Secrets and Lords by Justine Elyot

Hello, erotic writers! Ashley has kindly offered me a spot here to talk about my new novel for Mischief Books, Secrets and Lords.

It's a historical story set in 1920 in a stately home, but the behaviour is anything but stately. Here's the blurb to give you more of an idea:

The summer of 1920 brings illicit liaisons to stately home Deverell Hall. Lords, ladies, butler and maids all succumb to the spirit of the roaring 1920s as sex and scandal take over.

From the author of bestselling Mischief titles ‘Kinky’ and ‘Game’, Justine Elyot’s ‘Secrets and Lords’ is a historical erotic novel that will seduce anyone who loves period drama Downton Abbey and delight fans of The Great Gatsby.

Lord Deverell's new wife has the house in thrall to her theatrical glamour. His womanising son, Sir Charles, has his eye on anything female that moves while his beautiful daughter, Mary, is feeling more than a little restless. And why does his younger son, Sir Thomas, spend so much time in the company of the second footman?

Into this simmering tension comes new parlour maid, Edie, with a secret of her own – a secret that could blow the Deverell family dynamic to smithereens.

Would an excerpt be in order?

Edie accepted a rag and a tub of metal polish and made a start on the heavy, ormulu-framed square mirror that stood over an unused fireplace.

They worked silently and diligently until Edie was drawn to the window by the sound of a car drawing up in the drive. She wouldn't have admitted it to herself, but she was hoping for a glimpse of Ted.

The car was not the one she had ridden in earlier, though. It was that same sleek, cream-coloured monster that had twice passed her on the road.

The rain had abated and its driver got out on to wet gravel, looking up at the house windows as he did so. Edie took a swift step back, her heart pounding. Why did she not want to be seen? Because this must be Charles, the rake of the Deverells, and she had no wish to draw his attention to her.

He was pristine in a pin-striped blazer over light-coloured waistcoat, shirt and trousers. His dark hair was immaculately cut and he was clean-shaven. He didn't wear a hat, and Edie approved of this, for she had no taste for the current fashion for straw boaters on men.

His eye was soon drawn away from the house, and he went to the passenger side to open it for a young woman.

'Who is that?' asked Edie, and Jenny came to look over her shoulder.

'Lady Mary. Oh, don't look. Sir Charles will see you.'

'She is fearfully lovely.'

'Yes. Come away.'

 But a creeping fascination had overcome Edie, who noted that Mary was exceptionally fashionable and glamorous in a calf-length beige skirt, a lace-collared blouse and a loose belted jacket. Her hat was low on her brow over dark, shiny bobbed hair and she wore three long strands of pearls.

Jenny tried to tug her away but to no avail. Edie watched Charles take Mary's arm to help her up the steps, then – disaster! He looked directly at her window. Her throat tightened and she tried to move away but she felt held there by the keen penetration of his gaze. It only lasted a moment, before Lady Mary slapped him on the elbow, as if in reproof, and he turned back to her, laughing.

But a moment was enough. Edie had been noticed, and now she felt like a marked woman.

The book is available from all the Amazons, including Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-and-Lords-ebook/dp/B00CKE0FK4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369681967&sr=8-1&keywords=justine+elyot+secrets+and+lords

Here it is at Sainsburys: http://www.sainsburysebooks.co.uk/book/Secrets-and-Lords-Justine-Elyot/7507787

Many thanks to Ashley for hosting me – and to you for reading!