I love paisley patterns. Paisley fabric is out of fashion these days, but in Victorian times it was hugely popular. The teardrop shape with the curl at the top originated in Persia. However, textile manufacturers in the Victorian era adopted the pattern. The most popular garments using the paisley patten were shawls, called Kashmir shawls, […]
A Gargoyle of a Different Nature… Read More »
I am participating in a small and select BookFunnel giveaway for the next few day. If you’re looking for a new historical romance also to add to your collection, head over to the promotion site, here, and pick up a sample free. Promotion ends on September 8. Enjoy! Cheers, . Get the news that no
Try a New-to-You Historical Romance Author Today. Free. Read More »
The Romans fought a lot of wars, including a particularly grisly series of wars called the Punic Wars, against Carthage, in North Africa. One of the more famous series of engagements was against the Germanic tribes, who took nearly a decade to be ground down into the dirt. (If you have watched the movie
The More Things Change… Read More »
I first posted this in November 2015, but there has been some changes since then! Notes on the way through… There were two major influences that drove me as I wrote Heart of Vengeance, one of them positive, the other horribly negative…but I’ll get to that one in a minute. The positive one was an
The Good Story, the Bad Story and My Story – Revisited. Read More »
I came across one of the most bizarre facts I’ve ever learned about Victorians in my research for Rules of Engagement, the eighth book in the Scandalous Scions series, which I finished just a few days ago. In the late Victorian period, one of the most popular activities among the ton was mummy unwrapping parties!
And You Thought Victorians Were Straight-Laced? Read More »
This post appeared on a blog now long gone, when I was first touring for the release of Bannockburn Binding. As time travel romances are creeping back into my production schedule, I thought I’d add it here. — t. The United Kingdom today includes Scotland, Wales and Britain, but it took centuries and blood to unite
An Innocent Burn With A Bloody History Read More »
844 years ago today, in 1174, Baldwin IV became King of Jerusalem. He was only thirteen years old and a regent, the Count of Tripoli, controlled the kingdom for two years before Baldwin reached his majority. Not only did Baldwin have to control a sprawling kingdom, but it was–even in the 12th century–one of the
The Leper King of Jerusalem Read More »
Another post in the continuing series on things we don’t have to do anymore. These days, pickling vegetables and making jam is either a quaint past time mostly within the province of women, or it is a survival skill developed by preppers for when the shit hits the fan. Time was, collection, preserving and storing
Perserving Food To Feed The Family For A Year Read More »
Are you celebrating today? What’s your big July 4th tradition? Tell me in comments — I’d love to know.
Happy 4th to My American Readers! Read More »
It’s a murky picture, because the men in the photo are actually throwing their spears at the picture-taker…and they’re not actors. This is North Sentinal Island, a remote island in the Bay of Bengal off India. The residents of the island live a completely isolated hunter-gatherer lifestyle and have done so for what an
Virtual Time Travel Read More »