Dr Erica Canela’s debut history work, Zealous: A Darker Side of the Early Quakers, published by Pen & Sword History in the UK in late September 2025, focuses on the oft-sidelined history of the early Quakers, bringing to life these unconventional and fascinating people in Stuart Britain – with their many trials and tribulations. This period was at… Read on
Why do I write English Civil War fiction? It is not the easiest period to set a novel. Even the great Robert Harris talks about the challenges of writing fiction set in the 17th Century, in his Act of Oblivion. And civil wars are never simple. For me, I think it is all about the relevance. I think… Read on
Library of Dreams When I wrote about Queen Henrietta Maria I found surprises such as the attempt by parliament to kill her, then to impeach her. Yes the killing came first, as it were. Happily it failed. I should not mislead anyone by implying parliament sent an executive order to do away with the turbulent lady. What happened… Read on
Elizabeth was the second daughter of Charles I, the ill-fated king who would unprecedentedly lose his life after years of civil war. Born in 1635 to a London covered in snow, this daughter was named after her godmother and aunt, Elizabeth of Bohemia, the Winter Queen and would earn the nickname ‘the winter princess’. Elizabeth would grow up… Read on