Preparing for Battle

From Snowed by the Wallflower, in which our reluctant hero prepares to face his fate— “I should never have let you spend so much time with my grandfather’s valet!” John Conlyn, Earl of Ridgemont scowled at the giant of a man who had once been his batman, with no more duties than to keep his […]

Darkness and Light

Here on the east coast of the US, the day begins to darken by 4 PM. Add to that general dreariness and grey clouds and it is fair dim this month. Luckily it is the season of light. There is a reason our ancestors of most traditions put their light festivals in late December! As […]

Charity Balls in the Regency Era

Highlighting the facts behind the fiction with Pamela Gibson and The Grand Mistletoe Assembly. Women of the ton felt an obligation to support charities and most belonged to organizations  for that purpose. Originally, charitable giving was sponsored by churches. By the Regency period there were many private foundations established to meet a variety of needs. […]

A Failed Attempt at Discretion

Gemma, misunderstanding something Jeff said and desperate to see him in the face of her family’s interference, set out on foot for Regent’s Park at dawn. Luckily servants alerted Jeff and they came upon her just as a sneak thief took her reticule and knocked her in the gutter, and before he could do further […]

Across the Cotswolds with Lady Kitty Stocke

Goodness, but this ramble was a rush! When Lady Kitty’s brother-in-law’s game keeper fled their home with villains on his heels, the impulsive young woman pursued him into the hills. Longford Court, a stately old home in West Gloustershire, had every comfort a young lady of good family might want. What might provoke a young […]

A Woman’s Foolish Tears

If you read The Upright Son, you may recall Jeffrey Graham, the heroine’s brother. His story picks up a few months after The Upright Son ends, it is called, An Unlikely Duke. ***** The glittering throng parading about the Duchess of Winshire’s annual ball sported the finest silks money could buy. Jeffrey Graham should know. […]

MidWinter Madness

A few of you may have missed me lately. For a while I was focused on writing Duke in Name Only, and then… I’ve been very focused on Beloved who has been ill and spent 16 days in the hospital. I’m pleased to announce that he is home, feels better than he has since summer, […]

Crossing the Atlantic

…you could cross the Atlantic in a month in the Age of Sail? I read that Columbus took two months, and then again six weeks. Of course, he crossed the Atlantic more than once. The average trip was probably six weeks in the eighteenth century. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, sailings of three […]

Land and More Land

…that it took approximately 10,000 acres to yield an income of 10,000 pounds to a landowning aristocrat in the Regency Era? As you can imagine, it took a pile of money to pay all those servants, maintain a townhouse in addition to the country manor, and keep a stable of good horses and carriages. No […]