Tag Archives: Diane Gaston

Mapping Mayfair

Updated on January 24, 2023 by Diane Gaston

In one of my earliest books, Scandalizing the Ton, I set my heroine’s residence in London’s Mayfair, the area of London that borders on Hyde Park, and includes such Regency places such as Grosvenor Square, Gunter’s Tea Shop, St. George’s Church, Piccadilly, and Oxford Street, places very familiar to readers of Regency set historicals. I had my hero meeting her in the mews behind her town house.

Harelquin Historicals are edited by the UK branch of Harlequin whose offices are in London. As it so happened, one of the editors was walking through Mayfair back then and noticed that there weren’t any mews behind the houses on the street where my heroine lived. Luckily, I had time to change that part of the story.

I love telling that story. Imagine living in a place where you can in person check the historical accuracy of books set over 200 years ago. I love walking through Mayfair where so much is unchanged from that time period.

Needless to say, I try not to make mistakes like that again. But since I cannot walk through Mayfair myself, I must rely on maps.

My current favorite map to use is the 1806 Mogg Pocket or Case Map of London. It is incredibly detailed and expandable.

Using the map isn’t foolproof because Mayfair changes. For example, the Burlington Arcade was not built until 1818.

And Regent Street changed the area considerably.

So I still have to be careful….

Waterloo Again

Updated on January 24, 2023 by Diane Gaston

June 18th will be the 207th anniversary of the battle of Waterloo, the epic battle that marked the final defeat of Napoleon and gave Europe a century of peace and prosperity broken only by WWI. It is no surprise to long time readers of the Risky Regencies blog that I am fascinated by this battle. I’ve blogged about it at least seven times.

My friend Kristine Hughes of Number One London Tours is offering a Waterloo Tour in September 2022 and I just signed up! I am actually going to fulfill a long time dream to visit the battlefield and see in person what I’ve written about so many times. Kristine will be joined by Gareth Glover, a Waterloo expert who will, I am sure, make the battle come alive.

So what I’m doing to prepare is reading all the books on Waterloo that I’ve collected on my Kindle and have used for research from time to time.

First of these is Kristine’s Waterloo Witnesses: Military and Civilian Accounts of the 1815 Campaign. I’ve peeked into this book many times since its release a year ago, but this time I’m reading cover to cover.

I also just discovered The Longest Afternoon, a book about the defense of La Haye Sainte, an important part of the battle fought by the King’s German Legion. That’s on my list, too, now.

I discovered this book in a rather unusual way — I was searching YouTube for videos on Waterloo and I came upon this one:

Not only does this prove that there are other obsessed people in the world but also that one can find a book recommendation anywhere.

Because my Kindle books are not nearly enough, I’m also going through other YouTube videos on the battle and am listening to Bernard Cornwell’s Waterloo, which I borrowed from my library.

Can you tell I’m excited about this trip?

Posted in Diane Gaston, History, Places, Research, Risky Regencies, TV and Film | Tagged Diane Gaston, Reading and Writing | Leave a reply

Diane’s Trip to Waterloo

Updated on January 24, 2023 by Diane Gaston

As you might realize, most of my books’ heroes are British Army officers. Perhaps because I grew up as an army brat, the daughter of an army colonel. I’ve placed many of my heroes (and heroines) at the Battle of Waterloo. Imagine my excitement, then, when my friend Kristine Hughes of Number One London Tours (and author of the fabulous Waterloo Witnesses) offered a Waterloo tour this year. I’ve traveled often with Kristine and every one of her tours is fabulous. The Waterloo Tour was no exception. Kristine brought in Gareth Glover, author of several books about the battle and the Napoleonic War, to be our expert guide at Waterloo.

The tour covered all the sites relevant to the battle. Here are some highlights:

The Lion’s Mound

The Lion’s Mound was built in 1820 by King William I on the battlefield at the spot where his son, the Prince of Orange was shot in the shoulder. Lest you think the Prince was a hero, know his inexperience and incompetence got several of his soldiers killed.

Next to the Lion’s Mound was a wonderful Waterloo museum, featuring a 3-D depiction of the battle that put you right in the action.

Hougoumont

Hougoumont was one of the farms on the battlefield that saw the first action of the battle. The Allies, commanded by the Duke of Wellington, managed to hold the fort until the very end, although Napoleon made it a priority to be captured.

Hougoumont is now a museum and featured another film of the battle.

La Haye Sainte

La Haye Sainte was the farm on the other side of the battle, another strategic place of the battle held by the King’s German Legion, one of Wellington’s divisions, until the Legion’s ammunition ran out and the French finally took possession.

The farm is now privately owned and not open to the public so we could only gaze at the outside of it.

We walked the battlefield while Gareth explained the battle. I’ve done a lot of reading about the battle and I was pleased that I got most things right in my books.

This view of the battlefield is from the top of the Lion’s Mound (a 226 step climb). The land was farmland then and is farmland now.

Apsley House

We had one day in London to walk the sights that related to the battle. When Wellington returned victorious, all sorts of awards were heaped on him, including the funds for a London house and a country estate. So we visited Number One London, Apsley House’s address.

The house is one of my favorite sites in London and I’ve visited it several times. It is now a museum filled with the treasures heaped upon Wellington after the battle.

The Tour was everything I’d hoped it would be and left me with many memories I’ll always cherish.

Posted in Diane Gaston, History, Places, Research, Risky Regencies | Tagged Diane Gaston, Hougoumont, La Haye Sainte, Lions Mound, Waterloo, Wellington | Leave a reply

I Wished for White Christmas

Updated on January 24, 2023 by Diane Gaston

Recently Buffalo, NY (where my mother grew up) had a historic snow storm of 80 inches falling over four days, so much so the Buffalo Bills game had to be played in Detroit. No wonder my mother never wanted to move back to Buffalo! Here in the Washington, D.C. area we’re mostly lingering in the 50s F still. But as I looked for inspiration for my blog today, I came across an old Risky Regencies blog of mine from 2009 when we had our own record-breaking December snowstorm. We managed two feet of snow, but that was more than enough to shut down the whole DC/VA/MD area.

In the past three or four years (ever since I bought a snow blower) we’ve had very little snow. But we’re now in the Christmas season and, though I’m not ready for it to be cold now, it really would be nice to have a white christmas.

In that spirit, I’m adapting that 2009 blog for today.

One nice thing about snow is it covers all the dirt and darkness in a blanket of pure white, everything becomes quiet and life, of necessity, slows down. Here’s a photo of that 2009 snow, taken from my upstairs window.

One can almost imagine what it would be to live in the country in Regency England when it snowed, to take walks through the wood, perhaps even to go skating on the pond or zipping over to your neighbor’s house in a horse-drawn sleigh.

Of course, a Regency winter walk might be like this:

And zipping along in a vehicle, might be more like this:

In the newspaper you might read about stories like this one from the 1814 Annual Register:

Extraordinary Instance of the Sagacity of a Dog.—Mr. T. Rutherford, of Long Framlington, was, about a fortnight ago, overcome in a snow storm, near Alnwick, and fell. In this state he was exposed to all the horrors of the night, till seven o’clock in the morning. His faithful dog at this time observing a shepherd at a small distance, used every exertion to attract his attention, such as howling, going from and returning to the spot where his master lay. This induced the shepherd to follow the dog’s motions. Mr. Rutherford was found, (then covered by the snow,) carried to a neighbouring publichouse, and, after five hours’ exertion, life was restored, and he is now quite well.

On the other hand, one might have a lovely Regency Christmas, eating Christmas pudding, drinking wassail, playing Christmas music on the pianoforte, dancing or playing cards.

Tell me, do you also pine for a white Christmas?

I wish all my fellow Riskies and everyone else a very happy holiday season!

Marmion
by Sir Walter Scott

Heap on more wood! – the wind is chill;
But let it whistle as it will,
We’ll keep our Christmas merry still.

Posted in Diane Gaston, Frivolity, Holidays, Regency | Tagged Diane Gaston, snowstorm | 1 Reply

Secretly Bound to the Marquess – Diane’s latest!

Updated on January 24, 2023 by Diane Gaston

An emotional Regency reunion story

One passionate night
A seven-year-old secret…
Widowed Lady Eliza Varden must endure one more ball before she can politely return to the country. Only her last dance brings her face-to-face with Nathaniel, the new Marquess of Hale. It’s been years since their steamy encounter, but the spark between them is as alive as ever. Yet Eliza knows it’s not just their mutual attraction that binds them now… But is she ready to risk her independence with the truth?

From Harlequin Historical: Your romantic escape to the past.

My latest, Secretly Bound to the Marquess, was released October 25 and had received some very nice reviews. Here’s a sample:

Gaston (Lord Grantwell’s Christmas Wish, 2021) puts her own deftly crafted spin on the popular secret-baby trope in her latest cleverly conceived Regency historical, and her insightful way with characterization will win over readers who like their romances served up with a generous measure of historical realism.— John Charles, Booklist

Five Stars! In her latest historical romance, Diane Gaston lets doubts and schemes repeatedly cause heartache for a woman and man who only want to be loved….. SECRETLY BOUND TO THE MARQUESS is packed with believable situations, very interesting characters, and a noteworthy storyline filled with colorful descriptions.— Amelia Richards, Goodreads

Four Stars! Diane Gaston, much to the delight of her readers, knows scandal. Once again, this wicked author has written a tale that kept me glued to the pages, wondering how the main characters would save face. (Reputation means everything in the Ton.) The story was worth losing sleep for. A lovely tale, villains to enjoy hating, a child to lighten moods and give you an occasional smile, and an unending love. What more could you ask for in a romance? And all of it unfolds in such a way that only Diane Gaston can tell. Excellent! — Detra Fitch, Huntress Reviews

What the reviews and back cover blurb do not tell is that this completely heterosexual reunion and secret baby romance also gives the reader a glimpse into what it must have been like to be gay during the Regency (even though the crucial gay characters never actually appear in the book). Homosexuality in the Regency was considered a sin and a crime punishable by hanging. Just a rumor of being gay could ruin a man and his family.

I must give credit to Louisa Cornell. It was her 2020 workshop given to the Regency Fiction Writers that inspired and informed the history in this book. I’ve told her her workshop was worthy of a college course!

What do you think? Is touching on the topic of the Gay Regency in a Regency Romance welcome or too much of a risk?