Jess Steven Hughes

Website: http://www.jessstevenhughes.com/index.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessstevenhughes

Twitter: @JessStevenHughe

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5815864.jess_steven_hughes

Email: jessstevenhughes@hotmail.com

Blog - http://www.jessstevenhughes.com/blog.html

Book Trailers:

The Sign of the Eagle-Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWgMXA4nptM

The Wolf of Britannia, Part I - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8w8aTpqR68&feature=youtu.be

GREAT NEWS!

NOW AVAILABLE THE PEACEKEEPER (trade paperback and Kindle)

Britannia Romanus series: Volume 5

45-69 AD

Marcellus, a Spanish Centurion in the Roman Army, is unsafely ensconced in tumultuous and murderous Rome, a city that can claim its victims in an instant and give its chosen ones glory at a moment’s notice. After confronting his nemesis and former commander, Anicius Pedius Gallus, in the boisterous Roman forum, Marcellus escapes yet another close call with a “Roman ally,” and races home to the object of his desire—Eleyne, a feisty, British-Celtic princess. And one that is none too happy about being a royal hostage. But love counters betrayal in this harsh city, and the two are married against a backdrop of mysterious treacheries and secrecies. Even as the two start a family and Marcellus advances through the ranks, the evil Gallus seems to lurk in the shadows around every corner.

As a resident of Rome, Marcellus is no stranger to chaos, but when he’s thrust into the role of commander of the Watch’s Seventh Cohort and must lead a ragtag group of men to quell a bloody riot numbering in the hundreds of thousands, can he do the job? And when a new emperor takes hold of the reins, siding with scoundrels and slaughterers, can Marcellus save everyone he holds dear or will he be left alone with blood on his hands?

From the birth of Christianity to the backstabbings in the Senate, to lives of the slaves and commoners, to the behind-the-scenes of the worlds of the Roman emperors, The Peacekeeper will bring the duplicitous, colorful, and raw streets of Rome to brilliant life, and will leave you breathless until the final page.

THE BROKEN LANCE

In Rome, when shaking hands with a stranger, you'd best count your fingers to see if they are still attached.

44 A.D. Ancient Britannia is wild, unpredictable, and merciless. The dusty streets of Rome are chaotic and dangerous, home to incredible opulence, deplorable poverty, and a political web that catches anyone who dares to question the empire. Both places call to young Roman cavalry sergeant Marcellus Reburrus, who must survive a world of political treachery in which one’s life can be taken in an instant—by friend or enemy.

After enduring a ravaging storm, Marcellus’s boots hit the shore of Britannia under the orders of Roman Emperor Claudius only to face deplorable conditions and a commander who would rather see Marcellus dead than reporting for duty. Despite the circumstances, Marcellus quickly makes a name for himself, earning awards for bravery, promotion to centurion, and further alienating himself from the evil commander.

Marcellus’s return to Rome brings a whole new set of problems, the least of which is dodging assassination attempts, unraveling conspiracies, and falling in love. From the underground caves of beggars beneath the city to the magnificent homes of the Roman elite, Marcellus uncovers an elaborate plot of betrayal, one that can bring down the entire city. Can he find the conspirators before they find him . . . and destroy everything he holds dear?

This beautifully descriptive novel brings to life the remarkable worlds of ancient Britannia and Rome—while following the brilliant Marcellus, whose entire life is turned upside down as he must solve a complex mystery . . . and stay alive amongst backstabbing senators, murderous traitors, and an extraordinary city whose legacy is both inspiring and duplicitous.

THE WOLF OF BRITANNIA, VOL I & II: The two prequels to THE SIGN OF THE EAGLE are now available through Amazon as trade paperbacks and on Kindle at:

Part I: http://www.amazon.com/The-Wolf-Britannia-Part-I/dp/1620065606

Part II: http://www.amazon.com/The-Wolf-Britannia-Part-II/dp/1620065630

Published by Sunbury Press (www.sunburypress.com). This is not a self-published novel. This is a traditional small press.

This is a duo-olgy (two volumes) telling the story of the British Celtic King, Caratacus, Macha's (THE SIGN OF THE EAGLE) father, about his rise to power in Southern Britain and his battle against the Romans when they invaded Britain in 43 A.D.

When a young Celtic prince, desperate to prove himself to his father, is forced to gather every ounce of strength and courage to fight an enemy more cunning and powerful than either he or Britain has ever faced, will he be able to save his family, his sacred homeland, and his imperial legacy−or will his own head be among the next spoils of war?

The Wolf of Britannia, Part I

First Century AD Britain is a fragmented land of warring Celtic tribes, ripe for invasion by the juggernaut of imperial Rome. Knowing this, a young warrior, soon-to-be-legendary, Prince Caratacus, must unite the southern tribes if they are to survive. This is an enemy more cunning and powerful then either he or Britain has ever faced.

Standing by him is his wife, Rhian, a warrior princess who takes no prisoners. She is the first woman he has truly loved. With her support and that of other allies, Caratacus must outsmart a traitorous brother who is determined to take the throne, aided by a conniving Roman diplomat and a tribal king in the pockets of the Romans.

Caratacus must save his country not only from the pending Roman onslaught but from his own peoples treachery.

Or else die trying.

Part II

After winning the southern British throne, Caratacus and his tribe of Celtic warriors must face down the invading Roman army. He leads his people as they fight for freedom from the iron-fisted Roman rule that is in the process of obliterating their culture and lifestyle.

As the king strives to keep his people free, he must also battle his beautiful, conniving and lascivious cousin−a queen who wants Caratacus for herself.

Set in the years between 43 and 60 AD, in the mysterious land of ancient Britain and the majestic palaces of Rome, The Wolf of Britannia, Part II, is a painstakingly researched tale of one daring man, willing to risk his life to destroy the entire Roman army and to save his people.

Jess Steven Hughes brought his lifetime's fascination with ancient Roman and Celtic history into his historical novels set in the First Century A.D.

THE SIGN OF THE EAGLE. The action suspense novel set in 71 A.D., contains gripping, meticulous details of the period combined with raw power and explosive action. Jess, a retired police detective sergeant, uses his investigative experience and real-life knowledge of crime scenes to bring gritty accuracy to every page.

All his novels are available through Sunbury Press (www.sunburypress.com) as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble. They are available as a traditional paperbacks and as an ebooks (Kindle & Nook).

You check out his website: jessstevenhughes.com for his blog activities, busy book signing schedule as well as following him on Facebook and Goodreads.

Jess is a retired a police detective sergeant, Long Beach Police Dept, Long Beach, CA. He likes to write historical fiction set in the classical world. He holds a Masters Degree from the University of Southern California in Public Administration with a minor (my first academic love) in Ancient Mediterranean Civilizations. He also served four years United States Marine Corps (1962/66). He lives with his wife, Liz, on a four acre mini-farm in Eastern Washington. His hobby is outdoor model railroading.

Please check out his blog which can be found on his website www.jessstevenhughes.com. Just click onto blog or click onto the following link http://www.jessstevenhughes.com/blog.html. He updates it about every 7-10 days.

An article about his writing and him was featured in the newspapwer, Spokane Spokesman-Review. Click onto this link for details. http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/aug/18/the-longest-chapter/

You will also find information there on his historical mystery short story, DEATH MOST POISONOUS, which appears in the Literary Magazine, DOWN IN THE DIRT, in the December, 2010 issue (http://scars.tv/), a scars publication.

Jess is a member of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association (PNWA)and the Spokane Novelists Group.

As a retired person, Jess believes in keeping very busy. You must stay active mentally, physically and socially. These are a few of the keys to a long and healthy retirement. Writing novels has contribute greatly to my quality of life.

He has an outdoor model railroad that was featured in the June/July, 2010 issue of the regional magazine PRIME NORTHWEST (www.primenw.com). Check their website for the article.

Visit "The Britannia Romanus" Website and Blog at JessStevenHughes.com

Research for my Books

by

Jess Steven Hughes

Over the years I have accumulated a personal library of more than five hundred books on Celtic, Classical, Medieval and Mid-Eastern History which I use in the research and writing of my historical novels. This does not include various magazines, journals and other papers that I have collected, not to mention using the internet for the same purpose. I am always acquiring more information in an effort to make my novels as authentic as possible.

Before my first historical novel, The Sign of the Eagle, and the other four novels of the Britannia Romanus series were published, I had to learn the fundamentals of writing fiction as opposed to writing history. This included: plot, characterization, scene, setting, dialogue, descriptive narration, the difference between showing and not telling, etc. Only after I had attended writing seminars and workshops for several years did my abilities as an author of novels finally emerge.

Always keep in mind, I write first and foremost, FICTION; I don't write HISTORY. I use historical events and backdrops for my stories. My historical novel, The Sign of the Eagle, which is published by Sunbury Press (www.sunburypress.com) is an example. The story takes place in Milan and Rome in 71 A.D. The main character, Macha, is a Celtic woman married to a Roman officer, Titus. He has been wrongfully accused of treason and conspiring to assassinate the Emperor Vespasian. Macha must almost single-handedly prove his innocence.

Historians have speculated there were several conspiracies against the life of Emperor Vespasian, but only two appeared to have been recorded as found in The Twelve Caesars by Suetonius or in The Histories by Cassius Dio. Therefore, my story is a fictionalized account of one possible unrecorded attempt on Vespasian's life. I wrote it from what I believe to be a different perspective using an unlikely protagonist, a Celtic woman. Why not?

Before I could fully develop The Sign of the Eagle, e.g. the characters, plotting, setting, scene, dialogue, etc., I started by researching the overall history of the Roman Empire and the Celtic world. Such books included but not limited to: History of Rome - Michael Grant; Rome - M. Rostovtzeff; From the Gracchi to Nero - H.H. Scullard, Invasion: the Roman Conquest of Britain - John Peddie; The Agricola - Tacitus; The Histories - Tacitus; The Annuls of Imperial Rome - Tacitus; Rome Against Caratacus - Graham Webster; The Celts - Gerhard Herm; The World of the Celts - Simon James; etc.

I continued with geographical locations. I narrowed down the story to Milan, Rome and the Italian country side. This included studying: Muir's Historical Atlas: Ancient and Classical - Edited by R.F. Treharne and Harold Fullard; Atlas of the Roman World - Tim Cornell and John Matthews; The Ancient City: Life in Classical Athens and Rome - Peter Connolly and Hazel Dodge; etc.

I had to consider historical events that occurred prior to those in my novel which were important to the story's background. Among these I included the great civil war of 69 A.D. known as the Year of the Four Emperors (Galba, Otho, Vitellius and Vespasian). For this I referred to: The Long Year A.D. 69 - Kenneth Wellesley; The Twelve Caesars - Michael Grant; The Twelve Caesars - Suetonius, The Army of the Caesars - Michael Grant; etc. In my story, Macha's husband, Titus, fought in this war against the forces of the short-lived Emperor Vitellius at the Battle of Cremona. Titus was part of one of Vespasian's advanced units.

Other events included the invasion of Britannia in 43 A.D. and the eventual capture of the British Chieftain, Caratacus, Macha's father (see above Invasion, etc). He was brought to Rome along with his wife and Daughter and ultimately pardoned by the Emperor Claudius. We don't know the daughter's actual name, I chose a good Celtic name, Macha. Caratacus was ultimately pardoned and disappeared from history, but there was no reason why I could not use his daughter for a story.

For her background, I described her growing up being Romanized but clinging to many Celtic customs. Prior to the story, she married Titus, who was a born in Rome. His parents were Gauls, but his father was a Roman Senator, one of the first Gauls admitted to the Senate under the Emperor Claudius Because I used a Celtic protagonist, I had to research Celtic as well as Roman customs re: daily living, the role of women in the Celtic and Roman worlds, the gulf between the classes, slavery, etc., religion, the military (Celt and Roman), descriptions of city life, especially, in Rome, etc. My research included: A Day in Old Rome - W.S. Davis; Daily Life in Ancient Rome - Jerome Carcopino; A Roman Villa - Jacqueline Morely; The Sixteen Satires - Juvenal; The Epigrams of Martial - Translated by James Michie; The Satyricon - Petronius; Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity - Sarah B. Pomeroy; Celtic Women: Women in Celtic Society and Literature - Peter B. Ellis; The Gods of the Celts - Miranda Green; Celtic Art - Ruth and Vincent Megaw; The Complete Roman Army - Adrian Goldsworthy; The Roman Cavalry - Karen Dixon; The Vigiles of Imperial Rome - P.K. Baillie Reynolds; Fighting Elite: Celtic Warrior 300 B.C. - A.D. 100 - Stephen Allen and Wayne Reynolds; etc.

It was only after I had conducted sufficient research that I finally wrote my story. However, I wasn't finished. I had to run the gauntlet of two writers groups, The Spokane Novelists and The Spokane Writers Group which month after month reviewed and bled all over my chapters until the manuscript finally met their expectations. Even then I wasn't through, I sent my manuscript to a "Book Doctor," an editor whom had spent many years with Harper-Collins before going into private business. Fortunately, she is a very ethical person (there are some real charlatans out there) who was very thorough and answered all my subsequent questions after she had reviewed and returned my novel for more work. My efforts paid off. After many rejection slips, The Sign of the Eagle was accepted for publication. If you are interested in learning more about The Sign of the Eagle and when it is scheduled to be published, please check out my website www.jessstevenhughes.com.

-jsh

Contact Jess Steven Hughes at: jessstevenhughes@hotmail.com