Lenora Bell's Blog: A Bell Awakened, page 8

It’s difficult to believe my second historical romance novel, IF I ONLY HAD A DUKE, is coming AUGUST 30! To celebrate I’m hosting a new historical romance author every day for 2 WEEKS and giving away 2 COPIES of their second book! Stop by my facebook page every day to meet the authors and comment to win!!

First up we have Charis Michaels with THE VIRGIN AND THE VISCOUNT, Book 2 of the Bachelor Lords of London series. Charis is my dear friend and critique partner, as well as a fellow debut Avon author.

Charis counts the one and only Julia Quinn as one of her biggest fans (it says so right on the cover of her books), and THE EARL NEXT DOOR, the first in the series, quickly became a USA Today bestselling book!

Here’s a photo of Charis at the Avon Books signing at the RWA National Convention in San Diego last July. We were roomies and I can vouch that Charis is just as charming, funny, and lovely as her stories.

Lenora: Welcome, Charis!

Charis: *waves* Hi Lenora! Thanks for hosting me.

Lenora: So I’m wondering what type of romance hero you love the best?

Charis: I love a strong, silent, serious hero who slowly becomes unraveled by the heroine, and that’s what happens in THE VIRGIN AND THE VISCOUNT.

Lenora: Nice. I love a good unraveling. So I’m curious about the name of the book — was that the working title as well?

Charis: My editor would not allow me to title it DOWN FOR THE VISCOUNT (for obvious reasons!), but Lord Bryse is down for the count to be sure when he meets Lady Elisabeth.

Lenora: Haha. Too funny. Actually I really love that working title. Tell me more about The Bachelor Lords of London.

Charis: My tagline for the series is: Three men, two titles, one quiet street. Will London ever be the same? The trilogy was born on a real street in London called Henrietta Place, between Marylebone Lane and Cavendish Square, where I walked many times when I was a young newlywed, living abroad for the first time. I loved the name. It’s so very English.

Lenora: That’s so cool that you actually know the street.

Charis: It’s a special place. And the gentlemen who live there soon find that no one stays a bachelor in Henrietta Place for long…

Lenora: So what’s next for these poor, unsuspecting bachelor lords?

Charis: ONE FOR THE ROGUE, the third book in the series, will arrive this December.

Lenora: I can’t wait! Thanks for stopping by and best of luck with ONE FOR THE ROGUE.

If you’d like to get to know Charis’s bachelor lords, stop by my facebook page for a chance to win THE VIRGIN AND THE VISCOUNT!! One day only!

HOW THE DUKE WAS WON just got marked down to $1.99 on Amazon! I don’t know how long this will last so if you’re curious about the Disgraceful Dukes there’s never been a better time to have a taste!

Very excited to announce that I’ll be signing for the first time at the “Readers for Life” Literacy Autographing at the Romance Writers of America National Conference in San Diego on Wednesday, July 13th. If you’ll be at the conference I hope to meet you! I’ll have goodies to share including chocolate-scented candles, Swiss chocolate, and lots of hugs and thank you’s 

5 authors take each other on in a battle of the historical time periods

Are you ready to rrrrumble?!? In our five-sided showdown ring we have five heavyweight historical author contenders ready to battle for your applause!!

In order of time period, from most recent …

In corner No. 1 in the crystal beaded flapper dress, it’s Piper “Pay the Piper” Huguley representing the beginning of the 20th century in the United States (1900-1930)!

Piper Huguley

In corner No. 2 in the metallic gold bias-cut gown it’s Joanna “Magnate-o” Shupe representing America’s Gilded Age (1870s-1900)!

Joanna Shupe

In corner No. 3 in the whalebone corset and bustle, it’s Jennifer “McFists” McQuiston representing the Victorian era in the United Kingdom (1830s-1900)!

Jennifer McQuiston

In corner No. 4 in the dampened chemise and straw bonnet, it’sLenora “Final Count” Bell representing the Regency period in the United Kingdom (1811-1820s)!

Lenora Bell

And in corner No. 5, wearing the pink silk robe and carrying a wicked-looking sword, it’s Jeannie “Sting Like a Bee” Linrepresenting Tang Dynasty China (eighth century-ninth century)!

Jeannie Lin

And the crowd goes wild as these historically garbed ladies pump their fists, trash-talk their opponents and … wait, folks, there’s the bell for Round 1…

Find out more and enter to win books from all five authors at USA TODAY’s Happy Ever After blog!

If you’ve been reading my blog you’ll know I’m a huge Eloisa James fan girl. In fact, she’s the reason I began writing romance! I read her Potent Pleasures and I was hooked for life. After reading Eloisa, I printed out a list of the top 100 romances and went on a buying binge at Powell’s Books purchasing classics from Loretta Chase, Laura Kinsale, Judith Ivory, Julia Quinn, Mary Balogh, Beverly Jenkins, Judith McNaught, Lorraine Heath, Kathleen Woodiwiss, Teresa Medeiros,  etc. (of course this was pre-Tessa Dare, Sarah MacLean, Courtney Milan, Sherry Thomas, and Meredith Duran 

Featured today on Harlequin Junkie with a fun teaser excerpt and another delicious GIVEAWAY!

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

It won the 2014 RWA Golden Heart® Award for Unpublished Historical Romance.
The working title was Charlene and the Duchess Factory but that wasn’t quite sexy enough

The lovely folks at Avon Romance are giving away a delicious gift basket in celebration of How the Duke Was Won! All you have to do is visit the Avon fb page below and leave a comment for your golden opportunity to win! 

I’m so deliriously excited about HOW THE DUKE WAS WON finally arriving! I want to share the love!

Over at the Romance Dish, we’re dishing bad boys & dukes and giving away four copies of HOW THE DUKE WAS WON + fair trade DIVINE CHOCOLATES + copies of four of my favorite historical romances, Tessa Dare’s WHEN A SCOT TIES THE KNOT, Eloisa James’ FOUR NIGHTS WITH THE DUKE, Beverly Jenkins’ DESTINY’S CAPTIVE, and Sarah MacLean’s THE ROGUE NOT TAKEN.

http://bit.ly/1MVAkjY

If you want to choose your own books to buy, you can win a $20 Amazon or B&N gift card on my fb page!

http://bit.ly/1WRi6SK

And I’m in the company of some absolutely fabulous authors with new releases today!! Lorraine Heath, Eva Leigh, Sallie MacKenzie, Joanna Shupe, Laura Kaye all share the same book birthday. To celebrate I’m going to…you guessed it…give away MORE books! WOOHOO!

Head on over to my fb page and LIKE and COMMENT on the link to this blog post! Two randomly selected winners will receive copies of 1)  Lorraine Heath’s THE EARL TAKES ALL 2) Eva Leigh’s TEMPTATIONS OF A WALLFLOWER and 3) HOW THE DUKE WAS WON!

http://bit.ly/1NwDKd2

Oh, and chocolate! Also Divine Chocolate!

❤ Get your DISGRACEFUL DUKE now!!!:

HOW THE DUKE WAS WON, by Lenora Bell

Amazon: http://amzn.to/23xeo2r

B&N: http://bit.ly/1VMQ221

iBooks: http://apple.co/23xfdIB

HarperCollins: http://bit.ly/1TMcEzP

❤ Join in the fun at The Romance Dish tomorrow for more #giveaways!

http://www.theromancedish.com/

❤ Vote for HOW THE DUKE WAS WON for Goodreads Sexiest Cover of the Month!

http://bit.ly/1Ud9dCt

❤ ABOUT HOW THE DUKE WAS WON:

The pleasure of your company is requested at Warbury Park. Four lovely ladies will arrive… but only one can become a duchess.

James, the scandalously uncivilized Duke of Harland, requires a bride with a spotless reputation for a strictly business arrangement. Lust is prohibited and love is out of the question.

Four ladies. Three days. What could go wrong?

She is not like the others…

Charlene Beckett, the unacknowledged daughter of an earl and a courtesan, has just been offered a life-altering fortune to pose as her half-sister, Lady Dorothea, and win the duke’s proposal. All she must do is:

* Be the perfect English rose [Ha!]

* Breathe, smile, and curtsy in impossibly tight gowns [blast Lady Dorothea’s sylph-like figure]

* Charm and seduce a wild duke [without appearing to try]

* Keep said duke far, far from her heart [no matter how tempting]

When secrets are revealed and passion overwhelms, James must decide if the last lady he should want is really everything he needs. And Charlene must decide if the promise of a new life is worth risking everything . . . including her heart.

Thanks for helping me celebrate!!

❤️ ❤️ Lenora

Now don’t get me wrong–I love motorcycle bad boys as much as the next girl. And the more tattoos the better. But the 21st century did not invent the bad boy! Regency rogues may ride horses instead of Harleys, wear linen shirts and buckskin breeches instead of t-shirts and jeans, but let me tell you, ladies, the abs under the linen shirt? Just as rock-hard, ridged, and mouthwatering as the ones under the cotton t-shirt 

My sweet and supportive mother recommended HOW THE DUKE WAS WON to the entire women’s choir she directs. I was all, “mom, maybe you should READ it first”