It's our pleasure to welcome historical romance author Theresa Romain back to the Romance Dish today!
Theresa pursued an impractical education that allowed her to read everything she could get her hands on. She then worked for universities and libraries, where she got to read even more. Eventually she started writing, too. She lives with her family in the Midwest, where she is working on her next book. This September, she’ll begin a new historical romance trilogy with IT TAKES TWO TO TANGLE (recently featured in Eloisa James' Reading Romance column at BarnesandNoble.com). In October, her third holiday historical romance—SEASON FOR SCANDAL—will be released. (For fans of the series, this book is Jane's story!)
Theresa pursued an impractical education that allowed her to read everything she could get her hands on. She then worked for universities and libraries, where she got to read even more. Eventually she started writing, too. She lives with her family in the Midwest, where she is working on her next book. This September, she’ll begin a new historical romance trilogy with IT TAKES TWO TO TANGLE (recently featured in Eloisa James' Reading Romance column at BarnesandNoble.com). In October, her third holiday historical romance—SEASON FOR SCANDAL—will be released. (For fans of the series, this book is Jane's story!)
Website:
http://theresaromain.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorTheresaRomain
Twitter:
@TheresaRomain
Welcome, Theresa!
Welcome, Theresa!
All the Ingredients
for Romance
Thanks, PJ and Andrea, for hosting me today!
I ought to pretend I watch the Food Network for the recipes
and advice. For tips on healthful cooking, intriguing and simple meals, or a
use for that spare pound of butter in the freezer.
But really, I don’t. I watch the competitions. A recipe for
chicken legs? Pfft, I want to see what people can make with chicken feet. And hot dogs are a food too dull
to mention—unless they’re part of a dessert.
As you might guess, my favorite show is CHOPPED, that
marvelous hour in which unsuspecting contestants
In my new historical romance, IT TAKES TWO TO TANGLE, the
hero and heroine are both pushed to the edge of a society in which they used to
belong. They don’t have many ingredients to work with anymore: Henry’s been
injured in war, and Frances has been disinherited. Instead of wishing for more resources,
they have to get creative. They have to figure out how to build something
wonderful with the life they’ve been given. And as it turns out, together they
can create a life, and a love, far more delicious than anything they imagined
on their own.
Because I love making tables, here’s a closer look at how IT
TAKES TWO TO TANGLE compares to CHOPPED. Warning: silliness ahead.
CHOPPED
|
IT
TAKES TWO TO TANGLE
|
|
Heroine’s
greatest skill
|
Working
with knives to create pleasing dishes despite crazy ingredients
|
Working
with words to create pleasing social interactions despite crazy guests
|
Heroine’s
greatest difficulty
|
Completing
an appetizer in twenty minutes using all four basket ingredients
|
Completing
letters to man she loves on behalf of someone else
|
At
stake is…
|
Professional
respect (and ten thousand dollars)
|
Social
respect (and…oops, the rest might be a spoiler)
|
Witty
and all-knowing host?
|
Yes,
bespectacled Ted Allen
|
Yes,
silk-clad Caroline, Lady Stratton
|
Villain
|
White
truffle oil (or raw red onions, if Scott Conant is in attendance)
|
Lord
Wadsworth (no matter who is in attendance)
|
Motivation
of villain
|
Domination
of flavor profile
|
Domination
of social situation
|
Hero’s
victory achieved by…
|
Out-cooking
one’s competitors and not getting chopped
|
Out-dueling
one’s competitors and not getting shot
|
What's your favorite ingredient - either in cooking or in a romance novel? I'm eager to hear your thoughts! One random commenter will win a copy of IT TAKES TWO TO TANGLE. Open to US and Canada.
WOOING THE WRONG WOMAN…
Henry Middlebrook is back from fighting Napoleon, ready to re-enter London society where he left it. Wounded and battle weary, he decides that the right wife is all he needs. Selecting the most desirable lady in the ton, Henry turns to her best friend and companion to help him with his suit…
IS A TERRIBLE MISTAKE…
Young and beautiful, war widow Frances Whittier is no stranger to social intrigue. She finds Henry Middlebrook courageous and manly, unlike the foppish aristocrats she is used to, and is inspired to exercise her considerable wit on his behalf. But she may be too clever for her own good, and Frances discovers that she has set in motion a complicated train of events that’s only going to break her own heart…
UNLADYLIKE RISK
Jane Tindall has never had money of her own or exceptional beauty. Her gifts are more subtle: a mind like an abacus, a talent for play-acting—and a daring taste for gambling. But all the daring in the world can’t help with the cards fixed against her. And when Edmund Ware, Baron Kirkpatrick, unwittingly spoils her chance to win a fortune, her reputation is ruined too. Or so she thinks, until he suggests a surprising mode of escape: a hasty marriage. To him. On the surface, their wedding would seem to satisfy all the demands of proper society, but as the Yuletide approaches, secrets and scandals turn this proper marriage into a very improper affair.
