Review +Interview: Say You'll Love Me by Ally Broadfield
Release Date: 10/19/15
Synopsis
All of Lady Abigail Hurst’s dreams seem to be coming true when at long last her childhood sweetheart asks for her hand. But when a maid is found dead, and her betrothed is the chief suspect, Abigail begins to wonder just what manner of man she's marrying...The Marquess of Longcroft, Edmund Townsend, has always preferred complex mathematical equations to the trappings of society. And love? Love is a non-quantifiable concept. Still, Lady Abigail is his sister's friend, and he finds himself drawn into the mystery of her affianced…even as he begins to anticipate Lady Abigail's company with unfathomable pleasure.
Investigating the murder may reveal more than the sordid truth. It may just reveal the love Abigail always wanted...a little too late.
Purchase links for Say
You’ll Love Me
Amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Say-Youll-Love-Ally-Broadfield-ebook/dp/B015MQS27Y?tag=entangpublis-20&link_code=ur2&creative=9325&camp=211189
5-Stars Review
A great historical fiction, mystery plus romance, this book kept me captivated from the very beginning until the end. The story flowed smoothly with some twists and turns. It was sweet and quite entertaining.
Lady Abigail might be engaged to a murderer and in danger herself. She needs answers because without them she cannot get married. She wants to do the right thing and support her betrothed but can't help but suspect foul play. In this time of distress she sought help from her best friend's brother, Lord Longcroft...
Edmund has always admired Abigail, although he cannot determine the exact moment when his sister's friend became so important to him but he is unable to see her worried and wants to do everything in his power to find the murderer and put her mind at rest...
Things did not go the way they both anticipated and soon they find themselves betrothed to each other, although Abigail might not be able to go through an other loveless engagement and soon call it off.... or she might find her fairy tale ending that she has always wanted...
A perfect ending for a perfect story. Love, romance and a mystery to be solved, that and exceptional writing made this book an amazing one.
An Interview with the Author
1. What
are some of your writing habits?
My
only set habits are that I always wear my Pride
and Prejudice writing gloves and I drink lots of tea from my “Cup of Magic”
mug from Disney World. I have three active teenagers, so I’ve learned how to
write just about anywhere – the car, before and after sports games, at dance
conventions, etc.
2. What
inspired you to choose the genre you write in?
The
works of Jane Austen. The first manuscript I finished was a short story I
entered into a Jane Austen inspired contest. It was a continuation of Sense and Sensibility, and though I
didn’t win the contest, I did get some favorable feedback from bloggers. That
story eventually became my first published book, Just a Kiss.
3. I
loved Lady Abigail’s character in “Say You’ll Love Me”. Which one is your most favorite
character? And what did you like most about that character?
Oh,
this is such a difficult question. It’s like trying to choose which child is my
favorite. I’m so glad you loved Lady Abigail, and I have to say she is probably
my favorite character. She’s very different from the heroine’s in my other
books. She represents the quiet heroine, who on the surface seems to be a
proper and obedient Regency lady, but still manages to fight for what she wants
while adhering to the social conventions of the Regency period, and that isn’t
an easy thing to do.
4. In
your opinion how important it is to choose a right name for your character? Do
you think names make any difference or do you chose them randomly?
Character
names are very important to me as they represent not just a person’s identity,
but their individuality as well. Whenever possible, I chose my characters’
names from literature and written records either from the period, or from
earlier times so I can be sure that the name could have been used during the
Regency.
5. What
has been a best compliment given to you as an author?
I
think the best compliment I can receive is from readers who enjoy my books
enough to take time out of their busy lives to leave a review. It means a lot
to me that there are readers out there who enjoy my writing and identify with
the characters I create.
6. Sometimes
authors write about characters that are like them in some way or facing similar
challenges/situations. Are any of your characters like you?
All
of my characters have at least a small piece of me inside them, whether it’s a
positive trait, like determination, or a negative one, like procrastination.
Lady Abigail got her love of fairytales from me. I became a voracious reader at
an early age, and I loved the security of knowing that there would be a happy
ending when I read a fairy tale. Of course, there are some fairy tales that
don’t end happily, but I shy away from those.
7. What
literary character, do you think, is most like you?
This
is another difficult question. I think the character I most identify with is
Anne Elliot from Jane Austen’s Persuasion,
because when I was a teenager, I gave too much weight to the opinions of others
and allowed them to influence my decisions. Thankfully, like Anne, I outgrew
that and learned to stand up for myself and make my own decisions.
8. Is
there any genre you will never write? If so why?
I
think I can safely say that I’ll never write a graphic novel, because I cannot
draw at all, and no one else would be able to recreate the images in my head
(likely because I couldn’t describe them properly). However, I should never say
never, because a year ago I probably would have said that I’d never write
horror, and I have a middle grade short horror story releasing in an anthology
in November.
9. Is
there any particular topic or genre you wish to write in but haven’t gotten a
chance to do so yet?
I
started out writing a contemporary young adult story, but when I realized that
first manuscript was hopelessly flawed, I decided to try a different genre and
my historical romance career began. I haven’t had much time to write in that
genre over the past few years, but I have lots of stories plotted out that I
can’t wait to write, and I am pursuing publication in the teen market.
10. What
is your biggest dream and worst nightmare?
I’m
going to limit my answers to my writing career. My biggest dream is to hit the
New York Times bestseller list, and my worst nightmare (which haunts me before
every new release) is that I will have a book that doesn’t sell a single copy.
11. Have
you ever written something you absolutely loved but were unable to get it
published?
When
my mom was battling cancer, I wrote a middle grade story for her based on a
Russian fairy tale. The idea came from a picture on a lacquer box I bought for
her on a visit to Russia. It’s a really fun story and I’d love to introduce
Russian fairy tales to a new audience because they are relatively unknown
outside of Eastern Europe. Unfortunately, my mom passed away before I finished
writing, and so far I haven’t been able to sell the story, but I haven’t given
up yet.
12. What
do you like most about writing? Have you always wanted to be a writer or did it
happen unexpectedly?
I
never imagined I had the ability to write fiction. I double majored in history
and international affairs in college, and I’ve always loved to write, but
though I was comfortable with the technical aspects of writing, I didn’t think
I had enough imagination to write fiction. One day while I was working as a
librarian at an elementary school, I posted for a review for a book that had a
ton of potential, but fell flat, and I thought, I could write this story. So I started writing, and after a few years
and much learning, I sold my first book.
13.What
do you want your tombstone to say?
She
gave it her all.
14. If
you could have one superpower what will it be?
The
ability to heal others.
15. Any
advice or words for your readers and fans?
Have
the courage to follow your dreams. You’ll never know what you can accomplish if
you don’t try.
About the Author
Ally Broadfield lives in Texas and is convinced her
house is shrinking, possibly because she shares it with her husband, three
kids, four rescue dogs, a cat, a rabbit, and assorted reptiles. She likes to
curse in Russian because few people know what she’s saying, and spends most of
her spare time letting dogs in and out of the house and shuttling kids around.
She writes historical romance set in Regency England and Imperial Russia, and
middle grade and young adult literature as Ally Mathews. Find Ally on her website, Facebook, and Twitter, or subscribe to her mailing list.
Thanks so much for hosting me today and for the lovely review!
ReplyDeleteYou are most welcome :)
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