I’m so happy to welcome the lovely and talented Theresa Romain to the blog today. Theresa writes witty, emotional, truly beautiful Regency-set historical romance. She’s here today to tell us about the new book in her bestselling Christmas romance series.
Your new book, Season For Scandal, is the 3rd book in your wonderful Holiday Pleasures Series. What’s the thread that connects these stories?
Vanessa, thank you for welcoming me today!
They’re all set in the same Regency world, so there are continuing characters even though every book stands on its own. The hero and heroine of SEASON FOR SCANDAL—Edmund and Jane—both turned up in the previous Holiday Pleasures book, SEASON FOR SURRENDER. So I hope it’s fun for readers to see these secondary characters get their own chance to find love.
Your heroine Jane Tindall is one of my favorite kinds of heroines, one who must survive on her wits and courage. What can you tell us about Jane?
Thanks! Jane is a fun character to write because she’s not quite within the bounds of polite society. She hasn’t been raised with much money or many social graces, and so she has a bit of a chip on her shoulder, and a great craving to advance herself. But she’s not a ruthless person by any means! She’s also very loyal and warm-hearted. And for most of her life, she’s given that loyalty and devotion to Edmund, who turns out not to be quite the hero she thinks…
Readers are often very interested in the research we bring to our books. Did you have to do a lot of research on Regency gambling? Did you find any other interesting historical elements in which to ground your plot?
At the beginning of SEASON FOR SCANDAL, the characters play vingt-et-un, which is basically blackjack. So that didn’t take as much research as the bits of chess that come into the story later. (I am sooooo not a chess player.) But most research I did was related to social events, like how people bought ices at Gunter’s or what the punishments were for theft. I also researched a few rebellions that became part of the plot: the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and the Peterloo Massacre of 1819. On a more romantic note, I also checked out wedding traditions of the time. Jane and Edmund get married very early in the story, and so their wedding is an important story event.
You have another historical that’s recently come out. What can you tell us about it?
Thanks for asking! Besides the Holiday Pleasures romances, I’m also working on the Matchmaker trilogy of historicals. The first Matchmaker romance, IT TAKES TWO TO TANGLE, features a wily widow and a wounded ex-soldier in a Regency take on the Cyrano plot. ITTTT just came out in September, and the next Matchmaker book will be published in May. I’ve seen some preliminary cover art, and it’s gorgeous!
Thanks for being with us today, Theresa! Readers, Theresa is giving away a copy of her wonderful new book, A Season For Scandal. For a chance to win, tell us your favorite part of the holidays–or any holiday–for a chance to win.
SEASON FOR SCANDAL
UNLADYLIKE RISK
Jane Tindall has never had money of her own or exceptional beauty. Her gifts are more subtle: a mind like an abacus, a talent for play-acting—and a daring taste for gambling. But all the daring in the world can’t help with the cards fixed against her. And when Edmund Ware, Baron Kirkpatrick, unwittingly spoils her chance to win a fortune, her reputation is ruined too. Or so she thinks, until he suggests a surprising mode of escape: a hasty marriage. To him. On the surface, their wedding would seem to satisfy all the demands of proper society, but as the Yuletide approaches, secrets and scandals turn this proper marriage into a very improper affair.
Book order links:
Print: amazon • barnes & noble • book depository • books-a-million • indiebound • kensington • posman books • powell’s • watermark
Ebook: ibook • kensington • kindle • nook
Welcome Theresa! I know I just saw you over at Jaunty Quills with Vanessa but Hello again!
Ahhh The Holidays~ I love Holidays: Halloween, Thanks Giving, Christmas, New Years, Valentines, Independence….
A huge reason why I love them… The food! They all have great food! So yes, I love to eat and be around family. 😀
Hi again, Ki! Isn’t that funny how the scheduling worked out? I’m glad to get to hang out with Vanessa two days in a row. 🙂 And I completely agree, holidays have great food traditions!
For me the holidays mean family. The rest is just the icing on the cake. (Now I’m craving cake all of a sudden.)
Mary, nothing wrong with a family visit that includes cake, right? (Ok, now you’ve got me craving it too.)
Congratulations on your new release it sounds good, I’m looking forward to reading it.
I love the Holidays the family all get together, I love Thanksgiving too it’s the best time with the 2 teens they both help with the cooking.
Penney
Penney, what a cool tradition to cook with your teens. My daughter “helps” me bake sometimes, but she’s young enough that this still mostly means peering into the bowl and asking to taste different ingredients.
I love any holiday where the whole family is together (holidays are alternated with the in-laws)
Diane, do you have a lot of out-of-town relatives? There are some family members I only get to see around major holidays, just because that’s when they (or I) have time for travel.
I grew up with both sides of the family within an hour of each other, but now there are only 2 of us left in the state with the other close members of the family 3, 7 & 10 hrs away and the extended family spread across the country.
I’m going to say the upcoming Halloween holiday. We have a pumpkin carving party – my daughter is hosting this one and it’s always a fun time. My mom will be the oldest at 91 and my nephew’s son just turned 1.
What a great tradition, catslady! It must be fun to get all the different generations involved and see what they come up with.
the food
Gotta love those food traditions. Do you have a favorite?
The best part about the holidays for me is the excitement and anticipation I see in my grandsons. It is such a delight to watch them
MIchelle, it’s so fun to see kids enjoying a holiday!
I think my favorite part of any particular holiday is the food (and the drinks–can’t deny that I love spiced–and spiked–eggnog)…love also seeing family and friends that I do not get to see during the year.
Sandy, I am totally with you on the eggnog. As soon as it shows up in stores in October, I start buying it. Just a little (non-alcoholic) splash in morning coffee is wonderful.
I love the holidays because everything is pumpkin spice ..mmmmmmm
Dawn, I like that too. 🙂 Do you like to bake with pumpkin? I made a pumpkin bread last week; first of the season.
Theresa – so love your books. Have been reading you since the beginning! Family time is my favorite holiday thing. As my kids no longer live with us, it makes for a great reason to be together, when schedules don’t always coincide with each other. I also love the festivity surrounding holidays. People seem to treat each other better for awhile.
Sue, thank you so much for finding my books! And you are so right, it seems like everyone is a little more ready to connect/be kind during the holidays.
Hi Theresa. I’m looking forward to reading Jane and Edmund’s story.
I love seeing all the houses lit up for Christmas. Seeing those twinkling lights through falling snow always makes me feel good.
Hi, Marcy! What a beautiful image you describe. My daughter loves holiday lights, and she gets so excited about “sparkly houses” that it becomes more fun for me to notice lights too.
My favorite part of the Christmas holidays has always been driving around and looking at all the lights and decorations. It’s so fun and there are no expectations or anything to do but enjoy. 😀
Barbara, I love that phrase: “no expectations or anything else to do but enjoy.” Sounds like a marvelous way to spend an evening.
I think it’s the special holiday food! Always yummy….
There are so many goodies during the holidays! Do you have a favorite?
I love Christmas cards from friends and family. Today, almost everything is digital so those cards are like little presents throughout the season.
I love traditional cards too, Angela!
I love holidays! Any chance to be lazy & indulge myself reading is a thumbs up for me. My country also holds the dubious distinction of having the most holidays in a year.
Linda, I think that’s a pretty awesome statistic!
I love getting time off of work and spending it with loved ones!