Cole regularly holds creative writing classes in UK prisons. [15] She is a patron of the single-parent charity Gingerbread, and also a patron of Women's Aid. [1] I was a bit dismissive when I started this book after not enjoying previous Cole thrillers, but I was determined to finish the collection my neighbour had given.

The Know by Martina Cole | Waterstones

I found the book way too long. It was dragged out and boring in several places. I thought about giving up on it several times but read it to the end. The ending was pretty good and half saved it for me. Raising it to a 2-star. There are a lot of characters introduced throughout so it does get a little hard to follow at times. It also uses a lot of slang and different terminology, both criminal and regional; which I found harder to follow as well. I don't mind reading about violence and mayhem. I don't mind cruel, vicious characters. I don't even mind reading prose written in 'accents'. What I do mind is being introduced to a huge cast of characters within a short time and trying to piece together who they are. And I want to have something to like about them. Five chapters in and I was slightly confused, reading on automatic and found myself barely interested in what happened next. A shame, because I really wanted to like this and was in the mood for a crime thriller. I like this one but with some distance. The story and the characters are very interesting and the writing has its own distinctive style but it could have been half as long and just as good. This was a hard book to read but I didn't want to be one of them people that avoid these topics and pretend they don't exist. The prostitution of women and children does exist and Martina Cole spares us nothing of the underworld of it.This book will make you laugh and cry. Sometimes both together. It will also make you think of your own family. Love them or hate them they are your family. Just started reading martina’s Books, I can’t understand why I have never read them before I absolutely love them what a brilliant writer. Reply

The Know by Martina Cole | Goodreads The Know by Martina Cole | Goodreads

But I persevered. The book was gripping and it showed how good Martina Cole is at analysing human behaviour. Yes, she uses the criminal world as an example and as a metaphor, but shows how we are all guilty, to some extent, of justifying our hardships, finding excuses for our bad habits, frustrations, deflecting, assigning blame etc. A four-part TV adaptation of Dangerous Lady was broadcast on ITV in 1995, and in 1998 ITV broadcast a four-part adaptation of The Jump. The Take was serialised on British television on Sky1 in June 2009, which starred Tom Hardy as Freddie. Sky1 has also commissioned an adaptation of The Graft, which has yet to go into production. [7] Whilst this wasn't Cole's strongest novel, the plot itself raised some interesting questions and I was completely invested in the outcome. view: A dark and gripping crime epic, in one of my favourite stories by Cole, sees a seemingly accidental murder being investigated by the father of the victim, lead to uncovering some really dark untenable secrets within the underbelly of London. 8 out of 12 When the bodies of missing schoolgirls start turning up, former DCI Kate Burrows is dragged out of retirement.

Martina Cole on strong women in her books

This is the first book by Martina Cole, I enjoyed her writing in the novel, it was a book that I could not put down,

Faces by Martina Cole | Goodreads Faces by Martina Cole | Goodreads

My heart went out to the little two year old Jordanna, and I was horrified by what she had to witness and go through so early on in her life. I think it's this aspect that made The Business initially such an uncomfortable read because it gives the reader a stirring that this is what life is really like for some people. So when her beautiful teenage daughter is raped and murdered, only one thing will stop Joanie's pain - seeing her daughter's killer brought to justice. Joanie knows who he is and she'll do whatever it takes to nail him . . . Excessive repetition, do we need to be told twenty plus times that she is a drunken alcoholic who loves her husband (who hates her) and hates her sister (who loves her) – skimmed over sections as these had been covered numerous times before. Jon Jon, Joanie's oldest at seventeen/eighteen, tries to find out what's going on. Jon Jon works closely with Paulie Martin, a local pimp.This is just on the verge of being unreadable. While the start was promising, it all just devolves into a repetitive and predictable tract. Who the killer is hardly a mystery...they are the only suspect. Browse the world's largest eBookstore and start reading today on the web, tablet, phone, or ereader.

The Know - Martina Cole - Google Books

Wow. I live in a world where people read this, and then give it 5 stars. We're all doomed I tell you. Doomed ! The Graft is cleverly written so that you discover more and more about the main characters (including some very big surprises, but I won't tell you what they are !) as you read. The characters have hidden depths and dark secrets that nobody, neither the other characters in the story nor the reader, will suspect until they are suddenly revealed. a b c d e Cadwalladr, Carole (31 May 2009). " 'The Booker prize money wouldn't even keep me in cigarettes' ". The Observer . Retrieved 23 June 2018.You owe it to yourself to read one of Martina Cole's books if you haven't because she will take you places you don't want to go but can't ignore. This book is a great example of the power of a novel by her. The two gangsters are married to sisters. Freddie's wife is dependant upon drink and drugs and very jealous of her sister. While the world they live in has a strong moral code - loyalty - care for families - honesty in dealings with superiors (not the general public), retribution is swift and violent. Jealousy and betrayal erode the family bonds with severe consequences. She remarried in the 1990s, but the marriage ended in divorce. [14] She had her second child when she was 39. [4] Even before I started reading it, I started recommending it to friends.... who knew I would be disappointed?