Special Guest Interview with Chris (C.C.) Humphreys, Author of Someday I'll Find You

Available from Amazon UK, Amazon US

and Amazon CA

When Billy Coke steps onto the streets of London one December evening he has no idea he is stepping to his fate. 

I'm pleased to welcome author Chris (C.C.) Humphreys to The Writing Desk;

Tell us about your latest book

I was going to write a load of new stuff about it… then realized I'd laboured so long and hard to narrow it down for the back cover copy I thought it better just to send you that! I promise after this there will be no more cut and paste:

'Inspired by my parents' true story, this is a novel about a spy and a pilot who fall in love, are wrenched apart by war, and must find their way back to each other.

When Billy Coke steps onto the streets of London one December evening in 1940, he has no idea he is stepping to his fate. As Hitler’s bombers come close to burning the city down, Billy meets the woman who will change the course of his life - Ilse Magnusson, a musician from Norway, but also something more – a spy in training. Escaping the Blitz for three days, she and Billy drive, quarrel, conceal, reveal… and fall, finally, fully, in love. 

Now they must part, each to fight the war their own way. Billy, a Canadian Spitfire pilot, to duel with the Luftwaffe over North Africa and the Med. Ilse to return to her conquered country, ingratiate herself with the Nazi elite – which includes her beloved father ¬– and send vital intelligence back to Britain. They know that the odds of both of them surviving are poor. All they can hope is that the other does survive – and that someday they find each other again.

From decadent pre-war Berlin to the atrocity at Guernica, from dogfights over Sicily to an Oslo ground under the German jackboot, through small victories and bitter losses, this is the story of a man and a woman at war. A tale of causes and compromises, heroism, and betrayal. Of choices made, with consequences unforeseen. Finally how sometimes . . . love can give you a second chance.

(And yes, my father was a Battle of Britain fighter pilot, and my mother was a spy in the Norwegian Resistance, her cell run by SOE)

What is your preferred writing routine?

It really depends on what draft I am on. If it is my first draft - after I have done all my preliminary research and have a rough idea of where I am going (I don't outline), I just set out and try to find out who these characters are… in action. I like to be caffeinated and at my desk by about 7:30am. 

If I am filling the blank screen i.e. making it all up as I go, I find I am inspired for about five hours, so I stop for lunch. If it's second draft i.e. I have a mountain of words to chip away at - then I can go all day. You have to drive me from my desk with hounds.

What advice do you have for new writers?

CC: My biggest piece of advice - and what I strive to teach when I do - is to regard writing as a process. A series of stages. This part - the first draft - is about finding out what the story is, telling it to yourself. You need to remove the words 'good' and 'bad'. (They are rarely useful at any stage. 

Does it work - serve your purpose at this stage - or doesn't it?) Like so many I thought I needed to write well, instantly, like my heroes. Then I remembered the cliché - 'journey not destination'. Each stage - preliminary, first draft, second draft, working with an editor - is separate and distinct. The lines should not be blurred.

 

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Gosh, I am not great at the marketing stuff. Had to get a bit better since I started self-publishing some of my backlist. I find newsletters are useless, don't pay for them. Word of mouth - generated mostly by some social media shares - helps. 

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

I always say that research is not so much about getting the details right, necessary though that is. A good new fact acts as a springboard for the imagination. Very occasionally, maybe three times a novel, a fact merges with your imagination and writing becomes like taking dictation. 

In Someday I'll Find You (for reasons I can no longer recall) I chose to make Ilse, my female protagonist, a classical flautist. I am vastly ignorant about classical music, so I began to research, mainly by listening to flute quartets. I discovered that the adagio (second movement) in Mozart's Flute Quartet No. 1 in D Major is based on an old Troubadour song. 

Then I remembered that the troubadours sang of courtly love which was pure - and unrequited. This gave Ilse the perfect excuse not to sleep with the viola player she'd been considering - and left her free to meet the other protagonist, Billy Coke. I confess to chortling while typing as research and character came together in action.

Interestingly, I mentioned to Doubleday my publishers that I'd put together a Spotify playlist of my research. Suggested they might want to use it in some way. They put it on a QR code on the free bookmarks.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

Ever? In my novel Vlad, The Last Confession I kept delaying writing the impalement scene which was vital. I mean he was Vlad the Impaler, not Vlad the Tickler, right? My writing was getting delayed, I was antsy, then realized why. 

So I sat down and wrote a page and a half in 45 minutes. You will never need to know anything more about how to impale someone. I never needed to write it again. There are other impalements in the novel, but all done from people's POV, their reactions, never directly. Phew. Definitely tough.

What are you planning to write next?

Someday I'll Find You did especially well in Canada. Sequels are apparently out of favour, but Doubleday wanted more of the same: spy, WW2, love story, with some Canadian Content. Two weeks ago I delivered 'Eve Sinclair', mainly set in the world of spies in neutral Sweden during the war. 

I have also finally written another Jack Absolute novel, sixteen years after the last one. It's the sequel to the original 'Jack Absolute' and I am hoping it revives the whole series. We are in talks with a publisher about reissuing them all with new covers etc. This one is appropriately called, 'The Resurrection of Jack Absolute'. They would also want new ones which would thrill me. I love Jack!

Chris (C.C.) Humphreys

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About the Author

Chris (C.C.) Humphreys has played Hamlet in Calgary, a gladiator in Tunisia, waltzed in London’s West End, conned the landlord of the Rovers Return in Coronation Street, commanded a starfleet in Andromeda, voiced Salem the cat in the original Sabrina, and is a dead immortal in Highlander. He has written eleven historical fiction novels including Shakespeare’s Rebel  which he adapted into a play and which premiered at Bard on the Beach, Vancouver, in 2015. Chris has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia. He was the Fall Writer in Residence at the Vancouver Public Library 2021 and is very busy as an audiobook narrator-for-hire. Find out more from his website https://www.authorchrishumphreys.com/ and find Chris on Twitter X: @HumphreysCC

Historical Fiction Spotlight: The Tuscan Diary, by Anita Chapman

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

As she gazes at the lights of Siena glowing in the dusk, Jess flips through the yellowing pages of the diary that led her here. Written by her grandfather during the war, it holds the answers to a family secret 

that might just change everything…

When Jessica’s grandfather left for war, he promised to keep a record of each day he was apart from her grandmother. The diary was lost along with him – until now, when a mysterious, handsome Italian man named Alessandro shows up at Jessica’s door with the diary in hand.

Immediately enchanted by her grandfather’s accounts of Italy’s glittering golden hours, Jess decides to spend a summer in Tuscany before she’s due to take over at her family’s farm. She hopes she can visit the places her grandfather once did – and finally find out what really happened the night he died…

In the historic city of Siena, she finds a job as companion to the glamorous Sofia – Alessandro’s grandmother – whose stories of Italy during the war are captivating. And as Jess spends more time with Alessandro, she begins to fall for him with each lingering look into his deep-brown eyes.

Together, Jess and Alessandro visit her grandfather’s resting place. But the more Jess learns about her grandfather’s time in Italy, the more she’s forced to question whether everything about her family’s past is a lie…

Jess came to Italy in search of answers, but time is running out. She can’t shake the feeling that the diary that has stolen her imagination is merely a work of fiction. And if it is, will the truth about her family inspire her to turn away from the path she thought she was destined for, and towards the life she truly wants?

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About the Author

Anita Chapman enjoyed writing stories from a young age, and won a local writing competition when she was nine years old. Encouraged by this, she typed up a series of stories about a mouse on her mum’s typewriter and sent them to Ladybird. She received a polite rejection letter, her first. Many of Anita’s summers growing up were spent with her family driving to Italy, and she went on to study French and Italian at university. As part of her degree, Anita lived in Siena for several months where she studied and au paired, and she spent a lot of time travelling around Italy in her twenties. Since 2015, Anita has worked as a social media manager, training authors on social media, and helping to promote their books. She’s run several courses in London and York, and has worked as a tutor at Richmond and Hillcroft Adult Community College. Find out more from Anita's website https://anitachapman.com/ and find her on Facebook and Twitter @neetschapman

Special Guest Post by Birgit Constant, Author of Warrior of two Kings (The Northumbria Trilogy Book 1)

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

England, 1066. In a remote Northumbrian village, young Oswulf is to become an elite warrior for the English king. But as English, Norse and Norman forces wage war against each other to secure control over Northumbria, Oswulf is caught in a perilous web of fickle loyalities and relentless ambition that drive friend and foe alike.

Linguistic challenges for writers

I love languages, and my readers hate me for it. 

Well, that's not really true. Most of those I have spoken to and who have posted reviews of my books – historical novels set in the Middle Ages – quite like the sprinkles of foreign words and phrases in my novels because they enhance the medieval feel of the story for those readers.

But languages are not everyone's cup of tea, and I understand if readers are confused, annoyed or outright frustrated by words whose meaning eludes them. They are not alone, for this is a problem that readers share with us writers of historical fiction – not to mention the characters in our books, who may have faced a similar challenge in their living days, all those centuries and sometimes millennia back in history.

Imagine you're a peasant in the 9th or 10th century in northeastern England. You speak your local northern, Anglian dialect, church services are in Latin, your neighbours further south speak Mercian, and your king speaks West Saxon. Sure, as a peasant, you probably never have to talk to your southern neighbours or king in person, but what if messengers from down south come to your village to tell you something important – in their dialect? Would you understand them? 

More importantly, would you comprehend the Viking raiders that the messengers tried to warn you about and who are suddenly popping up on the outskirts of your village? It probably wouldn't matter, because chances are those Vikings will kill you before entering into diplomatic relations.

If this linguistic situation sounds confusing, don't even get me started on 12th-century France.

Anyway, back in England, fast forward another century. Assuming you survived, your grand-grand-children have come to terms – they didn't have a choice, after all – with the descendants of the Vikings who decided to settle in England. Now, all of a sudden, the country is flooded with Normans, and you are forced to work for someone whose language is unlike anything you've ever heard and utterly unintelligible to you. This is the situation my teenage protagonist of Warrior of two Kings is thrown into when the Normans try to establish their authority in Northumbria.

At this point, all writers will have to think about how they get out of this tricky situation. There are three options:

1. Ignore

You can ignore the historical reality and let both characters speak English and understand each other easily, without questioning how likely this would have been. This is the easiest solution for the protagonist, writer and reader.

2. Circumvent

Let your characters converse in a lingua franca, a common language, used at the time to overcome or circumvent their linguistic differences. This option might be tricky or even impossible. Latin, for example, was spoken by everyone belonging to the clergy – not necessarily at the same level of proficiency, depending on their position in the church hierarchy – across the whole of Christian Europe, but laymen, in particular of lower social orders, would not usually have known and even less mastered it. So, even if there was a lingua franca, your characters may not have been able to speak it. Incidentally, the same might be true for today's readers. While you solve the historical communication problem, for example amongst travelling clerics or members of a highly educated nobility, you could be creating (another) one for your reader.

3. Accept

Could you accurately convey the linguistic background without overcomplicating things and confusing yourself and the reader? This is not simply a question of willingness. You also have to be able to do it, meaning you should understand the medieval languages and be able to work with them.

I'm a linguist and a medievalist, so this third option is my preferred choice. While I know and accept that some readers will take offence at my incorporating bits of Old English, Anglo-Norman, Old Norse, Old Breton and whatnot, I appreciate the effort and goodwill of the majority of readers, who will happily dive into my stories despite, sometimes even because of those foreign words and phrases. Think of foreign as a flourish, not a flaw.

As a token of my appreciation and to help readers, notably the curious ones, I always include a glossary with translations, with literal and general meanings, at the end of my books. Yes, I know this is awkward to access on e-readers, hence I make sure that none of the information given in foreign words is essential to understanding the scene or the story. If it is, I cheat: in Warrior of two Kings, my young English protagonist – and hence also the reader – is lucky, as one of the Norman warriors is an interpreter who translates the foreign Norman gibberish into English.

Yet the linguistic challenges for us writers go beyond the character level. They start even before we decide how to handle languages of yore in our actual story, namely with the pile of research that every writer of historical fiction must do.

An essential question is how to get the information about the time and place where the story is set. What looks like a simple task might, however, be more complicated than it seems. After all, depending on your chosen time and setting, you may not be able to read source texts, because you do not speak the language they were written in and because there is no translation into a language you are familiar with.

There might also be specialist literature on certain essential details – architectural, social, cultural, whatever – in languages you don't know. Of course, if you don't know the languages, you won't be aware of those sources, but if for some reason, you come across them in your research, you'll have a hard time trying to make use of them.

Lastly, if your books are translated, how do you assess whether the translation is good? 

With my range of languages, those three areas are less of a problem, because I can search, understand and evaluate results in multiple languages. But what if this is not possible?

With the advent of free or cheap AI translation, you could always give that a try to get the gist of specialist literature. I would not go as far as to suggest using it on old source texts, though. For translations, you can always try to find colleagues or readers you trust who speak the translated language well enough to gauge the quality of the translation.

However, when it comes to specialist information, such as historical details and linguistic problems, there's nothing better than asking a specialist. Especially for obscure questions – I once needed help with Old Breton and Occitan dialects – I have found specialists very welcoming and helpful. So, don't be afraid to ask. It shows wisdom, not lack of it.

When faced with the challenge of languages, pick what is possible, desirable and most convenient to you and your readers. Think about how important languages and potential language barriers are for your story – you might discover interesting constellations of characters, underlying conflicts or motivations that could add an exciting extra to your novel.

For young Oswulf in Warrior of two Kings, it is the language barrier above all that alienates him from the Normans, creating mistrust and wariness. Cutting out the linguistic aspect would have removed much of the tension between the two opposing nations. It would also have given readers one reason less to fear for the young Saxon's life at a court full of foreign, battle-hardened Norman warriors.

Whichever way you decide, language is a powerful tool to convey a story. Make sure you use it to the fullest of your abilities – your readers will love you for it.

Helpful resources for languages:

https://www.oed.com/discover/history-of-english – History of English

http://www.triviumpublishing.com/articles/languages.html – Languages in Medieval England

https://bosworthtoller.com – Old English Dictionary

https://www.oed.com/discover/old-english-an-overview/ – Linguistic background of Old English

https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/middle-english-dictionary/dictionary – Middle English Dictionary

https://www.oed.com/discover/middle-english-an-overview/?tl=true – Linguistic background of Middle English

https://anglo-norman.net – Anglo-Norman Dictionary and everything Anglo-Norman

http://zeus.atilf.fr/dmf/ – Dictionary of Middle French

https://dicodoc.eu/fr/dictionnaires – Dictionnaire occitan (available in Occitan/French only)

http://www.koeblergerhard.de/ahdwbhin.html – Dictionary of Old High German (German only)

https://mhdwb-online.de/wb.php?buchstabe=A&portion=0 – Dictionary of Middle High German (German only)

http://micmap.org/dicfro/search/ – Enter a word and select one of the available dictionaries of English, French, Old French or Latin to look up the word

https://www.etymonline.com – Etymological Dictionary of English

https://lecteur-few.atilf.fr/ – French Etymological Dictionary

Birgit Constant

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About the Author

Birgit Constant has a PhD in medieval studies, has learned eleven languages and worked her way through translation, IT and Public Relations before ending up in the world of books. She writes historical fiction for language nerds and is particularly interested in hidden histories of less well-known people and places. Her works include the Northumbria Trilogy and a fictional biography about Marie de France, a 12th-century French writer. Subscribe to her newsletter Medieval Motes at www.birgitconstant.com for exclusive reading material, news from the Middle Ages, and information about her projects and books. You can also find Birgit Constant on Facebook and Bluesky

Visiting Athelhampton Historic House and Gardens in Dorset

Athelhampton House is one of England's finest Tudor Manors, a few miles from Dorchester in Dorset, near the village of Puddletown, and was buzzing with preparations for Tudor Week - Living History at Athelhampton (28th October-1st November 2024, (and 27th to 31st October, 2025)

During Tudor week living historians take on the characters of the 16th-century residents of Athelhampton, from gentlefolk to servants, and live, speak and act this part continuously, from early morning right through the day and into the evening. 

Juliet Braidwood, taking a rare moment

 from arranging Tudor Week

Cooks and servants prepare food in the Elizabethan kitchen, with its vast brick arch, and serve it in the Great Hall, built in 1485, which remains greatly unchanged with a hammer-beam roof, which has an unusual and possibly unique curved support.

Visitors can try Tudor food, have a go at period dances, learn to play games, examine clothing, try writing with a quill and much more.

I was fortunate to spend a morning with the owner, Giles Keating (author of the Anne of Athelhampton series). When he arrived five years ago, Giles researched the Martyn family. He found that about 1485 Sir William Martyn, merchant and landowner, whose family collected duties at Poole Harbour, built Athelhampton Hall, and the Martyns and their descendants became Lords of Athelhampton for the next 250 years.

Giles was struck by how unusual it was that the daughters had been made heiresses of the estate, becoming attractive marriage partners for desirable suitors - and undesirable ones! Anne, as a feisty and determined twelve-year old, finds herself entangled in the family feud with her sinister cousin, 'Young John'.

Giles revealed secret passageways and a hidden priest hole, and explained he is on a mission to restore the rooms with authentic period furniture but wishes to recognise how the history of the house has evolved with each generation of owners, and visitors from Thomas Hardy to Noel Coward.

One of the challenges of a Tudor house with as many rooms (seventeen open to the public) as Athelhampton is the cost of keeping them all warm and dry. Giles installed four hundred hidden solar panels, solved his over £50,000 a year energy bills and Athelhampton is now carbon neutral.

There are also many original Tudor roses to look out for, as well as a rare single rose of Lancaster, likely to date from the time of King Henry VII, carved into a wooden door.

I very much recommend a visit to the Grade 1 listed Athelhampton House – and the impressive gardens.

For more information please see https://www.athelhampton.com/ and Tudor Week will be live-streamed during Athelhampton opening hours and beyond at:

https://m.youtube.com/@athelhampton/streams

Tony Riches

Guest Post by Susan Grossey, Author of Ostler, Book One of The Cambridge Hardiman Mysteries

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Cambridge of the 1820s is not all lectures and prayers, as university constable Gregory Hardiman discovers in the pages of this intriguing Regency crime novel.

I have three obsessions in life: dodgy money, justice, and research. And I manage to unite the three by writing historical crime novels that focus particularly on financial crime. My interest in dodgy money is a legacy of twenty-five years spent working as an anti-money laundering consultant, and it was while I was working that I wrote my first novel – Fatal Forgery – based on the true story of a banker who stole from his own bank in London in 1824. 

I had fully intended it to be my one and only novel. But I fell in love with the 1820s and with the constable who arrested the banker, and this eventually resulted in a series of seven “Sam Plank Mysteries” taking us up to the creation of the Metropolitan Police in 1829. By then I was well and truly hooked on writing historical crime stories, and now I am working on a new series. 

It takes place – again – in the 1820s, but this time the books are set in my hometown of Cambridge and narrated by a university constable called Gregory Hardiman. I am older and wiser now and already know that there will be five books in this series, which means that I can plan much more carefully and can drip-feed information about the characters in a more measured manner. 

The first Hardiman book is called Ostler and the second – Sizar – is coming out in December 2024.My greatest skill as a writer of historical fiction is that I am a dogged researcher. I am never happier than when truffling around in a library or archive. 

Indeed, I have to be strict with myself and call time on the research so that I can actually do some writing, which I prefer to do in silence, at a keyboard, and in the morning. I would love to be one of those writers who can sit in the corner of a coffee shop and jot down notes in a fancy Moleskine, but sadly I am too distracted if I am out and about, and so I have to sit myself facing a wall, turn off the radio and just knuckle down.

My advice for new writers is two-fold: choose something you enjoy writing about (chasing the market to jump on the latest bandwagon is very difficult, and trends move so quickly it’s all but impossible to write a book in time) and then just stick at it (which is why you really have to enjoy it – otherwise it is sheer misery, plodding on with something that bores you). I cannot tell you how many people I meet who tell me that they have a good idea for a book, or some notes in a drawer – but unfortunately for them, the only way to write a book is to actually write a book.

There are two very surprising things I have found when researching my books. The first is that in England in the 1820s there was no such thing as a defence in court: if you were accused of a crime, there was a prosecution lawyer and a jury – but no defence! 

You might be allowed to put forward some mitigation after the verdict, but you could not defend yourself – that was not put in place until the 1830s. Not the fairest of systems… And the second surprise is how enormously helpful people are when you ask about their specialist subject. 

I have contacted all sorts of experts – on paddle-steamers, poisonous plants, university processions, musket injuries and more – and without fail, they have offered their information with enormous goodwill and generosity. So if you need to know about something, just ask an expert – and of course make sure you put them in the acknowledgements section of your book. Some of them are so thrilled that you are actually interested in their pet subject that they buy several copies of the book to prove to their family that they are not the only one interested in it!

Raising awareness of individual books is a constant battle in a very crowded marketplace, and I think the key is to find the promotional channel that plays to your strengths. I am not a great user of social media in my private life and so I find it an uphill struggle as an author. 

But I do love talking about my books and the history and research behind them, and I enjoy meeting readers, so I choose to spend my promotional energy on giving talks to any group that invites me. I take along books to sell, and I encourage people to sign up to my free monthly e-newsletter so that they can hear about new books as they come out. I also make sure that my books are easy for people to buy, which means listing them on every sales platform, getting them into local bookshops, and offering them in multiple formats (paperback, e-books of various flavours, and audiobook).

I had no idea that I would end up as an author. And I still can’t imagine being about to – or indeed wanting to – write stories set in the modern age and pulled completely from my imagination. But give me an historical framework into which I can fit my characters and I am, as they would have said in the 1820s, quite nuts upon myself – or extremely pleased with life!

Susan Grossey

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About the Author

For twenty-five years I ran my own anti-money laundering consultancy, which gave me almost limitless opportunity to write about my very favourite subject: money laundering. And the obsession with understanding the mechanics and motivations of financial crime has only grown.I have spent years haunting the streets of Regency London, in the company of magistrates' constable Sam Plank. He is the narrator of my series of seven historical financial crime novels set in consecutive years in the 1820s - just before Victoria came to the throne, and in the policing period after the Bow Street Runners and before the Metropolitan Police.The fourth Sam Plank novel - "Portraits of Pretence" - was given the "Book of the Year 2017" award by influential book review website Discovering Diamonds. And the fifth - "Faith, Hope and Trickery" - was shortlisted for the Selfies Award 2019.My new series is the Cambridge Hardiman Mysteries, set in Cambridge in the 1820s and narrated by a university constable called Gregory Hardiman. Find out more at Susan's website https://susangrossey.com/ and find her on Facebook

Book Launch Spotlight: Amid the Oncoming Storm (The Irish Fortune Series Book 3) by Juliane Weber

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

It’s the spring of 1847 and there’s much for Quin and Alannah to look forward to. And yet, the previous years’ hardships have left their mark. The famine that’s had Ireland in its grasp for the past two seasons continues to rage unabated, with hunger and disease sweeping across the land. As thousands lie dying, dissension spreads among the Irish people, the British government’s carelessness and their landlords’ ruthlessness breeding hatred in the poor and the oppressed.

With suffering all around them Quin and Alannah hold onto what happiness they’re able to. But can they trust the people living on their estate?

Set amongst the anguish of Ireland’s most devastating time in history, Amid the Oncoming Storm is a story of hope and resilience in a land struggling to rise from the depths of despair.

"A heartbreakingly emotional read. The pages practically turn themselves." - Yarde Book Reviews & Book Promotion

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About the author 

 

Juliane Weber is a scientist by training. She holds degrees in physiology and zoology, including a PhD in physiology. During her studies she realised, however, that her passion lay not in conducting scientific research herself, but in writing about it. Thus began her career as a medical writer, where she took on all manner of writing and editing tasks, in the process honing her writing skills, until she finally plucked up the courage to write her first historical novel, Under the Emerald Sky.  Juliane was born in Germany but spent most of her life in South Africa. She now lives with her husband and her two sons in Hamelin, Germany, the town made famous by the story of the Pied Piper.  Find out more (and follow her blog) on Juliane’s website www.julianeweber.com and find her on Facebook and Twitter @Writer_JW

Historical Fiction Spotlight: Under a Lightning Sky: A gripping historical suspense set against the backdrop of the Blitz, by Pam Lecky

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

London is under attack. But within the rubble, a greater danger lurks… The Luftwaffe has been bombing London continuously 

since September 1940.

During a bombing raid, Madeline Fairfax is caught in her kitchen whilst cooking for her husband and children. She becomes trapped in the rear of her home, but regains consciousness just in time to see a familiar face, offering hope of rescue. But instead, Madeline is tragically strangled to death.

As a dangerous murderer uses the Blitz to cover their crime, local detective Jamie Barton enlists the help of Madeline’s sister and volunteer firefighter, Penny Miller to help. Now, caught in a web of uncertainty and mistrust, a grieving Penny must find the truth and do whatever it takes to protect those she loves most.

Together, will they unravel this case before it's too late…?

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About the Author

Pam Lecky is an Irish historical fiction author with Avon Books UK/Harper Collins. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society, The Crime Writers' Association, and the Society of Authors. She is represented by Thérèse Coen, at the Hardman & Swainson Literary Agency, London. Pam has a particular love of the late Victorian era/early 20th Century. Her debut novel, The Bowes Inheritance, was awarded the B.R.A.G Medallion; shortlisted for the Carousel Aware Prize 2016; and longlisted for the Historical Novel Society 2016 Indie Award. Her short stories are available in an anthology, entitled Past Imperfect, which was published in April 2018.  Find out more at Pam's website https://pamlecky.com/ and find her on Twitter @pamlecky

Stuart Spouses: A Compendium of Consorts from James I of Scotland to Queen Anne of Great Britain, by Heather R Darsie

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Stuart Spouses looks at the oft-overshadowed consorts of the Stuart monarchs, from 1406 to 1714. 

By focusing on these people and detailing their rises to matrimony, the trials and tribulations of their courtships, and the impact their unions and dissolutions had on the kingdoms of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Wales, one learns not only the history of these kingdoms but the true, sometimes soft, power behind the throne.

"Stuart spouses focuses on the often disregarded by history consorts of the Stuart monarchs. I found it to be a well researched and fascinating portrait of people who were so important at one time in history but have been largely overshadowed by their spouses. I will definitely be adding this to my bookshelves and don’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone interested in this period of history." Amazon Review

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About the Author

About the Author

Heather R. Darsie works as an attorney in the US. Along with her Juris Doctorate she has a BA in German, which was of great value in her research. She completed multiple graduate-level courses in Early Modern History, with her primary focus being the Holy Roman Empire under Charles V. She runs the website MaidensAndManuscripts.com, and is a co-host of Tudors Dynasty podcast.  Find out more at maidensandmanuscripts.com  and follow her on Facebook and Twitter @HRDarsieHistory

Book Review: The Life and Death of Mary, Queen of Scots by Jan-Marie Knights

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Queen of Scots at six days old; married at fifteen in Paris to the Dauphin of France; Queen of France at sixteen; widowed at eighteen; dead at forty-four. Mary Stuart’s tumultuous life and tragic death continue to enthral us today. Utilising contemporary documents, Jan-Marie Knights tracks the fascinating story of Mary’s life and death by creating a diary-style blow-by-blow account of her actions and movements.

A Captivating Chronicle of a Tragic Queen

Jan-Marie Knights' The Life and Death of Mary, Queen of Scots is a an unusual exploration of one of history's enigmatic figures. This new account brings to life the tumultuous reign of Mary Stuart, a queen torn between her Catholic faith, her claim to the English throne, and the political machinations of her rivals.

One of the strengths of this book is how Jan-Marie Knights offers a nuanced understanding of Mary's character, acknowledging her strengths and her weaknesses.

I particularly liked the 'diary format' which keeps the timeline clear and is perfect for dipping in to check details - although I challenge readers not to find this a 'rabbit hole' and keep reading. 

What I missed is any referencing, and although there is a full bibliography, there were times when I found myself wanting to check some details.

The Life and Death of Mary, Queen of Scots is an informative book that will appeal to historians and general readers, and Jan-Marie Knights research make this book a useful addition to any library.

Tony Riches

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About the Author

Jan-Marie Knights is an ex- editor and journalist who has worked on many newspapers and magazines and is a keen researcher of local and Tudor history. She lives in the area known as the ‘Dukeries’ with her Tonkinese cat called Ashi.  

Blog Tour: Amulet's Rapture (Curse of Clansmen and Kings Book 3) by Linnea Tanner

Available at Amazon US and Amazon UK

Blood stains her Celtic home and kingdom. The warrior Druid princess will do anything to retake her kingdom.

Although Catrin is the rightful heir to the Celtic throne in Britannia, she is lucky to be alive. After witnessing the slaughter of her family at the hands of her half-brother, who was aided by the Romans, she is enslaved by a Roman commander. He disguises her as a boy in the Roman Legion with the belief that she is an oracle of Apollo and can foretell his future. The sole bright spot in her miserable new life is her forbidden lover Marcellus, the great-grandson of the famed Roman General Mark Antony.

But Marcellus has been wounded and his memories of Catrin and their secret marriage were erased by a dark Druidess. Though Marcellus reunites with Catrin in Gaul and becomes her ally as she struggles to survive the brutality of her Roman master, he questions the legitimacy of their marriage and hesitates to help her escape and retake her kingdom. If their forbidden love and alliance are discovered, her dreams of returning to her Celtic home with Marcellus will be shattered.

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About the Author

Award-winning Author Linnea Tanner weaves Celtic tales of love, magic, adventure, betrayal, and intrigue into historical fiction set in Ancient Rome and Britannia. Since childhood, she has passionately read about ancient civilizations and mythology which held women in higher esteem. Of particular interest are the enigmatic Celts who were reputed as fierce warriors and mystical Druids. Linnea has extensively researched ancient and medieval history, mythology, and archaeology and has traveled to sites described within each of her books in the Curse of Clansmen and Kings series. Books released in her series include Apollo’s Raven (Book 1), Dagger’s Destiny (Book 2), and Amulet’s Rapture (Book 3). Skull’s Vengeance (Book 4 Curse of Clansmen and Kings) is anticipated to be released in late October 2022. A Colorado native, Linnea attended the University of Colorado and earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry. She lives in Fort Collins with her husband and has two children and six grandchildren. To learn more about the author and her books, you can visit her website https://www.linneatanner.com/ and find her on Twitter @linneatanner

Special Guest Post by Steven McKay, Author of The Vengeance of Merlin (Warrior Druid of Britain Book 6)

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Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

AD 434 – Caer Legion, Western Britain A heinous crime is perpetrated against the druids of Britain and a grief-stricken Bellicus suddenly finds his world changing in ways he never expected. Before he can begin to make sense of things the terrible news that the Picts have allied with the Saxons and now march on Dun Breatann together spurs the warrior-druid into action, and soon he and his companions

are racing homewards.

The Vengeance of Merlin – challenges of writing a series!

In 2018 I published the first book in my Warrior Druid of Britain Chronicles – The Druid. It told the tale of Bellicus, a young druid (with shaved head and no beard, not at all like the stereotypical Merlin we see so often in books and movies) from Northern Britain who goes on a quest to rescue a little girl abducted by Saxon warriors. 

I set that first novel in AD 430 – post Roman Britain, specifically so I could explore the changing landscape of Britain at the time. Christianity was just beginning to get a foothold on the island although the pagan gods still held sway, some Roman soldiers were still living there, and the culture that came with the legions still lingered although it was beginning to disintegrate and the people were reverting to living in hillforts and the like as new invaders (the Saxons) took advantage of the new power vacuum in Britain.

I had a great time researching and writing The Druid and it sold extremely well, as did the sequels, Song of the Centurion, The Northern Throne, The Bear of Britain, and Wrath of the Picts. The latter was the last novel I published in the series in 2022 because I signed a deal with Canelo, one of the UK’s fastest growing publishers, to write a trilogy about King Alfred the Great. For the past two years I worked on those novels starting with The Heathen Horde, onto Sword of the Saxons and, in February 2025 the third and final book King of Wessex will be published.

 
When my deal with Canelo finished I knew I had to write more Warrior Druid of Britain novels – my readers had waited two years to find out what happened with Bellicus and, honestly, I was missing the big druid myself! However, this is where I realised just how difficult it can be to switch from one series to another after a long time away from it. 

I’d spent two long years researching the Anglo-Saxons and England around AD880 – more than four hundred years after my Warrior Druid series is set. I had been writing about new characters, inventing many of them myself, new locations, new enemies, new technologies, new kingdoms, and a completely different religious, political, and cultural landscape. Perhaps most jarring of all – the Saxons, enemies and “baddies” in my Druid series, were now the heroes in my Alfred the Great trilogy.

What all this meant was that when I finally got around to starting work on my sixth Warrior Druid of Britain novel my head was simply not in the right place. My memories of the people, events, and places in the previous novels had faded and it was a pretty frightening situation to be in!

I know some authors keep huge files filled with all sorts of information about their books – character descriptions with biographies, location details, plot events, future plans etc. I had a list of character names with a short description and, well, that was about it. I was pretty much lost, like a dark age druid wandering into a medieval Christian church and trying to join in with Mass!

Now, obviously I managed to find my way again. I’m promoting The Vengeance of Merlin after all, book 6 in the Warrior Druid of Britain Chronicles. We authors often find ourselves terrified that something just isn’t going the way we hoped and it seems at that moment like our career is over forever. 

Maybe we simply can’t come up with a good idea for a new book, or the book we’re halfway through writing seems like total garbage in our minds, or someone else publishes a book with the same idea as the one we’ve been working on. I’ve heard these stories so many times from authors I’ve interviewed on the podcast I co-host with Matthew Harffy, Rock, Paper, Swords!

 
When something like that happens it’s frightening, but we always manage to overcome it. The idea we so desperately need just pops into our heads one day, or we read our WIP and discover it’s nowhere near as bad as we thought, or we realise the book that’s just come out that seemed so similar to our own WIP looks at the themes through a totally different lens. Or, in my most recent case, I realise that I CAN remember my previous series without spending weeks feverishly reading all five previous novels, and things fall into place, thank the old gods!

There’s a piece of software called AEON TIMELINE which had been recommended to me (we actually did an episode of Rock, Paper, Swords! discussing this and other technology like SCRIVENER and SCAPPLE that authors use to make life easier, check it out HERE). Aeon Timeline lets you note down every event in your book/series in as much detail as you like. You can colour code things to make it easier to navigate, and you can use it to keep track of not only your previous books but also to help you plot out new books. 

Essentially, it’s rather like having dozens of post it notes, or notepad pages, but instead of having them scattered all about your house they’re right there in one handy screen. I won’t go into all the details of the app but it allowed me to easily look back at my previous Warrior Druid of Britain novels, note down every significant event and character, take it all in when I was finished and suddenly I knew where the series stood. The Vengeance of Merlin no longer seemed so difficult to approach, and I ended up writing it faster than any of my previous novels.

I hope this little blog post gives you hope if you’re an author struggling with writing your first, fifth, or fiftieth novel. I know the same fears assail us all at times, no matter how experienced we are. Things have a way of working out though, so stick at it. And, if you’re a reader, these are the trials we go through to get that polished novel into your hands and why we appreciate it so very much when you leave a nice review and we realise that people are enjoying the results of all our hard work (and terror)!

Steven  McKay

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About the Author

Steven A. McKay was born in Scotland in 1977. He says, 'I enjoyed studying history – well, the interesting bits, not so much what they taught us in school. I decided to write my Forest Lord series after seeing a house called “Sherwood” when I was out at work one day. I’d been thinking about maybe writing a novel but couldn’t come up with a subject or a hero so, to see that house, well…It felt like a message from the gods and my rebooted Robin Hood was born. My current Warrior Druid of Britain series was similarly inspired, although this time it was the 80’s TV show “Knightmare”, and their version of Merlin that got my ideas flowing. Of course, the bearded old wizard had been done to death in fiction, so I decided to make my hero a giant young warrior-druid living in post-Roman Britain and he’s been a great character to write. I was once in a heavy metal band although I tend to just play guitar in my study these days. I’m sure the neighbours absolutely love me.' Find out more at his website https://stevenamckay.com/ and find him on Twitter @SA_McKay.

Book Launch Blog Tour: The Vow, by Jude Berman

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

In a stunning work of feminist historical fiction for readers who loved Dawn Tripp’s Georgia and Whitney Scharer’s The Age of Light, Jude Berman brings painter Angelica Kauffman to life.

Accused of dressing as a boy to study in the prestigious galleries of eighteenth-century Italy, child prodigy Angelica Kauffman has set high goals for herself. She is determined to become a history painter, a career off-limits to women. To ensure her success, she has vowed never to marry.

When a new patron invites her to London, Angelica befriends famous artists, paints portraits of Queen Charlotte and other royalty, and becomes a founding member of the Royal Academy. While still in London, an alluring but mysterious Swedish count makes her an offer that may be too tempting to resist. Then, upon returning to Italy, she meets Wolfgang von Goethe.

Time and time again, Angelica faces the insurmountable obstacles and great personal sacrifices that come with being an independent woman. The vows she makes, big and small, are repeatedly challenged. Will she break free from the traditional male/female binary and the many oppressive social dictates of her time and learn to “paint with her soul” . . . or is a vow of a different sort necessary if she is to answer the deepest call of her heart?

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About the Author

Jude Berman has a BA in art from Smith College and an EdD in cross-cultural communication from UMass Amherst. After a career in academic research, she built a freelance writing and editing business and ran two small Indie presses. She lives in Berkeley, CA, where she continues to work with authors and write fiction. In her free time, she volunteers for progressive causes, paints with acrylic watercolors, gardens, and meditates.  Visit judeberman.com for more information about Jude’s books.

Author Interview with Susan Gray, Author of Blossoming of Truth

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

A tragic accident...a bitter betrayal...a baffling mystery. If the truth is denied...an identity is hidden... a trust is eroded and a shocking betrayal ensues... can love truly blossom?

I'm pleased to welcome author Susan Gray to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book?

My latest book is called Blossoming of Truth and it’s my second novel. The setting is Northeast England in the 1920’s. I endeavour to entwine the genres of romance and mystery. I live in this area, but the place names are fictitious. It is the first book of what I hope to be a trilogy. When an attractive young woman seeks refuge in Tom’s home during a snowstorm, he is struck with a déjà vu feeling - convinced they have met before. As their romantic liaison develops, Tom’s life code is threatened by her persistent, mysterious, denial of their former connection. Then his brother dies in tragic circumstances, and he is arrested for causing the accident. Is it possible for love to blossom when he is betrayed, and the truth is denied?

What is your preferred writing routine?

I try to write every day. I’m an early riser and find I can write for a couple of hours before the distractions of the day begin. I’m retired, so the amount of writing done each day depends on the stage I’m at in a novel. I often take a walk and chat through my ideas, to myself. During warmer days I use a summerhouse in our garden – it becomes my writing retreat. In the winter I snuggle up beside a radiator on the landing, but once my head is ‘in the book’, I’m caught up in the story, wherever I’m sitting!

What advice do you have for new writers?

Link with other writers either, physically or through social media. It’s such an encouragement to hear other writers are experiencing the same problems you are having. Don’t give up – accept discouragement as part of the process – it’s usually only temporary.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Talking about my books – library events, book fairs, book blogs, group talks, book signings and social media – Facebook, Instagram and X (Twitter). I love meeting people face to face, telling them about my books.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research?

I set my books in the 1920’s and I was amazed how advanced they were in those days. Testing was being done on televisions; fridges and gramophones were household items and women were entrepreneurial, starting businesses.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

The 1920’s court room scene in Blossoming of Truth  was challenging. Most of my knowledge concerning courtrooms was derived from contemporary scenes from TV or films. I was constantly asking myself…would they have done or said that a hundred years ago?

What are you planning to write next?

I have almost finished editing the sequel to Blossoming of Truth  which I hope to publish next Spring. A third book is knocking at the door – I already have ideas for it! This would make it a trilogy, if it happens.

Susan Gray

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About the Author

‘Never too old to follow your dreams’ has become Susan Gray’s mantra since beginning to write novels after celebrating a significant birthday. Susan endeavours to entwine the genres of mystery and romance and sets her novels in the early Twentieth Century. She lives with her husband in northeast England – setting her books in this picturesque area. She has a son and daughter, both married, two granddaughters and a grand dog. When not writing she loves to spend time reading, puzzling, walking and catching up with friends over a coffee. She enjoys travelling and tries to include many of the places she has visited in her books. Her plots are inspired by ‘life’ and how her characters navigate the waters. She loves to ‘people watch’ and creates her characters based on the many strangers she has observed. She has written six novels, and you can find her on Facebook and Twitter @SusanGray275384