Deborah Swift's Blog, page 9
July 12, 2023
The Diplomat’s Wife Series and the O-5 Group by Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger #WW2 #Resistance #HistoricalFiction
My guest today is Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger, to tell us about her WW2 series and the O-5 Resistance Group.
The Anschluss in Austria sparked one of the most brutal and violent anti-Semitic pogroms in all of the Third Reich. Vienna was bubbling over with anti-Semitism before Hitler’s Wehrmacht marched in and annexed Austria. The Nazi party had been growing steadily, rising like bread dough on a warm oven even though the party had been banned years earlier. The moment came, however, in March 1938, for them to come out of the woodwork and begin their reign of terror.
Throughout history, we celebrate the heroes who took up their stones and threw them at Goliaths. However, heroes are not created overnight. They do not wake up thinking, “This is my day.” Heroes are created out of terrified humans, who wrestle with high-stake moral dilemmas and decide that, if they do not take action, they will not be able to live with themselves. My stories shed light on the humanity behind the hero; the personal struggle of putting one’s life in the way of great risk and quite possibly ending in an awful death.
The O5 group in Vienna was a discovery for me. I knew I wanted to write about an Austrian resistance. I just didn’t know what resistance efforts existed. I knew there had to have been someone who had organized something, and I set out to learn about it. Fritz Molden, Hans Beck and Alfred Stilfried came together shortly after the Anschluss and began one of the first efforts to resist the Viennese regime. Molden was a German soldier and Catholic. Beck was an artist. Stilfried was an Austrian military officer. Together, they took the Ö from Österreich (Austria in German) and created the code name O-5. The Ö, when spelled out is E is the fifth letter in the alphabet.
With carefully curated assets, they began helping Jewish residents, forged documents, produced and distributed anti-Nazi fliers and leaflets, and forged a clandestine movement. Their headquarters were remarkably only some two blocks away from Hotel Metropole, the Gestapo’s new headquarters. By cover of darkness, they met in the basement of St. Ruprecht’s church. Soon enough, all around Vienna, chalk marks began appearing in places and infrastructures they had sabotaged. That O5 sign was a call and proof that resistance was possible. Those marks reminded people that, if they pulled together, they could—if they wanted to—bring the Nazis to their knees.
By 1944, however, the Gestapo had mercilessly cracked open and infiltrated a number ofresistance groups throughout Austria, including an attempt to bomb the Hotel Metropole/Gestapo headquarters. Molden’s group was in great danger of being wiped out of history all together. Their work, however, inspired another man at another church. In the 18 th district of Vienna, the Gersthof’s parish priest, Heinrich Maier and a very well-known industrialist by the name of Franz Josef Messner founded the cornerstones of the Cassia spy ring. In the spring of 1943, over couriers and contacts, Messner managed to deliver information to the American OSS chief, Allen Dulles, who was located in Bern, Switzerland.
The OSS, the Office of Strategic Services, was the foundation of today’s CIA. Messner’s information pinpointed production facilities in Peenemünde, where the Germans were producing the V1 and V2 rockets. In August 1943, the RAF bombed the facilities, and soon after, Messner got Dulles’ full-fledged support. Code-named Cassia, Messner signed an agreement with the OSS as the spokesperson and he and the Cassia spy ring continued providing intelligence.
In the meantime, Molden also made his way to Dulles, and convinced Dulles that over 75,000 members existed in the O5. In truth, only a few hundred stray members remained. However, Dulles took the bait and the O5 received the resources and the support they would need to regroup and continue their clandestine work, including sabotage. Suddenly, the chalk letters began reappearing on the streets of Vienna once more.
I have been following the war in Ukraine every day since Feb. 24, 2022. As I wrote The Diplomat’s Wife series, I was becoming depressed about how I write about an era where the world promised “never again” but here we are… at it again. Say what you will, the fact is, the Ukrainians are facing genocide but the very definition of what genocide means. I wasn’t surprised when suddenly, in Crimea—which was illegally annexed in 2014 by Russia—the call letter ï – a unique Ukrainian letter – began appearing as graffiti, photos of which appeared in Twitter posts. I wasn’t surprised, but I was buoyed.
The Ukrainian letter became a sign of resistance. This was soon followed by a string of crossed-out Zs (the Russian symbol) which turned into sharp-edged hourglasses, and were then colored in blue and yellow (the colors of the Ukrainian national flag) like the sands of time; the time that is ticking away for Russia, it says. Then yellow ribbons appeared, hanging all over the place. In tree branches, on posts, on buildings, on signs.
I was no longer researching the resistance groups of the past, but witnessing the establishment of partisan, underground groups of today. Live. They are letting the world know: We are here. We are fighting for you. Join us.
Stand up. Pick up a rock. And destroy the enemy.
The faces and names of these people will likely never be known to the average person. We will never know the debates they had to have with themselves before they stepped up and resisted. Nobody wakes up deciding to be a hero. Yet, I believe every single one of us has the potential to be one. Perhaps we just haven’t met that in ourselves, yet.
As the daughter of a U.S. Senator, who shoots, plays cards, and is very adept at extracting information from people, Kitty Larsson is tested again and again in her beliefs about not only the man she loves—an Austrian diplomat—but about the countries she calls home when the Nazis come to roost. If you love the kind of books that make you sit up and say, “I did NOT know that”, you will love this series!
FIND Chrystyna on www.inktreks.com
BUY THE BOOKSBOOK 1 An American Wife https://geni.us/B0BSH828Y9coverBOOK 2 An American Wife in Paris https://geni.us/B0C24D8VLXcoverThe post The Diplomat’s Wife Series and the O-5 Group by Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger #WW2 #Resistance #HistoricalFiction first appeared on Deborah Swift.
Spotlight on The Irish Fortune Series by Juliane Weber
Spotlight today for historical romance fans, and readers with an interest in the Victorian period or Irish History.
The Irish Fortune Series
Under the Emerald Sky Book #1 and Beneath the Darkening Clouds Book #2
About the Books
“Under the Emerald Sky reaches another level in storytelling, the kind where the characters remain with you long after you have closed the book.”
– The Historical Fiction Company
It’s 1843 and the Englishman Quinton Williams has come to Ireland to oversee the running of his father’s ailing estate and escape his painful past. There he meets the Irishwoman Alannah O’Neill, whose family is one of few to have retained ownership of their land, the rest having been supplanted by the English over the course of the country’s bloody history. Seeing the injustices of Victorian Ireland, Alannah’s brother Kieran has learned to hate the English and imperialism. Aware of Kieran’s hostility towards the English, Alannah keeps her growing relationship with Quin a secret – but it’s a secret that can’t be kept for long from those plotting to end England’s oppression of the Irish people. As Quin and Alannah seek happiness in the face of hate and revenge, an action-packed romance ensues.
But all the while, disaster looms – the Great Famine that would forever change the course of Ireland’s history. With repeated failure of the potato harvest upon which most Irish families depend, thousands will go hungry, with sickness and starvation sweeping through Irish farms, decimating poor populations for years to come.
Can Quin and Alannah find happiness in a land teetering on the brink of disaster?
Read on #KindleUnlimited. Under the Emerald Sky – Universal LinkAmazon UK • Amazon US • Amazon CA • Amazon AU
About the AuthorJuliane Weber is a scientist turned historical fiction writer, and author of the Irish Fortune Series. Her stories take readers on action-packed romantic adventures amid the captivating scenery and folklore of 19th century Ireland. Under the Emerald Sky, the first book in the Irish Fortune Series, was awarded bronze medals in The Historical Fiction Company 2021 Book of the Year Contest and The Coffee Pot Book Club 2022 Book of the Year Contest. The second book in the series, Beneath the Darkening Clouds, was awarded a bronze medal in The Historical Fiction Company 2022 Book the Year Contest.Juliane spent most of her life in South Africa, but now lives with her husband and two sons in Hamelin, Germany, the town made famous by the story of the Pied Piper.Juliane’s Social Media Links:Website • Twitter • Facebook • LinkedIn BookBub • InstagramThe post Spotlight on The Irish Fortune Series by Juliane Weber first appeared on Deborah Swift.
The Godmother’s Secret by Elizabeth StJohn #Audiobook #CoffeePotBookClub
Official Tantor Media Audio Link: https://tinyurl.com/2lrbp2tv
Spring 1483 | Bolton CastleToday, the wide windswept skies arc over our peaceful lands. Sun-bright clouds chase shadows from the forested valleys to the purple hills, and sweet birdsong replaces the clashing of iron being forged in the castle armoury. The only movement in the apothecary garden below my window is the gardener pulling weeds from the lavender beds.
Spurs jangle on the spiral steps, and Isabel looks up from her embroidery; her head bobs like the narcissus in the grasses lapping Bolton’s keep. An envoy strides across the solar. His murrey-and-blue livery proclaims the household of Richard Plantagenet, Duke of Gloucester.
Best to tell him his journey is wasted. “My husband is not here. Lord Scrope rides out to our farthest boundaries. He will not return for several weeks.”
“The message is to both you and Lord Scrope.” The rider thrusts a packet at me, crumpled and bulky, begging exploration. “The duke ordered I remain for further instruction.”
How peculiar Gloucester addresses us both. I ponder whether to read it now or wait for Jack’s return. The missive weighs heavy in my hands. While he is gone, he insists that although the steward governs in name, decisions about the castle are my responsibility.
But this is official business, from outside my domain, from Gloucester himself.
I run my fingernail under the edge of the seal, cracking the red wax slightly.
It is, after all, addressed to both of us.
The right to make my own decision. “Then I shall see what is so urgent from the king’s brother.”
Isabel joins me at the window, leans against my arm in her curiosity to see what I have received. “Should you not wait for Jack? Or ask Oliver his advice? He can ride from our home in just an hour.”
“My husband trusts me, and this is not addressed to my brother.”
I break open the seal with a click, and a pearl-and-ruby crucifix tumbles forth. I catch the cross just before it drops to the floor. No scribe has touched this note, for the writing is hasty, perhaps scrawled in Gloucester’s own hand. His words are abrupt, a series of directions, as if he is issuing instructions for a military campaign.
I command you both to Middleham on a matter of great urgency. Jack, you must attend us immediately and bring a troop of your most trustworthy men. Elysabeth, I send the king’s jewel as a reminder of your holy vow. Prince Edward is in danger. Do not delay, for each hour could cost us dearly. Prepare to travel with me to London.
The ill-fitting window shutter bangs open. A sudden cold eastern gust barges through the latch, whisking me back to the steps of the cathedral at Westminster. A November twelve years past and yet clear as day. The day I swore my sacred oath as godmother to the heir of England’s throne, to protect Ned against the wrong in the world.
A second note, just a scrap, flutters from the folds. Meg’s curved writing jumps from the parchment.
Come, Belle-maman, I am at Middleham with Will. You and Jack must come. Please. We are depending on you.
Blessed Virgin Mother. My vow is called.
PRAISE
“An extremely well-written book with depth and complexity to the main characters. The author says she wanted to write a book about family love and tolerance, and a woman’s loyalty and courage. She has done so. This is the best book I’ve read in ages!”
The Ricardian Bulletin, Richard III Society
“The authenticity and historical research displayed within this story is immense and exquisite. Ms. St. John is sure to be a newfound favorite for fans of not only this fractious time in English history, but of all historical fans who adore rich, immersive prose.”
Historical Fiction Company 2022 Book of the Year
“A very enjoyable read. The historical veracity is impeccable, and Elysabeth is a likeable, admirable character who faces interesting dilemmas with love and courage.”
Historical Novel Society
ABOUT THE BOOK
If you knew the fate of the Princes in the Tower, would you tell? Or forever keep the secret?
May 1483: The Tower of London. When King Edward IV dies and Lady Elysabeth Scrope delivers her young godson, Edward V, into the Tower of London to prepare for his coronation, she is engulfed in political turmoil. Within months, the prince and his brother have disappeared, Richard III is declared king, and Elysabeth’s sister Margaret Beaufort conspires with her son Henry Tudor to invade England and claim the throne.
Desperate to protect her godson, Elysabeth battles the intrigue, betrayal, and power of the last medieval court, defying her Yorkist husband and her Lancastrian sister under her godmother’s sacred oath to keep Prince Edward safe. Bound by blood and rent by honour, Elysabeth is torn between King Richard and Margaret Beaufort, knowing that if her loyalty is questioned, she is in peril of losing everything—including her life.
Were the princes murdered by their uncle, Richard III? Did Margaret Beaufort mastermind their disappearance to usher in the Tudor dynasty? Or did the young boys vanish for their own safety? Of anyone at the royal court, Elysabeth has the most to lose–and the most to gain–by keeping secret the fate of the Princes in the Tower.
Inspired by England’s most enduring historical mystery, Elizabeth St.John blends her family history with known facts and centuries of speculation to create an intriguing story about what happened to the Princes in the Tower .
LISTEN HERE: Audiobook Buy Link: https://geni.us/TGSAudible
The ebook is available to read on Kindle Unlimited.
BUY THE BOOK: https://geni.us/GodmothersSecret
About Elizabeth:
Elizabeth St.John’s critically acclaimed historical fiction novels tell the stories of her ancestors: extraordinary women whose intriguing kinship with England’s kings and queens brings an intimately unique perspective to Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart times.
Inspired by family archives and residences from Lydiard Park to the Tower of London, Elizabeth spends much of her time exploring ancestral portraits, diaries, and lost gardens. And encountering the occasional ghost. But that’s another story.
Living between California, England, and the past, Elizabeth is the International Ambassador for The Friends of Lydiard Park, an English charity dedicated to conserving and enhancing this beautiful centuries-old country house and park. As a curator for The Lydiard Archives, she is constantly looking for an undiscovered treasure to inspire her next novel.
Elizabeth’s books include her trilogy, The Lydiard Chronicles, set in 17th Century England during the Civil War, and her newest release, The Godmother’s Secret, which explores the medieval mystery of the missing Princes in the Tower of London.
Contact Elizabeth:
Website: http://www.elizabethjstjohn.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElizStJohn
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethJStJohn
The post The Godmother’s Secret by Elizabeth StJohn #Audiobook #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.
July 4, 2023
Turning the World to Stone by Kelly Evans @chaucerbabe #Renaissance #Italy
Turning the World to Stone – The Life of Caterina Sforza Part One 1472 to 1488
About the book:
Vilified by history, Caterina Sforza learned early that her life was not her own. Married at age ten, she was a pawn in the ever-changing political environment of Renaissance Italy.
Resigned to her life as a fifteenth-century wife, Caterina adapted to the role she was expected to play: raising and educating her children, helping the poor in her new home, and turning a blind eye to her husband’s increasingly shameful behaviour. But Fate had other plans for her, and soon Caterina’s path would be plagued by murder, betrayal, and heartbreak.
“Could I write all, the world would turn to stone.”
Read this lovely mini- extract to get a flavour!
They stood in awkward silence. The man hadn’t yet introduced himself, and she knew it would be rude to ask. “What are you doing here?”
“Excuse, my lady, I’m being impolite. I am Sandro Botticelli. I am working on a commission for His Holiness.”
“Ahh, the Holy Father won’t tell me what he has planned for his great chapel, no matter how much I pester him.”
Sandro leaned in conspiratorially. “I will tell you if you promise not to share with anyone.” He stood back and eyed her critically. “Are you interested in art, Madonna? You would make a wonderful model.”
“I am, yes. My father was a patron of many artists and musicians.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Now, let me describe to you what this chapel will look like, close your eyes if it helps.”
Caterina looked back at Luisa, who was still standing nearby, listening, before focussing on the artist’s words. Closing her eyes, she let his description fill her mind.
“Picture this, Madonna. Along the walls will be vast frescoes depicting the life of the Saviour and the life of Moses. Other artists and I have been selected to create these works. These focal pieces will be offset by portraits of past Popes above the frescoes and drapery done in the trompe-l’oeil style beneath.”
Caterina could see the large chapel taking shape in her mind. “And the ceiling?”
“Blue with gold stars spaced evenly.”
She nodded. “If it’s anything like I’m imagining it will be magnificent.”
A noise at one end of the room interrupted them. Caterina opened her eyes and saw another man enter. Another painter, she guessed. “I must go.”
But Sandro was off in his own world.
Smiling, she joined Luisa and left him as they had found him, staring at a wall.
Now buy the book or read on KindleUnlimited
Universal Link: https://mybook.to/Caterina
About the author:
Born in Canada of Scottish extraction, Kelly Evans graduated in History and English then moved to England where she worked in the financial sector. While in London Kelly continued her studies in history, concentrating on Medieval History, and travelled extensively through Eastern and Western Europe.
Kelly is now back in Canada with her husband Max and a rescue cat. She writes full-time, focussing on illuminating little-known women in history with fascinating stories. When not working on her novels, Kelly writes Described Video scripts for visually impaired individuals, plays oboe, and enjoys old sci-fi movies.
Social Media Links:
Website: https://www.kellyaevans.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChaucerBabe
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Kelly-Evans/author/B0187JGTOQ
The post Turning the World to Stone by Kelly Evans @chaucerbabe #Renaissance #Italy first appeared on Deborah Swift.June 13, 2023
New Release! Penelope: Tudor Baroness by @tonyriches #Elizabethan #Tudor
Penelope – Tudor Baroness by Tony Riches
(Book Four of The Elizabethan Series)
Lady Penelope is one of the most beautiful and sought-after women in Elizabethan England. The daughter of the queen’s nemesis, Lady Lettice Knollys, Countess of Essex, she becomes the stepdaughter of Robert Dudley when he marries her mother in secret.
Penelope’s life is full of love and scandal. The inspiration for Sir Philip Sidney’s sonnet Astrophel and Stella, she is inevitably caught up in her brother Robert’s fateful rebellion. A complex and fascina4ng woman, her life is a story of love, betrayal, and tragedy. Discover how Penelope charms her way out of serious charges of treason, adultery, and forgery, and becomes one of the last truly great ladies of the Tudor court.
A maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth, Penelope outlives the end of the Tudors with the death of the old queen and the arrival of King James, becoming a favourite lady-in-waiting to the new queen, Anne of Denmark.
“This is the story of a woman who lived life on her own terms, and one that will stay with you long after you finish reading it.”
BUY THE BOOK
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C78KDRK3
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C78KDRK3
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0C78KDRK3
Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0C78KDRK3
About Tony
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 new 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
www.tonyriches.com and his blog, The Writing Desk and find him on Facebook and Twitter @tonyriches
May 31, 2023
The Devil’s Glove – two objects of inspiration and a clash of worlds #CoffeePotBookClub
I’m delighted to host a Guest Post by Lucretia Grindle, author of The Devil’s Glove today.
It’s always lovely to hear what inspired an author to tell a story.
Two Objects of Inspiration.
At its heart, The Devil’s Glove is a story about clashing worlds. The Native world and the Anglo-European world. The private world of The Hammonds and the social world beyond that judges them. The Old World of England, Jersey, and London and the New World of New England, Massachusetts, and The Eastward.
The nature of these places that form the lives of the central characters – the wild coast of Maine, where they must carve out a future, and the cosmopolitan world of England, and especially London, that not only contains their past, but is also the center of the trade they depend on – were central to how I thought about, and wrote, The Devil’s Glove. I was fascinated by how different they were, while at the same time being so deeply inter-linked. The two photos included here sat on my desk as I worked on the story, and were a constant source of inspiration.
I took this photograph on one of the many trips I made up and down the coast while I was working on the book. ‘Place’ has always been a central element, basically a character, in my writing. In The Devil’s Glove in particular, the coast of Maine is more than just a ‘setting’. It physically and emotionally forms what happens to and around the characters in the book. Obviously, the ocean dictates how they must live their lives. It terrifies, nurtures, protects and threatens them – and is also the primary route in and out of the Falmouth settlement. They can be saved, or attacked by water.
But that is only half of the coast. The other half is the forest that still covers so much of Maine today. To the Native tribes in particular, it is a sanctuary. To many of the villagers, it is an ominous presence – a dark and forbidding place that houses people and things that terrify them. Warriors burst without warning out of its depths. Captives disappear into it and are never seen again. Strange noises come from it. This is the wilderness their civilization must battle against.
Not so for Resolve and Deliverance Hammond. Nothing typifies their difference from the villagers in Falmouth quite as much as their attitude to, and relationship with, both the water and the forest. Resolve swims, and feels herself transforming, and connecting with another world. When she goes into the woods, she feels it close around her, cradling her – literally. This is ‘The Greening’ where she spent her childhood, the sanctuary that kept her and her mother safe.
For The Hammond women, crossing the cove is entering another world. Water takes them there, while the forest itself, once a classroom when they were sheltered by Ashawonks, is increasingly a source of power, and a portal – an entry point not only into the past, but also into the parallel Native world. One that could not be more removed, and yet is strangely linked to the second photograph I kept on my desk.
I found this scrap in a junk shop in London. The fact that it is dated from the same year The Devil’s Glove is set in made it a perfect juxtaposition to the still wild Maine coast. This lovely little piece of printing, with odd scraps of addition doodled around it, lists a sale of all sorts of things, including bibles and ink pots, letters cases cards and pens that are for sale in a shop on London Bridge.
Most of the things it lists have to do with literacy and writing which were central to the world of the late 17th century – and seem very far removed from the great forests of The Eastward, as Maine was known at the time. But were they? Yes, these are the emblems and tools of European ‘civilization’, but they are also the emblems, and tools, of trade.
‘Civilization’ as the Anglo-European immigrants who peopled 17th century New England conceived of it, was the anti-thesis of – and the thing that had to be imposed on – the vast, frightening wilderness they found themselves in. Yet, the raw goods of trade; furs, lumber, fish, came from that wilderness. Pens, letters cases, pocket books recorded and tracked that trade, which would also become the engine that powered and enabled that same ‘civilization’ to cross and re-cross the Atlantic, getting first a foothold, and then a grip on Maine’s rock-bound coast. And, eventually, even in her dense all-encompassing forests.
As I wrote The Devil’s Glove, I found these two photos represented the difference between the worlds the Hammond women inhabited, and their interdependence. Look at them one way, and they are completely opposed. Look at them again, and they are completely interlinked. The coast of Maine in 1688 is the future, while the Old World of London is the past. Or, those pens and pots of ink, those bibles are the wave of the future, set to crash into a Native past cradled by Maine’s forest and her sea.
Thank you Lucretia, for this fascinating post!
Northern New England, summer, 1688.
Salem started here.
A suspicious death. A rumour of war. Whispers of witchcraft.
Perched on the brink of disaster, Resolve Hammond and her mother, Deliverance, struggle to survive in their isolated coastal village. They’re known as healers taught by the local tribes – and suspected of witchcraft by the local villagers.
Their precarious existence becomes even more chaotic when summoned to tend to a poisoned woman. As they uncover a web of dark secrets, rumors of war engulf the village, forcing the Hammonds to choose between loyalty to their native friends or the increasingly terrified settler community.
As Resolve is plagued by strange dreams, she questions everything she thought she knew – about her family, her closest friend, and even herself. If the truth comes to light, the repercussions will be felt far beyond the confines of this small settlement.
Based on meticulous research and inspired by the true story of the fear and suspicion that led to the Salem Witchcraft Trials, THE DEVIL’S GLOVE is a tale of betrayal, loyalty, and the power of secrets. Will Resolve be able to uncover the truth before the town tears itself apart, or will she become the next victim of the village’s dark and mysterious past?
Praise for The Devil’s Glove:
“From its opening lines this historical novel from Grindle (Villa Triste) grips with its rare blend of a powerfully evoked past, resonant characters, smart suspense, and prose touched with shivery poetry.” ~ BookLife Reviews Editor’s Pick
Buy the BookThis title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Find Lucretia on her Website: http://LucretiaGrindle.com or Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/lucretiagrindle
The post The Devil’s Glove – two objects of inspiration and a clash of worlds #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.May 16, 2023
Launch Day! The Silk Code by Deborah Swift #WW2 #HistoricalFiction #Englandspiel #Secret Agent
It’s out! I’m thrilled to launch The Silk Code today. The idea for this book was first mooted by the editor at HQ in February 2021, so it’s lovely to see it hit the virtual shelves. The audiobook will follow in about a week, and the paperback will be in bookshops in July. Meanwhile, the ebook is here! Thank you to everyone who pre-ordered, and all of my readers who support my books.
Thank you too to the fab team at HQDigital.
The Silk Code
‘The Silk Code had me absolutely hooked… A great storyline full of bravery, trust, love, survival, betrayal and determination.’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Based on the true story of ‘Englandspiel’, one woman must race against the clock to uncover a traitor, even if it means losing the man she loves.
England, 1943
Deciding to throw herself into war work, Nancy Callaghan joins the Special Operations Executive in Baker Street. There, she begins solving ‘indecipherables’ – scrambled messages from agents in the field.
Then Nancy meets Tom Lockwood, a quiet genius when it comes to coding. Together they come up with the idea of printing codes on silk, so agents can hide them in their clothing to avoid detection by the enemy. Nancy and Tom grow close, and soon she is hopelessly in love.
But there is a traitor in Baker Street, and suspicions turn towards Tom. When Nancy is asked to spy on Tom, she must make the ultimate sacrifice and complete a near-impossible mission. Could the man she loves be the enemy?
Buy The Silk CodeThe paperback and audiobook are coming soon.
The post Launch Day! The Silk Code by Deborah Swift #WW2 #HistoricalFiction #Englandspiel #Secret Agent first appeared on Deborah Swift.
May 11, 2023
The Queen’s Scribe by Amy Maroney @wilaroney #Review #HistoricalFiction #TheQueensScribe #TheCoffeePotBookClub
Review – The Queen’s Scribe
This is the third book in the series and I’ve read all three, as well as the author’s previous books, so you can tell I’m a fan! This is a fabulous evocation of a forgotten place and a forgotten era, and Estelle, the main character, is brave, resourceful and intelligent. Sent by her father to the court in Cyprus, she soon realises she has been dropped into a nest of vipers, and must use her wits to survive all the machinations of the court. Jacco, the bastard son, is intent on becoming ruler, and overthrowing the Queen’s rule. At first the Queen is reluctant to trust Estelle as her view of her has been poisoned, but through her knowledge of French and her ability to translate between the Queen ad her French husband, Estelle slowly wins her round. Not only that, but the friendship between the women gives the Queen the confidence to follow her own heart and mind.
As well as a hostile court, Estelle has to navigate an unwanted suitor, and the war that will surely come. In amongst all the skulduggery is a romance between Estelle and Gabriel, who is a falconer and a man of wisdom. At first mistrustful of each other, they are nevertheless drawn together and the reader is rooting for them all the way.
There is a lot going on in this book! Hidden treasure, a castle siege, and plenty of enemies. If you like a story which transports you to another era, but also keeps you nailed to the adventure, this is the book for you. Highly recommended.
ABOUT THE BOOK
A broken promise. A bitter conflict.
And a woman’s elusive chance to love or die.
1458
Young Frenchwoman Estelle de Montavon sails to Cyprus imagining a bright future as tutor to a princess. Instead, she is betrayed by those she loves most and forced into a dangerous new world of scheming courtiers, vicious power struggles, and the terrifying threat of war.
Determined to flee, Estelle enlists the help of an attractive and mysterious falconer. But on the eve of her escape, fortune’s wheel turns again. She gains entry to Queen Charlotta’s inner circle as a trusted scribe and interpreter, fighting her way to dizzying heights of influence.
Enemies old and new rise from the shadows as Estelle navigates a royal game of cat and mouse between the queen and her powerful half-brother, who wants the throne for himself.
When war comes to the island, Estelle faces a brutal reckoning for her loyalty to the queen. Will the impossible choice looming ahead be her doom—or her salvation?
With this richly-told story of courage, loyalty, and the sustaining power of love, Amy Maroney brings a mesmerizing and forgotten world to vivid life. The Queen’s Scribe is a stand-alone novel in the Sea and Stone Chronicles collection.
Praise for the Sea and Stone Chronicles:
“Island of Gold is a nimbly told story with impeccable pacing.”
—Historical Novel Society, Editor’s Choice Review
“Sea of Shadows is stunning. A compelling tale of love, honor, and conviction.”
—Reader’s Favorite Review
Amy Maroney is the author of the award-winning Miramonde Series, the story of a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern day scholar on her trail.
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Universal Link https://mybook.to/QueensScribe
Author Bio:
Amy Maroney studied English Literature at Boston University and worked for many years as a writer and editor of nonfiction. She lives in Oregon, U.S.A. with her family. When she’s not diving down research rabbit holes, she enjoys hiking, dancing, traveling, and reading.
Amy is the author of The Miramonde Series, an Amazon-bestselling historical mystery trilogy about a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern-day scholar on her trail. Amy’s award-winning historical adventure/romance series, Sea and Stone Chronicles, is set in medieval Rhodes and Cyprus.
An enthusiastic advocate for independent publishing, Amy is a member of the Alliance of Independent Authors and the Historical Novel Society.
Find Amy : Website: https://www.amymaroney.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wilaroney
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amymaroneyauthor
The post The Queen’s Scribe by Amy Maroney @wilaroney #Review #HistoricalFiction #TheQueensScribe #TheCoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.
April 26, 2023
A Matter of Faith by Judith Arnopp #Review #CoffeePotBookClub
A Matter of Faith: Henry VIII, the Days of the Phoenix by Judith Arnopp
About the book:
Finally free of Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII, is now married to Anne Boleyn and eagerly awaiting the birth of his son. In a court still reeling from the royal divorce and growing public resentment against church reform, Henry must negotiate widespread resentment toward Anne. He places all his hopes in a son to cement his Tudor blood line, but his dreams are shattered when Anne is delivered of a daughter.
Burying his disappointment, Henry focuses on getting her with child again, but their marriage is volatile and as Henry faces personal bereavement, and discord at court, Anne’s enemies are gathering. When the queen miscarries of a son, and Henry suffers a life-threatening accident, his need for an heir becomes critical. Waiting in the wings is Jane Seymour, a lady-in-waiting who offers the king comfort and respite from Anne’s fiery passions.
But, when Anne falls foul of her former ally, Thomas Cromwell, and the king is persuaded he has been made a cuckold, Henry strikes out and the queen falls beneath the executioner’s sword, taking key players in Henry’s household with her.
Jane Seymour, stepping up to replace the fallen queen, quickly becomes pregnant. Delighted with his dull but fertile wife, Henry’s spirits rise even further when the prince is born safely. At last, Henry has all he desires but even as he celebrates, fate is preparing to deliver one more staggering blow.
Henry, the once perfect Renaissance prince, is now a damaged middle-aged man, disappointed in those around him but most of all in himself. As the king’s optimism diminishes, his intractability increases, and the wounded lion begins to roar.
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
REVIEW
I have read the first book in this series and loved the portrait of the young Henry VIII. In this novel he is older, but it seems, not wiser! We are taken into the head of this monarch and although it can never be a true representation of the complexity of this man, Judith Arnopp manages to bring about a consistency that brings him to life on the page. His hopes, fears and dreams – all of which seem likely considering what we know of the history, are brought to the fore in the way only a novel can portray.
We have all seen films of Henry VIII, of his awful actions in his own court, of his bullying and cajoling to get what he wants. What is great in this novel is that we see also his insecurities – his longing for an heir, his hopes for Anne, his devastation at the loss of his sister Mary, and the eventual tragedy that befalls him, the church and the hapless Anne Boleyn, whose only crime was not to produce the required son. How he becomes the narcissistic and controlling megalomaniac that he eventually becomes, is tempered with his inner doubts. He knows he is bad, but is too selfish to remedy it.
Cromwell’s hand in Anne’s demise is subtly drawn, and the way Henry lurches afterwards to Jane Seymour is credible, as Jane seems to be able to put aside her personality do his bidding — the opposite of Anne who made him wait before she would marry him. It is a story nearly everyone knows – the story of Henry and his wives, yet this is so fresh, to feel his story from the inside.
Congratulations to Judith Arnopp – massively entertaining and a superbly inventive insight into the mind of one of our most famous monarchs.
Vey highly recommended for all Tudor fans.
Get it HERE: Universal Link: http://mybook.to/amofaith
Judith’s next non-fiction book coming soon: How to Dress like a Tudor will be published by Pen & Sword in 2023.
Get in touch with Judith: Website: Twitter: Facebook:
The post A Matter of Faith by Judith Arnopp #Review #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.April 12, 2023
The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick – 30 years old! Plus a birthday celebration @cathiedunn #CoffeePotBookClub
Huge Congratulations to Helen Hollick on her Special 30th Publication Anniversary and 70th Birthday Celebration!
Series: The Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy (Book #1)
The Kingmaking: Book One
Pendragon’s Banner: Book Two
Shadow of the King: Book Three
THE KINGMAKING
The Boy Who became a Man:
Who became a King:
Who became a Legend… KING ARTHUR
There is no Merlin, no sword in the stone, and no Lancelot.
Instead, the man who became our most enduring hero.
All knew the oath of allegiance:
‘To you, lord, I give my sword and shield, my heart and soul. To you, my Lord Pendragon, I give my life, to command as you will.’
This is the tale of Arthur made flesh and bone. Of the shaping of the man who became the legendary king; a man with dreams, ambitions and human flaws.
A man, a warlord, who united the collapsing province of post-Roman Britain, who held the heart of the love of his life, Gwenhwyfar – and who emerged as the most enduring hero of all time.
A different telling of the later Medieval tales.
This is the story of King Arthur as it might have really happened…
(contains scenes of an adult nature)
“If only all historical fiction could be this good.” Historical Novels Review
“… Juggles a large cast of characters and a bloody, tangled plot with great skill. ” Publishers Weekly
“Hollick’s writing is one of the best I’ve come across – her descriptions are so vivid it seems as if there’s a movie screen in front of you, playing out the scenes.” Passages To The Past
“Hollick adds her own unique twists and turns to the familiar mythology” Booklist
“Uniquely compelling… bound to have a lasting and resounding impact on Arthurian literature.” Books Magazine
The Kingmaking is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
BUY THE BOOK https://mybook.to/TheKingmaking_Book1
About Helen Hollick
Helen is celebrating her 70th birthday and thirty years as a published author. Her Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy, a fifth-century version of the Arthurian legend, was accepted for traditional publication in April 1993 by William Heinemann (Random House UK) a week after her 40th birthday. The Trilogy has been widely acclaimed since then – and gone through several different editions.
Helen moved from Random House UK in 2006 and went ‘Indie’, now in 2023 to celebrate she has brought out her own fabulous new editions! (The Trilogy is published mainstream by Sourcebooks Inc in USA/Canada. The publisher was offered the new cover designs for free, but declined.)
Helen became a USA Today Bestseller with her historical novel, The Forever Queen (titled A Hollow Crown in the UK) with the sequel, Harold the King (US: I Am The Chosen King) being novels that explore the events that led to the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
She writes a nautical adventure/fantasy Pirates of the Caribbean series, The Sea Witch Voyages and has also branched out into the quick read novella, ‘Cosy Mystery’ genre with her Jan Christopher Murder Mysteries, set in the 1970s, with the first in the series, A Mirror Murder incorporating her, often hilarious, memories of working as a library assistant.
Her non-fiction books are Pirates: Truth and Tales and Life of A Smuggler. She lives with her family in an eighteenth-century farmhouse in North Devon with a variety of pets and horses.
Find Helen on Social Media: Website: https://helenhollick.net Twitter: https://twitter.com/HelenHollick Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/helen.hollick
The post The Kingmaking by Helen Hollick – 30 years old! Plus a birthday celebration @cathiedunn #CoffeePotBookClub first appeared on Deborah Swift.
