Today, I am happy to host Amy Maroney and her latest release, The Pirate’s Physician, as part of her tour with the Coffee Pot Book Club. I have enjoyed several of Amy’s books, which was why I immediately downloaded my own copy of her latest. Did I enjoy it? Well, there is a review further […]
The Pirate’s Physician – all light on Amy Maroney’s latest! Read More »
Now and then I come across medieval women who wielded significant power. On the Iberian Peninsula there is Urraca and Berenguela, Maria de Molina, Isabel la Católica (better known as one half of the double act Isabel and Fernando)—and today’s protagonist, Leonor Teles de Meneses. In general, medieval chroniclers are a bit leery towards female
Constanza Manuel was born a pawn. That’s what happens when your mother is an Aragonese princess and your father, Juan Manuel, is a scion of the House of Ivrea, the ruling dynasty in Castile. Don Juan Manuel was the nephew of Alfonso X and the much younger cousin of Sancho IV. From his father, Infante
Constanza Manuel – a pawn to her daddy’s ambitions Read More »
This spring, our country house has been something of a construction site. First, hubby decided to build a greenhouse. “I want to grow my own veggies,” he said, but if we’re going to be honest, it’s mostly tomatoes and cucumber he wants to grow. And aubergines. And chillies. And have a home for his citrus
Finding peace in the heat – a reflection on saunas Read More »
Today, I am happy to be one of the hosts on The Coffee Pot Book Club blog tour for The Agincourt King by Mercedes Rochelle. I have previously read several of Ms Rochelle’s books, most of them set in the years round the Norman Conquest but have as yet not got round to deep-diving into
The Agincourt King – welcoming Mercedes Rochelle and Henry V to my blog Read More »
Those who follow my blog have encountered Jesamiah several times. Like here or here. One could almost think I have a thing for Helen Hollick’s adorable rogue Jesamiah – and yup, I do. But I also have a soft spot for all the other wonderful characters that flit through the pages of the Sea Witch
Last week, I undertook one of the few challenges I dread: I migrated from one laptop to the other. Now, all those Apple users out there will probably leap forward to tell me it is easy-peasy with a Mac, but I am not an Apple person. I am an android/Windows person. Mostly, I am happy
Living in the age of tech – or fighting the digital windmills of laptop upgrades Read More »
IToday, I’d like you to meet Ernst Algot Frank. At the age of seventeen, he was arrested in Malmö as part of a major razzia against men who “indulged in immoral practices”. Ernst Frank and various other men were arrested on a square that “everyone” knew was used for casual hook-ups, seeing as it was
Of vice and female impersonation – meet Ernst, victim or perpetrator? Read More »
The first book I read by Deborah Swift was The Gilded Lily, set in the 17th century. We bonded over that period, Deborah and I, when we met back in 2010, but since then, she has moved on to write books in various eras, as have I. Deborah has, among other things, penned an excellent
All limelight on The Fortune Keeper and Deborah Swift! Read More »
The first time I met Helen Hollick was fourteen years ago. She was sitting at a table promoting her historical books at a conference, and I was the bright-eyed newbie, there to tote my as yet unpublished book, A Rip in the Veil. At the time, this my first ever opus for publication was on