Books
The Forbidden Lord Scoop
- The idea was sparked while I was looking in Dale Spender's Women of Ideas and What Men Have Done to Them for early 19th-century women reformers to quote in The Pirate Lord. Spender mentioned a Victorian tale in which a woman at a masquerade ball goes home with a rake when she mistakes him for her brother. In the original story, the scoundrel ruins the woman pitilessly, but I went for something a bit more upbeat…and came up with the book's first chapter.
-
As for the
other chapters…I've always loved masquerades and even fantasized
about being a spy, a sort of James Bond female more elegant and
sophisticated than myself. And I'm a minister's daughter.
'Nuff said.
- To see the metope from the "Elgin marbles" that I describe in the book, go here. The debate about where the "marbles" should reside still rages. If you're curious about it, you can find links to all sides of the debate (Greek, British, and everybody else in-between) at The Parthenon Marbles website. And no, I haven't decided which side I'm on.
- The book's original title was The Notorious Lord, given in the teaser at the end of The Pirate Lord. I wrote that when I'd barely started the second book, but I later realized Jordan was no more notorious than your average Regency bachelor. The title didn't seem to fit him, so I changed it to The Forbidden Lord, and Avon went along. As it turns out, that created confusion when I later titled a book, The Notorious Love. Sorry!
The gossip making the rounds in London:
Lord Elgin's acquisition of the Parthenon marbles has roused a furor of public comment in recent years. Today some are protesting the scandalous nature of a particular work—a sculpture of a naked man and a centaur displayed at the British Museum.
Those who consider such works unfit for the perusal of ladies were shocked to hear that Lord Blackmore was seen leading a woman into the private room containing the sculpture.
The woman, whom several recognized as Lady Emma, had reportedly lost her bonnet and gloves when they emerged some time later.
We can only speculate why the earl, who is on the museum's board of directors, gave the beautiful Lady Emma a private showing of the piece (perhaps as an exercise in anatomical comparisons), but we would advise her to pursue her interest in art more cautiously in the future. Lord Blackmore is a dangerous companion for a gently bred female.
Inside Scoop from Characters
How to Masquerade as an Earl's Daughter without Compromising Oneself
by Miss Emily Fairchild
- Respond to the scandalous remarks of impertinent gentlemen by being equally scandalous. Only rector's daughters take offense at such.
- Do not accompany handsome gentlemen into private museum rooms. Said gentlemen can't be trusted to behave themselves.
- Avoid private gardens as well when said gentlemen are involved.
- Carry a sturdy fan for rapping the knuckles of lords who misconstrue your scandalous repartee.
- View Greek art cautiously and not as a prelude to seduction, no matter what certain lords tell you.
- Use boldness and flirtation to confound your male detractors. Both can be quite effective.