Wednesday 31 July 2024

Her actions could make history – but at what price?

 


A Tapestry of Treason
By Anne O'Brien


Publication Date: 22nd August 2019
Publisher: HQ
Page Length: 509 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

399: Constance of York, Lady Despenser, proves herself more than a mere observer in the devious intrigues of her magnificently dysfunctional family, The House of York.

Surrounded by power-hungry men, including her aggressively self-centred husband Thomas and ruthless siblings Edward and Richard, Constance places herself at the heart of two treasonous plots against King Henry IV. Will it be possible for this Plantagenet family to safeguard its own political power by restoring either King Richard II to the throne, or the precarious Mortimer claimant?

Although the execution of these conspiracies will place them all in jeopardy, Constance is not deterred, even when the cost of her ambition threatens to overwhelm her. Even when it endangers her new-found happiness.

With treason, tragedy, heartbreak and betrayal, this is the story of a woman ahead of her time, fighting for herself and what she believes to be right in a world of men.

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A Tapestry of Treason

Anne O’Brien


Sunday Times Bestselling author Anne O’Brien was born in West Yorkshire. After gaining a BA Honours degree in History at Manchester University and a Master’s in Education at Hull, she lived in East Yorkshire for many years as a teacher of history.

Today she has sold over a million copies of her books in the UK and internationally. She lives with her husband in an eighteenth-century timber-framed cottage in the depths of the Welsh Marches in Herefordshire. The area provides endless inspiration for her novels about the forgotten women of medieval history.

Anne's new book, A Marriage of Fortune, the sequel to The Royal Game, the exciting story of the women of the famous letter- wrting Paston family, will be published on 28th September 2023 in paperback.

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Tuesday 30 July 2024

Inspired by the incredible true story of Orli Reichert, this unforgettable World War Two novel brings to life the powerful tale of a woman who risked everything to fight against evil.



I Have to Save Them
By Ellie Midwood


Publication Date: 31st January 2024
Publisher: Bookouture
Page Length: 262 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

Auschwitz, 1942: The nurse’s entire body trembles as she watches the doctor guide the beautiful twins with chestnut curls into the infirmary. Everyone thinks he’s helping these innocent souls, but she knows the truth…

Betrayed by her own husband for being a German resistance fighter, Orli has no one left in the world as she stumbles from the cattle truck onto the frostbitten grounds of Auschwitz. She has arrived expecting to be sentenced to certain death. Instead, as a trained nurse, she is assigned to work in the infirmary to assist Dr Josef Mengele.

Soon, Orli learns Mengele is known as the Angel of Death, and is the most feared man in Auschwitz. At his hands, thousands of healthy inmates are cruelly killed and experimented on: and Orli is expected to assist him. She realises that her resistance work is not over. From inside the infirmary, she will secretly try to save as many souls as she can.

Orli starts to smuggle medicine to the most desperate of patients. But when Mengele instructs her to find children, she knows it isn’t enough… she has to keep him away. With the help of her fellow nurses, Orli plans to fake a typhus outbreak.

But can Orli really fool one of the most powerful men in Auschwitz? And if Mengele discovers her plan, will the cost of saving others be her own life?

Inspired by the incredible true story of Orli Reichert, this unforgettable World War Two novel brings to life the powerful tale of a woman who risked everything to fight against evil. 

Pick up your copy of
I Have to Save Them

Ellie Midwood


Ellie Midwood is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning historical fiction author, whose works have been translated into 20 languages. She owes her interest in the history of the Second World War to her grandfather, Junior Sergeant in the 2nd Guards Tank Army of the First Belorussian Front, who began telling her about his experiences on the frontline when she was a young girl. Growing up, her interest in history only deepened and transformed from reading about the war to writing about it. After obtaining her BA in Linguistics, Ellie decided to make writing her full-time career and began working on her first full-length historical novel, "The Girl from Berlin." Ellie is continuously enriching her library with new research material and feeds her passion for WWII and Holocaust history by collecting rare memorabilia and documents. 

In her free time, Ellie is a health-obsessed yoga enthusiast, neat freak, adventurer, Nazi Germany history expert, polyglot, philosopher, a proud Jew, and a doggie mama. Ellie lives in New York with her husband and their three dogs.

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How do you recover from the havoc wrought by history's cruellest plague?




Fortune’s Wheel, The First Meonbridge Chronicle
By Carolyn Hughes
Audiobook Narrator: Alex Lee


 Publication Date: 22/4/24 (Audiobook)
Publisher: Carolyn Hughes
Listening Length: 11 hours and 54 minutes
Genre: Historical Fiction

How do you recover from the havoc wrought by history's cruellest plague?

It's June 1349. In Meonbridge, a Hampshire manor, many have lost their lives to the Black Death, among them Alice atte Wode’s beloved husband and Eleanor Titherige’s widowed father. Even the family of the manor’s lord and his wife, Margaret de Bohun, has not entirely escaped.

But, now the plague has passed, the people of Meonbridge must work together to rebuild their lives. However, tensions mount between the de Bohuns and their tenants, as the workers realise their new scarceness means they can demand higher wages and dictate their own lives.

When the tensions deepen into violence and disorder, and the men – lord and villagers alike – seem unable to find any resolution, the women – Alice, Eleanor and Margaret – must step forward to find a way out of the conflict that is tearing Meonbridge apart.


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Fortune’s Wheel
This title / series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

Carolyn Hughes


Carolyn Hughes has lived much of her life in Hampshire. With a first degree in Classics and English, she started working life as a computer programmer, then a very new profession. But it was technical authoring that later proved her vocation, word-smithing for many different clients, including banks, an international hotel group and medical instruments manufacturers.

Although she wrote creatively on and off for most of her adult life, it was not until her children flew the nest that writing historical fiction took centre stage. But why historical fiction? Serendipity!

Seeking inspiration for what to write for her Creative Writing Masters, she discovered the handwritten draft, begun in her twenties, of a novel, set in 14th century rural England… Intrigued by the period and setting, she realised that, by writing a novel set in the period, she could learn more about the medieval past and interpret it, which seemed like a thrilling thing to do. A few days later, the first Meonbridge Chronicle, Fortune’s Wheel, was under way.

Six published books later (with more to come), Carolyn does now think of herself as an Historical Novelist. And she wouldn’t have it any other way…

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#HistoricalFiction #HistoricalRomance #MedievalEngland #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub





Oxford 1940. 17-year-old Alice ties on her facemask and enters a laboratory to harvest a potential new miracle drug called penicillin.

 


Never Closer
By Margot Shepherd


Publication Date: 18th November 2023
Publisher: UMBEL
Page Length: 260 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

An ordinary day in 2017. Jo receives a phone call about her 18-year-old daughter, Jessie. It is the call that every parent dreads.

Oxford 1940. 17-year-old Alice ties on her facemask and enters a laboratory to harvest a potential new miracle drug called penicillin.

The lives of these women become entwined when Jo finds Alice’s diary in a vintage handbag. Past and present overlap and merge as life-changing events resonate for them all across the gulf of time.

This is a story about a diary opening a door on the past, chronicling a young woman’s determination to succeed against all odds, while unknowingly inspiring others to step into a better life. Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, the infancy of antibiotics and a modern medical emergency and its consequences, it not only reminds us how fortunate we are to live now, but also serves as a stark warning about the fragility of life and the dangers of complacency.

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Never Closer

Margot Shepherd


Margot Shepherd is a British author who was born in Yorkshire where she spent her childhood. She now lives in rural Sussex with her husband and Springer Spaniel, Genni. When she’s not writing she works in medical research at the University of Surrey. She writes about family relationships with a particular emphasis on women and science from a female point of view.

Margot has an MA in Creative Writing & Publishing from West Dean College in Sussex for which she received a distinction and the Vice Chancellors prize.

Never Closer is her debut novel.

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Monday 29 July 2024

A thrilling historical novel of an assassination plot, conspiracy and divided loyalties in seventeenth century England.

 


The Plot
By Kate Braithwaite


Publication Date: 19th March 2024
Publisher: Lume Books Historical Thriller Fiction, A Joffe Books Company 
Page Length: 320 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction 

A thrilling historical novel of an assassination plot, conspiracy and divided loyalties in seventeenth century England.

London 1678.

Charles II is likely to die without a legitimate heir. His Catholic brother, James, is next in line to the throne. Across the country, fear of a return to Catholicism and its cruel persecution runs rife.

Fueling the hysteria are rumours of a Catholic plot to assassinate the king. Orchestrated by Titus Oates, its validity seems confirmed when prominent magistrate, Sir Edmund Godfrey is brutally murdered and his body thrown into a ditch.

Nathaniel Thompson, close ally to the king, is certain Oates’ claims are a hoax. He is determined to expose Oates as the traitor he truly is.

But Nat’s convictions put him directly in sight of the conspirators. Those who will stop at nothing to spread fear and unrest.

Nat’s loyalty is tested — to his King, country and even his wife.

Can he find allies willing to prove his case without losing his livelihood, his marriage . . . even his life?

Pick up your copy of
The Plot

Kate Braithwaite


Kate Braithwaite is the author of four historical novels based on true but overlooked events. “Charlatan” tells the story of Madame de Montespan and the Affair of the Poisons in 17th Century Paris. “The Plot” features Titus Oates’ Popish Plot, a scandal that earns him a place as one of Britain’s top 10 villains. “The Puzzle of Nellie Bly” explores the exploits of a ground-breaking female journalist going undercover in a 19th Century New York lunatic asylum. “The Scandalous Life of Nancy Randolph” reveals a shocking rupture between two very different sisters in late 18th century Virginia.

Originally from Scotland, Kate studied English at Leeds University and has subsequently lived in Canada and the US. She is the author of Sis-Stories, a Substack publication all about sisters in history and fiction, and an editor for the Historical Novel Society. Kate and her family live in Chester County, Pennsylvania.



Friday 26 July 2024

What if the only way to stay safe was to become one of them?

 


A Light in the Window
By Marion Kummerow


Publication Date: 20th July 2021
Publisher: Bookouture
Page Length: 282
Genre: Historical Fiction

Margarete stumbles out of the bombed-out house, the dust settling around her like snow. Mistaking her for the dead officer’s daughter, a guard rushes over to gently ask her if she is all right and whether there’s anything he can do to help her. She glances down at where the hated yellow star had once been, and with barely a pause, she replies “Yes”.

Berlin, 1941: Margarete Rosenbaum is working as a housemaid for a senior Nazi officer when his house is bombed, leaving her the only survivor. But when she’s mistaken for his daughter in the aftermath of the blast, Margarete knows she can make a bid for freedom…

Issued with temporary papers—and with the freedom of not being seen as Jewish—a few hours are all she needs to escape to relative safety. That is, until her former employer’s son, SS officer Wilhelm Huber, tracks her down.

But strangely he doesn’t reveal her true identity right away. Instead he insists she comes and lives with him in Paris, and seems determined to keep her hidden. His only condition: she must continue to pretend to be his sister. Because whoever would suspect a Nazi girl of secretly being a Jew?

His plan seems impossible, and Margarete is terrified they might be found out, not to mention worried about what Wilhelm might want in return. But as the Nazis start rounding up Jews in Paris and the Résistance steps up its activities, putting everyone who opposes the regime in peril, she realizes staying hidden in plain sight may be her only chance of survival…

Can Margarete trust a Nazi officer with the only things she has left though… her safety, her life, even her heart?

Pick up your copy of
A Light in the Window

Marion Kummerow 


Marion Kummerow writes historical fiction that explores the dark side of human history. A USA Today Bestselling author, she has received rave reviews from readers and critics for her novels about the German resistance during World War II. Her books feature characters who face moral dilemmas, make difficult decisions, and fight for what is right. She also infuses her stories with humor and undying love, because she believes that love is what makes the world go round.

Born and raised in Germany, Marion has lived in various countries before returning to Munich with her family. After writing several non-fiction books, she felt drawn to the past and the subject of resistance to the Nazi regime. It took her years of courage and hard work to turn the true story of her grandparents Ingeborg and Hansheinrich Kummerow into a trilogy: “Love and Resistance in the Second World War”. UNRELENTING is the first book in this series.

Bringing history to life through her books is Marion’s passion. She visits museums, travels to memorials and the locations in her books, reads original source material, and consults experts to meticulously research the historical facts and details in her novels. 

Her stories are authentic and immersive, transporting readers to another time and place. She writes with the conviction that we must never forget the past, so it won’t repeat itself.

When she’s not writing or researching, Marion likes to travel, do yoga, and spend time with her family. She also enjoys reading books by other historical fiction authors.

If you want to get a taste of her writing, you can download a free short story about a downed British airman here: https://kummerow.info/

Or visit her website for a complete list of her published books and interesting background information: https://kummerow.info/recommended-reading-order/




Thursday 25 July 2024

Can the sisters finally right the wrongs of seven hundred years of heartbreak, seven hundred years of betrayal…

 


The Lady of the Loch
By Elena Collins


Publication Date: 23rd February 2023
Publisher: Boldwood Books 
Page Length: 424 Pages
Genre: Historical Romance / Timeslip

‘Although I believe I will die here in this castle, my spirit will never be silent.’

Ravenscraig Castle, Scotland. 1307

When the castle she works in is sacked by the army of Prince Edward of England, kitchen maid Agnes Fitzgerald manages to escape north of Inverness to throw herself at the mercy of the Lord and Lady at Ravenscraig Castle. Although safe for now, the people of Scotland are fighting hard for their independence, and the threat of the English hangs heavy over the land. But when Agnes spies Cam Buchanan swimming in the loch, her mind turns away from war and towards love. Agnes even dares to dream of a happy future, until she learns that Cam must go and fight alongside Robert de Brus.

Present day

Twins Leah and Zoe need a change, so caretaking at Ravenscraig Castle is the perfect opportunity to get away from it all. Surrounded by rugged Highland countryside, and bordered by a loch, the picturesque setting is everything they dreamed of. But the locals are reluctant to visit Ravenscraig, and there are whispers of ghosts and lost souls. The sisters quickly dismiss such superstition, but soon the overwhelming sadness they feel coming from the tower grows too hard to ignore.

Can the sisters finally right the wrongs of seven hundred years of heartbreak, seven hundred years of betrayal… 

Pick up your copy of
The Lady of the Loch

Elena Collins


Elena Collins is the pseudonym for USA Today bestselling author Judy Leigh writing unforgettable, heart-breaking timeslip novels. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.





Wednesday 24 July 2024

The Germans’ transmissions are in her hands. Will she be enough to save her loved ones’ lives?


The Code Girl From London
By Deb Stratas


Publication Date: 19th May 2024
Publisher: Independently Published
Page Length: 255 Pages
Genre: World War II Historical Fiction

The Germans’ transmissions are in her hands. Will she be enough to save her loved ones’ lives?

England, 1944. 

On a classified Navy base situated atop the cliffs of Dover, telegraph operator Katie Kingston toils day and night intercepting and translating enemy transmissions in Morse Code, hunting for the next piece of information that will give Britain the edge in the ongoing war.

But as the entire base quietly prepares for Britain’s most daring operation yet, Katie has more at stake than her fellow telegraphists. Because among the allied forces due to land on the shores of Normandy in Operation Overlord is Special Forces Lt. Ciaran McElroy, an Irishman who has stolen her heart.

With her family left behind in Blitz-torn London and her beloved Ciaran far off on enemy soil, Katie knows her job has never been more important. After all, what is she fighting for if not to keep them safe?

A dazzling story of love and courage in WWII, this anticipated third installment of Deb Stratas’ Kingston Sisters books is perfect for fans of Kate Quinn and Sara Ackerman.

Pick up your copy of
The Code Girl From London

Deb Stratas


Creator. Writer. History Lover.

I tell well-researched and highly readable stories about powerful women in extraordinary circumstances. Readers are transported to other times and places, inspired to be authentic in their own lives.

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Tuesday 23 July 2024

As Napoleon Rises from the Ashes of The French Revolution, One Woman Dares to Spy Against Him.


Her Own War
By Debra Borchert


Publication Date: 14th July 2024
Publisher: Le Vin Press
Page Length: 438 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

As Napoleon Rises from the Ashes of The French Revolution, One Woman Dares to Spy Against Him.

Sentenced to eight months in an insane asylum for the crime of impersonating a man, Geneviève LaGarde fears giving birth in a filthy cell will mean certain death for her and her unborn child. Desperate for her release, her husband, Louis, trades his freedom for hers and must join Bonaparte’s army in Egypt.

As Geneviève wages her own war against the tyrannical general, she not only risks her own life but also those of her children and the four hundred families who depend on the Château de Verzat estate. Knowing her desperate actions could cause the government to confiscate the entire vineyard, she sacrifices everything to save her husband and protect the people who become her family. 

A captivating tale of the power of love, hope, and courage, and the strength of community.

 Praise

“Fans of historical fiction will find this novel a most captivating read.” —Kirkus Reviews

   Excerpt

Egyptian Desert

The gangly beast was two heads taller than Louis and smelled of dry excrement. This was Murat’s challenge? His cure for Louis’s cowardice?

Because he did not wish to be spat upon or bitten, he avoided looking directly at the animal. Its bulging amber-brown eyes were soulful yet harbored distrust. The thick brown lashes were as long as Louisa’s fingers. How his daughter would giggle. The camel must be female with such lovely eyes. A quick look confirmed his guess.

Louis pressed his lips against a laugh, blessing the night he and three other courtiers had broken into the King’s menagerie at Versailles. Louis had been the only one who not only successfully mounted the beast but also rode him around the enclosure. Despite his past success, Louis needed a lesson.

A black-robed and turbaned Bedouin held a rope tied around the creature’s neck and muzzle.

Louis nodded to him. “Inshallah.”

The man’s eyebrows rose. Louis could not tell if the man was surprised or impressed or both. “Inshallah.” His reply was gritty as sand.

Louis’s men stood around the Bedouin and his herd, watching carefully. He stood to the side and stroked the camel’s long soft neck, patting her wrinkled curve, and whispering, “I shall call you Sophie. Let us be friends you and I, surprise them all.”

Her small ears twitched.

The Bedouin brought a stick behind the camel’s front knee and pulled down on her rope bridle. After a bit of growling, Sophie knelt, rested back on her haunches, and sat, calmly chewing, her jaw sawing side-to-side.

Removing his hat, Louis pointed to the Bedouin’s turban. Then he pointed to himself. The Bedouin called out to a boy, who unwrapped his own red turban. Louis bent for the child to wrap the fabric around his head and neck. Louis placed his bicorne on the boy’s head, brought his hands together, and nodded, for he knew no other gesture for thanks.

The boy grinned. “Shukran.”

Louis repeated it to the boy and then to the Bedouin. The Bedouin’s lips relaxed their grim line.

Atop Sophie’s hump, draped in a colorful rug, sat a leather saddle with a carved wooden post at its front and back. Camel riders kept one leg bent around the front post and used the opposite foot to kick the animal’s flank. As there were no stirrups, Louis held onto both knobs, hoisted himself up onto the saddle, and hooked his leg over the front knob. The Bedouin gave him the rope and stick and slapped the camel’s hind quarter.

Sophie jolted forward, lumbering to her knees, and it seemed she was trying with all her feminine wiles to pitch Louis forward and fling him over her head. He leaned back to counter her efforts and gripped the rope. Sophie hissed and spat as she rose. Louis patted her neck. “All will be well, beauty.”

Pick up your copy of
Her Own War

Debra Borchert


Debra Borchert has had many careers: clothing designer, actress, TV show host, spokesperson for high-tech companies, marketing and public relations professional, and technical writer for Fortune 100 companies. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, The Christian Science Monitor, and The Writer, among others. Her short stories have been published in anthologies and independently. 

A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, she weaves her knowledge of textiles and clothing design throughout her historical French fiction. She has been honored with a Historical Novel Society Editors’ Choice, Publishers Weekly BookLife Editor’s Pick, and many other five-star reviews.

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#HerOwnWar #DebraBorchert #ChateauDeVerzatSeries #BlogTour #TheCoffeePotBookClub



Monday 22 July 2024

The tidal wave of WWI engulfs the rural French village of Bouresches, forcing two teens to embark on a harrowing journey to an uncertain future and a destination known only to their border collie, Abby.

 


Dogs Don't Cry: Novels of the Great War
By John Andrews


Publication Date: 12th January 2024
Publisher: 46 North Publications, LLC 
Page Length: 302 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

June 1918.

The tidal wave of WWI engulfs the rural French village of Bouresches, forcing two teens to embark on a harrowing journey to an uncertain future and a destination known only to their border collie, Abby.

Abby is the Durand family dog. Her job is to be a companion for fifteen-year-old Marcel and his thirteen-year-old sister, Geneviève. She considers it herding. Marcel is plagued by doubts about his courage as he approaches military age. His sister has severe pneumonia. As their neighbors flee, the doctor warns their mother that the rigors of evacuation will kill Geneviève.

A disastrous escape leaves them orphaned and alone.

Marcel and Geneviève must find a distant relative, Cousin Henri, who lives near Paris. However, they have never met him, are not sure of his last name, and don’t know his address. Abby is the key—Henri is her former owner, though she begs to differ on the “owner” concept. If anyone can find him, she can. The teens confront their worst fears while seeking refuge amid the chaos of war, armed only with their faith in Abby.

Pick up your copy of 
Dogs Don't Cry

John F. Andrews


John F. Andrews began writing fiction in 2012. The spark that ignited the flame was a true story strange enough to be fiction set in the 1930s. You can read about it when his Beware series is published. This launched his Twentieth Century historical fiction writing career. His Novels of the Great War leverage his fascination with history along with his knowledge and experience as a physician and a US Marine Corps father.

Andrews grew up in the Midwest with an early love for the Montana mountains. After earning a BA in psychology at the University of Minnesota-Morris, he completed his MD degree at the University of Minnesota Medical School. He trained in internal medicine at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, MI, and then completed a pulmonary medicine fellowship at the University of Chicago. He had a wonderful practice in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine in Green Bay, WI, before "retiring". He and his wife, Sue, live in Manhattan, MT where he writes for the sheer joy of it.

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Friday 19 July 2024

Change is coming as swiftly as the seasons themselves.



Summer's End
By Amy Myers


 Publication Date: 29th May 2024
Publisher: Joffe Books
Page Length: 432 Pages
Genre: Historical Romance

Summer, 1914.

Change is coming as swiftly as the seasons themselves. And the catalyst is the arrival of Aunt Tilly...

Preparations for the wedding of the Rector’s eldest daughter, Isobel Lilley, are well underway. The Rectory larders are full to the brim. The bridesmaids’ dresses fitted and pressed. The bridal gown allotted a room of its own. The only thing missing is Aunt Tilly.

But little does the Lilley family know, the arrival of Aunt Tilly will spark a chain of events that threatens to tear the village of Ashden apart.

When the dark clouds of war reach Ashden, Isobel and her sisters face daunting personal and social changes. Women of all classes are called upon to rise to the challenges of war and the Lilley family find themselves facing a new world that brings both tragedy and newfound freedom.

The whole village comes together in the face of adversity, but Aunt Tilly takes it one step too far, putting the stability of the Rectory in jeopardy.

Can the Lilley family survive Aunt Tilly’s visit and the outbreak of war?

Pick up your copy of
Summer's End

Amy Myers


 I enjoy writing crime novels and historical fiction, although I now concentrate on the crime novels. Currently living in southern England, I'm British and married an American. For many years I worked in publishing, then leapt over the fence to tackle the novels I'd always dreamed of writing. The crime novels I write are varied and all of them fall roughly into the Agatha Christie field with a mystery at their heart and a sleuth to solve it. Some series are set in the past, like those starring my 1920s chef Nell Drury, my Victorian chef Auguste Didier and my Victorian chimney sweep Tom Wasp. Now, however, i concentrate on the present day, such as in the classic car sleuth Jack Colby series. My Marsh and Daughter series is also set in the present day although they specialise in solving mysteries from the past. I am currently working on a series starring Cara Shelley who works at the stately home of Tanton Towers and it too is set in the present day. Present or past, they'd all like to meet you!