Give a signed copy of one of my adult or children’s books to your loved one this Christmas. For a limited period my adult novels will be selling at £7 each and children’s books £5 each, with £2 for postage in the UK (children’s books will be £2 postage for up to 2 books at a time). Foreign postage will be £7 for adult books and £5 for up to two children’s books. In addition, I have a small number of large print books for the visually impaired – The Jazz Files, The Kill Fee and The Death Beat (The Cairo Brief will be released in the New Year). These are £10 each plus £2 postage in the UK, and £7 abroad. Choose the book/s of your choice from the column to the right and then message me with your request – contact form on ‘about’ page. Simples! First come first served…
The Peace Garden and the Soweto Riots 40 years on
Today is the 40th anniversary of the Soweto Uprising – 16 June 1976. That infamous point in history, when black school children demonstrated for the right to be taught in English, forms an integral part of my literary thriller The Peace Garden, about a young English girl who befriends a South African political exile. If you would like a ‘novel’ take on how that day 40 years ago impacted one family for three generations, this is the story for you. Click here to get the book The Peace Garden
![](By <a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Nzima" title="Sam Nzima">Sam Nzima</a> - Dzambukira, Proud (November 5, 2006). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/bhlasen/article.php?id_art=16&id_reg=4&id_top=83">"Remember, Remember the Fifth of November"</a>. Harvard Computer Society.<span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AFile%3AHector+pieterson.jpg&rft.aufirst=Proud&rft.aulast=Dzambukira&rft.btitle=Remember%2C+Remember+the+Fifth+of+November&rft.date=2006-11-05&rft.genre=unknown&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hcs.harvard.edu%2Fbhlasen%2Farticle.php%3Fid_art%3D16%26id_reg%3D4%26id_top%3D83&rft.pub=Harvard+Computer+Society&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook" class="Z3988"></span>, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27740971 "Hector_pieterson")
Signed novels for Mothers’ Day
Mothers’ Day in the UK is early this year. Sunday 6 March. How about giving your mum or mum-in-law a signed copy of one of my novels. ‘The Peace Garden’ is a romantic thriller set alternately in England and Apartheid South Africa. ‘The Jazz Files’ is a mystery set in 1920s London against the background of the Suffragettes. The Peace Garden is a slightly ‘edgier’ read. The Jazz Files slightly lighter. If you would like more information on what the books are about, click on the images on the right hand side of this page under ‘Fiona’s books’. I can sign to your mother of choice and post off to you. £10 inclusive of P&P. Message me if you’re interested.
The Peace Garden
In all of the buzz around the autumn release of The Jazz Files I almost missed this lovely review of my ‘first child’ The Peace Garden. It’s a romantic thriller cum coming-of-age novel set against the backdrop of Apartheid. Although it came out in 2011 people are still buying and reading it. It’s a special book to me as – although it’s not autobiographical – it contains so much of my feelings about living in South Africa, and England. Thank you Belinda for a thoughtful review. The reviewer, Belinda Chaplin, is a South African living in Bosnia so knows a bit about being a ‘stranger in a foreign land’. Read The Peace Garden review here.
A cracker of a crime thriller
A lovely review of The Peace Garden from the Bookaholic ‘A cracker of a crime thriller’
‘This is a book on two levels. At its most basic it is about a young girl who sets out to investigate why plants are going missing in an English suburb. This seemingly simple premise leads to an exciting thriller which takes the reader on a roller coaster ride. It plays out in both England and South Africa. This is during the apartheid era and the depiction of life for black South Africans during this time is superb. The characters are well rounded and come across as real. The reader can almost palpably feel the anger emanating from Thabo, a young Black teenager. Natalie, the main character is also real and the reader sees her grow and develop throughout the book.
The settings also play a large part in the book. They are beautifully drawn and the reader can imagine them perfectly. Veitch Smith contrasts them and then skillfully pulls them together.
Fiona Veitch Smith is an excellent writer and I look forward to reading more from her. This is a book I can highly recommend.’
Click on the image of the book below or in the right-hand menu to buy it.
Mamphela Ramphele and The Peace Garden
I’m very happy to see that Dr Mamphela Ramphele, the partner of the late Steve Biko, and former managing director of the World Bank, is standing for the presidential candidature of the Democratic Alliance in South Africa. Her autobiography, ‘A Life’, had a profound impact on me when I first read it 15 years ago and was the inspiration for much of the middle section of my novel ‘The Peace Garden’. The character of Poppy Fakile is loosely based on her experiences as a young woman. Do read it, it’s inspiring (Dr Ramphele’s book, not mine – but hey, if you want to read mine too, go for it!)
Here is The Peace Garden on Amazon or from the Crafty Publishing website. If you buy it from the Crafty website I can sign it to you or your loved one if you leave a note …
