Nice Girls Reading Naughty Books BlogTalk Radio - 1pm Melbourne time, today

Nice Girls Reading Naughty Books -- Beverley Eikli 01/02 by Bernadette Walsh | Books Podcasts

Today I'll be doing my first radio interview in the US with lovely fellow writer Bernadette Walsh as my host.

The first challenge was to get the time difference right. Hopefully I've actually *got* it right - in which case, you can hear me at 1pm Melbourne time - so in just under five hours.

Today at 1pm Melbourne, Australia, Time, I'm a guest on BlogTalk Radio, hosted by lovely fellow author, Bernadette Walsh.

I'll be talking about my historical romantic intrigues written under my Beverley Eikli name as well as my more sensual Beverley Oakley romantic intrigues.

I'll also be talking about my unusual, convoluted writing journey - starting with my first novel when I was 17 (and drowned the heroine on the last page) through my years writing while often the only woman on survey crews in Greenland, French Guiana, Africa and Europe - to finally getting "the call", winning a few competitions and awards along the way, and now having published 8 books.

Wish me luck and hope that my Aussie accent is clear and I don't get a mind blank. I'm an author who mostly works in silence, so this will be a test.

Here's the link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bernadettewalsh/2014/01/03/nice-girls-reading-naughty-books--beverley-eikli#.UsXSGUNujb8.facebook

Lady Farquhar's Butterfly is now a new ebook

I love metamorphoses. I like to think we all, in some way, metamorphose into something resembling what we'd like the world to see.

I was once the closet writer, too shy to call myself a writer because I felt I was putting tickets on myself to imagine I could one day write like my idols.

But now I'm working on edits for my eighth book, The Maid of Milan, to be published in March 2014 by Choc Lit. My debut with them is my winning entry The Reluctant Bride which has just been released.

Originally published in hard cover several years ago, my second book, Lady Farquhar's Butterfly, is now an ebook. It's a Regency romance about an abused wife, now a widow, who metamorphoses into the woman she wants the world to see, only to have her newfound happiness and position threatened by the malignant forces of her husband's influence beyond the grave.

I've just now uploaded it as a pre-order and on November 4 - my 19th wedding anniversary - it will be officially released. I chose that date as it was one of such hope and expectation all those years ago; and happily all those expectations were met. Unlike poor Olivia, the lively Regency 'party girl' who married the 'bad boy' and lived to rue the day.

So if you like historical romantic suspense, why not check it out HERE - and order it during the next month when the pre-order price comes with a 33% discount. It's not only readers who benefit from a lower price; a book gains much greater visibility due to the amount of pre-orders it receives.

Here is the premise of Lady Farquhar's Butterfly:

Falsely branded an adulteress and stripped of her child by her vengeful late husband, Olivia is desperate to escape her grim past. But when her charade to reclaim her son results in a deep and unexpected love with her son's kind and charming guardian, Max, Olivia fears that blackmail, revenge and possibly murder will continue to stalk her.

And here are some reviews from Long And Short Reviews, Red Roses for Authors, and Books Monthly:

LAS Reviewer

Format:Hardcover

Originally posted at: [...]

Sweet with heat and hard to beat, Lady Farquhar's Butterfly gains momentum as it builds to a terrifying climax.

The imagery of a fiery-eyed stallion rearing over Olivia, who has fallen in the mud, and its reminding her of her cruel, now-dead husband gives a clue to what she suffered at his hands.

Olivia wants her two-and-half-year-old son back who is in the care of her late husband's cousin. She been lead to believe her soul is destined for hell because of her past actions; but she wants to raise her child, while she is on earth, and is willing to do whatever it takes to do so. An error in judgment when she was seventeen years old governs much of what she does. Even though she is a beautiful, attention-grabbing woman on the outside, she feels ugly and horrid on the inside.

Max Atherton sells his commission in the army and returns home to be the guardian for his cousin, Lucien's little boy and to run the estate until the child reaches his twenty-first birthday so he can take over his inheritance. Max has no idea of what a life-changing experience awaits him.

The Rev. Nathaniel Kirkmen, confessor for the now-dead Lucien and the consoler and advisor to Olivia, Lucien's widow, has woven and continues to weave a web of lies so tightly around Olivia with his pseudo-piety that she feels helpless to do anything other than what he says to do, until...

Beverly Eirki's concise, smooth, and subtle writing reveals characters and their motivations with a style that makes Lady Farquhar's Butterfly fascinating--a thoroughly enjoyable, page-turner of a tale.

So, if you think it's the sort of book that you might enjoy whiling away a few hours with, you can...

PRE-ORDER HERE

Thank you :)

Hot Down Under Release Day

Today is release day for the final five wicked and original short stories by the Hot Down Under Aussie erotic writers. In total there are 14 stories which were released in November and December, and I'm proud to be in such excellent, diverse company.

Saving Grace, my 10K story, was a pleasure to write as it combines so many themes and elements which fascinate me. Set during the early years of photography it's about a rich man's hobby which becomes a poor girl's road to ruin.

Below is the blurb, followed by a brief run-down of all the stories which can be downloaded at Amazon.

Saving Grace by Beverley Oakley.

It’s 1878 and London’s most beautiful and hard-hearted prostitute, Grace Fortune, is preparing for her next job. She’s the special initiation ‘gift’ procured by a mother in fashionable Mayfair for her son’s twenty-first birthday. When Grace discovers she is to be servicing the man whose secret she’d guarded at the cost of her once-secure position as a housemaid and whose betrayal has plunged her into this hated life, she wants revenge. That is, until the re-emergence of malevolent forces that destroyed the couple’s young love. Now David and Grace must reconcile the past and fight for a different kind of justice to salvage their dignity and find happiness.

Business with Pleasure by Keziah Hill

For sculptor Lottie Williams, entering her sculpture, Triumvirate, in the Carve the Wind exhibition is the culmination of her career.

What she doesn’t count on is the incendiary lust between her and the curators, James and Magda. While she’s at first happy to play, she rapidly gets out of her depth when she confuses business with pleasure. Against the wild backdrop of the Pacific Ocean her work is displayed to great acclaim.

But all she wants, all she can think about is being back in the bed of the two people who have laid claim to her heart and soul.

This story is rated "Very Hot" (5 out of 5 flames) and contains F/F/M pairings.

Midsummers Eve by Shona Husk.
When Zoe walked out on the dare-devil photographer Sam Lincoln she never expected to see him again. Now he is here covering the reopening of a winery that nearly burned down, the one where they’d planned to marry. Seeing Zoe is a shock. Five years ago Sam hadn’t been able to refuse the job of a lifetime, but in exchange he lost the love of his life. With a little help from the winery’s lusty patron spirit Zoe and Sam might be able to put the past aside and rekindle what they’d thought lost.

Hidden Passions by Marianne Theresa.
When a guy falls in love with a mate’s girl, there is only one thing he can do … leave town. When Chad Whittaker receives a frantic call for help from the woman he loves he’s on the next plane home to Sydney. But will he get there in time? Cally Foster just kicked her boyfriend’s no-good, lying, cheating ass out of her apartment and her life. That’s what a girl gets when she falls for the wrong guy.

Powerplay by Lexxie Couper.
Sam and Nicky White are a typical contemporary power couple. She’s a ball-busting vice president at the country’s leading bank, he’s the trophy husband she wears on her arm at executive dinners. Except when they are in the bedroom. In the bedroom, their “games” of sexual domination have Sam firmly in the position of power. Nicky, however, is ready to bring the game to an end but Sam has other ideas. During a night of domination and submission in their isolated country cottage, an unexpected guest drops in on the couple. A dangerous guest. And for Sam and Nicky, nothing will ever be the same again.

Pre-order for The Cavalier

In a change of policy, my publisher, Total-E-Bound has introduced big discounts for pre-orders - so it's a good time to check out, not just my English Civil War romantic novella, The Cavalier, but some of the other great stories on the site.

I've been very happy with TEB's attention to detail in creating a quality product, especially when it comes to copy edits. This is my third Beverley Oakley sensual historical romance and, like my other books, it's been copy edited five times.

I'm a freelance editor, myself, so I turn in a pretty clean product, but there are multiple editors who query everything from grammar points to whether a particular word used had entered the vocabulary of the day to whether the noise of cicadas or sparrows would be more appropriate to the setting. (This was queried in my very first paragraph.)

Here's the blurb and a bit about the novella in which:

A Puritan woman’s loyalties are tested when her husband is imprisoned by the Royalist lover she was forced to surrender through duty.

The Cavalier

by Beverley Oakley

Drummond Castle, home of staunch Puritan Silas Drummond and his beautiful wife, Elizabeth, has been besieged by Royalist forces. In a bargain to spare her husband’s life Lady Elizabeth has agreed to spend the night with the commander of the hated King’s Men.

Second-in-command, Charles Trethveyan, has other ideas. He’s planned this moment since Elizabeth chose to marry Silas eight years before.

When Elizabeth discovers that her former Cavalier lover has taken the place of his superior, she must decide whether Charles is motivated by love or revenge.

Either way, her response will have devastating consequences.

I usually write Regency Romances – either traditional under my Beverley Eikli name, or sensual or erotic under my pseudonym, Beverley Oakley. However this gritty, sometimes brutal story had been begging to be written for a long time. I love historical author Pamela Belle’s work. Her brilliant English Civil War Wintercombe series has resonated over decades with me.

I’ve also devoured everything I can find to do with seventeenth century diarist Samuel Pepys and his life. I feel comfortable with the time period. Honour and loyalty are two of my favourite themes and integral to a romance set against civil conflict when families and friends could be fighting on opposing sides. This short novella begins on the eve of battle and ends twenty-four hours later with the occupation of Drummond Castle. In the interim a lot of lives are lost or irrevocably altered but at least someone gets their happy ending. Writing it made me feel that the pen really is mightier than the sword.

You can read more by visiting my website or you can get the book here.

Hanging Rock Races

Went to the Hanging Rock Races last week. This was where the famous 1975 film Picnic at Hanging Rock was shot. Unfortunately the races last year were cancelled due to kangaroos on the track and this year moved to Kyneton because of a divet.

Anway, just uploaded this picture of me and the family (including beautiful Homer) from last year to show how lovely the scenery is.

I'd forgotten painting was so boring. Or so time-consuming. It's a good thing I have a couple of stories in my head to pot-boil or I'd go insane.

I also have my best friend, my big, loyal Rhodesian Ridgeback Homer, who is never more than two metres away, to keep me company. Every time I go inside to make a cup of tea or find some other excuse to leave the job at hand, he gets up with a groan and lopes after me.

If only my children were so dedicated - or could wield a paintbrush with any expertise or enthusiasm for more than two minutes. Mind you, I won't be on at them to keep up the hard work. I've spent too much time already fixing up the spills and drips.

Soon it'll all be worthwhile. A beautiful 6m x 6m pergola in blue and white will grace the back garden next to the swimming pool and I'll be enjoying entertaining my friends too much to remember how much I detested all the painting.

My ARRA Nomination - a huge thank you!

Thank you to everyone for your congratulations on being nominated for an ARRA award
AND congratulations to all my fellow nominees in all categories.

What a surprise that it was for A Little Deception which has received such mixed reviews. It shows you that not everyone likes the same things as the first few reviews I read were just heartbreaking! This nomination more than makes up for it.

A spontaneous trip to country South Australia (via the Renmark Big 4 caravan park with the kids) meant I was out of cyber contact for nearly 10 days so I've not responded as I should have but I've just booked my flight to Sydney for the ARRA awards dinner. (Not that I harbour any illusions that I'll win but it will be fun to catch up with my writing friends.) And since I can hop over on staff travel I might as well!

Anyway, here's the link to ARRA's blog which has all the finalists in the various categories and, below, the finalists in the historical category.


http://australianromancereaders.wordpress.com/2012/01/16/arr-awards-finalists-announced/#comment-4135

Favourite historical romance for 2011 (proudly sponsored by Rosemary’s Romance Books and Temptation the Romance Bookstore)

• A Little Deception / Beverley Eikli
• Cloudy With a Chance of Marriage / Kieran Kramer
• Heiress in Love / Christina Brooke
• How the Marquess was Won / Julie Anne Long
• Midnight’s Wild Passion / Anna Campbell
• Never Love a Highlander / Maya Banks
• Salt Bride / Lucinda Brant
• The Many Sins of Lord Cameron / Jennifer Ashley
• Unveiled / Courtney Milan
• Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue / Stephanie Laurens

www.beverleyeikli.com