Guest Post with Author Gina Conkle and Giveaway

Meet Gina Conkle, author of Meet the Earl at Midnight.

Gina Conkle is a lover of history, books and romance, which makes the perfect recipe for historical romance writer. Her passion for castles and old places (the older and moldier the better!) means interesting family vacations. Good thing her husband and two sons share similar passions, except for romance...that's where she gets the eye roll. When not visiting fascinating places, she can be found in southern California delving into the latest adventures of organic gardening and serving as chief taxi driver.

Find Gina at:

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5 Fun Facts

Thanks for inviting me to be part of blog. This was a fun.

You asked for “Five Fun Things” that happened on the way to writing Meet the Earl at Midnight.

1. Men with “queues” are HOT.
Men wore their hair long in the 1760s when the series Midnight Meetings is set. The black silk hair tie was the standard for men, and oh the things you can do with that!

In Meet the Earl at Midnight, Edward wears his queue messy. He starts out the day neat, but ends up needing some fixing. In book two, The Lady Meets Her Match, Cyrus wraps the length of his queue in black silk. In book three, the debauched rogue named Marcus, wears his queue in perpetual disarray. Needless to say, these men need some unraveling.

Yes, I had a lot of fun with my heroes and their queues. If you’re curious for more, check out the “Midnight Meetings” board on my Pinterest page – they didn’t all sport the George Washington look.

2. Bow Street “Runners” started in 1749
Yes, there’s also a Bow Street thief taker who shows up in the series. He’s good with knives, sports a wicked smile, and knows a thing or two about chemistry. A lot of people think of those Bow Street men as strictly of the Regency world. Actually, London’s first organized police force, the Bow Street thief takers, was started by Sir Henry Fielding, a successful playwright, in 1749. Later his whip smart brother, Sir John took over the helm. Sir John was blind.

3. The Khaya senegalensis Tree has some unique attributes
This African tree grows in the tropical regions of Africa and is more commonly called the African Mahogany. The bark is said to have medicinal properties for such maladies as headaches or bleeding wounds. It’s whispered the crushed seeds make a fine aphrodisiac…not that my hero, Lord Edward tried anything like that on Lydia.

4. Brilliant recluses make HOT heroes
Meet the Earl at Midnight features Lord Edward, a highly intelligent scientist. I was used to writing alpha males and lone wolf type heroes, but Edward took over the page, showing up one day in my mind. He was covered from head to heel in leather with his tricorn hat pulled low. All I could see were topaz colored eyes and the top of his blade straight nose looking back at me as I wrote the first scene.

Edward was turned out to be a smart and sometimes snarky hero living in 1768 England. He met Lydia at a ramshackle inn and their first scene morphed into “It was a dark and stormy night…”

I had no idea about their story or who they were, but I needed a break from the Vikings in my head. So, I decided to go with these two, Edward and Lydia.

5. My favorite TV shows are…
History Channel’s “Vikings” and AMC’s new drama “Turn” which is about America’s first spy ring during the Revolutionary War. Both shows represent eras that I love to read about in my passion for history. I’m a total nerd who thought hiking Hadrian’s Wall would make a fun vacation. My family vetoed the wall in favor of a tropical place, but I’m still holding out for Hadrian’s Wall...someday.

Thanks RFTC for hosting me on your blog!

It's going to take a Beast to tame this Beauty

Enigma Earl. The Phantom of London. That's what the gossip pages call Lord Edward Greenwich, a mysterious nobleman who doesn't show his face in London Society. With a reputation like that, no wonder Lydia Montgomery is horrified to be dragged from bed and packed off to live with him to save her mother from penury.

While Lydia has received all of the training a lady should endure, she's decidedly un-ladylike. She despises her corset and isn't interested in marriage. She'd prefer to remain unmarried and spend her time improving her art. But if she wants a chance at happiness, she'll have to set aside her fear of the earl and discover the man hiding behind the beast.

Will Edward and Lydia's greatest discovery be each other before time runs out?

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N |

Check out what's up for grabs.

Up For Grabs:

• 1 copy of Meet the Earl at Midnight
• 1 Nook Glowlight

To Enter: 

• Please leave a comment or question for Gina.
• US/Canada shipping ONLY.
• Please leave your email address to be entered to win book.
• Please fill out the Rafflecopter form.

Good Luck! 

Special thanks to Gina Conkle & Sourcebooks for sponsoring this tour-wide giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway