# Only 2 days remaining to get Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray for free.



## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Just wanted to start off a thread to tell you that Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray is available in the literary fiction category on Amazon.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Cathy. . . . .

Welcome to KindleBoards, and congratulations on the book! 

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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Anne

Hope it is ok to reply to you on the day I have started this thread off........but I just wanted to say thankyou for the opportunity to promote the novel and also how much I enjoy coming on the site now I have (more or less) got the hang of it.

Best wishes, Cathy


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

It is 1971. Biographer Nigel Lush has been asked to write the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley: First World War hero, arms dealer, renowned horticulturalist and founder of the Magnificent Britain gardening competition. Nigel's biography is almost finished when shocking revelations from Leonard Stidges, another First World War veteran, compel Nigel to completely revise his impressions of Sir Maurice with devastating consequences. Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray is a novel in three parts which explores the nature of biography and its relationship to fiction and the truth; the consequences of pursuing a secret life; and changing attitudes towards sexuality throughout the twentieth century.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Hypocrisy&#8230;..Secrets&#8230;..Lies

In 1971 Nigel Lush has almost finished writing the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley when shocking revelations from First World War veteran Leonard Stidges compel Nigel to completely revise his impressions of Sir Maurice with devastating consequences. 
Nigel Lush wants to find out the truth; Lady Celia Brearley wants to suppress the truth; only Sir Maurice knows the truth. 
In his novel Magnificent Britain author Michael Murray explores the nature of biography and its relationship to fiction and the truth; the consequences of pursuing a secret life; and the sexual politics of the twentieth century.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Hypocrisy&#8230;..Secrets&#8230;..Lies

In 1971 Nigel Lush has almost finished writing the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley when shocking revelations from First World War veteran Leonard Stidges compel Nigel to completely revise his impressions of Sir Maurice with devastating consequences.

In Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray, Nigel wants to find out the truth; Lady Celia Brearley wants to suppress the truth; only Sir Maurice knows the truth.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Many thanks to Flurries of Words UK who have made Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray their Book of the Day to-day.

http://www.flurriesofwords.blogspot.co.uk


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

If you're looking for a big summer read you might like Magnificent Britain which is nothing to do with either the Queen's Jubilee or The Olympics.

Nigel Lush has been commissioned to write the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley - First World War hero and pillar of the British establishment. The biography is almost complete when another old soldier, Leonard Stidges, contacts Nigel making allegations about Sir Maurice's war record. "The man's a liar; a liar and a fraud," Leonard tells Nigel.

Part One of Magnificent Britain tells the story of Nigel's search for the truth. This brings him into conflict with Sir Maurice's widow, Lady Celia Brearley, who is determined to preserve her husband's reputation.

Part Two of the novel is set thirty years later. Arnie Stidges, Leonard's son, has new information with which he confronts Lady Brearley. He is determined to get her to admit the truth of the allegations made by Nigel Lush in the unpublished Post Script to his biography.

In Part Three of Magnificent Britain, the reader is given access to Sir Maurice's secret memoir which reveals the truth which has eluded Nigel, Arnie and even his own wife.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

If you've read and enjoyed Magnificent Britain you will probably enjoy Michael's new book too.

The title is Julia's Room and it's a (long - 32,000 words) short story.

Julia's Room is set in Fleet Street, London and Alan, a young reporter, is having a bad Monday. By the end of the day he will never feel the same about Julia again.

Hope you have time to take a look at it.

Best wishes, Cathy


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## jackwarner (Aug 14, 2012)

Nice post. I just completed reading Julia's Room and after that I am a huge fan of Michael Murray.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Julia's Room by Michael Murray is FREE starting today (Wednesday August 29th) for FIVE days (until Sunday September 2nd).

Hope that you will download the book and enjoy reading it.

Julia's Room is a (long) short story or novella - 32,000 words.

It's another difficult Monday for Alan, a young reporter working in London's Fleet Street. He thinks he has three great ideas for the weekly story conference but then, in the editor's absence, Ray Dressler is put in charge.

In the course of the day Alan is humiliated by a colleague and shocked by the revelations of a stranger in a pub. By the day's end he will never feel the same about his fellow journalists or Julia again.

Many thanks to those readers who've already read Julia's Room and given positive feedback.


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## Marius Hancu (Aug 28, 2012)

> Topic: "Julia's Room" is *free today (August 29th - 2nd September) *

Can the owner of a thread of a book overwrite the original thread title to make such timely announcements?

I am new here, but it seems so.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Marius Hancu said:


> > Topic: "Julia's Room" is *free today (August 29th - 2nd September) *
> 
> Can the owner of a thread of a book overwrite the original thread title to make such timely announcements?
> 
> I am new here, but it seems so.


Hope I am not breaking the "bumping" rules by responding.

You go to your first post and change the title there.

Cathy


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## Marius Hancu (Aug 28, 2012)

Thank you, Cathy.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

First of all, I just wanted to say thankyou to everyone who downloaded Julia's Room and helped to make our free promotion so successful a few days ago. Julia's Room was #3 in Free Short Stories in the UK for the whole of the five days and actually managed to get into the Top Twenty Free Short Stories in the US for a couple of days too. As this was our first free promotion we thought this was fantastic.

Julia's Room is back to the normal selling price of just $0.99 now so if you missed the free promotion it won't break the bank.

If you've enjoyed Julia's Room you might like to try Michael's full length novel Magnificent Britain which will take you a lot longer to read but I think you will approve. It's a novel in three parts which explores some big themes such as the relationship between biography, fiction and the truth, the changing sexual politics of the twentieth century and the devastating consequences of living a secret life; but it is a very readable novel and readers I've talked to said that once they'd got into it, they couldn't put it down.

Thanks for reading and I hope you'll give Magnificent Britain a look..Best wishes, Cathy


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Until now, when I've written on this thread it's been to tell you about Julia's Room and Magnificent Britain which I've published on behalf of my husband Michael Murray.

Today I want to tell you about my own book I Think I Prefer the Tinned Variety: The Diary of a Petty Officer in the Fleet Air Arm during World War II which was published last week.

It's a work of non-fiction and the story that it tells is true.

Seventy years ago, World War II uprooted my father from a coal mining village in South Yorkshire (UK) and transported him thousands of miles to Sierra Leone in West Africa and later to a tropical island in the Pacific as part of the support network for the British Pacific Fleet.

This short, annotated diary (approximately 22,000 words) records his extraordinary experiences and the on-going banalities of everyday life on a naval air-base far away from home. Links are included in the text to a collection of original photographs on the Tinned Variety blogsite.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

Can celebrity biographer Nigel Lush tell the true story of First World War hero Sir Maurice Brearley? Not when Lady Celia will do everything she can to stop him.

Magnificent Britain has been called "immensely readable" and "a page turner right through to its gripping conclusion" by readers.

If you enjoy reading historical / political / literary fiction with a strong story-line then you would probably enjoy


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

*Free from 17th - 21st November.*_"An immensely readable novel. The book is a page turner all the way to its gripping conclusion."_

Nigel Lush - celebrity biographer - is one of the principal characters in Magnificent Britain. He has almost finished writing the official biography of First World War hero Sir Maurice Brearley when astonishing revelations from another old veteran, Leonard Stidges, cause him to revise his opinions. Nigel develops an infatuation for Arnie Stidges, Leonard's son, whom he meets when he goes to interview Leonard. As the story unfolds Nigel finds himself caught up in the lives of Leonard and Arnie Stidges with unexpected consequences.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

First of all I would like to say thankyou to everyone who downloaded Magnificent Britain when it was on a free promotion recently. It reached #4 Political Fiction (Top 100 Free Bestsellers) and #1 in the same category in the UK and Germany. It's on sale at the moment for $2.99 and you can read a substantial chunk on the amazon site in the free sample.

With Fleet Street so much in the news after the Leveson Inquiry report in the UK you might enjoy Julia's Room set in Fleet Street in the 1970s. 
Julia's Room is a (long) short story or novella - 32,000 words. It tells the story of Alan, a young reporter working in London's Fleet Street. He thinks he has three great ideas for the weekly story conference but then, in the editor's absence, Ray Dressler is put in charge. In the course of the day Alan is humiliated by a colleague and shocked by the revelations of a stranger in a pub. By the day's end he will never feel the same about his fellow journalists or Julia again. Julia's Room was #3 Short Stories (Top 100 Free Bestsellers) in the UK when it was on a free promotion recently. Currently priced at $0.99 - a great read for the weekend.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

A new review was posted for Julia's Room which included these wonderful words: _"Michael Murray writes with an intelligence and passion that drives the narrative forward at such a pace that you arrive at the end breathless but begging for more."_. Julia's Room is still available for $0.99 or free for Prime members.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

You can download Julia's Room free today and tomorrow (17 / 18 January).

Julia's Room is a (long) short story or novella - 32,000 words. It tells the story of Alan, a young reporter working in London's Fleet Street. He thinks he has three great ideas for the weekly story conference but then, in the editor's absence, Ray Dressler is put in charge. In the course of the day Alan is humiliated by a colleague and shocked by the revelations of a stranger in a pub. By the day's end he will never feel the same about his fellow journalists or Julia again.

Previously #3 in Top 100 Free Bestsellers Short Stories in UK and Germany and top twenty in USA. Aiming for a higher ranking this time. Can you help and download Julia's Room today?

Best wishes, Cathy


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

If you haven't read Julia's Room by Michael Murray, it's FREE to download on 6 / 7 February.

Julia's Room is a novella - 32,000 words. It tells the story of Alan, a young reporter working in London's Fleet Street. He thinks he has three great ideas for the weekly story conference but then, in the editor's absence, Ray Dressler is put in charge. In the course of the day Alan is humiliated by a colleague and shocked by the revelations of a stranger in a pub. By the day's end he will never feel the same about his fellow journalists or Julia again.

Julia's Room has had some great reviews such as this one:
"This novella firmly held my attention from start to finish. Straightaway it plunges the reader into the murky world of journalism in the 70s. We follow Alan over a hellish Monday, root for him to meet deadlines and watch as he discovers the secrets of current and former colleagues. It's very well-written and, for something that might first appear mundane, gripping to the very end. The book's style reminded me of the great American novel 'Revolutionary Road'. In both books, the dialogue is extremely convincing and at times crackles with electricity. Here, in Alan's world, not everything is as it seems. Even now I have finished the book, it is not entirely clear to me who knows what. This is a fitting way to leave the characters though. It surely reflects the murkiness of newspaper journalism at the time. Highly recommended. 5/5"

Hope you decide to give it a try and if you've read it already, thanks very much.


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## Cathy21 (Mar 28, 2012)

This week Magnificent Britain by Michael Murray is FREE to download until 20th February. It's the last time it will be free for a long while so if you're thinking of reading it, you need to grab it now.

Magnificent Britain is a literary / political / historical novel in three parts which spans the twentieth century.

Readers in the UK have said in their reviews:

"Well paced plot with some good twists and turns, interesting characters and convincing dialogue."

"An immensely readable novel. The book is a page turner all the way to its gripping conclusion."

"The plot is both factual and fictional which makes the characters and their story very believable."

Here are some details about the main characters:

Part One of Magnificent Britain is set in 1971. Nigel Lush is 41 years old and a hugely successful writer of celebrity biographies. He feels that his work is not well regarded and he yearns for recognition as a serious biographer. Initially he is delighted to be commissioned to write the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley but grows bored with it. When the biography is almost complete he receives a letter inviting him to interview Leonard Stidges a First World War veteran who claims to have revelations about Sir Maurice. Nigel is gay, a fact he keeps very much to himself despite the recent decriminalisation of homosexuality. He develops an infatuation for Arnie Stidges, Leonard's son, whom he meets when he goes to interview Leonard. As the story unfolds Nigel finds himself caught up in the lives of Leonard and Arnie Stidges with unexpected consequences.

Sir Maurice Brearley was born in 1893 and died aged seventy six in 1969. He was an absolute pillar of the establishment: First World War hero; arms and munitions manufacturer; prominent member of Churchill's re-armament campaign; expert on orchids and founder of the Magnificent Britain gardening competition. Knighted in 1953, he was married to Lady Celia Brearley and dedicated his life to horticulture and the restoration of Budeholme House and its gardens. He inherited the Budeholme Estate from his mother's family along with huge wealth from his industrialist father. To celebrate the twenty fifth anniversary of the Magnificent Britain Competition and to commemorate the life of Sir Maurice, Nigel Lush is commissioned to write an official biography. When he hears shocking allegations from Leonard Stidges, Nigel is forced to re-appraise his subject and attempt to tell the true story of this "Magnificent Briton."

Lady Celia Brearley is the widow of Sir Maurice Brearley. In 1971, when Part One of the novel begins, she is fifty two years old. She was married to Sir Maurice in 1937 when she was just eighteen and he was forty four. Like her husband, she too is a passionate horticulturalist. Lady Celia is also a recovering alcoholic who when drunk becomes outrageous and salacious. Nigel Lush visits her at Budeholme House to finalise the proofs of her late husband's official biography. She is fiercely protective of Sir Maurice's reputation but under the influence of drink she attempts to seduce Nigel and reveals much more about Sir Maurice's life than she ever has before.

Arnie Stidges is the handsome, athletic son of Leonard Stidges. In 1971 he is aged thirty six and is employed as a sports reporter on the Medway Argus, his local newspaper. A keen amateur cricketer, he is concerned to make his father's last days as meaningful as possible and contacts Nigel Lush on Leonard's behalf so that the old man can offload his memories of Sir Maurice Brearley. When Nigel has completed his interview with Leonard he contrives further reasons to meet with Arnie. His plans are scuppered however when Arnie telephones Nigel to inform him that Leonard has died. Undeterred, Nigel invites himself to Leonard's funeral where he makes even more remarkable discoveries.

In 1971 Leonard Stidges is eighty one years old. He is frail, bedridden and dying from cancer. He has heard that Nigel Lush is writing the official biography of Sir Maurice Brearley and asks to see him. He wants to share with Nigel all he knows about the illustrious war hero with whom he served in the trenches of the Western Front. Leonard makes serious allegations about Sir Maurice but it is only when Nigel has listened to Lady Celia's drunken confidences that he starts to take Leonard seriously.

Magnificent Britain FREE for only 2 more days.


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