Book Tour Stop: The Devil DeVere series by Victoria Vane (Guest Post + Giveaway)

Victoria Vane is currently on tour to promote her The Devil DeVere series and I asked her to do a guest post where she talks about Georgian England. (The Devil DeVere series is set in this period!)

Victoria will give one randomly chosen commenter a download of her first erotic historical romance A Breach of Promise.

Make sure to drop by her other stops! For links, click here.

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FACT OR FICTION by Victoria Vane

Although I was asked to write about five things not commonly known about Georgian England, I have decided to narrow it down to five obscure facts you probably didn't realize were true from THE DEVIL DEVERE SERIES.

#1 The Otaheitian Feast of Venus
FACT: Charlotte Hayes was one of the leading brothel keepers of her day and her establishment at King's Place was one of the premier pleasure houses. In the twilight of her long career Mrs. Hayes did indeed sponsor such an event in which three and twenty guest comprising "the first of nobility in addition to some baronets and but five commoners."

The formal invitations read:

Mrs. Hayes presents her most respectful compliments to Lord —
and takes liberty to acquaint him that tomorrow evening precisely at seven, a dozen beautiful nymphs, unsullied and untainted, and who breath health and nature will perform he celebrated rites of Venus, as practiced at Otaheite, under the instruction and tuition of Queen Oberea in which character Mrs. Hayes will appear on this occasion.

In A WILD NIGHT'S BRIDE, DeVere accepts this invitation thinking it the ideal opportunity to bring his grieving and celibate best friend Ned back to "the land of the living."

#2 The Prince of Wales' affair with actress Mary Robinson
FACT: 18-year-old Prince George (later Georve IV) truly did have an affair with actress Mary Robinson after seeing her perform as Perdita. According to Mary Robinson's memoirs:

Scanned image provided by author

The prince offered Mary a bond of 20,000 pounds (to be paid upon his majority) after which she became his mistress. The affair lasted for about a year but the bond was never paid. Abandoned by her lover with no provision and with her reputation in tatters, Mary threatened to publish his love letters. Wishing to avoid a scandal, the king himself offered her a quiet settlement to the tune of about 5,000 pounds. The deal was negotiated by her then lover, Charles James Fox. This bit of gossip is exchanged between Phoebe and Peg, the Covent Garden wardrobe mistress, in A WILD NIGHT'S BRIDE.

#3 Prinny's (later George IV) habit of collecting locks of hair from all of his lovers.
FACT: Throughout his life, George IV had many mistresses, and is said to have cut a lock of hair from each one, placing it in an envelope with her name on it. Supporting the rumor, an astonishing 1000 such envelopes were discovered upon his death. In A WILD NIGHT'S BRIDE, Phoebe holds the dubious distinction of having donated the first lock of hair.

#4 General John Burgoyne as a popular playwright
FACT: Although Burgoyne was a career soldier and politician, had he not played a prominent role in the American War of Independence, Burgoyne would most likely be remembered today as a leading Georgian dramatist.

Best known for his role in the American War of Independence in which he suffered defeat at Saratoga, he was never truly enamored of either politics or the military. Referred to by his contemporaries as "Gentleman Johnny," he was very much a man of fashion who enjoyed the theatre world. Upon his retirement he wrote a number of plays.The most notable were The Maid of the Oaks (1783) and The Heiress and may have co-authored The Camp with Richard Brinsley Sheridan, as well as writing the libretti for William Jackson's only successful opera, The Lord of the Manor. He also wrote a highly successful version of Richard Coeur de Lion for the Drury Lane Theatre. In THE VIRGIN HUNTRESS Lord DeVere offers Vesta and Diana his box at the Drury Lane for a performance of Burgoyne's Maid of The Oaks.

#5 The ignoble Baron Baltimore
FACT:  The story of Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore as relayed by DeVere in THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, is largely factual. Baltimore was a profligate nobleman whose life was rife with scandal. He indeed travelled to the east and acquired a private harem. He was suspected of murdering his wife, although never formally accused, he was indeed tried for the abduction and rape of a young Quaker woman named Sarah Woodcock, who kept a milliner's shop at Tower Hill. Although acquitted, the scandal forced him to go abroad where he died in Italy at the age of 39.

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Thank you, Victoria, for sharing these Georgian facts with us!  

I'm very happy to have you on my blog!

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More About the Author

A lover of history and deeply romantic stories, Victoria combines these elements to craft romantic historical novels and novellas for a mature reading audience. Her writing influences are Georgette Heyer for fabulous witty dialogue and over the top characters, Robin Schone , Sylvia Day, and Charlotte Featherstone for beautifully crafted prose in stories with deep sensuality, and Lila DiPasqua for creative vision in melding history with eroticism. Ms. Vane also writes award nominated romantic historical fiction as Emery Lee (http://authoremerylee.com)

CONTACT:
Email: victoria.vane@hotmail.com
Web: http://authorvictoriavane.com
Blog: http://victoriavane.wordpress.com
Twitter: @authorvictoriav

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More About The Devil DeVere Series

Book 1

What happens when a struggling actress and a grieving widower come together in a night of unbridled debauchery orchestrated by a bored and machinating rake? With the devil in charge — there will surely be hell to pay!

Excerpt:
DeVere, on the other hand, evinced no such qualms. He had already loosened his cravat and was stripping off his coat.

"As I said earlier, there is no need," Phoebe insisted. "A couple of buttons and a raised petticoat are all the business requires."

"How delightfully unromantic you are, my dear!" He chuckled. "But while most men would be charmed to comply with your simple wishes, I have quite another game in mind. One that most definitely requires you to disrobe."

"But what if I don't want to?"

"Oh but you will," he said with a smug smile.

She glared. "You are very sure of yourself!"

He studied his buffed fingernails. "I am sure of Ned. Thus, we must put on a convincing show."

Her brows came together in a deep scowl. "What do you mean? What has Ned to do with this?"

"Everything. And at any moment, I expect him to burst through that door like a raging bull."

Book 2

Desperate times call for devilish measures…Lady Vesta Chambers is accustomed to getting what she wants, but when the object of her passion has eyes for another, it’s time to take matters in hand!

Excerpt:
"But it is so large and swollen, is it painful?

"No, just uncomfortable. Now, may we stop discussing my …" the appropriate word for feminine ears failed him.

"Phallus?" she offered. "That is what the grooms call it."

"Why are you eavesdropping on grooms?"

"I used to watch the stallions leaping the mares."

"You what!" Hew almost choked.

"Well, how else is a girl with no mother supposed to get any education? Although I doubt Mama would have told me very much. So there's really no reason to be timid, Hew. I already know all about the mating process. And to the best of my knowledge, the stallions never 'ignored it until it went away.' Please feel free to relieve yourself of it. I would even help you if you would like. I'm not the least afraid for I have seen much larger ones."

Book 3

When dealing with the devil it's easy to be burned…especially when passion ignites the flames...

Beautiful, respectable, and dutiful, Lady Diana Palmerston-Wriothesley has long resigned herself to her loveless marriage …until her husband's gambling pushes them to the brink of ruin. Viscount Ludovic, "The Devil DeVere", is a man accustomed to taking what he wants according to his whim until he encounters a woman who won't be had at any price. But will a single night of heavenly passion damn them both forever?

Excerpt:
She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell her budding arousal and would relish bringing her to full bloom. God, how he loved this dance! She had taken the first tentative steps, yet she still fought her desire, refused to give in to it, but he would lead her now. He was a master…and a ruthless bastard.

He moved behind her, his fingers riffled gently through her hair. He closed his eyes to inhale her faint rose scent mixed with womanly musk. He dipped his head, letting his breath tickle her ear. She shivered. He whispered low and sultry. "Do you wish me to name the ways I can please you? I am delighted to comply if that excites you...although it would please me far more to demonstrate."

Book 4

Once burned twice shy ... but when old flames come together…passion reignites ...

Excerpt:
DeVere rose and came to her, perching himself on the arm of the settle. "My honorable and straitlaced brother could never satisfy a woman like you, Diana. He could never plumb the depths of your passion...unlock your secret desires."

His voice was low and seductive, and the flickering blue fire in his eyes heated her insides. Diana fiercely tamped down the smoldering sensation that threatened to reignite feelings she'd struggled to suppress. "And what would you know of my wants and desires after four years?"

"A great deal." He gave her a slow, confident smile. "Given that I was the one to unleash them."

Diana averted her face with a bitter laugh. "Thus you presume to have an exclusive claim to me?"

"Has any other exerted one?" he asked softly. He reached out a hand and traced a long, manicured finger along her jaw. "You are still unwed, Diana. Have you taken another lover in my absence?"

"It is none of your business whether I have or not, and you are grossly impertinent to ask."

He laughed long and low. "I think I have my answer."

She glared at him, and thus they remained, silently challenging one another for an interminable beat. Then suddenly his mouth was on hers, taking, possessing, as if it was indeed, his singular privilege.

Diana leaned into him, teasing his lower lip with her tongue and sucking it eagerly into her mouth before sinking her teeth into it. Hard. Savoring the coppery taste of his blood.

"What the hell!" DeVere jerked back with a cry. He touched his lip and examined the crimson stain on his fingertip, his expression a mix of outrage and bemusement.

"You took without invitation," Diana said. "It was a warning not to do so again."

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Giveaway! --

Victoria will give one randomly chosen commenter a download of her first erotic historical romance A Breach of Promise.

Make sure to drop by her other stops! For links, click here.

A Personal Note: I've read and enjoyed three of the four books in the Devil DeVere series and I've also had the pleasure to read A Breach of Promise. (To read my reviews of Victoria Vane's books, click here.)