Stand by your beliefs – even if it means going to the end of the Earth
By standing up for his principles to save the life of a prize racehorse, farrier Joseph Barnaby loses everything. Now, a personal vendetta has become too deep to fight and he escapes to the island of Madeira where he finds work on a small farm at the foot of a cliff, only accessible by boat. The balmy climate and never-ending supply of exotic fruit, vegetables and honey make it sound like paradise but, for Joseph, it’s the ideal place to hide from the world. Can the inhabitants of Quinta da Esperança, who have more grit in them than the pebbled beach that fronts the property, help Joseph find his self-worth again? And can he escape the danger that draws ever nearer?
Guest post
Today I am sharing a guest post written by the author about the Portuguese series. I hope you enjoy it!
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Joseph Barnaby – Number 3 in the Portuguese series
Muito obrigada for hosting me on your blog today to talk about my brand new novel with Crooked Cat Books! Joseph Barnaby which is another romantic suspense set in gorgeous Portugal. It’s the third in my Portuguese series, although each book can be read separately.
Although I have five books published, the Portuguese series started off with Rising Tide which takes place on the Alentejo coast in a small village which most of Portugal and the whole world has forgotten about. Strangers Leo, a brave crab fisherman (straight out of “The Deadliest Catch) from Alaska, US and naïve but feisty Piper – a small catch fisherman from Norfolk UK – come, separately to the village to find their roots. Sparks (and waves) fly.
Forest Dancer is the next one. It is set in the forests just outside Lisbon and features Flora, a classical ballerina from London whose career has taken a downturn. She’s been left a cottage in the small village in the mountains where she tries to put her life back on track. Forest ranger, Marco, though, has a way of derailing her.
Finally, Joseph Barnaby, is published on 5th October 2018 by Crooked Cat Books. Joe is a well-respected farrier who works widely in the horse-racing community in the east of England. When he decides that a horse – the favourite in one of the most important races on the racing calendar – is unfit to run, he risks his career to prevent it taking part. As a result, he loses his career, is hounded and beaten by the horse’s corrupt trainer and shunned from society (half the country had put money on the horse to win). Although he’s courageous and can stand up for himself, the aggression finally becomes too much and he sticks a pin in a map and takes himself to the island of Madeira.
Madeira is known for its temperature climate, tropical fruits and exotic flowers. But Joe ends up on what is called a fajã – a narrow strip of land by the sea at the foot of an escarpment that has been formed by lava. There are some on Madeira and also the Azores. The one Joe goes to is farmed, but is only accessible by boat, which suits Joe fine. The farm is only occupied by the farmer and his wife, as well as their beautiful niece, Sofia, who is completely deaf.
Here’s a blurb from Joseph Barnaby:
Stand by your beliefs – even if it means going to the end of the Earth. By standing up for his principles, horse farrier Joseph Barnaby lost everything. Now, when a personal vendetta goes too deep to fight, he escapes to the Portuguese island of Madeira where he finds work on a small farm only accessible by boat. The balmy climate and never-ending supply of exotic fruit, vegetables, and honey make it sound like paradise. But, for Joseph, it’s the ideal place to hide from the world. Not everyone is prepared to give up on life’s misfortunes. The local fishing village has its own surprises and the inhabitants of Quinta da Esperança have more grit in them than the pebbled beach that borders the property.
People ask me if the places I write about are real or fictional. They’re both. I do take a little bit of license to suit the books but Rising Tide is very close to Porto Covo and Sines (which is named in the book).
The village mentioned in Forest Dancer is very close to the town of Sintra – although I name it Serra Glória.
The fajã where Joseph Barnaby stays is close to a small town called, in the book, Porto Estreito – which doesn’t exist but is based on the real Câmara dos Lobos town, west of Funchal.
Again – thank you for hosting me today. I really hope you’ll enjoy Joseph Barnaby<;
Thank you, Susan Roebuck and RachelsRandomResources.
About the author
I was born and educated in the UK (I am British!) but now live in Portugal. I’ve been an English teacher for many years with the British Council and also the Portuguese civil service where I developed e-learning courses. My first love is, of course, my husband, my second writing, and my third painting. And now I have time to be able to indulge in all three. My debut novel, “Perfect Score” was published by Mundania Press on Sept 21, 2010 and the paperback launched on May 11 2011. It was a finalist in the 2012 EPIC e-book Awards in the Mainstream Category. My second novel is a dark thriller/fantasy called “Hewhay Hall”. It won an EPPIE award in the 2013 EPIC (Electronic Publishing Industry Coalition) e-Book Awards in the Horror Category. Next comes “Rising Tide”, published in 2015. Set in Portugal, published by Mundania Press. It is set in a tiny fishing village that the world, and most of Portugal, has forgotten. Read about the wonders of the ocean and see if Piper from Norfolk UK and Leo from Alaska, USA, can find what they’re searching for in the little village of Luminosa. “Forest Dancer” was published on 20th February 2018 by CrookedCat Books. This is novel number 2 set in Portugal but this time in the forests outside Lisbon, Portugal. Instead of the sea (as in Rising Tide), now find out about the wonders of the forest and whether classical ballerina, Flora, can find what she’s searching for in the small village of Aurora. On 5th October 2018 CrookedCat Books published my newest novel, “Joseph Barnaby”, another romance/suspense which is set on the island of Madeira.
Social Media Links – blog and website: http://www.susanroebuck.com General Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SuRoebuck Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SusanRoebuckauthor/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/sueroebuck Amazon page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Susan-Roebuck/e/B0050B2O3U/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1526385163&sr=8-1
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