Love reigns supreme for our three brave colonels at the start of this epic tale. Colonels Buford, Fitzwilliam, and Brandon are enjoying their courtships and their early married lives with three beloved Jane Austen heroines. The couples lead tranquil lives- until Napoleon escapes from exile. While the military men set out to meet their destiny on the fields of Waterloo, Anne, Carolina, and Marriane defend their hearts against the fear of losing their loved ones.
Lady Anne Mackintosh was the wife of the Highland chief of Clan Mackintosh during Scotland's last great war against England for Scotland's freedom. While her husband fought on the King of England's side, Lady Anne, age 23, made the unheard-of move of calling the clan to battle, herself, for the other side, for Bonnie Prince Charlie. The prince was Charles Stuart? "Bonny Prince Charlie"?and the rightful king of Scotland. In those days, any man who raised a regiment became its colonel. Of course Lady Anne did not ride into battle (although the English newspapers accused her of it) but ever since that time she was known to Scotland and to history as "Colonel Anne." With the help of five retainers, she routed the King's army when it threatened her beloved prince.
A gun-toting widow is more than a match for a mere cowboy in this unforgettable Western romance from the bestselling author of Virgin Fire. His mind preoccupied with the threat of cattle theft, Justin Harte was in no position to fall in love. But when his eye caught sight of the beautiful, forceful, and unbelievably skilled Anne McAuliffe, who could shoot a gun better than many men he knows, his heart began to beat so loudly that his mind could not talk any sense into him. Going beyond playing hard-to-get, Anne made it clear that she was not interested in the strapping and debonair Justin. But could Anne control her heart as easily as she thought or would she drop her gun and be swept into Justin's waiting arms?
The origins of the Scottish clans go back over a thousand years, and for centuries these extended networks of families dominated life in the Scottish Highlands and Islands. The warriors of the clan, fiercely loyal to each other and to their chief, were well known for their extraordinary courage and military skills. Retold by one of Scotland's most acclaimed storytellers, these stories illustrate the drama and the dynamism of a society which lived close to nature, had little in the way of material wealth but which boasted a remarkable treasure house of stories that were passed down over generations.
Of My Blood, tells the story of an unusual 17th century English family, all of them fiercely loyal to their country and causes, but far less so to the law. This rip-roaring tale, spans the Atlantic as the once magnificent Hawkwood family attempt to outrun the law and each other. They fight and feud, betraying one another as they fend off royal troops, unscrupulous nobles, and each other in their quest for the family fortune.
As Paris recoils under the turbulent political events of 1803, young English governess Anne Peters finds herself penniless, homeless and alone. But while France prepares for war she seizes the chance of escape, to a new life in the service of dashing Count Nikolai Kirov, and a new home in the glittering Russian city of St Petersburg. Thrown into the flamboyant and demanding circle of her new employer and his family, Anne moves between the city's splendour and the wild, untamed beauty of the Caucasus Mountains, and begins her transformation from Anne Peters into Anna Petrovna. But as Napoleon gathers his army for the final attack on Imperial Russia, Anna must prepare for a battle of the heart - her forbidden love for a man and a country she may never call her own.
As a successful trial lawyer, Mike Beck uses his personality and his skill with the letter of the law to win in a courtroom. As a Marine Reservist ordered to Iraq on an unexpected deployment, he finds himself in a different world where the law of war often conflicts with common sense and his own feel for what’s right and what’s wrong. When an embedded female correspondent reveals what appears to be an illegal killing of Iraqi civilians by a U.S. Marine during the battle for Fallujah, Beck finds himself faced with a case that challenges both his legal skills and his conviction that something is very wrong with what seems to be a clear violation of the law of land warfare. Devoted to finding the truth about an ugly incident and keeping an innocent Marine from being convicted in a court-martial, Mike Beck defies orders, purloins evidence, and leads a combat team that must fight their way through a fanatical enemy force to investigate the scene of the alleged crime. Along the way as he battles his conscience, command influence, and a media giant clamoring for his head, Mike Beck finds a lot of truth about the case, about the brutal enemy in Iraq, about the nature of a very nasty war, about the Marines risking their lives in a confusing combat situation—and about himself as a Marine, a lawyer, and a man. “A timely page-turner about war, honor, love, and Iraq justice told by a true Marine—Hooah!” Eugene Sullivan, Chief Judge (ret), U.S. Court of Appeals (Armed Forces) Author of The Majority Rules and The Report to the Judiciary Stone, a former Marine himself, blurs the lines between the good guys and the bad guys and shows us that in war, not everything and everyone is as they seem at first glance. His battle scenes are written from the perspective of a true soldier and are gripping and at times heart-breaking. Stone’s story is intriguing, action-packed—and hints at more to come.
Annie Harrower-Gray opens up an alternative view of Scotland's turbulent history, revealing three centuries through the eyes of the nation's women. The whole of society appears, from ordinary labourers, prostitutes and factory hands to their more celebrated sisters and even witches, bodysnatchers and female Jacobites. ??All their tales are freshly researched and told with a sense of humour. Colourful characters abound! Step inside the boudoirs of Edinburgh's ladies of pleasure, whose civilised manners so confused one church minister that he 'accidentally' took tea in a brothel. Creep into the graveyard with Helen Torrance and Jean Lapiq, convicted of bodysnatching half a century before Burke and Hare. Uncover the murky history of Scotland's last witch Helen Duncan, whose eerily accurate wartime predictions led to her imprisonment. This book offers an exciting and erudite voyage through the social history of Scotland. ??Honour the heroines who helped to shape Scotland, yet rest in unvisited tombs!??As featured in Alloa & Hillfoots Advertiser and Scottish Memories Magazine.
This book will take an academic look at those who are of the Gordon name and clan. There are already quite a few books about the Gordons but they either skip over the lineage or romanticise battles and positions held. There are defining traits within the Gordon DNA that much is true, however that does not always make us ‘good people’. We strive to be the absolute best, in our chosen fields. That could be taking the fore in battles or being the best musician, you can be. There are amazing acts of bravery that have been carried out by the Gordons along with substantial acts of cowardice. If that sounds like an oxymoron then you would be right, as we occupy both ends of the moral and social scales. The Gordons have fought for and against the Papacy. We fought on both sides of the Jacobite rebellion. We stood for and against England. The Gordons even as individuals have fought on both sides in World War 1 and 2. There were Gordons on either side of communism. We have been great scientists and doctors. I have one son who is a great Chef, and the other is a Quantum Physicist, whilst I am a Musician and Writer. So, we all do have a personal choice, but it is what and how you act upon us that will mark our places in the history of the Gordon name. I wrote this book in the year 2020 when the world was facing a global pandemic. Not only were our doctors and nurses fighting an invisible enemy (Covid 19) but worse was happening on the streets around the world. Racism seems to raise its ugly head when mankind is at its lowest ebb. ‘Black Lives Matter’ was a new movement. To an old problem. I feel that ‘ALL’ Lives matter. There are Gordons who are African, Indian, European, Australian, Asian, North American and South American. Those Gordons have every shade of skin colour that comes within the human range. We also follow every faith and no faith at all. If you go back far enough in any clan or race you will find some element of slavery. We Gordons have also been on both sides of that evil. We have been Slaves, Slave Owners and even Slave Traders. Slaves would normally keep their own first name but would also adopt the surname of the slave owner, hence not all Gordons are Celtic. Being involved in slavery is not a matter of pride to most Gordons, it is just a matter of historical fact. Tearing down statues or defacing buildings that bear the name of historical people, to me is pointless. It would be like tearing down the Auschwitz Museum. There was a holocaust and Auschwitz is testament to that horror and by it being there, it tells us not to forget. When people tried to tear down the statue of William Wallace saying that he was a racist. His statue is there because he fought for Scotland and its people. There were 12 presidents of the USA that owned slaves., Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, James K. Polk, Zachary Taylor, Andrew Johnson, and Ulysses S Grant. You would have to tear down America and start building all over again, starting with Washington DC and the White House. We remember our history, the good along with the bad in order to learn from our mistakes. Consequently, in this book you will find all the great moments in the Gordon history since 66BC all the way up to 2020. You will also find the truth and the facts that point to unspeakable acts carried out sometimes in the name of the Gordon families, other times just out of coincidence to them bearing the name of Gordon. One such example would be the Highland clearances carried out by the Duke of Sutherland whose wife was Countess Elizabeth Gordon. He committed an act of ethnic cleansing in the north of Scotland. This is not something that gives me pride, it is though part of my history and if you are a Gordon then it is part of your history, especially if you can trace your roots back, to that period in America, Canada, Newfoundland and Australia. These were the predominant areas that the crofters from the north of Scotland were forced to flee too. Gordons fought on both sides of the American Civil War. The Gordons fought during the crusades, it is even said that it was a Gordon that was responsible for the death of Richard The Lionheart. This book is not a romanticised novel where facts are cherry picked. I have written this as a non-fiction, work and as a starting point for any genealogical work you wish to embark upon. I have taken information for many sources in order to complete this and I give thanks to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, Wikipedia, Ancestry online, The Gordon Highlanders, UK Census, as well as reading many books on Scottish History and land ownership. Long and Short of this book is that it is written by a Gordon, for all, Gordons.
