I just want to say a huge thank you to David for meeting with me and being a guest here at Bookaholics, we may not have figuring out why a boxing ring is square but he was a genuinely nice guy and I hope you'll all pick up a copy of Torn!

David Massey is the author of TORN by Chicken House Books. When he is not writing his next novel he plays lead and classical guitar and runs an internet business with his wife, Debi. When he’s not doing any of those he’ll be thinking about walking Harvey or wondering where his next coffee is coming from...

You can chat to David on Twitter or find him on Facebook.

Torn - Check out my review HERE

Afghanistan. In the heat and dust, young British army medic Elinor Nielson watches an Afghan girl walk into a hail of bullets. But when she runs to help, Ellie finds her gone. Who is she? And what's happened to her? What Ellie discovers makes her question everything she believes in, even her feelings for the American lieutenant who takes her side.

Torn - Review

Torn by David Massey

Available now.

www.doublecluck.com 

What's it about?

Afghanistan. In the heat and dust, young British army medic Elinor Nielson watches an Afghan girl walk into a hail of bullets. But when she runs to help, Ellie finds her gone. Who is she? And what's happened to her? What Ellie discovers makes her question everything she believes in, even her feelings for the American lieutenant who takes her side.

My review

Normally I wouldn't pick up a book that's set in a war zone, but after reading the blurb for Torn I just felt that it would be different and knew I wanted to give it a try.
At 259 pages this was a really quick read for me and I breezed right through it engrossed in the story, it was different to other books like this, sure it had a message but there was a story and relationships and a little romance, I really enjoyed it and think it will appeal to young readers.
I think I'll first point out that I would've liked the romance to be a little more in depth, but other than that I really enjoyed the book, Ellie is a great caring character who genuinely just wants to help people, you know she's scared by the position she is in, but she goes ahead and gets on with it for the greater good, I really loved watching her unlikely friendship with Husna, and how protective she became over him.
The story itself was intriguing and there was a lot of excitement and mystery with highs and lows that kept me riveted throughout.
Torn is an exciting read full of suspense and I will be recommending it to my friends.

My thoughts on the cover
This cover really stands out, I like the bright orange cover and all the extra details, like the helicopter and the barbed wire, it really gives a sense of the book.

Favourite quotes

'Day one is almost over, I'm still alive and despite my exhaustion I'm beginning to think I might just make a real soldier.'

'"Elinor, when this tour is over I'll make it my mission to find you." He smiles. "and I've never failed a mission yet."'

Find the author
Website
Facebook
Twitter