Lynn Shurr | writer, novelist

How did it get to be summer of 2026 so quickly? Two major events have already occurred—an epic trip by boat around the islands of Japan and a day spent in Korea, to start. While we passed some time in Tokyo and rode the bullet train, we visited more off the main stream places like Hagi with its restored village from Samurai times and Uwajima where cultured pearls are created. At the famous Itsukushima shrine to the three goddesses, a sacred deer helped itself to one of my book publicity cards and ate it. I guess I now have a deer fan in Japan. Nagasaki with its atom bomb museum and Peace Park was incredibly moving. While we were gone, our new grandson, Isaac David, came into the world with both mother and child doing well. We plan a trip to Minnesota to see him soon.

We also had fun at Mardi Gras when one daughter and my son and his family came to Louisiana to celebrate. My very cute two-year-old granddaughter got lots of beads. Adjacent activities such as barbecue Sunday and a crawfish peeling dinner rounded out their visit. As many know, I often write about these Cajun customs in my books.

Writing took second place to the above, but I did manage to finish Two Blind, Two See, a book in the Longleigh Chronicles, The Next Generation, in which Lady Flora puts her matchmaking skills to work finding men for blind Ada and plain but high educated Lady Florette, her goddaughter. It has been professionally edited and awaits a cover. Since the press publishing the Longleigh Chronicles is closing and taking the first ten volumes with it, I have no idea how to publish it. Presses do not seem to want reprints. I suppose it must be self-publishing which I dread. In trying to restore two of my now out of print books, A Taste of Bayou Water and A Place Apart, I made a complete mess of it and must seek out paid help. It might be too expensive to bring all the Chronicles back this way though for the moment they are still in print. So what am I doing? I 've started yet another Longleigh Chronicle entitled A Muse in the Making, the story of Dora Heaton and Logan, one of Lady Flora's grandsons. I do love writing. All the other stuff that goes with it, not so much.

Publishing is a complicated and often brutal world as is the one we are living in right now. Hopefully, this will improve in a few years. Meanwhile, I will keep on traveling and writing.

THE LONGLEIGH CHRONICLES

Perfection (71,000 words): Lady Thalia Longleigh is know to be perfection personified. Unfortunately, the only man she finds intriguing in the scar-faced Earl of Danelagh who finds perfection oh so boring. With the help of her mother, Thalia seeks to capture his attention - literally. But once she masters him, Thalia decides she might value another year of freedom from marriage more. It is up to Danelagh to convince her otherwise. Another of the Longleigh Chronicles. SOLD!

Daughter of the Rainbow (72,000 words): Iris Longleigh, shy second daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Bellevue, wants nothing more than to left in seclusion to paint. Amateur portrait artist, Lord Valls, is summoned to paint her prior to her coming out. If only Valls weren't arrogant and uninterested in women, he would be her perfect match. When he paints a scandalous picture of Iris unbeknownst to her, the Duke will see they marry no matter what the young man's excuses. Iris gets more in a husband than she could ever foresee. Another Longleigh Chronicle Regency.SOLD!

The Greatest Prize (70,000 words): Joshua Longleigh jilts the woman he has long been expected to marry by telling her she cannot compete with the women of London, one of whom he is courting, the nonpareil of The Season. Instead of bursting into tears, Kate Morely bets him that she can land the greatest male prize, Viscount Astin. And the game begins. Just as Astin is about to offer for Kate, she vanishes, the victim of a rival. Joshua will not accept that Kate is dead and he might have lost the woman who is truly the greatest prize.SOLD!

Lion in the Heather (85,800 words). Enthralled by Scottish lore after reading Waverley, Lady Euphemia Longleigh, the Duke of Bellevue's most biddable daughter, leaps into the arms of a Highland laird who seems to have stepped from the pages of the book. With her father and brother in hot pursuit, Phemie aids her abductor in her own kidnapping until she can convince him they must be wed. Another humorous Longleigh Chronicle.SOLD!

Of Turtles and Doves (97,310 words): In Regency England, Jason Longleigh, third son of the Duke and Duchess of Bellevue craves turtle soup. When he attempts to get some, he is waylaid by a young American woman crusading against the killing of turtles. Despite her crazy notions, he is smitten. Unfortunately, little Miranda comes with a venal father and an easily insulted brother. Nevertheless, he takes the Clary family and two rescued Galapagos tortoises home to meet his own very eccentric family, including his sharp-tongued sister, Pandora. When the young couple appears to elope, a chase across England and over the ocean to America ensues. Sense and Sensibility with a touch of The Tempest.SOLD!

Lady Flora's Rescue (107,000 words): Last of the Mohicans with a humorous twist. Lady Flora will follow the man she adores anywhere to gain his regard-across the ocean and into the wilderness. Pearce Longleigh, Viscount Laughlin, resists knowing he cannot take this seemingly fragile woman to live among the Shawnee as he flees his responsibilities as a lord in order to return to his mother's people. The opening saga of the Longleigh Chronicles. SOLD!

The Earl’s Ugly Mistress (89,000 words): Blinded at Waterloo, the Earl of Edgemont takes out his bitterness on those around him. When he insults a spinster he has been stuck with for the evening, she insults him back and insists he can learn to live normally again. He dares her to show him how—and she does, falling in love with the handsome earl as she gives him lessons. But will he still love her when his sight returns, and he sees how very plain she is? The match-making Duchess of Bellevue is determined to bring them together. Part of the Longleigh Chronicles above. SOLD!

The Double Dilemma (65,185 words): The Duchess of Bellevue's twin daughters insist they must marry twins presenting a difficult dilemma for the matchmaking Lady Flora. Her son, James, provides a solution having encountered a mysterious pair who live in a secluded castle. Devotees of gothic novels, the twins are thrilled and ready to take on the adventure of meeting the men of their dreams. Another lively and humorous Longleigh Chronicle.SOLD!

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