Scandal and Steroetypes

My very first historical novel Scandal's Mistress came out two weeks ago and so far I've been too busy to shamelessly self-promote. That's what this post is for!


Here's a taste and then I'll get to the ideas and stereotypes that made the book possible.


London, 1805

Justin Trentham, third son of the Earl of Billington, is determined to get himself disowned from his cold and unloving family. Despite his numerous affairs with questionable women of the ton, his parents continue to be dismissive of his ploys, but Justin spots the perfect scandal in the form of a beautiful, exotic Italian opera singer...

Carmalina Belluccini refuses to become his mistress, despite being tempted by his charms. But after losing her singing voice, she finds herself destitute. She agrees to be Justin's mistress for one month, until she has enough money to return to her beloved Italy.
She intends to keep their arrangement strictly business, but after witnessing Justin's vulnerable side, she finds herself falling more in love than in lust with him. Carmalina is having second thoughts about leaving England...but is their love strong enough to survive the scandal of the season?


I often get asked where I came up with the idea for Scandal's Mistress and I have to tell them I honestly can't remember. I do know that for a long time I have abhorred stereotypes be it person, time or thing and I love to step up on my soapbox and pooh, pooh those who like to put things in the square and refuse to see anything outside it. That's probably where the idea came from. Just because Carmalina is an Opera Singer, it does not make her a prostitute. Just because most of the women who trod the boards were, doesn't mean they all were. Right? Are you getting cranky alongside me here?

But since there are certain factual guidelines we have to follow when writing Regency, I had to make my Opera Singer different from the rest. Just because I feel as though not all singers were sluts, doesn't mean I can crack the mold and say it wasn't so. So I made Carmalina an Italian Opera Singer. Things were different in Italy. Then I stranded her in England and made her voice scratchy from the cold and soot. That's when things got really hard for her and she had to figure out where her next meal was going to come from if she couldn't sing for her supper. Enter Justin Trentham. The season's bad boy and scandal king. You'll have to read the story to see what happens next. I can tell you it has a twist you (hopefully) won't see coming and you may or may not cry (just a little bit).

Enjoy and thanks for popping by!       

Buy from Carina Press, Amazon, B&N, All Romance Ebooks and most etailers.

History was written on the back of the horse.

By Danielle Lisle

As Wednesday, August the 1^st, is the horses celebrated birthday here in Australia, I thought I’d honour them by discussing their input into history.

"History was written on the back of the horse," an inscription at The Horse Park in Kentucky, USA.   How very true.

The Nobleman, groom and steed.

Our four-legged friend, the horse, has played a substantial role in the world of historical romance. From the simple but strong carriage horse in the Regency novel, to the adaptable mountain pony in the Scottish Highlands, or the stunning steed which the duke rode upon as he whisked his future duchess off her feet, the horse has always been by our hero’s side.

These days horses do not appear in modern day novels as much as they once did, simply because ownership of horses has turned from an essential form of transport, to an ownership of pleasure.

Like today, horses were not a ‘cheap’ commodity to own or maintain. Horses ranged in price, depending on their use. Where they part of a matching team for a stately carriage, a well breed hack for a gentlemen or lady, or perhaps a horse with superior speed offering the gentlemen a potential taste of victory on the track. I read somewhere (of which I can’t recall, much to my frustration) that William Cavendish, the 6th Duke of Devonshire, paid a thousand pounds (about $100,000 today) for a race horse which had to be shot two weeks later as it broke it leg in its first race. Bummer...

In the Regency, one could not own a carriage or keep the horses to draw it if you didn’t earn at least 1,100 pounds a year. This equates to about $110,000 in today’s markets. Don’t forget it is not simply just the initial cost of buying the steed that will set you back, which could range from one to several hundred pounds for a midrange animal, but you had to maintain the horses and keep grooms and drivers. A horse kept in stable in London cost a lot more to feed than a horse at a country estate. It wasn’t like the London horses had access to pasture to graze and therefore cost more to feed in grain.

A post-chaise carriage

Instead, most people hired horses and drivers when they travelled or used the services of a hackney coach (taxi) while in London. While still rather expensive, they did not tie one down to the ongoing costs of the animals keep or their handler’s wages. An example of costs for a longer journey, hiring two horses and a post-chaise carriage and a postilion (rider/driver) at the cost of 1/- per mile (1.6kms). The distance from Longbourn to Rosings we know was about 50 miles (about 80kms), so the cost of travelling there would be 50/-, 2 pounds ten, or in today’s equivalent about $250. This was the most cost effective way for people to travel.

**Please forgive me if I’ve offered a seemingly large section on how much it all cost, it just blows my mind! Allrighty, different track – jockeys ready?

Tattersall's 1865

What do you think of when you hear, “Tattersall’s”? I think of my mother and her weekly trip to the newsagency to buy her lotto ticket.
Well, back in the Regency, Tattersall’s was a horse sale yards in London, established in 1766 by Richard Tattersall, horse master to the Duke of Kingston. These sale yards become a popular place to buy and sell horseflesh, carriages and even hounds, with sale days being twice a week in winter and one a week in summer. It housed stabling for over a hundred horses with plenty of room to inspect carriages or the yapping hounds in their kennels (think of the noise!).

While there was always the opportunity to visit the sale yards, most of the gentry took an avid interest in breeding their own horseflesh, some actually became well known for it.

Horses were also fashion statements. Who had the best horse or the most stunning steed?

"I say, did you see the stallion Lord Percy rode upon in Lester Square yestereve? The beast was simply the most stunning horse I have ever laid eyes upon!"

In 1711, Queen Anne established regular race meetings at her park at Ascot (heard of it anyone?) while several gentlemen also arranged private ‘match races’ between themselves, the stakes often quite high.

But we woman cannot be forgotten. Flat and steeple racing was also held for women. Mrs. Bateman wrote in 1723, "Last week, Mrs. Aslibie arranged a flat race for women, and nine of that sex, mounted astride and dressed in short pants, jackets and jockey caps participated. They were striking to see, and there was a great crowd to watch them. The race was a very lively one; but I hold it indecent entertainment." Some women--such as the infamous Letty Lade, who reportedly swore like a coachman, rode and drove to please themselves, and made their own fashion statement by bucking the trends for demure ladies. (I think I would have liked these woman...)

But horse racing was a increasingly expensive sport (yes, at the costs again). Prince Regent’s stud farm for his horses was rumoured to have an annual cost of 30,000 pounds a year for its upkeep. That’s 3 million a year today! Sheesh!

How many of you out there dreamed of owning your own horse, riding it off into the sunset and feeling the wind fly through your hair?

My boy, Rain Ridge

I was one of the few lucky kids out there, owning my own horse since the age of seven. To this day I still own the Thoroughbred I brought (after working and saving for a year as a checkout chick at Woolworths) when I was fifteen. Rain, or Rain Ridge as was his racing/show name, carried me through the years of Pony Club and Eventing. We even tried PoloX once, but after my teammate hit me in the head with a bat, I determined the sport was not for me. Today he lives the cosy life in retirement, with the occasion weekend trail ride through the bush or on an excursion to the beach. It’s not a bad life for a horse in his late twenties, though once a horse ‘retired’ in the days gone past, their fate was not always guaranteed to be a relaxing one.

Once a horse became old, no longer able to keep up with the other horses in the team or simply because it became injured, the quickest answer was a bullet. This was not always the case and sometimes if the horse was deemed favourably by its owner or horse master, it would be sent out to a farm to work for its remaining days. But sadly, a true retirement, of lazy days roaming a lush paddock, wasn’t a rarity. Good to see some things have changed.

Happy Birthday Horses! Have a carrot on me.

In my debut novel, THE ROSE’S BLOOM (that coincidently hits the shelves today) my hero and heroine relied a great deal on their trusty steeds, whether it be to take them on a hunt, journey or simply a pleasure ride. My hero was actually out on a hunt when he noticed a young woman by the riverbank, her unexperienced fingers seeming to get her nowhere. He was a gentleman after all, and who is he to allow this poor damsel to go unaided? *giggle*

THE ROSE'S BLOOM

THE ROSE'S BLOOM is the first instalment in my ROGUES OF DECEPTION series with Total-E-Bound Publishing.

Comment below to go in the running for a change to win your very own copy! Just remember to leave your email address so I can contact you if you’re the lucky winner!

Danielle can be contacted on her Facebook and Twitter accounts or alternatively comment below.

Quote reference: Website, Rakehell, Regency Horses

The City of London.

Because my historical romances are set in London or other parts of England, I am fascinated by the enormous growth of the City of London and its importance throughout history. 

I hope you enjoy learning a little more about the Square Mile which is now only a tiny part of 'Greater London' yet is so famous.

Enjoy, 

Suzi Love.

General 

The City of London is an area in central London, England, which made up most of London in Medieval times but is now only a small part of ‘Greater London’. It is just over one square mile (1.12 sq mi/2.90 km2) in area, so is referred to as the ‘City’, or the ‘Square Mile’.

Add Borders of the City of London, showing surrounding London boroughs and the pre-1994 boundary (where changed) in red. The area covered by the Inner and Middle Temple is marked.

 It is one of London’s 32 boroughs, alongside the City of Westminster and only has a little over 11,000 residents, although around 316,700 people work there, mainly in financial services. It is England's smallest ceremonial county by area and population and the fourth most densely populated.

City and financial district

In the 19th century, the City was the world's primary business centre and today it still ranks above New York City as the leading centre of global finance. The legal profession takes up most of the Western area, especially with the Inns of Court in the Temple and Chancery Lane areas, having the Inner Temple and Middle Temple both within the City of London.
Many Roman sites and artefacts can be seen in the City of London today, including the Temple of Mithras, sections of the London Wall (at the Barbican and near the Tower of London), the London Stone and remains of the amphitheatre beneath the Guildhall. The Museum of London, located in the City, holds many of the Roman finds and has permanent Roman exhibitions, as well as being a source of information on Roman London generally.

Boundary

Borders of the City of London, showing surrounding London boroughs and the pre-1994 boundary (where changed) in red. The area covered by the Inner and Middle Temple is marked.
The City borders Westminster, crosses the Victoria Embankment, passes to the west of Middle Temple, along Strand and north up Chancery Lane, where it borders Camden. It turns east to Holborn Circus, with Baltic Street West as the most northerly boundary and in the south in includes Bishopsgate and Petticoat Lane. The City controls the full span of London Bridge but only half of the river underneath it.
Boundaries are marked by black bollards bearing the City's emblem, and by dragon boundary marks at major entrances e.g. Holborn, with a similar monument at Temple Bar on Fleet Street.

 Dragon statue atop the Temple Bar monument, which marks the boundary between the City and Westminster.

Roman London was established as a trading port by merchants on the tidal Thames around 47 AD but by the time of the construction of the London Wall, the city's fortunes were in decline, with problems of plague and fire. Alfred the Great, King of Wessex and arguably the first king of the 'English', began resettlement of the old Roman walled area in 886 and appointed his son-in-law Earl Æthelred of Mercia over it as part of their reconquest of the Viking occupied parts of England.

  The 1666 Great Fire destroyed nearly 80% of the City.

Map showing the extent of the Great Fire of London.

The 18th century was a period of rapid growth for London, reflecting an increasing national population, the early stirrings of the Industrial Revolution, and London's role at the centre of the evolving British Empire. The urban area expanded beyond the borders of the City of London, most notably during this period towards the West End and Westminster.
By the beginning of the 19th century, London was expanding rapidly in every direction and railways and the Tube allowed it to spread over a greater area. To the East, the Port of London grew when new docks were needed because the Thames at the City could not cope with the volume of trade. In 1894, an attempt was made to amalgamate the City and the surrounding County of London, but it did not succeed so the City elected four members to the unreformed House of Commons, which it retained after the Reform Act 1832 and into the 20th century.

St Paul's Cathedral, 1896.

During World War II, The City was aerial bombed in ‘The Blitz’ and although St Paul's Cathedral survived, large swathes of the City did not and the particularly heavy raids of late December 1940 led to a firestorm called the Second Great Fire of London.
 
In the decades following the war, there was a major rebuilding programme with modern and larger-scale developments.

They altered the City's urban landscape, although the parts which survived the bombings retained smaller buildings and old character.

The street pattern, which is still largely medieval, was altered slightly in certain places, although there is a more recent trend of reversing some of the post-war modernist changes made, such as at Paternoster Square.

Political and Legal   

The City is a ceremonial county, although it has a Commission of Lieutenancy, headed by the Lord Mayor, instead of a Lord-Lieutenant. Instead of a High Sheriff, two Sheriffs hold quasi-judicial offices and are appointed by the Livery Companies, another ancient political system based on the representation and protection of trades. Senior members of the Livery Companies are known as Liverymen and form a special electorate called the Common Hall and this body chooses the Lord Mayor of the City, the Sheriffs and certain other officers.
The local authority for the City, the City of London Corporation, has unusual responsibilities, eg. the police authority for the City, and holds ownerships beyond the City's boundaries. The Corporation is headed by the Lord Mayor of the City of London, an office separate from, and much older than, the Mayor of London.

The Guildhall - the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City

Numerous Functions of the City 

The City has an independent police force, the City of London Police, and the Common Council is the police authority, while the rest of Greater London is policed by the Metropolitan Police Service from New Scotland Yard.

The Corporation owns and runs both the Smithfield and Leadenhall Markets  and a number of locations beyond the boundaries of the City, which include parks, forests and commons eg most of Epping Forest, Hampstead Heath and many public spaces in Northern Ireland through The Honourable The Irish Society.

It also owns Old Spitalfields Market and Billingsgate Fish Market, both of which are within the neighbouring London Borough of Tower Hamlets, owns and helps fund the Old Bailey, the Central Criminal Court for England and Wales, as a gift to the nation, it having begun as the City and Middlesex Sessions.
In 1123, the only hospital, St Bartholomews at Smithfield, was founded. Known as 'Barts', the hospital is undergoing a long-awaited regeneration.

The City is the third largest UK funding-patron of the arts. It oversees the Barbican Centre and subsidises several important performing arts companies.

The Corporation is The Port of London's health authority, includes the handling of imported cargo at London Heathrow airport, oversees the running of the Bridge House Trust which maintains five key bridges in central London, London Bridge, Blackfriars Bridge, Southwark Bridge, Tower Bridge and the Millennium Bridge. The City's flag flies over Tower Bridge, although neither footing is in the City.

Mansion House - the official residence of the Lord Mayor

Former Lord Mayor of London John Stuttard during the Lord Mayor's parade of 2006

Cassie's Regency Tidbits - The Grand Tour

Hi again, time for another of Cassie’s Regency tidbits.  Well, okay, The Grand Tour was not specific to the Regency period but it was important to the upper classes, or more importantly to the men of the upper classes.

Emil Brack - "Planning the Grand Tour"
by Marcus, GK

The Grand Tour was a time for privileged young men to travel abroad and gain an education that could not be found in books or the hallowed halls of Cambridge and Oxford.

The tour was usually undertaken by young men and their tutor. They would travel to such places as France, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland, Greece and sometimes, if one was particularly keen, even as far as Africa and Egypt.

The whole idea of the tour was for young men to have the opportunity to travel and learn about the different cultures, languages and history of the places he visited. This would give him extra polish and a certain sophistication that was necessary to form character before taking on the daunting task of the family responsibilities - such as running an estate. It would also give them an edge over others in society who could not afford a Grand Tour.



A young charge and his tutor
(or Bear-leader)



This jaunt abroad could last anywhere from two to four years and cost his family a fortune. This was not generally seen so much as a burden but as the finishing touches of a young man’s necessary education.

Gentlemen would return laden down with art collected on their journeys. Often the paintings would be portraits of themselves in front of historic landmarks to record their time away. They would also send back keepsakes such as rugs, furniture and antiquities.



A typical route taken by young men



Although the Grand Tour was all but stopped during the Napoleonic Wars, as soon as it was safe to travel again, young men flocked back to the continent and beyond in search of education and adventure. However, with the invention of the railway, travel became easier and more affordable for people of lesser means, and so the elite exclusivity of the Grand Tour was all but lost.

This may all sound delightful but there were many dangers to be encountered when travelling abroad. A young man was likely to have his money stolen (if not his life), become infected by some kind of sexually transmitted disease, fevers and other nasty ailments and sometimes even kidnapped for ransom. However, this did not seem to stop many young men from taking the treacherous journey across the sea  (which was a risk on its own) in search of enlightenment. Instead of taking bags of blunt with them, most would travel with letters of credit, which they would present at the major cities – a little like travellers cheques. They also often carried letters of introduction as well, so that they could integrate into the local aristocracy.



Later in the Victorian period, travel abroad was more often taken by families and young women with an artistic bent or an adventurous spirit. They were encouraged to spend time in Italy and France admiring art and culture in all its forms. (See the movie, Room with a view for an example of this sort of travel.)

Of course, the world seems so much smaller now than it was then. With the advancements in air travel and the infinite resources of the Internet, you can travel and learn about other cultures from the comfort of your armchair, but it can never quite replace the thrill of seeing those sites in person.



I travelled to the United Kingdom recently for the first time and it will be an adventure I will never forget. I loved every minute of it. I was overwhelmed by the history and age of everything I encountered and the people I met. I was like a sponge soaking up every little detail as I explored. I wonder if those privileged young men felt the same thrill as I did while travelling?

If you had the chance to send your child on a Grand Tour after University or College, would you? And if so, what places would you insist they go and see?

For a really interesting blog on Richard Bealey’s grand tour see here: http://bealey.wordpress.com/2010/08/27/richard-bealeys-grand-tour-1830/

Sources:
http://nineteenteen.blogspot.com/2011/11/grand-tour-part-1-planning.html
http://bbc.co.uk/
http://grandtour.wordpress.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Tour

Courtship Throughout History - Regency England

By Danielle Lisle

Over my next few posts, I plan to take us all on a ride through time and witness some of the differences society standards and geological distance played in regards to young lovers and their courtship. You might be surprised to learn it was not as you thought it to be.

Regency England (early 1800’s)

 

Have flowers and candy always been the way to a woman’s heart?

Seemingly not.

I often wonder while I sit in my comfy recliner, watching regency movies or reading a new and exciting historical novel; Are the happy ever afters truly accurate? Do they really happen like we dream, watch or read about?

It turns out that fiction is simply fiction and majority of the time love has very little to do with a couple’s courtship. How sad.

Now this is not always the case, but it sadly occurred with some regularity among noble houses in the Regency period. People married for money and station in the past, with love having little or anything to do with the union. I guess I can see why it was so accepted to have a mistress back then. It makes me want to weep at the idea of a woman never finding her true love or happy ever after in life. Am I alone in this thought?

I guess there is an ideal example of the hardships woman faced back in the Regency in regards to marriage. The truth is, a woman had very little choice in the matter of her husband-to-be. Fathers ‘owned’ their daughters in a sense and contracts were drawn up once a settlement was agreed upon by the future groom and the bride’s father. But first, a woman needed to be chosen. And how was that done? *very big grin*

House parties and balls were a good opportunity for fathers and eager mothers to parade their young daughters around like horses up for sale at the stockyards. The young women (around seventeen years old) would be dressed in the latest fashion, jewelled in extravagant pieces and educated in the art of snagging a husband. After all, it was a woman’s goal in life to marry and run their own household. *can you hear me snorting people?*

The girls would be introduced to the men in attendance either by the host, their mother or a friend. It wasn’t like today, where you (okay, like me) would sashay up to a fella in a nightclub or bar and wink, ‘Hey stud, wanna dance?’ He would in turn give you a saucy grin and pull you onto the dance floor where you would bump and grind to the latest song on the pop charts. *snort* Hardly. A lady could never appear eager (I clearly wouldn’t have survived back then) or approach a man, especially if she had never been formally introduced to him before. There was a format that needed to be followed and strict unwritten rules that governed everyone, from the royalty to the labouring poor.

It wasn’t always peaches and cream for the men either, they were ‘expected’ to dance with all the girls making their come out, if not for the prospect of finding a bride but to appease their mothers, whether because they felt sorry for the wall flower sitting by the sideline or because they were a friend of a friend of a friend etcetera, it was still the expected thing to do. It was in these moments that a lady needed to shine. Her dancing needed to be precise and angelic, her manner needed to be demure and educated and her appearance needed to capture the man’s attention. Low necklines exposing the ‘girls’ was not unheard of either. But snagging a young buck was not always the easiest thing to manage.

A Regency Brothel

Men or boys (depending on your point of view) were ‘expected’ to sow some ‘wild oats’ before settling down and choosing a bride, likely because their father before them had done the same thing. College, at either Oxford or Cambridge, had little to do with education (in their mind anyway) and more to do with exploring life away from under their mother’s hand. Gaming Hells and Brothels catering to high society gentleman were a lucrative establishment to run, with regular visits from young gentlemen to their favourite courtesan or card table.

As a result, gentlemen did not generally marry at a young age and the men who were truly available to a debutant was likely quite older than she.

But what happened once a young lady actually caught a gentlemen’s eye?

Well, the idea of flowers and candy was not at all a reality back then. ‘Feel sorry for em now, huh?’ It was prohibited (not by a law, but simply society standards) that a man and woman could not correspond or exchange gifts. It was only into the Victorian era that flowers and candy became acceptable gifts, but that was all. The first gift a man would generally give his wife was her wedding ring and oddly they were not always expected or common.

So how did they get to know each other then? Well, in my opinion they didn’t, but I’m sure that’s debatable. A young lady’s most precious asset was her ‘virginity’ and it was not wise to call that into question or unmarried you would stay. It was therefore important that an unmarried woman was chaperoned at all times when outside of her home. She was accompanied by her mother, a member of the family or maid at every moment, whether it be a carriage ride in the park, a shopping trip or making a call to a friend, ensuring her ‘maiden state’ was never called into question. She was never, ever, left alone in the company of a man, courting or otherwise. Can you imagine trying to date a bloke with your mother listening to your every word? *shudders* I, for one, am glad times have changed.

I like thinking back to the Pride and Prejudice movies, either the early miniseries or the recent movie to explain this next point. Do you ever see Mr Darcy and Miss Bennett touch? Do you see them kiss? Well, they do kiss, but only AFTER they’re married. They never hold hands, or show any affection towards each other in any form of physical contact, simply because it just wasn’t done back then. Nor do they address each other by their given names, as that would appear far too ‘vulgar’ and call the poor woman’s virtue into question. *sigh* So, how did they truly do it? It was trying, to say the least.

While there is just something romantic about the Regency period, I think it is fascinating to learn that the idea of sending flowers and candy was not a reality in any way, shape, or form. But then again, there was always the opportunity to go riding with the handsome gentlemen, just sadly with your mother in tow. 

WIN ME!

Comment below for your chance to win a copy of Regency Pleasures by Louise Allan.

Danielle can be contacted via her website, Twitter or Facebook accounts.

Historical Hearts Good News

Congratulations go to the following HH authors

for their FANTASTIC news to kick of our

Good News Posts for 2012!!!

Bronwyn Stuart has signed her FIRST writing contract

with Carina Press for her Regency historical romance

'Scandal's Mistress'

to be released before the end of the year.

Congratulations Bron, we're all so happy for you

and can't wait to read 'Scandal's Mistress'.

 

To wet your appetite here is the blurb for Scandal's Mistress:

Love. It’s the cruelest mistress of all. When you have it, it hurts. When you lose it, it nearly kills you. But what if he doesn’t believe in it and she doesn’t want it…

Italian opera singer, Carmalina Belluccini, has been alone with her bad luck and morbid thoughts for too long. When a man who is no angel offers her an affare, dignity and desire start to battle within her. She is no courtesan and certainly not mistress material, only, when her beautiful voice fails she finds herself in a position too difficult to refuse Justin Trentham’s protection. But what is he hiding and why is he so desperate to create the scandal of the season?

Danielle Lisle has signed her second publishing contract with

Total-E-Bound Publishing for her

erotic Regency historical

'The Virgin at Goodrich Hall'

2nd story in 'The Rogues of Deception' series.

We'll keep you posted on the release date!

 

 

To wet your appetite here is the blurb for 'The Virgin at Goodrich Hall':

 

The rumour of a place housing mindless pleasure is too much temptation for this young maiden to ignore. Lady Margaret knew her father would choose her a suitor soon, but how could she find passion with a man twice her age? With the fear she would never experience anything with her husband other than her duty of providing him an heir, she set out for Goodrich Hall, a whispered about mystery of the ton. Propriety and good sense be damned, she would not die without experiencing the pleasure a real man could offer!

 

As soon as the young maiden entered the Hall, Victor knew he would have her. Her masked face and barely there silks, which clung to her body with a lust of their own, sent a rush a need through his body. It was not until she melted against him later, her passion fully stated, did he realise he might have taken on more than he first thought. He needed to her, regardless of if she wanted him or not.

 

 

Such wonderful news. Congratulations again

and keep the good news coming, ladies.

 

 

 

 

Historical Hearts Good News

Well, it's been another great news week for the writers of Historical Hearts.

So without further ado, we congratulate...

Maggi Andersen, who has signed a contract with

Knox Robinson Publishing to publish her Georgian Romance

'The Reluctant Marquess' available 8th March 2012

Also...

Knox Robinson Publishing have signed Maggi's two
Regency-set historical romances

'A Baron In Her Bed' available September 2012 and

'The Folly At Falconbridge Hall' available December 2012

Maggi has also been busy creating a wonderful new
book trailer for

'Surrender to Destiny'

This week Anne Whitfield celebrated the release

of her Victorian historical saga novel

'To Gain What's Lost'

To wet your appetite, here's the blurb:

Anna Thornton leads a privileged life, but she's not content. When the dashing Matt Cowan sweeps her off her feet, she thinks her boring existence has changed for the better, only all is not as it seems. betrayed and faced with family secrets, Anna flees her home. Taking her trusted maid with her, she begins a new life, which is filled with events that will test her strength and self belief. However, fate sends a man to heal her heart, but will she trust herself to another again? Will the past recede enough for her to see a brighter future?

Available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords all all good book stores.

Our very own talented, Annie Seaton (Anne-Marie Smith)

has become a content editor with Lyrical Press Inc Publishing.

If you would like to see what manuscripts Anne is acquiring

please refer to her page at Lyrical Press here.

And last but certainly not least

Danielle Lisle has signed a publishing contract with

Total-E-Bound Publishing for her

erotic Regency historical

'The Roses Bloom'

1st story in the series called

'The Rogues of Deception'

And it looks like Total-E-Bound are going

to publish the other two as well. Woo HOO!

Huge congratulations ladies

and keep the good news coming!

Historical Hearts Launch Party - Day 4

Dear Reader

I am so glad you have found your way to our Historical Hearts Blog. I’m Annie Seaton and I love all things historical. I write Steampunk romance.

I live on the beautiful east coast of Australia, where I spend most of the day sitting in my writing chair, gazing at the ocean and dreaming up stories. I have found my niche writing steampunk, where strong heroines and brooding heroes fight together to make their alternative world a better place.

I have recently signed with Lyrical Press, and I am looking forward to seeing my first novella, Winter of the Passion Flower released in March 2012. I am currently working on my second steampunk project, Summer of the Moon Flower, a novel length follow up.

Steampunk? What is steampunk you ask? Sounds slightly steamy?

Steampunk as a literary genre began to gain popularity in the 1980s. It began as a subgenre of science fiction and fantasy, and developed as a rebellious response to the science fiction that preceded it. Steampunk includes the core elements of

· Steam power

· Alternate history settings (mostly Victorian/Edwardian era England, and sometimes the wild, wild west)

· SF/Fantasy elements

· Devices that reflect the period but are ahead of their time. For example, difference engines, airships, and all sorts of clockwork and steam powered devices

I will let you peek at a directional perambulator, a device in my upcoming steampunk novella (March 2012) as an example.

“Steam lift,” Indigo spoke loudly above the humming. “Precision movement defined by the cogs. The perambulator ascends, descends and moves sideways if needed." 

Steampunk is warm, sassy, and larger than life. The new direction is now steampunk + romance and a major appeal is the historical setting, and a steampunk author can use familiar settings and times.

Steampunk romance has the potential to offer something familiar, yet different. Authors can stretch their creative wings. Sassy heroines can stretch the limits of Victorian dress codes...

Her signature red bustier topped an emerald green skirt embossed with the symbols of industry flowing around her ankles, neither satisfying air safety dress regulation for dirigible travel. 

Both excerpts from Winter of the Passion Flower – Annie Seaton (Lyrical Press March 2012)

So welcome to our blog, come along and say hello. I have some beautiful postcards and elegant pens for the person who can list three steampunk romance novels in a comment below!

Enjoy our launch week, come back and visit again.

Good Luck!

Annie.

Hello everyone. My name is Cassandra Samuels and I love everything Regency. The clothes, the manners, the people, the history, the entertainments, the clothes, the furniture, the music – did I mention the clothes? I think you get the picture and he looks a lot like Colin Firth. Hmmm I’ll let you think on that for a moment....

Right, onward! I am currently unpublished and writing – you guessed it – Regency Historical Romance. I love dashing Dukes, masterful Marquis’, enigmatic Earls and virile Viscounts – I mean who doesn’t? I love to write strong sassy ladies who give my heroes an adventure in love they never expected all with a touch of humor.

I will be blogging - Cassie’s Regency Tidbits. There will be interesting people of the period, historical trivia and other interesting things. My first blog will be about the language of the fan. It seems amazing that so much could be conveyed simply by placing your fan in a particular way. I hope you will enjoy my Regency tidbits’ and will let me know what you want to know about the Regency Period.

What do you like about the Regency era? As an incentive to creative answers there is a small prize up for grabs, an “I love Darcy” key ring all the way from the Jane Austen Tea House in Bath.

Good Luck!

Cassandra.

G-day all! I'm Danielle Lisle. The girls of Historical Hearts have asked that I introduce myself. My first thought was to shake your hand, but the limits of cyberspace make it rather difficult. Instead, I’ll have to give you a hot and steamy mental image of what I read and love to write. Surely that will imprint me in your memory? Well, let’s see... 

Men is skirts. In know it’s not all that sexy (well, perhaps it is if you swing that way) but stick with me and think of a Scottish warrior with a deep, thick accent (Gerard Butler *moan*) with bulging muscles, softly furred chest, his long, bulging and deliciously thick .... sword and eyes that could slay a woman’s soul. Oh yes, I have your attention. Now, this man in a skirt IS sexy!

Every writer writes for a different reason. I write stories of love, desire and passion, for a simple reason – I want to live it! Yep, I want to be that heroine, the damsel in distress who is saved by the hunky (and yes, sometimes damaged too) hero. I want him to whisk me away, cave man tactics and all, exposing me to the deep and dark passion of his soul. *sigh* Name me a woman who doesn’t want that?

You can likely gauge from my thought process in writing the above, that I write ‘naughty’ historical romances. Yep, I like it hot and there is nothing hotter than some hot and heavy passion leading the way to everlasting love.

I love reading all types historical’s as well. It’s not always romance, though granted most times it is. I find the path our ancestors have travelled to get the world to where it is today, remarkably fascinating. It is therefore my goal to have my stories as detailed and accurate as possible. Well, settings and events are at least. Everything else is totally my imagination. *cheeky grin*

Come on a whirlwind ride with me as I travel the strange and distant lands of our past and meet some very hunky men along the way.

Win Me!!!

Tell me what gets your blood flowing in the books you read. What is it about the hero or heroine that makes you refuse to put the book down regardless of the time of night? What is it that makes you say ‘to hell!’ with the pile of dishes in the sink or the dirty washing vying for your attention? All comments will go in the draw to win a copy of Judith Ivory’s, Angel in a Red Dress.

Good Luck!

Danielle.

Welcome to our Historical Hearts Blog. Hi I’m Elle Fynllay, one of your tour guides as we take the magical journey back through the mists of time. We’ll be passing back through Victorian time , stopping for a quite extensive view of the Regency period, back, back through the time of Cavaliers and Roundheads, deeper and deeper in to the mists to Medieval period and even deeper to the Time of the Romans and Druids.

My period is a medieval time where Kings, Lairds and heroes lusted for land, love and glory and their women lusted for…their alpha males, of course. My first novel “Siege of the Heart” is an alliance between an Anglo-Saxon Laird’s daughter and the Norman knight that brings his wealth and strength to the marriage but can the castle survive the turmoil between its fiery Lady and the Norman knight who has staked his wealth on a betrothal and can they both survive the treachery within the castle. There is more than one way to win a castle; through siege, battle or treachery. Who will win? Who will survive?

Back to modern times: The deeper we go in time the less we have evidence of the period. From the Medieval period we have manuscripts and a few drawings to refer to. In Regency, we often hear accounts of the plethora of ancestral paintings on the wall. Well Reader, look around you. How much of your history is on display? In this day and age of digital display there is little “Hard Copy“, that is, actual paintings or photographs of family that we can put our hands on. I have three silver finish photo frames, that will hold a 5’’x7” (13x18cm) photograph to give away to a reader who comments on their favourite time period and why.

Good Luck!

Elle.

Note: For your chance to win today's prizes, when answering the trivia questions or replying, please leave your name, email address and what draw you'd like to enter. Of course, you are more than welcome to enter all prize draws up for grabs. Good Luck!