Have you ever wondered what it might be like for a historical fiction writer during their writing process? How do they balance both their own lives and the lives of their characters? While we can read author interviews to find out what goes on in an author’s mind, why not take a fun twist of a historical fiction author writing about a historical fiction writer writing her first historical fiction novel? Meet Lucy Ellis, a new writer who is writing her first novel about the death of Amy Robsart while recovering from cancer and going through a divorce. Can Lucy finish her novel about Amy Robsart before her life and her health come crashing down? Wendy J. Dunn tells the tale of two women betrayed in her latest novel, “Shades of Yellow.”
I would like to thank Wendy J. Dunn and The Coffee Pot Book Club for sending me a copy of this novel. I am a fan of Dunn’s writing style, especially when it comes to her novels, so when I heard she was writing a new novel, I knew I wanted to read it before I knew the premise. The idea of a novel about writing a historical fiction novel was very intriguing, and to throw in the story of Amy Robsart in the mix adds to the complexity of this idea, which I love.
We begin with Lucy Ellis about to leave Australia for a research trip to England. Her mother does not want her to go because Lucy’s doctor found something concerning. Lucy is a survivor of breast cancer and is on the verge of a divorce from her husband, Ben, and she is nearing her 30th birthday. Life is hitting her hard, but along the way, she found a historical figure that she resonates with: Amy Robsart. She wants to tell the story of what really happened to Amy in her first novel, so she has to do research in England to make it more authentic.
Once in England, Lucy meets up with her aunt Jo, her cousin Max, and her grandpa, who is a blind author. We get to see her novel-writing process and bits of the novel while Lucy deals with a whole host of family drama. While the main focus of this book is Lucy’s story, sprinkled within are flashes of Amy’s life, how she felt about her husband Robert Dudley, and her rival in love, Elizabeth I. It is by studying Amy’s life that Lucy learns how to embrace life’s challenges and realize that she has people around her who love her.
It takes a lot of skill to write not just one novel, but a novel within a novel, but Dunn nails it perfectly. I would love to read the finished novel about Amy Robsart one day. This novel takes the aspects of a dual timeline novel and flips it on its head in such an innovative way. If you want a contemporary novel about healing between two women centuries apart and their strengths to keep fighting when life throws so many obstacles their way, I highly recommend you read “Shades of Yellow” by Wendy J. Dunn.
Blurb:
During her battle with illness, Lucy Ellis found solace in writing a novel about the mysterious death of Amy Robsart, the first wife of Robert Dudley, the man who came close to marrying Elizabeth I. As Lucy delves into Amy’s story, she also navigates the aftermath of her own experience that brought her close to death and the collapse of her marriage.
After taking leave from her teaching job to complete her novel, Lucy falls ill again. Fearing she will die before she finishes her book, she flees to England to solve the mystery of Amy Robsart’s death.
Can she find the strength to confront her past, forgive the man who broke her heart, and take control of her own destiny?
Who better to write about a betrayed woman than a woman betrayed
Buy Link:
Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/mqPGgd
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Author Bio:
WENDY J. DUNN is a multi-award-winning Australian writer fascinated by Tudor history – so much so she was not surprised to discover a family connection to the Tudors, not long after the publication of Dear Heart, How Like You This, her first Anne Boleyn novel, which narrated the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the elder.
Her family tree reveals the intriguing fact that one of her ancestral families – possibly over three generations – had purchased land from both the Boleyn and Wyatt families to build up their holdings. It seems very likely Wendy’s ancestors knew the Wyatts and Boleyns personally.
Wendy gained her PhD in 2014 and tutors in writing at Swinburne University of Technology, Australia. She loves walking in the footsteps of the historical people she gives voice to in her books.
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Illegitimate royal children have been known to make an impact on history. Take Henry Fitzroy, the illegitimate son of Henry VIII, and Bessie Blount, whom Henry VIII acknowledged as his son. There were discussions about Henry Fitzroy becoming the heir apparent if Henry VIII did not have a legitimate son. But what about the illegitimate children that a king did not acknowledge? What might their lives have been like? The story of Mary Boleyn and her affair with King Henry VIII has been told many times, but the story of her daughter born during that time is lesser known. In her first full-length nonfiction book, “Henry VIII’s True Daughter: Catherine Carey, A Tudor Life,” Wendy J Dunn has taken on the task of discovering the truth of Catherine Carey’s parentage and how it impacted her life.
Adventures of a Tudor Nerd 