Quill and Ink Book Tours Presents ~ A Governess Should Never... Lure A Spy - The Governess Chronicles: Book 4 by Emily Windsor

 

A Governess Should Never… Lure a Spy

(The Governess Chronicles – Book 4)

Emily Windsor

Genre: Regency Romance

Release Date: Thursday, 11^th April 2024

Heat Level: Sensual. Moderate. Open door but romantic.

 

Notes: This book is written in British English spelling.

 

A Dangerous Spy. An even more Dangerous Governess. 

 

“So tell me, Miss Jones, why should I employ you as governess?”

A question to rouse fear within the breast of any prospective governess, unless…she wasn’t a governess at all.

Yet Amelia must secure this position by whatever means necessary as this gentleman, dubbed The Scandalous Hugh Cadwalader by fashionable society, is not all he seems. Behind the elegant finery and azure eyes is a dangerous warrior of a man, a tenacious spy for the Crown.

One who might just have turned traitor…

 

“Just one more question, if I may…”

With her perfect references and perfect demureness, Miss Jones appears…perfect.

Feminine guidance and distraction are required for his inquisitive ward while Hugh Cadwalader hunts a traitor in the alleys of London’s Rookery.

But can such perfection be all it seems? And was that a glimpse of golden fire within those amber eyes?

 

The Dangerous Spy and… The More Dangerous Governess.

One should never judge a governess by her perfectly forged references or a spy by his unblemished Hessian boots, for behind both facades lay passion untamed, subterfuge unbound and a quest for justice.

A battle of wits with only one winner… Love.

 

With theatres of glister and glamour, nights of shadow and menace, hairpins of poison, and…being pressed to a desk by a shirtless masculine chest, the vocation of governess has never been so perilous – to the heart.

 

The Scandalous Hugh Cadwalader first features in Book 2 of this series, A Governess Should Never... Deny a Duke. This is his story.

Contains sensual scenes.

Purchase Links:

Available in e-book and paperback.

Amazon US

Amazon UK

 

Get The Governess Chronicles Series

A Governess Should Never… Tempt A Prizefighter – Book 1

A Governess Should Never… Deny A Duke – Book 2

A Gentleman Will Never… Forget A Lady – Book 3

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XB6NZ2B

Excerpt:

No. 14 Hanover Square, Mayfair, London. May 1817

 

“So tell me, Miss Jones, why should I employ you as governess?”

Curse it.

And Amelia lowered her gaze to the mahogany desk in order to portray thoughtful repose.

What a devious question.

Especially as there were countless reasons why the gentleman should, in fact, not employ her as governess.

She’d never educated a young lady in her entire twenty-four years of life, knew naught concerning the history of art, cared less about the proper use of semicolons, was quite hopeless at all musical endeavours and hadn’t the faintest idea what…tatting was.

Yet how arduous could it be to keep a fifteen-year-old girl occupied?

Just give her a book to read, surely?

So, with a surreptitious intake of breath, Amelia clasped her hands in what she judged to be a suitably demure fashion and raised her lashes to the gentleman who prodded her so.

A Mr Hugh Cadwalader.

His lustrous blue gaze caused that intake of breath to hitch somewhat, so she pursed her lips in a prim manner and sniffed. Governesses always sniffed. But as to his question… “I am well-versed, Mr Cadwalader, in all subjects that a young lady might have need of during her Season.”

Such as how to evade a marriage-obsessed mama at a ball, the varied usages for a yard length of silk sash and the extrication of oneself from the clutches of a lascivious duke with merely a dance card pencil.

“I see.”

Amelia thought that reply most enigmatic. “You have my references?”

“Yes,” he drawled, gathering the papers before him. “My man of affairs has attempted to verify these references, yet it seems your past employers are either not of the living or not currently residing within these isles.” With agile slender fingers, he leafed through them. “Lord Fowler is pursuing parakeets in the Amazonia, Lady Bassett is sifting through sand dunes in the former Mesopotamia, Lady Clifford is scouring Constantinople for the Ark and Lady Padgett is scouring Paris for her errant husband.”

Amelia held his gaze. “How unfortunate.” And tilted her head. “But if you find me acceptable on all other counts, might I suggest a period of probation until my references can be verified?”

That should give her enough time to search this townhouse, question the servants, note Mr Cadwalader’s movements and read any of his pertinent correspondence, all in order to write a comprehensive report for her superior at the Foreign Office.

For Amelia’s talents lay not in punctuation or musical endeavours but in subterfuge for the Crown…

 

About the Author

Regency Romance with Warmth, Wit & Well-tied Cravats.

Emily grew up in the north of England on a diet of historical romance and strong tea.

Unfortunately, you couldn’t study Regency slang, so she did the next best thing and gained a degree in Classics and History instead. This ‘led’ to an eight-year stint in engineering.

Having left city life, she now lives in a dilapidated farmhouse where her days are spent writing, fixing the leaky roof, battling the endless vegetation and finding pictures of well-tied cravats.

 

More about me can be found at:

https://www.amazon.com/author/emilywindsor

https://books2read.com/emily-windsor

https://facebook.com/AuthorEmilyWindsor

https://www.instagram.com/emilywindsorwritesregency/

https://www.bookbub.com/authors/emily-windsor

https://www.goodreads.com/EmilyWindsor

https://uk.pinterest.com/EmilyWindsorBks/

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/gehNKr

 

Guest Post:

Hatchard’s Bookshop

The Scandalous Hugh Cadwalader, hero of ‘A Governess Should Never… Lure a Spy’ attempts to trail his enigmatic governess on an exhaustive gallivant around London and one of the famed shops he is led past is…

Hatchard’s, which still exists today.

The oldest bookshop in the United Kingdom, Hatchard’s was founded in 1797 at No. 173 Piccadilly by John Hatchard, a publisher and anti-slavery campaigner. The iconic shop moved a few doors down (next to the prestigious department store Fortnum & Mason!) in 1801 and has been there ever since.

Queen Charlotte, wife of King George III, was one of their first customers and it became the fashionable place to shop with the Duke of Wellington and Lord Byron frequenting it, no doubt to buy a book or ten!  It now holds three Royal warrants, denoting that the business supplies to the royal family. But which genre of books…? 😁

Arranged over five floors, the wooden bay windows, beautiful old central staircase with carpeted treads, creaking floorboards beneath and snippets of memorabilia on the wall makes this a must visit for all Regency fans and bibliophiles!

So if you enjoy a romantic tale set in Regency London with a dangerous spy and a more dangerous governess, check out ‘A Governess Should Never… Lure a Spy.’

 

Giveaway:

Emily is offering a $50.00 Amazon Gift Card.

The giveaway is open internationally.

Runs from 12:00 AM EST April 10 – 12:00 AM EST May 3, 2024

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/30806ff51/?

 

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Book Blitz ~ SIR, Yes Sir by L. L. Ash

 

Sir, Yes Sir
L. L. Ash
Publication date: April 12th 2024
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Ashton

One single moment changed everything. After receiving life-altering injuries on my last operation, I was forced to retire early. What was I if not a Raider and a Marine? When my brother in arms Tommy (Gun) Blair offered his home up to me to finish my recovery, I snatched up the opportunity with both hands because I had nowhere else to go. Amidst all my calculations, however, I realized that I’d missed one significant detail. Freya, Tommy’s daughter. She’d been a kid last time I’d seen her. She was definitely NOT a kid anymore. Living up to her namesake, the daughter of my best friend was beautiful, sweet, and deadly. If Tommy knew the kinds of things running through my head, he’d kill me in my sleep with a rusty spoon. Didn’t matter though. The woman was temptation embodied, and despite all my training, discipline and control, she was the one weakness that I just couldn’t give up.

Freya

I’d never met a man like him. Ashton was solid, confident, rigid, and bold. He also had the body of a god. No joke. But I was just the kid of his best friend. Seeing a man as powerful as him bow to the agony of injuries and PTSD…it broke my heart. It also proved that he wasn’t just a fighting machine. When he started working at Dad’s dealership with us, I started to get to know the man instead of the legend, and I loved what I found. Good with his hands, and loyal to a fault, I fell so deep in love with him it’s almost disgusting. Too bad he was my father’s best friend and would never love me back.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

“Sorry,” Freya said from…yep, the kitchen. “Mom’s been into that stuff ever since I can remember. She thinks that good thoughts and crystals can heal just about everything.”

“You don’t buy it?” I asked her.

She just blinked at me.

“She once tried healing my broken arm with obsidian and selenite. It took me two hours to convince my mom that a couple of pretty rocks weren’t going to reset my bones.”

I whistled.

“How old were you?”

“Eight. Eight and a half, I think.”

Holy shit.

“Where was Tommy? Your dad, I mean.”

“Working. In Afghanistan, I think. He’d been gone for months before it happened. Mom always got super sucked into that stuff when he was away for a while.”

“I’m sorry, kid,” I told her, which made her bristle.

“I’m not a kid, you know that, don’t you, Ashton?”

Oh, I fucking knew it. I remembered the feel of her very grown-up breasts pressing against my chest while I was having a full on mental breakdown in the employee bathroom at work.

She’d never brought it up though. After Tommy had led me away, Freya never mentioned the incident again. Maybe she just wanted to forget the traumatizing moment, and I could respect that. I’d taken full advantage of her sympathetic and loving heart, and I knew it.

But I digress.

I didn’t remember things being so bad. Tommy had mentioned that he’d needed to leave the Marines to be with his wife and daughter, but he’d never mentioned how bad it had evidently gotten. Had Freya been dealing with being the grown-up in the house ever since she was a kid? Maybe our pasts were more similar than I ever realized.

“You look like you’re thinking too hard,” Freya said as she dipped to look into the fridge for something.

Damn, that ass…

“I’m afraid that maybe your head will explode or something,” she mused.

I barked a rusty laugh, just as she stood and graced me with a grin over her shoulder.

“You’re insane,” was the only comeback I had, because maybe she was right.

I was thinking way too hard about her and that peachy ass when I should’ve been focused on other things. “Is Tommy still at the dealership?”

She nodded, then slid over a beer to me.

“You know him. Workaholic.”

Yes, I did, but I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why. He had such an amazing life to come home to, why would he choose work over this?

I grunted instead of answering, but took the beer happily.

“So?” she asked after a minute. “You took the day to go to the base. How’d it go?”

I didn’t fucking answer. I didn’t want to.

Funny though, as it turned out, I didn’t need to.

“Oh…Ash…” she moaned, sadness and sympathy coloring her cheeks.

“Guess my nickname Citizen really matches now,” I grunted out, thinking it would be funny, but my voice cracked like a prepubescent boy, showing my emotions.

Freya came right around the counter and took me into her arms, beer and all where she squeezed me harder than anybody had ever hugged me before.

“You’ll be ok,” she muffled a whisper with her face in the crook of my neck and shoulder. “You’ve got us, and we’ll be your team.”

An unwelcome tear started slipping out of my eye, and I quickly tried sucking it back up before she could notice. But funny that, tears don’t suck back up like snot.

When she let me go, Freya looked into my face and lifted her hand, sweeping the trail of that singular tear away.

“You’ve got us,” she said, looking me right in the eyes. “If you need a wingman, I’m your girl. I’ll help get you laid and help you find a place when you’re ready. I’ll even watch sports with you, even though I hate everything other than hockey and MMA.”

I snorted a laugh, which made her sad lips turn into a small smile.

“I appreciate that,” I told her, pressing my palm to her cheek now. “But I’m ok. I don’t need a wingman. I can get laid all by myself. As for sports, what other real sports are there other than hockey and MMA?”

She snorted a laugh, legit making snot burst out of her nose, which made her cheeks flame with embarrassment.

I laughed too while she hurried away to the bathroom to get away from me.

That girl was too much.

And fucking everything.

Author Bio:

L.L. Ash is a Washington-born writer who has traveled and lived across the western coast of the US. Ash has been writing fiction since she was a pre-teen, and while her writing has improved since then, her love for literature has not changed.

Oftentimes you can find Ash reading an indie romance or enjoying a historical fiction. Dabbling in culinary arts and music, Ash has been an artist for decades but found her true love and passion in romances.

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Enter to win HERE!

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Book Blitz ~ In the Shadow of the Truth - Fareview Fairytale by Maci Aurora

 

In the Shadow of the Truth
Maci Aurora
(Fareview Fairytale, #3.5)
Publication date: April 9th 2024
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

The secrets Scarlett Fareview has hidden from her family are finally out in the open, but not without consequences. Alienating everyone she loves, she must face the hurt and betrayal she wrought with her duplicity. And the cost is high. In this series of novellas, the Fareveiws deal with the aftermath of Scarlett’s deception. Scarlett must face Tomas and her children, Brinna must determine if she and Luc can forge a future, and Auri and Nix face the next obstacle to their forever. Along with many other familiar characters, these stories bridge the gap between the end of In the Shadow of a Dream and the final book in the Fareview saga, In the Shadow of an Obsession.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

From In the Shadow of a Vow Novella

When Tomas returned from the barn that afternoon, the sound of his boots on the floor captured her attention as she stood at the kitchen counter he’d made for her. His form in the doorway—wide and encompassing—was at first a buoying relief then a crushing disappointment.

She’d failed him.

He stalled, assessing, his eyes dragging along the countertop where she stood amidst a haphazard wreck of herbs—her supplies for making tinctures and medicines she took on calls and sold at the market.

“Did you mean to leave all your tools in the garden?” he asked. There wasn’t any accusation in his tone, only curiosity. “And the laundry undone in the wash basin?”

When she didn’t answer—because she couldn’t seem to align the words with meaning—he asked, “What’s going on here?”

Scarlett looked down at the mess she’d made, opened her mouth to tell him what she was doing, but her mind went blank. She couldn’t remember what she’d been doing. She didn’t know what she was doing anymore. The longer she looked at the greens, the pestle and mortar, the boiling pot, the less sense any of the disarray made.

“It’s chaos, Scar,” he said quietly next to her. “Unlike you.”

She looked up from the mess to his face, to his kind eyes shaped with concern.

Scar. She’d always loved the way he shortened her name, the only one who ever did.

Then without warning, she burst into tears, pressing the towel in her hands against her face as her grief, pain, worry, regret, disappointment wrenched out of her with horrific gasp. She’d ruined everything.

Tomas gathered her into his arms with soothing sounds. “Hush,” he whispered, his wide, heavy hand on the back of her head.

“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed, grasping hold of his shirt, her face pressed into the strength of his chest.

He held her.

“They’re gone,” she sobbed. “I failed.”

His arms squeezed her a touch tighter, and when his face pressed into the place between her neck and shoulder, Scarlett wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing up onto her toes, needing to be closer to his comfort.

“I failed too,” he whispered, his lips against her skin. “We both have.”

She shook her head. “Not you, Tomas.” She drew back to look at him.

Raising his head, his eyes connected with hers, the sadness a deep, evergreen forest swirling inside them where he was lost. And it was her fault. She knew this. Had pushed him to go against his nature by keeping her secrets, securing the spells.

Unsure about anything but the tumult of emotions she couldn’t seem to harness, Scarlett reached for comfort she knew he provided, a comfort she could reciprocate.

She kissed him, her hands framing his face, his beard soft against her palms.

He froze, tension tightening his shoulders.

And she thought he might pull away, but suddenly he was kissing her back, capitulating, needing, seeking. His tongue sought entrance, and she granted it. It was hungry, two souls on the periphery of starvation, finding one another in the darkness.

Author Bio:

Romance author.

Lover of stories.

Maci Aurora has been writing stories since she was a child. When she was eleven, she fell in love with reading Sunfire Historical Romances about girls who made a difference in their lives and still fell in love. In high school, a friend introduced her to Lavyrle Spencer and Judith McNaught, and from there, her writing journey was cemented in telling stories about love. Having already published many novels (all of which are threaded with romance as upper YA and New Adult titles) under the pen name, CL Walters, Maci Aurora wanted to write stories that offered the same attention to story and characters but with additional steam.

Maci writes in Hawaiʻi where she lives with her husband, their children, and their fur-babies.

Website / Instagram / Newsletter

GIVEAWAY!
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Book Blitz ~ Crown of Wings and Thorns by Mary Ting

Crown of Wings and Thorns
Mary Ting
Publication date: April 4th 2024
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult, Romance

A fight for a throne that will rewrite history

The demon King Asmodeus has taken over the mortal world. The Order of Angel warriors have a mission to take him down, but many have died or joined the enemy. When Evangeline’s team is ensnared in a web of deception, she has no choice but to form an alliance with King Victus, a vampire ruler with a reputation for killing angels. Can the two set aside the past and take down Asmodeus? Or will they turn on each other first?

Michael is a half-breed angel who wants no part of the nonhuman world. However, his immense power makes him a target. King Asmodeus wants him to join his army, and so does Order of Angels, but Michael dreams of settling down, not going to war. He may not have a choice. When his family’s lives are at stake, he’ll have to pick a side or lose everything.

Goodreads / Amazon

There is also an APP GAME on Dorian-release April 4th!

—

EXCERPT:

I’d heard tales that vampires had an uncanny ability to beguile their prey. Their attractive faces and bewitching scent, partnered with their commanding voices entranced victims, making them do whatever was asked of them.

He must be using the same supernatural powers to captivate me. Despite his effort, I prevailed and pushed the horrendous thought to the far recesses of my mind.

“Never in peace.” He growled, his hot breath fanned the shell of my ear. “You are my enemy.”

“Fine. You want to die here, right now?” I gritted the words through my teeth as I slowly released my feathers, my chest rising and falling just as fast as his.

He made the mistake of pulling back just enough for his eyes to lock with mine. I pushed off with the strength of my feathers, taking him with me. His back thumped the opposite wall and I trapped him with my body and wings.

Victus’s eyes grew wide, stunned. With an ear-piercing snarl, his feet tangled with mine to launch us into a wild spin, and then he pushed me against the wall with such force that all of the air was knocked from my lungs with an oomph.

“I loathe your kind,” he hissed, baring his teeth.

“And I despise everything about you.” I clenched my jaw.

“My hatred for you is greater.” The tendrils under his eyes throbbed.

We were thrown into a battle of push and shove, taking turns on who would be on top of our chaotic tumbling until we eventually stopped at the opposite end of the room, panting.

With my back to the wall, he took a fistful of my hair and yanked my head to the side, exposing my neck. His hot breath and his sharp fangs grazed down my skin.

I shuddered and every vein in my body seared. I wasn’t sure if it was from fear or from the heated tussle and our bodies colliding.

“If you believe I’m your enemy, then bite me.” I took a chance by saying the latter. Since he found me revolting, he would likely release me.

He gripped my hair tighter and snarled

Author Bio:

Born in Seoul, Korea, author Mary Ting is an international bestselling, multi-gold award winning author. Her books span a wide range of genres, and her storytelling talents have earned a devoted legion of fans, as well as garnered critical praise. She is a diverse voice who writes diverse characters, often dealing with a catastrophic world.

Becoming an author happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother and inspired by a dream she had in high school. After realizing she wanted to become a full-time author, Mary retired from teaching. She also had the privilege of touring with the Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children’s chapter book: No Bullies Allowed.

Website / Facebook Page / Facebook Group / Twitter / Instagram / Bookbub / Newsletter / TikTok

GIVEAWAY!
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Release Blitz ~ A Governess Should Never... Lure A Spy - The Governess Chronicles Book 4 by Emily Windsor #quill_ink_tours #quillandinkbooktours #releaseday #historicalromance

 

A Dangerous Spy. An even more Dangerous Governess.

 

Genre: Regency Romance

Release Date: Thursday, April 11

Tone: Romantic. Humorous. Serious. Suspenseful.

Heat Level: Sensual. Moderate. Open door but romantic.

Notes: This book is written in British English spelling. Available in e-book and paperback.

 

A question to rouse fear within the breast of any prospective governess, unless…she wasn’t a governess at all.
Yet Amelia must gain this position by whatever means necessary, for this gentleman, dubbed The Scandalous Hugh Cadwalader by fashionable society, is not all he seems. Behind the elegant finery and azure eyes is a dangerous warrior of a man, a tenacious spy for the Crown.
One who might just have turned traitor…

Purchase Links:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CX9BBDSZ

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CX9BBDSZ

Mr Cadwalader’s blue gaze flicked up once more.

Yet this time it held no idle humour. Just a simmering fierceness that caused an anomalous flare of flame within Amelia.

Perhaps a warning that beneath that elegant finery and idle smile, there lay a different man.

One of dangerous nights and dangerous intent.

 

About the Author:

Regency Romance with Warmth, Wit & Well-tied Cravats.

Emily grew up in the north of England on a diet of historical romance and strong tea.

Unfortunately, you couldn’t study Regency slang, so she did the next best thing and gained a degree in Classics and History instead. This ‘led’ to an eight-year stint in engineering.

Having left city life, she now lives in a dilapidated farmhouse where her days are spent writing, fixing the leaky roof, battling the endless vegetation, and finding pictures of well-tied cravats.

 

More about me can be found at:

https://www.amazon.com/author/emilywindsor

https://books2read.com/emily-windsor

https://facebook.com/AuthorEmilyWindsor

https://www.instagram.com/emilywindsorwritesregency/

https://www.bookbub.com/authors/emily-windsor

https://www.goodreads.com/EmilyWindsor

https://uk.pinterest.com/EmilyWindsorBks/

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/gehNKr

 

Giveaway:

Emily is offering a $50.00 Amazon Gift Card.

The giveaway is open internationally.

Runs from 12:00 AM EST April 10 – 12:00 AM EST May 3

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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https://quillandinkbooktours.com/

 

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