Authors: Elizabeth Hoyt

Tags: #Contemporary, #Fiction, #Romance, #General, #Man-Woman Relationships, #Love Stories, #Historical, #Great Britain, #Aristocracy (Social Class), #Yorkshire (England)

The Leopard Prince (33 page)

BOOK: The Leopard Prince

12.75Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub

Read Book Download Book

ads

She paused halfway out of the room and shot him an enigmatic look over her shoulder. “You didn’t have any when I found you.” She closed the door quietly.

Simon blinked. Usually he didn’t lose his clothes until at least the second meeting with a lady.

THE DISH

Where authors give you the inside scoop!

From the desk of Samantha Graves

There are some characters who will haunt a writer until their story is told. Raven Callahan from SIGHT UNSEEN (on sale now) was one such character.

She was born from a One-Page Workshop exercise at my local writing chapter, where she fended off an attacker in an underwater cave. Call it intuition or inspiration, I decided that psychic touch was the edge Raven needed to be a world-class art thief and give her a humanity she didn’t always welcome. Fearless, capable, and fiercely independent, I knew I had a character I would never forget. But when the workshop was over, I filed her scene into the “Someday” folder on my desk as other obligations called.

For three years, Raven waited impatiently for me to create a story worthy of her courage and skill, full of high-stakes adventure, danger, and a hero who would challenge her at every turn, yet accept her just the way she was—the one man she couldn’t walk away from. Enter David Maddox, an ex-cop surviving on guilt and vengeance. With nothing left to lose, he needed redemption as much as Raven did, even if she would
never
admit it. They would learn the hard way that the only thing they could depend on was each other.

But I have to admit that half the fun of writing this book was the opportunity to research some remarkable locales I have always wanted to visit myself. From the excitement of Miami to the trop ical paradise of Key West to the sultry heat of Havana, I made their adventure mine.

So now their story is told in SIGHT UNSEEN, and although my “Someday” file doesn’t look much smaller, Raven Callahan can finally rest.

Happy reading!

www.samanthagraves.com

From the desk of Sarah McKerrigan

In KNIGHT’S PRIZE (on sale now), the final chapter in my Warrior Maids of Rivenloch trilogy, Rand la Nuit, infamous mercenary and expert swordsman, hunts the elusive outlaw known as The Shadow. But who is the mysterious, quick-as-lightning thief? And what is sweet Miriel of Rivenloch hiding from him? The quest draws Rand closer and closer to a shocking truth—that the seemingly innocent woman he’s falling hopelessly in love with knows more than she’s letting on about The Shadow.

Writing KNIGHT’S PRIZE presented a fascinating challenge for me—intertwining the cultures of East and West in a medieval setting. The Silk Road trade route was established at this time, so I imagined that some martial arts might have been imported along with the silk. Thus was born a very different type of damsel in shining armor—a medieval heroine who kicks butt Chinese-style!

Why martial arts? As a kid, I always thought Kato was way cooler than The Green Hornet. My guilty pleasure is Jackie Chan movies, which I watch with my teenage son. And I could watch that beautifully choreographed foyer fight scene from
The Matrix Reloaded
a hundred times.

The best thing about martial arts is that size doesn’t matter. I learned that as a pint-sized girl, studying judo. It’s all about momentum, strategy, grace, speed, agility, and surprise, using an attacker’s own strength against him. And as you can imagine, martial arts are also the great equalizer of the sexes!

As a reader, I love surprises, so I’ve packed plenty of them into KNIGHT’S PRIZE. No one is who they seem to be, twists and turns abound, and the story has an explosive ending! The romance and adventure should keep you up all night. Let me know if it did at www.sarahmckerrigan.com.

From the desk of Elizabeth Hoyt

Gentle Reader,

Whilst going through some old papers I found the pamphlet below. Although the author chose to remain anonymous, I have reason to believe that Lady Georgina Maitland, my heroine from THE LEOPARD PRINCE (on sale now), in fact wrote it.

Advice for the Landowning Lady of Means on the Hiring of Land Stewards

by an Anonymous Lady Who Knows

1. When hiring a steward the genteel lady should keep in mind that there are many Aesthetically Pleasing gentlemen who are just as much in need of work as those that are older, surlier, and not nearly as pleasant to look upon. It is your duty to hire them.

2. The Feminine Employer should remember that it is she who is in charge. Do not be afraid to issue orders to your Male Employee, although there are times when it may be to your advantage to permit your steward to issue orders to
you
.

3. Do not under any circumstances enter into an Intimate Relationship with your land steward.

4. However, should you succumb to broad shoulders, a dry tone, and a knowing gaze, do try to be discreet.

5. Whatever you do, do not let your brothers become aware of the liaison.

6. Or your sister.

7. Or your aunt, your family, your friends, your lady’s maid, or indeed any of the other servants, passing strangers, and the public in general.
Discretion
should be the watchword for the Genteel Lady desiring Further Acquaintance with her land steward.

8. It is This Author’s opinion that it is of Paramount Importance that the land steward be skilled in kissing and other Intimate Arts. She cannot stress this particular point enough.

9. The Lady of Means should try to refrain from mooning about and thinking obsessively of her land steward. This behavior is apt to attract the notice of Other People (see points 5, 6, and 7 above).

10. Finally, the Genteel Lady Landowner must never,
ever
, fall in love with her land steward. That way lies disaster—or at least a very good book.

Yours Most Sincerely,