Historical Fiction: Unpacked

Award-winning author Jody Hedlund has enticed readers with her intriguing and historically accurate novels. From the bride ships of Victorian England to the heart of the Wild West to the shores of Lake Michigan and beyond, Hedlund’s gift of storytelling has brought many time periods back to life. Now Hedlund takes readers on a journey through time to fourteenth-century Canterbury in Come Back to Me, the first installment in the Waters of Time series.

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Check out Jody's Facebook Group and her website, and visit her on Instagram and Facebook.

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Today's episode is an interview with Rachel Fordham. We talk about her newest book, A Lady in Attendance, which releases June 1. This novel is about a young woman employed as a dental assistant, but the secrets in this character's past make this story all about redemption, forgiveness, and love. Rachel and I talked about these aspects of the story, Rachel's writing career, and the importance of story in our lives.

Here's more about Rachel from her publisher, Revell:

Rachel Fordham is the author of The Hope of Azure Springs, Yours Truly, Thomas,and A Life Once Dreamed. Fans expect stories with heart, and she delivers, divingdeep into the human experience and tugging at reader emotions. She lovesconnecting with people, traveling to new places, and daydreaming about futureprojects that will have sigh-worthy endings and memorable characters. She is a busy mom, raising both biological and foster children (a cause she feels passionate about). She lives with her husband and children on an island in the state of Washington.

Preorder A Lady in Attendance from Amazon (affiliate).

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Visit Rachel's Facebook, Instagram, and website. 

Sign up for Rachel's newsletter here!

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Rebecca D’Harlingue has studied Spanish literature, worked as a hospital administrator, and taught English as a Second Language to adults from all over the world. She shares her love of story both with preschoolers at a Head Start program and with the members of the book club she has belonged to for decades. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband, Arthur, where they are fortunate to frequently spend time with their children and grandchildren.

The discovery of family papers prompted her to explore the repercussions of family secrets in her debut novel, The Lines Between Us, which released last September. 

Here is the description of the novel:

Juliana, a sixteen-year-old girl, vanishes from Madrid in the year 1661. Her aunt, Ana, having heard of her niece’s disappearance, frantically searches Juliana’s room and comes across a diary. Having made some painful discoveries when she had found her deceased husband’s journal, Ana is reluctant to invade another’s private thoughts. Still, as she journeys to the south of Spain in the hope that Juliana has simply traveled there with her father, Ana begins to slowly read Juliana’s diary. After a futile search for her niece in Seville, Ana finishes reading the entries, discovering the horrifying reason that Juliana has fled.

In 1992, Rachel is in the process of cleaning out her deceased mother’s home and finds a packet of letters, along with a diary by a woman named Juliana, enclosed in an old quilt. Rachel has never heard her reserved mother talk about any such papers, and she feels betrayed at the perceived deception. Reading Juliana’s words and the writings that had been hidden with them, Rachel begins to understand a centuries-old secret, the women who have preserved it, and what effect it had on her mother’s life and on her own in turn.

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Also mentioned: The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kadish (Affiliate)

Visit Rebecca's Instagram, Facebook, and website.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Today I'm sharing an interview with historical mystery author Lisa Karon Richardson. We talk about the Nosy Parker Mystery Series, inspired by Nancy Drew, as well as other books Lisa has written, her work as a missionary, and what it's like to write collaboratively with another author. As a special treat, Lisa is giving away a paperback copy of the first installment of the Nosy Parker Mystery Series, The Counterfeit Clue! Enter via the rafflecopter below!

Purchase The Vicious Victim on Amazon (affiliate).

Check out The Peacock Throne (affiliate).

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Here's the giveaway! I will not use your email address except to contact you if you win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Mark Sullivan is the #1 bestselling author of eighteen novels, including Beneath a Scarlet Sky, which has been published in 37 languages and is being developed as a seven-part limited series. His newest book, The Last Green Valley, is releasing May 4. Pictured behind Mark in the photo is the green valley from his novel.

On the podcast today, Mark and I discuss his latest book, his changing career, the plans to make Beneath a Scarlet Sky into a miniseries, and what he’s working on next.

Purchase The Last Green Valley from Amazon (affiliate).

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Check out Mark’s son Connor Sullivan and his upcoming book (affiliate).

Visit Mark’s website, Facebook, and Twitter.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Janalyn Voigt fell in love with literature at an early age when her father read chapters from classics as bedtime stories. When Janalyn grew older, she put herself to sleep with tales "written" in her head.

Today Janalyn is a storyteller who writes in several genres. Her Montana Gold historical romance series is based on actual historical events. Montana Gold explores faith, love, and courage in the wild west.

Tales of Faeraven, Janalyn's epic fantasy series, takes readers on adventures in a medieval storyworld much like our own.

The first installment of Janalyn's latest series, Montana Treasures, will release May 5! The first novel is entitled The Promise Tree, and it's available for preorder at a discount right now!

The same elements—romance, mystery, adventure, history, and whimsy—appear in all Janalyn's novels, no matter what their genre.

Preorder The Promise Tree on Amazon. (affiliate)

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Purchase the Montana Gold series on Amazon (affiliate)

Purchase the Tales of Faeraven series on Amazon (affiliate)

Check out all of Janalyn's books on Bookshop. 

Visit Janalyn's website and join her fan group on Facebook.

Also mentioned:

Miralee Ferrell—we talked to her in Episode 6 of Season 1!

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers (affiliate)

The Big Valley—the television show featuring the Barkley family.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Today I'm sharing my conversation with Steve Goble, author of The Spider John Series. In these historical mysteries, Steve combines his love of swords, pirates, and murder to follow a pirate detective on water and land. The latest installment in the series, Pieces of Eight, released March 16. Steve and I talk about pirates, the writing process, the search for an agent, and supportive spouses. 

Purchase Pieces of Eight from Amazon (affiliate).

Purchase Pieces of Eight from Bookshop (affiliate).

Also mentioned:

Away Off Shore by Nathaniel Philbrick (affiliate)

The Pirates Own Book (affiliate)

Check out Steve's website, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Join the Historical Fiction: Unpacked Podcast Group on Facebook!

Be sure to visit my Instagram, Facebook, and website.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

In honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, I'm sharing a conversation with Melissa W. Hunter today. Melissa's debut novel, What She Lost, tells the story of her grandmother, a holocaust survivor. Melissa is a writer and blogger from Cincinnati, Ohio. Her articles have been published on Kveller.com, LiteraryMama.com, Booksbywomen.org, and her short stories have appeared in the Jewish Literary Journal. She is a contributing blogger to the Today Show parenting community, and her novella Through a Mirror Clear was published as a serial installment on TheSame.blog, an online literary journal written for women by women (now available in its entirety on Amazon.com). When not at her computer, Melissa loves spending family time with her husband and two beautiful daughters.

Purchase What She Lost on Amazon. (Affiliate)

Also mentioned:

Night by Elie Wiesel (affiliate)

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (affiliate)

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne (affiliate)

Check out Melissa's website, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

Lisa E. Betz worked as an engineer, substitute teacher, and play director before becoming an award-winning mystery writer. She brings her analytical mind, quirky humor, and positive outlook to all she writes. She draws inspiration from thirty-five years of leading Bible studies to create entertaining mysteries set in the world of the early church, and then she fills that world with eccentric characters, independent females, and an occasional sausage-snatching cat. In addition to writing novels, Lisa blogs about living with authenticity and purpose.

Today we're discussing Lisa's debut novel, Death and a Crocodile. 

Here's the description:

Sensible women don't investigate murders, but Livia Aemilia might not have a choice.

Rome, 47 AD. When Livia's father dies under suspicious circumstances, she sets out to find the killer before her innocent brother is convicted of murder. She may be an amateur when it comes to hunting dangerous criminals, but she's determined, intelligent, and not afraid to break a convention or two in pursuit of the truth. Plus, she's adopted a radical new faith that encourages her to believe a woman and a handful of servants can actually solve a murder.

 

Can she uncover the culprit before powerful men realize what she's up to and force her to stop? Or will her snooping land her in deadly peril?

A lighthearted historical mystery set in first-century Rome, featuring a feisty amateur sleuth, a cast of eccentric characters, and an unrepentant, sausage-snatching cat.

Purchase Death and a Crocodile from Amazon (affiliate).

Purchase Death and a Crocodile from Bookshop (affiliate).

Visit Lisa's website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Join the Historical Fiction: Unpacked Podcast Group on Facebook!

Be sure to visit my Instagram, Facebook, and website.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!

In honor of Passover, I'm highlighting a piece of Jewish American history today by sharing my conversation with bestselling author and screenplay writer Leslie K. Barry. Leslie's novel, Newark Minutemen, released last fall. It's set in 1938.

Here's the description: Millions are out of work and robbed of dignity. A shadow Hitler-Nazi party called the German-American Bund that is led by an American Fuhrer threatens to swallow democracy. In this dangerous time of star-spangled fascism, a romance forms between the Jewish boxer, Yael and the daughter of the enemy, Krista. But 1930s America pulls them apart as Krista’s people want Yael’s dead. Then Yael is recruited by the mob to go undercover for the FBI against her people and bring down the German-American Bund. Author Leslie K. Barry captures an authentic and brave portrait of a lost America searching for identity, preserving legacy and saving its soul. It is a heartbreaking novel that crosses generations as it honors the fragility of freedom.

In a few years, you'll be able to watch the movie as well! Listen to our conversation to hear Leslie describe how this story was inspired by her own family legacy.

Purchase Newark Minutemen on Amazon (affiliate). 

Purchase Newark Minutemen on Bookshop (affiliate).

Check out the Newark Minutemen website and Facebook page. 

Also mentioned: 

The Plot Against America Series (affiliate).  

Wunderlich's Salute by Marvin Miller (affiliate).

Listen to the song "Fire in our Hearts" by Leslie's daughter Shaya on YouTube or SoundCloud.

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Be sure to visit my Instagram, Facebook, and website.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, you help support my work without paying any more for the product. Thank you for your support!