This is the only book that wasn't available on RiSi but I looked before I gave the choices and Amazon at the time had at least 6 copies at a 1p plus postage and there was 1 copy on play.com for £2.24.  The discussion will take place around 02.04.12.

Star Gazing by Linda Gillard. (272 pages)

Blind since birth, widowed in her twenties, now lonely in her forties, Marianne Fraser lives in Edinburgh in elegant, angry anonymity with her sister, Louisa, a successful novelist. Marianne's passionate nature finds solace and expression in music, a love she finds she shares with Keir, a man she encounters on her doorstep one winter's night. Whilst Marianne has had her share of men attracted to her because they want to rescue her, Keir makes no concession to her condition. He is abrupt to the point of rudeness, and yet oddly kind. But can Marianne trust her feelings for this reclusive stranger who wants to take a blind woman to his island home on Skye, to 'show' her the stars?

As all of these are already on my TBR, I really don't mind which one is chosen at all.  I hope there is something there that whets your reading appetites.  Happy choosing and I've enjoyed selecting the books and have managed to do my first poll.

I must admit I am struggling to make decisions at the moment. But I did it..so now just to wait and see.

I went for Star Gazing, cos I've already read it, and well, it's a knee jerk reaction, vote for Kier!!!!!  I might re-read it anyway though, just for a few hours in Kier's company!

Nat

My vote has gone to Peony in Love as it was the only one of the five that I could find at the BHF shop this afternoon.

Star Gazing is the only LG book I don't have (have read HOS and got the rest on TBR) if it is March's choice I will buy it

I've gone for Stargazing as I've wanted to read it for ages!  But Burning Bright sounds wonderful too!!

My vote is for Star Gazing and Keir every time !!

I've gone for Stargazing too, although I've read and enjoyed Burning Bright.

I'll be back after 11pm to announce the winner of this but at the moment it looks like Star Gazing is the main contender. 

I've reserved a copy at the library in anticipation of it being the winner!! Really looking forward to it (even if it doesn't win!)

Well it was a foregone conclusion from quite early on that Star Gazing by Linda Gillard was going to win the poll and I'm really chuffed as I've been saving this read for ages as it's the only tree book of Linda's that I've not read and I'm really looking forward to it.  So thanks everyone that voted for it.

Linda PM'd me a few days ago and will be taking part in the Reading Group discussion when it takes place.  Thanks Linda for offering to take part.  It was mentioned on the poll thread as Linda didn't want to influence the voting.

Happy reading everyone and I'm looking forward to taking part in the discussion at the start of April.

Yay!!  I really hope I manage to re-read it!!  I will leave it til last, as some of my books have been on my monthly schedule for several months now, and I really should get to them first, but if I get all my others read this month, I will totally re-read it!  Purely for literary reasons of course!!

Nat

Thanks for voting for STAR GAZING, good people! I'm very happy to be back in the RISI Forum. I've been following the posts & votes, on tenterhooks, but I thought I'd stay out of things until it was settled.

STAR GAZING is on Kindle at £4.99. I gather it's also available in 50 branches of Asda nationwide, priced (I am told) £4.50. There are copies available on Amazon Marketplace starting at 1p. And of course you can get new signed copies from me.

I'm sure you'll all have lots to say about Keir the book, but just FYI: I wrote a Reading Guide for STAR GAZING with discussion Qs and some background info about the writing of the book. I can post some of that on the fourm if you're interested. I also have a pic of the original cover for SG which was scrapped at the last minute. I much preferred it to the final cover. I'd be interested to know which you preferred.

When do we kick off, wyres?

lindagillard:

When do we kick off, wyres?

Around the 2nd April Linda.

lindagillard:

I'm sure you'll all have lots to say about Keir the book, but just FYI: I wrote a Reading Guide for STAR GAZING with discussion Qs and some background info about the writing of the book. I can post some of that on the fourm if you're interested. I also have a pic of the original cover for SG which was scrapped at the last minute. I much preferred it to the final cover. I'd be interested to know which you preferred.

That would be great Linda, once the Discussion is up and running perhaps you could post some of it on the thread and it'll give people something to think about.