REVIEWS: Secrets & Saviours
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I have just finished reading Secret’s & Saviours. There were tears! I started slowly but then I found it difficult to put the book down. I then got to the point when I slowed down again as I didn’t want it to end.
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New Year’s Eve was an example of feeling I was there with the guests and the tolling of Gabriel was so touching.
D
East Sussex, August 2021
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Lewes Author
BEVERLEY ELPHICK
This is the first book where the story begins
THREE ROUND TOWERS
ISBN 978-1-78306-420-5 (Matador) 2014
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Available as a paperback or ebook from Amazon or Troubador
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“An engaging tale of one young woman’s struggles against the prejudices, assumptions and deprivations of a grim and ruthless period of our history.” (Rosemary Aitken)
In the first of her Esther Coad historical fiction trilogy, Beverley Elphick powerfully reimagines life in southern England in the late eighteenth century and a society at war with itself. In times of hardship and shortage, when vicious smugglers hold sway over the town of Lewes in East Sussex, a young servant on the run finds herself caught up in a web of resentment, family feuding and brutal acts of revenge. To double the trouble for Esther, can she turn her back on the abandoned baby in need of care?
‘You’re an evil woman and I wish you were hanged, just as you deserve.’
‘Aye, maybe I do deserve hanging, but you’m come from our seed, girl, and you’ll never know whether the badness is in you.’
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I have been inspired by the landscapes around my home town of Lewes and have tried to bring a sense of time and place to highlight a turbulent period of history. I couldn't write a novel about Lewes without mentioning the bonfire traditions of that time.
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Click here for Three Round Tower reviews .....
This is the second book in my unfolding trilogy
RETRIBUTION
ISBN 978-1-78901-581-2 (Matador) 2018
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Available as a paperback or ebook from Amazon or Troubador
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Following the success of Three Round Towers, Retribution follows the unfolding story of Esther in 18th Century Lewes.
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Murder. Betrayal. Adventure. A Score That Must Be Settled.
A tale of twists and turns following the most unlikely of female leads.
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‘How do you know my name?’ I asked… ‘We will come to that’ he said.
‘Do you think they meant to kill him?’
War between Britain, France and Spain forms the background to Beverley Elphick's much-anticipated second novel, Retribution. Our heroine Esther Coad is looking forward at last to starting a normal family life; but with the town under threat, and plagued by shadows from the past, can Esther reach her longed-for happy ever after?
This is the second instalment of Beverley Elphick’s trilogy set in the eighteenth century when smuggling is rife and a strong female voice rarely heard.
At the heart of the story is family; not always the one you are born with, but the one you carve out for yourself.
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Click here for Retribution reviews .....
And finally the conclusion
SECRETS & SAVIOURS
ISBN 9798503667851 (Amazon) 2021
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Available as a paperback or ebook from Amazon
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The thrilling conclusion of Esther Coad's story is revealed in the final book in the trilogy: Secrets & Saviours
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"To him, I was just a hostage to fortune, a bartering tool. If not that, why would he keep me alive?"
A vacuum filled; a threat renewed.
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The early years of 1800 hold out great promise and hope for Lewes midwife Esther Coad and her young ward Beth, including marriage to the town’s coroner and physician. But storm clouds soon gather in the guise of bitter family discord and the rise of a new generation of rogues and cut-throats.
When Esther is given the opportunity to help destroy, once and for all, both the Kent and Sussex smuggling gangs, she jumps at the chance, little knowing the price she will pay as her life is held on a knife-edge with no rescue in sight.
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"This powerful conclusion to the Esther Coad saga will keep fans gripped to the last."
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"In her last book 'Retribution' Beverley Elphick captured a fragment of history and embellished it with a spirited heroine and a lively storyline, I can't wait to discover how the story develops in Secrets and Saviours".
Gill Kaye, Editor: ingénu/e magazine
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Available as a paperback or ebook from Amazon
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Click here for Secrets & Saviours reviews .....
Keep up to date with everything that's happening on Instagram and Facebook.
Facebook is where I often share recent events, books I've read, short stories I'm writing, even the nocturnal habits of my local hedgehogs! You'll also find two lovely videos there of the churches and countryside which feature in my books.
Who am I?
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My name is Beverley and I am the author of three historical novels set in Lewes, East Sussex, England, in the 1790's. The stories centre around the main character Esther, a young woman having to find her own way in life without family support or any financial means. Her life is tough and dangerous, but she is made of strong stuff, often showing true courage as well as compassion to overcome the cruel hand life has dealt her.
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The titles of my books are Three Round Towers, Retribution and Secrets & Saviours. My books are available as paperbacks or ebooks. You can buy the first two titles direct from the publishers, Troubador, or all of them via Amazon. Simply click the relevant links in the text alongside each of my books shown above.
If you live locally to me in East Sussex, all three books are also available in Lewes at Sussex Stationers in the High Street. Both are also available on Kindle, if you don't want to buy the physical copies.
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I have been writing most of my life, but it wasn't until I retired that I decided to try a novel. Up until then, I wrote for the local press, penned whimsical articles including several seasons of pantomime scripts for my children's primary school, St Philips in Uckfield. The panto tradition continues to this day with Sara Cannon (who was one of the cast in an early script now writing and producing). Children that we performed to now take the leading roles! And of course I entertained my own children with stories from my imagination.
When circumstances allow, I am available to do Talks, Book Signings and meet with Book Groups to discuss the novels, my characters, where I get my inspiration from. I really enjoy hearing your views and thoughts about my books, so please do get in touch and let me know if you are interested in arranging an event. If we happen to experience another lockdown (I hope we won't have to) I obviously can't do these events in person, but it might be possible to use Zoom, for example, if you'd like that idea. Let me know using the contact form below.
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Contact Me
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If you'd like to contact me with comments or reviews, to arrange a Book Group, Signing or Talk please use the adjacent form and I will reply as soon as I can.
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Thank you for looking at my site and I hope you enjoy reading my books!
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Beverley Elphick
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