Forced into the life of a fugitive, Nelan hides in London, before he is dramatically pressed into the crew of the Golden Hind.
Welcome to what was supposed to be the September 3rd stop on the blog tour for The Mark of the Salamander by Justin Newland with Goddess Fish Promotions. (And very sorry for the delay! Crazy week. New job, new child care, dead cat…) Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.
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Author Guest Post
My latest historical fiction novel, The Mark of the Salamander, was published in October 2024. It’s the first title in a two-book series, The Island of Angels, which tells the epic story and secret history of England’s coming of age during the Elizabethan era. Keep a watch out for the second book, The Midnight of Eights, due out in October 2024.
While The Island of Angels is an intriguing title, this blog explores the question: ‘What is an angel?’
Here’s a definition from the Merriam Webster dictionary:
‘A spiritual being serving as a divine messenger and intermediary and often as a special protector of an individual or nation.’
This suggests that any nation has a spiritual protector or guardian. If so, where would these angels live? In the ground, or in places like the lakes, forests and mountain ranges? Many monasteries, temples and holy places are located on mountain tops and in remote places like deserts in the expectation that the angelic beings would rise up out of the ground and grace its occupants with their presence.
The definition also talks of the spiritual being – the angels – as divine messengers. The angels of a nation are then custodial of the divine intention for that land and its people. The angels’ function then becomes to guide the people towards the fulfilment of that intention.
Then how would the people of a nation know if what they were doing was aligned or natural to that divine intention?
Well, if they were, the angels would super-charge what they were doing. For example, they would prompt them to greater exploits, exceptional discoveries, and the creation of finer art. They would urge the people to do things, perceive things, that were above and beyond what the people previously thought possible. Angels add charisma and most importantly, they yield a vision of the future. They add grace and offer healing to old wounds and new possibilities. Their presence would feel like a person had a hose pipe of water gushing into their back.
In 1578, Francis Drake set out from Plymouth with five ships to sail around the world. Until that point in history, England was a small, misty isle on the edge of continental Europe. Through Drake’s efforts, in that single voyage, he hauled England out of the dark ages and into a future in which England would become the hub of a new world of trade & communication. He single-handedly changed England’s self-view.
How was this momentous event achieved? Was it with the added assistance of the Angels of the Island? Where would you look for evidence of angels in the history of a nation? Well, perhaps you’d start with the symbols of the land that have persisted through the ages, their myths and legends, their constitutional elements, like the colour and formation of its flag. In Elizabethan England, the flag was still a red cross on a white background (Scotland had yet to contribute the blue saltire onto the Union Jack).
Then there’s the heraldry of the nation. England’s royal coat of arms features its Medieval chivalric Order of the Garter. Established by King Edward III in 1348, the motto of the Most Noble Order is, ‘Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense,’ which means, ‘Evil be to he who thinks evil (of me).’
This is a huge clue to nature and character of the land of England and its angels. It’s a powerful statement of defiance. The motto says that anything that comes into the land, that is not fitting, or of a lower order than the angels of the land, will get sent back to where it came from. In other words, defiant repulse. Or, in modern parlance – return to sender.
About the Book
The Mark of the Salamander
by Justin Newland
Published 28 September 2023
The Book Guild Ltd.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Page Count: 256
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
1575.
Nelan Michaels is a young Flemish man fleeing religious persecution in the Spanish Netherlands. Settling in Mortlake outside London, he studies under Queen Elizabeth’s court astrologer, conjuring a bright future – until he’s wrongly accused of murder.
Forced into the life of a fugitive, Nelan hides in London, before he is dramatically pressed into the crew of the Golden Hind.
Thrust into a strange new world on board Francis Drake’s vessel, Nelan sails the seas on a voyage to discover discovery itself. Encountering mutiny, ancient tribes and hordes of treasure, Nelan must explore and master his own mystical powers – including the Mark of the Salamander, the mysterious spirit of fire.
THE MARK OF THE SALAMANDER is the first in The Island of Angels series: a two-book saga that tells the epic story and secret history of England’s coming of age during the Elizabethan era.
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Excerpt
That night, Nelan had both light from the candles and some valuable space. With no room in the cramped cells, some prisoners slept in the wardens’ shed, and the new arrivals slept in the freezing yard. Marshalsea was a hard taskmaster; many fell by the wayside who could not afford the garnish. Squeezed into the corridor outside the infirmary, he got out his char cloth, iron, and flint, and lit the candle. Again, he read the two papers Dee had given him, but his mind prodded him about shoes. Not those in the cordwainers’ and cobblers’ shops, but the ones that never wore out. Dee had given him a clue in the Geneva Bible. Recalling the lines from the Book of Job, Nelan spoke Chapter 10, Verse 1 out loud:
My soul is cut off though I live.
I will… speak in the bitterness of my soul.
What did that mean? What were the connections between cutting off and living, and bitterness and the soul? And what had they to do with the shoes that didn’t wear out? Dr Dee had said it was a clue, so Nelan resolved to muse on the biblical passage until it revealed its inner meaning. He recalled the fear he’d felt on waking during his first night in Marshalsea, and then he wondered about sweetness and bitterness. Was the soul averse to certain flavours? Perhaps it was more sensitive to some emotions than to others.
About the Author
JUSTIN NEWLAND’s novels represent an innovative blend of genres from historical adventure to supernatural thriller and magical realism.
Undeterred by the award of a Doctorate in Mathematics from Imperial College, London, he conceived his debut novel, The Genes of Isis (ISBN 9781789014860, Matador, 2018), an epic fantasy set under Ancient Egyptian skies.
His second book is a historical thriller, The Old Dragon’s Head (ISBN 9781789015829, Matador, 2018), and is set in Ming Dynasty China in the shadows of the Great Wall.
The Coronation (ISBN 9781838591885, Matador, 2019) is an historical adventure and speculates on the genesis of the most important event in the modern world – the Industrial Revolution.
The Abdication (ISBN 9781800463950, Matador, 2021) is a mystery thriller in which a young woman confronts her faith in a higher purpose and what it means to abdicate that faith.
His latest is The Mark of the Salamander (ISBN 9781915853271, Book Guild, 2023) and is the first in a two-book series, The Island of Angels. Set in the Elizabethan era, it tells the epic tale of England’s coming of age.
The second in the series, The Midnight of Eights (ISBN 9781835740 330, Book Guild, 2024), charts of the uncanny coincidences that culminated in the repulse of the Spanish Armada and is due for publication in October.
Author, speaker and broadcaster, Justin gives talks to historical associations and libraries, appears on LitFest panels, and enjoys giving radio interviews.
He lives with his partner in plain sight of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England.
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Giveaway Alert!
The author will be awarding a signed, physical copy of the book to a randomly drawn winner.
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September 2: Boys’ Mom Reads!
September 3: Westveil Publishing
September 3: A Wonderful World of Words
September 4: Aubrey Wynne: Timeless Love
September 4: Long and Short Reviews
September 5: Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews
September 5: Dawn’s Reading Nook
September 6: Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read
September 6: The Faerie Review
September 9: Iron Canuck Reviews & More
September 9: The Pen and Muse Book Reviews
September 10: Kenyan Poet
September 10: Books, Ramblings, and Tea
September 11: Wendi Zwaduk – Romance to Make Your Heart Race
September 11: The Key of Love
September 12: DSDehel.com review
September 12: Beautiful Books
September 13: Pat Fayo Reviews
September 13: The Avid Reader
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