K.A.S. Quinn - The Queen Alone

Dear Reader,

The Queen Must Die, The Queen at War and now The Queen Alone. This is the final book in the Chronicles of the Tempus series. I feel like James and Katie, standing on the pier, waving goodbye as my books, my characters and my wonderful readers sail away to other adventures.

This has been such an interesting series to write, as each book contains three very different worlds. Katie lives in our time, in New York City. I found Katie easy to write, as she bears a strong resemblance to me. (Though my own wonderful mother is nothing like Mimi!)

Princess Alice and James OReilly are true Victorians. Over time Ive read many of the real Princess Alices letters to her mother, brothers and sisters. Katie is very lucky. I would have liked to be best friends with Princess Alice. Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, Mary Seacole and Florence Nightingale are all important historical figures. Though the twist in Florence Nightingales tale is pure fiction (or at least I believe so...) James OReilly comes from my imagination. To me, he represents the best of the Victorian frame of mind: a belief in science and medicine, hard work and progress. James might not always be charming, but he makes the world a better place.

As for the rather supernatural world of the Verus and the Malum, Lucia and Lord Belzen they might just be the most real characters in the trilogy. Good does coexist with evil. And the battle continues.

My favourite character, though, is the one who lives in all three worlds. Bernardo DuQuelle has to learn to be human, and he does this with keen observation and quite a bit of clever commentary. It strikes me that he would make an excellent writer!

If you have any questions, Id be delighted to answer them. You can follow me on Facebook and Twitter, or contact me by email:

Bon Voyage

K. A. S. Quinn

K. A. S. Quinn was born and raised in California and studied History and English at Vassar. For ten years she was the publisher of the Spectator. She has written for The Times, the Telegraph, the Independent and the Wall Street Journal, as well as appearing on Any Questions, A Good Read, Famous Lives and Broadcasting House for the BBC. An enthusiast of the Victorians, she enjoys speaking at schools on this topic, and the trials and joys of writing. She and her husband live in London with their two boys.

Also by K. A. S. Quinn

The Queen Must Die

The Queen at War

Published in paperback and e-book in Great Britain in 2014

by Corvus, an imprint of Atlantic Books Ltd.

Copyright Kimberly Quinn, 2014

The moral right of Kimberly Quinn to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the authors imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities, is entirely coincidental.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Paperback ISBN: 978 1 84887 056 7

E-book ISBN: 978 1 78239 454 9

Printed in Great Britain.

Corvus

An imprint of Atlantic Books Ltd

Ormond House

2627 Boswell Street

London

WC1N 3JZ

www.corvus-books.co.uk

We begin with family and we end with them.

To my family:

Charles Sanders, Genevieve Sanders, Lugene Sanders Solomon, Marvin Solomon, Jennifer Solomon, Stephen Quinn

and with hugs and kisses to William Quinn and Lorcan Quinn

The Cast of Characters: Where three worlds meet...

Modern Day New York City

Katie Berger-Jones-Burg: A typical New York kid, who just happens to be part of the Tempus Fugit.

Mimi: Her mother.

Dolores: The housekeeper, but much more.

Reilly O Jackson: A new friend.

The Victorians

Queen Victoria: She reigns from 1837 to 1901. The emblem of a powerful industrial nation and a great empire though as a person, she has her flaws...

Prince Albert: Also known as the Prince Consort. Queen Victorias husband.

Princess Alice: Queen Victoria and Prince Alberts second daughter, and Katies best friend.

Bertie, Vicky, Louise, Leopold: Children of Queen Victoria.

Sir Brendan OReilly: Doctor OReilly, the Royal Household physician newly ennobled by Queen Victoria.

James OReilly: Sir Brendans son and an important friend to Katie and Princess Alice.

Jack OReilly: Sir Brendans eldest son and Jamess brother, killed in the Charge of the Light Brigade.

Grace OReilly, Riordan OReilly: Other children of Sir Brendan.

John Reillson: As Civil War rages in the United States of America, he comes to London to promote the cause of the Northern States and the abolition of slavery.

Florence Nightingale: A national heroine due to her nursing during the Crimean War.

Mary Seacole: A Jamaican Creole, she ran a hotel in the Crimea during the war and nursed the sick and wounded.

Those Who Live in No Time

Lucia: The Leader of the Verus. She must keep history in balance, and make certain our world moves forward, in order to harvest our communication skills for her own people.

Lord Belzen: The Leader of the Malum. He longs for war, greed and violence. He and his followers feed off brute force. He has a way with snakes.

The Little Angel: The child who brings peace. She understands Katie and the Tempus.

The Man of All Time

Bernardo DuQuelle: Prince Alberts Private Secretary, old flame of Lucia, tormentor and saviour of Katie. An enigma.

Contents

Prologue

Windsor Castle: 21 December 1860

T hump! Princess Alice looked up from her writing to the wintry window. A snowball, she decided, the work of her brother Bertie. She glanced towards her father, but he continued to toil at his desk, stopping only to adjust the green shade of his lamp.

Christmas was coming, and it was snowing. The battlements of Windsor Castle were cloaked in soft white flakes, its towers transformed into fairytale turrets. It was bleak midwinter; the shortest day of the year, yet the snow captured what light there was, bathing the gardens in a moon-like glow. Outside there was ice-skating on the pond, sleigh rides and snowmen on the East Terrace. Inside, beech-log fires blazed in every room, adding to the cheer of the red carpets and damask curtains. There were whispery giggles as gifts were wrapped and shouts of joy as snowballs hit their targets. A dozen Christmas trees were hung with gifts and sweets. Down below in the kitchens, huge barons of beef were being prepared for the holiday feasts.