Emily Greenwood | Tips on Surviving a London Season
Thanks so much for having me back on Fresh Fiction to celebrate the release of
HOW TO HANDLE A SCANDAL,
the second book in my Scandalous Sisters series. Itβs the story of Miss
Elizabeth Tarryton, whom readers first met when she was a gorgeous, rebellious
teenager in THE BEAUTIFUL
ONE.
Elizabeth is a little too beautiful for her own good, and she definitely likes
to make a splash. When she goes to London for her first season, sheβs in
girls-just-want-to-have-fun mode and, well, sheβs a bit of a scandal. So sheβs
the perfect person to offer some tips on How to Survive a London Season:
Donβt go swimming in fountains in the presence of gentlemen and
wearing an evening gown. Or at least, donβt get caught in the Regency version of
a wet t-shirt. Elizaβs beloved guardian, Viscount Grandville, has
warned her about the damage she might cause her reputation if she doesnβt tone
down her behavior, but sheβs having the time of her life, and she just canβt
seem to resist fun, which in Elizaβs case is usually spelled t-r-o-u-b-l-e.
Donβt kiss gentlemen in public, stand on the streets of London
serenading a man through his window, or sneak out your own window to meet
gentlemen at night. Elizaβs outrageousness is one of the things her
friend Tommy Halifax likes about her, though heβs not too happy about the way it
attracts the attention of other men. Tommy is a handsome, adventurous guy as
well as being the viscountβs brother, and when HOW TO HANDLE A SCANDAL starts,
heβs in love with Eliza, but she doesnβt know it.
Donβt be in a rush to get married (unless you have to). With a generous dowry assured her from the viscount and a difficult year
behind her, Eliza sees her first London Season as her first chance in a long
time to do exactly as she likes. Unlike most debutantes, in London that year,
she has no interest in marrying any time soonβwhy put an end to all the fun?
Do expect the unexpected and keep your composure at all
times. When Tommy proposes to Eliza in front of a packed ballroom,
sheβs shocked, and she makes a terrible mistake: she laughs at him. Heβs furious
and heartbroken, and sheβs terribly remorseful. He promptly leaves England for
India, and six years will pass before they meet again.
Do keep your friends and family close. Since Eliza was
orphaned at fifteen, Viscount Grandville and his family have become her only
family. She adores them, and sheβd never want to disappoint themβbut she fears
that the disaster of Tommyβs proposal will make them reject her.
Donβt be afraid to reinvent yourself. Hoping to make up for
causing Tommy to leave the country, Eliza decides to make herself over into a
respectable, virtuous woman. Does it work? When Tommy comes home after six years
away, he doesnβt believe sheβs changed. And maybe heβs not entirely wrong,
because after one absolutely scandalous night at a very surprising place, they
have to get married. Neither one of them is happy about this.
Be ready for adventure. Hoping to avoid the prying eyes
of society, the acrimonious newlyweds leave town for Tommyβs newly purchased but
extremely disreputable estate by the sea. There, they intend to play out the
clock until Tommy returns to India. But the close quarters are making them
remember how much they once liked each other...and making them wonder how much
more they might want to discover.
Emily Greenwood worked for a number of years as a writer, crafting
newsletters and fundraising brochures, but she far prefers writing playful love
stories set in Regency England, and she thinks romance novels are the chocolate
of literature. A Golden Heart finalist, she lives in Maryland with her husband
and two daughters.
They thought the debutante was scandalous Miss Elizabeth
Tarryton was the toast of the London Season the year she was seventeen and
spurned young Tommy Halifax. A careless flirt who didn't know what she wanted,
she was startled into laughter by his public proposal of marriage. Furious and
heartbroken, Tommy promptly left home for a life of adventure in
India.
If they only knew about the widow Seven years
later, Elizabeth has much to make up for, but the methods she chooses for doing
good are as shocking as her earlier wanton behaviorβshould the ton ever find
out. Tommy returns to England a hero, with no intention of allowing himself to
be hurt by a woman ever again, but he's fascinated nonetheless by Elizabeth, now
widowed and more alluring than ever.
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