Blog Tour, Guest post, & Giveaway! It Takes a Spy by Sheridan Jeane

It Takes a Spy 

by Sheridan Jeane Secrets and Seduction 

Publication Date: November 1, 2014 

Genres: Historical, Romance

Synopsis

In 1851, Cecilia Paring has serious reservations about marrying her fiancé, Devin Montlake. Gone is the boy who could capture her heart with a word or a glance and in his place is a man who has made it clear that to be a proper barrister's wife, the exciting and impulsive Cecilia must change as well.

Although Devin Montlake loves his orderly life as a barrister, he's determined to follow his roadmap to achieve his goal of becoming a judge. His biggest obstacle seems to be convincing his headstrong fiancée to fulfill her social obligations with a modicum of propriety. But when the jewelry collection belonging to Cecilia's family is stolen the night before it is to be auctioned off and Devin is framed for the crime, he discovers that following his much-loved rules won't solve this particular problem. He'll need the inventiveness of his irrepressible fiancée to catch the thief.

Guest Post 

by Sheridan Jeane – author of "It Takes a Spy…"

What comes first when you write a book?  The plot? The characters? Something else?

First, I want to thank you for inviting me to your blog today! And hello to all your readers!

I have to say, it happens a little bit differently with each book I write. For "It Takes a Spy…" I'd say it started with "something else." I read about jewelry heist that took place in 2013 at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes.

You can read about it here:

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/28/cannes-jewel-theft-carlton_n_3666466.html

It gave me the idea for this story. I didn't know what would happen or who would be in it at first, but I knew I wanted the jewelry theft to play a central role in my story.

I initially thought my book could take place in Cannes. Researching that city's history all the way back to 1851 was a bit challenging since most of the websites I found were in French! The books that discussed the city focused more on the 1880s through the present.  I was getting pretty frustrated, I but continued developing my plot and my characters while I researched my setting.

I finally consulted a friend who had moved to Cannes and lived there for a number of years. Fortunately, she was able to set me straight. Cannes was pretty much a fishing village in 1851, and since a fishing village was unlikely to have had a big jewelry heist, Cannes was out of the running as a setting for "It Takes a Spy…" so I had to find a new location for my book.

I decided to move it to London. Cecilia might have been disappointed by my decision, but I'm sure Devin would have been extremely pleased. He's pretty conservative after all.

Cecilia and Devin are the adorable couple whose escapades I reveal in "It Takes a Spy…" The newly engaged couple is nervous about their upcoming wedding, and I made everything even worse for them by having Cecilia's family accuse Devin of stealing the jewels!

I wanted Cecilia and Devin to be childhood sweethearts who had grown apart.  I imagined them as a Bridge Jones Diary sort of couple. Cecilia is smart and unconventional, whereas Devin is fairly conservative and staid. 

About Sheridan Jeane

Sheridan Jeane writes exciting and emotion-packed historical romances set in the Victorian Era that confront issues of trust and conformity. With the advent of the industrial age, life was changing. Many people tried to hold on to the old ways of life while others embraced the new opportunities open to them. Join Sheridan as she explores the clash between the old and the new. Sheridan has always loved books, history, and stories about amazing people who blaze new trails. Despite naming their daughter Sheridan because they thought it might someday look great on the cover of a book, Sheridan's parents urged her in a more practical direction for college. Sheridan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science with a minor in English.

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