Amazon – Page 18 – MJ Porter

I’m delighted to feature an excerpt from Finlay McQuade’s new book, Life and Death in Ephesus, a short story collection. HistoricalFiction #shortstories #Ephesus #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub

I’m delighted to feature an excerpt from Finlay McQuade’s new book, Life and Death in Ephesus, a short story collection.

From “Nestorius.”

The next day, sure enough, the church of the Evangelist was half empty, but the murmurs of protest were twice as loud as the hissing and whispering of the day before. Even so, Nestorius persisted. Desperate to demonstrate the simple logic of his argument, he introduced a new metaphor into his sermon:
“Ferment the grape and what do you get? You get a sublime wine that buoys your spirit and lifts you heavenward. Squeeze the olive and what do you get? You get a taste of ancient earth, a hint of delight first tasted in the Garden by our earliest ancestors. But when you mix the two, what do you get? The sublime headiness of wine? No. The rich earthiness of Eden? No. You get a noxious mixture that retains the qualities of neither. Such is not the nature of Jesus Christ.
“Jesus was a man and had all the qualities of a man, including the capacity to suffer and die. And he was also and always will be a God, who did not die and did not fear the pains of death as you and I inevitably will. Our Lord Jesus Christ had two natures, the one human and the other divine. The blessed Virgin gave birth to the one, but she did not give birth to the other, because the Son of God already existed and had always existed. That is why I have said and I say again that the blessed Virgin was the Christ-bearer, not the God-bearer. And yet, from that miraculous moment of Incarnation, the God and the man were united as one: human and divine in perfect union.”
It seemed at first to have made an impression on his audience, for they were quiet. Later, on reflection, he thought that perhaps they were dazzled by the clarity of his argument, but no closer to accepting its truth. Then a scrawny little monk with a red clean-shaven face in the pew nearest to the altar stood and shouted in a deep bass voice, “HERETIC! HERETIC!” and continued to shout it until he was joined by a scattering of others in the dim interior of the church, and gradually by just about everyone present, “HERETIC! HERETIC! HERETIC!”

Here’s the blurb:

For over a thousand years, Ephesus, on the Aegean coast of what is now Turkey, was a thriving city. It was the site of the Temple of Artemis, one of the Wonders of the World, and a destination for religious pilgrimage long before the advent of Christianity. In the first century CE, St. John and St. Paul introduced Christianity to Ephesus, where it survived its turbulent beginnings and, in the fifth century CE, hosted the God-defining Council of Ephesus.

Life and Death in Ephesus is a collection of stories about major events in the history of Ephesus. Characters appearing in these stories include Herostratus, first to commit a “herostratic crime”; Alexander, the warrior king; Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, both lovers of Cleopatra; Heraclitus, the philosopher who said, “You can’t put your foot in the same river twice”; St. Paul, persona non grata in Ephesus; Nestorius, whose characterization of Jesus split the Eastern and Western church, and others, also important, whose names I have had to make up.

Hilke Thür, a leading archeologist, has said of these stories, “Life and Death in Ephesus will be a delightful and enjoyable accompaniment to the many available guidebooks. Not just tourists, but anyone interested in history will benefit from reading them.”

Buy Links:

Universal Link:

Amazon UK: Amazon US: Amazon CA: Amazon AU:

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Meet the author

Finlay McQuade is a retired educator. He was born in Ireland, went to high school in England, and university in the USA. He has a BA in English from Pomona College, an MA in British and American literature from Harvard University, and a PhD in education from the University of Pittsburgh, where he also taught writing courses in the English department. He spent some happy years as a high school English teacher and soccer coach, but after co-authoring the book How to Make a Better School he found himself in demand as a consultant to schools and school improvement projects in the USA and often, also, abroad. He ended his career in education when he retired from Bogazici University in Istanbul, where he had mentored young teachers in the school of education.

For eight years after retirement, he lived in Selcuk, Turkey, among the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus. The streets and squares of Ephesus became his neighborhood. His companions included archeologists, tour guides, and souvenir sellers. His curiosity about the people who had lived in those empty buildings for over a thousand years resulted in Life and Death in Ephesus, a collection of stories chronicling major events in the city’s history.

Now, back in the USA with time on his hands, he finds himself returning again and again to memories of his boyhood on the coast of Northern Ireland. The result of these forays into his past will be another collection of stories, part memoir, part fiction, called Growing Up in Ulster.

Connect with Finlay:

Website: Pinterest: Amazon Author Page: Goodreads:

Follow the Life and Death in Ephesus blog tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club

Who was the historical Ælfwynn, the main character in The Lady of Mercia’s Daughter duology?

Ælfwynn, the daughter of Æthelflæd of Mercia and her husband, Æthelred was born at some point in the late 880s or early 890s. It’s believed that she was an only child, although it does appear (in the later accounts of William of Malmesbury – an Anglo-Norman writer from centuries later) that her cousins, Athelstan, and his unnamed sister, were sent to Mercia to be raised by their aunt when Edward remarried on becoming king in 899. There is a suggestion that it might have been Alfred’s decision to do this and that Athelstan was being groomed to become king of Mercia, not Wessex.

The Family Tree of Alfred the Great, king of Wessex

Ælfwynn is mentioned in three charters. S367, surviving in one manuscript, dates to 903, where she witnesses without a title. S1280, survives in two manuscripts, dates to 904 and reads in translation.

‘Wærferth, bishop, and the community at Worcester, to Æthelred and Æthelflæd, their lords; lease, for their lives and that of Ælfwynn, their daughter, of a messuage (haga) in Worcester and land at Barbourne in North Claines, Worcs., with reversion to the bishop. Bounds of appurtentant meadow west of the [River] Severn.’^[i]

^[i] Sawyer, P. H. (Ed.), Anglo-Saxon charters: An annotated list and bibliography, rev. Kelly, S. E., Rushforth, R., (2022). http://www.esawyer.org.uk/ S1280. See above for the full details under Æthelflæd

Historians have reconstructed this haga in Worcester in ‘The city of Worcester in the tenth century’ by N Baker and R Holt.

In S225, surviving in one manuscript, dated to 915, Ælfwynn witnesses below her mother. Hers is the second name on the document. This could be significant, as she would certainly have been an adult by now, was she already being prepared as the heir to Mercia on her mother’s death?

Ælfwynn is named in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in the C text under 919. ‘Here also the daughter of Æthelred lord of the Mercians, was deprived of all control in Mercia, and was led into Wessex three weeks before Christmas; she was called Ælfwynn.’^[i]

^[i] Swanton, M. trans and edit The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, (Orion Publishing Group, 2000), p.105

And from there, we hear nothing more of Lady Ælfwynn, the second lady of the Mercians. Even though this is the first record of a ruling woman being succeeded by her daughter.

There’s no further mention of Ælfwynn in The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. It’s been assumed that she became a nun, and she might well be referenced in charter S535, surviving in one manuscript, and which Eadred granted at the request of his mother, dated to 948, reading,

‘King Eadred to Ælfwyn, a religious woman; grant of 6 hides (mansae), equated with 6 sulungs, at Wickhambreux, Kent, in return for 2 pounds of purest gold.’^[i]

^[i] Sawyer, P. H. (Ed.), Anglo-Saxon charters: An annotated list and bibliography, rev. Kelly, S. E., Rushforth, R., (2022). http://www.esawyer.org.uk/ S535

Bailey has suggested that, ‘In view of its close association with the women of the royal family, and of Eadgifu’s patronage of Ælfwynn (in S535), I would venture to suggest that it is possible she too may have ended her days at Wilton.’^[i]

^[i] Bailey. M, ‘Ælfwynn, Second Lady of the Mercians’, Edward the Elder, 899-924 Higham, N.J. and Hill, D. H. ed (Routledge, 2001), p.125

This would mean that rather than ruling as her mother would have wanted her to, Ælfwynn was overruled by her uncle, who essentially stole her right to rule Mercia as soon as he possibly could on her mother’s death. It must be said that he might have later paid for this with his life if he was indeed putting down a Mercian rebellion in Farndon when he died in 924.

Alternatively, there is another beguiling theory that Ælfwynn might not have become a nun but was, in fact, married to Athelstan, an ealdorman of East Anglia, known as the ‘Half-King,’ because of the vast control he had in East Anglia. It’s long been believed that this label might well have resulted from the fact that Athelstan was an extremely powerful and well-landed nobleman who was much beloved by the Wessex royal family and its kings. However, it might well be because he was indeed married to the king’s cousin (under Athelstan, Edmund and Eadred). If this is the case, and it’s impossible to prove, then Ælfwynn, as the wife of Ealdorman Athelstan, had four sons, Æthelwold, Æthelwine, Æthelsige and Ælfwold, and these sons would be friends and enemies of the kings of England in later years. She might also have been given the fostering of the orphaned, and future King Edgar, which would also have made these men the future king’s foster brothers.

‘he [Athelstan Half-King] bestowed marriage upon a wife, one Ælfwynn by name, suitable for his marriage bed as much as by the nobility of her birth as by the grace of her unchurlish appearance. Afterwards she nursed and brought up with maternal devotion the glorious King Edgar, a tender boy as yet in the cradle. When Edgar afterwards attained the rule of all England, which was due to him by hereditary destiny, he was not ungrateful for the benefits he had received from his nurse. He bestowed on her, with regal munificence, the manor of Weston, which her son, the Ealdorman, afterwards granted to the church of Ramsey in perpetual alms for her soul, when his mother was taken from our midst in the natural course of events.’

Edington, S and Others, Ramsey Abbey’s Book of Benefactors Part One: The Abbey’s Foundation, (Hakedes, 1998) pp.9-10

If this identification is correct, ‘This would explain why she was considered suitable to be a foster-mother to the ætheling Edgar. It may even explain why Edgar was considered in 957 suitable to rule Mercia.’^[i]

^[i] Jayakumar, S. ‘Eadwig and Edgar’, in Edgar, King of the English, 959-975, ed. D Scragg (Boydell Press, 2014), p.94

If Lady Ælfwynn did survive beyond the events of 919, it seems highly likely she would have continued her friendship with her cousin, Athelstan, when he became king of Mercia, and then Wessex and then England. It’s also highly likely that she might have rallied support for him in Mercia.

Certainly, the first known occurrence of a woman succeeding a woman in Saxon England ended in obscurity for Lady Ælfwynn.

So, who is my Lady Ælfwynn?

Well, she’s a warrior woman, reeling from the unexpected death of her mother. She is her mother’s daughter. She knows what’s expected of her, and she has no problem contending with the men of the witan, her uncle, Edward king of Wessex, or indeed, the Viking raiders. She and Rognvaldr Sigfrodrsson have a particularly intriguing relationship.

Here’s the beginning of The Lady of Mercia’s Daughter

‘The men of the witan stand before me in my hall at Tamworth, the ancient capital of the kingdom of Mercia. The aged oak beams bear the brunt of centuries of smoking fires. Some are hard men, glaring at me as though this predicament is of my making. They are the beleaguered Mercians, the men from the disputed borders to the north, the east, and the west, if not the south. They’re the men who know the cost of my mother’s unexpected death. And strangely, for all their hard stares and uncompromising attitudes, their crossed arms and tight shoulders, they’re the men I trust the most in this vast hall. It’s filled with people I know by name and reputation, if not by sight.

Those with sympathy etched onto their faces are my uncle’s allies. These men might once have understood the dangers that Mercia faces, but they’ve grown too comfortable hidden away in Wessex and Kent. Mercia has suffered the brunt of the continual encroachments while they’ve been safe from Viking attack for nearly twenty years. Some are too young to have been born when Wessex was almost extinguished under the onslaught of the northern warriors.

Even the clothes of the sympathetic are different from those with hard stares. Not for them, the warriors’ garb. There are no gaping spaces on warrior belts where seaxes and swords should hang, but don’t, as weapons must not be worn in my presence.

No, they wear the luxurious clothing of royalty, even if they’re not members of the House of Wessex. They have the time, and the wealth, to ensure their attire is as opulent as it can be. They don’t fear a middle-of-the-night call to arms. They don’t need to maintain vigilance or continuously be battle-ready. They don’t have to fight for their kingdom and their family at a moment’s notice or be ready to lose a loved one or face a fight to the death.’

https://amzn.to/3JnZoDC

(available with Kindle Unlimited)

To read more about the women of the tenth century in Saxon England, check out The Royal Women Who Made England, now available.

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Today, I’m delighted to spotlight Learning to Fly Alien Spacecraft by Fay Abernethy #blogtour #fantasy

Here’s the blurb:

What if the secret alien space station protecting the Earth went PUBLIC?

Hanna Abebe has come far since leaving Ethiopia. All the way to the other end of the galaxy, in fact. And although her course at the Essoona Pilots’ Academy is tough, it’s not as tough as maintaining the ultimate long-distance relationship . . .

Astronaut Dan Simpson is furious. The Galaksi Alliance have exiled him on a remote planet to stop him telling NASA about them before they’re ready. But by the time they come to take him home, Dan has fallen in love with an enigmatic alien and decides to stay. Only then does he discover what a perilous business his new girlfriend is involved in . . .

At last! Captain Joe Llewellyn has permission to initiate first contact via the UN. But if he messes it up, the Galaksi Alliance could cancel the Shantivira’s funding, leaving the Earth defenceless. So, no pressure. All goes well until a rogue Samaritan flies a cargo ship through months of painstaking negotiations . . .

This character-driven eco science fantasy is a must-read for fans of Becky Chambers, Ursula Le Guin, Douglas Adams and Doctor Who.

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Learning-Alien-Spacecraft-Shantivira-Book-ebook/dp/B0C9ZPK8M4/

https://www.amazon.com/Learning-Alien-Spacecraft-Shantivira-Book-ebook/dp/B0C9ZPK8M4/

Meet the author

Fay Abernethy left the UK more than twenty years ago, seeking adventure.

When not diving with sharks or falling off horses, she worked as an engineer in the automotive industry. Later, she started her own translating business and settled down in Germany with the man of her dreams.

Pre-children, they explored the Alps together – on foot in summer and on skis or snowshoes in winter. She now lives the life of a respectable citizen, having discovered that being a parent is the greatest adventure of them all.

Why does she write? To find out what happens next, of course!

Connect with Fay

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Who was Lady Eadgifu, the main character in Kingmaker?

Who was Lady Eadgifu?

Lady Eadgifu was the third wife of Edward the Elder (r.899-924), king of the Anglo-Saxons. Edward the Elder was the father of King Athelstan, and a whole host of daughters, as well as five sons. Lady Eadgifu would, it seems, have been young when she married the aging Edward the Elder, and that meant that she long outlived him, and also, that her three children (possibly four, but I’ve opted for three) were young when their father died. And two of these children were sons, Edmund (born c.921) and Eadred (born c.923). Her daughter, Eadburh, is thought to have been the oldest of the three children, born c.919.

While Lady Eadgifu, from what’s known (and it isn’t much, as there are few surviving charters from the end of Edward’s reign) perhaps had little role to play while her husband lived, other than wife and mother to the king’s children, following his death, she became increasingly significant. She was the daughter of an ealdorman, who perhaps died just before her birth, and her family are said to have had connections with Kent. Indeed, it’s often stated that she brought her husband Kent with their union. By that, what’s often meant, is the loyalty of the Kentish people. Remember, at this time, we’re still just before the creation of ‘England’ as we would now recognise it.

Sadly, very little is known about Lady Eadgifu (and she’s not alone in this – many of the royal women ‘disappear’ at points in the historical record, and on occasion, are entirely lost.) We know about a land dispute she was involved in, and also much more information for after King Athelstan’s reign (her step-son, who was quite likely older than she was).

Indeed, it has been said that

‘Nor is it surprising that Eadgifu, as the consort of the previous king, served little role in her stepson’s court.^[i]

^[i] Firth, M. and Schilling, C. ‘The Lonely Afterlives of Early English Queens’, in Nephilologus September 2022, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11061-022-09739-4, p.7

However, Barbara Yorke believes that,

‘the enhanced position [of Lady Eadgifu] may also have been developed specifically for the widowed Eadgifu as part of an alliance with her stepson Æthelstan [Athelstan] in which she supported his position and he recognised her sons as his heirs.’^[i]

^[i] Yorke, B. ‘The Women in Edgar’s Life,’ in Edgar, King of the English, 959-975 Scragg, D. ed (The Boydell Press, 2008), p.146

And it is this option that I’ve decided to explore in Kingmaker. Lady Eadgifu was wife to a king. She would have known her worth, even when faced with a stepson as the king of the English, and another stepson, and stepdaughters, who perhaps didn’t share any love for their, potentially, younger stepmother.

But the story doesn’t stop there. In later years, during the reigns of her sons, and her grandsons, Eadgifu would have been a powerhouse at the centre of English politics. Read her story, for it is, the story of England between the reigns of King Alfred, and King Æthelred II – allegedly, a century of peace between the English and the Norse. Read on to find out the truth of that assertion.

Check out The Tenth Century Royal Women page on the blog.

Curious? Read about the Royal Women of The Tenth Century in my nonfiction title.

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Where was the battle of Brunanburh fought in 937? #KingofKings #KingsofWar

First things first, no one actually knows where the battle of Brunanburh took place. No one. There are a number of different sites that historians have suggested from the one I’ve chosen in Kings of War, indeed, upwards of forty of them, although Bromborough in Cheshire, Brinsworth in South Yorkshire and Burnswark in Dumfries and Galloway are the most well-known. It’s worth noting that these different locations range all over Britain, from Devon to Scotland from the east coast to the west.

Frontispiece of Bede’s Life of St Cuthbert, showing King Æthelstan (924–39) presenting a copy of the book to the saint himself. 29.2 x 20cm (11 1/2 x 7 7/8″). Originally from MS 183, f.1v at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. (Wikimedia Commons)

As one historian has commented, more discussion has taken place about where Brunanburh was located than about its actual historical significance, which is often seen as much less important in the grand scheme of later events. Much of these difficulties arise because of the variety of names given to the location of the battle. Brunandun, in Æthelweard’s Chronicon (a later tenth century Latin copy of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle), Symeon of Durham suggested Weondune, although known by the name Brunnaneerc or Brunnanbyrig, while Geoffrey Gaimar (another post Conquest source) names it as Bruneswerce. To add to the confusion, are some of the descriptions given about the battle. John of Worcester ( a later source) asserts that Olaf and Constantin entered the mouth of the River Humber something that Symeon of Durham echoes. It’s been suggested that John of Worcester (an Anglo-Norman writing long after the events of 937 took place) took the knowledge that the River Humber was where Harald Hardrada landed in 1066 and Svein Forkbeard in 1069 and extrapolated from it.

As part of the discussion about where the battle took place, another problem needs to be addressed, that of the belief that the English rode down the Norse as they were fleeing from the battlefield to reach their ships. A word, eorodcistum, has been taken to be a reference to horses. Paul Cavill has shown that this word actually refers to gatherings of men and need not mean that horses were involved . This therefore does away with the argument that the Norse ships were far from where the battle took place.

(Please see https://ludos.leeds.ac.uk:443/R/-?func=dbin-jump- full&object_id=123858&silo_library=GEN01, for this discussion in full)

As well as the various sources mentioned above, the battle is also referenced in Welsh, Scottish and Irish sources. It was deemed to be significant. The Chronicles of the Kings of Alba gives a very brief account: ‘And the battle of Dun Brunde in his xxxiii year in which was slain the son of Constantin.’ While the Annals of Ulster tell us: ‘AU 937.6. A great, lamentable and horrible battle was cruelly fought between the Saxons and the Northmen, in which several thousands of Northmen, who are uncounted, fell, but their king, Amlaib, escaped with a few followers. A large number of Saxons fell on the other side, but Æ∂elstan, king of the Saxons, enjoyed a great victory.’ (Alex Woolf, From Pictland to Alba, 789-1070, p.169) (Amlaib was an Irish version of the name Olaf). A later source, that of the Historia Regum Anglorum by Symeon of Durham, tells that ‘Onlaf’ came with 615 ships. There are also many later sources that tell of the battle of Brunanburh, the distance in time to them being written, tending to add more and more details which can’t be confirmed with any accuracy.

Pauline Stafford, who has written an extensive account of the actual writing of what we know as The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, After Alfred:Anglo-Saxon Chronicles and Chroniclers 900-1150, (which survives in nine recensions/or versions, all with slightly different details and emphasis) states that perhaps the most famous account of the battle, the Brunanburh poem, was a retrospective addition, probably written in the twenty years after Athelstan’s death, and certainly before the death of the last son of King Edward the Elder, Eadred, in 955. Some have suggested that Edmund may not actually have been present at the battle but that it was deemed expedient to assign him a part in it, perhaps after his death, to show the sons of King Edward the Elder working together for England.

And there is one final source, which I’ve made no use of, but which many may be aware of, that of the accounting of the battle, named as Vinhei∂r in Egil’s Saga, a thirteenth-century Icelandic saga, which of course, is a tale of Egil’s involvement in the battle and tells us very little about the battle itself.

In recent years, and indeed, before I wrote the initial drafts of this book and its predecessor, there has been a move to accept the Wirral as the possible location. Bernard Cornwell has been instrumental, as has an archaeology group based in Wirral, in trying to find corroborating evidence for this. The results of the work can be found in Never Greater Slaughter by Michael Livingstone. Even now, I find it amusing that it wasn’t until Bernard Cornwell made Brunanburh one of the burhs built by the House of Wessex that I quite realized the significance of that element of the name.

In my role as writer of historical fiction, I chose the site that I thought offered the best opportunity to develop the storyline and the one that intrigued me the most. After all, it does sort of make sense that any battle for York would have taken place close to York, but equally, why would the Dublin Norse have sailed all the way around the tip of Scotland to get to York from the East Coast? If they used one of the portage routes overland then again, we must ask why. And so, I opted for the position which would be the closest way of them stepping foot on English soil.

Britania Saxonica, 17th Century Map, showing Brunanburh north of Bamburgh

Kings of War is available now in ebook, paperback, audio and hardback.

books2read.com/kingsofwar

Meet the characters from King of Kings and Kings of War by visiting the Brunanburh page on my blog.

My new book, Kings of War, has a number of main characters. Meet Constantin, the king of the Scots.

My new book, Kings of War, is a multi-viewpoint novel telling the story of events in Britain from 925-934. I thought it would be good to share details of the historical people my character are based on.

My portrayal of Constantin, the king of the Scots, is of course fictional in King of Kings, but he is based on a historical individual, Constantin (e) II, so who exactly was he?

Constantin is a fascinating character. Again, and as with Athelstan, his exact date of birth is unknown, but it must have been, at the latest, by 877/8, when his short-reigned father died.

By 900, Constantin was the king of the Scots (we think – there is some confusion about this). This wasn’t yet quite Scotland, but it was getting there. The ancient kingdoms of Cait, Fortriu, Atholl and Dal Riata, were ruled by one king, Constantin. But, he hadn’t succeeded his father, Aed, but rather a man named Domnall II, his cousin. At this time there were two rival dynasties and they strictly alternated the kingship.

Affairs in the kingdom of the Scots often intermingled with those of the independent kingdom of Bamburgh, Strathclyde, and of course, the Norse, or Viking raiders, if you will. Indeed, the entry recording Constantin’s death in the Annals of Ulster, reads as though there was often strife.

‘Constantinus son of Ed held the kingdom for xl years in whose third year the Northmen plundered Dunkeld and all Albania. In the following year the Northmen were slain in Strath Erenn…And the battle of Tinemore happened in his xviii year between Constantin and Ragnall and the Scotti had the victory. And the battle of Dun Brunde in his xxxiiii year.’ (Alex Woolf, From Pictland to Scotland, 789-1070,p.126)

Constantin, ruling for decades, and I mean decades, seems to have brought much needed stability to the kingdom, as affairs there very much mirrored the emerging ‘England’ to the south.

‘Constantin’s reign has increasingly come to be see as one of the most significant in the history of Scotland. Not only was it very long, at least forty years, but it was also the period during which conflict and diplomatic relations between a kingdom recognisably ancestral to Scotland and one recognisably ancestral to England first occurred.’ (Alex Woolf, From Pictland to Scotland, 789-1070, p.128)

Constantin allied with the rulers of Bamburgh, and York, and also, on occasion, both Æthelflæd of Mercia and Edward the Elder, after her death. But, he seems to have been quite flexible in his thinking, and was prepared to pick and choice as he saw fit.

By the beginning of King of Kings, Constantin would have been in his mid-forties, and he was still to rule for many years to come, and he was certainly a more than adequate counterpart to Athelstan, king of the English, no doubt helped by his sons and grandsons, as his reign continued.

books2read.com/kingsofwar

Meet Athelstan, the king of the English

Meet Hywel, the king of the West Welsh

Meet Ealdred, the king of Bamburgh

Meet Lady Eadgifu, queen of the Anglo-Saxons

Meet Owain, the king of Strathclyde

I’m delighted to welcome Nancy Northcott and her historical fantasy, The King’s Champion, to the blog HistoricalFantasy #WWII #Dunkirk #RomanticFantasy #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub

I’m delighted to welcome Nancy Northcott and her historical fantasy series to the blog. Nancy is sharing a fabulous post, about Challenges in the Past, with us.

Writing historical fantasy obviously requires dropping one’s characters into an historical world and making it seem real, vibrant and alive for readers. This holds true even when a writer decides to create an alternative timeline, or even an alternate universe for a particular era, as with steampunk, which is often set in a Victorian England that has steam-based and other tech. The more different the timeline and universe are from the way our history depicts a period, the more leeway an author has available in creating the world.

I like to stick close to the actual timeline, fitting my characters and their magic around the events of the era. That means I need to be fairly true to what people wore, how they lived, what they ate, and so on. In this post, I’ll share some of the challenges I faced in recreating the periods of the three books in my Boar King’s Honor historical fantasy trilogy.

The action in the first book Boar King’s Honor trilogy, The Herald of Day, takes place in 1674, during the reign of Charles II. Although the book opens in Dover, most of the scenes take place in London. I happen to like that period, so I didn’t have to do much reading about the political situation in England at that time. I did, however, have to find out about travel, food, clothing, customs, and language. I started this project before the internet had virtually every kind of information on it, so I had to do a fair bit of hunting for answers.

Finding out about clothing was harder than I expected. I had a scene in which the villain undressed, and I realized I had no idea how men’s pants closed in 1674. I started asking writers, and someone knew someone who was not only a writer but a costumer. This friend of a friend generously provided sketches, references on clothing design and fabric, and other information that was helpful for all the characters.

Despite preferring to stay close to established history, I took a leap with that book and decided to have the villain, a wizard, figure out how to go back in time and change history to create a dictatorship of the magically Gifted—with himself at the head, of course. So I had to decide whether he made the change before, during, or after the Restoration of Charles II. I went back and read from the events leading up to it through the period immediately after and weighed the results of several options. I won’t say what I finally picked because the characters have to figure that out what the villain did, and I don’t want to spoil that for readers.

The second book, The Steel Rose, was the scariest to write from a research standpoint. By the time I started that one, the internet offered reams of material, and books on historical costume were easier to find around here than they’d been before. That simplified choices for the characters’ clothing, but the period brought a new headache.

The Steel Rose is set in 1815 during the hundred days between Napoleon’s escape from Elba and the Battle of Waterloo. This period is known as the Regency because King George III was incapable of ruling and England was governed by his son, the future George IV, as Prince Regent. This is Jane Austen’s era. It’s also one of the most popular for romance novels. During the Regency, social classes were rigidly stratified, and manners made the difference between social success and ostracism. There was a very great deal of etiquette to learn.

As though that weren’t tough enough from a writer standpoint, there are vast numbers of people who love the era’s social history. They create historically accurate costumes, learn the dances, and memorize the etiquette. They’ve been known to eviscerate writers who got something wrong, and the internet didn’t offer the specific information I needed. Fortunately, some Regency romance writers came to my rescue, answering questions and pointing me to resources. I did cut come of the bowing and curtseying customary during the era in the interests of moving the story along.

The social niceties weren’t my only concern, though. This story would include both Napoleon’s departure from Elba and the Battle of Waterloo. You may be aware that literal armies of people re-enact Waterloo every year. And they do it wearing uniforms accurate for both the period and their military units. That means many, many potential readers would know if I made a mistake.

Fortunately for me, Osprey Publishing puts out wonderful books full of detailed information on military uniforms and equipment. They also had a terrific book on the battle that led me to other books full of the meticulous details that gladden writers’ hearts.

With those challenges behind me, I turned to the final book, The King’s Champion. It posed a different problem. There are many, many, many books about Britain during World War II, including libraries’ worth on social history. The trick, I quickly realized, would be in synthesizing all this information so that it offered an accurate picture of the era without including so much that it overshadowed the story. There are still people alive who remember the war years. There are many more who remember what those people said about life during the war. I had to depict British society in a way they would find acceptable.

Friends whose parents remember hearing about the war from relatives helped me out, especially about rationing and housing. Other friends knew the answers I needed or knew British veterans who would answer my questions. The Imperial War Museum website was very useful, as were, again, Osprey books. It was from that website that I learned about the 5” per person per week rationing of hot bath water, but I was never able to figure out exactly when that started.

At one point, my heroine is on a tugboat headed back to Dover from Dunkirk, and she asks the captain how long the trip will take. Unfortunately, I didn’t know. I could’ve deleted the question, but it would be logical for her to ask. I wanted to find the answer. This sent me down a research rabbit hole that grew ever deeper as I searched. Finally, after several attempts, I put the right combination of words into a search engine and hit upon a website devoted to the Little Ships of the evacuation.

These are some of the challenges I stumbled into while building the worlds for these three books. I didn’t want to hand-wave the problems away and just put down something convenient because “it’s fiction.” I’m grateful to everyone who helped me find the answers I needed.

I enjoyed the hunt for information, so finding it was a true delight each and every time. I’m happy with the worlds in this trilogy, and I hope readers be will as well.

Thank you for having me, MJ!

Thanks so much for sharing your fabulous post with my readers.

The Boar King’s Honor Trilogy

A wizard’s misplaced trust

A king wrongly blamed

A bloodline cursed until they clear the king’s name.

Here’s the blurb

Caught up in the desperate evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from France in the summer of 1940, photojournalist Kate Shaw witnesses death and destruction that trigger disturbing visions. She doesn’t believe in magic and tries to pass them off as survivor guilt or an overactive imagination, but the increasingly intense visions force her to accept that she is not only magically Gifted but a seer.

In Dover, she meets her distant cousin Sebastian Mainwaring, Earl of Hawkstowe and an officer in the British Army. He’s also a seer and is desperate to recruit her rare Gift for the war effort. The fall of France leaves Britain standing alone as the full weight of Nazi military might threatens. Kate’s untrained Gift flares out of control, forcing her to accept Sebastian’s help in conquering it as her ethics compel her to use her ability for the cause that is right.

As this fledgling wizard comes into her own, her visions warn of an impending German invasion, Operation Sealion, which British intelligence confirms. At the same time, desire to help Sebastian, who’s doomed by a family curse arising from a centuries-old murder, leads Kate to a shadowy afterworld between life and death and the trapped, fading souls who are the roots of her family’s story. From the bloody battlefields of France to the salons of London, Kate and Sebastian race against time to free his family’s cursed souls and to stop an invasion that could doom the Allied cause.

The King’s Champion concludes Nancy’s Northcott’s exciting Boar King’s Honor Trilogy.

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The Herald of Day

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The Steel Rose

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The King’s Champion

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Meet the author

Nancy Northcott’s childhood ambition was to grow up and become Wonder Woman. Around fourth grade, she realized it was too late to acquire Amazon genes, but she still loved comic books, science fiction, fantasy, history, and romance.

Nancy earned her undergraduate degree in history and particularly enjoyed a summer spent studying Tudor and Stuart England at the University of Oxford. She has given presentations on the Wars of the Roses and Richard III to university classes studying Shakespeare’s play about that king. In addition, she has taught college courses on science fiction, fantasy, and society.

The Boar King’s Honor historical fantasy trilogy combines Nancy’s love of history and magic with her interest in Richard III. She also writes traditional romantic suspense, romantic spy adventures, and two other speculative fiction series, the Light Mage Wars paranormal romances and, with Jeanne Adams, the Outcast Station space mystery series.

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Follow The King’s Champion blog tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club

I’m super excited to welcome Kelly Evans and her new book, Turning the World to Stone, to the blog. #HistoricalFiction #Renaissance #histfic #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub

I’m super excited to welcome my fellow Medieval Maverick, Kelly Evans and her new book, Turning the World to Stone, to the blog. Please enjoy this snipper from the story of Caterina Sforza.

When they were far enough from the people, her husband turned to her in his saddle. “Why? What was,” he motioned backwards at the citadel as it receded into the distance. “I don’t have the words to describe your actions. What did you think you’d accomplish by such a stupid act?”

“I had to do it.” She turned to him. “You’re weak. I knew of the deal you’d accepted.”

“You weren’t there,” he growled.

“No, I was protecting YOUR inheritance, and that of our sons!” Caterina shifted in her saddle, the child in her stomach choosing that moment to kick.

“Watch your tone, my lady.”

“Or what? You’ll beat a pregnant woman? Knock me from my horse?” With a disgusted noise, she continued. “All of Rome knows of your cowardice so it would hardly be surprising to hear of such an act of petty violence from you.”

Girolamo rode closer and began to raise his arm. Lifting her chin, Caterina stared coldly at him. Daringly. Defiantly. Glaring at her, he moved his mount to the side and rode a few steps away.

“I thought not,” Caterina urged her own horse forward. “I’m going to pack what little we still have in Rome. Thank God I thought to send our belongings ahead to Forli.” She stopped her horse and turned it to face her husband. “I’m leaving tomorrow. I can’t stand to be in this Godforsaken city another day.”

Here’s the blurb

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.”

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Meet 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.

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Follow the Turning the World to Stone blog tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club

Meet the new characters in Kings of War, Olaf Gothfrithson, King of Dublin

There are a few new characters in Kings of War, the sequel to King of Kings. Here I’ll explain who the historical individuals probably were, and what’s known about them, if anything.

Olaf Gothfrithson is the son of Gothfrith, who King Athelstan of the English, beat to the kingdom of York or Jorvik in King of Kings.

Olaf, perhaps a great-grandson of Ivarr the Boneless (it’s difficult to piece together the family connections, and indeed, in an initial draft I named Olaf’s brothers entirely incorrectly). Ivarr was the famous Viking raider who led part of the Great Heathen Army in the 860s before meeting his death in 870 or 873, depending on which contemporary source you read.

Olaf claimed Dublin following his father’s death, although not without some fighting. In Ireland, he had many enemies, including Olaf Cenncairech (Scabbyhead) of Limerick and Donnchad of the Southern Ui Neill.

Olaf is known to have been one of four brothers. Halfdan, who died in 926, according to the Irish Annals, Blakari and Rognvaldr being the other two, who both play a role in future events.

Affairs in Ireland at this time were complex. Dublin was largely a Norse enclave, involved in almost constant warfare with the Irish clans. Claire Downham has written extensively on this period. ‘The rivalry between Limerick and Dublin marks an important chapter in the history of vikings in Ireland. The number of viking campaigns recorded in these years rivals any other period of Irish history. The influence of the vikings is reflected in the range of their campaigns across the island and in the involvement of Irish overkings in their wars.’ (Viking Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ivarr to A.D. 1014, C. Downham, p. 41)

Affairs in Ireland fall far outside my expertise, but I hope I’ve correctly portrayed what events are known from this period and which concern Olaf Gothfrithson (you’ll find his name also written as Óláfr Gu∂rø∂sson and Amlaib), Olaf Cenncairech – Scabbyhead (a wonderful name for the man – again my thanks to C. Downham for including this in her work) – and Olaf’s brothers and sons.

In Kings of War, Olaf is staunchly determined to claim back ‘his’ lost kingdom of Jorvik.

Read King of Kings for FREE for a very limited time on Kindle, Kobo and Apple in the UK, US, Australia and Canada (3rd -10th July ’23).

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Preorder Kings of War now

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To find out about the characters who also appeared in King of Kings, please visit my The Brunanburh Series page to find the links.

Today I’m delighted to share an excerpt from The Hussar’s Duty by Griffin Brady #HistoricalFiction #WingedHussars #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub

Today I’m delighted to share an excerpt from The Hussar’s Duty by Griffin Brady.

Chapter 23 – Tremors

Oliwia had donned her cloak and exited the castle walls, making for St. Lawrence’s vaulted vestibules, black-and-white marble tiled floors, and high windows that threw down prismed light. She should have arranged for a male escort, but said males in her party were engaged in the tiltyards. Besides, Nadia walked beside her, they were within the walls of the city, and the sun was high in the early afternoon sky.

They scurried across Viche Square into the welcoming embrace of the cathedral’s walls. Nerves that had been jangling off and on for days suddenly calmed as she dipped her fingers in the font’s cool water, genuflected, and crossed herself under the watchful eyes of the archangels high above the glorious altar. She had come to love those angels.

The place was stunning … and mostly empty, which gave her an opportunity to linger as long as she pleased. She lit candles for each of her children, her brother, and Jacek, before selecting a pew close to the front. Kneeling, she bent her head over her hands clasped in prayer, dimly aware that Nadia sat several pews back.

Mary, Mother of God, I beseech you, please protect …

How long her prayers ran on and how much she repeated them, she could not say. When she lifted her head, shadows moved across the high windows. Glancing over her shoulder, she glimpsed Nadia sitting, rather than kneeling, and the maid seemed to be asleep. Oliwia suppressed a smile and sent one last prayer heavenward. She made to rise, but her knees and lower legs had gone numb. Eyes cast downward, she rearranged herself and grasped the pew to heave herself to her feet. A looming shadow, followed by a rank smell, had her eyes flying fully open. A man she did not recognize stood beside her, broadside to the altar so that he faced her side.

He crowded her. “Ain’t this a fortunate coincidence?” Breath fouled with the smell of decaying teeth and spirits blasted her, and his raspy voice sent alarm bells clanging in her head. She knew that voice! She turned to run, but a viselike grip clamped down on her arm. “Such a fine, fine lady. I have been dreaming of you ever since our encounter, my pet. Let’s go somewhere quiet where we can become better acquainted and tend to our unfinished business.”

My pet?

Terror seized her, and she kicked out, landing a blow to the man’s inner thigh. She had missed her mark, but he howled nonetheless, giving her a split second to whirl and run to the main aisle. Nadia startled to life and took off in the opposite direction toward one of the chapels. Behind Oliwia, the man thumped his way along the pew, though his steps were clumsy, uneven.

Finally unhampered by the pew, Oliwia ran shrieking down the aisle. “Help! Highwayman! Help!”

A stunned priest and several worshippers were congregated in a portal. The priest shouted for a guard, and Oliwia slowed enough to look over her shoulder. Her would-be attacker was headed for the sanctuary with all haste, but Nadia … Where was Nadia?

Here’s the blurb

Poland’s most valiant winged hussar is called to fight in a campaign ripe for disaster. But he must also protect those he loves from jackals waiting to pounce. How does he choose between duty and devotion when death is on the line?

When Sultan Osman II sends Poland’s envoy packing, the Commonwealth must prepare for war against one of the largest armies the Ottomans have ever assembled. Tasked with repelling the invasion is Grand Hetman of the Crown Stanisław Żółkiewski, and he knows who to turn to: Jacek Dąbrowski, the Commonwealth’s most valiant Polish winged hussar.

Jacek has been idle far too long, and the call to arms is a siren’s song he can’t resist. But he has built a life far from the battlefield with his wife, Oliwia, and their children. If he pursues his quest for glory, who will safeguard them?

Oliwia knows her husband is restless. In fact, she’s been sending Jacek on cross-country errands for years in the hopes of quelling his lust for battle. When she realizes her efforts are futile, she resolves herself to letting him go—after hatching a scheme to accompany him.

Honor. Obligation. Devotion. These forces push and pull Jacek in different directions. His country needs him, but so does his family. Where does his duty lie? His choice will cause catastrophic ripples no matter which path he follows … and could very well bring the loss of his loved ones or his life.

Will the cost of defending king and country prove too steep for this warrior?

This is a standalone continuation in The Winged Warrior Series.

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Meet the author

Griffin Brady is an award-winning historical fiction author with a keen interest in the Polish Winged Hussars of the 16th and 17th centuries. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society and Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. Her debut novel, The Heart of a Hussar, was a finalist for the 2021 Chaucer Early Historical Fiction Award and a 2021 Discovered Diamond.

The proud mother three grown sons, she lives in Colorado with her husband. She is also an award-winning bestselling romance author who writes under the pen name G.K. Brady.