Deborah Swift's Blog, page 2

Historical Fiction Spotlight on Uprising by Paul Bernardi #Rebellion #AngloSaxon #CoffeePotBookClub

Summer 1067. Northumbria.

Oslac, thegn of the village of Acum, feels cheated – having been robbed of the chance to kill his enemy by his own kinsman.

Instead, Gundulf, the erstwhile Lord of Hexham and murderer of Acum’s villagers, is now awaiting justice for his crimes in Bebbanburh, Earl Oswulf’s fortress capital far to the north.

But when Oslac narrowly escapes death at the hands of Gundulf’s assassin, he realises he will never be safe while the Dane lives. Summoning his closest companions, Oslac heads north to demand Oswulf put an end to Gundulf’s life – only to find the prisoner has escaped.

Tracking the fugitive into the wild hills and dales of Northumbria – places far beyond the reach of Oswulf’s power – Oslac falls into Gundulf’s trap when the earl’s warband is ambushed with catastrophic consequences.

Elsewhere, unrest in the north of England is growing. Impotent in the face of Norman avaricious brutality, the Saxon nobility can do nothing to prevent their ancestral lands being passed to foreign invaders. It can only be endured for so long, and a reckoning is coming.

Once again, Oslac must put aside his personal vendetta to join with the few remaining great lords of Anglo-Saxon England in what may prove to be the final, climactic stand against their Norman overlords.

The song of swords will echo across the land once more.

Buy The Book Universal Buy Link This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.About Paul Bernardi 

Paul Bernardi studied Anglo-Saxon and Medieval history at the University of Leeds more years ago than he cares to remember.He has been an author of historical fiction since his first novel (a second world war drama) was published in 2017. Since then, he has reverted to his favoured period, publishing six more novels (so far) set in 11th century England, mainly around the time of the Norman Conquest.Paul ‘s books are published by Sharpe Books.

Author Links:

Website • Twitter / X • Facebook • BlueskyAmazon Author Page • Goodreads The post Historical Fiction Spotlight on Uprising by Paul Bernardi #Rebellion #AngloSaxon #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Death and the Poet by Fiona Forsyth #Roman #HistoricalFiction #CoffeePotBookClub

Read an ExcerptPrologue: Rome, 14 C

It was the night of the Ides of May, dark and raining, when they got back to Rome. Fabius decided that he needed to walk home, said a quiet farewell, then set off along the Tiber embankment with one slave accompanying. Not too long ago Augustus would have walked with him, but now the litter and entourage overtook him, the only sign of his friend a wave of a weary hand through the curtains. Augustus had always hated the rain and the cold and now went everywhere by litter. Well – he was after all seventy five years old, visibly aging after a cold winter and damp spring, and this voyage had been hard work.

Fabius walked down the glistening streets and attracted no attention from the few people darting through the rain. He strode out, skirting the sudden small streams that tumbled down any incline. Ahead of him, torches bobbed as the Emperor’s entourage called out for space. Fabius’ boots and old military cape kept off the worst, and soon he started to climb the lower slope of the Palatine Hill. The bustle of the official procession ahead of him faded and the last part of the journey was made in silence, until with thankfulness he saw the quiet door of home where warmth, dry clothes and food awaited him. He wanted Marcia. Dear Marcia. She would take over, fuss him, get him back to feeling like a decent Roman should.

The door-slave let him in immediately and he went straight to his room, leaving a noisy bustle in his wake. Marcia came in to find him already in a clean tunic though still damp. As expected she took over, scolding him and giving orders to the slaves. He relaxed.

“And you can take that ridiculous smile off your face,” she said as she began towelling his hair dry. “Ah thank you, Parmenio, I don’t know what this house would do without you. Fabius, where have you been to get into this state? Parmenio, will you take the master’s cloak and have it thoroughly cleaned? Gods above, Fabius, your cloak stinks, and is that salt on it? You’ve been sailing haven’t you, and in this weather…”

She carried on towelling and he grabbed a blanket to wrap around himself. Gods, it was supposed to be May but felt more like a miserable November.

A cup of wine spiced exactly as he liked arrived and was thrust into his hand as Marcia finished towelling. It tasted wonderful and he said so, smiling up at his wife.

“Are you hungry?” she asked. “I’ve asked the kitchen to bring forward dinner and it won’t be long. The Arval Brethren missed you at the meeting yesterday but apparently young Drusus was elected without any dissent.”

Fabius nodded, swigging some more wine.

“I heard that the Emperor was also missing from the meeting,” said Marcia brightly. “So while you eat you can tell me all about what you and the Emperor were up to that made you miss your favourite boys’ club.”

He shot a wary look at Parmenio, who murmured about seeing to dinner and vanished tactfully.

“Marcia, don’t talk about the Arval Brethren like that,” he said softly. “It’s the most prestigious priesthood in the city, I’m honoured to be part of it. And don’t talk about the Emperor either.”

Marcia laughed and poured some wine for herself.

“Not talk about Augustus? My own cousin and I can’t mention him?”

Fabius sipped his wine and tried to change the subject.

“The roads were terrible, so much mud and rain,” he tried.

“Well it has been a miserable spring, and I don’t imagine you found the sea crossing much better,” said Marcia. “How sick were you?”

“Not much,” said Fabius.

“I expect Augustus was never out of his cabin,” said Marcia. “He has always had a delicate stomach.”

Augustus had only been sick once, Fabius thought grimly.

“What is it?” Marcia read him so well – but he could not tell her.

“My dear Fabius, I do know or rather can guess where the two of you went,” she said, and put her hands on either side of his face. “It was Postumus wasn’t it? You went to see that poor boy on his horrible little island. I hope Augustus decides to pardon him.”

“Pardon him!” Fabius almost laughed at that irony. He wished – how he wished – that he had never agreed to go with Augustus, though the gods knew one did not deny the Emperor.

“What is it?” Marcia looked at him with concern and his eyes dropped at her gaze.

For a moment he saw the two men facing each other: Augustus shrunken with age, his good looks reduced to a memory one saw on statues, and Postumus young, tall and strong – and sitting on the wooden bed in his cell, rocking back and forth and babbling about fishing.

“He’s having a good day today, sir,” the centurion had told Augustus. The old man had stood and watched Postumus with no expression on his face, but once they had left the stone cell, Augustus had turned away to be sick.

Fabius had once wondered how Augustus had endured the shattering series of disasters that had robbed him of so many family hopes, and now he marvelled all over again at his friend’s strength and determination. In Marcia’s arms, Fabius had to weep for this most recent tragedy, engineered by the gods to taunt an old man.

“Fabius? Fabius, what has happened? What is wrong?”

Far too clever, his Marcia.

“It will never be about the succession,” he said. “Oh, Marcia, I had no idea how bad it was with Postumus….”

He told her because he knew he was safe with her. He always had been.

Read moreBUY THE BOOKThe Blurb:

14AD

When Dokimos the vegetable seller is found bludgeoned to death in the Black Sea town of Tomis, it’s the most exciting thing to have happened in the region for years. Now reluctantly settled into life in exile, the disgraced Roman poet Ovid helps his friend Avitius to investigate the crime, with the evidence pointing straight at a cuckolded neighbour.

But Ovid is also on edge, waiting for the most momentous death of all. Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome, is nearing his end, and the future of the whole Roman world is uncertain.

Even as far away as Tomis, this political shadow creates tension as the pompous Roman legate Flaccus thinks more of his career than solving a local murder.

Avitius and Ovid become convinced that an injustice has been done in the case of the murdered vegetable seller. But Flaccus continues to turn a deaf ear.

When Ovid’s wife, Fabia, arrives unexpectedly, carrying a cryptic message from the Empress Livia, the poet becomes distracted – and another crime is committed.

Ovid hopes for a return to Rome – only to discover that he is under threat from an enemy much closer to home.

Praise for Fiona Forsyth:

‘An absorbing tale of friendship, corruption and murder, shot through with humanity and deep emotion. The remote imperial outpost of Tomis is vividly recreated and Fiona Forsyth’s portrait of the exiled poet Ovid, now joined by his formidable wife Fabia, is a triumph.~ R.N. Morris, author

‘The setting (Tomis) far from the heart of the nascent Empire – but still close enough to be affected by events in Rome, is brilliantly presented…Grips from the first page’. ~ Peter Tonkin, author

‘Beautifully written and utterly absorbing, Forsyth has created a stunning depiction of the end of the republic and birth of the Roman Empire.‘ ~ Jemahl Evans, author

About Fiona Forsyth Fiona studied Classics at Oxford before teaching it for 25 years.A family move to Qatar gave her the opportunity to write about ancient Rome, and she is now back in the UK, working on her seventh novel.Author Links:Website • Twitter / X • Facebook • Bluesky • InstagramAmazon Author Page • BookBub • GoodreadsThe post Death and the Poet by Fiona Forsyth #Roman #HistoricalFiction #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.

The Last Bookshop in Prague by Helen Parusel #Review #WW2 #BooksWorthReading

In times of strife, never underestimate the power of stories.

Was she incredibly brave or incredibly stupid? Neither. Just a bookshop girl doing what she could against her country’s oppressors.

The banned books club was only the beginning; a place for the women of Prague to come together and share the tales the Germans wanted to silence.

For bookshop owner, Jana, doing the right thing was never a question. So when opportunity comes to help the resistance, she offers herself – and her bookshop. Using her window displays as covert signals and hiding secret codes in book marks, she’ll do all in her power to help.

But the arrival of two people in her bookshop will change everything: a young Jewish boy with nowhere else to turn, and a fascist police captain Jana can’t read at all. In a time where secrets are currency and stories can be fatal, will she know who to trust?

A heart-wrenching and powerful story of courage, tenacity and love in wartime

REVIEW
The bookshop is a lovely setting and Helen Parusel makes the most of it in this gripping story of WW2 Czechoslovakia. Covering nearly the whole of the war, it describes how the main character Jana, is drawn deeper and deeper into Resistance work, and how that leads her to risk her life to both shelter some Jewish children, and work as a courier to deliver radio parts. There are several real incidents in the narrative including the assassination attempt on Heydrich, and the subsequent fallout, which included the massacre at Lidice. There is also the real horror of the ghetto of Theresienstadt.

But this is not a sad book, but rather an uplifting one. Jana finds the man who makes her heart race within the Resistance, and the relationships she has with other women are heartwarming. After all, what can you expect of a book club?!

In a novel like this there are bound to be betrayals and surprises along the way, but I won’t spoil it for you. If you enjoy page-turning historical fiction with characters you can empathise with, then this is a pageturner of a historical thriller you won’t want to miss. Highly recommended.

BUY THE BOOKThe post The Last Bookshop in Prague by Helen Parusel #Review #WW2 #BooksWorthReading first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Falling Pomegranate Seeds by Wendy J Dunn #CoffeePotBookClub #KatherineofAragon

Falling Pomegranate Seeds Duology: The Katherine of Aragon StoryOmnibus EditionA snippet

“I have been pleased to see how much my Catalina, my sweet chiquitina, enjoys her mornings with you.” Queen Isabel brought her hands together, drumming her fingertips together for a moment. “Latina, I believe the infantas Juana and María can be given over to other tutors now that you have provided them with an excellent grounding in Latin and philosophy, but I desire you to be Catalina’s main tutor, of course that includes María, her companion.”

Queen Isabel twisted the ring on her swollen finger. “One day, my Catalina will be England’s queen. It will be not an easy task – not in a country that has known such unrest for many, many years. I want to make certain my daughter is as prepared as I can make her, but I need your help. Can I rely on you to stay with us, and teach Catalina what she needs to know of England’s history, its customs, its laws?”

From The Duty of Daughters

In the Falling Pomegranate Seeds Duology, readers are transported to the rich historical tapestry of 15th and 16th-century Europe, where the lives of remarkable women unfold against the backdrop of political upheaval and personal struggles.

In the first book, beginning in 1490 Castile, Doña Beatriz Galindo, a passionate and respected scholar, serves as an advisor to Queen Isabel of Castile. Beatriz yearns for a life beyond the constraints imposed on women, desiring to control her own destiny. As she witnesses the Holy War led by Queen Isabel and her husband, King Ferdinand of Aragon, Beatriz dedicates herself to guiding Queen Isabel’s youngest child, Catalina of Aragon, on her own path. Beatriz’s role as a tutor and advisor becomes instrumental in shaping Catalina’s future as she prepares to become England’s queen.

Fast forward to the winter of 1539 in the second book, where María de Salinas, a dear friend and cousin of Catalina (now known as Katherine of Aragon), pens a heartfelt letter to her daughter, the Duchess of Suffolk. Unable to make the journey from her London home due to illness, María shares her life story, intricately woven with her experiences alongside Catalina. Their friendship has endured through exile and tumultuous times. María seeks to shed light for her daughter on the choices she has made in a story exploring themes of friendship, betrayal, hatred, and forgiveness.

Through María’s narrative, the eternal question Will love ultimately triumph?

Praise for  Falling Pomegranate Seeds: The Duty of Daughters (Book #1) :“…this profoundly moving story helps us appreciate today’s more enlightened world. The Duty of Daughters is historical fiction at its best!”
~ Readers’ FavoriteBUY THE BOOK Universal Buy Link About Wendy J. DunnWendy J. Dunn is an award-winning Australian writer fascinated by Tudor history – so much so she was not surprised to discover a family connection to the Tudors, not long after the publication of her first Anne Boleyn novel, which narrated the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the elder.Her family tree reveals the intriguing fact that one of her ancestral families – possibly over three generations – had purchased land from both the Boleyn and Wyatt families to build up their own holdings.It seems very likely Wendy’s ancestors knew the Wyatts and Boleyns personally.

Get in touch with the author:

Website • Facebook • Instagram • ThreadsAmazon Author Page • BookBub • GoodreadsThe post Falling Pomegranate Seeds by Wendy J Dunn #CoffeePotBookClub #KatherineofAragon first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Her Darkest Hour by Suzy Henderson #Review #Witchcraft #WW2 #HistoricalFantasy

England, 1939. A Witch in Hiding. A Nation at War. A Traitor in the Shadows.

Eliza MacLean has spent years suppressing her magic – until war and tragedy force her to flee to Cambridge. Among the women of the WVS, she hopes to find safety, but Cambridge holds dangerous secrets. A covert network of witches is fighting to protect Britain, and an enemy who understands magic is already closing in.

When MI5 recruits Eliza to track a spy tied to the occult, she is thrust into a world of deception and war. As Britain stands on the brink of invasion, she must embrace the power she’s long denied – before a traitor hands victory to the enemy.

For fans of The Maggie Hope Mysteries and The Midnight Bargain. Her Darkest Hour blends WWII espionage with historical fantasy in a tale of war, witchcraft, and sacrifice.

ReviewThis is a gripping fantasy set in WW2 but firmly based on fact. During WW2 there were a number of Wiccans fighting for the British war effort and led by Gerald Gardner, the man responsible for reviving the pagan belief system. In 1940s Britain, fearing they might soon all be under The Nazi boot, these pagans did their bit to defend our shores from invasion. Well, what exactly did they do? According to Gardner, through ritual practices, they manufactured a ‘Cone of Power’ which was supposed to affect Hitler’s reasoning powers.Did it work?Nobody really knows, but this is the jumping off point for Suzy Henderson’s new book, which describes itself as a historical fantasy. Within the clandestine world of witchcraft nothing is what it seems and the author uses this to her advantage. With a band of fascist sympathisers intent on sabotaging England’s efforts, Eliza, a natural born seer, is recruited by MI5 to help them in their mysterious work. Little does she know that another of her relatives is also involved in this kind of secret undercover activity, but alas she is tempted by the ‘dark side,’ and this leads to multiple plot twists and complications.The premise gives plenty of scope for heart-stopping moments and tension as the group of fascists and the coven of witches try to outwit each other. There are several interesting support characters in Eliza’s family, such as her grandmother and her father, and her boyfriend Jim, who ground the narrative in reality, and help us to root for Eliza. If you like books with witchcraft, history, a touch of romance and all the tension of a spy novel, you will enjoy this fascinating and unusual story.About Suzy Henderson

Suzy Henderson is the author of The Beauty Shop, Madame Fiocca, and SPITFIRE, novels which are set during the turbulent times of World War Two. She also writes romance and recently released a novella, Christmas in the Highlands, a best seller on Amazon UK.

Her debut novel, The Beauty Shop, was awarded the B.R.A.G. Medallion. It is based on the true story of pioneering plastic surgeon, Sir Archibald McIndoe, and the Guinea Pig Club – an exclusive club for RAF pilots and airmen who required plastic surgery as a result of their war injuries and were under the care of this enigmatic New Zealander. Madame Fiocca is also based on a true story. This gripping adventure follows the tempestuous life of SOE heroine, Nancy Wake before and during the Second World War.

Suzy lives with her family on the edge of the Lake District, where she can be found rambling around lakes, country lanes or roaming the fells. Armed with a pen, a love of reading and a growing obsession with military and aviation history, she is often lost in the 1940s, writing historical fiction.

WEBSITE: https://www.suzyhenderson.com

TWITTER: @Suzy_Henderson

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSuzyHenderson

The post Her Darkest Hour by Suzy Henderson #Review #Witchcraft #WW2 #HistoricalFantasy first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Spotlight on The Finding by Jane Hunt #WW2 #CoffeePotBookClub #Wiltshire #Novella

The Finding by Jane Hunt – a WW2 NovellaThis poignant novella is a tale of forbidden love, resilience, and the human cost of war.

In the quiet fields of Wiltshire during World War II, Eveline, a sheltered young woman, stumbles upon a life-altering discovery: a German Luftwaffe pilot, Fritz, has crash-landed near her home. Against the backdrop of war and suspicion, her family takes the injured man in, nursing him back to health. Beneath his reserved demeanor and burned body, Eveline senses a mystery—and something stirs an unfamiliar longing within her.

As Eveline’s infatuation deepens, she faces a storm of challenges: her overbearing mother’s rigid rules, a zealous preacher’s warnings, and the scrutiny of the town’s gossips. Despite Fritz’s attempts to keep her at arm’s length Eveline’s heart defies reason, falling for the man branded as her enemy.

But Fritz harbors secrets that could shatter Eveline’s fragile world. When the truths of war and the weight of loyalty collide, Eveline must confront the reality of loving someone forbidden.

Will their bond endure the hostility of a nation at war? Or will the scars of betrayal and loss prove impossible to heal?

Buy Link: Universal Buy Link   About Jane Born in Reading UK, Jane grew up with a love of reading. She remembers taking Enid Blyton books to bed and reading them under the covers when she should have been asleep! Her love of the written word extended into the classroom where the teachers commented on her vivid imagination and length of stories—probably accompanied with a few sights when they realized the amount of time the reading would take!On leaving school Jane spent a brief spell at college before finding employment as a Dental Nurse where she spent many happy years meeting lots of wonderful people and mixing lots of fillings.After meeting her husband, she later went on to have three children and found work as a Teaching Assistant.Alongside a busy life, she completed a comprehensive writing course, which saw her having non-fiction work published in newspapers and magazines. But the desire to do something ‘creative’ burned ever brightly.Having recently undertaken a lot of research into her family tree, a desire to find out what life was really like for her ancestors took hold, and she developed a fascination with World War 2. Heeding the advice of her late parents to ‘put pen to paper’, she decided to get a story that had been buzzing in her head for quit some time written. The result of her endeavour was a very ‘raw’ manuscript: The Finding.

Get in touch with Jane:

Publisher’s Author Page • Amazon Author Page The post Spotlight on The Finding by Jane Hunt #WW2 #CoffeePotBookClub #Wiltshire #Novella first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Spotlight on The Finding by Jane Hunt #WW2 #CoffeePotBookClub #Wiltshire

The Finding by Jane Hunt – a WW2 NovellaThis poignant novella is a tale of forbidden love, resilience, and the human cost of war.

In the quiet fields of Wiltshire during World War II, Eveline, a sheltered young woman, stumbles upon a life-altering discovery: a German Luftwaffe pilot, Fritz, has crash-landed near her home. Against the backdrop of war and suspicion, her family takes the injured man in, nursing him back to health. Beneath his reserved demeanor and burned body, Eveline senses a mystery—and something stirs an unfamiliar longing within her.

As Eveline’s infatuation deepens, she faces a storm of challenges: her overbearing mother’s rigid rules, a zealous preacher’s warnings, and the scrutiny of the town’s gossips. Despite Fritz’s attempts to keep her at arm’s length Eveline’s heart defies reason, falling for the man branded as her enemy.

But Fritz harbors secrets that could shatter Eveline’s fragile world. When the truths of war and the weight of loyalty collide, Eveline must confront the reality of loving someone forbidden.

Will their bond endure the hostility of a nation at war? Or will the scars of betrayal and loss prove impossible to heal?

Buy Link: Universal Buy Link   About Jane Born in Reading UK, Jane grew up with a love of reading. She remembers taking Enid Blyton books to bed and reading them under the covers when she should have been asleep! Her love of the written word extended into the classroom where the teachers commented on her vivid imagination and length of stories—probably accompanied with a few sights when they realized the amount of time the reading would take!On leaving school Jane spent a brief spell at college before finding employment as a Dental Nurse where she spent many happy years meeting lots of wonderful people and mixing lots of fillings.After meeting her husband, she later went on to have three children and found work as a Teaching Assistant.Alongside a busy life, she completed a comprehensive writing course, which saw her having non-fiction work published in newspapers and magazines. But the desire to do something ‘creative’ burned ever brightly.Having recently undertaken a lot of research into her family tree, a desire to find out what life was really like for her ancestors took hold, and she developed a fascination with World War 2. Heeding the advice of her late parents to ‘put pen to paper’, she decided to get a story that had been buzzing in her head for quit some time written. The result of her endeavour was a very ‘raw’ manuscript: The Finding.

Get in touch with Jane:

Publisher’s Author Page • Amazon Author Page The post Spotlight on The Finding by Jane Hunt #WW2 #CoffeePotBookClub #Wiltshire first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Launch Day for Last Train to Freedom #NewRelease

This was a fascinating book to research and taught me a history that I previously did not know existed.  Here is a little background to the book —

The Jewish Community of Kaunas

In Lithuania before the war, Jews made up roughly one-third of Kaunas’s population—about 35,000 people and the city was a major hub of Jewish culture. Institutions like the Slabodka Yeshiva, the Hebrew Gymnasium, and a thriving network of libraries made Kaunas a centerpiece of Jewish life in Eastern Europe. Into this flourishing community came Jewish refugees on the run from Nazi-occupied Europe, and especially from Poland. Already on the run, Jewish intellectuals were soon to face another threat – that of the Soviet invasion.

The Purge of Lithuanian Intellectuals

One of the Soviet regime’s first targets was the Lithuanian intelligentsia—writers, educators, clergy, military officers, and civil servants. Many of them held anti-communist views, were seen as threats to Soviet authority and ideology.

A key example was Vincas Mykolaitis-Putinas, a renowned poet and novelist, whose work symbolized Lithuanian national identity. Though he survived the occupation by keeping a low profile, many of his peers did not.

The most brutal blow came with the mass deportations of June 14, 1941, when the NKVD (Soviet secret police) rounded up over 17,000 Lithuanians and deported them to Siberia, the Arctic, and Kazakhstan. Among them were university professors, doctors, engineers, and clergy, many of whom perished in forced labour camps known as gulags. This systematic removal of Lithuania’s intellectual class aimed to destroy the country’s cultural memory and make way for the Sovietization of society. Of course it included many Jewish intellectuals in its purge, meaning they were caught between a rock and a hard place – the Nazis on the one hand and the Soviets on the other.

Escape from Lithuania

Zofia Kowalski is one of those who must escape and her story is told in Last Train to Freedom. The only way out for Jewish people at that time was via the Japanese Consul Sugihara who arranged visas for them to travel six thousand miles across Russia to reach Vladivostok and from there, a boat to Japan.

Needless to say, her journey is long and difficult, as she is pursued by both the Nazis and the Soviet Secret Police.

Reader reviews on NetGalley so far are excellent.

‘An epic journey across the Siberian wilderness that will keep you guessing until the end. Readers interested in the less well known events of World War II will find this book captivating and unforgettable‘ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Ms Swift is a talented writer… Captivating and compulsive reading’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘What a fantastic read this was’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Another stunning achievement in historical fiction from Deborah Swift’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Grips you from the beginning and does not let go until the end‘ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

BUY NOWThe post Launch Day for Last Train to Freedom #NewRelease first appeared on Deborah Swift.

Bess – Tudor Gentlewoman by Tony Riches #Elizabethan #Tudors #HistoricalFiction

Congratulations to Tony Riches on the launch of  BESS – TUDOR GENTLEWOMAN
Book Six of the Elizabethan Series

“A thrilling portrait of a remarkable woman who witnessed the key events of Elizabethan England.”

Bess Throckmorton defies her notorious background and lack of education to become Queen Elizabeth’s Gentlewoman and trusted confidante.

Forced to choose between loyalty and love, duty and desire, will she risk her queen’s anger by marrying adventurer Sir Walter Raleigh without permission?Entangled in a web of intrigue, from the glittering Palace of Whitehall to the cells of the Tower of London, Bess endures tragedy and injustice, becoming a resilient, determined woman, who takes nothing for granted. Can she outwit her enemies, protect her family, and claim her destiny in a world where women are pawns and survival is a game of deadly consequences? This is the true story of the last of the Elizabethans, which ends the story of the Tudor dynasty – and introduces their successors, the Stuarts.

BUY THE BOOK
BUY IN THE UK    BUY IN THE US 
Kindle, paperback, hardback

About Tony Riches

Tony Riches is a full-time UK author of Tudor historical fiction. He lives with his wife in Pembrokeshire, West Wales and is a specialist in the lives of the early Tudors. As well as his Elizabethan series, Tony’s historical fiction novels include the best-selling Tudor trilogy and his Brandon trilogy, (about Charles Brandon and his wives). For more information about Tony’s books please visit his website tonyriches.com and his blog, The Writing Desk and find him on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky and Twitter @tonyriches.

The post Bess – Tudor Gentlewoman by Tony Riches #Elizabethan #Tudors #HistoricalFiction first appeared on Deborah Swift.

The Florence Sisters by Tessa Harris #WW2 #Review #HistoricalFiction

The Florence Sisters

A war-torn city. A stolen masterpiece. Two lives in the balance…

Italy, 1940. With Florence on the cusp of war, Il Scorpione, the no-nonsense Englishwomen of the city, find their genteel livelihoods under grave threat by the approach of the Nazis. Tea rooms and bookshops are closed by the Fascists, and the women are forced to join the war effort.

Desperate to help in any way that she can, Angelina Leone, expert art-historian and the half-Italian niece of Il Scorpione’s founder makes a deal with the devil. To guarantee her beloved Aunt Agatha, the only family she has, safe passage across the city, Lina must authenticate the art ruthlessly stolen from Jewish families. But when she comes across a priceless portrait – one that she cannot bear to see seized by the Germans – Lina declares the masterpiece a fake. But in doing so, will she set off a chain of events with consequences more deadly than she could ever imagine …

REVIEW

An exploration of the art world in Florence during WW2 in which the Nazis are trying to loot the treasures of Florence for their private collections. This story shows the effort that went in to protecting and saving the masterpieces of Italian art in the Uffizi gallery and elsewhere, and the risks some women took to preserve them. Lina is an engaging heroine, but I had a soft spot for her formidable aunt and the other ladies of The English Lades Art Appreciation Society who gave up their time and loyalty under considerable duress. It is unusual to read about older women and the eye-opening risks they took in their contribution to the war effort.

There is a nice tension between Lina and the owner of a gallery, Edoardo, who may or may not be a Nazi collaborator. Lina has to navigate this uncertainty whilst slowly falling for this enigmatic dealer, whose reputation means that he cannot be trusted.

Based on real events, this is a suspenseful novel of bravery and determination in the face of Nazi greed. Tessa Harris gives us a world of heightened passions – the beauty of art, a constant sense of danger, and a desperate romance that simmers beneath it all. Highly recommended.

BUY THE BOOKThe post The Florence Sisters by Tessa Harris #WW2 #Review #HistoricalFiction first appeared on Deborah Swift.