Love is worth the risk
…that it took approximately 10,000 acres to yield an income of 10,000 pounds to a landowning aristocrat in the Regency Era? As you can imagine, it took a pile of money to pay all those servants, maintain a townhouse in addition to the country manor, and keep a stable of good horses and carriages. No […]
Working away at the hotel post Historical Romance Retreat. I’ve done a bit of character work, and finally got down the opening I envisioned for Duke in Name Only. When Phillip discovered that the title he held was acquired fraudulently, he wandered away to North America determined to create an independent fortune, success of his […]
I hope you had a wonderful summer. I’m not sure where mine went! It certainly was a busy one. The garden and I battled lack of rain, and about broke even. The Upright Son, final book in The Ashmead Heirs came out June 28. Since then I completed another novel (Duke in All But Name […]
…that the late Georgians were notoriously heavy drinkers? But the upper classes inclined more toward wine than distilled spirits. In 1838, by one estimate, consumption of distilled spirits in England was a mere .53 gallon per capita annually. Contrast that with Scotland at 2.46 and Australia at 5.02. While gentlemen might start their day with […]
This is a bit from my novella for A Duke in Winter. The stories in the collection are all based on Shakespeare’s plays. Mine is tentatively entitled The Sixth Henry. You can guess the play. It features a beleaguered new duke and a longstanding feud between two families over roses. Mary is the duke’s sister. […]
I typed “The End” on the bottom of Duke in All But Name last weekend. I’m taking a break from it while some eagle eyed beta readers take a look. I should know by next weekend if the plot holds together as well as I hope. Then I’ll get down to the serious work of […]
A brisk knock interrupted his thoughts. “Enter.” A footman entered, different from the night before. This one studied Gideon with naked speculation and a canny expression. “Mr. Marshall assigned me to be your manservant, you coming without one.” Marshall. The assigning of servants should lie with the butler not the steward. Gideon knew a spy […]
This one is about half done. The working title is Duke in All But Name. ***** Kendrick Colliery, Wales, August 1818 The rich wood paneling of the mine owner’s office glowed in flickering lamplight. Though barely noon, grey clouds hung heavily over the valley and little light filtered through the window. Gideon Kendrick reread the […]
Highlighting the facts behind the fiction with Jude Knight who brings us the origins of time keeping. Most of us know that, once upon a time, everywhere in the world took their time from the sun. Water clocks, candles, and sundials—all attempts to be more precise, were calibrated by the sun. That state lasted far […]
This is probably my favorite scene in The Upright Son. (Except for that big kiss. Maybe I’ll do that one next week.) David has reacted to an accident by forbidding his children to go anywhere near Lady Fitzwallace and her children. So, of course, Marj has headed directly there. ***** He dismounted and waited for […]