Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Julia Bennet | 20 Questions: THE RUIN OF MISS EVANGELINE JONES
Author Guest / April 29, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release? The Ruin of Evangeline Jones 2–What is it about? Alex is the new Duke of Harcastle but his true passion is uncovering charlatans and frauds. Evangeline (Evie) Jones is a fake spiritualist medium and he’s determined to expose her lies publicly. They strike a bargain: If he can uncover proof of her fraud in seven days, she’ll reveal the tricks of her trade in front of an audience. If he fails, he’ll leave her in peace. Naturally, their attraction foils these plans completely. 3–What word best describes your heroine, Evie? Fierce 4–What makes your hero, Alex, irresistible? Aside from the fact that he’s a hot duke, Alex is relentless, intense, and utterly focused on the woman he loves. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help? Alex has a half-sister (Helen Grey from The Madness of Miss Grey, book one in the series) and Evie has a roommate, an actress named Mags Carmichael. Alex and Evie are both lone wolf types (until they meet one another) and, in many ways, they’re both still learning about relationships. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book? I liked…

Amy Rose Bennett | Exclusive Interview: HOW TO CATCH AN ERRANT EARL
Author Guest / April 29, 2020

by Fresh Fiction Reviewer Jessica Grogan Welcome to Fresh Fiction! Please tell us about yourself and your new book! Hi and thanks so much for having me on the Fresh Fiction blog! A little about me–I’m an Aussie author who’s happily married to her very own romantic hero. My hubby and I have recently become empty-nesters; our two daughters are currently studying at university, so I have lots of writing time. Yay! Aside from penning historical romance novels, I love to cook. And given the current situation around the world, I’ve been doing a lot of baking, particularly bread making. I find the whole process quite therapeutic and comforting. My new book, How to Catch an Errant Earl, is the second title in my Disreputable Debutantes series with Berkley Romance. It follows the fortunes of my practical bluestocking Scots heroine with a tarnished reputation, Miss Arabella Jardine, and unrepentant rakehell, Gabriel Holmes-Fitzgerald, the Earl of Langdale. At the beginning of the story, the reader discovers that Arabella has been forced to accompany her family on a Grand Tour of the Continent when she’d much rather be in London making plans to raise money for an orphanage. Gabriel is also abroad….

Amelia Grey | The Pampered Miss and… well, Everybody Else
Author Guest / April 29, 2020

It’s almost impossible for the modern young woman to understand the lifestyle or the mindset of Polite Society’s Regency miss. And no wonder. She had a maid to help put on her unmentionables, comb her hair, and make her a cup of tea. She would never walk out the door without gloves covering her hands, a bonnet on top of her head, and a companion or chaperone by her side to protect her unblemished reputation from slanderous gossip. When going out for a stroll or to shop, most ladies had a dainty reticule swinging from their wrist, though said purse would have little more than a handkerchief, a hairpin, and threaded needle in it to make any hasty repairs. No essentials such as money, keys, or lip gloss. The pampered miss of yesteryear never made her own bed, laundered a piece of clothing, or stepped a foot inside a kitchen for any reason. My belief is that the typical woman of today would think being ridiculously pampered is getting a manicure, a pedicure, and a massage all in the same day. It’s safe to say most of us have washed a dish or two in our lifetime. Even the ladies…

Jane Ashford | Exclusive Interview: A DUKE TOO FAR
Author Guest / April 29, 2020

Welcome back to Fresh Fiction, Jane! Please tell us a little about yourself and the fourth book in The Way to the Lord’s Heart series, A DUKE TOO FAR. I’ve been writing Regencies for quite a while now. I love spending time in that world. The Way to A Lord’s Heart series is a sweeter saga than The Duke’s Sons, and A Duke Too Far focuses on the youngest couple in the group. The heroine hasn’t even made her bow to society as yet. Peter Rathbone, the impoverished Duke of Compton, has lost his beloved sister Delia and is at a loss as to what to do next. The crumbling family estate is in ruins, his finances are in disarray, and he didn’t have the usual upbringing expected of an aristocrat. How do these hardships and unique personality traits shape the man Peter has become?  I think they made him both more resourceful about practical matters (like carpentry) and more reticent in society. He knows he’s not the rich aristocrat people expect on hearing “duke.” When we meet Ada Grandison soon after the death of Delia, one of her closest friends, and she believes Delia may have left a clue…