Today I am sharing with you a guest post by the author of the book “From The Outside”, Clare Johnston. She has got some exciting experience to share with you. Want to know? Here you go! (The blog tour is organised by Love Book Group)
TITLE: FROM THE OUTSIDE
AUTHOR: CLARE JOHNSTON
BLURB
When internet millionaire and philanthropist Harry Melville dies in a car crash at the age of forty-four, the lives of his wife, Sarah, and twin brother, Ben, are thrown into turmoil.
Harry seemed to have it all; a close-knit family and a happy marriage – along with all the trappings of wealth. Yet as he recalls his past from the afterlife, a story emerges of the unspoken and bitter jealousies between brothers and of an unhappy wife burdened by loneliness and guilt.
When Ben takes over the running of Harry’s charity foundation he begins to find the purpose for the first time in years. But the arrival of a talented young artist brings a series of revelations that expose Harry’s complex and dual personality in full. As he learns his part in the suffering of those he left behind, is it too late for Harry to make amends?
A tale of regret and redemption in this world and the next. From the Outside looks at the futile rivalries that can destroy sibling relationships and the lost opportunity for happiness when the ego is allowed to reign over emotion.
GUEST POST
Characters
From the Outside tells the story of Harry Melville, a 44-year-old multimillionaire who dies in a car crash, and the impact of his death on his brother, Ben.
Those two characters were so alive in my mind when I was writing the novel that I used to look for them when I was driving through the areas in the north of Edinburgh where the book is set.
Harry was one of life’s achievers – someone you might meet at a social occasion and come away thinking how fortunate they are to have found their feet so easily, to be able to afford whatever their heart desires and to be so self-assured. But we are all driven by something, and for Harry that was a need to be admired and respected that overshadowed his relationships and everything else in his life.
Ben, on the flip side, was the anxious twin who failed to thrive. He lived and walked in his brother’s shadow and, despite being an immensely talented artist, just couldn’t move forward for fear of failure and a crippling lack of self-confidence.
In many ways, these two characters represent the dual sides of my own personality – perhaps that’s why I felt so invested in them.
Each had been badly affected by the death of their mother, but they had grieved alone, unable to put their differences aside to comfort one another and provide the friendship and support the other so desperately craved. In life, their relationship was a constant near-miss.
In the end, it took Harry’s death for their connection to be sealed. Ben takes on the running of Harry’s charitable foundation, helping disadvantaged young people to work. His lack of confidence meant he was loath to do it at first but, as fate would have it, Harry had left the running of the foundation to him in his will and he was duty-bound. It turned out to be the best thing that had ever happened to him, but his involvement in the Melville Centre also led Ben to discover some uncomfortable truths about his dead twin.
While From the Outside sets out to ask questions around our beliefs about the afterlife, it also exposes the human flaws that mean we look up to those with money and status, often disregarding the real talents and big-hearted individuals who are the true heroes of our society. But it also celebrates the chance for redemption and our hope that death is not the end, just another beginning.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Clare Johnston is a journalist and content specialist, and a frequent contributor on radio and TV, having appeared on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, The Kaye Adams Programme and comedy satire show Breaking the News on BBC Radio Scotland, along with STV2’s Live at Five. She is a former editorial director of Press Association Scotland and commercial editor and columnist with the Daily Record. She is currently working with the DC Thomson media group and supports businesses with communication and content creation. Clare is based in Edinburgh.
