NBTM + #Giveaway: A Maiden's Honor by Josanna Thompson @JosannaThompson @GoddessFish

A Maiden's Honor

by Josanna Thompson

GENRE:  Historical Fiction / Romance

BLURB:

Sarah Campbell is a rarity among women in her time. Raised by her Scottish father and the natives of a remote island in the South Pacific, Sarah and her father embark on a perilous journey to Scotland. Their crew betrays them and murders her father for the purpose of selling Sarah into slavery. She is rescued by an unlikely hero, Hassan Aziz, the most feared pirate on the Barbary Coast. She quickly discovers that she is unprepared for the complex world that is suddenly thrust upon her. Sarah must find a way to survive in a world that intrigues and terrifies her.

Excerpt:

Sarah picked up the first picture in the stack and handed it to Hassan. “My friend, Temoe. She … beautiful, aye?” 

Hassan frowned as he studied her drawing. If he had to guess, her friend looked as if she were Sarah’s age, perhaps a little older. She wore her hair cut to her shoulders with flowers tucked behind her ears, just as Sarah described, but she was not the Aphrodite goddess from his fantasies. Her flat nose and angular jaw gave her a slightly masculine quality. Dressed only in a cloth tied around her waist, her full breasts provided the only proof that she was a woman. 

“She beautiful, aye?”

“Well, um.” Hassan didn’t know how to answer her. “Do all the women on your island look like this?”

“Aye. You not like?”

“I am certain that your friend is lovely. Honestly, it's hard to ascertain her beauty from this portrait.”

”Temoe have … um … many sweetheart.”

“I see.” Hassan grinned as he studied the expression on her face. “I imagine you had many sweethearts of your own.”

Sarah looked down at her lap as her trembling hand fidgeted with a lock of her hair. “No. I not beautiful.”

Hassan lifted his brow. “You must be joking.”

Sarah pointed to her friend’s nose. “Beautiful women have nose like Temoe.”

“Do you mean that men esteem women who have flat noses?”

“What esteem?”

“Um.” Hassan thought for a moment. “In other words, your people consider flat noses as a sign of beauty.”

“Aye.”

Hassan wished he had a mirror to show Sarah just how exquisite she truly was. Then again, he wondered if it would make a difference considering that she measured beauty by the Polynesians’ standards. In this part of the world, Sarah would be regarded as the rarest of all beauties, for he had never seen her equal. Hassan caressed her cheek with the back of his finger and said, “I cannot speak for your countrymen, but I can speak for mine. They will esteem you as a lovely young woman.”

“Aye?” She looked at Hassan as if this was the first time someone had told her that she was beautiful.

Interview with Josanna Thompson

Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in A Maiden’s Honor?

First of all, thank you for interviewing me. A Maiden’s Honor is a multicultural story. The characters are from seven (7) different countries; each is as different from the other. Who are they and where are they from, you ask?

Sarah Campbell: Sarah is a Scottish lass who was born and raised on a primitive Polynesian island during the early nineteenth century. There are no money, no titles, and no landownership in her world. Her clothing consists of a paper-like cloth, called tapa that’s tied around her waist. Boy is she in for a culture shock after she’s captured on the Barbary Coast!

Hassan Aziz:  Hassan Aziz is the captain of the Zafirah. By reputation, he is the most feared Corsair pirate on the Barbary Coast, but he is more than he claims to be. Hassan becomes Sarah’s husband and the great love of her life.

Naa’il Dhar:  Naa’il is the villain. He is also the Dey (or the leader) of Algiers. He is ruthless, and his commands are laws. He does not hesitate to assassinate threats to his authority. Though he would never openly admit it, the women in his life have a powerful influence over him. A few even succeed in changing him, including Sarah.

Cora Bradley: Cora is one of Naa’il’s American captives. She is a strong woman with an unwavering faith. Though Naa’il would never openly admit it, Cora has a powerful influence over him.

There are other characters in A Maiden’s Honor, but I will let you discover them for yourself.

Can you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you have planned for the future?

I’m working on the sequel to A Maiden’s Honor. This is the second instalment in the Woman from Eden series. There are four (4) books total, at least so far. I must admit that I have a number of ideas for spin off stories. 

The story that I’m currently working on picks up where A Maiden’s Honor left off. Sarah, Hassan (Nathan) and their friends arrive in Regency England. Not surprisingly, Sarah has trouble adjusting to her new environment. Book two (2) is the ultimate fish out of water story, except this determined little fish learns to breathe air.

How long would you say it takes you to write a book?

My husband would tell you that it took me WAAAY too long, 10+ years to finish A Maiden’s Honor. In my defense, I wrote the first draft of the entire Woman from Eden trilogy, which worked out to be a 1,500 page document. I spent much of that time doing research. Now I have the fun task of turning this story into a trilogy. It shouldn’t surprise me that the task wasn’t as easy as it seems. 

What is your favorite childhood book?

That would have to be Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McClusky.  It’s the sweetest story ever, and the illustrations always make me smile.

If you could spend the day with one of the characters from A Maiden’s Honor who would it be? Please tell us why you chose this particular character, where you would go and what you would do.

Hands down, I would spend the day with my protagonist Sarah Campbell. Her character is near and dear to my heart. I love Sarah's child-like curiosity about the world around her. She's curious about everything, and she also has a healthy sense of adventure.

If I could spend one day with Sarah Campbell, I would spend it with her on her island, Tikutoa. 

Sarah is the ultimate hostess, and she would go out of her way to introduce me to her friends. It's a warm summer day, and there's not a cloud in the sky. We would spend a little time gathering food. Then would head to the ocean for an afternoon of surfing. Mind you, I don't know how to surf, but I'm confident that Sarah would teach me. We'd return to their fresh-water pond to wash off the salt water. Afterward, Sarah and I would feast with her frends. Mind you, men and women ate separately. But that's ok, eating separately from the men provides the perfect opportunity to gossip. Men and women would gather at the fire after dinner for a night of telling stories and dancing. Doesn't that sound like a fun day?

What was the hardest scene from A Maiden’s Honor to write?

Writing Cora Bradley’s story was undoubtedly the hardest part in this project. Cora is a favorite character. She goes through a lot in this story, to say the very least. Though she triumphs, it’s difficult to put her through such a difficult experience.

What made you want to become a writer?

My characters inspired me to become a writer. Each one came to me in the most unexpected way. They tapped on my thoughts and told me about their lives. Some characters were more insistent than others, and some were so insistent that I couldn't shut them up. So I got quiet and listened, and one day, I began writing their stories. I hope I will have the opportunity to share their journeys with the world.

Just for fun

(a Favorite song: All Star by Smash Mouth – Best dance song ever!

(b Favorite book: To Kill a Mockingbird – I love this story, and it so beautifully written.

(c Favorite movie: Australia – What an amazing story. It’s perfectly casted and acted.

(d Favorite tv show: The Curse of Oak Island – Ok, it’s another treasure hunting show where the searchers spend countless time and money on a project for which they get little in return. To date, they’ve found a really old cross (which is very cool by the way), a gold coin, other old coins, buttons, broken pottery, and a few other artifacts. Anyone who watches the show can’t help pulling for these guys. I love the camaraderie between the two brothers and the others involved in this project. It’s blatantly clear that they genuinely care about each other. That’s refreshing to see, opposed to so many of the other reality series that pit alpha personalities against each other. To my amazement and delight, these treasure hunters continue to uncover pieces of this puzzle. I and the other millions of other fans hope they discover the motherload without needing a seventh person to die before the island will reveal its secrets.

(e Favorite Food: Dark Chocolate, especially dark chocolate m&ms.

For those who love m&ms… put a handful in a small ramekin. Microwave 20 seconds at a time. You’ll know they’re done when the ramekin is warm. The shell will still be hard, and they inside is warm and gooey.  Yum!

(f Favorite drink: Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice or grapefruit juice. Lucky for me, our local grocer sells freshly squeezed OJ by the bottle. I have a glass every morning.

(g Favorite website: Mine (of course):  www.josannathompson.com  I did some fun things on my website. I added LOTS of extras including character interviews, articles on my research, and a map of Sarah’s journey. Readers can even ask the characters of A Maiden’s Honor questions. That’s pretty cool, right? Keep checking back from time to time. I will be adding new material on a regular basis.

Ok, I also love the French Tangerine. The blogger was a schoolmate, and she writes about my second passion: antiques and decorating. I always get so many intriguing ideas from her. Check it out:  http://www.thefrenchtangerine.com/

Thanks so much for visiting with us today! 

Thanks for interviewing me. It was lots of fun answering your questions.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Josanna Thompson is the author of A Maiden's Honor and The Woman from Eden series. She has lived in many different places in the United States, including the Southeast, the Midwest, California, and the Northeast. When she is not writing; she enjoys traveling, exploring, and scuba diving.

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Pinterest 

Your Questions for the Characters

Buy links:

Amazon

Giveaway:

$25 Amazon or B/N GC

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