What the devil is an ondine? - by Vijaya Schartz

Ondines, mermaids, sirens, silkies, they were called different names in different parts of the medieval world. Well, MELUSINE, the heroine of Seducing Sigefroi and LADY OF LUXEMBOURG (to be released in late fall), becomes and ondine (a water creature, a serpent from the waist down) on the first Wednesday of each month. It's the result of a curse, and there is a good reason for it. As an immortal, she abused her powers in childhood and caused unforgivable distress to her mortal father. She worships the ancient Goddess and is descended from a line of angels predating Christianity.

This story is based upon authentic legends, and ondines, like mermaids are part of the French medieval landscape. They appear in legends of Scandinavia, Germany, and eastern Europe as well as all over France. They were known in Greek mythology. They still resonate in today's readers. They are mostly female, and many preyed on mortals.

The people of the time, and the clergy in particular did believe in these supernatural creatures and condemned them as evil. But Melusine, although she is an immortal and a shapeshifter, follows the righteous path and seeks redemption. If, however, the Church ever suspects what she really is, she will burn at the stake.

Don't miss the CURSE OF THE LOST ISLE SERIES, and the perils of Melusine, an ondine trying to fit in medieval noble society.

Happy Reading

Vijaya Schartz

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

Find Vijaya's books on AMAZON

West Stow: An Insight Into Anglo Saxon Life

The Dark Ages create numerous problems for writers.  Accounts from the time are few and often written at second hand.  The remaining physical evidence is scant.  That’s why reconstruction can be so useful.  The Anglo-Saxon village at West Stow is a case in point.  It’s situated in the Lark Valley in Suffolk.  This county is part of East Anglia, once the dominant kingdom of England under King Raedwald.  (He featured in my previous blog on Sutton Hoo.)  It was also part of a much wider European culture.



West Stow Saxon village

    West Stow reveals much about the early Anglo Saxons in the period from 420-650AD.  The village has been recreated on the site where it was originally excavated, using the available archaeological evidence to determine the design and materials used.  Inevitably, experimental archaeology involves an element of best guess as well as trial and error.  For that reason the buildings are not uniform.  Some are constructed of timber, whereas others feature walls of wattle and daub.  One house has an earthen floor, a design that was abandoned when further excavations revealed evidence of the existence of wooden floor boards.  Consequently, subsequent houses incorporated these.  The houses also feature windows with weatherproof shutters, and stout wooden doors that can be securely fastened from inside.  Roofs are made of reed or straw thatch.  Taken as a whole they offer a real insight into the lives of Anglo Saxon people at the time.



door locking mechanism

weaving loom



Most of the structures are remarkably sophisticated and there is painstaking attention to detail.  This is also reflected in the simple furnishings inside each of the buildings whether it’s a box bed, a door latch, a loom or a bucket.  In addition to the various dwellings there is a barn and also a central hall.  The latter is modest in comparison to some of the great halls of the later Saxon period (like the magnificent example created by Regia Anglorum near Canterbury in Kent) but it serves a similar function.  Apart from offering additional sleeping accommodation in time of need, it was a focal point, serving both as a meeting place and also for entertainment, perhaps the telling of stories round the hearth of a winter night, or the relation of news from traders and travellers.  West Stow also boasts a carpenter’s shop as well as a forge and a kiln.  There are pig sties too complete with occupants, a cross breed of the ancient Tamworth with wild boar.  It is thought that pigs in Anglo Saxon times were originally descended from Iron Age stock.  People also kept cattle and sheep.  The river provided fish and fowl, the forest deer and boar.  There is also evidence of hens, geese and goats as well as domestic animals like cats and dogs.



crop growing

West Stow demonstrates the types of crops grown during the Anglo Saxon period: spelt wheat, barley, oats, rye, peas, beans, white carrots, kale and numerous herbs.  Back then the acreage of crops would have been much larger to maximise food production and thus see the community through the winter and also the lean months before the next harvest.  However, the existing area under cultivation gives a clear impression of what was grown and the surprisingly varied nature of the diet.

The village was virtually self-sufficient though excess crops could be used to barter for ornaments and trinkets from travelling traders.  Large towns were then unknown.  The scenery would also have been very different since the land was not enclosed and the big skies for which East Anglia is renowned would have seemed even greater.

different building styles

Writing about the Dark Ages is always an exercise of the imagination, but reconstructions like the one at West Stow really do provide some wonderful insights.  I’ve used the knowledge gleaned here to inform the stories that are set at a slightly later period.  For instance The Viking’s Defiant Bride and The Viking’s Touch both draw on this information and extrapolate from it.  Information about these and my other books can be found on my website at www.joannafulford.co.uk 

What historical locations have offered you the greatest insights?  I’d be interested to know.

 

I must be getting famous - Vijaya Schartz

BWL just released today: a special edition bundle of the CURSE OF THE LOST ISLE series, comprising the first three complete novels, PRINCESS OF BRETAGNE, PAGAN QUEEN, and SEDUCING SIGEFROI, into one handy kindle file. And all that for the super-friendly price of $5.99.

Find it at: http://amzn.com/B0091HX7EE

So I figured I must be getting famous. The special edition even wears my name rather than the series name. What a hoot!

In any case, this is a great opportunity to get these first three novels together and cheap. Since Book 4, LADY OF LUXEMBOURG, is coming out in late fall, grab the deal now, and you'll be ready for it when Book 4 is released.

Now back to writing. These books don't write themselves, and I don't want to disappoint my loyal readers. Wishing you all a fantastic end of summer.

Oh, and you can still enter my contest to win LADY OF LUXEMBOURG when it releases, by going to my website: http://www.vijayaschartz.com and clicking on CONTEST at the top right, then follow the directions on the contest page. 

Now back to writing. These books don't write themselves, and I don't want to disappoint my loyal readers. Wishing you all a fantastic end of summer.

Vijaya Schartz

Swords, Romance with a Kick

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

The madness of historical research - by Vijaya Schartz

What is an author to do when historians of the period do not agree? What could be more frustrating than the main expert on this particular place and time saying: "and here history gets rather confusing" Really? My hero is in a dungeon, suffering from malnutrition, and I can’t even know in which or whose castle along the Marne River he is detained?

That’s what I’m up against with my work in progress: LADY OF LUXEMBOURG, to be published late this year. And that’s what I get for dealing with historical figures. Of course it wouldn’t be a problem if I didn’t care so much about historical accuracy. But as an author, I want to be as believable as I can be. I want the good people of Luxembourg, if they happen to pick up this novel, to feel that I did a good job of portraying Sigefroi, their national hero and founding father.

Don’t worry, though, I won’t spoil the story for you. It’s just that sometimes, when dealing with early medieval history, research becomes very difficult. And don’t get me started about Wikipedia or other online sources... Of course, the legends are easier to handle and provide much fodder for all kinds of neat details that make the story intriguing.

But enough venting. Back to writing. Hope you are enjoying the series. The rewards of writing it outweigh the frustrations.

In the meantime, you can read the first three books in the CURSE OF THE LOST ISLE series:
PRINCESS OF BRETAGNE:http://amzn.com/B007K1EGAM
PAGAN QUEEN: http://amzn.com/B007Z8F7IA
SEDUCING SIGEFROI:http://amzn.com/B008LW18EG

Have a wonderful summer.

Vijaya Schartz

Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

Find me on Amazon HERE

www.facebook.com/pages/Vijaya-Schartz-Author/109777709045040

The Cult of the ancient Goddess in the early Middle Ages - by Vijaya Schartz

Ste Sarah (Ste Maries de la Mer)

The cult of the Goddess predates Christianity and many of the sites now occupied by churches and cathedrals in Europe were sites of ancient worship, often Druidic. When Christianity was imposed by Charlemagne upon his conquered enemies, churches were built over the old Pagan altars.

Many statues of the Goddess, revered by Pagans, were incorporated into the early Christian faith as representations of the Virgin Mary, sometimes knowingly, sometimes out of ignorance. Whenever a black statue of the Goddess was found, it was dubbed a Black Madonna and incorporated into the Christian church, possibly to prevent Pagans from worshiping old divinities. Even statues now recognized as Pagan by archeologists are still displayed in many churches in central France. One in particular was recently moved from inside the church to outside on the front porch, after it was officially identified as the Pagan Goddess. But it is still sitting in a niche at the church entrance, without inscription or comment.

Isis, Queen of Heaven

Growing up as a Catholic in France, I was told as a child that the cult of the Virgin Mary was the main point of dissension in the early Church and the root of the Protestant separatist movement. In hindsight, it might have been that the Protestants of the time knew the worship of the Virgin Mary was a substitute for the Pagan Goddess and wanted no part of it.

I’ve seen several statues of the Black Madonna, some ancient, others more recent. Some say she came from Africa and that's why she is black. Sometimes she is called the Egyptian, or Kali (the black). In India, Kali is a black feminine deity of chaos and revenge. But the early Celts also were dark-skinned before the Viking invasions, and may have emigrated in ancient times from North Africa or the Middle East. Possibly they brought the cult of the black goddess with them.

Kali, the black mother

Over the centuries, the cult of the Goddess somehow survived hidden among the Christian Faith. The most famous Black Madonna is located at the Ste Maries de la Mer on the French mediteranean coast of Camargue, where she is worshiped by the Gypsies as Sainte Sarah, or Sarah the black, as their patron saint. There are several in Spain and in eastern Europe. Many other black madonnas are mentioned in ancient manuscripts all over Europe but disappeared over the centuries.

Although somewhat of a secret in America, the Black Madonna phenomenon is better known in Europe, where civilization has older, deeper roots, and many traces remain of what existed before Christianity.

Marion Zimmer Bradley in her Mists of Avalon series also alludes to statues of the ancient Goddess worshiped as the Virgin Mary in Christian churches.

Curiously enough, a series of recent apparitions prompted a new cult of the Lady, especially in central Europe. Some believe she is the Virgin Mary. Others claim that although divine, she is a separate entity. Could she be the ancient Goddess who prompted our ancestors to worship her?

One of these statues figures prominently in PRINCESS OF BRETAGNE and in PAGAN QUEEN, Books 1 & 2 of the Curse of the Lost Isle series. There will be another Black Madonna in Book 4 of the series, LADY OF LUXEMBOURG, to be released later this year. That one is still visible in the crypt of the cathedral in Chartres, where she is called the black madonna of under the earth.

Please feel free to comment. This could be an interesting discussion.

Vijaya Schartz

Swords, Romance with a Kick.
http://www.vijayaschartz.com

Vijaya's books on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/author/vijayaschartz

NOAH’S ARK: http://amzn.com/B007QHHIL4

PRINCESS OF BRETAGNE: http://amzn.com/B007K1EGAM

PAGAN QUEEN: http://amzn.com/B007Z8F7IA

SEDUCING SIGEFROI: http://amzn.com/B008LW18EG

A Little Light on the Dark Ages by Joanna Fulford

The Dark Ages (broadly 500–1000AD) was a period marked by frequent warfare and the virtual disappearance of urban life.  It followed the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.  When the legions left Britain in 410AD, their absence created an opportunity for invading tribes of Jutes, Angles, Saxons and Friesians who competed for land and power.  It was the era of Bede and Hilda and Cuthbert, and the legendary king called Arthur about whom so much has been written.

The period is described as ‘dark’ because we know relatively little about it.  The surviving evidence is thin on the ground.  And yet what does remain offers a glimpse of something tantalising and at variance with preconceived notions about intellectual darkness and barbarity.

Burial mound



On my recent research trip into Suffolk (see previous blog) one of the places I visited was Sutton Hoo.  It’s a must-see for anyone interested in the early medieval period.  My visit coincided with an anticyclone, but storm winds and driving rain added another dimension to the sombre beauty of this ancient Saxon burial ground.  There are several burial mounds at Sutton Hoo, but the largest and most famous is believed to be that of the mighty East Anglian king called Raedwald who died around 625AD.  Excavation of the grave revealed the outline of a great ship.  The timbers have long since decayed in the region’s acid soil but a host of other artefacts remain.  These range from weapons and armour to coins and cauldrons; cups and gaming pieces.  Most astonishing of all is the beauty and craftsmanship of the jewellery.  The originals are in the British Museum in London, but the exhibition centre at Sutton Hoo has excellent replicas.  As soon as I saw these, a lot of preconceived ideas about ignorant Dark Age barbarians went up in smoke.

Sutton Hoo helmet

belt buckle

There is nothing remotely primitive about these fabulous pieces, and the hand that made them belonged to a master craftsman using techniques that have changed very little since.  The level of sophistication involved is self-evident.  Stunning design is used throughout.  Sword and belt fittings, purse lid and shoulder clasps all reveal it.  Into the glorious gold settings the goldsmith set red stones: rubies brought from India; garnets from Northern Europe.   He cut and shaped them and then set them into miniature cells of gold, each backed with gold foil to reflect the light through the gem.  The stepped interlocking patterns were built up with geometric precision and balance.  In some instances the design is freer and represents interlaced creatures and protective animal, bird and man-like figures depicting a visual language once widely understood in Northern Europe but whose meaning is now obscure.  Each piece is a work of art in its own right and speaks volumes about the power and status of the king for whom it was made.  In modern values, the equivalent cost of recreating the shoulder clasps alone is estimated to be in the region of £100,000 – roughly $156.000.  Yet they were just a small part of Raedwald’s treasure.

Purse lid

The king’s sword had a superb blade forged by a highly skilled pattern welder.  One of the three hanging bowls discovered in the grave carried brightly enamelled and patterned fittings of Celtic design.  Silver dishes, bowls and spoons reveal Roman and Byzantine production.  One of the bowls came from North Africa.  Excavations of cemeteries in central Sweden reveal ship-burial customs and contain helmets and shields very like those from the Sutton Hoo ship.   King Raedwald, and rulers like him, belonged to an international culture in which the sea was not a barrier but a path of communication.

Shoulder clasps

Sutton Hoo has provided valuable insights into the past and has caused me to re-evaluate the Dark Ages.  Certainly the departure of the Roman legions from Britain had a profound effect and, yes, it was a period of warfare and invasion.  However, it seems to me that that isn’t the whole story.  I can’t buy into the idea that Britain and Europe and this time were inhabited solely by mindless barbarians: the existing evidence suggests something very different. 

The Dark Ages continue to fascinate us: I come back to an earlier point about the sheer volume of stories written about Arthurian legend.  Perhaps our love affair with the period is partly concerned with its obscurity; with not knowing for sure; with the continual exercise of the imagination.  Perhaps too it is about those occasional gleams of light when an enthusiast with a metal detector unearths another hoard of ancient treasure and suddenly our understanding of the past alters dramatically.  For the novelist such moments are pure gold.

I’d love to hear about your light-bulb moments. What was it that changed your perception of the past or provided you with fresh insight?

SEDUCING SIGEFROI is free today in kindle!

Free today in kindle at:

http://amzn.com/B008LW18EG

SEDUCING SIGEFROI - Curse of the Lost Isle Book 3

From history shrouded in myths, emerges a family of immortal Celtic Ladies, who roam the medieval world in search of salvation from a curse. For centuries, imbued with hereditary gifts, they hide their deadly secret... but if the Church ever suspects what they really are, they will be hunted, tortured, and burned at the stake.

EXCERPT:

"Is everything to your liking so far?"

Jarred by the deep male voice, Melusine snapped awake. Sigefroi stood in front of her, one soft boot nonchalantly propped on the edge of the wooden tub. The white of his tunic matched his teeth as he stared at her with a wolfish grin.

Melusine glanced around in panic for something to cover her nudity but her clothes lay too far away. She pulled up her legs in the bath water and laced her arms around her knees. "How dare you intrude? Can’t you see I’m taking a bath?"

Sigefroi’s bold gaze swept over her exposed body. "It’s not as if it were the first time. You seem to like bathing in hot tubs as well as in cold rivers."

Shocked at his effrontery, Melusine released one arm to point toward the door. "Get out of my chamber immediately!"

"Your chamber?" His grin widened. "This is the only private chamber in the villa, and it happens to be mine."

"Yours?" Melusine flushed in confusion. She knew the villa was small but hadn’t really thought about all the details.

"I’ll share it with you, unless you want to sleep on the hall floor with the servants." The scowl on his brow returned. "And as the lord of this place, I don’t take orders from my guests... or my wenches."

Wench? Her solitary life hadn’t prepared Melusine for such vulgarity. According to what she understood of men, however, she must not give herself too fast but rather let Sigefroi grow hungry for her body as long as possible. "I am no wench and demand to be treated with respect!"

He chuckled and effected a mock bow. "You certainly have mine, my lady."

Melusine managed a forced smile. "If you give me your word to behave honorably, I could sleep on a pallet behind a screen at the far side of your bedchamber."

He rolled his eyes. "Truly?"

Melusine hoped her inaccessible proximity would work in her favor. "There is enough space for the two of us."

"Nay." The candles flickered in his amber eyes. "You don’t understand, my lady." A slow smile spread on his sensual lips. "I intend to take you to my bed tonight. After all, we are to be wed."

"So soon?" Panic choked her voice. Impaired by Sigefroi’s close proximity, Melusine couldn’t think. He wanted to consummate their union tonight? She quickly regained her composure. "My lord, it’s not proper. We hardly know each other and are not yet betrothed."

He pulled up the sleeves of his tunic. "A detail easily remedied, my lady. Do you mind if I wash my hands before dinner?"

Before she could react, he dipped his hands in her bath, caressed her knee, brushed the skin of her thigh. Delicious heat coursed through her entire body. He seemed to enjoy her confusion as he swept the length of her folded arms with the back of one finger.

Lifting her chin with the crook of one finger, he bent and softly kissed her lips.

Melusine melted into the bath water, waves of heat swelled and washed over her. His smooth, soft lips teased hers. Her mouth relaxed and opened under his. She let him gently probe her mouth then claim it as his own. Dear Goddess, she was lost.

How could she manipulate this man when she yielded under his touch? She had seen shameless wenches offer themselves to strangers when it served their purpose, or even withhold their favors at will, but Melusine could never do that. She could not refuse this man. She was exposed, vulnerable, and in great danger.

Don't miss this exciting saga. Other books in the series are:

Book One - PRINCESS OF BRETAGNE

Book Two - PAGAN QUEEN

Book Three - SEDUCING SIGEFROI

Book Four - LADY OF LUXEMBOURG (Late 2012 release)

Happy reading.

Vijaya Schartz

Swords, Blasters, Romance with a Kick

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

Find my books on Amazon HERE