prisoners in the palace by michaela maccoll

She heads off to Kensington Palace to interview for a position as a lady in waiting to Princess Victoria. But the lawyer also offers her an opportunity. What was meant to be a trip to London to introduce Liza to society and find a husband has ended in tragedy. Her father’s lawyer informs her that all the money is gone. Seventeen-year-old Liza Hastings has just lost her parents in a carriage accident. Have I got a book for you! Michaela MacColl’s Prisoners in the Palace has everything you’re looking for-that is if you want good YA historical fiction with a real historical person at its center.Įnd of sales pitch. Okay, listen up, you lovers of all things Queen Victoria. I trust them and love them.Prisoners in the Palace Michaela MacColl Historical

These gentle ladies are the only ones who’ve seen my highs and lows. Christine has a poet’s soul and when I write to something beautiful, I ask myself “What would Christine do?” And Karen? Her clear no-nonsense approach to editing has helped me find the germ of what’s good and clear out the dreck more times than I can count. Sari has such a deft gift for romantic comedy, she always finds the romance in my scenes, even if I don’t. We all bring strengths to each other and shore up the weaknesses together. I brought the group together originally (Sari and I were old friends, Christine I met at a conference and Karen stood behind Christine and I in the ladies’ room line at SCBWI!), but what keeps us going is how useful and necessary we are to each other. Sari, Christine, Karen and I have been together for over five years now. My mentor isn’t a person, it’s three people: my critique group. Who has seen every major revision and kept me writing through a careful combination of praise, guilt and critique. I ration these mentors, for better or worse.īut I do have a “mentor” that I go back to time and time again. I’m loath to use up too much of their time or goodwill. That one! He or she is my mentor! It’s additionally tough for me because I don’t like asking for help. Hi, Lynda! Thanks so much for the opportunity to muse out loud about mentors. Thanks so much, Michaela, for coming by to tell us about your wonderful mentors!

A BIG Mentor Monday welcome to Michaela Maccoll, author of two historical novels entitled, Prisoners in the Palace and Promise the Night. Both have earned so many starred reviews, they should be re-titled as constellations!

Prisoners in the palace by michaela maccoll