Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Stop #7
A Christian Fiction Giveaway
Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all the stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes.
· The hunt BEGINS on 3/18 at noon MST with Stop #1 at LisaTawnBergren.com.
· Hunt through our loop using Chrome or Firefox as your browser (not Explorer).
· There is NO RUSH to complete the hunt—you have all weekend (until Sunday, 3/21 at midnight MST). So take your time, reading the unique posts along the way; our hope is that you discover new authors/new books and learn new things about them.
· Submit your entry for the grand prizes by collecting the CLUE on each author’s scavenger hunt post and submitting your answer in the Rafflecopter form at the final stop, back on Lisa’s site. Many authors are offering additional prizes along the way.
And guess what? I’m one of the authors. Michelle Griep, who writes historical romance with a hearty dose of adventure and intrigue. I’ve got lots of books in the Regency and Victorian era in England, and a few during the Colonial period in America.
My recent release is The Thief of Blackfriars Lane, a rollicking mystery set on the streets of Dickensian London.
There’s Often a Fine Line Between a Criminal and a Saint
Constable Jackson Forge intends to make the world safer, or at least the streets of Victorian London. But that’s Kit Turner’s domain, a swindler who runs a crew that acquires money the old-fashioned way—conning the rich to give to the poor. When a local cab driver goes missing, Jackson is tasked with finding the man, and the only way to do that is by enlisting Kit’s help. If Jackson doesn’t find the cabby, he’ll be fired. If Kit doesn’t help Jackson, he’ll arrest her for thievery. Yet neither of them realize those are the least of their problems.
One of my favorite things about writing a book is doing the historical research. Now that’s a scavenger hunt! Here’s one of the prize pieces of information I came across and incorporated into the story.
Jobs of the Past: Flushers and Toshers
It wasn’t only trainmen and passengers who frequented the underground tunnels beneath Victorian London. Some people worked there.
Flushers were men employed by the city to free the sewers of debris and maintain them in good repair. They also kept down the brown rat population. Besides the obvious dangers of disease and bodily injury, drowning was a very real possibility. When a rainstorm began, an aboveground worker would raise the nearest manhole cover six inches then let it drop, the echo reverberating as a warning to those toiling down in the tunnels to beware of flash floods. Lest you think these valiant men are of bygone days, think again. Today there is still a team that goes underground every day to ensure things keep flowing.
A tosher was a scavenger, like the mudlarks on the banks of the Thames. They made their living by trolling through run-off pipes and sewers, picking up whatever they could find. And they did find things, usually to the tune of 6 shillings a day (about $50 in today’s money). They were colorful characters with colorful names: Lanky Bill, Short-armed Jack, One-eyed George. Usually they wore a long velveteen coat with enormous pockets and a canvas apron, and carried a bag on their back and an 8’ long pole in their hand. After 1840 it was illegal to enter the sewers without permission, and there was a £5 reward for anyone who snitched on them, so usually toshing was done secretly at night with a lantern.
Yeah, neither of those sound like something I want to do, and I’m guessing you wouldn’t want to either. But here’s something you could do that doesn’t involve going underground…let’s get back to that scavenger hunt, shall we?
Here’s the Stop #7 Basics:
If you’re interested, you can order The Thief of Blackfriars Lane on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, CBD or at your local bookstore.
Clue to Write Down: YEAR,
Link to Stop #8, the Next Stop on the Loop: James R. Hannibal’s Site
And before you go, here’s a chance to win a signed copy of The Thief of Blackfriars Lane!