Spreading some warmth as the days
get chillier in this part of the world. Welcome, Meredith Allard. Tell us a little bit about
your main character of this book, Down Salem Way.
MA: The main character of Down Salem Way is James Wentworth, a young man who left England with his father, John, in 1690 in hopes of furthering John’s prosperous mercantile business in the American colonies. They settle in Salem in the Massachusetts Bay Colony where James falls in love with Elizabeth Jones, a farmer’s daughter. James wants to be a dutiful son and he stays in Salem helping John with his business, but he’s torn because he wants to return to England to his studies at Cambridge. Suddenly, the Salem Witch Trials rear their ugly heads and James and Elizabeth find themselves caught up in the madness. Really, it’s james’ love for Elizabeth that drives this story. Down Salem Way is written as James’ diary as he and Elizabeth experience the witch hunt hysteria in Salem.
SC: Ah, Salem. Certainly a place full of strange happenings throughout history. Do you believe in the paranormal and if so, do you have an
experience you can share?
MA: I’ve had a lot of questions about whether or not I believe in the supernatural elements of the Loving Husband books. I don’t believe that vampires or werewolves actually exist. I don’t think it’s so much about believing in Wiccans because they’re really there. There are many all over the world who consider themselves Wiccan. Do they have magic powers like Miriam and the other witches in the Loving Husband books? I know Wiccans cast spells, and I’m not one to judge whether or not their spells work!
MA: My next novel is going to be a Christmas book from my Hembry Castle series. When It Rained at Hembry Castle is based on my love for Charles Dickens and Downton Abbey, and it’s a sweet Victorian romance. Christmas at Hembry Castle will be released Winter 2020. You can visit me online at www.meredithallard.com to learn more about Down Salem Way, the Loving Husband Trilogy, and When It Rained at Hembry Castle, and my future books as well.
MA: The main character of Down Salem Way is James Wentworth, a young man who left England with his father, John, in 1690 in hopes of furthering John’s prosperous mercantile business in the American colonies. They settle in Salem in the Massachusetts Bay Colony where James falls in love with Elizabeth Jones, a farmer’s daughter. James wants to be a dutiful son and he stays in Salem helping John with his business, but he’s torn because he wants to return to England to his studies at Cambridge. Suddenly, the Salem Witch Trials rear their ugly heads and James and Elizabeth find themselves caught up in the madness. Really, it’s james’ love for Elizabeth that drives this story. Down Salem Way is written as James’ diary as he and Elizabeth experience the witch hunt hysteria in Salem.
MA: I’ve had a lot of questions about whether or not I believe in the supernatural elements of the Loving Husband books. I don’t believe that vampires or werewolves actually exist. I don’t think it’s so much about believing in Wiccans because they’re really there. There are many all over the world who consider themselves Wiccan. Do they have magic powers like Miriam and the other witches in the Loving Husband books? I know Wiccans cast spells, and I’m not one to judge whether or not their spells work!
I believe that human beings are composed of body, mind, and spirit. I
believe we’re more than our earthly experiences and five senses show us. I do
believe our souls go on after our human bodies die, and I think it’s possible
that those souls go on to be reincarnated. Down Salem Way and The
Loving Husband Trilogy are fiction, and the reason I love writing fiction
above all else is because it allows me to explore the possibilities. Paranormal
events may or may not happen—I don’t know for sure one way or the other—but
writing these books was my way of wondering aloud what the paranormal world
(and vampires and witches) might look like if it was real.
SC: Well, if the possibilities ever become realities, do let us know. What titles are you working on now that you can tell us about?MA: My next novel is going to be a Christmas book from my Hembry Castle series. When It Rained at Hembry Castle is based on my love for Charles Dickens and Downton Abbey, and it’s a sweet Victorian romance. Christmas at Hembry Castle will be released Winter 2020. You can visit me online at www.meredithallard.com to learn more about Down Salem Way, the Loving Husband Trilogy, and When It Rained at Hembry Castle, and my future books as well.
SC: Thanks so much for dropping in today. Let's take a look at your
novel now.
Down
Salem Way
Prequel
to Loving Husband Trilogy
Meredith
Allard
Genre:
historical/paranormal/sweet romance
Publisher: Copperfield Press
Date of Publication: 6/25/2019
ISBN: paperback 978-0578500645
ASIN: B07QPBFYRP
Number of pages: 336
Word Count: 93,000
Cover Artist: LFD Designs
Book Description:
How would you deal with the
madness of the Salem witch hunts?
In 1690, James Wentworth arrives
in Salem in the Massachusetts Bay Colony with his father, John, hoping to
continue the success of John’s mercantile business. While in Salem, James falls
in love with Elizabeth Jones, a farmer’s daughter. Though they are virtually
strangers when they marry, the love between James and Elizabeth grows quickly
into a passion that will transcend time.
But something evil lurks down
Salem way. Soon many in Salem, town and village, are accused of practicing
witchcraft and sending their shapes to harm others. Despite the madness
surrounding them, James and Elizabeth are determined to continue the peaceful,
loving life they have created together. Will their love for one another carry
them through the most difficult challenge of all?
Down Salem Way is the
long-awaited prequel to the bestselling paranormal historical Loving Husband
Trilogy.
Excerpt:
“Would you like
a lesson?” I asked.
“Aye,”
Lizzie said. “Thank you.”
Lizzie has
progressed well in her reading. And quickly too. I believe our nightly lessons
help bond us more quickly than we might have otherwise since our readings
prompt long discussions where we learn much about each other. After we read the
rest of the passage together, I did the impossible: I cajoled my wife into
reading aloud on her own.
“No one has such
a lovely voice as you,” I said.
Lizzie laughed.
“You think your sweet tongue will persuade me to read alone? When you are such
a learned man?” She turned away, her cheeks flushed.
“But you know
how I love listening to you speak. Tis like hearing a serenata by Alessandro
Stradella.”
“Who?”
I reached for
our favorite volume of poetry. “Tis time, Lizzie. Read to me.”
Lizzie turned
the book in her hands, over and over. Finally, she nodded. She tentatively
opened the book. “What would you like to hear?”
“You know.”
Lizzie’s smile
rivals the brightest sunshine. She opened to the page, exhaled, and read,
haltingly, with pauses, some from a struggle to sound out or recall the words,
some from embarrassment that she read alone. After the first two lines, her
voice grew in confidence.
If ever two were
one, then surely we.
If ever man were
loved by wife, then thee.
If ever wife was
happy in a man,
Compare with me,
ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love
more than whole mines of gold,
Or all the
riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such
that rivers cannot quench,
Nor ought but
love from thee give recompense.
Thy love is such
I can no way repay;
The heavens
reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we
live, in love let’s so persever,
That when we
live no more, we may live ever.
Lizzie closed
the book. “Tis true, you know.”
“What is?” I
asked.
“This poem, To
My Dear and Loving Husband. Tis as though everything I feel for you has been
written here, by this woman, a magistrate’s wife I’ll never meet. You are…”
Lizzie blushed, hot along her jaw. I touched her cheek and lifted her head so I
could see into her eyes. “If ever man were loved by wife, then thee. That is
how…”
“Tis all right,
Lizzie. You can tell me anything.”
“That is how I
feel about you. You are my dear and loving husband, James Wentworth.”
I knelt before
Lizzie, pressing her hand to my lips.
“I knew the
moment I saw you over the supper table that you were the one for me. I cannot
imagine waking up every morning for the rest of my life without looking into
your beautiful eyes. I cannot imagine walking through this world without
knowing that you were here waiting for me. I cannot imagine having the strength
to breathe without you. You are my dear and loving wife, Elizabeth Wentworth.
And I love you. I shall never leave you. Ever.”
I swept my wife into my arms and
carried her away.
Meredith Allard is the author of
the bestselling paranormal historical love story The Loving Husband Trilogy and
the sweet Victorian romance When It Rained at Hembry Castle, named a best
historical novel of 2016 by IndieReader. Meredith's latest release is Down
Salem Way, the long-awaited prequel to The Loving Husband Trilogy set around
the Salem witch hunts. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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