One Day Blog Blitz ~ Primrose Park by Christie Barlow

 

One More Chapter
30 April 2021

Love Heart Lane #6

My thanks to the publishers and Rachel's Random Resources for my copy of the book
and the invitation to the blog tour

Vet Molly has always been career driven and focussed on caring for her animals, but when she meets a gorgeous Mystery Man at a conference and their connection is off the charts, well, one night off work won’t hurt anyone…except the next morning he’s vanished and all Molly knows about him is his first name.

Three months later, back in Love Heart Lane, everyone loves the story of Molly's amazing one-night stand. It's so unlike her! But when Mystery Man turns up walking his dog through Primrose Park and their night together seems to mean nothing to him, Molly needs her friends and neighbours more than ever. And especially when she’s left with the most unexpected of surprises...

📖 My thoughts..

When Molly McKendrick attends a conference she doesn't expect to find the man of her dreams there but pretty much from the start she is charmed by a handsome stranger. The connection between Molly and Cam is electric from the start and they share a special night of passion only for Molly to find that that next morning her handsome stranger has disappeared.

Once back home, Molly tries to forget her gorgeous stranger but fate has a habit of stepping in when you least expect it and when Molly bumps into Cam, in Primrose Park, this unexpected meeting opens up more questions than it does answers for both of them.

I raced through this story in one sitting as I thoroughly enjoyed meeting all the lovely characters who make reading Primrose Park such an absolute pleasure. Molly and Cam's relationship is made all the more intriguing by the added complications in their lives which the author skillfully weaves into the story. There's a fun element, an unashamedly romantic element and also a lovely look at all the little quirks and foibles that make up village life. I especially loved meeting Dixie, and Darling, two of my favourite characters who made me smile every time they appeared. It's not all hearts and flowers though as the author also covers some quite serious issues along the way but she does so with a lovely light touch and a flair for getting right into the heart and soul of the situation.

I am delighted to have started, albeit at book #6, this delightful journey into the Love Heart Lane series of romantic, feel-good novels. Primrose Park  is a lovely, heart-warming read and is great escapism in what can seem a very grey world at times. 

About the Author

Christie Barlow is the number one international bestselling author of fifteen romantic comedies including the iconic Love Heart Lane Series, A Home at Honeysuckle Farm and Kitty's Countryside Dream. She lives in a ramshackle cottage in a quaint village in the heart of Staffordshire with her four children and two dogs.

Her writing career has come as a lovely surprise when Christie decided to write a book to teach her children a valuable life lesson and show them that they are capable of achieving their dreams. Christie's dream was to become a writer and the book she wrote to prove a point went on to become a #1 international bestseller in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia.

When Christie isn't writing she co-presents The Book Show on Radio Northwich, enjoys playing the piano, is a keen gardener and loves to paint and upcycle furniture.

Christie is an ambassador for the @ZuriProject alongside Patron of the charity, Emmerdale’s Bhasker Patel. They raise money and awareness for communities in Uganda.

Twitter @ChristieJBarlow #PrimrosePark

@0nemorechapter 

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Blog Blitz and Giveaway ~ The Maiden and the Mercenary by Nicole Locke

 

Delighted to host one of the stops on the final day of this blog tour

Mills & Boon
1 December 2020

#10 Lovers and Legends

My thanks to the publisher for my ecopy of this book
and Rachel's Random Resources for the invitation to the blog tour

Keep your friends close…

But your enemies closer?

In order to find a legendary treasure map, mercenary Louve of Mei Solis must infiltrate his enemy’s fortress under the guise of a servant. There, Louve meets beautiful maiden Biedeluue, a fellow servant with her own hidden agenda…to save her sister from the malevolent Lord’s clutches! Their high-stakes missions may be at odds with one other, but their attraction cannot be denied even in this most dangerous of situations…

What did I think about it...

Serving woman, Biedeluue, is doing all she can to try to rescue her sister, Margery from the clutches of the evil, Ian of Warstone. However, when Bied comes into contact with the enigmatic mercenary, Louve of Mei Solis, who is posing as the castle usher, she is ill prepared for the effect that this man has on her peace of mind. That Louve is not who he says he is adds a certain piquancy to what is, after all, quite a complex medieval adventure. 

Filled with an array of rather dastardly villains the story takes some getting used to but once I had the characters firmly in place I found the story moved along at quite a fast pace. I enjoyed getting to know both Bied and Louve, both are complicated characters, and whilst their attraction to each other is obvious, they each have other, more important, things to worry about. However, as with all medieval adventures, nothing is going to run smoothly for this couple in this complicated tale of family politics and whilst I can't say too much for fear of spoiling, I can add that I was intrigued by the complexity of the overall plot.

The author is an accomplished historical fiction writer and brings to the story a distinct air of medieval skulduggery and an interesting sense of time and place. The Maiden and the Mercenary is now the tenth book in the Lovers and Legend series of historical novels which can all be read as standalone stories but as with all series it is better to start at the beginning to see just how the story line progresses through the medieval timeline. 

About the Author

Nicole first discovered romance novels hidden in her grandmother’s closet. Convinced that hidden books must be better, Nicole greedily read them. It was only natural she should start writing them (but now not so secretly).

🌠 Giveaway to Win a £20 / $20 Amazon Gift Card (Open Internationally) 🌠

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for dispatch or delivery of the prize.

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Mini Blog Blitz ~ The Warrior Knight and the Widow by Ella Matthews

Delighted to be one of today's stops on this Mini Blog Blitz

Mills & Boon
19 March 2020

My thanks to the author for my copy of this book
and top Random Things Tours for my invitation to be part of this book tour

Protected by The Beast 

Undone by the man 

Racing cross country pursued by danger, widow Lady Ellena Swein isn’t pleased to be taken back to her father’s castle. But with his knight Sir Braedan Leofri, also known as The Beast, as her captor, she has little choice! Ellena is surprised by his honourable and protective nature, even if she shouldn’t trust him. And when all seems to conspire against them, Braedan’s secret could either extinguish the spark between them or make it burn brighter.

What did I think about it..

Despite her objection, newly widowed, Lady Ellena Swein is being escorted back to her father's castle. Sir Braedan Leofric's, reputation as a dangerous warrior goes before him, nicknamed 'The Beast', he has been charged with delivering Lady Swein back into her father's safekeeping, however, the road back to Ogmore Castle is fraught with danger, a danger which will test both Ellena and Braedan to their absolute limit of endurance.

What then follows is an entertaining historical romp which has all the necessary ingredients for a lively medieval adventure. There's danger aplenty for Ellena as she is pursued across country, and Braedan has to keep his considerable wits about him in order to keep them both safe from those dastardly enemies who seek to do them harm.

This is the author's debut historical romance/adventure and I feel that she has the balance between excitement, danger and passion absolutely spot on. There's an authentic historical feel to the story and more than enough thrills and spills to keep you turning the pages. Of course, there is also the added attraction of a passionate romance and The Warrior Knight and the Widow certainly sizzles with an undercurrent of forbidden and illicit attraction between the high born lady and the fierce-some warrior, with his hidden heart of gold.

I enjoyed getting to know both of these characters who each have their own faults and failings but when up against the worst that can happen both Ellena and Braedan prove themselves to be strong and forceful personalities.

In this current troubling time, I need to read stories which take me to anther time and place, and I found so much to enjoy in reading The Warrior Knight and the Widow that I read the whole book in one delightful sitting.

About the Author

Ella Matthews lives and works in beautiful South Wales, When not thinking about handsome heroes she can be found walking the coast with her husband and their two children ( probably still thinking about heroes but at least pretending to be interested in everyone else)

Twitter @ellamattauthor

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Giveaway to Win a Signed copy of The Warrior Knight and the Widow (Open INT) 

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The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel's Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for delivery of the prize.

Mini Blog Blitz (Giveaway) ~ The Faerie Tree by Jane Cable

Delighted to be part of this mini blog blitz

My thanks to the author and Rachel's Random Resources
for the invitation to be part of this Mini Blog Blitz

In the summer of 1986 Robin and Izzie hold hands under The Faerie Tree and wish for a future together. Within hours tragedy rips their dreams apart. In the winter of 2006, each carrying their own burden of grief, they stumble back into each other’s lives and try to create a second chance. But why are their memories of 1986 so different? And which one of them is right?

With strong themes of memory, love and grief, The Faerie Tree is a novel as gripping and unputdownable as Jane Cables first book, The Cheesemaker’s House , which won the Suspense & Crime category of The Alan Titchmarsh Shows Peoples Novelist competition. It is a story that will resonate with fans of romance, suspense, and folklore.

My thoughts..

When Izzie meets Robin again after a gap of several years, there is much about them that lays hidden. Shared memories are hidden deeply away, locked in a place where hurt can no longer find them. Both Izzie and Robin have known loss and heartbreak and both have found love but in the intervening years they have never found the passion they once felt for each other.

In The Faerie Tree, the author sensitively explores the layers of memory that bind us together and just how deeply we lock away those memories when they seek to confuse and baffle us. The Faerie Tree itself hidden deep in the woodland is the place where Izzy and Robin made their memories. It’s a magical place but firmly bound in the rites and rituals of the earth, people often leave their secrets there and hope that their wishes will, one day, come true.

I was drawn into the story of The Faerie Tree from the beginning. Izzie and Robin’s story is beautifully realistic to the point where you find yourself looking with new eyes at people in the street, and wonder what their lives are like. The story is easy to read and nicely divided so that we see what’s happening from both Izzie’s and Robin's point of view, and although their memories sometime coalesce, often they don’t and once you get used to the quirkiness of the storyline, the book becomes unputdownable. Both Izzie and Robin dominate the story, they are superbly flawed and filled with so much angst and heartbreak that at times the storyline becomes almost a battle to see who hurts the most, and yet, there is a lightness to the narrative, in the shape of Izzy’s daughter Claire who is the still small voice of calm in an often emotionally fraught situation.

To say more about the plot would be to give too much away. This is one of those rather special stories which is all the better for reading knowing nothing of what is to come.

About the Author

Jane Cable writes romantic fiction with the over-riding theme that the past is never dead. She published her first two books independently (the multi award winning The Cheesemaker’s House and The Faerie Tree) and is now signed by Sapere Books. Two years ago she moved to Cornwall to concentrate on her writing full time, but struggles a little in such a beautiful location. Luckily she’s discovered the joys of the plot walk.

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The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.

Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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Blog Blitz ~ In the Heart of Windy Pines by Holly Tierney-Bedord (Giveaway)

🎄🎄 I'm thrilled to be part of this festive Blog Blitz 🎄🎄

Novella :274 pages

My thanks to the author and to Rachel's Random Resources for my ecopy of this book
and the invitation to be part of this Blog Blitz today

From the author of Kindle Unlimited All-Star winner Sweet Hollow Women comes a new novel featuring characters from Murder at Mistletoe Manor, Carnage at the Christmas Party,and The Port Elspeth Jewelry Making Club! 

Klarinda Snow is the innkeeper of Mistletoe Manor in beautiful, remote, Windy Pines, Idaho, where she brings her unique brand of hospitality to the tiny mountain town. When she finds her inn unexpectedly fully booked on a snowy Tuesday night in November, it brings back memories of a tragedy years before. Before she knows what hit her, she and her trusty team of employees (Myrtle, Pierre, and her new night manager, Josephine), have found themselves back at the task of solving another mystery at Mistletoe Manor!

While this book can be enjoyed as a stand-alone novella, if you plan to read the books in the Windy Pines Mystery series or The Port Elspeth Jewelry Making Club, it's highly recommended.


What did I think about it..

There can be no better named inn at this time of year than that of Mistletoe Manor which is  run by the aptly named Klarinda Snow, who together with her trusty band of employees help to keep the whole operation running. When an unexpected snowfall brings more than the usual guests to Mistletoe Manor it soon becomes obvious that some of the guests have more on their minds than at first appears.

With a lightness of touch this delightful inn and its rather unconventional characters come to life, and whilst the premise of a holiday read is usually light and fluffy, this story has more than enough angst among the guests to make this an altogether more substantial read.  I enjoyed  getting to know characters I hadn't met before, and learning about what makes Mistletoe Manor such an interesting place to stay.

Coming new to this author's work, it took me a little while to fully understand where the story was heading, but there's a nice mystery at the heart of the story and the idiosyncrasies of the guests adds a nice touch of light and shade, and I enjoyed watching how the story progressed. The author describes everything well and brings this tiny mountain town in Idaho to life, sharing quirky moments, which those who are familiar with the series will recognise.

Whilst In the Heart of Windy Pines can be read as a standalone story those who are familiar with the other books, Murder at Mistletoe Manor, Carnage at the Christmas Party, and The Port Elspeth Jewelry Making Club will be entirely familiar the author's style of writing and with the place and the people.

I am sure that fans of  this series will find much to enjoy in reading In the Heart of Windy Pines.

About the Author

Holly Tierney-Bedord lives in Madison, Wisconsin. She’s the author of over twenty books including The Woman America Loves a Latte, The Port Elspeth Jewelry Making Club, and Kindle Unlimited All-Star winner Sweet Hollow Women.

For more information or to subscribe to Holly’s newsletter, visit www.hollytierneybedord.com.

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✨ Giveaway to Win a $5 Starbucks card (Open INT) ✨

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The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize. 

Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.

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The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for the despatch of delivery of the prize.

Blog Blitz ~ The Warrior's Bride Prize by Jenni Fletcher - GIVEAWAY !!

✨ Happy Publication Day ✨

Blog Blitz

Jaffareadstoo is excited to be hosting today's stop on The Warrior's Bride Prize Blog Blitz

Harlequin
Mills and Boon
4 October 2018

My thanks to the author and Rachel's Random  Resources for my invitation to the Blog Blitz

What's it all about...

Daughter of a slave…wedded to the warrior

Livia Valeria is furious when she’s ruthlessly gambled away by her intended bridegroom. Luckily, it’s tall, muscled and darkly handsome Roman centurion Marius Varro who wins her as his bride! Livia must hide her Caledonian roots, but when Marius faces a barbarian rebellion at Hadrian’s Wall she must make a choice: her heritage or the husband she’s falling for...

My thoughts about it...

In The Warrior's Bride Prize I escaped back to the days of the Roman occupation of Britannia, back to AD 197 when women were used as little more than commodities to be bought and sold. Livia Valeria has been sent to the north by her ambitious brother to be given in marriage but fate has a funny old way of intervening and Livia ends up in quite a different relationship than she expected.

I really enjoyed this trip back in history and the author has done a great job of recreating a real sense of time and place so that it was easy to become immersed in Roman life. There are enough thrills and spills to make reading the story exciting, with elements of a dark mystery which surrounds Livia's background, which she tries to keep hidden, and also the dangerous task of keeping the empire safe from marauding Caledonians which falls to the brave and handsome, Marius Varro, who is a Roman soldier to the very tips of his finely made leather boots. The romance between the two lead characters fairly sizzles on the page and I enjoyed reading of the challenges they both faced and hoped that everything would work out for them.

The Warrior's Bride Prize is great historical escapism. I read it comfortably over the space of an afternoon, quite at home at the edge of Hadrian's Wall immersed in the life of Livia and Marius. I hope the author will take us back to the Roman empire in future novels.

Giveaway – Win 1 x Signed US Copy of The Warrior’s Bride Prize (Open Internationally) 

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time I will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

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About the Author

Jenni Fletcher was born on the north coast of Scotland and now lives in Yorkshire, where she writes Medieval, Roman and Victorian romance novels.

She studied English at Cambridge University before doing an MA on Women and Literature in English and a PhD on Victorian & Edwardian literature at Hull. After realising that she was better at writing than teaching, she worked in a number of administrative jobs whilst trying to finish her first book, which was rejected. Thinking there must have been some mistake, she then wrote another, which was fortunately accepted by Harlequin Mills & Boon.

Her favourite Jane Austen novel is Persuasion and her favourite Brontë is Anne. If she had to choose a romantic hero it would be John Thornton, but maybe that’s just because she’s Northern.

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Blog Blitz ~ The Makings of a Lady by Catherine Tinley

🌠 Jaffareadstoo is delighted to be involved in the Blog Blitz for  The Makings of a Lady 🌠

Harlequin
Mills and Boon
1 October 2018

My thanks to the author and Rachel's Random Resources for my copy of the book
and the invitation to be part of this blog blitz

What's it all about...

Be calm, she thought.

Be gracious. Be twenty-two.

Lady Olivia Fanton is eager to prove she’s no longer a child. However, just as she thinks she’s found a suitable match in the suave Mr Manning, charismatic Captain Jem Ford walks back into her life, bringing with him all the embarrassment of her infatuation four years before! She’s determined to appear mature, distant, friendly. But does she dare hope he’ll notice her as the lady she’s become? 

Here's what I thought about it...

This is now the third book in The Chadcombe Marriage mini series and in The Makings of a Lady we follow the story of Lady Olivia Fanton, who, as an eighteen year old, said goodbye to the first man who made her heart flutter. Now aged twenty-two, Olivia still remembers, Jem Ford, the gallant young soldier who stole her heart but, older and a little wiser, Olivia is now looking to find love with an entirely different sort of man. 

What then follows is a lovely Regency romance which, set against the background of the Chadcombe estate in Surrey, brings all the sights and flavours of an aristocratic family doing what they do best, that is, entertaining the local gentry with tea parties and balls and riding horses and walking in the countryside. 

The author writes this type of gentle romance with a lovely light touch and brings such a warmth to her characters that you can't help but bond with them, and yes, even the dastardly villains, of which there are a few splendid ones in this story, make their own rather special impact.There are several strands to the story, not just the "will they, won't they" aspect of a relationship, but also in the darker elements of the story which together help to create a nice blend of light and shade.

I'm sure that fans of this series will be delighted with The Makings of a Lady as it continues the lovely atmosphere which runs like a ribbon throughout the stories. It was lovely to meet up with the characters from the previous novels, particularly Adam and Charlotte who we met in Waltzing with the Earl and Juliana and Harry who took centre stage in The Captain's Disgraced Lady. However, it must be said that each of the stories work really well on their own merits and can be comfortably read as standalones.

There is no doubt that the author has found a real niche in writing Regency Romance and I think that, there is still scope for more lovely stories within this series. I look forward to seeing what happens next...

About the Author

Catherine Tinley writes heartwarming Regency love stories for Harlequin Mills & Boon. She has loved reading and writing since childhood, and has a particular fondness for love, romance, and happy endings. After a career encompassing speech & language therapy, NHS management, maternity campaigning and being President of a charity, she now works in Sure Start. She lives in Ireland with her husband, children, cat, and dog and can be reached at:

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Don’t forget to take a look at Catherine Tinley’s Social media accounts. She is running a giveaway to win a copy of the book, along with two other (surprise) romance novels by other writers. 

2 x UK/Ireland Winners and 1 x International Winner. 

For all the details look out for Catherine Tinley on Facebook and Twitter

Blog Blitz ~ The Last Plantagenet? by Jennifer C. Wilson

Jaffareadstoo is delighted to be involved in the 3 day Blog Blitz for The Last Plantagenet?

My thanks to the author and to Rachel's Random Resources for my invitation to be part of this Book Blitz

And here's a fabulous guest post from the author Jennifer C. Wilson

Thank you so much for being part of my blog blitz today; I hope you and your readers enjoy The Last Plantagenet?

There cannot be many writers who get to attend a funeral service for their leading man. Even fewer when you narrow that down to historical fiction writers. Yet, in March 2015, that’s exactly where I found myself. Granted, at that point he was only the leading man in two unpublished manuscripts, but still. Since then, Richard III has featured in three of my published novels, two Kindred Spirits tales (Tower of London and Westminster Abbey), and of course, The Last Plantagenet?

I had only entered the ballot for tickets to be part of things, feel a little involved in a dig and debate which seemed to be sweeping the nation. Having ‘discovered’ Richard in the historical sense several years before, it was fascinating to see the historical figure I’d become so intrigued by dominating the news, shelves filling up with new books, and more documentaries than you could shake a stick at. Then, even when the gold-rimmed envelope appeared in my postbox, I simply couldn’t believe it. Ok, so I had to Google what Compline actually was, but regardless, I was going to be attending it, and that was just amazing. 

In the end, the whole weekend felt like a festival, not a funeral. There were lectures, demonstrations (historical, not confrontational), the unveiling of the coffin, the hearse’s procession… Leicester was full of white roses, with such a buzz in the air. 

As we all took our seats for the service, and watched the procession follow the final few hundred metres to the Cathedral, there was a strange mix of emotions. Clearly, due to the setting, and occasion, there was an element of a sombre atmosphere, but then, nobody could truly be sad – it’s not as though anyone had been expecting to find him alive, after all. So there was almost a happy edge to proceedings, a celebration of having found our man, and bringing him the dignity he had been lacking for so long. 

Afterwards, back in the hotel, I thought about the two tales currently loitering on my hard-drive. For The Last Plantagenet?, I suddenly realised I had my ending, the final couple of scenes which had, to date, eluded me. I started making notes, and found I couldn’t stop. Notes on edits I needed to make to what I had written so far, ideas to explore for the rest of the plot, and even poems came flooding out (although, luckily for you, not all of the latter ever made it out into the world!). Once I was home, those notes hit the laptop, and Kate’s adventures in time began to come to life. 

Kindred Spirits: Tower of London was the first to make it into the wild, as it were, published by Crooked Cat Books just seven months later, in October 2015, but thankfully, The Last Plantagenet? made it too, self-published and released on Richard’s birthday, 2nd October, in 2017. 

I doubt either would have happened if I hadn’t been so lucky in that ballot. 

It’s almost enough to have made the stress of picking an outfit worthwhile… 

Crooked Cat Books

The fireplace hadn't looked like a time-portal. All Kate had wanted was a fun, relaxing day out, watching the knights jousting at Nottingham Castle. What she ended up with was something quite different. Transported in a heartbeat from 2011 to 1485, how will Kate handle life at the Ricardian court? Even more importantly, how will she cope when she catches the eye of the king himself?

My thoughts about The Last Plantagenet?..

I've always been interested in Richard III, the last Plantagenet king of England, and after his ignominious defeat at the Battle of Bosworth to be hidden for so long in an unmarked grave was perhaps the saddest outcome for this enigmatic king, and for the historic dynasty which ruled our country, so tempestuously, for the best part of 330 years.

The Last Plantagenet? gives a light hearted look at what might have happened if a modern day woman fell through a time portal in a fireplace and landed in the Ricardian court at Nottingham Castle just a few weeks before the Battle of Bosworth took place. When Kate finds herself no longer in the present, she is amazed to find that she is firmly placed in the centre of the fifteenth century court's festivities and when she catches the eye of the King, Kate's status suddenly rises and her time at court takes a very different turn indeed.

This was a really lovely short story which I managed to read quite easily over a cup of tea. There is a definite authentic feel to everything, and whilst you have to suspend belief, there is no doubt that the author has captured a real sense of time and place. I fully immersed myself at life at court with Richard III and his courtiers and enjoyed reading to find out how the story eventually played out.

More about about Jennifer

Jennifer is a marine biologist by training, who developed an equal passion for history whilst stalking Mary, Queen of Scots of childhood holidays (she since moved on to Richard III). She completed her BSc and MSc at the University of Hull, and has worked as a marine environmental consultant since graduating. Enrolling on an adult education workshop on her return to the north-east reignited Jennifer’s pastime of creative writing, and she has been filling notebooks ever since. In 2014, Jennifer won the Story Tyne short story competition, and also continues to work on developing her poetic voice, reading at a number of events, and with several pieces available online. Her Kindred Spirits novels are published by Crooked Cat Books and available from Amazon

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