Today I’m delighted to feature author Vicki Beeby. Vicki writes heartwarming historical fiction about the friendships and loves of service women brought together by the Second World War. She loves reading books about friendship, romance and adventure, so incorporates all those things in her stories. The first novel in her “Wrens” series, A New Start for the Wrens, won the Romantic Novelists’ Association Romantic Saga Novel of the Year award, 2023.
Vicki’s first job was as a civil engineer on a sewage treatment project, so things could only improve from there. Since then, she has worked as a maths teacher and education consultant before turning freelance to give herself more time to write.
In her free time, when she can drag herself away from reading, she enjoys walking and travelling to far-off places by train. She lives in Shropshire in a house that doesn’t contain nearly enough bookshelves.
Over to Vicki :
Which five pieces of music/songs would you include in the soundtrack to your life and why?
I have to admit that I’d love to have my life accompanied by a soundtrack. It would help no end to have audible clues to let me know whether someone could be trusted or if something bad was about to happen! Choosing only five pieces might be a challenge, but here goes…
Saturday Girl by Simple Minds. This was a B-side to one of their singles, and I became completely obsessed with it at university, much to the bemusement of my friends. Looking back, it’s hard to believe I still had friends by the time I finished my degree, thanks to the number of times I insisted on playing the song on repeat. In fact, it’s probably a good test of friendship. Anyone still willing to be friends with you after being forced to sit through a solid hour of the same song on repeat is there for the long haul.
The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams. Any time I need to de-stress, I just put this on and float away.
Vuli Ndlela by Brenda Fassie. I lived in Botswana in the latter part of the 90s, and this was a huge hit at the time. Whenever I listen to it I’m transported right back there. It’s also such a joyful song that it’s guaranteed to provide an instant lift to my spirits.
Newborn by Muse. I could choose anything by Muse but this is a song I come back to time and again.
Removables by Manic Street Preachers. Again, I could choose any of their songs but this is another of those songs that I have to play on repeat, so I thought it would be appropriate to include it!
What five things (apart from family and friends) would you find it hard to live without.
My Kindle – I always have to have a book on the go, and being able to cram books on my Kindle has been a godsend, especially when travelling.
Factor 50 – I’m very fair-skinned! I can’t go out without it between April and October.
My Audible subscription – The thing about being a writer is that I spend a lot of time staring at my laptop screen, and my eyes are often too tired for reading in the evenings. I love to be able to close my eyes and listen instead.
Chocolate – I’m sure that doesn’t need any explanation!
The view from my bedroom – There’s a gap between the houses opposite that allows me to see distant woods and fields. I find it very inspiring.
Give five pieces of advice to your younger self?
Start Pilates now – your spine will thank you later on.
Don’t give up when you write rubbish. Working out how to make a passage better is part of the process.
Comparison really is the thief of joy.
Pursue your dreams – you’ll get there if you keep going – but always…
… Appreciate the present and celebrate what you’ve already achieved.
Tell us five things that most people don’t know about you
There’s a cardboard cutout of me at Adam’s Park (Wycombe Wanderers’ football ground). I’m a Wycombe Wanderers supporter, and during lockdown, you could pay to have a cardboard cutout of yourself in the stands at Adam’s Park to help make up for their loss of gate receipts. I couldn’t collect it when lockdown ended because I live too far away, and it’s now on the wall outside the ground.
I once played tiddlywinks from Marble Arch to Piccadilly Circus.
I love travelling by train and have taken trains to places as far afield as Prague and Krakow.
I have real trouble telling left from right and can only do it by checking the birthmark on my right hand.
I’m really bad at thinking up interesting things when asked to say something about myself that people don’t know.
Tell us five things you’d still like to do or achieve.
Volunteer on an archaeological dig, particularly one investigating a Roman villa.
Travel through Italy by train.
Travel to the far north of Norway, stay in an ice hotel and see the Northern Lights.
Become famous enough to qualify for an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?
Have one of my books made into a TV series.
Many thanks for joining me today Vicki, it’s been a pleasure getting to know you. I think we’d get on should we ever meet as I’m another Kindle loving, factor 50 wearing, chocolate addict that also enjoys audio-books! I think I should have started Pilates way before now as my spine is definitely paying the price. I love that you’ve got a cutout of yourself on the wall at Adam’s Park, that’s a great way of celebrating your support. That’s some distance between Marble Arch and Picadilly Circus to play tiddlywinks, You’ll need to share more details as the visuals that sentence creates in my mind definitely require answers! I really hope you get to tick off the items on your wish list. Travelling by train through Italy is something that I’ve discussed. Since I discovered that there’s a Senior Eurail pass, I’m always imaging different journeys and Spain and Italy are both on my hitlist. Good luck with the Northern Lights. As we had so many sighting here in the UK over the last year and I saw none of them they’re still high on my wish list. A TV series sounds fabulous so here’s hoping for you.
Vicki’s Books
(NB This post features Amazon and Blackwell’s affiliate links from which I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases)
Bomber Command Girls series
The Girls of Bomber Command #1
With an enemy in their midst, can they still protect their fighters in the skies?
Pearl has given up on her dreams of being a journalist after being denied a promotion because of her gender. Joining the WAAF as a radio telephone operator for Bomber Command, Pearl’s new job at RAF Fenthorpe serves two purposes – providing an income for her grandmother, and keeping a close eye on her younger sister, Thea, an instrument repairer at another Lincolnshire bomber station.
Pearl befriends Met WAAF Jenny as well as Australian pilot Greg, who she guides home safely during an emergency. Pearl’s journalism background doesn’t go to waste, however – a series of thefts from pilots rekindles her investigative fire and she is soon caught up in the mystery.
But when all signs point to the perpetrator being her sister, she finds herself up against the clock to prove her sister’s innocence…
A Wedding for the Bomber Girls #2
As wedding bells ring out, joy will be found amidst the tensions of war…
At RAF Fenthorpe, instrument repairer Thea is helping her sister, Pearl, plan her wedding alongside fellow WAAF and maid of honour Jenny. A misfit amongst the women on the base, though, Thea is struggling to get others onboard.
When Flight Sergeant Fitz makes a point of befriending and standing by her, sparks fly between the two. And when Fitz’s crew member, Jack, faces being stripped of his rank due to cowardice, Thea throws herself into seeking justice and support for him.
Just as she begins to be accepted by her fellow WAAFs, a shadowy figure from her past has returned and is determined to ruin not just Thea, but also Pearl’s wedding. Will Thea’s reputation be marred once more? And will she face this struggle alone…?
Christmas for the Bomber Girls #3
With the men missing in action, can the Bomber Girls find a way to bring them home?
Pearl, Thea and Jenny fling themselves into making Fenthorpe as festive as it can be, looking forward to the Christmas dance. Disaster strikes when Pearl’s husband, Greg, crashes behind enemy lines and is reported missing.
Pearl and Thea’s grandmother, Deedee, immediately travels to Lincoln to support her granddaughter. But Deedee has a surprising – and troublesome – connection to Fenthorpe. Can the girls uncover her secrets to help their grandmother find new romance?
And can Greg evade capture and survive in enemy-occupied Holland to make it home for Christmas?
High Hopes for the Bomber Girls #4
The war may nearly be over, but danger is ever-present as storms lie ahead…
Even with peace on the horizon, Met WAAF Jenny Hazleton is as busy as ever. Her keen weather forecasting allows the pilots to continue their missions, including food drops to starving allies and the repatriation of prisoners of war.
Navigating many of these missions is Flying Officer Edwin Holland, whose rejection of her advances at Christmas still stings. Edwin is increasingly haunted by his role in the war, including the bombing of Dresden, and Jenny yearns to comfort him. But when he reveals the shocking reason he turned her down, she must decide if their friendship is well and truly over.
After a local young woman is found dead under suspicious circumstances, Jenny and Edwin come together to track down the killer. Can they rebuild their friendship – and can they ever be more than just friends? Or are the scars of war too deep to truly heal?
The Wrens series
A New Start for the Wrens #1
Are these newly trained Wrens ready to protect Britain’s coastline?
Following a humiliating experience involving the man she thought she’d marry, Iris Tredwick signs up to the Wrens in order to escape and find ‘the right sort’ of man to please her mother. After a bumpy start, Iris manages to befriend outspoken Mary and dreamer Sally as they are sent to their first posting – in Orkney.
There she meets mechanic Rob, whose flirtatious nature both charms and confounds straight-laced Iris. Much more appropriate for her is local doctor Stewart, if only she felt the same spark for him as she does for Rob…
As Iris, Mary and Sally work to interpret signals from incoming ships, they realise the enemy is somehow one step ahead of their manoeuvres, dropping sea mines under the cover of darkness. Could there be a spy on the island? And can the Wrens prevent disaster striking before it’s too late?
A Wrens’ Wartime Christmas #2
German U-boats are getting through the defences. It’s up to the Wrens to stop them.
After her fiancé died in the sinking of the Royal Oak, Mary finds herself stationed in Orkney, still battling her grief. With Iris and Sally by her side, she is gradually overcoming her loss and is surprised to be helped by the irascible Joe.
Joe is a signalman aboard the Kelpie and his cheeky Morse code signals to Mary while she’s on shift bring her cheer and exasperation in equal measure. With Christmas round the corner, Mary is opening herself back up to the festive spirit – and to love.
But the Germans keep slipping through Scapa Flow’s defences, somehow without triggering any of the Navy’s alarms. Could someone on land be guiding them? If so, can Mary, Iris and Sally figure out who and stop them before more lives are lost?
Hopeful Hearts for the Wrens #3
During war, nothing is ever at it seems…
Sally Hartley is a hopeless romantic. Her father died when she was a baby but she has lived off stories from her mother of what a wonderful man he was. Now, all she wants is a love like theirs. And she thinks she’s found it in Adam, the brother of a friend from home. When Adam is posted to Orkney, it’s like Sally’s dreams have all come true.
After Italy changes sides in the war, the Italian POWs are granted more freedom on the islands, meaning Sally can spend more time with her friend, Aldo, and the two grow ever closer. But when a family secret is revealed, Sally’s trust might be forever broken.
Sally, Iris and Mary must continue their duties even as life changes drastically around them, including an attack on one of their fellow Wrens from an unknown assailant. Now the friends face danger not just from the enemy, but also someone much closer to home.
Women’s Auxilliary Air Force series
The Ops Room Girls #1
When Evie’s dreams come crashing down, she’s determined to still make something of herself in these trying times…
It is 1939 and working class Evie Bishop has received a scholarship to study mathematics at Oxford when tragedy turns her life upside down. Evie must seek a new future for herself and, inspired to contribute to the war effort, joins the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force as an Ops Room plotter.
Posted to a fighter station on the Sussex Coast, Evie befriends two other WAAFs – shy, awkward May and flirty, glamorous Jess. Faced with earning the approval of strict officers and finding their way in a male dominated world, the three girls band together to overcome challenges, navigate new romances and keep their pilots safe in the skies.
But the German bombers seem to know more than they should about the base’s operations, and soon Evie, May and Jess are caught up in a world more dangerous than they ever imagined…
Christmas with the Ops Room Girls #2
When there’s so much to be afraid of, can May help bring festive cheer to the Ops Room?
After failing to help evacuee siblings whom she witnesses being separated, May wishes she’d had the confidence to speak up. When Jess suggests a pantomime to boost morale on the station, May is desperate to help – but is held back by her own insecurities.
With her low self-esteem also affecting her relationship with Squadron Leader Peter Travis, May is fed up with being her own worst enemy and decides to take charge of her destiny. But the past she ran from, plus a crisis with one of the evacuees, throw May into the midst of a drama that will test all of her newfound confidence.
May, Jess and Evie must work together once again to help each other through the challenges of war and of their own hearts.
Victory for the Ops Room Girls #3
Jess is about to face her biggest battle just as the war nears its end
With Jess newly promoted to Filterer Officer at RAF Fighter Command HQ, she is delighted to be reunited with Evie and May. However, now that they can enjoy socialising in London, Jess fears her friends will discover the secret she keeps there.
When Jess bumps into Milan unexpectedly, sparks are reignited – did she make a mistake, finishing with him in Amberton? But matters are complicated when a film company arrives at Bentley Priory to make a morale-boosting movie about the RAF. The lead actor is none other than Leonard Steele, a man from Jess’s past who could ruin everything she has worked so hard to build…
As her past and present collide, will Jess find the strength to fight for her future?
The Women’s Auxiliary Air Force Books 1-3
Lose yourself in these charming tales of sisterhood and sweeping romance. Includes all three books in the heartwarming Ops Room Girls series; The Ops Room Girls, Christmas with the Ops Room Girls and Victory for the Ops Room Girls.
