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the.southend.communitynews@gmail.com - editor David Wilson 07714772707 - Journalist, melaniejanette@gmail.com 07917730238
LEIGH Library hosted a book signing and talk by local author Hazel Lakeland, on Saturday, 14 December.
Following the release of her latest book,'Hazel's Story'. The story begins with the mystery that surrounds Hazel's grandmother's death in 1935, only weeks after she had attempted to throw her own seven year-old daughter from an upstairs bedroom window.
Hazel's grandfather then burnt all records relating to his wife and forbade her name ever to be mentioned again.
It isn't until Hazel treads the same path as her grandmother and sees beyond death that the mystery begins to unravel.
Terrifyingly, Hazel loses the battle with three men who forced her into a psychiatric unit.
Hazel Lakeland - ' Hazel's Story
HAZEL still lives in Hadleigh, Essex, in the exact house where her book ends, very happily with her third husband. It was he who encouraged her to write her unusual true story. She said" However it wasn't until his daughter had completed her Creative Writing Degree and offered to help guide me that I felt able to do so. And as I began the words really just poured out. However, without my mother's brilliant memory and her friendship with Lieselotte, my father's stepmother, I could not have told the story. Sadly my mother passed away before the book was finished. But I was able to visit my Aunt Bess in Australia with one of the first copies of my book and as she well remembers her mother's attempt to push her out of an upstairs window was so pleased to finally understand what happened to her."
Some reviews of the book
They unusual…. remarkable…I really enjoyed it…I couldn’t put it down … or at the very least, some have said …. interesting! Not least, apparently, because there are local details that readers didn’t know about. An example: what is in the basement of Chalkwell Hall? Well the answer is in my book.
I think what I was attempting with this book was to show that whilst fiction is a wonderful mix of imagination, true stories can be equally remarkable.
THE STRANGER IN OUR BED
28 MARCH 2020
15:30 - 16:30
PARK INN PALACE
Samantha Lee Howe began her professional writing career predominately writing horror and fantasy under the pen name Sam Stone.
Samantha’s breakaway debut thriller, The Stranger in Our Bed, is a gripping debut psychological thriller about the dark secrets in a perfect marriage.
This event is part of Essex Book Festival’s Golden Age of Crime Weekend, taking place at the Park Inn Palace Hotel in Southend-on-Sea on 28 and 29 March.
THE GUEST LIST
28 MARCH 2020
17:15 - 18:15
PARK INN PALACE
Get ready for 2020’s hotly anticipated thriller. Guests are called to a remote island off the Irish coast to celebrate the wedding of the year – the marriage of Jules and Will. Everything has been meticulously planned. It should be the perfect day, but instead it turns out to be the perfect murder.
The brand-new thriller from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Hunting Party, one of the fastest-selling & highly-acclaimed debut thrillers of 2019. The Guest List is a gripping, addictive, twisty update on the classic murder mystery.
This event is part of Essex Book Festival’s Golden Age of Crime Weekend, taking place at the Park Inn Palace Hotel in Southend-on-Sea on 28 and 29 March.
THE ADVENTURES OF MAUD WEST, LADY DETECTIVE
The Adventures of Maud West, Lady Detective
DATE
29 MARCH 2020
12:30 - 13:30
PARK INN PALACE
The Adventures of Maud West, Lady Detective is the enthralling true story of the curious life and career of one of Britain’s first and best-known female detectives. It is both a portrait of a woman ahead of her time and a deliciously salacious glimpse into the underbelly of ‘good society’ during the twentieth century.
“If you are susceptible to Miss Marple and Harriet Vane you must read The Adventures of Maud West. You will never know the difference between fact and fiction again.” – Jill Paton Walsh, author of the Peter Wimsey/Harriet Vane mysteries.
This event is part of Essex Book Festival’s Golden Age of Crime Weekend, taking place at the Park Inn Palace Hotel in Southend-on-Sea on 28 and 29 March.
Open Book
“NOTHING WASTED.” THE REAL PD JAMES
28 MARCH 2020
11:00 - 12:00
PARK INN PALACE
PD James once said:
“Open your mind to new experiences, particularly to the study of other people. Nothing that happens to a writer – however happy, however tragic – is ever wasted.”
Frances Fyfield, fellow writer and friend of PD James, will be in discussion with Geraldine Perriam, exploring the life and work of the late author.
2020 marks the centenary of the birth of crime writer, PD James. Come along to hear Frances and Geraldine discuss the life and work of this inspiring lady and the lasting legacy of her books.
This event is part of Essex Book Festival’s Golden Age of Crime Weekend, taking place at the Park Inn Palace Hotel in Southend-on-Sea on 28 and 29 March.
Tickets £8 and £5 for 27 years & under.
