Guest blogger: Nicola Pryce

For as long as I can remember I’ve loved historical romances—reading, listening, or watching them. I left school telling everyone I was going to write one of my own, so when we got together for our thirtieth school reunion and I was asked why I hadn’t, I churned out all the excuses about life and my nursing career and my three children getting in the way. That was ten years ago, but it was the trigger I needed. Why not try and write one? Who would ever know? I’m now pinching myself that the seventh book in my series has just been published.

My books are set on the south coast of Cornwall between 1793 and 1801. This one takes place in a girls’ boarding school on the shore of Restronguet Creek near Falmouth. Sinister threats have scared the girls away and rumours are circulating that the school is on the point of ruin.

As bankruptcy beckons, a surveyor turns up at the school with a map of the proposed new turnpike road. It will cut straight across the school’s land, which he claims will act to their advantage, but his motives are in doubt. What does he seek to gain? And why does he never smile?

Pitting their wits against those seeking the rich minerals on their land, a middle-aged headmistress and her niece seek to find who is targeting them with such malice. They know the creek with its rich alluvial deposits and tin-streaming works are rich pickings: the mineral rights on the land alone are worth a fortune, so, too, access to Harcourt Quay and the sea beyond. As frightening incidents start to reoccur, Aunt Hetty and Pandora find to their cost that the person who has instigated their ruin will stop at nothing.

It’s a love story on many levels: the love between two young people, the love between two sisters, and the love between aunt and niece. Overall, it’s the story of healing after loss and finding your true path.

Thank you for this lovely opportunity to introduce The Cornish Rebel to you. Happy reading everyone.

With very best wishes,
Nicola x

Nicola Pryce is published by Atlantic Books and is represented by Teresa Chris. She trained as a nurse at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, loves literature and history, and has an Open University degree in humanities. She is a qualified adult literacy support volunteer and lives with her husband in the Blackdown Hills in Somerset. She and her husband love sailing and together they sail the south coast of Cornwall in search of adventure. It is there where she sets her books. Nicola is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and The Historical Writers’ Association.

You can find Nicola here: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

The Cornish Rebel

Cornwall, 1801.

In the wake of her mother’s death, Pandora Woodville has finally escaped her domineering father and returned to Falmouth. Bright with the dream of working at her Aunt Harriet’s school for young women, Pandora is shocked to learn the school is facing imminent closure after a series of sinister events has threatened its reputation.

Acclaimed chemist Benedict Aubyn has also recently returned to Cornwall, to take up a new role as Turnpike Trust Surveyor. Pandora’s arrival has been a strange one, so she is grateful when he shows her kindness. As news of the school’s ruin spreads around town, everyone seems to be after her aunt’s estate. Now, Pandora and Aunt Harriet must do everything in their power to save the school, or risk losing everything.

However, Pandora has another problem. She’s falling for Benedict. But can she trust him, or is he simply looking after his own interests?