Book Review: Book One of The Du lac Chronicles, by Mary Anne Yarde

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

If all you had left was your heart, would you give it to your enemy?

A generation after Arthur Pendragon ruled, Briton lies fragmented into warring kingdoms. The powerful Saxon King, Cerdic of Wessex, spent the last twenty years hunting down Arthur’s noble knights. Alden du Lac, the once king of Cerniw and son of Lancelot, has nothing. Betrayed by Cerdic, Alden’s kingdom lies in rubble. Annis, daughter of King Cerdic of Wessex, has been secretly in love with Alden for what seems like forever. She will not stand by and see him die. She defies father, king, and country to save the man she loves from her father’s dungeons. Alden and Annis flee Wessex together.

My choice of holiday reading could hardly have been more appropriate. I found myself in the bright Brittany sunshine with a glass of chilled ‘Lancelot’ beer, within sight of the awe-inspiring triple towers of Chateau Josselin, reading about Lancelot Du lac’s mythical descendants - in a castle in Brittany.

Mary Anne Yarde’s new Dark Ages trilogy draws on the Anglo Saxon Chronicles for inspiration. An evocative, timeless saga of love and betrayal, it has rivalry and treachery enough for any ‘Game of Thrones’ aficionado. We follow the journey of two young lovers. Alden Du Lac is the defeated yet heroic former king who falls in love with Annis, beautiful daughter of his sworn enemy, the Saxon King Ceric of Wessex.

The brutal reality of life in ancient Britain is tempered with light touches of humour as the young lovers battle for survival against impossible odds. At first they don’t even share the same language and have to communicate in Latin, yet omnia vincit amor.

I particularly liked the development of the relationships between the Du Lac brothers once the action moves to Brittany, as well as the references to Arthurian legends. I reached the last page surprisingly quickly, so was pleased I’d also downloaded the accompanying novella ‘The Pichfork Rebellion’. I’m now looking forward to reading the next instalment in the Du Lac Chronicles!  Highly recommended.

Tony Riches

# # #

About the Author

Mary Anne Yarde grew up in the southwest of England, surrounded and influenced by centuries of history and mythology. Glastonbury—the fabled Isle of Avalon—was a mere fifteen-minute drive from her home, and tales of King Arthur and his knights were part of her childhood. At nineteen, she married her childhood sweetheart and began a bachelor of arts in history at Cardiff University, only to have her studies interrupted by the arrival of her first child. She would later return to higher education, studying equine science at Warwickshire College. Horses and history remain two of her major passions. Mary Anne Yarde keeps busy raising four children and helping run a successful family business. Find our more at her website and follow her on Twitter @maryanneyarde. 

Special Guest Post: Life on the Edge of Crazy, by Katie O’Sullivan @OkatieO

Climate scientist Chase Anderson races from one project to the next, unwilling to slow down in his quest to save the world’s oceans. He has no time for family or relationships until he crashes into an impetuous blonde with a quirky sense of humor. One sizzling kiss makes him seriously reevaluate his priorities. And his sanity. Emma Maguire left her small Cape Cod hometown years ago, seeking the fast pace and anonymity of New York City. She’s not sure what she’s searching for, but when a family crisis brings her home to Provincetown she’s caught in a crazy tangle of half-truths and mistaken identity… and falls for the handsome stranger who broke her cell phone. Will untangling the web of lies drive them crazy, or lead to something even crazier – like love?

Available on Amazon US and Amazon UK

The Wild Rose Press  and Barnes & Noble

My novel CRAZY ABOUT YOU is about small towns and second chances, learning to trust others and also believing in yourself. I live year-round on Cape Cod, and when I started writing fiction I decided to use the beautiful settings of the Cape as backdrops to my stories. They say “Write what you know,” right? And while Cape Cod has been a prime tourist destination for a few hundred years, there aren’t an overabundance of books set here…and some that do take place here just get it wrong. I try hard to infuse my novels with a sense of place, and lots of real details about what makes Cape Cod such a unique setting.

Summertime in Provincetown is every bit as flamboyant and colorful as portrayed in my story. The other nine months of the year it’s a quiet live-and-let-live community of families, fishermen, ocean researchers and artists. My kids attend a regional high school and have best friends who live in P-town year round. The place has a small-town, hometown feel to it where everyone knows and cares about each other.

But for the three months of summer, the population swells from under 3,000 to over 60,000 and the party never ends. Especially during Carnival Week in August, which is kind of like Mardi Gras with a rainbow-striped feather boa wrapped tightly around its neck.

Since the main character of CRAZY ABOUT YOU, Emma Maguire, grew up in P-town, she’s unfazed by much of the circus swirling around her. Like my kids, she went to high school with these shop owners and waitresses, and has learned to ignore most of the craziness that accompanies life in a tourist town and go with the flow. The other main character, Chase Anderson, is a climate scientist who studies the world’s oceans, too focused on saving the planet to slow down and enjoy life of any kind, let alone one as crazy as you find on the streets of P-town.

There really is a Center for Coastal Studies located in Provincetown. The Atlantic garbage gyre Chase is studying? That’s real, too. The “Plastisphere” of plastic debris so thick that it’s forming its own biosphere in the middle of the Atlantic, complete with yet-undiscovered bacteria? Also real. I read a fascinating article in Scientific American about the discovery of the “plastisphere” and the scientists collecting the varieties of new bacterial strains, and that part of my novel grew from there. Funny where we find inspiration!

Should we be scared of looming environmental disaster? Probably. Climate change is a serious threat to our world, and people need to be aware that these dangers are real. Slipping a bit of eco-knowledge into a romance novel isn’t going to solve the world’s problems, but might help introduce terms and concepts to readers who don’t know what’s going on in the oceans.

Like my character Chase, I want to make sure Cape Cod remains a beautiful place to live and to visit for generations to come. I’m not going to stop anyone from throwing plastic beads off the Carnival parade floats driving down the main streets in August, but I’m hoping in some small way to make people a little more aware of the problems facing our oceans and coastlines. And appreciate the unique beauty that is Cape Cod.

Katie O’Sullivan

# # #

About the Author

Katie O’Sullivan lives with her family and big dogs on Cape Cod, drinking way too much coffee and inventing new excuses not to dust. Living next to the Atlantic influences everything she writes, from her YA mermaid series to her crazy contemporary romances set along the Cape’s sandy shores. A recovering English major, she earned her degree at Colgate University and writes romance and adventure for young adults and something steamier for the young at heart. Find out more at Katie's Website and Blog, and find her on Facebook and Twitter @OkatieO.

The Tudor Brandons: Mary and Charles - Henry VIII's Nearest & Dearest, by Sarah-Beth Watkins

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

This fascinating book studies the life and times of Mary Tudor and Charles Brandon, Henry VIII's dearest sister and his closest companion. Charles rose from being Henry's childhood friend to becoming the Duke of Suffolk; a consummate courtier and diplomat. Mary was always royalty. 

At first married to the King of France, Mary quickly wed Charles after Louis XII's death in 1515, against her brother's wishes. Their actions could have been construed as treason yet Henry chose to spare their lives. 

They returned to court and despite their ongoing disagreements throughout the years, especially over the king's marriage to Anne Boleyn, the Tudor Brandons remained Henry's most loyal subjects and perhaps more importantly, his beloved family.

"It´s a book very much worth reading, and I highly recommend it." Review on Under The Tudor Rose

"A worthwhile addition to any Tudor library, its light and readable without shirking on detail and provides a brilliant introduction to the lives of the Suffolks during those momentous earlier years of Henry VIII’s tumultuous reign." Review by the Henry Tudor Society

# # #

About the Author

Sarah-Beth Watkins works in publishing and has a BA in Social Policy. She grew up in Richmond, Surrey and began soaking up history from an early age. Her love of writing has seen her articles published in various publications over the past twenty years. Her history works are Ireland’s Suffragettes, Lady Katherine Knollys: The Unacknowledged Daughter of King Henry VIII and The Tudor Brandons. Sarah also provides services for writers at www.bookwormsauthorservices.net and you can find her on Twitter @SarahBWatkins.

Book Review ~ Chosen Child, by Linda Huber @LindaHuber19

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

Ella longs for a child of her own, but a gruesome find during an adoption process deepens the cracks in her marriage. A family visit starts off a horrifying chain of events, and Ella can only hope she won’t lose the person she loves most of all. Amanda is expecting her second child when her husband vanishes. She is tortured by thoughts of violence and loss, but nothing prepares her for the shocking conclusion to the police investigation. And in the middle of it all, a little girl is looking for a home of her own with a ‘forever’ mummy and daddy… 

I started reading Chosen Child, the new psychological thriller from Linda Huber, with high expectations, as one of her previous books, The Cold, Cold Sea was unforgettable. I was not disappointed. Right from the start we are drawn into the routine lives of her characters and know something dreadful is bound to happen.

When it did I was taken completely by surprise – and couldn’t put the book down until I’d found out how the nightmare could ever be resolved. I particularly liked the Cornish setting, and Linda’s keen eye for the little details that keep the reader guessing.

Highly recommended.

Tony Riches

# # #

About the Author

Linda Huber grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, but went to work in Switzerland for a year aged twenty-two, and has lived there ever since. Her day jobs have included working as a physiotherapist in hospitals and schools for handicapped children, and teaching in a medieval castle. Not to mention several years spent as a full-time mum to two boys and a rescue dog. Nowadays, she spends her time teaching English and writing psychological thrillers. The Paradise Trees, The Cold Cold Sea, The Attic Room and Chosen Child are available in eBook and paperback. Find out more at Linda's website http://lindahuber.net/ and follow her on Facebook  and Twitter @LindaHuber19

Blog Tour: The Lord of Ireland (The Fifth Knight Series Book 3) by E.M. Powell #HFVBT

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

England, 1185. John is a prince without prospect of a crown. As the youngest son of Henry II, he has long borne the hated nickname ‘Lackland’. When warring tribes and an ambitious Anglo-Norman lord threaten Henry’s reign in Ireland, John believes his time has finally come. Henry is dispatching him there with a mighty force to impose order.

Yet it is a thwarted young man who arrives on the troubled isle. John has not been granted its kingship—he is merely the Lord of Ireland, destined never to escape his father’s shadow. Unknown to John, Henry has also sent his right-hand man, Sir Benedict Palmer, to root out the traitors he fears are working to steal the land from him.

But Palmer is horrified when John disregards Henry’s orders and embarks on a campaign of bloodshed that could destroy the kingdom. Now Palmer has to battle the increasingly powerful Lord of Ireland. Power, in John’s hands, is a murderous force—and he is only just beginning to wield it.

# # #

About the Author

E.M. Powell is the author of medieval thriller The Fifth Knight, which was a #1 Amazon best seller. Born and raised in the Republic of Ireland into the family of Michael Collins (the legendary revolutionary and founder of the Irish Free State), she now lives in the northwest of England with her husband and daughter and a Facebook-friendly dog. She is a regular blogger on English Historical Fiction Authors and a reviewer for the Historical Novel Society. Learn more about E.M. Powell on her website www.empowell.com and find her on Twitter @empowellauthor.

Book Launch ~ Magruder's Curiosity Cabinet: A Novel, by H.P. Wood

New on Amazon US and Amazon UK

It's been called "unputdownable,"

"a treasure,"

"a bizarre tale,"

and "probably the most odd book I've read."

A hypnotic debut in turn-of-the-century Coney Island, where an abandoned girl collides with a disgruntled ménage of circus freaks.

Kitty Hayward and her mother are ready to experience the spectacles of Coney Island's newest attraction, the Dreamland amusement park. But when Kitty's mother vanishes from their hotel, she finds herself penniless, alone, and far from her native England.

The last people she expects to help are the cast of characters at Magruder's Curiosity Cabinet, a museum of oddities. From con men to strongmen, from flea wranglers to lion tamers, Kitty's new friends quickly adopt her and vow to help find the missing Mrs. Hayward. But even these unusual inhabitants may not be a match for the insidious sickness that begins to spread through Coney Island...or the panic that turns Dreamland into a nightmare.

With shades of Water For Elephants and The Museum of Extraordinary Things, Magruder's Curiosity Cabinet sweeps readers into a mesmerizing world where nothing is as it seems, and where "normal" is the exception to the rule.

# # #

About the Author

H.P. Wood is the granddaughter of a mad inventor and a sideshow magician. Instead of making things disappear, she makes books of all shapes and sizes. She has written or edited works on an array topics, including the history of the Internet, the future of human rights, and the total awesomeness of playing with sticks. She lives in Connecticut with a charming and patient husband, a daughter from whom she steals all her best ideas, and more cats than is strictly logical. You can find her at hpwood.net and on Twitter @HilaryWrites.

Guest Post ~ TOBIAS, by Prue Batten

Available on Amazon UK, Amazon US

and Amazon Australia

Byzantium stretches a weakening grip across Eastern Europe, trying to hold onto all that has made it an empire. Tyrian purple, the unique dye that denotes its power, is held under close guard by the imperial house. However a Jewish merchant from Venice has sourced an illegal supply and Tobias the dwarf minstrel and his twin brother, Tomas, begin a dangerous journey to retrieve the purple and deliver it into the merchant’s eager hands. But is this supply as secret as they hoped? Trade is cut throat, men are expendable, money is power and Constantinople provides the exotic backdrop during a time of scimitars and shadows.

This is Tobias – the story of a minstrel and a broken life…

When I received an invitation from Tony via Facebook to guest on his blog, I was enormously chuffed as he’s a writer I admire. I was asked to talk about my latest release, Tobias, a book that’s ostensibly about twelfth century Europe and Byzantium, and what inspired me to write it.

In the first instance it was trade. In reading about the development of trade as we move through the Middle Ages, when Venice, Pisa and Genoa are competing against each other for trading rights, names began to have a curious effect upon me. Names like olibanum, cinnamon, salt, alum and frankincense. Cloth like silk and wool. Colours like pers, brunete, echiqueles and cramoisy. Cities like Venice, Genoa, Marseille, Lyon and Constantinople. Quite simply, the hairs stood on my neck, things resonating, and I knew that I just had to write a series where my characters were sunk amongst the shadowy and whispering folds of twelfth century trade.

Tobias was a hard book to write for two reasons – the first being that Toby has achondroplasia. Simply put, he’s a dwarf, more correctly a Little Person. I knew nothing about achondroplasia and the way an individual is affected in daily life by the strictures of the condition. So first and foremost, in order to make Toby an entirely ‘real’ character, I made contact with an American blogger whose son has the condition (www.dwarfaware.com ). She talks about exactly those difficulties and she helped me greatly by attempting to overlay the demands of twelfth century life with the physical condition.

The second issue was that a vast tract of the story was set in Constantinople and much of the archaeology of the time was destroyed in the Fourth Crusade and the later Ottoman invasion. But I’ve never been known to take things lying down and I discovered a brilliant 3-D rendition of the city at that time – www.Byzantium1200.com and it became Tobias’ and my GPS as we walked arm in arm through the city, finding places that would be settings for Toby’s dramatic tale.

Tobias as a main character was never meant to be; he was a mere secondary character in a previous series, The Gisborne Saga. But my editor liked him and was convinced he had a deep tale to tell. I asked Toby and he agreed that he had the story to end all stories – a true chanson de geste! It’s emotive, one that tugs at heartstrings and I like the idea that Tobias might either sing about his own life (he is a minstrel) across the halls of Europe, or indeed that his chanson will be sung to entertain not just noblemen, but the common man.

He’s since become a part of a series that is called The Triptych Chronicle. A triptych is defined in the OED as ‘A set of three associated … literary … works intended to be appreciated together’. The series will be about three connected characters, in that they all share the same employer, a man with a developing trading company, and they all know each other well. But like each of the painted panels on a triptych, their stories can be appreciated as semi-standalones. The three will round out my involvement with twelfth century Europe and Byzantium for the foreseeable future.

So far, Tobias has charmed people like Christian Cameron (‘Authentic characters and a twisting plot move this tale to a gripping end’.), SJA Turney (‘An atmospheric journey through the seedy underbelly of medieval Europe.’) and Ann Swinfen ‘A powerful tale of violence, treachery and intrigue…’) who have reviewed it well. It was recently awarded a coverted indie award – a gold medal from Indie B.R.A.G. (USA) 2016 and was a semi-finalist in the M.M. Bennetts Award for Historical Fiction 2016 (UK).

I am now well sunk into Book Two of the series, entitled Guillaume, and Tobias has just returned to the story. I’m so glad, as he is one of my greatest friends and I would have hated never to see him again…

Tony, thanks so much for inviting me to be your guest. I love thinking about the background to writing a novel. It anchors one back to one’s foundations. Cheers!

Prue Batten

# # #

About the Author

A former journalist from Australia who graduated with majors in history and politics, Prue became an award-winning cross genre writer who enjoys creating fiction from history and fantasy.

She lives on an island to the south of the mainland continent, a place called Tasmania, and is a farmer, a dog owner, a gardener and embroiderer, a swimmer and a kayaker. Find out more at Prue''s website www.pruebatten.com and find her on Facebook and Pinterest.