Ashley Mullenger and her office colleagues decided to take a day sea fishing as their team-building exercise. It went well. They had a good time. But Ashley was so taken with the experience that she paid for another day's outing, on her own. And another. Eventually the skipper of the boat running the trips told her she could come along for free and he'd teach her how to be a member of his crew. 

Despite the hard, smelly work, in all weathers, often through the night, Ashley loved the life and now has a share of the business.

Her profile as one of the few women working in the fishing industry has given her a platform to share her passion with a wider audience and also to highlight the challenges and frustrations facing this sector as a whole.

She gives a clear and balanced perspective of the politics, bureaucracy and precarious finances of the industry as well as illustrating how this is, by necessity, a lifestyle not a job and how much fishermen give of themselves to bring home the catch.

Ashley's story is vividly told in this fabulous book. Her joy in her work, and her thrill of the sea is contagious and I know that the next time I'm in Wells, North Norfolk I'll be looking out for her boat, and hoping to make my own purchase from the quayside.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Ashley for a summer issue of Norfolk magazine, so do look out for that in the coming months!