Abdication Inspiration by Paige Shelton

 JENN McKINLAY: I'm thrilled to have Paige Shelton, one of my plot group pals and a Book Talk member, here with us today! Paige writes two of my very favorite series--the Mary Higgins Clark Award nominated Alaska Wild series and the Scottish Bookshop Mysteries. You can't go wrong with either one of these as you'll see in her post below, Paige loves her research and she's very good at it!

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PAIGE SHELTON: The Poison Pen, the ninth book in my Scottish Bookshop Mystery Series, published last week. The story begins with the main character, Delaney, mourning the death of the queen. Shortly thereafter, she is thrown into the middle of a murder whose suspects just might have ties to the royal family. 

Though it’s a murder mystery series and those are, of course, all about finding killers, writing these books has not only allowed me to fictionally do away with some bad guys, but it has also given me a surprising and enjoyable education in Scottish and English history. This time I dug into some of the drama around King Edward VIII’s abdication.

Edward VIII - Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David (seriously, that was his name) abdicated the throne in early December 1936, after having been king for just under a year. It’s widely thought that he “gave up the throne for love,” but my research uncovered things that made me think there was a little more to the story (isn’t there always?). I suspect some people just aren’t cut out for the royal life. We’ve seen some of that recently, of course. I don’t think Edward liked the job. He wasn’t about the traditions and protocols that might have been expected of him. Maybe it was love, but maybe love was just a convenient way out. I’m simplifying, of course, but I really don’t think he enjoyed being king. 

I wondered what might have happened to the royal succession if he hadn’t abdicated. If Edward had remained on the throne and never fathered any “legitimate” (I’m using that word on purpose because it hints at a twist in the The Poison Pen) children, Elizabeth II would have been queen anyway. Her father became king when Edward abdicated, but he died before Edward, making Elizabeth II the next one in line. But if Edward had remained on the throne and had fathered children, everything would be different. It’s hard to imagine. 

Though it seems the family was close, once Edward left his royal life, he lived in virtual exile in France. It is said that Queen Elizabeth II did visit him when he was on his deathbed. He is buried in royal ground, which would not have happened if the queen had objected. Again, as we’ve seen recently, even royal families have their share of dysfunction. 

Abdication isn’t all that uncommon in other monarchies. For example, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark abdicated after back surgery complications; Emperor Akihito of Japan, for health reasons; and King Juan Carlos of Spain for “personal reasons.” Those sorts of abdications aren’t usually followed by exile though. Abdication has been going on for a long time, back as far as 318 BC from what I discovered. 

I don’t use most of the research I do for my books – there’s not enough room or it doesn’t fit. There was one thing I tried hard to include in The Poison Pen, but I couldn’t make it work. On July 10, 1296, King of Scots, John Balliol abdicated. Nicknamed Toom Tabard by his subjects, which means “empty coat,” he was not well-liked and thought to be ineffective. Additionally, Robert the Bruce disliked him so much (they were rivals for the throne, so there is that) that Bruce joined the English forces to fight against the Scottish king. The defeat meant that abdication was probably the only choice for King John. Oh, the drama that must have stirred up. 

Thanks to Jenn McKinlay and all the Jungle Reds for inviting me to post today. And thanks to all the readers. We couldn’t do what we do without you. 

So, what do you think about the abdication, Reds and Readers? Do you ever wonder how things would have turned out if Edward hadn't declined the throne? 

Paige Shelton is the New York Times Bestselling author of the Farmers' Market, Country Cooking School, Dangerous Type, and Scottish Bookshop, and Alaska Wild mysteries. She's lived lots of places but currently resides in Arizona. Find out more at www.paigeshelton.com

On the Road Again by Paige Shelton

Jenn McKinlay: There is nothing I love better than a good road trip and Mary Higgins Clark Award Nominee (you had to know I was going to work that in, Paige) and dear friend, Paige Shelton, is here to tell us about one of hers! Welcome Paige!

Paige Shelton: I don’t know how we managed to pull it off, but back
when I was nineteen (1984), my best friend and I took off and saw the world, by ourselves. Well, it wasn’t the entire world, it was . . . east of Iowa. That’s the direction we wanted to go, and that’s what we did. 

When we were sixteen, we told our parents we were going to do it. We’re pretty sure they thought we were kidding, but we weren’t. I still remember them looking at us as we drove away, their expressions a combination of disbelief, worry, and certainty that we’d turn around in a day or two. We were gone for thirty. 

We had a CB radio. We had cassette tapes with all the Springsteen anyone could want. We camped out on Lake Erie. We slept in the car – got cleaned up wherever we could. We also had friends and family we stayed with on some nights. We drove and walked all around New York City. We saw Waylon Jennings walking into a studio in Nashville. We drove right into the middle of a shift change on a dock in Newport News. My goodness, we were lucky. We had one car issue, but a sympathetic mechanic (probably had a daughter or two) just took care of it and sent us on our way. We made friends with truckers and had meals with them. We never felt uncomfortable around them, and they welcomed us and watched over us. I wish I remembered the CB names we gave ourselves, but I don’t. I can’t even imagine us getting away with such a trip nowadays. I wouldn’t have let my son take a road trip with a couple of buddies when he was nineteen. The times have certainly changed. 

However, I still love a good road trip and try to take a couple every year. My husband and I even took one during the summer of 2020. We spent most of the time in his truck (a pick-up, not like the big rigs from the earlier road trip) or doing outside things as we traveled up to Omaha to see our son and his fiancé. We wore masks everywhere. Once we’re vaccinated to the max – Maxinated, I call it, we’ll still wear masks but we’re hitting the road again.  



I think my love for road trips started when I was a kid, as, it seems, our genuine loves typically do. We would drive to visit my grandparents in Missouri for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. My mom slept, but my dad and I sang. I know many old country western songs. Those were also the days when kids sat on their parent’s laps and held onto the steering wheel. I remember those curvy Missouri back roads well. It’s a wonder I’m still here. 

 Driving through Rolla Missouri was when I learned about Route 66. Though on June 27, 1985, it was declared to no longer be a U.S. Highway, there are still many parts that are preserved and can be seen if you veer off the nearby main roads, which are now mostly I-40 and I-44. I still take that back way every once in a while, and I’ve made some fabulous discoveries. My favorite is Arlington in Missouri. 

Arlington is an old train station and ghost town, near Jerome, Missouri, and it’s fascinating. Train tracks run next to the old station and then lead to a bridge over the Gasconade River. There are a few other houses around and I think it was also an RV resort at one time but not anymore. I highly recommend you take a look if you’re anywhere near there. I hear the bridge might be torn down soon. Oh, I hope not. 

Here’s a picture: 


Photo from: www.Hookedonroute66.com
 

Cool, huh? How about you? Do you have a favorite road trip, a favorite place to pull over and look at the scenery? I’d love to know about it. 

 The fabulous Jenn McKinlay invited to me to post today and talk about my upcoming Scottish Bookshop book, DEADLY EDITIONS.

Thanks to Jenn and all the Jungle Reds and readers. Forgive me for being so distracted by the idea that a road trip might be in my very near future, that that’s what I was compelled to write about. I would be thrilled and honored if you checked out the book though. It was a blast to write (Jekyll and Hyde and Scottish pubs abound). It’s book six in the series and it publishes April 6. See, that’s kind of like Route 66. Thank you!

A treasure hunt through Edinburgh gives way to a search for a villain terrorizing the city in the sixth Scottish Bookshop Mystery.

It’s a quiet, snowy morning at The Cracked Spine bookshop, when bookseller Delaney Nichols receives a mysterious visitor, a messenger. He presents her with a perplexing note: an invitation to a meeting with eccentric socialite Shelagh O'Conner, who requests Delaney’s participation in an exclusive treasure hunt. Delaney is intrigued, but also cautious: Shelagh, while charming in person, has a reputation for her hijinks as a wealthy young woman in the '70s. She was even once suspected for the murder of a former boyfriend, though ultimately cleared of all charges.

But Delaney is enticed by the grand prize at the end of the treasure hunt: a highly valuable first edition copy of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson. The winner is also to receive the contents of Shelagh's vast library, and all participants will earn a large sum of cash.

The night after the first meeting of the treasure hunters, however, several homes in Edinburgh are robbed in a manner reminiscent of Shelagh's old tricks. And when a man connected to Shelagh is killed, suspicion builds. Except Shelagh herself has disappeared from her home, seemingly kidnapped by the villain.

Terror mounts throughout the city as Delaney attempts to solve the mystery, while trying to evade the killer's clutches. But it’s hard to know who to trust when around every corner, a new monster could be lurking.

 

Paige Shelton is the New York Times Bestselling author of the Farmers' Market, Country Cooking School, Dangerous Type, and Scottish Bookshop mysteries. She's lived lots of places but currently resides in Arizona. Find out more at www.paigeshelton.com