Author's debut is a sell-out

Eva Jordan was delighted to see her novel ‘183 Times a Year’ fly off the shelves at Waterstone’s in Bridge Street, Peterborough, and such is its success that her publisher has already commissioned a second book.

Eva (48) said: “It was absolutely amazing, a bit of a dream come true. It took a while to get here.

“I did my English and History degree and a while after that I started to write the book.

“It’s something I always wanted to do.”

The novel is a sideways look at life with a teenage daughter, complete with its stresses and strains.

The story of white lies, betrayal and, ultimately, honesty reflects the experience of many ordinary people and the unbreakable nature of the bonds within families.

The book launch at the Bridge Street bookshop, which was packed with fans and local authors Ross Greenwood and Jane E James, saw Eva signing copies of her novel for almost an hour.

“I wanted to show people the extraordinary among the ordinary,” she said. “Despite living in a world of advanced technology, where everything is available to us, smartphone in hand of course, it also feels, at times, like a lonelier, more insular place.

“It’s easy to believe when scrolling through our friends’ social media pages that somehow everyone else has got it right and yours is the only dysfunctional family on the planet – which just isn’t true of course.”

Eva insists the novel is not autobiographical but admits her children helped inspire the characters.

“There are complex and emotional connections between mothers and their children, daughters in particular, and I wanted to explore the emotion and complexity of those connections,” she said.

Eva, a mother to two teenagers and a step-mum of two, is currently writing the sequel to 183 Times a Year which is set three years into the future.

183 Times a Year is published by Urbane Publications at £7.99 and is also an e-book.