Then Came You

Reckless and wild, beautiful Lily Lawson delights in shocking proper London society -- and will break any rule to flaunt her independence. And now she is determined to rescue her helpless sister from an upcoming, undesired marriage to Lord Alex Raiford, the arrogant Earl of Wolverton. Through fair means and foul, the headstrong hellion succeeds outrageously -- but her handsome adversary is not to be outdone. A master gamesman, Lord Alex counters Lily's scorn with kindness, and parries her blistering barbs with gentle words and a soft, sensuous touch. For he has resolved to make the spirited miss pay dearly for her interference -- with her body, her soul...and her stubborn, unyielding heart.

Lisa's comments:

When I submitted a proposal to Ellen Edwards, my then-editor at Avon, it was for a fairly run-of-the-mill romance. I believe I was trying to write something light and humorous, along the lines of a Julie Garwood novel. To my absolute surprise (not happy, I might add *g*), Ellen rejected the proposal and urged me to try something new. She intuitively knew that I was capable of writing something far different than the usual 18-year-old virgin-who-needs-rescuing sort of story, and she pushed me to stretch my imagination and skills in a way that I never had before. So I came up with the story of Lily Lawson, a thirty-year-old unwed mother who is a professional gambler and engages in all sorts of wild activity, all because she is trying to find the little daughter who has been stolen from her. To my great relief, the novel was well-received, first by Ellen and then by readers, and since then I've had the confidence to try many different kinds of characters and plots. I think every author should be pushed to find his or her own "uniqueness", even though it is sometimes a very unnerving prospect.

Lisa Kleypas, Avon Books, 6/1993 

Back