ALISON STUART NEWS...
Notes from Alison's Typewriter is the place to go for all Alison's news and updates on books... exclusive content, contests and more!
 In GATHER THE BONES (first published back in 2012), I took a huge risk and threw a lot of clay on the wheel, hoping that the outcome would be something that would interest readers...
The gamble paid off and over the years since it was first published GATHER THE BONES remains one of my most popular stories. BUT... when it was first published, my then editor persuaded me to leave out the Epilogue (I know the debate about Prologues and Epilogues rages on... and the story already had a Prologue!). However I felt the ending never quite closed the loop on Helen and Paul's relationship and this was confirmed by several reader reviews. Yes, dear readers, we writers do read your reviews (even the 1 star reviews that make us want to jump off the nearest bridge). In this case I agreed with the sentiments and it is my huge pleasure to introduce a new, revised edition of GATHER THE BONES, complete with omitted Epilogue. Best of all, GATHER THE BONES has a wonderful new cover from FIONA JAYDE MEDIA which really captures not only the dual time lines but also the historical and mystery elements in the book. If you already know and love GATHER THE BONES, I don't expect you to repurchase the entire book but if you do want to read the Epilogue, I am making it available to my Readers' List. You can click HERE to subscribe (or the link in the header to this page) and watch out for my Christmas newsletter coming out on 15 December. And if you would like to BUY GATHER THE BONES and immerse yourself in the weird and wonderful world of Holdston Hall, just click HERE or the image below!  Is there a better date to launch a ghostly collection of short stories than Friday 13th? (Just in time for Halloween...) "...This was a fun collection that is clean and perfect for virtually any age, especially with Halloween just around the corner." Goodreads reviewer The Hauntings of Livingstone Hall is out now at all good ebook retailers (and in print!)Blame it on the wine... the atmosphere... the fact that one of our number is a 'ghost host' but some time over a convivial Christmas lunch, a group of writers decided it would be a really good idea to write an anthology of ghost stories... Not just any group of writers but a bunch of writers with varying degrees of experience in the writing and outside world, all of which we brought to bear in the compilation of THE HAUNTINGS OF LIVINGSTONE HALL. First... we needed to have a degree of consistency to all our stories, so we chose an old house, agreed (roughly) on a floor plan and decided all our ghosts had to inhabit this house. Second... large pieces of butcher's paper and a ghant chart (yes, one of us is a project manager). Allocation of roles and responsibilities (one is a former army officer) and we were off. And of course... WRITE THE STORY... The result is THE HAUNTINGS OF LIVINGSTONE HALL... reputedly the most haunted house in England. (Blame Sarah J. Wolfe for the 471 ghosts - or 472 if you count the head of the headless ghost separately)  JOIN THE AUTHORS for a fun FACEBOOK PARTY 7.30 -10.30pm Australian EDST (which is 4.30pm Perth time, 9.30pm NZ, 9.30am UKtime, 4.30am East coast US and 1.30am West Coast US - one for the night owls or early risers!) With 7 authors there will be 7 wonderful prizes on offer. I will be giving away an autographed print copy of my 'haunting romance' GATHER THE BONES and a pair of spooky earrings - perfect for Halloween. (Click the button below to go the event page) The Grey Lady by Alison StuartThe Grey Lady is only seen when the last male heir of the Compton-Barrs will die a violent death...But the Compton-Barrs have left Livingstone Hall. There are no male heirs... or are there? Read an excerpt...‘Oh dear, this can’t be good,’ Hector, Head of Ghosts, muttered.
A bright red Italian sports car, followed by a dark blue van swept around the bend of Livingstone Hall’s weed infested driveway. The sports car skidded to a stop outside the old house and the van drew up beside it. For months, the spectral inhabitants had endured a circus of real estate agents, and potential buyers, traipsing through the house. A few had been dissuaded with judicial and strategic shoves in the back and unexplained tripping but nothing could deter the odious Herbert Boxell Junior the Third, or HBJ3 as he called himself. A succession of architects and builders had crawled into every conceivable nook and cranny, shaking their heads about the dry rot, the state of the trusses, the death watch beetle and other structural issues. Even worse, blue print plans had appeared on the library table waiting for perusal by HBJ3 and his minions. Hector had reported to the other ghostly inhabitants about plans for roof top golf, an indoor swimming pool, a health spa, pedalos on the lake and even more alarmingly, a basement disco. ‘That sounds rather fun,’ Freddy and Paradise had agreed. The others just stared at them, and the White Lady moaned and dripped water. While the attempts by the ghosts to deter HBJ3 had gone unregarded by the man, he seemed to take an unhealthy interest in them. Hector had overheard him asking the agents about the reputation of the hall as the ‘most haunted house in Gloucestershire’ and when assured that, yes indeed, there were numerous stories about the place being haunted, HBJ3 had responded by rubbing his hands together. ‘Excellent,’ he had said in a self-satisfied tone that had sent shivers down Hector’s spectral spine... 
This is a shout out for the release of the 'boxed set' (the digital box!) of the three Guardians of the Crown books: BY THE SWORD, THE KING'S MAN and EXILE'S RETURN.
The three books span the 'Interregnum' (the years 1650-1660) and concern the fates of three young men, bound by a friendship born on the battlefield of Worcester (3 September 1651). They will pay a heavy price for their loyalty to the King, Jonathan Thornton (BY THE SWORD) will be a hunted man in his own country, Kit Lovell (THE KING’S MAN) will sacrifice his honour to save someone he loves and his brother Daniel (EXILE’S RETURN) will endure years of imprisonment, torture and slavery. Their only hope is the restoration of a monarchy. And of course… the women who love them… Kate (BY THE SWORD), torn by her loyalties to the parliamentary cause and the man she loves, Thamsine (THE KING’S MAN) abandoned, penniless and friendless on the streets of London and Agnes (EXILE’S RETURN) whose love for her sister’s children will drive her to risk everything to save them. To read more about the 3 books... click HERE​​ GIVEAWAY
If you would like to explore this fascinating period in history, I am offering a copy of my time travel romance SECRETS IN TIME to any readers who wish to sign up to my newsletter. The offer remains open until 30 June. Just click the button below!
Finally... I have posted this before... but it really goes to the heart of my stories and may go some of the way to explaining why I love these books so much...
Walking Worcester with my imaginary friends...
The 3rd September marked the 364th anniversary of the Battle of Worcester, the defining event of the Guardians of the Crown series which begins with the battle itself (BY THE SWORD).
My family has had a long, long association with Worcester, most notably boasting a High Sheriff of Worcester (my great grandfather) and a well respected MP and County Councillor (my grandfather) and my father served under the colours of the now defunct Worcestershire Regiment.
In May this year I returned (or, in a sense, went home) - on a canal boat (a whole other story!). My last visit to Worcester had been some twenty plus years ago when I was researching a little story I was writing about the Battle of Worcester. That little story became BY THE SWORD... which flowed on to THE KING'S MAN and on to Book 3, EXILES' RETURN (which comes out next February). I wanted to write about a group of friends/comrades and what this seminal battle of the English Civil War meant to them and their families.
We moored our canal boat below the Sidbury Lock within spitting distance of The Commandery and the site of what was once the Sidbury Gate through the walls of the old city (now long since gone). Having an afternoon free, I abandoned my travelling companions and stepped down on to the tow path of the canal (which had not been there in 1651). They were waiting for me - Jonathan Thornton, Giles Longley, Kit Lovell and his brother Daniel, the Guardians of Crown, my companions from the past and they would be my guides for the afternoon.
We began with The Commandery (that was its name long before the events of 1651). In its past it had been a merchant's house, a hospital and in 1651 became the Headquarters for Charles II.
(Jonathan) attended the meetings at the Commandery and concluded the house had been wrongly named. He saw precious little evidence of command taking place within its walls...In the endless councils that took place in the hall the young King found himself assailed from all sides by conflicting advice. (BY THE SWORD)
From The Commandery we set off up the hill to Fort Royal where a royalist battery had been established to defend the approach to Worcester along the Sidbury road. I won't go into the details of the battle itself (I've written about it elsewhere...click HERE). Suffice to say that while the royalists held Fort Royal, Cromwell had taken Red Hill and Perry Hill. The king himself led an attack on Red Hill but was driven back to the city. Fort Royal fell, the royalist defenders slaughtered to a man and the guns turned on the city itself.
My American readers may be interested to know that it was on this hill that an oak tree was planted in commemoration of a visit by Thomas Jefferson who is quoted as reminding all Englishmen that it was at Worcester that the concept of Liberty was fought for... you can read his quote on the plaque below...
My companions led me back down the hill toward Sidbury Gate...
The Parliament guns had been brought to bear on the gate, turning the retreat into
wholesale slaughter. Amidst the screaming of man and beast, the carnage of blood and guts and with shot pounding into the walls and the city, the King managed to get back through the gate. Jonathan followed through the confusion, scrambling over an overturned oxen cart to reach his King. (BY THE SWORD)
 No trace of the gate or walls remain today (destroyed for the building of the canal in the 1760s), just one small plaque on a wall marks its existence. We turned into the city and down one of the last remaining authentic city streets - Friar Street (curse those 70s redevelopments!). Still lined with half timbered houses, it is only here one can still get a feeling for 17th century Worcester.
Wilmot pulled at Jonathan’s arm and they both ran up Friar Street, toward the King’s lodging. Jonathan took only one look back to see Giles, fighting like a virago, a small defence against the mass of red-coated soldiers who now flooded into the city from all gates except one: St Martin’s Gate stood close by the King’s lodging and remained as yet unbreached. (BY THE SWORD)
It was here in Friar Street that Jonathan, Giles, Kit and Daniel lodged in a house that may have looked a little like Greyfriars (now a National Trust property). Here they played cards on the night before the battle.
Another evening at the Commandery had ended in bickering and Jonathan trudged wearily back up Friar Street to his billet ... In the downstairs parlour of the large, half-timbered house, Giles played cards with Kit Lovell, who had recently rejoined them. They were both fiendish card players, with a tendency to cheat, and Jonathan declined their invitation to join them. (BY THE SWORD)
Further up Friar Street we came to the building now known as The Charles II house (and rather ignomiously - a pie shop) which
 had been the King's Lodgings and from which he escaped.
They found the King within his lodgings, watching uncomprehendingly as Buckingham burned papers on a hastily lit fire.
‘We must go, Your Majesty,’ Wilmot said.
The King looked up at his old friend and advisor. ‘Leslie will come,’ he insisted. ‘We will rally again.’
‘No, Your Majesty,’ Buckingham spoke. ‘It’s too late. Leslie has failed us, Hamilton is fallen. We must away while we still have breath in our bodies.’
The noise of the fighting, drawing closer up the street, brought the King to his feet. With the Parliament’s soldiers at the front door of the house, the King and his party left by the back. Taking the nearest horses they fled, at a hard gallop, through St Martin’s Gate, the gate that led the way to the north. (BY THE SWORD)
Here we parted company, my imaginary friends returning to the past, and I trudged back through the streets of Worcester to meet my real friends at the Worcester Porcelain museum (in what had been a thriving factory on my last visit).
It is a pleasure to welcome my friend Anna Belfrage today. If Anna is a 'new to you' author, then you have been missing out. Best known for a time travel series to rival Outlander, Anna has now moved to the Middle Ages. UNDER THE APPROACHING DARK is third in The King's Greatest Enemy series set in the time of Edward II.
Anna is giving away a copy of Under the Approaching Dark. Please enter via the Gleam form below. In my next post, Anna will be back to talk about an aspect of her research for this book... medieval bathing habits. Click HERE to go to that post. 
Under the Approaching Dark by Anna Belfrage
Publication Date: April 28, 2017
Matador
eBook & Paperback; 424 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
"The writing is impeccable. The story has everything. Under the Approaching Dark is just perfect in every sense" - Sharon Bennett Connolly, History The Interesting Bits
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Chapters | IndieBound | Kobo
About the AuthorAnna was raised abroad, on a pungent mix of Latin American culture, English history and Swedish traditions. As a result she's multilingual and most of her reading is historical- both non-fiction and fiction. Possessed of a lively imagination, she has drawers full of potential stories, all of them set in the past. She was always going to be a writer - or a historian, preferably both. Ideally, Anna aspired to becoming a pioneer time traveller, but science has as yet not advanced to the point of making that possible. Instead she ended up with a degree in Business and Finance, with very little time to spare for her most favourite pursuit. Still, one does as one must, and in between juggling a challenging career Anna raised her four children on a potent combination of invented stories, historical debates and masses of good food and homemade cakes. They seem to thrive… For years she combined a challenging career with four children and the odd snatched moment of writing. Nowadays Anna spends most of her spare time at her writing desk. The children are half grown, the house is at times eerily silent and she slips away into her imaginary world, with her imaginary characters. Every now and then the one and only man in her life pops his head in to ensure she's still there. Other than on her website, www.annabelfrage.com, Anna can mostly be found on her blog, http://annabelfrage.wordpress.com – unless, of course, she is submerged in writing her next novel. You can also connect with Anna on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.Blog Tour ScheduleMonday, May 1 Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book! Tuesday, May 2 Interview at Let Them Read Books Spotlight at What Is That Book About Wednesday, May 3 Review at A Book Drunkard Thursday, May 4 Review at A Holland Reads Friday, May 5 Spotlight at The Reading Queen Monday, May 8 Review at So Many Books, So Little Time Tuesday, May 9 Review at Just One More Chapter Wednesday, May 10 Review at A Bookaholic Swede Thursday, May 11 Review at Pursuing Stacie Friday, May 12 Spotlight at Passages to the Past Monday, May 15 Review at Historical Fiction Obsession Tuesday, May 16 Review at Back Porchervations Guest Post at Ms. Stuart Requests the Pleasure of Your Company Wednesday, May 17 Spotlight at A Literary Vacation Thursday, May 18 Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views Friday, May 19 Review at Beth's Book Nook Blog Monday, May 22 Review at CelticLady's Reviews Tuesday, May 23 Review at A Chick Who Reads Review at The Muse in the Fog Book Reviews Wednesday, May 24 Excerpt at Jo's Book Blog Spotlight at The Paperback Princess Thursday, May 25 Review at Broken Teepee Friday, May 26 Spotlight at Laura's Interests Sunday, May 28 Review at Bookramblings Review at Books and Benches Monday, May 29 Guest Post at Yelena Casale's Blog Tuesday, May 30 Interview at Dianne Ascroft's BlogGiveawayTo win a copy of Under the Approaching Dark by Anna Belfrage, please enter via the Gleam form below. Rules – Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on May 30th. You must be 18 or older to enter. – Giveaway is open internationally. – Only one entry per household. – All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion. – Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen. Under the Appraoching Dark
Welcome to a MEGA BOOK BLAST... featuring a whole raft of new fiction for you to dive into, including my own AND THEN MINE ENEMY
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Alison StuartAlison writes historical romances and short stories set in England and Australia and across different periods of history. Archives
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