FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic - Published 16th June 2025

Released on 16th May - apologies for late posting.

FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic

If you had a crystal ball to predict what lay ahead, would you be tempted to use it? Or would you leave the future to the turn of Fate?

Tales of Variety. Tales of History, Mystery and Magic – some comprising just one of these popular fiction genres, others, a mild mixture of all three. Perhaps you prefer historical fiction rather than a story about magic or fantasy? Maybe you enjoy exploring new themes or prefer sticking to the familiar? Historical fiction can often inform, imparting knowledge of the past, of its events and its people. Stories of mystery exercise the ‘little grey cells’ as Poirot would say, while fantasy and magic create new worlds and awed wonder.

Whatever result, this is where anthologies come into their own, and where short stories are often appreciated as enjoyable, entertaining, quick or easy reads shown through the eyes of a variety of extraordinary characters and situations. In this instance: an Anglo-Saxon woman facing the consequence of conquest, the pursuit of alchemy, the concern of a mother for her daughter, the shifting of time, the necessity of hidden identity, souls who will linger as ghosts, a warning from the supernatural, the necessity for (justifiable?) revenge. All mingled with the rekindling of romance through a mutual quest, and the preparations for a Cotswold village celebration. (Along with a good tip if illicitly snaffling cakes.)

The binding theme? Destiny... Kismet... FATE!

Purchase Link

Amazon Universal link: https://mybook.to/FateAnthology

Author Bios

BRAMBLE CREEP BY ANNIE WHITEHEAD

When the Normans arrive at a peaceful Anglo-Saxon village, do the women, children and old men submit... or fight?

ABOUT ANNIE:

Annie Whitehead is a prize-winning writer, historian, and Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and has written four award-winning novels set in ‘Anglo-Saxon’ Mercia. She has contributed to fiction and nonfiction anthologies and written for various magazines. She has twice been a prize winner in the Mail on Sunday Novel Writing Competition, and won First Prize in the 2012 New Writer Magazine's Prose and Poetry Competition. She has been a finalist in the Tom Howard Prize for nonfiction and was shortlisted for the Exeter Story Prize and Trisha Ashley Award 2021. She was the winner of the inaugural Historical Writers’ Association (HWA)/Dorothy Dunnett Prize 2017 and was subsequently a judge for that same competition. She has also been a judge for the HNS (Historical Novel Society) Short Story Competition, and was a 2024 judge for the HWA Crown Nonfiction Award.

 

Her nonfiction books are Mercia: The Rise and Fall of a Kingdom and Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon. In 2023 she contributed to a new history of English monarchs, published by Hodder & Stoughton, and in February 2025 Murder in Anglo-Saxon England was published by Amberley Books.

Website: https://anniewhiteheadauthor.co.uk/

Amazon Author Page: http://viewauthor.at/Annie-Whitehead

SIX POMEGRANATE SEEDS BY JEAN GILL

A daughter’s dream can be a mother’s nightmare.

ABOUT JEAN

Jean Gill is an award-winning Welsh writer and photographer living in the south of France with a scruffy dog, a beehive named 'Endeavour', a Nikon D750 and a man. First published in 1988, her twenty-six books are varied in genre, including novels, memoir, military history, dog books, poetry, and a cookery book on goat cheese. With Scottish parents, an English birthplace and French residence, she can usually support the winning team on most sporting occasions. She taught English for many years and was the first woman to be a comprehensive school headteacher in Dyfed, Wales. Life has been hectic as she is also mother or stepmother to five children.

Website: www.jeangill.com

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/jeangill

ONE BLACK DOG BY MARIAN L THORPE

A warning of Fate, or simply too much beer and a tale well told?

ABOUT MARIAN

A dual Canadian/British citizen who divides her year between Ontario, Canada, and Norfolk, UK, Marian published the first of her eight-book Empire’s Legacy series, historically-inspired speculative fiction, in 2015. The series is set in a world ‘on the edge of history’: reminiscent of Britain, Northern Europe, and Rome in the latter centuries of the first millennium, but a world where society evolved differently after the Eastern Empire left; a world where one young fisherwoman answers her leader’s call to defend her country, beginning a journey into uncharted territory.

Website: www.marianlthorpe.com

Amazon Author Page: https://relinks.me/MarianLThorpe

IN THE SHADOW OF GHOSTS BY HELEN HOLLICK

Does the fate of those who survive linger forever?

ABOUT HELEN

Known for her captivating storytelling and rich attention to historical detail, Helen’s historical fiction, nautical adventure series, cosy mysteries – and her short stories – skilfully invite readers to step into worlds where the boundaries between fact and  fiction blend together. Helen started writing as a teenager, but after discovering a passion for history, was initially published in 1993 in the UK with her Arthurian Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy and two Anglo-Saxon novels about the events that led to the 1066 Battle of Hastings, one of which, The Forever Queen (USA title – A Hollow Crown in the UK) became a USA Today best-seller. Her Sea Witch Voyages are nautical-based adventures inspired by the Golden Age of Piracy. She also writes the Jan Christopher cosy mystery series set during the 1970s, and based around her, sometimes hilarious, years of working as a North London library assistant. Her 2025 release is Ghost Encounters, a book about the ghosts of North Devon.

Helen and her family moved from London to Devon after a Lottery win on the opening night of the London Olympics, 2012. She spends her time glowering at the overgrown garden, fending off the geese, helping with the horses and wishing the friendly, resident ghosts would occasionally help with the housework...

Website: https://helenhollick.net/

Amazon Author Page: https://viewauthor.at/HelenHollick

A FATEFUL ENCOUNTER BY ALISON MORTON

When time turns in the wrong direction, fate will always step in…

ABOUT ALISON

Alison Morton writes award-winning thrillers featuring tough but compassionate heroines. Her eleven-book Roma Nova thriller series is set in an imaginary European country where a remnant of the ancient Roman Empire has survived into the 21st century and is ruled by women who face conspiracy, revolution and heartache but with a sharp line in dialogue

Six years’ military service, a fascination with ancient Rome and a life of reading crime, historical and thriller fiction have inspired her writing. On the way, she collected a BA in modern languages and an MA in history. She lives in Poitou in France, the home of Mélisende, the heroine of her latest two contemporary thrillers, Double Identity and Double Pursuit.

Website: https://www.alison-morton.com

Amazon Author Page: https://Author.to/AlisonMortonAmazon

FOLLOWING FATE BY ELIZABETH ST.JOHN

A Lost Portrait, a Hidden Conspiracy, and a Second Chance at Love

ABOUT ELIZABETH

Elizabeth St.John’s acclaimed historical fiction brings to life her ancestors – remarkable women linked to England’s royalty – offering unique insights into Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart times. Inspired by family archives and historic sites like Lydiard Park and the Tower of London, her novels include The Lydiard Chronicles, The Godmother’s Secret, and The King's Intelligencer, exploring the English Civil War and the mystery of the Princes in the Tower.

Website: www.elizabethjstjohn.com

Amazon Author Page: https://geni.us/AmazonElizabethStJohn

 

THE BLACK ONYX BOX BY R. MARSDEN

The Bluffer’s Guide to Becoming a Famous Alchemist

ABOUT R. MARSDEN

R. Marsden is an author and musician, passionate about the Middle Ages. He plays the gittern, a beautiful medieval stringed instrument, ancestor of the guitar; and a thirteenth century recorder, a replica of one which was excavated from medieval ruins in modern-day Poland. He also plays the piano, and there’s nothing medieval about that!

Tales of Castle Rory are Medieval Fantasy Adventures, in which the demesne of Lord Rory of Hambrig is brought to life. Set in the latter part of the thirteenth century, these stories have adventure, mystery and magic at their heart. You’ll also find relationships, romance, friendship and the forging and breaking of ties between people and nations. Running through the Tales are themes of family, loyalty, trust and resilience, together with the other sides of those coins: abandonment, betrayal, loss and disempowerment.

Website: https://talesofcastlerory.co.uk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61554417124566

Amazon Author Page: https://mybook.to/TalesOfCastleRory

BEWARE THE CROWS  BY ANNA BELFRAGE

Beware the consequences of hatred. Revenge can take many forms…

ABOUT ANNA

Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with three absorbing interests: history, romance and writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17^th century Scotland and Maryland, as well as the equally acclaimed medieval series The King’s Greatest Enemy which is set in 14^th century England, and The Castilian Saga, which is set against the medieval conquest of Wales. She has also published a time travel romance, The Whirlpools of Time, and its sequel Times of Turmoil,  and is now considering just how to wiggle out of setting the next book in that series in Peter the Great’s Russia, as her characters are demanding. . .

All of Anna’s books have been awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion, she has several Historical Novel Society Editor’s Choices, and one of her books won the HNS Indie Award in 2015. She is also the proud recipient of various Reader’s Favourite medals as well as having won various Gold, Silver and Bronze Coffee Pot Book Club awards.

Website: www.annabelfrage.com 

Amazon Author Page: http://Author.to/ABG

 

DAME FORTUNE’S WHEEL BY J.P. REEDMAN

Fate can be in the hands of others – or held within your own...

ABOUT J.P. REEDMAN

J.P. Reedman lives in Wiltshire near to Stonehenge. Born in Canada, she has had a lifelong interest in ancient and medieval history, and is often found lurking around prehistoric sites, ruined castles and abbeys, and interesting churches with camera in hand. She became a full-time writer in 2018. Series include  I, Richard Plantagenet, five books chronicling Richard’s life from childhood to Bosworth, and Medieval Babes, a set of standalone novels about lesser-known medieval queens and noblewomen.

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

Amazon Author Page:  author.to/REEDMANHISTFIC

 

SAINTS ALIVE BY DEBBIE YOUNG

When children are not quite the saints we’d like them to be!

ABOUT DEBBIE YOUNG

Debbie Young is the author of three series of cosy mystery novels set in the Cotswolds. The Sophie Sayers series starts with Best Murder in Show; the Gemma Lamb series begins with Dastardly Deeds at St Bride’s; and the Cotswold Curiosity Shop series kicks off with Death at the Old Curiosity Shop. She sometimes sends characters from one series to visit those in another. She also writes short fiction, not all of it crime-related, set in the same world, eg Christmas with Sophie Sayers. Her novels are published by Boldwood Books in English, by DP Verlag in German, and by Antonio Vallardi in Italian. She has recently written her first murder mystery play for performance by her village amateur dramatic group. She is a frequent speaker at events for writers and readers, a course tutor for Jericho Writers, and the founder and director of the Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival. She lives in a Victorian cottage with her Scottish husband, her student daughter, and three cats, and she writes in a little hut at the bottom of her garden.

Website: www.authordebbieyoung.com

Links to buy Debbie’s books:

https://authordebbieyoung.com/books-2/

YouTube book Trailer:

https://youtu.be/M9pSrDX8PTQ?si=sqe7R1JpQoGwUjrb

#BookQuote Wednesday - KICK

Another one from Megan's P.O.V. this week. Oh dear, it doesn't sound like good news!

 

EBOOK or OR PAPERBACK AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

(also available at most other on-line retailers)

(published by The Wild Rose Press)

#BookQuote Wednesday - QUOTE

 

She hated the situation between them and CRAVED for things to get back to the way they had been.

(If you've read the book you might notice a teeny weeny bit of poetic licence!)

EBOOK OR PAPERBACK AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

(also available at most other on-line retailers)

(published by The Wild Rose Press)

The Matchmaker's Mare teaser and some Welsh myths

Happy Monday my dear readers. I'm excited to reveal the new book teaser for The Matchmaker's Mare.

EBOOK OR PAPERBACK AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

(also available at most other on-line retailers)

(published by The Wild Rose Press)

I thought I'd post a few Welsh 'horsey' legends and an old Welsh custom. I have posted these before but I think they bear repeating!

MARY GRAY

This custom was first recorded in 1800, although it has been recorded in the twentieth century. Mari Lwyd was a tradition performed at Christmas time by groups of men who would accompany the a the horse around the local area. Not a real horse, but the skull of a horse, mounted on a pole covered with a white sheet and decoarated with ribbons and glass baubles for eyes. These groups typically included an individual to carry the horse, a leader, and individuals dressed as characters such as Punch and Judy. They would carry the Mari Lwyd to local houses, where they would sing to request entry. The householders would be expected to deny them entry, again through singing and the two sides would continue back and fro like this until the householders eventually relented,and  the team would be permitted to enter the house and would be given food and drink. (Not too sure what this has to do with Christmas, but like many old Celtic customs it's probably a throwback to an old Pagan ritual originally performed around this time.)

WATER HORSE

The Ceffyl Dŵr, literally translated into English means the 'Water Horse'. It is most commonly considered a counterpart to the Scotish Kelpie, but has also been compared to the  the Irish puca. The ceffyl Dŵr appears as a white or grey horse, or sometimes black, with a white mane and tail, sometimes glowing or wings. It is said to inhabit mostly mountain pools and waterfalls, although it has been known to frequent rivers and the sea as well.

Depending on which region of Wales mentions the stories, the Ceffyl Dŵr was believed to shapeshift, as well as having the power of flight. For example, in North Wales, it is represented as being rather formidable with fiery eyes and a dark foreboding presence, whereas in South Wales is seen as merely mischievous. She also is known to walk on her hind legs and disappear down the well in the graveyard of St Illtyds church in Oxwich Bay, or to simply evaporate into the sea mist. Over the centuries there have been many sightings of Ceffyl Dwr mostly around St Illtyds church. Although it appears solid, it can evaporate into a mist. In one legend the Ceffyl Dŵr leaps out of the water to trample and kill lone travellers. In another legend, the Ceffyl Dŵr rises from the sea and entices the unwary traveler to ride her, then takes to the  air, and evaporates, and the unfortunate rider falls to his death. 

Okay - on to something a little less scary:

RHIANNON    

It just so happens that Rhiannon is the name of the matchmaker in The Matchmaker's Mare!

Rhiannon was married to Pwyll, the Lord of Dyfed. When Pwyll first saw her, she appeared as a beautiful woman dressed in gold, riding a magnificent white horse. Rhiannon managed to outrun Pwyll for three days, and then when he shouted to her to stop, allowed him to catch up. When he said he'd fallen in love with her and wanted to marry her, she scolded him for not telling her  to stop before, and making his poor horse work so hard. Then she said she'd be happy to marry him, because it would save her from marrying Gwawl, who she despised and who had tricked her into an engagement. Rhiannon and Pwyll conspired together to deceive Gwawl and thus Pwyll won her as his bride. 

Three years after they married,  Rhiannon gave birth to a son, but he disappeared at night while his nursemaids, who were supposed to have been watching over him, fell asleep. Frightened of the consequences, the nursemaids smeared the blood of a dead puppy on the face of their sleeping queen. When she awoke, Rhiannon was accused of killing and her son and eating him. As penance, she was made to sit outside the castle walls, and tell passers by what she had done. Pwyll, however, stood by her,  refusing to send her away or have her more severely punished.

The newborn child had been in fact found by\ Teyrnon, the lord of Gwent-Is-Coed. He was a horse lord whose beautiful mare gave him a foal every May Eve, but  each year. the foal would disappear. Before his mare had her next foal he took her into his house and sat vigil with her. After her foal was born he saw a monstrous claw trying to take the newborn foal through the window, so he slashed at the monster with his sword, before rushing outside. He found the monster gone, and a human baby lying by the door. He and his wife cared for the boy as their own, naming him Gwri Wallt Euryn (Gwri of the Golden Hair). The child grew rapidly, and had a great affinity for horses. As the boy grewTeyrnon who once served Pwyll as a courtier, recognised his resemblance to his father. He was an honourable man, and so he returned the boy to the Dyfed royal house.

Ah, I love a happy ending - and there is a happy ending in the Matchmaker's Mare, of course.

Available now on Amazon and other on-line retailers.

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Matchmakers-Mare-Hywela-Lyn-ebook/dp/B0DYF6L15C

US: https://www.amazon.com/Matchmakers-Mare-Hywela-Lyn/dp/1509259880/

Book Quote Wednesday

Hello my lovelies.  Today's word is TIGHT and it's contained in the excerpt below from Prologue in The Matchmaker's Mare.  In the distant past. Rhiannon flees on her trusty mare, to escape an arranged marriage, hoping to find her gypsy lover, Sion Sienco.

A snippet from a review on my recent Blog Tour: 

(Read wholeReview HERE)

GET YOUR COPY HERE

Welsh Myths and Legends Twm Sion Cati

Today's legend is a day late since I was hosting a fellow author yesterday.

The male romance lead in The Matchmaker's Mare,  my latest release, is a horse trainer, Glyn Phillips, who not only love horses, but also sharing Welsh myths and legends (a bit like me then!😄)

This is one of the tales that he mentions.

It's not just Sherwood Forest that has a famous outlaw who stole from the rich (although it's not confirmed that he gave his ill gotten gains to the poor, but we'll gloss over that.)

As a child, growing up in the area of west Wales where he lived, I was enthralled by the tales of Twm Siôn Cati. (Tom son of Cathi). He  may have become a legendary figure in Welsh folklore. but it seems he actually existed. Thomas Jones was of noble blood, born around 1530, supposedly the illegitimate son of the squire of Porthyffynnon (Fountain Gate), near Tregaron, mid west Wales and Catherine (Cati), the illegitimate daughter of one of the ancestors of Syr John Wynn of Gwydir. (a rather immoral lot some of these noble families), although it is actually more likely he was  the son of a farmer, Sion (John) son of David ap Madog. It was  common practice in rural Wales, traditionally a matriarchal society, for children with common names to be nicknamed after their mothers, so he became known as Twm Sion Cati.

Twm Sion Cati earned his reputation, roaming the rugged west and mid regions of Wales, relieving well to do travellers of their riches. It is thought he had some formal education and  was a talented poet. He appears to have progressed from being a a common thief and highwayman into quite a crafty and clever conman.
 
 According to one well known tale he once stole a fine chestnut mare from a farmer named Powell. Twm then painted the animal grey and sold it back to the farmer - who didn't find out how he'd been cheated until rain washed the paint off the horse!

Another tale tells how Twm stayed an inn overnight and learnt that a certain highwayman planned to  rob him the following day. He had a large sum of money with him and allowed the rumour to   get around that he had the money hidden in the pack saddle of his horse.The next day, Twm rode an old, broken winded nag along the track which the highwayman frequented. When the robber accosted him, Twm tossed the pack saddle in the middle of a pool. While the highwayman waded into the pool to fetch it, Twm  switched horses and galloped off on the highwayman's own horse, a fine, swift stallion.

Another time a shopkeeper tried to cheat him by selling him a pot with a hole in it, while claiming the it was sound. Twm dropped the pot over the man's head, saying that there was certainly a hole in it or he would not have been able to fit such a large thing as the shopkeeper's head inside it. He then made off with the other pots!

He was reputed to be compassionate though, and to have avoided hurting those from whom he stole. It is said he was able to secure his victim by firing an arrow which would pin the rider to his saddle, rendering him unable to move, but unharmed.

Twm often hid from his arch enemy the Sheriff of Carmarthen in a cave on the slopes of the rugged, densely wooded Dinas Hill, about 12 miles north of Llandovery, close to the village of Rhandirmwyn. Beneath the cave, the mountain river Pysgotwr joins the larger River Towy and thunders through the rocky gorge below. These days Dinas Hill is on RSPB nature reserve and  can be visited by tourists and visitors interested in the legend of Twm Sion Catti.

When Elizabeth 1st came to the throne he was pardoned and returned from Geneva where he had fled to escape the law. He served as steward for the lordship of Caron and later a Justice of The Peace and geneologist, becoming wealthy and marrying an heiress widow. becoming much loved and respected until his death in 1609.

There are several books written about this loveable rougue, including Lynn Hughes' book about Twm, entitled 'Hawkmoor', which was serialised by the BBC in back in 1977.

Buy your copy HERE

the death and life of Lucy Westenra

• 

Today is my stop for Rosie Fiore and her book. Bram Stoker's Dracula was one of the first paranormal books I read, so Im excited to learn about this new take on the story. Here's a little about Rosie's novel:

The Death and Life of Lucy Westenra

What desperate steps will Lucy Westenra take to save her own life? Hillingham in Hampstead, once the home of the well-to-do Westenra family, is now divided into apartments. When teacher Kate Balcombe sets about renovating her flat in the attic, she finds an unsent letter written 130 years before by Lucy, the nineteen-year-old daughter of the house.

You may know Lucy from Bram Stoker’s Dracula... a pretty, flirtatious girl with three ardent suitors, she is Mina Harker’s best friend. When Lucy falls mysteriously ill and dies, Van Helsing identifies her as a victim of the vampire.

But what if the monsters who hunt Lucy are much closer to home?

As Kate begins to investigate Lucy’s story, she meets James Harker, Mina’s great-great grandson, and together they uncover a long-hidden story of deception and murder.

Purchase Links https://www.amazon.co.uk/Death-Life-Lucy-Westenra-ebook/dp/B0F3Q4GZK6/ https://www.amazon.com/Death-Life-Lucy-Westenra-ebook/dp/B0F3Q4GZK6/

Author Bio –

Rosie Fiore is the author of eight published novels, including Wonder Women, After Isabella and What She Left, as well as The After Wife, written as Cass Hunter. She is a teacher of creative writing and a Royal Literary Fund Fellow. She lives in North London with her family, and can frequently be found wandering on the Heath or haunting a churchyard.

Social Media Links – 

https://x.com/rosiefiore 

https://www.facebook.com/rosiefiorewriter 

https://bsky.app/profile/rosiefiore.bsky.social

Now for a little 'Question and Answer Session. (I do love finding out more about my author guests and their books

What made you make the shift from contemporary fiction to historical fiction?

 I’ve always been an avid reader of historical fiction. I love a dual timeline story, like those Kate Morton writes, where we look for the echoes of the past with a modern-day character. I wanted to have a go at a Dracula retelling, and in doing so, absolutely fell I love with research. I write the first draft in lockdown, when I had all the time I the world to go down all sorts of online rabbit holes. It’s such fun to add depth and colour to a story with things you have learned.

What part of the research did you enjoy most?

I bought a Victorian A-Z, which shows maps of London. I spent hours with a magnifying glass, planning where my characters might walk, or live, or visit. Knowing modern London well, it’s fascinating to find how names and places have stayed the same and changed. For example, the rather plainly named Regent’s Park Road in Finchley, near where I live, was once called Ducksetter’s Lane. Much more exciting!

Lucy Westenra in your version of the story is feisty and feminist and acts in quite a modern way. Have you given her twenty-first century views in a Victorian story?

I was really careful about that: I wanted her to think and behave like a young woman of her time. So I did lots of research into what books and magazines she might read to think in the way she does. It seemed within the realms of possibility that she might pick up a copy of the North American Review in March 1894, and read Sarah Grand’s famous article, “The New Aspect of the Woman Question”: 

“Man deprived us of all proper education, and then jeered at us because we had no knowledge. He narrowed our outlook on life so that our view of it should be all distorted, and then declared that our mistaken impression of it proved us to be senseless creatures. He cramped our minds so that there was no room for reason in them, and then made merry at our want of logic.”

Stoker references this article in Dracula, and suggests that Mina and Lucy may have read it. It made me feel that the version of Lucy I was writing really could have existed and been as brave and forthright as she is.

Do readers need to have read Dracula to enjoy the book?

I think everyone should read Dracula! Seriously… it’s so brilliant, and it’s very modern. There are Kodak cameras, phonographs and typewriters and speedy train travel across Europe. You don’t need to have read it to enjoy The Death & Life of Lucy Westenra, but there are so many little easter eggs which will enhance your enjoyment if you have read it!

Tell us something about Dracula and Bram Stoker we don’t know!

Dracula is the most adapted story ever: more than 700 film versions and 1200 stage, comic and other adaptations! Many people also don’t know Bram Stoker was a theatre manager at the Lyceum Theatre in London, where the Lion King is performed! There’s a plaque with his name on it at the back of the theatre.

Thank you so much, Rosie, that was fascinating. I'm off to purchase your book!

Check out another of my series 'Welsh Myths and Legends' here tomorrow.