tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60983042826999692602024-03-11T03:24:01.110+00:00Poppy CoburnPoppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.comBlogger68125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-11315382158442437242018-10-13T10:35:00.000+01:002018-10-13T10:35:29.745+01:0068. 'The Eyes That Look' by Julia Grigg<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>We may have eyes that look – but how clearly do we see?</b></div>
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<b>This compelling novel of art and adventure, Julia Grigg’s debut, is set in the feverish creativity of mid-sixteenth century Italy. Francesco Bassano wants to find out how and why an extraordinary painting was made; the story traces his quest to discover the secrets of the portrait’s past. Francesco’s journey, his coming-of-age, takes him and his questions to Venice, Verona, Maser and Florence. Encountering the High Renaissance’s masters Titian, Veronese and Vasari in the very act of creating and recording the era’s stupendous art and architecture, he is witness to astonishing achievements. Enthralled, he learns of the determination needed for innovation and the sacrifices demanded of an artist if cherished ambition is to become reality. Little by little he unravels what lies behind the painting, gaining new understanding of love, truth and beauty, and of loyalty, devotion and the unbreakable bond between a master and his dogs. However, in delving deeper, the past’s dark side reveals itself: cruelty, inhumanity and human frailty – and Francesco cannot avoid the experience of bitter betrayal.</b></div>
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I was offered a copy of 'The Eyes That Look' in exchange for an honest review the lovely folk over at <a href="https://twitter.com/Bookollective">Bookollective</a>, and when I saw the cover I <i>jumped</i> at the opportunity. </div>
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The images online really do not do the details on the physical book any justice. It is gorgeous. The colours and design of the cover are completely appropriate for the subject matter, and it can't just be me who gets a thrill out of luxuriously thick pages inside a book, right? It really drew me to the book, and is something that will look beautiful on any bookcase or coffee table. I'll be sharing details of the book's cover over on my <a href="https://www.instagram.com/poppycoburn/">instagram</a>, so if you are interested to see just what the heck I am raving about you can have a nosy there!</div>
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Now onto my review...</div>
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'The Eyes That Look' is essentially a mystery, coming of age tale of Francesco Bassano, and his journey to find out more behind the intriguing piece of art by his father Jacopo. Jacopo is reluctant to reveal more about the art work, which displays two hunting dogs prominently as the focus point, and this captures and propels Francesco into the wider world in his quest for answers. His quest takes him on a long journey, and he encounters both the desirables and undesirables of the world, making new friends along the way. </div>
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I don't know enough about 16th Century Italy and the Artists that existed at this time, however Grigg seems to weave the fictitious characters with the factual to help build a strong, and engaging narrative. I think because I have the luxury of no prior knowledge around these figures it made it a more enjoyable read, and I was able to go with the flow a lot more than had it been say, a book based in the heart of Edward III's court. I am always wary of introducing too much poetic license in the historical fiction genre usually, but it did not seem negatively impact on the story itself in this case, as I do not know how much it strays from what is factually known about the artists and figures from the Italian Renaissance referenced. </div>
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It did take me longer to get into the story, in part because it does not move you along at a quick place. The feeling I got when reading was to take my time, and go with the leisurely pace presented to me. I was reading it in the mornings, and evenings during my commute to work, and I think this had an impact on how quickly I was able to immerse myself - I would definitely recommend reading this where you don't have to regularly stop and start. When I did have the opportunity to focus on it for longer periods of time I felt I was able to engage and immerse myself better. </div>
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That being said, Grigg's is clearly knowledgeable about her subject matter, and she writes beautifully. The style is descriptive, but not too much, and I feel a true passion for the work behind the story. </div>
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I especially enjoyed the development of Francesco and Jacopo, as the son learns to look at his father as more than just a parent, and discovers more about him as both artist and individual. There are so many lessons interwoven throughout the pages, many of which can apply to any reader's every day lives. I think it makes the book even more relatable, even though it is set in 16th Century Italy! </div>
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Everything is neatly wrapped up at the end of the book, all loose ends tied and as with the pace throughout the book, gently, and in places, bittersweet. The plot on the whole is one of dark tragedy, heartache and longing; accentuated by hope, and the promise of understanding and acceptance over time. </div>
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I highly recommend this book for those interested in the historical fiction genre, who perhaps are seeking something different from their usual cup of tea. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 5/5</b></span></div>
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<u>About the Author </u></div>
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Julia Grigg started out in fashion journalism, her first job on Vogue, also writing on the arts, food and travel. She retains an abiding interest in all these subjects but soon moved into a career with UNICEF as a writer and advocate for children’s issues and over many years was deployed to some of the world’s most demanding and complex countries. </div>
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Julia began The Eyes that Look – the secret story of Bassano’s Hunting Dogs while studying for the Bath Spa University Masters in Creative Writing from which she graduated with Distinction. Early drafts of the novel were longlisted for the Exeter First Novel Prize and for the Aurora Metro Virginia Prize for New Writing by Women in English. </div>
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The Eyes that Look was years in the making before a single word was put on the page. Writing it meant Julia could delve deep into the Italian High Renaissance, indulging a lifelong fascination with its art, music and poetry. In the research process she embraced online study, attended the Courtauld Institute summer school and the British Institute in Florence, and spent much time in Italian archives, galleries and churches as well as in trying to master the language. </div>
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Julia is working on the second novel of a planned Renaissance trilogy, involving mid 1500s Rome, Florence and Venice settings and some of the same cast of characters as The Eyes that Look. </div>
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Cornish in origin, Julia divides her time between the UK and Nairobi, Kenya, spending as much time as she can in the West Country, always thrilled to be once again crossing the Tamar. Dogs are another passion; she and her husband share their home with a pair of black and tan dachshunds. </div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-35455890475345997512018-01-23T08:57:00.005+00:002018-01-23T08:57:39.709+00:0067. 'In Love And War' By Liz Trenow <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>Three women, once enemies. Their secrets will unite them.</b></div>
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<b>The First World War is over. The war-torn area of Flanders near Ypres is no longer home to troops, but groups of tourists. Controversial battlefield tourism now brings hundreds of people to the area, all desperate to witness first-hand where their loved ones fell.</b></div>
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<b>At the Hotel de la Paix in the small village of Hoppestadt, three women arrive, searching for traces of the men they have loved and lost.</b></div>
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<b>Ruby is just twenty-one, a shy Englishwoman looking for the grave of her husband. Alice is only a little older but brimming with confidence; she has travelled all the way from America, convinced her brother is in fact still alive. Then there’s Martha, and her son Otto, who are not all they seem to be . . .</b></div>
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<b>The three women in Liz Trenow’s In Love and War may have very different backgrounds, but they are united in their search for reconciliation: to resolve themselves to what the war took from them, but also to what life might still promise for the future . . .</b></div>
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Today on the blog I am featuring an exclusive extract from Liz Trenow's newest offering - <a href="https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/liz-trenow/in-love-and-war">'In Love And War', published by Pan Macmillan January 25th, 2018</a>. Thank you to Alice and Grace from Pan Macmillan for sending me a copy - review to follow shortly! I really enjoyed Liz's previous book, 'The Silk Weaver', and can't wait to share my thoughts with you as she tackles another era of historical fiction. </div>
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Such a weight of sorrow seemed freighted between the scuffed and torn pages of the Talbot House visitors’ books: the script of shaky hands, the smudges of ink, mud stains and smells of wood smoke, sweat and old tea leaves. What had happened to all these young men? Had any of them survived and, if so, were they injured, struggling to make sense of life after war? Where were they now?</div>
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After Alice left for the post office Ruby turned back to scan, without any particular expectation, the columns of names, dates, ranks and regiments. She studied especially the half dozen names she found from Bertie’s regiment. None were familiar, but might they have known him? Were they perhaps together at Talbot House with him? Did they witness his final hours? </div>
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What saddened her most were the comments of strained jollity, belying the terror the men must surely have felt at the prospect of returning to those terrifying battlefields. <i>Back to beat up the Boche once again, one wrote. May he go to hell in a hand cart. </i>Some made her smile:<i> This farce promises to be a great success and a long run is expected. </i>Others made her want to cry: <i>While I have the strength I will fight to save my country, or: If I go to heaven, let it be like Talbot House. </i></div>
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She reached the final page of the final book and the last entry dated 11th November 1918 in the chaplain’s bold, open-looped hand: <i>It is over at last. Pray God we never forget all those who suffered and died. P. Clayton. </i></div>
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As she closed the book she felt his eyes on her. ‘No sign of your Bertie?’</div>
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She shook her head, too choked to speak. </div>
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‘My dear, I understand how hard this must be.’ </div>
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Tubby took out a large white handkerchief and gave it to her. Somehow just being in his presence was comforting, and his calm, patient listening seemed to unlock some¬thing. The words began to tumble out in a stream. </div>
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‘People talk about heroes’ deaths, of their souls still being with us, or being in some place called heaven, but it doesn’t mean anything to me. I just can’t get out of my head the fact that he may have died alone and probably in dreadful pain, among all that terrible destruction.’ A sob escaped. ‘Oh God, I don’t think I can face this any more . . . The mud and the mess and the thousands of crosses at the cem¬etery. I’ve seen them pulling bits of men from the mud, but we’ll never have a body to mourn.’ She sniffed and wiped her eyes. ‘I need to talk to him, Tubby. I need his forgive¬ness. Otherwise I’ll never be able to get on with my own life. I might just as well be dead.’ </div>
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She stopped, embarrassed, fearing that she’d said too much. Any moment now he would ask her what there was to forgive, and she would have to confess her shameful secret. But all he did was take her hand and sit quietly beside her, waiting for the storm to pass. </div>
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‘My dear, I have few words of consolation, I’m afraid,’ he said at last. ‘We are all sinners, and being able to forgive ourselves is the hardest lesson we face in life. But as for your Bertie, what I know from my own encounters with so many brave men over the past few years is that even in the most extreme circumstances, in conditions that no human, not even any animal, should be expected to bear, they took comfort from two important things.’ </div>
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She looked up into his face, hungry for the balm of his words. </div>
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‘The first was comradeship. Men learned to depend on each other in ways those of us who have never experienced front line combat will never understand. Those friendships were powerful and profound. To experience that real cama¬raderie, that absolute trust of knowing that someone would give their life for you, or you for them, is a rare and precious thing. I observed it at the House and when I went to give Sunday services in the trenches, and even envied them for it.’</div>
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‘That’s what Freddie talked about,’ she said, eager to understand more. ‘About how the war was hell, but he wouldn’t have missed it for the world because of that experience. He called it love.’ </div>
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Tubby nodded, smiling. ‘I have also heard it called that before, many times. But that was not the only thing that kept them going. For the fortunate ones, like your Bertie, the most important thing was knowing that they were also loved, deeply loved, by those at home. They knew that they were playing their part, however small and ineffectual it might have seemed at the time, to protect those who loved them, and whom they loved.’ </div>
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As her tears began afresh he sat beside her, quietly wait¬ing. Eventually, she gathered herself, clearing her throat enough to speak. ‘Thank you.’ </div>
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<b><i>Purchase 'In Love And War' <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-War-Liz-Trenow/dp/1509825088">here.</a></i></b></div>
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<b>Want to keep up to date with the other stops on the blog tour?</b></div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-16796923694331272522017-12-05T14:57:00.000+00:002017-12-05T14:57:40.329+00:0066. GUEST POST: THE FATE OF KINGS: MIGRATING FROM NONFICTION TO FICTION By Mark Stibbe<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Today I am very pleased to share with you a guest post, written by one of the authors of <i>The Fate of Kings, </i>Mark Stibbe.</div>
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<b>As the Terror begins to cast a great shadow over France, Thomas Pryce, the new Vicar of Deal, crosses the Channel to find the parents of his beautiful French wife. Facing grave dangers, he makes his way to Brittany where he not only discovers the fate of his in-laws but also uncovers a plot which threatens to topple the British monarchy. Fighting against a sinister secret society in a race against time, Pryce battles to thwart the plans of a Parisian spymaster and his agents in London. The Fate of Kings is the first in a series of gripping spy thrillers that will engross readers of C.J. Sansom, Dan Brown, as well as the many avid watchers of Poldark and Grantchester. In the first years of the British Secret Service, Thomas Pryce truly is the original James Bond.</b></div>
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I was fortunate enough to be invited to attend the launch of <i>The Fate of Kings </i>in the wonderfully quirky Libraries on St Martin's Lane, where attendees were treated to cocktails, delicious canapes and suited and booted French soldiers, fresh out of a time machine. </div>
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The authors, Mark and G.P. Taylor gave insightful speeches on the process of writing the book, and their own background which I found very interesting. </div>
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As you can see, they went all out setting the theme of the book, here are the authors with the aforementioned soldiers. </div>
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As you can see I couldn't resit either!</div>
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<i>How easy is it to turn your hand to fiction after writing nonfiction?</i></div>
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That’s a question I’ve been asked a lot, not just during the writing of my novel <i>The Fate of Kings</i>, but also since its launch in Covent Garden.</div>
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As it’s a good question.</div>
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If you’d asked me before I started writing <i>The Fate of Kings</i>, I would have said, ‘It can’t be that difficult. I’m sure it will be a smooth transition.’</div>
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But I would have been wrong.</div>
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Very wrong.</div>
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Up until New Year 2013, I had written nearly 40 books of nonfiction. Some academic books, some instruction manuals, some compilations, and some devotional books. Many had been bestsellers and won awards. I therefore thought I’d got the art of writing taped.</div>
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When the figure of Thomas Pryce emerged in my imagination – the hero of <i>The Fate of Kings</i> – I began to turn my hand to writing fiction. I thought I was doing okay until I showed draft chapters to my friends in publishing, including the publishing of fiction. They were not very complimentary.</div>
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Literary agents, not being friends, were even less polite. </div>
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My ego shrank, and my confidence with it.</div>
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Then, one morning, I saw an advert online for a fiction writer’s workshop in California. My twin sister Claire lives in the USA and is also a fulltime writer. She too was launching into novel writing – a strange synchronicity, if you ask me. I emailed her and asked if she was free. Just happened it was the only weekend she was available in the whole of that summer. Her husband was going to be flying model airplanes nearby, so it transpired.</div>
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I was penniless at the time, but I managed to scrape my way to the workshop, driving for thirteen hours without a break through the Nevada Desert to the hotel where the three-day class was being held.</div>
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<i>Where there’s a will, there’s a way</i>, my late Mum used to say.</div>
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My twin sister and I met up and sat at the black of a classroom for the first time since we were seven years old.</div>
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And those three days changed everything.</div>
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I had learned the academic skills to analyse stories when I was a senior scholar of English Literature at Cambridge University back in the early 80s.</div>
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But critiquing is not the same as creating.</div>
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Many a fool can comment on a game of professional football and criticise players. And generally speaking, many a fool does. But very few can play the game at that level – creatively, incisively, effectively.</div>
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The same is true of stories. Anyone can tell you what they don’t like about a novel or a film, what’s wrong with it, what should have been done better. But precious few have the actual skills to create a tale that hooks and enthrals readers and viewers.</div>
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That’s an art.</div>
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But it’s not a mystical or innate skill – given from heaven, imparted at birth.</div>
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That would make it wholly inaccessible.</div>
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No, it’s one that can be learned, provided we have the humility to cultivate a teachable spirit, even when we think we’re already God’s gift to writing!</div>
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And so, I sat and listened to a novelist with a wonderfully unusual capacity to describe the essential skills for fiction writing, and to equip us to activate those skills on paper.</div>
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When those three days were over, I drove to a large Californian house that I was looking after for two months, sat at the dining room table with my laptop, and began to type away about Thomas Pryce.</div>
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The novelist had given me the skills to bring structure to my story, life to my characters, heft to my dialogue, and drama to my scenes.</div>
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I’m not saying I’m great at all this yet, but my sister and I are both discovering the truth that our father imparted to us. </div>
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<i>If you’re determined enough, you can succeed at anything.</i></div>
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Now my sister and I cannot stop writing. She’s on the fifth of a crazily brilliant series about a British detective in the Albuquerque Police Department. I am writing the second in the Thomas Pryce series, a novel called <i>A Book in Time</i>, planning a trilogy of very dark ecclesiastical thrillers, and publishing a Christmas story next September called <i>Desperado</i>.</div>
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So, if there’s one thing I recommend to all writers, whatever their genre, it’s this: never stop learning.</div>
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The book is available as an original paperback and as an ebook on Amazon – see the links below:</div>
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<b><u>AMAZON UK:</u></b></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fate-Kings-Mark-Stibbe/dp/1910786756/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512125748&sr=8-1&keywords=fate+of+kings+mark+stibbe">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fate-Kings-Mark-Stibbe/dp/1910786756/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512125748&sr=8-1&keywords=fate+of+kings+mark+stibbe</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fate-Kings-Thomas-Pryce-Book-ebook/dp/B0751FDVHB/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1512125748&sr=8-1">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fate-Kings-Thomas-Pryce-Book-ebook/dp/B0751FDVHB/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1512125748&sr=8-1 </a>(Kindle edition)</div>
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<b><u>AMAZON US:</u></b></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fate-Kings-Mark-Stibbe/dp/1910786756/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1512125807&sr=8-1">https://www.amazon.com/Fate-Kings-Mark-Stibbe/dp/1910786756/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1512125807&sr=8-1</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Fate-Kings-Thomas-Pryce-Book-ebook/dp/B0751FDVHB/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512125807&sr=8-1&keywords=fate+of+kings+stibbe">https://www.amazon.com/Fate-Kings-Thomas-Pryce-Book-ebook/dp/B0751FDVHB/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512125807&sr=8-1&keywords=fate+of+kings+stibbe</a> (Kindle edition)</div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-87188933199923123282017-12-02T12:10:00.000+00:002017-12-02T12:10:07.761+00:0065. 'Made in Japan' by S. J. Parks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>A young girl traces her mother’s steps all the way from London to Japan to search for the father she never knew.</b></div>
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<b>Hana arrives in Tokyo with only two words in her mind: The Teahouse. She’s a long way from home in East London and still fresh from the loss of her mother. But her grief has sent her across to the other side of the world to find out who she is, and for Hana that means finding the Japanese man she has never met, her father with only these two words as clues.</b></div>
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<b>Made in Japan is a beautifully woven story of a mother and daughter who, decades apart, tread the same streets of glittering Tokyo looking for that something that might complete them.</b></div>
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I have always been fascinated by Japanese culture, so when Bookollective contacted me and asked if I'd like to be involved with the blog tour for Made in Japan I jumped at the chance. </div>
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Interweaving the story of mother and daughter - we first meet Hana. Hana has come to Japan to solve the mystery of her birth, and find out who her father is. Her mother has told her nothing, beyond the fact that he is long dead. Armed with threadbare information, Hana begins her journey retracing her Mother's footsteps. </div>
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She meets a host of characters, some likable (Miho I especially liked), scatty American Jess (who I did not like) and a host of other background characters who vividly bring 2012 Japan to life. </div>
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In contrast, when we meet Hana's mother Naomi she is bristling against the confines of having followed her boyfriend to Japan. Feeling stifled with little distraction, she acquires a position in an architects office through a friend. Little did she know how much that would change her life. She is captivated by the man, and the inevitable follows. Unseen hands have allowed the situation to develop until life throws in an unexpected element, leaving the main players reeling. </div>
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Park's writing is captivating. I could not put the book down. I hungrily devoured the stories of mother and daughter. She easily portrays the enchanting romanticism that so often surrounds Japan, and that both Naomi and Hana expect. I enjoyed how the harsher realities that faced both of them individually were presented, especially in regard to the caste hierarchy facing Mockhizuki, and how it deeply complicated the choices facing him. </div>
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Ed seemed like a filler character, fleshed out to be the modern day counterpart of Josh. I don't feel it was necessary for Hana to end up with Josh, although the ending is open and nothing seemed set in stone for their relationship. They seemed to have known each other too little, and have spent hardly any time together to feasibly shack up together - but then I suppose it adds another element of romance to the tale that does not end happily for most of the main characters. </div>
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I would have like for more clarity on exactly who Miho was talking about when she said Naomi caused the death of a friend - as poetry is filtered throughout the story it could have been a poetic way of saying they died emotionally, but I am still very unclear on this element of the plot. </div>
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That said, I really did enjoy this book, it was a captivating read. If you enjoy Japanese culture or have an interest this is definitely the book for you. Parks' writing is elegant and flowing, making it a joy to read. I especially enjoyed her descriptions of the tea house in winter, and the local customs and cultures littered throughout to flesh out the background story. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 4.5/5</b></span></div>
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<b>Thank you to <a href="https://twitter.com/Bookollective">Bookollective</a> for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review. </b></div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-8215540323572247722017-10-23T11:01:00.000+01:002017-10-23T11:01:08.679+01:0064. 'The Murderer's Maid' by Erika Mailman<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>'The Murderer's Maid' interweaves the stories of two women: one, the servant of infamous Lizzie Borden, and the other a modern-day barista fleeing from an attempt on her life.</b></div>
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<b>Trapped by servitude and afraid for her own safety, Irish maid Bridget finds herself an unwilling witness to the tensions in the volatile Borden household. As Lizzie seethes with resentment, Bridget tries to perform her duties and keep her mouth shut.</b></div>
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<b>Unknowingly connected to the legendary crime of a century ago, Brooke, the illegitimate daughter of an immigrant maid, struggles to conceal her identity and stay a jump ahead of the men who want to kill her. When she unexpectedly falls in love with Anthony, a local attorney, she has to decide whether to stop running and begin her life anew.</b></div>
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Having prior knowledge of the Lizzie Borden case from childhood (I was a morbid child), I was delighted to be asked to review 'The Murderer's Maid'.</div>
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Mailman really brings Lizzie to life in a very uneasy way. As a child I'd look at her photos and think how eerie she appeared, obviously this was not helped by the quality of the images of the time, but she always struck me as an uneasy person. She comes across exactly how I would have imagined her to, and it is a credit to Mailman at how deftly her characterisations of Lizzie, and the strained life in the Borden household are brought painfully to life. If, like me, the reader knows what happened to poor Andrew and Abby Borden, the lead up to it is almost agonising. It's an anxious read, there really is no other better word. Life with the Borden's from to start to finish is <i>painfully anxious</i>. </div>
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Poor Bridget had no idea what she was letting herself in for when she began working for the Borden's. Bridget just wants to make enough money to help her family back in Ireland and perform her daily duties. I get the sense that Lizzie was jealous of the freedoms allowed to Bridget - when she went to a dance on her day off, and took great pleasure in trying to unnerve Bridget. </div>
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On the flipside of the timeline we meet Brooke - who if I'm honest I was not invested in. Her backstory was not as interesting to me as the other half of the book, and the links to Lizzie seemed tangible, and predictable at best. I think that it is just my taste in the genre though, I very rarely find interest when there is another story-line running alongside the main theme of the book - in this case the Borden's. </div>
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I did like that when Brooke went to visit to Borden House to stay she seemed to react to the macabre way it had been turned into a business - and because she had a direct, personal link to the Borden's, it made me see it in a light so much more removed from it just being 'the murder house'. It's a very real situation because the house has been turned into a B&B - it seems grossly morbid, and this is coming from someone who reads into a lot of cold cases of times gone by. Whatever failures can be seen in Andrew Borden for being a 'penny pinching miser', and Abby for daring to try to be a mother in the place of the deceased first Mrs Borden, they did not deserve the horrifically gruesome fate that befell them. </div>
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The writing throughout Brooke's story-line isn't bad, it's just I could not get into it. The thing with the brothers out to get her and the constant moving seemed far fetched to me, as she'd already had an eventful life. It just seemed unrealistic. That is my main criticism, though readers who enjoy cat and mouse thrillers will like the book for both Bridget and Brooke's journeys. </div>
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I felt a deep sympathy for Abby throughout the book. I knew what was going to happen to her which made it all the more sadder. </div>
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Mailman writing is captivating in the Bridget focused part of the book, and she is extremely effective at creating the world and suffocating atmosphere that surrounded the Borden's and those connected to them, in the years leading up to the murders and then the immediate aftermath. </div>
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She leaves it up to the reader to deduce if Lizzie Borden really did take the axe and give her father and stepmother many whacks. For my part I have always thought it was Lizzie, and I had a great many hours of debate with my husband after finishing the book as to if he thought she was guilty or not - he maintains it wasn't her. The argument rages on. I'm with Bridget, in the sense that she was acquitted by a jury of men who just did not believe a woman was capable of such rage and violence. What happened on that unbearably hot day that the murders took place had been building up like a pressure cooker for years. Why could Lizzie not take what she saw as rightfully hers? All that was standing in the way were Andrew and Abby, and I do believe she thought she was smart enough to fool the police, and town into thinking there was no way she was involved. </div>
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Mailman's Lizzie is an uncomfortable bedfellow who stayed with me for a few nights since finishing the book, and I was very glad to see the back of Lizzie Borden once I had written this review. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 4/5</b></span></div>
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<u>About the Author</u></div>
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Erika Mailman is the author of The Witch’s Trinity, a San Francisco Chronicle Notable Book and Bram Stoker Award finalist, and Woman of Ill Fame, a Pushcart Press Editor’s Book Award nominee. She’s a Yaddo fellow and lives in Northern California with her family.</div>
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For more information, please visit Erika Mailman’s <a href="http://erikamailman.com/">website</a>. You can also find her on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/erika.mailman">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/ErikaMailman">Twitter</a>, and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/469747.Erika_Mailman">Goodreads</a>.</div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-318542919519488432017-10-13T09:39:00.002+01:002017-10-13T09:39:31.714+01:0063. 'Pleasing Mr Pepys' by Deborah Swift<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I was recently asked to take part in the virtual blog tour for Deborah Swift's 'Pleasing Mr Pepys' and I couldn't resist. I know a little bit about the restoration of the monarchy when Charles II came to England, but beyond a brief education in the Great Fire of London, and Charles' penchant for a buxom wench that's as far as my historical knowledge really goes.<br />
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I of course know the tale of how Pepys documented that he kissed a queen, namely Catherine of Valois on his birthday...<br />
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<i>On Shrove Tuesday 1669, I to the Abbey went, and by favour did see the body of Queen Catherine of Valois, and had the upper part of the body in my hands, and I did kiss her mouth, reflecting upon it I did kiss a Queen: and this my birthday and I thirty-six years old and I did kiss a Queen.</i></blockquote>
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<i>— Samuel Pepys</i></blockquote>
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I was very intrigued by the synopsis, which I share with you below, and couldn't wait to get stuck in.<br />
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<b>Set in a London rising from the ruins of the Great Fire, Pleasing Mr Pepys is a vivid re-imagining of the events in Samuel Pepys’s Diary.</b></div>
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<b>Desperate to escape her domineering aunt, Deb Willet thinks the post of companion to well-respected Elisabeth Pepys is the answer to her prayers. But Samuel Pepys’s house is not as safe as it seems. An intelligent girl in Deb’s position has access to his government papers, and soon she becomes a target of flamboyant actress Abigail Williams, a spy for England’s enemies, the Dutch.</b></div>
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<b>Abigail is getting old and needs a younger accomplice. She blackmails Deb into stealing Pepys’s documents. Soon, the respectable life Deb longs for slides out of her grasp. Mr Pepys’s obsessive lust for his new maid increases precisely as Abigail and her sinister Dutch spymaster become more demanding. When Deb falls for handsome Jem Wells, a curate-in-training, she thinks things cannot possibly get worse.</b></div>
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<b>Until – not content with a few stolen papers – the Dutch want Mr Pepys’s Diary.</b></div>
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<i>Pleasing Mr Pepys</i> is one of those books where the characters stay with you after you finish reading. I found my mind going back over their stories, and wondering of their futures once my journey with them had come to an end. I especially enjoyed that the protagonist is based on a real person, in the sense that Deb Willet was detailed in Pepys own diary, albeit from his own perspective. Swift brings Deb into vivid techno-colour vision - this is a woman who would not be out of place in today's society in her thoughts and feelings.<br />
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I find it especially topical in light of the news regarding Hollywood Harvey Weinstein, and allegations of sexual harassment/abuse women in the film industry received at his hands, because Pepys is not much different, in the sense that he doesn't see an issue with his actions - women are second to men, and the poorer classes are fair game, especially those within his household - a hazard of the society he was living him.<br />
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We meet Deb when she comes to accompany Elizabeth Pepys as a ladies maid. Deb has been educated to a high standard, and in the outset is thrilled to escape her domineering Aunt, although loathe to leave her sister Hester, who is constantly on her mind. She's conscious not to bring shame on the family name as her mother has, a mother she has not seen for years. Her mother's sudden disappearance and absence affect Deb deeply, and she hopes that by coming to London she may finally be able to trace her.<br />
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Deb is warned early on to be wary of Mr Pepys, who is painted in a somewhat sympathetic light in that he isn't an outright danger by the standards of the time, yes he is a predator, but he comes across as foolish and bumbling at the same time, although he is instant, pushy and inappropriate on so many levels - something Deb is able to play on later in the story, when desperate times call for desperate measures.<br />
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Through her connection to Pepys Deb is exposed to the bustling world of London's theatres, the main source of entertainment, and comes into contact with Abigail. Dazzled by Abigail's glamorous appearance, and easy going nature Deb is seduced into believing she has a real friend, something much welcome as Elizabeth Pepys swings between jealousy and blaming Deb for Samuel's attentions and wanting to protect Deb from her husband.<br />
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But Abigail Williams is not all she seems. Beneath the glamour is a dangerous agent for the Dutch. Having nestled herself in the very bosom of the English Naval Office, she makes the biggest error a spy can. She falls in love. With gathering information becoming harder, Abigail enlists Deb and coerces her into getting her the information she needs. I enjoyed Abigail's character development. She struck me as an intelligent and adaptable woman who was making her way in the world the best way she knew how - and if that involves silencing lose ends, well so be it. Abigail has a strong sense of self preservation, and as a skilled player of cat and mouse, she navigates the board with ease.<br />
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Swift is masterful when laying out the tension between Deb and Abigail as they try to catch one another out later in the book. I turned the pages with trepidation, as I had become attached to both women, and their stories - both with their own heartbreaking twists (which I shall leave for you to discover!).<br />
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Alongside Deb and Abigail we encounter Jeremiah Wells, the love interest for Deb. I really liked Jem's character - he was very much the moral compass for all, and the defining link between each character whether it was immediately obvious or not. He comes into contact with each major player, thus giving us Jem's opinion and insight alongside what we already know. His gentle nature appeals to Deb, who longs to escape Pepys' and the Dutch's clutches, but she fears dragging him into her mess. Oh what a tangled web we weave!<br />
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I very much enjoyed Swift's take on Deb Willet and the world around her. She's expanded Deb from the pages of Pepys' diary, and brought her to life beyond being Samuel's mistress. The intrigues were extremely well thought out and built up nicely, I found myself easily envisioning each stage as it played out. It's not easy to keep a reader engaged with a background of politics underpinning a story, but Swift does this well. She easily paints the picture of the restored King who cares nothing beyond his own pleasure, while the men who have protected the country wallow in poverty and starvation. They are facing the threat of not being able to feed or provide for their families, and begin to take what they see as the only means necessary. The Dutch loom like a grim spectre, seeping out from the pages to sow fear for all out characters, and this reader.<br />
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Swift's knowledge of 17th Century England during this period is key to her success, constantly reminding the reader of the day to day dangers that Londoners faced post The Great Fire - plague was still very much a danger, the destitute, undesirable living situations and the dictates of social morals during this period - this particular hit me hard as a woman because I really got the sense that the women were trapped in the merry-go-round of the society around them. I also enjoyed her references to the many different areas of London that the characters pass through, as someone who works in London I always got a little thrill of thinking, 'I've been there!' and visualising the areas through Deb's eyes.<br />
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<i>Pleasing Mr Pepys</i> is extremely well written and thought provoking. It goes beyond being just another book within the historical fiction genre - those who enjoy thrillers would love this book too. The characters stayed with me long after I had finished the last page, and I was saddened to learn that the real Deb Willet died while still very young, such were the perils of the time for every man and woman. Nothing was a certainty, although for fictional Deb I like to think she got her chance at a second life, and she lived it on her terms, not under the constraints of 'powerful' men, and with those she so desperately loved.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 5/5</b></span></div>
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<u>About the Author</u></div>
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Deborah Swift is the author of three previous historical novels for adults, The Lady’s Slipper, The Gilded Lily, and A Divided Inheritance, all published by Macmillan/St Martin’s Press, as well as the Highway Trilogy for teens (and anyone young at heart!). Her first novel was shortlisted for the Impress prize for new novelists.<br />
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She lives on the edge of the beautiful and literary English Lake District – a place made famous by the poets Wordsworth and Coleridge.<br />
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For more information, please visit Deborah Swift’s <a href="http://www.deborahswift.com/">website</a>. You can also find her on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/authordeborahswift/">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/authordeborahswift/">Twitter</a>, and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/authordeborahswift/">Goodreads</a>.</div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-59124199003455229392017-09-22T09:51:00.000+01:002017-10-04T17:09:26.670+01:0062. 'A Pearl For My Mistress' by Annabel Fielding<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>A story of class, scandal and forbidden passions in the shadow of war. Perfect for fans of Iona Grey, Gill Paul and Downtown Abbey.</i></div>
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<i>England, 1934. Hester Blake, an ambitious girl from an industrial Northern town, finds a job as a lady's maid in a small aristocratic household.</i></div>
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<i>Despite their impressive title and glorious past, the Fitzmartins are crumbling under the pressures of the new century. And in the cold isolation of these new surroundings, Hester ends up hopelessly besotted with her young mistress, Lady Lucy.</i></div>
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<i>Accompanying Lucy on her London Season, Hester is plunged into a heady and decadent world. But hushed whispers of another war swirl beneath the capital… and soon, Hester finds herself the keeper of some of society’s most dangerous secrets…</i><br />
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Set during the 1930s I knew I would enjoy this story from the get go, amongst the backdrop of the glamour of the 1930s, fascist Brits, Blackshirts, Political upheaval and class difference. </div>
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We follow Hester as she journeys to London to become a lady's maid. She is bright and ambitious, following in her sister's footsteps to escape the dreary Northern town she had called home for so long. Finding a job within the Fitzmartin home to daughter Lucy secure's Hester her ticket to freedom, or so it seems. Very quickly Hester is swept up into Lucy's life, and the intrigues that follow - and very soon those intrigues begin to present very real problems for Hester when Lucy is swept into Oswald Mosley's Svengali-like glamour. Hester very much opposes the beliefs of Mosley and Lucy, and is challenged with the very real question - can love trump all, especially upon the backdrop of differing social classes and core beliefs? </div>
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Fielding perfectly invokes the days gone by of Downton Abbey and I Capture The Castle, and those who love the 1930s era particularly will enjoy her first offering. I really enjoyed the contrasting lives of 'upstairs, downstairs' and feel she captured this brilliantly. While I did not mind the romance element I was drawn in more for the historical aspect of the story, but can see how it aided Fielding with adding another layer to the story. This is perfect for those seeking a romantic historical fiction and for those with an interest in the upheavals of the 30s, and how time was beginning to change for everyone, and having to work out where they stood as class systems began to be challenged and evolve into an entirely new creature, as the threat of war approaches. </div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: 4/5</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Keep up to date with the blogtour:</span></b></div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-61743226344929618692017-09-08T09:06:00.000+01:002017-10-04T17:09:53.217+01:0061.Blog Tour: 'The Keeping of Secrets' by Alice Graysharp <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>The keeper of family secrets, Patricia Roberts grows up isolated and lonely. Trust no one and you won't be disappointed is her motto. Three men fall in love with her and she learns to trust, only to find that their agendas are not her own. With secrets concealed from her by the ultimate love of her life, and with her own secret to keep, duplicity and deceit threaten their relationship. In a coming of age story set against the sweeping backdrop of the Second World War - evacuation, the Battle of Britain, the Blitz, buzz bombs and secret war work - Patricia ultimately has to decide whether to reveal her deepest held secret for the sake of her future happiness.</i></div>
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I am delighted to be sharing an extract from 'The Keeping of Secrets' on my blog as part of the blog tour. Here we find <span style="text-align: justify;">Jon is unexpectedly back in London in connection with secret war work.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Thank you to Rachel from Authoright for sending me a copy of the book (review will follow later this month so keep an eye out for it), and for asking me to take part in this Blog Tour. </span></div>
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<b>Click 'Read More' below to see it!</b><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">Jon
staggered along Whitehall towards Westminster, drained of energy, his only
emotion relief. Seeing the Red Lion across the road, he hesitated barely a
moment before diving in to the lounge bar, waiting his turn and ordering a pint
of best bitter. Retreating to a corner as the pub was very full he drank
deeply, the alcohol relaxing his tense muscles<i>. Just this one, then I</i></span><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span lang="FR">’</span></i><i style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US">ll be off</span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">.
Closing his eyes for a few moments, leaning against the wall, wondering how to
explain alcohol-laden breath to his mother, he heard as if from afar a vaguely
familiar female voice.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US">‘Jon, it <i>is</i>
Jon, isn</span><span lang="FR">’</span><span lang="EN-US">t it?</span><span lang="FR">’ </span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span lang="EN-US">He opened
his eyes to a vision in a smart dark brown skirt suit, a white blouse and a
cascade of autumn colours around a neck rising to a luscious-lipped mouth, a
tip-tilted nose and large brown eyes set in luminous skin beneath shoulder
length straight, shiny raven black hair. A memory surfaced of a warm curvaceous
body pressing against him below soft, insistent lips. Summer 1940. Reward for
walking her home from a party hosted by his cousin Margery. Feeling a stirring,
a hardening, <i>down boy, not now!</i>, he stooped slightly forward, exclaiming
wildly,</span><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b>About the author:</b> Born and raised in the Home Counties, Alice Graysharp has enjoyed a varied working life from hospitality to office work and retail. She currently lives in Surrey. This is her first novel, and the first title in a two book series, she is also already working on a seventeenth century trilogy. Published in the anniversary month of the outbreak of the Second World War and the Battle of Britain</div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Purchase from Amazon UK</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> - </span><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Keeping-Secrets-Alice-Graysharp-ebook/dp/B0744239GJ/ref=sr_1_8?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1502975713&sr=1-8&keywords=the+keeping+of+secrets"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">https://www.amazon.co.uk/Keeping-Secrets-Alice-Graysharp-ebook/dp/B0744239GJ/ref=sr_1_8?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1502975713&sr=1-8&keywords=the+keeping+of+secrets</span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Purchase from Barnes & Noble</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> - </span><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-keeping-of-secrets-alice-graysharp/1126686543?ean=9781911110910&st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Core+Shopping+Books_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP78860"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-keeping-of-secrets-alice-graysharp/1126686543?ean=9781911110910&st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Core+Shopping+Books_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP78860</span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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Want to follow the rest of the blog tour? Check out the next stops:</div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-72617362109503950982017-08-11T17:00:00.001+01:002017-08-28T20:20:06.562+01:0060. Recent Happenings & Moving Forward<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello, and welcome to the new incarnation of my blog!<br />
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I was beginning to feel very frustrated with the previous layout, and how posts were being affected by what should have been minor niggles to resolve. I started to really affect my enjoyment of blogging, and I am hoping this sleeker, more minimal aesthetic will help me moving forward.<br />
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I have changed my header, and have removed the previous one as I feel it no longer reflects or represents what I want this blog to be about - in part to a lot of interviews where I was told the image looked like it should be for a fashion blog, which is something this space no longer is. I'm so pleased with my new header, as it is a clean design in keeping with the layout, but also injects a pop of colour! The lovely <a href="https://twitter.com/beffshuff"><b>Bethan</b> </a>designed it for me and I highly recommend her!<br />
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In the spirit of change, I thought I should update you on recent life happenings, and future hopes and goals.<br />
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So, where to begin?<br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I have now been married for approximately 86 days, not that I'm counting! Our wedding day was wonderful (though I'm sure every bride says the same thing). It was a joy to share the day with out nearest and dearest. I know I speak for both myself, and my husband (I love writing that) that we really could feel the love in the room that day. It is so true that the day flies by, and I'm so glad we made sure to take moments to ourselves to reflect and enjoy the moments we had created. </span><div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">We went on honeymoon to Sorrento - and let me tell you it was </span><i style="text-align: justify;">very</i><span style="text-align: justify;"> much needed, as ten days before our wedding I was sadly made redundant.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">We went to Pompeii, Herculaneum and climbed Mount Vesuvius after going most of the way up in a 4x4. We had an amazing time, especially as my husband had never visited Italy before. It is safe to say we ate ourselves around Sorrento, which my husband's <a href="https://www.instagram.com/leonidas_182/">Instagram</a> will attest to. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;"> In the long run it seems to have to have been for the best, as I walked away in a strong position. I do miss seeing the friends I made there on a daily basis though, however I am sure I will continue to see them at social events.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I have started an new role at the time of writing this, at a kickarse company and I am very, very excited to get my teeth stuck into it. I've had quite a few weeks to kill before my start date after I secured the position, and as a result I am beginning to go slightly stir crazy. Don't get me wrong, down time is great, and it is the most I have ever had between jobs, but I'm beginning to need mental stimulation outside of the copious amounts of free time. Dare I even say I'm looking forward to cutting my teeth on commuting back into London? I </span><i style="text-align: justify;">know</i><span style="text-align: justify;"> I'm going to regret writing that...</span></div>
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<br style="text-align: justify;" /><span style="text-align: justify;">Moving on to what is next for me... we're starting to look for a new property to move to, as after four years in our first home together we have completely outgrown it. We both feel like we're on top of one another constantly and are desperate for more space. We're both set on a house. I've had my fill of flat complexes for the foreseeable - I was not made to live in such close quarters I have learned. So this is our next big step, which will hopefully be resolved by the end of November, and then I can get a massive Christmas tree this year (maybe even two if the property allows!), although packing away my books for however long always pains me. </span><br style="text-align: justify;" /><span style="text-align: justify;">I have been working on a new blogging schedule which I hope to share soon - including relaunching the Facebook Page for my blog. I just need to get my head round my new hours and what is feasible along side my job and other commitments. </span></div>
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Let me know if you like the blog's new look and design!</div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-12761705598143635872017-07-10T12:13:00.003+01:002017-08-11T16:59:54.457+01:0059. 'A Gathering of Ravens' by Scott Oden<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>To the Danes, he is skraelingr; to the English, he is orcneas; to the Irish, he is fomoraig. He is Corpse-maker and Life-quencher, the Bringer of Night, the Son of the Wolf and Brother of the Serpent. He is Grimnir, and he is the last of his kind--the last in a long line of monsters who have plagued humanity since the Elder Days.</i></center>
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<i>Drawn from his lair by a thirst for vengeance against the Dane who slew his brother, Grimnir emerges into a world that's changed. A new faith has arisen. The Old Ways are dying, and their followers retreating into the shadows; even still, Grimnir's vengeance cannot be denied.</i></center>
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<i>Taking a young Christian hostage to be his guide, Grimnir embarks on a journey that takes him from the hinterlands of Denmark, where the wisdom of the ancient dwarves has given way to madness, to the war-torn heart of southern England, where the spirits of the land make violence on one another. And thence to the green shores of Ireland and the Viking stronghold of Dubhlinn, where his enemy awaits.</i></center>
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<i>But, unless Grimnir can set aside his hatreds, his dream of retribution will come to nothing. For Dubhlinn is set to be the site of a reckoning--the Old Ways versus the New--and Grimnir, the last of his kind left to plague mankind, must choose: stand with the Christian King of Ireland and see his vengeance done or stand against him and see it slip away?</i></center>
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<i>Scott Oden's A Gathering of Ravens is an epic novel of vengeance, faith, and the power of myth. </i></center>
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When I read that A Gathering of Ravens combined elements from Beowulf and Lord of the Rings via the press release I felt my heart jump for joy. When I was younger enjoyed losing myself in sweeping epics that incorporated elements of the medieval worlds that so fascinated me; and I have to say, I was not let down.<br />
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Our two main characters are Grimnir and Étaín. Now, Grimnir is a creature that those around him had assigned to folklore and dark myths, however he very much exisits and has been biding his time as he seeks to bring down one known as 'Half-Dane', his nephew who slew Grimnir's brother. </div>
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Let's start with Grimnir first. He is described very similar to how I envisioned Orcs from Lord of the Rings, with red glowing eyes (surely something of nightmares!) and he is <i>soaked</i> in blood from the get go. He have absolutely no qualms with killing, barely flinching at the thought. To him it is a means to an end, and helps him to get to his goal faster. He's the typical anti-hero, who becomes a hero in the end - in a roundabout way, and I am sure if Grimnir could speak for himself he would deny any heroic acts. </div>
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When we first meet Étaín, it is under the guise of another and I really enjoyed the plot twist where she was revealed to be a woman, and not in fact Brother Aiden whom we meet in the opening pages. </div>
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As a woman reading the fantasy genre, it is appealing to read strong female characters, whom is also believable, and believable Étaín was. Her back story is revealed throughout the course of the story, and how she is saved by Christianity - and faith is an undercurrent that runs throughout the pages for all characters. She comes to realise that if she believes in The White Christ, then the other gods and religions must also have a place in the world too, albeit their power depends very much on who believes in what. The White Christ is gradually taking over and diminishing the power of the gods of old. </div>
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I enjoyed the development between Grimnir and Étaín, and how she brought out an element of humanity in him and how he toughed her up. They travel together, albeit unwillingly on Étaín's part at first when Grimnir kidnaps her, and eventually she springs into action to become Grimnir's saviour when he needs it most. </div>
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Oden writes superbly. I was reading A Gathering of Ravens in the Italian heat during my honeymoon, yet the cold, harsh weather felt so vivid as I lost myself in the pages, and it felt very in line with a Norse saga. As a lover of medieval history, the way Oden describes each battle or clash of swords, and the desperation as man fought man in a battle to the death. Grimnir's body count alone is impressive!</div>
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The plot flowed extremely well, and there was a natural progression when specific supporting characters gradually become more and more prominent. Everything is not what it seems, and as the Half-Dane's plans begin to unravel supporting characters really do come into their own, and there is a nice plot twist in the final pages were friends who thought they were lost to each other are reunited - much to my delight! </div>
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A Gathering of Ravens is one of the best fantasy books I have read in a long time, and the characters stayed with my long after I had finished it - but don't tell Grimnir that, he'll think I'm going soft! <br />
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<span style="color: #303030; font-family: "alegreya" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><a href="https://twitter.com/orcwriter">Follow Scott Oden on Twitter</a></b></span></span></center>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #303030; font-family: "alegreya" , serif;">I was sent a uncorrected proof copy in exchange for a honest review. </span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Can you recommend any other fantasy books similar that I may like? </span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Let me know in the comments below!</span></center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-52453370312425922062017-07-06T21:05:00.001+01:002017-08-11T16:59:14.872+01:0057. 'Every Secret Thing' by Rachel Crowther <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Can you ever bury the past? </i></center>
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<i>She'd recognised in him something of herself: that sense of not belonging, of secrets fiercely kept . . .</i></center>
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<i>Five friends, newly graduated, travel together to the Lake District. Young and ambitious, they little imagine the events that will overtake them that fateful summer, tearing their fragile group apart.</i></center>
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<i>Twenty years later, they return to the same spot, summoned by a mysterious bequest. It's not long before old friendships - and old romances - are re-kindled. But soon, too, rivalries begin to re-emerge and wounds are painfully reopened . . .</i></center>
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<i>How long does it take for past sins to be forgiven? And can the things they destroy ever really be recovered?</i></center>
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While not the most obvious choice for my typical book review, it is sometimes nice to step outside the comfort of your favourite genre and wade into the pool or something new; which is exactly why I jumped at the chance to review <i>Every Secret Thing</i> when the <a href="https://twitter.com/bookollective?lang=en">Bookollective</a> offered. </center>
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Following five friends through the years, from their first meetings at university in Cambridge, and joining the College Choir, the friends form that instant kind of bond you make when you're young and you're branching out into the world of unknown that is going to university and away from home. </center>
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Their bonds are forged in their mutual love and passion for music, and through the circle that they move in due to their association with the choir and responsibilities required of members. </center>
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I enjoyed that each character differed from the next - it was refreshing to read Crowther's take on how these individuals interacted with each other, and how their backgrounds and culture dictated their reactions. It was a very realistic element, and certainly gave me throwbacks to my days of university when you're all thrown together and left to muck it out. What's more is her careful attention to fleshing out the complexities of these relationships, aided by her beautifully descriptive writing style which I really did enjoy, and I liked how as readers we were taken back and forth over the years. It helped me get my teeth into the story that bit more. </center>
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A trip to the Lake District is the catalyst of the story line, and the ripples of that fateful trip with Fay, Bill, Cressida, Judith, Cressida Marmion and Stephen echo down the years, and haunts decisions made, which they are forced to confront 20 years later. To say it was gripping is a complete understatement!</center>
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Overall, <i>Every Secret Thing</i> was very well written. There is a care and attention to detail, and character development. I said earlier that it is not my typical choice of fiction, and I must admit I did stray quite far out of my comfort zone. At first I wasn't sure if this book was for me, but I'm glad I took it with my on my honeymoon because once I gave it a chance I could not put it down. I love how vividly Crowther paints with her words. </center>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 4.5/5</b></span></center>
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<b><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Every-Secret-Thing-Rachel-Crowther/dp/1785762125">Buy on Amazon</a></b></center>
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Keep up to date with the blog tour</center>
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Thank you to Bookollective for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review. </div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-12708865992647391892017-05-14T19:25:00.001+01:002017-08-11T16:58:45.330+01:0056. 'Outremer' by D. N. Carter<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;"><i>Who Controls The Past Controls The Future</i></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i> An epic love story must overcome religious divide and a plot to eradicate two blood lines, as the Crusades and the search for the ancient mysteries of the Holy Grail gather momentum.</i></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Raised by his father in La Rochelle, France, Paul Plantavalu is known for his artistic nature, inquisitive mind and Christian faith. He also has an unshakable love for his Muslim childhood friend, Alisha al Komaty. Courageous and outspoken, she returns Paul’s love. But their path is paved with obstacles; religion, war, political chaos and a mysterious enemy determined to destroy their family lines.</i></span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Sometime between 1110 AD and 1120 AD in the aftermath of the first crusade, a small band of nine knights — the founding knights Templar — recover ancient precious artefacts left by a former, advanced civilisation, beneath the City of Jerusalem. Ruthlessly guarded, the secrets revealed by this discovery are highly prized by powerful and dangerous forces far and wide; the repercussions of their capture are inextricably linked to Paul and Alisha. As Paul starts to experience dark and vivid dreams and the fragile balance of peace starts to crumble, it will fall to an enigmatic man known as Kratos and his female warrior protégée Abi Shadana, to safeguard Paul and Alisha.</i></span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Paul and Alisha’s love story weaves between the threads of our reality and other realms — from the Druids to the Sufi mystics, the Magi of the East, the secret political arm of the Knights Templar and the Isma’ilis, the Assassins. Knights and pilgrims alike will witness some of the darkest battles ever fought. The discovery of a unique sword’s lethal power and whispered connections to King Arthur and the Holy Grail lead Paul and Alisha to question if their lives ever be the same again.</i></span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><i>The first of a four-part series, Outremer is an historical epic, which sweeps across England, Scotland and France, to Syria, Jerusalem and Egypt. Discover the truth — and crack the ancient code — behind the great mysteries of the High Middle Ages for yourself.</i></span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Now onto my thoughts...</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal; text-align: justify;">Outremer is book 1 out of 4. When starting the book, you are given a breakdown of character names and some imagery, I imagine to help you visualise the characters, something that I have never come across in a book before. There is also a vast breakdown of the contents page, which is useful when going back to re-read passages - and it must be noted that there are </span><span style="font-size: small; text-align: justify;"><i>a lot</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-weight: normal; text-align: justify;"> of main characters to remember and visualise, which also slowed my reading time. </span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">From the outset I want to make it clear that I have not finished Outremer - I did not give myself enough time prior to sitting down to write and post this review, an error of mine, but I did not expect the book to be so dense! <i>(As a side note, I am in the midst of an extremely stressful time in my professional life outside of book blogging which has also cut into the time I have had to read)</i>. The sheer size of this book should have been a pre-warning to me!</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">Carter has taken a great amount of care with creating and presenting the world in which the characters inhabit. When I say, it is vast I don’t do so lightly - Holy Grail quests, secret sects, Knight Templars, a love story complicated by culture and opposing religions in a time when the two simply did not meet in matrimony. Definitely one for those who are captivated by the stories of Dan Brown et al, and anyone interested in The Knights Templar's and the secretive world and codes they lived by. </span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">There is such a care to research and attention to detail that was pleasantly surprising. Carter is to be applauded for teaching his audience about symbology - no easy feat I am sure while keeping the reader interested! As a stickler for historical fact within historical fiction I am also pleased to see that he hasn't strayed too far off the beaten track in terms of what is known about The Crusades, or what would be credible <i>(Philippa Gregory/The White Queen I am looking at you!)</i>. I feel that is something that will keep readers invested in this book series as I know the moment I feel something has strayed too far off the garden path of credibility I will lose interest <i>extremely</i> quickly.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">The book is very 'meaty', dense, and is certainly one I look forward to continuing while giving it more time to read further. I can tell that this is a labour of love by D. N. Carter, and that makes it a joy to read. Don't be intimidated by the size of the book at all, it is well worth losing yourself in it. </span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">My rating so far would be a strong 3.5/5 - mainly because I have not finished it as of yet but it is looking promising to move up to a 4.5 as I continue!</span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">About the author: </span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">After strange and vivid experiences whilst living in Cyprus as a child, author D N Carter has been fascinated by the history, myths and legends of the Middle Ages and mankind’s past. As he got older travels to Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, the Languedoc region of France and the deserts of Arabia fuelled his enthusiasm. While not decoding maps and mathematical codes D N Carter enjoys adventure sports from parachuting to microlight flying. Today he divides his time between East Anglia in the UK and the south of France with his family.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Purchase Outremer <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Outremer-I-D-N-Carter/dp/1911525255/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1493117717&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=d+n+carter">here</a></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">Thank you to Rachel from <a href="https://twitter.com/Authoright">Authoright</a> for generously sending me a copy to review!</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: normal;">Want to continue following the book tour? I've got you covered:</span></span></center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-16865678469029922062017-05-07T10:07:00.000+01:002017-08-11T16:58:27.747+01:0055. GUEST POST: Joan of Kent by Anne O'Brien for Poppy Coburn<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In celebration of Anne O'Brien's highly anticipated (by me!) newest release, <b>The Shadow Queen</b>, she has kindly agreed to share a post written for my blog, looking into the character of Joan, and the challenged she faced when she chose to wed Thomas Holland in secret. </center>
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I very much feel that Joan was a will unto herself, and this theme runs strong throughout the book.</center>
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Thank you very much to Anne for taking the time to create this guest post! Thank you for also sending me a copy of the new release, a review will follow next week when I have finished it, I am firing through it, although also wanting to savour it. Bookworm problems, eh?</center>
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<b>When Joan of Kent married Thomas Holland ...</b></center>
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... she broke every rule in the medieval book of how a royal princess should conduct herself.</center>
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- She married without the consent of family or King. </center>
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- She married a man who was unworthy as a suitable husband for a Plantagenet princess.</center>
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- She married clandestinely, in secret, giving rise to scandal and rumour that would do her family no good at all. </center>
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- What's more, she was well aware of what she was doing, brought up as she was in the household of Queen Philippa to know the tenets of the society in which she lived and what was expected of her. Youth could not claim ignorance in Joan's case.</center>
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What motivated Joan of Kent to carry out such an act, that must be discovered, and would have lasting consequences, and those not pleasant, for both herself and her new husband, when in 1340 in the town of Ghent, she engaged in this marriage ceremony with Sir Thomas Holland? She was twelve years old; he a young knight of twenty six. The ceremony had no priest, no banns, no religious or sacred trappings of any kind. We do not even know where it took place so it may not even have been in a church. It was merely an exchange of words in the present tense between Joan and Thomas to signify their wish to be man and wife. There were witnesses, and by Joan's own admission, the marriage was consummated. </center>
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This was a marriage per verba de praesenti, a form of marriage frowned on by the church but still recognised as legally binding if it was witnessed and the couple had marked the event with physical union.</center>
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Thomas then packed his belongings and departed for knight errantry in Europe, driven by a need to make his own living, for as a household knight his income was meagre and his position as a younger son would mean there was little inheritance for him to look forward to. Meanwhile Joan returned to her life at the royal court as if nothing had happened. </center>
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A matter of months later, Joan stood beside William Montagu, 12 year old heir of the Earl of Salisbury, in a second far more legal marriage before the royal court, with the full weight of blessings of her mother, the Salisbury family, King and Queen, and a bishop to carry out the ceremony.</center>
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Why did she do something so outrageous? As a Plantagenet princess, she would have been raised to know that her marriage would be an important one, arranged by her cousin King Edward III to ensure loyalty from some important family, either English or European. Why did Joan make such a misalliance? How did she foresee the ultimate outcome from these two marriages? Sadly, her thoughts were never put on record and we are left with mere supposition and conjecture.</center>
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If Joan broke the rules, so did Thomas Holland.</b></center>
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Thomas has easily been written off as a 'bad man', persuading a naive young girl to become his wife because he saw the chance of a well connected Plantagenet bride. He had preyed on her youth, seducing her with his glamour, encouraging her to wed him romantically without permission, so that, infatuated, she threw her reputation to the winds. He should have known better, but was driven by ambition to take this act of supreme selfishness. Joan was a victim of a vicious knave.</center>
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This may be so, that Thomas Holland had ambition in mind. And yet there is much evidence to suggest that Joan was not the naive pawn that this version would make her, that this marriage was not the product of childish infatuation. When given the opportunity to abandon this first marriage and remain wife to the Earl of Salisbury instead, a far more prestigious marriage, Joan fought tooth and nail to return to Thomas, so much so that she was kept under restraint for more than two years and was forbidden to give evidence to the papal court that her marriage to Thomas was viable. A soon as she could, she returned to Thomas. In her will it was Thomas Holland that she wished to lie beside in death. </center>
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This does not sound like a simple infatuation, quick to die a death. Nor did Joan see Thomas as the evil seducer. Perhaps Thomas did use the glamour of his position to win a valuable bride, but it remained a true marriage with five children, four of whom grew to adulthood. </center>
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There are those who today might condemn Thomas for taking a girl, little more than a child, as his wife, but it is important that we keep this in perspective. Girls from high-born medieval families were frequently married at a young age. It was not unusual for a royal bride to be so young, although it is true to say that such marriages were often not consummated until bride and groom were old enough to take on marital duties. Yet Philippa of Hainault was fourteen when she wed King Edward III and only sixteen when she gave birth to Edward of Woodstock. Margret Beaufort was thirteen years old when she gave birth to the future Henry VII. It might be considered unacceptable in today's mores but Joan's apparent immaturity fits seamlessly into the pattern of medieval marriage of the great and the good.</center>
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And finally, why did Joan allow herself to be given in marriage to William Montagu, when she was already married, and that at some point this first marriage to Thomas must come to light? Again there is no evidence, only supposition. Family pressure would certainly be applied, Joan's mother hoping that Thomas Holland would die abroad and solve all their problems. Furthermore it was the wish of the King to reward the family of the Earl of Salisbury, his greatest friend, with this valuable marriage. Whatever the reasons for Joan's compliance, she became the bride of the heir to the earldom of Salisbury in what was undoubtedly a bigamous marriage.</center>
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The only certainty we have in this legal morass of Joan's making is that she never regretted her marriage to Thomas Holland. Without evidence we are allowed to interpret it as we wish. And since she escaped the Montagu marriage and returned immediately to Thomas Holland, the romantics can only presume that she loved him.</center>
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But then, where does Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales, fit into this marvellous story? All is there to be enjoyed in <b>The Shadow Queen</b>. </center>
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The Shadow Queen is published by <a href="https://twitter.com/HQstories">HQ Stories</a></center>
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Find out more about Anne O'Brien:</h3>
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<b><a href="https://twitter.com/anne_obrien">Twitter</a></b></div>
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<a href="http://www.anneobrien.co.uk/">http://www.anneobrien.co.uk/</a></div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-48628572944989529682017-04-28T10:23:00.003+01:002017-08-11T16:57:42.371+01:0054. GUEST POST: Exposing the Real ‘Bloody Mary’ By Samantha Wilcoxson for Poppy Coburn<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In celebration of Samantha Wilcoxson's newest release, I invited her to create a post about her enigmatic subject, Mary I. </center>
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Mary has always been a controversial figure of English history, and Samantha examines how she came to be posthumously known as 'Bloody Mary'.</center>
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Once I decided to write about Queen Mary, I discovered that people largely hold one of two views of her. The first group quickly writes her off as a bloodthirsty butcher who was set upon vengeance. The second is somewhat more sympathetic, still believing her to have killed people with revenge in mind, but not holding her completely responsible because of the difficult life that she lived. What I would like to offer is a third picture of a woman who had a great faith, good intentions, and unfulfilled desire for love.</center>
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It is impossible to look at Mary without seeing the shadow of the 284 protestants who were burned at the stake during her reign. This image is one that was heavily emphasised by her sister, Elizabeth, upon her accession, Elizabeth being a much more skilled politician than her sister had been. The term ‘Bloody Mary’ comes from this time, not from Mary’s own lifetime. While it is difficult to wrap the modern mind around burning as form of punishment and the reasons for it, we must attempt to understand if we are truly going to appreciate the history of the sixteenth century.</center>
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To the twenty-first century mind, both religious persecution and cruel punishment for crimes are considered unacceptable, but if we are to judge Mary fairly we must look at the expectations and beliefs of her contemporaries. The rulers of the sixteenth century had a problem to deal with that had not troubled their predecessors. Faith had always been a matter of state and it was one of a monarch’s duties to shepherd their people along the journey to heaven. While some division had taken place in previous centuries, it was nothing like the schism that occurred after Martin Luther issued his 95 theses. </center>
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This is the world Mary entered with a strong faith but little political acumen. She had been raised with the expectation of being queen – at least for most of her childhood. Therefore, she was well educated and understood her responsibilities to her subjects. Yet she had also been neglected and removed from the political stage for her young adult years, leaving her immature in matters of manipulation and negotiation. When Mary took the throne, she was not out for revenge, she was committed to saving a country that she was certain her brother had placed upon a highway to hell.</center>
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We do not think about salvation and eternity the way those living in Tudor times did. This is likely because we do not experience the high rate of infant mortality, raging illnesses with no cure, and battlefield deaths that they endured. Of course, we experience loss, but death was a much more daily part of life, at any age, to one living centuries ago. It would have been an outrage to the people of England if their queen had not been concerned for their faith and eternal life.</center>
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Mary was greatly concerned. Throughout Edward VI’s reign, she had continued to keep the liturgical hours and have the mass said at her estates regardless of her brother’s statutes against it. When the people swarmed to her in support in favor of the usurper Lady Jane Grey, they knew that it meant a return to the old faith, and it was what many of them desired. They would have also expected that to mean a punishment of those who were involved with heresy.</center>
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It is a significant misunderstanding to assume that rebellions against Mary were a rejection of the Catholic faith. Events such as Wyatt’s Rebellion were actually targeted at Mary’s choice of spouse. Having never experienced a queen regnant before, Englishmen were wary of what power her husband would be given, both during her life and after her death. When she chose Prince Philip of Spain, many saw England’s future as a part of the Holy Roman Empire which Philip’s father, Charles V, ruled. As unrest grew, the outcry of the persecuted Protestants joined that of the anti-Spanish faction to become one.</center>
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Why did Mary choose Philip? He was certainly not her only prospect, despite the fact that Mary was thirty-seven when she took the crown. Her mother’s childbearing history and her own poor health gave rise to fears that her choice would have great effect on the future, and Mary understood this. She could have chosen an Englishman. Distant cousins Edward Courtenay and Reginald Pole were good options, reuniting York and Tudor family lines, but Mary trusted the judgement of her uncle, Charles V, to whom she had once been betrothed, when he offered her his son.</center>
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Philip, eleven years younger and with his own domains to rule, entered the marriage somewhat reluctantly but dutifully. While Mary was looking for the love that had long been denied her, Philip was hoping for a promptly born heir. </center>
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In the meantime, Cardinal Reginald Pole was recalled to England, not to be king, but to be Archbishop of Canterbury after the execution of Thomas Cranmer. Pole was not an advocate of burning, but he also understood that the idea of coexisting religions did not yet exist. He was one of few religious scholars of the day who enjoyed discussions with Catholics and Protestants alike, leading one contemporary to say of him, "He has been very unfortunate . . . being considered a Lutheran in Rome, in Germany a papist." Even with this relatively tolerant point-of-view for the era, he understood Mary’s need to take control as Head of the Church of England.</center>
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It may surprise some to learn that Mary’s council frequently accused her of misplaced mercy. She initially refused to have Jane Grey executed for treason, though the woman had ruled in Mary’s rightful position for almost a fortnight. Reluctant queen or not, there was no doubt that this was high treason. Mary also refused to take steps against her plotting sister besides relatively comfortable imprisonment, despite Elizabeth’s hunger for her sister’s throne. Hundreds of soldiers of Wyatt’s Rebellion were pardoned by Mary, as was Henry Grey, Jane’s father, until he rebelled following his original pardon. The woman we know as Bloody Mary would be shocked by the sobriquet, as would most who knew her.</center>
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So, why did Mary burn Protestants? Was it because she blamed them for her mother’s downfall or her father’s rejection? Did she simply hate those who did not share her beliefs? The answer is a resounding no.</center>
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Mary believed, as did those who lived during her reign, that burning was a foretaste of hell. It was specifically chosen as a punishment for heresy to give sufferers a chance to repent of their false beliefs and gain entrance to heaven. What we see as a slow, cruel death (and it was) had a purpose. Those who went to their death this way had the opportunity to reject hell and beg God for forgiveness. Witnesses would see what hell would be like – and hopefully see heartfelt recantation – and examine their own faith. As horrid as it seems to us, burning was intended to save the most people for eternity. </center>
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In the end, though, Mary’s efforts failed. She failed to bear an heir, failed to build a happy marriage, failed to reunite England with Rome. Yet, when the heartbroken queen went to her death, she did not attempt to deny her sister the crown. Elizabeth had schemed and was expected to undo all that Mary had done, but instead of denying her right to inherit as Edward had attempted to do, Mary accepted her fate and trusted the future to the God she had tried so devotedly to serve.</center>
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<b style="text-align: left;">Find out more about Samantha Wilcoxson:</b></div>
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<b><a href="http://author.to/SamanthaWilcoxson">Amazon Author Link</a></b></div>
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<b>Book Links</b></div>
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<i><a href="http://mybook.to/PPTQ">Plantagenet Princess, Tudor Queen</a></i> </div>
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<i><a href="http://mybook.to/FaithfulTraitor">Faithful Traitor</a></i> </div>
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<i><a href="http://mybook.to/QueenOfMartyrs">Queen of Martyrs</a></i> </div>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/PlantagenetEmbers/">Facebook</a> </div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/samanthajw">Goodreads</a> </div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCu7FOGMdS4uHQklhT-WViEQ">Youtube </a></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/samantha_wilcoxson">Instagram </a></div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-2715003803495947882017-04-21T13:33:00.003+01:002017-08-11T16:56:45.541+01:0053. GUEST POST: In the Straitjacket (on the discipline of writing historical fiction) by Edoardo Albert <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I've decided to include a new kind of featured post on my blog - the Guest Post! Kicking off the first ever Guest Post here is author Edoardo Albert, whose books I have reviewed <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2017/03/109-oswiu-king-of-kings-by-edoardo.html">here</a> and <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2017/03/109-oswiu-king-of-kings-by-edoardo.html">here</a>. In this feature, Edoardo writes about his journey becoming a historical fiction writer - I can't wait to share Edoardo's post with you, so lets get to it! Thank you to Edoardo for agreeing to write this feature for my blog. </center>
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<b>In the Straitjacket (on the discipline of writing historical fiction) by Edoardo Albert </b></center>
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That’s the great limitation and the great strength of historical fiction (at least, in the manner I write it). As a writer, I have to accept what happened and work with it, in all its messy reality, rather than trying to mould the historical facts to my narrative. Of course, it’s an open question in the field of historical fiction as to how much rewriting of history is allowed before historical fiction becomes historical fantasy. Let’s take as an example Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe novels. Along with Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin books, the Sharpe stories are probably my favourite series of novels but in them, Cornwell reshapes the historical record to put Sharpe at the centre of the action, from being the man to claim the first French Imperial eagle to be lost in the Peninsular War to taking part in the Battle of Trafalgar. I have no problem with putting Sharpe at the centre of all the great events of the time, but I begin to get a little uneasy when a fictional character is given the credit for doing something that a real historical person accomplished. So when writing my own books about 7th-century Britain I made a pact with myself – and with the spirits of those people I was writing about – that I would cleave to the historical record as closely as I possibly could.</center>
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I thought that this would make things difficult for me as a writer but the extraordinary thing is, that it did not. By accepting this discipline, I was forced to attempt to enter imaginatively into the sparse record we have for this time. Unlike the Napoleonic era, our sources for this time are meagre: basically Bede, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and some poetic allusions in the poetry and song of the peoples who became the Welsh and the Irish. In terms of what actually happened, Bede provides by far the most detail, but of course his interest was in the ecclesiastical history of the English people, not their political and military history. Still he provides enough evidence to provide the frameworks for my stories of the three successive kings of Northumbria, Edwin, Oswald and Oswiu.</center>
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Not long into writing Edwin, the first of the novels, I realised that the real skill in writing these stories would be in creating characters who would credibly make the choices and do the actions that Bede ascribes to them. I slowly realised that what I was doing was writing imaginative history rather than historical fiction. With that realisation, the writing really took off. </center>
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Looking back now, having finished the trilogy, I’m pleased with how closely I did manage to cleave to the historical record. Indeed, to my knowledge I only made two changes, one of them inadvertent. In Oswald, I placed the climactic battle between Oswald and Penda in winter, when Bede dates it to 5 August 642. I must put my hand up and admit that this was pure writer error: I completely forgot that we knew the date for the battle and, in the midst of writing what felt so much like a wintersfall encounter, I put it in winter. My second departure from the historical record was, however, done with full knowledge. In the hugely complicated dynastic politics of the time, Bede records that Oswiu’s son and daughter respectively married the daughter and son of his great rival and enemy, Penda of Mercia. With a narrative already groaning under the weight of marriages and alliances, I decided that this was one marriage more than the story could bear, so I omitted the alliance between Oswiu’s son and Penda’s daughter. But, apart from that, what I wrote was what happened – so far as we know it.</center>
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By accepting these limitations – the messy complications of history – I believe the writing and the stories were greatly improved; so much so that I’m not sure how I’ll cope when I have to write a story where I have greater freedom. But I’m going to have to find out soon..</center>
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Find out more about Edoardo Albert:</h3>
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<a href="http://www.edoardoalbert.com/">www.edoardoalbert.com</a></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/London-Spiritual-History-Edoardo-Albert/dp/0745956963" id="x_yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1492351382010_2932" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">London: A Spiritual History</a><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"> out now.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Oswald-Return-King-Northumbrian-Thrones/dp/1782641165" id="x_yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1492351382010_3161" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Oswald: Return of the King</a><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"> out now.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/In-Search-Alfred-Great-Legend/dp/1445638940/" id="x_yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1492351382010_2929" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">In Search of Alfred the Great: the King, the Grave, the Legend</a><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"> out now.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Edwin-High-Britain-Northumbrian-Thrones/dp/1782640339" id="x_yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1492351382010_3159" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Edwin: High King of Britain</a><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"> out now.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Northumbria-Lost-Kingdom-Hidden-History/dp/0752459708/" id="x_yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1492351382010_3160" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" style="background-color: white; outline: 0px; text-align: start;" target="_blank">Northumbria: the Lost Kingdom</a><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"> out now.</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;">Thank you for this guest post Edoardo!</span></span></center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-9876596625127197142017-03-27T14:16:00.000+01:002017-08-11T16:55:42.816+01:0052. 'God's Hammer' by Eric Schumacher: Part II<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Following on from my <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2017/03/110-gods-hammer-by-eric-schumacher.html">Q + A post</a> with Eric Schumacher I am excited to share with you my review of God's Hammer.</center>
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The book begins with young Hakon Haraldsson being taken as a fosterling to king Aethelstan’s court, for safekeeping and to continue his princely training. Hakon is the illegitimate youngest son of Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway. We follow Hakon’s journey from outsider at Aethelstan’s court, to eventually an outsider in his homeland when he sent back to Norway to stake his claim to the throne after his father’s death. To be successful, Hakon must defeat his older, bloodthirsty brother Erik Bloodaxe, who has already disposed of his other brothers and rival claimants.</center>
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What follows is Hakon’s journey and his struggles as he tries to integrate himself back into Norweigan life, with a faith that continuously sets him apart not just in beliefs but in customs and moral judgement. The backdrop and undercurrent theme is of religious strife, warfare and complicated allegiances. Hakon cannot abide the pagan sacrifices his countrymen insist on carrying out for favor with the old Gods, and struggles with the fact that if he imposes his own Christian belief on his countrymen he will lose all support, and his beliefs are tested further upon the discovery of a face from his years at Athelstan’s court, upon which the fate of his uprising hangs in the balance. </center>
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God’s Hammer is superbly written and researched. Eric has painstakingly brought the chaotic times of Viking Norway to life, with care and detail given to each character that you encounter within the pages, however that being said, the book is not overly dense in unnecessary description. It was a rapid, unsteady time where nothing was certain and I feel that the flow of the book appropriately reflected this. Eric doesn’t drag out Hakon’s journey because he doesn’t need to, which also leaves it nicely for a sequel which he tells me is in the works even now. I was pleased to be told such as I’m not quite ready to say goodbye to Hakon just yet. </center>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 5/5</b></span></center>
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Twitter: @DarkAgeScribe</center>
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Facebook: www.facebook.com/EricSchumacherAuthor</center>
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Publisher: Creativia.org</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-39202061838568766012017-03-24T17:15:00.003+00:002017-08-11T16:55:08.485+01:0051. 'God's Hammer' by Eric Schumacher<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>It is 935 A.D. and the North is in turmoil. The Norse king, Harald Fairhair, has died, leaving the High Seat of the realm to his murderous son, Erik Bloodaxe. To solidify his rule, Erik ruthlessly kills all claimants to his throne, save one: his teenage brother Hakon, who is being raised in the Christian courts of Engla-lond. Summoned by the enemies of Erik, young Hakon returns to the Viking North to face his brother and claim his birthright, only to learn that victory will demand sacrifices beyond his wildest nightmares.</i></center>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Eric reached out to me to see if I'd be interested in reviewing his debut novel, God's Hammer and I was intrigued from the moment I read the synopsis. I have previously been living in the Dark Ages with my last book review, and I wasn't quite ready to let go of the era. </span></center>
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To kick off my review, I asked Eric to take part in a <b>Q + A</b> session, and he willingly obliged. I think this will be an element of my reviews that I will continue to include, as I really feel that I and my readers get to learn more about the author which is always a bonus! </center>
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<b>Where did the initial concept for the book come from?</b></center>
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I’ve been a huge fan of Dark Age history my entire life. When I was in my late twenties, I heard about the book Heimskringla, or The Lives of the Norse Kings, a collection of sagas written by the Icelandic skald, Snorre Sturlason. In that collection was the story of Hakon the Good, or Hakon Haraldsson. I was drawn to Hakon’s story for a number of reasons. While we don't know all of the facts of Hakon's life or whether those “facts” recounted in Snorre’s saga are entirely true, we do know that even if marginally true, Hakon's story takes many of the norms of Viking literature and turns them on their head. In many ways, Hakon is the anti-Viking, yet a memorable hero nonetheless. And that's precisely what drew me to him.</center>
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Here are a few examples of what I mean:</center>
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The sagas and literature are bursting with tales of strong, fearsome Viking warriors. When Hakon returns from England to fight for the High Seat, he is approximately fourteen. In other words, his body is not fully developed. While he may have been strong or large for his age (we have no way of knowing), he is anything but the Beowulf-esque champion we think of when he think of a challenger to the throne of Norway.</center>
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What Hakon lacked in physical strength, he must surely have made up for with internal strength. During his time, the Norse worshiped the "old gods", and many stories speak of Viking raids on Christian realms and churches. Yet, along comes the story of Hakon, a lone Christian boy fighting for the throne of his "pagan" homeland. The pagans look at him askance and urge him to convert, yet Hakon holds fast to his beliefs. That type of courage, to me, is a fascinating spin on the traditional Viking yarn.</center>
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But lest we forget, Hakon is a Northman and they liked their battles. His ambition to rule his father's realm is no different than the ambition of the brother he seeks to dethrone. Only I saw Hakon as fighting two battles, one against his brother and one against himself. His faith in many ways is his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. How easy it could have been for him to shed his beliefs and earn the favor of his countrymen. But in GOD'S HAMMER, he didn't, and it plagues him.</center>
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All of this conflict and internal strife grabbed me, so much so that I wrote GOD'S HAMMER and continue to work on Hakon's tale.</center>
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<b>Tell us about yourself, how did you come to be an author?</b></center>
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Someone once asked me, “How can you look at words on a screen all day long?” My response was this: "I don’t. I see images in my head and put words to those.” That is what I want to wake up and do every day.</center>
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But in the words of McCartney and Lennon, getting to that point as been a “long and winding road”. I’ve written my entire life. Even as a child, I was writing stories and loved writing assignments in school. However, I never considered writing as a career. It just never occurred to me that I could make a living at it. If it had, I would have taken different subjects and possibly gone to a different university. The idea of being an author finally struck me in my second year of business school. Of course, the timing could not have been worse. I was buried under school loans and three months away from graduation. But I decided two things at that moment: that I would try to write a novel and that to fund my endeavour, I would focus on my business career. That is one of the reasons it took me so long to complete God’s Hammer! Today, I still run my own PR agency, but I’ve gotten better at balancing the two pursuits.</center>
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<b>Did you face any challenge when writing God's Hammer, if so what were they and how did you overcome them?</b></center>
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For God’s Hammer, there were three main challenges. The first was simply finding the balance between life’s pressures (work, kids, mortgage, etc) and writing. I’ve gotten better at it, but am a long way from being good at it. The second challenge was that it was my first novel. I’d written short stories and poems and plenty of business-related pieces, such as articles and press releases. But this was the first time I had undertaken something so large. Often was the time I’d pursue a path in the story only to have it end up at a dead end. Or try to weave a subplot into the tale and have it not work. And then there was the challenge of blending historical fact with an engrossing story. The two don’t always match up so well. Figuring out a way to stick to the history and tell a good story was a real puzzle, but one I thorough enjoyed.</center>
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<b>Any writing tips for aspiring authors?</b></center>
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If you truly want to follow this path, write regularly, make it often, and stick with it. The “sticking with it” part, in my opinion, is one of the most important. If you’re like me, you may find it hard to carve out a regular time to write, but if you stick with it, you’ll eventually get somewhere. </center>
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<b>Finally - chose 5 famous figures, dead or alive to have a dinner party with?</b></center>
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Man, that’s a great question! There are so many historical figures I’d love to meet. But if I had to narrow it down to five, I’d say the five founders of the world’s major religions: Jesus, Abraham, Mohammed, Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha), and whoever first started preaching the Hindu faith. I’d love to hear them have a peaceful discussion at the table about the similarities and differences of their faiths, and share with them the impact (both good and bad) those faiths have had on the lives of people through the ages. That, I think, would be fascinating! </center>
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Thank you Eric for such thoughtful answers, I'm sure my readers would agree that your passion for the Dark Ages and surrounding history, and love for writing comes through so very strongly, and I've enjoyed giving you a platform to promote your work on my blog! I can strongly relate to wanting to be a writer from childhood especially. There is something so magical about communicating with countless others through written text.</center>
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Purchase Eric's novel <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gods-Hammer-Eric-Schumacher/dp/158690017X">here</a>! <b>Be sure to check back here tomorrow to read my review in full!</b></center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-69603688498194490022017-03-02T15:21:00.000+00:002017-08-11T16:54:14.710+01:0050. 'Oswiu: King of Kings' by Edoardo Albert<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Can Oswiu avoid the same fate? </i></center>
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<i>The great pagan king Penda set a trap, and when the brothers Oswiu and Oswald walked in, only one came back alive. Rumours abound that the place where Oswald’s body is strung up has become sacred ground – a site of healing for those who seek it.</i></center>
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<i> Oswald’s mother believes he will protect those he loves, even beyond the grave. So she asks the impossible of Oswiu: to journey to the heart of Penda’s kingdom and rescue the body that was stolen from them. </i></center>
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<i>Will this fateful task allow Oswiu to prove himself worthy of uniting the kingdoms under him as the King of Kings, or will it set him on a path to destruction? </i></center>
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<i>Oswiu: King of </i><i style="text-align: left;">Kings is the masterful conclusion to The Northumbrian Thrones trilogy.</i></center>
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Oswiu: King of Kings is the final instalment in the Northumbrian Thrones trilogy by Edoardo Albert. I have previously reviewed Oswald: Return of the King <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2015/07/84-oswald-return-of-king-by-edoardo.html">here</a>.<br />
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I must admit I was eagerly awaiting the final instalment of this trilogy, as Oswiu called out to me from the pages of the previous two books. I don't know why, but something about the underdog brother really appeals to me. The genre, and style of writing really does lend itself to both male and female readers, which is a great advantage. I really enjoy when a book is aimed at no specific gender.<br />
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Well written, and spanning a vast length of Oswiu's rule, Edoardo Albert has once again brought the days of the past back to striking life. Although set in the seventh century the characters feel very real, against the backdrop of an extremely violent world. A world of warring clans and gods, where the cunning of a war lord, or the guile of a priest could be a King's undoing.<br />
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The characters are memorable in their own right, and can be traced back to the first instalment Edwin: The High King of Britain. As an audience we grow with the characters as they go through various trials and tribulations, tested time and time again by the world around them, by the old Gods and the new, one God.<br />
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My favourite character, as with in Oswald, has to be Bran the raven. Albert creates such a personality for the raven, it was impossible not fall a little bit in love with him. For his loyalty not only to Oswald, but to Oswiu too. He didn't abandon either brother, and was in that sense was their truest ally.<br />
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I grew to have an unexpected sympathy, and liking for Rhieienmelth, which quite frankly <i>astounded</i> me but Edoardo weaves the tapestry of the story cleverly, and you begin to see that those close to Oswui have their own motives woven into the background and serving their own agendas. The bond between Œthelwald and Rhieienmelth is severely tested later in the book, and was a story line I enjoyed very much. I feel that Œthelwald's character knew he could never live up to his sainted (quite literally) father, and this premeditated his later choices and failings.<br />
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Throughout the book, I felt Oswiu was striving to step out of his holy brother's shadow, and make his own mark in the world. It was upsetting to read how he felt he was still the lesser preferred brother of the two, even when he risked his life in a daring attempt to take Oswald's remains back from his pagan nemesis Penda, a relationship that runs as the lifeblood throughout the tale.<br />
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I think these books would make for a brilliant television series also, along the vein of The Last Kingdom, and I'm already thinking who could be cast in the main roles!<br />
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I <i>highly</i> recommend this trilogy to those of you interested in historical fiction, especially those who prefer the earlier centuries or medieval history. I very much enjoyed engrossing myself in the world Edoardo brought vividly to life.<br />
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Purchase Oswiu: King of Kings <a href="http://www.lionhudson.com/page/detail/Oswiu-King-of-Kings/?k=9781782641186"><b>here</b></a></div>
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Find out more about the Author, Edoardo Albert <a href="http://www.lionhudson.com/page/author-detail/?k=EDOARDOALBERT"><b>here</b></a></div>
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Thank you to <a href="http://www.lionhudson.com/page/index/">Lion Hudson</a> for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review. </div>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-59458304949760937792017-01-30T15:28:00.001+00:002017-08-11T16:53:58.873+01:0049. 'Before You Go' by Clare Swatman<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Before You Go is powerful story of love and loss, by debut author Clare Swatman.</i></center>
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<i>When Zoe’s husband Ed dies, her world caves in. But what if Zoe can get Ed back?</i></center>
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<i>You find your soulmate . . .</i></center>
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<i>Some people stare love in the face for years before they find it. Zoe and Ed fumbled their way into adulthood, both on different paths – but always in the same direction. Years later, having navigated dead-end jobs and chaotic house shares, romance finally blossoms. Their future together looks set . . .</i></center>
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<i>Then the unthinkable happens.</i></center>
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<i>One morning, on his way to work, Ed is knocked off his bike and dies. Now Zoe must find a way to survive. But she’s not ready to let go of the memories. How can she forget all of the happy times, their first kiss, everything they’d built together? Zoe decides she has to tell Ed all the things she never said.</i></center>
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<i>Now it’s too late. Or is it?</i></center>
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When Jess at Pan MacMillan sent me the synopsis of Before You Go, I was immediately visualising PS I Love You (the book, I refuse to acknowledge the film ever happened) crossed with About Time (the film, which gives me goosebumps just thinking of it) or The Time Traveller's Wife – all of which reduced me to a serious blubbering mess. </center>
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What I liked about Before You Go, is that Swatman hasn’t created a couple who were perfect in every way and were 100% happy, because it gives an element of realism from the offset, especially as Zoe goes through the grieving process, thwarted by what-ifs and moments of guilt – should she have reacted differently to things? Would that have made everything better, different? </center>
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I don’t want to go into much detail regarding the plot, for the sake of avoiding spoilers because I truly feel this is the kind of book each reader needs to experience for him or herself, it really is an enchanting read. I am actually in the process of re-reading it, combing over the details to ensure I did not miss anything the first time round because the story has really stayed with me from the moment I picked up the gorgeous navy and gold embossed front cover. </center>
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What I will tell you is that Clare Swatman is an artful wordsmith, weaving her tale with an enchanting skill, tackling what could be a confusing and gutsy story line, considering the time travelling element entwined with both the ups and downs of a very believable relationship. At times I didn’t much like Zoe, but I feel that was intentional on Clare’s part – who wants a perfectly un-flawed lead character after all. It is the dimensions of believably that I so enjoyed, interwoven by the supernatural element of time travel. </center>
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If you’re looking for the kind of book that will stay with you long after you’ve finished it this is the one for you, and I can certainly say for myself if was a welcome break from inhabiting a predominantly medieval world of fiction, such is my wont. </center>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rating 5/5</span></b></center>
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If you'd like to keep up with the rest of Clare's blog tour, please see the below dates:</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-64681936669193197022017-01-29T11:51:00.004+00:002017-08-11T16:53:42.719+01:0048. 'The Silk Weaver' by Liz Trenow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i style="text-align: left;">A novel of illicit romance set against the world of the silk trade in London</i></center>
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<i>Anna Butterfield moves from her Suffolk country home to her uncle's house in London, to be introduced to society. A chance encounter with a local silk weaver, French immigrant Henri, throws her from her privileged upbringing to the darker, dangerous world of London's silk trade.</i></center>
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<i>Henri is working on his master piece to make his name as a master silk weaver; Anna, meanwhile, is struggling against the constraints of her family and longing to become an artist. Henri realizes that Anna's designs could lift his work above the ordinary, and give them both an opportunity for freedom…</i></center>
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<i>This is a charming story of illicit romance, set against the world of the burgeoning silk trade in eighteenth-century Spitalfields - a time of religious persecution, mass migration, racial tension and wage riots, and very different ideas of what was considered for women.</i></center>
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Liz Trenow is the author of three previous historical novels: The Last Telegram, The Forgotten Seamstress and The Poppy Factory. Liz's family have been silk weavers for nearly three hundred years, and she grew up in the house next to the mill in Suffolk, England, which still operates today, weaving for top-end fashion houses and royal commissions. This unique history inspired her first two novels, and this, her fourth novel.</div>
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Liz is a former journalist who spent fifteen years on regional and national newspapers, and on BBC radio and television news, before turning her hand to fiction. She lives in East Anglia, UK, with her artist husband, and they have two grown-up daughter.</div>
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I couldn't wait to send my questions to Liz for a <b>Q&A</b> as my part of the blog tour below:</center>
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<b>Where did the initial concept for the book come from?</b></center>
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My heroine, Anna, is inspired by the eminent silk designer, Anna Maria Garthwaite, who lived and worked in a house just a few doors away from where my family’s silk weaving business started in the 1700s. I was intrigued to think that they must have known and worked with her.</center>
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Anna Maria was one of the most celebrated textile designers of the eighteenth century, her silks were worn by royalty and nearly a thousand of her designs are in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Yet no-one knows how she learned her craft or how an unmarried middle-aged woman managed to develop such a successful business in a male dominated industry. It is this mystery that sparked the idea for the novel.</center>
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The boy she falls in love with, Henri, is a Huguenot (Protestant) whose family fled persecution in France by the Catholic king. Many Huguenots made perilous journeys in small boats across the Channel to reach safety in England. I became fascinated by the parallels with what is happening to refugees today and wanted to highlight them in this novel.</center>
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<b>You have worked as a journalist before turning your hand to writing fiction, did you always want to be a writer?</b></center>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I distinctly remember, at primary school, being asked to read out a story I had written about a very cold, pink pig we’d found wandering lost in the snow! I decided then that writing was something I could be good at but I didn’t start writing fiction until much later in life because journalism offered a regular salary. It’s only now that I don’t have to go out to work, and my children have left home, that I’ve managed to find the time and brain space to write fiction. </span></center>
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<b>Do you have a particular process you follow when writing a book? </b></center>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">It varies. Usually there is a very slight idea – a couple of characters, a situation – often inspired by something I’ve been told or have read. That germinates for a year or so and I might start researching the history around it. </span></center>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Before I start writing I only know the main characters, a rough idea of beginnings and endings, and probably the ‘inciting moment’, ie the event around which the plot hinges. All the rest evolves as I write and do more research, often changing quite dramatically from my original idea.</span></center>
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<b>Did you face setbacks, and if so - how did you overcome them?</b></center>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Every writing day is an uphill struggle, with occasional moments of what I call ‘flying’, which is when a character really comes to life, or when you are so into the voice of a character that the writing just seems to flow. </span></center>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">The other kind of setback a writer must be prepared to face is rejections from agents, publishers etc. The only way of overcoming setbacks is to hold your nerve and plough on. </span></center>
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<b>Any writing tips for aspiring authors?</b></center>
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<li>Write every day</li>
<li>Read widely, to provide inspiration and give you an idea of where your own writing might fit in</li>
<li>Writing can be lonely. Join a group of writers, and agree to give each other really honest feedback.</li>
<li>Never give up!</li>
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<b>Finally - chose 5 famous figures, dead or alive to have a dinner party with?</b></center>
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<li>Maya Angelou (ground-breaking American poet and novelist, whose writing inspired me in the first place)</li>
<li>Jane Austen (surely the ultimate example for women writers)</li>
<li>Hilary Mantel (author of the remarkable historical novel Wolf Hall)</li>
<li>Sarah Perry (my current favourite writer and author of The Essex Serpent)</li>
<li>Barack Obama (who will be sorely missed)</li>
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<b>Buy a copy of 'The Silk Weaver' by Liz Trenow </b><a href="https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/liz-trenow/the-silk-weaver"><b>here</b></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I very much enjoyed reading 'The Silk Weaver'. Trenow has created a vivid and credible world, inhabited by characters whom both tug at my heart strings, and equally drive me bonkers because of their actions - I'm looking at you, </span><i style="text-align: justify;">William</i><span style="text-align: justify;">! I think a lot of readers will identify with Anna and Henri, and the challenges that they face. I could not put the book down, so vibrant was the storytelling, and found myself hanging by tenterhooks when I had to put the book down and face real life responsibilities.</span></div>
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<b style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: 5/5</span></b></center>
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If you'd like to catch up with the previous posts on the blog tour, you can find the listing below:</center>
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<i>A copy of 'The Silk Weaver' was sent to me by <a href="https://twitter.com/panmacmillan">PanMacmillan</a> in exchange for an honest review. </i></center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-48950079725181603402017-01-03T20:20:00.001+00:002017-08-11T16:53:30.527+01:0047: Goodbye 2016 / Hello 2017 <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="text-align: left;"><b>• </b></span><b>Top Highlights of 2016 </b><span style="text-align: left;"><b>• </b></span></div>
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- Getting my anxiety under control. While it is very much still there in the background I have a much stronger handle of my anxiety and am in a better, happier place for it. I have also come off my medication, which was a big goal of mine for 2016. I really wanted to be off everything before I get married in June 2017, and through working through things and taking the time to adjust and heal I have achieved this. </center>
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- Making contact and building relationships with publishers. It's very much in the early stages, but to be working with people in an industry I very much love is a real joy. I have also started making contact for submissions of my work, although I'm not quite ready yet it has given me a goal to work on throughout 2017. I have away wanted to have my writing published in some form by the time I was 30, so I have 2 years to work on this. </center>
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- Spending time with the people who enrich your life, and distancing/cutting the cord from those who are only around for fair weather or just serve to cause conflict. It's so hard to not take it personally when it is clear you are an after thought to someone after years and years of friendship, but it is okay to let go and move on from that relationship if it no longer brings you joy or enrichment. </center>
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- Returning to my Cathedral Guide training after a hiatus. </center>
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<b>• Goals for 2017 • </b></div>
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- Getting Married. On Friday 23rd June 2017 I will say '<i>I do</i>' to my best friend and partner in crime. We will have been engaged for 2 years, and together for 6 years by the time we wed. It feels so good to be able say that I'm getting married this year, although I am grateful for the longer period of engagement as I feel it really gave us the time to enjoy being engaged before we got into the hardcore wedding preparations and saving. </center>
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- Improving the content on the blog and posting on a regular basis. Sometimes I don't give myself enough time, or I say yes to books that I have a gut feeling that I just won't like. I want to be firmer with what I chose to review for publishers. I feel so privileged that my little old blog has caught the attention of those working in the book industry, and that they'd like to work with me to promote books on their portfolios. It's definitely a relationship I want to nourish for further development in 2017. </center>
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- Read more books. For reviewing purposes, and for general pleasure. I'm aiming for 100 books read in 2017, which I will keep track of via my <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/28743134-poppy-coburn">Goodreads</a> account.</center>
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- Refining what I post on my Instagram - remember to <a href="https://www.instagram.com/poppycoburn/">follow me</a>!</center>
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- Improving my health and fitness. I signed up for the gym on January 2nd (as did most of the UK I imagine!) and did my first proper work out in goodness knows how long. I've wanted to improve my fitness for quite some time now, but I lacked the motivation. Suddenly with the wedding looming and only six months away I've realised I need to get my backside in gear. I'm surprised by how much I enjoyed it, and the endorphin kick afterwords was so beneficial. I feel that this will help my anxiety as a result. </center>
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- Work on my original writing, both fiction and non-fiction. I have so many notebooks and files filled with half finished stories, or a heck of a lot of planning. This year I want to go through everything and really work at getting them in a more polished position. </center>
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What are your goals for the New Year?</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-1313439883525017712016-12-11T15:16:00.001+00:002017-08-11T16:52:56.568+01:0046. 12 Days of Clink Street: 'Murder on Track' by Stephen Childs <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I was very kindly asked by Rachel at <a href="https://twitter.com/Authoright">Authoright</a> if I would like to take part in the festive <i>12 days of Clink Street blog tour</i>, and of course I was thrilled to accept! The advent calendar below details what is featured on which blogs over the festive 12 days, if you'd like to catch up with any of them you can check it out below:</center>
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Unfortunately, I have not received a copy of Stephen's Murder on Track in time for posting a review, however I did ask Stephen to write me his interpretation of Christmas with his characters, which I enclose below. I love how they are adjusting to their new lives in Australia, yet still holding fast to Christmas tradition despite the change of climate and environment. I especially liked the festive visit by kangaroos!<br />
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<i><b>Dec 26 1889, Guildford, West Australia.</b></i></div>
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<i>Our first Christmas in the Swan colony was so very different to those I remember from England, yet I find myself growing most fond of this strange land. </i><br />
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<i>Christmas day found the weather extremely hot. My brother, Bertrand; my fiancee, Mr Ridley Dunning and myself had all been invited to supper with our neighbours. Mr and Mrs Wallace have become true friends rather than mere neighbours. They arrived from England six years ago and still very much understand the love we have of the festive season. We were greatly looking forward to our evening with them. </i><br />
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<i>The surprises began early when Ridley arrived before we had eaten breakfast. I hadn’t expected him until luncheon so was most excited to see him. He arrived in a covered carriage carrying the largest picnic hamper you have ever seen. He then produced beautifully wrapped gifts. Such finesse for a man! We opened our gifts over breakfast. I received a fabulous opal broach set in a gold mount. Truly unexpected. I believe I am truly blessed to have such a man by my side.</i><br />
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<i>Ridley then insisted we embark upon his surprise journey. Bertrand became awash with excitement. I was so glad of the distraction, this being our first Christmas since Father died. </i><br />
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<i>We travelled up the riverbank for a while then turned in to the most delightful open grassed area. There, on a spot beside the water under a large willow tree, we set up our picnic. </i><br />
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<i>Ridley had prepared cold chicken sandwiches and potted pork in aspic, with egg salad and lettuce on the side. He followed this with a delicious strawberry tart. All his own work, he told me. I was most impressed.</i><br />
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<i>Across the river we spied grape vines growing on taught wires stretched across grassy paddocks. Ridley informed us that the owners were making wine. Very good wine apparently. Then, like magic, he produced a bottle. How delightful it was, and so refreshing in the heat.</i><br />
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<i>We had a gorgeous day. Bertrand took off his shoes and paddled in the river. I could barely muster any energy in the heat, but grew more relaxed as the day progressed.</i><br />
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<i>An added surprise was seeing some kangaroos. They came out of the bushes not fifty yards from where we sat. The oddest of animals, they have large hind legs and use them to hop along at terrific speeds. This was turning into the oddest Christmas day, but I was enjoying it. </i><br />
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<i>We set off for home as the sun began to lower. It remained so hot that I burned my hand on the carriage seat. </i><br />
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<i>Ridley drove us directly to our neighbours. His strange grin should have warned me of further secrets to be revealed, but I was so hot I just needed to get out of the sun. </i><br />
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<i>Upon entering the house I was quite taken aback. We were treated to the most amazing sight. A huge fir tree held pride of place, laden with colourful candles, ribbons and baubles. An ornately set out table bore intricate decorations, more candles and a Yule log covered with palm tree fronds in place of holly.</i><br />
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<i>And in the corner, in all that heat, Mrs Wallace had made up the biggest fire her grate could handle. It looked wonderful and so reminded me of home. The only thing missing was the winter cold.</i><br />
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Thank you to Stephen for providing me with the above content. You can find out more about his novel Murder on Track, and about the author himself below:</center>
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<b>On Track For Murder</b></center>
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Travelling from England to Australia in the late nineteenth century, Abigail Sergeant and her brother,Bertrand, are looking forward to their new life. Leaving behind the prejudices that would likely have seen Bertrand committed to an institution before he reached adulthood, Abigail hopes their new life will offer freedom and security.But what awaits them on the shores of the Swan River dashes any prospects of a blissful life. A murder is committed and Abigail's family is thrown into turmoil. The evidence is damning. Only the guilty would be found standing over the body clutching the bloodied murder weapon. But something is not right. Police are convinced they have their killer. Abigail is certain they are wrong. As their one potential witness is missing, Abigail persuades the detective to allow time for a search. But that time is limited. Chasing across Western Australia with a reluctant Constable Dunning as her chaperone, Abigail is determined to uncover the truth. If only she had an inkling of what that may be. Through deception, kidnap, sabotage and arson, Abigail finds a resolve she didn't know she possessed. Her understanding of mechanical principles surprises everyone, as does her tenacity. She turns out to be a capable young woman. But is that enough to save an innocent from injustice?</center>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Track-Murder-Stephen-Childs-ebook/dp/B013K4Q2HW/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1478774078&sr=1-2&keywords=on+track+for+murder">Purchase from Amazon UK</a></center>
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<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/on-track-for-murder-stephen-childs/1122391161?ean=9781910782095">Purchase from Barnes & Noble</a></center>
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<b>About Stephen Childs</b></center>
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Born in Ealing, West London, Stephen Childs immigrated with his family to New Zealand in the 1970s. He has enjoyed a long career in the film and television industry. After a serious health scare in 2005, Childs’ view of life changed. He briefly went into politics as a parliamentary candidate in the national elections, standing against the now New Zealand Prime Minister, John Key. The drive to pursue new challenges prompted Childs to relocate to Western Australia, where he now lives in Joondalup, north of Perth, with his family and two cats. In his spare time, Childs enjoys exploring the great Australian outdoors and studying genealogy.</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-89282080300122921362016-12-04T17:18:00.001+00:002017-08-11T16:52:26.992+01:0045. 'Conquest: Daughter of the Last King' by Tracey Warr<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>1093. The three sons of William the Conqueror Robert Duke of Normandy, William II King of England and Count Henry fight with each other for control of the Anglo-Norman kingdom created by their father s conquest. Meanwhile, Nest ferch Rhys, the daughter of the last independent Welsh king, is captured during the Norman assault of her lands. Raised with her captors, the powerful Montgommery family, Nest is educated to be the wife of Arnulf of Montgommery, in spite of her pre-existing betrothal to a Welsh prince. Who will Nest marry and can the Welsh rebels oust the Normans? 'Daughter of the Last King' is the first in the Conquest Trilogy.</i></center>
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Although I have always known the basics of the Norman invasion of Britain, I did not know the extend of which the Normans tried to take over Wales. I vaguely knew the name Nest ferch Rhys, not from history lessons in school, but rather from my constant googling after reading more fiction during this time. I was very kindly sent a copy of Conquest by <a href="https://twitter.com/ImpressBooks1?lang=en">Impress Books</a> in exchange for an honest review, which I will gladly provide!</center>
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Tracey Warr certainly provides a dramatic history of this period, from the very first moment you begin in Chapter One. All of the characters are fleshed out thoroughly, even those you only encounter briefly. They remain with you throughout the course of the novel, especially Nest's family I felt. It gave her a very relatable dimension - a royal hostage within the Norman court, squirrelled away within a Norman family to train her in the new ways, for future Norman gains. You are immediately hanging on every page, desperate to discover where Nest's plight will next take her. </center>
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Watching over Nest is Sybil de Montgommery, part of the prominent Montgommery family, whom Nest comes to care for, despite the circumstances of her capture. Sybil's husband FitzHammon plays a significant role throughout the vein of the story, as does Sybil's brother Arnulf. Nest must find her footing a her new environment, which is traumatic enough when you consider that under her father's rule there had been many years of peace. Upon Nest's father's death, her whole world and future is plunged into uncertainty. She has to rely on her wits and intelligence to navigate through the dangerous world she now finds herself in. </center>
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The backdrop of Nest's new world is one of turmoil, as the sons of William the Conqueror fight amongst themselves for power. The Wheel of Fortune always features within historical fiction, and Conquest is no different, perfectly showing how the Montgommery family reach to far on their rise to power, and ultimately lose their grasp of power while Nest ascends to the court of King Henry I. I'll leave the reader to come to their own opinion of Henry I, for I still cannot make up my mind if I loathe him, or can accept him as he is. </center>
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Warr is an engaging writer, and I very much enjoyed the tale she wove over the course of the book. She is artful at playing the reader's heartstrings, especially when you believe that Nest is at last going to achieve happiness and control over her own life. Warr dangles this tidbit enticingly before you and at the very last moment snatches it away in the only way a complete curveball can. </center>
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There were parts of the book I could have done without, namely the parts of correspondence between Haith and his sister Benedictina. While I understand that they serve to provide insight and background information that Nest would not be aware of, and help to move the story along I did not find I made a connection to either of the two characters and was desperate to get through their parts to find out what was happening with Nest, although this is my personal preference and you may well enjoy their interludes. </center>
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I would highly recommend Conquest to those of you who have enjoyed <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2016/10/102-constant-queen-by-joanna-courtney.html"><i>Joanna Courtney's 'Queens of Conquest</i>'</a> series (which I have also <a href="http://www.poppycoburn.com/2015/09/88-chosen-queen.html">reviewed</a>), as this is definitely along the same vein as her work, which I also very much enjoyed. Well written and researched, you will find as I did that I could not put this book down from the moment I started it. I practically inhaled the content and finished the book within 2 days, which is always a good sign. I am now hungry to continue the world Warr has created, and hope to read more about Nest, as after a spree of googling I see her story does not quite end where the book does!</center>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: 5/5</span></b></center>
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Find out more about Tracey Warr <a href="http://www.impress-books.co.uk/impress/tracey-warr/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.impress-books.co.uk/impress/conquest-book-1-daughter-of-the-last-king/">here</a></center>
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Purchase Conquest <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Conquest-Daughter-Last-Tracey-Warr/dp/1907605819">here</a></center>
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Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/ImpressBooks1?lang=en">@ImpressBooks1</a> + <a href="https://twitter.com/TraceyWarr1">@TraceyWarr1</a></center>
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Have you read Conquest? If so what did you think? Do you have any new medieval historical fiction you could recommend - comment below if so, I'd love to read your suggestions!</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-43560960526930222542016-11-28T15:03:00.002+00:002017-08-11T16:51:30.819+01:0044. Fifteen Words by Monika Jephcott Thomas <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>Two young doctors form a profound and loving bond in Nazi Germany; a bond that will stretch them to the very limits of human endurance. Catholic Max - whose religious and moral beliefs are in conflict, has been been conscripted to join the war effort as a medic, despite his hatred of Hitler's regime. His beloved Erika, a privileged young woman, is herself a product of the Hitler Youth. In spite of their stark differences, Max and Erika defy convention and marry. But when Max is stationed at the fortress city of Breslau, their worst nightmares are realised; his hospital is bombed, he is captured by the Soviet Army and taken to a POW camp in Siberia. Max experiences untold horrors, his one comfort the letters he is allowed to send home: messages that can only contain Fifteen Words. Back in Germany, Erika is struggling to survive and protect their young daughter, finding comfort in the arms of a local carpenter. Worlds apart and with only sparse words for comfort, will they ever find their way back to one another, and will Germany ever find peace?</i></center>
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<i>Fifteen Words is a vivid and intimate portrayal of human love and perseverance, one which illuminates the German experience of the war, which has often been overshadowed by history. </i></center>
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While quite outside of the time period I like to read about within the Historical Fiction genre, I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised by Fifteen Words. </center>
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Taken from the perspective of ordinary Germans fighting during WW2, it follows their different paths, struggles and trials as they come to terms with how differently their lives have become. Much like Das Boot, Fifteen Words shows the reader that not all Germans were hard line Nazis, most were just ordinary folk caught up in the ideal of 'making Germany great again'. Max and Erika meet while training to become doctors, and are very different creatures, starting at their upbringing and I have to admit, I preferred Max over Erika. She just wasn't likeable to me, and I struggled to reconcile a lot of the decisions she made throughout the story. I find that that is the danger of flipping between two different POVs, there is always one character you connect more with, who you root for more. This may have been deliberate on Thomas's part however, given the background she created for Ericka. </center>
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The book starts very much in the thick of things, and certainly helps to set the scene and pace for the rest of the book. The harsh brutality of war is clear, especially after Max's unit's capture and the weaker patients are picked off one by one for slowing down the march. It seems unthinkable that such a lack of compassion and callous behaviour can be carried out without batting an eyelid, but then I remind myself how different the circumstances are under war. </center>
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Thomas paints a very realistic picture, and has great skill in helping the reader to understand how both Max and Erika fall prey to temptation, as so many other did during the tumultuous war years. While Max is captured by the Soviets and serves time in a POW camp, Erika remains in Germany, and witnesses the fall of the Reich as the allies take hold of Hitler's Motherland. </center>
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In this instance I don't want to go too deeply into the story-line, less I ruin the twist towards the end for anyone who goes on to read it. However, I what I will say is that Thomas artfully shows how the trauma of war can change two people very much, and how deeply the scars are left. She captures perfectly Max's confusion at being free, and back in the civilian world, and how it is so very, very alien to him after all his experiences. It is not a long read, and well worth the time if you enjoy this particular era of history. </center>
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I particularly enjoyed how the choice of a specific 15 words ring through the core of the story, and ultimately determine the results, whether the characters intended them to or not. </center>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: 4/5</span></b></center>
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You can purchase Fifteen words <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fifteen-Words-Monika-Jephcott-Thomas-ebook/dp/B01MCWG3IJ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1477564925&sr=1-1&keywords=fifteen+words">here</a>. </center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6098304282699969260.post-57546328179748766472016-10-28T11:52:00.000+01:002017-08-11T16:48:15.148+01:0043. 'The Constant Queen' by Joanna Courtney<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i>‘You need not take England without me, Hari, because I will be your constant queen – there with you; there for you.’</i></center>
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<i>Elizaveta is a princess of Kiev but that doesn’t stop her chasing adventure. Defying conventions she rides the rapids of the</i></center>
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<i>Elizaveta meets her match when the fearsome Viking warrior Harald Hardrada arrives at her father’s court seeking fame and fortune. He entrusts Elizaveta to be his treasure keeper, holding the keys to his ever-growing wealth – and eventually to his heart.</i></center>
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<i>Theirs is a fierce romance and the strength of their love binds them together as they travel across the vast seas to Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Iceland. In 1066, their ambition carries them to the Orkneys as they plan to invade England and claim the crown…</i></center>
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Following hot on the heels of The Chosen Queen, The Constant Queen is the second instalment of the Queens of Conquest book series, and it does not disappoint. Again, I found myself drinking in every page, and did have to force myself not to rush through it to savour the enjoyment. </center>
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I was absorbed into the story Joanna has weaved straight away, much as I was with TCQ. This time the spotlight is cast on the other eventual rivals for the throne of England, <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span> and Harald Hardrada of Norway. Kiev seemed very atmospheric, and her family and the ways of the court were extremely vivid, enabling me to picture the world the characters were encapsulated in. </center>
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I really liked <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span> from the beginning, and elements of her character certainly felt familiar to me. I felt like a duck out of water as a child, wishing I had blonde hair much like <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span> envied her sister Anastasia for being everything she was not. I think most young girls go through this phase, especially comparing themselves to their mothers, siblings and later in life, against their rivals. She was also stubborn, blunt and completely fearless, which made her very endearing to me early on in the book. That's not to say she doesn't have annoying traits, and there were times towards the end where I would groan in despair at her restless, rebellious nature and her need to push for more, which would ultimately push her and Harald to a point of no return, with no happy ending. </center>
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I enjoyed Joanna's portrayal of Harald, especially as we meet him when is is still young, aged 15 fleeing from the disastrous battle that led him to his mercenary path, and equipped him with the skills that he would become famous for, even to this day. It was interesting to follow his journey from rootless mercenary, to King of all Norway, and how he operated as a King. Viking blood ran strong through his veins, and his constant raiding in Denmark could only hold it at bay for so long. </center>
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Also thrown into the mix, is Haralds hand-fast wife, Tora who is <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span>'s opposite in every way. and a constant source of jealously and anxiety for Elisvita. Calm, cool and collected, Tora embodies qualities that do not come naturally to <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span>, not to mention the crucial part of bearing Harald sons. You sense how much of a failure <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span> felt, especially as during this period this was the sole responsibility of the Queen, to provide heirs for the kingdom. I came to care for Tora very much which is surprising given my feelings towards her at the beginning of the book - namely, 'get away from Harald, you hussy!'</center>
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I like how Joanna presented <span style="text-align: center;">Elizaveta</span> and Harald's courtship, and the passion leaps from the pages like flames licking across your skin. It's no bodice ripper ala Mills & Boons, but this is very tasteful and leaves you wanting more. She was his support and his drive when he needed it, and as a Viking King - what a better match than a Queen with the soul of a Viking? </center>
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She weaves the different stories of the queens together well, and it is interesting to see a different side to the saga in the second book compared the the first. It puts a great spin on things, especially when you think you've cast your allegiance to one Queen, like I had at the end of TCQ, and it has really left me thirsty for more tales of the epic women of these unruly times. There are hints on mentions of the focus of the next instalment, Matilda of Flanders. For some reason I picture her to be even more formidable than her delightful husband, best known as William the Conqueror (or as I prefer, William the Bastard).</center>
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I highly recommend The Constant Queen, if historical fiction is your particular cup of tea. There is obviously a certain element of poetic license within the story as women were not typically documented as much as the men of the time, however Joanna has done this very well, and it really is not flowery at all, thankfully! She presents strong, fleshed out characters who challenge each other and provides a good overview of this period of history. As with her first instalment, it led me to start researching all of the characters within the pages of her books, which I enjoyed immensely as it added another layer to my understanding of medieval history which, lets face it, as a history lover is always a good thing! </center>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rating: 5/5</span></b></center>
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Thank you to Jess from Pan Macmillan for sending me a copy of The Constant Queen in exchange for an honest review. You can purchase a copy of The Constant Queen <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Constant-Queen-Queens-Conquest/dp/1447281969"><b>here</b></a>. Be sure to check our Joanna's <a href="http://www.joannacourtney.com/"><b>website</b></a> for further information regarding her work, and she's very interactive on twitter too, tweet her at <a href="https://twitter.com/joannacourtney1"><b>@joannacourtney1</b></a>.</center>
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Poppyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07638278972260739516noreply@blogger.com1