Cathie Dunn writes...

I'm delighted to host historical fiction author and good friend, Vanessa Couchman , on my blog today. Not only is Vanessa an exceptional writer – her stories are full of intriguing plots and dramatic settings –, she is also a fellow author with Ocelot Press , our successful author cooperative.  In her Tales of Corsica series, Vanessa brings historic the island of Corsica to life in her immersive novels, The Corsican Widow  and The House at Zaronza .  This June, The Corsican Widow is Book of the Month in our Ocelot Press Readers Group on Facebook. Feel free to join us there for our latest news and chats, and some great giveaways! But now, discover her inspiration for the novels, and prepare to follow Vanessa to Corsica! The Corsican Widow Vanessa Couchman Historical Fiction An inspiring Corsican village The island of the island  Corsica is a place apart, but the peninsula of Cap Corse has an even more distinctive feel. Corsicans call it “the island of the island”. T...

Today, I'm delighted to welcome my friend Sue Barnard – terrific author, award-winning poet, and editor extraordinaire – to my blog. Her wonderful novella, Never on Saturday , is released through  Ocelot Press today.  Over to Sue to tell us more about Never on Saturday !  Today (15th December 2020), a new title joins the Ocelot Press catalogue.  Never on Saturday is a timeslip romance novella with a hint of mystery and a touch of the paranormal.  It is set partly in medieval France and partly in present-day North Wales, and is based on an old French legend. Unfortunately I can’t be more specific at this stage about the legend itself, as that would give away too much about the story.   Blurb: Two stories, two heartbreaks: one past, one present… Leaving her native France and arriving in North Wales as a postgraduate student of History and Folklore, Mel is cautiously optimistic that she can escape from her troubled past and begin a new and happier lif...

Join me as I celebrate the release of  The Shadows of Versailles , the first novel in a new series of loosely-linked stories set during the Affair of the Poisons, is now available in Kindle format!  Seduced at Versailles. Broken by tragedy. Consumed by revenge. Follow me to the glamorous court of Louis XIV, the Sun King. But beneath all the glitter of his impressive new palace lurks a danger, and not only to his own life.  The Affair of the Poisons is a fascinating time when dark dealings came to light, involving not only ’lowly’ midwives, alchemists and fortune-tellers, but also high-ranking officials, courtiers and even the king's longterm mistress, Madame de Montespan. We only meet La Montespan briefly in The Shadows of Versailles , as the focus is on Fleur, my fictional heroine, who discovers that Versailles reveals more hidden dangers than she'd expected.  Fleur falls victim to a serial seducer in the picturesque gardens – an act that leads her into trouble as h...

Today, I'm sharing an intriguing excerpt from The Devil's Crossing by Hana Cole as part of her blog tour with the  Coffee Pot Book Club .  We're heading to medieval France. There's just so much history! And this one looks very interesting. I'm going to look it up. I hope you enjoy the enticing excerpt from  The Devil’s Crossing ! Excerpt:   Prologue   That evening, drawn by the noise from the streets below, Gui laid aside his manuscript and peered over the balcony. Three men shuffled in irons behind a plough horse. The prisoners had been sentenced to suffer for their own good. The purifying flame would cleanse their souls, and bestow a last chance of salvation before the fires of Hell. Although he had been clerk to the inquisitor for weeks now, this was the first time that he had witnessed a blood punishment and seen the faces of the convicts; faces just like any other. Among them, he knew, was Estève Le Coudray. A salt merchant from the Languedoc with a kind ...

I’m so excited.  Today is the day when Doorways to the Past is published. ~happy dance~ A collection of short stories and character interviews by five Ocelot Press authors – Sue Barnard , Vanessa Couchman , Nancy Jardine , Jennifer C. Wilson , and me – with a foreword by our newest Ocelot, Yvonne Marjot , Doorways to the Past takes you on a journey encompassing 2,000 years! My own contributions are an interview with Nanthild from Love Lost in Time, and a short story linked to Dark Deceit, with the Empress Matilda (literally) walking on thin ice. But I do love all the other stories and interviews. So many fascinating characters, and you can get a real sense of the times they (fictionally or really) inhabited. If you're around later on this afternoon, 5pm-7pm UK time, 6pm-8pm CET, and 1pm-3pm EST, then stop by at our virtual launch event on Facebook where you can win some great prizes! Just click on this link: https://www.facebook.com/events/372655283704981/...

Today, I have a treat in store for fans of the Tudors and the Tudor era.  Historical fiction author,  Tony Riches , shares his research into the life of a remarkable lady I hadn’t heard of before: Katherine, Duchess of Suffolk . A brave lady who, without doubt, had to fear for her life repeatedly over the years. Find out why... Understanding the life of Katherine Willoughby, Duchess of Suffolk I began exploring the life of Katherine Willoughby when writing about her first husband, Charles Brandon. With typical panache, Brandon borrowed the money to buy the wardship of nine-year-old Katherine, who’d become Baroness Willoughby de Eresby on the death of her father – and one of the wealthiest heiresses in England. He claimed his plan was to secure her as a bride for his son and heir, Henry, (named after the king) yet I suspect the truth was a little different. Charles Brandon’s wife, Mary Tudor, Dowager Queen of France (and the king’s little sister) suffered wit...

Today, I’m delighted to share a promotion for Counterpoint: Henry, the King’s Cavalier , by historical fiction author, Elizabeth St.John , as part of her blog tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club .  If you’re into the history of 17th-century England, the Stuarts, and the English Civil War, Elizabeth’s fascinating and well-researched  The Lydiard Chronicles series is for you. Counterpoint: Henry, the King’s Cavalier is a linked short story.  COUNTERPOINT:  Henry, the King’s Cavalier  (The Lydiard Chronicles: 1603-1664) By Elizabeth St.John Blurb: A man may think his life is only measured by battles fought for the king. Until he meets a woman worth fighting for. Henry Wilmot. Cavalier. Seasoned soldier. Grieving widower. On the eve of battle he is sent by the king to requisition arms. What he did not expect was that the supplies were a gift from a feisty and attractive widow who was hiding her own Royalist beliefs in plain sight. E...