My dearest Readers,
I have the incredible pleasure of introducing a fellow historical romance siren who will not only be giving insight to a topic that beautifully fits my blog but will be doing a signed book giveaway in honor of her incredible debut, SWEET ENEMY. Read her fantastic post, post a question pertaining to her post with your email address and you'll be entered to win. Both US and International may enter. Winners will be picked on Valentine's Day. And seeing that it is the month of love, I'll also throw in a signed copy of FOREVER AND A DAY to a second runner up. Happy Valentine's Day!
Delilah
Delilah
Thank you so much, Delilah, for having
me. February is very exciting for me this year because my debut
Regency, Sweet Enemy, is being released on February 7th.
I can’t think of a better place to kick of my month than visiting
A Bit O’ Muslin!
RT Book Reviews gave Sweet Enemy
4 stars, saying, “In the first in the Veiled Seduction series,
newcomer Snow makes a mark on the genre. Her characters may be 18th
century, but their sensibilities are modern. The plot, with its tinge
of mystery, matchmaking and a bit of mayhem, will warm readers’
hearts.”
When I first read that description, I
thought “Hell, yes, my characters have modern sensibilities! My
heroines actually enjoy sex, in the daytime, with their
clothes off, and in positions other than missionary!” Because we
all know that our unfortunate sisters of centuries gone by were
restricted and oppressed when it came to expressing and enjoying
their sexuality. Think chastity belts…think dresses that covered
even one’s ankles so as not to incite men’s lust…think of
mothers advising their soon-to-be-married daughters to “close your
eyes and think of England.” If our poor characters were truly
women of their time, they would be married off as virtual broodmares
and tupped quite politely, often in the dark without even having to
remove their night rails, while their husbands saved the fun stuff
for their mistresses…at least in Polite Society. And what fun
would that be to read about???
But it wasn’t always that way. In
fact, the prudery, repression and social restrictions that began
towards the end of the Regency period and that marked the Victorian
period are vastly different than how sex, and the woman’s role in
it, was viewed before then. And you may be surprised at one theory
of how and why it all came about.
Prior to the 17th century, women’s
and men’s bodies were seen as virtually the same. This “one-sex
model” theory basically stated that a woman’s reproductive organs
were the same as a man’s, only internal whereas a man’s was
external. It was also thought that both men and women produced seed
crucial for conception, so both male and female ejaculation was
required to produce a child.
Now, the scientist in me screams, “How
could they have thought something so ridiculous? Surely some woman
who turned up pregnant without having orgasmed would have decried
this, LOUDLY!” But that’s not what’s important in this
discussion. The really interesting thing to take from this time is
that a woman’s sexual pleasure was considered vital…crucial,
even, to the survival of our species. Women were seen, and accepted,
as sexual beings equal with men, at least in the bedroom. To
have a lusty, voracious wife was a positive thing.
So what changed?
Londa Shiebinger, of Stanford
University, who specializes in the relationship between gender and
science throughout history, would argue that it was
politics—specifically, battles over women’s rights. If the
“one-sex” model was allowed to stand, and women were biologically
equal to men, why should they not have the same rights as men? Well,
you can see what a problem that might present—at least from the
male perspective. So a push to have women and men defined as
opposite sexes began.
Ms. Schiebinger argues “Natural
rights could be countered only by proof of natural inequalities.
There were endless new struggles for power and position in the
enormously enlarged public sphere of the 18th and
particularly 19th centuries: between and among women and
men, and between feminists and anti-feminists.”
So the “one-sex model” was
redefined to a two-sex model, with women and men no longer variations
of the same sex. Differences were stressed. Gender roles were
defined. And women came out on the losing end.
By the late 18th century,
the female orgasm was relegated to unnecessary (the bastards!), and
things went downhill for us sexually from there. Passion, lust and
desire were discouraged in young ladies, to be avoided lest she
become a loose or fallen woman—at least until the modern sexual
revolution, that is.
So I say, yes, my characters have modern sensibilities—or at least
“pre-18th century sensibilities”! I can promise you
that Liliana, the heroine of Sweet Enemy, has very “pre-18th
century sensibilities”. A scientist herself, she also has a love
for experimentation. In fact, come to think of it, I don’t think
she and Geoffrey try the missionary position even once in the book.
And the Earl, for his part, is also a man outside of his time—not
only does he support Liliana’s work and encourage her to use her
brilliant mind, he is thrilled to have a lusty, voracious wife. And
that, I hope, you will have great fun reading about!
Beakers and ball gowns don't mix, so
when a lady chemist goes undercover as a husband hunter to
investigate the earl whose family she thinks may have murdered her
father, romance isn't part of her formula. But it only takes one
kiss to start a reaction she can't control.
"Historical intrigue and
heart-pounding passion make Sweet Enemy a great read. Romance
fans will love it." ~#1NYT Bestselling Author JULIE GARWOOD
Available wherever books are sold on February 7, 2012. Find out more
at www.HeatherSnowBooks.com
Heather Snow is a
historical romance author with a degree in Chemistry
who discovered she much preferred creating chemistry on the
page, rather than in the lab. She is forever trying to wrangle her
left and right brain to work together (some days with more success
than others!), but if her two sides had to duke it out, left would
win every time—which can be a creative challenge. Luckily, she
loves challenges…she just goes about solving them analytically. Heather lives in the Midwest with her husband, two rambunctious boys and one very put upon cat. She sincerely hopes you find her stories have just the right chemistry...
Please
visit her at www.HeatherSnowBooks.com,
on Facebook www.facebook.com/authorheathersnow
or on Twitter www.twitter.com/HeatherSnowRW