Blog Tour: Compromising the Marquess by Wendy Soliman

Today, J9 is interviewing author Wendy Soliman. Welcome to The Book Vixen Wendy!

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J9: I perceive Leah is a different historical heroine in that she’s liberated.  Did you do this consciously? And did it allow you to write a different kind of story?

Wendy Soliman: My intention was to make her desperate which, I suppose, also made her liberated. She could either meekly live on her uncle’s charity or use her wits to make an independent life for herself and her sister. Leah isn’t the type to live on anyone’s charity but knows that in a man’s world she’ll never be taken seriously. So she levels the playing field with her rather inadequate disguise as a lad!

Yes, it was a departure from the norm, and a lot of fun to write. Leah had a plausible reason to disregard the rule book and do whatever it took to survive. She isn’t interested in impressing anyone, which is what attracts Hal’s attention, and holds it.

 

J9: What is your favorite scene between Leah and Hal?

Wendy Soliman: Oh, I think near the beginning, when Leah goes to the local inn disguised as a lad and finds herself in the middle of an arranged fist fight. She also meets Hal for the first time. He pretends not to see through her disguise and treats her as ‘one of the boys’.

Hal is using the tavern as cover for important matters of state. He ought to discourage Leah from going anywhere near the place but instead invites her on a tour of his boat. Leah knows she’s getting in too deep, that Hal’s dangerous, but her curiosity’s piqued and it doesn’t even occur to her to decline.

 

J9: Please tell us what’s in store for Hal’s wonderful siblings?

Wendy Soliman: Oh, all sorts of existing adventures! Flick’s story is next. Beguiling the Barrister is due for publication in June and, as the name implies, it’s a courtroom drama, Regency style, featuring Darius Grantley, a barrister who fights for the rights of the underprivileged in the wonderful Old Bailey courthouse. He’s the man whom Flick decided she would marry when she was just eleven years old. All she has to do now is convince Darius to set aside his principles and admit he’s in love with her.

Lord Robert, Hal’s middle brother, is a chess master. Many think the game’s a dull way to pass the time but when Rob meets Electra Falzone, the beautiful, exotic and mysterious Sicilian contessa, it proves to be anything but dull.

Lord Gabriel, the youngest of the Forsters, finds himself in the middle of a young lady’s determination to escape her manipulating guardian. When he discovers Miranda Cantrell hiding in one of his barns in the middle of winter, almost freezing to death, he can’t just leave her to his own devices, can he?

 

J9: Any other projects you’d like to share with us?

Wendy Soliman: As well as romance, I also write marine crime mysteries for Carina as W. Soliman. The third, Lethal Business, will be published in March. My husband and I have had boats for years and I know more about the wretched things than any woman ever wanted to. So, in the true spirit of novelists the world over, I put that experience into a series of books.

My retired detective Charlie Hunter lives aboard his boat in Brighton marina, England. He just wants to be left alone to go fishing with his young son but some of his unsolved cases come back to haunt him. Charlie’s problem is that he never could resist a challenge, especially when it’s delivered by an attractive woman!

Oh, and I also write erotica for SirenBookStrand as Zara Chase!

 

J9: Who are some of your favorite authors?

Wendy Soliman: Daphne duMaurier. I love the way she was able to switch between historical and contemporary romance without losing her voice. Judith McNaught for the same reason. Georgette Heyer. No explanation necessary! Sandra Brown for romantic suspense.

Thanks so much for having me here. I’m giving a copy of Compromising the Marquess away. Please leave a comment and fill out the Rafflecopter form for a chance to win. Good luck!

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Wendy Soliman was brought up on the Isle of Wight in Southern England but now divides her time between Andorra and West Florida. She lives with her husband Andre and a rescued dog of indeterminate pedigree named Jake Bentley.

The Isle of Wight is full of historic buildings, which is where she acquired her love of history, absorbing it like osmosis. She is the author of nine single-title Regency romances and is excited about her up-coming series charting the fortunes of the Forster dynasty.

When not writing she enjoys reading other people’s books, walking miles with her dog whilst plotting her next scene, and is on a one-woman mission to save the wine industry from the economic slump. Well, someone’s got to do it!

Find the author online: website | blog | twitter | facebook

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England, 1814

Leah Elliot sells secrets to survive. Donning boy's clothes, she uncovers society scandals for a London gossip rag to support herself and her sister, who were left destitute after their father's death. When she meets the dashing—and perhaps dangerous—Hal Forster, the Marquess of Denby, she learns he may be involved in treason. The rumor is too valuable not to sell, despite her attraction to him…

Hal does have a secret, but he's no traitor: he's a spy embroiled in a mystery, seeking the man who killed his contact in France. He sees the alluring woman behind Leah's disguise at once but is intrigued enough to play along…until he realizes that she's the source of the rumors interfering with his investigation and forcing him into an unwanted betrothal.

Now, Hal and Leah must work together to draw out the culprit and undo the damage caused by Leah's gossip. Or will their passion only cause more scandal?

     Buy on Barnes & Noble

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Thanks to Wendy Soliman and Lit Connect, one lucky winner will receive an ebook copy of Compromising the Marquess. Good luck to all who enter!

• No purchase necessary.
• Must be 18 years old or older to enter.
• Giveaway open Internationally. Void where prohibited.
• You must leave a comment and fill out the Rafflecopter form in order to enter this giveaway. Do NOT leave your email address in the comments.
• Winner will be notified via email at the end of the blog tour by Lit Connect.
• Please read TBV's Giveaway Policy before entering.
• Giveaway ends 9:01 pm (Pacific Time) on 12/22/2012.

a Rafflecopter giveaway