# Being Light



## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Hello, I hope you will take a look at my book, Being Light







. It's my second novel and was originally published by Orion (part of the Hachette Group). I have got the rights back and I am bringing it back to life by publishing it as an ebook. It will also be available in print.

Some of the characters from my first novel, Alison Wonderland







, crop up in Being Light as minor characters but you can read it even if you haven't read the first one.

_Here's the blurb:_
Roy Travers is swept away by a freak gust of wind while trying to install a bouncy castle in Brockwell Park, south London. Sheila, his wife, can't understand why he hasn't found his way back home. She begins to suspect that Roy has been abducted by aliens and enlists the help of Mrs Fitzgerald's Bureau of Investigation to find him.

Sheila travels to Kent with Alison, a private detective. Together they build a missing persons advertisement out of pebbles on a beach, hoping it will be seen by the aliens who have taken Roy. But Roy was not taken by aliens. The truth is far stranger.

_It had some great reviews in the UK press:_



> Smith has a keen eye for material details, but her prose is lucid and uncluttered by heavy description. Imagine a satire on Cool Britannia made by the Coen Brothers. _Times Literary Supplement_
> 
> This is a novel in which the ordinary and the unusual are constantly juxtaposed in various idiosyncratic characters&#8230; Its airy quirkiness is a delight. _The Times _
> 
> ...


Thank you
Helen


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

Thanks for letting us know about Being Light, Helen.  It sounds interesting.  Good luck with it!  I hope you sell many ebooks.


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## ScottLCollins (Dec 7, 2009)

Posted a review:
After reading Alison Wonderland, I too moved pretty quickly into this book. While the characters have some of the same crazy quirks and witty humor, there is a dark side to this Being Light that wasn't there in Alison. 

I really enjoy the writing style, as it feels like real life. There seems to be a certain amount of chaos, but even in the disarray, our lives are all connected. Nobody stands apart from everyone else. Our existences are filled with cause and effect. I felt she did a great job of striking that point home, at least with me.

Thanks for the read and I look forward to more!


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Thanks for the lovely review, Scott - I really appreciate it. I'm delighted that you liked the book.

LibraryThing and Goodreads are hosting giveaways for print editions of Being Light this week, if anyone is a member of those sites and wants to sign up. LibraryThing is also hosting a giveaway for the ebook version (which Goodreads doesn't allow, unfortunately).

(The Goodreads giveaway might not show up until tomorrow as it takes a while to go live - but it's definitely going to happen.)

Thanks for your comment, Daniel - I realised I hadn't responded to you, sorry. Never mind, we have exchanged comments elsewhere on Kindleboards - I love the cover of your book, as you know.


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Another review has come in on Amazon - this time from someone who liked it but didn't really know what to make of it. She says 'It is so different from any other books I have read.' 

I'd love some more reviews if anyone reading this has read the book.

Have a great Independence Day weekend if you're in the US and you're celebrating.


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

I have just had a 4* review for this book on Goodreads calling it 'a witty three-ring circus.'


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## DonnaFaz (Dec 5, 2009)

HelenSmith said:


> I have just had a 4* review for this book on Goodreads calling it 'a witty three-ring circus.'


Oooo, how nice, Helen! I want to read it, but I I want to read Alison, first! 

~Donna~


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## lonestar (Feb 9, 2010)

Just bought Alison.


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## DonnaFaz (Dec 5, 2009)

DonnaFaz said:


> Oooo, how nice, Helen! I want to read it, but I I want to read Alison, first!
> 
> ~Donna~


Well, I'll be! I think I just stammered without realizing it. LOL

~Donna~


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## Debra L Martin (Apr 8, 2010)

Helen, I just received my copy of "Being Light" from the Goodreads contest.  I'm so excited to start reading!  

Deb


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## 17284 (Jun 24, 2010)

Hi Helen...thought i got a whiff of something pleasant cooking over here - I know u know I don't own a kindle but I do, as of last night, have the kindle apps on my puter. I also went immediately and bought and downloaded three books, two of which are irrelevant for this post and the other is The Miracle Inspector, which u wrote - just in case u've forgotten...To me it sounds like a great premise and I have heard/read many good things about your writing talent. So I'll start with that one and get to Being Light, later on...best to you


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Hey, thanks Donna, Deb, Simon and Lonestar.  Thanks so much for buying the books - to you and to everyone who has bought them.

Alison Wonderland and Being Light are funny and quirky.  The Miracle Inspector is much darker. 

I hope you enjoy Alison Wonderland, Lonestar and Donna.

Deb, it really made me laugh when I saw that you were one of the people who had won Being Light over at GoodReads. I'm glad one of the copies went to a friend and fellow author.

Simon, I think you'll like The Miracle Inspector.  I just got a really good 5* review for it over on Amazon.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

HI again, Helen. As you know, we like to put the rules in every thread so people always know where to find 'em. . .seems like we missed you in April, so here they are now!

We invite you to use your book cover as your avatar and have links to your book and website in your signature. Don't forget to bookmark this thread (using your browser's bookmark/favorite function) so you can update it. Although self-promotion is limited to the Book Bazaar, most of our authors have found the best way to promote their books is to be as active throughout KindleBoards as time allows. This is your target audience--book lovers with Kindles!

Thanks for being part of KindleBoards! Feel free to PM us if you have any questions.

Betsy & Ann
Book Bazaar Moderators

_The fine print:
Please add to your existing book thread when you have news about your book rather than start a new one, it helps the members who are trying to follow you. You may have a separate thread for each of your books. We recommend you bookmark your post so that you can find it in the future.  You may respond to all posts, but if there have been no member posts, we ask that you wait a week before "bumping" the thread by posting back-to-back posts of your own. And we ask that Amazon reviews not be repeated here as they are easy to find at your book link. Also, full reviews from other sites should not be posted here, but you may post a short blurb and a link to the full review instead. All this, and more, is included in our Forum Decorum. From time to time our site rules may change; be sure to check Forum Decorum (http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,36.0.html) for the current guidelines and rules. _


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Thanks for the official welcome, Ann.

I love being part of Kindle Boards.  I love being able to come here and talk about books (and not just my own).


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## Debra L Martin (Apr 8, 2010)

HelenSmith said:


> Deb, it really made me laugh when I saw that you were one of the people who had won Being Light over at GoodReads. I'm glad one of the copies went to a friend and fellow author.


I've just started reading the book and loving it so far. Yeah for contests!

Deb


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Thanks, Deb.

Last night I was at the book launch for an anthology of writing for a writers' group I mentor in London. Details on my blog here: http://helensmithblog.blogspot.com


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## Edward C. Patterson (Mar 28, 2009)

Today's featured author at the Indie Spotlight is

Monday: Helen Smith - Being Light

http://www.theindiespotlight.com

Come up and read and leave a comment.

Edward C. Patterson
& Gregory B. Banks


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Thanks, Ed


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## Sandra Edwards (May 10, 2010)

Sounds like a great read! I'll download a sample.

Wishing you the best of luck!

Sandy


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## ScottLCollins (Dec 7, 2009)

Congrats on the spotlight!


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

Thanks Sandra and Scott.


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

I took part in a Q&A with Kris over at the Cajun Book Lady blog.

Thanks, Kris.


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

There are a few more 4* customer reviews for the book up at Amazon and a very nice review for the book at the Stimulated Outlet Books Review blog.


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

There's a great review for Being Light over at the All-Consuming Books review blog.


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## ScottLCollins (Dec 7, 2009)

Very nice!


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

There's a lovely review for Being Light over at Big Al's Books and Pals:

"It is unlikely Being Light is anything like any book you've read before... I've read all of Smith's books that are available for the Kindle. Each time the same things stand out for me. The plots are original, inventive, and (quick, find another word for quirky) idiosyncratic. But it is the characters and the humor that draw me in."


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## HelenSmith (Mar 17, 2010)

There's a lovely review for Being Light here.

"Being Light definitely has the same, quirky style as Alison Wonderland - Helen Smith has a wonderfully whimsical style of writing that I absolutely love, but this story has far more depth and underlying sadness with less of the madcap romping in Alison."


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