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Savaged Lands by Lana Kortchik #WWII
The plight of the people of Kiev in WWII was a subject that I knew very little about, so this book helped me understand a little more of the history of this city which is now the capital of Ukraine. This story tells of a romance between a Hungarian soldier, Mark,...
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Just Out - Entertaining Mr Pepys, the last of my trilogy of women featuring in Pepys Diary - each has a surprising story to tell, full of historical colour, page-turning adventure, and emotion to tug at your heart. 'The fusion of historical facts and fiction is so...
Forgetting Tabitha by Julie Dewey
Thank you for having me on your fabulous blog, Royalty Free Fiction! I am delighted to be here. I first heard about the orphan trains in 1990. I recall seeing a snippet in an article that was written about big moments in U.S. history that went widely...
The mystery of the disappearing author #ebooks #kindle
I was talking to a friend at Christmas who says he hardly ever remembers an author's name these days because he reads on kindle, and often picks up 99p or free books. When he picks up the kindle to read there is no book cover or spine to remind him what he is reading,...
We’ll Meet Again by Hilary Green
There have been a slew of new releases set during WWII to coincide with the various anniversaries and landmark moments in our 20th century history, and its easy to miss some of the novels released a while ago that are still well worth reading. I came across...
Divided Empire by Brian Kitchen
Brian Kitchen talks about Divided Empire I first became fascinated with the Roman period of British history when I was a child and read the 'Eagle of the Ninth' trilogy of novels by Rosemary Sutcliff. When I grew older I studied the period, reading as much as...
Books to invest in for Christmas Reading – mulled wine optional.
Excellent murder mystery with larger than life characters and a tone in which you can tell the author is enjoying the telling of the tale. John Lovat, the bastard brother of one of Queen Elizabeth's courtiers and always second fiddle to his snooty brother, is employed...
70th Anniversary of Brief Encounter
This year marks 70 years since Brief Encounter was made in 1945. It was one of my mother's favourite films, a real weepie, and one which seemed to touch the heart of a nation. Just why, is explored in this lovely documentary on Radio 4 which I listened to earlier in...
The Betrothed Sister – 11th century epic
I have read all of Carol McGrath's Hastings Trilogy, and have been entranced by this little-known period of English history. Her most recent features a woman about whom little is known, but McGrath's research into the politics, events and atmosphere of the time have...
New Anthology of Historical Essays
My post at English Historical fiction Authors this month is on the plunder of Basing House in the English Civil War. Read the post here. Basing House inspired some of the events in the Highway Trilogy where I imagined the occupants of Markyate Manor might have...
The Smoke of her Burning by M C Logue
The Smoke of her Burning Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to one Captain - Colonel, now - Holofernes Babbitt. Hollie to his friends. A man who begins the Uncivil Wars series as a disaffected mercenary cavalry captain in the Army of Parliament, and...
Interview with Victoria Delderfield, author of The Secret Mother
I first met Vicky on the MA in Creative Writing at Lancaster, and loved the premise of this book, which she was working on at the time. Now, at last, two children and a whole lot of work later. The Secret Mother is finally out, and getting the recognition it deserves....
The Ghosts of Markyate Manor – a hermit, an heiress, a highwayman
The name Markyate is derived from the Old English words mearc and geat and means 'the gate at the boundary', presumably between Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. In the 12th century, with the consent of his abbot, a monk went out from st Alban's and into the woods to...
Murder on the Minneapolis by Anita Davison
Murder on the Minneapolis - the Flora Maguire Mysteries by Anita Davison I often read how most writers, even established ones, find it hard to change genre. For historical fiction authors this is especially challenging. How difficult is it to switch your...
Female Mystics in Fiction
I have just finished 'Illuminations' by Mary Sharrat, about Hildegard von Bingen. A reader might be surprised that there could be so much plot in a book which is essentially about a woman enclosed firstly as an anchorite, and later as a nun. However the enclosed...