Distorted Days by Louise Worthington - Book Tour
Distorted
Days
If she could speak to them, she would say they
have exploded her heart, released firecrackers through her senses. She wishes
she could call the police, the ambulance, the fire brigade, to arrest and
anaesthetise and waterboard the bastards.
So what happens when your husband runs off
with your best friend? When you discover the dead body of an old man halfway
through your delivery round? When your house is burgled and you get beaten up?
Doris, Andy and Colleen are about to find out. They’re also about to discover
that you can find friendship and support in the oddest of places…
Heart-rending, humorous and above all
authentic, Distorted Days is an exquisitely written account of the ways
in which life can knock you off our feet – and how you can pick yourself up
again. If you’ve experienced the fickleness of fortune, this is a book that
you’ll never forget.
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Excerpt
Topical at the moment- the
destructive and cruel nature of social media posts and the loneliness some
people experience. Andy is falsely accused of verbally abusing a woman when he
was in fact the last person the woman’s father Winston saw before he died, and he showed great kindness towards the
lonely man. As a result of the posts, Andy loses his job. (440)
There’s a familiar sharp intake of breath from
Jade.
‘Dad, I don’t know whether to show you this or not
but – I think you need to see it.’
She reads the messages on Twitter and Facebook. The
author is Katie Howarth, and the subject is: #AndyLoveisaPredator
Andy Love is named and shamed as solely interested
in verbally attacking a single, grief-stricken woman and meeting her under false
pretences. Katie Howarth must have got a look at his van, so Stan’s Supermarket
is berated for employing the vicious, foul-mouthed man. The verbal abuse goes
as far as saying that estate agents should vet people before allowing them into
the homes of vulnerable relatives to stop people like Andy preying on the
bereft and the fragile, especially women on their own. In capital letters: ANDY
LOVE CANNOT BE TRUSTED. She has galvanised support in the shape of likes,
followers and comments, including one from Stan which hints at Andy’s contract
ending abruptly because of his customer-facing role.
‘There goes my job,’ he says with sad resignation,
thinking of his customers who will either think badly of him or miss his
friendship. Before Jade and Bosh leave, he explains the truth behind the
allegations. They stay longer than planned, thinking they are staying to help
him through the shock.
Once they’ve gone, Andy sits back on the recliner
feeling winded. The slandering of his name makes him feel like he’s been quarantined
in his own home. He walks around the lounge and the kitchen, not quite
sure what to do with himself but unable to settle. All those lies and all those
people believing them, wanting to stick their beady eyes at a peep-hole into
this woman’s nasty, made-up world that she’s dragged him into. The comments she
and others made sound so angry, a feverish kind of frenzy of bad-mouthing,
shaming him for being a bully, a predator.
Andy eats half a carrot cake and then finds the
shoe polish in the cupboard under the sink because he needs something to do
with his hands. He methodically shines the black shoes he usually wears for
best occasions like interviews or funerals.
His mobile rings. It’s Stan. ‘Sorry, mate. I’ve had
cancellations. It’s just, once word gets out it spreads like the plague.’
Stifling a carrot-cake burp, Andy says, ‘It’s all
lies, Stan, but I understand your point of view.’
He feels sick for his customers, his friends –
especially Margaret, Dave and Gilly. He knows details about their lives that
some of their own family members don’t.
Forgive Stan for thinking he just knows which
brands they like, which special offers appeal. Forgive.
Author Bio
Louise is the author of ‘Distorted Days’ and
‘Rachel’s Garden of Rooms.’ ‘The Entrepreneur’ will be available later in 2020.
‘The Thief’, a short story published by Park Publications, is available to
download Louise Worthington's website.
Before writing full time, Louise worked mainly
as an English teacher after getting a degree in Literature and later, studying
business and psychology at Masters level.
Louise grew up in Cheshire and now resides in
Shropshire.
“Louise’s characters, without exception, are
skilfully wrought which make the reader genuinely care for them.”
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