Pam Lecky's Blog, page 4

Lucy Goes Forth!

I am delighted to announce that today is publication day for A Pocketful of Diamonds, Book 4 in the Lucy Lawrence Mystery Series.

A missing count, stolen diamonds, a mystery that needs solving on the glamorous shores of Lake Como…

I’m often asked about the inspiration for my books. For the fourth book in the Lucy Lawrence series, that is very easy to answer: the location. My first visit to Lake Como, Italy, was back in 2008 as part of a holiday in the area. I fell in love with the location instantly, so much so, in fact, I have been back there for holidays several times now. However, back in 2008, I wasn’t writing books, but the magnificent scenery and ambiance stayed with me.

Lake Como, 2008

Lucy has had many adventures since No Stone Unturned, the first book in the series, and it is fun to use different locations for the books. This was even more important for the second book, Footprints in the Sand, which was set in Victorian Egypt, helping to satisfy my love and interest in Ancient Egypt and Victorian era tourism. For the third book, The Art of Deception, Lucy gets to visit Edinburgh, another favourite place of mine. But when it came to a location for A Pocketful of Diamonds, I knew it had to be Italy and it had to be Como.

Way back when only the wealthy travelled for pleasure, Italy was a must-go-to for The Grand Tour. With the industrial revolution came wealth, the railways and the birth of mass tourism. The Victorians loved travel and in the latter part of the 19th century, Lake Como and all the Italian lakes were particular favourites. September was the most popular time, when the intense heat had subsided. The rich Milanese owned villas on the lake with private jetties snaking out into the water. Those villas still stand and were part of the inspiration for the story.

But for me, it was the sorry sight of a derelict hotel, Hotel Grande Bretagne, which stuck with me and as I began to plot the story, I knew I had to include it. In the story, the hotel is called Grand Hotel Bellagio, and is owned by Lucy’s brother-in-law who has disappeared without trace, just weeks after the theft of diamonds from a wealthy guest.

Photo credidt: http://www.delcampe.net

In its heyday, Hotel Grande Bretagne, was a luxurious hotel catering to rich travellers. Located on the outskirts of Bellagio, it must have been quite a sight back then. It is sad to see the state of the hotel now. During one visit, it looked as though it was being restored, but when I was back there in 2021, work had ceased.

Hotel Grande Bretagne 2018

Then, to my delight, I discovered that smuggling had been a huge problem in the area right up to WW2, with some locals travelling across the border at night, in treacherous conditions, and bringing back goods such as salt and tobacco which they could sell at a higher price. I couldn’t resist and had to include those activities as a sub-plot.

For those who have read the series so far, you know that Lucy invariably gets herself into scrapes and it is often Phineas who must come to the rescue. Dear readers, you hardly thought that Lucy and Phin would have a non-eventful honeymoon, now did you?

So, in the vein of my favourite author, Dorothy L Sayers, our heroes have a busman’s honeymoon!

Books 1-4: The Lucy Lawrence Mystery Series

Buy Links:

No Stone Unturned: https://geni.us/715-al-aut-am

Footprints in the Sand: https://geni.us/717-al-aut-am

The Art of Deception: https://geni.us/719-al-aut-am

A Pocketful of Diamonds: https://geni.us/721-al-aut-am

Guest Post: Nancy Jardine

Today, I am delighted to have Nancy on my blog. An historical fiction author with many wonderful books to her name, Nancy kindly gives us some insight into the world of her main character, Margaret, in her newest release, Novice Threads.

Sharing is Caring

The phrase pops up on internet sites quite regularly but that’s not what my main character finds in Scotland during the 1840s when she is growing up…

Margaret Law, main character in Novice Threads (Book 1 of The Silver Sampler Series) loves words but she’d be confused by the above phrase. She spends hours wanting to know what everything means but at the tender age of five she’s stumped by things people around her say that don’t make sense. This is especially true when learning Victorian hymns, her parents being extremely devout churchgoers who drag her to services twice-on-a-Sunday with afternoon bible readings in between. However, Margaret instinctively knows that education is the key to a better future and that knowledge is essential.

A huge hurdle for Margaret is that few working-class girls are educated beyond a basic knowledge of reading and writing, and she craves so much more! Well before the 1840s, parishes in Scotland had to provide a schoolroom but that didn’t mean schooling was compulsory, or free. In general, sons were sent to the local school to learn to read, write and count, though some went well-beyond the basics so long as the quarterly fees for the dominie (schoolmaster) were paid. If educated at all, girls tended to go to a cheaper ‘Dame’ School, a facility that might teach basic reading skills but was designed to instruct girls in the arts of cooking, sewing, and how to housekeep. This was regarded as all girls required before they married and had their own home, or went into service in a larger domestic setting.

Little Margaret doesn’t know why she’s unlovable but she senses her parents have no real love to give her. William and Peggy run a local drapery shop in the rural mill-town of Milnathort. They’re not the poorest, yet money to spare is rare. Margaret is well-fed, well-clothed and with decent boots on her feet – unlike Margaret’s best friend Jessie who is the illegitimate daughter of a mill-worker. Yet, even at the age of five, Margaret knows she’d rather have the hugs and overt love that Jessie gets from her mother and grandmother, none of that ever coming Margaret’s way from her cold parents.

Margaret’s totally overjoyed when her father insists on paying for her to attend the local Subscription School. Peggy is against spending the money, claiming she can teach Margaret all she needs to know. William wins that particular argument, one of many acrimonious shouting-matches that Margaret has to listen to over the years. Declaring that since he has no son (and will never have one) Margaret must learn to read the Sunday afternoon bible readings.

Margaret is a little sponge soaking up knowledge as the years pass. She aspires to become a fully-fledged teacher though, in 1850, few women worked as certificated teachers in Scottish schools.

Everybody around Margaret knows how much Queen Victoria and Prince Albert love each other and they adore their large brood of children, but Margaret’s home situation seems entirely the opposite. William rarely shares anything with Margaret at all except for his religious views, and her mother isn’t much different. Her parents embrace new religious sects in pursuit of the ‘best doctrine’ for them, but Margaret is later to find that all is not as is seen on the surface with regard to her parents!

If he shared details of Queen Victoria, William might tell the curious young Margaret that Victoria was fifth-in-line for the monarchy when she was born in 1819. He might say that Victoria’s father, her grandfather, and two of her uncles would all have to die before she’d become queen. Margaret would be sad to learn that Victoria’s father died in 1820 from pneumonia, the well-known and brutal silent killer, before Victoria was a year old. However, William Law wouldn’t share particulars about Victoria’s grandfather being ‘the mad king’ who died almost immediately after her father. And explaining about the profligate and licentious Regency period from 1811 to 1820 would have been beyond the pale.

William Law wouldn’t be telling Margaret about King George IV’s mistresses, or about the monarch’s excessively lavish lifestyle. Those scurrilous ‘facts’ were definitely popular in some daily or weekly newssheets, but not in the ones William subscribes to.

And the next king, William IV? Nothing would be divulged about William’s illegitimate son by an unacknowledged mother, nor about King William’s long-term mistress, the ex-actress ‘Mrs Jordan’, who bore him ten children. Margaret might learn that King William eventually married at the age of 53 but had no surviving legitimate children, which was why Victoria became queen in 1837. Facts, yes, but never salacious ones.

Devastatingly, Margaret has to leave school before her twelfth birthday, circumstances forcing her parents to give up their drapery business. However, the job she gets as a tutor in Edinburgh, in a household where her friend Jessie works, is an incredibly good alternative to becoming a teacher. When her employer organises the use of a local lending library, Margaret learns far more about the monarchy and Victorian morality when she is exposed to some of those famous politically inspired ‘Punch’ cartoons in the weekly periodical which was started up in 1841, a cartoon style which imitated the earlier sketches from the late 1700s. Though Margaret could never take anything like a copy of Punch back to the Duncan house to devour during her own time, nor could she share such literature with her young pupil.

Unfortunately, Margaret gradually learns that the veneer of Victorian morality can be a sham. Her employers, the Duncans, hide many secrets, shames, and volatile situations – different to, but just as explosive as things her parents hide from her over the years. Growing up for young Margaret brings incredible joys but also terrible heartaches as she matures in a somewhat morally confusing Victorian society.

Buy Link: https://Mybook.to/NTsss

Author Bio:

If I’m not found staring into space beyond my desk (though some may call it my ‘thinking about/doing’ writing time) then the remainder of my week tends to be spent working in my garden, which always needs attention, or passing the time of day with my grandchildren who live next door. 

Living in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, has great benefits because we can all pop out to visit a huge range of fabulous castles, standing stones, and other historical sites so easily – there being hundreds of sites to choose from – some within walking distance, or others a short drive away. Woodlands and Forestry Commission areas are also great for letting off some of that energetic steam which kids have in abundance. Fresh air is supposed to clear my ‘writing’ head, but I’ll let you know how that goes!

When I can find the time, I love to read an eclectic mixture of fiction genres, often reading into the wee small hours since my writing time tends to go on late and my reading for pleasure even later!

You’ll find me at the following places… and others across the internet. 

​Blog- http://nancyjardine.blogspot.com

Facebook Author page- https://www.facebook.com/NancyJardinewrites/

Pinterest- https://www.pinterest.co.uk/nanjar/

Twitter- https://twitter.com/nansjar

A Conversation with Roger Corke

Today, I am delighted to have Roger Corke in the library to talk about his writing life. Although a veteran TV documentary maker, Roger is now a published author, too, with his debut, Deadly Protocol, out today. I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this crime thriller and thoroughly enjoyed it.

You are very welcome to the library, Roger. Please tell us a little about yourself.

For more years than I care to remember I’ve been making current affairs and investigative documentaries for TV series like the BBC’s Panorama, ITV’s World In Action and Tonight and Channel 4’s Dispatches.

It was whilst I was on a filming trip in America that I came across the idea for my debut thriller, Deadly Protocol. It’s about the brutal murder of a scientist who is researching the Holy Grail of medicine – a cure for cancer: who killed him and why?

I had a chance meeting with the British scientist working on cancer research in New England, who told me how much progress he and his colleagues were making in trying to cure this terrible disease. I asked him the obvious question: did he think a cure for cancer might come soon? His answer floored me.

“Well, it’s possible someone has already discovered a cure for cancer but, if it ever saw the light of day, a lot of people would have a lot to lose,” he said.

The plot for “Deadly Protocol” jumped out at me in a trice.

Roger Corke

Which genre do you write in and what draws you to it? Do you prefer books in your own genre or are you happy to explore others?

I write crime thrillers and that’s what I love to read. But I like thrillers that make you think – in particular, the “what if?” thriller. Two very different books that both fall into that category for me are Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and Jo Callaghan’s In the Blink of an Eye. Jo’s book was my book of the year last year and I was thrilled for her that she won the Crime Novel of the Year Award at the Harrogate festival.

There is a lot of snobbery in the literary world about crime fiction thrillers but they are perhaps the hardest genres to write well, as well as one of the most competitive for a debut author to break into. I once heard Lee Child say , “There’s a difference between me and Martin Amis…I could write his books”! I think there’s more than a grain of truth in that.

Get it right and you literally can’t put that book down. There aren’t too many other genres of literary fiction to which I could apply that test. My idea of the perfect thriller is one which is so engrossing that, when I turn the page, I put my hand over the right hand side of the book so my eye doesn’t stray over to see what is happening until I have read the left-hand page. That happens more often than you might expect for me, which shows that a lot of writers must be doing something right.

Are you an avid reader?

“Yes” in theory – sadly “no” in practice. At the moment I’m just too busy getting ready for the publication of Deadly Protocol to read as much as I would like but I am now trying to put aside a certain amount of time each day to read because one very good way to become a better writer is to read the work of other writers. And I’m forcing myself to read newspapers less so I have more time to read fiction –  which, as a journalist, is a difficult thing to do!

Are you a self-published/traditional or hybrid author?

I am very much a traditionally published author and have never wanted to self-publish my work. I think that self-publishing is just as valid a route as traditional publishing but it wasn’t right for me. I have spent my entire working life as a journalist with someone – a newspaper or a TV company – putting up the money to pay me to write. And when a publisher is spending his own money to publish a book, they are bound to be pretty rigorous about the end product. Certainly, that has been my experience with my publishers, Diamond Books. I am, of course, used to having my material edited I don’t have a problem with that at all. But the edit Diamond undertook was the most thorough I have ever come across and Deadly Protocol. is a much better book as a result. That would never have happened if I had self-published it.

Has your country of origin/culture influenced your writing?

Of course. It’s no coincidence that Deadly Protocol has, as one of its main protagonists, a television  journalist!  It’s probably easier by the time you get to your third or fourth novel to travel completely outside your comfort zone but, when it’s your first, I think leaning on your background and experience helps give your work the extra grain of authenticity that it needs. The same goes with where you set your novel. In my case, the plot moves from London to Trinidad in the Caribbean and then onto the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. I have been to both of those places and I think I would have found it very difficult to describe them simply by searching the Internet.

What part of the writing process do you find most difficult? How do you overcome it?

Re-writing. I am one of those writers who is constantly going back to the manuscript and reworking it – not the plot but the indivdual scenes (I’m a plotter rather than a writer who flies by the seat of their pants). It sometimes takes several attempts before I’m happy with what I’ve written – only to go back the following day and decide what it needs yet another rewrite! I really envy writers like Lee Child and Felix Francis who write every day and then don’t need to revise it the following day.

What was the best piece of writing advice you received when starting out?

I can’t narrow it down to one – I’ve got two pieces of advice that I would pass on to anyone hoping to publish their novel. The first is “you must starting writing now!” If you’ve got nothing written down, you’ve got nothing to build on and revise. The second piece of advice is “don’t give up”. It’s taking a very long time for me to get Deadly Protocol published and I’ve lost count of the number of people who said to me, “if you want to be published hard enough, eventually it will happen”. That’s complete rubbish. I’ve read a lot of books which have never been published but could’ve been, and in my opinion, should have been. But what is certainly true is if you give up, you definitely won’t be published, so keep going!

Do you have a favourite time of day to write?

Absolutely. The best time for me to write is very early in the morning, from about 4:30 am. At that time of day there are no distractions and I find my mind works faster and much more creatively. I have been working this way long before I started writing Deadly Protocol. When you make a documentary, you produce a “rough cut” – an early version of the film which you show to the programme editor. Often the editor will bring a fresh mind to the subject and suggest wholesale revisions to the running order and the script, which means I’ve got a complete re-write ahead of me. I never try to do that after a viewing. Instead, I go home, have a couple of drinks and something to eat, try to relax, and wake up early the next morning. Fortunately, I don’t need much sleep and I set my alarm to wake before the dawn chorus. It’s amazing how quickly I can change a film round at that time of day and I find the same thing happens when I’m writing fiction.

If you weren’t an author, what would you be up to?

I would still be making documentaries. It’s still much better than working. In fact, I haven’t really retired from doing so. It’s just that writing and publishing fiction is so time-consuming and getting a book ready for publication, sorting out that social media, etc., takes up every waking hour! Then there is the sequel to Deadly Protocol to write. It’s called Deadly Messages.

If a movie was made of one of your books, who would you like to play the lead roles?

My main protagonist is a feisty American female cancer researcher called Dr Veronica Ackerman, known to her friends as Ronnie. I secretly thought that Julia Roberts would be perfect for the role but she’s probably a little bit old now, because Ronnie is in her early 30s. Mind you, it’s amazing what Hollywood can do with special effects these days!

Please tell us about your latest published work.

Deadly Protocol is my debut novel and is the ultimate medical conspiracy. A scientist working in London on the Holy Grail of medicine – a universal cure for cancer – is found brutally murdered: who killed him and why? So far, no one has been able to answer both of those questions before they’re revealed in the book.

Dr Veronica Ackerman – who must solve the murder mystery after she wakes up in the victim’s bed, following a disastrous one-night stand, – discovers his body downstairs. He has been bludgeoned to death and is roasting on the heater in his sauna, which is the inspiration for the stunning cover.

The stakes turn out to be higher – far higher – than Ronnie could ever have imagined, as she is pursued across the world by the killers before coming back to Britain in a bid to trap the mastermind behind the plot.

Buy Link:

You can order Deadly Protocol from Amazon by clicking onto amzn.to/3yQtriF

Amazon eBook: https://amzn.to/3z4uj38

You can order it from Diamond Books at bit.ly/3Mt1Mr9

Deadly Protocol is published by specialist crime publishers Diamond Books.

If you’d like to know more about Roger and his book, please check out his social media links below:

You can find Roger Corke’s Facebook author page at: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61563973661953

https://x.com/rogercorke

https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-corke-42920b14/

https://www.instagram.com/roger.corke/

Guest Post: Behind the Scenes of The Pirate’s Physician by Amy Maroney

Today is publication day for The Pirate’s Physician by my good friend and fellow historical fiction author, Amy Maroney. Amy has kindly written a guest post in which she tells us about the inspiration behind her main characters.

I usually focus on women artists of the medieval and Renaissance era in my fiction, but when I discovered the trailblazing woman physician Trotula of Salerno, I made an exception.

In my research, I had come across many female midwives and healers, but not one physician. And yet Trotula de Ruggiero (also known as Trota of Salerno and Dame Trot), a graduate of the Schola Medica Salernitana in Salerno, Italy, was a renowned physician in her day. Not only did she practice medicine, she also published treatises about women’s health that circulated widely in Europe long after her death.

I decided to honor Trotula’s memory with a character in my Sea and Stone Chronicles series, which is set in the medieval Mediterranean. Like Trotula, my character Guiliana Rinaldi studied at Salerno’s famed medical school. In my novels, Guiliana makes several small but critical appearances, doling out medical care and advice to the women of Rhodes, Greece.

But I could hear Guiliana whispering in my ear after the series of three novels was completed. “Minor character, eh?” she’d say. “You don’t think I deserve a tale of my own?” At the same time, a certain Basque pirate whose ship appeared in those books developed the habit of perching on my other shoulder. “You didn’t even give me a name in those novels,” he’d chide me. “You’re not done with me, not by a long shot.”

After a few months of this, I capitulated. The temptation to write a love story starring Guiliana and an enigmatic Basque pirate was just too strong to ignore. The result is The Pirate’s Physician, a seafaring tale that’s a heady combination of romance, swashbuckling, and intrigue. The story gives Guiliana and her pirate—whose name turns out to be Eneko—their moment in the spotlight. And it was tremendous fun to write.

To give you a better idea of the real history behind the story, I’ll circle back to Trotula first. Then I’ll share the jaw-dropping historical tidbit that gave me permission to write about Basque pirates. And I’ll conclude with a glimpse of life on medieval merchant galleys.

Down the history rabbit hole we go!

Trotula of Salerno

Born into a wealthy 11th or 12th century family of Salerno, Trotula received a high level of education. She is said to have married a fellow physician and their sons may have practiced medicine, too. She was respected by her peers in Salerno and frequently sought after for advice.

A 13th century document called De mulierum passionibus describes an ill woman calling upon Trotula “as if she were a master of this craft.” It goes on to recount Trotula taking the woman into her home for an examination and refuting the previous diagnosis of hernia. She then cures the woman of her actual illness with baths and other treatments.

Digging around for Trotula lore, I found wonderful snippets of her writings. From her Book on the Conditions of Women: “Women, from the condition of their fragility, out of shame and embarrassment do not dare reveal their anguish over their diseases (which happen in such a private place) to a physician. Therefore, their misfortune, which ought to be pitied, and especially the influence of a certain woman stirring my heart, have impelled me to give a clear explanation regarding their diseases in caring for their health.”

Much of the information I discovered about Trotula came from the invaluable website Academia.edu, and I am particularly indebted to scholar Monica H. Green, who has conducted extensive work on the subject.

A Basque pirate straight out of history

I’ve long been fascinated by Basque culture. My first historical mystery series was set in and around Basque country in the Pyrenees mountains. I write magazine articles about the area, and I recently completed a walking tour in Spain’s Basque hills with my husband.

All this to say, I’ve known for years that the Basques have a long, illustrious history as sailors and shipbuilders. They started whaling and codfishing throughout the Atlantic Ocean in the early medieval era, and they developed a reputation as the best boat builders of Europe.

But when I researched my Sea and Stone Chronicles series in 2020, I discovered a startling line in a research paper about piracy in the Eastern Mediterranean.

According to legal records from the city of Famagusta in Cyprus during the fifteenth century, Catalan pirates used the city as a base for their operations. In protest, citizens of Famagusta made legal complaints against the city for allowing pirates to circulate freely there. One man complained that sometimes more than a hundred pirates from the Bay of Biscay (off the coast of Spain’s Basque country) would appear in the city streets. The ships they used were Atlantic whaling vessels called balenas.

This stunned me because I’d assumed the Basques just kept to themselves in the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, they were also seeking their fortunes in the Eastern Mediterranean.

I’m grateful to Nicholas Coureas and Andreas G. Orphanides for sharing this and many other details of life in the medieval Mediterranean.

So now you know the history inspiring my heroine, Guiliana, and my hero, Eneko. But what about all the seafaring and swashbuckling scenes in The Pirate’s Physician? Did I just make that up?

Life aboard a medieval galley

It turns out another one of my history obsessions is the maritime world. I’m fascinated by port cities of Europe’s Mediterranean, and I’ve done lots of research into this topic. One of my favorite sources is a research article by Benjamin Arbel about life aboard wooden galleys during pilgrims’ voyages from Venice to the Holy Land (Jerusalem).

These voyages were not for the faint of heart. Passengers struggled to sleep crammed into berths that crawled with fleas, lice, gnats, and worms. Live animals were penned on board, both as food for passengers and as working animals being transported to new homes. People often brought their own snacks  to supplement what they were served aboard, including fresh fruit, lentils, and cheese. Nothing happened on these ships without the blare of trumpets and fifes (pipes) to accompany it. Passengers brought lots of musical instruments to pass the time, and special occasions such as feast days were marked with fireworks, dancing, singing, and lots of wine.

Putting it all together

When I combined these details of daily life with my findings on Trotula of Salerno and the Basque pirates of the Eastern Mediterranean, I had more than enough fabulous fodder for my novella. The Pirate’s Physician is steeped in real history, but it took a lot of imagination to bring this romantic seafaring adventure to life.

Where to buy the book: https://mybook.to/PiratesPhysician

Publication Date: September 5, 2024

Publisher: Artelan Press

Blurb:

When her world shatters, she dares to trust a pirate. Will she survive what comes next?

The Pirate’s Physician is the story of Guiliana Rinaldi, a student at Salerno’s famed medieval medical school, whose lifelong dream of becoming a physician crumbles when her uncle and mentor dies suddenly.

Faced with an unwanted marriage to a ruthless merchant, Guiliana enlists the help of a Basque pirate and flees home for the dangers of the open sea.

Will she make it to Genoa, where her only remaining relative awaits? Or will this impulsive decision seal her own doom?

A delightful seafaring adventure packed with romance and intrigue, The Pirate’s Physician is a companion novella to the award-winning Sea and Stone Chronicles series of historical novels by Amy Maroney: Island of Gold, Sea of Shadows, and The Queen’s Scribe.

Author Bio:

Amy Maroney lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family, and spent many years as a writer and editor of nonfiction before turning her hand to historical fiction.  Amy is the author of the Miramonde Series, a trilogy about a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern-day scholar on her trail. Amy’s new series, Sea and Stone Chronicles, features strong, talented women seeking their fortunes in the medieval Mediterranean. To receive a free prequel novella to the Miramonde Series, join Amy Maroney’s readers’ group at http://www.amymaroney.com.

Author Links:

Website: https://www.amymaroney.com/

Twitter: https://x.com/wilaroney

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amymaroneyauthor/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amymaroneywrites/

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@amymaroneywrites

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/amyloveshistory/

Book Bub:  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/amy-maroney

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Amy-Maroney/author/B01LYHPXEO

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15831603.Amy_Maroney

Guest Post: Dealing with Stroppy Royals by Judith Arnopp

Those of you who have read my books will know that I tend to write about historical characters that we have come to regard as flawed, some might say ‘evil.’ Our twenty-first century sensibilities are outraged by actions which were perfectly within the bounds of acceptability at the time. Margaret Beaufort is the prime example of a woman whose historical record is spotless yet is commonly regarded as an obsessive mother with a cruel vindictive streak. One TV series even has her murder a man whom history records as dying in his own bed on a day when Margaret was many miles away. This type of character assassination is often dismissed with the words, ‘It’s only fiction,’ but as historical writers, fiction or otherwise, I feel there should be some authorial regard for the reputation of their subject.

Other than what I’d read in popular fiction, I knew very little about Margaret when I began writing The Beaufort Chronicle and my research revealed a very different woman to the one I’d expected. In book one, The Beaufort Bride, she is a child, married at a very tender age to Edmund Tudor. She is quickly widowed and gives birth to a son when she is still only around thirteen years of age. We throw up our hands in horror at this now, and there were murmurs against it at the time. Margaret herself, however, seems to have held no resentment toward Edmund. Even though the birth was traumatic and possibly ended her fertility, after two further husbands, she still requested to be buried with Edmund – a request that was denied.

Margaret deftly negotiated the war of the roses and the political upheaval that followed, managing to stay in favour with the Yorkist king Edward IV and his queen, Elizabeth Woodville. She worked tirelessly for the return of her exiled son, Henry Tudor, but it is not until the reign of Richard III that she began to manoeuvre him into the position to take the throne. Above all, Margaret was pious, loyal and generous, so given the current appreciation for strong women, our perception of her is surprising. Margaret was way ahead of her time when it comes to female rights; she certainly didn’t remain a victim for very long. The Beaufort Chronicle is a trilogy, written in Margaret’s voice, recording the events from her own perspective. She is sometimes blind to her own failings, as we all are.

When I completed the final book, The King’s Mother, I had come to know Margaret very well, or at least I’d come to know the woman who emerged from six years of research. History only provides us with facts that were recorded, as a historical fiction author I have to fill in the gaps and come up with a credible voice, and follow their path that was written long ago.

I am often asked how I manage to get inside my character’s head and convince the reader that they are listening to a historical voice. It is quite easy really. After I’ve studied the recorded facts, I sit down in an imaginary place, a tavern, or a garden for instance, and question my protagonist. How did that feel? Why did you do that? What were you thinking? What were you afraid of? Of course, fiction is only speculation. Any author, either of fiction or non-fiction, can only hypothesise about past events. None of us have been there.

After I’d finished The Beaufort Chronicle I became a little obsessed with tricky characters and wrote The Heretic Wind, which tells the life of Mary Tudor, better known as Bloody Mary. The list of atrocities she is accused of are damning; it is not until you consider her life as a whole and understand the events from her perspective that one begins to understand.

Aside from her traumatic upbringing, the religious upheaval she lived through had a pronounced effect on the passionately devout girl. We look on her today as fanatical and ruthless yet the historical record also speaks of her generosity, her compassion. Her actions against what she perceived to be heresy was bred of a deep love for her subjects. As far as Mary was concerned, the new religion would condemn her subjects to Hell. Hellfire has become a bit of a joke to many of us today yet in Mary’s time it was very real. God, Heaven and Hell, the devil, were all very real to Mary.

She had no concept of free thought. Her drastic measures were intended to deter her people from entering a pact with the devil. To us, the Smithfield Fires were abominable yet to Mary it was a last-ditch attempt to redeem her subjects from eternal punishment.

Noone can deny that Mary was wronged in childhood, deprived of love in her youth, and made miserable in womanhood. In The Heretic Wind, Mary is on her death bed when she narrates the story of her often miserable, seldom merry life. She is brutally honest, accepting her own failures, admitting her misdeeds but as she had been throughout her life, she is desperate for the approval of the listener/reader.

Once The Heretic Wind was complete, I walked away from the fires of Smithfield and turned my attention to the greatest perceived monster of them all, Mary’s father, King Henry VIII.

I will not pretend that writing The Henrician Chronicle was easy. It took four years to complete the trilogy and during that time, almost every day, Henry was in my head. It all got a little too real. Even when I put aside the laptop, he followed me into the shower, sat on my bed in the middle of the night. Sometimes he teased me, sometimes he flattered me and quite often he terrified me. Of all the characters I have written, Henry is the most complex; he was conflicted, frustrated and desperate to be loved. Blind, of course, to the misery he inflicted on others, at the end he was furious that fate had dealt him such a bad hand. By book three, his rage and hopelessness consumed both of us.

On a daily basis on social media I see Henry labelled a wife-killer, a philanderer, a monster. Nobody ever stops to ask what made him so, why he took the actions he did, what moulded him into the man he became? He is rarely judged from the standards of his day but from the obscure view of the modern world. Of course, I don’t approve of his actions or applaud him as a man or king but I try to understand him.

As I unpeeled the layers of negativity and uncovered the boy prince beneath, I discovered a likeable young man. He was fun loving, friendly, exuberant, and overflowing with good intentions, but as he led me through his life, I saw his hopes, his dreams, his grand plans for England shatter, one by one.

Henry craved the return of chivalry, a second Agincourt, he wanted to be remembered for glory, he dreamed of being a second Henry V. He also wanted to fill the royal nursery with miniature Tudors, boys in his own image. He didn’t like to fail, nobody does, and Henry had the power and the means to fight back, and fight back he did. He was nothing if not persistent. He fought for a son, he fought to regain territories lost in France, he fought against what he considered to be corruption in the church. He did not give up the fight until the very end.

In the final book, A Matter of Time, the young prince we encountered in book one, A Matter of Conscience, is vanquished, the determined king of book two, A Matter of Faith, is laid low by pain and disease. He looks back at his life and realises he has failed to achieve even one of his goals. He is a failed husband, a bad father and an underachieving king. The only thing he has gained is notoriety.

Once the last book in The Henrician Chronicle was complete, I found myself at a loss. For several months Henry lingered in the corner of my mind, tainting my joy, refusing to go away but eventually he left.  Almost immediately, another door opened and out stepped my current protagonist. Marguerite of Anjou – detested French queen of Henry VI, labelled a she-wolf, brought down by York, her son disinherited, her battles lost, her status diminished. She fought hard for her son, just as Margaret Beaufort fought for hers, but whereas Margaret won glory, Marguerite lost.

She ended her days a penniless pensioner of the French king, forgotten and alone. The popular perception of her is negative yet her actions were no worse than her male contemporaries; the only difference is her sex. Marguerite’s story is one of injustice, misogyny and treason, and I don’t think the war of the roses has been told from her perspective before.

So, after spending years at the court of Henry VIII, I am once more up to my neck in the war of the roses, encountering my old friends: Edward IV, Henry Tudor, Richard III, Anne Neville, and Margaret Beaufort. I hope to see you there.

Judith Arnopp – Author Biography

A lifelong history enthusiast and avid reader, Judith holds a BA in English/Creative writing and an MA in Medieval Studies. She lives on the coast of West Wales where she writes both fiction and non-fiction. She is best known for her novels set in the Medieval and Tudor period, focussing on the perspective of historical women and of course, from the perspective of Henry VIII himself.

Her novels include:

A Song of Sixpence: the story of Elizabeth of YorkThe Beaufort Chronicle: the life of Lady Margaret Beaufort (three book series)A Matter of Conscience: Henry VIII, the Aragon Years (Book One of The Henrician Chronicle)A Matter of Faith: Henry VIII, the Days of the Phoenix (Book Two of The Henrician Chronicle)A Matter of Time: Henry VIII, the Dying of the Light (Book Three of The Henrician Chronicle)The Kiss of the Concubine: a story of Anne BoleynThe Winchester Goose: at the court of Henry VIIIIntractable Heart: the story of Katheryn ParrSisters of Arden: on the Pilgrimage of GraceThe Heretic Wind: the life of Mary Tudor, Queen of EnglandPeaceweaverThe Forest DwellersThe Song of HeleddThe Book of ThornholdA Daughter of Warwick: the story of Anne Neville, Queen of Richard IIIMarguerite: Hell Hath No Fury (Coming soon)

You can find Judith on most social media platforms.

Webpage: www.judithmarnopp.com

Books: author.to/juditharnoppbooks

Blog: www.juditharnoppnovelist.blogspot.co.uk/

Return to the Eyrie by Katerina Dunne: The Coffee Pot Book Blog Tour

Today, I’m delighted to host Katerina Dunne for the spotlight tour for Return to the Eyrie.

You can follow the full tour here:

Tour Schedule Page: https://thecoffeepotbookclub.blogspot.com/2024/07/blog-tour-return-to-the-eyrie-by-katerina-dunne.html

Return to the Eyrie by Katerina Dunne

Honour, revenge, and the quest for justice.

Belgrade, Kingdom of Hungary, 1470:

Raised in exile, adolescent noblewoman Margit Szilágyi dreams of returning to her homeland of Transylvania to avenge her father’s murder and reclaim her stolen legacy. To achieve this, she must break the constraints of her gender and social status and secretly train in combat.

When the king offers her a chance at justice, she seizes it—even if it means disguising herself as a man to infiltrate the vultures’ nest that now occupies her ancestral ‘eyrie’.

Plagued by childhood trauma and torn between two passionate loves, Margit faces brutal battles, her murderous kin’s traps and inner demons on her quest for vengeance. Only by confronting the past can she reclaim her honour—if she can survive long enough to see it through.

Return to the Eyrie is an epic coming-of-age tale of a young woman’s unwavering pursuit of justice and destiny in 15th century Hungary.

Buy Link:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/bz8gJL

Author Bio:

Katerina Dunne is the pen-name of Katerina Vavoulidou. Originally from Athens, Greece, Katerina has been living in Ireland since 1999. She has a degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Athens, an MA in Film Studies from University College Dublin and an MPhil in Medieval History from Trinity College Dublin.

Katerina Dunne

Katerina is passionate about history, especially medieval history, and her main area of interest is 13th to 15th century Hungary. Although the main characters of her stories are fictional, Katerina uses real events and personalities as part of her narrative in order to bring to life the fascinating history of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary, a location and time period not so well-known to English-speaking readers.

Return to the Eyrie (published April 2024) is the second book in the Medieval Hungary series, a sequel to Lord of the Eyrie (published in February 2022).

Author Links:

Website (publisher): https://www.thehistoricalfictioncompany.com/hp-authors/katerina-dunne

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100076818802721

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katerina-vavoulidou-07962a85/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Katerina-Dunne/author/B09R4P733K

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22196953.Katerina_Dunne

The Witch of the Breton Woods by Jennifer Ivy Walker: The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour

Today, I am delighted to host Jennifer Ivy Walker for the blog tour for The Witch of the Breton Woods. Jennifer has kindly provided an excerpt (please see below).

You can follow the full tour here:

Tour Schedule Page: https://thecoffeepotbookclub.blogspot.com/2024/07/blog-tour-the-witch-of-the-breton-woods-by-jennifer-ivy-walker.html

Trailer link: https://youtu.be/6A-VLgO7Aww?si=z6Mx_Mvncgfz2voP

The Witch of the Breton Woods by Jennifer Ivy Walker

Traumatized by horrors witnessed during the Nazi invasion of France, a young woman retreats to the dense Breton woods where she becomes a member of the clandestine French Resistance. When she finds a critically injured American paratrooper whose plane was shot down, she shelters the wounded soldier in her secluded cottage, determined to heal him despite the enormous risk.

Ostracized by villagers who have labeled her a witch, she is betrayed by an informant who reports to the Butcher—the monstrous leader of the local paramilitary organization that collaborates with the Germans. As the enemy closes in, she must elude the Gestapo while helping the Resistance reunite the American with his regiment and join the Allied Forces in the Battle of Brittany.

Can true love triumph against all odds under the oppressive Third Reich?

Buy Link:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/mdAzww

The Witch of the Breton Woods (Excerpt)

The Wounded Soldier

Low, agonized moaning interrupted Yvette’s nightmarish reverie.

That’s a man’s voice. And it’s coming from over there.

She followed the deep groans through a copse of trees to find an American soldier impossibly tangled in a nylon parachute. Suspended from a high branch of a massive oak tree, he was dangling upside down, hanging by an obviously broken leg. A sharp bone protruded from the torn, blood-soaked pants of his khaki uniform, and dried blood—which must have leaked from under his helmet– covered half of his contorted face. His pitiful wails pierced her heart.

I can’t lower him to the ground by myself. He’s twice my weight. And if I cut the ropes, he’ll plummet headfirst. He already has a head injury, judging from the gore all over his forehead. Please, God, let him hang on until I get back.

“I’ll go get help. I promise to come back soon.” She called up to him, hopeful that he could hear her.

 And that he understood French.

Author Bio:

Jennifer Ivy Walker has an MA in French literature and is a former high school teacher and professor of French at a state college in Florida.  Her novels encompass a love for French language, literature, history, and culture, incorporating her lifelong study, summers abroad, and many trips to France.

The Witch of the Breton Woods is heart-pounding suspense set during WWII in Nazi-occupied France, where a young woman in the French Resistance shelters and heals a wounded American soldier, hiding him from the Gestapo and the monstrous Butcher who are relentlessly hunting him.

Author Links:

Website: https://jenniferivywalker.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bohemienneivy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenniferIvyWalker/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-ivy-walker-685b58248/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferivywalkerauthor/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/bohemienneivy/

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-witch-of-the-breton-woods-by-jennifer-ivy-walker

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jennifer-Ivy-Walker/author/B0B91R2MJZ

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22671046.Jennifer_Ivy_Walker

A Conversation with Author Juliane Weber

Today, I’m delighted to host Juliane Weber in the library for a chat. You are very welcome, Juliane, please tell us a little about yourself.

Thank you for having me on your blog today, Pam. I’m a scientist turned historical fiction writer, and author of the Irish Fortune Series. My stories take readers on action-packed romantic adventures amid the captivating scenery and folklore of 19th century Ireland.

I was born in Germany but spent most of my life in South Africa. I now live with my husband and two sons in Hamelin, Germany, the town made famous by the story of the Pied Piper.

Which genre do you write in and what draws you to it?

I write historical fiction set in 19th century Ireland. Although I really disliked history at school (!) I now love learning about the past in historical fiction books, imagining how people might have lived in days gone by. It’s this fascination that drew me to writing historical fiction myself.  

Are you an avid reader? Do you prefer books in your own genre or are you happy to explore others?

Yes, I love reading and am rarely found without a book in hand in my spare time. As mentioned, I love reading historical fiction but I do also read lots of crime thrillers and am happy to explore books in other genres if they sound interesting.

Are you a self-published/traditional or hybrid author?

I am a self-published author. While it was a difficult route to take at the beginning of my author journey I now enjoy the freedom self-publishing gives me. I like being in complete control of my work, from the content of the books themselves and the design of the covers to the way the series is marketed.

Who has been the biggest influence on your writing?

The biggest influence on my writing has been Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series of books. As a fan of her work I found myself googling her some years ago, only to find out that she was a scientist turned novelist. Having been an avid reader all my life and being in the middle of my science degree at the time I thought: wouldn’t it be great if I could also be a scientist turned novelist one day? Although it took some years before I actually started writing anything, it was her story that inspired me to try it in the first place.

Has your country of origin/culture influenced your writing?

Yes, I believe it has. Although I was born in Germany I moved to South Africa with my family when I was four years old and lived there for most of my life. South Africa is a land of contrasts, with extreme poverty and extreme wealth existing side by side, a situation that is similar to the conditions that prevailed in Ireland in the 19th century. I believe that having grown up in South Africa, and travelled elsewhere in Africa, has given me a better understanding of such contrasts than I might otherwise have had and allowed me to describe the extraordinary situation in 19th century Ireland in what I hope is a sensitive fashion.    

What was the best piece of writing advice you received when starting out?

Something I read some time ago and has resonated with me ever since is advice given by my favourite author, Diana Gabaldon. When asked how one goes about writing a book she said to do whatever gets words on the page (or something to that effect). I think this summarises perfectly that not all techniques work for all writers and that there isn’t a single way to write a good book. For example, there are those who insist an outline is essential before writing a single word but this approach doesn’t work for everybody as some authors come up with the story while they’re writing it (including me). So I would say, the best advice I’ve received is to find out what works for me and to simply do that.

Do you have a favourite time of day to write?

I don’t really have a favourite time of day to write as such. When I started out I wrote whenever I had a free moment, including late at night, but now I do most of my writing in the mornings when the kids are at school.   

If you weren’t an author, what would you be up to?

If I weren’t an author of historical novels I would probably still be working as a medical writer, which is what I was doing before. I realised during my studies that I preferred writing about scientific research to doing the research myself, and ended up falling into a medical writing career. Although I’m now writing novels, not scientific articles, in some ways I am still carrying on in this vein, as I enjoy including scientific titbits in my books.  

Please tell us about your latest published work.

My new book will be published later in the year. It’s called Amid the Oncoming Storm and is the third book in the Irish Fortune Series. It continues the story of Irishwoman Alannah O’Neill and Englishman Quinton Williams as they try to make a life for themselves in 19th century Ireland, a land plagued with injustices and hardships. Trying to help those in need, they’re unaware that an unimaginable disaster looms—the Great Famine that would forever change the course of Irish history.

Thank you so much for chatting to us today, Juliane.

If you’d like to know more about Juliane and her work please check out her social media links below.

Website: www.julianeweber.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JulianeWeberAuthor

X: https://x.com/Writer_JW

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliane._.weber/

Jude Wright’s Review of Under A Lightning Sky

My #BookReview of #UnderALightningSky by #PamLecky @pamlecky published by @AvonBooksUK

Fortune’s Wheel by Carolyn Hughes: The Coffee Pot Book Club Audio Tour

Today, I am delighted to have Carolyn Hughes back on my blog for the audio book tour for Fortune’s Wheel, the first book in the Meonbridge Chronicle series. Carolyn has provided a short listening sample – please see below.

You can follow the full tour here:

https://thecoffeepotbookclub.blogspot.com/2024/06/blog-tour-fortunes-wheel-audiobook-by-carolyn-hughes.html

Fortune’s Wheel, The First Meonbridge Chronicle, By Carolyn Hughes; Audiobook Narrator: Alex Lee @alexleeaudio

How do you recover from the havoc wrought by history’s cruellest plague?

It’s June 1349. In Meonbridge, a Hampshire manor, many have lost their lives to the Black Death, among them Alice atte Wode’s beloved husband and Eleanor Titherige’s widowed father. Even the family of the manor’s lord and his wife, Margaret de Bohun, has not entirely escaped.

But, now the plague has passed, the people of Meonbridge must work together to rebuild their lives. However, tensions mount between the de Bohuns and their tenants, as the workers realise their new scarceness means they can demand higher wages and dictate their own lives.

When the tensions deepen into violence and disorder, and the men – lord and villagers alike – seem unable to find any resolution, the women – Alice, Eleanor and Margaret – must step forward to find a way out of the conflict that is tearing Meonbridge apart.

Buy Links:

This title / series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/3LL1d1

Audible Links:

UK : https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Fortunes-Wheel-Livre-Audio/B0D2FKPQN4  

US : https://www.audible.com/pd/Fortunes-Wheel-Audiobook/B0D2FMT3QG

Audio Sample:Author Bio:

Carolyn Hughes has lived much of her life in Hampshire. With a first degree in Classics and English, she started working life as a computer programmer, then a very new profession. But it was technical authoring that later proved her vocation, word-smithing for many different clients, including banks, an international hotel group and medical instruments manufacturers.

Although she wrote creatively on and off for most of her adult life, it was not until her children flew the nest that writing historical fiction took centre stage. But why historical fiction? Serendipity!

Seeking inspiration for what to write for her Creative Writing Masters, she discovered the handwritten draft, begun in her twenties, of a novel, set in 14th century rural England… Intrigued by the period and setting, she realised that, by writing a novel set in the period, she could learn more about the medieval past and interpret it, which seemed like a thrilling thing to do. A few days later, the first Meonbridge Chronicle, Fortune’s Wheel, was under way.

Six published books later (with more to come), Carolyn does now think of herself as an Historical Novelist. And she wouldn’t have it any other way…

Author Links:

Website: https://carolynhughesauthor.com

Twitter: www.x.com/writingcalliope

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CarolynHughesAuthor

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/carolynhughes.bsky.social

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/carolyn-hughes

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Carolyn-Hughes/author/B01MG5TWH1

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16048212.Carolyn_Hughes