Book review : The Woman Before Me - Ruth Dugdall

Legend Press are currently in the process of re-releasing some of their most popular titles from the past ten years, including The Woman Before Me. First published in 2010, it was Ruth Dugdall's debut novel, but she has since written six more. 

While most crime fiction focuses on trying to catch the perpetrators of awful crimes, The Woman Before Me focuses on the next stage. Rose Wilks has already been arrested, found guilty of manslaughter for her part in an accidental house fire that killed a baby and served nearly five years in prison. She is up for parole and her newly-assigned probation officer Cate must decide whether she remains a threat to society or has accepted her guilt and shown genuine remorse, in which case she could be approved for early release.

As Cate tries to delve inside Rose's psyche and past, visiting the people who know her best, the reader also starts to fit together the pieces of Rose's tragic life through a series of diary entries that she has made while in prison. From childhood trauma, beginning with the suicide of her depressive mother and a philandering father who swiftly moved his new woman in and packed Rose off to an elderly aunt, to new suffering from unrequited love and the heartbreak of losing a premature baby, Rose has had a lot to deal with. It's easy to empathise with her and see her as a victim, despite what she has done.

Rose has had one ally : Emma, another new mum she became best friends with (and regular babysitter for) after meeting her on the maternity ward. By a cruel twist of fate,  she turns out to be her partner Jason's ex-wife. An ex-wife he is still madly in love with, still seeing on the side and whose bouncy baby boy, born at the same time as Rose's own sickly son, strangely resembles. Emma already has the perfect family that Rose envies and she is determined that she won't also take away the one thing that Rose has managed to keep a tentative hold on: her partner Jason. Would this be enough to push her over the edge and make her do the unthinkable - the ultimate crime to stop her friend from having the happy-ever-after she craves for herself?

While the reader sees the events as they really happened, through Rose's brutally honest accounts, Cate can only work with second-hand information, half-truths and skewed interpretations : the opinions of Emma, her angry and bitter husband, Rose's macho case worker, her seemingly unstable partner Jason... She must make her mind up with what she has available to her, but will she come to the right conclusion? Rose has been in some bad places and done some awful things, but is she really a wicked, heartless child-killer or a victim of circumstances, pushed to breaking point by all the things she has had to endure?

It's a gripping and poignant read, which had me guessing right up until the end. Although Rose is the one doing the time, she actually came across to me as one of the least despicable characters. Cate has a secondary role in the novel, but she has great potential and reappears in Ruth Dugdall's subsequent novels. The author's own experience working as a social worker and probation officer in the Criminal Justice System lends weight and authenticity to the novel.

star rating : 4.5/5

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Legend Press; New edition edition (31 Oct. 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1909593613
• ISBN-13: 978-1909593619
• Product Dimensions: 12.7 x 2.5 x 20.3 cm

Find out what other bloggers thought by following The Woman Before Me blog tour.

Disclosure : I received a review copy of the book.

Globecooking recipe : Barquettes au chocolat (France)

One of the most popular shop-bought biscuits in France, particularly if the kids are choosing, is Barquettes - literally little boats. If you've never tried them before, the closest thing you can imagine is the spongey base of Jaffa Cakes, but the texture is not quite the same - it's slightly drier and lighter. 

They come in various flavours - strawberry, apricot, chocolate - and, when Pierre saw a recipe from one of his favourite French Youtubers, L'atelier de Roxane, to make homemade Barquettes, he wanted to try. I was sceptical but they're actually spot on. The only thing that isn't authentic is the shape - I didn't have the required "financier" mould so I used a silicon muffin tray instead. This worked perfectly but you don't get the traditional boat shape.

Barquettes au chocolat

ingredients :

50g plain flour

50g sugar

2 eggs

1tsp vanilla essence

100g milk chocolate

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Separate the eggs. (Tiger onesie purely optional !)

Use an electric whisk to beat the egg whites until firm. (I added a pinch of salt.)

 In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the vanilla essence and the sugar until pale and creamy.

Mix the flour into the egg yolks then gently fold in the egg whites.

Pour spoonfuls of the mixture into a silicon muffin tray. Put in the oven for 13 minutes.

As soon as you take them out of the oven, use a teaspoon to press down on the centres to create a hollow.

Leave to cool.

Melt the chocolate in a bowl in the microwave or over a pan of boiling water and put a teaspoonful in the centre of each biscuit base. Pop in the fridge to set if the kids are in too much of a hurry to eat them !

These disappeared extremely quickly, but luckily, they only use a few basic store cupboard staples so we could easily make another batch.

*** Don't miss my country-by-country globecooking recipe index ! ***

Linking up to the brand new World Food Linky over at Jess Eats and Travels

#MySundayphoto #SundaySnap 4/3/18

A little bit of shadow play despite the cold

#TalkPANTS and Stay Safe, with a little help from the NSPCC

When BzzAgent got in touch and told us all about the NSPCC's #TalkPANTS children's safety campaign, I was intrigued. Four decades on, I still have a clear recollection of the 1970's and 1980's campaign of my own childhood, Charley Says, featuring a little boy and an incomprehensible cat who shared all sorts of important messages for children, including stranger danger, falling in water, playing with matches or not upsetting a hot teapot.

Modern parental concerns seem much more sinister, from paedophile rings and online grooming to child abductions and sexual abuse. The NSPCC have tackled the thorny issue of sexual abuse with an uplifting, appealing and incredibly catchy song, sung by The Pantosaurus.

When I went to get the embed code, Pierre heard the music, glanced across and was instantly drawn in, by the catchy tune, the colourful animation and the words "pants" and "private pants". Without me even asking, he came and snuggled up next to me and watched the whole thing, giggling repeatedly. I then heard him head off to his big sister's room with the i-pad to show her, and they've been singing extracts all morning !

The song and video are great fun, but also lead naturally on to a very important conversation. From P through to S, each letter in “PANTS” stands for an important, yet simple, message for kids:

Privates are private

Your underwear covers up your private parts and no one should ask to see or touch them. Sometimes a doctor, nurse or family members might have to. But they should always explain why, and ask you if it’s OK first.

Always remember your body belongs to you

Your body belongs to you. No one should ever make you do things that make you feel embarrassed or uncomfortable. If someone asks to see or tries to touch you underneath your underwear, say ‘NO’ — and tell someone you trust and like to speak to.

No means no

No means no and you always have the right to say ‘no’ — even to a family member or someone you love. You’re in control of your body and the most important thing is how YOU feel. If you want to say ‘No,’ it’s your choice.

Talk about secrets that upset you

There are good and bad secrets. Good secrets can be things like surprise parties or presents for other people. Bad secrets make you feel sad, worried or frightened. You should tell an adult you trust about a bad secret straight away.

Speak up, someone can help

Talk about stuff that makes you worried or upset. If you ever feel sad, anxious or frightened, you should talk to an adult you trust. This doesn’t have to be a family member. It can also be a teacher or a friend’s parent — or even Childline.

To help get the message across even more and continue the conversation after you've watched the video, the NSPCC have also produced a fun kids' pack, which includes a double-sided fold-out sheet of Pantosaurus' Roarsome Activities and Puzzles (colouring, maze, wordsearch, drawing, etc), The Talk Pants Guide For Parents, a sheet of Pants stickers and a Pantosaurus cutout which can be used as a bookmark.

You can order the pack at nspcc.org.uk/pantshop for a suggested £5 donation. There is also a free Playtime with Pantosaurus app available on App Store or Google Play.

Disclosure : As BzzAgents, we received a free activity pack in order to spread the word and give our honest opinion.

What's Cooking at The Madhouse? menu plan 2018 week #10

It's the holidays so I'm working through my bookmarked recipes and clearing out the cupboards - in terms of menu planning, that generally means it's a real mixed bag of international recipes, several of which are literary inspired for the #readcookeat challenge. The recipes will be coming up next week, once I've cooked and blogged my way through them.

Saturday

lunch - The traditional Burger King visit

dinner - first destination, Spain - stuffed peppers with rice - not sure what they'll be stuffed with yet, but it'll involve either mince or tuna probably

Sunday

lunch - roast dinner - chicken probably

dinner - chicken soup, assuming we had chicken - if not sandwiches/fridge grazing

Monday 

lunch - Spanish omelette or maybe Denver omelette

dinner - lamb or beef tagine, with beans and veggies and a side dish of couscous

Tuesday 

lunch - shashlik kebabs, a Russian version of shish kebabs, with rice and sour cream dip

dinner - I managed to pick up some egg roll wrappers so I can now finally try making Afghan mantu, which are like beef dumplings - not sure what these will go with - rice or mash maybe?

Wednesday 

lunch - sausages, mash and baked beans

dinner - West African peanut stew (not sure if it'll be the spinach or butternut squash version - it all depends on what Madhouse Daddy finds when he goes shopping !)

Thursday 

lunch - mince & potatoes

dinner - off to Russia again for Solyanka soup

Friday  

lunch - beefburgers, Actifry chips & ratatouille

 dinner - final destination of the week, Japan for Oyakodon (Chicken and Egg Bowl)

***Click on my Menu Plans tag to see all my other weekly menu plan blogposts.***

Join in with the weekly meal plan bloghop !

#KitchenClearout February roundup and March linky

February is the shortest month of the year but I still can't believe how quickly it's zipped by. I think I say that every month though ! Looking out of the window at a sprinkling of snow on the patio doesn't make me feel like we're heading into spring either - we're definitely still enjoying winter warmers at the moment here at The Madhouse. I haven't had much time for cooking elaborate meals lately, and even less time for blogging about them, but luckily you've been sharing your dishes with me in this month's linky. We're on holiday now so I should have more time for working through the baking cupboard this week !

Jane at Onions and Paper kicked things off this month with her Ham & Cheese Bites - the perfect way of clearing out all the odds and ends in the fridge and I just happen to have everything I need. Yum !

Jess from Jess Eats and Travels was next with her Mini Strawberry Jam & Cream Tarts - lovely for a taste of summer in the middle of winter !

Various odds and ends including a pouch of bulgur, quinoa and riso rosso turned into the ultimate throw-it-all-together meal, Mince & Potatoes Freestyle.

Chicken Spaghetti Bake is an American recipe and a twist on pasta bake, which would be ideal for using up all the leftover meat and veggies after a Sunday roast.

A globe-cooker after my own heart, Jess was back with an Afghan-inspired vegan kidney bean slow-cooker casserole - perfect to come home to on a cold evening.

Her final offering was Sabse Borani, Afghan-style Spinach & Yogurt Flatbread, which only take minutes to throw together if you use shop-bought flatbreads.

Funnily enough, my next recipe is perfect for using up stale flatbread, as well as clearing out the salad ingredients in the fridge - Lebanese Kibbeh with Fattoush Salad. The kibbeh (meatballs) also used up bulgur/couscous, baharat spices and dried apricots that were cluttering up the cupboards.

Finally, Galina from Chez Maximka shared her Muesli Cookies, which used up a box of muesli from a recent Degustabox.

There are a lovely mixture of sweet and savoury options this month, with a great balance of simple comfort food and more exotic dishes to tickle your tastebuds. 

Fancy joining in? Have a rummage through your kitchen cupboards, spice rack, freezer or fridge and see if there's anything that needs using up then come and share your creations with us. Or if it's way past its sell-by date, throw it in the bin and come and tell us what you found ! It would be great if you could add my badge and a link to this post for anyone else who wants to get involved.

Globecooking recipe : Chicken Pot Pie with Cheddar & Chive Biscuits (USA)

This recipe is largely inspired by one I saw on the Southern Living website but I made a lot of changes, so make sure you head over to see the original. American biscuits are more what I would call dumplings and they make a lovely alternative to the traditional pie crust. This would be a great way of using up leftover chicken after the Sunday roast, and is also ideal for clearing out the veg box in the fridge.

Chicken Pot Pie with Cheddar & Chive Biscuits

ingredients :

1 pack bacon lardons

1 onion

1 pack chicken breasts (or leftover roast chicken)

3 mushrooms

a big handful of frozen carrots (or 2 carrots, peeled and sliced)

2 leeks

1tsp mild curry powder (optional)

20cl crème fraîche

180g flour

80g butter

chives

100g grated cheese

splash of milk

Start off by frying the bacon in a large pan until it releases some fat.

Add the diced onions and chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until the chicken is completely white.

Quarter the mushrooms and add to the pot. Cook until it reduces slightly and you have enough room to add the veggies.

I used frozen carrots to finish off a bag that was in the freezer and a couple of fresh leeks, but you can use whatever you have to hand - peas, sweetcorn, broccoli, mange tout, fresh, frozen or a mixture of both.

When the veggies are cooked but still firm, add the crème fraîche and the curry powder, if using. Taste and add salt if necessary, but mine was salty enough from the bacon.

Transfer to an ovenproof dish. Pop in the oven to keep warm (preheated to 180°) while you make the biscuits.

Rub the butter into the flour to make breadcrumbs. Use scissors to cut the chives into pieces and add to the bowl. Mix in the grated cheese. (You could add 1/2tsp mustard powder or paprika if you want.)

Add just enough milk - a small splash should do it - to bring the flour together into a ball with your hand.

Roll out fairly thickly (about 1cm) onto a floured board and use a cookie cutter to cut out discs.

Arrange on top of the chicken, pressing down slightly into the hot mixture.

Brush with a little milk and pop back in the oven for about 20 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown. I used this time to boil some potatoes to serve with it.

Adding to this month's #KitchenClearout linky as it used up various odds and ends - the end of a bag of frozen carrots and some mushrooms, leeks and chives that were looking forlorn in the bottom of the fridge !

Linking up to the brand new World Food Linky over at Jess Eats and Travels