FROM THE WRITER'S DESK STEPHANIE'S MONTHLY NEWSLETTER

1st July, 2008.

Big, big news: The episode of the TV series, "The World's Greenest Homes," that features our new house will, so we've now been told, go to air in the US earlier than thought, on the 29th August, on Discovery Planet Green. And the lucky Canadians will see it first of everyone - on July 20th on HGTV. Links to check times and any programming changes are on our Home Page, so you can be sure not to miss it.

We've not yet heard which other countries will see it or when, but we will pass on any infomation we get.

If you're curious as to what, aside from books, I've been busy with for the last 4 years, tune in. Much of the program will be me taking viewers on a tour, and with luck you'll also see kangaroos, wallabies and eagles - and of course my cats - assuming they don't end on the cutting room floor!

Another point of note for readers in the San Francisco area - I'll be attending the Romance Writers of America conference in San Francisco, and will be participating in the major Literacy Booksigning (all profits to Literacy programs), along with about 400 other romance authors - all of us in one huge, mad ballroom. Details of the signing are on the Home page - under Engagements.

But enough of distractions - on to the books! You've already had your Cynster fix for this year with WHERE THE HEART LEADS, so now it's time to turn to the the next volume in the Bastion Club novels - THE EDGE OF DESIRE - the story of the last club member to surrender to love. Christian Allardyce, Marquess of Dearne is the last club member unwed. As it turns out, there's a very good reason he hasn't found a bride and proposed - namely that the lady his heart settled on years before is now married. Or she was....

In THE EDGE OF DESIRE, which will be released on 26th August, you'll learn what happens to Christian and his long ago sweetheart, Letitia. The eye-popping cover - yes it really is that bright - and the excerpt are now up on this site. Check under the Bastion Club novels, or click on the book cover on the Home page. Incidentally, there are two prizes in the current contest, which will run for 6 weeks - two lucky entrants will receive a personalized autographed and pre-release-dated Advanced Readers Copy of THE EDGE OF DESIRE. There will only be 3 of these dated and signed volumes ever, so it will be a collector's item. As for the book's cover, it really is astonishing color-wise, such an eye-scorching shade of hot pink no way will you be able to miss it once it's on the shelves. And just to cap off a good cover, the stepback is stunning - gorgeous and evocative - so good the artwork is on show at the Society of Illustrators in New York through July.

Stay tuned for more on Christian's travails in THE EDGE OF DESIRE - and more on Dalziel, too.

And yes, Dalziel finds his lady, very soon. I'm writing his book right now. His story will be #8, the final, capping volume of the Bastion Club novels, scheduled for release in Fall 2009. You will see and learn more of him - including who he really is - in THE EDGE OF DESIRE.

The anthology with 3 other historical romance authors - Mary Balogh, Jacquie D'Alessandro and Candice Hern - each of us writing romances with the same basic set-up of a hero and heroine who haven't met for 10 years who are stranded together for one night at an inn, and titled IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, is scheduled for release in October, 2008. Amazingly for an anthology, it has a lovely cover. More on my story, and the anthology, in due course. Cover and excerpt will be up on this site, hopefully sometime in August.

The downloadable version of "The World of Stephanie Laurens," a pdf (Adobe Acrobat file) containing all sorts of background on my novels, including updated family trees and a chronology, can be found by clicking HERE.

Yes, there are a few errors still lurking in the booklet, especially on the Promise in a Kiss page. We plan to correct it as soon as possible, and will also update the downloadable version every year or so - I'll put up a notice on the Home Page every time there's new information added. At this time, I have no further word on any future distribution of the printed version, although it's likely to appear in chain bookstores from time to time, around the time one of my new books is released.

I do keep getting emails from readers wondering why one of my paperbacks they've bought hasn't got the stepback art. Please don't forget that each new, not-previously-published paperback (like BEYOND SEDUCTION and THE TASTE OF INNOCENCE most recently) will go out in an original cover including a stepback, and then after about a year, sometimes less, they'll be given a "World" cover to fit into the "World" look. This means that each book in its original cover, plus stepback, will be available for a limited time only - only the original covers have stepbacks, so if you want the full art to add to your collection you need to make sure you get each book when it first comes out in paperback.

For my audio "readers", YES! - the first two Bastion Club novels are now available, unabridged, from Recorded Books. They are narrated by Jill Tanner. The rest of the unabridged Bastion Club novels are definitely in the works, although as usual I have no idea of exactly when they will be released. Recorded Books are also continuing to work their way through the Cynster novels - including the one to be released next year. I think they missed one, but have gone back to pick it up.

Now a few quick Q&As:

Yes, Timothy Danvers, Viscount Breckenridge, who appears in The Ideal Bride, a rake who immediately captured readers' imaginations, will indeed be making an appearance as a hero in a later Cynster novel, one that will be appearing sometime in 2010. Likewise, you haven't seen the last of Jonas Tallent, or James Glossup, to name but two. Their stories will come!

Regarding Augusta (nee Cynster) she makes numerous appearances in both Cynster and Bastion Club novels as the Marchioness of Huntly, a major hostess, occasionally further identified as Helena's sister-in-law. Edward, Augusta's son, is not a Cynster in any way - he takes after his father, who is relatively dull and boring, and Edward naturally spends his time more with his paternal relatives than his maternal cousins. As he is not a Cynster, he doesn't appear in the Family Tree (he was added for The Promise in a Kiss because he was mentioned in it, and we forgot to remove him for a few more books, but as he's not a Cynster he has no claim to just be dangling there). His sister - the child Augusta was expecting in The Promise in a Kiss - is Marjorie.

For those who haven't realized, the Cynsters and their associates appear in the background of the Bastion Club novels, and in some cases vice versa - the two groups of novels are not separate but rather are two perspectives on the same group within society, the same "world" - "The World of Stephanie Laurens."

Please note: Various 2-in-1 editions of some of my books will continue to appear in various outlets - these are reissues. You will never find new, first time in print books of mine in a 2-in-1 format. Yet for some, a 2-in-1 may be the first time you've seen some of these stories, so if you come across them and don't have them, the 2-in-1 is a cost-effective way of picking them up.

Our plan to have one new Cynster novel, whether you read them in hardcover or paperback, and one new Bastion Club novel (in paperback) will continue through 2009. THEN, however, things will change. You'll always have at least 2 books in paperback from me per year, but after Dalziel's book in September 2009, there'll be something special coming. I can't say more yet, but it's no secret that there are 5 Cynster girls yet to come, plus numerous connections, and there'll be more tales from the Casebook of Barnaby Adair coming along to entertain you as well, so you have lots, lots more to look forward to.

My release schedule for 2008/2009 reads:

OUT NOW!! - THE TASTE OF INNOCENCE (paperback) - a Cynster novel, the story of Lord Charles Morwellan, Alathea's brother and Gabriel Cynster's protégé.

OUT NOW!! - WHERE THE HEART LEADS (hardcover) - the story of Barnaby Adair, and the lady who captures his attention, his imagination, and finally his heart. First volume in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair.

AUGUST 26TH, 08 - THE EDGE OF DESIRE (paperback original) - #7 of the Bastion Club novels, Christian Allardyce's story.

SEPTEMBER 30TH, 08 - IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (paperback anthology) - 4 novellas by Stephanie Laurens, Mary Balogh, Jacqueline D'Alessandro & Candice Hern - all with the same premise of a hero and heroine who haven't met for 10 years being stranded together for one night at an inn.

LATE NOVEMBER, 08 - FOUR IN HAND - MIRA reissue (see REGENCIES page for more details of Four in Hand).

JANUARY 27TH , 08 - WHERE THE HEART LEADS (paperback) - the story of Barnaby Adair, and the lady who captures his attention, his imagination, and finally his heart. First volume in the Casebook of Barnaby Adair.

MARCH, 09 - TEMPTATION AND SURRENDER (hardcover) - the story of Jonas Tallent, Lucifer Cynster's brother-in-law, his innkeeper-manager and a treasure hunt that turns deadly.

We will always keep this website and this letter up-to-date with all my latest news.

For those who have emailed, thank you for taking the time to drop me a note.

I hope you all enjoy reading my works as much as I enjoy writing them.

Best wishes and happy reading!

Stephanie

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