Swords & Love - Book 2 for the cantiniére tales.

AUTHOR’S NOTES

Jeanette’s story is a wild ride. So it is. It is meant as an old fashioned adventure story, one to celebrate practical heroes and vile villains, though it is not always clear which is which, for we all know sometimes life forces us down paths that are shady at best. There is violence in the story. It is not subtle story of historical romance, though there is romance, but a woman’s story of war and survival. Jeanette is a daughter of revolution and war, she grew up with rough boys, and while a fighter’s heart beats in her chest, she is a woman as well. Yet, she is a female soldier most of all, and no soldier puts a civilian before their company and mates. So, forgive her the looting and casual attitude for killing. She is no murderess born, only a killer out of necessity. Moreover, the fighter’s heart is a good heart and gods know she can love as well as hate.

In Reign of Fear, she learnt to conquer her fears and to fight. She found the army, she found a man. Life seemed simple for her.

In Swords and Love, she keeps on fighting, but also finds love is complicated. She has a lot of growing up to do and Egypt is the place where she finds new doorways to cross. She finds new love, a healthier one, perhaps, but there is a prize to pay if you pursue your dangerous goals and some things are not meant to be. She will also learn to close old doors. Sometimes with a sword.

As ever, a fictional writer of history is bound to make some allowances for the sake of the story. So did I. There are characters that I remade. They sound and act differently than the history books would hint at, but in this book, they serve the story, not historical facts. Nor is the timeline always accurate, though I did try to accommodate the main milestones of the campaign to the story. Acre is not portrayed entirely accurately. I found a surprisingly small amount of information on the Mamelukes and the ways of Islam at the time, but I dug around deeper and came up with goodly amount in the end. Yet, I am sure to have made mistakes in some of the habits and ways of the time, though hopefully not too many. The Mamelukes were Muslims, yes, but they were also very powerful men and perhaps not always good Muslims. Some were, of course, but in this book the rules of a religion and how the powerful act might not always walk hand in hand. Also, I could have drawled on and on about the army units, the fabulous happenings of this incredible war and the details of the battles, but chose to do that only for the Acre, a horrible business that was. This is Jeanette’s story, not the story of Napoleon.

Yet, he does have an important part to play.

As for Bonaparte, the tension between the Directory and him was very much present at the time. They were at odds, they were paranoid of each other, and one has to wonder why Napoleon left for Egypt. Was it to gather fame and glory, wealth and allies, even a kingdom of his own or was it an honorable exile, similar to what old Augustus did for his Agrippa? Did the Directory send the bothersome bloodhound as far as possible, on a supposedly important mission? Did they suspect the Turks would take offence at seizure of Egypt; indeed did they encourage the Ottomans to respond? Did they stop Talleyrand from going over to Constantinople to negotiate a peace while the general fought a war, thinking his backdoor was safely latched? None knows.

Many have opinions on the matter.

Yet, I assumed he was disliked by the Directory, even feared and so the reasons for going are not important, only that he was not supposed to come back. The murder plot is a part of the story and another condemning contract was born. This age and time loved it’s papers, documents and signed deals.

I am also partially sorry for the unfortunate part Joachim Murat plays in the book. He is certainly given a nefarious character, and even as I did not know the man personally, only by the books and stories of his incredible feats, I do feel sorry for him on hindsight. He was a merchant’s son who became a king. He was brave, he was opportunistic, utterly vain, and handsome. His wife laconically noted that all his goods are on sale at the window. He was pretty and brave, but perhaps not overly smart. All those qualities make the perfect villain, a dangerous sidekick. When he died, he told his executioners not to shoot him in the face. What a man. A man of endless stories, that one. Therefore, I beg pardon, dear Murat, for making you a brute.

Going forward, we will see Jeanette with new problems to solve. She has the whole Napoleonic era to get into trouble, after all.

It is a furious adventure. I hope you enjoyed it.