Guest Post & Giveaway with Sophie Barnes

Having finally devoured my first Barnes' novel a few weeks ago, I am super excited to welcome another soon-to-be-fav author to the blog. She's a sweetheart, has some serious writing chops, and is here today (release day) to share insider knowledge on the characters of her latest novels. 

Without further adieu:

About the Author:

Born in Denmark, Sophie has spent her youth traveling with her parents to wonderful places all around the world. She’s lived in five different countries, on three different continents, and speaks Danish, English, French, Spanish and Romanian.

She has studied design in Paris and New York and has a bachelor’s degree from Parson’s School of design, but most impressive of all – she’s been married to the same man three times, in three different countries and in three different dresses.

While living in Africa, Sophie turned to her lifelong passion – writing.

When she’s not busy, dreaming up her next romance novel, Sophie enjoys spending time with her family, swimming, cooking, gardening, watching romantic comedies and, of course, reading. She currently lives on the East Coast.

Find Sophie Online: Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

About the Books:

Available TODAY!

Mary Croyden lives a simple life . . . and she likes it. But when she inherits a title and a large sum of money, everything changes. Forced to navigate high society, Mary finds herself relying on the help of one man—Ryan Summersby. Determined not to lose her sense of self, she realizes that Ryan is the only person she can trust. But Mary's hobbies are not exactly proper, and Ryan is starting to discover that this simple miss is not at all what he expected . . . but just might be exactly what he needs.

Coming November 20th, 2012

Lucy Blackwell is desperate, reckless, and maybe a little bit crazy. That's the only possible explanation for tricking a man she doesn't know into a dance, a kiss, and an engagement—all in the middle of the biggest ball of the year! But Lord William Summersby is the final piece of her grand plan, and she'll do what it takes to make this marriage of convenience work—as long as it's convenient for her. She just never counted on falling in love . . .

Guest Post

Introducing: Mary Croyden, Ryan Summersby,
Lucinda Blackwell & William Summersby.

In There’s Something About Lady Mary we encounter Ryan Summersby (Those of you who have read Lady Alexandra’s Excellent Adventure will recall that he’s more of an intellectual than spy material). A year has passed since he rode to France with his sister Alex to rescue their brother William, and he has since then abandoned his work for the Foreign Office in favor of pursuing a medical degree. But when he is asked to keep a protective eye on Mary Croyden, the Marchioness of Steepleton who (word has it) may be in terrible danger, Ryan Summersby is not only swept back into a world of intrigue, but quickly finds himself embroiled in a situation that’s way over his head.

This is partly due to Mary’s character.  I wanted to create a female protagonist different from any I’d ever read about before, and since Ryan was studying medicine, I thought it would be fun and challenging if she was a physician/surgeon. She’s learnt everything she knows about medicine from her father, but naturally, given the time period, the fact that she’s a woman does pose a problem. Conflicts arise, not only between her and Ryan but between her and the rest of the ton since there are many who are eager for her downfall. Only one man can save her, but she’s the stubborn sort too, who doesn’t believe in running to a man at the first sign of trouble, and then of course there’s the question of whether or not she can trust his motives. She’s a peeress in her own right, having inherited her title from her father by royal decree while Ryan Summersby is a second son with no title or fortune to his name. Yet somehow, amidst the suspicions, deceits, threats and a puzzle that will likely see them both killed before they manage to solve it, an attraction blossoms, leading to a friendship that eventually turns into so much more.

Another year passes and William, seeing both of his siblings settled, feels that it is time for him to marry as well with the intention of retiring from the Foreign Office in order to set up his nursery – he is after all his father’s heir. But, since no woman he’s met thus far has sparked his interest, he decides to make a decision based on logic. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it =)), he never manages to tie the knot with the lady he’s selected to be his bride. Instead, he finds himself trapped into marriage by a woman he’s never set eyes on before.

Lucinda Blackwell is certain that she’s planned everything to perfection – marry England’s foremost spy so he can help her locate the men who ruthlessly murdered her parents six years earlier in Constantinople without scandal. As it turns out, her eagerness for revenge stopped her from thinking it all through, and she consequently finds herself just as trapped as William. At first, he resents her for what she’s done to him, but gradually accepts that since there’s nothing he can do about it anyway and considering the fact that he did want a wife, well then why not try and make the most of it? Lucy however quickly proves herself to be quite a handful. She’s incredibly honorable and loyal with a determination to see justice served and William soon finds himself dealing with a wife who’s more of an enigma than any other person he’s ever met before. The question is how much Lucy’s willing to sacrifice in order to realize her goal, because as she and her husband slowly get to know each other, the more difficult it becomes for her to take advantage of his trust as she’s forced to admit that her feelings for him grow increasingly stronger with each passing day.

 Thank you so much for stopping by today. I’ll be popping in throughout the day to chat with you and to answer any questions you might have.

If you’d like to follow my tour, I’ll be back tomorrow at United by Books to talk about the process involved in getting a book from concept to publication.

To learn more about Sophie, please visit the links in this post titled: "Find Sophie Online"

~*~GIVEAWAY~*~

As a part of Sophie's blog tour, all commenters are eligible to enter this giveaway to win 1 of 2 Sophie Barnes ebooks (winner's choice of the two featured today). Just fill out the rafflecopter below! Also, leave your email in your comment because one commenter from this blog will be selected to receive awesome author swag from Sophie!


a Rafflecopter giveaway