I confess, I often judge a book by its cover. Although I write (mostly) historical romance or historical romantic suspense or intrigue, I read across the genres. Obviously, a book’s cover indicates genre as well as key elements that will appeal to readers.
So, when I got back my rights from Pan Macmillan to Saving Grace, I had to find a new cover. I then wrote the next two books in the series and, right now, am promoting Forsaking Hope for free for a couple of days, while Keeping Faith is up for pre-order.
But here are the three past covers for Forsaking Hope.
They’re very different, aren’t they? Yet, each shows the vulnerability of a lone young woman in a harsh society where a woman without a protector is destined to die in the gutter.
Yes, they’re romances, but it’s the reality of their situation that gives each heroine her motivation to act in ways that perhaps we’d not see as moral in today’s society where we have a welfare safety net. (Well, we do in Australia, anyway.)
When I asked my fantastic cover designer, Dar Albert of Wicked Smart Designs for a cover for Forsaking Hope, she initially came up with this. However, while I love it, I was really looking for authenticity, so I sent her these pictures from an 1878 book of English fashion plates.
And that’s when she came up with this:
Hope’s life of betrayal has involved the cruel destruction of any potential happiness with the handsome squire’s son.
When they finally meet again, she’s faced with the most difficult choice of her life as she is blackmailed by someone she’d once trusted. Now, following through with what’s in her heart may mean her lover’s destruction.
You can read it in KU or for free for the next day or so – here.
Meanwhile, Keeping Faith, is up for pre-order. It’s currently $2.99 but will increase a month after release because it is a very long romance filled with passion, danger and adventure plus a liberal dose of blackmail and intrigue.
You can get it on all platforms here.