Laura Navarre's Blog - Posts Tagged "romance"
The Perfectly Imperfect Heroine in Medieval Romance
The conventional wisdom among authors is that you shouldn’t read your own book reviews. Or else, you should only read the good ones. The reason for this is because, with the internal critic from your last book nattering away in your head about the myriad flaws in your writing, it becomes paralyzingly difficult to switch off the voices and write the next one.
In my case, I read the good critiques, and I make my screenwriter-fiance read the bad ones. His job is to tell me if there’s a pearl of wisdom nestled in the oyster of that two-star review that I need to hear to improve my writing. While obligingly performing this function for my latest release, my epic medieval romance By Royal Command (Harlequin/Carina, July 2012), he’s revealed two pearls so far: 1) the majority of readers and reviewers seem to like the book, and 2) among those who caviled with it, the primary discussion point seems to be the powerlessness of the medieval heroine (not just mine, but any heroine from that period). What can an author do to empower a historical heroine who hails from a decidedly patriarchal, male-dominated society, while still remaining true to the setting?
I was keenly conscious of this challenge while writing By Royal Command. Here’s the set-up: On the turbulent shores of Anglo-Saxon England before the Norman Conquest, a daughter of royalty must choose between two warring brothers to save the English throne. Lady Katrin of Courtenay believes she murdered her cruel, controlling husband when she prayed for his death, but she doesn’t mourn him. Struggling to defend her lands from Viking raiders, she is proud and courageous as any man. Yet Katrin has learned she must also be subtle to survive. Determined never to remarry, she believes manipulation and deceit are a woman’s only true weapons. But they won’t be enough to save her from her vengeful uncle: Ethelred, the King of England. Katrin’s remarriage is the cornerstone of his scheme to defeat the Viking invasion and save the English throne.
As an aetheling—kin to the King, albeit a royal in exile on her northern lands—Katrin begins with some advantages over many women of her time. Nonetheless, she’s constrained by circumstances that make her a product of her time.
Readers who quibble with medieval romance often bring to the genre three major issues about the medieval heroine. Let’s take a look at each one.
1. The medieval heroine is too young.
It’s a fact that medieval life expectancy was considerably shorter than in modern times. A medieval woman of good birth could be betrothed in infancy and married by age twelve. Most medieval women were married by sixteen, and had given birth to six or so children by age twenty-five. In By Royal Command, Katrin begins the story as a widow at eighteen, which was not an uncommon occurrence. Inevitably, some readers worry that a young heroine will be a helpless ingénue.
In Katrin’s case, nothing could be farther from the truth. She’s survived a difficult marriage and acts as sole defender of her northern lands against the raiding Vikings. Her people look to her as their only source of comfort and protection. In defense of her home, Katrin fends off starving wolves with a dying torch, defends her own walls with bow and arrow, hunts for her own food and is accounted an excellent shot. She defies the King when he proposes to make her his lover, physically defends her virtue from an amorous earl three times her size, and sacrifices her own happiness without flinching to protect others.
Katrin may be young, yet she is anything but weak.
2. The medieval heroine is too innocent.
This argument I consider to be a misconception of the modern reader. Medieval women, for the most part, were intimately acquainted with the shadowy side of life. As we’ve discussed, the medieval bride lost her virginity in the marriage bed at an astonishingly early age (although this is not an aspect of medieval life I depict on the page in By Royal Command.) They were giving birth as early as age twelve. Of the six children an average medieval woman would have borne by her mid-twenties, she would have buried two of them.
Like Katrin, the medieval woman was the doctor of the house, the administrator of her estate during her husband’s frequent absences, the keeper of the purse, the voice of judgment and justice for her tenants. A number of medieval ladies, like Katrin, successfully defended their lands and people against attack. In 1461, for example, Lady Alice Knyvet successfully defended Bokenham Castle against ten commissioners and a justice of the peace who tried to seize it on the spot while her husband was away. From the ramparts, Lady Alice commanded the defending force and flung defiance in the commissioners’ faces, swearing she would rather die than surrender her castle. She kept it.
In fact, the medieval woman was frighteningly capable, required to demonstrate organization, vigor, diplomacy, and good sense on a daily basis. No woman with her responsibilities would remain naïve, sheltered or innocent for long.
3. Medieval society was patriarchal, with women at the mercy of men. Therefore, the medieval heroine must be a helpless victim.
It’s certainly true that medieval society was patriarchal. A woman had some legal advantages (for instance, she couldn’t be forced to marry without her consent.) Nonetheless, once she made her choice, she was stuck with it. Like many women of her time, Katrin uses her wits and charm to manipulate the authority figures who rule her world. She dazzles Borovic, the powerful earl of Argent, with her feminine wiles while protecting her virtue from his lechery. She bargains successfully with the vengeful King not only to spare the life of her secret lover—a common-born Viking—but to reward him with lands and lordship in exchange for her consent to another marriage. Finally, Katrin persuades both the King and her new husband to sign a marriage contract that leaves lands and dowry in her possession—a rare concession for a woman of her time.
Was life perfect for the medieval heroine? Far from it. Could the medieval heroine successfully protect her children, dependents, property and herself through brute force, as a man might do? Unlikely. Like other women of her time, Katrin is a perfectly imperfect heroine, making subtle and complex choices to defend her loved ones and advance her interests.
If you’d like to learn more about Lady Katrin of Courtenay, King Ethelred of England, and the two luscious heroes of By Royal Command, my publisher has released an exclusive extended excerpt (the first five chapters!) for a limited time here: http://t.co/T4qZ6vUY
Happy reading!
First published at Romancing Rakes for the Love of RomanceBy Royal Command
In my case, I read the good critiques, and I make my screenwriter-fiance read the bad ones. His job is to tell me if there’s a pearl of wisdom nestled in the oyster of that two-star review that I need to hear to improve my writing. While obligingly performing this function for my latest release, my epic medieval romance By Royal Command (Harlequin/Carina, July 2012), he’s revealed two pearls so far: 1) the majority of readers and reviewers seem to like the book, and 2) among those who caviled with it, the primary discussion point seems to be the powerlessness of the medieval heroine (not just mine, but any heroine from that period). What can an author do to empower a historical heroine who hails from a decidedly patriarchal, male-dominated society, while still remaining true to the setting?
I was keenly conscious of this challenge while writing By Royal Command. Here’s the set-up: On the turbulent shores of Anglo-Saxon England before the Norman Conquest, a daughter of royalty must choose between two warring brothers to save the English throne. Lady Katrin of Courtenay believes she murdered her cruel, controlling husband when she prayed for his death, but she doesn’t mourn him. Struggling to defend her lands from Viking raiders, she is proud and courageous as any man. Yet Katrin has learned she must also be subtle to survive. Determined never to remarry, she believes manipulation and deceit are a woman’s only true weapons. But they won’t be enough to save her from her vengeful uncle: Ethelred, the King of England. Katrin’s remarriage is the cornerstone of his scheme to defeat the Viking invasion and save the English throne.
As an aetheling—kin to the King, albeit a royal in exile on her northern lands—Katrin begins with some advantages over many women of her time. Nonetheless, she’s constrained by circumstances that make her a product of her time.
Readers who quibble with medieval romance often bring to the genre three major issues about the medieval heroine. Let’s take a look at each one.
1. The medieval heroine is too young.
It’s a fact that medieval life expectancy was considerably shorter than in modern times. A medieval woman of good birth could be betrothed in infancy and married by age twelve. Most medieval women were married by sixteen, and had given birth to six or so children by age twenty-five. In By Royal Command, Katrin begins the story as a widow at eighteen, which was not an uncommon occurrence. Inevitably, some readers worry that a young heroine will be a helpless ingénue.
In Katrin’s case, nothing could be farther from the truth. She’s survived a difficult marriage and acts as sole defender of her northern lands against the raiding Vikings. Her people look to her as their only source of comfort and protection. In defense of her home, Katrin fends off starving wolves with a dying torch, defends her own walls with bow and arrow, hunts for her own food and is accounted an excellent shot. She defies the King when he proposes to make her his lover, physically defends her virtue from an amorous earl three times her size, and sacrifices her own happiness without flinching to protect others.
Katrin may be young, yet she is anything but weak.
2. The medieval heroine is too innocent.
This argument I consider to be a misconception of the modern reader. Medieval women, for the most part, were intimately acquainted with the shadowy side of life. As we’ve discussed, the medieval bride lost her virginity in the marriage bed at an astonishingly early age (although this is not an aspect of medieval life I depict on the page in By Royal Command.) They were giving birth as early as age twelve. Of the six children an average medieval woman would have borne by her mid-twenties, she would have buried two of them.
Like Katrin, the medieval woman was the doctor of the house, the administrator of her estate during her husband’s frequent absences, the keeper of the purse, the voice of judgment and justice for her tenants. A number of medieval ladies, like Katrin, successfully defended their lands and people against attack. In 1461, for example, Lady Alice Knyvet successfully defended Bokenham Castle against ten commissioners and a justice of the peace who tried to seize it on the spot while her husband was away. From the ramparts, Lady Alice commanded the defending force and flung defiance in the commissioners’ faces, swearing she would rather die than surrender her castle. She kept it.
In fact, the medieval woman was frighteningly capable, required to demonstrate organization, vigor, diplomacy, and good sense on a daily basis. No woman with her responsibilities would remain naïve, sheltered or innocent for long.
3. Medieval society was patriarchal, with women at the mercy of men. Therefore, the medieval heroine must be a helpless victim.
It’s certainly true that medieval society was patriarchal. A woman had some legal advantages (for instance, she couldn’t be forced to marry without her consent.) Nonetheless, once she made her choice, she was stuck with it. Like many women of her time, Katrin uses her wits and charm to manipulate the authority figures who rule her world. She dazzles Borovic, the powerful earl of Argent, with her feminine wiles while protecting her virtue from his lechery. She bargains successfully with the vengeful King not only to spare the life of her secret lover—a common-born Viking—but to reward him with lands and lordship in exchange for her consent to another marriage. Finally, Katrin persuades both the King and her new husband to sign a marriage contract that leaves lands and dowry in her possession—a rare concession for a woman of her time.
Was life perfect for the medieval heroine? Far from it. Could the medieval heroine successfully protect her children, dependents, property and herself through brute force, as a man might do? Unlikely. Like other women of her time, Katrin is a perfectly imperfect heroine, making subtle and complex choices to defend her loved ones and advance her interests.
If you’d like to learn more about Lady Katrin of Courtenay, King Ethelred of England, and the two luscious heroes of By Royal Command, my publisher has released an exclusive extended excerpt (the first five chapters!) for a limited time here: http://t.co/T4qZ6vUY
Happy reading!
First published at Romancing Rakes for the Love of RomanceBy Royal Command
From Scarlett O’Hara to Sookie Stackhouse: A Look at Love Triangles and Hero Choices
Hello all you wonderful readers at Cocktails and Books! Given my penchant for curling up with a dirty martini and a fat historical novel…or a spicy contemporary romance…or some mind-bending science fiction, I feel as though I fit right in here.
Given the obscenely early hour as I write this blog, let’s make my cocktail of choice a Mimosa. Champagne seems appropriate, because I’m celebrating the July 2 release of my epic medieval romance, By Royal Command (Harlequin/Carina). Set in Anglo-Saxon England before the Norman Conquest, it’s the story of a daughter of royalty who must choose between the Devil’s minion and a would-be bishop to save the English throne. Two brothers, one woman, three hearts at war—a medieval love triangle.
Although love triangles appear in many of the classic historical romances I read growing up, I haven’t seen as many in recent years on the page, although they remain very popular both in cinema and television. In fact, I learned a lot about writing love triangles from Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind and Charlaine Harris’s True Blood series.
Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind
In this Civil War-set classic, Southern belle-turned-businesswoman Scarlett O’Hara stands up against invading Yankees, rapacious Carpetbaggers, crushing poverty and the ostracism of her conservative Confederate neighbors. Yet this strong, dynamic heroine can’t stop pining for scholarly gentleman Ashley Wilkes, who is virtuously married to bluestocking Melanie. But he’s not above a few searing kisses for Scarlett that keep her dreaming of him for eleven years. Ashley is so obviously not the right hero for this fiery heroine. This reserved, suffers-in-silence gentleman-scholar lacks the backbone, determination to survive, and passion for living that animate Scarlett. For her part, she hasn’t an intellectual bone in her body, and Ashley’s constant prosing on about Gotterdammerung and the end of civilization bores her silly.
I would argue that Scarlett’s childish obsession with Ashley is linked to her immaturity as a woman. As she progresses through her character arc from spoiled child to powerful defender of her home and family, the elegant Mr. Wilkes very gradually begins to lose his fascination for her.
Meanwhile, Scarlett’s willful blindness to the roguish charm and sexual allure of blockade runner Rhett Butler, so obviously her perfect match, is guaranteed to frustrate any reader. Rhett is clever, canny, sexual, sophisticated, wealthy and amoral, though he is capable of being moved by suffering and sacrifice—as when he turns his back on his lucrative smuggling career to enlist in the faltering Confederate Army for honor’s sake. Stunningly portrayed by Clark Gable, he’s every woman’s dream…yet the immature Scarlett is indifferent to his charms. It’s only when Melanie’s death forces character growth in Scarlett that her eyes are opened to her love for Rhett—just in time to see him abandon her and vanish into the fog. She’s taken too long to see the light, and he’s finally given up on her. Frankly, my dear, he no longer gives a damn.
Reading and watching Gone with the Wind a ridiculous number of times helped me understand the critical connection between the heroine’s character arc and her hero choice. As the heroine grows, her feelings for both heroes evolve. Indeed, the heroine’s choice (for Scarlett, the discovery of her love for Rhett and her decision to win him back) illustrates and externalizes her growth.
Sookie Stackhouse in True Blood
From the classic to the contemporary, from the silver screen to the TV screen, let’s take a look at Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse stories. First, a disclaimer: I love this stuff! But as a writer on constant deadline, I’ve only read the first three so far, and I’m in the middle of watching Season 3 on Netflix. So I’m working from a partial storyline, with the strong inkling that vampires Bill and Eric are about to be replaced by werewolf Alcide in Sookie’s affection, making True Blood a love quadrangle.
Nonetheless, the connection between character arc and hero choice holds true. When we meet Sookie, she’s a naïve, virginal cocktail waitress in rural Louisiana—a bit of a local misfit because her telepathic abilities make people think she’s nuts. She’s ripe to be swept off her feet by gentlemanly Civil War-era vampire Bill Compton, the knight in shining armor who saves her from a brutal attack. Romance blossoms between them, and the two fall in love. But it’s Sookie’s eventual disillusionment with Bill, in light of his questionable motives and some negative developments in his own character, that spurs her growth. The gradual discovery of her Faerie origins and the flowering of her psychic abilities both contribute to her character arc, serving as external manifestations of these inner changes.
A bit warier and worldlier, Sookie draws back from Bill and grows increasingly intrigued with Viking-era vampire Eric, a darker and less courtly hero. Interestingly, Eric is also less human. His brief human lifetime occurred a millennium ago. Eric is older and physically stronger than Bill; he manifests inhuman, almost godlike qualities like the ability to fly. And he is largely devoid of human conscience or morality, though he too is capable of strong attachment and deep loyalty. Sookie wouldn’t have been ready for this hero when the series opened, but by Season Three, the couple works.
In addition, Eric’s amnesia in Season Three, his childlike naivete and relative helplessness permit a “softening” of his character. Sookie becomes his protector during this vulnerable period—in essence, the two exchange roles. When she gives herself sexually to Eric, Sookie’s choice is a milestone in her own growth.
Lady Katrin of Courtenay in By Royal Command
This connection between character growth and hero choice was an insight I wanted to explore in my own medieval romance. My courageous heroine, Lady Katrin of Courtenay, is an exiled royal struggling alone to hold her northern lands against the invading Danes. The willful widow believes that she must be subtle to survive, and that manipulation and deceit are a woman’s only weapons.
When her ruthless uncle the King of England sends a Viking warrior of rough edges but unbending integrity to escort Katrin to a marriage she’ll do anything to prevent, she seeks to manipulate and seduce him from his duty—but falls in love with him instead. For Eomond, the world is black-and-white, and he’ll always choose the honorable course. For the youthful Katrin, Eomond’s directness and lack of complexity are appealing. So is his strong sword arm.
Then Katrin encounters her reluctant bridegroom, Rafael le Senay: a brilliant and enigmatic would-be bishop with a tortured past who harbors ambitions for the papal throne. Rafael is subtle, secretive, powerfully ambitious and morally complex, a perfect match for Katrin—although she erroneously believes this foreign-reared scholar will have little appetite for her bed. In order to discern her heart’s desire and make her own hero choice, Katrin must learn her own hard lessons about desire and loyalty, love and honor, damnation and redemption.
Free Excerpt of By Royal Command
Interested in reading more about the Katrin-Eomond-Rafael love triangle? If you’re on Facebook, you can read an excerpt here: http://www.lauranavarre.com/books
I love to hear from readers, so please friend me at www.Facebook.com/LauraNavarreAuthor and follow me at www.twitter.com/LauraNavarre
Happy reading!
First published on Cocktails and Books website
Given the obscenely early hour as I write this blog, let’s make my cocktail of choice a Mimosa. Champagne seems appropriate, because I’m celebrating the July 2 release of my epic medieval romance, By Royal Command (Harlequin/Carina). Set in Anglo-Saxon England before the Norman Conquest, it’s the story of a daughter of royalty who must choose between the Devil’s minion and a would-be bishop to save the English throne. Two brothers, one woman, three hearts at war—a medieval love triangle.
Although love triangles appear in many of the classic historical romances I read growing up, I haven’t seen as many in recent years on the page, although they remain very popular both in cinema and television. In fact, I learned a lot about writing love triangles from Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind and Charlaine Harris’s True Blood series.
Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind
In this Civil War-set classic, Southern belle-turned-businesswoman Scarlett O’Hara stands up against invading Yankees, rapacious Carpetbaggers, crushing poverty and the ostracism of her conservative Confederate neighbors. Yet this strong, dynamic heroine can’t stop pining for scholarly gentleman Ashley Wilkes, who is virtuously married to bluestocking Melanie. But he’s not above a few searing kisses for Scarlett that keep her dreaming of him for eleven years. Ashley is so obviously not the right hero for this fiery heroine. This reserved, suffers-in-silence gentleman-scholar lacks the backbone, determination to survive, and passion for living that animate Scarlett. For her part, she hasn’t an intellectual bone in her body, and Ashley’s constant prosing on about Gotterdammerung and the end of civilization bores her silly.
I would argue that Scarlett’s childish obsession with Ashley is linked to her immaturity as a woman. As she progresses through her character arc from spoiled child to powerful defender of her home and family, the elegant Mr. Wilkes very gradually begins to lose his fascination for her.
Meanwhile, Scarlett’s willful blindness to the roguish charm and sexual allure of blockade runner Rhett Butler, so obviously her perfect match, is guaranteed to frustrate any reader. Rhett is clever, canny, sexual, sophisticated, wealthy and amoral, though he is capable of being moved by suffering and sacrifice—as when he turns his back on his lucrative smuggling career to enlist in the faltering Confederate Army for honor’s sake. Stunningly portrayed by Clark Gable, he’s every woman’s dream…yet the immature Scarlett is indifferent to his charms. It’s only when Melanie’s death forces character growth in Scarlett that her eyes are opened to her love for Rhett—just in time to see him abandon her and vanish into the fog. She’s taken too long to see the light, and he’s finally given up on her. Frankly, my dear, he no longer gives a damn.
Reading and watching Gone with the Wind a ridiculous number of times helped me understand the critical connection between the heroine’s character arc and her hero choice. As the heroine grows, her feelings for both heroes evolve. Indeed, the heroine’s choice (for Scarlett, the discovery of her love for Rhett and her decision to win him back) illustrates and externalizes her growth.
Sookie Stackhouse in True Blood
From the classic to the contemporary, from the silver screen to the TV screen, let’s take a look at Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse stories. First, a disclaimer: I love this stuff! But as a writer on constant deadline, I’ve only read the first three so far, and I’m in the middle of watching Season 3 on Netflix. So I’m working from a partial storyline, with the strong inkling that vampires Bill and Eric are about to be replaced by werewolf Alcide in Sookie’s affection, making True Blood a love quadrangle.
Nonetheless, the connection between character arc and hero choice holds true. When we meet Sookie, she’s a naïve, virginal cocktail waitress in rural Louisiana—a bit of a local misfit because her telepathic abilities make people think she’s nuts. She’s ripe to be swept off her feet by gentlemanly Civil War-era vampire Bill Compton, the knight in shining armor who saves her from a brutal attack. Romance blossoms between them, and the two fall in love. But it’s Sookie’s eventual disillusionment with Bill, in light of his questionable motives and some negative developments in his own character, that spurs her growth. The gradual discovery of her Faerie origins and the flowering of her psychic abilities both contribute to her character arc, serving as external manifestations of these inner changes.
A bit warier and worldlier, Sookie draws back from Bill and grows increasingly intrigued with Viking-era vampire Eric, a darker and less courtly hero. Interestingly, Eric is also less human. His brief human lifetime occurred a millennium ago. Eric is older and physically stronger than Bill; he manifests inhuman, almost godlike qualities like the ability to fly. And he is largely devoid of human conscience or morality, though he too is capable of strong attachment and deep loyalty. Sookie wouldn’t have been ready for this hero when the series opened, but by Season Three, the couple works.
In addition, Eric’s amnesia in Season Three, his childlike naivete and relative helplessness permit a “softening” of his character. Sookie becomes his protector during this vulnerable period—in essence, the two exchange roles. When she gives herself sexually to Eric, Sookie’s choice is a milestone in her own growth.
Lady Katrin of Courtenay in By Royal Command
This connection between character growth and hero choice was an insight I wanted to explore in my own medieval romance. My courageous heroine, Lady Katrin of Courtenay, is an exiled royal struggling alone to hold her northern lands against the invading Danes. The willful widow believes that she must be subtle to survive, and that manipulation and deceit are a woman’s only weapons.
When her ruthless uncle the King of England sends a Viking warrior of rough edges but unbending integrity to escort Katrin to a marriage she’ll do anything to prevent, she seeks to manipulate and seduce him from his duty—but falls in love with him instead. For Eomond, the world is black-and-white, and he’ll always choose the honorable course. For the youthful Katrin, Eomond’s directness and lack of complexity are appealing. So is his strong sword arm.
Then Katrin encounters her reluctant bridegroom, Rafael le Senay: a brilliant and enigmatic would-be bishop with a tortured past who harbors ambitions for the papal throne. Rafael is subtle, secretive, powerfully ambitious and morally complex, a perfect match for Katrin—although she erroneously believes this foreign-reared scholar will have little appetite for her bed. In order to discern her heart’s desire and make her own hero choice, Katrin must learn her own hard lessons about desire and loyalty, love and honor, damnation and redemption.
Free Excerpt of By Royal Command
Interested in reading more about the Katrin-Eomond-Rafael love triangle? If you’re on Facebook, you can read an excerpt here: http://www.lauranavarre.com/books
I love to hear from readers, so please friend me at www.Facebook.com/LauraNavarreAuthor and follow me at www.twitter.com/LauraNavarre
Happy reading!
First published on Cocktails and Books website
My Next Big Thing: Magick by Moonrise
I’ve been tagged to participate in The Next Big Thing, a round of “musical chairs” for authors excited to share new releases with our readers. My Next Big Thing is my March 2013 release for Harlequin’s Carina line—the launch book for The Magick Trilogy.
Without further ado, here’s my Next Big Thing!
1: What is the working title of your book?
Magick by Moonrise
2: Where did the idea come from for the book?
I’ve always been a huge fan of fantasy author Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon, which tells the story of King Arthur from the perspective of the women in his life. As in Bradley’s series, I started to wonder what would happen if a “shadow kingdom” existed alongside Tudor England, a Faerie kingdom that drifts beside the mortal world, separated only by a fragile Veil or curtain of fog—and then the Veil started to thin. If Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collided, what would happen?
To make matters worse, what if this mortal turmoil mirrored a growing discontent among the ranks of angels in Heaven? And the punishment for these fallen angels was to be condemned to a mortal life?
These ideas gave me the inspiration for The Magick Trilogy, which features Faeries, celestial beings, legendary figures from King Arthur’s Camelot and real historical figures from Tudor England.
3: What genre does your book come under?
Historical paranormal romance. Great for fans of Tudor fiction and sexy historical romance, lovers of fallen angel heroes and King Arthur’s Camelot.
4: Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
My hero, ruthless Church Inquisitor Lord Beltran Nemesto, would be perfectly played by Daniel Craig.
For my heroine, ethereal half-Fae princess and healer Rhiannon le Fay, I’d choose Emilia Clarke, who plays the dragon princess Dani in Game of Thrones.
5: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
When Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collide, the players risk all for power. But only love can save them.
6: Is your book self-published, published by an independent publisher, or represented by an agency?
I write for Harlequin/Carina and love it! My agent is the amazing JD DeWitt at The View Literary Agency.
7: How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
It used to take me a year to write a book, but I’ve been picking up the pace! Magick by Moonrise took me six months.
8: What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
For fantasy fans, I think my work has similarities to Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel books and Bradley’s Mists of Avalon. For historical fans, my Tudor fiction has flatteringly been compared to the work of Philippa Gregory (The Other Boleyn Girl). For romance fans, Magick by Moonrise is a cross between Laura Kinsale’s For My Lady’s Heart and Bertrice Small’s Skye O’Malley.
9: What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
If you like the idea of fallen angel heroes, royal heroines who descend from King Arthur of Camelot, and Tudor queens with Faerie blood, this series is for you!
10: How can readers get their hands on Magick by Moonrise?
Right here!
http://www.amazon.com/Magick-Moonrise...
I’d like to thank bestselling author Leigh Michaels for tagging me to participate in The Next Big Thing. Click the links below to find out more about Leigh’s latest sexy Regency-period historical, The Birthday Scandal.
Website: www.leighmichaels.com
Facebook: Leigh Michaels
Twitter: @leighmichaels
Blog: http://leighmichaels.blogspot.com
Without further ado, here’s my Next Big Thing!
1: What is the working title of your book?
Magick by Moonrise
2: Where did the idea come from for the book?
I’ve always been a huge fan of fantasy author Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon, which tells the story of King Arthur from the perspective of the women in his life. As in Bradley’s series, I started to wonder what would happen if a “shadow kingdom” existed alongside Tudor England, a Faerie kingdom that drifts beside the mortal world, separated only by a fragile Veil or curtain of fog—and then the Veil started to thin. If Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collided, what would happen?
To make matters worse, what if this mortal turmoil mirrored a growing discontent among the ranks of angels in Heaven? And the punishment for these fallen angels was to be condemned to a mortal life?
These ideas gave me the inspiration for The Magick Trilogy, which features Faeries, celestial beings, legendary figures from King Arthur’s Camelot and real historical figures from Tudor England.
3: What genre does your book come under?
Historical paranormal romance. Great for fans of Tudor fiction and sexy historical romance, lovers of fallen angel heroes and King Arthur’s Camelot.
4: Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
My hero, ruthless Church Inquisitor Lord Beltran Nemesto, would be perfectly played by Daniel Craig.
For my heroine, ethereal half-Fae princess and healer Rhiannon le Fay, I’d choose Emilia Clarke, who plays the dragon princess Dani in Game of Thrones.
5: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
When Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collide, the players risk all for power. But only love can save them.
6: Is your book self-published, published by an independent publisher, or represented by an agency?
I write for Harlequin/Carina and love it! My agent is the amazing JD DeWitt at The View Literary Agency.
7: How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
It used to take me a year to write a book, but I’ve been picking up the pace! Magick by Moonrise took me six months.
8: What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
For fantasy fans, I think my work has similarities to Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel books and Bradley’s Mists of Avalon. For historical fans, my Tudor fiction has flatteringly been compared to the work of Philippa Gregory (The Other Boleyn Girl). For romance fans, Magick by Moonrise is a cross between Laura Kinsale’s For My Lady’s Heart and Bertrice Small’s Skye O’Malley.
9: What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
If you like the idea of fallen angel heroes, royal heroines who descend from King Arthur of Camelot, and Tudor queens with Faerie blood, this series is for you!
10: How can readers get their hands on Magick by Moonrise?
Right here!
http://www.amazon.com/Magick-Moonrise...
I’d like to thank bestselling author Leigh Michaels for tagging me to participate in The Next Big Thing. Click the links below to find out more about Leigh’s latest sexy Regency-period historical, The Birthday Scandal.
Website: www.leighmichaels.com
Facebook: Leigh Michaels
Twitter: @leighmichaels
Blog: http://leighmichaels.blogspot.com
Sympathy for the Devil: Fallen Angel Heroes in Romance
Why do I love fallen angels? At first blush, my fascination with these unconventional heroes seems unlikely. These once-divine beings, their bright beauty forever marred by their plummet from grace into darkness, seem better suited to villainy than romance. That’s why I think I love them—because they’re the ultimate bad boys. Their choice to fall, to reign in Hell rather than serve in Heaven, suggests a profound and bitter disillusionment with their former Paradise that makes me burn to discover what has happened to these tarnished angels to transform the infinite love in their hearts to inconsolable rage.
Fallen angels arrive on the scene with a backstory few mortal heroes can rival. A fallen angel’s very essence is a fatal flaw, a fissure of the soul so profound that this weakness has destroyed him. To me, his dark and tragic history betrays a unique and powerful need for salvation that only the heroine’s love can supply.
My fascination with this midnight of the soul and the themes of salvation, damnation, forgiveness and the redemptive power of love led to The Magick Trilogy, my maiden voyage into the world of Tudor paranormal romance. In my series debut Magick by Moonrise, Lord Beltran Nemesto is a Blade of God, a Church Inquisitor with a ruthless reputation for hunting down suspect witches and heretics. Unknown to Beltran, he’s a fallen angel, sentenced by God to a mortal life, where he must learn the hard lessons of mercy and compassion or lose his divinity forever. Yet he appears doomed to repeat the same mistakes that jeopardize his immortality—until he meets gentle healer Rhiannon le Fay, the Faerie ambassador to the Tudor court—the very woman he’s been ordered by the Church to interrogate and condemn.
Beltran begins his journey to redemption with his forbidden passion for this ethereal, unconventional, utterly unsuitable beauty—a heroine who fits my brooding, damaged hero to perfection. When Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collide, only love can save them.
Beltran and Rhiannon’s story holds a special place in my heart. I hope you enjoy their journey as much as I have.
What do you think about the emerging trend of angels and demons in romance? Do you find these paranormal creatures sexy, intriguing or unnerving? I’d love to hear your views and any recommendations you might share on books, movies, and TV shows that explore this fascinating trend.
Fallen angels arrive on the scene with a backstory few mortal heroes can rival. A fallen angel’s very essence is a fatal flaw, a fissure of the soul so profound that this weakness has destroyed him. To me, his dark and tragic history betrays a unique and powerful need for salvation that only the heroine’s love can supply.
My fascination with this midnight of the soul and the themes of salvation, damnation, forgiveness and the redemptive power of love led to The Magick Trilogy, my maiden voyage into the world of Tudor paranormal romance. In my series debut Magick by Moonrise, Lord Beltran Nemesto is a Blade of God, a Church Inquisitor with a ruthless reputation for hunting down suspect witches and heretics. Unknown to Beltran, he’s a fallen angel, sentenced by God to a mortal life, where he must learn the hard lessons of mercy and compassion or lose his divinity forever. Yet he appears doomed to repeat the same mistakes that jeopardize his immortality—until he meets gentle healer Rhiannon le Fay, the Faerie ambassador to the Tudor court—the very woman he’s been ordered by the Church to interrogate and condemn.
Beltran begins his journey to redemption with his forbidden passion for this ethereal, unconventional, utterly unsuitable beauty—a heroine who fits my brooding, damaged hero to perfection. When Tudor England and the Faerie kingdom collide, only love can save them.
Beltran and Rhiannon’s story holds a special place in my heart. I hope you enjoy their journey as much as I have.
What do you think about the emerging trend of angels and demons in romance? Do you find these paranormal creatures sexy, intriguing or unnerving? I’d love to hear your views and any recommendations you might share on books, movies, and TV shows that explore this fascinating trend.
