I’M RUNNING A GIVEAWAY OF OLIVIA’S BOOKS—SEE BELOW.

Olivia Rae has created two novel series that plunge readers into medieval life with all its drama and adventure. In contrast, she has written a poignant contemporary romance about a widower, a women’s shelter director, and a disabled boy, titled Joshua’s Prayer.

I’m particularly grateful to Olivia for endorsing my novel, A Hundred Magical Reasons, published by Scrivenings Press in January.

Teaser for A Hundred Magical Reasons

Most fairy tales have happy endings, but is it too late for this one? After all, Mrs. Gordon is 88.

This split-time fiction set in 1980 and the early 1900s encompasses . . . 

• A child’s unlikely friendship with The Wizard of Oz author, L Frank Baum, & his influence across 4 generations
• A young woman following a risky dream
• An old woman haunted by regret as she reveals her past

If you enjoy historical fiction and character-driven stories—with a touch of romance—this novel fits the bill. If you like fairy tales, that’s another bonus.

If you’re a fan of Wicked, the musical or the movie, you’ll get a chance to see where all the Oz hoopla originated—with the inimitable L. Frank Baum.

If you’re a Baum fan, you’ll get the feel of what it was like to be with him.

If you’re unfamiliar with Baum, you’re in for a treat, for you’ll have the pleasure of getting to know him.

Read more and watch the book trailer on my website here.

You can purchase the book on Amazon.

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Now back to Olivia. I’m sharing some of her books and running a GIVEAWAY!

Comment below on any of Olivia’s books for a chance to win the paperback of your choice. 

Here are Olivia’s award-winning book titles at a glance . . . 

Secrets of the Queens (medieval historical romance & mystery):

• A Life Renewed (2020)
• A Life Redeemed (2021)
• A Life Reclaimed (2022)

The Sword and the Cross Chronicles (medieval historical romance):

• Salvation (2015)
• Revelation (2015)
• Redemption (2016)
• Resurrection (2017)
• Adoration (2018)
• Devotion (2019)

Small Town Contemporary Clean Romance & Family Life Fiction:

• Joshua’s Prayer (2018)

Secrets of the Queens series , , ,

Blurb for A Life Reclaimed

A Scoundrel, A Spy, and A Secret. Will She Ever Learn the Truth?

Desperate to avoid a second loveless marriage, Anne Howell hides out in a cave on the Welsh coast. If she can get to England, she should be safe from her stepfather’s long-reaching hand. She thinks her prayers are answered when she rescues a shipwrecked sailor, Thomas Armstrong, who agrees to help her, claiming he has ties to Queen Elizabeth I. Though she fears he may be an accomplished liar, she has no choice but to trust him, especially when a secret from her past puts spies on her trail and threatens to destroy her future.

Upon learning his true mother was executed in place of a dethroned queen, Thomas Armstrong sets out to find the cowardly monarch and avenge his mother’s death. Broke and in debt, he is finally on the verge of reaching his goal when his ship goes down in a storm and he ends up owing his life to the honest and forthright Anne Howell. He fears his quest is finished – until he learns there are those who would pay handsomely to have Anne in their possession, enough to clear his debt and enable him to pursue the revenge he seeks. But in helping Anne he has lost his heart, and now faces a devastating choice – remain loyal to his goal of avenging his mother or follow his feelings to an uncertain future with Anne.  

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My thoughts

In a rage, Thomas Armstrong discards his family—the kind of family Anne Howell longs to have. Thomas and Anne’s paths cross while he’s on a mission to exact revenge and she’s running for her life. They travel together, holding to tightly held secrets. See my full review on the Standout Stories blog here.

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The Sword & the Chronicles series . . .

Blurb for Salvation

She Only Wanted To Be Left Alone.

With the death of her husband, independent Lady Breanna Durville is finally free of male control and happily waits the birth of her child…alone. But her late husband’s cousin, Lord de Beaufou has come to claim his rights to Durville Keep and to her hand in marriage. If that is not enough to deal with, her brother has sent a peasant to watch over her. She has but one plan. Get rid of them both! 

But He Swore To Never Leave Her Side.

Tormented by his past, Royce Canwell leaves the unrest in the Holy Land and returns to England to fulfill an oath to a friend–go to Durville Keep and ensure all is well with man’s sister. But upon arrival Royce discovers Lady Breanna’s situation is more precarious than he expected. Though he longs for a simple life in which to heal his wounded soul, he finds himself sacrificing his hopes, his dreams, and even his heart to give Lady Breanna the future she wants and deserves.

The Sword and the Cross Chronicles . . .   Let the journey begin.

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My Thoughts

Twelfth century England came alive for me in this riveting piece of historical fiction. Royce and Breanna are opposite in every way: personality, goals, and social class. Through clever dialog and numerous twists and turns, this unlikely romance easily kept my interest. See my complete review on the blog here.

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Blurb for Revelation

Olivia Rae brings an inspirational award-winning tale of intrigue, love, and a faith that can change even the proudest hearts.

King Richard needs a royal wedding…

Richard’s niece, the feisty and resourceful Lady Ariane is to be his pawn. Though she has spent the last ten years living with the infidels in the Holy Land, Richard plans to turn her into a pious Christian lady, one fit to marry the nephew of King Phillip of France and, thus, seal a lucrative contract between the two countries.

But she needs the right teacher.

Proud and fierce, Templar Knight, Julian de Maury believes he has been chosen by God to free the holy city of Jerusalem from Saladin’s evil grip. But when Richard orders Julian to return to England with Lady Ariane and oversee her Christian education, he’s angry and terrified; he has been denied his destiny and England holds a dark secret better left buried. Now he must come to terms with his past and his attraction to the forbidden Lady Ariane.

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My Thoughts

This is another great plunge into twelfth century England, into the world of the Knights Templar. The suspense and character dynamics never slack. Read my complete review on the blog here.

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Blurb for Joshua’s Prayer (small town contemporary clean romance & family life fiction)

They only want what is best for Joshua—but disagree about what that is.

When Dr. Sam Morgan’s estranged wife dies in a tragic accident, he returns home from a months-long, overseas surgical mission to discover his disabled son, Joshua, does not remember him. Sam is convinced that he and Joshua can only overcome their heartbreaking memories by leaving their decaying small town and starting over somewhere else.

Nicole James runs a women’s shelter where Sam’s wife fled with Joshua, claiming Sam was not the saint he appeared to be, but a physical and mental abuser. Nicole is determined to protect Joshua by legally preventing Sam from leaving Golden Ridge with his son until she can get at the truth—is Sam Morgan an abuser or the victim of lies in a marriage that went terribly wrong?

As Sam and Nicole are forced to work together on Joshua’s behalf, they begin to gain a grudging respect for one another. But will mutual distrust prevent them from realizing that the best thing they can do for Joshua is to fall in love?

Here are 3 excerpts from the Q & As when Olivia visited my blog.

Questions about A Life Reclaimed

What inspired your Secrets of the Queens series, and particularly A Life Reclaimed? How does A Life Reclaimed fit into the context of the first two in the series? 

Olivia: The birth of A Life Reclaimed came out of the second book in the series, A Life Redeemed when Thomas was a boy. If I say too much more, I might ruin the plot of book two. Thomas drew me in as a child and I knew halfway through the second book that his story would have to be told along with Anne’s. Their stories were the logical end to the series. 

What are some of the intriguing things you learned or researched for the Secrets of the Queens?

Olivia: I knew quite a bit about English history before starting the first book in the series, but I didn’t know much about German history (for A Life Renewed, book 1) and Scottish history (for A Life Redeemed, book 2 and A Life Reclaimed, book 3). 

One of the most interesting facts was learning about the Scottish border Reivers. Besides fighting with the English, the Reivers had many squabbles among themselves. Land was the most valuable commodity at the time and the people who lived between England and Scotland suffered. You had to be strong and tough physically and mentally in order to survive on the Scottish/English border. 

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Questions about Salvation

What inspired you to write stories set in Medieval times?

Olivia: I have always been interested in the time period and have done a lot of research in English Medieval history (1100 to the 1600). A long time ago while I was researching, I came across a story about a knight who fought against Saladin’s army in the Holy Land. Though he and the Crusaders lost the battle, his story stayed with me a long time.  

A few years later, I created a new story for the avenging knight in my book Revelation, which inspired my whole Sword and the Cross Chronicles. 

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Questions about Revelation

Did you plan from the outset to write a series? How did you decide to write Julian de Maury’s story next, after Salvation?

Olivia: I wrote Revelation first before I wrote Salvation and it started as a straight romance, not a Christian romance.  However, Julian’s story was so entwined with his faith it became a Christian romance.  Originally this was written as a stand-alone book, but I was encouraged by fellow author Laura Scott to write a series, which originally was going to be a four-book series, but wound up being six books.  

Who or what was your inspiration for Lady Ariane’s character and the plight she found herself in?

Olivia: Really, her character was born out of causing trouble for Julian. Later, I drew inspiration from reading about slaves in the Holy Land during the Crusades. Originally, the Arab people accepted Europeans who were on Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land. However, the flood of pilgrims entering the Holy Land began to worry the Muslim population so they began killing and capturing many of the Christians pilgrims. The Muslim raiders were known as the Assassin. Yes, this is the origin of the Assassin word. 

Are characters from Salvation and Revelation in books 3 – 6? Share a bit about the rest of the series and how those tales developed.

Olivia: Book 3, Redemption is Guy’s story. He was Julian’s sidekick in Revelation.  Guy had a story that needed to be told.

Book 4, Resurrection was supposed to be the last book of the series. This story is about Hugh, Julian’s brother. I even tried to wrap this story up by having the whole family show up for an archery tournament. However, there were two other knights that I sent off to France. I got so many emails about these two knights that I decided to add two more books to the series, Adoration and Devotion.  In all honesty Devotion, is by far my favorite book of them all.

REPLY IN THE COMMENTS BELOW FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A PAPERBACK OF YOUR CHOICE!

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Olivia Rae bio

Olivia Rae is an award-winning author of historical and contemporary inspirational romance. She spent her school days dreaming of knights, princesses and far away kingdoms; it made those long, boring days in the classroom go by much faster. Nobody was more shocked than her when she decided to become a teacher. Besides getting her Master’s degree, marrying her own prince, and raising a couple of kids, Olivia decided to breathe a little more life into her childhood stories by adding in what she’s learned as an adult living in a small town on the edge of a big city. When not writing, she loves to travel, dragging her family to old castles and forts all across the world.

Olivia is the winner of the Angel Awards,  New England Readers’ Choice Award, Golden Quill Award, American Fiction Award, Illumination Book Awards, and the Southern Magic Award. She has also been a finalist in many other contests including the National Readers’ Choice Awards.  She is currently hard at work on her next novel. Learn more on her website.

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Join me next time for a visit with author Jane Kirkpatrick.

Meanwhile, have you read any books by Olivia Rae? Do you enjoy medieval historical fiction? Or do you prefer small town contemporary romance? Answer in the comments below.

COMMENT BELOW ON OLIVIA’S BOOKS FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A PAPERBACK OF YOUR CHOICE!

Ever reading,

Laura

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