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\nAnd just look at that cover! If that doesn’t draw you into this gripping tale, then perhaps the blurb will.
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<\/p>\nCeltic Connexions is happy to welcome Helen Forbes, author of Unravelling ~ a gripping tale of dark secrets, lies and murder.
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\nAnd just look at that cover! If that doesn’t draw you into this gripping tale, then perhaps the blurb will.
\n<\/p>\n
Incarcerated in the gloom of a Highland asylum,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n a young mother finds illicit love. And death.<\/span><\/p>\n Kate Sharp\u2019s family is a mystery. Her mother, Ellen,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>disappeared into the shadows of Craig Dunain psychiatric hospital when Kate<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>was a child.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>When her grandmother dies, Kate is desperate for answers. What were the circumstances of her mother\u2019s life and death? Who is her father?<\/span><\/p>\n Kate\u2019s not the only one trying to uncover the truth.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>The remains of two bodies<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>with murderous injuries have been found buried in the forest next to the former hospital.<\/span><\/p>\n And someone else is searching for answers, and he will stop at nothing to find them.<\/span><\/p>\n As the tale of Ellen\u2019s tragic unravelling unfolds, the secrets that led to her death are exposed, along with the shocking truth about Kate\u2019s father.<\/span><\/p>\n Unaware of the danger stalking her,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Kate<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>continues her search.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Will she<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>find<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the answers? And<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>can she<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>save her own life?<\/span><\/p>\n Go, a voice cried in my head. Run. Before it\u2019s too late. A little overdramatic? Not really. Who wouldn\u2019t run from a seven-hour shift of spooning mushed-up food into gaping, toothless mouths, wiping backsides, and mopping up body fluids? But I didn\u2019t have a choice. Not without another job, and I lacked the energy or motivation to find something else. Pushing open the front door, I caught the scent of tangerine and lemon. Mrs Shelby had been at the homemade air fresheners again. It made for a pleasant welcome to the foyer of the care home, but a few essential oils couldn\u2019t cover up the natural scents of warm cabbage, bed sores and incontinence. Not that it was a bad care home. A large Victorian villa with high ceilings and big rooms, clean and well-managed, it was one of the better ones. There were just some scents that couldn\u2019t be shifted. And some residents. \u2018This too.\u2019 Stefan smiled. \u2018Forget him. He is just an old man. Tomorrow he will be my…\u2019 He frowned and fished his notebook out of his pocket. He thumbed through the pages of scribbled vocabulary. \u2018Ah, he will be my beastie.\u2019 amazon.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0Website:<\/strong> www.helenforbes.co.uk<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n Facebook:<\/strong> https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Helen-Forbes-Author-457783327732599<\/a><\/u><\/p>\n Twitter:<\/strong> https:\/\/twitter.com\/foreva48<\/a><\/p>\n #UNRAVELING a gripping tale Celtic Connexions is happy to welcome Helen Forbes, author of Unravelling ~ a gripping tale of dark secrets, lies and murder. And just look at that cover! If that doesn’t draw you into this gripping tale, then perhaps the blurb will. Blurb Incarcerated in the gloom of a Highland asylum,\u00a0 a … Continue reading Unravelling ~ a gripping tale of dark secrets, lies and murder<\/span> Excerpt<\/h2>\n
\nI heard Smyth before I saw him, his entitled plummy tones and the squeak of his wheelchair grating through me. Scarcely a shift passed that I didn\u2019t fantasise about smothering him with a pillow, but that would be far too kind. He needed to be strung up and eviscerated.
\n\u2018Pole, you come here right now.\u2019
\nStefan was at the reception desk. He ignored Smyth and smiled at me. Deep in my belly, something primitive tugged and taunted. It was another good reason for running, but I\u2019d left it far too late.
\n\u2018Pole!\u2019 Flecks of spittle shot from Smyth\u2019s mouth. His face was twisted with venom. There were bulging veins on his forehead, a crimson flush creeping up his wrinkled neck. I willed Stefan to pull the old man from his wheelchair and throw him on the floor.
\nHe didn\u2019t. Of course, he didn\u2019t. He held out his hands. \u2018Mr Smyth. What may I do for you?\u2019
\nSmyth\u2019s eyes narrowed. \u2018What is your name?\u2019
\n\u2018Stefan Nowak.\u2019
\n\u2018Why are you here? Aren\u2019t there care homes in your own
\ncountry?\u2019
\nStefan nodded. \u2018There are, Mr Smyth. Remember, we
\ntalk yesterday and I tell you all about them. The story of my grandmother and the tattoo?\u2019
\n\u2018Yesterday?\u2019 The old man\u2019s eyes shifted between us. \u2018A tattoo? Don\u2019t be ridiculous. I\u2019ve never seen you before in my life. I couldn\u2019t believe it when Matron said you came from Poland to work here.\u2019
\nStefan\u2019s smile didn\u2019t falter. \u2018I did, Mr Smyth, with others.\u2019 \u2018There are others? My God. Matron, get me out of here.\u2019
\nAs Smyth\u2019s frantic hands wheeled his chair down the corridor,
\nI apologised to Stefan, and not for the first time. He waved his hand. \u2018Kate, it is not your fault. There are many head-dicks.\u2019
\n\u2018Dickheads.\u2019
\nHe laughed. \u2018Ah, yes. I will learn.\u2019
\n\u2018What\u2019s this about your grandmother and a tattoo?\u2019
\n\u2018My grandmother is… was… in a care home in Warsaw. My
\nyoung wild sister \u2013 you know, I tell you about her punky hair and purple lips \u2013 she take my grandmother out one day and she comes back with a little black cat on her ankle. There is… what do you say? Hell to pay. My father, he doesn\u2019t speak to my sister again. Yesterday, Smyth, he almost die laughing when I tell him this.\u2019
\n\u2018Almost died?\u2019 I shook my head. \u2018Stefan, you have to try harder next time.\u2019
\nHe laughed. \u2018Today, he remember nothing. His head, it is full of holes.\u2019
\n\u2018Full of shite.\u2019<\/p>\n
\nI couldn\u2019t keep my laughter in. Stefan looked devastated. \u2018This is not right?\u2019
\n\u2018Let me see.\u2019 I looked at his notebook. \u2018I think you mean bestie, though you\u2019re not too far wrong with beastie.\u2019
\n\u2018Whatevers.\u2019 His hand rested on my arm. \u2018You are tired, Kate. How is she?\u2019
\nI would have told him. I might have cried, and he might have held me, but our conversation was severed by the shrill voice of Mrs Shelby, a cloud of stale perfume, the crackle of starched polyester, and then the woman herself. She looked about to cry. \u2018Stefan, whatever have you said to Mr Smyth? He\u2019s in quite a state. His daughter will be here shortly and we mustn\u2019t upset her. She\u2019s very generous…\u2019
\nStefan shrugged. \u2018I no know what you ask, Madame Shelby, but you look very… how you say…?\u2019
\n\u2018Haggard,\u2019 I muttered.
\nStefan sighed. \u2018Very beautiful, Madame.\u2019
\nMrs Shelby blushed and waved her hand. \u2018Oh, Stefan. Just be
\nmore careful. It\u2019s not your fault things get lost in translation. Kate, there\u2019s a new resident in room nine. She\u2019s a little fragile. Younger than our usual clientele. She\u2019s refusing to get out of bed. Says she can\u2019t walk, but she had no problems yesterday on arrival. Perhaps you could have a chat, see if you can get her up and dressed, and into the dayroom.\u2019
\nI nodded. \u2018I\u2019ll try. What\u2019s her name?\u2019
\n\u2018Lucille Leonard. You\u2019ll need the key. She wants the door kept locked.\u2019
\nThat was understandable with the likes of Smyth roaming around, interfering with everyone else\u2019s business.
\n\u2018What\u2019s wrong with her?<\/p>\nBuy Link<\/h2>\n
About the Author<\/span><\/h2>\n
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<\/span>Helen Forbes is a mystery author known for her crime novels Madness Lies and In the Shadow of the Hill. The author has also written a few contemporary and historical fiction pieces as well as short stories. When she is not writing, Forbes enjoys her work as a lawyer in Inverness. She published the first two novels based in Outer Hebrides and Inverness, two areas that she feels have not been given enough attention in the crime-fiction genre. Forbes also has a deep liking for the Gaelic language and island communities, which explains her choice of characters in her stories.<\/p>\nLinks<\/h2>\n
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