The Bookstore
Support my writing by buying my books directly from the website.
The Foreign Aide
“One of the best choices available to put on a Kindle.”
“A great read for anyone who enjoys a fast-paced yet nuanced story of shattered relationships in an absorbing foreign setting of historical importance.”
That’s how reviewers responded to my 2010 eBook, The Lebanese Troubles. Now, with conflict in Lebanon once again in the news, I’m republishing my novel, retitled as The Foreign Aide, updated, repackaged, and this time in these four different editions:
Instant delivery via Bookfunnel. Works on all major devices — Kindle, Kobo, your phone / tablet / computer.
£4.99
Printed and shipped internationally by Bookvault.
£12.99
A deluxe edition, printed and shipped internationally by Bookvault.
£19.99
Not yet available – but it won’t be long. Watch for further details.
£12.99
The Foreign Aide is also available on Amazon, Apple Books and many other online platforms, as well as from bookshops — nationally and internationally — including Waterstones in the UK and Barnes & Noble in the USA. To find out more, including international pricing, follow this link.
Samples and DISCOUNTS
If you haven’t come across The Foreign Aide sample chapters on the site yet, you can find them here.
And in my free fortnightly newsletter, I’m offering subscribers an exclusive 40% discount coupon code for Foreign Aide orders placed here on the website BEFORE the end of June 2026. If you’re not already a subscriber but you’d like to take advantage of this offer, the sign-up form is here. (As soon as you subscribe, we’ll email you the discount code immediately.)
Why buy from my store?
There are plenty of other places where you can buy the book — on Amazon, Apple Books, and Nook, for example. I’m using the wholesaler Ingram Spark to distribute to bookshops and libraries. I’m grateful to all of these for helping me to get my books into the hands of readers.
But for the writer, there’s a price to pay when we work with these agencies. They all want their share of the money our customers pay, leaving the author with a small fraction of the cover price.
Apparently, the UK publishing industry is worth £7.5 billion a year. Wonderful! But sometimes it feels that we authors are just tiny plankton feeding big whales.
That’s why, increasingly, independent authors like me are setting up their own bookstores. It cuts out the middlemen. Potentially, it creates a direct link between writers and their readers. And it gives us the flexibility to offer specials and bundles and deals — just like the discount I’ve offered above.
What to expect
All orders
I’m using the e-commerce platform, Payhip, to process and facilitate orders. So don’t be surprised when you see the Payhip name on the shopping cart and email confirmation of your order.
eBooks and Audiobooks
Shortly after placing your order, you’ll get an email from my delivery partner, Bookfunnel, giving you a unique, private link to download your book to your preferred reading device (e.g. Kindle, Kobo, phone, tablet, computer) with easy-to-follow instructions. If you have any difficulty with downloading, Bookfunnel’s experts are your troubleshooters.
If you can’t see the email from Bookfunnel, first check junk/spam in case your email provider has mistakenly filtered it. If you still can’t find it, email me (— the address is at the foot of this page).
Printed books
I’m using a Print on Demand service; in other words, books are printed only as orders are received. The company I’m using, Bookvault, typically prints paperbacks in 3-5 working days, hardbacks in 5-7 working days (in both cases, slightly longer at peak times, such as Christmas).
After printing, Bookvault then ships your order directly to you. Shipping times will depend on your location and the delivery service you select at checkout. If you’ve been waiting an unreasonably long time for your order to be delivered, email me with full details of your order; I’ll find out what’s happened and report back.
I highly recommend that you choose a ‘tracked’ service when selecting a delivery option: Bookvault explains that if an untracked option is undelivered, they can have no claim against the postal or courier service, so they would not be able to offer a reprint.
Finally, what happens in the unlikely case that your book has been damaged in transit, or something appears to have gone wrong with the printing? Email me directly, no later than 7 days after your order has been delivered, with photos showing the problem, a description, and full order details, including your full name and address. On your behalf, I will then contact Bookvault, who will replace the order — provided the claim is valid and received by them within their deadline period.
Where else is The Foreign Aide on sale?
In lots of other places. On Amazon of course, but also in all the outlets you’ll see if you click on the button below, kindly provided by Books2Read. It’s a smart button: it will connect you to the appropriate version of the bookseller’s site for your location. For example, if you’re in Canada and you use the Amazon link, you’ll be taken to The Foreign Aide page on amazon.ca with the prices shown in Canadian dollars. Why not try it now?
If you’ve clicked on the button, you’ll probably have noticed that some of the world’s largest bookstore chains are on the list — Barnes & Noble in the USA and Waterstones in the UK. It doesn’t mean that you’ll see my print books on their shelves: I’m not famous enough (yet!). But if you place an order with them, online or in-store, they will be able to get The Foreign Aide for you. This is because my books are listed with a wholesaler, Ingram Spark, which prints and supplies books to over 40,000 bookshops and libraries worldwide.
If you’re checking with your local bookshop, ask them whether they order from Ingram Spark. If they do, give them the name of the book and the author — and also the ISBN number, which is 9781919527413 for the paperback, or 9781919527420 for the hardback version.