Sunday, 13 July 2025

✧ Book in the Spotlight ✧ Dagger’s Destiny (Curse of Clansmen and Kings, Book 2) By Linnea Tanner Narrated by Kristin James

 

Dagger’s Destiny (Curse of Clansmen and Kings, Book 2)
By Linnea Tanner
Narrated by Kristin James

Audiobook Title: Dagger’s Destiny
Series: Curse of Clansmen and Kings 
Author: Linnea Tanner
Narrator: Kristin James
Publication Date: October 2, 2018 (Audiobook Publication)
Publisher: Apollo Raven Publisher, LLC
Listening Length: 12 hours and 50 minutes
Genre: Historical Fantasy, Historical Romantasy, Myth & Legend

A Celtic warrior princess accused of treason for aiding her enemy lover must win back her father’s love and trust


In the rich and vibrant tale, author Linnea Tanner continues the story of Catrin and Marcellus that began with the award-winning novel APOLLO’S RAVEN in the Curse of Clansmen and Kings Series. Book 2: DAGGER’S DESTINY sweeps you into an epic tale of forbidden love, mythological adventure, and political intrigue in Ancient Rome and Britannia.


War looms over 24 AD Britannia where rival tribal rulers fight each other for power and the Romans threaten to invade to settle their political differences. King Amren accuses his daughter, Catrin, of treason for aiding the Roman enemy and her lover, Marcellus. The ultimate punishment is death unless she can redeem herself. She must prove loyalty to her father by forsaking Marcellus and defending their kingdom—even to the death. Forged into a warrior, she must overcome tribulations and make the right decisions on her quest to break the curse that foretells her banished half-brother and the Roman Empire will destroy their kingdom.


Yet, when Catrin again reunites with Marcellus, she is torn between her love for him and duty to King Amren. She must ultimately face her greatest challenger who could destroy her life, freedom, and humanity.


Will Catrin finally break the ancient prophecy that looms over her kingdom? Will she abandon her forbidden love for Marcellus to win back her father’s trust and love? Can King Amren balance his brutality to maintain power with the love he feels for Catrin?


✧ Praise ✧ 

Tanner is a masterful wordsmith and storyteller. There were no plot holes, everything was believable, and her characters grew as did the plot.”
~ The Audiobook Reviewer

For those with an interest in epic fantasy, the characters and their interactions, each with their personal goals and motivations, and often in conflict with each other, Dagger’s Destiny is a book sure to keep your interest.”
~ Geoff Habiger for Readers' Favorite (GOLD MEDAL Fiction: Magic / Wizardry)

Click on the link to listen to an audio excerpt:

Book Trailer


Purchase Links:


 ✧ AUDIOBOOK GIVEAWAY✧ 
Linnea Tanner is giving away an audiobook copy of Dagger’s Destiny!
A winner will be chosen at random and announced after the tour has finished.

Linnea Tanner


Award-winning author, Linnea Tanner, weaves Celtic tales of love, magical adventure, and political intrigue in Ancient Rome and Britannia. Since childhood, she has passionately read about ancient civilizations and mythology. She is particularly interested in the enigmatic Celts, who were reputed as fierce warriors and mystical Druids.

Linnea has extensively researched ancient and medieval history, mythology, and archaeology and has traveled to sites described within each of her books in the Curse of Clansmen and Kings series. Books released in her series include Apollo’s Raven (Book 1), Dagger’s Destiny (Book 2), Amulet’s Rapture (Book 3), and Skull’s Vengeance (Book 4). She has also released the historical fiction short story Two Faces of Janus

A Colorado native, Linnea attended the University of Colorado and earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry. She lives in Fort Collins with her husband and has two children and six grandchildren.

Author Links:
Website ✧ Facebook ✧ Instagram ✧ Twitter / X ✧ Pinterest ✧  Bluesky ✧  Amazon Author Page ✧ BookBub ✧ Threads ✧ LinkedIn ✧ Goodreads 

✧ Tour Schedule✧ 

Thursday, 10 July 2025

✧ Book in the Spotlight ✧ An Echo of Ashes by Ron Allen Ames


An Echo of Ashes
By Ron Allen Ames


Publication Date: March 25th, 2025

Publisher: Historium Press

Pages: 247

Genre: Historical Fiction


An Echo of Ashes is a story lost to time, then found again in century-old letters that lay in a tattered box.


Based on actual events taken from the pages, this story tells of when the Great War and the Spanish Influenza forever altered the lives of millions, including a family of subsistence farmers who also worked the oil fields of Pennsylvania.


Ella and Almon make their home in the backcountry. Almon and his sons work in the oil fields, just as their forefathers before them. As war and influenza break out, the parents seek to shield their family from the impending perils. Earl, the eldest son, is a gifted trombone and piano player. He is captivated by Lucile Lake, a girl from a higher social status. All he has to win her heart are his music and his words as the military draft looms in the foreground. Jack, a friend as close as a brother, faces the horrors of war at the Western Front. Albert's free spirit creates chaos as he searches for direction. Arthur's patriotism leads him to the Mexican border. Young Russell must suppress his fear to save a life, while Little Clara remains protected from the distress.


World War One and the Spanish Influenza Pandemic are most often documented separately, yet they intersected in 1918. For those who endured sacrifice and loss during this time, looking forward seemed their only choice. The sharp echo of tragedy, carried through the ashes of what once was, likely dulled but never vanished from their minds. This is just one of countless family stories from such a perilous chapter in American history.


✧ Excerpt 

He heard footsteps coming and could see a silhouette through the lace curtains that hung in the door’s window. The curtains flicked, the door opened . . . and there she stood.
   
 “Yes?” Lucile asked the dashing young man. Earl froze as Lucile stared directly into his deep blue eyes, recognizing him.

“I am here…” Earl blurted out as he thought, I am making a fool of myself. “I mean, I am here to give lessons.” Did that sound right?

She giggled. “I do not want trombone lessons.”

“No,” Earl spoke up. “Piano lessons.”

Just then Lucile’s mother called out from the adjoining parlor, “Lucile, who is at the door?”

“It is the trombone player, mother . . . the one from the pie social. He is here from the advertisement.”

“Tell him it is piano lessons we require, not trombone.”

Earl then spied a grand piano sitting to the right of the room by a large window.

“The advertisement says a reference is required . . . may I?” He pointed to the piano.

Lucile raised her brow and hesitated. Finally, she opened the door just far enough for Earl to squeeze by. He nervously fumbled with his hat before pushing it into Lucile’s hands.

✧ Purchase Link ✧
Amazon

Ron Allen Ames 


Ron Allen Ames is a history enthusiast who attributes his forty-six years of life experience as a hands-on business co-owner, for giving him insight into human nature, a benefit when portraying the lives of others. The information he received, dating from 1914 to 1919, is what prompted Ames to bring this history to light in An Echo of Ashes.

Ames lives with his wife Cathy in Pennsylvania. They have two grown sons.

Author Links:

Website ✧  Facebook ✧  Instagram ✧ 

✧  Tour Schedule ✧  




Sunday, 6 July 2025

✧ Book in the Spotlight ✧ Shattered Peace: A Century of Silence by Julie McDonald Zander



Shattered Peace: A Century of Silence
By Julie McDonald Zander


Publication Date: March 27, 2025 (Official book launch was May 10, 2025)
Publisher: St. Helens Press
Pages: 290
Genre: Historical Fiction, Time-slip, World War I


A forgotten diary. A century-old secret. A town still haunted by its past.

When former Navy Seabee Colleen Holmes inherits an old house in Centralia, Washington, she sees it as a chance to escape her own ghosts and start anew. But as she peels back layers of history within the home’s walls, she unearths long-buried secrets tied to a dark chapter in the town’s history.

Hidden behind crumbling plaster, a faded diary and a bundle of love letters unveil the struggles of a soldier trapped in the trenches of France and the heartbreak of those left waiting at home. Yet the diary’s brittle pages hold more than just longing—they bear witness to the explosive events of November 11, 1919, when a parade meant to celebrate peace erupted into violence and bloodshed.

As Colleen pieces together the tragic choices that shattered lives and fractured a town, she realizes history is never truly buried. The wounds of yesterday still shape today, and the past is not done with her yet.

Inspired by true events, Shattered Peace is a gripping time-slip novel of love, loss, and the echoes of history that refuse to fade. Perfect for fans of The Alice Network and The Girl You Left Behind, this haunting tale of resilience, redemption, and the pursuit of truth will linger long after the final page.

✧ Purchase Link ✧

Julie McDonald Zander


Julie McDonald Zander, an award-winning journalist, earned a bachelor’s degree in communications and political science from the University of Washington before working two decades as a newspaper reporter and editor.

Through her personal history company, Chapters of Life, she has published more than 75 individual, family, and community histories. Her debut novel, The Reluctant Pioneer, won a Will Rogers Medallion and was a finalist for the Western Writers of America’s Spur Award for Best Historical Novel.

She and her husband live in the Pacific Northwest, where they raised their two children.

Social Media Links:

Website ✧ Facebook ✧ Twitter ✧ Instagram ✧ Bluesky ✧ Pinterest ✧ Amazon Author Page ✧ TikTok ✧ BookBub ✧ Goodreads

✧ Tour Schedule 




Sunday, 29 June 2025

✧ Book Review ✧ By Love Divided by Elizabeth St.John



The Lydiard Chronicles:
The Lady of the Tower,
By Love Divided,
Written in their Stars,
By Elizabeth St.John



Publication Dates: 2016 - 2020
Publisher: Falcon Historical
Genre: Biographical Historical Fiction

Duty, passion, and power collide in The Lydiard Chronicles, a gripping trilogy inspired by true events. Follow three courageous women—survivors, strategists, and storytellers—who defy the constraints of society to shape their family’s fate and England’s future. Their voices echo through time. Their legacy changed a nation.

The Lydiard Chronicles is an award-winning, best-selling historical family saga which brings to life the remarkable true stories of the St.John family. Spanning three compelling novels—The Lady of the Tower, By Love Divided, and Written in Their Stars—the series follows the legacy of resilient and intelligent women who lived as spies, courtiers, and diarists during England’s most turbulent century, navigating the quicksand of love and war, political upheaval, and personal sacrifice. 

Bound by fierce family loyalty and unforgettable love, the women of The Lydiard Chronicles defy the limits of their time with passion, courage, and unshakable independence. They endure captivity in the Tower of London, exile in the Louvre Palace, and the heart-wrenching divisions of the English Civil War—fighting not just for survival, but for their beliefs, their families, and the right to choose their own fate. Meticulously researched and vividly told, this epic saga reveals how these women created history from the shadows, leaving a legacy of resilience, defiance, and enduring influence.

Rooted in original diaries, letters, and family papers, The Lydiard Chronicles offers an intimate, biographical portrait of women who moved behind the scenes of power. Serving as trusted secret agents, military wives, and confidantes of kings, they were deeply engaged in the political and religious conflicts of their time. Through tragedy and triumph, the women of The Lydiard Chronicles shape their destinies—and the fate of a nation—in this richly researched and vividly told historical epic.

✧ Review ✧ The Lady of the Tower


Where do I even begin? This book really does tick all the boxes. Not only has the author taken her readers back in time to the Stuart period, but she has also brought back to life characters who have long since been dead. 


While the heroine of this story, Lucy St.John is a strong, brave and intelligent woman she has not had the best of starts, having lost both her parents she is belittled by his aunt Joan, who favours Lucy's sister Barbara over her. Joan does not just physically and emotionally abuse Lucy but she always makes sure Barbara outshines her, much to Barbara's delight. But things finally take a turn for the better when her brother, John announces that once he is wed he will return his sisters to their estates at Lydiard. Lucy could not be more delighted. However, her life will not be one of ease and pleasure if  Barbara has anything to do with it.


I hated Barbara with as much passion as I loved Lucy - she is arrogant and so determined to ruin her sister that she will stop at nothing. Lucy on the other hand is kind, intelligent and has an incredible strength to make the best out of the situations she finds herself in. When she finally marries, Sir Allen Apsley, who becomes the Lieutenant of the Tower of London, her life changes again. On entering the Tower of London, Lucy becomes a woman of great value and kindness, and I could not help but love her for her gentle ways and compassionate soul.


The Lady of the Tower is a page-turning novel that is so moving and so beautifully told that I found myself getting up early before work to read a couple of chapters. Then, I would look forward to coming home and spending the evening reading! 


Elizabeth St.John is not a new author for me, for I thoroughly enjoyed The Godmother’s Secret (which is another book that I highly recommend) and therefore I had high expectations for this novel, and thankfully, I was not disappointed. If you enjoy realistic and very emotional historical fiction based on the lives of real people, then you really must check out Elizabeth St. John's novels.


✧ Purchase Link ✧

Amazon 

Read with #KindleUnlimited

Elizabeth St. John


Elizabeth St.John’s critically acclaimed historical fiction novels tell the stories of her ancestors: extraordinary women whose intriguing kinship with England's kings and queens brings an intimately unique perspective to Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart times.

Inspired by family archives and residences from Lydiard Park to the Tower of London, Elizabeth spends much of her time exploring ancestral portraits, diaries, and lost gardens. And encountering the occasional ghost. But that’s another story.

Living between California, England, and the past, Elizabeth is the International Ambassador for The Friends of Lydiard Park, an English charity dedicated to conserving and enhancing this beautiful centuries-old country house and park. As a curator for The Lydiard Archives, she is constantly looking for an undiscovered treasure to inspire her next novel.

Elizabeth's works include The Lydiard Chronicles, a family saga set in 17th-century England during the Civil War, and The Godmother's Secret, which unravels the medieval mystery of the missing princes in the Tower of London. Her latest release, The King’s Intelligencer, follows Franny Apsley in the treacherous court of Charles II as she risks everything to uncover the dangerous truth behind the discovery of the princes’ bones.

Social Media Links:

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Amazon Author Page  BookBub  LinkedIn  Goodreads


✧ Tour Schedule 






✧ Book in the Spotlight ✧ Dagger’s Destiny (Curse of Clansmen and Kings, Book 2) By Linnea Tanner Narrated by Kristin James

  Dagger’s Destiny (Curse of Clansmen and Kings, Book 2) By Linnea Tanner Narrated by Kristin James Audiobook Title: Dagger’s Destiny Series...