Scandal’s Promise
Scandal’s Promise by Pamela Gibson 2020 Regency
Gibson gives us a lovely twist on a common plot line in a Regency romance. Normally a young woman is compromised and forced to marry a man. In this Andrew Marcus Quigley, a future earl, is engaged to Emily, his childhood friend and true love but at a house party, Lord Woodley gets him drunk and he finds himself in his room with Lady Caroline Woodley whose mother and a friend happen to pass by and overhear her screams.
His pious father forces him to elope with Caroline instead of believing he’s been tricked into marrying her. He refuses to bed her and leaves for the military. Caroline dies in childbirth eight months later.
This is a unique twist on a old plot and adds the layer of forgiveness. Emily has been wronged publicly by Andrew. Will she forgive him? He’s been given a son he knows isn’t his biologically but legally. What will he do?
Emily has remained a spinster, still in love with Andrew, but refusing to be a fool. When he returns she is determined not to give her heart to him, but he lives next door to her estate, and they run into each other. His grandfather drops his son, George, who is six, on his doorstep. George tells Emily the boy is not his, but she reminds him he is an innocent and needs him.
When someone kidnaps the boy, the tension ramps up. Add Andrews addiction to laudanum, and the plot becomes more complex. Andrew has to forgive himself before he can move forward.
A writer needs to think of ways to keep two lovers apart while they are attracted to one another. A simple misunderstanding isn’t enough in today’s novels. The characters have to dig deeper into what is important to them and possibly change to win someone’s love. A child is often used to bring two people together but should not be the only reason two people decide to wed.
The characters have best friends or a loving aunt to share their worries with and obtain advice. This helps to convey different beliefs and solutions to problems. Give your main characters friends and relatives to deal with, both good and bad.
Also, Andrew begins to receive cryptic messages before George is kidnapped. The story has already shown the “gun” and Gibson fires it. If you introduce a character or weapon in the beginning of a story, you need to use it later on.
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