I am very excited to be sharing this post today, and welcoming fellow Bloodhound author Sarah Edghill to my Thursday Themes blog. Sarah’s latest novel was out last Thursday and you can read all about it below…
WHAT’S IN A NAME…?
At the launch party for my third book, my husband made a speech and got himself a big laugh by suggesting the book was in fact an autobiography. It was called The Bad Wife. I had to forgive him for the joke because, before he got in first, I’d been intending to use it myself.
My latest novel is called The Good Daughter, but there’s no way I’ll be claiming this title was chosen with me in mind. My protagonist, Eve, is in her mid-forties and sandwiched between her elderly mother and young son, trying to do her best by both of them, while holding down a full-time job and running a (slightly chaotic) house. She worries she is doing none of those things particularly well, but – like so many people in midlife – she has reached a stage where everyone wants a piece of her, and it feels as if there’s not much left to give.
When I submitted this book to my publisher, its working title was The Best Version of Me and, although I was initially disappointed when they insisted on the change, I quickly realised they were right. Titles are hugely important in publishing, partly because they help readers identify the genre of the book – once you know what you like reading, you start to recognise other books you may enjoy by their cover and title; it’s almost a form of reader-shorthand. But a really great title can also attract and intrigue potential readers, making them want to find out more. As a title, The Good Daughter is short, snappy and does what it says on the tin. And Eve – despite her fears that she’s letting everyone down – is a very good daughter, who discovers a family secret that makes her doubt everything she has believed about herself and her parents.
So, a title – along with a great cover – can make a book do what every book needs to do, which is stand out from the crowd. This was particularly important for The Good Daughter because my publication day, 10th October, was Super Thursday – which is the heaviest publication day of the year. I’ve no idea why so many books are officially launched on this one specific day, but this year, an incredible 1900 books were published on the same day as mine, from fiction by Ian Rankin and Kate Mosse, to memoirs by Alison Steadman and Rick Astley. Oh yes, and some bloke called Boris Johnson had a book out on that day too.
As an author, this sort of thing can make you want to curl up into a ball and hide in a corner. How is anyone going to find my little book when a) there are already so many great books out there, and b) there are so many other books coming out today? But in such a saturated market, all you can do is hope for the best, and know that with a great title and an eye-catching cover, you’ve given your book the very best chance of grabbing some attention.
About the Book:
THE GOOD DAUGHTER
How much can one woman take?
Being a good mother and a good daughter is pushing Eve to her limits; when she discovers a devastating family secret, something has to give…
Eve is struggling. As she reaches her mid-forties, there isn’t much to celebrate. She has been forced to move her elderly mother into a care home and is juggling a stressful job while taking care of her son, Daniel, who is acting up. Worse still, her ex-partner Ben – now enjoying a perfect life with his new family – blames Eve for their son’s reckless behaviour and accuses her of being a bad mother.
Then, while sorting through her mother’s flat, which needs to be sold to pay for her care, Eve stumbles across a long-buried family secret that threatens to bring down the finally balanced house of cards…
From bestselling author Sarah Edghill, comes a drama addressing the challenges of being sandwiched between your children and your parents. Everyone needs something from Eve, but she hasn’t got much left to give…
About the Author:
Sarah Edghill worked as a journalist for many years, before starting to write fiction. She has been short-listed in several short story and novel competitions and lives in Gloucestershire with her husband, three (mostly grown-up) children and far too many animals. Her debut novel, A Thousand Tiny Disappointments, was published in September 2021 and her second, His Other Woman, was a Kindle Best Seller in May 2022. Since then, she has published The Bad Wife, Memory Road and The Pool, and all are available as e-books and paperbacks via Amazon.
The Good Daughter is her sixth novel, available to order via The Good Daughter (geni.us)
FB – Sarah Edghill Author
I @sarah.edghill
X @Edghillsarah http://www.sarahedghill.com
