Life update: In which you can win a signed copy of The Husband Before You

Hello!

Would you like to win a signed copy of my latest psych thriller, The Husband Before You? If the answer's yes, stick around and I'll explain how you can enter.

First, though, I thought I'd let you know what I've been up to since I last wrote, and what's coming up in the next couple of months.

It's been a crazy busy time, with a book launch, a book deadline and - last but definitely not least - a two-week break on the paradise island of Mauritius.

Adrian and I celebrate our silver wedding anniversary in July, and we decided it was the perfect excuse for a long-haul holiday.

We had an amazing couple of weeks chilling on the beach and exploring this beautiful gem of an island. The people were friendly, the scenery spectacular and the food delicious. We hiked up a mountain in the Black River Gorges National Park, visited a vanilla farm, haggled with traders at colourful markets and explored the island's vibrant capital, Port Louis.

We loved it, as you can probably tell!

The Husband Before You was published the day we arrived, which meant I was on my phone more than I probably should have been, checking ratings and rankings and keeping up with all the lovely mentions on social media.

A huge thank you if you've read and reviewed the book. I hope you enjoyed it! And if you have read it but haven't left a review yet, even a couple of lines on Amazon and/or Goodreads would be amazing. Reviews really help the mighty Amazon algorithms match my books to new readers. 

If you haven't read it yet, you can check it out here. All my books are available as audiobooks, and they're all free to read with Kindle Unlimited.

Once we were back home I dived straight into my writing cave to finish the first draft of the next book, due to be released this November.

The manuscript stood at 57k words when we left for Mauritius and I'm happy to say that I handed in the finished first draft - just shy of 80k words - on Thursday, three days early.

I started the book on 6 February. On my most productive day I wrote 3,759 words (I think this is the most I have ever written in one day) and on my least productive, 134 words.

Of course, there were many days when I didn't write a single word.

I'm now waiting with bated breath for the verdict from my editor... I'm keeping everything crossed she loves it.

So, what happens next? Well, I'm due to receive the structural edit on 2 June. Structurals look at the concept and plot - all the big picture stuff, like pacing, character development, twist, structure and flow.

After that comes the line edit, which is more about style choices on a sentence level, and the copy edit, which tackles grammar, consistency and accuracy.

Finally, the book is given to a proofreader to catch any last-minute typos and other errors.

As you can see, a lot goes on behind the scenes to ensure the book is the best it can be.

In other news, my first book with my publisher Bookouture, The Baby, celebrated its first birthday last month, and this coincided with two foreign editions hitting the bookshelves. Das Baby has gone on pre-order in Germany, and O Bebé is now on sale in Portugal.

Seeing these translations has been such a thrill!

Now, some of you will know that horses are very close to my heart, and I have been riding almost all my life, so I was bowled over to be invited to speak at Redwings Horse Sanctuary's Book Festival near Great Yarmouth in Norfolk on Saturday 14 June.

Adrian (aka AJ Wills) and I will be on stage talking about what it's like being a husband and wife who both write thrillers. Do we steal each other’s ideas or do we have to have a no-talking-about-work rule? Do we discuss plot twists together? Have we ever thought about writing a book together…?

[Spoiler alert: we have, and the answer from me is a definite no, though Adrian says never say never].

Here are the details:

Redwings Book Festival 2025

Date: Saturday June 14th 2025

Start time: 10am

Location: Redwings Caldecott, near Great Yarmouth, Norfolk

Audience: Suitable for all ages

Duration: 7 hours

Price: £20. Free entry for children aged 16 and under

Tickets: Book your ticket here

Maybe I'll see you there!

And, finally, here's your chance to win a signed copy of The Husband Before You. All you have to do is email me at amanda@ajmcdine.com with the answer to the following question:

Which of the following did I not do in Mauritius?

A) Hike up a mountain

B) Visit a vanilla farm

C) Swim with dolphins

D) Haggle in a market

That's it. Just email me at amanda@ajmcdine.com with your answer and I'll pick a winner out of the hat on Saturday 31 May.

Thank you for entering and GOOD LUCK!

That's all from me for now. I'll be back in a couple of weeks with details of the winner and some exciting news about the world's longest-running and most prestigious celebration of crime writing, the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, this July.

In the meantime, happy reading!

Amanda