Tom Douglas

Diana's Rebel Heritage

In 1997, the world mourned the tragic passing of Diana, Princess of Wales. A cultural icon of her time, she was famous for her sense of style and her independent spirit.

As a member of Britain's illustrious Spencer dynasty, Diana came by these attributes naturally. For over 400 years, strong, rebellious women have been a part of the Spencer family.

Diana's female ancestors built fortunes, wielded political power, set fashion trends, and inspired their generations. And, like Diana, they suffered through scandals, heartbreaks, and public scrutiny.

Author Gail Douglas has produced a fascinating overview of the female side of this dynasty, with the underlying theme: "How could the Royal Family have deluded themselves into thinking that Diana would be a compliant, meek little mouse when she had Spencer blood roaring through her veins?"

"Diana's Rebel Heritage - Five Centuries of Scandal and Defiance" is available at Chapters, Indigo, Coles and other bookstores as well as on www.amazon.ca and www.amazingstories.ca.

Signed copies of all Gail's books are available by emailing the author at: gaildouglas@cogeco.ca

Étienne Brûlé

Étienne Brûlé was a teenager when he set sail from France with Samuel de Champlain for the new world.

Brûlé took immediately to the new, rugged lifestyle of what would become Canada. He lived with the Huron Indians, learned their language and travelled with them across vast stretches of wilderness. He is believed to be the first European to see the Great Lakes in several canoe trips that would challenge the stamina of today's Olympic athletes.

Champlain condoned Brûlé's new lifestyle for several reasons. It helped make French friends among a powerful Indian tribe; it gave them an "in" when procuring product in the lucrative fur trade; it helped Champlain contruct a map of what he called New France; and it aligned the Hurons with the French against the British in the New World.

Unfotunately through a series of misunderstandings, Champlain and Brûlé had an irreconcilable falling out. To make matters worse, the young explorer also ended up at odds with his Huron hosts who, legend has it, tortured, roasted and ate their guest.

"Étienne Brûlé - The Mysterious Life and Times of an Early Canadian Legend" is available at Chapters, Indigo, Coles and other bookstores as well as on www.amazon.ca and www.amazingstories.ca. Signed copies are also available from the author at www.gaildouglas.cogeco.ca

The Loveswept Line

Before she broke into the mainstream publishing field, Gail found that it was as difficult to interest an agent in taking on your manuscripts as it was to find a publisher. A published author advised her to try breaking into the romance line, a genre that would still look at new authors. When she replied that she had never even read a romance, her mentor suggested she set aside a weekend, read about a dozen of them and get the formula down pat.

The result was that Gail had her first manuscript accepted by the Loveswept division of Bantam/Doubleday/Dell out of New York. The publishers chose the title "On Wings Of Flame" and set about hiring actors to dress the parts of the "loveswept" protagonists and have photos taken. One of the photos went to an artist who produced a painting that would be used as the cover.

Next came the Hollywoodesque flight to New York City to meet with her publisher and editor for lunch at a chic NYC restaurant. This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship, resulting in Gail publishing 14 romance novels for Bantam, including the popular Dreamweavers quartet about four sisters who operate tourist attractions in different international cities: Key West, Nice, New Orleans and Edinburgh.

Gail's books were translated into about 16 languages, including Italian, Swedish, Russian, French, German and Dutch, and sold all over the world.

Signed copies of all of Gail's books are available by contacting her at: gaildouglas@cogeco.ca