First meeting

                         It all starts badly. 

Riding on a vital mission through the Pyrenees, Louise is pursued by Napoleon's agents. A mighty thunderstorm makes matters worse. Then, when she seeks shelter in a cavern, it seems that is the worst choice she could make. 

She was shivering more violently than ever as he reached them and held his lantern aloft, training it first on Joseph and then on her. She forced herself to sit straight, and stared into a dark, angry face with gleaming eyes that seemed to see through her disguise.

 Joseph said something in the local dialect. Louise made out only a few words, just enough to know that Joseph had not revealed she was a woman. He had merely asked for shelter. The man held the lantern closer. His almond eyes were suspicious.

 ‘How am I to know you're not a spy?’ he growled. At least he spoke French, not this dialect she could scarcely follow.

 A surge of dislike rushed through her at his hostility. ‘I am on an urgent mission,’ she croaked, through chattering teeth. ‘I must get to my rendezvous quickly. But someone is pursuing me and I need to escape them. If you are unwilling to give us shelter from this storm, we'll leave now before night falls.’ She tugged at her horse’s bridle but to her dismay, she swayed and nearly toppled from the saddle. The man looked more closely.

 ‘You’re just a boy,’ he exclaimed, putting a hand on her horse’s nose. The beast immediately stilled. ‘Very well. Get down. You can strip off and dry.’

 Oh heavens! He would discover her secret; and as she thought again of that woman’s moans, she feared he was not to be trusted. But Joseph had already dismounted and was holding her bridle. The flash of rage had faded, leaving her head spinning with fatigue. She slid off the horse and her knees buckled. The stranger caught hold of her.

 ‘Not a seasoned adventurer, are you?’ He laughed and slid an arm round her ribs to steady her. She felt his hand jerk as it encountered her breast.  Awareness snaked through her as he brought his head close, examining her face keenly.
 ‘No, leave me,’ she protested, ‘I can manage.’ Panicked, she pulled away but staggered and sank to her knees with a little sob. Immediately his strong arms were hauling her up. Then everything blurred. 

The book is available here :   https://tinyurl.com/zlwnczj

and it will be on free offer between 14th - 18th March

Louise's cavern in the Pyrenees. She was so glad to get out of it !!

Turkish Delights and Gallic Fights

HOME | NEWS | BOOKS | ABOUT US TURKISH DELIGHTS AND GALLIC FIGHTS...ALL AT A HEART-STOPPINGLY LOW PRICE When they met in London in 1799, Rose Charteris and Tom Hawkesleigh fell instantly in love. But disapproving families and misunderstandings came between them, and the romance was over as quickly as it started. Five years later, Tom is working for the Turkish ambassador in Constantinople and he runs into Rose once again...will she succumb to her desires and give Tom back her heart? Get your copy here 1813. Napoleon is on the rampage through France. Louise Fauriel comes from a family of talented silversmiths. Using their art shop as a front, the family run messages between the Comte d’Artois and his brother, King Louis. But Napoleon’s Secret Police are patrolling the area, searching for any signs of a revolt and keen to intercept any messages that could harm their campaign... Get your copy here

Turkey, 1811. Olivia Hartford falls in love with the magical land of Turkey and meets a number of interesting people, like Lady Hester Stanhope, niece of the prime minister of England, and intrepid world traveller. And then there is the handsome Selim, cousin to the Sultan. Is Olivia destined to live a life of solitude and regret? Or will her past stay buried long enough for her to have her happy ending?  Get your copy here

The Rake And His Honour

   This is the story of Arnaut, the second brother in the Montailhac family 
    and of his brave companion, Louise.

                                              

Together they travel between France and England, not always avoiding Napoleon's elite spies but determined to succeed in their mission.

                          to buy:      https://tinyurl.com/zlwnczj

Street in Saint Lizier in the Pyrenees

                          

Hartwell House, residence of the French king in exile, Louis XVIII

Olivia's new home

On arriving in Constantinople, Olivia and her companion, Miss Neston, inspect the house her brother has rented for them. 

The ladies were pleased to find that their new home was a handsome, stone built villa near the top of the hill and with a view of the sea. 

Olivia flitted back from the balcony. 'I like this house,' she declared, 'The view over the city and across the water is delightful. It’s splendid to be living in one continent and looking out at another one, do you not agree, Nessie?' She surveyed the room and nodded briskly. 'All we need is carpets, a few hangings and some ornaments.' 

The view over the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus Strait from the hilltop in Galata where Olivia stays.

Another view of the busy Strait

An adventurous Regency lady

SCANDALOUS  LADY

Constantinople 1811

Not a promising start to the relationship between the diplomat and the artist.....

'It would be very easy, Olivia,' he insisted, his eyes flashing as she kept shaking her head. 'No servant would hesitate if I gave the order to have you tied in a sack and thrown in the Bosphorus.'

            At this she leapt to her feet. 'You are disgusting!' she shouted, 'I can hardly believe you're human when you talk like that. You take me away by force and plan to use me for your entertainment with no respect for my wishes or my reputation.'

            He rose in one fluid movement and stood over her. 'You have no reputation.'

                   ...and it soon gets much more complicated ! Oh dear!

The reviews for my story are very encouraging and I'm delighted to share some of them

By lesley whitfield on 21 Jan. 2017

Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase

I have just finished reading this book and, although it was after midnight, I simply couldn't put it down until I had reached the end. Beautifully written with such detail of what took place at the time.

The descriptions were just right of the characters, enough but not too much. I love to have some freedom to add my own thoughts on the characters. This was well researched and well written, hence the 5 star I have given it. An insight into the troubles at the times, with romance thrown in, as well as danger.

By Birdseye on 22 Jan. 2017

Format: Kindle Edition

Olivia is a wonderful character. She is delightfully independent. She knows exactly what she wants and what she needs and has the courage to get it. She is also so real, so strong. It was like following a friend that I admired through her adventures.

By evelyn on 20 Jan. 2017

Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase

A book with actual story telling as well as humour for a change.

Fire and Ice. Can they ever mix?

A new Regency tales adventure.

             Set in Constantinople in 1811, SCANDALOUS LADY   is the story of a top ranking, ice-cold diplomat who encounters a fiery, rebellious artist  and thereafter, nothing goes to plan - for either of them!

Published by Endeavour Press               

__________

Experience the city together with Olivia as she discovers the exotic mix of past and present, east and west in Constantinople, the " city of the world's desire ". 

                                                             

                                     Dusk on the Golden Horn, 1845 - Ivan Aivazovsky

The Ciragan Palace, summer residence of the Sultan and his court. 

A narghile, a water pipe. In the coffeehouse she visits, Olivia takes only one puff but Lady Hester Stanhope is constantly smoking hers.

Turkish Café -Picture by Amadeo Preziosi

The bewildering variety of food   [picture by TooIstanbul]


 
    








                             The splendid goods such as carpets

        and jewellery

     

                                                           Airy carriages

                               
                                                            picture by Giovanni Brindisi, 1845

                            and magnificent horses

                                 

       

                                                  

Interview with Regency Author, Beth Elliott by Lynette Rees

Interview with Regency Author, Beth Elliott

by Lynette Rees   

                                              

Hello, Beth, welcome to my blog. 

Hello Lynette. Thank you for inviting me. It’s lovely to have a chat.

You write Regency Romance and have recently had a book published by Endeavour Press called, ‘April and May’, could you tell readers a little about your book?

Four years earlier Tom and Rose met and fell in love but both families disapproved and they were parted. They meet again in Constantinople. Circumstances force them to work together on a secret project. Rose now has a new admirer, handsome Kerim Pasha, the Sultan’s chief minister. Back in London, Tom and Kerim Pasha carry out their secret mission, with threats of violence never far away. Both wish to win Rose but it takes her a long time to understand her own feelings.

Is this your first book? Do you have any plans to write and publish any other books?

I’ve written six stories set in the Regency period. April and May has just been published as an e-book by Endeavour Press. It’s my first story using Constantinople [now Istanbul] as a setting, although the plot moves to London later on.

My next story, Scandalous Lady, is set entirely in Constantinople. That’s the story of an ice cold diplomat who meets a rebellious artist and thereafter, nothing goes to plan.

Who was your favourite character in ‘April and May’? And why?

I love all my main characters – no favourites, although I do have a soft spot for Sebastian. There’s a plot all ready for him to have his own story soon.

Is there any sort of theme throughout your book?

Very simply: If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

Did you learn anything from writing the story?

In terms of crafting the story there’s always more to learn. I feel pleased with some of my scenes but conveying character, events and setting while keeping the story flowing is a never-ending process.

Where do you usually write?

I have a small study [very untidy with books and papers in heaps] and prefer to write on the desktop, then edit on printed out pages. It gets messy!

Where’s the strangest place you’ve ever written?

When I stay with my long time French friend, she puts me in her study to write while she carries on with her endless DIY. [She has an enormous old farmhouse]. Every now and then she sticks her head round the door and asks ‘Are you writing?’ As she’s always holding either a hammer, an electric screwdriver or a saw, you bet I’m writing. It’s like that cartoon on Facebook where the stick figure with the gun says ‘Just write the damned novel’.

Tell me a little about your writing day…

I’m a night owl. In the day I may do research but the actual writing starts about 9pm and goes on until I run out of ideas or the characters get stroppy. They normally cooperate until at least midnight.

Do you have any writing advice for would be authors?

Writing is not easy but don’t get discouraged. Never throw anything you have written away. In a few days you’ll find something in there that is worth developing.

Which authors have you been influenced by?

I always loved tales of long ago and far away. As a child, Robert Louis Stevenson’s stories fired my imagination, and in a completely different vein I enjoyed Jane Austen. Then I sneaked my mother’s Georgette Heyer stories. I also like Louise Allen, Nicola Cornick and Loretta Chase. Then there’s Mary Balogh and Diane Gaston and, again showing an inclination for travel and adventure, Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe stories – after watching the delectable Sean Bean in the TV films of them.

Can you tell readers something about yourself that would either amuse/interest/or surprise them?

I studied French and Italian [in England] and went to teach at a university in France. There I met my Turkish husband. He had also studied French and Italian [ in Turkey]; so we had two languages in common but then we both had to learn each other’s own language to speak to the members of our families.

If you could be anything other than an author, what would that something be?

An archaeologist. It involves history, travel and breathless excitement when you discover unexpected items from so long ago. You’ll notice there’s a whole family of archaeologists in April and May.

Finally, can you tell readers where they can find your books and where they can find your website/social media links online?

The best way to find my books is via my website www.bethelliott.webs.com.

There’s a link there to my Amazon page as well as to Endeavour Press www.endeavourpress.co.uk

I have a Blog called Regency tales – http://Regencytales.blogspot.com. It’s mostly a well illustrated scrapbook of research for my stories, with a few interviews and travel notes.

I’m also on Facebook as Beth Elliott and on Twitter as @BethElliott.

Thanks for answering my questions and good luck with your new book! 

Thanks to you for the invitation. Your questions have made me think hard.  And in my grandmother’s language I’ll end by saying Diolch yn Fawr Iawn to you, Lynette.