Shining a light on our ladies

Welcome to the Shining Light On Our Ladies Blog Tour,
Every Tuesday during October a selection of different authors will be joining Helen Hollick to shed light on their lead female characters. Today I am delighted to be with Helen, Regina Jeffers and Diana Wilder.
 
Let me introduce you to MY lady:
​My very special lady is Caroline Llewellyn known by her relatives and friends as Carrie and by her nursing pals as Lew (no first names for the nurses!)
 
Carrie with her fiery tangle of unruly, wild hair, which refuses to be dealt with in a civilised manner until she is introduced to the taming element of Vaseline is feisty, stubborn, single-minded but has a natural empathy with all living things especially her constant companion, her beloved black and white border collie, Trixie.
 
Carrie is but a child in the first book Whispers on the Wind and after the tragic death of her mother in childbirth she’s forced to become a woman before her time, leaving school, taking on the chores in the house and condemned to watch her father, Bryn, self destruct as he wallows in drunken self pity.
 
Carrie not only has to deal with her distraught and troubled father, but also reluctantly has to deal with the suffocating and unhealthy love of her older brother, John. But when Bryn takes on a farm hand in the escalating depression of the thirties she is faced with another challenge of overcoming a brutal rape and all of the repercussions it brings, not least testifying in court on the side of her Aunty Netta who has murdered Jackie Ebron, her lover and the perpetrator of the fraud and the horrific violation of Carrie.
 
Carrie models herself on her adored mother Miri whom she closely resembles physically and has always admired so that when the farm is swindled from her and her brother, John, rather than crumbling under the acute pressure and terrible difficulties she grows in strength, stature and pride. Compelled to leave her beloved Hendre for Gelli Galed - Hard Living - a derelict hillside farm, Carrie strives to reclaim what is rightfully hers bringing her into conflict with the Englishman, Michael Lawrence, who bought the farm in innocence. She baulks against the underlying attraction between them seeing him as her enemy. Reacting angrily to any of his attempts at compromise.
 
Carrie comes to realise that in order to survive that she has to leave the village of her birth and carve out a new life for herself in the nursing profession for which she has shown a natural talent. 

Shadows on the Moon follows her exploits as she trains in midwifery when WW2 breaks out throwing her world into chaos. Carrie leaves the comparative safety and security of the Maternity Unit in Aberystwyth for a teaching hospital in Birmingham where she develops her nursing skills and determines to specialise in Chest and Respiratory Diseases following the death, from TB, of her close friend and roommate, Gilly.
 
Her bravery shines though when she volunteers to travel to London and nurse the sick and wounded through the Blitz. Being bombed with six other nurses doesn’t deter her. Again and again she shows her incredible acumen for doing the right thing and for standing up for others unable to defend themselves and always seeing the best in people. 

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In Rainbows in the Clouds, Carrie, with her knowledge of the French language, and recognition of her nursing skills after dealing with a Diphtheria epidemic is selected to become a Special Operations Executive and is dropped behind enemy lines. Her life has become even more extraordinary. Her emotions are sent into turmoil when she and her compatriot Matthew become increasingly attracted to each other although she knows her happiness lies in her own back yard with her one time enemy, Michael.
 
Facing Life and Death situations every day she draws closer to Matthew but it is soon clear that she needs to be transported back home. The rescue appears to go horribly wrong and her family at home including Michael believe she is dead.
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​Thunder in the Sun sees Carrie returning to work on the district facing new trials as evacuated children arrive at the village and it is her responsibility to find suitable homes for them. Some are lucky and some are not. Carrie strives as always to do her best, second best is just not enough.
 
Coupled with the reappearance of Matthew as Michael is called to war once again and deemed lost in action, normally decisive Carrie dithers for the first time in her life. She is human with human frailties. Will this mean that she will marry the wrong man?

If you would like to follow the tour please visit:
REGINA JEFFERS

​Regina Jeffers has worn many hats over her lifetime: daughter, student, military brat, wife, mother, grandmother, teacher, tax preparer, journalist, choreographer, Broadway dancer, theatre director, history buff, grant writer, media literacy consultant, and award-winning author of Austenesque and Regency era romance. 
Living outside of Charlotte, NC, she does not consider herself a “snowbird,” but rather an adventurer with a penchant for warm weather. 
Jeffers’ novels take the ordinary and add a bit of mayhem. Meanwhile, she masters the tension in her life with a bit of gardening and the exuberance of her “grand joys.”

And please welcome her Lady - Miss Elizabeth Bennet... 
 
You are “the last man in the world whom I could ever be prevailed on to marry.” 
But is he? Can Elizabeth Bennet come to terms with the fact the one man she most despises is the one man who owns her heart? Find out and win a giveaway book! https://reginajeffers.wordpress.com/

​Meet Also Diana Wilder…

Diana Wilder comes from a family of storytellers and people-watchers. A childhood spent traveling with her military family gave her plenty of opportunities to weave stories around the places and people that she encountered.  Her first novel, written on lined paper and barely legible, was a story of the Hawaii of Kamehameha the Great. The Safeguard, born of a lifelong fascination with its period, features several of her ancestors who were in the area at that time. She says it is difficult to be bored when there is history to read and people to write about.
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And her shining lady, Lavinia Wheeler: Born into the cream of Southern society in Savannah, Georgia, Lavinia Wheeler was raised to run an estate with a light touch. That training proves to be of some use when the American Civil War comes roaring to her doorstep. 
Plus a chance to win a book -  http://dianawilder.blogspot.co.uk/

​Website: www.dianawilderauthor.com
Blog: http://dianawilder.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diana.wilder.98
Twitter: @diana_wilder

Here's Diana as she likes best to be seen!

And the delightful Helen Hollick.

​Helen Hollick lives on a thirteen-acre farm in Devon, England. Born in London, Helen wrote pony stories as a teenager, moved to science-fiction and fantasy, and then discovered historical fiction. Published for over twenty years with her Arthurian Trilogy, and the 1066 era, she became a ‘USA Today’ bestseller with Forever Queen. She also writes the Sea Witch Voyages, pirate-based fantasy adventures.
As a supporter of Indie Authors she is Managing Editor for the Historical Novel Society Indie Reviews, and inaugurated the HNS Indie Award.
 
And Helen’s ‘Ladies’
Edith number one: the love of King Harold’s life – a woman who walked the battlefield at Hastings in 1066 to identify his mutilated body, and Edith number two, Harold’s own sister who despised him…

Next!

​Next Tuesday - Shining Light on some more Ladies! We meet a woman who walked a knife edge between the demands of her dangerous family, and those of her own conscience, King Arthur’s ladies and a former Praetorian Guard sent to Berlin to investigate silver smuggling,..
 
Come back and join us!