Forever Your Earl & Scandal Takes the Stage The Wicked Quills of London # 1 & 2 by Eva Leigh

Up until recently, I wrote entirely under the name Zoë Archer. My Zoë books involved lots of action, adventure, and sometimes a touch of the paranormal. I wrote historical paranormal, steampunk, sci-fi, and historical romantic suspense. That’s a pretty diverse genre group. But the one element all my books had in common was that the heroines kicked ass.

Description:

FOREVER YOUR EARL: The Wicked Quills of London # 1

Eleanor Hawke loves a good scandal. And readers of her successful gossip rag live for the exploits of her favorite subject: Daniel Balfour, the notorious Earl of Ashford. So when the earl himself marches into her office one day and invites her to experience his illicit pursuits firsthand, Eleanor is stunned. Gambling hells, phaeton races, masquerades…What more could a scandal writer want than a secret look into the life of this devilishly handsome rake?

Daniel has secrets and if The Hawk’s Eye gets wind of them, a man’s life could be at stake. And what better way to distract a gossip than by feeding her the scandal she desperately craves? But Daniel never expected the sharp mind and biting wit of the beautiful writer, and their desire for each other threatens even his best laid plans.

But when Eleanor learns the truth of his deception, Daniel will do anything to prove a romance between a commoner and an earl could really last forever.

SCANDAL TAKES THE STAGE: The Wicked Quills of London #2

Successful playwright Maggie Delamere has no interest in the flirtations of noblemen like Cameron, Viscount Marwood. She once paid dearly for a moment of weakness… and vows to rebuff the wildly persistent-and irritatingly handsome-scoundrel at every turn. But when pressure to deliver a new play hampers her creativity, an invitation to use his country estate as a writer’s retreat is too tempting to resist...

For years, Cam has admired Maggie’s brilliant work and he can’t pass up the opportunity to discover if the beautiful, mysterious playwright is as passionate and clever as the words that flow from her quill. He’s never offered a lady his bed without being in it, but if it means loosening Maggie’s pen-and her inhibitions-he’ll do exactly that.

But soon Cam’s plans for seduction become a fight for Maggie’s heart. He’s more than the scandalous, carefree rake society believes him to be… and she’s the only woman who has ever noticed.

GUEST POST

Up until recently, I wrote entirely under the name Zoë Archer. My Zoë books involved lots of action, adventure, and sometimes a touch of the paranormal. I wrote historical paranormal, steampunk, sci-fi, and historical romantic suspense. That’s a pretty diverse genre group. But the one element all my books had in common was that the heroines kicked ass.

Sometimes they kicked ass literally, sometimes metaphorically, but they were always capable and strong. They didn’t require rescuing by the hero, and they didn’t fall down, scream, and generally make themselves into liabilities. I remember watching Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and absolutely hating the female lead. She was everything I didn’t want in a heroine. So I made sure that when it came time for me to write my stories, I did the complete opposite. 

I’ve recently added a new pen name to my litany: Eva Leigh. Eva writes Regency-set historical romances, with no paranormal elements and maybe a wisp of action. The books in my Wicked Quills of London series are full of wit, wordplay, and plenty of sexiness. 

There may be a fear that, now that I’ve turned toward writing more traditional historical romances, my heroines are going to become pallid, submissive, soft ladies who can’t make a fist. True, they might not get into fights or know how to shoot a pistol, but they still kick ass in a metaphorical sense. 

For one thing, they’re all writers during a time when women didn’t commonly make their living from their pens. Writing during the early 19th century was still a male-dominated field, but my heroines consciously shove past that to earn money from their work. Eleanor Hawke, the heroine of Forever Your Earl, is the owner and editor of The Hawk’s Eye, one of England’s most popular scandal rags. Her friend, Maggie Delamere (and the heroine of Scandal Takes the Stage) is a working playwright. Plus, both Eleanor and Maggie aren’t cowed when handsome noblemen tangle in their lives. They stand up for themselves, and let the aristocrats know that they won’t be intimidated. 

So, while there might not be shootouts in the Wicked Quills, fear not—my heroines still kick butt. 

Now here’s my question for you: Who are your favorite kick ass heroines from books, film, or television?

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About the author:

EVA LEIGH is the pen name of a RITA® Award-nominated romance author who writes novels chock-full of smart women and sexy men. She enjoys baking, Tweeting about boots, and listening to music from the ‘80s. Eva and her husband live in Central California.

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