Blonds Have More Fun!

We're delighted to welcome today's special guest, and our dear friend, Anna Campbell back to The Romance Dish. Anna's newest book, Midnight's Wild Passion, was released two days ago and is gathering rave reviews across the romance community, including 5 Stars from Janga here at The Romance Dish. (Click here to read Janga's review.) When Anna enters a room, smiles and laughter are always her companions so sit back, relax and prepare to enjoy yourself as Anna joins us to celebrate Midnight's Wild Passion!



North American Cover



Hiya Dishes! I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be here, not with my reviewer hat on (although that's always fun!) but in my romance author persona! Thank you so much for inviting me here to talk about my new release from Avon (26th April North America, 1st May Australia and New Zealand) MIDNIGHT'S WILD PASSION.



Australia/New Zealand Cover





You can read an excerpt of MIDNIGHT'S WILD PASSION here:
http://www.annacampbell.info/wildpassion.html

Anyway, enough of the idle chatter, I thought I'd get into the really profound issues today and talk about...

Hero hair color!!!

Yep, we cover all the deep philosophical questions here on the Dishes. The meaning of life. Global warming. How to grow African violets. Just when billionaires replaced mere millionaires in Harlequin Presents!

Up until now, my heroes have all been the classic tall, dark and handsome. But when the hero of MIDNIGHT'S WILD PASSION prowled onto the page, he was (shock! horror!) blond. I told him he had to be dark and he just arched one rakish golden eyebrow at me and went on his merry way, fair in coloring if not in behavior, at least until he undergoes his redemption arc, anyway!

Nicholas Challoner, Marquess of Ranelaw, was very vivid to me both physically and emotionally as I wrote him. He was a man with those fallen angel looks that kinda make your heart beat faster! I had a couple of vague models for him. One was the sexy angel from Barbarella which I hadn't seen for years. But I remembered John Philip Law's olive skin and his golden hair - and a rather spectacular bod! Even closer to my concept of Ranelaw was a rather obscure British actor called Marcus Gilbert who played the hero in a couple of Barbara Cartland telemovies back in the 80s. Look at that bone structure! Doesn't he look like the perfect blond Regency rake? You can just see him casting a roguish eye upon our heroine and setting out to work his wiles to get her into the nearest bedroom.

When it came time to talk about covers, my editor and I had a bit of back and forth about Ranelaw's coloring. She definitely prefers them dark. You'd think a mere fact like changing hair color wouldn't matter much - but again, Ranelaw basically flipped me the finger. He was blond and he was staying blond. You'll notice that the gorgeous guy in the stepback is dark-haired! Not that the girl in the picture seems to be complaining.

I must say generally my preference too runs to dark hair in romances although I'm not averse to a great blond. Francis Crawford from Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Series is blond (mind you, he's another guy whose interior is as dark as his exterior is bright). The gorgeous Esmond in Loretta Chase's classic CAPTIVES OF THE NIGHT is blond and he's one of the most charismatic heroes I've ever read.

So do you have a preference? Do you think blonds have more fun? Do you have any favorite blond heroes? And most important of all, have you ever had any luck with African violets? Every time I've tried to grow them, they disintegrate into an 'orrible slimy mess. I've got a signed copy of MIDNIGHT'S WILD PASSION for one lucky commenter today! Good luck!

Anna, thank you for visiting with us today! Readers, to learn more about this award-winning author, visit her website and "like" her on facebook. Don't forget to also visit her at the multi-author blog, and one of our favorite sites, Romance Bandits!

Guest Review - - Midnight's Wild Passion

Midnight’s Wild Passion
By Anna Campbell
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: April 26, 2011

A notorious rake with an ancient name and enviable wealth, Nicholas Challoner, Marquess of Ranelaw raises eyebrows and ruffles feathers when he appears at a debutante ball where he is as out of place as a tiger at a tea party. What the denizens of London’s ballrooms don’t know is that Ranelaw is a man ruthlessly set on revenge, a revenge that has been years in the making. Long ago Godfrey Demarest charmed Ranelaw’s young sister into surrendering her virginity and then abandoned her. Two decades later another innocent young woman, Demarest’s daughter, Cassandra, provides Ranelaw with the perfect instrument for his revenge. A ruined life for a ruined life is definitely the Marquess’s motto.

Ranelaw has no doubt of his ability to seduce his victim, but this lord who boasts of his ability to eradicate chaperones is unprepared for Miss Antonia Smith, companion to Cassie. Experience has taught Miss Smith more than she ever wanted to know about rakes. Disowned by her family and forced to assume a disguise of “irreproachable rectitude” for the past ten years, Antonia is determined to protect her charge from repeating the mistakes made by Lady Antonia Hilliard, the girl Antonia Smith once was. The battle is on. Ranelaw and Antonia are engaged in a duel of moves and counter moves, complicated by the growing attraction that threatens to destroy his perfect revenge and her carefully constructed identity.

I’ll admit up front that I am not a fan of revenge plots. Had I been less a fan of Anna Campbell, I might well have passed on this one for that reason. For several chapters, Ranelaw seemed more villain than hero. I was repulsed not only by his willingness to destroy the life of an innocent but also by the fact that he recognizes the heinousness of his own actions and yet is not deterred from his plan. The struggle between Ranelaw’s darker and better selves is powerful, and the outcome seems in question for much of the novel. Just when the reader thinks that love may redeem him, the rake resurfaces:

He’d stared into her eyes, dark with confusion and unwilling passion, and for one, stark, horrible instant, he’d wished to be that different man. He’d wished to be worthy of her.

Hell, no. he was perfectly happy with who he was. He had more freedom than anyone he knew. He took what he wanted and discarded it when he’d had his fill. His world held no limits.

To my surprise, I found myself as a reader seduced by Ranelaw’s guinea gold hair and shades-of-gray heart. Like Antonia, I came to realize that “a reluctant hero skulked inside the Marquess of Ranelaw.”

I did like Antonia immediately. Ms. Campbell is well-known for her hot, angst-filled heroes, but she is equally skilled at creating remarkable, courageous heroines. Antonia is such a heroine. Some of my favorite romance heroines are those whose deepest nature is at odds with the image they present to the world. I’m happy to add Antonia to the list.

The secondary characters are also memorable. Cassie is a dear—young, idealistic, and loyal, with a surprising streak of pragmatism that surfaces at a crucial moment. Cassie’s father and Antonia’s benefactor, Demarest, is also an exceptionally well-drawn character—a carelessly kind man and indulgent father, who is nonetheless shallow, selfish, and incapable of accepting responsibility for his actions. I’d love to see more of Cassie and of Antonia’s brother, Henry.

Although her new novel lacks the darkness of Ms. Campbell’s earlier, Regency noir stories, it has all the emotional intensity and sizzling love scenes that one expects in an Anna Campbell novel. It’s another AC keeper! If you are a reader who sticks to light-hearted romance, this book is not for you. But for those who love a passionate, poignant romance that shows the redemptive power of love, I highly recommend Midnight’s Wild Passion.

~Janga