A home for my hero

The Princes' Islands are situated at about an hour's sailing time from the European side of Istanbul. They are a peaceful haven, where wealthy Istanbullus have a summer villa, or if not rich enough to own or rent one, go for a few days holiday in a hotel.  The journey by boat sets the mood - no racing along the motorway, it is a restful interlude. 

When you disembark, the peaceful atmosphere continues. There are no motorised vehicles on the island. Transport is either by bike or by horse drawn carriage. The roads are really quiet.

                                              

The villas are mainly set back in beautifully tended gardens.

The islands have been inhabited for as long as Constantinople itself, so it seemed feasible to give my hero a home on Buyukada, the largest island. Research to decide where and what style of house, was indeed a pleasure for me. The villas are delightful but traditionally they are made of wood and so are not generally very long lasting. 

There are only a couple left old enough to represent a building typical of the 18th Century. Judging by this engraving, the older villas were large and elaborate - very suitable for my hero's mother, who is a Turkish princess.

 Fortunately for Olivia in Scandalous Lady, the hero's yali is always kept in good order for when members of the family visit from France. Selim sends Olivia here as a place of safety. In his mother's house, she is protected by the laws of hospitality from the Sultan's plan to dispose of her. 

Sunshine and warm hearts

After the winter that wouldn't end, I was in a hurry to get back to Turkey to be cheered up by kind relatives and friends as well as by large doses of sunshine and warm hospitality. Nothing is too much trouble when they have a visitor, even in such uncertain times as they are living now and they are weighed down by the apprehension of what could happen.

Meals are always an opportunity to crowd everyone round a table groaning with goodies. I love the differences between a Turkish breakfast and our own.

The central tray contains different white cheeses, made from goats', cows' or  sheeps' milk and the firmer, yellow kashar cheese. Then there is butter, kaymak [cream from the top of yogurt], green and black olives, dried apricots and their kernels, walnuts, honey and rose-hip jam. Oh, and fresh chopped tomatoes, peppers and cucumber. All washed down with copious amounts of black tea.

And then there are the invitations to afternoon tea, which is more what we would consider a high tea.

Here we have a selection of salads and savoury patties, made with bulgur wheat and red lentils.There are lemons to squeeze over the salads and fresh mint for extra taste. Then there are poacha, boat shaped pastries filled with white cheese and herbs, various small buns and a ring cake full of chopped almonds and walnuts.
 As at  breakfast, the preferred drink is tea.
Later, there will be  a huge plate of fruit, nicely chilled in the fridge and very welcome in the torrid heat and finally Turkish coffee, followed by fortune telling for those who want it.

A Taste of Eastern Splendour

APRIL AND MAY

Caught in a compromising situation with Tom, Rose is whisked away in disgrace and hastily married off. Four years later, widowed but still heartsore that Tom abandoned her without a struggle, she is horrified to encounter him again - and in Constantinople of all places. Worse, she has to work with him on a secret document for the Sultan.  Kerim Pasha, the powerful and handsome minister, is entranced by Rose's English beauty and immediately spirits her off into his home.

Tom has never forgotten Rose but even now, the misunderstandings continue. In addition, Rose is determined to maintain her hard-won independence. But back in London, she soon finds that not only Tom, but Kerim Pasha also, has arrived and neither has given up hope of winning her.

Published by Robert Hale   ISBN 9780709090427

READ AN EXCERPT

This is from Chapter 2, when Tom and Rose come face to face so unexpectedly, after a long gap, in Constantinople.

Tom gulped and frowned at the empty glass. Just what had Mehmet put in the hoshaf? To his annoyance, a large blot was spreading over his sketch. With a sigh he set his pen down and looked up again reluctantly. Apparently it was not an illusion. The three dark shapes were still there.

Not for the first time he found himself wishing that he knew just what he was looking at. Some ladies wore only the lightest of silken veils and you could more or less look them in the eye. These three were completely hidden. He scowled. How dare they invade his office at such a time.

          Behind them he spotted Sebastian Welland, making frantic gestures to him to stand. With a sigh, Tom rose to his full six foot three. There was a rustle as three heads shifted upwards beneath their wraps. From behind one of the veils came a sudden sharp intake of breath. Then silence. Tom’s thick brows drew down as he glared from one to the other, waiting. Normally women did not appear in public offices, especially Turkish women. Was it some kind of plot to disrupt these delicate negotiations?

          Sebastian now reappeared, together with Mehmet, carrying chairs. As he placed the seats for the visitors the young man stammered: ‘Ladies, this is our special envoy, Mr Hawkesleigh.’ Turning to Tom he quailed at the glare he received but persevered in his explanation. ‘I know you said you were not to be disturbed… but…but the Ambassador’s guest is still here…’ 

          Tom glared again at his unwelcome visitors. ‘I regret I cannot spare any time at present -’

At this, the smallest one put back her veil with an impatient gesture. Tom saw that she was fair skinned and haired. She looked to be in her late forties and had a keen, scholarly air.

          ‘Lady Emily Westacote,’ she said briskly, ‘and these are my two nieces.’

          ‘Westacote?’ echoed Tom. ‘Sir Philip Westacote, the antiquarian…?’

          Lady Westacote nodded. ‘Just so. I am his wife. And we are in need of help.’

          ‘In what way ma’am?’ Tom knew his tone was less than cordial. She probably wanted permits to excavate some godforsaken ruin in a remote and bandit-infested area of the Levant. Surely it could wait half an hour. His frustrated gaze turned to the other two females. They had not removed their veils.

          Lady Westacote followed his gaze. ‘Girls!’ she said reprovingly. At this the figure on her left raised her arms and put back the heavy veil to reveal a lovely face with huge pansy brown eyes and shining dark hair. Tom’s eyebrows lifted a little and Sebastian gaped in frank admiration. Then their heads all turned expectantly towards the last veiled figure. There was a pause then very slowly she raised her arms. Tom could sense the reluctance with which she folded back her veil. Then he drew in his breath sharply. His brows met across his formidable nose in a deep frown.

          The young lady met Tom’s eyes. Her oval face was pale and mask-like. Her hair was the colour of ripe wheat, just as he remembered. Tom felt a kind of pressure on his heart. Of all the impossible coincidences. What could bring Rose Graham here?

          ‘Allow me to present Mrs Rosalind Charteris,’ Lady Westacote indicated the fair haired girl, ‘and her sister, Miss Helena Graham.’

          Charteris! So she was married now. Tom could feel the blood draining from his cheeks. He kept his face impassive as he sketched a bow in the general direction of the young ladies. The surge of emotion and anger swamped him. For a moment he could not speak. Then he recovered enough to snap his fingers at Sebastian, who was still gazing from one beauty to the other. The young man gulped, nodded and disappeared, to return a few minutes later with Mehmet and the tray of glasses and fruit juice.

         While Mehmet poured drinks for the ladies, Tom stole a look at Rose Charteris. She was every bit as lovely as his memory of her. That glorious hair, so silky and thick, her creamy skin and that provocative pink mouth. He clenched his jaw against the memory of their last meeting. In spite of the years abroad, he had not forgotten the feel of her in his arms. He instinctively knew how ill at ease she was. She had not expected to find him here. She was gazing round the room, not looking in his direction. His mouth twisted. So what! She had married another man. And why was he surprised at that? She had never answered a single one of the many letters he had sent her.

(C) Beth Elliott

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An 18th Century Pharmacy in Saint-Lizier, Ariège-Pyrenées

The town of Saint-Lizier in the Pyrenees dates from the 5th Century and has a rich variety of historical monuments of many periods. It is on the pilgrim route to Compostela and its cathedral is dedicated to St James.

       An 18th century Bishop founded a Hotel Dieu [hospital], which was completed in 1764. The entrance to the hospital and pharmacy is through the blue gate in the photo above. The pharmacy remains exactly as it was originally built. The amber coloured wood used for the shelves and cupboards came from fruit trees and is made in the style of Louis XV.

As well as the straight shelves on all four walls, there are four matching corner cupboards, with glass panelled fronts. All the pots and bowls on the shelves were made specially at a pottery near Toulouse. Every pot has the name of the remedy it contains painted on before the pots were fired, so there was no possibility of mistakes with the contents.

                 

>

A little more grisly, in one of the corner cupboards there is the set of surgical tools, including knives and saws. There are also two large, marble topped tables for preparing medicines or for operating on sick people. Close by the tables are two enormous marble mortars and pestles for preparing and mixing medicines.

                                 

The Vinegar of the Four Thieves

From records kept in the hospital, it has been possible to reconstitute the 'Vinegar of the Four Thieves'. This remedy protected against the plague. During one terrible outbreak of plague in Toulouse in 1630, four thieves were caught stealing from the dead victims. These four did not become ill with plague, and the doctors discovered that the men had concocted a lotion that they spread on themselves, [hands, face, armpits and nether regions] which prevented the fleas from jumping on them. In exchange for the recipe, they escaped execution. The remedy is based on vinegar and many herbs, plus camphor.

                                       

                 For more information on Saint-Lizier, see :

https://www.ariege.com/en/discover-ariege/must-see-places/saint-lizier

Rome

A four day trip to Rome is enough time to exhaust yourself but woefully inadequate to see much of the Eternal City. However, we managed to fit in at least two churches and two museums each day as well as a splendid exhibition of Titian's paintings, a hike across the Borghese Park and a stroll round the Trastevere district with its quaint little alleys and squares. Of course, anyone walking around Rome comes across piazza after piazza, fountain after fountain - and all decorated with enormous baroque statues. Then there are the mighty columns and the obelisks. I gave up counting those - but it seems an obelisk was the must-have souvenir for any Roman general of the classical period. Add to this the antique ruins and the palaces of many styles and ages and you have a mix that is special to Rome. 

And the streets are mostly cobbled....

Perhaps that is why my favourite discovery was the splendid Garden frescoes from the Villa of Livia. They are on display in the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme. In about 30 BC, Livia, wife of Augustus, decorated her dining room with these garden frescoes to give the impression of being outdoors. In the fierce summer heat, they created a feeling of coolness. They are wonderfully fresh and soothing, even today.

 

Inspirational Valentines, one and all.

I know I'm not the only writer to get inspiration for my characters from film clips or photos of actors. The fictional character has his path set out and his actions planned, but to get him walking off the page, I need inspiration - and where better to find it than in by mixing and adapting the appearance, the voices and mannerisms of such a bunch of gorgeous guys.

Thank you, fellas, for providing the details that really help to bring my heroes and their friends to life. This is a virtual Valentine's Day party for you - and all the others, too numerous to post here. There's plenty of champagne and canapés.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

                                    

         

                    ***************************************

*In case* anyone doesn't recognise one or other of them....

1 Antonio Banderas    2 Burak Ozcivit     3 Dan Stevens    4 George Clooney   
5 Henry Cavill    6 Ildebrando d'Arcangelo     7 Mehmet Gunsur   
8 Richard Armitage    9 Santiago Cabrera    10 Colin Salmon

            ******************************************

Difficult Times - the reign of Sultan Selim III

         Sultan Selim III came to the Ottoman throne in 1789, at the age of 27. 

He was a good looking, slender young man, able and energetic, an accomplished musician and a poet. He corresponded with King Louis XVI of France, who faced similar difficulties to those that Selim would now discover.
        The previous sultan, Abdulhamid I, had complained of sleepless nights. Selim soon grasped why. His empire was beset by war, disobedient soldiers, economic decline, a restless populace and thrusting minorities, aggressive neighbours, religious fundamentalism, frequent fires in Constantinople as well as outbreaks of plague.

Selim set about initiating reforms of the taxation system and especially of the army. It was obvious that without radical modernisation, the Ottoman army would never hold back the constant attempts at invasion by the Russian and Austrian forces. In spite of much opposition from conservative elements, Selim managed to set his reforms in motion. By 1807 he had established the Nizam-i-Cedid, the New Military Order; 27 thousand troops trained in modern European drill and tactics. These troops were stationed outside the city to avoid inflaming the hatred of reactionary elements in Ottoman society, and in particular, the janissaries, who resisted anything that might harm their privileged status.

Selim gave many parties in the gardens of his palaces. In April 1797 he gave a tulip fete. This is the last known mention of such an event, which had been so popular at the Ottoman court throughout the 18th century. He was an active man and took part in jirit matches, together with his young nephew, the future Sultan Mahmud II. They made up teams from the palace gardeners and the pageboys. Mahmud led the bamya team and Selim the cabbage team.

At the Sultan's invitation, foreign advisers from many European countries flooded into Constantinople.  Selim's court was the centre for introducing European culture into Turkish society. France, Turkey's oldest ally, was particularly favoured. The Sultan gained a reputation for favouring western civilisation.  In addition, he was attracted to the artistic pleasures of rebuilding and decorating his many palaces. [We can see some of these through the paintings of Antoine-Ignace Melling, who became decorator to the Sultan and to his sister, Hatice Sultan.]
                                  

Struggling under a heavy burden of taxation, the people protested, sometimes violently. Selim lacked the ruthlessness necessary to resist the growing pressure.
In May 1807, a revolt broke out in a fort at the top of the Bosphorus. The unrest grew until the Sultan was forced to abdicate in favour of his weak-minded cousin, Mustafa IV.  
Over the following year matters grew steadily worse. The Russians were occupying Wallachia and Moldavia, which meant food was scarce in Constantinople.  A loyal Governor attempted to restore Selim to the throne but in the struggle, reactionary soldiers murdered Selim on 28th July 1808.  

Today he is remembered for his music and poetry as well as for his efforts at reform. Some of his music is still played on Turkish radio. His favourite summer palace on the shores of the Golden Horn, is now the State Music Museum.

Aynalikavak Kasri - the Pavilion of the Mirrored Poplars
[top] facade facing the Golden Horn
[below] the composition room

                                          *****************************************

The plan to modernise the Turkish army is a basic theme of April and May, set in Constantinople in 1804.

April and May

                                                      *************************

The attempt to end the long running war with Russia is the background

 to  Scandalous Lady, also set in Constantinople in 1811.

Scandalous Lady

                                                     

                                                     *************************

A Holiday Blog Party

Fellow writer Jean Bull is hosting a Holiday Blog Party this week. Jean is visiting many interesting destinations and sending postcards back to show all the delights of a sunshine holiday. For full details, visit her blog at 

                                           Jean Bull's Writing Blog

       And now for a few postcards from my recent holiday in the Pyrenees. This stunning region is the setting for my second story about the Montailhac brothers. Remote, dramatic and starkly beautiful, this mountainous area never fails to delight me.

  

The Lake of Bethmale. 

                                                                   

The Valley of Niaux with its prehistoric caverns

The Ferme de Méras, worked by oxen and mules. 

I could go on - but I'd rather plan a return visit....soon!

The Battle of the Pyrenees, July-September 1813

The Battle of the Pyrenees was a large-scale offensive launched on 25th July 1813 by Marchal Soult, on orders from Napoleon, in the hope of relieving the French garrisons under siege at Pamplona and San Sebastian. After initial success the offensive ground to a halt in the face of increased allied resistance under the command of Wellington. 

                   

The Battle of the Pyrenees involved several distinct actions. 

On 25th July, Soult and two French corps fought the reinforced British 4th division and a Spanish division at the Battle of Roncevalles. The Allied force successfully held off all attacks during the day, but retreated from Roncevalles Pass that night in the face of overwhelming French numerical superiority. 

Also on 25th, a third French corps severely tried the British 2nd division at the Battle of Maya. The British withdrew from the Maya Pass that evening.  

Wellington rallied his troops a short distance north of Pamplona and repelled the attacks of Soult's two corps at the Battle of Sorauren on 28th July. Instead of falling back northeast towards Roncevalles Pass, Soult made contact with his third corps on 29th July and began to move north. Soult abandoned the offensive on 30th July and headed towards France, having failed to relieve either garrison.

On 30th July, Wellington attacked Soult's rearguard at Sorauren, driving some French troops to the northeast, while most continued to the north. Soult led his army up the Bidassoa River valley and escaped the British after a final rearguard action at Etxalar on 2nd August.
                                

              Wellington at the Battle of Sorauren, 28th - 29th July 1813

[All necessary background for my current story about the Montailhac brothers, who live in the eastern Pyrenees.]

The Next Big Thing #thenextbigthing

The Next Big Thing:
 Scandalous Lady

The latest game for authors in the blogosphere is to tag each other for The Next Big Thing. Once tagged, an author answers a few questions, then tags other writers, with their permission.

This time I was tagged by Jane Risdon.
You can read a wide variety of items by Jane at   http://janerisdon.wordpress.com/

Jane loves books as magical things and of course I would agree with her that the smell and feel of them is the first part of the spell. Once inside a good book, you are in another world, one that is always there for you to go back to. Jane's WIP is about the sleuth Lavinia Birdsong, retired from MI5 to live in an Oxfordshire village. But when mystery and murder occur, she has to go back to solving the crimes. We are waiting eagerly for Lavinia to complete her first adventure, so we can read it….

Now for.......The Next Big Thing.

What is the working title of your book?

          Scandalous Lady

Where did the idea come from for the book?

For me, things start by looking at pictures. I have a large collection of faces and buildings, gathered from magazines, etc. One or two faces suddenly seem to have a story attached and a few scenes of their story are immediately clear to me, although I'm not sure where in the tale these events take place. It's as if the story is already complete, but I must work to uncover it, little by little.
This time, my hero looked gravely out at me and his character was evident: proud, subtle and determined, yet he also liked to tease. His dark colouring indicated an exotic setting, so Istanbul, a city I love, seemed to be part of his story. Lady Hester Stanhope spent some months in Istanbul in 1811, when things were settling down after a period of great turmoil. And setting the tale in that year allowed me to add in a few details about Sultan Selim III, whose life fascinates me. Another photo of a sultry young lady with a fearless look completed the basic mix. She was going to challenge my gorgeous but arrogant hero to the limit.

What genre does your book fall under?

Historical romance with a dash of adventure.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The hero's looks are based on Santiago Cabrera. It was the actor's thoughtful pose that initially inspired me. I also think he has the right voice to play Selim / Henri, who is part French, part Turkish. Olivia is a redhead and very lively. Carey Mulligan would provide a wonderful, impish contrast to my rather serious Selim / Henri.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

No matter the obstacles, love will find a way through them.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I hope to find a publisher to take the story. Agents are not keen on Regency set stories, although the public like them.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

About eight months writing time but before I could complete it, I needed to go to Istanbul and to the Pyrenees for research - so just over a year altogether. But eventually it took longer because my first draft is always very different from the final version of the story. And the chateau in the Pyrenees was so wonderful I went back for a second visit.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I feel very presumptuous even to mention myself in the same sentence as such a prestigious author but the closest would be Loretta Chase's Mr Impossible - because both stories are about an English person coping with life in a very different culture. It's also clear that both she and I like exotic settings.
Here is a view of Istanbul / Constantinople from Pera, where the European community lived, looking south across the Golden Horn.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

I love to read about intrepid women travelers. For a long time I was looking for an opportunity to put Lady Hester Stanhope into a story. As she spent time in Istanbul, that settled both the time and place for me. Her independent lifestyle makes her a role-model for Olivia, my heroine. In addition, I have to confess to a special interest in the Ottoman Sultan, Selim III, the gentle musician monarch. He tried to reform his empire but he was murdered by reactionary soldiers in 1808.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

It is an Ottoman Regency story and opens the door on an exotic world. As this is mainly seen through Olivia's eyes, the reader can share her experience of dipping in and out of a very different way of life and then return  to more familiar customs. Here is the kasir [pavilion, part of a royal palace] where Selim stayed while working for the Sultan. This little gem is situated on the north shore of the Golden Horn. It was the favourite palace of Sultan Selim III, and is now the National Music Museum.

                                                                                                         

Now I'm tagging Cindy Nord to tell us about her latest stories on The Next Big Thing. There is a lot of fascinating information about Cindy, her writings and her interest in the American Civil War Reenactment Society on her website at :    www.cindynord.com

Cindy writes a luscious blend of history and romance with fast-paced action and emotionally driven characters. She has been a finalist or won many times in chapter competitions, including the Romance Writers of America National Golden Heart Contest. Her latest novel, "NO GREATER GLORY" is a love story set against the tapestry of the American Civil War.



Istanbul live

  The Galata Tower

                             Aynalikavak Kasri - the Pavilion of the Mirrored Poplars

http://www.istanbulizle.com/


Click on this link to view various parts of Istanbul. 

Where's the Bear?

When speaking of bears in the Pyrenees, people always say 'the bear' in the singular. Sadly, that is almost the truth.

                

The brown bear was once present in every region of France. Over the centuries, hunting, poisoning, deforestation and poaching led to a massive decline in the bear population. Their last refuge was in the Pyrenees. Here the bears were both loved and hated. They were hunted for their skins and, in a poor region where any meat was acceptable - badger stew and crow pie figured in local recipes - for their meat. The forests nearly disappeared as miners used the wood for charcoal, new roads crossed valleys where the bears had previously been able to live undisturbed. The local farmers were always hostile to the presence of bears who could kill as many as twenty sheep in a single attack. Bear cubs were taken from their mothers and trained to perform. This was a tradition in the Couserans region, where the living was particularly hard.

And there were always the hunters, eager to shoot a bear for sport. When a hunter shot Cannelle [Cinnamon] the last native Pyrenean female bear in 2004, the population was reduced to just five male bears. Brown bears from Slovenia have been brought in, and the bear population is currently about twenty. There is violent opposition from the farmers of the Ariege region, who want the bears to disappear permanently. During the summer months, their animals - cows, sheep, goats and horses - are taken up to roam freely in the lush upper valleys. This is called "Estive". As the bear is an opportunistic hunter, the farmers risk losses to their stock. The struggle over the bear is far from over.

                                         
Safety leaflets for walkers in the central Pyrenees offer the following advice:

-- If you come across a bear at less than 50 metres, help it to realise you are there by moving slowly and speaking softly. Never shout.

 -- Move away gradually, keeping away from any path the bear might use to escape.

-- DO NOT RUN,  WALK

They state that if the bear rears up on its hind legs, it is not being aggressive, only curious.

How brave would you feel at such a moment?

Saint-Lizier in Couserans, Ariège.

 Once this was an important bishopric but the town was gradually deserted for the town of Saint Girons further down the valley. The old town has been restored and is an absolute gem, gently slumbering on its hill. There are arcaded squares and quiet streets following the line of the massive medieval walls of the two cathedrals.

The cathedral of Saint-Lizier is an example of Pyrenean Romanesque style. It dates from the 12th Century and contains 12th century frescos, discovered behind plaster during restoration.

It also has a two storey cloister with marble columns, some of which have carved capitals. This is a wonderfully peaceful place to sit on a hot day.

Next door to the cathedral is a hospital and pharmacy, still equipped with its surgical tools and medicines as it was in the 18th century.  [see later post].

[Thanks to Lucie Rochelle for the photos]

The Lake of Bethmale, Ariège-Pyrénees

The Couserans region of Ariège is a wild tumble of mountains, high meadows, lakes, streams and waterfalls. The Lac de Bethmale is especially beautiful because of the incredible blue-green colour of the water.
According to legend, a wicked witch lived by the lake and she caused endless mischief and misery for the local peasants. One day, they took their pitchforks and surrounded her. Seeing there was no escape, the witch jumped into the lake, shouting that she would never really vanish. It is her cloak, on the lake bottom, that gives the water its unusual colour.

The traditional costume of the people in the Vallée de Bethmale is completely different from anything else in the region. The wooden sabots with their enormous upturned toes have a special significance. The young man has to have the strength to pull two branches from a beech tree from which to make a pair of clogs. So - the longer the toes, the stronger the man and the better chance he has of getting a bride.

                             


Picture courtesy of Wikipedia Commons