CHARACTER INTERVIEW WITH AMYLYNN BRIGHT

Today, I’m tickled pink…er…blue to have Amylynn Bright in the Blue Rose Writing Room. I won a copy of Lady Belling’s Secret and became an instant fan of Amylynn.

Welcome Amy!

I love character interviews! Today, we get to meet Olivia and Henry, the heroine and hero of Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret.

BRWR: Thank you so much Olivia and Lord Dalton for joining me in the Blue Rose Writing Room today. Would either of you care for some refreshments? I have some lovely maid of honor tarts, baked just this morning, and the tea is piping hot.

Lord Dalton: Good morning, Lady Cameron. Do you mind if I move this cat?

BRWR: No, please do. Watch yourself though, he’s been know to be less than gracious when his sleep’s disturbed.

Olivia: I say, I do love tarts. Are you going to eat yours, dear?

BRWR: Er, well, I was, but you’re more than welcome to it.

Lord Dalton, please tell us what your very first thoughts were when Olivia fainted in your arms on the street.

Lord Dalton: I will have to admit that I didn’t even realize she was grown. I thought she was a child. Very quickly though I realized she was a very lovely woman.

BRWR: Yes, I’m sure you did. Olivia, can you share with us your first impression of Lord Dalton?

Olivia: I thought he was Zeus. Or Apollo. I mean, really, look at the man. Surely you can see my mistake.

BRWR: Yes, he does look rather delicious . . . Oh, dear. Did I just say that out loud? Is it hot in here or is it just me. (Waving my hand frantically here.)

When did you know you loved each other? Not just attracted physically, but truly loved the other?

Olivia: I think it was watching him with my brother and his sisters. He’s a very affectionate man. Who couldn’t love a man who takes such good care of the people who’re important to him?

BRWR: So true. What about you, Lord Dalton?

Lord Dalton: Probably immediately after I thought I killed her little brother. She took the news tolerably well, considering.

BRWR: Ah, yes, that was a bit of a bumblebroth. Can you share with us what you feared most when you discovered Olivia’s past, Lord Dalton?

Lord Dalton: I can say it now because it’s over, but I was terrified for her. And so angry that she wouldn’t just let me take care of everything. Every time I discovered more evidence of abuse – ah, I just wanted to kill that man.

BRWR: Forgive me for saying so, but her cousin was a cur. Olivia, when did you begin to trust Lord Dalton?

Olivia: Bit by bit. I really wanted to, you understand. It was just that I was so afraid that awful man would hurt Henry or one of his family. I wish I could say I trusted him completely sooner, but I stubbornly clung to the hopeless idea that I could handle everything.

BWRR: Well you’d had to for so very long. Can each of you share something about the other that no one else knows. Perhaps something funny or silly? Lord Dalton, why don’t you go first?

Lord Dalton: My darling wife has a hidden stash of candies in almost every room that she doesn’t think I know about. In her sewing basket, behind her wardrobe, in the umbrella stand to name but a few.

BWRR: Sweets hidden everywhere? And you still maintain that lovely figure? Umm, what kind of sweets are we talking here. Any chocolate, (Collette asks hopefully).

No? Oh well, I suppose we should continue (sounding disappointed). Olivia, what about you. Something no one else knows about Lord Dalton?

Olivia: I shouldn’t say. Really. He’d kill me if I told you. Who all is going to read this? Oh, I really shouldn’t. Ummm, (in a whisper) He’s afraid of grasshoppers. (giggle)

BRWR: Dear Lord, I snorted into my tea! Did you say grasshoppers? Truly? I’m dying to know why. (Collette stares intently at Lord Dalton, who remains silent, his face flushed.)

(Shifting her seat, Collette mutters to herself.) Well, this is a bit awkward.

Tell us, what does the future hold for you?

Olivia: My foundation is going so well. I’m so proud of the great strides were making helping women and children struggling in the East End. I have so many new ideas to implement.

Lord Dalton: I’ve mentioned several times that I’d like an heir. Another boy in the house would be a nice counterpoint to all the lace and fripperies.

BRWRP: Would you like to share anything else with your readers?

Lord Dalton: I understand the Duke of Morewether is having his story told soon. It’s fabulous having that man taken down a few pegs by a woman. You just know that story will be outrageous.

BRWR: Oh, my. I can hardly wait. I’m sure it will be fabulously splendid!

Olivia: Yes, as much as we love him, the scamp, I do adore his new lady. Beautiful, charming and smart enough to set the good duke on his ear.

BRWR: Thank you again, for visiting. It’s been such a pleasure. Another tart, Olivia?

Here’s a bit about Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret

When Henry Cavendish, Marquess of Dalton, leapt to catch the fainting woman before she hit the cobblestone, he never thought that one chivalrous act would set his well ordered life on end. His ingrained need to protect her has every bit as much to do with her enchanting beauty as it does his desire to wipe the hunted look from her startling blue eyes. He thinks he has everything in hand, but the lady has secrets that puts everything he loves at risk.

Olivia Goldsleigh just wants to live without terror, but a gunshot in the night proves things can always get worse. The beautiful and god-like Lord Dalton swears to protect her, to make the danger go away. She wants the man, the life, the family, the bliss he promises, but her secrets are certain to destroy them all.

Here’s my review of Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret.

I fell in love with Lord Dalton in Lady Belling’s Secret and was thrilled when he got his own story.

From the moment Henry catches Olivia when she faints from hunger and exhaustion, to her helping rescue him bouncing about in the ocean in a small dingy with fellow lords and chums Thomas and Christian, I was enthralled. The story takes some unexpected turns which kept me flipping the pages rapidly to find out what would happen next.

Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret is sweeping story of instant attraction, dangerous intrigue, and delightful humor. Ms. Bright’s ability to take the reader deep into her characters through clever introspection and often hysterical internal dialogue, makes you feel like you really know them. Her colorful secondary characters add another fabulous element to the story. Her use of words is magical, and more than once I read a sentence just because it was so brilliantly phrased.

I enjoyed the lighthearted bantering amongst Henry and his sisters(and his cute pet names for them), as well as the teasing by his good friend Christian. Olivia’s devotion to her stepbrother Warren, is heartwarming. She’s a complex woman who desperately needs to feel safe and have someone take care of her. Adonis like Henry, being the ultimate gentlemen, takes on that roll with a bit more enthusiasm than necessary. Petite Olivia isn’t altogether happy with his high-handedness, but as she says, “It’s hard to resist a God.”

I absolutely cannot wait to read more of Ms. Bright’s work, and I highly recommend Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret for those who love a well-written, emotionally gripping historical romance.

Five roses for Miss Goldsleigh’s Secret!

CHARACTER INTERVIEW WITH AMYLYNN BRIGHT 2

CHARACTER INTERVIEW WITH AMYLYNN BRIGHT 3

Amylynn read her first romance novel in 2008 after being a lifelong literary snob. By the time she was done, she was hooked. Now she pens Regency and contemporary romances that will make you laugh.

She is an Arizona native and lives in the same house her husband owned before they were married. Amylynn fears she will never call another state home unless someone tells her husband there are forty-nine others to choose from. In reality, she’d settle for a walk-in closet.

Her family consists of the aforementioned husband, two beautiful children, two dogs, two cats, some fish, and a hankering for a panda. She’d like it mentioned she’s never been in prison, but we’ll see how that panda thing works out.