Join me on tour - with Goddess Fish Promotions

 

Yes, that's right. 'Rosamanti' was released on Friday November 29, so what better way to launch it, than to go on a blog tour with the wonderful people from Goddess Fish Promotions.

Here are the dates and the hosts. Come along for all the fun, and leave a comment for a chance to WIN a free ecopy of Rosamanti.

December 2 Bookgirl Knitting
December 3 It's Raining Books
December 4 Harlie’s Books
December 5 Queen of the Night Reviews
December 6 Christine Elaine Black
December 9 Christine Young Romance Writer
December 10 Reading In Twilight
December 11 Deal Sharing Aunt
December 11 Long and Short Reviews
December 12 The Hedonistic Minimalist
December 13 Welcome to My World of Dreams

Rosamanti -- Release day is here!

In February this year, I sat down and wrote Rosamanti in three weeks. The story came from my heart; from a deep love of the beautiful island of Capri; and from a life-long fascination with the Blue Grotto. Today, Rosamanti is published and on sale throughout the world. I feel like pinching myself.

This book is very special to me in many ways. I do hope you enjoy reading it.

Fate drew her to Rosamanti. Love made her stay…

After the death of her husband, best-selling mystery author Sarah Halliman has lost her desire for just about everything. Desperate to break out of her funk and rediscover herself, she answers a newspaper advertisement—For lease: Isolated villa on Capri, Italy. Must love cats. Traveling alone to the beautiful island of Capri, she locates Villa Rosamanti, a gorgeous 400-year-old dwelling nestled in the hillside of Monte Tiberio. Above it lies Villa Jovis, the 2000-year-old villa of Emperor Tiberius, ripe with history and intrigue.

Sarah soon discovers a strong resonance with Rosamanti and its gardens and quirky pets. She begins to feel a deep connection to Elena Lombardi, the deceased owner. But it’s not just the villa Sarah’s fallen in love with. Elena’s grandson, Pietro, is handsome and charming, the epitome of the passionate Italian. His dream is to own a restaurant of his own, but such dreams are for wealthier men.

Between the sparks that Pietro kindles in Sarah’s heart—and her kitchen—and the mystery of nearby Villa Jovis, Sarah’s muse begins to stir. She senses stories in the ancient stones, and romance in the phosphorescent blue waters of the Blue Grotto. But when her curiosity takes her to Elena’s library, a child’s notes and maps lead Sarah to a mystery that could be the answer to everyone’s prayers—or perhaps, be the destruction of everything they hold dear…

Buy Rosamanti here

Amazon   

Barnesand Noble

AllRomance Ebooks    

Kobo 

  

 

Pietro

Pietro lived with his grandmother – Nonna –and his mother, the only male in the household. From his Nonna, he learned all about loyalty, love, and belonging. Nonna was his rock in a sometimes difficult childhood. She taught him about life, and nurtured him until he was a grown and capable man.

Although life threw some curve balls at Pietro, he grew to be a stoic and reliable man. He is happy working as a chef in his Aunty Maria’s restaurant, turning out authentic Caprese fare to the hordes of tourists and day-trippers to the island.

When Pietro happens to meet an Australian woman who arrives on Capri, his whole world seems to turn upside down. He is forced to face his future, seeing for the first time the opportunities to turn his life in a different direction. But his loyalty to Nonna goes much deeper than pursuing his own dreams.

Stubbornly, he fights the notion of change, but there is one thing he is helpless to fight, and that is the power of falling in love.

Rosamanti -- out on November 29^th from Etopia Press
 

I'm going on tour! With Goddess Fish Promotions. Lots of Giveaways!

Yes, that's right. 'Rosamanti' will be released on Friday November 29, so what better way to launch it, than to go on a blog tour with the wonderful people from Goddess Fish Promotions.

Here are the dates and the hosts. Come along for all the fun, and leave a comment for a chance to WIN a free ecopy of Rosamanti.

December  2   Bookgirl Knitting 
December  3   Musings and Ramblings 
December  4   Harlie’s Books  
December  5   Queen of the Night Reviews
December  6   Christine Elaine Black 
December  9   Christine Young Romance Writer
December  10   Reading In Twilight 
December  11   Deal Sharing Aunt 
December  11   Long and Short Reviews 
December  12   The Hedonistic Minimalist 
December  13   Welcome to My World of Dreams

Rosamanti - out on November 29th

 

Three mysterious clues ...

ROSAMANTI

 

out on November 29th

She clung tight on the little blue Vespa

Mystery, danger - treasure

Rosamanti - Fate drew her to a faraway villa – her heart made her stay

 

Out on November 29th!

 

 

If these walls could talk - inside the Blue Grotto





Villa Jovis photo from http://www.capri.net

The Emperor Tiberius ruled the Roman Empire from the island of Capri for 10 years between 27 and 37 AD.  The reclusive and unconventional Tiberius loved the seclusion and mild climate the island offered, and built 12 villas there. His main residence was Villa Jovis, which stood atop the second highest mountain on the island, on the edge of a 1000 foot high cliff. It was an impregnable fortress, offering Tiberius safety and privacy.

It seems Tiberius frequented the famous Blue Grotto, or Grotta Azzurra, and had a quay carved from rock inside it, enabling him to indulge in his fondness for bathing in the other-worldly blue waters. It’s also said he built a marine nymphaeum, where he indulged in another passion – swimming naked with young boys and girls. Tiberius, from all accounts, was a depraved individual who held orgies of unorthodox sexual practices in several of the grottoes that dot the waterline around Capri.

In AD 121, Suetonius wrote De Vita Caesarum  - The Twelve Caesars. Although considered a primary source of Roman history, Suetonius had his critics, many questioning the truth of some of his claims. Suetonius has painted a picture of Tiberius which some scholars today say may not be true. But one only has to look at the paintings, statues, and other relics in Capri to see that he was probably close to the truth.

Suetonius graphically describes some of the lurid and debauched behaviour perpetrated by Tiberius on all who happened to cross his path. Not just sexual deviance, but murder and cruelty. At Villa Jovis, there is a ledge atop the cliff which is apparently where he would have people pushed to their death, merely on his whim.

This extract – a translation from the Latin – shows just how depraved Tiberius was, and it doesn’t take too much imagination to see what went on in his Blue Grotto nymphaeum.

“After retiring to Capri, where he had a private pleasure palace built, many young men and women trained in sexual practices were brought there for his pleasure, and would have sex in groups in front of him. Some rooms were furnished with pornography and sex manuals from Egypt - which let the people there know what was expected of them. Tiberius also created lechery nooks in the woods and had girls and boys dressed as nymphs and Pans prostitute themselves in the open. Some of the things he did are hard to believe. He had little boys trained as minnows to chase him when he went swimming and to get between his legs and nibble him.”  (Suetonius, De Vita Caesarum , XLIII,XLIV)

Painting from http://www.artvalue.com/auctionresult--italian-school-20-italy-the-emperor-tiberius-caesar-au-1901797.htm

 

For all his wayward and decadent behaviour, Tiberius was also a lover of the finer things in life. He gathered the best architects and craftsmen and set them to work creating complex and massive edifices which allowed him to play his games in luxury.

A statue of Neptune recovered from the Blue Grotto

As recently as 2012, researchers discovered several plinths and statue bases nearly 500 feet
underwater, on the floor of the Blue Grotto.  The number and positions of the bases suggests that there were many statues decorating the grotto. In 1964, archaeologists recovered three statues from the floor of the Blue Grotto – one of the sea god Neptune, and the others were of Triton. Considering seven statue bases in all have been found, experts are confident that another four statues have yet to be discovered.

Boats waiting to enter the small cave opening

Whilst local Caprese fishermen have always known about the existence of the Blue Grotto, it wasn’t until 1826 that the rest of the world heard about it. Two Germans, a writer and a painter visiting Capri, found the small, metre-high opening to the cave by chance.

The wonder of the Blue Grotto, is that it has remained so pristine over the centuries.

No one who visits can ever adequately describe the magical blue light within the cave, caused when sunlight enters the small underwater aperture and is then refracted through the water. The white sandy bottom of the cave reflects the light, producing a vivid blue hue. Any object that is dipped in the water turns silver white. Small fissures in the rock walls emanate a mysterious silver light, adding to the surreal beauty of the grotto.

The Blue Grotto is today one of the most magical of places I've ever been.

Reference: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/suet-tiberius-rolfe.asp

 

Rosamanti - out on November 29th

Meet Sarah Halliman

Successful crime author, Sarah, needs to write a new chapter in her life. But right now she’s finding it difficult to write anything, let alone find her place in a world which has turned upside down.

 

Never one to shy away from hardship, she takes a big breath – and a huge leap of faith – and embarks on a solo adventure to the other side of the world. She’s seeking solitude, peace, and inspiration. When she arrives on Capri, the tiny island off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, she finds all of what she needs in huge abundance.

ROSAMANTI

 

Fate drew her to a faraway villa – her heart made her stay

Out on November 29th

What would you do?

Read this ad in the newspaper classifieds.

If you wanted to get away from everything for a while – maybe to pursue your dreams, maybe to recover from something or someone, or maybe just to think for a while – what would you do?

Sarah had this dilemma. Could she pack up and leave her friends and family, and go somewhere she knew no one? Where she couldn’t speak the language? Would it fix the problem?

Rosamanti  -  by Noelle Clark

Out on November 29th

Facing inner demons

Meet Nonna

Elena Lombardi is Pietro’s grandmother, or Nonna. She and Pietro both call Rosamanti home, a safe and loving environment in which to nurture one’s soul. Pietro’s love for her is evident in the way he cherishes everything that she holds dear. She has instilled in her grandson the most admirable of traits – loyalty, honesty, and hard work.

Although tragedy has been no stranger to Nonna, causing her great pain and immense loss, she has never lost her ability to love those dearest to her.