Tom's treasures of fiction, poetry, literature and more...

Hello everyone. I know it has been a long time but I am back and I am here to stay. You are probably wandering why I was quiet for the whole of October as well as September. So let me explain... When September arrived, I knew I was not up to posting on my blog much and needed time away to compose and get myself back into a better frame of mind to be able to have a clearer and sharper focus on certain things (not just my blog here). Alongside that it was decided at the last minute that I would be going away to see some family. As I was not here for over a week and knew I would end up spending several days without a decent signal, I thought it was best to leave it for September. Then October came and work was being done in my home which not only left the place noisy for two weeks but also meant some days had hours of no electric and subsequently no internet. Then around about the same time I fell unwell and had to prioritise getting better as I was struggling to do all my day-to-day acti...

We should think about the world we leave behind... We don't want there to be a divide, we don't want people to fight, to clash with each other, cause trouble, or even cause war and create more rubble. We should want people to all know what's right and wrong, to try and get along, not hurt another person. is there anything wrong with unison? Teenagers and young people are our future, but ask yourself what kind of future you want to leave for them to look after.

Hi!

 Hello all!

Today's a good day for a book review.

Today's post.

Hi!

Hi everyone and welcome to a new month.

September has arrived and hence so has autumn. Now this month is going to be a special one for me as I am going away (hopefully) to see some family later on for several days. Because of this I shall not be here for over a week and will not have a signal likely to be able to regularly post. It is not definite I am going away because I have not been too well. For both of these reasons I have decided to take this month off from my blog so that I can come back in October when I am not thus unprepared. Sometimes life can be a lot and as a person you can experience burnout. The most important thing is your health and I need time to focus on myself. Therefore I shall not be posting this month. I hope to return in October with some great posts for you all. Until next time, Thomas (they/them). [P.S: It's okay to admit when you are struggling or not at your best! We all have our down days...]

 Yes, yes I know!

After having published The Girl with Seven Lives , I've realised that Vikas Swarup has now released a total of four novels. So today I am going to provide a timeline of all four of his novels starting with the earliest. 1: Q&A (2005) also known as Slumdog Millionaire. Swarup's debut novel focuses on the character Ram Mohammed Thomas who competes on the Indian version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire? When he is doing really well, getting every question correct, he is arrested on the accusation he has cheated. Through explaining how he knew the answer to each question, the novel highlights the various moments of his life. I reviewed this book last year when I looked at BIPOC authors so take a look to see what I thought about the novel. 2: Six Suspects (2008) [the one I reviewed this month]. After being acquitted for murder, Vicky Rai has an acquittal party to celebrate but gets murdered at his party. Six people are found with guns on them. The novel follows all six suspect...

Hello people. Today I have some news to offer you all. I recently found out that Vikas Swarup has his new book being released in this country, in fact it was published on the 13th of this very month and year by Apollo Books. The book entitled 'The Girl With the Seven Lives', follows the life of Devi and all about her seven lives. It was first published on the 15th of July 2024 in India by Simon & Schuster India. Alongside the novel being published on the 13th of August (just gone) here in the U.K, the novel will also be published in the U.S.A on the 1st of September by Pegasus Books. Now this is a book that I want to read because I have enjoyed all his other novels. Hopefully, I will get the chance to read it sometimes soon and will not find myself disappointed. Until next, Thomas (they/them).

Hello again. Today is the time I present you with my monthly bookshop visit.  For this month, I took a trip to the charming town of Lewes in East Sussex, near to the coastal city of Brighton & Hove. The bookshop in question is Fifteenth Century Bookshop which happens to be an actual historical landmark! The bookshop, residing down Lewes High Street visitors a quieter shopping experience and provides a nice assorted mix of books. To me though, it came across as a little overcrowded in places with the books. The bookshop is quaint but if I go into a bookshop that is either untidy or dirty or overloaded with too many then it puts me off the bookshop a bit. There was a good variety of the books you could buy from classic literature to something more suited for younger readers. The books are not that bad price wise too, not too expensive or ridiculously cheaper in price from what I saw. So you have choice at reasonable prices just if you find something you like. When I visited the s...

Welcome blog readers... Recently I reviewed Vikas Swarup's second novel, Six Suspects  (2008). But one thing I wanted to take to the stand was the fact that I have two different versions of this novel.  You are probably thinking that one is a classic paperback and the others is a box-standard hardback. However, you would be mistaken for thinking so... Here I have a hardback copy which I read through and as already stated, reviewed. But before I acquired my hardback copy, I found an uncorrected proof copy. The two books are photographed below for comparison. The reason I have the proof copy is because a while ago when I was hunting down this book in local, second hand or independents bookshops, even charity shops I came across it while at a National Trust bookshop. At first glance I did not even acknowledge that it was just a proof copy. It was when I got back home and investigated the book did I realise something was amiss. On the 'Contents' page, each section has '000...

Hello again. For today's post I am cross-referencing Vikas Swarup's novels that I have read to bring to light my thoughts on having recurring characters. In Six Suspects  (2008), the novel introduces us to a whole variety of characters who crop up more than once and form connections with other characters. For example we have Champi, Munna's sister. When we are first introduced to Champi is earlier on as a minor character in Munna's backstory, him being one of the 'Six Suspects'. Later on however, she meets reappears in Eketi's backstory and the two appear to form a bond which is explored somewhat towards the ending of the novel. We then get the crossover between Shabnam Saxena and Larry Page as their stories start to become entwined. Saxena is mentioned throughout and not just in her sections. Having the characters appearing in other people's backstories provides the opportunity to link them all at the end with ease. I liked this flowing in and out of th...

Welcome dear readers to my blog. For today's blog post, I am going to go through some of my favourite villains. Villains do bad thing of course and this often includes committing crimes. Here is my list. 1: Sacha Dhawan's version of Doctor Who. When Sacha Dhawan's character 'O' was introduced to the 13th Doctor as the master, that to me instantly became iconic. He was the epitome of a villain. Everything small thing he did was pure evil. Every time he saw the doctor, he always had wicked words for her. Plus, let us not forget when he was able to make the cybermen regenerate, how horrible! 2: Bianca Del Rio - drag queen who has appeared on Drag Race amongst other stuff. Drag Race winner Bianca Del Rio who has done various things such as portraying Loco Chanel in the musical Everybody's Talking About Jamie has long been considered a villain in the Drag Race world. I must admit I have noticed that she can read other people very well. For those of you unaware, readi...

Hello all, I have had internet troubles and could not publish my latest blog post on Friday so instead you have today! For this blog post, I wanted to highlight a video to you that I have watched. I found a video on YouTube from the publishers of Vikas Swarup's novel Six Suspects  (2008), Transworld Books. In the video, Vikas Swarup explains who he is, referring to his debut novel Q&A  (2005) and the subsequent film based on the novel, Slumdog Millionaire  (2008). Then he divulges into the finer details of what happens in Six Suspects  (2008). The way he does this is clear and concise, without missing key detail out. If you want to want the video then I do recommend it. I shall provide the link below. Vikas Swarup - Six Suspects (Author of Slumdog Millionaire) That is the link for the video, which is only a short one. Until next time, Thomas (they/them).

Welcome to my blog... Now is the time to take a seat as I take through my thoughts of Vikas Swarup's twisted and loaded novel Six Suspects  (2008) by Vikas Swarup. This novel is definitely one to read! Especially as it heads towards the gripping ending, it is shock after shock after shock. Take an evil and corrupt man, who commits crimes again and again yet somehow manages to evade any form of imprisonment or alternative punishment. This is a man who always gets what he wants. However, as the novel explores, some people are not happy with this man. The man Vicky Rai, murders a bartender who refuses to serve him a drink, having just stopped serving in the bar. Rai shoots the bartender dead and flees. When he finally gets off, he decides to celebrate his acquittal with a party. Throughout the novel we are met with six different people such as famous Indian actress Shabnam Saxena and Munna Mobile who is a phone thief from the Sanjay Ghandi Slums. One thing I love about this novel is h...

For today's post I am uncovering what my favourite detectives and investigators. 1: Mystery Incorporated - all the Scooby-Doo franchises. I absolutely love the whole Scooby-Doo gang! I grew up watching anything Scooby-Doo that I could and still do when I see Scooby-Doo stuff showing. Personally my favourite character is Velma; I love an interesting young woman who is able to uncover or should I say unmask the culprit. It is fun, entertaining and a link to my childhood. What's not to love? {Also big shout out to The Hex Girls.} 2: Detective Inspector Neville Parker - Death in Paradise . Now I like all the lead detectives but Neville was my favourite. I loved his usage of his dictaphone, blossoming relationships and his fine attention to detail. I know he was annoying at times but once he acclimatised to Saint-Marie, he perfectly neatly spotted into island life. 3: Luella Shakespeare and Frank Hathaway - Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators . What can I say about the...

Lately I have been thinking about the story I have been writing bits and pieces from. I don't know if this will turn into a full length novel but hey, for now I am carrying on with the next part of my artsy crime genre work of fiction whenever one of my weekly writing tasks permits it. You probably wander what it is about or who my protagonist. Let me introduce Veronica Chalkwater... Miss Veronica Chalkwater is an artist who works at the LGBTQIA+ artists hub. The hub is a local space for her and other LGBTQIA+ artists to come together and the space to work on their artistic craft for events, exhibitions and more. It also enables a safe space for the artists to discuss things, often matters regarding being a part of the LGBTQIA+. I know how hard it is to be LGBTQIA+ so I wanted to highlight that in my writing. Further to this I wanted to showcase the life of an artist/creative which again I have experience of. Not all the details are there about Veronica's character but I know e...