Diane Scott Lewis, historical author: french revolution

Showing posts with label french revolution. Show all posts

Monday, May 5, 2025

Award winning novels set during the French Revolution, by Diane Scott Lewis

To purchase Escape the Revolution, click HERE

To purchase the sequel, Hostage to the Revolution, HERE

A writer goes through many drafts of their manuscript. This one I worked on the longest, being my first completed novel.

A novel that grew so big I had to cut it in half. Who knew publishers shied away from large novels, though it didn't stop Diana Gabaldon.

I even visited Cornwall and Paris, where my main character lived, struggling to solve her situation.

Settle back, and enjoy this journey through a determined young lady's experience.

The northern coast of Cornwall, England where Bettina works in a tavern

I researched the French Revolution to add flavor to the story of a young countess who is tricked by a trusted servant into fleeing to England to deliver important papers. When she arrives she discovers the paper are blank and she's left penniless and adrift. She must find a way to reconnect with her mother. And uncover the truth of her father's death. She finds herself embroiled in a murderous plot. Escape the Revolution takes place in England, where Bettina must find work to pay her way. With no real skills, she ends up in a bawdy tavern on the Cornish coast where she meets a man who is rumored to have killed his unfaithful wife. Will an attraction happen between them?

The Luxembourg Palace in Paris where Bettina must go to ask a favor of Napoleon

The second novel, Hostage to the Revolution, takes place in New Orleans and France. Bettina discovers the truth of her father's death, and kidnapped by rebels, she escapes into war-torn France to save the man she loves. Through it all, she grows in courage and shrewdness, ready to face any difficulty that comes her way.

Read an excerpt, the first meeting of the main characters:

“Affreux!” Bettina recoiled from Stephen. “You are … a rutting pig, and have no reason to say that to me!”

He grabbed her upper arms as she tried to shove past him. His bared teeth turned him wolfish, wiping any attractiveness from his features. “A pig, am I? I’ll show you a pig, froggie!”

“Let go of me!” She struck and pushed at him with her fists. But the harder she struggled, the more he laughed. Stephen hauled her to his chest, then brushed his damp lips on her jaw when she whipped back her head. Bettina wrenched up a hand to scratch his cheek.

A horse clopped up. Someone dismounted, jerked Stephen around and punched him in the face.

The young man sprawled on the ground, kicking furiously at the dirt. “Damme! Who the hell—oh!” He staggered to his feet and sped off into the twilight, his footfalls echoing across the cottages.

Bettina froze, her hand at her throat, heaving for breath. Facing the person who came to her aid, she took in a tall figure in cape and hat silhouetted against the darkening sky.

“Are you all right, young woman?” The man spoke in a deep, resonant voice. The clean, faint scent of spice floated around him.

“Yes … merci,” she uttered through tight lips. "Who are--"

“Then if you don’t live far, you had better proceed home.”

Bettina didn't wait for more and hurried up the road. Once she reached the inn porch, she looked back to see the man mount his horse and ride away. With a ragged sigh, she brushed tears from her cheeks. She’d little doubt she just came face to face with the nefarious Everett Camborne.

The story is about coping, survival, passion and heartbreak.
Then victory under dire circumstances. A rousing adventure.

"...wonderfully researched and the reader is taken right into the drawing rooms, kitchens and taverns of the dark days of late eighteenth century England."
- Historical Novels Reviews blog

Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with one naughty dachshund.

Friday, July 28, 2023

A Time Travel and a Spy Story, by Diane Scott Lewis

Can a sassy San Francisco gal from the 21st century survive when she's hurtled two hundred years into the past in a neglected cemetery? And what about the handsome farmer who may be a grain smuggler? After Tamara's nasty divorce, can she trust again? Caught up in England's turmoil during the French Revolution, can she ever go home?

To purchase BEYOND THE FALL, click HERE

"Colum and Tamara have become my favorite characters of all time! I absolutely will recommend this book to all avid romance readers who love fast, and intriguing plot!" ~ Mariola S. Librarian via Netgalley

Countess Trehearne returns to England in the midst of the French Revolution. She's determined to avenge the death of her companion in Paris. Her probing embroils her with a deadly spy and her childhood love, Robert. Will their passion heat up before she becomes the spy's next victim? Robert works for the new Secret Services. He discovers they stalk the same villain. Can he protect his old love before it's too late?

Tamara from Beyond the Fall makes an appearance in this novel.

To purchase, TO ENTICE A SPY, click HERE

"Ms. Lewis does an excellent job of keeping you invested in Eseld and Robert. A historical romance that is thoughtfully researched, features a couple that is older (late 30s), and a plot that is interesting and fascinating. So do yourself a favor and pick this little gem up. You'll thank me later." *Harlies Books*

Diane lives is Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty dachshund.

Friday, March 17, 2023

Excerpt from Hostage to the Revolution, sequel to Escape the Revolution, by Diane Scott Lewis

Continuing Bettina's misadventures from Escape the Revolution, will she find her lover or be kidnapped by the revengeful revolutionaries?
An excerpt.

The woman lowered her Carnival mask to reveal the perfect, glacial features of Lucrece Bardou, Geralde’s former fiancée.

Lucrece raised her elegant brows. “Very well, we’ll talk here. Are you seeing my Geralde? You have been noticed with him these past months.” She swatted her fan. “And you were dancing with him out front, like two peasants.”

Bettina half-expected this and stifled a laugh. The wine seeped into her muscles, calming her. “We have spent time together, yes. Why is it your business? I heard you were involved with someone else.”

Lucrece tipped up her perfect chin. “That didn’t work out. Geralde and I were practically married. I plan to convince him to change his profession and settle down, with me.” She poked her fan into Bettina’s face. “Without you underfoot.”

Bettina swiped the fan aside. “If he wants to court me, that is our affair.” She grew irritated, yet the idea of his courting her again sent excited quivers along her body. But what about Everett? Could she banish the idea of cheating on a man declared dead? Would the deep hollow in her heart finally heal? “I have nothing more to say to you, Madame.”

“You stay away from him, I’m warning you.” Lucrece turned. A masked man bowed in her path. She jabbed her fan into his chest. “You had better not be a Negro, sir. The law forbids you to mask.” She tossed her curls in superiority and flounced off.

Bettina laughed at the woman’s haughtiness and walked in the other direction from the shrew. She looked around for Geralde, unsure if she should warn him about Lucrece. He may not even want to court Bettina again, and she couldn’t blame him. She’d find him and ask him to dance with the others, under the gigantic crystal chandelier that shimmered and reflected candlelight in sprinkles across the ceiling and walls.

Someone tugged on her sleeve. Bettina glanced down to a Negro child dressed in white cap and apron. “Yes, dear?”

“Pardon, Madame. A man wishes to speak to you.” The girl stared up with large black eyes. “He is on the side gallery.”

Was it Geralde, hiding from Lucrece? “Show me where. Is he a handsome man in buckskins?” She followed the child down a short hallway to a set of long windows. Then she hesitated, uneasy in the shadows. “Can you ask him to come inside?”

“He says he has news about your children.” The girl opened the windows.

Could Fred be here? Were the children ill? Bettina winced and poked her head out to scan the dark porch. “Who is here?” Now she wished she’d brought someone with her.

A man stepped forward, and waved the girl off. The long windows clicked shut. “I have news from your nephew. You must return to the cottage.”

“What has happened? Are my children all right?” She hurried out, thoughts confused.

He clasped her arm. “Come with me, Madame, and I will explain.”

“Tell me who you are first.” She resisted his tug on her arm, her skin prickling.

His grip tightened and he shuffled her toward the steps. “Do not fight me, I have a gun.”

“Mais non. How dare you. Let me go!” Bettina gasped and struggled. A pistol barrel stabbed into her side.

Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty dachshund.

Saturday, March 4, 2023

A young woman running from French assassins, Escape the Revolution, by Diane Scott Lewis

Purchase Escape the Revolution HERE

Read an excerpt:

Around a corner, Lisbette started when a figure emerged from an alley and blocked their path. Armand halted, twitching his shoulders before the huge man who trudged into their lantern’s glow. Lisbette cringed at his filthy clothes. His face looked as if someone had tried to carve their initials into his cheeks. A stench rolled off him, like the slime washed up from beneath the sea.

“So, this is the one?” The giant tugged a frayed hat low on his forehead. Water dripping off the roof behind him smacked the cobbles and stirred the mist around his bulky frame.

“Certainement. This is she, and please be gentle.” Armand glanced at her, his eyes droopy above gaunt cheeks, sadder than she’d ever seen them. “Is it quiet down there, at the harbor?”

“Quiet enough for what we need. Only one from customs. I’ll be there.” The man turned around and in a splat of footfalls the gloom swallowed him up once more.

Lisbette shivered and bunched together the edges of her cloak, already damp from the increasing rain. “Who is that dirty man, Armand? I still don’t understand why you insist on sending me off at this hour and with no decent companion.”

“I’ve explained that it’s too late to engage anyone. But I promised your mother I’d keep you from harm.” He averted his eyes when he mentioned her mother, then coughed into his hand. “Let’s keep walking, my dear.”

“Maman will not approve of this. We should go back to the house. You’re ill. I feel the heat in your arm.” Lisbette wondered if his fever had confused him. The shock of being dragged from bed, her interrupted sleep, scrambled for reason in her head. But the cold air sharpened her fears like a needle. “Ma foi, why is my leaving so urgent?”

Follow Lisbette on her frightening journey to England. Will she find solace or more danger?

Diane lives in Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty dachshund.

Monday, November 21, 2022

Excellent Review by Terry Newman VINE VOICE, by Diane Scott Lewis

To purchase, click HERE

Prepare to fall in love with To Entice a Spy

Intrigue. Espionage. Romance.
If you love these elements in an historical novel, then you’ll fall in love with to Entice a Spy by Diane Scott Lewis. Widowed Countess Eseld Trehearne has returned to England following an extended stay in France during the tumultuous French Revolution. She’s determined to avenge the death of her female companion.
Eseld finds herself deep in the world of espionage when she agrees to root out a French rebel spy. A woman with a mind of her own, she doesn’t heed the pleading of her childhood love, and now widower, Baron Robert Penhale, to leave the spying to the men. Eseld doesn’t realize that he’s working in an official capacity to protect England from French terrorists.
Her actions not only put her own life at risk, but also that of her 14-year-old daughter.
Within all this, a romance between her and Robert blossoms.

Lewis deftly transports the reader to another era, highlighting both its pageantry and perils filled with well-developed characters who come to life on the page. You’ll especially love Eseld’s precocious daughter, Clorenda, who’s kindness to and love of animals deserves a special place in your hearts.
A remarkable story with twists and turns, To Entice a Spy will keep you turning the page. Five Stars

by Terry Newman, Vince Voice

Friday, October 28, 2022

Enter into the past with two mystery novels, time travel and spies, by Diane Scott Lewis

In a neglected cemetery, Tamara falls two hundred years into the past. Will she find her way home, or stay with the rebel farmer who is capturing her heart?

"A fabulous and compelling time-travel romance that

readers will revel in. Full of twists and turns... The character development is skillful and impressive.

An original work of fiction written with a unique and

extraordinary voice."

~ Reviews, ChickLit Cafe

Buy LINK

Countess Eseld returns to England in the midst of the French Revolution, determined to catch a spy. But will her old love Robert, now working with the Secret Services, complicate her mission? Or could their passion revive?

"The author's research into the period shines through in every paragraph of this tale. I was never pulled out of the story by a tidbit that didn't ring true. Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres, and To Entice a Spy ranks among the best." *Gina Rae Mitchell*

Buy LINK

Diane Parkinson (Diane Scott Lewis) grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, joined the Navy at nineteen, married in Greece and raised two sons all over the world, including Puerto Rico and Guam. A member of the Historical Novel Society, she wrote book reviews for the Historical Novels Review. Diane worked from 2007 to 2010 as an on-line historical editor. She has had several historical and historical-romance novels published between 2010 and 2021.

Her first Time-travel, Beyond the Fall, was published by The Wild Rose Press in 2018. To Entice a Spy was published in 2021.

Diane lives with her husband in western Pennsylvania.

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Review TO ENTICE A SPY-Diane Scott Lewis, by guest Holly Schwartz

Buy LINK

A Riveting Page Turner

Set in the time of the French Revolution, To Entice a Spy is cleverly written from the English point of view. The tightly written plot follows the exploits of the headstrong, resourceful English widowed Countess Eseld Trehearne and her childhood love Baron Robert Penhale as they both work separately and unbeknownst to one another to root out a French spy disguised as an English aristocrat intent on financially supporting the revolution in France by using ill begotten British funds. Experienced historical fiction author Diane Scott Lewis did her homework and it shows. She embeds readers in the story from the first page on with her remarkably in-depth descriptions of the times. Readers are swept into the story and become a part of it by experiencing the architecture, fashions, foods, drinks, smells, sights, social mores, and sounds of England in the 1790s. Lewis has penned a deftly plotted tale that weaves ribbons of mystery and romance into a historical event and makes it come alive. The tautly written story is driven by love, loss, trust, betrayal, family ties, and the inner strength one must summon to face adversity created by both human fallibility and fate. The story moves at a comfortable pace with flawed, but believable characters who drive the plot. Readers find themselves rooting for the protagonists from the beginning to the end of the tale. The characters evoke strong emotions in readers right from page one. This reader found herself wanting to hug Eseld and Robert on one page and throttle them on the next. Lewis creates a huge conflict with a backstory to keep readers turning the pages to see how it all turns out. Part romance, part mystery, part thriller, and a part second chance at love; To Entice a Spy will capture the imagination of readers who enjoy a passionate love story fueled by human frailty, intrigue, and suspense. This terrific book has more than earned the five-star rating this reader has given it.

~Susie Black~

Monday, March 28, 2022

Dare Eseld and Robert fall in love again? Excerpt from To Entice a Spy by Diane Scott Lewis

After years of being apart, and marrying others, can Robert and Eseld find love again, in the midst of the turbulence of England's spy service during the French Revolution?

Here is an excerpt as they try:

Eseld finished her punch and looked away.

“I was being friendly with the viscount, on a purely decent

level, on my part.”

“I’m worried about you. Men can take advantage.

As in being purely mercenary.” Robert’s emotion rose to the

surface, rawer than he wished. “I want you to be very

cautious.”

“I’m aware of greedy men. And I’m not

romantically involved, if that’s what concerns you.”

She didn’t sound angry, more a question. A yearning?

“Are you collecting friends or inquiring where you

should not?” He toned down his rhetoric, not wishing to

upset her.

“That again. You think me foolish, or incapable.”

Her reply was soft despite what she stated. She didn’t

deny her motives.

He moved closer. His heartbeat thudded; was she

investigating a possible spy as he first surmised? “You

are one of the most capable women I know. Please,

confide in me.” They appeared to still dance around one

another—this time with words.

She turned and faced him. “I don’t want us to be at

odds.” She paused for a moment and lightly touched his

stock. “Is that all you seek, me to confide? Am I but a

contrary girl who must be guided by you?”

“Truthfully, as we were always truthful in our

youth, I want to kiss you.” He cupped her upper arms

and couldn’t believe he’d said that aloud. Her jasmine

perfume invaded his senses. “Pardon my boldness. I’m

not of your station anymore, am I?”

“That doesn’t matter to me,” she whispered. “But

aren’t you still in mourning?”

Is the notorious spy tracking them even at Truro's famous assembly rooms?

Purchase from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Entice-Spy-Diane-Scott-Lewis-ebook/dp/B09D9ZCRKX

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

Meet my Wicked Villain from To Entice a Spy

Today I blog about Pierre, my first Villainous POV. It was fun to write a character who doesn't have to follow the rules, though he does have a motive for his wicked ways.

Visit my blog post on Brenda Whiteside's blog.

https://brendawhiteside.blogspot.com/2022/03/a-worthy-villain-for-wickedwednesday-by.html

Enjoy Pierre's first scene as he surveys the people he wishes to destroy in the name of Equality during the French Revolution.

I might need to write more villains, and get deep into their points of view, I so enjoyed being Wicked. Of course, my villain gets his just desserts at the end.

Monday, February 28, 2022

Making my research links live, website to blog, by Diane Scott Lewis

After three frustrating months of being unable to log onto my website, I decided to go Blog only. And that's been a challenge as well. Getting your domain name, plastered all over my banners, bookmarks, etc, to point toward the blog took several hours of phone talks with my provider.

I copied my research links then realized later they weren't live.

So here I go, trying to resurrect them.

First my Research Links:

Eighteenth Century: