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Item 2 in VINTAGE VOICES' blog tour

25/1/2017

Blog Tour ~ SEDAHLIA #HistFic #BGSHF @ctoliver58

SEDAHLIA
By
Cynthia D Toliver
After fleeing post-Civil War Georgia, John Masters, Sr., his wife Virginia Masters, and their rebellious servant Jessie Lindsey have built new lives in Texas ranch country. Now their offspring, Johnny Masters and Rachel Lindsey, are in love. On the isolated, sprawling Sedahlia ranch, their youthful dalliances are largely overlooked until Rachel becomes pregnant, forcing Rachel to leave Texas for a freedman’s school in Georgia.

From the insulated Sedahlia ranch to the Jim Crow south, the rails both separate and unite - parting lovers, reuniting family, pushing out the old, bringing in the new. It is in these settings that the Masters and Lindseys live and love, and their personal needs and mores clash with society. The repercussions rumble through this family and the surrounding community, tearing them asunder and bringing them together as only love and tragedy will.

Book Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2X9KnqMINo
Link for Purchase US
https://www.amazon.com/SEDAHLIA-Cynthia-D-Toliver/dp/163490561X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1484591402&sr=1-1&keywords=Sedahlia
Link for Purchase UK
https://www.amazon.co.uk/SEDAHLIA-Cynthia-D-Toliver/dp/163490561X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1484592328&sr=1-1&keywords=sedahlia

Author Bio
Cynthia D. Toliver is a 1980 graduate of Rice University and a native Texan. She has enjoyed a varied career as an engineer, environmental consultant, educator and author. Sedahlia is her second novel and third book. She has two previously published works, Crown’s Jewel, a historical novel and Come See a Man, an inspirational book. She also hosts a Christian blog, Back to Eden at cynthiatoliver.blogspot.com. Follow Ms. Toliver at www.cynthiatoliver.net.

Inspiration
My inspirations come from multiple sources. Sometimes it is a word or title. Other times it may be a thought, observation or dream. From that seed, I will develop my characters and write an outline. The seed for Sedahlia was a dream about disparate lovers. Their story sprouted and grew to the family saga it is today.
I love the creative process, from beginning to end. My books are very much character driven. As a writer, I become invested in the characters and their stories. If I've crafted them well, my readers will do the same.
Other Links
Author website www.cynthiatoliver.net
Author blog http://www.cynthiatoliver.net/blog/
Christian blog, Back to Eden http://cynthiatoliver.blogspot.com/
http://facebook.com/cynthia.toliver
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCynthiaToliver/
twitter @ctoliver58

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How much do we owe who we are, to our parents?

18/1/2017

2 Comments

For the next few weeks I'm going to post extracts from my books, starting with my latest, The Thread That Binds Us, a 21st century novel that looks at love and relationships, particularly between parents and children. How much do we owe who we are, to the parents who brought us up?

While Graham dialled 999 and explained about the break-in, Susan went to check on her office. Just as she had expected, her computer had gone, together with the printer, scanner and her laptop. The drawers of her desk hung open and their contents was scattered on the floor. Her notes for the next day, so meticulously prepared, had been swept onto the floor along with everything else. She knelt down and picked them up, sorting them carefully back into order before replacing them in their file. The burglars had gone through everything, had touched all aspects of her life. She felt violated. In a minute she would have to go into her bedroom and see what damage they had done in there.
Then she saw it, open, under the table where they'd thrown it. Her father's wallet. When she had cleared out his belongings after he died, she couldn't bring herself to throw it out, and it had been at the back of her desk drawer ever since. It was old and battered, black leather worn with use, and contained only an old library card, a photo of her as an eight-year-old and a ten-shilling note—a relic from pre-decimalisation days. Not surprisingly, the burglars had taken nothing from it. She picked the wallet up and held it to her face. It still smelled of her father, that distinctive tang of cigarettes and after-shave. Idly she undid each compartment, unzipping the purse section, looking carefully for anything she had missed. The photo was still there, even more faded than ever and the plastic covering that protected it was dirty, stained brown from nicotine, like so many other things in her parents’ house had been, so she gently pulled it out, curious to see if she could recognise her younger self. As she did so, another photograph fell to the ground. She picked it up and peered at it. Against a woodland background stood two smiling people, one clearly identifiable as her father and the other a woman. Was that her mother? No, impossible. This woman had long blonde hair and her mother's had been as black as a raven's wing, that was how her father had described it once. Her aunt maybe? She too had been dark-haired, as were all her father's family.

Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.com

2 Comments

What brings a character to life?

18/1/2017

1 Comment

They say that all the cells in our body change every seven years—or maybe ten years, depending on what you read. In fact it is not quite so simple. According to scientists, cells replace themselves at different rates depending on their function. Nevertheless I'm sure everyone would agree that you are not the same person today as you were ten or twenty years ago. The question is, would you be a different person today if you could change how you were in the past?
In my latest novel, 'The Thread That Binds Us,' there is really only one main protagonist, a woman called Susan, but Susan's battle is with her other selves—the Susan of her childhood whose memories are filled with rage, Susan the career woman, ambitious and goal orientated, Susan the somewhat reluctant mother, the wife, the grandmother and the one she has become, a cold woman approaching her sixtieth birthday, who has alienated her son and lied to her husband.
But change is possible and as the story unfolds, Susan discovers her father's secret life and gradually the ties of the past begin to fall away. You may start out by disliking Susan but I hope by the end of the story you will see her in a different light and with affection.

Currently available for pre-order from Amazon, The Thread That Bind Us will be released in February. You can read an extract from the book here.

If you pre-order a Kindle copy from Amazon, you can buy it for only £1.99

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Item 1 in VINTAGE VOICES' blog tour

15/1/2017

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Book Tour ~ Before The Darkness #HistFic #BGSHF @annettecreswell

Before The Darkness
By
Annette Creswell

In pre-World War Two London, Penny works as a maternity nurse at the Royal Women's Hospital. Happy in her work and with two really good friends and several doctor suitors, little does she realise how her life will be changed by a chance lunch-time encounter. Who is the ruggedly handsome man who helps her? And how will their lives entwine as the war clouds gather?

Book Extract
Read by Emma Calin

Links For Purchase
Amazon US
Amazon UK

About the author

Annette Creswell is the author of Before The Darkness, published 2015. Creswell loves to hear from readers and can be found on Facebook and Twitter.

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Item 2 in VINTAGE VOICES' blog tour

How much do we owe who we are, to our parents?

What brings a character to life?

Item 1 in VINTAGE VOICES' blog tour

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