Build Universes – serie

Having fled his home city of Liverpool and left with precious little time to escape his unpredictable father; Danny and his mother end up in a safe, rural corner of Shropshire. It seems to be yet another 'fresh start', but little does Danny know just how different it will be this time around. This most recent of moves will either make or break him. Working hard to forge a different reputation for himself, Danny tries to get things right. However, a chance finding of a long-forgotten drum - coupled with an encounter with a ghost from a bygone era - lead to an extraordinary sequence of events, as Danny concludes his last year at primary school before moving on. He will need every ounce of positivity and resilience that he can draw on, as things look likely to unravel in spectacular style. Danny is tested to the limits by new acquaintances, as well as figures from his past returning to complicate matters further. With the clock ticking, he needs to quickly piece the jigsaw together and it's not just Danny who needs everything to fall into place! There's far more at stake than that...

A story for ten to twelve years-old children which perfectly complements the transition between primary and secondary school.

Steve Morris has spent the vast majority of his career - twenty-three years and counting - in primary education. From class teacher to headteacher, Steve has worked in a variety of primary schools across the north-west of England and Shropshire. He's especially passionate about encouraging children to read and write, both for the sheer enjoyment of it and the escapism it can offer. Steve is married and has two teenage children. He enjoys nothing more than getting out regularly on his bike, exploring the beautiful Shropshire countryside. The Distant Beat is his debut novel.

This is an account of a father's attempts to discover what has happened to his son, who disappeared in the Darien Gap Jungle in Panama, in Central America.

Just how do you go about finding out what has happened to someone six thousand miles away in a Spanish-speaking country?

At the start the father did not know for definite where how his son had disappeared, if he had had a companion or who that companion was, or if he had had a guide.

The significant thing is that the search became a family affair (without divorce!), but then other people became involved - some complete strangers very generous and helpful, a genuine crook, and two largely incompetent detective agencies.

After 9 months, it was resolved, free of any ransom demand, probably by direct contact with the guerrilla group, FARC, itself.

When the two adventurers were released, the parents, Brian and Anne Winder, heard of ransom demands of $2.000,000 each which never reached them, and many situations where the two adventurers could easily have died, and their fate never be known.

Brian Winder is a family man with three grown-up sons and a long-suffering wife who is a French teacher. He was born and educated with degrees in Classics and Philosophy with the Jesuits in Ireland.

In his 20s he travelled in North Africa and most countries in Europe, and most interestingly in Russia when it opened its borders. He taught in a secondary school in Zambia and also worked in the copper mines in Zambia for 11 years and in London, after he specialised in computers and as an accountant.

After retirement, he devoted himself full-time over 25 years to volunteering with many roles in charities serving the homeless and addicts. His favourite hobby is country dancing.

The Clutterbutt and Flumpkin Appreciation Society is an adventure fantasy and young adult novel that tells the story of Guy Foulkstone, a spoiled rich kid, whose father has tried unsuccessfully to send to Tremerwick Towers. He, instead, attends Eleven Hills High with his friends Emma, Diana and Will, and while he keeps out of trouble and gets good grades, his father is happy. But strange, supernatural things lurk behind every corner...

Forced to face up to these unexpected events, Guy quickly comes to realise the truth and, in doing so, discovers some rather unexpected things about himself, as well. Are magic, witches, fairies and spells real? Come and join Guy on his journey and decide if magic is truly real or just smoke and mirrors.

Colin Ridyard spent his formative years in the idyllic foothills of the Snowdonia Mountain Range attending schools in both Caernarvon and Bangor. Very much a country boy at heart, he has fond memories of catching trout in the meandering mountain streams, gathering nuts and berries from overladen trees and bushes and drinking ice-cold, fresh water from the hillside springs. An accomplished academic as well as a novelist, Colin applied his love of nature to obtaining his PhD at the University of Exeter, where he used whole cell microbiological techniques to investigate ways of synthesizing novel antiviral active pharmaceutical ingredients. Then, after a stint working as a research chemist in manufacturing and a trouble shooter in the NHS, he went to work as a researcher in clinical trials at various universities. Working as a Research Fellow, Colin divides his time between writing novels and children's stories and working across various academic fields including randomised clinical trials, database design, data mapping, methodological development, and infection control. His research has resulted in several journal publication contributions and conference talks in the fields of paediatric intensive care and Type 1 Diabetes. In his free moments, Colin continues to train for his 2nd Dan in Shotokan Karate, spend time with his family and walk in his beloved Snowdonia Mountain Range.

Although Frank Bell thinks up lots of stories, The Adventures of James Bone Secret Agent was always his wife's favourite, and she has often encouraged him to get around to finding the time to write down the first adventure. This book is about the adventures of James and his cat and dog friends, working as secret agents to protect our county.

Frank chose Elena D'Cruze-Reynolds as the illustrator for The Adventures of James Bone as he really likes her detailed and quirky style.

Frank Bell, author of The Adventures of James Bone, Secret Agent, is a businessman. Whenever he is not at work, he loves to involve himself in creative or sporty things, whether it's writing, painting, gardening, cycling or playing tennis. When he's not busy doing this, he loves to spend time with his family and have fun with a few very close friends. He has been writing for a long time. He has created several children's books including two series of books called Panda Patrol and Louis The Lifeboat.

Elena D'Cruze-Reynolds, the illustrator of the book, lives in Carmarthenshire with her husband and two daughters. When she isn't cooking spaghetti, washing dishes, hanging out the laundry, being a taxi driver, nurse, referee or learning Welsh; she can be found in her creative space Y Stiwdio Mama, wearing an old bobble hat that keeps her cosy and like magic helps her find inspiration. There, alongside her three very attentive artist's assistants, also known as the goldfish (Tân Gwyllt, Morgan and Lyne), she submerges herself into the land of doodles.

Elena has illustrated and character-designed for Gomer Press, Baby Buzz Magazine, Mindful Ted and Jelly Cat. James Bone and The Italian Job is her debut children's book and she's very thrilled to have been part of his exciting adventure. What a daring dog he is!

If you want to see more of her art for the young and young at heart, pop over to her Facebook page: Live, Love & Doodle, she always loves welcoming new friends.

Escaping a crumbling marriage and a frigid Calgary winter, Shari Shapiro-a retired teacher and an Italian Jewish immigrant-flees to Puerto Vallarta (PV), Mexico. Despite the lush, vibrant surroundings, she grieves her mother's death. Since family ghosts appear whenever she enters a bathroom, death is never far from her thoughts. Yet she longs to embrace life again. She also struggles with issues faced by other baby boomers such as retirement.

Eager for tequila to dull her pain, Shari heads to a bar on Playa Los Muertos, Beach of the Dead. Here she meets Carlos, a skittish, but sexy, former revolutionary who mourns the death of his wife. He strongly resembles Subcomandante Marcos, the legendary Zapatista leader, a post-modern Che Guevara. Paramilitaries stalk Shari and Carlos and the danger grows as does their attraction to each other. Together they end up supporting Mexico's poverty-stricken beach vendors.

Elena Schacherl was born in Trieste, Italy, and immigrated to Canada as a young child. She now lives in Calgary, Alberta and travels to Puerto Vallarta every winter. After a post-graduate education in English and a career in non-profit management, about ten years ago Elena took on a new challenge-writing fiction. Since then, she's studied creative writing at Calgary's Alexandra Writers' Centre. She's also a member of the East Village Writers' Circle and the Writers' Guild of Alberta.

Elena has published several short stories. In 2017 "Swimming with Sharks" was included in the art book Printed Word, on permanent exhibit at the main branch of the Calgary Public Library. And "Let's Go" was accepted by Colorado's Living Springs Publishers' Baby Boomers Plus, Stories Through the Ages anthology. With her father Dr. Ugo Schacherl, she also co-translated from Italian to English, Giovanni Pascoli's poem "Psyche", published in the Sage of Consciousness E-zine.