Cover Reveal!

  I'm delighted to share with my lovely readers the cover for my next release, The Riverside Maid, which is book 3 in the Waterfront Women Series.

The blurb:

From rags to riches... but will happiness follow?

Orphaned as a child, Fliss Atkins has spent her life working at her uncle’s pub, The Bay Horse Inn, nestled along the banks of the River Calder. Life has been anything but easy for Fliss. Her aunt is unloving, and her older cousin Gerald is cruel.

Then she meets Oscar Nolan, whose adventurous spirit makes her wonder if there might be more to life beyond the only home she’s known. Could Oscar and his dreams of travel be her chance at a fresh start? The thought is tempting, but leaving her best friends, Lorrie and Meg, and their beloved families behind seems unimaginable.

When tragedy strikes, Fliss is presented with an unexpected opportunity to shape a new life for herself. But will new riches bring her the happiness she longs for, or will it lead to even greater troubles for this riverside maid?

The Riverside Maid will be released March 2025 and is available for pre-order on Amazon. https://mybook.to/TheRiversideMaid

Victorian York, Yorkshire

 Coney Street is featured in a few of my novels, mainly The Tobacconist's Wife, as the fictional tobacconist's shop is on Coney Street situated just out of shot on the photo below. It is easy to imagine my main character, Thea, walking along the cobbles.

 Coney Street, York, UK. circa 1860.

Characters in my other books have walked this street, such as Caroline in The Winter Widow, and Annabelle in The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl.

Historical photos like these really help historical authors to visualise the settings in their books. They can imagine the characters strolling the cobbles, shopping, going for walks, or hiding from those seeking to find them.

A lot of the slum areas of York have been demolished, but 'Yards' like the one above is where the poor of the city lived. The York slums feature in my books, especially The Slum Angel, Aurora's Pride, The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl and The Winter Widow.

To learn more about my books, please visit my website: http://www.annemariebrear.com

Coming Soon!

 Whispers of Spring released August 22^nd 2024!

https://mybook.to/WhispersofSpring 

sequel to The Winter Widow

When all is lost, the hand of friendship is everything…

https://mybook.to/TheWinterWidow

 

New Book! The Dock Girl's Shame

 New book!

The Dock Girl's Shame is now out. Book two in The Waterfront Women Series.

A broken heart, a shameful secret…

Wakefield, Yorkshire 1871

Loretta Chambers has spent her life working at her father’s boatyard down at the docks. She’s tried hard to keep the business afloat, but with the railways taking trade away every day, Lorrie fears for the worst.

The arrival of handsome Italian, Matteo Falcone brings a brief glimmer of hope and a yearning inside Lorrie for another life, away from the filthy grime of the dockside. But despite her feelings for Matteo, she could never travel to Italy with him, and leave her father alone.

But one reckless, impetuous moment leaves Lorrie with a secret she will struggle to hide. And when tragedy strikes at the boatyard, Lorrie is left feeling more alone than ever before.

Always a dutiful daughter, Lorrie now carries a shame that could ruin her life forever…

The Waterfront Lass (Book 1)

The Dock Girl’s Shame (Book 2)

A broken heart, a shameful secret.

https://mybook.to/TheDockGirlsShame

Best Seller!

 

So happy to see The Winter Widow a best seller in Amazon Australia Kindle!

 

New Release!

 

 

The Winter Widow is out now!

When all is lost, the hand of friendship is everything…

New Release 2 Jan 2024!

#historicalfiction #bookaddicts #readers #bookcommunity #familysaga #booklovers

https://mybook.to/TheWinterWidow

The Winter Widow - Coming Soon!

 

My next book to be released is The Winter Widow. 

When all is lost, the hand of friendship is everything…

York, Yorkshire, England, 1852

When Caroline Lawson becomes a young widow, her grief is deepened by the loss of her farm. A rash decision to travel to York to find work doesn’t turn out as she expected. Alone and vulnerable, she is unprepared for the harshness of the narrow dirty streets. With money running low and work difficult to come by, Caroline fears she will soon have no choice but to knock on the dreaded workhouse door.

However, she is not without hope, and with her new friends, feisty Trixie, and her two little sisters and the unique Mussy, Caroline learns she is stronger than she realised and that even in the worst of times, friendship is all you need.

Only Trixie and Mussy each have their own secrets, ones which will test their newly formed bonds with Caroline. 

When tragedy strikes again, and secrets are revealed, Caroline knows she must protect her friends and get them out of the dangerous city to the countryside she loves, but will she find there the happiness she once had? Or has the past destroyed any dreams for a happy future?  

Amazon pre-order available!

Out 2 Jan 2024!

https://mybook.to/TheWinterWidow

New release!

 Publication Day! 🥳

Thank you to all who pre-ordered my newest release, The Waterfront Lass. 😁

Meg might be poor, but she is proud and spirited and will strive to keep her family together! Set in Victorian Yorkshire.

Amazon: https://mybook.to/thewaterfrontlass

New title and cover!

 

The War Nurse’s Diary (previously titled Where Dragonflies Hover) had a new title and cover!

When a stranger’s life in more intriguing than your own…

Sometimes a glimpse into the past can help make sense of the future…

Everyone thinks Lexi is crazy when she falls in love with Hollingsworth House – a crumbling old Georgian mansion in Yorkshire – and nobody more so than her husband, Dylan. But there’s something very special about the place, and Lexi can sense it.
Whilst exploring the grounds she stumbles across an old diary and, within its pages, she meets Allie – an Australian nurse working in France during the First World War.
Lexi finally realises her dream of buying Hollingsworth but her obsession with the house leaves her marriage in tatters. In the lonely nights that follow, Allie’s diary becomes Lexi’s companion, comforting her in moments of darkness and pain. And as Lexi reads, the nurse’s scandalous connection to the house is revealed...

#dualromance #WW1 #contemporaryromance #romance #timeslip #romancebooks #RomanceReaders #bookish #booktwitter #dualtimeline

Amazon: https://mybook.to/WarNursesDiary

Coming June 6th 2023!

 

The Waterfront Lass – out June 2023!

Meg might be poor, but she is proud and spirited! 

#historicalfiction #familysaga #WestYorkshire #booklovers #readers #readingcommunity #Authorsoftwitter #newfiction #reading #RomanceReaders #books

#Preorder Amazon: https://mybook.to/thewaterfrontlass

The Soldier's Daughter Released!

 

In The Soldier’s Daughter, Evie lives close to the made-up village of Lylston, which I located north of the real market town of Bingley and set between the higher villages of Micklethwaite and East Morton, leading up to the Ilkley Moor area.  Like many towns in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Bingley prospered during the Industrial Revolution. The Bingley section of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal was completed in 1774, linking the town with Skipton, and Bradford via the Bradford Canal. The canal passes through the town centre and ascends the side of the valley via the Bingley Five Rise and Bingley Three Rise Locks. Several woollen and worsted mills were built and people migrated from the surrounding countryside to work in them. Alexander’s mill is located in the valley between the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the River Aire. This map is what I used to set Lylston Village, Bellingham Hall and Alexander’s mill in comparison to where Bingley is situated. Evie’s home (and Mr Lund’s farm) is just north of Lylston village. A riding track Evie would have used over the moors. A view from the moors overlooking the valley. Something Evie would have seen when she left her home. A glimpse of Bingley in the valley.   In Victorian times, Bingley was a hive of industry and a main route through the Aire Valley. Below are two photos I used as inspiration for when Evie is in the town, especially when she secretly meets Hal down the lane beside the pub and Alexander sees her but she denies it when he confronts her.   The Soldier's Daughter Yorkshire 1860 With the heat of their beloved India far behind them, Evie Davenport and her widowed British Army officer father, are starting a new life in England. But Evie is struggling. With her dearest mother gone, Yorkshire with its cold, damp countryside and strict societal rules makes Evie feel suffocated and alone. Her friendship with Sophie Bellingham, the gently reared daughter of a wealthy rail baron, is Evie’s only comfort. Until the arrival of local cotton mill owner, Alexander Lucas. Newly returned from America, it is expected Alexander will marry and finally make England his home. And Sophie with her family connections and polite manners is the obvious choice. But when Alexander meets Evie, a simmering passion ignites between them. Evie, with her rebellious spirit is like no other woman Alex has ever met, but to reject Sophie for Evie would cause a scandal and devastate everyone Evie loves. Evie knows she must do her duty. But in doing so faces the unbearable future of being without the man she loves. Available now on Amazon: http://getbook.at/thesoldiersdaughter

99c Amazon USA sale!

 

The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl is on sale for 99c on Amazon USA.

“The writing is vivid and gripping!”

Annabelle can’t hide forever from the wealthy Hartley family, but can she give up the baby she loves? #historicalfiction #historicalromance #Victorianromance #bestseller

Amazon: http://getbook.at/OrphanPeacockShawl

The Marsh Saga Book Series

 Marsh Saga Series is now complete.

Book 4, Alice, has been returned by my editor and it's had another read through and is all ready for her release on May 27th.

Four very different women.

Millie (Book 1) 99p

Christmas at the Chateau (novella)

Prue (Book 2)

Cece (Book 3)

Alice (book 4 preorder - out May 27th 99p)

Amazon: viewbook.at/Millie

Over 2000 Reviews!

 Over 2000 reviews in 3 months of release!

Thank you to those who take the time to review any book and especially my books! LOL

The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl

“The writing is vivid and gripping!”

Annabelle can’t hide forever from the wealthy Hartley family, but can she give up the baby she loves?

Amazon: http://getbook.at/OrphanPeacockShawl

A Finalist!

 

My certificate arrived from the RNA for being a finalist in the Romantic Saga Award with A Distant Horizon. I didn't win but was so proud to be a finalist.

Book trailer for The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl

The Orphan in the Peacock Shawl

New Release!

Annabelle can’t hide forever from the wealthy Hartley family, but can she give up the baby she loves? #historicalfiction #historicalsaga #Victorian #Yorkshire

Amazon: http://getbook.at/OrphanPeacockShawl

Diaries and Journals

 

DIARIES AND JOURNALS BY ANNEMARIE BREAR

Jan 27, 2022 | Uncategorized

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I collect Victorian diaries and journals, written mainly by women who have arrived in Australia after leaving England, but also by women born in colonial Australia. These diaries are brilliant when I’m writing a story set in colonial Australia and they give me an insight to how they lived and what was happening in the world around them at that time. From their personal entries, we can learn what was important to them, their daily routine, their views and opinions. They can also lift some of those myths we in the modern world tend to think as true.

Below are some pages from a selected few of my diaries, which may show why I adore them so much.

This page is from The Letters of Rachel Henning. A genteel lady who left England and ventured to Colonial Australia to join her brother who was farming out there. It’s a fascinating account of her life and full of details about those times.

I also have a few diaries, or collections of letters written during the First World War, which is another favourite era for me to write.

Below is an example from the book, Unknown Warriors, The Letters of Kate Luard, RRC and BAR Nursing Sister in France 1914-1918.

Kate Luard is one of those unsung heroines of the war. A dedicated nursing sister who went to the front line to give aid to the wounded. Her letters are fascinating, harrowing, tragic but filled with such devotion and commitment.

Below is a page from The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady. A lovely diary of a naturalist’s world in 1906 written by English lady, Edith Holden.

Get your copy of The Orphan in the Peacock shawl below:

🇬🇧 https://amzn.to/3rRa15H

🇺🇸 https://amzn.to/3IFfymy