POWER OF AUDIO

Last summer, the wonderful John Banks narrated NEON, courtesy of Orion Fiction. This year, like buses that come along all at once, Apple released ‘A Deadly Trade and Final Target,’ both narrated with super deadly style by Ben Onwukwe. This was followed by ‘SIX’ narrated by gifted Simon Mattacks – love his northern accents. To say that all narrators bring to life my stories is an understatement. I’ve heard anecdotally that some writers aren’t keen on the way their books are portrayed in audio, but I have absolutely no complaints. I find it a bit like settling down to listen to a radio play. How narrators manage to convey as many as three different tones and pitches in a single scene leaves me awe-struck. 

Apart from this, I can report that rights to NEON have been bought by Albatros, Czech Republic, which, added to Germany, Poland and Russia, is deeply satisfying. 

Editing work continues to keep me out of mischief by day. I’m reading more for pleasure now than at any time during the pandemic. Of writing, I’d be telling fibs if I told you that I was hard at it. But that’s okay because I have a big idea bubbling and taking shape while I dig the garden, clear the cobwebs and generally do things I’ve put off for too long.  

Detective-led fiction aka police procedurals are as popular as ever. Consequently, agents and publishers are keen to have writers on their books who can deliver in what is a deeply competitive genre. And so it was with a measure of excitement that I watched  ‘GRACE,’ an adaptation of Peter James’s superlative novels, which hit the small screen this week. Originally, and somewhat confusingly, I’d thought the story was to be split into a couple of episodes but, no, some wise bod decided that it should run in its entirety over a two-hour slot; another complete story to feature later in the year. Even the commercial breaks weren’t too intrusive. 

In the lead role, John Simm (Life on Mars) plays Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. I confess that he didn’t immediately conform to my idea of James’s main protagonist, but as the story got underway, I changed my mind. Understated, slightly vulnerable and yet on top of his professional game in a way that he clearly isn’t in his personal life, his was a great performance and brought something extra to the role. No spoilers here but if you are claustrophobic, (I was positively hyperventilating in certain scenes and thinking about opening a window) you have been warned! Characterisation is cracking.  Plotting is superb. The narrative is taut, ensuring that the viewer is on the edge of his or her seat. If you haven’t watched it already, I urge you to do so. Better still, just buy the books.