Sailaway Trilogy
Book 2
Derek Curzon
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Cruising
Publisher: Filament Publishing
Publication date: 24th January 2017
ISBN: 978-1-911425-51-9
Book Description:
In Family Sailaway, Sarah receives a flyer from CZN Cruises with tantalising summer offers and soon makes plans for her next cruise. This time, the adventure is longer, the ship is bigger and there are many more countries on the agenda. Unlike the first cruise, when she travelled with her younger sister, Sarah is joined by her aunt, uncle, cousin and boyfriend Paul (who she met on her first cruise).
Two other families become part of their adventure and sparks fly between cousin Megan (young, single, attractive - and she knows it) and protagonist Sarah. Megan befriends another passenger, Rebecca, who says she is a cruise reporter but Sarah suspects there is more to her than meets the eye.
Megan attracts a lot of attention from fellow passengers including a married man travelling with his wife and a younger, shy man who lives in the shadows of his more confident brother. Who will win Megan’s affections and how do other families get entangled in their story along the way? A storm brews during the cruise that makes for even more entertaining scenes along the way. This is a tale of family relationships, friendships, suspicion and intrigue, romance, feuds and, of course, the thrill of the cruise.
Family Sailaway is the second in the ‘Sailaway Trilogy’ and starts six months after the original book. You could read this as a standalone book but as they're both quick and easy reads, we strongly recommend starting with the first - Surprise Sailaway, published by Filament in 2015 – and then jumping ship straight to the second!
Surprise Sailaway
Sailaway Trilogy Book 1
Derek Curzon
Print Length: 138 pages
Publisher: Filament Publishing Ltd
Publication Date: December 7, 2015
ASIN: B0193S7QBK
Book Description:
Surprise Sailaway tells the story of two sisters who embark on a short cruise following the sudden and tragic death of their parents. Sarah and Hannah find themselves living the high life on the high seas where the eldest finds possible romance and the youngest a potential career. Life on board is relaxed and stress-free for them both, a million miles away from the memories they have back home of their parents.
Follow their adventures on board as they visit Amsterdam and Hannah has the chance to see Paris. A twist at the end is a direct result from the parent’s death and an event that will change both sister’s lives forever.
About the Author:Born and raised in Dundee, cruise aficionado, retail manager and author, Derek Curzon, moved to Lancashire in 1998 aged 28. His background is Accountancy, he has worked in myriad roles in the banking world as well as editing a local magazine. He found love through writing - he married his penpal (before the days of emailing and Tinder!) and their first cruise was their honeymoon in 2005 - they've never looked back and have been on six cruises to date with plenty more in the pipeline.
Their cruise holidays have given them the chance to see places they couldn’t have hoped to visit on a 'normal' holiday. The Sailaway Trilogy takes inspiration from their own cruise experiences and celebrates the cruise industry as the booming travel sector it is today.
Family Sailaway, due for release in January 2017, is the second book in the series. As a spin-off from the trilogy, Derek launched a fictional cruise blog: ‘Nautical Nights.’ It's a light-hearted and humorous look at life on board a cruise ship and the ensuing adventures!
When he's not working his day-job, writing blogs or articles, or planning the next book, Derek can be found long-distance walking.
As a couple, Derek and his wife have completed the West Highland and Great Glen Ways in the Scottish Highlands and will be walking Hadrian’s Wall in 2017.
To Cruise or Not To Cruise?
BY DEREK CURZON
My first thought of cruising was made by my Father 10 years ago when discussing possible Honeymoon destinations for my fiancée and
I. The upshot was we embarked on a 13-night cruise to the Canary Islands and have not looked back since.
We were slightly nervous with the whole experience but after the first day at
sea we really became settled into our 'moving home' for a fortnight. We were rather sceptical over the thought of dressing up, but after a day of relaxing at sea or doing shore excursions in wonderful destinations, we actually looked forward to coming back to the ship and adhering to the ship’s dress code each evening.
The cruise industry has changed wholeheartedly even since our first cruise. It is no longer just for the elderly and/or wealthy, in fact the cruise companies have reached out towards the young couples and family market. Nowadays there is a cruise out there for everyone.
There are also several cruise companies to choose from with some having recently celebrated 175 years of cruising like
P&O and Cunard. Some companies have
brought out ‘monster sized’ ships able to carry in excess of 5,000 passengers; Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line. There are also the more exclusive companies like Oceania and Regent Seven Seas.
Although every cruise company will try and tempt you to sail with them, they are all offering much the same … beautiful ships, five-star service, excellent value for money, fantastic food prepared by culinary chefs, West End style shows and entertainment, activities for children … the list goes on.
Meeting up with fellow passengers at evening dinner is also a delight,
exchanging stories about what we had all been doing that day or just simply finding out about each other. We tended to find (or certainly the wife did) that it could become a little emotional on the last evening, when you had shared so much together over the holiday period and no one else, no matter how you described
it would ever understand it like your evening dinner passengers had.
Needless to say since our first cruise, we have embarked on a further 4 cruises taking us all over North and West Europe and even venturing as far as Greenland where we experienced very rough seas together with hurricane strength winds! In a scene that wouldn’t have looked out of place on Titanic, the band did play
on despite their instruments and certain items of furniture, rolling across the floor!
One thing is certain though; cruising aboard your floating hotel is like no other holiday you’ll ever experience. There is no other environment where you can wake up in a different country every single
day, having only packed once. There is normally no luggage allowance (unless you fly cruise) and on arriving to check in, the next time you see your luggage is in your cabin. Once you step on board, you really are treated like royalty with the crew doing all they can to assist you and make your cruise the most enjoyable experience possible.
For anyone considering a cruise I would strongly recommend trying one for yourself, even if it is just for 2 nights.
Most cruises out of the UK sail from Southampton and in our experience, it is an efficiently run military operation from the time you leave your car to embarking on your ship for the first time then meeting up with your luggage again in your cabin.
Inspired by our experiences on board these amazing ships, I have written my first fictional book. ‘Surprise Sailaway’ tells the story of 2 sisters who embark on their first cruise together and the adventures that await them. It is the first of a trilogy and is a celebration of the cruise industry.
How many nights at Sea?
Having decided to embark on a cruise and what kind of cabin or stateroom you’re going to be in, one of the next considerations is duration. There are various factors to consider.
My wife and I took the plunge on our first cruise. It was our honeymoon so we opted for a fortnight in the Canary Islands. Thankfully we’ve never looked back since and are looking forward to our first fly cruise in September.
If you’re booking your first cruise and are not quite sure about the whole experience, there is nothing wrong with what I call a ‘taster’ or ‘teaser’ cruise. These only last a couple of nights but will give you a feel for the cruise itself, the ship and overall experience. Like this and you’ll be booking longer cruises in the future. Not impressed and you’ve not spent too much time and money on-board. That said, I haven’t met anyone yet who hasn’t enjoyed their cruise.
The longer the duration, the further afield you can travel and explore, both from a UK sailaway or a fly cruise. There may be a special destination that you would like to visit or somewhere that you have always wanted to see and by spending a day there might make your mind up for definite to go back or not? This is the beauty of a cruise. We have visited so many different places over the years that we wouldn’t have had a chance of experiencing any other way and having had a day there, have decided we would like to visit again but for slightly longer.
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