Front Page Fridays Week-39
Front Page Fridays Week-39
Welcome to Front Page Fridays Week-39. On Fridays I showcase the first page of a new book.
My Front Page Fridays Week-39 author is Jennie Ensor with The Bad Women, the second psychological thriller in her Brampton Village Mysteries series, published in September by Hobeck Books.
Here’s the opening:
Chapter 1
Ashley
Oh God, if only her mother could stop complaining for a moment. Especially anything involving her uncomfortable mattress, cold bedroom, the long list of foods she couldn’t eat or the inadequacies of Brampton. Why had she ever suggested that her mother move in, and how could she survive five more months more of this?
‘I’m going for a walk,’ Ashley announced as her mother began to describe her nocturnal journey to refill her hot-water bottle. Diane’s intensely groomed eyebrows met beneath her fringe.
‘Can you take Brillo, too? You only took him out for half an hour this morning. He’ll enjoy seeing some new scenery.’
Ashley grabbed the lead and stomped towards the front door.
‘When will you be back?’
She didn’t answer. Right now, she didn’t feel like coming back.
Outside the village, instead of heading towards higher ground, she took the undulating path that wended between waterlogged fields. The landscape here wasn’t at all striking but there would be no flocks of sheep to tempt the dog.
‘Let’s go!’
Brillo paid no attention. The Welsh terrier had stopped yet again, this time nosing inside a plastic wrapper. Thankful for her fur-lined boots, she jogged on the spot to stay warm.
The path continued past farm buildings and a pile of shredded plastic in a field. Her boots squeaked on frozen mud. Ahead, Brillo criss-crossed the path. It was a weekday afternoon in early January. School and work had re-started; hardly anyone was about. She felt a pang for her work as a book illustrator. If only the pay had been enough to hire a carer… Thank God, they’d agreed for her to return after six months’ leave.
The wooded slopes bordering the old quarry loomed. In over five years living here, she’d never come this way. At a frozen puddle, she stopped. A sign guarded a narrow path leading o this one:
QUARRY AHEAD
PRIVATE PROPERTY KEEP OUT
Her nostrils twitched. Something horrible… it had a foul base note, like rancid food. She checked her watch. Gone three. They ought to head back before the sun sank any lower. She turned to the dog as he scampered onto the other path towards a squirrel.
Blasted dog! Once he caught a scent, there was no stopping him.
‘Brillo, come!’
She strode into a thicket of bare trees along the path, pushing past stray branches, peering left and right, occasionally yelling for the dog.
Ahead, the ground rapidly descended. Ashley stopped at the edge. The jagged, roughly circular hole hewn out of the earth was partly filled with rubble and slabs of concrete. She’d never seen the remaining quarry from this close. It was bigger than she’d imagined.
A figure in silhouette on the far side caught her eye – a female, emerging every so often from bushes. Something on her body glinted. She was running, clumsily, as if her feet were landing awkwardly. Without slowing, the woman swung her head to look behind. Moments later, she vanished.
About The Bad Women
It is a new year and the Covid pandemic is a distant memory for the residents of Wilton Close. If only the sudden death of neighbour Tara Sanderson wasn’t still haunting some of them. But Tara is very much alive in memories, and consciences – in particular, those of friends Ashley Khan, Elspeth Chambers and Clare ‘Bird Woman’ Titchfield.
Then a young woman from a nearby caravan park is found dead in a local quarry. Police conclude it was suicide; she was gravely ill when she died. But is there more to the tragic death than meets the eye?
Attempting to lay ghosts to rest, Ashley becomes obsessed with solving the mystery, finding an unlikely ally in the local police. Her friends insist on helping, too. Clare must make amends after she carelessly let the local vicar snatch her drawing of the scene of Tara’s death. Elspeth seeks atonement for her role in Tara’s unfortunate demise – while doing her best to quell suspicions that the three friends are guilty of a heinous crime.
The trio find themselves trailing the young woman’s suspected killers, pitching them against powerful men determined to keep their own secrets hidden. To stand a chance of defeating their adversaries, the women must find a courage beyond their imagination.
Purchase links
Amazon UK: https://amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FH7LR3S1
Amazon US: https://amazon.com/dp/B0FH7LR3S1
Hobeck: https://hobeck.net/product-page/the-bad-women-by-jennie-ensor
About Jennie Ensor
A Londoner with Irish heritage, Jennie Ensor writes daring, emotionally-charged psychological suspense and crime fiction, often with a thread of dark humour. She began her writing career as a freelance investigative journalist. Her hobbies include classical singing, night-sky watching, wild swimming, transformational journeys and getting lost on mountain hikes.
Social media links
Author website: https://jennieensor.com
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/JennieEnsorAuthor
Instagram: instagram.com/jennieensor
X: x.com/jennie_ensor
Crime Writers Association profile: https://thecwa.co.uk/find-an-author/ensor-jennie
Links to Jennies other books
The Bad Neighbour (The Brampton Village Mysteries Book 1) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bad-Neighbour-deliciously-entertaining-psychological-ebook/dp/B0C4FRSP1J
Silenced
The Girl in His Eyes
The Girl in His Eyes: A dark psychological drama eBook : Ensor, Jennie: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
Blind Side
Blind Side: a psychological mystery eBook : Ensor, Jennie: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
Not Having It All
I hope you enjoyed reading Front Page Fridays Week-39. Please come back next time when I’ll be featuring a different author and the first page of their book.
And please take a look at books already featured on Front Page Fridays:
1. Blood Ribbons by Lin Le Versha – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/front-page-fridays-week-1/
2. Fatal Blow by Brian Price – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/front-page-fridays-week-2/
3. Can I Trust You? by Rob Gittins – Front Page Fridays Week-3 – Rachel Sargeant
4. The Last Bird of Paradise by AJ Aberford – Front Page Fridays Week-4 – Rachel Sargeant
5. Never Forgive You by Hilly Barmby – Front Page Fridays Week-5 – Rachel Sargeant
6. The Mists of Pencarrack Moor by Terri Nixon – Front Page Fridays Week-6 - Rachel Sargeant
7. The Thief of Joy by Stacey Murray – Front Page Fridays Week-7 - Rachel Sargeant
8. Edge of the Land by Malcolm Hollingdrake – Front Page Fridays Week-8 - Rachel Sargeant
9. The Mind of a Murderer by Michael Wood - https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/front-page-fridays-week-9/
10. The Midnight Man by Julie Anderson – Front Page Fridays Week-10 - Rachel Sargeant
11. Dark Road Home by Sheila Bugler – Front Page Fridays Week-11 - Rachel Sargeant
12. Her Charming Man by Rachel Sargeant – Front Page Fridays Week-12 - Rachel Sargeant
13. Wedding Bells at the Lakeside Hotel by Linda Huber – Front Page Fridays Week-13 - Rachel Sargeant
14. Dark Island by Daniel Aubrey – Front Page Fridays Week-14 - Rachel Sargeant
15. The Shame by Maureen Myant – Front Page Fridays Week-15 - Rachel Sargeant
16. Dead Mile by Jo Furniss – Front Page Fridays Week-16 — Rachel Sargeant
17. The Violin and Candlestick by David Jarvis – Front Page Fridays Week-17 — Rachel Sargeant
18. New Memories by S.E. Shepherd – Front Page Fridays Week-18 — Rachel Sargeant
19. Young Blood by Victoria Gemmell – Front Page Fridays Week-19 — Rachel Sargeant
20. Private Investigations by Rob Gittins – Front Page Fridays Week-20 — Rachel Sargeant
21. The Car Horn revolution by A.J. Aberford – Front Page Fridays Week-21 — Rachel Sargeant
22. What Lies Beneath by Maureen Myant – Front Page Fridays Week-22 — Rachel Sargeant
23. A Safe Place by Stephanie Carty – Front Page Fridays Week-23 — Rachel Sargeant
24. Fatal Image by Brian Price – Front Page Fridays Week-24 — Rachel Sargeant
25. Run For Your Lies by A.A. Abbott – Front Page Fridays Week-25 — Rachel Sargeant
26. A Walk in the Park by Natalie Kleinman – Front Page Fridays Week-26 — Rachel Sargeant
27. A Storm in a Teacup by Rachael Gray – Front Page Fridays Week-27 — Rachel Sargeant
28. The Midnight Bookshop by Amanda James – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/blog/front-page-fridays-week-28
29. A Death in the Afternoon by Julie Anderson – Front Page Fridays Week-29 — Rachel Sargeant
30. Justice by Madalyn Morgan – Front Page Fridays Week-30 — Rachel Sargeant
31. Let Me Out by Amanada Brittany – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/blog/front-page-fridays-week-31
32. A Pocketful of Poisons by Brian Price – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/blog/85orb6bc15cs2voyn37yv3jprw0jec
33. Tribute by Madalyn Morgan – Front Page Fridays Week-33 — Rachel Sargeant
34. Mistress of the Manor by Cara Clayton – https://www.rachelsargeant.co.uk/blog/front-page-fridays-week-34
35. Waves of Change in Pelican Crossing by Maggie Chistensen – Front Page Fridays Week-35 — Rachel Sargeant
36. A French Inheritance by Jennifer Bohnet – Front Page Fridays Week-36
37. Beneath the Same Moon by AS Andrejevic – Front Page Fridays Week-37 — Rachel Sargeant
38. The Fallen by Maureen Myant - Front Page Fridays Week-38 — Rachel Sargeant