tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61605221961019880982024-03-06T00:53:07.810-08:00English Epochs 101For lovers of English history and historical fiction<br> Indulge Your Inner Aristocrat!Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.comBlogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-47675742611227022262016-08-19T00:00:00.000-07:002016-08-19T00:00:02.595-07:00Bringing one soldier’s experience to life<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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by Mary K. Tod<br />
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For the past six or seven years, I’ve been fascinated with World War One. So much so that I’ve written three novels centred on that horrifying world conflict. And still it haunts me.<br />
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Initially, I concentrated on understanding my grandfather’s experience and his role in the Signal Corps but I quickly broadened the scope to include other roles, military strategy, the chain of command, seminal battles, the causes of war, the home front and many other areas. I read fiction and non-fiction to augment online research and visited the war museum in Canada’s capital city of Ottawa.<br />
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My latest novel, <i>Time and Regret</i>, is a dual-time story with some action occurring in the early 1990s and other action in World War One. For this story I invented a character called Martin Devlin, his role as a lieutenant in the Canadian infantry and his battalion and brigade – 19th Battalion, 4th Brigade, 2nd Division to be precise – and I decided to follow that battalion during its entire service overseas. My objective was accuracy and authenticity.<br />
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The Canadian government has created an online repository for the battalion diaries from World War One. Should you be so inclined, you can discover where any group of soldiers were on any day of the war and read the notes about troop movements, casualties, weather, important visitors, training, battles, preparations for battle and other details the battalion commander chose to record. I read almost every entry for the 19th battalion including those written while they were training in England prior to embarking for France.<br />
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According to the battalion’s website: “The 19th Battalion (part of the 4th Infantry Brigade) was originally formed the 7th of November, 1914 at the Exhibition Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Soon the battalion went from High Park to the shores of England on the USS Scandanavian on the 23rd of May, 1915. They trained in Shorncliffe, Kent at West Sandling camp. By September of that same year the 19th landed in Boulogne, France to begin over 4 years of service on the European continent. The 19th Battalion, CEF, was nicknamed “The Slicks” because they were mainly raised in Toronto and were seen as “city slickers”! This caused much good-natured rivalry and practical jokes between these two battalions [the 19th and 18th] throughout the war. During their service, the men of the 19th fought on the Vimy Ridge, in the environs of Transloy, endured Passchendaele, the German offensives "Michael" and "Georgette", Amiens, and many other battles to finally push the German Army into surrendering their arms in November of 1918.<br />
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During good times, the men often played soccer, had shooting contests, played their instruments, enjoyed church services, and challenged other battalions. During the bad times, they slept in dirty, smelly, infested holes, constantly wore gas protection, marched back and forth from trenches to reserve camps, were bombarded by shells, both gas and not, were exposed to sudden raids by Germans, and even had to shoot their own men who had deserted.”<br />
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Beyond the diaries, I found maps detailing troop deployments in advance of battle and intended targets during battle, detailed descriptions of the major battles on the western front involving Canadians, a description of the first deployment of tanks during action at Flers-Courcelette (part of the Somme), the names of those commanding the 4th infantry brigade and the 19th battalion, an entire book on the Canadian Expeditionary Force, various Division orders detailing battle orders and rules to be obeyed by soldiers, and a chart showing the composition of each division of the Canadian army. To add substance and a human face to these factual details, I read many diaries and letters written by soldiers in WWI.<br />
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Slowly Martin’s experience took shape.<br />
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In <i>Time and Regret</i>, Martin’s diary entries provide an opportunity for readers to hear his thoughts and appreciate how war affected him, while chapters dedicated to Martin’s story and that of his friends bring the sights, sounds and visceral experience of war to life. Hopefully, I’ve done justice to that terrible world conflict and in my own way, honoured those who fought.<br />
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<i>Time and Regret</i> is available on <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Time-Regret-M-K-Tod-ebook/dp/B01CGBC7CE/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470977282&sr=1-1&keywords=time+and+regret" target="_blank">Amazon</a>.<br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-49865895606958797382015-11-04T00:12:00.002-08:002015-11-04T00:12:58.196-08:00The Snows of Yorkshire <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
by Angela Waller<br />
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<i>The Snows of Yorkshire</i> is the fictional story, told in five parts, of the Snow family who live in Yorkshire in the northeast of England. The story begins in 1415, and the father of the family, Richard, is away in France, fighting in the Battle of Agincourt. He sends a brief message home to say that he is well, as are all his men, and not one has been injured.<br />
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The house in which the family lives is already old, and several generations of the Snow family have lived there. When Richard returns, his wife, Kate, has to break the sad news to him that while he was away their only child, a son, has died. When, later, another son is born to the couple, Richard says that he would like this child to be named Crispin "because the Battle of Agincourt was fought on St. Crispin's day, and I believe it was through the saint's benevolent watch over us that we all came home safely." Thus a family tradition began; from then on, through the centuries, every first born male was named Crispin.<br />
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The second part of the story is set in 1592; alterations are made to the house so that it's outline is shaped as an "E" to honour the great first Queen Elizabeth who was on the throne at that time. Further decoration is added to the house to commemorate England's victory over the Spanish Armada.<br />
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In the third part of the story, set in 1679, after a period of England being governed by Oliver Cromwell, the monarchy has been restored and King Charles II is on the throne. The Snow family are establishing a reputation as horse breeders -- the horses are all white, appropriately for a family named Snow. One of their younger sons decides that, as he will not inherit the house and estate in England and after talking to some people about the new colonies in the Americas, he would like to leave England, go to Virginia and hope to become a tobacco grower. Some letters from him are kept in the family archives; he enjoyed his life there, married and started his own family.<br />
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The family's story continues in 1848; Queen Victoria was on the throne of England, and the industrial revolution was beginning. The Snow family had established a school in the local village to provide a basic education for the children of the families that worked on the estate and in the house; one of the Snow daughters is an enthusiastic teacher at the school. The Snows also started to build almshouses so that when their servants and staff grew too old to continue working, they had a place to live.<br />
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Part 5 opens in 2006; the house and its estate continues to be home to the Snow family, and for several days each year the house is open to the public to visit. Among the visitors one day there is a young American man who tells a family member that his name is also Snow, and it has always been said in his family that one of his ancestors came from this very place in England. And for the rest of the story... you will have to read the book!<br />
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<a href="http://author.to/AngelaWaller" target="_blank"><span id="goog_1204600316"></span>Amazon<span id="goog_1204600317"></span></a><br />
<a href="http://www.angelawaller.co.uk/" target="_blank">Angela's Website</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/AngelaWaller" target="_blank">Twitter</a><br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-92144905615529085122015-09-29T22:00:00.001-07:002015-09-29T22:00:31.258-07:00Crazy Customs Blog Hop and Book Release<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">by Debra Brown<br />
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To our modern way of thinking, people of the past had some crazy customs. Packing a lunch to attend and observe a hanging comes to mind. Or is that any different than a box of popcorn in the theater seats to see the blood in glorious color and the bodies larger than life?<br />
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We believe in doing things our way, as people did back Then. It comes with practice. I was always bewildered by the fact that ladies wore their dresses dragging in the mud. Surely all would have understood if just a bit of ankle showed to keep the expensive fabrics from becoming dirty and ragged? It was unfathomable to me until I attended a Renaissance Faire in Elizabethan dress (to the top of my foot, thank you) and watched the more resolute women dragging their trains in the dust. As I was required by contract to stay for the weekend, I readjusted my thinking and learned to accept it as if it were normal. I may go upper class for the next event and drag some acres of fabric.<br />
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Time traveling is great fun. One of the English Historical Fiction Authors mentioned the convenience of relieving oneself while attending a Regency banquet--since there were no private rooms for the purpose as we have now, a lord or lady might (well, would, actually) simply step behind a screen and use a chamber pot. Isn't that classy?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1hvf7LILJPoGdTxpmad9zOrR1t6-Sf_VROmi6xx_gLw72KVy8k0e75nxFoHnam72-y3raA1nDILFVyVZzSYjIDEuFKswISpHZOmk4jYZl-4XFtO0mTFRE9dilxAku0QCHC0C5qmKPs6M/s1600/CC%2526KII+Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr1hvf7LILJPoGdTxpmad9zOrR1t6-Sf_VROmi6xx_gLw72KVy8k0e75nxFoHnam72-y3raA1nDILFVyVZzSYjIDEuFKswISpHZOmk4jYZl-4XFtO0mTFRE9dilxAku0QCHC0C5qmKPs6M/s320/CC%2526KII+Cover.jpg" /></a></div>For those of you who prefer entering the past from the comfort of your sofa (just down the hall from your water-saving toilet), we proudly present <i>Castles, Customs, and Kings: True Tales by English Historical Fiction Authors,</i> Volume II, edited by myself and Sue Millard. Several of our contributing authors and friends have posted on various interesting customs. Following the book information are links to their blogs. We hope you enjoy reading about these customs in celebration of our new release.<br />
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<blockquote><i>An anthology of essays from the second year of the English Historical Fiction Authors blog, this book transports the reader across the centuries from prehistoric to twentieth century Britain. Nearly fifty different authors share the stories, incidents, and insights discovered while doing research for their own historical novels.<br />
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From medieval law and literature to Tudor queens and courtiers, from Stuart royals and rebels to Regency soldiers and social calls, experience the panorama of Britain’s yesteryear. Explore the history behind the fiction, and discover the true tales surrounding Britain’s castles, customs, and kings.</i></blockquote><br />
Volume I<br />
<a href="http://mybook.to/DebraCastles" target="_blank">Amazon</a><br />
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Volume II<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Customs-Kings-English-Historical/dp/0996264817" target="_blank">Amazon US</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Castles-Customs-Kings-English-Historical/dp/0996264817" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-34065787572071602472015-05-19T00:52:00.000-07:002015-05-19T00:52:07.929-07:00The Descent of Anne Boleyn and the Ascent of Jane Seymour<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The descent of Anne Boleyn</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">and </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Anne Boleyn</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>We walk down the steps from the Queen's Apartments. Sir Kingston walks with me and the ladies walk behind us. The morning sun kisses my face. The daffodils are in bloom and the birds sing like any other radiant spring morning. Surely even Nature would know if the hour of death was approaching for an anointed Queen Regnant of England. It must be a sign of hope for me. I will be rescued at the last moment. This is all part of the public humiliation Henry wishes. He wants all to witness as I bow to his greatness, then he will pardon me for sins against the Crown and banish me to a nunnery, much as Cranmer promised. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>If not, then I face the morning with courage. If I am to be punished, it is for my own sins. The last few years swiftly pass before my mind's eye. What had caused the change? Certainly the miscarriage of a son had been a part of Henry's outrage. But what made him turn against me in such haste? Again, the unseen troubadour's voice pleads for the love of his lady; his song is as sweet as the one sung by the birds around me, yet as mournful as the questioning of my own heart. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>I see the crowd that awaits us as we move closer to the edge of the White Tower. One way or another, either death or escape await me. I am ready to face whatever God wishes for me. All I pray for is an answer that will serve the greater good of the King, and an end to my pain.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The maid woke me as she walked across the room to light the candle opposite my bed. Hearing me move underneath the cover, I see her silhouette curtsy in the outline against the backdrop of daylight peeking through the window.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>"So sorry for waking you, my great and beautiful lady," she whispers. I hear the trembling of fear in her voice. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>"Oh, there is no need to worry yourself, my dear girl. This is the best of days to wake early. Thank you for waking me. I couldn't be more delighted. Today is the day for which we have longed! You do me a very great favour. I am to be fitted for my wedding dress on this very morning."</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>"Thank you, Lady Jane. May I bring you anything from the kitchens?" she asks.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The tapping on the door let me know my ladies had arrived to ready me for the fitting of the dress the King had ordered. My time has come. All I pray for is the ability that will serve the greater good of the King, and an end to his pain.</i></span></div>
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Available globally on <a href="http://getbook.at/phoenix_rising" target="_blank">Amazon</a> via Kindle and in paperback, May 19, 2015</div>
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Deb Hunter writes fiction as Hunter Jones or Hunter S. Jones. Her best-selling poetic romance novel, <i>September Ends</i>, won awards for Best Independently Published Novel and Best Romance, based on its unique blending of poetry and prose. The Fortune Series received best-selling status on Amazon in the Cultural Heritage and Historical Fiction categories. She has been published by H3O Eco mag, LuxeCrush, Chattanooga Times-Free Press, and is now a freelance contributor for the Atlanta Journal Constitution. She has recently been accepted into the prestigious Rivendell Writers Colony. Her arts, music and culture blogs on ExpatsPost.com are filled with eclectic stories regarding music, writing, the arts and climate awareness. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her Scottish born husband. She graduated without honors from a university in Nashville, Tennessee but with a degree in History. </div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-70650842700745665302015-04-15T23:24:00.001-07:002015-04-15T23:24:16.296-07:00Stendhal, Waterloo and a Forgotten Tale<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">by David Ebsworth<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCrPQ-9XDVgx3ffqYoKcw-bOFMnlh5Z91sF_HpuwSyBVsk94IOkGyK9B2kqezdkOP4fcLc5KbMmp5ffJPsc6IyyVRu99O37MnMum-MHC3NKQcFUixWSr65gtFa_fYbdpvkcs9fnlJDenxN/s1600/Stendhal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCrPQ-9XDVgx3ffqYoKcw-bOFMnlh5Z91sF_HpuwSyBVsk94IOkGyK9B2kqezdkOP4fcLc5KbMmp5ffJPsc6IyyVRu99O37MnMum-MHC3NKQcFUixWSr65gtFa_fYbdpvkcs9fnlJDenxN/s320/Stendhal.jpg" /></a></div>The classic French author who wrote under the pen name of Stendhal was born in Grenoble in 1783. His real name was Marie-Henri Beyle, and his star was joined irrevocably with that of Napoleon when he moved to Paris in 1799, literally on the day after Bonaparte’s <i>coup d’état</i> and appointment as First Consul of France. Beyle became a clerk in the War Ministry but subsequently accepted a commission in a French Dragoon regiment so that he could take part in Bonaparte’s invasion of the Italian states, then occupied by the Austrians. He came under fire during the campaign but also contracted syphilis, and eventually resigned his commission. <br />
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His association with the French army continued, however, when he was appointed a War Commissar. In this capacity, in 1809, he travelled through war-torn Germany and, in the town of Stendhal, was particularly affected by the horrific devastation he saw there. He returned to Paris and gained a promotion as the Emperor’s Inspector of Accounts, spending a couple of years moving among the highest echelons of French Imperial society. But in 1812, he chose to join Bonaparte’s ill-fated Russian Campaign and, though he fared much better than most others, he was lucky to return alive. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6tf9e0YuS6rrkrIZstZSgFb9GGBCzCde6BnVJ8yb4qxvjNtAVI71N-V7Jkv34lnr9kKHzzOphwcD1aEu7Ntq-ZpeyrgWxQoij-j0F2ubxblEmSb9t-R-1XR0MHbcDpmMI94deblD0AUml/s1600/Stendahl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6tf9e0YuS6rrkrIZstZSgFb9GGBCzCde6BnVJ8yb4qxvjNtAVI71N-V7Jkv34lnr9kKHzzOphwcD1aEu7Ntq-ZpeyrgWxQoij-j0F2ubxblEmSb9t-R-1XR0MHbcDpmMI94deblD0AUml/s320/Stendahl.jpg" /></a></div>With Napoleon’s abdication in 1814, Beyle moved to Milan and stayed there until 1821, completing a biography of Napoleon during that period. He returned to Paris and began to write novels under the Stendhal pen name but became increasingly embittered, first, by the trend towards denigrating the legacy of both the Revolution and Napoleon Bonaparte but, second, by the effects of his syphilis and its treatment. He died in 1842, just three years after publishing perhaps his most famous work, <i>The Charterhouse of Parma.</i><br />
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It’s the story of young Italian aristocrat, Fabrice del Dongo, and several chapters follow Fabrice as he tries to join the French army on the Waterloo battlefield. Stendhal had not been at Waterloo, of course, but he was intimately familiar with its details. Despite this, he carefully avoided the temptation to write a blow-by-blow account and recalled, instead, his own experience of war. The confusion. The impossibility for the “common soldier” to know anything about what may be happening. An unusual tale. No real heroes. And much of Fabrice’s time at Waterloo is spent with a hard-nosed, nameless cantinière, giving us some unusual political viewpoints – as well as the inspiration for my own recent novel about the battle.<br />
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The <i>cantinières</i> were female sutlers (victuallers), three or four serving with every French battalion, and frequently to be seen in the very front lines, serving brandy to the soldiers and sometimes embroiled in the fighting itself. Many of them died brutal battlefield deaths and it wasn’t unusual for them to keep their children at their side, even at the bloodiest moments. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEwUW1ZyRbGjkElw0fY58ccV_xgENKKklu1Nw6UsK6t_D5EsVuNrCkDoHs9lKPgQODtk28rWH_gwRQij6sha0Jl2yQ9q-NkPR5dflhKDQFWQYijwGioA0wtI3_JT0DAuHyhgBBQKEaBBS/s1600/David+Marianne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEwUW1ZyRbGjkElw0fY58ccV_xgENKKklu1Nw6UsK6t_D5EsVuNrCkDoHs9lKPgQODtk28rWH_gwRQij6sha0Jl2yQ9q-NkPR5dflhKDQFWQYijwGioA0wtI3_JT0DAuHyhgBBQKEaBBS/s320/David+Marianne.jpg" /></a></div>Remembering the Stendhal novel, and wanting to write my own story of Waterloo in time for this year’s bicentenary, I decided to tell the tale of <i>cantinières</i> as the core of <i><b>The Last Campaign of Marianne Tambour</b></i> (David Ebsworth, 2015). Astonishing that no fiction authors have told this remarkable story since 1839 – well, at least, not until now! The result is, naturally, a real blood and thunder account of this famous battle but told, I hope, from an entirely fresh perspective. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJloe4rWubyHBDGoJ3vuedlPaM7HCgyJ-bUp8PBuHKcM3JREw_23b2zANTdnnzpmoTAgYMj2ccj_T-lqJQ5dVF7fpdcLXp456V_dBJiJ4YdGEctaGBGxuT69dmnjy7623X84xwEY8Mv-PH/s1600/David+Ebsworth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJloe4rWubyHBDGoJ3vuedlPaM7HCgyJ-bUp8PBuHKcM3JREw_23b2zANTdnnzpmoTAgYMj2ccj_T-lqJQ5dVF7fpdcLXp456V_dBJiJ4YdGEctaGBGxuT69dmnjy7623X84xwEY8Mv-PH/s200/David+Ebsworth.jpg" /></a></div><b><br />
David Ebsworth, has published four novels. The first, <i>The Jacobites’ Apprentice</i>, was a Finalist in our 2014 Indie Award. His fourth novel, <i>The Last Campaign of Marianne Tambour</i>, was published on 1st January.</b><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-31320345546517348042015-03-28T21:32:00.001-07:002015-03-28T21:34:48.200-07:00Elizabeth of York as Mother to Henry VIII<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">by Judith Arnopp<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLBgFYs2N9q0dIe1rUqRFkSeOnxQOCvwKLLr6QDf3ITUf69asm2vUOgDr6I-82bZln4QJIvOYDI8tC3-Fjf72JLbGCJeZ6_gXhrAvfZqhuF7Ed9iEt0Zeu51dYOopTbuR6F3UBweP23HJn/s1600/Elizabeth_of_York.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLBgFYs2N9q0dIe1rUqRFkSeOnxQOCvwKLLr6QDf3ITUf69asm2vUOgDr6I-82bZln4QJIvOYDI8tC3-Fjf72JLbGCJeZ6_gXhrAvfZqhuF7Ed9iEt0Zeu51dYOopTbuR6F3UBweP23HJn/s1600/Elizabeth_of_York.jpg" height="320" width="229" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Elizabeth of York</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The union of Elizabeth of York and Henry VII put an end to many years of civil unrest. It was a political match that proved affection can grow out of expediency. Although Henry’s reign suffered more rebellions than any other he left a stable and affluent realm and an heir that would prove to be the most memorable in British history.</di
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The name Henry VIII conjures a vision of an obese, vindictive, embittered man but, as I have discussed on other blogs, he wasn’t always so. In his youth Henry was irrepressible; a tall, courtly, bright-haired prince whose appearance owed more to his Plantagenet grandfather, Edward IV, than his Tudor lineage. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Henry was born at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich on 28th June 1491, the third child of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. As second son he was never intended for the throne; that honour was to go to his older brother, Arthur. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Like most royal children Henry’s early life was governed by women. While Arthur, as heir to the throne, was given his own extravagant male-orientated household at Ludlow, Henry shared a nursery with his sister Margaret, and later his other siblings joined them. It was a world of women. Henry’s wet nurse, Anne Uxbridge, provided nourishment in his early years while his two rockers, Margaret Droughton and Frideswide Puttenham, saw to his other comforts. As the royal nursery continued to fill, the role of ‘lady mistress of our nursery’ was bestowed upon Elizabeth Denton who served in the Queen’s household long after the children had outgrown their need of her.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">This team of women who cared for the royal infants should not suggest that Elizabeth kept her children at arm’s length. In fact Elizabeth seems to have been exceptionally close to her younger children. With Arthur far from court and growing up almost a stranger, she took an active role in the upbringing of his siblings. David Starkey believes Henry’s handwriting is so similar to his mother’s that she must have had a hand in their early education too. The nursery at Eltham was next door to Elizabeth’s favourite palace of Greenwich so it would have been a simple matter for her to visit regularly to oversee their upbringing and lessons.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">At his mother’s knee Henry may have heard the tales of old stories of knights and battle, chivalry and romance which emphasised the importance of treating maidens gently and foes mercilessly. The stories he heard at this time would influence him for the remainder of his life. Despite his failings Henry always <i>aspired</i> to being a knight like the men of old. Even as late as 1542 when he was growing old and infirm, he gamely donned his armour, climbed onto to his charger, and rode off to war with France for his ‘second Agincourt.’ Where his father preferred to negotiate for a peaceful settlement, Henry VIII revelled in war.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As Henry grew from infancy into a small boy new siblings arrived, and some departed. When Henry was just four years old his sister, Elizabeth, who had blossomed briefly into his life died suddenly in September 1495 aged just three years old. What affect this loss of a playmate may have had is impossible to say. Childhood death was commonplace in Tudor England, but that doesn’t mean it was easy to bear. As humans we never get used to death. Henry would have missed her. He and Margaret may have found it lonely without her. She would have left a gap.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">It was Henry’s first brush with death and the loss perhaps made him wonder and worry a little. In 1496 Elizabeth’s place in the nursery was filled by another sister, Mary, and a brother, Edmund, followed in 1499. Sadly, like Elizabeth, Edmund did not survive for long, but Mary survived and has long been regarded as Henry’s ‘favourite’ sister. It was a harsh lesson, but Henry learned early that childhood was dangerous – sons and daughters could be lost. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">His father, the King, beset by rebellion, was made more insecure by the loss of each child; Henry would have noticed, and soon, as rebellion and unrest rattled at the doors of the royal palace, the lesson would become further ingrained.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Perkin Warbeck</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">When the King of the Scots gave shelter and support to the pretender Perkin Warbeck, war broke out between Scotland and England. The Cornish, unappreciative of the rise in taxes to pay for this war, decided to rebel, darkening and lengthening the threatening shadow bearing down on the Tudor king.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">While the King called his men to arms, Elizabeth of York fled with her children to the safety of the Tower, the situation reminiscent of how in her youth during the wars of the roses she was forced to take refuge with her mother at Westminster. With the future yet unwritten, Elizabeth may have been afraid and vulnerable. There were no assurances that her husband would triumph or that her own children might shortly join the ranks of her missing brothers. The walls of the Tower were thick, impenetrable stone; she was as safe from physical danger as it was possible to be, but the memories, if not the ghosts of her brothers, must have cried out to her from the shadows. Fear is contagious, and her children, sensing their mother’s dread, would have been frightened too. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">During the writing process of <b><i>A Song of Sixpence,</i></b> the infant Henry refused to remain in the back ground. The book isn’t about him but his character continually raised his head and demanded attention. He first appears as a fat, noisy baby, then later as a cuddly, argumentative toddler squabbling with his sisters in the nursery. He is loving, demanding and happy despite the shadows of fear that pervade his early childhood. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Once the pretender was put down and the throne secure again, the wedding between Arthur and Catherine of Aragon went ahead. Henry took a prominent role in the proceedings, leading Catherine of Aragon from the Bishops palace to the altar at St Pauls. Afterwards he danced with his aunt Cecily, and then with his sister, Margaret. He led her onto the floor, bowed to the audience and … David Starkey looks at the record and describes what happened next:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><blockquote><i>“But now Henry stepped out of the script. Finding that his heavy clothes got in the way of his fun, he ‘suddenly cast off his gown’ – which had been obtained at much expense – and ‘danced in his jacket’ with his sister. His parents looked on proudly and indulgently.”(Starkey: p.146)</i></blockquote></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite his failings as a king and a husband Henry VIII remains fascinating. What was it that changed the perfect chivalric prince into the king we love to hate?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggvmgTgKsC5mojEx0iVMZ0WS-ffochSt6BV1YOVswWsQqngSuAAe2B7LKbZD9xrn6n8HJjmr2BkfCN7_sA9SoNSjPmlcEeXewNQmwfamIU_NXSn9tGSMKAJeohnWpE4QOghuBhfzqwcTvb/s1600/%E2%80%9CLaughing+child,+possibly+Henry+VIII,+c.1498.+Possibly+commissioned+by+or+presented+to+Henry+VII.+Guido+Mazzoni%E2%80%9C.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggvmgTgKsC5mojEx0iVMZ0WS-ffochSt6BV1YOVswWsQqngSuAAe2B7LKbZD9xrn6n8HJjmr2BkfCN7_sA9SoNSjPmlcEeXewNQmwfamIU_NXSn9tGSMKAJeohnWpE4QOghuBhfzqwcTvb/s1600/%E2%80%9CLaughing+child,+possibly+Henry+VIII,+c.1498.+Possibly+commissioned+by+or+presented+to+Henry+VII.+Guido+Mazzoni%E2%80%9C.jpg" height="200" width="191" /></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Elizabeth of York is often by-passed, her political influence dismissed, but her influence on her son is easily discernible. As I put the finishing touches to the last heart-wrenching scenes of <b><i>A Song of Sixpence</i></b> when the twelve-year-old Henry’s heart was breaking over the loss of his mother, I could not help but contemplate the disappointment Elizabeth would have felt if she could have foreseen the future.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the years after Bosworth, a small boy is ripped from his rightful place as future king of England. Years later when he reappears to take back his throne, his sister Elizabeth, now Queen to the invading King Henry Tudor, is torn between family loyalty and duty. As the final struggle between the houses of York and Lancaster is played out, Elizabeth is torn by conflicting loyalty, terror and unexpected love. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Set at the court of Henry VII <b><i>A Song of Sixpence </i></b>offers a unique perspective on the early years of Tudor rule. Elizabeth of York, often viewed as a meek and uninspiring queen, emerges as a resilient woman whose strengths lay in endurance rather than resistance.</div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD7vAgfncZ8OhPwJHNoXwexMbIx1LUoDgqbRVIh1gESQgerDv4DM6O4RAUO8JSkW841CwTPRgHUpSQpcf3rdYpBbwuZ9sX0_qxfxPJWK7oOrPijLM1L-t1NJydg9Jqj9OxXKiV5Ybt0XXz/s1600/tudorleaflet2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD7vAgfncZ8OhPwJHNoXwexMbIx1LUoDgqbRVIh1gESQgerDv4DM6O4RAUO8JSkW841CwTPRgHUpSQpcf3rdYpBbwuZ9sX0_qxfxPJWK7oOrPijLM1L-t1NJydg9Jqj9OxXKiV5Ybt0XXz/s1600/tudorleaflet2.jpg" height="226" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><u>Illustrations from Wikimedia commons</u></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Henry_receiving_a_tribute_from_Erasmus.jpg</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Elizabeth_of_York_from_Kings_and_Queens_of_England.jpg </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Perkin_Warbeck.jpg</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">“Laughing child, possibly Henry VIII, c.1498. Possibly commissioned by or presented to Henry VII. Guido Mazzoni“from the royal collection.</span><br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Bibliography</span></u></b><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Starkey,David. Henry: the prince who would become tyrant</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Weir, Alison. Elizabeth of York: the first Tudor Queen</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Licence, Amy. Elizabeth of York</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Penn, Thomas. The Winter King</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hutchinson, Robert. Young Henry </span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Wroe, Ann. Perkin</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Skidmore Chris. The Rise of the Tudors</span><br />
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</span></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-64755128401868530232015-03-24T23:08:00.001-07:002015-03-24T23:08:07.155-07:00A New Biography for Lovers of All Things Georgian!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<i>Prinny’s Taylor: The Life and Times of Louis Bazalgette (1750-1830)</i> by Charles Bazalgette<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00Yxj_igq2oGImD0uP5mXUsRdpHfLc7r5ntphuKBReWAPtKoDvYsdo9kWSnTO5S9D9JY3Y3CSHTruLCq8h5-XJ91ZrXezQbR7ftbE6rtVLJbwjuGLIlObeFnUln-Hbm6-5n27ZocPXdPo/s1600/Charles+Prinny.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00Yxj_igq2oGImD0uP5mXUsRdpHfLc7r5ntphuKBReWAPtKoDvYsdo9kWSnTO5S9D9JY3Y3CSHTruLCq8h5-XJ91ZrXezQbR7ftbE6rtVLJbwjuGLIlObeFnUln-Hbm6-5n27ZocPXdPo/s320/Charles+Prinny.jpg" /></a></div>
About twenty years ago, Charles Bazalgette had mostly completed re-researching the history of the<br />
family to which all anglophone Bazalgettes belong. He was then in a position to begin investigating<br />
his great-great-great-great grandfather, the patriarch of this scion, Louis Bazalgette, who moved to London from his native France in 1775. Information about him was scanty but over these years he ran to ground firstly his bank ledgers and then – a major breakthrough – nine years of his tailoring accounts with the Prince of Wales. Having transcribed these it was possible to cross-refer them to accounts in the newspapers which described what Prinny wore to state occasions. By that time Charles realised that he had far more than a genealogical study, but a unique slice of Georgian royal and social history. He was also surprised to find that rather little had previously been written about gentlemen’s tailoring in these times, particularly prior to the arrival on the fashion scene of ‘Beau’ Brummell. In a way this could be regarded as a ‘prequel’ to Ian Kelly’s excellent biography of Brummell.<br />
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The resulting biography is extraordinarily detailed and contains a mine of information never previously seen.<br />
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The book has been published in Kindle format in order to give it an initial audience, but a printed version will hopefully emerge in the fullness of time.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbst9E4KZrN7R4lOA4SxThJLgF4d_iyAJYEcN98EtHOxTS9m8g6HaKiEkycUYac22UfyaEl0QyCPiTNdWGn-8ExhoiZflSD_k7Sl9t-DEHKFVdV4nDGQz-SP_SSGYhlTkkR-ei7_78jr_E/s1600/Charles+Bazelgette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbst9E4KZrN7R4lOA4SxThJLgF4d_iyAJYEcN98EtHOxTS9m8g6HaKiEkycUYac22UfyaEl0QyCPiTNdWGn-8ExhoiZflSD_k7Sl9t-DEHKFVdV4nDGQz-SP_SSGYhlTkkR-ei7_78jr_E/s200/Charles+Bazelgette.jpg" /></a></div>
The e-book can be downloaded at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Prinnys-Taylor-Times-Bazalgette-1750-1830-ebook/dp/B00UPI8BWG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427262594&sr=8-1&keywords=Prinny%E2%80%99s+Taylor%3A+The+Life+and+Times+of+Louis+Bazalgette" target="_blank">Amazon US</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Prinnys-Taylor-Times-Bazalgette-1750-1830-ebook/dp/B00UPI8BWG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427262594&sr=8-1&keywords=Prinny%E2%80%99s+Taylor%3A+The+Life+and+Times+of+Louis+Bazalgette" target="_blank">Amazon CA</a>, and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Prinnys-Taylor-Times-Bazalgette-1750-1830-ebook/dp/B00UPI8BWG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427262594&sr=8-1&keywords=Prinny%E2%80%99s+Taylor%3A+The+Life+and+Times+of+Louis+Bazalgette" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a> and is very reasonably priced at $6.00 USD.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-6557382944191792692015-02-19T17:34:00.000-08:002015-02-19T17:49:28.317-08:00Book Review: Mist of Midnight by Sandra Byrd<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">And Giveaway of a Lace Bookmark!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9RirW07ulv93ozCcgpCdfJJkeqqElQ6dqgECQwEIQOTAfLDvHhy0R9zCUIKZvjtxo46Dzj49JxLwGNoB9uXDsP_QDoJ7ZswcgXbV-vy5A7C8-B7JNcFP8pjOVF2S1b2yNkFo5bly1RwlJ/s1600/Sandra+Mist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9RirW07ulv93ozCcgpCdfJJkeqqElQ6dqgECQwEIQOTAfLDvHhy0R9zCUIKZvjtxo46Dzj49JxLwGNoB9uXDsP_QDoJ7ZswcgXbV-vy5A7C8-B7JNcFP8pjOVF2S1b2yNkFo5bly1RwlJ/s320/Sandra+Mist.jpg" /></a></div><i>Mist of Midnight</i> is in a Victorian setting, mostly in the house of a young woman returned to her estate after growing up in India, the daughter of missionaries who died in the Rebellion. Eager to arrive at Headbourne House to grieve but also to settle into her life, Miss Rebecca Ravenshaw becomes most unsettled upon learning that her inheritance had already been claimed by an imposter who now lay in a grave with Rebecca's name chiseled into the stone. What is worse is that most people in the area see Rebecca as the probable pretender. A third claimant, the appealing Captain Luke Whitfield, had taken up residence before even the first "Miss Ravenshaw", and the staff was loyal to him.<br />
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How could Rebecca prove her identity? What would she do while waiting for the truth to be revealed? And what of this charming man? Was his kindness genuine, or was it part of a plan to put her, too, in a grave near the other?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwMPcsXWasQEt2YMt3Om9LVJDkQVAQ7RDrJb4wEUdb_3w-ua9tdLrWQ0g_E2H5iCevO8C0Dzs4iYkWtpmikK3wIRQp1x_QzCnxB3Q2M-YaK7cXi_fEFAX1NRHWNGGi-wky3N0KzGnxnUT3/s1600/authorSandraByrd.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwMPcsXWasQEt2YMt3Om9LVJDkQVAQ7RDrJb4wEUdb_3w-ua9tdLrWQ0g_E2H5iCevO8C0Dzs4iYkWtpmikK3wIRQp1x_QzCnxB3Q2M-YaK7cXi_fEFAX1NRHWNGGi-wky3N0KzGnxnUT3/s200/authorSandraByrd.png" /></a></div>Ms. Byrd kept me in the Victorian era. A Gothic feel to this mystery kept me turning pages. And the various characters kept me hoping, concerned, or judgmental--to the end.<br />
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Ms. Byrd showed excellent research historically and geographically both in England and India. And I wish now I'd put post-its at some of her excellent turns of phrase to share them with you, but you'll enjoy them yourself when you settle down by the fire with this new release.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGj77PuHMeBkaN7v31IvHGI4kQw5S1H_hETL1HRwDu1INbExg3IS8CyrirEYeL5xI0Bhx9N84XtNvhyr-0TAIIDKF7y2PDy5nurwJ26ahyU27Hhh9FuhJes5FZoBjjNSFr9DDLfZxUM4v/s1600/Endorsement1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGj77PuHMeBkaN7v31IvHGI4kQw5S1H_hETL1HRwDu1INbExg3IS8CyrirEYeL5xI0Bhx9N84XtNvhyr-0TAIIDKF7y2PDy5nurwJ26ahyU27Hhh9FuhJes5FZoBjjNSFr9DDLfZxUM4v/s320/Endorsement1.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuwbHH4Y0fEJyrbbf4VqcAG-mulMBDAqMb2O4juvjFhQooMc23MUxQ4xNObIl0OGpPKd1OR_Bf8nw9-NBTscmVyMnp0FPHD7xBe3NEaivVTL_KX3ADSf6hCgO_tz7X3q_NI_ysbmSwXYAY/s1600/endorsement2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuwbHH4Y0fEJyrbbf4VqcAG-mulMBDAqMb2O4juvjFhQooMc23MUxQ4xNObIl0OGpPKd1OR_Bf8nw9-NBTscmVyMnp0FPHD7xBe3NEaivVTL_KX3ADSf6hCgO_tz7X3q_NI_ysbmSwXYAY/s320/endorsement2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqaxr2cz5yrR0IuEfVQ7znMMe1utvr1A5UncFNBWJvN7qLU4vhRAlGnOLTK9b4SliZpPGiUxqqvinOHeu6yVHCaS03Jn5YwM6Sa5J3gvayDK_6K3EliBWYPauVPQHfpYFvbjDsLis12ME/s1600/endorsement3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqaxr2cz5yrR0IuEfVQ7znMMe1utvr1A5UncFNBWJvN7qLU4vhRAlGnOLTK9b4SliZpPGiUxqqvinOHeu6yVHCaS03Jn5YwM6Sa5J3gvayDK_6K3EliBWYPauVPQHfpYFvbjDsLis12ME/s320/endorsement3.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I received this book free of charge for an honest review.<br />
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.4999990463257px; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Link to </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mist of <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_301785675" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: dashed; border-bottom-width: 1px; position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">Midnight</span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on the Simon and Schuster/Howard </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Books </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Website: </span></div><div dir="ltr" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.4999990463257px; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="http://books.simonandschuster.com/Mist-of-Midnight/Sandra-Byrd/The-Daughters-of-Hampshire/9781476717869" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://books.simonandschuster.<wbr></wbr>com/Mist-of-Midnight/Sandra-<wbr></wbr>Byrd/The-Daughters-of-<wbr></wbr>Hampshire/9781476717869</span></a></div><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.4999990463257px;" /> <div dir="ltr" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.4999990463257px; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">About the author:</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.4999990463257px; line-height: 1.15; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="http://www.sandrabyrd.com/index.php" style="text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sandra Byrd</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is a best-selling author and has earned Library Journal's Best Books of the year pick twice, in 2011 for </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To Die For: A Novel of Anne Boleyn</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, and in 2012 for </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Secret Keeper: A Novel of Kateryn Parr</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. She's twice been a Christy Award finalist, for </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To Die For</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and for </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let Them Eat Cake: A Novel</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Roses Have Thorns: A Novel of Elizabeth I</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> published April 2013</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.sandrabyrd.com/mist-of-midnight-giveaway/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg74qCOzS4WcbrPwOmYJ8e1y0RoQYjz2oDi-Pc-8QRqHC55dqlRd1FmPGrS1bkO7WstuX47yX-xMGxjxQRwpmWFV8mJJZq5sVzBPbBIrsCOVazz1gCkxV6wRceJuWCxSt8LCXm5PgcRHtWZ/s1600/MomRevisedButton2.jpg" height="200" width="191" /></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpC0HK7OIbQHn6e_EaXyyKvMwrSyuXUH-xZiKseVcSSMfrTfjRsxAx3AaSsWRmfH3ANuifrOaH3xnYAMZ0zODHaUDOIFaTrn84j4yhdht-DYeT7dOy3GbQ9cpz52RH4tHTV7liyHVDaU_E/s1600/lacebookmark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpC0HK7OIbQHn6e_EaXyyKvMwrSyuXUH-xZiKseVcSSMfrTfjRsxAx3AaSsWRmfH3ANuifrOaH3xnYAMZ0zODHaUDOIFaTrn84j4yhdht-DYeT7dOy3GbQ9cpz52RH4tHTV7liyHVDaU_E/s320/lacebookmark.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;">Please comment below and <br />
leave your contact information<br />
to enter the drawing for a lace bookmark.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-30172441012408607612015-02-10T20:32:00.001-08:002015-02-11T08:58:14.261-08:00New Release: Stolen, by Sheila Dalton<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZPG2yXO4kHIWtjU4TsF2uBy7YJbHG3F5NTEPvKpq_c5Fs9RH8e11CdYQWhsCm9OSB-kqwXzle3HXlPL9tF6pozbdv8pmdWKhvEgefnvQUgvDsVIYuPxYIA6JmK8M8lgW6fTpXdD9P7eS8/s1600/Sheila+Stolen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZPG2yXO4kHIWtjU4TsF2uBy7YJbHG3F5NTEPvKpq_c5Fs9RH8e11CdYQWhsCm9OSB-kqwXzle3HXlPL9tF6pozbdv8pmdWKhvEgefnvQUgvDsVIYuPxYIA6JmK8M8lgW6fTpXdD9P7eS8/s320/Sheila+Stolen.jpg" /></a></div>
I was intrigued by a recent post on this blog, “Paper Gods and Iron Men: Ordinary people in <br />
extraordinary situations” by Kevin Cowdall, because that is really what my novel, Stolen, is about - how a series of tragic and tumultuous events affects my heroine, an ordinary young woman who must re-assess herself in the face of difficult situations beyond her control.<br />
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The seventeenth century was a challenging age: poverty in England was widespread because of a huge jump in the population between 1529 and 1630. (My novel begins in 1633.) Poor and homeless people were consequently frequently arrested and transported to the new colonies in the Americas and the Caribbean, where labour was desperately needed. They went as indentured servants, a position even lower than that of slave in some instances. Many died on the journey, and many more died of their labours and terrible living conditions shortly after arrival.<br />
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The era was also known as The Golden Age of Piracy. Lizbet Warren, at nineteen years old, must face a raid on her village by Barbary Corsairs, in which her parents are carried off to the slave markets in Morocco. Later, she is captured at sea by the British pirate, Gentleman Jake. It is while sailing with him that she confronts many of her most difficult choices: he is a black slaver, and in order to continue her quest to find her mother in Morocco, she colludes in this activity. She must also fight for her life, and finds, somewhat to her horror, that she is able to do so. <br />
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Her experiences inevitably transform her, and she is not always happy about how. But she also discovers depths of courage within herself, determination to forge her own path, and the strength of character to change what she can in the world around her. <br />
<br />
Stolen is currently available as an ebook for the <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Stolen-Sheila-Dalton-ebook/dp/B00SXBLCTQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1423585123&sr=1-1&keywords=dalton+stolen" target="_blank">Kindle UK</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Stolen-Sheila-Dalton-ebook/dp/B00SXBLCTQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1423585190&sr=1-1&keywords=dalton+stolen" target="_blank">Kindly US</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Stolen-Sheila-Dalton-ebook/dp/B00SXBLCTQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1423585223&sr=1-2&keywords=Stolen" target="_blank">Kindle CA</a>, <a href="https://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/stolen-70" target="_blank">Kobo</a>, <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stolen-sheila-dalton/1121136287?ean=2940151662819&itm=1&usri=2940151662819" target="_blank">Nook</a> and <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id962804120" target="_blank">iTunes</a>.<br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-10961931048037782882014-12-18T00:02:00.000-08:002014-12-18T00:02:44.677-08:00Call for Submissions <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">English Historical Fiction Authors Announces the First annual M.M. Bennetts Award for Historical Fiction</span></h2>
Entries are being accepted for works published in 2014.<br />
<br />
The winner of the $500 prize will be announced at the Historical Novel Society Conference in June, 2015.<br />
<br />
For further details and to submit an application visit <a href="http://mmbaward.blogspot.com/">http://mmbaward.blogspot.com</a>.<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-45154784172652787672014-09-09T14:47:00.000-07:002014-09-09T15:25:01.876-07:00Paper Gods and Iron Men: Ordinary people in extraordinary situations<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">By Kevin Cowdall<br />
<br />
A few months ago The Telegraph published one of it’s periodic ‘Best of…’ lists, selecting the ‘Best War and History Books Ever Written’; a mix (or mish-mash, depending on your point of view) of historical fiction and non-fictional history. <br />
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Such selections are always subjective and, whilst we all have our own particular favourites, many of us would, I think, certainly include several novels from the list, and might well disagree with the selection of others. For the record, The Telegraph’s list included: Erich Maria Remarque’s <i>All Quiet on the Western Front</i>, Ernest Hemingway’s <i>A Farewell To Arms</i>, Stephen Crane’s <i>The Red Badge of Courage</i>, Norman Mailer’s <i>The Naked and the Dead</i>, Joseph Heller’s <i>Catch-22</i>, Sebastian Faulks’ <i>Birdsong</i>, Thomas Keneally’s <i>Schindler's List</i>, and Evelyn Waugh’s <i>Sword of Honour</i> and Pat Barker’s <i>Regeneration Trilogies</i>, amongst others. <br />
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What struck me most about the choice of fiction on the list was that, almost without exception, the main focus of these works is not on the perceived glory / actual horrors of the fighting (indeed several are, undeniably, anti-war in tone), but on the individual, often poignant, experiences of the participants, both combatants and civilians, and how conflict and struggle on such a scale can permanently change individuals and societies alike. The selected novels do not glorify war and few, if any, have a recognisable derring-do, swashbuckling ‘hero’ in the traditional sense of, say, <i>The Three Musketeers</i> of Alexandre Dumas, Bernard Cornwell’s Richard Sharpe, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli et al in J.R.R. Tolkien’s <i>Lord of the Rings</i>, those of classic mythology and epic poetry such as <i>Beowulf, The Aeneid, The Iliad</i> and <i>The Odyssey</i>, and the Arthurian legend; nor even the anti-heroes and adventurers found in the works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Walter Scott, H. Rider Haggard, G. A. Henty or Jules Verne. <br />
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As Remarque commented about the semi-autobiographical novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, “This book is neither an accusation nor a confession, and least of all an adventure”: He takes no overt political or moral stance as such, does not glorify or condemn; he simply tells a story and lets the reader fill in their own blanks. It is this which has, perhaps, contributed to making it (and the others on the list) such an enduring classic.<br />
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Likewise, Tolkien opines, “Courage is found in unlikely places.” In other words, like the characters in the above stories, recognition is not consciously sought, but nor is it shirked in the face of adversity or seemingly insurmountable odds. Characters become merely victims of the singular, and often bewildering, situations in which they find themselves, driven by, and responding to, unprecedented circumstances in a manner beyond their accepted norms of experience or comprehension. As Harper Lee has Atticus Finch declare in To Kill a Mockingbird, courage is, “When you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what”. Such is the theme of my novella, <i>Paper Gods and Iron Men</i>.<br />
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Set in the North Africa Campaign of World War II, <i>Paper Gods and Iron Men</i>, is a story of endurance and survival, of ‘ordinary people in extraordinary situations’ - a phrase I have used repeatedly in publicity material and interviews to explain what the story, despite its setting, is really about. Two mismatched British Army officers have come together at a temporary aerodrome to be flown out. When their plane is shot down the two are the only survivors and begin the long trek north across the desert... <br />
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This Kindle edition is published with the short story, <i>Flanagan's Mule</i>, which shares the theme of personal determination and resolve, and which is set in a South-American mining community in the 1950s.<br />
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As Yann Martel reflects in <i>Life of Pi</i>, “Survival starts by paying attention to what is close at hand and immediate”, and Margaret Mitchell observes in <i>Gone with the Wind</i>, “Hardships make or break people.”<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSGDphLCw6d9FpfWMUTHDVOuO9OqBizu8iT9sMrHUl1w-Gewo7MMKvl5_ufMMFfeWqi4PkjYNPheXSVvMH0JxivB0Pwz5N0d-7f0mb3WRsQwsIjzBtmWmZF6P3BpWY8RYjx3RnceIjkkw/s1600/Kevin+Paper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSGDphLCw6d9FpfWMUTHDVOuO9OqBizu8iT9sMrHUl1w-Gewo7MMKvl5_ufMMFfeWqi4PkjYNPheXSVvMH0JxivB0Pwz5N0d-7f0mb3WRsQwsIjzBtmWmZF6P3BpWY8RYjx3RnceIjkkw/s200/Kevin+Paper.jpg" /></a></div><i>Paper Gods and Iron Men</i> is available from the Kindle Store on Amazon at:<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Paper-Gods-Iron-Flanagans-ebook/dp/B008QNS1E0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343632543&sr=8-1#_">http://www.amazon.co.uk/Paper-Gods-Iron-Flanagans-ebook/dp/B008QNS1E0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343632543&sr=8-1#_</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Gods-Iron-Flanagans-ebook/dp/B008QNS1E0/ref=la_B008BW2AJS_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1348658719&sr=1-2">http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Gods-Iron-Flanagans-ebook/dp/B008QNS1E0/ref=la_B008BW2AJS_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1348658719&sr=1-2</a><br />
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Tremendous new voice<br />
<i>"These are two wonderful stories of survival. Cowdall has an expertly controlled style and is a tremendous new voice. At times I was reminded of the early, and best, Norman Mailer.</i>"<br />
Paul Pickering (author of <i>Over the Rainbow</i> and <i>The Leopard's Wife</i>) <br />
Amazon / Goodreads Reviews <br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-64765951783005503472014-09-06T02:48:00.000-07:002014-09-06T02:48:57.721-07:00Historical Fiction Enticements <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Revenge and Retribution</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Anna Belfrage</span><br />
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<i>Revenge and Retribution</i> is the sixth book in Anna Belfrage’s time slip series featuring time traveller Alexandra Lind and her seventeenth century husband, Matthew Graham.<br />
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Life in the Colony of Maryland is no sinecure – as Alex and Matthew Graham well know. But nothing in their previous life has prepared them for the mayhem that is about to be unleashed upon them.<br />
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Being labelled a witch is not a good thing in 1684, so it is no wonder Alex Graham is aghast at having such insinuations thrown at her. Even worse, it’s Matthew’s brother-in-law, Simon Melville, who points finger at her.<br />
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Not that the ensuing hearing is her main concern, because nowadays Alex’s entire life is tainted by the fear of what Philip Burley will do to them once he gets hold of them – there is no longer any ‘if’ about it. On a sunny May afternoon, it seems Philip Burley will at last revenge himself on Matthew for every single perceived wrong. Over the course of twenty-four hours, Alex’s life – and that of her family’s – is permanently changed.<br />
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As if all this wasn’t enough, Alex also has to cope with the loss of one of her sons. Forcibly adopted by the former Susquehannock, Samuel is dragged from Alex’s arms to begin a new life in the wilderness.<br />
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How is Alex to survive all this? And will she be able to put her damaged family back together?<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Revenge-Retribution-Graham-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B00LERATOK/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1409996802&sr=8-5&keywords=revenge+and+retribution" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Revenge-Retribution-Graham-Saga-Belfrage/dp/1781321752/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1409996749&sr=1-2&keywords=revenge+and+retribution" target="_blank">Amazon US</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Kingdom of Rebels</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Book 3 of the Rebels & Brothers Series</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Derek Birks</span><br />
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When all hope is gone, only death lies in wait… <br />
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England in 1468 is a nervous kingdom. King Edward IV has fallen out with his chief ally, the powerful Earl of Warwick. <br />
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Ned Elder, a young lord whose sword helped to put Edward on the throne, has been forced out of England by Warwick. Far away on the Scottish border, a beleaguered fort, Crag Tower, desperately awaits Ned’s return. Led by his fiery sister, Eleanor, the dwindling garrison is all that remains of his brave army of retainers. <br />
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Unknown to all except the loyal knight, Ragwulf, Eleanor has Ned’s young son in her charge - a son who has never seen his father. But, as border clansmen batter the gates with fire, the castle seems certain to fall. <br />
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One by one Ned’s family and friends are caught up in Warwick’s web of treason. The fate of the Elders and those who serve them lies once more in the balance as all are drawn back to Yorkshire where they face old enemies once more. <br />
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Eleanor can only hope that Ned will soon return. She must fight to keep that hope alive… and when Lady Eleanor fights, she takes no prisoners...<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00MQA6826?*Version*=1&*entries*=0" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MQA6826http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MQA6826" target="_blank">Amazon US</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Josiah Stubb </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Chuck Lovatt</span><br />
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It is 1758 and The Seven Years War is raging. The military might of the British and French empires collide in a desperate bid to control the key strategic Fortress of Louisbourg and, in turn, Quebec and French-held North America.<br />
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One man caught amidst the bloodshed is the young grenadier, Josiah Stubb. Raised by a whore amidst poverty and incest, Josiah seemed doomed from birth to a life in the gutter. His attempt to leave his sordid past behind leads him to Louisbourg, but it comes back to haunt him in the form of a gifted officer, battling his own inner demons.<br />
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As the siege blazes towards its inevitable bloody climax, will Josiah live to overcome the formidable obstacles that keep him chained to his past, or will his aspirations for a better life die with him on the brooding shores of Ile Royale?<br />
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<a href="http://mybook.to/josiahstubbl" target="_blank">Amazon (Universal)</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">City of Ladies</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Sarah Kennedy</span><br />
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It’s midwinter in 1539, and Catherine Havens Overton has just given birth to her second child, a daughter. The convent in which she was raised is now part of the Overton lands, and Catherine’s husband William owns the properties that once belonged to her mother’s family. With a son, Robert, and her new daughter, Veronica, Catherine’s life as the mistress of a great household should be complete.<br />
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Henry VIII’s England has not been kind to many of the evicted members of religious houses, and Catherine has gathered about her a group of former nuns in hopes of providing them a chance to serve in the village of Havenston, her City of Ladies. <br />
Catherine’s own past haunts her. Her husband suspects that Catherine’s son is not his child, and his ambitions lie with service at court. Then the women of Overton House begin to disappear, and though one of them is found brutally murdered nearby, William forces Catherine to go to Hatfield House, where the young Elizabeth Tudor lives, to improve the family’s standing—and to ensure, for her own safety, that she is as far away from connections to her old convent as possible.<br />
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Reluctantly, Catherine obeys, only to find herself serving not only the Protestant Elizabeth but also the shamed Catholic Mary Tudor. As the murders in Yorkshire mount up and her loyalty to the Tudor sisters grows more complicated, Catherine must uncover the secret of the killer and keep her dream of a City of Ladies alive.<br />
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Preorder:<br />
<a href="http://www.knoxrobinsonpublishing.com/book/city-of-ladies/" target="_blank">Knox Robinson</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ladies-Cross-Crown-Sarah-Kennedy/dp/191028209X/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408395614&sr=1-2&keywords=city+of+ladies+Sarah+Kennedy" target="_blank">Amazon</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Men of the Cross (Battle Scars)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Charlene Newcomb</span><br />
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War, political intrigue and passion… heroes… friends and lovers… and the seeds for a new Robin Hood legend await you…<br />
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Two young knights’ journey to war at Richard the Lionheart’s side sweeps them from England to the Holy Land in this historical adventure set against the backdrop of the Third Crusade.<br />
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Henry de Grey leaves Southampton in high spirits, strong in his faith and passionate about the mission to take Jerusalem back from Saladin’s army. Stephan l’Aigle’s prowess on the battlefield is well known, as are his exploits in the arms of other men. He prizes duty, honour and loyalty to his king above all else. But God and the Church? Stephan has little use for either.<br />
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Henry’s convictions are challenged by loss and the harsh realities of bloody battles, unforgiving marches, and the politics of the day. Man against man. Man against the elements. Man against his own heart. Survival will depend on more than a strong sword arm.<br />
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Available in print and for Kindle on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K0TPEBG" target="_blank">Amazon</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00K0TPEBG" target="_blank">Amazon (UK)</a> and other Amazon sites worldwide, for Nook via <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/men-of-the-cross-charlene-newcomb/1119380850?ean=2940149175840" target="_blank">Barnes and Noble</a>, and via <a href="http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/460918" target="_blank">Smashwords</a> in multiple formats.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">This Old World</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Steve Wiegenstein</span><br />
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<i>This Old World</i> begins with the end of the American Civil War. The Union has been preserved, but at a dreadful cost. The inhabitants of Daybreak, a Brook Farm-like agrarian commune in the Missouri Ozarks, tried to maintain a neutral stance but were drawn in, inevitably, as the war swept over their settlement. Now, the remnants of the community try to rebuild.<br />
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The community's founder, James Turner, enlisted in the Union Army but returns a broken man, traumatized by the horrific violence he has witnessed, including the death of his father-in-law, whom he had served as an aide-de-camp. In his absence, his wife Charlotte has been managing the community, but the war has taken its toll on her as well, making her hard and suspicious when she was once soft and idealistic. <br />
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Other former communitarians return, changed in their own ways. Charley Pettibone, an Arkansas native who fought for the South, is embittered and estranged by defeat. Michael Flynn, an Irish emigrant from a nearby settlement, discovers that his community has been scattered and blames the Southerners and their sympathizers for his misfortune. With his surviving son, five-year-old Angus, he starts anew on acreage adjoining Daybreak. And a former slave named Dathan appears from out of nowhere, his origin and motives unknown, and sets to work in the ravaged fields of Daybreak.<br />
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Marie Mercadier, a colonist who had an affair with James Turner before the war, remains in the community, and although Turner harbors feelings for her, she only wants to move onward in her life. But her sense of responsibility to her elderly father and to her daughter – her child with James Turner – keep her in Daybreak. Longing for a break with her past, she accepts the courtship of Michael Flynn, despite the fearsome intensity of Flynn's anger toward the world.<br />
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Charley falls in with the Law and Order League, a group of former guerrillas and Confederate regulars who refuse to accept defeat and who continue the war by other means, such as night raids and lynchings. Although he is quickly disillusioned by their brutality and random violence, he can't find a way to leave the group without becoming a target himself.<br />
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The lives of the characters reach a crossroad when the Law and Order League raids Daybreak, forcing each of them into a moment of moral decision in which they keep or discard their ideals of the prewar past. <br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-76788936489112151642014-08-18T13:45:00.000-07:002014-08-18T13:45:09.943-07:00Historical Fiction Enticements 8/19<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Along with introducing several newer historical novels, I would like to announce that <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Castles-Customs-Kings-English-Historical/dp/0983671966/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408394396&sr=1-1&keywords=castles+customs+and+kings+true+tales+by+english+historical+fiction+authors" target="_blank">Castles, Customs, and Kings: True Tales by English Historical Fiction Authors</a></i> will be available in Audiobook format hopefully in November. Aaaaand! We are working on Volume II.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Bronze and Stones</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Paul Burnette</span><br />
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2300 BCE, Hanavel struggles to escape a group of slavers abducting her from her home in Bretanye. Mate Aiman searches for her, finding clues, crossing the Sea Neck into Britain. <br />
<br />
He eventually finds the Keepers of the Stone Circle. While Aiman describes his wife and what he knows or suspects of the kidnappers for the Keepers, Ulen studies the stranger again. His brown hair is braided and hangs down his back almost to his waist. . . . Even squatting, he looks ready to fend off any attack. In fact, Ulen sees that the warrior’s body is positioned so that he can see all of the Keepers as well as the leader.<br />
<br />
<i>The leader gestured again, this time toward the pack at the feet of the warrior. <br />
<br />
“And here?”<br />
<br />
Aiman placed his hand on the skin bag and left it there for a moment. Then he took the bag up in one hand, loosening the leather thong that held its mouth closed. Ulen also felt – with every one of the villagers – the impulse to look at the various gold-hued objects that fell from the bag to the ground. He had seen copper jewelry several times and gold a few. These – there were two knives, several pins, bracelets, an armband, more – they were another metal, gold in coloring, but not as deep a tone. <br />
<br />
Several of the others had drawn their breath in sharply. But the warrior did not seem to notice, instead drawing his own knife and holding it out toward the leader in the palm of his hand. “Here, try mine.”</i><br />
<br />
The Keepers will not let Aiman take his new metal-smithing skills away, so he sends new friend Ulen to search for Hanavel. At Beltane, Lammas, and Samhain festivals, Tellers stand on their clan’s Telling stone sharing the ancient stories of love, betrayal, trickery, and fate that resonate in their listeners’ lives.<br />
<br />
While Hanavel suffers life as a slave to a rival clan’s chieftain, seeking opportunity to escape, the youth Ulen finds his own place adventuring among the ancient peoples who inhabited what we now call the United Kingdom, but which they know simply as the Land.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bronze-Stones-%20Vikki-ebook/dp/B00KSR2TWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402518674&sr=8-page:%20http://www.amazon.com/Bronze-Stones" target="_blank">Amazon US</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Bronze-Stones-%20Vikki-ebook/dp/B00KSR2TWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402518674&sr=8-page:%20http://www.amazon.com/Bronze-Stones" target="_blank">Amazon CA</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bronze-Stones-%20Vikki-ebook/dp/B00KSR2TWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402518674&sr=8-%20%201&keywords=Bronze+and+Stones" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
<br />
7 five-star reviews, 1 four-star.<br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Portuguese Affair</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Ann Swinfen</span><br />
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The year after defeating the Spanish Armada, England retaliates. The expedition to Portugal sets out to destroy what remains of Spain’s Atlantic fleet, drive the Spanish out of Portugal, put the claimant Dom Antonio of Aviz on the throne, and seize the Azores.<br />
<br />
But from the time the English fleet, led by Drake and Norreys, reaches Plymouth, things start to go wrong. Christoval Alvarez, sent to carry out two missions by Walsingham, has a more important private plan in mind. Are any members of the family still alive? And what will become of the disaster-ridden expedition?<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://mybook.to/PortugueseAffair">http://myBook.to/<wbr></wbr>PortugueseAffair</a></b><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">His Majesty's Confidential Agent </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Tom Williams</span><br />
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The war against Napoleon brought horror, death and destruction to countries across the world. For a young man anxious to improve his position in the world, though, it brought opportunity.<br />
<br />
James Burke comes from a poor Irish background. Joining the army offers him a way of escape. Glory in battle might allow him to achieve his ambition to rise in society. But when his linguistic skills are noticed and he is plucked from the infantry to become a spy, James' hopes of advancement are crushed. Spying is no business for a gentleman. And when a mission to Buenos Aires means disguising himself as a merchant in leather goods, he feels he has hit a new low.<br />
<br />
His mission, though, means fighting alongside men who see the collapse of the old order giving them a chance to break free of Spanish colonial rule. He falls in love with the country – and with the beautiful Ana.<br />
<br />
urke tries to forward British interests, while keeping faith with the rebels. He gains the trust of the rebels, who plot with him to put the British in charge of Buenos Aires. Once their army is established there, though, the British renege on the promises they made to the rebels who helped them. When the people rise against the invaders, Burke is caught in the middle. Captured by revolutionaries and disowned by the British, he becomes a pawn in the three way fight between Britain, Spain and South American patriots. For once, he has more at stake than his own ambition. How can he honour the pledges he has made to his friends and his country and still stay alive?<br />
<br />
Based on true events and meticulously researched, <i>His Majesty's Confidential Agent</i> follows James Burke from the jungle of Haiti through the courts of Spain and Brazil until, back in Buenos Aires, he is forced to risk everything to fight for the girl he loves.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Majestys-Confidential-Agent-James-Burke-ebook/dp/B00JZZS5JY" target="_blank">UK Kindle</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Majestys-Confidential-Agent-James-Burke/dp/1783754214" target="_blank">UK Paperback</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Majestys-Confidential-Agent-James-Burke-ebook/dp/B00JZZS5JY" target="_blank">US Kindle</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Majestys-Confidential-Agent-James-Burke/dp/1783754214" target="_blank">US Paperback</a><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">The Bitter Trade</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Piers Alexander</span><br />
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In 1688, torn by rebellions, England lives under the threat of a Dutch invasion. Redheaded Calumny Spinks is the lowliest man in an Essex backwater: half-French and still unapprenticed at seventeen, yet he dreams of wealth and title. When his father’s violent past resurfaces, Cal’s desperation leads him to become a coffee racketeer. He has just three months to pay off a blackmailer and save his father’s life - but his ambition and talent for mimicry pull him into a conspiracy against the King himself. Cal’s journey takes him from the tough life of Huguenot silk weavers to the vicious intrigues at Court. As the illicit trader Benjamin de Corvis and his controlling daughter Emilia pull him into their plots, and his lover Violet Fintry is threatened by impending war, Cal is forced to choose between his conscience and his dream of becoming Mister Calumny Spinks.<br />
<br />
$0.99 through Tuesday 8/19<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bitter-Trade-Piers-Alexander-ebook/dp/B00JGN9GT8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406648943&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bitter+trade" target="_blank">Amazon US</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bitter-Trade-Piers-Alexander-ebook/dp/B00JGN9GT8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406648943&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bitter+trade" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Bitter-Trade-Piers-Alexander-ebook/dp/B00JGN9GT8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406648943&sr=8-1&keywords=the+bitter+trade" target="_blank">Amazon CA</a><br />
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<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/the-bitter-trade/id854994357?mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes/iBooks</a><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Gang Warfare</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Peter St. John</span><br />
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Have you ever been blamed for something you didn't do?<br />
<br />
Have you ever been caught up in a minor incident that grew into a major conflict?<br />
<br />
An orphan, evacuated from the World War II bombing of London, comes to live with his pious aunt in an English village. A bag of sweets is knocked out of his hand in the school playground. This trivial incident has devastating consequences.<br />
<br />
The villagers become increasingly quarrelsome. The tension reaches a climax at a fund-raising fete to buy a Spitfire aircraft. This ends in a riotous fight which causes the funds collected for the Spitfire to be last seen floating gently down the river in the twilight and a barrel.<br />
<br />
Although this book follows-on from the previous ‘Gang Territory’, it can stand as a complete story in its own right.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.peterstjohn.net/" target="_blank">Purchase</a><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-58396454692503438552014-08-15T14:05:00.000-07:002014-08-15T16:08:23.212-07:00Discovering the Diamond: Interview with Helen Hollick<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Discovering the Diamond</i> by Helen Hollick is an excellent read much like a mentor for the new author or wannabe who needs to develop a feel for the work and the field. Helen is well qualified to help after twenty years as an author, one who has been published in the mainstream and who also has done indie-publishing. <br />
<br />
In <i>Discovering the Diamond</i>, Helen discusses tips of the trade for new novelists, going self-published, the basics of writing a good novel, and the importance of editing. I have interviewed Helen below.<br />
<br />
<b>So… who is Helen Hollick then and now?</b><br />
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I’ve always thought of myself as ordinary, if a bit of a loner. I like chatting to people (one bonus of being a writer is you get to meet lots of lovely people!) but I am also happy in my own company and quite content when immersed in my own fictional worlds – whether these are the ones I am reading or writing about. I had few friends at school (many years ago!) and found the world of books to be a much kinder place. I wasn’t bullied or anything, but extreme shyness combined with short sight and those awful bottle-bottom glasses eroded my confidence. You do not need to be confident when you are off adventuring with fictional characters though do you?<br />
<br />
Now? Well I live in Devon, England, having moved in January 2013 from the noise, pollution and pressure of a London suburb. The decrease in stress levels and the quieter, slower life is wonderful – as is being able to write without neighbours shouting, radios blasting or sirens blaring. The noisiest things outside my study window are birds, cattle and sheep!<br />
<br />
<b>At what point did you find yourself becoming a writer?</b><br />
<br />
Writers, I thought, were clever people who went to university and had degrees. Ordinary people like myself with minor, low-grade qualifications were not writers.<br />
<br />
I was about thirteen when I started scribbling stories. I am sixty-one now, so a lot of words have been transferred from imagination to paper in the years between. I desperately wanted a pony, we could not afford one so I invented one in the world of fiction. I wrote dozens of stories about Tara, as she was called. (Must have been an unrealised influence from <i>Gone With the Wind</i>.) I was quite shocked when I discovered that living your dreams through writing stories was unuasual. I had assumed that everyone did it<br />
<br />
I moved on from pony stories to fantasy and science fiction, still inventing my own worlds, then I discovered that King Arthur may have been a real person who lived during the fifth or sixth century. I had never much liked the traditional Arthurian tales of knights in armour and courtly deeds – they always seemed so out of place somehow, but the excitement of discovering that he might have been a post-Roman warlord fired my imagination. I delved deeper with research and suddenly the novels I were reading irritated me – they were not how I envisioned Arthur. So I wrote my own novel, which turned out to be the first book in the Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy. The books were picked up by William Heinemann in 1993 (Random House UK) and that was it. I was a published writer.<br />
<br />
<b>You review self-published novels for the Historical Novel Society. How did that come about, and what are your goals there?</b><br />
<br />
I was delighted to discover that the HNS reviewed indie historical fiction; few such societies do as there is still an unfortunate element of disdain about self-published books. But the reviewers were all US based – what about us UK writers? It costs a fortune to mail books to America. Rather than moan I offered to become a UK editor, which set the ball rolling, but as is oftn the way, one thing led to another and I am now overall Managing Editor of Indie Reviews, with a fantastic and enthusiastic review team behind me.<br />
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<br />
The doubts about Indie books can be justified because, sadly, there are a lot of badly written, poorly produced self-published novels out there. But there are also some darn good ones! I wanted to introduce a standard into our HNS Reviews, aiming for the point where if it has been reviewed by the HNS then you know it is a good read. We take into account the standard of writing, of course, but also the quality of production – comic sans font, double- spaced paragraph breaks with text left justified is unacceptable. As are covers with no title on them (yes! I have had two books submitted with no text on the cover: the authors said that as the books sold on-line not in a book store why did they need to print a title? Words fail…!)<br />
<br />
Recently, in 2014 I have also introduced the HNS Indie Award, which is to be an annual award for the best Indie Historical Novel, This is not a competition as such, and there is no entry fee, the books are selected from those submitted to us for review. If one of our reviews becomes an Editor’s Choice then it is automatically long-listed for the award.<br />
<br />
<b>I know most of your work is historical fiction. But I just read your <i>Discovering The Diamond</i>. What motivated you to write a writing book, and who is this book mainly for?</b><br />
<br />
I wrote this in conjunction with my UK editor, Jo Field. Both of us were receiving so many e-mails asking for various bits of writing advice that we decided to produce some common answers on a quick to send attachment. This soon became six pages, then twelve, and then booklet-sized. In the end we thought we might as well publish our useful tips as a modest ‘how to’ book.<br />
<br />
It is written with the intention of assisting novice and new writers to discover their talent and achieve a dream – of writing a good, readable book. Writing well is not just about thinking up a decent plot and getting the punctuation, spelling and grammar right. There is a technical side as well: to ‘show’ not ‘tell’ your story, not have too many point of view changes (often called ‘head-hopping’,) or not to use author’s voice. Although useful for prospective mainstream authors Discovering the Diamond is especially helpful for Indie writers as it also includes advice about layout – the dos and don’ts of self-publishing, many of which I learnt first-hand.<br />
<br />
When I initially went Indie with my Sea Witch Voyages a nautical adventures series, I made many errors that are very common for the new indie writer – going it alone is a sharp learning curve, so I wanted to share my experiences and help other writers avoid the pitfalls.<br />
<br />
<b>Where can Discovering The Diamond be purchased?</b> <br />
I expect it can be ordered from any good bookstore, but it is available from any of the leading on-line stores, such as Amazon, in paperback format or on Kindle, Nook etc.<br />
<br />
<b>What are your historical fiction topics and titles?</b><br />
<br />
<i>The Arthurian Trilogy</i><br />
<i>The Kingmaking</i><br />
<i>Pendragon’s Banner</i><br />
<i>Shadow of the King </i><br />
<br />
The ‘what might have really happened’ story of King Arthur. No knights in armour, no Lancelot or Merlin; just a boy, who became a man, who became a king… who became a legend.<br />
<br />
THE SAXON SERIES<br />
<br />
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<i>The Forever Queen</i> (US title) / <i>A Hollow Crown</i> (UK title)<br />
USA Today Bestseller<br />
The story Of Emma of Normandy, Queen of Anglo Saxon England<br />
<br />
<i>I Am The Chosen King</i> (US Title) / <i>Harold The King</i> (UK Title) <br />
The people and events that led to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 from the English point of view.<br />
<br />
THE SEA WITCH VOYAGES<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6X1trnQOROc-Z4F6ekisfW9qkY8-hOcAtWrG3zegw4Zd_Gi-C-aAzmWerQbqIcOccU43ZzPe48qTBFVSHZHEZ_A-CsskXe-h2mcvepnHmIDgOJbrLnRGh8vPjNr9EXxRu7I88jKOl_r64/s1600/Helen+Calm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6X1trnQOROc-Z4F6ekisfW9qkY8-hOcAtWrG3zegw4Zd_Gi-C-aAzmWerQbqIcOccU43ZzPe48qTBFVSHZHEZ_A-CsskXe-h2mcvepnHmIDgOJbrLnRGh8vPjNr9EXxRu7I88jKOl_r64/s200/Helen+Calm.jpg" /></a></div>
<i>Sea Witch</i><br />
<i>Pirate Code</i><br />
<i>Bring It Close</i><br />
<i>Ripples In The Sand</i><br />
<i>On The Account</i> (coming soon)<br />
Pirate-based adventure series with a touch of fantasy. <br />
I describe Captain Jesamiah Acorne as a blend of Jack Sparrow, Indiana Jones, Hornblower, Jack Aubrey, James Bond and Bernard Cornwell’s Richard Sharpe. <br />
If you liked the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, you will enjoy these sailor’s yarn adventures.<br />
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8) Where can we learn more about your books?<br />
My website: <a href="http://www.helenhollick.net/">www.helenhollick.net</a><br />
My Main Blog: <a href="http://www.ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.com/">www.ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.com</a><br />
My (sort of monthly) Newsletter: <a href="http://www.h2unews.blogspot.co.uk/">www.h2unews.blogspot.co.uk</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/HelenHollickAuthor">www.facebook.com/HelenHollickAuthor</a><br />
Twitter: @HelenHollick<br />
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Thanks Debra – this has been a most enjoyable interview!<br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-45483530458757382882014-06-24T13:57:00.000-07:002014-06-24T13:57:08.981-07:00Why set a story in 17th century Scotland?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">by Anna Belfrage<br />
<br />
If one is going to be financially successful as a writer of historical fiction, one should write about the Tudors. Or about Rome – or medieval England. Maybe even Regency (especially when thinking Romance). Somehow, the 17th century exists in a bubble of obscurity, trapped between the great drama of the 16th century and the bloody upheaval of the 18th. The 17th century has no Marie Antoinette, no Mary Queen of Scots. <br />
<br />
Instead, the 17th century has religious strife a-plenty. It has war, it has pillage. It has the English Civil War, the execution of Charles I, Cromwell’s mass deportation of the Irish. It has Mazarin and Louis XIV, it has the Dutch rebellion against the Spanish, it has a Glorious Revolution, it has men like John Locke and Isaac Newton. Really, not much to write home about, right? <br />
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Reading through that rather impressive list, I can only congratulate myself on my choice of century. After all, there is no shortage of dramatic material. Besides, there is a very personal reason for my fascination with the 17th century, and that’s my husband.<br />
<br />
Let me immediately disillusion you by assuring you my husband is not a time traveller. He is a man very much rooted in the here and now, but on his finger he carries a signet ring, and his family can be traced back to the more remote parts of time. He can claim ancestry from Erik XIV of Sweden (but rarely does, as Erik XIV was not all there, plus 90% of all Swedish noble families share that honour) but he can also claim Stuart ancestry – and all because of the religious upheaval that plagued Scotland in the 17th century.<br />
<br />
Picture Gothenburg in the early 17th century: having brought in Dutch city planners to design his new city – as yet very much under construction – the Swedish king, Gustavus Adolphus, also needed to populate this city of his, preferably with merchants. Sweden at the time mostly traded in raw material. We exported timber, iron ore, wool and oats. We imported everything else – including capable people. On the opposite side of the North Sea lived a nation of savvy merchants, namely the Scots. Being a small and relatively poor country, Scotland produced a number of surplus sons, many of whom crossed the sea to Sweden (or elsewhere – a minority chose Sweden, having as yet not developed latter day’s appreciation for Swedish blondes).<br />
<br />
To this building site, yet another Scot arrived in 1624 – no doubt attracted by the fact that so many Scots were already there. John Belfrage was twelve, and came with his mother, Joneta. As per the records, they were fleeing their homeland due to religious persecution – that was the reason Joneta gave. Given that they chose to go to Sweden, we must assume these refugees were Protestants. Sweden looked askance at Catholics. As John received an education and rose to local prominence, we can deduce that Joneta carried funds of some kind with her. Other than that, we know very little. In what straits did Joneta find herself that her powerful Stuart connections could not help her? And what became of John’s father? <br />
<br />
Anyway; this little glimpse into my husband’s ancestry fascinated me. Where before my preferred historical reading matter tended to be focused on the 11th to 14th century, I began reading extensively about the sixteen hundreds, a period defined not only by religious conflicts but also by the birth of modern science, of modern concepts such as the rights of men. Sadly, at the time those human rights did not include the right to worship as one pleased, but the seeds for future liberties were sown.<br />
<br />
And so <b>The Graham Saga</b> began to take form. My central character very quickly became a Scot, and because I was intrigued by the tales of Covenanters and the brutal persecution they suffered at the hands of the restored Stuart monarchy, this shadow man of mine developed into a former Commonwealth soldier, a man of convictions and a deep personal faith. Just to spice up his life a bit, I decided to endow this man with a woman very different from him. Enter Alexandra Lind, a modern day woman who had the misfortune (or not) to fall through time and land at Matthew’s feet. The rest, as they say, is history. <br />
<br />
On July 1, the sixth instalment of the series, <i><b>Revenge and Retribution</b></i>, will be published. I am of course inordinately proud of this particular book, a heady mix of adventure, emotional drama and despair. But it all began in <b><i>A Rip in the Veil</i></b>, when Alex Lind first clapped her concussed eyes on Matthew Graham. Below an excerpt from that first book – I hope you enjoy it!<br />
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<br />
<i>Alex rested back against the cave wall and concentrated on breathing without hurting herself. She studied him from under her lashes, irritated to find he’d gone back to gawking at her. What was the matter with him? Had he never seen a woman in jeans before? She looked closely at him. Tall, broad in shoulders and chest, but thin and with an underlying pallor to his skin – as if he’d been ill, just recently allowed out of bed. His hair was cut unbecomingly short except at the back where some longer strands still hung on, his cheeks were covered by a dark, unkempt bristle, like the one Magnus, her father, would sport at the end of his summer holidays – so far nothing alarming. His shirt though… Worn linen that laced up the front, mended cuffs – all of it hand stitched. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>Maybe his girlfriend had made it for him, or maybe New Age people believed in doing everything from scratch, in which case they needed a serious fashion update. She moved, scraped her foot against the rocky ground, and winced. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Is it alright if I touch you?” he said. “It might ease somewhat if I wash the blood off.” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Sure, go ahead, touch all you want.” Well, within limits of course. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>He looked at her with a hesitant expression. “All I want?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>She made a huge effort to look him straight in the eyes, despite the fact that she could see two – no, three – of him.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Help me, I’m not feeling too good.” She turned her head to the side and retched, but this time it was just slimy yellow bile that burnt her throat as she heaved. “Damn,” she said afterwards, keeping her eyes closed to stop the whole world from spinning. “I must have hit my head really hard.”</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>He spent quite some time on her forehead, close enough that she could smell him, drawing in the scent of sweat and unwashed male. She wrinkled her nose. Phew! How about some soap?</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“What?” he said. “Did I hurt you?”</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“No, I’m fine.” She wasn’t; her brain was banging against her skull, the broken skin on her forehead itched, her ribs were using her lungs as a pincushion and her foot... no, best not think about her foot, because it looked absolutely awful, blisters like a fetter round her ankle and all the way down to her toes. She flexed them experimentally. It hurt like hell. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>He poured some more water onto the rag he was using and wiped her face. She liked that, opening her eyes to smile her thanks at him. He smiled back, teeth flashing a surprising white in the darkness of his beard. He sat back on his haunches, a worried expression on his face. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“What?” Did she need stitches? Because she really, really hated needles.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Your ribs, I have to do something about them.” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Like what?”</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Bandage them, so that you don’t shift them too much.” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“You’ve done this before?”</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“It happens, aye.”</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Oh, so you’re a doctor?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“A doctor?” He laughed. “Nay, lass, I am no doctor. But setting ribs is no great matter, is it?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“It is when they’re mine.” She shifted on her bottom. “It won’t hurt, will it?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“No, but I will have to ... err ... well, I must ... the shirt, aye?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“The shirt?” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Well, you have to take it off.” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“Oh.” Where did this man come from? “That’s alright; you won’t be the first to see me in the flesh.” He looked so shocked she laughed, but the pain that flew up her side made her gasp instead. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>He pulled his bundle close and rummaged in it, muttering something about having to find something to bandage her ribs with. Finally he extracted what looked like a rag and proceeded to tear it into strips.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>He was very careful as he helped her out of her jacket and her shirt, and at the sight of her bra his eyes widened, but he didn’t say anything. She sat up so that he could wrap the torn lengths of cloth around her. His exhalations tickled her skin, and she took short breaths, staring straight ahead as his big, capable hands worked their way around her torso, a gentle touch that sent surprising and quite unwelcome tingles of warmth through her body. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>She was aware of his eyes on her skin, on her neck, but mostly on her breasts, quick glances that returned time and time again to the lacy red bra edged with cream that cupped her breasts and lifted them high. She sat up straighter, shoulders pulled back. She peeked at him, met his eyes and looked away. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“What’s this?” He put a finger on the satin strap. Impossible; men that hadn’t seen a bra didn’t exist – not where she came from.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“It’s a bra.” </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“A bra,” he echoed, tracing it round her middle. She jerked back, making both of them gasp. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>“My apologies.” He raised his hands in a conciliatory gesture. “I shouldn’t … But there, now it’s done.” He gave her the shirt and averted his eyes as she struggled to put it back on.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i> <i>Alex closed her eyes, trying to come up with a label to pin on this strange man. Isolated goat farmer? Recluse? Maybe he was an old-fashioned – extremely old-fashioned – Quaker, or maybe the Amish had set up a little colony up here in the Scottish wilderness.</i><br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ <br />
<br />
All of Anna’s books are available on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_11?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the%20graham%20saga%20by%20anna%20belfrage&sprefix=the+graham+%2Caps%2C328" target="_blank">Amazon US</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the%20graham%20saga%20by%20anna%20belfrage&sprefix=The+Graham+S%2Caps%2C210" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
For more information about Anna Belfrage and her books, visit <a href="http://www.annabelfrage.com/" target="_blank">her website</a>!<br />
For a somewhat more visual presentation of The Graham Saga, why not watch <a href="http://youtu.be/Uwhe0Fx6kq8" target="_blank">the book trailer</a>?<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugcaGF1bTYrIm4xg4VgeklDtKhpuWNSj8znTdGQOsINJ0KpuGxcKoqknTFnVOOpB-RWMjgCh78vlrnHKYr5pNJgxypS-qlbbY_Pl865YtdX7OhHg9aqC4W8mmHvb1UiM-3tuN7l0dC59l/s1600/Anna+Revenge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugcaGF1bTYrIm4xg4VgeklDtKhpuWNSj8znTdGQOsINJ0KpuGxcKoqknTFnVOOpB-RWMjgCh78vlrnHKYr5pNJgxypS-qlbbY_Pl865YtdX7OhHg9aqC4W8mmHvb1UiM-3tuN7l0dC59l/s1600/Anna+Revenge.jpg" height="320" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhge_NcsSk7F2Qs4BMa73rtWOf461DUM9KmioXBIz5xSdWHDZpF6CxSmGSch0336_qVsoR6iElCOHmbXM0WdSEKulDUKjm6fQOLdABd2hfnPr6vmVtPMrAYcaYMPOG-Q0P8pLr9Hfxt7fey/s1600/Anna+Veil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhge_NcsSk7F2Qs4BMa73rtWOf461DUM9KmioXBIz5xSdWHDZpF6CxSmGSch0336_qVsoR6iElCOHmbXM0WdSEKulDUKjm6fQOLdABd2hfnPr6vmVtPMrAYcaYMPOG-Q0P8pLr9Hfxt7fey/s1600/Anna+Veil.jpg" /></a><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-54923864911817798652014-06-20T23:33:00.000-07:002014-06-20T23:33:01.852-07:00New Release: The Hall of Tyr by Octavia Randolph<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br style="font-family: 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" /><span style="font-family: 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 20px;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hall-Tyr-Book-Circle-Ceridwen-ebook/dp/B00L4OF04W/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1403229679&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Hall+of+Tyr" style=" target="_blank"><i>The Hall of Tyr, Book Four of The Circle of Ceridwen Saga</i></a>, has just been released.</span><br style="font-family: 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" /><br style="font-family: 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 13.333333969116211px;" /><span style="font-family: 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTSYsP44NG0Zm46IDBA4UsbfraBA2uGXjvdVBaLyEVepkhO5N7bU0ye0aoq84i6oS-sg7hUiF9gIuHgYFe1tp3ltmNs-09km6eHHorbO16AQdkn-eIXmRBlSejuJLBs7ictxo9WCOp_a4t/s1600/Octavia+Tyr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTSYsP44NG0Zm46IDBA4UsbfraBA2uGXjvdVBaLyEVepkhO5N7bU0ye0aoq84i6oS-sg7hUiF9gIuHgYFe1tp3ltmNs-09km6eHHorbO16AQdkn-eIXmRBlSejuJLBs7ictxo9WCOp_a4t/s320/Octavia+Tyr.jpg" /></a><i>The Hall of Tyr: </i>It is a new day. Dawn finds Ceridwen and Sidroc beginning their lives together on the Baltic Sea island of Gotland. It is a place of peace and beauty. But someone is searching for them...<br />
<br />
To celebrate <i>The Hall of Tyr</i>, all the books have new covers. <a href="http://www.octavia.net/" style=target="_blank">See them here</a>.<br />
<br />
<b>Thank you for placing </b><b><i>The Circle of Ceridwen</i></b><b> in Amazon.com's Top Ten in Women's Adventure</b><b> for five months running!</b></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-64689265756360093702014-06-17T15:25:00.001-07:002014-06-17T15:25:43.114-07:00Game of 7s<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="font-size: large;">I was tagged by Paula Lofting (see <a href="http://paulalofting-sonsofthewolf.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/game-of-sevens.html" target="_blank">her Game of 7s here</a>) to post 7 or so lines from page 77 starting at line 7. Since I start a new chapter just a few lines into that, I will just start in the new chapter.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sc9ZfmkrdRjitZQlnI2omll8sUX9V9rBTaor7nbTdR8YPSdcA3Cmr094mgPbPv_a1XTAYa4g1vs5hRYfvJSsScOSIXeeZH4SsYXrgHjG7bqySEqV6Z8pYSiCrKtCsUnRJvBF6uT3PVOO/s1600/Robertson_PortretOrlovoiDavidovoi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sc9ZfmkrdRjitZQlnI2omll8sUX9V9rBTaor7nbTdR8YPSdcA3Cmr094mgPbPv_a1XTAYa4g1vs5hRYfvJSsScOSIXeeZH4SsYXrgHjG7bqySEqV6Z8pYSiCrKtCsUnRJvBF6uT3PVOO/s320/Robertson_PortretOrlovoiDavidovoi.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">"Do we have lamb tonight, Smills?" Mama said.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">"We do, my lady. Shall I uncover that first?" he replied, frowning at Angel.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">Angel turned her face from the everlasting glower of the man.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">"Yes, that will be fine." The silver dome clanged as Smills lifted it from the plate, and Mama served herself. She did not look up, but asked for anyone's ears, "Has one of you broken Rules?"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">Angel looked distraught. Dante straightened his back, looking more of a man, hoping to strengthen her. Nothing was wrong, and it was time to stand up for himself.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">But Angel hastened to speak. “We intend to follow Rules, do we not, Dante? Do not be concerned, Mama.” She gave her brother a firm look.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 32px; margin-right: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: large; line-height: 37.33333206176758px;">I tag <a href="http://www.mmbennetts.com/" target="_blank">M.M. Bennetts</a>, <a href="http://www.patriciabracewell.com/blog/" target="_blank">Patricia Bracewell</a>, <a href="http://www.bgdenvil.com/" target="_blank">Barbara Gaskell Denvil</a>, <a href="http://www.maggiandersen.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Maggi Andersen</a>, <a href="http://www.lindacollison.com/blog/" target="_blank">Linda Collison</a>, <a href="http://www.empowell.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">EM Powell</a>, and <u><a href="http://juditharnoppnovelist.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Judith Arnopp</a>.</u> </span></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-5809544417872039642014-06-11T07:55:00.001-07:002014-06-11T07:57:08.259-07:00The Bitter Trade Book Launch Invitation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieTOTkIVgK1h-ujtA0MOKF5FGnwNufH7dHH8wnudVyC0Xrgk5ZTKmRURHslHrFFojHMi9wY0jm65xTu3o6N4ui0Ejyy2Q_0_zTqAGHwGRp1jdAkJ_NNLa0pYMqdSICguVkJ8fNPo0f6_Tf/s1600/Piers+Bitter+Trade+Launch+Invitation.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieTOTkIVgK1h-ujtA0MOKF5FGnwNufH7dHH8wnudVyC0Xrgk5ZTKmRURHslHrFFojHMi9wY0jm65xTu3o6N4ui0Ejyy2Q_0_zTqAGHwGRp1jdAkJ_NNLa0pYMqdSICguVkJ8fNPo0f6_Tf/s640/Piers+Bitter+Trade+Launch+Invitation.jpeg" /></a></div><br />
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-56512769415601580202014-06-01T00:00:00.000-07:002014-06-03T02:08:29.563-07:00Meet My (Other) Main Character: Dante<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">This fun blog hop started some time ago with <a href="http://englishepochs.blogspot.com/2014/04/meet-my-main-character-by-debra-brown.html" target="_blank">my post about poor Evangeline</a>, a co-protagonist in the Dante and Evangeline Series. I have been tagged now to write about her twin brother, Dante.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFoovttpaoY3idWhBDuc18-i1wKqRrh9sd-Yx_kpg1WUYtJorctAheBtIAevDB3Nu4yX2Svphwxe_YhsAj2M6YiRI6lT-IJtFtTrMU9IqeMZT3CjtGukvI7vbaOxAdBqvSjMCbj1qzbkP/s1600/Liz+Silk+Weaver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFoovttpaoY3idWhBDuc18-i1wKqRrh9sd-Yx_kpg1WUYtJorctAheBtIAevDB3Nu4yX2Svphwxe_YhsAj2M6YiRI6lT-IJtFtTrMU9IqeMZT3CjtGukvI7vbaOxAdBqvSjMCbj1qzbkP/s200/Liz+Silk+Weaver.jpg" /></a></div>Thanks to Liz Kales, author of <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Silk-Weavers-Daughter-Elizabeth-Kales-ebook/dp/B0071NP3LU/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1401137142&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=the+sil+weaver%27s+daughter" target="_blank">The Silk Weaver's Daughter</a></i> and her work-in-progress to be named either <i>Night of the Gypsies</i> or <i>The Summer Gypsies</i>, for the tag. You can read about her character and his intriguing dilemma <a href="http://albetkales.blogspot.ca/2014/05/meet-my-main-character-blog-hop.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br />
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<b>1) What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person?</b><br />
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Dante. He is fictional.<br />
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<b>2) When and where is the story set?</b><br />
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The story takes place in the year of Queen Victoria's coronation on the fictional estate Cantery Hill with its strange manor house which was put together in a helter-skelter arrangement over the centuries. <br />
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<b>3) What should we know about him/her?</b><br />
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Dante and his twin sister Evangeline were raised by their reclusive mother on the estate. Not having been allowed to talk to other people and neglected by their Mama emotionally, Dante and Evangeline have a very tight bond. Together they make plans for the future of Cantery Hill House and the estate.<br />
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<b>4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?</b><br />
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As the years passed, tutors have planted the seed of curiosity in Dante's mind about the world outside the locked gates, a world the twins have been forbidden to see. Evangeline is content with life as it has been and fears any change, certain their reclusive mother's warnings that disaster would result from "breaking the Rules". As Dante's growing interest in outside places begins to raise problems in their relationship, Dante meets and falls in love with one of the kitchen maids, Molly. His concerns about his sister spiral as Evangeline develops a panic disorder, feeling she has lost him to the maid. The Rules become desperately important to her, and she tries to restrain Dante from pursuing a normal life. He now has to juggle an impossible state of affairs, wanting to marry the maid, overcome his sister's pathological thinking, and appease his mother as he makes changes which are against her Rules. Mama and her solicitor will not yield control of the house or money to Dante. As if this is not enough, the woman he loves tells him that a lord cannot marry a maid and keeps pulling away... He is yet to learn what is behind the strange bent of their life, and when he does it turns his world upside down.<br />
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<b>5) What is the personal goal of the character?</b><br />
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I'm afraid I can't tell that without giving away too much of the story because... something big happens. Sorry!<br />
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<b>6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?</b><br />
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The title is <i>For the Skylark</i>. You can read the first section <a href="http://authordebrabrown.blogspot.com/p/for-skylark.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br />
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<b>7) When can we expect the book to be published?</b><br />
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I am hoping it will be out by the end of this year.<br />
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I am tagging these authors to write about their main characters in one week.<br />
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<b>Scott Amis</b> is the author of <i>To Shine With Honor</i> and will post on his <a href="https://www.facebook.com/joseph.scott.amis?ref=br_rs" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>.<br />
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<b>David Cook</b> is the author of <i>Liberty or Death</i> and will post on his <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8180726.David_Cook?from_search=true" target="_blank">Goodreads</a> blog.<br />
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<b>Tom Williams </b>is the author of <i>Cawnpore, The White Rajah, </i>and <i>His Majesty's Confidential Agent. </i>He blogs at<i> </i><a href="http://thewhiterajah.blogspot.co.uk/"><span style="font-family: inherit;">http://thewhiterajah.blogspot.<wbr></wbr>co.uk/</span></a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-45207618451773662712014-05-14T09:30:00.001-07:002014-05-14T09:30:11.852-07:00 The Intractable Heart of Katherine Parr<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Katherine Parr, Henry’s last queen, was a scholar and a reformer, publishing books and entering the male world of theological debate, just as Anne Boleyn had before her. This won the queen enemies, the conservative faction resenting her influence over the ageing and increasingly disabled king. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Just as with several of her predecessors, moves were made to bring her down and the task promised not to be difficult. It is possible that Katherine was just too clever for the king’s liking, perhaps she bested him with her arguments, perhaps she reminded him just a little too much of Anne Boleyn. Whatever the reason, after several years of marriage, Henry came to resent her unfeminine attitude, providing her enemies with the opportunity they needed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When Henry complained, in Gardiner’s presence, of the nature of the queen’s conversation Gardiner lost no time in convincing the king to agree to a coup against her. Her women and her books were to be seized and the queen arrested and sent to the Tower.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Luckily for Katherine, one of Henry’s physicians got wind of the plan and tipped her off. Katherine went straight to the king but had the sense not to remonstrate with him outright. Instead, when the subject turned to religion, she pretended ignorance, preferring to <i>‘defer my judgement in this, and all other cases, to our Majesty’s wisdom, as my only anchor Supreme Head and Governor here in earth, next under God.’ </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When he looked doubtful as to her honesty, she went on to claim that she had only ever disputed with Henry to take his mind from his pain, and to try to learn from his own great wisdom.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">His ego salved and his faith in women restored, Henry and Katherine kissed and made up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It must have been a triumphant moment for Katherine when Wriothesley arrived the next day to arrest her. The king and queen were walking in the garden, and Henry furiously berated him, calling him a knave and a beast. Wriothesley fled the royal presence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">On this occasion Henry’s wife managed to escape the ultimate penalty for displeasing the king but as Henry’s health began to deteriorate further the couple spent more and more time apart. Henry spent his last Christmas in London, while Katherine was at Greenwich. He died in January 1547, leaving Katherine free to marry again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Below is an excerpt from <b><i>Intractable Heart</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">It is the summer of 1546 in the royal palace garden:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Much later we are seated in the shelter of the laurels, watching Rig pestering Homer who is trying to sleep in the sun. Rig has no desire to lie down; he darts around, every so often rushing back to his friend to snatch at his long ears. “Look Henry,” I say, drawing his attention to their antics. “Rig is such a pest.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Henry chuckles and squeezes my knee and I try to savour the moment. At least I can feel a little secure again, and sure of his affection.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The sun is deceptive and a lively wind ripples the surface of the fountain bringing with it the scent of roses and honeysuckle. Anne and Lady Tyrwhit are laughing at some joke, their heads close together, and their brightly coloured kirtles merging. Courtiers stroll together; some are lovers, some are friends, some are probably conspiring against their foe. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">My hand is clasped in Henry’s and after a while it grows hot and clammy. I long to remove it, wipe my palm on my gown but I tolerate it. I remind myself that I am lucky to be here, back in his favour. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">After his efforts last night he once more holds hopes of a son, but I am less convinced of success. I try to turn my mind from the indelicate procedure required to stir the king to perform the required act. I try to just be grateful for my freedom. I may have drawn further away from the heretical fires but recent close proximity to them has made sleeping with Henry seem not so great a penance after all.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Henry is telling me a story about a day in his youth when he jousted incognito and astounded everyone with his prowess. I smile at the picture his words evoke. Had I known him when he was in his prime I might have loved him in earnest, but the days he is talking of were before I was even born. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Henry ceases suddenly, cocks his ear, alerting me to the sound of tramping feet approaching along the gravel path. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When Wriothesley and a company of the guard emerge from an archway cut into the yew hedge I give a little scream. My security has fled. I leap to my feet, darting behind Henry’s back as if he will jump up and lay about him with a sword in my defence. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“What the devil …?” Henry lumbers to his feet, stands wavering, leaning heavily on his stick. “What is the meaning of this?” <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“I have a warrant for the queen’s arrest.” Wriothesley booms. “And have come to take her for questioning.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Henry wavers. I increase my grip. He could change his mind. He could hand me over: discover the truth. My hand slides up the back of his doublet and comes to rest on his shoulder. To my great relief, after a few heartbeats Henry covers my hand with his.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Get from my sight, Wriothesley. What are you about, you Knave! You are a beast and a fool!” He makes to cuff the chancellor around the head, but the man ducks away, backs off. <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The rumpus has drawn the attention of the courtiers and one my ladies titters behind her hand. At the sound of her amusement the party relaxes, one of the gentlemen guffaws and soon they are all laughing. Henry and I remain unsmiling as a scarlet faced Wriothesley recovers his hat from the path, bows low before the king, and makes humble apology.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> I hold my breath as he flees the scene and when he has gone, release it slowly. My women cluster about us, exclaiming and laughing in relief while my heart resumes its normal process. Gratefully, I squeeze my husband’s hand and he draws me close to his shoulder, kisses the top of my head. But despite the hilarity of our courtiers the day is spoiled, the sun suddenly not so warm. I suppress a shudder.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Come along, my love,” says the king. “Accompany me back to the palace.”<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">©juditharnopp2014<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">To read more of <i>Intractable Heart</i> </span><span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Intractable-Heart-story-Katheryn-Parr-ebook/dp/B00KBS4L6U/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1400076013&sr=1-1&keywords=intractable+heart"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">click here</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> if you are in the US<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intractable-Heart-story-Katheryn-Parr-ebook/dp/B00KBS4L6U/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1400074860&sr=8-15&keywords=judith+arnopp"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">And here</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> if you are in the UK<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Judith Arnopp is the author of historical fiction. Her books include:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><i>The Winchester Goose: at the court of Henry VIII<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB"><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACatherine_Parr%2C_attributed_to_Master_John.jpg"><span style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACatherine_Parr%2C_attributed_to_Master_John.jpg</span></a></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-74356404544432184612014-04-14T00:10:00.000-07:002014-04-14T09:44:52.898-07:00Meet My Main Character, by Marilyn Watson <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I am delighted to have been tagged in a series called, “Meet My Main Character.” It is the brain child of my host Debra Brown who is the Administrator of English Historical Fiction Authors and our Host. Although I have written Blog pieces before, I stuck to historical figures or vainglorious deeds. There is no end to them thank heavens, for those of us that love history and never tire of it. Research has me following it down each rabbit hole. This works out very nicely for Historical Fiction. It’s important to include rich details of actual events. <br />
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You can read my excerpt here which I have been working on like mad. It’s very different from the mysteries I write set in the 1930's and still in its early stages, so this is just a taste of things to come.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2L7MNPxtj5pEX0KnN-T5rMBPTM1Vzj4Cq3D9hdVVqOulVT4FUM037LF_kRZWG8UcUvNG4GDmW6vteB_c8tndEy6SE7claygCCmBfniL0aVk7ulQMD79l9qm6hmTAIJaLGeS84_3b_k4Vl/s1600/1mari.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2L7MNPxtj5pEX0KnN-T5rMBPTM1Vzj4Cq3D9hdVVqOulVT4FUM037LF_kRZWG8UcUvNG4GDmW6vteB_c8tndEy6SE7claygCCmBfniL0aVk7ulQMD79l9qm6hmTAIJaLGeS84_3b_k4Vl/s320/1mari.jpg" /></a></div>
This is set in the Court of Louis XIV with all its twists and turns. There was so much to choose from in the wealth of material I could have read for years. I chose to start with the Memoirs of Madame de Montespan as she had so many little tidbits to share. I found her utterly fascinating...charming and ruthless. I had to tuck her into my Fiction. She is one of my inspirations, so I include her Portrait. How could it be otherwise?<br />
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<b>1) What is the name of your character? Is she fictional or a historic person?</b><br />
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My main Character is fictional although set in actual events. Louise de Mortemart is a very distant Cousin of Madame de Montespan, favorite Mistress of Louis XIV at this time. The Marquise and the Court of Versailles are very real.<br />
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<b>2) When and where is the story set?</b><br />
<br />
The Story is primarily set around Versailles during the year 1680. But the beginning opens in 1677 with a series of murders directly in Paris. <br />
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<b>3) What should we know about her?</b><br />
<br />
Louise is a distant Cousin of the illustrious branch of the de Rochechouart de Mortemart family and a very poor one at that. Due to misfortune with no hopes of a well-connected Marriage she is sent to amend that by ingratiating herself to the King. As a distant relative she hopes to please Athénaïs, Marquis de Montespan during her stay. She may be enticed to introduce her to the King who would take an interest in her and give her a dowry. It had been known to happen. <br />
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<b>4) What is the main conflict? What messes up her life?</b><br />
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She is asked to perform a task that on the surface appears simple. Go to a certain Lady and pick up a love potion... that is all the rage in Paris at the time. She is unaware that the dealer of herbs and love potions is also performing little favors that include poison. “Not until she arrives at the home of Madame, that is, and then it becomes apparent there are some horrible things going on.”<br />
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<b>5) What is the personal goal of the character?</b><br />
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In the beginning Louise hopes to repair the poverty of her family. However once she is caught at the home of a poisoner, picking up a love potion, she is then hunted by his Agent. She desperately tries not to get caught up in the web of events. <br />
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<b>6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?</b><br />
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<i>Poison is a Woman’s Game</i>, and you can read more <a href="http://englishepochs.blogspot.com/2014/04/excerpt-from-poison-is-womans-game-by.html">here</a>.<br />
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<b>7) When can we expect the book to be published?</b><br />
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Tentatively, at the end of the year. I am writing furiously.<br />
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Thank you for visiting with me. I would like to tag three Authors who will publish their posts on April 17th.<br />
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<a href="http://www.drakaenwood.com/" target="_blank">Denise Wilson Falvo</a><br />
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<a href="http://francinehowarth.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Francine Howarth</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.ellaquinnauthor.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Ella Quinn</a><br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-21915518141266582882014-04-14T00:00:00.000-07:002014-04-14T00:00:09.350-07:00Excerpt from Poison is a Woman's Game by Marilyn Watson<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">1677<br />
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Darkness had come early to the underbelly of Paris. A small street leading off the Rue Thevenol to a spot known as the Cour des Miracles hid a wretched corner of Paris. In its seamy misery were beggars, thieves and prostitutes. The wretched hovels that surrounded the Rue St. Denis and the Court housed these families that bred and lived like infestations on Paris. In doorways there were shadowy figures as women finished their transactions clutching a few coins in their hands. A quick fumble in the dark, a swish of their petticoat as they finished with each Man, moving on looking for the next Customer.<br />
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One with a large belly staggered down the Street grunting as she looked for a place to rest. Her face was young and lined with pain. Unable to perform, she had not eaten all day. In a dark doorway, the gaudy figure of a Woman pointed at her stomach screeching, “Amalie you’ll never work with a brat; you’re a fool,” spitting in disdain at her feet.<br />
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“Pute” snarled the girl. Her tone ferocious as the other Woman rose menacingly to her feet. She walked quickly, not stopping, for dusk was beginning to fall; the mist coming off the pavement gave an eerie glow to her surroundings. <br />
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She had no time for a fight. The strong need to rest kept her agitated, looking for a cool place to sit and relieve the pain. <br />
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Out of the shadows, a form glided up to her. “Here, you need help; come with me.” He placed a hand on her shivering shoulders. <br />
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She looked up at him with tired eyes. “Why would you help me, Father? I am a harlot.”<br />
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“Do not speak of yourself that way, Child. I help all those who have sinned; it’s God’s will. It was through no choice of your own. You needed to eat. The coins kept your belly filled. Come with me.” His voice was kind, and she so badly needed it at this moment.<br />
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She muttered under her breath, “Oh God,”… but pain was driving her to find shelter. “The Babe,” he grasped her hard by the elbow, “is it to be born soon?”<br />
<br />
“Soon, yes,” she gasped as a moan escaped her. “I need to find a place…somewhere.” She looked around. The Streets were grimy and wet; urine and rotten sewage reeked from the corners.<br />
<br />
“Not here.” He led her down an evil smelling back lane, “I know someone that will help you,” he muttered, “it’s close.” His arm urged her down the rough cobblestone lane. <br />
<br />
“Who would help the likes of me?” her voice broke. She bit her lip as her eyes watered.<br />
<br />
“A midwife.” He whispered in her ear, “Someone who can deliver. Come.” His voice was urgent. He led her bulky form by the arm, keeping in the inky darkness down one street and another till they came to a small house. Entering from the back without knocking, he dragged her quickly through a door. <br />
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“Quick,” he said to a woman neatly dressed in black, “she is in labor.” He motioned to her belly, “Soon to bear a Child.” He nodded his head to her, “Old mother, can you help?”<br />
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The Woman grinned at him nodding her head. Showing no surprise, she led them to a back room that smelled of herbs and something stronger. <br />
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The sense of excitement from him transmitted to the Woman. “She’ll come out of this strong. It’ll be a healthy baby for her,” winking at him. “A lively one, “she muttered to herself.<br />
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Sweating and grunting, her face moist with pain, it seemed hours to Amalie before the Child came. He came with a rush, his pink face screaming in a wide- open, gusty wail.<br />
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“Here,” the young Woman, who had been selling her body just a day before. “Let me suckle him. It will quiet him. ”She reached her arms for him her face still flushed.<br />
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“You want to hold him? No, you need to give him up.” the midwife cackled. “He can’t be following you around while every man pays for his pleasure. You need money. I can get you gold coins for him. Take the money and buy bread.” She turned looking at her intensely, “it’s no life for a babe.”<br />
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The forlorn, beaten girl, old before her time, thought it over and slowly nodded. “But you will keep him safe. I don’t want him to live on the streets like I do.” Her face pleaded. Looking at the baby, “Is he healthy?”<br />
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“You are young.” The Midwife wiped her hands on her black dress. “A lusty boy—he might have a place here.” She grinned at the Priest, “I’ll take care of it.” Studying the girl’s face, “You need to drink something,” bending over a vial. “This will help the pain.” She handed her a glass filled with a bitter demi-vin wine. “I make it myself, “the little Lady nodded, “It’ll make you feel better.”<br />
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“It’s bitter,” the girl swallowed more. ” But if it’ll help the pain.” She drank letting the last drop run down her mouth in haste. Wiping it with the back of her hand, she grimaced.<br />
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“Rest a bit; then you can leave,” pointing to the girl. Picking up the baby, she scooped up an old cloth and put him in it. She pointed, “Here put it in this,” to the Priest, and they left the room.<br />
<br />
Outside the door he murmured, “I told you I’d get you one.”<br />
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Lying there, Amalie felt a prick of unease. She decided to follow them. Something was wrong. The looks were not seemly between a Priest and the likes of her. She raised herself painfully to her feet. Holding onto the edge of a table she felt her head spin. She was dizzy from the loss of blood. Her hands were soiled but strong as she steadied herself. This was her first birth. She had been careful to use vinegar to prevent any births except this time. Pain shot through her legs slowing her down. She forced herself to move, dragging one foot after the other. Passing a dirty baby blanket, she snatched it up, smelling another baby recently here. It still held the sour smell of urine and something else.<br />
<br />
Down the hallway, the two whisperings gave her chills. They weren’t coming back with the coins to buy bread. It was more likely they planned to cut her throat.<br />
<br />
She staggered down the hallway holding onto the wall. Through the open door she saw her baby. He lay in an open room with no blanket or covering. She walked toward him and reached for him, cuddling his warm little body while she held the blanket twisted in her hand.<br />
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The edges of the room shadowed to black. Someone was coming. Amalie trembled as she put the sleeping baby back on the table. Breathing became difficult as though her neck was being squeezed tightly. She staggered to the door, wiping away her sweat to see, finally grasping the doorknob. Escape was at hand—she felt the knob turn under her fingers and a rush of cold air on her face. The stomach spasms were worse as she bent over vomiting, finally falling on the ground in convulsions. The coins. What use were they?<br />
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“Not far here, look out the back for her…no, wait you fool. People are coming, I must go greet them. You go and make the Altar presentable. What difference does it make to the child now?”<br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-83427441691041572582014-04-09T00:00:00.000-07:002014-04-09T07:05:47.823-07:00Meet My Main Character by John Campbell<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>John is a good friend of mine whose first two books won the The Harper Collins/Authonomy Gold Medal. He answers questions about the MC of the second book of his series below.</i><br />
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<b>1) What is the name of my main character? Is he real or fictitious?</b> <br />
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Malcolm Roberts is a fictitious thirteen-year-old who comes to interact with Winston Churchill in the 1920s. That encounter is of some minor importance compared to the issues and mysteries he must solve in the story. <br />
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<b>2) When and where is the story set?</b><br />
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A Lark Ascending is part of my 1914 collection, the second novel. It begins in the fall of 1921 and runs through February 1922, a short time span compared to the first of the collection, which is a saga. The purpose of the collection is to dramatize the impact of the Great War.<br />
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Lark is set in London’s East End. <br />
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<b>3) What should we know about him?</b><br />
<br />
Malcolm is driven to rein in his father’s attention, and this leads to his daring and eventual sleuthing. Malcolm’s father is suffering, and distracted by, the type of Shell Shock that involves night terrors. The condition worsens and threatens Malcolm’s safety. This forces Malcolm to move in with an eccentric aunt while his father gets treatment in an asylum (Malcolm’s mother died of the Spanish Flu). <br />
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<b>4) What is his main conflict? What messes up his life?</b> <br />
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Driven as he is, he comes upon two mysteries that he needs to solve. The first involves a plot that could upset Britain’s international relations during the vulnerable time when countries and ideologies are yet reeling after the war. Malcolm has strong reasons for not trusting the authorities, but he does befriend a newspaperman to better investigate the matter. The second mystery compels Malcolm to find the murderer(s) of one of his mentors. <br />
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Girls mess him up. The Malcolm Roberts series will follow his rites of passage. In this first novel, a lovely but acerbic Serbian girl becomes his love interest and then his nemesis, yet he needs her to solve the mysteries.<br />
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<b>5) What is Malcolm’s personal goal?</b><br />
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In addition to craving his father’s attention, the void in Malcolm’s heart is even larger than that. He is a lonely character. He aims to fill that void.<br />
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Despite his loneliness, he has two sidekick friends: Sid Shapiro and a street urchin from Limehouse named Jun. Sid’s family attend the Poltava Synagogue, a place with connections to one of the mysteries. We do not learn of Jun’s family or heritage, other than he is partly Chinese. Jun supports himself by cleaning an opium den and a fashionable Chinese restaurant, in addition to running errands for pay. Both boys help Malcolm with the mysteries. <br />
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<b>6) What is the book's title?</b><br />
<br />
My 1914 collection consists of the following:<br />
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-<i>Walk to Paradise Garden</i> (released in 2012)<br />
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-<i>A Lark Ascending</i><br />
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-<i>In These Distracting Times</i><br />
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-<i>Beneath a Winter Garden</i><br />
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-<i>Nimrod’s End</i> <br />
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Although <i>Walk to Paradise Garden</i> is not part of the Malcolm Roberts series, it contributes to the arc of the collection and does have links (such as shared characters) with the other books. <br />
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<b>7) When will the book be released?</b><br />
<br />
Here is the link for <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Walk-to-Paradise-Garden-ebook/dp/B007BGZN30/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1361504923&sr=8-2&keywords=walk+to+paradise+garden" target="_blank">Walk to Paradise Garden</a>.<br />
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A Lark Ascending should be ready for release by July 2014.<br />
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I have an excerpt of Lark on my blog, which I resurrected for the honor of being featured here. Thank you.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://nigelfields.wordpress.com/">http://nigelfields.wordpress.com/</a><br />
<br />
Watch for posts on the 12th by:<br />
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1) <a href="http://suemillard.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Sue Millard</a><br />
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2) Diana Birchall<br />
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<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-44121579724058382152014-04-07T12:29:00.000-07:002014-04-07T12:29:37.220-07:00Spring into Books Giveaway Hop April 7- 14<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Ze4IF6DzhbWG6bt0kY9mLl1a_NvpbJV4Sr4rL7qmFudLCBuRmZJN5G4p-lrYqQu6FvJV-8DrSSoBkOrQ72cVhXgNTQFan-zg-95XHIbFuOfEKzbauF5w6Qj5mnm3QIQhKPgMDIMnYt3b/s1600/Companion+of+Lady+Holmeshire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Ze4IF6DzhbWG6bt0kY9mLl1a_NvpbJV4Sr4rL7qmFudLCBuRmZJN5G4p-lrYqQu6FvJV-8DrSSoBkOrQ72cVhXgNTQFan-zg-95XHIbFuOfEKzbauF5w6Qj5mnm3QIQhKPgMDIMnYt3b/s320/Companion+of+Lady+Holmeshire.jpg" /></a><br />
The Companion of Lady Holmeshire<br />
by Debra Brown<br />
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Lowly servant Emma Carrington becomes the companion to the widowed Countess of Holmeshire. Emma has eyes for the widow's son, but it is hopeless; besides the class difference, the young Earl of Holmeshire has long been engaged to a London lady. It seems Emma exists for the amusement of polite society where she receives a rude reception. Travel with the Holmeshires from a castle near the Scottish border to a small English village and then into London for the season as puzzling events and mysterious strangers lead to a surprise ending. <br />
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"This is an elegant novel. I was quickly absorbed into it, finishing it over the course of a weekend. The characters are well drawn, the settings refined and the plot reminiscent of Jane Austen. The attention to historical detail is remarkable; the writing equal to the complexities of a plot which is as good as any Georgette Heyer novel."<br />
Judith Arnopp, <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/231575853">Goodreads Review</a><br />
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"What I liked the most about this book was that it was intelligent. Just when I thought I had the plot and ending sussed, I was proven wrong. There are a lot of surprises along the way before ending with a beautifully tied-up conclusion. I wasn't expecting the plot to develop as it did and I was glad for this. The entire book was a beautiful, unpredictable, well-written and entertaining piece and I look forward to reading more from this talented Author."<br />
Jennifer Elgey, <a href="http://www.booksthatspark.com/2011/12/review-companion-of-lady-holmeshire.html">Books That Spark</a><br />
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Enter to win an ecopy of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire by commenting at the bottom of this post.<br />
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Visit other blogs on this hop by visiting Goodreads here: <a href="http:" target="_blank">https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1742021-april-giveaway-blog-hop-7th-14th</a><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6160522196101988098.post-70577244912722807752014-04-06T11:00:00.000-07:002014-05-26T16:45:37.555-07:00Meet My Main Character, by Debra Brown<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I am hoping to start a chain of posts by historical fiction authors in which we introduce the main character of our work in progress or soon to be published novel. This is trial by error, so if there is a question that should be included, please leave me a comment. Thanks!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My vision of Evangeline</td></tr>
</tbody></table>1) What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person?<br />
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Evangeline. She is entirely fictional, but I hope there is a group of people who will identify with her.<br />
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2) When and where is the story set?<br />
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It is in England at the beginning of Queen Victoria's reign. Evangeline has been raised isolated on a large estate by a reclusive mother (based on Miss Havisham). The only friend she has been allowed is her twin brother, Dante.<br />
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3) What should we know about him/her?<br />
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Evangeline is a poetess and is devoted to living by the strict Rules of the household created by her mother. This, to her, compensates for the sense of neglect caused by her mother's seemingly emotionless, reclusive existence.<br />
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4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?<br />
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Dante has met his love. To Evangeline, that means she has lost Dante or rather that he has been stolen from her. This triggers an OCD with all its irrational behaviors.<br />
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5) What is the personal goal of the character?<br />
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On the surface, Evangeline struggles to win her brother back, though she never really lost him. The deeper dilemma, of course, is whether or not she can learn to live with the reality of his having found a wife, whether she can adjust to a more normal life, and whether she can overcome the chains of the OCD.<br />
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6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?<br />
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The title is <i>For the Skylark</i>. You can read the first section <a href="http://authordebrabrown.blogspot.com/p/for-skylark.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br />
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7) When can we expect the book to be published?<br />
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I hope by the end of this year. It depends upon life!<br />
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Thanks for visiting the post. I have tagged five authors to follow me; they will post about their main characters on the ninth.<br />
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1) <a href="http://rosannelortz.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Rosanne Lortz</a> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a></div><br />
2) <a href="http://www.madamegilflurt.com/" target="_blank">Catherine Gilflurt</a><br />
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3) <a href="http://evelyntidmanwrites.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Evelyn Tidman</a><br />
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4) <a href="http://nigelfields.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">John Campbell</a><br />
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5) <a href="http://lindaroot.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Linda Root</a><br />
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Let me know what you think of Evangeline!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thank you for reading my blog! I am always eager to hear back from you.
Debbie Brown
Author of The Companion of Lady Holmeshire</div>Debra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.com18