Sofie Darling On Her New Release: Three Lessons of Seduction

Welcome to Sophie Darling, celebrating the release of Three Lessons of Seduction: Book One in the Shadows and Silk Series

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Paris, September 1824
Lord Nicholas Asquith needs his wife. Too bad he broke her heart ten years ago. Can he resist a second chance at the love he lost?

When Mariana catches the eye of the man at the center of an assassination plot, Nick puts aside their painful past and enlists her to obtain information by any means necessary, even if it means seducing the enemy agent. Even if the thought makes his blood boil.
Only by keeping his distance from Mariana these last ten years was he able to pretend indifference to her. With every moment spent with her, he feels his tightly held control slippingCan she trust the spy who broke her heart?

Mariana spent the last decade forgetting Nick. Now she has the chance to best him at his own game, an opportunity she can’t resist, even as her view of him begins to shift. Increasingly, she wants nothing more than to seduce her own husband . . . 
It’s only a matter of time before mad passion ignites, a passion never convincingly extinguished. A passion that insists on surrendering to the yearning of the flesh and, quite possibly, of the heart.

Excerpt:

“Do you not understand how difficult it is to find a lady’s maid who speaks English in Paris? She is as rare as a Woolly Mammoth in London.”

“A Woolly Mammoth in London?” he asked with a confounded laugh.

“Given my involvement with The Progressive School for Young Ladies and the Education of Their Minds, I spend a good deal of time perusing London’s museums.”

Nick cocked his head. “I would have thought finding you in a stuffy museum would be as rare as finding a Woolly Mammoth in London.”

“I enjoy it.” She sounded defensive. Drat. “And I happen to know that the Museum of Natural History in Paris has its very own Woolly Mammoth.”

In fact, she was disappointed to have missed it on this trip. But Nick needn’t know that. She’d revealed too much about her life already.

“That’s,” he began, a reflective note in his voice, “new.”

“Actually, they acquired it more than one hundred years ago.”

“I wasn’t speaking of the mammoth.”

Mariana’s traitorous insides went light at his words and at the implication within them. The moment could grow soft, and a sense of ease could steal in, if she allowed it. It was an ease she’d felt the first time they’d locked eyes at a dinner party at Uncle Bertie’s country estate—so very long ago. She’d felt they were two halves of the same whole and had been waiting all their lives to be joined together.

She gave herself a mental shake. Such memories were a trap.

Over the last decade, she’d done quite well forgetting what she liked about her husband. She wouldn’t allow softness to shake her resolve.

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This was Nick. He was as soft as a razor blade.

Sounds like this book has some suspense and intrique mixed in with romance.

Tell us a little about yourself and your writing.

After some worldwide adventuring with my husband in my early twenties, we decided to settle down and raise a family. As the boys grew up, though, I realized I wanted to write the sort of books I loved. So, in my thirties, I went back to university and finished my English degree with the intention of becoming a historical romance writer. When I was pregnant with my first son, I fell in love with the genre, tearing through every Kathleen Woodiwiss and Mary Jo Putney novel I could get my hands on. Now, six years after graduating, my dream is coming true!

Do you write full time?

One of my sons flew the coop this year, so I’m still part-time mom / part-time writer.

What are your writing inspirations?

Mostly, I find inspiration through reading other genres, especially upmarket women’s fiction and historical non-fiction. Sometimes, though, I find a spark in real people and situations.

How did you come to write this story?

Funny enough, when I conceived this series, Three Lessons in Seduction was supposed to be book two of the Shadows and Silk series. However, after I’d written the manuscript for “book one,” a critique partner explained to me why the books needed to be switched around. She was right, and I did. So I wrote Three Lessons. Although, I must say, it’s been great having book two of the series already finished.

Tell us a bit about the characters and who we might be meeting in the future.

The story centers around a married couple, Nick and Mariana, ten years after they became estranged due to a very public scandal. Now, they must learn to trust each other as they work together to prevent the assassination of the King of France. The next book, Tempted by the Viscount, will center around Mariana’s twin sister and the man she can’t seem to keep out of her life!

What project are you working on next?

Since Tempted by the Viscount is already finished and in the hands of my editor, I’m currently writing book three of the series.

Tell us one surprising or interesting fact about yourself.

I took up marathon running several years ago. Now, I meet up with an out-of-state friend in a different state every year for a “masochistic girls’ weekend.” Actually, it’s a blast. We’ll be running our fifth one this Fall. It’s been a fantastic way to see to see the country.

Author Bio

Sofie hails from Austin, Texas. She spent much of her twenties raising two boys and reading every book she could get her hands on. Once she realized that she was no longer satisfied with simply reading the books she loved, that she must write them, too, she decided to finish her degree and embark on a writing career. Mr. Darling and the boys gave her their wholehearted blessing.

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When she’s not writing heroes who make her swoon, she runs a marathon in a different state every year, visits crumbling medieval castles whenever she gets a chance, and enjoys a slightly codependent relationship with her beagle, Bosco. 

Contact/Connect with Sofie:

Website: www.sofiedarling.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sofiedarlingauthor/

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/sofie_darling

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Welcome Back Gail Ingis: Announcing A Reception for Indigo Sky and Her Coney Island Art Show

Congratulations, Gail!

Indigo Sky is an enthralling glimpse of what life was like for women in the 1860s. My heart was breaking for Leila, and it was beating for Rork, who not only recognized her independent streak but admired it. And for those like me who prefer to hold a book in their hands, Indigo Sky is now out in print with Soulmate Publishing. It's also out on Audible and Gail is offering a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Leave her a message right here.

It's based on the events in the life of Albert Bierstadt, nineteenth-century Hudson River artist, his painting, The Domes of Yosemite, and his travels with a friend from New York to Yosemite, and the romance that ensued between him and his friend’s wife.

In a whirlwind romance, a lovely New York socialite marries a fêted, debonair author. But beneath the charm is a cheating husband addicted to hasheesh. Her dream marriage turns sour and the simplicity of her life runs amok when a handsome stranger, her husband’s business partner, threatens her staunch loyalty to her wayward husband. When she faces the ugly truth about her marriage, her need to finalize her divorce sends her on mad chase across the wilds of nineteenth century America with a handsome stranger—she learns hard lessons of murder, kidnapping and more that almost destroy her.

Excerpt

Dawn finally broke, and Leila sat listlessly on the pallet. Would today be the day she was raped? Death was preferable.

Little Star peeked through the doorway and crooked her finger. “Come.”

Leila crawled out and blinked against the strong light. Rising stiffly, she stretched, enjoying the sun on her face. She smiled at children laughing and playing between the tipis.

A group of women waited for her. “You bathe.”

Bathe? Leila almost laughed with relief.

The women led her silently to a copse of trees. A stream gurgled over rocks. They stripped her clothes off, urged her into a deep pool and washed her with a chunk of herb scented soap.

She reveled in the cold water until an elder hustled her out, drying her with scraps of soft hide.

Stony faced, the elder worried her gums and mumbled something rubbing herb oils on Leila’s body. Deep crevices on her face sagged in a perpetual expression of discontent. The elder peered over Leila, her small black eyes glittered with malice. She rattled off in an angry tirade.

One of the young women giggled behind slim fingers.

Leila glanced from one to the other. “What did she say?”

Little Star arrived with a hide garment over her arm and handed it to the elder. “She say you white like chicken fat, and don’t know why Red Arrow want you.”

The truth dawned on Leila. This was the moment she’d dreaded. She backed away holding up her palms. “N—no!”

Snarling, the elder grabbed Leila and issued brief instructions. The other women hastily pulled the buckskin dress over her head. Beads and feathers decorated the soft garment. Had circumstances been different, the dress would have delighted Leila. The women took her arms and led her back to the lodge.

Red Arrow stood in the center of a clearing between the tipis, hands behind his back, black eyes impassive.

Leila’s heart pounded and she hung back. The women shoved her and she fell to her knees at the warrior’s feet. “I—I will not be your woman—your whore.” She took his callused hand. “Please, I have a husband.”

He shook her off. “You obey.”

“I can’t—won’t!”

Red Arrow looked at Hook Nose. The leader nodded at a group of warriors. They stepped forward and hauled Leila up, dragging her from the clearing.

She twisted around. “What are they going to do to me?” She cried.

For you viewing pleasure, here’s the Indigo Sky trailer;

Indigo Sky_07_11_15 – Small

Gail is also an artist, and the curator of exhibition at the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion M

 Having spent her youth dallying in Coney Island, her new Coney Island exhibit features images from her 2010, 2011, and 2014 photographs. The legendary Brooklyn attraction  is near and dear to my heart since, like Gail, a trip to Coney Island brings back many happy memories of when life was simple and you got your thrills on a roller coaster, not the subway. 

The deadline is fast approaching to RSVP for the reception.

Gail Ingis writes historical romance, loves history, and romance, of course. Her weekly blog frequently contains historical content. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Gail’s early days began and ended with writing, drawing and music. Her inspiration to write came from books gifted to her by an aunt. But life had other ideas.

After graduating from the New York School of Interior Design with a BFA in Interior Architecture and Design and with master’s studies in Architecture and Design Criticism at The New School (Parsons), she worked in interior design and architecture, and founded a school, the Interior Design Institute. Twice asked by publishers to write a textbook, her efforts were thwarted by a heavy schedule.

She resides in Connecticut with her scientist-writer husband. She and her husband love to travel and do ballroom dancing, a recent commitment. Gail is working on another historic romance about cowboys, wranglers and ranches.