My guest is Historical Romance author, Donna MacMeans. Aside from being a lot of fun in person, she writes some fabulous books which make you laugh and sigh. I'm happy to be welcoming her back to Over Coffee. Isn't her cover gorgeous?
Thanks Sia for
having me here today.
I had so much fun
writing this last book, I’m hoping readers will enjoy it as well. In particular, I had great fun with my hero,
Michael Rafferty, and his sidekick Phineas Connor, a secondary character who
I’m guessing will have his own book one of these days. Michael Rafferty is the muscle of the
two. He’s an Irishman who works for
British Intelligence. He’s
well-acquainted with London’s underbelly.
The bad guys that live in the sewers there are well acquainted with his
fists. His best friend and associate,
Phineas Connor, is a stage magician and a master of disguise. I patterned the relationship on James West
and Artemis Gordon from the Wild Wild West - the TV show, not the movie.
When I first
clicked on the men’s relationship, I thought I’d watch some reruns of that show
for a little character study. Somehow I
don’t remember the series being quite as campy as it is on my dvds (grin). Memories work that way I guess. I remember my brother and I watching the show
after school. James West was like an American James Bond for the Victorian period.
Remember their private railroad car with all the cool gadgets? I understand that the show is now considered
one of the first examples of Steampunk.
I also learned
that the show was cancelled at the height of its popularity because SOMEONE
decided it was too violent. (Remember
when James West punched the woman with the knife in the animated segments?) Robert Conrad was known for doing his own
stunts so I imagine the insurance costs to produce the show didn’t exactly aid
its longevity. Anyway, I don’t have to
worry about either of these things in my REDEEMING THE ROGUE. I’m not sure you can say I have a lot of
violence in the book, but there are an awful lot of dead bodies. This book definitely has a high body
count. Fortunately, the insurance cost
for fictional characters is eminently affordable (grin).
Here’s an excerpt so you can get a taste for the relationship of
these two:
The vaguely annoying threat of a
knife pressed to the small of his back gave Michael Rafferty pause.
“Your valuables or your life,” a
guttural voice hissed. “I reckon a
couple of swanks like you two have nice fat pockets.”
Michael glanced at his
associate. Receiving his slight nod,
Rafferty turned abruptly, rapping the miscreant’s hand sharply with his walking
stick. The knife fell and slid along
the street. Deprived of his weapon, the
thief resorted to his fists but soon discovered he was out-classed there as
well. Rafferty had the man’s face
pressed to the side of a well-appointed Mayfair townhouse with his arm twisted
in a painful hold.
“Well done.” His companion applauded. “You didn't need my assistance at all.”
Rafferty winced, feeling the sting
of a cut on his lip. The bloody bugger
had landed one lucky punch. Blast that
it had been the fist with a ring.
“Some of that famous sleight of
hand would have been appreciated,” Rafferty said, shaking his hair clear from
his eyes. “Or is that only for the
stage?”
His friend, the renowned Phineas
Connor master of illusion, laughed. “My
performance on stage is limited to cards and doves. You’re the one, Rafferty, known for his fists.” He glanced at Rafferty’s captive. “At least among the Irishmen that should
know better.”
The man squirmed. “Rafferty? Is that you?” He swore like a seaman, which —based on his filthy rags — he
could have been. “I swear I didn’t know.”
Rafferty tugged the crook’s arm
higher and heard fabric rip. “Check his
pockets.”
While Phineas rummaged through the
man’s clothing, Rafferty glanced around the corner of the building to a line of
hansoms in front of a stylish townhouse.
Such an elite gathering might offer temptation for the kind of criminal
he held captive. “This is a dapper
neighborhood for a wharf rat like you.”
“I was minding me own business
until you two came along,” the thief muttered.
Silver glinted in Phineas’s hand,
the contents of the thief’s pocket.
Rafferty gave the man a shake.
“A half-crown? Who else did you
rob tonight?”
“I didn't rob nobody. That was for a
message. Half now and half when I
brings the reply.”
“What sort of reply did you expect to a
knife in the back?” Rafferty tugged the arm, earning a squeal from the thief.
“The
message weren’t for you. I was to
hand-deliver it to a lady, I was. I
thought you two was easy pickings while I waited for her to show.”
Phineas
retrieved an envelope from the crook’s jacket.
No name or address was noted on the front but a blob of red wax sealed
the back. He bounced the letter off his
fingertips. “Nice quality
stationery. Too nice for the likes of a
gutter rat.”
“Who’s the
lady?” Rafferty asked. When an answer wasn’t immediately
forthcoming, he tugged the twisted arm higher.
“Tell me before your arm leaves its socket.”
“I don’t
know her name,” the cutpurse bellowed, his eyes squeezed shut. “All I know is she’s dressed in green and
she’s going to that party of swells.”
He slid his face on the limestone to point the way with his chin.
“Barnell said…” His eyes widened and his
mouth clamped shut.
You might
notice that Rafferty is a little rough around the edges. As he’s about to be assigned a mission to
masquerade as a British diplomat assigned to Washington DC, he’s going to need
some sprucing up. That’s where my heroine
comes in. Lady Arianne Chambers is
the sister to a duke who agrees to
transform the rogue into something more convincing for his mission. It’s sort of a reverse Pygmalion. All to solve a mystery and catch a killer.
Publishers Weekly neatly summed up the story this way: Irish rebellion, smuggled guns, and the
assassination of American president James Garfield form a lively backdrop for
this sweet, sexy, and smartly told Victorian romance.
Romantic Times gave REDEEMING THE ROGUE a 4.5 Top Pick with
the comment: [Redeeming the Rogue] is pure joy; funny, sexy and exciting.”
I hope you will give it a try. I’m running a contest
with a Kindle as a prize. You can find
the details at www.DonnaMacMeans.com.
Plus I’ll give a copy of REDEEMING THE ROGUE to
someone leaving a comment that tells me their favorite character(s) from an old
TV show. (Old of course being relative
- grin).
Buy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, IndieBound, Powells
~*~*~
Before beginning her writing career in earnest, Donna MacMeans kept books of a different nature. A certified public accountant, she recently abandoned the exciting world of debits and credits to return to her passion: writing witty and sensuous romances. Her debut novel, The Education of Mrs. Brimley, won the 2006 Golden Heart for Best Long Historical. Her second book, The Trouble with Moonlight, won the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice award for historical love and laughter. Originally from Towson, Maryland, she now resides in central Ohio with my husband, two adult children and her kitty keyboard companion, Shadow.
Visit her website at https://www.donnamacmeans.com
Lots of bars and all the patrons (and barkeeps) seemed engrossed in the same book!
