Wednesday Writers–The Price of Glory by Caroline Warfield

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Wednesday Writers, historical romance, Caroline Warfield, The Price of Glory, Egypt, archeological digs, book excerpt from The Price of Glory

Welcome to Wednesday Writers! Today’s guest is historical romance author Caroline Warfield with an excerpt of her early Victorian Historical Romance, The Price of Glory, set in Egypt 1839-1840. Personally, stories set in this time era and location have always fascinated me. I suppose it’s because as a teen I watched a lot of Hollywood movies with my mother that had to do with the archeological digs in Egypt. So, without any further rambling from me, lets welcome Caroline and get on with the reading of her book excerpt.

The Price of Glory

Richard Mallet comes to Egypt with dreams of academic glory. He will be the one to unravel the secrets of the ancient Kushite language. Armed with license to dig, he sets out for Meroë, where the Blue Nile meets the White. He has no room in his life for dalliance or entanglements, and he certainly doesn’t expect to face insurrection and unrest.

Analiese Cloutier seeks no glory—only the eradication of disease among the women and children of Khartoum. She has no interest whatsoever in romantic nonsense and will not allow notions about a lady’s proper role to interfere with her work. She doesn’t expect to have that work manipulated for political purposes.

Neither expects to be enchanted by the amorous power of moonlight in the ruins of Karnak, or to be forced to marry before they can escape revolution. Will their flight north take them safely to Cairo? If it does, can they build something real out of their shattered dreams?

Excerpt: the Journey Begins

The sight of Anastasie Cloutier climbing onto the boat caused Richard’s heart to stutter. When Bashkim introduced Dr. Navarre, he had referred vaguely to the rest of a medical party. Richard recalled Navarre from dinner with Cloutier Bey, but it never occurred to him the medical party might include Cloutier’s daughter.

A jolt of pleasure cut through him at the surprising turn of events, but the sight of her hakima garb boded ill for frivolity. ‘Medical Party’ sounded like business. For Anastasie Cloutier this would be no pleasure cruise.

We’ll have that in common then, he thought, rubbing his chin. At least the chances of interesting conversation during the journey have improved.

A thrill vibrated through him when the dahabiya finally began to move. He had come to one of those moments that divided a life between the time before and what happened after. Whatever the outcome, this moment marked a beginning.

He pushed away from the railing and headed in the direction of Anastasie Cloutier, eager to share his enthusiasm with someone, only to see a servant usher her and the woman with her behind the veils that marked off an enclosure.

“The women’s area,” Ahmed murmured, coming up the aft stairway to stand by Richard. He looked irritated. “Our gear is well packed, but a gang of boys has taken up residence at the end of the cargo barge. The little hooligans will cause mayhem.”

“Our men are there as well?”

“Of course. They know what to watch.”

He shrugged. “But eight weeks is a long time.” Dreadful thought. It almost upended his elation at being on his way at last. “Will it really take that long?”

“Allah permitting. Two thousand miles,” Ahmed said, raising an eyebrow at his employer. “Upriver. The wind will be with us, the current not.”

“Point taken. You did say you know how to play chess, did you not?” The two men grinned at each other in perfect accord. Khalil’s cousin had proven to be intelligent as well as efficient, educated as well as skilled. He promised to be an excellent tour guide as well.

Want to read more? You can find The Price of Glory  here:

About the Author

Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

You can find me on my website: 

Or follow me here: BookBub: Facebook: GoodReads:

A Writer’s Garden–What COVID Did for My Garden by Caroline Warfield

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A Writer's Garden, Caroline Warfield, COVID garden, garden pictures, historical romance, Longwood Gardens, The Ahsmead Heirs, The Wayward Son

Welcome to A Writer’s Garden where writers who are gardeners or just love gardens will be sharing their garden and flower stories, as well as a bit about their writing. Today’s writer/gardener guest is Caroline Warfield who is sharing the good things that COVID did for her garden. Welcome, Caroline!

Gardens are one thing; gardening is another. I generally say I love the first, but I’m not fond of the second, nor particularly skilled. Covid turned that on its head.  We could no longer plan visits to the public gardens we’ve known and loved—from Longwood near Philadelphia to Versailles and the Vatican Gardens. Worse, we had no way  to visit ones still on our bucket list, such as Kew. All we could do is stare at our own piece of earth. Perhaps that was a blessing.

The plantings across the front had to go first. At the very beginning of the pandemic, we hired a crew (masked and outside) to remove ugly yew bushes and plant flower beds. We thoroughly enjoyed the sequence of blooms all spring and summer. Four little plants, short and unassuming in the very back puzzled me. I didn’t recognize them and worried they were unrecognized weeds. They weren’t. Imagine my  delight this spring when they shot up  into glorious bloom—Foxgloves.

We spent weeks staring at sprawling patch of grass out back. We removed the dead and dying pines that lined the back lane, and planted four trees.

Charging into the second spring, we raised the vegetable patch three inches and  filled it with mushroom compost.

Then  we plunged into a tougher project, a flower border along our back patio. Removing sod  to create a new bed exhausted us, particularly when we realized the spot was heavily  clay. We learned about the uses of gypsum and hard work, but we did it. We used the rest of the compost, and lined the patio with  bee balm and other hummingbird-friendly flowering plants. I’m rather proud of it!

By then restrictions were lifting and a visit from a friend gave me an excuse to visit Longwood Gardens again. Next year it will be back to visits to great public gardens, but our own ground will be much the better for our year of Covid.

Book Two of The Ashmead Heirs has a pivotal scene in a rose garden… but that is a story for another time.

About  the Writer/Gardener:

Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

Connect with Caroline on her Website and Blog   Facebook    Twitter   YouTube                                            

The Ahsmead Heirs

About the Series

When the old Earl of Clarion leaves a will with bequests for all his children, legitimate and not, listing each and their mothers by name, he complicates the lives of many in the village of Ashmead. One of them grew believing he was the innkeeper’s son. He is the first of The Ashmead Heirs.

Book One: The Wayward Son

Sir Robert Benson’s life is in London. He fled Ashmead the day he discovered the man he thought was his father had lied to him, and the girl he loved was beyond his reach. Only a nameless plea from his sister—his half-sister—brings him back. He will not allow a ludicrous bequest from the earl who sired him turn him into a mockery of landed gentry. When a feisty little termagant with flashing eyes—and a musket—tries to turn Rob off the land—his land—he’s too amused and intrigued to turn away. But the longer he stays, the tighter the bonds that tie him to Ashmead become, strengthened by the powerful draw of the woman rooted on land he’s determined to sell.

Lucy Whitaker’s life is Willowbrook, its land, its tenants, its prosperity—and her precious  apiary—but she always knew it wasn’t hers, knew the missing heir would come eventually. When a powerful man with military bearing rides up looking as if he wants to come in and count the silver, she turns him away, but her heart sinks. She can’t deny Rob Benson his property; she can only try to make him love the place as she does, for her peoples’ sake. A traitorous corner of her heart wishes Rob would love it for her sake.

His life is London; hers is Ashmead. How can they forge something lasting when they are torn in two directions?

Available on Kindle Unlimited or for purchase: 

Musings from A Writer’s Brain–Egypt, Romance and History by Caroline Warfield

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Caroline Warfield, Early Victorian Romance, Egyptian history, essay, historical romance, Musings from a Writer's Brain, The Price of Glory

I’ve never been to Egypt.  I often set books in places I’ve visited—and I’ve been to over fifteen countries­—but I’ve never been to Egypt, except in imagination. My great passion is history, however, and Egypt is a history lover’s dream. I couldn’t resist it as a setting for a novel.

It is hard to write about the 19^th century and not bump into issues surrounding the long, slow, disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and what the English called “the Eastern Question.” England needed the Ottoman Empire as a buffer to Russian expansionism in ways too complex to go into in  detail. (Think trade routes to India, for one thing.) In researching various books, I became intrigued by the figure of Muhammad Ali Pasha, nominally viceroy of Egypt on behalf of the Ottoman Sultan. In digging deeper, I discovered:

courtesy of Wikimedia

• Muhammad was actually Albanian, a solider in service to the Sultan sent to drive the French from Egypt. He did so well, he set himself up as governor.
• Over decades he also absorbed all of Palestine including what is now Syria under his rule. His son, head of the Egyptian Army, threatened to take Constantinople and topple the empire not once but twice. Russian intervened the first time. England, Austria, Prussia, Russia, and (eventually) France the second time, clipping Muhammad’s wings.
• His armies also took Nubia (what is now northern Sudan) and grafted it on to Egypt, They built Khartoum as  a military outpost.
• He was modern and forward thinking in many ways, bringing Western engineering, education, and medicine to Egypt.
• Under his rule they even opened a medical school for women in 1832. Women graduates were called hakimas, healers, and cared for women and children.
• He was also despotic, ambitions and cruel. The source of much of his wealth came from trading in and using the labor of enslaved people. Khartoum was a slave trading center.

However, I don’t write straight up historical fiction. I write romance, and I like to think I write “family  centered” romance. The heroes and  heroines of recent books are the children of characters in my earlier books.  When my English hero, raised by a tribe of ferociously  strong women  (his mother is the heroine of Dangerous Works), meets the daughter of a French doctor, trained in the famous medical school, but raised in a male dominated home with a jaundiced view of marriage, their relationship is complicated, to say the least.

I was able to weave that background together with what I learned about Egypt into their story in Cairo, as they  travel down the Nile to Khartoum, and as they are forced to flee back  to create The Price of Glory and I’m thrilled with  the results.

The Price of Glory

by Caroline Warfield

Richard Mallet comes to Egypt with dreams of academic glory. He will be the one to unravel the secrets of the ancient Kushite language. Armed with license to dig, he sets out for Meroë, where the Blue Nile meets the White. He has no room in his life for dalliance or entanglements, and he certainly doesn’t expect to face insurrection and unrest.

Analiese Cloutier seeks no glory—only the eradication of disease among the women and children of Khartoum. She has no interest whatsoever in romantic nonsense and will not allow notions about a lady’s proper role to interfere with her work. She doesn’t expect to have that work manipulated for political purposes.

Neither expects to be enchanted by the amorous power of moonlight in the ruins of Karnak, or to be forced to marry before they can escape revolution. Will their flight north take them safely to Cairo? If it does, can they build something real out of their shattered dreams?

Preorder here.

Note to readers: This book is a Historical Romance, early Victorian, set in Egypt 1839-1840 and is a sensual, but not steamy romance.

About the Author

Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

My website:  http://www.carolinewarfield.com/

Or follow me here: Bookbub: Facebook: Good Reads:

Wednesday Writers–Lord Ethan’s Courage by Caroline Warfield

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book excerpt from Lord Ethan's Courage, Caroline Warfield, Fire and Frost collection, historical regency romance, Lord Ethan's Courage, Wednesday Writers

Today’s Wednesday Writer’s guest is Caroline Warfield, author of Historical Romance/Regency. She’ll be sharing an excerpt from her book Lord Ethan’s Courage, one of several novellas in the Fire and Frost collection. She’s also going to talk about what goes into making such a collection. Welcome, Caroline!

 

 

 

 

MANAGING A GROUP PROJECT

by Caroline Warfield

 

When a group of friends gets together and decides to produce a collection of novellas, it is significantly more complex than simply, “Hey folks, let’s make a book!” My friends The Bluestocking Belles have done six and they are never easy.

The first task is to agree on a theme, or an organizing principle, to tie the stories together. I’ve read entirely too many for which the only unifying theme is “Christmas.” We try to connect them a bit more than that, and we’ve gone in a variety of directions. What has consistently worked best is to agree on an event that each of the stories will include. Once it was a country house party at Christmas; once it was a ball on Valentine’s day beneath the crystal chandeliers of the Assembly Rooms in Bath. This year we focused on the 1814 frost fair on the frozen Thames, and decided that our characters would conduct a charity auction on behalf of veterans of the Napoleonic wars and their families. It turned out to be both fun and enlightening.

Frost Fair on the Frozen Thames

By choosing a unifying event, we can write separately. We post the potential shared scenes to a private space on Facebook so we can make sure our details line up, our characters behave, and we describe the event the same. If we have five couples all at the same ball or charity auction, we need to tell the same story from 5-10 points of view. It is much less difficult and more fun than you might think. We can rely on each other for shared characters as in, “Does someone have an uppity aunt who might insult my heroine?” or “Do you have a gentleman who can ask my heroine to dance?”

This year we put the actual auction in shared space. Jude Knight contributed some beloved elders to actually conduct the auction. Several of us posted our scenes of the bidding. Snatches of dialog, bidders, winners, and losers were shared back and forth so that when our individual stories were complete, that scene meshed in all five. To a lesser degree a skating scene and a theatre scene appear in some but not all of the stories. After all, all our characters are in London at the same time. Some of us have characters that have appeared in previous collections as well.

Once the stories are written, we do two rounds of beta reading in which we all read all of them. That has the usual benefit if sorting out plot holes and typos, but also smoothing out the share details. Once that is finished, production starts and that is a bit less fun. We agree on specs and all produce a formatted final document. One person assembles the master manuscript. Other jobs are divided up: proof reading, editing and formatting. Agreeing on a title is hard; hopefully we’ve managed that early in the writing process. We hire a cover artist unless one of us is particularly inspired (as occurred this year). Someone makes promotional memes and we all use the same template.

Someone sorts out an event for the launch. This year we had a blog hop called (not surprisingly) the 1814 Frost Faire on the Thames. We each created a story about one fair booth, a bit of flash fiction involving our characters, and added a bit of historical trivia. There were, of course, prizes. Folks seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.

What happens after launch? We start planning the next one. We’re already doing that; see you next year.

 

 

About Fire & Frost

In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.

Love unexpected, rekindled, or brand new—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the frigid winter. After weeks of fog and cold, all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.

In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul-searing romance.

 

EXCERPT

from Lord Ethan’s Courage

Caroline Warfield’s novella

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ethan shivered behind the mews to the rear of Chadbourn House, able neither to return to his hiding place nor to approach the earl. He held the stump of his damaged arm against his chest with the other, trying to keep the chill at bay. It had snowed the night before.

Many months had passed since anything as inconvenient as duty had bothered Ethan, and now that it had, he didn’t care for the feeling at all. Belief someone should tell the earl his sister put herself in jeopardy with her misguided efforts to help injured soldiers drew him there; old fears held him back. He might have hovered next to the mews until he froze to death and they hauled his unloved carcass to a pauper’s grave—or sold it to the body snatchers—if he hadn’t been spotted.

“You there, looking for a meal? Speak up; I almost missed you in the fog.”

Ethan gaped at the groom who came toward him wiping his hands. He didn’t know if the man meant to accuse him of stealing or offer him bread.

“Y’ve come to the right place; follow me.” The man didn’t wait; he started toward the house. “What regiment?”

Ethan, thoroughly confused, followed him. “Regiment?”

“Aye, where’d you serve, man?”

How can he tell I’m a soldier?

“Veteran, aren’t ye? Why else would you hang outside the earl’s kitchen?” The groom held a door open for him.

Ethan stepped up, and mumbled under his breath, “Light Division,” as he passed.

“Craufurd’s? God love y’!”

Warmth wrapped itself around Ethan as they entered the kitchen. “’Nother ’un Mrs. Potter,” the groom called. “Served in th’ Light Division. Not many o’ them left,” he added mournfully, on his way back out the door.

A plump woman gave Ethan a swift no-nonsense examination before he could speak, and scowled at his appearance before waving a dripping spoon toward a table in the corner. The savory stew she set on the table so overwhelmed him that he almost forgot who he was, much less why he came.

Ethan attacked the stew, shoveling it in as rapidly as he could swallow. “Easy now,” the woman chided. “No point in making yourself sick.” She set a plate of warm bread down next to him. “Craufurd’s was it? My man died at Cuidad Rodrigo.”

Ethan kept eating, more slowly now, his stomach clenching. He hadn’t come to share war stories. Cuidad Rodrigo. The words almost drove him back out the door. “I’ve come to see the earl,” he said between bites of bread.

“He isn’t here,” she said. “If it’s work you want—”

“It’s not,” he muttered. He knew the ways of the upper ten thousand. No earl was ‘in’ until he knew who asked and what they wanted. “I won’t keep him long. I’ll just say my piece and be gone.” He considered in bitter humor that he ought to have brought his calling card.

The one-eared footman he saw in the alley came in carrying buckets of water. “Another hungry veteran, Mrs. Potter?” he asked. “What’s his regiment?”

“As you see,” the cook responded. “Served with—”

Ethan had enough bad memories. He rose to his feet. “Tell the earl I have a message, and I’ll—”

“He isn’t here,” Mrs. Potter repeated.

“You can see his man of business if you want work, though,” the footman added.

Ethan did not want work, and he most certainly did not want to revisit bad memories with the oddest collection of servants he’d ever encountered.

“What I have to say is for his ears only. I know the earl isn’t ‘in’. I’ll only take a moment to give him my message and be on my way.”

Both servants stared at him as if he were simpleminded.

“It isn’t how it’s done,” the footman muttered.

Years past caring how things ought to be done, Ethan lost all patience. He stalked out the door to the family quarters, with the footman scurrying behind.

“You can’t go there!” the boy shouted. A stern looking butler started down from the front of the house, and Ethan turned down a hallway, surprised at his spurt of energy. A study was bound to be off the back corridors, and if he made enough of a scene the earl would show himself. He yanked open a door and stopped dead in his tracks.

“You!” the speaker and sole occupant of the room stared at him in astonishment. He had wandered into the library, and stumbled onto Lady Flora.

Want to read more? You can find Caroline’s book at this Buy Link

 

About the Author:

Traveler, would-be adventurer, librarian, technology manager, Caroline Warfield has many things, but she is above all a romantic. Someone who begins life as an army brat develops a wide view of life. She reckons she is on at least her third act. When she isn’t off seeking adventures with her Beloved or her grandson down the block, she works happily in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to even more adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS  Website   Facebook   BookBub

 

Free Book Friday Christmas Romances–A Dangerous Nativity by Caroline Warfield

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A Dangerous Nativity, Caroline Warfield, Christmas romance, Free Book Friday, Sweet

 

It’s Time for free Christmas Romances! Today’s offering is from historical author Caroline Warfield. Reviews show this to be a sweet read.

 

A Dangerous Nativity

By Caroline Warfield

A lonely earl, a competent heroine of dubious origins, family secrets, and three young boys…a goat on the roof, kisses in the barn, and mischief in the parlor…

Two passions rule Will Landrum’s life: family and a devotion to the land and those who depend on it. The only benefit of being Earl of Chadbourn that matters to him is the right to care for those things. Carrying family burdens can be lonely, however, without a life partner.

Catherine Wheatly’s mother married her beloved Papa when Cath was ten. No one ever had to explain to Cath that base-born daughters have few marriage prospects. She knew. She contented herself being the best land-steward in the county and helping Papa with is research and raising her two brothers.

Trapped by his brother-in-law’s death into responsibility for his traumatized nephew, grieving sister, and an estate gone to ruin, loneliness overwhelms Will. The first-rate husbandry of a neighboring farm and Catherine, who runs it, draw him like a moth to a flame. With Christmas coming, can he repair the damaged estate and far more damaged family? Dare he hope for love in the bargain?

Excerpt

The three boys, and their woolly friends, wandered off to the barn, arguing about what animal might stand for a shepherd. Randy argued correctly that Bertha, who was a sheepdog, would be the logical choice. “But she’s going to be Mother Mary. If we make her a shepherd, where will we be?” Freddy insisted, lobbying for the loan of a horse.

When the barn door closed, Chadbourn and Catherine convulsed in laughter.

“Oh, my lord,” Catherine laughed, tears rolling down her cheeks. “However am I going to keep from laughing on Christmas morning? I will disgrace myself during services.”

“Will.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“My name is William. Two people who laugh so hard together certainly ought to make use of given names, Catherine.” His expression held a challenge.

She looked to the house, as if she could hear her father’s fervent admonition about trusting titled blackguards, from the yard.

“Say it. Say my name.”

“Will,” she whispered. She felt a blush heat her cheeks. “For this moment. For the laughter, but not—”

“—not when I talk with your father? Have you convinced him I’m right about your brothers?”

She shook her head, a sly smile appearing only briefly. “Not quite. I’m wearing him down, though.”

When he took her hand, she let him. When he drew it toward his lips rather than bowing over her fingers, she let him. When he cupped her cheek and leaned in to kiss her, she almost let him.

“Unhand my daughter, you damned rakehell!” Papa stood in the doorway in full outrage.

There are links to multiple vendors here: https://www.carolinewarfield.com/bookshelf/a-dangerous-nativity-1815/

 

About the Author:

Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

You can find her here:  Website  Facebook  BookBub

 

As to those boys, you’ll find them as the heroes of her Children of Empire series.

 

 

 

Wednesday Writers–Christmas Hope by Caroline Warfield

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Caroline Warfield, Catherine Castle Wednesday Writers series, Christmas Hope, Christmas romance, historical romance, WWI romance

Today’s Wednesday Writers guest is award-winning historical author Caroline Warfield. She’s talking about her Historical Romance: 20^th Century-World War I book Christmas Hope. There’s an excerpt and a chance to pre order the book at a discount. Welcome, Caroline!

 

Thanks, Catherine.

 

Stories just come to us sometimes. This one surprised me. It grew in part from a visit to Amiens ten years ago.

 

I was, as always, looking deep into history, viewing the town my ancestors left in the 17th century, and admiring the great medieval cathedral. The tributes to the soldiers of 20^th century wars on the walls of that cathedral took me off guard.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seeds planted by those tributes surfaced in the form of a novella four years ago, the story of a soldier mired in the trenches along the Somme who finds hope among the floating islands (les hortillonnages) of Amiens. Those islands, laced with rivulets and canals, have been used for centuries as gardens, supplying vegetables to Amiens, just as the heroine of my book does. A boat tour though them helped inspire that bit.

The original novella ended with Harry and Rosemarie Happy-For-Now, but readers wanted more and so did I. What would the rest of the war do to them? How would he survive, heart and soul, the horrors of that awful war?

I was deep into the writing when I realized that a great deal of what I described came to me from my father. He haunts the book. Dad was born the year the book ends, but he fought in two great wars later in the century. Many of his sayings and ideas crept into the story. He was called Sarge to the end of his life; the book is dedicated to him.

The 19^th century is my usual playground. My previous stories take place between 1812 and 1840. This is different. It took me by surprise, but in some ways it may be my favorite. It is a story in four parts; each part ends on Christmas 1916, 17, 18, and 19.

Christmas Hope

by Caroline Warfield

After two years at the mercy of the Canadian Expeditionary force and the German war machine, Harry ran out of metaphors for death, synonyms for brown, and images of darkness. When he encounters color among the floating islands of Amiens and life in the form a widow and her little son, hope ensnares him. Through three more long years of war and its aftermath, the hope she brings keeps Harry alive.

Rosemarie Legrand’s husband left her a tiny son, no money, and a savaged reputation when he died. She struggles to simply feed the boy and has little to offer a lonely soldier, but Harry’s devotion lifts her up. The war demands all her strength and resilience, but the hope of peace and the promise of Harry’s love keep her going.

When the Great War is over, will their love be enough?

 

Excerpt:

“Clergy can be narrow minded,” she said. More than this man can possibly know. With the exception of Abbé Desjardin, the clergy of Amiens had been quick to judge her, quick to believe Raoul’s accusations. Hypocritical fools!

“Your priest seemed more humane,” he said as if he read her mind.

“He has known me since I was a child. He is wise and kind. Not all of them are.”

“He said…” the corporal broke off, coloring brightly.

Rosemarie stood abruptly and busied herself making tea. She didn’t think she wanted to know what the abbé told this man, but she may as well get it out. At least he wasn’t talking to Sabine.

“What exactly did Abbé Desjardin tell you?” she asked over her shoulder, the words sour in her mouth.

“That you’ve been unfairly judged. That you chose charity over self-regard and have paid for it dearly.”

Her shoulders relaxed, the sensation of comfort rolling up her neck and down her back. “He’s a good man,” she murmured.

“How did you find the German?” he asked.

His interest sounded genuine, but she breathed deeply before answering. “I was fishing in the Somme. Early mornings are best, and I was alone with Marcel. When I started for home, I found him caught in the weeds, just where I found your Bible. Things catch there often. This time, it was a human being. I pulled him out.”

“Why didn’t you take him into Amiens?”

“I struggled to manage a wounded man and Marcel both, and I needed to dock quickly. Home was closer. I would have stopped at another cabin, but none looked occupied, and most of them would have let the boy die.” She sank back into her chair. “He died anyway. My so-called generosity was for nothing and brought me the undying contempt of my neighbors.”

“So the abbé said. He also said you are hurting yourself by hiding away.”

“He wants me at Sunday Mass. Typical priest.”

“He thinks the ladies of Amiens need to witness what a good mother you are. For your protection.”

She snorted, an unladylike sound she didn’t regret. “Those hags believe Sabine. Why should I have to put on a show for them?”

The corporal watched her intently, his blue eyes lit with curiosity, until she began to squirm in her seat. She wondered if he found her attractive. Raoul’s eyes had taken on a predatory gleam whenever desire drove him. This man’s eyes had a different sort of warmth.

“The abbé also thinks you would do well to visit the Christmas market with Marcel.”

She shook her head to deny it. “I won’t put Marcel in that position.”

“He thinks it would be better if you were on the arm of—his words—a ‘brave allied soldier.’” He grinned ruefully.

Rosemarie choked on her tea so badly the corporal jumped to his feet to pat her back until she regained control.

“The old reprobate!” she growled when she could.

Preorder for discount pricing. You can find links to various retailers here:

https://www.carolinewarfield.com/bookshelf/christmas-hope/

WARNING TO READERS OF SWEET/CLEAN ROMANCE:

This book is mildly sensual, but no open door sex and may contain some swear words.

About the Author:

Award-winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

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Free June 22-24 — Dangerous Works by Caroline Warfield

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Caroline Warfield, Dangerous Works, excerpt from Dangerous Works, Free Book, Historical Regegency Romance

 

FREE June 22, 23, 24

 

Dangerous Works, Caroline Warfield’s Regency Historical Romance is free on Kindle beginning today, June 22  through June 24 on Amazon. Warfield is an award-winning author of family centered romance set in the Regency and Victorian eras. Take a peek at the excerpt.

Warning for readers of sweet romance: this book does contain mild language, moderate sensual content and behind closed door love scenes.

Dangerous Works

by Caroline Warfield

 

A little Greek is one thing; the art of love is another. Only one man ever tried to teach Lady Georgiana Hayden both. Now she has taken on a body of work; translating the poetry of the women of ancient Greece. If it takes a scandalous affair to teach her what she needs to complete her work, she will risk it.

 

Major Andrew Mallet returns to Cambridge a battle scarred hero and would be scholar. His last encounter with Georgiana cost him eleven years of his life. Determined to avoid her, he seeks work to heal his soul and make his scholar father proud. The work she offers risks his career, his peace of mind, and (worst of all) his heart. Can he protect himself from a woman who almost destroyed him? Does he want to?

 

Excerpt:

She attempted to make her work, as always, her sturdy bulwark against the blows of life. This time, the work only added to her emotional vortex. She read the epigrams with new eyes, and what she found there disturbed her. “Erotos” she knew meant love, certainly, and romantic love at that. How should I translate this line? she wondered.

“‘Nothing is sweeter than love.’”

“‘Nothing is sweeter than Eros.’” In English the meaning tilted slightly with the change of wording. The next phrase appeared to be about delight or pleasure.

“Definitely Eros,” she said to the empty room. Whatever it is, Nossis prefers it to honey. Yesterday, Georgiana wouldn’t have understood. Love has a taste; she knew that now. She recalled the feel of Andrew’s mouth on hers, and the taste when he opened and let her explore. The taste was sweeter than honey, indeed. She felt warmth rise again deep within her. Heat colored her neck and pooled deep in her belly.

The words of Nossis hadn’t changed since yesterday, but Georgiana had. Andrew had kissed her when she was a girl, sweet innocent kisses, not like he had kissed her the day before. The raw pleasure of it opened her eyes to Nossis. She understood nuance and meaning she didn’t see before. What other secrets do they hold? With these distractions, how will I ever finish the translations?

 

About the Author:

Award winning author of family centered romance set in the Regency and Victorian eras, Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

 

 

A Writer’s Garden with Author Caroline Warfield

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A Writer's Garden, Caroline Warfield, Catherine Castle’s gardening blog, gardening with deer, historical romance, Pre-Victorian romance, romance set in India, The Reluctant Wife

Let’s welcome author/gardener Caroline Warfield to A Writer’s Garden today. She’ll be talking about the garden enemy that makes all gardeners cringe—deer—especially when they see their neighbors putting salt licks in their back yards for the foraging creatures. Welcome, Caroline.

Thanks, Catherine.

Let me say it clearly: I love gardens. As my various biographies have stated, I am enamored of gardens, but not so much the act of gardening. Gardening can be glorious or backbreaking in turns. It can also be heartbreaking. Five years ago we moved to Cheltenham, an older suburb that borders Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I left behind three lovely, manageable flowerbeds and my thyme garden, a mature herb garden designed around a sundial, a sort of literary conceit with several varieties of thyme used in Edward Eagers The Time Garden. I miss it still. That’s the glorious part.

The heartbreaking part wasn’t so much leaving it behind, as facing the new environment and finding an army of enemies. As if weather, rainfall variations, clay soil, dying fruit trees, and insects weren’t enough, I discovered some of my new neighbors to be a scourge upon plant life. That is to say, we are surrounded by white-tailed deer.

When I asked if I needed to worry about my raspberry plants, my grandson sagely replied, “These are city deer, Grandma. They will eat anything.” He didn’t exaggerate. They leave my daffodils and irises alone, but tulips, hostas, and annuals are at their mercy. The lovely hydrangeas I saw when we looked at the house have been reduced to nothing. They almost destroyed the buckeye tree we brought from Ohio until we fenced it in. The beasts target small trees.

buckeye tree

You may wonder how a deer or two can do so much damage. One can do quite a lot, and we have many more. I’ve counted eight in our yard at one time. Other family members once counted a herd of fifteen nearby. A scourge, indeed.

Research quickly turned up a wide variety of home remedies from human hair (which appears to have been a preferred tactic of the previous owner), to soaps to hot sauce, all of which need to be repeated often. Some more repulsive home remedies and commercial deer repellent products involve foul smells. None worked well for us.

We declared a moratorium on planting flowers until we know more about deer resistant plants and methods. Abandoning a vegetable garden, however, will not happen. It is my red line in the sand. After a disasterous first season, we declared all out war. We had only one option. We constructed an anti-deer fortress.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It has served us well for two seasons and we expect success this year as well. It is too narrow to tempt them to jump in and, while lower than experts recommend, is high enough to keep them from leaning in to the vegetables. They get a wee nibble of tomato plant late in the season, but leave the fruit alone. I don’t begrudge them.

For now we’re enjoying Philadelphia’s abundance of public flower gardens and wondering how they do it! So far, only Bowman’s Wildflower Refuge has revealed their strategy. They have a ten-foot electronic fence around the refuge. Sigh.

 

About the Author:

Caroline Warfield finds walking through a garden deeply soul satisfying, and she doesn’t need to own the garden to enjoy it. She has been thrilled with public gardens all over the world, from Singapore to London to New York.

Caroline has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows overlooking bird feeders, trees, and her deer fortress where she writes family-centered romance with interconnected characters.

Her current series involves three cousins who have been driven apart by lies and deceit, drawn back to England by family ties, and sustained by loves of their own. Her books have a moderate level of sensuality. She believes that in romance sex will happen, but it can be handled with sensitivity and care. In such scenes she focuses on relationship, commitment, and emotion not eroticism per se.

In The Reluctant Wife, a disgraced Bengal army officer finds himself responsible for two half-caste daughters and a headstrong, interfering,—but attractive—widow. This time, failure is not an option.

Genre: Historical Romance, Pre-Victorian (set in India and England in 1835)

Heat Level: Moderate. or warm

Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Reluctant-Wife-Children-Empire-Book-ebook/dp/B06XYRRR1R/