Book Tour: Revenge & Retribution by Anna Belfrage

    Revenge and Retribution is the sixth book in Anna Belfrage's time slip series featuring time traveler Alexandra Lind and her seventeenth century husband, Matthew Graham. 

Life in the Colony of Maryland is no sinecure - as Alex and Matthew Graham well know. But nothing in their previous life has prepared them for the mayhem that is about to be unleashed upon them. 

Being labelled a witch is not a good thing in 1684, so it is no wonder Alex Graham is aghast at having such insinuations thrown at her. Even worse, it's Matthew's brother-in-law, Simon Melville, who points finger at her. 

Not that the ensuing hearing is her main concern, because nowadays Alex's entire life is tainted by the fear of what Philip Burley will do to them once he gets hold of them - there is no longer any 'if' about it. On a sunny May afternoon, it seems Philip Burley will at last revenge himself on Matthew for every single perceived wrong. Over the course of twenty-four hours, Alex's life - and that of her family's - is permanently changed. 

As if all this wasn't enough, Alex also has to cope with the loss of one of her sons. Forcibly adopted by the former Susquehannock, Samuel is dragged from Alex's arms to begin a new life in the wilderness. How is Alex to survive all this? And will she be able to put her damaged family back together?

Graham Saga Titles

• Book One: A Rip in the Veil 
• Book Two: Like Chaff in the Wind 
• Book Three: The Prodigal Son 
• Book Four: A Newfound Land 
• Book Five: Serpents in the Garden 
• Book Six: Revenge & Retribution 
• Book Seven: Whither Thou Goest (November 2014) 
• Book Eight: To Catch a Falling Star (March 2015)

About the Author 

I was raised abroad, on a pungent mix of Latin American culture, English history and Swedish traditions. As a result I'm multilingual and most of my reading is historical - both non-fiction and fiction.

 I was always going to be a writer - or a historian, preferably both. Instead I ended up with a degree in Business and Finance, with very little time to spare for my most favourite pursuit. Still, one does as one must, and in between juggling a challenging career I raised my four children on a potent combination of invented stories, historical debates and masses of good food and homemade cakes. They seem to thrive... Nowadays I spend most of my spare time at my writing desk.

The children are half grown, the house is at times eerily silent and I slip away into my imaginary world, with my imaginary characters. Every now and then the one and only man in my life pops his head in to ensure I'm still there. I like that - just as I like how he makes me laugh so often I'll probably live to well over a hundred. 

I was always going to be a writer. Now I am - I have achieved my dream. For more information, please visit Anna Belfrage's website and blog. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

Review

Series: The Graham Saga

Release Date: 1 July, 2014

Publisher: SilverWood Books
Genre: Historical Fiction/Time-Slip/Time-Travel

ISBN:  978-1-78132-175-1

Edition: Paperback

Rating: ★★★★☆

Review Written: 27 August, 2014

I have to admit, I was warned ahead of time that this is the sixth book in a series. I generally abhor reading a series out of order if there's a set timeline; however I'm certainly glad I decided to read this novel despite my own oddities about series. 

Time-travel novels seem to be the thing now, though truth be told, they've been around for as long as I can remember at least. In my twenty-five years, many of my favorite novels have included time travel - or in some cases time and world jumping - and I have to say, out of the many that I've read, The Graham Saga does interest me. Despite my obviously lack of knowledge to the previous books, Belfrage managed to leave enough background details within her novel that I wasn't floundering around - I was curious about previous events a motivator to read the other novels in the series when I finally have time, but never lost and floundering. 

Instead I was drawn into this story of a displaced woman and her husband - captivated and enthralled - and their trials of life in the late seventeenth century. I, at times, forget that travel wasn't as easily done in those days, and if a family member left for England from the Colonies, there was the likeliness that you'd never see them again. With Alex's family, there's a lot of previous drama coming into play, but also a lot of new things as well. From being accused of being a witch by her brother-in-law to having a child dragged away from her to begin a new life with the Indians, Alex Graham is finding life to be very trying. It's all about making due with what you have and making the best of situations to survive.

I highly recommend this book and this series - though perhaps start with book one - if you enjoy a good novel of displacement, love, family, and general mayhem. I know that I'll be going back and picking up the other books in this series.