Not the ton

I love Regency romances. Love! I love many historical romances, to be honest. The clothes, the manners, the locations. Especially historical romances set in non-Western countries.

When I went to write an historical romance, I wanted something different. Set in London during the late 1790s, Smuggler's Captain has nothing to do with the ton.

I'll still devour ton romances, don't get me wrong. But I wanted to write about people who were, well, not the rich and titled. 

Nadia, once a rich and pampered Russian princess, now helps those in need in London. James, disowned by his father at 15, is now a captain in the British Army. Together they need to find a kidnapped child, solve a murder, and stop a human smuggling gang.

LImehouse-research

Limehouse is one of many docks on the Thames. Why Limehouse? The Thames is full of shipyards and docks. Wapping and Whitechapel are 2 others. I liked the name!

I open Smuggler's Captain with Nadia sneaking around the warehouses in Limehouse. In reading about Georgian and Regency Era wharves, I stumbled upon Isle of Dogs. Isn't that the best name ever? I couldn't figure out how to connect it, even if its a peninsula not an actual island. It was just farther than Limehouse from where I needed her in London. 

John Boydell's view of the riverside at Limehouse in 1751 shows
respectable houses and shipyards crowding onto the riverfront

The photo is from 1850

Welcome!

 It's been a bit since I've blogged so forgive the spareness of my current layout. It's one more thing on my writing to-do list. 

I love writing Georgian and Regency romances, contemporary fantasy romance, and romance in general. Here you'll find bits of my research, excerpts, ideas, and recipes, since I also like to eat. And probably a bunch of other things I like. Animals, for instance.