Fourth book in the Lou Elliott mystery adventure series now available for advance orders

Greetings! It's been so long since I wrote a blog entry that I couldn't even remember my password. I just fell out of the habit of blogging and, as I alluded to in my last entry ages ago, I was seized for a long time with writer's block.

Furthermore, I also lost my George Chedzoy hotmail account because it was inadvertently deleted so apologies to anyone who has emailed me in recent months and not had a reply. Please do get in touch again.

I know that a number of people have been hoping that I would write a fourth book in my Lou Elliott mystery adventure series, which began with Smugglers at Whistling Sands. At last, I have! It will be published on Amazon on July 4th, 2015, and is called Trouble at Chumley Towers. You can already buy it as an ebook priced £1.99, or the equivalent in other currencies as an advance order. I submitted the final manuscript to Kindle Direct Publishing yesterday evening at 9pm after working throughout the day on last-minute alterations.

Trouble at Chumley Towers is the longest in the series, at just over 73,500 words. Furthermore the age category for this book is more like 10 to 15 than 8 to 12. This book moves genre slightly into detective fiction and away from mystery adventure. The children, Lou Elliott and siblings Jack, David and Emily Johnson embark on a whodunit. A number of thefts have taken place from Chumley Towers, a stately home just outside Malpas in Cheshire. We join them just days away from celebrating Christmas. Lou - who is facing the prospect of a miserable Christmas at home with her uncaring parents - comes to stay with the Johnsons. She's delighted to have the chance to experience a proper family Christmas and also pleased to help lead the others in the pursuit of the thief or thieves targeting Chumley Towers.

I really enjoyed writing this book and getting to know my main characters a bit better and giving them a chance to take on the baddies once again. The items taken from the Towers are not priceless heirlooms but are nonetheless of great sentimental value to its owners, Lord and Lady Somerset. Lord Henry Somerset is the Ninth Marquess of Chumley and the Towers has been in his family's possession for centuries.

Like many aristocratic families over the years, they are struggling with the upkeep of their huge home and grounds and do not have the wide array of domestic staff which would once have worked in a place like this. They open their doors to the public to bring in vital extra income yet as a result, are vulnerable to some light-fingered person out there coming in and quietly taking away some of their treasured possessions. This could be the last straw which persuades them to sell up and move out altogether, which would be a very sad day, not only for them but the residents of Malpas.

I really hope you will enjoy this addition to the series and a chance to catch up with Lou, Jack, David and Emily again. Lou is a teenager now, she has turned 13 and Jack is not far behind her. David is still 11 and Emily 10.

Over the next few days, I'll bring you more news on the new book and what to expect in it. Remember that you can already order it on Amazon and be among the first to read it from July 4th.