Welcome to my blog! I’m the author of four historical novels set in medieval England, with a fifth one set in Tudor England due in 2012.
As a writer of biographical fiction, one of my main goals is to avoid the stereotypes, myths, and misconceptions that have gathered around historical figures over the centuries. At the same time, I strive to remain true to known historical facts and to the mores of the times in which my characters lived. I use both primary sources—chronicles, letters, wills, diplomatic dispatches, household inventories, land grants, royal records, and so forth—and modern historical research to achieve my primary goal, which is bringing my characters to life.
My first two novels, set in fourteenth-century England, feature the Despenser family: The Traitor’s Wife: A Novel of the Reign of Edward II and Hugh and Bess.
My third novel, The Stolen Crown, set during the Wars of the Roses, is narrated by Henry, Duke of Buckingham, and his wife, Katherine Woodville. My fourth novel, The Queen of Last Hopes focuses on Margaret of Anjou, one of the most maligned queens in English history.
I have just published my fifth novel, Her Highness, the Traitor, narrated by Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk, and Jane Dudley, Duchess of Northumberland, the mother and the mother-in-law of the tragic Lady Jane Grey.
I use this blog to post about history (mostly late medieval and Tudor England), historical fiction, and whatever strikes my fancy from time to time. Thanks for stopping by!
