What's been cut?

I'm being ruthless as I go through "Come, Now" for submission and thought I'd share a snippet of what's been cut.

May 1896 – Petrovsky Palace, Moscow, Russia

In two hours he’d be sitting in a fabulously ornate carriage, with his beautiful wife, Alexandra Fedornova, sitting at his side. They’d be driving toward the Cathedral of the Assumption in the Kremlin where he would be crowned Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias. Their people would be pleased to see him officially don the crown.

How stupid, he thought, here he stood a few hours before the grand procession would take him to the Assumption Cathedral for his coronation, waiting to ask a man he’d never met or heard of, for his support.

When asked, Witte, his advisor, had been able to fill him in on the Ivanovich family. Without question or needing to do research which had surprised him because he believed he already knew everyone who was important in Russia. Apparently they were an old, extremely successful family based up in Novgorod. The people of the area respected the entire clan and never questioned when their word was given.
A set of footsteps echoed down the hallway toward him. Not sure how this meeting was to be conducted he decided the best route would be to ensure this man knew he, Nicholas II, was the person in charge not some man from the wild northern territories.

Just a snippet of what's out but there's also a hint in there of what's to come :-)

Thursday 13 #31!

On Tuesday's Book Talk! I mentioned being knee deep in my Russian books for the 'Come' series. Because I'm still there and might be for longer than I thought, here's 13 bits and pieces about the series.

1. 'Come' is an erotic romance shape-shifter trilogy about the three Ivanovich brothers.

2. They were all born in Russia and left after Gorbachev took office.

3. There are rumors flying around their homeland about them that they will never confirm or deny.

4. They moved to New York City and have an estate in the Adirondaks that's like one of the old camps with a house for each man.

5. They brought their tradtions with them including one that belongs only to their family.

6. The eldest son is Mikhail and his story is first - "Come, Now".

7. He's a well-respected businessman who runs Ivanovich Holdings.

8. He falls for Cassie, a nurse, who may be be small but she definitely keeps this big strong man on his toes.

9. A very small peek at one of my favorite interactions between Mikhail and Cassie in "Come, Now" is:

“Back hurts from the tree.”
“Sorry.”
She was stunned he didn’t jump up and at least look at it. She stared down at him waiting for him to apologize or something. When not another word was said gave him a poke in the side.
“What?!?”
“Hello, wounded here big guy.”
“It’s the cost.”
“Cost? What cost?”
“Stripping in the woods.”

10. The middle son is Aleksandr and his story is second - "Come to Me".

11. He's a security consultant for the government on various high-profile events.

12. He falls for Alison, a paper engineer.

13. The youngest son is Stefan and his story will be last - "Come and Stay".

I'm heading back in to "Come to Me" to make some extensive changes before moving on to write the final book. The Ivanovich men are definitely inspiring me to delve ever deeper into their stories who knows what will happen along the way to their happy ever after.

Book Talk!

This month I'm knee deep in my 'Come' series and that means Russia! Where I'm double checking some of my information for the opening prologue [hmmm] just so happens to be from one of my text books and this led me to a Book Talk! on my Russian book shelves.

A History of Russia by Nicholas V. Riasanovsky is just one of the many books I kept from my time in the classroom that I enjoy rereading. Russia's history is anything but simple and boring. Through the rule of individual princes to the Tsar's and on to today where they have a prime minister/president system, there is much intrigue and behind the scene happenings that just might help you understand where this country is coming from.

One of the first books I ever read about this country and its history was Peter the Great by Robert Massie. A one of a kind man who had a vision for Russia and did it, without a care for the detractors around him and there were many. Nicholas and Alexandra also by Massie is another book that brings a great deal of insight into the man on the throne and in this case his wife who was strong enough to have some influence.

Because my studies stopped abruptly with the end of the Romanov reign I have only a dozen or so books beyond it but I did like Khrushchev by Roy A. Medvedev & Zhores A. Medvedev. He's a fascinating man in the Soviet period. Stalin is a man I'd make the time to read more about. I know he was Georgian and cruel, but really that's about it and I should know more because he was able to control this nation with an iron fist that is most likely still felt by some of the people today. One of these days I'll get to Stalin by Edvard Radzinsky which is sitting on my to be read stack.

If you're not a fan of non-fiction then I'd highly recommend these three books to give you a good taste of Russia through various stages. Eugene Onegin by Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin , this is a tale before politics takes over all aspects of life. Petersburg by Andrei Biely, a story that takes place on the cusp of change. Finally, my favorite and the one that led me into the classroom for more, A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn - short and packs a serious punch. There's many more fictional books on my shelves that I'd recommend and think I'll have to do another Book Talk! about them in specific.

As this is Women's History Month there's one more very interesting read is the Five Sisters by Barbara Engel. At a time when many people thought women were only for the home, here is the story of five women who took part in trying to overthrow a Tsar.

Happy Reading!