It’s such a pleasure today to be joining the blog tour for The Love Detective by Angela Dyson, published today (28th September) by Matador Books, and available as an ebook and in paperback. When Helen Lewis of Literally PR invited me to join the tour (thanks Helen!), I sadly had to decline the opportunity to read and review the book – the usual “too many books…”. And I must admit I’ve been rather regretting it ever since – the more I read about this book, the more I wish I’d had time to read it. Let’s take a closer look…
“He’d thought himself the hunter, that I was easy prey but what he hadn’t bargained for, was contending with a woman who hadn’t eaten a square meal in twenty-four hours. I get mean when I’m hungry.”
Clarry Pennhaligan, low on ambition but high on energy, can’t seem to come up with a proper grown-up plan to kick-start her life. Planning really isn’t her thing. But then she happens upon her true vocation: Snooping. Discovering other people’s secrets and getting paid for it. What could possibly go wrong?
Well… as it turns out, just about everything and soon Clarry finds herself in real danger. The Love Detective has a dark undertone with gritty themes that will keep the reader gripped to the edge of their seats until the very last page.
The really good news is that The Love Detective is the first in a planned series – the second book will follow in late spring 2019 – so I do hope I’ll have another opportunity to catch up with Clarry and Flan. But I’m delighted to welcome author Angela Dyson as my guest today, talking about a subject that (as a larger lady myself) is rather close to my heart – why was it important to her to have a size 14 protagonist? Over to you, Angela…
I think this is a very important question to raise. And my answer is a highly personal one for which I hope, Anne, you will forgive me.
Here’s my take on it: So many women suffer the tyranny of being expected to conform to a physical stereotype and experience profound self-loathing when they don’t.
I would love to be able to state that I have always accepted myself as I am and rejoiced in my body… but I haven’t… and I don’t. I think that it is almost impossible to repress negative responses when we are constantly being bombarded with images of how the “perfect” female body should look.
What I have decided, however, is that I’m bored and fed up with feeling bad about myself. What a waste of time! When I think of how many opportunities I missed when I was younger (parties, beach holidays, camping trips) because I was so very self-conscious about my weight, I could cry. Why didn’t I see that I had just as much right as anybody else to enjoy life and splash about in the sea and feel reckless and free and at peace with myself?
Being scouted in the street (many years ago now) and doing some plus-size modelling certainly helped with issues of self-esteem but even now at my age (when I can only dream of being a size 14!) I find myself, at times, crippled by such a dislike of myself that I avoid looking in the mirror. When it came to creating my heroine, Clarry Pennhaligan, in The Love Detective, it was essential to me that she was real woman. A relatable one. Clarry is a generously proportioned size 14. She looks good, she’s healthy and she adores her food.
In fact, a question in the Reading Group Notes that accompany my novel is:
Clarry loves food and is confident in her body size and shape. What are your thoughts on Body Image Activism and Body Positivity?
I am very much looking forward to hearing how my readers answer this!
Clarry is fortunate in that she has a wonderful role model in her side-kick, Flan, who assists her in her investigations as a private detective. Flan is 70 years old, gloriously outspoken, very attractive (she has two men in love with her) and brimming with energy and charm. With Flan around it’s impossible not to share her appetite for life. I want to be more like her…to let go and give myself permission to be exactly who I am.
A nicely inspiring post, Angela! I’ll look forward to catching up with Clarry when I can – I’m sure so many readers will love her, and I wish you every success with The Love Detective.
About the author
Angela Dyson ditched her London life and downsized her home to move to the sticks in Surrey, to follow her dream to become a professional author. She loves to write but to pay the bills (Angela soon discovered that utility companies, bank managers and landlords aren’t known for their generosity and understanding natures,) she had to squeeze the writing in with working for a living.
Some of the jobs to which she only gave half her attention have included working for a recording studio and a record label, running a building maintenance company where pretty much the only upside was getting to boss a lot of men about all day, doing a bit of plus size modelling (strictly clothes on) and, for one memorable summer, making a living reading palms on a Greek Island.
I love this post!
I have this book already on my TBR – thanks Anne. X