Blog Tour: Guest Post: To Find My Mother by Mary Wood
Today I am helping to end the blog tour for To Find My Mother by Mary Wood. This is a historical fiction novel that deals with the Holocaust. It is about two young girls and their story of survival and love. Mary is sharing a guest post and talking about the novel! To Find My Mother was just released April 20, 2026. **If you are lucky enough to live in the UK, To Find My Mother is on a Kindle Countdown Deal of 99p until June 8th!**
Book Description:
A HARROWING AND YET UPLIFTING STORY OF SURVIVAL AND LOVE
Best friends Jana and Eva are carefree eight-year-olds in Prague-until Nazi occupation tears their lives apart.
As their mothers are taken away and the girls face the horrors of war, survival becomes all that matters
In Theresienstadt, two desperate women make unimaginable sacrifices to one day find their children.
But will love and hope be enough to help them reunite?
Buy Your Copy Here:
Amazon US
Amazon UK To Find My Mother is on a Kindle Countdown Deal of 99p until June 8th!
Hello everyone,
I am thrilled to be here.
I am an author of 36 Historical Fiction books – 11 of which were written under the pseudonym of Maggie Mason besides these I have written a Gangland Thriller under the pseudonym of Molly Kent. Here for you to enjoy is a summary of my latest book.
TO FIND MY MOTHER is harrowing in parts as it deals with the holocaust – a dreadful time in the world’s history that we all hope is never repeated.
In a very short chapter one, we meet Jana, a young Jewish girl, living in London. searching for her mother.
Then the story behind that search unfolds as we are taken back in real time to 1939.
Jana and her friend, Eva, just eight years old, are playing happily until the moment they hear the drumming sound of many feet pounding the road. In the distance they see what to them is a magnificent sight – rows and rows of soldiers, immaculately dressed, marching as if they were clockwork figures. Unaware of danger, they are soon enveloped in fear as Jana’s mama clutches them to her and utters: ‘Elohim save us.’
So begins a life of segregation, the wearing of the Star of David, and not being allowed to attend school and worst of all, the disappearance of loved ones. Until one day whilst playing in the park across from their apartment block, they hide when their street is suddenly filled with Nazis arriving in trucks. What they witnessed should never be so.
The book follows their journey as they are rescued and cared for by outlying farmers – The rebuilding of their lives to feeling happy and secure with many moments of joy but always lurking in the shadows is their longing to be with their mamas and to know what happened to their Tata’s (father’s).
Their story then goes forward to them being aged thirteen when they find where their mamas are incarcerated – hear tales of starvation and cruelty, but also of other children taking food to the walls of the ghetto where a young girl from inside crawls through to collect it.
Their decision to do this for their mama’s, brings them joy, but leads to the end of life as they know it . . .
For Marie, mama of Jana, and for Lenka, mama of Eva, whose story is told alongside Jana’s and Eva’s, their lives have changed unrecognisably as they try to survive in Theresienstadt. In their quest to avoid the dreaded lists that see hundreds of Jews sent to concentrations camps, leads to a path that’s abhorrent to Marie.
They want to live. They want to find their children. They know this won’t be possible if they are ‘chosen’. The tales they hear of extermination of Jews being carried out in Auschwitz where many are sent, fills them with fear.
Lenka shocks Marie by the measures she takes to progress to a trusted position in an endeavour to keep them safe. For herself, the love she still holds for her beloved husband, Jan, will not let her betray his memory in that way. Having a beautiful voice, she is chosen for the choir which affords her some protection.
One concert is attended by Rolf, an officer of high ranking. When he falls in love with her, her life changes. But is devastated once more when Jana and Eva are captured and by what happens to Eva and then to Lenka, the friend she has had in her life since they were children. . .
This is a story that takes you from, Prague to England, to Argentina. It will tear at your heart and give you moments of heartbreak and of feeling fear for the characters, interspersed with Joy and eventual happiness as you involve yourself in the incredible resilience and courage shown during the Holocaust, not just by the Jewish community but by many who tried to help them, including German soldiers.
All characters are fictious, but events are based on true accounts.
Hope you enjoyed my post. Thank you for having me, Much love to all, Mary x
About the Author:
Mary was brought up in Leicestershire where her family settled when she was six months old, Mary now lives in Blackpool with her beloved husband Roy. Their children have long flown the nest and are living happily with their partners and have extended Mary and Roy’s happiness by giving them eight wonderful grandchildren, and umpteen great grandchildren, all of whom are a joy to them.
Mary began writing in the 1980’s but didn’t find success until she self-published on amazon in 2011. Soon after she was thrilled to be spotted by Pan Macmillan who have since published 24 of her books, including the bestselling Jam Factory Girls series. Her latest being ‘A Lasting Promise’ and ‘Her Hidden courage’.
Soon after being published by Pan Macmillan, Mary was approached by Sphere, a subsidiary of Little Brown Books. Joining them she wrote 12 novels under the pseudonym of Maggie Mason. Including the bestselling, The Half Penny Girls. Her latest Maggie Mason is: A Daughter’s Dream, with one more to come in 2027 yet, untitled.
Mary has now come full circle and is returning to publishing herself with the help of her son, James Wood, as she now cares for her beloved husband and needs to set her own, achievable deadlines, but remains ever grateful to both of her publishers and for all they did for her.
Contact Mary:
Website
YouTube @booksbymarywood8074
TikTok @authormarywood
Instagram @mary.wood.7796420
The Blog Tour:
Audiobook Review: Rebellion 1776 by Laurie Halse Anderson
Rebellion 1776
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
Narrator: Phoebe Strole
Published: April 1, 2025
Audiobook: 10 hours 00 minutes
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Listened To: April 5-12, 2026
Jessica’s Rating: 3.5 stars
Book Description:
A historical fiction middle grade adventure about a girl struggling to survive amid a smallpox epidemic, the public’s fear of inoculation, and the seething Revolutionary War.
In the spring of 1776, thirteen-year-old Elsbeth Culpepper wakes to the sound of cannons. It’s the Siege of Boston, the Patriots’ massive drive to push the Loyalists out that turns the city into a chaotic war zone. Elsbeth’s father—her only living relative—has gone missing, leaving her alone and adrift in a broken town while desperately seeking employment to avoid the orphanage.
Just when things couldn’t feel worse, the smallpox epidemic sweeps across Boston. Now, Bostonians must fight for their lives against an invisible enemy in addition to the visible one. While a treatment is being frantically fine-tuned, thousands of people rush in from the countryside begging for inoculation. At the same time, others refuse protection, for the treatment is crude at best and at times more dangerous than the disease itself.
Elsbeth, who had smallpox as a small child and is now immune, finds work taking care of a large, wealthy family with discord of their own as they await a turn at inoculation, but as the epidemic and the revolution rage on, will she find her father?
Jessica’s Review:
We have a middle grades historical fiction novel taking place in 1776 Boston. In addition to the war for Independence, the city of Boston is dealing with a smallpox epidemic. Our MC is 13-year-old Elsbeth whose father disappears and she ends up working as a ‘serving girl’ for the Pike family and their ward 16-year-old Hannah.
The listener or reader goes along with Hannah over a short time period and experiences many activities with her. At times Hannah addresses the reader/listener directly. We experience 1776 in Boston and the effects of smallpox, including the inoculation process. As the listener we realize how serious smallpox is and all of its effects. We also see how the town feels for or against the vaccine.
The novel takes place over a short time period, March 4- November 29, 1776. At the beginning of each chapter we are given the date(s) for the time period, but with the audiobook I had issues remembering how long of a piece of time each chapter was. I did not realize how important this was until I met with my book club. Reading a physical book/ kindle you could go back and look at that again. That isn’t really possible with an audiobook. Other than this issue, the narrator is a good job portraying Elsbeth.
This is a good YA novel that shows the time period and the everyday person’s struggle to survive war and disease.
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Blog Tour Guest Post: No More Tomorrows: A Confession From a Romance Author
Today I am taking part in the blog tour for No More Tomorrows by Olivia Lockhart and Hal Lambert. Today Olivia is sharing a confession: She loves writing sex scenes! I’m intrigued by this novel so I had to put in a pre-0rder for it! **And if you are lucky enough to live in the UK, there is a giveaway going on to win a signed copy of the novel!
No More Tomorrows is available now! It was just released on April 9th.
Book Description:
Two eras. One aching heart.
1917 – At Cambridge University, American scholar Harry Turchin never expects to lose himself to desire. But Annie Mackenzie—soft-spoken, grieving, and luminous—claims his heart from their very first kiss. Their love is swift, fierce, and intoxicating. Married just days before Harry is sent to war, their passion is ripped apart when the trenches claim everything he knows, and Harry is thrown into a future that should not exist.
1967 – The free-spirited sixties are alive with rhythm, rebellion, and possibility. Harry awakens to a world he doesn’t recognise—and to Annalise Taylor, as bold and captivating as the era itself. Brilliant, independent, and achingly alive, she rouses a desire he thought belonged solely to the past.
Caught between the love he was ripped away from and the passion he cannot resist, Harry is torn between two women, two lives, and two versions of forever. Because time will not bend twice … Or will it?
Sweeping from the blood-soaked battlefields of World War One to the fevered nights of the swinging sixties, No More Tomorrows is a sensual time-slip romance about desire, devotion, and the devastating power of love that refuses to be bound by time.
Buy Your Copy Here:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Confession From A Romance Author:
I Love Writing Sex Scenes!
I love writing sex scenes. Maybe that has something to do with the kind of books I write. In my stories, the intimacy is never pointless. It isn’t there purely for titillation or shock value. It’s there because it reveals something deeper about the characters – their trust, their vulnerability, and the love growing between them.
To me, those moments are another form of storytelling.
Literature can be incredibly sensual when it’s done well, but I’ve read too many books that focus purely on the physical mechanics of it all. You know the type, insert A into B while stroking C, followed by a meticulous description of what D looked like in the moment. Technically detailed, perhaps – but for me, they miss the point entirely.
That kind of writing has never been what draws me in.
What I care about are the small, human details. The way someone’s breath catches unexpectedly. The way their eyes soften as they look at the person they love. The nervous hesitation before a first touch, the quiet wonder of discovering someone’s body and realising that they trust you enough to let you be there.
Those are the moments that make a scene feel real.
For me, intimacy in books isn’t about anatomy – it’s about emotion. It’s about the tension that builds between two people who have been circling each other for chapters, sometimes for an entire novel. It’s about the shift in their relationship when the walls come down and they finally allow themselves to be seen fully by another person.
When that connection is written well, the physical side of the scene almost becomes secondary. It’s there, of course, but it’s the emotional weight behind it that makes readers feel something.
That’s the kind of scene I love writing.
In many ways, it’s also part of the reason I started writing in the first place. I’ve always loved romance novels, but over the years I found myself frustrated by some of the ones I read. The relationships didn’t feel believable, or the intimacy felt disconnected from the story itself.
So eventually I did the slightly reckless thing many writers do.
I decided to write my own.
It feels like a bold statement to say that out loud, because the truth is that someone, somewhere, will inevitably think my books fall into the same category of “bad romance” that I once complained about. Taste is subjective, after all. What works beautifully for one reader might completely miss the mark for another.
And that’s okay.
At the end of the day, all any writer can really do is write the stories that feel true to them. The stories we’d want to read ourselves. The ones that make us excited to sit down at the keyboard and bring characters to life.
For me, that means writing romance that leans into the emotional side of intimacy – the tenderness, the anticipation, the quiet moments of connection that happen between two people who care deeply about each other.
Because when those feelings are on the page, the scene becomes about far more than sex.
It becomes about love.
And if I’m lucky, somewhere out there are readers who feel the same way. Readers who connect with those moments, who see the beauty in them, and who want to experience more stories where intimacy isn’t just physical – it’s emotional too.
Those are the readers I write for.
And hopefully, they’ll keep wanting me to write more.
About One of the Authors:
Olivia Lockhart (Livvie to her friends) is an English author who can’t quite decide if she wants to write contemporary romance, historical romance, or paranormal romance. So she writes them all, because it HAS to be romance!
She loves to write about the underdog, the one who got away, the bits of love stories we can all relate to.
When not writing she can be found drinking wine, cuddling with her beloved pooch, or with her head in a book.
**UK GIVEAWAY**
Win a signed copy of No More Tomorrows
Click here to enter to win! (Win for me since I can’t enter as I am in the US!)
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the link above. The winner will be selected at random via Gleam from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. She is not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize
Contact Olivia:
X @Olivialocks
Instagram @livvieharts