I Love The Elf

Songs and Portobellos is a magical story that captures the creativity and clarity of perception that young people possess.
The book centres on the development of teenagers Conor and Melanie during the summer of 1967 and explores the influences that bring them to understand their uniqueness.
By the end of the summer they have transcended the ordinary, discovered who they are and determined what they stand for.

The last time I saw my new colleague, she was on top of me.

Literally. She’s my best friend’s sister.

It might have been a hot one-time fling at his wedding. Maybe.

And the preacher from the church might have been the one to wake me up with my pants around my ankles.

What? It was worth it.

Years later she’s pissed that we’re working together.

Personally, I like having her curvy figure around to keep things interesting.

But she’s a boss in business — and a goddess in bed.

Lucky me.

We have six months to get a job done.

Our task?

Romance and architecture.

How hard can it be?

Turns out it’s not that easy with a woman whose heart is cold as ice.

She doesn’t believe in love.

Unfortunately for her, I do.

And I love a challenge.

She has her eyes on the deadline.

I have mine on the prize:

Her.

A paranormal phenomenon, a mysterious curse, and an old town with a sinister past.

When Amber finds a miraculously low-priced house for rent, what she thought was the solution to all of her problems becomes the beginning of her worst nightmare.

A darkly comic novel with observations about modern cultural preoccupations, such as the growing influence of the Internet on teenagers’ mindset and behaviour and the tourist money and decay in British seaside towns.

The towns are realistically and atmospherically evoked, along with the politics, rivalries, and power play between the domestic animals and seagulls, which are harshly depicted but entertaining.

A seagull in an English seaside town acquires a taste for hunting and killing cats. Embarking on a killing spree, the bird inadvertently adds to an adolescent boy’s woes while causing paranoia in local cats.

As the cat population diminishes, an Abyssinian cat happens upon the truth and sets out to restore natural law where cats are the predators, and birds are their victims.

Although media and public pressure to catch the cat killer builds, a recession and the uncertainty of Brexit means the underfunded civil service isn’t too interested in solving cat deaths.

Eventually, after much public pressure, two constables are put on the case, and after stumbling upon evidence via social media, they find their killer. Unfortunately, their deductive reasoning is flawed, resulting in an innocent teenager taking the fall.

A wildlife-loving elderly lady, aware of nature’s cruelty, suffers as the seagull and his family reside on her roof.

Nature is cruel, but the bloated British civil service is more cruel. And corrupt and stupid, too.

Most species try to protect their families, but life is hard, and DNA adapts slowly to cope with environmental changes. While most evolve for the better, humans seem to get worse.

All Eleanor Payne wants is to live her life in peace.

But a war between the gods has cracked the world in two, and the Payne family pledged to the losing side.

The village of Blackridge has labeled them traitors. They’ve fallen far from grace and lost nearly everything.

With her mother desperate to convert to preserve the little they have left and her great-grandmother forbidding it, Eleanor has no choice but to pick a side.

She would rather starve than surrender.

On the hunt for another path, Eleanor uncovers powerful secrets that the Payne matriarchs buried in their past. And a condemning truth about the dark history of Blackridge. The more she uncovers, the more desperate the village becomes to silence her.

But Eleanor has come too far to turn back now. And when faced with the dangerous consequences of digging too deep, she unlocks a terrifying power within herself.

One that will make Blackridge wish they hadn’t pushed her so far.

Bring the rich flavors of Portugal to your kitchen! Prepare a memorable Portuguese feast for your family and friends. Choose your favorite from the fifty classic recipes in this Portuguese Cooking Cookbook.

Portugal’s rich and vibrant culture is undeniably felt in its cuisine. Portuguese dishes are never shy. Each dish proudly presents itself with fresh, robust, and surprising flavors. There is something both comforting and celebratory about Portuguese dishes. Hearty soups and stews are warm and nourishing. With olive oil, one must be extravagant; with meat, nothing is to be put to waste. Desserts are divine, their flavors and preparation seeming to resound with good times and happy memories. Traditional recipes have mostly been passed down from mothers to daughters, with no measurements. The Portuguese are innovative and creative people, and their recipes and methods vary from family to family and from region to region. What one family may consider authentic may seem foreign to another. With that in mind, the recipes in this cookbook do not claim to be authentic. They are here to give you at least a glimpse of Portugal’s gastronomy, to let you taste the flavors dear to its people, and to feel its rustic charms. In this collection of classic Portuguese recipes, it is hoped that you will experience the passion and simplicity of Portuguese cooking. Something as simple as using real Portuguese olive oil, sea salt, coarse-ground pepper, and only the freshest ingredients will help you understand why Portuguese food is considered some of the best in the world.

In the brutal summer of 1763, the fragile peace on the American frontier shatters as Native American tribes, united under the formidable Chief Pontiac, rise up against the encroaching British forts. Caught in the desperate struggle for survival is Molly, a young woman whose life is irrevocably changed by the conflict. As the world she knows collapses, she is forced to confront the violence and trauma of war firsthand, bearing witness to a “brutal collision of worlds.”

When a daring British relief column, led by Colonel Henry Bouquet, marches to aid the besieged Fort Pitt, Molly’s fate is tied to their harrowing journey. But the forest holds many secrets, and the paths of soldiers and survivors lead to a final, bloody confrontation at a small crossroads known as Bushy Run.

Bushy Run is a visceral tale of courage and resilience, exploring the lasting scars of combat and the deep strength required to find peace in a world that will never be the same.