Camy Tang's Blog

If you enjoy Regency romance with wit, awkward ballroom encounters, and a heroine who can’t quite keep her thoughts to herself, you’ll love Lissa and the Spy. This free Christian Regency romantic suspense novella is the perfect entry point into my Lady Wynwood’s Spies series. Get it free when you join my newsletter (details below).

Miss Lissa Gardinier survived her last London Season by pretending to be as inoffensive as possible. But at this ball, she lets her true thoughts slip yet again. And this time, they involve an unfortunately named spaniel.

Excerpt

Last year during that first dance with Mr. Collingworth, upon seeing him excitedly discuss his dog breeding, she had been encouraged to also speak without restraint. So she had voiced her exact thoughts rather than hiding behind a vapid facade. “Why in the world would you name a dog Lickspittle Furrybottom?”

At Mr. Collingworth’s startled look, Lissa realized that she’d said that out loud now, in this dance with him.

“… Not that it’s not a lovely name,” she added lamely.

Mr. Collingworth didn’t believe her, and his conversation faltered. She regretted that, for she hadn’t intended to be rude to him.

“Er … did I speak of Lickspittle Furrybottom?” he asked.

Lissa did a mental shriek at her mistake. “We spoke briefly about her last year. You were worried about her compatibility with Snout Droolalot.”

About the BookA Christian Regency Romantic Suspense novella in the Lady Wynwood’s Spies series

In the opulent ballrooms of Regency-era London, Miss Lissa Gardinier struggles through her second Season with a singular goal: marriage to escape her mother's constant criticism. So she represses her cheeky remarks behind a quiet, innocent facade, but combined with her plain face, it only serves to make her uninteresting to potential suitors.

It is her very unpopularity that enables her to notice the enigmatic Lord Jeremy Stoude and set in motion a chance encounter. An overheard conversation and faux dialogue later, she finds herself entangled in Jeremy’s covert undertakings. Lissa resists the temptation to pry, finding delight in their mysterious friendship.

Yet the world Jeremy inhabits is one of secrets and subterfuge, and he cannot afford to be distracted by Lissa’s charming smile and unflappable demeanor. Lissa’s family dynamics grow increasingly complicated with a sister harboring her own desires for the eligible Lord Stoude, and a formidable rival—Lady Charline Halberstam—making her intentions clear.

As danger stalks them and true feelings come to light, can Lissa and Jeremy navigate the labyrinth of society’s expectations and their own insecurities to find love?

Lissa and the Spy offers readers an intoxicating blend of romance, suspense, and wit, set against the glittering backdrop of Regency London. Perfect for those who love their historical fiction laced with a dash of intrigue and a sprinkle of humor.

Prequel to the Lady Wynwood’s Spies series

This is a stand-alone story that occurs before The Spinster’s Christmas.

Ready to enjoy the full adventure?

Download Lissa and the Spy for free when you join my newsletter!

Regency Haircuts and Disguises in Lady Wynwood’s Spies

In this excerpt from Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor, Phoebe prepares for a dangerous mission—one that requires her to disguise herself as a young man. The hairstyle she receives, called a Brutus cut, was actually quite fashionable during the Regency. Read on to find out more about this curious trend and why it suited her new identity so well.

Excerpt from Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor:

By far, the absolute worst part of Uncle Sol’s plan was that Phoebe had to cut her hair.

Of the four agents, Phoebe and Mr. Coulton-Jones would be the least likely to be recognized when they entered the Ramparts building—Mr. Coulton-Jones, because of his skill in altering his facial features and his posture, and Phoebe, because she could play a convincing young man, which no one would expect.

A disreputable hat would hide her long hair to an extent, but it would not fool anyone who looked closely. Also, because she would look like a junior agent, she would be expected to remove her hat if addressed by a senior officer in a corridor. It would be far too easy for a wig to slip in such circumstances.

She gazed mournfully at the locks carpeting the floor underneath her chair as Aya removed them and gave her a fair approximation of a Brutus cut. Phoebe’s skin hadn’t the roughened texture of a common working man, and so it had been decided that she would pose as a young man from a more wealthy background. Aunt Laura had managed to collect several sets of male clothing for her, including an outfit appropriate for the son of a wealthy merchant.

Phoebe used cloth to pad her waist and groin areas, and she looked like a slightly portly young man with spindly arms and legs.

She pictured gentlemen of her age, especially those younger than herself, and recalled the way they stood, the way they walked and carried themselves. She made an effort to alter her gait and posture.

And suddenly, looking back at her from the full-length mirror in Aunt Laura’s bedroom stood an arrogant young stripling just down from university.

But what exactly is a Brutus cut?

The Brutus cut was all the rage in the early 1800s, especially in the years following the French Revolution and into the Regency era.

From Roman hero to fashionable haircut

The Brutus cut (sometimes called the Titus cut in French fashion plates) was inspired by ancient Roman statuary, particularly busts of figures like Lucius Junius Brutus, the legendary founder of the Roman Republic. In an era newly obsessed with classical antiquity, it was the ideal hairstyle to show off your noble ideals—short, tousled curls, brushed forward, and decidedly free of powder or wigs.

This was a radical change from earlier Georgian fashion, where men often wore powdered wigs, queues (a braid or ponytail down the back), and elaborately styled hair. The Brutus cut rejected all of that in favor of a more “natural,” even slightly rebellious look.

Think: “I’m a modern Roman senator who just rolled out of bed and crushed a Republic before breakfast.”

What did it look like?

Fashion plates from the time show men with short, curly hair that’s been cropped close around the ears and neck, often with the front brushed slightly forward or left tousled. Some plates even show sideburns or a bit of fringe over the forehead.

Here are some examples from fashion plates of the time. This first plate is of Lord Cochrane, published in Ackermann’s Repository in 1809:

Here is a fashion plate of a young man from Ackermann’s Repository published in 1810:

Here are two fashion plates published in 1804 from Journal des Dames et des Modes:

Lastly, here are three fashion plates published in 1810 from Journal des Dames et des Modes:

This haircut was practical, expressive, and—importantly for Phoebe—easy to mimic when disguising oneself as a young man. For a woman cutting off long hair, the Brutus cut offered a believable shape that didn’t require extensive barbering.

Why does my heroine wear it?

In Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor, a quick haircut helps Phoebe pass as a male junior agent in a world that doesn’t expect a woman to walk confidently into the heart of a clandestine spy operation.

Because the Brutus cut was popular with young, fashionable men—particularly university students or sons of wealthy merchants—it was the perfect choice for Phoebe’s persona. It allowed her to look like a well-bred (if slightly foppish) young man.

Want to see more Regency-era disguises and espionage?

If you enjoyed this peek into Regency fashion and covert hairstyling, you’ll love the full story in Lady Wynwood’s Spies. Start the series in Volume 1, where a misfired arrow reunites Phoebe with a young gentleman who happens to be a spy, and a memory from her past propels her into a mission that could change the fate of England.

📚 Volume 1: Archer is available now, with more volumes in the series unfolding secrets, slow-burn romance, and dangerous plots—all in Regency London.

A New Look for Year of the Dog (and a Behind-the-Scenes Oops!)

What do a dog trainer, a security expert, and a nearly-naked book cover have in common? Let me explain. 😅

Year of the Dog is the first book in my Christian romantic suspense series, Mahina Security, set in beautiful (and sometimes dangerous) Hawaii. It features quirky humor, family tensions, sweet romance, and a mystery involving a missing person—and it’s now available to read in the Christian suspense anthology, Danger in the Shadows, on Kindle Unlimited!

But before that happened, I had a bit of a cover mishap…

While creating the ebook cover, I realized that the original stock photo made my heroine look, well, completely nekkid. 😳 She’s actually wearing a tube top in the image, but when I cropped it for the ebook, the top disappeared—leaving her looking very PG-13.

To fix it, I did some Canva magic on a strappy top from another image and stuck it onto the model (so she’s decent now).

But when I resized the image for the paperback, a bit of that strappy top peeked out behind her shoulder like a rogue piece of laundry flapping in the wind. So I had to adjust the front paperback cover, which altered the original ebook cover a little, too.

Most people probably won't notice, but the model looks a little bigger on the paperback cover than on the original ebook cover.

I also gave the back cover copy a makeover. The original was a bit too long for the layout, so I streamlined it. Here’s a peek at both versions:

🐾 Old Version (Longer)

Mari Mutou, a professional dog trainer, is having a bad year.

While renovating her new dog kenneling and training facility, she needs to move in with her disapproving family, who have always made her feel inadequate—according to them, a job requiring her to be covered in dog hair and slobber is an embarrassment to the family. She convinces her ex-boyfriend to take her dog for a few months … but discovers that his brother is the irate security expert whose car she accidentally rear-ended a few weeks earlier.

Ashwin Keitou has enough problems. His aunt has just shown up on his doorstep, expecting to move in with him, and he can’t say no because he owes her everything—after his mother walked out on them, Aunt Nell took in Ashwin and his brother and raised them in a loving Christian home. What’s more, his brother Dusty also needs a place to stay after being kicked out of his apartment—with a dog in tow. And guess who the dog’s owner is?

But then Ashwin gets a request from an old friend, Edytha Guerrero, a private investigator who also runs a day spa on O’ahu’s north shore. A strange bit of “vandalism” at Mari's facility had led her to find a purse belonging to Edytha’s sister—who had disappeared three years ago. Worried that Mari might be in danger, and finding out that security expert Ashwin already knows her, Edytha asks him to covertly keep an eye on the busy young woman.

Ashwin is reluctantly attracted to the lively, easy-going dog trainer. She reminds him too much of his happy-go-lucky mother, whose betrayal had caused him to keep people at a distance. Mari sees past Ashwin’s cold exterior to a man who is loyal to his family, unlike her own mother and sister, who only criticize her career choice.

In the midst of Mari’s disjointed family and Ashwin’s disruptive home, danger begins to circle around them from people who want the past to remain there. Can they shed light on the secrets moving in the shadows?

🐾 New Version (Shorter, Punchier)

They both have baggage. Only one has a leash.

Mari Mutou, a professional dog trainer, is having a bad year.

While renovating her new kenneling and training facility, she’s forced to move back in with her critical family, who treat her career like an embarrassment. To avoid more conflict, she convinces her ex-boyfriend to watch her dog for a few months … only to discover that the dog’s temporary caretaker is his older brother, Ashwin Keitou—the grumpy security expert whose car she accidentally rear-ended weeks ago.

Ashwin’s life is already overloaded. His beloved but demanding aunt has unexpectedly moved in, his freeloading brother brought along a dog, and now Mari—quirky, kind-hearted, and far too cheerful—keeps showing up in his life. When a private investigator friend asks Ashwin to keep an eye on her after a suspicious break-in at her facility links to a cold missing person case, he reluctantly agrees.

But as they navigate complicated pasts, strained family expectations, and an unexpected attraction, they challenge each other in ways neither anticipated. Mari finds herself deeply touched by Ashwin’s loyalty and faith, seeing a man whose trust in God has carried him through betrayal and loss. And Ashwin sees how Mari’s joyful spirit masks the wounds on her heart and might help him finally face his own scars.

Mari and Ashwin must quickly learn to trust each other when danger begins creeping too close. Some secrets don’t want to be found—and someone will do anything to keep the past buried.

(I totally love the new hook line at the beginning!)

📚 If you’re in the mood for suspense, family drama, and romance wrapped in Hawaiian sunshine and danger, check out Year of the Dog—available in the Danger in the Shadows Christian suspense anthology, on Kindle Unlimited.

👉 Click here to learn more

Free Christian Regency Romance Novella – Start Here!

A quiet wallflower. A wary spy. A dance of secrets.

Miss Lissa Gardinier may appear unremarkable in the ballrooms of Regency London, but her sharp wit and keen observations make her far more dangerous than society suspects. She’s trying to endure her second Season without offending anyone—again—and escape her mother’s relentless disapproval with a sensible marriage.

But when she crosses paths with the mysterious and guarded Lord Jeremy Stoude, her uneventful Season takes an unexpected turn into whispered secrets, hidden motives, and subtle sparks.

This novella, Lissa and the Spy, is a stand-alone story in the world of my Lady Wynwood’s Spies series and blends romance, suspense, and a dash of dry humor. If you’re new to my stories, this is the perfect place to start.

Here’s a snippet from the opening scene (including my annotations):

***

Spring, 1807

London

If only she were allowed to open her mouth.

Lissa reflected that in all fairness, she was not prohibited from opening her mouth. She was allowed to drink champagne and eat the delicacies offered by the host of the ball. She was allowed to discuss the weather, she was sure. And her mother likely wouldn’t be disappointed if she discussed fashion with a young lady or gentleman. She might even be allowed to say something ignorant about Napoleon, as long as she accompanied her words with a smile and a giggle.

But she had been ordered—under threat of being sent back home even in the midst of the Season—to keep her tongue under control while in London. Lissa didn’t think her tongue was particularly out of control. She had perfect control of her words. She had completely meant what she said when she compared Lady Adderly’s hat to a molting chicken (1).

And to be perfectly honest, she had been extremely polite when she asked Mr. Peterson to take more lessons from his dancing instructor. There was nothing rude about a gentle suggestion such as that, surely? (2)

Because she could have instead told him that he stomped on her foot like a bad-tempered donkey trying to maim its owner. She had exercised an iron grip on her tongue in that instance, and yet her mother had scolded her.

***

(1) This is an Easter egg. Laura, Lady Wynwood, might have also unfavorably described Lady Adderly’s hat in The Spinster’s Christmas

(2) In The Spinster’s Christmas, Aunt Lavinia gossiped about the rector’s wife, Mrs. Peterson, whose husband’s older brother became heir presumptive to an earldom. This poor gentleman with two left feet is Mrs. Peterson’s brother-in-law, but before the events that will lead to his expectations.

***

Ready to enjoy the full adventure? Download Lissa and the Spy for free when you join my newsletter!

Cover Reveal + Patreon Perks for Volume 8: Traitor!New to the series? This is Book 8 in my Christian Regency Romantic Suspense series, Lady Wynwood’s Spies—filled with intrigue, danger, and slow-burn romance. If you’d like to start from the beginning, you can check out Volume 1: Archer here.

I’m so excited to share the cover for Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor ! My amazing graphic designer just finished it, and I’ve been staring at it with hearts in my eyes ever since. 😍

Meet Mr. Benjamin…I got to choose the model for this cover—he’s meant to represent Mr. Benjamin, one of the key characters in this volume. The model’s name is Mathias (isn’t he handsome?!), and here’s the original stock photo I picked:
My designer tilted the image slightly and added a dagger and pistol behind him, both of which I also picked out! She removed the background, edited the weapons, and chose the deep violet background to complement the series’ aesthetic.

Here’s a look at all the covers side by side. You can really see how Traitor stands out!
Want Early Access?I’m currently working hard to finish Volume 8: Traitor by July, but it will not release on Amazon until October or November 2025. If you’d like to read chapters early and get a free copy of the ebook months before it releases on Amazon, consider subscribing to my Patreon!

Patreon subscribers get:

• 2 chapters of Volume 8: Traitor a week
• Behind-the-scenes updates
• A free ebook of Volume 8: Traitor when it releases
• Access to bonuses like deleted scenes, annotated editions, and book boxes

📌 Click here to check out my Patreon.

Thank you so much for your support and enthusiasm—it keeps me writing (and revising…and rewriting…😅). I can’t wait for you to dive into Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor !

Are you looking for a new Christian Regency with intrigue, romance, and a splash of humor? I’m currently working on Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 8: Traitor , the latest installment in my Christian Regency romantic suspense series featuring lady spies, hidden secrets, and unexpected romance.

This past week, I made great progress—nearly 10,000 words written! My goal is to finish this historical spy romance by July, although if the story grows (as they often do), I’ll soon be shifting to my next project: Bento and Betrayal, a Christian contemporary romantic suspense novella set in Hawaii for the Don’t Blink anthology.

In the meantime, dictating while walking has helped me stay productive and inspired. If you love sneak peeks and work-in-progress excerpts, here’s a snippet from what I wrote:

***

Mr. Norton had been at his leisure during those three weeks, spending more time at his club. He was not a gamester, and The Runny Knees was not known for deep play. However, the members were all avid sportsmen and enjoyed hearty physical activity—as well as the inevitable betting that accompanied it. The betting book was larger than White’s but did not bear the unusual wagers that other establishments boasted. Instead, the stakes were placed upon races—horses and boats, mostly, but some footraces as well—games of cricket, and competitions such as shooting, fencing, or boxing.

Norton greeted some gentlemen sitting in chairs around the large front room, who were either reading the papers or arguing over some carriage race or another. They all returned his greeting with friendliness, and several motioned for him to join them, but he politely refused.

If these men knew Norton’s humble origins, none of them would speak to him. While toiling away as a shipping clerk, he would never have guessed that he would one day be a member of an establishment such as this, catering to the wealthy and to the nobility. These men had no need to know that Norton only possessed one of those.

He admitted to himself that it gave him something of a thrill to walk into this club, to chat with these men who had never known hardship in their lives. But it was his job to make himself agreeable and to listen to whatever idle talk they desired to bestow upon him, because it was in those unguarded words that he could understand a man’s true opinions and feelings. It was often surprising, the truths that lurked deep in a man’s soul, which he always strove to keep hidden. But Norton was a master at digging through the dirt and rock to uncover men’s secret thoughts and plans.

He had made his way around the front room of the club, speaking to all his acquaintances—and he had acquired many, by this point—and he was about to settle down to a delicious dinner and a bottle or two of wine when a man seemed to appear out of thin air.

“Norton,” the harsh voice said. The tall, spare man addressed him familiarly, but there was no warmth or cordiality in his grating tones.

Norton liked to play the reckless fool, for it caused men to underestimate him. In actuality, while his actions were usually very daring, most of the time he had already looked at the situation and conjured up a dozen different ways that everything could go wrong, and considered what he might do in response if any of those occurred. So he had accustomed himself to a certain level of preparedness no matter where he found himself, and he did not like being surprised.

But this man, being here and approaching Norton, was not only a surprise, but a nasty one.

“Mr. Antingham,” Norton said carefully. “I was unaware that you were a member of The Runny Knees.”

Mr. Antingham couldn’t quite suppress the curl of his upper lip as Norton mentioned the name of the club. But he attempted to paste a polite smile upon his face as he said, “Yes, I have been a member for many years, although I rarely spend time here.”

Norton gave terse nods to the two men behind Mr. Antingham. “Mr. Maghew, Mr. Golding.” They were both Antingham’s agents at the Ramparts, and Norton had worked with them a few times. However, Mr. Maghew was the same rank as Norton, and they had butted heads more often than not. Norton found the two men to be inflexible, perfectly willing to obey orders blindly instead of considering other consequences. He himself preferred to think more critically in different situations rather than reacting like a mindless slave.

But Mr. Maghew and Mr. Golding were not members of The Runny Knees, as far as he knew, which meant that all three of them were here for Norton.

“What can I do for you, sir?” he reluctantly asked Mr. Antingham.

“I’d like to have a word with you in private, Mr. Norton. Perhaps you would be so good as to come with me?” Mr. Antingham gave a close-lipped smile.

The senior officer had a wide jaw and a wide mouth, so even his stiffest smile often fooled people into thinking that he was more congenial than he actually was. But Norton knew to look at his cold blue eyes instead to gauge his true emotional state. And he didn’t like what he saw there.

Mr. Antingham looked triumphant, the victor collecting his spoils and trampling his enemies. Norton didn’t have to guess whom he considered his enemy.

He didn’t directly report to Mr. Antingham—in fact, he didn’t directly report to any senior officer at the moment, now that he had been removed from under Mr. Uppleby. Since he was currently working under Drydale in his team, Norton could be considered a direct subordinate of Sir Derrick.

But he didn’t fool himself into thinking that Mr. Antingham’s request was anything less than a direct order. And the fact that Mr. Antingham wanted to remove Norton from the very public venue of this club meant that he wasn’t going to like what followed.

But Norton couldn’t refuse, and Mr. Antingham knew that.

***

Haha, I enjoyed naming Norton’s gentlemen’s club, The Runny Knees. 😝

Start the series with Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 1: Archer .

Historical research behind the stealthy fashion of my lady spies

What would you do if you were a woman in 1811 and needed to carry a weapon, but had no pockets and couldn’t very well strap a dagger to your thigh? That was the challenge I faced while writing my Christian Regency Romantic Suspense series, Lady Wynwood’s Spies, where my heroines don’t just attend balls and sip tea—they also sneak around carriages, spy on dangerous men, and fight off attackers when necessary.

In Volume 7: Spinster and Volume 8: Traitor, two of my heroines—Lena and Phoebe—retrieve hidden knives from secret slits in their gowns. The sheaths are sewn directly onto their corsets. Naturally, you won’t find that kind of accessory in the pages of Ackermann’s Repository of Arts or La Belle Assemblée, the fashion magazines of the day. But I wanted my heroines to be both era-accurate and armed. So I dug into fashion history to find a creative (and plausible) solution.

The Idea Behind the Hidden Knife Sheath

In the fictional world of Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Lena works for a covert organization known as the Ramparts. Back in 1803, she and the group’s costumer, Mrs. Price, devised a clever way to hide a knife—sewing a sheath into the corset itself and creating a discreet slit in the gown’s side seam to reach it.

This method was so effective that when Lena’s combat trainer, Mr. Armstrong, later trained other operatives (like Phoebe and Keriah), he taught them the same trick. That way, my lady spies are never unarmed, even when dressed in their finest.

Is This Historically Accurate?

Yes—and no. You won’t find corset-mounted knife sheaths in the history books, but the construction of Regency gowns makes the idea surprisingly feasible. I first learned about it in a hands-on workshop on Regency clothing construction, taught by a seamstress who had sewn her own period-accurate dresses.

She walked us through the structure of apron-front gowns, which were especially common during the Regency. These high-waisted empire dresses had full skirts that tied in back and opened on the front, which created slits on the sides.

The slits weren’t large enough to flash some skin, and a proper young lady wore a chemise, corset, and petticoat under her gown anyway.

The concept of slits in gowns is not new—during the Georgian era, before empire-waist gowns, women often had slits in their dresses to reach for pocket pouches on sashes tied around their waists under their clothing. But when Marie Antoinette made the Grecian long-waisted gowns popular, which made it difficult to hide pouches under the thin muslin skirts, reticule bags became popular instead of pocket pouches.

With this design in mind, it’s perfectly reasonable that a hidden slit—cleverly placed within the folds of the skirt—could allow access to a sheath sewn to the corset beneath.

Regency Fashion Plates for Reference

Here’s an 1804 fashion plate from Journal de Dames et de Modes, showing how full the skirts could be despite the slim silhouette:
(Explanation of Plate No. 8)

The hat, made of white satin and adorned with a tuft of flowers, is of an entirely new shape. Many fashionable ladies wear it as part of a demi-parure ensemble.

The gown, made of white muslin, is slightly heart-shaped in the front. The half-wide sleeves are ruched in slashed pleats, somewhat resembling the folds of the hat. A silk ribbon encircles the waist.

The table, in both its shape and ornamentation, is of a new style. It is a breakfast table.

And here’s another from Ackermann’s Repository, June 1811:
PLATE 36. PROMENADE COSTUME.

A round robe of plain jaconet muslin, with a border of needle-work at the feet. A Roman coat of violet shot sarsnet, with pointed cape; binding and tassels of jonquil silk. A Parisian cap of sarsnet, same as the pelisse, ornamented with a broad braid of jonquil silk, and a fancy flower placed towards the left side. A veil of fine white lace, thrown negligently over the head-dress, shading the throat, and falling on the shoulders. Half-boots of violet silk or French kid. Gloves of jonquil kid.

A round high walking dress of fine oblique corded muslin, with high arched collar, trimmed with a narrow full edging of muslin or plain net lace, and finished at the feet with narrow tucks. A Roman helmet of sea-green sarsnet, terminated with a Tuscan band of cut white velvet. A short winged veil, or under-cap of transparent net, caught up in the center of the forehead. A Grecian drapery scarf of sea-green sarsnet; parasol to correspond. Shoes of similar coloured kid. Blossom-coloured ridicule, and primrose or pale tan gloves.

As skirts gradually narrowed through the 1810s, the option for hiding weapons became trickier—but still possible with enough folds, petticoats, and corset stability.

Could a Corset Really Hold a Knife?

Surprisingly, yes. The corset I saw at the seminar (a real one, made with a substitute for whalebone) was solid enough to support the weight of a knife sheath placed under the arm or at the waist, which would be easily accessible without being visible.

A typical Regency undergarment setup included:

• A chemise or shift as a base layer

• A corset, structured and fitted

• A petticoat underskirt tied around the waist with ribbon straps over the shoulders to keep it in place under high-waisted gowns

This combination offered just enough coverage, movement, and concealment to make my fictional setup surprisingly realistic.

If you’re a fan of spy novels, historical detail, and plucky heroines who defy expectations, check out my Lady Wynwood’s Spies series. It’s Pride and Prejudice meets Mission: Impossible, full of Regency gowns, knife fights, hidden messages, and a touch of romance.

🗡️ Explore the series here

📚 Read an excerpt of Volume 1 online

Avoiding the “Too Stupid to Live” Heroine in Regency Romantic SuspensePlus: Read a Deleted Scene from The Spinster’s Christmas

If you’ve ever shouted at a movie screen because the heroine ran into the dark woods instead of toward safety, you’ve probably encountered what writers call a “Too Stupid to Live” (TSTL) heroine. As a reader and writer of Regency romantic suspense, I’ve always tried to avoid falling into that trap.

But sometimes, even the most logic-loving authors can make mistakes.

When I was about to release The Spinster’s Christmas , I hired a professional macro-editor to take a look at it. I wrote the book during a difficult season in my writing journey, and although I sensed something wasn’t working in the manuscript, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

Turns out, it was a classic case of being too close to the story to see the problem.

My editor pointed out a scene near the climax where my heroine—normally level-headed—suddenly runs away from safety and into the dark woods, despite the fact that she knows the villain is after her.

That’s right. I accidentally wrote a Regency version of the cheerleader from a horror movie who runs upstairs when the killer’s chasing her. 🫣

Cue the head smack.

Thankfully, I revised the scene, and the heroine’s actions now make a lot more sense in the final version of The Spinster’s Christmas. But I thought it might be fun (and maybe a little cringe-inducing) to post the original, unedited scene here on my blog.

✨ Read the Deleted Scene

In this version, my heroine makes a very questionable choice—one I ultimately cut in the revised novella. But if you’re curious, you can read the original draft below and see how a small change can make a big difference in character logic and reader satisfaction.

***

January 2nd

It was still dark when Miranda woke and dressed. The governess on the other bed groaned and rolled over. "Miranda, it is too early."

"Go back to sleep," Miranda said. She wrapped Gerard's scarf around her neck, pausing to breathe in the scent of him.

Do not be so stupidly sentimental. She briskly threw her cloak around her shoulders, collected her portmanteau, and left the bedroom.

Cecil had given her funds for the coach last night, but she had marked where he stored the lock-box in his desk drawer. She snuck into the pitch-black library, and felt her way to the drawn curtains, pulling them back a crack. At the desk, she took the lock-box from the drawer and broke the lock with several blows from a paperweight.

She bit her lip as she extracted the money, not a large amount since quarter day had just passed. God would surely strike her down for stealing from her cousin, but since she didn't receive an allowance from Cecil, she only had a meager amount of her own, and she needed enough to survive in London for a short time. She only hoped it would be enough.

She had willingly drunk a potion of shame and desperation, and it made her irredeemable. Or perhaps her actions as a child had already done that.

Miranda struggled to unbolt the back door, and had just managed it when the first scullery maid wandered into the kitchen to stoke the fire. She stared at Miranda with eyes bleary from sleep.

Miranda slipped through the door and was gone.

She did not head toward the village and the posting inn there, but instead turned down the lane toward the next village over. There was a larger inn where the stagecoach to London would leave early this morning. She also remembered what Gerard had said about Harriet staying nearby so she could watch the house. If Miranda went to the next village over, she could avoid the possibility of being seen by Harriet.

Her breath clouded around her face as she walked. Her hands in their mittens were cold, but her heart felt colder.

Two and a half hours later, she trudged into the yard of the inn. Water had seeped into her shoes and wet her socks, turning her feet numb. However, soon she would be on the coach and speeding far away.

The inn was bustling, but the common room was sparsely populated. Miranda bespoke a cup of tea and sat in a small table in the corner next to a farmer's wife who had her three children with her.

"Going to London?" the woman asked cheerfully.

"Yes," Miranda said.

"Us, as well. But we'll have a wait of it. The coachman is having a wheel fixed or summat of the sort."

After drinking her tea, Miranda helped entertain the woman's children, who were becoming impatient at the delay. Finally the coachman entered the common room to call that all was ready, and the woman gathered her belongings and her children to bustle out.

Miranda had picked up her scarf and draped it around her neck when she happened to look up.

Directly into Harriet's eyes.

Harriet had descended the stairs of the inn, obviously having taken a room here. She froze on the last step, her dark eyes pinned to Miranda, her lips curled back in a snarl.

Miranda bolted.

She left her portmanteau and ran for her life, shoving her way past the farmer's wife out the front door.

"Here, what's up?" the woman said. Then less than a second later, "Oh, you too?"

Miranda darted out into the inn yard, frightening a pair of horses just drawn up by a stablehand. She raced around a post-chaise and toward the back of the inn. Chickens scattered before her in a flurry of wings and squawking. One flew directly into her face, and she swatted at it to get it out of her way. She skirted the pig-pen to dash headlong into the forest beyond.

Because she was already tired from her long walk, she could not outrun Harriet. But she could lose her in the woods.

Her cloak flapped behind her, and she reached back to grasp the cloth and hold it closer so it would not catch on any branches or bushes. She had lost her scarf, and the wind of her passing caught her bonnet, her ribbons pulling at her throat. She scrabbled at the ends and untied it, and it flew from her head. She would be colder, but she could see more clearly around her.

Behind her was the sound of thrashing through the underbrush. She darted around the trees along a twisting path, and slowly the thrashing grew fainter.

She had to find a way to hide. What could she do?

***

Why This Matters for Romantic Suspense Authors

As Christian romantic suspense authors, we owe it to our readers to write heroines who feel real—not perfect, but rational under pressure. Otherwise, we risk breaking the reader’s immersion (or worse, encouraging them to stop reading).

Still, this was a humbling reminder that every writer can miss the obvious—and that’s exactly why good editing is priceless.

📚 Read the final version of The Spinster’s Christmas free on my blog or my Patreon.

💌 Get more behind-the-scenes peeks like this one
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When I first released the Sushi series, I had no idea how deeply readers would connect with Lex, Trish, Venus, and Jennifer—and with their wild, meddling aunties and one very stubborn grandma. The stories were a mix of my friends’ family chaos, my love of romantic comedy, and the joy (and frustration!) of navigating faith, friendships, and relationships as an Asian American Christian woman.

Now that the rights have returned to me, I’m thrilled to be republishing the series on Amazon so a new generation of readers—and longtime fans—can dive back into the drama, the laughter, and the unforgettable auntie antics.

Book 1, Sushi for One?, is available on Amazon now, and the rest of the series is up on preorder. Sushi for One? will go into Kindle Unlimited on May 19, 2025.

Each book follows a different cousin in the extended Sakai family as they wrestle with romance, expectations, and God’s timing (and sometimes, Grandma’s interference).

If you’re new to the series, here’s the best reading order:
1. Sushi for One? (Lex’s story)
2. Only Uni (Trish’s story)
3. Single Sashimi (Venus’s story)
4. Weddings and Wasabi (Jennifer’s story)
5. The Lone Rice Ball (Mimi’s story, but don’t be confused because this is also book 1 in my new Christian romantic suspense series, Mahina Security)

You can also find information on all the books on the series page here.

Whether you’re returning to the series or meeting the cousins for the first time, welcome to the family! I’m so glad to bring these stories back to Amazon—and I hope they make you laugh, swoon, and maybe even text your cousin a prayer request after reading.

I’m thrilled to finally reveal the cover designs of the Special Edition paperbacks I created exclusively for my Kickstarter backers! These collectible Christian historical romance paperbacks feature dual-sided covers and beautifully designed interior pages that make each copy feel truly one-of-a-kind.

I wanted these books to be more than just a different cover—they’re meant to be an experience. That’s why my graphic designer and I worked hard to style every part of the interior to match the tone, theme, and beauty of the story inside.

📖 What Makes These Special Editions Unique?

Each Special Edition paperback includes:

• A dual-sided cover with exclusive art and back design
• Beautifully styled interior pages, unique to the edition, including color chapter headers and interior edge border design
• Digitally sprayed edges in color

These editions were produced as Kickstarter exclusives and won’t be available through regular retailers. I wanted to offer something special for the readers who supported this campaign, and I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out.

📸 Photo Gallery of the Finished Editions

Below, you can see photos of both sides of the covers, and I also included two pages that show the color chapter headers and the interior border design. I hope these give you a sense of the love and detail that went into each book!

💬 Share Your Thoughts

I hope this sneak peek into the Christian Regency romantic suspense Kickstarter editions gives you a glimpse of what’s possible with reader-supported publishing.

And late pledges are still open! That means if you missed the campaign, you can still grab one of these beautiful editions before they’re gone.

👉 Click here to visit the Kickstarter late pledge page

Thank you again to everyone who backed the campaign and made these gorgeous editions a reality!