Linnea Tanner's Blog, page 21
February 1, 2023
ROSALIND: DNA’s Invisible Woman Jessie Mills #rosalindfranklin #historicalfiction #invisiblewomen #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @byjessiemills @cathiedunn
Please welcome Jessie Mills as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour being held between January 30th — February 3rd, 2023. Jessie Mills is the author of the Historical Fiction / Narrative Non-fiction, ROSALIND: DNA’s Invisible Woman, released by Ingram Spark/Alpha Helix Publishing on 15 March 2022 (print) and 18 February 2022 (digital) [310 pages].
Below are highlights of Rosalind: DNA’s Invisible Woman, author bio for Jessie Mills, and an excerpt from her book about Rosalind Franklin.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Blog Tour Schedule
ROSALIND: DNA’S INVISIBLE WOMAN HIGHLIGHTS
Rosalind: DNA’s Invisible Woman
by Jessie Mills
(blurb)
‘A luminous, pin-sharp portrait of a true trailblazer. Mills’s writing simply glows.’−Zoë Howe, Author, Artist and RLF Writing Fellow at Newnham College, University of Cambridge
Rosalind: DNA’s Invisible Woman tells the true story of the woman who discovered the structure of DNA, whose work was co-opted by three men who won a Nobel prize for the discovery.
Her story is one of hope, perseverance, love and betrayal.
Driven by her faith in science, Rosalind Franklin persisted with her education in the face of formidable obstacles, including the de-reservation of women from war science.
In Norway at the start of World War II, her place at Cambridge’s first women’s college was thrown into jeopardy. A decade later, she fled Paris upon the news that the research director at the State Chemicals Lab was having an affair. They continued to write to each other in secret.
Rosalind knew when embarking on science, a gentleman’s profession, that the odds would be stacked against a woman’s success. But she did not foresee that her pay would later be cut on account of her age and gender, that she would be burned by the plagiarism rife among her male contemporaries, or face her own battle with cancer.
When she took a research post at King’s College London, the head of the physics department switched her subject to DNA at the last minute.
She was tasked with discovering its structure using X-ray crystallography. Could she become the first scientist to map the DNA molecule and would the discovery ultimately be worth it?
When two researchers at Cambridge University, her alma mater, built a three-chain model of DNA weeks after seeing her lecture, she knew that it was wrong.
Scientists at each of the three labs competing in the race to find DNA’s structure had guessed that the molecule had three chains. Her evidence proved them wrong. But would anybody listen?
This is the story of DNA that you won’t find in the history books…
The woman behind science’s greatest discovery has been variously referred to as ‘an obsessive woman’, ‘difficult’, and ‘the dark lady of DNA’. Why was she called these names, and were they justified?
Written by journalist and former Wall Street Journal (PRO) editor Jessica Mills Davies, following nearly three years of intensive archival research, the novel aims to give Rosalind Franklin a voice for the first time in history. Her story is the most well-documented account of ‘the Matilda effect’ and its corollary ‘the Matthew Effect’, whereby women’s contributions to science and other professions are often ignored or misappropriated.
The Exeter Novel Prize-longlisted novel is peppered with copies of original correspondence between her and her contemporaries, illustrating how three men got away with the biggest heist in scientific history.
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AUTHOR BIO: JESSIE MILLS
Jessica is a journalist and author. She has written for publications such as The Independent, The Wall Street Journal and Business Insider, where she investigated the use of flammable cladding in hospital intensive care units in 2020.
Before that, she was a member of the steering committee for Women at Dow Jones, where she spent several years as an editor and led the team that uncovered the misuse of funds at Abraaj.
Her debut novel tells the true story of Rosalind Franklin, the invisible woman behind the discovery of DNA’s double helix. It was longlisted for the Exeter Novel Prize 2020.
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EXCERPT FROM ROSALIND: DNA’S INVISIBLE WOMAN
ROSALIND: DNA’s INVISIBLE WOMAN Part XI, chapter 35 (Ecclesiastes | Qōheleth’)
‘Are you pregnant?’ Dr Livingstone asks, taking one look at my stomach.
Her office is bare except for a leather chair. I had been struggling to zip up my skirt since New York. The diners there served fatty breakfasts, pancakes with a choice of maple syrup or jam, and cheese omelettes, in quadruple the usual quantity.
The doctor beckons for me to sit down as I hover at the entrance to her office. I pause. My hands are sweaty and my heart is pounding. She flicks through my notes, which are kept in a brown envelope, waiting for a response.
‘I wish that I was,’ I say, betraying my fears of spinsterhood.
It makes me nervous when doctors ask such personal questions. I didn’t know how many of my parents’ friends attended that same surgery in Hampstead. Even if I was pregnant, would I tell a person behind a desk? As the local doctor, she’s in a position of authority to elicit my most vulnerable secrets. What would she think of me, if I told her that I could be pregnant? Would she think I was a harlot?
‘Are you trying?’ the doctor asks, checking my notes once more.
‘I’m not married.’ The sound of my voice betrays my disappointment.
‘Professor Nixon is very good,’ she says, referring me to see a specialist.
‘What will you say on the referral?’
‘Patient notes are private Ms Franklin.’
‘Please don’t use the word pregnant. I don’t want people to talk.’
‘Do you think you might be?’
‘No, I mean, I came about stomach pains, not pregnancy.’
‘I think you had better leave, Ms Franklin. I’m referring you to see a specialist for your bloating and gastralgia. There’s not much more I can do for you unless there’s anything more you want to tell me.’
It is several weeks before I receive a letter with a date to see Professor Nixon. The gel specimens of the tobacco-mosaic virus are keeping me busy most nights. I need to find a way to reconstitute specimens of the virus and prepare them to be X-rayed. Before my trip abroad we had struggled to get good specimens, as the slides were sticky with RNA. By treating the build-up, we were able to get clearer X-rays.
On examining my stomach, the specialist Dr Nixon immediately advises surgery. He says University College Hospital will operate for free under the National Health Service, which is less than a decade old.
‘Is it really necessary?’ I ask.
‘We won’t know what’s causing your symptoms without investigating further.’
Before surgery, the nurse at the hospital hugs me and tells me not to worry. The next few minutes are a blur.
‘Have you had a surgery before?’ she says as she takes my blood pressure.
Her velvety accent sounds Caribbean.
‘The only serious illness I’ve ever had is jaundice, except for a cold now and then.’
‘When was that?’
‘I was twenty-two.’
‘You’ll be fine,’ she says. ‘Don’t you worry.’
She says it in the way that adults comfort children, with both benevolence and pity. In her palm, she is holding a small mountain of drugs.
‘Three painkillers, one penicillin. Take them.’
The doctor returns shortly afterwards with a form for me to sign.
‘It’s for consent,’ he says.
The form says that if one of my organs is damaged during the operation, the surgeon has permission to repair it.
‘How often does that happen?’ I ask him.
‘Rarely,’ he says.
Another box asks me to consent to my ovaries being removed if necessary. It says there is a chance of death from the operation.
‘This is only meant to be exploratory,’ I say.
The nurse puts her hand on mine and looks at the form with me.
‘They only do what’s needed,’ the doctor says.
He registers my details and explains the procedure. Then he hands me a pillow and sends me to wait outside in a cemented stairway. I feel as though I am holding my block for the gallows. I had signed my life away. Now I am waiting for the inevitable. My whole body, up to my shoulders, is trembling.
‘So you’re a physicist? What are you working on?’ the anaesthetist asks as I’m laying on my back in a hospital bed, upstairs from the registrar.
‘Polio,’ I say.
He asks me to lie down and count backwards from ten while he injects the drugs into my veins. As I count the numbers, the summer sunshine begins to fade away.
I have applied for a grant to fund my investigations into the structure of polio. It is the very last thing on my mind when the anaesthetic starts to take effect. If we could map the structure of the virus, as Dorothy Hodgkin had done with penicillin, it would be possible to make a synthetic vaccine. It hadn’t been done before. A denatured polio specimen was available, but an artificial vaccine would be cheaper. The more people who were immunised, the more effective any vaccine would be. Perhaps one day it would eradicate the most paralysing killer of the age: polio.
The next thing I know, I am being propped up on a hospital bed by two nursing staff.
‘Did they find anything?’ I ask.
Their silence is palpable. From the corner of my eye, I see the nurses turn to each other while they are adjusting the bedding underneath me. There is an almost equal chance of good or bad news, but their reticence is foreboding.
…
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January 26, 2023
N L Holmes Pilot Who Knows the Waters #HistoricalMystery #AncientEgypt #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @nlholmesbooks @cathiedunn
I am pleased to host N. L. Homes again as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour being held between January 16th — January 27th, 2023. She is the author of the Historical Mystery / Political Intrigue novel, Pilot Who Knows the Waters (The Lord Hani Mysteries, Book 6), released by WayBack Press on 15th June 2022 (330 pages)
Below are highlights of Pilot Who Knows the Waters, the author bio for N. L. Holmes, and my review of her novel.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page
HIGHLIGHTS: PILOT WHO KNOWS THE WATERS
Pilot Who Knows the Waters
(The Lord Hani Mysteries, Book 1)
By N.L. Holmes
(Blurb)
Hani must secretly obtain a Hittite bridegroom for Queen Meryet-amen, but Ay and the faction behind Prince Tut-ankh-aten are opposed—to the point of violence. Does the death of an artisan have anything to do with Ay’s determination to see his grandson on the throne? Then, another death brings Egypt to the brink of war… Hani’s diplomatic skills will be pushed to the limit in this final book in The Lord Hani Mysteries.
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AUTHOR BIO: N. L. HOLMES
N.L. Holmes is the pen name of a professional archaeologist who received her doctorate from Bryn Mawr College. She has excavated in Greece and in Israel, and taught ancient history and humanities at the university level for many years. She has always had a passion for books, and in childhood, she and her cousin (also a writer today) used to write stories for fun. Today, she and her husband live in France with their chickens and cats, where she weaves, plays the violin, gardens, and dances.
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BOOK REVIEW: PILOT WHO KNOWS THE WATERS
The sixth and final book in The Lord Hani Mysteries by N. L. Holmes sweeps you back to 1335 BCE in ancient Egypt, after the death of Pharoah Akh-en-aten, who imposed his radical reforms of elevating only one god for worship. It is a period of political unrest when powerful factions yearn to return to polytheistic traditions, and the dynastic male heir is in doubt.
Lord Hani, the protagonist, is based on a historical Egyptian emissary sent on a secret mission to negotiate a marriage between the Hittite king’s son and Queen Meryet-amen, Akh-en-aten’s eldest daughter, and to form an alliance between the rival nations. If the marriage proposal comes to light, there could be violent resistance by Ay —the grandfather of Prince Tut-ankh-aten, whose birth mother is in question. When Hani returns with the Hittite bridegroom to the border between the hostile nations, the prince is mysteriously killed during a lion hunt. At about the same time, an artisan working for the mother of Lord Hani’s son-in-law is murdered. Are the two incidents coincidental or the consequences of political infighting for power in the dynastic family?
Author N. L. Holmes has written a meticulously researched historical mystery steeped in mystery and political intrigue. She provides historical notes, a list of characters, and glossaries of gods, terms, and places to help navigate the political machinations. The book can be read as a standalone. Still, it would be helpful to read the entire series to keep track of the myriad of characters with complicated names and the complex historical backdrop. I read the first book, Bird in a Snare, which helped me understand the relationships in Lord Hani’s family and how they fit into the dynamics of the religious and dynastic upheavals.
The story is told from various characters’ viewpoints to set the suspense for tying together the mysterious deaths of the Hittite prince and Egyptian artisan. The author masterfully weaves the dynamics of Lord Hani’s family into the epic backdrop of Egyptian political maneuverings. Clues are dropped throughout the story, tying the incidents surrounding the murders to a satisfying ending of the series.
Pilot Who Knows the Waters is highly recommended for readers who enjoy reading complex historical fiction rich in accurate descriptions of the ancient Egyptian civilization’s archaeology, culture, and religious beliefs.
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January 22, 2023
Book Spotlight The Flame Tree Siobhan Daiko #HistoricalFiction #WomensFiction #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @siobhandaiko @cathiedunn
It is my pleasure to spotlight the Asian Historical Fiction, The Flame Tree (The Hong Kong Collection) by Siobhan Daiko, in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour that is being held today, 20th January 2023. The Flame Tree was released by Asolando Books on 19th January 2023 (300 pages).
Below are highlights of The Flame Tree and Siobhan Daiko’s author bio.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page
BOOK SPOTLIGHT: THE FLAME TREE
The Flame Tree
(The Hong Kong Collection)
By Siobhan Daiko
(Blurb)
In the spring of 1939, dashing young William Burton and the beautiful Constance Han set sail from London on the same ocean liner to Hong Kong.
Romance blossoms while they enjoy games of deck quoits and spend sultry tropical evenings dancing under the stars. Connie is intrigued by Will’s talent for writing poetry, and she offers to give him Cantonese lessons to help him with his new job— a cadet in the colonial service.
But once in Hong Kong, Connie is constrained by filial duty towards her Eurasian parents, and their wish for her to marry someone from her own background. She can’t forget Will however and arranges to meet him in secret under the magnificent canopy of a flame of the forest tree—where she fulfils her promise to teach him to speak Chinese.
Before too long, trouble looms as Japanese forces gather on the border between Hong Kong and mainland China. Will joins a commando group tasked with operating behind enemy lines, and Connie becomes involved in the fight against local fifth columnists.
When war breaks out, they find themselves drawn into a wider conflict than their battle against prejudice. Can they survive and achieve a future together? Or do forces beyond their control keep them forever apart?
Based on a little-known true story, The Flame Tree is a tale of love and survival against all the odds.
PRAISE FOR SIOBHAN DAIKO
“Siobhan Daiko will tug at your heartstrings, and leave you desperate for more…”~ Ellie Yarde, The Coffee Pot Book Club.
“Daiko is an author you’ll want to add to your historical fiction favourites.”~ Netgalley Reviewer
Buy Links:
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AUTHOR BIO: SIOBHAN DAIKO
Siobhan Daiko is a British historical fiction author. A lover of all things Italian, she lives in the Veneto region of northern Italy with her husband, a Havanese dog and a rescued cat. Siobhan was born of English parents in Hong Kong, attended boarding school in Australia, and then moved to the UK—where she taught modern foreign languages in a Welsh comprehensive school. She now spends her time writing page-turners and enjoying her life near Venice.
Her novels are compelling, poignant, and deeply moving, with strong characters and evocative settings, but always with romance at their heart. You can find more about her books on her website www.siobhandaiko.org
Social Links:
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LinkedIn • Instagram • Pinterest • Book Bub • Author Page • Goodreads
Instagram: @thecoffeepotbookclub
January 19, 2023
Book Spotlight Caledon Virginia Crow #HistoricalFantasy #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @DaysDyingGlory @CrowvusLit @cathiedunn
It is my pleasure to spotlight the Historical Fantasy, Caledon (Caledon Book One), by Virginia Crow in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour, being held between 16th December through 27th January 2023. Caledon was released by Crowvus on 22nd January 2019 (468 pages).
Below are highlights of Caldon and Virginia Crow’s author bio.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page
HIGHLIGHTS: CALEDON
Caledon
(Caledon, Book 1)
By Virginia Crow
(Blurb)
“Go out and tell all those you meet, Caledon has risen. Caledon will be protected and defended.
And to you who would cause her harm, be prepared. A new fight has come.”
After the destruction of the Jacobite forces at Culloden, Scotland is divided, vulnerable and leaderless, with survivors from both sides seeking to make sense of the battles they have fought against their fellow Scots.
James Og flees Drumossie, seeking the protection of his uncle’s house in Sutherland. It is here that James learns that the Northern Highlands hold a secret power only he can wield: Caledon. When Ensign John Mackay begins hunting Og’s family, James realises he must harness this power to defeat the enemies of Scotland.
But, as the ageless Caledon awakes, so too does an ancient evil. When it allies with Mackay, the small Clan of Caledon faces enemies at every turn, discovering that even those closest to them may seek to destroy them.
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AUTHOR BIO: VIRGINIA CROW
Virginia grew up in Orkney, using the breath-taking scenery to fuel her imagination and the writing fire within her. Her favourite genres to write are fantasy and historical fiction, sometimes mixing the two together. She enjoys swashbuckling stories such as The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and is still waiting for a screen adaption that lives up to the book!
When she’s not writing, Virginia is usually to be found teaching music. She believes wholeheartedly in the power of music, especially as a tool of inspiration. She also helps out with the John o’ Groats Book Festival which is celebrating its 4th year.
She now lives in the far-flung corner of Scotland. A doting spaniel-owner to Orlando and Jess, Virginia soaks up in inspiration from the landscape as she ventures out with her canine companions.
She loves cheese, music, and films but hates mushrooms.
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Instagram: @cathiedunnwrites
January 13, 2023
The Captain’s Woman Holly Bush #HistoricalRomance #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @hollybushbooks @cathiedunn
Please welcome Holly Bush again as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour held between January 9th — January 13th, 2023. Holly Bush is the author of the Historical Romance, The Captain’s Woman (The Thompsons of Locust Street), released by Holly Bush Books on January 10th, 2023 (218 pages).
Below are highlights of The Captain’s Woman, Holly Bush’s author bio, and an excerpt from her book.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page
HIGHLIGHTS: THE CAPTAIN’S WOMAN
The Captain’s Woman
(The Thompsons of Locust Street)
by Holly Bush
(Blurb)
Meet the Thompsons of Locust Street, an unconventional family taking Philadelphia high society by storm…
1870 ~ Muireall Thompson has taken her duties seriously since her parents died on the family’s crossing from Scotland to America in 1854. As the eldest sibling, their death made her responsible for her family and left little time for a life of her own. But now her brothers and sisters are adults; even the youngest is nearly ready to face the world on his own. What will she do when she is alone, other than care for an elderly aunt and volunteer at the Sisters of Charity orphanage? Has the chance for a husband and children of her own passed her by?
Widower Anthony Marcus, formerly a captain in the Union Army, is a man scraping the bottom of his dignity and hanging on to his honor by the barest thread. Reduced to doing odd jobs to keep a roof over his dear daughter Ann’s head, he often leaves her with the Sisters of Charity while he is out seeking steady work with a decent salary that will allow him to move from their single-room living quarters.
After an initial meeting that finds Muireall and Anthony at odds, a tentative friendship forms as they bond over their mutual affection for Ann. As friendship leads to passion, can a wealthy spinster and a poor soldier overcome their differences in station to forge a future together? Just as Muireall finds the courage to reach for her own happiness, Anthony’s past rises up between them and an old enemy reemerges to bring the Thompson family down once and for all. Will the divide between them be insurmountable, or can they put aside pride and doubt for a love worth fighting for?
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Holly Bush writes historical romance set in the U.S.in the late 1800’s, in Victorian England, and an occasional Women’s Fiction title. Her books are described as emotional, with heartfelt, sexy romance. She makes her home with her husband in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Connect with Holly at www.hollybushbooks.com and on Twitter @hollybushbooks and on Facebook at Holly Rutter Bush.
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EXCERPT 7: THE CAPTAIN’S WOMAN
“I promise, Mrs. Phillips. I will not forget to stop and see you,” Anthony said to his landlady as the last of his things were loaded into a closed wagon sent by his stableman, Mr. Reynolds, to Devlin Street. His stableman! It was still hard to believe that the changes in his life were real. That they’d actually happened.
“I’m so happy for you and that dear child of yours,” she said as she wiped tears from her eyes.
“And do not hesitate to call on John Pennyknoll. He’s a good all-around carpenter and won’t gouge you. And the veterans, especially the wounded ones, need work.”
“Mr. Pennyknoll seems to know his way around a hammer, but it won’t be you.”
“You are too kind. Now please get out of this wind. I carried down all the extra coal I had in my rooms for you to use.”
He looked over her shoulder and saw Ann trudging through the snow holding the hand of Sister Ann Marie. She was not chattering or smiling. In fact, her head was hanging. Strange to see his girl less than happy, especially as of late, after he’d told her about having her own room and a school nearby her new home for her to attend. She looked up, saw him, and ran straight to him. Her face was tear streaked.
“Papa,” she said softly against his neck as he held her. “I will miss the sisters and all the children. I want to take them all with us to our new home so they will have a home too, but I know I can’t.”
He kissed her forehead. “I’ve promised Mrs. Phillips we will visit occasionally. We’ll make time to visit the orphanage too.”
“Maybe Miss Thompson will bring me with her when she comes.”
“We will see.”
“I’m excited about all the changes and scared too, Papa.”
“I know exactly what you mean. It is a bit overwhelming.”
She shimmied down from his arms and hurried over to hug Mrs. Phillips, who was drying her tears with the corner of her white apron. Anthony glanced up at the windows of his room, his former room, and felt a little melancholy too. Not for the worry that he wouldn’t be able to pay Mrs. Phillips what was owed or if he would be able to replace Ann’s clothes as she grew out of them, but for the community that he’d found in the orphanage, at the grocer and other businesses, and with his landlady.
He would not be sad long, however, and he did not think Ann would be either. Not once they’d settled into their new home on Spruce and 33rd Street. The street bordered the wealthiest section of the city and was only a few blocks from the Vermeal mansion and their headquarters nearby. He’d been to see it already, accompanied by Mr. Critchfeld and the housekeeper, Mrs. Smithy, who was to see to the redecorating or updating that would need to be done. He’d been overwhelmed at the time and said very little. The house held fifteen rooms, not counting staff quarters. There was a small ballroom, a large library, a formal dining room, and a casual parlor on the second floor where he imagined he and Ann would spend much of their time. There was indoor plumbing, including hot water and a bathing room near his suite and one on the top floor for the staff. The kitchen, which the cook informed him she would prefer he stay out of, had every modern appliance available recently installed.
He took Ann’s hand as she waved with the other to Mrs. Phillips and led her to the small carriage, where Reynolds was holding open the door for he and Ann to climb in. He turned to her when they were settled and she’d shouted her last good-bye to Mrs. Phillips. Reynolds climbed in his seat in front of them, flicking the reins for the horse to begin moving.
“We are on our way, Papa,” she said. “There are so many things to think about!”
“We are on our way, but we are not going to hurry any of our decisions. We are going to take our time and allow ourselves to be accustomed to our new home. Other than new clothes I’ve ordered and the new clothes to be made for you, we need not worry about anything.”
“Yes, Papa.”
Twenty minutes later, she was latched on to his arm as they pulled up to the brick house, the snow swept from the stone walkway and steps. They both sat still, looking at the bright red front door and peering up at the three stories of windows, even after Reynolds had opened the door of the carriage.
“Come along now, dear,” he said. “Let us see our new lodgings.”
She glanced at him. “It seems every bit as nice as Mrs. Phillips’s house.”
It took him a moment to realize she was teasing him, trying to lighten their mood. “I will miss the steps that creaked so loudly I worried I was about to fall through them.”
“I will miss running to the water closet in the middle of a cold night,” she said with a smile.
“Perhaps we will tell the housekeeper to light no fires in our sleeping rooms so we will be comfortably cold.”
She laughed then and looked back at the house through the open carriage door. “Oh, Papa! It is so beautiful! And we are keeping poor Mr. Reynolds out in the cold.”
She held his hand as they went up the brick walk. The door was opened by Mrs. Smithy. “Come in out of this weather, young lady,” the woman said.
“It is very cold out,” Ann said and held out her hand. “Good morning. I am Ann Marcus.”
The housekeeper smiled and took her hand. “And I am Mrs. Smithy. I am so glad to be managing a household with such a lovely young lady in residence.” She looked up at him. “Welcome home, sir.”
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January 9, 2023
Sisters of Castle Leod Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard #HistoricalFiction #SistersOfCastleLeod #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @EHBernardAuthor @cathiedunn
Please welcome Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour held between January 2nd — January 13th, 2023. Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard is the author of the Historical Ficiton / Biographical Historical Fiction, Sisters of Castle Leod: A Novel, to be released by Black Rose Writing on January 19th, 2023 (293 pages).
Below are highlights of Sisters of Castle Leod, Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard’s author bio, and an excerpt from her book.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page
HIGHLIGHTS: SISTERS OF CASTLE LEOD
Sisters of Castle Leod: A Novel
by Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard
(Blurb)
** Finalist in the 2022 American Writing Awards **
Millions are fans of Diana Gabaldon’s popular Outlander books and television series, but few know that Gabaldon’s fictional Castle Leoch was inspired by a real Scottish castle, Castle Leod. The two sisters who lived there at the turn of the twentieth century were among the most fascinating and talked-about women of their era.
Lady Sibell Mackenzie is a spiritualist, a believer in reincarnation, and a popular author of mystical romances. Petite and proper, she values tradition and duty. Her younger sister Lady Constance, swimming champion and big game hunter, is a statuesque beauty who scandalizes British society with her public displays of Greek-style barefoot dancing. The differences between the sisters escalate into conflict after Sibell inherits their late father’s vast estates and the title 3rd Countess of Cromartie. But it is the birth of Sibell’s daughter that sets in motion a series of bizarre and tragic events, pitting sister against sister and propelling Sibell on a desperate mission to challenge the power of fate.
Sisters of Castle Leod, by award-winning author Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard, is the emotionally charged story of two sisters torn apart by jealousy and superstition, and the impossible leap of faith that could finally bring them together.
Buy Links:
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A former touring musician/songwriter and public relations professional, Elizabeth Hutchison Bernard is the author of two Amazon bestsellers: THE BEAUTY DOCTOR, “a compelling historical novel steeped in mystery with strong elements of a medical thriller” (Readers’ Favorite, 5 stars), and TEMPTATION RAG: A NOVEL, a “resonant novel … about the birth and demise of ragtime … luxuriously crafted” (Publishers Weekly). Her books have been finalists for the Eric Hoffer Book Award, National Indie Excellence Awards, and Arizona Literary Contest; they have received 5-star ratings from Readers’ Favorite, Book Readers Appreciation Group, and historical fiction Discovered Diamonds. Elizabeth and her family live near Phoenix, Arizona.
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EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER 6
THE DEBUTANTE
Cover Art: oil on glass painting, ©Alison Hale https://alisonhale.co.nz/
My official introduction to society could not help but create fertile ground for gossip. Suddenly, everyone had access to an agglomeration of useless information about me. And what they didn’t know, they were not at all reluctant to invent. Within a few months, newspapers reported that I had turned down more marriage proposals than any lady in England.
Such accounts, though highly exaggerated, had the effect of encouraging even greater legions of eager suitors to test their tenacity, each more confident of his irresistible charm than the last. I found most of them tedious and, as time went on, the search for a husband felt more and more like an imposition. My life became a succession of tea parties, polo matches, and races at Royal Ascot, lavish dinners, theater events, and grand balls, followed by suppers that started at midnight. I tried to act as if there could be no more appealing way to spend my time than in the company of those who enjoyed wasting theirs. I doubt I was convincing.
The routine was always the same. Before each fruitless encounter arranged through my chaperone Aunt Millicent, Duchess of Sutherland, I was primed with propaganda by well-meaning friends of the family.
“Surely you’ll find the baron to be a most charming companion. And he has his own money.”
“Between us, the earl is rumored to be a man of extraordinary physical attributes.”
“My dear Sibell, it’s inconceivable you should settle for anything less than a duke!”
How could I explain I was not like other young debutantes set on achieving the most boast-worthy match? I was too much of a romantic or, if not that, at least I hoped for someone who might share my distaste for languishing in the drawing rooms of London. How I ached for the wild moors and mountains of home!
In June of 1898, near the end of my second spring season—the first having been a dismal failure—I was seated at a dinner party next to Sir Thomas Bethel, a professor of philosophy at Oxford, scholarly writer of some renown, and probably three times my age. Our hostess, the Duchess of Connaught, had selected the young Earl of Ronaldshay, only two years older than I, as my escort to the table. I’m sure she thought him perfect for me and perhaps he might have been. But with the earl on my right and Sir Thomas on my left, it appeared the choice was mine.
I turned to Sir Thomas, eager to impress. Seldom did I have the opportunity to display the knowledge, however impractical, gained over many hundreds of hours spent in Papa’s library. “Tell me, in this age of materialism are your students still interested in reading Plato and Socrates? Or do their tastes run more to Epicurus?”
Beneath Sir Thomas’s bushy mustache, I detected a slight smile. “Most of them, I’m afraid, are only interested in receiving a pass mark. There are some, of course, who enjoy the art of dialectic.”
“But do you find them open to views other than the ones currently in vogue? It seems science is all anyone thinks about these days. Yet, as far as I know, no one has succeeded in describing the properties of the soul.”
He lifted his wine glass to his nose, indulging in a deep sniff. “You sound to me like a woman of religious conviction, Lady Cromartie.”
I hesitated, unsure how to respond. My upbringing was in the Anglican Church but, lately, I’d begun thinking of myself as Christian in name only. What good is a religion that leaves so many important questions unanswered and too often dresses faith in a cloak of intolerance?
“I respect all the great religions,” I replied evasively.
“You adhere to no particular doctrine?”
Such a direct question deserved, I supposed, a direct answer. “Truth cannot be taught. It must be felt.”
“I see, then, why you would have a contempt for science.”
“Not contempt.” I was in over my head but could see no option other than honesty. “However, the rational mind cannot explain everything.”
“And, thus, there is no need to prove anything?”
“I’m not sure whether certain things can ever be proven—not to everyone’s satisfaction.”
He leaned in closer. “By certain things do you mean communication with the dead?”
Instagram: @thecoffeepotbookclub
January 2, 2023
That Dickinson Girl Joan Koster #ThatDickinsonGirl #HistoricalFiction #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @womenwewrite @cathiedunn
I am pleased to welcome Joan Koster as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour held between January 2nd — January 6th, 2023. Joan Koster is the author of the Historical Biographical Fiction, That Dickinson Girl (Forgotten Women Series), released by Tidal Waters Press on 15 November 2022 (345 pages).
Below are highlights of That Dickinson Girl, Joan Koster’s author bio, and a riveting excerpt from her book.
That Dickinson Girl
Forgotten Women Series
by Joan Koster
(Blurb)
SHE IS GOING TO BE THE GREATEST ORATOR OF THE CIVIL WAR
Eighteen-year-old Anna Dickinson is nothing like the women around her, and she knows it. Gifted with a powerful voice, a razor-sharp wit, and unbounded energy, the diminutive curlyhead sets out to surpass the men of her day as she rails against slavery and pushes for women’s rights. Only two things can bring her downfall—the entangling love she has for her devoted companion, Julia, and an assassin’s bullet.
Forced to accompany the fiery young orator on her speaking tour of New England, Julia Pennington fights her growing attraction to the ever more popular celebrity. When a traitor sets out to assassinate Anna, Julia must risk her life to save her.
Loosely based on the life of forgotten orator, feminist, and lesbian, Anna Dickinson, That Dickinson Girl is the story of one woman’s rise to fame and fortune at the expense of love during the political and social turmoil of the American Civil War.
An earlier version of That Dickinson Girl was a finalist in the Mslexia Novel Competition.
Buy Links:
Universal Buy Link 
Amazon US Amazon UK Amazon CA Amazon AU
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When she is not writing in her studio by the sea, Joan Koster lives with her historian husband and a coon cat named Cleo in an 1860s farmhouse stacked to the ceiling with books. In a life full of adventures, she has scaled mountains, chased sheep, and been abandoned on an island for longer than she wants to remember.
An award-winning author who loves mentoring writers, Joan blends her love of history, and romance, into historical novels about women who shouldn’t be forgotten and into romantic thrillers under the pen name, Zara West. She is the author of the award-winning romantic suspense series The Skin Quartet and the top-selling Write for Success series.
Joan blogs at JoanKoster.com, Women Words and Wisdom, American Civil War Voice, Zara West Romance, and Zara West’s Journal , and teaches numerous online writing courses.
Social Media Links:
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EXCERPT: THAT DICKINSON GIRL
Chapter 2 Excerpt 4
Anna winked at Gracie over Julia’s shoulder. “Take care of your sister’s ankle. I wish you well. My tongue may be glib, but hers is a pruning knife that shreds hearts.”
“Cut the dramatics, Nappie,” Sam said, coming in from talking to the cabbie. He turned to Julia. “You ready? The driver’s anxious to get his horse moving in the cold. I covered the fare.”
Julia gave a tight shake of her head. “There was no need. But thank you.” She grasped Gracie’s arm and limped down the steps, her skirts bobbing like the paper boats Anna and her brothers used to set adrift on the Delaware, the ones that never came back.
“Wait.” Anna yanked her coat off the hook, rummaged in the pocket, and pulled out the complimentary tickets intended for her mother and sister. She dashed down the step and shoved them into Julia’s hand. “Please come to my Concert Hall oration.”
Julia stared at the flimsy bits of paper as if she’d been offered an invitation to feast with the devil. She would never come, unless—
“I’m going to talk about you,” Anna whispered in her ear. “The poor working girl with holes in her shoes, in one of my exemplary stories.”
Julia’s face blanched white. She stashed the tickets inside her coat then disappeared into the cab.
Despite the damp breeze coming off the Delaware that whipped at her skirts and tangled her curls, Anna pressed her coat against her chest and watched the cabbie pull away from the curb.
What was it about that girl? She’d never felt the need to interfere in someone’s life as she did Julia Pennington’s. The mill girl deserved more than whatever life had thrown at her and her sister. If she could, she’d whisk her away, free her from whatever dire secret made her lips turn down and her hands tremble.
She wanted to laugh with her. Curl up under the covers at night and read poetry. Argue until dawn. She pictured herself, arm in arm with Julia, two bold women promenading past all the pontificating men and striding up to the platform. Of all the women she knew, Julia Pennington, in her faded clothes and scuffed shoes, was the first who had seen through her. She had inner strength, that girl. And her hair—
Sam jabbed her with his elbow. “Come in out of the cold, Nappie. You will catch your death.” He held the door for her and hustled her inside. “What a pair of goslings. Wherever did you find them? The young one claims she wants to be a doctor but does not have a serious thought in her head. She talked on and on about the health of the cabbie’s poor horse. Made me go out and check it over, as if I know anything about horses. And the other one has the face of a stone Venus and says nothing. Her clothes belong in the dustbin. You can’t save every beggar girl, Anna.”
“No, Sam.” She pinched his sleeve. “Those girls are trapped in a world where women can’t earn a decent living or have aspirations beyond marriage.”
Her brother pulled her hair and grinned. “Give it up, little sister. I’ve heard it all. Move along. It’s way too cold out here.” He opened the parlor door and stepped inside. The door shut behind him with a thud.
Anna hung her coat on the hall tree. Pompous prig. Her brothers liked to talk justice all right, spouting arguments for woman’s rights while they sat in a cozy parlor with their friends.
But like so many good men, it was easier for them to blame women for their own rotten lot in life. They would never take action for women like Julia, who toiled long hours in unbearable conditions for a third of a man’s salary.
But she could. She could mount the platform and speak out for women.
Anna leaned against the front door, steadied by the hard oak. That was the way to show girls like Julia and Gracie what determination and ambition could accomplish. She pictured herself banging the podium and demanding womanhood to rise up and claim their rightful place in the world.
She, not her brothers, had inherited her father’s fight, and oration was her gift. Everyone said so. Why, two years ago, had she not driven a man from the Clarkson debates with words alone? Why shouldn’t she inspire women to take action?
One of Julia’s hairpins lay forgotten on the table. She picked it up and pressed the end against her thumb until pain radiated deep under the skin.
Marmee was right about the danger. Self-satisfied men would not hesitate to make an upstart woman’s life miserable if she challenged the status quo. Look at how her boss at the Mint treated her like a pesky fly he wanted to bash.
She pushed away from the door and twisted her hands in her hampering skirts. If she had enough courage, she’d slash the hated softness of womanhood off and peel away the tender skin until only bone and hardness were left.
She set her brother’s silk top hat jauntily on her head and nodded at the image in the hall mirror. She knew she was a plain woman, but it was no fancy that, except for fate, she might have been a handsome man.
She tore off the hat and threw it down. She had to do it. She had to change the world for women, no matter what. And she would start with Julia Pennington.
December 26, 2022
Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway Skull’s Vengeance Linnea Tanner #GoddessFishPromotions #Giveaway @GoddessFish
Goddess Fish Promotions Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway
Skull’s Vengeance
(Curse of Clansmen and Kings Book 4)
Follow the virtual Goddess Fish Promotions Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway for Skull’s Vengeance (Curse of Clansmen and Kings Book 4) for a chance to win an Amazon or a Barnes & Noble gift card. The tour runs from 26 December 2022 through 20 January 2023. Guest blog posts, interviews, and reviews will be posted at each blog tour site with instructions on how to enter the giveaway. A randomly drawn winner will receive a $50 Amazon/BN gift card.
Follow the Tour Below
(As each post is published each day, the link will be highlighted in blue)
December 26: Momma Says: To Read or Not to ReadDecember 26: The Faerie Review
December 27: fundinmental
December 28: Gina Rae Mitchell
December 28: Rogue’s Angels
December 29: B-gina Review
December 30: Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews
December 30: Guatemala Paula Loves to Read
January 2: Beyond Romance
January 3: Lady Hawkeye
January 3: FUONLYKNEW
January 4: The Avid Reader
January 5: Dawn’s Reading Nook
January 5: Hope. Dreams. Life… Love
January 6: Kit ‘N Kabookle
January 9: Candlelight Reading
January 9: Joanne Guidoccio
January 10: Write. Read. Live.
January 10: Literary Gold
January 11: Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm
January 12: Author Deb Bailey
January 13: Sybrina’s Book Blog
January 13: Ilovebooksandstuffblog
January 16: All the Ups and Downs
January 17: Fabulous and Brunette
January 17: Sandra’s Book Club
January 18: Westveil Publishing
January 19: Straight From the Library
January 19: Jazzy Book Reviews
January 20: Long and Short Reviews
December 15, 2022
Son of Anger Donovan Cook #HistoricalFiction #BlogTour #CoffeePotBookClub @DonovanCook20 @maryanneyarde
It is my pleasure to welcome Donovan Cook again as the featured author in The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour held between December 5th — December 16th, 2022. Donovan Cook is the author of the Viking Historical Fiction, Son of Anger (Ormstunga Saga), which was released on 12 Nov 2020 (347 pages).
Below are highlights of Son of Anger, Donovan Cook’s author bio, and my 5-star review of his riveting novel for which the ending resonated with me after I finished the book.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule
HIGHLIGHTS: SON OF ANGER
Son of Anger
(The Ormstunga Saga, Book 1)
By Donovan Cook
(Blurb)
Ulf is like a storm, slowly building up its power, he grows more dangerous with each passing moment. And like all storms, he will eventually break. When he does, he will destroy everything in his path.
Ulf is one of a long line of famous Norse warriors. His ancestor Tyr was no ordinary man, but the Norse God of War. Ulf, however, knows nothing about being a warrior.
Everything changes when a stranger arrives on Ulf’s small farm in Vikenfjord. The only family he’s ever known are slaughtered and the one reminder of his father is stolen — Ulf’s father’s sword, Ormstunga. Ulf’s destiny is decided.
Are the gods punishing him? All Ulf knows is that he has to avenge his family. He sets off on an adventure that will take him across oceans, into the eye of danger, on a quest to reclaim his family’s honour.
The gods are roused. One warrior can answer to them. The Son of Anger.
Buy Links:
This book is available on #KindleUnlimited.
Universal Link (if you have it): • Amazon UK • Amazon US • Amazon CA • Amazon AU • Barnes and Noble
AUTHOR BIO: DONOVAN COOK
Donovan Cook was born in South Africa but raised in England, and currently works as an English tutor. He is the author of the Ormstunga Saga, which includes his debut novel Son of Anger and the follow-up, Raid of the Wolves. His novels come from his fascination with the Viking world and Norse Mythology, and he hopes that you will enjoy exploring this world as much as he did writing about it.
When Donovan is not teaching or writing, he can be found reading, watching rugby, or working on DIY projects. Being born in South Africa, he is a massive Springboks fan and rarely misses a match.
Social Media Links:
Website • Twitter • Facebook • BookBub • Amazon Author Page • Goodreads
BOOK REVIEW: SON OF ANGER
Son of Anger by Donovan Cook is an epic coming-of-age tale that sweeps you into a Nordic action/ adventure during the Viking age. Ulf, the son of the famous warrior Bjørn, is embittered because he believes his father, who died in battle, had abandoned him as a boy. Ulf’s uncle has adopted him as his son and trains him with weapons whenever they are not doing chores on the farm. A cruel Viking plunders the family farm, slaughtering Ulf’s adopted family and leaving him for dead. A voice in a near-death vision charges Ulf to slay a cloaked troll. Unarmed, Ulf asks how he can slay the troll, and the voice answers, “Trust in your blood, Bjørnson. Embrace it.”
Ulf wakes from his near-death experience to learn that an older man found him and an enslaved mute boy treated his wounds. After the boy unexpectedly kills his abusive master, Ulf accepts him as his companion and names him Vidar after Odin’s son, who avenged his father’s death. Likewise, Ulf swears to avenge the deaths of his adopted family, and he retrieves his father’s sword, Ormstunga. Finally, he sets off on his pathway of vengeance with the mysterious Vidar to seek aid from Jarl Thorgils.
Ulf saves the son of Jarl Thorgils from a bear attack. Seriously injured, Ulf recovers in the household of Jarl Thorgils, for whom Bjørn had championed. Ulf must prove himself as a loyal and capable warrior to the Jarl, but he repeatedly falls short, in part, due to his uncontrollable anger. Yet, on his adventures, he slowly learns from failures and embraces his legacy and destiny to be a great warrior like his father. The riveting, climactic ending took my breath away.
Author Donovan is a master storyteller, weaving supernatural elements of Norse mythology into the tale. Scenes move at a fast clip, but nuances of the supernatural molding Ulf’s destiny bubble just beneath the surface of the story. The tale follows the structure of the classic Joseph Campbell hero’s journey. Ulf is an engaging, flawed hero who must undergo trials on his road to self-discovery. He is often knocked down, but he gets back up, ready to face his next challenge. After I finished the book, his epiphany of what truly motivates a warrior to fight resonated with me.
On the surface, Son of Anger seems like a simple tale, but underneath there are powerful themes of coming-of-age, good vs. evil, and father vs. son. It is a story about friendship and the bond between warriors fighting alongside each other. Author Donovan vividly describes the Viking culture, the warriors’ training with weapons, and the fight scenes. The story works best when told from Ulf’s point of view, but there are occasional scenes when characters head-hop. The book is best suited to a mature audience due to some graphic scenes of violence and some explicit language. Extra bonuses at the end of the book are a glossary of Viking terms used in the narrative and a list of Norse gods.
Son of Anger is a compelling, fast-paced tale of a young Viking on a hero’s journey fraught with conflict, intrigue, and betrayal. It is highly recommended for readers who enjoy multi-layered Viking action and adventure with elements of Norse mythology spun into the story.
December 13, 2022
Book Spotlight Minotaur’s Lair Luciana Cavallaro #AncientGreece #GreekMythology #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub @ClucianaLuciana @cathiedunn
It is my great pleasure to spotlight the Historical Fantasy Fiction, Action/Adventure, Minotaur’s Lair (Servant of the Gods – Book 3), by Luciana Cavallaro The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour being held on December 13th, 2022. Minotaur’s Lair, which was released by Mythos Publications today, December 13th, 2022 (396 pages).
Below are highlights of Minotaur’s Lair and Luciana Cavallaro’s bio.
To follow the blog tour, CLICK Tour Schedule Page:
HIGHLIGHTS: MINOTAUR’S LAIR
Minotaur’s Lair
(Servant of the Gods – Book 3)
By Luciana Cavallaro
(Blurb)
The Minotaur stirs. Evan is drugged to forget the gods’ quest.
Evan and his companions are entrapped by the Amazon Queen Antioche and her warriors. Memories and allegiances are tested. The Dark Master’s victorious revenge over the gods is almost complete. The plight of the High Priestess is precarious, her health ailing, and unable to rescue her brother and fellow Atlanteans.
The last sacred relic, secreted in the lair of the Minotaur, must be recovered or the Dark Master’s succession plans of a new god are complete. The mystical lands of Krete, the final stage of Evan’s journey, are within his grasp. He must succeed so his father, Zeus, fulfills his promise. Then there is Queen Antioche, and the precious gifts she presents him.
Will Evan return home, and what will become of his future?
Minotaur’s Lair is the third and final book in the action-packed Servant of the Gods historical fiction series. If you enjoy well-researched landscapes, historic characters, excitement, mythical creatures and unique settings, then you’ll love Luciana Cavallaro’s heroic odyssey.
Buy Links:
Universal Link • Amazon UK • Amazon US • Amazon CA • Amazon AU • Smashwords • Author website
AUTHOR BIO: LUCIANA CAVALLARO
Luciana Cavallaro’s alter ego is a high school teacher where she plugs away educating teenagers the merits of reading and ancient history. She often looks for a brick wall to bang her head when faced with disinterested looks from her students. She’s also a historical fantasy and thriller/suspense author, who creates fast-paced, action-packed series for her readers.
Born and raised in Western Australia, residing in Perth, Luciana loves to travel and since getting her passport at the ripe old age of twenty-four has toured parts of Europe, a legacy of her Italian heritage. She enjoys being active, going out with friends, reading and tries to grow her own vegetables. She dreams of travelling again and visiting the ancient sites that inspired her stories, that is when she’s not spending time being an unofficial stunt person and knocking herself out in the process.
Social Media Links:
Website • Twitter • Facebook • LinkedIn • Instagram • Book Bub • Amazon Author Page • Goodreads
