.png)
.png)
The Untold Story of a Californian First Lady and Playwright - Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Mrs R Pacheco"
BOOK EXCERPT During the eighteen-seventies, Californians took risks everyday. Molly and Lizzie rode up Filbert Street in a horsecar packed with shoppers. It was winter, and the day was miserably wet and cold. Molly shivered, pulled her wrap tight against the wind, and listened to her sister complain about life in San Francisco. “I don’t know how much longer I can put up with it,” Lizzie said. “I’ve repeatedly told Henry how I worry about living here, and now we have our baby
DK Marley
3 days ago3 min read
Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "The Spirit of the Times"
BOOK EXCERPT CHAPTER 1 The Mirror of Fate The town of Balasagun in Moghulistan district, Central Orient 4th of October 1336 in the Year of the Rat The soft rays of the autumnal afternoon sun shone through the crown of the ger onto the Mirror of Fate. There it was, facing Karia on the table, a lit candle on either side of it. A short time ago, as custom dictated, the newlyweds had stared into it, revealing their future. She had yearned to gaze into the oval-shaped mirror and h
DK Marley
3 days ago3 min read
The Complex Moral Struggles of WWII German Women - Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Fables and Lies"
BOOK EXCERPT Chapter Five Berlin, Sunday, 27 August 1939 The Adlon’s lobby was vast, with vaulted ornamental ceilings and a gigantic chandelier. The bannisters of the sweeping staircase were inset with bronze reliefs. Potted palms and Persian rugs added an exotic atmosphere. Well-heeled people bustled past, greeting friends, or headed for the reception desk. Freyja felt like an impostor. The Silesian girl masquerading as a society woman. Voigt was sitting on a leather Chester
DK Marley
6 days ago3 min read
DK Marley
7 days ago0 min read
For Fans of Kristin Hannah and Kate Quinn - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "The Making of Marigold McGrath"
BOOK EXCERPT “Mr. Murrow?” “Yes Marigold.” “Before I came here, I worked for a relief agency at Woburn House. Uh, in light of the news last week, I was hoping sir, you might give me this Friday.” Ed Murrow leant forward and put out his cigarette. “What do you have in mind?” “I’d like to photograph the children’s arrival, sir. I could photograph it, sir.” He studied her for a moment and then smiled. “We work in radio, Marigold. Radio.” Marigold straightened her back. “Well, th
DK Marley
Jul 14 min read
Where No One is Quite Sure Where They Belong - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Unbelonging"
BOOK EXCERPT To help clear the way, Frank Sasaki obtained permission to return to Seattle in April to check on the status of their restaurant and their home on Fourteenth and Yesler. He was relieved to learn about a drop-off in violence against Japanese. But with war still raging in Asia at that time, anti-Japanese sentiment was ever present. At the invitation of his pastor at the Japanese Congregational Church, he’d attended a public hearing at Seattle City Hall on resettlem
DK Marley
Jun 293 min read
She Yearned for the Sun - Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Queen of Shadows"
BOOK EXCERPT Alma felt safer the moment she entered her city. One of the guards at the city gate recognised her and asked her to give his regards to her mother. She slowed her pace along the familiar streets, passed by the huge cathedral just as the bells in the Giralda rang out the noon hour, and came to an abrupt stop at the sight of her childhood home. The gates stood wide open, people spilling out from the courtyard within to stand in the street. She pushed her way throug
DK Marley
Jun 243 min read
Passing Through History Without a Trace - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "The Lost Voices"
BOOK EXCERPT A city is not a place you enter, but a series of experiences closing around you. You only realise how far in you are when it’s too late. Leeds greeted them with noise, filth, and ceaseless movement. Houses pressed in, streets thick with smoke, dung, and bodies—beggars, thieves, merchants, wounded soldiers moving without distinction. Robert’s coin vanished before nightfall—lifted cleanly, without witness. Gone as if it had never been his. After Robert’s loss, they
DK Marley
Jun 221 min read
The Legend of the First Named Author - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Enhudanna's Song"
BOOK EXCERPT Inanna, supreme in Heaven and Earth, ruler over all gods, I beg of you: restore me to my temple, bring me home! In the ancient city of Ur, I no longer breathe the salty air, lift myself from the sacred bed, or unravel Ningal’s dreams for my followers. The southern stars have slipped away from me; now I walk the thorny brush of the northern mountainside. As I sing your blessed song, I am dying. Lugalanne made me fly from Ur like a swallow swept from its home. He r
DK Marley
Jun 121 min read
Behind the Scenes of a Tudor Life - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "The Queen's Sister"
BOOK EXCERPT Accompanied by Madeleine, wearing large cloaks and carrying baskets so we look like a merchant’s wife and her servant, we hasten to the Cathedral to pray for Queen Anne’s soul and for the souls of the men who were accused with her and died. Their heads brutally struck from their bodies, those handsome proud courtiers once gorgeously clothed in colourful velvets and silks are no more. Often people gather in the Cathedral to discuss news as well as pray. The column
DK Marley
Jun 102 min read
Shipwrecked After Escaping the Irish Potato Famine - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for 'What the Ocean Brings'
BOOK EXCERPT “Sir, we are looking for a family that may have been brought here about three weeks ago. It is the Clarey family. They arrived, rather abruptly, from Sligo, Ireland, and crashed upon the shore at Gaspé. They would be a family of five, a father, mother, and three daughters.” The doctor rubbed his chin in thought. “I do recall an unfortunate shipwreck, but from what I’ve heard, there were very few survivors. A small group of Irish was brought in the most unconvent
DK Marley
Jun 15 min read
Three Women, Three Centuries, Three Reckonings - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Heroica"
BOOK EXCERPT Excerpt from Honoria’s Battle, the second story in the HEROICA collection Early July 1683, Praetorian compound, Roma Nova city. Honoria Mitela has been questioning a Tatar spy and is reporting to her commanding officer. On a wider note, Vienna, the capital of the Holy Roman Empire, is again under siege by Ottoman Empire forces. ‘His name is Aydar, Legate Aemelia, and he is a bastard son of Murad Giray, the Crimean Tatar khan.’ Honoria stood stiffly in front of th
DK Marley
May 194 min read
A Match Made in Art and Poetry - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for 'Some Starry Night'
BOOK EXCERPT [when Emily first sees Vincent at the Louvre] When she next looked up from her work, a group of three men caught her eye. She could only hear bits of their conversation, but their gestures indicated an intense discussion. One man in particular aroused her curiosity. He wasn’t tall, but he was stocky and solid. Red-haired with a smattering of freckles. He radiated passion and intensity, like a bullfighter ready to dance. His French wasn’t exactly French—he had an
DK Marley
May 181 min read
A Family United, a Family Divided - a Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Beneath the Dark Oceans"
BOOK EXCERPT: A WINTER STORM CANADA Winter 1906 If they’d thought the weather had been bad so far, this was nothing compared to the dark days of January. Now the snow took on a wilder, meaner character and no-one wanted to play in it any more. The house was very cold, and heating supplies were running low. In desperation one day, Ellen sent the two oldest boys out to find firewood wherever they could. Coal had run out in the neighbourhood and wood was scarce. Another storm ha
DK Marley
May 143 min read
Breaking Conventions and Making Sacrifices - A Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Sarah's Destiny"
BOOK EXCERPT 1862 Even though she was expecting it, and – she thought – prepared herself for the inevitable, she hadn’t expected the intensity of the sorrow that surged through her. Neither could she hold back the wail that escaped as she tried to push air into her lungs to release the pain. “Daaaa! Oh, Da. Nooooo!” Mary held her sister close while Sarah’s shoulders shook, and her hands covered her face hoping to block out the image of her ashen-faced father lying on his bed,
DK Marley
May 124 min read
Sisters, Survival, and the Making of a Dynasty - A Blog Tour and Book Excerpt for "Infidel: The Daughters of Aragon"
Infidel: The Daughters of Aragon By Nicola Harris A sweeping, intimate portrait of sisterhood, survival, and the making of a dynasty, Infidel reveals the hidden lives of a woman whose courage shaped the Tudor world. We warmly invite book bloggers and #Bookstagrammers to join us on tour from April 27th to May 8th for the ten-day blog tour of Infidel: The Daughters of Aragon by Nicola Harris — a sweeping historical novel of ambition, devotion, and the formidable women behind on
DK Marley
May 83 min read
