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Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast Episode 295 - On the Shelf for September 2024

Saturday, September 7, 2024 - 07:00

Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast - Episode 295 - On the Shelf for September 2024 - Transcript

(Originally aired 2024/09/07 - listen here)

Welcome to On the Shelf for September 2024.

I usually start off these episodes by commenting on the passage of time or noting something about the season. This month, you get to hear about What I Did On My Summer Vacation. Ok, not all the things I did, but the ones relevant to the podcast.

As regular listeners may know, I go to science fiction conventions, and I make a big effort to get to the annual World Science Fiction Convention, which is held in a different location every year. This year, Worldcon was hosted in Glasgow, Scotland and when I took a look at how much accrued vacation I need to use up before my retirement, I decided to take an entire month off and do some serious sightseeing.

In addition to the convention, the organizing theme of my travels was doing some deep-background location research for various writing projects. So I took advantage of Icelandair’s free lay-over offer and started by spending half a dozen days in Reykjavik, with a tour to see various sites like the Thingvellir that will feature in a Viking-era fiction project. The week after that was the convention in Glasgow where I had the chance to see all manner of international friends whom I mostly only meet on the internet. My one piece of programming at the convention was a panel discussion entitled “Sword Lesbians: Discuss” with Ellen Kushner (author of The Privilege of the Sword), Samantha Shannon (author of The Priory of the Orange Tree), and Em X. Liu (who was a finalist this year for the Astounding Award for best new writer). It was a fabulous panel discussion with intense energy and too many good points to be able to summarize at all.

My next stop after Glasgow was Halifax, to make a pilgrimage to Shibden Hall. Halifax has really embraced Anne Lister tourism wholeheartedly. The staff at Shibden Hall were passionately knowledgeable about the site and its history and ready to educate and engage with visitors on whatever level was most suitable. I was particularly interested in seeing how the building had evolved across the centuries, the changes that Anne Lister made to it as part of her program of sprucing up “shabby Shibden,” and the ways the site has been conserved to best illustrate that history. There’s also a lot of explanatory material, not only about Anne Lister’s life, but about the use of Shibden Hall as a location when filming Gentleman Jack. I highly recommend a visit if you’re in the neighborhood.

After that I stayed with friends in London for a week and went on a program of visiting buildings that survived the Great London Fire in 1666, as location research for my Restoration-era series, Diana’s Band. (Of which the first story was published recently in the Bella Books anthology Whispers in the Stacks.) Since many of the surviving buildings are currently pubs or restaurants, I made it a side quest to eat a meal every day in a building that existed in the 17th century. (I started that quest in Halifax and continued it later in the trip in York.) While it made for a fun theme, the experience also reminded me of how there’s no such thing as a building frozen in time, and historic research always needs context and interpretation. While it was possible to trace the original oak beams in the building interiors, and make a good guess at what parts of the footprint were original and which parts were later modifications, it was always the case that the interior decoration and many aspects of the structures dated to more recent centuries.

After London, I returned north to York to meet up with a friend and visit the Portal Bookshop, a queer bookstore that may be the only place in the UK that regularly carries all my books. (I even hand-sold a copy of The Language of Roses to a customer while I was there.) York was even richer is historic landscapes than London, and you could get a real sense of civic planning as a “character” in how the layout of streets and the relationships of the buildings reflected the deep history of the town.

After York, I returned to Glasgow for a day’s recuperation before flying home again. So my month has been full of memorable experiences…but not a lot of other productive activities!

Publications on the Blog

As expected, I didn’t blog any new publications in August due to travel.

Book Shopping!

But I did pick up a couple new books from the gift shop at Shibden Hall. These are two of Jill Liddington’s shorter publications about Anne Lister. Presenting the Past: Anne Lister of Halifax 1791-1840, is an overview of the history of Anne’s diaries and the various researchers who worked to bring them to the attention of the public. When I was discussing the topic with one of the staff at Shibden Hall, he very emphatically corrected me that the diaries were never “hidden away” in any deliberate sense. They were always just sitting there on the shelves and people knew they were there, but since all the “juicy bits” were in code, a superficial look suggested that the content was primarily financial and household records.

The second book is Nature's Domain: Anne Lister and the Landscape of Desire, which is a focused look at the year 1832 in Anne’s life, a key period in her refashioning of her life and her courtship of Ann Walker. Liddington has compiled key diary entries and strung them together with a narrative providing context. This is the book on which the tv series Gentleman Jack was based.

There were, of course, a number of other books relating to Anne Lister in the gift shop, but I already owned all the rest of them!

I also picked up a non-text item: a CD of music from Anne Lister’s personal sheet music collection, recorded live at Shibden Hall.

Recent Lesbian/Sapphic Historical Fiction

We have a good selection of new and recent releases to talk about this month, with a better distribution across the centuries than we often get.

One July book that only just came to my attention is the medieval adventure Chivalry in the Shadows by Meg Merriet Wahlberg from Parkwood Manor Press.

Chivalry, for Rowen, is more than a code of honor. It is a culture of fraternal love that elevates a person in spirit and heart, an errant way of life that knows no bounds. Chivalry, though, belongs only to men, and as a lady, Rowen lives completely under the control of her father. Longing to carve out an identity as a warrior, she compels her brother, Roland, to teach her the way of the sword.

When Amarys, Rowen's dearest friend and secret beloved, is to be married to the victor of the midsummer tourney, Rowen entreats Roland to compete and prevent her from marrying a stranger. Fortune’s ever-turning wheel trembles, though, as the reality of Roland and Amarys together unearths Rowen's true feelings. Can she bear to watch her brother marry the woman she loves? Or does chivalry have its limits, after all?

August releases start off with the Regency fantasy Netherford Hall by Natania Barron from Solaris Books, which I saved to include in this episode in order to coordinate with our interview with the author later in this podcast.

After a mysterious fire at their home in Regency London displaces Gentlewitch Edith Rookwood and her now much-reduced family to their ancestral seat of Netherford Hall in Kent, she faces a new threat in the form of her tenant—the chaotic and lovely Poppy Brightwell.

The repairs on the old pile are prohibitive, Edith’s standing is uncertain, and her inheritance has been challenged by a forgotten American branch of the family. It is clear she needs to marry, soon and wisely—but the lively girl from Harrow House gradually comes to occupy all of her thoughts.

As tenants, rivals, suitors and enemies start to circle Netherford, and dark secrets about both women’s pasts come to light, Edith and Poppy must confront what it means to fight for love and family, and to be their authentic selves.

The gender-crossing Western Generations by Madison Locke is tagged as a fantasy, but it’s unclear to me from the cover copy whether there are, in fact, fantasy elements. The description of the main character’s gender identity is a bit ambiguous, and I don’t know how the Native American love interest is handled, so if these may be important elements for you, perhaps check out reviews before reading.

Generations follows Sam, a woman forced to live as a man in the late 19th century. From a young age, Sam navigates the complexities of a male-dominated world, facing unparalleled challenges as she transitions from boy to man. Tragedy strikes when her father dies, leaving her to carve out a solitary existence on the harsh frontier of Colorado Territory. Enduring the unforgiving elements and the dangers of the Wild West, she builds a homestead from scratch. A pivotal moment comes when she rescues a Native American woman, igniting a forbidden love that defies societal norms.

Generations later, Jordan, a descendant of Sam, finds herself stifled by societal expectations. Much like her ancestor, Jordan yearns for a life outside of traditional boundaries. Through unexpected connections, she discovers a long-lost relative, offering a lifeline and a deeper understanding of her own identity.

The novel explores how the experiences of one generation echo through time, shaping the lives of those who follow and illuminating the enduring power of human resilience, love, and the complexities of identity.

September books start off with a story from the late Roman Republic: Between Feud and Treason by Francis Grash from Improwizacja.

Cassia's life turns upside down after she discovers her father was involved in the plot against Caesar. She needs to learn how to function in the new reality, trapped between political unrest and her own ambitions. Always passionate about writing, she tries to follow her heart. The more she descends into the artistic world, the greater obstacles she encounters, one of them being a newly uncovered desire. What choices will Cassia make to free herself from this den of lies? Will she be able to abandon one goal in favour of another?

The next title ties in with my interest in Restoration London: The Pudding Lane Witch by A.W. Jackson from Cranthorpe Millner Publishers

On the run from the mob who killed her mother, young pyrokinetic witch Gweneviere Baxter is running out of options. Surviving as an unmarried young woman in the 17th century is challenging enough, let alone when you are a witch. So, when the opportunity to wed the local baker is presented to her, Gweneviere feels she has no other choice, if she wants to survive.

Tragically, marriage is less peaceful than Gweneviere had envisaged, and she struggles to keep her witch identity hidden as she suffers through her husband’s daily abuse. But everything changes with the arrival of a young slave woman, Kambili, and Gweneviere falls hard and fast, her love for Kambili shining brightly in her otherwise hellish life.

But with both witches and mortals working against her, will Gweneviere ever be able to make a life for herself and her true love? Will she ever have her paradise?

Given the reference to the protagonist as a pyrokinetic and married to a baker, I have to wonder if there’s a very direct connection to the Great London Fire, which started out in a bakery on Pudding Lane.

Renee Dahlia has a short story on offer: The Pirate's Willing Captive (Swain Cove #1).

There are two things Tzipporah MacJohn can’t resist. A beautiful woman and an adventure. When her brother asks her to kidnap his sister-in-law to help her escape an abusive husband, Tzipporah is keen for the adventure.

She doesn’t expect Lady Abigail Coxspeckle to be so brave under her polite porcelain façade. Soon their kisses, the murder of Lord Coxspeckle, and the little matter of an accidental pregnancy all threaten to destroy Tzipporah’s pirate smuggler lifestyle.

Can Tzip keep her freedom if she falls in love with the most inconvenient of her lovers?

Major romance publishers continue to test the market for sapphic Regencies with The Duke's Sister and I by Emma-Claire Sunday from Harlequin Historical.

She’s supposed to wed a duke…

But it’s his sister she can’t keep her eyes off!

As the ton’s most in-demand debutante, it should be easy for Miss Loretta Linfield to find the perfect husband. So the reason why she is embarking on her third season unwed is a puzzle that nobody can solve. Not least Loretta! Until she meets Charlotte Sterlington… The sister of her new suitor, the Duke of Colchester, is everything that prim and proper Loretta isn’t—bold, daring and rakish! But Charlotte is also everything that Loretta finds herself desiring…

Faye Murphy describes her novel The Dishonest Miss Take from BHC Press as “Enola Holmes meets X-Men meets Warrior Nun.” So if that stirs your interest, check it out!

Clara Blakely has left her days as Miss Take, the notorious villain of Victorian London, behind her. She is a reformed, law-abiding citizen using the superpower given to her by industrial pollution to pay her debt to society. Or that's what she would have the authorities believe. Clara has no intention of helping anyone but herself, and the last thing she wants is to be dragged into a fight against a new and murderous evil that's stalking the streets.

Yet, despite the Hero Brigade thwarting her every move, she must take on the city's powerful and corrupt elite by joining forces with a cheat, her hapless landlord, and a trio of trained killers, including an assassin whose skill with a knife is matched only by their skill at creeping into Clara's heart. With stakes so high, Clara must become what no one, least of all herself, expects: a hero.

Rounding out our tour of the centuries, we have The Market Women of Diamond Square by Jan Ellen Kurth from East Enders LLC.

When Katherina “Katya” Wessel takes over a fruit stand at Pittsburgh’s Diamond Market House, she assumes she’s simply working to support herself and her invalid father. But she finds something else.

A sisterhood of hucksters.

Shrewd, outspoken, hardworking—and hard drinking—market women. Women who congregate in the saloons around Diamond Square and make them their own.

The election of 1913 throws this world into turmoil. The new mayor announces that the market house will be demolished. With encouragement from the Billy Sunday revival, the mayor also cracks down on “vice.” By “vice” he means liquor, motion pictures, pool halls, dancing, street musicians—and women gathering in saloons without a male escort.

The market women fight back, but taking on city hall is an uphill battle. For Katya, the battle is complicated by her often-confusing attraction to Ester, a Russian Jewish immigrant. After Ester is arrested and disappears, Katya makes it her mission to find her. When the city of Pittsburgh decides to tear down the “new” market house almost fifty years later, Ester’s fate is finally made clear.

Prolific author Robin Talley has a new YA title, Everything Glittered, from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

It’s 1927 and the strict laws of prohibition have done little to temper the roaring 20s nightlife, even in the nation’s capitol. Everyone knows the booze has never stopped flowing, especially amongst the rich and powerful, and seventeen-year-old Gertrude and her best friends Clara and Milly are determined to get a taste of freedom and liquor, propriety be damned.

 But after sneaking out of the Washington Female Seminary to visit a speakeasy, they return to discover that their controversial young headmistress, Mrs. Rose, has been murdered.

 Reeling from the death of her beloved mentor, Gertrude enlists her friends in her quest to clear Mrs. Rose’s reputation, while trying to keep her own intact. But in Prohibition Washington, it’s difficult to sidestep grifters, bootleggers, and shady federal agents when investigating a murder. And with all the secrets being uncovered, Gertrude is finding it harder and harder to keep her attraction to her best friends hidden. 

 A proper, upscale life is all Gertrude has ever known, but murder sure makes a gal wonder: is all that glitters really gold?

Pre-war Berlin is the setting for Beyond a World Apart by Caitlin E. Myers from CEM Publishing LLC.

Cara O’Shea encounters her first look at a fully nude female figure in Die Freundin, and her life is never the same again. When her strict Catholic family finds the magazine in her closet, she is forced to flee to the liberating streets of Berlin, where she finds herself at the heart of the city’s queer cabaret scene. She gets a job at the famous club Eldorado, and finds joy in creating extraordinary costumes for her new queer friends.

Her world darkens as the Nazi’s shadow looms over Berlin, and Cara faces new fears when her newfound community and future become threatened. As the fascist regime strengthens its hold, impossible choices arise, with tragedy waiting just around the corner.

Set against a backdrop of historical upheaval, this novel weaves a compelling story of resilience, identity, and the enduring power of community amidst adversity.

Other Books of Interest

I also want to give a shout-out to the re-issue of a book I loved that’s been unavailable for some time. Frederica and the Viscountess, by Barbara Davies, has been reissued by Bedazzled Ink Publishing. If you’re a fan of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer, you’ll love this tropey Regency romance, originally published in 2010. I don’t usually list re-prints in this segment of the podcast, but I’m willing to make exceptions on a whim for books I really love.

What Am I Reading?

And what have I been reading? You might think that with a  month’s vacation I would have really torn through my to-be-read list, but I find I have a hard time concentrating on new material when I’m traveling, so this month’s reading list is limited to the audiobook of Paladin's Faith (Saint of Steel #4) by T. Kingfisher, and I finished it before my vacation started. This is the latest volume in a fantasy romance series featuring earnest, good-hearted but soul-damaged paladins and the people who love them despite sense and their best interests. A good read and very much in line with the previous books in the series.

Author Guest

As mentioned previously, we have an author guest this month. To coordinate with the release of Netherford Hall, we’re happy to welcome Natania Barron to the show.

[Interview transcript will be added when available.]

Show Notes

In this episode we talk about:

Links to the Lesbian Historic Motif Project Online

Links to Heather Online

Links to Natania Barron Online

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