Highland Rebel, Judith James: Author Guest Post & Book Giveaway

A TALE OF A REBELLIOUS LADY AND A TRAITOROUS LORD

Set in a dangerous time of religious and political upheaval and civil war, HIGHLAND REBEL tells the story of Catherine Drummond and Jamie Sinclair, two proud and lonely outcasts whose struggle for acceptance and survival draws them together in a partnership based on mutual interest that will transform them both. In so doing it transports the reader to Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, the court of King James II, and the coffee houses, backstreets and taverns of seventeenth century London, while chronicling the brief reign of England’s last Stuart king.

Born in the waning days of Cromwell’s England, despised as a bastard by his Puritan father, and abandoned by his mother, James Sinclair has learned from an early age to fend for himself. Charming, dangerous, and decidedly amoral, his quick wit, good looks and military prowess have served him well in the courts of two Stuart Kings, the grudgingly Protestant Charles II and the openly Catholic King James. Adventurer, courtier, mercenary and spy, he’s a master of disguise who can transform from aristocrat to beggar and disappear in any crowd. Sent to mind a troop of foreign mercenaries, he looks forward to completing his mission and collecting his reward, and when an inconvenient spark of gallantry and his own perverse humor cause him to marry a maid captured on the battlefield he intends the marriage to be in name only.

Raised in the Scottish Highlands, heiress to a title, a fortune founded on the whiskey trade, and properties in Scotland and in France, Cat Drummond is far from the camp follower Jamie mistakes her for.  Fiercely loyal to family, clan and king, she’s born to rule, trained on the field of battle and at the court of Versailles, and equally comfortable in men’s breeches or a gown.  Disguised as beggars on the streets of London, or glittering amongst the courtiers of Whitehall Palace, Catherine and Jamie will join forces in an age where treachery and adultery are the fashion, and cynicism, cruelty and barbed wit are the qualities most admired.  But in a world where family, creed, and princes can’t be trusted, and faith fuels intolerance, hatred, and war, they’ll soon find themselves on opposite sides of a growing conflict that will force them to question everything they know, and test the bounds of friendship, loyalty and love. – FROM AUTHOR WEBSITE

AUTHOR GUEST POST…“Herstory”

It’s a great pleasure being here at the Book Faery today. Thank you so much for hosting me. I’ve been writing a number of blogs as part of a virtual book tour for my new release Highland Rebel. Last week I blogged at Morbid Romantic on how historical stereotypes can overwhelm historical facts to the point where historically accurate words, situations and events might be mistaken as anachronisms; modern day habits, customs and mores applied to older times. Many of these stereotypes revolve around women’s roles, and as promised, that is what I’m going to talk about today.

When I started reading herstory instead of history, the world of the past revealed itself as a very different place than I’d imagined, and things I thought anachronistic and fantastical were often revealed as sometimes commonplace, more often unusual, but surprisingly true.

In Highland Rebel, Jamie and Catherine meet on a battlefield. She is dressed as a man and is wielding a sword. While researching the story I had some concerns about this. Would readers find that implausible? Would they feel it was a too modern sensibility? I began by looking for an historically appropriate phrase to describe Catherine as a child, when she was essentially what we call today a tomboy. Much to my surprise, I discovered that the first recorded usage of that word in the way we use it today was in 1592. It was safe to assume the word had been in common usage well before that, which suggests that “tomboys” have been with us for many centuries.

Nevertheless my qualms remained. Female soldiers tend to be the stuff of fantasy novels and saints (I am thinking of course of Joan of Arc). Then I read Antonia Frazer’s wonderful and ironically titled The Weaker Vessel: Woman’s lot in 17^th century England. Beginning there I found records of women dressing and fighting as men in the English Civil war, both marching to battle as soldiers, and leading troops to defend their homes and properties. I discovered that “Mother Ross” started her military career disguised as a man, but later fought openly as a female soldier, and Hannah Snell called herself James Gray, served in the Royal Marines; and after revealing her secret was dismissed but granted a lifetime pension.

So on to the next stereotype. Women in breeches. Another anachronism? Something that just didn’t happen? Tell that to Mary of Modena or Charles II’s lover Hortense Mancini. When Catherine arrives in London, missing her breeches and hating her restrictive clothing she is not alone. Hortense Mancini, Duchess of Mazarin and niece of Cardinal Mazarin, arrived in England (allegedly as a French spy) dressed in men’s clothes, and bowled over Charles II, soon becoming his mistress. Mary of Modena, James II’s wife, had her portrait painted in men’s clothes and started something of a fashion craze in which the finest ladies of London affected a masculine look. The Stuart boys liked bad girls and it didn’t hurt their social standing any. Anyone who reads the works of noted historian Antonia Fraser will find accounts of women who lead troops, went to war, ran their own business, wrote books and plays, dressed and lived as men, secured divorces, or abandoned husbands and didn’t die of shame.

There are numerous travel accounts of adventuresome ladies who traveled alone to exotic lands and toured the continent. Granted women had more freedoms in the 16^th and 17^th centuries than in later years but even the Georgian period is full of surprises. Have you heard that women were considered bad luck on ships and didn’t sail with their men? Researching my first novel, Broken Wing, I discovered that ships with women living, as opposed to traveling on them, were referred to as Hen Frigates, and in Nelson’s time, women traveled aboard warships and were present at all the major battles of the era.  In fact, the rules governing soldiers allowed each company of marines to travel with five women, who were usually officer’s wife’s and often helped the physician deal with the wounded.

It wasn’t only upper class women who had more freedom and adventures than many of us assume. Seventeenth century common wives in England ran businesses, worked as entrepreneurs, and could join a guild by inheriting their husband’s position upon his death. Thus there were female goldsmiths, tailors, weavers etc. On her husband’s death a widowed commoner could expect to receive a third of her husband’s estate, and two thirds if there were no children. The people and circumstances I describe may not be typical, but they certainly existed. They were I suppose remarkable, or like most women, they would never have been mentioned by historians. They were certainly real, generally accepted, and were a part of the fabric of the history of the times.

Catherine is such a woman, the type who is willing to defy convention to take charge of her own life, but she is also fortunate in having a father who accepts her, and Jamie who enjoys her for what she is. I look forward to any comments or questions, and I’m curious too. What kind heroine do you prefer, the Jane Austen type who accepts the conventions and then uses her brain to navigate through them and get what she wants, the heroine that makes her own rules, or another kind of heroine altogether?

Highland Rebel by Judith James, in stores September 1, 2009!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Judith James has worked as a legal assistant, trail guide, and counselor. Living in Nova Scotia, her personal journey has taken her to the Arctic and the West Coast. Her writing combines her love of history and adventure with her keen interest in the complexities of human nature and the heart’s capacity to heal. For more information about Judith, please visit http://www.judithjamesauthor.com/

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…It’s been awhile since I read a really good historical romance with a heroine I could feel proud of for her strength and curiosity and a “bad boy” hero I could not help falling in love with in the first couple of chapters. Lots of adventure for sure in this book from beginning to end which had me on my toes wanting to fight alongside the two. Can you imagine the expression on my kids faces when I jumped up on my bed pretending to be in a savage sword fight after reading a heart pumping scene?! Judith James created a delicious “cat and mouse” game filled with bantering back and forth between the two. She gave Cat and Jamie the perfect relationship of battle comrades and best friends who sought out adventure and passion who in the end always knew where they to find the other so they could be there. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a strong heroine/hero with some great adventures.

Now on the to the book giveaway…All participants must have a US/Canada (Non-PO Box) address. For an entry in this giveaway which ends September 30th, 2009, you must first answer this…would you have been one of those Catherine’s in the old times supporting your cause in some adventuresome way?

For extra entries do the following (1 per item completed):

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