FREE BOOKS

Whether you are a fan of historical fiction, historical romance, historical fantasy or all three, there is bound to be something in this giveaway that you will love. Just click here to download lots of free books and discover lots of great authors.
 

NEW COVERS FOR HOLY POISON

'the 6 books of holy poison are among some of the best books I have read,i could not put them down and the last one had me crying, what a author I have also read another 3 and they where just as good. could have given it 10 stars if I could,'

This was the lovely review given to my Holy Poison series and I decided such praise deserved an update of their covers.

There are six books in the series, set amid the violent and turbulent reign of Queen Mary I, known throughout history as Bloody Mary for her five year campaign to stamp out heresy and bring England back to the Church of Rome.

What was it like, to live through those days? What was it like to have lived for six years under the rule of the Protestant King Edward VI, who outlawed Catholicism and imprisoned and confiscated the property of those who defied that law. Before that, King Henry VIII had broken with Rome and set himself up as head of the Church in England, although he was still basically a Catholic, just not a Roman Catholic. Indeed, his sixth and last wife, Queen Catherine Parr, narrowly escaped arrest on his order for following the Protestant faith.

There were many, like the heroine of the first novel, THE JUDAS PLEDGE, who remembered nothing of Catholic rule and knew only that they were worshippers of idols and that their penalties were harsh. Don't forget, their very soul depended on their belief in their religion. To be suddenly told that they had to recant from the Protestant religion and once again follow the doctrine of Catholic rule, as well as the rule of the Pope in Rome, caused many of those Protestants to suffer the agonising death of being burned alive rather than deny their faith. It caused others to flee the country, to escape to France, where the King was helping English Protestants whilst still persecuting his own.

In the first book we meet Lord Richard Summerville and his wife, Bethany. The story begins at the end of the reign of Edward VI, when Richard decides that Bethany, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, will make him a good wife. In order to accept, she must promise to give up her faith and follow his Catholic beliefs. But she finds it almost impossible to support her Catholic husband when Mary Tudor gains the throne, despite having fallen in love with him.

Their turbulent marriage almost destroys them both.

In THE FLAWED MISTRESS we meet Lady Rachel Stewart, a woman who Richard presented to the Queen as his wife, a woman who Bethany always believed was her husband's favourite mistress and whom she has always despised for that reason.

But there is far more to Rachel's story than anyone is allowed to know. 

THE VISCOUNT'S BIRTHRIGHT sees little of the Summervilles, but tells the tale of Lord Robert Roxham, an arrogant young viscount whose plans to wed Lady Camilla are thwarted. For when his estranged father dies and he expects to inherit the earldom, he learns that a proviso in his late father's Will means he will only inherit if he marries the late Earl's ward, Antonia Jarvis. Having taken legal advice and learned that the Will is perfectly legal, Robert decides to comply and forget Camilla, but Antonia has other ideas and declares she would rather find work than be married to such an arrogant and boorish man.

However, on further consideration she can see where her best interests lie and agrees to the marriage. She is devastated when she falls ill and suspects that Robert is trying to poison her so he can have his inheritance and Lady Camilla.

Believing that he has lost Antonia anyway, Robert decides to join Thomas Wyatt's rebellion to oust Mary from the throne of England and replace her with her sister, Elizabeth.

BETRAYAL tells the tale of Lord Adrian Kennington whose plan to marry Lady Frances, a maiden to whom he has been betrothed since childhood, is shattered when his brother, Mark, tells him that he is in love with her and she with him. Having no wish to be tied to a wife who is in love with his brother, Adrian gives them his blessing and helps them to elope to the Americas. 

Now he is free to taste the delights of the seedier side of London and there he meets Marianne, a young girl whose father is trying to sell her virginity to the highest bidder. Having rescued her, Adrian forms a loving relationship with her, not realising until it is too late that he can never marry a tavern girl.

He meets Lady Elizabeth, a woman still grieving from an incident in her past when her former betrothed was revealed as a secret Catholic who betrayed his entire family for their heresies. Adrian falls for her and swears to devote himself to her and leave Marianne. But his weakness for his tavern girl follows him into the future and when Lord Richard Summerville tells him he must accept a place at Mary's Catholic court, Elizabeth sees history repeating itself.

They are driven apart by the Queen's suspicions and Adrian's own weakness for another woman.

THE HERETICS tells the tale of Lady Julia Winterton, Bethany's sister, whose marriage to the cruel Sir Geoffrey Winterton was arranged by her father to win his title. But Sir Geoffrey's preference is not for women and Julia cannot help but be attracted to her handsome neighbour, Lord Richard Summerville. But when he marries her sister, she has no option but to flee and she cannot forgive Bethany for knowingly marrying a Catholic.

Her journey takes her to a farm, where she meets Charles Carlisle and gives birth to Richard's child. Together they build a life together and risk everything to help fleeing Protestants to escape to France.

CONSEQUENCES tells of the aftermath of Mary's reign. When the Queen dies, Richard narrowly escapes with his head and he returns to Summerville Hall and the wife who betrayed him, and whom he still loves. They swear to put the past behind them and build a new life together, away from the court and the influence of the Monarch, But past transgressions and resentments threaten to ruin their love and Richard's rift with his cousin, Anthony, whom he raised from childhood, threatens their future.

Will the consequences of the past actions and betrayals of the Summervilles allow them to live in peace?

The series is also available in a boxed set, although I've decided to leave that cover alone for the time being.

AND if you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited, you can read them all through that service. The best news is that the first month's subscription is free.

Thank you for reading; I hope you like my new covers and the books.

My First Regency

So, I have been a bit out of touch, having moved house again. It had to be done; when autumn arrived, so did the mouses. Hundreds and hundred of mouses. I took the tea cosy off the teapot one morning and there was a little Mickey sitting on the lid waving at me! Well, I'm not scared of mice, but I don't want to share my limited space with them.

Now I have started a new Regency series. It is clean and wholesome, no sex, just the hint of some. It is called A Match of Honour and is available to buy at the reduced price of $2.99 for the first week. The paperback will be along soon, but it seems Amazon don't like the English spelling of 'honour' on the cover, although they don't have a problem with it on the kindle version!

Like all my books, it is available to read for free via the Kindle Unlimited program, for which you can still get a month's free trial. 

So, here is the tale:

Christopher Hartleigh is the 21 year old heir to his father’s brother, the Duke of Somersham. Because the present Duke has no sons, only three daughters, and their mother is determined that the estate stay with her own bloodline, the Duke tells Christopher that he should marry his cousin, Susan, the eldest of those daughters.

Christopher initially finds the idea amusing. Susan has been like a sister to him all his life and he tells his uncle he has no intention of marrying her.

However, wanting to discuss the matter with Susan, and perhaps enjoy a joke with her about the suggestion, he seeks her out. When he sees her going into the woods, dressed in peasant’s garb, he follows her to the cottage of an old wise woman, the local herbalist and seer, and his curiosity is piqued.

He waits outside the cottage for Susan to emerge and there he discovers a secret to make his amusement turn quite sour.

And here is a teaser from the first chapter.

CHAPTER ONE

The Only Suitable Match

Christopher laughed out loud. He could not quite take this conversation seriously, could not believe his father was even suggesting it.

“It is no jest, Christopher,” George said. “I am but passing on the suggestion your Uncle has made, as I promised him I would. If the idea does not appeal to you, if you are firmly set against such a plan, then that will be the end of it.”

“Will it?” Christopher turned to face his mother, who sat quietly with her hands clasped loosely in her lap. She wore an enigmatic smile and he would have given a year’s allowance to know what she was thinking. “Mother? What is your opinion of this ridiculous suggestion?”

He thought she would reject the idea out of hand, but she surprised him by not answering straight away. When she did find her voice, it was to utter words he would never have expected.

“I think it would be a good match,” she said quietly.

Her husband turned to look at her sharply and raised his eyebrows.

“Jane? That is not what you said when I first mentioned it.”

Jane stared at her husband, George, Lord Hartleigh, brother of the Duke of Somersham and father of her sons, Christopher and Mason. The elder of those sons was the heir and would inherited the title when the Duke died, which everyone expected to be very soon.

Finally, Jane replied.

“No, but I have had time to consider.” She turned to her son. “If you, as the future Duke, do not marry Susan, who will you marry? You will be an important and wealthy man. Something should have been arranged years ago.”

“Then why was it not?” Christopher demanded.

“Because,” George replied, “it would have been disrespectful to your Uncle. Not knowing if he would one day have a son meant that we could not in all conscience find the right bride for you.”

“Well, Mother, you probably know that I would prefer to find my own bride. The days of arranged marriages are long gone, I hope.”

“Yes, they are, but even so you must choose from among maidens of your own class. We have neglected our duty by doing nothing to introduce you to such girls. That being the case, your cousin would be the most suitable match.”

Christopher shook his head and got to his feet. He still wore a little grin, still found the situation amusing. Marry Susan, indeed! He had nothing against her, except the slight resemblance to her mother’s superior attitude that he found hard to tolerate. She was a nice enough maid, and, as the eldest daughter of the present Duke, certainly of the correct status to wed the future Duke. But this was not something he had ever expected.

She was his cousin, a childhood playmate of his own age. He had thought about a marriage over the years, of course he had, but if he had considered anything it was that he might go to London, perhaps to court and meet some young lady there. Lord knew there were enough of them paraded before suitable young men every season and Christopher was certainly suitable. He was an excellent catch for all the mothers desperate to have their daughters well married. Indeed, he was one of the most eligible bachelors in the country and would be more so when his uncle passed away.

It was rumoured that the Prince Regent kept a jovial court and quite informal. Christopher would not be averse to spending time there, to discovering for himself whether the rumours were true.

“Give it some thought,” George said as his son moved toward the door.

Christopher turned back with his hand resting on the doorknob, still wearing that amused smile.

“I will, Father,” he said. “But do not hold out too much hope. I trust you have made no promises to His Grace.”

“Of course not. I would like to see his mind at rest though. That I cannot deny.”

Christopher was still grinning when he saddled his horse and went for a ride about the estate. It was something he liked to do when he had things to think about and this was certainly something to think about.

The Surrogate Bride - A Romantic Fantasy Out Now!

First of a Series: The Surrogate Bride. This is a new direction for me and I hope my readers will give it a go. It is a fantasy, sort of medieval and sort of romantic.

After years of abuse at the hands of her husband, Natasha finds herself running for her life after yet another spell in hospital. She is certain that this time he will kill her and when her flight takes her to some Romany caravans beside a deserted car park, she runs to them for help.

That is when she meets a young girl who heals her wounds with a touch and finds herself in another world.

Her rescuers are the telepathic Lord Christos and his sweetheart, Kendall, who resembles Natasha. Their immortal King, Wolfstan, has commanded that Kendall marry him and Christos has brought Natasha to his world in the hope that she will agree to take Kendall’s place.

But marriage in this world is not the same thing at all; it is a magic and physical joining of minds and souls and one which can never be undone. And joining with a woman from Natasha’s world has an unexpected and devastating effect on the King. Soon Natasha finds herself not only joined for life to Wolfstan, but a weapon to be used by his enemies.

The First chapter is available to read here.

THE ROMANY PRINCESS - now in paperback, kindle and audio.

THEY CALLED HER THE ROMANY PRINCESS

This popular novel of life in the slums of London is now available in audio as well as paperback and kindle.

Don't forget you can download a kindle app for your pads or smartphone for free.

They called her The Romany Princess this lovely girl from the slums of London who rose to be the darling of the music halls. This is her heartbreaking tale, how she fell in love with the wrong man and how that great love ended in tragedy.

Her story is told here by her sister, Bess, on the occasion of her one hundredth birthday, when she sends for a great niece she has never met before and tells her the family truth that great niece has never been allowed to know.

Bess has secrets she has kept for nearly eighty years and she has no intention of taking those secrets with her to the grave.

Follow me on Facebook

The first chapter is available to download here

HISTORICAL ROMANCE, HISTORICAL FICTION, HISTORICAL FANTASY FREE UNTIL 20th November. Grab yours now!

Love reading Historical Fiction? Let us take you back in time with the Instafreebie Historical Fiction Giveaway. Don't miss this chance to get your free copies of stories from the beginning of time to the turbulent periods of the 20th century. To see what these authors of historical fiction, historical romance, and historical fantasy have to offer, visit http://alexakang.com/home/instafreebie_historical/

Has no one ever heard of research any more?

I just had to post this. As an historian I am constantly amazed at the misinformation being touted as 'history' both on television and in books. 

First there was the Tudors, a television programme here in England with the usual wonderful acting and equally wonderful costumes. Of course the title was wrong because this series was not about the Tudors, it was specifically about King Henry VIII who was only one of five Tudor monarchs. Perhaps the inventors of this programme did not know that.

Well, according to this tv programme, Henry's sister, Margaret was sent to marry the ageing King of Portugal. NOoooo! His sister, Mary was sent to marry the ageing King of France. Then she married Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, but had no children with him. Well, if she hadn't, there would have been no nine day wonder called Jane Grey. But never mind.

Henry's sister, Margaret, who was not even included in this programme, married the King of Scotland, James IV, making him Henry's brother-in-law NOT his cousin as he kept saying. Charles Brandon, when widowed married Catherine Willoughby and no they didn't separate and he didn't have a French mistress.

Then we have Victoria, the wonderful programme about Queen Victoria, where we have people being hanged, drawn and quartered, a barbaric sentence for those found guilty of treason. The last person to suffer this was about 100 years before Victoria; during her reign the drawing and quartering was carried out after death.

Now, let's come to some recent books I have read. The first was a tale of a King of Wales - Wales never had a king, it was and still is a principality. Not so bad, a fictional King of Wales, except the earl mentioned in the story had a throne, a realm and a kingdom. Noooooo! Only Kings, Queens and sometimes princes and princesses have those. Still, it was a good story.

The next was a timeslip novel, where the modern girl not only turns up at the door of a 17th century castle in modern clothes and is given hospitality and a bed for the night, but then she overhears a plot against King James I because he was Catholic! Noooooooooooo! James was Protestant, anyone with a modicum of historical knowledge knows that. He padded himself out wherever he went because he was terrified of Catholic plots against him.

Now I have started to read a book where a mulatto, i.e. person of mixed race, is a barrister at the Inns of Court in London. Nooooo! Never would a person of mixed race have been accepted, but worse than that, far worse, is the fact that the barrister is in Newgate Prison, thinking about the Old Bailey. Nooooo! The Old Bailey, central criminal court, was built on the site of Newgate Prison after it was demolished. The story is set in 1819 - the Old Bailey was opened in 1907.

Please, please, please, if you are going to write a screenplay or a novel involving English history, make sure you get your facts straight. It is not that difficult. You don't even need to open a book nowadays, you can simply google it. It is an affront to historians.

I have read from people who are supposed to be historians, that people in the middle ages had nice white teeth because there wasn't any sugar, I kid you not. They also had baths every day. Yeah, right.

Please, get it right before you publish.