Freedom Blog Hop - Celebrating Our Freedoms

I'm very pleased to be a part of the Freedom Blog Hop! To all my American friends and readers, Happy Fourth of July. To my fellow Canadians, I hope you had a wonderful Canada Day on July 1.

The theme of this blog hop is "Celebrating our freedom to live, love and read." Here in North America, we take our freedoms for granted. We can travel wherever we want, and live wherever we want. As long as we don't promote hate or trample on the freedoms of others, we have the freedom to say or write whatever we want.

And we can love whomever we love. More and more jurisdictions are legalizing same sex marriage. In too many parts of the world, that freedom does not exist, and gay and lesbian couples are persecuted for simply being in love. But before we get too smug, let’s not forget that same sex relationships are still discriminated against here. And it wasn't that long ago that homosexuality was illegal in North America. That situation only changed when people of courage stood up and said no more. In Canada in the late 1960s, Pierre Trudeau famously said that "there's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation", adding that "what's done in private between adults doesn't concern the Criminal Code".

We're also lucky enough to be able to read whatever we want. I've written a couple of books set during or just after World War Two, and in my research I've read about many atrocities perpetrated by the Nazis. One of these atrocities was the mass burning of books. Most of these books were by Jewish authors, Germans who opposed National Socialism, or non-German writers such as Jack London, Ernest Hemingway and H.G. Wells. It’s estimated that in one night alone, May 10, 1933, as many as 25,000 volumes were burned across Germany, mostly in university towns. By burning books, the Nazis sought to silence any descending voices, and eliminate any thoughts that didn’t conform with their agenda.

Reading, whether it be romantic fiction, philosophy or a favorite newspaper, is a joy as well as a right. So let’s celebrate our freedoms and always be vigilant about protecting them. Remember that “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Enjoy the Freedom Blog Hop!

My prizes today are one copy each of my World War Two novellas FLAWLESS and HOME FIRES. Enter the Rafflecopter contest for your chance to win. Good luck!

France, 1942.  The world is at war. The Nazis have stolen the infamous blue diamond, Le Coeur Bleu, intending to barter it for weapons that will destroy the Allies. Jewel thief Hunter Smith is given a choice; help the French Resistance steal back the diamond and avenge the death of his best friend, or stay locked up in an English prison. He chooses revenge.
Resistance fighter Madeleine Bertrand’s husband died when he was betrayed by Hunter Smith. How can she now pretend to be married to the arrogant American? How can she betray Jean Philippe’s memory by her passionate response to Hunter’s kisses? Neither is prepared for the maelstrom of attraction that erupts between them. To survive they must uncover the mysteries of the past and conquer the dangers of the present. But first Madeleine must decide if her loyalties lie with her dead husband and the Resistance or with the greatest love of her life.

FLAWLESS can be purchased at The Wild Rose Press, Amazon, and at other ebook retailers.

Anne Wakefield travels halfway around the world for love. But when she arrives in Canada from England at the end of World War Two, she discovers the handsome Canadian pilot she’d fallen in love with has married someone else. Heartbroken, she prepares to return to London, though she has nothing left there to return to. Her former fiancé’s mother makes a suggestion: marriage to her other son. 
Badly wounded and scarred during the war, Erik Gustafson thinks he’s a poor substitute for his brother. Although he loves Anne almost from the first time he sees her, he cannot believe she would ever be able to love him as he is – especially as he might be after another operation on his bad leg.  Anne sees the beauty of his heart. The cold prairie winter may test her courage, but can she prove to Erik that her love for him is real?

HOME FIRES can be purchased from The Wild Rose Press, Amazon, and from other ebook retailers.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to continue hopping with other members of the Freedom Blog Hop!