Giveaway: The Greek Maiden and the English Lord

This giveaway is part of the November Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and co-hosted by Tristi Pinkston. There are many great blogs participating in this hop. After you enter here, you can hop over to some of the other blogs listed below and enter their giveaways too.



This giveaway is for one (1) copy of The Greek Maiden and the English Lord by Patty Apostolides.

Summary: 
Six year old Lily Montgomery wanders from her home in Patras on that fateful night of 1821 when the Ottomans set fire to the Greek city, and is captured by gypsies. Ten years later, she learns about her true identity from her gypsy grandmother and begins her search for her father, who is an English Lord and her mother, a Greek heiress. Her personal journey leads her to England, where she is informed by her cousin, Mrs. Bennington, that her father is away on a trip to the Indies and her mother presumably dead from the war. Lily is sent away to boarding school by Mrs. Bennington. There, she falls in love with Edward Grant, an English lord, but he is engaged to another. When Lily receives news that her father has died in a shipwreck, her whole world turns upside down. She has no funds and is forced to work as a maid to pay her tuition. Love wins the day, however, and a surprise ending will bring happiness to all. 

You can find more about Patty Apostolides on her website and on Twitter.

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About this giveaway:
Giveaway runs from 12:01 A.M. CST November 8 to midnight November 11. Giveaway is open internationally. Winner will be selected using Random.org. Winner will be announced on this blog and by email. Winner will have 3 days to contact me to provide address or new winner will be selected.

Thank you for entering and good luck!

Update: Sorry, this giveaway is now closed.

Interview with Patty Apostolides

Patty Apostolides is the author of The Greek Maiden and the English Lord, which I recently had the pleasure of reviewing.

About the author:
Patty Apostolides has a biology degree from Case Western Reserve University with minors in music and theater. She has worked in the health care industry for over a decade and has co-authored medical articles. She has authored the novels Lipsi's Daughter and The Lion and the Nurse as well as the poetry book Candlelit Journey: Poetry from the Heart. She has also played viola in the Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra. Born in Greece and having traveled there several times, Mrs. Apostolides is in a unique position to write about the Greek culture. She resides in Maryland with her husband and son.

How did you get the idea for The Greek Maiden and the English Lord?

We celebrate Greek Independence Day on March 25th, which marks the day when the Greeks broke away from the Ottoman rule. I began researching the topic a few years ago, which eventually led to my book. Greece had been under the Ottoman rule for hundreds of years, but after the French Revolution, in 1814, a group of students outside of Greece formed the “Filliki Etairia,” or “Friendly Society.” This underground movement formed the groundwork for the 1821 revolt. On March 23, 1821, the town of Patras was set on fire by the Ottomans and several people perished. Many Greek women and children were taken as slaves by the Ottomans. The idea for my novel resulted from the question “What happened to the women and children on that day and beyond?” Also, I am a romantic at heart, and have a soft spot for Cinderella-type stories where the virtuous and good heroine is down on her luck but is loved by a good and gentle prince or nobleman.

Review: The Greek Maiden and the English Lord

The Greek Maiden and the English Lord 
by Patty Apostolides
Publication date: September 2010
Publisher: Virtualbookworm.com
The Book Depository/Barnes & Noble

Summary:
Six year old Lily Montgomery wanders from her home in Patras on that fateful night of 1821 when the Ottomans set fire to the Greek city, and is captured by gypsies. Ten years later, she learns about her true identity from her gypsy grandmother and begins her search for her father, who is an English Lord and her mother, a Greek heiress. Her personal journey leads her to England, where she is informed by her cousin, Mrs. Bennington, that her father is away on a trip to the Indies and her mother presumably dead from the war. Lily is sent away to boarding school by Mrs. Bennington. There, she falls in love with Edward Grant, an English lord, but he is engaged to another. When Lily receives news that her father has died in a shipwreck, her whole world turns upside down. She has no funds and is forced to work as a maid to pay her tuition. Love wins the day, however, and a surprise ending will bring happiness to all.

My thoughts:
You can't always judge a book by its cover, or its title. While this book may not physically be an attention grabber, what is inside the book certainly is. Yes, the underlying story is the basic one we see in most romances. Girl meets guy, girl and guy are in love with each other, something keeps them from realizing that the other loves them too, but all is well in the end. But we do love those romances for a reason. In my opinion, The Greek Maiden and the English Lord stands above many of the typical romance novels that I have read, even if it does have the same basic story line. Mrs. Apostolides has an engaging style of writing that pulls you into the story and into the lives of the characters. You empathize with Lily as she seeks her family and deals with shame over her past. You admire Edward for his strong and caring personality. Also, this story is well written and there are many twists and turns that quickly grab and retain your attention. When reading this novel, I was reminded of the historical romances written by Johanna Lindsey that are set in England, but The Greek Maiden and the English Lord is a "clean" romance. I have no hesitations handing this one over to my book-obsessed teenager. Bottom line is, if you enjoy historical romances, this one is a must read.

You can find Patty Apostolides at her website and on Twitter.

A copy of this book was provided by the author.