Tami Lund Romance Author It’s A Party At Versailles!

Today, I have a special guest on my blog. His name is Jack Sharpe, and he’s the adorable hero from The Long Way Home, Jessica Cale’s most recent release from the Southwark Saga. Jack and Alice’s story was released on Monday. If you like amusing, adorable romance, if you like historical romance, if you like romance at all, you will love this book. It’s fun, it’s dangerous, it’s compelling… Can you tell I like this book? A large part of the reason I like it so is because of Jack. He’s such a perfect hero. Don’t believe me? Here, check out his interview…

The Long Way Home

(The Southwark Saga, Book 3)

By Jessica Cale

Release Date: February 29^th, 2016

Genre: Historical Romance, Adult Fairytale, Romantic Comedy, Action/Adventure

A paranoid king, a poison plot, and hideous shoes…it’s not easy being Cinderella.

~~~

Jessica Cale, The Long Way Home. Interview with hero, Jack Sharpe

What’s your favorite restaurant? The Rose & Crown in Southwark. There’s something comforting about going down to the local for a pint and pie. It’s the cleanest place for miles, the bread is more than edible, and there’s this girl who works there…

Tell me a joke. A joke? My life is a joke. Have you heard the one about the pickpocket son-of-an-actress who went off to fight for a country not his own? He has camp followers in his bed every night but he never touches them because he’s paralyzed with kindness. He’s in love with a painting and he’s tolerably clever, but when he opens his mouth, only rubbish spills out. That’s funny, isn’t it?

What would you do if you woke up and found an elephant in your room? I would assume Harry got me drunk and dumped me in the menagerie when I was sleeping. Again.

What is your idea of perfect happiness? Alice Henshawe smiling at me over a pint of good dark beer.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? I’m useless at speaking. I couldn’t be more awkward if I tried. I don’t act until it’s too late, and then I go too far. I’m cool-tempered until I’m not. Few things set it off, to be fair, but I am violently opposed to men who hurt, take advantage of, or otherwise dishonor women. I cannot bring myself to regret that, but I’ve been known to, erm, react badly if I see it.

What do you most dislike about your appearance? I don’t give it much thought, but I used to be very short, and now I’m tall and gawky. I think I was an ordinary height for about a month when I was seventeen. Now I’m more than two yards tall and I feel like I’m all elbows. Would it have been too much to ask to be ordinary?

What is the quality you most like in a woman? Efficiency. That doesn’t sound very romantic, does it? It’s just that Alice has this way that she moves…she flits about like a fairy as she works, every movement quick, confident, and necessary. I used to watch her waiting tables and she was so fast, it was like time was different for her — her world was spinning faster while the rest of us were sleeping. She always seemed very sure of herself and her place in the world, unselfconscious and graceful, spinning between tables with plates in her hands, blowing hair out of her face. I’ve never seen a woman move like that. There’s so much life to her, but she’s quiet, so you have to watch her to see it.

What is your most treasured possession? (pulls a miniature out of his coat) Harry painted this portrait of Alice years ago, when she was perhaps thirteen. He dropped it in my bag before left for the Continent, and I didn’t find it until I’d been in Flanders a week. I’ve been grateful for the company all these years. It’s a piece of home I can carry with me. It’s been useful, as well. Alice has gone missing and I’ve been searching for her for weeks. Come to think of it, have you seen this girl? English, quite short?

Still curious? Here’s what the book is about…

After saving the life of the glamorous Marquise de Harfleur, painfully shy barmaid Alice Henshawe is employed as the lady’s companion and whisked away to Versailles. There, she catches King Louis’ eye and quickly becomes a court favorite as the muse for Charles Perrault’s Cinderella. The palace appears to be heaven itself, but there is danger hidden beneath the façade and Alice soon finds herself thrust into a world of intrigue, murder, and Satanism at the heart of the French court.

Having left his apprenticeship to serve King Charles as a spy, Jack Sharpe is given a mission that may just kill him. In the midst of the Franco-Dutch war, he is to investigate rumors of a poison plot by posing as a courtier, but he has a mission of his own. His childhood friend Alice Henshawe is missing and he will stop at nothing to see her safe. When he finds her in the company of the very people he is meant to be investigating, Jack begins to wonder if the sweet girl he grew up with has a dark side.

When a careless lie finds them accidentally married, Alice and Jack must rely on one another to survive the intrigues of the court. As old affection gives way to new passion, suspicion lingers. Can they trust each other, or is the real danger closer than they suspect?

“Really brilliant writing that’s so engaging with such endearing characters! I especially love the way Jack and Alice are both so devoted to each other! I was totally absorbed in this exciting and fascinating world Jessica Cale created from the very first paragraph to the last! I read this all in one sitting, staying awake late to finish, just had to!” – Romazing Reader

Add to your Goodreads TBR: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28499321-the-long-way-home

Get it through the publisher, Liquid Silver Books: http://www.lsbooks.com/pre-order-coming-soon-romance-books-c322.php

Or here: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/the-long-way-home-62

Find the entire series here: http://www.amazon.com/Jessica-Cale/e/B00PVDV9EW

There was a The Long Way Home Leap Year Ball this past weekend, if you want to check it out: https://www.facebook.com/events/1040328009352362/

Win a 7” Kindle Fire! Contest open from 2/22-3/14. Go to Jessica Cale’s website to enter: WIN BIG

About the author

Jessica Cale is the award-winning author of the historical romance series, The Southwark Saga. Originally from Minnesota, she lived in Wales for several years where she earned a BA in History and an MFA in Creative Writing while climbing castles and photographing mines for history magazines. She kidnapped (“married”) her very own British prince (close enough) and is enjoying her happily ever after with him in North Carolina.