This book is dedicated to my mother, Catherine Ward & to all my family & friends who have given me their wholehearted support & who have always believed in me. A special thank you to my late, Great-Aunt Maggie Anne, for introducing me to the original book all those years ago.
THE PRETENDER
READ SOME
REVIEWS OF
THE PRETENDER
A delightful 21st century fairytale complete with a charming prince and a villainous father. That doesn’t mean the narrative is light and fluffy, far from it.
Norway Ellesea Blog, UK blog tour.
This is a perfect YA book that I really got stuck into and could not put down.
Coffee and Kindle Book Reviews, UK blog tour.
If you are familiar with the classic story of the Prince and the Pauper – this is a modern take on the story. It makes for a lovely read and teaches that there is always a consequence to an action and to make the best from every situation. It also highlights the value of friendship. I would thoroughly recommend if you like a book to take you on a journey and that reads well and easily.
Paula Seal, UK Amazon Customer Review.
CHARITY WORK BOOKS 2 AFRICA
One of the central themes of ‘The Pretender’ is that Sophia is born into a life of poverty while Princess Isabella is born a Princess. When I came to write this story, I was aware that many children in this country and abroad live in poverty and also experience abuse. This was a fictional story in my book but unfortunately for many it's a reality.
HELLO READERS I'M
KATIE WARD
I am a Devon based author with a lifelong love of literature. I have a particular love of classic fiction novels such as Wuthering Heights, Woman in White and Vanity Fair. These all have dark undertones that enhance the plot with a sense of tension and foreboding. In my own writing, I aim to encapsulate this classic style but within a modern and contemporary storyline.
MY FIRST NOVEL
THE PRETENDER
My first novel ‘The Pretender’ is a modern-day adaptation of the Mark Twain classic ‘The Prince and the Pauper’. This is another of my childhood favourites but due to its age and style of writing it is a difficult read for most modern readers. For my novel, I took all the main elements of the original story in order to stay faithful to it but then weaved them into a brand new contemporary novel targeted at a YA audience.
HELLO READERS
I'M KATIE WARD
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Cookbook Twist for The Pretender
Have you ever read a book and wished you could make the dishes from that book for yourself? Well now you can, as the new Eat, Read and Dream cookbook features recipes inspired by award-winning novels. The Pretender is one of the books that is being featured. Being set in the re-imagined world of the French monarchy, food plays an important part especially considering that the only the best food would ever find its way to the royal table. Prior to the cookbook being produced, I had worked with a friend of mine who was a French food writer to bring to life some of the recipes from my book that my readers could make to give them a flavour of the world they were reading. I like the idea of making my work a bit more immersive than usual and this seemed a great way. So, when I was contacted by Indie Brag about the idea of developing a cookbook inspired by their award-winning novels, I seized the opportunity to showcase the amazing recipes my friend had created with my book in mind. This has been such an exciting project to be a part of and I can’t wait to see the finished book when it is released. Eat, Read and Dream will be released on Saturday 22 August 2020 and pre-orders can be made using the below link. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Indiebrag-Eat-Read-Dream-Cookbook/dp/1098308034
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Shute Festival 2019
During the promotion of ‘The Pretender’ I met one of the organisers of Shute Festival on a Twitter forum I took part in. This is a literary festival that I run in the little village where I grew up and takes place in the local church with all profit made benefitting the local school and church. When I was asked to become involved in organising the 2019 festival, I jumped at the chance. In March 2019, while I was in Canterbury for my Books 2 Africa interview I had BBC Breakfast on while I was getting ready. They were talking to an eminent forensic scientist about a book she had released. Then they asked her “of all the cases you have been involved in what is the one that has caused you the most concern”. As she began to reply, I noticed I had stopped and was enthralled a I almost had a feeling I knew what she would say.In 1987, there was a murder of an elderly woman in her rural home in Shute. A local man was convicted and sent to prison but there was always a fear that a miscarriage of justice had occurred. A Channel 4 documentary in the late 1990’s highlighted some of the major discrepancies within the case.As I stood watching the TV, Professor Angela Gallop responded by saying that the one case she felt most uneasy about even to this day was the murder that took place in Shute. Realising how amazing it would be to have Angela come to Shute to talk about her involvement in this case as well as her extensive 40 year career in forensic science, I got in contact with her publicist to see if she would be willing to attend. In September 2019, Angela Gallop was one of many brilliant participants of Shute Festival and to a full house explained her ongoing concerns around the murder that took place in Shute all those years ago and how she would like to do more to help on this case if the opportunity should ever arise. As well as Angela, many others in the law enforcement world remain concerned today about the conviction made in this case and the likelihood that an innocent man was sent to jail for a murder he did not commit.
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RED ROSES
SECOND NOVEL
BY KATIE WARD
Red Roses is the second novel by Katie Ward, her first The Pretender was awarded a prestigious BRAG Medallion Award in April 2019.
This novel is a modern interpretation of the classic tragedy made famous by the likes of William Shakespeare, Charlotte Bronte and Wilkie Collins. Katie has a love of classic fiction and aims to encapsulate these elements in work in order to allow her readers to enjoy these aspects in a modern way.
