AUTHOR GINA DANNA'S ROMANTIC REGENCY CHRISTMAS

Gina Danna spent hours devouring historical romances, always dreaming of writing one of her own. After years of writing historical academic papers to achieve her undergraduate and graduate degrees in History, and then for museum programs and exhibits, she found time to write her own historical romance and is now a bestselling author of historical romances. Learn more about her and her books at her website.

Christmas, Love & Oops!

 

Christmas – Time for families, get-togethers, friends and lovers – the joy of the season!

 

As an author, to write a yuletide novel, we must start long before the season is even considered. And for a historical love story, one must consider how it was celebrated during that time. Before Queen Victoria set Christmas trees the rage, the time was a religious celebration and without all the commercial hype of today.

 

This story was also a ‘vacation’ for me. My latest series, Hearts Touched by Fire, is a Civil War historical fiction with romance storyline, full of research and research and study with long, involved novels the result. To Catch A Lady is Book 1 of a Regency romance novella series, and while needing research for it, it was also a nice mental break from the horrors of war. It is a story with a happy-ever-after, of love found, lost and recovered. The dream we all have and fun to write!

 

Originally, it was part of an erotic-style Christmas box set that is no longer available. But I realized it is not erotic. There are hot scenes involved, but nothing that truly went with its original title of A Merry Wicked Christmas. So this is a ‘re-launch’ as To Catch A Lady. This novella ties in with two other novellas in the new series of Lords & Ladies & Love – Regency love stories. This one and To Kiss A Lady are Christmas love stories. 

 

So come and meet Phineas and Marina and his pet fox as they discover that their romance during a Yuletide house party is a true gift, despite her being promised to an elder lord. Phineas refusal to allow himself to marry may make him lose his new love. His realization came late and now he’s racing against time. Can he catch her heart before she’s gone for good? To Catch A Lady – can love win?

 

To Catch A Lady

Lords & Ladies & Love, Book 1

 

London, 1815. 

 

Phineas vowed to never marry after his last engagement ended sourly. Hosting a winter party filled with ladies will not sway him. 

 

Lady Marina meets her host and dreams of a future. Snowed in alone with him, sparks fly, ruining her, only to die when he won’t marry her.

 

Phineas finds Marina gone and with her, his heart. With the odds stacked against him, can Phineas turn fate into a never-ending love story?

 

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HISTORICAL AUTHOR ALYSSA ROBERTS CHANNELS HER LOVE OF SAILING IN HER REGENCY ROMANCE

*Photo 1

Alyssa Roberts writes historical fiction and historical romance. Her historical romances to date are set in Regency England and Wales, and in American Revolutionary War Vermont. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

I’ve always heard you should write what you know. Naturally, that can’t always happen, but sometimes it works out. A lot of us have some entertaining interests, and one of the things my husband and I love is sailing. 

 

My recently released historical romance Duchess Deceived includes sailing scenes inspired by the adventures I have had with my very competent sailor husband. We have raced over the frothy waves to beat a dark, thundering storm behind us. We have battled tides and winds for exhilarating, unexpected rides into safe harbors.

*Photo 2

Duchess Deceived includes a wild sail across the Bristol Channel as our hero and heroine race against time. The Bristol Channel’s tides can be compared to the similarly huge tides in the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia where within hours boats go from bobbing peacefully on the water to being moored on the sand! I have been lucky enough to see the strength of the Bay of Fundy tide as it comes in—and goes out. The moving water held me spellbound, just staring as it came in fast enough to cover a stone in minutes. It inspired me so much, I was determined to capture that power in my debut romance.

 

Our heroine in Duchess Deceived, Juliana, does not want to go anywhere near the Bristol Channel because, as the result of an event in her childhood, she fears the water. The wild ride in this book helps Juliana overcome that fear. That result might sound unlikely, but when I faced my first storm on a sailboat, I was pretty scared. I found, though, that riding out a storm with someone who knows what they are doing, is careful and attentive about it, and actually enjoys themselves while doing it helped me overcome my fear. Later, when we raced ahead of a different storm, we ended up having a rollicking good time. 

 

In writing this book, I used what I saw of the Bay of Fundy (although I did not sail there), but I would love to also see the Bristol Channel. Has anyone been to the Bristol Channel? To the Bay of Fundy? Both? Do you have any great stories about either—or both?

*Photo 1: This is a picture taken near Brier Island, which is far south in the Bay of Fundy, so does not even experience the full extent of its tides, yet a boat is resting on the bottom – and the water is far out.

*Photo 2: This picture of a pier shows how high they must be built to accommodate the tides. Again, this is not even at the northern end of the Bay of Fundy! 

Duchess Deceived

Widowed duchess Juliana Barrington fears that men who covet her son’s title are trying to kill him. When greedy relatives discover her whereabouts, she flees her seaside hideout. Will she be running forever? 

Ransom Wolfe Hawkins, a Royal Navy officer in hiding, wants to protect Juliana and her son, but fears he'll lose her trust if she learns he's been accused of murder. Will he have to choose between clearing his name and protecting the woman he loves? 

Or will he deceive the Duchess?

 

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--AN INTERVIEW WITH REGENCY AUTHOR ELF AHEARN AND HER MEAT MARINADE RECIPE

Today we have a double treat, an interview with Regency romance author Elf (yes, that’s her real name) Ahearn and her marinade recipe. Learn more about Elf and her books at her website where you can find links to her other social media and subscribe to her newsletter. 

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author? 

I’m a hybrid author by default. My books were published by Crimson Romance, which was sold to Simon & Schuster, which passed on keeping both novels on its backlist… alas. 

 

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. I would love to have the skill to make people laugh and cry the way Steinbeck does with that story. The characters are brilliant and the problem of Lenny’s brute strength and inability to control it is the most heartbreaking situation in literature. A class I teach for Romance Writers of America is called Conflict, Action, and Suspense, and I use Of Mice and Men as an example.

 

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours? 

For nearly 20 years, I struggled as a New York City actress. Instead, I wish I’d lived in the country and gone straight to writing. Rejection is face to face in the theatre, whereas an author gets to read a no-go weeks after the submission. Believe me, that’s a lot easier to take.

 

New York is an amazing place—Broadway, SoHo, Fifth Avenue, Central Park—it’s got so many things to offer, it takes your breath away, yet every chance I got, I dashed home to the country. If you take a gander at A Rogue in Sheep’s Clothing, you’ll see it’s a story about a girl, a boy, and a horse. The horse is her best friend; that was me, except I had a pinto pony named Bettikins whereas in my book, the horse is Manifesto, a dapple grey stallion.

 

What was the worst job you’ve ever held? 

I was the personal secretary to two sadists who owned a radio station in Connecticut. Example: One of them took an incredibly nasty poop, and then made me search for something nonexistent in the attic where the bathroom fan vented. The same guy didn’t want to know when callers were on hold: “You are to treat me like the governor and make them wait until I’ve finished my other business.”

 

They were also yellers, and they yelled at me for everything. Example: One night, long after I’d gone home, the office alarm went off and the police showed up. The owners had visited the office, and one of them blew it entering the alarm code. When I said he’d probably made a mistake, he started screaming, “I never make a mistake! Never!” 

 

Less than six months later, knowing my husband and I were applying for a mortgage, they terminated me. It would have been devastating except they fired employees all the time for the slightest infraction. In fact, by the time I lost my job, they’d racked up the second highest number of unemployment claims in the state—this from a tiny, rinky dink radio station. Ironically, the only employee they hesitated to dismiss was this crazy receptionist who came in early and lit a shelf on fire. Why didn’t they dump her immediately? Because they were scared. You see, they’d weaseled their way onto the board of directors of the local hospital and had the nursing staff cut so the lobby could be decorated with high-end furniture and the president supplied with a $10,000 desk. People in that peaceful Connecticut community hated them so bitterly, their tires were regularly slashed. 

 

They’d spread their personal brand of lousiness so far and wide, they needed a bodyguard to visit New York City. You see, one of them had had a prime position in the fashion industry but lost his job due to lawsuits claiming employee abuse. 

 

There is a happy ending, though: my husband and I got a mortgage on better terms, and I became a journalist—a job I absolutely loved. And here’s the kicker—my newspaper printed the story of how those two bankrupted the radio station and had to sell for less than it was worth. Karma, baby.

 

What’s on the horizon for you? 

I’ve completed two more Regency romances with my signature “Gothic twist.” The moment I find a publisher, I’ll be building the suspense till their release.

 

Elf’s Marinade

I use this marinade on chicken, lamb, and pork. It’s super tasty and easy to make. 

 

Ingredients:

Chicken, lamb, or pork

Lemon juice

Mustard

Minced garlic

4C seasoned breadcrumbs

 

Pour enough lemon juice to cover meat. Add approximately 1/4 – 1/2 cup mustard. Add a heaping tablespoon of minced garlic.

 

Allow meat to marinate for 10-20 minutes. I usually turn on the oven and wait for it to reach 350 degrees F (approx. 10 minutes), then remove the meat from the marinade.

 

Coat meat in 4C seasoned breadcrumbs. Place coated meat in a baking pan. Bake 20 minutes or until specific meat reaches proper temperature.

 

A Rogue in Sheep’s Clothing

The Albright Sisters, Book 1

 

In Lord Hugh Davenport’s opinion, women of the ton perpetually hide behind a mask of deception. That’s hard for Ellie Albright, the daughter of an earl, to swallow—especially since she’s disguised herself as a stable hand to get back the prized stallion her father sold to Hugh to pay a debt. If Hugh learns her true identity, she’ll lose the horse and her family will go bankrupt. Somehow, though, losing Hugh’s affection is beginning to seem even worse…

 

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--ROMANCE AUTHOR CATHLEEN ROSS ON ARRANGED MARRIAGES OF YESTERDAY AND TODAY

Multi-award-winning romance author, English teacher, and editor Cathleen Ross describes herself as a quirky writer living on Sydney Harbor who often gives psychic predictions to family and friends. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

When I started my research for An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord, I read an excellent biography on Mary Wollstonecraft by Claire Tomalin and Mary’s own book, The Vindication of the Rights of Women. Although Mary Wollstonecraft passed away in 1797, both books helped me prepare for the mindset of being a woman in Regency times in 1811 in Scotland. Women had to toe the line in Regency times to be marriageable or risk being shunned socially. Arranged marriage was still the norm for wealthy aristocrats in order to keep property in the family.

Against this backdrop, I developed a heroine from an ancient Scottish line, whose father had passed away and who had enough money and independence to do what she wanted—an usual lady for the times. 

Lady Crystal Wilding is appalled by the lack of education for women in Scotland. Read between the lines here—I was appalled—most working class and lower middle class women couldn’t sign their own names on their marriage certificates, one of the most important days of their lives.

Lady Crystal sets about to change this, but she needs allies, which she finds in Lord Aaron Lyle, Marquis of Lomond. Aaron is in a difficult position, too. His father, the duke, is building the family seat and including every new innovation possible—something that will eventually bankrupt the family unless Aaron marries well.

I worked for an organization when I was younger and most of the adult students I interviewed were in arranged marriages. It’s hard to believe that this is still going on in modern times. Most of the women I interviewed said that they didn’t like their husbands, though it isn’t something that they would say publicly. Imagine that! Their comments have stayed with me, so it was easy to imagine the loathing that men and women must have felt when forced into marriage with someone they didn’t like in order to keep property in the family.

Something that is almost unimaginable today is that in Regency times, when a woman married, everything she had became the property of her husband. It seems to me that women had everything to lose and nothing to gain by marrying. This certainly is the attitude of Lady Crystal and it makes for an explosive, passionate book.

I hope you will enjoy reading An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord. 

An Unsuitable Lady for a Lord 

A Scottish Lords and Ladies Book

Lord Aaron Lyle has one hell of a choice: a bankrupt dukedom, or marriage to some simpering society miss so his spendthrift father can get his hands on her huge dowry. He won’t do it. He has a reputation to maintain, and besides, he’d rather run naked through the streets of London than marry anyone at all. Surely, there must be a third option.

Then Lady Crystal Wilding walks into his life, a bluestocking, full of subversive thoughts, who hates the notion of marriage even more than he does. He is intrigued...and suddenly he has an idea. He invites the totally unsuitable lady home on the pretext of presenting her as a possible match...but in truth, Aaron has something far more pleasurable in mind. For her part, Lady Crystal has her own reasons for going along with his harebrained scheme. 

Imagine their shock when his highly proper family loves her and starts planning the wedding. Good lord. Now what?

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#CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--AUTHOR HANNAH MEREDITH'S SALT DOUGH CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS

Hannah Meredith loves to tell stories that examine the vagaries of the human heart. She writes primarily historical romance, although an occasional fantasy romance has been known to sneak in. She’s a social media dud, but would love to hear from you via her website. Today she stops by to talk about making salt dough Christmas ornaments and a new multi-author Christmas anthology of Regency romance novellas.  

Cookie Christmas Ornaments Serve Up Family Memories

The year our son Rob turned six, my husband took a job in a small town in southern Virginia, and we bought an old house with large rooms and high ceilings. The corner of the den was the perfect place for a big Christmas tree. My imagination saw it there even though it was the middle of the summer when we moved in. 

Over the Thanksgiving weekend that first year, my husband and son went to a friend’s farm and cut the perfect tree. Great excitement abounded when we wrestled it from the bed of the pickup and with a lot of extra help, got it set into a bucket of water on the carport. It was then I realized this wasn’t just a big tree, it was massive. 

I lamented that we wouldn’t have enough ornaments to make such a tree even look like it was decorated. My neighbor disappeared into her house and returned with a bag of Christmas cookie cutters and a recipe card. “Salt dough cookie ornaments,” she said—and a tradition was born.

That year, Rob helped me make dozens of cookies, and every couple of years thereafter, we added new ones, our choices becoming more elaborate as Rob got older. Eventually, we made our own tracing paper patterns from pictures in coloring books or on Christmas cards. I’ve followed the same routine with all the grandkids, and our ornaments now adorn a variety of trees. For my own tree, still massive but now artificial and located in an old house with high ceilings in North Carolina, every time I hang one of the cookies, I have wonderful memories of creating it with someone I love.

A selection from the author’s cookie cutter collection

Salt Dough Cookie Ornaments

Ingredients:

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup table salt

1 cup tap water (approximate)

acrylic paints

paintbrushes

1 spray can polyurethane

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Mix flour and salt together with a fork or whisk until well blended. Add water a little at a time until the dough forms a ball.

Move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes until the consistence is similar to pizza dough.

Roll out the dough to about 1/4" thickness. (See Note)

Cut out cookies with selected cutters. Make a hole at the top with anything from a toothpick to a straw so you have a place to insert some yarn or ribbon for a hanger.

Carefully transfer to a cookie sheet with a spatula, and bake for 30-45 minutes. You want the cookies very hard, but they need not be browned.

Let cool completely.

Paint the cookies with acrylic paint. The original recipe said poster paint, but I’ve found artist acrylics are less messy to use and have more vibrant colors.

After the paint dries completely, spray both sides with fast drying spray polyurethane, one side at a time, allowing sealer to dry before turning over.

If stored in tissue paper in a cardboard box, these ornaments will last for years. Many of mine are over 40 years old. Putting the box in either a damp basement or a hot attic is not particularly good, however. I have, alas, done both, and many of the older ornaments are now wavy rather than flat.

Note: The “best” thickness depends on what you’re cutting out. If you’re using a paper pattern from a picture and cutting the dough with a knife (such as the old-fashioned train engine in the picture), you’ll need to roll the dough to a thickness of about 1/8”. To get the dough this thin, roll it out on parchment paper sized to fit your cookie sheet. After cutting out the shapes, remove the excess dough, leaving the cookies where they are on the paper. Then transfer the paper to the cookie sheet and bake. Otherwise thin cookies are prone to become misshapen in the transfer process.

The thicker the cookie, the more likely it is to puff up. This sometimes looks cool for shapes like Santa faces or bells. The only problem is that you can’t control where they will “puff” so be prepared to throw away those that look peculiar.

Christmas Revels VI

Come Revel with four award-winning authors and discover Regency Christmas tales filled with laughter, tears, and love…

“Her Ladyship Orders a Christmas Tree” by Anna D. Allen – A pagan custom leads to an unexpected attraction. 

“The Play’s the Thing…” by Hannah Meredith – Going off script prompts a surprise ending. 

“Yuletide Treachery” by Kate Parker – Two lonely people find a traitor—and love. 

“A Perfectly Unexpected Christmas” by Louisa Cornell – An accident brings redemption and a homecoming. 

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--AUTHOR REGAN WALKER ON HOGMANAY, CLOOTIE DUMPLINGS, CRANACHAN & OTHER SCOTTISH HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

Hogmanay in Stonehaven

Regan Walker is an award-winning, bestselling author of Regency, Georgian and Medieval romances. Each of her novels includes real history and real historical figures as characters. And, of course, adventure and love, sometimes on the high seas! Learn more about her and her books at her website.

Scottish Christmas Traditions

It may surprise you to know that Christmas was not celebrated as a festival in Scotland for about four hundred years. This dates back to the Protestant Reformation when the Scottish Kirk proclaimed Christmas a Catholic feast. While the actual prohibition, passed by Scotland’s Parliament in 1640, didn’t last long, the Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian, discouraged Yule celebrations beginning as early as 1583. This continued into the 1950s. Many Scots celebrated only the Winter Solstice at the New Year, which came to be known as Hogmanay. Today, it’s celebrated with much fanfare and balls of fire. (See photo above.)

It is believed that many of the traditional Hogmanay celebrations were originally brought to Scotland by the invading Vikings in the early 8th and 9th centuries. These Norsemen, or men from an even more northerly latitude than Scotland, paid particular attention to the arrival of the Winter Solstice, the shortest day, and fully intended to celebrate its passing.

In the late 18th century, Georgian hostesses entertained in grand style. For those who celebrated Christmas, possibly in secret as my characters do, greenery of holly, hawthorn and Scots pine (gathered from the woods) would decorate the house. And there would be a giant Yule log to burn in the fireplace.

Instead of the usual two large courses of food at dinner, wealthy families in Scotland offered guests several smaller courses including soup, fish, game, roast meat, pudding and dessert. Food was richer with more complicated recipes and there was a greater emphasis on cream and sugar in desserts.

In the late 18th century and into the Regency, it became sort of a fad for high-born Englishmen and women, particularly in the literary establishment, to travel to Scotland and write travel books. There are dozens of such examples including Recollections of a Tour Made in Scotland by Dorothy Wordsworth (sister of the more famous brother). However, none is better known than the 1773 trip undertaken by friends Samuel Johnson and James Boswell. 

Johnson published his travel book A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland in 1775, and Boswell waited until 1785 with his Tour to the Hebrides of the same trip. From Boswell’s description of breakfast in 1773: 

“They set down dried haddocks, broiled, along with our tea.”

“… as good chocolate as I ever tasted, tea, bread and butter, marmalade and jelly… very good scones, or cakes of flour baked with butter. There was a plate of butter and curds mixed, which they call “gruitheam” (Gaelic)... and cheese… it often smells very strong.”  [Note: gruitheam is a mix of curds and butter]

They also ate “barley bread and cheese” as well as “… milk, cheese, eggs, bread and butter.”

And for other meals, he wrote:

“…all of the people have little boats and catch fish. There is plenty of potatoes here. There are blackcock in extraordinary abundance, moor-fowl, plovers, wild pigeons.

“There is a great deal of fish: rock cod, haddocks, etc., and fresh water trout...a place where one may live in plenty, and even in luxury.”

The Scottish kitchen would turn out an abundance of soups and broths including Cock-a-Leekie (chicken and leek soup), Scotch Broth (barley enriched soup) and Cullen Skink (a stew/soup from Cullen on the shores of the Moray Firth usually made with Finnan Haddock and brose, a simple soup with kale, with a handful of oatmeal).

For the Hogmanay feast, there would be Haggis with tatties, steak pie, Cock-a-Leekie soup and, if you were on the sea, salmon. Haggis, which I have tried, never appealed. It starts with the large stomach bag of a sheep, into which goes the pluck (including heart, lungs and liver) beef suet, pin-head oatmeal, onions, black pepper and salt. I’ll stick with salmon, kale and soup.

Clootie Dumpling

For dessert, you might have a clootie dumpling. The clootie dumpling is a traditional Scottish pudding closely associated with Christmas and Hogmanay. It’s like an English Christmas pudding only not as rich. Although flour, suet, dried fruit and spices always feature, the precise ingredients vary from region to region and family to family. The cloth, however, is constant – a reminder of the days before ovens, when family meals were boiled in a pot.

There would be Scottish shortbread, of course, as legendary as oatcakes. But no celebration would be complete in my mind without Cranachan, a dessert that incorporates some of Scotland’s most famous ingredients: raspberries, oats and whisky. You can see the recipe on my website.

Cranachan

What to drink? While distillation of whisky had been going on for a long time by the Regency era, most of the distilleries were illicit. The invention of the column still by Scotsman Robert Stein in 1828 revolutionized whisky making in Scotland. Then in 1831, Aeneas Coffey invented the Coffey or Patent Still, which enabled a continuous process of distillation leading to the production of grain whisky, a less intense spirit than the malt whisky produced in the copper pot stills.

In the early days, Scotch whisky was mostly considered the equivalent of moonshine—a drink enjoyed by unrefined Highlanders, aged in sheep bladders and filtered through tartan. Men like those in A Secret Scottish Christmas would be drinking the finest European wines, along with sherry, port, brandy and cognac.

And, of course, on New Year’s they would sing Auld Lang Syne. A version of the song existed decades before Robert Burns wrote it down. It’s said an old man dictated the words to him. Before Burns wrote it down, the ancient song had been passed on by word of mouth. The melody we know today that accompanies the lyrics didn’t appear until after Burns’ death in 1796.

The phrase “Auld Lang Syne” means “old long ago”, which can be translated as “days gone by” or “back in the day”. Thomas Keith, a Burns scholar, says the song symbolizes reunion, not parting, as some mistakenly believe. The song looks back over happy days from the past, a separation and then coming back together.

Once Upon a Christmas Past

An Historical Romance Holiday Collection

A Secret Scottish Christmas by Regan Walker 

Spies, Scots, and Shipmasters celebrate a very secret Christmas in Scotland as identical twins, Robbie and Nash Powell, spies for the Crown, compete for the love of the daughter of an Aberdeen shipbuilder.

A Highlander for Christmas by Paula Quinn 

As the bard of the MacGregor clan, Finlay Grant is a natural-born charmer. He can easily win the heart of any lass . . . but somehow, the right words to express his love for stunning Leslie Harrison have eluded him. Yet as Christmastide approaches, Finn knows he must find a way to propose to the raven-haired beauty who has stolen his heart.

A Knight’s Redemption by Catherine Kean 

Six Christmases ago, after refusing his kiss, Lady Mary Westbrook was locked in the dungeon by Lord Holden Kendall, a squire at Branton Keep. When an attempted child abduction days before Christmas brings Holden back to the castle, Mary must confront again what happened between them. Now a grown warrior, Holden resolves to not only make matters right with Mary but finally win her kiss. Yet, as peril ensues, Mary must risk far more than a chance at true love.

Christmas in Camelot by Brenda Jernigan 

Sir Nicholas the Dragon’s orders are clear. He is to fend off the enemy besieging Noelle’s castle and bring the lady safely back to Camelot for her wedding to Sir Gavin. But spending time with the proud beauty awakens an irresistible hunger in Nicholas. Now, as desire does battle with duty, Nicholas has only two choices — to surrender the woman he loves to another man or fight to the end to make her his own.

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AUTHOR GINA DANNA ON REGENCY AND VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS

A USAToday bestselling author, Gina Danna has spent the better part of her life reading. History has always been her love and she spent numerous hours devouring historical romance stories, always dreaming of writing one of her own. After years of writing historical academic papers she finally found time to write her own historical romantic novels. Learn more about Gina and her books at her website. 

Celebrating the Holidays – Regency style

As the holidays approach today, in the 21^st century, now is when we rev-up for all the festivities. We moan Christmas decorations arriving in the stores prior to Halloween (and in some, at the end of August!), but by November, we anxiously prepare for getting through Thanksgiving to put up our Christmas tree, decorate our homes, and shop for the perfect gift! Soon, sleigh bells will be ringing as buildings blink their holiday lights at night. Ah, tradition!

But truly, this version of the holidays is not that old. Christmas as a commercial celebration did not swing into gear until the late 19^th century, well past the Regency era. Yes, I can hear you asking didn’t they celebrate during Jane Austen’s time? Yes, but be prepared for anything other than the Hallmark movies.

During the Regency era and before, Christmas time was celebrating the birth of the Christ child. Often times, mass was a midnight affair, with families going en masse to it with an early fancy breakfast afterward. Churches that did not have the midnight service, offered an early morning affair, elaborate on music and jubilation on Mary and Joseph’s expected child. Again, a large breakfast was held afterward.

But wait – what about presents and the Christmas tree? The tree itself was part of the Germanic culture celebration – the Tannenbaum tree, introduced to the English (and then American) society when Queen Victorian married Prince Edward, who was of Germanic descent. 

Originally, Queen Victoria had a small evergreen on a table, like a centerpiece, lit with candles on the limbs. These candles, hung with a weighted stand so as to balance it, were lit Christmas morning, prior to the children coming to breakfast. A bucket of sand stood nearby in case there was an accident. As to the gifts, originally these were more for the children. Not toys, per se, but candies, an orange (which was particularly prized, since it was not in season), stockings, and a doll or model horse. These were hung, unwrapped, on the tree. So the scene must have been spectacular, even though short-lived.

Also, keep in mind, Christmas celebrations continued for the next twelve days with parties and merriment. There were balls and visits to neighbors. In the New World, oftentimes (during the Victorian era for sure), these twelve days were frequently the times when slaves were given ‘freedom’ from chores, to be with their families. The making of the Yuletide log was a point of reference to this practice, for as long as it burned, slaves had free time, so when they were sent to find the Yuletide log, they looked for the greenish stump, since green wood smoldered longer.

For our Regency period, this was also the time of house parties, where guests stayed for a week or longer. At these parties there were dances, fancy dinners, parlor games, and hunts. A fun time for all! And if true love was discovered, it was the greatest gift of them all! Merry Christmas!

A Merry Wicked Christmas

Lady Marina Lockhart's dreams of her upcoming Season debut are squashed by her father's news of an arranged marriage. An unexpected invitation to attend a country Christmas house party with her cousin carries the improbable hope of meeting a gentleman who will save her.

After a disastrous engagement, Phineas Carrollton, the Marquis of Huntington, buries himself in the affairs of running his country estate but begrudgingly agrees to host his sister's Christmas festivities. When he meets the lovely Lady Marina, his dismal mood is swept away by a passion he believed was dead inside him.

A sudden snowstorm strands Phineas and Marina at a hidden cottage, but her hopes of marriage vanish when he weaves a story concealing their time together, shattering her heart and dreams to save her from a loveless match, for she has fallen for the dashing Marquis. She obeys her father's summons to return to London for the wedding, holding in her heart the cherished memory of Phineas, a flame for the bleak years of marriage she faces. Unable to deny that Marina has ignited his heart, Phineas refuses to believe that she loves anyone but him. His headlong rush to London to stop the wedding will be only the beginning of his challenge.

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--AUTHOR M.A. LEE'S CONSTABLE SHARES HIS CORRESPONDENCE

M.A. Lee writes romantic suspense and historical murder mysteries.  Her Hearts in Hazard series is set in the Regency era of Great Britain.  Today her protagonist, Constable Hector Evans, shares with us a letter he wrote to the London Magistrate regarding a case he’s working on. Learn more about M.A. and her books at her website. 

To Magistrate William Sampson, Bow Street, London

From Constable Hector Evans, Chalmsley Court

I write to report a series of three murders, with the same modus operandi and a curious lack of evidence and witnesses.

My current theory of the murder is that debutantes should snare fiancés, not murder them.

That wasn’t my first theory of the crime when Lord Chalmsley reported the murder of one of his guests.  I expected a shooting disguised as a hunting accident.  But William Kennington, a young man in good health, died in his bed.  Nor was that my first thought when we found another guest with his blood staining the sheets and soaking into the mattress.  Barrington Pierpont died in the same manner as had Kennington.  Now we have found Edmund Tretheway killed in the same manner.  And the little bit of evidence that I do have points to one of the women, either a guest or a member of the family.  The three men have in common that all were recently betrothed, two of them to young ladies associated with Chalmsley Court.  And one of those ladies is Bee Seddars, the woman I love.

As you know, sir, Chalmsley Court is the typical English manor of a typical English peer.  Lord Chalmsley keeps as tight a finger on the estate as he does on his family.  While the Court does not often host parties, people are eager to visit, and the house has several families as guests in celebration of recent engagements.  The expansive gardens and well-run stables are known throughout the district.  Servants rush to perform the family’s bidding.  The house even has a mad woman in the attic, Mad Aunt Beth as she is known, an aunt of Lady Chalmsley who has lived on the fringes of the family for years.

I know all this because I spent my formative years at the great house.  I can still walk the garden paths with my eyes shut.  I know without thinking the number of minutes needed to walk to the stables and kennels far beyond the kitchen garden.  The house rises above a meandering river.  Every time I see it I remember the hours that I dallied with Beatrice Seddars—until his lordship sent me to London to work with you and your Bow Street Runners, chasing criminals on London’s sooty streets.

When I arrived here at the Court to investigate the murder, I thought I knew all the secrets of the house.  I have discovered that I do not know any of the recent secrets.  Mad Aunt Beth with her riddling snippets of ballads hints at recent troubles.  And Lord Chalmsley doesn’t accept that I can find no murder weapon or no evidence and that I have too many suspects to solve this case quickly.

Sir, I must admit that one of my chief problems with the suspects is that one of them is Bee.  I still love her, and I doubt my objectivity around her.  The third man dead was Bee’s fiancé, and she is a little too cool about his death.  I remind myself that she admitted she did not love him.  I worry that her coolness is because she murdered him.

Who had a reason to kill all three men?  To find that answer I will need a key to the secrets of Chalmsley Court.  I admit that I want to trust what Bee tells me.  Yet she could be diverting my attention from her guilt.  What do Mad Aunt Beth’s clues mean?  Is she helping me, or is she just insane?  Who had a reason to kill three men?

The evidence is here, sir.  I must find it.  When I do so, you may trust that I will see the culprit gaoled.  Nor matter who she is.

Sincerely,

Hector Evans, Constable

The Key to Secrets

Hearts in Hazard series, Book 7

Debutantes should snare fiancés, not murder them.

When Constable Hector Evans returns to Chalmsley Court, he doesn’t expect the violent crime to be the murder of one of Lord Chalmsley’s guests. His lordship wants a quick resolution, before gossip about the crime’s salacious nature and trap-like killing becomes widespread. With no murder weapon, no identifiable clues, and no eyewitnesses, Hector has little to build a case, but he has plenty of suspects, even when he realizes the murderer must be a woman.

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BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--INTERVIEW WITH HISTORICAL FICTION AUTHOR GINA DANNA

Today we sit down with author Gina Danna who writes historical fiction and historical romance set in Ancient Rome, Regency England, Victorian England, and the American Civil War. Learn more about Gina and her books at her website. 

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

Probably in my twenties when I read a ton of Regencies and other historicals and realized I knew the plot in the first few pages. I thought, wow, I could do this! Mulled with the idea for years. Took my son going to college to actually start.

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

Three years after starting to write.

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

I am a hybrid author.

Where do you write?

Just about anywhere. Get the most done at home, of course, but I take my laptop to work to write on my breaks or on a plane when I’m traveling.

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

At home and anywhere else, I’d prefer silence but work is crazy so there, I’ll put on a soundtrack to listen to, like the recent one I’ve been going to is Ken Burns American Civil War (that PBS series).

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

Well, this last series is on the Civil War, so from real life (Grant, Lee, Rosecrans, etc). And there are a few from my real life, who shall remain nameless. J

Describe your process for naming your character?

Always a hard one! In this series I’ve been writing, mostly from my family, since my mother’s family has been here since like the 1700s. I always get the Hero/Heroine kinda told to me by them and then the rest? Always difficult!

Real settings or fictional towns?

For most – real; for Regency – made up

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

In my personal life? My choices in men and in college degrees. Love history! But wow, hard to market outside museums (and I did have a wonderful career in museums – educator/curator; but when there’s a financial cut, they’re hit hard). And men? Well…

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves? A ton of books, great wine and a dog. J

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

Branch Office Admin at Edward Jones – hated it from day 1! But needed a job. BORING plus, I failed accounting in college (I’m a mathematician – accounting makes no sense to me)

What’s the best book you’ve ever read?

Hard to decide. Woodiwiss/Heath/Bob Mayer (his Civil War book, which he’s now cut into 3 books)/wow..so many more

Ocean or mountains?

Ocean!!!!! (I’m in landlocked Dallas now – I’ve lived near water all my life up to 3 years ago; so weird!)

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

City girl here

What’s on the horizon for you?

More writing. Working on a Christmas novella (which is a challenge – I’ve never had a short book) and researching for book 4 of the Civil War series.

Rags and Hope

Hearts Touched by Fire series, Book 3

Thanks to his father’s political machinations, grieving widower Colonel Pierce Duval only wants to leave his family home in New York and return to his Union command in Tennessee. A chance and harrowing encounter with a true-blue Southern belle stirs emotions he thought long buried. When her safety is at stake, how can he not help her? 

Cerisa Fontaine ran away from her wealthy Louisiana home to build a new life away from her family’s awful secret. But her controversial marriage and southern drawl make her a pariah in New York. Her situation becomes downright perilous when her husband is killed in battle. Alone and penniless, Cerisa is forced to seek employment at the only establishment that will accept her: a brothel.

Each for self-serving reasons, Pierce and Cerisa embark on a journey to Tennessee posing as a married couple. But as secrets stand between them, passion wages its war within them. All too soon, they must make a life altering choice: remain loyal to their cause, or give in to their heart’s desire.

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