About Deadly Village
In a village steeped in secrets, one woman's past is the key to solving a murder.
Olivia Redmond thought she'd left danger behind in blitzed-out London. But the quiet Cotswold village of Chipping Ford offers little refuge--especially when a local gossip turns up dead. With a baby to care for and the villagers turning frosty, Olivia's only ally is a young bobby overwhelmed by his first murder case.
As a former newspaper reporter and covert asset for Britain's intelligence chief, Olivia knows how to uncover the truth. The deeper she digs, the uglier it gets: blackmail, betrayal, and decades of whispered sins. And as the village closes ranks, Olivia must choose--keep the peace or expose the secrets that could shatter everything.
Perfect for readers of historical mysteries with sharp heroines and tangled moral landscapes, Deadly Village is the exciting thirteenth book in the World War II mystery Deadly Series. If you like research based history and clean reads, then you'll love USA Today Bestselling Author Kate Parker's page-turning mystery.
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Author Guest Post
'Government Restrictions on the English in World War II'
The world that Livvy Redmond lived in during Deadly Village varies by more than modern technology. The British government had the duty to provide for everyone, military and civilian, during the war, and being an island nation, most goods, whether food or fuel, had to be imported. The Germans knew this and sent as much of the imported goods for Britain to the bottom of the Atlantic, courtesy of their U-boats.
The way the government did this was by rationing. From January 1940, rationing for food and fuel began in a small way and tightened up as the war dragged on. Food rationing began with meat, cheese, butter, and sugar, and increased until by 1942, when Deadly Village takes place, almost all foods except vegetables and bread loaves were rationed. And the bread wasn’t the white bread people were used to. Now it was grey and had a rough texture.
To keep track of each person’s share, the government issued identity cards and ration books. These continued to be in use until 1954 when rationing finally ended, nine years after the war ended.
During the war, British Restaurants were started to feed the civilian populace who had been bombed out of their homes as well as factory and munitions workers who didn’t have time to go home and cook. These were basic three course meals for less than a McDonald’s meal today.
Clothing was also rationed from June 1941 to March 1949, and clothing and shoes were rationed by a point system. In 1942, each adult received 48 coupons for the year, in 1943, 36 coupons. Clothing for children under four years old was not rationed, which was lucky for Livvy and Jane as they had to clothe Stevie and Andrew.
Other things that were rationed were fuel, coal and other heating methods, and soap. Other items that weren’t rationed but were hard to get included razon blades, baby bottles, Christmas trees, and Christmas toys. Many families made Christmas toys out of scrap pieces of wood. At about the time of Deadly Village, the basic fuel ration was removed to save petrol for the military, the fire service, bus service, and agriculture. I suspect Sir Henry, Esther’s father, would have kept his petrol allotment to keep tabs on all the news his newspaper would have to cover, and because, then and now, the leaders of society get special privileges.
Jane and Lydia have arguments over raising the money to pay the government the inheritance taxes owed since both of their husbands had died as earls in the early stages of the war, and their husbands’sfather had died in 1938. In 1938, anything over 2 million pounds was taxed at 50%, in 1939, anything over 2 million pounds was taxed at 60%, and in 1940, the rate was up to 65%. Since the family owned the manor house that had been requisitioned by the Ministry of Defense, the dower house where they live, farm land, a spectacular art collection, ornate silver collections, etc., the tax bill would have been enormous. While Jane is for selling the art and silver before they lose everything, Lydia doesn’t want to part with any part of the estate.
These taxes don’t resemble anything we’re familiar with today, nor does the rationing and scarcity. But this is the world Livvy Redmond lives in during Deadly Village.
Kate Parker is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the Deadly Series. Deadly Village is number 13 in the series set primarily in Britain during World War II.
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About Kate Parker
Kate Parker has long wanted to build a time travel machine. However, after several false starts, she gave up and created time travel by going back in time inside her books. Since she’s fond of murder mysteries, it is probably best that all of her travel is inside books or police from various ages would be hunting her. When not recreating old time buildings and fashions, she can be found with a modern computer and modern air conditioning in North Carolina with her daughter and a 115 lb. puppy who could just crash through any time barrier.
Author Links:
Website – http://www.kateparkerbooks.com
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/Author.Kate.Parker
Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Apple – Kobo
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