PUYB Author Talks: ⭐A Bookish Conversation with 'The Essence of Bliss' Emily Astillberry⭐ #interview

 

Emily Astillberry is an author and RSPCA Inspector from Norfolk, England. She has a degree in English Literature and Linguistics from York University and has been investigating animal cruelty and neglect and rescuing sick and injured animals for 20 years. In her day job, Emily deals with very difficult and often emotional situations and meets all sorts of people from all sorts of backgrounds. Her career provides some of the inspiration for themes and characters that can be found in her fictional work.

At home, in a very old cottage in the country, Emily has a husband, 5 children, a dog, a cat, an axolotl, 2 giant African land snails and a varying number of rescue hens, so finding time to write can be a challenge. She is happiest outdoors, growing fruit and vegetables in the garden, walking the dog and family holidays usually involve walking up mountains in summer, skiing down them in winter and sleeping in a tent whenever possible.

Emily loves spending time with her large, noisy, chaotic family, cooking meals for friends and playing board games. She always has at least one book on the go and has always dreamed of writing her own novel. She now dreams of writing more. 

Visit her website at https://emilyastillberry.com. 

You can also find her on Facebook and Instagram.

The Essence of Bliss is her latest book.

 

Can you tell us what your book, The Essence of Bliss, is about?

 

The Essence of Bliss tells the story of Isabel Bliss, an ordinary woman with extraordinary power. Isabel is a reception class teacher who has a remarkable relationship with emotional energy. She can feel and experience other people’s emotions as if they were her own, sometimes to an unsettling or even debilitating degree. She also has the power to manipulate the emotions of others but has never understood or learned to harness her gift. Isabel’s abilities are put to the test when a little boy in her class experiences unspeakable suffering, and only she can sense his torment and help to end his agony.

 

During the book, Isabel encounters a kindred spirit and an adversary when a new family move to town, propelling her into a tangled web of love, passion and power, underpinned by secrets, deceit and betrayal. She is set on an emotional journey of self discovery and discovers a whole world of potential and possibilities. The Essence of Bliss is a heartwarming emotional rollercoaster, with paranormal romantic escapism at its heart. I hope to have crafted a deeply empathetic heroine and a magical journey for readers, who may find themselves pondering the profound themes of emotions and the power of human connections.

Can you tell us a little about your main character and supporting characters?

 Isabel Bliss is a reception class teacher in her late twenties. She is an ordinary woman with an extraordinary sensitivity to the emotions of the people around her. Having been encouraged to keep her ability to herself, she has never spoken of it  to anyone except her mum, but when she helps a young boy in her class who is experiencing unspeakable suffering, and also meets a kindred spirit, Isabel begins to realise the potential of her gift. Isabel begins the story in a long-term relationship with childhood sweetheart, Jack, her parents are Beth and Max, and she has a younger sister, Stephanie. She also has a best friend called Donna. Isabel’s family are very close. Beth is eccentric and complicated but Isabel has always felt loved. As the story progresses, a new family moves to town. The Callahans take up residency in the Big House at the top of the hill and their family consists of Nicholas, an extremely successful barrister with an incredible professional record, his beautiful wife Georgina and their two sons, Scott and Daniel. On first meeting, Isabel has a profound reaction to the sons, recoiling from one and being inexorably drawn to the other. 

 

Where is your book set and why did you pick that location? 

Ramsey Bridge is a fictional town, which exists only in my imagination and within the pages of The Essence of Bliss. I was deliberately vague about its location so that readers are free to use their own imagination. However, I couldn’t help picturing my local area when I was writing and the beach scenes are based very closely on one of my favourite local beaches, Burnham Overy Staithe on the North Norfolk Coast, which I believe is one of the most beautiful places in the world.

 

How long did it take you to write your book?

 I’ve always wanted to write and have never had the time but I got to a point where I realised that the right time would never arrive and if I wanted to do it, I just had to get on with it. I have a job, a husband, 5 children, a menagerie of rescued animals and a 250 year old dilapidated cottage to prop up, so finding time to write can be extremely tricky. It took 3 years of stolen moments and a very patient family to write The Essence of Bliss but I loved every minute of it. 

What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?

 My writing life is very much still in its infancy but I think that the moment my book arrived in the post and I unwrapped it and held it in my hands for the very first time, was rather special and will take a lot of beating.

What kind of advice would you give to up-and-coming authors? 

I’m still very new to this myself so I’m not sure that I’m qualified to give much advice, but I would say that life is hectic and full and the perfect time, when you are free to commit and dedicate yourself to your writing, very rarely ever arrives, so if you want it enough, you have to stop waiting for the perfect time and get on with writing. Make the time, or you could waste your entire life, waiting.

Inside the Book

Title: The Essence of Bliss

Author: Emily Astillberry

Publisher: Blossom Spring Publishing

Publication Date: December 16, 2024

Pages: 615

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Speculative Fiction

Formats: Paperback, Kindle

Isabel Bliss is a reception class teacher. She experiences other people’s emotions and can influence how they feel but she doesn’t truly understand her gift and has been encouraged, by her mum, to hide it from others. She often feels lost and alone. 

When a child in her class experiences chronic distress that only she can perceive, Isabel uses her ability to relieve his suffering, but his situation continues to worsen. Eventually she is forced to take matters into her own hands, escorting him home where she finds horrific signs of abuse. She saves his mum’s life and his father is arrested for the brutal torture he has inflicted upon his family. 

A wealthy family moves to town and Isabel meets the two sons. She recoils from Daniel, who is hateful, rude and emotionally deficient but is inexorably drawn to Scott, who awakens something magical, deep inside her. They are like her. They are fluencers and have the ability to sense, read and willfully manipulate emotional energies. Isabel confronts her mum and uncovers hurtful lies and deceit within her own family. 

She falls deeply in love and ultimately discovers the untold potential of her gift and the passion and power that dwells within.

Read a sample here.

The Essence of Bliss is available at Amazon UK and Amazon US.