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With the publication date of my new book, The Cherry Blossom Murder, galloping towards us (It's coming out in February - I'll let you know the exact day soon) I've started to spread my wings with a new website, . Take a look and let me know what you think!



The proof copies of the paperback arrived just before Christmas: Only one typo, and not a serious one so I'm going to leave it in there. If you buy the paperback, let me know if you spot it!




The matte cover shows off the design (by ) really well. Here's what the back looks like:



With help from a Japanese friend (whose blog about the food in her daughter's nursery,is full of wonderful pictures of delicious and healthy-looking food), I now have a Japanese version of the blurb which you can find underon .



Not that I'm publishing The Cherry Blossom Murder in Japanese (not just yet, anyway). It's so that my Japanese friends can get an idea what it's about.



It was interesting translating the title into Japanese. In the end I went for a title that translates back as Murder under the Cherry Trees. That's because, while cherry blossom means Japan to us, in Japan has different overtones, meaning something that's sophisticated, elegant and desirable. So if I'd gone for a literal translation the meaning would have changed.



2014 is a great year to be publishing a book that focuses on the Takarazuka Revue as they reach their 100th anniversary in April. I'll be adding more information to the on my new website as the year goes on, and of course making a big splash on the actual anniversary on 1st April. It was wanting to tell people more about the amazing story of the Takarazuka Revue that got me started writing.



The picture below is the statue of Oscar and Andre, the lead characters of The Rose of Versailles, Takarazuka's most famous show. It's on the Flower Path outside the Grand Theatre, just along from where Josie finds the body in The Cherry Blossom Murder.



What next? The paperback is done, the ebook is uploaded and ready to go. I'll let you know the publication date in a few weeks time. Both versions will be available on Amazon.



Some of you have asked about pre-ordering; sadly, Amazon only allows pre-ordering for established authors, so you'll have to wait for publication day. Not long now!
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