I am pleased to welcome Anna Belfrage back to my blog to share an excerpt from her latest novel, “Queen of Shadows.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Anna Belfrage for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Alma felt safer the moment she entered her city. One of the guards at the city gate recognised her and asked her to give his regards to her mother. She slowed her pace along the familiar streets, passed by the huge cathedral just as the bells in the Giralda rang out the noon hour, and came to an abrupt stop at the sight of her childhood home. The gates stood wide open, people spilling out from the courtyard within to stand in the street. She pushed her way through, her initial fear that something bad had happened assuaged by the laughter, the loud voices.
The small patio was crowded with people, and sitting on a chair in the centre was Ramona, her cheeks flushed.
“Alma!” Abuela greeted her with a hug. “How propitious that you should come today. We are celebrating.”
One of the women present broke out in song. Several others fell in, some clapping out the rhythm. A song of love, of marriage and future babes, and Alma turned to blink at Ramona, who gave her a smug look.
“You’re getting married?” Alma asked.
“I am. The contracts were signed earlier today. I come with an adequate dowry, so Mamá has arranged a good marriage for me.” Ramona smirked. “Not much left for you. Or Nuria.”
For the first time ever, Alma felt a twinge of jealousy. Not because Ramona was to wed, but because she, Alma, would never have anything to offer someone like Rodrigo.
“Is he handsome?” she asked.
Ramona shrugged. “I have not met him. Mamá says he is.” She lowered her voice. “He’s a widower, father of three.”
“Ah.” Whatever jealousy she’d felt dissipated. “Is he from Sevilla?”
“No.” Ramona frowned. “He is from Cádiz.”
So far away!
“Have you been there?” Ramona asked.
She had, some years back when Doña Leonor had instead on accompanying the king when he set out to visit both Cádiz and Tarifa, central locations for his plans to one day retake Gibraltar from the Marinids.
“Mamá says it is a good place to live.” Ramona snorted. “How would she know? She’s never been further away than the Sierra Morena.”
“It benefits from the sea,” Alma said. “It is never as hot as Sevilla because there is always a breeze.” And it was also very small compared to Sevilla, the protective walls resulting in cramped conditions, but she did not think Ramona needed to hear this. “Is your future husband a caballero?”
“Sí. He now serves the king as a tax collector,” Ramona replied. “Before that, he served the local adelantado for years. He commanded men at the siege of 1333 but was grievously wounded and can no longer ride to war.” She cocked her head. “Mamá says the king should have persisted until he won.”
“Mamá knows nothing of what it is to be king.” Alma knew, from listening to Doña Leonor, that the king had every intention of retaking Gibraltar, but then, back in 1333, he’d had to break the siege to handle Juan Manuel and his cohorts, who had been happily raiding their way through Castile. Outlaws and renegades, the lot of them! Since then, Juan Manuel had been reined in—until last year, when he’d allied himself with Portugal.
“No, I suppose she doesn’t. Just as she doesn’t know anything about living in Cádiz.” Ramona sighed. “I won’t know anyone.”
“You will make friends soon,” Alma told her. “Your husband will be so proud of you and will likely parade you round every plaza, every church.”
Ramona gnawed her lip. “You truly think so?”
“You are very pretty.” And also very young, only a year older than Alma. Her husband-to-be had to be at least twice her age if he’d held command in 1333. She dug into her basket and found the pair of ivory hair combs she’d intended to give Mamá. Of Moorish origin, they were old but beautiful. “Here. For the bride-to-be.”
Ramona gaped. And then she threw her arms around Alma.
“I bought them for you,” Alma said much later to her mother. “But Ramona—”
“You did the right thing,” Mamá said. “You made her very happy.”
Blurb:
She should have stayed in the shadows—but Leonor de Guzmán yearned for the sun.
Castile in the 1330s is a place of constant turmoil. King Alfonso must contend with the incursions from the Muslim Marinids, eager to reclaim Al-Andalus while struggling with repeated rebellions against his firm rule.
When Alfonso needs respite, he finds it in the arms of his Leonor—the most beautiful woman in the realm. But while he may love Leonor over all others, his lawful wife, Maria of Portugal, is tired of being constantly displaced by the fair Leonor.
Leonor loves her man. She gives him healthy sons, a place to be himself. But she is only a mistress, even if Alfonso treats her like a queen. Leonor’s enemies watch and hate.
Flying too close to the sun comes at a high price. How much will Leonor’s love cost her?
Based on the true story of Alfonso XI and his complicated relationships to wife and lifelong mistress
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bio:
Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with three absorbing interests: history, romance, and writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time-travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17th-century Scotland and Maryland, as well as two equally acclaimed medieval series: The King’s Greatest Enemy, which is set in 14th century England, and The Castilian Saga, which is set against the medieval conquest of Wales. She has also published a time travel romance, The Whirlpools of Time, and its sequel Times of Turmoil, and is now considering just how to wiggle out of setting the next book in that series in Peter the Great’s Russia, as her characters are demanding. . .
All of Anna’s books have been awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion, she has several Historical Novel Society Editor’s Choices, and one of her books won the HNS Indie Award in 2015. She is also the proud recipient of various Reader’s Favorite medals, as well as having won various Gold, Silver, and Bronze Coffee Pot Book Club awards.
“A master storyteller. “This is what all historical fiction should be like. Superb.”
Find out more about Anna, her books, and enjoy her eclectic historical blog on her website, www.annabelfrage.com, where you will also find her post about Alfonso and Leonor:
I am pleased to welcome Helen Hollick & Friends to my blog today to share a spotlight for their latest book, “Courage Anthology: Tales of History, Mystery and Hope.” I would like to thank Helen Hollick & Friends and The Coffee Pot Book Club for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
Fifteen historical short stories, covering eras from Roman to present-day by Judith Arnopp, Anna Belfrage, Derek Birks, Cathie Dunn, Patricia Furstenberg, Jean Gill, Kathy Hollick-Bater, Helen Hollick, Carolyn Hughes, Amy Maroney, Alison Morton, Elizabeth St.John, Marian L Thorpe, Antoine Vanner, Annie Whitehead. With an introduction by Lorna Fergusson.
The lion has long been a symbol of courage, loyalty, and hope. A creature of power and, in some traditions, of the divine. We imagine it unflinching, unafraid. Yet the truest bravery is not found in the open, but within, where the lion lies hidden, waiting to be called upon. In moments of uncertainty or grief. Courage is not the absence of fear, but the decision to face it. It is the moment when we would rather flee, but instead, find a strength we did not know we possessed.
These powerful and often emotional stories follow men, women, and children as they face profound adversity, the resilience to endure, cling to hope for the future, and the courage to change their lives forever.
Join these ordinary people as they uncover extraordinary strength and emerge, in their own way, lion-hearted.
The Stories – in appearance order: (collated by Helen Hollick)
THE SENTRY by Alison Morton
Roman province of Noricum, AD 395
When danger strikes, and you are on your own with only fear as a companion
THE SAXON by Derek Birks
Southern Britain, the frontier between the Belgae and the Atrebates. AD 471
When escape means more than just running for your life
THE PHOENIX by Marian L Thorpe
Ésparias, a fictional country bordering the western sea circa AD 900
A mother’s dilemma? To keep them safe – or let them go?
SIFLEDE by Judith Arnopp
London, October 1066
When the Normans come, Southwark’s residents need to fight, flee, hide, or die.
DAISY CHAIN by Annie Whitehead
England, 1141
A mother’s love. A mother’s grief
STEPPING BETWEEN by Anna Belfrage
Ludlow Castle, England, 1308
When all you can do is to endure
CONFRONTING PLAGUE by Carolyn Hughes
England, 1361
When courage must survive in the face of history’s cruellest plague
KATE’S LETTER by Patricia Furstenberg
Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, 1478
One letter, sealed in dragon’s wax
THE PORTRAIT’S SECRET by Amy Maroney
Paris, 1536
When a woman holds a secret, does she keep it or share it?
LEGACY by Jean Gill
Tudor England, 1558
When a man loses everything, what is his legacy?
A TALETELLER’S TALE by Helen Hollick
Somewhere in the Caribbean, 1709
When the only sound is the song of the sea, do you listen? Or do you drown in the embrace of a mermaid?
THE GATE by Elizabeth St.John
London, 1900
When courage costs everything
DARKNESS RISING by Cathie Dunn
Venezia, June 1923
Can the mystery of a secluded island and a murder be solved before
time runs out?
A SACK OF POTATOES by Antoine Vanner
Groenhorst, outskirts of Amersvoort, The Netherlands
November 11th, 1954
Courage meant survival for many – but others relied on greed
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bios:
Helen Hollick: About Helen – (anthology compiler)
Originally first published in 1993, and now known for her captivating storytelling and attention to historical detail, Helen’s historical fiction, nautical adventures, cosy mysteries, and short stories invite readers to step into worlds where the boundaries between fiction and history blend together. Her historical novels span a variety of periods, with a particular focus on the Early Medieval. Her Pendragon’s Banner series offers a vivid portrayal of the King Arthur story set against a plausible reality setting, while the events that led to the 1066 Battle of Hastings shows her ability to bring historical figures and settings to life. Her novel about Queen Emma (The Forever Queen – USA title) became a USA Today best-seller.
In the Sea Witch Voyages, she subtly weaves in elements of supernatural fantasy against the Golden Age of Piracy, creating an immersive and addictive nautical adventure experience.
Her Jan Christopher cosy mystery series is set during the 1970s, based around her sometimes hilarious years of working as a North London library assistant. Her 2025 release of Ghost Encounters, co-produced with her adult daughter, Kathy, reveals some benign ghosts of North Devon, where the family moved to in 2013. Helen has written several short stories, further exploring the echoes of the past, all with her compelling and convincing signature style.
Judith Arnopp: About Judith – Multi-award-winning author Judith Arnopp’s novels are set in the late medieval and Tudor period. Her main focus is on the women of the era, her meticulous research offering deep psychological analysis of well-known figures such as Margaret Beaufort, Marguerite of Anjou, Anne Boleyn, and Henry VIII himself. She has also written a non-fiction How to Dress like a Tudor.
Anna Belfrage: About Anna – Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with three absorbing interests: history, romance, and writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time-travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17th-century Scotland and Maryland, as well as the equally acclaimed medieval series The King’s Greatest Enemy, which is set in 14th-century England, and The Castilian Saga, which is set against the medieval conquest of Wales. She has also published a time travel romance, The Whirlpools of Time, and its sequel, The Times of Turmoil, and is now considering how to wiggle out of setting the next book in that series in Peter the Great’s Russia, as her characters are demanding.
Derek Birks: About Derek – Derek writes character-driven, action-packed fiction. His debut historical novel, Feud, is the first of a series of eight books and one novella, entitled The Wars of the Roses. which follows the fortunes of the fictional Elder family. He has also written the Amazon bestselling series, The Last of The Romans, which focuses on the real fifth-century Romano-British character of Ambrosius Aurelianus. His first non-fiction book is: A Guide to the Wars of the Roses. Under the pen name Tom Hadley, he has also written the Liv Fisher modern thriller series, which begins with Eyes Like Blades.
Derek has written and produced over 40 podcasts on the Wars of the Roses, and now co-hosts the podcast series, A Slice of Medieval, with historian Sharon Bennett Connolly.
Cathie Dunn: About Cathie – Cathie is an award-winning, Amazon-bestselling author of historical fiction, mystery, dual-timeline, and romance set in Scotland, England, and France. Her latest release, Ascent – the story of Poppa of Bayeux, handfasted wife of Rollo the Viking – is her sixth novel, and she is currently working on the sequel, Treachery. In her House of Normandy series, Cathie seeks to showcase the forgotten women behind the famous warriors who forged early medieval Normandy.
Cathie lives in the south of France with her husband and two rescue pets, enjoying the Mediterranean sunshine and visiting the many historic sites whenever she can.
Patricia Furstenberg: About Patricia – Patricia is a Romanian-born, South Africa-based author of character-driven historical fiction set in medieval Eastern Europe. Her latest novel, When Secrets Bloom, part of the Blood of Kings, Heart of Shadows saga, explores the turbulent world of Vlad the Impaler, weaving meticulous research with moral complexity, faith, and the quiet resilience of women navigating power and peril. Her short stories, poetry, and travel features have appeared in anthologies and online publications. Patricia blogs about overlooked corners of history and cultural heritage on her
Jean Gill: About Jean – Award-winning Welsh author and photographer Jean Gill lives in Provence with the best scent-hound in the world, a Nikon D750, and a man. Best known for writing epic medieval adventures in The Troubadours and The Midwinter Dragon series, Jean has published twenty-seven multi-genre books since 1988, including the dog bestseller Someone To Look Up To.
For many years, she taught English and was the first woman to be a secondary headteacher in the Welsh county of Dyfed. She is a mother or stepmother to five children, so life is hectic. With Scottish parents, Welsh and French residence,e and an English birthplace, she can usually shout for the winning team in sporting events.
Kathy Hollick-Bater: About Kathy – Kathy is severely dyslexic and struggles with her reading and writing. Her passion is horses and mental well-being. She started riding at the age of three, had her own pony at thirteen, and discovered showjumping soon after. Kathy is now a Devon farmer’s wife, runs Taw River Equine Events, and coaches riders of any age or experience, specialising in positive mindset and overcoming confidence issues via her Centre10 accreditation and Emotional Freedom Technique training. EFT, or ‘tapping’, uses the body’s pressure points to aid calm relaxation and to promote gentle healing around emotional, mental, or physical issues. She hopes to extend her training in order to help ex-servicemen overcome PTSD.
Kathy regularly competes at British Showjumping, and rides side-saddle (‘aside’) when she has the opportunity. She produces her own horses, several from home-bred foals. She also has the ability to see, hear, and talk to friendly ghosts, several of whom share our 1769 farmhouse.
Carolyn Hughes: About Carolyn – Carolyn is the author of The Meonbridge Chronicles series, historical fiction set in fourteenth century England. The first Chronicle, Fortune’s Wheel, is set in the immediate aftermath of what we call The Black Death. Times of social change are always fascinating, and trying to depict the great upheaval in society brought about by the plague was the inspiration for the book. In the subsequent novels, Carolyn has sought to reveal the lives of mostly ordinary medieval folk through stories that tell of experiences especially pertinent to the time but which also resonate today. The stories focus particularly on the lives of women, if only because women in history often have not had much opportunity to “speak”.
There are now eight books in the series. More will follow.
Amy Maroney: About Amy – Amy lives in Oregon, U.S.A., and spent many years as a writer and editor of nonfiction before turning her hand to historical fiction. Amy is the author of the Miramonde Series, a trilogy about a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern-day scholar on her trail; and the Sea and Stone Chronicles, which features strong, talented women seeking their fortunes in the medieval Mediterranean. To receive a free prequel novella to the Miramonde Series, join Amy Maroney’s community of readers on her website: https://www.amymaroney.com/
Alison Morton: About Alison – Alison writes the thrillers she always wanted to read – ones featuring tough but compassionate heroines. Her eleven-book Roma Nova thriller 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 with a sharp line in dialogue.
All six full-length Roma Nova novels have won the BRAG Medallion, the prestigious award for indie fiction. SUCCESSIO, AURELIA, INSURRECTIO, and JULIA PRIMA have been selected as Historical Novel Society’s Editor’s Choices. AURELIA was a finalist in the 2016 HNS Indie Award. The Bookseller selected SUCCESSIO as Editor’s Choice in its inaugural indie review.
Six years’ military service, a fascination with ancient Rome, and a life of reading crime, historical, and thriller fiction have inspired her writing. She lives in Poitou in France, the home of Mélisende, the heroine of her contemporary thrillers, Double Identity, Double Pursuit, and Double Stakes.
Elizabeth St.John: About Elizabeth – Elizabeth’s critically acclaimed historical fiction brings to life the stories of her ancestors—extraordinary women whose close connections to England’s kings and queens offer an intimate perspective on Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart times. Inspired by family archives and historic residences from Lydiard Park to the Tower of London, she explores ancestral portraits, diaries, and lost gardens—and occasionally encounters a ghost. Discovering a whole different family history in The Gate, Elizabeth expands her storytelling into the early 20th century, adding a new era to her repertoire.
Living between California, England, and the past, Elizabeth is International Ambassador for The Friends of Lydiard Park and curator of The Lydiard Archives, where she is always searching for inspiration for her next novel. Her works include The Lydiard Chronicles, set during the English Civil War, and The Godmother’s Secret, exploring the mystery of the princes in the Tower. In The King’s Intelligencer, set in the court of Charles II, a young woman must decide what she is willing to risk to reveal the whereabouts of the missing princes.
Marian L Thorpe: About Marian – Marian’s novels are historical fiction of an imagined world, one that is close to Britain, Northern Europe, and Rome, but isn’t any of them. Her short stories, either in multiple-author anthologies or her own collections, range from urban fantasy to historical fiction, slice-of-life to climate fiction.
After two careers as a research scientist and an educator, she decided it was time to do what she’d always wanted, and be a writer. Her first book was published when she was in her mid-50s. Her lifelong interest in Roman and post-Roman European history provided the inspiration for her first series, while her other interests in landscape archaeology and birding provide background.
Antoine Vanner: About Antoine – Antoine spent four decades in international business, latterly at a senior executive level, and lectured in academia afterwards. He lived through military coups, a guerrilla war, negotiations with governments, storms at sea and life in mangrove swamps, tropical forest, offshore oil-platforms, and the boardroom. He has lived and worked long-term in eight countries, has travelled widely in all continents except Antarctica, and is fluent in three languages.
He has a passion for nineteenth-century political and military history and has a deep understanding of what was the cutting-edge technology of the time. His knowledge of human nature and his first-hand experience of the locales – often surprising – of the most important conflicts of the period provide the impetus for his chronicling of the lives of Royal Navy officer Nicholas Dawlish and his magnificent wife, Florence. There are thirteen volumes so far in the Dawlish Chronicles series, the actions set in the period 1858 to 1915.
Vanner now lives in Britain with his wife, Eva Lagassé (a journalist by background), their dog, and five horses.
Annie Whitehead: About Annie – is a prize-winning writer, historian, and Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and has written four award-winning novels set in ‘Anglo-Saxon’ Mercia. She has contributed to fiction and nonfiction anthologies and written for various magazines. She has twice been a prize winner in the Mail on Sunday Novel Writing Competition, and won First Prize in the 2012 New Writer Magazine’s Prose and Poetry Competition, a finalist in the Tom Howard Prize for nonfiction and shortlisted for the Exeter Story Prize and Trisha Ashley Award 2021. She was the winner of the inaugural Historical Writers’ Association HWA/Dorothy Dunnett Prize 2017 and subsequently a judge for that same competition. She has also been a judge for the HNS (Historical Novel Society) Short Story Competition, and was a 2024 judge for the HWA Crown Nonfiction Award and chaired the same panel in 2025.
Her nonfiction books are Mercia: The Rise and Fall of a Kingdom (a #1 Amazon Best-seller, published by Amberley Books) and Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon England (Pen & Sword Books). In 2023, she contributed to a new history of English monarchs, published by Hodder & Stoughton, and in 2025, Murder in Anglo-Saxon England was published by Amberley Books.
In February 202,6 she signed a contract for a new nonfiction book about the Anglo-Saxons, to be published by The History Press in 2027.
With an introduction by Lorna Fergusson: About Lorna – Lorna Fergusson is an award-winning short story writer and novelist. Founder of Fictionfire Literary Consultancy, she is an experienced editor, writing coach, and speaker. She has taught on various Oxford University writing programmes since 2002. Her stories have won an Ian St James Award, the Historical Novel Society’s Short Story Award, and been shortlisted for the Bridport Prize, Pan Macmillan’s Write Now prize, and the Historical Novel Society’s First Chapters prize. She was twice runner-up for the Mogford Prize. Author of The Chase and An Oxford Vengeance, her latest book is a collection of stories set in France, One Morning in Provence. She is currently developing one of the Mogford stories as a novel, as well as working on poetry and a book on mindset for writers. Born in Scotland, she is married with two sons and lives in Oxford, England.
I am pleased to welcome Ellen Rachlin to my blog today to share an excerpt of her novel, “Enheduanna’s Song From The Sands.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Ellen Rachlin for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Eight years ago, I was bitten by a desire that I can’t forget. I was seven and with my mother in Azupiranu, the City of Saffron, and Father’s birthplace. We were at the Temple when I had a vision of my paternal grandmother, the former High Priestess, whom I’d never met. Ever since she revealed herself to me, I’ve wanted to be a high priestess too.
Even my father had no memory of her. Only rarely did my parents speak of her. And I never received a good answer to how a high priestess could give birth to a mortal son. High priestesses are married to gods. They aren’t supposed to have children.
I assume that’s why she gave father away. She tried to protect him by sending him downriver alone in a sealed basket. Akki, the royal gardener of Kish, found Father at the riverbank and raised him. When Mother brought me to Azupiranu on holiday, I believe she was looking for him. She’d lead me along a sloped embankment to the Euphrates riverbank where Father’s journey to Kish began.
On that long-ago trip to Azupiranu, when I was steeped in grief, my grandmother appeared to me. It was on the day before Mother’s, and I was to return home to Agade. A cooling breeze from the East set in as we arrived at grandmother’s old Temple. She lived in the giparu where usually only the High Priestess and priestesses can enter. But on this day, Mother and I were permitted inside. She tugged my hand, and I followed her across the sacred courtyard, stepping lightly on my toes with my head tilted upwards, taking in the tops of the carved stone archways.
The current High Priestess received us in her golden throne room and invited us to spend the night. Mother was allowed to climb to the mountain house, the highest point of the Temple, to spend the night. It’s the room closest to the gods, at the meeting place of Heaven and Earth. Mother left me all alone below in the care of the priestesses.
As she ascended all three of the mountain house’s sacred platforms, she slipped away from me, becoming smaller and smaller. I stood at the base, and tears escaped my eyes. She told me that she was going to pray to Ninurta, the god of farming and healing.
For several hours, I barely spoke to the priestesses. They chattered at me as they led me through the temple rooms and grand kitchens. All I could think of was that Mother didn’t allow me to go with her to touch the Heavens. I vowed that one day I would serve as high priestess at a temple with a grand mountain house. Then I would decide who was permitted to enter it. But that same night, the Heavens came to me. I saw a woman who looked as familiar to me as my own face. But she was more beautiful with a narrower nose and fuller bottom lip than mine; her dark almond-shaped eyes were the same. She sat on a small curved throne, enveloped in brilliantly colored woven fabrics. One shawl, the color of the morning sun, covered her head, grazed her shoulders, and flowed down her back. She called me to
her. I could sense her breath. I moved closer, just close enough to stare at her curiously familiar face.
Perhaps because she was speaking to a child, her words were slow and cautious. It took some moments for me to take them in, so I don’t recall her first words. But their meaning I understood—it was a warning that women are doomed to be forgotten and that I should take advantage of my blessed birthright, tell my story, and defend the beliefs of our people. I remember her asking me, “Do you understand me?”
Maybe because I dreamed of being a high priestess as Father intended, serving Inanna, I remember her exact words that followed: “Great men have epics pressed into tablets and live on as the gods do. High priestesses who commit their lives to the gods are forgotten. Gilgamesh and your father remembered—you and I forgotten.”
When she spoke about the legendary king, Gilgamesh, and Father, and the scores of tablets that tell their stories, her words seemed true. Her voice became louder, more insistent, “Study history. Learn how to write so you can tell your story and achieve immortality like great men and gods.”
I’ve told no one, not even Mother, about this. At first, I wanted something all my own that night when Mother wouldn’t let me join her. Then, I put the vision aside, but not my desire to become a high priestess and climb the mountain house whenever I wished.
Until recently, I had almost forgotten about that vision of my grandmother.
Blurb:
Discover the untold story of Enheduanna, the world’s first named author, as she navigates power, betrayal, and divine destiny in ancient Mesopotamia. A mesmerizing fusion of history, myth, and female leadership that challenges how we see the past—and ourselves.
A high priestess dethroned. A rebel with a dangerous plan. One empire hanging by a thread.
When Enheduanna is named High Priestess of Ur, her connection to the gods makes her a target. Lugalanne’s coup strips her of robes, power, and home, casting her into the perilous underworld. There, amid forests of shadows and treacherous trials, she discovers that divine favor alone won’t save her—only cunning, courage, and a willingness to embrace the ruthlessness of her enemies can restore her.
Drawing on history and myth, Enheduanna’s Song From the Sands follows the world’s first named author as she fights to reclaim her voice and her destiny. Political intrigue, betrayal, and divine tests collide as Enheduanna must decide whether to forgive, to fight, or to harness the power that could shake the foundations of an empire. For readers who love The Song of Achilles’s intimate heroism, Circe’s mythic depth, or The Daughters of Sparta’s fierce women, this is a mesmerizing dive into ancient Mesopotamia where courage and cunning are the only paths to survival.
Ellen Rachlin’s poetry has appeared in American Poetry Review, Comstock Review, Granta, Court Green, Literary Imagination, and various anthologies. She has published two collections of her poems, Until Crazy Catches Me (Antrim House, 2008) and Permeable Divide (Antrim House, 2017), winner of the 2018 IBPA Benjamin Franklin Silver Award.
She has a historical fiction novel, Enheduanna’s Song From the Sands, based on the life of Enheduanna, the Akkadian high priestess and world’s first-named author, forthcoming from Histria Books, and a collection of poems, At the Big Bang Resort, forthcoming from Red Hen Press.
She is also the author of two chapbooks, Waiting for Here (Finishing Line Press, 2004), a finalist in the New Women’s Voices series, and Captive to Residue (Flarestack Publishing, 2009). She received her MFA from Antioch University. She serves as Treasurer of The Poetry Society of America and is a partner at Blue Leaf Ventures.
Other writing genres include numerous textbooks and journal articles on the subject of finance and investing with various publishers, including Wiley.
Praise for Enheduanna’s Song From The Sands (optional):
“In finely detailed prose, Ellen Rachlin brings Enheduanna, daughter of Sargon, to life, as well as the mythic figures of Inanna and Ereshkigal of the Underworld. Enheduanna’s Song From the Sands is filled with conflict and intensity, each quest, not only a matter of achieving power, but of life and death.”
~Regina McBride, author of Stranger from Across the Sea
“Ellen Rachlin’s sumptuously detailed debut novel Enheduanna’s Song From the Sands tells the remarkable true story of the ancient high priestess Enheduanna. Rachlin guides us through the intrigues, secrets, spies and wars of Enheduanna’s times, bringing this gifted woman and the goddess she served to life. What’s so singular about this heroine? Daughter of a king, a spiritual leader, and a poet, she signs her hymns with her own name. In Enheduanna’s Song From the Sands, the first known author in Western recorded history is a gutsy woman! Thanks to Rachlin’s imagination and rich research, I fell in love with Enheduanna and relished her anguished and opulent story.”
~ Molly Peacock, Author of The Paper Garden: Mrs. Delany Begins Her Life’s Work at 72
“Enheduanna’s hymns to the goddess Inanna are the first known literary works to name an author. Rachlin brings her to life in this novel set in 2300 BCE, a novel of sex, war, love, a baby in a basket, and a woman creating a new order of being. It’s historical fiction writing that reminds the reader of Hilary Mantel; you can’t put it down. You want to follow the priestess to bed, to rise, to her last fighting breath. Rachlin won’t let you put this book down.”
~Kate Gale, author of Under a Neon Sun and Swimming the Milky Way
“I could not put this book down! As a history buff, I always love reading historical fiction, and this book was so amazing. Reading Enheduanna’s struggle and overcoming hardships as a high priestess were so inspiring and intriguing to read about. If you loved books like The Song of Achilles than you would love this book as well.” – Elda Rastoder Net Galley Reviewer
“I’m OBSESSED. This is a rich and beautiful story of stepping into power and making hard decisions, told with a wonderful, brilliant voice perfect for its historical setting. The blend of intense drama, action, and conflict/reflection with oneself and the world around was executed so well. I really liked the addition of the footnotes and references because they tied this fantasy story in with real history; that was a smart addition. I fell in love with Enheduanna and the ancient high priestess’ intricate story, and I simply could not put this book down. I’d recommend this book to anyone who loves ancient history and feminist retellings of true stories.”
~ Seeta Net Galley Reviewer
“A historical fiction about an almost forgotten but formidable high priestess in Ancient Mesopotamia. Enheduanna is the daughter of the king Sargon, and has been destined to become high priestess since receiving visions of a goddess from a young age. After a brutal SA on her journey, her desire for power turns hungry from wanting revenge. She experiences isolation, punishing rebels, and mastering her intimidation. Learning that seeking divine power is not the way, she begins to once more find alignment with values and creation, which led her to become high priestess in the first place. Tracing the course of Enheduanna’s rise to power, many important aspects of Mesopotamia 2300 BCE mythology and Enheduanna’s life are explored. Enheduanna was such a powerful FMC in this book and woman in real life, I’m truly so grateful to have learned about her. Ellen Rachlin’s writing captures the powerful and divine moments of Enheduanna’s life and suspends them before you so you may be there right alongside.”
~ Morgan ARC reader
“Enheduanna’s Song from the Sands is a historical fantasy surrounding the life and actions of Enheduanna, the daughter of Sargon the Great and High Priestess of Ur, a powerful religious and business leader who lived approximately two thousand years before Virgil. Ellen Rachlin entwines her history with myth in a novel about the world’s first named author, who finds herself the focal point of conflict, transformation, and choices surrounding an extraordinary power rising in ancient Mesopotamia.
From the start, the first-person story builds an evocative, compelling scenario that draws readers with passion and insight:
Inanna, supreme in Heaven and Earth, ruler over all gods, I beg of you: restore me to my temple, bring me home! In the ancient city of Ur, I no longer breathe the salty air, lift myself from the sacred bed, or unravel Ningal’s dreams for my followers. The southern stars have slipped away from me; Now I walk the thorny brush of the northern mountainside. As I sing your blessed song, I am dying.
A host of equally memorable characters enter Enheduanna’s life and chambers, from Darda, the son of Purushanda’s former king, to her mother and father, Sargon and Tashlultum, Uanna and Nidintu, women who are part of a core circle Enheduanna thinks she can trust, and others from different sides of an evolving rebellion.
Enheduanna tries to fulfill her destiny, but often winds up feeling isolated and uncertain:
“…in this forest of knowledge, the faces of some of my closest friends are becoming increasingly obscured.”
As Enheduanna faces riots, rebels, and intrigue, her world comes to life with a host of social, political, and personal issues; all of which she navigates with authority and, sometimes, uncertainty: “I fear we’re losing real ground to our enemy.”
Suffused with rage, she then documents the history of her world in vivid detail that readers will find engrossing and realistic.
Librarians and readers seeking a story of ancient history come to life will find Enheduanna’s Song from the Sands rich with detail, personalized by the protagonist’s reflections as she steps into her power and makes difficult choices.
Filled with dramatic action and confrontations with self as well as the outside world, Enheduanna’s Song from the Sands will appeal both to leisure readers and scholarly students of ancient times. The former will appreciate the high drama and personal touches; the latter the footnotes and references which cement events and fantasy in a layer of real history.
An important footnote by the author clarifies why this novel should be in any serious collection of women’s history, as well as in fantasy and historical fiction holdings:
I stumbled across Enheduanna while researching Sargon the Great. No one I knew, including poets, had ever heard of her or her hymns. When I began to uncover what was more broadly known about Enheduanna, it astounded me that the first-named author in history was not only a virtual unknown, but a woman who lived in a male-dominated culture.”
~ Diane Donovan, Midwest Review, on recommended reading list
I am pleased to welcome Carol McGrath back to my blog today to share an extract from her latest novel, “The Queen’s Sister.” I would like to thank the Coffee Pot Book Club and Carol McGrath for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Extract from Chapter One
We ride into the courtyard, myself, my lady, Madeleine, two female servants, and my six guardsmen. Stable boys come racing over the slippery cobbles to help with our horses. I had ridden most of the way north, sheltering from bitterly cold, harsh winds wrapped within my canvas cape and fur-lined gown, my underdress the warmest wool kirtle I could find in my travelling box. My lady-in-waiting, at nineteen, only a few years older than I, sat for most of the journey in a wagon, with two servants and my travelling chests.
A tall woman, wearing a sensible, plain gown and a coif covering a glimpse of grey hair on her brow, hurries from the porch to greet us. She is followed by a bustling, rotund man of a similar age, his kindly crinkly face creasing into smiles. My lady attendant drops a curtsey to her, and the middle-aged woman does the same to me. There is a rattling, noisy activity behind me as my luggage is unloaded from the wagon and my guard dismounts, their horses neighing and stamping the ground, puffs of steam billowing from nostrils.
I assume the woman is the housekeeper. A ring of keys hangs from her belt. Seeing my glance at these, she speaks. ‘I am Mistress Eugenia Buxton, your housekeeper, and my husband is Master William Buxton, steward of Kexby.’
Master William steps forward and bows. Rising, he glances up and sniffs the bitter air. ‘My lady, welcome. Come away inside out of the bite.’
‘Hurry, Lady Elizabeth,’ his wife says. ‘Your messenger came in good time. There’s been a hot supper ready since he told us of your imminent arrival, and a warm chamber too. The manor has not had a mistress for many years, and the Cardinal, though much-loved here in the countryside, only visited Kexby on an odd occasion.’ She crossed herself, presumably because Cardinal Wolsey had died disgraced, on his way to London from York many years before. Hurrying me towards the door, she adds, ‘But rest assured, we have done our best to look after it all.’
‘I thank you.’ I turn to her husband. ‘Do you have accommodation for my household guard, Master Buxton?’
‘The manor has a substantial guard house beside the stables. It’s warm and comfortable. We can send meals over to them unless you prefer otherwise.’
‘They will eat in the hall with the rest of the household,’ I say at once. Master Buxton calls instructions to the boys minding the horses, and we all process through the enormous porch into the hall. The first thing I notice is the crackling, spluttering fire blazing in the hearth. A cloth-covered table is placed at the upper end. Another solid oak table is placed lengthwise. On either side, benches are squeezed against it. I observe that a door along the wall opposite the fireplace must open into a screen passageway.
Mistress Eugenia ushers myself and Madeleine to the top table, which is set with silver and generously laden with food – crisped small fishes, winter salads, pies, cheeses, meat,s and mountains of bread rolls on platters. As I take my seat, as if from nowhere, the manor’s population appear in the hall to take up places along the board. They appear awed by my presence and are quiet as they squeeze along benches to make room for the six soldiers who will remain with me for my stay in Kexby. Master William Buxton, I see, is already conversing with my sergeant and draws him to sit at the high table with us. A white-robed priest, who I am told is Father Adolphus, blesses the supper. Warmed wine smelling of spices is poured for those of us seated along the top board. Napkins are placed over our shoulders by servants, and we break bread. Determined not to appear greedy, I manage to avoid falling upon the food before me, though I am hungry as a half-starved beggar. I force myself to eat daintily as I politely converse with the housekeeper.
‘I expect you observed a quiet Christmastide, my lady,’ Mistress Eugenia says.
Blurb:
A mother, a wife, a woman of substance…
At nineteen, Elizabeth Seymour is already a mother, has been recently widowed, and has seen her Queen, Anne Boleyn, lose her life. Against the wishes of her father, she heads North, away from Wulf Hall and the court in London, to Yorkshire, determined to establish a new beginning as a landowner and businesswoman. As her family in Wiltshire curry favour with King Henry, aided by Thomas Cromwell, Elizabeth makes Kexby Manor her home, finding loyalty among her people there.
Soon, news comes to Elizabeth of the King’s desires for her sister, Jane, and while her brother, Edward, encourages her own betrothal to Gregory Cromwell, son of Thomas. It is a happy second marriage for Elizabeth, but it brings unwanted involvement in the dark plots and secrecy of the court, while in the wider country, changes in religious practice threaten to alter the traditions and values of all she has known…
THE QUEEN’S SISTER vividly imagines the story of the woman possibly portrayed in Hans Holbein’s beautiful painting ‘Portrait of a Lady,’ and is a colourful, meticulously researched novel of Tudor life behind the scenes.
What readers say about Carol McGrath’s novels:
‘Another beautifully crafted, well-researched work of historical fiction from Carol McGrath.’
‘Brimming with intrigue, tension and adventure, The Lost Queen is a powerful Medieval tale full of atmosphere, danger and emotion, and transports the reader to another world.’
Following a first degree in English and History at QUB, Carol McGrath completed an MA in Creative Writing from The Seamus Heaney Centre, Queens University Belfast, followed by an MPhil in English from the University of London. She is published by Headline.
The Handfasted Wife, first in a trilogy about the royal women of 1066, was shortlisted for the RoNAs in 2014. The Swan-Daughter and The Betrothed Sister complete this highly acclaimed trilogy. Mistress Cromwell, a best-selling historical novel about Elizabeth Cromwell, wife of Henry VIII’s statesman, Thomas Cromwell, was republished by Headline in 2020. The Silken Rose, first in a Medieval She-Wolf Queens Trilogy, featuring Ailenor of Provence, saw publication in April 2020. This was followed by The Damask Rose. The Stone Rose was published in April 2022. The Stolen Crown 2023 and July 2024, The Lost Queen about Berengaria of Navarre and The Third Crusade. The Queen’s Sister, sequel to Mistress Cromwell, sees publication in June 2026.
Carol writes historical non-fiction as well as fiction. Sex and Sexuality in Tudor England was published in February 2022 by Pen & Sword. She speaks at Conferences and gives interviews.
I am pleased to welcome Julia Ibbotson back to my blog to celebrate the book birthday of her novel, “Daughter of Mercia.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Julia Ibbotson for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
Echoes of the past resonate across the centuries as Dr Anna Petersen, a medievalist and runologist, is struggling with past trauma and allowing herself to trust again. When archaeologist (and Anna’s old adversary) Professor Matt Beacham unearths a 6th-century seax with a mysterious runic inscription, and reluctantly approaches Anna for help, a chain of events brings the past firmly back into her present. And why does the burial site also contain two sets of bones, one 6th century and the other modern?
As the past and present intermingle alarmingly, Anna and Matt need to work together to solve the mystery of the seax runes and the seemingly impossible burial, and to discover the truth about the past. Tensions rise, and sparks fly between Anna and Matt. But how is 6th-century Lady Mildryth of Mercia connected to Anna? Can they both be the Daughter of Mercia?
For fans of Barbara Erskine, Elena Collins, Pamela Hartshorne, Susanna Kearsley, and Christina Courtenay.
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bio:
Julia Ibbotson is fascinated by the medieval world and the concept of time. She is the author of historical mysteries with a frisson of romance. Her books are evocative of time and place, well-researched and uplifting page-turners. Her current series focuses on early medieval time-slip/dual-time mysteries.
Julia read English at Keele University, England, specialising in medieval language/literature/history, and has a PhD in socio-linguistics. After a turbulent time in Ghana, West Africa, she became a school teacher, then a university academic and researcher. Her break as an author came soon after she joined the RNA’s New Writers’ Scheme in 2015, with a three-book deal from Lume Books for a trilogy (Drumbeats) set in Ghana in the 1960s.
She has published five other books, including A Shape on the Air, an Anglo-Saxon timeslip mystery, and its two sequels, The Dragon Tree and The Rune Stone. Her latest novel is the first of a new series of Anglo-Saxon dual-time mysteries, Daughter of Mercia, where echoes of the past resonate across the centuries.
Her books will appeal to fans of Barbara Erskine, Pamela Hartshorne, Susanna Kearsley, and Christina Courtenay. Her readers say: ‘Julia’s books captured my imagination’, ‘beautiful storytelling’, ‘evocative and well-paced storylines’, ‘brilliant and fascinating’, and ‘I just couldn’t put it down’.
I am pleased to welcome Mercedes Rochelle to my blog today to share a spotlight for her novel, “The Agincourt King,” the audiobook edition. I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Mercedes Rochelle for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
From the day he was crowned, Henry V was determined to prove the legitimacy of his house.
His father’s usurpation weighed heavily on his mind. Only a grand gesture would capture the respect of his own countrymen and the rest of Europe. He would follow in his great-grandfather Edward III’s footsteps and recover lost territory in France. Better yet, why not go for the crown?
Poor, deranged Charles VI couldn’t manage his own barons. The civil war between the Burgundians and Armagnacs was more of a threat to his country than the English, even after Henry laid siege to Harfleur.
But once Harfleur had fallen, the French came to their senses and determined to block his path to Calais and destroy him. By the time the English reached Agincourt, they were starving, exhausted, and easy pickings. Or so the French thought.
Little did they reckon on Henry’s leadership and the stout-hearted English archers who proved, once again, that numbers didn’t matter when God was on their side.
This series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bio:
Mercedes Rochelle is an ardent lover of medieval history and has channeled this interest into fiction writing.
Her first four books cover eleventh-century Britain and events surrounding the Norman Conquest of England. The next series is called The Plantagenet Legacy about the struggles and abdication of Richard II, leading to the troubled reigns of the Lancastrian Kings. She also writes a blog: HistoricalBritainBlog.com to explore the history behind the story.
Born in St. Louis, MO, she received a BA in Literature at the Univ. of Missouri, St.Louis in 1979, then moved to New York in 1982 while in her mid-20s to “see the world”. The search hasn’t ended!
Today, she lives in Sergeantsville, NJ, with her husband in a log home they had built themselves.
Today, I am pleased to welcome Rachel Elwiss Joyce to my blog to share a guest post about the heroine of her novel, Lady of Lincoln, Nicola de la Haye. I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Rachel Elwiss Joyce for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
In October 1216, as England staggered through civil war and a French invasion, a dying King John made one of the last appointments of his life.
He named a woman sheriff of Lincolnshire.
That may not sound dramatic to modern ears. But in thirteenth-century England, a sheriff wasn’t a local official in any minor sense. Sheriffs collected royal revenues, administered justice, and represented the king’s authority in the shire. It was a powerful, public, unmistakably male role.
Nicola de la Haye was the first woman appointed sheriff of an English county in her own right.
She was also hereditary constable of Lincoln Castle, and when widowed, she was by extraordinary exception allowed to keep that role for herself.
And in 1217, when English rebels and French forces besieged Lincoln, she held the castle until royalist relief arrived. Her defence helped secure the throne of the young Henry III and turn back the French invasion entirely.
Historian Sharon Bennett Connolly calls her “the woman who saved England.”
So why haven’t most people heard of her?
Born to inherit. Not expected to rule.
Nicola’s father was the constable of Lincoln Castle. His father had been before him. Without a son, that title and the barony of Brattleby would pass to Nicola.
Being a medieval heiress sounds glamorous, but the reality was more complicated.
An inheritance wasn’t just wealth. It was power, duty, military obligation, and political loyalty all rolled into one. It meant men, rents, courts, and the security of the Crown. And for a woman, all of that came with a catch.
She needed a husband.
A husband was expected to manage her estates, command her garrison, and deal with the world on her behalf. A good one could protect everything she’d inherited. A bad one could destroy it through debt, bad decisions, or outright disloyalty.
Nicola was caught in a bind from the very beginning. She was born to inherit Lincoln Castle, but told her whole life that she needed a man to carry it. Her name mattered, her lands mattered, and her marriage mattered.
Her own voice was unlikely to have mattered much at all.
That tension is at the heart of Lady of Lincoln.
A kingdom under strain
Nicola’s early life unfolded during one of the most turbulent periods of Henry II’s reign.
Henry’s empire stretched from the Scottish borders to the Pyrenees. It was vast, powerful, and under constant pressure. In 1170, his quarrel with Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, ended with Becket’s murder on the floor of his own cathedral. The shock rippled across Christendom.
Barely three years later, Henry’s own teenage sons rose against him. The Young King Henry led the rebellion, along with his brothers, and their mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and many powerful barons across England and France.
For Nicola, this was not distant politics, but danger literally knocking at her castle door.
She had probably married her first husband, William FitzErneis, around the time of her father’s death in 1169. Marriage, for a young heiress, was meant to be protection. But by 1173, FitzErneis had joined the rebellion against the king.
Which raises a question that history has never answered.
Her husband rebelled, so why does Lincoln Castle never appear as a rebel stronghold?
By then, Nicola was the hereditary constable. Did she defy him? Did her loyalty to her father’s legacy outweigh her duty to her marriage? Did she find herself trapped between the man she had married and the castle she was born to protect?
We will probably never know.
But for a novelist, that silence is irresistible.
When private life becomes political
One thing I try to do in my writing is show that history wasn’t happening somewhere in the background. For people like Nicola, it determined who you married, what you owned, and whether you were safe.
Almost every great crisis of her age hit her directly. Church against Crown, rebellion in the royal family, and an empire splitting at the seams.
And because she was an heiress, her marriage was never simply private. Who she married affected Lincoln Castle, and Lincoln Castle affected the security of the kingdom.
Nicola was also born into the generation that grew up in the shadow of the Anarchy – the brutal civil war between King Stephen and Empress Matilda, with Lincoln at its very centre. The older people around her would have remembered what it looked like when loyalty broke down, and castles became prizes in someone else’s war.
That memory shaped everything. It shaped her father and her father’s fears. And in Lady of Lincoln, it shapes the novel’s opening: his terror that without the right man beside her, Nicola cannot hold what she was born to protect.
The making of Nicola de la Haye
The Nicola history remembers is formidable: she holds castles, becomes sheriff, endures sieges, and helps save kings. She becomes one of the few women of her age to exercise power so openly that chroniclers, who rarely bothered with women, had no choice but to acknowledge her.
But I didn’t want to start with the legend.
I wanted to ask how she became that woman.
What would it have done to you, being told from childhood that you’re responsible for everything but incapable of handling it yourself? Being valued for your land, not for who you are? And then having the husband who was supposed to protect your inheritance become one of the biggest threats to it?
The Great Rebellion of 1173–4 may have been Nicola’s first real turning point: the moment when marriage, inheritance, and loyalty collided, and everything she stood to lose became terrifyingly real. That collision, and what she might have done about it, is at the heart of Lady of Lincoln.
She was born an heiress in a man’s world.
She was repeatedly tested in one of the most turbulent times of the Middle Ages.
And those challenges would turn her into the woman who would eventually stand between England and conquest.
Lady of Lincoln is the first novel in the Nicola de la Haye trilogy, in which a young Nicola learns to fight to keep and protect what is hers.
Blurb:
A true story. A forgotten heroine. In a time when women were told to stay silent, could she become the saviour her people need?
12th-century England. Nicola de la Haye wants to do her duty. But though she’s taught that a female cannot lead alone, the young noblewoman bristles at the marriage her father has arranged to secure her inheritance. And when an unexpected death leaves her unguided, the impetuous girl shuns the king’s blessing and weds a handsome-but-landless knight.
Harshly fined by Henry II for her unsanctioned union, Nicola struggles to salvage her estates while dealing with devastating betrayals from her husband… and his choice to join rebels in a brewing civil war. Yet after averting a tragedy and gaining the castle garrison’s respect, she still must face the might of powerful men determined to crush her under their will.
Can she survive love, threats, and violent ambition to prove she’s worthy of authority?
In this carefully researched and vividly human series debut, Rachel Elwiss Joyce showcases the complex themes of honour, responsibility, and freedom in the story of a remarkable heroine who men tried to erase from history. And as readers dive into a world defined by violence and turmoil, they’ll be stunned by this courageous young woman’s journey toward greatness.
Lady of Lincoln is the gritty first book in the Nicola de la Haye Series historical fiction saga. If you like richly textured female heroes, courtly drama, and fast-paced intrigue, then you’ll adore Rachel Elwiss Joyce’s gripping true-life tale.
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bio:
After a rewarding career in the sciences, Rachel returned to her first love—history and the art of storytelling. Fascinated by the women history has neglected or tried to forget, she creates meticulously researched, emotionally resonant fiction that brings her characters’ stories vividly to life.
Her fascination with the past began early. At six years old, she was already inventing tales about medieval women in castles, inspired by her treasured Ladybird books and other picture-rich stories that transported her to another time. By the time she discovered Katherine by Anya Seton as a teenager, she knew the joy and escape that only great historical fiction can bring.
Rachel’s two grown-up children still tease her (fondly) about childhoods spent being “dragged” around castles, archaeological sites, and historical re-enactments. For Rachel, history and imagination have always gone hand in hand.
There was, however, a long gap between the stories of her childhood and her decision to write her own novel. The spark came when she discovered the remarkable true story of Nicola de la Haye—the first female sheriff of England, who defended Lincoln Castle against a French invasion and became known as “the woman who saved England.” Rachel knew she had found her heroine and a story she was destined to tell.
Rachel lives in the UK, where she continues to explore the lives of women who shaped history but were left out of its pages.
I am pleased to welcome Nicola Harris to my blog today to share an excerpt from her novel, “Infidel-The Daughters of Aragon.” I would like to thank Nicola Harris and Yarde Book Promotions for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Excerpt
Juana:
The shade beneath the lemon tree was cool, and Maria sat cross-legged, fists clenched, watching Juan with a hawk-like intensity. He was twelve now and fancied himself a man. Today, he was pretending to be the High Inquisitor.
Two page boys knelt before him, wrists bound with garden twine. Juan strutted before them, robes billowing, although it was only a velvet curtain stolen from the nursery, pinned together with Isabel’s sewing pins. He raised a stick like a sceptre and proclaimed their heresy with theatrical solemnity.
Catalina dozed in my lap, her breath warm against my arm, fingers curled into my bodice. Beside me, Isabel’s needle hovered mid-stitch.
‘I wonder,’ she murmured, ‘if Alfonso and I will still like each other now we’re grown.’
I brushed a curl from Catalina’s brow. ‘You speak perfect Portuguese, and you were fond of each other as children. By the time you’re Queen of Portugal, you’ll know your place, what your duties are, and your husband. That’s more than most brides can say.’
Isabel smiled faintly. ‘I know. But I’d rather not spend my life with someone dull. He used to laugh at my jokes.’
‘He will,’ I said. ‘You’re more mature now, but still amusing. That’s rare.’
She laughed softly. ‘Rare, but not romantic.’
‘Do your nightmares still wake you in the night, Isabel?’
‘Sometimes,’ She said, ‘but the fear of childbirth is natural for a new bride. Don’t you think?’
A cry split the air. One of the page boys gasped, face drained of colour. Juan had looped the twine around his neck and was pulling, not in play, but with grim, frightening fury.
I lurched to my feet, jolting Catalina awake. She wailed. ‘Maria! Fetch Mother!’
Dropping to my knees, I prised Juan’s hands from the boy’s throat. He resisted, flushed with triumph. The boy collapsed, coughing, tears streaming down his cheeks.
Juan sneered. ‘He is a false converso. He deserves it.’
‘He is a child!’ I spat, clutching Catalina to my chest. ‘What are you doing, Juan? Have you run mad? The boy is a servant and in your household. It’s.’
Maria sprinted across the scorched lawn. Moments later, Queen Isabella swept in, skirts flying, rosary clutched in her hand. She entered like a thunderclap.
‘Juan! Stop this at once!’
He dropped the twine but stood tall. ‘I was only doing what they do in the real trials.’
‘My angel,’ she said, voice trembling, ‘you mustn’t hurt people. Sometimes you are such a child, and the next so adult.’
Rage surged through me. ‘Do you think making children watch burnings will make us kind mother? Children turn the horror they see into games to try to make sense of it. Don’t you know that?’
Her eyes snapped to mine. Before I could brace, her hand struck my cheek. The sound rang through the garden like a bell.
I staggered. Catalina woke suddenly and screamed in my arms. Isabel dropped her embroidery.
‘You teach us cruelty, Mother, and call it justice,’ I said, voice shaking. ‘And now you’re surprised when it takes root in your son?’
Isabel slipped away before the storm could break. Juan sulked beneath the lemon tree, proud and silent. Catalina’s sobs softened into hiccups against my shoulder. My cheek burned, but the fire in my chest was fiercer.
The page boy had been carried off, pale and trembling. Only the Queen stood rigid, fury barely contained, rosary clenched in her shaking hands.
‘You taught him this,’ I said, low but steady. ‘And now you’re shocked when he acts it out. I’m surprised you still have shackles enough for all the so-called heretics you have burned.’
She stepped closer, voice trembling. ‘We must protect Christians from conversos who cling to their old ways. They light candles on the Sabbath, refuse pork, and bury their dead with straight arms. They mock our faith.’
I shifted Catalina to my hip. ‘You do know Jesus was a Jew, don’t you? He will not approve of you garroting his people.’
She ignored me, pacing. ‘The Jews turn their beds to the wall before death. They bury their dead in Christian soil but follow Jewish rites. It is heresy. Defiance.’
‘Is that why you dig up the dead? To burn their bones? Do you hear how mad that sounds? People will think you are as insane as Grandmother.’
Her hand twitched but did not strike. ‘Your grandmother is not insane. Her stepson betrayed her. She withdrew from the world because she was wise. And the conversos, they are Judaizers. They spread their beliefs among good Christians.’
I shook my head. ‘Most noble families in Castile and Aragon have Jewish blood. Judges, priests and even notaries were once Jews. Perhaps some cling to old customs. But so do the uneducated masses. You must stop the radical priests who whip up hatred. Your people are turning on each other.’
She lifted her chin. The Church deals with heresy through inquisitions. It always has.’
I looked at her, my mother, my queen, and I felt the distance between us stretch like a chasm. Catalina stirred, and I held her tighter.
‘You were seen, Juana,’ she said. Spitting out the host. The body of Christ. In front of the priest, before God.’
I turned slowly. ‘Yes. I spat it out.’
She gasped. ‘You desecrated the sacrament. You insulted the Church.’
‘I refuse to lie,’ I said. ‘I do not believe in your God who demonises the Jews. My Jesus is different from yours.’
Her shoulders tensed. ‘Why do you defend God’s enemies?’
‘Because it’s the truth.’
Her eyes narrowed. ‘You speak as if you know better than the Church.’
‘I speak as someone who has seen greed cloaked in a cassock,’ I snapped. ‘You know how it is, a woman covets her neighbour’s silver, so she calls her neighbour a heretic, and then she can take all the silver and her neighbour’s house too. Conversos denounce their own brothers and sisters because they are poor and desperate. They cry “Judaiser!” and watch the men of the Inquisition drag them away. That is your justice, Mother!’
She stepped forward, voice trembling. ‘They betray Christ. They cling to old rites. They mock our sacraments, and all the time they pretend to be one of us.’
‘No,’ I said. ‘They have to pretend to survive, and you have let poverty become a weapon. You let envy masquerade as piety. You let the Church burn the innocent because someone wanted a gold cup or their debts forgiven.’
Her hand twitched again.
‘You think you’re clever,’ she said. ‘You think you know everything, but you are just young and naive.’
‘I have seen enough,’ I said. ‘Enough to know fear and greed do more harm than any secret prayers.’
She turned away, swinging her rosary like a flail. ‘You will go to your rooms. You will stay there until you are ready to kneel, confess, and take communion.’
I laughed a long, bitter, and hollow laugh.
Her face darkened, ‘This is not a joke.’
‘No,’ I said. ‘It is a tragedy. You torture your people in public squares and burn children at the stake. You arrest the richest Jews, seize their property, and call it holy. And now you want me to swallow a wafer and call it God. I won’t. I will not kneel. Not for fear. Not for show.’
She pointed toward my apartments, then turned and left without another word.
And I stood in the silence, knowing I had made an enemy of my own blood.
Blurb:
Born in the glittering courts of Castile and Aragon and forged in the shadow of war, Catalina de Aragón grows up surrounded by queens, rebels, and explorers. She is her mother’s last daughter, the final jewel of a dynasty built on conquest and faith, and the one child Isabella of Castile cannot bear to lose.
But destiny has already claimed Catalina.
Promised to Prince Arthur of England since childhood, she is raised to bind kingdoms, soothe old wounds, and carry the hopes of an empire across the sea. Yet, Spain fractures under rebellion, grief, and the ruthless zeal of its own rulers.
From the burning streets of Granada to the storm-lashed Bay of Biscay, Catalina and her sisters must navigate a treacherous path shaped by ambition, betrayal, and the dangerous love of men who fear the power of queens. She learns to read cyphers, to read hearts, and to stand unbroken even as her childhood is stripped from her piece by piece.
And when she finally sails for England armed with her mother’s lessons, her father’s steel, and the ghosts of the Alhambra at her back, Catalina steps into her fate not as a girl, but as a force.
A princess.
A survivor.
A daughter of Aragon.
Infidel is the story of a young woman raised for greatness and destined to reshape the fate of nations. This is Catalina, as she has never been seen before. She is fierce, vulnerable, and unforgettable.
A sweeping, intimate portrait of sisterhood, survival, and the making of a dynasty, Infidel reveals the hidden lives of a woman whose courage shaped the Tudor world.
I’ve always been a writer, but it was only when illness forced me to stop everything that I finally had the time to write a novel. After decades of misdiagnosis, I learned I was born with a serious genetic condition, not rare, but profoundly misunderstood. The clues were there from birth, and suddenly, a lifetime of struggle made sense.
Writing became my lifeline: a way to step beyond my pain, to shape my experience into a story, and to find meaning where there had once been only endurance.
I have a lifelong love of children, Counselling, and Psychotherapy Theory and history.
Today, I am pleased to welcome J. P. Reedman to my blog to share a spotlight for her novel “Bride of the Devil.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and J.P. Reedman for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
She is a great heiress; he is the wickedest man in Normandy.
Known to men far and wide as ‘The Devil,’ Robert de Belleme terrorises France alongside his equally fearsome mother, Mabel the Poisoner. But even a Devil needs an heir, and Mabel chooses the wealthy heiress Agnes of Ponthieu to be her son’s bride. The marriage is unhappy, though the longed-for son and heir is eventually born…but when Robert is away on one of his military campaigns, Agnes flees back to her father’s castle.
She is not safe; her young son William is not safe.
This series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
Author Bio:
J.P. Reedman was born in Canada but has lived in the U.K. for over 30 years.
Interests include folklore and anthropology, prehistoric archaeology (neolithic / bronze age Europe; ritual, burial & material culture), as well as The Wars of the Roses and the rest of the medieval era. Novels include the popular I, Richard Plantagenet series about Richard III, The Falcon and the Sun (featuring other members of the House of York), and Medieval Babes, an ongoing series about lesser-known medieval queens and noblewomen.
I am pleased to welcome Mary Lawrence to my blog today to share a snippet from her latest novel, “Fool.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Mary Lawrence for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Snippet
I expected to be an object of curiosity—what dwarf leading a costumed goat into town wouldn’t be? Plenty of townsfolk stopped in their steps to gawp. Women stared, kept a wide berth, while children laughed and pointed. Men, however…
As if my size were a challenge to their manhood. But as I thought more on it later, I believe I was a challenge to their sense of convention. Most had probably never seen a smidge of a human. I think some considered me an insult, a queeb, Satan’s fart. I led Hazel to the conduit and stood by while she drank. One child was attracted to Hazel’s colourful harness and approached to stroke her back.
“She likes to be scratched here,” I said, showing him the spot between her shoulder blades.
“I like your goat,” he said. He concentrated on rubbing Hazel, then looked at me and tilted his head. “You look strange,” he said.
“I am a dwarf,” I answered. “I’m not strange, I’m just built differently from you.”
Blurb:
Betrayal. Power. Perception. The most dangerous mind at court belongs to a fool.
From the author of The Alchemist’s Daughter comes a dark tale of ambition and survival.
“One of the most vibrant characters I’ve encountered in years.“–Goodreads Ecostell
Kronos is a fool–mocked for his dwarfism, prized for his juggling, and underestimated by everyone who matters. But in a court ruled by paranoia and whispers, invisibility is its own kind of power.
When Kronos overhears a secret that could destroy Queen Katherine Howard, he becomes a liability the crown cannot afford. Silenced, mutilated, and left for dead, he survives–barely.
Rescued by an ambitious apothecary, Kronos soon realizes he has not escaped danger–he has merely changed masters. His secret is worth a fortune…and powerful men are willing to kill to control it.
But Kronos has spent his life being overlooked, and he’s ready to use that to his advantage.
As rival factions circle and scheme, Kronos sets a plan in motion–one that could topple the mighty, rewrite his fate, and force his foes to reconsider which of them is truly…the fool.
Perfect for fans of C.J. Sansom and Philippa Gregory
Praise for Fool:
“Vividly written and grounded in scrupulous research, Fool captures both the dark comedy and lethal danger of Henry VIII’s court.”
~ Nancy Bilyeau, author of The Crown and The Blue
“A masterclass in immersive storytelling.”
~ Tony Riches, author of the best-selling Tudor Trilogy
“A thoughtful and unsparing Tudor novel that reframes the court jester not as comic ornament but as a precarious witness to power.”
Mary Lawrence is the author of the Bianca Goddard mysteries, a 5-book series that takes place in the slums of Tudor London, featuring the daughter of an infamous alchemist. Suspense Magazine named The Alchemist’s Daughter and The Alchemist of Lost Souls best historical mysteries of 2015 and 2017.
Her writing has been published in several journals, including The Daily Beast. When she is not writing, she tends a small berry farm in Maine with her husband and creates artisanal jams for sale at market.
I am pleased to welcome Nicola Harris to my blog today to share an excerpt from her novel, “Infidel-The Daughters of Aragon.” I would like to thank Nicola Harris and Yarde Book Promotions for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
Author Bio:
Today, I am pleased to welcome J. P. Reedman to my blog to share a spotlight for her novel “Bride of the Devil.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and J.P. Reedman for allowing me to participate in this blog tour.
Blurb:
Author Bio
I am pleased to welcome Mary Lawrence to my blog today to share a snippet from her latest novel, “Fool.” I would like to thank The Coffee Pot Book Club and Mary Lawrence for allowing me to participate in this blog tour. 
Blurb: 
Author Bio