Book Lovers Inc.
Romance Novel Reviews, Author Interviews, Commentary
Interview with Maggie Robinson + Giveaway
Today we would like to welcome to Book Lovers Inc. Maggie Robinson who is here to celebrate the release of Mistress by Marriage, Book #3 in her Courtesan Court steamy historical romance series! (You can read my review of the novel here.)
Maggie: Book Lovers have passion! They get behind the scenes. They read blogs like this, review magazines, interact with writers online. I am amazed at the support and strength of the romance community. It’s so amazing to get email from readers who talk about my characters as if they are real people!
Stella: Your latest release Mistress by Marriage is the third novel in the Courtesan Court series. Could you introduce the series to those readers who haven’t read it yet? (Those readers: Seriously what are you waiting for??)
Maggie: LOL, thanks! The books all take place on Jane Street, AKA “Courtesan Court,” a cul-de-sac of a dozen homes that house the most alluring mistresses in London. My heroines all wind up there pretty much by mistake. (the name of the first book!)
Stella: Can you tell us what we can expect of Mistress by Marriage?
Maggie: This book begins six years into an unhappy marriage, a very unusual spot for a romance. The hero and heroine are total opposites—Edward is rigid and proper and Caroline is emotional and improper. To get them to meet in the middle was a challenge. While the book has been described as a “romangst” (it’s being discussed tonight as the Smart Bitches September Sizzling Book Club selection), there’s a lot of humor in it too.
Stella: Did you already know when penning Book #1 (Mistress by Mistake) and introducing Caroline as a supporting character in the role of the fairy godmother of the Janes that you will tell her story later? Or was it something that just happened later?
Maggie: Yes and no, LOL. The first book I wrote was actually Mistress by Midnight even though it was published second in the series, and neither Caroline and Charlotte were on my mind in the beginning. From a random musing of the heroine Laurette, I realized I could tell her who was behind the garden walls next door. I then went back and added the characters, and even duplicated a few scenes from another POV in the other books.
Stella: The series is centered around the (in)famous Jane street. Was it an actual, existing street or historical fact? Did such a neighbourhood really exist or did you make it up?
Maggie: One of the best compliments I’ve gotten was to read in a review that the reviewer Googled Jane Street to see where it was located. It’s all in my head.
Stella: You have said several times that Mistress by Marriage was your favourite story in the series, why is that?
Maggie: Well, the heroine writes romance novels and is married to a man who drives her crazy. Enough said. 😉
Stella: Can you summarize Mistress by Marriage for us twitterstyle (140 characters or less)?
Maggie: Do you know how hard it is for me to use Twitter and shut myself up? Hm. I’ll try.
Can an improper woman ever find comfort in her proper husband’s arms? Caro can kill him off in her books but not root him from her heart. (That’s with 4 characters to spare!)
Stella: Is Mistress by Marriage the last installment of the Courtesan Court series or will there be more books?
Maggie: Master of Sin comes out in April 2012, and is the last “official” CC book, although people do turn up on Janes Street in future books. You meet Andrew, the hero of MOS in Marriage, and you will wonder if I am completely crazy trying to turn him into a hero. We’ll see if I was successful next spring.
Stella: Now can you tell us 3 reasons why people should read your Courtesan Court series?
Maggie:
1.Heat
2.Humor
3.Heart…and not necessarily in that order. 😉
Stella: You also pen historical romances under the penname of Margaret Rowe, can you tell us why you write under two names? What are the differences between your Maggie Robinson and Margaret Rowe novels? The Courtesan Court series is a scorching hot historical romance series, are your Margaret Rowe novels just as steamy?
Maggie: It was a contractual thing for my two publishers. Maggie’s hot, but Margaret is hotter. And a little darker.
Stella: In your opinion what characteristics does a historical hero have to possess to engage the reader in his story?
Maggie: Oh, such a hard question. Much depends on a reader’s expectations. I tend to prefer someone strong yet damaged or flawed in some way, so the heroine can patch him up. Or vice versa. In the book I just finished writing (Lady Anne’s Lover, out sometime in 2013) both h/h have a ton of baggage to overcome and they patch each other.
Stella: What behaviour of a historical heroine could you not overlook? Or how would you never make any of your heroines be/behave?
Maggie: My heroines are not especially domestic or “proper.” They aren’t sitting around doing needlepoint waiting for the heroes to marry them. But I dislike 21st century attitudes turning up in historicals, so it’s a tricky line to draw. The fact is, women were dependent on their fathers and brothers and husbands for the outlines of their future. It was up to them to color inside the box and make it their own. I try not to make my heroines too stupid, but the heroes do tend to make them lose their wits a little. 😉
Stella: What shall we expect from you, what is next on your schedule?
Maggie: As Margaret Rowe, I have a short story in Berkley Heat’s Agony/Ecstasy anthology in December. Maggie has Master of Sin in April 2012 and Lord Craig’s List in December 2012, the start of a new series.
Stella: If you could have a literary crossover, from any other historical romance story what other character would you love to invite over and guest star in your stories?
Maggie:I’d like to invite Mr. Darcy over to see if he could out-Edward Edward in Mistress by Marriage.
Stella: Can you share with us some little secret trivia, something that not many people know about you?
Maggie:My life is pretty much an open book, LOL. But I had lunch with Jackie Kennedy’s half-brother once.
Now here’s my question for you. The Courtesan Court books are a four-book series (and actually, my novellas in Improper Gentlemen and Lords of Passion are also set there). How many books do you prefer in a series? Three? Four? An infinite number? One commenter will win a signed copy of Mistress by Marriage, or any book from my backlist.
Where to find Maggie: Website / Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
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Oh I don't mind the number of books in a series – sometimes you just don't want it to ever end! I love reading series' as you get to know the characters so well that when you read a new book, you feel like it is a visit with old friends.
PS: Beautiful covers!
baychriz at gmail dot com
It really depends on the books, of course! Sometimes a trilogy is perfect to tell a whole story, then a series can have a dozen books and will work great.
I guess the important thing is to know when to bring a series to an end, because there are those who work brilliantly until, say, book five and then it's downhill, because there are no new ideas being explored.
danaan at gmx dot at
I love reading books in a series !!! i just do. and, i like it when the series go into many books . i try to read them all lol 🙂
Congrats on the new release, Maggie! I hope there are many more book to come.
A trilogy is a perfect length to me. If the series is too long, it is difficult to keep track of all the characters and events in the past.
natalija (dot) shkomare (at) gmail (dot) com
i prefer if not too many books in a series, i think 8 or 10 books is enough ^^
eli_y83@yahoo.com
How many books do you prefer in a series? Three? Four? An infinite number?
= I think 5 is enough for 1 series…
Too many number in 1 series will make the stories out of the way….
blessing80000[at]gmail[dot]com
Hi Maggie!
I think it depends on the series. There are some great ones with "only" three or four books but also fabolous ones with like ten books. I hate it when an author tries to draw it out and can't find an ending to a series even though it would be better sometimes. Then there are some where I really wish the author would write another book just to give a certain character his or her HEA. So you see, you can't quite make it right. 😉
claudigc at msn dot com
I prefer 6 book in 1 series
sjdlampung1@yahoo.com
Good morning (or afternoon as the case may be)! My question is not an idle one. For my next series, The London List, I'm waffling with my next proposal. I've written and turned in the first two books. I wonder if #3 is good, or if I should try to outline a fourth. Of course, I never stick to an outline anyway, LOL.
I think I'm a trilogy or quartet person. When something goes on forever (like the Sue Grafton or Janet Evanovich books), I tend to forget where I left off. Though I'm hooked on Deanna Raybourn & C.S. Harris's mysteries…they should go on for the rest of my life, LOL.
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for a very interesting interview.
I think maybe 5 books in a series is a good number. Mary Balogh did that with the "Huxtables", and it wrapped up nicely.
I do enjoy a series over stand alone books. It’s nice to meet and follow characters from one book to another. I also think this heightens the excitement in waiting for the next book to be released.
I love the cover art on your books.
dpd333 AT aol dot com
I think that would depend on what kind of series it is.
For example: the Sookie Stackhouse or Queen Betsy series are going on much too long in my opinion. Any series with a continuing storyline should be carefull not to stretch it, although some are really good in keeping things interesting (Mercy Thompson).
But for series that also act really well as stand alones it can't be long enough if I like the setting/stories.
I love a series with lots and lots of books. Definitely an infinite number as long as there are well developed characters. Secondary characters from the previous books and of course an interesting plot. Wouldn't want things to get boring. If the focus is on a family (3 brothers for example) I'm not so sure if it would be a good idea to suddenly throw in a random cousin for book 4.
Thank you for this awesome WORLDWIDE giveaway.
I'd love a signed copy of the first book in the series.
sk_86(at)gmx(dot)de
GFC: _yay_
Thanks for the interview ladies, I liked reading it. And good luck on the new release, I would love to win it 😉
Sometimes I like trilogies, as you know there will be an end, and the main characters are often close. But when an intended trilogy is such a success that secondary characters get their own book, and the series is expanded, well, that is great of course. So, not really a preference. But I do prefer series over stand alone books.
oops, forgot my email. auriansbooks at gmail dot com
I am one of those readers who love series. As long as the stories remain interesting, I never want them to end. I follow many series that have 6 or more, some are up to 12 or more. As long as I continue to enjoy the series and stories, I will keep following them.
manning_j2004 at yahoo dot com
The bigger the number, the better! I don't like to say goodbye to my favorite characters! 🙂
justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com
I enjoy a trilogy because I know how the story arc is going to go and that there will be an end. But I also love the long running series, like Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse books. If it's a great series, I'll keep reading as long as the author wants to continue writing great stories.
Barbed1951 at aol dot com
It's hard to say, when there is a continuing story – like Lord of the Rings for instance (which is a bad example because that was actually 1 book but split into 3 for publishing purposes), I prefer 3 to 5, otherwise I get worried that the story will never finish or that the author will die before it gets done (Robert Jordan for example) but if it's like the in Death series where each story is complete in itself* but there's a continuing overarching arc which is nice to have but not essential, then I'm happy for it to go on as long as the books are good!
(*what I mean by that is that at the end of each book Eve and Roarke have caught the bad guy and they are happy together, there's no cliffhangers.)
I'm looking forward to reading Mistress by Marriage!
hankts AT internode DOT on DOT net
If the books are all continuances & need to be read in sequence then I'd prefer not more than a trilogy. If the books are each complete stories in themselves & can be read as standalones then I'm not so fussed if there are multiple books. I do find that if there are too many books after a while I tend to forget the different characters & important interlinked details that may an impact on the plot.
Of course if the series is too long after a while i might just lose interest (think Robert Jordan)
thumbelinda03@yahoo.com
This series looks so good! I love series, i'd say an infinite number with tons of great characters!!
inthehammockblog at gmail dot com
thank you!
I don't think I have a preference, although I don't like it when they go on so long that the author has run out of good ideas and it's obvious that they are just milking it for more money. I recently read an 8 book UF series and was very sad to see it finish, although in a way I was glad that the author wrapped it up.
I think for historicals, three or four books is fine because otherwise, there tend to be too many lords/ladies to keep track of. On the other hand, with UF, a series can easily go 6 or more books and not get stale.
jen at delux dot com
A trilogy holds my interest. If a book is incredibly good, of course I want more. After three, I feel I have delved into that world or these characters long enough.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
It depends on the series. Sometimes 4 is perfect and sometimes certain series are better even longer. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com
I don't usually like infinite because if you don't get it on it at the beginning it can be too daunting to read it when they are on book #10! I like 3 or 4 🙂
Whoops!! I forgot my email address!
jwitt33 at live dot com
Thanks 🙂
If I like the characters, I want a series to go on forever. I love to visit with the characters from earlier stories & find out what they are up to. The only problem with a long series is that so much time goes by from the beginning to the latest story.
sallans d at yahoo dot com
would love to win and read this book. This is a new author for me and am always looking for new books to read. Have heard great things about this book and author and want to check it out.
Thanks for the chance to win.
christinebails@yahoo.com
You have asked a VERY difficult question! If a series is about one main character or couple, I think 4 or 5 books is the maximum that usually works. Of course, there are examples to disprove this but I think it is more often than not true. However, if a series moves constantly forward with new characters but does a little revisiting of old character, the series can go longer. Sometimes as much as 8 or 9 books. Usually, the stories go nowhere after that. I read a couple of authors that have written related stories but not part of the same series. That certainly extends the life of the world the author has built. What I hate is when an author pushes a world beyond it's natural number of books and then ends up tieing the characters up in impossible knots or the author has to add "magic" to the story to make it work. Ugh!
I forgot my email. I was so intent on answering the question!
jepebATverizonDOTnet
it depends — if it's just related (family or friends)characters or such, no limit as long as the stories continue to be fresh; if there is a plot line between books then 3-6 books is good (but either way each should stand alone as far as the h/h and their individual story–I want them to have that HEA for more than one book)
gamistress66 (at) aol (dot) com
It depends on whether the series is based one character or related characters (like a family or group of friends). With the latter setup, the series can have an almost infinite number of books although I then would only read the ones of the characters I like. Still, there ought to be a limit of maybe 6? I even thought the Lemony Snicket books were too many (13) and I love them.
I still want to know the name of the man on MISTRESS BY MIDNIGHT (because I can't keep referring to him as "Eyebrow Guy").
ironss [at] gmail [dot] com
That's such a hard question! I guess it's partly dependent on the actual series and the author, and although I would always love series to go on forever maybe six or seven is a good number(and I'm thinking specifically of Harry Potter and Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy and Georgina Kincaid series). In some cases more books can work, like the Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong, but usually if the main characters change because having that many books with all the same characters doesn't usually work as well, like the there's only so much emotional issues people can go through.
Short series, like of 2-4 can be good but I love the feeling of waiting for the next book to come out, and counting down the days. Plus being able to stare lovingly at 6 books is more fun.
Thanks for the giveaway! I would love to read some of the books in your Courtesan Court series.
jessicamariesutton(at)msn(dot)com
This question is hard to answer! There are so many variables that there isn't a 'one size fits all' answer.
David Drake's space opera series is at #8 now, and I CAN'T WAIT until #9 comes out next April. But a reviewer summed the series up very well: character development combined with first-rate action and memorable world designs.
And possibly that's the answer – how long does the story want (or need) to be? Is the world-building or setting strong enough to handle return visits? Is there a sufficient population of characters that the reader will want to know about? Does the story/plot continue to develop naturally, or are readers rolling their eyes at what action has suddenly popped up out of nowhere?
I know that 'it depends' isn't a helpful answer, though. Sorry!
Mickie T
mdturett at juno dot com
I don't really mind how many books there are as long as the series is still interesting and exciting and isn't being dragged out!
I have to admit I am less likely to start a series which already has like 10 books just because I am so behind!
booksforcompany @ gmail.com