My Friday Reads this week is the riverting crime mystery, Dead End by Gwyn Bennett, which will be published in November. Let’s find out a bit more about the book and start chatting to Gwyn.

Blurb

Just one wrong turn and her life will never be the same again…

Anna’s husband walked out on her two months ago. She’s now a single mother of a three-year-old, fighting to keep her job and a roof over their heads. She’s up for a promotion, and she needs it, but the universe has other plans.

Faced with a long tailback on her daily commute, Anna follows a car down what she thinks might be a way around the traffic. It’s a dead end, and she drives straight into a murder scene.

At first she’s willing to be a witness and help the police convict the high-profile killer, but after her son’s life is threatened, she pulls out.

What happens next is out of her control. She’s thrown into a world of lies, violence, and deceit; where not all the good guys are on her side, and her worst fears are used to manipulate her.

But even the toughest criminal is no match for a mother’s revenge.

Out on November 10!

Follow Gwyn on Amazon to be notified when Dead End and her other books are published:

https://www.amazon.com/author/gwynbennett

Gwyn is sharing an extrac with us, just to whet our appetite!

Prologue

When I look at my hands, they’re covered in blood. I smell it too, the rich iron-laden narrative of death, slowly pooling on the ground beside me. I look down at myself, there’s more blood on my clothes. It may have even splashed onto my cheek because that feels sticky in the slight breeze which brings the sounds of shouting and police sirens to my ears.

Six bullets to the chest and abdomen. No one can survive that.

My vision blurs and I feel myself slipping into unconsciousness.

Perhaps that’s a good thing. An escape from this reality. I should let my eyes close and then I won’t have to face up to what’s next.

But I have to.

Hasn’t this been all about justice?

Justice and revenge, and one terrible mistake.  

I just never thought it would end this way.

Your book sounds amazing, Gwyn, have you always wanted to be a writer?

Always. I think I wrote my first ‘book’ when I was about seven. I still have it and many of the subsequent attempts. I was also savvy enough to realise that it was likely I’d need a career to pay the bills, and some life experience under my belt, before I could make it as a writer. There weren’t the training opportunities then, like there are now. So, I did the next best thing and after Uni I became a journalist which meant that writing has always been my career; I’ve just kept up the fiction side at the same time as the factual.

It sounds like you’ve had an interesting career. What are you writing at the moment?

I’ve just finished Dead End, that’s a psychological thriller due for publication in November. I’m currently working on the third book in my Saskia Monet crime mystery series, set in Jersey, Channel Islands. That’s being published by Storm and the first one in that series is due out in October. Next, I need to write the ninth book in my Harrison Lane crime mystery series. He’s my hunky criminal psychologist who runs the Ritualistic Behavioural Crime unit.

You’re certainly very busy! What are your hobbies?

To be honest, I’m a workaholic. It’s taken my husband over twenty years to accept that he’s not going to change that about me. I work seven days a week, but my down time is spent walking my dog, whose plaintive nagging to go for a walk ensures I do stop writing. My other ‘hobby’ if you can call it that, is as a volunteer Asian Hornet tracker. In Jersey, we have unfortunately been inundated with these invasive insects which decimate our native pollinators and destroy bee hives. They’ve caused havoc in Europe and now the UK, and even the USA, are starting to get them too. In spring we trap queens that have emerged to try to stop them building nests, and in the summer, we track them so that we can locate their nests and destroy them. As of mid-September, we’re up to about 240 nests so far this year in our little nine-by-five mile island. I think it’s critically important for our natural and farming environment that we keep these insect predators under control.

How fascinating! Do you have any advice you’d give to other writers?

Perseverance is totally the key. It’s not an easy gig being a writer. You need to practice your craft first and then you need to get the book published. Nowadays we can indie publish or directly approach digital first publishers, which gives more options, but you’ve still got to ensure you are producing a polished and professionally edited and produced book. Next comes the marketing and building up your readership. Then, you have to do it over again. My advice would be to find some fellow authors who you can become friends with and who will support you through the whole process. I’m lucky enough to have two friends here in Jersey, we’ve called ourselves The Blonde Plotters. We’re always there for each other at that scary moment when you first put out a book and wait for the reviews, through to celebrating the good times and providing solace during the bad. In the end, I think the successful authors are those who just ‘have to’ write and keep on going no matter what because it’s a part of their DNA and they can’t stop. Becoming a published author is totally do-able, you’ve just got to sit your bum in the seat and do it.

I agree, Gwyn, a support system and lots of perseverance is vital. Thanks so much for dropping by to tell us about your book. Wishing you lots of success with it.

Meet Gwyn

Gwyn Bennett is an Amazon best-selling author who writes intriguing fast-paced character driven mysteries and thrillers.

She’s always been a writer, initially working as a broadcast journalist and newsreader for the BBC and ITN in London, before she was able to become a full-time fiction author. Gwyn undertakes a lot of research for her books, weaving fact in with the fiction in order to make them relatable to readers. Her favourite days are when she hears from people who have enjoyed her books and meeting the characters.

You’ll find more information about Gwyn on her website: www.gwynbennett.com and she can also be found on Facebook: gwyngbwriter, Instagram: GwynGB, and Tik Tok: gwyngbauthor

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