Virginia Crow's Blog: Crowvus Book Blog

 It's true that the title of this blog does not look like anything to do with historical fiction, but the equilibrium between wildlife and humanity was not always so precarious as it is now. Finding the balance which existed at the time you're writing can be a very useful tool to setting a believable background for your writing.

So here are a few mammal considerations...

Wild mammals were everywhere - they still are, in fact! Whether you're writing about the middle of a city or the middle of nowhe...

 It's back for another year...

Welcome to this year's #HistFicMay!

I know a number of writers like to have these prompt in advance so that you can line up a few answers, so it seemed like a good time to share them. Of course, the aim of #HistFicMay is to celebrate both the fantastic network of historical fiction writers and their books, so even if you don't use the prompts, hopefully you can use the hashtag on your social media to discover fabulous authors and writings.

And here they are:

 Every week we settle down for a family games night. This week was a game called £GREED, which is a variation on the long established dice game 5000. It's a favourite in this household, as it is a precarious balance between tactics and gambling. Caesar's famous remark that "the die is cast" as he crossed the Rubicon, shows that he knew and acknowledged this balance.

Dice are amongst the oldest continually used form of gaming. They have a long history in every single continent, although not always...

Today's #HistFicThursdays blog is an exciting interview with Ian Hunter, as part of his Yarde Book Promotion tour! Read on to find out about his influences, inspirations, and the adventures which readers can expect to share in with Quetzalcoatl.

But first, let's meet the book...

Jessie Mason lives with her nose in the pages of history. But she is discovering that the past is a dangerous place where she doesn't belong, and knowledge alone is not going to save her.

Jessie’s life has become a se...

Today's #HistFicThursdays blog is a fantastic interview with Cliff Lovette, as part of his Yarde Book Promotion tour! Read on to find out about his influences, inspirations, and the emotional rollercoaster on which Circus Bim Bom carries readers away.

But first, let's meet the book...

Soviet circus performers arrived in America hoping to build cultural bridges. Instead, they became unwitting pawns in a Cold War game of international intrigue.

When the first privately owned Soviet circus arrive...

 The other day at Crowvus HQ, we were discussing our favourite Jane Austen novels. Amazingly, for saying there were four of us with a positive opinion, each person had a different favourite. Jane Austen's books, of course, are not historical fiction, but books written contemporaneously to what is now an historical era.

But!

All the multitude of spinoffs which her books have invoked are historical fiction. Pride and Prejudice is not my favourite Austen story, nor my second or third, but I absolutel...

 Today, in Caithness, the sun is shining and the air is clear. I'm sure it will come as no surprise to anyone reading this blog that, certain weathers and certain times of the year ignite certain music in me. And, on late winter days which are filled with sunshine, I am usually to be found singing the songs of The Spinners. Inevitably, I start humming different ones of their songs (and of course adapting them to be about Orlando and Jess) as I go around doing different things. But I remember alm...

 This week has been a mad one. Close to the start of the Christmas period, we found out that Mum would be having a thyroidectomy on Candlemas (the final day of the Christmas season). Of course, this was not enough to spoil Christmas. As readers of this blog are no doubt aware, Christmas happens in a big way in this house. But when the day finally arrived it was nonetheless met with, if not fear, definite nervousness.

I'm pleased to say that the procedure seems to have been a great success! And wo...

There are so many things we have today which were almost beyond imagination in the past. This has been particularly brought home to me this week as I'm making a few trips to our county town (more than 100 miles away), and because we lost the internet which brings home just home much we use it! Technology certainly has its benefits!

In fact, looking around the room (and this is a comparatively old-fashioned room) as I'm writing this, there are so many things we take for granted which would simply ...

 It is always great to host fellow historical fiction authors on the blog, but I'm doubly excited to introduce you to today's #HistFicThursdays writer, Catherine Hughes. Catherine has always been very supportive of my writing, and it's a pleasure to be able to host her new book, Therein Lies the Pearl, on the blog as part of The Coffee Pot Book Club's book tour. Read on to enjoy an excerpt from this gripping book!

First of all, let's meet the book...

Normandy, 1064  

Celia Campion, a girl of humble...