Casting Off
‘In the first half a second of seeing him in the flesh for the first time, two words flashed into my mind so clearly it was as if someone had shouted them. Small! Bald! I almost flinched. Next came Ugly! No doubt he was summing me up as Sweaty! Dirty! Wearing a freakishly large amount of clothes!’
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As a journalist on a national newspaper, Emma is swept along with the London rat race. But the thrill of a breaking news story is no longer enough, and while she’s still struggling to get a fourth date, her friends are settling down in the country to marriage and family.
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Emma decides to grasp her life by the roots and reclaim her freedom… by running away to sea and joining a complete stranger (and his cat) on a yacht in Borneo.
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Emma’s journey leads her to find adventure and happiness in the most unlikely places, and as she learns to let go and leave things to chance, her true story shows that it is possible to break free and fine happiness – and love – on your own terms.
‘Casting Off is an autobiography as exciting as a novel; I couldn't put it down.
Emma Bamford is a great writer who knows how to hook her reader’
KATIE FFORDE
‘An inspiring and entertaining read about breaking free from the rat race
and having the courage to chase your dreams’
CLOSER
‘Wryly funny, fast-paced, with a good plot and tons of adventure, this entertaining debut
would make a great holiday read... part memoir, part travelogue, part romance’
THE LADY
‘An engaging tale...there is much fun to be had’
THE INDEPENDENT
‘The feel-good, moving account of a young woman’s love of the sea’
DAILY EXPRESS
Untie the Lines
Former stressed-out city girl and journalist Emma is living the dream. She’s in Malaysia, living on a yacht with handsome traveller Guy, and together they have plans to explore the world’s most remote and exotic places. Adventures in Asia, America and the Caribbean beckon. Life, free from the rat race and nine-to-five grind, couldn’t be more perfect. Or could it?
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Such dreams can’t last forever. Eventually forced to return to London, to her old, crippling, fast-paced world, Emma finds herself struggling with anxiety and panic attacks and losing the battle between head and heart. Running, or sailing, away is just not an option any more.
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Untie the Lines, the sequel to Casting Off, is a beautifully written, often funny story for those who dream of escape, adventure and an unshackled life. But it is also a deeply moving tale about recognising the need to be true to yourself and to live a balanced life – for without balance, we fall.
‘Untie the Lines really describes a world I’ll never see but can feel I know a bit about now. I can even smell the places and feel the humidity. Well written and insightful. I really loved it’
KATIE FFORDE
‘An emotionally honest account of the actual practicalities of living “the dream”…
[and] the often vast chasm between “exploring” and “escaping”’
WANDERLUST