Earlier this spring, author Debra Brown started this series of posts from writers of historical fiction, "Meet My Main Character" and my good friend and fellow author Anita Davison tagged me. So, it's time to introduce readers to the title character of Sultana: The Bride Price.
What is the name of your character? Is she fictional or a historic person?
Her full name is Sultana Jazirah bint Ismail of the Nasrid Dynasty. She is based on a historic personage, the wife and paternal cousin of Sultan Muhammad V. Although historians know several details of her life, one of the most important facts went missing over the centuries; her real name.
When and where is the story set?
The story is set in Moorish Spain within Granada's Alhambra palace mostly, during a ten-year period of 1357 to 1367, which was a turbulent time during Muhammad V's reign.
What should we know about Jazirah?
She lives a remarkable life in adverse times. When she was six, her father was imprisoned by his brother for treason, so Jazirah did not enjoy the pampered existence one might expect for a princess. When she is sixteen, she receives a marriage proposal from Muhammad V, an opportunity to seal the breach in the family caused by her father's imprisonment. She eventually accepts, but even after the marriage, peace does not follow. While Jazirah and Muhammad share a deep attraction and understanding of each other's natures, neither has reason to trust or rely upon the other.
What is the main conflict? What messes up her life?
How does a woman who has no reason to trust her new husband and no hope of a bright future with him learn to embrace new possibilities? Jazirah has lived with the consequences of betrayal all of her life, so she struggles with an inability to understand the intentions and motives of almost everyone around her. While she is perceptive, she's also judgmental and guided by the bitter past. Jazirah's difficulty in reconciling past and present dims her future prospects.
What is the personal goal of the character?
To find her own path toward forgiveness and faith in her marriage, to let go of old hurts and to secure the future for her and Muhammad's children.
When can we expect Sultana: The Bride Price to be published?
Late May. I'm making some changes based on feedback from members of the NYC chapter of the Historical Novel Society.
I'm passing this on to three writers of historical fiction (in the hopes they haven't already been tapped for a Meet My Main Character post)
Mirella Patzer, Heather Domin and Jessica Knauss.
Her full name is Sultana Jazirah bint Ismail of the Nasrid Dynasty. She is based on a historic personage, the wife and paternal cousin of Sultan Muhammad V. Although historians know several details of her life, one of the most important facts went missing over the centuries; her real name.
When and where is the story set?
The story is set in Moorish Spain within Granada's Alhambra palace mostly, during a ten-year period of 1357 to 1367, which was a turbulent time during Muhammad V's reign.
What should we know about Jazirah?
She lives a remarkable life in adverse times. When she was six, her father was imprisoned by his brother for treason, so Jazirah did not enjoy the pampered existence one might expect for a princess. When she is sixteen, she receives a marriage proposal from Muhammad V, an opportunity to seal the breach in the family caused by her father's imprisonment. She eventually accepts, but even after the marriage, peace does not follow. While Jazirah and Muhammad share a deep attraction and understanding of each other's natures, neither has reason to trust or rely upon the other.
What is the main conflict? What messes up her life?
How does a woman who has no reason to trust her new husband and no hope of a bright future with him learn to embrace new possibilities? Jazirah has lived with the consequences of betrayal all of her life, so she struggles with an inability to understand the intentions and motives of almost everyone around her. While she is perceptive, she's also judgmental and guided by the bitter past. Jazirah's difficulty in reconciling past and present dims her future prospects.
What is the personal goal of the character?
To find her own path toward forgiveness and faith in her marriage, to let go of old hurts and to secure the future for her and Muhammad's children.
When can we expect Sultana: The Bride Price to be published?
Late May. I'm making some changes based on feedback from members of the NYC chapter of the Historical Novel Society.
I'm passing this on to three writers of historical fiction (in the hopes they haven't already been tapped for a Meet My Main Character post)
Mirella Patzer, Heather Domin and Jessica Knauss.
4 comments:
What beautiful cover art Lisa, makes me want to find out more about her. It still surprises me that these dynastic marriages, the wives especially always work hard against the odds to make their marriages successful. They may have married for political reasons, but they all crave love, loyalty and the devotion of their spouses. I wonder how many really achieved that?
I LOVE that cover too!!!! So...is this the daughter of the Sultana in book one? It's been a while since I read book one and two and I cannot remember. Or would it be granddaughter? Still, beautiful cover. Did you do it yourself?
Thanks so much, Anita. When I first started this series, I wanted to write Muhammad's story, never guessing at the turmoil within his marriage. The other stuff was interesting enough. As for their HEA, well, we'll have to see when the book comes out!
Hi Tara, this is the great-granddaughter of Fatima in books one and two. I took the girl from a 1920's public domain painting and my cover artist Lance Ganey prettied her up and inserted the image into the background, plus added the lettering. Two more books in the series to go before I bid Moorish Spain a fond farewell.
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