Royal Reviews: Interview with Sally Orr and Giveaway

Hello Lovelies,

Pull up a chair, pour yourself a hot cuppa tea, grab a scone, and please help me welcome Sally Orr who has graciously stopped by Royal Reviews to chat about her debut novel, The Rake’s Handbook: Including Field Guide.

1. Welcome to Royal Reviews! Thanks for stopping by to chat with us for a while. Could you tell us something about yourself, so that we can get to know you a bit better…

Thank you for having me today!

Well, I spent thirty years working in mostly academic research. So I’ve performed a lot of experiments, taught classes like microbiology, and directed a number of research laboratories. I live with my husband in San Diego, and we are surrounded by a large number of old clunker cars.

2. Your Regency romance novel, The Rake’s Handbook: Including Field Guide, is out now—congrats! Could you tell us about it?

The Rake’s Handbook: Including Field Guide is a humorous, light-hearted Regency-era romance.

This is the first book in The Rake’s Handbook series. The hero, Ross Thornbury, is a very naughty rake, who vows to change his ways and behave like a proper gentleman. Needless to say this is going to be difficult for him.

The heroine, Elinor Colton, is a widow who loved her late husband and cannot imagine ever falling in love again. She believes rakes don’t exist and tales of rakish seductions are nothing more than taproom boasts. In her case, she’ll learn first hand how seductive they can be.

3. Naughty rakes reforming always makes for a juicy romance. What inspired The

Inspiration for Ross Thornbury

Rake’s Handbook?

The book was inspired by the BBC’s version of the Elizabeth Gaskell book, North and South. While it is not fan fiction, it was inspired by the hero and the area around Manchester, England.

4. I think more romance novels could do with a little more Mr. Thornton. How do you find just the right blend of history and romance?

The book is my debut, so I’m not sure if I do have the right mix. Like most authors, I write to my preferences, so I hope to find readers with similar tastes.

5. Do you do anything special to get into the right frame of mind for writing?

I drink lots of coffee. Once the grey cells start firing, I’m off and writing.

6. What can readers expect next in The Rake’s Handbook Series?

A really fun book. The title is When a Rake Falls. It’s about a rake that hires a balloon to win a daring race to Paris. The heroine helps her father do research on the atmosphere. Of course when the balloon lifts off, only the hero and heroine are on board. So they decided to perform the experiments together. Experiments like tasting spices at high altitude to determine if they lose flavor. Hmm, I wonder how that will turn out?

7. When a Rake Falls sounds intriguing. What inspired you to become an author?

A friend challenged me to write a novel. My first reaction was a complete lack of faith that I could do that. So of course I had to give it a try. I never planned to publish, but after I started writing, it was just too much fun to stop.

8. Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring authors?

Enter contests. Writing takes a lot of craft, so having an experienced tutor helps. Yes, you will get silly, snarky, responses sometimes. But other times, you may get lucky and get valuable tips about your writing strengths and weakness that will help your writing improve.

Thanks so much for joining us today on Royal Reviews. I look forward to reading more from your debut series, The Rake’s Handbook.

Sourcebooks Casablanca, November 4, 2014, ISBN: 9781492602118, Mass Market Paperback, $7.99/£5.99

Synopsis

The definitive guide to seduction…

The Rake’s Handbook was written on a dare, and soon took the ton by storm. Now its author, Ross Thornbury, is publicly reviled by the ladies—who are, of course, forbidden to read the handbook—but privately revered by the gentlemen. Unfortunately, Ross’s notoriety is working against him and he flees London painfully aware of the shortcomings of his own jaded heart.

Spirited young widow Elinor Colton lives next to Ross’s country estate. She’s appalled not only by his rakish reputation, but also by his progressive industrial plans. Elinor is sure she is immune to Ross’s seductive ways. But he keeps coming around…impressing her with his vision for England’s future and stunning her with his smiles.

How does one resist the man who wrote the manual on love?

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BAM | !ndigo | IndieBound | iBooks

Author Bio

Sally Orr worked for thirty years in medical research, specializing in the discovery of gene function. After joining an English history message board, she posted many, many examples of absolute tomfoolery. As a result, a cyber-friend challenged her to write a novel. Since she is a hopeless Anglophile, it's not surprising that her first book is a Regency romance. Sally lives with her husband in San Diego, surrounded by too many nerdy books and not enough old English cars.

Social Media

Author Website | Twitter @OrrSally | Facebook | Goodreads