It was with much anticipation that I awaited the arrival of ‘The Light Jar’ – after the brilliance of ‘The Goldfish Boy,’ I knew that I was going to be in for a treat. My patience was rewarded when a copy was finally delivered by my friendly postlady.  I’m also thrilled to be hosting an exclusive author post from Lisa Thompson entitled ‘Music and The Light Jar.’

You’ll be pleased to know I wasn’t disappointed.

‘The Light Jar’ tells the story of Nate and his Mum as they are forced to flee their home on the middle of the night to escape an abusive partner to hide out in a tumbledown cottage in the middle of a forest.  The cottage is not quite the idyllic hideaway Nate’s mum remembered so she leaves Nate to do some tidying up whilst she heads out to buy provisions.  When Mum doesn’t return, Nate is left alone to face his fear of the dark, freezing temperatures and dwindling food supplies.

When Nate sets off to explore his surroundings, he finds more than he expected in the form of an elusive girl called Kitty.  She’s trying to solve the clues of an uncompleted treasure hunt set in the grounds of an old stately home and wants Nate to help.

Will Nate be able to face up to his current situation?  Will he find the courage to come to terms with his past?

This book is a beautiful story about facing your fears, friendship and hope.  Although domestic abuse plays a central role in the story, it is deftly handled by Lisa Thompson as she sheds light on just how clever abusers can be at slowly eroding their victims’ confidence and the impact this can also have on their families.  Woven in and around that central theme, is a truly compulsive story that will leave readers heartbroken and uplifted at the same time.

Author, Lisa Thompson, previously worked as a Radio Broadcast Assistant before turning her hand to writing.  She grew up in Essex and now live in Suffolk with her family.  Her debut novel, ‘The Goldfish Boy,’ was one of the bestselling debuts of 2017.

I am delighted to welcome her to the blog to talk about the music which helped inspire the writing of The Light Jar:

Music, writing and The Light Jar by Lisa Thompson

A few years ago, I always wrote in silence as I was sure that this was crucial for better concentration and productivity.  However, music is a huge part of my life and, after reading that Stephen King listens to heavy metal when he writes, I thought I’d give my kind of music a try.  Maybe it wouldn’t be a distraction after all? Maybe it would help my creativity?  When I began writing The Light Jar I shuffled my Spotify songs as I went, trying to find the ‘right’ piece that fitted the mood.  I hit on two songs that worked perfectly… and I must have listened to those two songs over 200 times.

The Light Jar is set during a bitterly cold winter and the moving theme from the film The Revenant helped me create Nate’s feeling of desolation, loss and fear.  But the book is also ultimately uplifting and I found another song that fit that mood perfectly: ELO’s Mr Blue Sky.  In fact it even made it into a scene in the book…

You can listen to the music Lisa wrote The Light Jar to here –

The Revenant main theme tune

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4oEhmvaC4I

Electric Light Orchestra – Mr. Blue Sky

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQUlA8Hcv4s

So there you have it  – it’s just a case of finding the right music for you!

The Light Jar by Lisa Thompson is available now (Scholastic).

If you’d like more exclusive interviews from Lisa, make sure you take a look at the other stops on the blog tour (see below for details.)

Library Girl.

*Many thanks to Lorraine Keating and Scholastic for inviting me to be part of this blog tour*