If you read this blog with any regularity, you will know that I’m a big fan of the Regency mysteries and suspense novels written by Andrea Penrose. But before she became Andrea Penrose, the same author wrote historical romances, also set in the Regency period, as Andrea Pickens. These are now being reissued by Oliver Heber Books, and I invited her to talk about them. Read on to find out more from our interview.
The Intrepid Heroines series first came out a couple of decades ago. In fact, ten of them are listed, although only two are currently available. What made you decide to reprint them now, and will all ten reappear?
I started my journey as an author writing traditional Regency romances—inspired by the world of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer, it’s a genre that features nothing more explicit than a few passionate kisses—for the Signet line. When the line folded, I got the rights back to all these books, but at the time, self-publishing was just a glimmer in the eyes of most authors.
So they basically went into a desk drawer.… However, the publishing industry has undergone countless changes since then, and in re-reading the novels, I realized how much I still liked the characters and the stories. Even back then, I tended to write unconventional heroines and heroes, and enjoyed putting them in offbeat settings. So when the opportunity arose to partner with Oliver Heber Books in reintroducing the stories to new readers, I was really excited to take advantage of it.
I’ve polished them up a bit (mostly cleaning up a some of my rookie mistakes in titles of the nobility and such), and they have gorgeous new covers. All ten will be published over the coming year—and I hope readers will enjoy them!
The Banished Bride opens with a classic romance plot—the arranged marriage—although this one goes in a direction some readers may not expect. What can you tell us about the marriage and why the hero and heroine immediately separate?
As I said, I tend to stray from the beaten path of traditional Regency drawing room romances. So this one is an enemies to lovers trope … with a twist! Both the hero’s and the heroine’s fathers are dissolute gamesters, and the outcome of a gambling wager results in the hero being forced to marry the child-bride heroine—something he agrees to do only if his father buys him a commission in the Army, allowing him to head off to explore the world as soon as the wedding vows have been uttered.
Years pass, and the heroine and her beloved governess have forged an independent and interesting life for themselves … until a chance encounter changes everything!
Introduce us, please, to Aurora Sprague, which is the name under which we meet her as an adult. What kind of person is she, and how is she coping with life at this point in time?
Aurora Sprague is a strong, resourceful woman, and although she was too young to protest her father’s reprehensible behavior, she is determined never to allow another man to control her destiny. In fact, she is quietly running a private investigating business, helping other women avoid being cheated or bullied by their spouses or family. One of those cases involves an urgent trip to Scotland …
And what causes Lord Fenimore, the absent groom, to return to Great Britain?
Lord Fenimore is now an experienced espionage officer, but the death of his father means he must give up his military career and take up his lordly responsibilities. However, his superiors ask him to undertake one last mission to catch a cunning spy.
Fenimore and Aurora don’t exactly hit it off when they first meet. What can you tell us about that?
Well, let’s just say there is a tangle of mistaken identities, and secrets hidden within secrets. That’s when things get … interesting.
Let’s shift to the second novel in the series, The Storybook Hero. It won’t surprise anyone who follows this blog that what drew me into the story was the setting: Russia at the moment when Napoleon has reached Moscow in 1812. Why set a novel there?
I find it really interesting to write a book set outside the expected drawing rooms and ballrooms of Bath or London. I studied a lot of Russian history in college and was fascinated by the culture and customs. And given that Russia was an (off and on) ally of Britain during the Napoleonic Wars, it really intrigued me to set a book there during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia and his burning of Moscow. As I’ve visited both Moscow and St. Petersburg (and experienced a Russian winter!), it was fun to use so many of the wonderful sites in both cities, as well as the Russian forests, as backdrops.
What should we know about Octavia Hadley? How does she end up in Moscow—or, more accurately, escaping Moscow?
Left penniless when her scholarly father dies, Octavia is forced to take up residence with her lecherous cousin and his family. But when she refuses his advances, she’s left with no choice but to accept the position of governess to an orphaned relative of a British diplomat in faraway Moscow. She and the girl develop a wary friendship, but when Napoleon’s army threatens the city, they find themselves on their own, with Octavia determined to somehow get them to the safety of St. Petersburg.
The storybook hero, though, is Alex Leigh. Tell us about him and how he not only ends up in Russia but runs into Octavia.
Alex is ostensibly the black sheep of his straitlaced aristocratic family, who have written him off as an unredeemable wastrel—though it’s not quite as simple as that. It’s his sisters-in-law who see the glimmer of good beneath the bad behavior and challenge him to defeat his inner demons. To his surprise, he accepts and heads to Russia to rescue a young relative who is in danger from a scheming uncle. He’s crossed paths with Octavia on the sea voyage to St. Petersburg—it did not go well—but he has a chance to make amends when they meet again.
You wrote these—and many other romances—under the pen name Andrea Pickens, as well as more romances as Cara Elliott, but you also have two current historical suspense/mystery series as Andrea Penrose. The next book, Murder at Somerset House, is due out in the fall. Any hints of what to expect?
I’m very excited about Murder at Somerset House, which is Book 9 in the Wrexford & Sloane series. I feel it’s really important—both for my readers and for me—not to become too formulaic in the plots, or to allow the found family and their inner circle of friends to become too predictable. No spoilers—but expect some shake-ups and surprises!
Thank you so much for answering my questions!
Andrea Pickens has written eighteen well-regarded historical romances, and more under the pen name Cara Elliott. As Andrea Penrose, she is the bestselling author of Regency-era historical fiction, including the acclaimed Wrexford & Sloane mystery series, the Lady Arianna Hadley series, and The Diamond of London, about Lady Hester Stanhope. Find out more about her and her books at https://www.andreapenrose.com.
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