Acts of Love by Susan Pearce

I've been a bit absent from the ether this past week since the wind took out my broadband connection (of course I didn't know the cause until the Telstra technician finally showed up today. It always amuses me when I hear their slogan Now's Good, and I use it to taunt the poor person at the end of the phone regularly). Anyway, this is just a quick plug for my friend Susan Pearce, whose first novel Acts of Love is being published this week by Victoria University Press. It received a stunning review on National Radio this morning - the reviewer declared it a definite contender for the Montana Book Awards next year. Because Susan is part of my, ahem, very exclusive writing group, I have read it in many forms and have seen the work and dedication that has gone into it. I can't wait to read the finished work in its own beautiful package (I expect nothing less of VUP, who produce the most consistently elegant books in the country). Now I can't wait for my other writing group friend Kate Duignan to finish her long-awaited second novel. Breakwater is one of my favourite NZ novels. No pressure, Kate!