Word Wenches

August What We're Reading

Collected by Mary Jo

Christina Courtenay Contributes:

Following a Wench recommendation, I have spent this month immersed in the world of the Brooklyn Bruisers, a series by Sarina Bowen. Starting with Rookie Move, it follows the members of a new ice hockey team based in Brooklyn, each of whom falls in love in spectacular fashion. As a huge fan of ice hockey, I’ve really enjoyed this series and am now working my way through various spin-offs as well. I’ll probably also read all the other books by this author as soon as I can.

Rookie Move features Leo, a player who has spent the last six years trying to succeed in the NHL and also get over the girl who broke his heart in high school. Unfortunately for him, when he’s taken on by the Bruisers he finds that the team’s publicist is his former girlfriend Georgia, and the coach is her father, who hates him with a vengeance. As for Georgia, she had suffered her own trauma and the last thing she wants is to work with Leo. Keeping their relationship strictly professional is never going to be easy …

 

A winner

Anne here, with a quick Sunday post to announce a winner in the draw arising from the interview Mary Jo did with me.

Jeanne B has won a copy of The Scoundrel's Daughter.

Congratulations, Jeanne. I will email you directly.

Thank you to all who left comments, flowers, good wishes and compliments. The wenchly community is wonderful.

Here's a sprig of fragrant lilac from the old tree in my garden. I wish you could smell it.

Dark Passage

Dark Passage:

The Lackland Abbey Chronicles: The Second Adventure

by Mary Jo

While I've always written romance focused on one couple, but with connecting characters around them, this young adult series is different because it's about a small group of young people moving together through their world. 

The heart and soul of the stories, is Tory--sixteen year old Lady Victoria Mansfield.  In Book 1, Dark Mirror, she was exiled to Lackland Abbey to be "cured" of her magic. There she makes friends both at the Abbey and in WWII England, where all the young mages worked together to help save their country.

After surviving the terrors of time travel and of the Dunkirk evacuation, Tory and her friends are grateful to be back home in their own time, and none of them want to ever again make the shattering trip through Merlin's Mirror to the twentieth century again.

 

The Scoundrel's Daughter: an interview with Anne Gracie

Mary Jo here. Today I'm delighted to interview my sister Word Wench, Anne Gracie  about her new book, The Scoundrel's Daughter, the first in her new series, The Brides of Bellaire Gardens.

Reviews so far have been very positive. On Book Page it was called "an excellent new romance" and concludes "Within these two love stories, Gracie paints a beautiful portrait of two women becoming fuller, happier versions of themselves." The blog Flippin' Pages gave it 5 stars and said: "This delightfully romantic and entertaining book has it ALL!  Wonderful characters, wit, laugh-worthy humor, a despicable, shrewish harpy who definitely gets her comeuppance, TWO swoon-worthy romances, three adorable little girls, and it is all set a very realistic and well-described Regency London." 

MJP: Anne, your cover is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen and it reflects the setting of the book.  Romance series most often are built around family members or groups of friends, yet you've chosen a physical setting, Bellaire Gardens, a place so charming that we Word Wenches chose it for the setting of this year's Anniversary Blog, part 1 and part 2.

Anne: Thanks, Mary Jo — I feel very blessed to get that beautiful cover. The Berkley Art Dept. has done a wonderful job. I sent them the photo below of a wisteria arch and they clearly liked it.

As for the setting, I wanted something a little bit different to connect the various characters and, since I've always loved gardens, I chose a large private garden, surrounded by houses and only accessible through each house's back gate. Each of the women in the series live on Bellaire Gardens, and of course, they each will become brides.

When Natures Erupts . . .

Andrea here, writing this while hurricane warnings are flying fast and furious where I live in New England as Tropical Storm Henri bears down on us. I don’t take this stuff lightly as I was at Ground Zero when Hurricane Sandy and experienced first-hand how devastating Nature can be.

Climate threats seem to be intensifying all over the world, from the terrible fires in Australia and the Western United States to catastrophic flooding in Europe and Asia, as well as droughts and dangerous heat waves in areas that haven’t suffered such things before. It’s terrifying, but it got me to thinking about the history, and how natural disasters had a profound effect on past eras, too.

Winners — Quiz, The Scoundrel's Daughter

 

Thank you to all those who tried my little quiz, and who left a comment. I was so pleased at the number of people who played and commented that I decided to pick two winners. (I did it with a random number generator.)

The two winners are:  Janet M and Robin. I have emailed them privately.

Thank you everyone who entered. You'll have another chance to win a copy of The Scoundrel's Daughter when Mary Jo interviews me on Wednesday August 25.

Snobbery and Exclusivity

Anne here, starting off with a one-question mini-quiz. In the Regency-era (1811—1820), what was a snob? (Hint: these are all true dictionary definitions.)

a) A shoemaker or cobbler; a cobbler's apprentice.
b) A game of cricket played with a soft ball and a thick stick in lieu of a bat.
c) The last sheep to be sheared; the roughest or most difficult sheep to shear. 
d) Any one not a gownsman (university student); a townsman.
e) A person belonging to the ordinary or lower social class; one having no pretensions to rank or gentility.
f) A person who has little or no breeding or good taste; a vulgar or ostentatious person.
g) A person who admires and seeks to imitate, or associate with, those of higher social status or greater wealth; one who wishes to be regarded as a person of social importance. 
h) A person who despises those whom he or she considers to be inferior in rank, attainment, or taste. 

Acting Your Age

Christina here. Something I was doing recently made me think about the phrase ‘acting your age’ and I realised I don’t like it. Not one bit. Why should we have to act in a certain way just because we happen to have lived a particular number of years? Isn’t it up to us how we act? And age is just a number anyway – on the inside, I’m pretty sure we are all still much younger than our outside would suggest. Do we really need to lose that youthful enthusiasm entirely just because society’s norms dictate that it should be so?

My mother is both my biggest fan and my fiercest critic, and she strongly objects to some of my choices. Silly things, like me wearing ripped jeans for example – she thinks I’m too old for that and told me that “old ladies don’t wear clothes with holes in them”. First of all, why not if the holes are meant to be there? And secondly, for the record I’m no spring chicken but I’m not THAT old either! Besides, ripped jeans are the fashion so I resent not being allowed to wear them if I want to. I happen to like that look and if others can, so can I.

AAW: Do you re-read?

Pat here! From our monthly reader questionnaire we pull an easy one because it’s August and we’re all drooping from heat (except me, because we’ve been shrouded by marine layer for four months and counting, and Anne, because she’s upside-down): Kareni asks Are You a Re-Reader? (I owe Kareni a free book for her question, thank you!)

Personally, I’ve never been much of a re-reader. For a while, I re-read Pride and Prejudice regularly. It was my one comfort read, but I read it first when I was nine, so I’m thinking that needed re-reading as I grew older. Every once in a while, when I hate every book I open, I might go to my Regency shelf and pull out a favorite author. But even those old traditional Regencies are losing their comfort these days. And when the world gets really crazy, I dip into my huge Terry Pratchett collection because his satire returns humor to my perspective.

Mostly, I eye my huge stacks of To-Be-Reads and think there isn’t enough time in the world to read all the books I want to read, so why go backward? But as Anne says below, I do occasionally dip into old favorites to see how their authors pulled off particularly memorable scenes and relish the beauty of them.

A Sad and Fond Farewell

Sometimes we have sad news to report, and today we want to acknowledge one of our own as we tip our Wench bonnets in honor and loving memory to Nina Paules, who, on August 9, “graduated to heaven,” as her husband Brian Paules so beautifully phrased it.

If you were with our blog in the beginning, you may remember Nina from the early days of Word Wenches. when she was one of our first and most frequent blog visitors. Her encouraging presence was important to our new blog venture. Enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and cheerful, Nina loved romance and Regency in particular. At first a reader, she became an integral part of the industry by bringing that caring and intelligence to e-publishing; she also became an e-publisher for a few of the Word Wenches.

One of our fondest and most fun memories of Nina is when she attended a Regency weekend at a historic house near Washington, DC. She wore Regency costume with every perfect detail in place, including a corset. Nina truly enjoyed it, and shared her experience in a guest blog about that weekend—read Nina’s “The Truth About Corsets” blog here.

One day in an email exchange, Mary Jo asked Nina if she would like to try formatting an ebook version of one of Mary Jo’s earlier novels. At the time, there was no convenient software or pathway to accomplish it easily. “She took that idea and ran with it,” Mary Jo says, “and created a new business in a new and growing field. She was a very sharp businesswoman as well as a kind, helpful woman.”

That initial idea, combined with Nina’s love of the romance genre, became ePublishing Works!, the digital publishing business that Nina built with the help of her husband Brian and their daughter Anna. Filling a real need for authors, ePW has become a uniquely comprehensive e-publishing resource and support for authors, books, and ultimately, readers. Of the Wenches, Mary Jo, Pat, Andrea, and Susan have all published ebooks with ePW.

“Nina was a huge help in getting me into self-publishing,” Andrea says. “She was a lovely, cheerful person with a passion for helping authors. A big loss, not only for her family and friends but also for the world of self-pubbing.”

"Nina was a gem and will be missed," says Pat. "She made a big difference in the world of indy publishing."

“For me,” Susan says, “she was the bringer of good news for my ebooks. I’ll miss those cheerful notes about sales, promotions, bestsellers, and progress. She was a lovely person who truly loved the romance genre, especially Regency, and she made a real impact in the world of books. I wish I could thank her for that now.”

To Brian, Anna, their family, and the rest of the ePublishing Works! team, we want to express our condolences and support. To the memory of Nina, we send our love and gratitude for her creative spirit, and for the difference she made in our world of books and stories.

The Art of Dunking (A Biscuit)

Nicola here with a classic post from a few years ago that I originally posted on the UK Historical Romance Authors Blog. It got such an interesting response then that I thought I would update it and share it here because I was keen to hear what the Wenches and Wench readers thought of it.

So here goes. Do you dunk? I’m using the word “dunk” in the British sense of the word which means “to dip a biscuit or some other food, usually baked goods, into a drink, especially tea, coffee, or milk." Dunking releases more flavour from confections by dissolving the sugars, while also softening their texture. With the UK/US differences in language I had no idea about the basketball definition of dunking until I looked it up!

It turns out that dunking is an ancient tradition but it’s also a divisive one. Apparently in a recent survey done by the Great British Bake-Off TV Programme, 52% of people said they wouldn’t dream of dunking a biscuit – they never had and they never would!

Quiz — The Scoundrel's Daughter

Anne here, and for your entertainment, here's a quiz on a book you haven't yet read — The Scoundrel's Daughter, which comes out on August 24th.
A few reviewers and most of the wenches have read it, but that's all. And since it's the start of a new series, you won't know any of the characters from earlier books. So it's not testing anything — you can only guess at the answers — it's just for fun. 

The intent is to give you a little taste of the book to come, something a bit different from an excerpt or a blurb. (Mary Jo is also interviewing me about the book on 25th August.

So here it is, a fun little quiz on a book you haven't read. Grab a pen and paper to make a note of your answers, then check them via the link at the bottom and come back and tell us how you went. I'll be giving a copy of The Scoundrel's Daughter to someone who leaves a comment.

1)  The "scoundrel" in the title is:—
        a)  a blackmailer
        b)  a rake
        c)  a thief
        d) a swindler

2)  There are two couples in this story. The younger couple meet:—
        a)   at Almacks
        b)   during a curricle race  
        c)   at a costume ball
        d)   in the garden at Bellaire Gardens

3)  When the younger couple meet, Lucy, the scoundrel's daughter is carrying:—
        a)   a wet kitten
        b)   a goose
        c)   a picnic basket
        d)   a large bunch of flowers

Going Down the (Research) Rabbit Hole

Andrea here, musing on the stories we authors tell, and what sparks them. I get asked a lot about how I come up with ideas, and it’s impossible to give a simple answer. Inspiration comes in an infinite number of ways—many of them totally unexpected! And those serendipitous discoveries of fun things to weave into a plot often come from what many of us authors call the “Rabbit Hole” effect.

Sooo, what’s a Rabbit Hole? It’s what happens when I do a quick google search, meaning to spend a few minutes checking a simple fact or researching a specific fact . . . and lo and behold, some other detail within the text catches my eye. That results in another search, which leads to more fascinating details that draw me deeper and deeper into—you guessed it—the Rabbit Hole. (It can sometimes take hours to emerge!) (Above: Ernst Hermann Joseph von Münch)

Summer by the Sea

Nicola here talking about the summer holidays and the history of being beside the seaside. It’s the time of year in England when the schools are on holiday and as most people still aren’t able to travel abroad because of pandemic regulations, lots and lots of people are taking their holidays at home, particularly at the coast. The English weather being what it is, this is a risky occupation but a downpour of rain isn’t enough to put the hardy holidaymaker off! I can remember childhood holidays when the beach was so wet with rain coming down as well as the tide coming in that my sandcastles set like cement!

When I was a child (and I know that line makes me sound ancient) we took all our holidays at home, sometimes at the coast and sometimes in the countryside. Coming from Yorkshire, our favoured seaside resort was Scarborough on the east coast but we also visited family in Morecambe. In the 1920s and 30s my grandparents had been amongst the working-class crowds from Bradford who had taken their fortnight’s holiday at Morecambe. Here are my family enjoying an outing to the seaside in 1938!

Iceland – In the Footsteps of the Vikings (Part II)

Christina here. Today I continue the tale of my recent journey to Iceland. (You can find Part I here):-

A trip to Iceland would not be complete without a visit to two special places - Thingvellir (Þingvellir) and the Geysers. We drove south east to Thingvellir first, the place where the Vikings held their annual meetings (Alþingi) to dispense justice and decide on laws. It's a natural rock formation, a bit like a canyon with an amazing waterfall – Öxarárfoss – on one side. In a spectacular setting up on a hill overlooking a huge lake nearby, the waterfall came as a complete surprise. It’s hidden away among the rock formations that form two curtain walls, like fortifications on a castle. Views over the surrounding landscape are out of this world. There is a large grassy plateau below, where the Vikings taking part in the Alþingi would have raised their tents and camped out. When we were there, the place was incredibly windy and I nearly froze to death as the rocks acted like a wind tunnel. It was so cold!

Things improved at our next destination, the famous geyser Strokkur which wasn’t all that far away. The whole area smelled like rotten eggs because of the sulphur in the water, but it was fascinating to see the geyser erupt every five to seven minutes without warning. It was the only one at present, as another one nearby is dormant right now. All around were little smoking springs, as if the brown soil itself was smouldering. There were also pools of various sizes, beautiful and very inviting, but at 80-100 degrees extremely dangerous! You can’t even stick your hand in or your skin would burn off. Strokkur was not as big as I had imagined it, but still impressive and I’m so glad I got to see it.

Dark Mirror Returns!

by Mary Jo

Authors cherish our books because we love them, since it takes love to keep working when a story turns feral.  But all is forgiven when the book is finished and alive.  This is why I'm so pleased to be reissuing my Dark Mirror Young Adult trilogy with a terrific new set of covers designed by the amazing Kim Killion. (I liked the original cover as well, which is below, but the new ones are more dynamic.)

The series was partially inspired by the parallels between the Napoleonic and World War. In both eras, Britain stood alone against a Continental tyrant who wanted to conquer the world.  The English Channel saved the British Isles from invasion, but it was a near run thing.

I've always loved fantasy and I've enjoyed writing stories that include magic and the challenges of wielding it. In an era of Harry Potter popularity, I had the contrarian idea that it would be fun to write about a school that didn't teach magic, but tried to suppress it because aristocrats despised it.