Hello Vixens
It’s lovely to be here with you to talk about my new book THE DANGEROUS VISCOUNT.

Now as you may guess from the title, this is a “hero-centric” book. My shorthand description of the plot is “Regency Revenge of the Nerd.” Sebastian Iverley is a badly dressed book collector who wears spectacles and has nothing to do with women. And I mean nothing. He’s totally inexperienced. Then he catches a glimpse of Diana Fanshawe’s leg and falls for her. He thinks Diana returns his feelings, until he discovers she kissed him to win a bet with his hated cousin Blakeney. To get his revenge, Sebastian gets himself an extreme makeover, intending to break Diana’s heart.

It’s a male Cinderella story but today I want to talk about my heroine. She’s not as obviously “different” as my nerdy hero, but neither does she fit the common stereotypes.

1. She is not remotely a Mary Sue. She is not sacrificing herself for her family, selflessly caring for orphans (or stray dogs), or holding her head up bravely through poverty and hardship.

2. She is not kickass. She doesn’t have a job, want a job, want to save the world, or have any useful skills. It’s just as well she’s never attacked on a dark night because she’d have no idea how to defend herself. When she’s held up by a highwayman, the only weapon at hand is her miniature embroidery scissors.

She loves clothes and hats and her idea of fun is redecorating the house. She worries about her weight. She married once for money (though she was fond of her much older husband) and she wants to marry again for status and because she likes sex (she has her eye on a hot ducal heir). She finds her family’s eccentricities embarrassing and her mother drives her nuts.

On the other hand she’s smart, kind, warmhearted and loves her crazy family, especially her little sister, whom she wants to give every advantage she herself lacked. She’s really fun and I would love to be one of her girlfriends.

Diana isn’t as shallow as she appears. Even before his makeover, she appreciates Sebastian for the interesting man he is. While approving of his improved appearance, she fears he may have lost something in the transformation.

As with any Cinderella story the characters have to learn to distinguish between appearance and reality. And it’s always a toss up which has the most to learn.

You can find an excerpt from the book on my website, or the go to the HarperCollins site for the first 60 pages.