What a nice surprise. The Count of the Sahara has been awarded Honorable Mention as “General fiction book of the year” at the 2015 Great Midwest Book Festival.
Below is the book’s place on their Table of Honor Page.
It’s so gratifying that the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive, if a bit mixed. If you’ve enjoyed the story, please tell the world on Amazon or Goodreads.
Oh and my favorite review so far? A 4-star that started with “I liked this book and I don’t know why…”
One of the most mythologized/lied about/ accurately reported periods in history is the opening of the American West. So much that’s true is fascinating and so much of what is “known” is uhhhhhhh utter nonsense. That said, it’s ripe for good historical fiction. That’s where Janet Squires comes in.
She began her career writing short stories and nonfiction articles for national periodicals. However, my work as a Library Media Specialist for a school district inspired me to shift by attention to children’s books. Her first picture book, The Gingerbread Cowboy, is the Arizona Governor’s 2007 first grade book. A special edition of 100,000 copies was printed and distributed to every first grade student in the state.
Since then she’s broadened her focus and now writes fiction and nonfiction for both children and adults, which brings us to her novel, “Desperate Straits” She teaches writing workshops, volunteers for literacy events at libraries and schools, tend a large organic garden. In whatever time she has left, she likes to saddle up and ride, or hike with her dog.
Okay, so in a nutshell, what’s “Desperate Straits” about?
Irish immigrant Sarah Ryan’s hope for a new life in the Arizona Territory is shattered in an instant by gunfire. Suddenly, she has to rebuild an uncertain future with her orphaned nephew, Will, and take on the challenges of a cattle ranch, be it installing cattle guards or fending off poachers. Just when order returns, veteran lawman, L.T. McAllister rides in. He’s a dangerous man determined to do what’s right regardless of the personal cost. L.T. believes himself ready for anything until he meets Sarah. Her ideas about the man he’s become soon pit his lifetime of duty against desire.
L.T.’s and Sarah’s loyalty to Will catapults them into a life for which neither one is prepared. When L.T. and Sarah stand between one man and his obsession with the Lost Adam’s Gold, they trigger a firestorm of retaliation. Kidnapping and murder escalates into a battle for justice… and their lives.
What is it about that time period you find so fascinating?
The American frontier has always been a passion for me. I grew up listening to tales of how my Irish/Cherokee ancestors pioneered their way West as ranchers, miners, and lawmen. Later, research into my family history uncovered personal accounts of life in the eighteen hundreds — Kentucky during the civil war — wagon trains from Texas — lives that inspired me with examples of fortitude, courage, and humor. Frontier life is personal for me.
One of my fondest childhood memories is waking in a creaky old iron bed to the sound of my Dad chopping wood so Grandma could cook breakfast on the wood burning stove she used til the day she died. I’m a daughter of the West… it’s the place where I’m at home.
Without giving away spoilers, what’s your favorite scene in the book?
Oh, wow…this is a tough question. Certainly, one of my favorite events is Sarah’s arrival in the Arizona Territory from Ireland. She defends herself against a shotgun wielding ranch hand with nothing but a broom, teaches herself to ride astride, and confronts the challenge of befriending her newly orphaned nephew. Each trial speaks to Sarah’s strength of character, courage, quick wits, and sense of humor. A quick poll of some of the men who’ve read my book puts L.T.’s action scenes at the top of their favorites list.
Men, what’re you gonna do with them? Where can people learn more about you and your work?
People can learn more about me and my books through these Social Media Outlets —
Website: http://www.janetsquiresbooks.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janetsquiresbooks?ref=hl
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Janet-Squires/e/B001IGQIQK/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1445792569&sr=8-1
Blog: All About the Books with Janet Squires: http://janetsquires.blogspot.com/
Twitter: Janet Squires Author@Janet Squires
I’m also on GoodReads and Riffle.
In a moment of snark in a previous post, I posed the question, “Why does it seem like every other historical fiction novel is set in ancient Rome?” (By the way, Rome is the new Middle Ages if the list of new books is any indication.) This is not terribly new in traditional “histfic”, but there are more and more fantasy books set in this time as well. In a Goodreads discussion, author Chris Northern, author of the Price of Freedom/Freedom’s Fool series took me to task.
I asked him, using small words that even I could understand, to explain why that was. Here’s his answer. Enjoy.
I enjoy the mix of history and fantasy, but some people are uneasy with it. Why do you think they go together so well?
political structure must be based on something, and picking a historical period is the simplest method available. The high medieval period has been the default choice for a good while, but it has become far more common to reach further afield geographically and temporally for a framework to define fantasy stories.
And we are kind of burned out on the pretend-medieval theme, I grant you. So why Rome?
Still, Rome burns bright in history as one of the longest lasting empires, territories of economic and social stability, that the world has ever seen. Little wonder that it resurfaces in the collective psyche when our own times become increasing unstable. Perhaps we recognise the parallels and subconsciously fear Rome’s ultimate fate – a decent into barbarism and poverty that we know can persist for centuries. Not a cheery thought, but perhaps one worth a little more than a passing glance.
Hey all. The Count of the Sahara is available in both paperback and Kindle, but if you’re a Kindle reader–or know people who load up their Kindle for cheap
(guilty!) please spread the word.
If you wonder why a publisher would give an ebook away, so was I. Then I looked at my sales ranking an hour after the announcement:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,837 Free in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Free in Kindle Store)
I’m going to assume Erik and the folks at TheBookFolks.com know what they’re about. If you’ve read it and enjoyed it, please tell your friends, fellow readers and the world.
I’m always fascinated by (and somewhat jealous of) people who can draw upon their family histories as the jumping-off place for historical fiction. That’s because I know embarrassingly little about my own roots. I mean, I had ancestors, I just don’t know anything beyond the fact I must have had great grandparents. That being said, I have definitely considered doing some research using an online census and some of the other resources over on the Genealogy Bank website. There is so much that I would like to learn about my ancestors and I have a lot of questions about my family tree so it would be absolutely fascinating to learn a little bit more about my roots. Deborah Lincoln, on the other hand, has used family history to write her tale of Missouri before the US Civil War, “Agnes Canon’s War.”
Deborah Lincoln has lived on the Central Oregon Coast for ten years. S. She and her husband have three grown sons. She was awarded first place in the 2013 Chanticleer Laramie Awards (best in category) and was a 2015 finalist for a Willa Award in historical fiction presented by Women Writing the West.
So tell us what the book’s about?
Agnes Canon’s War is the fictionalized story of my great great-grandparents’ experiences during the Civil War in Missouri. Agnes Canon is 28 and a spinster when she leaves her home in Pennsylvania in the spring of 1852 to join a group of cousins who traveled to frontier Holt County in northwest Missouri. There she meets and marries Jabez Robinson, a doctor who was born in Maine and had traveled to the California gold fields and the army posts of the Southwest during the Mexican-American War. In the decade before the Civil War actually breaks out, both Kansas and Missouri are a battleground of politics and acts of violence, and Agnes and Jabez are in the thick of it. This is the story of two people who watch their family, their town, everything that keeps a society civil, crumble into a chaos they are powerless to stop.
What is it about this time period that intrigued you enough to write the book?
I had access to the basic facts of my ancestors’ lives, which were compiled by a cousin in the 1970s. The characters were so exceptional, the events so
extraordinary, that I didn’t want the story to die out. Agnes seemed to me to stand out from other nineteenth-century women, in that she chose to turn her back on her family home in Pennsylvania and venture into the unknown. She left behind six siblings, none of whom ever married or bore children, so her marriage and children were the only links to the next generation.
Jabez, too, was a fascinating and even romantic character: though he was born and raised in Maine, he held secessionist views during the Civil War and suffered from them. He was an adventurer, too, traveling to California and the Southwest in the 1840s, becoming a doctor in the face of all sorts of challenges, marrying his first love after a ten-year separation only to lose her within two months of the wedding. The “plot” was tailor-made for a novel, and though I left out lots of events and made up others, I hope I did them justice.
Without setting off the spoiler alert, what’s your favorite scene?
Several of my favorite scenes would give away too much. So I’ll choose an early one: a scene set in Cincinnati where Agnes and Jabez meet for the first time, an accidental encounter at a marketplace along the riverfront. I like it for the sense of being suspended between civilization and frontier, for the colorful characters and the bustle and excitement of an exuberant young town. It mirrors Agnes’s hope for and optimism in her future.
Where can people find your award-winning book?
Agnes Canon’s War is available on
Website: http://www.deborahlincoln.org
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21882293-agnes-canon-s-war
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deborahslincoln?fref=ts
Twitter: @dslincoln51
It’s not based on my family, but if you enjoy historical fiction,you can check out The Count of the Sahara, available on Amazon or from The Book Folks
Sometimes it’s hard to believe that our great grandmothers had to fight for the right to vote, and that meant fight. Those Suffragettes were some bad-ass women, and God bless’em for it. British author Jacqueline Beard has written a novel that captures the tension of that time, and combines it with a murder mystery to paint a picture of the beginning and end of the Victorian age.
So what’s the Jacqueline Beard story?
I’m a writer and genealogist, and have traced my family back to 1517 in the county of Suffolk in England. I now live in the beautiful Cotswolds in Gloucestershire but visit Suffolk often. I am married with two children and a delinquent border terrier.
So give us a quick idea of what your book’s about.
Vote for Murder is a tale of two murders. A census night evasion has been planned in Ipswich following years of fruitless campaigning which left the suffragettes no closer to gaining the vote. When Louisa Russell finds an old diary, it leads to revelations about a Victorian Suffolk murderess. Louisa finds herself involved in suffragette protests while investigating two horrific murders – and the murderer is getting too close for comfort.
What is it about that time frame–actually frames, since you’re going back and forth– that intrigues you?
Where to start! Victorian murderess Mary Cage appears in my own family tree. She confessed to wicked, immoral behavior but despite all the evidence against her, she always denied murdering her husband. Mary lived in abject poverty in a society where the only help for the destitute was the workhouse. I wanted to get under her skin to work out how much the poverty contributed to her depravity.
The second murder involved a family of suffragists. My genealogy also includes middle class suffragists Ada and Bessie Ridley who had close connections to Millicent Fawcett, leader of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies. I find the various factions of the suffragette movement fascinating; Millicent Fawcett’s mainly peaceful suffragists on the one hand and Emmeline Pankhurst’s militant suffragettes on the other. My book is set in 1911 when many suffragists throughout the UK hid themselves away to avoid the 1911 census. It was a peaceful protest but it wasn’t long before British suffragettes were chaining themselves to railings, performing acts of vandalism and breaking the law where they felt it necessary. Vote for murder contrasts the poverty of the 1851 murder with the relative wealth of the families in the 1911 murder. Interestingly there’s a Meryl Streep film coming out shortly called Suffragette. I will be first in the queue to see this at the cinema!
What’s your favorite scene in the book?
It’s not so much a scene, as a change of perspective. The book is written in three voices but the one I enjoyed writing the most was that of Mary Cage as she described, in her own words, the events that led her to the gallows, writing her personality to alter according to events. It was interesting to use the language and words prevalent in Victorian times and there were several colloquialisms peculiar to Suffolk that I was able to insert for authenticity. I researched real newspaper extracts of the murder and kept faithfully to the story while developing Mary’s fictional character.
Vote for Murder can be found at Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com and in paperback at Lulu.com
Jacqueline’s Blog: https://jacquelinebeardwriter.wordpress.com/
Twitter: @Jacquibwriter
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VFM1851
Every year, the Naperville Writers Group publishes an anthology of members’ works called “Rivulets.” This story will be in the 2015 version, “Rivulets 27,” due out October 3. You can join us for the launch party. Click here for details.
It began as a writing exercise: Could I capture everything that goes through someone’s mind during just the 2 minutes of a horse race? I leave it up to you whether I’ve succeeded. Please enjoy.
On the Rail
“And they’re off, and Billy’s Buddy takes the lead off the rail followed by Pleazpleazpleaz, Penzance Pirate and BarTab…”
I love to hang over the rail and lean in just so I can feel them passing by, the vibrations running through the ground, along the rail and up my arms. God I love this game.
Broke even so far but this is the race, I can feel it in my bones…. One and four. That’s the exacta. Four’s the favorite, what’s the name… oh yeah, what’s it say on the ticket, Billy’s Buddy, and he looks like chalk—only real horse in the race. Runs like a champ on the outside, with that white paint sploosh on his forehead and the jock in all blue silks and already up by a nose. Velasquez—top jockey at the track so he gets the best rides, no secret there. Best riders, best rides, should be an easy winner against these dogs. Can’t make any money with favorites though.
Let’s check the slip, one and four for the exacta. Oh, Jesus, what’s the name of that…. RoundtheHorn, and I can get a really good look at the nag because he’s all by himself at the back of the pack. COME ON ALREADY, MOVE IT. Gimme a little love here for crying out loud.
“At the quarter pole, it’s Billy’s Buddy, Perfect Pitch a length back, with Bar Tab running on the outside…”
I can’t hear the rest because the perky little cheerleader in the floppy-ass hat with the, what is that a peacock feather? It ain’t Derby Day little girl, stop screaming. “Come on Bar Tab”, Sweet Jesus H Christ on a crooked crutch what is she six years old? I swear she just called him a “horsey”. Look at her, maybe twenty one, and all her brains inside her sweater. And that hipster boyfriend of hers, what a piece of work he is, a real mook.
“And RoundtheHorn trails going into the quarter pole…”
Come on, pick it up. It’s okay, I have’m boxed. Four horse can win long as one horse comes second… doesn’t pay as much but RoundtheHorn’s fifteen to one, so that’s four fifty plus the exacta…. We hit and it’s a mortgage payment. Make a move you frickin’ nag….
Look at that little dipshit she’s with. No one under forty should smoke cigars, it makes the little frat boy SOB look like he’s wearing his daddy’s clothes. Playing grownup and thinks he looks like Sinatra in that hat. Yeah, maybe Frank Junior. Jeez, I got concert T shirts older than this punk. And daddy’s got money, sure as God made little green apples. Why else would a little hottie like that…
Come on, one horse, you’re supposed to be a stalker. ‘Course so was Ted Bundy and look how that worked out….
Oh hell, they’re behind the scoreboard, check the screen. Those little circles with the numbers on them are moving around, changing position except for one… that little green circle with the 1 on it is still behind everyone else. You’re supposed to be a closer…. Coffee’s for closers, can I get you an espresso, you stupid can of dog food? Make a move damn you!
“And off the turn, it’s Billy’s Buddy with Bar Tab two lengths back, Penzance Pirate and Perfect Pitch”
I can’t hear the announcer for that girl screaming and bouncing around. She picked him ‘cause she liked the name. Well of course she did. And she’s proud of it, too. Sure didn’t look at his PP, and who bets a grey horse? Freakin’ amateur night. Didn’t daddy teach her nothing?
This is a numbers game, it’s science, and the numbers say he likes to close so make a move, Jose, come on, let him go. Let’s see, so Four horse wins and Round the Horn can comes second if he actually makes a FREAKING MOVE BEFORE DINNER. Numbers don’t lie, he ran a hell of a final quarter last time out. I can’t read my form right now ‘cause it’s all crumpled up in my fist and I’m beating it on the railing. Yeah, that’ll make him run faster, you dumbass.
“It’s Billy’s Buddy by a length, Penzance Pirate and Bar Tab with Booboo Kitty and RoundtheHorn moving on the outside…”
Come on Four you gotta hold on. I knew that jockey let you go too fast, you shouldn’t be front running… Velasquez knows better than that. Okay but one horse is making his move come on baby, that’s it… grind it, grind it….. Come on, one and four, one and four…..
She just won’t shut up, will she? And look at the way she looks at him. She wins on that little two dollar bet of hers and he’s in for a hell of a night. Hardly fair but that’s life, right? I could win the Triple Crown three times at ninety to one and never get a chick like that. Hell, even when I was hot Sheila never gave a…..
Alright about time, he made a move. The outside’s clear. Attaboy, what’s he sitting now, third? COMEON….
“And at the last turn, it’s Billy’s Buddy, BarTab and Round the Horn, followed by Penzance Pirate and BoobooKitty”
Make a move, make a move. Four horse, what are you doing? You can’t let up for Chrissakes . I know you got something left in the tank. Hold off that gray piece of….
“It’s BarTab and Billy’s Buddy, Billy’s Buddy and Bar Tab, neck and neck with RoundtheHorn and Penzance Pirate as they near the finish line…”
Come on, one and four, four and one I don’t care just finish it. Oh honey, give it a rest, your horse hasn’t got a….
“And it’s BarTab, with Billy’s Buddy and RoundtheHorn, followed by BoobooKitty, Penzance Pirate…..”
Is there a challenge? Let there be a challenge. Course not, God hates me, always has. Why toss me a bone now? Place and Show isn’t good for a damned thing. Crap, shouldn’t litter, I’ll drop it in the basket on my way to the window.
Sweet Jesus, what’s she gonna suck his face off? Let him breathe babygirl, he might need the oxygen later. And what’d she win, like nine bucks? What would she do to him if she hit a real long shot? Kid wouldn’t live to tell the tale.
Second and third…beat by a…’cause she liked the name…. Christ, amateurs are ruining this game.
Okay who’s up in the fifth?
You can find my new novel, The Count of the Sahara at my publisher’s website or at Amazon.com
So what is it about ancient Rome that has people all a flutter? It seems like the new hot topic in Historical Fiction is the Roman Empire. I will bet a quarter of the indie writers I connect with are writing about that particular period in time. And it’s not just fiction. My buddy Cameron Reilly’s “Life of Caesar” podcast is insanely popular and a lot of fun.
A new author to the field, writing only for Kindle at the moment, is Alex Gough from the UK. The latest in his Roman series is “Bandits of Rome.”
Oh, and those aren’t typos, he’s British. The language is English, deal with it……
Hi Alex. In a nutshell, what’s the new book about?
Carbo (the hero of the series) and his loved ones leave Rome for the sleepy Italian countryside, desperate to recover from their recent traumas. But a chance encounter with locally notorious masked bandits leads to a devastating outcome. Carbo has to fight his own demons and an evil conspiracy to save himself and his friends, and avenge his loss.
Bandits of Rome, the sequel to the number one bestselling novel Watchmen of Rome, follows Carbo as he plunges from happiness to despair, from the Italian countryside to the lead mines of Sicily. Will Carbo ever find the peace he craves?
Good cliffhanger question. So what is it about Ancient Rome that is so intriguing? Seems like a lot of British writers are focusing on it- it’s becoming the new “Arthuriana.”
I’ve always had an interest in Ancient Rome, which has grown deeper the more I have found out. They were a civilisation of huge contrasts. They had mighty
armies, a huge Empire, philosophy, art and architecture. They also had terrible cruelty and awful poverty. I am fascinated by the ordinary people of the Roman Empire who had to survive in the shadows of the magnificent buildings. My hero, Carbo, is a traumatised war veteran, trying to find peace, and consistently failing. He has to overcome his own inner demons, as well as his prejudices, to fight for what is important.
A completely unfair question to ask an author; what’s your favorite scene in the book?
One favourite scene is too spoiler-heavy to describe but is full of emotion, especially if you have read the first book, Watchmen of Rome. Another favourite part involves Carbo being sent to the lead mines as a slave, and I try to describe the horror of the existence of a Roman mine slave.
Bandits of Rome, and all his books are available on Amazon UK and on Amazon.com, depending on how you want to spend your money.
Speaking of spending money, my novel The Count of the Sahara is now available on Kindle and Paperback from TheBookFolks.com
There is nothing like the feeling of holding a hard copy of your book in your hand for the first time. This is especially true in the case of my first novel, The Count of the Sahara.
I have published a number of books (you can see the whole list here) but until now, something’s been missing. I always felt in my heart that to be a “real writer” you had to have a novel published. And not just published, but published by someone who wasn’t you.
Thanks to the folks at The Book Folks, the dream has come true. My first novel, published by someone with a purely commercial interest in the works, and available to everyone is now out for the world to gaze in awe… and to take shots at.
Anyone who has ever been published knows that holding your book in your hand for the first time is an emotional experience, one that Kindle books–much as I love reading them–can’t match.
Today, I am a real author. Now to see if the world thinks my baby is ugly….
At long last, The Count of the Sahara is available in paperback and Kindle.
Not only can you order the book, but people actually seem to be enjoying it.
Good historical fiction leaves you entertained while you learn something. Excellent historical fiction leaves you wanting to know more about the history and wondering where the history ended and the fiction began. This is excellent historical fiction.
Kevin Eikenberry, author of Remarkable Leadership
Wayne Turmel has created an exciting and well-crafted novel that draws the reader in from page one. The hero is Willy but the most interesting character is the fascinating Count de Prorok, a figure that any writer of historical fiction would be proud to have in their book. The story is well paced, set in an interesting period and full of surprises. I look forward to more.
Peter Darmon, author of “The Sword Brothers” series
Order now from Amazon in Kindle or paperback .
You can also buy directly from the Publisher
