Book Spotlight: The Queen’s Maid: Anne Boleyn in France by Rozsa Gaston

 

The Tudor series continues! For fans of Philippa Gregory, Elizabeth Chadwick, Carol McGrath and Anne O’Brien.

A new adventure begins for Anne…

France, 1514

After an enlightening period of training as a lady’s maid at Margaret of Austria’s court, Anne Boleyn has been sent to France.

She arrives at the Palace of Tournelles, home of ageing King Louis and his new English wife, Mary Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII. As Anne speaks French, her main role is to serve as translator for Queen Mary.

Anne’s sister Mary is also at the French court, and Anne soon learns that not everyone is pleased about the union between the French king and his young queen.

The king’s cousin-in-law, Louise of Savoy, is desperate for Queen Mary not to fall pregnant, so that her son Francis will ascend the throne.

And with Louise and the English queen pulling Anne in two different directions, it will not be possible to appease everyone.

Can Anne successfully navigate the familial politics at the French royal court? Will she make her mark as one of the queen’s maids?

Or could her divided loyalties prove to be her undoing…?

THE QUEEN’S MAID is a thoroughly researched, fascinating historical novel set during the 16th century in Europe. It is the second book in the Anne Boleyn Chronicles series.

‘Wonderfully detailed and entirely enjoyable. This is a young Anne in whom I absolutely believe, and who does much to explain the woman she’d become.’ – Sarah Gristwood, author of Game of Queens

THE ANNE BOLEYN CHRONICLES SERIES:
Book One: Maid of Honour
Book Two: The Queen’s Maid
Book Three: Queen of Diamonds 

 

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Links:

Book 1: https://getbook.at/MaidOfHonour

Book 2: https://getbook.at/TheQueensMaid

Book 3: https://getbook.at/QueenOfDiamondsAB

 

Series Buy Links:

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FNQHK66N

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FNQHK66N

This series is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

 

Rozsa Gaston is a historical fiction author who writes books on women who reach for what they want out of life.

She is the author of Maid of Honour: Anne Boleyn at Margaret of Austria's Court, 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction, The Queen's Maid: Anne Boleyn in France, Queen of Diamonds: The French Royal Court, Margaret of Austria, 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction, the four-book Anne of Brittany Series: Anne and Charles; Anne and Louis, 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟴 𝗣𝗨𝗕𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗦 𝗪𝗘𝗘𝗞𝗟𝗬 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲; Anne and Louis: Rulers and Lovers; and Anne and Louis Forever Bound, 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 of the 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗨𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 for Early Historical Fiction.

Other works include Sense of Touch, Marguerite and Gaston, The Least Foolish Woman in France, Paris Adieu, and Budapest Romance.

Gaston studied European history at Yale and received her master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia. She worked at Institutional Investor, WR Capital, and as a columnist for The Westchester Guardian before becoming a novelist.

She is currently working on Book Four of The Anne Boleyn Chronicles, covering Anne Boleyn's time at the 1520 Field of Cloth of Gold. She lives in Bronxville, New York with her family.

Her motto? History matters.

 Author Links:

 Website: https://rozsagaston.wordpress.com/anne-boleyn-discover-rozsa-gastons-latest-novels/

Twitter / X: https://x.com/RozsaGaston

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rozsa.gaston/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rozsagastonauthor/

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/rozsa-gaston

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rozsagastonbooks

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Rozsa-Gaston/author/B0084F8MJE

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5391292.Rozsa_Gaston

 

 If you enjoy discovering new stories, you may also like The AnaRose Chronicles—a trilogy of award‑winning adventure novellas. https://books2read.com/u/4jzKAY

 

 

Book Spotlight: Nothing Proved by Janet Wertman

 

Danger lined her path, but destiny led her to glory…

Elizabeth Tudor learned resilience young. Declared illegitimate after the execution of her mother Anne Boleyn, she bore her precarious position with unshakable grace. But upon the death of her father, King Henry VIII, the vulnerable fourteen-year-old must learn to navigate a world of shifting loyalties, power plays, and betrayal.

After narrowly escaping entanglement in Thomas Seymour’s treason, Elizabeth rebuilds her reputation as the perfect Protestant princess – which puts her in mortal danger when her half-sister Mary becomes Queen and imposes Catholicism on a reluctant land. Elizabeth escapes execution, clawing her way from a Tower cell to exoneration. But even a semblance of favor comes with attempts to exclude her from the throne or steal her rights to it through a forced marriage. 

Elizabeth must outwit her enemies time and again to prove herself worthy of power. The making of one of history’s most iconic monarchs is a gripping tale of survival, fortune, and triumph.

 

 Buy Links:

 Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/bM8Vrk

Barnes & Noble:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nothing-proved-janet-wertman/1146831389

 Kobo:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/nothing-proved

 Apple:

https://books.apple.com/us/book/nothing-proved/id6740549129

  

By day, Janet Wertman is a freelance grantwriter for impactful nonprofits. By night, she writes critically acclaimed, character-driven historical fiction – indulging a passion for the Tudor era she had harbored since she was eight years old and her parents let her stay up late to watch The Six Wives of Henry VIII and Elizabeth R.

Her Seymour Saga trilogy (Jane the Quene, The Path to Somerset, The Boy King) took her deep into one of the era’s central families – and now her follow-up Regina series explores Elizabeth’s journey from bastard to icon.

Janet also runs a blog (www.janetwertman.com) where she posts interesting takes on the Tudors and what it’s like to write about them.

Author Links:

Website:         https://janetwertman.com

Facebook:       https://www.facebook.com/janetwertmanauthor/     

LinkedIn:        https://www.linkedin.com/in/janet-ambrosi-wertman-b5531aa/      

Instagram:       https://www.instagram.com/janetwertman/  

Bluesky:          https://bsky.app/profile/janetwertman.bsky.social   

Pinterest:        https://www.pinterest.com/janetwertman     

Book Bub:       https://www.bookbub.com/profile/janet-wertman    

Amazon Author Page:  https://www.amazon.com/stores/Janet-Wertman/author/B01CUSMWFA    

Goodreads:             https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2028387.Janet_Ambrosi_Wertman   

        

 

 

 

Book Spotlight: Falling Pomegranate Seeds: The Katherine of Aragon Story by Wendy J. Dunn

 

In the Falling Pomegranate Seeds Duology, readers are transported to the rich historical tapestry of 15th and 16th-century Europe, where the lives of remarkable women unfold against the backdrop of political upheaval and personal struggles.

In the first book, beginning in 1490 Castile, Doña Beatriz Galindo, a passionate and respected scholar, serves as an advisor to Queen Isabel of Castile. Beatriz yearns for a life beyond the constraints imposed on women, desiring to control her own destiny. As she witnesses the Holy War led by Queen Isabel and her husband, King Ferdinand of Aragon, Beatriz dedicates herself to guiding Queen Isabel's youngest child, Catalina of Aragon, on her own path. Beatriz's role as a tutor and advisor becomes instrumental in shaping Catalina's future as she prepares to become England's queen.

Fast forward to the winter of 1539 in the second book, where María de Salinas, a dear friend and cousin of Catalina (now known as Katherine of Aragon), pens a heartfelt letter to her daughter, the Duchess of Suffolk. Unable to make the journey from her London home due to illness, María shares her life story, intricately woven with her experiences alongside Catalina. Their friendship has endured through exile and tumultuous times. María seeks to shed light for her daughter on the choices she has made in a story exploring themes of friendship, betrayal, hatred, and forgiveness. Through María's narrative, the eternal question Will love ultimately triumph?

 Buy Link:

 Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/bax5n6

Wendy J. Dunn is an award-winning Australian writer fascinated by Tudor history – so much so she was not surprised to discover a family connection to the Tudors, not long after the publication of her first Anne Boleyn novel, which narrated the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the elder.

Her family tree reveals the intriguing fact that one of her ancestral families – possibly over three generations – had purchased land from both the Boleyn and Wyatt families to build up their own holdings. It seems very likely Wendy’s ancestors knew the Wyatts and Boleyns personally.

 

 Author Links:

 Website: www.wendyjdunn.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorwendyjdunn

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendyjdunnauthor/

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@wendyjdunnauthor

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/wendy-j-dunn

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B004FRTZFA

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/197156.Wendy_J_Dunn

 

 

 

 

Book Spotlight: The Tudor Queens’ Midwife by Brigitte Barnard

 

In the glamorous, glittering and dangerous court of king Henry VIII and his queen Katherine of Aragon, the desperate desire for a healthy male heir overshadows all. Plagued by a series of miscarriages the queen is left grappling with the weight of her singular duty to provide a son for the Crown. Amidst this turmoil the queen turns to Sarah Menendez, the most highly skilled midwife in England. Sarah, exiled from her homeland and concealing her true identity must serve the queen and battle her deepest fears. As Sarah strives to save the queen from the perils of childbirth, the specter of her own past threatens to unravel the carefully crafted identity Sarah has created for herself and her young daughter.

 

  In a world where power, politics and religion collide, Sarah finds herself entangled in a web of intrigue and deadly danger. The fate of the queen’s unborn child, the survival of the midwife and her daughter, and the stability of the kingdom hang in the balance. Sarah Menendez must employ all of her skills, cunning and courage to protect those she holds dear as well as the life of the queen and her unborn child.

 

The Tudor Queens’ Midwife is a gripping tale of secrecy, sacrifice and religious turmoil amongst the most opulent court the world has ever seen. 

 

Buy Link:

 Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/4jzxyk

 

Brigitte Barnard is an amateur historian of Renaissance English history and an author of the trilogy The Tudor Queens' Midwife, of which the first book in the series is available. She is currently writing a non-fiction book about Tudor midwifery for Pen and Sword Publishing House.

 

Brigitte is a former homebirth midwife who lives at home with her husband and four children. She also raises Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.

 Author Links:

 Website: http://thetudormidwife.com/

Twitter: https://x.com/TheTudorMidwife

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetudormidwife

Book Spotlight: The Mark of the Salamander by Justin Newland

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1575.

Nelan Michaels is a young Flemish man fleeing religious persecution in the Spanish Netherlands. Settling in Mortlake outside London, he studies under Queen Elizabeth’s court astrologer, conjuring a bright future – until he’s wrongly accused of murder.

Forced into the life of a fugitive, Nelan hides in London, before he is dramatically pressed into the crew of the Golden Hind.

Thrust into a strange new world on board Francis Drake’s vessel, Nelan sails the seas on a voyage to discover discovery itself. Encountering mutiny, ancient tribes and hordes of treasure, Nelan must explore and master his own mystical powers – including the Mark of the Salamander, the mysterious spirit of fire.

THE MARK OF THE SALAMANDER is the first in The Island of Angels series: a two-book saga that tells the epic story and secret history of England’s coming of age during the Elizabethan era.

 

Buy Links:

 Universal Link

Justin Newland’s novels represent an innovative blend of genres from historical adventure to supernatural thriller and magical realism. His stories explore the themes of war and religion, and speculate on the human’s spiritual place in the universe.

Undeterred by the award of a Doctorate in Mathematics from Imperial College, London, he conceived his debut novel, The Genes of Isis (Matador, 2018), an epic fantasy set under Ancient Egyptian skies.

The historical thriller, The Old Dragon’s Head (Matador, 2018), is set in Ming Dynasty China in the shadows of the Great Wall.

The Coronation (Matador, 2019) was another historical adventure and speculates on the genesis of the most important event in the modern world – the Industrial Revolution.

The Abdication (Matador, 2021) is a mystery thriller in which a young woman confronts her faith in a higher purpose and what it means to abdicate that faith.

The Mark of the Salamander (Book Guild, 2023) is the first in a two-book series, The Island of Angels. Set in the Elizabethan era, it’s an epic tale of England’s coming of age.

His work in progress is the second in the series, The Midnight of Eights, the charting of the uncanny coincidences that led to the repulse of the Spanish Armada.

Author, speaker and broadcaster, Justin appears on LitFest panels, gives talks to historical associations and libraries and enjoys giving radio interviews and making podcasts.

Born three days before the end of 1953, he lives with his partner in plain sight of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England.

Author Links: 

Website: https://www.justinnewland.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JustinNewland53

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/justin.newland.author/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-newland-b393aa28/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjustinnewland/  

Book Bub: https://partners.bookbub.com/authors/4862998/edit

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Justin-Newland/author/B06WRQVLT8

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jnewland