Publication Day for Polly Heron

Today is publication day for The Surplus Girls and I'd like to share the excitement with you. Every publication day is special - of course - but this one has extra twinkly bits because it is my first as Polly Heron and I am thrilled that my new saga series has been launched. It's also special for two of the book's characters, Prudence and Patience Hesketh, who have been waiting since the 1990s to appear in a book!

Reviews have been appearing on Goodreads for a while, but other reviewers have kept back their reviews until publication day. Looking at reviews on the day itself involves a mixture of excitement and nervousness, but today's reviews are generous in their praise and I am a very happy bunny.

Here is a flavour for you:

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Jane Cable in Frost Magazine:

"Polly Heron has a rare talent for portraying the atmosphere of a setting with a few carefully selected sentences, which never detract from the pace of the plot. And pacey plot it is, making The Surplus Girls hard to put down. The detail of the era is there, forming a rich background tapestry, but I never once felt I was bogged down by it. While I could see, hear and breathe the world the characters inhabited, as a reader I was free to enjoy being transported there and immerse myself in their story. And it takes a great deal of skill for an author to achieve that."

Tara Greaves on her After The Rain website:

"I made a huge mistake with The Surplus Girls; I got into bed, picked it up and thought “I’ll just read the first few pages”. The next thing I know it’s way beyond my bedtime and I still don’t want to put it down.... It has everything you could want; a gripping story, interesting characters and it is set in an absolutely  fascinating period in history."

Grace J, Reviewer Lady:

"This is a great read, and in preparing for this review post I’ve discovered it’s first in a trilogy so now I’m really excited!... Polly Heron spins a fine tale.... This is a well written, enthralling read which captivated my attention from first to last."

Okay, I'll stop there before my head swells so much that I can't get through doorways.

And, since, as we all know, the best surprises come in boxes.....

.... Above is the box of paperbacks the lovely people at Corvus sent me, and below is the box I received on publication day morning....

.... beautiful flowers from my fellow Sister Scribes.

Huge thanks to everyone who has helped get my (and Polly's!) year off to such a wonderful start. And to everyone who has The Surplus Girls on their reading pile, I hope you'll love reading it as much as I loved writing it.