Winner of Barbara Monajem‘sa novella duet ebook – winner’s choice – of The Wanton Governess/The Unrepentant Rake, The Magic of His Touch/Bewitched by His Kiss, orUnder a Christmas Spell/Under a New Year’s Enchantment is
Ashley Y!
Winner of Julia Justiss’s The Rake To Rescue Her is
Michelle F!
Ladies, you will each be hearing from the author so your prizes can get to you asap!
Thanks to everyone for making our guests feel welcome!
Welcome our guest today–Julia Justiss who is here to talk about her new release, The Rake To Rescue Her (Harlequin Historical, March 2015). Julia is giving away one copy of The Rake To Rescue Her to one lucky commenter, chosen at random.
See what RT Book Reviews’ Maria Ferrer has to say about The Rake To Rescue Her:
The Ransleigh Rogues return with a passionate and poignant tale of betrayal, revenge, sexual healing and second chances. This is another keeper with strong characters and authentic settings.
HE’S NEVER FORGOTTEN HER. BUT CAN HE FORGIVE HER
When Alastair Ransleigh sees Diana, Duchess of Graveston, for the first time since she jilted him, he makes her a shockingly insulting offer…the chance to become his mistress. And even more shockingly, she accepts!
But the widowed duchess is nothing like the bold, passionate girl Alastair once loved. Years of suffering at the hands of a cruel husband have taken their toll. And as Alastair resolves to save Diana from the damage of the past, their chance meeting turns feels of revenge to thoughts of rescue…
Thanks to Diane and the other Riskies for hosting me today!
My March release, Book Three of the Ransleigh Rogues, is the story of Alastair, the poet and dreamer whose world is shattered when Diana, the woman he loves, jilts him in a humiliatingly public fashion to marry a man of high rank. When he meets her again by chance eight years later, now widowed and on the run, he is stunned, then curious, then angry that the girl who once vowed to love him forever seems to be able to treat him with so little emotion, when he is torn, attracted, and seething. While he doesn’t exactly seek revenge when she offers to do what she can to make it up to him—he really wants to try to purge her from his heart and mind once and for all—the idea of making her feel something, after she has put him through every extreme of emotion, is certainly one of his chief motivations.
A revenge sub-theme figures in another one of my favorite all-time romances, Reforming Lord Ragsdale by the stellar Carla Kelly. Her heroine is an indentured Irish servant, detested and scorned by her English masters, whom the dissolute Lord Ragsdale rescues from a very bad situation. Initially he is inclined to treat her just a tad less poorly than her previous master—his father was murdered by Irish rebels, and he has every reason to hate the Irish. But he is a deeply flawed man himself, which Emma sees, and gradually, by fits and starts, the two begin to heal each other.
So, too, do Alastair and Diana. Although Alastair initially rejects Diana’s explanation for why she jilted him as unbelievable, as he slowly puts together the bits and pieces he ekes out of her about what her life with the duke was like, he begins to realize her improbable story was true and appreciate the heroism, and suffering, she endured to protect those she loved. As he works to bring back to life the girl he once loved and protect her from present danger, she rekindles once again the deep love he’s suppressed for so many years.
Are there any revenge-to-love stories that touched your heart? Is this a theme that you like to read about? One commenter will win a copy of Alastair and Diana’s book, The Rake To Rescue Her.
Coming in June, PBS presents the new Poldark, and to put it mildly, I can’t wait. Here’s a preview.
Starring the lovely and talented Aidan Turner (and some other people, but don’t worry about them too much), the series is based on the blockbuster novels by Winston Graham, set in Cornwall. And you know what that means–smugglers! Duels! Naked frolics in the surf! Tin mining! Brawls! Galloping about cliffs on horseback! Shirtless scything!
Some of us who are ahem a little older may remember the 1975 version, starring Robin Ellis, who was also pretty hot, and one of my local PBS stations is repeating the series in all its faded melodramatic glory–the ultimate binge-watch: a show stuffed to the gills with people declaiming their love or damning people to hell. (Sarah Hughes, The Guardian.) One interesting detail, the scar has shifted from the right to the left of Poldark’s face (well, think about it. He’s been wounded by someone right handed, far more likely in an age where left-handers were literally beaten into compliance. Hence, the scar is on his left).
And this new series. Oh boy. Yes, there was hot scything action last Sunday, and Sarra Manning (The Guardian) sums up our hero thus:
He’s part alpha male, part metrosexual, all combined in one HD-ready, smouldering package …He’s imbued with a social conscience, sees the heroine as an equal rather than a commodity to be conquered and possessed, and manages to do all this in a pair of pleasingly tight breeches without banging on about his feelings all the time. Reader, I’d marry him.
Me too. And for those of you who absolutely must take a look Aidan Turner’s pecs and so on, here’s an interview with pics where the actor confessed he took the role to pay the bills and describes how he achieved his impressive physique: Daily Mail.
What will we do until June? Easy. Watch Wolf Hall, and here’s a preview.
Do you remember the original Poldark? Are there any other tv series you’d recommend or that you anticipate?
Today we have a guest author, Barbara Monajem.
Barbara Monajem wrote her first story in third grade about apple tree gnomes. An embarrassing number of years later, she still sneaks magical little creatures into her books, although they’re romances for grownups now. She lives near Atlanta with assorted relatives, friends, and feline strays. I know Barbara through her several wonderful stories for Harlequin Historical Undone.
But today Barbara is here to talk about an exciting new book, Lady of the Flames.
Magic is fraught with peril—but so is love.
Lord Fenimore Trent’s uncanny affinity for knives and other sharp blades led to duels and murderous brawls until he found a safe, peaceful outlet by opening a furniture shop—an unacceptable occupation for a man of noble birth. Now his business partner has been accused of treason. In order to root out the real traitor, Fen may have to resort to the violent use of his blades once again.
Once upon a time, Andromeda Gibbons believed in magic. That belief faded after her mother’s death and vanished completely when Lord Fenimore, the man she loved, spurned her. Five years later, Andromeda has molded herself into a perfect—and perfectly unhappy—lady. When she overhears her haughty betrothed plotting treason, she flees into the London night—to Fen, the one man she knows she can trust. But taking refuge with him leads to far more than preventing treason. Can she learn to believe in love, magic, and the real Andromeda once again?
Listen to what reviewers say:
“Loved this story from Barbara Monajem with its magic and paranormal happenings nestled in a Regency setting.”
“The story…pulled me in right away and there were no slow spots; I really hated putting the book down.”
“It kept me guessing the entire time… I love historical romances but add in the paranormal aspect and it is perfect.”
“Loved the hobgoblin Cuff.”
To celebrate the release of Lady of the Flames, Barbara will be giving away a novella duet ebook, winner’s choice. The options are The Wanton Governess/The Unrepentant Rake, The Magic of His Touch/Bewitched by His Kiss, or Under a Christmas Spell/Under a New Year’s Enchantment—for either Amazon or B&N.
Welcome to Risky Regencies, Barbara!
Tell us about Lady of the Flames.
It’s a Regency historical romantic suspense with magic. It has a traitor, some French spies, knife magic, fire magic, and a hobgoblin. (And a hero and heroine, of course.)
I understand Lady of the Flames is a part of an exciting series you and several other Historical Romance authors are releasing. Tell us more about this series, how it came about, and the other books in it.
As you can probably tell from the above description, I find it hard to stick to one genre. I share this difficulty with many other authors. No matter how rewarding our relationships with our editors and publishers, sometimes we just want to write whatever we please.
That’s why, when fellow author Deborah Hale suggested a loosely-connected multi-author series, I jumped on the bandwagon right away. Apart from one commonality that defined the series, each author could write whatever she liked. We chose the year 1811, when the Prince of Wales became Prince Regent, and named our series A Most Peculiar Season. The only requirement, apart from the year, was that our stories would be about something that made that London Season a peculiar one. What fun that turned out to be!
Michelle Willingham writes both Regency and Viking historicals. She combined the two in a time travel story, A Viking for the Viscountess. Deborah Hale’s Scandal on His Doorstep features three rakes who find a baby abandoned on their doorstep—but which of them is the father? I had fun playing with magic in Lady of the Flames. Ann Lethbridge indulged her muse by writing a paranormal romance, Lady Sybil’s Vampire. Gail Ranstrom’s To Tempt a Thief is about a rash of thefts by the elusive Mayfair Shadow. Ann’s and Gail’s will be released soon, and there are more to come after that!
What inspired you to write Lady of the Flames?
I don’t remember! By the time I finish writing a story I have often forgotten what prompted me in the first place. Something pops into my head, and I start writing and see where it leads. That said, I really, really like writing about magic. I’ve done vampires, a human chameleon, a dangerously telepathic rock star, an aura reader, and a ghost. My first Regencies had no magic in them (except, of course, for love, which is a magic of its own), but pretty soon there were hobgoblins, May Day magic, and an incubus and succubus.
Also, I love Second Chance at Love stories. Too much, maybe – more than half of my published stories involve second chances at love, and Lady of the Flames is one of them.
What is risky about Lady of the Flames?
Apart from its being a multi-genre novel and therefore difficult to market, I think the hobgoblin is the biggest risk. He’s a secondary character, but he is mentioned on the very first page. I wanted the reader to know right away what she’s getting into—a story with magic—but for some readers, a hobgoblin may seem too childish a character for an adult romance. Was that a worthwhile risk? Time will tell.
Did you come across any interesting historical facts when researching the book?
I didn’t do much research for this particular book. When writing a story about magic, one has more freedom than usual to make things up! However, the setting of the story is definitely Regency, and I drew upon knowledge I had acquired when researching for other novels – about the furniture of the era (since Lord Fen, my hero, has a furniture shop), parts of London, smugglers, coffee houses, French pastries, and so on. I was a little hard on the British spy-catchers of the time. I’m sure they were much more clever and efficient than I have portrayed them in my book.
What is next for you?
As usual, I’m working on several projects at once. There’s a novella for a summer anthology with some of the other authors at the Embracing Romance blog. The anthology title is Passionate Promises, and my story (so far untitled) involves several of those. I’ve started another novel in the same vein as Lady of the Flames, I’m revising a full-length Regency (without magic), and I’ve also started on the first of a Regency mystery series written in first person – a refreshing change for me.
What do you think would make a Regency season unusual? What peculiarity would you like to read about? Abductions? Dragons? A lion escaping the Royal Menagerie? One lucky commenter will win my novella duet–The Wanton Governess/The Unrepentant Rake, The Magic of His Touch/Bewitched by His Kiss, or Under a Christmas Spell/Under a New Year’s Enchantment—for either Amazon or B&N.
Thanks so much for being our guest, Barbara. Readers do not forget. Make a comment for a chance to win one of Barbara’s duets!
I’m delighted to announce the winner of Margaret Evans Porter’s giveaway from her guest interview last week. Kristen H is the winner of a print copy of Margaret’s newly reissued romance, The Proposal!! Congratulations, Kristen. We’ll put Margaret in touch with you to work out the details. And thank you, everyone else, for your great comments and for participating. Margaret enjoyed visiting with us and sends her best regards to all.