Aloha to Ella Quinn and ENTICING MISS EUGENIE VILLARET

Oh, purple is my new favorite color!  Ella Quinn is celebrating the release of ENTICING MISS EUGENIE VILLARET:

William, Viscount Wivenly, plans to remain the most eligible of bachelors. He refuses to surrender to the schemes of husband-hunting ladies and matchmaking mamas. Fleeing the pressure of the ton, he’s bent on finding refuge in the West Indies. What he finds instead is a fascinating stranger, a woman so unlike those of his society that he can’t resist such a beguiling distraction…

Determined to let nothing complicate her mission to protect her family’s livelihood while covertly rescuing orphaned slave children, Miss Eugénie Villaret does her best to evade suitors. But when dashing William lures her down a path of forbidden adventure and delicious danger, she may be convinced that business can indeed be mixed with pleasure—and persuaded to add passion to her priorities...

How Do You Say Hello

by Ella Quinn

Good day, Kim and thank you for having me back on your blog!

Unlike in Hawaii, we don’t give lei when a visitor arrives in the Virgin Islands. Guests are more likely to receive a shot of our excellent rums. Why am I telling you this? Because my latest release, Enticing Miss Eugénie Villaret is set in St. Thomas, which is currently a United States Territory, but in 1816, the year the book takes place, it was part of the Danish West Indies.

Charlotte Amalie was and still is the main town in St. Thomas. My heroine and her best friend live off the Ninety-nine Steps, one of the many step-streets in St. Thomas.  They were originally constructed from the ballast in ships. The Ninety-nine Steps are located on King’s Hill where many of the wealthy merchants lived. All the houses lining the step-street had one or two gates built into their wall.

One of the interesting things I discovered while researching this book was that the old houses were built with one main floor where the dining room, a large drawing room, office, pantry, the master’s bedroom, and parlor were located. Children lived on the next level lower. There were no inside stairs, therefore, staircases were located at each end of the house on the outside leading to the lower levels and garden. Kitchens could be across a small courtyard from the main house or on a lower level.

Since I mentioned rum, you’ll probably be surprised to know that unlike in England, ladies drank it as well. The most common concoction was a rum shrub, which consisted of fruit juices mixed with rum. You can try some yourself. All you need is some fruit juice and a jigger or two of rum. 

Barnes & Nobel and Amazon bestselling author Ella Quinn’s studies and other jobs have always been on the serious side. Reading historical romances, especially Regencies, were her escape. Eventually her love of historical novels led her to start writing them.

She is married to her wonderful husband of twenty-nine years. They have a son and granddaughter, Great Dane and a Chartreux. After living in the South Pacific, Central America, North Africa, England and Europe, she and her husband decided to make St. Thomas, VI home.

Ella is a member of the Romance Writers of American, The Beau Monde and Hearts Through History. She is represented by Elizabeth Pomada of Larsen-Pomada Literary Agency, and published by Kensington. Her debut novel The Seduction of Lady Phoebe, released in September 2013.

Website: ellaquinnauthor.com
Facebook: facebook.com/EllaQuinnAuthor
Twitter: twitter.com/ellaquinnauthor
Blog: ellaquinnauthor.wordpresscom

Ella is sponsoring a giveaway at this link.

Mahalo,

Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City