Danger Lurks Behind Every Corner in Candace Robb’s ‘A Murdered Peace’ [BOOK BLAST]

December 21, 2018 by Leave a comment

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Royal secrets. Dangerous liaisons. A conspiracy that could destroy the throne. All the best literary elements are here in Candace Robb’s third installment of the Kate Clifford saga, A Murdered Peace. But this time out, someone close to Kate is hiding something, and she doesn’t know if he can be trusted. Will she discover what lurks behind the facade before it is too late? Welcome to York, where nothing and no one is what it appears.  Read more of this post

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Queens Don’t Play: Fear and Gender Equality in Elizabeth’s Court [GUEST POST]

December 19, 2018 by Leave a comment

Elizabeth Receiving Dutch Ambassadors, 1560s

Queen Elizabeth I lived during a precarious time for women. Still, she had a knack for handling the men in her life. (Elizabeth Receiving Dutch Ambassadors, 1560s by Levina Teerlinc, Public Domain)

We love a good mystery… especially when it transports us to a time and place we could never go on our own. In Suzanne M. Wolfe’s new novel, A Murder by Any Name, readers are taken to Elizabethan England, where the queen’s ladies in waiting are being killed off one by one, and only one man can find the killer. This premise made us wonder if while researching this story, whether or not Ms. Wolfe discovered any disparities between how the Queen dealt with men versus women. If so, to what extent did fear play a factor in how she dealt with each gender? The author answers all our questions in today’s fascinating guest post. Enjoy! —J&H Read more of this post

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Love Sees Past Race in Sarah Creviston Lee’s ‘The War Between Us’ [EXCERPT]

December 17, 2018 by Leave a comment

Sarah Creviston Lee's THE WAR BETWEEN US blog tour bannerIt never fails to surprise me. No matter how many novels I read set against the backdrop of World War II, no two stories are ever identical. Because so many nations were involved in the conflict, the war tore everyone apart. But even in the midst of great turmoil and grief, stories of survival and courage and undeniable love continue to emerge. That’s why I love Sarah Creviston Lee’s book, The War Between Us. In it, she captures the dramatic, captivating and bittersweet romance between two people who should never have fallen in love. All these years after WWII, it is a story that is simultaneously touching, heartfelt, and relevant to today’s turbulent social climate. I think you’ll see what I mean when you read the excerpt below. Enjoy! —Jathan Read more of this post

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A Lot of Work for a Little Snow [GUEST POST]

November 19, 2018 by Leave a comment

Wintertime at the Monastery
Sometimes the smallest detail creates the largest amount of work for an author, like trying to pick the perfect time for a setting to have snow. E.M. Powell explains in this guest post regarding her new novel, The Monastery Murders. (Photo by Paul R. Robinson, Flickr)

Whenever we pick up a book by one of our favorite authors, we may not realize just how much research went into writing a certain character, choosing a setting, or crafting a particular scene, especially when the author does her job as seamlessly as historical mystery author, E.M. Powell. Reading her latest novel, The Monastery Murders, she excels at luring us into the story’s disarming setting and made us ask: How did holiday traditions differ way back in 1176 and how does she utilize these details to build suspense? Thankfully she explains in today’s guest post. Enjoy! —J&H

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When A Bad Idea Seems Like Your Only Option [GUEST POST]

November 9, 2018 by Leave a comment

Woman in white dress

When society is unforgiving, some secrets must be kept at all costs. (Photo courtesy K. A. Servian)

What would you do if everything you thought you knew about yourself turned out to be a lie? In the new book, A Pivotal Right, a young woman named Viola is faced with just such a dilemma when she discovers her father isn’t who she thought he was and that her mother, Florence, has kept the truth hidden for years.

This premise captured our imaginations, so we invited the author to tell us how being a mother herself impacted the way she wrote Viola’s character and what advice she would give to Florence on how to handle telling a child such a carefully guarded secret. We hope you enjoy this guest post from K.A. Servian! —Jathan & Heather Read more of this post

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