Elizabeth Kerri Mahon

Amanda McCabe who writes as Laurel McKee for Grand Central Publishing has a new series out set in Ireland. The first book is appropriately enough called Countess of Scandal . To celebrate her release this month, she's been featuring Irish Heroines over at her blog, some of whom were pretty Scandalous. So far she's featured The Countess Markiewicz, and now Margaret King, whose governess was once Mary Wollstonecraft. I came across Margaret when I was researching Mary for Scandalous Women (the book, not the blog). You can read about Margaret here . I can't wait to find out who she's going to feature next weekend.

The Crown Prince (2006) Directed by Robert Dornhelm Written by Klaus Lintschinger and Didier Decoin Who's in it: Crown Prince Rudolf  - Max von Thun Emperor Franz Josef  - Klaus Maria Brandauer Empress Elisabeth      - Sandra Ceccarelli Mary Vetsera            -  Vittoria Puccini Max Korn                 - Omar Sharif What it's about: The story opens with the news of Crown Prince Rudolf's suicide at Mayerling. At his funeral, the film flashes back ten years to 1878. Crown Prince Rudolf is full of youthful enthusiasm, and has been living the life of a Playboy in Vienna with his cousins Johan and Crown Prince Wilhelm of Prussia but his father worries that he is throwing his life away. His father exiles him to Prague. Max (played by Omar Sharif, looking like Karl Marx), the painter who is painting the P...

So sorry that it's taken me so long to post this. My computer was giving me fits this morning, and that I had to spend most of my time sending out emails to libraries, museums, and historical societies to find out how much it is going to cost me for the rights to photos that I want to include in the inserts for SCANDALOUS WOMEN. The manuscript is due in *gulp* two weeks. Any, I'm pleased to report that the winner of the giveaway of WENCH by Dolen Perkins-Valdez is: Marg Marg, I will email you to get your address to send you your copy of the book. I'd like to thank everyone for entering and I hope that you will continue following the blog. I will be doing another giveaway probably at the end of the month so stay tuned. I'll also be reviewing the films Camille Claudel and The Crown Prince (about Mayerling) as well

For years I'd seen Renaissance Magazine in bookstores and never picked up a copy. For some reason I thought it was just a magazine for people who liked Renaissance Faires. That was until recently when I ordered a back issue that had an article on Veronica Franco. It turns out that I was wrong. Sure Renaissance Magazine has a lot of ads in the back for the various Ren Faires around the country but it is also filled with interesting and unusual articles. The Veronica Franco (Issue #41) issue alone has several articles that I found interesting, including one tourism in Medieval Venice, the Origins of the Mafia and Venetian gondolas. Looking at some of the articles in the back issues made me salivate. Whole issues devoted to Robin Hood, and Women of Arthurian Legend just to name a few. I was in heaven. Unfortunatley back issues cost a fortune. The one I ordered cost a whopping $25! So it will take me awhile before I get around to ordering any other issues. However, the magazine itsel...

I recently picked up a copy of a debut novel called WENCH by Dolen Perkins-Valdez. Dolen had actually sent me an email about her book way back in October, and I'd been eagerly anticipating it ever since. It did not disappoint. Here's a little teaser from the front flap: Tawawa House in many respects is like any other American resort before the Civil War. Situated in Ohio, this idyllic retreat is particularly nice in the summer when the Southern humidity is too much to bear. Lizzie, Reenie, and Sweet are regulars at Tawawa House. They have become friends over the years as they reunite and share developments in their own lives and on their respective plantations. They don't bother too much with questions of freedom, though the resort is situated in free territory-but when truth-telling Mawu comes to the resort and starts talking of running away, things change. In her debut novel, Perkins-Valdez takes the reader on a journey into a period of American history that is of...