Carrie Turansky's Blog, page 25

GoodReads Giveaways

Hi Friends,

Not long now until the October 20th release of the third and final book in the Edwardian Brides Series, A Refuge at Highland Hall. The early reviews are coming in, and they are very encouraging. Here’s one from Kate Breslin, the author of Not by Sight.

“The hardship and sacrifices of the First World War are illuminated in this poignant portrait of faith and family during 1915 Britain. In A Refuge of Highland Hall, third book in the Edwardian Brides series, author Carrie Turansky weaves an inspiring and beautiful tale about Love’s power amid adversity, and the miracle of redemption when we allow God to guide our hearts. Carrie’s keen eye for historical detail lends an atmosphere that will delight readers as they are swept back into a time of lush simplicity set against the backdrop of war, with a cast of engaging characters whose courage and strength promise to rise triumphant.”

To help spread the word about Refuge we’er offering GoodReads giveaways on all three books in the series.  I hope you’ll click on over and enter the giveaways and then share them with your friends. The Governess of Highland Hall giveaway, The Daughter of Highland Hall giveaway, and A Refuge at Highland Hall giveaway.

To order copies or for more info about these books, please visit my website books page.

Blessings and Happy Reading!

Carrie

 

Connecting with Dutch Readers

 

It’s been exciting to see my two latest books translated into Dutch and made available to readers in The Netherlands.

This week a blogger who reviews books and helps promote new titles in The Netherlands contacted me and asked me to write a post about the story behind The Daughter of Highland Hall, which comes out in The Netherlands on August 25th.

I thought my friends here in the US and Canada might like to know more about that story as well.

When I did research for The Governess of Highland Hall, I was surprised to learn that wealthy young women went to London with their family for a few months in the spring and summer to hopefully meet their future husband. It was called the Season, and also jokingly called “The Marriage Market.” I decided that would be an interesting focus and setting for The Daughter of Highland Hall, Book Two in the Edwardian Brides Series. So I set off to learn more about the Season, debutantes, and presentation at court, so I could write Kate’s story.

But I didn’t want to make it an easy journey for her or her family. In The Governess of Highland Hall Kate proved to be quite a challenge for her governess and guardian. In the Daughter of Highland Hall I had to find ways for her to mature and change so she would become a heroine readers would love. The greatest influence on Kate was Jon Foster, who is the hero of the story.

But I also wanted to find other people and situations that would inspire Kate and help her along on her faith journey. I researched prominent Christians in London in the Edwardian era, and I read about the Salvation Army’s work among the poor. After looking into their history and the lives of their leaders, I found the inspiration Kate would need to change.

Helping those who are poor or disadvantaged, especially children, is an important cause that is close to my heart. We have been foster and adoptive parents, and our family also spent a year in Kenya, Africa, as missionaries. My daughter and her husband currently work for an international foundation with relief and community building projects in Africa. They have hearts much like Jon and Kate’s, and The Daughter of Highland Hall is dedicated to them.

I’ve spent some time in The Netherlands on our travels through Europe and found it to be a lovely country. I’m grateful for the opportunity to have my books available there!

Have you every traveled to The Netherlands?

Dowton Abbey, Poldark, and The Crimson Field

Hi Friends,

Are you missing Downton Abbey? Fans of the popular British TV Series have found some new, exciting programs to enjoy while we wait for the sixth and final (snif-snif) season of Downton.

I’ve enjoyed Poldark and The Crimson Field, both of which are airing on PBS now. I wanted to recommend them to you, and give you a little more information about them so you can decide if you’d like to tune in.

 

Poldark

Aidan Turner stars as Ross Poldark, a redcoat who returns to Cornwall, England, after fighting in the American Revolutionary War to discover that his father is dead, his lands are ruined, and his true love is about to marry his first cousin. Also starring is Eleanor Tomlinson as the fiery servant Demelza, a strong-willed miner’s daughter who runs away from home and finds refuge in Poldark’s household.

I’ve enjoyed the family drama, romance, adventure, and learning more about Cornwall, England, in the late 1700s.

Poldark is based on a beloved series of novels by Winston Graham. The first, Ross Poldark, was published in 1945; the last, Bella Poldark, appeared in 2002, a year before Graham’s death.

There will be 8 episodes, and 2 – 5  are available free on the PBS websites. The DVD is also for sale there and at other online sites.

Crimson Field

In a tented field hospital on the coast of France, a team of doctors, nurses and women volunteers work together to heal the bodies and souls of men wounded in the trenches during World War One. The hospital is a frontier: between the battlefield and homefront, but also between the old rules, hierarchies, class distinctions and a new way of thinking.

Kitty (Oona Chaplin), Rosalie (Marianne Oldham) and Flora (Alice St Clair) arrive as the hospital’s first volunteer nurses and struggle to be accepted by the established medical team. The girls are flung head first into a world for which nothing and nobody could have prepared them, but it is also an opportunity to break free of the constraints and limitations of their lives back home.

Sarah Phelps, one of British television’s most exciting and original writers, tells this story of World War One’s front line medics — their hopes, fears, triumphs and tragedies.

Episodes 1 – 5 are available to watch on the PBS website now.

And now take a look back at a video of the 50 most memorable moments of Downton Abbey.

Have you watched either of these new series? What did you think?

Until next time, Happy Reading and Happy Viewing,

Carrie

Isabella Beeton ~ The Martha Stewart of Edwardian England

“As with the commander of an army, or the leader of any enterprise, so it is with the mistress of a house.”

With those words Isabella Beeton opens the first chapter of Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management, which offered authoritative advice to Victorian and Edwardian Women on a wide range of subjects including childcare, fashion, animal husbandry, medicines, cleanliness, frugality, economy, and the management of servants as well as a great number of recipes.

When I began researching my Edwardian Brides Series I wanted to learn more about the roles of women and how they managed their homes . . . so I consulted Mrs. Beeton.

I thought you might enjoy learning a little about this amazing woman. Isabella Mayson was born in London in 1836, the oldest of four children. Her father, Benjamin Mayson, died when she was young, and her mother remarried a widower with four children of his own. The blended family lived in Epsom, Surrey. With her four half-sisters, she had 21 siblings, a huge family even for the Victorian times. Being the oldest, Isabella honed her abilities in babysitting and general household management, which gave her the experience and confidence to write her famous book when she was in her early twenties.

When she was nineteen she met Samuel Beeton, a rich and handsome young book and magazine publisher. Samuel and Isabella were married in 1856. Nine months later Isabella gave birth to a baby boy, but he only lived three months. A second son also died when he was young. She later had two more sons.

But during their marriage, Isabella and Sam were a successful and prolific team. Between 1859 and 1861, Isabella wrote articles about cooking and household management for Samuel’s publications, including a monthly column for The Englishwoman’s Domestic Magazine.

In October of 1861, the supplements were collected and published as a single volume. The book’s official and complete title was: The Book of Household Management Comprising information for the Mistress, Housekeeper, Cook, Kitchen-Maid, Butler, Footman, Coachman, Valet, Upper and Under House-Maids, Lady’s-Maid, Maid-of-all-Work, Laundry-Maid, Nurse and Nurse-Maid, Monthly Wet and Sick Nurses, etc. etc.—also Sanitary, Medical, & Legal Memoranda: With a History of the Origin, Properties, and Uses of all Things Connected with Home Life and Comfort, edited by Mrs. Isabella Beeton. Now that’s quite a title!

It became the most famous English domestic manual ever published, selling more than 60,000 copies in its first year of publication, and almost two million by 1868.

In the preface, Isabella explained why she wrote the book:

“What moved me, in the first instance, to attempt a work like this, was the discomfort and suffering which I had seen brought upon men and women by household mismanagement. I have always thought that there is no more fruitful source of family discontent than a housewife’s badly cooked dinners and untidy ways. Men are now so well served out of doors — at their clubs, well-ordered taverns, and dining-houses — that, in order to compete with the attraction of these places, a mistress must be thoroughly acquainted with the theory and practice of cookery, as well as be perfectly conversant with all the other arts of making and keeping a comfortable home.”

Isabella embraced the traditional roles of wife and mother and saw women as queens of the domestic sphere. She believed men were kings of the public sphere.

Although the book contained hundreds of recipes, most of the recipes were not Isabella’s originals. It was meant to be a collection of useful recipes and information. Mrs. Beeton’s was the first book to list ingredients at the start of the recipe, and to recommend cooking times.

Isabella died at the age of 28 after giving birth to her fourth child in January of 1865. Her husband and subsequent publishers kept the news of Isabella’s death quiet, and continued to publish updates to Household Management, as well as completely new books, under her name.

Would you like to see more interesting photos from life in England in the early 1900’s? I have several Pinterest boards on those topics. I hope you stop by and take a look. http://www.pinterest.com/carrieturansky/

Have you ever heard of Isabelle Beeton before? Or her book?

Ahhh . . . it’s Almost Summer

Hi Friends,

The weather has turned warm and lovely here in New Jersey, and I’ve enjoyed spending a good amount of time in my flower gardens. Digging in the dirt and seeing my flowers bloom always lifts my spirit and brings me joy!

Are you making plans to enjoy your summer? If your traveling far, enjoying a “staycation”, or just a lazy Saturday on the patio, I hope you’ll be refreshed and blessed by this new season.

I’ve been working on the final revisions for A Refuge at Highland Hall. Copy edits are coming back soon. I’ll be reading through the story again to make those last changes. I’m excited to share that final book in the Edwardian Brides Series with you in October!

Until then . . . I’ve been working on a proposal for a new series and just sent that off to my agent and editor this week. The working title of the first book in Shine Like the Dawn. The story is set in England in the early 1900s and follows the Harcourt Family of Morningside Manor in Northumberland, England. I can’t wait to get started! For a sneak peek at the heroine and Morningside Manor just click on the title above.

Summer is a great time to catch up on reading! June 11 – 15 you can download the ebook version of Where Two Hearts Meet for just .99 Cents!

Two Sisters . . . Two Heartwarming Novellas. There’s no better place for forgiveness, romance, and second chances than the Sweet Something Teashop!

Kindle books make a great gift and can be shared with friends. You can read them on an iPad, smart phone, or your computer with the free Kindle Ap. Already read Where Two Hearts Meet? No worries, just visit my book page to find a new book to enjoy!

Happy Reading this Summer!

Carrie

Visiting Mr. Darcy’s Pemberly ~ Chatsworth House

Hi Friends,

On my first research trip to England my husband and I visited beautiful Chatsworth House in the Peak District where we spent two days exploring and enjoying this lovely estate.

The first day we attended the Chatsworth Country Fair held on the grounds of the estate, and we had a delightful time experiencing English country life with bagpipers, highland dancing, hunting dog demonstrations, horsemanship demonstrations, birds of prey demonstrations, and saw all kinds of country clothing, traditional food, and crafts for sale. There was a fun antique car parade, and several historic military vehicles to view. And almost everyone brought their dog along. They were all very well behaved and seemed to enjoy the fair as much as their masters.

On the second day we toured the house and grounds and enjoyed learning about the history of the family who had lived there for so many years. The rooms were filled with beautiful furniture, paintings, and sculptures. Each room seemed more amazing than the last.

Chatsworth house may look familar to you because it was the location used for Mr. Darcy’s Pemberly in the latest version of Pride and Prejudice. With that movie in mind, my favorite part of the house was the long sculpture gallery. As I walked through I could just imagine Elizabeth Bennett  finding the statue of Mr. Darcy and seeing him in a new light. The gardens, fountains, and reflecting pool were all lovely too!

Our two days at Chatsworth gave me a unique view into English country life and were wonderful inspiration for my novels! This month I’ll be working on revisions for A Refuge at Highland Hall, which comes out October 20th. I’m also researching a new series that I hope to set in Northumberland, England, in the early 1900s. Would you like to see more photos of my trips to England? Just click on over to my Research Page. Would you like to know more about my books? Here’s the link for book info.

Happy Reading!

Carrie

 

Visiting Balmoral Castle

Hi Friends,  On my last research trip to the UK I visited Balmoral Castle, and I enjoyed touring the gardens and grounds and walking through the ballroom and learning about the castle’s history.

Balmoral is a Scottish Baronial style mansion built for Queen Victoria in the mid-1800s by her husband Prince Albert, and it’s now the summer home of the royal family. Balmoral stands on 50,000 acres of land in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Much of the land is covered with beautiful evergreen forests and the River Dee runs through the property.

Queen Victoria at the time of her coronation

Prince Albert and Queen Victoria visited the area only a few years after their marriage and they loved the beauty and serenity of the countryside. Queen Victoria said, “All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils”.  The surrounding hilly landscape also reminded them of Thuringia, Albert’s homeland in Germany.

Queen Victoria and her family often spent time at Balmoral each summer, and other members of the royal family have continued the tradition of summer holidays at Balmoral.

Prince Albert and Queen Victoria and their nine children

I especially enjoyed seeing the sunken gardens and the greenhouse filled with bright blooms.

 

I hope you’ll visit my Research page to see more photos of my trips to England and Scotland.

Happy Reading!

Carrie

Celebrate Spring!

Hi Friends,

Spring is my favorite season! The snow is finally melting in New Jersey, and soon the grass will start to turn green and the flowers will bloom again. I can’t wait! I hope the sun is shining for you today, and you are seeing those welcome signs of Spring too.

To celebrate Spring’s arrival, I’m offering three of my ebooks at special sale prices.  Where Two Hearts Meet and Surrendered Hearts, Kindle versions, are on sale for .99 cents each. The Governess of Highland Hall is on sale for $1.99, at Amazon, CBD, and Barnes & Noble. All three of these books have been finalist or winners of national writing awards and have lots of great reviews on Amazon. If you’d like to find out more about these books or read the first chapters, just click on the covers below. Sale ends March 29th! I hope you’ll take advantage of these great sale prices and enjoy one or all of these stories!

 

Blessings and Happy Reading,

Carrie

Special Sale Price ~ The Governess of Highland Hall

Hi Friends,

Just a quick note to let your know The Governess of Highland Hall, Book one in the Edwardian Brides Series, ebook version, is on sale for $1.99 at Amazon, CBD, and Barnes & Noble.

This is a great time to start reading the series. Book 2, The Daughter of Highland Hall is available, and Book 3, A Refuge at Highland Hall will be out in October. Each story stands alone and is complete, but the characters and setting continue on in each book.

The Governess of Highland Hall was a finalist for the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and also an ACFW Carol Award finalist. It has over 180 great reviews on Amazon. I hope you’ll take advantage of this sale price and enjoy the series!

For more info about the series, photos from my research trips to England, and more, click on over to my website!

Blessings and Happy Reading!

Carrie

 

Historical Fiction Giveaway

Hi Friends,
Do you like to read historical romance? Then this is the giveaway for you!

I’ve teamed up with nine other authors to bring you a fun giveaway just in time for your spring reading. Enter to win one of the books pictured here. There will be 10 winners in all, each winning 1 book. The Giveaway is open for enteries until March 27.

Contest is open to US residents only. Just click over to my extra page to enter!


Happy Reading to All!
Carrie