Tag Archives: Regency Romance

First Kiss Friday with Jude Knight

27 Friday Mar 2020

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Any day I can welcome my friend Jude Knight to my First Kiss Friday blog is a good day. She certainly has a way of pulling at your heartstrings. Read on to find out what she has in store for you!

This first kiss appears in Paradise Lost, the little collection of vignettes that Jude Knight is currently writing, and that she’ll give away to newsletter subscribers when she publishes the story of James’s son next month, on 15 April. Paradise Lost is a companion piece to Paradise Regained, which is about James. To Wed a Proper Lady is the story of his son, and novel one of six in The Children of the Mountain King.

Excerpt:

Eleanor traced the words in the water that puddled on the stone rim of the fountain. “Lady James Winderfield.” Her lips curved in a tremulous smile. The man she loved was asking her father for her hand, and would soon come to ask her.

“I have made an appointment to meet your father tomorrow,” he had whispered in her ear last night as they promenaded down the centre of the double line of dances. Then, as they passed one another, a few moments later, “You know what I want to ask him, my darling.”

She circled the girl at the head of the ladies’ line, barely aware of the other people in the room, conscious only of James and the words that set her heart thumping. Only years of practice kept her moving gracefully back around to meet James again, her arm stretched high, her hand ready for his brief clasp and her ears for another burst of whispered words.

“This is what you want?”

Looking up, she nodded, and the anxiety cleared from his eyes as they met hers. How could he be unsure of her? She had no further opportunity to reassure him. They had to part and dance down the outside of their respective lines, and the music drew to a close before they could speak again.

Her mother was waiting, and hurried her away. The Earl of Farnmouth, her father, had decided it was time to leave.

He was with her father now, shut in the earl’s study. Soon, surely, the earl would send him out into the garden. The answer would be yes, of course. As the daughter of an earl, she knew her worth, but James was third son of a duke; a duke, furthermore who was a friend of her father.

Eleanor cast a glance at the house and frowned slightly. Lord Farnmouth would say yes. Of course, he would. Only last week, he had interrupted her dinner with her mother to announce that he expected a very eligible offer for Eleanor’s hand. “I am pleased with your daughter, countess,” he had told her mother. “Betrothed after only two months after her debut. You are to be congratulated, madam.”

He had not spoken to Eleanor, but he seldom did. Nor had he given a name, but who could it be but James? James was her most ardent suitor. Indeed, since the rapscallion son of the Duke of Winshire had made her the object of his devotion, the rest of her court had fallen away. They had been callow boys, in any case, standing up with her because of childhood friendship or because she had become fashionable.

James was a man, not a boy — twenty-four years to her seventeen. He was unbelievably handsome, charming, clever, funny, and dearer to her than anyone she had ever known, even her older sister. And he had chosen her! She clapped her hands and spun in a circle, unable to contain her delight.

Soon he would come. She composed herself on the stone bench opposite the path by which he would enter the garden.  How would he propose? On one knee? Sitting beside her? The thought had her up on her feet again, too excited to stay still, peering down the path.

“Eleanor!” It was a hiss just a hairsbreadth above a whisper.

She spun around. James had come from the other direction. Well, no matter. She hurried towards him, her hands outstretched. What was the matter? The tragic expression on his face frightened her. “James? What is the matter?”

He clasped her hands and pulled her after him into the shadows of the yew walk, where he wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her hair. “Eleanor, I love you. I love you more than life itself. You believe me, do you not?”

Eleanor pulled away, but only enough to peer into his eyes. “James? What did my father say?”

James groaned.

“James, you are frightening me. Did he say we must wait?”

“Eleanor, he says that he has given your hand to the Duke of Haverford,” James blurted.

Eleanor’s breath stopped and she could hear her blood surging in her ears as her heart pounded. Her sight grew dark at the edges, and the enormous yew hedges swayed towards her as if to batter her into the ground. By force of will, she fought off her faintness. “But… but he is old,” she stammered, “and a wicked libertine, and cold as ice.” She stamped her foot. “I don’t want him, James. I love you. I love you, James.”

“Shush, my love,” James begged. “We must be quiet. Farnmouth told me I could not see you again, but I had to, Eleanor. I’ll find a way. I promise. You love me and I love you. I will ask my father to help. He is friends with yours. Surely Winshire can persuade the earl.”

“Yes!” Eleanor’s heart gave another enormous thump, this time with relief. “We will be together?” she asked.

“We will marry,” James promised. He bent his head and his lips touched hers. It was a gentle, reverent salute, but Eleanor pressed closer and the kiss changed, James’s lips still soft, but questing, moving, devouring. His tongue pressed the seam of her mouth and swept inside when she gasped. Again, the darkness hovered, but this time it was a welcoming warmth, a giving and taking of sensation, a merging of selves so that Eleanor no longer knew who sighed and who moaned, or how long they stayed intertwined.

The whistling of a gardener brought them back to themselves. “I must go,” James told her. “Stay strong, my love. We are meant to be together, and I will find a way.”

“We are meant to be together,” she agreed.

***

The Duchess of Haverford put the rose back into her memory box. It was from a small bouquet he had sent her. She had worn it for that last dance. Now it was fragile, dried and faded, adorned with yet another tear to join all the others she had wept on it in the past ten years. Once, she had loved and been loved. That, at least, would never change.

***

For more about Paradise Regained, see https://judeknightauthor.com/books/paradise-regained/

For more about The Children of the Mountain King series, see https://judeknightauthor.com/the-children-of-the-mountain-king/

For more about To Wed a Proper Lady, including preorder, see https://judeknightauthor.com/books/to-wed-a-proper-lady/

For your copy of Paradise Lost, subscribe to Jude’s newsletter: https://judeknightauthor.com/newsletter/

About Jude Knight:

Have you ever wanted something so much you were afraid to even try? That was Jude ten years ago.

For as long as she can remember, she’s wanted to be a novelist. She even started dozens of stories, over the years.

But life kept getting in the way. A seriously ill child who required years of therapy; a rising mortgage that led to a full-time job; six children, her own chronic illness… the writing took a back seat.

As the years passed, the fear grew. If she didn’t put her stories out there in the market, she wouldn’t risk making a fool of herself. She could keep the dream alive if she never put it to the test.

Then her mother died. That great lady had waited her whole life to read a novel of Jude’s, and now it would never happen.

So Jude faced her fear and changed it–told everyone she knew she was writing a novel. Now she’d make a fool of herself for certain if she didn’t finish.

Her first book came out to excellent reviews in December 2014, and the rest is history. Many books, lots of positive reviews, and a few awards later, she plans to keep publishing until she runs out of years.

Website and blog: http://judeknightauthor.com/

Subscribe to newsletter: http://judeknightauthor.com/newsletter/

Bookshop: https://judeknight.selz.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JudeKnightAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudeKnightBooks

Pinterest: https://nz.pinterest.com/jknight1033/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jude-knight

First Kiss Friday with Virginia Heath & a Giveaway!

13 Friday Mar 2020

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Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Today’s guest is my friend Virginia Heath who as an excerpt from Redeeming the Reclusive Earl. Take it away Virginia!

I love a quirky pairing and Max and Effie in REDEEMING THE RECLUSIVE EARL are certainly that. Scarred from a fire, Max is trying to hide from the world at his newly inherited estate but those plans are scuppered by the tenacious Effie who flatly refuses to abandon her archaeological dig on his land. Effie is, for want of a better word, a genius with a photographic mind who terrifies most men with her intelligence. Despite his initial anger at her trespassing, the pair form an unlikely friendship as Max finds himself recruited as her reluctant assistant…

Excerpt:

Did she intimidate him?

What sort of a blasted question was that to ask hot on the heels after he had only just discovered there had been multiple idiots who had apparently kissed her in the past. Idiots who were too stupid not to want to do it again! Because to his way of thinking, asking if she intimidated him was merely a polite way of asking if she emasculated him, which would be laughable if everything about Effie didn’t remind him hourly exactly how masculine he truly was.

The most masculine part of him was still reeling at the sight of her all flustered and damp in that worn shirt and those damned form-fitting breeches. And she had a smear of mud on her cheek, which he’d had the devil of a job not brushing away the second he had seen it. The only way he could stop himself was to pretend he did not want to hold her muddy hand when he had stupidly offered to help her out of the trench, because in that precise moment, had he hauled her up, he would have hauled her into his arms and likely scared the hell out of her.

What baffled him, what he still couldn’t wrap his head around, was how those idiotic men had found the strength not to kiss her because he was severely struggling with it.

Every day it got harder and, to make it worse, the urge wasn’t only fired by her pretty face and mouth-watering figure, but by her mind. The more he got to know her, the more he wanted to know her in every sense of the word. His unwelcome infestation of visitors aside, the past three days had been interminable because he had missed her. He’d even ridden twice in the pouring rain in the pathetic hope he would still find her here, tenaciously digging despite the foul weather. The linen shirt plastered to her skin and rendered translucent…

And those thoughts were not helping his discomfort at all. What had possessed him to work in the same trench as her? Mere inches away, but still too many miles apart for his liking.

Blasted torture!

Clearly he had a masochistic streak to have chosen this, rather than the other fifteen trenches he had dug, just to be close to her?

Annoyed, he thrust the trowel into the soft mud wall in front of him and felt the tip of it strike something solid. Even though he knew it was probably a rock, he still took the time to remove the soil carefully from the surface exactly as Effie had taught him.

The edge of whatever it was seemed large and curved like a wheel and, because he did not possess her patience or want to alert her to the fact he might have found something and then have to suffer her leaning over him while he worked, he discarded the trowel and began to tug away the earth with his fingers. Then he hit peat and that happily crumbled with the merest touch.

Little by little, the object quickly revealed itself until Max had uncovered a foot-wide crescent. But unlike a wheel, it wasn’t hollow, nor did it have spokes. He swiped his hands over it to clean away the mud and then stared in disbelief at the tiny spot of ornately tooled metal he had clumsily uncovered.

‘Effie…’

His tone must have alerted her to his discovery, because like a shot she as at his side and staring in disbelief. ‘Good heavens…’

Suddenly crouched next to him, her fingers joined his as they frantically removed the dirt. A task made easier by the moisture left in the ground from days of rain , the removal of years of compacted earth with the pickaxe only days before and the fresh drops which decided to fall from the sky to soften the peat it sat in. In no time and oblivious of the rainfall soaking them through, they had unveiled a perfect circle, obviously an ancient shield, the centre decorated with a proud riveted disc around which swirling patterns had been pressed into the metal.

Max stepped back to allow her smaller, more nimble, gentle fingers to prise the embedded edges from the earth, then watched transfixed as it was suddenly and miraculously free with hardly any effort and she lifted it.

‘I cannot believe it is completely intact.’ She laid it reverently on the grass on the top of the trench and ran her palm over the pattern as the rain that had started again hammered down on it. ‘Unless the peat somehow preserves things better than normal soil?’ She tugged free the hem of her shirt and used it to clean away as much muck as she could and then just stood and stared at it in wonder. ‘It is beautiful… Truly beautiful… Obviously bronze by the patina and lack of rust… The workmanship exquisite.’

‘So much for the Celts being savages, then? The man who used this had excellent taste and knew one hell of a blacksmith.’

She slowly turned to him, half-smiling, half-agog. ‘You are right… The man who owned this was someone special, Max. This shield is a statement. Purely ceremonial, I’ll wager, and a mark of his status, exactly like the gold bracelet. Both are incredibly special objects and it is too coincidental to find two such treasures in one small space.’

‘Do you think it plausible this wooden hut belonged to a king?’ If the Celts even had kings.

‘Perhaps… Which would make this dwelling…’ Awe turned to excitement as she beamed, then launched at him, wrapping her arms around him in an exuberant hug while jumping up and down. ‘Oh, Max! This is wonderful! Wonderful! You’ve found something wonderful! He’s someone important! Someone hugely important! That explains why his house is so big!’

‘Do you think?’

‘It has to be! He is an eminent chieftain or a king!’

‘Or a queen like that Boudicca you and my sister are so fond of. That bracelet is too small for a man’s wrist. And then there is that comb you found. Big, hairy, blue men wouldn’t bother with a comb…’

‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this was a woman’s house? A different sort of woman than society understands today, of course.’ Much like Effie herself. ‘But one who mattered once. Someone important…’ Her hands clutched at his waistcoat as she beamed and bounced on the spot. ‘You’ve found something amazing, Max!’ Caught up in her excitement he looped his arm around her waist and laughed, picking her up and spinning her around in the confined space as best he could until they were both giddy. ‘You’ve found something amazing!’

‘We found something amazing, Effie.’

We…

He liked the sound of that on his lips. Liked the feel of her arms locked around his neck. The feel of her lush body in damp fabric plastered against him. The sight of her bedraggled hair and the way it dripped rainwater on to his face. The way that rainwater spiked her long lashes and dewed her lips.

He felt his heart beating against her ribs.

Felt his chest rise and fall in time with hers.

Lost himself in the depths of her beautiful, expressive eyes.

Then forgot all the reasons why he shouldn’t kiss her and simply did, sighing against her mouth as he gathered her close. She tasted like the outdoors. The sea air. The vast horizons he had sailed towards, filled with promise and wonder. Smelled of lilacs and roses and rainwater. Felt like utter perfection in his arms.

As if she had been made for him. That was his last rational thought before he lost himself.

Until the sound of rapidly approaching hoofbeats broke the spell and the pair of them jumped apart and blinked at each other, stunned.

REDEEMING THE RECLUSIVE  EARL
By Virginia Heath

His heart is a fortress.

And she’s trespassing!

After losing all he holds dear in a horrific fire, Max Aldersley, Earl of Rivenhall, shuns the world—until he catches Effie Nithercott digging holes on his estate! He banishes the intrepid archaeologist and the unsettled feelings she rouses within him. But she returns even more determined and infuriatingly desirable than before! He wonders just how deep she’s prepared to dig—so far she’ll reach the man beneath his scars?

Giveaway question: For a chance to win 1 of 3 eBook copies of REDEEMING THE RECLUSIVE EARL simply answer the following question:

I love a tortured hero and there aren’t many more tortured than poor Max- who is you favourite fictional tortured hero?

Buy link: mybook.to/reclusiveearl

Social links:

https://www.facebook.com/virginiaheathauthor/

https://www.virginiaheathromance.com/

Virginia Heath bio:

When Virginia Heath was a little girl it took her ages to fall asleep, so she made up stories in her head to help pass the time while she was staring at the ceiling. As she got older, the stories became more complicated, sometimes taking weeks to get to the happy ending. Then one day, she decided to embrace the insomnia and start writing them down. Eighteen books later, it still takes her forever to fall asleep.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

14 Friday Feb 2020

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Happy Valentine’s Day to all our wonderful readers!

I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of you for making Fire & Frost a bestselling box set. The Bluestocking Belles and I are thrilled with all the marvelous reviews we’ve been receiving and also for the set hitting several bestseller lists including, Amazon, Goodreads, and Smashwords.

You are the ones to make this happen. Thank you for supporting the Bluestocking Belles by purchasing a copy of Fire & Frost. Your purchase also supports our mutual charity, the Malala Fund. Our readers are the best!

♥ ¸.•*(¸.•*´♥`*•.¸)`*•.♥
Fire & Frost – Only $0.99
Curl up with the gift of a great book this Valentine’s Day. Fire & Frost will warm your heart!
In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.
Love unexpected, rekindled, brand new or rediscovered—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the winter. After weeks of fog and cold all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.
In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul searing romance.
Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.
Buy links:
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2LGvSbK
Apple Books: https://apple.co/355nXMG
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2sdPVYd
Kobo: http://bit.ly/36nYwX
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2LF74AK
International:
Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2t7vMDH BR: https://amzn.to/2rybx1o CA: https://amzn.to/2Pcnenz DE: https://amzn.to/2E2sIL6 ES: https://amzn.to/2E77hZr FR: https://amzn.to/2RKJc2J IN: https://amzn.to/35bdCPd IT: https://amzn.to/2qIOSz2 JP: https://amzn.to/35c8mLw MX: https://amzn.to/2YATO5r NL: https://amzn.to/2YGzhfR UK: https://amzn.to/2YArBf2

First Kiss Friday with Caroline Warfield

07 Friday Feb 2020

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Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Today’s guest is my dear friend Caroline Warfield who is sharing an excerpt from her novella Lord Ethan’s Courage found in our box set Fire & Frost. Happy reading, my lovelies, and enjoy!

Unlike the heroes of the other stories in Fire & Frost, Ethan isn’t able to actually bid on Flora’s time and her basket in the ladies’ charity auction due to illness. He sends his brother as surrogate. He does, however, have a surprise for her.

Excerpt:

She took a step back, arms akimbo and flashed him stern frown. “Is that all you want to say? ‘Call on me?’ Where is your courage when I need it?”

He came closer to her. “I have no right to say more, but if you can be patient…”

Flo heaved a sigh of exasperation and closed the distance between them, grabbing his shoulders, and meeting his lips with her impatient ones. After a heartbeat he returned the kiss with an achingly tender one, using his damaged arm to pull her close while he feathered his graceful fingers across her cheek.

“Much better,” she sighed against his neck, “But know this. I can wait out my mourning and your illness, but do not ask me to be patient.” She spat each of the last words out one by one. “I am not a patient woman when I know what I want, Ethan Alcott, and I want you.”

He kissed her again, this time deeply, passionately, possessively. When she moaned and pulled him closer, he pulled back, tipping his forehead onto hers. “Your brother believes you deserve a Season. I agree. If you still want this in a year…”

“God save me from men and their honor,” she muttered into his cravat.

About the Story

When Flora Landrum’s family is thrown into mourning and her brother loses himself in his new duties as earl, she refuses to be shunted off to her sister’s household under the eye of her vile brother-in-law. If the new earl can take time from his problems to do charity work for returning veterans, so can Flora, even if she has to sneak behind his back to visit some unsavory neighborhoods.

Lord Ethan Alcott lost his desire to live after the horrors of the peninsular war. The courage that enabled him to lead men into battle and drove him to charge into the rioting in its aftermath to save innocents failed him when he woke up on a troopship, just one wounded man among many. He was content to sit among the most wretched in an alley waiting for death until the day an innocent young lady stormed bravely among them determined to alleviate what suffering she could. She ought not be there and honor bound him to find her family and tell them so.

Flora might be insulted by the interference, but she isn’t about to let him sink back into misery. Ethan has a new battle on his hands, one for his life.

Fire & Frost:
A Bluestocking Belles Collection
Only $0.99

In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.

Love unexpected, rekindled, or brand new—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the frigid winter. After weeks of fog and cold, all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.

In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul-searing romance.

Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.

BUY LINKS

Amazon US  |  Apple Books  | Barnes & Noble | Kobo  | Smashwords

Amazon Global:

AU BR CA DE ES FR IN IT JP MX NL UK

About the Author

Award winning author Caroline Warfield has been many things: traveler, librarian, poet, raiser of children, bird watcher, Internet and Web services manager, conference speaker, indexer, tech writer, genealogist—even a nun. She reckons she is on at least her third act, happily working in an office surrounded by windows where she lets her characters lead her to adventures in England and the far-flung corners of the British Empire. She nudges them to explore the riskiest territory of all, the human heart.

Visit Caroline’s Website and Blog  http://www.carolinewarfield.com/

Meet Caroline on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/carolinewarfield7

Follow Caroline on Twitter https://twitter.com/CaroWarfield

Email Caroline directly   warfieldcaro@gmail.com

Subscribe to Caroline’s newsletter  http://www.carolinewarfield.com/newsletter/

Amazon Author http://www.amazon.com/Caroline-Warfield/e/B00N9PZZZS/

Good Reads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8523742.Caroline_Warfield

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/profile/caroline-warfield

Caroline’s Other Books

Amazon                      https://www.amazon.com/Caroline-Warfield/e/B00N9PZZZS/

Bookshelf                    http://www.carolinewarfield.com/bookshelf

Happy Release Day ~ Fire & Frost

04 Tuesday Feb 2020

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It’s always a great day to celebrate when you release a new book baby into the world (although my brother would say it’s in honor of his birthday ~ Happy Birthday, Tim).

The Bluestocking Belles and I are pleased to release our latest collection, Fire & Frost. Taking place during the last Frost Fair of 1814, you’ll find five stories to give you hours of reading pleasure. My contribution to the set is A Second Chance At Love with Viscount Digby Osgood and Lady Constance Whittles whom you first met in Under the Mistletoe. Be sure to read to the end to learn about our blog hope and contest!

Be sure to grab your copy for only $0.99 and remember that with your purchase a percentage of the sales will go to our mutual charity The Malala Fund.

Fire & Frost: A Bluestocking Belles Collection
Only $0.99!

In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.

Love unexpected, rekindled, or brand new—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the frigid winter. After weeks of fog and cold, all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.

In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul-searing romance.

Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.

A Second Chance At Love

Viscount Digby Osgood returns to London after a two-year absence, planning to avoid the woman he courted and then left. Surely she has moved on with her life; even married by now. A bit of encouragement from a friend, however, pushes him to seek the lady out. Can she ever forgiven him and give them a second chance at love?

Lady Constance Whittles has only cared for one man in her life. Even after he broke her heart, it remains fixed on him. Another man tries to replace him, but she soon learns she can never feel for him a shadow of what she still feels for Digby. One brief encounter with Digby confirms it; she is more than willing to forgive him. Can they truly take up where they left off?

Charity projects and a Frost Fair on the Thames bring them together, but another stands in their way. Will he tear them apart?

Fire & Frost Buy links:

Amazon US  |  Apple Books  | Barnes & Noble | Kobo  | Smashwords

Amazon Global:

AU BR CA DE ES FR IN IT JP MX NL UK

How about a blog hop & contest to celebrate?

Read and comment on five original pieces relating to our stories at each hop, comment on the Belles’ blog and you’ll be in the running for a $50 Amazon gift card. We’re keeping this contest open until Saturday, February 8th. Start the hop here!

The Book Palace on Ice for Imaginative and Curious Minds

02 Sunday Feb 2020

Posted by in 2020, New Release

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Lord Digby Osgood held tightly to the lady on his arm after she lost her footing on the ice. He gave her a reassuring smile silently telling her he would never let her fall.  Lady Constance Whittles murmured a soft thank you and Digby swore his heart flipped end over end when she moved a little closer to his side.

They continued on their way through the stalls of the Frost Fair. It had already been a fun-filled day despite the cold weather. They had enjoyed the Tea Shoppe on the Ice followed by the stall featuring Anna’s Hot Roasted Chestnuts. He had been more than thrilled when they had come upon Wilfred Bagshotts Portraits on Demand and he insisted Lady Constance sit for a drawing. The miniature was now tucked away in his coat and he would see that it was properly framed once he returned home.

But when they came upon The Book Palace on Ice for Imaginative and Curious Minds, a squeal of delight escaped Constance’s lips. Digby could not refuse her plea to take only a small peek at what the stall had to offer. Small peek, indeed. He should have known the lady would become lost in the makeshift bookstore the moment she stepped foot inside. Digby had been waiting for the past twenty minutes. Not that he minded. Constance loved her books and he would deny her nothing as long as she was happy.

“Checking out my sister’s competition, Lord Osgood?” That voice held a hint of sarcasm but still remained civil enough to not offend.

Digby turned and saw none other than Samuel Clemens, the editor and owner of The Teatime Tattler. “Mr. Clemens,” Digby replied with a nod of his head. “What brings you here in such inclement weather?”

“My stall is just around the corner and business has never been better. Not only have I sold more copies of my newspaper than usual, but everyone wants a keepsake from the Frost Fair. We keep running out of paper,” he said before he held out a sheet for Digby to take.

His newspaper was nothing more than a gossip rag, Digby thought but took the offering of the keepsake knowing Constance would like it. “It appears the Frost Fair has been a big success for everyone who has a stall,” he replied before pulling the edges of his coat closer together.

“I could not agree more,” Samuel said before his attention turned to the people in The Book Palace stall. “Ah… I see what keeps you here. Lady Constance has been very helpful to my sister’s business. I hope she does not lose the lady to another store once this is over,” he said with a chuckle.

“I am certain Lady Constance is more than happy to work for your sister as long as Miss Amelia will have her.”

Samuel tipped his hat. “I must be off. I cannot keep the world waiting for the latest news.”

Digby watched the man leave before he noticed Constance reaching for her reticule to make her purchase. He quickly stepped forward. “Allow me, my lady,” Digby said.

“I do not mind paying for the book, my lord.” Constance once more brightened his day with her smile.

“I must insist.” Paying the man, Digby offered his arm again to his lady as they began perusing the other stalls. They came upon the next stall, The Mystical Oracle Madam Amy Quinton. “Do you wish your fortune to be told, Constance?” he asked with a grin.

“Perhaps after we see the elephant? You did promise me you would take me to see it,” she said, her eyes twinkling in delight.

“And so I did. Let us make our way to see the beast then we can return here to see what the oracle has to say about our future.”

Constance gave his arm a squeeze. “I already know our future, Digby,” she replied.

“You do?” he said looking down into her beautiful face. Constance never looked lovelier.

“Of course! We shall live happily ever after!”

Digby swore his heart melted right then and there. His future indeed looked bright as long as Lady Constance remained in his life.

Was there really a bookstall at the 1814 Frost Fair?

None of my research found an actual bookstall on the ice but there were nearly a dozen printing presses producing keepsakes and commemorative poems. A printer named George Davis published a 124-page book called Frostiana; or A History of the River Thames In a Frozen State and the Belles referenced this material when we were working on our common theme for Fire & Frost. The entire book was typeset and printed in Davis’s printing stall set up on the frozen Thames.

The 1814 Frost Fair was also it’s last. With the old London Bridge being demolished in 1831, it was replaced with a new bridge with wider arches. This allowed the tide to flow more freely. The river was also embanked during the 19th century causing the river less likely to freeze.

You can read more about printing at the frost fairs here: http://www.letterology.com/2014/02/printing-at-frost-fairs.html

 

My contribution to Fire & Frost is A Second Chance At Love featuring Lord Digby Osgood and Lady Constance Whittles whom you first met in Under the Mistletoe.

Can the bittersweet frost of lost love be rekindled into a burning flame?

Viscount Digby Osgood returns to London after a two-year absence, planning to avoid the woman he courted and then left. Surely she has moved on with her life; even married by now. A bit of encouragement from a friend, however, pushes him to seek the lady out. Can she ever forgive him and give them a second chance at love?

Lady Constance Whittles has only cared for one man in her life. Even after he broke her heart, it remains fixed on him. Another man tries to replace him, but she soon learns she can never feel for him a shadow of what she still feels for Digby. One brief encounter with Digby confirms it; she is more than willing to forgive him. Can they truly take up where they left off?

Charity projects and a Frost Fair on the Thames bring them together, but another stands in their way. Will he tear them apart?

Fire & Frost:
A Bluestocking Belles Collection
Release Date: February 4, 2020
Preorder for $0.99

In a winter so cold the Thames freezes over, five couples venture onto the ice in pursuit of love to warm their hearts.

Love unexpected, rekindled, brand new or rediscovered—even one that’s a whack on the side of the head—heats up the winter. After weeks of fog and cold all five stories converge on the ice at the 1814 Frost Fair when the ladies’ campaign to help the wounded and unemployed veterans of the Napoleonic wars culminates in a charity auction that shocks the high sticklers of the ton.

In their 2020 collection, join the Bluestocking Belles and their heroes and heroines as The Ladies’ Society For The Care of the Widows and Orphans of Fallen Heroes and the Children of Wounded Veterans pursues justice, charity, and soul-searing romance.

Celebrate Valentine’s Day 2020 with five interconnected Regency romances.

Melting Matilda by Jude Knight – Fire smolders under the frost between them.

My One True Love by Rue Allyn – She vanished into the fog. Will he find his one true love or remain lost, cold and alone forever?

Lord Ethan’s Courage by Caroline Warfield – War may freeze a man’s heart; it takes a woman to melt it.

A Second Chance at Love by Sherry Ewing – Can the bittersweet frost of lost love be rekindled into a burning flame?

The Umbrella Chronicles: Chester and Artemis’s Story by Amy Quinton – Beastly duke seeks confident woman who doesn’t faint at the sight of his scars. Prefers not to leave the house to find her.

Buy Links:

Amazon US  |  Apple Books  | Barnes & Noble | Kobo  | Smashwords

Amazon Global:

AU BR CA DE ES FR IN IT JP MX NL UK

Comment to Win

Comment on this post, each of the other four, and the page on the Belles’ website here https://bluestockingbelles.net/frostfairhop/?fbclid=IwAR2qQS4IMhZYgVNvhbfFVmTf6Bm5tFwAJy5bxu21remzDRHzcM5rcRXa1sU to go into the drawing for the main prize in the blog hop, a $50 US Amazon card.

Tell me… what would have piqued your interest at the frost fair? What would you have liked to see? All comments on this post will go in a drawing for an eCopy of one the previous four Bluestocking Belles’ collections, plus a copy of Under the Mistletoe a prequel to A Second Chance At Love found in the Belles’ new box set Fire & Frost.

Did you miss the previous blog hop stop? You can access it here.

And don’t forget you have one more hop that surely you don’t want to miss. Find your way to That Mystical Oracle Madame Amy Quinton here: http://amyquinton.net/?p=2308

First Kiss Friday with Sherry Ewing

31 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in 2020, First Kiss Friday

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Hello, my dearest readers! Today for First Kiss Friday I have a treat for you. You’ll be getting the first kiss scene from my novella A Second Chance At Love that is in the Bluestocking Belles’ box set Fire & Frost. This set is available for pre-order and releases on Tuesday, February 4th. Our set centers around a common theme, the Frost Fair of 1814, where the winter was so cold the Thames freezes over. I know you’ve been waiting for Lord Digby Osgood and Lady Constance Whittles story since Under the Mistletoe and now you’ll have it to add to your collection. Happy reading, my lovelies and enjoy!

Excerpt:

Constance waited in the foyer while a servant went to fetch her pelisse. Her aunt had stayed behind in the meeting room to finish up a few details, and Constance hoped this would give her some additional time alone with Digby. Her heart leapt when she saw him leaving the front parlor. She could barely contain her breathing as he came ever nearer to her side. How she loved this man.

“Your aunt—” he started to say, bowing over her hand.

“—is momentarily delayed,” she finished with a smile.

He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “Come with me,” he urged, while gently taking her elbow.

She gave a quick glance around and nodded. None of the other people gathering in the foyer paid any attention to them. They were too preoccupied with their own conversations or going on about the details of the event to follow next month.

Constance and Digby did not go far and she was thankful he escorted her into an open room with no door, thus ensuring her reputation remained intact. A nook not visible from the hallway gave them a semblance of privacy and she could only wonder what this man who owned her heart would do next. She did not have long to wait.

“You may think this is too forward of me, Lady Constance,” he began.

She let a light laugh escaped her. “We have known one another far too long to be so formal, my lord, at least when we are alone together.”

He brightened her day with his smile and brought her closer. “Constance… you do me a great honor.”

“The honor is mine, Digby,” she breathed in a soft whisper, resting her hands lightly on his forearms.

“During my time away, a day did not go by that I did not think of you. The hurt I caused you at our parting has weighed heavily on my mind for two long years.”

“I have already forgiven you for all that, Digby.”

“Yes, I know, and I am most grateful you can forget my foolishness. This may be too fast, since we have only just reunited, but I wanted you to know I still care for you, Constance.”

She reached up to cup his cheek. “Digby, surely you must know you still own my heart?”

“You give me hope for a future together,” he said in a husky tone.

“Nothing would make me happier.”

She thought she was prepared for when Digby bent down to place his lips upon her own. The kiss was gentle at first, a testament to what they truly felt for one another. But as she stepped closer, wrapping her arms around his neck, everything changed. Digby pulled her into his arms and every fiber of her being burst in sheer joy. He deepened their kiss, and she was more than willing to follow his lead. Tingling sensations stole down her spine and Constance knew in this very instant that she had not lost his love. Surely, if Digby could kiss her like this then he would certainly wish for them to wed at some point in their future.

A Second Chance At Love in
Fire & Frost: A Bluestocking Belles Collection
Pre-order now for $0.99!

Can the bittersweet frost of lost love be rekindled into a burning flame?

Viscount Digby Osgood returns to London after a two-year absence, planning to avoid the woman he courted and then left. Surely she has moved on with her life; even married by now. A bit of encouragement from a friend, however, pushes him to seek the lady out. Can she ever forgiven him and give them a second chance at love?

Lady Constance Whittles has only cared for one man in her life. Even after he broke her heart, it remains fixed on him. Another man tries to replace him, but she soon learns she can never feel for him a shadow of what she still feels for Digby. One brief encounter with Digby confirms it; she is more than willing to forgive him. Can they truly take up where they left off?

Charity projects and a Frost Fair on the Thames bring them together, but another stands in their way. Will he tear them apart?

Buy Links for Fire & Frost:
Amazon US  |  Apple Books  | Barnes & Noble | Kobo  | Smashwords

Amazon Global:
AU BR CA DE ES FR IN IT JP MX NL UK

 

First Kiss Friday with Jude Knight

17 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in 2020, First Kiss Friday

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Welcome to another First Kiss Friday. Today’s guest is my dear friend Jude Knight who will be sharing the first kiss scene from her upcoming novella Melting Matilda. Happy reading, my lovelies, and enjoy!

First Kiss Friday with Matilda and Charles

In this excerpt from Melting Matilda, a novella in the Bluestocking Belles’ box set Fire and Frost, the kiss is the first one in this book. They had another kiss a year before, and it haunts them. You’ll have to read the book to find out more.

Excerpt:

He had dressed with enormous care, driving his valet demented by changing his mind three times about his waistcoat, rejecting six cravats before settling on the seventh, and hesitating for twenty minutes on his choice of fobs. The valet would probably slit his wrists in despair if he could see how Charles had set his hair in disarray by running his fingers through it, and ruined the hard-won perfection of the cravat by tugging it further open because he felt it choking him.

Then the door opened. Matilda entered the room and he lost his breath again. She was magnificent in a violet gown that hugged her curves before sweeping out into a deceptively simple skirt that avoided fashionable ruffles in favor of more subtle stitching that added detail without fuss. The neckline was low enough to rivet his attention while still high enough to be demure by the current standards. She wore pearls at her neck, her wrists, dangling from her ears and glowing in her dark hair, and the blue eyes he met when he wrenched his attention from the snowy skin displayed by her décolletage had taken on a violet cast from the gown.

He gazed, losing track of time and space, until she said his name. “Charles?”

“I had a speech.” His voice croaked, and he swallowed. “I do not remember a word.”

With one hand, index finger outstretched, he traced an inch or so away from her face. “Why did I try so hard to resist you, you beautiful woman?”

It was the wrong thing to say. Her nostrils flared. “Because I am the base-born daughter of a harlot.”

“I cannot remember why I thought that important,” he confessed. “You are the beloved sister of the next Duke of Haverford, the ward of the current duchess, and a lady of impeccable education, training and manners. That is not why I love you, though.”

Her eyes softened. “You love me?”

“That was part of the speech. It is the only bit I remember. I look into your eyes, and I forget my own name.”

“Why?” Matilda asked.

“Why do I forget? No? Why now?” She colored, and he realized what she was asking. “Why do I love you? How can I explain something that has grown in my heart without my knowledge, even against my will?” He took both of her hands, and suddenly the words began to flow.

“I have been attracted to you since the first time we danced, but that is desire, and desire is a part of love but not the whole. I do desire you, my love, more and more each day, but I also admire you, I like being with you, I enjoy talking to you, I respect you. I want to see you every morning when I wake, to spend my days with you, to have the right to dance the first waltz with you at every ball, and to go home with you every night. I want to see your belly rounded with our child, and watch you as you gently teach them the way I’ve seen you teach your little sister. I want you and only you as my countess and the mother of my children. I want to grow old with you, Matilda Grenford.”

He dropped to one knee. “Miss Grenford, I esteem you with all my heart. Will you do me the very great honor of becoming my wife?”

He waited, his anxiety rising as she said nothing, despair taking over as tears rose and began to leak from her pansy eyes. Then she began to nod as she slipped to her own knees and reached out for him. “Yes. Oh, yes. Charles, I love you, too.”

For more than a year, Charles had kept to himself the fact that the Haverford Ice Princess kissed like a flame. As he abandoned his own granite facade for once and for all, he rejoiced in her heat. This time was even better than the last, and the best was yet to come. Though perhaps not here in a family parlor where her brother or sisters could walk in at any time.

“I hope you do not want a long betrothal,” he whispered, between kisses.

She broke off her attempt to completely unravel his cravat. “Not long,” she agreed.

Her fervent answer demanded that he kiss her again, losing himself so deep he didn’t know they were no longer alone until a voice behind him said, “I trust you are betrothed to my sister, Hamner, for it would be most inconvenient to start the evening’s celebrations by killing you.”

Melting Matilda

Her scandalous birth prevents Matilda Grenford from being fully acceptable to Society, even though she has been a ward of the Duchess of Haverford since she was a few weeks old. Matilda does not expect to be wooed by a worthy gentleman. The only man who has ever interested her gave her an outrageous kiss a year ago and has avoided her ever since.

Charles, the Earl of Hamner is honour bound to ignore his attraction to Matilda Grenford. She is an innocent and a lady, and in every way worthy of his respect—but she is base-born. His ancestors would rise screaming from their graves if he made her his countess. But he cannot forget the kiss they once shared.

For more about Fire & Frost, including preorder links, see: https://bluestockingbelles.net/belles-joint-projects/fire-frost/

About Jude Knight

Have you ever wanted something so much you were afraid to even try? That was Jude ten years ago.

For as long as she can remember, she’s wanted to be a novelist. She even started dozens of stories, over the years.

But life kept getting in the way. A seriously ill child who required years of therapy; a rising mortgage that led to a full-time job; six children, her own chronic illness… the writing took a back seat.

As the years passed, the fear grew. If she didn’t put her stories out there in the market, she wouldn’t risk making a fool of herself. She could keep the dream alive if she never put it to the test.

Then her mother died. That great lady had waited her whole life to read a novel of Jude’s, and now it would never happen.

So Jude faced her fear and changed it–told everyone she knew she was writing a novel. Now she’d make a fool of herself for certain if she didn’t finish.

Her first book came out to excellent reviews in December 2014, and the rest is history. Many books, lots of positive reviews, and a few awards later, she plans to keep publishing until she runs out of years.

Website and blog: http://judeknightauthor.com/

Subscribe to newsletter: http://judeknightauthor.com/newsletter/

Bookshop: https://judeknight.selz.com/

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First Kiss Friday with Sherry Ewing & a Giveaway!

03 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by in 2020, First Kiss Friday

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Welcome to my blog and the first… well… First Kiss Friday of the year. I somehow thought it appropriate to share with you the first kiss scene between Edmond and Roselyn from One Moment In Time: A Family of Worth, Book Two. This book, in particular, holds a special place in my heart because it’s the very first manuscript that I ever wrote. It’s dedicated to my mother who was kept patiently waiting for me to publish this book, especially when I was consumed with my medieval/time travel series. But like any good author should… I linked Edmond’s family to my Knights of Berwyck series because… well… I could! Read on, my lovelies, and be sure to check out the end of this post for my giveaway opportunity!

Excerpt:

Edmond opened his eyes and found himself gazing into the face of an angel. Emerald pools, green as the Scottish moors, stared back at him with an expression of wonder. He reached out to lightly caress her cheek just to ensure she was real. She trembled beneath his touch and he thanked God Roselyn had awoken once more.

Swinging his legs down to the floor, he stood and reached for her hands to help her to rise. Her beautiful face wore a confused frown, and without thought he acted on the urge to assure himself she was real and on the mend, bringing her into his embrace. He knew in his heart his gesture was inappropriate; he should not be so bold, especially considering all that she had been through, but he could not resist.

Stepping back as he should became impossible when she returned his affection by placing her arms around his waist. As if they had a will of their own, his hands made their way up her arms and into her glorious curling hair that cascaded down the length of her back. It felt like the softest silk to his touch and a lock coiled around his fingers taking possession of him.

He took her chin in his fingers and tilted it up so he could see the face she had been hiding in his chest. Once more staring into her eyes, he saw her lips tremble and wondered how sweet they would taste. Leaning forward, he came to within a breath and hesitated. But only for one second. At last, he brought his mouth down to hers in a gentle first kiss.

There could be no mistaking her hesitation nor that she was inexperienced in her technique. Edmond retained enough control to remember she was a young innocent and he did not wish to scare her away. His heart rejoiced when he felt her arms creep up his back and he tightened his hold upon her. One taste would in no way satisfy the sudden desire he had for her and her encouragement gave him the permission he needed to deepen the kiss all the more.

His sanity finally reined in his desire, and he broke the spell by ending their kiss abruptly. Alarm briefly shook him when Roselyn took several steps backwards to put some distance between them. In the silence of the room, the only sound was the two of them attempting to catch their breaths after the heat of the moment.

One Moment In Time:
A Family of Worth, Book Two
By Sherry Ewing

One moment in time may be enough, if it lasts forever…

When the man Lady Roselyn Anne Winslow has loved since she was a young girl begins to court her, Roselyn thinks all her dreams have come true… until the dream turns into a nightmare.

Lady Roselyn is everything Edmond Worthington, 9th Duke of Hartford, could ask for in a wife and he is delighted to find she returns his love… until he loses her, not once but twice.

From England’s ballrooms, to Berwyck Castle and a tropical island that is anything but paradise, Edmond and Roselyn face ruthless enemies who will do anything to tear them apart. Can they recover their one moment in time?

Buy Links:

Amazon US | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo

Amazon AU  |  Amazon BR  |  Amazon CA  |  Amazon DE  |Amazon ES  | Amazon FR  |  Amazon IN  |  Amazon IT  |  Amazon JP  |  Amazon MX  |  Amazon NL  |  Amazon UK

Giveaway Opportunity: For a chance to win an eCopy of One Moment In Time, comment below and tell me what you’re grateful for. That’s it! Super easy. I’ll choose a random comment as the winner on Sunday so everyone has a chance to enter. Good luck, my lovely readers!

#FREE eBook just for you!

26 Thursday Dec 2019

Posted by in 2019, Uncategorized

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My gift to you this holiday season is the gift of a good read. Under the Mistletoe was the first book I published with the fabulous group of authors called the Bluestocking Belles. We’ve gone to publish a box set every year since 2015 for your reading enjoyment.

Grab this freebie while you can. It will be a refresher for you when our next box set, Fire & Frost, comes out on February 4, 2020. My story in the box set, A Second Chance At Love, continues to the story of secondary characters Lady Constance Whittles and Viscount Digby Osgood. I know you’ll just love this story, too!

Read on for an excerpt from Under the Mistletoe and Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and may you all have a prosperous New Year!

Excerpt:

With Digby gone, Margaret took a seat by the fire, and Frederick sat opposite her. An awkward silence fell between them, broken only by the crackling and popping of the wood within the hearth. Conversation had never been stilted between them, but Margaret was clearly nervous because she kept peeking over her shoulder as if she were being watched. Frederick was unsure what he should say to calm her nerves.

 

“You have no need to fear me, Margaret,” Frederick whispered softly now that they were alone.

 

“I do not fear you, Freddy.”

 

He was pleased to hear his name as it passed her lips. “Then what is troubling you so?”

 

The eyes raised to his were filled with worry. “Why are you here?”

 

He watched her fidget with the fabric of her gown. “You know why. I was invited,” Frederick answered.

 

A sound escaped her, but it was hardly ladylike. “You could easily have made your excuses and refused.”

 

“I wanted to make sure you were safe,” he replied.

 

“How could I not be safe? Captain Morledge is practically my betrothed.”

 

Frederick ran his hand across his eyes. “I do not trust him. There are rumors—”

 

The laugh she gave was meant to be merry, but sounded forced. “Frederick, please tell me you have not taken to believing in town gossip. I would have thought you, above all people, were above such nonsense.”

 

He frowned. “Nonsense or not, I needed to see for myself that you are not in danger, even if I must watch over you myself.”

 

“It is hardly necessary.” Margaret’s attention once more flew to the entryway.

 

He reached over to take her hand.

 

She wrenched back with a silent and pleading look, and the briefest shake of her head. Leaning slightly forward, she confided, “Please do not, for it will not be wise. The servants watch my every move, and even now, it is reckless of me to be here alone with you.”

 

“You see! There is cause for concern. Why will you not let me help you?”

 

“Please, Freddy. This is my one chance to find some happiness. Do not ruin it for me.”

 

“We have discussed this before, Margaret. You know my offer still stands. I would wed you on the morrow if you would have me.”

 

“Shush, you fool. You know I cannot.”

 

“Yet you would enter into a marriage with a man you do not love.”

 

A heavy sigh left her lips. “I can learn to love him.”

 

“Now who is the fool?” he grumbled irritably.

 

Under the Mistletoe
by Sherry Ewing
FREE – through December 29th

A new suitor seeks her hand. An old flame holds her heart. Which one will she meet under the kissing bough?

When Margaret Templeton is requested to act as hostess at Captain Sander Morledge’s Christmas party and possibly agree to marry him, she did not think she would see the man who once held her heart. Frederick Maddock, Viscount Beacham had never forgotten the young woman he had fallen in love with, and his feelings are evident when he sees her at a holiday gathering. In a swirl of Christmas miracles and joyous celebration, will the two finally put down their differences and once again fall in love?

Buy Links:

Amazon US  |  Apple Books | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
Amazon AU | Amazon CA | Amazon DE | Amazon FR | Amazon UK