Today, Diney Costeloe joins me today with a wee interview. Diney’s latest novel Miss Mary’s Daughter is out now. The cover is absolutely beautiful!

|Synopsis|

Miss Mary’s Daughter

DINEY COSTELOE

Publication Date: 15^th February 2018
Price: £7.99

A heartwrenching story from the bestselling author of The Throwaway Children.

“Enlightening, compelling and emotional.” Living North

London, 1886

After her mother’s death, twenty-year-old Sophie Ross is left orphaned in London. With no money and little chance of an income, she tries to get work as a governess to avoid destitution. Now alone in the world, she only has the company of her erstwhile nursemaid and faithful friend, Hannah.

But unbeknown to Sophie, her mother instructed Hannah to post a letter to Trescadinnick House in Cornwall upon her death. The letter will be the catalyst that changes Sophie’s life forever as she learns of her mother’s romance, marriage and then ultimate rejection by her own father and the estranged family she left behind in Cornwall.

The Penvarrow family welcome Sophie and Hannah into their fold, but tensions rise and family secrets are revealed as Sophie attempts to rebuild her life and find happiness.

|Author Interview|

What book truly inspired your life and why?

I doubt if there is one book that inspired my life. There are several books that I can read and re-read and never tire of them.

Pride and Prejudice  by Jane Austen….I had to study this for ‘O’ level English literature and have loved it ever since.

The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe  by CS Lewis….When I was a primary school teacher I always read this to my class as a serial story at the end of the day, and we all enjoyed it.

Winne the Pooh  by AA Milne….Some of my earliest memories are having the Pooh stories read to me by my Mother and Grandmother and they still delight me.

 

How did you pick who you dedicated your book too?

It depends what the book is about. Sometimes I dedicate it to the people who inspired the story and others I dedicate it to those who have given their time to help with my research.

Did you do a lot of research for your book?

Yes, a great deal. It is much easier now than it used to be before the Internet. Then it required frequent trips to the library, now I can look up things I need to know on-line. Often something I discover researching one book leads to the story for the next.

What was your favourite read of 2017?

The Long Long Trail: War at Home by Cynthia Harrod Eagles

If you had to take three books on a desert island what would they be?

Probably the three I’ve mentioned above.

As with Desert Island Discs I’m assuming the Bible and A Complete Shakespeare are already there!

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?

My father was a publisher, so I hand first-hand experience of how publishing used to work.

It’s different now!

My first book was published in 1980 by Robert Hale. It was a romance and I went on to write nine more romances, all written under the name of Diney Delancey. Well, it sounds, like a romantic novelist, doesn’t it?

I then self-published four books under the Castlehaven Books Imprint. These have subsequently been republished with new titles by Head of Zeus, who are my current publishers.

 Can you share with us a photo that tells a story?

My grandfather had a furniture factory, Globe Wernecke, who made these glass-fronted bookcases. They have been part of my childhood and the ones in this picture are still in my study today.

As you can see they are crammed with my favourite books!

What would you like your readers to know before starting your book?

Nothing. It must come to them fresh so that they can make their own minds up about it.

If they enjoy it I’m always delighted to hear from them. If they don’t like it, constructive criticism is also welcome.

 Do you have any questions that you would like to ask your readers?

I have some questions and a comment! What makes you chose a book to read? The title? The cover? What you read on the blurb or because it’s an author you know already?

My comment: my father always said that reading was a habit and he never minded what we read as long as we were reading something…we’d become more discerning as we grew older. It doesn’t matter when you start to read, but it’s important to establish the habit, so keep reading.

Imagine not having a book by the bed!

|Buy Link|

 

|Publisher Info|

Aria Fiction

Website: www.ariafiction.com

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