I’ve very happy to welcome fellow Kensington author Christie Kelley to the blog today. Christie writes critically acclaimed, Regency-set historical romance, and her books are described by RT Book Reviews as “racy and romantic.” Fun! Christie has a new book out, so let’s find out all about it, shall we?
Bewitching The Duke is not your standard Regency romance, with lords and ladies cavorting about London and living the good life. What can you tell us about the book, and why you decided to write it?
After writing five books of lords and ladies cavorting in London, I needed something new to write. The idea started when watching a documentary on witches on the History channel. They had a quick blurb explaining what wise women were and how their healing abilities led to them being called witches. All it takes is a little something like that to make think…what if? What if there had been some wise women protected by their landowners and still practiced their healing ways in the Regency period. Plus the idea of writing a woman who was a free spirit and not tied down by society’s rules intrigued me. It was actually a lot of fun to write Selina.
Your heroine, Selina, is not from the same social class as the hero. Did you have fun playing with those class differences?
I loved writing Selina. She is a woman who really doesn’t care if she wears her hair unbound. She doesn’t want to cause the servants more work so she’ll take her boots off before walking around the manor. While Colin was born and raised to be a duke, he thinks she is completely mad. He doesn’t understand how a woman can act so freely. It was great fun to write! Plus writing about a woman who is hiding out in the manor under the nose of a duke made me laugh as I wrote it.
What attracts you to the Regency period, and did you come upon any interesting historical tidbits when you wrote the book?
I love writing the Regency period because I can play with the mores of the day. I can stretch those boundaries or stay strictly inside of them depending on the story or the character. And who doesn’t love the clothes! For me, learning more about the healers of the day was terribly interesting. I had to stop myself from the research so I could get the book written. Does that make me a geek? Probably.
What’s up next in your writing life?
I’m currently editing my October release, Enticing the Earl, which is Mia’s story. And writing the third book in the trilogy. After that, my editor mentioned writing some novellas for some of the secondary characters in Enticing the Earl. So, I’m keeping busy!
Vanessa, here. Bewitching The Duke sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Here’s the blurb:
ONLY HER DESIRE…
After losing his wife in childbirth, Colin Barrett, Duke of Northrop, does not trust healers. So when he discovers Selina White cleansing his home, he is livid. As duke, Colin is accustomed to his charges taking orders from him. But the fiery Selina has the audacity to defy him when he asks her to leave his lands. More infuriating, he cannot stop thinking about the seductive sway of her hips when she walks.
CAN HEAL HIS HEART…
The sick tenants of Northrop Park depend on Selina, and she’s not about to let a man tell her she must leave her village—even if he is a duke. And while Selina does not fear Colin’s temper, she is afraid of the secrets she keeps from him and of the desire he sets off in her every time he is near.
For my readers today, Christie is giving away a copy of Bewitching The Duke. Since Christie’s heroine is not your usual Regency lady, let’s talk about that. What kind of heroine do you like to see in your historicals? The gently bred lady, the sexy widow, a free spirited commoner, or all types? One person who comments will win a copy of Christie’s book!
