New Series Tease

Love is often gentle, desire always a rage--Mignon McLaughan

Well, here it is, as promised, a teeny-tiny glimpse into my new series. I am SO excited about it, its near and dear to me, and I hope it will be the same for readers, too. I think the above quote so fitting for this group of books. I love writing about the madness of passion, the fever of lust, and the emotions of falling deeply in love. I also like exploring the connectedness, and relationships between families, and in this case, it will be about a duke, and his five sisters, who he has raised after the devastating death of their parents. But he has help from a very lively and enchanting aunt, whom I know readers are going to adore!

This series is a mix of so many elements that I love. First off, it is a straight romantic relationship series. I loved writing the mystery subplot in the Brethren Guardians, but I missed writing those dark, emotionally intense love stories, so with the Westlake Series (as its known for right now) brings me, and readers back to that those deeply emotional, romantic, intense and yeah, sexy as heck books!

I pitched the series like this,  the haunting beauty of the Brontes brooding Yorkshire moors, meets Jane Austen lively Bennett family, in an intensely emotional and highly sensual Victorian-set series about forbidden love, passionate love letters, the exotic pleasures of a West Indies island, and a scandalous secret admirer, whose mysterious identity has set the Ton on its ear!

Phew! Right. Well, here are a few facts about the series.

It will be Victorian set, 1837, the very year Victoria came to the throne. So, really its very early Victorian. I love the decor at that time, the frilly, feminine dresses, the way they bare the shoulders and the decolletage (fabulous imagery for those heated love scenes). It still feels old, but so much change was just brimming, waiting to spill over. So, I had to take a risk, and write in an era that I have not done so before. The research is wonderful!!! And I am having waaaaay too much fun virtually shopping and surfing for my heroines wardrobes!

The series takes place in North Yorkshire, with the moody moors, the windswept coast, the haunting, often stark beauty of the landscape. I find that atmosphere so lovely and romantic, perfect for a family known to be eccentric, passionate, scandalous, and a touch wild, to hale from.

Another tie in with the series is the island of Barbados. I wanted something exotic to intersperse with the wildness of the moors. Not every book is going to be set in Barbados, but I know for sure two of them will have a hefty amount of island time represented. Think sultry nights, mahogany plantation furniture, four poster beds draped in white netting, two people admidst the crumbled white linen, the scents of the ocean, the exotic flowers, their passion between them. Beautiful men sweating working for their lovers pleasure....you know, you get the drift! lol! What is it, with that toe curling image of a beautiful male with a trickle of sweat glistening between his pecs! ;)

Another aspect that carries through this series, that I truly adore is the theme of the written--and whispered word! I am not ashamed that I have always longed to receive a love letter--a real passionate, soul bearing one. One that could sweep you off your feet, one that you would wrap in a pretty ribbon, and tuck away, to be pulled out and stroked, to be lovingly read and re-read, to be brought to your lips to kiss, and to be tucked beneath your hand and buried with you for all time.

With the way the world is, texting, emailing, twittering, the art of a love letter, carefully written with quill and ink, and scrolling words, folded, and sealed in wax is, for the most part, dead. I wanted to bring that back to readers. I wanted to explore the use of words to convey the most profound feelings and emotions, and yes, the most base desires beautifully, erotically written. I wanted all the longings of the heart and soul to be poured out onto a piece of parchment, written at a writing desk, with only candle light illuminating the black ink. So a series involving love letters, in varying shape and form, and manner were born! I have already written a few such letters for the first book, and I have to tell you, what fun and pure fantasy it was to write them! I hope you enjoy opening them up and reading them, right along with the heroine.

With love letters comes the very thrilling and yes, titilating idea of a secret admirer. Who has not wanted to be secretly admired. So, yes, there is an admirer in there!

Forbidden. I love that concept. We have all been tempted by something, have we not! These books are alot about the forbidden, about temptation, about giving into our desires that run soul deep and not worrying about the fall out. Forbidden, yes, I do love that word!

I hope you will stay with me as the series progresses, and that perhaps, I have tempted you today to keep an eye out for the new series comign from HQN books.

I do not have any release dates yet, or titles, but I will soon, and I will share those as soon as I know them. But for now, I can let you know that there will be a prequel for this series coming in Nov, 2012. It is a novella, entitled Missives and Mistletoe, and its in an anthology with Stephanie Laurens and Nicola Cornick! This will be a first glimpse into the world, and pleasures of the scandalous, and extremely passionate Westlake family!

I will leave you with these quotes, which my hero does use. What Romeo can resist quoting the bard....
I will live in thy heart,
die in thy lap,
And be buried in thy eyes....-Shakespeare

Or this one...
love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs....

Be Well!