Let us Talk of Many Things; of Books and Queens and Pirates, of Mystery and Kings...

Wednesday, 12 August 2026

My Coffee Pot Book Tour Guest: G.G. MacLeod VIA MALORUM II

Welcome to my Blog!
Wander through worlds real and fictional,
meet interesting people, visit exciting places
and find good books to enjoy along the way!

About the Book

Book Title: VIA MALORUM II

Series: Yes

Author Name: G.G. MacLeod

Publication Date: 10/7/2025

Publisher: Self published

Pages: 218

Genre: Historical Fiction / Psychological Thriller / Giallo / Drama

Any Triggers: A brilliant young girl exhibiting her psychopathic nature by participating in murder plots. Some people might get freaked out by that who can’t handle the idea of children exhibiting evil tendencies bereft of being abused.

The beginning is the end.

VIA MALORUM II: INITIUM ENIM EST FINIS

In the frozen shadows of Rome’s Appian Way, December 25th, 19 CE, a four-year-old prodigy walks among the mourners, her heart untouched by grief. Julia Agrippina, born with a mind sharper than any gladius and a soul devoid of fear, sees her father’s funeral not as an end, but a beginning. In a world of snarling mobs and scheming kin, she learns the first lessons of power: to deceive, to kill, to outmaneuver.

Guided by the cunning Sejanus and shadowed by the wild-eyed Messalina, Agrippinilla navigates a labyrinth of betrayal where every ally hides a dagger. As winter’s chill cloaks The Eternal City, whispers of poison and treachery swirl around her family’s throne. The Prophet’s warnings echo faintly, but for a child who embraces, fate is merely a game to be won.

Via Malorum II plunges deeper into Rome’s heart of vice, where ambition is a blade that cuts both ways. A chilling prequel to the visceral saga, this tale of a psychopath’s genesis blends Stoic wisdom with blood-soaked intrigue. In the war of all against all, who will rise when the snow falls red?

Buy Link:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/bPqqN7

Author Bio:

The author is a 59-year-old Canadian male based in Calgary. The author has always had a tendency of combining genres like horror and action along with drama, psychological thrillers, giallo, and sometimes even comedy.

It really depends on how the author feels from moment to moment as they write because the author likes to entertain themselves first and then hope that a smattering of other people out there in the world will like it as well.

Author Links:

Twitter / X:

https://x.com/GGMacLeod1

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/ggmacleod1/

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@ggmacleod1

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/G.-G.-MacLeod/author/B098Z2Z35R

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22624912.G_G_MacLeod

Follow the tour:

Twitter / X Handles: @GGMacLeod1 @cathiedunn @maryanneyarde

Instagram Handles: @ggmacleod1 @thecoffeepotbookclub @yardereviews

Hashtags: #AncientRome #Agrippina #Messalina #PsychologicalThriller #BlogTour #ReaderReach #TheCoffeePotBookClub #YardeBookPromotions

Tour Schedule Page

https://thecoffeepotbookclub.blogspot.com/2026/07/blog-tour-via-malorum-ii-by-gg-macleod.html

Bsky: @cathiedunn.bsky.social

via https://ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.com/

(Helen might not have read this title yet)

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https://mybook.to/COURAGE-Anthology

You might also like books written by Helen Hollick

Website: https://blog.helenhollick.net/

Amazon Author Page:

https://viewauthor.at/HelenHollick

cosy mysteries : historical fiction
nautical supernatural adventure

1066 : King Arthur
ghosts : non-fiction

anthologies

2025 annual award winner

THANK YOU!

Tuesday, 11 August 2026

My Coffee Pot Book Tour Guest: Elle Mott: Marie Conner – A Leading Lady

Welcome to my Blog!
Wander through worlds real and fictional,
meet interesting people, visit exciting places
and find good books to enjoy along the way!

About the Book

Book Title: Marie Conner, A Leading Lady

Book Title with Subtitle:

Marie Conner, A Leading Lady: Her Life and Civic Leadership in a Bygone Era

Author Name: Elle Mott

Publication Date: February 11, 2026

Publisher: Luminare Press

Pages: 303 Print Pages

Genre: Nonfiction Historical Biography

Any Triggers:

As a historical nonfiction book, some people die, should death be a trigger. Otherwise, no triggers. It is very family friendly and is safe to read.

Marie was born a girl. That was only her first mistake, according to her father.

In an era when daughters and wives are not supposed to be concerned with matters outside the home, Marie is determined to prove him wrong. To do this, she must break down barriers placed on women in society, overcome difficulties that befall her, surpass hardships from the Great Depression, and then face an inevitable relocation.

Marie steps into her community and into the hearts of many people to give her time and help with their needs. She wants nothing in return other than her father's acceptance as a worthy woman and yet, she gains much in return, even if it is not her father's praise. This is Marie’s story—of a rise from her girlhood angsts to become a leading lady—and much more.

This definitive biography is the empowering true story of one trailblazing woman who, in the mid-1900s in small-town America, changed her community and beyond for the better and forevermore.

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Links:

Amazon universal paperback link:

https://mybook.to/AmazonMott

Author’s Website for all links:

https://ellemottauthor.com/product/marie-conner

Author Bio:

Elle Mott is a creative nonfiction author who weaves advocacy and strength into her writing, empowering readers to find their purpose.

“Marie Conner, A Leading Lady" is her third book. She is also the author of “Out of Chaos: A Memoir” and “People Helping People.” Her next book, releasing this fall, will be as a contributing co-author to “When Women Talk, Notes From the Future: What I Would Tell My Younger Self.” Her other publications have been featured in literary journals, news magazines, and anthologies.

She has a background working in libraries, both at the college level and, for more than ten years, at the public library in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. While library work is her livelihood, writing is her passion.

Elle grew up in Oregon and now makes her home in the suburbs of northern Kentucky with two cats and several pet birds.

Author Links:

Website: https://ellemottauthor.com

Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/novellemott

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellemott.author

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/marie-conner-a-leading-lady-her-life-and-civic-leadership-in-a-bygone-era-by-elle-mott

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Elle-Mott/author/B07G4FXMSJ

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/elle_mott

Other Author Links (optional):

AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/author/ellemott

Kofi: https://ko-fi.com/ellemott

Read an excerpt

Excerpt 2:

Chapter 13 Polly Potter (1950-51). “Our children are our future!” –Marie Conner, 1951.

Two short excerpts from this chapter to use together.

(In 1950)

The Christmas party for Santiam Unit 51 was on Sunday, December 17, and again with a turkey dinner. Marie attended that, as did several district officers. Gold Star Mothers were the unit’s honored guests on that night. For music, Mrs. Lois Abrell led group singing while Marie played the piano. Two young girls with accordions almost as big as they were performed two songs, and Santa officiated the white elephant gift exchange.

Marie enjoyed those social gatherings. She also thought of people who were less fortunate. Her last Polly Potter letter in 1950 detailed ongoing needs and expressed her gratitude:

Many, many thanks to all the fine people who helped to make Christmas a very happy day for so many needy families. I am sure that every one of you who made the day brighter for others must have had the true feeling of “Peace on earth, Good will to men.” I know these people were grateful although they do not have the ability to express themselves as others do. The look on one child’s face when I handed her a few used toys was enough to make me happy through and through.

I was asked how many needy families I had reported to me at Christmas time and when I said 43, they were amazed and didn’t seem to think there could possibly be that many. When I convinced them that there was, they couldn’t see why there were so many. But it all comes back to these men who just walk out on their wife’s children without a thought as to who could care for them.

(1951)

Polly Potter’s letter in the “Needs of the Needy” column on March 20 drew attention to her new clothing room, located in the American Legion hall. It had started in January and was open on Monday afternoons. [She] emphasized that it was the place to drop off donations and the place to come to for help. Of course, Marie also received many donations on her doorstep at home. She had several volunteers, some of whom were from church groups and one being her good friend Mrs. Peggy Hatfield. The room was an unheated space where she and her volunteers sorted and distributed clothing and household goods.

There was no formal application process for someone in need. Marie felt that if someone was brave enough to ask for help, they were desperate enough to need that help. The March 20 letter was printed on the Tuesday before Easter Sunday:

I would like my readers to picture if you will what it would be like to have just barely enough income to pay the rent for a tiny little house and to pay the light and water bill and the barest food necessities. We who worry about a new Easter bonnet or whether our shoes and purses match, please stop and think what it would be like to not have even the simplest of new clothes. Always someone’s cast-offs. And then something happens, like the 60th wedding anniversary of a couple who has been mother and father to us. How nice it would be to attend this affair. Now, remember we are nice people just like other people but through a great deal of sickness we have been reduced to living on a welfare check. I hope I have made the picture clear.