If you’ve followed this blog, you’ll be aware that I mix personal interest with purely food and culinary content. One of my hobbies is writing and my tenth book called ‘The Platinum Pirate’ has been released. Here’s a bit about it.
The Platinum Pirate -‘The Island Connection #8’
Joseph Adebayo is looking for investment money for The Foundation when he is savagely beaten by his fellow diners. The incident sees DI Sarah Flemons and DC Penny Chakyar investigating at The Foundation where a previous mystery is solved but a new mystery comes to light. Meanwhile, Al Callow leads a group of people who steal £15 million of platinum. But all is not as it seems, and Al’s wife, Paula, has other ideas. The owner of the platinum wants his precious metal back and hires The Vicar to get the information he needs. However, he misjudges events and finds that his platinum has taken on a strange new shape. Meanwhile, Craig, a hard-drinking, hard-hitting Australian tries to steal the platinum but Al is wise to him as Craig soon discovers. And while everybody is chasing their tails, Al and his new love, Carla, are having a ball.
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THE PLATINUM PIRATE
After a few moments, two cars approached. Al recognised the lead car as Tyler’s flashy Jag. The angle of the sun and the tinted windows turned the men inside into dark shapes. It was impossible to see if anybody was in the back: there could easily be another guy or two back there. Both cars turned onto the cobbled surface of the breakwater and drew to a halt a few metres from him. Tyler and a heavy-built man with a shaved head and a tattoo curling behind his right ear and rolling down his neck stepped from the first car. Mr Tattoo stood with legs apart then shuffled forwards like a boxer preparing to spa. The rear doors opened and two more heavyweights emerged.
Stan Clague and Al’s wife, Paula, stepped out of the smaller car behind. Nicholas Tyler approached Al.
“Well now, Mr Callow, what do we make of this then?”
“Make of what, Tyler?”
“What do we make of the fact that you are outnumbered?”
“Numbers count for nothing, Tyler. Agility, strength, speed: they all count for something though. And what are Marty Feldman and my ex-wife doing here? They have nothing more to do with this.”
Paula said, “I needed to come to some agreement with you, Al, but you’ve cut me off completely—”
“Well what the hell do you expect, you stupid bitch. You were double-dealing me. I have copies of all the emails between you, Tyler and Clarence the Cross-Eyed Lion here. So I simply planned and executed a double-cross of my own. Now, let me try again. What the hell are you doing here?”
Paula looked down at the ground. “I came to try and talk you into giving Mr Tyler his platinum back. He’ll pay you according to the original deal, and there’ll be no ill feelings.”
“You’re bloody joking aren’t you? You wasted your time coming here to say that?”
“I also came to apologise for Bruce.”
“What? What’s with Bruce?”
“He’s dead,” Tyler said. “Which is how we knew that you’d be here now, waiting for your fellow criminals.”
“Yeah, well I didn’t want anything like that to happen,” Paula said.
Al shook his head. “You played with the big boys, Paula, and you got your fingers burned. Tough shit. Anything else you want to say to me?”
“There is nothing I can say that you will want to hear, so I think it’s best if I don’t say anything,” she sighed.
“How convenient,” Al snorted. “I’d hate to make you feel uncomfortable in any way for being a double-crossing bitch.”
Nicholas Tyler addressed himself to Stan Clague. “Get her out of the way, Stan. I only let her come because I thought it might convince Callow to change his mind.”
“That plan’s not working too well then, is it?” Al said, as Stan and Paula reversed their car along the breakwater. “So you’ve killed Bruce and now you plan to kill me too, eh?”
“Certainly not,” Tyler said. “You wouldn’t be standing there brazen and bold if you didn’t have information about me somewhere – to be found only in the event of your untimely death of course.”
Al nodded and smiled.
“So I’m here simply to take back what belongs to me. My three associates are here to ensure that you don’t stop me from boarding your boat.”
“Go ahead,” Al said. “Knock yourself out.”
Nicholas Tyler nodded to the three heavyweights. “Keep an eye on Mr Callow for me. If he tries to follow me, please use force to detain him.”
Image used and published according to the licence granted by the artist
Web of Tangled Blood stretches the nerves as Florence and Ken rekindle old feelings and old desires while they search for their lost son. But there is more than one elephant in the room as they struggle to understand their past. Meanwhile, Florence’s brother is making life as difficult as he can and it is only by bringing Harry (Harriet) Lewis over from her home on the Isle of Man that Florence and Ken can begin to make sense of the mutitude of problems that beset them. But Harry has her own issues to deal with.
Chicken Rock doesn’t figure in Sarah and her police partner Penny’s thoughts when they go on an advanced drift dive. However, they are separated from the other divers by whirling currents and find themselves lost at sea in a thick mist. Their only chance of survival is to get to Chicken Rock, a tiny reef surrounded by vicious tidal surges and whirling vortexes. Can they survive the experience? Meanwhile, at The Foundation, Joseph Adebayo has broken the rules and his punishment is to spend two weeks in solitary confinement. But Joseph is tempted by a possible escape route that is more dangerous than he can imagine – as he discovers when the water covers his head.
Sarah gets a new police partner called Penny, and her initial reaction is not good since the new girl has the same name as her former partner and friend who was killed by jihadists six years previously. However, Penny proves to be a good match for Sarah as they are sent on a hunt for the truth into The Dordogne region of France. Meanwhile, Hjalmar’s past has caught up with him again in the form of The Vicar. But now, Hjalmar’s using his computer skills to track a group of influential paedophiles, and deals are made so that the past can be forgotten. When he sees Penny, he loses more than just a few fingers – he loses his heart. Will it end in happiness, or will it end in tears?
Sod’s Law could go wrong! After a fine Full English Breakfast, we arrived at the train station in Douglas to find it overrun with strange people wearing duffle coats and bottle glass spectacles. They were walking round saying things like “Oooh” and “Ahhhh” to each other – and that was before they even got on the train. And all because it was a special journey to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the re-opening of the Isle of Man Railway by the Marquess of Ailsa after its entire closure at the end of 1965. Without Lord Ailsa’s personal financial support from 1967 until 1973, the south line to Port Erin would not have survived for everyone to enjoy. Everyone except Ian, Caroline nd Alfie that is!
On the morning in question, their train was not only full, but they had to quickly add more carriages. Far from being able to stretch out and enjoy the spectacular scenery, Ian and Caroline were squashed into a carriage full of train spotters. “Oh look, Doris, our engine is a Beyer Peacock, 2-4-0T, with the special Alisa Green livery.” And what a surprise. So it was!
A disgruntled army Colonel threatens the island with the most toxic chemical agent ever synthesized. But worse is yet to come as an even more dangerous threat becomes apparent. The Devil’s Helmet is the code name for a toxin that is so lethal it could wipe out the whole population of the Isle of Man. And the man who is going to release it is never what he seems. Meanwhile Rolien is trying to find Hjalmar. But she’s not the only one as Hjalmar’s past threatens to catch up with him.
everything you need to make a good book is there
I have just started the Devil’s helmet. The first …
Our grand-daughter, Lily, the girl in pink, has been with us for ten days and we’ve had lot of fun chasing round châteaux and eating good meals outside in the sun. Elêonore, one of our French grand-daughters, heads home tomorrow and I shall take Lily back to Scotland the day after. Meanwhile, we had just one more surprise in store… Lily had asked a couple of times whether it was possible to go Eurodisney and we’d had to explain that, with it being the Easter school holidays, they were already pre-booked. What we hadn’t told her was that we were amongst those who had pre-booked! So today, we told her we were going to visit a park on the other side of Paris (not a lie!) and after a ride on the train, she suddenly opened her eyes to discover we were in EuroDisney. Bless, her, she was gobsmacked!
For us old ones, it was a long, tiring day, but for the two girls, it was a day of laughter and fun, and that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? Mind you, the girls going for two rides on Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was great for us, since it gave us a breather and time to rest a little before the grand parade. We don’t see too much of our Scottish grandchildren so ten days with Lily was like a breath of fresh air. She and Elêonore were good for each other; both immersing themselves in the other’s culture.
Of course, we couldn’t let the holiday go without suggesting that Lily try a snail! Well credit to the girl she did exactly that. It didn’t work out too well, because she immediately decided that snails were not for her, but at least she had a go. It did nothing to spoil her appetite, however. After rejecting a snail, Lily ate ‘paupiettes de veau’ (minced pork wrapped in veal) with lots of vegetables and gravy – followed by a bucket of strawberries (the girl has a thing for strawberries!).
One of the first things we did was to head down to Orleans where our French Grandchildren live. Clémence is 19 and Eléonore is 14. The plan was for Eléonore to spend a week with us so she and Lily could enjoy their holidays together. To see the two of them (Eléonore and Lily) together is like looking at a pair of sisters, and (thanks to Eléonore’s strong English) they got on just fine. By the way, yesterday, my iPad disappeared for a few moments. Now I know why… it seems to have taken that photo of the pair of them all by itself!
Eléonore’s father, Vincent, is a hunter – their freezer is full of wild boar. So on the weekend we stopped with them in order to collect Eléonore, they served wild boar for Sunday lunch. Now I have a good appetite, and a second helping of ‘sanglier’ was well in order. But I wasn’t the only one! Lily helped herself again, and again, and again, an again! FIVE helpings of sanglier later, she declared herself ready for dessert. And she’s only a little slip of a thing! Vincent has the tusks of the first boar he ever shot, mounted on a small wooden plaque. He explained to Lily who (due maybe to a slight misunderstanding in the transalation) decide that they came from the boar she had just eaten. She was impressed.
For a starter, we decided on 
For our main course, we indulged in a glorious 
Bonnezeaux is recognised as a leading appellation. The steep, south- facing slopes and the outstanding thermal properties of the shallow soils encourage early development and over-ripe harvests which gives a sweet white wine. Intensely coloured; soft gold, developing coppery highlights over time. As they age, Bonnezeaux wines develop notes of acacia, verbena and orange peel before reaching an extraordinary level of aromatic complexity with notes of ripe quince, cooked apricot, caramel and tropical fruit and an underlying layer of spice. As an aperitif, with pan-fried foie gras, shellfish, fish in creamy sauces, blue cheese,and desserts with pears or almonds Bonnezeaux is ideal. The bottle we drank was luscious and powerful with a robust, full body, giving a perfect balance of richness and vibrancy. Lovely way to finish the meal.
China in Her hand explores unconventional personal relationships in an unusual situation. The story is about revenge and what happens when two strong-minded women join together to punish the man who has harmed them. Sparks can fly, particularly when the man has no idea he is being punished… until it’s too late. But interwoven into the fabric of the story we look at the very essence of love and hate. For many, there will be questions about morality and a social underworld that they know nothing about. But this is the twenty-first century and it’s time to put old prejudices behind you.