Blog Tour: Christmas on the Little Cornish Isles by Phillipa Ashley

It may only be September, but the first hint of Christmas has made it's way to my blog, and I am thrilled to be part of the blog tour for Christmas on the Little Cornish Isles by Phillipa Ashley. As part of my stop on the tour Phillipa is sharing her top five childhood reads. Find out what she read pre-J.K Rowling.

Guestpost with PHILLIPA Ashley

My favourite childhood reads
I can’t remember a time when I couldn’t read.  I was brought up in a time without the Internet. There was no JK Rowling, no Philip Pullman and e-books hadn’t been invented. Luckily for me, my Auntie Pat was a librarian and I loved visiting her and spending my school hols stamping books, hiding away in corners reading and sending the circular card index whirling round at lightning speed. At one time, I even thought of becoming a librarian. Back then, I kept every book I was given and re-read most countless times, often with a torch under the bedclothes. Here are some that stick out for me.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe  I still love this epic story of good triumphing over evil. I had no idea it was an allegory and love the fact you can just enjoy it as a gripping story. 
Edgar Allan Poe’s Tales of Mystery and Terror Another auntie gave me this book as part of a collection of ‘children’s stories’ that also included Pride & Prejudice (which I didn’t read at the time…) I now realise that Poe is totally unsuitable for kids, of course, but she had no idea of the content! I read the disturbing stories over and over, scaring myself half to death in the process. I can still recall the quiet horror of the Tell Tale Heart and the Pit & the Pendulum.
My Gran Ashley’s Mills & Boons I loved my Gran Ashley and the fact that she had lots of Mills & Boons lying about the house, provided by my librarian auntie. Those romances must have provided an escape into a more glamorous life. I’m not sure how old I was when I started reading them – early teens I guess. I never thought that I would write romance myself one day and count many of their authors as friends.
HMS Ulysses – Alistair Maclean I was about 12 when I got into the thrillers of Alistair MacLean. By the time I was 16, my wonderful English teacher found out and in an attempt to encourage me to read something more literary, gave me Graham Greene’s The Comedians. I’m afraid I hated it but I *did* finally read Pride & Prejudice. Two years later, thanks to my teacher’ encouragement, I got a place to read English at Oxford. 

Christmas on the Little Cornish Isles is out now