My Guest Today: Award-Winning Author Eliza Knight

Ella: Please help me welcoming my guest today, multi-published, historical author Eliza Knight. (applause) Eliza is accompanied by Magnus Sutherland, laird. Please have a seat.

(Eliza sits, Magnus, dressed in nothing but kilt, socks and shoes, with an impressive chest, remains standing with his sword pointed downward.)

Mr. Sutherland, you may sit as well, if you please:

Magnus: I can better protect the both of ye if I stand.

Eliza: I’m sure we’re perfectly safe here, Magnus. Although, the view is quite daring…

(Magnus winks): Exactly.

Ella: Well, then. Eliza, you are most well known for your Scottish historicals and erotica, however you also write western erotica as part of a writing team. Please discuss how you came to write both genres.

Eliza: I’ve loved historicals since I was in high school and fantasized about writing one of my own. The characters were banging around in my head—no pun intended! LOL—and I just had to get them out. I started writing a novel, intent on publication when my 2^nd daughter was born, before that I was mostly just doing it for myself. I joined RWA and several signature chapters and dove “write” in. I’ve never looked back, it was the best decision I’ve ever made, and I’m proud to say I have the most awesome job evah! Plus I get to hang out with hunks like Magnus. <grins>

As for the writing duo—Annabelle Weston—I was approached by my writing partner who had an idea for an erotic western and she liked my writing style (we were crit partners through a group at the time), thought that as a team we could really make an exciting series. I’m always up for an adventure and the DESERT HEAT series has definitely been that. Our characters are edgy, dark and deal with some real issues, but also find love. Wicked Woman was the first in the series, Scandalous Woman was the second and our third, Notorious Woman will come out sometime in early 2013.

Ella turns to Magnus: Mr. Sutherland. Thank you for agreeing to be interview with your author. Tell me, how did you meet Eliza?

Magnus: Not quite by accident… I’d been watching the lass work for some time, and knew she would be the best one to tell my story. I was not disappointed.

Ella: Did you have a hard time convincing your author to write any particular scenes for you?

Magnus: <laughs> Och, aye! Just after I married my beautiful bride, I wanted to tease her by walking around nude—even though I promised to leave her innocence intact. Eliza didn’t think it was appropriate, but I convinced her ’twould be most enjoyable for all of us.

Ella: What is the least favorite characteristic that your author attributed to you?

Magnus: The lass <hooks thumb at Eliza> made me a stubborn arse. I’m nay stubborn! Nor an arse.

<Eliza snickers>

Ella: Did you ever think your life story would end up in a book?

Magnus: I’d hopes. Mine and Arbella’s story is one that I thought would bring smiles and happiness to people, hope and love. <Frowns and purses lips> And battle, lots of weapons, and other manly things.

<Eliza rolls eyes> Such an Alpha…

Ella: Ah, yes, it’s definitely a type. Magnus, what are your favorite scenes in the book?

Magnus: I enjoyed teasing my bride ceaselessly, making love to her, learning about her preferences for vegetables. But above all, and I cringe to admit this, but when she knocked me out. ’Twas a sad and proud moment all in one.

Ella: Do have any secret aspirations that your author doesn’t know about?

Magnus: <rubs hands together> Och, aye! But I canna say or likely Eliza will put me through some catastrophic event in the next book!

Ella: Do you like the way the book ended?

Magnus: Verra much.

Ella: What would you have done differently if you’d written the book?

Magnus: <winks> I’d have made a lot more love to Arbella.

THE HIGHLANDER’S REWARD, Book One: The Stolen Bride Series

She belonged to another… But was destined to be his…

Lady Arbella de Mowbray abhors the idea of marrying an English noble occupying Scotland. When she arrives in Stirling, she is thrown into the midst of a full battle between the Scots and the English. Besieged by rebels, she is whisked from her horse by a Highland warrior who promises her safety. But when he kisses her she fears she’s more in danger of losing herself.

The last thing Magnus Sutherland wants is to marry the beautiful English lass he saved. As the laird of his clan, he has a responsibility to his clan and allies. But when Arbella is attacked by one of his own men, he determines the only way to keep her safe is to make her his. A decision that promises to be extremely satisfying.

Magnus brings Arbella to his home of Dunrobin Castle in the Highlands. And that’s where the trouble begins… Their countries are at war and they should be each other’s enemy. Neither one considered their mock marriage would grow into a deeply passionate love. What’s more, they were both unhappily betrothed and those who’ve been scorned are out for revenge. Can their new found love keep them together or will their enemies tear them apart?

“Eliza Knight has crafted a wonderfully entertaining, emotional and sensual read. I loved the sizzling romance and the exciting adventures. Magnus, the hot Highland hero, stole my heart just as he did Arbella’s.” Vonda Sinclair, Award-Winning author of Scottish romance.

EXCERPT:

From Chapter One — Copyright 2012 © Eliza Knight 

September, 1297

Northern England 

Arbella de Mowbray contemplated running away. The forest was conveniently to her left and still thick with leaves. Perhaps she could join a ring of outlaws hidden within the imposing foliage.

She shifted restlessly on her mare, arranging her skirts first one way and then another. The horse responded with an annoyed snort. If only she weren’t with a dozen guards and her father.

“Oh, hush, Bitsy,” she scoffed. The animal had no idea what was at stake here.

Anything would be better than permanently leaving England—and for Scotland! The land of heathens, barbarians… Oh, the horrors she’d heard went on there! The men ate their young. The warriors kept the bones of their victims tied to their beards. The horses were trained to sniff out an English lady and trample her to death. The women were witches. The children ran naked, even in the dead of winter. And the winters, how could she forget? No person of truly English blood could survive one.

She was glad that her maid Glenda had told her all she needed to know of Scotland. Although she could have done without the woman’s tears and fainting when Arbella asked her to join her on the journey. As a result, her old maid was not with her—in fact none of the female servants at Mowbray Manor would accompany her. She was alone, without help. Not that she needed help, but it would have been nice when she arrived in a foreign country to have someone with her from home. And while her father promised her husband would provide a maid, that maid would be Scots.

She would die before the new year—either from frostbite or at the hands of the dreaded Scots.

Now granted, her father said she would be marrying an English baron, but that mattered little. They would still reside in Scotland. And no doubt her baron husband would be just as brutal, if not more so, than the savages she’d heard tales of. Indeed, he would have to be if he kept them all tightly reined in. She knew little of her intended. Never met the man. Never heard any stories. He was a mystery. She discounted the things her father told her. He only honeyed the character of Marmaduke Stewart, hoping to sweeten the horror of her upcoming nuptials.

Arbella shivered, and rubbed her cloak-covered arms, contemplating the forest along the edge of the road. Late in the afternoon, the sun was hidden behind the trees making the road to Scotland chilly. A slight breeze blew, wrenching her hood from her head and pulling a few strands of hair from her tight chignon. Arbella tucked the hair back into the knot and pulled her hood over her ears. She hated the cold. Death might take her before the week was out. She’d no doubt shiver like mad in her new bed since the Scots abhorred warming their homes by fire. Another fact from Glenda. One thing was certain—she didn’t want to die anytime soon. 

~*~*~*~

THE HIGHLANDER’S CONQUEST, Book Two: The Stolen Bride Series 

What is a Highlander to do when he falls for the daughter of his enemy?

Highland warrior, Blane Sutherland, has one mission: disguise himself as an Englishman, cross the border and retrieve Lady Aliah de Mowbray. Always up for a challenge, he agrees, pursuing his conquest with vigor—and trying to deny the powerful desire that eclipses him each time he touches his charge. A rogue of the highest order and a younger son, he has nothing to offer a lady but a broken heart.

And what is a lady to do when she cannot trust her heart?

Aliah is skeptical of the English noble who has come to take her to her father and sister in Scotland, but she pushes her doubts aside. Without word in months, she must make certain her family is safe, then she can return to England to join the convent to which she has sworn to pledge her life. But then her escort reveals his true
self—he’s a Highlander and his kisses are more seductive than the sweetest of wines.

Surrender never tasted so sweet…

“An author with a natural gift for story telling…” ―Victoria Roberts, acclaimed author of Temptation in a Kilt

EXCERPT:

From Chapter One — Copyright 2012 © Eliza Knight

Late Fall

Northern England, 1297 

A violent banging at the manor door startled Aliah from her studies and set Frosty, the family’s monstrous Irish wolfhound, to barking ferociously. Aliah jerked backward against the oak chair she sat in, hitting her head against the ancient wood and stifling a harsh word beneath her breath.

Her father, Baron de Mowbray, had left a small contingent of men to protect her while he escorted her older sister Arbella to her bridegroom in Scotland. These men would fight to keep her safe until their very last breaths.

But who was to say they hadn’t already taken that last shuddering inhale?

Aliah glanced around the room, filled with memories, but not with people. Today, her maid Glenda was her only companion. Well, Frosty as well—who in fact was a far superior protector than her maid. Swallowing her fear, she rubbed the ache from the back of her head and squared her shoulders. Strength. That was what she needed, even if the sound of someone knocking made her want to run to the opposite end of the manor and hide.

Her father should have returned a month ago. The only news she’d managed to garner was that a battle took place at Stirling Bridge in Scotland—the very place her sister was to marry.

Had the battle now come to her own door?

Aliah jumped as a strong fist once again slammed the door.

“Glenda, would you answer the door?” Aliah asked.

’Twas Saturday morning and most of the servants had gone to tend family or to enjoy themselves in whatever way they did, leaving Aliah quite alone—and at the mercy of whoever stood outside her door. Could they have dispensed of her father’s guards so quickly?

Glenda, afraid of her own shadow, started to shake her head, but Aliah gave her a stern look. The woman had been driving her mad since she was a babe and ever since Arbella left, Aliah had little patience for the older woman’s nonsense.

Aliah set down the book of Gaelic she’d been studying—she was determined to learn the language because she secretly believed the Scots would soon invade. Understanding their barbaric conversations was crucial. Aliah smoothed her gown and stood tall.

Glenda scurried toward the door, Frosty a foot ahead of her.

Aliah tried to find comfort in the fact that perhaps the guards had allowed whoever came knocking through the manor gates. She’d heard no clanging of metal or yells of pain. Aye, the only conclusion that made sense was, they were not enemies, but friends.

She could use a good friend. The comfort of someone she knew. Aliah frowned. She had few friends, and seldom was it that they dropped by.

So who had the audacity to practically beat down her door?

“Wait!” Aliah shouted just as Glenda touched the wooden plank barring the door.

She hurried to retrieve her bow and an arrow from beneath her chair. As swiftly as possible, she cocked an arrow and aimed it at the door. Taking a deep breath, she nodded for her maid to open it. If her father’s enemies dared to come after her, they were in for a big surprise, she wouldn’t surrender so easily.

An interminable amount of time seemed to pass before the door was fully open. Aliah stepped back, speechless. Standing before her was the most staggeringly handsome man she’d ever seen—and he was quite alone. Frosty growled for only a moment, quickly silenced by a motion the stranger made with his hand. What? How had he done that? Aliah struggled to keep her mouth from falling open at the man’s effortless command of the dog. The animal had favored her sister, but since Arbella had left, Frosty refused to leave Aliah’s side.

She felt a certain amount of betrayal at Frosty’s easy acceptance of this stranger. Who in the name of God was he? And why didn’t one of her father’s men escort him? She’d have to speak with them about that later.

The visitor wore an intriguing cap of deep burgundy, a dark feather jutting from the side, held on by some sort of medallion. A thick black wool cloak lay open to reveal a matching tunic, and leather studded armor. White hose outlined the shape of his legs in a way that drew her eyes from his intense dark green gaze. His boots were made of soft, expensive-looking leather, and the gilded belt at his waist held a gleaming, sharp sword that was hard to miss.

Aliah allowed her gaze to travel over the length and breadth of his solid form, before getting ahold of herself.

“Will you shoot me, my lady?” His voice was deep, raspy, and stroked along the ends of her nerves in a way that made her want to run away and kiss him at the same time.

~*~*~*~

Want more?

Read The Highlander’s Reward!: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Read The Highlander’s Conquest!: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

BIO:

Eliza Knight is the multi-published, award-winning, Amazon best-selling author of sizzling historical romance and erotic romance. While not reading, writing or researching for her latest book, she chases after her three children. In her spare time (if there is such a thing…) she likes daydreaming, wine-tasting, traveling, hiking, staring at the stars, watching movies, shopping and visiting with family and friends. She lives atop a small mountain, and enjoys cold winter nights when she can curl up in front of a roaring fire with her own knight in shining armor. Visit Eliza at http://www.elizaknight.com or her historical blog History Undressed: www.historyundressed.com. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elizaknightauthor. Twitter: @ElizaKnight