{"id":908,"date":"2017-11-29T00:01:07","date_gmt":"2017-11-29T05:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/?p=908"},"modified":"2017-11-27T06:09:54","modified_gmt":"2017-11-27T11:09:54","slug":"mermaid-sings-helen-hollick-historical-ya","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/2017\/11\/29\/mermaid-sings-helen-hollick-historical-ya\/","title":{"rendered":"WHEN THE MERMAID SINGS by Helen Hollick #historical #YA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"mermaid\"<\/a><\/h1>\n

When the Mermaid Sings<\/span><\/h1>\n

by<\/span><\/h1>\n

Helen Hollick<\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"mermaid\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Genre: <\/strong><\/span>Historical adventure, YA<\/p>\n

Series:<\/span> <\/strong>The Sea Witch (can be read as a standalone)<\/p>\n

Release Date: <\/strong><\/span>29 September 2017<\/p>\n

Publisher: <\/strong><\/span>S Books<\/p>\n

An early coming-of-age tale of the young Jesamiah Acorne set in the years before he becomes a pirate and Captain of the Sea Witch<\/em>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Throughout childhood, Jesamiah Mereno suffered the bullying of his elder half-brother. Then, not quite fifteen years old and on the day they bury their father, Jesamiah hits back. He flees his home, changes his name to Jesamiah Acorne and joins the crew of his father\u2019s seafaring friend Captain Malachias Taylor aboard the privateer Mermaid<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Jesamiah makes enemies, sees the ghost of his father and hears the mysterious voice of a Cornish girl in his mind. But can he avoid the beguiling lure of a sensuous mermaid\u2026?<\/p>\n

EXTRACT<\/span><\/h2>\n

As followers of Jesamiah Acorne\u2019s various nautical adventures know, the series of\u00a0Sea Witch Voyages\u00a0<\/em>starts in January 1716 with Jesamiah, not yet a Captain of his own ship, about to take part in a pirate \u2018Chase\u2019 and a fight at sea with a prospective Prize.<\/p>\n

He is aboard the\u00a0Mermaid<\/em>, with Captain Malachias Taylor in charge, and the opening scene, set off the coast of Africa, leads the way to what will be a turning point in Jesamiah\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

But what of his life\u00a0before<\/em>\u00a0the events of\u00a0Sea Witch<\/em>? We know from the backstory that he fled his home in Virginia to escape the vicious bullying of his half-brother, Phillipe, and then crewed with Taylor, but\u00a0how<\/em>\u00a0did that happen?<\/p>\n

How did he learn to be the experienced seaman – and pirate – that he is?<\/em><\/p>\n

How did he learn to fight?<\/em><\/p>\n

What adventures, and risks, did he face in those days of his youth?<\/em><\/p>\n

How did he develop from the\u00a0frightened boy of not quite fifteen years old, to the cocksure, confident Captain that he became?<\/em><\/p>\n

EXCERPT<\/span><\/h2>\n

\u201cYou alright, son?\u201d<\/p>\n

A man was bending over him, taking his arm, half-shaking it, half-assisting him to rise.\u00a0Jesamiah looked up into a face with weatherworn, tanned skin, several teeth missing and a\u00a0beard that was more grey-grizzled than the brown it had once been. Bright eyes sparkled\u00a0beneath a three-corner hat that sprouted a feathered plume.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou alright?\u201d the man asked again.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I think so,\u201d Jesamiah answered, scrambling to his feet. He was at the harbour \u2013 how\u00a0had he got here? Three ships, in addition to\u00a0Anna,<\/em>\u00a0rested at anchor, the nearest sporting a\u00a0splendid figurehead with carved seaweed hair draped over her bare breasts; her fishtail curled\u00a0as if clinging to the bow itself.\u00a0Mermaid<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou sure?\u201d the sailor asked again, his hand still clasped to Jesamiah\u2019s arm.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a bit dizzy, that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot surprising,\u201d the man said with a nod and grim smile. \u201cThat\u2019s some cut to your head.\u00a0You came down quite a wallop.\u201d
\nTouching his fingers to his temple, Jesamiah looked at the sticky smear of blood left on\u00a0them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw you take the tumble as I were coming ashore. Noticed you earlier, too, with Tom\u00a0Markham?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jesamiah nodded, then wished he hadn\u2019t. \u201cAye, from\u00a0Anna\u00a0<\/em>over there.\u201d He pointed her out.<\/p>\n

\u201cStannis still her bosun?\u201d<\/p>\n

Not risking another nod, Jesamiah confirmed that he was.<\/p>\n

\u201cNasty piece of work. I\u2019d as soon shoot him as serve with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not making a comment that could land him in trouble, Jesamiah answered, tactfully, \u201cYou\u00a0know him, then?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man indicated a scar on his face. \u201cWe had a serious falling-out a few years back.\u201d<\/p>\n

The dizziness clearing, Jesamiah took a deep breath and was grateful that the man made a\u00a0grab for him as he again tottered precariously. He attempted a jest: \u201cI\u2019m not sure if it\u2019s the\u00a0wound or not finding my land-legs yet. The ground\u2019s pitching as much as the deck did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh, you\u2019ll soon adjust, son. Your pa always takes a few hours to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

That cleared Jesamiah\u2019s head as efficiently as a dousing with a bucket of cold seawater.\u00a0\u201cMy pa?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man studied the boats at anchor in the harbour. \u201cAye. I take it Charles is not here? No\u00a0sign of his vessel out there. Has he sent you off to sea?\u201d The man chuckled. \u201c\u2019Bout time, if you\u00a0ask me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unexpected tears swam in Jesamiah\u2019s eyes. He rapidly blinked them aside. \u201cMy father\u00a0passed away a few months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

The man removed his hat, wiped his hand across his mouth and nose, sniffed loudly and\u00a0blinked as rapidly as Jesamiah had done. \u201cI\u2019m sorry to hear that, lad. Right sorry. He was a\u00a0good man.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking a step backwards, the man held out his hand. \u201cYou are, of course, Jesamiah? You\u00a0are the image of Charles. Got your ma\u2019s dark Spanish eyes and hair, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Initially tentative, Jesamiah hesitated, but took the proffered hand and gripped it in a firm\u00a0handshake.\u00a0\u201cMy apologies, but you are\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTaylor. Captain Malachias Taylor of the\u00a0Mermaid<\/em>, yonder.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

BUY LINKS<\/span><\/h2>\n

Amazon US – <\/strong><\/span>http:\/\/amzn.to\/2zqcFCI<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Amazon UK – <\/strong><\/span>http:\/\/amzn.to\/2A5TC4n<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

ABOUT HELEN HOLLICK<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"MERMAID\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Helen Hollick moved from London in 2013 and now lives with her family in North Devon, in an eighteenth century farmhouse surrounded by fields and woodland. She owns variety of pets including horses, Exmoor ponies, dogs, cats, chickens, ducks and geese.<\/p>\n

First published in 1994 her passion now is her pirate character Captain Jesamiah Acorne of the nautical adventure series The Sea Witch Voyages<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Helen became a USA Today bestseller with her historical novel The Forever Queen<\/em> (titled A Hollow Crown <\/em>in the UK). This is the story of Saxon Queen Emma of Normandy. Her novel Harold the King<\/em> (titled I Am The Chosen King <\/em>in the US) explores the events that led to the 1066 Battle of Hastings. Her Pendragon\u2019s Banner Trilogy, set in the fifth century, is widely acclaimed as a more historical version of the Arthurian legend.<\/p>\n

She has written non-fiction books including Pirate – Truth and Tale<\/em>s, a book about smuggling (due to be published 2018) and Discovering the Diamond, <\/em>a short advice guide for new writers interested in self-publishing which she co-wrote with her editor Jo Field.<\/p>\n

Helen is published in various languages including Turkish and Italian.<\/p>\n

Facebook:<\/span> <\/strong>https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/helen.hollick<\/a><\/p>\n

Twitter:<\/span> <\/strong>https:\/\/twitter.com\/HelenHollick<\/a><\/p>\n

Blog:<\/span> <\/strong>https:\/\/ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n

Website:<\/span> <\/strong>www.helenhollick.net<\/a><\/p>\n

Newsletter: <\/strong><\/span>http:\/\/tinyletter.com\/HelenHollick<\/a><\/p>\n

Publisher:<\/strong><\/span> http:\/\/sbooks.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When the Mermaid Sings by Helen Hollick   Genre: Historical adventure, YA Series: The Sea Witch (can be read as a standalone) Release Date: 29 September 2017 Publisher: S Books An early coming-of-age tale of the young Jesamiah Acorne set in the years before he becomes a pirate and Captain of the Sea Witch. Throughout … Continue reading WHEN THE MERMAID SINGS by Helen Hollick #historical #YA<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[4,306,305,3,113],"tags":[8,307,9],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p79kK0-eE","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/908"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=908"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/908\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":911,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/908\/revisions\/911"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.melanierobertson-king.ca\/wp02\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}