tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34012060578447162662024-02-07T05:52:31.562-08:00Flashlight CommentaryHistorical Book Reviews From A Late Night ReaderErinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.comBlogger731125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-89752079216807078962018-07-18T09:10:00.001-07:002018-07-18T09:10:39.833-07:00FLASHLIGHT COMMENTARY HAS MOVED<br />
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<b>Hello fellow book lovers! </b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Flashlight Commentary has moved and rebranded itself as </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><u><a href="https://historicalfictionreader.blogspot.com/">HISTORICAL FICTION READER!</a></u></span></div>
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<b>Please join me at my new site for more book reviews and author interviews. </b></div>
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<b>Happy Reading!</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2hCd0zRdMZ2KddL7Y6qDG2a3x5UkHKERo17tBSOWgOd9LFCwl_m1ViFerJ-CZ46_zA28P6mB2aiK2pTZYtNAkT_vWAQEPHwu_KFd-af5BhbNY_f6Cd-Rf__tAK62Km1yWn9aodHiJsfOg/s1600/image+%252820%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="926" data-original-width="960" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2hCd0zRdMZ2KddL7Y6qDG2a3x5UkHKERo17tBSOWgOd9LFCwl_m1ViFerJ-CZ46_zA28P6mB2aiK2pTZYtNAkT_vWAQEPHwu_KFd-af5BhbNY_f6Cd-Rf__tAK62Km1yWn9aodHiJsfOg/s320/image+%252820%2529.png" width="320" /></a></div>
</span>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-18223969663167151672018-04-30T02:00:00.000-07:002018-04-30T02:00:17.894-07:00#CoverCliche: In Secret Kept, In Silence Sealed<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
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<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUzooHNV2v1xlP8LGtjbe-I4-O7MCPL45fNlnUANehIIJD_AH7Ug-fSOnVOM525ppvuluqOgTL00n_ktPQu_qgAWPqOvTzPWL6F2MGckQRDj6-EyQjE7RPT2CvzegBAmSdI7wq30JiYGpT/s1600/copeland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="332" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUzooHNV2v1xlP8LGtjbe-I4-O7MCPL45fNlnUANehIIJD_AH7Ug-fSOnVOM525ppvuluqOgTL00n_ktPQu_qgAWPqOvTzPWL6F2MGckQRDj6-EyQjE7RPT2CvzegBAmSdI7wq30JiYGpT/s320/copeland.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
Willow Madison and her friends Copper and Audrey taught school in neighboring Texas towns until the Yankees rode in and burned them out. In the midst of fear and chaos, survivors banded together to fight for what remained of their homes. Then word reached the people that the terrible war was over.<br />
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Now penniless but still hopeful, Willow vows she will take care of her friends, and her ailing uncle, in Thunder Ridge, Texas, even if it means having to marry wealthy Silas Sterling, a man thirty years her senior. But standing in her way is sawmill owner Tucker Gray, with his enticing eyes and infuriating headstrong manner—the man Willow cannot get out of her head . . . or her heart. Even though her friends beg her not to give up her dream of happiness, Willow is determined to do the right thing for those who are dearest to her. But which path does God want Willow to take: a life of duty and commitment . . . or a life of everlasting love?</blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVh_zbvG4A7IihTsObax4b5zYvBh1JAA6KsQ6qFw0sqlxWoUcwMebM4Pxn0o7jP7fJbWlhnrmt79reBQVSQZ6N8aCe6oZ6Feh6dFpbWc9PImdMRbhvpy1YYxjpIIvX7AQCRSg73B37eEvI/s1600/goolrick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="237" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVh_zbvG4A7IihTsObax4b5zYvBh1JAA6KsQ6qFw0sqlxWoUcwMebM4Pxn0o7jP7fJbWlhnrmt79reBQVSQZ6N8aCe6oZ6Feh6dFpbWc9PImdMRbhvpy1YYxjpIIvX7AQCRSg73B37eEvI/s320/goolrick.jpg" width="214" /></a></div>
He placed a notice in a Chicago paper, an advertisement for "a reliable wife." She responded, saying that she was "a simple, honest woman." She was, of course, anything but honest, and the only simple thing about her was her single-minded determination to marry this man and then kill him, slowly and carefully, leaving her a wealthy widow, able to take care of the one she truly loved.<br />
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What Catherine Land did not realize was that the enigmatic and lonely Ralph Truitt had a plan of his own. And what neither anticipated was that they would fall so completely in love.<br />
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Filled with unforgettable characters, and shimmering with color and atmosphere, A Reliable Wife is an enthralling tale of love and madness, of longing and murder. </div>
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-35021473733552139542018-04-23T02:00:00.000-07:002018-04-23T02:00:07.243-07:00#CoverCliche: Celtic Queen<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI8VpuUSt6N7U2moswnGv3tRGWCE9AijYtOYaqcOkMSNNZCk44SXs5DINHGI1p9e5p47MUSLJSPs0cceCrgV3nb9c4YTRBK_0f6Gj7MMw7j4h_xv7qeflCWgu-QVCINwAzQphmvbRMPFvI/s1600/mckenzie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="292" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI8VpuUSt6N7U2moswnGv3tRGWCE9AijYtOYaqcOkMSNNZCk44SXs5DINHGI1p9e5p47MUSLJSPs0cceCrgV3nb9c4YTRBK_0f6Gj7MMw7j4h_xv7qeflCWgu-QVCINwAzQphmvbRMPFvI/s320/mckenzie.jpg" width="196" /></a></div>
On the night of Guinevere’s birth, a wise woman declares a prophecy of doom for the child: She will be gwenhwyfar, the white shadow, destined to betray her king, and be herself betrayed. Years pass, and Guinevere becomes a great beauty, riding free across Northern Wales on her beloved horse. She is entranced by the tales of the valorous Arthur, a courageous warrior who seems to Guinevere no mere man, but a legend. Then she finds herself betrothed to that same famous king, a hero who commands her willing devotion. Just as his knights and all his subjects, she falls under Arthur’s spell.<br />
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At the side of King Arthur, Guinevere reigns strong and true. Yet she soon learns how the dark prophecy will reveal itself. She is unable to conceive. Arthur’s only true heir is Mordred, offspring of a cursed encounter with the witch Morgause. Now Guinevere must make a fateful choice: She decides to raise Mordred, teaching him to be a ruler and to honor Camelot. She will love him like a mother. Mordred will be her greatest joy–and the key to her ultimate downfall.<br />
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Return to a time of legend–the days of Guinevere and Arthur and the glory that was to become Camelot.</blockquote>
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Forced to flee Ireland, Gracelin O’Malley boards a coffin ship bound for America, taking her young daughter with her on the arduous transatlantic voyage. In New York, Gracelin struggles to adapt to a strange new world and to the harsh realities of immigrant life in a city teeming with crime, corruption, and anti-Irish prejudice. As she tries to make a life for herself and her daughter, she reunites with her brother, Sean . . . and a man she thought she’d never see again. When her friendship with a runaway slave sweeps her into the volatile abolitionist movement, Gracelin gains entrée to the drawing rooms of the wealthy and powerful. Still, the injustice all around her threatens the future of those she loves, and once again, she must do the unthinkable.<br><br><br></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU8ZWyzGTi-BI9HWycpxJUVj7QgHfj4oyTLBLgSYVMwjm2Dd8MfLSWU34axQf7zWhOLQm4a33-89CZjlF8k5Gt3ap4ckUa-iED3CKg9Ntppoxc3OdeLLxEdCHys8fiYn3XfEArIVkStrNh/s1600/mccafferty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="315" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU8ZWyzGTi-BI9HWycpxJUVj7QgHfj4oyTLBLgSYVMwjm2Dd8MfLSWU34axQf7zWhOLQm4a33-89CZjlF8k5Gt3ap4ckUa-iED3CKg9Ntppoxc3OdeLLxEdCHys8fiYn3XfEArIVkStrNh/s320/mccafferty.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><br><br>
The captivating story of Cot Daley, kidnapped in Galway and shipped to Barbados and sold as a slave. The survivor of a failed rebellion, in which black and Irish slaves have conspired to overthrow their masters, Cot Daley is called in for questioning. She agrees to give her account only as part of her life story, wanting to set the record straight for posterity. The tale of her amazing life unfolds: the journey to Barbados, the harrowing years of fieldwork on the sugarcane plantations, and her marriage to an African slave and rebel leader. Kate McCafferty brilliantly re-creates this little-known part of seventeenth-century history, when more than fifty thousand Irish were sold to the plantation owners of the Caribbean.<br><br><br></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-69251649485963620812018-04-16T02:00:00.000-07:002018-04-16T02:00:24.318-07:00#CoverCliche: Stolen Kisses <div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2tPZw9T75PgkAdehrB1sUzKchDpXX_dO9y0SiyVdPTcNJqsJmfzAIeYE6-vI7BJh_nRcbDcz9Jex9960Laq454fkgPiFCDx3o5HVf_zxvZzU0RP2Xw6mt1ZmUWxRCE8AR3peAGvGB4OZX/s1600/18759329.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="306" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2tPZw9T75PgkAdehrB1sUzKchDpXX_dO9y0SiyVdPTcNJqsJmfzAIeYE6-vI7BJh_nRcbDcz9Jex9960Laq454fkgPiFCDx3o5HVf_zxvZzU0RP2Xw6mt1ZmUWxRCE8AR3peAGvGB4OZX/s320/18759329.jpg" width="206" /></a>
The first retelling of the passionate, twelfth-century love story since the discovery of 113 lost love letters between Heloise d’Argenteuil and Pierre Abelard—the original Romeo and Juliet.<br />
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"While I sleep you never leave me, and after I wake I see you, as soon as I open my eyes, even before the light of day itself." —Abelard to Heloise<br />
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Among the young women of twelfth-century Paris, Heloise d’Argenteuil stands apart. Extraordinarily educated and quick-witted, she is being groomed by her uncle to become an abbess in the service of God.<br />
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But with one encounter, her destiny changes forever. Pierre Abelard, headmaster at the Notre-Dame Cloister School, is acclaimed as one of the greatest philosophers in France. His controversial reputation only adds to his allure, yet despite the legions of women swooning over his poetry and dashing looks, he is captivated by the brilliant Heloise alone. As their relationship blossoms from a meeting of the minds to a forbidden love affair, both Heloise and Abelard must choose between love, duty, and ambition.<br />
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Sherry Jones weaves the lovers’ own words into an evocative account of desire and sacrifice. As intimate as it is erotic, as devastating as it is beautiful, The Sharp Hook of Love is a poignant, tender tribute to one of history’s greatest romances, and to love’s power to transform and endure.</blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjuEh-mC69s3EEu4hj74Te_dMuZf5Tdts77CuEBw6wm4LF2wd2GMRTQtZOf03oxVbmfAec9C6nHgOKjrSV7ZZzR8lYh2XmuC4E1cNJ1jVe-B3KEsdsgzJtP9NFCWk82g0Ez5bCbzCV5-i/s1600/331830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="283" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIjuEh-mC69s3EEu4hj74Te_dMuZf5Tdts77CuEBw6wm4LF2wd2GMRTQtZOf03oxVbmfAec9C6nHgOKjrSV7ZZzR8lYh2XmuC4E1cNJ1jVe-B3KEsdsgzJtP9NFCWk82g0Ez5bCbzCV5-i/s320/331830.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="224" /></a>Martine Leavitt offers a spellbinding story, interweaving elements of classic fantasy and high romance in this National Book Award Finalist. Keturah follows a legendary hart into the king's forest, where she becomes hopelessly lost. Her strength diminishes until, finally, she realizes that death is near. Little does she know that he is a young, handsome lord, melancholy and stern. Renowned for her storytelling, Keturah is able to charm Lord Death with a story and thereby gain a reprieve but only for twenty-four hours. She must find her one true love within that time or all is lost. Keturah searches desperately while the village prepares for an unexpected visit from the king, and Keturah is thrus into a prominent role as mysterious happenings alarm her friends and neighbors. Lord Death's presence hovers over this all until Keturah confronts him one last time in the harrowing climax.</div>
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Love is for women who have choices. She has none.<br />
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In eleventh-century France on the eve of the First Crusade, Isabel de Vermandois becomes the wife of a man old enough to be her father. He is Robert de Beaumont, Comte de Meulan. A hero of the Norman victory at Hastings and loyal counselor to successive English kings, Robert is not all Isabel had expected. Cruel and kind by contrast, he draws her into the decadent court of King Henry I. As Robert's secrets are unraveled, Isabel finds her heart divided. Her duties as a wife and mother compel her, but an undeniable attraction to the young William de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, tempts her. In a kingdom where love holds no sway over marital relations, Isabel must choose where her loyalties and her heart lie.<br />
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Based on the life of a remarkable medieval woman forgotten by time, The Burning Candle is a story of duty and honor, love and betrayal.</div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-538113415619778702018-04-09T02:00:00.000-07:002018-04-09T02:00:08.919-07:00#CoverCliche: Lost in Thought<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
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<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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Will the dam hold?<br />
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Julie Wallace has always wanted to write. Trying to escape the Great Depression, Julie’s father buys The Alderton Sentinel, a small-town newspaper in flood-prone Alderton, Pennsylvania, and moves his family there. As flash floods ominously increase, Julie’s investigative reporting uncovers secrets that could endanger the entire community.<br />
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Julie, the newspaper, and her family are thrown into a perilous standoff with the owners of the steel mills as they investigate the conditions of the steelworkers. Battle lines are drawn between the steel mill owners and their immigrant laborers. As The Sentinel and Julie take on a more aggressive role in reforming these conditions in their community, seething tensions come to a head.<br />
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When a devastating tragedy follows a shocking revelation, Julie’s courage and strength are tested. Will truth and justice win, or will Julie lose everything she holds dear?</blockquote>
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"This collection... escorts readers through historic Europe’s romantic settings in search of the perfect love story." --DESERET NEWS, Melissa DeMoux<br />
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In WAR OF HEARTS, Annette Lyon’s exciting novella, Anna, a journalist, is desperate to escape the magazine where Pete, her now-former boyfriend, also works. Heartbroken and still in love with him, Anna snags an assignment to cover the Winter War in Finland. She arrives at a snowy Finnish battlefront only to discover that Pete is already there—as her photographer. She’s determined to be professional about the situation until a battle breaks out in camp, putting her and Pete in harm’s way and putting their love to the test.<br />
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In bestselling regency romance author G.G. Vandagriff’s enchanting novella, THE EARL OF OAKSEY TAKES A WIFE, Melissa Burroughs is the new Countess of Oaksey. Her whirlwind romance and subsequent elopement was worth every divine moment, even if her parents did disapprove. When Melissa learns about her new husband’s apparently empty pockets, she wonders if the intimacy they’ve shared is only the ruse of a fortune-hunter. Melissa is devastated and determines to live a separate life from her new husband. But the Earl has other plans, which do not include staying away from his wife.<br />
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In Michele Paige Holmes’ charming story, GIFT OF LOVE, Ethan Mooreleigh knows he’ll never love another woman after the loss of his beloved wife. Yet he needs a male heir to inherit his vast fortune. Ethan’s best friend, Stuart, has an idea and retrieves his sister, Amelia, who has been living in a convent since the tragic death of her parents. Amelia only agrees to enter into the contract marriage because there’s a child involved, Ethan’s neglected three-year-old daughter. When Amelia meets Ethan for the first time at the altar, she realizes that the last thing she wants her marriage to be is loveless. But winning a man whose heart is still broken may be impossible.<br />
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A LESSON IN LOVE, a delightful novella by bestselling regency romance author Sarah M. Eden, captures the uncertainties of newlywed life. Lucy Stanthorpe arrives for the London Season, planning to attend every ball and musicale with her new husband, Reed, only to discover he has no intention of taking part in the social whirl. Spurred on by their family and friends, Lucy and Reed each formulate increasingly outlandish plans to teach the other a lesson in appreciation. Their battle of wills threatens to pull the young couple apart unless they can both soften their stubborn hearts.<br />
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In AN OCEAN AWAY, Heather B. Moore’s captivating story, Gina Graydon knows the last thing she’ll attract on her holiday in France is an eligible bachelor. Tall, outspoken, and with a weakness for laughing at the wrong moment, not to mention being much too occupied with reading gothic romances, Gina decides she’d rather live in her fictional world. Besides, the only man who pays attention to her at the resort hotel happens to be her father’s worst enemy. And that is far from romantic. Reading in a secluded garden, and dreaming about the perfect kiss, all keep Gina much too busy to consider Mr. Edmund Donaldson any sort of hero.<br />
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Nancy Campbell Allen’s entrancing regency romance novella, WHAT HAPPENS IN VENICE, follows Evangeline Stuart as she determines to enjoy her vacation in Venice—her first and likely her last since she lives under the strict confines of her step-father’s control. When she meets the mysterious and romantic Conte Bellini, who happens to be Italy’s most eligible bachelor, she decides he is all part of the dream of visiting Venice. It’s impossible for her to believe that his interest in her is anything more than kindness to a foreign visitor. But when he discovers the true betrayal of her step-father, Evangeline learns the Conte may be the one person with the power to restore her happiness.</blockquote>
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Return to a Jazz Age tale of grand adventure by New York Times bestselling author Deanna Raybourn<br />
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On the verge of a stilted life as an aristocrat’s wife, Poppy Hammond does the only sensible thing—she flees the chapel in her wedding gown. Assisted by the handsome curate who calls himself Sebastian Cantrip, she spirits away to her estranged father’s quiet country village, pursued by the family she left in uproar. But when the dust of her broken engagement settles and Sebastian disappears under mysterious circumstances, Poppy discovers there is more to her hero than it seems.<br />
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With only her feisty lady’s maid for company, Poppy secures employment and travels incognita—east across the seas, chasing a hunch and the whisper of clues. Danger abounds beneath the canopies of the silken city, and Poppy finds herself in the perilous sights of those who will stop at nothing to recover a fabled ancient treasure. Torn between allegiance to her kindly employer and a dashing, shadowy figure, Poppy will risk it all as she attempts to unravel a much larger plan—one that stretches to the very heart of the British government, and one that could endanger everything, and everyone, that she holds dear.<br />
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“Raybourn skillfully balances humor and earnest, deadly drama, creating well-drawn characters and a rich setting.” —Publishers Weekly on Dark Road to Darjeeling<br />
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-17221074920018579872018-04-02T02:00:00.000-07:002018-04-02T02:00:35.209-07:00#CoverCliche: Across the Lonesome Prairie <div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp6ucIYowc-p8JabzvY0X_Dcz92YyYkuvUwyjF2UzueJqJh-qZSVbJ-kOG9HQ6xgy9XDEuYggc_v7lQ_361g3iDj7aPduzHzQBUAkm04J5SHIEfdDhJjFQNcdV1x0UtWf1Lip9MESGKSns/s1600/51S66bOaZhL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="324" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp6ucIYowc-p8JabzvY0X_Dcz92YyYkuvUwyjF2UzueJqJh-qZSVbJ-kOG9HQ6xgy9XDEuYggc_v7lQ_361g3iDj7aPduzHzQBUAkm04J5SHIEfdDhJjFQNcdV1x0UtWf1Lip9MESGKSns/s320/51S66bOaZhL.jpg" width="207" /></a>Follow the paths of Sarah and Will (or Sam) as they tell their stories of trust, secrets, and betrayal on the frontier in the old West. Their pioneer spirit helped to fuel the expansion into the Western territories of the United States. The two are historically on their separate journeys, yet they remain intimately connected. <br />
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In 1878, Will is on the run after killing a man in a barroom gunfight. He escapes the Texas Rangers by joining a cattle drive as a cook headed to Dodge City. He struggles with the dilemma of saving his life or attempting to return to his pregnant wife and five children. Just when he thinks he might be able to return home, he is confronted by a bounty hunter who captures him and plans to return him to Fort Worth, Texas to be hanged.<br />
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Although Will changes his name to Sam, he remains an irresponsible, lonely and untrustworthy man on the dodge from the law who abandons the women he loves. He ultimately seeks redemption and marries Sarah.<br />
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In 1911, Sarah, a pioneer woman, and a widow with five children, struggles to find the inner strength to overcome betrayal, loneliness, fears, and self-doubt. Her husband, Sam, thirty years her senior, died with a mysterious and defiant declaration, "I won't answer!." Despite poverty and a crippling illness, she draws on her pioneer spirit to hold her family together and return to Nebraska to be near her parents and siblings.<br />
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When Sarah returns to Nebraska she receives staggering news which complicates her efforts to support her children. She is shocked, angry and emotionally devastated. Since she is attempting to establish herself in the community as a teacher, she believes she must keep her secret even from her own family. Will Sarah find forgiveness in her heart and the resolve to accept her new life alone?</blockquote>
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One Thousand White Women is the story of May Dodd and a colorful assembly of pioneer women who, under the auspices of the U.S. government, travel to the western prairies in 1875 to intermarry among the Cheyenne Indians. The covert and controversial "Brides for Indians" program, launched by the administration of Ulysses S. Grant, is intended to help assimilate the Indians into the white man's world. Toward that end May and her friends embark upon the adventure of their lifetime. Jim Fergus has so vividly depicted the American West that it is as if these diaries are a capsule in time.<br />
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-40562836205976070272018-03-26T02:00:00.000-07:002018-03-26T02:00:06.399-07:00#CoverCliche: Cautious by Nature<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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At the heart of truth lies madness...<br />
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Two months before Hitler's rise to power, a beautiful young woman is found naked and near death in the woods outside Berlin. When she finally wakes from her coma, she can remember nothing, not even her name. The only clue to her identity is a handbill found nearby, advertising a public lecture by Albert Einstein: 'On the Present State of Quantum Theory'.<br />
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Psychiatrist Martin Kirsch takes the case, little suspecting that this will be his last. As he searches for the truth about 'the Einstien Girl', professional fascination turns to reckless love. His investigations lead him to a remote corner of Siberia via a psychiatric hospital in Zurich. There the inheritor of Einstein's genius - his youngest son, Eduard - is writing a book that will destroy his illustrious father and, in the process, change the world.</blockquote>
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A beautiful American spy flees into the night. On her own, she must live by her wits to evade capture and make it to the safety of the Allied forces.<br />
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Lily Saint James grew up traveling the European continent, learning languages as she went. In 1938, her mother’s abrupt death brings her back home to Washington, D.C., and after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Lily comes to the attention of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Her knowledge of German, French, and Italian makes her the perfect OSS Agent, and her quick thinking places her as a nanny in the household of an important German Army Colonel, where she is able to gather intelligence for the Allies. After her marketplace contact goes missing, she makes a late-night trip to her secondary contact only to find him under interrogation by the SS. When he commits suicide, she flees into the frigid winter night carrying false identification papers that are now dangerous and a mini film cartridge with vital strategic information. In order to survive, Lily must make it out of Germany, into the hands of Allied-controlled France, through a path fraught with peril. </blockquote>
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In the midst of the Second World War, and charged with taking vital equipment via the 9:45 train, Ena Dudley makes regular trips to Bletchley Park, until on one occasion she is robbed. When those she cares about are accused of being involved, she investigates, not knowing whom she can trust. While trying to clear her name, Ena falls in love.<br />
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-22373779920363586822018-03-19T02:00:00.000-07:002018-03-19T02:00:00.220-07:00#CoverCliche: Dark Elegance<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
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<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem is a dazzling novel of mothers and daughters, stories told and untold, and the binds that tie four generations of women.<br />
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Gabriela's mother Luna is the most beautiful woman in all of Jerusalem, though her famed beauty and charm seem to be reserved for everyone but her daughter. Ever since Gabriela can remember, she and Luna have struggled to connect. But when tragedy strikes, Gabriela senses there's more to her mother than painted nails and lips.<br />
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Desperate to understand their relationship, Gabriela pieces together the stories of her family's previous generations—from Great-Grandmother Mercada the renowned healer, to Grandma Rosa who cleaned houses for the English, to Luna who had the nicest legs in Jerusalem. But as she uncovers shocking secrets, forbidden romances, and the family curse that links the women together, Gabriela must face a past and present far more complex than she ever imagined.<br />
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Set against the Golden Age of Hollywood, the dark days of World War II, and the swingin' '70s, The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem follows generations of unforgettable women as they forge their own paths through times of dramatic change. With great humor and heart, Sarit Yishai-Levi has given us a powerful story of love and forgiveness—and the unexpected and enchanting places we find each.</blockquote>
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Based on the author's discoveries about her great-grandfather, this stunning debut novel takes place over three days when World War II comes to the doorstep of an ordinary German family living in an idyllic, rural village near the Swiss border.<br />
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When World War II breaks out, Edith and Oskar Eberhardt move their family--their daughter, Marina; son-in-law, Franz; and their granddaughters--out of Berlin and into a small house in the quiet town of Blumental, near Switzerland. A member of Hitler's cabinet, Oskar is gone most of the time, and Franz begins fighting in the war, so the women of the house are left to their quiet lives in the picturesque village.<br />
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But life in Blumental isn't as idyllic as it appears. An egotistical Nazi captain terrorizes the citizens he's assigned to protect. Neighbors spy on each other. Some mysteriously disappear. Marina has a lover who also has close ties to her family and the government. Thinking none of them share her hatred of the Reich, she joins a Protestant priest smuggling Jewish refugees over the nearby Swiss border. The latest "package" is two Polish girls who've lost the rest of their family, and against her better judgment, Marina finds she must hide them in the Eberhardt's cellar. Everything is set to go smoothly until Oskar comes home with the news that the Fuhrer will be visiting the area for a concert, and he will be making a house call on the Eberhardts.<br />
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Based on the author's discoveries about her great-grandfather, this extraordinary debut, full of love, tragedy, and suspense, is a sensitive portrait of a family torn between doing their duty for their country and doing what's right for their country, and especially for those they love.<br />
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English Title: The Good at Heart</blockquote>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-51419317601960441202018-03-12T02:00:00.000-07:002018-03-12T02:00:07.576-07:00#CoverCliche: Girl Talk<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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In January 1943, 230 women of the French Resistance were sent to the death camps by the Nazis who had invaded and occupied their country. This is their story, told in full for the first time—a searing and unforgettable chronicle of terror, courage, defiance, survival, and the power of friendship. Caroline Moorehead, a distinguished biographer, human rights journalist, and the author of Dancing to the Precipice and Human Cargo, brings to life an extraordinary story that readers of Mitchell Zuckoff’s Lost in Shangri-La, Erik Larson’s In the Garden of Beasts, and Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken will find an essential addition to our retelling of the history of World War II—a riveting, rediscovered story of courageous women who sacrificed everything to combat the march of evil across the world.<br />
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Inspired by the life of a real World War II heroine, this debut novel reveals a story of love, redemption, and secrets that were hidden for decades.<br />
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New York socialite Caroline Ferriday has her hands full with her post at the French consulate and a new love on the horizon. But Caroline’s world is forever changed when Hitler’s army invades Poland in September 1939—and then sets its sights on France.<br />
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An ocean away from Caroline, Kasia Kuzmerick, a Polish teenager, senses her carefree youth disappearing as she is drawn deeper into her role as courier for the underground resistance movement. In a tense atmosphere of watchful eyes and suspecting neighbors, one false move can have dire consequences.<br />
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For the ambitious young German doctor, Herta Oberheuser, an ad for a government medical position seems her ticket out of a desolate life. Once hired, though, she finds herself trapped in a male-dominated realm of Nazi secrets and power.<br />
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The lives of these three women are set on a collision course when the unthinkable happens and Kasia is sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious Nazi concentration camp for women. Their stories cross continents—from New York to Paris, Germany, and Poland—as Caroline and Kasia strive to bring justice to those whom history has forgotten. </blockquote>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-73754823250199930132018-03-02T06:50:00.000-08:002018-03-02T06:50:17.415-08:00#AuthorInterview: Linda Stratmann, author of An Unquiet Ghost<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author Linda Stratmann to Flashlight Commentary to discuss the third installment of the Mina Scarletti Series, An Unquiet Ghost.</b><br />
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Release Date: March 1, 2018 | Sapere Books | Historical Fiction/Paranormal Mystery<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy7-_nYX6Jf8Q3ipr-eCnLzX0CP8UTcUObN9jRezGyENLGTxpKBSXWku9y2oYCvRA-cPiWZq9u6Bdw7KTEWLe9QufErNwGfUHEfNiTJEqzs83FhiMWOtWKL1cNXbge9DDPHrQHZXO2B6H3/s1600/37557477.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy7-_nYX6Jf8Q3ipr-eCnLzX0CP8UTcUObN9jRezGyENLGTxpKBSXWku9y2oYCvRA-cPiWZq9u6Bdw7KTEWLe9QufErNwGfUHEfNiTJEqzs83FhiMWOtWKL1cNXbge9DDPHrQHZXO2B6H3/s400/37557477.jpg" width="266" /></a><b>Welcome to Flashlight Commentary Linda. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about An Unquiet Ghost.</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">The setting is 1871 Brighton. Séances were extremely popular, and without independent investigation, there was something of a free-for-all for charlatans. Mina Scarletti has successfully exposed fraudulent mediums who callously extorted money from the vulnerable bereaved, but now she has a new problem. A young couple, second cousins, wish to marry, but twenty years ago an aged relative, Henry Fernwood, was poisoned, and the killer can only have been a blood relation. If they marry will they pass on a dreadful taint to their children? Only one person knows the identity of the killer - the murdered man - and the couple want Mina to find a genuine medium who can contact his unquiet ghost. They visit two mediums, one who receives messages chalked on slates, and an emaciated young woman who has visions of both the living and the dead. Are they truthful, false or simply deluded? And who killed Henry Fernwood? When Mina finds the answer it is worse than she could possibly have imagined. </span><br />
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<b>An Unquiet Ghost is the third installment of the Mina Scarletti Mystery series. At risk of sounding impertinent, where did the idea for these books come from? Did it strike like lightening out nowhere or was is something that came to you over time? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Oddly enough it did strike like lightning! I was walking along my street approaching a corner, when the idea just popped into my head, and by the time I had turned the corner I knew I had something I wanted to write. Of course it must also have been the culmination of all the reading and researching I had been doing. I find that when the time is right, ideas that have been floating about randomly in my head just come together and click. </span><br />
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<b>Without giving too much away, what can you tell us about Mina Scarletti’s character and personality?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Mina is 25 and is 4ft 8” tall with a twisted spine. When she was sixteen she was told she should never marry and have children. Physically frail, she has great strength of character, and decided that if the traditional role of a woman was denied her, this gave her the chance to do anything else she wanted. She has great imagination as a storyteller, but at the same time feels she knows the difference between what is real and what is invention. She particularly dislikes people who try to extort money from those who are grieving for loved ones. With few weapons at her disposal, she takes a mischievous pleasure in stirring up others in order to achieve what she wants. </span><br />
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<b>Mina is a writer by trade, but is becoming well-known for unmasking fraudulent psychics by this point in the series. How did Mina fall into this secondary profession? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">In the first book, Mr Scarletti’s Ghost, Mina’s mother and friends are excited by the seances of a visiting spirit medium, Miss Eustace. Mina is not seriously concerned until she reads about the renowned medium D D Home, (1833-1886) who attempted to separate a 75 year old widow from her fortune. Appalled by this, Mina determines to make sure that her mother and friends are not in the thrall of an extortionist. </span><br />
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<b>Though she is not a believer in ghosts, Mina is intrigued when George Fernwood and Mary Clifton request her help in tracking down a genuine spiritual medium. What about this request strikes her interest? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">She feels sympathy for the couple who wish to marry, and is interested in the mystery that lies behind their request. Also, as a writer constantly looking for inspiration from her surroundings, their offer to give her the full story behind the 1851 murder is too tempting to resist! </span><br />
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<b>Do you have a favorite scene in An Unquiet Ghost? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Not exactly a scene, but there are letters passing between Mina and her older brother Edward, and Mina and her mother which were huge fun for me to write as we get different views of the same situation, and sometimes we have to read between the lines to see the real picture. </span><br />
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<b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on while writing An Unquiet Ghost?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I didn’t feel that, but I have laid groundwork for the future. We know very little as yet about Edward’s fiancée, and what will happen when Mina’s sister’s husband, Mr Inskip who is currently abroad, finally re-appears? </span><br />
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<b>If you could sit down and talk with one of the characters in An Unquiet Ghost, maybe meet and discuss things over drinks, who would you invite and why? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">It would be great to chat with Nellie, as she has had a fascinating career as a conjuror’s assistant, and knows a few tricks of her own. I’m sure she would have some colourful stories to tell. </span><br />
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<b>If you could pick a fantasy cast to play the leads in a screen adaptation of An Unquiet Ghost, who would you hire? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I would love to see Lisa Hammond (Donna in Eastenders) as Mina. She radiates drive, determination and inner strength. And while we’re about it, what about Nitin Ganatra (Masood) as dishy Dr Hamid? Lily James would make a sparkling Nellie. Leo Suter (Edward Drummond in Victoria) would be great as Mina’s dashing scallywag of a brother, Richard. Joanna Lumley would be ‘Ab Fab’ to play Mina’s difficult mother. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">A character who appears in The Royal Ghost, (book 2) and is destined to appear again, is the devilishly charismatic war hero and explorer Arthur Wallace Hope and I can’t help thinking about Aidan Turner to play that part! </span><br />
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<b>What do you hope readers take from their experience of An Unquiet Ghost? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Admiration for Mina who has overcome difficulties that would crush another person in order to be her true, spirited self, a wish to understand more about the nature of hallucinations and a burning desire to read the other books in the series!</span><br />
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I was born in the City of Leicester. My parents were in the tailoring trade, and belonged to the Orthodox Jewish community. They wanted me to be educated, have a career, and marry a nice Jewish doctor. I managed two out of the three. All four of my grandparents had immigrated from Poland early in the 20th century, and my parents were born in London. During the second world war, my parents moved to Leicester, though they maintained close ties with the family in London. I have always felt that if there was any place I really belonged, it was London. Much as I enjoy rural pleasures I am a city person at heart, and nowadays would find it hard to live more than a tube ride from the British Library!<br />
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My love affair with the printed word probably started when I was two, when I eagerly absorbed the alphabet as taught to me by my mother. I have had my nose in a book ever since. The scribbling of poems and stories certainly dates back as early as six, and my first efforts at a novel from the age of eleven. I attended Medway Street Infants and Junior School, in the days of the eleven plus, and from there I went to Wyggeston Girls Grammar School. My earliest ambition was to be an astronomer, and I both read and wrote a great deal of science fiction. I also read biology, zoology and medicine, and seriously considered a medical career. By my teens, however, I had developed my absorbing and life-long interest in true crime, probably taking after my mother who loved to read about famous trials.<br />
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After taking my O levels, I left school, and trained to be a chemist’s dispenser with Boots. I was first married at the age of 18 and my son was born when I was 20. Whatever I was destined to be it was not a housewife, and I took my A levels and went to Newcastle University in 1971, graduating with first class honours in psychology three years later. I then joined the civil service, and trained to be an Inspector of Taxes.<br />
From the early 70s I was very active in science fiction fandom, attending a great many conventions. I was living in Co. Durham , working in Newcastle, yet virtually everything I wanted to do, and most of my friends were in London. In 1987, unable to resist the pull of London I moved there, and my first husband and I were amicably divorced in 1992. I married my second husband, Gary in 1993. In the same year I began practising aikido, and obtained my black belt in 2000.<br />
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In 2001 I left the civil service, and in 2002 was commissioned to write my first published book on the history of chloroform.<br />
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I am delighted to be Artistic Patron of Talliston House and Gardens.</div>
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<a href="http://lindastratmann.com/">Website</a><span id="goog_1294136613"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_1294136614"></span> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Books-by-Linda-Stratmann-270261905489/">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/461694.Linda_Stratmann">Goodreads</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/lindastratmann">Twitter</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-549899089838804342018-03-01T05:55:00.000-08:002018-03-01T05:55:05.975-08:00#AuthorInterview: Clarissa Harwood, author of Impossible Saints<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author Clarissa Harwood to Flashlight Commentary to discuss her debut release, Impossible Saints.</b><br />
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Release Date: January 2, 2018 | Pegasus Books | Historical Fiction/Family Life<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyeyQZGEUwKju5B6_XN7XcyVjMNUv-JhyphenhyphenkUanJr4ODohufq5P1zCDNZAR7BgAxIlr566zXHLhCKrf7zCpMGcJ_TWJSJs8wXKQqKuIfoOfnAM22OCvRxScx-7bkJPggOATX_cHchQGOfLT/s1600/35407551.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyeyQZGEUwKju5B6_XN7XcyVjMNUv-JhyphenhyphenkUanJr4ODohufq5P1zCDNZAR7BgAxIlr566zXHLhCKrf7zCpMGcJ_TWJSJs8wXKQqKuIfoOfnAM22OCvRxScx-7bkJPggOATX_cHchQGOfLT/s400/35407551.jpg" width="266" /></a><b>Welcome to Flashlight Commentary Clarissa. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about Impossible Saints.</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Thank you for having me here! Impossible Saints is set in 1907 England and is about the competing ambitions and growing love between a schoolteacher turned militant suffragette and an Anglican clergyman. Lilia, an agnostic, considers marriage to a clergyman a fate worse than death. Paul, a supporter of women’s suffrage but not of militancy, is well aware that his love for Lilia is incompatible with his ambition to become the next dean of the cathedral. Paul and Lilia must reach their breaking points before they can decide whether their love is worth fighting for.</span><br />
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<b>At risk of sounding impertinent, where did you find this story? Did it strike like lightning out of nowhere or was is something that came to you over time? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">What first sparked the novel was a scene that popped into my head about twenty years ago: it was as vivid and detailed as a scene in a movie. I saw a confrontation in a meadow between a quiet, studious boy who didn’t know how to play, and a fiery girl pretending to be Jeanne d’Arc, leading her army of brothers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">When the idea first came to me, I had just started my PhD studies and didn’t have time to write the novel, but that scene haunted me for about ten years before I finally gave in and started writing Paul and Lilia’s story. The meadow scene was cut from the finished novel, but both Paul and Lilia refer to it and remember it as their first meeting. Their personalities as children were so clear in the meadow scene that it was easy to imagine what they’d be like as adults.</span><br />
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<b>Without giving too much away, what can you tell us about heroine Lilia Brooke?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Lilia is a young woman with very modern ideals. She believes women should have the vote, and she’s willing to break the law to fight for it. She believes contraception should be legal. She believes in free unions, not marriage. She might seem extreme or too modern to contemporary readers, but the primary sources I found in the course of my research suggest otherwise: there were plenty of women like her in the early 20th century, though they weren’t accepted in most respectable middle-class circles.</span><br />
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<b>The Women's Social and Political Union was a militant organization that campaigned for Women's suffrage in the United Kingdom. Why is Lilia drawn to this particular group? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">At the beginning of the novel, Lilia belongs to the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS), a non-militant suffrage group that was socially acceptable and pursued quieter, legal methods to get the vote. But she learns that the government doesn’t listen to these quieter methods, and after a tragedy involving a friend, she joins the militant WSPU founded by Emmeline Pankhurst, the only real person who makes an appearance in Impossible Saints. The WSPU was known for window-breaking, arson, and other property destruction, but what many people don’t realize is how brutally they were attacked by the police and bystanders even when they attempted to stage peaceful demonstrations and speeches. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">Belonging to the WSPU fits Lilia’s personality: she is strong, brave, and fearless when fighting for a cause she believes in, and there’s nothing she believes in more than women’s rights. But she’s not perfect: she lacks insight into her own heart!</span><br />
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<b>Do you have a favorite scene in Impossible Saints? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I have several favorites! Without giving too much away, one of them is possibly the worst marriage proposal in the history of marriage proposals. Another is a flirtatious scene in which Paul and Lilia argue about translating Horace’s Odes. One of my beta readers commented after reading that scene, “If I knew it could be this sexy, I would have paid more attention in Latin class!”</span><br />
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<b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on while writing Impossible Saints?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Paul has a nemesis named Thomas Cross who intrigued me, but I couldn’t allow him to take over the story. The way I solved this problem was by making Thomas Cross the protagonist of a new novel!</span><br />
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<b>If you could sit down and talk with one of the characters in Impossible Saints, maybe meet and discuss things over drinks, who would you invite and why? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I don’t think either of my protagonists would want to just sit and talk with me, though I’d love to do that with either of them. I don’t know if other writers have inferiority complexes about their characters, but I certainly do: I’m constantly plagued by doubts that my characters would want to be friends with me if they knew me in real life!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">Paul is harder than Lilia to get to know and I could see myself becoming frustrated with his reserved nature. The two of us might just sit in opposite corners of a room reading books! Lilia would certainly talk to me, but she wouldn’t want to sit still for long, so she’d probably prefer that I follow her around, hearing her speeches and watching the effect she has on the people around her. Maybe she’d let me be her personal assistant!</span><br />
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<b>If you could pick a fantasy cast to play the leads in a screen adaptation of Impossible Saints, who would you hire?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I would cast James Norton as Paul, which is a no-brainer for anyone who’s watched Grantchester. I’m not as sure about Lilia. Gal Gadot could do it, but in proper period dress, of course, not her Wonder Woman costume! One of my readers suggested Maggie Gyllenhaal, and I’d be happy with her, too.</span><br />
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<b>What do you hope readers take from their experience of Impossible Saints? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I’ve built a lot of layers into Impossible Saints, so I’d like to think it has something for everyone. Readers who like deep philosophical themes will be challenged to examine their beliefs about religion and feminism. Readers who love history will learn what women in England went through to get the vote. Readers who want romance will see that the novel is at its core a love story. I hope readers feel both satisfied and empowered after they turn the last page.</span><br />
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Clarissa was born and raised on the Canadian prairies, where she spent her childhood forcing her younger relatives to play roles in her interminably long family Christmas plays. (She has since apologized to her Traumatized Cousins and Very Patient Elders, all innocent victims of her attempts to realize her artistic vision.) She now contents herself with trying to manipulate the characters in her novels, who regularly surprise her by being just as resistant to her interference as real people.<br />
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Clarissa writes historical fiction set mainly in Victorian and Edwardian England. She has been fascinated by all things Victorian since she was a child: the clothes, the elaborate social rituals, the gap between rich and poor, the dizzying pace of advancements in science and technology. When it was time to choose a major in university, she had trouble deciding between history and English literature because she really just wanted to study the Victorians. Ultimately, she chose English and earned a PhD specializing in nineteenth-century British literature.<br />
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Her novels pay homage to her favourite Victorian authors: the Brontë sisters, George Eliot, Thomas Hardy, and Frances Hodgson Burnett. Her favourite living authors include Diane Setterfield, Kate Morton, Jessica Brockmole, and Susanna Kearsley.<br />
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In addition to being a novelist and proud member of the Historical Novel Society, Clarissa is a part-time university instructor and full-time grammar nerd who loves to explain the difference between restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses.</div>
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<a href="http://www.clarissaharwood.com/">Website</a><span id="goog_1294136613"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_1294136614"></span> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ClarissaHarwoodAuthor/">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16943362.Clarissa_Harwood">Goodreads</a> | <a href="http://www.clarissaharwood.com/blog/">Blog</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/clarissaharwood">Twitter</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-60133774715629618162018-02-22T06:41:00.000-08:002018-03-01T05:55:46.854-08:00#AuthorInterview: Kevin O'Connell, author of Two Journeys Home: A Novel of Eighteenth Century Europe<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author Kevin O'Connell to Flashlight Commentary to discuss his latest release, Two Journeys Home: A Novel of Eighteenth Century Europe.</b><br />
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Release Date: November 1, 2017 | Gortcullinane Press | Historical Fiction/Family Saga<br />
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<b>Welcome to Flashlight Commentary Kevin. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about Two Journeys Home: A Novel of Eighteenth Century Europe. </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Thank you so much for having me! </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">Two Journeys Home is the second of what appears will be a series of four, or perhaps even five, works of historical fiction, which will together comprise what’s become The Derrynane Saga. The story is based on what little is historically documented about several members of the O’Connell family of Derrynane, in far southwest County Kerry, Ireland. As it relates their largely-fictional lives from 1760 until the mid-1790’s, set in Ireland, Vienna and France, this provides a time-line for each book and the Saga as a whole. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">The period covered in Two Journeys is Spring, 1767 until mid-Summer 1770 – which proves to be a highly-eventful, albeit relatively-brief span of time, in which several of the O’Connells’ lives are changed forever, amidst a melange of romance, intrigue, betrayal, violence and conflict within and without the clan. In some parallels, one or two other major characters’ lives are similarly altered.</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>At risk of sounding impertinent, where did you find this story? Did it strike like lightening out nowhere or was is something that came to you over time? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">‘Tis not impertinent at all – it’s a great question! </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">I believe it is accurate to say that, without being aware of the fact, I seemingly had the story within me for much of my life. Having heard any number of “O’Connell tales” since childhood, I ultimately studied both the O’Connells and the Eighteenth Century in Europe in quite some detail, in the process subconsciously tucking away many wee snippets of what has become this story – a mix, as are all Irish stories, of fact and fancy.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">The writing itself began just about six years ago this Winter, as a bit of a lark. I must admit that writing was not something I’d dreamt about or deferred all of my life. When I did start – with a gossamer-thin story line, and no experience in writing fiction – or anything else, other than incredibly-dull, complex legal opinions and massive legal transactional documents, the stories literally – and surprisingly – “poured out of me”. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">I was somewhat heartened relatively early-on in the process by a small article written by Hilary Mantel which appeared, in of all places, the Wall Street Journal, which was entitled The Art of Making the Dead Speak; as I read it and critiqued what my characters were saying and how they spoke, I felt that I actually might have some knack for this! </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">During the course of writing both books, I’ve frequently had a sense of almost watching things unfold, “hearing” what was being said, following the characters rather than creating them and what appears on the pages. I’ve come to learn that this is a phenomenon experienced by some writers. Whatever it may be . . . it continues to be an incredible wonder.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">There were certain immutable historical facts about the O’Connells that I knew, and which I’ve used as “mile-markers’ within the story – these facts were few, minute even – footnotes in history, actually – so there are huge gaps in time that needed to be provided for, and it is here that my imagination kicked in and from whence the story emerged. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Without giving too much away, what can you tell us about Eileen O'Connell? What kind of person is she? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Ah, Eileen! I grew up hearing of her, referred to at times as “Auntie Eileen,” and I’ve always felt some type of a numinous, mystical connection with her. I know her, at least the Eileen who strides elegantly across these pages, better than anyone for she is in many, albeit not all ways, a product of my imagination.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">At this stage of her life, virtually all that is known for certain, as she is historically referred to, in Irish, as “Eibhlin Dubh” – which in English translates as her being “Dark Eileen” or, perhaps more poetically, “Eileen of the Raven Locks”, is that she had black hair.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">In developing her character, I have used this as a distinguishing feature – one that sets her apart, even from her own family, as the O’Connells of the period whose appearance we do know were largely fair-haired. In the books, Eileen’s hair is a thick blue-black mane that cascades to her waist. So unique is it and such is the personality that I have created for her (based on a single written reference that she was apparently a “headstrong” young girl), in a time when “ladies at court” wore their hair fashionably-dressed and, at least in part, covered, Eileen does neither.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">She stands “six feet tall, plus an inch – perhaps two” with the deepest of blue eyes, a luminous complexion and a manner befitting a member of the vestiges of the now-fallen Gaelic Aristocracy. Though she is, as the O’Connells are said to have been, proud and arrogant – and intimidating, she is also loving, gentle and quite brilliant – fluent in Irish, English and French, near-fluent in Latin, conversant in German; well-read, equally so-travelled. She speaks in a husky, almost sensual voice. She is a complex character, strong, courageous and – for her time – independent, but also highly-conservative, traditional, and a fervent absolute monarchist. Lastly, she is skilled in the use of firearms – and does not hesitate to meet violence with her own armed ferocity</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">By the time Two Journeys begins, after having been wed (in an arranged marriage solely for the benefit of the O’Connells and their smuggling activities) and widowed before her seventeenth birthday, she has been at the Hapsburg court for almost six years. There, she is amongst its best-recognised members, serving as governess, teacher, riding-mistress and companion to two of Maria Theresa’s daughters, with the younger of whom, the Archduchess Maria Antonia, she has developed an intimate, maternal relationship. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Not too far into Two Journeys, Eileen will make a life-changing decision, about which I shall say no more!</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Eileen is not the only member of her family in the Habsburg Court. Can you tell us a bit about Abigail? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I smile whenever I think of Abby: One reviewer flatly stated, “I love her . . . she is a doll!” whilst a reader wrote to me that “I would love her to be my best friend!”</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">She is several years older – and several inches shorter – than Eileen, more than just pretty, she has, soft curly reddish-blond hair, lying just past her shoulders. Her sky-blue eyes sparkle, a smile or the warmest of laughs seems always close to the surface and her complexion glows, with cascades of faint freckles over her nose and down her cheeks, her manner is perhaps best described as being “elegantly casual”.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">One of the best examples that comes to mind, one through which her unique personality truly shines, is a scene after she’s just arrived at Vienna and is being introduced to the Empress, hew new mistress, for the first time:</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">“Abby was, as her mother would have said, “being Abby”: warm, intelligent, humorous, thoughtful and genuine, posing even the most delicate questions in such a guileless</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">way that Maria Theresa could only laugh and answer — “No, darling, there are those people amongst us whose tasks specifically include the removal of such ‘pots’”. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">Despite a subtle comedic aura about her, during the rest of the first book Abby matures rapidly and settles into a “career path” that had been set out for her even before she arrived in Vienna; she also weds Denis O’Sullivan, a young Irish (a Kerryman she’d met whilst still at home) officer in the Hungarian Hussars, in a magnificent ceremony staged for her by Maria Theresa.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">By the time Two Journeys Home picks up her story, far from being overshadowed by her more colourful younger sister Abigail has risen to what many consider to be the highest post at court: principal lady-in-waiting to the Empress Maria Theresa; as head of her household and “gatekeeper,” Abigail is the servant closest to the most powerful woman in the world. She is a beloved – and commanding – figure at court, who is still able to make people – including readers - laugh.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">She is also Eileen’s anchor, her constant, who provides her younger sister with invaluable degrees of wisdom and insight.</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Hugh O’Connell, Eileen and Abigail’s younger brother also appears in the novel. What can you tell us about him and the Irish Brigade? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Hugh was first introduced as a little boy in Beyond Derrynane, youngest of the 22 children born at Derrynane to Donál Mór and Maire ni Dhuibh, during the course of their long marriage, some 16 of whom survive. Virtually from the time of his birth until she departed home as a teenage bride in 1760, Eileen mothered him; the two have remained close. Like most of his siblings, Hugh is tall, fair, dirty-blonde and blue-eyed. Like his older sister, he is an excellent rider and is also said to be brilliant, an avid reader, multi-lingual and confident. He has an easy-going manner and, at least when he first arrives in Vienna, a somewhat wide-eyed, guileless view of the world.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">When Hugh reappears in Two Journeys Home he as at that juncture in the life of a younger son in a still somehow-landed native Irish family – of deciding whether to go to Continental Europe for a more formal education (the O’Connells having been taught from an early age by “a succession of it always-seemed handsome young Jesuit priests” who had been smuggled into Derrynane by their father for this purpose) and/or to enter the military service of one of the Catholic monarchs.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">As the on-going story is related in the Derrynane books, for several centuries there had been any number of Irish Catholic officers and other-ranks in service to Catholic monarchs from Russia to Spain. Eileen, Abby and Hugh’s uncle, Moritz O’Connell, a general in the Imperial Austrian army, a count (wed to the Empress’s former lady-in-waiting) and a counsellor to Maria Theresa, is far from being the highest ranking Irish officer in Vienna.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">In terms of the Irish Brigade, briefly, its history really begins with James II’s vanguishment by the forces of William of Orange at the Battle of the Boyne in 1689 and the subsequent defeat of General Patrick Sarsfield at Limerick in 1691, the latter of which that resulted in what has become known as the “flight of the Wild Geese”. This term is applied to the soldiers who, having been loyal to James’s cause, were permitted to leave Ireland as a relatively-intact, albeit defeated army, to follow the Stuarts into permanent exile in France – this led to the formation of the famed “Irish Brigade of France”, which plays an increasingly-important role in Two Journeys Home and even more so as the Saga continues, as Hugh will follow his older brother, Daniel Charles, into the service of King Louis XV. Hugh’s career will be as an officer in Dillons Regiment of the Brigade, whilst Daniel Charles, who began his French service with the Swedish Brigade, will spend some time in Lord Clare’s Regiment of the Irish one, he will go on to become an ennobled general and live long enough to be imprisoned by Napoleon. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">Ah, but I digress . . .</span><br />
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<b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on while writing Two Journeys Home?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I have been extremely fortunate to have the most wonderful editor an author could possibly want! Randy Ladenheim-Gil is nothing short of remarkable, as she has guided, nudged, pushed, pulled and carried me through the creative process, employing a not-always-subtle mix of wisdom, humour, patience and great kindness. It is because of her that I can say that I’ve not had to toss away any character or major concept whilst writing Two Journeys or its predecessor. She has always managed to assist me in salvaging worthy ideas – even well-written but misplaced language which, absent her skill, might have fallen victim to the “delete” button.</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">In much the same way, she has prevented me from making potentially-damaging creative errors, one lengthy scene between Eileen and Maria Antonia comes to mind - it would have negatively-impacted the entire story had she not caught it.</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>If you could sit down and talk with one of the characters in Two Journeys Home, maybe meet and discuss things over drinks, who would you invite and why? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">My choice of a companion for good German beer and conversation would be Colonel Wolfgang von Klaus, of the Imperial Austrian Army. Von Klaus, a member of one of Austria’s oldest and most prominent noble families, first appeared in Beyond Derrynane during the Winter of 1764, and became Eileen’s lover and companion. Their relationship goes well beyond the bedroom, as the two share a love of books and reading, and horses. Over time they became each other’s closest confident, Eileen learning from von Klaus the intricacies of European politics, “as tawdry as they are magnificent”, such that as her knowledge expands he comes to rely on her insights and thoughts in his role as counsellor to the Emperor Joseph. Von Klaus continues his intermittent appearances in Derrynane until he departs rather abruptly for the court of Catherine the Great at St Petersburg, as a direct emissary of the Emperor and his co-reigning mother, Maria Theresa. He reappears briefly several times in Two Journeys Home and will make a significant return to the Saga in the third volume. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">Von Klaus is an engaging character, tall, blonde, bluff, handsome and unassuming despite his vast wealth and lofty social and military stature. I would be interested to learn his “take” on the Habsburgs, especially the Empress, as well as Eileen and the other O’Connells at court, and also of the expatriate Irish overall serving in Catholic Europe, his views on the European political and social landscape, his experience at the court of Catherine the Great – and how he really feels about Eileen O’Connell.</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>If you could pick a fantasy cast to play the leads in a screen adaptation of Two Journeys Home, who would you hire? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Eileen O’Connell: Margot Robbie</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Abigail O’Connell: Emily Blunt</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Maire O’Connell [mother]: Emma Thompson</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Anna Pfeffer: Joanne Froggatt</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">General O’Connell: Liam Neeson</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Countess von Graffenreit: Julianne Moore</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Empress Maria Theresa:<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Cate Blanchette</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Archduchess Maria Antonia: unknown teenage actress</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Hugh O’Connell: unknown teenage actor</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Art O’Leary: Ryan Gosling</span><br />
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<b>What do you hope readers take from their experience of Two Journeys Home? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I should hope that they take away an understanding of the unique history of the period and places as presented in the book, as well as a curiosity to perhaps learn more about at least some aspects of it all. I have included a fairly detailed bibliographical essay in both books as there is a fair amount of excellent non-fiction available; I hope more than a few readers will have been intrigued enough by this fictional introduction to want to read more. </span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #76a5af;">In all honesty, I also hope the experience the readers have had with Two Journeys Home might make them want to read Beyond Derrynane, as well as the books to come!</span><br />
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Kevin O'Connell is a native of New York City, the descendant of a young officer of what had—from 1690 to 1792—been the Irish Brigade of the French army, believed to have arrived in French Canada following the execution of Queen Marie Antoinette in October of 1793. At least one grandson subsequently returned to Ireland and Mr. O'Connell's own grandparents came to New York in the early twentieth century. He holds both Irish and American citizenship.<br />
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He is a graduate of Don Bosco Preparatory School, Ramsey, New Jersey; Providence College and Georgetown University Law Centre.<br />
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For much of his four decades-plus long legal career, O'Connell practiced international business transactional law, primarily involving direct-investment matters, throughout Asia (principally China), Europe, and the Middle East.<br />
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Mr. O’Connell has been a serious student of Eighteenth Century Europe, especially of Ireland and France, for much of his life; one significant aspect of this has been a continuing scholarly as well as personal interest in the extended O’Connell family of Derrynane, many even distant and long-ago members of which, especially the characters about whom he writes, he has “known” intimately since childhood.<br />
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The father of five children and grandfather of ten, he and his wife, Laurette, live with their golden retriever, Katie, near Annapolis, Maryland, USA.</div>
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<a href="http://www.derrynanebooks.com/">Website</a><span id="goog_1294136613"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_1294136614"></span> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/kevin.oconnell.98434?ref=br_rs">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15202361.Kevin_O_Connell">Goodreads</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-67759302596659834892018-01-05T03:57:00.000-08:002018-01-07T17:12:24.982-08:00#AuthorInterview: Anna Belfrage, author of There is Always a Tomorrow<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author Anna Belfrage back to Flashlight Commentary to discuss the ninth book in the Graham Saga, There is Always a Tomorrow.</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcZbbAxEuNMgx9lJ1bVycqSAtw-aP08zEXLXxOoBPHgUdoEAUXoqzcNgZx92Yf_iQvj3UaZ2FP2PDrO51gyyieCVSvL4MYb3cj2m3H6qDfwG-Hk37Wu_fw2R8DOUpHy7Ls20L8Q1thnr7/s1600/36466085.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="297" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcZbbAxEuNMgx9lJ1bVycqSAtw-aP08zEXLXxOoBPHgUdoEAUXoqzcNgZx92Yf_iQvj3UaZ2FP2PDrO51gyyieCVSvL4MYb3cj2m3H6qDfwG-Hk37Wu_fw2R8DOUpHy7Ls20L8Q1thnr7/s400/36466085.jpg" width="250" /></a><b>Welcome back to Flashlight Commentary Anna. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about There is Always a Tomorrow</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">There is always a Tomorrow is the book that wasn’t supposed to happen. I thought I was done with Alex and Matthew when I published the previous book, but it proved very difficult to say good bye to them. Also, the future fate of White Bear/Samuel (the second youngest Graham child) kept gnawing at my heart so I thought it best to start writing about him and see what happened. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>There is Always a Tomorrow is the ninth volume in what has become a vast, multi-generational epic. Why was creating this kind of story so important to you and what do you hope readers take from their experience of it? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">The Graham Saga is self-indulgence at its best. I became so addicted to my characters and their adventures that I just couldn’t stop telling their story. At its core lies the love story between Alex and Matthew, but it’s also about love in all its forms, between parent and child, friends, brothers, sisters…I hope my readers put my books down with a reconfirmed belief in love and family. If, along the way, they’ve also learnt a bit more about life in the 17th century that is just an added bonus. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Though neither will openly admit it, Alex and Matthew are beginning to feel their age in this story. As an author, how do you feel about seeing these characters reach this point in their lives? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Stressed! After all, no one lives forever, and I am fast reaching appoint where…gulp. But there is an element of peace and acceptance in Alex’s and Matthew’s approach to age that I find comforting. After all, growing old is something most of us will experience and I believe it is how we choose to confront the inevitability of life nearing its end that colours our last years. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>White Bear/Samuel struggles with his identity through much of the narrative. What inspired his storyline and why did you feel it so important? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I have a good friend who has a son who is not biologically his. The boy is very loved—but also confused as to who he really is. Like this boy, White Bear/Samuel and to some extent Ian are both people caught between two families, two identities. In Samuel’s case, he has difficulties in finding who he really is, torn as he is between his white identity and the Native American heritage of his adopted family. Ironically, the fact that all his parents love him makes things even more difficult for him. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>While historically appropriate, Rachel’s experiences are particularly tragic. Did you find it difficult to write these scenes? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Yes. Especially as there are girls in our day and age that are experiencing similar horrors. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Rachel isn’t the only grandchild facing hardship in this chapter of the Graham’s story. Duncan is beginning to note the social implications of his origins in There is Always a Tomorrow and I wondered if you might elaborate on how colonial culture viewed and treated both illegitimate children and the women who bore them. </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">It varied from colony to colony, but in general most of the 17th century colonies considered an illegitimate child to be the result of fornication. In those colonies which had a Puritan majority, fornication was a crime that led to fines and public flogging. In principle, colonial laws considered the father to have an obligation to support his child—but the problem lay in identifying the father. An adulterous woman was considered sinful and for a long, long time it was believed that if a woman became pregnant she must have enjoyed the sexual act, hence a rape victim was as sinful as the woman who consensually initiated a sexual liason with someone not her husband. More specifically, this means that the good inhabitants of Providence would view Duncan’s birth mother as something of a fallen woman while Duncan himself would probably not be ostracized (beyond being taunted). Fortunately for Duncan, he has an adoptive father with some standing in society which probably helps! </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Your incorporation of Coode’s Rebellion represents one of my favorite aspects of narrative. Why did this particular episode of American history capture your imagination? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Because it is rarely talked about. Coode’s rebellion effectively wrested control of the Colony of Maryland from the Catholic Calvert family (who had been granted Maryland as their colony by James I) and also signaled the end of the religious tolerance the Calverts had always promoted. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Carlos finds himself at the center of this conflict. Can you tell us a bit about his personal situation and how this movement impacts him? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Carlos has never found a place to call home prior to ending up in Maryland. So when Coode and the Protestant Associators make it illegal for Catholic priests to live & minister in the colony, they effectively make Carlos homeless again. It’s not as if Carlos has all that many alternatives: he can’t go back to Seville because his uncle has threatened to turn him over to the Inquisition. He has no real desire to travel to the Spanish colonies so he decides to stay put. A somewhat fateful decision…</span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on while writing There is Always a Tomorrow?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Adam Graham – but I’m thinking he’ll get more airtime in a future book. And Samuel needs more time as do Duncan and my favourite among the Graham grandchildren, Lettie. </span><br />
<b><br /></b> <b>As a reader, I love Alex’s habit of sharing her favorite stories with her family and the literary legacy she gifts her children. It’s not related to the novel per say, but I’d love to know what titles the Graham children and grandchildren love best. </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Well, they’d not know the titles, but the boys would put The Three Musketeers right at the top. Alex’s daughters have always preferred the stories from The Lord of the Rings (as does Matthew). They all like Robin Hood, have heated discussions regarding Arthur and the Holy Grail, Guinevere and Lancelot. Alex has also passed on a number of Swedish fairy tales, most of them involving the very pretty little princess Tuvstarr and trolls. </span><br />
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Anna was raised abroad, on a pungent mix of Latin American culture, English history and Swedish traditions. As a result she's multilingual and most of her reading is historical- both non-fiction and fiction. Possessed of a lively imagination, she has drawers full of potential stories, all of them set in the past. She was always going to be a writer - or a historian, preferably both. Ideally, Anna aspired to becoming a pioneer time traveller, but science has as yet not advanced to the point of making that possible. Instead she ended up with a degree in Business and Finance, with very little time to spare for her most favourite pursuit. Still, one does as one must, and in between juggling a challenging career Anna raised her four children on a potent combination of invented stories, historical debates and masses of good food and homemade cakes. They seem to thrive…</div>
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For years she combined a challenging career with four children and the odd snatched moment of writing. Nowadays Anna spends most of her spare time at her writing desk. The children are half grown, the house is at times eerily silent and she slips away into her imaginary world, with her imaginary characters. Every now and then the one and only man in her life pops his head in to ensure she's still there.</div>
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For additional information regarding Anna, her characters, extra scenes, and teasers for her next books, have a look at Anna's website.</div>
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<a href="http://www.annabelfrage.com/Home/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/annabelfrageauthor/">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/abelfrageauthor?lang=en">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449528.Anna_Belfrage">Goodreads</a><br />
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FLASHLIGHT COMMENTARY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FANS OF ANNA BELFRAGE:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://flashlightcommentary.blogspot.com/2015/07/a-rip-in-veil-by-anna-belfrage.html">A Rip in the Veil</a><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">★ ★ ★ ★ ★</span></td></tr>
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<td><a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Conquerors-Wife-Stephanie-Thornton/9780451472007"></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://flashlightcommentary.blogspot.com/2013/03/like-chaff-in-wind-by-anna-belfrage.html">Like Chaff in the Wind</a><br />
★ ★ ★ ★ ★</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://flashlightcommentary.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-prodigal-son-by-anna-belfrage.html">The Prodigal Son</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-54623260161518023482018-01-01T07:23:00.001-08:002018-01-01T07:23:42.062-08:00#AuthorInterview: Jennifer Laam, author of The Lost Season of Love and Snow<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author Jennifer Laam to Flashlight Commentary to discuss The Lost Season of Love and Snow.</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBkR7UGCNegMf2MZoboexJ4pTafZTZKwoSQ6eUoaV32u7CFxGmSqfTDMR1xEaIYOVKECuk3F2HjUe1OGuNV3_mDfHaz8wGdriUHJ6HK5CxyOneMM_bNB0P194LRVE294ZVBeBxAC3JNjg/s1600/34964901.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBkR7UGCNegMf2MZoboexJ4pTafZTZKwoSQ6eUoaV32u7CFxGmSqfTDMR1xEaIYOVKECuk3F2HjUe1OGuNV3_mDfHaz8wGdriUHJ6HK5CxyOneMM_bNB0P194LRVE294ZVBeBxAC3JNjg/s400/34964901.jpg" width="266" /></a><b>Welcome to Flashlight Commentary Jennifer. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about The Lost Season of Love and Snow.</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Thank you! The Lost Season of Love and Snow is set in 19th century imperial Russia and tells the story of Natalya Goncharova and her tumultuous marriage to Russia’s greatest poet, Alexander Pushkin, who died tragically in a duel fought over Natalya’s honor. After his death, Natalya’s reputation suffered, as she had been the cause of the duel. I think it’s time to hear Natalya’s side of the story.</span><br />
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<b>At risk of sounding impertinent, where did you find this story? Did it strike like lightening out nowhere or was is something that came to you over time? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">As a student, I was fascinated with the story of Alexander Pushkin’s life and death, which always struck me as romantic in a morbid way. I didn’t know much about his wife, only rumors that she may have been unfaithful and perhaps even the tsar’s mistress. Fast forward twenty years or so. As I’m thinking of topics for a new book, I “bump into” Natalya Goncharova in Martin Cruz Smith’s Tatiana. A yacht is named after Natalya and there is much talk of beauty, disloyalty, and betrayal. At one point, a character even refers to her as “Pushkin’s whore.” After reading, I had to learn more and found a Newsweek article about her. Pushkin scholars have recently uncovered more information on Natalya’s intellectual ambitions. That made me want to spend time with her and get to know her world.</span><br />
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<b>Natalya Goncharova is a lesser-known historical figure. How did you go about bringing her to life in The Lost Season of Love and Snow? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Since her husband, Alexander Pushkin, is so well known, I focused primarily on books about him for my research. It was fascinating to see how Natalya’s historical reputation evolved over time. All of the books made the Pushkins’ world come to life, but later ones were far kinder to Natalya.</span><br />
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<b>Natalya’s relationship with Alexander Pushkin is the obvious heart of the novel. How would you define and characterize their romance? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I think they shared an intense erotic and intellectual chemistry and this is how I portrayed their relationship in my book. Their correspondence seems playful and high-spirited. They both enjoyed attention and attracted admirers, but I believe they were intensely in love.</span><br />
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<b>Do you have a favorite scene in The Lost Season of Love and Snow? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I’m torn. I loved writing Alexander and Natalya together, but scenes featuring antagonists are even more fun because you can let characters say absolutely the worst things possible. So my favorite scenes are the exchanges between Natalya and her sister, Ekaterina, early in the book, where they are giving one another a terrible time. Even though Ekaterina is definitely an antagonist in my book, the more I think about it, the more I want to tell the entire story through her point of view.</span><br />
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<b>Is there a character you felt particularly close to while writing The Lost Season of Love and Snow? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I bonded with Natalya and felt I understood her. The world she experienced as a young woman may have been different than mine, but I related to the challenges she faced when dealing with men, particularly men in power. I’ve laughed nervously when a man said something inappropriate. I’ve been blamed for the bad behavior of a man. I’ve tried to pretend everything was all right for the sake of outward appearances and my own reputation.</span><br />
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<b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on while writing The Lost Season of Love and Snow?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Writing on a deadline is a necessity, but a challenge. In this case, it meant I couldn’t explore Alexander’s literary legacy as thoroughly as I would have liked. At the same time, this makes the novel focus on Natalya and I don’t think that’s a bad thing.</span><br />
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<b>If you could sit down and talk with one of your characters, maybe meet and discuss things over drinks, who would you invite and why? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">I want to meet Alexander and Natalya and see how close I got to the truth of their relationship. Natalya was a fascinating woman married to a genius. I want to know what that was like: emotionally, intellectually, and, yes, sexually.</span><br />
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<b>If you could pick a fantasy cast to play the leads in a screen adaptation of The Lost Season of Love and Snow, who would you hire? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Since I write historical, I usually know what many of my characters looked like in real life. I love television and movies, though, and want to cast everything in my head as well. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">Natalya: Sophie Turner aka Sansa Stark from Game of Thrones</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Alexander: Alfred Enoch from How to Get Away with Murder (He’s too tall and too young, but I want to make this work.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Georges (the other man): Charlie Hunnam (why not?)</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Tsar Nicholas I: Damian Lewis because he did such a great job of portraying Henry VIII in Wolf Hall that I figure he’s a natural fit for the “Iron Tsar.” </span><br />
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<b>What do you hope readers take from their experience of The Lost Season of Love and Snow? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">My goal is always to entertain and to get someone to turn the page and stay up past bedtime to read one more chapter. Of course I want to leave readers feeling satisfied. Since most of the characters in this novel are fictionalized versions of real people, I would be honored if readers finish my book and then take a few minutes to learn more about Natalya and Alexander. Finally, I hope Natalya’s story will inspire readers to look closely at the way women are portrayed in history books. I think Natalya got an unfair shake for many years and I hope to be some small part of changing the way we view women. </span><br />
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Jennifer Laam is the author of THE SECRET DAUGHTER OF THE TSAR, THE TSARINA'S LEGACY, and the forthcoming THE LOST SEASON OF LOVE AND SNOW (January 2018), all from St. Martin's Griffin. <br><br>Jennifer has lived in Los Angeles and the suburbs of Detroit, and has traveled in Russia, England, France, and Finland. When away from her computer, she enjoys fussing over animals, binge watching her favorite TV shows, planning cosplay for Comic Con, and line dancing. Jennifer currently lives in Northern California, where she works for her alma mater, University of the Pacific.<br />
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<a href="https://jenniferlaam.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/jenniferlaam.writer/?ref=bookmarks">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/jenlaam?lang=en">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6906466.Jennifer_Laam">Goodreads</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-87338903966260227232017-12-05T06:00:00.001-08:002017-12-05T06:00:43.523-08:00#AuthorInterview: David Blixt, author of Master of Verona<b>Author interviews are one of my favorite things to post which is why I am super excited to welcome author David Blixt to Flashlight Commentary to discuss book one in the Star-Cross'd series, The Master of Verona.</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQwPVEbtAUOQw5kGZWZosr50Vst2zJijG6ehQvbJ9zW41yzDiFuzei18TNkPwlIY4WSuDJs97GNpxNRY0Y-CDntr1smVYsEjr5vFD86FDk3xhbqLyZvCs_NSxWtbOVg_5HfjVq5TJbixVb/s1600/23316224_10155067751653907_900713813_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="640" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQwPVEbtAUOQw5kGZWZosr50Vst2zJijG6ehQvbJ9zW41yzDiFuzei18TNkPwlIY4WSuDJs97GNpxNRY0Y-CDntr1smVYsEjr5vFD86FDk3xhbqLyZvCs_NSxWtbOVg_5HfjVq5TJbixVb/s400/23316224_10155067751653907_900713813_n.jpg" width="266" /></a><b>Welcome to Flashlight Commentary David. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To start things off, please tell us about The Master of Verona.</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Delighted to be here. This novel was recently called “Romeo & Juliet meets Game Of Thrones”. I hope it’s not quite that bleak, though combining characters from Shakespeare’s Italian plays with the real people of Dante’s time, things aren’t always going to end well. Paradise beckons, but first you have to go through Hell.</span><br />
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<b>At risk of sounding impertinent, where did you find this story? Did it strike like lightening out nowhere or was is something that came to you over time? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Like all great ideas, it came to me in the shower. I was about to direct Romeo & Juliet, and the idea of the feud’s beginning leapt out of my head like Athena, fully-formed and armed. It was only later, diving deep into the research, did I find that Dante mentions the Capulet-Montague feud in the Divine Comedy. Which means that Dante was in Verona during the birth of the feud. So was Giotto. So, a little later, was Petrarch. The feud became a thread in a larger tapestry of the birth of the Renaissance in Italy.</span><br />
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<b>The Master of Verona was originally published ten years ago, but you recently revisited the novel to record the audiobook. How did it feel to immerse yourself in this story after so long?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Surreal, both as author and actor. I can’t count the number of times I paused in the middle of some really long sentence to say, “Who wrote this?” The happy discovery was how much I enjoyed the story, especially the characters. Finding their voices was a real challenge, in a good way. There were also several things I had forgotten were in there, little allusions and nods to plays and poems, historical events and figures. And I was able to cut a little excess verbiage from the previous edition, so that this one flows better. A book is never finished, only published.</span><br />
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<b>The Master of Verona brings together the characters from Shakespeare's Italian plays with the real people from Dante's time. Was it difficult to combine the two? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Actually, it took several running starts. I kept trying to write from the point of view of Shakespeare’s characters, but that felt trite. The lynchpin ended up being Dante’s son, Pietro. A very real person, with some solid facts about his life, yet with no real timeline for his early years. Through him I was able to link the historical and fictional characters. Right away he becomes friends with young Capulet and Montague, while at the same time he’s brought into the confidence of Dante’s patron, Cangrande della Scala, the titular master of Verona.</span><br />
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<b>Do you have a favorite scene in The Master of Verona? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Two. I very much like the duel in the middle of the book, where Pietro’s sense of justice gets him in far over his head. And the final scene, which was as surprising to me as it has been to readers. No spoilers, but I’ve had friends show up at my house to curse at me after reading Chapter 40. I really like surprises, but only if they’re earned. Since that scene surprised me when I wrote it, the shock seems very honest.</span><br />
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<b>Is there a character you felt particularly close to while writing The Master of Verona? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">To this day Pietro remains my favorite character to write. I’ve been asked how much of me is in him. The answer is, none. Pietro is a far better man than I am. His sense of honor and need for justice are unfailing and unfaltering – and often unfortunate. Rarely is he rewarded for his dogged perseverance.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">The other character that’s always a joy to write is Cangrande himself. Go to Verona and he still permeates the city. Dante dedicated Paradiso to him. Patron of the arts, clever warrior, skilled diplomat, famous lover - he was a figure for fiction because he’s larger than life. All the events in the book are real, he did those things. Creating a complex character out of someone so romantic and dashing was a huge challenge. It’s hard not to fall into hero-worship. Pietro certainly does. But if I’m following Shakespeare’s rules, there has to be a tragic flaw…</span><br />
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<b>Authors are often forced to make sacrifices when composing their stories. Is there a character or concept you wish you could have spent more time on in The Master of Verona?</b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Oh, there are always rabbit-holes to dive down. The first draft was significantly longer, and my editor gave me one of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever heard: “David, you’ve confused what a writer needs to know to write a book with what a reader needs to know to read it, which is much less.” The research is so fun for the author, but sharing that research often bogs down the story itself. So I cut 100,000 words from the novel – just about a third. Some of the neat facts I held on to for the sequels, but most of it just vanished.</span><br />
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<b>If you could sit down and talk with one of your characters, maybe meet and discuss things over drinks, who would you invite out and why? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Are we talking the historical people, or the ones I’ve created on the page? I’d love to chat with Dante, no matter what. Cangrande’s wife would be fascinating to talk to. And the fictional Moorish astrologer, Tharwat al-Dhaamin, would be my chosen companion for dinner. He’s a mystery to me, even though I invented him.</span><br />
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<b>If you could pick a fantasy cast to play the leads in a screen adaptation of The Master of Verona, who would you hire? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Hm. Ten years ago, Hugh Jackman would have been Cangrande, hands down. Today? Chris Hemsworth. And so many of the leads are in their teens, making the cast change over every five years. So here goes:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #76a5af;">Cangrande della Scala: Chris Hemsworth</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Pietro di Dante: David Mazouz</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Katerina della Scala: Cate Blanchett</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Dante Alighieri: Michael Gambon</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Mariotto Montecchio: Logan Lerman</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Antony Capulletto: Leo Howard</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Gianozza della Bella: Mackenzie Foy</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Antonia Alighieri: Millie Bobbie Brown</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Tharwat al-Dhaamin: Morgan Freeman</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Vinciguerra da San Bonifacio: Brendan Gleeson</span><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">Marsilio da Carrara: Dakota Goyo</span><br />
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<b>What do you hope readers take from their experience of The Master of Verona? </b><br />
<span style="color: #76a5af;">A sense of awe. A sense of scope. And a deep desire to read both Romeo & Juliet and The Divine Comedy (as well as come back for the next novel in the series, Voice of the Falconer).</span><br />
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David Blixt‘s work is consistently described as “intricate,” “taut,” and “breathtaking.” A writer of Historical Fiction, his novels span the early Roman Empire (the COLOSSUS series, his play EVE OF IDES) to early Renaissance Italy (the STAR-CROSS’D series) up through the Elizabethan era (his delightful espionage comedy HER MAJESTY’S WILL, starring Will Shakespeare and Kit Marlowe as inept spies). His novels combine a love of the theatre with a deep respect for the quirks and passions of history.
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Living in Chicago with his wife and two children, he describes himself as “actor, author, father, husband. In reverse order.”
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<a href="https://www.davidblixt.com/">Website</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DavidABlixt/">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/David_Blixt">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/635608.David_Blixt">Goodreads</a><br />
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-47881638908347054352017-11-28T03:00:00.000-08:002017-11-28T03:00:00.174-08:00#CoverCliche: A Quiet Moment<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
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<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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Out of the courts of twelfth-century England strode the legendary figure of Richard of England - leading his knights onto the Saracen battlefields - inspired by a vision of the Holy Land.<br />
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Here is the story of the Soldier-King and the Third Crusade - of his strange, ill-fated union with Berengaria, Princess of Navarre - of his mother, the She-Wolf, Eleanor of Aquitaine who loved her son with a frantic, possessive pride. And above all, here is the story of the minstrel whose life was linked with that of the King - the story of Blondel - the lute player...<br />
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Sam Thomas takes readers back to Puritan England with midwife Bridget Hodgson, hailed by the Cleveland Plain Dealer as "one of the most fascinating detectives in contemporary mystery fiction."<br />
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Winter has come to the city of York, and with it the threat of witchcraft. As women and children sicken and die, midwife Bridget Hodgson is pulled against her will into a full-scale witch-hunt that threatens to devour all in its path, guilty and innocent alike.<br />
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Bridget—accompanied once again by her deputy Martha Hawkins and her nephew Will Hodgson—finds herself playing a lethal game of cat and mouse against the most dangerous men in York, as well as her sworn enemy Rebecca Hooke. As the trials begin, and the noose begins to tighten around her neck, Bridget must answer the question: How far will she go to protect the people she loves?<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">Eleanor is young, high-spirited, supremely intelligent, heiress to the vast Duchy of Aquitaine - at a time when a woman's value was measured in terms of wealth. Her vivid leadership inspired and dazzled those about her. And yet, born to rule, she was continually repressed and threatened by the men who overshadowed her life. This is the story of a brilliant, medieval figure - of a princess who led her own knights to the Crusades, who was bride to two kings and mother of Richard the Lion Heart. It is the rich, incredible story of Eleanor Of Aquitaine.</span>?</div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-59944116822598086442017-11-07T03:00:00.000-08:002017-11-07T03:00:01.325-08:00#CoverCliche: Eyes on the Sky<div>
<b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b><br />
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<b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting. </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawDe2n-84kAwrdp5duCCq61P0um9n4kvzJK02maEdOJsL5mj6CxDSFnk40U9qUvl82jdV9L7mY-mn6FirLIam4q5E8VFPHCJ25onFRPyF3a-yI-TPmUVyclumEJg2Q-F4q_ati4O-dvhn/s1600/4419501.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="302" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgawDe2n-84kAwrdp5duCCq61P0um9n4kvzJK02maEdOJsL5mj6CxDSFnk40U9qUvl82jdV9L7mY-mn6FirLIam4q5E8VFPHCJ25onFRPyF3a-yI-TPmUVyclumEJg2Q-F4q_ati4O-dvhn/s320/4419501.jpg" width="203" /></a><br />
Ida Mae Jones dreams of flight. Her daddy was a pilot and being black didn't stop him from fulfilling his dreams. But her daddy's gone now, and being a woman, and being black, are two strikes against her.<br />
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When America enters the war with Germany and Japan, the Army creates the WASP, the Women Airforce Service Pilots - and Ida suddenly sees a way to fly as well as do something significant to help her brother stationed in the Pacific. But even the WASP won't accept her as a black woman, forcing Ida Mae to make a difficult choice of "passing," of pretending to be white to be accepted into the program. Hiding one's racial heritage, denying one's family, denying one's self is a heavy burden. And while Ida Mae chases her dream, she must also decide who it is she really wants to be.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ4rJ3BG2rR-o29K9GOc_0YYi6CUKImOcnfOGbeESq9MiBuCysMjtFkIMn4crK7JGTxkP6zwNPSXl0WdTfaY55IVd7QuOxFUmt8noHLmAd5wciLCnKOSAXCqOEAW38P2NG_GN54UnXHtQU/s1600/20040709.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="307" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ4rJ3BG2rR-o29K9GOc_0YYi6CUKImOcnfOGbeESq9MiBuCysMjtFkIMn4crK7JGTxkP6zwNPSXl0WdTfaY55IVd7QuOxFUmt8noHLmAd5wciLCnKOSAXCqOEAW38P2NG_GN54UnXHtQU/s320/20040709.jpg" width="206" /></a><br>Former wartime ace James Harrington has his sights set on being the first person to fly from Britain to Australia in a light aircraft. With so much desert and ocean to cross, he's been told it can't be done.<br />
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Sarah Carson can help make his dream a reality, but only if he takes her with him. So begins the flying adventure of a lifetime, until halfway across the world, the plane disappears. Where in the world are they? And what is really going on?<br />
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From Australia's master of the historical blockbuster comes this highly entertaining adventure-romance about an ambitious and heroic pair. Glory Girl is an unforgettable story about the risks and sacrifices made for a chance of glory.<br />
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-2294737065138324642017-10-03T01:55:00.002-07:002017-10-03T03:27:16.695-07:00#CoverCliché: Barrymore<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbFi5OZDXUTkI4D7_dXCG_u-Qn71kMwmaLnBx6T-8Mw49ibUb8k_Qn0DMvZ_WBBXmxVIqA7yRlzjRdBoK4aohj4pEiZqZRLF4JcR7LNDJ1BhPwNaEmzNSci1lr_vocLtcupfxHz921lFfc/s1600/16034245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="312" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbFi5OZDXUTkI4D7_dXCG_u-Qn71kMwmaLnBx6T-8Mw49ibUb8k_Qn0DMvZ_WBBXmxVIqA7yRlzjRdBoK4aohj4pEiZqZRLF4JcR7LNDJ1BhPwNaEmzNSci1lr_vocLtcupfxHz921lFfc/s320/16034245.jpg" width="210" /></a>
Ten-year-old Helen and her summer guardian, Flora, are isolated together in Helen's decaying family house while her father is doing secret war work in Oak Ridge during the final months of World War II. At three Helen lost her mother and the beloved grandmother who raised her has just died. A fiercely imaginative child, Helen is desperate to keep her house intact with all its ghosts and stories. Flora, her late mother's twenty-two-year old first cousin, who cries at the drop of a hat, is ardently determined to do her best for Helen. Their relationship and its fallout, played against a backdrop of a lost America will haunt Helen for the rest of her life.<br />
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This darkly beautiful novel about a child and a caretaker in isolation evokes shades of The Turn of the Screw and also harks back to Godwin's memorable novel of growing up, The Finishing School. With its house on top of a mountain and a child who may be a bomb that will one day go off, Flora tells a story of love, regret, and the things we can't undo. It will stay with readers long after the last page is turned.</blockquote>
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Anne Frank has long been a symbol of bravery and hope, but there were two sisters hidden in the annex, two young Jewish girls, one a cultural icon made famous by her published diary and the other, nearly forgotten.<br />
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In the spring of 1959, The Diary of Anne Frank has just come to the silver screen to great acclaim, and a young woman named Margie Franklin is working in Philadelphia as a secretary at a Jewish law firm. On the surface she lives a quiet life, but Margie has a secret: a life she once lived, a past and a religion she has denied, and a family and a country she left behind.<br />
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Margie Franklin is really Margot Frank, older sister of Anne, who did not die in Bergen-Belsen as reported, but who instead escaped the Nazis for America. But now, as her sister becomes a global icon, Margie’s carefully constructed American life begins to fall apart. A new relationship threatens to overtake the young love that sustained her during the war, and her past and present begin to collide. Margie is forced to come to terms with Margot, with the people she loved, and with a life swept up into the course of history. </blockquote>
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Emily Emerson is used to being alone; her dad ran out on the family when she was a just a kid, her mom died when she was seventeen, and her beloved grandmother has just passed away as well. But when she’s laid off from her reporting job, she finds herself completely at sea…until the day she receives a beautiful, haunting painting of a young woman standing at the edge of a sugarcane field under a violet sky. That woman is recognizable as her grandmother—and the painting arrived with no identification other than a handwritten note saying, “He always loved her.”<br />
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Emily is hungry for roots and family, so she begins to dig. And as she does, she uncovers a fascinating era in American history. Her trail leads her to the POW internment camps of Florida, where German prisoners worked for American farmers...and sometimes fell in love with American women. But how does this all connect to the painting? The answer to that question will take Emily on a road that leads from the sweltering Everglades to Munich, Germany and back to the Atlanta art scene before she’s done.<br />
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Along the way, she finds herself tempted to tear down her carefully tended walls at last; she’s seeing another side of her father, and a new angle on her painful family history. But she still has secrets, ones she’s been keeping locked inside for years. Will this journey bring her the strength to confront them at last?</blockquote>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-31568652107087551222017-09-26T03:00:00.000-07:002017-09-26T03:00:25.035-07:00#CoverCliché: Louise de Kérouaille<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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Abandoned pregnant and penniless on the teeming streets of London, 16-year-old Amber St. Clare manages, by using her wits, beauty, and courage, to climb to the highest position a woman could achieve in Restoration England-that of favorite mistress of the Merry Monarch, Charles II. From whores and highwaymen to courtiers and noblemen, from events such as the Great Plague and the Fire of London to the intimate passions of ordinary-and extraordinary-men and women, Amber experiences it all. But throughout her trials and escapades, she remains, in her heart, true to the one man she really loves, the one man she can never have.<br />
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Frequently compared to Gone with the Wind, Forever Amber is the other great historical romance, outselling every other American novel of the 1940s-despite being banned in Boston for its sheer sexiness. A book to read and reread, this edition brings back to print an unforgettable romance and a timeless masterpiece.</blockquote>
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From the author of The King's Favorite-a new novel based on a dazzling and decadent true story of Restoration England.<br />
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The daughter of a poor nobleman, Louise leaves the French countryside for the court of King Louis XIV, where she must not only please the tastes of the jaded king, but serve as a spy for France. With few friends, many rivals, and ever-shifting loyalties, Louise learns the perils of her new role. Yet she is too ambitious to be a pawn in the intrigues of others. With the promise of riches, power, and even the love of a king, Louise creates her own destiny in a dance of intrigue between two monarchs-and two countries.<br />
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'I had so long habituated myself to a Life of Vice, that really it appear'd to be no Vice to me'<br /><br>
Beautiful, proud Roxana is terrified of being poor. When her foolish husband leaves her penniless with five children, she must choose between being a virtuous beggar or a rich whore. Embarking on a career as a courtesan and kept woman, the glamour of her new existence soon becomes too enticing and Roxana passes from man to man in order to maintain her lavish society parties, luxurious clothes and amassed wealth. But this life comes at a cost, and she is fatally torn between the sinful prosperity she has become used to and the respectability she craves. A vivid satire on a dissolute society, Roxana (1724) is a devastating evocation of the ways in which vanity and ambition can corrupt the human soul.<br />
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In his introduction, David Blewett discusses Defoe's literary career, his moral stance and his portrayal of his heroine's psychological turmoil and the social world she inhabits. This edition includes a chronology, bibliography, notes and a map of Roxana's London.
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-56781299659611850052017-09-18T03:00:00.000-07:002017-09-18T11:28:48.203-07:00Cover Cliché: Plunging V<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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For readers of The Paris Wife and Z comes a vivid novel full of drama, passion, tragedy, and beauty that stunningly imagines the life of iconic fashion designer Coco Chanel—the ambitious, gifted laundrywoman’s daughter who revolutionized fashion, built an international empire, and become one of the most influential and controversial figures of the twentieth century<br />
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Born into rural poverty, Gabrielle Chanel and her siblings are sent to orphanage after their mother’s death. The sisters nurture Gabrielle’s exceptional sewing skills, a talent that will propel the willful young woman into a life far removed from the drudgery of her childhood.<br />
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Transforming herself into Coco—a seamstress and sometime torch singer—the petite brunette burns with ambition, an incandescence that draws a wealthy gentleman who will become the love of her life. She immerses herself in his world of money and luxury, discovering a freedom that sparks her creativity. But it is only when her lover takes her to Paris that Coco discovers her destiny.<br />
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Rejecting the frilly, corseted silhouette of the past, her sleek, minimalist styles reflect the youthful ease and confidence of the 1920s modern woman. As Coco’s reputation spreads, her couturier business explodes, taking her into rarefied society circles and bohemian salons. But her fame and fortune cannot save her from heartbreak as the years pass. And when Paris falls to the Nazis, Coco is forced to make choices that will haunt her.<br />
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An enthralling novel of an extraordinary woman who created the life she desired, Mademoiselle Chanel explores the inner world of a woman of staggering ambition whose strength, passion and artistic vision would become her trademark.<br />
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One summer night in 1930, Judge Joseph Crater steps into a New York City cab and is never heard from again. Behind this great man are three women, each with her own tale to tell: Stella, his fashionable wife, the picture of propriety; Maria, their steadfast maid, indebted to the judge; and Ritzi, his showgirl mistress, willing to seize any chance to break out of the chorus line.<br />
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As the twisted truth emerges, Ariel Lawhon’s wickedly entertaining debut mystery transports us into the smoky jazz clubs, the seedy backstage dressing rooms, and the shadowy streets beneath the Art Deco skyline.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-57440357795146022052017-09-12T03:18:00.000-07:002017-09-12T03:18:09.303-07:00Cover Cliché: Echoes of the Past<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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June 1963, Clematis Cottage, Stoke St. Mary, Herefordshire<br />
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I am really not sure why I am writing this. A foolish whim by a foolish old lady and it will probably sit in a box unread and decay much like its writer when Death makes his careless decision.<br />
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But perhaps someone will find it. Someone will care enough to read and somehow I know that will happen.<br />
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April 2000, Clematis Cottage, Stoke St. Mary, Herefordshire<br />
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Tired of her life in London, freelance illustrator Rachel buys the beautiful but dilapidated Clematis Cottage and sets about creating the home of her dreams. But tucked away behind the water tank in the attic and left to gather dust for decades is an old biscuit tin containing letters, postcards and a diary. So much more than old scraps of paper, these are precious memories that tell the story of Henrietta Trenchard-Lewis, the love she lost in the Great War and the girl who was left behind.<br />
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Torn from her beloved Italy, Teresa is brought to America by her abusive husband, Nico. She finds the new world harsh to immigrants, especially women, but is determined to make a better future for her children and herself. Trapped in a loveless marriage, she devises ways to build a small fund that she hopes will bring eventual independence. However, she underestimates her husband's ruthlessness. Then fate brings her into the lives of a special family, and a special man, who offer both opportunities and new complications. However, Teresa never loses sight of her determination to become independent and to make her future travels first class.<br />
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London on 3 September 1939 is in upheaval. War is inevitable. Into this turmoil steps Kate Sheridan newly arrived from Ireland to live with her aunt and uncle and look for work. When she meets Flight Lieutenant Charlie Butler sparks fly, but he is a notorious womaniser. Should she ignore all the warnings and get involved with a ladies man whose life will be in daily danger?<br />
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Charlie Butler has no intention of getting involved with a woman. But when he meets Kate his resolve is shattered. Should he allow his heart to rule his head and fall for a nineteen-year-old Irish girl while there is a war to fight?<br />
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Private conflicts and personal doubts are soon overshadowed. Will the horrors of total war bring Kate and Charlie together or tear them apart?<br />
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After the gloomy memorial, the formerly pampered 1929 characters mourn the loss of Aryl Sullivan. Claire, now a pregnant widow, is too devastated to cope and withdraws from the group, delving into a deep depression. Caleb drowns his own sorrow in a bottle of whiskey, and Jonathan becomes obsessed with finding the true cause for the boat’s explosion. And Ava anxiously awaits the birth of their child.<br />
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As the family and friends come to grips with Aryl’s death, the struggle to survive both emotionally and financially strains everyone in different ways.<br />
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So it’s up to Maura to see them past the worst of it, but she faces setbacks of her own when complications arise in her pregnancy. The new sheriff, Marvin, is working both sides of the law and takes advantage of Caleb’s state, getting him involved in bootlegging that threatens the business and his family. A concerned Patrick tries to help him, but stubborn as a mule, Caleb won’t listen.<br />
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But the gears of life slowly start to move again, and new friends are made and old enemies return. Claire finds refuge in Gordon, a widower, and the two find a common bond, finally allowing her to move on and accept her new life.<br />
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Until she’s met with a shocking surprise.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-11088915090333442192017-08-22T03:00:00.000-07:002017-08-22T03:00:24.122-07:00Cover Cliché: Emilia in the Rosegarden<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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One spring day, the Narrator of The Canterbury Tales rents a room at the Tabard Inn before he recommences his journey to Canterbury. That evening, a group of people arrive at the inn, all of whom are also going to Canterbury to receive the blessings of "the holy blissful martyr," St. Thomas à Becket. Calling themselves "pilgrims" because of their destination, they accept the Narrator into their company. The Narrator describes his newfound traveling companions.<br />
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The Host at the inn, Harry Bailey, suggests that, to make the trip to Canterbury pass more pleasantly, each member of the party tell two tales on the journey to Canterbury and two more tales on the journey back. The person who tells the best story will be rewarded with a sumptuous dinner paid for by the other members of the party. The Host decides to accompany the pilgrims to Canterbury and serve as the judge of the tales.<br />
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Thirteenth-century Wales is a divided country, ever at the mercy of England's ruthless, power-hungry King John. Llewelyn, Prince of North Wales, secures an uneasy truce by marrying the English king's beloved illegitimate daughter, Joanna, who slowly grows to love her charismatic and courageous husband. But as John's attentions turn again and again to subduing Wales---and Llewelyn---Joanna must decide where her love and loyalties truly lie.<br />
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The turbulent clashes of two disparate worlds and the destinies of the individuals caught between them spring to life in this magnificent novel of power and passion, loyalty and lies. The book that began the trilogy that includes Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning, Here Be Dragons brings thirteenth-century England, France, and Wales to tangled, tempestuous life.<br />
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It is England, in the fourteenth century -- a time of plague, political unrest and the earliest stirrings of the Reformation. The printing press had yet to be invented, and books were rare and costly, painstakingly lettered by hand and illuminated with exquisite paintings. Finn is a master illuminator who works not only for the Church but also, in secret, for John Wycliffe of Oxford, who professes the radical idea that the Bible should be translated into English for everyone to read. Finn has another secret as well, one that leads him into danger when he meets Lady Kathryn of Blackingham Manor, a widow struggling to protect her inheritance from the depredations of Church and Crown alike. Finn's alliance with Lady Kathryn will take us to the heart of what Barbara Tuchman once called "the calamitous fourteenth century."<br />
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Richly detailed and irresistibly compelling, Brenda Rickman Vantrease's The Illuminator is a glorious story of love, art, religion, and treachery at an extraordinary turning point in history.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-38343707597705828142017-08-01T03:00:00.000-07:002017-08-01T03:00:15.418-07:00Cover Cliché: The Morally Questionable Green Hat <div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdmtzwL2PwOGVm2HevviUGa7oZ8_IyDuRJV12cxuoRy6eWFvAWf_pIpI2lNuqmQRiSQwlRDwY3BHnlJjDrknInAr2eO9moxmTBl2rzY1VLWhanilKXlGY4NdpkS2A0LdW7RKAH98PtU-M/s1600/17352292_1208270735907622_7788297712364127352_n.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="396" data-original-width="255" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdmtzwL2PwOGVm2HevviUGa7oZ8_IyDuRJV12cxuoRy6eWFvAWf_pIpI2lNuqmQRiSQwlRDwY3BHnlJjDrknInAr2eO9moxmTBl2rzY1VLWhanilKXlGY4NdpkS2A0LdW7RKAH98PtU-M/s320/17352292_1208270735907622_7788297712364127352_n.png" width="206" /></a></div>
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Newly engaged, Clive and Henrietta now begin the difficult task of meeting each other's family. Difficult because Clive has neglected to tell Henrietta that he is in fact the heir to the Howard estate and fortune, and Henrietta has just discovered that her mother has been hiding secrets about her past as well. When Clive brings Henrietta to the family estate to meet his parents, they are less than enthused about his impoverished intended. Left alone in this extravagant new world when Clive returns to the city, Henrietta finds herself more at home with the servants than his family, much to the disapproval of Mrs. Howard and soon gets caught up in the disappearance of an elderly servant's ring, not realizing that in doing so she has become part of a bigger, darker plot. As Clive and Henrietta attempt to discover the truth in the two very different worlds unraveling around them, they both begin to wonder: Are they meant for each other after all<br />
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Sweeping and panoramic, You Were There Before My Eyes is the epic and intimate story of a young woman who chafes at the stifling routine and tradition of her small, turn-of-the-century Italian village. When an opportunity presents itself for her to emigrate to America, her hunger for escape compels her to leave everything behind for the gleaming promises await her and her young husband in Mr. Ford’s factories.<br />
<br />
Determine to survive, and perhaps even thrive, young Jane finds herself navigating not just a new language and country, but a world poised upon the edge of economic and social revolution—and war. As Jane searches for inner fulfillment while building young family, the tide of history ebbs and flows. From the chaos of Ellis Island to the melting pot of industrial Detroit, You Were There Before My Eyes spills over with colorful characters and vivid period details. Maria Riva paints an authentic portrait of immigrant America and poignantly captures the ever evolving nature of the American dream.<br />
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In an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women—a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947—are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.<br />
<br />
1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She's also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie's parents banish her to Europe to have her "little problem" taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister.<br />
<br />
1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she's recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she's trained by the mesmerizing Lili, the "Queen of Spies", who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy's nose.<br />
<br />
Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn't heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth ...no matter where it leads.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZwFqmbN3WxsT18oDLkqseMy2GVhwuYr6afo7WrkIzKtRt0NppRP5qq5EOMTxitXb18lfwSkz1HindV1Dt54eO831GOcmJWrTVUrgVLB1ib4H96pzW4V-8BmFbxBvie6XsCcrmEv5Dj4r/s1600/35407606.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="315" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZwFqmbN3WxsT18oDLkqseMy2GVhwuYr6afo7WrkIzKtRt0NppRP5qq5EOMTxitXb18lfwSkz1HindV1Dt54eO831GOcmJWrTVUrgVLB1ib4H96pzW4V-8BmFbxBvie6XsCcrmEv5Dj4r/s320/35407606.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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In October 1932, at the tail end of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s first presidential campaign, Eleanor Roosevelt took an overnight train from Potsdam to Albany with Lorena “Hick” Hickok, one of the top Associated Press reporters in the country. That train ride marked the beginning of an extraordinary relationship that would last the rest of Hick and Eleanor’s lives.<br />
<br />
In Undiscovered Country, Kelly O’Connor McNees adroitly mixes fact and fiction to present an intimate portrait of the love that bloomed between these two women, hidden in plain sight. Using historical records (including the more than three thousand letters the pair exchanged over a span of thirty years), McNees portrays their relationship from their introduction as reporter and subject through their intense first meetings, their burgeoning affair, and the conflicts that arose as journalist Hick’s ethics were hopelessly compromised by her affection for the woman she was supposed to be covering.<br />
<br />
A remarkable portrait of Depression-era America (including Hick and Eleanor’s work on the founding of Arthurdale, the federal housing project in West Virginia for homeless ex-miners), Undiscovered Country is thoroughly researched, highly readable, and beautifully subtle—an extraordinary portrayal of one of the greatest unknown love stories in American politics.<br />
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<br />
Ariel Lawhon, a rising star in historical suspense, unravels the extraordinary twists and turns in Anna Anderson's fifty-year battle to be recognized as Anastasia Romanov. Is she the beloved daughter, revered icon, and Russian grand duchess or is she an imposter, liar, and the thief of another woman's legacy?<br />
<br />
Countless others have rendered their verdict. Now it is your turn.<br />
<br />
Russia, July 17, 1918: Under direct orders from Vladimir Lenin, Bolshevik secret police force Anastasia Romanov, along with the entire imperial family, into a damp basement in Siberia, where they face a merciless firing squad. None survive. At least that is what the executioners have always claimed.<br />
<br />
Germany, February 17, 1920: A young woman bearing an uncanny resemblance to Anastasia Romanov is pulled shivering and senseless from a canal. Refusing to explain her presence in the freezing water or even acknowledge her rescuers, she is taken to the hospital where an examination reveals that her body is riddled with countless, horrific scars. When she finally does speak, this frightened, mysterious young woman claims to be the Russian grand duchess.<br />
<br />
As rumors begin to circulate through European society that the youngest Romanov daughter has survived the massacre at Ekaterinburg, old enemies and new threats are awakened. With a narrative that is equal parts The Talented Mr. Ripley and Memento, Lawhon wades into the most psychologically complex and emotionally compelling territory: the nature of identity itself.<br />
<br />
The question of who Anna Anderson is and what actually happened to Anastasia Romanov creates a saga that spans fifty years and touches three continents. This thrilling saga is every bit as moving and momentous as it is harrowing and twisted.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-38572086118576551402017-07-25T03:00:00.000-07:002017-11-07T06:03:55.138-08:00Cover Cliché: Faint-Hearted Femme<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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The night holds no secrets for Sir Marcus Camberley now that he's free of the illness that threatened his life and there are no more vampires lurking in its shadows. So he's surprised to find himself in the middle of a small band of smugglers on Hampshire's quiet coastline. Even more surprising is the woman waiting to guide them on the beach. Mariah Dean is a no-nonsense, practically minded widow doing her best to help her neighbors and friends as best she can. Sex is the farthest thing from her mind until she runs into the talented lips of this strange gentleman. Seizing the opportunity, Mariah offers him one night in her bed. After all, if opportunity knocks, then it's only polite to answer the door. Of course, Mariah discovers to her chagrin that incredible sex can be rather addictive and gives rise to a whole new set of problems. Especially when her unexpected lover declares his intentions-and won't take "no" for an answer.<br />
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Lady Katherine Ellsworth lives a beautiful, dull country life in the midst of the Somerset moors. Her main concerns are country fayres and village intrigue. But when her cousin is murdered, Katherine soon learns that the killer has targeted her next. Walking upon the moors one day, she is attacked by a vicious man wielding a saber.<br />
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There is nothing for her to do but seek protection with her late cousin’s betrothed, Harold Rockfall, Duke of Highset. Harold Rockfall is a veteran of the wars in France, and has only returned to England to hunt his betrothed’s killer. But when he meets Katherine, he begins to wonder if he hadn’t picked the wrong cousin after all.<br />
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With the killer on the loose, Harry should be doing everything in his power to catch him. So why is it he never wants to leave Highwall Castle? Why is it he never wants to leave the intriguing and dangerous Lady Katherine Ellsworth?<br />
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<br />
An unfulfilled love.<br />
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A royal hunt that goes horribly wrong.<br />
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And an opportunity for a humble governess to save the man of her dreams and gain a royal title in the process.<br />
<br />
Virginia Honeyfield has been the governess for Nicholas Willoughby, the Duke of Kent, for years. She's the only one who truly understands the shy, reticent Duke, and she stays on to become his administrator when they both come of age. Their love and attraction fails to come to fruition, though, because Virginia is a mere commoner.<br />
<br />
But everything changes in the blink of an eye when Nicholas indulges in his favorite passion, hunting, and he's attacked by a wild boar. His injuries are severe, and suddenly circumstances dictate that Virginia is the only one who can come to his rescue.<br />
<br />
Will she succeed? And will her efforts allow their longstanding love to be realized? Download this fast-moving Regency romance today and find out!<br />
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Tatiana Ashurst has a secret – one that she cannot afford to be known to Georgian English society. But Kit Vallentyn discovers her hidden ability to wield infinitely powerful magic… and saves her from inadvertently revealing it to everyone. Tatiana knows it is impossible for her to marry him. But how can she help herself from becoming fascinated by this handsome man, who seems to extend a spell over her more powerful than any she can conjure?<br />
<br />
Kit is out for a wife. His instinct, however, is to go through the mere motions of searching, just to please his ambitious father who wants a big dowry from the marriage. But the one woman who he can’t get out of his mind is the twin sister of the one his father wants him to marry – the one who is plain, penniless, ineligible… and enchanting in more ways than one.<br />
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For Kit and Tatiana to weather the storm of their desires, they have to peel away the layers of all of their secrets, to discover the simple truth of their love.<br />
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The night Victoria Conrad runs away doesn’t turn out at all like she planned. After being accosted by two ruffians, she is rescued by the Earl of Carlisle’s coachmen and taken to his country house—only to discover she is his prisoner! The doors aren’t locked but the winter is severe, and she is prevented from walking to freedom by the snow. Horribly scarred from painful injuries, Alastair Saville returned from the war a broken and lonely man, the last heir to an earldom he doesn’t want. The previous earl and his son, Alastair’s uncle and cousin, perished aboard a ship lost in the channel, but it is the wrongful death of Alastair’s beloved sister that sets his misery afire and makes him seethe for revenge. Alastair kidnaps Victoria to prevent her marriage to Ellison Montgomery, heir to the Montgomery barony, whom he blames for his sister’s death. Alastair intends to bring the man to ruin through poverty and scandal, but once he has Victoria as his unwilling guest she ceases to serve as an anonymous tool in his quest for vengeance. She is vivacious, outspoken and alluring, and she brings light into Alastair’s shattered existence. But Alastair is a dying man, and has only these last few days to enjoy her company as he dreams about life as a man whole, and what might have been.<br />
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Angelica is a Dutch heiress on the run from a British Officer who has gone from would-be-lover to stalker. The mystery man who appears with an offer of escort from New York City to her home in Albany may not be exactly who he seems, but Angelica is desperate to escape. The journey they make upriver during the height of the Revolution is full of danger, for there are Indians, opposing armies and brigands along the way. The greatest danger, however, will be to her heart.<br />
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Henrietta Hawksley walks hesitantly to the cliff edge, staring down into the pitch dark cold sea and it’s crashing waves…could this be the answer to her predicament, a long leap off the edge into the murkiness below? Left pregnant by the scandalous Lord John Pembury, her character and good name and more importantly that of her fathers the Rev. Robert Hawksley soon to be in disrepair…this appeared to be Henrietta’s only escape, until she falls into the arms of The Duke of Templeton - William Pembury. Will Henrietta’s life change for the better and be saved from scandal, will she finish that deliberate walk to the cliff edge…or does she favour a different path? Find out what happens in this delightful clean regency romance read, that gives you the real comfort and warmth of an exquisite candlelit feast...<br />
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<br />
To save her true love, she must sacrifice her own heart.<br />
<br />
Tessa Ryder's Gift, which allows her to take the form of anyone she touches, was invaluable to the British Army's secret Omega Group. The Peninsula War is over, the Omegas are disbanded, but she's learned of a plot to exterminate them—and free Napoleon.<br />
<br />
Desperate to warn Sebastian Montague, one of the few remaining Omegas, Tessa takes on the guise of his ex-mistress. It's the only way she can face the man she loved. The man whose memory of her was telepathically wiped—at her request.<br />
<br />
Sebastian knows a lie when he sees one, and it doesn't take long to strip the disguise of the unfamiliar woman he believes is his assassin. But before he can use his formidable Gift for illusion to wring the truth from her, bullets fly and they are both on the run.<br />
<br />
Surrounded by traitors and spies, Tessa and Sebastian fight to thwart the scheme to plunge England back into the darkness of war. And, as their powerful attraction brings them closer and closer, Tessa fights to protect the man she still loves more than life—by keeping the secret of their shared history buried deep in her heart.
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<br />
India Black uses her wit and wiles as both a madam and a spy, proving she’s the best there is when it comes to undercover work…<br />
<br />
Drawn into intrigue by her lover Philip Barrett, India finds herself being used as a pawn to help him steal a valuable jewel. Turning the tables, she proves that India Black answers to no man, no matter how attractive he may be…<br />
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Determined to help her impoverished family, Elizabeth Canham accepts a position at Burndale Academy, an isolated girl's school filled with secrets and shadows. There she meets mysterious widower Griffin Fairfax, a man dogged by dark rumours, a man who both frightens and fascinates her.<br />
<br />
But Beth has secrets of her own, nightmares that haunt her and fears that follow her into the light of day when a woman is found dead in the nearby woods—the victim of a brutal murder… a murder that bears terrifying similarity to others. Then Beth discovers that all the victims were intimately connected to Griffin. Beth’s past has taught her to be wary, but her heart tells her that Griffin cannot be the charming, seductive killer stalking the night, stealing women’s hearts…and lives.<br />
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<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Judith has the perfect present for Stephen—herself. Will he accept, or decline her gift?</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Lady Judith Gresham had been in love with Stephen, Viscount Pelham for years.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Stephen eleven years her elder, treated her purely as one of his sisters friends; he was too old in years and deeds for such a young innocent. As his sister, was now happily married, there was no longer any reason to see her.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Even to himself he wouldn't admit he missed her.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">So when his sister and her new husband decided to have a Christmas house party, and illness causes them to beg to use his home, he agreed. Even when he heard Judith was to be one of the guests he wasn't really worried, he would keep to himself, enjoy Maria Mallins, his long married mistress, and treat Judith with distant benevolence.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">However Judith and his sister had other ideas.<br><br></span></span></blockquote>
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It’s almost as if my burning rage has taken over. I must seek revenge…<br />
<br />
Now in America, Mary begins to successful set her plans into motion. She enlists the help of two unlikely friends, Matthew and Simone to help her concoct a recipe for revenge. But along the way Mary feels her integrity fading, she now lies and deceives her closest friend Ana on a regular basis. Even worse, her plan of revenge involves hurting innocent people.<br />
<br />
Mary is beginning to realize that the thin line of revenge and justice is a difficult one to walk unscathed.<br />
<br />
How far is Mary really willing to go in the name of redemption?<br />
<br />
Don’t miss out on the Fires’ Crossroad the second book of the False Redemption Series by Laura Fletcher. If you like strong female protagonists, deadly consequences and hopes of redemption then this book will have you turning the pages all night long.<br />
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Marie lives happily in Sobernburg Castle with her beloved husband, Michel Adler, a tremendous achievement for a woman who was once the 'Wandering Harlot'. The happy couple longs for a family, but when Michel is called to battle against the rebellious Hussites, they have to put those dreams on hold until, if they're lucky, Michel returns home.<br />
<br />
Soon after his departure, Marie is thrilled to find she is already with child, but this bright news is quickly tarnished by anxiety for her husband's return. News of him trickles in: first that he's been knighted for his exemplary courage in battle . . . and then that he disappeared without a trace during a grisly massacre and is presumed dead. Pregnant and alone, Marie's place in the world is once again precarious. Unwilling to abandon the hope that her husband has somehow survived, Marie escapes form the castle and takes to the road once more to find Michel and save her family.<br />
<br />
In this sequel to The Wandering Harlot, bestselling author Iny Lorentz transports readers to a richly rendered fifteenth-century Germany, where courage and true love conquer all.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3401206057844716266.post-38832075325328709592017-07-18T03:00:00.000-07:002017-09-12T03:21:42.648-07:00Cover Cliché: Glassy Eyes<div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87LeRvh3XOMFPpHPF-Jjp6HXvWdJVGF6Z_1V-aRQA2RNSL_-e4o79DSdGNXBe4Nx5kqRyCR9Qth9Nurv_CLHtjQ8mt-s-UY74wdC4LaYTAc6qjqL4sFWolpr886FAO4hJt02KSBbP7fPh/s1600/51Xbb0fIqJL._SX319_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="321" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87LeRvh3XOMFPpHPF-Jjp6HXvWdJVGF6Z_1V-aRQA2RNSL_-e4o79DSdGNXBe4Nx5kqRyCR9Qth9Nurv_CLHtjQ8mt-s-UY74wdC4LaYTAc6qjqL4sFWolpr886FAO4hJt02KSBbP7fPh/s320/51Xbb0fIqJL._SX319_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
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Soho 1925 Two young men meet - for one of them this is love at first sight, for the other only lust and guilt... In 1925 Paul Harris returns to England from self-imposed exile in Tangiers for an exhibition of his paintings. He leaves behind Patrick, the man he has loved since they met in the trenches in 1918, needing to discover if he has the strength to live without him and wanting to explore the kind of life he might have lived had it not been for the war. In Bohemian Soho, Paul meets Edmund whose passionate love changes Paul's idea of himself. With Edmund, Paul begins to believe that he may have another life to live, free of the guilt and regrets of the past. But the past is not so easy to escape, and when Patrick follows Paul to London a decision must be made that will affect all their lives.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ5XpfmPVkCDw2XxHDtoTlGYWwZsiqLH8MPRlKhSrtwcoVgigt-2_GSXzbAy-11xUbfXR79WAKeLJfy_VyIruM58rFA6Mhj8qtEtZwEo6SPc1x7e-MSbYdCGxBrGnB3rYnviKJlGJsGmtM/s1600/12669881.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="423" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ5XpfmPVkCDw2XxHDtoTlGYWwZsiqLH8MPRlKhSrtwcoVgigt-2_GSXzbAy-11xUbfXR79WAKeLJfy_VyIruM58rFA6Mhj8qtEtZwEo6SPc1x7e-MSbYdCGxBrGnB3rYnviKJlGJsGmtM/s320/12669881.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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San Francisco, 1939.<br />
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The Golden Gate International Exposition has captured the imagination of the country. The fair is a spectacular blend of mankind's newest innovations and basest urges, and Miranda Corbie is smack in the middle of it, working security at Sally Rand's. A former Spanish Civil War nurse and escort and now a private investigator, she has seen more than her share of the glitter and the grit, not to mention the people looking to make a quick buck off of them.<br />
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Virginia MacAvoy's grandmother seems to be one of the unfortunate innocents. Mrs. MacAvoy came to the fair to give her granddaughters the inheritance that she had been saving for them, but it was stolen. It consisted of $500, four gold coins, and a memory book—a scrapbook where she has been saving family memories. While Virginia is convinced that Miranda will be able to track them down, her grandmother isn't and only hires Miranda to convince her granddaughters of how there is nothing to be done. Mrs. MacAvoy makes a good point, but Miranda can't understand why she's so quick to give up, and it isn't long before she's looking for more than a stolen bag but for answers as well.<br />
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With Memory Book, Kelli Stanley takes readers to a time and place where the sordid and the sublime come together, making for a stunning prequel story to her to acclaimed historical series.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcG9qKUs4qYZ4QDayKMHi_qwM32qL6dZQ1YInEZkDqxRPfDCeizaLfNfxZjM4HEJUD98YU_Vjk18ao47Uk_cA9A6ufhur3t4TzhnTZ7rqAx-unkZImzeRiqkL25IHCDtXLWUR3igxI3QxL/s1600/13540957.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcG9qKUs4qYZ4QDayKMHi_qwM32qL6dZQ1YInEZkDqxRPfDCeizaLfNfxZjM4HEJUD98YU_Vjk18ao47Uk_cA9A6ufhur3t4TzhnTZ7rqAx-unkZImzeRiqkL25IHCDtXLWUR3igxI3QxL/s320/13540957.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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Edith sleepwalks through a life so normal as to be boring. She lives with her mother, works a mundane job to support them, and makes no waves among the ladies of her sleepy 1920's Canadian town. Secretly, though, she watches the flappers and so-called "loose women" with envy, dreaming of what glamorous lives they must have. And that's before Clark walks into her life.<br />
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Clark embodies the world that Edith wishes she could be a part of. He's slick and dangerous and sexy in a way Edith has never experienced. So when Clark offers her a window into his world, she dives through without thinking. On the other side, though, her black and white world explodes into shades of gray, challenging Edith in ways she never imagined.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHK4H_QCVYraLvJKTwvR_ZZxgYgh3NeaewGcpS8GI7YJnjjYanOppMHiY-BQgqePMpUOqtUbLVaeW1a60ss7eDOjrpTDyDsoaEMa0Hdd8JO6zDUvgSbYSg6xRQirITnsuWxE-ttUW1h5U/s1600/17364245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="307" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbHK4H_QCVYraLvJKTwvR_ZZxgYgh3NeaewGcpS8GI7YJnjjYanOppMHiY-BQgqePMpUOqtUbLVaeW1a60ss7eDOjrpTDyDsoaEMa0Hdd8JO6zDUvgSbYSg6xRQirITnsuWxE-ttUW1h5U/s320/17364245.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
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Annemarie Kendall is overjoyed when the armistice is signed and the Great War comes to an end. Her fiance, Lieutenant Gilbert Ballard, is coming home, and though he is wounded, she is excited to start their life together. But when he arrives, her dreams are dashed when she learns Gilbert is suffering from headaches, depression, and an addiction to pain killers. This is not the man she had planned to marry.<br />
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After serving in the trenches, Army Chaplain Samuel Vickary is barely holding onto his faith. Putting up a brave front as he ministers to the injured soldiers at the hospital in Hot Springs, Arkansas, he befriends Gilbert and eventually falls for Annemarie. While Annemarie tries to sort out her confused feelings about the two men in her life, she witnesses firsthand the bitterness and hurt they both hold within. Who will she choose? Will she have the courage to follow her heart and become the woman God intended her to be? As the world emerges from the shadow of war, Annemarie clings to her faith as she wonders if her future holds the hope, happiness, and love for which she so desperately longs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj70UoN2lOnuS-HmWTwjSVMcXj4dn01k4Q4aAXc8JDL0VMhN3olw-ra0VYx6EOnjpewwFbphUZ0pii70AmPzE08fcQEshUpcbuYiTQTiIIaTHtAB0fAk4UR131G20SyTj2feWDS9apo1IVi/s1600/17904968.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj70UoN2lOnuS-HmWTwjSVMcXj4dn01k4Q4aAXc8JDL0VMhN3olw-ra0VYx6EOnjpewwFbphUZ0pii70AmPzE08fcQEshUpcbuYiTQTiIIaTHtAB0fAk4UR131G20SyTj2feWDS9apo1IVi/s320/17904968.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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The Irish Flapper, is a novel set in Manhattan during the exciting Roaring Twenties about a young Irish woman’s journey to America to fulfill her contrasting dreams of wealth and artistic expression. Once in America she awakens to the stark difference between her dreams and the disillusioning reality of an immigrant’s life. It is her new friends, flamboyant cousin and her new found love that make life in the big city an unforgettable adventure.<br />
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In America she encounters her wildly flamboyant cousin Isabelle who just happens to be the “IT” actress of the moment and the girlfriend of a notorious dangerous gangster. Isabelle introduces her to the enticing, glamorous but ultimately empty and deceptive world of fame and fortune. Annie falls deeply in love with Jack an extremely successful stockbroker haunted by the ghost of his past which threatens their future. In the end it is the knot that ties family and friends together that helps her through great adversity and devastating loss.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifuLOPYXOl-iD8peIMmoTvLA5nkriipSqwbJou8F55uXeyygYe7nH947Go3jN54SvczZ_IOK_E0f45nkGkh7b2YpkSOXKCgqy5C7KbT41mMyZ0ipsItjo3v05zlrCGEHPnCs5XqjaIXaq3/s1600/cover80330-medium.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="255" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifuLOPYXOl-iD8peIMmoTvLA5nkriipSqwbJou8F55uXeyygYe7nH947Go3jN54SvczZ_IOK_E0f45nkGkh7b2YpkSOXKCgqy5C7KbT41mMyZ0ipsItjo3v05zlrCGEHPnCs5XqjaIXaq3/s320/cover80330-medium.png" width="213" /></a></div>
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News reporting is the main joy in Norma Hill's life. She is hell-bent on being more than a weather reporter, but new tyrant boss, Henry Chapel, doesn't agree. While she is following a news lead, Henry saves her from a handsy heir. His words warn her of danger, but his actions stir deeper emotions. Despite his gruff words, can she find the love forever absent from her life?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGPzoklFYLwRc-7L9Kz5007xYacKyz-VF5e-uFcQb7-HmEJQSl3P7FwbaLQbm4qqfji6Q_2rdZN6izWb-Hrpoo-aS-Xw1zwCwaFr-6q2xgzFTEs_k28dI5EEe7iJ2VyPFuHSwb8fF-DH4M/s1600/32672825.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="316" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGPzoklFYLwRc-7L9Kz5007xYacKyz-VF5e-uFcQb7-HmEJQSl3P7FwbaLQbm4qqfji6Q_2rdZN6izWb-Hrpoo-aS-Xw1zwCwaFr-6q2xgzFTEs_k28dI5EEe7iJ2VyPFuHSwb8fF-DH4M/s320/32672825.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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The Evening Star is a 1929 Series Prequel Novella . See how it all started for one couple in this dynamic series and begin your journey into the world of 1929.<br />
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Caleb Jenkins wasn’t looking for the love of his life. After selling his grandfather’s farm in Massachusetts, he was only searching for a place to start over and forget his past. In his travels through Georgia, he meets Arianna Bellamy, a woman with modern ideas, struggling beneath the confines of old-fashioned values and strict parents.<br />
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She begins to buckle under the weight of the responsibility that’s been placed on her. Caleb sees a kindred spirit in her yearning to be free and has to fight to get beneath the iron exterior that Arianna has built for her own protection. As he starts to unravel her complicated nature, he shows her a life she knew existed but had always been denied. Caleb suggests that they run off together to New York. With the firm hold her family has on her, Arianna must make a choice between love and obligation.<br />
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<b>Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!</b></div>
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<b>Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know. </b></div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17542174578278020919noreply@blogger.com0