Tangled Tuesday-Guest Author Carol Browne

An Elf’s Lament Upon Leaving & Other Tales

BLURB

This little anthology of short stories and poems was originally published as an experiment. I had not been able to find a publisher for my novel and thought self-publishing on Kindle might be the way forward. First of all, I needed to try out the procedure, so I collected a number of stories and poems I had written over the years and put them all in an eBook.

I write about the things that interest me – animals, nature, magic, history, astrology – so there is no set theme for this anthology, but I do like my short stories to have a twist in the ending.

The poem I decided to open with, An Elf’s Lament Upon Leaving, gave me the idea for the title. The cover photograph was one I had taken myself back in the 1980s. I had always liked it and even suspected it might one day be perfect for a book cover. I wasn’t able to correctly format the text, however, although I’ve been told it makes no difference to its readability.

As for my novel, The Exile of Elindel, it did get accepted by a publisher after all.

EXCERPT

Martin found just the spell he needed. It was in a very old book, wedged among countless other volumes at the rear of the occult bookshop.

     
He pulled the book from its hiding-place. ‘Eight Ways to Magic’, proclaimed the title. The book cracked in protest, as Martin pried it open. His eyes flicked hungrily down the list of contents and widened as they reached Chapter Six – Love Spells.

     
Martin glanced warily around the shop, as though fearful of discovery, but, apart from an elderly lady squinting at a book on Flower Magic, he was quite alone. And the proprietor, a raw-boned man whose fuzz of grey hair ringed the summit of his skull like a helm-cloud, was engrossed in a book catalogue at the counter, his long nose like a spike of bone wearing spectacles.

     
Martin’s fingers fumbled their way through age-thickened pages until they reached Chapter Six. And there it was: spell number eight. How to attract the lover of your choice.

     
He closed the book, hugged it to his chest and made for the counter, his heart quickening with excitement.

     
Now, Debbie Starsmore, he thought, you shall be mine.

AUTHOR BIO

Carol Browne first appeared on the planet in 1954. She regards Crewe, Cheshire, as her home town and graduated from Nottingham University in 1976 with an honours degree in English Language and Literature. Now living in the Cambridgeshire countryside with her dog, Harry, and cockatiel, Sparky, when she’s not writing fiction, Carol spends her time as a housekeeper, proofreader, and ghost writer in order to pay the bills. Pagan and vegan, Carol believes it is time for a paradigm shift in our attitude to Mother Nature and hopes the days of speciesism are numbered. Carol's first novel 'The Exile of Elindel' was published by Musa Publishing on 18th April 2014. This eBook is part one of her fantasy series - The Elwardain Chronicles.

BUY LINKS (Elf’s Lament)

Amazon USA

Amazon UK


My Review of Carol Browne's book

I had the pleasure of reading An Elf's Lament Upon Leaving and Other Tales. Here's my review:

★ 5 Stars ★

Very atmospheric writing. The poetry is steeped in a love of nature, magic and mythology. The short stories hold interesting twists. No spoilers! The Boomerang Effect (dabbling with a love spell, Martin Nevis finds himself having second thoughts) A Force to Be Reckoned With (an outcast with thoughts of being "destined for something great" wants to join the police force) and Transformation (once bullied, Patricia attends a school reunion and emerges victorious) were my favorites.
Give this collection a read, you won't be disappointed.