Troubador Publishing – The Bell Bookshop

Heroes and Traitors

Emma — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Hero or traitor? Which is he? Which is she? It depends on which side you are on. But there are a lot of sides in the aftermath of Kimalloa’s social, political and religious revolution. Rich and poor, plotters and spies, idealists and cynics are all trying to make sense of it and survive the brutal realities of it.

In the final battle of a bloody civil war, Yonnis, the successful General of the Rebel Army of Truth, shocks himself by committing a reckless act of vengeance. He resolves to change, and to prove that he can be a peacemaker. He commits to an unpopular marriage to the defeated king’s niece, Esta, and takes a symbolic role in the government of the new republic.

His quest for peace starts well, but resentment and suspicion swirl around him. One former comrade in a cabal of purists in the government elite is determined to destroy Yonnis and Esta. A rebellion and an ill-timed assassination play into the plotters’ hands and plunge them into danger. Who can help the injured Yonnis to save the crumbling peace of Kimalloa?

The Long Shadows of War

Emma — Sun, 28 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Mark is a successful political journalist. Following the death of his emotionally constrained mother on the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall, he finds a journal written by his father, George, who was absent throughout his childhood. It reveals the distinguished military record of a soldier charged with mine clearance in the ruins of post-war Germany.

George’s own words paint a vivid picture of the father Mark had scarcely known. A man dedicated to his family despite tensions in his marriage and his growing friendship with a local woman. He only becomes aware of the depth of his feelings for her as he is about to return home following demobilisation.

Mark had never challenged his mother’s account of his father’s death in 1947. He now sets out to dismantle the wall of silence she had erected and discover more. His sister discourages him sensing that disturbing family secrets might be uncovered, and his German born wife seeks to distance herself from his quest; she is scared that she will be forced to confront painful memories of her wartime flight from East Prussia and her post-war childhood.

Mark’s quest leads to a transformative conclusion in Germany against the background of the reunification ceremonies.

The Cameraman’s Cut

Emma — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In The Cameraman’s Cut, Colin Clarke takes the reader on an exhilarating journey through a lifetime behind the camera. From living with tree-dwelling cannibals in New Guinea to braving Arctic conditions at the North Pole, he has travelled globally, capturing extraordinary stories. He has visited the statues of Easter Island and the watering holes of the Congo, filmed with royals in Buckingham Palace and documented lives of the homeless in cardboard shelters. One moment, he’s face to face with cave-dwelling crocodiles in Madagascar; the next, he’s on stage with a rock ‘n’ roll legend.

Colin offers insights into human and geopolitical events, from the turmoil of the Middle East to life behind the Iron Curtain and the fall of the Berlin Wall. His work has also immersed him in history, science, sports, music, and the arts.

His 50-year career began in Swinging London in the mid-sixties as a photographer’s assistant, leading to studies at the National Film School and four decades as a freelance cinematographer. Woven throughout the book is his unique perspective on the evolution of factual television and documentary filmmaking-the art, the craft, and the challenges of an ever-changing industry.