1--What is the title of your latest release?
MARRY ME, MARQUESS,book 5 in the Ladies Least Likely series
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
To protect himself from marriage-minded mamas, marquess’s heir and aspiring antiquarian Leo Westrop persuades Lillian Gower to fake a betrothal, promising to help her publish her botanical book—but not revealing he targeted her because he hopes her famed antiquarian parents will help his career.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
I wanted a time when antiquarian and botanical fields were growing, but there was still much to be discovered. The other Ladies Least Likely books are set in Britain in the later decades of the 18th century, so that’s where I began. When I learned that William Cunnington was excavating at Stonehenge in 1798, that historical tidbit became the linchpin for my setting.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
I would! Lillian especially, as she is funny, smart, and perceptive. I think we’d get along well, though I would imagine she and Leo would make a great couple friend also. They’d be a lot of fun at dinner parties.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Leo: reserved, loyal, stubborn; Lillian: generous, nurturing, amused
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned a ton—I love historical research—but some of my favorite bits are legends surrounding the area where Leo decides to excavate, near the White Horse of Uffington. There’s a legend that the sarsen stones around Ashdown House are sheep enchanted into stones by Merlin the magician. Why? Who knows. There was once a legend that the Danish King Bagsecg, who was defeated by King Alfred at the Battle of Ashdown, was buried in Wayland Smith’s Cave, as Wayland’s Smithy was then called. What an archaeological find that would have been!
It was also said that if you left your horse and a coin at the Smith and took yourself for a walk, you’d return to find that Wayland had shod your horse and you could proceed on your travels. When you consider that Volund/Weland had god-like powers in Norse and Germanic mythology, shoeing horses seems a step down, but since the White Horse is said to leave his hill every so often and gallop over to be reshod by Wayland, it’s handy to keep in practice.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
Both. I tweak until a scene feels right, and then there are further rounds of edits when the first draft is done, for clarity, continuity, and to cut all the extra things I wrote when I was trying to figure out the action and character arcs.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Chocolate. Mmm. Rich, dark chocolate with something tasty added, like orange or mint. I love chocolate mousse above anything.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I have a beautiful, book-lined office with an enormous desk and a wall of built-in shelves, but it’s in the basement. Right now, I’m writing at the kitchen island, on the quartz countertop we recently installed, where there’s lots of natural light.
10--Who is an author you admire?
Susan Carroll. I admired her books long before I met her, especially her historical romances; they’re rich and complex and funny and moving. Then I met her, and she became a mentor and sort of fairy-tale godmother in my own writing life. She’s wonderful.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
Two: Jane Eyre, 11th grade English class. The time period, the story, the characters, Brontë’s prose; I wanted to live inside that book. I found the kind of book I wanted to write. Then in 12th grade I read The Mists of Avalon thanks to a rec from my AP English teacher, and Marion Zimmer Bradley’s world engulfed me completely. Those were the books that started me thinking about writing not just as a hobby but as a craft—I could learn to build worlds like this that readers could get lost in.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
This is why Susan Carroll is my fairy godmother; she suggested I submit one of my historicals to her publisher, Oliver Heber Books. Tanya Anne Crosby is a hugely talented writer, and OHB’s lineup includes so many authors I enjoy. I didn’t imagine I could belong in those ranks. When Tanya offered for a series of books like the one I submitted, I think my heart stopped beating. Had it not resumed, I would have died happy.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
Honestly any fiction that combines rich world-building with characters who undergo some kind of transformation, told in well-crafted prose. Literary, women’s fiction, romance, and historical are my go-tos, but lately I’ve been getting into fantasy, sci-fi, and romantasy. I love traveling to new and undiscovered worlds.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
With the December holidays coming up, I’m going to say Mixed Nuts, Nora Ephron’s hilarious farce about people running a suicide hotline on Christmas Eve. It’s irreverent and outrageous and touching, and every year, it makes me laugh till I cry.
15--What is your favorite season?
High summer. Pool-floating, clear-blue sky, somnolent summer.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I drag my husband and kids on a trip to someplace new. I like to explore, and my birthday is a good excuse to make them humor me.
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
My new favorite podcast is The Historical Romance Sampler by Katherine Grant. I’ve discovered so many new authors and exciting books through her. I love the range of conversational topics, how she draws out her guests, and the segments like ‘Love it or Leave it.’
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
My comfort food is sushi. What’s funny is that this is becoming my kids’ comfort food, too. We like to make it at home and experiment.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
Grab my kids and get out of the house. Talk a walk through the neighborhood arboretum. Call up a friend. Occasionally I get zany and try a new activity or skill.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
MY LADY MELISENDE, sixth in the Ladies Least Likely series, is due out in February. This one is more of an adventure quest with romantic suspense, new territory for me. I hope readers have as much fun with it as I’m having.
Ladies Least Likely #5
When his cousin’s death puts Leo Westrop in line to inherit a marquessate, he suddenly becomes the target of every matching-making mama in London, including his own. To save himself, Leo offers his hand to the angel who delivers him from a compromising situation—Lillian Gower, the daughter of well-known antiquarians, who could finally help Leo secure a dig of his own.
Lillian, in town chaperoning her younger cousin, doesn’t have a romantic bone in her body. She knows Westrop is desperate, and she’s shrewd enough to bargain: she’ll go along with the pretense if he helps her publish her study of the lady’s slipper orchid.
It’s not part of the bargain for him to escort her to balls and gardens. She doesn’t need his help organizing her uncle’s library. He certainly oughtn’t be winning over her cousin. And it’s a mistake to bring him to meet her parents—but an even bigger mistake to agree to help him with his own excavation. Because the attentions of the delicious Leo Westrop could make even the most sensible botanical illustrator lose her head.
An undeniable passion draws them together even when they both know their betrothal of convenience must end. But when Lillian learns what he’s been after all along, what can Leo do to persuade her the feelings between them are real?
Romance Historical [Oliver-Heber Books, On Sale: November 19, 2024, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781648397486 / ]
Misty Urban is a medieval scholar, freelance editor, and college professor who likes to write stories about misbehaving women who find adventure and romance. She holds an MFA and Ph.D. from Cornell University and lives in the Midwest in a little town on a big river.
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