Thank you Catalina for inviting me as guest to your blog. Well, as it’s a blog focused on history, I have a confession to make – namely that history wasn’t among my favorite subjects while I was a pupil. Literature, chemistry, English – yes. History – no. But things changed since I started writing. Since I became an author.
Why? The answer is
in the type of fiction I write. I write paranormal, light romance. Furthermore,
my favorite subgenre deals with ghosts,
reincarnation, magic, past life regression, Karma.
Thus, my
characters travel back in time, revisiting their former lives, which are set mostly
around or in the Middle Ages.
For my first
release, Shadows of the Past, whose
plot takes place in England, I studied thoroughly Britain
during Middle
Ages, a fact remarked by many of my reviewers. In writing Dracula’s
Mistress it was a bit easier, as
it’s in connection with my country’s history, with the famous historical character Vlad the Impaler.
As about Till Life Do Us Part, ( BUY LINK )my latest
release, I based the story on a real event. One part of the story, the past
part, is set in Switzerland, Glarus1780,
during the age of Enlightenment. I weaved my story around a seed of historical
truth – the execution of the last witch in Europe. Yes, there were such
horrible things in many European countries, Switzerland, being one of them.
Barbara Heyer can hear voices of dead people. They whisper of their deaths, seek comfort for those left behind, and occasionally even warn her about future events. But when Barbara’s brother, Colin, is accused of murder, it will take more than her gift to prove his innocence.
Becoming smitten with the handsome investigator, Detective Patrick Fischer, is a serious complication given his assignment to her brother’s case. Barbara senses there is something far deeper—and perhaps much older—than the surface attraction between them. Could that be why she’s visited by a mysterious woman named Emma in her dreams? Could past life regression tie all the seemingly unconnected events together?
Barbara and Patrick must overcome heartache to find the truth to save Colin, and perhaps themselves.
While my book is
not a historical novel, only partly based on a historical event, I searched for
the truth in this event, and infused this truth into my fictional work. I
didn’t keep the real name of the woman involved only because I had already used
it in Shadows of the Past, and feared my readers will suspect me of lack of
imagination. I used the name Emma which was a name used in Europe at that time.
I allowed my
characters to question and explore their place in society. This helped me
reveal the larger social and cultural context of the time. For example, what
were the expectations for women. My
character, Emma, the same as the real historical one, is a maid in a rich house
taking care of the family’s children. I won’t go into any more of the plot than
that – you’ll want to read it for yourselves as the book has already come out.
I discovered all sorts of interesting things
regarding Switzerland at that time. For
example, that Jean Jaques Rousseau, whom
I always considered French, was in fact born and lived a great part of his
childhood in Switzerland.
Till Life Do Us Part
is a crossover novel as it blends elements
of romance, history, mystery and paranormal.
So a bit to everyone’s taste. I hope you will enjoy reading it. If you do,
please, I would be grateful if you could leave a couple of lines review.
Author Bio
Carmen Stefanescu resides in Romania, the native country of the infamous vampire Count Dracula, but where, for about 50 years of communist dictatorship, just speaking about God, faith, reincarnation or paranormal phenomena could have led someone to great trouble - the psychiatric hospital if not to prison.
Teacher of English and German in her native country and mother of two daughters, Carmen Stefanescu survived the grim years of communist oppression, by escaping in a parallel world, that of the books.
Her first novel, Shadows of the Past, was released in 2012 by Wild Child Publishing, USA.
Carmen joined the volunteer staff at Marketing For Romance Writers Author blog, and is the coordinator of #Thursday13 posts.
You can stalk the author here:
shadowspastmystery.blogspot.ro
@Carmen_Books
www.pinterest.com/carmens007
facebook ~ Carmen-Stefanescu-Books
goodreads.~ Carmen_Stefanescu
Carmen Google+
Carmen-Stefanescu~ AMAZON Author Page
Till Life Do Us Part
Publisher: Solstice Publishing
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Reincarnation, Mystery, Suspense
Release date: 9th June 2016
“She’s here,” Barbara replied in a small voice.
Excerpt
He watched the windows of the house for several days,
hidden by the mantle of the falling night. Taking advantage of the cover the
lime trees in the garden offered, he avidly followed her every movement across
the bedroom. He could have hidden in the attic as he had a few times, watching
her through the peephole he’d made, but from here, he could see her better.
He had a cautious nature, yet wasn’t afraid of being
spotted. There was little likelihood of his presence being announced to the
police as a stalker. After all, they’d been seen together quite often.
The first drop of rain fell with a splash on the
windshield jolting Barbara back to reality. She opened her eyes and slipped her
small handbag into the glove box. The money she received would help her solve
many of the “not-for-now” things, like replacing the floorboard in the bedroom
and repairing the leaking pipe in the kitchen.
She looked through the windshield at the pelting rain
washing over her car. She reached for the key to start the engine when a faint
light flickered on top of the steering wheel.
Barbara, Barbara, a voice came, more like a whisper, in her mind. He
killed me. He just killed me...
Who are you, dear? Who killed you?
Kathleen… He killed me.
“Detective, please, don’t think I’m raving, but I have to ask. Do you know
someone called Mabel?”
The man riveted Barbara with his dark blue eyes for a
moment. Barbara cringed inside. He’ll rebuke me. The man passed a hand over his
face and nodding, he answered, “Yes, I know a Mabel. My... my wife.”
“How long ago did she pass away?”
In a voice that was more than a little surprised he
asked, “How on earth did you know she’s dead?”
“She’s here,” Barbara replied in a small voice.
His eyebrows shot up in disbelief. The steel in his
voice was hard to miss. “What? What are you talking about?” He spun round and
looked at the apparently empty space behind him.
Detective Fisher was still staring blankly around him.
“She wants me to tell you she no longer suffers. She
hopes you’ve found in your heart the power to forgive her for committing
suicide... for jumping off the bridge.”
The detective looked straight into Barbara’s eyes. The
grief she saw in them was almost palpable.
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