Karen: Below, you'll find my review for
The Chevalier by the very talented
Jacqueline Seewald! Also enjoy Jacqueline's post about romance and research. Feel free to comment or ask her a question. She'd love to hear from you!
Review
Madeline de Mornay, a French born lady finds she’s attracted to Gareth Eriksen, the illegitimate son of an English nobleman. Gareth has a reputation with the ladies, but this does not matter to Madeline. Try as Gareth might, he cannot stay away from the dark haired beauty.
However, love is not so easily won for these two. It’s 1745, a time of unrest from the Jacobite Rebellion. Madeline and Gareth find themselves on opposite sides when it comes to politics. If that was not enough, Madeline finds herself betrothed to her cousin Andrew, who is wanted by the English for his part played in the rebellion, and though Gareth wants to claim Madeline for his own, he feels he cannot offer her marriage since he is beneath her station.
From London to Scotland, fate plays a hand in throwing Gareth and Madeline together time and time again with hope that true love will finally win out.
Ms. Seewald has penned a passionate and intriguing historical saga that will keep you turning the pages to the very end. Historical fans, you don’t want to miss this one.
Romance and Research by Jacqueline Seewald
You’ll notice that a lot of romance writers set their novels
in places they either live in or have lived in. This may seem provincial, but
in fact, it makes for good writing. If writers know a place well, they can
create a realistic setting, an intriguing background for their novels. Setting
is one of the important components of any piece of fiction.
But what about writing historical romance, writing about
times and people long ago?
The answer here is that writers need to do research. The
fact is every novel requires a certain amount of research, some more than
others. My prize-winning sensual historical romance THE CHEVALIER required
extensive research. And I enjoyed every minute of it. I’ve been a fan of
British historical romance for many years and wanted to do my own version of
such a novel. But to do it right, I had to research the details so I made no
mistakes—or as few as possible. I am fortunate in having Australian editors who
could give me an additional perspective.
I believe the best novels combine elements of what we
actually know with research into what we need to find out. I’m no fan of info
dumping in fiction, but writers need to read and discover a lot more
information than they will actually use in their novels before they begin writing. I’ve tried to seamlessly
incorporate the culture and history of the turbulent, passionate Jacobite
period of English history into my novel. The characters represent the
viewpoints and prejudices of those times.
I'm going to
offer a short excerpt of the novel. I must warn you, the edited version is in
pdf. format, and so I am giving you a taste of the pre-edited version which is
a bit rougher. Hope you enjoy it and decide to purchase the e-book of THE
CHEVALIER which is offered in all e-book formats at:
London, 1745
“She found her warm shawl and moved with agility across the
room and out the wide doors. There was torchlight to illuminate the walkways
through the shrubbery, but the garden was deserted. Madeline bravely continued
forward, shivering in the evening chill. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness,
she could see the tall figure of a man off to one side looming near a carved
bench, his leg raised as he leaned forward on it. She decided to simply walk
past him.
"I wouldn't go walking through the hedge." His voice was deep,
resonant and pleasing to her ear.
He had actually noticed her. She quickly turned around. "Why
not?"
"It is not the sort of thing a young lady should do if she is
unescorted."
"Then perhaps you might escort me?" She was glad that it was
dark so that he would be unlikely to see how red her face was, for she was
certain that it had colored deeply. In her whole life, she had never been so
outspoken.
He let out a rumbling, surprised laugh that came from deep within his
chest. "You would compromise your reputation if you took a walk in the
maze with me."
"Would we get lost?" she asked in a soft voice.
"Most assuredly, I do not know the way. And you would certainly be
lost."
She stared into his eyes with interest. "I was told that you are a
notorious rake. Is that so?" She was mortified by her own audacity. What was wrong with her? Mama would
slap her if she knew how badly Madeline was behaving.
He laughed again with a surprised sound that had the clarity of a bell.
"You are either the most innocent chit imaginable or the most accomplished
flirt I have ever had occasion to meet."
He sounded amused but she regretted her foolish remark. Surely, she had
been taught better. "I am sorry. I truly did not mean to behave in an
insulting manner."
He smiled at her in a forgiving manner. "Who protects you?"
Her brows rose questioningly. "Why do I need protection?"
"From men like me, of course," he said with a disarming smile
that took her breath away. "We are prone to snatch away the innocence of
young maidens. Who are you?"
"I am Madeline de Marnay. My father, Etienne de Marnay, was the
Comte de Sarnou, French Deputy Ambassador to England. He died six months
ago."
"My condolences. And you have not returned to France,
Mademoiselle?"
"No, my maman is ill and
does not wish to leave England quite yet. But when we go, I believe it will not
be to France but to Scotland."
He narrowed his jewel-like eyes. "Why Scotland of all places?"
"Maman was born there. She still has family in the northwest. My
grandfather was the chief of a clan in the Highlands but he supported King
James against the Elector of Hanover and was forced to flee with his family or
be arrested for treason." She was telling him more than she ought. Why did
she have the unfortunate tendency to babble when she was nervous?
"So your mother wants to return to the Highlands, but
why?" His tone was cool,
disinterested.
"The Highlands will always be her home. And now that Papa is gone,
she wishes to be buried with her own people."
Gareth Eriksen shook his head. "She
is picking the worst possible time to go to Scotland. Tell her that the Young
Pretender is on the march with a Highland army. Soon, they'll be facing a large
British force and the danger to anyone caught in between could be devastating.
She would be risking your life as well as her own." His fierce frown was magnificently
masculine and she let out a small sigh of admiration.
"Prince Charles Edward might make a fine showing, don't you
think?" Madeline was unable to restrain the enthusiasm from her voice. The
passion she expressed for the cause masked the strange, disturbing feelings for
the handsome stranger that so heated her blood.
She hoped that he could not read her mind; she would truly die of shame
if he had an inkling of how desperately she wished to caress his cheek with the
tips of her fingers. And Mother of God, if only this virile man would crush her
into his arms and kiss her—perhaps even make love to her! Where were such wild,
outrageous thoughts coming from? She must be mad!”
About the Author:
Multiple award-winning author, Jacqueline Seewald, has taught creative, expository and technical writing at Rutgers University as well as high school English. She also worked as both an academic librarian and an educational media specialist. Fifteen of her books of fiction
have been published to critical praise including THE INFERNO COLLECTION, THE DROWNING POOL, THE TRUTH SLEUTH and DEATH LEGACY. Recent releases are her prize-winning sensual historical romance THE CHEVALIER, her book of romantic short stories BEYOND THE BO TREE Amazon and her romantic suspense mysteries reprinted in new editions by Harlequin.
You can also find the author on Facebook and Amazon Author Page
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