21 Sep Amy Maroney Island of Gold Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour #IslandOfGold #HistoricalAdventure #Rhodes #KnightsHospitaller #BlogTour #CoffeePotBookClub @wilaroney @maryanneyarde

FEATURED AUTHOR: AMY MARONEY

It is my pleasure to feature Amy Maroney as part of The Coffee Pot Book Club Blog Tour being held from September 13th  – September 24th, 2021. Amy Maroney is the author of the Historical Adventure and Romance, Island of Gold (Sea and Stone Chronicles), which was released by Artelan Press on September 8, 2021 (380 pages).

Below are highlights of Island of Gold, Amy Maroney’s author bio, and her guest post on what inspired her to write the book.

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HIGHLIGHTS: ISLAND OF GOLD

Island of Gold

(Sea and Stone Chronicles)

By Amy Maroney

1454. A noble French falconer. A spirited merchant’s daughter. And a fateful decision that changes their destiny forever.

When Cédric is recruited by the Knights Hospitaller to the Greek island of Rhodes, his wife Sophie jumps at the chance to improve their fortunes. After a harrowing journey to Rhodes, Cédric plunges into the world of the knights—while Sophie is tempted by the endless riches that flow into the bustling harbor. But their dazzling new home has a dark side.

Slaves toil endlessly to fortify the city walls, and rumors of a coming attack by the Ottoman Turks swirl in the streets. Desperate to gain favor with the knights and secure his position, Cédric navigates a treacherous world of shadowy alliances. Meanwhile, Sophie secretly engineers a bold plan to keep their children safe. As the trust between them frays, enemies close in—and when disaster strikes the island, the dangers of their new world become terrifyingly real.

With this richly-told story of adventure, treachery, and the redeeming power of love, Amy Maroney brings a mesmerizing and forgotten world to vivid life.

Buy Links:

This novel is available on #KindleUnlimited

Universal Link  ♦  Amazon UK  ♦  Amazon US  ♦  Amazon CA  ♦  Amazon AU

AUTHOR BIO: AMY MARONEY

Amy Maroney lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family, and spent many years as a writer and editor of nonfiction before turning her hand to historical fiction. When she’s not diving down research rabbit holes, she enjoys hiking, dancing, traveling, and reading. Amy is the author of the Miramonde Series, a trilogy about a Renaissance-era female artist and the modern-day scholar on her trail. To receive a free prequel novella to the Miramonde Series, join Amy’s readers’ group. CLICK Website

Social Media Links:

Website  ♦  Twitter   ♦  Facebook  ♦  Instagram  ♦  Pinterest  ♦  Book Bub  ♦  Amazon Author Page  ♦  Goodreads

GUEST POST: THE INSPIRATION BEHIND ISLAND OF GOLD

Hello Linnea! Thanks so much for hosting me on your blog.

Island of Gold, the first book in my Sea and Stone Chronicles series, was inspired by a visit to the Greek island of Rhodes back in 2012. With my husband and two daughters, I got to know the island and its people over a period of three weeks. I was struck by the kindness of the Greeks we met, and by the layers of history stretching back thousands of years. Ancient temples and crumbling statues of Greek goddesses existed alongside walls and forts built by the medieval Knights Hospitaller of the Order of St. John during the medieval era.

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History Architecture Greece Castle Fortress Rhodes

During our stay there, I was fascinated to learn that Rhodes Town, the largest community on the island, has been a thriving port for millennia. In the medieval era, the Knights Hospitaller ruled Rhodes and the surrounding islands from a palace overlooking the bustling harbor. The knights were few in number—about three hundred knights lived in Rhodes Town during the mid-fifteenth century, when Island of Gold takes place—but they were supplemented by thousands of mercenary soldiers and bolstered by their powerful naval fleet. Their primary goal was to defend Christendom from Muslim forces in the East, both the Ottoman Turks and the Mamluks who ruled Egypt.

I remember exploring the vaulted corridors of the hospital that once served local people, Christian pilgrims en route to Jerusalem, and the knights themselves. The graceful stone arches gave no hint as to the original purpose of the building, but they were breathtaking. Exiting the hospital, we followed a narrow cobbled lane up a hill. Known as the Street of the Knights, it’s lined with lovely medieval structures that once served as “inns” that housed knights, pilgrims, and travelers.

Medieval Hospital in Rhodes Town, Unsplash Photo

At the top of the hill, we entered the rebuilt palace of the Order and wandered through vast, formal chambers. We peeked into dim corridors where stone tablets carved with European knights’ coats-of-arms leaned haphazardly against the walls. Staring at those forgotten slabs of stone, I found myself wondering who the knights had been, where they’d come from, how they’d died. I imagined their militarized world existing alongside the merchants, ship captains, and local Greeks who made up the population of Rhodes Town. What had it been like for ordinary people living in the knights’ shadow? For women, especially?

We strolled down the hill from the palace to the harbor, where seawalls stretch out from stone quays to embrace the waves. I watched sailboats cruise in from the sapphire-blue waters of the Aegean and imagined the past. Would merchant galleys six hundred years ago be powered by sails, by oars, maybe by both? Did the merchants and the knights get along? Did the locals resent the knights? Who benefited from the Order’s presence? Who suffered? The questions burrowed into my brain and never left.

Before we left, I bought a few souvenirs in Rhodes Town that are with me still. One is a lovely head of a goddess painted on a piece of driftwood by a Greek artist. I have a set of three tiny olivewood bowls that we use for nuts or other snacks, and a set of olivewood salad spoons. Every time I look at these items, I’m transported back to Rhodes.

Greek Goddess Painting, Photo by Amy Maroney

The truth is, Rhodes cast a spell on me a decade ago that only grew deeper as the years wore on. When I decided to write about the island and its history, I had no idea what an incredible journey of research lay ahead. The secrets of history I’ve shared in Island of Gold are just the beginning…there are many more voices and stories of the past waiting for their turn in the spotlight. And, in time, the Sea and Stone Chronicles will reveal them all

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