Hello, and welcome to my October Newsletter.
This year seems to be slipping by so quickly; the nights are already pulling in, and no doubt the shops will soon be full of Christmas goods.
A year ago we were waiting to exchange contracts on the sale of our bungalow, and we moved to our new house at the beginning of November; we remarked on this the other day and are relieved not to have to go through that again.
Since then, we have been busy in both the house and garden, and the time has flown by. Since the heatwaves of the summer when all gardens suffered, now, with a little rain and continued warmth, all the plants seem to have got a second wind and are still flowering strongly. I even have primroses in flower – they must think it is spring. Long may it continue – it will make the winter seem shorter.
Old Saying of the Month
Hold Your Horses!
In modern times, this saying has become a way of telling someone to be patient, but for centuries, horses were the main mode of transport, and this was a literal instruction to a rider or a driver to pull on the reins and slow down. The term was first recorded in English in the 1840s in America when a newspaper used the phrase “Hold you hosses, Squire”. However, the phrase is known to date back far longer, for Homer mentioned it in The Iliad when referring to Antilochus in a chariot race.
October Blog
A Visit to Tewkesbury
The historic town of Tewkesbury offers many medieval black and white half-timbered buildings, elaborately carved doorways and charming narrow alleyways, where the eaves of the crooked buildings nearly touch.
Find out more here: https://marciaclayton.co.uk/a-visit-to-tewkesbury/
My Writing News
A Difficult Dilemma
My main news this month is that my latest book in The Hartford Manor Series will be published on 6 November. Those of you who read my last couple of newsletters will know that I struggled to decide on the title, but I got there in the end. I gave you all a glimpse of the cover last month – with the wrong title – but here it is in all its glory! My daughter-in-law, Laura, produced it for me, and I’m really pleased with it. I think it will fit in nicely with the other books in the series.
Here is the blurb about the new book. I hope it encourages you to buy the book! If you do read it and enjoy it, I would be so grateful for a review on Amazon – just the stars will do, though a few words are even better. Reviews help an author because the more reviews a book gets, the more Amazon makes it visible to potential buyers. Anyway, enough of that – here is the blurb from the back cover:
North Devon 1887
Lady Eleanor Fellwood has never acknowledged Annie as her daughter-in-law or forgiven her son, Robert, for marrying a former servant. However, when the two women are trapped together on a cliffside following a freak accident, home truths are aired, and Lady Eleanor realises she has misjudged the younger woman. Fortunately, both survive the ordeal, but Lady Eleanor is shocked by revelations about her husband’s past behaviour, and tells him their marriage is over.
When a growing friendship develops between the two women, Annie agrees to allow Lady Fellwood to meet her grandchildren. However, Sabina Webber, Annie’s mother, is horrified at this development as she suspects the noble lady has an ulterior motive. Seven years earlier, Lady Eleanor rejected her newborn baby because he was badly disabled and she wanted him adopted, as far away as possible. However, she was unaware that the child had been taken in by Sabina, who lived not a stone’s throw away, and had been raised as her son, Danny. Eventually, having noticed the child playing in the garden, Lady Eleanor recognised her son and is now desperate to have him back – an impossible situation for all concerned.
Meanwhile, Jimmy Chugg, another resident of Hartford, is worried about Nell Patterson, his wife-to-be. Nell has been nursing her Aunt Meg in The Tucker’s Arms, a disreputable brothel in Barnstaple, and it is only Meg’s fragile influence over her husband, Noah, and two sons, Abe and Reggie, that is keeping Nell from a life of prostitution.
Knowing she is dying, Meg is determined to save her niece and gives Nell an envelope that, she says, can be used as leverage against Noah to gain her freedom. She says the envelope contains evidence of a crime so serious that it would see Noah and his sons hanged. Nell gives the letter to Jimmy for safekeeping, telling him she has promised not to open it until after her aunt’s death. When Meg Berryman dies, and Nell and her daughters have not been seen for weeks, Jimmy is distraught and decides to open the letter, but he is unprepared for the enormity of the truth it contains.
You can pre-order the book here: https://mybook.to/ADilemma
The Coffee Pot Book Club
Over the last few months, I’ve been acting as a Blog Tour Host for The Coffee Pot Book Club:
https://thecoffeepotbookclub.blogspot.com/, and these are the ones I hosted last month.
I like the look of both.
London Tales by Tim Walker
London Tales is a collection of sixteen tales that offer dramatic pinpricks in the rich tapestry of London’s timeline, a city with two thousand years of history.
They are glimpses of imagined lives at key moments, starting with a prologue in verse from the point of view of a native Briton tribeswoman absorbing the shock of Roman invasion. There’s a series of contemporary stories that reference recent history and current affairs, including the London terrorist bombings of 2005; a literary pub crawl and a daring prison break, building to the imagined death throes of London in a dystopian vision. These stories are inspired by the author’s love of history, personal experiences and reflections on his time living and working in London in the 1980’s and 90’s. Adaptability, resilience, conformity and resolve are recurring themes in these stories.
You can find the book here: http://mybook.to/LondonTales
Fraying Skeins by Nancy Jardine
This is the third book in the Silver Sampler Series by this author, and although I haven’t read this one yet, I enjoyed the first book, Novice Threads and recommend it.
1870 Scotland
Fleeing from Peterhead, Margaret Law makes Aberdeen her refuge.
Menial jobs keep her and her toddler fed – till an unusual tutoring task boosts her finances and self-worth. Letters to best friend Jessie contain the absolute truth, especially when Johnny Fraser re-enters her life. Is he the man for Margaret to grow old with? When better employment emerges in St. Andrews, Margaret is torn. Will the move mean losing Johnny? When Johnny follows Margaret to St. Andrews, their life together is idyllic. But when menacing secrets unfold, will Johnny’s past indiscretions be their undoing? Will he lose the cherished family he is establishing with Margaret?
You can find the book here: http://mybook.to/FSSSS
This Month’s Bargains!
All of my books are free to read if you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited on Amazon. However, if you want to grab a bargain, these books will be reduced to 99p on the following dates:
The Angel Maker
Reduced to 99p from 8th October to 15th October
The Angel Maker is set in a Devon village in Victorian times. Unmarried mother Charlotte is distraught when her aunt has her baby adopted behind her back. Will she ever see her daughter again?
You can find the book here:
http://mybook.to/TheAngelMaker
A Woman Scorned
A Woman Scorned will be reduced to 99p from 15th October to 22 October
An embittered woman is determined to wreak vengeance on her late husband’s two illegitimate children, but just how far will Lady Lilliana go? A gripping Victorian tale!
You can find the book here:
https://mybook.to/AWomanScorned
My Book of the Month
Hyde and Seek by Adley Saunders
About the Book
When bubbly Jaime Sanders flees to France as a housekeeper to Father Dante de Vere after receiving menacing letters back in England, she believes she is safe. The village is secluded. It’s the perfect place to hide, and Jaime gradually lowers her guard. But when the priest begins to behave strangely by watching her every move, and the letters return, Jaime wonders if the two are linked. Torn between keeping her past to herself, and confiding in the man of the cloth who she believes has nothing to do with the church, Jaime sits on her worries until the stalker turns up in France. After an unexpected encounter, where both she and the priest fear for their lives, Jaime discovers she isn’t the only one with secrets. And when the stalker gains ground and puts his threats into action, Jaime comes to a terrifying conclusion. Her pursuer is no other than a dead man…
My Review
Jaime Sanders, a young woman on the run from a scary stalker, leaves England to seek safety in a secluded village in France, where she will be the housekeeper for two priests in a presbytery.
She is instantly drawn to the younger man of the cloth, Father De Vere, but unknown to her, he has secrets of his own.
When the stalker tracks her down and the priest’s past catches up with him, neither is safe, and they are drawn together.
I really enjoyed this gripping thriller with all its twists and turns, and it held my attention from beginning to end. You can find the book here: Hyde and Seek by Adley Saunders
So, that’s all for now. Thank you for listening to my ramblings, and until next time, I hope you keep safe and well.
Very best wishes,
Marcia
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