Authors: Katharine Ashe
The Rogue (36 page)
H
ere is something I find truly sexy: a man who is good, kind, and emotionally strong, and who wants above all else a woman's safety and happiness. Put that man in tight breeches on a horse, and give him a sword, and he's just about ideal.
From the time I first started thinking about Constance's book years ago, I realized she needed that sort of hero. Then as I was writing
I Loved a Rogue
, I discovered how Saint helped the hero of that book, Taliesin, when they were young men. (This happened in the way that characters often tell a writer what to write about them and, if she is wise, the writer obeys.) At that moment, Constance and Saint's love story became clear to me. I knew that he would save her not by slaying the bad guys himself, or even by teaching her how to slay them, but by showing her what honest, generous, true love looks like. If you would like to read the scene where I came to understand Saint, you can find that bonus scene from
I Loved a Rogue
on my website www.KatharineAshe.com. In it, Saint is a very young man, and full of energy, and it marks
the moment during his hiatus from war when he picks up a sword again.
Like many of my books, Constance's is a secret identity story of sorts. Beneath her beauty, wealth, and position is a girl who just wants to be loved. Appearances often deceive, don't they? You never really know what's behind the face that a person shows the world. In the next book of the Devil's Duke series, both the hero and heroine are in disguise, which makes for some pretty crazy (and very sexy) shenanigans. Look for
The Earl
, starring Peregrine and his nemesis Lady Justice, coming soon.
Regarding the word “rogue”: In the early nineteenth century it carried the meaning of “vagrant” with the strong implication of “idle and troublemaking scoundrel.” Social order was hugely important to Britons of this era. The empire was expanding rapidly, and the enormous mercantile and industrial wealth amassed by commoners was upending the traditional power hierarchy that ensured a hereditary aristocracy stayed in charge of everybody else. It was a tumultuous, uncertain time for the landed elite. Additionally, in the post-Napoleonic war years, veterans (many who were seriously damaged from warfare) wandered the countryside searching for work as laborers. These homeless men, along with Gypsies, were called “rogues,” and lawmakers, who saw them as forces of chaos in a rapidly changing society that they were desperately trying to control, were not fond of them.
Hanging in my mother's kitchen throughout my childhood was a needlepointed sampler that read,
Home is where the heart is
. I have used the word
rogue
in the titles of my books that feature heroes who are wanderers of one sort or anotherâpirate, spy, Gypsy, and swordsmanâuntil the rogue finds his home with the woman he loves.
Concerning swords, swordsmanship, and fencing: while most gentlemen of this era learned swordsmanship in their youth, it was relegated to the battlefield and sport. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, gentlemen no longer
wore swords as part of their regular dress, and dueling was not only illegal in England; many considered it immoral. If men were caught dueling, penalties included hefty fines, imprisonment, and execution if a duelist killed his opponent. But the origins of the duel went back before even the Middle Ages, and gentlemen had a hard time relinquishing this method of settling disputes of honor. Because death by dueling could not easily be hidden from the authorities, however, most duels between gentlemen at this time were fought to “first blood” only. Nevertheless, men of high rank or position continued to murder their opponents in duels, perhaps because many suffered no punishment for it, especially when the murdered man was of lesser social status than the winner. Tried by their peers in the House of Lords, they were forgiven the murderous deed as the unfortunate by-product of a necessary act of honor.
Laws that significantly hobbled the practice of dueling came into effect only in the middle of the century, but by then so many men of the mercantile class practiced swordplay too that aristocratic gentlemen actually complained of the democratization of dueling. In the meantime, improvements in firearms had made swords less popular on the battlefield. Fencing enjoyed an upsurge of popularity in the late nineteenth century in England, as nostalgic experts encouraged gentlemen to keep swordsmanship in their arsenals of power against socially inferior men. But the great era of the sword had by then come to an end.
A fun fact: in the centuries of public swordsmanship, prize-fighting fencers as well as duelists often fought bare-chested. This was to prove they wore no protective covering over their vital organs that would allow them to fight more aggressively since they did not fear mortal injury. Essentially, fighting bare-chested proved a man's bravery and honesty in one-on-one combat. It is in this tradition that Saint spars bare-chested.
I modeled Saint's teacher, Georges Banneret, on fencing masters of the era, including the Chevalier Joseph
de Saint-Georges, a “creole” from the French island of Guadeloupe who became famous in both England and France for his extraordinary skill with a sword, not to mention his charm and cultivated sophistication. His story is marvelous, and I recommend it to anyone intrigued with this exciting era of revolution (particularly his biography by Alain Guédé).
Saint's words about “calmness, vigor, and judgment” in Chapter 8, and the title of that chapter, come from a short seventeenth-century publication,
The Swordsman's Vade-mecum
, by Sir William Hope. A concise list of eight rules for fencers, it begins with, “Rule I. Whatever you do, let it always (if possible) be done Calmly, and without Passion, and Precipitation, but still with all Vigour, and Briskness imaginable, your Judgement not failing to Direct, Order and Govern you as to both.” All eight rules in this treatise include the words “with Calmness, Vigour, and Judgement.” I think this is great advice for life in general, and I couldn't resist including them in Saint's lessons for Constance.
I can never resist borrowing from William Shakespeare when it suits. Fans of the Bard will recognize that the titles of Chapters 32 and 33â“The brave day sunk in hideous night”âcome from his twelfth sonnet.
A word on Scotland and castles:
innumerable
. They cover the magnificent landscape. While the Duke of Loch Irvine's principal seat is many miles northwest of Edinburgh, Haiknayes Castle is just a stone's throw from Castle Read, which in my experience of traveling through Scotland is entirely possible. I loosely modeled Castle Read on Castle Fraser, including the grounds. Other details of the Duke of Read's castle are drawn from Abbotsford, the house built with love and at great expense by the popular novelist Sir Walter Scott. Scott was an enthusiast of antique weapons, and the weaponry and its display in Castle Read were almost entirely inspired by the collection at Abbotsford. I am indebted to the volunteer guides of both of these estates for generously sharing their vast knowledge with this humble novelist doing her best to fashion fiction from fact.
The Peppermill, the loch, the church ruins on Arthur's Seat, and many other Edinburgh landmarks in this novel can be found on maps of the era. Some are still there today. One of these is the Sheep Heid Inn in Duddingston, where I spent a delightful afternoon sipping ale, chatting with friendly folks, and plotting Annie Favor's sad fate.
With each book I write, my world of early-nineteenth-century Britain expands. Constance appears in
When a Scot Loves a Lady
,
How to Be a Proper Lady
,
How a Lady Weds a Rogue
, and
In the Arms of a Marquess
; Saint appears in
I Loved a Rogue
; young Dylan makes an appearance in
Swept Away by a Kiss
; and Constance's Falcon Club friends can be found in the other books of that series as well. For a timeline of characters and events in the Falcon Club, the Devil's Duke and all my series, I hope you will visit the Timeline page of my website at www.KatharineAshe.com.
M
y books owe an enormous lot to others. To Marcia Abercrombie, Sonja Foust, and Lee Galbreath, who plucked this story out of darkness and drew it into the light, and to whom I dedicate it, I offer a world of thanks and hugs and munchies and cookies. Thanks to my beloved team of readersâGeorgie C. Brophy, Nita Eyster, Donna Finlay, Meg Huliston, Helen Lively, and Celia Wolffâwhose generosity and graciousness exceed every expectation of friendship and loyalty and who most certainly made this a better book. Thanks for crucial help also to Diana Bennett for her scene blocking idea; Georgann Brophy, Mary Brophy Marcus, and The Lady AuthorsâCaroline Linden, Miranda Neville, and Maya Rodaleâfor love, assistance, and support; Sandie Blaise for emergency counsel; Carol Strickland and the HCRW BiaW writers for camaraderie; Cari Gunsallus, assistant extraordinaire; and Chuck Wendig for lemurs on fire (though not
real
lemurs . . . of course).
I adore both swords and Scotland, so this was pretty much the most fun I've ever had researching a novel. I found the epigraph of this novel in Ben Miller's
Self-Defense for Gentlemen and Ladies
(2015), an excellent collection of Colonel Monstery's newspaper articles from the 1870s on
the subject; my thanks to the Reference librarians at the Duke University Library for their assistance in tracking down Monstery's original articles. To Alison Lodge at Castle Fraser for the information she generously shared during my visit there, to the wonderful volunteers at Abbotsford, and to Noah Redstone Brophy for medical consultation, I am indebted. Without consulting Melinda Leigh for her expertise in martial arts I would be lost. And to Jeff Kallio and Jennifer Oldham of Mid-South Fencers Club, Professor Leslie Marx of Duke University Fencing, and Walter G. Green of Salle Green, my gratitude is beyond words.
To my wonderful editor, Lucia Macro, whose work on this book was not only gracious and compassionate, but perfect, I am ever grateful. Indeed, I am enormously grateful to everybody at Avon Books who brings my books to life, including Gail Dubov and Thomas Egner for this beautiful cover; Ellen Leach for copyediting brilliance; Nicole Fischer for making everything so easy for me and for her endless patience; and Pamela Jaffee, Jessie Edwards, and Shawn Nicholls for all of their help and support. To my agents, Kimberly Whalen and MacKenzie Fraser-Bub, and to Meredith Miller and Sylvie Rosokoff, who bring my books to foreign language readers, I send up plentiful thanks.
All accidental mistakes or intentional deviations from historical or technical accuracy in this novel are not to be laid at the capable feet of any of the above, but should be attributed to the faeries who live in the woods behind my house and are growing weary of being referred to obliquely in my books without ever getting starring roles. (Someday, faeries . . . I promise!)
To my readers, who make writing romance an infinitely great joy for me, and whose letters, emails, tweets, posts, and reviews I appreciate more than you can know, I send big hugs and kisses to you all. Special thanks to my Princesses, the best street team in the world, for your love and enthusiasm; I am deeply thankful for you. I love to hear from readers, and I always reply personally. Feel free to contact me
via my website or to send a letter the lovely old-fashioned way in the mail.
To my dear husband, son, and Idaho: in these past few years you have taught me more about honest, generous, true love than I had ever thought there was to learn. You are my heroes.
KATHARINE ASHE
is the bestselling, award-winning author of historical romances that reviewers call “intensely lush” and “sensationally intelligent,” including
How to Be a Proper Lady
, an Amazon Editors' Choice for the 10 Best Books of the Year, and 2014 and 2015 finalists for the Romance Writers of America's prestigious RITA® Award. She lives in the wonderfully warm Southeast with her beloved husband, son, dog, and a garden she likes to call romantic rather than unkempt. A professor of history, she writes romance because she thinks modern readers deserve grand adventures and breathtaking sensuality too. For more about her books, please visit
www.KatharineAshe.com
.
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