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Ruby Release: The Danger of Desire by Elizabeth Essex
 Posted by Addison Fox Nov 29 2011, 12:01 am in historical romance, Ruby Release
I’ve really been looking forward to celebrating Elizabeth’s release day. I’ve loved these books and THE DANGER OF DESIRE did NOT disappoint!!! This is Captain Hugh McAlden’s book. Now I’ve had a little thing for Hugh since he appeared on the page in PURSUIT and have been anxiously awaiting his book. And OH WOW, EE did not disappoint. This book is lush and beautiful, evoking equal parts MY FAIR LADY and a good spy thriller and I was enthralled from page one clear through to the end. Here’s a short excerpt: The door was opened wide and Meggs could see Himself striding his uneven way across the deep, quiet rug with the singular concentration of a silent hawk, swooping down on its prey. She was struck again by the eerie, almost incandescent light of his ice blue eyes. Her stomach did a nasty little flip that made the floor tilt under foot. Gave her the jim-jams bad, this one. Coming here was a mistake. “Well, well. It seems good things do come to those who wait. Please, come in.” He gestured toward two armchairs in front of the glowing hearth. Lord help her, but it was warm. “I’m impressed. Jinks clearly didn’t recognize you. I see you’ve decided to accept my offer.” So he’d had the Irish fairy man with him before, at the watchmakers. Stupid of her not to have seen him. This cove was too flash by half. “Ain’t decided nofink. Yet.” She didn’t like being inside, all caged up with nowhere to run. Though it was nice and warm. “I see. So you’ve come to negotiate, have you?” He seated himself behind his desk, leaned back in the leather-bound chair and steepled his fingers across his chest. All to show her he was in charge. “You’re hardly in a position to ask for a pot to piss in. I could see you in jail or transported on the strength of my word alone. I could see you hung.” He meant to frighten her. Good thing she was already scared shite-less. It saved them both time. “You could see me do what you want, nice ‘n easy like. For the right price.” So come join us for the day as we talk sexy ship captains and the fair lady who has some suspect beginnings but who is destined to capture the good captain’s heart.
Addison Fox: Elizabeth, you’ve been teasing us with Hugh’s story from the very first book. How did you come up with Meggs as his perfect counterpart? Elizabeth Essex: I came up with Meggs entirely separately from Hugh. Actually, I think she was the second heroine I ever conceived of, and I wrote down notes about her years ago, long before I ever learned how to write a proper story, and years before I wrote this book. She popped into my head one day, talking a mile a minute, very knowing and full of ‘flash patter’ on the surface, but scared and scheming just to stay alive beneath. I just had the idea of a story about children who had been swallowed whole by the gaping maw of the London slums. I started to work with her character a bit and then one morning when I was trying to think up a full story for Hugh, I realized that she was perfectly inappropriate for him. So of course, I had to get them together.
AF: Meggs is an unusual heroine and one that, given her profession, could have been a bit difficult to care for. Instead, you had me rooting for her from the get go. What considerations went into writing this character? EE: She had to be smart, smart, smart. And blazingly honest, at least with herself, about making the best of a very bad situation. I tried to make every thought that went through her head, and every emotion she carried in her heart, open and apparent to the reader. I originally had a different opening for the book—a scene where Meggs sizes Hugh up and almost picks his pocket—but I felt that was TELLING us she was a pickpocket without SHOWING it. And I was very worried that readers who had become invested in Hugh over the course of the last two books would automatically take his side against her. So I re-wrote the opening to be in her POV, show her at work and get the reader to feel the desperation, the aching hunger and the clammy nervousness that she had to overcome every single time she picked a pocket.
AF: You’ve set all your books thus far in the Georgian period. Your depth of knowledge on the time period is incredibly impressive and your writing is full of historic touches and an incredibly authentic use of language. What draws you to that time period as a writer and what sort of research have you done to prepare yourself? EE: I do so love this time period. I find it bawdy and earthy, and so incredibly full of vibrant, radical thinking and turmoil that there is great fodder for story ideas everywhere I turn. The best tool I have found for research is reading writers of the period (for some examples: Wollstonecraft, Paine or Burke for the heavy stuff, and Austen and Fanny Burney d’Arblay for lighter) and look at art from the period. My imagination really takes flight when I look at paintings, especially portraits. Maybe that’s part of my academic training in Art History coming through but I like to spend a lot of time culling the on-line archives of the National Portrait Gallery in London to find interesting and arresting subjects. As to more prosaic research tools, when I wrote this book I was never without Grouse’s “Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue” for slang and Cary’s 1790 Map of London. I really love exploring maps. Somehow they just get my creative and imaginative senses sparkling off into adventures. And I listen. I must have watched every show, contemporary and historical, on the BBC for the past few years and I have a pretty good ear for accents, language and cadence. I’m always more interested in the secondary characters, the ones with the rough accents and slang, and for this book, I wanted to make those kind of quirky, jabber-talking characters take center stage.
AF: Hugh McAlden is an incredibly dynamic hero who burns up the page. Did you see his story from the very start and know Meggs was the perfect character for him? Or was it something that evolved over time? EE: I knew I was going to have to give Hugh a book of his own as soon as he started to be so very interesting in THE PURSUIT OF PLEASURE. I wrote him as a rather blunt, almost menacing secondary character in that book—a foil for the hero, Jamie. By A SENSE OF SIN, Hugh had grown and mellowed a little, and in comparison to the seething hatred roiling in the hero of that book, Viscount Delacorte, Hugh’s principled and caring characteristics could be seen to best advantage. In THE DANGER OF DESIRE I wanted to present the whole man, mature and almost at the top of his game as an officer, but with some deep chasms of vulnerability. As I said before, I conceived of Meggs separately from Hugh, but once I looked around for people for Meggs to clash and connect with, there was Hugh, striding to the front of my mind, just asking to have his pocket picked. I thought they were all wrong for each other, so it would be so much fun to throw them together and watch the sparks fly off the flint that was Hugh. And that’s what I hope I did.
AF: One of the things that absolutely captivates me about your writing is your lush, evocative prose. This passage caught me in particular: ‘At first glance, he looked like the kind of man a prudent person would leave alone, but to her, he looked most like his real self. A natural leader among men. Capable and commanding, without the need for any sort of rank. All the layers of civilization peeled back, leaving nothing but the man himself.’ All the layers of civilization peeled back….no wonder he’s so lovable!! You also blend this incredible prose with an active adventure story. How do you manage the pacing between both? EE: First, thank you so much. Here’s another short excerpt: He was back into his gentleman’s rig this morning—coat, waistcoat and cravat all in place, all clean and ship-shape. Civilized. All that cagey power battened down under his hatches. He took her outstretched hand carefully, half turning away, to hold it tucked under his arm, steady against his side, as he plucked the tied linen strip free. She pulled back awkwardly to keep from being hauled up against his backside, with her chest plastered against his coat. He said he wanted them to be professional, so she kept her left hand fisted up in her skirts to keep from touching him. But she couldn’t do it, could she? Because she was a professional and he was making it so easy for her fingers to make business-like with his waistcoat pockets. The Captain was unwinding the bandage and she found herself craning her neck around to see the surgeon’s handiwork. There, across her palm, was a row of stitches, bristling black against her skin, like an uneven quilt edge. Eight in all, she counted. Lucky eight. Jesus God. “It looks good. Can you wiggle your fingers? Handsomely, now.” “What does that mean, handsomely?” she asked his back. His broad, tall back that near blocked out the light. “It don’t look handsome to me.” “Doesn’t. Means carefully, with thought and deliberation. It’s a naval expression.” “Do tell. I like it. The naval expression,” she clarified, because he was touching each of her fingers in turn, running his own strong fingers across the tips and knuckles, sending soft waves of something nice lapping up inside her.
AF: And for my last question….to an earlier point above, Elizabeth uses a sense of language and prose that really puts you in the story. There is one line that’s repeated throughout and contextually you’ll figure out what it means pretty quickly. But…EE – you’ve got to tell us what a “prime filching mort” is!!! EE: That is one of my favorites! Meggs clings very hard to her identity as “a prime filching mort,” so I do use it repeatedly. I first learned ‘mort,” which is slang for a woman, from an old Irishman with whom I worked on an archaeological project back in the day. “Yer a mean mort y’are,” he’d tell me when I wouldn’t let him pop off to the pub for “A bit of a wet,” at 10am. I found the full descriptive phrase, which refers to an accomplished female pick-pocket in The Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue and was enchanted by the idea of writing a character who was unapologetic and monstrously good at what she does. One last excerpt: Meggs found a quiet passageway between two buildings across the square and pulled the Captain into it, so he might lean against the wall and rest his leg. Must be a powerful hurt to make a man that big and that strong, take to limping. But the passageway was narrow and they had to squeeze up together a fair bit to stay out of sight. The Captain leaned one shoulder into the wall and turned his back a bit to the street, to block the worst of the wind. His body made a momentary cove of warmth and calm around her, a respite from the hurly burly of the sidewalks. He was so near, so big and masculine. She swallowed the jim-jams tip-toeing up her throat. “I suppose we ought to make it look like you’re chatting me up. Like we had private things to say to one another.” “Oh aye, that should work.” He smiled down briefly. “It would be the most expected thing in the world, to see a man and his lass looking for a quiet corner.” His lass. Along with the rough clothing, he let the rough Scots burr come out in his voice. Oh Lord, the way he said it, made her wish with all her heart she could be that lass. When he was so himself like this, it made her want not to be herself, not to be Meggs the prime filching mort. It made her want something else, something clean and free from all the burdens of the past. It made her want to be better.
AF: I’m so glad you’re sharing your release day with the Rubies. Congratulations on your latest release!! EE: Thank you so very, very much for hosting me, Addison and for all your kind words. I’m thrilled to share this story with you and it’s always a singular pleasure to launch my books here with my Ruby Sisters. To celebrate I would love to give away a copy of THE DANGER OF DESIRE to three random, lucky commenters, and as a GRAND PRIZE, all three of my Brava Novels, THE PURSUIT OF PLEASURE, A SENSE OF SIN and THE DANGER OF DESIRE to one very lucky commenter! Good luck to all and thanks to all for coming on over today. Cheers! Share:
              
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I have to say that I write in layers. Most stories start with the characters and their voices first and foremost, and the story evolves from the characters. I write pages and pages of dialog with almost minimal stage direction, and then I go back in and add dialog tags, then dialog cues with movement and body language, then reactions, then thoughts. Layer after layer. I’ve learned to spark up passages of internalizations with rhetorical devices that give the language that feeling of richness—the alliterations, repetitions, metaphors and similes that are a wonderful way to deepen characterization. (Actually, see my post at Margie Lawson’s Writers Academy blog for a more in-depth look at these techniques: http://www.margielawson.com/margies-writing-blog/167-margie-grad-elizabeth-essex#comments ) I try to look at every single word on the page as a opportunity to either deepen characterization or propel the story forward.
Elizabeth, congratulations on the release of your third book! Loved the excerpts. I can’t wait to read the rest and find out how Meggs and Hugh get together.
Fantastic interview, Addison! “A prime filching mort” — I’m going have use that in a sentence today.
Vanessa:
Isn’t that a great expression?!?!?!!!
Addison
Thank you so much, Vanessa. I’m really excited about this book and hope everyone loves these characters as much as I do! And I LOVE all the expressions I found in THE DICTIONARY OF THE VULGAR TONGUE so much I started making up my own 18th century slang—and even used some of it in this book. I really hope no one can tell them apart.
Thanks so much for stopping by. Cheers!
I loved the excerpts. The hero strikes me as exactly what I’m hoping for when I buy a historical romance: in control, handsome, well-to-do, and experienced when it comes to how to touch a woman, as he did in the excerpt when he was unbandaging her hand.
Yeah, Caro! I’m so glad you liked that excerpt. It was one of my favorites (and Addison’s too.) And I hope Captain Hugh McAlden is everything you want in a hero—except … I think I may have a few surprises (hopefully good ones) in store for you, too.
Thanks so much for stopping by to chat today and good luck in the drawing!
Cheers.
Caro:
I can promise you, Hugh does not disappoint. He’s everything a good hero should be – smouldering, sexy and deeply compassionate.
Addison
I adore the way you make the chemistry between your hero/heroine pairings completely their own–no generic attractions for you. *swoon*
And now, making up your own slang? That’s our girl!
Congratulations.
Sally! Thanks so much for popping by. I’m so thrilled you think there are no generic attractions.
I really work hard on that, and every time I read through my draft manuscripts, I write TRITE in the margin with a big Purple pen to remind me that if I’ve READ the expression before, or if I EXPECTED that description, I’ve got to change it to something fresh and new.
And the slag was really a great deal of fun. I will tell you one of the oaths I made up was a variation on the “God’s blood” theme. Only much, much earthier! Hope you enjoy.
Good luck in the drawing. Cheers!
Sally:
SO true – I absolutely loved everything about this book – the hero and heroine, their conflicts and the setting. But what really sets this book apart is the incredibly rich, lush prose.
Addison
Oh my gosh, it sounds so good. I meant to only skim and I couldn’t stop myself from reading all those excerpts and wanting more. I LOVE Meggs already – such a wonderful combination of moxy and vulnerabilty – a perfect recipe for a heroine I will follow on the entire journey.
Sounds like another winner, Elizabeth. Now I’m off for a little “wet” myself…but it’ll just be another cup of coffee
Liz:
Raising my glass of caffeinated “wet” to you this morning!
Meggs is an awesome heroine. I was SO rooting for her and Hugh all the way through the book.
Addison
Thank you so much, Liz! There’s another word I just adore—moxy—and yes, this heroine has it in spades.
And don’t you just love that expression—A bit of a wet. Such a lovely Irish euphemism. I can still envision the way that old coot would wink up one eye and cock his head as he said it.
Enjoy your coffee! (What a good idea. Toddling off to the kitchen to find a nice hot cuppa.)
Thanks for stopping by! Cheers.
Oh, and I saw they did a nice review on the book at Dear Author. The reviewer had loads of good things to say about it. They draw a big crowd over there, so maybe you’ll get a few more sales
Dear Amy – You are such a great Ruby to jump into DA’s comment thread and weigh in on the whole discussion of what is historically accurate versus what is historically appropriate.
I want readers to know that I go to a lot of time and trouble to do my research (I’ve been researching the Royal Navy of the Georgian/Napoleonic Era for over 20 years) and to know my period inside and out, but there will always be some compromises that I will make at the expense of strict accuracy if I can achieve greater characterization, or serve the appropriateness of the scene.
I very much appreciate your terrific, thoughtful comments on their comment thread.
(“Panties in a wad” is my personal, all-time favorite!)
Well, it really bugs me that the commentors making those claims HAVEN’T read it. So they don’t know whether it’s something to put on the keeper shelf (which I highly suspect) or something to line the birdcage with. So how can you go on their and malign an author when you don’t KNOW. This is the problem with society. It’s one thing to have a conversation on inaccuracies, but it’s an altogether different thing to turn up a nose at something not even sampled. My kids get in trouble for doing that…the general public should too.
And the reviewer only pointed out two things she thought were inconsistent. And she rectified some of the other points made by the commentors. It was obvious she liked the book.
Oh, hurray!!! The new books sounds great! I definitely was intrigued by Hugh in book one, and am eager to read his story, and Meggs’. Great excerpts!! Very Joanna Bourne-ish, which is (as you know) a great compliment!
Oh, Elisa that is a swoon-worthy compliment! Thank you so very much. (Making a deep curtsey in your direction.) I am a huge fan-girl of Jo Bourne’s work and just wept for how wonderful THE BLACK HAWK was.
And as chuffed as I am with the favorable comparison, I hope my voice, and the character’s voices, are unique enough to set it apart.
Hope you enjoy the story, and find some time for reading over the holidays!
Cheers.
Elisa:
Aren’t these great excerpts? As Elizabeth and I were putting the interview together, I had such a hard time picking out favorite passages!!!
Addison
Elizabeth,
Congratulations on the release of, “The Danger of Desire!” Fabulous interview, and love your passion for your era. I’m so proud of you, and I wish you every success! *Hugs*
Happy Holidays!
Diana:
I couldn’t agree more! I’ve been lucky enough to know Elizabeth for some time, since we met at the Dallas Area Romance Authors and I’m so happy for her and all her success.
Addison
Thank you so much, Diana. And I think you’ve hit on one of the keys to my success—my absolute passion for my era and the historical romance genre in general. I adore reading it, and I adore writing it.
And I think that passion for our eras and setting is something we share. I know you are just as passionate about all things Scots and I love looking at the gorgeous, very inspiring photographs of Scotland you post on your FB page every week. Sigh. (Going off on a little daydream about kilt-clad MacGruders.)
Hope you find some time for reading in your busy holidays! Cheers!
Congrats, Elizabeth! What a gorgeous cover!!! Loved the excerpts. Cannot wait to dive in.
Thank you so much for your kind words and for stopping by this morning. I hope everyone enjoys reading this book as much as I enjoyed writing it.
And I must say—I really loved this cover too! Just luscious.
Cheers!
Luscious is the perfect word for it!!!
Great cover! Congrats on the release!
Thanks so much, Diane. I was really pleased with this cover, too. THanks so much for stopping by. Cheers!
Thanks for joining us today, Diane!!!
I can’t wait to read the rest. Love the prime filtching mort.
Sara, I’m so glad you liked the excerpts. It was really hard for us to choose which to put in that wouldn’t give the story away but would still give you all a taste of the flavor of the book. You’re going to love Meggs!
Thanks for stopping by. Cheers!
Swell cover too! Perhaps I should switch to these kind of photos, so much fun!
Isn’t that just the best?
Yeah!!..another wonderful book to read. On my list of new releases to buy this week and read over the holidays. Your previous two are on my current keeper shelf. I think I can already say, “Thanks for the Great Read!”
Margaret, you have made my day with your kind words! Hope you can find a nice quiet corner to curl up and jump on into Meggs’ and Hugh’s story to give yourself a little break during the busy holidays.
I think I can already say, “You’re most welcome!”
THanks so much for stopping by today. Cheers!
Margaret:
Aren’t the first two books in this series divine? I absolutely love, love, love Elizabeth’s sense of the time period and her characters. She writes such lush, rich stories.
Addison
Between the two of you, I don’t know who is making my day!
Thank you so much for the kind words. They are balm to my writer’s soul and just the thing to think on to give me encouragement on the days when the words don’t flow so easily. 
Great excerpts! I write in layers too. In fact, my process sounds very similar to yours. Though, how you could get 3 books done in a year is beyond me
All those layers take a lot of time. Your writing shows it! I know Margie Lawson from our Colorado RWA group. Her EDITS is awesome.
Thanks for stopping by, Leigh! And my goodness, yes, I do use Margie Lawson’s EDITS system. I find it incredibly helpful for focusing my attention on what needs to be fixed in a manuscript. Without that detailed method of looking at all different element that need to go into a novel I would get bogged down pretty quickly.
As to the three books—I didn’t exactly write them in one year.
I had one done and then wrote two more in one year, and I’ve since learned how to write on a deadline. By writing every day, and by keeping my characters on my mind as much as possible within the constraints of family life and carpools.
Keep up that layering! Cheers!
Leigh:
I absolutely love process discussions. I’m always fascinated by how we all get our words onto the page!!
Addison
I’m such a fan of your books, EE! Delighted to see Hugh getting his day and Meggs sounds utterly fascinating.
Congratulations on your new release!
Huzzah! Thanks so much, Vivi! The regard of my fellow writers and fellow Rubies means so much to me, and I am thrilled you like the sound of this book. Hope you can find some quiet reading time over the holidays!
Cheers and thanks for stopping by!
Vivi:
Hugh SO gets his day!!!
And Meggs is an awesome heroine.
Addison
Congratulations on your release, Elizabeth! I haven’t read any of your books yet and I think I am missing out. I do like historical romances so will be keeping your books on my reading radar. Sounds like you have tons of loyal fans here and I am looking to be one soon. I do like how in The Danger of Desire, you feature a man with vulnerabilities. That is wonderful because I can connect with him on an emotional level and root him on.
Na, thank you so very much for stopping by and for giving my historical romances a try. If you liked the excerpts here, there is a slightly longer one from the beginning of the book up at my website:
http://www.elizabethessex.com/ElizabethEssexBooks.html
I’m so glad you like to read about a man with vulnerabilities. I think romance writers often get a bit too carried away with the idea of the “Alpha male” and forget that interesting flaws and unexpected vulnerabilities make for a more interesting character.
Thanks again for stopping by and good luck in the drawing. Cheers!
Na:
I think that’s a great point. Seeing someone find strength despite a vulnerability is one of the best things about a well-drawn character.
Addison
Hi Elizabeth and hi to Addison too. I never read any ms. Essex book before, but the review and interview sounds very interesting.. Sounds like I will become a new fan of yours. Anyway congratulation for your book release. I wish you all the best:) cheers
Hi Aretha-
So glad you joined us today!
I promise you won’t be disappointed with an Elizabeth Essex book. A quick note to everyone…I realize in the interview we talk about Hugh being in the first book, but these books don’t have to be read in order to enjoy them.
Elizabeth has done a great job in connecting characters across books but allowing each story to truly stand alone.
Addison
Aretha, Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by and say hi. I love when new readers discover something they like in my books.
And Addison has a really great point, that you certainly don’t have to have read the other books to enjoy Hugh and Meggs’ story.
Wishing you happy reading and good luck. Cheers!
Congratulations, Elizabeth. This sounds so good. LOVED the excerpts. Congratulations on The Danger of Desire – lush and beautiful and evoking. I’m hooked!
Bev:
Aren’t those excerpts just yummy?!?!!
Addison
Bev, thanks so much for stopping in to read the excerpts. I’m so glad you found them interesting and evocative.
I feel like I’ve done my work when someone says that.
Hope you enjoy the rest of the book as much! Cheers.
Congratulations on your newest release! I’ve read the Pursuit of Pleasure and it was an exciting, very fun read. You are brilliant at painting a picture.
Gillian, thank you so much for visiting this morning. I’m so glad you enjoyed THE PURSUIT OF PLEASURE, and I know you’re going to like THE DANGER OF DESIRE even more.
And thank you so very much for your kind words! Cheers.
I’m a day late, Elizabeth, but had to pop in and say congratulations! What a gorgeous cover! Looking forward to reading it.
Late but not too late. (I like to take my time) Thanks so much for stopping by. I’m so glad you like the cover—it’s my favorite so far!
Here’s to finding some quiet time over the holidays to read! Cheers.
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