A Personal Ghost Story...

The last day of October has arrived, and so has Halloween! And, I just couldn't let the day pass without leaving you all something spooky. After all, it is the time for pumpkins carved with eerie faces, witches, vampires, goblins and ghosts...

Photograph By Anthony

During my "Spirit of the Knight" book tour, I shared a personal ghost story at the request of my lovely hostess (You can read it here: Brooke Blog's) and since that time, some of you have asked me for another. Now do be aware, I really don't have that many. I mean, it's not like I run into ghosts on a regular basis. 

However...

On a dark and stormy night...no, no, that's not right...

The Ghosts of Gwydir....

Well, it's October and almost Halloween, so I just can't let the month go without a single mention of ghosts. Because "Court of the Hawk" takes place almost exclusively in Wales, I decided to, well, talk about Wales!

Gwydir Castle by Jo Turner

Nestled in the lovely valley of Llanrwst, Conwy, Wales, sits the enchanting Tudor courtyard house known as Gwydir Castle.

Just a bit of History:

In the 14th century, a man by the name of Hywel Coetmore is said to have possessed the original Gwydir structure, which was subsequently destroyed during the Wars of the Roses. Then, one of Hywel's decendents later sold the place to Meredith ap Ieuan, a decendent of Owain Gwynedd. According to history, somewhere around the year 1500, Meredith rebuilt Gwydir.

In turn, Meredith's son, John Wynn ap Meredith is responsible for increasing the size of the castle beyond its rectangular keep-like Solar Tower and the adjoining hall block. During the 17th century, a knight by the name of Sir John Wynn, doubled the size of the courtyard mansion. In 1816, most all of his contributions were destroyed, but fortunately, we still have the lovely porch that Sir John added to the front of the Solar Tower.

All right then - The Ghosts:

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"Court of the Hawk" Gets a Cover!!!

I am so excited....

Debbie Taylor, the very talented cover artist for The Wild Rose Press has just presented my cover for my upcoming fantasy romance, "Court of the Hawk" and I just had to share it with all of you on this fabulous Friday!

And just in case you're wondering why on earth there is a castle at the bottom of the sea, I'll go ahead and  leave you with the blurb...

Blurb:

When a single moment challenges your perception of truth…

Epigraphist Dr. Essie DeSpencer, travels to an ancient Welsh castle in order to decipher an Ogham inscription discovered by the handsome and enigmatic, Garreth ap Daffyd. But the journey is not what she anticipated. She doesn’t expect to fall for the Lord of the castle, or to find herself deeply entrenched in legends, myths, and magic. Real legends, and real magic, that have devastating consequences.

Garreth didn’t plan for Essie to stay any longer than it took her to decipher the pictograph. Instead, he finds himself falling in love for the first time in his very long life. Now the Lord of Llys y Gwalch must find a way to attain the heart of his soul mate and keep her safe from the dangers that threaten them both...

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Tell me what you think of the cover, I'm dying to hear your thoughts (and more than likely so is Debbie Taylor)!

Hoping you all have a wonderful weekend!

An Interview with Kristy Centeno, author of Keeper of the Innocents!

I am so excited to have my very talented Inkspell Publishing sister, Kristy Centeno, visit with me today as she  answers a few questions and discusses her new book, Keeper of the Innocents. This is a Young Adult paranormal novel, filled to the brim for your reading pleasure, with an assortment of witches and demons...

First, the Questions!

So, Kristy, tell us a little bit about your book!

Lost Spirits of the Battlefield...

On this final day of our "Spirit of the Knight" Book Tour and Giveaway, I want everyone to know how much fun I've had while visiting the various blogs. My hostesses have been so sweet, they have asked me some interesting questions, and they made me feel welcome. So many friends--those I've had for quite a while as well as some new ones--dropped by and said hello. Thank you all for your support and all of your sweet comments! I am really excited to see just who it is that wins our prizes, including the beautiful print, "Prayer For The Fallen," by the very, very talented artist, Shandra Kay!



My very last stop takes me to Brooke Blogs where I share one of my very own, personal ghost encounters! I hope that one more time, you'll take a few minutes, stop by and say hello... (not to mention doing so will give you one more chance to win!)


Now, for those who read "Angels of Mons," penned by my beloved husband, I thought I'd present the following...

The Battle of Braddock Down...

Here, on the 19^th day of January, in the year 1643, the Royalist forces under Sir Ralph Hopton engaged the Parliamentarian army in battle. Hopton's forces prevailed. Even though 350 plus years have passed since that infamous day, they say the sound of galloping hooves made by phantom horses can still be heard racing across the battlefield.

The Battle of Hastings...

What's Cooking inside a Medieval Kitchen...

With but one week left to go on our Spirit of the Knight Book Tour and Giveaway I thought we would explore what the medieval cooks might have served our garrison of ghostly knights!

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The medieval kitchen inside the Nanstein Castle, by Anaconda74

So, what's cooking inside a Medieval Kitchen? All kinds of things, actually, and some of the cuisine on the medieval menu just might surprise you. During the middle ages, and via the crusades, exotic spices became far more accessible to good cooks throughout all of Europe. Spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, coriander, mustard and ginger, just to name a few. Now, instead of cooking with just what they grew in their gardens, our medieval chefs could brew up a bit of excitement in the kitchen.