Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Jan21

Lady Pendleton, Damian Ashby’s eccentric aunt (see the epilogue to Treasuring Theresa on Susana’s web site), is visiting Susana from the early 19th century. She’s intrigued by life in 21st century Toledo, Ohio, and, of course, Susana is thrilled to have the opportunity to pick her brain about life in Regency England. It certainly gives her a great deal to write about in Susana’s Parlour!

Susana (To the Reader): Today we are shopping for the fabric for the Regency ball gown I mentioned in the first post about Lady P’s visit. We postponed the trip for a couple of weeks because we thought there was going to be a big sale at JoAnn’s at the end of the month. Actually, we discovered the sale was already over! But Lady P was far too wired for shopping to tolerate another delay, so we forged ahead to the fabrics. As you might imagine, Lady P was overwhelmed by the selection!

Lady P: Here I thought Ellington’s Emporium well-stocked with the latest textiles! They have nothing on this-this Joanne’s…is that the name of the linen-draper? Or perhaps his wife’s?

Susana: Joanne’s, yes. It’s a national chain—that is, there are many stores of the same name around the country for those who enjoy sewing and handcrafts.

Lady P: So there isn’t any person named Joanne, then?

Susana: I don’t really know. No one here, at any rate.

Lady P: Young people! Too self-absorbed to ask obvious questions! Goodness! Are those tiny diamonds woven somehow into the cloth?

Susana: Oh no, just something sparkly. Sparkly is the fashion these days.

Lady P: Yes, I see. Everything here is glittering like treasure. Goodness, I’d love a gown made up of this aubergine material. Little sparkling flowers all over it! What about you? I daresay this would become you as well.

Susana: Uh, no. Purple is definitely not my color. And besides, I’m looking for a fabric similar to what was used in 1813 England. Sparkly fabric would be a dead giveaway.

Lady P: What a pity. These are so beautiful. I have half a mind to have a whole new wardrobe made up to take back with me to my own time. Why, I would be a sensation! The talk of the town! And dear Theresa could use some new additions to her wardrobe after her latest lying-in. She’s expecting her third, you know. Amelia came first, and then little Charles Robert, the heir. Named after her father, you know.

Susana: How lovely! I’d love to meet Theresa someday. But…no, you can’t take back anything from this time period when you return to the 19^th century.

Lady P: Poppycock! Of course I can!

Susana: Anyone who watches science fiction knows that you can’t meddle with history. It has to follow its natural course. Otherwise, the future might evolve differently and people like me might not even exist.

Lady P: Well, of course that would be a shame, but then, if you didn’t exist, you wouldn’t even know it, would you?

Susana: Hmm… no, I suppose not.

Lady P: Perhaps the new future would be a better one than it would have been. Have you considered that?

Susana: Well, uh, not really.

Lady P: Even so, Susana, I hardly think that taking back a trunk of new gowns with—what do you call them–—sparkly fabric?—would upset the future world all that much.

Susana: Well, perhaps not, but how would you explain having such unusual gowns in the 19^th century? If you tell the truth, who will believe you? At best, they will confine you to Bedlam. At worst, they might burn you at the stake as a witch.

Lady P: Nonsense! Witches are no longer burned at the stake in England, Susana.

Susana: Nonetheless…

Lady P: I shall have to think on it. Now… if you must have the sort of fabric from my time, let’s look at the silks and muslins and see what we can come up with. I still think you would look well in orange or yellow…

Susana (to the Reader): They told me finding the appropriate fabric for a reproduction gown would be difficult, and they were right! Sparklies aside, they just don’t make fabrics the way they used to. After several false starts, we finally settled on the cream taffeta pintuck for the gown and the blue satin for the coat. And we’re making a chemise as well. The gown is supposed to be lined, as is the coat, and I’m wondering how comfortable it will be to wear five layers of fabric in a crowded exhibit hall at the convention. Can we get away with not lining the gown and hoping that the chemise keeps it from being too revealing? Decisions, decisions!

In the meantime, I’ve been showing Lady P some episodes of Star Trek that feature the Prime Directive. As much as I enjoy having her here, I am not keen on disrupting the past and thus inadvertently starting World War III. But it’s an uphill battle. She seems to grasp certain concepts quite quickly, but those she finds inconvenient she persists in misunderstanding. Like a few other people I know.

As always, please comment if you have any specific questions you’d like Susana to pose to Lady P while she is here.

The Lady P Series

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Episode #6: Lady P Dishes the Dirt on the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #7: The Political Exploits of Lady P and the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #8: Lady P and the Prince Regent’s Illicit Marriage

Episode #9: In Which Lady P Depletes the Cooking Sherry During Her Discussion of Caroline of Brunswick

Episode #10: Lord Byron: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

Episode #11: In Which Lady P Talks About Hannah More and the Rights of Women

Episode #12: Lady P’s Revelations Regarding George III and His Peculiar Progeny

Episode #13: Lady P Discusses the Luddite Uprising, the Assassination of Spencer Perceval, and the General Unfairness of Life

Episode #14: In Which Leticia, Lady Beauchamp, Pops In For an Interview On Her Personal Acquaintance With Princess Charlotte of Wales

Episode #15: Lady P On Assignment in 1814 Kent

Lady P Quizzes Jane Livingston, the Hero’s Sister From “A Twelfth Night Tale”

Susana Welcomes the Happy Endings Giveaway Hop!

Jan19

Hello and welcome to the Happy Endings Giveaway Hop.

Susana’s Parlour is offering two giveaways for participants of this hop:

One lucky commenter will win a free e-copy of my new release, Treasuring Theresa, a sweet Regency short story. (Be sure to answer the comment question at the end and include your email address in the comment.)
Click on the Treasuring Theresa cover at right and enter the Rafflecopter contest for a $20 Amazon Gift Card.

When you’re ready to move on, click either the Happy Endings image in this post or the link at the bottom of the post to go back to the main giveaway page.

Moving on to today’s main course:

A Happy Ending Is Not a Disney Movie

As a child, I loved fairy tales like Cinderella where the fairy godmother makes things right for the poor, abused heroine. One likes to think there is a fairy godmother out there somewhere to make things right for us when things go wrong. And it’s not just children who indulge in such dreams—people who faithfully buy lottery tickets every week do so with the hope that someday their persistence will be rewarded. Is luck a reward, though?

As an adult, however, I realize that something crucial is missing in the Cinderella story…Cinderella’s character. What did she do to solve her own problems? Not a thing. Remove the fairy godmother from the story, and what would you have? A poor, downtrodden waif. Where’s the story there?

As much as we adore rooting for the underdog, it’s because the underdog, with nothing to lose, is giving everything he’s got to bring down the favorite team. Would the movie Hoosiers be as emotionally satisfying if the big city players were all weak from the flu and the hick town team won because of a fluke? Hey, they still got the trophy and the prestige, didn’t they? But without both teams playing at their top level, there will always be doubts about the result.

And so it is with romance. The grownup in me wants to see my protagonists earn their happy ending. Luck is not enough. What did each of them do to deserve it? No fairy godmother or buried treasure. Because if I am convinced their love is strong enough for them to fight for it, I can feel certain that the pair will face the future with the same determination and will end up victorious no matter what hardships come their way.

What do you think about Cinderella-type happy endings?

**********

In Treasuring Theresa, both Theresa and Damian must get beyond their narrow-minded prejudices in order to see each other’s true characters. It’s not enough that Damian is attracted to Theresa’s astonishing blue eyes and feels guilty about inheriting her father’s estate. Or that Theresa finds Damian charming and handsome and knows he can rescue her from penury. A marriage of convenience is not a happy ending. To come to a true meeting of the minds, this pair is going to have to face some hard truths about themselves.

Treasuring Theresa is a sweet Regency short story available at Ellora’s Cave, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo Books, Bookstrand, and AllRomance E-books.

Note: Free bonus reads include character sketches of both Damian and Theresa, a prequel, and an epilogue (be sure to read the story first, though). Enjoy!

http://www.susanaellis.com/pub.html

Click here to continue on your journey through the Happy Endings Giveaway Blog Hop.

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Jan17

Susana (to the Reader): One of my traditional New Year’s goals is to work on clearing up the clutter in my basement office. I use a FlyLady timer that my friend Ellen sent me and tackle the mess fifteen minutes at a time. Well, I was going through some of the travel paraphernalia I brought back from England last May, and I found a $100 bill I had taken along just in case my debit card got eaten up by some greedy ATM. Since I usually carry around $60 or less at one time, I was just about to take out a bank deposit envelope when Lady P caught sight of the picture of Benjamin Franklin on the bill and mentioned that her father had been a great friend of his and that she had met him several times during her come-out. And she did have some fascinating things to say about this famous American statesman and his progency that you may not have heard before.

Lady P: My father dabbled a bit in science, you know. Younger sons do need to find something to occupy their time, even if they marry heiresses, as Papa did. In any event, Papa was a great patron of the sciences, and he and Mr. Franklin took to each other immediately. Papa visited his lodgings on Craven Street quite often to conduct experiments and whatnot.

Susana: How fascinating that you were able to meet Benjamin Franklin! What was he like?

Lady P: Quite a charming man. Not a dasher, you understand, though exceedingly well-groomed. But his witty conversation and elegant manners…goodness, if his son William had inherited even a small portion of his father’s charm…I daresay he could have married into the ton, despite his unfortunate birth.

Susana: Unfortunate birth?

Lady P: Indeed. He was a natural son, you know. Acknowledged, of course, and a British Loyalist all his life. Much better looking than his father, even in his sixth decade, as he was when I met him in the 1790’s, but certainly lacking his father’s éclat. you understand. Landed on his feet, though. Married a sugar heiress, I believe.

Susana: An illegitimate son who was a British Loyalist. Fascinating.

Lady P: Not so unusual. Like many colonists, the elder Mr. Franklin had divided loyalties. Why, Papa told me that many a time Mr. Franklin bemoaned the fact that neither side was willing to compromise on their positions. In the end, he took the side of the colonists and never returned to England, but his son William did. Fathered an illegitimate son of his own, too. Who in turn fathered two illegitimate children by two different women.

Susana: Oh dear. So many illegitimate children! Must have been quite scandalous at the time!

Lady P: Not really. Natural children are quite common. Our Englishwomen are known for their attraction for the male sex, you understand. It’s all in the complexion.

Susana: Er, yes. Of course.

Lady P: Dear Pendleton, of course, was much too prudent to indulge in such behavior, but his uncle–goodness, I could tell you endless stories about his escapades. Poor Aunt Lavinia was forever being humiliated…

Unfortunately, Susana never did finish de-cluttering her office. But she has pages and pages of notes about late 18^th/early 19^th century scandals that she plans to turn into a book one day. Lady P predicts an instant best-seller.

See you on Monday! As always, please comment if you have any specific questions you’d like Susana to pose to Lady P while she is here.

The Lady P Series

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Episode #6: Lady P Dishes the Dirt on the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #7: The Political Exploits of Lady P and the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #8: Lady P and the Prince Regent’s Illicit Marriage

Episode #9: In Which Lady P Depletes the Cooking Sherry During Her Discussion of Caroline of Brunswick

Episode #10: Lord Byron: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

Episode #11: In Which Lady P Talks About Hannah More and the Rights of Women

Episode #12: Lady P’s Revelations Regarding George III and His Peculiar Progeny

Episode #13: Lady P Discusses the Luddite Uprising, the Assassination of Spencer Perceval, and the General Unfairness of Life

Episode #14: In Which Leticia, Lady Beauchamp, Pops In For an Interview On Her Personal Acquaintance With Princess Charlotte of Wales

Episode #15: Lady P On Assignment in 1814 Kent

Lady P Quizzes Jane Livingston, the Hero’s Sister From “A Twelfth Night Tale”

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Jan14

Susana (to the Reader): Lady P took to driving like a duck to water, except that she has no sense of distance and thought she had to press the accelerator down to the floor. There was a point when I saw a pole looming closer and closer and was convinced we were both goners when she jerked the steering wheel and swerved away, narrowly missing it, but running straight through a deep pothole that would have jerked us out of our seats had we not been wearing seat belts. To make a long story short, the car is in the shop for the next several days—I told them to take their time fixing it—and so Lady P and I are walking and begging rides with friends for awhile.

My next-door neighbors, Stephanie and Derrick, invited us to go with them to the Hollywood Casino that opened last year in Rossford, and Lady P wanted to know more about it.

Lady P: A casino? Where people play games of chance and lose their fortunes?

Susana: Well, I don’t know about that last part. I think a few people must win. But there are other things to do there besides gamble.

Lady P: Oh, I know about that. Pendleton told me about the painted ladies upstairs.

Susana: Oh no! I didn’t mean that. I mean, there are no painted ladies there. There are several restaurants—my friend Ray works as a cook there and he says the food is excellent.

Lady P: So people go there only for a good meal?

Susana: I think they have entertainment and dancing on weekends. But…I don’t suppose that would appeal to you.

Lady P: Why not? I was told once by my friend Charles James Fox that I am one of the best dancers in the ton.

Susana: Er, it’s not that kind of dancing. It’s modern dancing. But perhaps you’d be more interested in the slots.

Lady P: The slots? Is that a dance?

Susana: No, the slots are machines into which you insert money, push down a lever to make the pictures spin, and if you get just the right combination, you win more money.

Lady P: And if you don’t?

Susana: You lose. Most of the time you lose, actually. But it’s fun to watch the little pictures spinning around and the excitement of waiting for the machine to stop to find out if you won anything. And the clanging and ringing noises the machines make too. I like the slots.

Lady P: How much money have you won from the machines?

Susana: Well, once I won about 150 quarters, but I spent them all trying to win more, and ended up losing about $60 overall.

Lady P: Indeed. You sound very much like dear Georgiana Cavendish, the Duchess of Devonshire. Such a lovely woman, before she took ill. Very popular, quite a leader of society. Charles Fox was her cousin, in fact. I was sincerely fond of them both, but they had quite an appetite for games of chance. Especially Georgiana. I knew her since her marriage, and every time I saw her—at parties or balls or even political dinners—she’d find her way to start some sort of game of chance. Why, at Lady Fontaine’s Venetian breakfast, she took a deck of cards out of her reticule and won 400 guineas from her hostess’s mother. Of course, the next night she lost 1,700 and had to beg her husband for the money to pay it. But instead of paying the debt, she had the notion to try to increase it, and before she knew it, she had lost all of it, plus more.

Susana: I imagine her husband was livid.

Lady P: You don’t think she ever told him, do you? Indeed not. She simply couldn’t bring herself to do it, unless the dunns were at her door. In any case, Pendleton told me Devonshire was similarly afflicted. Quite a pair, those two. Why, I heard she had lost nearly a million pounds in her lifetime; there’s no telling how much more he lost.

Susana: A million pounds? Why…that would be—let’s see, where’s my calculator—oh my goodness—over a billion dollars today!

Lady P: Indeed. Georgiana told me once that her pin money was 4,000 pounds a year, which would be enough to provide her all the gowns and fripperies she could possibly desire. Her sister Harriet had only 400 pounds, but she managed to drive her family into bankruptcy. Georgiana had to bail her out of the Fleet Prison when she was arrested for debts.

Susana: The gambling fever tends to run in families. You say her cousin was a gambler too?

Lady P: Such a shame. He was an amiable gentleman. Even after he got so fat and they circulated all those cartoons ridiculing him. But he had no self-restraint at all, poor man. Pendleton told me the night before he died, Fox had been drinking most intemperately, and the doctors said his liver was hard as a rock.

Susana: Oh dear. I’m suddenly not feeling like a trip to the casino. What would you think, my lady, if we were to order a pizza again tonight?

Lady P: Italian food again? In my day, it was French food that everyone doted on.

Susana: There is no French restaurant in Toledo, and we have no vehicle to travel up to Detroit, so it’s either pizza or the McDonalds across the street.

Lady P: I suppose the pizza will do, since you only have the one vehicle. But no anchovies this time, if you please. Wine too, if they have it. I didn’t care for that strange bubbly drink they brought last time.

Susana: They don’t sell alcoholic beverages, but I have some red wine somewhere.

Lady P: Excellent. And then perhaps I can tell you about the discussion I had with Pendleton when he returned from White’s in the early hours of the morning with pockets to let after losing a hundred pounds. Well, we were newly married at the time, and after the talking-to I gave him, he never did it again. Have I mentioned that I can be quite convincing at times…?

Susana (to the Reader): As you can see, Lady P thrives on recounting all of her experiences in Regency England. If you have any questions you would like to ask her, or possible suggestions for outings—when the car is repaired, of course—please mention it in your comments, and I’ll do my best to get answers for you.

The Lady P Series

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Episode #6: Lady P Dishes the Dirt on the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #7: The Political Exploits of Lady P and the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #8: Lady P and the Prince Regent’s Illicit Marriage

Episode #9: In Which Lady P Depletes the Cooking Sherry During Her Discussion of Caroline of Brunswick

Episode #10: Lord Byron: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

Episode #11: In Which Lady P Talks About Hannah More and the Rights of Women

Episode #12: Lady P’s Revelations Regarding George III and His Peculiar Progeny

Episode #13: Lady P Discusses the Luddite Uprising, the Assassination of Spencer Perceval, and the General Unfairness of Life

Episode #14: In Which Leticia, Lady Beauchamp, Pops In For an Interview On Her Personal Acquaintance With Princess Charlotte of Wales

Episode #15: Lady P On Assignment in 1814 Kent

Lady P Quizzes Jane Livingston, the Hero’s Sister From “A Twelfth Night Tale”

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Jan10

Lady Pendleton, who is visiting Susana from the 19th century, is the aunt of Damian Ashby, the Earl of Granville, the hero of Treasuring Theresa. In last week’s installment, Lady P agreed to assist Susana in her project of creating a Regency ball gown, and they have included a trip to the linen-draper’s—that is, Joanne’s—in the near future. In the meantime, Lady P, when not experimenting with modern-day gadgets, entertains us with tales of life in Regency England…and a myriad of other things we’d never have thought to ask. Enjoy!

Lady P:

Goodness, I hardly know where to start. I’ve never done this before, of course. I suppose I should mention that Susana could not be with us this morning because she has an appointment with…oh dear, I can’t seem to recall his name—some Italian fellow, a bone doctor, I believe—for a consultation. I told her physicians are nearly always quacks and offered her some of the special elixir my apothecary mixes up for me, but she insisted she’d rather get the quack’s opinion first. Ah well, so be it. I did offer, after all.

Although… I think I’ll have a dose or two of Mr. Mullens’s miraculous potion before I continue my commentary. Always seems to clear my head.

Ah, yes. Much better. Well, Susana thought I might talk about that most excellent novel, Pride and Prejudice, by Miss Austen. As a matter of fact, I started to watch the—uh—play—on that curious picture machine, but I discovered I could not manage to operate it in her absence, so I found a copy of the book instead. Such a delightful story, as I recall.

My good friend Sally Jersey recommended the novel to me as superior over Mrs. Radcliffe’s, so I purchased the three volumes at Hatchard’s. I recall that I was visiting Granville Manor at the time I started reading it—my nephew Damian and his wife had invited me for the Christmas holidays and I was laid up for a time after a fall. Little Amelia’s nursemaid had neglected to put away the child’s toys, you know, and I did give her quite a scolding about it, but Theresa had it in mind to pardon her—she’s far too tenderhearted, especially when she is enceinte, but there it is.

In any event, I took the opportunity to begin reading the first volume, and I found it so engrossing that I did not wish to stop. That Mrs. Bennet—the girls’ mother, you know—was such a character. I suppose most people know someone like that, silly and frivolous and without the least knowledge of how to get on in society. My husband’s mother was such a one. Always railing at someone—usually her husband—although he quite deserved it, the way he treated her. What chance did she have to become anything other than what she was? Pendleton and I avoided her as much as possible, but there were always holidays, and then when she took ill and came to live with us…well, the servants took the brunt of it, I’m afraid. I made sure to give them extra vails at Christmastime.

Of course, I was a much more sensible woman, more like Miss Elizabeth herself, I daresay. Which is undoubtedly why Pendleton and I rubbed along so well together. He enjoyed his clubs and sporting events and left the rest to me. Why, many a time he said to me, “My dear Agatha, I could not have found a better wife had I been looking for one,” and quite true it was, too. His mother was pushing the Notting heiress at him, and had I not stepped in to rescue him, it’s quite probable my daughters would have had a fool for a mother.

Ah well, where was I? Oh yes, Miss Austen’s novel. So true to life. My older sister Edith—Damian’s mother, you know—was much like Elizabeth’s sister Jane, although her husband was a great deal more sensible than Bingley…much more like Mr. Darcy. And Lady Catherine de Bourgh reminded me so much of my Great-Aunt Harriet. Her husband was only a baronet, but you would think she was a duchess for all that she lorded it over the rest of us…boasting about those children of hers—such a shame that she passed away and can’t see what a scapegrace that Richard of hers has turned out to be.

Oh dear, was that the clock chiming? How the time has flown! I’m afraid I must be going now. Susana will be home at any moment and she has agreed to teach me how to drive a motor vehicle! Of course, she wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about it, but I simply would not take no for an answer. These 21^st century vehicles are far superior to the horse-drawn carriages from my era. The speed alone…and well, no indelicate odors from the horses to deal with! I insist on learning to operate one. Why, I could drive a curricle with nearly as much skill as my nephew, and he was a member of the Four-in-Hand Club. This is just a machine, after all, not a live horse with a mind of its own. I’m sure I shall be a true proficient after a bit of practice.

Susana’s turn:

After the experience with the Russian exchange student, I promised myself I’d never teach another person to drive again, but Lady P has a mind of her own. I’ll take her over to the shopping center parking lot—early, when no one else is there—and keep my foot as near the brake as I can. There’s no way she’s going anywhere near the road. I’m not that crazy. Besides, she’ll never get a driver’s permit without a birth certificate, and even if they issued them in 1755, there would be a lot of raised eyebrows at the DMV when she produced it.

We’ll be back next week. We’ve decided to hold off on the shopping expedition because Joanne’s has announced a big sale toward the end of the month, so that Lady P can have a new gown as well. I’m afraid her grasp of economizing is bit sketchy…she doesn’t quite grasp that the MasterCard eventually has to be paid and is not just a magical piece of plastic.

As always, please comment if you have anything you’d like Susana to ask Lady P while she’s here.

The Lady P Series

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Episode #6: Lady P Dishes the Dirt on the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #7: The Political Exploits of Lady P and the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #8: Lady P and the Prince Regent’s Illicit Marriage

Episode #9: In Which Lady P Depletes the Cooking Sherry During Her Discussion of Caroline of Brunswick

Episode #10: Lord Byron: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

Episode #11: In Which Lady P Talks About Hannah More and the Rights of Women

Episode #12: Lady P’s Revelations Regarding George III and His Peculiar Progeny

Episode #13: Lady P Discusses the Luddite Uprising, the Assassination of Spencer Perceval, and the General Unfairness of Life

Episode #14: In Which Leticia, Lady Beauchamp, Pops In For an Interview On Her Personal Acquaintance With Princess Charlotte of Wales

Episode #15: Lady P On Assignment in 1814 Kent

Lady P Quizzes Jane Livingston, the Hero’s Sister From “A Twelfth Night Tale”

Guest Interview: Author Cecilia Gray

Jan7

Today I’m pleased to introduce Cecilia Gray, author of The Gentlemen Next Door, a series of delightful Regency novellas, and also a series of YA romances, The Jane Austen Academy.

Welcome, Cecilia!

Thank you so much for having me! I read through your blog and saw your Deal Breakers and confess to possibly having broken one or two. Even though I am in complete agreement with them!

Tell us something about your newest release that is NOT in the blurb.

The heroine of A FLIRTATIOUS RENDEZVOUS is my most traditional regency-style heroine. My other heroines are ahead of their time (although not quite anachronistic!) in their pursuit of engineering or business, Hanna has few pursuits beyond that of the boy next door.

When I started writing Hanna, I thought I was crazy because how could a reader like a character with little individual identity? But I found myself charmed with the idea that her entire sense of herself is based on how much she loves her family and especially how much she loves Hayden Banks. I really did end up feeling protective of her and wanting her to find happiness.

(I know that makes me sound crazy, to talk about her like she’s real and like I had no control over her fate.)

Are you working on something at present you would like to tell us about?

Yes! While The Gentlemen Next Door series is complete, I’ve become fascinated with one of the side characters. I’ve since imagined her entire life and I think she deserves her own book—with a hero that doesn’t live next door and may not be so gentlemanly.

What are you reading now?

I’m reading Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor, the second book in a superb fantasy series about an epic battle between angels and demons that spills out of their world into ours.

What is your work schedule like when writing?

Unfortunately I don’t spend a lot of time writing because of other obligatons during the week—like my job! I spend a lot of time thinking about writing but usually won’t write actual words until midight and even then only for an hour. Once a month I’ll get away for a weekend and write my ass off. If it weren’t for those weekends, then I’d probably only release a book every decade.

The Gentlemen Next Door series are historical regency romance novellas. The entire series, including the latest release, A FLIRTATIOUS RENDEZVOUS, is available now.

Book #1 A DELIGHTFUL ARRANGEMENT is currently free at Apple, Kobo and Google and just 99 Cents at other retailers:

Phillip has a duty to marry Francesca. He has always protected his former neighbor and childhood companion, and now that she is of marriageable age, he will give her what she needs most – a real home where she is welcome and wanted.

Unfortunately for him….she is done with being dutiful.

After years of being an obedient daughter to a hateful father, Francesca jumps into her first Season. Francesca is ready to dance every dance, flirt with every bachelor and snatch what she wants most – a man she loves who will make her swoon.

Unfortunately for her…he now sees making her swoon as his duty, too.

And Phillip takes his duties very seriously.

http://www.ceciliagray.com

Win a $20 Amazon Gift Card!

Jan3

To Celebrate the Release of Treasuring Theresa

January 3, 2013 at Ellora’s Cave

Susana is hosting a series of contests for the month of January!

All you have to do is answer a question about the Regency period (and/or Tweet about this contest) and your name will be entered for the next drawing!

Free Bonus Reads Available!

in-depth character sketches of Lady Theresa and Damian, Lord Clinton
an extra scene and an epilogue, both not included in the published story

Feel free to tell all your friends!

Winners will be chosen on January 9, 16, 23, and 31.

http://www.susanaellis.com

New Year’s and Twelfth Day Traditions

Jan1

It’s only been since 1752 when England adopted the Gregorian calendar that January 1st was considered the first day the year. Until then, Lady Day (March 25) had that honor. In Regency times, New Year’s was considered rather a minor holiday between two major holidays—Christmas and Twelfth Night.

New Year’s was associated with superstition. The family would sit around in a circle before midnight, and when the clock struck, the head of the family would go to the door and open it and usher in the New Year. People would clear their homes of old scraps and perishable food so as not to carry it over into the new year and court bad luck.

The singing of Aulde Lang Syne, which is loosely translated as “days gone by,” began as a Scottish celebration which traveled to England when Robert Burns published the lyrics in 1796.

Twelfth Day was the twelfth day of Christmas, or Epiphany, when the three wise men and shepherds came to honor the Christ child. In many parts of the world, January 6 is the day presents are exchanged, since that was the day the young Christ child received his gifts. Twelfth Night is considered by some to be the night before Twelfth Day, thus January 5.

On Twelfth Night, a special “king” cake is baked containing a bean and a pea. The person who finds the bean in his/her piece is the king of the evening’s festivities and whoever finds the pea is the queen. Check out this king cake recipe by Emeril Lagasse. The king cake started out as an English/French tradition, but has spread to Spain and other countries. In New Orleans, Twelfth Night or Epiphany is considered to be the beginning of Carnival, which culminates at Mardi Gras, where the king cake remains an important tradition today. During the Carnival season, people hold weekly king cake parties, and whoever finds the small baby token (representing the Christ child) has to hold next week’s party.

Off With the Old, On With the New

The old year, with its struggles and heartaches, is gone, and the new year, with all of its hopes and possibilities, is in front of us. No doubt that is why many of us tend to use this time to reflect on the past year and plan some “course corrections” for the future. When you look back on 2013 a year from now, what would you like to have accomplished?

Because once the year is over, you won’t be getting it back to do over. Keep that goal in front of you at all times and whatever happens, enjoy the journey as well as the destination.

A toast to a prosperous 2013 to each and every one of you!

Carrie Ann’s New Year’s Blog Hop & Contest

One lucky commenter—chosen at random—will win a $20 Amazon gift card at the end of the blog hop. Be sure to include your email address in the comment so that I can contact you (and to be eligible for Carrie Ann’s Grand Prizes, which include a Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet, a $300 Amazon or B & N gift card, and a swag pack of books and all kinds of goodies (the swag pack is US only; the others are international).

January 7, 2013: Congrats to latishajean, who is the winner of the $20 Amazon gift from Susana’s Parlour. Happy reading!

Susana’s Treasuring Theresa Weekly Giveaways Begin January 3

Win a $20 Amazon Gift Card!

To celebrate the release of Treasuring Theresa, Susana is hosting a series of contests on her web site (http://www.susanaellis.com) for the month of January. All you have to do is answer a question about the Regency period and your name will be entered for the next drawing. Winners will be chosen on January 9, 16, 23, and 31.

To continue on your journey through Carrie Ann’s New Year’s Blog Hop, click below.

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Dec29

Susana (to the Reader): I first met Lady Pendleton when I was writing Treasuring Theresa: The Epilogue, where Theresa—now Lady Granville—accompanies her husband to London to take up their social duties. Theresa did not have a successful Season seven years before when she first came out, and she was definitely not looking forward to this one. Her own Great-Aunt Tabitha was elderly and not in health, so Damian’s Aunt Agatha—his mother’s younger sister—came to the rescue. She accompanied Theresa on her rounds to the modiste’s and the linen-draper’s and the other shops in order to acquire a wardrobe suitable for a countess. While Lady Pendleton’s sense of fashion may be a bit on the outrageous side, she did give Theresa much to think about when she suggested that it was her own immaturity that was to blame for her unsuccessful Season.

Lady Pendleton: Well, really, Miss Ellis. Do you consider that a proper introduction? You say my fashion sense is outrageous, when what you are wearing—well, in my day a young lady would never have been seen wearing trousers, let alone skin-tight hose like Henry VIII used to wear—or so I’m told. I’m not quite that old, you know.

Susana: I do apologize, my lady. Please call me Susana. I was simply referring to your… uh… unusual color choices and spectacular headwear. You were rather… ahead of your time, I believe.

Lady P: How would you know? You were not born yet. I lived it!

Susana: Well, I’ve read quite a lot of Regency romance novels, you see, and—

Lady P: Romance novels, indeed! I used to find them in my daughter’s room and took them for myself. (Completely unsuitable for a young girl, doncha know?) Have you read A Sicilian Romance? The Mysteries of Udolpho? No? Mrs. Radcliffe had much more of a sense of the dramatic than your… what was her name… Nora Roberts? Where are the castles? The dark, mysterious barons? The exotic locales? Not to mention innocent young girls. In my day—

Susana: But surely Georgette Heyer’s Regencies—

Lady P: Pshaw. Her stories never had any drama. Although I did rather like that Frederica character a great deal. Had spunk, that girl. Reminds me of my niece-by-marriage, Theresa. And myself, of course, when I was younger. We make our own style, you know, while the others merely follow it.

Susana: I see. Well, if that’s the case, perhaps you could help me in a little sewing project I’m planning. A Regency gown with a matching pelisse. I’ve purchased the pattern already.

Lady P: The pattern? Oh, I see. Rather a plain style, but I suppose with the right material—and some ruffles and bows—we can remedy that quite easily. Do you sew, my dear?

Susana: Well, I have a sewing machine, but I’m a better cook than seamstress.

Lady P: A machine? For sewing? Preposterous! In my day, all young ladies could sew a fine seam, although I own that I never made my own gown. Mostly handkerchiefs and doll’s clothing until I got older and worked my own chair covers. But…you say you can cook? I don’t suppose you have some tea and biscuits handy, have you? I’m sharp-set and parched after traveling two centuries through time! Quite exhausting, really.

Susana: Well, I have some chai tea and a package of Oreos…

Lady P: I suppose that will have to do. Although I have to say I have never heard of chai tea, and…what else did you mention?

Susana: Oreos. A sort of cookie…I mean biscuit. Chocolate with vanilla in the center.

Lady P: Chocolate? In a biscuit? Singular. Well, get on with it, girl, and afterward, we shall head for the linen-draper’s to look over his selection of material for your gown. I think bright orange might do well for you…

To be continued

Next installment: Lady Pendleton and Susana search for appropriate fabrics at Joanne’s in Toledo, Ohio. While you’re waiting, take a look at Susana’s “Regency Fabrics” board on Pinterest.

The Lady P Series

Episode #1: Susana’s Adventures With Lady P: The Introduction

Episode #2: Lady P Talks About… Pride and Prejudice?

Episode #3: Lady P and the Duchess Who Lost a Billion Dollars

Episode #4: Lady P and the Face On the $100 Bill

Episode #5: In Which Lady P Discovers Sparkly Fabrics and Ponders Violating the Prime Directive

Episode #6: Lady P Dishes the Dirt on the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #7: The Political Exploits of Lady P and the Duchess of Devonshire

Episode #8: Lady P and the Prince Regent’s Illicit Marriage

Episode #9: In Which Lady P Depletes the Cooking Sherry During Her Discussion of Caroline of Brunswick

Episode #10: Lord Byron: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

Episode #11: In Which Lady P Talks About Hannah More and the Rights of Women

Episode #12: Lady P’s Revelations Regarding George III and His Peculiar Progeny

Episode #13: Lady P Discusses the Luddite Uprising, the Assassination of Spencer Perceval, and the General Unfairness of Life

Episode #14: In Which Leticia, Lady Beauchamp, Pops In For an Interview On Her Personal Acquaintance With Princess Charlotte of Wales

Episode #15: Lady P On Assignment in 1814 Kent

Lady P Quizzes Jane Livingston, the Hero’s Sister From “A Twelfth Night Tale”

Breaking the Rules: Why Some Authors Get Away With It

Dec25

Rules are made to be broken.

If every historical romance author took notice of my twelve “historical romance deal breakers” and endeavored to avoid them all, would their books be better…or just boring?

I think probably both would happen.

Many of my favorite books use a well-worn plot and make it unique and different by creating lovable, memorable characters and settings that draw me into the story with them. The author doesn’t need to break a rule to keep me turning the pages. Even though I know there’s going to be a Happy-Ever-After ending—that’s why I read romance novels, after all—I am still eagerly anticipating the scene where the hero and heroine discover their feelings are returned and anticipate a long life together.

On the other hand, some of my favorite books break some of the rules—and I love them just as much! Does this make me schizophrenic? Indecisive? Hypocritical? Maybe. Maybe not.

So what’s the difference? Why will I rant over one book with a ditzy heroine, and rave over another with a similar problem? My intuition tells me it’s the skill of the author that makes the difference.

If the ditzy heroine stays ditzy and gets the hero anyway, I’m disappointed with both—the heroine because she hasn’t grown or matured during the story, and the hero because he is stupid enough to fall for a ditzy heroine who will probably be ditzy her whole life. Yeah, I know—it happens. But not in the romance stories I enjoy. I want my hero and heroine to be worthy of each other. Not perfect, but moving in that direction, at least.

Most heroines aren’t ditzy, but they still have much potential for growth. I read a story recently where the heroine started out being very superficial and unsympathetic. To be frank, I almost couldn’t believe she was the heroine and kept looking for someone more worthy to come along. It seemed to get worse before it got better. But with the right man, she gradually began to evolve into a mature, caring woman, and I found myself applauding for her. Doesn’t everyone like to see an underdog win in the end?

Character is the key.

Diana Gabaldon is a case in point. There are many things in her books that I don’t particularly care for, such as violence, long separations, rape, infidelity (although I still can’t decide if it’s infidelity if your husband hasn’t been born yet—or died 200 years ago), and lots of information about 18^th century medicine that I never really thought I wanted to know. But instead of wanting to throw the book against the wall—and if I did it would probably damage the wall—I lap it all up. Why? It’s the characters. I love Jamie and Claire. They seem like real people to me. I want to read everything about them, even the not-so-pretty aspects of life. Diana can put them through the wringer—and she does—and they still emerge victorious, together, and stronger than ever. After the first book in the series, they are middle-aged, soon-to-become grandparents. And we readers love them more than ever!

Characterization is important in any novel, but in romance novels it is particularly important. Who wants to read a romance between unlikable and/or cardboard characters? If the reader doesn’t care about them, she won’t be motivated to finish the story. The author has to make me care whether or not the prince proposes to Cinderella. If I think Cinderella is going to turn out to be nag or the prince is going to be a tyrant, well, the whole “sailing into the sunset” thing doesn’t seem quite believable.

Authors: whether you decide to follow or ignore my twelve “deal breakers,” make sure your characters are compelling and readers will buy your book in droves.

That’s my opinion…and I’m sticking to it.

What do you think about rule-breaking? Do you have some favorite authors who can get away with it? Or do you have some rules of your own not mentioned here?