Release Day Interview...in reverse! With Jenn LeBlanc & Maire Claremont (+ Giveaway)

So you guys know how I usually invite authors on the blog on their release day for an interview, right? Well, TODAY is Jenn LeBlanc's release day; but instead of ME interviewing HER, SHE will be interviewing someone ELSE! A new author to me, but sure to be a fav, Maire Claremont! This is part of Jenn's "The Wicked Blog Tour", so sit back at your computer desk, relax, and enjoy the mayhem!!

Getting Down to Business:

Who's Jenn LeBlanc?

"Jenn has several constants in life that define her: Colorado, Canon, CJ, kids and curls.

Born and raised in a household of other people's children in this beautiful state- she never left. She started her own family, got used to the curls, went to college, built a CJ, and started a business, all with a camera in hand.
She always had another passion; storytelling born from daydreams and nightmares. Her fingers were never as quick as her mind, and no amount of practice got them there, so it was difficult and frustrating to have this inside. When her second daughter was born her inherent traits kept Jenn pinned-- her only escape the keyboard. Spending her days in parenting chat rooms she got highly adept with one-handed typing and she can still type just about as fast with one hand as she can with two. It's a great talent to have when engrossed in a scene and in need of a hit of caffeine. She recently finished her first novel but quickly realized: she was born a photographer.
From the realization that someone ELSE would be shooting the cover of her book her control-freak took over. What started as an easy cover shoot ballooned into this completely new kind of media, designed specifically for digital book readers.
Jenn lives and thrives off chaos and the constant flow of the creative process. She wears shorts and flip-flops year-round --much to the chagrin of her friends and family-- and she is currently working on the illustrations for her second novel.
Follow the blog or twitter for up to date information!"

Where can I find her?

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

What has she released lately?

TODAY is the official release day of Jenn's latest installment to her six part serial series: The Rake and The Recule: REDUX. Totally remastered and remagnificent-ified and broken up into the six-part serial e-novel it was meant to be. Did I mention it is FULLY ILLUSTRATED. Your eReader will thank you later ;)

Six weeks ago, PART 1 was release (Get part 1: here), and then 4 weeks ago, Jenn stopped by with the lovely Delilah Marvelle for an interview and released PART 2! Then, she was back with Elise Rome and the Third installment of her novel (get part 3: here). And now, it's time for another interview to celebrate the release of PART 4!

A woman out of time.
A man stifled by propriety.
A nemesis determined to take her away.
A brother to the rescue.

How will a powerful Duke deal with a woman who doesn't know her place? How will a woman used to the 21st century survive in time where she is considered property?

THE RAKE AND THE RECLUSE Part FOUR is full of revelations, celebrations, protestations and one surprise that will have you holding your breath for the final chapters. What has Perry done?

Francine Larrabee woke up on the wrong side of the century. She was fairly certain she went to sleep in her own comfy bed, but she doesn’t quite seem to be there now. Only adding to her problems is that she has no voice, is constantly being glowered at by a large, stunning man who is obsessed with propriety, and she is apparently betrothed to another horrid little man, determined to ruin her, and any other girls that get in his way.
How does she find herself in the past, when she couldn’t even find herself in her present? How does a self sufficient businesswoman survive in a time when women were still considered property for the whole of their lives and what is she going to do with this man who draws her to him so fiercely.

How do I get my copy now, Now, NOW?

Amazon (Kindle)

All Romance eBooks (digital ecopy)

Barnes and Noble (Nook Book)

Who's Jenn Interviewing Today?

Maire Claremont

Chatting Up Maire Claremont:

Marie Claremont

Hello my lovelies! Welcome to Not Another Romance Blog. Rita thank you SO much for hosting my Wicked Blog tour! I’m baaaaaack!! 

And thank you Lady Rita, ever so kindly, for allowing me to hijack your blog to chat with some amazing authors!

My third victim guest (ok now it’s just habit) is Maire Claremont. Maire is the 2011 winner of the Golden Heart in Historical Romance from Romance Writers of America. That is quite the accomplishment! Congratulations! 

Maire: Why thank you, my darling Jenn. It was an amazing experience. Sometimes I can’t believe it happened, and I end up staring at my little Golden Heart necklace to prove it! Also, thank you to our hostess, Lady Rita for having me too! I was pleased as punch to be asked.

Jenn: I’m so excited you said yes because the buzz on the interwebz is quite...buzzy with your book. Why don’t you tell these readers a little bit more about yourself.

Maire: {Waggles brows} Where does a lady begin? Well, I’ve spent most of my life gypsying about, practicing dance and theater. I’ve lived all over the US and Ireland, Scotland, and London. At present I’m working toward my Ph.d in theater so that one day I might corrupt . . . Ahem. . . educate young minds. Every spare moment is spent researching dark, luscious landscapes for dark luscious heroes, of course.

Jenn: *sigh* Who could go wrong with luscious anything really, but luscious heroes? *daydreams* 

Oh my! I beg your pardon! Eh hem. Tell us about the manuscript that won, THE DARK LADY. As if the title isn’t compelling enough, who is the dark lady?

Maire: Thank you for the compliment! The title actually originates from Shakespeare’s Dark Lady Sonnets. They are fabulous sonnets about a very cheeky woman who doesn’t fit the contemporary mold of women in his time. And who is my Dark Lady? She is Lady Eva Carin, a character who crashed into my world one night whilst I was in bed. Eva clamored so loudly I had to get up and write her first scene, a scene which launches her into a darkness so deep only her childhood love, Lord Ian Blake, can save her from it. 

Jenn: Aw! I adore that. But I understand that this book is set in Victorian era and that is rather a recent development for you after being dedicated to the ever popular Regency. Why the switch? 

Maire: I LOVE Regency. Its a fabulous genre full of delicious fun and sometimes darkness depending on which lens you focus with. I’d been writing it and getting very close to being agented with it, but Eva came along and with her tale, I knew I couldn’t abandon her to the back files of my imagination. I’d also just read Duke of Shadows by Meredith Duran. If you haven’t read this book, get yourself to the nearest book store or fire up your fingers to purchase a la Amazon. Its a gorgeous dark Victorian novel about impossible redemption. 

So, I was quickly awakened to a new time period and the wild, repressed passion of a society in the midst of astronomical change. What I truly love about Victorian society is that the veneer was so placid, so still, so proper, but beneath it was a sea of roiling emotion, aggression, rapture, wicked sex, and opium addiction.

Jenn: Talk about dark! Sex, drugs and...and...waltzing? Maybe? Yikes! So back to this awakening of yours, because writing in any historical era requires a lot of research, you must have had to delve into this new world. What are some of the more interesting points you’ve discovered while researching? 

Maire: Oh my, lady. This is hardly a fair question! The most fascinating piece of information that I discovered was Godfrey’s Cordial. This was a medicine for children to “calm” them. It was basically laudanum and treacle, known as maple syrup in the United States. Parents used this to knock their children out so they could have a few hours of peace from their grueling work days and sometimes that peace was to drink their gin. Essentially, the laudanum, which is opiates mixed with alcohol, would deplete the nutrients from the child’s body and kill their need to eat. As a result, thousands of children died of malnourishment. Upper class women also used Godfrey’s Cordial to sooth the nerves and dampen their appetite which then helped them fit in those oh so tiny corsets. Godfrey’s Cordial was available easily over the counter. 

And one last piece, in India, Indian soldiers could not be flogged for offenses whereas troops from “home” could. I thought this was remarkable and almost had to rewrite an entire scene because I had assumed floggings would occur to Indian soldiers as well to those from the Isles. This wonderful bit of research allowed me to become more creative with how a certain character showed his cruelty.

Jenn: WOW Godfrey’s Cordial. Cough syrup offenses suddenly seem quite minor in comparison. *eh hem* Soooo....will WE be able to read The Dark Lady?

Maire: {Wink wink} The answer is yes, but the details are still hush hush. Can’t wait to squee all about it in the next weeks.

Jenn: Ahhhhh!! I can’t WAIT to *squee* right along with you! I’m so intrigued by this world you’re shaping for us, I’m very much looking forward to diving in head first. 

Maire: Thank you so much for having me, but before I go, I must ask our lovely readers what’s their favorite part of a dark historical. I love to chat about passionately dark tales, so comment or ask away! 

Jenn: If you’d like to chat with Maire (and who wouldn’t) hit her up on twitter- @MaireClaremont. AAAND! One very lucky commenter will win a copy of our sweet friend Delilah Marvelle’s FOREVER AND A DAY from me!! Because she was my first interview...because her tales always have that dark wickedness to them. Because...just because. So comment away!! 

Find Maire Claremont on Twitter and stay tuned for her updates: @MaireClaremont 

**GIVEAWAY**

Jenn has generously offered to giveaway a copy of her buddy, Delilah Marvelle's, book FOREVER AND A DAY to 1 lucky commenter. So leave a comment AND fills out the raffle copter widget below to be in the drawing!

a Rafflecopter giveaway