How do you recover from the havoc wrought by history’s cruellest plague?
It’s June 1349. In Meonbridge, a Hampshire manor, many have lost their lives to the Black Death, among them Alice atte Wode’s beloved husband and Eleanor Titherige’s widowed father. Even the family of the manor’s lord and his wife, Margaret de Bohun, has not entirely escaped.
But, now the plague has passed, the people of Meonbridge must work together to rebuild their lives. However, tensions mount between the de Bohuns and their tenants, as the workers realise their new scarceness means they can demand higher wages and dictate their own lives.
When the tensions deepen into violence and disorder, and the men – lord and villagers alike – seem unable to find any resolution, the women – Alice, Eleanor and Margaret – must step forward to find a way out of the conflict that is tearing Meonbridge apart.
Carolyn Hughes has lived much of her life in Hampshire. With a first degree in Classics and English, she started working life as a computer programmer, then a very new profession. But it was technical authoring that later proved her vocation, word-smithing for many different clients, including banks, an international hotel group and medical instruments manufacturers.
Although she wrote creatively on and off for most of her adult life, it was not until her children flew the nest that writing historical fiction took centre stage. But why historical fiction? Serendipity!
Seeking inspiration for what to write for her Creative Writing Masters, she discovered the handwritten draft, begun in her twenties, of a novel, set in 14th century rural England… Intrigued by the period and setting, she realised that, by writing a novel set in the period, she could learn more about the medieval past and interpret it, which seemed like a thrilling thing to do. A few days later, the first Meonbridge Chronicle, Fortune’s Wheel, was under way.
Six published books later (with more to come), Carolyn does now think of herself as an Historical Novelist. And she wouldn’t have it any other way…
I’m delighted to welcome Debra Borhert and her new book, Her Own War, Book 3 in the Château de Verzat Series, to the blog with the historical aspect of the novel.
Historical Aspect of the Novel: Enslavement in Eighteenth-Century France by Debora Borchert
“I survived enslavement. I know where they look.” — Aurélia, Her Own War
In the first book in my Château de Verzat series, the brother-sister protagonists flee France aboard a slaver. As I further researched the slave trade, I knew I would not be able to adequately convey the horrors of their voyage. Consequently, that story lives only in my mind.
Yet, the male protagonist, Henri, falls in love with a formerly enslaved woman, Aurélia, who was forced onto the same ship. In America, they cannot marry, and people treat Aurélia as an enslaved woman. Eager for her freedom, Henri brings Aurélia to France, after the new government abolished enslavement. The August 1793 decree for the abolition of slavery ended all slave-trade activity across all French territories in 1794.
In the second book, Her Own Revolution, Henri, Aurélia, and their son, Charles, depart America and arrive in France in late 1796, where Henri believes Aurélia and their son will be safe.
Although slavery was illegal in France, people, like Thomas Jefferson, brought their “property” to France, and France respected his and others’ rights to own enslaved people.
The irony of these laws caused me to wonder about the formerly enslaved, and whether people of color had rights in France in 1796. They did not. In my work as a historical fiction writer, I attempt to focus light on historic injustices.
For research, I traveled to Nantes, which was the largest slave-trading port in France from 1707-1793. The city has created a Memorial to the Abolition of Slavery, dedicated to the thirteen million Africans who were deported during the transatlantic slave trade.
The Memorial’s underground gallery was created to enable visitors to imagine what it might feel like to exist in the hold of an 18th century ship. Sounds of flapping sails, splashing waves, creaking ropes and wood, clanking chains and shackles, human groans and cries, echo in the shadows.
At that moment I knew my character Aurélia would be mute, caused by the trauma she had endured. I also knew she would not be safe in France, for, although Henri did not know it, I knew she had no rights.
The third book, Her Own War, opens with a hailstorm that threatens the vineyard, and is followed by a declaration that all noble émigrés must leave France or face the guillotine. Henri, a noble émigré, must leave, and, as Aurélia is pregnant, she is unable to travel with him. He must leave her under the protection of the four hundred families who live on the estate. However, no one, not even Henri, could have protected her from history.
During the eighteenth century the recapture of freed, formerly enslaved people was terrifyingly common, and many were enslaved in the sex trade. France had a robust demimonde, a polite name for the business of prostitution, catering to tastes for the exotic. These facts threatened Aurélia’s safety. But, as Aurélia had survived enslavement, she proved to be a courageous character who risks her life to save the lives of her children.
As Napoleon Bonaparte gathers power at the end of Her Own War, I know the plot of the next book of in the series will be affected by his re-establishment of slavery in1802, which revived slave-trade activity for another fifteen years.
Having learned that even today human beings are enslaved, I chose to bring light to the historical facts of the 18th century, sadly reflected in the crimes against humanity in this century.
Artwork that inspired the character Aurélia.
Bust of an African Woman by Charles-Henri-Joseph Cordier. Courtesy The Walters Art Museum, Creative Commons License. Artwork that inspired 18th century Nantes, France.
Le Port de Nantes, by Nicolas Ozanne, Courtesy Wiki Creative Commons
Blurb
As Napoleon Rises from the Ashes of The French Revolution, One Woman Dares to Spy Against Him
Sentenced to eight months in an insane asylum for the crime of impersonating a man, Geneviève LaGarde fears giving birth in a filthy cell will mean certain death for her and her unborn child. Desperate for her release, her husband, Louis, trades his freedom for hers and must join Bonaparte’s army in Egypt.
As Geneviève wages her own war against the tyrannical general, she not only risks her own life but also those of her children and the four hundred families who depend on the Château de Verzat estate. Knowing her desperate actions could cause the government to confiscate the entire vineyard, she sacrifices everything to save her husband and protect the people who become her family.
A captivating tale of the power of love, hope, and courage, and the strength of community.
Book 1Book 2Book 3
Reviews
“Fans of historical fiction will find this novel a most captivating read.” —Kirkus Reviews
“For fans of Stephanie Dray’s The Women of Chateau Lafayette.” —Publishers Weekly BookLife Editor’s Pick “A compelling story of love, war, and fierce family loyalty. While the narrative stays true to the social mores of the French Revolutionary era, Borchert gives her readers powerful and active female characters who often cunningly use conventional gender expectations to conceal their real motives and actions. Fans of historical fiction will find this novel a most captivating read.” —Kirkus Reviews
This title will be on #KindleUnlimited for the first 90 days
Meet the Author
Debra Borchert has had many careers: clothing designer, actress, TV show host, spokesperson for high-tech companies, marketing and public relations professional, and technical writer for Fortune 100 companies. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, The Christian Science Monitor, and The Writer, among others. Her short stories have been published in anthologies and independently.
A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, she weaves her knowledge of textiles and clothing design throughout her historical French fiction. She has been honored with a Historical Novel Society Editors’ Choice, Publishers Weekly BookLifeEditor’s Pick, and many other five-star reviews.
I’m delighted to welcome Luv Lubker and her new book, Under A Cloud, from The Rival Courts series, to the blog, with an excerpt.
Excerpt 1
On the 24th they had arrived in Palermo. Fritz had been emotionally excited to show them this place, where he had been the year before his and Vicky’s engagement. They had visited the place where he had stayed at the time, and also an old monastery, leaving with bits of beautiful mosaic in their pockets.
Most of the buildings here were of very Eastern architecture. The orange groves, aloes, cactuses, fig trees, heliotropes, date palms, all the vegetation was such as Vicky had never seen before outside of a hot house. They often stopped to breathe in the sweet, almost overpowering scent of the brightly colored flowers, and to watch the swarms of butterflies and bees. The gaudily painted donkey and mule carts, embellished with red dyed feathers and harnesses covered with glittering, jingling bells were also very striking. In the towns, they often met these carts, driven by boys or young men who were dressed for the heat – or rather so nearly undressed Vicky felt shy of looking at them.
She had begun to take sketches of the views which were most striking to her eye.
“You are sure you do not need more time?” Fritz had asked her. She had only been sitting a few minutes when she put her sketchbook away.
“Oh, no, that is plenty. I can finish them later,” she had assured him. “You remember my pictures from Balmoral. Most of those were done this way.”
“How do you remember the details? Every color is perfect, and the shadows, the drops of water. How do you do it?”
Vicky smiled up at him, meeting his gaze. He stood looking down at her, his eyes expressing his admiration, just as they had when she first showed him her artwork at Balmoral, a few days before he proposed. She shrugged and shook her head.
“It is so easy. I don’t know what the fuss is.” She laughed. “Bertie, I didn’t think you knew so much about art as you do. You knew every artist at the galleries we saw.”
Bertie shrugged, turning his face away. He had always professed ignorance and boredom when Papa and Mama had attempted to speak with him about such things. “I know. I – I don’t usually find it so interesting, though I do know it quite well. But you make it so interesting,” he said to Fritz.
“No, it is she who makes it interesting,” Fritz said, smiling at Vicky. “I know so little myself, my company could not possibly make it interesting.”
“No, that is not true,” Vicky and Bertie both said. Vicky took their hands, smiling up at them. “You have both learned so much about art, I am proud of you.”
Here’s the blurb
Vicky’s father, Albert, the Prince Consort, has just died, leaving her and her family under a heavy cloud of grief, without their dearest friend and advisor, at a most critical time: The political horizon grows dark with storm clouds at the entry of Bismarck to Germany’s political stage in 1862.
Will Fritz’s courage stand the test as he confronts the spider in its web? Is Prussia really fighting for the rights of the Schleswig people, or is so much blood being shed for the sake of Prussia’s aggrandizement?
Join Vicky and Fritz on their journeys under the blue cloudless skies of the Mediterranean to the peaceful heather-clad hills of the Highlands of Scotland; to the burning heat of the North African desert to the raging blizzards of a winter war in Denmark.
When Vicky’s closest friend disappears, will she be able to keep the secret? Will old enemies prove to be friends, and old friends prove to be enemies?
Luv Lubker has lived in the Victorian era half her life, making friends with the Brontë sisters and the extended family of Queen Victoria. Now she knows them quite as well as her own family.
Born in a cattle trough in the Appalachian mountains, Luv lives in Texas – when she comes to the modern world.
When she isn’t living in the Victorian era, she enjoys being with her family; making and eating delicious raw food, riding her bike (which she only learned to ride at 25, though she has ridden a unicycle since she was 7), and watching animals – the passion of her childhood.
From the author of the Kingmaker series, an epic and intimate tale of adventure, myth and the creation of one of literature’s greatest stories.
Warwick, 1468. One drowsy summer afternoon, Sir Thomas Malory – politician, courtier, renowned author of Le Morte D’Arthur – is seized from his garden and dragged to Newgate Prison for reasons unknown.
Shivering in his foul-smelling, filthy old cell, Malory mourns his misspent life as he awaits the execution bell. But when the locking bar lifts, he is greeted by a boy of about twelve winters: the gaoler’s son. Giddy with relief, Malory seizes the opportunity to recount his deeds to an audience.
So begins a prison confession of a perilously exciting life full of sieges, battles and court intrigue. A Good Deliverance is the captivating tale of a man at odds with his past and the events that inspired him to write the first great work of prose fiction in English.
A Good Deliverance is a fictional account of Thomas Malory, the man who wrote the famous Le Morte D’Arthur and, in doing so, perpetuated the myths of Arthur and his knights, queen, and, of course, Lancelot.
Our Thomas Malory, as presented by Toby Clements, is a man of his time, living a life that even he questions for his feelings of inadequacy. He doesn’t fight at Agincourt, and indeed, his deeds of martial glory come from a battle few remember. Locked up for a crime we, the readers, never truly understand, he finds a willing listener to his life’s tales in the son of his prison guard.
This is an intriguing tale, told in an unconventional way. Wary of losing the interest of his audience, much of the tale is told as an aside, the parts that his young listener won’t be interested in hearing. It does make the story a little disjointed, but it also allows us to sweep through some of the more mundane details and focus on what Thomas Malory (and the author) thinks is important to the reader. Perhaps very much as the Arthurian Legend, it focuses on brave daring-do (or not) and not so much on matters of the heart or Malory’s less honourable actions.
It is somewhat of a rambling tale – indicative of a man fearing for his life and determined to ensure someone knows his story before his death. It is also thoroughly enjoyable – fans of the period will delight in seeing the glories of Agincourt and the hot mess of politics and bickering kingship played out in a very different way – through the eyes, not of a common man, but through the eyes of one for whom everything is still very much out of his control. Thomas Malory must do as he’s bid to make his way in the world.
The ending of this tale is very abrupt – too abrupt – no doubt because I as the reader was hoping for some redemption for our main character.
In a genre where the legends of Arthur have always been so alluring for authors and readers alike, I admire this fresh attempt to tackle where much of our knowledge of the legend comes from. The book might have its faults, but in revealing even our scribe’s biases, it sheds a whole new light on the tales.
A fabulous take on the fifteenth century and the man behind the Le Morte D’Arthur (even if so much of it is fictional as we know so little about him).
While traveling on an overnight train from Barcelona to Madrid, my friends and I had an unexpected discovery when we got to our cabin.
Sheilds, Jim, Nicole, and I work our way down the carriages. We pass through the non-operative dining car to arrive at the entrance to our seated cabin. I slide open the door and am surprised to find the small compartment already full of people. It is a six-person sitting cabin and there are eight bodies already squeezed in. Not just any people, either.
They are gypsies.
There is an uncomfortable silence among everyone present who is not a gypsy before I speak.
“Um, is this your cabin?” I ask.
“Of course,” one gypsy replies.
I nod, turn, and shoo my companions back into the dining car.
“Are they in our cabin?” Sheilds asks.
“I don’t know. They say it is theirs,” I answer. “Are we sure we have the right wagon?”
“I am sure that is our cabin,” Sheilds declares. “They need to leave.”
She extends her arm and points towards the corridor that leads to our cabin. What? Sheilds expects me to go back and throw them out? Why me? Why do we not simplytake advantage of all this open space in the empty dining car for the trip? Nicole gives me an expectant look as well. Great. Now I must impress my future wife. I take a slow, deep breath. Surely Gypsies are not as dangerous as the German Mafia. I keep repeating this to myself as I walk back to the door of the cabin filled with the unwelcome, and unwashed, guests.
I slide open the door cautiously. Every pair of gypsy eyes in the room turn to me. I gulp.
“Excuse me. Do you have tickets for this cabin?” I firmly ask.
The gypsies disclose their complete surprise at being put on the spot for overtaking a cabin that is not theirs.
“We do not need tickets. We are gypsies.”
“We like this cabin.”
“We are gypsies, we mean you no harm,” one coyly remarks.
“I am sorry. If you do not have a ticket for this room, you need to get out,” I state, while standing at the door looking as menacing as I can as my knees are shaking.
Here’s the blurb
The best has been saved to last. Book 3 of a hilarious series of travel misadventures and dubious personal introspection by Australian author Simon Yeats, who from an early age learned that the best way to approach the misfortunes of this world is to laugh about it.
Simon shares his comedic insights into the unusual and uproarious elements of living life as an Aussie ex-pat and having a sense of Wanderlust as pervasive as Cholera in the 1850s.
From how to outwit the Italian police while trying to find parking in downtown Genoa, to how to negotiate exploring the Roman ruins of Plovdiv, Bulgaria while on crutches, to how to impress the German Mafia with 80s dance moves, to how to leave a lasting impression on a crowded bar in Gothenburg, Sweden after combining alcohol and antibiotics.
Simon Yeats has gone into the world and experienced all the out of the ordinary moments for you to sit back and enjoy the experience without the need to rupture a disc or succumb to Dengue fever.
Simon Yeats has lived nine lives, and by all estimations, is fast running out of the number he has left. His life of globetrotting the globe was not the one he expected to lead. He grew up a quiet, shy boy teased by other kids on the playgrounds for his red hair. But he developed a keen wit and sense of humor to always see the funnier side of life.
With an overwhelming love of travel, a propensity to find trouble where there was none, and being a passionate advocate of mental health, Simon’s stories will leave a reader either rolling on the floor in tears of laughter, or breathing deeply that the adventures he has led were survived.
No author has laughed longer or cried with less restraint at the travails of life.
I’m delighted to welcome Roberta Tracy and her new series, Zig Zag Woman, to the blog, with an excerpt.
Excerpt One
The Morehouses’ world turned upside down on a warm September day when Captain Hiram Clarke of the Los Angeles Police Department welcomed Margaret to the force with a book of rules and first aid kit. Had he included a crystal ball, she might have been able to predict the way murder and deception would riddle her life for the next twenty years.
On her first official day of work, Margaret tried to take advantage of a long-standing police department privilege, free trolley rides to Central Police Station on First Street. The pot-bellied conductor, who always tipped his hat to policemen and waved them aboard, eyed her up and down with suspicion. “Anyone not wearing a badge must pay!” he declared.
Assuming he had not had a chance to read the morning paper, she handed him the fare.
If she’d left home a few minutes later, Margaret would have ridden to work alongside Alice Stebbins Wells, Los Angeles’s first female policewoman with arrest powers, who never, ever paid to board a trolley.
Blurb
The last thing LAPD Detectives McManus and Tyson expect to find behind Pantages Theatre is a body rolled up in a blanket. The last thing Margaret Morehouse, one of the city’s first policewoman with arrest powers, expects to do is join the investigation. When a deadly explosion at the L. A. Times derails their efforts, Margaret finds herself at a crossroads and strikes out on her own, a path leading to delusion and self-discovery on a vaudeville stage. Her husband’s nephew Leland further complicates the situation by sharing a ransom note and confiding his failure to report his wife’s disappearance at the Dominguez Air Meet.
A brief stint as a magician’s assistant takes Margaret to Chicago, where she almost signs on as a zig zag girl, the term used for ladies performing in the “cutting-a-woman-in-two”
illusion. Instead, Margaret returns to the tumultuous world of early twentieth century Los
Angeles. Reunited with McManus and Tyson, she confronts prejudices and societal norms in efforts to identify a body, clear Leland’s name, and topple the stranglehold one powerful, amoral person has over many lives. Their efforts lead to dead ends and misconceptions before truth comes to light. Love is rekindled and danger uncovered in unlikely places. Margaret goes from Zig Zag Girl to Zig Zag Woman, no longer cut in two but headed on a clearer path.
Early experience as a staff greeting card writer introduced Roberta Tracy to witty people who shared the writer’s dream. Marriage, motherhood, and career intervened, but she maintained that creative desire.
A degree in nonprofit management led her to work situations where newsletters, grant proposals, and business correspondence took precedence. Still, she wrote poetry, some of which won prizes and publication, and children’s books set in worldwide locations. Recently, she co-authored Come Dream With Me, a part travelogue, part hippie nostalgia work of creative nonfiction, detailing the adventures of colleague Inese Civkulis.
No matter what writing projects unfold in the future, she’ll never find enough words to thank family and friends for their inspiration and encouragement.
I’m delighted to welcome back R.W. Meek and his new book, The Dream Collector “Sabrine and Vincent van Gogh”, to the blog with an excerpt.
The Dream Collector Excerpt 3
“The Mermaid Palace”
MAP IN HAND, I followed Theo’s route to the brothel district. At Place Victor Hugo, I stopped and thought this square might be where Vincent confronted Gauguin with a straight razor. According to Gauguin, his stare alone stopped Vincent in his tracks, causing him to run back to the Yellow House and use the razor on himself. The suspicion I brought to Arles was that the two artists, who held each other in high regard, would not reach such a violent juncture, unless there was a woman involved. Would the prostitute Rachel talk with me?
I reached Place du Calvaire, a three-quarter circle of tall, dreary houses except for the three Maisons de Tolerance,each brazenly painted a different primary colour. I kept a safe distance from House #1, Vincent’s brothel of choice, where his favorite Rachel worked. I lingered and wondered if Sundays were a busy day for brothels?
House of Tolerance #1 was painted a lurid purple-blue which I thought could have only been attractive to the coarsest eye. Gauguin mentioned that the brothel was ruled by a Madame Virginie. I knocked, but no one answered, every window shuttered, and the front door latch locked.
I noticed narrow alleyways separated the houses around the circle. The gated alleyway
next to the brothel was unlocked. Creaking open, I ventured into a dark, dank, and urine smelling passageway, coming to separate wooden gates.’ I pushed open the one leading to the back of the brothel. The scene before me defied immediate comprehension.
Here’s the blurb
Sabrine, hospitalized for five years at the infamous Salpêtrière Asylum for Women, gains her release due to intervention of her sister Julie Forette and a young Sigmund Freud. The reunited sisters are introduced to the dazzling art milieu of 1886 Paris, and soon become close friends to the leading Impressionists. Sabrine attracts a cult following as a poetess, the enigmatic “Haiku Princess.” Seemingly cured by Freud of her Grand Hysteria, Sabrine soon enters into a tumultuous relationship with Vincent van Gogh.
Julie and Sigmund Freud, alarmed by the eerie parallels between the emotionally volatile couple and their self-destructive impulses, begin an urgent search to discover the root causes for Sabrine and Vincent’s growing psychoses. Julie, ‘The Dream Collector’ seeks their most unforgettable dream for Freud’s interpretation and revelations occur.
The Dream Collectoris an exploration of the psychological consequences of betrayal, abandonment–and the redemptive power of art.
R.w. Meek has a Master’s degree in Art History from the American University in Washington, D.C., his areas of expertise are Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, with a particular interest in Vincent van Gogh.
His first novel The Dream Collector “Sabrine & Sigmund Freud” was voted runner-up by the Historical Fiction Company for best novel of 2022.
Born in Baltimore, he currently resides with his wife Pamela in Santa Clarita, California. He’s passionate about art, cinema, literature and jazz. His two dogs, Reve and Banjo, were awarded angelic status in heaven.
I’m delighted to welcome Nicolette Croft and her new book, The Curse of Maiden Scars, from the Maiden, Mother, Crone series, to the blog with an excerpt.
Excerpt
The Curse of Maiden Scars—Excerpt 1:
My story must have begun before life as a stray waif, but I didn’t know the tale. The cotton house takes in children as little as three—the unwanted offspring of criminals, crazies, and the contagious. By sixteen, we were expected to make room for younger sprogs and pursue meaningful work. It was weeks until my sixteenth birthday, and I didn’t have a plan. Choices for a girl like me were limited, so Camilla told me. I had some learning and hoped I might find a maid’s position. Whatever I was to become, I didn’t want it to include lurking about the seedy, dank Yorkshire streets like a wet cur.
A cackle of laughter echoed from inside the Inn that stood open behind me. A woman’s mound of blond hair tied in red, pink, blue, and black ribbons appeared in the window’s waving candlelight. She tossed her head back and let out a bright, spirited laugh as a burly man with a beard kissed her neck. I envied their intimacy. I longed to know such love and care.
Deep shivers tightened my sodden dress over my back, and a cough rattled through me. I was prone to illness. My lungs had never been strong. And the wetness only made things worse. I stuffed my head between my knees and swooned in lightheadedness. I closed my eyes and wished myself someplace warm and safe, dreaming of a small bed in a quiet room free of mold, surrounded by soft blankets, the amber light of candles, and a stack of leather-bound books with stories waiting for me to discover. Such a wish was only a fantasy to me—nothing in my real life resembled it.
Boot heels sounded beside me, ripping me out of my daydream. I lifted my head too quickly, and my vision faded darkly. Panic grew from the depths of my belly. Had I missed the opportunity to signal the workhouse strumpets, giving them time to sell their comfort for a copper?
A passerby kicked me and shot, “street rat.” He poured ale over my head and rolled with laughter. There was always laughter. I’d have kicked his feet out from under him if I hadn’t felt weakened from illness. I was accustomed to this sort of abuse, having scouted for culls since the age of eight, and wasn’t afraid to fight back if needed.
Here’s the blurb
Sixteen-year-old Renna Covert toils away in the shadows of a Yorkshire workhouse, her days filled with the mundane task of shelling cotton and the dangerous duty of scouting for punters. One fateful night, she crosses paths with two sailors and finds herself thrust into the heart of a chilling encounter at the local asylum.
These harrowing experiences catalyze Renna’s journey, promising newfound opportunities and revealing long-buried family secrets. Yet, at every turn, powerful forces conspire to thwart her quest for truth, forcing her to abandon her scullery work and embark on a daring escape to Venice alongside her steadfast companions.
In the labyrinthine alleys of Venice, Renna’s fate takes yet another twist. She is ensnared by a cunning Madam who trains her as a Venetian courtesan. But beneath the veneer of luxury lies a world fraught with danger, where Renna must rely on her withs and resilience to navigate the treacherous waters of deceit and betrayal.
Set against the backdrop of Venice’s tumultuous Napoleonic invasion of 1797, this is a tale of a girl’s struggle for survival. It is a story of resilience, defiance in the face of adversity, and, ultimately, one young woman’s determination to reclaim her identity.
Nicolette Croft can’t remember a time when she was not creating imaginary worlds inspired by her Hungarian and American ancestors. As a neuro-divergent learner, however, putting those stories to paper proved more challenging than imagining them. Because her determination would not allow her to settle, she pursued an English B.A. to improve her writing.
Young motherhood also brought unexpected challenges, which motivated her to pursue graduate work in twice-exceptional learners and education. She would later add an M.A. degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, specializing in neurodivergent people, trauma, and grief. Nicolette uses her natural gift of storytelling as an exploratory method for her clients.
The Curse of Maiden Scars is also an outgrowth of her personal journey and marks her first publication as a novelist, having previously published short fiction. When not at her counseling practice or researching historical facts for her latest story, Nicolette shares treasured time with family, friends, and her husband. Whether writing, cooking, traveling, or learning, the act of creation is always at the center of her colorful life.
With the release of a new title in The Last King series, The Last Alliance, I thought it time to address the ‘elephant’ in the room – all that d*** swearing, and not just swearing, but the heavy almost grotesque use of one particular swear word which some will bend over backwards to assure you was used no earlier than the sixteenth century (in the written records), 700 years after the books are set. (Check out Holy Sh*t by Melissa Mohr for a history of swearing.)
I’m not writing in Old English
Well, first things first, lovely people, aside from the names of the characters in these books, and perhaps the word ‘witan,’ every word in these books is modern-English. I’ve not attempted to have my characters sound ‘ye olde worldy’ and that was very intentional. Although, it seems, that s*** is, indeed, Old English. So, forget that, there is another word in there that is also Old English. (Check out the will of King Alfred, and Eadred for some Old English https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2013/07/the-last-will-and-testament-of-alfred-the-great.html)
The UK/US divide around swearing
I wanted my characters to swear. There, I’ve said it. I wanted them to swear and to shock with their language, but I also wanted them to sound like people today. Not everyone swears, admittedly, but most people do. In the UK, we have no problem with the F-word, although US audiences are horrified by it. In the UK, we don’t like the C-word, which in the US, is just fine and dandy – apparently. We swear and we curse and we’re not even (most of us) fighting for our lives against a deadly enemy, which my characters are forced to do.
Am I a potty-mouth?
I’ve had reviewers decry the swearing. I’ve even had reviewers decide the swearing in the books is because I somehow lack the intelligence to write a novel without swearing. Perhaps, most amusingly, a close friend was astounded by the language in the books – I am not, it seems, a potty-mouth in ‘real life’ (although, I can be pushed to it).
‘Oh dear me, that smarts.’
My characters face a life-and-death situation almost every day of their lives. I don’t think they’ll be sitting there saying, ‘oh dear me, that smarts,’ when they’re wounded, or even, ‘oh goodness me, I’ve killed that man.’ They are lethal, bloody and violent, and for all that, they are very relatable to a modern-audience perhaps struggling to truly comprehend what life ‘might’ have been like in Saxon England as the Viking raiders threatened the safety of all.
There are Cleaner Version
That said, I have no intention of forcing people to cast the books aside if they don’t like the swearing. There are also ‘Cleaner Versions‘, without much of the foul language. It tones it down a little, but the violence is not diminished.
Enjoy the fast-paced action
So, whether you love the swearing or not, you can still enjoy the tales of Coelwulf II, and book 9, The Last Alliance is available now in ebook, paperback, hardback and the Cleaner Version on kindle as well. And remember, allowing my characters to swear was done purposefully, indeed, on initial feedback, I actually added a lot more:)
I’m delighted to welcome Heidi Eljarbo and her new book, Trouble in Assisi, to the blog.
Here’s the blurb
Assisi, 1973.
On art historian Fabiola Bennett’s first day in Assisi, a local gentleman takes her aside to ask for advice about a painting that has wondrously appeared in the basilica’s bell tower.
So much for enjoying relaxing days filled with dining on pasta and gelato.
Soon, Fabiola and her besties, Pippa and Cary, are thrown into a shrouded mystery and caught up in a whirlwind of intrigue, theft, lies, and attempted murder, all of which overshadows the postcard-like charm of the small, historic town.
Rome, 1511.
Life is going well for Teodoro Nicoletti. Since he was a young man in Florence, he has worked and learned alongside the most-favored artist Raphael.
When Pope Julius II commissions Raphael to paint several frescos in the reception rooms of the Vatican Palace, Teodoro follows his master to Rome and discovers firsthand the admiration and rivalry between Raphael and two other reigning artists: Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.
But the prickliest thorn in Teodoro’s side is his beloved Elisabetta’s father. The old man is determined to keep his youngest daughter from becoming Teodoro’s wife.
Heidi Eljarbo grew up in a home full of books, artwork, and happy creativity. She is the author of historical novels filled with courage, hope, mystery, adventure, and sweet romance during challenging times. She’s been named a master of dual timelines and often writes about strong-willed women of past centuries.
After living in Canada, six US states, Japan, Switzerland, and Austria, Heidi now calls Norway home. She lives with her husband on a charming island and enjoys walking in any kind of weather, hugging her grandchildren, and has a passion for art and history.
Her family’s chosen retreat is a mountain cabin, where they hike in the summer and ski the vast white terrain during winter.
Heidi’s favorites are her family, God’s beautiful nature, and the word whimsical.
MJ Porter 