Please give a warm welcome to romance author, Chasity Bowlin, who is joining us on her tour for The Haunting of a Duke.
If I could go back in time....
That is a really hard question for me to answer. Obviously, I love the Regency era. It speaks to me on a number of levels. And being that I have no waist, the fashion of that period is perfect for me. But I also love the Victorian era, where it didn’t matter if you had a waist or not, because you could fake it with a corset. Still, the Regency era was more free I think. There were rules governing behavior, but they were more easily broken and more easily forgiven.
I love the romance of Regency England, glittering ballrooms, the fact that men routinely and spontaneously composed poetry to the beauty of whatever woman they were trying to court. When juxtaposed to what was happening on the Continent, with the Napoleanic Wars, and the French Revolution which was still very fresh in people’s minds, the Regency was such a mix of the extravagant and the restrained. Rich fabrics were frowned upon and simple, muslin dresses became the standard, in some cases even for evening wear. Embellishment came in the form of embroidery. Yet, in one’s home and one’s vehicle, ostentation was perfectly acceptable.
Also, from a hygiene standpoint, the Regency is one of the few historical eras where people bathed often and regularly. So, yay for that. (Not very romantic is it?) Still, I work in mental health and the value of hygiene is very obvious to me. Also, I’ve read so many Regency novels, researched so much for the period, I think if you dropped me down in the middle of Regency England, I believe I could pull it off. They would consider me a crass “colonial”, but I can cope with that.
Title: The Haunting of a Duke
Author:
ChasityBowlin
Publisher:
Wild Rose Press
Length: 290 pages
Sub-Genres: Paranormal, Regency
Facing danger from both sides of the grave, will two souls merge to find a love that conquers all? Communing with spirits has been both gift and curse to Emme Walters. Now it's made her a killer's target. Emme knows why the Dowager Duchess of Briarleigh invited her to a house party--to investigate whether the duke, Rhys Brammel, murdered his wife years ago. But Emme never imagined she would fall in love with the brooding duke. Branded by society as a possible killer, Rhys is suspicious of Emme and her alleged "gift." Then a late night encounter creates awareness of her other, more attractive, aspects. When Emme's life is threatened, Rhys becomes her protector. Emme and Rhys find passion and peril as they join forces to solve the mysteries at Briarleigh. She made him believe in spirits, but can she make him believe in love?
EXCERPT:
The little girl smiled. “I’m Melisande. But I don’t want to
hear a story, I want to tell one.” Her voice had a slight lilt to it, the
singsong pattern of a child with a secret.
She was a bit odd, but she was a pretty child and had an
amiable nature.
Emme nodded. “I think I would like to hear it very much.”
The little girl seated herself on the grass and cocked her
head to the side, and then began to speak.
“There was a princess who lived here, in this house. But the
princess was very unhappy. She was forced to marry a man she didn’t love. He
was a kind man though, or tried to be, but the princess was angry at having to
marry him, when her own love was so close by. She met her love in secret. But
the princess had loved unwisely, and her love had a price. A very dear price.”
Emme shivered. It was not a story, at all. It was thinly
veiled gossip about the duke. “That isn’t a very nice story, Melisande.”
The little girl nodded. “Not every story can be nice, Emme.”
A chill swept Emme’s body. “I didn’t tell you my name. Who
are you?”
The little girl smiled again and her eyes were knowing as
she met Emme’s startled gaze. “You never have to tell us your name. We always
know who you are.”
Gooseflesh raised on her arms, Emme looked at the apparition
before her. It had never happened when she was awake; it had never been so
clear. She looked to be flesh and blood, but Emme had no doubt the child before
her was a spirit.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Chasity, a former ghost hunter and professional student, lives in Kentucky where she works for a nonprofit agency providing family counseling. In her spare time she reads romance voraciously, rescues stray animals and occasionally stalks her favorite bands. Twitter is @ChasityBowlin - Facebook Page
That cover is GORGEOUS!!! Okay, I got distracted, so now I will go back and read the post. ;)
ReplyDeleteHi Chasity!
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