Sunday, February 1, 2015

Maxine's Musings
February 1, 2015

It’s the month for Love!  Let’s have a collective SIGH.  February has spawned marriages, engagements and otherwise unusual happenings when it comes to the matters of the heart.  I hope everyone’s Valentine’s Day is filled with warm, love, happiness and a special night with the special someone.  The big party night before Cupid’s Arrow strikes happens at Mardi Gras a/k/a Fat Tuesday on February 17th!  Get your King Cake in time and see who gets the baby this year.

In this Issue:
          Quote of the Month
Valentine’s Day Contest Winner Announced
          Recommended Read of the Month
Interview with Sir Reynold Roddington of Knight to Remember
Valentine Traditions, bonus recipe
          News/Updates
          Upcoming Appearances
          Coming next month

Quote of the Month“All that we are is a result of what we have thought.”  Buddha (563 BCE - 483 BCE)

Valentine’s Day Contest -- Congratulations!  Mary Wirth of South Dakota won the Kama Sutra Honey Dust!  Thank you Mary for being a Muser and for your support.

Featured Authors:  What could be more fun than hanging out with your writer buddies in a martini lounge and drinking martinis? We’ll tell you what…creating
stories centered around a martini lounge with your WBFFs (Writer Best Friends Forever). That is exactly what these four have done—Amanda McCabe, Alicia Dean, Kathy L Wheeler, and Krysta Scott. Each author has written a novella set in the 1920s. Their heroines are (BFF) friends who fled England to New York City in search of a new life. The most fun part of these stories is how they interact as the timeframe for each is simultaneous. So you know there were some interesting meetings!


Rebellious - Amanda McCabe
Can an aristocratic lady melt the cold heart of a Russian gangster?
Lady Jessica Hatton fled her high-society London debutante life for one of investigative journalism in New York—only to be relegated to the fashion pages. Searching for a juicy story leads her to Club 501, the city's most glamorous speakeasy—and its handsome, mysterious owner, Frank Markov. But his past of war and revolution puts their hearts—and their lives—in danger... 

Ruined - Alicia Dean
She vowed she’d be no man’s doxy, but fate had other plans... 
After the Earl of Goodwin attempts to force himself on her, housemaid Eliza Gilbert flees England for New York, hoping to build a better life. But the land of opportunity proves as harsh as the London docks, and she finds herself in a situation more dreadful than the one she escaped. Former boxer, Vince “The Fist” Taggart dreams of marrying, having a family, and living a quiet, peaceful life. But when a girl he's known since childhood disappears, he heads to New York in search of her and meets Eliza, a woman with a less than honorable reputation. Inexplicably captivated, Vince can’t force himself to stay away, especially when he learns Eliza is the key to finding his missing friend. 

Reckless - Kathy L Wheeler
Lady Margaret turned Lady Bootlegger… 
Singer Margaret (Meggie) Montley needs money…fast. Her friend is in a dire situation with nowhere to turn. While Meggie is on the brink of stardom, it’s not soon enough to save her friend. Harry Dempsey is out to avenge the deaths of his father and brother at the hands of a ruthless gangster. But trouble spirals out of control when Meggie Montley shows up the night he meets his nemesis to settle the score. Saving the impetuous woman from a crime lord might be easier than saving her from her own reckless behavior. 

Runaway - Krysta Scott
Can she prove her innocence before more than her dreams are destroyed? 
After escaping an arranged marriage, Lady Charlotte Leighton lands on a new shore, determined to realize her dream of opening her own bakery. But her plans are shattered when her former fiancĂ© follows her to New York. Now, she finds herself in a fight for her freedom. Haunted by a string of failures, Detective Felix Noble is determined to solve his latest case. But his efforts to find a murderer are jeopardized by a forbidden attraction to his number one suspect. While he’s certain Charlotte Leighton is keeping secrets, instinct tells him she’s not the murderess he first believed. 

Interview with Sir Reynold Roddington a/k/a The Black Knight in Knight to Remember:

Q:  Sir Reynold, please tell us what brought you to our land.
Black magic.

Q:  Black magic? Really now, can you honestly say you believe in magic in the modern world?
In thy world, mayhap not. Magic is a way of life in my land and practiced by Queen Isabel for her own gain.

Q:  And what of Queen Isabel? What is the relationship between the two of you?
We grew up as children playing within the castle walls with Thomas and Kathryn. Isabel took over the crown when her father, King David, died. I swore on his deathbed to protect her and the lands of Heartsease, not to lay in her bed. ‘Tis was her jealousy of my love for the Lady Kathryn which hast sent me to thy lands; deception and trickery.

Q:  Ahhh, another woman. I’d say typical male, but you’re anything but typical. Are you in love with Lady Courtney?
Thee hast but to look into my eyes to see the truth. Lady Courtney is my life and soul now as she was as Lady Kathryn.

Q:  Tell my readers just what it is that makes you defy your queen for another woman.
A passion for people, love of thy country. My heart speaks louder than any of the Queen’s threats upon my life.

Q:  Is there a happy ever after to your story, Sir Reynold?
M’lady, if I revealed such a secret there’d be no reason for your readers to seek out our story, now would it?

Q:  You are so right. Thank you, Sir Reynold for your time and insight.
‘Tis been a pleasure, m’lady.


Valentine Traditions:  Valentine's Day always falls every year on February 14, and
is the traditional day on which lovers in certain cultures let each other know about their love, commonly by sending Valentine's cards, which are often anonymous. The history of Valentine's day can be traced back to an obscure Catholic Church feast day, said to be in honor of Saint Valentine, are discussed below. The day's associations with romantic love arrived after the High Middle Ages, during which the concept of romantic love was formulated.

Some legends go back to erotic festivals in ancient Rome that happened to take place during February. Women would dress up as wolves and wait to be whipped by men wearing loin cloths. Today in Italy and Greece, young men still chase young women while brandishing whips - made of plastic. The Lupercalia (February 15), was a fertility festival until 495 A.D., when a pope put a stop to it.

Valentine’s Day Chocolate Love Potion

2 pods of vanilla
1 liter of milk
2 tbs spoons of pure cocoa
1 quarter of liter of tepid water
2 tbs spoons of honey
2 tbs spoons of brown sugar
1 pinch of salt
1 glass of rum or tequila
1 half tea spoon of Tabasco or Cayenne pepper

Preparation
- Heat the vanilla pods 10 minutes in milk.
- Withdraw the pods, press them to extract all juice from it and scrape them to preserve small seeds.
- Add the pure cocoa to water with a quarter of tepid liter of water.
- Add hot milk while stirring up well, then to add honey, and the brown sugar.
- Incorporate while whipping: Tabasco or Cayenne pepper, salt, and rum or the tequila.
Is useful hot or cold. Drink in very good company!

News/UpdatesRelease date for Eternally Yours coming soon, and my Civil War time-travel, Blood Ties, coming to print soon with a new print cover!

Upcoming Appearances:
Coming Next Month:  Easter traditions.
With much gratitude, until next time…keep reading.
Maxine           
Spark your imagination and entice your mind
Be adventurous in your own home
Take a journey into a new world and be inspired
Enjoy the pleasures of reading ~~
It does the mind and body good.