I’m very excited about a number of events coming up. The launch of ‘The Separation’ will take place on or around May 8th at Waterstones Cheltenham. The plan has yet to be confirmed, but the idea is for an evening launch at the store. I’m also looking forward to talking at the Calcot Manor Literary luncheon in May. In addition I’m thrilled that ‘The Separation’ has been chosen as the NHS bookclub book of the month for May, and I will be giving a talk at Penguin to the NHS. Watch out for my article in You magazine and a short story in the Sunday Express magazine too.

But before all that, I’m preparing for a research trip to Vietnam which is coming up very soon, and will be followed by a book tour in Norway. I am so pleased the Norwegian publishers invited me, as it will be my first book tour and I can’t wait to see Norway. So, as you can see, I’m very busy!

I’m also very happy to announce a talk I’m giving alongside the author Isabel Wolff, at Waterstones Windsor, on Wednesday April 23rd. Isabel is the author of ten successful novels and having read each other’s books we found that our books have a lot in common. As my novel ‘The Separation’ is set in Malaya during the ‘Emergency’ of the 1950s, and Isabel’s wonderfully moving new book, ‘Ghostwritten’ is set on Java, a few years before that, she and I will be doing some events together, with a ‘Novels Set in the Far East’ theme. Both books explore the lengths to which a mother will go to protect or find their children at times of war. I cried buckets reading hers and found out so much that I didn’t know. We will keep you posted about these events and others, and hope that some of you will come along. If Windsor is too out of the way, then our next scheduled event is on June 22nd at Waterstones Nottinghill. In the meantime we also have a Book Lover’s Supper Club event pencilled in.

Other news – I shall be recording a podcast (an audio interview) with Venetia Butterfield of Viking Penguin next week, and the week after Cotswold Life are coming to interview me. Better find something nice to wear. There are other bits and pieces in the pipeline, which I’ll either be posting here or on my Facebook page.