Lord Shallow by Eileen Putman - Book Tour
LORD SHALLOW
Eileen Putman
Regency Historical Romance
To all of London, Sebastian Traherne is a pretentious fop who prizes
his tailor over his dukedom. In truth, he’s an obsessively rational
fellow protecting a secret marriage. When a prickly Welsh miss arrives
at his crumbling castle one gloomy night, she upends his world—and every
principle he holds dear. Worse, she believes in a silly fairy tale
known as True Love.
Gwynna Owen might be the last true Princess of Wales, but she needs
this very English duke to claim her legacy and vanquish a tyrant. When
Sebastian quickly sees through her boy’s disguise, she must plead her
case with only a rusty dagger—and sapphire eyes that conjure what he
most wishes to avoid.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: One early surprise may be a deal breaker for
some romance fans. If you’re looking for classic Regency historical that
fits a formula, Lord Shallow may not be your cup of tea. Yet
character will out. Here you’ll find a man who is so much more than he
seems and a woman who’s finding her voice after years of having it
suppressed. Their struggle as they make their way to one another is this
story’s truth.
About Maitland’s Rogues: Andrew Maitland’s group of daring
English rogues risk all for their country. Hardened and deadly, they
have no use for love—until it ensnares them…
_____________________
Gwynna had prepared herself to face an old man who might wish to set things right in the twilight of his years. Instead, she had this aloof aristocrat.
Pretentious fop or no, the Duke of Claremont was something else as well: Beautiful. As handsome a man as Gwynna had seen.
Moreover, he was immense. Measuring him with her Welshwoman’s eye, which could judge at a glance whether there was meal in the larder to last the month, Gwynna decided he was nearly half a foot taller than any man she knew.
Yet his eyes held a cool intelligence. He was no one’s fool.
Despair swept her. She might have faced down an old man preparing to meet his Maker, but she’d never persuade this too-perceptive aristocrat—whose features had only hardened since discovering her gender—that she was a member of his family.
Still, she was an Owen. He was but an Englishman. Welsh did not give way to English.
“I am the daughter of Megan Glendower Owen of Anglesey,” Gwynna said. "It’s an island off North Wales. It’s there William and my mother met. They fell in love.”
His gaze narrowed. “How the devil do you know that?”
That was the rub. She had no proof.
The duke looked down that patrician nose. “You Welsh are storytellers, are you not? Doubtless you felt compelled to put a lovely bow on something sordid—”
“It was love,” Gwynna insisted. “A man with your lofty self-regard cannot possibly fathom how passion can sweep all else aside."
He stiffened. "You know nothing of me."
A frisson of uneasiness swept her. They were all but alone in this dreadful castle.
His gaze hardened. "There’s no reason to believe a word of your tale, especially since you’ve been engaged in pretense from the first.”
“I pretended to be a boy because I couldn’t travel alone as a woman.”
“Those ruffians were on the verge of unmasking you.”
“I would have prevailed. Owen was with me.”
The duke frowned. “The only person I saw at your side was your terrified friend. Owen, whoever he may be, was nowhere —”
“Owen is Prince of Wales.”
He blinked. “If I recall correctly, England already has a Prince of Wales. Just the one, mind you, and his name isn’t Owen. Moreover, he would be the last person to rush to any woman’s defense.”
“You refer to the Regent—English royalty,” Gwynna said. “I do not regard him. Owen was the last true Prince of Wales. I am his blood descendant.”
“Ah. He would be dead, then?”
She glared at him. “His spirit lives. I’ll have what I’m due by rights, Englishman. And while I am certain every woman in England finds you a catch, I have no use for puffed-up peacocks."
_____________________
AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Like many
authors, I struggle with self-doubt. I’m not good at judging my own work. The
challenge is to listen to that questioning voice, because it can sense valid
flaws, but not to let doubt inhibit my writing. Tall order!
2. If you
could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?Take
chances. Be brave in your writing, and honest above all. Genuine emotion must come
through on the page, and it can’t be faked. What I probably wouldn’t tell my
younger self is how much work it is to find a character’s emotional truth. There
are no shortcuts.
3.
Favorite childhood memory involving books?My mother
had a set of those old Childcraft books from her childhood. The pages were
yellowed, and they smelled funny. But such stories they held! Everything from
fairy tales to rhymes, and they were quaint but somehow mesmerizing.
4. If you
could dine with any literary character, who would it be and why?Sherlock
Holmes, but I fear it would not go well. Instead, I’d have a glass of wine with
any of the strong female characters created by K.F. Breene and Iona Andrews.
Some days, it’s Andrews’ Kate Daniels. Today, it’s Jacinta, Breene’s midlife
divorcee who finds her true self as a keeper of a magical house and becomes a
female gargoyle. I write in the Regency period, but these heroines inspire me.
5. Did
you want to be an author when you grew up?Does
anyone want to be an author? It’s more like you’re called to it and
can’t imagine doing anything else. Even as a child, when I tried to go to
sleep, stories kept spinning in my brain. I’m a journalist in my other life, so
I’m never not writing. Fiction was hard at first, because it wasn’t fact-based.
But I can’t escape it. Those stories still spin in my brain.
6. What’s one movie you like recommending to
others?This is
odd, but “Cast Away” with Tom Hanks stranded on an island with only a
volleyball he named Wilson
7. If you
could own any animal as a pet, what would it be?Oh, I do
own pets. Cats, always cats.
8. Have
you ever met anyone famous?Yep.
Journalism opens many doors. You cover famous people, but you don’t really get
to know them.
9.
How long, on average, does it take you to write a book?Forever.
A year, certainly. The last one took nearly two years. I’m always seeing ways I
can make my work better. That’s not necessarily a plus! At some point, you’ve
got to send that manuscript out into the universe.
10.
How do you select the names of your characters?They
just come to me and seem right.
11.
What creature do you consider your "spirit animal" to be?When
my daughter was young, I told her stories I made up about Jennifer and “Star,”
a unicorn who ferried her on magical adventures to other planets. I kinda think
I’d be the unicorn, barreling through the universe.
12.
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?Read
everything, especially outside the genre you’ve chosen to write. While you must
trust your inner writing voice, reading others will make your writing grow.
13.
Tell us 10 fun facts about yourself! :)Ten’s
a lot, but here’s a few: I love music, especially bluegrass and country. (Comes
from my Nashville
_________
Eileen Putman is the author of a dozen British historical and Regency
romances. Her love of England’s Regency period (1811-1820) has inspired
her research trips to England, Ireland, Wales, France and other
countries — there being no substitute for stepping on the soil that Beau
Brummell and his champagne-polished Hessians once trod.
Website Address: https://eileenputman.com/
Twitter Address: https://twitter.com/eileen_put
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