Blog Tour Spotlight: The Relic Keeper, by Heidi Eljarbo

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Italy, 1620: Angelo is an orphan, lonely and forgotten. Having been passed on from one family to the next, he ends up as a common thief, subject to and under the thumb of a ruthless robber called Tozzo.

Angelo knows no other life and has lost hope that any chance of providence will ever replace his lonely, misfortunate existence. When he loses his master, his livelihood is shaken. 

Tozzo’s plunder is hidden in a safe place, but what will happen if someone comes after Angelo to get their hands on the stolen relics? More than that, he feels threatened by words he’s heard too many times; that he’ll always remain unforgiven and doomed.

One day, a priest invites Angelo to help with chores around the church and rectory and, in exchange, offers him room and board. Padre Benedetto’s kindness and respect are unfamiliar and confusing, but Angelo’s safety is still a grave concern. Two older robbers have heard rumors about the hidden treasures and will stop at nothing to attain them.

With literary depictions and imagery, Angelo’s story is a gripping and emotional journey of faint hope and truth in seventeenth-century Italy—an artistic and audacious tale that crosses paths with art collector Vincenzo Giustiniani and the powerful Medici family.

Using invisible threads, Heidi Eljarbo weaves together her fictional stories with historical figures and real events. The Relic Keeper is similar in tone to books by Geraldine Brooks, Tracy Chevalier, Deborah Swift, and Laura Morelli.

Inspired by Gerrit van Honthorst’s masterpiece, The Adoration of the Child, and the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.

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About the Author

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. Find out more at heidi's website https://www.heidieljarbo.com/ and find her on Facebook and Twitter @HeidiEljarbo

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Author Mary Lawrence reviews Raleigh - Tudor Adventurer (The Elizabethan Series Book 3)

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Based on extensive research, original letters and records of the Elizabethan Court, this new account explores the life of Tudor adventurer, courtier, explorer and poet, Sir Walter Raleigh, who has been called the last true Elizabethan.

I've always been curious about Sir Walter Raleigh and I don't believe I could have found a more thorough retelling of his life story, than Tony Riches' Raleigh. Told in a first person narrative, we are immediately placed in the man's shoes as we experience the adventurer's world first hand under Queen Elizabeth. His life is covered from his time studying law and writing poetry, hopeful that a chance meeting with the Queen's favorite courtier, Robert Dudley, might be his ticket out of a vocation he finds uninteresting. Alas, nothing becomes of the opportunity.

Raleigh longs for a life of favor and adventure and gets his opportunity to captain a vessel in his brother's fleet headed for the New World. It is a testament to Raleigh's determination that he would take on such a role with no experience. True to his nature, Raleigh charts his own course and the first foray into sailing ends in disaster.

Disappointment and debt plague Raleigh and he descends into drunkenness and fighting, predictably ending in prison on two separate occasions. But he is given another chance and he redeems himself in Ireland by actively suppressing the Irish.

Riches' research is impeccable and his evenhanded retelling of Raleigh's life felt as though I had experienced it first hand. The descriptions of court politics, Elizabethan culture, and naval adventures were relatable and spot on. 

The author has successfully given life to a man who, these days, is mostly remembered for a few anecdotes. Riches has fleshed out Raleigh's perspective and his yearning to rise, so much so that I rode the roller coaster of his successes and failures right along with him.

Mary Lawrence

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About the Author

Mary Lawrence lives in Maine and is the author of five Bianca Goddard Mysteries set in Tudor London featuring a cast of commoners. Bianca uses her wits and a smattering of alchemy to solve murders in the slums of Southwark. Suspense Magazine named The Alchemist’s Daughter and The Alchemist of Lost Souls "Best Books of 2015 and 2019” in the historical mystery category and each mystery has been a top 100 best-selling historical mystery. Her articles have appeared in several publications most notably the national news blog, The Daily Beast. Her latest historical novel, Fool is released on 14th April.  Find out more at www.marylawrencebooks.com and find her on Facebook and Instagram

Book Review: 'Fool' by Mary Lawrence

Available for pre-order 

from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Appearances are not what they seem... Kronos is a fool in the court of King Henry VIII. Jeered for his dwarfism, lauded for his juggling...and discreetly desired by noble ladies. One dangerous moment of eavesdropping nearly costs him his life. Brutally maimed and abandoned, he is rescued by an apothecary and nursed back to health. When his rescuer learns of Kronos's import, he contrives to make himself a rich man.

“A man of my stature must have twice the wits if he is to survive amongst men twice his height.” These opening words of Mary Lawrence’s latest novel, ‘Fool’ begin an, epic journey from being abandoned as a malformed infant on a midden heap to the court of King Henry VIII. 

Told mostly in retrospect, our unreliable narrator is named ‘Kronos’ by his rescuers, with typical irony. I enjoyed the well observed details of his early life at a monastery, although it is hard to think of a character less well suited to monastic discipline.

This story builds on the author’s excellent ‘Bianca Goddard Mystery’ series, exposing the harsh and dangerous realities of life for the lower levels of Tudor society. I also liked the inventive use of language, enough to convey an authentic sense of time and place.

Not for the squeamish, there are some disturbing details of cruelty and injustice, yet these are plausible and typical of the period.

I hope Mary Lawrence will consider a sequel, as like all the best stories, ‘Fool’ leaves the reader wanting to know more. Highly recommended.

Tony Riches

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About the Author

Mary Lawrence lives in Maine and is the author of five Bianca Goddard Mysteries set in Tudor London featuring a cast of commoners. Bianca uses her wits and a smattering of alchemy to solve murders in the slums of Southwark. Suspense Magazine named The Alchemist’s Daughter and The Alchemist of Lost Souls "Best Books of 2015 and 2019” in the historical mystery category and each mystery has been a top 100 best-selling historical mystery. Her articles have appeared in several publications most notably the national news blog, The Daily Beast. Fool is a standalone Find out more at www.marylawrencebooks.com and find her on Facebook and Instagram