Today for #HistFicThursdays, I am delighted to once again be teaming up with The Coffee Pot Book Club , this time to share an excerpt from SP Somtow 's fantastic new book Nero and Sporus ! First of all, let's meet the book... Finally available in one volume! The decadence of Imperial Rome comes to life in S.P. Somtow's Literary Titan Award-winning novel about one of ancient history's wildest characters. The historian Suetonius tells us that the Emperor Nero emasculated and married his slave Sporus, the spitting image of murdered Empress Poppaea. But history has more tidbits about Sporus, who went from "puer delicatus" to Empress to one Emperor and concubine to another, and ended up being sentenced to play the Earth-Goddess in the arena. Nero and Sporus is available on #KindleUnlimited via this link . And here's an excerpt to whet your appetite: I suppose we were anxious to see who the surprise competitor would be, but no one was as surprise...
Craggy the Coo was given to me as a Christmas present by my mum way back in 2017. She knitted him from scratch, using her own artistry to produce the woolly mammal who ā almost three and a half years later ā is about to be unleashed to a brand new audience. I canāt really remember how Craggyās evolution began. But I remember thinking from the moment I held him in my hands that I ought to repay my mumās creativity and generosity in kind.
The wee coo whose adventures are documented in my first ever book took his first steps out of my hometown of Langholm, Dumfries and Galloway in early January 2018, and heās never looked back. Iāve packed him in the coo-themed case (well, wash bag if Iām honest) that keeps him safe on each trip Iāve taken around Scotland. And he got to experience some of my favourite parts of the country, in order that I could share those places with a generation of young readers.
The idea of travelling widely, armed with a healthy dose of curiosity but a sense that someday Iād like to settle in the perfect place, is one that I found easy to translate to Craggy from my own experience. Prior to 2017, I had spent several years living and working overseas as a producer for CNN. I travelled first to Hong Kong, then to Abu Dhabi and finally to Atlanta in the USA before deciding to return to where I belong. Seeing the world has given me an even greater appreciation of my homeland. And itās an appreciation I am passionate about nurturing in others. My first job was in marketing for the national tourism agency, VisitScotland, and Iāve never shaken off that need to shout about where I come from.
So Craggy has stopped off in several of the places I love to spend time in myself, from the bustle of our two biggest cities to the heights of majestic Suilven in Sutherland. Heās mingled with the comical puffins on Lunga in the Treshnish Isles, and sailed on the mysterious waters of Loch Ness, in search of the ever-elusive Nessie.
Since I returned from my adventures overseas, Iāve rarely been abroad myself. Iāve attended the odd Scotland rugby match in Paris and Rome. Iāve made one trip to Southeast Asia but returned to a ten-day spell in the Infectious Diseases Unit of Edinburghās Western General Hospital, thanks to a bug that found its way up my leg from a toe wound! So Iām generally safer and happier holidaying at home these days. And having set my sights on writing my first novel, taking in so much native soil, Iāve been given the perfect excuse to do so.
Craggyās own journey has been a long time in the making since that wonderful and inspirational Christmas gift. And Iād like to thank the team at Crowvus for believing in the wee coo and the middle-aged bloke who penned his story. Getting to share that story with the world has been worth the wait. Iām glad Craggy finally found a home, and Iām equally glad the book found a home with Crowvus. I canāt wait for the woolly traveller to find his way into your homes too.
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There's still time to pre-order Craggy!
Thank you, Nicol, for this great introduction to an adorable little cow. Can't wait to share Craggy's adventures with my granddaughter.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan! All feedback (brutal or otherwise) is very welcome!
DeleteI love that coo! And my mother's maiden name was Nicolson (from Skye originally).
ReplyDeleteHello! Yes, we love Craggy, too - remarkably well-travelled for such a wee coo! Even the old drove roads couldn't have taken him further.
DeleteI love small-world stories, and I think the Scottish diaspora really lends itself to them!
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