Ina de Man
Ina de Man has been writing stories for as long as she can remember. As a teenager she promised herself that one day she would have a book published. But of course there is work and there is life and the promise she made herself gathered dust on a shelve. Until she ran into a publisher at the end of 2019. Hamley Books liked her story about the two cousins Kate and Eve and her life long dream became reality. One book became two and later three. In October ’20 Raven Castle was born, nine months later Wolven Heart was proudly presented to the public and Kate and Eve found a big secret in the city of Mechelen. But still the story of the two cousins was not finished. They had one more story in them so this time they went to Windsor and the beautiful castle of the Queen. As of May ’22 Dragon Blood was published.
De Man writes historical thrillers for readers as of 9 years old. But she doesn’t limit herself to this genre. In ’21 she took part in Hamley’s 22 writing contest and as a result the cozy mystery novella The Unforeseen Guest was offered as free reading material. She discovered that she loved writing cozy mysteries and feelgood stories and so she decided to write a whole series of short stories about a lovely coffee bar with a library. The owner Jasmin and her two helpers Thomas and Maris solve smaller and bigger mysteries, all linked to the coffee bar Latteratura. in July ’22 they were released as audiobooks on Storytel and as of September 1st they will be available as eBook-only, published by Hamley Digital.
Currently Ina is writing a new trilogy about two boys who find themselves in a parallel world called Crystonia. The first book will be released in the summer of ’23 but in February ’23 we expect the release of a secret project she is working on.
Kate and Eve Series
Publisher:Hamley Books
Series: Kaat en Eva
Pages: 267
Released: 27/10/2020
EAN code: 9789463967532
Edition: Hardcover, ebook en audiobook
Kate spends the summer holidays with her cousin Eve on a farm near the French border. The neighborhood is dominated by a grim and mysterious castle. Kate and Eve try to find out what the secret of the castle is, but they get into serious trouble when a gang of thieves captures them. But Kate’s resourcefulness and coolness can prevent worse. They help to catch the thieves but also solve the secret of the Raven Castle.
Heavenleigh
Ina De Man’s writing style was absolutely fluent, evocative, mysterious and full of a good dose of history. A very adventurous and at the same time educational book, a very cool and beautiful combination if you ask me.
Publisher: Hamley Books
Series: Kaat en Eva
Pages: 293
Released: 28/08/2021
EAN code: 9789464208016
Edition: Hardcover, ebook en audiobook
In Wolven Heart Eve spends the fall break with Kate in Mechelen. During their first outing, they discover strange symbols on the statue of Margaret of Austria. These symbols tell a story that finds its origin in the 16th century when Margaret governed the Netherlands. They discover who Wolvenheart was and why he was so important for the dutches. And of course, they have to use all their perspicacity again, because someone else is also after the secret of Wolvenheart.
Elsa Bakker
I think that ‘Wolven Heart’ is an intelligent story for young people, which I base mainly on the way of thinking, the ingenuity and the perseverance of Kate and Eve. In addition, I find the historical references and knowledge of the city of Mechelen a nice contribution to the story. Not everything is factual but this is explained in the epilogue at the end of the book. And so it is a book that I would have enjoyed reading in my youth but also now I have read it with great pleasure. I heartily recommend the story.
Publisher: Hamley Books
Series: Kaat en Eva
Pages: 278
Released: 06/05/2022
EAN code: 9789464510195
Edition: Hardcover en ebook
In this final adventure the girls, together with Kate’s parents, visit the town of Windsor in England. The castle, which was built by William the Conqueror has been very important for the history of the United Kingdom. Through the War of the Roses and the Order of the Garter, they discover a great secret. Someone is doing everything to make this secret public, while the monarchy would rather it stay a secret forever. Again, the girls have to pool resources to stay ahead of the thief.
Jeannie – Perfecte Buren
I found the interaction between Kate and Eve particularly surprising and enjoyable. De Man has turned them into real teenagers, the characters have clearly evolved. In the previous two volumes, De Man incorporated a lot of historical facts into the plot and this is the case again. Everything is presented in a way that will appeal to young people: smoothly, concisely and full of mystery. I think this third part is the best in the series so far.
Johan Dupont
Wolven Heart has elements of Dan Brown and Umberto Ecco. It is written in a form that will appeal to both young readers and adults with a young heart. It should be on everyone’s reading list.
Cappuccino and Cupcakes
Publisher Audiobooks: Lind & Co
Series: Latteratura Short Stories
Released: 11/07/2022
Publisher eBooks: Hamley Digital
Series: Latteratura Short Stories
Released: 01/09/2022
Edition: Audiobooks & eBooks
A few years ago, I wrote a novella as part of a Hamley initiative (Hamley’s 22). ‘The Red Cup’ told the story of the lovely Jasmine and her two friends Thomas and Maris, who run a special coffee bar. Cooks ’n Books, as the shop was then called, combines a coffee bar with an exquisite selection of coffees and matching pastries with a reading corner for those who want to enjoy a cup of coffee a little longer. The reading corner started with some of Jasmine’s old books, but soon the regular customers brought books from their own libraries.
When around Christmas one of the customers of Cooks ’n Books (now dubbed Latteratura) suddenly dies in the stairwell to the flats above the shop and it looks as if he has been poisoned, it is a point of honor for Jasmine to find out what has happened. But who was this man and what was he actually doing in the stairwell? Nobody knew him and nobody knew what he was doing. But when Jasmine and her team discover what happened, it promises to be a beautiful Christmas after all.
The publisher offered the story for free on their website and it began to take on a life of its own.
Novellas and Short Stories
As you might have seen, a number of short stories and novellas have disappeared from the website, and there is a very good reason for that. They were picked up by my publisher and will be reworked to either appear in a collection of stories or to become complete books. Keep an eye on @booksandbutterfliesuitgeverij on the social channels Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn and you will see them appear in one form or another as of 2022.
Some of them can still be read for free and you’ll find them under the menu heading ‘Novels and Short Stories’.
Ina wrote The Uninvited Guest for the reading club ‘Hamley’s 22′. When a widow sees a leg sticking out from underneath her Phloxes in her front garden one morning, it is the start of an unlikely adventure. Together with her neighbor Trudy, she searches for the identity of the leg (and appendage). This Cozy Mystery is currently being reworked and will be published later as ‘Killer Bouquet ‘ (Moordboeket) as a full story by Books & Butterflies.
Cappuccino & Cupcakes is a series of 21 Cozy Mystery stories, set in and around the cozy coffee bar Latteratura. In the summer of 2022, they appeared as audiobooks on Storytel and you will be able to listen to a new story every day. On September 1st, they will also appear as an ebook.
This short Story was written for the annual Halloween Free Story run by Hamley Books.
Nicole is very lucky. This year, her pumpkins are of exceptional quality and she has a chance to win the prize for the largest pumpkin. But the night before the competition, her prize vegetable is stolen. Who did it and why?
Ex Libris
Ex Libris is one of the unpublished stories from the collection Cappuccino & Cupcakes that was published as a audio series on Storytel and other audio platforms. But this story previously appeared on Melanie Hoogvliet’s site Bookstamel.
When Jasmine, the owner of a special coffee bar in town, spots a very special book among the free books in the library, she discovers that it is very old and probably valuable. Then a search begins for its origin and owner, because both Jasmine and her friends Thomas and Maris suspect that the owner is very much looking for his book.
Download is currently only available in Dutch. English will be available shortly
Train to Nowhere
Train to Nowhere is a story I wrote in English, just to test my skills.
It tells the story of a girl who takes the train to her final destination but what happens on the train doesn’t seem real at all. Or does it?
You can download this free short story by clicking here
Too many Gravestones
This short story was written as part of the Cappuccino & Cupcakes series but was never published.
Jasmine has a new hobby, genealogy. When she visits the graveyard where most of her ancestors are buried, she discovers that there is one gravestone too many. Who is buried there? She decides to investigate who was laid to rest in this unknown grave.
This short story will be available for download shortly.
Lectures and reading sessions
Reading in School
This year, I had the opportunity to talk about books and writing in the sixth grade. I talked about my books, of course, but I also talked extensively about history and why I think it is important to incorporate the love for our past in my books. The students asked hundreds of questions: How do you start writing a book? Do you write by hand or with a computer? Do you earn a lot from writing? Where do you get your inspiration from? It was so nice to take these children, who are about to start a whole new phase in their life with going to a new school, forging new friendships and becoming new persons, into the wonderful world of writing and reading.
Would you like me to come to your school, club or group and talk about writing, reading, books, inspiration, creativity and much more? Then get in touch via my contact form on the website.
Book Signings
This year, a number of book signings are coming up. Most of them will take place in the autumn, but if you happen to be by the sea on 6 August, you can find me and my Hamley colleagues in the Standard Bookshops of Nieuwpoort and Middelkerke. Furthermore, you can follow my calendar on my website, but also on Facebook and Instagram I will regularly post new signings. Here you can see some impressions of those of last year.
Bookmarked 