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Chains of Sand
Posted by: Jemma Wayne In: Books 15 Sep 2015 0 comments
Untitled-1Published by Legend Press 1st June 2016
• Shortlisted for the 2016 Guardian Not the Booker Prize

 
He has always been good at tracking down things that are hidden, like cockroaches in his mother’s kitchen cupboard, or tunnels in Gaza.

At 26, Udi is a veteran of the Israeli army and has killed five men. He wants a new life in a new place. He has a cousin in England.

Daniel is 29, a Londoner, an investment banker and a Jew. He wants for nothing, yet he too is unable to escape an intangible yearning for something more. And for less. He looks to Israel for the answer.

But as the war with Hamas breaks out, Daniel cannot know that the star-crossed love of a Jewish girl and an Arabic man in Jerusalem a decade earlier, will soon complicate all that he thinks has become clear.

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Praise for Chains of Sand:

‘This is a wonderful book. Intriguing, moving, absorbing. It explores universal emotions, and particular feelings. It’s also a great read.’
-Daniel Finkelstein, The Times

‘Hard hitting and powerful.’
-The Sun

‘This is a book that offers both perception and understanding…a real contribution to the political debate.’
-The Guardian

‘A terrific novel by an accomplished writer, and deserves to cause a stir, with its brutally topical setting and the frank, poignant and bitter-sweet stories of its main characters. Loved it, and would strongly recommend it.’
-Edwina Currie

‘Ambitious in scope, and evocative in every detail…Jemma Wayne defies the myth that second-time novelists often disappoint…I predict laurels aplenty as this young writer’s future in fiction unfolds.’
-The Jewish Chronicle

‘Smart and moving drama’
-Heat Magazine

‘Gritty new novel’
-The Jewish News

‘A beautifully observed, carefully crafted, often touching, sometimes shocking, and always compelling read.’
-Church Times

 
 

Press for Chains of Sand :

-The Jewish Chronicle

-The Jewish News

-The Sun

 

After Before
Posted by: Jemma Wayne In: Books 15 Mar 2013 0 comments
Untitled-1Published by Legend Press 1st June 2014
• Longlisted for the 2015 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction, formerly the Orange Prize
• Longlisted for the 2014 Guardian Not the Booker Prize
• Shorlisted for the 2015 Waverton Good Read Award

 

“That was the day that Mama made the rules: If they come, run. Be quiet and run. But not together. Never together. If one is found, at least the other survives….”

During a cold, British winter, three women reach crisis point. Emily, an immigrant survivor of the Rwandan genocide is existing but not living. Vera, a newly Christian Londoner is striving to live a moral life, her happiness constantly undermined by secrets from her past. Lynn, battling with an untimely disease, is consumed by bitterness and resentment of what she hasn’t achieved and what has been snatched from her.

Each suffering their own demons, their lives have been torn open by betrayal: by other people, by themselves, by life itself. But as their paths interweave, they begin to unravel their beleaguered pasts, and inadvertently change each other’s futures.

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Untitled-1Audio Book published by WF Howes November 2014

 

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Praise for After Before:

‘Rich, haunted, gripping, painful and beautifully entwined’ –Ruth Padel

‘A powerful novel. Its characters will haunt you long after their stories have been told.’ –Naomi Gryn

‘A fearless and meticulously observed examination of pain transformed by the redeeming power of friendship’–Vanora Bennett

‘Cosy domestic scenes in suburban London, brilliantly described, are used to contrast with experiences of absolute horror at the heart of a deep and shaming secret. For life to move on, all must be forgiven, no matter how difficult this may be.’–Phillip Knightley

‘Jemma Wayne has very skilfully managed to weave together not only the alternating strands of her compelling narrative but also passages of intense action with reflective inner monologue. A highly accomplished debut!’ –Gerald Jacobs, The Jewish Chronicle

 

 

Press for After Before:

The Guardian

The Guardian Books Podcast with Claire Armistead

Good Morning Sunday with Clare Balding on BBC Radio 2

BBC News – Meet the Author

HamHigh

The Jewish Chronicle

Book Brunch

The Daily Mail

Inspire Magazine

We Love this Book

The Jewish Telegraph

The Jewish News

Book Blog

Whats On

Southside Broadcasting - (28th May – The interview is 13mins in)

Curious Animal

The Jewish Chronicle Online

The Independent

BBC News – Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction

Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction

Harpers Bazaar

Stylist

Daily Mail Online

Times

Bare Necessities
Posted by: Jemma Wayne In: Books 11 Mar 2013 0 comments

Bare Necessities

Essential life skills for surviving in the real world

So, you’ve left home, you’re finally living on your own, A’Levels or degree in hand, perhaps even a job under your belt, you know exactly how trigonometry works and how to present in PowerPoint, and then someone asks you to switch on the washing machine…

Bare Necessities is the essential survival guide for home-leavers of all ages, filling you in on everything your education left out. Light-hearted and anecdotal, it guides readers through absolutely everything from writing a cheque to filing a tax return, and from boiling an egg to contacting the gas company when the egg fails to boil.

Chapters include: food, health, housekeeping, car survival, banking, starting work, and property.

Read more…

Recent Work

  • In the wake of interest in Gita: The Battle of the Worlds, Jemma and co-author Sonal are joined by Lord Popat, Lord Parekh, Baroness Prashar, Lord Hameed, Luciana Berger MP and Justin Cohen on a panel at the House of Lords, discussing ideas about how to encourage the next generation to celebrate difference.
  • Gita: The Battle of the Worlds
  • BAME Authors Should Not Be The Only Ones Tasked With Bringing Diversity To Children’s Literature
  • Jemma and co-author Sonal talking on BBC Radio London about Gita: The Battle of the Worlds, meditation, and the importance of BAME characters in children’s literature.
  • Jemma and co-author Sonal featured on BBC News discussing the importance of BAME characters in children’s literature.

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