Some authors are surprisingly prolific with a large catalogue of books to their name, others are less so, their books appearing at infrequent intervals. So it is with Ross-on-Wye author, Brian Jackson who has just published his third novel, ‘The Unacceptable Face’.

It has been a long time coming, the first ideas date from over 15 years ago while Brian was working on his second book, and he told the Ross Gazette that even when he reached the last page it was not the end. He said that there’s rewriting which is a time-consuming business. Brian said: “Up to 20% of the original will be discarded, but unless the end result pleases me then it stands little chance with the readers.”

And Brian has high hopes for his latest novel, a bittersweet love story with a dark underside in which we are introduced to the world of domestic abuse hidden behind brave public smiles. It affects men too, as Brian explains: “At one period in my professional career I became the confidante of a company’s employees. What surprised me was the desperate stoicism of men suffering stress, putting on a confident face to conceal it. But there is happiness too. After all, ‘The Unacceptable Face’ is a love story, but life isn’t like that for everyone and inevitably someone has to pay a price.”

Brian will be at the Phoenix Theatre on October 9th at 7.30pm talking about the events that led to him writing this novel, reading extracts and signing copies. He added that he hopes it is a book which can touch the nerve of contemporary society.See this week’s paper for more stories like this, available in shops and as a Digital Edition now.