Mary Anne Yarde's Blog: The Coffee Pot Book Club , page 220

Author’s Inspiration ~ Mandy Nachampassack-Maloney #histfic

Please give a warm welcome to author, Mandy Nachampassack-Maloney. Mandy is going to tell us all about the inspirations behind her latest book…
Asha In Time
 
One moment she was just an average little girl: playing with her toys; receiving her schooling; getting ready to celebrate the 13th birthday that would launch her fully into her teen years. In the next moment she was an ancient Egyptian priestess, songstress, and love interest of the heir apparent- Ramses the Great. She could never go back, but somehow, some way she'd have to go forward among the intrigue and rough waters of cutthroat Egyptian politics. For this teen, it was become queen or die trying.
***
Asha in Time was such a work of love for me. It encompasses all the nerdy, enjoyable research that I'd been unknowingly doing my entire life. You know that girl who, at museums, heard someone say something like, “Look dear, this male mummy seems short,” and comes over to point out in a rather irritating museum-y tone that, “Actually, Egyptians were shorter as a people than we are. He was probably a fairly average fellow.” True story, that's me.
Specifically the idea for Asha in Time, especially for the main character Isetnofret, came from reading two books from separate authors which paint her in a pretty villainous light. I loved one of the books (it still holds a place of honor on my favorites shelf) but wanted to give this poor girl some of her honor back. We only know two things about Isetnofret; her name and that she was married to Ramses. Everything else has been lost to the sands.
We do know a ton more about Nefertari, Ramses’ first Great Wife. Yet just because Ramses clearly dearly loved Nefertari, that doesn't mean Isetnofret had to be a terrible woman. Marriage, especially the way royals did it in Egypt and in many other historic populates , was quite a different institution than the way we practice it today. I wanted to explore all those differences, shed light  on  all those unknowns. I hope I succeeded.
Links to purchase
https://mnmaloney.wordpress.com/asha-in-time/
About the author
Mandy Nachampassack-Maloney wrote her debut paranormal romance novel, Autumnal Dancer, when she was 20 years old. She quickly followed that up with Asha in Time. In her free time Mandy writes about the dangers of parenting (projectile body fluids, going to work on two hours of sleep, raising two headstrong children who can talk back in foreign languages) and manages a group of very dedicated volunteers.  To see what Mandy is working on next visit her at mnmaloney.wordpress.com.

Are we a step closer to finding King Arthur? #Cornwall

  Tintagel Castle


You may have read in the news that archaeologists have discovered what appears to be a Dark Age, possibly 5th or 6th Century, Royal Court at Tintagel Castle. If you missed it, then you can check out this post from The Independent.
 I have not seen such excitement from Tintagel since they discovered the Artognou Stone in 1998. Tintagel keeps on surprising us.
However, it seems to me that we are so desperate to connect Tintagel with King Arthur that we will do almost anything to make him fit there ~ regardless of the truth. Let's face it, Arthur is a tourist attraction, he always has been. So I can understand the excitement that English Heritage must be feeling with this discovery. However, let us be very careful not to get carried away.

Geoffrey of Monmouth was the first to make the link between Tintagel and Arthur, in his factually correct book The History of the Kings of Briton. If Monmouth story is to be believed, Tintagel was the place where Arthur was conceived and then born, which makes this castle a pretty special place. Tintagel is the beginning of Arthur’s story.

I do find the whole situation slightly bemusing. I think it is amazing what the archaeologists have discovered, and it has proven my theory that Tintagel was a pinnacle stronghold in Cornwall's Dark Age history.
I am fascinated with the history of Cornwall, and I have been for a very long time. I like to think of it as the forgotten Scotland. The Roman's dealt with their Scottish problem by building a great big wall, but they didn't have to do that with Cornwall, because Cornwall, was willing to trade. The Roman's wanted Cornwall's tin, and she was a mind to sell it to them. Apart from a few Milecastles, there is very little evidence of Roman occupation. Likewise, when the Saxon's invaded and Cerdic of Wessex started his reign of terror as he conquered one kingdom after another, Cornwell stayed strong. And not just for a couple of years but for hundreds of years.  I am not surprised the archaeologists have found more evidence that Cornwall was a wealthy trading nation. But does that mean they have found the birthplace of King Arthur? I'm sorry, I'm not convinced.

Monmouth's work cannot and must not be relied on as factual evidence. Dare I say, he made half of it up. It would be nice to think that Arthur was born at Tintagel, just like it would be nice to think that Arthur is buried at Glastonbury Abbey. Recent archaeological evidence has shed light on the Glastonbury Legend. Arthur was not buried at Glastonbury, but those monks sure knew how to bring in the pilgrims, just the same way as English Heritage is doing now with Tintagel. Don't get me wrong; I am not bashing English Heritage. English Heritage does a fantastic job at preserving well, England’s heritage, and for them, Tintagle and the Arthurian Legend is a little gem. The draw to Tintagel is King Arthur. King Arthur is Tintagel. I am pleased that they have found evidence of Dark Age occupation, but I will never be convinced that this was the birthplace of Arthur.

#bookreview ~ Call to Juno (A Tale of Ancient Rome) @elisabethstorrs

Call To Juno(A Tale Of Ancient Rome)ByElisabeth Storrs

Four unforgettable characters are tested during a war between Rome and Etruscan Veii.
Caecilia has long been torn between her birthplace of Rome and her adopted city of Veii. Yet faced with mounting danger to her husband, children, and Etruscan freedoms, will her call to destroy Rome succeed?
Pinna has clawed her way from prostitute to the concubine of the Roman general Camillus. Deeply in love, can she exert her own power to survive the threat of exposure by those who know her sordid past?
Semni, a servant, seeks forgiveness for a past betrayal. Will she redeem herself so she can marry the man she loves?
Marcus, a Roman tribune, is tormented by unrequited love for another soldier. Can he find strength to choose between his cousin Caecilia and his fidelity to Rome?
Who will overcome the treachery of mortals and gods?
 ***
What did I make of the book?

 Two great nations face each other. Now it is up to the Gods to choose their victor.
Aemilia Caeciliana (Caecilia) has forsaken Rome, the place of her birth and has pledged her loyalties to her husband and his people. Rome however, will never forgive her for such a betrayal. She is an enemy to them now, and if they ever catch her, there will be no mercy. Caecilia knows that the very future of herself and her children are dependent on Veii's defeat of Rome. They must win. The Gods must favour them. But to appease one God has Caecilia unintentionally angered another?
Roman Tribune, Marcus Aemolois Mamercus, the cousin of Caecilia, wants to see Veii fall to the Roman Army, and he will see his traitorous cousin brought to justice. But like his cousin, Marcus’s life hangs in the balance. If General Camillus were to discover the truth about him, then his life would be forfeit.
Full of treachery, lies and intrigue, The Call of Juno is a captivating read that caught my attention from the blurb and held it throughout the story. I loved the changing Point of Views - Storrs tells the story from both camps, so it is a well rounded read. Make no mistake this book is truly epic in the telling and it isn't predictable at all. I had no idea where Storrs was going with her story. Expect the unexpected if you choose to read this book and if you are prone to shed some tears, like I am, then make sure you have a box of Kleenex handy, for this book is rich in emotion and has characters that you will come to care for.
Call to Juno is book 3 of A Tale Of Ancient Rome series. I have not read the other two, but this book easily stands alone. Not once did I feel confused as to what had gone before.
I have to commend Storrs for her attention to detail. It was staggering. I have read many great books set in this era, but Call to Juno far surpasses any that I have read in its historical accuracy. It is a remarkable book. Storr has brought the era back to life.
The four protagonists each have a fascinating story to tell, and I enjoyed reading about them all. Storr has created well-fleshed and believable characters that made the story rich and full and interesting.
I cannot recommend this book enough. It was just incredible and it is certainly a strong contender for a place in the top 5 books that I have read this year so far.
I Highly Recommend.


Links for Purchase  Amazon USAmazon UK
About the author



Elisabeth Storrs has long had a passion for the history, myths and legends of the ancient world. She graduated from University of Sydney in Arts Law, having studied Classics. Her curiosity piqued by an Etruscan sarcophagus depicting a couple embracing for eternity, she discovered the little known story of the struggle between Etruscan Veii and Republican Rome and the inspiration to write the TALES OF ANCIENT ROME series.

Elisabeth lives with her husband and two sons in Sydney, Australia, and over the years has worked as a solicitor, corporate lawyer and corporate governance consultant. She is one of the founders of Historical Novel Society Australasia. Feel free to contact her at elisabeth@elisabethstorrs.com

Elisabeth considers herself a 'hybrid' author who was traditionally published in Australia, then gained a readership in the international historical fiction community through self-publishing her TALES OF ANCIENT ROME series. This led her to securing an international publishing contract with Lake Union Publishers.

Researched and written over a period of fifteen years, TALES OF ANCIENT ROME vividly describe the world of Etruria, a fantastic civilization ultimately destroyed by Rome but which heavily influenced its conqueror's culture from republican into imperial times. There have been very few novels that have explored the world of the Etruscans and the early Roman Republic which makes the series unusually engrossing reads for historical fiction lovers.

THE WEDDING SHROUD was endorsed by Ursula Le Guin and judged runner-up in the 2012 Sharp Writ Book Awards for general fiction. THE GOLDEN DICE, was endorsed by Ben Kane and is a first place category winner in the 2014 Chaucer Awards. The third book, CALL TO JUNO, was endorsed by Kate Quinn and was selected as an Editor's Choice in the HISTORICAL NOVELS REVIEW in 2016.

Where do we start looking for the real Robin Hood?

I was thinking about history ~ I know not particularly surprising considering what I do for a living, but more specifically I was thinking about how we regard history nowadays. If we had a time-machine and travelled, let's say a thousand years into the past, our concept of history would be very different. We would take folklore very seriously. We would believe what we were told, and we would not ask for proof. We would take a leap of faith - I guess you could call it.

These stories, whether they were about King Arthur or Robin Hood, were important to everybody, not just the peasantry. Henry VII named his first born son Arthur, hoping to replicate King Arthur's glorious reign and the Tudor period saw May Day celebrations where good folk dressed up as Robin Hood and his merry men.

Let's stick with Robin Hood today, sometimes even I have enough of Arthur - did I really just say that?!

Robin is woven into folklore. If we went back to his time, it would be simply a case of heading to Sherwood Forest and at some point you would inevitably bump into him? Maybe if you had a purse full of gold he might seek you out? Or not. It is all suggestive anyway...he didn't actually exist. All we have is some rather wonderful ballads of the time. There is no proof that he was once a genuine historical figure...is there?



In the 1850s Joseph Hunter, a  Unitarian Minister and a deputy keeper of Public Records came across something rather interesting. He discovered that the original location for the Robin Hood stories was not Sherwood in Nottingham, but in Barnsdale. Robin of Barnsdale - doesn't quite have the same ring, does it?!

Nevertheless, Hunter became rather excited about his discovery. Was there a paper trail that led not to a fictional character but to a real person? Hunter used the ballads to guide his way. He discovered a servant called Robin Hood at the court of Edward II. He published a pamphlet on his findings in 1852.  Robin Hood the porter, doesn't quite do it for me and where is King John and the evil Sheriff of Nottingham? I don't want to know about a porter - I want the real thing!

Hunter was like a dog with a bone; he had to find the real Robin Hood. Hunter went on to discover a Wakefield family that had the surname Hood and Robert was a particularly popular name during this time, so there were one or two possible Robin Hoods.

Unfortunately, he could not find any Hoods that were outlawed. However, there seemed to be an issue between the Hoods and some foresters - if the court records are to be believed. There is one Robert Hood who was constantly in  court being fined for aggressive behaviour, trespassing and "...for making his haystack in the common way..." I dread to think.


This Robert, doesn't sound like the Robin we are looking for, although he certainly appears violent enough, he doesn't have that good and kind heart that we associate with Robin Hood.



Let me just stop a minute and put the time of Robin Hood into context. It was an incredibly violent period in English history. Stealing was a huge problem in 13th Century England and the homicide rate was ridiculously high. Gangs of men would band together to raid livestock, and cause terror to the populous. Highway men were a common occurrence. And these gangs were incredibly well organised. They could raid an entire town - remember there is no police force during this time, England would have to wait until Sir Robert Peel introduced the Metropolitan Police Act in 1829!


The exploits of these gangs are not an easy read. They were brutal with no apparent humanity. Was Robin Hood such a man?

What am I doing? I can not compare Robin Hood to these rogues. Robin fought the establishment. He did not make war on his own people.

However, these gangs were not afraid to target the aristocracy either.  In the 14th Century, Sir Richard de Willoughby was seized by a well-organised band of cut-throats. His family had to raise a staggering 1,300 marks for his safe return. Crime sometimes did, it seemed, pay well!

 What was the justice system like?

The justice system reflected the times. It was as brutal as the criminals who lived every day within its shadow. One of the worst sentences was to be declared an outlaw. Not only would you lose all of your property, but you now lived outside of the law. You were a wolfs-head - which meant that anyone could take you down. In all the stories Robin Hood is an outlaw. He loses his property - in modern version of the tale, this is Loxley, his family estate.

Sometimes the sentence of outlaw was thrown around like confetti. Interestingly you didn't necessarily have to commit murder to be declared one. And it wasn't that uncommon to be falsely accused.

"...a fourteenth-century poem says, if a man is unjustly accused and feared the outcome, 'the only remedy is to go to the forest'." Michael Wood In Search Of England.

If that was the case then maybe the forests were full of outlaws! I guess it beats running away to a country that doesn't have an extradition treaty!

The history doesn't really point to a band of merry men, and if the ballads are to be believed, Robin could be just as brutal as the best of them. Kevin Costner, he is not.



Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves - Trailer (1991)
Still, it's a good starting point in the search for Robin Hood.
 

Author’s Inspiration ~ Brian Kitchen #HisFic #Romans @Oldbrookender

It is with the greatest of pleasure that I welcome Historical Fiction author, Brian Kitchen, onto the blog today to talk about the inspirations behind his book…
Divided Empire
 

Britain, 391 AD.The geographical, political and social outlines of the annexed nation are being constantly redefined, as the battling powers in Rome attempt to seize control of the Empire.Flavius Vitulasius and his trusted associate, Siward, are journeying to receive a highly confidential mission, across the narrow sea, from the Master of Offices in Gaul.On their path, they stumble upon a seeming damsel in distress, her carriage under attack from bandits. Using all their prowess and experience, Flavius and Siward rescue the damsel from certain death. Nevertheless, the beautiful young lady, Corellia Velva, is not as she seems. When Corellia slips away the following night, Flavius thinks nothing of it. He has orders passed down from the Emperor himself to attend to. A document, the ‘Pagan Concord’, threatens to pull apart Britain at the seams, creating the lurking fear of civil war between the Christians and Pagans. If Flavius and Siward can recover the ‘Pagan Concord’, they will be able to unmask the conspirators behind the unrest. With the help of an ardent Christian, Lucius Aurelius, the trio commence their enquiries in a clearly divided Britain. However, their expedition takes an unexpected turn when they visit the town of their first suspect. Once again, they come across Corellia. She fervently denies any knowledge of Flavius and Siward, suggesting that it is a case of mistaken identity, prompting suspicion from Flavius.The disquiet among Pagans soon becomes clear, as ritualistic sacrifices and mysterious disappearances soon become the norm, while Flavius attempts to track down the ‘Pagan Concord’ and save the country of his origin. It is not long before he has some unwelcome attention, as murderous villains stalk his every move.Can Flavius locate the document in time?Is there more to Corellia than meets the eye?Can he escape the clutches of his murderous pursuers, and uncover a conspiracy that goes right to the top? Divided Empire is a compelling piece of historical fiction. The first in the series, there is an unexpected twist around every action-packed corner.
***
The inspiration for the 'Divided Empire' series of novels first came back in 1994 when I came across an article in our local newspaper, the Burton Mail, written by a local historian, Dennis Bladon.  Since childhood I have been interested in history, but particularly the history of Roman Britain, even though my home town, Burton upon Trent has little known Roman history. Apart from a Roman urn that was found at Shobnall in the town and some Roman coins which were found at Callingwood on the outskirts of the town, there is little evidence of Roman occupation. Dennis Bladon to my surprise however, theorised that Burton upon Trent was the lost Roman settlement of Ad Trivonam. An interpretation of the name Ad Trivonam is 'the meeting of three roads, by the river'. Now at the time of Dennis’ article only the routes of two Roman roads were known to run through the town and so his theory wasn't given much credence. Four years later however, a Roman road was discovered leading from Leicester in the direction of Burton, which helped to support his theory and my imagination was fired. Further inspiration for the 'Divided Empire' series came from our local castle at Tutbury, near Burton upon Trent. Although the castle is Norman, it is built within the site of an Iron Age Hill Fort, as is the village itself. When the well in the castle was being cleaned out some years ago, a number of small Roman artefacts were found, including a pair of tweezers and some Samian pottery shards. When I visited the castle some years later, I saw displayed in the tea room at the castle, two stone carvings (I visited recently and they are still there). One of the stone carvings fascinated me, as it looked very much like stone carvings that I'd seen of the Celtic God Cernunnos, whilst the other stone carving looked like a Celtic fertility goddess. The two stone carvings were apparently found during excavations of the Castle moat, which explains their worn conditions. The Celtic tribe which occupied the West Midlands was the Cornovii and it is possible that their boundaries stretched as far as Burton & Tutbury. The meaning of the tribes' name has long been a matter of conjecture, but Anne Ross thought that the tribes name contained the element meaning 'horn' (cornu) and could therefore possibly mean the tribe were worshippers of a horned deity. Cernunnos is one such horned deity and in 'Divided Empire’ it is the one the Cornovii worship. Not far from both Burton upon Trent and Tutbury is the village of Abbots Bromley, where each usually each September, the Horn Dance takes place. Although the present Horn Dance dates from the Middle Ages, there is some belief it has its roots in pagan times. For my novel the boundaries of the Cornovii in the east stretch as far as the River Dove and Ad Trivonam and Tutbury, which is known as the 'Lookout fort on the Dufan' are both within the tribe’s territory. Flavius Vitulasius’ home in ‘Divided Empire’ is in Ad Trivonam in a villa overlooking the Trisantona Fluvius (the River Trent). In Shobnall on the Sinai Hill is Sinai House, now in private hands, but in the days of Burton Abbey it was the country house of the Abbots and later converted to a sanatorium for use of the monks. Local legend has it that when some repairs were being carried out in the 1800’s, a Roman mosaic was uncovered in the cellar of the house. For the purposes of my novel Flavius’ home is a villa on the site of Sinai house, though if the legend is true, then it is more likely that a temple would have stood there.As regards the historical background to my novels, they start in 391AD; three years after the Emperor Theodosius had defeated Magnus Maximus and restored Valentinian to the throne of the Western Roman Empire. I have tried to keep the events that followed true to the known history of what followed as regards Arbogastes eventual usurpation of the throne and his placement of Eugenius as his puppet upon it. What the true events were in Britain are not fully known however, as the history of that period is sketchy at best. I’ve therefore based events in the novel on what could have happened, using the known later events as a guide. ‘Divided Empire’ is after all a work of fiction, but one that sets out to tell a good story. As regards what people wore, eat, the way they lived and their daily lives, I’ve based as much as possible on what is known of the period.
 
Links for PurchaseAmazon USAmazon UK
About the author 
I live in Burton upon Trent, England and am married to Lynne and have a son, Mark and two tortoise shell cats, Tansy & Zoe. I enjoy walking in the countryside, photography, reading, writing, visiting museums and historic sites & buildings and supporting Burton Albion. I first became interested in the history of Roman Britain as a child and loved the 'Eagle of the Ninth' trilogy of novels by Rosemary Sutcliff. When I was older I read & studied all that I could about the history of the period, visiting many museums and archaeological sites to further improve my knowledge. I am a member of The Association for Roman Archeology.I've always had a passion for writing and when I retired from Local Government Health & Social Services, I wrote a guest column in our local newspaper for two years and also decided to write novels set in late 4th Century CE Roman Britain. The first of the Flavius Vitulasius Novels, 'Divided Empire' is my first published novel, but there are many more to come and the second novel is nearing completion. I hope that you enjoying reading the novels as much as I've enjoyed writing them.Should you wish to know more about Flavius & his friends, you can find me at:Twitter: Brian John Kitchen @OldbrookenderWebsite: www.briankitchen.me.ukFacebook: facebook.com/FlaviusVitulasius

How Historically Accurate Should Historical Fiction Writers Be?

 
 Well...
This is a relatively contentious question and one I have been thinking about a lot recently. I was asked, by an author, to review their historical fiction book. As well as an author I am a professional reader ~ in other words...I review books. The book in question sounded right up my street, and I looked forward to reading it. However, very soon I became very disheartened, for there was one historical inaccuracy after another. The author had clearly done very little research, and this showed in the writing. I am afraid the book did not make it onto this blog as I could not give it a positive review and I do not want to trash someone else's book on this blog ~ that isn't what I am about. Unfortunately, the more books that I am given to review, the more I have realised that this isn't an isolated incident.

Now those of you who are regular readers of this blog, will no doubt know that I write historical fantasy set in the Dark Ages. Just because I write 'fantasy' this does not mean that I am complacent with the era in which my book is set in. I can spend hours researching the most mundane history of - let me give an example, I spent two hours researching the history of cobblestones and all for this one sentence.


There was an old man with a broom and a bucket, trying to wash away Merton’s blood from the pitched paving. All the water did was spread the blood around further until the old man was paddling in it. The Du Lac Devil (Book 2 of The Du Lac Chronicles)- due for release late 2016


That is 2 hours of my life that I will never get back, but I now know a lot more about cobblestones! And who knows, maybe one day there will be a question on cobblestones at the local pub quiz, and I'll be able to answer it. Yay!

My point is, if I can spend two hours researching cobblestones for my historical fantasy novel, then I expect a historical fiction author to take as much care.

 Please note - the Candy floss was merely used to hold the book down. I did not eat the rest of the tub. As I asked my children, "where's your proof?"


 For someone like me, a historical inaccuracy jumps out. It is the same with historically based movies. Let's use Braveheart as an example. I am sure we all remember Mel Gibson playing the heroic Scottish freedom fighter, William Wallace. There is so much historically wrong with this movie that it could take up an entire post, but nevertheless, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it is a great movie, and cinematically pleasing. Braveheart was - is - an amazing film. I have watched it countless times. It won 5 Oscars for goodness sake. So why am I spending two hours of my time looking up the history of cobblestones for one sentence, when Hollywood, puts all the Scots in kilts and rewrite history by taking out the Bridge in the Battle of Stirling - and that is just two examples of historical inaccuracies in this film...believe me, there are more! 


No one cares about the historical inaccuracies if the story is good.
Actually, readers care.
Readers, and Reviewers like myself, expect a historical novel - whether that is romance or an epic saga - to represent the period of the time it is set in. An author is setting themselves up for a fall, if they don't do their homework. Believe me, it isn't just reviewers that pick up historical inaccuracies, it is readers as well, and they will happily tell you all about it when they leave a review on Amazon.
Just out of interested I googled how to write historical fiction. I read a few posts, and they all said the same sort of things...
Don't trust Wikipedia.Grab some reference books.Don't worry about the history just get the story down.
I agree with the Wikipedia and the reference books but how can you not worry about the history when you are writing historical fiction? That is like saying, don't worry about medical practices when your story is set in a hospital. You need a little knowledge at least. Now there is a fine balance. I don't want to read a book that comes across as a history lesson. If I wanted to do that, then I would pick up one of my non-fiction history books. The story has to be good, and if the story is good, then the odd historical inaccuracy can be overlooked and let’s be honest, we all,  even with the best intentions, make mistakes, but when the mistake is something big, or there are a lot of little mistakes, then this takes me away from the story.
Let's take a look at one of the masters of historical fiction. For this example I am going to look at Philippa Gregory's books - I'll pick The White Princess as an example - now this book is a work of historical fiction. Gregory has no proof that Henry Tudor raped Elizabeth, but Gregory obviously thought this made a good story (personally I would disagree with her on this, but it is her book, it is her fictional story). But, what Gregory does do very well, is she keeps to the history of the period. By that I mean she sweats the details. She researches the mundane. And that is why I have read, not all, but a fair number of her books.


A historical fiction author can get away with a fair amount. They can rewrite history. They can make good kings bad, and bad kings good. But, to keep their readers ( and reviewers) happy, they must stay authentic to the time the book is set in. As a book reviewer I ask this of you... Take your time to research. Don't make big mistakes. It could mean the difference between a 5* review and a 3.

#bookreview ~ The Du Lac Chronicles #Arthurian historical #fantasy

The Du Lac Chroniclesby Mary Anne Yarde

“It is dangerous to become attached to a du Lac. He will break your heart, and you will not recover.” So prophesies a wizened healer to Annis, daughter of King Cerdic of Wessex. If there is truth in the old crone’s words, they come far too late for Annis, who defies father, king, and country to save the man she loves.
Alden du Lac, once king of Cerniw, has nothing. Betrayed by Cerdic, Alden’s kingdom lies in rubble, his fort razed to the ground and his brother Merton missing, presumably dead. He has only one possession left worth saving: his heart. And to the horror of his few remaining allies, he gives that to the daughter of his enemy. They see Annis, at best, as a bargaining chip to avoid war with her powerful father. At worst, they see a Saxon whore with her claws in a broken, wounded king.
Alden has one hope: When you war with one du Lac, you war with them all. His brother Budic, King of Brittany, could offer the deposed young king sanctuary—but whether he will offer the same courtesy to Annis is far less certain. 


What are readers saying about The Du Lac Chronicles?



Links To Purchase  
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The Dark Ages ~ A real Game of Thrones?

"Britain is an island in the ocean and it was formally called Albion... It is rich in crops and trees and has good pasturage for cattle...

In Britain at present there are five languages following the number of the books in which the Divine law was written. It contains five nations, the English, Britons, Irish, Picts and Latins, each with its own special dialect intent on the sublime study of divine truth. Because of the study of the Scriptures the Latin tongue has become common to them all..." Bede Ecclesiastical History of the English People.

What do we know about the Dark Ages?


I posed this question to a group of children I was tutoring a little while ago.  This was one of the answers I received.

"It was dark in the Dark Ages. There was no electricity and candles had no been invented. And it was always raining, so it was dark in the day time as well."

For a six year old I thought that was a pretty good answer!

It was Francesco Petrarca, an Italian scholar who first penned the phrase. He was studying the works of the time and concluded...

 "Amidst the errors there shone forth men of genius; no less keen were their eyes, although they were surrounded by darkness and dense gloom."

  He meant it as a scathing criticism of late Lain literature and not the period itself.

Saeculum obscurum ~ the dark world (The Dark Ages) was also a name used to describe the history of the Papacy in the latter part of the 10th Century. It wasn't until the 16th Century that the age between the Roman's departure and the Norman invasion became commonly known as The Dark Ages.


Since then scholars have tried to rename the period -

The Pagan Saxon Period

The Early Saxon Period

The Early Christian Period
The Christian – Saxon Period

The Early Middle Ages

But, for consistency in this post, I will continue to refer to the era as The Dark Ages.

The Dark Ages was a time of invasion - it saw the arrival of the Saxon's, the Angles and the Jutes who fought over the spoils.  And let's not forget the missionaries under St Augustine, who came back to Britain and reintroduced Christianity.  Which ultimately led to the Christina Saxon Period.


By the 8th Century, the Vikings had finally travelled West.  I have often wondered what these Viking explorers thought when they landed at Lindisfarne in 793. Here was an island, completely defenceless, inhabited by men in robes, and filled with precious treasures. What a find. They must have thought the people of this rich country a little soft in the head to leave such treasures unguarded. So it is no surprise that they sacked Lindisfarne. But to a scholar, many centuries later, Lindisfarne shows us how dynamic the political structure in Britain had become.  Up until the Viking invasion, the monasteries were respected as sacred places. No one would dare attack them.


Therefore, we cannot overlook the importance of the church during this period.


" ...As late as the mid-fourth century the principle rural religious foci throughout the region were pagan temples, by 500 the situation had ceased. There is no trace of organised paganism in western Britain after the early fifth century, and the main religious foci are now monastic sites and churches."  Dr Ken Dark

Likewise, trade continued when the Roman's left, particularly between the West of Britain and the Mediterranean. If we stick to Arthurian Legend, then let's go to Tintagel Castle. The finds that have been found here show that this was a regular stop for trade. Money was being spent.
"...glassware from southern Spain, wine amphorae from Byzantium, oil jars and fine tableware from North Africa..." Dr Francis Pryor.


It is true that not a great deal was written down during the Dark Ages. We have to go on archaeological finds and defer to people who have far greater knowledge of the era than I do, but one thing I find intriguing is why what was written down, was written down in the first place.

Gildas - A British monk from the 5th Century who wrote the se excidio et conquestu Britanniae (Concerning the Ruin and Fall of Britain) reads like a condemning sermon. He is preaching a political reprimand.


Nennius and his Historia Brittonim(History of the Britons) is dripping with political motives - in this instance, we need to look to the politics in 9th Century Wales ~ King Merfyn of Gwynedd needed a great Celtic leader to inspire his supporters, and Nennuis’s work provided one.


"The Historia was also created as a counter to the "English" of the Venerable Bede's history, which was very popular at the time…" Dr Francis Pryor.


I love the work of Bede, I have read Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People many times. He describes a time of anarchy - (dare I borrow the title of George R. R. Martin book) – Bede describes A Game Of Thrones. But when the Anglo-Saxons turned to Christianity, order was restored.


During Alfred The Great's reign, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles was composed. As an author of historical fiction set in the Dark Ages, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles is one of the most important books in my collection. It begins with the Roman invasion, and it was updated until as late as the mid-twelfth century. Although deciphering what is real and what is fictitious is certainly challenging!



Of course, being an author who writes about Arthurian legend, I have to give credit to another writer of that time, Geoffrey Monmouth. Monmouth lived during a period of grave unrest. England was in the midst of a civil war between King Stephen and Matilda. Monmouth's work was incredibly popular - but there was more to it than simply telling a good yarn about King Arthur. He wasn't writing for the masses, but for the Anglo-Norman elite. He made up extravagant claims of King Arthur's greatness, which he backed up by "authentic sources,” which he then accidentally misplaced! His work was considered to be factual - for the most part!


"it is quite clear that everything this man wrote about Arthur and his successors, or indeed about his predecessors from Vortigern onwards, was made up, partly by himself and partly by others..." William of  Newburgh ~ 12th Century English Historian.


The Dark Ages is anything but Dark! It is a fascinating period in British history that I will never  tire of.

Sources
Gildas ~ se excidio et conquestu BritanniaeNennius  ~ historia brittonimBede ~  Ecclesiastical History of the English PeopleKing Alfred the Great ~ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles Geoffrey Monmouth  ~ historia regum britanniaeFrancis Pryor ~ Britain ADMichael Wood ~ In Search Of The Dark Ages  Michael Wood ~ In Search of England

#BookReview ~ The Viking by Marti Talbott #YA

Today, I am handing the blog over to my daughter, Elle, for her very first book review!! Elle is 12 and very much a bookworm!
The VikingbyMarti Talbott
  At not quite fifteen, Stefan’s father finally let him board the longship Sja Vinna to take part in his first Viking raid. Yet, the battle was not at all what he expected and he soon found himself alone and stranded in Scotland.

Thirteen-year-old Kannak’s problem was just as grave. Her father deserted them and the only way to survive, she decided, was to take a husband over her mother‘s objections. Suddenly she was helping a hated Viking escape. Could Kannak successfully hide a Viking in the middle of a Scottish Clan? And why was someone plotting to kill the clan's beloved laird? 
What did I think of the book?  At last, the day has come, Stefan has finally been allowed to board his father's Viking longship and go on his first raid.  What he didn’t count on was being left behind in Scotland.

 Kannak is thirteen and is alone with her mother - as her father has abandoned them. She has decided that the only way for them to survive is to marry, so they will have someone to help work the land.

Then she meets Stefan…and life will never be the same again!

This young adult book is one that had me hooked from the beginning. The romance that is weaved into the storyline is beautiful. The relationship between Kannak and Stefan developed over the course of the story and was very believable.

My favourite character is Stefan, for, although he is a Viking, he fits right into the Scottish clan without any problems and cares deeply for the two women who work their way into his life.

I also like the fact that this book wasn’t written as most books are. The clan is Scottish, so when they are speaking, they are speaking the way a Scottish clan would. I could almost hear them talking as I read it.

I Highly Recommend this book to anyone.
Links to buyAmazon 
About the author

After I retired in 2010, I had lots of time on my hands, so I started writing ANNA and just for fun, posted the story on my website for people to read free. ANNA, typos and all, was a huge success, so I wrote the story of Anna's little sister, Rachel, and a third story called Charlet. Charlet was the most fun to write, and after her story, came seventeen more stories of life, laughter and love in the MacGreagor Clan.

I then divided the twenty stories into five volumes and published them as Kindle books. Like my readers, I could not say goodbye to my characters, so after the first five, I wrote nine more novels, bringing the total to fourteen. The Viking is a prequel to the series. Now, and to my amazement, my Highlander Series is being read all over the world.

Before my grandparents passed, they wrote a journal about their courtship in the early 1900's. Thus, Marblestone Mansion was born. There are now nine books in that series with one more to come.

Seattle Quake 9.2 was written years ago and since then I have added two more books to the Jackie Harlan Mysteries. The Carson Series was already written before I retired. 
Useful Links 
Come meet me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/marti.talbott and visit my website at www.martitalbott.com  

#Arthurian Legend ~ Morgan le Fay

 Hell Hath No Fury Like A Woman Scorned.

Morgan le Fay ~ the sister King Arthur wished he never had.

Morgan le Fay by Frederick Sandys (1864)
Morgan goes by many names, the most popular being Morgana. As her name "Fay" suggests, she is a magical being. She is a great sorcerer, a healer, who uses her magic against her brother.

Morgan is the daughter of Igraine and her first husband Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall. This makes her Arthur's half-sister. She is married to King Uriens and is the mother of Yvain. In later works, she is the mother of Mordred. 


The earliest mention of Morgan was by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his lesser known work Vita Merlini (The Life of Merlin). In this account, Morgan and her nine magical sisters reside in Avalon. They can only use their magic for good. But by the 13th Century, Morgan takes on a more sinister role.


It is in Lancelot-Grail where her character first takes a turn for the worse. Suddenly, instead of being this caring and compassionate woman who can only do good, she becomes this evil sorcerer, who is intent on bringing Artur and his kingdom down.


 Morgan Le Fay by John R. Spencer Stanhope (1880)

Morgan believes that Arthur ruined her life. To find out why we need to look at how Arthur was conceived...

 Uther Pendragon became obsessed with Igraine, Morgan's mother. Uther is determined to have her in his bed. While Morgan's father, Glorious, is a way in battle, Uther Pendragon disguises himself - with the aid of Merlin - and tricks Igraine into thinking she is making love to her husband when in fact she is being raped by Uther. It is on this night that Arthur is conceived.

Uther Pendragon by Howard Pyle  The Story of King Arthur and His Knights. (1903)

After her father's death, Morgan is spirited away to a convent ~ she is out of sight, out of mind. It is at the convent where Morgan begins to study magic. Later, her education is continued under the watchful eye of Merlin. However, Arthur puts a stop to her learning by marrying her off to King Urien of Gore. Their marriage is not a happy one, and Morgan takes a string of lovers until the fateful day when Queen Guinevere finds out about her not so honourable behaviour and puts a stop to it.


Morgan's relationship with Merlin also rapidly breaks down, and she ends up despising him too. To make matters worse, all her attempts at bringing Arthus's reign down is hampered by Nimue ~ The Lady of the Lake.

  The Enchanter Merlin, by Howard Pyle The Story of King Arthur and His Knights (1903)

And then one day Lancelot comes to court. Poor Morgan, she falls head over heels in love with him, but alas he does not love her back. She tries countless times to seduce him and to trick him into loving her. Unfortunately, he is faithful to his lover, Guinevere. Morgan find's our about the affair and does everything she can to expose it.


Illustration from The Boy's King Arthur  Launcelot and Guinevere — "He rode his way with the Queen unto Joyous Gard."


In Post-Vulgate Queste Morgan is devoted to her magic. She even takes herself away from society, living in a forest. She becomes a shape-shifter - she can transform into any animal - and she earns the name Morgan the Goddess.


In Thomas Malory Le Morte d'Arthur, Morgan dedicates her life to bringing Arthur and Guinevere down.


In the tale of Gawain and the Green Knight, Morgan is the brains behind the plot. She wants to test the knights metal and, in an underhanded way, hopes to frighten the living daylights out of Guinevere!


 Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Artist unknown)

Morgan's tale is told in a thousand different ways through the ages. The most recent account of Morgan's escapades can be found in the BBC series, Merlin. Here she goes by the name Morgana. She is a sorcerer. She is also Merlin's enemy and Arthur's half-sister ( although this time, they have the same father), and she lives in a world where magic is banned.



So from Welsh myth to an Arthurian one, Morgan goes on one heck of a journey.  But the common theme throughout seems to be that she was dealt a poor hand which makes her one very bitter lady with a grudge.