Today on WinterHaven Books we are joining in the blog tour for Maid of Deception by Jennifer McGowan!
Elizabethan glamour and intrigue abound in this heartpounding followup to MAID OF SECRETS, which Kirkus Reviews called “lively and fastpaced” with “plenty of action Want to get to know Jennifer better? Check out this exclusive interview!
Tour Wide Giveaway:
Prize: $25 Gift Card Amazon or B&N (winner’s choice) and a Grand Prize “Queen for a Day” Spa Kit!
About Maid of Deception:
Love may be the most dangerous weapon of all.
Beatrice Knowles is a Maid of Honor, one of Queen Elizabeth I’s secret protectors. Known for her uncanny ability to manipulate men’s hearts, Beatrice has proven herself to be a valuable asset in the Queen’s court—or so she thinks. It has been three weeks since the Maids thwarted a plot to overthrow the Queen, and Beatrice is preparing to wed her betrothed, Lord Cavanaugh. However, her plans come to a crashing halt as rumors of a brewing Scottish rebellion spread among the court.
Beatrice’s new assignment is to infiltrate the visiting Scottish delegation using her subtle arts in persuasion. The mission seems simple enough, until the Queen pairs Beatrice with the worst of the lot—Alasdair MacLeod. Beatrice cannot help but think that the Queen is purposefully setting her up for failure. But Alasdair could be the key to unlocking the truth about the rebellion...and her heart. Caught in a web of evermoretwisting lies, Beatrice must rise up among the Maids of Honor and prove what she’s known all along: in a court filled with deception and danger, love may be the deadliest weapon of all.
Also in the Maids of Honor series: MAID OF SECRETS by Jennifer McGowan!
About Jennifer McGowan:
Jennifer McGowan was born in Ohio, grew up in Montana, and studied in Paris. She fell in love with the Elizabethan era as a college student and is now an unrepentant scholar of that period, happily splitting her time between the past and present. An RWA Golden and plot twists.” Heart Award winner and multiple finalist, Jenn is the author of the Maids of Honor series, which currently includes Maid of Secrets (2013), the novella A Thief Before Christmas, and the forthcoming novel Maid of Deception (2014). She lives and writes in Ohio, and you can connect with her online at JenniferMcGowan.com, find her on twitter via @Jenn_McGowan, or visit her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenniferMcGowan.
Excerpt Too Late:
Now I catalogued the gossip with rote disinterest, wishing once again that I was not Beatrice the court insider, but Meg with her fabulous memory and quick hands; Sophia with her powerful gifts; Anna with her intelligence; or Jane with her cruel knives.I finally was set free well after midnight, the Queen realizing that I was not, in fact, one of her indentured servants, and sending me along to my bed. But I could not return yet to the maids’ quarters. There was no room in Windsor that could hold me this night, and I fled to the North Terrace, then stepped out into the chill wind that somehow did not cut through the rising tide of misery that flushed through me, thick and hot.
I moved all the way to the small balcony that overlooked the wide grassy plain leading to the Thames. And quite without expecting it, I found myself on my knees.
I was not a religious person, I tell you plain. I believed in God, of course, but the dictates as to the worship of that God I left to my monarchs to decide. But the tears that rose up within me and spilled out of my eyes were not a lamentation to the heavens. The heavens had no care for me. The tears were not even a cry to my family or my fellow maids, for whom I would sacrifice much and much again, and who had come to my aid when I’d needed them most. I did not cry to these; they could not heed my tears.
I cried to myself. And for myself.
For the little girl who’d stared adoringly at the father destined to leave for court and kings, and who’d stood by in fear and confusion as her mother had withdrawn inch by painful inch into a world hazed with drugs and despair. For the young innocent at court who’d learned too quickly how not to trust. For the bold and hopeful insider whose manipulations had landed her the most coveted role in the land—bride-to-be of the splendid Lord Cavanaugh.
And for the stupid, foolish girl who—whom no one loved at all.
But I loved. I loved with a strength and fervor that filled my very bones and blood. I loved so much, I could not breathe.
I really want to read this. It's definitely on my list.
ReplyDeleteside note: the giveaway says it's over
Oh no I'll check with the publisher! Sorry!!
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ReplyDelete