Elizabeth Marshall's Blog, page 2
October 13, 2011
Christmas Competition!
It’s competition time!
Tell me the name of your favorite Christmas song –
A winner will be picked at random and will receive a free signed copy of ‘When Fate Dictates’ –
What’s more, I’ve been dared to sing the winner’ s choice on a youtube video – released the week before Christmas.
Tell me the name of your favorite Christmas song –
A winner will be picked at random and will receive a free signed copy of ‘When Fate Dictates’ –
What’s more, I’ve been dared to sing the winner’ s choice on a youtube video – released the week before Christmas.
October 9, 2011
'Saving Grace' - is now available
“I’ve been haunting you? You’ve got to be bloody joking,” Grace said sitting bolt upright in the bed. Realising too late that she had nothing on, Grace grabbed for the blanket and pulled it up underneath her chin. “Where the hell are my clothes?”
He raised his brows, casting his eyes lazily towards the wrought iron bedstead where Grace’s clothes hung neatly.
“They were wet,” he replied simply.
“So you just decided to take them off?”
“You were catching your death.” ....
http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Grace-Be...
http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Grace-Be...
He raised his brows, casting his eyes lazily towards the wrought iron bedstead where Grace’s clothes hung neatly.
“They were wet,” he replied simply.
“So you just decided to take them off?”
“You were catching your death.” ....
http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Grace-Be...
http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Grace-Be...
October 7, 2011
Saving Grace - coming soon
In one swift movement Robert smacked his forehead on the bridge of the man’s nose.
The man dropped to the floor, and within seconds was lying in a pool of his own blood.
Robert grabbed him by the shirt. The man swayed unsteadily as Robert held him upright.
“No, Robert, leave him,” Grace screamed.
Scrambling off the bed she flung herself at Robert, begging him to stop.
“You’ll kill him, Robert. Please, let him go?”
Robert stared at the man for a brief moment before flinging him aside.
“Get out!” he ordered, “Now!”
The dazed man scurried through the door leaving a trail of blood behind him.
Click here to download the first book in the Beyond Time series, 'Haunting Grace'- UK
Click here to download the first book in the Beyond Time series, 'Haunting Grace'- USA
The man dropped to the floor, and within seconds was lying in a pool of his own blood.
Robert grabbed him by the shirt. The man swayed unsteadily as Robert held him upright.
“No, Robert, leave him,” Grace screamed.
Scrambling off the bed she flung herself at Robert, begging him to stop.
“You’ll kill him, Robert. Please, let him go?”
Robert stared at the man for a brief moment before flinging him aside.
“Get out!” he ordered, “Now!”
The dazed man scurried through the door leaving a trail of blood behind him.
Click here to download the first book in the Beyond Time series, 'Haunting Grace'- UK
Click here to download the first book in the Beyond Time series, 'Haunting Grace'- USA
October 2, 2011
Changing Grace (Beyond Time, #2)
Changing Grace
Alone in a foreign city, haunted by the ghost of Robert Hamilton and confronted with a portrait of herself painted four hundred years ago, Grace Evans has every reason to doubt her sanity.
If you’ve been waiting for the 2nd book in the Beyond Time series then I am happy to announce that it has just gone live on Amazon.
Click here to download from amazon.com
Click here to download from amazon.co.uk
Alone in a foreign city, haunted by the ghost of Robert Hamilton and confronted with a portrait of herself painted four hundred years ago, Grace Evans has every reason to doubt her sanity.
If you’ve been waiting for the 2nd book in the Beyond Time series then I am happy to announce that it has just gone live on Amazon.
Click here to download from amazon.com
Click here to download from amazon.co.uk
A Cavalier Haunting
His presence once more filled the room as sleep claimed her mind.
Dare she trust him? Her heart leapt at the thought. She sensed him behind her, moments before she felt his strong arms wrap around her waist. His chest was rising and falling against her back, his breath warm and soft against her ear. She gasped as pleasure rippled through her body at the feel of his touch.
“Why do you haunt me, Robert?” she whispered to the darkness.
“You are the one that haunts my dreams.”
“I’m frightened, Robert. I don’t understand.”
“No my love, nor do I.”
She had to resist, had to stop this. She fought to end the dream. Her mind clawed to break free, pulling at a thin thread of light that broke through the darkness. But he held her, trembling against him until the light of dawn rose around them.
'Changing Grace' is the second short story in the 'Beyond Time' trilogy.
Click here to download from Amazon.co.uk
Click here to download from Amazon.com
Dare she trust him? Her heart leapt at the thought. She sensed him behind her, moments before she felt his strong arms wrap around her waist. His chest was rising and falling against her back, his breath warm and soft against her ear. She gasped as pleasure rippled through her body at the feel of his touch.
“Why do you haunt me, Robert?” she whispered to the darkness.
“You are the one that haunts my dreams.”
“I’m frightened, Robert. I don’t understand.”
“No my love, nor do I.”
She had to resist, had to stop this. She fought to end the dream. Her mind clawed to break free, pulling at a thin thread of light that broke through the darkness. But he held her, trembling against him until the light of dawn rose around them.
'Changing Grace' is the second short story in the 'Beyond Time' trilogy.
Click here to download from Amazon.co.uk
Click here to download from Amazon.com
October 1, 2011
'Saving Grace' - Just to prove I've started it:-) xx
“I’ve been haunting you? You’ve got to bloody be joking,” Grace said sitting bolt upright in bed. Realising too late that she had nothing on, Grace grabbed for the blanket and pulled it underneath her chin. “Where the hell are my clothes?”
If you haven't yet got your copy of 'Haunting Grace' - it is now available for download on Amazon kindle.
Click here to download from Amazon.co.uk
Click here to download from Amazon.com
If you haven't yet got your copy of 'Haunting Grace' - it is now available for download on Amazon kindle.
Click here to download from Amazon.co.uk
Click here to download from Amazon.com
September 28, 2011
Haunting Grace - He Haunts Her Dreams
HAUNTING GRACE
She smelt the sweet smokiness of burning wood and heard the gentle crackle of flames in the distance of her dream. The room was in complete darkness but she knew he was there, beside her. She reached out to touch him and felt the curve of his shoulders. He turned and wrapped his arms around her pulling her, into his embrace. Tiny bubbles bounced in the pit of her stomach as she nestled into him, her back curved against his chest, her body pressed against the entire length of him. He reached for her hand and enclosed his large palm over it. His lips brushed against her head lightly as he rested his cheek against the top of her head. Cocooned in his embrace, secure in his arms, her heart safe in his hands, she smiled into darkness.
“I love you Grace.”
“I love you too,” she whispered.
“Please don’t leave me again,” she cried as the dream slipped from her clutch and dawn crushed the magic of the night.
‘Haunting Grace’, a short story – now available for download on Amazon kindle.
Click here to download from Amazon.com
Click here to download from Amazon.co.uk
Haunting Grace
HAUNTING GRACE
...She felt the brush of a coat as someone passed her. Instinctively, she turned towards them. Only his back was visible but he had the appearance of a costumed guide. Her eyes followed him as he made his way purposefully down the street, his long black coat flowing behind. There was something familiar about him but she couldn’t quite decide what. Suddenly he stopped, rigid in his tracks. He turned abruptly, his coat swirling around him. She gasped as their eyes locked in shocked silence. The soft curve of his mouth quirked in a gentle smile and she raised her hand towards him. He took a long measured step towards her, his eyes never leaving hers. Her heart pounded fiercely as he drew nearer and nearer. The city dimmed around them. She could almost touch him. His hand was raised towards hers. He was going to touch her, take her hand in his. He was so close she could feel the warmth of him in front of her. His lips smiled and whispered ‘I love you,’ as she stretched her fingers to meet his hand...
‘Haunting Grace’, a short story – now available for download on Amazon kindle.
Click here to download book from Amazon.com
Click here to download book from Amazon.co.uk
September 20, 2011
Roman Ghosts of York
60AD and Queen Bodicea and her Iceni warriors prepare to revolt against the mighty Roman Empire.
Bodicea’s loses eighty thousand men, woman and children in her last stand against the Romans. Rather than be taken captive, the Queen of the Iceni poisons herself and the war is over. The mighty Roman Empire reigns supreme over southern Britain.
It is not long before the Romans realise the strategic value of the north and in 71AD the Ninth Roman Legion invades the area. Fort Eboracum is commissioned and warriors stand poised, shovels raised. With that first powerful blow the sharp edge cuts through the soil and the story begins.
Alone in the damp darkness of a cellar, a young heating engineer called Harry Martindale is distracted from his work by an odd noise coming from the wall of the cellar.
It is 1953 and Harry is standing on a ladder repairing some heating pipes in the ‘Treasurer’s House’ in York.
The odd sound gradually becomes clearer until Harry recognises it as that of a trumpet blast.
From out of the cellar wall rides a horseman, followed by two Roman legionnaires and then another two. The procession of dirty, weary Romans terrify Harry so much that he falls off his ladder. Scrambling to hide in a corner he watches as they march past him, their legs, from the knees down, hidden below the ground.
Apparently oblivious of Harry they continue along a line and disappeared through the opposite cellar wall. Later excavations unearthed, eighteen inches below the floor, an original Roman road.
Ridiculed for his tale, Harry stopped talking about his encounter - until in 1971, it was discovered that his description of the uniforms and insignia of the ghosts were those of the Ninth Legion.
Standing in the shadows of York Minster, The Treasurer’s House was built on a Roman site. The house has been rebuilt and altered many times over the years - but not enough it would seem to discourage its original occupants from their home.
Bodicea’s loses eighty thousand men, woman and children in her last stand against the Romans. Rather than be taken captive, the Queen of the Iceni poisons herself and the war is over. The mighty Roman Empire reigns supreme over southern Britain.
It is not long before the Romans realise the strategic value of the north and in 71AD the Ninth Roman Legion invades the area. Fort Eboracum is commissioned and warriors stand poised, shovels raised. With that first powerful blow the sharp edge cuts through the soil and the story begins.
Alone in the damp darkness of a cellar, a young heating engineer called Harry Martindale is distracted from his work by an odd noise coming from the wall of the cellar.
It is 1953 and Harry is standing on a ladder repairing some heating pipes in the ‘Treasurer’s House’ in York.
The odd sound gradually becomes clearer until Harry recognises it as that of a trumpet blast.
From out of the cellar wall rides a horseman, followed by two Roman legionnaires and then another two. The procession of dirty, weary Romans terrify Harry so much that he falls off his ladder. Scrambling to hide in a corner he watches as they march past him, their legs, from the knees down, hidden below the ground.
Apparently oblivious of Harry they continue along a line and disappeared through the opposite cellar wall. Later excavations unearthed, eighteen inches below the floor, an original Roman road.
Ridiculed for his tale, Harry stopped talking about his encounter - until in 1971, it was discovered that his description of the uniforms and insignia of the ghosts were those of the Ninth Legion.
Standing in the shadows of York Minster, The Treasurer’s House was built on a Roman site. The house has been rebuilt and altered many times over the years - but not enough it would seem to discourage its original occupants from their home.
September 19, 2011
Haunted York!
Sit back, relax and prepare yourself to meet some famous residents of York - the most haunted city in Britain!
The dark streets are overcrowded, noisy and foul smelling. The air is heavy and wet. The smell of rancid waste fills your nostrils and hits the back of your throat. Lowering your eyes to the ground, anxious to avoid stepping in the sludge of filth that carpets the street, you notice an old man stumble and fall heavily in front of you. His death is not your concern.
You turn and guide your horse off the main path of the street and onto the cobbled courtyard of a posting house. A stable lad is grooming a fine black stallion as you emerge into the yard.
“Any chance of a drink for my horse?” you ask, noticing a trough of water to the side of the yard. The lad nods in the direction of the trough.
It is 1680 and you are watering your horse at what is now known as ‘The Olde Starre Inn’ - York’s oldest licensed public house.
The air around you fills with the desperate cries of wounded and dying men and the unmistakable smell of blood and death hangs in the air.
Fear grips your soul as the sound grows louder and closer - but there is no one there, except you...and the stable lad.
The lad shrugs, “Ignore it! It is nought but the cries from the surgeon’s blade. Before my time, you know...back in ‘44, after Marston Moor. They brought their injured and dying here, used it as a bloody billet hospital and morgue. It is said the landlord was none too happy, him being a Royalist and all. Don’t suppose he had much choice, them Roundheads haven taken the city from Charles. Mind it wasn’t long after that they took his head as well.”
So, if you are ever in York, I dare you to take a wander up Stonegate. Look for the banner stretched across the street and take the entrance below. Go hear for yourself the cries of the dead as you lift your mug of ale and sup to King Charles’ and his head.
Not brave enough for the ‘The Olde Starre Inn’, well...why not try the ‘Cock and Bottle’? Ladies be warned however, of a man wearing a richly embroidered coat and tight fitting breeches, with dashingly handsome features and long, black, wavy hair.
George Villiers, the second Duke of Buckingham, born in London in 1628, was a close friend of Charles the second. He was a womaniser with an extraordinary talent for charming pretty ladies into his bed. So infamous was his character and reputation that his way with the ladies and his downfall from parliament in 1673 was immortalised in the nursery rhyme ‘Georgie Porgie’.
It is believed that on his retirement George bought a house on Skeldergate on exactly the same site as today’s ‘Cock and Bottle’ public house.
Ladies be warned - Mr Villiers is still there! His saucy ghost has been caught spying on young ladies in the shower, following them to the toilet and fondling and stroking pretty customers of the ‘Cock and Bottle’ pub.
Shall I continue?
Ok, but we only have time for one more, so grab a cup of tea and enjoy this, my last haunted tale for now!
Around Bedern Arch, off Goodramgate, stood an ancient building that, in 1847, became the ‘York Industrial Ragged School’. Its master, a greedy and crazed alcoholic, rounded up the homeless and hungry children of the city and set them to work. His only interest in the children was their financial worth and he frequently kept their welfare money for himself. Many of them perished from exposure and starvation. This suited the master very well as each death meant one less child.
In summer months he would secretly bury their little bodies in shallow graves. But when the winter frosts came he wasn’t able to dig through the hard ground. Instead he hid the bodies in a large cupboard in the orphanage. Over time the rotting bodies mounted in his cupboard and the ghosts of his victims haunted his twisted mind until, in a state of wretched derangement, he took a knife and murdered the remaining children in the home.
The house no longer exists but, on cold winter nights, if you are brave enough to wander through the Bedern Arch off Goodramgate, it is possible that you will feel the hand of a child in yours and hear the terrible screams of the ghosts of the ‘York Industrial Ragged School’.
On that note and with many thanks for your time - I bid you a warm farewell from York, the most haunted city in Britain.
The dark streets are overcrowded, noisy and foul smelling. The air is heavy and wet. The smell of rancid waste fills your nostrils and hits the back of your throat. Lowering your eyes to the ground, anxious to avoid stepping in the sludge of filth that carpets the street, you notice an old man stumble and fall heavily in front of you. His death is not your concern.
You turn and guide your horse off the main path of the street and onto the cobbled courtyard of a posting house. A stable lad is grooming a fine black stallion as you emerge into the yard.
“Any chance of a drink for my horse?” you ask, noticing a trough of water to the side of the yard. The lad nods in the direction of the trough.
It is 1680 and you are watering your horse at what is now known as ‘The Olde Starre Inn’ - York’s oldest licensed public house.
The air around you fills with the desperate cries of wounded and dying men and the unmistakable smell of blood and death hangs in the air.
Fear grips your soul as the sound grows louder and closer - but there is no one there, except you...and the stable lad.
The lad shrugs, “Ignore it! It is nought but the cries from the surgeon’s blade. Before my time, you know...back in ‘44, after Marston Moor. They brought their injured and dying here, used it as a bloody billet hospital and morgue. It is said the landlord was none too happy, him being a Royalist and all. Don’t suppose he had much choice, them Roundheads haven taken the city from Charles. Mind it wasn’t long after that they took his head as well.”
So, if you are ever in York, I dare you to take a wander up Stonegate. Look for the banner stretched across the street and take the entrance below. Go hear for yourself the cries of the dead as you lift your mug of ale and sup to King Charles’ and his head.
Not brave enough for the ‘The Olde Starre Inn’, well...why not try the ‘Cock and Bottle’? Ladies be warned however, of a man wearing a richly embroidered coat and tight fitting breeches, with dashingly handsome features and long, black, wavy hair.
George Villiers, the second Duke of Buckingham, born in London in 1628, was a close friend of Charles the second. He was a womaniser with an extraordinary talent for charming pretty ladies into his bed. So infamous was his character and reputation that his way with the ladies and his downfall from parliament in 1673 was immortalised in the nursery rhyme ‘Georgie Porgie’.
It is believed that on his retirement George bought a house on Skeldergate on exactly the same site as today’s ‘Cock and Bottle’ public house.
Ladies be warned - Mr Villiers is still there! His saucy ghost has been caught spying on young ladies in the shower, following them to the toilet and fondling and stroking pretty customers of the ‘Cock and Bottle’ pub.
Shall I continue?
Ok, but we only have time for one more, so grab a cup of tea and enjoy this, my last haunted tale for now!
Around Bedern Arch, off Goodramgate, stood an ancient building that, in 1847, became the ‘York Industrial Ragged School’. Its master, a greedy and crazed alcoholic, rounded up the homeless and hungry children of the city and set them to work. His only interest in the children was their financial worth and he frequently kept their welfare money for himself. Many of them perished from exposure and starvation. This suited the master very well as each death meant one less child.
In summer months he would secretly bury their little bodies in shallow graves. But when the winter frosts came he wasn’t able to dig through the hard ground. Instead he hid the bodies in a large cupboard in the orphanage. Over time the rotting bodies mounted in his cupboard and the ghosts of his victims haunted his twisted mind until, in a state of wretched derangement, he took a knife and murdered the remaining children in the home.
The house no longer exists but, on cold winter nights, if you are brave enough to wander through the Bedern Arch off Goodramgate, it is possible that you will feel the hand of a child in yours and hear the terrible screams of the ghosts of the ‘York Industrial Ragged School’.
On that note and with many thanks for your time - I bid you a warm farewell from York, the most haunted city in Britain.
