Now that The Sleepless City is out in the world again, I’m returning to the past, and working on getting my WWII Echoes Rising series republished. Shadowboxing will be up on pre-order very soon—just waiting on Amazon—with a release date of 8th November, and available in KU for the first time once it’s live.

Although Echoes Rising, and my WWI story On Wings of Song are historicals, there are a couple of easter eggs in there from The Sleepless City. After all, vampires are long lived, and did play an active role in both wars.

I love writing historicals, despite the amount of research that goes into them. At one point I had just about every WWII book from the library piled up on my living room floor. I’m not sure what it is that draws me to them—I love reading them too—but perhaps it’s a glimpse into another age? I definitely wouldn’t want to live in earlier times though. A passing visit, maybe but *shudders* I’m too attached to modern technology and medicine.

There is something to be said about writing a story where the characters are that much more isolated, without mobile phones or the internet. Trying to get help takes that much longer, especially in enemy territory during a time of war where you’re not sure who can be trusted. And what looks like a simple graze can get infected very easily and lead to death.

As well as venturing back into WWI, Lou Sylvre and I are planning the sequel to our 18th Century Scottish fantasy The Harp and the Sea. This next book in the Magic in the Isles series is set in the 19th century but is still set in the Isles, and has more than a touch of fantasy in the plot. I’m enjoying reading up about the time period, and discovering more about Lachlan and Fionn.

Here’s the information, and the new cover, for Shadowboxing. As I don’t have the buy link yet, here’s the link to the book page on Drops of Ink as I’ll be updating it ASAP. I’m aiming to release the series two months apart, so Winter Duet in January, and Comes a Horseman in March.

Echoes Rising Book 1

Complete their mission or lose everything.

Berlin, 1943

An encounter with an old friend leaves German physicist Dr Kristopher Lehrer with doubts about his work. But when he confronts his superior, everything goes horribly wrong. Suddenly Kristopher and Michel, a member of the Resistance, are on the run, hunted for treason and a murder they did not commit. If they’re caught, Kristopher’s knowledge could be used to build a terrible weapon that could win the war.

For the team sent by the Allies—led by Captain Bryant, Sergeant Lowe, and Dr Zhou—a simple mission escalates into a deadly game against the Gestapo, with Dr Lehrer as the ultimate prize. But in enemy territory, surviving and completing their mission will test their strengths and loyalties and prove more complex than they ever imagined.

Author’s note: This is the third edition of Shadowboxing. The first and second editions were released by another publishing house. This story has been re-edited, and uses UK spelling to reflect its setting.

Meantime I’d love to see some of you in my readers group and/or signing up for my newsletter.