Blog Tour: The Fern Flower, by Kathleen Shoop

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Russia 1908-1917: Born into privilege as the daughter of the Tsar’s favored vodka maker, Mila appears to have everything: wealth, status, and a household devoted to her happiness. But behind the gilded doors of her family estate, she is trapped by the cruelty of a stepmother whose greatest wish is to give birth to her own child.

Each summer on Ivan Kupala Eve, Russia turns its gaze to river bends and forest floors in search of the legendary Fern Flower—a mythical bloom said to grant fortune, power, and the deepest desires of the heart. Only one person had ever found it.

Until Mila.

Years later, in the fading grandeur of Petrograd, Mila and her friends slip into the fabled Stray Dog Café, once the sanctuary of Russia’s most daring artists and dreamers. Inspired by its ghosts, murals, and memories, Mila's group resurrects the work she'd first imagined as a child. The Fern Flower is a breathtaking ballet drawn from folklore, magic, and the secrets of Mila’s past.

But in the fiercely competitive ranks of the Imperial Ballet School, talent is never enough. Though Mila wrote the ballet and her gifted musician friend composed its score, rivals question whether Mila is worthy of claiming the coveted lead role.

As World War I intensifies and revolution ignites, the Russia Mila knows begins to collapse. Family secrets surface, loyalties are tested, and the people she loves begin to disappear. When her parents flee and her young brother’s life hangs in the balance, Mila is faced with an impossible choice: remain with the found family who helped her chase her dreams or risk everything to save the person who needs her most.

With Russian folklore, imperial grandeur, and the fierce beauty of ballet, The Fern Flower is a sweeping tale of ambition, friendship, sacrifice, and the magic that survives even when the world is falling apart.

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About the Author

Bestselling author, Kathleen Shoop, PhD’s novels have won awards in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), Eric Hoffer Book Awards, the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, Readers’ Favorite, and more. Kathleen has more than 20 years of experience in the classroom and has been featured in USA Today and the Writer’s Guide. She co-coordinates Mindful Writers Retreats and co-coordinated the 2023 Pennwriters Conference.  She frequently teaches and is a regular presenter at conferences for writers. Find out more at Kathleen's website: http://kshoop.com and find her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter / X @kathieshoop and Bluesky @kathleenshoop.bsky.social

Blog Tour Book review: The Making of Marigold McGrath: A Novel of London in the Second World War, by Carrie Hayes

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

New York City, 1937. Seventeen-year-old Marigold McGrath is coming undone. Her mother is dead. Her father is drawn to dangerous politics. The only place she feels joy is behind a camera — where she can frame the world on her own terms. After a series of her own missteps, she reinvents herself in London. She falls in love with Joop, a charming Dutch student, and shrugs off the war gathering around her.

Readers could be forgiven for thinking there isn’t much more to say about London during the Blitz, yet Carrie Hayes’s The Making of Marigold McGrath is a fresh and sometimes moving story.

Seventeen-year-old Marigold McGrath leaves New York to make a new life as a photographer in London. She tries to frame the world on her own terms, documenting the arrival of Kindertransport children, but the beginning of the devastating Blitz forces her to choose what kind of observer she is going to be.

I particularly like Carrie Hayes’s engaging character development, and the London setting is well researched and authentic. Marigold’s journey from a privileged teenager to a wartime photographer is convincing and often poigniant.

If you like original WW2 historical fiction, this is a story of survival and resilience that I am happy to recommend.

Tony Riches

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About the Author

Carrie Hayes lives with her husband and two spoiled dogs in a rambling Victorian house just outside of New York City. Her previous historical Fiction novels deal with the suffragist movement. Find out more at www.carriehayeswrites.com and find Carrie on Facebook and Instagram

Blog Tour Spotlight: Mrs. R. Pacheco: The Untold Story of Playwright and California First Lady Mary McIntyre Series, by Rose Ann Woolpert

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

It is 1859, and the glittering promise of the California Gold Rush has faded into dust, leaving behind a land suspended between ambition and uncertainty.

Into this shifting world steps Mary Catherine "Molly" McIntyre, a young woman newly unmoored by loss, carrying both the weight of family duty and the quiet, persistent call of her own dreams.

Based on the remarkable life of Mary McIntyre Pacheco, Mrs. R. Pacheco unfolds as an intimate portrait of a woman caught between cultures, expectations, and the fragile hope of self-determination. When Molly marries Romualdo Pacheco, a Californio statesman destined to become California's first Hispanic governor, her life is swept into a world both foreign and exhilarating, where love must contend with tradition, and identity is shaped by forces beyond her control.

As Molly navigates the complexities of marriage, society, and a rapidly changing California, she discovers within herself a fierce creative spirit that refuses to be silenced. Her journey from grieving daughter to pioneering novelist and playwright becomes a testament to resilience, illuminating the quiet strength required to carve a voice in a world not yet ready to hear it.

Rich in historical detail and alive with emotional depth, this novel evokes the textures of nineteenth-century California, from its sunlit landscapes to its deeply rooted cultural divides. Through Molly's eyes, readers are drawn into a story of longing, reinvention, and the delicate balance between belonging and becoming.

Both sweeping and deeply personal, Mrs. R. Pacheco is a story of love shaped by circumstance, ambition tempered by sacrifice, and the enduring courage it takes to stand between worlds and claim a life as one's own.

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About the Author

Rose Ann Woolpert is drawn to questions history leaves unanswered. As an author whose work is grounded in fact and shaped by imagination, she writes stories that explore how individuals navigate change, loss, ambition, and identity. Her writing is often inspired by California history, particularly the lives of women whose stories risk being lost to memory. Family recollections, historical records, and careful research inform her work, while fiction allows space to imagine motives, choices, and inner lives beyond the historical record. Find out more at www.roseannwoolpert.com, Facebook and Rose Ann's Substack / Blog: https://roseannwoolpert.substack.com 

Blog Tour Spotlight: Rise of the Pale Moon, By Patricia Brandon

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Forced to navigate complex relationships with each other and the master’s family in colonial South Carolina, three young women (an indentured servant, a chattel slave, and a Catawba Indian) must choose between remaining in servitude or risk a dangerous escape that could change their lives – and the course of the Revolution. 

In the heart of coastal South Carolina, during the Revolutionary War era, a profound narrative unfolds in Rise of the Pale Moon. This captivating tale is set on a plantation, where three young women of strikingly different backgrounds are held captive - a humble indentured servant from London, a resilient chattel slave, and a resourceful Catawba Indian. Their lives are intertwined, bound by the chains of their circumstances, and deeply impacted by the Master and his family.

These women, each bearing a unique perspective, must learn to navigate their relationships with each other and their captors. As they grapple with their brutal reality, their courage is put to the ultimate test. Will they risk a daring escape, knowing full well that it could result in their demise? Or will they remain, hoping to influence their fate and possibly alter the course of the war in the American South?

Rise of the Pale Moon explores the intricacies of loyalty, sacrifice, and love amidst harsh adversity. The characters' relentless pursuit of hope is a testament to their determination and resilience, offering an inspiring portrayal of human spirit. As the birth of a new nation unfolds around them, their journey reveals the transformative power of unity and friendship.

This riveting narrative is more than just a historical fiction; it is a timeless exploration of the human condition, capturing the essence of shared struggles, shared dreams, and the shared determination to survive. The characters' journey serves as a poignant reminder of the enduring power of hope, even in the darkest of times.

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About the Author

Patricia Brandon is a winner of a Carrie McCray Memorial Literary Award (South Carolina Writers’ Association). Her first novel, THE CENTER OF GRAVITY, earned a Coffee Pot Book Club (UK) “Highly Recommended” 5-Star Award. It recently was awarded a bronze medal (fiction-mystery-historical category) in the Readers Favorite International Book Contest. Her second novel, A RULE OF LIFE, was selected as a gold medal (YA, Historical Fiction category) 2021 Book of the Year by The Coffee Pot Book Club. It also was recently selected as a bronze medal (YA Mystery category) winner in the Readers Favourite International Book Contest. Fibd out more at https://patriciabrandon.com/  and find Patricia on Twitter / X, Facebook and Instagram

Patricia’s interview at Meet The Author: 

Blog Tour Spotlight: Lady of Lincoln: A Novel of Nicola de la Haye, the Medieval Heroine History Tried to Forget, by Rachel Elwiss Joyce

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

A true story. A forgotten heroine. In a time when women were told to stay silent, could she become the saviour her people need? 12th-century England. Nicola de la Haye wants to do her duty. But though she’s taught a female cannot lead alone, the young noblewoman bristles at the marriage her father has arranged to secure her inheritance. And when an unexpected death leaves her unguided, the impetuous girl shuns the king’s blessing and weds a handsome-but-landless knight.

Harshly fined by Henry II for her unsanctioned union, Nicola struggles to salvage her estates while dealing with devastating betrayals from her husband… and his choice to join rebels in a brewing civil war. Yet after averting a tragedy and gaining the castle garrison’s respect, she still must face the might of powerful men determined to crush her under their will.

Can she survive love, threats, and violent ambition to prove she’s worthy of authority?

In this carefully researched and vividly human series debut, Rachel Elwiss Joyce showcases the complex themes of honour, responsibility, and freedom in the story of a remarkable heroine who men tried to erase from history. And as readers dive into a world defined by violence and turmoil, they’ll be stunned by this courageous young woman’s journey toward greatness.

Lady of Lincoln is the gritty first book in the Nicola de la Haye Series historical fiction saga. If you like richly textured female heroes, courtly drama, and fast-paced intrigue, then you’ll adore Rachel Elwiss Joyce’s gripping true-life tale.

“A towering, epic saga… one of the greats in this genre.” — Readers’ Favorite

“Profoundly moving… Nicola de la Haye shines with determination and emotional depth.”— The Coffee Pot Book Club

“An extraordinary book that shows a woman successfully overcoming the constraints of her time… with wits, will, and an unbreakable spirit.” — The Historical Fiction Company

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About the Author

After a rewarding career in the sciences, Rachel returned to her first love—history and the art of storytelling. Fascinated by the women history neglected, or tried to forget, she creates meticulously researched, emotionally resonant fiction that brings her characters’ stories vividly to life. Her fascination with the past began early. At six years old, she was already inventing tales about medieval women in castles, inspired by her treasured Ladybird books and other picture-rich stories that transported her to another time. By the time she discovered Katherine by Anya Seton as a teenager, she knew the joy and escape that only great historical fiction can bring. Rachel’s two grown-up children still tease her (fondly) about childhoods spent being “dragged” around castles, archaeological sites, and historical re-enactments. For Rachel, history and imagination have always gone hand in hand.There was, however, a long gap between the stories of her childhood and her decision to write her own novel. The spark came when she discovered the remarkable true story of Nicola de la Haye—the first female sheriff of England, who defended Lincoln Castle against a French invasion and became known as “the woman who saved England.” Rachel knew she had found her heroine, and a story she was destined to tell. Rachel lives in the UK, where she continues to explore the lives of women who shaped history but were left out of its pages. Lady of Lincoln is her debut novel, the first book in her Nicola de la Haye Series, with sequels to follow. Find out more at www.rachelelwissjoyce.com and find Rachel on Facebook, 

X/ Twitter: @RachelElwJoyce and Bluesky @rachelelwjoyce.bsky.social

Book Review: Infidel: The Daughters of Aragon (Six Tudor Queens) By Nicola Harris

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

A princess. A survivor. A daughter of Aragon.  Born in the glittering courts of Castile and Aragon and forged in the shadow of war, Catalina de Aragón grows up surrounded by queens, rebels, and ghosts. She is her mother’s last daughter, the final jewel of a dynasty built on conquest and faith, and the one child Isabella of Castile cannot bear to lose. But destiny has already claimed Catalina.

Nicola Harris’s Infidel: The Daughters of Aragon offers a compelling and emotionally resonant portrayal of Catherine of Aragon’s early life in Spain.  Known as 'Catalina', this intimate focus on her formative years offers a deeper understanding of the values, pressures, and cultural influences that would define her as Queen of England.

Catalina's upbringing within the formidable court of Ferdinand and Isabella explores how deeply her early life steeped in discipline, education, and expectation would have shaped her sense of purpose and unwavering faith.

I liked the depiction of Catalina as a curious, intelligent, and perceptive young girl, navigating the tension between innocence and responsibility. Even her moments of familial warmth and personal aspiration are overshadowed by the weight of her destiny, made more poignant by witnessing the sad fate of her brother and sisters.

Well researched historical detail supports the narrative, and the rituals, landscapes, and spiritual intensity of the Spanish court adds immersive depth to the story. Ultimately, Infidel succeeds in reframing Catherine of Aragon not as a historical figure defined by her marriage and its dissolution, but as a woman shaped by a complex and deeply influential early life. 

I am happy to recommend Infidel to anyone interested in historical fiction and Tudor history, and hope to one day read Nicola’s sequel, covering the rest of Catherine’s troubled life.

Tony Riches

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About the Author

Nicola Harris has been a lifelong enthusiast of Tudor history, with a particular fondness for castles, queens, and the emotional undercurrents of court life.  Before illness changed her path, she worked with children as a Nursery Nurse. Nicola was an Aid worker in Romania for the BBC's Blue Peter Appeal in the early 1990s, Writing became a lifeline when she became seriously ill and was diagnosed with a genetic disability. Although she will  never “get better,” Nicola has completed three novels with a fourth in the pipeline. She lives in England with her husband and has two adult children—none of whom share her historical obsession, but who have endured countless castle visits with admirable patience (and the occasional ice cream bribe). Find out more at Nicola's website: https://nicolaharrisauthor.com and find her on Twitter @harris_nic59544 and Bluesky @nicolaharrisauthor.bsky.social

Historical Fiction Spotlight: Margery and Me, by: Maryka Biaggio

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

In the 1920s, Margery Crandon captivated both Boston society and psychic researchers with her astonishing seances. At her gatherings, her deceased brother Walter regularly appeared, entertaining the circle with his witty and cheeky remarks. 

Margery's abilities earned her the admiration of luminaries, including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and William Butler Yeats. But one man stood in opposition: Harry Houdini, the legendary magician, who was determined to expose her as a fraud.

Margery and Me tells the true story of the medium who mystified scientists, challenged skeptics, and sparked a sensation across America and Europe. As Houdini and Margery clashed in a battle of wits and wills, the question remained: Could the master illusionist unmask her, or would her extraordinary powers be enough to convert even the most resolute of doubters?

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About the Author

Maryka Biaggio is a psychology professor-turned-novelist who brings forgotten lives back into the light. Specializing in historical fiction inspired by real people, she crafts emotionally resonant narratives anchored in careful research. Her debut novel, Parlor Games (Doubleday, 2013), launched a distinguished career that includes Gun Girl and the Tall Guy and Margery and Me. Her work has earned numerous accolades, including the Willamette Writers Award, Oregon Writers Colony Award, Historical Novel Society Review Editors' Choice, La Belle Lettre Award, and a Publishers Weekly pick.  Find out more  at:https://marykabiaggio.com and find Maryka on Facebook

Blog Tour Spotlight: Bride of the Devil: Agnes, Wife of Robert de Belleme (Medieval Babes: Tales of Little-Known Ladies Book 13) by J. P. Reedman

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

She is a great heiress; he is the wickedest man in Normandy.

Known to men far and wide as 'The Devil,' Robert de Belleme terrorises France alongside his equally fearsome mother, Mabel the Poisoner. But even a Devil needs an heir, and Mabel chooses the wealthy heiress Agnes of Ponthieu to be her son's bride. 

The marriage is unhappy, though the longed-for son and heir is eventually born...but when Robert is away on one of his military campaigns, Agnes flees back to her father's castle.

She is not safe; her young son William is not safe.

The Devil will seek to claim his own.

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About the Author

J.P. Reedman was born in Canada but has lived in the U.K. for over 30 years. Interests include folklore and anthropology, prehistoric archaeology (neolithic / bronze age Europe; ritual, burial & material culture), as well as The Wars of the Roses and the rest of the medieval era. Novels include the popular I, Richard Plantagenet series about Richard III, The Falcon and the Sun (featuring other members of the House of York), and Medieval Babes, an ongoing series about lesser-known medieval queens and noblewomen. Find out more at https://stone-lord.blogspot.com/  and follow J.P. Reedman on Facebook,  Twitter / X: @stonehenge2500 and Bluesky

Blog Tour Book Review: The Enemy’s Wife (Survivors of War, Book 2) by Deborah Swift

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

1941. When Zofia’s husband Haru is conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Army, she is left to navigate Japanese-occupied Shanghai alone. Far from home and surrounded by a country at war,  violence tightens its grip on the city, she seeks shelter with her American employer, but the horrors of war and Haru’s absence begin to reshape Zofia’s world – and her heart.

The second instalment of Deborah Swift’s Survivors of War series delivers a powerful and often harrowing exploration of love, loyalty, and moral courage amid the devastation of what became the longest battle of the Second World War.

Set amid the authentic chaos of wartime Shanghai, the atmosphere is tense and claustrophobic. Threaded with moments of unexpected tenderness, Deborah Swift's storytelling is intimate yet cinematic in scale. I particularly liked the nuanced and layered characters, and how even minor players reveal unexpected back stories.

The protagonist Zofia’s internal conflict, torn between duty, survival is handled with sensitivity. Deborah Swift presents wartime choices as morally fraught, and deeply human. The relationships at the heart of the story are shaped as much by hope as fear and loss.

The Enemy’s Wife is an absorbing, compassionate novel with emotional depth and ethical complexity. It is a testament to resilience in the darkest of times—and a reminder that even in war, humanity and kindness endure. Highly recommended.

Tony Riches

See also Review of Last Train to Freedom, Book One of the  Survivors of War series 

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About the Author

Deborah Swift lives in North Lancashire on the edge of the Lake District and worked as a set and costume designer for theatre and TV. After gaining an MA in Creative Writing in 2007 Deborah now teaches classes and courses in writing and provides editorial advice to writers and authors. Find out more at Deborah's website www.deborahswift.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter @swiftstory

Blog Tour Review: Fool: A Tudor Jester's Reckoning in the Court of King Henry VIII, by Mary Lawrence

Available 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.

Mary Lawrence’s latest novel, ‘Fool’ is 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, Instagram and Bluesky @marylawrence.bsky.social

Historical Fiction Spotlight: Escape of the Grand Duchess, by Susan Appleyard

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Rich in historical detail and driven by an unforgettable heroine, Escape of the Grand Duchess is a sweeping riches-to-rags tale of survival, love, and the strength it takes to forge a new life in the face of

unimaginable upheaval.

Unlike her ill-fated brother and his family, Olga’s story is one of resilience, sacrifice, and daring escape. Trapped in a loveless marriage to a reckless gambler—who harbours secrets of his own—she finds hope in the arms of a dashing army lieutenant. But before she can claim her own happiness, she must first endure the brutal realities of World War I, where she serves as a nurse on the frontlines.

As the Russian Empire teeters on the brink of collapse, the infamous Siberian mystic Rasputin tightens his grip on the imperial court, setting the stage for revolution. With the Bolsheviks seizing power and the Romanovs marked for death, Olga faces an impossible choice: risk everything to stay or flee into the unknown with her true love and their children.

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About the Author

Susan Appleyard was born in England, which is where she learned to love English history, and now lives in Canada in the summer. In winter she and her husband flee the cold for their second home in Mexico. Susan divides her time between writing and her hobby, oil painting, although writing will always be her first love. She was fortunate in having had two books published traditionally. Since joining the ebook crowd, she has published nine books, some of which have won various awards. Find out more from Susan's website and find her on Facebook and Instagram

Blog Tour Gues Post; Inspiration Behind The ‘Soldier Spy’ Trilogy, by Rosemary Hayes

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

1812: Britain’s war against Napoleon continues. Will Fraser and Duncan Armstrong have served their country well as spies, exposing traitors and rescuing betrayed royalists. Now they are asked to support military operations in the Peninsular War. The French are using a new code which is proving impossible to decipher. Will and Armstrong must work with Spanish guerrillas to intercept messages between French Commanders and pass them to Wellington’s codebreakers

Much has been written about spying during warfare – particularly during WW2 – and I have always been attracted to stories of those working in the shadows, under-cover agents, brave men and women risking their lives to garner information about enemy activities. 

Of course, spying on your enemy is an activity as old as history itself and has become ever more sophisticated in this digital age. But how did spies operate in earlier conflicts? I decided to investigate covert operations during the Napoleonic Wars. And what a rich seam I uncovered about those 19th century spies, who they were and the lengths to which they went to get their information across borders.

The extent of spying, on both sides, during the Napoleonic Wars, was considerable. Not only at a diplomatic level, through overseas embassies and through the Alien Office, in London, and highly placed double agents, but among networks of ordinary people, too, who passed on maps and documents, letters, money and even arms.  

Smaller documents or items of intelligence could be sewn into clothing or hidden in hollowed out walking sticks or riding crops. Or even, apparently, in a hatpin (see below)! Larger items were hidden in barrels or at drop off points on the French coast such as oyster sheds. And fishermen sometimes buried items on uninhabited islets for later collection. 

Both sides employed complex codes and ciphers to protect their communications. Codebooks and cipher wheels were standard kit. One captured French codebook was worth its weight in gold to the British Intelligence Service. 

Until 1811, the French had lagged behind the British in the matter of devising and cracking codes but then the French started using the Great Paris Cipher. This code was so complex that the French were convinced that it could never be broken. Although documents using the code had been captured by Wellington’s forces, it’s unravelling defeated even the most skilled group of decoders and linguists based at his headquarters in Portugal. 

And then, at last, a British officer, George Scovell, a gifted linguist, famously cracked it, deciphering a captured letter from Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s brother. It revealed current and planned French troop movements and this intelligence led to a pivotal breakthrough in the Peninsular War. 

Wellington never acknowledged Scovell’s part in this breakthrough - and Joseph Bonaparte never believed the code had been broken.

Sir George Scovell

In Paris, there were underground networks of those spying for the British. Royalists, Bonapartist defectors and even double agents moved in secret, often under the noses of Joseph Fouché’s secret police (more of him later). Many were caught but a few key figures were never unmasked. 

Both British and French agents used disguises, posing as merchants, priests, artists or diplomats. Some even used travelling theatre troupes as cover to move behind enemy lines. The more mundane the cover, the more convincing. Fishermen and smugglers took agents and documents to and fro across the Channel. One Jersey fisherman made nearly 200 trips across before he was caught and executed.

Women played an important role in Napoleonic espionage. Rachel Charlotte Biggs was an English writer and spy. Between 1802 and 1816, she repeatedly visited France and Napoleon controlled Europe. She corresponded with British politicians and reported her observations about military strength, industry and agriculture and the political state. Her extraordinary story is told in the novel ‘Georgian Heroine’.

Another was a countess who allegedly passed secrets to the British via coded embroidery patterns. Female spies came in many guises and used imaginative ways in which to move intelligence across borders, including hiding micro letters in hatpins! 

Fishermen’s wives and daughters also put themselves in danger by passing on information and giving shelter to royalist spies. But among the many women spies, the one who really caught my attention was Arabella Williams, originally from Liverpool. Her handler was William Wickham. Wickham was a British diplomat who used his position in Bern as a cover to gather information and coordinate royalist organisations against France. Arabella became known as ‘le petit matelot’ – the little sailor – as she had acted as a courier passing papers between France and England for a number of years disguised as a sailor, without being caught. Arabella had her own property in France where she had lived for some years, which she also used as a safe house for other agents. 

One of her contacts was Abbé Ratel. Early in the war, Abbé Ratel organised a network of royalists to keep watch around the port of Boulogne and provide early warning of any invasion. Reports were sent to England through fishermen recruited by Ratel – who was reputed to have a very beautiful mistress. Arabella was described as being petite, very pretty, lively and immensely busy. The group she belonged to was extremely successful and despite the gendarmerie’s surveillance they managed to escape detection for many years. Sadly, I can find no portrait of Arabella though we do know that she was an English widow, the daughter of David Mallet, the poet and joint composer of ‘Rule Brittania.’ 

In France, all those spying for Britain or sympathetic to the royalist cause had to evade the clutches of Napoleon’s Minister of Police, the notorious Joseph Fouché. He was ruthless in his pursuit of British spies or those in France with royalist sympathies, torturing and executing them. He was dubbed ‘the most feared man in France’ and even Napoleon was quoted as saying ‘I fear Fouché more than all the armies of Europe’.

Joseph Fouché

The threat from spies in France and those with royalist sympathies was very real. There were several attempts to assassinate Napoleon, the most famous being in Paris on the evening of December 24th 1800. Almost certainly funded by the British, this very nearly succeeded when a cart exploded just after Napoleon’s carriage had passed, killing bystanders. 

Malmaison, Empress Josephine’s country chateau, was the site of others, including the poisoned snuff put into a replica of Napoleon’s snuff box and placed on his desk there.

Although I have changed some of their dates and locations, many of the characters mentioned in my books are based on real people including ‘Le Petit Matelot’, Pipette, the fisherman’s wife, Abbé Ratel (disguised as Father Jacques) the infamous Joseph Fouché, Wellington, General Hill and George Scovell.

The two main protagonists in my ‘Soldier Spy’ trilogy are Captain Will Fraser, a disgraced ex-army officer and his wounded sergeant, Duncan Armstrong.

In ‘Traitor’s Game’ while desperately trying to find Will’s brother, they first become embroiled in the murky world of espionage, with tragic consequences.  In the second ‘The King’s Agent’, now officially undercover agents, they are sent to France to rescue

betrayed royalists, and in the final book, ‘Code of Honour’, set in Spain and Portugal, they work with Spanish guerrillas to intercept messages between French Commanders and pass them to Wellington’s code breakers. 

And it is in this final story that the mystery surrounding Will’s dismissal from the army is at last uncovered. 

In these fast-moving stories, Will and Armstrong play terrifying games of deception and duplicity. But they are also stories of love, loyalty and revenge.

Rosemary Hayes

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About the Author

Rosemary Hayes has written many books for children in a variety of genre, from edgy teenage fiction, historical fiction and middle grade fantasy to chapter books for early readers and texts for picture books.  Many of her books have won or been shortlisted for awards and several have been translated into different languages. Rosemary has travelled widely but now lives in South Cambridgeshire. She has a background in publishing, having worked for Cambridge University Press before setting up her own company Anglia Young Books which she ran for some years. She has been a reader for a well-known authors’ advisory service, runs creative writing workshops for both children and adults and reviews for historical publications. Rosemary has now turned her hand to writing adult fiction. Her historical novel ‘The King’s Command’ is about the terror and tragedy suffered by a French Huguenot family during the reign of Louis XIV. Traitor’s Game is the first book in the Soldier Spy trilogy, set during the Napoleonic Wars. The King’s Agent is the second and the third, Code of Honour, has recently been published. Find out more at www.rosemaryhayes.co.uk  and find Rosemary on Facebook and Twitter / X: @HayesRosemary

Blog Tour: Both Sides of the Pond, My Family’s War, by Barbara Kent Lawrence

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

In January of 1939 when Barbara Greene, a beautiful young British actress, met Joe Kennedy, Jr., son of the American Ambassador, she could not have expected that their relationship would lead to her emigrating to the United States and learning to pilot a plane. 

Neither could her brother, Kent, have foreseen his bitter retreat from Dunkirk when he left England in January 1940 to fight in France, or his subsequent service on the frontlines in Cornwall, North Africa, Sicily, and Burma. 

In this intensively researched war story of the author’s family, we also hear the stories of other ordinary people who survived extraordinary circumstances. Richly illustrated with photographs and documents, “Both Sides of the Pond, My Family’s War: 1933 – 1946” is a captivating book.

Praise for Both Sides of the Pond:

"Author Barbara Kent Lawrence weaves a rich tapestry of the lives of her British mother and uncle from 1933 to 1946, before, during, and just after World War II. War stories are very personal. This is such a story, and it offers insight into how two young people navigated difficult years that altered the trajectories of the lives they thought they would live. It is a worthy read, written beautifully. Don’t miss it." ~ Patricia Walkow, Military Writers Society of America

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About the Author

Dr. Lawrence is the author of many articles and nine books, including an award-winning dissertation about the influence of culture on aspirations in Maine.  A former professor, she has taught courses in anthropology and sociology, research, and writing non-fiction and memoir. Lawrence grew up in New York City and Washington D.C., then earned a BA in anthropology from Bennington College, an MA in sociology from New York University, and an Ed.D. in Administration, Policy and Planning from Boston University. When not working she loves to garden, knit, and go for walks, pastimes she learned from her British mother. She lives in Maine and is working on the third novel in her Islands series.  Find out more at https://barbaralawrence.com/  and find Barbara on Facebook and Instagram.

Blog Tour Excerpt: West of Santillane by Brook Allen

Available from Amazon UK and Amazon US

Desperate to escape a mundane future as a Virginia planter’s wife, Julia Hancock seizes her chance for adventure when she wins the heart of American hero William Clark. Though her husband is the famed explorer, Julia embarks on her own thrilling and perilous 

journey of self-discovery.

Excerpt:

Our journey began by flatboat, crossing the Mississippi from St. Louis to docks near Cahokia. From there, we’d head toward Louisville, where we’d enjoy sweet respite with Jonathan, Sarah, and family.

    Built for carrying people and freight, flatboats offered reliable transport down the Ohio in spring and summer and back and forth on the Mississippi and downriver from St. Louis to New Orleans. Still, I always eyed them with a certain trepidation, making sure I was safe in the central part of the boat since they had no guardrails. 

    Halfway across the river, a cold crosswind blew up, so Chloe and I stayed inside the wagon, wrapped up tight together in a blanket while the men readied the mules and horses for debarking. Once off the boats, they’d be hitched to the wagons again. 

    As we approached Illinois, people gathered on the port side, their weight causing the craft to scour the river bottom along shoals near the docks. Chloe and I laughed, feeling the slight bumps accompanied by a scraping sound emanating from the shallow bottom.

    Suddenly, a male voice from the top of the small shelter bellowed, “Slave overboard!”

    Next came Scott’s voice, shouting to Chloe, “Mama, you got Rachel?”

    Chloe’s mouth dropped as she tossed aside our blanket and leaped from the buckboard. “No!” she cried, her voice wavering. “I figured she was with you . . .”

    I jumped down from the wagon too. Even more passengers had gathered portside, eager to get off, with yet more folk queued up on the Illinois dock, standing at the edge of the waterfront, some of them pointing down into the water.

    Dread gripped me.

    The same crewman who had first sounded the alarm shouted again, “Who’s missing a slave girl?”

    Scott and Chloe were fighting their way through the crowd, not making much headway. Most of the flatboat passengers saw that they were slaves and pushed them back, ignoring their distress.

    Chloe shrieked, out of her mind with terror, “Where is she? Rachel, where you at?” 

    To my horror, I saw Will near the edge of the boat, lifting his arm in the midst of all the people, calling, “She’s mine, sir.” Gradually, the crowd parted, allowing him through.

    Scott and Chloe were still caught up behind crowds of passengers, who were only now surging forward toward the gangplank. Bless Chloe, she was panicked, screaming and keening. “Master Clark, is it Rachel? Please, Lord Jesus, don’t let it be Rachel!” She glanced back, searching for me, eyes brimming with tears. “Our girl don’t swim none, Missus Julia…”

    Little Lewis was alone in the wagon, but he’d been asleep, so I sprang forward to comfort my friend. A fear I’d never known gripped my heart with steely fingers, making my breath shallow: a mother’s distress at the thought of losing a child, especially in such a chilling and unforeseen manner. My heart beat in rhythm with Chloe’s—both of us mothers and facing a terror for which no parent was ever prepared.

    Scott was finally at the edge of the flatboat with Will, and the sound that emanated from his throat was something from a nightmare. A moan, long and loud, pierced like that of a banshee over the confusion, carrying over people talking, stepping off the boat, greeting loved ones, calling for their bags, going about their business…

    How was it that life was carrying on in such normalcy when a little child was lost? 

    As tall as he was, I saw Will’s red head bobbing through the crowd toward us. Oh God—he was carrying her—Rachel! Drenched and dripping from her watery fate, she was limp as the cotton rag doll I remember Harriet losing as a child, left outside during a summer storm and hanging over the wrought-iron rail on our back stairwell, soaked and drooping.

    She was also still as stone, blood dripping from her head, staining Will’s cotton shirt. I willed her to lift her head and say something—anything. Still holding Chloe, I shielded her as long as I could, but when she finally saw her daughter, her scream clawed its way up my spine. She ran to Will, and I stood helpless, my emotion spilling its way down my face.

    Chloe snatched Rachel from Will, lowering her to the deck and holding the girl’s bloody head in her hands, swaying from side to side.

    Will crossed over to where I stood. “She must have gotten too near the edge. My best guess is that she lost her balance when we hit ground back there.”

    “She couldn’t swim,” I murmured. “Will—is she—”

    My answer came when arms encircled me, and it wasn’t the one I wanted. “I need to know. Did she drown?”

    His arms gripped me tighter as he spoke softly in my ear. “The boat was docking and crushed her head when she was flailing about. Let’s pray she went quickly.”

    Oh, Sweet Lord…

    “Nooo—” Chloe was on her knees, rocking Rachel’s lifeless form in her arms, her protest a guttural screech at the top of her lungs. Scott stood sobbing behind her, wiping both eyes with his worn, patched shirtsleeves and shaking his head in disbelief. 

    At the sound of their grief, other travelers crossing the gangplank to Illinois stared back at our group, heading on their way and leaving us in our shock. 

    Will released me, turning and walking slowly toward the wagon.

    “Where are you going?” I cried, balling my fists. My tone turned accusatory and bitter. “How can you just leave us to hitch the mules when this has just happened?”

    He stopped in his tracks and turned about to face me, patiently and quietly answering, “Julia, I’m going to the wagon to find something to wrap her in.”

Brook Allen

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About the Author

Brook Allen has a passion for history. Her newest project, West of Santillane, spotlights history from a little closer to home in Botetourt County, Virginia. It’s the story of Julia Hancock, who married famed explorer, William Clark. Each character of this thrilling, adventurous period was researched throughout southwest Virginia and into Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Idaho, and North Dakota. It launched in March of 2024. Brook belongs to the Historical Novel Society and attends conferences as often as possible to study craft and meet fellow authors. In 2019, her novel Antonius: Son of Rome won a silver medal in the international Reader’s Favorite Book Reviewers Book Awards, then won First Place in the prestigious Chaucer Division in the Chanticleer International Book Awards, 2020. West of Santillane garnered international attention in Summer 2025 by becoming a Silver Medalist in the Independent Publishing Book Awards for best Mid-Atlantic Fiction. Also, it was a finalist for the Virginia Romance Writers Holt Medallion. Most recently, Brook appeared in Season 8 of Blueridge PBS’s WRITE AROUND THE CORNER. Though she graduated from Asbury University with a B.A. in Music Education, Brook has always loved writing. She completed a Masters program at Hollins University with an emphasis in Ancient Roman studies, which helped prepare her for authoring her award-winning Antonius Trilogy. Brook recently retired from public education and her personal interests include travel, cycling, hiking in the woods, reading, and spending downtime with her husband and big, black dog, Jak. She lives in the heart of southwest Virginia in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains. Find out more at https://www.brookallenauthor.com/ and find Brook on Twitter @1BrookAllen, Facebook and Bluesky @brookallenauthor.bsky.social