This week we Riskies are celebrating our second anniversary! For two years we have been sharing our various and sundry thoughts about the Regency, about writing, life, and such. Sometimes we are brilliant and scholarly. Sometimes frivolous and silly. Sometimes even naughty, but always, we hope, interesting. I am the latecomer to this wonderful group, but I’m delighted to be here and delighted with the friends I’ve made. Our readers are wonderful!

We’d like to reward you for your friendship and your comments. You make this blog a conversation among friends and that is my favorite part about Risky Regencies. Each of us will offer a prize to someone who participates on our day. And we’ll also have a Grand Prize, an Amazon gift certificate for $25 for one lucky person picked at random from our newsletter list. Sign up for our newsletter by midnight Sunday, Sept 23 in order to be eligible for the Grand Prize.

My prize for today is an autographed hardback copy of The Marriage Bargain, one of my Diane Perkins books that was printed by Doubleday Book Club. Because I’ve decided to only write under the name Diane Gaston from now on, this promises to be a collectible (I should hope!). Added to that is A Reputable Rake–not my RITA book, but the promotional item I used when the book came out from Harlequin Historical, complete with a laminated copy of the cover. A Rake such as this (only smaller) was mentioned by Judy T recently. And if those items are not enough, I also am including a hand embroidered lady’s handkerchief, the sort a Regency lady might use to dab at her tears.

All you have to do is pick your favorite blog of mine over the last year and tell me why it was your favorite. Winner will be selected at random from the comments on my blog. Keep commenting all week. All our winners will be announced next Monday.

To assist you, I’m going to list five of my favorites. You can pick from this list or from another one of mine. Just be sure to give a reason why it is your favorite.

One of my favorites was “300 and the Regency” on March 19, 2007. Not only did it give me an excuse to post pictures of Gerard Butler in the flesh, so to speak, but it was fun looking at the movie from a Regency perspective.

A lot of my favorite blog postings seem to have something to do with handsome men. Another favorite was from January 29, “More on Covers – Men or Flowers?” I discuss one of my favorite topics: Romance covers. We all have our strong opinions about Romance covers.

Which leads me to another favorite. My postings of the interviews with Richard Cerqueira, both Interview 1 and Interview 2, March 11 and 12, which I’ll take credit for even though it is his interview.

I thought it was fun learning about the behind-the-scenes of a cover shoot, and I thought Richard was an interesting person in his own right.

Another favorite of mine was my posting of December 11, 2006, “Is it Lord Byron?” I shared the sketch I purchased at an antique shop and compared it with paintings of Byron. When I look at the blog again with the images side by side, I’m even more convinced I have a sketch of Byron.

And lastly, my rant about the movie Beau Brummell starring James Purefoy, “Brummell, Bio or Bust?” from May 2. In this blog I show just how hypocritical I can be, because I go on and on in indignation about the inaccuracy of his open-front shirt and then last week I turn around and rave about the open-front shirt on my The Vanishing Viscountess cover.

If I could add one more, I’d add my blog about Waterloo from June 18, “Waterloo, A Very Near Run Thing.”

I’d include that one because I think that was such a pivotal day in history, a day of incredible horror and incredible honor.

So, now it is your turn. What is your favorite Diane Gaston blog of the past year? You could win her Perkins book, her Reputable Rake, and a handkerchief to stick in your reticule.

Sign up for our newsletter by Friday for a chance to win our Grand Prize-a $25 Amazon Gift Certificate. Just send an email to riskies@yahoo.com and put “newsletter” in the subject field.