Wednesday 29 October 2014

"Inspiration for The Chateau" by Karen Aldous.

Today I'm excited to welcome the wonderful Karen Aldous to Reviewed the Book, who'll be sharing the inspiration for her latest book, The Chateau, which is published tomorrow!






Inspiration for The Chateau


The beautiful town of Montreux on Lake Leman (also known as Lake Geneva) in Switzerland had been beckoning me for years. I’d driven past and taken the train on my way to ski and to spend summers in the mountains with friends, tormented by its splendour. Then, a few years back, one summer, I finally got to visit and, it didn’t disappoint. The lake is truly captivating with miles of lakeside promenade to explore and enjoy and, I couldn’t fail to be impressed by its piece de la resistance - nestled on its eastern shore is the Chateau de Chillon. It is simply stunning with romantic turrets perched on a huge rock which is lapped by the lake water.

















It was late last year however, just months after my mum past away and soon after I received news of my first book contract with CarinaUK when I had an extremely vivid dream. In it I saw a woman in a medieval dress with a rope tied to her waist and being dunked in water and hauled out and back again. The rope being hauled by a wooden-framed contraption and a guard standing at the doorway to a lake or some body of water, operating it. This poor woman was desperately gasping for her breath and her life. Of course it woke me and I wrote it down and the spirit of Agnes-Francesia was created.

















At this stage I had no idea where this had taken place. I hadn’t visited the Chateau on my first visit. However, once I began researching, I discovered that the Chateau de Chillon did have a rather haunting history from around the 12th century. I had to get back there and I returned this year. I found this area of Switzerland had a particularly high number of sorcerers and witches hunted and imprisoned then tried and burned. This woman was just one and wanted her story told. The sad part is, from research I gathered, many of the men and women accused of witchcraft were not even guilty. They were tortured by being dunked until they gave names of others who they believed to be witches. Of course, if they didn’t know any they gave a name to save themselves. Any name. Thus, once accused, authorities, guards and normal folk were so superstitious about being cursed by one of them, there was rarely any redress or way of proving innocence.

















And so, I’d like to thank this lady for haunting my mind that night and hope it gives her some peace and satisfaction that her story has been shared. I also hope you, readers of The Chateau, enjoy it!

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Can young hearts ease a restless spirit?

On the shores of stunning Lake Geneva, Gina Remy is celebrating her brother’s wedding – when the figure of a woman appears hovering above the water, beckoning to her. Ghostly visitations do not happen to Gina - a self-confessed control freak with her own successful property business, she prides herself on being level-headed. But as she is tormented by dreams and visions, her perfect life begins to unravel, and she knows she needs to help this ghost find peace if she’s to get any of her own!

Enter Ollie Martin, an Anglo-Swiss property developer who’s sexy as hell and knows it. His arrogance annoys Gina, but he’s the only one who will take her seriously… and the closer they come to understanding the quest the ghost has set for them, the closer they get to one another…



Purchase Links:

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Amazon AU | Kobo

Author Links:

Twitter | Facebook | Website | Goodreads


4 comments:

  1. Fantastic setting/inspiration. Good luck with the launch.

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  2. It's such a beautiful place. Thank you so much Tanya! Xx

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  3. Ooh I've had a boat trip on Lake Geneva many years ago and totally agree a fab setting. Looking forward to reading this one. Dawn xx

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  4. Thank you Dawn -it's on Net Galley. Yes it's a magical place Lake Geneva and effortlessly stunning!

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