Definition of Yearn: Downton Abbey

Watched the sneak peaks of Downton Abbey last night. Makes the word "yearn" come to mind.

YEARN

1: to long persistently, wistfully, or sadly <yearns to make a difference>

2: to feel tenderness or compassion 

 

Am I the last one to discover that there is a Downton Abbey App.?

 

Love these pictures!  Looking forward to the new season and now I hear we have season four to look forward to as well.

What can writer Julian Fellowes teach us? A lot obviously. Perhaps the most important thing being that it's all about the characters and their relationships and how we as viewers want to know more about them. And the man has worked hard. You can read more here.

Masterpiece Classic was enthralling Sunday evening as we revisited Downton Abbey and got a couple looks at what is to come. I watched along with a few more folks, I'm sure. If only we could have dismissed all the advertisements.

 

One of the things that Downton Abbey has is a historical advisor Alastair Bruce.Getting into Character has it's challenges How I would love to have my own historical advisor. If you're writing historical fiction of any kind, I'm sure you can appreciate this.

Am I reading this correctly? I can order it now from the UK? Will you buy it or wait till January?

Grateful Give Away

 I was blessed to be invited to a book club meeting of the River Hills Christian Church in Loveland, Ohio on October 29th this year. And even prior to the meeting this fantastic group of women  dropped by to visit and support me at Books by the Banks in September. And they were there among others and even a few gals from my Thursday night Bible study.

Book club members from River Hills Christian Church in Loveland, Ohio drop by to visit at Books by the Banks. Left to Right: Suzanne Mohr, Terri Weeks, Joni Baker, Terry Kirkland, Me, and Dee Bailey.

This is the very first book club event I've attended in person where a novel I'd written was being discussed. We had a great time talking about the characters in, Secrets of the Heart. It's one thing to know that people are reading your book, it's another thing altogether to sit down with readers and hear them discuss the book you've written. This particular group will always hold special memories for me. I not only gained readers but I gained friends, and prayer warriors, and will always be thankful for them.

Because it's Thanksgiving season I encourage you to reach out to someone who needs a bit of encouragement this special week. Authors, thank a reader. Readers, thank someone who has written something, published or not that was meaningful to you. Read a favorite poem or tell a story on Thanksgiving Day this year. Pick a favorite Psalm about gratitude and study it in the silence of a room where no one will interrupt for a few minutes at least. Thank a Veteran for their service and maybe visit someone who is home bound or in the hospital. Write a letter to someone. Not an e-mail but a real letter.

In honor of Thanksgiving I'm giving away three autographed copies of Chameleon. If you would like a chance to win a copy just leave a comment telling me what you're thankful for this season, or a story, a poem, your favorite line of scripture, or how someone has inspired you. Please leave your e-mail address and check back on Sunday, November 25th to see if you've won.  And if you want me to personalize for a special someone for Christmas this year just let me know. You can enter through midnight Saturday, November 24th at midnight Pacific Time. Void where prohibited.

You can read the first chapters of all my books here.

Chameleon is the story of Lady Victoria Grayson, fondly referred to as Snoop by her physician brother, Lord Ravensmoore. Lady Victoria journeys to London for the first time in her adult life after battling a chronic childhood illness that kept her home bound for years. She is embroiled in a hornet's nest of intrigue when her brother is called upon to treat a Member of Parliament after a brutal attack.

The Prince Regent has called Jonathon Denning, Lord Witt, from his home in the country to investigate Ravensmoore's activities. The Regent isn't so sure he wants one of his lords working a trade and expects to put an end to what he considers eccentric behavior. Jaded by his profession as a spy, Witt understands that some people are not what they pretend to be. When he meets Victoria his cynical nature is challenged along with his doubts about God. Together they must confront their pasts in order to solve a mystery that could devastate their future.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Escape into Medical History: Smallpox

Edward Jenner (1749–1823).
Photo courtesy of the
National Library of Medicine.
Discovered here.

Have you ever thought it might be fun to have lived at a different time in history? No computers, no phones, no airplanes. You may immediately think, no way! I like those conveniences. There are pros and cons to many aspects of living during different historical time periods. However, the lack of current day medical practices and our extensive knowledge of disease is something I wouldn’t want to leave behind if time travel were possible.

You wouldn’t want to have the need for surgery because chances are that you wouldn’t get it (they rarely performed surgical operations) and you’d die, or you would get it and you’d die, or if you were that sick you’d just want to be left alone to die. Medicine is one of those things that I wouldn’t want to give up if I could escape into Regency England (one of my favorite eras) for a year or so.

Did you know that Edward Jenner discovered the vaccine for smallpox in late 18th century England? I doubt many high school students know about smallpox today unless they watch movies on bioterrorism, etc. Isn’t it scary that a disease that was virtually wiped out by 1977 could be resurrected for horrifying purposes?

Jenner used the pus and infectious matter of a dairymaid’s cowpox to inoculate a small boy in 1796. Do you want to know what that looked like? Probably not but I’ll tell you. He scraped inside nasty looking wounds on Sarah Nelm’s (dairymaid’s) hand and arm, gathered the infection, created two small incisions in the boy’s (James Phipps) arm and spread the pus into the incisions. You can read more here about the method of variolation here.

From Wikipedia, Jenner's Theory:

The initial source of infection was a disease of horses, called "the grease", which was transferred to cows by farm workers, transformed, and then manifested as cowpox.More here. For more on the great and terrible scourge go here.
Did you know the history of smallpox inoculation? Did any of this surprise you? Brings a whole new meaning to the saying, "A pox upon you!" Of course in that day if they didn't mean smallpox they probably meant syphilis. That's another post.

  From an etching by James Gillray (1757-1815) 1802 caricature of Jenner vaccinating patients who feared it would make them sprout cowlike appendages. From Wikipedia.              

Mystery of the Heart Cover Art

Releasing January 8th 2013

Here's the new cover for the third and final book in The Ravensmoore Chronicles. Hope you like it.

 

ABOUT THE BOOK

Lady Mercy Grayson has secretly been studying medicine in Edinburgh, Scotland. She has dressed as a man to pursue the same passion her big brother Devlin, Lord Ravensmoore, pursued outside the acceptance of society. Her secret has been discovered. Now she’s running away from Scotland and her dreams. Will she be able to accomplish what she feels is God’s calling, or will the parameters of society and those who want to use her secret to accomplish their own selfish ends determine the course of her future?

Vincent Lyons, Lord Eden, is an adventurer coming home to London to deliver the mysterious Holy Lance to the prince regent who wants to see if the legends are true surrounding this relic that is said to possess both the power of healing and destruction. His life is catapulted in another direction when he meets Mercy who is pursuing a different kind of adventure that will cause him to question everything he believes.

Both will be forced to examine their personal motives when members of a voudon tribe, the Regent, and the London Legend Seekers Club search to possess the ancient relic for their own purposes.

ENDORSEMENTS

 Jillian Kent's, Mystery Of The Heart, is a riveting tale of intrigue, courage, romance and faith. I was hooked from the first page, when the heroine washes up upon the shores of Regency England half-drowned, only to be taken captive by the mysterious Lord Eden. This is a story to be savored and shared.  ~ Serena Miller, author of, The Measure of Katie Calloway, 2012 Rita Award for Best Inspirational Romance.

A winning escape for the romantic imagination, Mystery of the Heart, will keep readers on the edge of their seats! A sigh-worthy hero and an intelligent make this Regency novel a pure pleasure for fans of the genre as well as anyone seeking a love story that's brightened by a healthy dose of adventure. ~Rosslyn Elliott, Award-winning author of,  Fairer Than Morning and Sweeter Than Birdsong

Mystery of the Heart is a deliciously credible and moving account of a nineteenth-century woman pursuing her dream to become a doctor. From the elegant world of English royalty to the frightening venues of an insane asylum, author Jillian Kent presents a meticulously researched novel filled with suspense, mystery, and romance. I couldn’t put this one down! ~Sue Harrison, Author of international best seller Mother Earth Father Sky

Jillian Kent writes a sweeping romantic intrigue, brilliant with well-drawn characters and meticulous research of Regency England. ~ Linda Windsor, Author of The Brides of Alba historical series: Healer, Thief, and Rebel