Author of Saxon historical fiction and non-fiction, 20th-century historical mysteries, and Norse-inspired historical romantasy. Book reviewer and blog host.
Author: MJ Porter, author
I'm an author of historical fiction (Early England/Viking and the British Isles as a whole before 1066, as well as five 20th-century mysteries), a non-fiction title about the royal women of tenth-century England, and historical fantasy.
I’m welcoming Maryka Biaggio and her new book, Margery and Me, to the blog #MargeryandMe #historicalfiction #realpeople #TheCoffeePotBookClub #BlogTour
I’m welcoming Maryka Biaggio and her new book, Margery and Me, to the blog #MargeryandMe #historicalfiction #realpeople #TheCoffeePotBookClub #BlogTour
Here’s the blurb
In the 1920s, Margery Crandon captivated both Boston society and psychic researchers with her astonishing seances. At her gatherings, her deceased brother Walter regularly appeared, entertaining the circle with his witty and cheeky remarks. Margery’s abilities earned her the admiration of luminaries, including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and William Butler Yeats. But one man stood in opposition: Harry Houdini, the legendary magician, who was determined to expose her as a fraud.
Margery and Me tells the true story of the medium who mystified scientists, challenged skeptics, and sparked a sensation across America and Europe. As Houdini and Margery clashed in a battle of wits and wills, the question remained: Could the master illusionist unmask her, or would her extraordinary powers be enough to convert even the most resolute of doubters?
Maryka Biaggio is a psychology professor-turned-novelist who brings forgotten lives back into the light. Specializing in historical fiction inspired by real people, she crafts emotionally resonant narratives anchored in careful research.
Her debut novel, Parlor Games (Doubleday, 2013), launched a distinguished career that includes Gun Girl and the Tall Guy and Margery and Me. Her work has earned numerous accolades, including the Willamette Writers Award, Oregon Writers Colony Award, Historical Novel Society Review Editors’ Choice, La Belle Lettre Award, and a Publishers Weekly pick.
Biaggio is celebrated for illuminating overlooked historical figures with psychological depth and narrative grace.
I’m welcoming John Anthony Miller and his new book, Another Soul Saved, to the blog @authorjamiller @maryanneyarde @yardereviews
@maryanneyarde.bsky.social #BlogTour #HistoricalFiction #WWIIFiction #HolocaustFiction #WomenInHistory #YardeBookPromotions
I’m welcoming John Anthony Miller and his new book, Another Soul Saved, to the blog
Research required to write the novel Another Soul Saved
An author’s goal in writing a novel is to create an imaginary world with make-believe characters that keep the reader immersed in the story. When writing historical fiction, the story is usually grounded in fact—actual places, events, or historical accounts. To keep the reader fully engaged, the author needs to mimic the every-day life of people who lived during that time. Details lend credibility to the narrative, and details require research.
Another Soul Saved is my nineteenth published novel, and I typically approach each one from the same perspective. Usually, I start by choosing a location and time period, or a world event that drives the plot. Once I have the basic concept underway, I start the research.
I begin with the names of the characters. Another Soul Saved is set in Vienna, Austria, in the early days of WWII. Assuming the characters are around thirty years old, and the book takes place in 1941, I searched online for popular Austrian baby names in 1910 – the year around when the characters would have been born. I use a legal pad and make three columns: female names, male names, and surnames. Then I match them based on my image of the character. I actually spend a lot of time on names because I want them to flow, especially for the main characters.
Next, I researched the city of Vienna, where the book takes place. I have been to Austria, but not the neighbourhood where the book is set, so I used Google Earth—it has a dropdown feature where you can actually “walk the streets.” It helps me describe buildings and use actual street names. Since some of the book takes place in St. Stephen’s Cathedral, I had to find the floor plans, including those of burial crypts in the basements, which are used in the novel to hide escaping Jews.
To create the right atmosphere, I had to understand the city of Vienna as it existed in 1941. Ninety-nine percent of the residents supported the policies of Adolf Hitler, but my novel uses the voice of the one percent who didn’t—those risking their lives to save others, knowing that friends, neighbors, and even family members could betray them. I had to create the underlying tension so the reader felt the same fear that the main characters lived with. I read books about the Austrian Resistance movement and the nation’s policies and treatment of the Jewish population, so I understood what their lives were like.
Another Soul Saved tells the story of Monika Graf, a wealthy woman who risks everything to rescue Jewish children, with no recognition or reward, betraying both her country and her husband. Unable to have children of her own, she impulsively rescues two Jewish children from the Nazis, which starts a whole underground movement. To realistically portray the process, I had to research real-life events. How did Jewish children escape the Nazi regime in Austria? A limited number were permitted to emigrate. What process was followed to get them out of the country? Many more children posed as Catholics, sheltered by the church in orphanages, convents, and seminaries. How was this accomplished? Other children were hidden on farms where it was easy to blend in with the farmer’s family, with much less exposure to soldiers or citizens who supported them.
Topics specific to the novel that I had to research included train travel, a nearby concentration camp, the workings of St. Stephen’s Cathedral—how many priests and what duties were they assigned, food rationing, the Gestapo presence in Vienna—headquarters and processes, and a timeline for the Jews in Vienna.
And lastly, I conducted research common to any historical novel: clothing worn during the time period, women’s hairstyles, local foods, and popular automobiles.
My goal as an author is to blend the different levels of research into a world the reader doesn’t want to leave.
Here’s the blurb
Vienna, 1941
Monika Graf, the wife of a wealthy Austrian military commander, steals two Jewish girls from the Nazis—a crime often punishable by death. With soldiers in rapid pursuit, a homeless Jew named Janik, a mysterious man who lurks in the shadows, helps her escape.
Unable to have children of her own, she finds a new purpose in life—rescuing Jewish children from the horrendous Nazi regime. She asks the Swiss for help, trading military secrets she gleans from her husband for the lives of Jewish children. With Janik’s continued support, she also enlists Father Christoff, a priest at St. Stephen’s Cathedral coping with unexpected emotions and doubting his commitment to God. Monika quickly forms bonds that can’t be broken, feelings exposed she never knew existed.
Relentlessly pursued by Gestapo Captain Gustav Kramer, Monika combats continuing risk to her clandestine operation. When her husband, a rabid Nazi, returns from the battlefield severely wounded, she gets caught in a cage that she can’t crawl out of.
Wrought with danger, riddled with romance, Another Soul Saved shows humanity at both its best and worst in a classic struggle of good versus evil.
Any Triggers: Holocaust storyline; Nazi characters
John Anthony Miller writes all things historical—thrillers, mysteries, and romance. He sets his novels in exotic locations spanning all eras of space and time, with complex characters forced to face inner conflicts—fighting demons both real and imagined. He’s published twenty novels and ghostwritten several others, including Another Soul Saved. He lives in southern New Jersey.
I’m delighted to welcome Deborah Swift and her new book, The Enemy’s Wife, to the blog #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub #TheEnemysWife #HistoricalFiction #WW2 #Shanghai @swiftstory @cathiedunn
@deborahswiftauthor @thecoffeepotbookclub
I’m delighted to welcome Deborah Swift and her new book, The Enemy’s Wife, to the blog #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub #TheEnemysWife #HistoricalFiction #WW2 #Shanghai
The Political Melting Pot of Shanghai by Deborah Swift
My novel The Enemy’s Wife is set in Shanghai during the Attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. At this time, China was already deeply embroiled in turmoil—both from foreign invasion and internal political conflict. Understanding the situation requires looking at two overlapping struggles: the war against Japan and the civil war within China itself.
The External War with Japan
Pic of Japanese arrival in French concession
China had been fighting Japan since the Second Sino-Japanese War, which began years before Pearl Harbor. Japan had occupied major parts of eastern China, including key cities like Shanghai and Nanjing, so that the Chinese capital had moved inland to Chongqing. The war was brutal, with events like the Nanjing Massacre, where thousands of women were raped and murdered, still fresh in memory. Commanders at Nanjing were later found guilty of war crimes and executed. These barbaric crimes were not isolated incidents, so by 1941, China was exhausted but still resisting.
The Internal War – Two rival Chinese governments
China was politically divided between two main factions, firstly, the Nationalists (Kuomintang), the official government of China, led by Chiang Kai-shek, and supported by the United States and other Allies.
On the other side were the Communists, led by Mao Zedong who controlled vast swathes of northern China. When the Japanese invaded, these rebel communist factions used guerrilla warfare against the Japanese. They were extremely influential amongst the workers and the lower classes in China.
To defeat the Japanese, The Nationalists and Communists agreed to a temporary alliance called the Second United Front to resist Japan. But in reality, cooperation was limited and mistrust remained high. Both sides were already positioning themselves for a future power struggle, so fierce clashes between them still occurred even during the anti-Japanese war. The civil war within China was still going on beneath the invasion of the Japanese.
Pic – Collapse of United Front Propaganda Poster
The Impact of Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor dramatically changed China’s situation. The United States officially entered the war and became a major ally of China, which meant China was now part of the broader Allied war effort against Japan.
In turn, this meant that American aid (military supplies, training, and financial support) began increasing, mainly to the Nationalists. This did not please the communists, who saw it as arming their enemy!
Corruption Rots the Government
Corruption created a sharp contrast between the ruling elite and ordinary people. Many officials lived soft lives of relative comfort, while ordinary civilians suffered deprivation and hardship.
A large portion of foreign aid (especially from the U.S.) was lost to corruption. Supplies like weapons, fuel, and food were stolen, hoarded, or sold on the black market. Some officers in the Nationalist army inflated troop numbers known as ghost soldiers to collect extra pay. Even so, frontline soldiers were often under-equipped and underfed despite the incoming aid. Officials embezzled funds or mismanaged resources. The government printed large amounts of money to cover costs, contributing to hyperinflation, so that ordinary people saw their savings become nearly worthless. This resulted in more support for the communists, and growing anger toward the government.
Pic of Chinese army
The Chinese Communist Party, led by Mao Zedong, capitalized on this by promoting strict discipline and anti-corruption policies. Communist forces often treated peasants better and redistributed land in some areas, and their image as more egalitarian helped them gain grassroots support. By the end of World War II, these weaknesses contributed directly to the Nationalists’ defeat in the resumed Chinese Civil War.
So writing a novel including all these factions was interesting. Not only was corruption rife in government, but there was also prostitution, gambling, and drug wars to contend with! I have a character in the Japanese army, but also several who are part of the Communist rebel faction fighting against them. This is a book where women too play a major part, both in resisting the Japanese through distributing anti-Japanese propaganda, and more directly by helping prisoners of war held by the Japanese.
As a place to set a novel, Shanghai offers plenty of opportunity for tension, conflict and plot. I hope you will enjoy The Enemy’s Wife.
Here’s the Blurb
‘A fast-paced, beautifully written, and moving story. Refreshing to read a book set in a different theatre of war. Wartime Shanghai jumped off the page’ CLARE FLYNN
A poignant story of the impossible choices we make in the shadow of war, for fans of Daisy Wood and Marius Gabriel.
1941. When Zofia’s beloved husband Haru is conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Army, she is left to navigate Japanese-occupied Shanghai alone.
Far from home and surrounded by a country at war, Zofia finds unexpected comfort in a bond with Hilly, a spirited young refugee escaping Nazi-occupied Austria.
As violence tightens its grip on the city, they seek shelter with Theo, Zofia’s American employer. But with every passing day, the horrors of war and Haru’s absence begin to reshape Zofia’s world – and her heart.
Can she still love someone who has become the enemy?
Readers love The Enemy’s Wife:
‘A gorgeous novel that will truly pull at your heartstrings‘ CARLY SCHABOWSKI
‘I loved The Enemy’s Wife – a gripping, fast-paced and evocative story about the Japanese occupation of Shanghai during WW2 – and really rooted for the brave and selfless central character, Zofia. Highly recommended’ ANN BENNETT
‘Such an emotional and moving read, grounded in immaculate research that never overshadows the heart of the story’ SUZANNE FORTIN
Deborah used to be a costume designer for the BBC, before becoming a writer. Now she lives in an old English school house in a village full of 17th Century houses, near the glorious Lake District. Deborah has an award-winning historical fiction blog at her website www.deborahswift.com.
Deborah loves to write about how extraordinary events in history have transformed the lives of ordinary people, and how the events of the past can live on in her books and still resonate today.
Her WW2 novel Past Encounters was a BookViral Award winner, and The Poison Keeper was a winner of the Wishing Shelf Book of the Decade.
I’m welcoming JP Reedman and Bridee of the Devil to the blog #medieval #HistoricalFiction #Norman #WomenInHistory #BiographicalFiction #BlogTour @stonehenge2500 @cathiedunn
@jpreedmanhistorical @thecoffeepotbookclub #TheCoffeePotBookClub
I’m welcoming JP Reedman and Bride of the Devil to the blog #medieval #HistoricalFiction #Norman #WomenInHistory
Here’s the blurb
She is a great heiress; he is the wickedest man in Normandy.
Known to men far and wide as ‘The Devil,’ Robert de Belleme terrorises France alongside his equally fearsome mother, Mabel the Poisoner. But even a Devil needs an heir, and Mabel chooses the wealthy heiress Agnes of Ponthieu to be her son’s bride. The marriage is unhappy, though the longed-for son and heir is eventually born…but when Robert is away on one of his military campaigns, Agnes flees back to her father’s castle.
She is not safe; her young son William is not safe.
This series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Meet the author
J.P. Reedman was born in Canada but has lived in the U.K. for over 30 years.
Interests include folklore and anthropology, prehistoric archaeology (neolithic / bronze age Europe; ritual, burial & material culture), as well as The Wars of the Roses and the rest of the medieval era. Novels include the popular I, Richard Plantagenet series about Richard III, The Falcon and the Sun (featuring other members of the House of York), and Medieval Babes, an ongoing series about lesser-known medieval queens and noblewomen.
I’m delighted to share my review for Adam Lofthouse’s Tribune and the Sword, #historicalfiction #bookreview #RomanEra #boldwoodbloggers @BoldwoodBooks @AdamPLofthouse @rararesources
I’m delighted to share my review for Adam Lofthouse’s Tribune and the Sword #historicalfiction #bookreview #RomanEra
Here’s the blurb
August. 383 AD. Flavius Maximus has declared himself emperor and crossed into Gaul. The civil war with Gratian has been short, and the rightful ruler of the West lies in an early grave.
Now two men face off across an empire. Theodosius in the east, his armies large but reliant on mercenaries. Maximus in the west, his forces small, but battle hardened and loyal to a fault.
In the middle of the chaos, at the heart of a dying world, two old friends march at the heads of opposing forces. Tribune Sixtus Victorinus fights for the West. Not out of loyalty to Maximus, but to his two sons who are bound by oath to fight for the pretender.
And General Gaius Felicius for the East. Outcasted by Maximus, he will stop at nothing to see the usurper toppled. But if his old friend stands in his path, is the road to vengeance still one he will choose to tread?
War is coming, and both men must look inside themselves and decide what is greater: the cause they fight for, or the bonds of fellowship. 🔥⚔️
This is the third book in the series featuring Victorinus and Felicius. What began on the Wall of Hadrian now takes us far from the frigid north of England and to the heart of two emperor’s kingdoms. And as if discord between them isn’t threat enough, there is a new conspiracy to plague our two war-weary warriors and Victorinus and Felicius are in it up to their necks.
This is such a well-paced novel, the conspiracy and action building, layer upon layer, and I have absolutely devoured it. Do I recommend starting at the beginning of the trilogy? Yes, I do, but equally, if you want to start here, then I do think it would be readable as a standalone.
Another triumph for Adam. I do love his books, and it’s his fault my historical fiction reading now extends back into the Roman era.
Adam has for many years held a passion for the ancient world. As a teenager he picked up Gates of Rome by Conn Iggulden, and has been obsessed with all things Rome ever since.
After ten years of immersing himself in stories of the Roman world, he decided to have a go at writing one for himself, and hasn’t stopped since. Check out the books on the website, or follow Adam on Social Media for regular updates.
Follow Adam on Twitter: @AdamPLofthouse Find him on Facebook: facebook.com/AdamPLofthouse Instagram: adamplofthouse
