Wednesday, 22 November 2023

HISTORICAL STORIES of EXILE- with Charlene Newcomb

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(or order from any bookstore)

graphic by Marian L Thorpe

HISTORICAL STORIES 
of 
EXILE
A collection of short stories by thirteen (non-superstitious) 
award-winning authors

in order of appearance

Annie Whitehead, J.G. Harlond, Helen Hollick, Anna Belfrage, Elizabeth Chadwick, Loretta Livingstone, Elizabeth St.John, Alison Morton, Charlene Newcomb, 
Marian L Thorpe, Amy Maroney, Cathie Dunn, Cryssa Bazos
 with an introduction by Deborah Swift

Exile: a risky defiance, a perilous journey, a family’s tragic choice – or an individual’s final gamble to live. Exile: voluntary or enforced, a falling in love, or a falling-out between friends, a prejudiced betrayal – or the only way to survive persecution?

An exclusive collection of historical short stories on the theme of exile..


TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT

A KING’S MAN NO MORE
by Charlene Newcomb

There was one, last, task...

read a snippet:

FRANCE, 2nd APRIL 1199

“I know you were to leave for England on the morrow, Robin.” It was well past dusk when Queen Eleanor had summoned me. Fire crackled in the hearth of her solar at Fontevraud Abbey, but cold gripped me. An hour earlier I had learned her son, my liege lord King Richard, lay dying more than one hundred miles away at Chalus-Chabrol.

I had only returned from Paris two days past as her envoy to the French king. I had made that journey in secret many times the past three months, and this was to have been the last – but that is a story for another day.

Eleanor stood dry-eyed, her tears shed before I arrived. Still, I had known her long enough to see pain in her creased brow. Her dark crimson gown was plain and unadorned, more suitable for riding rather than entertaining her usual visitors. She was prepared for the long, hard ride – day and night – to be with Richard.

“I have rarely asked more of any man, but I have one last request.”

read the full story in HISTORICAL STORIES of  EXILE

AUTHOR’S NOTE
The scenes with Queen Eleanor, John, and Allan are adapted and expanded from chapters of https://mybook.to/SwordsoftheKing  




ABOUT CHARLENE NEWCOMB
Charlene Newcomb, aka Char, writes historical fiction and science fiction. Her award-winning Battle Scars trilogy is set in the 12th century during the reign of Richard the Lionheart. Her writing roots are in the Star Wars Expanded Universe (aka Legends) where she published ten short stories in the Star Wars Adventure Journal. Scifi/space opera fans should check out Echoes of the Storm, her original novel published in 2020. Char returned to medieval times with her novel Rogue in 2023. 

“Newcomb [creates] a believable world of the bloody crusades: she captures brilliantly the twisted ideology of those religious wars whilst also narrating the personal traumas and passions of her main characters.’’
Dr. Christopher Monk.

Buy Charlene’s books on Amazon: 


https://viewauthor.at/CharNewcomb

A knight sworn to keep a family secret.
A king who seeks revenge.
A daring plan to save one life...or condemn many.

England 1216AD. Sir Robert Fitzwilliam faithfully serves the English crown, but when the outlaw Allan a Dale, a childhood friend, is captured and thrown in the sheriff's dungeons beneath Nottingham Castle, trouble is certain to follow.

Allan's days are numbered. Nothing would please King John more than to see an old nemesis hanged. Nothing except watching Robert's estranged father, Robin, dangling dead from a rope beside him.

When his father joins forces with the Hood gang to rescue Allan, enlisting the aid of friends and even the girl he loves, Robert must decide where his loyalties lie.

TALES OF ROBIN HOOD

Before there was Robin Hood, there was Allan of the Hood. You know their story - in Sherwood Forest, they rob from the rich and give to the poor. Rogue is a retelling of the origins of the Robin Hood legend set during a time of rebellion and invasion near the end of King John’s reign. It’s a thrilling adventure of loyalty, love, sacrifice, spies, and intrigue.

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(or order from any bookstore)

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all graphics, unless otherwise stated 

Tuesday, 21 November 2023

HISTORICAL STORIES of EXILE - with Alison Morton

BUY on AMAZON
(or order from any bookstore)



graphic by Marian L Thorpe

HISTORICAL STORIES 
of 
EXILE
A collection of short stories by thirteen (non-superstitious) 
award-winning authors

in order of appearance

Annie Whitehead, J.G. Harlond, Helen Hollick, Anna Belfrage, Elizabeth Chadwick, Loretta Livingstone, Elizabeth St.John, Alison Morton, Charlene Newcomb, 
Marian L Thorpe, Amy Maroney, Cathie Dunn, Cryssa Bazos
 with an introduction by Deborah Swift

Exile: thirteen authors (they are not superstitious!) have written exclusive short stories on the theme of exile. Some are based on true history, others are speculative fiction. All mine the depths of human emotions – fear, hope, love, and the fortitude to survive.

With an introduction by multi-award-winning author Deborah Swift, enjoy these tales of exile across the ages. Some are hopeful, some sad, some romantic, some tragic, but all explore the indomitable spirit of resolute, unforgettable characters.

TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT

MY SISTER
by Alison Morton

A group of Roman families is preparing to go into voluntary exile and found a new colony in the mountains of Noricum. But how can Marcellus Varus broach this to the most awkward sister in all Rome?

read a snippet:

ROME, SUMMER AD 395

“Have the maniae entered your mind and destroyed it?”
My sister, pale skin flushed and eyes blazing, was a change from her usual whingeing persona. She shook her head so fiercely that several strands of her curly hair became unpinned.
“No, Flavola, and if the mad spirits had entered my head, it would make no difference. We’re going and that’s it.”
“You can go on your own then, Marcellus.”
“Fair enough.”
She stuck her chin out in the way a recalcitrant mule did...

read the full story in HISTORICAL STORIES of  EXILE

You can read more about some of the characters in this story in Alison Morton’s Roma Nova first Foundation story https://books2read.com/JULIAPRIMA which will be followed in early 2024 by a sequel Exsilium when we will meet Marcellus Varus and Flavola again.



ABOUT ALISON MORTON 
Alison Morton writes award-winning thrillers featuring tough but compassionate heroines. Her ten-book Roma Nova series is set in an imaginary European country where a remnant of the ancient Roman Empire has survived into the 21st century and is ruled by women who face conspiracy, revolution and heartache but use a sharp line in dialogue. Several of her novels have hit  #1 in Amazon US, UK, Canada and Australia. The latest, Julia Prima, plunges us back to AD 370 when the founders of Roma Nova met.

She blends her fascination for Ancient Rome with six years’ military service and a life of reading crime, historical and thriller fiction. On the way, she collected a BA in modern languages and an MA in history.

Alison now lives in Poitou in France, the home of Mélisende, the heroine of her two contemporary thrillers, Double Identity and Double Pursuit. Oh, and she’s writing the next Roma Nova story.

Julia Prima “This is a stunning historical novel set in the 4th century. Morton’s descriptions of the countryside on Julia’s journey are magnificent, and you feel as if you are traveling along with her.” Historical Novel Society (Editors’ Choice)

Buy Alison’s books on Amazon: 
(Also available from other online stores or order from any bookshop.)


https://books2read.com/JULIAPRIMA

"You should have trusted me. You should have given me a choice."

AD 370, Roman frontier province of Noricum. Staying faithful to the Roman gods in a Christian empire can be lethal. Half-divorced Julia Bacausa is condemned to an emotional desert and a forced marriage, Lucius Apulius barely clings onto his posting in a military backwater. Strongly drawn to each other, they are soon separated, but Julia is determined not to lose the only man she will love.

Neither wholly married nor wholly divorced, Julia is trapped in the power struggle between the Christian church and her pagan ruler father.

Tribune Lucius Apulius’s life is blighted by his determination not to convert to Christianity even to save his cherished career. Stripped of his command in Britannia, he’s demoted to the backwater of Noricum – and encounters Julia.

Unwittingly, he takes her for a whore. When confronted by who she is, he is overcome with remorse and fear. Despite this disaster, Julia and Lucius are drawn to one another by an irresistible attraction.

But their intensifying bond is broken when Lucius is banished to Rome. Distraught, Julia gambles everything to join him. But a vengeful presence from the past overshadows her perilous journey. Following her heart’s desire brings danger she could never have envisaged…

Set in the dying Roman Empire, JULIA PRIMA is the first part of the foundation story of Roma Nova and prequel to the award-winning Roma Nova alternate history thriller series.

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(or order from any bookstore)


all graphics unless stated