SHOPPING & BUSINESS NEWS: SUMMER BOOKS SPECIAL
Axis publisher writes debut novel set in the near future One of the publishers of Axis magazine has just released his debut novel, which is set partly in Hertfordshire. Outside, by Aaron Gransby, has been published in hardback by Gerard Books and is also available in paperback and as an ebook on Amazon. The book is set in a near future society where the economic powerhouse of The City, administered by an unelected government called The Board, dominates the nation. When journalist Rory Kennet begins to investigate the disappearance of a blameless civil servant on behalf of a friend he finds himself Removed from The City. He has to adjust to a new life on the Outside, away from the riches of the 24/7 metropolis, where he vows to uncover the truth behind The Board’s Removals policy. It is an investigation which in turn sheds a new light on his whole existence. Aaron said: “I’m hoping that Outside will make people think a bit about where our society is heading, particularly after the last few difficult years. But anyone buying the book will find it’s a
highly readable thriller which can be enjoyed on that level too.” The striking cover artwork is by the renowned London-based artist and printmaker John Duffin.
WHERE TO BUY YOUR COPY A limited edition hardback of Outside can be ordered direct from Aaron via his website (aarongransby.com) at £14.99. It is also available to buy now from stock at The Book Nook, 65 High Street, Ware and it can be ordered through other bookshops including Waterstones. A paperback (£7.99) and ebook (£3.99) are available on Amazon.
Author Aaron Gransby, photographed by Edmond Terakopian
Former bookshop owner turns author with new Sherlock Holmes story
Ex-journalist swaps news for ewes in memoir on her new farming life
The former owner of a bookshop in Sawbridgeworth has just published his new novel. Neville Twitchell, who writes under the pen name Simon Trelawney, has written a Sherlock Holmes book called Sherlock Holmes and the Ciphered List. Neville, who lives in Harlow and used to run the former Sawbridge Words bookshop in Bell Street from 2015 to 2018, wrote the book chiefly during lockdown. He has always been interested in Sherlock Holmes, having read all the books, and says he is “steeped in Sherlock Holmes-lore,” adding: “I had an idea for a story that I really wanted to write so I went for it.” In the book, Holmes looks into the case of a woman who holds
A journalist who swapped her office-based life in Hertfordshire for a cow-milking career in Northern Ireland has written a book about her adventures. Former Hertfordshire resident Holly Crawford (née Kernot) moved away in 2020 when she married Paul Crawford, a vet and sheep farmer from Northern Ireland. Her new book, called Stuck In The Middle With Ewe, details how she went from city journalist to a milker of cows, freelance writer and a lamb and sheep foster-mum. Holly said: “I realised that being able to take a shorthand note or report on a news story wasn’t too helpful when standing in the middle of a field surrounded by ewes. So, I learned to deliver lambs and
herself responsible for the death of a blackmailer Holmes believes to have been an aide to the head of a German spy ring. Set against the backdrop of the mounting tension in international affairs in the 1890s, it is one of Holmes’s most politically sensitive cases. The book costs £10.99 in paperback and can be bought from the publisher at breesebooks.com or on Amazon.
went to milk cows and I love it. “I hope my story will make people laugh, smile and remind them that it’s never too late to make a fresh start, find true love or learn to lamb.” Stuck In The Middle With Ewe is published by The Conrad Press at £9.99 and can be ordered from bookshops. It is also available in paperback and ebook format from Amazon. axis magazine 13
