WIP Wednesday: Mary Hart Perry Update

Authors needed - all genres! Are you an author who'd like to share a 100- to 200-word blurb about a current work in progress on a future WIP Wednesday? If so, please send an e-mail to Erin O'Riordan (erinoriordan AT sbcglobal DOT net).

Read Mary Hart Perry's previous WIP Wednesday guest post here.

Mary Hart Perry: As of today I'm diving back into Seducing the Princess, the second book of my new Victorian thriller series that features the daughters of Queen Victoria. The first, The Wild Princess, comes out  August 1 of this year, and I don't have a release date for the second. But I'm hoping to have it ready for 2013 publication...maybe. 


I'm nearly halfway through with this novel, not as far along as I'd have liked, due to interruptions such as an increased teaching schedule at The Writer's Center in DC and a multitude of writer's conferences. But the good thing about being among other writers is you get recharged. So I'm throwing myself into an aggressive writing binge. 

Queen Victoria painted by Franz Xavier Winterhalter, 1843.  Public domain image

By the end of May I hope to have my draft done, leaving the summer for fine tuning. The first novel is about Princess Louise, the fourth daughter of Victoria and Albert, who dreamt of becoming an artist at a time when women weren't allowed the same training in art as men. The second is about Beatrice, whose fate was to be the aging queen's caretaker. Victoria wanted Beatrice to remain unmarried and "pure". (Read that: a virgin.) Beatrice wasn't too thrilled with that idea. Anyway, back to work now. I'm in the middle of a very exciting chapter! Hugs to all as you write and read...


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Read an excerpt from The Wild Princess on Mary Hart Perry's website

WIP Wednesday with Mary Hart Perry

Guest authors needed - all genres! Are you an author? Would you like to share a little bit about a current work in progress on a future WIP Wednesday? Then I invite you to be my guest. Please e-mail Erin O'Riordan (erinoriordan AT sbcglobal DOT net).

Mary Hart Perry, The Wild Princess

My work-in-progress is the first of a series of romantic Victorian thrillers inspired by my love of cherished stories like Jane Eyre and Downton Abbey. I’m particularly drawn to women who have stepped out of their comfort zone in search of love, who also make a difference in the world.

Princess Louise (Queen Victoria’s fourth daughter) had a reputation for being the “wild child” of the family. She insisted upon mixing socially with commoners and being trained in London as a professional artist at a time when girls were denied the same education as boys. So, I wondered, what is a princess to do when she longs to break out of Buckingham Palace and follow her dream—but her mother refuses her and then marries her off to a man who can’t return her love?

It’s not just Louise’s future at stake in the novel. London is a dangerous place in the 1870’s. Desperate men have vowed to free Ireland from the Crown, even if it takes blowing up half of London, and the royal family with it. How will Louise protect those she loves? Needless to say, I’m having such fun with this story!

The release date for The Wild Princess is July 31, but you can pre-order now from Amazon.



Erin O'Riordan is currently reading:

James the Cat approved.