Can you really set a romance in Anglo-Saxon England?

There aren't a lot of historical romances set in Anglo-Saxon England available. Viking and Medieval, yes - but not Anglo-Saxon. 

The Anglo-Saxon period covers from approximately 400 A.D. (with the departure of the Romans), until 1066 (with the arrival of the Normans). 1066 marks the beginning of the what we now call the 'Middle Ages'.

However, the Anglo-Saxon era can be divided between the post and pre-Viking periods. The 'North Men' began attacking the east coast of Britannia, on 793 A.D - when they destroyed the abbey of Lindisfarne on the North-east coast. This marked the beginning of the 'Viking Age' - that led up to the Norman conquest.

Now, there are plenty of Viking romances available. A quick search on Amazon will bring up a wealth of titles for anyone who loves reading historical romance set in this period. There are lots of steamy tales about blond Viking warriors abducting maidens, taking them home as slaves and then falling in love with them. Many romance readers can't get enough of these stories.

So why aren't there plenty of Anglo-Saxon romances available as well? 

Does this period not lend itself to love-stories as well as the Viking era?

I believe it does.

Anglo-Saxon Britannia is a period shrouded in a lot of mystery. It is not very well documented historically, as much of records of this period were destroyed during the Viking raids. Much of what we have learned about this era has come from epic poems, such as Beowulf. Writing in this period requires a touch of fantasy, a love for writing about raw emotions and big themes - with a touch of violence and bloodshed. These were gritty times, after all!

I write my historical romances exclusively in this era - 7th century Anglo-Saxon Britannia - and I love setting my romance adventures in this period. In fact, I'm always looking for books to read, set in this era!

My current series is set during the 7th century - during the last years of the dominance of the Kingdom of the East Angles before the rise of Mercia as a dominant power. My first book in the series, Dark Under the Cover of Night, was inspired by, and based around, the last year in the life of King Raedwald - the king thought to be buried in the famous Sutton Hoo longship in Suffolk. This novel's love story centers around Raedwald's daughter and her forbidden love for the son of her father's arch-enemy.

Dark Under the Cover of Night, in turn, inspired the following two books in the Kingdom of the East Angles series (which can all be read as stand-alone novels). The second novel, Nightfall till Daybreak, is centered around the reign of King Sigeberht (Raedwald's stepson), who comes back to Britannia to claim the throne from a usurper, after many years exile in Gaul. Here, the love story is between Sigeberht's most trusted retainer, and one of the king's slaves.

The third book (due to be released on Amazon in the next couple of days!) is The Deepening Night. This novel's love story is centered around King Annan of the East Angles (who takes the throne after Sigeberht is killed). Annan has been forced to 'bend the knee' to Mercia - and must marry the sister of a man he loathes in order to ensure peace for his people.

There are an endless supply of ideas for stories in the Anglo-Saxon period. 

It was a brutal time, in many ways; a time when men were warriors and women had to be very strong to survive. It was a time when Christianity was beginning to make in-roads into the local culture, conflicting with pagan beliefs, and bringing with it new ideas and influences. It was a time of powerful emotions: love, honor and vengeance.

If you love this period as much as I do - and enjoy reading character-driven, adventure romance set in a time when only the strong survived - why not give my novels a try? I love to hear from my readers, so please let me know what you think!

CLICK ON THE COVERS BELOW TO FIND OUT MORE!

      

Out on Amazon in the next two days!

Historical accuracy in novels - rabbits and getting your facts right

I'm in the final edits of my latest historical romance, set in Anglo-Saxon England (The Deepening Night) - and part of that process is doubling checking my historical facts.

I write historical romance that's set in a sketchy period of British history: 7th century Anglo-Saxon Britain. Many of the details we have about this period were actually recorded a few centuries (mostly by monks) after the events actually took place. The Viking raids on the eastern coast of England destroyed what few written records there were, and so historians have had a tricky job of pasting it all together.

This misty historical period can be both a blessing and a curse! It's a blessing in that, since I write historical romance, I can 'play' a little with history - shift one or two dates, and adapt historical figures and events to suit the purposes of my story. However, it can be a curse because checking details such as weaponry, food, habits, clothing and building materials can send an author round in circles. Everything is open to interpretation.

Take, for example, the issue of rabbits.

Now, I took it for granted that there were ALWAYS rabbits in the British isles. Rabbits play a huge role in my books set in the 7th century. Chicken wasn't part of the Anglo-Saxon diet, and foods such as potatoes, tomatoes, wheat and sugar would not enter Britain until much later. I mention rabbits as a major meat source, especially for the poor. Yet I also write about clothing and wall hangings made from rabbit skin. It was a fact I felt pretty sure on - but then I read something that made me break out into a cold sweat...

Some historians believe that the rabbit was not introduced to England until the Norman conquest.

Arggh! This meant that my references to bunnies - in all three of my books - was wrong!

Panicking, I dug a little deeper, before realizing - with enormous relief - that not all historians believe rabbits arrived after 1066. Instead, many insist that rabbits came with the Romans, who kept them fenced off in warrens and harvested them for meat and fur.

Here's an interesting article from the Telegraph, explaining the archaeological evidence that proves that rabbits - or 'conies' as they once known, arrived with the Romans.

Massive sigh of relief - I had not been putting my readers after all!

This might not seem a big deal but getting historical details right is important, both for authors and readers. Don't be fooled into thinking readers of historical romance don't know their history - they do! However, for writers of historical fiction, it can be easy to get your facts wrong - especially when dealing with everyday details, facts that we take for granted.

Hence, I will never look at the humble bunny in the same way again!

COMING SOON - NIGHT SHADOWS

Every series needs a prequel - and the Kingdom of the East Angles is no exception!

Do you enjoy historical novels set in 7th century, Anglo-Saxon Britannia? Enjoy stories brimming with romance and adventure? 

COMING SOON!

A NOVELLA

Then dark comes,

night-shadows deepen…

þonne won cymeð,

nipeð nihtscua…

The Wanderer

In the spring of 609 A.D. - in the village of Went - a young man comes to ask for the hand of the ealdorman's daughter. 

Wilfrid is intense, takes himself a little too seriously, and is in love with Cynewyn - a spoiled young woman who has been promised to another.  Spurned and humiliated, Wilfrid leaves the ealdorman's hall, never to return.

Ten years later, Cynewyn's life has not turned out as she has hoped. Her husband is dead, her village is under siege - and to make matters worse - the king has sent men to inform her that the land on which her village stands now belongs to the East Saxons. 

Among the men sent to escort her and the surviving villagers back over the border is her former suitor - Wilfrid. 

The past decade has changed, and embittered, them both. Wil no longer believes in love, and Cynewyn no longer believes in happy endings. Yet neither are prepared for the passion that ignites between them, or its consequences...

NIGHT SHADOWS will be available on Amazon Kindle in the next few weeks - watch this space!

What’s your perspective on love?

One of the best things about picking up a book by a romance author you’ve never read before, is discovering a different perspective on love. The plot-lines of romances are deceptively simple, in that they are all about a couple that fall in love. However, it is the complexity of the developing relationship between the main characters, and the uniqueness of their love, chemistry and story, which makes romance such a well-loved genre.

Each romance author focuses on different aspects of love. For some, the ‘getting together part’ happens early on in the story, as deepening the relationship is the part these writers enjoy focusing on. Kathryn Le Veque (who writes epic medieval romances) does an excellent job of this. Others write ‘love heals all’ novels, in which our couple leave painful pasts behind with the assistance of their newfound love. Then there are those where the main characters learn to accept who they are through love; and others where the lovers must grow as people before they can truly be happy together.

Each reader also has their favourite approach to the telling of a love story. I particularly enjoy the ‘calm at the end of the storm’ approach to romance. The whole book is a whirlwind, an adventure, before our lovers are finally able to be together. It’s for this reason that I read – and write historical romance.

If you're a historical romance writer, what perspective do you take on love? It might be something you've taken for granted; it's only when we step back from our own work that we notice there is, indeed, a pattern to the themes we write about and approaches we take.

The period I write in (7^th Century, Anglo-Saxon Britannia), lends itself to ‘love through adversity’ tales. Life was hard in Anglo-Saxon England – only the strong survived! Men were tough, and even the gentle ones had to be warriors. In this period, war, feuding and the hardship of getting through one winter to the next, made even daily life a challenge. This said, it was a magical era; the age that brought us epic poems like Beowulf, a culture that inspired writers such as Tolkien.

My romances are about strong men and women, kept apart by circumstance. In many cases, they start off with plenty of reasons to hate each other, but it’s the setting that provides their greatest obstacle. Conflicts such as blood-feud, slavery and arranged marriage play huge roles in my Kingdom of the East Angles Series.

The beauty of setting a novel in such a distinctive period is being able to completely immerse yourself in a unique world. It’s more than just researching the history, customs and clothing of the period – but about creating conflicts and characters that could never exist out of that time and place. 

My perspective on love, and one that I share through my writing, is that it’s an adventure – a journey rather than just a destination – what’s yours?

Anglo-Saxon Yule treats - golden, round and hot like the sun!

In pagan Anglo-Saxon England, Yule marked the Winter Solstice. A bright light in the dark of winter - this festival represented the turning of the sun back towards the south, and the return of life, light and warmth. Once Yule passes, the days grow longer and the nights shorter. 

Yule begins on 'Mother Night' and ends twelve days later - hence the origin of the 'Twelve Days of Christmas'. The Winter Solstice is a solar festival, and it was on this night that a Yule Log, or a bonfire would be burned, to entice heat back into the world. 

Traditionally, the Anglo-Saxons baked any food that was round, golden, or hot like the sun, for the Yule celebrations.

Ingredients in Anglo-Saxon times were limited to those things in season, or food-stuffs that could be stored or dried. As such, nuts, seeds, honey, dried plums, apples and eggs were used in Yule baking. The spices, oranges and lemons, that we now associate with Christmas, came later.

With the simplicity of Anglo-Saxon Yule sweets in mind, here are two simple, but delicious recipes, inspired by this age:

Honey Shortbread
This shortbread is delicious, simple and very easy to make!

Ingredients
250g spelt flour
175g soft butter 
125g creamed honey 

1. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the honey and butter and  mix with a wooden spoon until a ball of dough forms.
2. Transfer mixture to greased baking tray or swiss roll tin and press it down well. Prick with a fork.

Bake at 325F/160C for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool for a few minutes then cut into fingers while still warm and serve when cold.

Anglo-Saxon Yule Pudding
This pudding uses only ingredients that would have been available during the Anglo-Saxon period - but don't think that detracts from the flavour!

Ingredients
200g of prunes, cut into pieces
70g of walnut pieces
100g spelt flour
150g suet
125 grams of bread crumbs
4 large eggs
4 heaped Tbsp of honey
4 cooking apples, peeled and grated
1 and a half cups of apple wine or strong cider

1. Soak the prunes and walnuts in the apple wine or cider for up to a week.
2. In a large bowl add flour, suet, breadcrumbs and grated apple.
3. Add honey and beaten eggs to the dry ingredients before mixing in the fruit and nuts that have been soaking in the apple wine - more in the wine too (unless there is A LOT of liquid - in this case, hold some back). 
4. Grease a pudding basin really well and pack the pudding mixture in. 
5. Wrap the basin in at least 3 layers of foil and steam in a pot for 5 hours. 
6. Once 5 hours have passed, remove from the pot, leave to cool and store (for up to 6 weeks) for Yule!

Do you have any Anglo-Saxon-inspired sweets to share?

The Deepening Night - the new book of the Kingdom of the East Angles is underway

Starting on a new book is always an exciting moment for any author. It's the rewriting, editing and polishing process that gives one grey hairs, and makes you wonder why you put yourself through it.

Of course, you know exactly why you do it - to be able to see your story come to life, and for others to read and enjoy the novel once its finished. At least, that's why I write. I love sharing my stories with others.

The Kingdom of the East Angles series has, in many ways, been very easy to write. These days, I plan and research meticulously before I ever sit down to write. I employ a far more 'businesslike' attitude to my writing. I schedule writing time, and I stick to it. I also keep records of my writing, so that I can get a sense of when, where and how I'm most productive. Plus, it helps that these stories are gritty, romantic adventures set in my favorite era - they're great fun to write!

I'm very excited about my new project - the last of The Kingdom of the East Angles series - The Deepening Night.

The Kingdom of the East Angles is a series of historical romance novels set in Anglo-Saxon East Anglia. These are stand-alone novels set around the lives of actual East Anglian Kings: Raedwald, Sigeberht and Annan, and spanning eight years, from 624-631 A.D - at a time when the East Anglian kingdom's power was beginning to wane under the threat of Mercia.

Dark Under the Cover of Night, the first story in the series, begins in 624 A.D. The novel takes place at the end of King Raedwald reign (the king thought to be buried in the Sutton Hoo longship), and is the story of Raedwyn and Caelin: lovers who are kept apart by feuding fathers. The second novel in this series 

Nightfall till Daybreak, takes place five years after the first story. This novel is centered around King Raedwald's stepson, Sigeberht, who returns to Britannia from exile in Gaul to take back the East Anglia throne for the Wuffinga family. This is the tale of Freya and Aidan, a slave and a warrior, and of the king who rules their fates. 

The Deepening Night is the third, and final, story in this series. This tale begins in the spring of 630 A.D., and is the story of Annan - the proud East Anglian king who must 'bend the knee' to Mercia - and Saewara, the sister of Annan's enemy. 

Here's a sneak peak at the cover art for the novel. Click on the image to find out more about Annan and Saewara's story.

Right - back to writing!

Two famous quotes from Anglo-Saxon England

I love Old English - the language of Anglo-Saxon England. In many ways, I wish we still spoke it!

I couldn't resist using two famous quotes, one from The Wanderer and the other from Beowulf in my historical romances set in this era.

I based the title of Dark Under the Cover of Night, and the idea of the end of a reign of a great king, on this quote from The Wanderer.

I based the character of my hero in Nightfall till Daybreak on this quote from Beowulf.