Category Archives: YouCaxton

fiction, YouCaxton

The Secret, the Sword and the Seal
Fran Norton

On a bleak November day in the year of Our Lord, 1307, Eve de Clavering rode away from the Staffordshire Castle of Heleigh into an uncertain future. Wracked by grief at losing her young husband, Thomas de Audley, Eve carries a guilty secret, one which will affect the rest of her life. When she arrives back in Essex, the home of her dominating father, Sir John de Clavering, Eve discovers her future has already been decided. No time for grief, Eve reluctantly meets Sir Thomas de Ufford, the second son of a kinsman to the Earl of Suffolk. Infuriated by her father's insensitive behaviour, it sparks a rift between father and daughter which will never be resolved. However, against all odds, Eve discovers an ally in her second husband but will the chance of happiness be overshadowed by her secret? Meantime, Thomas introduces her to court life where she meets the powerful and colourful characters surrounding the Edward II and his queen Isabella of France, but Eve hates the hypocrisy and underlying tensions. In 1314, Thomas joins the knights and earls of the king to face the Scots at the fateful Battle of Bannockburn where the English suffer an ignominious defeat and where the king even loses the Great Seal of State.
Published:September 2020
Paperback:227 pages
Price:£9.99
ISBN:9781913425487
£9.99 (+ £2 postage)

Number of copies:



Available from Amazon
Once again Eve finds herself a widow but this time, she has three young sons to protect. A proposal of marriage from James de Audley throws her into a quandary, beset by guilt, Eve refuses. How will she overcome her emotions and will she now seize the chance to marry her girlhood love? When her brother-in-law, Hugh de Audley escapes from Nottingham Castle, Eve finds herself in danger as the king's treacherous favourite, Hugh Despenser the Younger, sends troops to search her home at Stratton. Set against the dysfunctional reign of Edward II, Eve's destiny unfolds against a backdrop of civil wars, through a time of desperate poverty and the unending struggle with the Scots, in a period of history which is filled with treachery, intrigue, and controversy. Come, let us accompany Eve through the years of her eventful life; meet the four men who play a intrinsic role in her destiny and watch, as the terrible fate of a king's favourites unfolds. These are the years of 'The Secret, the Sword and the Seal'.

Books by Fran Norton...
The Twisted Legacy of Maud de Braose

Isolde, Lady de Audley: The Mortimer Myth

The Secret, The Sword and the Seal
Reader Reviews...





poetry, YouCaxton

Policeman’s Prose
Tim Grace

Policeman's Prose
Tim Grace

 This is a collection of poems written over the last forty-five years: from childhood memories to life in Cyprus as a teenager in the 1970’s, to policing in London during the 1980s and 1990s and time with Customs and Excise.
Tim is still in law enforcement.
His current role is as an investigator with The Illegal Money Lending Team.
He writes about mums and dads and daughters and discusses the question what is love? Homelessness is close to his heart, as the poem about the YMCA and The Tramp illustrates. Then there are his beloved pets, Captain and Brenda, both immortalised in verse.
The author shares his raw emotions about Depression and thoughts of suicide and talks about tragedies such as Dunblane and the Twin Tower attacks.
Published: May 2020
Paperback: 56 pages
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 9-781913-425227

£4.99 (+ £2 P&P)
Number of copies:



Available from Amazon
Tim was born in Germany and lived in Aden and Cyprus before settling down as a Metropolitan policeman in 1979. After twenty years' service he was medically retired. Later he joined Customs & Excise looking at counterfeit goods. He became an expert on the subject and lectured around the world to his counterparts.
In 2011 he reconnected with his childhood sweetheart Michelle and they married. They moved in together in 2013 when Tim moved to Birmingham where they currently live. He has one son and two married daughters, two sons-in-law, three granddaughters and a grandson on his way.
Reader Reviews...

Self-Publishing town, YouCaxton

Self-Publishing – Birmingham and West Midlands

 

YouCaxton will be starting a monthly book clinic in Birmingham from February 2014. This will provide local writers with the opportunity to discuss their projects in person with one of our editorial staff.  We are particularly interested in hearing from writers of books with connections to the West Midlands Region.

YouCaxton

Book clinic

Gloucester Green

We’re holding a ‘book clinic’ at Gloucester Green Market, Oxford, next Thursday, 9.00 am to 2.00 pm. If you have a publishing project which you would like to discuss, do call by our stand.