by Mary Jo
I've just released Carousel of Hearts , the second in my Putney's Classics series. Carousel was published as a sweet Signet Regency and is one of my three early books that really couldn't be revised into historical romance because the tone is light and the sensuality is muted.
The story has four main characters and there is much love and much confusion. Here's the blurb:
Love is in the air, but where is Cupid aiming his darts?
Spirited and beautiful, Antonia Thornton is a baroness in her own right and her companion and best friend is Judith Winslow, a quiet intellectual with a love of natural philosophy. Then Antonia's childhood friend, Adam Yorke, returns from India and brings his friend, the outrageously handsome Simon, Lord Launceston. They all like each other, love is in the air--and they are all too noble for their own good! Can four confused young people sort themselves out properly before it's too late?
Carousel is something of a romp, but it also explores the many varieties of friendship, love, and infatuation. Not to mention steam engines. <G>
It's also an amnesia story, a trope for which I have a guilty fondness. A lot of amnesia stories have a stranger appear with no memory, and danger follows. I'm more interested in when a character becomes amnesiac while surrounded by friends and family. The people around us have expectations of our behavior, and we often present different aspects of ourselves to different individuals and in different circumstances.
But what happens when the character doesn't know what others expect of him or her? With no knowledge of the expectations of others, what personality will emerge? With the character be more confident? Less inhibited? More outspoken? The possibilities are fascinating!
Having four main characters presents a challenge for cover design. The classic Signet Regency cover has a man and two women and doesn't say much to me. The cover with two men and two women was for a digital edition put out by Regency Reads (Belgrave House) and I think it does the best job of showing the multiple characters who are all friends.
For my new Kim Killion cover, I made the choice to show only two people, and I do love the result, which I think has drama and tenderness. (But I had to choose which two people to put on the cover!)
Here's an excerpt, which captures the beginning of the complications!
Lady Antonia Thornton is a wealthy, beautiful bluestocking and quiet, widowed Judith Winslow is her companion and friend. Antonia’s cousin Adam Yorke is visiting after many years in India. With Antonia’s permission, Adam has invited his friend Simon, Lord Launceston, to stay at Antonia’s country house.
Simon Launceston, fifth Baron Launceston, arrived that afternoon. Like all great events, Lord Launceston's arrival was ever after indelibly etched in Judith's memory. When he was announced, they were taking tea in the small parlor, which commanded a splendid view of the lush gardens. In the distance the green Peaks floated. The afternoon sun was softly bright, illuminating the rich colors of the Persian carpet with unnatural clarity, causing Antonia's apricot hair to glow like a living thing as she laughed and poured tea for the others.
Then Burton entered, intoning solemnly, “Lord Launceston.”
All three of them looked up, Adam with pleasure that his friend had arrived, the two women welcoming.
At the sight of the man in the doorway, Judith drew in her breath, her eyes widening and her mouth forming a silent “0” of shock. Time seemed to freeze, as still and motionless as pollen suspended in the sun-drenched air. Next to her on the sofa, Antonia had gone rigid with the same awestruck reaction that Judith was experiencing.
Simon Launceston was, quite simply, the most beautiful man Judith had ever seen dreamed of. His superbly tailored clothing would have drawn the eye in a lesser man, but for Lord Launceston clothing was no more than a foil for his height and perfect proportions. Though he had wide shoulders and an elegant figure, what one noticed first was his eyes, deeply and magnetically blue. Then his face, the planes and lines shaped with a perfection that a Greek sculptor could only yearn for, a faint in his cleft chin adding charm to a countenance that might otherwise have been too flawless to be approachable.
Judith's first thought was of Apollo, but Lord Launceston's beauty was of a Celtic kind; surely the sun god would be golden, while the newcomer's hair was the shining black of obsidian, all the darker for the contrast with his fair skin. But Launceston was more than just handsome; he was the very image of the parfit gentil knight Judith had dreamed of when she was still young enough to dream. Even now, after a lifetime's knowledge that no handsome prince would appear to fulfill her fantasies, she felt a moment of irrational belief that her dream lover had found her.
Then common sense returned. Judith ruthlessly suppressed the absurd longing that coursed through her veins, telling herself that what she felt was simply admiration such as any woman must feel at the sight of such an attractive man.
While Judith worked on her rationalizations, Launceston paused on the threshold, his face cool and remote until his gaze fell on Adam. Then he smiled with a quiet charm that could have melted the heart of Medusa. Adam rose and greeted his friend, then performed the introductions after the men had shaken hands.
The new arrival took Judith's hand in his and bowed over it, speaking politely as his deep-blue eyes met hers. Judith barely comprehended his words as she struggled to act like a rational being; her real desire was to stare at him with her mouth open. His lordship's slow soft tenor was as wonderful as his face.
When she released his hand, Judith thought, dazedly that it was brave for his lordship to put any part of himself in a female's grasp; surely there was the risk that it would not be returned. If even a practical, unromantic woman like herself went weak and butter-kneed at the sight of Lord Launceston, it must be dangerous for the poor man to walk the streets.
Lord Launceston turned to Antonia, getting his first clear look at his hostess. He clasped her hand, then time stopped again as he simply held it, forgetting to bow, as mesmerized by her beauty as she was by his. Antonia was in her best looks today, her hair shimmering like sunset, her vitality drawing the eye, her splendid figure the stuff of male dreams.
Rallying more quickly than Judith had, Antonia said, “Welcome to Thornleigh,” in her husky contralto. Then her eyes met his and her next words caught in her throat. The two stared at each other, still hand-fast, the energy pulsing between them like a storm.
Though Judith had heard of love at first sight, she had not believed in it. But then, she had never seen anything like this. The beautiful of both sexes are not like the rest of the human race; Judith had never seen two people who were more obviously born for each other. There was something shockingly intrusive about witnessing their silent interchange, and she turned her head away.
As she did, her gaze fell on Adam, and the sight of the vivid, inarticulate pain on his face pulled her out of her disordered thoughts. Judith had guessed from the first that Adam Yorke was in love with Antonia. Now he faced the devastating knowledge that bringing his friend and his cousin together was disastrous for his hopes, and Judith ached for him.
“Would you care for some tea, Lord Launceston?” she asked, her pragmatic question shattering the spell that lay over the room.
Hastily releasing Antonia's hand, he said, “That would be very welcome.” A faint flush colored his fair skin.
The four people sat down and exchanged commonplaces as if that strange, lightning-struck moment had not occurred. Lord Launceston commented on the geological history of the Peak District, Antonia mentioned how old the manor house of Thornleigh was, Judith asked about his lordship's studies.
Adam Yorke said nothing at all, merely drank his tea, that strange, blinded expression on his face. Judith was acutely aware of the crosscurrents, of the way Antonia and Lord Launceston were making love to each other with every word and gesture, and finally she could bear no more. She needed to escape before she succumbed to a wicked envy of her best friend. Equally important, Adam must be taken away.
There is also a print edition of Carousel of Hearts as well as the ebook. The third Putney Classic Romance, Lady of Fortune, will be coming along in time, but not till I finish writing next year's Rogues Redeemed book.
I will give away a copy of Carousel to someone who comments between now and Thursday night. US residents can get either an ebook or a print edition of the original Signet. I think I can also send a digital edition to Canada, but I'm not sure about other countries. We'll see if Amazon allows digital gifts around the world.
Here's a question to consider: Do you like stories that contain more than one romance, or do you feel that diffuses the power of the main romance? I'll be interested in your comments!
Mary Jo