Julia Kelly's Blog, page 13

The Light Over London Goodreads Giveaway

What's better than free books? Not much. That's why I'm happy to announce another The Light Over London Goodreads giveaway! 

Up for grabs is 100 advance reader copies of The Light Over London. All you have to do is click here to enter to win one. (You can also follow me on Goodreads for updates about my book.)

Now for the fine print: The contest is for U.S. readers only and is open until August 27. 

Good luck!

The Women Who Ran Towards Bombs

In researching my upcoming release, The Light Over London , I was continually amazed at the many—often unsung—ways women contributed to the war effort in Britain during World War II.  The Lightseekers is an ongoing series of articles that highlights some of their work and the ways they brought light to Britain in one of its darkest times.

The London Blitz saw 56 out of 57 days of German attacks on the capital city, claiming an estimated 17,500 lives. People learned to shelter in basements, purpose-built spaces, church basements, and Underground stations. But every night, at least one group was out on the streets.

The air raid wardens in London, Newcastle, Liverpool, Glasgow, and all over the United Kingdom, were responsible for both keeping the British public safe and acting as first responders. Most were civilian volunteers who also worked a day job, although there were some full-time air raid wardens. But most of all, their jobs were incredibly dangerous and important.

Air raid wardens were covered by the Air Raid Precautions (later the Civil Defence). Their ranks were varied. Some of the men were World War I veterans who were unable to fight or were deemed too old. About one in every six warden was a woman. 

Elaine Kidwell, who served as an air raid warden in Swansea, told Wales Online in 2009, “We were a family of volunteers so I joined up as a civil defence messenger and when I was 17 years and two months old I asked to be an air raid warden even though you had to be 18. The man in charge could see I was young and when I told him my true age he said ‘In war we bend rules’. So I was in.”

Each warden had a post which covered a certain area and certain sectors within that area. At the start of the war, with no major German air attacks, they were tasked with registering everyone in their sector. They also made sure everyone “did the blackout”, which meant blocking out all visible light in a home either through blackout curtains or by turning off all lights after dark. The wardens were easy to spot with the bright white W painted on the tin helmet they were issued, but they weren't always welcome in those early months. Some saw them as busybodies or pests who demanded to know why a family's blackout wasn't up to scratch.

When the London Blitz started on September 7, 1940, all that changed. When the air raid sirens would sound, everyone else was meant to shelter. The wardens, however, helped people into shelters, touring their sectors to make sure that no one was out and in danger. That exposed them to the possibility of being hit themselves, either by a bomb, falling bricks, shrapnel, or other debris.

Kidwell recalled a close encounter while on one of her shifts: “I suddenly saw a parachute mine drift down a few yards away and it went off, blowing me backwards until I hit a wall. Amazingly, I was alright so I dusted my jacket down and applied my lipstick. My lipstick was like my armour so I felt safer."

All-in War Worker- Everyday Life For Mrs M Hasler, Barnes, Surrey, 1942, courtesy of the Imperial War Museum

At sixteen, Dorothy Lee volunteered to become a part-time warden like her father. In an interview with the website Memories of War, she recounted her what it was like to be out on the streets when the bombs were falling, saying, "I don’t think I was ever that scared. But then again maybe because you’re young."

If a bomb were to fall in a sector, a warden was often the first on the scene—long before the fire brigade, police, or ambulances arrived.

"You all have something you must do," said Lee. "You’re not running around which—you had to be orderly and do these things and I think that kept me sane in as much as I was panicking that day."

The wardens performed what first-aid they could and put out smaller fires. When a building collapsed, they might be one of the people digging survivors out. It was just as possible that they would find they were too late.

At the end of a shift, when the all clear sounded, wardens would submit information on bomb strikes in their sectors including the size of the damage. Then they would go back to their normal day jobs until their next shift.

"It’s amazing what you can endure if you’ve got a job and you stick to it," said Kidwell.

Read every story of the The Lightseekers in the series archive. You can also learn more about their stories by following the hashtag #TheLightseekers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

The Woman Who Broke the Story of World War II

In researching my upcoming release, The Light Over London , I was continually amazed at the many—often unsung—ways women contributed to the war effort in Britain during World War II.  The Lightseekers is an ongoing series of articles that highlights some of their work and the ways they brought light to Britain in one of its darkest times.

The biggest scoop of World War II belongs to an extraordinary journalist at the dawn of her career. 

A woman with such a colorful life and career that it almost would be hard to believe if it wasn’t true, Clare Hollingworth’s early life is relatively unextraordinary. She was born in Leicester and raised on a farm. After attending domestic science college and spending some time working, she won a scholarship to London University and then went to Zagreb University to study Croatian. 

Hollingworth began working as an activist for a charity in Europe that would be credited with saving the lives of thousands of refugees from pre-war Nazi Germany. According to her obituary in the New York Times, her work secured visas for between 2,000 and 3,000 people before it came to an end in July of 1939.

After she returned to London, she talked her way into an assignment working as a stringer for the Daily Telegraph. On August 28, 1939, just three days after she was sent to Poland, she borrowed a British diplomat’s car and drove to the border with Germany. According to the New York Times, “Alone on the road from Gleiwitz…she watched as the wind lifted a piece of the tarpaulin that had been erected on the German side to screen the valley below from view,” and saw hundreds of German tanks. It was the invasion of Poland that would mark the start of World War II.

Hollingworth raced back to Poland to call her editor. Her story ran on the front cover of the Daily Telegraph with no byline under the headline: “1,000 tanks massed on Polish border. Ten divisions ready for swift strike”. It would prove to be one of the biggest scoops in the history of journalism. 

Prime Minister Nevill Chamberlin warned Germany that it had until September 1, 1939, to withdraw from Poland or face war. At dawn on the day of the deadline, Hollingworth found the story coming to her. She woke up to German bombers and artillery fire near her hotel in Katowice. When she called a friend at the British embassy in Warsaw to warn him, he didn’t believe her so she held her phone receiver out the window so he could hear it all unfolding. Britain and Germany were at war.

Hollingworth would go on to cover the war from multiple fronts in Europe and North Africa. She would report on major breaking stories and conflicts like the Vietnam War, the Cambridge spy ring, various conflicts in the Middle East, and multiple wars. 

“Often under fire, occasionally arrested and possessed of such a keen nose for covert information that from time to time she was accused of being a spy—both by local governments and by the British—Ms. Hollingworth was friend, or foe, to seemingly everyone in a position of power in the world at midcentury,” the New York Times obituary recalls.

Hollingworth slept on the floor of her Hong Kong flat well into her 90s in order to keep from going soft. She carried a revolver, wore a safari jacket most of her life, and hated housework thanks to her years in domestic science college. 

Her first husband divorced her after 15 years, citing desertion because she was always out reporting. “When I’m on a story, I’m on a story—to hell with husband, family, anyone else,” she said in an interview with the Guardian in 2004.

Hollingworth was not universally liked but, in reading her interviews, one gets the sense that hardly mattered. She was respected, a doyenne of conflict journalism in the twentieth century. 

Clare Hollingworth died in her Hong Kong flat in January of 2017 at the age of 105.

Read every story of the The Lightseekers in the series archive. You can also learn more about their stories by following the hashtag #TheLightseekers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Writing Synopses The Sell

I recently taught a workshop with Alisha Rai at the Romance Writers of America conference in Denver about writing synopses that grip editors and agents and sell your book, During that, I promised that I would link to a presentation I'd put together for another workshop walking through the mechanics of what a synopsis needs. If you're looking for that presentation, you can find it here. (Please enjoy the Queer Eye GIFs.)

Authors, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions at juliakelly@juliakellywrites.com.

The Lightseekers

In researching my upcoming release, The Light Over London, I was continually amazed at the many—often unsung—ways British women contributed during World War II.

The Ack-Ack Girls manned the anti-aircraft guns defending Britain from Luftwaffe attacks. 

Spies got valuable information out of Germany, occupied France, and other enemy territories.

Land Girls worked the farms and fed the country.

Factory girls braved dangerous conditions to make the munitions necessary to fight battles on all fronts.

All of these women were instrumental to achieving the ultimate goal: winning Britain the war.

“After the greatest darkness... there is light.”

— The Light Over London

As I kept reading about these ordinary women rising to the challenge and doing extraordinary things, I realized that I didn't just want to tell the story of The Light Over London. I wanted to tell all of their stories. I wanted to show their bravery and single-mindedness, hoping to teach just a few more women their stories as I told them.

I call these women The Lightseekers, and over the coming months I'm going to endeavor to tell their stories both here and on social media. You can follow stories of The Lightseekers on my blog and in The Lightseekers archive which will grow as articles are released. And for more information, you can follow the hashtag #TheLightseekers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

The Light Over London Goodread Giveaway

I just sat down the other day and look at my calendar only to realize that The Light Over London comes out in six months! On the writer side of the publishing business, that's like tomorrow, but as someone who stalks her favorite authors' new releases I know that can feel like ages from now!

Luckily, the kind people at my publisher have come up with a solution. They're running a Goodreads giveaway! That means there are 100 advance reader copies of The Light Over London up for grabs. All you have to do is click here to enter to win one. (You can also follow me on Goodreads for updates about my book.)

Now for the fine print: The contest is for U.S. readers only and is open until July 23rd. 

Good luck!

What I Read: April to June 2018

I've been keeping a reading list off and on since I was in college...let's just say many years ago. I will always regret that I haven't been consistent with it because I love having a record to look back on and remember those hidden gems that I loved but might have forgotten.

When I look back at this past three months of reading, I'll have plenty to remember fondly. Click on any of the titles below to find out more about these recommended reads. Follow me on Goodreads or leave a comment below to let me know what you think I should read next.

Meet Me at RWA in Denver

A quick note for those readers headed to the Romance Writers of America national conference in Denver this year. I'll be signing books at the Pocket and Gallery signing at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 19. Bring your coffee and come get a copy of The Light Over London signed!

I will also be teaching a workshop on writing synopses that sell with Alisha Rai on Saturday, July 21. Come for the practical advice, stay because Alisha is a delightful person with great hair and lipstick game.

I can't wait to see you at all RWA!

The Allure of Attraction Is Out Now

Today I’m very excited to announce that the last (for now at least) of the Matchmaker of Edinburgh series hit stores. A few of you have taken a guess at who the next book would be about, and those who chose Lavinia, the kind dressmaker who helps Caroline, got it spot on.

Lavinia’s story, The Allure of Attraction, was a fun one to write for a few reasons:

It’s a spy storyIt’s a second chance romanceIt’s an enemies to lovers romance

(Those of you who’ve been reading me for awhile know that I’ve never met a second chance romance I didn’t love.)

Here’s a closer look at what you can expect when you pick up this book.

Lavinia Parkem, the most talented dressmaker in Edinburgh, has never forgotten her first love: Captain Andrew Colter. They were meant to be married years earlier but when Andrew’s ship was wrecked in the Caribbean her parents forced her to marry another.

Andrew may have survived a shipwreck to find fame and fortune at sea, but he never fully healed after Lavinia’s abandonment. Instead, he dedicated himself to the navy—and secret missions for the foreign office. Nearing retirement and back on British soil, he’s given a new assignment—infiltrate the home of a wealthy banker who’s suspected of being behind a plan to assassinate the Prince of Wales. But to do that, Andrew must recruit and turn the woman the banker once wooed: Lavinia Parkem.

Unable to shirk his duties, Andrew begrudgingly uses the influence of successful matchmaker of Edinburgh to convince the now-widowed Lavinia to help him take down his mark. She relents, telling herself that Andrew’s no longer the warm, loving young man she once knew. But the more time she spends with him, the harder it is to pretend there’s no longer any attraction there. And it’s tormenting Andrew that he must ask her to put herself in more and more danger and now, he must decide whether his duty to queen and country is worth risking the life of the woman he never stopped loving.

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If You Make a Heroine a Spy, She’s Going to Want a Pistol…

I’ve been a James Bond fan ever since I saw Diamonds Are Forever years ago. Yes, some of the movies are highly problematic on several levels, but I can’t help loving the combination of dashing spies, sexy adventure, and Britishness.

It was only a matter of time until I tried to write my own spy book, which is what you’re getting with Andrew and Lavinia’s story in The Allure of Attraction.

When veteran spy Captain Andrew Colter is forced to recruit his ex-fiancé for one last job, he knows it’s not going to be easy. What he doesn’t count on is Lavinia’s enthusiasm for the job.

The Allure of Attraction comes out on June 25th at fine ebook retailers everywhere:

Amazon  | iBooks | Kobo | Nook | Google Play

You can also add The Allure of Attraction on Goodreads and follow me on BookBubfor all the latest sales news.

Happy reading!

XOXO,

Julia

She was lying to him. Each simple lift of her shoulder and casual comment was designed to distract him, but he’d been in this game for far too long.

“If there’s something that will compromise your ability to complete this mission, I need to know about it,” he said.

“All you need to concern yourself with is making sure that I still have a reputation to rely on when you leave Edinburgh,” she said.

Her words hung in the air, the implicit trust in them weighing him down. She was putting her life and her livelihood into his hands, trusting him when everything between them was broken. In a strange, twisted way, he felt honored in that.

“I would never knowingly put you or your business in harm’s way. You have my promise on that,” he said.

Her gaze fell to her lap, where her hands were clasped so tightly that her knuckles were white. “I do hope your promises hold more water than mine did,” she said.

He started, surprised that she would’ve mentioned their broken engagement, and a little thread of doubt began to worm its way into the certainties he’d held for more than ten years. Did she regret the decisions she’d made? Did she ever wonder what their lives would’ve been like if she’d refused the first man who’d come along and asked her to marry him?

Lavinia leaned across the gap between their benches, and he couldn’t help but mirror her, drawn in by his desire to know more.

“I have one very important question to ask you, Andrew.”

His eyes locked on the sensual rounding of her lips again. They were teasing him, lush, pink, and beautiful and more kissable than he wished he knew. He couldn’t help but lean a little loser.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Do I get a pistol?”

He jerked back. “What?”

She rolled her eyes. “A pistol. A mechanized weapon that fires lead projectiles at one’s enemies in order to injure or kill them.”

“I’m well aware of what a pistol is and its purpose.”

“Or perhaps a knife. I’m sure I could think of all sorts of ways to modify a gown so that it could be hidden. There’d be no need to go reaching down and hitching up my skirts to get at a stiletto secreted in my garter.”

“No stilettos,” he nearly hissed. No garters either. Bloody hell.

“You’re quite right. They’d be far too large. What I need is a knife with a blade that folds into its handle. Far more compact. What are those called?”

“A switchblade,” he said automatically, before realizing he was only throwing fuel on the fire. “Which you will not under any circumstances be carrying or using.”

“Why not?” she asked. “If I’m to be a spy—”

“You’re not a spy.”

“I am absolutely a spy. Spy.” She jabbed a finger at her chest, depressing the taut fabric across her breasts and inadvertently making the swell of them more prominent as though she was actually trying to kill him. Then she pointed at him. “Spymaster.”

“The spymaster is a man I sincerely hope you never meet. I’m the handler. You are an asset.”

Her face scrunched up in distaste. “An asset? That sounds so . . . uninspired.”

“It’s what you are. And there is no need for an asset who is doing clandestine work to carry a weapon.”

“Is this because I’m a woman?” she asked, her back clearly up.

“No, it’s because if I give you a pistol, you’re likely to shoot Wark the moment he annoys you.”

“I will concede that you have a point.”

 

Preorder The Allure of Attraction and start reading it as soon as it releases on June 25th!

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