A thriller set in the seedy world of London's drug rings: Hamelin's Child by .@debjbennett #thriller

Hamelin’s Child

by

Debbie Bennett

Michael Redford died on his seventeenth birthday – the night Eddie picked him up off the street, shot him full of heroin and assaulted him.

Now he’s Mikey and he works for Joss. With streaked blond hair and a cute smile, he sleeps by day and services clients at night. Sometimes he remembers his old life, but with what he’s become now, he knows there is no return to his comfortable middle-class background.

Then he makes a friend in Lee. A child of the streets, Lee demands more from friendship than Mikey is prepared to give. But the police are closing in on them now and Mikey’s not sure anymore who he really is – streetwise Mikey or plain Michael Redford. 

Amazon.UK | Amazon.com |

More Purchase Links!

Hamelin’s Child was long-listed in the UK Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger Award.

A thriller set in the seedy world of London's drug rings, this book contains strong scenes and adult material.

Excerpt from Hamelin’s Child

Michael Redford died on his seventeenth birthday – the night Eddie picked him up off the street, shot him full of heroin and assaulted him.

Michael had been drinking steadily all night, matching Jenny’s Breezers with export-strength lager, and when he saw Jen wrapped around his mate’s brother across the dance floor, he didn’t feel at all inclined to slow down. Totally oblivious to observers, they were all hands and lips – a human octopus of limbs on the red chesterfield sofa with Jenny’s long dark hair covering both their faces. She’d dropped an E in the toilets; he could tell by the shine in her eyes and the way she moved when they’d been dancing earlier – she always came onto him when she was high, then pulled away when he got interested. Michael kicked the pillar next to him in disgust. He hated nightclubs anyway.

‘She came with you, didn’t she?’

Michael turned to see a man standing next to him. Blond hair, cream chinos, polo shirt and too much jewellery. He seemed older than the rest of the punters.

The man waved his hand in Jenny’s direction. ‘The girl,’ he added, by way of explanation. ‘I was watching the two of you earlier.’

Michael nodded. ‘Don’t think she’ll be leaving with me.’

‘Girlfriend?’

‘Ex.’

‘Evidently.’ The man smiled sympathetically. ‘Women are bitches, aren’t they? He’s a dealer, by the way – saw him outside the bogs before. What’re you drinking?’ He pointed at Michael’s empty glass.

Michael shook his head. ‘No, thanks.’ Now fuck off, creep. Something about the stranger made him uneasy.

‘Suit yourself.’ The man shrugged and went off to the bar, returning a few moments later with a pint and what looked like a whisky chaser. He held the pint out. ‘Got you one, anyway. You look like you could use it.’ He had an impressive assortment of gold rings on his hand, which suggested serious money, even if the guy was a poser.

Oh, what the hell… ‘Cheers.’ Michael emptied half of it immediately. He had less than a fiver left from the eighty quid his dad had given him earlier that day and not enough for a taxi home. Still, he couldn’t complain – there weren’t many parents who’d let their underage son celebrate his birthday in a club, and it was largely due to the intervention of his elder sister Kate that they’d let him go at all. On top of that, she’d even managed to talk them into giving him enough money to enjoy it in style. The money had come with strings of course, but listening to the ten-minute evils of drink and drugs lecture had been a small price to pay for his freedom.

Seventeen today. Or was it yesterday now? It was well past midnight. Some of his mates were on the other side of the dance floor; Jenny and her new friend were all but shagging on the sofa and everyone seemed to be one half of a couple apart from him. Glancing sideways, he saw the man had melted into the crowd. Michael wondered whether he should just go home and he was starting to consider the idea seriously when the stranger appeared at his side again.

‘Still here?’ The man smiled. ‘D’you want me to have him warned off?’

‘No.’ Who is this prick? Some kind of gangster? ‘He can have her.’

‘What’s your name?’

‘Michael.’ His voice sounded weird – in fact, everything sounded weird. The music seemed distorted and hollow and it echoed around his head, the bass making his teeth ache. Too much booze, Redford, that’s your problem. And far too much imagination. Sure, the guy was a bit strange, but – shit – wasn’t everyone in this dump?

‘Hi, Michael. I’m Eddie.’ He touched Michael’s shoulder with an air of concern. ‘Are you OK?’

Michael shook his head, trying to clear it. His pulse was pounding in time with the music. ‘What is this?’ He held out what was left of his drink, wondering whether the man had spiked it with anything.

‘Holsten. It’s what you were drinking earlier.’ Eddie sounded hurt. ‘It’s all right, isn’t it? Chuck it, if it’s off, and I’ll get you another.’

‘No … I don’t know.’ The lights seemed brighter and sharper, the music burning into white noise. He stared at the pint in his hand. What the hell is in this drink? He took a step forward and staggered, but Eddie caught his arm and deftly took the glass out of his grip.

‘I think you’ve had enough, Michael,’ he said softly. ‘Let’s go get some fresh air, shall we?’

 Amazon.UK | Amazon.com | More Purchase Links! | Website | Twitter

Indie authors, listen up!

Authors are offering advice in 'What I wished I'd known before I published' all through January

Part One

Before publishing I wish I had known about self-publishing and the many great programs that can be used to do so. There are pros and cons to using a publisher, it can get costly and frustrating with the time consumed in the communication during the process. - Anna Othitis

Don't rush to get out there. First impressions are everything. Cover, blurb, opening pages. You only get one chance at a first impression so make it count. Also, don't think that just because trad books "have a few typos" that it doesn't matter if yours does too. It does matter.- Debbie Bennett 

Agreed, don't rush, get someone else to edit for you and get beta readers! Then, listen to other writers and use the common information they are giving you before pushing that publish button. In other words, do NOT do what I did! LOL - Linda Zukowski 

Make sure your book blurb is the best it can be before you press publish. It goes without saying that editing, formatting, cover and presentation is as good as it can be too. - Pam Howes 

I wish I had been told, sternly, that a social media platform is essential for building your author brand but you have to discipline yourself in ring-fencing time to continue writing creatively. - Ruby Barnes 

I wish I'd known that by reading a printed proof I’d notice literally dozens of errors that I'd missed on-screen, despite reading the electronic document many, many times. - Peter Reynolds

Don't write for money, fame, or accolades. If you do, you'll be disappointed. Write because you love it.- Simon Parkinson

Focus on writing more books. You don't realize how much having a second book helps until you have a second book. Promotion is helpful, but if you spend more time promoting than writing your next book, you're not spending your time well. -  RJ Crayton

Matthew Wayne Selznick - A month of planning before you type "Chapter One" will save reams of paper and hours of editing after you type "The End."

Rachel Eliason -  Publishing your first book is the beginning of the process of becoming an author, not the end of it.

Jolea M Harrison - Don't rush to publish. It's easy to do when the thrill of finishing a book is swimming through your head. After you've finished that final edit, step back at least two weeks, then reread.

Mandy White  - 1. Ebooks are where the money is. Ebook first, print after, not the other way around. Only do the print version AFTER it's been edited by a professional.

2. Don't waste money ordering a zillion copies in print of a book that you haven't even seen yet. There WILL be things you want to tweak before you distribute it to friends, family and local readers. Take your time and make sure it's perfect. Your credibility as an author is at stake.
3. Readers can and will judge a book by its cover. Make sure your cover is a good one.

4. Understand that other writers are busy with their own projects. If someone offers to use their valuable time to read your work or offer advice, express your appreciation.

Deb Nam-Krane - 1. I want to take off on what Mandy White said: order a print copy of your book BEFORE you publish the e-copy and read it through. Plan on doing it twice, because you'll find things you'll need to change, no matter how many times you and your editor looked at it. Make the changes to the e- and paper-versions, then put them up for sale. I cannot tell you how much less angst I had with the second than the the first doing it that way rather than publishing the e-version and then going through the print.

2. Outsource anything you can't do well yourself (for most of us that's the cover and for all of us that should be the editing), but if there's something you *can* do yourself, do it. Learning to format your own book can save you money as well as worry if you want to make small changes.

Mandy White What Deb Nam-Krane said is also true - to proofread a print copy because the book will look different on paper than it does on the computer. You will see typos that you missed on the computer. The reason I said ebook first, print second is that I skip the paper-proof step by reading it on my Kindle. I find the Kindle works just as well as a paper copy and it costs nothing to put my book on it.

More author tips all through January on WWBB in 'What I wished I'd known before I published'.