Today, I am delighted to welcome Marie Laval as she talks about researching her latest romance novel,  Queen of the Desert, released on February 15th. Over to you, Marie …

I absolutely loved writing and researching this novel. Not only did I get to travel in imagination with my heroine Harriet Montague and my hero Lucas Saintclair to the Sahara desert, but I got to read many legends and tales associated with the mysterious queen Tin Hinan.

Tin Hinan is said to have come from what would now be Morocco and settled at Abalessa, an oasis in Southern Algeria, and founded the Tuaregs tribes, or the  “Kel Tamasheq”(those who speak Tamashek) as they call themselves. Her tomb was discovered by archaeologist, adventurer and allegedly occasional con artist Byron Khun de Prorok (what a name!) in 1925.

In QUEEN OF THE DESERT, I used my artistic licence to write that it was Harriet’s father who discovers the tomb, but I made sure I kept as close as possible to the accounts detailing the artefacts, the gold, silver jewellery, and precious and semi-precious stones which were found there, as well as the description of the remains of the Tuareg queen.

In the days before carbon dating, it was the imprint of a coin with the effigy of Emperor Constantine on a sculptured bowl which enabled historians to date the tomb from the 4^th century AD. The body of Queen Tin Hinan as well as all the artefacts found in her tomb are now in the Bardo Museum in Algiers.

Even before her tomb was discovered, the numerous legends surrounding Queen Tin Hinan inspired Pierre Benoit to write his classic novel ‘Atlantide’, published in 1919. His heroin, Antinea, and her followers are descendants of the people of ‘Atlantis’ who had taken refuge in the Hoggar after a great disaster destroyed their world. Antinea lives in a palace hidden in the mountains, where she seduced and entrapped lost explorers to the Sahara.

Recently there has been some controversy about the identity of the woman who was buried at Abalessa, with some historians now disputing that the remains belonged to Tin Hinan at all! But whoever was buried there however was a woman of immense prestige and immense wealth.

I hope that readers will enjoy the adventure and the mystery in the story as much as the romance between Harriet and Lucas, who remains one of my all times favourite heroes…

Here is the blurb:

Sometimes the most precious treasures exist in the most barren and inhospitable of places …
Harriet Montague is definitely too much of a gentlewoman to be frequenting the backstreet taverns of Algiers. But her father has been kidnapped whilst on an expedition to the tomb of an ancient desert queen, and she’s on a mission to find the only person who could save him.

It’s just unfortunate that Lucas Saintclair, the man Harriet hopes will rescue her father from scoundrels, is the biggest scoundrel of the lot. With a bribe in the form of a legendary pirate treasure map, securing his services is the easiest part – now Harriet must endure a treacherous journey through the desert accompanied by Saintclair’s band of ruffians.
But on the long, hot Saharan nights, is it any wonder that her heart begins to thaw towards her guide – especially when she realises Lucas’s roguish façade conceals something she could never have expected?

QUEEN OF THE DESERT is available as ebook from Amazonand Kobo

Follow The Queen of the Desert on tour as Marie Laval stops by the following blogs:

About the Author:

Originally from Lyon in France, Marie now lives in Lancashire and writes historical and contemporary romance. Best-selling LITTLE PINK TAXI was her debut contemporary romantic novel with Choc Lit. A PARIS FAIRY TALE was published in July 2019, followed by BLUEBELL’S CHRISTMAS MAGIC in November 2019 and bestselling romantic suspense ESCAPE TO THE LITTLE CHATEAU which was shortlisted for the 2021 RNA Jackie Collins Romantic Suspense Award. HAPPY DREAMS AT MERMAID COVE is her latest contemporary romance. QUEEN OF THE DESERT is Marie’s second historical romance, following on from ANGEL OF THE LOST TREASURE which features another member of the Saintclair family.

She also writes short stories for the bestselling Miss Moonshine anthologies, and is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and the Society of Authors. Her novels are available as ebooks and audiobooks on Amazon and various other platforms.

You can find out more about Marie here:  Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest 

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog, Marie. I hope you enjoy the rest of your tour. xx