Novels
The Mayflower Maid
The Mayflower Maid
The Mayflower Maid
The First Book in the New World trilogy
400 years ago a group of like-minded men and women fled England and religious persecution to start a new life on a new continent – America. One woman’s story begins here…
In the infant colony of Plymouth in 1623 a women lies consumed with fever. In her delirium she insists her name is not the one everyone has come to know and love her by.
The story of Dorothy’s tragic journey amongst the Pilgrim Fathers is a vivid and moving account of a pivotal moment in history. The story of how she became the Mayflower Maid is an unforgettable tale of love and loss set amidst the strife and religious bigotry of Seventeenth Century England.
Printed Version: £7.99 plus p&p
OUT OF PRINT
Jamestown Woman
The Mayflower Maid
The Mayflower Maid
The Second Book in the New World trilogy.
Follow the story in Virginia where having weathered the perils of the Mayflower’s voyage and the early days of the Plymouth colony, Dorothy nee Bessie and her husband Thomas are cast adrift into even more stormy and dangerous waters. Seventeenth century politics are a violent and deadly business as they are about to find out in the harsh realities of those dark colonial days.
Printed Version £7.99 plus p&p
OUT OF PRINT
Restoration Lady
The Mayflower Maid
Restoration Lady
The Third Book in the New World trilogy.
The much anticipated finale to this wonderful story following events in post civil war England.
Stripped of her title and wealth Bessie faces revenge from past enemies, accusations of witchcraft and the catastrophes of the plague and Great Fire of London.
This concluding part of the New World Trilogy is gripping reading for all followers of Bessie – the Mayflower Maid.
Printed Version £7.99 plus p&p
OUT OF PRINT
Tudor Rose
Living in Hope
Restoration Lady
Lady Rose was the eighty-year-old matriarch of the Hickman family of Gainsborough Old Hall when Separatists from Lincolnshire and North Nottinghamshire first came together under her roof to worship in secrecy and safety.
Lady Rose’s own family roots ran deep into past religious non-conformity. Her mother and father were closet Protestants at a time when King Henry VIII’s realm was still steadfastly Catholic.
Her father, William Locke, although highly trusted by the King as his Royal Mercer, nonetheless smuggled Tyndale’s ‘heretic’ English Bibles into the country and into the hands of such people as Anne Boleyn. Having found favour under Protestant King Edward VI, Lady Rose, she and her husband faced exile under Catholic Queen Mary, but not before helping countless others escape her clutches.
With her own son, Anthony, having been a non-conforming Fellow at Cambridge University during William Brewster’s time there, little wonder that she might be found more than sympathetic to the Separatist cause.
“Tudor Rose” is her story and based upon Lady Rose’s own writings.
Many scenes from the book take place in recognizable settings situated in and around Gainsborough Old Hall helping to truly bring this story , and building, to life.
"The story of Rose Hickman is one of the most fascinating untold tales of British history. Its pathways lead from Elizabethan Lincolnshire out to the Pilgrim Fathers, the English Revolution, and American War of Independence. With great sensitivity and all the instincts of a natural story teller, Sue Allan has immersed herself in Rose’s riveting life story, and in the people, landscapes and places that Rose knew, to tell the tale of an extraordinary person in extraordinary times. No one understands Rose better, and no one is better placed to tell this wonderful tale."
Michael Wood Historian/TV Presenter
Printed Version £7.99 plus p&p
OUT OF PRINT
Living in Hope
Living in Hope
Living in Hope
"Talking about one’s family history could sometimes be similar to showing a set of family holiday snaps to someone not connected to the family. Not everyone’s ideal way of spending an evening. I found an exception to this rule recently when I received a copy of a newly published book titled “Living in Hope” written by English author, Sue Allan based in the Lincoln area.
Sue cleverly recreates in an imaginative way the stories of three female ancestors from her own family history. The book is divided into three parts, each part dealing with three ladies from different generations of the family. Sue writes about their experiences of love, hardship, loss and she even incorporates a murder.
I was immediately drawn into the book from the first few lines in chapter one which refer to local places in the district. It relates the story of Mary Hendren, who was born in Ballinderry, County Antrim about 1793. The story develops from Mary’s childhood and her sweetheart John Witherup. “…My brothers and John would break away from their chores and sneak off along The Prog to parade about.”
John left his native townland at Ballypitmave and joined the army from which he was later discharged in 1826 due to chronic arthritis. He and Mary were married in Ballinderry on the 6th August 1810. Sue charts their removal to England and their return to Ballypitmave on John’s discharge from military service. The use of historical fact tends to authenticate the background to the story and assists in recreating the scene in the early 19th century. The family leave Ireland and make their way to Quebec, Canada. They eventually settle in Peterborough. The story of their life is a moving one and at the conclusion of the first part of the book we leave the story of the author’s great-great-great grandparents and move onto the fascinating story of their granddaughter - Mary Ann Wetherup. She was born in the township of Dummer, Ontario in 1850. Her heart rendering story is told using her own words. It is a story that certainly supports the phrase that fact is stranger than fiction, exploring a mysterious case of infanticide. The body of her child is discovered close to her home leading to a mother’s traumatic ordeal.
The third part of the book tells the story of Edith May Masters, born in Tooting, London in 1899. She is the author’s paternal grandmother. It is certainly not a story of meeting someone, falling in love and living happily ever after. Life’s complications are explored in great depth and comfort zones are stripped away to deal with the everyday reality of life.
Edith May met Bill Weatherup whilst he was on active service during World War One in March 1918. Eventually they were married and they made their way across the Atlantic for a new life in Norham, Township of Percy, Ontario. Edith May soon discovered that the reception from her mother-in-law would be a cold one. Personal tragedy brings her and her children back to England. The shocking story is compelling and any hopes that life would improve are shattered.
The unique feature about this book are the author’s notes that explain the background of the book and her research process. It certainly is an encouragement for anyone “teetering on the brink” of family history to take it to a different plain. I tend to be in agreement with Sue’s strong views on family history. The collation of facts and figures, displayed neatly on paper in the form of a family tree, falls short of reality. She refers to the trap that the family historian can sometimes fall into, seeing “these past folk as mere collection of entries and not as once living, breathing individuals from the past.” Sue concludes that we all should at least attempt to leave behind some written record of our lives for future generations.
Sue Allan’s book titled “Living in Hope” is published by Domtom Publishing UK.
The Digger Lisburn.Com
Printed Version: £7.99 plus p&p
OUT OF PRINT