Highlighting Historical Romance with Pamela Gibson and her novel Scandal’s Deception.
My quirky American heroine in Scandal’s Deception uses worry beads to calm herself. Hers are
amber and are spaced evenly on a string. Worry beads were believed to have been created by monks in Mount Athos, Greece, years beforethe time of A.D. Like strings of good pearls, they are placed at specific intervals and are knotted to keep the beads in place. The beads themselves can be turned and were most likely made of olive pits, wood, or other inexpensive materials and used for prayer.
They are no longer used for religious purposes, transitioning in the 18 th century to other uses. Amber and coral are now considered the best beading materials, although worry beads are sometimes made of metal. In addition to stress relief by turning each bead on the string, then starting over, the beads can also have a musical quality as they move against each other. A full set of worry beads are called Komboloi. (prayer) and are usually an uneven number like 33 or 23. A half set are called Begleri and are an even number.
My Regency heroine’s father bought hers in a shop in New York while on a visit. She carries them with her to calm her fears when she travels from her home in America to England to meet her mother, a woman she long-thought dead. Many more surprises confront her, making her use of this calming aid frequent.
Worry beads today are widely available and are often quite lovely. They present an alternative for those who prefer tactile ways to handle stress.
About the Book
Jane Stafford, raised in America, is shocked to learn she is a wealthy heiress, her late father was an earl, and her English mother is alive. Anxious to meet the woman she long-thought dead, she travels
to London, only to be whisked away by her sinfully handsome guardian to a remote estate to be “schooled” in the ways of the ton.
Gilbert Carmichael, Lord Ralston, chafes at having to make a rebellious young heiress acceptable to society, especially one who is impetuous and blatantly democratic. Because the instruction she needs is more than deportment and dancing. It’s also about how to spot a rake who might woo her for her fortune.
When Ralston learns his ward is to be used as a pawn in an elaborate scheme involving a secret impersonation, he will move heaven and earth to keep her safe. Because proximity has brought the uncomfortable knowledge that his interest may be more than duty—it just might be love.
Buy link for Scandal’s Deception
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098BBLPR4/
About the Author
Author of eight books on California history and over a dozen romance novels, Pamela Gibson is a former City Manager who now lives in Henderson, Nevada. Having spent the last three years messing about in boats, a hobby that included a five-thousand-mile trip in a 32-foot Nordic Tug, she now spends most of her time indoors happily reading, writing, cooking and keeping up with the antics of her gran-cats, gran-dog, and gran-fish. Sadly, the gran-lizard went to his final reward.
Growing up in the small, historic California town of San Juan Capistrano, just a half mile from the Pacific Ocean, she majored in history in college and went on to get a master’s degree in public administration.
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Thank you Caroline.