A new, fresh website

It took a while to make myself a new website. Goodbye to my olde booke format, which served me well, but had done its time.

Over to 

   www.regencytales.co.uk

for a fresh new look at my writing life, from Books to Byron to Brighton and Bath;

from Lady Hester Stanhope to Lisbon or London and more, in an exploration of life [as my characters live it] in the wider Regency world.

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Delicious gossip. Read it in The Teatime Tattler

"My virtue was saved by the language of the fan"

                      Such is the latest whisper to reach the ears of our Reporter !

The Bluestocking Belles' own scandal sheet, The Teatime Tattler, allows us to glimpse some of the more scandalous events of society life during the Regency period. Is it even necessary to say that the Prince Regent is often involved....?

  [ digital image of Castle Tavern owned by the Society of Brighton Print Collectors.]                                                           

                                                                   

                                                     








    

Parkland House,    

Marine Parade,

Brighton,               

                                                31st August 1814

Dearest Emily,

Today I shall not be present at Donaldson’s for the teatime meeting. It is a great pity when the weather is so mild and the sea is calm. However, Lady Fording is fatigued and so we must remain quietly at home. She won quite a large sum at cards last night, and continued playing longer than usual, encouraged by her success. I do love her for being such a sprightly old lady. And she is very kind to me, but even so, I cannot tell her anything about the Events of last night, even though it is thanks to her that I had the means to escape a Horrid Fate.

Emily, you swore to me you would keep anything I told you a Secret and so I will set down what happened. It will unburden my mind to share it with you. Let me begin from the moment when that odious Mrs Chetwynd interrupted our little gathering at the Castle Tavern last night. By the by, did you see how low cut her gown was? If she had so much as sneezed…! She took me into the other salon, into an alcove and [I shudder as I write his name] that horrible roué, Sir Bilton Kelly, was there, with his dissipated face and oily manner. Between the pair of them, they thought they had me trapped, so that I would submit to being taken to the Prince Regent’s private party.

My dear Lord Longwood had warned me repeatedly against accepting any such invitation, and indeed, I was very Angry, but could not push my way out of that narrow alcove with Mrs Chetwynd blocking the way. It was most humiliating to see that many people in the room were watching, some more discreetly than others. And, oh, thankfully, at the far end of the room was Lord Longwood. He noted the general silence and turned in my direction. Lady Fording has been instructing me in the language of the fan, and so, even though my hands were shaking [with anger, not fright, you understand], I hastily took mine in my hand, waved it, then snapped it shut, laying a finger on the top of the sticks. That signals ‘I wish to speak with you’, and Lord Longwood understood.

At once, he made his way over toward me. Mrs Chetwynd was angry and tried to distract him, but he ignored her. When Sir Bilton Kelly blustered, he stared at him through his eyeglass in a truly Terrifying manner. Then he offered me his arm and so I made my escape. Once we reached the hallway, my knees began to shake. You know how Lord Longwood’s face goes dark when he scowls, and his black hair falls over his forehead. He assured me he was not angry with me and suggested we should take a turn along the path up towards the Pavilion and back, so I might compose myself.

In his company I soon felt calmer. But then he announced that he would be leaving Brighton today to return to London. That made my heart sink into my boots, for he is always so kind and helpful towards me and, as you have suspected, I do love him with all my heart. On an impulse I begged him to kiss me goodbye. But I asked for a proper kiss. He was shocked and then, his face changed, those wonderful green eyes glowed and he did, indeed kiss me. In those moments, I went to heaven. But now I am Wretched, for I want more of those sensations. Oh, Emily, I depend on you to support me through the next days as I struggle to appear calm. At least, until we can meet for a conversation, I have my copy of Lord Byron’s Corsair, to divert my mind from its sorrows. Truly, Emily, I cannot decide if being in love is a blessing or a curse.

                                         Yr friend,  Anna 

The Rakes Challenge Beth Elliott       

             

With thanks to Jessie Cahalin and her wonderful Books in my Handbag Blog

                         




Fancy a trip to the Ottoman Empire? Take a peek at this #Regency #Romance. Beth has packed a guide book to accompany you on the journey through her novel. http://jessiecahalin.com/handbag-galleryy/ …

                                    


Very proud to be featured in the Handbag Gallery this weekend.

Readers and writers will find lots of treats at  http://jessiecahalin.com/

Delicious yogurt

Turkey is the land of yogurt in all its glory and variety. It can be made from cow, sheep or goat milk. The enormous variety of yogurt in this supermarket section shows what an important item it is in the Turkish diet.

The meal could start with a bowl of yogurt soup, [called yayla corba = mountain soup], perhaps with a dash of fiery red pepper and dried mint to garnish it;

Iskender Kebab is a dish of spit-roasted lamb, served on a bed of pide, with tomatoes, long green peppers and a buttery spicy pepper sauce, together with a generous dollop of thick, creamy yogurt.

 Yogurt is served as a salad with chopped cucumber in it or mixed with aubergine and garlic as a mezze. It may be cooked with rice and spinach. There is also a mouthwatering salad of grated, cooked carrots tossed hot in yogurt. In addition, many cakes and desserts have yogurt as an ingredient. Laz Borek is one, made from simple ingredients but pretty to look at and a delight to taste.

And then there is ayran, a drink made of yogurt mixed with water and a tiny pinch of salt. This is the most refreshing drink in the scorching heat of summer. The yogurt can be made from cow, sheep or goat milk. 

The photo shows the size of pots and pails of yogurt which would last a Turkish family two or three days. I put a four-pack of western style yoghurts [with the pink tops] next to one pot to compare....

Kaymak is the cream skimed from the top of freshly made yogurt. It is ften served instead of butter at breakfast, or perhaps with some fruit or honey as a dessert.

Sütas, Icim, Pinar, Yorsan,.... They are all good brands of Turkish yogurt.

Milk from the water buffalo is mainly used to make the heavenly tasting Marash icecream, much more consistent than normal ices.

Summer in Brighton, 1814

The Rake's Challenge is set mainly in Brighton in summer 1814, after the grand Peace Celebrations in London, to mark the defeat of Napoleon and the restoration of the Bourbon king, Louis XVIII to the French throne.

In Brighton, the mood is relaxed - the long years of war are over and people want entertainment. There were visits to the races, to the theatre, sea bathing, promenades along the Steyne, card parties, and for the lucky ones, [or not always so lucky] an invitation to an evening at the Prince Regent's Pavilion.

 Below are some of the places visited by Anna during her seaside holiday.

The Steine in 1805

The Castle Tavern

               [ digital image owned by the Society of Brighton Print Collectors.]

THE BRIGHTON THEATRE

As it appeared 1814-19

 


[ http://www.mayhum.net/hcobb_theatre.htm ]

Anna does try sea bathing but she ends up in hot water with Giles.

and in one of her dashing new gowns


[from Ackermann's Repository series 1]

Off on a new adventure

THE OUTCASTS

The year is 1818. In Paris the French king, Louis XVIII, is doing his best to establish a peaceful regime. The Duke of Wellington, along with the other members of the Alliance, wants to withdraw the Army of Occupation and allow France to be independent. 

At the other end of France at the Chateau de Fontanes in the Pyrenees, Joachim de Montailhac, the youngest of the three brothers, has the job of caring for the family estate. He deals with replanting and maintaining the woods, organising the work of the tenants, villagers and farmers, supervising the family stables and other livestock.

Into his busy life come some unexpected problems, in the form of two sisters. He senses from the outset that they are going to be trouble. And at the same time the unrest that has simmered in the southern French towns spreads into the local area. It is clear the rebels are targeting his family.

Helen [Nell] and Sophie Hartford are cousins of Joachim's sister-in-law, Olivia [see Scandalous Lady]. In the Spring of 1818 they find themselves outcasts from their father's home and are forced to accept Olivia's assurance that the Marquise de Fontanes and her family will make them welcome. Two unhappy girls struggle to fit into the very different lifestyle of the large and slightly exotic Montailhac family. 
 

The Rake's Challenge - on Free Offer this week - 20th December 2017

                               click here :    The Rake's Challenge



REVIEWS  

5.0 out of 5 starsAh, a life of adventures

ByRosemary on 19 December 2017 - Published on Amazon.com

Oh what a perfectly wonderful Regency romance. A runaway heiress, saved by a Rake, who
then ensures her safe passage through the perilous corridors of the Ton. In the end she
saves him.

4.0 out of 5 starsDelightful

ByPaton 18 December 2017 - Published on Amazon.com

Verified Purchase

I enjoy historical romances much and this one lived up to my expectations. The Prince Regent
was quite the ladies man, but more the young ladies man. I found that this story provided
a neat way of going around the diety. Actually the scene not being London was refreshing too.

5.0 out of 5 starsLovely

Byelfon 18 December 2017 - Published on Amazon.com

Verified Purchase

"Rake reformed by love. Young lady finds a very different adventure than the one she had planned.

I truly enjoyed this sweet Regency romance." 

A visit to Brighton, Prinny included in : - "The Rake's Challenge"

Do you know how there are those authors you buy no matter what? Those authors who you love and get so excited when I new book comes out. Well that is what Beth Elliott is to me! She is an amazing writer and a fantastic person! I even got to meet her on a trip to England and we had a lovely high tea together. If you have not read Beth, please do! Her books are reasonably priced, things I read over and over again, filled with new words for my vocabulary, and she has written one of my all time favorite heroes. His name is Greg, and yes, it's serious.  Rachel Joyce


I am deeply touched by this kind tribute from Rachel, herself an academic and writer and a keen fan of Regency England and stories thereof, as well as loving Wales, where she spent a year. 

             Rachel, I put a Welshman in this story [although in a very minor role].

                                            
                                         

                          https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B077K221F4


Another day, another duel for Giles Maltravers, Earl of Longwood. London’s worst rake lives up to his scandalous reputation, but begins to find it’s all getting wearisome. When his father, the duke, orders him to reform and marry. Giles responds by driving out of town in search of fresh adventures. On his way he sees a young lady being molested by a couple of drunken young bloods, and rescues her.
Shaken by her narrow escape, Annabelle Lawrence reluctantly allows Giles to drive her to her destination. She declares she is setting off on a life of adventure and he recognises a kindred spirit. A month later, they meet again in Brighton. But the agreeable summer holiday nearly goes horribly wrong when the Prince Regent is the target of a sinister plot, involving Anna. Giles has to rescue her yet again. He comes to realise that looking after her makes life more worthwhile, but of course, the path of true love does not run smooth.

Inspiration: what sets the process in motion?

In her monthly column "The Ideas Store" in Writers' Forum, Paula Williams examines how fellow writers find inspiration. 

For the issue No 192, published on 14th October 2017, I was one of the three featured authors. 

Each one of us has a different method of finding that initial spark to set a story forming in the mind. Here is the way I get drawn into creating another story, as recounted by Paula.

Historical novelist Beth Elliott writes stories of adventure, intrigue and romance, set in the time of Napoleon. Her late husband was a Turkish poet and linguist, and Beth has lived in France, Turkey and England, so she has a great mix of backgrounds and experiences to weave into her stories. Her latest publication is Scandalous Lady, published by Endeavour Press in December 2016.

 'For me, inspiration for a story always begins with a picture, maybe from an advert in a magazine or even a fashion catalogue' she says. 'That’s where I saw Olivia with her red curls piled high and a provocative look - the rebel! And soon her opposite appeared, leaning over a railing, his huge dark eyes calm and steady, but from the little smile I could tell he liked to tease. It was definitely a tale of ice meets fire.

Somehow the whole setting and the plot appeared so quickly, so easily, it felt as if I was simply recording events, rather than creating them. Even the year came quickly: 1811, the year Lady Hester Stanhope spent in Istanbul -or Constantinople, as it was called then. This real-life socialite and adventurer would serve as a model for my Olivia. It was also the year the Turkish Sultan was negotiating with the Russian Tsar to end a long-running war, so my hero was a diplomat. He suspects Olivia of being a spy, and sparks soon fly between them.'

    

                                                               Scandalous Lady        

[Beth adds: Scandalous Lady is the first story in the series about the Montailhac family. The next story,  The Rake and His Honour, is also available from Endeavour Press ]

                                                                                         

                                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 PAULA WILLIAMS is a writer, speaker, workshop leader and tutor.

You can see her wide range of writing skills by following this link

http://www.paulawilliamswriter.co.uk

"Over the hills and far away..."

Fans of the Sharpe TV series will perhaps hear an echo of the melody as they read that title. It kept sliding into my head during a recent visit to the wilds of north-east Portugal, in the Peneda-Geres National Park. The landscape of sharp [sorry] hills, winding roads and mighty rivers is breath-taking. 

                     View across the River Lima from the Roman bridge at Ponte da Lima

St Barbara's Garden in Braga

 and the main square with several sets of fountains

There are frequent festivals and feast days in Portugal. The picture above shows the square being prepared for the festival of Braga Branco, a 24 hour festival of dancing and music.

Dolmens at high altitude in the Serra Amarela. A suitable landscape to imagine a troop of British soldiers scouting for signs of the French army in an episode of Sharpe. As we didn't see any such thing, here's a couple of pictures to fill that missing link.

                  Richard Sharpe and his faithful sidekick, Sergeant Harper

         All in all, plenty to set the imagination working on a new tale set in Portugal.

A magic carpet

My latest visit to Turkey involved stops in Istanbul, Bursa, Ankara and finally in Adana.






The first activity was visiting family in the leafy suburbs of the Asian side of Istanbul. It is such a pleasant area, with parks full of flowering trees and shrubs, and hydrangeas in bloom spilling out over their garden walls into the streets. As always, the cats of Istanbul are peeping out from the bushes, hoping for treats.

A few days later I took the Sea-bus across the Sea of Marmara to the outskirts of Bursa. Even though it was mid May, the peaks of Uludag, the Turkish Mount Olympus were still covered in snow. 
 In the foothills, the vast olive groves were a delight. The olive trees were a mass of frothy green tops on gnarled trunks, with drifts of red poppies stretching out under them. The region is famous for its delicious olives, called Gemlik olives from the name of the nearby town.




The next stop was Ankara for lots of warm hospitality and the pleasure of joining in a wedding celebration. The family breakfast was a remarkable feast each morning and a time to exchange anecdotes, jokes and news as we helped ourselves from the heaped dishes of fruit, olives, cheeses, conserves and pastries.

All too soon it was time to move on again, this time to Adana, where the weather at last relented and the sun made an appearance. Again I received a heart warming welcome from dear friends and family. 

So far my travels had been by boat, car and train, but one afternoon in Adana a very special carpet made an appearance. It was made by the great-grandmother of our hostess. She had woven a Turkish samovar as part of the design. The colours were absolutely fresh and vibrant and when it was spread on the floor,it did seem we could have flown off on it. However, nobody dared to put a foot on such a precious heirloom.

 I spent a pleasant afternoon talking to the Turkish-American Ladies English Reading Group in Adana. The members had read my story, Scandalous Lady, and invited me to explain why I chose to set the tale in Constantinople in the year 1811.

We had an interesting discussion on what fires a writer's imagination and how a story develops from things seen, from memories and how the plot can change due to the characters taking over the story. And, as always when a group of ladies gets together in a Turkish home, the event ends with a splendid feast. The kind hospitality of everyone on this occasion made it truly an afternoon to remember with pleasure.

My hero is a caveman

My hero is actually a caveman. Poor Arnaut.

When he first appears in the story, he walks out from the depths of a cavern. He’s hiding there for a very special reason [ *see older post about The Heavenly Horse]. The local people are familiar with the many ancient caverns in the region and use them from time to time for shelter. In this case, Louise and her local guide take refuge from a fierce storm and to escape a pair of Napoleon’s secret agents.

Arnaut is not at all pleased to see them invading his hideout  and Louise would rather be anywhere than enclosed in the dark and eerie bowels of the earth.

Photo: Heinrich Wendel (© The Wendel Collection, Neanderthal Museum]

She is oppressed by being shut in this warren of rough and uneven areas, with unexpected columns of rock jutting up from the ground or dipping down from above to bump against her head. When at last Arnaut leads her back to the entrance, she’s overjoyed to see the blue sky and green hills.

Louise sets off to complete her mission. As she rides away, she wonders what Arnaut has done for him to be living in such a bleak place. But Louise comes from London and everything about the Pyrenees is strange to her at this point in the story.

The endless steep mountains and deep valleys…..

The small, sure-footed Merens horses

The mysterious Lake of Bethmale    

but she’ll learn…………..

                        …and my Caveman? Acually, he’s very charming.