I'm delighted to host Maggie Robinson today! I've known Maggie for a long time - since before she published her first novel - and I'm always excited when she has a new release. I know when I pick up one of her books that I'm going to be thoroughly entertained.
Maggie is a former teacher and library clerk who didn't begin writing until she was, as she puts it, a "woman of a certain age." Check her website for the full story of what inspired her to write (hint: annoyed with husband, middle of the night, and quest for the perfect man all play a part). Her books have earned her two Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice nominations, an Amazon Editors' Best Book of the Month selection and have been translated into multiple foreign languages. Maggie is happily married to the same man who inspired her to write and is a proud mother and grandmother. You can read more about her at her website and connect online with her at Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Welcome back, Maggie!
It wouldn’t be a new book without a visit to the
Romance Dish! Thank you, P.J. for the opportunity to invite you all to the
Puddling-on-the-Wold world. The fictional “celebrity rehab” center,
the setting for Schooling the Viscount,
was founded in 1806. Rumor has it that in exchange for an unknown sum, the
Puddlingites agreed to be the repository for the rebellious sons and daughters
of Great Britain’s finest families. Like a spa without yucky mineral water,
deep-tissue massages, or mysterious crystals, rich young men and women are
forced under house-arrest to eat healthy food, work, and give up their
excesses. A quiet month in the country is the prescription, a resort of last
resort.
The tiny village I envisioned was
inspired by a stay in the Cotswolds a few years ago. If four weeks in a cozy
cottage was good for me, imagine how soothing it would be for the unhappy 19th
century folks who faced Bedlam or attics (I’m looking at you, Mrs. Rochester)
if they didn’t conform to society’s rules. So Puddling became an open-air sort
of hospital in which to refresh, reform and rusticate. Much more humane than
cold baths or electric shock or laudanum!
My first “inmate” in the Cotswold
Confidential series is Captain Lord Henry Challoner, a young veteran of the
first Boer War wounded in body and spirit. He’s been sent to Puddling to mend
the errors of his ways—women, whiskey, and wild times. But when he claps eyes
on schoolteacher Rachel Everett, he begins to see a different path. And stars.
Or bullets.
Here’s an exclusive excerpt of Henry’s
and Rachel’s first kiss:
Henry
had not been a coward when it counted, but he felt like a coward now in
supposed peacetime. The armistice was signed just last month, too late to do
him any good. How could he pretend everything was all right?
Well,
of course it was all right this very minute. He had a fresh-scented young woman
in his lap, whose skin, what he could feel of it, was satin-soft. She was
kissing him open-mouthed, her tongue tangling with his. He really had
absolutely no complaints. This Puddling place was improving by the lick.
Until
the slap. Henry’s head snapped back against the stone wall with a sickening
thunk, and for a moment he saw stars. Or perhaps swirling bullets—it was hard
to tell. Then he saw the young woman’s dismayed face.
Lord,
he didn’t even know her name, but she looked concerned, and so she should. He
hadn’t been walloped like that since his school days. She might have even done
him permanent damage, cracked his skull or some such. He was already physically
impaired. Damn if he was going to wind up shuffling about not even knowing his
own name.
“Oh!
I’m so sorry!” Miss Whosis tried to scramble off his lap, but Henry held her
fast. “Are you hurt? Bleeding? I didn’t mean for you to hit your head.”
Was he bleeding?
Henry didn’t care for the sight of blood. He’d seen far too much of it recently
in Africa. He refrained from trying to touch the back of his throbbing
head—he’d have to release Miss Whosis to do so, and he had no intention
whatsoever of doing that. She fit so nicely into his lap. Was so warm and
cuddly and pretty. He felt…complete.
Henry
stared into the cloudless heavens. The sky was bright blue, and he fancied it
matched his eyes. Would she make the comparison herself? He batted his
eyelashes.
“Who—who
are you? Where am I?” he groaned.
Was
he laying it on too thick? Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
***
Henry eventually works his way into
Rachel’s heart, battling both sets of parents, the Puddling Rehabilitation Foundation,
the parson, and Rachel’s pugnacious dog Rufus. I’m thrilled that the Amazon
Editors called the book “hilarious” and selected it as a best book of the month
in romance!
Throughout the book, Henry is forced
to eat nutritious and bland food, part of the Puddling Program, until Rachel
sneaks him some more interesting fare.
If you were going to break your diet,
what would your most delicious meal be? I plump for Thanksgiving dinner with
all the trimmings!
One commenter gets an e-copy of Schooling the Viscount, or any book from my backlist!
Schooling the Viscount
By Maggie Robinson
Cotswold Confidential - Book 1
Publisher: Lyrical Press
Release Date: January 31, 2017
After a harrowing tour of duty abroad, Captain Lord Henry Challoner fought to keep his memories at bay with two of his preferred vices: liquor and ladies. But the gin did more harm than good--as did Henry's romantic entanglements, since he was supposed to be finding a suitable bride. Next stop: The tiny village in Gloucestershire, where Henry can finally sober up without distraction or temptation. Or so he thinks...
A simple country schoolteacher, Rachel Everett was never meant to cross paths with a gentleman such as Henry. What could such a worldly man ever see in her? As it turns out, everything. Beautiful, fiercely intelligent Rachel is Henry's dream woman--and wife. Such a match would be scandalous for his family of course, and Rachel has no business meddling with a resident at the famed, rather draconian, Puddling Rehabilitation Foundation. All the better, for two lost souls with nothing to lose--and oh so very much to gain.
I love the picturesque Cotswold villages ... used to live in the Cotswold escarpment at Uley village. Maggie, I'm a little afraid that If I read this series, Stow on the Wold will never seem quite the same again!
ReplyDeleteTo break a diet I would choose a gourmet restaurant, in the Cotswolds of course, I think perhaps Indian. I'm quite partial to a Biryani.
Quantum! Long time no see! We stayed in Painswick (which I much-miniaturized for the setting) for a month, and then in Kingham last spring. Did not see any of the Chipping Norton set, although there was a hunt that drew everyone to the side of the road. Such lovely scenery, but you have to be short to live in those old cottages. My husband nearly knocked himself unconscious!
ReplyDeleteMaggie, I loved visiting Puddling-on-the-Wold. It has joined Julie Anne Long's Pennyroyal Green and Tessa Dare's Spindle Cove as a favorite historical "small town." I'm eagerly awaiting the next visit.
ReplyDeleteOh, gosh, thank you! I had so much fun world-building, which I'd never really done before. I have to keep the five streets straight tho, LOL.Maybe I should draw myself a map!
DeleteWelcome, Maggie! I'm so looking forward to reading this book. The description hits all my "happy reader" buttons and Janga's addition of Puddling-on-the-Wold to her Pennyroyal Green/Spindle Cove favorites list amps up the excitement even further. I'm heading out to run errands in a bit then plan to settle in with Rachel and Henry for the afternoon. Can't wait! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks again for having me visit! Hope you like the book--I must say it was one of my favorites to write (even though I'm not supposed to say stuff like that, LOL).
DeleteIt would probably be what we make for special occasions. Prime rib or chateau brion, rebaked potato, green beans almondine, sour cream crescent rolls, with cheese cake and or mincemeat pie for dessert, a good red wine and strong, rich coffee with dessert.
ReplyDeleteOh, now I'm hungry! Pat, may I come to your house? ;)
DeleteWell, dang! Now I'm drooling all over the place.
DeleteAny time, Maggie. You are invited too, PJ. Haven't done the full blown meal in a while, but did do the Prime rib for Christmas.
DeleteI am ready for some BBQ ribs, cole slaw and corn on the cob. For dessert I want Death by Chocolate cake. I want some ice tea to drink.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite summer meals! I can no longer have the cake but I sure can chow down on the rest of it. :)
DeleteI can come to your house too, Pamela! I'll bring the Wetnaps.
DeleteI've got to get offline for the evening, but will check back in tomorrow to whet my appetite! Thanks so much for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Maggie! Have a nice evening!
DeleteThanksgiving Dinner sounds like an amazing choice! However, I would definitely need to have something very chocolaty for dessert!
ReplyDeleteYou know, there's something wrong with me. I could live w/o chocolate, which I guess makes me a bad romance writer. ;)
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