Further Off the Mark

Book excerpt: Further Off the Mark is the amusing sequel to Off the Mark, the humourous novel set in 1960s Norfolk In this latest book, we rejoin Mark Barker, now aged nineteen and moving on from his youthful awkwardness, but still seeking to expand on his paltry experience of girls of the opposite sex. He pursues a variety of young women, including the lovely Sandy who shares his love of soul music; as does her equally attractive and flirtatious mother, causing Mark much anguish and confusion, but as with most of his encounters, he often confuses love with lust! As he tries to establish a new career, Mark makes enemies; wrecking his chances of advancement, but there is a consolation in his new attractive female assistant, Della. However, nothing with Mark goes according to plan so after all this time will he manage to get further off the mark? The novel is set in Norfolk in the late sixties and is a nostalgic journey to a simpler time when a ‘discotheque evening’ was a new concept and when unreliable cars could be coaxed into action by jumping up and down on their door sills!