Author Interview & Book Giveaway: Blythe Gifford on SECRETS AT COURT

Today, we welcome Blythe Gifford, a long time contributor to the Unusual Historicals blog.  Her tenth novel, SECRETS AT COURT from the Harlequin Historical line, has just been published.  (Excerpt here.)  She’s offering a free print copy to one randomly chosen commenter, so leave a comment at the end of the interview for a chance to win.

First, here’s a bit about the book.

THE THRONE OF ENGLAND IS AT STAKE!

Anne of Stamford has long been the keeper of her mistress's secrets, but when Lady Joan marries the king's son, court life becomes ever more perilous. Sir Nicholas Lovayne has arrived to uncover the truth about Lady Joan's past, and Anne must do something—anything—to throw him off….

Longing to escape the intrigues at court, Nicholas hasn't counted on the way Anne distracts him—her refusal to accept pity for her clubfoot touches something deep inside him. Will he be able to follow his duty when every fiber of his being tells him to protect Anne?

After forays into stories set in Scotland and into self-publishing, you are back in 14^th century England publishing with Harlequin.  What lead to that?

I never left Harlequin.  The self-publication of THE WITCH FINDER was concurrent with work on this Royal Weddings series.

The court and era of Edward III of England was my romance “home” and the setting for my first four books.  Even HIS BORDER BRIDE, my first to be set in Scotland, included King Edward’s (fictional!) bastard nephew as the hero.  So it was a surprise to realize I have now published five Scottish set stories.  This evens the count!  But seriously, the “Royal Weddings” idea grew out of an English royal wedding, so it belonged there.



This staircase plays a key role in the book.

What was the genesis of the story?

When Prince William and Kate Middleton married, the Harlequin Historical line released a series of short stories that looked back at British royal weddings of the past.  I was invited to participate, but had too many deadlines on my plate at the time.  I loved the idea, though, and I envisioned a full-length book using the premise.  I did consider a wide range of possibilities, including weddings of Queen Victoria’s many children, but the medieval court of Edward III is familiar territory and feels like family.  Unlike most royals, his two oldest children married for love, so that seemed to be a natural fit.

Can you tell us about this story?  

SECRETS AT COURT is set around the wedding of the oldest son of Edward III, also an Edward.  History knows him as the Black Prince.  (As an aside, he was the first Prince of Wales.)  His chosen bride, Joan, the Fair Maid of Kent, had a bit of a scandalous past and they, in essence, “eloped” and married without the church’s consent.  My hero, Nicholas, is charged with untangling the mess they made and getting the Pope’s dispensation for their marriage.  My heroine, Anne, who has been with Joan all her life, is the keeper of her lady’s secrets.  Secrets that, if Nicholas discovers them, could destroy the throne of England.  (For the full historical background, see my post from February, The Prince Who Married for Love's Sake.)

You have always included real history in your books.  What made this one different?

I’ve had real historical figures and events before, but this is the first time the plot revolved around a specific event.  The complexities of Lady Joan’s marriages, and the timelines, were critical to both the plot and my characters’ backstories.  In some ways, it had more in common with an historical fiction plot than an historical romance plot, though it is definitely a romance!


Found a few drawings of the castle during this period.

Was it hard to research the complexities of medieval church laws concerning marriage and the other parts of the story?

Strangely enough, despite the fact that there is no full-scale biography of Joan of Kent, there have been a couple of scholars who delved into her life and marriages.  I even found copies of some of the papal pronouncements, so I felt comfortable with the accuracy there.  Beyond that, my heroine, Anne, was born lame, so I tried hard to be true to the reality she faced, both physically and in dealing with the attitudes of the time.  Even with that, my most difficult research challenge was something quite different.

So what was the hardest part to research?



My research of Windsor's Floor Plan in 1361-62!

Windsor Castle!  You see, King Edward was involved in a massive rebuilding of the castle between about 1350 and 1377.  This story takes place in 1361-1362 and, for the most part, is set at Windsor.  As an author who needs to feel grounded in her characters’ physical world, I spent hours trying to figure out what parts of the project had been completed at that time and which were still to come.  It took several books and much online searching, but the final, most helpful piece was The Royal Guide to Windsor Castle by Sir William Henry St. John Hope, published in 1920 and available via a research library near me.  It has beautiful, color coded floor plans, and I ended up taking dozens of iPhone pictures as notes, which I'm using here.

What’s next? 

I’m finishing up the next Royal Weddings story, WHISPERS AT COURT.  No publication date yet, but I’ll be sure to let the Unusual Historicals family know.

So, readers:  what makes you feel as if you are truly embedded in the historical world of the book?  Is it the physical descriptions?  Attitudes and behaviors that are far from our modern perspectives?  Or something else?  Leave a comment below for a chance to win a copy of SECRETS AT COURT. 

 

After many years in public relations, advertising and marketing, Blythe Gifford started writing seriously after a corporate layoff. Ten years and one layoff later, she became an overnight success when she sold her first book to the Harlequin Historical line.  Since then, she has published ten romances set in England and on the Scottish Borders.  The Chicago Tribune has called her work "the perfect balance between history and romance."  For more information, visit www.blythegifford.com or www.facebook.com/BlytheGifford or follow her on Twitter @BlytheGifford.

Excerpt Thursday: SECRETS AT COURT by Blythe Gifford

This week, regular contributor Blythe Gifford is back with an excerpt from her new Harlequin Historical release, SECRETS AT COURT, one of two planned Royal Wedding stories.  Set in the 14th century court of England's King Edward III, the wedding in question is that of the king's oldest son and Joan, Countess of Kent.  (Blythe wrote about the historical background in last month's post about the prince who married for love. )  The book is available in both the U.S. and the U.K. this month in both print and digital versions.

Blythe will offer a free paperback of SECRETS AT COURT to a randomly selected blog visitor from the U.S. or the U.K.  Be sure to leave your email address in the comments of today's post or Sunday's author interview for a chance to win.  The winner will be contacted privately by email. Here's a bit about the book:

The king’s son has married for love and now, Sir Nicholas Lovayne must persuade the church to bless the union. But Anne of Stamford knows something about the prince’s bride: a secret that must be kept at any cost.

Anne has long been the keeper of her mistress's secrets, but when Nicholas starts to uncover the truth about Lady Joan's past, Anne must do something—anything—to throw him off the hunt.

Longing to escape the intrigues at court, Nicholas hasn't counted on the way Anne attracts him—her refusal to accept pity for her clubfoot touches something deep inside him. Will he be able to follow his duty when every fiber of his being tells him to protect Anne? 

Here’s an excerpt from Chapter One:

Windsor Castle—late March, 1361

‘Come. Quickly.’ A whisper, urgent. Disturbing her dreams.

Anne felt a hand, squeezing her shoulder. She opened her eyes, blinking, to see the Countess holding a candle and leaning over her in the darkness.

Closing her eyes, Anne rolled on to her side. She only dreamt. Lady Joan would never rise in the dead of night. That was left to Anne.

Slender fingers pinched her cheek. ‘Are you awake, Anne?’

Suddenly, she was. Throwing back her bedclothes. Reaching for something to cover her feet. ‘What is it?’ Had the pestilence found them? Or perhaps the French? ‘What is the hour?’

Lady Joan waved a hand. ‘Dark.’ Then, she gripped Anne’s fingers and tugged. ‘Come. I need you.’

Anne tried to stand. Awkward, more out of balance than usual. She patted the sheets, searching for her walking stick.

‘Here.’ It was thrust into her hand. Then, the Countess, putting her impatience aside, offered a shoulder to help Anne rise.

Kindness from her lady, often when it was least expected. Or wanted.

Walking staff tucked snugly under her left arm, Anne hobbled through Windsor’s corridors, mindful that Lady Joan had put a finger to her lips to signal quiet and gestured for her to hurry. As if Anne had any control over either. Between stick and stairs, she could not hurry unless she wanted to tumble to the bottom and risk her only good leg in the process.

Lady Joan led her towards the royal quarters and into an echoing chapel, dark except for a candle, held by someone standing before the altar. A man, tall and strong.

Edward of Woodstock, eldest son of the King, Prince of England, smiling and looking nothing like the stern warrior she, nay, all England and France knew.

Lady Joan was beaming, too. No longer sparing a glance for Anne, she moved swiftly to join her hand with his. ‘Here. Now. With a witness.’

No. It could not be what she intended. But Lady Joan, of all people, knew what must be done and how important a witness would be.

The Prince took her candle and set them both on the trestle that served as an altar. Wavering flames cast shadows upwards on their faces, throwing the Prince’s nose and cheekbones into sharp relief and softening her lady’s rounded smile. Then they clasped hands, fingers tight, one on top of the other’s.

‘I, Edward, take thee, Joan, to my wedded wife.’

Anne swallowed, speechless. Surely God must want her to speak, to prevent this sacrilege?

‘Thee to love and keep, as a man ought to love his wife…

She freed her voice. ‘You mustn’t. You cannot! The King, you are too close…’

The Prince’s scowl stopped her speech. They knew the truth better than she. They shared a royal grandfather, a connection too close for the church to allow this marriage.

‘All will be as it must,’ Lady Joan said. ‘As soon as we have said the vows, we will send a petition to the Pope. He will set aside the impediment and then we will be wed in the church.’

‘But…’ Anne let the objections fade. The Countess believed it would be as easy as that. Logic, reason, all for naught. Lady Joan would do as she pleased and the world would accommodate her.

It had ever been thus.

The Prince withdrew his frown and faced his bride again. ‘…and thereto, I plight thee my troth.’

As if he knew exactly the words to say.

Ah, but her lady knew. Lady Joan knew exactly what must be done to make such a marriage valid.

Now, she heard her lady’s voice, the soft, seductive tone Anne knew too well. ‘I, Joan, take thee, Edward, to be my wedded husband…’

Intentions stated, clearly. Too late to protest now.

The chill of the midnight chapel sank into her bones. She would be the one. She would be the one who held the truth of Lady Joan’s clandestine marriage.

Again.

After many years in public relations, advertising and marketing, Blythe Gifford started writing seriously after a corporate layoff. Ten years and one layoff later, she became an overnight success when she sold her first book to the Harlequin Historical line.  Since then, she has published eight romances set in England and on the Scottish Borders.  The Chicago Tribune has called her work "the perfect balance between history and romance." For more information about Blythe Gifford and SECRETS AT COURT, visit www.blythegifford.com

For Love's Sake: The Prince Who Married For Love

By Blythe Gifford

Cinderella aside, until the twentieth century, most royals married for duty, not love.  Particularly in the medieval time period, marriage meant a political alliance, joining countries as well as individuals.

One of the notable exceptions was the oldest son of Edward III of England, also

Edward, Prince of Wales This image is in
 the public domain because its copyright has expired

Edward, and remembered by history as the Black Prince.  (That moniker came after his death.  He was called Edward of Woodstock during his lifetime.)  And his choice of bride came with more complications than most.

It was not for lack of trying that the prince was still unmarried at 31.  From his birth, his father had sought advantageous matches with dynasties from France, Brabant (now part of Belgium), Castile (Spain), and Portugal.  Meanwhile, the heir to the throne, first to bear the title of Prince of Wales, distinguished himself as a warrior talented as his father during the war with France. 

He also fathered an illegitimate son or two along the way.

The only known image
of Joan of Kent.  This image is
in  the public domain because
 its copyright has expired

But when the time came to marry, he chose an English woman older than he, already twice married, with a bit of a scandalous past.  Worse, he did not wait for permission from his father or the church, but joined with her in a secret ceremony, the medieval version of elopement.

The lady in question, Joan, Countess of Kent, was considered one of the most beautiful women in England.  They were no strangers, but had played together as children.  They were both descended from King Edward I, so “cousins” in the church’s eyes, prohibited from marrying without dispensation.  In addition, the prince was godfather to some of her children, so there were two strikes against their marriage, a fact they conveniently flouted by marrying without permission in a clandestine ceremony.

Joan was beautiful and of noble lineage, but she had a marital past that might have made Elizabeth Taylor blink.  She was married at thirteen (not unusual at the time) to the Earl of Salisbury, younger than she.  But it seemed that when she married Salisbury, she was already married to Thomas Holland, a reputable knight, but no earl.

Exactly when this previous marriage came to light and how she was pressured into a second one is a matter for debate, but it seemed that in the eyes of the church, the lady had, not to put too fine a point on it, two husbands.  After a lengthy wrestling match with the church, all the way up to the Pope, the marriage to Holland was upheld and the marriage to Salisbury set aside.  Joan and Holland lived as man and wife, and had a brood of children.

Upon Holland's death, Joan was an eligible, beautiful, titled widow in need of a husband.  But there were lingering whispers about how “amorous” she was.  History may have called her the Fair Maid of Kent, but the chroniclers of the time used a more satiric nickname:  The Virgin of Kent.

Tomb of The Black Prince (c) Klotz CC-A.A. 3.0

The fairy tale version of her marriage to the prince is that he was sent by a friend to plead the friend’s case for her hand.  Alas, Joan said, she was in love with another and would never marry.  “I have given my heart to the most gallant gentleman under the firmament…it is impossible that I should marry him.  So, for love of him, I wish to shun the company of men.”

Pressured by the prince, who vowed to try to make it possible for her to marry the one she loved, she finally confessed she loved him.  His response?  “As long as I live, no other woman shall be my wife.”

An unlikely story, but regardless, they finally received blessings of church and family, and Joan became the first Princess of Wales.  She and the prince lived happily together until his death.  He died before his father and so never sat on the throne, but their son, Richard, succeeded his grandfather as Richard II.

SECRETS AT COURT, my current release from Harlequin Historical, is set amidst the intrigue surrounding the marriage of Edward and Joan.  My hero, Nicholas, is charged with clearing the path for an official church wedding, but that is bringing him too close to secrets about Joan’s past – secrets my heroine, Anne, is bound to protect.

After many years in public relations, advertising and marketing, Blythe Gifford started writing seriously after a corporate layoff. Ten years and one layoff later, she became an overnight success when she sold her first book to the Harlequin Historical line.  Since then, she has published eight romances set in England and on the Scottish Borders.  SECRETS AT COURT, a Royal Wedding story, is a March release from the Harlequin Historical line.  For more information, visit www.blythegifford.com

Author photo Jennifer Girard