Vivian
Do you like to wait until a Regency has a few reviews, positive and negative, before adding it to your collection? Here's a relatively new release (March of this year) with a 4.3 star rating on Amazon from twelve reviews. This is A Gift for Fiona by S.G. Rogers. She's best known for sweet fantasy romance, but lately she's been releasing some lovely historical romances, too. This one's set in the Victorian era. Here's an oldie that remains a perennial favorite. This is A Lot Like a Lady, by twin-sisters-from-different-mothers Kim Bowman and Kay Springsteen, originally published by Astraea Press (a/k/a Clean Reads) and now with esKape Press. Lady has a 4.2 star rating with 99 reviews, and was re-released in August of last year. Here's another recent release (April of this year), Maid for Romance by Ruth J. Hartman. It has a 4.7 star rating on fifteen reviews, and while the cover's not precisely Regency, it's gorgeous and that counts more. Be sure to watch out for the cat; there's one in every book Ruth writes. Another backlist title (from January of 2013), this is my own Regency sailing ship adventure~romance, A Different Sort of Perfect. It's been a thrill and an honor watching readers award it a 4.4 star rating on 21 reviews. Gives me happy dance feet! Thanks for stopping by. Happy reading!
Vivian
0 Comments
On sale now at SMASHWORDS! Use the coupon code REW50 when checking out, and get 50% off the purchase price for my Regency romance and sea adventure, A Different Sort of Perfect. Here's the blurb: # a clean Regency novel with lots of high seas adventure... but no pirates Lady Clara Huckabee stows away by accident. But she's not sorry to sail aboard HMS Topaze, leaving England behind. It's a chance to search for her charming French suitor from the Amiens peace, the man she's determined to marry despite the war and her dominating uncle's disapproval. All she has to do is convince the Topaze's handsome captain to see things her way, and everything will be perfect. A French frigate has evaded the Royal Navy blockade of Brest. Captain Alexander Fleming sails the smaller, elderly frigate Topaze in pursuit, but what he's supposed to do with a silly stowaway debutante for seven thousand miles wasn't covered in his orders. In the doldrums, during a South Atlantic storm, and with French t'gallants spiking the horizon, his first responsibility is always to his ship, his crew, his assignment... not his growing attachment for the woman doubling as his captain's clerk. Perfect; just perfect. Before disaster strikes, before the cannons open fire, will Lady Clara and Fleming learn that the perfection they longed for isn't the one they really want? # Normally it's $2.99, so if you've been waiting for Perfect to go on sale, well, right now the time is perfect. Cheers, Vivian THIS CONTEST HAS CLOSED FOR ENTRIES AND THE WINNERS NOTIFIED Coming soon! Welcome to the party! Can you hear the chant? It's for Rachel Van Dyken, a bestselling author on just about every list out there — the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Amazon. I've lost count of the number of books she's put on all the lists, but her two latest, The Bet and Elite, have now landed her a four-book contract with Grand Central (Hatchette) which is also Nicholas Sparks' publisher. WAY TO GO, RACHEL! RA-CHEL! RA-CHEL! As part of the celebration, we're giving away prizes, lots of prizes, here and on every blog in this hop. You like books? You want books? You're in the right place! GO RACHEL GO! GO RACHEL GO! GO RACHEL GO! GO RACHEL GO! GOGOGOGO! Just comment below for a chance to win any of Rachel's books. Winner's choice! PLUS I'll throw in a copy of either my clean Regency sea adventure, A Different Sort of Perfect, OR my inspirational Regency novella, Scandal on Half Moon Street OR my new release, Mischief on Albemarle. (Covers and links in the right-hand margin.) Want to enter twice? Just tweet about the blog hop and paste your tweet link below. Or do a Facebook post. You can enter once each day if you really really want to. We won't mind! All prizes will be gifted through Amazon or Smashwords. Click on the covers to learn more about the books. Here's a link back to the main blog hop, or, if you prefer, the list is below all the covers. And thanks sooo much for stopping by! Cheers, Vivian
THIS CONTEST HAS ENDED. THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERED AND CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS!! Hi, everybody, and welcome to the Spring Fling Giveaway Hop. Sorry, but I don't have time to draft anything intriguing nor even all that intelligent, and besides, you probably aren't reading blog posts, are you? More likely you're skimming to find the rules, so you can spend your time entering as many contests as possible. Right? So let's skip the introduction and get down to it. Entering here is easy. Just comment below for a chance to win via a Random.org drawing. ("Yes, you fool, but what precisely are we entering to win?") Good question. You're entering to win an ebook prize package of Regency romances. ("And the Weebly server shuts down as everyone clicks the Back button…") Now, there ain't no call for that. The winner receives ebook copies of EITHER my inspirational Christmas Regency, Scandal on Half Moon Street, OR my clean Regency sea adventure, A Different Sort of Perfect. Here's the info (click the covers to read the blurbs on Amazon): PLUS the winner receives his or her choice of any of the books below. Thanks to authors Kay Springsteen and Kim Bowman for contributing to this prize package, by the way. Don't worry, they're both participating in the blog hop. You've probably already visited their websites. ALL ebooks will be GIFTED through either AMAZON (for Kindle owners) or SMASHWORDS (for all other formats). Please do not enter if this is not acceptable. Thanks for stopping by. The Linky's below. Cheers, Vivian BLOG HOP ENDS TUESDAY MAY 7, 2013! Hi, everybody, and welcome back for more Sweet Saturday Samples fun. Here's an excerpt from my new swashbuckling nautical Regency, A Different Sort of Perfect. In this scene, Lady Clara has stowed away aboard His Majesty's frigate Topaze, and has just been discovered. # It was far more comfort, more contained elegance, than she’d ever expected. No better, more inviting place could exist for reading, napping, lace-making, dreaming. It was breathtaking. Perfect. Topaze shuddered and jerked again, sending the lanterns spinning. The sailor or steward who’d discovered her reached for Clara’s elbow then hesitated and drew back, throwing a disconcerted glance aside. The right-side door was now open — somehow she’d missed its motion — and an officer stood framed there, blond curls brushing the timbers. Indignation seethed from his erect bearing and lowered brows. Of course, he didn’t understand yet. But he looked every inch a gentleman, dark broadcloth coat tailored and silk stockings discreetly gleaming. Once she’d explained her distress, surely he’d do whatever he could to help. “Oh, this is wonderful! It’s better than any ball!” Clara could no longer resist. She twirled, joining in Topaze’s dance, although her walking dress would never do it justice. For this she needed a ball gown of silk and crepe, a petticoat edged with ivory Irish lace, her lightest slippers. The deck rolled beneath her, handing her through a quadrille figure, chassé, glissade, jeté. Topaze made a wonderful partner. “How could my father have given this up? It’s perfect!” In the doorway, the officer tilted his head. “Perhaps he preferred his ballrooms unmoving and out of range of enemy carronades.” She was dancing and he was staring. Embarrassment won. Clara froze, staring back. The light from one lantern fell fully onto his face, highlighting the planes of his cheeks and forehead. His strong, winged brows and chiseled nose spoke of patrician breeding, perhaps even noble blood at one or two removes, and his baritone voice rang rich with education and culture. But patently false gaiety edged his thin-lipped smile and no humor lightened his expression, despite the ingrained, slanting grooves separating his lips and flushed cheeks. His pale eyes were angry. The ship’s pitching and rolling didn’t disturb him, either. Although he was so tall his curls brushed the open rafters, his shoulders, broadened by gilt epaulettes, shifted above his white breeches without any visible effort on his part, as if he’d been moving with fractious vessels for so long that even the worst couldn’t surprise him now. Such long-taught grace would make him as delightful on a dance floor as his ship, surely? # The officer glowering at her, by the way, is the handsome captain… Here's the link back to #SweetSat, and don't forget to check out the other authors' samples. Who knows, you might stumble across a book that keeps you reading all night long. Cheers, Vivian So it's giveaway time! Leave a comment on this blog post before midnight Friday night for a chance to win a free copy of my Regency romance and sea story, A Different Sort of Perfect. C'mon, you know you wanna… Blurb: Lady Clara Huckabee stows away by accident. But she’s not sorry to sail aboard HMS Topaze, leaving England behind. It’s a chance to search for her charming French suitor from the Amiens peace, the man she’s determined to marry despite the war and her dominating uncle’s disapproval. All she has to do is convince the Topaze’s handsome captain to see things her way, and everything will be perfect. A French frigate has evaded the Royal Navy blockade of Brest. Captain Alexander Fleming sails the smaller, elderly frigate Topaze in pursuit, but what he’s supposed to do with a silly stowaway debutante for seven thousand miles wasn’t covered in his orders. In the doldrums, during a South Atlantic storm, and with French t’gallants spiking the horizon, his first responsibility is always to his ship, his crew, his assignment… not his growing attachment for the woman doubling as his captain’s clerk. Perfect; just perfect. Before disaster strikes, before the cannons open fire, will Lady Clara and Fleming learn that the perfection they longed for isn’t the one they really want? And if you just can't wait, click here for Apple, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Kobo, and Smashwords. Cheers and thanks for stopping by, Vivian Hi, everybody and welcome back! Let's start the brand new baby-year 2013 off with a sample from my newly released Regency romance and sea adventure, A Different Sort of Perfect. Here, the hero, Captain Alexander Fleming, is on the quarterdeck at the start of a cruise: # Red glowed in the west, the first stars peered from blue-violet shadows in the east, and still the wind held. The cabin steward, Hennessy, brought sandwiches and Fleming munched by the binnacle, sipping tea from a battered tin mug as the stars marched across the darkening sky. He could have gone below for dinner and supper, but this delightful sailing, averaging nine knots through the Channel, had a magical feel this early in a cruise and the spell might shatter if he looked away. Even when something crashed and voices raised below deck, with the horned moon peeping above the horizon and full night claiming the sky for its own, he listened but didn’t notice. A shadow approached and the binnacle’s glow showed Abbot, in his working rig of duck trousers and blue watchet coat, sennit hat in his hands and ruddy hair blown back off his forehead. “Sir, if you please, there’s—” He broke off, mouth moving but no words coming out. His eyes were glassy and staring. In the waist, someone sniggered. “Yes, what is it?” Whatever it was couldn’t be good. He’d seen Abbot leap through the shattered gunport of a French ship of the line, leading a boarding party into a whirling, bloody melee, with a saber in his hand and a brilliant smile lighting his face. A growling mass of murderous enemies hadn’t slowed Abbot. This had to be something awful — a leak in the hold, water sloshing into the powder kegs, the wardroom’s wine forgotten on shore. It would be something he’d have to notice. Abbot swallowed. “There’s — there’s a woman in your cabin.” # It might be preferable if it HAD been the wine left on shore. Here's a link back to the Sweet Saturday Samples blog. Have a great time and a fabulous 2013! Cheers, Vivian It's finally here! My Regency romance-sea story, A Different Sort of Perfect, has been released by Astraea Press. Blurb: a clean Regency novel with lots of high seas adventure... but no pirates Lady Clara Huckabee stows away by accident. But she's not sorry to sail aboard HMS Topaze, leaving England behind. It's a chance to search for her charming French suitor from the Amiens peace, the man she's determined to marry despite the war and her dominating uncle's disapproval. All she has to do is convince the Topaze's handsome captain to see things her way, and everything will be perfect. A French frigate has evaded the Royal Navy blockade of Brest. Captain Alexander Fleming sails the smaller, elderly frigate Topaze in pursuit, but what he's supposed to do with a silly stowaway debutante for seven thousand miles wasn't covered in his orders. In the doldrums, during a South Atlantic storm, and with French t'gallants spiking the horizon, his first responsibility is always to his ship, his crew, his assignment... not his growing attachment for the woman doubling as his captain's clerk. Perfect; just perfect. Before disaster strikes, before the cannons open fire, will Lady Clara and Fleming learn that the perfection they longed for isn't the one they really want? You can find A Different Sort of Perfect at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, and all the usual suspects. Oh, and how about that awesome cover, huh? Kudos to AM Design Studio for the pink title! PINK TITLES RULE! A new feature! There's a saying among writers: Be prepared to murder your darlings. No, we're not talking about children, significant others, pets, beloved plants, etc. But sometimes there's a sentence or paragraph that you just loved writing, that you think says so much about your story, your characters, your theme, your whatever. It's poetic, dramatic, a sterling example of your best writing. It's a darling. And then the manuscript goes into editing and you find your editor doesn't agree with that assessment. "Need this?" "What on earth does this mean???" and "What were you thinking or drinking?" are the sort of comments you might receive. Not encouraging. Not fun. But necessary. As professional writers, we strive to present our readers with polished stories that flow, without a single paragraph out of place. And so, when a beloved sentence or paragraph just doesn't fit, we must be prepared to murder our darlings. Cut the little buggers out and leave them on the hard drive's floor. And ache at the surgery's aftermath, even as we take comfort in the satisfaction of a book well edited. For posterity, here's a murdered darling from my upcoming Regency sea story and romance, A Different Sort of Perfect, releasing through Astraea Press early next year. This paragraph had been intended to show that pins-and-needles sensation of anticipation and excitement, without using those words. My editor didn't ask what I was drinking, but she might as well have. # Clara paused at the ladder’s foot and settled herself with a shake. A thrilling inside her, something delicious and devilish, had answered the drum’s martial music, the driving ferocity on the upper deck, the way Captain Fleming had stared into her while they’d talked. As if he yearned to slice her open and examine all those fearful, wonderful organs secreted beneath her skin. Natural philosophers and physicians did that, Harmony said; they’d buy a dead orphan or pauper, a suicide or hanged gallows thief, and peer underneath the chaste skin to the grisly bits below. If one of them cut into her now, surely he’d find a new and extraordinary layer that no one had ever seen before, something rather like a luscious pin cushion or a sensitive, inverted hedgehog. No one could possibly have ever felt this way before, angry, fearful, hot and cold and trembly, like a snowfield ablaze. Without warning, she shivered all over. # Writers, have you saved clippings of your murdered darlings? Send them to me at 1940 [dot] mysterywriter [at] gmail [dot] com. Include a copy of your cover and a buy link to the finished, published book, and I'll post them as I receive them. Thanks for stopping by. While you're here, jump over to J.L.'s blog, one tab over, and tell him hello for me, okay? Cheers, Vivian |
Vivian Roycroft
Vivian Roycroft is a pseudonym for historical fiction and adventure writer J. Gunnar Grey. And if she’s not careful, her pseudonymous pseudonym will have its own pseudonym soon, too. With its own e-reader, a yarn stash, an old Hermès hunt saddle, and a turtle sundae at Culver‘s. Archives
June 2016
Categories
All
PRIVACY POLICY: We will never sell nor otherwise disclose your email address.
A Different Sort of Perfect
Works in progress:
Kissing the Toad: In Berkeley Square, book #1
|