2013's Most Anticipated New Releases

Marg: The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley. I actually claimed this book as my most anticipated new release in 2013 back in July! I am just that excited at the prospect of reading it! And I was very excited when I got an early copy of it in the mail a couple of weeks ago. There was squeeeing and happy dancing involved. I am kind of glad you couldn't all see it!

Kelly: The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin. I wasn't sure what I was going to choose, but when I heard that Melanie Benjamin had a new book out in 2013 I decided it was a safe bet. I really enjoyed both of her previous books!

Julie: As I have to wait until the Autumn of 2013 before my most anticipated release is available, there is not even a cover I can show you. The book is the latest in the Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon and is to be titled "Written In My Own Heart's Blood". 

So, as I have to wait almost a year I have a selected a second book, one that I know will be a great success, as indeed the rest of the books by this author are.

That book is Mrs Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini and is released in the UK in January 2013.

Ana: I have been very undecided about what to choose for this feature. There are several books that interest me but I ended up writing down Patricia Bracewell's Shadow on The Crown. It is set during a different period than what I usually read and I don't think I have ever payed much attention to Emma of Normandy so it might be both an interesting and informative read. Shadow on the Crown will be out on Feb 7, 2013.



Nanette: I'm with Ana in my anticipation of The Shadow on the Crown. I love books that are set in this era, and there are so few of them.

The others that have piqued my interest:

  

Fever by Mary Beth Keane, which is a novel about Typhoid Mary, the Irish immigrant who unknowingly started a typhoid epidemic in early 19th century New York City. I've been fascinated by Mary Mallon since fourth grade, when I read her story on one of the history cards that my teacher had in her classroom. As far as I know, this is the first novel about Mallon, and the author is highly acclaimed. Fever will be released in the U.S. on March 12.

The Ashford Affair by Lauren Willig. I admit that I've fallen behind on Willig's Pink Carnation series, which is a shame, because it's a lot of fun. But this novel is a standalone, and it looks like a family saga--one of my favorite genres. I'll be looking for this one in April.

I know I've mentioned this before, but the book I'm most looking forward to in 2013 is Paullina Simons's Children of Liberty, which has been out in Australia since last fall, but isn't available in the U.S. until late February. I loved the Tatiana and Alexander series, and Children of Liberty gives the backstory of Alexander's ancestors.

Alex: This choice was quite difficult to make since several books already caught my attention, but Christine Trent's Lady of Ashes, a story about a Victorian undertaker, seems absolutely fascinating and unusual. Can't wait to read it !

The Summer Queen by Elizabeth Chadwick, a novel about Eleanor of Aquitaine, is also in my "most anticipated release" list for this year. Her books are always amazing !

What are your most anticipated new releases for this year?

Books of a Lifetime by Lauren Willig

The book that set me on the road to perdition—I mean, on the road to writing historical fiction—was a flimsy paperback with a smug lady and a worried knight on the cover. It was E.L. Koenigsburg’s inventive reconstruction of the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine, A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver, recounted by that formidable lady’s friends and associates as they sit around on a cloud, waiting to see if Henry II has finally collected enough lawyers to argue his way up into heaven. It was a zany, lively look at history, packed with historical in-jokes. By the time I finished it, I felt like they were all old friends: Eleanor, Henry, William the Marshall, Abbot Suger. I wanted more. I wanted to go on living in Eleanor’s world, this bright world of crusades and jousts, of love and treachery and struggles for the throne—and, as I learned the hard way, there was only so many times I could re-read A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver. The cover fell off. I stapled it back on and went to nag the adults in my life for more historical fiction, Eleanor appearances a plus. I was six years old. My fate was set.

By the time I was ten, I had gotten over my Eleanor of Aquitaine fixation (there may have been a little Nancy Drew obsession along the way, followed by a Three Musketeers phase, in which I wrote that wimpy Mme Bonacieux out of the story and wrote myself in instead) and found a new historical period to obsess about. My local television station had aired one of those wonderfully cheesy 80’s mini-series about Napoleon and Josephine, playing up the romance and playing down the more negative bits. My ex-historian father gave me Theo Aronson’s The Golden Bees. My school librarian gave me Desiree, by Anne-Marie Selinko. Told in diary form, Desiree is the story of Napoleon’s first love, whom he jilted for Josephine, and who went on to marry another revolutionary general who became, in an odd twist of fate, King of Sweden. This was history brought to life in the best of all possible of ways. In addition to being a fascinating example of the ways in which historical narrative can be twisted to make a better story, Desiree inspired me to research and write novel about Hortense de Beauharnais, Josephine’s daughter, while I was still in high school. That novel is still unpublished—for good reason!—but it deeply influenced the choice of setting of my Pink Carnation books, several of which intersect with the Bonapartes and their colorful, tangled lives.

I was fortunate to have parents who were both avid readers and who set no bans on the books I read (they did make faces when I clamored for Sweet Valley High, but they bought it for me anyway). I browsed freely among their shelves. I found Kathleen E. Woodiwiss’ A Rose in Winter that way, Jean Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear, Joan Wolf’s Road to Avalon, and Karleen Koen’s Through A Glass Darkly, but my biggest find, one sunny summer day when I was hiding in the shade of the house, was M.M. Kaye’s Shadow of the Moon. It boasted one of those covers with a woman in a large hooped skirt, swooning back against a man who seemed to have lost half his uniform and his shirt buttons. Excellent! I was going through a Victorian phase (thank you, Victoria Holt), and the heavier on the hoops and the swooning, the better. Shadow of the Moon introduced me to the whole fascinating world of colonial India—which proved a huge help when I found myself unexpectedly TA-ing a class on the topic in grad school!

There’s far too little space to talk about all the books that have made my eternal keeper shelf (Judith Merkle Riley, Robin McKinley, and Diana Gabaldon, I’m looking at you), but I do want to give a shout out to just one more: The Blue Castle, by L.M. Montgomery (and The Ladies of Missalonghi, by Colleen McCullough, which is a lot like it). No one tells a Cinderella story like L.M. Montgomery, with pith and heart and all those other good things. It’s not historical fiction per se, except in the sense that it’s historical to us, but, boy, does it pack a punch.

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Lauren Willig's new Pink Carnation book, The Orchid Affair was released January 20. You can read an excerpt of this exciting new adventure and learn all about Lauren at her website http://www.laurenwillig.com/

Cover story: Pink Carnation series by Lauren Willig

With only a couple of days left in our current giveaway of the latest instalment of the Pink Carnation series, Mischief of the Mistletoe, and a gorgeous Christmas ornament, it seemed like a good time to do a cover story of the series! To me, this series has a really strong identity through its covers, particularly through the first 6 books. I understand that the covers are changing now, which I understand from a marketing point of view but do think is a shame, especially if you have been collecting them for a while.

I am not all that keen on the first UK covers, but do like the second and third ones, and personally I am not a big fan of the cover for the next book either.

Don't forget to go and enter our giveaway after you have finished looking at all this eye candy! And if you like, revisit the Why I Love post that Lauren Willig did for us a while ago on why she loves Men in Black Masks

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation

Right to Left: US Hardcover, UK Hardcover, UK paperback, Australian hardcover, US paperback.


The Masque of the Black Tulip

L to R: Paperback, Hardcover, UK Paperback

The Deception of the Emerald Ring

L to R: UK paperback, hardcover

The Seduction of the Crimson Rose

 

The Temptation of the Night Jasmine

The Betrayal of the Blood Lily

The Mischief of the Mistletoe

The Orchid Affair (release date January 2011)

Spotlight: Pink Carnation series by Lauren Willig includes *giveaway*

If you are a fan of the famous Scarlet Pimpernel and any other stories with lots of adventures, sword playing, glamourous spies, mystery and romance, you will be definitely become a huge fan of The Pink Carnation series by Lauren Willig.

In the first book, The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, we meet Eloise Kelly, an American grad student who came to the UK to uncover the identity of the Pink Carnation, the mysterious team leader of a spy network who worked during the Napoleonic wars.

Each book present us a new spy (all with beautiful flower names) and we follow their adventures back in the beginning of the 19th century. In the present day, we tag along with Eloise who does her best to continue her research trying not to be troubled by handsome Colin, who does everything to stop her to find out the real identities behind those aliases.

As the series continues we find that not everyone is who they appear to be (especially not the character’s friends, family and enemies!), and that the course of true love doesn’t necessarily run smooth for anyone, and have lots of fun along the way.

The covers are amazingly beautiful and work perfectly as an eye candy. Some of the most recent artwork used in the paperback edition is more in the romance side and quite different from the initial covers, but still very distinctive for the series.

The Pink Carnation Series in order:

1. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation

2. The Masque of the Black Tulip

3. The Deception of the Emerald Ring

4. The Seduction of the Crimson Rose

5. The Temptation of the Night Jasmine

6. The Betrayal of the Blood Lily

7. The Mischief of the Mistletoe (release date 28/10/10)

8. The Orchid Affair (release date 11/01/11)

Lauren Willig’s new book, The Mischief of the Mistletoe (a perfect read for Christmas!) is being released today. To celebrate this occasion we have two special prizes: a package deal with a copy of The Mischief of the Mistletoe and a Christmas ornament to give away to two lucky winners.

To participate you just have to leave a comment!

• contest open to the US only
• closes the 11/11/10

A big thanks to Lauren Willig and Liza from the Penguin Group for this lovely giveaway. Good luck to everyone!


Related posts:

• Lauren Willig on Why I Love Men in Black Masks

Lauren Willig on Why I Love Men in Black Masks

The Scarlet Pimpernel, the Purple Gentian, the Pink Carnation.  The very music of their names invoked a forgotten era, an era of men in knee breeches, and frock coats who dueled with witty barbs sharper than the points of their swords.  An era when men could be heroes….  That was what I planned to do—to hunt the elusive Pink Carnation through the archives of England, to track down any sliver of long-dead gossip that might lead me to what the finest minds in the French government had failed to discover.  

Of course, that wasn’t how I phrased it when I suggested the idea to my dissertation advisor. I made scholarly noises about filling a gap in the historiography, and the deep sociological significance of spying as a means of asserting manhood, and other silly ideas couched in intellectual unintelligibility.  I called it “Aristocratic Espionage during the Wars with France: 1789-1815.” 

Rather a dry title, but somehow I doubt, “Why I Love Men in Black Masks” would have made it past my dissertation committee. 

                                  -- Eloise Kelly, The Secret History of the Pink Carnation

Like Eloise Kelly, the fictional Harvard grad student whose dissertation research provides the frame story for my Napoleonic-set novels, I’ve always been fascinated by these dashing masked mystery men.  I grew up on that demmed, elusive Pimpernel, the Z that stands for Zorro, and that charming scamp of a Swamp Fox.  When it came time to pick a dissertation topic back in my own grad school days, I made straight for the machinations of Royalist spies during the English Civil Wars.  So I suppose it’s no surprise that when I sat down to write historical fiction, my novels would feature florally-named leagues of spies in the tradition of the Scarlet Pimpernel, intent on defending King and country under a variety of masks, not all of the literal variety.

             

What it is about these masked men?  It certainly isn’t just the outfit.  Most of the secret agents about whom I write are masked only in the metaphorical sense.  As one of my heroes muses to himself, a black cloak and mask can be more conspicuous than otherwise.  Instead, they disguise their deeper purposes under a variety of guises: society lady, rake-about-town, hopeless poet, bon vivant.  But all these spies—cloaked or corseted, floral or otherwise—have a few essential traits in common. 

First, our secret agent is invariably clever.  Physical strength and the sort of bravery required to go charging off with the Light Brigade are all very well and good, but our spy has something more: he has the intelligence, the resourcefulness and the self-control necessary to maintain a complicated ruse over a long period of time.  If he weren’t clever, he wouldn’t last long.  Unlike official prisoners of war, spies are considered outside the code de guerre, accorded no official protections, fair game for racks, thumbscrews, and all the rest of the Inquisition’s Greatest Hits.  The spy’s intellectual agility is his ticket to survival—not to mention that it makes for some great, witty one-liners.

Not only must our spy be clever enough to pull off his charade and brave enough to face torture and death, he has to have the strength of character to endure public scorn, and, even worse, the opprobrium of his own friends and family, all in the service of a cause he deems more important than himself.  Think about Sir Percy Blakeney as the Scarlet Pimpernel.  Loving Marguerite to distraction as he does, Sir Percy is still willing to incur her scorn rather than jeopardize the cause to which he has dedicated himself. 

In my most recent book, The Temptation of the Night Jasmine, my hero, who has just returned from India, is searching for the traitor who murdered his mentor at the Battle of Assaye.  To do so, he must befriend the members of a local branch of the Hellfire Club, men whose morals and practices he finds repugnant on a number of a levels.  In doing so, he also sacrifices the good opinion of the heroine, cutting himself off from his own hopes of future happiness.  Talk about I could not leave thee dear so much/ Loved I not honor more! 

(As a side note, Lovelace, who wrote that well-known line, was one of the Royalist conspirators who showed up in my dissertation.  When he penned that line, boy, did he know whereof he wrote.)

Utterly dedicated and devilishly clever, our spy tends to play his cards close to his chest.  Trust, when it is finally given, matters.  Everything has more savor to it when the stakes are high, and the life-or-death nature of the spy’s dual career pushes those stakes to the utmost.  When he confides in the heroine, you know he means it.  Because, if he misjudges, he and that important cause of his are both doomed.  Doomed with a capital D.  By revealing his dual identity to the heroine, he places his life and his honor in her hands.  And what could possibly be more attractive than that?      

Lauren Willig is the author of six books in the Pink Carnation series of novels. The latest, The Temptation of the Night Jasmine is released in paperback today, 5 January 2010, and her next book, The Betrayal of the Blood Lily is released in hardcover on 12 January 2010.

You can visit her website at LaurenWillig.com

Upcoming Release: The Curse of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig

If you are ever looking for a fun series to read that combines a bit of romance, some adventure, some dashing spies and some dastardly villains, as well as a bit of modern action, then Lauren Willig's Pink Carnation series could be just the thing. The early books in particular are loads of fun, and I am looking forward to the next instalment in the series:

The much anticipated fifth installment in the inventive and original Pink Carnation series

"Pride and Prejudice lives on" in Lauren Willig's acclaimed Pink Carnation series, which continues with another deliciously lighthearted, romantic, and suspenseful novel. Willig introduces to her series the most elusive spy of all time, whose calling card is the faint whiff of jasmine in the cold night air.

After twelve years in India, Robert, duke of Dovedale, returns to his estate in England to avenge the murder of his mentor during the 1803 Battle of Assaye. Robert plans to infiltrate the infamous, secretive Hellfire Club to uncover the murderer's identity- but he has no idea that an even more difficult challenge awaits him-one Lady Charlotte Lansdowne.

Having cherished a romanticized view of Robert since childhood, Charlotte is thrilled by his return. To Charlotte, Robert is all the knights of the Round Table rolled into one. That's not exactly the case, but she can't help but search for the man she loves inside this less-than-pristine package. And while Robert works to dissuade Charlotte from her delusions, he can't help but be drawn to her innocence and inner beauty.

When Charlotte is approached by Lady Henrietta Selwick to join her in a bit of espionage-investigating a plot to kidnap the king-Robert soon realizes that Charlotte is not only the perfect partner in crime; she's the perfect partner, period. Caught in a dangerous game with deadly flower-named spies and secret members of the Hellfire Club, Robert and Charlotte must work together to reveal the villain . . . and confront their true passion for each other.

This book is released on January 22.

I should mention that Lauren Willig has a short story that she is posting on her website. At the moment it seems to be being called A Very Selwick Christmas

The Seduction of The Crimson Rose by Lauren Willig

"Pride and Prejudice lives on," (USA Today) "a fun and zany time warp," (New York Daily News) "history textbook meets Bridget Jones" (Marie Claire): Readers and reviewers alike praise Lauren Willig's bestselling Pink Carnation series for its passion, adventure, and tantalizing stories of flower-named spies during the Napoleonic wars.

Lauren Willig continues the exciting Pink Carnation series with her fourth novel, The Seduction of the Crimson Rose, featuring Lord Vaughn, the delightfully devilish spy from The Masque of the Black Tulip, and Mary Alsworthy, the raven-haired beauty whose sister accidentally stole her suitor in The Deception of the Emerald Ring. Determined to secure another London season without assistance from her new brother-in-law, Mary accepts a secret assignment from Lord Vaughn on behalf of the Pink Carnation: to infiltrate the ranks of the dreaded French spy, the Black Tulip, before he and his master can stage their planned invasion of England. Every spy has a weakness, and for the Black Tulip that weakness is black-haired women—his "petals" of the Tulip. A natural at the art of seduction, Mary easily catches the attention of the French spy, but Lord Vaughn never anticipates that his own heart will be caught as well. Fighting their growing attraction, impediments from their past, and, of course, the French, Mary and Vaughn find themselves lost in the shadows of a treacherous garden of lies.

As our modern-day heroine, Eloise Kelly, digs deeper into England's Napoleonic-era espionage, she becomes even more entwined with Colin Selwick, the descendant of her spy subjects.

I have been reading this series now for a couple of years, and for the first two books, after I closed the book I was very much interested in knowing when the next book came out. After I read the last book, I was still interested, but I was aware that the third book in the series hadn't quite lived up to the first two. Unfortunately, neither did this book, the fourth in the series.

I still love the idea that Willig started off with. Two time lines, one where a grad student (Eloise) is trying to pick her way through the historical record to find out exactly who the leader of the Pink Carnation spy ring was, and what happened to the group. As Eloise finds more letters and information, then we travel back in time to see the events as they unfold.

In this book, the heroine is Miss Mary Alsworthy, who in one of the previous books was jilted quite by accident in favour of her sister. Mary is seen as something of an ice princess by the ton, and she keeps any unsuitable men away from her using her iciness as a weapon. It is unthinkable that Mary may well have to rely on the kindness of her sister and her husband to look after her, because Mary is very much in danger of being left on the shelf. When Mary is approached by Lord Vaughan, she does not realise that it is because her looks are very much the type preferred by the infamous Black Tulip, and her task will be to infiltrate the gang.

What follows is kind of a hotch-potch. The plot takes twists and turns that seem unlikely, despite the fact that Willig acknowledges exactly that in the Author's Note, and then elaborates that it wasn't far from actual events.

By far the biggest problem for me in this book was the build up of tension between our heroine and her hero, Mary and Lord Vaughan. Now, I love reading about the aristocratic lord who is somewhat aloof, cold and haughty who thaws dramatically when he meets the love of his life. He may still be aloof to everyone, except to that inner circle of people. The problem in this case is that Vaughan is cold (and yes we do find out the reasons why) and Mary is an ice princess - there's no thawing going on here. There also wasn't enough build up of attraction between them.

In terms of the contemporary strand of the story, I understand that Eloise only gets 5 or 6 chapters per book, but it just seems to me that it is moving forward to slowly. I want to see Eloise get it on, although it seems as though the momentum is building.

I am hoping that it is just me, and that this series is not losing steam, because I really want to see it through to the end, finding out exactly what happened to the Pink Carnation and whether Eloise finally gets her man.

In the end I rated this book a 3.5/5. That in itself is a respectable grade. I guess I just wanted more, and I do definitely want more from the next book, The Temptation of the Night Jasmine, which is due out on 22 January 2009. The main thing that concerns me about the next book though is that I can't remember meeting the heroine before. If I have time I might try to reread at least the first couple of books to give myself a refresher course in all the minor characters.

Book release frustration

You know how there are sometimes books that you are just waiting to come out with a great sense of anticpation?? I have a few of those, but despite the fact that I check the online stores and the library catalogue every couple of days, they don't seem to be showing the titles I am waiting for. Today, I took it a step further to see whether I could track down any information on the publisher's website, and I have to say, the news wasn't that great!

The Death Mask by Ariana Franklin won't be released here until May 15 - it came out in other countries in December last year, under a different title I know but surely that doesn't justify such a delay surely.

Also released late last year was Libba Bray's The Sweet Far Thing. Is it going to be released here. Well, yes, but not until 1 July! Six months after the rest of the world! Gah!

No sign at all of a release date for The Seduction of the Crimson Rose by Lauren Willig.

Usually it doesn't matter so much, but I am awaiting these anxiously!


What books are other people waiting for with great anticipation?

The Deception of the Emerald Ring by Lauren Willig

Emerald rings aren't all they are cracked up to be....

Eloise Kelly has gotten into quite a bit of trouble since she's been spying on the Pink Carnation and the Black Tulip - two of the deadliest spies to saunter the streets of nineteenth-century England and France. Not only has been unearthing secrets that will change the course of history, she's been dallying with Colin Selwick - great-nephew of Mrs Selwick-Alderly, the keeper of important hidden documents - looking for a romantic adventure of her own.

Little does she know there's another fierce heroine running headlong into history...

It's 1803 England, and Letty Alsworthy awakens in the middle of the night to discover that her sister, Mary, is about to make the very grave mistake of eloping with Geoffrey Pinchingdale-Snipe (second in command of the League of the Purple Gentian). In an attempt to save the family name, Letty tries to break up the midnight assignation - only to find herself accidentally carried off in her sister's place. The ensuing scandal forces Letty and Geoff into a hasty marriage - and just as hastily, Geoff disappears on their wedding night, under orders to hurry to Ireland and help the Pink Carnation squash a ring of Irish rebels led by the Black Tulip. Not to be outdone by her husband, Letty steals away on a ship bound for the Emerald Isle, armed and ready to fight for her integrity, and learn a thing or two about espionage - never imagining that she might learn a few things about love on the way...

After the intensity of the last couple of reads, something a bit light was in order, and one of the Pink Carnation books by Lauren Willig fitted the bill perfectly....that and the fact that it was due back at the library!!

The first two books in the series, The Secret History of the Pink Carnation and The Masque of the Black Tulip very much set the tone for this book, which really continues two stories in two different time lines.

In the first time line we have a chick lit style story where young American Eloise Kelly is living in London, whilst she is working on her dissertation which proposes that in addition to the more well known Scarlet Pimpernel and Purple Gentian, there was another spy called the Pink Carnation. For the chapters that focus on Eloise, the main topic is her love life, and more specifically her infatuation, for want of a better word, with Colin Selwick.

The book is stronger when the narrative concentrates on the events of the past. This time, the Pink Carnation has been sent to Ireland to quash a rebellion that is brewing which appears to be backed by old enemy Napoleon. After a botched elopement where Geoffrey Pinchingdale-Snipe ends up engaged to the wrong Alsworthy sister, and a hasty wedding, he too is off to Ireland. Unfortunately for his new bride, Letty, he chose to run off on their wedding night, choosing to believe that she has manipulated matters to try and destroy his happiness. Letty has never one to let sleeping dogs lie (case in point - interrupting the elopement in the first place), and so she follows her errant husband to Ireland, very nearly causing the mission to fail.

For the most part I enjoyed the relationship between Geoffrey and Letty. In many ways Geoffrey was a reluctant spy/hero. Whilst he loved his work in the league and the War Office, he would have been content to do his desk job instead of actually being out in the field - especially when his wife keeps on getting in the way! I did, however, think that the relationship between Letty and Geoffrey didn't really build up all that well - there was lots of angst and then it seemed all too suddenly they were in love, and then the book was over!

So whilst this one probably wasn't as good as the first two books in the series, there were still lots of fun elements in this book in both time settings, and I will definitely read the next book in the series.

Rating 3.5/5


The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
The Masque of the Black Tulip
The Deception of the Emerald Ring
The Seduction of the Crimson Rose (out January 2008)

The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig

Finding True Love Was Never So Dangerous

Two hundred years ago, secret documents so sensitive they could alter the course of history were stolen from a courier with the London War Office. A the scene of the crime, the victim was left with a curious note containing only a small black symbol pinned to his chest. Authorities were baffled. It took two centuries for a young American history student, Eloise Kelly, to uncover the missing pieces of the puzzle...

As Eloise reads from an old codebook, she discovers that the Black Tulip, the deadliest spy in Napoleon's arsenal, has returned to England with a terrifying mission. Only a pair of star-crossed lovers stand in the way of the Black Tulip. But will stopping the Black Tulip's secret mission cost them their lives or, even worse, their love?

This review was originally written in June 2006.

It's funny you know...when I was rereading what I wrote about Secret History, it struck me as quite ironic that I wrote that the back cover blurb wasn't really accurate for that book, as I have to say the same thing again. Reading the blurb above, it makes it seem as though the missing documents were a key part of the story, and that Eloise was the first person to discover the true identity of the Black Tulip...which isn't exactly the way the book pans out.

Our hero from the previous book (Lord Richard Selwick aka ThePurple Gentian) has had to retire from active spy service given that his cover was blown. That actually suits him as he is now settled into married bliss with Amy. He is, however, keeping his hand in by running a spy school from his home.

The Pink Carnation is still plying her trade in Paris, obtaining secret information and sending it home to England using a series of chatty letters to Lady Henrietta Selwick (sister of Lord Richard). What looks like gossip is in fact a complex series of codes that Henrietta then passes onto The War Office.

Miles Dorrington was a close personal friend of Richard (in fact has basically been a member of the family since he was a very young boy) and also employed at The War Office.

When the news comes through that there is a deadly new spy who has made their way to London, both Miles and Henrietta decide that they will track down the deadly Black Tulip.

There is a small problem though. All of a sudden they are both finding each other more and more attractive. Whilst Henrietta acknowledges her feelings, Miles is somewhat slower...very concerned about the fact that he is lusting after his best friend's sister, which apparently is just not done.

After both having numerous escapades and false leads, Miles and Henrietta both end up at a special spy weekend (the event is meant to appear as a house party) at her brother's home, where they are training their latest recruits, things don't quite go to plan. When it seems as though the Black Tulip has infiltrated the house, all of the potential spies are required to stay in the grounds of Selwick Hall, and in some ways, it is inevitable that Miles and Henrietta will be caught in a compromising situation.

There were times that I did just wish that Miles and Henrietta would just talk to each other, and things would have been a lot easier for them. As for Eloise, she spends the weekend at Selwick Hall, searching through the archives there for more evidence about The Pink Carnation and The Black Tulip, and the spy school that was convened there, but is she also succumbing to the charms of Colin Selwick? There's been no action on that stage yet, but it is building nicely!

Another fun, light read. The next book comes out later this year and has The Pink Carnation setting off for Ireland. I will definitely be getting hold of it when it comes out!

Rating 4/5


The books in this series in order are:

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
The Masque of the Black Tulip
The Deception of the Emerald Ring
The Seduction of the Crimson Rose (out January 2008)

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig

The first in a series of book by new author Lauren Willig, this book looks at the lives of the spies that followed on in the footsteps of the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Deciding that true romantic heroes are a thing of the past, Eloise Kelly, a gifted young history student who nonetheless always manages to wear her precious Jimmy Choo suede boots on the day it buckets down, abandons Harvard for London to finish her dissertation on a dashing pair of spies, The Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian. What she discovers is something the finest scholars have missed: the secret history of The Pink Carnation - the most elusive spy of all time, said to have singlehandedly saved England from Napolean's invasion.

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation opens with the tale of a modern-day heroine but soon becomes a story within a story. After discovering a treasure trove of old letters, Eloise is transported to eighteenth-century Paris through the daring exploits of another young woman determined to make her mark, and a passionate love affair that almost threw off the course of world events is at last revealed.

This book is an interesting mix of genres. We have some elements of chicklit (brand name dropping, parties, fashion), and yet at another level we have historical romance, mixed in with a dash of spying for good measure. In lesser hands, it could have been a recipe for mediocrity, with none of the elements dealt with satisfactorily, however, happily for the reader, it was handled quite competently. I was certainly left wanting to read more from this author!

The back cover details (above) really do not give an accurate reflection of what the book is about. From that blurb, one would assume that the main focus of the novel is Eloise, but really, other than a chapter here and there, the main focus of the novel is about the starting of the spy legend that is The Pink Carnation, and the romance between Amy Balcourt and Lord Richard Selwick.

From her days as a very young girl, Amy has dreamt of joining the league of spies that followed in the footsteps of The Scarlet Pimpernel, and if she couldn't join him, she would start her own league...the league of The Pink Carnation. Already enrolled in the league is Amy's cousin, the unflappable Jane. When Amy is called to go home to Paris by her brother Edouard, of course Jane will accompany, along with the very strict Miss Gwen, who is lethal with her parasol. Amy has everything planned...she is going to find The Purple Gentian and join him in Paris, and restore the monarchy to France. Unfortunately, The Purple Gentian has a much different agenda!

After being disappointed in her plans, the girls hire a boat for their exclusive use. Only problem is Lord Richard has done the same, and before they can sort out who really has the exclusive use of the boat, they are on their way to France, and the first interactions between our hero and heroine take place. In true romance fashion, they are attracted to each other, but keep on fighting with each other, especially when Amy finds the fact that Richard works for Napoleon unpatriotic. Once they reach Paris, they meet time and time again, until at last Amy realise who exactly she is dealing with. When the Purple Gentian finds himself cornered, he finds help from unlikely elements....in scenes which have high elements of slapstick comedy.

Whilst Eloise follows the story of Amy and Richard, she locks horns with the imperious Colin Selwick who is the family guardian of the papers regarding his ancestors life. There are only half a dozen chapters focusing on Eloise, and secondarily Colin, so there is plenty of scope in the next couple of novels to see where, if anywhere, the author wants to take our modern day couple.

The intriguing thing about this blend of different genres and styles is that it works! It will be interesting to see if it maintains its freshness as the series continues. I have my name down first on the request list at the library for The Masque of the Black Tulip

Reading this book did actually lead me to discover that Baroness Orczy who wrote The Scarlet Pimpernel actually wrote about 15 Pimpernel books, which I never knew previously, and most of them are available for free downloads on the internet. Hopefully I will get a chance to read some more of them soon!

A good fun read, filled with ingenious plans, swirling capes, masks and disguises - in short....lots of fun!

Edited to add: On Lauren Willig's website there are some "Outtakes" from this book - more fun!

Rating 4/5


The books in this series in order are:

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
The Masque of the Black Tulip
The Deception of the Emerald Ring
The Seduction of the Crimson Rose (out January 2008)

Lauren Willig giveaway

Kelly from Loaded Questions is giving away an ARC of Lauren Willig's next book, The Seduction of the Crimson Rose over at her blog! Willig's Pink Carnation series is a really fun spy caper/historical romance. I have read all the previous books in the series, and really enjoyed them. The new book is out in January. I will have reviews for the first three books in the series up here over the next few weeks in anticipation of the new release!

There are two ways to enter the giveaway. First, you can subscribe to Loaded Questions, or you can send Kelly an email. You can read all the details here!