Tuesday, 2 July 2019
Prairie Rose Publications: 90 Seconds of Terror by Elizabeth Clements #prairi...
Prairie Rose Publications: 90 Seconds of Terror by Elizabeth Clements #prairi...: 90 SECONDS OF TERROR by Elizabeth Clements Have you ever had that moment when you’ve been so captivated by something that time see...
Friday, 21 June 2019
Women Caught up in World War One
More than 700,000 British men were killed during World War One, and women suffered badly from bereavement, grieving for their lost loved ones. More than a million women never found a man to marry, or the opportunity to bear children. They came to accept they never would have any, their lives having changed forever. They felt lonely with solitary lives and many lost their jobs, once the war was over. At least 750,000 women were made redundant in 1918. All men who returned were highly given priority, and even if a woman had children to care for, and no husband, she would still find it extremely difficult to gain a job.
Many began to seek careers, the facility to be able to vote and the opportunity to live their own life. They also wanted the freedom to enjoy themselves by going to the picture-palace or the palais-de-danse, if they wished of an evening. They weren’t interested in going back to being servants or maids, they either wished to keep the job they’d worked on during the war, or find a better one with good pay to care for themselves or any children they might have. Unfortunately they were not granted equal pay, and no right to vote unless they were over thirty and owned property in 1919.
Even those women who were married, their task now was to stay home, cook, clean and care for their family and be a dutiful wife. Their husbands generally felt ashamed of having her working and employers agreed and sacked them. Men saw themselves as the ruling section of society. But some men who had survived were likely to have been injured, maimed, or psychologically damaged, and their wives needed to be the one to work and care for them too.
There were many surplus women after the war. Those lucky enough to have secure financial independence often had no wish to hand it over to a husband and become ruled by him. Others felt desperate for a husband, but suffered loneliness, virginity, no children, grief for lost loved ones, or the loss of their job and rights. My books usually has a strong woman as the main character - who must succeed against all odds. She can be found fighting against the difficulty of her life, aspiring to better herself, and battling against the restrictions and prejudices of the time or whatever other dire circumstances she finds herself in. She must pit good against evil and win by her own efforts, no matter what she has suffered or lost along the way. Cecily greatly believed this, attempted to help her sister, and women battling to achieve an improvement in their life. As a member of the suffragists, she worked hard for them and met some interesting people who, as a consequence, had an effect upon her own situation
Many began to seek careers, the facility to be able to vote and the opportunity to live their own life. They also wanted the freedom to enjoy themselves by going to the picture-palace or the palais-de-danse, if they wished of an evening. They weren’t interested in going back to being servants or maids, they either wished to keep the job they’d worked on during the war, or find a better one with good pay to care for themselves or any children they might have. Unfortunately they were not granted equal pay, and no right to vote unless they were over thirty and owned property in 1919.
Even those women who were married, their task now was to stay home, cook, clean and care for their family and be a dutiful wife. Their husbands generally felt ashamed of having her working and employers agreed and sacked them. Men saw themselves as the ruling section of society. But some men who had survived were likely to have been injured, maimed, or psychologically damaged, and their wives needed to be the one to work and care for them too.
Amazon Lake Union
There were many surplus women after the war. Those lucky enough to have secure financial independence often had no wish to hand it over to a husband and become ruled by him. Others felt desperate for a husband, but suffered loneliness, virginity, no children, grief for lost loved ones, or the loss of their job and rights. My books usually has a strong woman as the main character - who must succeed against all odds. She can be found fighting against the difficulty of her life, aspiring to better herself, and battling against the restrictions and prejudices of the time or whatever other dire circumstances she finds herself in. She must pit good against evil and win by her own efforts, no matter what she has suffered or lost along the way. Cecily greatly believed this, attempted to help her sister, and women battling to achieve an improvement in their life. As a member of the suffragists, she worked hard for them and met some interesting people who, as a consequence, had an effect upon her own situation
Friday, 7 June 2019
The Salford Sagas
I have several favourite sagas and four of my original ones that are part of my backlist and about to be republished by Canelo on 26th August. They have always sold well as have my others, including The Girl From Poorhouse Lane Series now published by Canelo and selling well. I sincerely hope these other books will all do well for them.
I will put up pictures of them closer to the time. But here are a few details of their stories.
Watch for the Talleyman.
He’s after more than your money…
Dolly Tomkins knows what it’s like to live hand to mouth. In the mean streets of 1920s Salford, the only one making a decent living is the talleyman - and Nifty Jack has a moneybag where his heart should be. Dolly’s mam is in hock up to her ears, but when Jack offers to wipe the slate clean in return for Dolly’s favours, she just can’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she takes him on at his own game, and in the process is in danger of losing the love of her life.
Dancing on Deansgate
They called it the Christmas Blitz, but there are no festivities for Jess, locked in the cellar by her feckless, tarty mother. And when Lizzie is imprisoned for shoplifting, Jess is sent to live with her uncle, a bullying black marketeer, who treats her like a slave. Her natural musical talent offers an escape route - and the chance for love. But Uncle Bernie has never forgiven his niece for refusing to join his illegal schemes, and threatens to deprive Jess of her hard-won independence.
The Favourite Child
Isabella Ashton has always been her father's favourite, but when she becomes involved with the new Birth Control Movement, Simeon is scandalised. It’s 1928 and running a family planning clinic in Salford is challenging but rewarding work, and Bella is grateful for the help of Violet Howarth, a big, generous-hearted woman who takes her in off the street. A friendship with Violet’s son, Dan, quickly turns to love. But Bella also becomes involved with handsome ne’er-do-well Billy Quinn, leader of an illegal betting ring, and soon finds everything she has worked for put at risk, and herself in mortal danger . . .
Ruby McBride
The grand opening of the Manchester Ship Canal is a big day for Ruby McBride and her young sister and brother. Its glories fade into insignificance, however, when their mother Molly, due to illness, reluctantly entrusts her beloved children to Ignatius House, and the not-so-tender care of the nuns. Ruby, a rebel at heart, is always on the wrong side of authority, but when she is sixteen, the Board of Guardians forces her into marriage and she has to abandon her siblings, vowing she will reunite the family just as soon as she can.
Convinced that her new husband is a conman, she discovers life on the barge is not at all what she expected. She is furious at being robbed of the chance to be with her childhood sweetheart, Kit Jarvis, so resists Bart’s advances for as long as she can. But Ruby’s courage and spirit enable her to rise above the disadvantages of her birth and make a life for herself within the thriving community of waterways folk.
And on 23rd September they will next publish The Champion Street Market Sagas, of which there are six of them. More details of these later.
Freda Lightfoot, my latest news.
I will put up pictures of them closer to the time. But here are a few details of their stories.
Watch for the Talleyman.
He’s after more than your money…
Dolly Tomkins knows what it’s like to live hand to mouth. In the mean streets of 1920s Salford, the only one making a decent living is the talleyman - and Nifty Jack has a moneybag where his heart should be. Dolly’s mam is in hock up to her ears, but when Jack offers to wipe the slate clean in return for Dolly’s favours, she just can’t bring herself to do it. Instead, she takes him on at his own game, and in the process is in danger of losing the love of her life.
Dancing on Deansgate
They called it the Christmas Blitz, but there are no festivities for Jess, locked in the cellar by her feckless, tarty mother. And when Lizzie is imprisoned for shoplifting, Jess is sent to live with her uncle, a bullying black marketeer, who treats her like a slave. Her natural musical talent offers an escape route - and the chance for love. But Uncle Bernie has never forgiven his niece for refusing to join his illegal schemes, and threatens to deprive Jess of her hard-won independence.
The Favourite Child
Isabella Ashton has always been her father's favourite, but when she becomes involved with the new Birth Control Movement, Simeon is scandalised. It’s 1928 and running a family planning clinic in Salford is challenging but rewarding work, and Bella is grateful for the help of Violet Howarth, a big, generous-hearted woman who takes her in off the street. A friendship with Violet’s son, Dan, quickly turns to love. But Bella also becomes involved with handsome ne’er-do-well Billy Quinn, leader of an illegal betting ring, and soon finds everything she has worked for put at risk, and herself in mortal danger . . .
Ruby McBride
The grand opening of the Manchester Ship Canal is a big day for Ruby McBride and her young sister and brother. Its glories fade into insignificance, however, when their mother Molly, due to illness, reluctantly entrusts her beloved children to Ignatius House, and the not-so-tender care of the nuns. Ruby, a rebel at heart, is always on the wrong side of authority, but when she is sixteen, the Board of Guardians forces her into marriage and she has to abandon her siblings, vowing she will reunite the family just as soon as she can.
Convinced that her new husband is a conman, she discovers life on the barge is not at all what she expected. She is furious at being robbed of the chance to be with her childhood sweetheart, Kit Jarvis, so resists Bart’s advances for as long as she can. But Ruby’s courage and spirit enable her to rise above the disadvantages of her birth and make a life for herself within the thriving community of waterways folk.
And on 23rd September they will next publish The Champion Street Market Sagas, of which there are six of them. More details of these later.
Freda Lightfoot, my latest news.
Tuesday, 30 April 2019
Free First Novel in BDSM Series Set in London
Grab yourself a FREE copy of THE NOVICE, book #1 in the critically acclaimed SEXY AS HELL series. Go, run...get it now...
Tuesday, 23 April 2019
Available for pre-order!
Available for pre-order!
Millie - the first book in a new
4 book series!
Will the events
of the past destroy everything she wished for?
#historical
#1920s
The Great War is over, and Millie is ready to leave her loving family home and be a wife to Jeremy who is everything she had hoped for.
Until…
Not long after their wedding, Millie discovers Jeremy is affected by shell shock and moving into his late father’s cold dark estate escalates the problem. Millie tries to help, but Jeremy grows more distant and befriends a homeless, wounded ex-soldier, Monty, who has secrets...
As Millie’s distrust of Monty grows, a rift is created between her and Jeremy and when he leaves to receive hospital treatment, she is left feeling abandoned. When her family is dealt a terrible loss, it is Millie who must be the strongest. However, just when she feels things couldn’t become worse, she suffers her own heartbreaking tragedy.
Grieving and alone, Millie wonders if her marriage can ever be mended, but she can’t give up without a fight.
Will a new home for her and Jeremy in a foreign country be the answer, or will the events of the past destroy everything she wished for?
Monday, 15 April 2019
Votes Needed... pretty please.
If you have a moment, I would sure appreciate your vote! Magic of the Loch has been nominated for the 2019 RONE Awards for best Audiobooks: Paranormal/Mystery
Voting for this category is
Week 1: April 15 to April 21st
Please, cast your vote here:
***Please note: You MUST be logged in to vote.
A note for new subscribers: you also have to verify your account before you can log in and vote. Thanks so much!!
Wednesday, 20 March 2019
The "Affair" series
The Gavington Affair by Jen Black
Melanie Grey endured a
bitter marriage which ended in an accident that killed her aged husband and
left her facially scarred. Unable to claim her dower rights, she travels north
to Northumberland in hope of a quiet life as housekeeper to Lord Jarrow. She
soon discovers he has secrets, and her curiosity grows. Unexplained night time
activity, and a shooting that almost kills Jarrow - can Melanie deal
successfully with these things and make a new life for herself in the country?
Available as both Amazon Kindle and paperback.
(Thoroughly re-edited and a new cover and title in honour of the paperback edition!) It also takes this story into the same "series" as the other three "Affair" titles. Some of them you might know:
The Matfen Affair ~ the bridesmaid and the ghost
The Gybford Affair ~ the heiress and the fortune-hunter
The Craigsmuir Affair ~ the artist and the thief
Here are the links:
Here is a short excerpt from chapter 1:
(Thoroughly re-edited and a new cover and title in honour of the paperback edition!) It also takes this story into the same "series" as the other three "Affair" titles. Some of them you might know:
The Matfen Affair ~ the bridesmaid and the ghost
The Gybford Affair ~ the heiress and the fortune-hunter
The Craigsmuir Affair ~ the artist and the thief
Here are the links:
Here is a short excerpt from chapter 1:
She mounted the shallow flight of steps to the front door,
and hesitated. Perhaps prospective housekeepers would be expected to use the
rear entrance? Before she could decide, the door opened, and a plump, grey-haired
woman in a black gown and white apron greeted her.
“Ye’ll be Miss Grey?”
Melanie swiftly angled her head to the right. “Yes, indeed.”
“Come in, come in. The Master’s away today. Oh, no need to
worry, pet,” the woman added, seeing Melanie’s alarm. “He’ll be back tomorrow.”
Melanie stepped onto the scrubbed flagstones of the hall,
dropped her portmanteau and looked about her. A vast spray of blue delphiniums
and pink roses, with the occasional lupin spiking the mix, perfumed the air.
Not a fallen petal lay on the polished mahogany table beneath the vase.
Unthinkingly, she voiced her thought aloud. “The house is
well kept.”
“Of course, it is.” The woman glared over her shoulder.
“I’ve lavished sweat and tears on this house over the years, and mark my words,
young lady, I’ll be back often enough to visit with Miss Penny. If everything
is not up to scratch, I’ll be letting ye know.”
Startled by the sharpness of the outburst, Melanie realised
the lady must be the resident housekeeper. “You assume I shall be taking the
post,” she said mildly. “I have yet to meet or please your master.”
The woman crossed the hall and approached a wide flight of
carpeted steps. Melanie followed, looking about her with interest. Several
doors opened off the square entrance hall and the dome above fed natural light
onto the floor tiles. On a sunny day, it would look magnificent. The
housekeeper turned on the bottom stair.
“I’m sure ye’ll do—oh my.” One hand flew to her mouth. “What
happened to your face?”
Melanie dipped her head and turned away. “An accident,” she
muttered. “I do not like to talk about it.”
“Aye, well, if ye do a good job, the Master probably won’t
even notice. It’s not that obvious,” the woman said kindly. “But Miss Penny
will, that’s certain.”
With a sinking heart, Melanie forced the words out. “She is
the daughter of the house?”
“Eight years old and bright as a button.” The housekeeper’s
smile turned her face sweet as a rosy apple. “Come, I’ll show you to your
room.”
Melanie followed her up the main flight, and then stopped.
“Oh, dear. I’ve forgotten my portmanteau.” Her bag stood forlorn in the middle
of the hall.
“Edith will bring it up later. This way, Miss Grey. My name
is Rose Dawkins, and as soon as ye’re installed I can stop scrubbing and
polishing and put my feet up on my daughter’s fender. Gertrude lives in the
village, a little way off. She’s been after me to retire for years, but I
couldn’t leave the Master. Not as he was.” She hesitated by a large door. “You
didn’t think this was a place where you could order a multitude of servants to
your bidding, did you?”
Mrs Dawkins now seemed unable to look Melanie straight in
the eye, although a moment ago her gaze had been direct.
“The advertisement spoke of a small staff,” Melanie said. “I
am under no illusions, Mrs Dawkins.”
It had been what attracted her to the post. That, and the
remote position of the house. The fewer people she had to meet, the better she
would like it.
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