The Rainbow Bridge

If you are unfamiliar with ‘the rainbow bridge’ it is what many of we pet owners like to think our pets cross when they leave us. I wonder if author and pet owner, Kim Nash believes in it too? I didn’t ask her that but find out if she’s a dog or cat person in Between the Lines, my new Q&A with fellow authors, later in this blog.    

Last week I introduced you to Wilfie, who is technically my son’s cat. He has been the only pet in our house since our beautiful old girl Poppy left us on April Fool’s Day three years ago. To be honest, she wasn’t in the best of health and had probably been ready to go for a few years, but she seemed to sense that I wasn’t ready to lose her after we nursed her back from the brink three years previously. She died cradled in my arms, which although devastating, Chris and I were both grateful for as we would have hated for her to be on her own. She was a much-loved member of our family and will live in our hearts forever. We created a resting place in our garden for her and erected a cross and later an enamelled poppy, but the beautiful flowers were not from us. They were from our neighbour, Sarah, who used to feed the cats if we were on holiday (remember those?) and absolutely adored her.

The above photo was of Poppy on her twentieth birthday shortly after the aforementioned health scare. She was a gorgeous girl who was very accepting of everything we threw at her and I think that may have originated from when we first had her. We already had a fairly elderly black and white male cat, Dylan who, after a bit of a tentative start, took her under his wing until he passed over the rainbow bridge at the grand old age of twenty-two. She then had to endure, Daisy, a tabby who terrorised her, three house moves and sharing her home with Wilfie and also, for a shorter period, Milo, our daughter’s cat.

When we moved into our current home, Wilfie was only five months old and needed reassurance. To that point, Poppy had tolerated him but didn’t allow him too close, so it was a lovely surprise to find them cuddled up on the sofa together amongst all the packing cases just a few days after we moved in. After that, as you can see from the above, they quite happily shared sofas to sleep on. It’s hard to let go of our much-loved furry friends, but the pleasure they bring outweighs the sorrow when they pass in my opinion.

So, it’s Easter weekend, and for once I’m not working for most of it, although I will be hard at work on the first round of edits for my next book (book nine) which arrived in my inbox yesterday evening. If you’ve got a bit more time on your hands and haven’t read it yet, the action in both chapter one and the final chapter of my latest book, My Mother’s Secret take place on Easter Monday in consecutive years. An awful lot happens in those twelve months if you’re up for a bit of a heartbreaker.

Little Girl Missing 

However, if crime is more your thing, I’ve just been told that Little Girl Missing, book 1 in my DCI Rachel Hart series is on a Kindle Monthly Deal for April costing just 99p. The little girl in question is called Cassie, and if you were a fan of series 4 of Unforgotten on television you’ll be hoping for a better outcome for my Cassie than that of Cassie in the final episode on Monday night…

Well, you’re used to reading about my books on my blog but, as I mentioned last week, today I’m starting a new feature called Between the Lines. We’re kicking things off with Kim Nash, who I’ve had the pleasure of knowing for the past five years. The above picture was taken at the QVC studios, where I’ve worked as a presenter since the channel started in 1993. Kim had come down to London for work and was at a loose end for a couple of hours, so I invited her for a tour as I know she is a bit of a fan! I always remember people asking if she’d got a new job after I posted the photo on Twitter. Who knows what the future holds for Kim, but here is where you find out a bit about her present.

Q & A session with Kim Nash

Posted on March 2nd 2021

1. What was your first job after leaving full-time education?

I went on a YTS course (yes I’m THAT old!) to a place called Pat Knight Commercial College in Lichfield where we trained to be secretaries. We did work placements at real companies and then I was employed by one of those companies.

2. Who was your first crush – real life or famous?

Jimmy Osmond I think.  I can still remember all the lyrics to “Knock on your door!” without faltering even today!

 
3. What was your first piece of creative writing outside of school/college/uni?

When my Mom died in 2006.  I wrote down what I thought she would say to me if she could still talk to me.  That writing, years later became the inspiration for Amazing Grace, my first book. 

4. Do you have a favourite tipple, alcoholic or otherwise?

I can’t believe you have to ask me this question!  I’m a gin girl.  But I’ve been drinking it for years, way before it became trendy.  One of my favourite memories of my Mom, is us sitting in her garden, on the swingy bench with a gin and tonic, and putting the world to rights. 

5. Are you a cat or dog person?

DOG! We rescued our English Setter Roni just over 3 years ago now.  He’s made our family complete and my son adores him.  I definitely think he loves the dog far more than he loves his Mom.

 
6. What is your favourite TV show or series from the past twelve months?

The one program that has really lifted my spirits during the last twelve months has been Gogglebox.  I watch it with tears rolling down my cheeks and holding my tummy because I’m laughing so much.

 
7. Do you have a favourite holiday destination or special memorable holiday?

One of our more recent holidays was when I treated my son and I to a luxury hotel suite which had an upstairs sun terrace with a hot tub.  It was summer 2019 and was absolutely roasting and we used to go in the hot tub to cool down.  Each night before bed we used to go in the hot tub and then wrap ourselves up in dressing gowns and lie on the  sun terrace big squishy sunbed and look at the stars and chat.  It was gorgeous! 
I also went to The Maldives years ago and it was the most relaxing place I have ever been.  Whenever I can’t sleep, I imagine myself back there, on my private beach with the waves gently lapping the shore and the sun beating down on my body.  Works every time.

 
8. Do you like to read in the same genre as you write?

I do.  Women’s fiction/chick lit will always be my favourite. I love a book with a happy ending, laughs along the way, a good dose of reality and a lot of heart.  I try to write the books that I’d like to read. 

9. How do you deal with negative reviews?

Ignore; try to see their POV; get upset?I think it’s hard if they’re personal.  I know not every book is for everyone, but the reviews that are personal are just unkind.  Someone very wise, once said to me that nasty reviews say more about the reviewer than the author. If there is constructive criticism by a reader that would make the book better, than I think authors can learn from that.

 
10. Cast your mind back to when you were thirteen and complete the following sentence:

When I grow up I want to be… An author so I could write books all day long, or to work at a book publisher because I could sit and read books all day long!  BINGO! But I don’t sit and read all day – honest! 

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When thirty-four-year-old Nellie Wagstaff loses her job and discovers her fiancé is a cheating scumbag in a single day, she feels like the world has come crashing down. And that’s before the solicitor’s letter, along with a request to visit a place she hasn’t thought about for a very long time.

Heartbroken, Nellie escapes to the beautiful seaside town of Muddleford in Dorset, where she discovers she’s inherited more than she ever bargained for. Nellie never knew why her mother stopped talking to her sister, but now childhood memories of Muddleford come flooding back: long hot summers, the sea glistening beyond the sandy cove… and a stolen kiss with a boy called Jack.

Jack, now a devilishly handsome vet, has the local pet owners swooning over him, and as Nellie and he become close once more, and she gets used to gossiping with the locals and sipping wine at her beach hut with sand between her toes, she’s sure she can feel sparks flying once more. But just as she thinks she might be able to open her heart again, her newest frenemy, the glamourous Natalia, tells her a secret about Jack that changes everything.

Nellie will never know why her mother and aunt parted ways. She’ll sell the house, forget about Jack, and get back to real life. Because there’s nothing for her in Muddleford… is there?

An utterly uplifting and completely hilarious summer read about learning to trust yourself and of finding love and friendship in the least expected places for fans of Jessica Redland, Heidi Swain and Holly Martin.