Fantastic Review TO ENTICE A SPY a novella of intrigue and romance

 

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A Riveting Page Turner

Set in the time of the French Revolution, To Entice a Spy is cleverly written from the English point of view. The tightly written plot follows the exploits of the headstrong, resourceful English widowed Countess Eseld Trehearne and her childhood love Baron Robert Penhale as they both work separately and unbeknownst to one another to root out a French spy disguised as an English aristocrat intent on financially supporting the revolution in France by using ill begotten British funds. Experienced historical fiction author Diane Scott Lewis did her homework and it shows. She embeds readers in the story from the first page on with her remarkably in-depth descriptions of the times. Readers are swept into the story and become a part of it by experiencing the architecture, fashions, foods, drinks, smells, sights, social mores, and sounds of England in the 1790s. Lewis has penned a deftly plotted tale that weaves ribbons of mystery and romance into a historical event and makes it come alive. The tautly written story is driven by love, loss, trust, betrayal, family ties, and the inner strength one must summon to face adversity created by both human fallibility and fate. The story moves at a comfortable pace with flawed, but believable characters who drive the plot. Readers find themselves rooting for the protagonists from the beginning to the end of the tale. The characters evoke strong emotions in readers right from page one. This reader found herself wanting to hug Eseld and Robert on one page and throttle them on the next. Lewis creates a huge conflict with a backstory to keep readers turning the pages to see how it all turns out. Part romance, part mystery, part thriller, and a part second chance at love; To Entice a Spy will capture the imagination of readers who enjoy a passionate love story fueled by human frailty, intrigue, and suspense. This terrific book has more than earned the five-star rating this reader has given it. ~Susie Black~ Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty dachshund.  To find out more about her novels, check out her Amazon page: DianeScottLewis

A Hidden City - Medieval Bath. Lindsay Townsend

The city of Bath in Somerset, south west England is a world heritage site, famous for its Roman baths and its Regency architecture. I drew on the Roman city of Aquae Sulis and its baths for my historical romance Flavia’s Secret. There is also a hidden city at Bath, the medieval city, parts of which remain even after much has been built over, adapted, added to or superseded by the Regency makeover the city underwent in the eighteenth century.

            We can see the medieval city in John Speed’s 1610 map of Bath. It’s small and walled, with towers and gates. The thermal baths are there, and there are orchards, churches and hospitals. The Abbey is also shown, smaller than in the early Middle Ages when it was extensively added to by Bishop John, who wished to make Bath the seat of his bishopric. This Abbey church was wrecked by fire in 1137 and the whole monastery complex declined, especially after the Black Death in 1439. Later, the rebuilt church occupied only the nave-space of the former Norman cathedral.

            Other medieval buildings of Bath, such as St Catherine’s hospital on Bilbury Lane, the church of St Mary of Stalls and Alsi’s bath have long disappeared, their foundations hidden beneath the later expansion of the city. However aspects of medieval Bath do survive. A section of city walls still stands in Upper Borough and is now protected. Part of one of the ancient gates, the East Gate, remains, close to Robert Adam’s Pulteney Bridge. Many of the Georgian-fronted buildings turn out to have hidden medieval timber frames and structures behind the palladian facades, such as was discovered behind the front of 21-22 High Street. There are medieval cellars, too, such as one in Abbey Church House. The ancient healing place of the Hospital of St John the Baptist, ‘the hospital of the baths’ still partly fulfils its original medieval function.

            I have recreated the medieval city and its baths in my forthcoming historical mystery, An Older Evil, the first of a series featuring Alyson, a widow of Bath.

Lindsay Townsend  http://www.lindsaytownsend.net