The Hippo Hangs Out . . . . with Alison Brodie

Today I'm so excited to be hanging out with Alison Brodie, author of Zenka, which I'm hugely embarrassed to reveal I still haven't read. I'll be heading off to naughty corner, with my tail firmly between my legs when I'm done chatting to Alison though!

If you haven't heard of Alison Brodie, where have you been? This woman has been everywhere lately talking about her latest book Zenka and everyone I know who has read it tells me that it's fantastic, which is another reason why I need to get reading it. Anyway I digress, let me introduce you all to this fabulous and very funny lady.

Photo courtesy of Alison Brodie

Alison Brodie is a writer and animal rights activist.  Her books have been published by Hodder & Stoughton (UK), Heyne (Germany) and Unieboek (Holland).

Alison has now gone indie.  Here are some editorial reviews for her recent books: 

BRAKE FAILURE:  “Masterpiece of humor” –Midwest Book Review

THE DOUBLE:   “Proof of her genius in writing fiction” -San Francisco Book Review.

ZENKA has been chosen as a “Top Read of 2017”  by Being Anne, Ali the Dragon Slayer, Dash Fan Reviews, Lauren Sapala (WriteCity), and Wall-to-Wall Books.

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Did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?

All the time.  My name is boring.  As an author I need a memorable name to grab a reader’s attention, a name such as Donna Trump, Charlie Dickens, or Fluffy Winters

Do you often hear from your readers and what do they say?

When my debut was released (Face to Face) this girl came up to me outside the local village shop and grabbed my wrist hard enough to snap it and with eyes like saucers she whispered:  “I loved it!”  I didn’t know what she was talking about.  (My first fan!  And all I wanted to do was run away from her shouting “POLICE!”)

What’s your favourite motivational phrase?

“Get through the day and have a Guinness.”

Where did your love of books/storytelling/reading/writing etc come from?

Hell if I know.  I’m a Scot, and Celts tend to be creative. 

If you could spend time with a character from your book who would it be and why? What would you get up to?

I would spend time with Beth (“The Double”) on the Kazka.  Just the two of us on the billionaire’s yacht, dressed in tiaras and designer bikinis, lazing in the pool and giving orders to the Russian stewards for more champagne.  But then I wouldn’t want to be her when the stalker gets her.

Do you have any hidden or uncommon talents?

I wouldn’t call it talent but I can’t stand injustice or people not helping others.  I’m always the first to help someone in the street, and I’m always picking up stray dogs from the side of the road (and boy! there’s a lot of strays in France!)

Photo found on Forgotten Dogs of the 5th Ward Project

If a genie granted you three wishes what would they be?

That everybody on the planet will be happy.  That everybody will care about all the animals we share the planet with.  And that the sodding plumber will get off his fat French butt and fix my leaking tap.

If you were a superhero what would you be called, what would your super-power be and what would you wear?

I would be called Pussy Aplenty.  I would be dressed as a cat, in a skin-tight costume (after I’ve had liposuction).   My super-power would be that I can just point at a room and it would miraculously clean itself.  My arch enemy would be Michael Fassbender and we would wrestle each other, mostly on the carpet.  My super-hero-buddy would be Bradley Cooper and he would come and save me and fly me off to his lair where he would ….  (You can guess the rest).

I'm really not sure why you would choose Mr Fassbender to be your arch enemy, but hey, while you're busy with Bradley Cooper. . . . . . 😉 😂

                                        
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                                                       Zenka

                                                    Blurb

A Comedy Noir set in gangland London

When mob boss, Jack Murray, saves Zenka’s life she vows to become his guardian angel, whether he likes it or not.  Happily, she now has access to shotguns, pistols and knuckledusters. 

 

But Jack doesn’t need her to go around murdering his enemies.  He wants her to toughen up his son, Nicholas, a mild-mannered community nurse whose patients call him an “angel”.  

 Zenka takes charge. Using her feminine wiles and gangland contacts she will bring out the gorilla in Nicholas. Her tactics are unusual, and illegal, and things soon start to spiral out of control.

“Don’t vorry, Jack. Ven I am finished vith Nicholas he vill be dog’s bollocks just like his papa” –Zenka

Zenka is currently available to download for just 99p.

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You can find out more about Alison, her books and connect with her using the links below:

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Goodreads 
Amazon

I'd like to thank Alison for taking the time to stop by and chat with me today. It's always a pleasure having you here and I promise to quietly sneak Zenka into my schedule, but don't tell anyone ok! 😉