The last couple of days have sped by in a signing blur!! I only had one signing session on each day -- but what sessions they were!!!! First came Bluewater, on Sunday, scene of one of my biggest signings ever in the UK during the Bec tour. I thought it might be disappointing second time round, that less people would come, but that myth was swiftly debunked when I arrived to discover that lots of people had been waiting since the shopping centre opened at 09.30!!! I was signing for FOUR AND A HALF HOURS in total!! I think that might be my new UK record!!!! I was delighted to have such a huge turnout. I often get asked if my hand hurts after such a long signing, but the honest answer is no -- I've only once had a problem with it, and that was on my first trip to Hungary, when I was caught by surprise by the number of fans who turned up. My eyes do hurt a bit, from all the photos and squinting that I have to do when I strangle people (!!!!), but so far the hand has held up beautifully!! I had a couple of strawberry-and-creams frappucinos from Starbucks, which helped keep my strength up while signing (if anyone from Starbucks is reading this, I'm totally open to offers on sponsorhip for future tours!!!!! ). And when I got back home, Bas and I went to a temporary street market behind the Southbank, serving organic food, and I had a delicious burger and a bun with yummy pork -- a vegetarian's nightmare, but good times as far as the Shan stomach is concerned!!!!!!

Today I headed up to Swindon for an afternoon signing. Since it was a bank holiday Monday in the UK, I wasn't expecting a huge crowd, and confidently told Bas that I'd be back in time for a long walk before an early dinner. Nuh-uh!!!!! There was already a large crowd when we arrived, and it built steadily. In the end I was signing for 3 hours!!!! I came away very happy (I even managed to get another frappucino!), then met with Bas near the Tower of London, where we went to a restaurant that does scrumptious Argentian steaks. We went for a 4 slab taster, and waddled out VERY happy an hour or so later!!

The new book (Death's Shadow) has been going very strongly. Response from fans has been immediate and overwhelmingly positive. Sales have been brisk -- the official nationwide chart won't come out until later in the week, but it's currently the 1 bestselling children's book on Amazon UK, and 6 on the Amazon UK overall chart!!! I'm looking forward to the last 5 days of the tour -- it's going to be a busy week, but I'm determined to have lots of fun, and I hope everyone who comes to my events has fun too -- I'll do my best to keep you all happy!!!