Giveaway – The Nature of a Lady Release Day!

Giveaway – The Nature of a Lady Release Day!

by | May 4, 2021 | Announcements, Book News, Books, Giveaways and Contests

There’s a lot of information here,
so here’s a quick list of what you’ll find in this post!

1. How I came up with the idea for The Nature of a Lady and why I love it

2. The “Hunt through the Pages” is on, and it has some awesome prizes

3. A science and faith resource page

4. Companion articles on subjects from the book

5. Facebook LIVE event link

Inspiration for The Nature of a Lady

I can’t believe it’s here! Finally! Release day for The Nature of a Lady, book 1 in the Secrets of the Isles series!

After seven books in a row that took place during a war, I was ready for a break–something pure fun. And that’s what this series is! Oh, not to say there aren’t some serious subjects contained in these pages. But writing these stories have been pure joy for me. We’ve got pirate tales, treasure hunts, mistaken identities, new love, old love, hometown rivalries…yep. FUN.

Hilariously, I actually got the idea for this book when The Number of Love released. My author copies arrived, and I was signing and packing up the books that readers had pre-ordered through my store. As I was looking at packing slips and signing books accordingly, I noticed quite a pattern. Namely, I have a LOT of readers named Elizabeth (or some variation thereof). Enough that at one point, I pulled another sheet forward and went, “Oh, look, another Elizabeth.”

Another Elizabeth.

The words stuck in my head. All day. Into the next. Another Elizabeth. Wouldn’t that be a funny concept for a story? Maybe it could be about a group of people all sharing the same name…could be a contemporary…it would be fun as a YA…but that’s not my style. No, so what would make sense as a historical?

I was out on the swingset with the kids when the next piece clicked into place. Edwardian era. A girl–a noblewoman in hiding, maybe–shows up at a flat she just let. The landlady greets her with “Oh, another Elizabeth is it? Hope you’re more dependable than the last.” This Elizabeth soon discovers that the previous occupant left all her stuff…including her troubles. And our heroine meets the same basic physical description too. So she gets confused with the previous Elizabeth. Then the brother of the original Elizabeth shows up…

Well, the flat turned into a holiday cottage, the name of the book got changed from Another Elizabeth to The Nature of a Lady, and the story certainly became a lot more fleshed out as I decided what sort of trouble the original Elizabeth–Beth–left for the new Elizabeth–Libby. And gracious. So much fun!!

My first step was a fabulous setting, and I settled on the Isles of Scilly (pronounced Silly), 28 miles off the coast of Cornwall. Figured I’d toss in a hunt for pirate treasure, give the hero Oliver (Beth’s brother) a rival he’s in constant battle with, have that rival be a would-be-old-flame of my third POV character, Mabena, Libby’s maid…and then just go along for the ride.

I hope you love the result as much as I do! These characters…they really gripped my heart, my mind, and my imagination. They ask questions about things that matter. They deal with tragedy and chronic illness. They struggle with anxieties and what friendship really means, how to find their place in the world. They ask questions about the universe itself. They find and deepen faith; and there’s a grandmother character I think you’ll adore.

Hunt Through the Pages

To celebrate the release of The Nature of a Lady, I thought it would be super fun to do something a little different from my usual giveaway. This time, I’m inviting YOU into the treasure hunt!

“Hunt through the Pages” while you read the book, find the answers to 20 questions, and turn them in for access to a SECRET PAGE! What’s on this page? Exclusive videos, a downloadable recipe booklet, a bonus scene featuring the story of the eldest Tremayne brother, which I’ve called “The Heart of His Brother,” and a sneak peek of the next book, To Treasure an Heiress!

PLUS, if you get your entries in by July 19, 2021, you will be entered to win one of TWELVE prize packages! (Each correct answer is one additional entry!)

Visit the Hunt through the Pages page here on my website for the full rules, to download a printable PDF of the clues, and to fill in your answers and be entered to win one of those twelve prizes!

The Prizes

Twelve winners will receive a “treasure chest” full of:

  1. A vintage teacup with saucer and a dainty spoon
  2. Two servings of flavored loose-leaf tea
  3. Honey and sugar cubes
  4. Cakebites
  5. A pearl and leaf necklace
  6. A Zoom link to join me and the other winners on Saturday, July 30 at 7 pm EDT for an hour to chat about the book and enjoy our tea together!

 

So grab your pirate hat, an eyepatch, and get your best “Arrr!” ready to roll off your tongue! We’re huntin’ pirate treasure, matey, and it’s bound to be fun!

On Science and Faith

Throughout the pages of The Nature of a Lady, Libby struggles a bit with how to reconcile her love for the scientific method and discovery with the faith of her mother, which seems very closed-minded to her. Oliver, a faith-filled vicar but also a bit of a botanist, helps her see that the two don’t need to be at war. This is a conversation I’ve heard played out many times over the years, though, so I thought it would be fun (and hopefully valuable) to chat some more about it.

If it’s a subject that interests you, please join me on the Science and Faith page. There you’ll find an article I’ve written, a conversation I had via email with other authors with scientific backgrounds, and some resources for further reading.

Go to "Science and Faith"

Companion Articles

In the weeks leading up to release day, I’ve also been posting articles on subjects corresponding with the book! You can find links to all of them now in one handy location. Check them out here!

Go to Companion Articles

Live Event

Join me for a LIVE chat on Tuesday, May 4th at 7pm EDT! Behind the scenes, an excerpt, a treasure hunt, and more! Join the event HERE.

It’s HERE! Dreams of Savannah Release Day

It’s HERE! Dreams of Savannah Release Day

by | Jan 5, 2021 | Announcements, Book News, Books, Giveaways and Contests

I first came up with the idea and wrote the manuscript way back in 2011, fully expecting it to be published in the next year. But God (thankfully!) had other ideas. Nine years later, it’s finally coming out, and let’s just say a lot has changed in those nine years–not just in my story, but in the world. The book originally meant to hit a few Gone with the Wind notes now has a very different goal. Themes I never would have considered back then became the central ones. Lessons I didn’t know I needed have become so important to me.

In many ways, the process of this book opened my eyes to the noble ideals of racial reconciliation. I certainly won’t make any bold claims that this story will do any amazing work in that vein–I have no idea what it will or will not strike in the hearts of any readers. But I know what rewriting and editing have done for my heart. I know how the lessons my heroine learned have opened my own eyes. And I pray–I pray with fervency and hope–that it will do the same for you.

 

One of those lessons Delia learns is that it’s through learning each other’s stories that we can really come to understand and love each other. And so, I’d like to invite you all to share yours. Your personal story, your family’s story, your community’s…whatever you feel is what led you to where you are today. I love it when readers contact me to say, “My grandfather had a role like this character’s in the Great War!” or “My family came from this same area!” Those many emails I get actually inspired me to begin a new project. I’ll have a post dedicated SOLELY to it soon, but for now, a quick invitation. If you’d like to share your story, I’ve created SeeingtheStory.com as a place for you to do so. You can type it up, or you can record it either just with audio (even just calling in!) or with video. We’ll then index and post your musings, so you can share with your own family and everyone else’s! Let’s preserve our stories. They’re what keep us connected to our past and give us the courage to face the future. How? Because stories change the world.

About the Book

Cordelia Owens can weave a dream around anything and is well used to winning the hearts of everyone in Savannah with her whimsy. Even when she receives word that her sweetheart has been lost during a raid on a Yankee vessel, she clings to hope and comes up with many a romantic tale of his eventual homecoming to reassure his mother and sister.

But Phineas Dunn finds nothing redemptive in the first horrors of war. Struggling for months to make it home alive, he returns to Savannah injured and cynical, and all too sure that he is not the hero Cordelia seems determined to make him.

As the War Between the States rages ever nearer and Savannah’s slaves start sneaking away to the islands off the coast to join the Yankees, both Phin and Cordelia get caught up in questions they never thought they’d have to ask–questions that threaten the very dreams of a future they’d cherished.

Dreams of Savannah Prize Pack

Dreams of Savannah PRIZE PACK Includes:

  • One (1) Signed Print copy of Dreams of Savannah
  • One (1) “Because Stories Change the World” tote
  • One (1) “Once Upon a Time” pendant

Enter via the Rafflecopter form below. Prizes subject to change due to availability. Open to US mailing addresses only. Void where prohibited. Giveaway open 1/5/21-1/11/21. One (1) winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and will be notified via the email provided. Winner will have 48 hours to claim prize before a new winner is selected. See roseannamwhite.com for more information.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

International Giveaway

International Prize Includes:

  • One (1) print copy of Dreams fo Savannah – shipped through Book Depository, not signed.

Enter via the Rafflecopter form below. Prizes subject to change due to availability. Open to residents outside the USA only. Void where prohibited. Giveaway open 1/5/21-1/11/21. One (1) winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and will be notified via the email provided. Winner will have 48 hours to claim prize before a new winner is selected. See roseannamwhite.com for more information.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Bookish Tees & Totes

Shop Now

Tea Party Book Club

Coming up in February, we have a special Tea Parties for Dreams of Savannah! Mark your calendar and follow the link below for more info!

 
Saturday, February 20 & Friday, February 26 ~ with me
talking about Dreams of Savannah

Friday, March 19 ~ with Hannah Currie
talking about Heart of the Crown
More Info
Cover Reveal ~ New Jewel of Persia

Cover Reveal ~ New Jewel of Persia

by | Oct 22, 2020 | Book News, Books, Cover Designs

This

has been…quite a month. I have this vague recollection of coming home from my writing retreat bursting with ideas for Thoughtful posts and other website work. Super excited about classes and workshops and tea parties and T-shirts and all the many things I have going on over here.

Then…well, then the Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis for my 12-year-old son threw us all for a loop. We’re adjusting, and God is so good! But midnight blood sugar checks and insurance worries and so much thought going into meals and food, plus playing catch-up from all the work I fell behind on have taken their toll on me, LOL. So my big goals of having a fabulous post this Thursday have yet again resulted in it being Wednesday, and here I sit with no ideas. 😉

So…a cover reveal!! Those are always fun, right? I already shared this cover with subscribers to the WhiteFire Publishing newsletter (that’s the small press my husband and I run), but I wanted to share it with you guys too!

Jewel of Persia was my second published book, which released in January of 2011, so we’re coming up fast on its ten year anniversary. I deem that a fine time to refresh the cover. =) I’d had it on my list for quite a while, and I’d played around with different designs, but they all looked so much like the original that there was no point in changing, LOL. Then, on my birthday back in August, I decided that would be a great way to spend my day. 😉 So I decided on a new color scheme (cool colors instead of the warm tones of the orginal), used the same model photo, and got to work.

If you haven’t read Jewel of Persia, it’s my Esther story that’s not about Esther, LOL. You know me–I write historical fiction through the eyes of a fictional character, not the historical ones. 😉 In this case, I focus on Kasia, Esther’s childhood best friend who ends up a wife in Xerxes’ harem before Esther ever arrives there.

My research for this book combined the biblical account with Herodotus’s Histories, the ancient text about the Greco-Persian war. One thing I absolutely LOVED was how the war history fits perfectly into the biblical narrative–have you ever noticed that there are YEARS between the queen being deposed and new brides being brought in so a new queen will be named? I hadn’t! But that was when Xerxes was attacking Greece! And the very personality of this great king is consistent between the two accounts, proving they’re speaking about the same person. (That “I’ll grant you up to half my kingdom” promise was one Xerxes was rather famous for–he was constantly offering people cities if they pleased him, LOL.)

Jewel of Persia is actually one of my two bestselling books of all time, coming in right behind The Lost Heiress. I love that this book has reached so many readers, and I also love that I can now give it a fresh, updated look. =) But I also love that I still had the photos from the original shoot, so I could use the same model. That’s actually a funny story too.

So the girl was, at the time, a college student here from Lebanon, named Perla. My friend, critique partner, and fellow WhiteFire editor, Dina Sleiman has a lot of Lebanese connections due to her husband hailing from there, so when I said I needed a model of Middle Eastern descent for the cover, she said she’d ask around. Hilariously, that very weekend she was at a beach party and saw Perla, who she’d never met. So she thought it would be fun to introduce herself with, “Hey, would you like to be on a book cover?” Poor Perla ran away, terrified. LOL. But later she came back and asked what Dina meant, and a few weeks later, they arranged a photo shoot. I sewed the chiton she’s wearing, Dina added the beautiful striped scarf material, and we ended up with a slew of fabulous images.I love this one best, though, because of the movement in that scarf…

Here’s the original cover, which I still love:

 

And now, the new version! Same Perla shot, new background; I changed the color of her clothing, and I had to reshoot the bracelet–making my daughter model the actual bracelet that I have, courtesy of the amazing owner of the Greek Jewelry Shop, Aris. (A few months after he granted me permission to use this bracelet, his lions’-head torc designs actually found a home in the gift shop of the Louvre!!!! For the original cover, he let us use his photography, but then he actually sent me a sterling silver torc, made to my size!) New title font, bigger name to be more easily read in thumbnail…and voila! Ready??

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And just for kicks, here are the two side by side. What do you think?

 

The new version will be available in both ebook and print in time for Christmas!
“Classic” cover editions are now on sale for 50% off!

Cover Reveal for The Nature of a Lady

Cover Reveal for The Nature of a Lady

by | Oct 7, 2020 | Announcements, Book News, Books

My new series, The Secrets of the Isles, releases summer 2021 and it’s time to share the cover for the first book! Are you ready? 
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But first….
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About the Book
 
1906 – Lady Elizabeth “Libby” Sinclair, with her love of microscopes and nature, isn’t exactly a hit in society. She flees to the beautiful Isles of Scilly for the summer…and stumbles into the dangerous secrets left behind by her holiday cottage’s former occupant, also called Elizabeth, who mysteriously vanished.

Oliver Tremayne—gentleman and clergyman—is determined to discover what happened to his sister, and he’s happy to accept the help of the girl now living in what should have been Beth’s summer cottage…especially when he realizes it’s the curious young lady he met briefly two years ago, who shares his love of botany and biology. But the hunt for his sister involves far more than nature walks, and he can’t quite believe all the secrets Beth had been keeping from him.

As the two work together, along with Libby’s maid—his cousin—they find ancient legends, pirate wrecks, betrayal, and the most mysterious phenomenon of all: love.
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NOW….Are you ready???
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Ready
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Set
 
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When I filled out my cover info sheet for this one, I had one request: PURPLE. Libby wears a purple gown in the book, and the fact that it’s “her color” plays into the story several times. So I was beyond thrilled to open this up and see my lovely Lady Elizabeth in a beautiful purple dress!!

And the garden background is PERFECT too!! Several key scenes take place in a garden, and her love of all things botanical and biological are super important. Even the jasmine flowers tucked in her hair and that she’s holding are from a pivotal scene!

Then just to look at the design…that title treatment. I love it with the love of a thousand pieces of chocolate. So pretty!!!

So….What do you think? Leave a comment below!

 

Announcing Chrism Press!

Announcing Chrism Press!

by | Aug 20, 2020 | Announcements, Books

An exciting announcement for writers and readers who are Catholic or Orthodox! WhiteFire Publishing is acquiring titles for a brand new imprint ~ Chrism Press!

Chrism Press is a brand-new imprint of WhiteFire Publishing dedicated to stories informed by Catholic and Orthodox Christianity that may not be able to find a home in either mainstream secular or evangelical presses. Karen Ullo and Rhonda Franklin Ortiz are the imprint’s new lead editors and as such have become part of the WhiteFire editorial board. We are thrilled (!) to announce that we are open to queries to adult and young adult fiction in all genres.

What is Chrism Press looking for? To quote our mission statement:

 “Whether Christian themes are presented overtly, subtly, or symbolically, Chrism Press seeks Spirit-filled fiction in all genres. We are not afraid of darkness; we enjoy the strange and the weird, as well as humor, romance, adventure, and fun. We strongly believe that fiction should never be boring.”

WhiteFire Publishing was founded in 2005 by me and my husband, David. In 2018 we launched a juvenile fiction line, WhiteSpark, and acquired Ashberry Lane, which is now our dedicated romance imprint. Between these three divisions, our growing company boasts a list of about 150 titles, including books by respected and well-known Christian market authors such as Melody Carlson, Susie Finkbeiner, Camille Eide, Christy Barritt, and of course, me. 😉

How Chrism Press came about is a long story, full of surprises and the working of the Holy Spirit. It actually began with conversations between us and Rhonda (a college friend who I reconnected with thanks to our shared love of writing Christian fiction) and Karen thanks to the #BeBetter group. Rhonda and Karen had been discussing the idea of publishing for a while, and a random mention of it to us had David and I both thinking independently that it would make a great addition to the WhiteFire family. So we mentioned the possibility of an imprint, and it just took off from there. We believe that Catholic and Orthodox fiction will enrich not only our company’s offerings, but the Christian market at large. I personally know after publishing The Number of Love, with its Catholic main characters, that this is a niche that needs filling, and which readers are hungry for. It’s such a privilege and honor to get to work with these talented editors and authors to bring the vision to life!

We encourage everyone to check out the website and follow Chrism Press on Facebook and Instagram. If you’re a writer with a manuscript that’s ready to submit, we encourage you to consider Chrism Press. And if you’re one of the Catholic readers I heard from last year who is eager for more fiction that represents YOU, be sure to sign up for the WhiteFire/Chrism newsletter, where news about our Chrism acquisitions and releases will be shared first, along with other stuff relevant to all the imprints!

Summer Reading!

Summer Reading!

by | Jul 9, 2020 | Announcements, Book News, Bookish Tees and Totes, Books, Sales

Summer is in full swing and I thought it would be fun to share with you some fun Book News and some Deals that you won’t want to miss out on!

eBook Deal

Head to your favorite eBook Retailer to snag The Culper Ring series ON SALE!

Amazon

Coming Soon!

I am excited to announce….That I will be releasing the Culper Ring Novellas in PRINT soon! Here is a peek at the compilation cover.

PreOrders NOW Available!

Special PreOrder Price – $12
He sees patterns in what she deems chaos. She sees beauty in a world he thought destroyed. – Book Three in The Codebreakers Series

Available September 1, 2020 (Price will increase after release)
PreOrder Now!

Special PreOrder Price – $12
Cordelia Owens can weave a hopeful dream around anything and is well used to winning the hearts of everyone in Savannah with her whimsy. – Stand Alone Novel
 
Available January 5, 2021 (Price will increase after release)
PreOrder Now!

Summer Discount!

Shop my store and receive 20% off your order with the code “summer20”!
(Some restrictions apply.)

 

Tea Party Book Club

Join me on Friday, August 7 for a virtual Tea Party to discuss the final book in my Shadows Over England series, sip on delicious tea, and make new reader friends!

Reserve Your Seat

Podcast

In case you missed it…I have a podcast now! You can check out new episodes HERE!

Bookish Tees & Totes

I’m excited to have a line of bookish T-shirts and tote bags available now! You can buy directly from my store or through my new shop on Etsy! (The Etsy store is set up to support international shipping, so if you have a non-US address, this is the best option.)

Shop Bookish Merch

Happy Reading and Enjoy Summer!!!