How To Seduce A Scoundrel - Blog Tour - Guest Post & Giveaway!!

 Today I am thrilled to have Vicky Dreiling author of How to Marry a Duke

and her newest novel How to Seduce a Soundrel visit us with a guest post!

Favorite Historical Romance Writers
By Vicky Dreiling

I read my first historical romance early in the nineties. To be honest, I didn’t even know that I’d picked up a romance novel until I brought it home from the supermarket and started reading. I was a bit skeptical at first, but the author hooked me. The author was Judith McNaught and the book was Almost Heaven. As soon as I finished that book, I hurried to the nearest bookstore to buy all of Ms. McNaught’s novels. I adored her heroines because they were the sort of women we would all like to have as our best friends: nice women and yet courageous as well. Naturally I loved the strong alpha heroes in her books as well.

Since then, historical romances have evolved in many ways, but the nurturing aspects of the heroine and the strong alpha heroes remain very popular with readers. I happen to love charmers, which leads me to my very favorite historical romance author Loretta Chase. In particular, I loved the Carsington Brothers series, especially Rupert Carsington in Mr. Impossible. I love Loretta’s brand of humor and her vivid characters. Another charming hero I loved was Josh in Mary Balogh’s Slightly Scandalous. He was a wonderful foil for the perfectly hoydenish and prickly heroine, Freyja.

Historical romances with great openings always stay with me. One of the most memorable for me was the opening for Elizabeth Hoyt’s Notorious Pleasures. I won’t spoil the hilarious circumstances for those who haven’t read it, but I loved Elizabeth’s dry sense of humor. Another opening for a book with a far more serious tone got me at hello, and I’ve never forgotten it. “He liked radical politics and had a fondness for chocolate.” That first line came from Laura Kinsale’s Flowers from the Storm, a book I’ve read several times because it is truly brilliant.

Prologues lost favor for several years, but recently two book openings that used this device really started off with a bang for me. I adored the prologue showing Kieran Kramer’s heroine Molly in When Harry Met Molly. At thirteen, Molly is convinced that no one feels as deeply as she does, which leads her to conclude that she must share her passions at a Christmas ball. “If she didn’t, she would die.” I laughed out loud when I read that line. Who doesn’t remember feeling such strong emotion in their teens? Raising my hand. J And of course, readers know that disaster is bound to erupt. The other prologue that captivated me was Sarah MacLean’s heroine Callie in Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake. From the very first sentence, I wanted Callie to win. “Lady Calpurnia Hartwell blinked back tears as she fled the ballroom of Worthington House, the scene of her most recent and most devastating embarrassment.”

These are just a few of my favorite historical romance authors. Since I’m always on the lookout for great authors, I’d love to hear some reader favorites.

Cheers!

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Excerpt from How to Seduce a Scoundrel

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SCOUNDRELS, RAKES, AND ROGUES BEWARE . . .

Lady Julianne Gatewick is in a pickle. It started when her brother’s best friend—for whom she’s long nursed a secret tendre—agreed to act as her guardian for the Season, only to seduce her with a risqué waltz.


But when the music stopped and the expectant ton waited for the Earl of Hawkfield to claim her as his own, he made his disinterest clear. Rather than succumb to humiliation, Julianne does what any recently discarded, wickedly witty young miss would do. She secretly pens a lady’s guide to enticing unrepentant rakes . . . and it becomes the hottest scandal in London.


Every honorable rake knows that friends’ sisters are forbidden. But suddenly Julianne has a spark of mischief in her eyes that Hawk can’t resist. Try as he might to push her away, he spends his days listening for her laughter and his nights dreaming of her kisses. He’s always avoided innocents and their marriage-minded mothers, but has the man least likely to wed finally met his match?

GIVEAWAY:

Vicky and her publisher Grand Central Publishing are giving 1 lucky reader a copy of Vicky's newest book How to Seduce A Scoundrel!  This giveaway is open to residents of Canada and the US.  Prize will be shipped directly from the publisher.  No PO Boxes please.  Winner will be selected randomly via random.org

All you have to do is leave a comment with your name and email address (in this format aislynnt(at)gmail(dot) - to avoid all that lovely spam out there!) to enter!  Giveaway will run from July 15 until July 20th.  Winner to be announced on July 21st - winner must respond within 48 hours or a new winner will be selected.