Tag: historical fiction

blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: Secrets in the Dark – Ceril Campbell

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Glamour. Deceit. Sex. Deadly ambition.
They have the world at their feet.
And they want it ALL.

Innocent Phoebe has only known a life of privilege.

Street-smart Paula has had to make her own way in the world.

When the two girls meet as teenagers, they form a deep sisterly bond, recognising in one another a yearning for love and for lives that are different from the ones they were born into. But when they each suffer a personal trauma, they are torn apart and set out on very different paths.

So begins a rollercoaster journey throughout the 1970s of extreme highs and lows for Phoebe and Paula, as they travel from the epicentre of cool on the Kings Road, Chelsea, to the glamour of Paris, LA and the South of France.

It’s a scandalous world of sex, drugs, celebrity and wealth – alluring, addictive…and deceptive.

Ceril Campbell has always been passionate about fashion. For over thirty years she has worked as a celebrity stylist, fashion commentator and expert on TV and radio with her own magazine columns and features. Her debut novel, Secrets in the Dark, is not autobiographical in any way, but is inspired by her insider knowledge of the glamorous world of celebrity.

Ceril is now a broadcaster and motivational speaker, helping clients with lifestyle, image, life change, self-esteem, positive body confidence and mental wellness.Ceril has also written self-help books, including Discover the New You: Celebrity Stylist Secrets to Transform Your Life and Style. She lives in London and has two adult children.

To find out more about Ceril, visit her website http://www.cerilcampbell.com, and follow her on Twitter and Instagram @cerilcampbell.

My thoughts: I really enjoyed this, it was a pure slice of escapism. Fans of Jackie Collins, Lace and Jilly Cooper would enjoy this, as would anyone else who wants to read a fun, extravagant story. I liked Phoebe and Paula, they were very different girls but their bond keeps them together even when events conspire to force them apart.

I loved the 70s fashion bits as my mum was a bit of a hippy back then and still has an Ossie Clark dress hanging in her wardrobe (which she can probably still fit into). All the places Phoebe, Simon and Jake go felt familiar and made me smile, as my mum’s own youthful stories mention some of them.

My heart broke for the terrible things that both Phoebe and Paula dealt with, neither of them should have had to deal with any of it. When they finally reunite I wanted to cheer. And their group of friends are wonderful too. Because ultimately this is a story about friendship, it’s Phoebe’s friends who are always there for her, as she is for them.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: Betsy Roberts – N.G. Neville

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This incredible story is based on true events concerning young Betsy Roberts – how she was kidnapped, abused but survived America’s first serial killers – the evil Harpe brothers – how she outlived and ultimately profited using her wits and sheer determination.

Betsy Roberts, a young woman from Kentucky is brutally kidnapped by notorious outlaws Micajah and Wiley Harpe who abuse then exploit her. The novel describes how Betsy uses her wits and courage to survive, and then ultimately prosper despite the most appalling conditions and treatment she suffers, in the wilderness of late eighteenth century America. She gradually becomes tainted by the evil, murderous activities of the Harpe brothers who, amongst other things, use her as bait to lure travelers to their deaths. She does this under duress initially but later becomes indifferent, even to the extent of being a willing accomplice.

Part 2 of the novel describes her long, gruelling journey of escape to New York in the early eighteen hundreds. It covers how she became a key figure there, developing businesses, illicit and legal, and the family dynasty she establishes.

The story is an extraordinary and gripping tale of horrific violence, a kaleidoscope of extraordinary characters, settings and and yet also incredible willpower, survival instincts. Betsy ultimately becomes a strong, determined woman but also uses almost any means to achieve her ends.

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N.G. Neville is the pseudonym or pen name of Geoff Burke and Nick Fisher, co-authors of ‘BETSY ROBERTS’ their first major novel. It was preceded by a shorter novel entitled ‘DEGENERATION The Story of Betsy Roberts’ which forms the first part of the full novel ‘BETSY ROBERTS’.

A sequel or more accurately prequel, a collection of short or not so short in some cases, stories will be published in 2021. It has a working title ‘DEATH and SALVATION’. Many of the amazing characters in ‘BETSY ROBERTS’ are present before they appear in the full novel. How they got to where they were in the novel forms a fascinating collection of truly extraordinary stories.

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My thoughts: inspired by the real life Betsy Roberts, this novelised biography is packed full of details of her nefarious dealings and the trail of corpses left in her wake. From rural Kentucky to the high society of New York City, Betsy proves to be a ruthless and determined woman, whether surviving being kidnapped by two outlaws, to escaping justice, travelling cross country with her young son, and engineering her way to wealth and success, she doesn’t let anyone or anything get in her way. Including husbands.

I felt sorry for Betsy at first, with her murdered parents and having been kidnapped and treated brutally by the Harpe brothers. But instead of escaping them, she breaks them out of jail and goes on the run with them again. She’s so cold hearted and utterly without remorse, even murdering her own husbands to get her own way. While I can’t quite say I admire her, she is after all a murderer and criminal, she sounds like a force to be reckoned with, and her rags to riches tale should be encouraging – as long as you don’t go with the body count too.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: An Italian Scandal – Cecil Cameron

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A captivating story of romance, passion and adventure set in nineteenth century London and Italy.

London 1859. Carina Temple has put away the stifling black crepe demanded by the death of her father – but with it she has also cast aside society’s expectations of what a single young lady should be and do.

When Carina’s uncle summons her to Belgrave Square to inform her that her reputation is ruined, thanks to a certain Lord Danby, he tells her that she must travel to Italy until the gossip recedes and a suitable match can be found for her.

But Italy is a tempestuous place – her grandmother and cousins soon tell her of the fault lines between the states and the dangerous rebels fighting for freedom. Chief among these is Ben Mavrone – and when he and Carina meet, he distrusts her society pedigree, and she considers him a violent extremist.

When trouble comes to Carina’s door, it is Ben who saves her – reluctantly – and as they go on the run, they must learn to understand each other to stay alive.

Meanwhile back in England, Carina’s family has plans for the life Miss Temple should lead – if she ever returns…

An Italian Scandal is based on Cecil Cameron’s own family history and is perfect for fans of the Bridgerton series.

Lady Cecil Cameron OBE grew up on the Scottish border near Jedburgh, daughter of the Marquis and Lady Lothian. Her grandmother came from Naples and is the inspiration behind her writing. Cecil read renaissance history at London University and subsequently worked for Save the Children in Vietnam and the UK. Married to the Chief of Clan Cameron, she was made an OBE in 2002 for services to children.

My thoughts: this was an excellent historical romance, with the backdrop of Sicily’s (and then Italy’s) fight for independence from the Bourbons and the eventual unification of the country. Sent to her maternal grandmother as a punishment, Carina is all set to sulk till her uncle allows her to return to London, but she doesn’t expect to fall for the island and the dashing revolutionary Ben Mavrone.

Over a tempestuous year, Carina will find love, friendship and a new purpose, as well as reconnect with her late mother’s Sicilian family and heritage. She’ll suffer but it makes her stronger and more determined to be part of shaping the country’s future and of being with Ben, whatever it takes.

Sweeping and action packed, Carina is a modern heroine, despite the historical setting, she works as a nurse and then as part of General Garibaldi’s inner circle, riding with his bodyguards, dressed in trousers and red shirt, far from the glamorous gowns of her London life. I loved her aunt Alice, rooting for her from Northumbria, and the band of friends she makes, some of whom were real people, their passion is inspiring.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: The Memory Box – Kathryn Hughes

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Jenny Tanner opens the box she has cherished for decades. Contained within are her most precious mementoes, amongst them a pebble, a carving and a newspaper cutting she can hardly bear to read. But Jenny knows the time is finally here. After the war, in a mountainside village in Italy, she left behind a piece of her heart. However painful, she must return to Cinque Alberi. And lay the past to rest.

After a troubled upbringing, Candice Barnes dreams of a future with the love of her life – but is he the man she believes him to be? When Candice is given the opportunity to travel to Italy with Jenny, she is unaware the trip will open her eyes to the truth she’s been too afraid to face. Could a place of goodbyes help her make a brave new beginning?

My thoughts: this was a lovely, sweet and moving book about reconciling with your past and memories. Jenny is 100 and knows that time is short, she has a lot she wants to resolve. With the help of Candice, a carer at the retirement home she lives in, she plans to travel to the Italian village she once lived in to say goodbye.

Candice is in a horrid relationship with a terrible, spoilt, manipulative man who needs a good slap. She can’t see the wood for the trees and Jenny is trying to encourage her to set herself free and be happy.

Jenny has a lot of regrets, the way she left her little brother, the deaths of her in-laws and a little girl called Eva. But in travelling to Italy and telling Candice her story, she is able to set some things right and learn some truths hidden from her for 75 years.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: A Fatal Night – Faith Martin

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As a snowstorm rages outside, Oxford high society gathers to ring in the new year at the city’s most exclusive party. This is a soiree no one will forget… not least because a guest is found dead in his car the next morning.

It seems the young man tragically froze to death overnight after crashing into a snowdrift – but when WPC Trudy Loveday and coroner Clement Ryder are called in to investigate, they discover a tangled web of secrets that plainly points to murder.

With everyone telling different stories about that fateful night, only one thing is clear: several people had reason to want the victim dead.

And if Trudy and Clement don’t find the cracks in each lie, the killer will get away with the perfect crime…

My thoughts: hooray, a new Loveday and Ryder novel, this is a really enjoyable series. And this time their victim, of an apparent car accident, is really unpopular. There’s an abundance of suspects to sort through. The business partner, the abandoned wife, the new girlfriend’s obnoxious children, but is it any of them or is there someone else with a reason to want him dead?

On an icy, snow filled New Year’s Eve, someone made sure Terrance Parker didn’t get home safely from a party, his car is found, with him dead at the wheel. PC Loveday is assigned to make sure it’s all squared away, but with the aid of coroner Dr Ryder, she soon discovers it’s not as simple as all that.

I really like this series, Loveday and Ryder are a great duo and I like that even though she’s one of only a few women in the police force, Trudy Loveday is fast becoming a crack investigator and her bosses don’t disregard her instincts. DI Jennings may tell her to find something useful to do but he’s like that with all his PCs, and his detectives too. He knows she’s good police but wants to make sure she’s tough enough. Dr Ryder is at the other end of his career, and is seen as interfering, but he and Trudy work well together and he provides experience and knowhow to back up her investigative skills.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: Babes in the Wood – Mark Stay

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Read my review of The Crow Folk.

July, 1940

In a quiet village in rural Kent, a magical mystery leads to murder . . .

Woodville has returned to ‘normal’ after the departure of the Crow Folk. The villagers put out fires from aircraft shot down in the Battle of Britain, and Faye Bright discovers that magic can be just as dangerous as any weapon.

The arrival of a trio of Jewish children fleeing the Nazis brings the fight for Europe to the village. When their guardian is found dead, Faye must play nanny to the terrified children while gathering clues to uncover a dark magic that threatens to change the course of the war. And she must do it quickly – the children have seen too much and someone wants them silenced for good.

Mark Stay co-wrote the screenplay for Robot Overlords which became a movie with Sir Ben Kingsley and Gillian Anderson, and premiered at the 58th London Film Festival. He is co-presenter of the Bestseller Experiment podcast and has worked in bookselling and publishing for over twenty-five years. He lives in Kent, England, with his family and a trio of retired chickens. He blogs and humblebrags over at markstaywrites.com.

My thoughts: I usually avoid Second World War fiction as it’s often either jingoistic or exploitative, but Mark Stay has handled it beautifully here. The three Jewish children are very much the heroes of the story, having been brought over on the kindertransport ship and protected by their cousin Klaus, they come to the unusual village of Woodville, hoping to find some peace.

Unfortunately for them, and Faye Bright, peace is in short supply and they soon find themselves in danger. But the village witches, Faye, Miss Charlotte and Mrs Teach, will do what they can to protect not only the children, but also a very special apple tree.

One of my favourite random facts is that all apples are descended from the original apples grown in Kazakhstan, which is relevant to this story. And that apples feature in lots of notable myths, legends and religions, tells you how important they are to humanity. Magda, Max, Rudolf and Nelson the dog will have to be very brave and clever to outwit some rather nasty people and save the day. Faye’s visions help guide events and her final one of the book, made me smile. It was filled with hope.

This series just gets better and better as the witches of Woodville grow in their strength and the village stands strong against a variety of evils.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Book Blitz: The Resurrectionist – A.R. Meyering

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TheResurrectionist copy

If you enjoy gothic tales, then look no further than The Resurrectionist by A.R. Meyering. A chilling tale inspired by real events!

Resurrectionist Cover (2)

The Resurrectionist “Inspired by the true story of the Burke and Hare murders”

Publication Date: July 3rd, 2020

Genre: Supernatural/ Horror/ Fantasy/ Based on Real Life Characters

Synopsis:

Scotland, 1854

On a skinny, forgotten road in Edinburgh stood a shop without a name—a shop that could be found only if one had previously been led to its door. William, who was blind, rapped his knuckles on the door. The shop owner opens the door and says, “I recognize you. You’re the thief who slithered away while your partner swung by his neck.”

William begs the woman to break the curse that has been set on him that prevents him from dying. The curse, says the woman, cannot be broken, but it can be displaced. Is your death so precious to you that you would destroy one more innocent life to get it? The life of your own child?”

London 1895

In 19th century Scotland surgeon Edgar Price has only days to live. He has become host to a revenant that will corrode both his body and soul. Edgar’s fatal mistake has not only doomed him, but also released six more of these malignant wraiths onto the world. In his remaining time, he has vowed to stop the revenants from claiming other victims. His perilous travels lead him to the Witches’ Wood, a haven for a sisterhood of powerful enchantresses. There he meets Ainsley, who is also racing against the clock to save her life and will go to any lengths to spare the life of her lover Colleen from the grief of losing her. Despite their mutual dislike, Edgar and Ainsley find that the only way to traverse the twisted, otherworldly labyrinths that the revenants have created is to work together. Their mission becomes further complicated when Edgar begins to develop feelings for Fana, the guardian goddess of the Wood in spite of Ainsley’s forbidding warnings to stay far away from her.

Though THE RESURRECTIONIST is a work of fantasy, many of the settings and elements are based on fact. Horror and fantasy intermingle in this novel inspired by the true story of the Burke and Hare murders.

From 1828-29, Irish immigrants William Burke and William Hare were responsible for the murders of sixteen people in Edinburgh. Their methods generally involved luring a victim to Hare’s boardinghouse, where they plied them heavily with alcohol before suffocating them. They were motivated by greed, selling the corpses of their victims to a local surgeon, Robert Knox. Each victim was publicly dissected, and Dr. Knox is largely thought to have been complicit in the crimes.

During their ten-month killing spree, William Hare’s common-law wife, Margaret Laird, was pregnant with their child. Hare was pardoned for his crimes due to his confession and condemnation of his accomplice Burke, who was hanged and publicly dissected as punishment.

After being pardoned, Hare, Margaret, and their infant are thought to have escaped to Ireland. It also has been rumored that William Hare was thrown into a lime pit and subsequently suffered blindness before becoming a beggar. The victims in THE RESURRECTIONIST are also based on real life people.

Reminiscent of Tess Gerritsen’s The Bone Garden, THE RESURRECTIONIST explores a real-life horror story through a riveting supernatural thriller that is guaranteed to hook readers from the very first page.

Available on Amazon

About the Author

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A.R. Meyering was a graduate student studying philosophy. She has worked as an English teacher in a small town in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. Her dark fantasy novel, Unreal City, won a Literary Classics International Book Award gold medal for YA horror and a Moonbeam Award bronze medal in YA horror. While doing her undergrad in English she studied abroad in Edinburgh, focusing on Scottish occult literature and folklore. 

Sadly, A.R. Meyering passed away in 2021.

A.R. Meyering

Book Blitz Organized By: 

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Blog Tour: The Room in the Attic – Louise Douglas

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A child who does not know her name…
In 1903 fishermen find a wrecked boat containing a woman, who has been badly beaten, and a young girl. An ambulance is sent for, and the two survivors are taken to All Hallows, the imposing asylum, hidden deep on Dartmoor. The woman remains in a coma, but the little girl, Harriet, awakens and is taken to an attic room, far away from the noise of the asylum, and is put in the care of Nurse Emma Everdeen.
Two motherless boys banished to boarding school…
In 1993, All Hallows is now a boarding school. Following his mother’s death and his father’s hasty remarriage, Lewis Tyler is banished to Dartmoor, stripped of his fashionable clothes, shorn of his long hair, and left feeling more alone than ever. There he meets Isak, another lost soul, and whilst refurbishment of the dormitories is taking place, the boys are marooned up in the attic, in an old wing of the school.
Cries and calls from the past that can no longer be ignored…
All Hallows is a building full of memories, whispers, cries from the past. As Lewis and Isak learn more about the fate of Harriet, and Nurse Emma’s desperate fight to keep the little girl safe, it soon
becomes clear there are ghosts who are still restless.
Are they ghosts the boys hear at night in the room above, are they the unquiet souls from the asylum still caught between the walls? And can Lewis and Isak bring peace to All Hallows before the past breaks them first…

Praise for Louise Douglas
‘A brilliantly written, gripping, clever, compelling story, that I struggled to put down. The vivid descriptions, the evocative plot and the intrigue that Louise created, which had me constantly asking
questions, made it a highly enjoyable, absolute treasure of a read.’ Kim Nash on The Scarlet Dress
‘A tender, heart-breaking, page-turning read’ Rachel Hore on The House by the Sea
‘The perfect combination of page-turning thriller and deeply emotional family story. Superb.’ Nicola Cornick on The House by the Sea
‘Kept me guessing until the last few pages and the explosive ending took my breath away.’ C.L. Taylor, author of The Accident on Your Beautiful Lies
‘Beautifully written, chillingly atmospheric and utterly compelling, The Secret by the Lake is Louise Douglas at her brilliant best’ Tammy Cohen, author of The Broken
‘A master of her craft, Louise Douglas ratchets up the tension in this haunting and exquisitely written tale of buried secrets and past tragedy.’ Amanda Jennings, author of Sworn Secret
‘A clammy, atmospheric and suspenseful novel, it builds in tension all the way through to the startling final pages.’ Sunday Express, S Magazine

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Louise Douglas is the bestselling and brilliantly reviewed author of 6 novels including The Love of my Life and Missing You – a RNA award winner. The Secrets Between Us was a Richard and Judy Book
Club pick. She lives in the West Country. Louise’s first book for Boldwood, The House by the Sea was published in March 2020.

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My thoughts: this was really enjoyable and clever, moving between timelines, 1903 and 1993. The terrible events the boys uncover the story of in the school library, shouldn’t have happened and they wonder if they can change them.

In 1903, nurse Emma Everdene is charged with caring with little Harriet, who’s suffered a terrible trauma, and slowly Emma coaxes the story out of the child, but it doesn’t add up with the mysterious Mrs March’s account.

In 1993, two lonely boys, Isak and Lewis become friends in the asylum turned school. They become scared and fascinated by the noises coming from the attic above their room. Finding out about Emma and Harriet, they try to find a way to save them from their terrible fates.

Slowly the two storylines converge and something magical and mysterious happens, something that changes the course of all of their lives. I was completely hooked by the plot, and really felt for Lewis and Isak – their families aren’t very warm or loving, their school is cold and still uses corporal punishment (something I’m pretty sure was illegal in 1993, I was at school then), but they’re so clever and caring boys who want to help change Emma’s terrible fate. Emma is also a hugely caring person, and far more intelligent than the men in charge think she is. She solves the case of Mrs March and Harriet a long time before anyone else. A hugely enjoyable and redemptive story.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: The Spy Who Inspired Me – Stephen Clarke

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For legal reasons, The Spy Who Inspired Me does not mention J-mes B-nd. Which is a shame, because it is a
comedy based on the idea that I-n Fl-ming’s famously macho spy might
have been inspired by a woman…
It is April 1944, and chic armchair naval officer Ian Lemming (sic) is accidentally beached in Nazi-occupied Normandy. With no access to a razor or clean underwear, and deprived of his cigarettes, Lemming just wants to go home. But he is stranded with a young, though hugely experienced, female agent called Margaux Lynd, who is on a perilous mission to unmask traitors in a French Resistance network.
So, as she bullies him across France, Lemming receives a painful crash course in spy craft, and starts to fantasize about a fictional agent – male of course – who would operate only in the most luxurious conditions, and lord it over totally subservient women. A world-famous spy is born …
Stephen Clarke said: ‘In World War Two there really were female undercover agents who were ten times tougher and braver than Ian Fleming. I thought it would be great fun to send him (or rather, someone very like him) on a dangerous mission with one of these women who would show him what real spies got up to.’
Stephen Clarke has combined his knowledge of French history with a fondness for Ian Fleming’s novels (despite their old-school machismo) to create The Spy Who Inspired Me, set in the complex background of real Occupied France.

STEPHEN CLARKE is the bestselling author of the Merde series of comedy novels (A Year in the Merde, Merde
Actually, Dial M for Merde et al) which have been translated into more than 20 languages and sold more than
a million copies worldwide. Stephen Clarke has also written several serious-yet-humorous books on Anglo-French history, such as 1000 Years of Annoying the French (a UK
number-one bestseller in both hardback and paperback), How the French Won Waterloo (or Think They Did), and The French Revolution & What Went Wrong. He lives in Paris.
For more information about Stephen Clarke please visit: Website
Follow Stephen on Twitter

My thoughts: this was a very funny, highly entertaining book and I loved how smart, resourceful and sarcastic Margaux was, not a woman any man could flirt into bed. She’s utterly ruthless when she has to be and ten times the spy a certain 007 claims to be. She’s definitely not going to talk, and won’t even tell her unwanted companion the real mission she’s on.

Lemming is a bit less useful, a military man with a nice desk job in London, the son of a former MP who has led a very nice life in the inter war years, all cocktails and tail coats, and is not exactly prepared for sneaking around behind enemy lines and avoiding Nazis. He gets completely thrown by Margaux’s brilliance and wishes for a different kind of woman, the fantasy kind who doesn’t laugh at him and efficiently murder people.

I went through a phase when I was about 11 or 12 where I watched all the Bond films from the beginning and got quite fascinated by the world they portrayed, a mostly made up one to be quite fair, of sophisticated men in dinner suits and woman who all appeared to have knee issues that meant they went all wobbly when a man in a tux appeared. I understood it was all a lot of nonsense and completely ridiculous. I knew there were women who worked as spies and resistance in conflicts all over the world. A man in a nice suit stands out, a woman, well she might catch the eye but you’d be less likely to suspect her. Besides James B needs to retire, he’s been doing his thing for so long, it’s time to collect his pension. Time for Margaux’s spiritual granddaughters to handle business instead.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: Chronicles of Iona: Exile – Paula Fougerolles

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The Chronicles of Iona: Exile tells the story of the Irish monk and Scottish warrior, Saint Columba and Aedan mac Gabran, who would band together to lay the foundation of the nation of Scotland.  They were a real-life 6th-century Merlin and King Arthur and their story has never been told.

The book begins in 563 A.D.  The Roman Empire is long gone, freeing the region of Scotland from the threat of imperial rule but opening it to chaos from warring tribes vying for control. Columba, a powerful abbot-prince, is exiled from Ireland to the pagan colony of Dal Riata on Scotland’s west coast for an act of violence. There he encounters Aedan, the down-and-out second son of the colony’s former king, slain by the Picts.

Together, this unlikely pair travels the breadth of a divided realm, each in search of his own kind of unity.  Their path is fraught with blood feuds, lost love, treachery, dark gods and monsters, but also with miracles and valor.  Beset on all sides, their only hope is to become allies—and to forge a daring alliance with the pagan Picts.

How Columba overcame exile and a crisis of faith to found the famous monastery of Iona (one of the greatest centers of learning in Dark Age Europe) and, from it, the Celtic Church in the British Isles; and how Aedan avenged his father’s death and became, against all odds, the progenitor of Scottish kings and the greatest warlord of his age, begins here.

For both, what begins as a personal imperative becomes a series of events that lead to the foundation of Iona and the kingdom of Scotland—events that literally change the world.

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Paula de Fougerolles has a doctorate from the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, University of Cambridge, and has taught and published in the field. She has lived and traveled extensively throughout Scotland and Ireland, including a prestigious year-long Thomas J. Watson Fellowship in which she criss-crossed Europe in search of the physical remains of the so-called Dark Ages–research which ultimately led to this award-winning historical fiction series. To learn more, visit http://www.pauladefougerolles.com.

My thoughts: this was really interesting because I am a) a massive history nerd, and b) fascinated by the lesser known pockets of history. I’d heard of St Columba and Iona, which is still a holy isle, but I didn’t know much about the history of either.

It’s also interesting, to me at least, to learn about my long distant ancestors, the early Scots and Britons. It’s not a period of time you really learn much about at school – the early medieval ages are pretty much dismissed as “after the Romans left, not much happened….1066” which is obviously untrue and also really lazy.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book, part historical chronicle, part adventure, replete with woad painted Picts, greedy kings, and Nessie. Columba can come across as a bit useless at times, despite being a warrior monk and pretty intelligent, as a prince, before his calling, he probably led quite an indulged life – he just seems a bit unworldly, but then monks hidden safely away in their monasteries probably were.

Aedan is an interesting chap – second son to a murdered King, a warrior bound by a prophecy he’s not too keen on, in love with a woman he can’t have (she’s married to his brother), sent here and there by his duplicitous cousin. He does have a lovely dog though, his companion and friend through it all. He might look like a big thug but he’s also clever and determined. A sharp contrast to Columba, he’s actually lived quite a rough and tumble life, out in the thick of things.

I’m quite keen to read the rest of the series and find out how these two unlikely individuals get on in their missions – to bring Christ to the heathen Scots, settle Iona and not die, and get revenge for his father’s death, outlive the prophecy and not die.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.