FICTION
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The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd
A killer to unmask - on an English country estate. So far the police have failed, but Jennifer Lloyd has a devious plan.
A feisty TV reporter - prepared to go the extra mile to secure her career in television. Blogging deficiencies or a dodgy CV might otherwise lead to her downfall. A high-risk strategy - accusing someone of murder while filming a documentary about his beloved gardens. Will Jennifer's self-defence skills save her when the knives come out? |
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Author's Note
I just want to tell you that Jennifer Lloyd, the principal character and protagonist in this novel, came over so strongly before I even began to write that I felt obligated to listen to her. She was a strong and living character for me right from the outset, and she insisted I write the book HER WAY: in the style she wanted to speak.
How could I argue with that? |
SCROLL DOWN FOR BUY LINKS BELOW THE REVIEWS
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This is a psychological/mystery thriller featuring Jennifer Lloyd. Although she's effectively an orphan, she's learned how to be a survivor, and she's concentrating on her television career - and how to stand-out and get noticed.
With the certain knowledge she will one day become famous, she decides to keep a journal about her reporting and presenting adventures but, in order to capture her knowledge and emotions as they happen - in real-time - she goes for writing it in what reads like a fictional format. Hence the book! It's an angle which allows her to talk to the reader as a close friend - and another close friend would be great for her, because she only really has one person she fully trusts: a Chinese girl called Ami Tan who shared a bedroom with her in a children's home. So the thing is: Will you be her friend and confidant as well? Wealthy landowner, Digby Barrington-Smith, was arrested three years ago after the suspicious drowning of his wife within the grounds of their famous Dorset attraction: Solent House and Gardens. Due to lack of evidence, and because their handyman inexplicably disappeared immediately afterwards, Digby was released due to lack of evidence. So why did Digby then become a virtual hermit when he once liked nothing better than to chat with visitors to his beloved gardens? Feisty TV reporter Jennifer Lloyd smells a rat. Unmasking a murderer on-camera seems a great way to fame and fortune for Jennifer. With visions of making her name by filming protracted interviews along the lines of Martin Bashir’s exposure of Michael Jackson, Jennifer employs the ruse of producing a documentary about the history of the gardens and Digby’s expertise as a plantsman. Is it possible to gain the trust of the eccentric who now lurks in virtual squalor within the grand house? Can she worm her way into finding out more than the police by befriending his sons and defensive staff? More importantly, will Jennifer survive an escalating series of death threats aimed directly at her? |
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A Message from Jennifer Lloyd
OK, there might be risks, but I can take care of myself. I'm taking kick-boxing lessons and people soon learn not to mess with me. I was sexually-abused as a kid, but the abuser came off worse than I did. Trust me!
Do I sound a tough cookie? I know I do come across that way. I had to be like that to survive my childhood in a terrible children's home. Only my closest friends discover what I'm really like, what my weakness are, how I use body language to read people - and my "womanly wiles" to persuade them to my way of thinking. This is the first time I've had to used those talents to unmask a murderer on-camera! But, hey, it should make good television! Let me tell you about it. Oh, and by the way. The author wanted to write this book in a more conventional style, but I want to communicate with you as my confidant. So I insisted he did it my way. I believe in speaking out, you see. Thankfully he listened! |
Reviews
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I absolutely loved the way the protagonist, pretty, feisty and flawed Jennifer Lloyd, humorously engages directly with the reader who is made to feel like her confidant during her trials and tribulations. Through her devious plan of filming a documentary of beautiful gardens, newbie TV presenter Jennifer Lloyd is determined to unmask its murderous owner on-camera - so claiming her fame as the new face to watch out for on British television. Full of interesting and very believable characters the story follows numerous twists and turns as the former homeless girl builds an impressive career on television while pursuing her daring freelance exposé on the side.
The unusual style of this mystery thriller is a huge 'unique selling point' for the author, Ian Kingsley, who is also a radio presenter on the local radio station called 90.1 Hope FM. It was on this station that I heard him explaining how the appealing writing style of this book came about. Apparently the protagonist, known as ‘Jen’ to her friends, came fully-formed into his mind, talking directly to him in her forthright style, and asking for a book to be built around her, before he had even conceived a plot. (I gather characters are normally only fleshed-out during the writing of a novel.) It explains why she is such a strong character that she stays in mind long after reading the novel. I hope I meet her again one day! He also let slip on the radio that while most of the locations are genuine – proven by related walks he has published on his website – the location for the beautiful gardens was actually Exbury –relocated through poetic licence to Highcliffe Castle, in order to place them nearer the protagonist’s home in Christchurch. I was very conscious of trying to spot some of the characters walking around in Christchurch for a while afterwards! (I felt the same after reading Kingsley’s earlier novel set in this locality called ‘Sandman’.) Thoroughly recommended as the perfect beach read or winter warmer! I award it 5 stars without hesitation and can only hope for more. I wish I had discovered this novel earlier. (I now regularly listen to Ian’s Thursday radio shows and love his quirky sense of humour. I can now see where Jen’s humour comes from!) --An Amazon Customer 'A fine melding of mystery thriller and contemporary fiction, but refreshingly free of the clichés of either, The Grave Concerns Of Jennifer Lloyd is an impressive accomplishment... Exceptionally entertaining, The Grave Concerns Of Jennifer Lloyd proves Kingsley’s prowess as a multi-genre author and is recommended without reservation.' --Stephan J Myers (Book Viral) 'The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd is a thrilling murder mystery by author Ian Kingsley, with an authentic British flavour... 'Ian Kingsley has created a charming and real young woman whose ambition and logic usually prevail, but who has genuinely believable faults which could also be her undoing. The narrative style allows Jennifer to speak directly to her audience, creating a sometimes cosy atmosphere which is engaging to read, but also allowing access straight into the character’s mind at the most tense moments of the plot. What I enjoyed most about The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd was the utter Britishness of the gentry and the television industry, for the action and thrills of this novel come from somewhere authentic, which makes them all the more entertaining.' --K.C. Finn (Readers' Favorite) 'A fine melding of mystery thriller and contemporary fiction, but refreshingly free of the clichés of either, The Grave Concerns Of Jennifer Lloyd is an impressive accomplishment... Exceptionally entertaining, The Grave Concerns Of Jennifer Lloyd proves Kingsley’s prowess as a multi-genre author and is recommended without reservation.' --Stephan J Myers (Book Viral) |
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'From its first paragraph, The Grave Concerns draws readers in with a flash and a bang. "I plan to start with a murder. That should get me noticed. I’m after headlines and television news. Or, to put it more bluntly: fame."
Murder mystery and thriller readers will relish The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd. The feisty and conflicted world of Jen and how she chooses to navigate her obstacles makes for a powerful, compelling read that's hard to put down.' --D. Donovan (Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review) 'Ian Kingsley has his own style of introducing characters and letting them weave their way through a labyrinthine plot. In this one he creates a sense of place that is particularly palpable and is always in keeping with the characters in play. With clever and deeply layered narrative it is, without a doubt, my favourite so far.' --ML. H. (Amazon.co.uk reader) 'One of the most intriguing mystery novels I have read in a long time. The plot is very well conceived with multiple threads to keep the suspense but it is the characters that really mad this a special read for me. Too often characters come across as generic or wooden but Ian Kingsley really brings them to life, warts and all. A very talented author.' --Avid Reader (Amazon.com reader) 'If you are looking for well written fiction that's a cut above the rest you should start with The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd... The central character is so strong. Jennifer Lloyd is a nice mix of complex, vulnerable and quirky. I could imagine her character from the start and I think this would make a really good film.' --Annastew1144hotmail.com (Goodreads reader) This was a fun and original novel, with plenty of twists and excitement within its pages. The plot is entertaining and provides an original spin on the murder mystery genre by exploring a suspicious death from the POV of a reporter rather than the usual police angle. The characters living at Solent House (including the housekeeper and her family, the groundskeeper and Digby’s 14 year old son) are well-constructed and complex and, as a reader, your suspicion switches between them rapidly as Jennifer uncovers more about each of their personalities and the night of the death (or murder?). The writing style was unique, with the book written as if the main character is talking directly to the reader, which made it engaging and gave an insight into her thoughts and emotions at key points in the story. I also enjoyed that the book was set in and around Dorset and Christchurch meaning that many of the locations were familiar to me, and I felt they were described well and gave the story a good atmosphere I absolutely loved the way the protagonist, pretty, feisty and flawed Jennifer Lloyd, humorously engages directly with the reader who is made to feel like her confidant during her trials and tribulations. Through her devious plan of filming a documentary of beautiful gardens, newbie TV presenter Jennifer Lloyd is determined to unmask its murderous owner on-camera - so claiming her fame as the new face to watch out for on British television. Full of interesting and very believable characters the story follows numerous twists and turns as the former homeless girl builds an impressive career on television while pursuing her daring freelance exposé on the side. The unusual style of this mystery thriller really is a huge 'unique selling point' for the author, Ian Kingsley, who is also a radio presenter on the local radio station called 90.1 Hope FM. --An Amazon.co.uk Reader 'The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd is a thrilling murder mystery by author Ian Kingsley, with an authentic British flavour... 'Ian Kingsley has created a charming and real young woman whose ambition and logic usually prevail, but who has genuinely believable faults which could also be her undoing. The narrative style allows Jennifer to speak directly to her audience, creating a sometimes cosy atmosphere which is engaging to read, but also allowing access straight into the character’s mind at the most tense moments of the plot. What I enjoyed most about The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd was the utter Britishness of the gentry and the television industry, for the action and thrills of this novel come from somewhere authentic, which makes them all the more entertaining.' --K.C. Finn (Elite Book Club) |
BUY: The Grave Concerns of Jennifer Lloyd
At some times all available paperback copies of this book at Amazon will be sold. However, you can always get it directly by clicking the PUBLISHER button below. Or you can order it through a bookshop.
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Want A Signed Copy?
If you would like a signed copy of any one of my paperbacks with a bespoke dedication message of under 12 words the cost for the book, delivery and packing will be: £16. This offer is restricted to UK addresses. Describe what you would like on my contact form. PLEASE INCLUDE YOUR FULL POSTAL ADDRESS IN THE MESSAGE AREA OF THE FORM. Payment will be requested as either PayPal or bank transfer to the author. If you want to give this as a gift please allow plenty of time as two postal journeys may be required.
{If you live in the 'BCP' area of the UK I might deliver it personally! What are your best hours?} |
My other paperbacks set in Southern England: SANDMAN (Christchurch) and FLYING A KITE (Bath & overseas)