Sugarbeat's Books

The Home of the Romance Novel

Maggi Anderson

An Improper Lover by Maggi Anderson

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Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – the Home of the Romance Novel!

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Welcome also to Steamy Saturdays!

Saturday is the day in which I post a review for a book that is on the steamier side of romance! Today’s choice I reviewed a while ago for The Romance Reviews and my review can be found on TRR also. I hope you enjoy my thoughts on An Improper Lover.

An Improper Lover by Maggi Anderson
ISBN: 1615720960
ASIN: BOO3LSSYA
Release: May 2010
Source: I received this book from The Romance Reviews to read and review

sugarbeat's books romance books romance novel reviews historical contemporary eroticaWhen Lady Harriett Edgerton falls in love with the wrong man, Gerard, Earl of Foxworth, she decides to seduce him and have one night of passion before becoming an old maid with a scandalous past.

An unconventional heroine, a handsome hero, set amongst the splendor of Regency England results in a wonderfully gentle romance that’s difficult to put down.

An Improper Lover is a short little story about Lady Harriett Edgerton who is certain that she is going to be a spinster. She accompanies her parents and younger sister, Leonora, to see a failing older relative out in the country, and runs into Gerard, the new Earl of Foxworth whom she knew as a child. Although it seems that Gerard is attracted to her beautiful younger sister, Harriet is determined to experience one night of passion before she settles herself into the life of a spinster. To that end, she sets out to seduce Gerard. Before she can succeed, there is a murder in the house and she becomes involved in the investigation.

At just over 70 pages, this book is a short, but well developed story. The characters are interesting and the story moves along at a good pace. This book is good entertainment for a sunny afternoon and a comfy chair.

Buy a Copy of An Improper Lover

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The Reluctant Marquess by Maggi Anderson

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Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel

Welcome back to the discussion on The Reluctant Marquess by Maggi Anderson.  Yesterday Maggi dropped by for a guest post.  Please check out her thoughts from yesterday’s post and read on for my thoughts for  the book.

The Reluctant Marquess by Maggi Anderson
ISBN: 978-1908483096
Release: Mar 8, 2012
Publisher: Knox Robinson Publishing
Source: I received a copy of this book from the author to read and review

sugarbeat's books romance book reviews romance novels historical contemporary erotica author promotionCharity Barlow wished to marry for love. The rakish Lord Robert wishes only to tuck her away in the country once an heir is produced. A country-bred girl, Charity Barlow suddenly finds herself married to a marquess, an aloof stranger determined to keep his thoughts and feelings to himself. She and Lord Robert have been forced by circumstances to marry, and she feels sure she is not the woman he would have selected given a choice. The Marquess of St. Malin makes it plain to her that their marriage is merely for the procreation of an heir, and once that is achieved, he intends to continue living the life he enjoyed before he met her. While he takes up his life in London once more, Charity is left to wander the echoing corridors of St. Malin House, when she isn’t thrown into the midst of the mocking Haute Ton. Charity is not at all sure she likes her new social equals, as they live by their own rules, which seem rather shocking. She’s not at all sure she likes her new husband either, except for his striking appearance and the dark desire in his eyes when he looks at her, which sends her pulses racing. Lord Robert is a rake and does not deserve her love, but neither does she wish to live alone. Might he be suffering from a sad past? Seeking to uncover it, Charity attempts to heal the wound to his heart, only to make things worse between them. Will he ever love her?

The Reluctant Marquess is an interesting book. I got a copy of this book to read as part of the Goddessfish Production tour that I sponsored yesterday. This book features Charity Barlow and Lord Robert, the new Marquess of St. Malin. Charity is a girl that has been brought up in the country and intends to marry for love. As we start the story, her godfather, the former Marquess of St. Malin has died and she has been summoned to meet the new Marquess. Although she is financially dependent on the Marquess, she doesn’t anticipate him making her marry Robert, the new marquess, as a condition of his will. She sees Robert as a cold, formal man, and not the type of man she has dreamed of marrying. However, she feels that she has little choice but make the best of this marriage.

Robert, the new Marquess of St. Malin feels thrust into his new role. He is annoyed at the condition in the will that basically forces him to marry a woman who is a stranger to him. Once married, he takes Charity to town to get some clothes and meet the members of society that she will associate with. Sadly, he doesn’t seem to realize that Charity is lacking in the sophistication necessary to swim in this pool!

Although this book isn’t long, it is an emotional read! For most of the story, I really didn’t like Robert. He kept a mistress, he was cold and unhelpful to his new wife. He was unwilling to help his new wife adapt to her new station in life. I found myself cheering for Charity and the maturity she exhibited, and the grace with which she carried herself regardless of how difficult things got. It isn’t often that I read a book with a character that has me reacting with such emotion. I really wanted this book to NOT have a happily every after because I didn’t feel that Robert deserved Charity. This opinion did change by the end of the story, however.
I feel that this story is well written and marches along quite quickly. It can be finished in an afternoon. I’d be interested in hearing other’s thoughts about this book and I look forward to reading more of what this author writes!

Pick up a copy and share your thoughts with us!

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Guest post & Giveaway – Maggi Anderson, author of The Reluctant Marquess

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Welcome to Sugarbeat’s Books – The Home of the Romance Novel!

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Today we are welcoming Maggi Anderson, author of The Reluctant Marquess, to the blog. She is touring with Goddessfish promotions to promote this book.  I’ve actually read this book and liked it! I’m going to post my review tomorrow so be sure to come back and read my thoughts!

Maggi is giving away 2 $10.00 Amazon GCs to randomly drawn commenter from this tour.  You know how to increase your chances of winning…..click HERE and find other blogs to leave comments on from the tour as well as leaving your info here!

The topic I asked Maggi to talk on is the challenges that she faces when writing historical romance. So, here are her thoughts!

What challenges do I face when writing a historical romance? Writing a romance set during a historical era is like creating a soup.

First you take your story.

And create your world with its historical setting.

Then add your hero and heroine.

Add large dollops of external and internal conflict, to bring about a plausible happy ending.

Sounds easy doesn’t it? But for me at least it never is. No matter how many books I write. I have the masters of the genre to draw on, Georgette Heyer – for her wonderful world creation, and her characters – always opposites! Victoria Holt for her superbly conceived Gothic mysteries. Mary Stewart for her romantic suspense and her prose.

Apart from the conflict situations my hero and heroine face, they are also opposites in personality, and bring different strengths to the relationship by the time I type ‘end.’ I can recommend a book for romance writers which I’ve found helpful: The Complete Writer’s Guide to Heroes & Heroines. Sixteen Master Archetypes, by Tami D. Cowden, Caro LaFever and Sue Viders. In their words, “strong characters may carry a weak plot, but weak characters cannot be hidden by a strong plot.”

Challenges aside, I do enjoy the research. The historical content especially, which adds flavor to a romance. It might be the time of war, political unrest or dramatic change. The eras in which I write, Georgian, Regency and Victorian are all very different. Fashion was different. Society’s mores were different. The Georgian era in which I set The Reluctant Marquess was wilder and freer than the Regency and Victorian periods which were governed by stricter societal rules. But a woman was expected to marry, have children and to run the home.

Despite the restrictions placed on them, there are a great many inspirational women throughout history. But by the late Victorian period more women had freedom to do as they pleased. But marriage was still the first (and expected) option for a woman.

So my heroine knew she must marry. Did love come into it? Not that often. More likely it was a contract to suit both parties. In the Reluctant Marquess, sophisticated rake, Lord Robert does not expect to love his wife. It is unusual for Charity, a country-bred girl to expect him to do so. But she does. And fights for it.

Hopefully my ‘soup’ is light and delicious on the pallet as The Reluctant Marquess was meant to be, a light-hearted romp which is pure escapism.

When I begin to plot a story, I try to make my characters dynamic and lend their actions a certain veracity. Think of those that leap out from our best loved stories. In Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind for example, Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler, were two flawed human beings, larger than life, but their motives are clear as they attempt to overcome the adversities facing them.

Even though writing historical romance undoubtedly has its challenges, I am inspired by the best.

Regards,

 

Maggi

 

sugarbeat's books romance books romance novel reviews interviews author promotions historical contemporary eroticaMaggi Andersen is an Australian author. She lives in the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales with her lawyer husband, their cat and the demanding wildlife. Maggi has two degrees, a BA in English and an MA in Creative Writing. Georgette Heyer, Victoria Holt and Mary Stewart were strong influences on her writing. She began her career when her children left the nest and writes in a variety of genres. Her historical romances are set in the Georgian, Regency and Victorian era.

 

 I’d like to thank Maggi for dropping by and sharing about her book!  Remember to leave a comment to be entered into the giveaway and remember to drop by tomorrow and read my thoughts of this neat book!

 

Blurb: Charity Barlow wished to marry for love. The rakish Lord Robert wishes only to tuck her away in thesugarbeats books romance novels romance book reviews historical contemporary erotica interviews author promotion country once an heir is produced.

A country-bred girl, Charity Barlow suddenly finds herself married to a marquess, an aloof stranger determined to keep his thoughts and feelings to himself. She and Lord Robert have been forced by circumstances to marry, and she feels sure she is not the woman he would have selected given a choice.

The Marquess of St. Malin makes it plain to her that their marriage is merely for the procreation of an heir, and once that is achieved, he intends to continue living the life he enjoyed before he met her.

While he takes up his life in London once more, Charity is left to wander the echoing corridors of St. Malin House, when she isn’t thrown into the midst of the mocking Haute Ton. Charity is not at all sure she likes her new social equals, as they live by their own rules, which seem rather shocking. She’s not at all sure she likes her new husband either, except for his striking appearance and the dark desire in his eyes when he looks at her, which sends her pulses racing.

Lord Robert is a rake and does not deserve her love, but neither does she wish to live alone. Might he be suffering from a sad past? Seeking to uncover it, Charity attempts to heal the wound to his heart, only to make things worse between them. Will he ever love her?

AUTHOR WEBSITE: http://www.maggiandersenauthor.com

AUTHOR BLOG: http://www.maggiandersen.blogspot.com

TWITTER: @maggiandersen

FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Maggi-Andersen-Author/372854959805

Excerpt:

“Nefarious dealings go on next door,” Robert commented almost to himself as he and Charity crossed the footpath to the front door.

 

Charity’s eyes widened. “What sort of dealings?”

 

He felt unsure whether to tell her and wished he hadn’t spoken. “A house of ill-repute,” he finally said.

 

“Is that all?”

 

He held the door open for her to enter the vestibule, annoyed that she wasn’t impressed or shocked by such a revelation. “They are said to charge barren couples quite a lot of money to assist them in their quest for a child. With the use of special beds.”

“Oh.” Charity bit her lip. She put her head down and continued walking.

 

Bemused, Robert wondered how an innocent comment could stir up a veritable nest of unspoken feelings. “It mainly serves as a brothel offering no end of delights,” he added striding to catch up with her. His somewhat callous remark was an endeavor to guide their conversation in a safer direction. But it only served to make him recall the night of passion they had shared. A glance in Charity’s direction confirmed she was thinking of something similar, for her footsteps had faltered, and her eyelid’s looked heavy as she flicked her bottom lip with her tongue. He suffered a strong urge to draw her into that dark corner and kiss her. He found himself seriously considering it, and far more. Raising her skirts and…

 

He took her arm. “Charity?”

 

“Yes?”

 

A door opened at the end of the corridor and a servant poked his head out. “Please come in, Lord and Lady St Malin.”

 

Robert took off his hat and held it somewhere near his groin. “Shall we go in, my dear?”

 

Charity nodded her eyes a little vague.

 

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