I just threw everything into this book that made my heart skip a beat. I had to have a hot but humiliated hero, with a huge amount to prove. I wanted a vulnerable but resourceful heroine, with a shady past, a domineering mother, and a kind-hearted maiden aunt with a soft spot for a gypsy healer. I wanted villains too, oodles of them, so I created a nefarious smuggling ring under the control of a coldly calculating traitor who could, if not foiled, betray Regency England straight into the hands of Napoleon Bonaparte.

In fact, I wanted my hero to be like a Jane Austen version of James Bond. Imagine 007 in breeches, and you have the resourceful Rafe Pomeroy, Earl of Beckport. He’s not as fickle as Bond but equally seductive, and he displays a touch more humour, combined with a dash of gallantry.

And he wears a tricorn hat. I don’t know what it is about them, but these three pointed hats on a handsome man just make me MELT. I guess I fell in love with Dick Turpin on TV when I was a kid—for those who don’t know, the character was based on a real-life highwayman back in the 1700s, who became a bit of a folk hero. I adored the romantic image of the dashing highwayman, holding a swooning damsel in his arms as he courteously relieved her of her jewelry.

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What a pleasure it is to be a guest on Ever After Romance! I’m celebrating the release of my new book, A Lady’s Deception, in which the heroine chooses to keep her baby a secret from the hero, who has gone off to war. This “secret baby” becomes the catalyst for the remainder of the story.

So, what makes an enjoyable “secret baby” romance? First, a child complicates things but must not overpower the romance, which should always take center stage. Second, the introduction of the baby into the plot must come at a pivotal moment. Our two protagonists need to care deeply about the child and be willing to make sacrifices to assure her well-being. And last, when all is said and done, the child should bring the hero and heroine together.

In Loretta Chase’s Not Quite a Lady, Lady Charlotte Hayward is seduced and gives birth at age seventeen. The child, a boy, is given to a “good” family to raise, but Charlotte secretly hopes that someday she’ll be reunited with him. After what happened, she’s determined never to marry. Darius Carsington, our hero, also has no intention of marrying. So, of course, the two meet and sparks fly. Just when the reader is wondering when the secret baby will ever make an appearance, the author reveals the child in a surprising and clever way. When the boy goes missing, Charlotte and Darius spring into action to find him, solidifying their trust in and love for each other.

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The heroine’s father in How to Bewilder a Lord is very determined to keep her from marrying the hero, by fair means or foul, and it got me thinking about other famously meddlesome parents. Here are my Top 5:

1. Mrs. Bennett from Pride and Prejudice – Though her fondest wish is to see all five of her daughters secure an advantageous match, her meddling has the opposite effect and she ends up scaring off their most promising suitors.
2. Titanic – When the movie starts, Rose’s mother has forced her to accept an offer from Cal, a rich but rather unpleasant man who is paying for their voyage on the Titanic. Rose is so distraught she climbs onto the outside of a railing and contemplates suicide, but luckily Jack rescues her. I think we all know how this story ends, but just think. If her mother hadn’t forced her to marry Cal, they never would’ve been on the ship in the first place, and I choose to believe that since she was meant to be with Jack, she would have met him somewhere else. Due to her mother’s meddling, they never had that chance.
3. Do You Want to Start a Scandal by Tessa Dare – As the story begins, all Charlotte wants to do is avoid a scandal since her mother’s matchmaking schemes have already given her a reputation as a fortune hunter, but when someone has a tryst at a ball and rumor has it she was the one, she must clear her name or be forced to marry the emotionless Lord Granville. Luckily for her, he turns to out to be very different than she first thought, and since this is a romance, we know everything will work out in the end despite her mother’s interference.
4. Jane Foster and Thor – I’m basing this off of the Marvel movies, in which Odin does not seem overly fond of Jane. Perhaps it’s just his dislike of mortals, but in any case, he wanted her out of Asgard as quickly as possible in the second movie, and supposedly she won’t be in the next one. This actually works for me because I love me some Thor and the less competition I have, the better my chances are.
5. Romeo and Juliet – Though one could argue that Romeo and Juliet brought disaster upon themselves, and they were certainly in touch with their inner drama queens, you have to admit that their parents were also at fault. Everybody knows if you forbid a teenager to do something, they’re going to work even harder to make it happen.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ally Broadfield started reading historical romance at the age of twelve and has never looked back. Her four dogs and two cats keep her company while she writes, and in her free time, she shuttles kids around and binge watches Outlander, This is Us, and Younger. You can find her on her website, Facebook, and Twitter, though she makes no claims of using any of them properly.

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Thanks so much for having me today. Today, I’ve borrowed an idea from one of my writer friends, Shana Galen. So without further ado I give you the first five, the first paragraph from the first five chapters. I hope these little tastes whet your appetite for Eloping With the Princess.

 

Chapter One:

Isabel Crisp had always considered herself the most ordinary of women. Of unknown or undetermined parentage, she relied on the generosity of her uncle, Lord Thornton, to fund her rather mediocre education at St. Bartholomew’s School for Girls. At nineteen, she had long ago made peace with her lack of prospects. After all, if her uncle had intended to withdraw her from school and launch her into society, it would’ve happened long ago.

 

Chapter Two:

Jason ran outside his London townhome and peered in both directions, but the lady was nowhere to be seen. He swiped blood out of his right eye, then followed the hoof tracks to and from his house, noting a rock indenture in one hoofprint that crossed from well before his address to well after. In one direction, though, the tracks were slightly deeper, indicating a change in the weight of the rider.

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