Always the Music   is the story of Cosima, one of three illegitimate children born to Franz Liszt and his mistress. After her parents separate, Cosima spends her childhood searching for the love and security she lost. She survives years of uncertainty, shuffled between boarding schools and disapproving governesses, while trying to please both parents in the hope that she can bring them together. After Cosima joins her glamorous and adventuresome mother in a daring escapade through the streets of Paris, Liszt tightens his control, a decision that leads Cosima straight to the arms of her father’s piano student, Hans von Bulow. As she attempts to escape from Hans’ mother’s domination, her life takes a downward spiral, one that leads inevitably to an affair with Richard Wagner, an event that prompts Cosima to take control of her own destiny. This is the story of one woman’s remarkable courage in the face of scandal, and how she survives to help create a legacy that survives to this day as the Bayreuth Festival.

Read an interview with Elizabeth here.

Theodora of Constantinople  is a story of one woman’s triumph over adversity in the waning days of the Roman Empire. Theodora, a bearkeeper’s daughter, is the Hippodrome’s favorite actress. Tempted by gold, she performs a lewd act on stage before a crowd of excited spectators. Humiliated and struggling to gain respect, she accepts a governor’s offer of marriage and accompanies him to North Africa, lured by promises of sanctuary and status. Later, disillusioned and desperate, she begins a journey that brings her from the depths of despair to the arms of an emperor, but her newfound joy is short-lived. This is the second in a series about women who defined their own lives in the shadow of powerful men. The novel is based on the life of Theodora, a sixth century empress, best known for her part in ending the Nika riots. The book examines the events that allowed this controversial personality to reach beyond class status, deception, and political maneuvering to create her own unique destiny and carve her place in the history of the Byzantines.

When Augustus discovers his daughter Julia’s adulterous affair with Marc Anthony’s son, the lovers are forced to make desperate choices that scandalize Roman elite and change the course of history in the Republic.

Julia, Daughter of Rome  is the first of a series about women who defined their own lives in the shadow of powerful men. Julia, strong-willed and determined to live life to the fullest, is a descendant of Pompey on her mother’s side. Her father, adopted heir of Julius Caesar’s power, is the new leader of Rome. As such, he is intent on shaping Julia to fit his idea of a respectable Roman matron.

The book, written in three parts, begins when Julia is taken from her mother’s home to live with Octavian and Livia, his new wife. Part Two reflects Julia’s chaotic years as a young wife, first to Marcellus, and later, to Agrippa, Octavian’s general and the man who helped Octavian defeat Marc Anthony at the Battle of Actium. In Part three, Julia matures into the woman she will become as she pursues lasting happiness with Iullus, the son of Marc Anthony.

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