Release Notes is thrilled to feature Lorna Peel and her novel, Into the Unknown. Set during in England during World War II, the story provides a look at love during the time of war. Make sure to read through the entire post and check out the giveaway at the end of the post. Make sure to visit Lorna and let her know you saw it here on Release Notes. Her information is below! I hope you enjoy!
Make Do and
Mend
At the
outbreak of World War Two in September 1939, almost a quarter of the British
population was entitled to wear some sort of uniform. The increased demand for
uniforms put enormous pressure on Britain's textile and clothing industries and
rationing was introduced in June 1941. Silk was one of the first fabrics to go
as it was needed for the war effort, so Into The Unknown’s Kate Sheridan was
very lucky to have been bought two sets of silk lingerie by her aunt Helen to
replace her embarrassingly old-fashioned underwear.
Rationing
worked by allocating each type of clothing item a value in points. Every adult
was initially given an allocation of 66 points to last one year, but this
allocation shrank as the war progressed. Eleven coupons were required for a
dress, two needed for a pair of stockings, and eight coupons for a man's shirt
or a pair of trousers. Women's shoes meant handing over five coupons, and for
men's footwear seven.
Despite
these shortages, people were encouraged to keep looking fashionable in order to
keep up morale and the 'Make Do and Mend' campaign was launched to encourage
people to make their existing clothes last longer. The ability to repair, alter
and make clothes from scratch became increasingly important as the war went on.
Kate would have studied needlework at school in Ireland, so she wouldn’t have
found making clothes from a pattern too daunting a task.
Over 40
million gas masks had been distributed around Britain by the outbreak of war.
The population were told to carry them at all times in the standard-issue
cardboard box tied up with string. Fashion designers quickly saw a gap in the
market, turned the ugly boxes into handbags at the top and a space at the
bottom for the mask, and these were snapped up by many women like Kate.
Make-up was
never rationed, but was taxed and very expensive. As with their clothes, women
found imaginative ways around shortages. Bright red lipstick was a way to look
glamorous, even if you couldn’t afford any other cosmetics. And when it just
couldn’t be found, beetroot juice was used instead of both blusher and lipstick
and boot polish instead of mascara. When stockings were in short supply, an
eyeliner was used to draw a ‘seam’ up the back of the legs—which may also have
been carefully painted with gravy browning to appear like a tan shade of
stockings. So, instead of being moth-balled for the duration of the war,
fashion became more inventive and individual—the colours brighter and the
colours bolder.
Excerpt:
Following
Helen into a department store’s lingerie department, and into a changing room,
Kate stripped right down to her embarrassingly old-fashioned underwear.
Catching sight of the shop girl’s smirking face in the mirror, Kate wanted the
ground to open up and swallow her. The girl measured her before bringing a
selection of bras and knickers for her to choose from. Kate stared in
consternation. How could she choose? They were all beautiful. Thankfully, Helen
decided for her.
“We’ll take
the peach set and the white,” she said. “Would you like to wear the peach set
now, Kate?”
Kate had
been running her fingers over the silk in awe and jumped. “Yes, I will. Thank
you.”
She changed
into the lingerie and stared at herself for a long time in the mirror. Silk.
She had never felt anything so soft before.
“Let’s see,
Kate.” She heard her aunt’s voice, opened the curtains, and both women stared
at her. “Good Lord.” Helen seemed astonished. “You do have a figure, after
all.”
Passing a
boutique a little later, Kate stopped and gazed at a suit in the window. Helen
had walked on but returned to her and smiled. “That’s very smart, isn’t it? Do
you want to try it on?”
“Oh, no, it
looks very expensive.”
“Do you
like it?” Helen asked.
“Oh, yes,
it’s lovely.”
“That’s
just as well because it’s yours.”
“Mine?”
Kate’s mouth fell open. It must have cost a fortune. “Oh, thank you.”
“Nonsense,
you’re starting to look feminine at last. Shoes and a handbag next.”
They found
a black handbag and matching shoes in a shop across the street. Again, Kate
paraded up and down, but this time to get used to the high heels. Standing up
in them for the first time, she had almost toppled over. Kate tottered along
the street, finding herself much taller than Helen, and followed her into a
hair salon.
“Your hair
isn’t too bad, actually,” Helen told her before turning to the stylist. “A
trim, and style it, please.”
Within an
hour, Kate’s hair had been swept back from her face into a chignon. Her aunt
leaned forward.
“Cheekbones,
too,” she murmured and nodded. “Beauty salon next.”
Out on the
street, Kate found herself being stared at and even attracted wolf whistles
from a
group of soldiers. It felt strange—embarrassing—but flattering, too.
London on 3
September 1939 is in upheaval. War is inevitable. Into this turmoil steps Kate
Sheridan, newly arrived from Ireland to live with her aunt and uncle, and look
for work. When she meets Flight Lieutenant Charlie Butler sparks fly, but he is
a notorious womaniser. Should she ignore all the warnings and get involved with
a ladies man whose life will be in daily danger?
Charlie
Butler has no intention of getting involved with a woman. But when he meets
Kate his resolve is shattered. Should he allow his heart to rule his head and
fall for a nineteen-year-old Irish girl while there is a war to fight?
Private
conflicts and personal doubts are soon overshadowed. Will the horrors of war
bring Kate and Charlie together or tear them apart?
Amazon UK -
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00UAY719Y
Amazon US -
http://amzn.com/B00UAY719Y
Smashwords
- https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/525040
Barnes and
Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1121346684
Author Bio
and Links
Lorna Peel is an author of contemporary and
historical romantic fiction. She has had work published in three Irish
magazines – historical articles on The Stone of Scone in ‘Ireland’s Own’, on
The Irish Potato Famine in the ‘Leitrim Guardian’ – and Lucy’s Lesson, a
contemporary short story in ‘Woman’s Way’.
Her first novel, Only You, a contemporary
romance, was published in 2014. Into The Unknown, an historical novel set
during WWII, will be published on 5 May 2015.
Lorna was born in England and lived in
North Wales until her family moved to Ireland to become farmers, which is a
book in itself! She lives in rural Ireland, where she write, researches her
family history, and grows fruit and vegetables. She also keeps chickens (and a
Guinea Hen who now thinks she’s a chicken!).
Thank you for hosting me, Karen!
GIVEAWAY!
Make sure to
follow the whole tour—the more posts you visit throughout, the more chances
you’ll get to enter the giveaway. The tour dates are here: http://www.writermarketing.co.uk/prpromotion/blog-tours/currently-on-tour/lorna-peel-2/
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