Meet Electra Yellowsmith from History Talks! Author Xina Marie Uhl’s Antarctic #romance

Xina Marie Uhl is here today to tell us more about the heroine of All Mouth and No Trousers: A Sweet Romance (An Icebound Tale) set in the exotic locale of Antarctica.

Loving Historical Romance graphicBut before we start the interview, mark your calendars for Monday, Feb. 8th at 6:30PM! Xina, Autumn Bardo, Zenobia Neal and I will be doing a free panel discussion on Loving Historical Romance for the Santa Clarita Public Library. Click here to register for this fun event. Blogger Erin Davies will moderate. Click on the event under Feb. 8th to register.

Electra YellowsmithLM: Xina, tell us about Eletra Yellowsmith.

XU: Electa Yellowsmith, a self-possessed, smart-mouthed secretary on the British Antarctic Base. She’s beautiful and well aware of her effect on men, and she uses that to her advantage. She’s also quite choosy, and knows just what she wants: the blustery, recently divorced, utterly clueless commandant.

LM: What are her greatest strengths?

XU: Persistence and cleverness. Once she knows what she wants she zeroes in on accomplishing her goals. That doesn’t mean she’s always successful, though.

LM: What are her greatest weaknesses?

XU: She can come off as haughty in order to keep herself from being hurt. It’s not easy for her to be vulnerable, and putting her heart on the line doesn’t come natural.

LM: What are some of her favorite foods?

XU: Champagne, caviar, and shortbread biscuits.

LM: Sounds good to me! Will readers like or dislike this character, and why?

It depends on which of the Icebound tales they read. According to the main character in Whiter Pastures, she’s not sympathetic, but that’s okay since she has a minor role there. She’s a main character in All Mouth and No Trousers, and as such she’s amusing and interesting to read about.

LM: What first gave you the idea for the Icebound stories: Whiter Pastures and All Mouth and No Trousers?

XU: A combination of factors: my love of explorer stories, fascination with the Antarctic, desire to make people laugh, and coming across this article: 106 of the Least Popular Baby Names in American History (I’m determined to write stories in which I name my characters each of these).

LM: LOL, that’s a lot of names! I’ll have to check out the article. What do you like best about Icebound stories?

XU: They are fun despite the rather grim history of Antarctica. I love to write about quirky people and these characters have unlikely adventures which makes them even more fun.

Two romantic novellas in the Icebound series, an ongoing collection of polar delights.

Behold dogsleds and penguins.

Howling winds and cold, pitiless wastes.

This is Antarctica, where the intrepid inhabitants of the frozen ends of the earth battle the terrain, and each other, to find love—in a past much like that of the early 1900s.

Whiter Pastures coverReluctant spinster Florance Barton fled to the British Antarctic base to escape a scandalous love affair. Amidst the handful of other women there, Florance is the perfect chambermaid, meek, mild, and forgettable. No one has a clue that she’s also a novice spy.

When handsome young Handy McHanagan arrives at the base, he sets everyone agog. He’s charming, artistic, and … an accomplished gardener. His arrival may be a mistake on the part of naval command. Or is it something more sinister?

Killer seals and subzero ice storms and aren’t the only danger in Antarctica: a enemy spy is on the loose. Florance has been ordered to choose between queen and country and her heart. Because penguin is off the menu now–and murder is its replacement.

All Mouth cover

Amidst the scientists and explorers at the British Antarctic base in 1900 there are a few women who serve as maids, cooks, and nurses.

Then there’s Electa Yellowsmith.

The beautiful blonde secretary has no problem attracting male attention, but she’s got her eye set on Commander Gorge Elderbatch. He may yell like a longshoreman and drink like a fish, but Electa likes the cut of his jib, and the idea of being an officer’s wife.

Gorge has enough trouble with ice crevasses, blizzard forecasts, and upcoming polar expeditions without his smart-mouthed secretary defying him at every turn. What could a looker like her want with a grump like him, anyhow? Especially since he’s sworn off women after his disastrous divorce.

Gorge may be as dense as an iceberg, but Electa hasn’t yet met a man she couldn’t charm. Though if that doesn’t work she has plenty of schemes that just might. The result is a comedy of errors and explosions in a frostbitten frontier.

Buy Links:

All Mouth and No Trousers: https://books2read.com/u/mZjx9R

Whiter Pastures: https://books2read.com/u/bPZKxj

Author Details

Website: http://www.xuwriter.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/xinamarieuhl
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/XinaMarieUhl/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xuwriter/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/xuwriter
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Xina-Marie-Uhl/e/B00E7AKNR4

Newsletter signup link http://bit.ly/30qhIAS (Includes a free short story when you sign up)

Other books published:

Necropolis: https://books2read.com/u/3Gd8nO
The Cats’ Guide to Human Behavior: https://books2read.com/u/mVKjoZ
The King’s Champion: https://books2read.com/u/4DWXvk
Lady Law and the Texas DeRangers: https://books2read.com/u/38MkoL

Xina, thanks for visiting! See you on the 8th.

Linda McLaughlin

Meet Spooky History Author Xina Marie Uhl #authorinterview

Spooky Topics

Please join me in welcoming historical author Xina Marie Uhl to the Reading Room today.

Author Xina Marie UhlThanks for joining us today, Xina. Tell us a little about yourself. What do you do for a living?

I write full time: part of the time I write fiction and part of the time I write nonfiction educational books for young people, though Covid-19 has disrupted the nonfiction work for now. Writing is something I do about 6 days of the week, and it occupies an important part in my day. Some days it is harder than others to actually accomplish, though.

What’s your home life like?

Pretty quiet these days. There’s just my husband and me, three dogs, and one 21-year old cat. I’ve worked from home for 13 years now and it is so nice, though it does have its challenges, like anything.

What are your hobbies?

Hiking, travel, research, photography, and mosaics. Of these, hiking is the one I spend most of my time doing. I find it restorative to be alone in the quiet with just my dog for company.

What’s a dream you have? How are you working toward this dream?

I want to see one of my stories as a video. Along with the help of some talented people, I’m working at filming a short script I wrote. It’s exciting but also somewhat scary since I’ve never done such a thing before. I have a few scripts laying about here and it would be so fun to bring them to life.

What historical period is your favorite? Why?

It’s hard to pick just one. My original favorites are the Ancient Mediterranean and the Ancient Near East. The sweep of history involved so many fascinating expressions of human societies. The Assyrians brought the heavy foot of conquest down on their enemies, and created fantastical art while doing it, the Greeks debated and discovered many philosophical and scientific methods; their development of drama and comedy affects us today, and the Romans evolved from stoic and practical farmers to builders of roads, bridges, and aqueducts that remain today. I could go on and on.

What subjects do you like to give historical talks about? Why?

I’ve taught World History and California History in addition to writing about various time periods such as the Ancient Mediterranean, the Old West, and Antarctica and the Arctic from the late 1800s through the early 1900s, so I’m game to talk about just about anything, though favorite subjects include women, explorers, Alexander the Great, and the artistic and scientific achievements of the ancient world.

Necropolis cover

Necropolis cover

Xina’s novel Necropolis is a fantasy greatly influenced by ancient history.

When prison guard Conyr rescues a young priest from execution, he sets off a dangerous adventure that brings allies in a scheming politician, a mischievous urchin, and a beautiful tavern server. Together, the group must navigate a maze of power-hungry rivals, skilled assassins, and deadly sorcery. For the young priest’s lost memory holds the key to more than his past, but the fate of two cities.

Buy Now! Amazon.com * BarnesandNoble.com * Apple Smashwords.com

How to find Xina online:

Website: www.xuwriter.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/xinamarieuhl
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/XinaMarieUhl/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xuwriter/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/xuwriter
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Xina-Marie-Uhl/e/B00E7AKNR4

Newsletter signup link http://bit.ly/30qhIAS (Includes a free short story when you sign up)

And please join us for Spooky History on Monday, October 19, 2020 at 6:30 p.m. (PT) The Zoom meeting is sponsored by the Santa Clarita Library in their series of History Talks held monthly on various historical topics.

Click here to register: bit.ly/HTSpookyHistory

Hope to see you there.

Linda McLaughlin