Read an interview with Juliane Weber author of Under the Emerald Sky (The Irish Fortune Series, Book 1) #HistoricalRomance #BlogTour #CoffeePotBookClub @Writer_JW @maryanneyarde

Under the Emerald Sky

(The Irish Fortune Series, Book 1)

By Juliane Weber

He’s come to Ireland to escape his past. She’s trying to run from her future. 

It's 1843 and the English nobleman Quinton Williams has come to Ireland to oversee the running of his father’s ailing estate and escape his painful past. Here he meets the alluring Alannah O’Neill, whose Irish family is one of few to have retained ownership of their land, the rest having been supplanted by the English over the course of the country's bloody history. Finding herself drawn to the handsome Englishman, Alannah offers to help Quin communicate with the estate’s Gaelic-speaking tenants, as much to assist him as to counter her own ennui. Aware of her controlling brother’s hostility towards the English, she keeps her growing relationship with Quin a secret – a secret that cannot, however, be kept for long from those who dream of ridding Ireland of her English oppressors.

Among the stark contrasts that separate the rich few from the plentiful poor, Under the Emerald Sky is a tale of love and betrayal in a land teetering on the brink of disaster - the Great Famine that would forever change the course of Ireland's history.

Publication Date: 23rd October 2020

Publisher: Independently Published

Page Length: 468 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction/Historical Romance 

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INTERVIEW

Writing Interview questions.

Why did you choose to write your book in this era?

That was something of an accident. I had thought about writing a book for several years before actually getting started. I knew only that it would be a historical fiction novel, but not when or where the story would take place. When inspiration refused to come, I turned to Google for help, where I came across the Great Famine in Ireland. I was immediately drawn to this setting, as I liked the idea of the 19th century; I liked the idea of Ireland, with its beautiful scenery and its myths and legends; and I liked the idea of writing about a time in history that hasn’t been written about quite as much as some others. 

What is the most surprising thing you discovered while you were researching this era?

The most surprising thing I discovered while researching 19th century Ireland was that the peasants were not, in fact, already starving before the famine hit. Although the majority of the population was wretchedly poor, the potatoes they lived off did actually see them reasonably well fed, not least of all because potatoes are far more nutritious than bread, for example. 

Can you share something about the book that isn’t covered in the blurb?

What isn’t covered in the blurb is that the book contains a good dose of lighthearted material, including bits of Irish folklore, wedding and festival scenes, and the like, which I hope will make for an entertaining as well as an enlightening read.  

If you had to describe your protagonist, in three words, what would those three words be?

Alannah O’Neill is intelligent, determined and loyal. 

What are you currently working on?

I am currently working on the second book in The Irish Fortune Series, which is tentatively called Beneath the Darkening Clouds. While Under the Emerald Sky takes place in the years leading up to the famine, in the second book, the potato harvest actually starts to fail and the famine begins. But of course, it won’t be all doom and gloom! There will be trips to London and Dublin (including an accidental visit to a Dublin brothel!), as well as a sprinkling of Irish folklore and the like to brighten up the mood.  

  

Personal Interview questions 

What do you like to do when you are not writing?

When I’m not writing I enjoy reading and spending time with my family, as well as playing volleyball. 

What’s for dinner tonight? What would you rather be eating?

Dinner tonight is butternut soup, and I’m entirely happy eating that, especially with a few slices of fresh bread! 

What’s your favourite food?

I am quite a chocoholic, so that’s high on my list, but I really just love food in general! If I had to choose, I would say pasta, but I also love potatoes and pastries, just about all things vegetable in nature, and and and…   

What is the best part of your day?

Either or!

Tea or coffee: coffee

Hot or cold: hot

Movie or book: book

Morning person or Night owl: night owl 

City or country: country 

Social Media or book: book 

Paperback or ebook: paperback 

Juliane is actually a scientist. She holds degrees in physiology and zoology, including a PhD in physiology. During her studies she realised, however, that her passion lay not in conducting scientific research herself, but in writing about it. Thus began her career as a medical writer, where she took on all manner of writing and editing tasks, in the process honing her writing skills, until she finally plucked up the courage to write her first historical novel, Under the Emerald Sky. The book is the first in The Irish Fortune Series, which is set in 19th century Ireland around the time of the Great Famine.

Juliane lives with her husband and two sons in Hamelin, Germany, the town made famous by the story of the Pied Piper.

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