Meredith Duran, author of the Rules for the Reckless series, sits down with Fresh
Fiction Reviewer Make Kay to talk about LUCK BE A LADY, the fourth book in the series!
Make: Hi, Meredith! Thank you for joining us on Fresh Fiction. I'm so glad
to talk with you about your books and your life!
Meredith: Thanks so much for having me!
Make: LUCK BE A LADY is the fourth book in the the Rules for the
Reckless series. Can you tell me one fact that readers wouldn't expect
about the series (even readers like me who stalk you on Facebook, Twitter, and your
website!)?
Meredith: As you’ve probably noticed, some of the books in this series are
far more loosely connected than others. For instance, while Olivia (FOOL ME TWICE)
is introduced in the book preceding hers, Lilah (LADY BY GOOD)
is mentioned only in passing before we meet her (Olivia thinks a couple of times
about the reformed thief whom she met at typing school, who taught her to pick
locks).
And that, in itself, was actually the inspiration for this series: I wanted to write
about women who would be utterly tangential in most plots, particularly in the
classic, “polite society waltzes in the ballroom” romance. None of these women are
really wallflowers, per se (shy, modest, retiring, plain), but by virtue of their
choices or the circumstances of their birth, they would never have been included on
the guest list at the most proper society events. Moreover, none of them care to be
included.
Make: You posted recently on Facebook about LUCK BE A LADY
that this quote sums up what makes the hero of the book tick: “I want the freedom
to live as I please,” he said softly. “By my own rules, nobody else’s. How does that
sound to you?” Does that resonate with you as a personal mantra as well?
Meredith: What a fascinating question! I suppose that this might be
considered any writer’s personal mantra; it’s certainly one of the greatest boons of
being a novelist.
Make: Will there be more books in the Rules for the
Reckless series? If yes, will the next feature someone we've already met in
a previous book?
Meredith: My imagination is actually now wandering toward a couple of long-
overdue sequels: the story of Lord Lockwood, whom we met in my debut novel (THE DUKE OF
SHADOWS), and the story of Stella, whom we met in BOUND BY YOUR
TOUCH, and who made a surprise appearance in LUCK BE A LADY,
too. (Surprising for me, at least – I am not a plotter, and until I was in the thick
of writing the scene in the asylum, I had no notion that Stella would appear.)
But as I always say, believe nothing about my next book until you see the
description posted on my website! I have a bad habit of chucking a manuscript after
30,000 words and then writing something entirely different.
Make: In a 2009 interview for an Edwardian period blog, you said "Let it
be said plainly: I have no desire to write historical fiction. I write romance, and
I strongly believe that the history of the period should accentuate, rather than
detract, from the development of a hot, steamy love affair that ultimately results
in a lasting happy-ever-after." And I personally say to that, Huzzah! I adore
the fabulous wealth of historical detail in your books! Are there some entertaining
historical sources or blogs you can share with us that your readers might enjoy
looking at?
Meredith: My favorite resources for research are old newspaper archives and
books published in the nineteenth century. If you don’t have a research library
nearby that will let you go prowling in the stacks (I have found some AMAZING
nineteenth-century Baedeker’s travel guides to London in mine), never fear – a huge
wealth of material like this is now available freely on Google Books!
Make: I know you did some studying abroad, for your graduate school, I
believe. Can you share some more about that with us?
Meredith: My doctoral work centers on issues of class, consumerism, and urban
life in North India. I spent a good deal of my twenties doing research there, and
I’ve been studying Hindi and Urdu since I was seventeen.
As for how this influences my writing – well, if you’re a fan of romance novels,
there’s no cinema better at romance than Hindi cinema (often called “Bollywood”).
I’ve had great luck recommending films like Jab We Met to my fellow romance
readers!
Make: How much does your background in Cultural Anthropology feed into your
books? Does it change your approach the plots for your stories?
Meredith: It has certainly made me acutely aware that when we write about
nineteenth century Britain, we’re always simultaneously writing about an empire;
that the aristocrats and 1% of that era were deeply implicated in colonial projects
abroad.
Make: Is there a book you've read this year that you've thought, "I wish I
had thought of that plot!" ?
Meredith: Pretty much any book by Sarah Maclean
or Courtney
Milan leaves me awestruck in that regard. They both are so incredibly gifted at
creating “high concept” books (i.e., those premises that make you go, “OF COURSE,
THAT’S A BRILLIANT IDEA FOR A BOOK!”).
Make: What are you obsessed with right now? It can be a book or series, a tv
show, a band... What's captivating your soul currently?
Meredith: On the television front, I’m obsessed with Mr. Robot and
Humans. Book-wise, I’ve spent a year shilling STATION ELEVEN,
by Emily St. John Mandel – it’s this fabulous postapocalyptic tale of a Shakespeare
troop bringing art to a devastated world. And it’s a pageturner.
Make: With a busy life and your writing career, how do you grab some "me"
time, and what do you like to do for it?
Meredith: I read a tremendous amount. I knit, and I butcher canvases in my
attempts to paint them. I also try to get to the gym regularly. I grew up imagining
I was the worst athlete of all time because I hated running. Then, in my mid-
twenties, I discovered weight lifting, and you know what? It’s actually a ton of
fun. Finally, I try to do ten minutes of mindfulness meditation each day, especially
when I’m in the thick of a book – it is the best spur for creativity that I’ve ever
found.
Make: Congratulations on making this summer's National Public Radio's list of
the top 100 all-time swoon-worthy romances! for THE DUKE OF
SHADOWS. You also won a RWA award, the RITA, this year for best Historical Long
Romance with FOOL ME TWICE. You're in the Historical category with some
other amazing authors for each, and I hope you're fantastically proud of your
success- I fervently believe you deserve the accolades! What has been your proudest
moment as an author?
Meredith: Oh, I would have to say that winning the RITA is up there. I am
being bluntly honest here: I genuinely did NOT believe I was going to win. As you
say, the competition was incredible. Grace Burrowes, Kaki Warner, Jodi Thomas? I
mean… all of those women write exquisitely.
So… I spent the day of the ceremony repeatedly warning my husband that he needed to
take his excitement down a notch, because I would feel horrible when he was
disappointed by the announcement. When they did announce my name, my jaw dropped.
I think the only comparable moment in my career came when I first found out that THE DUKE OF
SHADOWS was going to be published. All of my life – since I could talk – I have
wanted to be a writer. To realize a dream you’ve nursed since childhood is such an
astonishing privilege and good fortune. I remain dazzled every day that I get to do
this for a living!
Make: We're thrilled get to do this for a living as well! Thank you so much
for joining us!
Meredith Duran grew up enamored of British history. At thirteen years old,
she made a list of life goals that included writing romance novels, trying sushi,
and going to London to see Holbein’s portrait of Anne Boleyn. Now a doctoral
student in anthropology, she is happy to report that all three goals have become her
favorite things to do. When not studying, doing fieldwork in India, or working on
her next novel, Meredith can be found in the library, browsing through travelogues
written by intrepid Englishwomen of the nineteenth century.
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Romance sizzles between a famous heiress and an infamous crime lord in this
fourth sexy novel in the Rules for the Reckless series from the USA
TODAY bestselling author of FOOL ME TWICE.
THE WALLFLOWER
They call her the “Ice Queen.” Catherine Everleigh is London’s loveliest heiress,
but a bitter lesson in heartbreak has taught her to keep to herself. All she wants
is her birthright—the auction house that was stolen from her. To win this war,
she’ll need a powerful ally. Who better than infamous and merciless crime lord
Nicholas O’Shea? A marriage of convenience will no doubt serve them both.
THE CRIME LORD
Having conquered the city’s underworld, Nick seeks a new challenge. Marrying
Catherine will give him the appearance of legitimacy—and access to her world of the
law-abiding elite. No one needs to know he’s coveted Catherine for a year now—their
arrangement is strictly business, free from the troubling weaknesses of love.
Seduction, however, is a different matter—an enticing game he means to ensure she
enjoys, whether she wishes to or not. . . .
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