Smitten by Books

by Bronwen Evans

Or so they would have said in the Regency period. Then again, very few ‘jobs’ were deemed appropriate for women; let alone the impoverished daughter of a baron.

My heroine in my latest Regency romance, Invitation to Scandal, Rheda Kerrich, has been helping the townspeople of Deal and trying to hold on to the family home for her younger brother, Baron de Winter, in her own unconventional way, as local smuggler “Dark Shadow.” She wants to retire and put her illegal deeds behind her. But she will need money to support herself. She refuses to take the dishonorable option of marrying her wealthy neighbor, a man she does not love. Instead, she prefers to maintain her independence by any means necessary. She’s at the point where she only needs one last shipment before she can retire and instigate her second plan—to breed cavalry horses.

Why cavalry horses? Well, Rheda being a Baron’s daughter knows there is good money in breeding quality race horses. Unfortunately, women are not allowed to enter horses into the General Stud Book at Weatherby’s. Thankfully there is nothing to stop her breeding cavalry horses which are sold privately. The ongoing war with Napoleon has seen an increase in the number of men signing on as cavalry officers. Each man has to buy his own mount and mounts can only be black. This means there is big demand for well bred light and heavy cavalry horse stock.

Cavalry (from French cavalerie, cf. cheval ‘horse’) or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms. A soldier in the cavalry is known by a number of designations such as cavalryman, horseman or trooper. [CLUE NINETEEN: NOTORIOUS]

In the Regency period, the cavalry played an important role on the battlefields of France. The 1st and 2nd Life Guards formed the front charging line of the Household Cavalry Brigade at Waterloo. The famous charge against the French Cuirassiers took place at the height of the battle and saved the British centre from being overrun.

Most horses are purchased when between 3 and 4 years of age, so Rheda smuggles in order to save enough money to see her through the first few years of breeding. Ideally, the horses should be between 15 and 15.2 hands high, hence why breeding Irish draught horses with Arabian’s produces strong yet fast steeds.

Rheda almost loses one of her two breeding mares to colic. Rufus, the hero in Invitation to Scandal, of course comes to the rescue…

It was close to midnight when Rufus decided to pay an unannounced and secret visit to Tumsbury Cliff Manor. The baron could not afford a full complement of staff, and that, in all likelihood, would allow him to poke around the estate and outbuildings at his leisure. If he could only find illegal contraband, he’d have the proof he needed to arrest Daniel.

Part of him welcomed the chance to be caught snooping. He could do with a good fight to burn off his frustration—frustration at their limited progress in uncovering a simple smuggling network, and frustration at knowing the most beautiful woman he’d met in a long time was sleeping in the house he was about to visit. He’d love to instigate a personal search of her room, of her bed, of her person. He gave a silent curse.

He tethered Caesar a mile from the house—with mares in heat he couldn’t afford to let Caesar come any closer—and began the walk to the manor pondering what he was going to do about Rheda. Stephen had suggested he talk with her about his mission. Explain to her why it was so important they find Dark Shadow. But he’d trusted a woman once before, and it had cost him his mission and his friend’s life.

No. Until he found evidence of Rheda’s innocence he could not afford to trust her.

He sidled into the stable and came to an abrupt halt, freezing in the shadows. From somewhere within came the sounds of whimpering. He stood frozen against the wall. Who was up at this hour and why? He continued forward until he reached the first empty stall and stopped at the sight of a shape—a small shape. It couldn’t be the baron. One of Meg’s boys perhaps? The eldest helped with the horses. But surely they would be tucked up in bed by now.

He crept farther into the dimly lit stable, and as his eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light he recognized the shape—Rheda. She was leaning against the stable wall, her head buried within her arms—sobbing. He tried to stop his heart from lurching in his chest; he was helpless when it came to women’s tears.

“What’s happened?” he asked with barely concealed panic.

At the sound of his voice she swung round. “Rufus! Oh, Rufus!” She flew at him, grabbed his hand, and dragged him toward the stall at the rear of the building. “It’s White Lily—please—you have to help me.”

As they drew nearer Rufus could hear the mare’s snorts of distress.

Rheda’s tears continued to flow although her sobs had quieted. The sticky trails of tears on her cheeks testified to her anguish.

“Daniel is still not home, and Jamieson and Penny have been called into Seaton. Penny daughter’s gone into labor.” She gestured to White Lily who lay groaning on her side, legs thrashing, stomach heaving, froth covering her nose and mouth. “I can’t get her to stand up. She’s been lying down and standing up all day, but now she simply lies there panting and groaning. She’s been fretting since early afternoon.” Rheda’s hands clenched and unclenched. “Caesar’s mating hasn’t hurt her—has he? He seemed so large . . .”

He shook his head grimly and began to take off his heavy overcoat. “She’s got colic.”

“Is the condition dangerous?”

“It can be.” Trying not to show his anxiety, he ripped off his jacket and began rolling up his sleeves. “How long has she been down?”

“This time? Not long.” She started to cry again. “I tried to get her up, but I’m not strong enough.”

He bent down and stroked the mare’s nose. “Easy girl, we’ll make you feel better, but you have to get up for me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to make her stand up. She could die if we don’t get her back up and walking to ease the blockage in her gut.”

“Will we have enough strength between us?”

“We don’t need strength—I hope.” He crouched next to White Lily’s head. “You might want to stand clear. She may kick out.” Then he took a deep breath and prayed this would work. If it didn’t he was not sure he’d have the strength to pull the mare to her feet, even with rope. Besides, that method often hurt the horse even more. “Have you any cod liver oil in the house?”

“I’ll go see. I’m sure we do.” Rheda turned, and, lifting her skirts, she raced toward the house. He could hear her hurried footsteps on the cobblestones.

Quickly he bent to his task. He covered White Lily’s nose with his hand and forced her mouth closed so she could not breathe. Immediately her legs started thrashing and she made to get to her feet. After an almighty struggle she stood, although she was still in palpable discomfort.

“Come on, we need to get you walking, young lady.” And talking softly he encouraged the trembling mare out into the yard.

It would appear Rheda still has a lot to learn about horse breeding. However, I’m sure she’s up for the challenge. Read the book to see how she copes and to learn if Rufus Knight catches Dark Shadow…

I’m giving away two copies of Invitation to Scandal. Simply tell me what name you think Rheda should give her first cavalry foal. Remember they are black in color.

PLUS don’t forget to join my Invitation to Romance Blog Tour. The Book Tour Grand Prize – A $200 Amazon, or B&N Voucher, PLUS… A Book Basket of a collection of 30 ‘SIGNED by the AUTHORS’ books…

There are 30 clues that must be collected to be eligible for entry into this contest.  Collect all the clues and spell out a paragraph relating to Bronwen’s 1 May 2012 Regency release – INVITATION TO SCANDAL.  Visit my website to collect the back clues.

Praise for Bronwen Evans’s, Invitation to Scandal

In An Invitation to Scandal, Bronwen Evans deftly pens a darkly sensual tale of intrigue, romance, and unexpected twists.
Lorraine Heath, The Duke is Mine

A sexy Regency take on Robin Hood. Passion, adventure, secrets and danger will keep you turning the pages.
Anna Campbell, Midnight’s Wild Passion

About Bron:

New Zealander Bronwen Evans grew up loving books. She’s always indulged her love for story-telling, and is constantly gobbling up movies, books and theatre. Her head is filled with characters and stories, particularly lovers in angst. Being able to write her characters stories is never work, it’s a dream come true. Is it any wonder she’s a proud romance writer.

She writes both historical and contemporary sexy romances for the modern woman who likes intelligent, spirited heroines, and compassionate alpha heroes. Her 2011 debut novel, INVITATION TO RUIN, received a 4.5 star rating from RT Book Reviews and was nominated in the RT Reviewers’ Choice awards – Best First Historical.

When not ensconced in her study writing her characters’ thrilling journeys to their happy ever after, Bron can be found on the golf course.

Readers can contact Bronwen via email at romance@bronwenevans.com . For more information on all of Bronwen’s books, including updates on novels yet to come, visit Bronwen’s website at www.bronwenevans.com