I'm Back!

I'm Back! Posted by: RuthSaberton at 15:23, July 22 2017.

Apologies for being a little quiet on my blog lately. I had a few technical issues and I’ve also been very busy with some family bits and pieces which have required a lot of zooming up and down the motorway to London. Then I was in hospital for a brief spell. I won’t get political but I will say that our NHS is AMAZING and we have to cherish it. Without the care of paramedics, nurses, and doctors I don’t want to think what could have happened.

I was devastated to lose my horse, Milly, at the end of May. Shortly afterwards, we lost Freddie our beautiful Ragdoll cat and my constant writing companion. These two were a huge part of my life for almost 15 years and it’s a huge blow to lose them. I’ve buried myself in my new book ¬– more of that next time – and then ended up adopting Penny, a tiny 18 year old blind and deaf cat who had been abandoned. The idea is that she’s supposed to enjoy a quiet life here and just hang out with me while I work … except that nobody told Penny this! After three weeks she’s doubled in size and made it clear she wants to be outside hunting and prowling. She’s also an escapologist who somehow knows the instant a window or door is left open. As she can’t see this is a little hazardous and I spend a lot of time tearing outside mid sentence to rescue her. Horses are so easy in comparison! Kiki is loving the summer and looks very cute in his flysheet. He loves going for long rides through the shady woods and once the harvest is gathered in we’ll have fun in the fields too.

I have had lots of emails asking me when the next Polwenna Bay book will be out. I’m due to start book six in August and I can’t wait! It’s about the Polwenna Bay Festival and will be Zak Tremaine’s story. He’s the bad boy musician of the family and it’s going to be great fun seeing what he gets up to and who steals his heart. I’m going to have a wonderful time finding out what happens next to all the characters too. Lots of you write to me and ask me what is next for the characters (and lots of you also tell me what mustn’t happen – Ashley Carstairs is very popular!) and all I can say is that I do have a plan but I never really know until I start to write quite what will unfold.

I had fun doing a book signing for THE ISLAND LEGACY at the Duchy of Cornwall Nursery last week. It a beautiful venue and I was made very welcome by the staff and plied with cake and tea all afternoon. It was lovely to meet so many nice people from all over the UK and I hope they enjoyed taking a little piece of Cornwall home with them courtesy of Ness, Max and all the other characters in the story. A big thank you to Prince Charles for stocking my books!

My pony book CHANCES made its second round of donations to the chosen charities this month too. I’m very proud of this book for reaching #1 in YA Equestrian Fiction and for doing its bit to support some great causes. Sirona Therapeutic Horsemanship, The Emile Faurie Foundation, Farms for City Children and Humanity for Horses (USA) do amazing work. I went to Sirona’s open day in Devon and had a wonderful time meeting the therapy horses and watching the children work with them. It was humbling.

I recently ran a little competition to give away signed copies of THE ISLAND LEGACY. Thanks so much to everyone who entered. The three winners have all been contacted and sent their copies of the book. I’ve got a big competition planned for a little later on in the year – I’ll keep you posted!

It’s mid July now and I’m flat out working on my new novel and editing the Christmas book, THE SEASON FOR SECEOND CHANCES, which will be published on October 1st. It’s a bit strange reading about snow and mince pies when the sun is shining out side and the holiday makers are walking past with buckets and spades!

That’s all for now I think but I will be back much sooner than before. That’s a promise.