Stuart Standing
About Me
I was born in 1959 in South Staffordshire, England. I have lived in several parts of the UK and have also spent time on the Continent. I currently live in an English village - not unlike the hamlet of Applevale in my debut novel - with my wife of thirty years and an elderly little dog.
Favourite authors & books
I’m a passionate reader, my taste in literature running from Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, to Great Expectations. I love Colin Dexter’s Morse series and re-read them every few years. Robert Harris is certainly one of my top writers and I am currently re-reading The Ghost. John le Carre is another favourite; I especially enjoyed The Night Manager. I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes is up there with my top titles, and I was totally hooked on the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz – which I must go through again. Then to bounce completely in another direction, I’m addicted to the Thursday Murder Club books by Richard Osman, and I can never resist anything by Alexander McCall Smith. The list goes on and on.
Other Interests
Away from reading, I enjoy walking, wildlife watching, wildlife gardening and veg growing. I also enjoy cooking; can anything beat cooking home-grown produce? Writing is something I became interested in during my late teens, penning pieces for club journals etc. I’m a keen Letter to the Editor writer and I’m on close terms with my local council through my long complaints!
Debut Novel
Trouble in Applevale is my first novel. If it is a novel. It’s such an oddball book, I’m not quite sure what it is! I hope, with all its oddness, wacky characters and crazy happenings, it hits its main objective – to make the reader smile.
Trouble in Applevale
‘Highly original, enjoyably bonkers’
Rose Shepherd, Saga Magazine
If you have new neighbours moving in, you may not want to read this book. If those new neighbours are planning an extension, you definitely don’t want to read it.
Or…
Maybe you should. Maybe you should be prepared.
Welcome to Applevale, a quiet backwater hamlet, tucked away in its own secret world. Nothing very dramatic ever happens here – the bottle of milk stolen from Mrs Hubble’s doorstep was talked about for months.
Then a new couple move in and the place is sent flying into total chaos.
What unfolds is probably the most unique piece of comedy horror you will read this year. A tale where lying, cheating and manipulation – everything short of murder – is brought into play as a series of bizarre events shake this normally tranquil village.
This story is so weird, the characters so odd, it has to be fiction. But you will put the book down feeling far from sure. You’ll also be watching very closely as your new neighbours’ removal van pulls up next door.ISBN 978-0-9563169-5-0
Published by Pigeon Lane Press
What readers are saying
‘This story is just begging for somebody to make a TV series out of it!’‘I loved the author’s rather zany, humorous writing.’‘Couldn’t wait to turn the page to find out what happened next.’‘It’s a book that you want to keep within reach as you regularly get the urge to find out how Marty's getting on. After I finished reading this book I missed Marty.’‘There were so many moments when I found myself smiling inwardly as this battle between neighbours unfolded, with some of his descriptions causing me to laugh out loud.’‘At times hilarious, at others alarming but always entertaining.’‘... would easily make a six-part sitcom starring some of your eighties favourites. A nice diversion from books that take themselves too seriously.’‘The unpredictability of its tone, the odd turns of dialogue, and the refusal to conform to genre expectations make it linger in the mind’
From Amazon, Good Reads, LibraryThing and other sources.
Signed and personalised copies available. Please email.
Sample Chapter
The stress of the building work results in a hospital visit ......
© Stuart Standing. All rights reserved.
Website illustrations by A Reade