Cynthia Sally Haggard was born and reared in Surrey, England. About 30 years ago she surfaced in the United States, settling in the Mid-Atlantic region as she wound her way through four careers: violinist, cognitive scientist, medical writer, and novelist.
In June, 2015, Cynthia graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University, Cambridge MA.
Her first novel, "Thwarted Queen," a frustrating tale (hence the title) of a woman who was nearly crowned Queen of England, was shortlisted for many awards, including the 2012 Eric Hoffer New Horizon Award for debut authors. To date, sales have surpassed 38,000 copies.
Her second novel, "Farewell My Life," a Cinderella-ish tale with not-so-charming princes who inhabit the edgy setting of 1920s and 1930s Berlin during the rise of the Nazis, won a Pinnacle Award for Historical Fiction (2019) and was a Distinguished Favorite for the 2019 New York City Big Book Awards.
I read this volume straight after Volume 1 (SAILING TO SARANTIUM) and found this to be equally as strong, if not better. The author’s descriptions are the best I’ve ever read. The […]
SAILING TO SARANTIUM is Guy Gavriel Kay’s alternative take on the Byzantium of the Emperor Justinian (482-565 CE.) In Kay’s novel this emperor is referred to as “Valerius II” and his wife […]
This is author Guy Gavriel Kay’s sixth novel, coming after the FIONAVAR TAPESTRY (a trilogy), TIGANA (which I absolutely loved) and A SONG FOR ARBONNE (which I didn’t much care for.) My […]
“Mary, dear.” Laura Mollington’s voice jolted me from my reverie. “I was wondering if you would mind helping us to settle a dispute. Lucy’s daughter is to marry an American and he […]
At the beginning of this volume, Kate Winters finally gives birth to her son Milo. The problem? Calliope wants to use this baby as her pawn in her machinations to torture and […]
Hmmm. This novel was not as successful as her first (THE GODDESS TEST.) Instead of spending time with Henry/Hades and Kate and seeing their relationship unfold, we are immediately yanked into an […]
In the upper peninsula of Michigan lies a mysterious estate, Eden Manor. Kate’s dying mother insists on her daughter driving off piste down a dirt road so that she can see it […]
I turned to her. “Jessie, dear, you did what you could. Now, I think you should go upstairs, change your clothes and try to get warm. We’ll be having supper presently.” I […]
Jodi Picoult’s fifteenth novel CHANGE OF HEART is leisurely, and perhaps overlong, but that didn’t matter to me, as the slow unspooling of tragedy, loss, courage and kindness kept me enthralled. Shay […]
Please vote for it at https://www.tckpublishing.com/2021-readers-choice-awards/ Farewell My Life has just been nominated for the 2021 Readers Choice Awards contest by TCK Publishing, founded by Tom Corson-Knowles in 2011. Please vote for […]
NINETEEN MINUTES is the novel that cemented the reputation of author Jodi Picoult, becoming her first book to debut at #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list. As everyone knows, […]
Hmmm. I feel a bit mixed about this one. The positives for me were the link to Dante (one of my favorite authors) and how Jodi Picoult’s wonderful imagination created a Tenth […]
That was the end of piano lessons, as Miss Richardson informed me she was not going to continue trying to teach a band of unruly girls. Spencer, amused, had said that Stephanie […]
I found this book absolutely fascinating. Like many readers, I was drawn in by the first part of the book, by the first several chapters which deal with the linguistics issues of […]
It is always a pleasure to watch the havoc one person can create amongst people, especially people who are far too polite for their own good. In TIDELANDS, that person was James […]
You might think that after writing 15 novels about the Tudors and the Plantagenets, author Philippa Gregory would be spent. You would be wrong. TIDELANDS, set in Selsey Bill on the marshy […]
“Well then.” Spencer smiled at me. “They’re nice people, perfectly respectable.” I turned to her. “Have you been going out with any young men?” A faint flush crawled up her neck as […]
I love Jodi Picoult’s punning titles and I loved the way this novel began with the protagonist, Delia, six years old, being part of her father’s magic act: “The first time I […]
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