Guest Post by Faith Mortimer - author of 'Paradise Prison' (@FaithMortimer)

Published 7 January 2017

It’s a pleasure to welcome to the blog, author Faith Mortimer, whose latest book Paradise Prison was published yesterday. Paradise Prison is the fourth book in the ‘Dark Minds’ series however each book can be read as a standalone.

Faith has provided an introductory post …. so over to you Faith.

Hello Karen. May I just say how nice it is to be featured on your blog today? I am indeed honoured and appreciate it immensely. Thank you.

A little bit about myself.

I was born in Manchester, England. I had an exciting childhood spent on Royal Air Force camps around the Globe. I think this first kindled my lifelong enthusiasm for seeing new places and people. After returning home from school in Singapore, I attended a Grammar School in Hampshire and left full time education with only a handful of ‘O’ levels but a wealth of interests.

I qualified as a Registered nurse before starting a family, and later changed careers and ran a number of sport related holiday companies. Hence my passion for sailing and snow skiing. During this time, I became a qualified Yacht Master and when my husband took early retirement we upped and set sail for foreign lands. I studied for a Science degree on board our sailing yacht and being fortunate enough to gain my degree I then felt confident to write my first full length novel, The Crossing (The Seeds of Time and Harvest).

I set high importance in the setting of my books as I believe it adds to the richness of a story. I firmly believe that having lived in foreign climes and meeting other races, broadens, and kindles the mind of both writer and reader. This leads on to writing about modern day as we know it, including horror stories about rape, murder, drugs, human trafficking, and the illegal sale of body parts. These problems are so vast that many countries are completely out of control socially. Although the subject matter is shocking and disheartening I believe we shouldn’t ignore the suffering of millions. By writing about these topics it is my small way of opening people’s eyes. Knowledge is power after all.

My latest book is Paradise Prison and the 4th in My Dark Minds Psychological Thriller series. (It is to be published on January 7th.) These books are all standalone and each has a completely new set of characters for each novel. I try not to be too graphic with the Dark Mind series instead playing heavily on the mind of the protagonist, hence the psychological effect.

Paradise Prison is set in the Caribbean, on a fictitious island off the coast of Columbia…a short book blurb:

During a huge row, Gillian stands up to her abusive boyfriend. The consequences are horrendous and far-reaching. Terrified, she flees her home, seeking anonymity abroad while coming to terms with the outcome of her actions.
In Portugal, Gillian meets Harry, a yachtsman, needing crew for his Atlantic Ocean-crossing. She applies for the job. Half-way into the journey, after talking about her crime, Harry offers her refuge on an uninhabited island in the Caribbean which he says he owns.
Confused and depressed, Gillian imagines this is the answer to her problems. She needs time to lie low and consider her options; confront the authorities or live in obscurity? Harry is offering the perfect hiding place…or is he?

When things start going horribly wrong, she asks herself if she is alone on the island. But maybe the biggest question of all is why she gets the gut feeling Harry wants to keep her there at all costs?
What happens when she says … no.

Thank you, Karen, and thank you everyone for dropping by! X