In Georgette Heyer’s FREDERICA, the heroine’s little brother calls the hero, the Marquis of Alverstoke, a “second-best nobleman.” Of course, the “best” is a duke. Maybe that’s why I found 121 romance titles at Barnes & Noble with “Duke” somewhere in the title.

For me, “duke” (or “millionaire” for that matter) in the title doesn’t affect my buying decision either way. Beautiful estates and gardens and horses are fun to imagine, but I don’t necessarily prefer a hero with vast wealth and power over one who’s in dire straits or one that is somewhere in between. I do want to know how his situation affects him and how he deals with it.

A duke was kind of like a CEO of a large company. He had political and economic clout, influence over people’s lives and the state of his country. If the hero’s a duke, his power and the responsibilities that go along with it ought to be important elements in his story. Otherwise it seems that his rank is just a shortcut for creating a “perfect” hero (who sounds like a bore to me). If he is a duke, I want to know how that affects him besides the obvious attraction he has for golddiggers.

Anyway, here are a few from my Dukes Done Right list:

Possibly my favorite fictional duke is the Duke of Salford in Georgette Heyer’s SYLVESTER. He is so busy being the perfect duke he has trouble being a human being. Of course, Phoebe, the heroine, helps him in that area.

Rafe, Duke of Candover in Mary Jo Putney’s PETALS IN THE STORM. I am usually skeptical of spy-dukes. In this case it works because he is busy being an impeccable duke when the spy thing is thrust upon him. His rank also plays into part of the conflict with the heroine.

Christian, Duke of Jervaulx in Laura Kinsale’s FLOWERS FROM THE STORM. In this case, Maddy, the heroine, is a Quaker. Christian’s rank creates a daunting chasm between her simple and unworldly view of life and his approach to dealing with his vast holdings and responsibilities. It raises the stakes when his relatives try to declare him insane.

So what do you think about romances featuring dukes?

Do you love them? Who are some of your favorite fictional dukes?

Or do you think there are too many dukes already? Do you think Romanceland could use more marquesses, earls, etc…, or even (gasp!) a few mere misters?

Elena, who likes variety in her fantasy men 🙂
www.elenagreene.com

Oh, this is a week of ANTICIPATION for me!

First, I am eagerly awaiting the Risky Regencies very first COVER MODEL Interview!! Coming March 11 and 12

When my The Wagering Widow came out Feb 2006, the publicist for Richard Cerqueira, romance novel cover model, contacted me to let me know Richard’s hand was on the cover–and a much better image on the inside! I did some promotion for Richard at the Romantic Times Convention last year and he almost-almost-joined me for a booksigning on Long Island at Side Street Books in Patchogue (alas, he was out of town that day).

Now he has agreed to be interviewed here at Risky Regencies! He’s going to tell us all about the nitty gritty of doing a romance shoot and he’s also got some exciting news to share about his life….

Richard also will kindly offer us a prize: an autographed photo of him at a Romance Cover Shoot. Wait until you see it!!

But before next Sunday….. the days will finally be counted down and the wait over.

Gerard Butler’s new move 300 will be released this Friday, March 9 and I will have seen it!

The movie is the cinematic recreation of Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300, telling of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. A small force of 300 Spartans led by King Leonidas (Butler) hold back an invasion of the huge Persian army for three days. The brave 300 fight to the death, ultimately losing the battle, but because of them, the Persian army sustained astronomical losses, Greece was never conquered, and Western Civilization was preserved!

The movie, as you can imagine, will be very violent, but the innovative cinematography promises to present the images in a unique form. Like in the movie Sin City, Zack Snyder filmed the actors against a blue screen, computer generating the setting details afterward. To learn more about 300 and to view some amazing movie trailers, go to the 300 internet site

What, besides it being Diane’s latest obsession, connects the movie 300 to the Regency Period?
That is your question of the day, my friends!!!

Ha ha! You think I’m done but there is more anticipation in my beating little heart.

EHarlequin is going to post their Readers Choice Awards on March 14. My A Reputable Rake is up for Favorite Historical and Mistletoe Kisses is up for Favorite Anthology.

Your task, should you choose to accept it, is to go to eHarlequin and vote for your favorites. You will have to sign in or register, but that is an easy matter (just look for the little sign-in icon in the upper right corner). Vote HERE.

I’m not done yet.

By now you know that my Innocence and Impropriety is in bookstores this month. (I’ve only told you a million times!) Now I am anxiously awaiting its Reviews.

So far the reviews have been positive. Check out the ones on Amazon.com and Romance Reviews Today.

But more are due any day now…..

I’ll be Blogging about Innocence and Impropriety and the writing life on Romance Vagabonds on Wednesday, March 7. They call themselves “just a ragtag bunch of writers…” Just my kind of folks, I say!!!

And that is ALL I have to look forward to…….except doing taxes, but that is a whole other kind of anticipation!

Question Number 2 of the day: What are you looking forward to?

Cheers!
Diane

That’s one of the traditional sayings in England (and a lot of other places too) for the first day of the month. I have no idea why or what it means. Another tradition is to sidle up to someone and say, with appropriate gestures, A pinch and a punch for the first of the month–very popular among children–and then run before they can retaliate with A pinch and a kick for being so quick. Again, other than the opportunity for random violence, I have no idea of the origins.

Today, March 1, is also the feast day of St. David, the patron saint of Wales–and here’s the Regency connection–he was responsible for creating the warm springs of Bath! Apparently he also liked dancing with large rams while wearing an eyepatch.

March 1 is also the day on which William Caxton, a former wool merchant, began his translation into English of The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye for Margaret of Burgundy, sister of the King of England. Caxton set up a printing press in Bruges and printed his translation, the first book in the English language, in 1475. He moved his printing business to London, where his books included two editions of The Canterbury Tales.

And in other literary news, the first edition of The Spectator was published on March 1, 1711.

Do you have any first of the month rituals? Do you have any particular goals for this month, writing or personal, you’d like to share? Mine are to finish revisions on one book, update my website, and, oh, all the usual stuff about not eating so much etc.

Janet, Noodler of the Month at www.wetnoodleposse.com

The first actual book I ever read was L. Frank Baum’s “Ozma of Oz.” I was in first grade, and my book-loving third-grade brother wanted to introduce me to the Oz books, which were among his favorites.

I turned up my nose at “The Wizard of Oz” — I’d seen the movie, and so I figured I’d be bored reading the book. The second Oz book, “The Land of Oz,” had a boy as the main character — and I wasn’t so interested in that. So I started with the third Oz book, “Ozma of Oz,” and that started me on a lifetime of loving books.

As a kid, I used to make lists of my favorite authors, and favorite books. Ten of each wasn’t enough — so it became “my ten favorite authors” and “my other ten favorite authors” and “seven others who are also really really good.”

At different points in grade school, my different lists included authors such as Edward Eager, Louisa May Alcott (always top ten), L. Frank Baum, E.L. Konigsburg, Joan Aiken, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Carol Ryrie Brink, Natalie Savage Carlson, Eleanor Cameron, Mary Norton, Noel Streatfeild (also always top ten), Zilpha Keatley Snyder, Alexander Key… By sixth grade, C.S. Lewis and Tolkien were on the list, with Diana Wynne Jones to come along just a year or two later. (Hmmm, I see if I go on I shall need more than just a top twenty-seven!)

I read the Nancy Drew books too, and the Bobbsey Twins and Trixie Belden, but my favorite books were any sort of fantasy, or books set in the past.

So — what books turned you onto reading as a child? Which ones did you love best? Which authors stirred your imagination, or inspired you, or drew your greatest devotion?

If you’re a writer, which books made you want to start writing?

All answers welcome!

Cara
Cara King, author of My Lady Gamester, and obsessive reader and buyer of way too many books