arrives at the castle gates in the middle of the night and is put to the test to see if she is a “real” princess—by sleeping on one hundred mattresses and a pea, among other things? I had a great time figuring out how to get those mattresses into the plot. (And the pea! The pea was another challenge.)
That’s probably the most fun aspect of rewriting fairy tales: how does one take the structural underpinnings of one story and weave an entirely new, fresh story around them? I’m very happy to announce my next fairy tale will be a version of Rapunzel, the story of a golden-haired girl locked in a tower. Mine is called, quite fittingly, Once Upon a Tower.
If you enjoyed the length of “Seduced by a Pirate,” I have quite a number of novellas that make perfect reading in a waiting room (I’ve taken to reading on my phone, and I love it). Two are loosely connected to my version of fairy tales, “Winning the Wallflower” to The Duke Is Mine, and “Storming the Castle” to A Kiss at Midnight. “A Fool Again” is another e-novella, connected to one of my earlier novels called Fool for Love. Of course, all my novels are available in electronic form. Want to read more about them? I have excerpts, inside information, and even some photos that inspired my characters on my website, www.eloisajames.com.
And, as always, you can find me either through email ([email protected]) or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/eloisajamesfans. Please check in and tell me what you thought of “Seduced by a Pirate!”
Yours,
Read on for a preview of the first three chapters of
The Ugly Duchess
Available now from Avon Books
ONE
March 18, 1809
45 Berkeley Square
The London residence of the Duke of Ashbrook
“You’ll have to marry her. I don’t care if you think of her as a sister: from now on, she’s the Golden Fleece to you.”
James Ryburn, Earl of Islay, and heir to the Duchy of Ashbrook, opened his mouth to say something, but a mixture of fury and disbelief choked the words.
His father turned and walked toward the far wall of the library, acting as if he’d said nothing particularly out of the ordinary. “We need her fortune to repair the Staffordshire estate and pay a few debts, or we’re going to lose it all, this town house included.”
“What have you done?” James spat the words. A terrible feeling of dread was spreading through his limbs.
Ashbrook pivoted. “Don’t you dare speak to me in that tone!”
James took a deep breath before answering. One of his resolutions was to master his temper before turning twenty—and that birthday was a mere three weeks away. “Excuse me, Father,” he managed. “Exactly how did the estate come to be in such precarious straits? If you don’t mind my asking.”
“I do mind your asking.” The duke stared back at his only son, his long, aquiline nose quivering with anger. James came by his temper naturally: he had inherited it directly from his irascible, reckless father.
“In that case, I will bid you good day,” James said, keeping his tone even.
“Not unless you’re going downstairs to make eyes at that girl. I turned down an offer for her hand this week from Briscott, who’s such a simpleton that I didn’t feel I need tell her mother. But you know damn well her father left the decision over who marries the girl to her mother—”
“I have no knowledge of the contents of Mr. Saxby’s will,” James stated. “And I fail to see why that particular provision should cause you such annoyance.”
“Because we need her damned fortune,” Ashbrook raged, walking to the fireplace and giving the unlit logs a kick. “You must convince Theodora that you’re in love with her, or her mother will never agree to the match. Just last week, Mrs. Saxby inquired about a few of my investments in a manner that I did not appreciate. Doesn’t know a woman’s place.”
“I will do nothing of the sort.”
“You will do exactly as I instruct you.”
“You’re instructing me to woo a young lady whom I’ve been raised to treat as a sister.”
“Hogwash! You may have rubbed noses a few times as children, but that shouldn’t stop you from sleeping with her.”
“I cannot.”
For the first time the duke looked a trifle sympathetic. “Theodora is no beauty. But all women are the same in the—”
“Do not say that,” James snapped. “I am already appalled; I do not wish to be disgusted as well.”
His father’s eyes narrowed and a rusty color rose in his