I am delighted to welcome back to Jaffareadstoo
Her latest novel INSURRECTIO was published on the 12th April
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| Silverwood Books 12 April 2016 |
A twentieth century Roman heroine?
Aurelia Mitela came to life when I was writing the first
Roma Nova book, INCEPTIO.
Then, she was the clever, worldly-wise grandmother of Carina, INCEPTIO’s
heroine. In PERFIDITAS,
six years on, we see Aurelia, now in her mid-seventies, the cool politician and
ex-Praetorian, holding the family together after they’d been falsely arrested:
“[Aurelia to Carina] ‘I’ve been through a
great deal worse. I’m not a little old lady out of some genteel novel.’
No, she truly wasn’t. She’d been Praetorian
Guard Special Forces in her time. Although now in her mid-seventies, she
definitely belonged to the “tough gals” league.
Throughout the first three books, INCEPTIO,
PERFIDITAS and SUCCESSIO, we catch glimpses of Aurelia’s early life, but
even more, a whole range of questions are thrown up. What did she do in the Great
Rebellion nearly twenty-three years before the time of INCEPTIO? Why is she so
anxious when she compares the villain in SUCCESSIO to Caius
Tellus, the brutal ‘First Consul’ who instigated the rebellion all those years
ago? Who was the great love of Aurelia’s life that Carina only learns about in
SUCCESSIO?
In AURELIA, the fourth
book which takes us back to the late 1960s when Aurelia was a tough young woman
just 30 years old. She’s accused of murder while on a mission to Berlin, and
while in remand undergoes a (hostile) psychological assessment. Here’s the
report on her:
Subject is highly rational, quick-minded and
a natural leader. She sees nothing is impossible given enough time and
resources. Subject has the confident personality and willpower to pursue and
implement her goals, easily bringing others with her. A dominant personality.
Strategic thinker, curious, innovative, able
to grasp and deal with problems with determination and precision. Energetic and
excellent communication skills, happy to confront and negotiate with others.
Intelligent enough to recognise other people’s talents, and work with them.
Requires challenges and even failures, or her self-confidence could easily turn
into arrogance and condescension.
Personalities of this type cannot tolerate
inefficiency or those whom they perceive as lazy or incompetent. They can be
chillingly cold and ruthless when the situation arises, operating purely on
logic and rationality.
This is a slant on the classic ENTJ
personality profile from the Myers-Briggs
Type Indicator, a psychometric test system popular in business
to indicate psychological preferences about how people perceive the
world and make decisions. I needed to make the report negative for the story,
but positive aspects of this type of personality are that they are conceptual
and global thinkers, able to see connections where others don’t, and to think
ahead. Couple this with the intuition and sense of fair play many ENTJs
possess, it can make life frustrating for this personality when people around
them don’t grasp things the way they do. Of course, this conflict is a
gift for a writer…
In essence, Aurelia is a blood-and-bone Roma
Novan whose values are based on traditional ancient Roman ones; tough, loyal
with a strong sense of duty and fully aware of her responsibilities as head of
a great family. But her desire to keep all the balls juggling in the air
with precise timing leads to her being riven by guilt if she doesn’t
perform a hundred per cent.
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| Aurelia |
Aurelia has one big vulnerability, her love
for her frail daughter, Marina. This vulnerability, and willingness to
sacrifice everything for Marina, is also her greatest strength, along with her
determination to serve her country.
Is she sympathetic? Yes, because under all
that resolution and toughness, she is still a human being who experiences fear,
love, despair and grief. She bitterly misses the strong comradeship of her
earlier military career, and is exhilarated when going back into action. And
then, there is her devotion to her life-long love, elusive though he
sometimes is…
INSURRECTIO, which came out a few days ago,
is set twelve years later. Aurelia’s
nemesis has returned and is not only intent on destroying her but also on grabbing
power in Roma Nova. Whether Aurelia can summon enough inner strength to
challenge him, preserve her inner core and survive is the question at the heart
of INSURRECTIO.
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| Caius Tellus |
Even before she pulled on her first set of
combats, Alison Morton was fascinated by the idea of women soldiers. Brought up
by a feminist mother and an ex-military father, it never occurred to her that
women couldn’t serve their country in the armed forces. Everybody in her family
had done time in uniform and in theatre all over the globe.
Busy in her day job, Alison joined the
Territorial Army in a special communications regiment and left as a captain,
having done all sorts of interesting and exciting things no civilian would ever
know or see. Or that she can talk about, even now…
But something else fuels her writing…
Fascinated by the mosaics at Ampurias (Spain), at their creation by the
complex, power and value-driven Roman civilisation she started wondering what a
modern Roman society would be like if run by strong women.
Alison lives in France with her husband and
writes Roman-themed thrillers with tough heroines.
Social
media links
Connect with Alison on her Roma Nova site: http://alison-morton.com
Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/AlisonMortonAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/alison_morton
@alison_morton
Buying link for INSURRECTIO: (multiple
retailers/formats):
ENTER THIS FABULOUS GIVEAWAY TO WIN A SIGNED COPY OF INSURRECTIO
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Huge thanks to Alison for her generous giveaway opportunity and for being , as always, a lovely guest on the blog.
~***~
Absolutely delighted to return, Jo, to chat you you and Jaffa.
ReplyDeleteI hope readers enjoy this glimpse into Aurelia's world.
Thanks for being a welcome return visitor to our blog, Alison. I enjoyed getting to know more about AURELIA.
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