First, thank you Kim for having me back on your blog! It’s a thrill to be here.
Desiring Lady Caro is book #4 in my series, The Marriage Game. The story takes place mostly on the road from Venice to Paris. I have a good deal of familiarity with the route, and my research mostly dealt with what things looked like at the time. Having been to Austria through Switzerland, and knowing how difficult a route that was, I decided to take my Caro and Huntley through the Brenner Pass, which was a much easier way to go, and links northern Italy (South Tyrol) with Austria (North Tyrol). However, imagine my excitement when I discovered that in 1777 Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, had a carriage way built, which was a great improvement on the old path. I also discovered many hotels and restaurants had been around for at least a couple of centuries.
So, because I know how much Kim likes to travel, I thought we’d take a short trip through the pass. Caro and Huntley spent the night in Brennerbad at the Hotel Kerschbaumer before crossing the pas the next morning. The hotel really did exist at the time. They also strolled around the town. The good thing for you is that many of these old towns haven’t changed much over the past couple of centuries. Here are some photos of what they saw.
When you read the book, you’ll discover that there is a lot of food. In Brennerbad two of the dishes they ate were Gerstensuppe which is a type of barley soup.
Caro has a weakness for chocolate, something many of us can identify with. There was no hard chocolate in the area, but they did have Baumkuchen (tree cake) which is a cake baked on a spit. The pieces that fall off are covered with chocolate.
The next morning they started across the pass, which was fairly uneventful until . . .
How do you like food in books?
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 giving away an ecopy of DESIRING LADY CARO:
Haunted by her past, Lady Caroline Martindale fled England for the solace of her godmother's palazzo in Venice. But if Caro was hoping to escape the charms of marriage-minded men, she's come to the wrong place. And she'll resort to extreme measures to spurn the advances of a dangerously determined Venetian marquis. . .
Though most of his friends have married off, Gervais, Earl of Huntley, remains bent on eluding the parson's mousetrap. But his convictions begin to falter when he arrives in Venice and meets his match in the alluring Lady Caro. What began as a hastily concocted lie to save her from the marquis may become a chance for them both to relinquish their fear--and embrace what they can no longer deny. . .
To enter the giveaway,
1. Leave a comment to Ella's question, How do you like food in books?
2. Comments are open through Saturday, April 5, 10 pm in Baltimore.
3. I'll post the winner on Sunday, April 6.
Mahalo,
Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City
