I am delighted today to welcome back my lovely friend, Val Penny to my Thursday Themes blog as part of her tour with Bittersweet Book Tours.
Val joins me to talk about the themes of her new Jane Renwick novel…
Jo. thank you so much for inviting me to your blog today to tell your readers about my new book, A Fighting Chance. This is the second book in my series of Jane Renwick Thrillers and it is often said that the second book is much more difficult to write than the first book, and so it was with this one, and I think I know why.
Jane was originally a character in my DI Hunter Wilson Crime Thrillers, but I became so fond of her that I wanted to create a new series in which she was the main protagonist. When I wrote the first ‘Jane’ book, The First Cut, it was well received by readers and reviewers alike and so I knew that I had done a good job of telling Jane’s story. So when it came to writing A Fighting Chance, I was afraid of not meeting the high bar I had set myself.
Eventually, my publishers, SpellBound Books Ltd., set me a firm deadline and I had no more time to indulge in revising and changing the manuscript. The work had to be finished.
I was glad when I finally sent off the story to my editor and, although the book needed an extra round of editing, I was delighted to share Jane’s second story with the world. The editor made several changes but amongst the things that didn’t change throughout the writing and editing process were the themes of A Fighting Chance.
The most important themes in my book are positive ones, love, friendship and family. These are portrayed by love Jane, and her wife Rachael have for one another, the love mothers have for their children and the love Annie has for Brian. Then there is the friendship between police colleagues and some of the women in the prison. The theme of the importance of family is illustrated by the reaction of families to the fates of the victims.
However, of course, as would be expected in thrillers there are bound to be negative themes, and A Fighting Chance is no different in this respect. These include crime, revenge and morality. Crime is depicted by the murders and the drug crimes that are central to the story whereas revenge occurs when DC Brian Harris’s past finally catches up with him.
Morality and, indeed, immorality, are woven throughout the book. I always thin it is interesting to show elements of positive morality in nasty characters and therefore I have shown Connor O’Grady, who is a wicked man, turn up to assist the police by informing them that neither he, nor his team had any involvement in the murders. Of course, whether the police can trust him is another matter entirely!
I do hope your readers will enjoy A Fighting Chance and all the crimes and issues I have created for Jane and her team.
About the Book:
In the second Jane Renwick Thriller by Val Penny, drug cartels collide as crime boss Connor O’Grady returns to Scotland to protect his turf from rival Peggy Cheney, newly released from prison.
DS Jane Renwick and DC Brian Harris are sent to Stirling, where Jane discovers two tragic deaths—a young man and a girl—raising suspicions of a single killer.
O’Grady denies involvement, but can a drug lord be trusted?
Set in Stirling and Gartcosh, this tense police procedural thrusts Jane into the heart of a deadly turf war.
About the Author:
Val Penny has an Llb degree from the University of Edinburgh and her MSc from Napier University. She has had many jobs including hairdresser, waitress, banker, azalea farmer and lecturer but has not yet achieved either of her childhood dreams of being a ballerina or owning a candy store.
Until those dreams come true, she has turned her hand to writing poetry, short stories, nonfiction books, and novels. Her novels are published by SpellBound Books Ltd.
Val is an American author living in SW Scotland. She has two adult daughters of whom she is justly proud and lives with her husband and their cat.
Author Contact Details:
http://www.facebook.com/valerie.penny.739
www.facebook.com/groups/296295777444303
https://twitter.com/valeriepenny
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17300087.Val_Penny
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Val-Penny/e/B07C4725TK?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1611574956&sr=1-1
https://www.bookbub.com/profile/val-penny
Buy Links:
Hunter’s Chase – https://geni.us/ic7r
Hunter’s Revenge – https://geni.us/a13c
Hunter’s Force – https://geni.us/f5eJb
The First Cut – https://linktr.ee/spellboundbks
Hunter’s Blood – https://tinyurl.com/8rrpp59x
Hunter’s Secret – https://tinyurl.com/ezer746e
Hunter’s Christmas – https://rb.gy/9d79us
Hunter’s Rules – https://tinyurl.com/2s3myb5s
A Fighting Chance: https://mybook.to/FightChance