May I introduce: Patricia Preston "To Save a Lady"

 

 

 "To Save a Lady"

by  Patricia Preston

 

Today's guest is Patricia who I've met through "Marketing for Romance Writers". A wonderful group where you get to meet wonderful authors like Patricia ...  

 

1 - What gave you the idea "To Save a Lady"?

I guess it all started with a romantic notion of a couple meeting in a courtyard. I love the French Quarter, and I think it is a perfect setting for a historical romance. Luckily, I live in Mississippi so I was able to do on-site research, plus I collected a trove of books regarding the history of the French Quarter. Using a map of the French Quarter streets, I used my references to place many of the buildings that were there during December 1814. Some of the buildings are still there today. Also by using the era when the Battle of New Orleans took place, I was able to have an American officer as a hero and a French heroine. I loved that combination.

 

2 - You seem to write across the genres. Is there one genre you haven't tried yet but would like to? 

I’m happy writing what I write for now. But, if I had the time and resources, I would definitely write a suspense novel. I love great plot-twists.

 

3 - Tell us a little bit about your current project.My next historical is Rafe and Simone’s story called To Lose a Lady. Rafe, a privateer, was a character that just popped in To Save a Lady out of nowhere. I actually planned for Book 2 to be Bonnard’s story. Once Rafe showed up, things started changing and I knew him and Simone, whom he despises, would be the main characters in the next book. I’m also working on a contemporary romance which I hope to have out in January.


Blurb:
A DARING MASQUERADE
A move from Paris to New Orleans brings disaster to Elise Plaisance’s predictable life as a lady’s maid. The son of her grief-stricken mistress disappears, and Elise becomes involved in a dangerous masquerade when she turns to a devious gentleman for help finding the boy.

A CAPTAIN BEWITCHED
Captain Jesse Cross has journeyed to New Orleans with General Jackson’s army, but his biggest battle is one of romance when he falls for a French girl, who is cloaked in mystery. Their romance is a frail illusion, born in the darkness of a moonlit courtyard and never meant to last forever.
A FUTURE IMPERILED
The city is on the brink of war. Deceived by an adversary and haunted by her tragic past, Elise must risk everything to rescue her mistress’s son before all is lost. But how can she prevail when the captain who has stolen her heart is determined to stop her?

 

Author:

Patricia Preston is a Southerner, who loves to listen to epic music while sipping on sweet tea and writing about the characters who keep her company night and day.

She is working on a historical series is set in the French Quarter of New Orleans during 1814-1815. The first book of the series, To Save a Lady, is available now on Amazon.

She is also working on a contemporary romance series that is set in a fictional town near Nashville, Tennessee and centers on a group of single doctors at the Lafayette Falls Medical Center. Both series are a little spicy, a little sweet with a dash of humor and lots of emotion and action. In her stories, love always matters most.

She also has a romantic Western novella, Almost an Outlaw, published by Carina Press available. And, she has two short comedies, set in the South and filled with quirky Southern characters, available on Amazon.

Please visit her webpage at www.patricia-preston.com for more contact information and sign up for her newsletter.

 

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Purchase links:

Available at Amazon: http://amzn.to/1tz2HIq

 

 

Excerpt:

He tugged her onto the banquette where a street lamp hung from a rope suspended across the street. A haze of light shimmered through the fog. He stepped back to get a better look at his quarry.

A black hooded cloak, with beaded trim, shrouded her from head to toe. An excellent garment for pursuing a man in the dark. The deep hood obscured her face, except for the half mask she wore. The sparkling gemstones scattered across her silver mask winked at him.

He couldn’t believe a woman was out at this late hour following him.

You could expect anything to happen in this bizarre city.

He shoved his pistol in his waist belt. He figured he knew who was behind this caper. “Bonnard hatched this little plot, didn’t he?”

His cousin, Lieutenant Bonnard Reid, had been enthralled by the numerous whorehouses in the city. Bonnard acted like a kid running from one candy shop to another. He visited a different whorehouse every night and returned bragging about how the women were so adept in the art of pleasure.

Bonnard had begged Jesse to join him on his escapades, but Jesse had been too busy setting up the general’s headquarters. He figured his cousin had taken the matter into his own hands.

“Wait until I see him tomorrow. He won’t pull a stunt like this again.”

“I do not know the man you call Bonnard.” She repeated the name awkwardly.

He frowned. “But you are here intentionally?”

“Oui.” She stepped forward, closer to him.

The seductive scent of flowers and musk intoxicated him. Like her face, her body was hidden. It was all shadows and secrets beneath the cloak except for the flirty mask with its twinkling gems, but his imagination pictured her as a beautiful woman. Nude, of course.

“I am your liaison.” Her sensual voice was a mere whisper carried in the wind.

“Liaison?” The implication was so intimate that it aroused him. He reminded himself she could look like a toad for all he knew. She could have a husband and ten kids waiting at home for her.