LIVING THE HISTORY: A few interesting days in London.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

A few interesting days in London.

Just now I am in and out of London a great deal for diverse reasons. Late last month, I was there with my good friend and Akashic Records consultant Alison King to give a talk to the London Dowser's Society about how we work together to access the past. The talk was in Dirty Dick's pub, and suffice to say that there was plenty of the past lurking around in there!

Then last week I was in the capital for a couple of days. I had to meet with my agent to discuss business on one of them, but that left me a free couple of hours to head on the Tube to the British museum and take some photos and have a look round their Medieval gallery - see below.
Then it was back to my hotel to meet a fellow author for dinner. On day two, I had to be up bright and early to attend an event at the RAF club on Picadilly. The shortlisted novels for the RNA's Best Romantic Novel of the Year Award were to be announced at a champagne breakfast and I was one of the shortlisted writers with TO DEFY A KING. The novel is also on the shortlist for the Best Historical Novel of the year too.
I'm back in London next week for another meeting with my publishers and then again on March 7th for the announcement of the winners of the RNA awards. In between, I had better get some writing done! Click to enlarge. As usual, apologies for some of the formatting. Blogger can be awkward.

A very haunted pub

In the vaults!
me and Alison King

British Museum
Door knocker

Series of tiles

Drinking horn - 6thC

enamel plaques

brooch

Seals of Joanna,
Daughter of Eleanor
of Aquitaine and
Henry II

Details for
photo below

liturgical comb

mid 12thC enamel
plaques. Lower one
depicts Henry of Blois
Bishop of Winchester
and King Stephen's
brother.

Explanation of below
photo

aquamanile

reconstruction of the
Sutton Hoo sword

Close up of pattern
welded blade

Replica of the
Sutton Hoo helm

Selection of earrings

RNA awards shortlist
Left to right:

Kate Furnivall
Elizabeth Chadwick
Christina Jones

Shortlisted novels for
the main award.

5 comments:

Carol said...: Fab photos.

Have you been to Sutton Hoo?
I have been a couple of times in past years on class trips, as a teaching assist.

carol; 12:03 pm
Jules Frusher said...: Wonderful pics! Congrats on the short-listing too - well-deserved!!! Wish I could have been with you both in that pub :-); 1:11 pm
Cindy Ash said...: I was there as well, very cool place. Also saw much of the horde at the York museum.

I loved that section of the British Museum. I'm assuming youve also been to the medieval section the MET's auxillary Cloisters once or twice. I go there anytime I am in the city. Not only does the collection rival whats in the BM, but the atmosphere is a grand way to feel that you are really in that time period.

What in the world is a 'liturgical comb'?; 1:25 pm
Marilyn Smith said...: Thanks for sharing your trip, and esp. the neat photos giving us a glimpse of the past.

Congratulations on the short-listings
too.

Marilyn; 7:14 pm
Emilie Laforge said...: Congratulations on the short-listing and thank you for sharing your pictures.

If I ever get a chance to go back to the British Museum, I will definitely take a look at the Medieval period artifacts.

I went to the BM in 2008 and it was 30°C outside so needless to say that with the hundreds of tourists, it felt even hotter. It's funny, in Canada, museums are considered great places to escape the sweltering summer heat because buildings have air conditioning whereas in the BM, only some rooms had air conditioning.; 2:14 am

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING

" Wow! I feel like someone used to watching movies in black and white but has just seen the first one in technicolor! " A personal letter from a reader.

"The Winter Crown ...will, I have no doubt, become the definitive fictional account of this remarkable woman.' ..." I’ve read a fair few fictional depictions of Henry II over the years and I must say that his portrait in The Winter Crown has the most authentic feel of them all."
Kate Atherton, author of For Winters Night blog.

"Eeanor’s life story has been told many times over in historical novels but rarely with such insight, emotional intensity and page-turning readability." Pam Norfolk, Lancashire Evening Post.

"In the world of the arts, the Black Legend and the Golden Myth still hold sway, as seen in novels, such as Alison Weir's, which seek to portray both the scandalous, adulterous queen of legend and the powerful female ruler. Historians may shake their heads at the perpetuation of such myths, but many historical novelists such as Sharon Kay Penman and Elizabeth Chadwick are seeking to apply modern scholarship to their fiction, and consequently avoid the most egregious of the legends that surround Eleanor."

Professor Michael R. Evans in Inventing Eleanor - Bloomsbury Academic.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE SUMMER QUEEN

"What I loved about this novel, and I have felt this way about all of Elizabeth’s novels that I have read, is that she does not pander to stereotypes or write scandal for the sake of it. The historical Eleanor is defamed beyond belief- a whore chasing anything in trousers, a woman who committed incest with her uncle, a woman who was ‘ahead of her time’, and so on. Elizabeth’s Alienor is none of these things. She is treated fairly, as a woman of her own time, written in a believable way. Elizabeth does not go for scandal because she does not need to- the writing in this novel makes that very clear. Her scene setting is lovely, her character development top notch, and the book is a compulsive page turner. I couldn’t put it down." Sarah Bell

."The Summer Queen is a fabulous novel based on the most up-to-date and meticulous research. This is historical fiction at its best and I loved every page of it." Kate Atherton, blogger.

"I have read just about everything I can about Eleanor and enjoyed both biographical and fictional accounts of her life but I must say that your creation of Eleanor is the most compelling." Reader from Australia

"I loved the story; I loved the way the author wrote Alienor as a woman of her times instead of a thoroughly modern independent woman, or a slut in chase of anything in pants. As with all Chadwick novels, there's also the added plus of being sucked into another century with the sights, smells and sounds that wrap up a darn-near perfect reading experience. I couldn't put it down, and very sorry I'm going to have to wait for the next installment. Reader from the USA

"Meticulous research and strong storytelling." Woman & Home
"A rich and compelling read. " Candis Magazine

"I often see the expressions, `fleshing out the history' and `making it real', and they more than apply here...the main aspect that made me keep turning the pages and burning the midnight oil? The things that I didn't know about Alienor.." Reader from Australia

"Chadwick has succeeded where many other novelists have failed by giving us not just the legend but the very human young woman – intelligent, determined, witty and sexy." Pam Norfolk. Lancashire Evening Post.