I’m
delighted to introduce author, Lauren Smith. She is an attorney by day and an author by night who pens adventurous and edgy romance stories by the light of
her smart phone flashlight app. A native Oklahoman, she lives with her three
pets—a feisty chinchilla, sophisticated cat and dapper little schnauzer. She's
won multiple awards in several romance subgenres including being an Amazon.com
Breakthrough Novel Award Quarter-Finalist and a Semi-Finalist for the Mary
Wollstonecraft Shelley Award.
Check
her out at http://www.laurensmithbooks.com.
You can follow her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/LaurenDianaSmith
and on Twitter at @LSmithAuthor.
Her blog is http://theleagueofrogues.blogspot.com. Welcome to Book Blather, Lauren.
Bad Boys in Historical Romance
When
I decided to write my regency series The League of Rogues, I knew I wanted to
center the series around a group of bad boys. They would be completely bad,
totally unapologetically bad…until they fell in love. I love bad boys,
especially bad boy heroes in romance novels. They are the source of the best
jokes, the funniest scenes, and some of the sexiest parts of many of my
favorite romance novels. I love to cheer these wicked men on because I know
that when they meet their heroines they will be well matched and the chemistry
between them will be hot enough to light the pages of my book or e-reader on
fire.
My
first book Wicked Designs, features
the leader of my band of bad boys. His name is Godric and as a duke, he pretty
much gets whatever he wants. When a man embezzles from him during an investment
deal, he decides to get revenge. In the finest tradition of being truly wicked,
he develops a scheme to abduct the embezzler’s niece and ruin her reputation. It
would keep her uncle from marrying her off to settle debts, something Godric
knows would be the worst thing that could happen to this man. He doesn’t care
that the heroine, Emily, will have her entire life ruined, not just her
reputation.
So
yeah…Godric is not a good guy, not at the very beginning. He kidnaps poor
Emily, and takes her to his estate and thereby ruins her reputation. But she’s
not an easy victim, and she turns the tables on Godric and his friends.
I
think what is so fun about this book and the series is watching Godric, an
ultimate bad boy, succumb to sweetness and love and turn gentle with Emily
during their story. The hot sex along the way is an added bonus! That’s the
best part of writing bad boys, writing the transition to where they truly
become heroes and champions that we adore. I hope you all get a chance to check
out Godric and his friends in Wicked
Designs. If you like bad boys, you’ll love the League of Rogues!
Blurb:
The League of Rogues takes what they want—but have
they taken on too much?
For
too long Miss Emily Parr has been subject to the whims of her indebted uncle
and the lecherous advances of his repulsive business partner. Her plan to be
done with dominating men forever is simple—find herself a kind husband who will
leave her to her books.
It
seems an easy enough plan, until she is unexpectedly abducted by an
incorrigible duke who hides a wounded spirit behind flashing green eyes.
Godric
St. Laurent, Duke of Essex, spends countless nights at the club with his four
best friends, and relishes the rakish reputation society has branded him with.
He has no plans to marry anytime soon—if ever. But when he kidnaps an
embezzler’s niece, the difficult debutante’s blend of sweetness and sharp
tongue make him desperate for the one thing he swears he never wanted: love.
Yet
as they surrender to passion, danger lurks in Godric’s shadowed past, waiting
for him to drop his guard—and rob him of the woman he can’t live without.
Warning:
This novel includes a lady who refuses to stay kidnapped, a devilish duke with
a dark past, and an assortment of charming rogues who have no idea what they’ve
gotten themselves into.
Buy
Links
Barnes
and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wicked-designs-lauren-smith/1117685733?ean=9781619217454
Excerpt:
Godric
St. Laurent, the twelfth Duke of Essex, leaned back in his saddle watching the
abduction he’d orchestrated unfold. Covering his mouth with a gloved hand, he
stifled a yawn. Things were going smoothly. In fact, this entire kidnapping
bordered on the point of tedious. They’d intercepted the coach ten minutes
before it reached Chessley House. No one witnessed the escort of riders or the
driver changing his route. Oddly enough, the young woman hadn’t shown any signs
of resistance or concern from inside the coach. Wouldn’t she have made some
protestations when she realized what was happening? A thought stopped him dead.
Had she somehow slipped out of the coach when they’d slowed on a corner before
they’d left town? Surely not, they would have seen her. Most likely she was too
terrified to do anything, hence the silence from inside. Not that she had
anything to fear, she would not be harmed.
He
nodded to his friend Charles who was perched next to the driver. A bag of coins
jingled as Charles dropped it into the jarvey’s waiting hands.
They
had reached halfway point between London and Godric’s ancestral estate. They
would go the rest of the way on horseback, with the girl sharing a horse with
either him or one of his friends. The driver would return to London with a
message for Albert Parr and a wild story that exonerated himself from blame.
“Ashton,
stay here with me.” Godric waved his friend over while the others rode the
horses a good distance away to wait for his signal. Abductions were tricky
things, and having only himself and one other man take hold of the girl would
be better. She might have a fit of hysterics if she saw the other three men too
close.
He
rode up to the coach, curious to see whether the woman inside matched his
memory. He’d seen her once before from a window overlooking the gardens when
he’d visited her uncle. She’d been kneeling in the flowerbeds, her dress soiled
as she weeded. A job more suited to a servant than a lady of quality. He’d been
ready to dismiss her from his mind when she’d turned and glanced about the
garden, a smudge of dirt on the tip of her upturned nose. A butterfly from a
nearby flower had fluttered above her head. She hadn’t noticed it, even as it
settled on her long, coiling auburn hair. Something in his chest gave a funny
little flip, and his body had stirred with desire. Any other woman so innocent
would not have caught his interest, but he’d glimpsed a keenness in her eyes, a
hidden intelligence as she dug into the soil. Miss Emily Parr was different.
And different was intriguing.
Ashton
handed the driver the ransom letter for Parr and took up a position near the
front of the coach. Taking hold of the door, Godric opened it up, waiting for
the screaming to start.
None
came.
“My
deepest apologies, Miss Parr—” Still no screaming. “Miss Parr?” Godric thrust
his head into the coach.
It
was empty. Not even a fire-breathing dragon of a chaperone, not that he’d
expected one. His sources had assured him she would be alone tonight.
Godric
looked over his shoulder. “Ash? You’re sure this is Parr’s coach?”
“Of
course. Why?” Ashton jumped off his horse, marched over and thrust his head
into the empty coach. He was silent a long moment before he withdrew. Ashton
put his finger against his lips and motioned to the inside. A tuft of pink
muslin peeped out from the wooden seat. He gestured for Godric to step away
from the coach.
Ashton
lowered his voice. “It seems that our little rabbit chase has turned into a fox
hunt. She’s hidden in the hollow space of the seat, clever girl.”
“Hiding
under the seat?” Godric shook his head, bewildered. He didn’t know one woman of
his acquaintance who would do something so clever. Perhaps Evangeline, but then
if anything could be said of that woman, it was that she was far from ordinary.
A prickling of excitement coursed through his veins, into his chest. He loved a
challenge.
“Let’s
wait a few minutes and see if she emerges.”
Godric
looked back at the coach, impatience prickling inside him. “I don’t want to
wait here all night.”
“She’ll
come out soon enough. Allow me.” Ashton walked back to the coach and called out
to Godric in a carrying voice. “Blast and damnation! She must have slipped out
before we took charge of the coach. Just leave it. We’ll take the driver back
to London tomorrow.” Ashton shut the door with a loud slam and motioned for
Godric to join him.
“Now
we wait,” Ashton whispered. He indicated that he would guard the left coach
door while Godric stationed himself at the right.
Emily
listened to the drum of retreating hooves and silently counted to one hundred.
Her heart jolted in her chest as she considered what the men would do if they
caught her. Highwaymen could be cruel and murderous, especially if their quarry
offered little. She had no access to her father’s fortune, which left only her
body.
Icy
dread gripped Emily’s spine, paralyzing her limbs. She drew a breath as anxiety
spiraled through her.
I must be brave.
Fight them until I can fight no more.
With trembling hands, she pushed at the roof of the seat, wincing as it popped
open. Once she climbed out, she brushed dirt from her gown, noticing some tears
from the rough wood on the inside of the seat. But the tears held no
importance. All that mattered was survival.
Emily
looked out the coach window. Nothing stood out in the darkness. Only the faint
glimmer of moonlight touched the road with milky tendrils. Stars winked and
flickered overhead, pale lights, distant and cold. A shudder wracked her frame,
and Emily hugged herself, wanting so much to be at home. She missed her warm
bed and her parents’ murmurs from down the hall. It was a comfort she’d taken
for granted. But she couldn’t afford to think about them, not when she was in
danger.
Were the men truly gone? Could it really be this easy?
She
opened the coach door, and stepped down onto the dirt road. Strong arms locked
about her waist and yanked her backward. The collision with a hard body knocked
the breath from her lungs. Terror spiked her blood as she struggled against the
arms that held her.
“Good
evening, my darling,” a low voice murmured.
Emily
screamed once, before she bit down on the hand that covered her mouth. She
tasted the smooth leather of fine riding gloves.
The
man roared and nearly dropped her. “Damn!”
Emily
rammed an elbow backwards into her attacker’s stomach and began to wrestle free
until he grabbed her arm. She swung about, striking him across the face with a
balled fist. The man staggered back, leaving her free to dive inside the coach.
If
she could get to the other side and run, she might stand a chance. She
scrabbled towards the door, but never made it. The devil surged into the coach
after her. Turning to face him, she was knocked flat onto her back.
She
screamed again as his body settled over hers.
The
dim moonlight revealed his bright eyes and strong features.
He
caught her flailing wrists, pinning them above her head. “Quiet!”
Emily
wanted to rake his eyes out, but the man was relentless. His hips ground
against hers and panic drove her to a new level of terror. Her fears of being
forcibly taken surfaced as his warm breath fanned over her face and neck. She
shrieked, and he reared back away from her, as though the sound confused him.
“I’m
not going to hurt you.” His voice vibrated with a low growl, ruining any
promise his words might carry.
“You’re
hurting me now!” She yanked her arms uselessly against his hold.
The
man eased off her somewhat, and Emily took her chance. She tucked her knees up,
and with all the power she could summon, she kicked. Her attacker stumbled out
the open door and fell onto his back. Emily barely registered that he was
winded before she turned and exited the other side of the coach.
The
moment she emerged, another man lunged for her. To escape him, Emily fell back
against the side of the coach. Rather than grab her, he held his arms wide to
keep her from slipping by him, like he was corralling livestock.
“Easy,
easy,” he purred.
Emily
whipped her head to the left and pleaded with her mind to think, but the man
she’d bitten rounded the corner and pounced, pinning her against the coach, his
arms caging her in. His solid muscular body towered over her. His jaw clenched
as though one move from her would trigger something dark and wild. Emily’s
breath caught, and her heart pounded violently against her ribs.
The
man was panting and angry. The intensity of his eyes mesmerized her, but the
second he blinked, the spell broke and she fought with every bit of strength
she could muster.
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