Carrie Turansky's Blog, page 30

What’s on Your Bookshelves?

Hi Friends,

One thing I loved about our house the first time I walked through with the realtor was the built in bookshelves in the living room. In the past we stored all our homeschooling books there, but now they mostly hold some of my favorite novels and a few research books. People often comment about our collection when they visit, and I enjoy sharing books with friends.

This basket holds research materials for the novels I am working on now in the Edwardian Brides Series. I’ve had fun collecting books and maps from England on topics like country life, servants in the Edwardian Era, and Downton Abbey, which has been a great inspiration for The Governess of Highland Hall. I do most of my research before I write, but I often go back to check facts or find more information. It looks like I need a bigger basket!

Are you a book collector?  Tell us about your bookshelves and what we might see if we paid you a visit.

Happy Reading!

Carrie

 

Costumes of Downton Abbey

Fellow author Terri Gillespie and I at the Costumes of Downton Abbey at Winterthur

Hi Friends,

Last week I visited Winterthur Museum near Wilmington, DE, where they are hosting a wonderful exhibit featuring 40 historically inspired costumes from the hit British TV series, Downton Abbey.

The exhibit includes Lady Sybil’s controversial harem pants, Mathew Crawley’s cricket whites, and Lady Edith’s ill-fated wedding gown. The downstairs staff is well represented with uniforms for almost all the primary characters, including Mr. Carson, Mrs. Patmore and Thomas Barrow. Not surprisingly, their clothes pale in comparison to the glamor of the ensembles from the upstairs Crawley Family.

You’ll see many of Lady Grantham’s and Lady Mary’s beaded gowns, as well as velvet eveningwear from the Dowager Countess and Martha Levinson. The upstairs men are represented with dapper sporting and hunting attire and eveningwear.

But the exhibit isn’t just made up of mannequins decked out in period clothing. The curators tell the story behind the costumes in many ways. For Mathew’s dramatic proposal to Mary, her burgundy gown and his tuxedo are displayed in front of the film clip of their engagement.

Nearby on the wall is an enlargement of the corresponding dialogue from the script. There is also an explanation from the costume designer about why the show chose to keep her dress from being too ornate (they didn’t want to distract from the scene’s action), while special lighting creates the romantic effect of snow falling all around you.

More footage, photos and scripts segments can be found posted throughout the exhibit. You’ll also find interesting explanations about how some of the costumes were made, which ones are actually vintage or incorporate vintage fabrics.

The exhibit also includes descriptions that explain the clothing’s historical context. If you wondered why Lady Mary wore so much lavender this season, the exhibit explains that during the Downton era, it was considered the appropriate color for mourning dress—which is why it was also worn by the Crawley women at Baby Sybil’s christening.

 

Winterthur visitors are allowed to take photos of the Downton exhibit garments, which is rare at any museum, and a real treat for fans who want photos of themselves standing near their favorite costumes. Barring a trip to Highclere Castle in England, where the series is filmed, photographing oneself at this elaborately detailed exhibit is probably as close as fans can get to actually entering the world of Downton.

Costumes of Downton Abbey will be at The Winterthur Museum until January 4th, 2015. Tickets are timed and should be bought in advance, as the show is already selling out on some days. Admission: $20 for adults, $18 for seniors and $5 for children 2 to 11. Visit winterthur.org or call 302-888-4600. Would you like to take a video tour?

If you’re a Downton Abbey fan, I think you’d enjoy The Governess of Highland Hall.

“With its engaging cast of characters, a setting reminiscent of “Downton Abbey” and a storyline that celebrates faith, family and friendship, The Governess of Highland Hall is more than an historical romance.  It’s a book that’s sure to delight Carrie Turansky’s current fans and bring her many more.”

~Amanda Cabot, bestselling author of Christmas Roses and With Autumn’s Return

For more information about The Governess of Highland Hall or any of my books please visit my website.

Which is your favorite Downton costume?

Welcome Spring & A New Cover

Hi Friends,

I hope you are enjoying the first day of Spring. It’s a bit cool and gray here in NJ, but I know brighter days are ahead. Keep reading all the way to the end of this post for a fun giveaway.

Today I’m excited to reveal the cover of my next book, Where Two Hearts Meet! Release day is April 15th. These two novellas that were originally published in 2005 and 2006, and I’ve revised and updated them for you.

There’s no better place for romance, forgiveness, and new beginnings  than the Sweet Something Teashop.

Tea For Two

Allison Bennett, co-owner of a financially strapped teashop in Princeton, New Jersey, receives a large anonymous check that saves her business. But she has no idea who sent it. Could it be from Peter Hillinger, the wealthy businessman who owns the shop next door and wants to win Allison’s heart? Or is it from Tyler Lawrence, Allison’s old boyfriend, who returns to town claiming a renewed faith and a changed life. Allison doesn’t know who she should trust. Should she follow her head or heart, or is there Someone else who can guide her toward the best path for her future?

Wherever Love Takes Us

After twenty-five years of marriage, Matt and Tessa Malone are struggling to recover financially and rebuild trust following a business failure. Then Matt inherits property in Oregon, and he wants to move the family there to make a fresh start. But Tessa can’t imagine giving up the cozy teashop she co-owns with her sister, or leaving her friends and family in Princeton. Whose dream will they follow, and how much will it cost their family? Can they resolve their differences and rebuild a love that seems lost?

Would you help me spread the word? I will be giving away two copies of the ebook. Just share the cover photo and a link to this blog post on Pinterest or Facebook, and then leave a comment below with a link to your pin or post.

Blessings and Happy Reading!

Carrie

Missing Downton Abbey?

Downton Abbey Season Four has come to an end, and those of us who enjoy that series will miss seeing our favorite characters on Sunday night. Here are some fun ideas to help fans get their Downton fix until next season:

1. Watch Downton Abbey again on DVD or Amazon Instant video. It’s free for Amazon Prime members. PBS also has a few episodes available online that you can watch at any time.

2. Watch other programs and movies set durring the Gilded Age, Edwardian Age, or simply set in England: Berkley Square, Ann of Green Gables, A Little Princess, Manor House, The Lost Prince, The Secrets of Highclere Castle, Pride and Prejudice, Emma, and Little Dorrit.

3. Visit Downton Abbey Cooks Website and prepare some Edwardian enspired recipes. Pamela Foster, a cullinary historian, has a fun blog and cookbook with recipes to try. Maybe you’d like to invite your friends over for tea and scones while you watch Downton Abbey again.

4. Visit Pinterest and search for boards about Downton Abbey. I have two boards dedicated to Downton Abbey and Highclere Castle.

5. Enter contests that will take you to England. Masterpiece Theater is offering one, and actress Laura Carmichael who plays Lady Edith is also sponsoring a fundraiser for health care in Haiti.

6. Shop online for Downton books, gifts, calendars, puzzles, etc.  There is also a new line of Downton linens, lace, and housewares. Macey’s carries Downton themed jewelry, and it’s also available at the PBS online giftshop.

 

7. Visit The Downton Costume Exhibit at Winterthur Museum in Delaware. I’m headed there on March 21, and I’ll be sure to take photos if they are allowed and report back to you!

7. Read books that are similar to Downton Abbey. Ah, now here’s a great idea!

The Governess of Highland Hall is set in 1911- 1912, the same year as the first season of Downton Abbey. It takes place on a beautiful English country estate similar to Downton Abbey/Highclere Castle, and features both upstairs and below stairs characters.

It’s availabe at Barnes & Noble, Target, Walmarts, Costco, and wherever books are sold. Here are links to purchas a copy online: Happy reading to all my friends and fellow Downton Abbey Fans!

Isabella Beeton – Martha Stewart of Victorian Times

“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 late 1800s and early 1900’s? I have several Pinterest boards on those topics. I hope you stop by and take a look. You don’t have to be a Pinterest member to view the boards. http://www.pinterest.com/carrieturansky/

Here is one of the recipes from Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management that looks good to me.

BAKED APPLE DUMPLINGS (a Plain Family Dish).

INGREDIENTS. — 6 apples, 3/4 lb. of suet-crust, sugar to taste.

Mode. — Pare and take out the cores of the apples without dividing them, and make 1/2 lb. of suet-crust; roll the apples in the crust, previously sweetening them with moist sugar, and taking care to join the pastry nicely. When they are formed into round balls, put them on a tin, and bake them for about 1/2 hour, or longer should the apples be very large; arrange them pyramidically on a dish, and sift over them some pounded white sugar. These may be made richer by using one of the puff-pastes instead of suet.

Time. — From 1/2 to 3/4 hour, or longer. Average cost, 1-1/2d. each.

Sufficient for 4 persons.

Have you ever heard of Isabelle Beeton before? Or her book? And what about baked apple dumplings?

Debutant’s Court Presentation

Hi Friends,

I’m working hard on Book 2 in the Edwardian Brides Series, The Daughter of Highland Hall. It continues the story of the Ramsey family as they travel to London in 1912 for the season. One of the first events for the heroine, Kate,  is her presentation at court. This rite of passage opened the door for an upper-class young lady to take part in society and hopefully meet her future husband.

Preparing for her presentation and first season took months. She had to learn court protocol, how to curtsy, how dance, and how to carry on a conversation. Some young women traveled to Paris to choose a wardrobe including their presentation gown, while others, like Kate, visited dressmakers in London.

There were very specific rules for court dress. The presentation gown had to be white, low-cut, and have a long train. They had to wear an ostrich feathered headdress and veil. Three feathers signaled she was a married woman, and two feathers were worn by single woman. Most debutantes also carried a bouquet of flowers. She looked very much like a bride, and some young women refashioned their presentation gowns and wore them on their wedding day.

After all that practice and expense, the young woman only spent a few minutes in the throne room. But being presented signified she was ready to take part in the season and become a member of London society.

Dowton Abbey fans will learn more about  court presentations next month in the final episode of season four when Lady Rose is presented to King George. Each girl needed a sponsor, so Lady Cora takes on the roll for Rose. That episode is set ten years after The Daughter of Highland Hall, so it’s a bit more relaxed, but still very similar and fun to watch!

 

 

 

I’ve really enjoyed researching court presentations, and I espcially love the beautiful gowns!

Would you like to see more photos of presentation gowns and the characters in The Daughter of Highland Hall? Take a look at my Pinterest board:

http://www.pinterest.com/carrieturansky/daughter-of-highland-hall/

Have you entered the Downton Abbey Finale Viewing Party Giveaway? You can see the prizes and enter by following this link:

http://carrieturansky.com/index.php/viewingparty/

What do you think? Would you like to wear a gown like the ones pictured here?

A Promise Kept

A promise from God is a promise kept

Robin Lee Hatcher draws on her own personal pain to illustrate God’s goodness.

Hi Friends, today I wanted to share news about a novel that has just released from one of my author friends. It’s a story that comes from her heart, I believe it will touch yours!

When Robin Lee Hatcher’s marriage ended in divorce, she was devastated. “I’d been so convinced God had promised me that He would save our marriage,” the author says, but she quickly learned that sometimes God answers prayer in the most unexpected ways. In the following years, God used the pain of what appeared to be a failed marriage to draw her closer to Him. In A Promise Kept Robin draws on that personal pain to craft a story about a woman married to an alcoholic, a woman who has to learn the value and importance of surrendering everything to the Lord.

Despite the similarities to her own life, Robin notes, “Allison’s life is not the same as mine. I didn’t retreat to a mountain cabin nor have an aunt whose journals helped me discover truths I needed to know, nor did I withdraw from God during the depths of my grief as Allison does. But every lesson God teaches me eventually makes its way into one of my stories. That was certainly true of A Promise Kept.”

In A Promise Kept, Allison finds herself divorced despite her long-held belief that God would save her marriage. She’s left asking, “What became of God’s promise?” Tony Kavanagh had been Allison’s dream-come-true. They were in love within days, engaged within weeks, then married and pregnant within a year. Her cup bubbled over with joy . . . but years later, that joy had been extinguished by unexpected trials.

The day Allison issued her husband an ultimatum to get and stay sober or leave, she thought it might save their marriage. She never expected he would actually choose to walk out the door. She was certain God had promised to heal; it was clear she’d misunderstood. Now, living in the quiet mountain cabin she inherited from her single, self-reliant great aunt Emma, Allison must come to terms with her grief and figure out how to adapt to small-town life. But when she finds a wedding dress and a collection of journals in Emma’s attic, a portrait of her aunt emerges that takes Allison completely by surprise: a portrait of a heartbroken woman surprisingly like herself.

As Allison reads the incredible story of Emma’s life in the 1920s and 1930s, she is forced to ask a difficult question: Has she really surrendered every piece of her life to the Lord?

Drawing from her own heart-wrenching story of redemption and eventual reconciliation with her husband, A Promise Kept is Robin’s emotionally charged thanksgiving to a God who keeps His promises. “I hope readers will be encouraged to keep walking forward,” Robin says. “I hope, if they are in a troubled marriage, that they will seek God with their whole hearts and not act out of selfishness but out of obedience. I hope reading A Promise Kept will deepen their faith in a God who answers prayers, in His own way and His own time.”

Robin Lee Hatcher will be hosting a Facebook party on Thursday, February 6, 2014 at 8:00 PM EST to chat with readers about A Promise Kept, give away copies of the book and reveal the grand prize winner of a social media giveaway. More details will be available on her Facebook page .

Advance Praise for A Promise Kept

“A beautiful, heart-touching story of God’s amazing grace, and how He can restore and make new that which was lost.”

~  Francine Rivers, New York Times bestselling author

“Hatcher’s beautifully crafted tale alternates between the past and the present. Allison and Emma are incredibly relatable characters, and readers are able to examine their own lives through the mirror of the novel’s events. Filled with family and faith, the author’s phrasing is exquisite and a treat to savor.”

~ RT Book Reviews Top Pick

Best-selling novelist Robin Lee Hatcher is known for her heartwarming and emotionally charged stories of faith, courage, and love. She discovered her vocation after many years of reading everything she could put her hands on, including the backs of cereal boxes and ketchup bottles. Winner of the Christy, the RITA, the Carol, the Inspirational Reader’s Choice, and many other awards, Hatcher is also a recipient of the prestigious RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. She is the author of 70 novels and novellas with more than five million copies in print.

Hatcher enjoys being with her family, spending time in the beautiful Idaho outdoors, reading books that make her cry, and watching romantic movies. Her main hobby (when time allows) is knitting, and she has a special love for making prayer shawls. A mother and grandmother, Robin and her husband, Jerry, make their home on the outskirts of Boise, sharing it with Poppet, the high-maintenance Papillon and Princess Pinky, the DC (demon cat).

For more information about Hatcher and her books, visit her online home at www.robinleehatcher.com, become a fan on Facebook (robinleehatcher) or follow her on Twitter (@robinleehatcher). 

 

 

Quoteable Scavenger Hunt!

Hi Friends,

It’s GIVEAWAY TIME! Come on and join the QUOTEABLE SCAVENGER HUNT!

Just follow the link below connected to my Facebook Author Page, to a form where you will be prompted to Like my page, then guess which character from THE GOVERNESS OF HIGHLAND HALL said the quote that will be revealed. Then you’ll be prompted to move on to the next author in this Quotable Scavenger Hunt loop.

My publisher, WaterBrook Multnomah, is sponsoring this giveaway, and it includes five other WaterBrook Multnomah authors: Kim Vogel Sawyer, Lori Benton, Joanne Bischof, Meg Mosley, and Katie Ganshert.

The prizes on my page are a pretty antique key necklace from Belle on a Budget and some delicious Dowton Abbey Tea. Enter the drawing for my prize, and then visit the other five authors Facebook Author pages.

 

Carrie Turansky
http://a.pgtb.me/CHK8KX
Lori Benton
http://a.pgtb.me/zRV3LK 
Joanne Bischof
http://a.pgtb.me/hHw3KF 
Katie Ganshert
http://a.pgtb.me/rPtqWW
Meg Moseley
http://a.pgtb.me/t128XB
Kim Vogel Sawyer
http://a.pgtb.me/m4tpfd

*********Update!

Congratulations to Cathy D. of Rib Lake, WI for being the winner of this portion of the Quoteable Scavenger Hunt!

Carrie

Win a Downton Abbey Finale Viewing Party Prize Package!

Hi Friends,

Downton Abbey Season Four premieres on January 5th on PBS, and I can’t wait! I’m excited to see what will happen to all the characters, and I plan to follow them through this new season.

Season three had a rather shocking ending . . . but I’ll be cheering for Mary and eager to see how she overcomes her grief and moves forward as George’s mother and as the new partner in overseeing the estate. And what about Edith—will she finally find happiness? I’m hoping Anna and John Bates will enjoy married life and perhaps have a baby. And then there’s Mr. Carson, Mrs. Hughes, Daisy, Mrs. Patmore, Lord and Lady Grantham and my favorite, Violet – the Dowager Countess.

My enjoyment of Downton Abbey inspired me to write the Edwardian Brides Series. Book one, The Governess of Highland Hall, released last fall, and I am hard at work on Book 2, The Daughter of Highland Hall which comes out this October. Book 3 is also in the works and will follow the Ramsey family of Hihgland Hall into WW1.

To celebrate Dowton Abbey’s new season and The Edwardian Brides Series we’re hosting a, “Win a Downton Abbey Finale Viewing Party” contest, where you can win treats and Downton Abbey-themed items for you and your friends. It will run through February 9, 2014. US residents only.

Prizes include:

Downton Abbey DVDs, Seasons 1, 2, and 3.
A Downton Abbey Tote Bag
Downton Abbey English Rose Tea
Four Tea Cups, Scone Mix, and Lemon Curd
The Governess of Highland Hall, four copies

Are you a Downton Abbey fan? Will you be watching too? Be sure to fill out the entry below and share this contest with your friends!

Happy viewing and  happy reading!

Carrie

Have You Heard of NovelCrossing?

Hi Friends,

I know many of you are avid readers of Christian fiction . . . so how do you keep up with what’s new in Christian fiction and how do you find the next book you’d like to read? I’d like to tell you about NovelCrossing – a great website for readers!

Publisher websites are excellent for featuring their titles and authors. Book retailers have good, up-to-date, thorough book data and include reader reviews. Christian Fiction Online Magazine, Family Fiction, Title Trakk and others have features and interviews of favorite authors. Shelfari and Goodreads offer reader community options but cover all books and all genres. So where can an avid reader of Christian fiction go to find all that, across all publishers, at one Website? You can visit Novel Crossing, the Intersection of Fiction and Faith!

Here’s what Novel Crossing has for you:

Want to find your favorite Christian fiction author?

Currently 800+ novelists can be found on the Website, including favorites Francine Rivers, Karen Kingsbury, Jerry Jenkins, Ted Dekker, and hundreds of others. More are being added each day. By visiting your Novel Crossing author pages, you will find bios, photographs, and links to their presence in the digital world, including Websites, Facebook, and Twitter options. Authors are able to customize their own pages as well, giving them ability to leave messages for readers, upload videos or new photos.

Looking for a particular novel?

Around 4,000 individual book listings are available to browse on Novel Crossing, including titles both new and old, their authors, and their descriptions. These books are published by Christian publishing companies, and we exercise caution when adding self-published books so that the Novel Crossing catalog will remain a trusted source of faith-based fiction.

Don’t have a particular book in mind?

All titles are categorized into genres, and featured titles can be found in those categories as well as through book searches. Looking for romantic suspense that isn’t thriller-heavy? Come take a look!

Looking for Christian fiction news and entertainment? 

Check out any of our featured book reviews, unique-to-Novel Crossing author interviews, devotionals from favorite authors, features introducing readers to new books, by genre or topic, book club and librarian-specific elements.

Want to create of bookshelf of your favorite authors or get a recommendation for a next fantastic read? 

Novel Crossing allows community members the opportunity to build “Read,” “Reading,” and “To Read” virtual bookshelves, and offers suggestions of similar books on the book item pages. As you add books to your shelf, review books, and comment on features, Novel Crossing is better able to connect you with authors and books you may love.

Looking for the latest in book trailers or author interview videos? 

Novel Crossing features new videos weekly, drawing widely from the book trailers and author videos that help connect a reader to a beloved author or series.

Hoping to purchase a new novel?

Novel Crossing is not a retail site, but on any of the book pages there is a Buy Now link that will take you to a variety of retail options.

Can I write for Novel Crossing?

Check out our writer’s guidelines, where writers and reviewers can learn more about contributing to the Website.

NovelCrossing would like to hear from you!

READER SURVEY: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NovelCrReaders

NovelCrossing is offering 1 in 10 survey respondents a free book, while supplies last. Winners will be randomly drawn from among all survey respondents and notified in late January. USA only.

Have you visited NovelCrossing? Why not click over and take a look today! Happy Reading to All!