Lissa Bryan

Well, This Sucks

2023-11-03T13:43:00.002-04:00

Some of you may recall that I spent the spring of 2021 writing a book about the Underground Railroad in Ohio, and I'm sure many of you were thinking, "So, where is the book, Lissa?After my publisher, The Writer's Coffee Shop, closed in 2017, I found myself adrift. I didn't know what I wanted to do. Self-publishing didn't seem to be the right fit for me, but I have a thing about rejection and

In the Name of Duty by Sandi Layne

2023-05-26T17:23:00.000-04:00

A new Regency romance by Sandi Layne! The success of Bridgerton has refocused some attention on a delightful genre, the Regency romance. I, myself, hadn’t delved into one in quite a while and this book reminded me of why I love it. Robert Lord Aberleigh married Georgiana after the death of his elder brother, to whom she had been betrothed. Robert didn’t really want the marriage, nor did

Review of "The Most Happy" by Helen R. Davis -- An Alternative History of Anne Boleyn

2023-02-25T13:07:00.001-05:00

This week I read The Most Happy by Helen R. Davis. I had recently read her alternative history series on Cleopatra and really enjoyed it, but this was the first alternative history of Anne Boleyn I’ve ever read. I’ve always wondered about the “what ifs,” of course. What if Anne had survived Henry’s obsession? What if she had given Henry a son and heir? In this story, Elizabeth has a twin

Review of "When Women Stood" by Alexandra Allred

2022-07-30T15:24:00.001-04:00

I’m passionate about history, but like many history buffs, I get a bit stuck in my own rut and prefer reading in my own time periods and topics. When Alexandra Allred told me she’d written a book about women’s sports history, I realized this was a chance to fix a gap in my knowledge. Still, I wondered how well I’d connect with the topic because I’m not a very sports-orientated person. I quickly

Review of "Cleopatra Unconquered" and "Cleopatra Victorious.

2022-07-13T16:26:00.008-04:00

I had the opportunity this week to read two delightful alternative history novels, Cleopatra Unconquered and Cleopatra Victorious by Helen R. Davis. ~.~Cleopatra UnconqueredI adore a well-researched novel and this one satisfied my cravings. Though technically an "alternative history" there's enough real history here to satisfy even the most discerning of history buffs, and

Revolution: A Short Story

2021-03-13T08:49:00.000-05:00

I wrote this story for Alec Frazier. He intended to do an anthology of stories about disability for his second book, but it never worked out.Now that he's gone, I've decided to share it, dedicated to his memory. Abide, my friend..¸¸•.¸¸.•´¯`• (¯`•ღ•´¯)•´¯`•.¸¸.•.¸¸.Revolution by Lissa Bryan Holloway Prison, 1913 She didn’t look up when the cell door opened. “Miss

Salvation (Heart of Steel Trilogy Book 3) by Rose Mashal

2021-02-04T14:55:00.003-05:00

Let me just get this out of the way first: THIS IS NOT HOW I EXPECTED THINGS TO GO!It's genuinely not often that a book surprises me with its twists and ending, but over an entire three book series, Rose B. Mashal kept me guessing. I'm going to try to be as vague as possible because I want to preserve the suspense for those who haven't read it. Penny is lonely after her fiancée has an

This is Not Anne Boleyn

2021-01-02T13:56:00.003-05:00

Another person has come forward with research on a portrait claiming that it's Anne Boleyn. It's not.I'm not going to post a pic of the portrait in question because the author of the study has mentioned not having permissions to post the whole image himself.Instead, I'll post the image it's a copy of. This painting is NPG 96, a portrait of an unidentified woman, c. 1570. It has

Redemption (Heart of Steel Trilogy Book 2) by Rose Mashal

2020-11-18T15:13:00.004-05:00

The first Heart of Steel book in this series captured my imagination and I still haven't been able to shake it off.This is a hard review to write because I don't want to give anything away! First things first -- I loved the story and was enthralled all the way to the end where I was hoping to get some answers. Who can Penny trust? In the first book, Penny created an android replica of

The Prince's Bride 2 by JJ McAvoy

2020-11-18T14:52:00.003-05:00

Let's get the important part out of the way first: I LOVED THIS BOOK. It had everything I love about royalty -- palace intrigue, the crushing burdens of etiquette and tradition, the jewels and splendor, and the weight of history's eyes upon each action. Odette was chosen by her prince for a very traditional reason: her money. But as a Black American woman she's not the traditional

"The Prince's Bride" by JJ McAvoy

2020-07-06T14:36:00.003-04:00

As soon as I read the description of this book, I knew I had to read it. Royalty, as readers of my blog might have gathered, is one of my fascinations. JJ McAvoy warned me that it might not be what I was expecting because her prince was from an invented country, but her royals live with the same realities of modern European royalty -- an avid press, traditions, duty, and the ever-present

Heart of Steel by Rose B. Mashal

2020-03-09T13:04:00.000-04:00

This week, I read Heart of Steel by Rose B. Mashal. As ya'll are probably aware by now, I looooooves me some sci-fi romance and when Rose offered me a copy of her book, I jumped at it, even though I've been so busy with the Unnamed Underground Railroad Project. Still, when I could steal a moment away, I'd pull out my Kindle, and I found myself thinking about the story at odd moments of the

New Project, New Directions

2020-02-13T19:18:00.000-05:00

Hello again, my lovelies! Seems ages since we've talked, doesn't it? Well, ages since I updated my blog, anyway. So, here's the gist of things: After the death of my best friend, the closure of my publisher, and well, *gestures vaguely in the direction of everything* ... I was a wee bit out of it. I wrote a few history articles, but fiction just seemed to elude me. Even updating my fic

New Story Coming Soon!

2019-10-01T17:22:00.001-04:00

Immigrant Song by Lissa Bryan Summary: Bella made a promise to her dying grandmother that she would see the monument to the General completed, but doing so means taking on a powerful anti-immigrant group. She needs allies, and perhaps she’s found one in a handsome junior congressman with a wicked sparkle in his eyes… ༻❁༺

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.20 "Ragnarok"

2019-01-31T13:22:00.001-05:00

“They're nice women, really. They just know a lot about hangings." - No Ship Network (CHECK THEM OUT FOR THEIR PODCASTED RECAPS AND FEEDBACK ‘CASTS! And Yes, we did one, too!) By elithanathile on Tumblr Heillir! The Shieldmaidens of History (Protecting the Innocent from Anachronisms) welcome you back to our series on the History Channel show

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.19 "What Happens in the Cave"

2019-01-24T11:23:00.000-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.18 "Baldur"

2019-01-17T13:15:00.001-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.17 "The Most Terrible Thing"

2019-01-10T12:11:00.000-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.16 "The Buddha"

2019-01-03T13:48:00.000-05:00

“100% more evisceration talk than expected.” “These chicks are machines!” - Steve No Ship Network (CHECK THEM OUT FOR THEIR PODCASTED RECAPS AND FEEDBACK ‘CASTS! And Yes, we did one, too!) By elithanathile on Tumblr Heillir! The Shieldmaidens of History (Protecting the Innocent from Anachronisms) welcome you back to our series on the History Channel

The Edited Bible of #ThomasJefferson

2018-12-28T16:22:00.000-05:00

I got a wonderful Christmas present from my dear friend Alec Frazier, who heads Autistic Reality. When I was in Washington DC recently, he took me to the FDR Memorial and the Library of Congress where I saw Thomas Jefferson's personal library. It was an awe-inspiring experience. Jefferson was not only the author of the Declaration of Independence, and our first Autistic president, he was

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.15 "Hell"

2018-12-27T16:30:00.001-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS, Episode 5.14 "The Lost Moment"

2018-12-20T18:26:00.000-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 5.13 "A New God"

2018-12-13T12:39:00.000-05:00

The #ShieldGeeks Review #VIKINGS 11.5 "The Revelation"

2018-11-29T20:31:00.000-05:00

No Score and Seven Years Ago...

2018-10-28T00:00:00.000-04:00

October 28, 2011... I don't remember what time it was, but it was late, probably the wee hours of the morning. I was trying to talk myself into doing something that made me very nervous. I was going to post the first chapter of a story. Maybe. Late in the summer, I'd discovered fanfiction. It came as a shock to discover there were other people out there who rewrote books and movies to give